#she is such like. a good example of something this franchise was built on. ability to hide herself away but slowly coming to the conclusion

[beforetimes]

i also think it's fair to say that charles was projecting onto erik a tiny bit during that fight on the jet to paris. when he says that erik took raven from him. when you're watching first class it's sort of very clear to see that charles did his share in pushing raven away throughout the film. especially when she's portrayed to be in this space between acceptance and rejection of her mutation. after erik enters her life around the same time she finds more mutants to bond with, she gets positive reinforcement surrounding her blue skin. when before, she asks charles and he sidesteps the question, and hank outwardly rejects her. she was definitely a kid at the beginning of the film before transitioning into someone who decided she deserved more than to be hated for who she was at the end. and in that process left the person who had raised her but also never seemed to see things the way she did; see her the way raven saw herself. becoming mystique and shedding the name raven was a way to divorce herself from charles' influence but! erik still played his fair part in bringing her over to his side. both charles and erik pushed her away from home and both charles and erik needed to work together to bring her back to her family

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

On the matter of the Miraculous as not just a magic tool but a jewel where “a magic being fuses with you and you become one”, what is your take on the powers the Miraculous give and how it plays into the whole abstract concept idea the kwamis personify? I’m a bit curious.

I know this may seem like an odd question, but really looking into the idea of “a human being is chosen by a mystic secret society because THEY in particular are the one who best embodies and upholds this concept at the forefront of their lives” as the basis of your magic system, it becomes apparent that Miraculous has a really barebones and literal approach to the idea.

One concept, one power (if you ignore the main heroine and villain lol) and it’s the most literal expression of the idea possible. Well, it is until it isn’t. I’m looking at you, ROOSTER. Dragon, you’re on thin ice because you’re technically able to spin the idea of your power being a play on the phrase “perfect storm” but I know that’s just wishful thinking on my part.

I understand why they chose to do it the way they did for their target audience (aka children). But I also find that using ABSTRACT concepts in the most literal and straight forward way possible is also a MASSIVE wasted opportunity from both a lore perspective and a storytelling one.

What about more symbolic or metaphorical means of showing those concepts and how they can play and be used in our everyday, mundane lives? What about using those concepts to help showcase their “moral lesson of the week” and letting it act as the lesson kids takes away from the episode because the show was made for kids?

Like for example, Marinette sees two friends get into an argument and are no longer on speaking terms. After hearing both of their stories however, she comes to learn that the argument stemmed from good but mishandled and misunderstood intention. From her desire to help those friends make up and reveal that good intention, she can use the power of Creation to create a magic bond between the two friends and connect their hearts to help them communicate more honestly and freely. Despite being a superpower, it acts as a lesson to show the need for mediation skills and promotes honest communication in friendships.

Another could be Adrien finding someone that is plagued with doubt and fear over wanting to do something they truly want to do but are too afraid to go through with it. Paralyzed by this fear, they choose to turn away from something they truly want to do and make themselves miserable due to it. Chat Noir then could use the power of Destruction to quash that fear holding them back and empower them, but also act as a lesson in the importance of encouraging others and the need for strong support networks in your life.

I absolutely love the idea of using those abstract concepts the kwamis embody to help guide the choices the Miraculous holders make and not only be used to showcase and promote growth in themselves but in others and the world itself. I think by leaning heavily into this idea, it could tremendously expand on the importance and gravity of the power of the kwami, the bond a Miraculous holder shares with their kwami, and just what wielding that Miraculous entails.

I know you’ve talked about how you feel as if the Black Cat should have the ability to purify and not the Ladybug because purification is the act of destroying or removing taint or corruption, so this ask is very much built off of this idea and I want to know how far you would willingly push this idea of what it means to wield the power of Creation, Destruction, Illusion, Transmission, and so forth.

Sorry for kinda the long ask, but I wanted to try and explain my question in the most easy to understand way possible lol.

I think I get what you're asking and it's an interesting idea. The first show I thought of after reading this was Winx club because that franchise does a lot of things with abstract concepts like belief and harmony leading to magic powers, but the concept is far from unique to Winx. A lot of magical girl shows lean into more abstract ways of granting magical powers because magical girl shows tend to lean hard on the whole Power of Friendship thing and friendship is an abstract concept, so it makes sense to pair it with other abstract things.

I personally wouldn't go this abstract route for Miraculous simply because it's such a massive deviation from canon and - when I'm coming up with ideas on here or writing fanfic - I do try to be as canon loyal as I can so that my stuff feels like an adaptation of canon and not a whole new show. Adaptation is an art, not a science, so there are no hard rules here, but my general approach is to try to make a bunch of little tweaks instead of big, massive shifts like you proposed. Those tweaks add up to massive shifts, but it's more of a gradual over time thing than a glaring, right from the start change. Or, at least, that's what I hope I'm doing!

That doesn't make your idea bad! Far from it. It would be a way to fix the wonky lore around the Kwamis because you are absolutely right to say that the powers they grant are often far too rigid for how abstract some of the associated concepts are. Perfection being a play on a perfect storm is one of the worst offenders in my book because sure it's fun and all, but when you try to match it with the very clear powers granted from concepts like Destruction it's feels weird and off. It's almost as if the writers are mixing a soft magic system with a hard magic system.

In case you don't know those terms, here's a real quick primer:

Soft magic systems are systems where the magic isn't clearly defined. They work best in stories where the specifics of how and why the magic works don't matter. Think Cinderella, where it doesn't really matter why the fairy godmother can do what she does because the magic is just an excuse to get Cinderella to the ball.

Hard magic systems are systems where the magic is clearly defined and basically works like a science. These types of systems work best in stories where the main characters are actively wielding magic and the way they wield that magic matters because it's how the writers establish narrative stakes. This is what Miraculous is theoretically doing with things like its five minute timers and single use powers. The problem is that the writers often ignore their established rules for the sake of plot and that's a terrible way to tell a story. It leads to all kinds of nonsense like the aforementioned mismatch between the kwamis and their associated Forces.

The way that I'd fix the Kwami issue is to just change what Force each Kwami is tied to. Abstract concepts are out, hard concepts are in and really always were because Creation and Destruction may have a broad range, but they work as hard concepts. I'd then do some relatively minor tweaks to the powers that each kwami grants in order to make everything align. (My peacock and dragon are arguably pretty different from canon, but generally speaking, my tweaks are more along the lines of the purification example you brought up in your ask).

But that's all about trying to fix canon and canon is a broken mess, so I don't blame you if you say, "Nah, I'd rather explore this fun idea I had to drastically overhaul the magic system and the way akuma fights work." And yes, this magic system change would also require making some pretty big changes to how fights work since akumas aren't well suited to the idea in their current form. You'd want to move away from the breaking the item path that canon favors and make it so that every akuma fight ended in a person rejecting their akuma. Which canon does do, but it's weird and I don't like it. When we first saw it, it was a big deal special event, but since then they've cheapened it by having way too many people be able to do it, so having it be the standard path instead of this overused deviation would be a good way to fix that. It would also allow for an easier lesson of the day if that's your kind of thing.

There's one other thing this could fix: the character bloat. You may have actually brought up one of the only ways to make a team of 18 heroes work. If we have each hero be chosen for their unique tie to an abstract force, then you can get some really niche problems that only they can solve. I'm not sure how well the abstract forces chosen by canon work for that idea, but the general concept is the core of plenty of successful properties.

I already mentioned Winx, but the 2010 version of My Little Pony also played with this idea by having each of the six main heroes be tied to an abstract concept (generosity, honesty, laughter, kindness, loyalty, magic). If you did something like that where the core team had broadly applicable powers while the side heroes had really niche ones, then I think the temp heroes could have actually been something great! Right now, most of their powers are too broadly applicable to the point where it's weird that they're not called on more and it would be nice to see that fixed. (Luka should be at every fight and you cannot change my mind on this. It's ridiculous that Marinette somehow magically knows which fights will have them fail and is able to always call him in at the right time, but that's a rant for another day.)

In summary, I like this idea and would watch a show with it/read a fic with it, but I think it's too deviant from canon to fall into the "fix-it" category. Feel free to (kindly) chime in if you disagree!

[0aurelion-sol0]

"There's no place like gnome."

Stranger Things 3: The Game.

Gnomes 1-10. 🧙‍♂️

IT'S FINALLY HERE!

It's no secret that the Duffers take a lot of inspirations from Pop Culture. From the most well known movies to the more obscure comics, they are always able to sneak a reference somewhere everytime. And they are also able to make it connected to the story.

I've bragged about how the Stranger Things expanded universe in media is one of the best out there compared to many others. I think that the Duffers, the writers or people in the highest places of the marketing are really paying attention to what comes out of the ST franchise because there is no way to have such content with so many details without someone looking into them.

And ST3: The Game is a very good example of that.

So let's start! The first 10 Gnomes out of 50 that you have to find in the game.

BE AWARE THAT THERE ARE SPOILERS BELOW!

"There's elements that could please those who makes metas/analyzes or theories. Especially things related to possible future plot points, easter eggs, references in previous seasons mainly season 3 like unsolved mysteries or unanswered questions and for future seasons such as season 4 like foreshadowing or teasers, trailers or as of lately the sneak peek."

If you have anything you'd like to add, might think I have missed or think it might be referencing something else don't hesitate to share it by commenting or reblogging.

(Say thanks to @hawkinsschoolcounselor for having helped me with some of them. )

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Gnome #1: Johnny

"He's here... with an axe."

Overall plot:

"The film's central character is Jack Torrance, an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker of the isolated historic Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies. Wintering over with Jack are his wife, Wendy Torrance, and young son, Danny Torrance. Danny is gifted with "the shining", psychic abilities that enable him to see into the hotel's horrific past. The hotel cook, Dick Hallorann, also has this ability and is able to communicate with Danny telepathically. The hotel had a previous winter caretaker who went insane and killed his family and himself. After a winter storm leaves the Torrances snowbound, Jack's sanity deteriorates due to the influence of the supernatural forces that inhabit the hotel, placing his wife and son in danger."

So I assume a lot of you know The Shining by Stanley Kubrick. A movie which was adapted from the novel of the same name by Stephen King in 1977.

There's a lot of things that could have served as an inspiration for ST.

A boy/child who has psychic abilities = Eleven has psychic abilities such as telekinesis. Will has his True Sight which consist in seeing what the MF was seeing and feeling.

Now there's also the theme of family and parenthood that is also a big theme in Stranger Things. Especially abusive parenthood such as Brenner, Lonnie and even Hopper to a smaller degree.

In Shining, Jack tries to kill his family with an axe due to supernatural forces that are in the hotel but there's a difference between King and Kubrick. While King specifically said that Jack was heavily influenced by the Hotel, Kubrick shows that Jack always had that sinister violence in him even before they arrived at the hotel.

It's interesting to draw a parallel to Billy and Will, both characters called William who tried to kill their families and other people while being possessed. But Billy compared to Will was shown to have been abusive even before that. Dacre Montgomery also said that he was inspired by Jack Nicholson's performance in the Shining for his character Billy.

Joyce and Jonathan were shown to get ready to fight the monsters by taking an axe.

It's also interesting to note that Jack dies in the snow while a blizzard is happening outside the hotel. Much like the storm of the Mindflayer who is in the Upside Down, the same Mindflayer who "likes it cold". While in the book, the Overlook explodes and burn.

(Cold vs Fire much like everything Upside Down related not liking Fire.)

Also "Johnny" = "Jonathan", it's kind of similar and Jonathan did wield an axe before. Maybe this is teasing parts of Jonathan storyline next seasons ?

The gnome was also found in Mike's basement, Mike who wants to be a writer when he's older just like Jack.

Let's just hope that Jonathan and Mike don't get the same fate as Jack.

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Gnome #2: Christine

"Two bright, beaming lights for eyes."

Overall plot:

"Written by Bill Phillips and based on Stephen King's 1983 novel of the same title, the movie follows the changes in the lives of Arnie Cunningham, an awkward and unpopular teenager, his friends, his family, and his teenage enemies in Rockbridge, California after Arnie buys a classic red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine, licence number CQB 241, a car that seems to have a jealous, possessive personality – and a mind of its own, which has a bad influence on Arnie. After working on a car in a junkyard owned by Will Darnell, Arnie drops his glasses, starts dressing like a 1950's greaser and develops an arrogant and paranoid personality. He than decides to invite and date the most beautiful girl in highschool, Leigh, who will soon become the next victim of Christine."

I was actually quite surprised by how this story parallels Stranger Things a lot.

First off, Christine is very much like The Mindflayer, a dangerous supernatural being set out to destroy anyone who is in her way, the people who tries to take the things that she thinks belongs to her or threatens her. This is very much relevant to The Mindflayer who after being hurt by the Fire created by the Hawkins Lab was upset and attacked everyone he could. Or as Will putted "Not me, everyone else."

This is very much like Christine who tried to kill Leigh because she was taking her place in the life of Arnie. Christine also tried to kill the bullies of Arnie who after a conflit with him, tried to destroy the car which angered Christine heavily.

The Mindflayer has been described someone who views himself as superior to other species and wants to conquer them, even if it's not his real "goal", the description fits anyone who is possessive and paranoid.

Both the MF and Christine are associated with the color red. Red storm = red color of the car.

Arnie ressembles Will and Billy alot. Will is an awkward and unpopular teenager who after being possessed by the Mindflayer became very different and more violent. Billy was shown to be paranoid, jealous, violent and his look even ressembles the one Arnie takes after repairing Christine.

Both of these boys have the same name as Will Darnell, the owner of a junkyard. Just like the boys in Season 1 who takes shelter in a junkyard, or in season 2 where they fight the Demodogs.

Billy dies, killed by the Mindflayer just like Arnie who was completely possessed by Christine who tried to kill Leigh and Dennis, his best friend after they tried to destroy the car when they realised the supernatural nature of it.

Billy's car ressembles a lot Christine with those lights on. Especially with shots like in the Void or at Starcourt during the night.

Chrissy, a new character that will be in season 4, the most popular girl in Hawkins High like Leigh, has a name that is the diminutive of Christine. It is said that under the perfect surface lies a dark secret. Much like the car Christine, while a beauty is actually a dangerous supernatural being. We'll see if the both of them actually connects in the show.

Also it is set in California where Billy and Max come from and has been rumored by many people due to set leaks (The Surfer Boy Pizza Van.) that it is where the Byers went. I won't get into it in this post but this could be a tease or hint of that IF the set leaks ARE true and not fake to mess with people and the fandom.

Arnie also dies in a car crash having been completely possessed by the evil powers of Christine which is something we see in the sneak peek of ST4. It also reminds of Carrie who has a bully named Chris who she kills in a car crash with her boyfriend Billy aka William.

So will someone die from that car crash ? Who is it ? Chrissy, Joyce, Lonnie ? We can only speculate.

The gnome is also found outside the Wheeler's house where Karen lives near the community pool where Billy works and where the car of Billy is located during the first few chapters of the game. Again, a "bad boy" hitting on the beautiful girl in town. (with a lot of creepy subtext all over it.)

_____________________________

Gnome #3: Doc

"Always mumbling something about being late."

Overall plot:

"Set in 1985, in the town of Hill Valley, California, the story follows Marty McFly, a teenager accidentally sent back to 1955 in a time-traveling DeLorean automobile built by his eccentric scientist friend Doctor Emmett "Doc" Brown. Trapped in the past, Marty inadvertently prevents his future parents' meeting—threatening his very existence—and is forced to reconcile the pair and somehow get back to the future."

So I don't think I need to explain why this is here given how much it has been shown and mentioned in season 3. But few things are interesting here, the fact that California is mentioned is a big deal for me again. I know you are aware of the set leaks just as I am aware, if we can trust them than this could be a hint of that location.

Next, we have the theme of Time. Now ever since ST4 was announced, clocks and times have been a key feature in the promotion. Who know what this might mean but again, we're not going to develop that in the post.

There is also the whole funny scenes of Robin realising that indeed Marty's mother had tried to "bang" her own son. Now given the nature of the shown, certain images in the show during certain events and certain stories, you know to what it connects and to which theories it connects. Won't develop further on it but it can be used as an element that can go into those theories.

The gnome is also found outside of Starcourt Mall where Robin and Steve talk about "Back to the Future". It is also where Billy has his "Back to te Future" moment with his car going extremely fast just like the DeLorean.

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Gnome #4: Indiana

"Master of Adventure."

Overall plot:

"After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by desperate villagers to find a mystical stone and rescue their children from a Thuggee cult practicing child slavery, black magic, and ritualistic human sacrifice in honor of the goddess, Kali."

Fun fact, on Twitter for ST3 promo, a parody poster of this same movie has been posted here of the official ST account.

Jim is obviously Indiana Jones, the look speaks for itself and when he is in the Tunnels in season 2, there's a lot of Indiana Jones imagery.

And of course Kali as 008, a Hindu goddess but as we will see here, it parallels more the Mindflayer.

In 1935, Indiana Jones survives a murder attempt by Lao Che, a crime boss in Shanghai who has hired him to retrieve the remains of Emperor Nurhaci. With his young orphaned Chinese sidekick, Short Round, and the nightclub singer, Willie Scott, in tow, Indy flees Shanghai on a cargo aircraft. While the three of them are asleep, the pilots (employed by Lao Che) dump the fuel and escape via parachute, leaving the plane to crash over the Himalayas. The three narrowly manage to survive by jumping out of the plane on an inflatable raft.

(I wonder if this could be something we see in season 4 with Hopper where he tries to escape on a plane and ends up crashing somewhere or is betrayed by someone who he asked the help of. Now it's a trio and in season 3, Jim, Joyce, Alexei and Murray are the main group that fits this trio. Jim for all the fighting and crazy shit, Joyce and Alexei are kind of like Short Round, they are the sidekicks of Hopper. Murray the role of Willie Scott since she speaks Chinese and him Russian and that Jim just like Indy finds annoying sometimes. Alexei is also kind of like Willie since he kinda goes along with them.

But if we also look at season 2, El is alot like Short Round since she is kind of an orphan too and has a father figure later on. It could also be Will since Hopper is with him a lot of times through season 2. Also Willie did felt out of her element like Alexei because of course he is Russian. Willie in itself doesn't have a lot in common with Joyce but still it's another connection to Will since she has a name close to the one of her sons. Something that does fit a bit more is Jim and Hopper both escaping death, of course Hopper at the end of season 3 but also during season 3 at the farm where he's being shot at by Gregori and than the car doesn't work and explodes and they have to make their way through the forest.

Willie Scott could also be referenced when El disguise herself as this pretty blonde girl in season 1.

Now however, Scoop Troops does fit certain parts of these trio. All the fighting with Steve like Indiana Jones but Robin got his brain because she cracked the code. Dustin and Erica are kinda like short round (especially Dustin who has kind of the same hat as short round.) and are referenced with all the others as children by Robin. Steve doesn't feel in his element like Willie with the three of them who are nerds just like Erica who also doesn't want to accept it. And Robin just like Willie speaks some languages.)

They ride down the mountain slopes and fall into a raging river, eventually arriving at the village of Mayapore in northern India. The villagers plead for their aid in retrieving the sacred stone (shivalinga) stolen from their shrine, along with their missing children, by evil forces in the nearby Pankot Palace. Indy agrees to do so, hypothesizing that the stone is one of the five Sankara stones given by the gods to help humanity fight evil. (It's kinda like Alexei who turns his back on the Russians, for his life of course and agrees to help Hopper close the gate to save Hawkins and their kids before monsters start to appear or may attack one of their kids. Now the stone could be something similar to the promethium or the two keys who opens the gate and is a highly valuable ressource. It also may be the Flayed who are needed to create the monster for the Mindflayer.)

The trio receive a warm welcome at Pankot Palace and are allowed to stay for the night as guests, attending a lavish, but revolting, banquet hosted by the young Maharajah. The officials rebuff Indy's theory that the Thuggee cult is responsible for their troubles. Later that night, Indy is attacked by an assassin. After Indy kills him, he discovers a series of tunnels hidden behind a statue and sets out to explore them, overcoming a number of booby-traps.

(This could be like when Hopper, Joyce and Murray disguised themselves as Russian soldiers but was than discovered by Grigori who attacks them.

The tunnels could be both groups discovering that there is a secret russian base underground and a gate which explains why there are monsters again in Hawkins but it also be the Source, Brimborn Steel Works, where the Mindflayer is lurking underground where he has cult-like followers who makes sacrifices for him to grow bigger and bigger.

It's also like the Tunnels in season 2 who explains why the soil of Hawkins seemed to literally rot. )

The trio reach an underground temple where the Thuggees worship Kali with human sacrifice. They discover that the Thuggees now possess three of the Sankara stones and have enslaved the children to search for the last two, hidden in the palace catacombs. As Indy tries to retrieve the stones, he, Willie, and Shorty are captured. Thuggee high priest Mola Ram forces Indy to drink a potion that puts him into a trance-like state in which he mindlessly serves the cult. (It's very much like Robin and Steve who after discovering the gate are catched by the Russians and than drugged to answer their questions. But also like the Flayed who drinks the chemicals and serves the Mindflayer like a mindless cult.)

Willie is prepared for sacrifice, while Shorty is put to work in the mines with the other children. Shorty escapes and returns to the temple, where he first frees Indy and, later, the Maharajah from the effects of the potion. Indy saves Willie and retrieves the stones. After freeing the children, Indy fights a hulking overseer and leaves him to be killed by a rock crusher. (Basically Dustin saves Steve and Robin. Willie being prepared for sacrifice is kind of like El prepared for sacrifice by Billy in 3x08 but also frees Billy from the effects of the Mindflayer by making him remember his mother, a pretty blonde woman like Willie and sacrifices himself. And Hopper fights Gregori, a "hulking overseer" and kills him.)

The trio escape from the temple, pursued by Thuggees, and barely escape Mola Ram's attempt to flood them out. They are again ambushed by Mola Ram and his henchmen on a rope bridge above a crocodile-infested river. Indy cuts the bridge, causing several of the henchmen to fall to the crocodiles and leaving the survivors to hang on for their lives. As Mola Ram and Indy struggle, Indy invokes the name of Shiva, causing the stones to glow red-hot and burn through Indy's satchel. Two of them fall out; Mola Ram tries to catch the third, but burns his hand and falls from the bridge and into the river, where he, too, is eaten by the crocodiles. (This can be connected to all the kids fighting in Hawkins with the Spider Monster. But the bridge could also fit for the key in the secret base where Hopper and Gregori fights. The gruesome death of Mola Ram is similar to the gruesome death that Gregori has.)

Indy catches the stone safely and climbs up just as a company of British Indian Army riflemen, sent by the Maharajah, arrive and open fire against the Thuggees to drive them away; the surviving Thuggees are soon cornered and arrested by more soldiers. Indy, Willie, and Shorty return safely to Mayapore with the stone and the missing children. (While it may end well in the movie, we know Billy and multiple people die, the Thuggees unlike the Russians have been captured while the Russians where all able to flee before the US Army arrives and Hopper is presumed dead. Only the children in both stories are alive but are probably traumatized for life.)

All in all we can see that this movie might have had a big influence on the plot of season 3 through many characters and more. It may have some hints about possible events for Hopper in season 4 or even beyond but that's about it for. It's a nice package of comparaisons and references though.

The gnome is found in the Hawkins Community Pool where Billy is. The same Billy who obeys mindlessly the Mindflayer and sacrifices people to it. Just like the Thuggees with Kali.

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Gnome #5: Chunk

"Posed in some odd dance maneuver."

Overall plot:

"In the film, a band of kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, attempt to save their homes from foreclosure and, in doing so, they discover an old treasure map that takes them on an adventure to unearth the long-lost fortune of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. During the adventure, they are chased by a family of criminals who want the treasure for themselves."

So first, let's get this out of the way, Sean Astin who play Bob Newby, our beloved who plays a character named Mikey.

The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure comedy film co-produced and directed by Richard Donner from a screenplay by Chris Columbus, based on a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. In the film, kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, attempt to save their homes from foreclosure and, in doing so, they discover an old treasure map that takes them on an adventure to unearth the long-lost fortune of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. During the adventure, they are chased by a family of criminals who want the treasure for themselves.

I wonder if this might hint at some Season 4 plot right here. The Hawkins gang faces the threat of Hawkins becoming a literal ghost down and might need to find something to save it. Also Willy like William, again Will is still there.

The Goonies include optimist lead Goonie Mikey Walsh, his older brother Brandon, the inventive Data, the talkative Mouth, and the overweight klutz Chunk.

Rummaging through the Walshes' attic, they come across a 1632 doubloon and an old treasure map purporting to lead to the treasure of legendary pirate "One-Eyed Willy", believed to be located somewhere nearby. Mikey considers One-Eyed Willy to be the original Goonie. (It kinda reminds me of Mike who got mad at Max in season 2 and told her they didn't need another party member. And he mentionned Will first right after him.)

The kids overpower and bind Brandon and make their way to an abandoned restaurant on the coast that coincides with the map; Brandon soon follows alongside Andy, a cheerleader with a crush on him ( there has been cheerleaders that have been reported in season 4 such as Chrissy.); and Stef, Andy's friend. The group quickly discovers the derelict restaurant is a hideout of the Fratelli crime family: Francis, Jake, and their mother. (Maybe it is both a reference to the Russians in season 3 who have a hideout under the mall who have many restaurants. Or the Lab who OBVIOUSLY does a lot of illegal activities. )

The Goonies find a tunnel in the basement and follow it (like the tunnels made by the Mindflayer in season 2), but when Chunk flags down a motorist to go to the sheriff’s station, he gets abducted by the assailants and imprisoned with their hulking, deformed, younger brother Sloth. (This is obviously like Dustin who befriends Dart in season 2, a literal Demogorgon in the making.)

The Fratellis interrogate Chunk until he reveals where the Goonies have gone, and begin pursuit. Chunk is left behind with Sloth, but befriends him. After Sloth frees both of them, Chunk calls the sheriff, and both follow the trail of the Fratellis. (This is very reminiscent of Hopper in season 1 who gets interrogated by Lab agents or Steve and Robin by the Russians.)

The Goonies evade several deadly booby traps along the tunnels, while staying ahead of the Fratellis. Finally, they reach the grotto where Willy's pirate ship, the Inferno, is anchored. (Will also has a ship, the rainbow ship he drew for Joyce, also Inferno literally means Hell just like what Hawkins has been called.)

The group discovers the ship is filled with treasure, and they start filling their pockets, but Mikey warns them not to take any on a set of scales in front of Willy, considering that to be their tribute to him. As they leave the ship, the assailants appear and strip them of their loot. They start to bind the Goonies and make them walk the plank, until Chunk arrives with Sloth and distracts the assailants long enough for the Goonies to jump overboard and swim to safety. (It's the opposite of the season 2 finale, where Dustin has to distract Dart so that the other could pass through the tunnels.)

The Fratellis proceed to grab all the treasure they can, including those on Willy's scales; this triggers another booby trap that causes the grotto to cave in. With Sloth's help, the Goonies and Fratellis barely escape.

The two groups emerge on Astoria's beach, where they reunite with the Goonies' families and the police. The Fratellis are arrested, but Chunk prevents Sloth from also being taken; he invites Sloth to live with him, which Sloth accepts. ("Unfortunately", Dart compared to Sloth probably died.)

As the kids describe their adventure to their parents, the Walshes' housekeeper, Rosalita, discovers that Mikey's marble bag is filled with gems he took from the ship and had not been seized by the Fratellis. Mikey's father triumphantly rips up the foreclosure papers, declaring they have enough money to negate the foreclosure. As the Goonies celebrate, they see the Inferno, having broken free of the grotto, sailing off on its own in the distance. (Could it be hinting at a possible happy ending for Stranger Things ?)

So Fratellis, is similar to fratello which means "brother, fellow, neighbor" which perhaps could be a reference to the Mindflayer who is kind of our neighbor since he is basically in the same places but in the Upside Down. The Mindflayer also has been paralleled to Billy and other abusive father figures. Billy who is the brother of Max. He has also been paralleled to Kali through his anger and him attacking people who hurted him or might hurt him. Could in itself The Mindflayer should be taken or seen as some sort of family figure ? Maybe him being always associated with Will The Wise especially in 2x04 or someone who has the name Will like Billy is a connection. The same Billy who also parallels Russians who just like the Fratellis have secret hideouts.

Though the Fratellis are more motivated by greed which fits Brenner, Lonnie (who tried to use his son's death to gain money.) or Russians most.

Now Willy, Willy is a captain. Maybe it could be hinting at the fact that Will has more importance to the story than we think. There's also Inferno, "Hell" which is Hawkins but also the name of the ship. And Will has a rainbow ship... Could Hawkins be the ship of Will where his adventures are taking place ?

As for the dance... well as you've seen upper in the post: it's the "Truffle Shuffle Dance". It's something that Chunk has to do before entering Mikey's house. It's similar to what Dustin do at the beginning of season 1 to the bullies when he makes his bones crack due to his medical condition, cleidocranial dysplasia.

As for where this gnome is located, it's in Weathertop where Cerebro is located which is fitting since Dustin has a lot of Goonies as inspiration for his character.

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Gnome #6: Elvis

"He's not dead!"

"Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), also known simply as Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century. His energized interpretations of songs and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, led him to both great success and initial controversy." - Wikipedia.

It is a lot known that people in the 80's thought that Elvis Presley was still alive due to his status and the aura he had as a celebrity. However, no matter how appealing this myth may be, he died of an excessive usage of prescription drugs which reminds me of Nancy who said she thought Tom was on drugs when he fired her and Jonathan while he an the Flayed were drinking chemicals. He also died in 1977, the same year "Heroes" by David Bowie came out which is a song that was used two times when we thought a character died when he was actually alive which are Will and Hopper. Will and Hopper both have a lot of rock in their Spotify playlist.

Also, I personally think that Steve has kind of an Elvis Presley aura to him especially in season 1. After all, Steve has a nickname "King Steve" and Elvis Presley is often nicknamed "The King" and both were popular with girls.

Fun fact: Dacre Montgomery who plays Billy who literally becomes the new "King" of Hawkins will play in the biographical music drama "Elvis" about Elvis Presley where he will play a character called "Steve Binder".

Also actor David Harbour also got married with singer Lily Allen by Elvis in Las Vegas.

It's also found hidden behind bushes near the Public Library. Maybe indicating that Elvis is still out there in the world and hiding.

Which also may be a reference to Brenner who has a similar haircut but also about the novel "Suspicious Minds", a prequel of ST taking place in the Lab when Brenner was doing his sinister experiments which is the same title as one of the songs of Elvis. Like Elvis, Brenner is still out there, hiding in Hawkins.

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Gnome #7: Jack

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull gnome."

Again another reference to Shining. So what you are seeing here is a proverb, it means:  "It means that without time off from work, a person becomes both bored and boring."

In Shining, it represents Jack's slow descent into madness. But it could be a reference to Joyce, Jonathan and Nancy who all work their asses off and don't take a lot of time for themselves and so don't have the time to explore anything else than work which also cause for them not to be there when Will got kidnapped. It may also represent Jonathan's words to Nancy in season 1 where he "called out" the boring life she will have and that she will live like her parents so in this case the proverb becomes about societal norms.

Mike just like Jack is an aspiring writer, Mike just like other members of his family falls into these societal norms that are expected like work and overworking in this instance which makes them boring in the eyes of people like Jonathan. "No play" may also reference D&D which Mike started to ignore in season 3 and worried more pointless and superficial things.

Again, hope it doesn't foreshadow anything for these two characters.

This gnome is found in the Library which is fitting considering Jack wants to be a writer.

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Gnome #8: Flynn (Flynn Rider from "Tangled" (2010))

"Looks like he rides well."

Overall plot of Tangled (2010):

"The film tells the story of Rapunzel, a lost, young princess with magical long blonde hair who yearns to leave her secluded tower. Against her abusive foster mother's wishes who kidnappee her when she was young, she accepts the aid of an intruder to take her out into the world which she has never seen."

This story is literally what the boys was arguing about at the end of season 1.

1)The lost knight...

Flynn Rider is actually the son of a king and queen that were from a kingdom that got destroyed by a powerful opal. He was evacuated and placed in an orphanage. He made his reputation as thief.

So Mike and El both parallels this guy, well Mike is a palladin in D&D and he is the son of a wealthy family so he is basically a night. El however also lost her parents like him and has more attributes of a knight in season 1 than Mike.

Flynn is arrogant, which Mike can be a bit sometimes but the both of them can be extremely courageous and care a lot about the people they care about though they are not very strong, nor athletic. Maybe Flynn a bit more.

Also fun coincidence Flynn = Finn, the name of the actor who plays Mike. (almost the same name).

Both him and El run into each other in the woods. Just like Flynn who discover Rapunzel while trying to enter Rapunzel's tower but is knocked out by her who is none other than the...

2)The proud princess...

Well first Rapunzel = Eleven. Both of these girls have magical powers and are used by an abusive and evil parental figure who needs them for their own interest, Mother Gothel used the powers of Rapunzel to stay young forever (like an addiction, a drug) and Martin Brenner aka "Papa". They are both locked away somewhere. El in the lab and Rapunzel in the tower which they both seeked to escape out of. Both believed that these parental figures loved them while it was not true. El also has long blond hair in season 1 like Rapunzel. And both quickly form a relationship with a boy they just met. Both don't know who their real parents are and wants to find them. While Rapunzel has long blonde hair, El had a shaved head.

Also in season 2, El is locked in a cabin in the woods because of Hopper because he believe it is not safe out there which is exactly what Mother Gothel tells Rapunzel. Just like her El disobeys and seeks to discover who her true parents are.

Rapunzel seeks to know what are those floating lights that always appear on her birthday, it is actually her parents who are the king and queen of a kingdom not so far away that do that every year hoping one day she will come back to her. She is a "lost princess". It is very similar to Terry Ives who was communicating through the lights to El.

Rapunzel's power comes out of something that is also connected to something famous in ST.

3) Weird flowers in the cave...

Rapunzel's power come from a flower called "Sundrop flower". = Sunflower which is said by Terry Ives.

This flower can pretty much heal anything including mortal wounds. The Queen got pregnant with Rapunzel but was also terribly sick so she took this flower to heal herself and while doing so, Rapunzel got this ability.

This is very reminiscent of Terry Ives who was pregnant with El and took part in the MKUltra experiences that gave her these powers including certain drugs. She is also "ill" in a way as she is now stuck in a loop. At least from what we saw.

But Rapunzel also parallels another character.

Will Byers. Will could communicate through lights to his mother, just like the parents of Rapunzel and Terry Ives.

The weird flowers could be referencing the sort of vines that entered inside of him in the Upside Down which gave him his "now-memories".

Both had abusive parental figure that would lock them somewhere for whatever reason. (Lonnie with Will in his trunk.)

(Also Hopper may have tried to separate Mike and El but he wasn't like what a Lonnie or Brenner would have been. This is why yes, the situation in season 2 parallels but Hopper truly wished good for El while Brenner and Mother Gothel didn't care for any of these two.)

Same is for Lonnie, he doesn't care about Will.

Since Will is a cleric, both him and Rapunzel have the same time of power. Powers that El doesn't have:

To heal the sick and injured

To revive the dead

To work as a shield

Given this story, it may hint at the fact that Brenner and Lonnie may try to take El and Will for their own greed and purposes.

Since Rapunzel parallels both Will and El, you know what that means for Flynn who parallels Mike.

Flynn in the movie is stabbed by Mother Gothel and dies before cutting the hair of Rapunzel killing Mother Gothel in the process. Rapunzel mourns him and one of his tears heal him.

If Flynn parallels Mike, than something bad could happen to him. If Will does have powers and has feelings for Mike, a supposed death may reveal his powers.

And if he has the same powers as his cleric role, than he could heal those who get hurt or even bring the dead back to life.

If Lonnie sees Mike around Will, given he is homophobic. He may try to hurt him so that he doesn't go near Will again which could lead to him being in grave danger.

Of course all of that is just speculation.

This gnome was found on the parking lot of Starcourt where El decided to break up with Mike and we saw Will smiling in the background.

Also I don't know but... "Looks like he rides well", I mean there's certain undertones to that which are... I don't know how to process that but from what you've just read, Mike apparently rides well. I mean I have nothing against gay sex jokes but still...

Even if it's unintentional, it's how it'll sound on the internet.

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Gnome #9: David

"At 399, he's the oldest gnome around."

So this gnome was already in the first ST official mobile game. And this reminds me a lot of The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit but also and of course; Dungeons & Dragons.

The World of David the Gnome, originally titled David, el Gnomo (also known as David, the Gnome), is a Spanish animated television series based on the children's book The Secret Book of Gnomes, by the Dutch author Wil Huygen and illustrator Rien Poortvliet. The series was originally created in Spain by BRB Internacional (who were also responsible for the Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds franchise (Like Dart in season 2 and Mike, Lucas and Dustin where very much like the Three Musketeers in season 1.) and other cartoons such as Bobobobs and Around the World with Willy Fog)

The series presents the gnomes as a kind species, of 15 centimetres (6 inches) of height, and between 250 and 300 grams (8 and 10 ounces) of weight depending on gnome body mass. According to their habitat, different types of gnomes are distinguished: the ones of the forest, the ones of the garden, the ones of the farm, the ones of the house, the ones of the dunes, those of Siberia (David = David Harbour = Hopper = Hopper is in Russia), and nomadic "gypsy" gnomes (commonly looked down upon by other gnomes). A gnome's lifespan is usually 400 years, though there is one example of a couple in the Balkans living 550 years.

Gnomes such as the main characters live in pairs in comfortable caves or holes under trees [kinda like Hobbits] (in their case in the company of a pair of mice and a cricket). Their diet is mostly vegetarian. They are helped by the animals of the forest (kinda like Radagast who is the password to Castle Byers who is located in the woods) when travelling long distances or when they need to arrive quickly at a specific location. Gnomes work in various ways to repair the damage inevitably caused by humans. They also have the power of telepathy and mind control. (kinda like El or the Mindflayer, or even Galadriel in The Lord Of The Rings.)

Their main enemies are the trolls, malevolent and clumsy creatures who always make trouble for the other inhabitants of the forest, as well as gnome poachers. They have supernatural powers that are really strong but they have a weakness, if the sunlight gets on them, they turn to stone.(could be referencing all the Upside Down creatures who don't like sunlight and everything hot.) [Also very much like the Hobbit.] Also one of the trolls was voiced by someone who had the name Henderson, like Dustin Henderson. I also think it references a comic where some bullies attack Will and Mike calls them trolls.

Here are the most important characters:

David is a gnome of the forest. David is 399 years old, making him the oldest gnome around (since gnomes live no more than 400 years exactly, except Franklin, the gnome from the west, who lived 550 years), although he possesses exceptional constitution. David is a doctor, and he uses his knowledge of many fields, such as hypnosis and acupuncture, to heal his patients, usually animals, such as his faithful friend Swift the fox, or other gnomes. David also befriends a bird that, when he whistles, immediately arrives to quickly transport him to wherever necessary. For longer trips, he sometimes travels in a basket attached to the neck of the bird. (It may be a reference to clerics who are known to heal their allies and travelling with birds reminds me of Gandald who sometimes has the help of Eagles in some stories.)

Paul is David's twin brother. Not only does Paul have a normal moustache in contrast to David's handlebar moustache but his jumper is a darker shade of blue, he has a bigger nose, his gnome hat is dark blue whereas David's is red, and his trousers and boots are an inverse of David's: David's trousers are brown and his boots are beige, while Paul wears beige trousers and dark boots. (Of course this is a reference to Will and El who have been compared a lot of times throughout the show and who a lot of people in the fandom consider them siblings and twins, Will has a lot of Red in his wardrobe while El has a lot of blue.)

This gnome was found in a secret Russian base underground in Weathertop where Dustin discovers the Russian transmission coming from their main base located under the mall like a cave (like where gnome lives.). There are also gnomes in Siberia and having the name David, the name of Hopper's actor creates a connection since right now Hopper is in Russia. It may also be a nod to the group of kids who are all little gnomes running around the forest with their magical powers.

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Gnome #10: Baskin

"Robin's favorite gnome."

Now this is a funny one.

This is a reference to the famous Baskin-Robbins which is a chain of ice cream restaurants that did special ice creams for Season 3 because of Scoops Ahoy. It is Robin's favorite gnome because they literally share the same name.

Baskin could also be a reference to the film of the same name where Five police officers, Remzi, Arda, Yavuz, Apo, and Seyfi, are dining at a restaurant, during which they have a discussion. Their meal is interrupted when they receive a distress call from Inceagac, a town known for being the focus of strange rumors. During the trip Seyfi has a terrifying vision of a bloody figure and accidentally drives their van into the water. Stranded, the officers eventually make their way to Inceagac, where they find themselves in an abandoned building (back in the Ottoman days, this used to be a police station), captured by cult members and are subjected to a number of increasingly bizarre and surreal scenarios. In the end, they realize they have all inadvertently wandered into Hell.

It has alot of similiraties with stories like Silent Hills or Hellraiser, two stories that inspired Stranger Things especially Hellraiser for Stranger Things 4. And it fully embraces the satanic imagery and themes which is something we are going to see with the satanic panic and also has the theme of time, dreams and visions.

We'll see how much season 4 decides to use those sort of elements in the show.

Well this gnome is easy to find. It's in the Scoops Ahoy parlor next to Robin. USS Butterscotch seems to be very popular there

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Gnomes 11 - 20 coming soon.

[hopeymchope]

Persona Lite with Fire Emblem sprinkles on top

I’ve been addicted to Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore on my Switch for the past few weeks, and I’m getting close to wrapping it up. I figured it’s high time I talked about it a bit.

The game that would become Tokyo Mirage Sessions (TMS) was first announced as “Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem,” which is absolutely not a good way to describe what this became. 

This title led so many people astray.

What comes to mind when you think of (mainline) Shin Megami Tensei games? An apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic setting. First-person-perspective battles. Negotiating with demons. Battles against deities. TMS contains a little bit of the third thing on that list, and none of the others. 

What comes to mind when you think of Fire Emblem? Medieval-era settings. Permadeath (either optional or mandatory). RTS-style combat. The famed “weapon triangle.” Support conversations. TMS contains the fourth thing on that list, and none of the others. 

But let’s be honest here: For most people (especially Westerners), the first thing you think of when you think about Shin Megami Tensei isn’t even the games with “Shin Megami Tensei” in the title. It’s the Persona series! They’ve grown far more popular than their parent franchise at this point.

So I suppose it was natural that TMS is, at its core, a “Persona Lite” game. The darker edges of Persona titles are removed in favor of something more T-friendly, but the basics are all there: A group of teenagers in modern-day Japan discover a strange alternate dimension that they can access which also gives them the ability to summon supernatural powers/entities. When people start to go missing in this other dimension, it falls to this group of teens to unite and save the day, ultimately leading to them discovering the reason why this alternate world has been bleeding into modern Japan in the first place and, in the end, saving humanity from annihilation. That’s totally how Persona works, and it’s also totally how Tokyo Mirage Sessions works!

However, instead of summoning Shin Megami Tensei demons as “Personas,” the heroes of TMS summon Fire Emblem characters that are “Mirages.” Each character is permanently linked to a single Mirage, so there are no “Wild Card” characters here. However, you can level the characters’ mirages up to make them take on new forms and new abilities. FE fans will notice that all of the characters here are from the Falchion/Tiki/Shadow Dragon stories - the two Marth adventures (Shadow Dragon/Mystery of the Emblem) and the semi-recent 3DS hit Awakening.

For some weird reason, all of the Fire Emblem “mirages” wear helmets, masks, or other face coverings 100% of the time. The only exception is Tiki.

The lack of the darker themes in many Persona games and the fact that there’s no “Wild Card” to manage is what makes this, in my opinion, more like PERSONA LITE. And then you get your Fire Emblem backup characters to serve as extra flavoring. The characters we meet from Fire Emblem are rarely the focus — you spend most of your time with the teen heroes — but they still manage to show off their unique personalities and carry in a load of FE fanservice. (The good kind of fanservice where it’s full of references and nods to the continuity of the series, I mean. Not the other kind where it’s softcore porn.)

Fire Emblem fanservice was one of the biggest delights for me here. If you’re looking for any SMT/Persona characters to pop up and link the continuity together, you can stop looking because they aren’t here. But if you want to see specific characters from the three source FE games pop up here, a metric ton manage to do so. For example: Tharja (from Awakening) creates two golems for training purposes, which she names Bord and Cord after the pair of heroes from Marth’s era. And then the actual spirits of Bord and Cord possess those golems. So naturally, they start bickering and fighting. It’s delightful. 

So yeah, there’s plenty of nods for FE fans to appreciate even if your favorite characters are taking a back seat to a bunch of teenagers. Fire Emblem fans will recognize the heroic mirages, the enemy boss mirages, the weapon triangle weakness/strength system and lots of musical cues. On the flip side, Persona fans will recognize the story structure, the magic spells the characters wield (things like “Mazio” and “Diarama” and “Rakukaja”), the common enemies you encounter and cameos from a few of the more famous demons found on signage around Tokyo. Sadly, there are no familiar sounds or music pieces borrowed from SMT/Persona that I noticed.

In addition to the main story, there are also “Side Stories” for your party and side quests from various NPCs. The whole game lasts around 50 hours even if you aren’t trying to 100% it.

And while the music here is mostly pretty good — especially the Fire Emblem themes — I really wish we’d gotten some Persona-style tunes in here. Persona soundtracks are absolutely killer and everybody knows it. I wanted to hear some Shihoko Hirata, some Lotus Juice, some Yumi Kawamura, some Lyn Inaizumi. Alas, that never happens. Sad face.

In fact, as far as vocal tracks go, you’ll only be hearing the performances of the main characters. See, the story this time revolves around a group of teens who are hired by a talent agency to become young starlets of the stage and screen. You meet plenty of pop idols, a cooking show host, aspiring actors, and those who do combinations of the above. There’s a lot of focus on the Japanese entertainment industry, and it’s mostly a very positive portrayal about how hard teen stars work to reach their dreams and how fulfilling it can be when they express themselves through their artistic pursuits. Speaking as someone who legitimately does not care one iota about the idol industry in Japan or Asia as a whole, I’m very happy that these characters managed to remain likable and their pursuits stayed enjoyable throughout. No one here is an ultra-deep character, but no one here is a total cipher, either. I’m additionally thankful that the vocal songs are another highlight of the soundtrack alongside the FE tunes. 

The last thing I’ll bring up is the “Sessions” mentioned in the title. It’s a battle mechanic wherein striking an enemy with a weapon or element they’re weak to will enable other characters to start jumping in with follow-up attacks. At first, it’s just one or two follow-ups, but by the game’s end, you might be sitting there for 15 or more consecutive strikes on an enemy after you initiate a “Session” of follow-ups. The greatest quality-of-life improvement built into this Switch port is that you can turn on “Quick Session” to make these attack animations much shorter and more rapid than they ever were in the Wii U original. I never had to play that one, but I can’t imagine I’d have much patience for constantly triggering 15 attack animations with every round. SO glad I don’t have to sit through that.

This is just a two-strike Sessions, so it won’t last long enough for you to take a beverage break.

So yeah, there’s a lot for RPG fans, Persona fans, and most of all, Fire Emblem fans to dig in “Tokyo Mirage Sessions.” And since we already covered that Danganronpa fans are apparently predisposed to enjoying Persona and Fire Emblem, that probably means that YOU, dear reader, are likely to dig this game as well. 

[shihalyfie]

No, Miyako and Iori’s Digimentals were not switched, can we please stop endorsing that

There’s a really common argument that Miyako and Iori’s initial Digimentals should have been “switched” (i.e. give Knowlegde to Miyako and Love to Iori), and accusing the series of trying to pigeonhole Miyako into a “girl” box by giving her the two Crests that originally belonged to her Adventure predecessor girls (Sora and Mimi). While I am not ever going to say that Adventure or 02 were the paragon of feminism, I seriously take issue with this reading, not only because of the fact that I feel it’s a misreading of Miyako and Iori’s characters to consider these Digimentals inappropriate, but also because the “alternative” suggestion of swapping them is an even worse misreading of what said Digimentals are actually about, and would result in an extremely unfitting result.

I would say that the major reasons these misconceptions get drawn a lot are mostly pertinent to the following:

A common misreading of the actual meaning of the “Crest of Knowledge”

The fact that Daisuke, Miyako, and Iori’s initial Digimental traits actually kick in the most in the latter half of the series, after they get their second set -- i.e., the secondary Digimentals are actually more obvious than their first set, even though the secondary ones are the ones to get focus episodes. (For a brief example with Daisuke, his “courage” resembled reckless foolhardiness for a lot of the first half, but at the end of the Kaiser arc and the entire second half it became very clear that Daisuke was still standing resolute in the face of what he knew were increasing stakes, which is a much, much more genuine show of courage.)

If you do want to make the argument that Miyako got this treatment “because she’s a girl”, you might as well argue that she was initially built from the ground up as someone who mixes core personality traits from Sora and Mimi. But she was absolutely not “pigeonholed”, and, again, I think it’s a severe misreading of her character to think that she was.

All quoted translations are by Ryuu-Rogue (Adventure) and PositronCannon (02).

The Crest of Knowledge

The Crest of “Knowledge” is a bit of a misnomer. It’s tempting to read it as simply “knowing a lot of information”, but note that there’s nothing really virtuous about that. You could easily be someone who “naturally” has a knack for studying or information, and then takes that information to be a smart-aleck who lords over everyone. Considering that the Crests were normally supposed to be about personal growth and virtues, “knowledge” seems like a very poor and incidental thing to be valuing.

In actuality, Adventure’s episode in relation to Koushirou and the Crest of Knowledge (episode 24) made it very clear that being intellectual had nothing to do with it. The entire episode revolves around Koushirou willingly giving up his “inquisitive heart” to the point where Tentomon considers him basically having thrown out himself. Koushirou spends the duration of the episode blindly accepting pseudoscience until Bubbmon snaps him back to his senses, and the “epiphany” that powers AtlurKabuterimon’s evolution later in the episode is as follows:

Koushirou: Staying ignorant isn’t what makes me, me! Wanting to know everything is part of who I am!...My inquisitive heart...I’m sorry for throwing you away. I want to know. I want to know!

The “actual” meaning of the “Crest of Knowledge” is defined here: it’s not about how much knowledge you currently have, it’s about how much knowledge you want to have -- wanting to not only have more information, but to also understand more. This is what fuels Koushirou’s character throughout all of Adventure -- he’s the one who can’t let something go whenever something interests him, and therefore he becomes the team’s valuable analyst and the one making the most progress in understanding the Digital World.

So when we get to 02 episode 2, and Iori claims the Digimental of Knowledge, Koushirou has this conversation with him to indicate him worthy of it:

Koushirou: Iori-kun, what do you think of the Digital World? Iori: What do I think...I don’t know, I just got here. Koushirou: But you’re thinking something, aren’t you? Iori: Yes...I have my own theories, but new questions keep popping in my mind and I want to know more. Koushirou: You have a really curious mind, as I thought. Iori: A curious mind? Koushirou: If you have any questions, please ask me. We’re your friends, and we’ll always help you out.

Just in case there were any ambiguity, Koushirou clarifies the “actual” meaning of the Crest of Knowledge right then and there: it’s not about having knowledge, it’s about curiosity, and that’s what we’re supposed to be looking out for with Iori’s character for the rest of the series.

Nevertheless, this conversation in episode 2 is a little misleading, and probably comes off as performative to many because Iori doesn’t actually show that much interest in the Digital World for the rest of the series, even though Koushirou had expected him to be like-minded in this regard. But what does happen is that once the Kaiser arc passes, and we reach the second half of 02, Iori starts to entertain some very interesting questions in regards to his stubborn insistence on black-and-white morality.

His first major shake to his frame of morality is episode 29, when he realizes that pacifist principles don’t mix well with a Digimon that professes to having no desire beyond wanton destruction.

In episodes 34-35, upon seeing Takeru gung-ho against BlackWarGreymon and the darkness to levels that disturb even him, he immediately goes up to Yamato to get answers on what’s up with Takeru without hesitation.

In episode 43, he starts to contemplate his stance on pacifism again after the SkullSatamon army ultimately forces the kids’ hands on breaking their anti-kill stance.

He asks his grandfather about his father in episode 47, and, upon coming face-to-face with Oikawa in episode 47, starts actually questioning him about his motives before he learns about Oikawa’s connection with Hiroki. The framing of the scene indicates he is very desperate to understand how Oikawa’s mentality could possibly make sense. Once he learns about the connection between the two, he gets even more desperate to understand how a friend of his father, whom he admired so much, could end up like this.

Eventually, his experiences with Ken and Oikawa lead him to become a defense attorney in the 02 epilogue, which is reiterated in side material (Spring 2003, Character Complete File, etc.) to be representative of his desire to “understand the hearts of criminals”.

Iori is not Koushirou, and his curiosity is not tied to intellectual pursuits or the Digital World, as much as he very much wants to understand morality and other people. He starts off the series with a very black-and-white view of it, but the more his intuition about it starts to crack, the more desperate and interested he gets about getting to the bottom of it. It’s a very unconventional way to see “knowledge” when such a term is usually applied to intellectual knowledge, but when you see it in terms of the Crest’s actual definition of “inquisitiveness and curiosity”, it fits like a glove.

What of Miyako? Well, she’s certainly got a lot of intellectual knowledge in the way Koushirou has, in terms of being good with computers, but...that’s...about it, actually. Unlike Koushirou, she doesn’t seem to be motivated by a drive to learn anything new with it. She can be curious about things, but that’s in the same way that everyone has a least a little of each Crest virtue within themselves to some degree; it’s not a driving part of her personality, and in fact, while she’s certainly not dismissive or callous, she sometimes even has a tendency to shut down at things she doesn’t understand and ask that it be simplified for her. In that light, “inquisitiveness and curiosity” actually feels very unfitting.

In fact, Miyako’s “intellectual” pursuits of being good with computers actually have very little to do with her character or personality. She has it as a peripheral hobby, and she engages in it, but unlike Koushirou, who uses his computer work as a way to gain more information and analyze things further, Miyako’s computer work really seems to be largely in the range of hobbies for her. A lot of her work is portrayed as favors for other people -- she helps fix Iori’s family computer, she helps out Yamato’s band, and she’s helpful to Koushirou as his junior -- in fact, the most pertinence Miyako’s computer abilities have with her actual personality is how much it puts Koushirou in her high esteem. So in actuality, all of that ties more into...

The Crest of Love

The Crest of “Love” is too often conflated with the potential for romantic love, especially because Sora was involved in the franchise’s most infamous love triangle, but the name of the Crest is actually aijou, i.e. “affection”. It’s a pretty neutral word, all things considered, and it has to do with being affectionate with and supportive of those around you.

Miyako starts off the series as a bit shallow and sometimes self-centered, but the way she interacts with Iori (someone from the same building quite a few years younger with her) already demonstrates that she’s open-minded about making friends and being friendly. On top of that, Miyako immediately demonstrates herself off the bat as being emotionally sensitive (see how she endears herself to Jou and Mimi in episodes 5-6 and has a bit of a mental health crash in episode 10).

Again, episode 2 tends to be a bit misleading, especially when Sora explicitly compares Miyako more to Mimi more than herself when she guides her towards the Digimental of Love. But observing Miyako’s behavior in most of 02′s second half indicates she is actually more than worthy of her title:

Starting as early as episode 3, she brings food for people, and does this a lot. She does this partially because she has privileges when her family runs the i-Mart, but she’s very much doing it to show her affection for all of her new friends -- it’s implied she’s the ringleader behind the “picnic” idea in episode 6 so that everyone can have a bonding session, despite it (at the time) having no relevance to the territory war and the fact that she’d just met everyone. By the time of episode 33, the way she cheerfully keeps in touch with Koushirou during her trip to Kyoto and brings souvenir yatsuhashi home for everyone (Koushirou included) indicates that she’s always got her friends on her mind.

Anytime she likes something or someone, she is perpetually open about her feelings and makes it very clear that she likes such a thing. Again, see how she immediately endears herself to Mimi, and later Michael in episode 14. (14 is interesting in that her “purity” is front and center that episode, because she calls herself out for being too straightforward about her own shallowness, but it’s worth noting that the way she manifests said shallowness is by being openly affectionate.)

Episode 24 has her notice that Daisuke’s feeling left out when Takeru and Hikari walk off on their own, and immediately assign him to nursery care duty where he can have fun and feel a little fulfilled teaching them soccer. This is a very often-overlooked scene, but she had basically no motive to do this except to make Daisuke happy, and the way she looks on the scene fondly indicates she’s very proud of herself for doing so -- she knew exactly what she was doing there, and is actually far more emotionally in touch with others than she’s often given credit for.

She is the second most proactive (behind Daisuke) to bid for Ken’s acceptance into the group, and while she initially seems to take a slightly more passive approach than he does, she immediately goes into given name basis with him (before Daisuke does, even!), takes a personal investment in seeing him become friends with Iori in episode 30, has a stake in reaching out to both Hikari and Ken in episode 31 (and is self-conscious about her running-her-mouth behavior being too insensitive), and Ken’s emotional well-being and welfare is a perpetual thing on her mind for the rest of the series (see: her going out of her way to accommodate his worries in episode 46).

Although Miyako’s propensity for affection is actually quite clear throughout the entire series, I do really think it’s the second half of 02 that brings it out the most, because her way of connecting to otherwise emotionally closed-in characters like Hikari and Ken ultimately demonstrate a lot about how outwardly proactive she is about those feelings, and how integral she is to keeping the group of friends together -- there’s very good reason she’s often referred to by third parties as a “mood maker”, someone there to keep everyone in high spirits.

And what about Iori? It’s hard to argue he doesn’t have love, of course. He has a very deep and passionate love for those around him! But, again, while he does have a propensity for it, that doesn’t mean it’s a trait that necessarily defines him, especially because his stubborn and passionate hatred of certain things ends up making the others have to pull teeth a bit with him at times.

Of course, one could argue that it comes out of his love for the things he wants to protect. But, nevertheless, I would still say it’s rather inaccurate to say that the trait defines him nearly as much as it does Miyako, who is openly and passionately affectionate, actively tries to be open-minded towards new things in her life, and spends a lot of her time doting on others and her hobby work doing favors for her friends.

[smokeybrandreviews]

Smokey brand Retrospective: The Gift and the Curse

Brendan Fraser has seen a resurgence lately and i love every bit of that. Dude has been one of my favorite actors for decades. I’m an Eighties kid who grew up during the Nineties so i was right there when he came onto the scene. I was a massive fan f all of his early work; Bedazzled, George of the Jungle, Encino Man, Airheads, Blast from the Past, and even Monkeybone. Dude hit his stride right around the Aughts and then completely disappeared. We found out later it was because of some really f*cked up sh*t but he made it through and proved he still had with Robot Man on Doom Patrol. I’m so glad this guy got another shot at this movie star sh*t but i wanted to revisit the franchise that put him on the map: The Mummy.

The Mummy

I love this campy ass flick, man. I saw this one in the theaters because, at the time, i was super into CG. It had only been a few years since Jurassic Park blew that sh*t out the water and only a few months after The Matrix made everyone sh*t the bed. The Mummy just missed that window but it was still incredibly enjoyable. This was my Indiana Jones because i didn’t care about Indy for a long time. It’s not that they were bad movies, i was just too young to appreciate them. The Mummy came out right at the time i started to really understand why i liked cinema, what a good permanence truly was, and how beautiful a film could be. The Mummy covered almost all of those bases. Fraser did an excellent job as Rick O’Connor and Rachel Weisz stunned as Evelyn Carnahan. F*cking Evie, man. I was already a fan of Fraser but this movie made me really pay attention to Weisz and she became one of my favorite actresses. It helps tremendously that she is f*cking gorgeous! Rounding out the cast is John Hannah as Evie’s brother, Johnathan and Arnold Vosloo as the titular mummy, Imhotep. Also, i can’t not mention the scummiest of scumbags, Benny, portrayed so effortlessly by Kevin J. O'Connor.

I absolutely adore this film. It’s a not the best example of Nineties cinema, how can it be, and it’s a terrible remake of the original Universal Mummy but it does what it wants to do very well. I love the ideas and the world they built with this campy clusterf*ck. It shouldn’t work, it should be terrible, but it’s one of the funnest films i have ever seen. It has it’s issues, absolutely, but they are minor compared the non-stop action, the incredible cinematography, the dated but ambitious CG effects ,and solid performances from every principal actor. They really let Fraser do his thing and that energy carried over to the rest of the cast. Evie is every bit the bad ass as Sarah Connor or Ellen Ripley but is still a very girly-girl; Something that seems to be frowned upon nowadays. Imhotep id an unrelenting, vicious antagonist who controls powers from long ago, literally willing the seven plagues of Egypt into modern times. This movie is all over the f*cking place but it worse so well and every time i see it, i have as much fun as i did way back when i was a ripened fourteen years old.

The Mummy Returns

Boy, this one suffers terrible from Sequelitis. It does nothing new and is an almost exact retread of the first film but we have new characters and a new villain in the guise of... The Scorpion King! Yes, this is the first film that titular Arachno-Monarch makes his first appearance portrayed by a very young, very beefy, and later, very poorly rendered, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson! That’s right, long before he was Franchise Viagra, way before he was punching out Dom into a stalemate in them god awful Fast flicks, The Rock got his start here, in the sequel to The Mummy and he’s f*cking terrible! Oh my god, is he bad but it works. His awful, awful, performance fits right in with the utter camp of this ridiculous franchise ans, to no one’s surprise, i loved every second of it. Now, as much as i love The Rock in this thing, i have to absolutely give it to Patricia Velasquez as Meela Nais, the physical reincarnation of Imhotep’s regicide partner and f*ck-buddy, Anck-Su-Namun. I didn’t talk about her much in the entry about The Mummy but that as mostly because she was more a plot device rather than a character. She isn’t much else in this one either but at least we got to actually see her for more than ten minutes. Plus, that fight between her and Nefertiri was f*cking glorious. Sixteen year old Smokey appreciated the f*ck out of that.

The returning cast hits their points perfectly. That chemistry never falters. Fraser, Weisz, and Hannah are exceptional together and Vosloo is, somehow, both far more menacing and hilarious at the same time. There’s this scene toward the end where he is utterly defeated and it’s the funniest sh*t i have ever seen. I also really enjoy both Oded Fehr as Ardeth Bay far more in this one than the last because he gets to do sh*t finally. Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje was also a welcome surprise as  the muscle, Lock-Nah. Dude just kinds of stands around and i think he gets into a fight with Fehr that was pretty cool but a little trite. Obviously, as a film from the early Aughts, it has it;s problems. There’s a ton of culturally insensitive sh*t that Zoomers would probably be upset about but, you know, f*ck em. It’s like a sense f humor is illegal nowadays. That said, having Rachel Weisz, as gorgeous and half-naked as she is and was, portray an Egyptian is a little much nowadays. At least Patricia Velasquez is a type of Brown? An attempt was made. This thing is a mess and i enjoy every second of it. The Mummy Returns is substantially worse that the first but, at the same time, just so batsh*t that it is equally as entertaining. But f*ck that kid, though. Every time he’s onscreen all of the good times are thrown right out the goddamn window!

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

I gave this one the hard pass for years. It looked like trash. Like straight up dog sh*t. This thing came out seven years after Returns and i just didn’t care. I was one hundred percent in my hipster film snob era and couldn’t be bothered. For a full f*cking decade and some change. Seriously, i just watched this thing the day before yesterday. For the first time. It was the inspiration for this retrospective because, after seeing this train wreck, i went back to check out the first two just to get the taste of dogsh*t out of my mouth. There are several changes made to the formula that immediately take me out of this film. First, and most egregiously, no more Rachel Weisz! She didn’t come back for the third. The reason behind her absence has run the gambit from vanity, to scheduling conflicts, to literally never getting a script. I don;t really care why, all i know is that her absence was felt. Maria Bello did her best but she isn’t MY Evie. Another “choice” was to age up that awful f*cking kid into an awful f*cking adult. That’s right, this is a “passing of the torch flick” and Luke Ford’s Alex O'Connell was supposed to take over the franchise going forward. That didn’t happen because this is Rick’s franchise. The Mummy would be nothing without Fraser and the at was proven when this thing tanked. It wasn’t all bad though. I really liked the new mummy, Han. They did some really fin things with his abilities and Jet Li never once phoned in an action scene. Unfortunately, even with the strength of the brand and outstanding lead performances, this thing still sucks.

I had a time with Tomb but it wasn’t like the time i had with it’s predecessors. I don’t know if it’s because I'm so much older and hardened by life but all i see is the flaws in this one. It doesn’t have the nostalgia goggles like the first two so i can’t enjoy it like i enjoy those. I just see plot holes instead of camp. Bad CG instead of rustic attempt. Poor set pieces instead of Nineties jank. Bad character writing instead of unfortunately hilarious dialogue. Tomb isn’t terrible but it ain’t good wither. It;s mediocre and i know the first two aren’t great but they’re better than whatever this wanted to be. It’s weird to see because there are a lot of great ideas here. I can see the vision that lays outside the margins and it’s frustrating. Fraser does is in his element as Rick and Li’s Han is a physical powerhouse but that’s not enough. As awesome as this movie gets when those two are on screen, literally everything around them is dismissible and i don’t understand how or why. I think a lot of the chemistry was lost when the focus was shifted to Alex from Rick and the recasting of Eve really didn’t do this film any favors. However, even with all of my frustrations, i can’t say i had a terrible time with this thing. It was entertaining, if a little bogus.

[1kook]

hope you don’t feel offended about what I have to say but the way you built nc, specially the characters, the way you write their dialogue, interactions, how they share anecdotes from years back and make it feel so raw, the attitude that you gave each one of them without being repetitive, their beliefs, their unique thoughts, behavior, how you explain their thoughts, their quirks and perks... all that makes me feel like I’m reading a whole ass book, like you literally have a whole editorial working beside you in each word you share, I find your imagination and way to portray words so beautiful and natural, so funny. You make me cry and laugh mi lungs out in just a chapter. I came past to the point where I don’t really can empathize with being y/n and I refer and think of her as just an oc, she’s sooooo amazingly well written that it’s not that you were too specific or something that makes me not feel like I’m her; it’s just that your level of writing and development just takes me to a whole new world where nc jungkook is not bts jungkook at all, it’s just his face, you created this man of every pussys dream that resembles but doesn’t the actual jungkook, when I think of nc jungkook I totally dissociate the jeon jungkook from nc jeon jungkook, they are not the same person, and i know that it’s the whole point of fan fiction but for example that doesn’t happen when I read bad boy jk or fuckboy jk or nerd jk, they make me feel off for some reason and I have to really push myself through it cuz is unnatural, fan fiction is about creating this scenario surrounding someone you idolize, but still nc has something that goes beyond that, I personally thinks it’s because of how you portrayed him so meticulously different but familiar, so in the back of my head when I see jk in the pic of nc, something just tells me that he’s an actor portraying nc jk lol, and you go beyond just surrounding our idol and writing about him, it almost feel like he was created for and it only exists in nc

i really feel like that went nowhere, I just wanted to tell you that you are so talented, you are the only writer that makes me feel this way, I feel like they are out of a franchise book characters, that they are known for everyone like Romeo and Juliet, like they are gonna get a movie adaptation. So thanks for sharing a piece of your mind, I’m so grateful that I found you <3

oh my god, the way u said ‘please don't be offended’ in the beginning I thought u were going to roast me or tell me u didn't like it 😭 had me SO SCARED TO READ THE REST LMAO, but im glad I did!!!! reading your message just made me feel so stupidly happy and proud about the stories I write (especially nc) and my writing abilities and techniques in general!! ive mentioned this many times, but i don't aspire to be a novelist or have writing be a part of my career, so I know im not the best in certain areas/have rlly amateurish skills and have a lot of room to improve lol, but to read that you think my characters are well developed enough to be considered characters on their own.... like they’re part of a franchise.... made my ego so big fjanfjkaes THANK YOU!!! this ask really made me feel proud of my ability to create characters. since all I write are xreader stories and in these types of stories the physical image of the reader is ambiguous/meant to be blank, I really try my best to make the focus of the ‘reader’ character be their personalities, and im really honored you think ive done a good job of that!!!

I've had a few other ppl tell me before that they don't associate nc jk with the real jk and like its always made sense, bc when I write jk in fan fic im technically just using his LIKENESS and appearance and attributing it to a character that's otherwise my own, but when u said it feels like he’s more of an actor 😭 made me laugh a little lol, all I can imagine is the acting credits in movies ‘JEON JUNGKOOK starring as JEON JUNGKOOK’ rjagkjehb

thank you for taking the time to send me such a thoughtful and heartfelt ask, it really made my day!!!! this ask just made me feel so grateful and happy with the community ive been able to foster on this blog through writing all over again <3333

[chivesyo]

What I hope to see from Avatar Studios

So the last couple days have been fun - I started rewatching ATLA (for like the third time in the last six months), got a new Avatar graphic novel omnibus in the mail, and learned about Nickelodeon's plan to launch ‘Avatar Studios’ to produce EVEN MORE Avatar content in the future! Since all this is so fresh in my mind I wanted to just talk about some of the things I hope to see from the franchise going forward.

Things I hope stay the same:

Attention to world-building and continuity: Obviously this tends to be one of fans’ favorite parts of this franchise. I hope that whatever comes out in the future will maintain and build on what’s been so painstakingly built up by entries up to now.

Encouraging the audience’s imagination: On the other hand, I’m not looking for them to address every little detail that has been left unexplained. In my opinion one of the best parts of the original series is how well it was able to set up its world and characters to inspire audiences’ imaginations and then provide opportunities to apply that imagination.

Introducing its audience to diverse ideas/themes: The original ATLA series came out around 15 years ago, and even though obviously people who see it for the first time in recent years still enjoy it, I think that maybe they miss some of what attracted so many people to the series when it first came out. For me and many people my age, ATLA served as an introduction to a lot of ideas/themes from Asian cultures that seem much more widely-known in the U.S. today, including anime, meditation, martial arts, philosophy, etc. I hope that they will take this opportunity to continue to innovate in this area.

Complex characters and moral themes: In the original series Zuko is the character that to most people stands out as having the most compelling character arc, and that’s largely due to his moral complexity. I hope that they will continue to pursue this idea, without feeling the need to try and “recreate” another Zuko.

Things I hope change:

Representation: When ATLA came out it was praised for its representation of women, elderly people, and people with disabilities, which I think is well-deserved. As additional entries have been released we’ve also been getting more and better representation of gay/lesbian/bisexual people, and I hope that trend continues. However, there has been scrutiny over the show’s representation of people of color - there’s technically a lot of it but it isn’t always “good” or well thought-out. Additionally, at this point the lack of gender identity diversity is frankly unacceptable (we deserve a trans Avatar).

Cultural appropriation: My biggest criticism of the Avatar franchise up to this point is its tendency to liberally borrow from Asian, Native American, and other cultures without committing to telling stories or creating media that empower people from those cultures. This has to do with on-screen representation as well as “representation” in the people who are making the show. From what I’ve read there has always been some diversity in the team behind the show, and I get the impression that it’s moving in the right direction, but I hope they will take this opportunity to fully and explicitly commit.

Specific topics/ideas I’d like to see:

More intimate look at Air Nomad society: Most existing stories in the Avatar universe take place after the Air Nomads were wiped out. In the Kyoshi novels the little time spent at the Air Temples is from the POV of an outsider. Most of what we hear about Air Nomad society and culture comes from a) a literal 12 year old child or b) outsiders. This and the fact that Air Nomad society is characterized by “purity” makes me think there’s got to be a “dark side” to it. For example: it’s known that “all Air Nomads are airbenders” but I have to wonder if that’s because every child that’s born to Air Nomad parents has airbending abilities or if its because only people who happen to have airbending abilities are able/allowed to be considered “Air Nomads”. In the real world “purity” often comes at the price of exclusion. I’d like to understand why Kyoshi’s mother was so willing to leave a so seemingly-perfect society, beyond the fact that she fell in love with some dude.

Water Tribe development: With the above, it seems like the Water Tribe serves (or could serve) as an interesting foil to the Air Nomads - both societies rely heavily on bending for their everyday way of life, but while 100% of Air Nomads are airbenders, presumably the Water Tribe follows the given “standard” of only 10% of the population being waterbenders. That dynamic in and of itself is fascinating to me - in ATLA in fact we see that the top leaders of the Water Tribe are non-benders (an interesting contrast to the politics we see later in Republic City in LOK). I haven’t read the graphic novels that deal with the Water Tribe, so maybe it comes up there. Something else that I might just not be familiar with there is the long-term history of the society: How did they end up moving from their original Lion Turtle to the North Pole? Where did the Swampbenders come from? One aspect of the original series that receives a lot of (well-deserved in my opinion) criticism is the fact that the (Northern) Water Tribe is shown to be significantly more misogynist than the other nations. This was re-confirmed in the Kyoshi novels. I hope that they either abandon this idea, or if they’re bound to it for some reason, maybe use it to illustrate how these ideas develop and how they can be dismantled (usually it isn’t enough for one girl to beat one guy in hand-to-hand combat). If we look at the “ancient” Water Tribe society, maybe misogyny is absent. Maybe the same circumstances related to them ending up at the North Pole are related to the introduction of these oppressive ideas. Also, there have presumably been female Avatars from all nations who have mastered all four elements - where did they learn waterbending?

Focus on non-Avatar characters: The Avatar sort of functions as a walking deus ex machina due to the Avatar State pretty much always being available if it’s really, truly needed. Even just being the Avatar provides the character with material and social benefits with both humans and spirits. Part of what makes the series great is that it is able to maintain stakes by developing really strong relationships between characters: Aang has the Avatar State to rely on, but not Katara, Sokka, Toph, or Appa. In the Kyoshi novels this idea is even more explicit with Kyoshi and Rangi. I love this dynamic and I hope and expect it to continue, but I think there are other options worth exploring as well. For example, what if the Avatar was an obstacle to the protagonist? 

[samgibbsmultiverse]

Games which have a multiverse:

Now although not clear there are quite a few games which contains features of multiverse’s. Whether this is the plot of the game, a gameplay mechanic or the fact that the game has multiple different endings we can look into how games decide to use the concept of multiverse inside of their games.

Family Guy: back to the Multiverse

The first game is family guy into the multiverse. The plot of the game is that the main character Stewie and Brain follow the antagonist through 7 different universes. The different universe’s are all different due to something being different:

Universe 1 is is a universe which is ruled by Greek college students.

Universe 2 is a universe ruled by the Amish.

Universe 3 is a universe ruled by handicapped people because they were given a lot of “special treatment” which resulted in them to lead to power.

Universe 4 is a universe where everyone is evil

Universe 5 is a universe where pirates came to rule.

Universe 6 is a universe where no one needs Santa due to them buying presents online. This causes Santa to become a weapons dealer.

Universe 7 is a universe where aliens have been invaded by alien chickens.

This game uses the concept of multiverses in order to present the player with different types of levels. This is a good way to easily use the multiverse them inside of a game. This also means that the creators of the game were able to make whacky levels which didn't have any relation to each other.

Bioshock Infinite: 

Bioshock uses the theme of multiverse in a different way compared to the family guy game. Here is a nice video I found which talks about the use of the Quantum Multiverse Theory in the game.

In the video it talks about the aim of the game is to find a young girl called Elizabeth who isn't your ordinary girl. Elizabeth has the ability to open “Tears” Tears are portals into alternate realities. While jumping between alternate realities you uncover that the “Lutest Twins” who took you to Columbia are infact the same person just from different universes. It is also revealed that in the game that your character and the evil villan in the game are the same person from different realities. Your main character in one universe has a daughter called Anna. However the villan comstock (who is you from a different universe) comes and kidnaps your daughter from your universe and renames her as Elizabeth. Revealing that Elizabeth is actually your daughter. However while being taken as a child she gets her finger cut off and remained in your universe when a tear closes. This is how Elizabeth manages to get her ability to open the Tears herself. 

Now we need to think about the science behind this and how it would work. The use of Quantum Multiverse theory and it relates to the Schrodinger's cat quandary. The Schrodinger's cat quandary is basically a thought experiments where we imagine a cat in a closed box with a radioactive sauce, poison and a Geiger counter. When the Geiger counter detects a radiation particle a process that is fairly random it breaks the bottle of poison and kills the cat. After time leaving the box alone there is no way we can tell whether the poison bottle has broken so the cat can be considered both alive and dead. 

Another example of this is plugging in a usb. When plugging it in without looking the usb is both in the correct and incorrect rotation. Its not until you try to plug it in and observe whether it is the correct way round you have then collapsed the probability curve to be one or the other. The quantum multiverse idea is that if I observe the usb stick to be correct when I plug it in there also exists another universe where it was incorrect.

In the BioShock universe the 2 universes are made when the decision for the main character to get baptized appears. You as the player don't get baptized and stay as Brooker Dewitt and have a daughter. However in another universe you do get baptized and become Comstock a childless prophet and founder or Columbia. When in the players universe Rosalind lutes was working on manipulating quantum atoms for her city floating lutes field. She discovered her alternate self in another universe Robert lutes (where she was born a guy) doing the exact same experiment as she is at the exact same time. This led them to creating a device which could create Tears between alternate realities.

In the game not only does Bioshock use the multiverse theory as a plot point it also uses it as a gameplay mechanic through Elizabeth being able to make tears to help the character progress through the game. 

Spiderman: Shattered Dimensions:

Spiderman: shattered Dimensions is about when an artifact called the “Tablet of order and chaos” is shattered. this caused problems with multiple marvel realities.  A character called Madam Web calls on four versions of Spiderman ( The amazing spiderman, Spider-man Noir, Spider-man 2099 and the Ultimate Spider-man. In the game they have to work together to get all the pieces of the artifact back together in order to restore balance to the universe. 

In the game they use the multiverse theme to allow the player to play as 4 different Spiderman character which add variety to the game play as characters. When playing as Spider noir most colour to the level is taken away and the colour is very minimal due to him of course being “noir”. However when playing as spider 2099 the environment is very brightly lit as well as very futuristic to fit in with the spider man you are playing as. 

Lego Dimensions:

Lego dimensions mainly uses the whole theme of multiverse as a selling point. with the game being very much like sky landers where you use physics figurines for the different multiverses it tries to get the player to spend a lot of money to have all the characters from each multiverse. The game has 30 different franchises which range from the power puff girls all the way to Beetlejuice. 

The plot of the game is that in the center of the Lego Multiverse which is inhibited by an evil mastermind. It is said that the person who controls the foundation elements that the planet is built upon, controls all of the multiverse. Your task in the game is to stop lord vortech for gaining the power to the multiverse.

What I have taken away from this research:

The one main thing I have taken away from this game research is that the theme of multiverse can be used in multiple different ways such as different levels, game play mechanics as well as having multiple of the same character in the game in order for people to have a variety of characters to play.

[that-shamrock-vibe]

Movie Review: The Spy Who Dumped Me

Disclaimer: I am posting this review a couple of days after the movie first screens in the U.K, so if you haven’t yet seen the movie and want to go in with a fresh mind don’t read on.

General Reaction:

Finally a female-led action movie ticks all the boxes. It has been a rocky road for female action movies both in terms of remakes (Ghostbusters, Oceans 8) and while Atomic Blonde and Lucy were critically acclaimed and praised by audiences, nothing has been built on either one.

Here however, we have a somewhat original screenplay that stars two realistic young women and the best part is the guys in the movie are not sidelined or only used to prop up the women.

Also when you consider that both Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon have both been working for over a decade, with Kunis working for 24 years and McKinnon working for 11, it is about time they had a movie that showcases their acting abilities and comedic natures in a positive light rather than coming across as annoying or grating.

While the plot for the movie is somewhat fantastical even for the more grounded installments of the spy genre in recent years such as Kingsman and Spy, it is a fun nod to the times of Austin Powers but not to the extent where it feels like they are just doing a female reboot of Austin Powers. The Spy Who Dumped Me is definitely its own thing.

The chemistry between Kunis and McKinnon as friends is 100% believable and I as an audience member could easily believe that Audrey and Morgan had been friends for years which made their interactions more genuine.

It is a great buddy movie and unlike some buddy movies that try too hard, these women are relatable in what happens to them, being dumped, oversharing with your parents, being made to feel less of yourself, particularly for women but also men these are real-world problems that can happen to anyone and that mixed into the A-plot spy-story made for a very fun movie.

Cast:

There is no real standout star of the movie because both Kunis and McKinnon are as good as each other, also the leading man of the movie Sam Heughan more than held his own.

Mila Kunis is having somewhat of a renaissance in recent years in the female buddy film genre. First with the Bad Moms franchise and now this movie which, I don’t see becoming a franchise but if it does well you never know. Of course she will always be known as Meg Griffin but, while I do not think she will become an action star anytime soon, I could see her continuing along this type of genre movie as her comfort zone.

Kate McKinnon is someone I have never put much stock into as either an actress or comedian, I know she is an SNL alumna but I have never taken the fact a comedian was from SNL as gospel for them being that funny and in fact when I have seen McKinnon act in comedies it pretty much matches how I find Melissa McCarthy these days post-Gilmore Girls which is essentially just being crude for the sake of being crude regardless of if it is actually funny. Here though it was completely the opposite, there was no unnecessary vulgarity, no cringe-worthy moments or lead balloon-style jokes.

I actually found her take on femininity to be the right amount without feeling forced or exhausted as opposed to the female Ghostbusters or even Wonder Woman, in fact Morgan trying to teach that Ukranian pig about feminism and her practically hero-worshiping Gillian Anderson’s head of the CIA character were the only examples of feminism I can think about in the movie; this was not a “Women can be spies just as well as men” type of movie it just so happened the ex-girlfriend of a spy got involved in spy drama and her best friend tagged along for support.

Sam Heughan is very much the poor man’s Chris Hemsworth both in terms of looks and comedy, both of which are compliments because I like both actors, I liked how for the first 1/3 of the movie you didn’t really know if you were supposed to support him or not and then after one or two rather brilliant action sequences he was firmly on Mila Kunis’ good side.

Something to appreciate about this movie is, with potentially the exceptions of Kunis and McKinnon, there are no big names in this movie. Even Kunis and McKinnon I would rate as C-list, B if I was being generous. But when you consider the Bad Moms movies co-starred mainly B-level actors and Spy was A/B-List, to not even have one big name even cameo in this movie is a huge gesture of support to the movie as it shows the powers that be believed the movie could stand on its own merit rather than being propped up by an A-Lister cameo.

Recommendation:

I am not going to say this is my favourite spy movie or buddy movie, the latter is still the Jump Street/Bad Moms movies and the former is Kingsman however it is up there in both and an unexpected hit for me as when I saw it advertised I was genuinely expecting a typical American comedy movie with a lot of vulgarity and ludeness however my friends saw the movie before me and praised it so I decided to give it a chance and I really enjoyed myself.

[briangroth27]

Incredibles 2 Review

I absolutely loved Incredibles 2! It's a great time at the movies and definitely worth the 14-year wait. I was initially skeptical of it picking up seconds after the original, but I think the story threads here—particularly Jack-Jack's (Eli Fucile, Nick Bird) development and the Anti-Super laws—needed to be dealt with onscreen rather than off.  I liked that they reversed the structure of the first movie and had Helen (Holly Hunter) go off on the adventures while Bob (Craig T. Nelson) stayed at home to watch the kids. Even better, this switch was rooted in statistical facts that Elastigirl was the most effective and efficient hero between herself, Bob, and Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson). Since so much of her Elastigirl persona was left in the past in the original movie because she’d moved on in life while Bob hadn’t really, showing Helen truly loving her work and being great at it was a perfect moment that let us see a whole new side to her. Seeing Helen so overjoyed at getting to be a hero again—and being great at it, with no collateral casualties—was excellent! It was also nice to see that she had detective skills; a good contrast to Bob smashing his way through problems (and which have probably have helped her deduce what her kids are up to over the years!). That her heroic competence was truly valued outside her family circle and by the people who wanted to use her to push their politics Bob Odenkirk, Catherine Keener) was a genuine and welcome surprise; I'd love to see more female heroes respected and revered the way Elastigirl is here. Bob playing Mr. Mom was a lot of fun, even if I’m more than ready for a competent parenting duo instead of the always-effective mom and the cliché overwhelmed dad. That said, Bob’s battle with Dash's (Huck Milner) new math, Violet's (Sarah Vowell) teenage angst, and Jack-Jack's terrible toddling was extremely relatable and a great change from the superhero midlife crisis we saw in the original. I enjoyed Bob’s playful ego about being the better hero in his marriage and loved that it was balanced by genuinely caring that Helen had the space to do what she needed to do. That sort of loving/selfish balance is an extremely difficult line to walk but the writing and acting totally pull it off without making him unlikable (and it's not even hinted or implied that Helen is in any way selfish either). It was especially sweet of Bob not to tell Helen what was going on with the family not because he didn't want to come off as incompetent, but because he knew she'd stop her mission. Yes, he benefits from her completing it, but I fully believe that he also wants the better future for his kids that Helen can secure. I would've liked to see more of Dash and Violet in general, and particularly their school lives. Dash has homework trouble and Tony (Michael Bird), the boy Violet made a date with, forgets her (a cool example of superhero lives wreaking havoc on civilian ones as well as the law affecting the Parrs in an unexpected way), but the Anti-Super laws would've been stronger if we'd seen the kids’ lack of choice Bob talks about. Violet wanting to be normal and Dash being "defined as a person" by heroism does play out that choice, but we don't really get to see consequences of the laws in terms of impacts on the kids. Does having to come in second place in track rankle Dash? And if he's defined by being a hero, how does he feel about having to hide at school?  Is anyone suspicious of his speed? Does Dash have to fight to control himself when confronted by bullies that openly hate Supers? By teachers who preach that Supers are bad and should be illegal? Playing up the questionable aspects of the first movie's ending—is he cheating by using his speed, even for second place? How is not living up to his potential affecting his development?—would've built up a lot more pressure on the need to make Supers legal again. Violet hating being a Super made her a good proponent for not being legalized, though I would’ve liked more of that as well. How much of her tragic love life is really angst about not being able to be herself? Maybe she could’ve gotten involved with a student organization to keep Supers illegal, pitting her against her mom’s efforts. What if she discovered another Super kid at school and was forced to choose between outing them or letting them stay hidden? Might she find that pretending to be normal at school is simply boring or stifling her in ways she doesn’t want to admit? That said, I loved what we did get from Dash and Violet and absolutely dug Jack-Jack's awakening powers! The idea that Super babies often have multiple abilities is a very cool metaphor for kids having unlimited potential and it also made for a lot of fun, varied action scenes. His battle with a raccoon was highly entertaining and his unexpected bond with Edna Mode (Brad Bird) was a brilliant twist! Edna discovering a role as a loving aunt was as hilarious as it was heartwarming and a great way to reveal a new dimension of her character. Frozone is always a welcome addition and it was great to see more of him here, both as a "rebel" with Bob and Helen trying to get the Anti-Super law reversed, as a protective uncle to the Parr kids, and finally a hypnotized enemy. I’d like to finally meet his wife Honey (Kimberly Adair Clark) though. It's beyond time she was more than just a nagging influence taking the joy out of his superheroics (though I like that she knows her worth!). I really hope she’s also a retired Super so we can see what the two of them are like outside of their home. Or, it would’ve been easy to make her a Lois Lane-type figure, so she could cover Helen’s return to prominence and at least get a moment of bonding with her. Either of those options would be great and I’d like to see their relationship explored somewhere. I knew who Screenslaver (Bill Wise) was almost immediately, but that didn’t lessen my love for this character at all. The hypnotism was a spooky and old-fashioned angle that felt totally fresh and fit the retro-futurist world of The Incredibles perfectly! Screenslaver also managed to comment on modern concerns about social media obsession, which was a nice bit of relatability (just like Bob and Dash's struggle with new math) while remaining rooted in the films’ era, when TVs were the hip new thing everyone was obsessed with. Screenslaver was a creepy, cool villain who topped Syndrome for me. I just wish his argument—that people were getting lazy and becoming too dependent on Supers—was more explored with examples of people being "less" because of superheroes (beyond hearing about a death caused by waiting on one). Maybe Screenslaver should’ve been saved for a movie set after the law against Supers was lifted, but slightly clearer examples of his point here would’ve worked just as well. I feel like his argument would be stronger if we got to see Supers making things too easy or if more people were put in peril because they waited for Supers to fix their problems instead of the big argument against heroes being the collateral damage their fights cause. That said, I absolutely loved this villain and would definitely be down for a Screenslaver return! Underminer (John Ratzenberger) was also a cool, second-tier villain that felt like a classic comic book bad guy. He's clearly patterned off of Mole Man, but that didn't matter to me; it was kinda refreshing (and appropriately old-school, given these movies’ time period) to see a villain who just wanted to rob banks. He also provided a good way to reintroduce the family's heroic dynamic and to showcase Bob and Helen's different fighting styles while complicating their lives further, building off the end of the first movie brilliantly. I liked that it became a strike against the heroes that he was forgotten in the scramble to stop his drills and that he actually got away. The new Supers that were introduced didn't make the biggest impression, but I preferred this to more focus on a bunch of random new people who would take screentime from the Parrs. I did like Voyd (Sophia Bush) a lot; her fangirl attitude toward Elastigirl was fun and she was a nice answer to Syndrome's toxic fandom. I hope she returns in a sequel! Krushauer (Phil LaMarr) was a solid threat and got some good and funny lines in, while Screech playing up his full animalistic nature was creepy and something I hope Daredevil does with Owl Jr. These wannabe Supers did bring a variety of challenges to the final battle, so as secondary adversaries go, they worked perfectly. All the fight scenes contained very clever uses of everyone’s powers and were choreographed with an insane amount of fun and imagination! The numerous powers on display also made for battles that were never uninteresting. Even Bob's Incredibile got a nice showcase here as a display of the retro tech in this universe. I love the design of this world in general, but classic spy and superhero aesthetics like that are my favorite parts; I wish more superhero franchises would embrace stylized elements like this to carve out their own identities. Speaking of classic aesthetics, I loved that Bob, Helen, and Lucius had their own old-timey superhero theme songs! Michael Giacchino’s music was great as always, but those themes were great surprises! Brad Bird's direction was crisp and the writing emotionally resonate, bringing the heart of the first movie back at full force.  I can't wait to see what comes next from this world! I hope we don't have to wait another 14 years for Incredibles 3 (and I didn't need the apology/”trust us the wait was worth it” video that played at the beginning of this one; it only made us wait longer!), but I definitely want to see more adventures in this universe. Now that Supers are allowed again, I’d love for the next movie to introduce Dash and Violet's trouble-making cousins as wannabe supervillain bad influences. Cousins would bring aunts and uncles who have differing parenting styles from Bob and Helen, as well as Bob and Helen’s in-laws, who have their own opinions on how to “correctly” be heroes as well as parents. I'm thinking Christmas Vacation with superheroes, but whatever the next film is, I'll be in line to see it! While we wait, you should see Incredibles 2! It's among Pixar's best and definitely worth seeing on the big screen!

Check out more of my reviews, opinions, and original short stories here!

[smokeybrand]

The Gift and the Curse

Brendan Fraser has seen a resurgence lately and i love every bit of that. Dude has been one of my favorite actors for decades. I’m an Eighties kid who grew up during the Nineties so i was right there when he came onto the scene. I was a massive fan f all of his early work; Bedazzled, George of the Jungle, Encino Man, Airheads, Blast from the Past, and even Monkeybone. Dude hit his stride right around the Aughts and then completely disappeared. We found out later it was because of some really f*cked up sh*t but he made it through and proved he still had with Robot Man on Doom Patrol. I’m so glad this guy got another shot at this movie star sh*t but i wanted to revisit the franchise that put him on the map: The Mummy.

The Mummy

I love this campy ass flick, man. I saw this one in the theaters because, at the time, i was super into CG. It had only been a few years since Jurassic Park blew that sh*t out the water and only a few months after The Matrix made everyone sh*t the bed. The Mummy just missed that window but it was still incredibly enjoyable. This was my Indiana Jones because i didn’t care about Indy for a long time. It’s not that they were bad movies, i was just too young to appreciate them. The Mummy came out right at the time i started to really understand why i liked cinema, what a good permanence truly was, and how beautiful a film could be. The Mummy covered almost all of those bases. Fraser did an excellent job as Rick O’Connor and Rachel Weisz stunned as Evelyn Carnahan. F*cking Evie, man. I was already a fan of Fraser but this movie made me really pay attention to Weisz and she became one of my favorite actresses. It helps tremendously that she is f*cking gorgeous! Rounding out the cast is John Hannah as Evie’s brother, Johnathan and Arnold Vosloo as the titular mummy, Imhotep. Also, i can’t not mention the scummiest of scumbags, Benny, portrayed so effortlessly by Kevin J. O'Connor.

I absolutely adore this film. It’s a not the best example of Nineties cinema, how can it be, and it’s a terrible remake of the original Universal Mummy but it does what it wants to do very well. I love the ideas and the world they built with this campy clusterf*ck. It shouldn’t work, it should be terrible, but it’s one of the funnest films i have ever seen. It has it’s issues, absolutely, but they are minor compared the non-stop action, the incredible cinematography, the dated but ambitious CG effects ,and solid performances from every principal actor. They really let Fraser do his thing and that energy carried over to the rest of the cast. Evie is every bit the bad ass as Sarah Connor or Ellen Ripley but is still a very girly-girl; Something that seems to be frowned upon nowadays. Imhotep id an unrelenting, vicious antagonist who controls powers from long ago, literally willing the seven plagues of Egypt into modern times. This movie is all over the f*cking place but it worse so well and every time i see it, i have as much fun as i did way back when i was a ripened fourteen years old.

The Mummy Returns

Boy, this one suffers terrible from Sequelitis. It does nothing new and is an almost exact retread of the first film but we have new characters and a new villain in the guise of... The Scorpion King! Yes, this is the first film that titular Arachno-Monarch makes his first appearance portrayed by a very young, very beefy, and later, very poorly rendered, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson! That’s right, long before he was Franchise Viagra, way before he was punching out Dom into a stalemate in them god awful Fast flicks, The Rock got his start here, in the sequel to The Mummy and he’s f*cking terrible! Oh my god, is he bad but it works. His awful, awful, performance fits right in with the utter camp of this ridiculous franchise ans, to no one’s surprise, i loved every second of it. Now, as much as i love The Rock in this thing, i have to absolutely give it to Patricia Velasquez as Meela Nais, the physical reincarnation of Imhotep’s regicide partner and f*ck-buddy, Anck-Su-Namun. I didn’t talk about her much in the entry about The Mummy but that as mostly because she was more a plot device rather than a character. She isn’t much else in this one either but at least we got to actually see her for more than ten minutes. Plus, that fight between her and Nefertiri was f*cking glorious. Sixteen year old Smokey appreciated the f*ck out of that.

The returning cast hits their points perfectly. That chemistry never falters. Fraser, Weisz, and Hannah are exceptional together and Vosloo is, somehow, both far more menacing and hilarious at the same time. There’s this scene toward the end where he is utterly defeated and it’s the funniest sh*t i have ever seen. I also really enjoy both Oded Fehr as Ardeth Bay far more in this one than the last because he gets to do sh*t finally. Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje was also a welcome surprise as  the muscle, Lock-Nah. Dude just kinds of stands around and i think he gets into a fight with Fehr that was pretty cool but a little trite. Obviously, as a film from the early Aughts, it has it;s problems. There’s a ton of culturally insensitive sh*t that Zoomers would probably be upset about but, you know, f*ck em. It’s like a sense f humor is illegal nowadays. That said, having Rachel Weisz, as gorgeous and half-naked as she is and was, portray an Egyptian is a little much nowadays. At least Patricia Velasquez is a type of Brown? An attempt was made. This thing is a mess and i enjoy every second of it. The Mummy Returns is substantially worse that the first but, at the same time, just so batsh*t that it is equally as entertaining. But f*ck that kid, though. Every time he’s onscreen all of the good times are thrown right out the goddamn window!

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

I gave this one the hard pass for years. It looked like trash. Like straight up dog sh*t. This thing came out seven years after Returns and i just didn’t care. I was one hundred percent in my hipster film snob era and couldn’t be bothered. For a full f*cking decade and some change. Seriously, i just watched this thing the day before yesterday. For the first time. It was the inspiration for this retrospective because, after seeing this train wreck, i went back to check out the first two just to get the taste of dogsh*t out of my mouth. There are several changes made to the formula that immediately take me out of this film. First, and most egregiously, no more Rachel Weisz! She didn’t come back for the third. The reason behind her absence has run the gambit from vanity, to scheduling conflicts, to literally never getting a script. I don;t really care why, all i know is that her absence was felt. Maria Bello did her best but she isn’t MY Evie. Another “choice” was to age up that awful f*cking kid into an awful f*cking adult. That’s right, this is a “passing of the torch flick” and Luke Ford’s Alex O'Connell was supposed to take over the franchise going forward. That didn’t happen because this is Rick’s franchise. The Mummy would be nothing without Fraser and the at was proven when this thing tanked. It wasn’t all bad though. I really liked the new mummy, Han. They did some really fin things with his abilities and Jet Li never once phoned in an action scene. Unfortunately, even with the strength of the brand and outstanding lead performances, this thing still sucks.

I had a time with Tomb but it wasn’t like the time i had with it’s predecessors. I don’t know if it’s because I'm so much older and hardened by life but all i see is the flaws in this one. It doesn’t have the nostalgia goggles like the first two so i can’t enjoy it like i enjoy those. I just see plot holes instead of camp. Bad CG instead of rustic attempt. Poor set pieces instead of Nineties jank. Bad character writing instead of unfortunately hilarious dialogue. Tomb isn’t terrible but it ain’t good wither. It;s mediocre and i know the first two aren’t great but they’re better than whatever this wanted to be. It’s weird to see because there are a lot of great ideas here. I can see the vision that lays outside the margins and it’s frustrating. Fraser does is in his element as Rick and Li’s Han is a physical powerhouse but that’s not enough. As awesome as this movie gets when those two are on screen, literally everything around them is dismissible and i don’t understand how or why. I think a lot of the chemistry was lost when the focus was shifted to Alex from Rick and the recasting of Eve really didn’t do this film any favors. However, even with all of my frustrations, i can't say i had a terrible time with this thing. It was entertaining, if a little bogus.

[gziets]

A Retrospective on the Mask

It’s hard to believe that it’s been ten years since Mask of the Betrayer… actually, at the time I’m writing this (in the final days of 2017), the ten-year anniversary has just about passed. After all this time, Mask remains the most fun project I’ve ever worked on, and I wouldn’t want to let the moment go by without spilling a few secrets about why the game worked pretty well (while others didn’t).

The story took a really long time to write.

I started work on the Mask narrative in late spring / early summer of 2006, while the NWN2 team was still in the “polish and bug-fixing” phase. The first few months were mostly brainstorming. I had freedom to do pretty much anything with the narrative, so it took me a while to settle on a hook that I really liked. For a while, the player was going to become a minor deity at the beginning of the game, and the expansion would focus on the travails of a new deity in the Forgotten Realms universe… but it quickly became clear that we didn’t have the budget to create all the new creatures, items, and game systems to support a deity-level campaign. So I kept thinking about other ways to make the expansion a unique experience, and I finally settled upon the spirit-eater curse – a magical affliction that would give the player some near-godlike abilities but could still take place (mostly) in the mortal world.

Even after that first major decision was made, I spent weeks reading through Obsidian’s library of Forgotten Realms sourcebooks, picking out elements that got me excited (the Wall of the Faithless, the lore of Rashemen and Thay), and then figuring out how to weave together a story that would incorporate them all. 

That was a long and intensive process, with tons of rewrites, tweaks, and iterations. For the whole second half of 2006, I probably didn’t have a spare moment when I wasn’t thinking about the story, going over and over it in my head, and trying to think of ways to make it better. Mask’s narrative wasn’t truly finished until December 2006, when the first zone of the game (Okku’s barrow) was already underway.

Don’t get me wrong - that grueling, painstaking process was totally worth it – the story wouldn’t have been as strong if I hadn’t put in all that time. In my experience, memorable stories take a lot of deep thought and iteration, and if you don’t have the time (or your schedule doesn’t allow for it), your story may be decent, but it likely won’t be great.

I’ve worked on some games where the story needs to be developed in a very short time – e.g., a week or less. It’s possible to craft a simple, competent narrative in that time, but the chances are good that you’ll still need to iterate a lot during development to make it stronger, and your game will probably not be remembered for its story.

I find that the time required for story and world development are often underestimated in the games industry, though studios that have made a lot of narrative-focused games are starting to schedule more realistically. (Still, the realities of game development, like publisher contracts, don’t often allow for sufficient story development time, which is part of the reason that a lot of game stories aren’t that great.)

On Mask, it also helped that we dedicated one writer (me) to craft the high-level story AND write all the main story dialogues. Sometimes division of responsibility is unavoidable, but if one person has the high-level vision for the game’s narrative, it’s much easier for that person to write all the story moments. They know exactly what needs to be communicated and what the player has already learned, so they can carefully control the flow of information to the player. If the main story is divided up between multiple writers, information flow can become a major problem… and a source of confusion for the player.

Mask had the benefit of low expectations… and no external interference.

When “NX1” (Neverwinter Expansion 1) was first described to me, it was pitched as a simple hack-and-slash adventure. Neverwinter Nights 2 was expected to do reasonably well, and the expansion would be a quick, relatively low-cost way to provide a followup product to fans. (Expansions never sell as well as the original product, so their budgets are proportionately reduced.)

I was not particularly excited about making a hack-and-slasher, so I pushed back on that particular point. To the credit of our lead, Kevin Saunders, he allowed me to pursue a much more expansive vision that required more work and longer hours. (Our schedule was not going to change, but if we could get more work done in the same amount of time, we could deliver something grander. Of course, not every lead would have trusted their team enough to give them a shot.)

Also, because Mask was expected to be a simple hack-and-slasher, the publisher paid little attention to what we were doing. Effectively, we operated under most people’s radar. This was great because we were able to pursue a vision that was shared among the team and didn’t suffer from interference from outside.

As in any industry, outside interference is a reality of game development. Sometimes it works out fine, as when higher-ups are heavily invested in a franchise, understand the core vision, and give well-informed feedback that improves the product. But the more a publisher or executive is separated from the project, the more likely they’ll give direction that doesn’t strengthen the game.

Case in point. Years ago, when I was working on Earth & Beyond (a science fiction MMO) for EA-Westwood, executives would occasionally fly in from California to play the latest build of the game. On one of these visits, the executives decided that they didn’t like the existing story and wanted the main narrative to be focused on a war instead. This meant that the lead writer (not me) had to rewrite everything she had done so far. The resulting story was fine… but the massive change invalidated many of the quests that the team had already built. So with months left on the clock before release, we had to create all new material to replace what was lost, which meant that we didn’t have enough time to finish the rest of the content we had originally planned. When Earth & Beyond shipped, one of the biggest complaints was that we didn’t have enough quests and other things to do, a problem that could be traced directly to that outside interference.

Mask never had a problem like that. Everybody on the team knew the vision, it never changed (apart from minor improvements along the way), and our schedule played out as expected.

We were able to focus on quests and narrative… not new game systems.

Designing the core systems of a game has one thing in common with designing a story - it can take a lot of time and iteration to get it right. But unlike story design, systems design requires multiple people – designers to write documents defining the gameplay and programmers to implement those designs. Then they play and test… and iterate… over and over again until the gameplay feels fun. It can be a long and unpredictable process, and if you start designing levels and quests before that process is finished, you might have to redesign those levels and quests when the gameplay changes. I’ve seen many games run into problems because their gameplay isn’t finalized before the design team starts building levels.

And if the game systems are new, level designers may not know how to build fun content with the new systems. That’s why expansions are sometimes more fun than the original game. Over the course of development, the team has figured out what works and what doesn’t, and they can apply all those lessons to the expansion.

Dungeon Siege 3 is a great example of this. DS3 diverted from the standard gameplay of the previous Dungeon Siege games, and it took us a while to figure out how to make fun levels using the new systems. By the time we developed the expansion, we’d figured out the winning formula - but by then, most people had written off the game.

Mask of the Betrayer, on the other hand, had no new systems. The core design team (Eric Fenstermaker, Jeff Husges, Tony Evans, and I) had all designed levels, combat encounters, and quests for NWN2, and we knew what worked and what didn’t. Three of us (Eric, Jeff, and I) had shared an office. We didn’t have to worry about learning new tools or figuring out each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Instead, we could focus all our energy on creating great quests and narrative, and that gave us a big advantage.

We let the themes arise naturally.

Some writers will disagree with me here, but I’ve found that it’s better to avoid thinking about themes and deeper meanings until after your main story is written. On Mask, I didn’t write a “themes” document at first. I let the themes arise naturally from the work… as they almost always do. Your subconscious will seed your work with recurring ideas and motifs, and as long as you’re attentive to them, you can identify and reinforce them later.

For example, the most obvious thematic element in Mask – the idea of “masks” – didn’t appear until after I’d written the story and decided to set the game in Rashemen. I started to notice that masks – in various forms – were cropping up in the narrative I’d written, so I reinforced that element (in names, like “The Veil,” in dialogue references, in items, etc.) as I fleshed everything out. The title of the game didn’t appear until close to the end of development, when Kevin asked me to propose some names for the expansion. Until then, it was just “NX1.”

In my experience, starting narrative development with a theme – rather than a fun or emotional story hook – can lead to a story that feels preachy or emotionally empty. That may not be the case for everyone, but I do think it’s a harder road to tread.

Happy New Year, and good gaming in 2018!

[aion-rsa]

Mass Effect: 10 Toughest Choices in the Trilogy

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BioWare knew from the start that they wanted Mass Effect to be a franchise about tough choices. Unlike Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic where your decisions often came down to whether or not you wanted to be “good” or “bad,” BioWare wanted Mass Effect to be the kind of game where you were rarely sure what the right decision was (if one even exists).

Granted, the Mass Effect franchise sometimes struggled to achieve that lofty goal, but many of the best moments in Mass Effect history come down to a tough choice that leaves you staring at the screen wondering what to do. In many cases, there is indeed no “right” decision. The trouble comes when you try to look far enough ahead to see all the possible angles and decide which decision is the right one for you.

While our look back at Mass Effect‘s toughest choices accounts for the consequences of those choices and how they impact the game’s dynamic story, it’s important to also remember how those choices felt in the moment they were presented and the ways they made us question how we were ever going to force ourselves to make a decision that could very well hang over our head for the rest of the game and beyond.

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10. The Ending- Mass Effect 3

Many words have been written about Mass Effect 3’s controversial ending, and many more words will likely be written about it now that we have the chance to revisit that ending via the trilogy’s Legendary Edition release. However, it’s hard to deny that the final choice presented during that ending is a tough one to make, even if it’s only because none of the options really speak to you.

There is a lot to be said about the decision to effectively whittle Mass Effect’s story down to three choices, but the feeling of having to make that choice at that moment after everything you’ve been through is hard to replicate. That choice is made all the more difficult by the fact that the consequences of each decision can play out differently enough based on your previous actions to make you wonder whether the choice you make at that moment is also the one that will honor what you’ve done before.

9. Destroy or Rewrite the Heretic Geth – Mass Effect 2

The decision to either destroy the Geth in Mass Effect 2 that have been aiding the Reapers or to rewrite them and convince them to rejoin the hivemind is sometimes criticized for being a decision that has a “right” answer in terms of the payoff.

That’s actually part of what makes this choice so fascinating, though. Many members of your squad think the right decision is to destroy the Geth (for various reasons), and it’s only through investigation and soul searching that you start to see the value and ethics of the other option. Of course, destroying the Geth may still be what you simply prefer to do as part of your roleplaying experience, which happens to be the kind of emotional conflict that makes these games so great. 

8. Save or Destroy The Council -Mass Effect

If you’ve never played Mass Effect, the decision to save the Citadel Council at the end of the game probably seems like an easy one. Who wouldn’t want to save the “good guys?” However, actually playing the game will likely make you wonder if the council is more of an annoyance than an asset and if it’s worth sacrificing so many lives and resources to save them. 

The thing that makes a Mass Effect decision so tough is weighing the value of your instincts against the consequences of your actions and your emotional investment in the outcome. So far as that goes, this is still one of the best examples of an “obvious” choice that isn’t nearly as obvious as it may seem.

7. Who to Romance – Mass Effect Trilogy

We’ve seen other games treat the ability to romance other characters as little more than a gimmick, but there are two things that separate the Mass Effect series from those other games: the quality of most of the characters you can romance and the ways that romancing characters allow you to better understand them.

It’s technically possible to romance multiple characters across the Mass Effect trilogy, but most of the more impactful and memorable relationships require you to commit to one partner over the others. It’s hard enough to make that decision, but the really tough part is not dwelling on what could have been. 

6. Destroy or Save Maelon’s Data – Mass Effect 2

If you complete Mordin’s loyalty missions in Mass Effect 2 (which you should), you’ll eventually confront one of Mordin’s students (Maelon) who has been performing unspeakable experiments in search of a cure for the Genophage. You’ll have to decide whether to keep the data related to his research or destroy it. 

Aside from the ethical dilemmas associated with the research methods that data comes from, the thing that makes this decision so hard is the fact that the game offers little indication of what this is really all about and how far the consequences will go. Is there something in that data that will lead to more deaths? Can you really trust Mordin given his past? Your decision may come down to what you think the Shepard character you’ve built so far would do, but trying to guess what will happen is certainly part of the fun.

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5. Give the Illusive Man the Collector Base or Destroy it – Mass Effect 2

You’re on your way to destroy the Collector Base in Mass Effect 2 when you receive a transmission from the Illusive Man. He asks you to utilize a radiation pulse that will kill the Collectors but preserve the base. With their technology, he believes he can help find a way to destroy the Reapers. 

This is something of a companion to the “Council” decision from the first game in that your feelings about the Illusive Man will likely impact your choice. Is your animosity towards the Illusive Man blinding you, or are you right to suspect that his seemingly generous offer isn’t what it appears to be? The long-term payoff of this one is a little underwhelming but, it’s a fantastic dilemma delivered at the right time. 

4. Free or Kill the Rachni Queen -Mass Effect

Not too long into your Mass Effect adventure, you confront the Rachni Queen: the apparent sole survivor of a species once partially responsible for a long and violent war. The queen asks for you to spare her life so that she has a chance to rebuild her species, but given the historic actions of that species, you may decide to kill her instead. 

While this is another one of those instances where the payoff of your decision doesn’t quite justify the feeling of the moment you have to make it, this was certainly one of the first Mass Effect decisions that really made you stop and think. It may be little more than a test of your moral compass, but it’s certainly a fascinating one. 

3. Save the Geth or the Quarians? – Mass Effect 3

One of Mass Effect 3’s best moments see the Geth and Quarians engage in a massive battle. Geth companion Legion asks you to give the Geth the Reaper code so that they can perhaps aid you in future battles. Quarian companion Tali says that doing so will likely lead to the Geth killing the Quarians and that it’s better to simply be rid of the Geth altogether.

It’s entirely possible to broker peace between the Geth and Quarian, but if you haven’t made the right moves along the way, then you’ll ultimately need to pick one side over the other. Not only does your choice have galactic ramifications but it will lead to the death of one of your companions. Aside from the diplomatic option and the “out” it provides, this is arguably the ultimate example of a tough Mass Effect choice. 

2. Save Ashley Or Kaidan – Mass Effect

While trying to destroy Saren’s base on Virmire, a series of circumstances put Ashley and Kaidan’s lives in jeopardy. It becomes clear you can only help one of them, but which one do you save? 

The set-up is simple, but the fact that you’re forced to choose between two of the companions who have been with you the whole time is more than enough to make this one of the hardest decisions in the Mass Effect trilogy. Granted, these aren’t the most beloved characters in the game, but in a strange way, that almost makes the decision more difficult as it robs you of an “obvious” choice.

1. Picking Your Squad for the Suicide Mission – Mass Effect 2

The final mission in Mass Effect 2 makes little effort to hide how dangerous it will be. As you prepare to infiltrate the Citadel, you’re forced to decide which of your crew members will assist you in what is clearly described as a suicide mission. Make the right decisions, and you all might just make it through alive. Make the wrong decisions, and the consequences could be devastating.  

The thing that makes this choice so tough and so memorable is the fact that it’s both sudden and very much based on the little choices that you’ve made so far up until this point. Making the “right” decision requires you to make a series of right decisions along the way that allow you to clearly see the best path forward. Overall, this is one of the best examples of a Mass Effect choice that’s tough at the moment, tough based on your previous actions, and tough based on what you suspect the consequences of your decision may be.

  The post Mass Effect: 10 Toughest Choices in the Trilogy appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[bradjweber]

The Importance of Game Literacy

There’s probably been a time where you played games with somebody who normally- doesn’t. When you handed them the controller, they held it like it was from another planet. Any button press would be preceded by that thing where they inspect the entire controller then slowly press the button. Maybe they struggle with camera controls in 3D games. Maybe they didn’t realize there’s a run button in Mario. Maybe they don’t know what a minimap even is.

This is all simply due to the fact that they don’t have much experience with video games.

ALRIGHT THANKS FOR READING GUYS

No but seriously. When compared to other forms of media, I’d say that video games have more in common with books than film/television.

And no- not because I think video games are some next level shit telling stories that are better than The Great Gatsby or whatever- in fact, that’s largely... the opposite.

What I am saying is that video games and books require active participation on the part of its consumers. While something like film can be engaged with on a higher level than what you see at face value, actually watching a film requires nothing more of its audience than to- well obviously just sit there and watch it. The film keeps going regardless of whether you’re paying attention or not.

Now- another scenario. You and a group of friends have all started playing a new game. This game is completely brand new, and not a sequel or part of another franchise in any way. It literally doesn’t matter what it is, but for the sake of this example we’ll say it’s a shooter; all that actually matters though is that one of your friends is immediately able to perform at a relatively high skill level, while the other is still attempting to learn the controls.

This is because the first friend is very familiar with modern first person shooters, while the other is not. And the first friend doesn’t even necessarily have a mechanical advantage over the second, but he does have more knowledge of common UI configurations, button layouts, and a general understanding of modern map/objective design- whether he knows it or not.

Much like reading a book, game literacy is a skill that’s developed over many years of being immersed in the art form. One of the primary benefits of reading on a regular basis is an increased comprehension of language and texts as well as a more diverse vocabulary. Now, replace comprehension of language with the ability to intuit the objective of a game, and replace vocabulary with a repertoire of basic mechanical skills and well- you’re off to the races.

Another important attribute to literacy in any art form is the ability to quickly detect outside influences, and understand how those influences impact whatever it is you’re listening to, watching, reading, or playing.

One example of this that I know- somebody- somewhere, will take a lot of issue with me making is how Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds draws on two very specific and obvious sources for its game design. Counter-Strike and ARMA. From Counter-Strike it takes the importance of map awareness, player prediction, body placement, a lack of respawns and an intense focus on high mechanical skill in combat. From AMRA, we obviously get the simulation-esque handling of players and weapons, the sprawling maps, realistic ballistics, and the overall pseudo-real military aesthetic. Experience in both of these games will give you not only mechanical advantage in PUBG, but it will also make the initial hours of play much less daunting.

It’s no secret as to why somebody like Shroud is very good at this game.

Another massively-successful-and-popular shooter which draws from wildly different influences for its design is Overwatch. Overwatch obviously draws its player mechanics from popular MOBAs like DOTA and League of Legends, while the majority of its map and objective design comes directly from Team Fortress 2.

Hell, even down to the micro level of a single character in Overwatch like Pharah for example, it's very clear to veterans of the genre, only by looking at her skillset, what some of the more “advanced” maneuvers are that she might be able to execute such as rocket jumping.

Having this background knowledge and literacy in games makes it easier to pick up new games, and to become better at them faster than other people might.

And if you’re part of the group that doesn’t have this literacy in games, that’s okay too. Somebody who just learned to read isn’t going to pick up The Fountainhead the next day and be expected to make any substantial progress.

*although maybe nobody should be reading the fountainhead because like yikes bro-*

Anyways, that is a skill which is built up over time. Literacy not only makes future endeavors in the artform more easily appreciable, but it also allows for a greater appreciation than you had with the things that came before it.

The only thing that stops you from getting better is not doing it. So get out there and do it.

[soulephant]

I never thought I’d reach the point where I legitimately want to complain to Intelligent Systems and ask what they think they’re doing to Fire Emblem Heroes but...

Here we are. A player with resources who did spend money in the past and decided it probably wasn’t worth it. A player with all these resources who has reached tier 20 before through hard work but can’t reach it again because IntSys made a completely redundant green that’s so powerful even his biggest, red merge dies in one hit to it.

Speaking frankly, me and IntSys need to talk.

Let me start by saying that many, many of the problems I'm going to touch on relate to and impact the arena. Anything outside of it is fine, the anniversary provided me with over 100 orbs in about a week, infernal is good now that I have the resources to deal with it... But the arena. Oooh boy.

As I said in the survey, the scoring in the arena (which IntSys tries to sell as being competitive, mind you) stops having anything to do with skill starting from tier 19. I've had to do massive finetuning with merges and spend feathers on one level of one skill just to get into tier 20 somewhere in January! Even before that, I've known success with less resources than the kind of people that populate tier 20. Being matched with teams that are as beefy or beefier I can understand. But then also being scored based on the power of your team regardless of how you used it? For example, flatout scoring higher with the decidedly easier to use Hector than any mage with a raventome? Scoring higher because you have disposable heroes to merge? It doesn't make a lick of sense, and robs me (and probably several other players with me) of any due sense of accomplishment. I have proven I belong in tier 20 once before. But at the same time, I figured it was fine since it could apparently be done... Until the latest new heroes came along.

Before that though, let me highlight an unhealthy tendency as far as development of Fire Emblem Heroes goes. You see, Intelligent Systems rarely outright fixes anything related to game balance at all. Trenches, they kept cavaliers in check, true. I initially applauded the weapon refinery due to the selection of refinable things. But let me tell you a bit of a story: While rolling for regular Ike, I got Ryoma. He did fine, despite an unfavorable bane. But then sword users got faster and bulkier. Most importantly, the first Choose Your Legends really did a number on distant countering weapon users. One of the first CYL units is Brave Lyn. She's on a horse, has quite the stats despite being a ranged cavalier and, most importantly, has a skill that neuters distant counterers. And then Intelligent Systems gave that for free! There goes one of my strongest units. The money I spent earlier in the game? Effectively up in flames! In general their tendency to powercreep makes investment earlier in the game mostly pointless. If I didn't get the Nowi I did as first 5 star hero, I could have stopped playing already because I'd have been unable to check Brave Lyn. They still get my money every now and again because I lucked out.

Did I mention it impacts the arena? Which is by far the most consistent source of feathers, and later also refining stones and sacred coins that are likewise used to build units? Basically, anything that makes the arena a nightmare negatively impacts the ability to keep playing the game and not lose interest. Especially with the powercreep making it necessary to build new things (even though most units just come with perfect skills nowadays but that’s neither here or there).

Anyway, that's one example of fixing a problem by introducing another problem. Now for the main problem: The new Hector. Quite frankly: What the fuck was Intelligent Systems thinking?!

For a start, he barely has anything to do with Valentines whatsoever. Couldn't they come up with something? Even before Awakening and Fates, there were plenty of other options! But no, instead IntSys has to powercreep again! And this is of the kind I didn't even think was possible!

He's pretty much straightup stronger than regular Hector. He loses speed and HP but they barely mattered on him anyway. Mind, Hector was already one of the strongest units in the game! Doesn’t IntSys do research? Then how does one miss the fact that Hector was that strong and has actually survived powercreep to boot?! That has to be the most common knowledge!

Second, they literally had another opportunity to powercreep Hector. It was called Choose Your Legends 2. Instead it's in a valentines banner Hector has nothing to do with! I don’t like valentines but if you’re going to release a banner for it, do it right!

But the following has to be the absolute worst: Just as Hector was one of the strongest units, his Armads was one of the best legendary weapons. And it somehow needed an upgrade to a slaying weapon with wrath built in... and then be given to the new strongest unit in the game to make him busted! Yes, I said busted! I bloody well mean it! Let me tell you of the straw that broke the camels back: Today I faced a “valentines” Hector in the arena with vantage, bonfire and I don't even remember what else. I had a red who was my biggest merge outright: Masked Marth. After a few turns of combat, I had the Hector in wrath and vantage range, and to my horror... He would oneshot my Masked Marth even at full health! They have made a green that doesn't give a single fuck about reds! That destroys my best unit that is both red and able to get me in tier 20! And mind, I have paid money! Three or four games worth on money on just one game! How does IntSys think less wealthy/more wise players are supposed to deal with their developmental mistake?!

And the worst thing is... they are probably planning to make the Armads upgradable into that thing, giving regular Hector access to it... And a lot of people have regular Hector! They have probably ruined the arena for several people, including at least one that has resources! Good job there! I have to wonder who they were even catering to: People who somehow can't win with the former best unit in the game? That’s a lack of skill, not imbalance! What problem were they even solving? Reds can beat Hector? It's called the weapon triangle, or at least based on it! It’s in the franchise this game is supposed to celebrate in the first place!

So as much as I hate to do this, I'm going to have to make a demand of IntSys: Start nerfing things, starting with Berserk Armads.

Yes, I said nerfing! Not what they are usually doing! Making a separate upgrade to armorslaying weapons because they fucked up with them before? No. Making the slaying edge because the killing edge was a tad weak? NO. Making separate Brazen skills because they overestimated Defiant skills? NO! Making Brave Lyn what she is because of distant countering swordsmen? NO! Adding Zelgius because the Black Knight apparently wasn't strong enough?! NO! This time, actual nerfs are in order! Think about what unbeatable red they would have to make because they thought that Hector was a good idea! They would be reading similar complaints time and time again, and they could be losing profit because guess what? Most people eventually stop paying or even playing if you keep making their most prized units irrelevant!

If I indeed complain to IntSys (and admittedly be more polite about it), I hope they consider what they’re doing. But there’s another Hector still coming. One that is probably similar bullcrud. I don’t mind him but not like this, when he becomes synonymous with nonsense, developmental mistakes and fun-sucking! I mean it’s fine right? People have money to burn so they get a brainless gamewinner to be “skilled” with in a gacha game.

Seriously.