#the difference between smart villains and dumb villains

[thebibliomancer]

Essential Avengers: Avengers West Coast #55: THE BREAKING STRAIN

February, 1990

"Let there be an ENDING!"

Yes, please, let there!

Actually, by skipping everything not Avengers, Acts of Vengeance has been fairly bearable.

But still. Let's get this over with.

Last times in Wanda's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Month: Vision was kidnapped by every world government, disassembled, rebuilt wrong, and has decided to join the East Coast Avengers, while leaving Wanda in the West. Wanda was also kidnapped by a Texas college and pumped full of racism goo. And had her children kidnapped and eaten by a Satanist who then exploded because they were actually not babies but chunks of Mephisto. Then, her mentor Agatha Harkness erased Wanda's memories of ever having children. On top of all that, a Deviant kidnapped Wanda to try to force her to marry a snake god.

I'm not surprised she's gone catatonic from all that. I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner.

In Acts of Vengeance: Doctor Doom's robots sank Avengers Island. The U-Foes burned down the Avengers West Coast Mansion. Freedom Force smashed up Avengers Park and then the Mandarin and Wizard show up to smash it up some more. And Magneto sends Wanda's house into orbit, with Wanda inside.

I swear. The Avengers just aren't allowed any nice things.

Also, they caught the Wizard when the Mandarin ditched him.

And now, house in orbit.

Magneto muses on how Wanda is so catatonic that even getting thrown into orbit didn't get a reaction from her.

Magneto: "Clearly the time has come for a more direct approach."

Call me suspicious but I don't think Magneto's idea of mental health care is going to be very good.

But this is Acts of Vengeance. Which Magneto has ditched in order to go see Wanda.

There's an ending to let there be happening.

Thor announces to the assembled Avengers that all the trouble they've been doing through is definitely the act of Loki.

He doesn't know how Loki organized this but he's definitely sure of that.

Wasp is confused because Cloak and Dagger told her that Doctor Doom was behind things, based on their own Acts of Vengeance tie-ins.

And the Avengers have the Wizard locked up in a holding cell, loudly insisting to anyone that will listen that he's the mastermind of everything.

Speaking of the Wizard, he decides he doesn't want to be in Avengers jail anymore.

And he just leaves.

He has a miniature teleportation device built under a false fingernail and he uses it to make a portal directly to Acts of Vengeance headquarters.

Where, to his annoyance, he finds that his fellow Prime Movers don't really give a shit he was in Avengers jail. Because they're too busy debating whether Doctor Doom was ever hanging out with them or whether he was always a Doombot.

The Wizard immediately starts shit by yelling at the Mandarin for abandoning him.

The Mandarin: "Do not blame me for your own shortcomings, Wizard. When the tide of battle turned against us, I withdrew. you should have done the same."

Owned.

The Wizard shoots back that he did withdraw, once he felt like it! So there! But he had to put up with an Avengers interrogation before he could teleport from his cell.

Which Definitely Loki is very annoyed to hear about.

Definitely Loki: "Ignorant mortal! Say thou hast not done this thing!!" Wizard: "?!? Unhand me, lackey! How dare you raise hand or voice to your better?!"

And Loki takes exception to that. And reveals that he's Loki. Duh.

Kingpin just peacing out while everyone is gawking kills me.

He's the third smartest villain involved. After Doom, who may not have ever been involved, and Magneto, who only got involved to handle some personal business.

Meanwhile, another weird timeline thingy.

President Lincoln is attending the theater, as Presidents Lincoln are wont to do, but when John Wilkes Booth tries to shoot him, as Johns Wilkes Booths are wont to do, it aggros the full force of Kentucky woodsman in Lincoln and he jumps up and slaps Booth's aim astray.

Amazing.

So amazing that Immortus (sitting in on the divergence as a general) wishes he could just leave this timeline alone.

But in order to accomplish his vague goal of becoming master of time again, he has to snuff out all alternate timelines. For some reason.

He returns to Limbo (the time one) and discovers to his annoyance that his Wanda-stalking scanner has lost Wanda due to a "massive disruption of the Earth's electromagnetic field."

My dude.

You can't spy on her in hell. You can't spy on her if there are magnets.

You're being made to look like a chump by people who don't even know you're involved.

Wonder Man returns to the Avengers West Coast Compound from the Mole Man thing last time to find one entire missing cottage which should have a Wanda.

He asks Agatha Harkness, what the shit, you had one job!

Agatha says that the house was thrown into orbit faster than she could cast a spell to do anything about it.

US Agent shows up and says that the cottage is about thirty miles up and ten miles off from where it launched.

Wonder Man yells at US Agent for not doing anything to stop a cottage from launching into space.

... C'mon, dude. He has the powers of Captain America plus the power of being a jerk nobody likes. How is he supposed to stop a house launch?

Anyway, he wasn't even at the compound when the cottage launched. He was at the Mole Man thing too.

He got back just in time to see the house blast-off and then checked the tracking system to find where it had gone.

Wonder Man just wants to fly off after Wanda. Even though his belt jets don't work in space.

US Agent suggests using one of the space-capable Quinjets instead.

Wonder Man: "Well, this is a first! You being the calming influence in a situation, Agent!" US Agent: "Belay the jabber, Wonder Man.

The two find the house just floating in space.

Houses don't just launch themselves, usually, so US Agent suspects some supervillain plot. And since Wonder Man is near indestructible, he gets to go poke around while US Agent watches the ship.

And for some reason, Wonder Man puts on a space helmet. Guy doesn't need to breath but constantly wears space helmets or lets people grow gills on him.

Maybe he just wants to feel like one of the cool people. Maybe that's where Vision got it from.

Anyway, when Wonder Man approaches the orbiting house, it explodes in his face.

Geez. The Avengers just can't keep a headquarters unexploded, unsunk, or unburned down in this event.

But not time to follow up on exploding space houses. There's Acts of Vengeancing to wrap up.

Loki has the villains too stupid to have peaced out (Wizard, Red Skull, the Mandarin) magically levitated so he has a captive audience to rant at.

Loki: "FOOLS! Stupid, mortal imbeciles! And all the greater fool is Loki, that ever I did trust the petty egos of mortals with the consummation of my plan! I didst think that by directing so-called super-villains into attacking champions unaccustomed with their powers I could rid this world of super heroes... And in the process once and for all destroy those who have so long vexed me by their very existence!"

Loki singles out Wizard to yell at. Because teleporting directly from the Avengers' holding cell to Acts of Vengeance HQ means that if Thor uses Mjolnir, he could track the energy trace and just show up!

Thor: "Say thee not 'if', beloved sibling... Say thee rather WHEN!"

You have such a good sense of timing, Thor.

Also, he brought Dr Pym, Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Captain America, Wasp, Iron Man, Vision, and Falcon with him to kick Loki's ass.

Loki responds to imminent booty thrashing by dismantling the Acts of Vengeance HQ to reveal it was located on the Isle of Silence this whole time!

The very place Loki was exiled when he tried to get Hulk and Thor to fight, which caused the Avengers to form.

So now Thor understands the why.

And despite being a place of exile, Loki has spent so much time here (a lot of it voluntary) that he has mastered the dimension.

He brings forth Silent Ones from below the ground to fight Captain America. He tangles Hawkeye and Mockingbird in roots. He buffets Falcon and Wasp with winds. He creates a plume of fire that engulfs Iron Man.

Cap tells Thor to go beat up Loki since he's the best one to do that. Not bogged down in some mischief currently and also very experienced at punching Loki in his Loki face.

Thor chases after Loki and Loki scampers away saying he'll only fight in a time and place of his choosing when he thinks he'll win! He creates a wall of ice between him and Thor.

Focused on the Avengers, Loki loses his hold on the Wizard, the Mandarin, and the Red Skull.

Red Skull argues this is their best chance to strike at the heroes, while they're distracted.

The Mandarin calls him a stupid dumbass. This whole thing has been Loki's scheme and Mandarin isn't going down for it. He's leaving Loki to his own failure (like he did the Wizard. Consistent.)

When Loki dismantled the meeting place, he left the walls lying on the ground. And the dimensional portals built into each door is still active so the three villains not smart enough to fuck off until now now fuck off.

Wasp and Cap notice the villains getting away but, eh, they're busy right now. They'll get them next time.

Thor just smashes through the wall of ice because it's ice.

Thor: "Show thyself to have at least some fragment of our father in thee! Some small spirit of the godhood! Of the nobility which is our birthright!" Loki: "Speak to me not of nobility, Thor! Thou dost speak of music to one born deaf! There is but one Lord Loki serves, and that is power!"

Funny to think that in recent years, Thor gets along much better with Loki than he does with Odin.

Loki creates a giant rock hand to crush Thor but Thor crushes the hand instead. And hits the ground so hard that it makes a fissure that Loki falls down.

Which Thor then seals up so he can't escape.

Pretty perfunctory conclusion to this ENORMOUS company wide event.

Cap is like geez did you just kill him but no, "gods do not perish thus" not even Loki.

Loki is just trapped under millions of tons of Earth. But alive.

Thor explains that Loki was Big Mad that his actions created the Avengers so he wanted to destroy them with this big villain team-up. But he only strengthened the resolve of the heroes.

Thor: "Let the evil minds of the world beware! Ever and always shall the Avengers prevail!"

Yeah, Old Man Logan's backstory set-up IS dumb, Thor.

Anyway. Everything is solved forever.

The West Coast situated Avengers return there.

Iron Man flies off in one direction, Hank and Jan in another direction in a Quinjet.

Janet and Hank re-explain the plot and how Loki was Big Mad at creating the Avengers.

... This is really a lot more explaining than is needed.

I do like how Jan puts it.

Wasp: "So... that's that! Another threat ended, and this time it all started because Loki got tired of the other villains poking fun at him at the annual bad guys' picnic!"

Hank lands the Quinjet in the hanger. He goes off to check on Tiny Tigra and Wasp goes to change.

Another day, another new Wasp outfit.

But after changing into the blue and white number, Jan goes to check on Wanda.

The cottage seems to be back in place but Wasp finds US Agent sprawled on the floor and warning her to get away while she can.

Wasp: "Get away? From what... ? Who... ? What's going on here? Where's Wanda? Where's Wonder Man?" US Agent: "Dead! Blown to bits out in space! Get away... Get away..." Wasp: "Wonder Man... killed?? But... by who??"

Scarlet Witch: "By me, Janet! I dealt with him as I shall deal with all the Avengers, now that my power has been finally unleashed!" Wasp: "W-Wanda...??" US Agent: "Tried to warn you... Now... Too late... too late for everyone!"

Ahh, knew we'd get here eventually.

If there's three things everyone knows about John Byrne's Avengers run, it's Vision being disassembled, Wanda's children turning out to be devil chunks, and Wanda having a heel turn.

So whatever happened in space between Catatonic Wanda and Magneto, Wanda is Evil now and also had an Evil Costume Change and Haircut.

Honestly, this isn't a bad look for her. Shame about the whole evil thing, she looks stylish af.

But next week I'm alternating over to Avengers. I'd consider doing the Evil Wanda plot before switching back over except there's a weird interruption in the middle of the arc where Byrne quits the book in a huff.

So best to stick to alternating. Besides, the Avengers got stuff going on too. Remember all that stuff with Real Nebula and that one old man who blew up his own house? Yeah, that stuff is popping off!

Follow at @essential-avengers for all the best vowels. You like A's? I got tons. Buy them in bulk because this is an Avengers blog. Like, reblog, comment, whatever.

[toastedsmoreo]

I gotta be less terminally online bc every time I think about jjk’s ending I get annoyed

[trashogram]

It's even worse for Crimson as being a villain, he's completely wasted. Given how Moxxie acts, personality wise and the like, he has the ruthless side of him(with killing) yet he's intelligent and caring. You'd think these would come about due to his upbringing by both of his parents.

But then we finally get around to it and we see Moxxie's mom is dead and not recently either and Crimson....is a complete dumbass and also an asshole.

This would have been a good side story, to showcase that Moxxie comes from a grey morality family, which is why his personality is the way it is.

His mother is that kind and sweet caring figure, his father is that ruthless and hardass figure, yet somehow, someway the two still love eachother. I feel this also would actually add to Hell as far as the daily life goes and struggles between morality.

The Mafia/Mob, while obviously there's a bunch of assholes within it, that doesn't mean that's all there is to these guys. They wouldn't have gotten anywhere near the power that they had in the 20th Century, if they weren't smart about what they were doing, if they didn't have some sort of code or honor system. As ruthless as Mobsters can be, not all of them are assholes...for the sake of being assholes.

There are laws that had to be followed(different from policies that each Family may have had, so those varied between). Michael Franzese is a huge, good source on the Mafia life and it's a lot more complicated than one might realize.

Crimson comes across as a dumbass, because he didn't check Chaz' finances...when they were in his car, unlocked....on the property. He's head of the Mob and doesn't do the most common sense thing ever, checking someone out before you take their word at face value.

It also comes across as such, that this is somehow the ONLY way to get money. ...Crimson...my guy, HOW are you head of anything in Greed?

No one becomes the Head of the Mafia, if they are so stupid that they don't have fingers in the pockets of...just about everyone they come across, if they don't strategize and have many, many, many different ways of making money.

They introduce us to Crimson as if he's some big shot, with the huge house, the helicopter and all the goons....and yet all that is thrown away when we learn that he's in heavy debt. So how are you paying all your men? How are you paying for any of your supplies? But then they take it a step further with Crimson being a dumbass, by forcing his son to marry Chaz(who he hates) and is just taking the latter's word that he's rich....so you're not going to check the guy who you HATE and make sure he's telling the truth? Crimson you have no right to be pissed at Moxxie, for you being an idiot.

Didn't mean to go on this long spiel I guess, I'm just now worried for when we get into Hazbin...in how Angel's Mafia Family is going to be portrayed, especially when we know it'd at least be early 20th Century of when they were alive. Which means, they should be well organized and have significant power.

....Also Moxxie's mother deserved way better than being killed. I wanted her alive, there was so much potential to have this contrast between Millie's parents and Moxxie's parents and....we didn't get that. ...Also I WANT HER OFFICIAL NAME!

GIVE MOXXIE'S MOM AN OFFICIAL NAME!

Crimson is so deep in debt that he had to take out his brain and put it up for collateral.

It’s the only way to explain why he’s such an audacious idiot that I have to assume failed upward. Or we could blame it on the real problem, which is that Vivienne Medrano decided one day that she wanted to turn a gay wattpad fanfic into an episode of Helluva Boss regardless of how dumb the idea was and no one stopped her.

Exes and Oohs hurts my brain with how preposterous it is, dude. How does marriage work in Hell?? Why the fuck are there priests in Hell that can officiate marriages?!

As for Angel Dust — God, is being from a mafia family even part of his character anymore? Oy vey we’ll probably find out before we spend anymore time on Charlie in Hazbin Hotel.

(I’m gonna call Moxxie’s mom Marzia. It’s cute. Not holding out for the show to actually give her a name.)

[rythmicjea]

Daddikins and The Slaughter

A bit of housekeeping first. I've been agonizing on what my second entry in this series would be. I wish that I could say that I had a whole bunch of these lined up ready to post. But, all of my ideas revolve around a central theme: Two Sides of the Same Coin. So, before I get into all of those, and my break down of their romance, I want to isolate the situations where they are on the same side. Also, I made a few of the gifs in this post. They're shit. I know they're shit. Just go with them lol. And this is long. Holy hell it's long. It's longer than some of the short stories I've written.

The Opening Game

Archie

Hiram is considered to be the "main villain" of the series up through, and including Season 5. In these five seasons, the show posits that Archie is Hiram's archnemesis. Here's the thing, Archie maybe Hiram's opposite, but he's also a reflection of all of Hiram's insecurities. The biggest question is why a middle aged man would do everything he could to destroy a teenager. Hiram wasn't necessarily trying to destroy Archie himself. He was trying to destroy everything that Archie represented in himself. Archie is the character that most represents Riverdale itself in the show. Everything that the town can be. And Archie isn't afraid of being who he is no matter if he may stumble or fail along the way. To Hiram, that is unacceptable. He can't afford failure. He can't afford to make any mistakes. Everything Hiram does is to capture and destroy Riverdale as a whole because it encapsulates everything he is not. It's also why he can't condone a relationship between Archie and Veronica; because, Veronica is an extension of Hiram and Hiram can't let someone like him be involved with a person who represents everything he is not.

Jughead

Unlike Archie, who can be molded into Hiram's image, Jughead cannot. Hiram knows from the get go that he can't control him. Jughead is Hiram's opposite. Where Hiram is wealthy, Jughead is poor. Where Jughead lets morality dictate, Hiram has no scruples. There is a spot for everyone at Jughead's table, but Hiram believes that the boy shouldn't even be breathing the rarefied air that surrounds him.

For all of their differences, it's not the superficial contradictions that make Jughead an adversary. Again, unlike Archie, it's their similarities that birth the true rivalry. Hiram isn't dumb. He's incredibly cunning. Unlike Jughead, whose intelligence doesn't come from his parents, Veronica's comes from her father's. But, Jughead is a teenager and for as smart as he is, he doesn't have the life experience that Hiram does. He still holds onto an optimism that his exterior doesn't always emulate. Hiram recognizes and respects Jughead's royalty (and yes, Royalty is going to be one of my next entries); and, to take down a royal opponent you have to play a game of politics and subterfuge. This is why the matchup between Hiram and Jughead is of The Game of Kings.

Veronica

Hiram's villainy against his daughter doesn't come out immediately. He still sees her as his "little girl", "princess", and "mija" for the first few seasons. He relies too heavily on the blood between them to extract what he wants out of her and to manipulate her onto his side. As he tells Archie "fathers are forever". This... this is pure hubris. When a child cuts ties with a parent it's all "But it's your mom/dad! You only have one!" and not "Wow, what did that parent do to make their child walk away from them? How bad was it that their own child left them?"

One of the persistent jabs at Veronica's character is that she insists on telling him her plans to defeat him and then is surprised when he listens and turns the tables on her. For all of her acumen, Veronica is still a child. The main characters are still only children. They are teenagers thrust into a world of adult problems. Then, they are expected to solve all of the town's issues when it was never their job to begin with. But, Veronica, as Mrs. Burble points out is obsessed. She is obsessed with making her father proud of her. She wants all of her accomplishments to be recognized on their own merit without his interference.

Even though it takes many years, Veronica ends up severing ties with him completely. Going so far as to hire a hitman who is successful. That should tell you just how villainous Hiram Lodge was that his own daughter took such extreme measures.

The Middle Game

Hiram's True Rival(s)

The true opposition to Hiram's town domination has always been Jughead and Veronica. Sometimes separately and sometimes together. Unlike Archie, Hiram can't control or manipulate Jughead onto his side. And to an extent, he can't do the same to his daughter. He tries his best and for a brief moment, he succeeds. But, she always finds a way out of his clutches.

The Prince

There's more than one way to execute your opponent. Jughead put Hiram in a position that he never expected. For all of his underhandedness and corrupted ways, Hiram wasn't ever able to bring Jughead down to his level. Hiram buys the Riverdale Register, Jughead publishes in the Blue and Gold. When the Register becomes the Lodge Ledger, Jughead creates the Riverdale Choice. Jughead helps lead the protests on Pickens Day and then Hiram retaliates by severing the statue blaming it on the Serpents. It's when Jughead refuses to kill the article on him that Veronica's vision of her father begins to become unrepairable.

The first time Jughead meets Hiram, they speak about family. But, before Jughead can continue any meaningful dialogue, Hiram cuts him off. Hiram employs these little mind games throughout the series. Jughead might have come off as dramatic when he said that Hiram was "trying to buy [his] silence again". But, he was right. And I believe the majority of viewers knew that, even if they didn't recognize how.

Hiram realizes that for every move he makes, Jughead successfully uses the high road against him. Hiram is not a shortsighted individual. In Chapter Twenty-Nine: Primary Colors we see the trap that's been laid coming to fruition. Now, Hiram never expected Jughead to go on a hunger strike or for anyone to follow him for that matter. He asks Archie about it and Archie (oh you lovable himbo), thinks he takes Hiram off the scent.

For all of Hiram's diabolical scheming, there is one thing that sets him apart from other villains. And that is, he keeps himself incredibly composed. In fact, the first time we ever see him get angry is in the second season when Jughead first starts writing about Hiram's exploits. I think every fan remembers where he slams his hand against his desk yelling "JUGHEAD JONES!" In fact, you can probably count on one hand the amount of times Hiram actually gets angry. And if it's not him lashing out about his own insecurities, he's lashing out about Jughead.

The Knight

Jughead discovers Hiram's plan for the Southside very early on. But, he has absolutely no support. Even when he proclaims he's going on a hunger strike, his best friend laughs. Then, to his surprise, Jughead has far more support than anyone expected. And, Jughead correctly knows that it's in no one's interest to take down "a bunch of teenagers trying to save their school". So, Hiram gets Archie to do his dirty work. He pits the best pals against each other.

The knight always gets romanticized in literature, history, and in this game of black and white. But simultaneously they remember and forget the knight always makes a turn. A change of course.

Season two isn't the best season for Archie's character. There's a lot of attempts at ambiguity. He thinks he's trying to play both sides, but he isn't. Archie is always categorized as someone who is steadfast and true. He is the moral compass for the town. But with this, he lets Hiram direct that turn and it puts everyone in danger.

But, there's something I find really interesting in the costuming that you can see in this scene in particular. Whenever Jughead needs to be The Leader/The Prince the prongs of his beanie are curled outward making the famous crown more prominent.

Jughead in the shot below is acknowledging that Archie, his once white knight, is gone. He doesn't know when or where he lost him, just that he's gone. But, he accepts the sacrifice of his own piece for what he hopes will be a win in the end.

The Rook Pawn

There are several times that Hiram throws Veronica to the wolves. Far too many for a father to do to his own daughter. But, it all starts with her rebellion. At first, she wants to be part of her parents enterprise. She doesn't realize just how deeply her family is committed to this life of crime. Like Jughead, there's an innate optimism that she can change her family's legacy.

In 2x16 we see the start of Hiram's plans to sacrifice his daughter. And it's this episode that Veronica starts to realize that she is unprotected and begs for help. She realizes that she's not a backrow piece. She's a pawn. She might be her father's favorite pawn, but she is still a pawn. A piece to be maneuvered for his own gain. She lists three names, Ethel, Betty, and Jughead. Betty is her best friend who just left her high and dry as her running mate because Veronica lied to her. She put her parents first and has realized that mistake. She's known for some time that her parents are the reason why Ethel's life is in shambles and she wants to make amends. But... why Jughead?

The deification of parents in Hollywood

Like I'm a criminal too...

Why is it so important to Veronica that Jughead doesn't see her in the same light as her parents? Because she, unlike Betty and Archie, and unlike the Serpents, can see the game the two are playing. She has been witness to Jughead's hunger strike, read his articles about her father, and arbitrated the negotiations between the two kings. And, yet, she's afraid. She's afraid that she brought this blight onto the town. In season five she says that it's her fault. It's her father and she needs to be the one to fix it. Children of narcissists learn from a very young age that it's their job to regulate the emotions and behaviors of their parents. Veronica never wanted her father home. She begged her mother to find a way out from under his thumb. Her actions of trying to impress him is a tactic to regulate her home life.

In the comics, it's well known that Veronica and Jughead are classified as "Frenemies". Do you want to know a secret? *beckons you over and whispers* They date several times in the comics and there are tons of panels where Jughead is lusting over Veronica unironically. In the second episode of season two Jughead is a friend to Veronica. He gives her cliche advice because it's what worked for him and his father. Children of addicts are special. They have to make their home safe for themselves. They put a burden on their shoulders to cure their parents. Because if they can do that then they don't have to carry the weight of the responsibility of surviving anymore. Trust me when I say, that all children of addicts blame themselves for what they went through at some point in their life.

Hollywood loves to deify parents. They can't do anything wrong. And if they did then they had a good reason for it. Play some sappy music in the background and they make you forget just how horrific their actions were. Jughead, when he gives this advice to Veronica, doesn't know Hiram. He says "I won't pretend to know what lies inside your father's heart". And when he says if there's a chance that her father is trying then it's only respectful to recognize that. He doesn't say she has to meet him halfway. How much effort she wants to put into it, is for her to decide.

But when Jughead realizes who Hiram is and the extent of his control he backpedals faster than a cyclist in the Tour de France. He does everything out in the open too. He does it so Veronica can see. He fucked up by giving her bad advice. If he had known what her father was truly like he never would have said such things! He would never tell her that she was at fault for his actions. He would never say that her father's mess was hers to clean up. Because he recognizes a traumatized person, because he's been traumatized. What he would say is that he was at fault for not knowing things sooner. (Oh you sweet summer child...)

When Jughead challenges Hiram to come to the trailer park, so that the two royal lines can broker an accord, she doesn't sit with her father. Jughead doesn't sit next to her because this is not a 'both sides made mistakes' issue. This is Hiram against the Jones'. So, Veronica sits between them - like a moderator or negotiator. She doesn't fully realize it yet, but this physical separation is the beginning of a crack. It's small. But it's enough.

That's why, when she announces her candidacy for Student Body President, Jughead perks up when he hears her parents are against it. Because that means she's thinking for herself. She's acting on her own. And Jughead presses on that crack making it deeper.

So, when she says that she doesn't want Jughead to see her as a criminal, her subconscious is coming to the surface and she is recognizing the truth around her. It's a truth she doesn't want to be apart of. So while Jughead has been trying to atone for his mistake, by exposing Hiram; Veronica changing course is her way of atoning to Jughead for what she believes is her fault.

One of the most beautiful things about their interactions is that Jughead never blamed Veronica. He might have been upset with her because outwardly she was so dedicated to her family, but he never once thought that she was responsible for Hiram's actions.

When they go low, we go high... Riot Night

The Bishop

Hiram has a Bishop - Penny Peabody. And he uses her to destroy the newly crowned Prince. And this is where Jughead realizes the real game he's been playing. The entire time he believed that it was two kingpins moving those under their leadership, using their own resources, to bring the other down. It's on Riot Night that he finally sees that he's never been on the offensive. Where he entertained the possibility of Hiram and FP playing the Kings on the board, he now understands that Hiram was never on the board to begin with. And Jughead was a pawn who made it to the back row. You see, in chess, a pawn can be elevated to "Prince" if they make it to the back row of the opposing side. Jughead was someone who begrudgingly took up his mantle in the Serpents (he moved from pawn to prince to king). And Hiram used this to his advantage.

Even at the last minute Jughead still didn't figure it all out. But he did realize the one thing no one else did. When confronted, Hiram tries to deflect; but, it's what Jughead says that is the most haunting. He notes how much Hiram is spending on all of this. But it's not the amount spent - it's the worth that those he bought represents. In business, the most valuable item is that which has not been obtained. Without Jughead, the Serpents would have rolled over. There was enough heat coming down on them to make them leave. So, when Jughead says "but you couldn't buy us", what he means to say is "you couldn't buy me."

It's in this moment, when he's cornered and in check, that he realizes he was Hiram's opposition all along. Jughead knew he was a thorn. But, he believed himself to be outside of the fight. An objective observer. This realization is what inspires the counteroffer to go to the slaughter for his gang, his town, and his father. Hiram knew the only way he could ever defeat Jughead was if Jughead sacrificed himself. He used Jughead's innate goodness against him. And Penny noted it all. "The sacrificial lamb arrives..." Jughead figured that no bloodshed would follow his sacrifice, but Hiram knew that without Jughead's leadership, the Serpents would implode. Getting Jughead out of the picture was Hiram's entire goal.

Deflection, Attack, Refute, Valve, Opposition

Like all villains, Hiram has a pattern. Surprisingly, Hiram's is well known in the psychology world: DARVO.

Deny

Attack

Reverse Victim

Offender

For those who are unfamiliar with this the titles are pretty self-explanatory. But, Hiram executes these with precision. Jughead says himself that Hiram is 10 steps ahead, because he is. Knowing when a teenager is going to zig instead of zag isn't that difficult; but, making that zig look like something it's not, is.

Deflection

Hiram likes to isolate his opponent first. But during that isolation he builds you up. He appreciates what you have to offer. He loves listening to your ideas. He makes you feel welcome in his world. That's how slimy he is and it makes the skin crawl once you know this. The diabolical part of this is the "Deny" aspect. He denies his involvement because he makes his victim come up with the idea. He gives them the authority to act out their deepest and darkest desires. This is how he keeps his hands clean.

Attack

Surprisingly, his attack, looks like denial, but it's really a withdrawal. Take the Dark Circle. Archie came up with it, Hiram facilitated it, but he maneuvered behind Archie's back to take it away from him. And he did all of this, so that at the debate, Hermione could truthfully say that Archie started it. Because he did. The nuance of the situation doesn't matter.

When it comes to Jughead, his actions are far more psychological. He calls Jughead "the other one" when he introduces Archie and Jughead to the new sheriff. He does this knowing it will diminish Jughead's efforts. But, Jughead, always knowing he's underestimated takes it in stride which just further upsets Hiram.

Refute

In Veronica's case, he serves his daughter up on a silver platter to be auctioned off to the highest bidder of 'The Families'. And when she puts in the work to get her idea off of the ground, he plays the victim. He makes it seem like she is the bad guy for thinking that her efforts could be successful. Because, if she fails, what would happen to Hiram? Later he throws out that she chooses others "over blood". No, she chooses others over him. He acts like she has made the ultimate betrayal when really, he has always been the betrayer. This is especially evident at the beginning of Season Three when Hiram refuses to withdraw his attack against Archie and says that it is her "punishment" for picking "that boy over blood".

Valve

Ultimately, his goal is to make those he is attacking into the offenders. "I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling kids". Sound familiar? Hiram is just a business man taking advantage of good land deals so he can elevate his project that will elevate the town. He doesn't understand why this petulant teenager is trying to stall progress! Why is he the one being vilified when everyone can prosper? His Mija is just a child! He's looking out for her and her well-being. Of course he would take the money she earned and put it in a trust. She's not old enough to understand the responsibility that comes with such a large sum. Ignoring the fact that when her would-be rapist kidnapped and tortured her boyfriend, Hiram did nothing. Instead, he's absolutely okay with Veronica selling herself for Archie's freedom.

Opposition

He doesn't send Jughead or Veronica to be slaughtered, it was done of their own volition. They decided to do that. Their choices lead them to that outcome. Except, his game of psychological warfare in the form of systematic torture and corruption of the town drove them to do it.

The End Game

Tick Tock, Daddy... Tick... Fucking... Tock...

Season five and six Jeronica is SO underrated. I know that it seems like their relationship in season seven came out of nowhere but if you don't think that they were coded from the pilot, then you have recognize that the groundwork was being laid since they all came back to Riverdale. But I argue this groundwork goes back even farther. As early as the season finale of season two.

It's Veronica who is the first to stand with Archie to save everyone from being bussed out. She wants to buy the Whyte Wyrm to save Jughead from Hiram. And when she finds out that Hiram fired FP from Pop's she realizes the "bigger, smarter play". Jughead really doesn't have that strong of a connection to the Wyrm. Yes, it's Serpents territory. Yes, it's the last piece of the southside that Hiram needs. But it's in this moment that Veronica realizes that Pop's is the Heart of Riverdale. In my analysis of Archie's dream, at the beginning of season five, I present that Jughead is Riverdale's conscience. And Veronica is the first to realize this fact. So, because her friend loves this diner, and this diner is everything to the town, she lovingly takes it over.

Hiram's deception of still owning Pop's is the first time he sacrifices Veronica. The second time is when he destroys her rum business because he can. He uses his position as Mayor to literally break the law because she beat him at his own game. So, he topples the game board. The third is when he sabotages her self-esteem by greasing her entrance into Harvard. He even tries to sacrifice her for his own good in season seven! He gets her to perjure herself with an affidavit by saying she was with him in Cuba. But, to me, what he does in Season 5 is the worst one and one he both succeeds and fails at, at the same time.

From his intro we all knew that Chad was a version of her father. The saying that "girls marry boys just like their father" exists because it's true. Chad is stalking her, harming her, defrauding her, and abusing her (love bombing is a form of abuse). Every trick that Chad employs is the same that Hiram did to Hermione. So, Veronica, innocently believing enough time had passed, goes to her father for help. And Hiram turns her away. Why does he do this? What could she have possibly done to deserve him turning his back on her? She set a boundary that she would not clean up his mess and save him when he willingly and stupidly put himself in danger because of his machismo. I repeat, as a teenager she refused to be a parent to her father. That's the reason why he won't help his daughter get out of an abusive marriage and he actively helps Chad hunt her down. This is when he succeeds at sacrificing her. Hiram fails when she successfully defends herself against Chad and eliminates the threat he poses.

Just like the end of sophomore year when Jughead almost gave his life to save everyone he loved, history repeats itself with Veronica fighting for hers against her husband and exiling Hiram.

Check...

The Heart and The Conscience...

The conscience is when the brain agrees with what the heart wants. Jughead and Veronica work separately to take her father down. They both almost die in the process. Hiram willingly sends his daughter and the rival prince to their own demise to keep his control. To quote Jess, that's some Shakespearean shit. If Veronica is Cordelia then Jughead is Hamlet. But, if they had worked together from the beginning? Archie never would have been arrested, they never would have been in danger, Veronica never would have put the hit out on her father, and Hiram would have been gone by the end of season two.

Season Three

In Season Three, Jughead investigates the Gargoyle King and he suspects it's Hiram. But he can't go after Hiram the way he did the previous year. He knows what will happen if he does. He still never comes down to Hiram's level but he's far more covert and direct than he once was. He was a pawn who elevated himself to Prince and then took up the mantle of King. This time, he knows he's on the board but instead of moving everyone else, he knows better now. He knows to make sure everyone's playing the same game.

That's why Hiram could never really affect Jughead the way he wanted. Jughead used his resources against him not wanting to get too close. But in their Junior Year, Jughead has to take a more personal approach. There's a discomfort and an anger when he does this. He can't obfuscate the fact Hiram has gotten to him, but it's far more complex than it once was.

This is the same with Veronica. The first episode has her disowning herself from her father. "You don't have a daughter anymore." She feels more inclined to manage the carnage but neither have the fortitude to do what they did the second half of their sophomore year. And they don't have the wherewithal to aid the other's help. It's why in season three we begin to see Jughead pick up the pieces from when Hiram shattered Veronica. Even when dating Archie, Veronica's only protector was Jughead. But that's for another post 😉.

...and Mate

If their dynamic with Hiram teaches us anything it's that together, Jughead and Veronica are absolutely unstoppable. For as cerebral as Jughead can be, he is the heart to Veronica's conscience. Jughead is emotional and prone to letting them cloud his judgement. It's a real and honest portrayal of the complexities of teenagerhood.

Where Jughead is emotional, Veronica is analytical. She's the embodiment of the sexism women face every day. Women can't be emotional or they won't be taken seriously. They have to work twice as hard to get half as much. Nothing, not even for a Princess, is handed to them. Veronica rarely lets her emotions get the best of her, and the first time she sheds a few tears it's Jughead's name on her lips. Not because he caused them but because she's not ready for him to see her vulnerable. She's not ready to confide in him. She's not ready to apologize for her parent's actions because she still believes it's her fault. That's why, after he's almost killed, Veronica vows to make things right. She still wants to atone.

I mean, when you break down the series finale you realize that the writers couldn't say it outright, but Jughead and Veronica became the most influential couple the world had ever seen. Name a more powerful couple than a studio president and a publishing mogul. I'll wait...

And, as always, I love feedback. Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know your thoughts!

Bisous, Bisous... Votre Auteur.

[where-theres-smoak-2]

Dune 2021/2024, Dune 1984 and Dune 2000 miniseries comparison.

After watching Dune part 2 I found out that there were actually other adaptions of the book and so with my curiosity piqued I decided to give them a watch and what I found really interesting was how different each one was, so I figured I'd make a post talking about some of the main differences between the three adaptions I watched. Obviously there are spoilers for both Dune part one and two, the 1984 film and the 2000 miniseries, I ma also going to put a book spoiler warning even though I haven't read the book because I am going to assume that some of the things that were present in the earlier adaptions and missing from the Villeneuve version probably came from the book, but anyway lets jump in.

The Harkonnens

The portrayal of the House Harkonnen is very different in the 2021/2024 films than in the other two adaptions. In Villeneuve's version they come across as much more threatening and terrifying. In the 1984 version they are just kind of disgusting and repulsive, like in almost every scene they are doing something that makes your stomach churn, whether that is having the doctor treating the boils on the Baron's face or Rabban tearing a dead cow's jaw off and munching down on it, uncooked, while making their evil plans. It seemed Lynch was really leaning into them being just repulsive and animal like to the audience.

When it comes to the miniseries they are portrayed in a more ridiculous, flamboyant and over the top, kind of way. They all seem a bit unhinged but it felt more like you were supposed to laugh at them than be afraid of them. It's still clear that they are the enemy that needs to be defeated and that they are brutal but they, in my opinion, also seemed to be portrayed as being a bit dumb, except maybe for the Baron. But you had Rabban who seemed to be just mindless muscle with anger issues, Feyd who often seemed like he was short a few brain cells and was kind of that dumb handsome jock type almost and the Baron who clearly had the smarts to pull off an evil plan but he was very flamboyant and a bit goofy, might be the word I'm looking for, but it was hard to take either the 1984 version or the miniseries version of the Baron very seriously as a scary threat when he was floating around the place like a villain from the power rangers.

In opposition of that Villeneuve turned the Harkonnens into something that was truly menacing and something that seemed powerful. Whilst watching both Part One and Two, I genuinely felt afraid of those characters, it felt like they really were threats to the fremen and to paul and his family. He even managed to make the Baron's floating seem creepy and imposing instead of gimmicky and goofy. I also really liked the change he did where instead of them being overly colourful he put them in black and took the red hair away to give them the bald heads, it made them seem more militaristic and harsh, if that makes sense, I just love that he stripped all the colour from them.

Liet-Kynes

So this one is less a comparison and delves more into theory/possibility mode but I still wanted to talk about it. One of the biggest changes for this character in Villeneuve's adaption is that she is a woman, in the other two adaptions (and I am guessing the book) the character is male. What I found really interesting though was that in the miniseries Liet-Kynes is not only a really respected figure amongst the fremen but also Chani's father. That does make me wonder if the character in Villeneuve's version was supposed to be Chani's mother and they just cut it out for whatever reason? If so then I kind of wish they had leant into that in part two as it would have given her another connection point with Paul in order to build their relationship. He had just lost his father and she just lost her mother, it could have been interesting to see them discuss those losses with each other and to see how they both deal with their own grief. The fact that Liet died helping Paul and him maybe feeling some responsibility or grief over that in relation to her being the mother of the woman he comes to love, could also have been interesting to explore. Another thing that could've been interesting to explore if they had stuck to Liet being Chani's mother was it seemed that Liet did believe in the prophecy yet Chani very much does not, it makes me wonder if there was any tension between Chani and her mother over the prophecy and whether Chani would have some resentment over her mother dying to save Paul because she believed he was the Mahdi.

Ok so I actually did a quick google search just now and it turns out that Villeneuve confirmed in an interview with entertainment weekly that they changed the gender of Liet-Kynes but that Chani was still her daughter and now I bummed out because it feels like such a wasted opportunity to cut that out, but who knows maybe it'll come up in part three, don't think its likely but you never know.

Gom Jabbar Test

So I'll be honest in most things I think Villeneuve did it best, if there is any adaption that I will go back and watch over and over its his. That being said there is one little thing that I think the other two versions did ever so slightly better than the more recent Dune Part One. That's the Gom Jabbar test, you know the creepy box that contains pain. In the 2021 version I understood that Paul was feeling pain but in the other versions they use visuals to show you exactly what kind of pain Paul is feeling. It is so much worse than anything I imagined when watching the scene in the 2021 version. In both the 1984 film and the 2000 miniseries we are shown visuals of the flesh being burned right off of his hand to the point where bone is revealed. It is gruesome and it really made me want to look away but it did also fully make me understand just how much pain Paul was in during that scene, it has now completely changed how I view that scene in the 2021 version because like yikes no thanks.

Jessica

Jessica is actually probably the most consistent character across all the adaptions, although I would say maybe she's a bit darker and more obviously manipulative when it comes to winning followers over to Paul as the Mahdi from the prophecy in Villeneuve's version. However there was one interesting little difference between the 1984 and miniseries versions and the 2021 version and that is the reason why Jessica chose to have a boy instead of a girl like she was instructed to. In the 2021 version Mother Mohiam says that Jessica was arrogant enough to think she could bring forth the Kwisatz Haderach and Jessica doesn't dispute instead just saying 'was I wrong', which is interesting because it implies that even before he was born Jessica planned to install Paul as this messiah figure and it shows her as being much more scheming. But in the other two versions the reason given is simply that she loved the Duke and he wanted a son so she wanted to give him that. I do think that this could have contributed to Jessica's motivations in the 2021 version as well, but having that line saying she wanted to bring forth the Kwisatz Haderach adds another interesting layer to Jessica's motivations.

Alia Atreides

It turns out that the creepy, magical, mystical, talking, fetus baby has a name and its Alia, in the 1984 film and 2000 miniseries she's actually an equally creepy, magical, mystical, talking toddler and not going to lie as creepy as I find her I also kind of love her in a, she terrifies me and she is clearly unhinged but there's just something about her, kind of way. I mean in the 1984 film it is another one of those plot points that they just kind of narrate over, they just announce that drinking the waters of life caused Jessica to go into preterm labour and also made Alia mature much faster. In the miniseries they do go a little deeper into her character and there is this scene where she creeps out a ton of the adults by saying a baby looks like a man that was dead before she was born, after she is talking to her mother and talks about how she hates how they all look at her because its not her fault she knows things and she says she feels like a freak. It reminded me a bit of that scene in Dune Part One in the tent where Paul screams at his mother that she made him a freak. I just couldn't help but feel really sorry for Alia in that moment.

However going back to the unhinged creepy part. Another huge difference between 2021/2024 Dune films and the other two adaptions is the way the Baron dies. In Dune Part Two Paul kills the Baron and its a very serious and dark moment, as Paul slowly pushes the blade into the Baron's throat. But in the other versions its actually Alia that kills the Baron and in both versions it comes across as both creepy and well a bit silly and absurd. In both versions she kills him with the Gom Jabbar needle and the baron, who still has the floating machine thingy on, proceeds to float about the room like an inflated balloon. In the 1984 version after pricking him with the needle she also stabs him I think, but there is this really creepy scene where Alia is just standing there with this blood soaked knife laughing manically.

Another creepy thing she does is get into Mother Mohiam's head which clearly disturbs her alot and its actually Alia that she calls abomination in the earlier versions not Paul. It is very clear that Alia does seem to have a like for seeing people suffering and also seems to have a violent side, like there's another scene in the miniseries where she is sitting at the base of Paul's throne and just smiling and laughing creepily at all the chaos going on around her. I just feel like Alia might benefit from a therapist, just a suggestion.

Obviously the changes to the 2024 Dune part two were made because in this version Alia isn't even born yet. Ironically though I do think you get more of a sense of her character through her talking to her mother and paul than you do in the two adaptions where she is born. But the other versions have made me even more excited to see this character once she has been born in part three. We did get that little shot of her as an adult in Paul's vision played by Anya Taylor-Joy, but yeah I suspect she's going to be an interesting character to watch.

Princess Irulan

This is another character that changes a fair amount from adaption to adaption. In the 1984 film she's another one that really isn't in it a whole amount. She does the narration at points including at the start of the film, explaining the set up and what not, and then she appears at the end of the film alongside her father but she really is not in it, she has such a minor role, Paul doesn't evne ask for her hand in marriage in this film, (but I do think there is a deleted scene of this?).

When we get to the miniseries though she actually has a much bigger role. She meets Paul much earlier in the film when she attends a banquet on Arrakis and she kind of has this flirty conversation with Paul and a little dance, seems like she kinda likes him. She also investigates the attack on the Atreides trying to discover if her father played a part in the attack, she even goes so far to flirt with and seduce Feyd to get him to reveal the information to her. In the miniseries I'm pretty sure it is also her that tells Margot to get pregnant by Feyd and secure the bloodline. Also at the end its actually her that says that the only solution is for her and Paul to wed and honestly, unlike Florence Pugh's version of the character, she seems pretty happy with the turn of events. I found that in the miniseries she comes across as very kind of cheerful, smart and sassy and also has this girlish flair about her, but I still can't decide if I liked her or not.

Which brings me to the 2024 version and Florence Pugh's portrayal. This version of the character did seem to be a bit more serious which honestly fits in more with the darker feel of these later adaptions. I did feel like you got more of a sense of her connection with the Bene Gesserit, there were times in the miniseries where I honestly forgot that she was part of their order, but in the 2024 adaption they did a good job of highlighting that connection. Making that connection clear also makes the ending scene more interesting because she doesn't look particularly happy about being Paul's bride and it does come across as like she only agrees to save her father's life but we know from an earlier conversation with Mother Mohiam that Irulan was already aware that she was going to have to do her part and either marry Paul or Feyd. It just adds that extra layer to that end scene, along with those looks that are exchanged between her, paul and Chani and you can see her putting pieces into place. This is another character that I am curious to see more of in part three. I just hope that they aren't going to try and turn it into some love triangle thing, in the miniseries its made very clear that Paul is devoted only to Chani and that the marriage is only a political one.

Chani (and Paul)

Chani is so different in each adaption, like so different and honestly my favourite version has to be Villeneuve's version because she has just got so much more depth to her and seems so much more of a complex and realistic character, I also think she is a lot more relatable.

In the 1984 version when I say she is barely in it, I mean she has like six lines total. I do think a large part of this was because with that version they tried to do the whole book in one movie and it didn't entirely work. Chani and Paul's relationship consists pretty much of two voice overs, one where the narrator says Paul fell in love with a fremen girl Chani and the second saying Paul and Chani fell even deeper in love, with some shots of them kissing. It was very underwhelming and you really didn't get a sense of their relationship as it was all tell and very, very little show.

The miniseries was a little better as the story was spread over three, one and half hour long, episodes. So we got to see a bit more of the relationship between Chani and Paul and she had a bit more substance as a character although I personally would have liked to see more of her as she still felt a little flat and really did seem to be there as the love interest. One really big difference that caught me by surprise though, is that in the miniseries they actually have a child who they call Leto after his father. Tragically Leto is killed when the Harkonnens and Sardaukar attack their sietch. This is obviously something that doesn't make it into Villeneuve's version of part two and I think that is partly to do with the time span differences, in the mini series years go by as opposed to the eight or so months of Dune Part Two. But it is still interesting that in the miniseries there is this whole new layer to Chani as her role as a mother that we don't see in the other versions. However I do think that the miniseries could have leant more into her role as a mother than they did as she only really has a few scenes with her son before he is killed off. It's even worse with Paul as the only scene you get of him with his son is a long distance shot of him carrying his son. We do see a couple of scenes of him grieving though.

When it comes to Villeneuve's and Zendaya's version of Chani, as I said above, I do think she was alot more fleshed out and she seemed more like a character in her own right rather than just the obedient love interest. I loved that they added in the plot of her not being a believer in the prophecy and how she sees that it is just a plot by the bene gesserit to further control and enslave her people, I think it adds an interesting new perspective that the others didn't have. I also love that she is a fighter and goes on the missions to attack the harvesters with Paul and the others and that she's the one that shows him the fremen ways alongside Stiglar. Not only did it bring her character more to the forefront and give her more to do but because she was actually with Paul it meant they had the time to build their relationship and romance in a way that felt natural. With them being apart whilst Paul was off training and fighting with the Fedaykin, in the earlier versions, there wasn't as much time to spend on building the romance so I didn't really buy into it as much as I did with Dune part two. By making Chani a Fedaykin herself, they could cover both the plot of Paul becoming a fremen and a Fedaykin but also still have the time for the romance.

I also think the ending scene and reaction to Paul embracing the role of Mahdi, overthrowing the emperor and asking for the princess' hand was more realistic in the 2024 version. I never really understood Chani just accepting it in the miniseries version, the engagement part wasn't even in the 1984 version. Chani's look of shock followed by anger in the 2024 version just seemed more relatable to me. I did very much feel like in the other versions Chani was just blinded by love and was meekly following along with whatever Paul wanted and to me personally I just didn't find that very interesting. I am also a huge sucker for angst though and the 2024 ending definitely had that angst. I also think Chani being angry and feeling betrayed adds alot more weight to that scene. Instead of it feeling like a victory its a kind of gut punch as you feel the same betrayal that Chani felt, watching Paul lose himself more and more to this role of Messiah after he promised her he wouldn't. There is also that scene where Chani takes the blue scarf that is supposed to represent her love for Paul off her head and wraps it around her arm instead, almost like its a mourning band, as if she is mourning the loss of the man she fell in love with. Its so much more heartbreaking and also intriguing than the other versions.  

Paul's Journey

The biggest difference between all these versions for me though was the character of Paul and his journey into becoming the messiah to the fremen. In Villeneuve's version I thought it was pretty clear that this was a tale about the dangers of blind faith and false prophets. Whilst I don't think Paul is necessarily a villain I also don't think he's a hero. He's a very complicated and interesting character. In that end scene where Paul defeats Feyd and overthrows the emperor, whilst you can feel the fremen's and Paul's sense of victory, as an audience member you are feeling anything but victorious. Me personally, I was still reeling from the change in Paul's character post drinking the waters of life where he seemed much more detached and colder almost, and also from seeing Chani's betrayal and watching him watching her walk away, that moment when it ends on her face and you can see all her anger and hurt with the tears welling up that she is refusing to let fall. I just feel like that end scene had so much complexity and layers to it, that it is different depending on whose point of view you look at it from. I might do a separate post going into that at some point.

But when it came to Paul's journey in the other adaptions I never got the sense that what Paul was doing was wrong. It just felt more like a hero's journey, this messiah come to lead the fremen. He teaches them to fight and helps them defeat the Harkonnens and defeat the evil emperor. I just felt like neither of the other versions really leant into the consequences of Paul leading the fremen into this Holy War, or into the fact that Paul is fully aware that the prophecy was designed by the Bene Gesserit and is just playing the role as opposed to actually believing that he is the Mahdi.

Which version is best?

So to wrap this all up, I definitely think each adaption had it own interesting interpretations of the story and characters as well as intriguing moments, but I would say my least favourite was Lynch's 1984 film. There was just too much story to pack into one film and the last 45 minutes of that film suffered for it. There was a very obvious moment where they just kind of skipped over a large amount of plot and opted for a narrator just giving you the low down on what has happened in this time skip. Coupled with the stomach turning Harkonnen scenes and the lack of Chani, I can't say I will be rushing to watch that version again anytime soon.

The miniseries was a bit more interesting and did a better job with the pacing of the story and their characters were a bit more fleshed out, there were moments where I did have an emotional reaction. That being said I did find it a bit difficult to connect to the characters and really care about them, I do think it was more plot driven than character driven. But it was fairly enjoyable and it passed an afternoon.

But for me personally Villeneuve's version is hands down and by far the best version. I feel like there's much more focus on the characters and how they are reacting to the plot and what is happening around them. I also think the characters are a lot more relatable than the other versions. I also much prefer the darker more serious tone of this adaption. I felt like I had much more of an emotional response to what was happening to these characters than I did with the other versions.

So yeah that's some thoughts I had on all the different versions of Dune. I am aware that there is a follow on series called Children of Dune but I think its covering what might happen in Dune part three of even beyond on that so I don't want to risk getting spoiled, maybe I'll go watch that in a few years time after Dune three has come out, for now I'm just content to go watch dune part one and two a few more hundred times.

[thelastharbinger]

Tidbits of ATSV That I Enjoyed (Or Alternatively: Just Miles Being The Most Endearing Spidey Ever)

Miles patting The Spot's head after successfully webbing him (I don't see this as condescending, but rather him still engaging with the humanity of a villain like Spot) and ~very assertively~ telling/asking him not to escape.

"I'm like Robin Hood-if he gave to himself."

Miles' spidey senses going off when he arrives late to his dad's party because there's nothing more frightening than Brown parents when they're mad at you. Beware the chancla or correa!

O.k. So we all know there are different versions of the movie out there. You may already know that one of the slight differences is when Miles goes to save Inspector Singh. There's a version where you can hear Gwen's voice in the distant background yelling no! when she thinks Miles gets crushed under the rubble, and there's another where she's silent as she webs to him. Now, I have found ANOTHER version (online) where her shouting is even more at the forefront. She's practically screaming and sounds more desperate, (prolly because it's close to the same way her Peter Parker died so she's reliving trauma) and the fear in her voice is palpable. That one haunts me.

Jefferson trying to equate studying for his police exams to childbirth, which Rio quickly nips in the bud.

Ganke having a soccer poster of Son Heung Min, a famous Korean footballer who currently plays for the Premier League Tottenham Hotspur and is captain of the South Korean national team.

Miles having a Sashimi (his universe's version of Supreme, but I just like the idea that Miles loves eating sashimi. Like I know that kid has good taste in food) poster in his bedroom.

The fact that Miles kept in touch with Aunt May for long enough after the events of ITSV that he helps her move.

The Spot saying he was one of the more handsome scientists at Alchemax according to his colleagues.

Miles and Gwen having the same collectible toys, the only difference being that he keeps his in the box and she doesn't.

"Hey, don't try to wow me with big words, man," *in deep manly voice* "I do crosswords every day"- Miles after Spot points out Alchemax as "the crucible of our connection!"

Miles going, "This job is so dumb sometimes" after he tries to web Spot at the deli, but it goes through a hole and lands on his face.

"Nahhh, he seems more Dominican to me." Kinda want Miles to meet a native Dominican Spidey because that dynamic would highkey fuck hard *pun not intended*. They would repair relations between our two islands-PR&DR.

"Almost there Mami *smiley face* *cowboy* prayer hands*"

The college admissions coach at Visions Academy straight up saying, "That's your story! Now, just stick to the script..." Ma'am what???

"Calmate Mami, eso no es my fault."

"I've hit a lot of different villains with a lot of different food...I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

Miles in his angsty teen era and smart-mouthing everyone around him. Love that for him.

"He almost killed his mom as a baby, I mean, look at those shoulders." No but for real tho. Those shoulders are as wide as a truck. Kim Seokjin who??? (if you understood that reference, ily).

Miles writing a love letter to his dad in 2 cakes.

Gwen at the water tower chowing and saying how feelings make her hungry after her and Miles talked about how they can't be together cause it would end in tragedy. Like Gwen, come again?!

Also, Miles' and Gwen's talk at the Williamsburg Bank Building being lowkey the catalyst for the 2nd/3rd acts of the film. Without them both kind of silently admitting their feelings for each other, Miles probably wouldn't have chased after her the way he did. Pretty sure you know the rest.

"I bet she doesn't even speak Spanish," and Jeff going "Que barbaridad" in his very broken Spanish. Queue Rio's bombastic side eye.

Both Gwen and Miles referring to Spot as a Villain Of The Week, even though neither of them have spoken about Spot to each other.

"I was bitten by a-wouldnt you like to know? Know what I mean?" SIR. Chill. This movie is for children.

The Spot inverting himself, going from a white mass with black spots to a gaping black hole with smaller white spirals. It's giving Junji Ito.

The irony of Pavitr exclaiming, "Well that was another easy adventure for Spider-Man!" right before an incoming canon event. HIS. He was about to experience his first big loss, and his happy-go-lucky nature would've been challenged.

Miguel saying conyo! when all the Spideys start pointing at each other.

"!Cállate!" "Nosy!" Sidebar: we don't talk about Gwen's banter with bad guys enough. She's so funny!

A lot of the Peters saying hi to Gwen as she passes HQ because she is canonically the one lost love--the love interest they all would've ended up with had she not died, so they all have an affection for her.

Web-Slinger going "Giddy up!" Cause he's swinging up.

Miles offering his fresh new takes on how to deal with the Spot upon meeting Miguel, saying "He just wants to be taken seriously. Like we all do." MILES YOU BEAUTIFUL, COMPASSIONATE GOLDEN SUNFLOWER BOY I LOVE YOUUUUU.

Hobie referring to Peter B. as Humbling Reality Spider-Man, which considering how steeped in tragedy the Spidey lore is, is really saying something.

Miguel's nonono no puedo más no puedo más. His misery is very funny and delightful to me. Little bitch ass.

"You know you're the only Spider-Man who isn't funny." Yes! More Miguel slander in the next one, please! Little bitch ass.

"Snitch!"

Miles shouting out Peter's name for help whilst Miguel pins and lays into him the fact that he's an anomaly. This after he momentarily glitches back to his ITSV store-bought suit. Mimicking the way-in also the first movie-Miles shouting out Peter's name for his own rescue as Doc Ock attacks him at the research facility. Because even though he feels hurt by Peter at this point, that's still his dad mentor and he still instinctively looks to him for protection. Rip my heart out why don't you!

Gwen sneaking back into her and her dad's place just to get that printed polaroid of her and Miles, a pic she already has on her phone.

Earth-42 Miles wearing Nike while our Miles wears Jordans.

[24hourtickets]

Here are my thoughts on each contestant so far (spoilers up to ep. 9). These are just my impressions of their roles in the limited context of the show, not as actual people.

- Lee Si-Won: The mad scientist! My favorite, though not necessarily my favorite to win. Sharp, strong-willed but loyal, and most of all, persistent. She and Seok-jin have incredible synergy. If the competition comes down to the two of them, though, I feel like she wouldn't have the heart to beat him...

- Ha Seok-jin: ...while he would have no such qualms. Crafty, independent, and observant, a real genius when it comes to scheming to an almost scary extent. He's definitely most at home in a "villain" role where he doesn't have to protect anyone. He and Si-Won give me the vibes of a natural talent and a hard worker teaming up instead of fighting over their differences.

- Seungkwan: Actually pretty interesting. Whether he intended to or not, he's the only one who has managed to strike a balance between being a threatening contestant and an exploitable one. He leans more towards the latter, but not to the extent that people are targeting him. In fact, everyone likes him a lot. That's an idol for you.

- Guillaume: Just smart in general. It was especially sly of him to play dumb throughout the first game. Seemed like an all-rounder. It wasn't his or really anyone's fault he got eliminated. His team just had to decide on a strategy early on that they weren't able to change later.

- Kim Dong-Jae: Very similar to Seok-jin. Schemers, the two of them. The main difference is that while Seok-jin is fine with keeping a tight circle or even flying solo, Dong-jae wanted to build trust with others. His fatal mistake during Secret Number was not committing to either closing ranks or cutting off contact with Seok-jin and Si-Woo. I'm very interested in what the writing test for this show was like, for him to be one of the two to get a perfect score.

- Lee Hye-sung: She didn't get to do much. I like that she trusted Dong-jae, but she was too trusting. I think she should've stood her ground and compared numbers with Yu-min first, then leveraged that information to ensure Dong-jae's loyalty. That might have helped Yu-min feel secure enough to not betray them later.

- Seo Yu-min: Way too dependent on others, though she seems to have taken the results of Secret Number to heart. She has the right idea about taking advantage of other people's sympathy for her, but the helpless act only works in the long term if it's just an act and not, you know, real. Also, Seungkwan has already filled the niche she wants. She should make more use of her greatest asset: Joon-bin, who clearly still feels guilty about Secret Number.

- Park Kyeong-rim: She's so sweet. If I had to choose, she's the one I'd want to meet in real life the most. But in the show, she's way too much of an open book and bleeding heart. I like that she's more cautious of Yu-min after Laying Grass, though that just means she'll divert more of her attention to helping Seungkwan.

- Kwak Joon-bin: He's funny because he talks a big game about wanting to turn traitor and cause chaos, but he's a huge softie who refuses to exploit weaker contestants. I don't think he's crafty enough to take down stronger opponents either. He's proven himself as an active participant in the games, which is really all it takes to not be marked as exploitable even if your most of his ideas go unused. But people don't trust him because of his big ol' mouth.

- Seo Dong-joo: Also smart in general, bold. The Si-won to Orbit's Seok-jin, kind of. She's more of Orbit's second-in-command than his partner, though that's only because Orbit is that much of a force of nature while she's content to play a supporting role. She's pretty loyal to Orbit, but she doesn't care that much about the others and only helps them because he does. Even then, she's been having doubts about him since Zoo. I think she could go head to head with Orbit if it comes down to the two of them.

- Orbit: Love him or hate him (looking at you, Si-won), he's incredibly influential. He's so much of a leader that it's kind of stifling. Extremely smart in a technical way, the best at coming up with group strategies based on actual game theory. This complements his "protect the weak" ideology, though that has been breaking down. He can't save everyone, even at the expense of the other team. I think he first realized that after Zoo and then truly accepted it during Laying Grass.

- Cho Yeon-woo: She was too passive, exploitable. But while Seungkwan is loveable and Yu-min is pitiable, she never found an approach that would make someone hesitate about targeting her. I wish she got the chance to show her strengths, but Seok-jin's robbery was frankly a brilliant move so I'm not that mad. I think she should've cozied up to Si-won more, especially by telling her about the safe. Seok-jin would've disapproved but Si-won would've stood up for her.

[actualbird]

knock knock hey zak, it's time for your regular chika rambles about main story in your asks are 3am (I'LL BE SLEEPING REAL SOON I PWOMISE)

but other than the AAAAGGGOOONNNYYY my precious lukey pookie is going through, HOOHH subby bratty marius, and the MARILUKE CRUMBS OF THE HOSPITAL VISIT...

gah i'm so obsessed with marius in this chapter. like, i don't know if it's said enough that, marius is actually very smart. like REALLY SMART. the way he's always two steps ahead, yet people think he's some naive dumb rich brat, but he lets them believe so. it plays to his advantage. AND GOD the last scene with him perched on the edge of the building watching the sun set is SO BEAUTIFUL AND POETIC. SIR YOU AND YOUR "how could a place so rotten, be so beautiful" talk. and i find that so endearing in him. he knows already, how corrupted the world is. the world of the rich and powerful is no different than those of the poor and struggling, even in it's shiny sparkling benevolence. yet he still holds so much hope despite all that.

but more than i'm kinda obsessed with the relationship between letha and gerard. what if you were just a girl HOUSING AN EMO RUNAWAY BOY IN YOUR BASEMENT... how letha was writing and hanging notes on the pagoda tree and how gerard was the recipient of all the thoughts of a highschool girl. but it breaks my heart a bit how even in all of that that this was their semblance of "normal" if that makes sense. BUT it only makes me question letha's motives more tbh, cause why is she taking in all those people? what for? is it really just out of kindness? to feel like she has a family? WHERE DID SHE GET ALL THE BUDGET TO SUSTAIN ALL OF THEM ANYWAYS, INHERITANCE????????

my only qualms is that would we not have found out roman sooner like... if he did give the traced water to his brother, wouldn't it be in the scene of the crime, if not somewhere close by? but i guess tbf he could've just thrown it away when he's very far away and the police wouldn't be able to catch him. but other than that i dub chp 12 THE mariluke (marius and luke) chp.... mmm.... yes.... nod nod

main story 12 spoilers

HI CHIKAAAAA, THANK U FOR UR MAIN STORY RAMBLES :DDD

isnt the agony so delicious. luke is literally losing his mind, his sanity, and it currently looks like there isnt much that can be done to help him but to keep his condition as stable as it possible can ;w;

subby bratty marius on his knees Awakened something in me

I NEED TO KNOW WHAT WENT DOWN DURING THE MARILUKE HOSPITAL VISIT FR

marius was SUCH a star in this chapter. he was so cunning and calculating, yet that last scene was really so poignant, the moment felt so precious and delicate even if the circumstances around everything feel so dire

LETHA AND GERARD YESSSS, it made me really emo when it was revealed he was living in her home ;-; but fr yeah letha was running an entire CHARITY in that house by that point KJBLSBFLS

roman was such an interesting and kinda heartbreaking villain to me. he kinda showed up late enough in the story that i too wondered why he didnt enter the scene earlier, but i was really hit in the feels during the flashbacks of his life with remus. how remus had absolutely done terrible things, while also absolutely trying to love and care for his brother. oaugh. sibling stories always get to me, i fear….

[theaawalker]

Character tropes are a writer's bread and butter, for better or worse. Because of this, it can be easy for your characters to be mistaken, copied, and boxed in with others. Especially in this industry, it's important to stand out. What’s the difference between a flat character and a well-rounded character? How do writers bring a character to life on the page? When it comes to character development, these are central questions—especially when it comes to using character tropes...

[ ~ a world that's waiting up for me ~ ]

What Are Character Tropes?

The word “trope” refers to a common motif or pattern in a work of art. In the context of fiction, character tropes refer to common attributes or even entire stock characters. The word trope comes from the Greek word 'tropos' meaning “to turn.” Originally it referred to rhetorical devices that a writer uses to develop an argument. Character tropes can be useful in fiction, but when overused, they can detract from a story.

Common Character Tropes

Every genre of storytelling has its own stable of common character types, and as a storyteller it’s worth being aware of them. Here are nine of the most common:

1. The chosen one:

The chosen one is a common fantasy trope. Their identity typically revolves around a task that’s been set aside for them, which they typically pursue without much hesitation or complication. Like Frodo Baggins, Luke Skywalker, and Harry Potter, the chosen one is often, conveniently, an orphan.

2. The damsel in distress:

One of the most common and pernicious types of female character tropes, the damsel in distress, whatever form she takes, is a passive figure who exists mostly as an object for the hero to save. Even versions of the character who turn out to be a little more plucky than expected (think Princess Fiona from Shrek or Princess Leia from Star Wars) have become their own subset of this creaky old trope.

3. The femme fatale:

A mysterious and seductive woman who uses her sex appeal to seduce and entrap her enemies, the femme fatale is a popular character trope in hardboiled mysteries. In many ways, the femme fatale is an updated version of supernatural witches or sorceresses. It’s no spoiler to say that she nearly always leads men to destruction. Sharon Stone, Uma Thurman, and Eartha Kitt are the queens of this trope. <3

4. The girl next door:

The small-town girl with a heart of gold is, in many ways the opposite of the femme fatale. A common film and TV trope, the girl next door is innocent, kind, and wholesome. In other words, she’s the embodiment of domestic femininity and typically a candidate for the male protagonist’s love interest. Take Mary Jane Watson for instance.

5. The mad scientist:

Going back to Dr. Frankenstein (or any number of sorcerer antecedents), the mad scientist is usually a villain, driven by an eccentric, antisocial personality and unrestrained hubris or a desire to play god. The mad scientist’s benign counterpart is the nerdy “absent-minded professor” who’s so engrossed by their work that they struggle to relate to “normal people.”

6. The trusty sidekick:

Like the damsel in distress, the trusty sidekick typically has no life outside their relationship to the main character and their quest. Whether the sidekick is a loyal companion, like Samwise in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, a faithful butler, or a chatty best friend—as in any number of romance novels—their main quality is that they have no story of their own.

7. The wise old man:

Sometimes an actual wizard, sometimes just an old guy who’s seen his share, the wise old man is a long-enduring stock figure who usually imparts some special wisdom to the protagonist. Dumbledore, Master Oogway, Gandalf, and Master Miyagi.

8. The dumb muscle:

Based on the idea that it’s impossible to be smart and fit at the same time, the dumb muscle is an exceedingly common minor character, especially in action and adventure stories. As a bad guy the dumb muscle is easily outsmarted or otherwise bested by the main character. X-Men's Juggernaut is a prime example.

9. The antihero:

Antiheroes are typically cynical loners with major personality flaws, often darkly appealing bad boys. Like normal heroes, the antihero still drives the story, but often to a more amoral place. Tony Soprano, Red Arrow, Emma Frost, and the grittier versions of Batman are all prime examples of modern antiheroes. These days, antiheroes are almost as common as idealized heroes.

5 Tips for Avoiding Character Tropes

Character tropes aren’t good or bad in and of themselves. In some types of fiction, especially epics, satires, and more plot-driven forms of fiction, the use of stock characters can be expected and even desirable. The problem is when writers lean so heavily on these tropes that they’re no longer telling an original story. This is the point where archetypal characters can bleed into stereotypes. In order to avoid (or at least complicate) character tropes, you’ll need to develop a richer sense of your characters. Here are a few tips:

1. Figure out what your characters really want.

One reason writers lean on stereotypes is because they don’t know their characters well enough. Instead of playing to type, spend some time figuring out what really motivates your characters. Are they driven by a need to belong? By a thirst for knowledge? By a desire to be recognized? These super-objectives may lead your characters to buck their outward roles in interesting ways.

2. Look for opportunities to subvert tropes.

If you find yourself drawn to certain tropes, look for ways to undermine them. While this sort of self-conscious style may not be right for every story, it can be especially compelling in the context of genres that traditionally rely on tropes: think fantasy novels, horror movies, love stories, westerns, and other popular genres.

3. Get to know your characters outside the story.

A common writing exercise is to develop backstories for your major characters. Imagine them in real life. Ask yourself questions about your characters, like: What was this person like in high school? What objects are on their nightstand? How do they get along with their families? While seemingly inconsequential, these questions can help you get a sense of the individuality of your characters, rather than just thinking of them as adhering to a common type.

4. Allow your characters’ personalities to change.

Again, there are types of stories where characters may remain static, but in general, it’s important for readers to feel like your character changes (or at least has the potential to change) over the course of the story. Remember, the change need not always be positive, but there should be some sense that the experience they’ve had has marked them in some way.

5. Avoid clichéd situations.

Sometimes the issue isn’t with the characters you’ve developed but the scenario in which you’ve placed them. If you’ve created a pair of star-crossed lovers who are meant to fall for one another at first sight, it’ll be hard not to make the situation feel hackneyed—no matter how well-drawn your lovers are. If you’re only thinking in terms of common plot tropes, it may be hard to get your characters out of them. If you’re working in a science fiction or fantasy setting, this is where worldbuilding might help you find more interesting angles to explore.

Want to Learn More About Writing?

Follow me here (theaawalker)

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...Or Tiktok (@.the.aa.walker)

I post my fandom imagines, too. Check out my latest one here.

Did I mention I'm publishing a book soon?! If you're interested in YA fantasy, fiction, and philosophy, then see my website, newsletter, or email me at guardiansofcamoria@yahoo.com for updates.

[cornfields-td-nonsense]

scottt🥺🥺🥺

ah yes, Scott. A character I have never mentioned before lmao.

Sexuality Headcanon: Unlabeled. Says 'no homo' after doing anything remotely not-straight.

Gender Headcanon: 'whats a gender? sounds lame'

A ship I have with him: Dott... *sighs* my guilty otp. Are they that good a ship? Who knows. Can Dawn do better? Yeah probably. Have they had any positive interactions? Not really. (What was I talking about again?) But that scene where like a snowball explodes in his face or smth and she gently puts a hand on his arm and goes "you weren't held enough as a child" lives in my head rent free. it's so good lmao.

Um. Weirdly enough I liked him and Courtney. they were such a bizarre couple but they still kind of worked. like, he likes bossy women, she likes being bossy and in charge. it was never going to last but it made sense. but the way they broke up (both times) was so fucking stupid lol

A BROTP I have with said character: him and the other guys on his team were such a fun group. he and Sam and Lightning and Brick. they have JUST enough braincells between them to function as a unit.

A NOTP I have with said character: him and Zoey. do people ship him and Zoey? idk. but if they do, then yeah.

Random headcanon: we already know he eats dirt, but also different dirts have different flavours to him. his favourite is pure compost with a hint of clay.

General opinion: he's a silly little rat bastard man on my screen and I like him. that's about it. I liked him in ROTI and I liked him in TDAS (in a vaccuum). I saw a post once that said he's a pretty solid balance between being genuinely smart and really really dumb, and... yeah. accurate. I don't have that much to say about him, but I like him, he's funny, he's a pretty good villain and that scene in TDAS where he runs across the bridge screaming made me laugh so hard I got a headache.

[transhawks]

hello, boyfriends anon here

dunno if you know, but in the MHUI game some characters when on opposite sides give you a brief taunt dialogue - including hawks and dabi. now, they don't say anything in particular, i just wanted to share because they sound like they're flirting if you use shipping googles, it's funny.

yet another twitter link because i can't send images on anon 🚶 https://twitter.com/dailytoukei/status/1611462214325510149?t=quFRFf0U0dp5-1nBeB4gPQ&s=19

also when they are on the same side they say something like "i'll be in touch/i'll contact you" [dabi] and "why can't we get along?" [hawks] but im not sure because i can no longer find the translation 😥

side note, i think you can find other innocuous comparison between the two on op's account

Okay, by the way, this is how you can tell I was in the hotwings trenches for a long time - I remember when toukei was coined. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was there for that convo in CTABB. Fuck, so much time passed.

Okay done being old! Let's talk about Ultra Impact. Not canon, but boy does it give.

You think this is anything???

Let's talk about the Hawks Infiltration Story in the Ultra Impact Game. Here's a video but I'll show screenshots.

So Hawks goes to visit the PLF during his infiltration. He decides to hang out with Twice who wants his help, and they get lost and find Geten and Dabi arguing. See Dabi wants to skiv off of a meeting with the VIOLET regiment and his co-captain, Geten, is annoyed. So when he sees Twice, Dabi asks for a clone so he can have them go to the meeting. Now, uhh, Twice does this before anyone smart enough speaks up about this being a dumb fucking idea. The clone, of course, doesn't want to do that so they have to fight it. Except Dabi still doesn't want to go to the meeting so:

You see that smirk Keigo has on? He's a smug little shit, and this is why:

Yeah. He told Twice to go and get VIOLET so he could essentially force Dabi to go to the meeting.

LOOK AT HOW SATISFIED HE IS. HIS SMUG SMILE. HE'S SO DAMN PLEASED WITH HIMSELF.

I think he just likes getting one over Dabi, he doesn't have this dynamic with anyone else.

See? He's thrilled. Dabi's pissed off. But don't worry, he gets even!

This is gay, by the way. Like... When this happened at the end, I screamed. I couldn't believe it?

See Hawks got hurt doing something for the PLF, returns, and people are congratulating him. And Dabi, seeing him injured, decides to give him pats on the back. "Pats" - pretty sure he's clapping him really hard to make it hurt.

"This is my way of sayin' good work."

By the way, manga-wise, while Dabi definitely gets completely manic around heroes and has different personalities around them versus villains, he doesn't do this sort of thing with anyone else. He randomly put his arm around Hawks that one time and I've never seen him touch the League so casually outside of a high-five. It's just...Keigo. Because he likes making him uncomfortable. He uses his touch and presence as a threat.

Anyway this was the gayest thing ever.

BONUS:

[hyperpsychomaniac]

Victoria Van Gale needs to be in s3 of Hilda because actually competent human villain. But consider…

Victoria returns with upgraded nissa/magic powers/conquerer of the knowledge of nowhere space. She’s the queen of mind games and leaves Erik’s blunt force approach to manipulation in the dust, but there is no way she’s going to trick the kids a third time. They’re immediately onto her BS. Instead, she offers her newfound knowledge to Safety Patrol as a gift. She wants to help! And she immediately sees how gullible and just plain stupid the new Safety Patrol leader is. The kids, of course, warn Gerda. And Gerda confronts Victoria. And Victoria… admits to all of it. But she’s changed… getting flung to the far corners of Nowhere Space and fighting her way out tooth and nail saw to that!

And Gerda… well, she’s a little wary after everything that happened with Erik. But she also feels a little guilty. Sure she stood up to him. But she backed off at the very last hurdle. She went hands off and he shot her down and it was such a shock she backed off. It was Hilda who went that extra step, who didn’t give up on him and finally got through to him. What if she hadn’t? What would have happened to Trolberg… and to Erik? Did she give up on him too soon?

It’s this kinda headspace that makes her feel the kids are being too harsh. Vitoria was honest with her - not like Erik’s usual blather. So she trusts her… and then as soon as Victoria gets whatever she was after, she shows her true colours. And Gerda realises she’s actually swung too far the other way and let herself get in the same position as she was with a Erik… letting someone pull her strings and manipulate her. And she is so so angry with herself.

Of course the kids would pull her out of it. And Victoria will have underestimated her because she just thinks she’s dumb. And between Gerda’s practical smarts, the kids help (probably to counter the magic) and the fact Gerda would actually get her officers help (and Victoria would just rely on her own smarts) defeat her.

((Also so much fun drawing these two together - such different body types 🥰))

[everythingtoony]

MADE A TIRE LIST WITH LION KING CHARACTERS FROM THE ORIGINAL MOVIE AND THE SEQUEL LETS GO OVER MY CHOICES!!

S tier: Timon, Pumbaa, Nuka, Rafiki, Scar

Timon and Pumbaa- I feel like this one is an obvious choice tbh, at least for me! I adore these two, they are extremely gay, and I just love the contrast between their two personalities. Timon is impulsive, reckless, and can be loud and rude at times. Meanwhile, Pumbaa is the literal definition of a sweetheart. He's kind, loving, and although he may be oblivious at times he can actually be quite smart in his own way.

Nuka- Ah, where to start with this loopy boi... he is such a dummy, and I mean that in the most affectionate way possible. He's got a few screws loose in his brain, and he can be very jealous of his younger brother Kovu. And while his selfishness ends up being the thing that kills him, he's got a very endearing personality, and I just adore how dumb he is!!

Rafiki- I'm just going to start by saying rest in peace to Rafiki's voice actor, he brought this character to life in the best way possible, and I am so glad he gave this monkey as much personality as he did. He is very wise, yet can come off as confusing to others. She can actually be quiet sarcastic when he wants to be, and he has outbursts that I find quite funny. I also love it when he just casually hit Simba on the head with a stick with no warning. And in the second movie, when Mufasa's spirit talks to Rafiki, suggesting that Kovu and Kiara should get together, Rafiki loses his mind, it is the funniest thing ever. I also quote him on a daily basis, he's actually one of my favorite characters!

Scar- he was actually my favorite character before I realized that I may like Timon and Pumbaa a little more... but! That does not mean I still don't love him. Scar is my favorite Disney villain ever! I just love his menacing personality, and I think Disney knew what they were doing with his design and voice, because come on, you can see it in the animation. Jeremy Irons voices Scar and I think he did an excellent job on the character. And at one point Jim Cummings had to take his place in the end of Be Prepared, and you can barely notice the difference. The only noticeable thing is that Scar's voice sounds more vicious and chaotic. I really love this character, and he is the last one to go in S tier.

A tier: Ed, Banzai, Shenzi, adult Simba, Zira, adult Nala, young Simba

The hyenas- I don't think I need to say too much about these guys, they pretty much speak for themselves. I think I tend to lean towards chaotic trios and Duos. The hyenas are actually extremely hilarious, and I find their Antics quite funny.. in fact, these hyenas are probably the reason why Timon and Pumbaa exist. Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella originally auditioned for the hyenas, but they loved their dynamic so much that they created two characters just for them, Timon and Pumbaa! I adore the way the hyenas talk to one another, and I think that their dynamic is so cool to watch

Adult Simba- Okay, bear with me here. This list gave me young and adult versions of a lot of the characters, including Simba, Nala, Kiara, Vitani and Kovu. I mainly placed them on the list based on their personalities, because they have two very different personalities... I might like an adult version more than a younger version, or vice versa. With that out of the way, I'm going to talk about adult Simba. I actually really like the way his character was evolved in the first movie, and while he's kind of a jackass in the second movie, he gets better in the end. I think it might also have something to do with his voice, both speaking and singing. I just really like Simba.

Zira- Her obsession with Scar is actually so important to this movie, it's not even funny. In the deleted scene of her death, she says and does a little more than she does in the final scene. Either way, she chose death, because the only thing she wanted was to be with Scar. She would've rather died than be helped out by those she thought she had been hurt by. I think her whole motive is a little strange, but I understand where she's coming from. I think the only thing I don't like about her is how she treats Nuka. She only cared about him in the end when he died. My stupid baby boy did not deserve any of the treatment that came from that woman. Either way, I still think she's a great villain. Scar is way better, but Zira is second place

Adult Nala- This lioness is one of the best moms I've ever seen. I was unsure about where to place her at first, because of the way she reacted with Simba in the first movie...I don't like how pushy she was with her. But like Adult Simba in the 2nd movie, Adult Nala got better by the end of the first movie, and I think she was great in the 2nd one. She saw Kiara, and knee she wanted freedom. She understood that, and tried to help Simba understand as well.

Young Simba- Finally, this little shit is the last to be on the A tier. He's absolutely adorable, but he's constantly getting himself in trouble. He's energetic and just wants to be like his father, but JEEZ, SIMBA WHEN HE SAYS DONT GO TO THE SHADOWY PLACE IT MEANS DONT GO! I think his voice is adorable, and he was super close with Mufasa, which made Mufasa's death so much sadder. Either way, Young Simba is great. Not my favorite, but he's cute.

B tier: Adult Kovu, Zazu, Adult Kiara, young Nala, Mufasa

Adult Kovu- He's pretty nic

e looking, and I love how he's eventually taught how to let go and have fun. I also love how he decided to go against Zira's plan in the end, although he was going to do it at first. And of course, Scar was a heavy influence that he was taught to look up to as a cub, he didnt know about the blackness in his soul. Other than that...yeah, I think he's a meh character. I certainly don't hate him, but he's definitely nit my favorite.

Zazu- He's so snooty and I love him, but he played such a small role in the 2nd movie, and it made me sad when I didn't hear Mr. Beans voice. I think he's kinda in the middle because he's not really anything special. Yes, he's smart, witty, and can be rude at times, but he's also extremely overbearing and it kinda annoys me sometimes. Either way, he's a good character, just not my favorite.

Adult Kiara- Ehh...I like her voice, and the way she stops the war at the end of the 2nd movie by making Simba eat his own words was pretty good...but she's kinda meh. She was quite annoying sometimes, and Imma be honest, her laughing is fake as he'll. But I do like how she has the same energetic spark in her soul that Simba once had. I think that's cool.

Young Nala- Again...nothing really special...yeah, she's sassy and witty, but other than that...she doesn't really do a whole lot. Her adult self does way more than her younger self.

Mufasa- He's a really good dad, but he did let Simba go off on his own constantly. And I think he definitely deserved more screen time, because he's such a good father. But now he's dead, so oh well.

C tier: Sarabi, Adult Vitani, young Kiara, young Kovu

Sarabi- Okay, getting to the ones I'm really kinda "meh" about. Sarabi didn't do much...I do like jer personality, but the only thing exciting on screen was when Scar hit her across the cave. I don't really have a lot to say about her.

Adult Vitani- ehhh...she joined Simba's side in the end, but other than that, dhr really didn't do much, either. I do like her personality, and her and Nuka's dynamic was funny, but other than that, she's mid.

Young Kovu and Kiara- dislike these two but not enough to put it in D tier..they're just...there for story, I guess. They're eh.

D tier: Young Vitani

Don't come at me but I don't like Vitani that much. She's just there to be the "voice of reason" between her and Nuka. I don't have much to say on her.

Well, that's it, there's everything. I'm gonna take a nap.

[cocoabubbelle]

Hey, hello fellow Frelma shipper! Can I ask what you like the most of the ship? If you want to answer of course. Anyway have a good night!

Canon Reasons not necessarily in order

This includes all of the series, films, books, etc that I can remember from the top of my head. Meaning, I have not watched/read all of them but plan to when possible!

WARNING: might be slightly repetitive because my writing skills do not always follow or translate the thinking process of my brain.

Their color combinations don’t make me wanna barf. It is very hard to get the complimentary colors of orange and blue together without them looking like the visual representation of nails on a chalkboard.

Smol x Tol. A height difference combination that rarely fails. Especially if their complimentary shapes also include short and curvy/plump with big and bulky/muscles.

Nerd-shaped Nerd x Jock-shaped Nerd

The Smart One (Logic) x The Other Smart One (Creativity). This is mostly applicable to the earlier late 60s-70s series before most of the later adaptations lower Fred’s intelligence to varying degrees. It can be generally agreed upon that Velma has a lot of book smarts and proven theories, while Fred leans more towards understanding engineering and mechanics (to an extent, seeing how his traps usually work out).

Snarky x Sweet. Honestly? Both have their moments.

Headcanon Reasons not necessarily in order

Warning: ranting involved.

Grumpy Cat x Golden Retriever energy.

“Excuse me , he asked for NO pickles.”

Gremlin Fighter x Giant Softie

“I connected the dots!” “You didn’t connect squat.” “I connected them!” I do not ship Ryan and Shane together, I just feel like this dialogue could fit Frelma.

Nerdy Loser Dork x “Dumb” Popular “Jock”/Girboss x Himbo/ Brains x Brawn. Explanation provided below. ⬇️

*DEEP BREATH*

I am not interested in watching HBOMax’s VELMA for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to:

1) Copying and Pasting the format for the Harley Quinn series, which is also a black comedy/satire with mindless violence, constant swearing, and inappropriate depictions of adult content (as you can probably tell, I do not like the premise of, nor will watch, that series either. If any of you do like either of those series, that is okay; go ahead and enjoy.)

2) The interpretation of the Scooby without the Scooby Gang’s personalities (Their adaptational races and social statuses are fine.) is superficial at best and insulting at worst.

That being said, from what little I heard about what happens in VELMA, there could have been a cute dynamic between Velma and Fred. Unfortunately, neither of the characters seemed very likable based on what the creators said and how the Scooby fandom reacted. This artist best portrayed what Velma and Fred’s chemistry COULD HAVE LOOKED LIKE in these videos:

Credits to Jamie De Jonge.

Do you see what we Frelmas could have had???

The Gunn live action films aren’t that much better frantically dodges bullets but there are more moments shown between Fred and Velma that despite some occasional bickering, Fred is wowed by Velma’s intelligence while Velma admires Fred’s confidence. I think as a younger kid, I was actually expecting them to end up together despite being a Fraphne shipper at the time because of their chemistry whenever they shared screentime.

Honestly? In the ending, the Fraphne kiss was a lot less satisfying to me than the moment when Fred steps down from the spotlight and directs it to Velma so she could finally get the credit and recognition she deserved in solving the mysteries and catching the villain.

I hope this was a mostly? coherent answer, @light-miracles ! Thanks for the question!!!

[arcplaysgames]

Man do y'all remember when I was sad at the start of P4G because the game did not adequately pat my head and feed me soup and give me friends on day one like P3P did

that was fucking little leagues. I'm gonna light everyone in this game on fire.

Anyway, we are in the tutorial stages so lemme sum up except with there's weird shit I wanna pontificate on.

Reverie missed a bunch of school on his first day with frankly doesn't look amazing for him. We met Ryoji GODDAMN RYUJI on the roof, because all Persona games love the school roof, and he wants to go back to the App World so he can poke around on Kamoshida.

There is palpably some Beef between Ryuji and Kamoshida. There is some fucking t-bone 3-inch cut that I have seasoned in mushroom salt and fresh ground pepper and left to air-dehydrate for three days, there is soooo much beef between them.

In the Not-Velvet Room-- Look, I am gonna start calling it the VR for efficiency's skae but be aware I do not think this is actually the Velvet Room, or if it is then someone has booted Igor and is pretending to be him.

But yeah Notigor says our rehabilitation can begin and I just wanna claw my hair out. What's funny is I know for a lot of fans, Persona 5 was their entry point. Did they know this was as severely fucked as it is? I feel like the game is pushing Fucked As Hell vibes pretty well, so maybe it was obvious even to the initiated.

Oh so Notigor is the one pushing the unauthorized APK onto my phone. I think Reverie is rocking a Samsung, it's got that Chonk to it.

Also, I dunno what it's called in the Japanese... hang on, to google!

Isekainabi, or "Otherworldnavi" that's pretty good. Which, the adjustment of "navi" to "nabi" reminds me that Japanese doesn't use 'v' does it? Or.... wait.... R is also a no, right?

(That is shit I learned from fucking Metal Gear Solid 2 actually, because my beloved Problematic Fave Kojima called the big villains the La-Li-Lu-Le-Lo, because they were 'invisible', they weren't even a part of the language, metaphorically speaking, which when I understand that I thought was fucking smart as hell, though I imagine the original voice actors who had to say it a lot and rapidly did not agree.)

ANYWAY I AM GETTING DISTRACTED, POINT IS, I picked a hilariously un-apt name with Reverie Vantas. That is a tongue-twister and I am sorry.

what the fuck was i even talking about OH YEAH Netscape Navigator, yeah. That's our Dark Hour/TV World, the Metaverse. I find it cursorily interesting that Persona has many different manifestations of the whole Jungian Collective Subconsciousness. P4's TV World was fully separated and impossible to access without the power of Persona. But Reverie and Ryuji stumbled like idiots into the....

wait, that cutscene from the start, that was Reverie's awakening to Persona. So what caused it. Also: Is that relevant to the mystery here like it was in P4, because in P4 that was super important, and I would prefer it wasn't Super Important again lmao.

God the Izanami thing was dumb. ANY FUCKING WAY.

I briefly meet THAT ONE GIRL FROM THE INTRO on the train, and her personality traits seem to be "worryingly doormat-ish" and "thin'

Like man, P5R is not hitting me over the head with DIET SODA ADS but we are still fatphobic, don't forget! BTW if you want a Persona game that doesn't do that shit, P3P Girl Route baybeeeee best Persona.

I am apprently ribbon girl's senpai and she bows to me twice nad runs off to school. Later, gator.

holy shit this game doesn't fuck around with its classroom questions, are you kidding me

also I am sitting behind Moot in class. how's your life been since relinquishing 4chan, moot? I hope it's better.

Mitsuru would use her rapier to carve you like a chunk of roast.

Kamoshida's influence over everyone is kind of baffling to me. It's a VOLLEYBALL TEAM. Oh is that the Japanese equivalent of a football team? Because then I TOTALLY GET IT, CARRY ON.

Like, I understand sort of academically that having sports teams is good for students but also I fucking hate school sports culture. Dunno if its as vile in Japan as in America but if its even half as bad, yeah, abolish it.

Ryuji is so far not the brightest bulb on the tree, bless him. He keeps trying to locate a castle and getting frustrated. Finally, we put him out of his confused misery and use the app to make castle happen.

HE IS JEALOUS! In almost every jock there is a theatre kid's soul, crying to get out.

Ryuji has like no indoor voice, Morgana, I am sorry.

Also, I have so far zero indication of Morgana's gender, which I do like. 8) Gender don't matter, just don't call me a fucking cat.

There is a huge tutorial section, and I immediately understand why this game is +100 long, these sequences are much more complicated now. There's psuedo-stealth mechanics? Blurgh.

Ryuji wants to save the volleyball slaves and Morgana explains that these aren't actually them, they are cognitive copies that are.... essentially the projection Kamoshida has of each person in the school.

I don't wanna be a jerk Persona but this is adding more and more complexity to your already complex world. But maybe I am still in P4G mode, where every aspect of how the Midnight Channel worked was a clue. At this point, there is no central mystery.

hey yo what the fuck

Somehow Kamoshida broke Ryuji's fucking leg?????

What the fuck happened there? Also yeah, Ryuji, I don't know you super well yet but I'm with you, we can wreck this guy. Holy shit.

boy howdy getting your persona stings a bit in this one huh

Ryuji has Captain Kidd as his, with is pretty fun NGL. So our theme is literally Various Types Of Thieves in this game, huh? I'm cool with that.

[12freddofrogs]

Okay. So having finished season one of OUAT, I might do a better summing up post of the things to actually sum up in a second. But first, I have just been thinking about all the characters who actually know their histories and backstories have been told to thousands of children as bedside stories, and how they probably feel about it.

There were four people who completely, 100 percent knew that they weren't from this world (who also had the theoretical opportunity to research fairytales; I kinda doubt Maleficent did): Regina, Gold, Jefferson, and August. As of yet, at least. Maybe later seasons will reveal that Tiana or someone was also there with her full memories.

Regina probably didn't buy a copy of Snow White for Henry (I maintain my theory Henry's first introduction to that specific fairytale was in the storybook), but she was probably curious. She might have picked up a copy of the Grimm's tale and laughed at most of it, successfully ignoring the slight twist in her stomach at the description of the Evil Queen's brutal death. Regina could have even put on the most famous movie version, the Disney cartoon, and deliberately gagged throughout the singing birds. She might have made a snarky comment at the Happily Ever After ("You sure about that?") and then tossed out the DVD. Ultimately, she's aware of the tale, but hasn't really studied it.

Mr Gold absolutely read a version of Rumpelstiltskin or two. He probably would have watched the movie, but there isn't really a mainstream American Rumpelstiltskin movie. A couple can be found here and there, but it doesn't seem to be a hugely popular movie to adapt. The biggest one I can think of is the third Shrek, and Mr Gold doesn't particularly strike me as someone who would sit down and watch Shrek for its own sake.

That said, he was trapped in time for almost thirty years, during which he could do very little. Refine his plans, gather information, the general running of a store, but he was stuck in Storybrooke for a long time. It's not impossible to me things would contrive until he found himself watching Shrek 3. And honestly? I think he wouldn't hate his portrayal in that movie. That particular Rumpelstiltskin was smart, made deals and kept them despite looking for loopholes, collected power, was terrifying in his own right despite being a comedic character in a comedic film. He was a villain, but it's not like the Dark One has ever particularly been surprised at that title.

My first thought on Jefferson was that he probably hadn't read Alice in Wonderland, but then I realised that he absolutely, most definitely had. So many times, in every variation he could find. Jefferson has spent those thirty years desperately looking for a way to go back. There is no doubt that the Mad Hatter has been intensely studying what seems to be the biggest link between the Enchanted Forest (and Wonderland) and the Land Without Magic: the fact that somehow the stories themselves are leaking through in variations.

He's watched movies. He's read Alice and Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, and read books on those books. He's played video games and watched kid's cartoons and read dumb romances that seem to have no link other than the characters having familiar names. Jefferson has noticed that, for some reason, the Disney cartoon appears to be the most accurate.

Not just for Alice in Wonderland, but for all of them. Some of the other stories he only knew by reputation, or rumour, and he can't actually ask Mary Margaret what elements of the Snow White tale were true or not. That said, he knows that dwarves have names like Grumpy and Doc, and only Disney seems to have given that name. He'd heard of the fairy Maleficient, and every other variation of Sleeping Beauty gave the uninvited fairy a different name. Disney isn't exactly accurate but they are closer than anyone else, including the original tales. What does that mean? He has no idea. He would break into Disney studios if he could.

And then August, I think, would absolutely watch Pinocchio. I'm fairly certain he was still going by the name Pinocchio when he first arrived, and people made connections. Small child by the side of the road, someone grabbed the Disney DVD from Blockbuster. The first time he saw it he was too startled to tear his eyes away. He watched it again a few weeks later, and had adjusted enough to the world that he sobbed the whole time.

August has, much like Jefferson, also noticed that Disney seems to be the most accurate one. He read The Adventures of Pinocchio when he was fourteen, tucked up in a private corner of a library and half expecting the book to cause a breakdown, and was instead just surprised at how different things were. The Field of Miracles? Bandits? Why is the whale a dogfish shark?

He hasn't made it a hobby to track down every version, but he has watched a few of them. He liked a couple, disliked others, more based on how he was portrayed rather than how accurate it was. He did at least once go on the Pinocchio ride at Disneyland and, despite how cartoony and wrong the little Jiminy Cricket was, he was nearly crying when he got out.

And, of course, Mr Gold isn't just Rumpelstiltskin, is he?

I'm not sure how it would come up, necessarily. Again, he's not really the type to watch children's movies for fun. He could pick up a book of fairytales and browse through, but honestly, his story was different enough that he might not connect who this Beauty is, with two older sisters and a father who steals a rose and a monster with an unwilling curse.

But it was twenty-eight years, and a lot can happen in that time. Maybe Regina did it on purpose - after all, she had a young son who was allowed to watch most of the Disney princesses, just not Snow White. She could have made a delicate suggestion to a man she was sure wouldn't get the reference about a Belle and Gaston, and certainly nothing showed in Gold's face that he recognised those names. But once she left, he curiously tracked down the Disney copy of Beauty and the Beast.

It didn't take long at all before he saw the familiarity, a girl who loved to read who, even in a cartoon, looked too familiar. Gold actually couldn't get through the whole movie in one go, and had to keep stopping. If it was more accurate, he might not have finished. He didn't realise that the singing teacup with a single chip in it meant something until he was well into the movie. And he didn't quite cry, not even in the privacy of his own house with the doors locked, at the ending when the Beast that was not him chose love and the woman who was absolutely Belle, but his eyes were a little wet. He spent the next few weeks making Mr French's life miserable, raising rent and insisting on quicker repayments, and didn't even pretend to justify it.