#not necessarily out of malice it's just how he views things. whether because of past experience or brain chemistry

[doodlejoltik]

my favourite writing device is having an un-Rei-liable narrator

[cogentranting]

The flashbacks in Prodigal Son 2x03 were, in my opinion, a major puzzle piece of Malcolm’s past that we didn’t even know we were missing. I think they were hugely significant. Or they should be. 

Malcolm being attacked in that way is potentially one of the most overtly traumatic experiences we’ve seen in Malcolm’s childhood. It really stands out among the things we’ve seen and heard about from his childhood. Up until this point Malcolm’s trauma has all been a bit more abstract. The grooming from his father. The fallout from his father’s crimes being revealed, and the way that changed how Malcolm was viewed. His own fears pertaining to his how he might be like Martin, and fear of Martin directly. Finding the body. Even being chloroformed by Martin fits more in this general category.  But this incident is distinctly different. First of all, this is the most significant trauma not directly from Martin; Martin is indirectly the cause, but there is a much more present, much more direct perpetrator, and that’s unique. Secondly, this is the first trauma that directly, and maliciously targets Malcolm. Most of what Malcolm has dealt with is the result of just being within the fallout zone from Martin’s actions. Even the ones that are more focused on him-- Martin’s grooming and the chloroform-- have a different character because there’s no explicit malice (they certainly did harm Malcolm, but that was not Martin’s mindset in doing them). Third, there’s a greater degree of specific fear in the particular moment. Most of the flashbacks we’ve seen with the child actor don’t necessarily show Malcolm being afraid (even though fear is a big thing for Malcolm). With a lot of those aspects, it seems like it was more a creeping fear after the fact, as he realized more and more about who his father was and what had been going on with him and around him. So it wasn’t concentrated in one moment but was spread out over everything, sort of a spreading infection that worked its way into every aspect of his life over time. And that fear is somewhat abstract or even existential a lot of the time. (this point might have the exception of the moment when he find the girl in the box). Which is quite different from the experience in the 2x03 flashback, where there is a present intense fear for his life. Fourth, this is the only one which caused Malcolm physical harm (the chloroform had the potential to, but the main way it seems to have affected Malcolm was through the role it played in gaslighting him, and through the realization during season 1 of how Martin treated him and what that meant for the relationship). This one however, physically trapped Malcolm and led to him being denied food and water for three days.  (Note: I’ve excluded the events with Watkins at the cabin from this discussion, primarily because Malcolm had so thoroughly repressed those memories) None of this is to say that the closet incident was worse than what Martin did, or that it affected Malcolm more, just that this incident has a very different character, so it can’t be written off as just another episode in a long run. 

But I do think there’s a strong argument to be made that this event did have a major effect on Malcolm. It is so different and so extreme that I don’t see how it could not. According to this episode, we do know that this is the origin of his hand tremor (I know this conflicts with an earlier flashback, but I’m going to accept the retcon). However, the way the episode was framed it almost felt like  they were treating this as just some random bit of backstory. So I really hope that they do revisit this idea and incorporate it more into our understanding of Malcolm and why he is who he is. 

There’s already one more conclusion that I think can be reasonably drawn. While this incident stands out really starkly against Malcolm’s childhood trauma, it doesn’t stand out against his adult trauma. In the present, things of this nature-- Malcolm being targeted, Malcolm being hurt, Malcolm’s life being in danger-- are very common. Very common. Practically a weekly occurrence. 

And it’s very clear that Malcolm’s response to these weekly brushes with death is not appropriately scaled. The end of 2x03 even demonstrated this. Malcolm risks his life. Malcolm gets hurt. And Malcolm shrugs it off and tries to disregard it. 

Maybe the root of that lies in this high school experience. The timeframe isn’t clear but it appears as if Malcolm is back at the school (WITH the student who did this) within the week. That could be Jessica pushing him to maintain appearances, that could be the school’s doing, or that could be a choice made by Malcolm himself, but regardless, that is hardly any time given for him to recover either physically or emotionally. Which becomes characteristic of Malcolm. Furthermore, when Malcolm retaliates (and of course I am not condoning his little foray into attempted murder) he is the one who is punished. Malcolm is expelled, but we are not told that the same happened to the student who locked him in the closet in the first place. It could be that Malcolm refused to identify who trapped him (because he wanted to take action himself) and that’s the reason we don’t hear about him facing consequences. It could be that for whatever reason, there were no significant consequences for that boy. Or it could be that he did get expelled (or face other consequences) and the narrative, framed as a component of Malcolm’s memory, did not include that detail. 

With any of these explanations, a pattern is established that frames Malcolm’s perception. Malcolm is hurt. Malcolm’s actions to protect or avenge himself are bad and punishable. Malcolm’s attacker either faces no consequences, or those consequences are deemed unimportant. 

Now, again, of course it would not be right for Malcolm to murder the student who trapped him. But I think the extremity of that reaction informs why this pattern seems to have held. Malcolm is so afraid of his capability to be like Martin-- to kill-- that he struggles to draw a distinction between justified self defense/reaction and vengeful retaliation. He fears the latter so he hesitates to pursue the former. 

So it seems that this particular incident in high school is what began to unduly acclimatize Malcolm to violence against himself and fear of death. And it at least planted the idea in his mind (or watered it) that he should be extremely distrustful of any of his own attempts to protect himself, and that it doesn’t matter whether his attacker faces repercussions or not. 

Whether he expressed it and understood it explicitly or not, Malcolm’s takeaway from the experience seems to have been that there is some element of his father in him and that others will innately recognize it and try to punish it (attributing this to both the headmaster and the other student) and that as much as he might hate them for it, he feels limited in how much he can actually blame them for it. Because on some level he sees them as justified in whatever they do to him. In fact, the only one he feels he can consistently blame for actions against himself, is Martin, because while others are punishing him for the “evil” he inherited from Martin, Martin is the one to blame ultimately for it being there. 

[auburnflight]

Why Rinkah is amazing and underappreciated:

Rinkah is such a wonderfully complex character, and I appreciate that. In terms of both appearance and personality, she creates a very strong, particular first impression, as a “hardened warrior” and as the sole representative of the Flame Tribe among the game’s major characters. The other characters and the game itself often view her through these two lenses, but I find it intriguing to delve into just how many layers are beneath that impression.

Keeping others at a distance by default and being cautious about the connections she forms, when she’s from a small, highly individual tribe that has also suffered marked breaches of trust in the past, makes sense. As she describes in her supports with Corrin, it tends to be outsiders who extinguish the eternal flame that her tribe keeps burning; sometimes these outsiders do so out of malice, and sometimes out of simple insensitivity. This policy of keeping outsiders at a distance is often described in dialogue as a “law,” but other times as more of a “guideline.” And indeed, Rinkah seems to understand it (even if not on a conscious level) as a way of framing one’s thinking, rather than an absolute to which one should adhere. She is described on the surface as “aloof,” but I think it’s more complicated than that: more that she dedicates her entire heart and being to whatever she does, wherever she decides to be, and she demands that same level of respect and seriousness from others.

Clearly, Rinkah has a very strong sense of self. And she invests a lot into whatever pursuits she’s focusing on, and into herself as a person. Whether it’s food (as in her conversations with Hayato), free time (in the overworld and one-on-one interactions), or other people (in her supports with Saizo), she doesn’t like wasting; once she decides something is important to her, she strives to treat it with the utmost value. As a result, she isn’t interested in idle chatter or superficial connections. Perhaps this is one reason that she is so cautious of Corrin at first, in spite of owing them a debt: the Nohrian noble has apparently earned a widespread reputation for being naive, and Rinkah reads their initial attempt at conversation accordingly. Maybe this means in some cases, she’s predisposed to forming preconceptions about other people, which may or may not prove true later. But part of this is also holding others to the same high standards to which she holds herself: she naturally invests considerable energy in wherever she decides to focus, and she wants to make sure this energy won’t go to waste on someone who is only interested in surface-level interaction, who won’t respect her for entire self.

And perhaps because she aims to be treated accordingly, she may not be comfortable with what she perceives to be her own weaknesses. For instance, her supports with Kaze reveal that she actively hides her sweet tooth, arguing that it’s not something everyone needs to know about, and she responds defensively when he shows concern. Even though her love for sweets isn’t inherently a weakness, she sees it as something that could potentially cause others to treat her differently from how she would prefer (for example, doting on her or seeing her as childish). Kaze points out that she seems focused on maintaining false appearances. But it’s not necessarily that Rinkah wants to lie to herself or other people. It may be that, opposite of her initial impression, she is actually quite sensitive to others.

Not so much in the sense that she would change who she is based on what others think. And in fact, as we see from supports such as Oboro trying to convince her to eat with utensils instead of her hands, she generally refuses to compromise on who she is just based on others’ ideas, unless they can frame this change as advantageous to her in some way. Rather than letting fear of others’ opinions control her, it’s more that she wants to make sure others understand who she is and how highly she thinks of herself (if this isn’t obvious from her very first instance of dialogue in the game, in chapter 3: “I am Rinkah! Daughter of the Flame Tribe’s honorable Chieftain!”). She sees herself as independent, unafraid and unwavering, and strives for others to have this same impression. She even admits this directly in her parent-child supports with Velouria, who is very physically affectionate: when Rinkah accepts a hug from her daughter Velouria, she says to herself, “I hope no one thinks I’ve gone soft...”

But as proud as she is, Rinkah is not entirely too stubborn to admit her own weaknesses when the situation prompts it. Contrary to her outward feelings about her flaws, for the most part, she demonstrates that she’s actually very good at confronting them. Like anyone else, sometimes she suffers lapses in judgment, acting impatient towards others when they don’t listen to her initial requests to leave her alone, responding quite defensively when others comment on her temper, or being more critical of others’ perspectives than maybe the situation warrants. But given space, she consistently realizes this: she returns to the issue, apologizes, understands others’ perspectives, and seeks to set things right. 

Therefore, her sensitivity also comes in the form of being an active listener and an excellent communicator. Exactly because she holds herself in such high regard, she knows when her actions are inconsistent with who she is. She knows when she needs to speak with others about overstepping boundaries, whether her own or someone else’s. And even if it means momentarily swallowing her pride, she uses her mistakes as opportunities for growth wherever possible. 

And I think that’s one of the most respectable things about her. She doesn’t let her strong ideas about herself keep her from growing--if anything, this only furthers her desire to constantly improve, to meet and expand her own expectations of herself. She’s painfully aware of her temper as one of her most immutable weaknesses, but even so, she’s able to obtain the skills to better grapple with it when, in their supports, Ryoma begins to teach her the art of meditation. Such developments occur not only emotionally, but in her physical self as well. Her support conversations (for example, with Hinata and Kagero) often detail her acutely picking up new ideas and fighting techniques from her allies.

How does this all interact with the values of her tribe that she so persistently upholds? The Flame Tribe is said to particularly value their individual identity and independence, and therefore to interact with outsiders as little as possible. But as one finds fulfillment and meaning in forming bonds with others, and as by nature it would be near impossible to participate in the war effort alone, does this mean that Rinkah’s involvement with her allies beyond what is necessary to fight is in opposition to her tribe’s policies? Not necessarily. Rinkah explains in her supports with Keaton that to the Flame Tribe, to be independent means “We are committed to walking our own path, despite what others say or do. We do not compromise, we do not beg for aid, and we do not sell our loyalty.” And thus, the ways in which she so rigidly maintains her sense of self in her interactions with the other characters closely follows these ideas. It’s not about refusing to interact with others or even preferring to be alone; it’s about knowing, at one’s core, who one feels they are as a person, and not going against that core sense of self for the sake of others. 

So I would venture that one of Rinkah’s primary motivations is creating a space where she can uphold that sense of self. This may also be why she potentially reads as closed-off and unwilling to show vulnerability: she places enormous importance on maintaining her own space, both physically and mentally. She does open up to others, given the trust that they will take her just as seriously as she takes herself and them, and given the space to make her own decision to do so. Going back to her conversations with Kaze, in their later supports, she is happy to eat the sweets he offers if left by herself in peace. (Kaze’s decision to go along with her blaming her obvious hunger on an imaginary “mouse,” by simultaneously taking Rinkah’s words seriously and finding an avenue to get her to her to listen to him, is very perceptive.) I think this is also the reason that being imprisoned in the prologue is one of the most significant challenges Rinkah could possibly face in her character arc: all of her power and freedom to make decisions for herself is taken away, no less as a result of obeying her father’s orders to join Hoshido’s war effort--something she had her own reservations about to begin with, and went along with anyway.

Kaze is also highly perceptive in realizing that Rinkah is concerned in keeping up an appearance of being independent and perhaps difficult to approach--though as I’ve already summarized, I would argue this is more just the facet that she wishes to show of herself foremost than it is entirely “false.” Though it’s only a subtle part of her initial read, there is kindness, even gentleness, in her greetings to Corrin as they travel around the castle, in the phrases that she uses when supporting other characters in battle (“No need to be afraid”), and in her concern for others’ safety (which is what starts off her supports with Subaki). And this kindness grows to be a more visible part of her mannerisms as she builds trust and grows closer to others. She’s more comfortable making light banter with the other characters, like Charlotte and Kaden, in their later supports. She goes from using the somewhat rough-mannered third-person pronoun omae to calling Corrin by their name. And if the player marries her and Corrin together, it’s clear that she speaks and uses other qualities of her voice in a completely different manner with someone she’s very close to: she speaks in a somewhat higher pitch, in contrast to the low-toned, sometimes almost growling voice that she favors in other contexts. Clearly, it’s not that she cares little for other people, as her outward demeanor might suggest to those who aren’t familiar with her. It’s that she’s very intentional about to where and to whom she dedicates her energy and trust. Realizing that some people may pose a danger to her tribe and that keeping her distance is one of their policies is a part, but not the only aspect, of this. 

(I think this makes her an interesting contrast to Corrin, who is freely kind to everyone; because of this trait, others fear that Corrin is far easier to manipulate or take advantage of. Corrin’s kindness is related to their sense of self in a very different way from how it is related to Rinkah’s.)

Clearly, Rinkah has a very impactful initial read as a character, yet she is also highly nuanced, and her psychology as a character certainly facilitates deeper exploration. I feel this complexity is particularly apparent in contrast to many characters in Awakening or even some others in Fates, who have distinctive quirks but can sometimes fall short of being developed further as characters beyond that initial read. (I delve more into why this might be the case in another piece linked to in the “source” section of this post.) Could she read as short-tempered, stubborn, and hard to approach? Of course. But she can also be seen as passionate, loyal, perhaps surprisingly sensitive, and dedicated wholly to maintaining her sense of rightness and her sense of self. She’s a formidable warrior with, like any other well-executed and likable character, her own moments of vulnerability and internal conflict, even if she doesn’t always readily allow them to surface.

[frigginconfused]

So I’d had a dream a while ago, and it was kind of a duzy. Might have been about escorting an older man with dementia into heaven because I looked like someone he knew??

Dreamt I was in the queue/processing line for heaven. Not necessarily the heaven of any specific religion, more concept. I was there with a group of friends. In order to get into the processing queue, we used fake names and the like, or course. Nothing particularly convincing, just not being blatant or too bold about our own identities. 

We'd snuck in to fool around, just kind of explore the place and roast everyone standing in line. It wasn't malicious behavior, it was more akin to a bunch of bored kids going to the laundromat to buy a soda from the machine and push each other around in the laundry carts. You weren't supposed to and you could definitely get in trouble, but it wasn't going to hurt anyone.

We made fun of everything we saw. Just absolute upriotous laughter from everyone, the kind there there's tears in your eyes and every time you're about to recover somebody else says something dumb. Nobody around seemed to pay any mind, again they knew it was just a bunch of silly kids having fun with no malice.

I pointed to an older guy, somewhere in the winding mess of line-- he had a bit of a hunch in his posture and long thinned hair and eyebrows. I'd said something I don't remember, but had to do with how half of his eyebrows had launched themself off his face.

I got caught by one of the angels working the place, and had to smooth talk my way out of it by explaining we weren't making fun, and this was our way of expressing endearment.

The angel left and the line went on.

I guess the goal was to see who could make it the farthest without being caught in their lie, because the point came where I'd reached the front of the queue. It looked a bit like a DMV combined with an airport terminal. Desks and lines, but so very large.

They asked my name, and I gave my fake information, barely containing my amusement as they checked it over and had me stand for my picture. Then I was told to wait in one of the chairs until I was called.

I saw the man with thinned eyebrows go past after a few minutes of sitting. He'd been ahead of me in the queue but the line made no sense anyway.

As he was being processed, I was approached by one of the angel workers. Oh good, they said, it was a good thing I was here today. My husband was here too, and a little confused, so we could make the walk to heaven together. It would surely ease his nerves.

My husband?

The angel made a point to refer to him as I had, "the man whose eyebrows had launched themselves off his face".

Scrambling to recover I said oh yes, what could possibly be more wonderful than spouses walking the path to heaven together, of course I would wait for him.

In the dream there was a 'scene'' that's really unclear, but involved the old man taking a wrong turn in the processing terminal, and needing to be brought back. I don't remember a lot, but the wrong turn led down some stairs and into a very large dark room supported by pillars. It was all stone, and housed an overwhelming number of small pointy headed creatures that tried to cling to the both of us. I got bit a couple of times.

But once we'd made it out and got back on track, it was our turn in the queue to make the walk to heaven.

Both of us were let out a side door. The view was drastically different than it was in the windows inside. Instead of slightly desaturated blue sky and clouds, it was a bright dense forest packed with wildflowers, and a smooth brick path laid ahead of us into it.

Everything about it was pristine and ideal, the perfect colors, the right amount of fresh air with hints of cut grass, flowers, and pine. It was like everything had been laid out and picked specifically to make the most wonderful picture possible.

We walked off at a leisurely pace, maybe even a little slow. It was uncomfortable at first with this old man I didn't know, but he was mostly quiet and enjoying the scenery, and what conversation we did have he lead and I went along with.

It was impossible not to feel an overwhelming calm seep deep down into my bones as we progressed. The flora changed subtly as we went on this long walk, until eventually the trees were replaced by tree sized flowers. We exited the last bunch of the trees, to see a new 'forest' that was all massive flowers, even bigger.

It was bright and colorful and the most lovely shades of greens, yellows, reds, and pinks especially. I remember looking up at the petals of massive tulips clumped in bunches. You could make a house out of them and a good sized one.

We progressed a little further into this half clearing before we entered the flowers, and I admired it. But I got caught up with a very heavy feeling, and stopped.

I knew that going any further now, meant that I would lose any opportunity to turn back. But if I progressed then this beautiful landscape, and amazing sense of calm would only grow into something unimaginably greater, and I would spend eternity happy, instead of returning to my often discontent.

I could tell that there were no wrong choices. That if I progressed I'd be welcome with open arms, and if I turned back there would be only gratitude, no trouble waiting for me. Even thinking of what I'd leave behind, it was not an easy choice, because I knew eventually the people I cared about would all be here too and anything of the past would mean nothing. There would be no hard feelings from them either.

In the end, I told the old man to go on a bit ahead without me and that I'd catch up. I wanted to rest and take in the scenery, and wanted him to save me a seat. He was happy to, and told me he'd be waiting for me when I got there. Whether he knew or not at this point that I wasn’t who he’d thought I was I don’t know. As soon as he was out of sight I turned around.

In the dream I woke up surrounded by the friends I'd been in line with, but I woke up for real too, so I don't know what came after that.

[smashmusicideas]

June 20: Waluigi, Sakurai, and the People for Whom Smash is Made

It’s probably not smart to follow up my most crowd-pleasing post with something that’s kind of inflammatory. But if nothing else, this place is a soapbox for me. And I want to talk a bit about the reaction to the news that Waluigi is once again an Assist Trophy, thus disconfirming him from the roster a third time.

Before anything else, I’m going to say this: if you’re about to or already have or are planning to harass Sakurai on Twitter like the legion of vitriolic Waluigi fans who have been doing so, for any reason, stop. Just stop. This has nothing to do with any kind of legitimate criticism about Sakurai or Smash or Nintendo or anything else; to claim it has merit of any sort or even comes from a good place only defends that behavior. It’s harmful, offensive, and unacceptable. Don’t do it now; don’t do it under any circumstance.

Really, that could be it. I’ve no interest in treating it as anything more than the abuse it is and giving it more digital ink than it deserves. But it also is a part of something I do think about, and that’s the enduring question about the audience for whom Smash is built. Because this series appeals to audiences both narrow and wide, of people from across the globe. It’s a fun, frenetic staple of parties one moment, and a tense competitive fighting game the next. It’s a crossover of incredible icons, and a repository of Nintendo and gaming history. All those things bring together a tent as wide as any other.

And all of us come into that tent with our own desires and expectations. It’s rare for any one player to intimately know every series represented, nor is that something required or expected of you. So we hold onto the things we care most about and which may have brought us in, whether they are some of the world’s biggest gaming franchises or a cult classic or just a desire to hang out with friends. Those things we take with us, the things we take from the series itself, they color how we engage with and understand it. This is by design good; it makes what could easily be an impenetrable game accessible and exciting. But it also means our expectations on it are inherently biased, viewing our favorite things through a lens that can make them seem more important than they may actually be...or at least to not necessarily just Sakurai, but Nintendo or other fans or just the nature of the industry.

I cannot imagine the difficulty Sakurai faces as a director of this franchise. For five prior installments he’s constantly pushed what Super Smash Bros. is capable of and tried to placate as many fans and as broad an audience as possible. He doesn’t choose his rosters flippantly, or just as an extension of personal preferences (he is certainly biased, but those aren’t nearly as central to the actual choice of fighters as a lot of fans think). He knows Waluigi has devoted fans, just as he knows Bayonetta and Ridley and Cloud and King K. Rool and every major video game character does, too. There are plenty of possible reasons he didn’t become playable, even if we may never know them.

This also can be seen in things in general, from which games are used as the influence on stages or character designs, to what higher level mechanics have been introduced or discarded, to any other thing about the game. It’s not about being a mischievous troll and punting fans’ hopes; it has always been about trying to make sure the series can be as many things for as many people as possible. That’s why every single game has felt different; they were responding to their successor, and the industry around them. And sometimes, mistakes are made. Melee was a little too fast. Brawl had too many random elements. Some of the Smash For elements didn’t work, and while I don’t think it was wrong at all, the ballot was never going to be as satisfying as people hoped. But it’s always been in a spirit far more of inclusion than exclusion.

And I think it’s easy to forget that when we push for our favorite characters or mechanics or music or stages, that this is a series that really does try to cater to people in general. We’ve long moved past the range of characters who “absolutely” must be in the series; many of them were already brought in for the very first Smash game, before it was the massive enterprise it is today. So just, I guess, remember that while we can personally feel a connection to these characters and certainly feel bad when the things we love them most don’t make the cut - or even when they do, but not in the ideal way - it’s not done out of malice or precocious cruelty or anything like that. The game is partially made for all of us, but it’s not really made entirely for anyone.

But also, seriously, don’t pull that crap on Twitter.

(Link to my writings on Smash Bros for Nintendo Switch)

[nemetonisevilpassiton]

Teen Wolf and the problems of Unreliable Narration

magessI have been open about how I feel about Teen Wolf's unreliable narration as a framing device, in that I think it was ambitious but it failed terribly but there is a lot of questions about it that need exploration.

Why is it unreliable? How much of it is unreliable? Why does it fail? What did it hope to achieve?

To start the meta writers en masse do not agree on how much of it is unreliable, it ranges from the last episode - almost certainly, to the last season half  - sure does explain that mess, to all of it.

I'm in the all of it camp but there is nothing absolute in the answers the show gives. 

Often that is the problem with Teen Wolf, there are no absolute answers and often when people come to us with questions that's what they want, so I know personally I give them all the information I've got with my answer so they can decide for themselves. 

but in conversation with @demonzdust about the question of unreliable narration - sort of in a vague way I realized that the understanding of what unreliable narration is was preventing understanding of what it meant.

Any story told by a fixed narrator [not an omniscient third person] is "unreliable". It is not a pejorative or negative term, it is simply a statement of truth, an axiom. This is because people, whether fictional or not, are unreliable.

The best example is five people, who are all fixedly honest, see an accident as it happens from five different places. None of these witnesses have anything to lose or gain from the accident but all five of them give unreliable eyewitness accounts. This is for several reasons, their view of the accident might be limited by foot traffic, cars, buildings, they might be in a building and see it out of the window. They might have turned their head at the noise of it and so only saw the aftermath. Then there is natural neural filling where the brain fills in details that it didn't necessarily witness, so if you see a car speeding past you and then hear an accident and turn your brain might fill in details that you didn't personally witness. Then there is how people repeating the same story might, in all innocence and unaware that they are doing so, take in aspects of someone else's version of the story. 

Then you get into the witnesses as individuals who have preconceived ideas and biases which they use to fill in the story. Even if this is innocent and non-offensive it still makes their version of accounts unreliable. 

However it being unreliable does not make it unusable, it is through correlating all of the evidence, including the eye witness testimony that a decision about what actually happened is reached, so all the details in their story that line up are used.

And that's just one accident.

In narrative we see it most often in first person narration. That one character should not have all the information or access to all of the story [it's bad writing when they do], so their narration is unreliable because of that. So in Teen Wolf how we rarely see the villains monologuing in private and when they do the lighting is often the "dream lighting" which I'll go into in more detail later. If the whole show is narrated [like How I met your mother] then these details were filled in, either imagined or told to the narrator.

There does not have to be malice in an unreliable narration - but there can be.

In Wuthering Heights for example as bad as Heathcliff is to Lockwood in Nelly's version of events [the one that Lockwood recounts] he is a puppy strangling wife-beating son of a bitch, but Nelly blames Heathcliff for the death of her beloved Catherine [who was no better than Heathcliff].

There are five types of unreliable narrator in fiction.

These are : The clown; the picaro; the naif; the liar; and the madman 

We do actually see all of these narrators in Teen Wolf.

The clown plays with expectations and narrative forms to twist the story into the version that they want = Peter does this in Visionary.

The picaro is a braggart to oversells their own part that they played in the story to make themselves seem much more spectacular than they are = Noshiko does this in the Fox and the Wolf

The naif is innocent, they do not know what is going on and tend to just roll with it, most naifs are children = The child does this in Memory Lost

The liar flat out lies, twists the story to advantage and is doing it knowingly, often to get out of some sort of crime = Gerard does this in Visionary.

If Scott is our narrator from Pilot then he is a liar pretending to be a naif, although I do not question the majority of the narrative until 6b there is evidence that Scott has tweaked some of the details very early on.

In scenes where Scott is without someone who can corroborate the story he is much more capable than he actually is, for example in season 1 in the scenes where he is alone with Allison he's got game, he is slick, flattering and amazing at flirting. In scenes where the two of them are in a group Scott completely lacks game. As Allison died she cannot corroborate that that is the way that it happened.

That scene is a great one to show unreliable narration because it doesn't mean anything, it doesn't alter the narrative, at that point the kid is more picaro than liar, but it is a lie.

Scott is introduced as a liar by his mother as early as 102, we see Stiles lie badly and Peter who we are told, often, is a liar, only lies off screen, on screen he twists the truth to get the outcome he wants. Peter is "the clown" in a vee neck sweater, but continually we see Scott lie, to his girlfriends, to Derek, often by not revealing information but sometimes he flat out lies.

And considering how he promotes what happened to make himself look better in inconsequential scenes does he do it in consequential scenes?

That's the rub

if Scott narrated the entire show then we cannot trust canon at face value, we have to investigate the glitches and come to our own conclusion.

if Scott narrated 6b it explains why it's a complete mess and the only thing narratively that makes sense of that season is him mentioning Monroe to gain Alec's trust.

if Scott narrated 620 then 6b is a mess for no reason and we can take canon up to that episode at face value.

As I said I'm in the all of it camp because there is so much reference to unreliable narrators throughout the show, the fiction named or referenced in the show is all unreliable narration [Othello, Heart of Darkness, Metamorphosis], the show uses techniques of unreliable narration [the Rashomon effect, flashbacks, other people telling stories that happened to someone] and we knew as early as season 1 that someone was skewing the events in Scott's favour. 

Or to put it simply the show believed that Scott was the hero but the narrative wasn't as keen. @Sublimeglass pointed out in season 3 that the show and tell were two very different narratives.

There is, within the study of unreliable narration, an explanation for this. It's complicated but I'll try and explain it simply, when a writer creates a narrative character they are writing in three voices [when they do it well] but not necessarily intentionally.

There is the writer with their ideas and biases and preconceived notions that the writer cannot escape [so in third person this is the omniscient voice]

there is the narrative as the writer sees it [so in teen wolf this would be the show]

there is the narrator who has their own ideas and biases [and in teen wolf this would be Scott]

it is where these three voices do not align that we get "glitches" or places where show vs tell.

A good example of this is the blue eyes. We do not know what they mean, but we know what Scott thinks that they mean.

Scott, who got the explanation from Peter, believes that you get blue eyes if you killed an "innocent", however the narrative doesn't support this [Peter doesn't lie but that doesn't mean he can't be wrong] because if blue eyes = killer the hunters would have an easy job identifying that information and removing killers from packs. There is no evidence in the show that the hunters know what the blue eyes mean, and with the evidence the show puts forth blue eyes more likely means a wolf with a power boost which was most likely from killing, but as the pain drain uses the same ability as the consumption of someone's spark [it's a minor form of it] then its likely, considering the amount of pain Scott has consumed, that if he became a beta again, even without killing, Scott would be blue eyed.

Scott believes blue eyes means killer and is therefore bad, but the narrative [the writer] doesn't agree with him.

Scott believes that villains shouldn't be killed but the narrative very much disagrees because they keep coming back, and the writer believes in the judicial system as much as possible by supporting the sheriff in his decisions more than Scott.

So we have the three voices.

Then we have "dream lighting" and mirror verse.

Mirror verse is complicated and to try and keep this meta shorter than war and peace I'll summarise it, at certain points in the narrative things change very slightly, books are reversed so they read backwards, shirts change, writing appears and disappears, character positions are flipped, clocks change time and then go back again, magnets fall from the fridge and are restored and often have nothing to do with the story as it's happening, but those scenes where it does happen often end up are often key scenes about character.

For example in season 2 when the kanima breaks out in the library the scene is in mirrorverse, and it is the scene where Erica has the epilepsy attack despite being a werewolf, in mirrorverse that is a thing that happens, and Stiles reveals knowledge that he should not have, about triggering her healing.

Dream lighting, as we've been calling it, is easier. The scene is dark, lit from behind with a blue-grey filter. We see it in every dream sequence except Lydia's in season 2, we see it when Stiles is talking to the bandaged figure in 3b, we see it in s4 when Scott dreams about killing Liam, we see it in 6b when Lydia has the visions of the spider's webs. And if it was just in dream sequences that would be it, however it's not. We see it a lot of time in scenes which Scott should have no knowledge of [both the Dennifer and Draeden sex scenes have this lighting, as does Donovan's death], in the scenes where phantasmagoria is at play [where it is hard to tell dream from reality], we see it in Scott's triumph over Peter in 412 [where he is lit like the emperor from star wars with the circular window]. The Beast in S5 is mostly shot in that lighting, when Liam and Scott fought in the library it had that lighting as well.

And the lighting tells us that those scenes are suspect, if most of the scenes are dreams then it's likely that those scenes aren't "real" either, but reality is fluid in Teen Wolf.

So it's likely that those scenes are the ones that are most unreliable, where Scott has lied. If we take Liam and Scott fighting in the library the lies might be what Scott said, it might be that he fought back against Liam, it might be that Liam said other things, or it might be that the fight never happened. It might be an innocent it happened so fast I have no idea what really happened I'll fill in the details, or it might be an entire fiction.

And there is no absolute answer, there is no answer that says this is exactly what happened.

All of the evidence says Scott is an unreliable narrator, but we can't say for how much of the story, and we can't say where he lied, but we can say why - to recruit Alec.

Far TL:DR

The narrator is unreliable but that's not necessarily a negative thing, he's a liar but his lies in the show are generally well meaning [one thing @magess said recently that was more true than she probably intended is that Scott believes himself to be a good person - he's not but he believes he is and he tries hard to be but it doesn't, at all, come naturally to him]. We can not say absolutely where the narration starts but we can say why it's unreliable and what Scott hopes to gain from it.

The next rewatch means taking more notes with what we know now, because we've got all the information we're going to get, now we have to unpack it until it won't unpack any more.

[survivor-all-stars-blog]

EP 16: "Bitterness Breeds Bitterness" - Pat

JAKE’S EXIT INTERVIEW

Well, that was definitely some kind of something, huh?

The bitter 'I got outplayed so I'l just gonna spill everything’ speech is a hallowed tradition of Tumblr Survivor that’s been around for as long as I can remember. It’s gotten to the point where you almost NEED to gameplan for it. Personally, I’m thoroughly /*shocked*/ that it came from Jakey, who has already taken the personal attack route with me and others, and who enjoyed Naonka enough as a character to use her as an icon.

Anyway, I’m not upset by it half as much as some are. I think I’m pretty well-documented as being someone who never puts any stock in those speeches because, in my eyes, they’re not part of the game. And they can be so easily manipulated to serve others’ purposes. So I’d be a pretty big hypocrite to lend this one much stock, either. But I feel like there are a few things I do have to straighten out from that speech, in no specific order.

1. Wes isn’t “wiping my ass.” He’s the one who’s been taking me to account, probably more than anybody else in the game. Wes and I both have the same end goal, but our means of going about it are very different. I daresay I’d have an easier time of it without him acting as the voice of reason and dissent. Just because I was willing to take a risk to keep him safe doesn’t mean he’s a lackey. Far from it. Sorry you didn’t have any allies who cared enough to stick their necks out for you this round, Jake.

2. Kait isn’t “letting her game be run by a man.” Congratulations, you deduced that Kait and I have a strong partnership. But that’s the key word that you seem to be missing: PARTNER. Kait and I have discussed every decision we’ve made together. As a unit. I’m not telling her what to do, she’s not telling me what to do. If anything, this vote was exceptionally difficult because for the first time so far this game, our interests didn’t align. I think it says a lot about a strong partnership when both parties are willing to take risks to help each other out. Sorry your only strong ally wasn’t able to prevent voting you out this round, but that’s so far from anyone else’s problem but yours that it’s laughable. If your social game were stronger, you wouldn’t have had this issue.

3. Yes, I’ll fully admit to putting my game between Kait and Lydia. You got that part right, and that won’t be an easy decision when they do definitively split. But until they do… it’s gotten me farther than your strategy of putting your game between a rock and a hard place.

4. If I were running things, or if everyone were doing what I said, you’d have been out of this game four rounds ago. Slow your fucking roll.

And that’s the last bit of electronic ink I’ll be spilling on that.

Next order of business: reassure Jimmy and Jenn. I know the latter isn’t too pleased with me, and I need to rectify that whether she decides to come for me or not. I think I underestimated how emotionally some people are choosing to play this game and, for my money, no winner title is worth causing permanent damage to any friendship. I think it’s pretty telling that the game in which I got furthest is also a game with one of the tightest casts in the community. Moves were made because they were necessary, but not with malice or anger. Whereas you look at a season like, say, Sri Lanka… I don’t think they’re all that close, and that’s WITH the advantage of having tight duos prior to the game. Why aren’t they tight? The game got too needlessly contentious.

Anyway, I digress. My point is that bitterness breeds bitterness. I’m not about that life, and I hope I’m sitting in the final three so I can treat Jakey with kindness in a way that I don’t recall him treating anyone.

honestly thank god for the “day off” because i feel like just about all of us were at our wits end last night and especially with the ugly shit jake said when he left, i could definitely use a day to just relax a bit and search for this jewel thing when i have time.

i didn’t make a confessional leading up to that vote last night because i was too busy like focusing on the task at hand, which ended up getting away from me anyways because people just can’t keep their shit together.

Plan A was to vote MJ under the guise that we were all voting Jake end of story done. i don’t think it necessarily would’ve gone off without a hitch but i think we had the opportunity to do it and it got squandered because mj was telling jake he was gonna use his vote reveal on jenn, then telling lydia he was gonna use it on me. meanwhile i’m sitting here like why in the world is he telling all of this shit to lydia???? she really trying to replicate her animal crossing game and sit her ass in the middle of everyone again and lemme tell you i’m not about to let that happen again. i want to be in that position and i want people to be too afraid to do anything about it etc.

some highlights from yesterday - lying to mj’s face on call then turning around the entire conversation and watchign alyssa edwards videos on youtube, telling jake on call that i want to save him and don’t want him to leave (all true), but my hands are tied esp knowing that there was a plot to get me out last round started by mj (which was then confirmed by not only him, but jack later on after lydia and pat both told me), jack calling me immediately after and me accidentally telling him that wes is after the maslaysia fam so then jack IMMEDIATELY jumps into making this big ass convoluted plan to vote wes out this round which completely messes up ALL OF THE PLANS THAT WE HAD MADE, then he calls the COMPLETE maslaysia chat and then we’re sitting there talking in the jimmy’s angels chat like ………….what are we supposed to say there’s no way we’re voting wes. anyway i told pat about this and literally told him not to leak, which then of course he leaks immediately to wes and lydia so thats cool i love a good trusting partnership. we got it shut down p quickly and just told jack we wanted to still vote jake. sdgklsd idk I DONT KNOW

this happened later last night

[2/9/2017 8:00:02 PM] mj ultra . _/: Also, on a more serious note: I’m gonna be watching IASIP for the rest of the night and just kinda of, take a step back and reset my mind.

I know we weren’t in the same page, at all, this round. Mostly my fault. Hopefully you give me the chance to talk things through tomorrow.

Thanks for not voting me out [2/9/2017 8:00:29 PM] kait ~~/: yeah i was gonna say i think we both need t just like [2/9/2017 8:00:33 PM] kait ~~/: sit back and talk things out tomorrow [2/9/2017 8:00:38 PM] kait ~~/: thanks for not voting me out either [2/9/2017 8:00:50 PM] mj ultra . _/: LSHSKDJDJ [2/9/2017 8:00:54 PM] mj ultra . _/: Why are we like this… [2/9/2017 8:00:56 PM] mj ultra . _/: LDJSKDHSJDHDJD [2/9/2017 8:01:01 PM] kait ~~/: ;) [2/9/2017 8:01:12 PM] mj ultra . _/: “Thanks for not voting me out!” “Thanks for not voting me out… either!” [2/9/2017 8:01:25 PM] mj ultra . _/: There will never be another MJ/Kait… know that.

tfw you both know damn well the other was trying to get each other out last round and both failed miserably so you still gotta pretend to be best friends!! jk he still my buddy regardless of waht happesnjkgd but still

Drunk Lydia is my favorite Lydia

I think this format of Touchy Subjects in this game is a shame. Because of the way answers have to be given, there’s a very real chance that we won’t be getting what people are really thinking. And strategy is nice, but when you can’t answer two names it’s going to be a crapshoot full of throwaway names winning rounds and someone fluking into a win.

That said, here’s what I REALLY think:

Which player has absolutely no idea what’s going on? Jimmy. Possibly by choice? He seems like the type who thrives on social game far more than strategic.

Who is always left out of plans until the last minute? Would’ve said Steffen until this round… and actually, still will. Would’ve said Jimmy took the crown this round but he wasn’t even filled in. Which was not great.

Who here is hands down the biggest threat to win? Oh god. This is anyone’s game. I think people are saying me, but are you really such a big threat if everyone knows it and everyone will be gunning to take you down?

Out of everyone left, who least fits the category of “all star”? Based on past placements, me by a country mile. Still amazed that I was cast, even as an alternate, let alone that I got so far.

Who is the rudest person in the game? Each person will have a different answer to this. Personally, I’ve seen such limited amounts of rudeness from anyone left. Just a lot of tension and frustration boiling over. MJ by default, I guess, for being the only person left in the game who was involved in that ugly Logan vote.

Which player did not live up to your expectations? Jenn, unfortunately. Love her to death but our strategic talk has been so limited.

Which player do the hosts like the least? After the bitching I’ve done about this challenge and my obnoxiously long confessionals, I’d say me.

Which player does the Viewing Lounge likes the most? The VL always loves an underdog. But who’s the underdog? Steffen? Any of Malaysia? I’m inclined to say MJ because he seems almost like a lone wolf at this point.

Even though we’re only at Final 9, who here has zero chance of winning the game? Nobody. We’re all here, we all have paths to the end and to win. Some paths are more fraught with complications than others.

Who is the most manipulative? Either me or Kait. I bet Lydia gets a few votes here, too.

Who does not deserve to be here? Nobody. If you’re able to make final 9 of an all-star game, you absolutely deserve to be here.

If you could not win the game, who would you most like to see win? Kait, Lydia, Wes. Any of those three and I’d be over the moon. A Steffen win would make me happy too.

Who do you sometimes confuse with a piece of cardboard because they are so bland and boring? Heh. Me. I’m already frequently called a saltine, so just take off the salt and I fit this.

Who will never wake up and play the game? Jimmy… because he’s asleep when a lot of things are going on. :P Nah. I think he’s playing the best way he knows how, but he’s either not about the strategy game or doesn’t know how to segue into it.

Who is most likely to have an idol? I’m thinking MJ, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Wes had something.

Who is your best friend in the game? Kait. Sorry, Lydia and Wes, she beat you out by a hair. Y'all are still some of my favourite people.

Who will never win an immunity challenge? JACK. No, probably me. With this track record of no flash games (i.e., my one strong suit) I’m typically competitive but not the best.

Out of everyone left, who is the biggest fan of Benjamin “Coach” Wade? Um duh. Coach for life. Only person in the entire community who could fight me on this is Ari.

Which player is the most likely to have recently watched a Scooby Doo marathon? Steffen or Lydia, I think. No particular reason beyond personality.

Which player is too honest for their own good? Me. It’s what caused this whole mess this round. I couldn’t lie to anyone. The leaking put everyone I’m close to in a state of panic, and I still regret it.

I love you Lydia!!!!!!!!

I just enjoy this.

[2017-01-31 11:07:41 PM] Owen (Myanmar Host): gg jenn/jimmy/kait! [2017-02-07 10:14:03 PM] carson (tibet host): kait, jenn, jimmy? [2017-02-07 10:14:04 PM] carson (tibet host): good job [2017-02-09 10:43:02 PM] jakey: FUCK THE MALAY-CULT!!!!!!111 gg jenn jimmy kait

[ x ]

[09:50:43 PM] kait ~~/: I've been sitting here freaking because Lydia is so calm [09:51:14 PM] mj ultra . _/: isn't acceptance the last stage of grief