#planet comic con 2017

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

This weekend’s MCU developments, fresh out of Comic-Con and on DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE's massive opening weekend, seem to indicate that Disney's trying to make the year 2026 - as I've mentioned before - into their proverbial next 2019.

A repeat of a year where they just dominated with billion dollar smashes, with few valleys in-between... They made *bank* with CAPTAIN MARVEL, AVENGERS: ENDGAME, ALADDIN, TOY STORY 4, THE LION KING, FROZEN II, and STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER.

Of course, that was a rare occasion where the planets pretty much aligned for them... CAPTAIN MARVEL directly preceded ENDGAME, and of course ENDGAME was the big climax to the entire "Infinity Saga" of the MCU: Three phases, 11 years of movies, all down to that one big battle. ALADDIN and LION KING were remakes of some of Disney's most iconic and beloved animated films. TOY STORY 4, following up the huge smash that was TOY STORY 3 by almost a decade, almost as long of a wait between 2 & 3. FROZEN II, sequel to their animated phenomenon. RISE OF SKYWALKER was the end of the entire Skywalker Saga, 9 movies across five decades...

I think they keep wanting to recreate that, even though the 2020s are a much different time from this past decade, and some of those "brands" are now kinda stale...

So they revealed at Comic-Con that AVENGERS 5 has dropped the Kang stuff altogether, the Russo Brothers have returned to direct (along with SECRET WARS, arriving 2027), Dr. Doom is now the main villain and is played by none other than Robert Downey Jr., and it's called AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY. A lot of fans, from what I understand, are very mixed on this. Some feel it's desperation at this point, after their Kang/multiverse plans for phases 4-6 just didn't seem to pan out, and arguably weren't planned too well in advance - Majors accusations or no Majors accusations. So, go to an iconic villain who has been portrayed in live-action before, and get the beloved actor who played Tony Stark to make his grand return as this all-time Marvel villain that could very well be a thinly-written portrayal that strips the character of what makes him compelling and richly-written in the comics... Maybe, we don't know, the movie's far from being done... But the announcement definitely caught me off guard.

But yeah, add that to 2026... A year with, tentatively, two new STAR WARS movies: THE MANDALORIAN & GROGU, and an untitled movie about Rey 15 years after the events of RISE OF SKYWALKER. Familiar faces. Also TOY STORY 5. And a live-action remake of the beloved MOANA... Though, somewhat differentiating 2026 from 2019 is the possibility of new original movies from the two animation studios: A Pixar in the spring, and a WDAS in the autumn. In 2019, both studios only offered up sequels. There are a couple other slots Disney has for 2026 as well, which will likely go to some 20th Century/Searchlight movies. 2019 was when Disney finished their acquisition of 20th Century, and... The line-up that year was either movies they didn't give a damn about, or just didn't cut it. That was the year of... DARK PHOENIX, STUBER, THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN... Movies that didn't get greenlit under Disney's watch, but these 2026 movies will be, so maybe those will do better for them.

So yes, I can kinda tell that Iger's Disney is still chasing that 2019 high. Surefire hits based on old favorites, but I think in the case of the MCU, it really isn't - say - 2017 anymore. Announce both DOOMSDAY and SECRET WARS back then, and the roof is blown off the joint. But we're in 2024 now, and while Deadpool teaming up with Hugh Jackman's iconic go as Wolverine is expectedly doing amazing business, Captain Marvel joining forces with Ms. Marvel and Rambeau (two characters largely established in two Disney+ shows) did horribly, as did a third Ant-Man movie. CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 without Chris Evans, this THUNDERBOLTS* thing, and another go at Marvel's First Family could reverse this, maybe not... Tellingly, BLADE - still ostensibly scheduled for November of next year - didn't get a mention at all during the presentation. We know it has been held up, that they just can't seem to crack what was already done w/o pools full of Disney money back in the 1990s... Maybe it goes to show that something as neat as Blade falls apart when you try to force it into the fractured framework of the MCU. BLADE would've had a much easier time, I feel, if it were being developed during the first two phases w/o Ike Perlmutter around.

I guess at this point, it either opens in fall 2026 after DOOMSDAY releases, or it'll debut after SECRET WARS. I don't know anymore. The MCU was certainly imperfect from the word-go, but the character interactions and dynamics, the fun soap opera-like tricks, and often memorable moments got us through the big tangle of it all. The novelty of this big cinematic universe with all these characters from multiple movies crossing over was just such a real novelty circa 2010-2019, it was done on a scale that no one really saw beforehand. But that has now worn off, what with many of the OGs having died or left. It's not too late to reinvent it, and go a new direction after SECRET WARS. One that doesn't recreate what came before.

I think audiences have gravitated towards that kind of superhero movie now... The likes of the SPIDER-VERSE movies, THE BATMAN, etc. Both a handful of recent MCUs and the last of the old DC movie-verse films largely got rejected, so the tricks of the 2010s no longer work. It's about personal stakes and distinct style and a vision now. Unless it's a pre-established portrayal of a character that audiences love (like Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool and Jackman's Wolverine), you gotta be more than just a garden variety CG spectacle. It's why I'm curious as to how James Gunn and Peter Safran will launch the live-action end of their new DC Universe. Do SUPERMAN, SUPERGIRL: WOMAN OF TOMORROW, THE AUTHORITY, BRAVE AND THE BOLD, etc. all stand out on their own? Or do they feel like episodes with little to no visual/storytelling differences?

Either Marvel Studios are onto something, or this is some last-ditch attempt to drum up a lot of interest again and make the end of Phase 5 and all of Phase 6 flop-less. Less MARVELS, more GUARDIANS/DEADPOOL 3-sized stuff.

What caught **my** interest the most were the details revealed about their new Fantastic Four film, now titled THE FANTASTIC 4: FIRST STEPS. Continuing their little way of differentiating their movies from the adaptations that came before. Fantastic Four already had two* iterations (*not counting the unreleased 1994 Roger Corman film), the 2005 movie was called FANTASTIC FOUR, as was the 2015 movie, though everyone calls it FANT4STIC. This tells you it's the Marvel Studios MCU F4 movie! Just like how their Hulk movie was THE INCREDIBLE HULK, five years after the release of the 2003 movie HULK. And how their first Spider-Man solo movie added the subtitle HOMECOMING. Also, it's like we get an F4 every 10 years now. The Tim Story-directed movie with Chris Evans in 2005, the next version in 2015, and now this version. Next year. 2025.

It had been teased that this film would have a more '60s flavor to it, which always made sense, given that the Fantastic Four debuted in the early 1960s and directly correlated with space age exploration. The setting of this film is described as a sort-of '60s retro future, and the first look at it certainly confirms it... And what's more, Michael Giacchino is doing the score.

This is literally THE INCREDIBLES!

I remember for many years, some people joked that they didn't need to make a "good" Fantastic Four movie. One already existed: THE INCREDIBLES. And of course, THE INCREDIBLES is highly inspired by the same space age aesthetics that inform the original F4 comics and most superhero/sci-fi stuff of that era. They both have stretchy and invisible characters. And Giacchino did the score for that film. Brad Bird grew up during that period, and it's all over his animated classic. Tim Story's FANTASTIC FOUR was in post-production when THE INCREDIBLES came out, and he had made changes to his movie, fearing similarities that were always inevitable.

So maybe this 2025 movie, part of the MCU, finally works. That Marvel's First Family finally works as a live-action movie, and can stand on its own in a world where an amazing animated equivalent exists. Matt Shakman directs, who helmed WANDAVISION, which had three episodes heavily patterned after sitcoms made in the '50s, '60s, and '70s, so maybe I'll quite like this movie. It's the one future MCU movie, outside of BLADE, that actually has my interest.

[cartoonmadness]

Multifandom sideblock for my fav comics / games / animated series / movies / short films / other stuff

My art blog is peikonlainen.tumblr.com

Movies

Akira

Barbie

Book of life

Boy and the beast

Catnapped

Coraline

Craig before the creek

The dark crystal

Disney movies

DreamWorks movies

Ernest and Celestine

Ethel and Ernest

Flight of dragons

Hoodwinked

Hotel transylvania

Kung fu Panda

The Labyrinth

Laika movies

Land before time

The Last Unicorn

Lego movies

Mary and Max

The Midnight gospel

The Muppets

The Never ending story

Osmosis Joe

Paprika

Rock and rule

Secret of Nimh

Scooby-Doo

Studio Ghibli movies

Tekkonkinkreet

TMNT Mutant Mayhem

Treasure planet

Tree of Palme

Trolls movies

Up

The wizard of Oz

Wolf Children

Cartoons / Show / Anime

Adventure Time

Alfred J. Kwak

The Amazing wold of Gumball

Amphibia

Angelic Layer

As told by Ginger

Avatar the last airbender

Batman the animated series

Bluey

Bob's burgers

Bojack Horseman

Care bears

Centaurworld

Clone high

Count Duckula

Craig of the creek

Cyborg 009

The dark crystal age of resistance

Darkwing Duck

Ducktales (2017)

Evil con carne

Fraiser

Golden girls

Gravity Falls

Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy

Hazbin hotel

Helluva boss

Infinity train

Jellytown!

Kaiba

Kid Cosmic

Kim Possible

Kipo

The legend of Korra

Looney tunes

Mao Mao heroes of pure heart

Masters of the Universe 2002

Maya and the tree

Moomins

Murder she wrote

My little pony

Oggy and the cockroaches

The Owl house

Ping Pong animated series

Pokemon

Reboot

Regular show

ROTTMNT

Sesame street

She-ra

Sherlock Hound

Spiderman

Spongebob

Tuca and Bertie

TMNT 80s/90s

TMNT 2003

Transformers (80s)

Transformers prime

Twelve forever

Unicorn - Warriors eternal

The Venture bros

Wander over Yander

Winx

Indie animations

Bigtop burger

Chikn Nuggit

the Devil and Daniel Mouse

Lackadaisy

Metal Family

Monkey Wrench

Soviet Union animations

Shred force

Smiling friends

Spooky month

Wallace and Gromit

Comics / Manga

Adventures of Tintin

Bamse

Batman

Cyborg 009

Detective Conan

Donald Duck (Aku Ankka in Finnish)

Dragon ball

Garfield

Moomins

Peanuts

Paradise kiss

Popeye

Niilo Pielinen

Spiderman

Spirou and Fantasio

Vinland saga

Wimpy Witch

Books

Amazing land of Oz

Babar

Moomin books

Games

Animal crossing

Garage: bad dream adventure

Katamari

Pokemon

Other Nintendo games

Sly Cooper

Sonic the hedgehog

[jedivoodoochile]

A lo largo de los años desde el lanzamiento original de Star Wars en 1977 , especialmente después del lanzamiento en 2017 de la epopeya de ciencia ficción Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets , críticos e historiadores se han preguntado acerca de la influencia del cómic francés Val é rian y Laureline en el Franquicia de Star Wars . Las cosas ciertamente se ven similares,

En el comic de Valerian ,llamado Empire of a Thousand Planets de 1971 ,aparece un personaje como miembro de un culto conocido como los Iluminados. Sin máscara, su rostro está lleno de cicatrices y quemaduras con pocos rasgos, similar al de Darth Vader en El retorno del Jedi de 1983 .

En The Empire Strikes Back de 1980 , Leia Organa es esclavizada por un gobernante con obesidad mórbida (Jabba the Hutt), y obligada a usar un traje revelador de esclava. Y casi exactamente lo mismo le sucede a Laureline en el volumen de Val é rian de 1972 World Without Stars ; aunque, en este caso, el monarca gordo es el emperador Alzafar, que gobierna la ciudad de Valsennar .

En la compilación de 1971 de Val é rian y Laureline Empire of a Thousand Planets , Valérian está congelado es una sustancia que tiene un extraño parecido con Carbonite , la sustancia en la que Han Solo se congeló casi una década después en The Empire Strikes Back de 1980 . Como señaló, nuevamente, The Film Theorists, la pérdida de memoria de Valérian mientras estaba congelada coincide con un síntoma conocido de la enfermedad de Carbonite .

En última instancia, ya sea que todas estas similitudes sean una coincidencia o no, ambas franquicias introdujeron muchas ideas nuevas al género de ciencia ficción, y ambas también se basaron mucho en trabajos de ciencia ficción anteriores.

[bfgfs]

SHEN IS A GOOD GUY! PT1/? … I might’ve been a little too ambitious with this……… Can you identify the artists? Cheat sheet here: bit.ly/2pHndsg soundcloud.com/pcwc bfgfs.com | tumblr | twitter | tapastic *edit* idk why I didn’t just list everyone out. Lazy persons lapse of judgement. Here are the comic creators by order of appearance: - Average Adventure of Average Girl - Cheer Up Emo Kid - The DaneMen - Pear-Shaped Comics - Webcomic Name - Owlturd Comix - The Pigeon Gazette - Brutally Honest - Dungeon Contruction Co. - Imogen Quest - Fowl Language Comics - Mr.Lovenstein

[2ndstreetdrifter]

JesUS god well kids here they are, all the ridiculous items that go along with my taako cosplay. This is by no means an extensive collection, but I wanted to make the most important and interesting ones while still being able to function as a person with all of these things attached to my body and visible. I'm finally ready for planet comic con bring it onnnnn

 My largest artistic inspirations: this post holy shit and my sword design was influenced heavily by gullshriek.tumblr.com

 Now the real test--how many can you name ??

[zigidaoma]

Went to Planet Comic Con today! Got some great stuff and got to see a lot of amazing people. Super worn out but worth it! Not that I took a lot of cosplay pictures today but of you see yourself feel free to mention it in a reblog or let me know and I'll update the post!

[queerskywalkers]

My favorite moment from Justin Roiland’s panel at RI Comic Con (bonus: he confirmed that Rick is Mexican and autistic!)

[yandere-toons]

Current Fandoms [Alphabetical]

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🔶️🔷️ No need to limit yourself to what's here! This is merely what has been done and what is being considered, a list which you're welcome to expand. 🔷️🔶️

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Books:

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Durarara!!

The Great Gatsby

The Hobbit

The Hunger Games

IT

The Lord of the Rings

Mortal Engines

No Country for Old Men

Percy Jackson & the Olympians

Ready Player One

The Silence of the Lambs

A Song of Ice and Fire

Star Wars: Dark Disciple

Comics & Manga:

BEASTARS

Blue Exorcist

Boku no Hero Academia

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Disney Duck Comics

Hellblazer

Johnny the Homicidal Maniac

Kamonohashi Ron no Kindan Suiri

Scott Pilgrim

Soul Eater

Tokyo Ghoul

The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye

Watchmen

Film:

Accepted (2006)

The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl

Airplane!

The Angry Birds Movie

Argylle

Asteroid City

Austin Powers

Back to the Future

The Bad Guys (2022)

Bad Ronald

Bad Taste

Balto

Bambi (1942)

Bambi II (2006)

The Banana Splits Movie

Barbie (2023)

Batman Begins

Batman Forever

The Beekeeper

Beetlejuice

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

Beverly Hills Cop

Big Hero 6

Black Christmas (1974)

The Black Phone

The Book of Life

Brave (2012)

Brother Bear

A Bug's Life

Bullet Train (2022)

Cars (2006)

Chickenhare and the Hamster of Darkness

Chicken Little

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Con Air

Coneheads

Coraline

Corpse Bride

Cowboys & Aliens

The Dead Don't Die

Deadpool

Despicable Me

Detective Pikachu

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)

Dracula: Dead and Loving It

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Elemental

Elvira: Mistress of the Dark

The Emperor's New Groove

Encanto

Enchanted

Exchange Student Zero

An Extremely Goofy Movie

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Fast & Furious Saga

Fear Street Trilogy

FernGully: The Last Rainforest

Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Five Nights at Freddy's (2023)

Free Guy

Frozen (2013)

Galaxy Quest

Ghost Rider

Glass Onion

Godzilla

A Goofy Movie

Grease (1978)

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

The Happytime Murders

Haunted Mansion

Hellboy

Hercules (1997)

The Hobbit

Hocus Pocus

Holes

Home (2015)

Home Alone (1990)

Hotel Transylvania

Howard the Duck

How to Train Your Dragon

The Hunger Games

Ice Age

IF (2024)

The Incredibles

Inside Out

IT (2017)

John Wick

The Jungle Book (1967)

Jurassic Park

Jurassic World

Killer Klowns from Outer Space

Knives Out

Kung Fu Panda

Legally Blonde

The LEGO Batman Movie

The LEGO Movie

The LEGO Ninjago Movie

Lift (2024)

Lilo & Stitch

The Lion King

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Longlegs (2024)

The Lorax (2012)

The Lord of the Rings

Luca (2021)

Luck (2022)

Mad Max

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Mars Attacks!

Mean Girls (2004)

Meet the Feebles

The Meg

Megamind

Migration (2023)

Minions: The Rise of Gru

Mission: Impossible

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

The Mitchells vs. the Machines

The Monkey King Reborn

Monsters, Inc.

Monsters University

Monsters vs. Aliens

Mulan (1998)

My Little Pony: A New Generation

My Little Pony: The Movie

Napoleon Dynamite

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Night at the Museum

The Nightmare Before Christmas

No Country for Old Men

NOPE (2022)

Now You See Me

Onward

Open Season (2006)

Osmosis Jones

Over the Hedge

Pacific Rim

Paddington

Pee-wee's Big Adventure

Penguins of Madagascar

The Phantom of the Opera

Pirates of the Caribbean

Planet of the Apes

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Rango

Ready Player One

Renfield

Return to Oz

Rio (2011)

Rise of the Guardians

Road House

The Road to El Dorado

RoboCop (1987)

Robots (2005)

Rock Dog

Ron's Gone Wrong

Scarface

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Shark Tale

Shaun of the Dead

Shrek

Sing (2016 & 2021)

Small Soldiers

Sonic the Hedgehog

Spaceballs

Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money

Space Jam

Spider-Verse

Spies in Disguise

Star Wars

Storks

The Suicide Squad

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Surf's Up

The Terminator

Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast

Titan A.E.

Titanic (1997)

Top Gun

Toy Story

Trap (2024)

Treasure Planet

Trolls (2016)

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil

Turning Red

Vivo

Wendell & Wild

Whiplash

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

Wreck-It Ralph

X Trilogy

TV Series & Web Series:

The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police

The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin

Adventure Time

Alvin and the Chipmunks

The Amazing World of Gumball

American Dad!

American Dragon: Jake Long

American Gods

Amphibia

Animaniacs

Aqua Teen Hunger Force

Ash vs Evil Dead

Barry (HBO)

Bates Motel

The Batman (2004)

Batman: The Animated Series

Better Call Saul

Big City Greens

Bigtop Burger

Black Clover

Bluey

Bob's Burgers

BoJack Horseman

Breaking Bad

Buzz Lightyear of Star Command

Camp Camp

Carmen Sandiego

Cars on the Road

Clone High

Codename: Kids Next Door

Count Duckula

Courage the Cowardly Dog

The Cuphead Show!

Danger Mouse

Danny Phantom

Dan Vs.

Darkwing Duck

The Devil Is a Part-Timer!

Dexter's Laboratory

Dinosaurs

Diriliş: Ertuğrul

Doctor Who

Dogs in Space

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared

Dorohedoro

Duck Dodgers

DuckTales (1987 & 2017)

Exchange Student Zero

Freakazoid!

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Futurama

Game of Thrones

Gargoyles

Good Omens

Goosebumps

Gotham

Gravity Falls

Green Eggs and Ham

Gregory Horror Show

The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy

Grimm

Haikyuu!!

Happy Tree Friends

Harley Quinn

Hazbin Hotel

Helluva Boss

Hetalia

Hero: 108

House, M.D.

House of the Dragon

Inside Job (2021)

Inspector Gadget (1983)

Invader ZIM

Kiff

Kim Possible

King of the Hill

The Lion Guard

Looney Tunes

The Looney Tunes Show

Love, Death & Robots

Making Fiends

The Mandela Catalogue

Max Headroom

the middle.

Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series

Milo Murphy's Law

Mob Psycho 100

Modern Family

Monkie Kid

Monsters at Work

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic

Mystery Skulls Animated

Ninjago

Nu, pogodi!

The Office

OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes

Our Flag Means Death

Overlord

The Owl House

Peaky Blinders

The Penguins of Madagascar

Phineas and Ferb

Pinky and the Brain

Popee the Performer

The Powerpuff Girls

Primal

The Proud Family

Ramshackle

Regular Show

The Righteous Gemstones

Rocko's Modern Life

Salad Fingers

Samurai Jack

The Sandman

Schitt's Creek

Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated

Shameless

Shaolin Wuzang

Silicon Valley

Silly Symphony

The Simpsons

Sonic Prime

Sonic X

Soul Eater

Space Force

SpongeBob SquarePants

Spooky Month

Star Trek

Star vs. the Forces of Evil

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Static Shock

Succession

Superjail!

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!

Supernatural

Superstore

Tabaluga

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teen Titans (2003)

Tiny Toon Adventures

Tom and Jerry

Total Drama

Transformers: Prime

True Detective

Twin Peaks

The Umbrella Academy

Underverse

Villainous

The Walking Dead

Wander Over Yonder

We Bare Bears

Welcome Home

What If...?

X-Men: Evolution

Xiaolin Showdown

Zig & Sharko

The Yogi Bear Show

Young Justice

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead

Music:

Gorillaz

The Purple People Eater

Board Games:

Monopoly

Video Games:

At Dead of Night

Batman: The Enemy Within

Borderlands

Crash Bandicoot

Cuphead: Don't Deal with the Devil

Danganronpa

Deltarune

Destroy All Humans!

Dialtown

Dino Crisis

Don't Starve

Eloquent Countenance

Fallout

Far Cry

Five Nights at Freddy's

Friday Night Funkin'

God of War

Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee

Grand Theft Auto V

Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series

John Doe

L.A. Noire

LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga

Lollipop Chainsaw

Lucius

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy

Mass Effect

MazM: Jekyll and Hyde

Middle-earth: Shadow of War

Monkey Island

Monster Prom

Mortal Kombat

Naughty Bear

Nicktoons Unite!

Oddworld

Outlast

PaRappa the Rapper

Pathologic

Psychonauts

Rampage: Total Destruction

Ratchet & Clank

Red Dead Revolver

Resident Evil

Road 96

Silent Hill

Slime Rancher

Smile For Me

Sonic the Hedgehog

Total War: Warhammer

Uncharted

Undertale

[lokiondisneyplus]

No character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has the staying power of Loki. Portrayed with just the right amount of smarm and charm by Tom Hiddleston, the impish trickster with the ability to shapeshift and cast illusions is a favorite among fans despite the fact he's betrayed friends and family multiple times since debuting opposite Chris Hemsworth in 2011's "Thor." The most predictable thing about him might be his unpredictability. And yet no one thought the character would return to the MCU after being killed by the all-mighty Thanos (Josh Brolin) in the opening scene of 2018's "Avengers: Infinity War." However, we're now on the cusp of the character leading his very own show.

Debuting Wednesday, June 9 on Disney+, the six-episode "Loki" follows a past version of the character, though it's not a prequel. This Loki is the man who successfully stole the Tesseract, aka the Space Stone, when the Avengers traveled to the past in 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." His actions that day ultimately created a branched reality — the very thing the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) warned the Avengers about when they attempted to gather the stones in the past. So when the show picks up, Loki will find himself being forced to work with the Time Variance Authority, an organization dedicated to protecting the proper flow of time, to help restore the main timeline he broke when he fled with the Tesseract in 2012.

It remains to be seen whether or not the series is one of the shows Marvel's Kevin Feige said was developed with additional seasons in mind. But with this particular setup — and assuming the show operates independently of the main overarching narrative of the MCU — this is the type of series that could easily run for multiple seasons should the people involved desire it. And given his comments over the years, Hiddleston definitely seems game to portray Loki until he's too old to do so.

But what is it about the character, a Frost Giant who was adopted by Odin (Anthony Hopkins) as a baby and raised as an Asgardian, that has allowed him to persevere – especially when Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) and even Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) have not? What gives Loki, a character who has been both villain and antihero, such longevity in the MCU? Is it Hiddleston himself? Is he nurturing goodwill with his enchanting performance? Is it the character's unpredictability keeping things fresh? Or is it the potential of a flawed man still searching for an identity and purpose?

Over the last decade, Hiddleston — whose name was once bandied about as a possible James Bond candidate after a stellar turn in "The Night Manager" — has won favor with Marvel and its fans thanks to his continued dedication to the role of Loki and his support of the extended universe. Some actors have been happy to say goodbye after fulfilling their contracts, but you'd be hard-pressed to find an actor who loves his job with Marvel more than Hiddleston. (Never forget the time he dressed up in character and took over Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con in 2013.) But in addition to his acting chops and commitment to the role of Loki, Hiddleston is also just an effortlessly charming individual, and some of that natural charisma bleeds into his performance, making the character a richer and more complex character as a result. And it's a good thing too because a character like Loki — someone ruled by his emotions, whose only allegiance is to himself, and who wouldn't think twice before double-crossing his own brother — runs the risk of becoming either very annoying or quite tired rather quickly. Luckily, Loki is neither.

After learning the truth of his origins in the first Thor film, Loki's anger toward his family and the betrayal he felt put him on a path to finding his purpose, which resulted in him becoming the mouthy and manipulative, power-hungry antagonist of the first Avengers movie. At the time, no one outside of Feige and other decision-making executives likely knew what was in store for the future of the MCU.

But now we can look back and see Hiddleston's captivating turn in "The Avengers," in which he attempts to take control of Earth using an army of Chitauri forces, was more than just the catalyst for the various heroes recruited by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to finally team up. It was also the beginning of what might be the best character arc in the entire MCU. No one save perhaps Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier, has had a more complicated or effective emotional personal journey throughout the entirety of the Infinity Saga (and beyond). Perhaps that is why when Loki was eventually killed several films later in the middle of his redemption arc during the opening scene of "Infinity War," the heartbreak seemed to extend beyond the edges of the frame and into the real world.

The exceptionally fun 2017 film "Thor: Ragnarok," which immediately preceded "Infinity War," saw Loki forced to confront his past and make a decision regarding his future. The death of his father and the return of Hela (Cate Blanchett), the Goddess of Death and the sister neither Loki nor Thor knew existed, ultimately meant the end of life as he knew it. But rather than fleeing at the first chance like everyone assumed he would, Loki accepted his place in his family and returned to his brother's side after the destruction of Asgard. Of course, he also pocketed the Tesseract before the planet was destroyed, a seemingly innocuous decision that would unfortunately lead Thanos right to him. But learning to care about something more than his own immediate wants was a redeeming moment for Loki, as was his attempt to save Thor from Thanos, so his death was both an effectively heartbreaking moment that resonated with fans while serving as a harbinger of what was to come.

It also felt like closure, so when a past version of Loki popped up in "Avengers: Endgame" when Tony, Cap, and Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) traveled to 2012, it was a pleasant surprise. That the new series "Loki" follows this branched-reality version of the character and won't erase the character's original narrative arc is what makes the show such an intriguing new chapter. When the show premieres, Loki hasn't gone through any sort of character evolution. He is still the angry man who tried to force all of humanity to kneel before him in a desperate attempt to find his place in the world. He has yet to go through the events of his mother's death or the destruction of Asgard. He's a man out of time, a man without a home. And it's the chaotic, still-in-progress nature of Loki and the inability to guess what he might do when an organization like the Time Variance Authority, which is dedicated to order, tries to force him to do what they say that makes this new chapter so exciting.

Each episode of the show, which also stars Owen Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Judge Ravonna Lexus Renslayer, will see the character travel through time and space on a mission to restore order to the timeline. But will this Loki follow the same path as the man we know and love? Or will this version make different choices without Thor by his side? More importantly, will he find what he's looking for?

Loki is a man driven by insecurity and an ongoing struggle with his identity, though he deftly covers up his deficiencies with a devious wit and charm. The constantly shifting logo in the show's trailer represents both the character's shapeshifting ability as much as the idea that he doesn't know where he belongs or who he is yet. And although the beats of such a character arc are hardly new territory for Hollywood — you could argue they've even been done to death at this point — the potential for greatness still exists as Loki remains pleasantly unpredictable. It means anything can happen, and with Hiddleston promising a show that is unlike anything Marvel has ever done, there's no reason to believe Loki the man and "Loki" the show won't continue to endure and evolve even beyond this first season. After all, he certainly has the staying power.

"Loki" premieres Wednesday, June 9 on Disney+.

[newsintheshell]

Fullmetal Alchemist: l’adattamento live action prosegue con altri due film, online i primi trailer

Il primo film uscirà nei cinema giapponesi il 20 maggio, mentre il secondo il 24 giugno.

Era il 2017 quando faceva il suo debutto il primo film live action di “Fullmetal Alchemist”, diretto da Fumihiko Sori, già regista anche dell’adattamento con attori in carne ed ossa di “Ping Pong”, poi sbarcato anche in streaming su Netflix, con risultati non proprio entusiasmanti.

A distanza di anni, Warner Bros e Sori ci riprovano, proseguendo l’avventura del celebre alchimista d’acciaio di Hiromu Arakawa (La leggenda di Arslan, Silver Spoon, Hero Tales - Le cronache di Hagun), portando al cinema altre due pellicole intitolate “Fullmetal Alchemist: Final Chapter - The Avenger Scar” e “Fullmetal Alchemist: Final Chapter - The Last Transmutation”.

Il primo film uscirà nei cinema giapponesi il 20 maggio, mentre il secondo il 24 giugno. Dato il debutto imminente, sono stati già diffusi due lunghi trailer.

Il progetto celebra il 20° anniversario del manga e annovera lo stesso cast della pellicola precedente, che girò parte delle scene qua in Italia, sullo sfondo del comune di Volterra, con ovviamente l’aggiunta di altri interpreti visti i nuovi personaggi in campo.

L’originale manga sul quale si basa l’adattamento è stato serializzato fra il 2001 e il 2010, venendo raccolto in 27 volumetti. L’opera è edita in Italia da Panini Comics, sotto l’etichetta Planet Manga, che recentemente ne ha lanciato una nuova Deluxe Ultimate Edition.

Dal fumetto sono state tratte due popolarissime serie animate, entrambe prodotte dallo studio BONES (The Case Study of Vanitas, My Hero Academia). 

La prima, composta da 51 episodi e andata in onda fra il 2003 e il 2004, traspone solo in parte il materiale originale, proponendo una storia diversa, che culmina con il film d’animazione intitolato “Il conquistatore di Shamballa”.

La seconda, composta da 64 episodi e che prende il nome di “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood”, invece, risale al 2009 e segue fedelmente la storia firmata dalla Arakawa. Con l’edizione home video della serie sono usciti anche tre OAV, mentre nel 2011 è arrivato anche il film d’animazione  chiamato “La sacra stella di Milos”, che mette in scena una storia del tutto originale.

* NON VUOI PERDERTI NEANCHE UN POST? ENTRA NEL CANALE TELEGRAM! *

Autore: SilenziO)))

[FONTE]

[chingonaclawsarchive]

     *  Note: Since LOGAN takes place in a dystopian world set in  the 20th Century Fox world of their ‘XMEN’ in 2029 -- I’ve had to tweak Laura’s canon timeline to fit in with the MCU. These are my compiled ideas/notes for where Laura would/might fit in, according to the MCU timeline. This can also be amended/altered depending upon who I am writing with & whatever stories we come up with on the sides. I will update/list those verses within this list as well. XO. - Betty. 

2012.  AVENGERS.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 001. avengers. )  i am not my enemy.  

     2002, Alkali-Transigen  aka ‘Essex Corp’ ) conducts it’s second round of the Weapon-X program utilizing children ‘perfected’ in a lab/facility. Laura Howlett ( known as X23 amid the program ) was ‘born’ into the program, the daughter of an unknown Latina woman ( who is more than likely murdered by the company shortly after Laura’s birth ) & James Howlett aka The Wolverine.       2012, a 7 year-old ‘killing dream’ begins her hardcore training under the Transigen umbrella, having grown up within their cage and knowing nothing but life within ‘The Facility’. During the events of ‘The Avengers’, Transigen ( more than likely a subsidiary or sister-company to HYDRA ) attempts to gather knowledge/the power of the alien forces that attack Earth. It is quite possible during this attack, the Xmen join the Avengers. - Transigen utilizes newer technology to harness a killing serum that triggers and strengthens the children’s mutant abilities. Through the years they continue to medicate and test the formula out on the children, including Laura;  to which they discover if they choose a specific target, she will stop at nothing until said target is vanquished. 

2015.  AGE OF ULTRON.  ✗ verse: ( mcu 002. ultron. )  i can do anything.  

     2013,  8-year-old Laura, along with her ‘brothers and sisters’ attempt to escape from the underground jail in Mexico ( where she was ‘born’ ) when given word/hope of a safe haven full of mutant-kind. The children are provided stories with the help of comic books smuggled into the facility. Some of which include stories of The Avengers, while others house a storyline shadowing the truth about the XMEN. Upon their first attempt of escape, the children are unsuccessful, and Essex Corp demands that they relocate to a ‘more secure’ unit in New York City. In 2015, the attack of ULTRON commences, more or less rocking the hard walls of the New York facility to rubble.        For the most part, with the help of HYDRA, Transigen is able to gather up their little ‘test subjects’, some having successfully gotten away, sadly Laura not being among them.      2016, an 11-year-old Laura with the help of the nurses, including Gabby, leads the pack to escape once more. It’s here Laura encounters her father ( Wolverine/James LOGAN Howlett ), Xavier & Caliban by psionic-ally following Charles’ guidance. During this timeline she goes on the wild chase, running from Transigen and relying on what remains of Logan’s strength. The climax ends with Xavier’s passing and Logan’s sacrifice, and the children successfully fleeing for the Canadian border to ‘Eden’ aka the safe haven which turns out to be a new school for the gifted, headlined by a group of vigilante mutants ( aka, the plotline of Mangold’s LOGAN. )      It should also be noted that during this time period, the X-men are dwindling/dying out, and going into hiding due to many people either wanting to lock them up out of fear or provide them ID badges and what not ( similar to the plot of the ‘Civil War’ in the comics. ) 

2017.  CIVIL WAR.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 003. civil war. )  my choice mine.   

     At 12, Laura quietly slips from the safe haven ( headmistress at this time being Emma Frost ) , feeling as though she’s really more of a danger than anything else, specifically due to the ‘death’ serum. Laura cannot control herself when injected with it, especially if she’s provided a ‘target’. To think she could end up killing one of her own terrifies her, not to mention the more she keeps running the less likely Transigen is to discover her.       During the time of the Avengers’ ‘Civil War’  ( between Tony & Steve ), Laura is only a child but spotted through the streets of New York. A time or two, Tony witnesses the feral child having pick-pocketing or slyly stealing a thing or two of necessity. Unable to confine the child or discover her whereabouts, he becomes aware of the ‘mutant strain’ in DNA, now knowing there is far more to this life than other worlds, planets, Norse gods and experimental projects gone wrong like Banner -- Hydra’s been hiding the secret unit to which not only have they began to suppress the X-gene that creates the ‘mutants’ but that they’ve been testing the effects of their serums and juices and what have you on children more-or-less created in a lab with the specific function of utilizing them as some ultimate mutant army. It is a terrible and harsh reality and one he does not take to lightly.      Contrary to the comics’ canon ( & the Xmen’s Civil War ) when Tony discovers she is a mutant child born and raised the way she was, he almost feels an obligation to protect her from others who felt mutants ought to be branded or ID’d and what not. ( A bit contradictory to the Xmen comics, I know, but it makes sense when you think of Steve/Capt America in the comics and how against Laura he was in the beginning, I feel he’d be a little apprehensive in the MCU as well. This could change depending upon whom I’m writing with. )       On the search for a place to help her ‘lay low’, Tony keeps her at the compound, until Pepper insists she just come on home with her. ( Again, this can be adapted depending upon the individual story. ) 

2018.  HOMECOMING.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 004. homecoming. )  are you sure i deserve salvation?  

     At age 13, since Pepper thinks it best that the pre-teenage girl get used to a ‘normal’ life, Laura begins attending public school, where she continues to attempt to ‘lay low’. Of course she does her very best to fit in, though there are many ‘human’ things she’s unaware of such as personal space and certain topics of speech. She basically follows the lead of people she feels she can trust like Peter Parker. Technically since Laura also ages much slower than most everyone, she will be a teenager for a longer period in her life. It is within these confines that she learns more about humanity, her compassion for the human race quite evident and her curiosity ever the more present. She spends a lot of time making up for lost time in her childhood, things she’s never discovered, places she’s never been -- a life she never knew she could have.  2019/2023.  ENDGAME.   ✗ verse: ( mcu 005. endgame. )  i’m f*cking wolverine. 

     During INFINITY WAR ( obviously just prior to this timeline ) Laura of course fights along side the team sustaining little to no injury even though she could’ve severed a limb or two, due to her mutation, she recovers rather quickly. Upon the realization that she could lose her family of mutants with Thanos’ plan, she scurries to get back to the school, begging many of the others to fight along side the Avengers. She succeeds in convincing several of the XMEN, including but not limited to Emma Frost,  to take part in the battle... but it is only to their demise as her healing is too rapid for his ‘curse’ and rather than fluttering into ash, she witnesses all those she holds dear dissipate having to see, once again, the utter destruction of those she holds dear. It tears her apart from the inside.       In 2023, Laura is just about to turn 17. -- Upon Tony’s return from space (2019), and the realization that Pepper hadn’t been taken away, Laura barricades herself within the hope she can have a somewhat normal family. She stays with Pepper and Tony, far away from the compound. She takes up her roll as a sister-figure to Morgan, something she absolutely takes seriously. She’d give it all up for this little girl -- hell, for this family. Tony stands in as an unlikely father-figure, but even moreso, Pepper as her mother. ( Again, these choices can be adapted/tweaked depending upon the storyline/plot we have -- maybe Laura grew up at the compound, or with someone else or with Aunt May... the possibilities/ what-ifs are endless... She could’ve also gone off on her feral way, etc etc. ) 

     When the final battle hits, and those who were taken away appear within the portals, a sudden relief washes over her. She has much more to fight for, and she gives it her all. But it is at the loss of Tony where she feels her world crumble once more, wondering if she should go off on her own and call it good, because it seems no matter where she attempts to land, there is far more loss to be had. She contemplates whether or not Logan had it correct when he was always insistent they stay far away from people, isolate and keep to themselves. Of course that was a much different time in the world and Transigen/Hydra has/have more things to worry about than hunting her down lately -- still, it’s a threat.        With Peter Parker’s ( and possibly others ) insistence, she remains close by. 2023/24.  FAR FROM HOME.  ✗ verse: ( mcu 006. far from home. )  el que con lobos anda a aullar se enseña. 

     Basically, Laura ( now, tech, post-snap almost 18 ) is hanging out with SHIELD, there to aid Peter where needed, more or less helping to keep an eye on him, along with Happy doing her best to stay out of trouble.   

[torrikusuta]

Me cosplaying Roman Torchwick at a con: I mean... SPANK ME, Iron Daddy!

Ironwood cosplayer passing by: -WINKS AND SPANKS HIS GUN-

Me: JFC NOOOOOOOOO. I DID NOT KNOW YOU WERE THERE HOLY FUUUU---

Ironwood: >;)

Jessica Nigri and crowd: -CACKLES EVILLY AS I EMBARRASSED MYSELF-

[louieduckgonebutnotforgotten]

Darkwing Duck Season 1: Darkly Dawns the Duck (Part 1) Darkly Dawns the Duck (Part 2) That Sinking Feeling Beauty and the Beet Getting Antsy Night of the Living Spud Apes of Wrath Dirty Money Film Flam Duck Blind Comic Book Capers Water Way to Go Paraducks Easy Come, Easy Grows Negaduck A Revolution of Home Appliances Trading Faces Hush, Hush Sweet Charlatan Can’t Bayou Love Bearskin Thug Fungus Amongus You Sweat Your Life Days of Blunder Just Us Justice Ducks (Part 1) Just Us Justice Ducks (Part 2) Double Darkwings Slaves to Fashion Aduckyphobia When Aliens Collide Jurassic Jumble Something Fishy Cleanliness is Next to Badliness Smarter Than a Speeding Bullet Tiff of the Titans All’s Fahrenheit in Love and War Whiffle While You Work Calm a Chameleon Ghoul of My Dreams Battle of the Brainteasers Adopt-a-Con Bad Tidings Toys Czar Us The Secret Origins of Darkwing Duck Up, Up and Awry Going Nowhere Fast Life, the Negaverse and Everything Dry Hard Heavy Mental A Brush with Oblivion Disguise the Limits Planet of the Capes The Merchant of Menace Darkwing Doubloon It’s a Wonderful Leaf Twitching Channels Dances with Bigfoot Twin Beaks The Incredible Bulk My Valentine Ghoul Dead Duck A Duck by Any Other Name Let’s Get Respectable In Like Blunt Quack of Ages Time and Punishment Stressed to Kill The Darkwing Squad Inside Binkie’s Brain The Haunting of Mr. Banana Brain Slime OK, You’re OK Whirled History U.F.Foe A Star is Scorned The Quiverwing Quack Jailbird Dirtysomething Kung Fooled Bad Luck Duck Season 2: Monsters R Us Inherit the Whimp The Revenge of the Return of the Brainteasers, Too! Star Crossed Circuits Steerminator The Frequency Fiends Paint Misbehavin’ Hot Spells Fraudcast News Clash Reunion Mutantcy on the Bouncy Malice’s Restaurant Extinct Possibility

Ever since @suspendersofdisbelief put out the correct order for Ducktales 2017 I also noticed some of my other shows were out of order too. I decided to type out the right order of DW so if you want to watch that in chronological order here it is! I also heard Talespin is out of order so I might type that out later.

[theprettynerdie]

A Decade of Highlights

2010 - Got my first car

2011 - Went to my first Pride, in NYC. It was the week after NY legalized gay marriage and I marched in the parade itself

2012 - Went to New Hampshire for the Republican presidential primary and met all the candidates

2012 - Got into Mass Effect

2012 - Met a bunch of political pundits when the seconds 2012 presidential debate was held at my college; live on his radio show I taught Geraldo Rivera what Wizard Rock was

2012 - Taught myself how to sew and make plushies

2012 - Met @mandyshepard​, the best human being on the planet

2012 - Became a Lushie

2012 - Realized and came to embrace my bisexuality

2013 - Developed an interest in polymer clay and began sculpting

2013 - My feminism-inspired sculpture was put into my college’s gallery 

2013 - Graduated from college within my four year plan despite two separate major depressive episodes that almost threw me off course

2014 - Got into Dragon Age

2014 - Met Mandy when she came to visit me in New York!

2014 - Made my first cosplay costume and went to my first Comic Con!

2014 - Began learning how to make gifs

2015 - Saw Steph Curry shoot two incredible three pointers when my dad was watching Golden State play one night and became hooked on basketball

2016 - Went to my second-ever Pride (again in NY), this time as an out and proud bisexual woman

2017 - Saw my first live NBA game 

2018 - Lost my virginity!!!

2019 - Became obsessed with football

2019 - Went to my third Pride

2019 - Decided to become a teacher and went back to school for it

Of all the accomplishments, the best one is knowing Mandy. I can’t imagine living a life without this incredible woman. Every single horrible thing I’ve gone through in my life is worth it if it means she’s in my life. i’m so blessed to have not one, not two, but THREE incredible ride-or-die friends. 

[lambcaey]

Coming to Planet Comic Con 2017

[violethowler]

The Winding Detour: An analysis of Shiro’s Character Arc in Seasons 1-7

A common accusation I’ve been hearing ever since Season 6 came out is that the EPs didn’t know what they were doing with Shiro. That they never wanted to bring him back in the first place and just kept shuffling him around to give him something to do.

Not only is this contradicted by several interviews with the EPs, but when you actually look at Shiro’s story over the course of the series, particularly with the added context of his backstory that we get in S7E1 A Little Adventure, there was a clear arc in Shiro’s character from Point A to Point B. It’s not immediately obvious because there were a few unplanned zigzags in the middle.

In a Den of Geek interview in August 2017, LM and JDS say “We weren’t allowed to from the executives. That’s it. He had to come back. That’s pretty much it. We wanted him to be gone for a much longer period of time and we weren’t allowed to.” He was going to be gone longer. Not that hey never wanted to bring him back. JDS also later in the interview adds “Concessions have to be made and we’re still happy with where the story has gone, it just wasn’t our original idea.”

Leaving aside the fact that they’ve said they’re happy with where the story has gone even if it wasn’t their original idea, the biggest indicator that they knew what they were doing with Shiro was the fact that when you look back at Seasons 3 – 7 and connect all the dots not just in the show itself but in the similarities and references to the original 80s cartoon, there is a clear trajectory in Shiro’s arc that led to him serving as the captain of the Atlas.

Debates on the ethics of the clone merger aside, the end result of the Clone Shiro storyline, when combined with the revelations about Shiro’s illness in Season 7, presents his story from Seasons 3 – 6 as meta commentary on how DOTU adapted two similar-looking GoLion characters into a single person via the character of Sven Holgorsen. (Credit to radioactivesupersonic for that analysis, I did not come up with that): The GoLion version, Takashi Shirogane, died and was replaced by his previously-unknown to the audience identical brother Ryou Shirogane. The DOTU version, Sven, survives and returns to the team after a long absence. Voltron: Legendary Defender manages to combine both versions of the story into a single character with all the relevant memories.  

And I want to expand on the DOTU/GoLion connections some more. In Beast King GoLion, Takashi Shirogane serves as the mentor for Akira Kogane, Keith’s original GoLion counterpart, and pilots the blue lion before his untimely death. Following his introduction later in the series, Ryou Shirogane serves as a key leader in the resistance against the Galra. In DOTU, both Shirogane siblings are adapted into the character of Sven Holgersson, who instead of dying as Takashi did, was sent to a hospital planet to recover, before being recaptured by the Drule (Galra). He escapes with the help of Romelle, and together they lead a significant rebel cell in the fight against the Drule Empire.

And in Voltron: Legendary Defender, Shiro starts off piloting a Voltron lion, before outside circumstances force him to step down from the role. Clone Shiro cannot initially pilot the Black Lion, and so becomes a leader of the Coalition, helping to coordinate between multiple rebel factions. Then Keith leaves the team, Clone Shiro pilots the Black Lion for a while, and then everything in Season 6 happens, and Shiro and his clone are fused into a single consciousness. After returning to Earth, Shiro quickly rises to become one of the highest-ranking people (if not the highest) at the Galaxy Garrison and serves as one of the leaders of the Coalition following the liberation of Earth in Season 7.

Whether other possible storylines for Shiro would have been better, or how well this storyline was pulled off, is a matter of individual opinion. But it is inaccurate to say that the writers had no plan for Shiro when his arc so closely mirrors that of his DOTU counterpart. 

Popular interpretations of the line “I don’t see what’s more fulfilling than being a Paladin” assumed that this meant either Shiro was supposed to be the Black Paladin permanently, or that Clone Shiro would find something that would help him form his own identity. But there are multiple different ways that line can be interpreted, and a lot of fans have interpreted it based on what they wanted to happen, rather than what did happen.

In the context of the finished show – not in hypothetical early season 7 drafts with Black Paladin Shiro that the showrunners alluded to in a post-S7 interview, but the show we have on screen – this line is a type of foreshadowing known as Tempting Fate: where a character makes a hypothetical or rhetorical comment or question and is soon proven wrong.

Lines that typically tempt fate include:

“__ is just a myth” and variations thereof. The myth soon turns out to be completely real.  

“Nothing could stop us now”. Something comes along to stop them.

“That sounds easy”. It turns out to be a lot harder.

“What’s the worst that could happen?” Do I even need to say it? 

“What could be worse then __?” Something turns out to be worse than __.

“Can this day get any worse?” Yes, it can. 

To break down a specific example, let’s take a look at The Incredibles:

On their wedding night, Elastigirl tells her husband that if their marriage is going to work, they need to be ready to support each other through thick and thin, the good times and the bad. To which Mr. Incredible responds:

“We’re superheroes. What could happen?”

We then immediately cut to a newsreel announcement detailing how the lawsuits levied against Mr. Incredible for injuries inflicted in the process of saving people’s lives resulted in the government legislating all superheroes into retirement and forcing Mr. Incredible and his wife to give up crime fighting. 

While the line is typically used for negative consequences, there are examples where the character being proven wrong is a good thing. A common example would be someone saying, “it can’t get any better than this” and then quickly find out that it actually can get even better.

So, when Shiro says “I don’t see what’s more fulfilling than being a Paladin,” narrative convention dictates that by the time the series is over, he will have found something that is more fulfilling to him than being a Paladin.

And in Season 7, he does.

S7E1 A Little Adventure reveals that despite his fame as the youngest pilot to fly a solo mission to space, the Garrison staff had repeatedly doubted him because of his illness. He was seen as a liability, as not being capable of flying the Kerberos mission despite the records he’s broken and the things he’s achieved. Sam Holt had to argue with Sanda on his behalf just for him to be allowed to fly the mission, and even his then boyfriend was telling him, “you can’t do this. You’re too weak. You’re not capable enough for this.” Though Adam didn’t put it in as many words as Sanda did, the message Shiro received was the same.

But S7E11 Trial by Fire is where things come full circle. He’s back on Earth, his illness healed, and he’s literally come back from the dead. With Sanda’s betrayal and Sendak going on the offensive, everyone around him is scrambling and panicked, but when Shiro starts giving orders everyone immediately follows them. No one makes any comment about his rank or his age or his health or his fitness for the job. The man who left home sick and doubted is now the person they all look to for leadership.

At New York Comic Con 2017 a few weeks before the release of Season 4, the showrunners spoke of Shiro’s role in the coming season, saying that with Keith now flying the Black Lion, Shiro needed to adjust to a support role where he isn’t always fighting on the front lines in the thick of the action himself.

Unfortunately, Keith’s VA had schedule conflicts that forced the writers to pause Keith’s leadership development and write him off the team until Season 6 to accommodate the limited time Steven Yeun could make it to the recording studio. As a consequence of Keith’s arc being put on hold, so was Shiro’s, as Keith’s absence forced the writers to put Shiro back in the Black Lion until Keith came back in Season 6.

But what we see of his tenure as the captain of the Atlas in Seasons 7 and 8 lines up as an organic culmination of that arc. And in addition to that particular arc, a recurring theme we’ve seen throughout Shiro’s character development is learning that like Sam Holt told Admiral Sanda in The Last Stand: Part 1, you can’t control every situation. There is repeated pattern across the first seven seasons that because of his illness and his trauma, Shiro has difficulty accepting help from other people and allowing himself to be vulnerable:

S7E1 A Little Adventure: In a flashback to before the Kerberos mission, he tells Adam, “You don’t need to protect me. This is something I need to do for myself.”

S1E9 Crystal Venom: Shiro only starts to grow agitated and directly question Sendak during the memory transfer once Coran and the other Paladins have left. One of the taunts he hears from Sendak is “The others don’t know what you know. They haven’t seen what you’ve seen.”

S2E1 Across the Universe: Compared to his optimism when leading the rest of the team and the way he constantly encourages everyone, Shiro is more flippant and vulnerable with Keith in this episode, particularly in how casually he treats having a glowing wound from Haggar in his side.

S2E3 Shiro’s Escape: When the team questions his decision to look for the mysterious Galra who helped him escape, he overrules their objections and insists that his memory of the event is real despite the Paladins’ valid concerns.

S2E7 Space Mall: Tries to work with the Black Lion to strengthen their bond and drive Zarkon out. When the Lion apparently takes off on its own, he panics at the lack of control and starts demanding the lion turn around. When Zarkon attacks him on the astral plane, Shiro wins by realizing that he needs to trust the Black Lion as a partner instead of using it as a tool.

S3E6 Tailing a Comet: After the trauma of escaping from a Galra laboratory a second time, Shiro is more closed off with Keith compared to their solo interactions in S2E1. He asks Keith “How many times will you have to save me before this is over?” His tone sounds exhausted and resigned, as if he feels he shouldn’t need someone to save him. 

S4E1 Code of Honor: Despite saying S1E4 that “People have to want to be part of a team. They can’t be forced,” Shiro continues trying to force Keith to continue as the Black Paladin despite Keith’s clear reluctance.

S5E3 Postmortem: Shiro argues with the team and leverages his authority as the Black Paladin when they question him about the risks of taking Lotor to the Kral Zera.

S5E4 Kral Zera: When the rest of the team won’t support his decision, Shiro flies Lotor to Fayiv by himself.  

S5E6 White Lion: Shiro attempts to open up to Lance and admits that he hasn’t been feeling like himself lately. 

S6E1 Omega Shield: When the mental link between him and Haggar causes him headaches during the missing, Shiro brushes aside the team’s concern, repeatedly telling them “I’m fine”. Later, he pretty much has a panic attack when Honerva forces her way into Oriande and the backlash reverberates through the link, distracting the paladins at a crucial moment when lives were on the line and their plan required Shiro’s prosthetic hand in order to succeed.

S6E3 Monsters and Mana: Shiro admits at the beginning that he’s “trying to take a mental break”, and says at the end that after playing the game with the team his head “feels so much better.” 

S7E6 The Journey Within: When Lance comments on Shiro just now bringing up a way to recharge the lions, Shiro sarcastically comments that “I guess having my consciousness transplanted from the infinity of Voltron’s inner Quintessence into the dead body of an evil clone of myself has left me a little out of sorts these last few weeks.” This is the most open he’s been about anything bothering him since the end of Season 5, and he’s saying it to the entire team at once and not just Keith or Lance. 

There is a noticeable pattern here: Shiro started the series suffering from PTSD, but kept it hidden from the team, only attempting to deal with his trauma when he was alone. Because of his disease, he had already developed a mentality of “I have to be strong. I need to do this by myself,”by just bottling up his problems so that others don’t see his pain. And once he’s the Black Paladin, expected to be “in control at all times”, he simply continues with that pattern of behavior. The only person he ever allows to see past the level-headed mask he presents to the rest of the team is Keith.

But the events of S3E5 bring further trauma, tearing him from a place of safety and security back into the hands of the people who violated him. After his escape not even Keith is allowed to see past the walls he puts up. From there, his behavior in Seasons 3 – 5 is driven by his need to re-establish that feeling of safety and security that he had back in Seasons 1 – 2.

It’s fitting that the ship Shiro now commands is called the Atlas. In Greek Mythology, Atlas was the titan who held up the sky on his shoulder. Nowadays, it’s used to refer to anyone who carries a heavy burden of any kind. Shiro has been carrying the weight of his trauma since the first episode, channeling his need for control into his work as the Black Paladin. But as S6E1 demonstrated, bottling up his pain and dealing with it alone only created more problems. In order for Shiro to truly heal, he needed to learn to share the burden instead of stoically going it alone.

It reminds me of the stigma that still surrounds mental illness today, but in particular, it reminds me of the damaging idea that someone who has mental health problems is somehow weak for seeking help and not dealing with it on their own. And that is the underlying principle of Shiro’s character arc: that you don’t have to deal with your personal demons alone. That it is not weak to seek help and rely on support from the people around you. I believe a verbal acknowledgement of this was cut from Season 8 amidst all the other edits, but the arc is still there even though it unfortunately wasn’t addressed out loud.

So, despite a clear – albeit tangled in the middle due to circumstances beyond the writers’ control – line for Shiro’s arc leading to where he is in Season 7, why do fans continue to insist that LM and JDS didn’t know what they were doing with him after they brought him back early?

Part of it comes down to the fact that, as I mentioned once in a brief post, the main flaw of the show’s writing is that is sometimes relies on the “show don’t tell” maxim a little too much: all of the details are there, but you don’t always notice them because the narrative doesn’t call attention to them.

The other part is that this fandom has an unfortunate habit of making quick judgements about characters and storylines based on first impressions, building theories and head canons around those impressions, and then dismissing anything that contradicted those theories and headcanons as bad writing or a character being OOC. (Remember all the Lance-obsessed antis who acted like he was so fragile and underappreciated he’d drop dead if he wasn’t constantly being praised? Because I do). And the gaps between season drops didn’t help matters.

Due to the way Seasons 3 – 6 were structured and released, we had almost a full year to get attached to our own headcanons and theories as to what was happening with Shiro and Operation Kuron. Fans who believed that S3-6 Shiro was a clone wrote theory after theory where the current Shiro’s status as a clone was discovered and the clone was deprogrammed and allowed to live his own life and develop into his own person separate from Shiro. While fans who didn’t believe the clone theory dug in their heels and continued to argue against Shiro being a clone.

In the end, both sides were wrong, but everyone came together to cry foul because they thought their respective interpretations were better than what the writers ended up going with. While I guarantee that with this fandom’s history there would almost certainly have been backlash no matter what (and I’ll grant you that the ethics of the clone merger are a little iffy), I think that if Seasons 3 – 6 were released as two full 13 episode seasons in 7 months instead of 4 half-seasons over the course of 10 months, it would have been a lot less severe because both sides of the Clone or Not Clone argument wouldn’t have had as much time to become entrenched.

TL;DR: Contrary to popular belief, the writers and EPs knew what they were doing with Shiro. They managed to combine three different characters across two different versions of the IP into a single character with an arc that mirrored the story of the DOTU character that he was based on. His character development in relation to his PTSD was meant to reject the stigma that people with mental illnesses are somehow weak for needing help and support from the people around them. I don’t speak for all Shiro fans, and we can debate about how well the arc was handled and the quality of it until the end of time. But it’s inaccurate to say that the showrunners were just making stuff up as they went along where Shiro was concerned when there is a clear, if tangled, trajectory from Point A to Point B for his character arc.