#there simply aren’t very many people who sound like that. you can’t just cast aaron tviet as hades all willy nilly

[theywontletmebeprincipal]

ENOUGH with the stuntcasting either hold an honest open audition or pick your next cast member via an insanely convoluted poorly produced reality tv show as god intended

[spencers-renaissance]

Rain is a Chance to be Touched Ch.6

it leaves me cold

Chapter Five

This is the sixth chapter in my ongoing hotchreid fic! Please click here for the fic summary, full tags, trigger warnings, more information etc.

Last Chapter: Penelope ambushed Spencer in his apartment, proved herself the best friend ever, and finally got him some psychiatric help.

In This Chapter: Aaron — furiously angry at the team and convinced Spencer wants nothing to do with him — finally has enough and goes to visit him. Even Penelope can't prepare him for what he'll find.

TW: same as usual — except this time the depictions of depression are representative of a major depressive episode. Spencer requires help with bathing/washing/personal care.

Word Count: 4.7k

RCT Masterlist // Main Masterlist // Read on AO3

AARON

I can't exactly describe how I feel, but it's not quite right. And it leaves me cold. — F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Love of the Last Tycoon

Aaron has spent the last three weeks in shock, floating through the days absently as he goes through the motions of his daily routines. Guilt has been throbbing through his veins with each painful heartbeat, only exacerbated when every one of his attempts to reach out to Spencer is rebuffed. He can’t exactly blame him, though: he hasn’t let anyone down this badly since Haley’s death, the least he deserves is the silent treatment.

It doesn’t matter that objectively he knows his life has been far too hectic to notice something Spencer was trying so hard to conceal, because when he runs over every interaction they’d had in his head, he can’t believe he missed it. Spencer’s misery was staring him right in the face and he was too blinded, too self-absorbed in his own problems to help the man his heart won’t shut up about, no matter how hard he tries to convince himself of its impropriety.

Penelope had taken yesterday off to help Spencer with a few things, and Aaron couldn’t have been quicker to grant her the leave. If Spencer doesn’t want him around, he can at least rest easy with the knowledge that he was allowing someone to help him. And there isn’t anybody better at caring for other people than Penelope Garcia. That doesn’t help much, though. Not when he spends every moment she’s gone wishing he was the one looking after him, fulfilling his every need and want.

Honestly, he’s just glad they don’t have a case on at the moment. For one, he has a mountain of paperwork he needs to catch up on — including finding Spencer’s replacement, a necessary task no matter how painful — but he also knows he’d not be much use in catching America’s Most Wanted in this mindset.

He looks up from his blurred-over gaze at the paperwork on his desk when Dave taps on the doorframe. “Got a second?” he asks, already making his way into the room.

Aaron sits back in his chair, running a hand across his face as he takes in Dave’s concerned expression. He’s been avoiding him the past few weeks — he’s been avoiding everyone the past few weeks: he works with profilers who are paid to figure out what’s going on in people’s heads and he knows he’ll be read like a book if he lets himself get close enough. Not to mention his desire to lay blame at the feet of his co-workers. As far as he’s concerned, they should all be consumed with guilt even stronger than that which is eating away at him; they all let Spencer down, and emotional turmoil is a small price to pay for such a heinous crime.

“How’s the hunt for a new team member going?” Dave asks, and Aaron resents his easy, honest body language as he sits with his knees apart and shoulders relaxed and open. It’s alright for some, he supposes.

He sighs and reaches for the pile of applications to his right, thumbing through them half-heartedly. “A lot of people want to join the BAU,” he says, after a moment of reaching for something to say.

“Well,” Dave raises an eyebrow as a knowing smile pulls at the corner of his mouth, “have you even started looking through those?”

Aaron looks up at him from under his dark eyebrows, leveling him with a steely gaze. He leans back in his chair again a few seconds later, clasping his hands in front of him. “What do you want, Dave?”

He sighs at that, looking down for a moment before meeting Aaron’s eyes with a determined look of his own. “You’ve been avoiding the entire team since Spencer left,” he says frankly, “and as private as you try to be, Aaron, I know you. I know how you feel about him. You’re torturing yourself.”

“Well, maybe I deserve that torture,” he bites back angrily, the words tumbling from his lips before he can stop them. “I failed, Dave, we all did. And sometimes I think I’m the only one who actually cares about that. I know everyone’s sad Spencer’s gone, but how can all of you feel that way and not hate yourself for contributing to the loss of this unit’s best asset, both personally and professionally?”

Dave looks puzzled at that. “Spencer left of his own accord, Aaron. That’s got nothing to do with the rest of this team.”

Rage — furious, agonising rage — sparks in his chest and he closes his eyes for a moment as he pleads with himself to keep his cool. It’s not his place to share with the rest of the team why Spencer left, but he’s also furious that Dave can apparently use his profiling skills to work out he’s half in love with Spencer, but not apply them enough to realise how much pain their youngest team member was in.

“I suggest you think about the last year long and hard,” Aaron murmurs, low and bitter, and he knows he sounds passive-aggressive but he doesn’t care. He’s too blinded with fury at himself and the rest of this team to care about professionalism right now. “Maybe you’ll understand, then.”

He doesn’t watch Dave leave the room.

Penelope comes into his office that evening, dropping off files he had asked for.

“Come and sit down, Garcia.” He’s exhausted and human contact is not what he really wants right now, but Penelope has information about Spencer he longs to hear. Burying himself in his paperwork again can wait a few minutes.

“Sir?” She looks a little puzzled as she obeys and takes a seat across from him, her bright yellow dress bringing a little colour to his day.

“How’s Spencer doing?” he asks, bone-weary tiredness seeping into his voice as he meets her gaze.

She casts her eyes downwards, her fingers fidgeting in her lap as she considers how to answer the question. “I took him to the doctor yesterday,” she starts carefully, “but he’s hurt. And miserable. He thinks we all hate him, that we’ve excluded him on purpose… he was telling me how he’s been feeling for the past year and it broke my heart. Sir, I’m only being this honest with you because I know you’re aware of Spencer’s mental state, but the others aren’t. And it’s not our place to say.”

“I agree,” he reassures her, nodding. “I’m glad he has you, Garcia. You’re a good friend.”

She pauses for a moment, but she must see something in his face because she eventually musters the courage to say what’s really on her mind. “I hope I’m not overstepping, but Spencer… he needs you, Hotch. I know that he’s been over to see you and Jack a few times and from what I hear that’s the only thing that kept him going for those last few months working here.”

“Garcia, he’s not answering my calls or texts,” he sighs, wishing with every bone in his body that Spencer really does need him the way Penelope says he does; the way Aaron needs him, but he thinks there’s probably a better chance of the sky falling in. “I’ve got the message. He definitely doesn’t need me, I can promise you that.”

“Sir, I know you’re my boss,” she says evenly, averting her eyes slightly, her tell that she’s trying to stay calm, “but you’re being really stupid right now. Spencer is in a lot of pain, I’ve seen it first hand this last week, and I’m in a much better position to say what he needs than you. Communication is overwhelming and exhausting for him, and he’s feeling guilty about leaving you and me. I feel as guilty about all of this as you do, but you can’t let your emotions dictate how you act right now. You’ll only end up hurting him further. If you turn up at his place, I can promise you he will let you in.”

She takes a breath in before meeting his relaxed, open gaze. “I love you both very much, but you are both being idiots,” she huffs before levelling him with a stern glare and storming back to her own office.

With Penelope vacating the room, Aaron is left alone with his head reeling. He knows how close Penelope and Spencer are and he can’t think of a reason for her to lie, especially with Spencer being in such a fragile state, but he simply can’t wrap his head around the possibility of what she’s saying being the truth. He’s so desperate not to get his hopes up; he isn’t sure he can take another heartbreak so soon after losing Haley.

When he turns his phone over, he sees two messages from Penelope: He took today off to recover from yesterday. He’ll be home. Under the files she’s left in his office is a key and a pretty, pink piece of note paper with the code to Spencer’s building printed in dark purple gel pen.

🌧

Aaron can’t believe he’s doing this. He’d spent most of the drive over convincing himself he wasn’t — he absolutely was not — going to use the key Penelope had slid into his office without him noticing. She wasn’t far from begging him when she walked into his office and that’s the only reason he even considered it in the first place. But that innocuous ‘considering’ had landed him here, standing outside Spencer’s apartment, trying to work the courage up to actually go inside.

God, there are so many reasons not to do this. It feels wrong to even be thinking about someone other than his dead ex-wife, but he also knows she’d want him to be happy, and when he really thinks about it those sparks of emotion he wasn’t able to put his finger on were happening long before Haley passed.

“Spencer is in a lot of pain.” Penelope’s desperate words to him earlier wouldn’t stop rattling around his head. Knowing what his heart is longing for now, and knowing what Haley would have wanted for him and Jack, he was finally launched into action.

He can’t believe he’s doing this. That’s true. But he is also absolutely going to do it. He slides his key into the lock on the front door of Spencer’s apartment and pushes it open gently. The living room is dark but tidy; Penelope had told him she was helping him around the house, and he walks in just enough to close the door behind him, its soft click the only sound to be heard.

Gingerly, he makes his way through the lounge and kitchen, heading towards the bedrooms at the back. Two of the doors are open, one obviously the bathroom, the other seeming to be an office of sorts, but one of them is closed. There isn’t any light coming from under the door despite it only being 7, and if he didn’t know better he’d assume nobody’s home.

He does know better though, and not just because of Penelope’s earlier text. He knows Spencer is fighting depression, and he knows he’ll be exhausted both physically and mentally from his day yesterday. That only leaves two options: Spencer is laying completely silently in the dark, or he’s asleep. Considering the time of day, Aaron isn’t sure which of those is better.

“Spencer?” he calls quietly as he pushes the door to his bedroom open. There’s a Spencer-shaped lump hidden under the blankets, but he isn’t moving, so he flicks the hallway light on before making his way towards the bed. The light casts a pretty shadow across Spencer’s face, but Aaron is more focused on the tear tracks staining his cheekbones. “Hey, Spencer?” He touches his arm gently, rubbing a little when he doesn’t flinch. Relief flashes across his chest as soon as he starts to move.

“Aaron?” he asks sleepily, sounding confused. He doesn’t spring upright though, simply burying deeper under what he suspects are very comfortable, warm blankets.

“How are you feeling?” He tries to keep his voice soft and careful, but he can hear the naked, unadulterated fearful concern he feels for Spencer bleeding into his words.

“Tired,” Spencer sighs, and as soon as he admits it, a fresh tear drops from his eye straight to the pillow. “Sad.” Aaron watches as he blinks to try and stop any more tears from betraying how he feels, but it just makes things worse. His heart aches as he watches Spencer curl further into himself as he tries to fight the emotions welling up inside him.

“Hey,” he says gently, “it’s okay.” He reaches out to tenderly touch Spencer's cheek, fingers so light he barely makes contact. He has no idea what he’s doing, but he honestly doesn’t care. Everything inside of him is screaming to take care of the man lying in bed as he falls apart. “You’re okay. I’m here.”

Surprisingly, that actually seems to work. Spencer relaxes slightly and lets the tears fall, uninhibited. The defeated expression on his face still eats Aaron up inside, but the pain is mixed with relief that Penelope might actually have been right. Maybe Spencer does need him. As much as it kills him that Spencer’s even in this position to begin with, he’d much rather he be going through the darkness with him at his side than alone; he’d much rather actually be able to do something to ease the pain than sit in his office feeling helpless.

“Have you eaten anything today?” He caresses Spencer’s cheek with a bit more confidence, and his heart clenches tightly when he feels the younger man lean into his touch. Emboldened, he reaches his other hand under the duvet and clasps one of Spencer’s cold hands in his own, threading their fingers together. He swears he can hear music when Spencer holds his hand tightly, clutching at it as though it’s the last connection he has to the real world.

“Don’t think so,” Spencer murmurs, letting his eyes droop closed again.

“Do you think you maybe feel like eating something now? If I made it for you?”

Spencer squeezes his eyes closed at that and clasps at Aaron’s hand even tighter. “No, please don’t go,” he begs, sounding as desperate as Aaron feels.

“Hey, hey, okay,” he says soothingly, holding Spencer’s hand tightly in his own as he lays his other palm flat against his cheek, noticing how the firm touch seems to relax him. “How about if we ordered something? Then I don’t have to leave.”

He waits patiently for Spencer’s hesitant nod of consent before pulling his phone out and quickly ordering from the curry house he knows is his favourite. Later, he’ll stop to think about all the little pieces of information he’s stored up on Spencer over the years; he’ll consider why his brain thought small things like his favourite foods and the way he smiles every time a Sarah MacLachlan song comes on were important enough to store away for moments like these.

Right now, though, all his focus is on the man in front of him.

“Can you…” Spencer starts hesitantly, voice cracking, “can you come up here?” He refuses to meet Aaron’s eyes as if sure he’s going to refuse, and he doesn’t know how to tell him just how unfounded his fear is. He’d lasso the moon and wrap it in ribbon if Spencer asked for it.

He climbs onto the bed carefully, surprised when Spencer immediately moves to lean his head against his chest, burying into his warmth. Aaron can hear his pounding heart in his ears and he knows there’s no way to conceal its fast-paced rhythm from a man with his ear to his chest, so he simply forces himself to relax into the bizarre position he’s somehow found himself in, and it slowly starts to calm down.

“Aaron?”

God, he loves it when Spencer uses his first name. It’s so personal, so intimate, and it fills his chest with something akin to euphoria every time it graces his ears. “Yes?”

“Why did you come?”

Well. Isn’t that a question. Truthfully, it’s because it feels like there’s some magnetic pull between Aaron’s heart and Spencer’s; like anywhere Spencer is, Aaron needs to be. The feelings he’s been confused by — the ones he’s been trying to ignore, the ones he’s pretending not to understand despite his subconscious longing for Spencer’s company, his touch, his love — are more prominent and undeniable than ever before. But above all, he came because Spencer needed him. And he’d do that no matter what his brain was screaming at him, or what his heart longed for.

This isn’t exactly the time for a bold, terrifying declaration of love, though, is it?

“You needed me,” he says simply, after a long, telling pause. “And there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you.

Spencer nods, pressing impossibly closer to Aaron. Tears are still making their way down his cheeks, wetting the fabric of Aaron’s shirt, but he doesn’t care. He’ll be anything Spencer needs, and if that’s a hug and a good cry, then that’s perfectly fine. He wraps his hand around Spencer’s waist, hugging him closely and he feels him relax even further. The feeling of his small frame pressed against his own is unparalleled, and he has to breathe deeply to keep himself calm. He’s so far gone.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asks when he feels another sob wrack Spencer’s shoulders.

“I’m exhausted, Aaron,” he replies, voice thick and eyes droopy. “I’m mentally and physically exhausted and I’m lonely. I’m afraid… I’m afraid I’ll never be happy again. I’m tired like I’ve never been tired before, and I just— I can’t keep going like this, you know? I’m never going to get the things I want.”

He presses closer as he says his last sentence and, distantly, Aaron wonders what it is that he wants exactly. A small voice in his head suggests something so preposterous he has to push it aside violently. He might have these feelings for Spencer, but expecting any kind of reciprocation is only going to end in heartbreak; getting his hopes up is simply irresponsible no matter how many stupid, reckless, hope-ridden inklings he might have.

“Spencer,” he starts, but his voice catches and he has to take a moment to compose himself. “Why didn’t you say something? You could have told me, I— I would have helped you.”

“Aaron, you had — still have — so much on your plate, I couldn’t burden you with my… feelings.”

At that ridiculous notion, he reaches for Spencer’s hand and takes it, holding it gently in his own. “You, Spencer Reid, are never a burden to me,” he insists, moving his hand from Spencer’s waist to his short hair, caressing his head soothingly. “I’m not going anywhere, okay? You are so incredibly important to me, I’m so unbelievably sorry that I ever let you forget that. That we — that this little family ever let you believe you were anything less than crucial and adored. I’ll never forgive myself for not noticing how much pain you were in sooner.”

“You don’t need to—”

“Yes, I do,” Aaron interrupts him. “We let you down, Spencer. There are no two ways about it. I will spend the rest of my days apologising to you for not seeing how much agony you were in, no matter how well you were concealing it. You work with profilers, and not one person spotted the burden you were carrying. I can’t imagine how much that must have hurt.”

Just like that, the quiet, steady flow of tears Spencer had been crying since Aaron woke him up turn into loud, heaving, heart-wrenching sobs. He turns his face to bury it flat into Aaron’s shirt, rolling so he’s almost on top of him as he searches desperately for purchase in his imploding, grieving state. He holds Spencer as tight as possible, letting him scramble and grip at whatever he can as he completely falls apart, sending little pieces of himself into the atmosphere until he’s nothing but a shell of himself, a broken skeleton with nothing left to give.

It takes almost ten minutes for his violent sobbing to subside, and by the time it does Aaron’s crying too, heart breaking clean down the middle as he tries to hold a broken man together with just his hands. The raw, hopeless, unrestrained emotion in Spencer’s sobs cuts straight through his soul, as if every one of this godforsaken earth’s weighty, miserable grievances have been spilled by one man’s tears.

“I’m so sorry,” he murmurs again as Spencer collapses against him, exhaustion palpable as he allows his boneless body to be cradled by Aaron. He has to push aside his self-hatred in order to comfort the younger man — the wrath at himself and the rest of his team can only be unhelpful right now — but he can’t help it from swelling in his chest.

Their food arrives minutes later, and Aaron carries Spencer to the sofa in the living room, internally cringing at how ridiculously easy it is to pick him up, even with his own, albeit mostly healed, injuries still flaring up from time to time. He flicks on the lamp and tucks him in a blanket before running out to get their food. When he returns, Spencer’s staring at nothing as he lays on the sofa, looking so utterly defeated Aaron feels it himself.

“Hey, how do you feel about some food?” he asks softly, perching next to him on the sofa. “Maybe just a little naan? Or some poppadoms?”

Spencer stares at the food Aaron’s laid on the coffee table, a stray tear running down his cheek. He doesn’t even think he’s even crying anymore, it’s just his body doing what it’s used to. Aaron recognises pretty quickly that he’s not up to making any sort of decision, so he plates up a small serving of food: a little naan, half a poppadom, some pilau rice, and some onion bhajis. “Try this.”

Spencer takes the plate obediently and brings a bite of naan to his lips. Aaron gives him some space and serves up his own food before checking the kitchen for some drinks. The naan and some of the rice have disappeared from the plate by the time he gets back with two glasses of water, and he doesn’t even fight the small smile that makes it onto his face at the sight. He’d prepared himself for a hunger strike.

“Let’s watch a documentary,” he suggests, reaching for the remote and flicking the TV on. “How does that sound?”

Spencer actually brightens a little at the suggestion, breaking off a piece of bhaji and sitting up a bit taller. He takes the win and sets the TV to the history channel, catching the beginning of a documentary on European castles.

“Did you know that Wales has more castles than any other European country?” Spencer offers quietly, and Aaron’s heart flip flops happily in his chest — hearing Spencer talk about something he’s interested in, hearing a fact fall from his lips feels like some sort of progress. It’s like seeing a little piece of the real Spencer through the cloak of sadness he’s been shrouded in for so long now.

“Really? Why?” He tries to sound as casual as possible, but he knows his eagerness to keep him talking is showing. “Isn’t it a tiny country?”

“It’s one of the smallest in Europe, but it was a contested territory for centuries, especially in the Medieval era, so countries would set up fortresses and castles to stake their claim,” he explains despite his weariness, before picking another bit of bhaji off. His face isn’t lighting up with quite the same level of enthusiasm as it used to, but just explaining a bit about his knowledge on some obscure topic is enough for Aaron.

When he doesn’t explain beyond that, Aaron simply smiles and reaches for the food on the coffee table. “Do you want any more?”

“Uhm— some more naan?” Spencer sounds almost shy, and it takes him back to when he first joined the bureau, so shy and unsure of his role in the FBI and the world in general. Aaron had felt that flare of protectiveness from his first day in the department, and it’s only grown stronger over time.

“Sure.” He breaks off another piece of naan and hands it over, and the thankful smile he receives in return feels more gratifying than solving any case ever has. The circumstances might not be ideal, but in that moment it strikes him that he wants to spend every evening for the rest of his life like this, watching something that interests and inspires Spencer while they share a take-away on the couch.

Just days ago the thought would have terrified him. Tonight it’s oddly comforting.

As soon as they’ve finished eating and the documentary’s finished, he leads Spencer into the bathroom and makes sure he’s brushed his teeth and washed his face. “Do you want me to help you with the shower?” he asks tentatively, but Spencer shakes his head. “I’ll wait outside, okay? Call me if you need anything.”

He leans against the hallway wall while he waits, but after ten minutes goes by, he knocks on the door. “Everything okay, Spencer?” He calls out a few more times but left with no reply he pushes the door open and finds Spencer sitting on the floor of the shower, staring motionless at the wall as tears stream down his face. “Oh, sweetheart.” The nickname falls from his lips before he can stop it, but that’s the least of his worries.

As he grabs the clean, fluffy towel from the hook on the back of the bathroom door he finds himself, not for the first time, thanking the heavens for Penelope Garcia. He steps forward and turns the water off, grabbing Spencer’s attention, hushing him as he wraps him gently in the towel and lifts him out of the shower. He sits him on the closed toilet seat and dries him the best he can. It’s not like he’s a trained carer, but he does his best. Only his absolute best for Spencer Reid.

“I’m sorry,” Spencer says through his tears, “I can’t stop crying. I’m so sorry.”

“Hey, there’s no need to apologise. Let’s focus on getting you ready for bed, okay?” He brushes the tears from Spencer’s cheeks before continuing to dry him off.

When he’s dried and dressed in a clean t-shirt and boxers, he carries him — at Spencer’s very adorable insistence — back to the bedroom, tucking him under the duvet and making sure he’s warm and comfortable before he stands upright.

“Stay,” Spencer whispers, grabbing Aaron’s wrist.

Conflicting emotions wage war with one another in Aaron’s mind as he considers such a request. On one hand, it feels majorly inappropriate, even though he’s not Spencer’s boss anymore. He doesn’t want to take advantage of his vulnerable emotional state and they haven’t had a proper conversation about how they feel. But on the other hand, Spencer’s miserable, and if having someone close to reassure him he’s okay is going to make him feel even the tiniest bit better, then he doesn’t know how to say no.

After all, he promised himself that tonight, he would be whatever Spencer needed.

“Are you sure?”

“Please.” His expression is so sincere and earnest that he can’t help it when he slides under the duvet next to him, a warm body immediately cuddling up next to his own.

9.30 is far too early for him to go to sleep usually, but he finds his eyelids drooping only minutes after Spencer’s breathing evens out. The subtle magic, the heady cocktail of desperation and anticipation mingles deep in his heart as he feels himself drop off to sleep, and it’s far too easy to ignore the screaming voice in his head telling him all the awful ways this could go so terribly wrong. Because maybe, his heart whispers, this could go so gloriously right.

Chapter Seven

If this chapter brought anything up for you, hotlines are in the endnotes of the AO3 version of this fic. Bigger countries are listed and a link is included if you live somewhere else in the world. I love you <3

taglist: @criminalmindsvibez @suburban–gothic @strippersenseii @takeyourleap-of-faith @makaylajadewrites @iamrenstark @hotchseyebrows @reidology @i-like-buttons @spencerspecifics @bau-gremlin @hotchedyke @tobias-hankel @goobzoop @marsjareau @garcias-bitch @marvel-ous-m @oliverbrnch @sbeno22 @aaron-hotchner187 @thataveragenerd (add yourself to my taglist here)

[umbrahighpriestofgiratina]

Heroes After All Bonus Chapter 2: Fire Emblem Heroes After All

Surprise! You thought I was DONE with Fire Emblem crossovers after Rude Awakening?! Well think again! This fic is going in a whole new direction with more FE characters than Smash Bros, starting... Now!

Bonus Chapter 2: Fire Emblem Heroes After All

Polly was resting on a bench outside the monastarey. It was a peaceful day - the sun was shining, Butterfree were flying about, there was a soft breeze blowin-

A noise. A specific noise Polly didn't recognise. She saw Metagross trudging toward her.

~Polly! Soldiers. They're approaching a village to the south.~

"What? We should evacuate the citizens right awa-"

~There's something else.~

"What?"

~They came out of a portal.~

------------

A young girl in elaborate royal attire looked out over the landscape, curious.

She was pretty sure she had set her sights on the World Of Blazing. Her troops were ready to conquer and make contracts. But something seemed... off.

It wasn't until she noticed a very strange brown and gray bird perch nearby that she realized how off.

She tapped a soldier on the shoulder. "Do you know what bird that is?"

The soldier looked over. "Er, no, your highness."

"Doesn't look like anything native to the World Of Blazing."

The bird gave a chirp and a "star, staravia."

"...We seem to be far from our intended destination," said the soldier.

"...Keep going," said the girl. "Perhaps we can find something useful here."

She ordered the troops onward.

----------

Aaron was idly scratching doodles in the dirt with a stick when he noticed the older Aura Guardians scrambling around in a panic. For a second he considered heading inside, where he'd be safe.

But then he thought a bit. If he couldn't really help with the dead and missing Aura Guardians back then, he could stand to benefit from helping now...

He quietly placed his stick down and started following the senior Aura Guardians.

----------

The purple creature noticed a rush in activity in its new home. Curious, they quietly hovered over the hurried bipeds and their companions, evading notice.

Then they saw a strange, pink creature hovering nearby.

~Heh... They're really in a hurry! Looks like fun.~

The purple creature eyed the pink one quizzically. The pink one looked at them and smiled.

~Wanna watch them with me?~

The purple creature gave a chitter of affirmation.

~Alright! Let's go.~

The pair headed off after the bipeds.

-----------

Polly, Vince, and Carol all hid behind some trees, watching the strange enemy soldiers walk by.

"This is so weird," said Vince. "These soldiers are like nothing in the Genesis Mountains."

"Well they did come out of a portal," said Carol.

"We need to find out what their deal is," said Polly. She turned a bit. ~Dunsparce?~

Dunsparce slithered out of some nearby bushes and toward the soldiers, burrowing underground when she got close. After a bit Polly could pick up on Dunsparce's thoughts.

~Woah,~ said Dunsparce. ~They're some... Embian Empire, they came from another realm, and, uh, they don't know what Pokemon are? Weirdos.~

Polly relayed the information to her companions.

"This is... concerning," said Vince.

"We need to report this to Ryan," said Carol.

Dunsparce slithered back to the group and they snuck back off to camp.

------------------

Aaron trudged through the forest after the senior Aura Guardians, trying to find where they'd gone. He had no clue what was going on, but he'd be darned if he couldn't-

He bumped into a leg coming out of some bushes and fell over.

"Ow..."

A boy noticeably older than him with blue hair looked down at where he lay. "Are you all right?"

"Ugh, yeah..."

"Oh, he's so cute!" said a blonde girl peeking over. "Is he one of the Heroes of this world?"

"Calm yourself, Sharena," said another, redheaded girl. "He's probably just a civilian."

"N-no I'm not!" said Aaron,sitting up. "I'm an Aura Guardian!"

"Hmmm, Aura Guardian?" said the redhead. "That sounds impressive... and marketable."

"Anna knowing you you'll just bring it up as a side thing and forget about it completely later."

"Don't question my strategies! Well at least not more than Kiran's. But Kiran has the flu so you all will have to listen to me!"

"Point is, can we keep him?" said the blonde girl, holding up a squirming Aaron.

"Sharena we can't just adopt every Hero we find," said the blue-haired boy. Sharena pouted and put Aaron down. "A girl can dream Alphonse."

"Wait, so who are you guys?" said Aaron.

"We're the Order Of Heroes!" said Alphonse. "Dedicated to protecting the multiverse from the Emblian Empire and similar threats!"

He looked around. "Though, uh, this seems a bit far from home multiverse-wise...."

Aaron's eyes were sparkling. "That sounds so cool! I totally wanna join!"

"Well, normally, Kiran has to summon you," said Anna. "But we could let you meet the team we brought along if you'd like!

"Sure thing!" said Aaron.

He followed the three away.

---------------

Mithos and the purple creature were hovering over the advancing Emblian army, ogling them curiously.

~Man these guys look like bad news,~ said Mithos.

The purple creature gave a chirp of agreement.

~Wanna mess with them?~

Another chirp.

~Good. Now...~

There were telepathic whispers, and the two separated to wait.

----------------

Polly, Vince, and Carol were talking to Ryan and Nightjar in the camp the group had set up.

"So yeah. They're extradimensional, they're here to conquer, but they have no idea what this world really is," said Vince.

"If that is the case, we may be able to convince them to look elsewhere with minimal casualties," said Nightjar.

"Are you sure diplomacy is the best idea in a situation like this?" said Polly. "When we're potentially outgunned, certainly," said Ryan. "And at the very least we have our Pokemon if worst comes to worst."

"Very well," said Carol. "Let's get ready."

They started preparing.

-------------

Aaron was lead to a camp populated by four people - a girl in a blue dress clutching a gemstone, a man with two large wings sprouting from his back, a green-haired man in blue with a book, and a green-haired woman tending to a Mudsdale.

"Hello there," said the girl in the dress. "I'm Ninian."

"I'm Tibarn," said the winged man.

"I'm Merric!" said the green-haired man.

"I'm Lyndis, but you may call me Lyn," said the green-haired girl.

"Nice to meet you all!" said Aaron. "I'm Aaron."

"I still think we should have brought Ballista Wolt on this mission," said Anna.

"No," said Alphonse, fear in his voice. "He's too powerful."

"But we use Grima and Duma on missions all the ti-"

"TOO POWERFUL."

Meanwhile, Aaron was inspecting Ninian and Tibarn in particular.

"So, what are the wings and stone for?"

"Oh, for this!" said Ninian.

Ninian raised the stone and suddenly transformed into a Hydreigon. Tibarn similarly transformed into a Braviary. Aaron's jaw hit the floor.

"That's so cool! I wish I could do that!"

"Their forms do look... different here," said Merric. "As does my magic." He cast an Air Slash.

"My horse looks different too..." said Lyn.

"Huh... You're not from here?"

"None of us are," said Tibarn, shifting to his normal self. "We're from other realms."

"So that's why you can do all this cool stuff?"

Lyn chuckled. "Pretty much."

"Attention!" said Anna. "Emblian troops are heading this way! We need to engage!"

The people in the camp immediately began to move. Sharena picked up a protesting Aaron and carried him following the others.

-----------------

The Emblian army's journey was almost at an end. They had almost reached the village.

"Halt."

The girl's head turned. There was Ryan, flanked by Polly, Vince, Carol, Nightjar, and several other senior Aura Guardians, as well as their Pokemon.

"We wish to negotiate."

"With what?" said the girl.

"This world is not the one you wish to intrude upon. It has nothing for you. Turn back and avoid wasting your time."

"Bah, you think I, Princess Veronica, am so easily swayed? The strange creatures of your world have so much potential... If we can fully harness it then-"

"Princess Veronica! We aren't going to let you do that!"

Saying this was Alphonse, who was leading his party up to the front lines. Veronica simply scowled.

"You all are interfering again? Very well. Troops, charge them both!"

Veronica prepared her dark magic spell, but since the author of this segment forgot what her personal tome is, let's say she left it at home and cast Fenrir instead.

The Aura Guardians managed to evade the blast of magic, and they and their Pokemon fired back with their powers. Shades of blue, pink, black, and lighter pink flew across the battlefield, knocking down a few soldiers and causing Veronica to scowl further.

From above, Ninian (in her new Hydreigon form) fired off a stormy Draco Meteor, the thunderbolts and lightning causing many enemy soldiers to be very frightened, scampering off the battlefield screaming “Galileo, galileo figaro, magnifico!” (hey they were from the Italian localization of FEH, don't blame me)

Tibarn swooped in and used Brave Bird, a move which disrupted the enemy formations enough for Merric and Lyndis to come in with an Aeroblast and a couple of Murgleis shots. Soldiers soared through the air like dragons and their dragon mounts crashed to the ground like humans.

Aaron had been sticking behind Sharena the whole time. Then he noticed Veronica nearby and got an idea.

He hid behind a small tree near her and started charging a Focus Blast right next to it. There was a crack and a flying of splinters as Aaron fell and so did the tree, straight toward Veronica. Veronica wasn't crushed due to the tree being small, skinny, and dead but it knocked her asunder, sending the troops into a panic.

It was then a booming laugh echoed across the battlefield and a Zekrom descended.

~Foolish mortals! I am the dragon god Morkrez, patron deity of this world! All who interfere shall suffer two punishments - one the sticky threads of fate!"

The purple creature flew around, leaving a poisonous glue that bound the panicked troops in place.

~And two... THE RAIN OF DEATH!~

“Surprise motherfuckers!” announced Ballista Wolt, who began firing Arrowspate bolts from the heavens. He then launched some Hoistflamme shots and some BlizzardBlasts, scorching and freezing the battlefield. Zaps of electricity from the brave-effect magic-based Zap Cannon ballista rained down from the sky. And to top off the siege of doom with the icing on the cake of increasingly potent siege weapons, Wolt loaded a trebuchet full of hatchets and fired, thus finishing with the very same weapon that slew the Demon King Fomortiis: the AxeLauncher.

Everyone stared in equal measures shock, awe, and horror, except Anna and Lyn, the former of whom grinned.

"I knew bringing him was a good idea!"

"My hero!" said Lyn, sighing wistfully.

Veronica got up, glowering at the others

"Imbecles! I'll be back for this world! And I'll have backup!"

She opened a portal and stormed through it, the remaining troops following. The Zekrom disappeared and a pink wisp was vaguely visible exiting the area.

"We... We did it," said Vince.

"Woo!" said Aaron. "...Ow, splinters."

"Your world is threatened no longer," said Ninian.

"Whee!" said Sharena, picking up Aaron and spinning him around. "You did great! One of our healers can probably fix up those splinters-"

"And after that you are giving him back because he's ours," said Polly. "Kid how did you get here?"

"I followed them!"

Meanwhile Ryan was conversing with Alphonse.

"The Genesis Mountain Aura Guardians are grateful for your support," said Ryan.

"And the Order Of Heroes is grateful for yours," said Alphonse.

"I'm not certain our respective groups will cross paths again but I have a feeling our worlds might."

"Well, the multiverse is pretty big, and we've got a lot closer to home to defend," said Alphonse, grinning, "but I certainly wouldn't mind coming here again. These Pokemon are fascinating!"

"Indeed they are," said Ryan. "I guess only time will tell."

-----------

Riolu, making his way through the human town he'd encountered, felt like he'd missed something.

He decided it was probably nothing.

***

April fools. :P

You can blame both Fire Emblem being my second-favorite Nintendo franchise after Pokemon, Fire Emblem Heroes being the one mobile game to ever hold my attention for long, and my friend Vanillite the Dragonslayer/Purple Mage - this whole shebang was his idea and he even wrote some of the fight scenes. The all-powerful monstrosity known as Ballista Wolt also originates from a FE8 romhack he did.

Anyway yeah this is canon but has no effect on the rest of the story so don't worry I'm not pulling any permanent crossover plots.

[theprocrastinatingalien]

Looking towards Avengers 4 (with major Infinity War spoilers)

I'm aware that this might come across as negative, so I need to get something out there immediately... I absolutely loved AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.  I thought it was epic, and in the same way that THE AVENGERS shouldn't have worked, it totally did.  Bringing all those characters together and it not being a shambles. I've always had faith in Marvel and (in particular) the MCU... all in all INFINITY WAR is a triumph.  My excitement for AVENGERS 4 is on overload already.

The second (and much better) ANT-MAN AND THE WASP trailer has just been released, and early next year we get to meet CAPTAIN MARVEL.  That's all exciting stuff, but AVENGERS 4... that's where we've heading to.  Kevin Feige has stated that there will be a line drawn for the fans... everything before AVENGERS 4, and everything after it. 

That's something to remember when discussing AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR, because whilst it feels like everything has been leading to THAT film, that's not true, it's next year's outing that really is - as Doctor Strange would say - the endgame.

It's impossible to look towards AVENGERS 4 without  talking about INFINITY WAR, of course.... especially as, well, it killed off a lot of it's characters.  I'm not about to review the film, but we HAVE to talk about the deaths.   They're very important.

Marvel have always, seemingly, been afraid to kill off major characters.  One-off villains, sure.  The odd supporting character, maybe.  But the big players?  Not so much.  During the first two phases of the MCU, the biggest death is arguably Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) in AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON.  Sadly, the death is underwhelming because... we've only just met him.  Barring a tease at the end of a previous movie, the 'twins' were only properly introduced in the film that offed him, so we can't possibly care as much as if, say one of the originals had died instead.  A lot of people thought Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) might bite the dust, and that would've meant more, certainly.  Quicksilver it was though.   Then phase three happened - would things change?  A little bit, and not at first.  Personally I was disappointed with CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, as it was a film I went in absolutely expecting the exit of a known character.  The comic book source suggested a death should happen, and really if it wasn't known that Chris Evans had more films on his slate I would've really expect Captain America to be a goner.  Knowing that wouldn't happen I expected someone in his place.   The closest we come is (Don Cheadle's) War Machine's plummet. It's dramatic... but it's not a death and it is sadly completely signposted in the trailers.

I've made my peace with CIVIL WAR though, and moved on from my initial disappointment to regard it as one of my favourite movies in the franchise. Since then, Marvel have seemingly cottoned on to the fact that - as much as we don't want to see our favourites die - it needs to happen if the audiences are to believe the jeopardy of the situations the characters are in.  In GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2 director/writer James Gunn chose to kill off Yondu (Michael Rooker).  It's actually a powerful moment, and whilst Yondu is hardly a core member of the group, it's affecting enough.   THOR: RAGNAROK took it further... with half the cast of the previous films not returning anyway (Foster, Selvig, Darcy and Sif all missing), the devastation across Asgard at the hands of Hela (Cate Blanchett) sees off Volstagg, Fandral, Hogun, with Odin (Anthony Hopkins) having his swansong earlier in the film.  It's enough.  True none of the 'crossover' characters get taken out... but RAGNAROK does run straight into INFINITY WAR as the fleeing Asgardian race come face to to face with Thanos' ship.

That's precisely where we start INFINITY WAR too.   Whilst some characters are questionably missing - Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie and rock dude Korg for example - those we do see aren't around for long.   The Asgardian bodies are scattered, and the first 'proper' death of film is Idris Elba's Heimdall.  He bifrosts the Hulk to Earth and in doing so is killed by Thanos (Josh Brolin).  Thor (Chris Hemsworth - in his biggest, most important role during an Avengers outing) is shocked, but the bigger shock comes when Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is throttled to death.  Okay, for some of the audience I don't think this is as big a shock as it is for Thor, but it means a lot.  Loki has been a favourite with the fans, especially the favourite villain in the MCU, and whilst I've seen some bemoan a wasted death, I think it's perfect for the film. Loki IS  a villain, and the 'bigger' deaths need to be reserved for the heroes.

Gamora.  That's a big death, which actually guides the film to it's conclusion.  Zoe Saldana's green assassin plays such an important role.... it is sad when Thanos sacrifices her for the soul stone... but again, I'm sure we saw it coming.  ONE of the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY had to be offed. As the story unfolds, it makes sense that Gamora is the one.... and if it's a permanent death it's going make a big hole in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3!  She's the lead female after all.  But her death works... and, let's be honest, it's the effect on Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) that stops Iron Man and Spider-Man succeeding in getting the gauntlet off of Thanos, which could have won everything there and then.

We then have Vision (Paul Bettany).  He dies twice.   Once at the hands of Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) to save half the universe... and once by Thanos to destroy it.  Those deaths all have a lot of weight to them for varying degrees and reasons.  Heimdall is the first notable death, Loki a god, Gamora a guardian and Vision an android who probably could've been the saviour of the universe had his head not been a target.

Thanos then clicks his fingers.  A simple act, that has devastating consequences. Half the life in the universe gets wiped out - including half of our heroes.  Bucky, Falcon, Black Panther, Groot, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, Star-Lord, Drax, Mantis, Maria Hill, Nick Fury and Doctor Strange.  They all... disappear.  It's has a massive impact  The bad guy won.  The good guys lost.  The last shot of the film is Thanos smiling.   The credits are black and sombre.  At the very end we're normally told that our heroes will return... but we're not... instead we're told that Thanos will return.

It's a shock.

Until you think about it. 

If AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR was the last film of the phase, then the impact would be astounding, but we know AVENGERS 4 is now a year away. When the third phase was announced, a two-parter was announced - AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR PART 1 & PART 2.  Since then, the writers and directors have tried to undo that.  INFINITY WAR has now 'part one' attached, and the title to the follow up is still a secret.  We've been told that the film is very different to the one we've seen, but the title is technically a spoiler, so they chose to withhold it so audiences could concentrate on the movie at hand.

Having seen INFINITY WAR (and I'll state again - I loved it) I really wouldn't be surprised if the title for the next film ends up simply being AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR VOL 2.   I can't see how it's not a simple 'second part'.  Thanos smiling at the end of this movie might as well have had the words 'to be continued' written across it.

And the more I think about those deaths at the end, the more it bugs me. Why?  Because it's the wrong characters that died.   That might sound like a silly statement, but stick with me here... look at the list again.... in particular, Black Panther, Doctor Strange... Spider-Man... almost all of the Guardians.   They're all characters that will DEFINITELY be back.  Next year sees the sequel to SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING.  The year after, we have GUARIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3, and let's be honest, there's no way we're not getting a DOCTOR STRANGE 2 or  BLACK PANTHER 2.  Most of the characters (barring Maria Hill and Nick Fury) are phase 2 or 3 characters, and will have their place amongst phase 4.

Who are we left with?  Iron Man, Thor, Dr Banner, Steve Rogers, Black Widow, War Machine, Nebula, Okoye, Rocket and M'Baku.  These are the characters we'll be following into the next movie - what's odd about that is, except for the last few names on the list - these are the guys who are moving on.  Robert Downey Jr was the first guy we ever saw in this franchise.  Chris Evans has publically said he's done, and Chris Hemsworth's arc seems largely done now.    I'm going to come back to this.   This is important.  Right now, I'm going to start looking at what I know/suspect about AVENGERS 4...

CLINT BARTON, ANT-MAN, WASP and CAPTAIN MARVEL

These four are joining the action.   No question.   There's been a lot of upset that Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) was absent from the marketing, but that's simply because he wasn't in the film.  They probably could've shoehorned him into it they wanted, he could've shot lots of arrows in the Wakanda fight... but he's been saved for something bigger.   The on-set photos of him seem to suggest Clint is now going by the name Ronin.  I assume this is because, whilst he was keeping away from the Avengers to keep his family safe, his family then disappeared with Thanos' click.   He probably blames himself.  Maybe an extra pair of hands could've helped save the day?  With so many characters now taken out of action, I reckon Barton (whatever his moniker) will have a major role to play in the next movie.  Likewise, Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Brie Larson get to tag in... with Ant-Man (also noted to be missing from IW) Wasp and Captain Marvel (both ladies kept back until their superhero statues had been revealed officially in their respective movies) coming in the kick ass.  Captain Marvel even gets a tease in the post credits as Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) sends her an emergency message).  She's likely to play a key part too, as she's be noted to be the most powerful of all the heroes.

And it's now I need to go back to my feeling that they've killed off the wrong characters.  You see, think about this... as it stands, with the deaths we've have, we known it's all going to get undone.  We know things are going to be sorted to some degree.   But now switch it.   Imagine the characters that died at the end were Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hulk, Rocket, Nebula, War Machine... would we be so certain things would be undone?  Knowing certain contracts were at the end, others happy to leave... and imagine also, that first battle in New York, but with all the new guys - Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Spider-Man, the Guardians... all joining in what was already an brilliant cinematic scene.   How great would that money shot be - you know the one, with the six Avengers in a circle together for the first time, but now bolstered by added Ant-Man, Falcon, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel...

I just wonder if the writers have missed a trick.  Because we do, really know things are going to be okay.  But we return to that feeling that a lot of these deaths in this movie were for shock value only, they will be undone.  Maybe not for EVERYONE, but mostly.  It also makes us wonder... is Vision gone?  Will Gamora, and maybe even Loki rise from their graves?  Hell, will the reset button go so far back that even the likes of Quicksilver and all over Asgard come back?

I think what we will see, is the original gang lay down their lives to bring all those characters back.  Going back in time might not actually be the big finale, it might be second act action leaving into a third act where Thanos joins forces with the Avengers against... a Gauntlet wielding Nebula (Karen Gillan's character does get to do that in the comic, and she's still around) or a different character... maybe the Skrulls will appear?  (I don't think that's the case though).

Whilst I am, I guess, disappointed with who they killed off, I do believe we'll have a cracking end to the three phases of the MCU.  I do believe that it'll end the franchise as we know - as certain characters will be leaving us, and there'll undoubtedly be a lump in the throat as they do.   Whilst a lot of the characters will (probably) be missing for large portion of the film, I do believe - if Sebastian Stan can be believed - there'll be the biggest 'money shot' we've seen - with more characters than we've ever seen, including characters like Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) coming into the mix somehow.

Whatever AVENGERS 4 has in store, I am so excited.  This will most definitely not be my last post n the matter.  There's so much to look forward to... what we already know, and all the stuff we haven't got a clue about!

[aion-rsa]

The Last of Us: Why Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey Are the Perfect Joel and Ellie

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After much speculation and more than a few false rumors, we finally know that Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey will portray Joel and Ellie in HBO’s The Last of Us series. That announcement brings us one step closer to the debut of what may be the most exciting video game adaptation in production at the moment.

As is usually the case when these casting announcements are made, though, there are some who remained unconvinced that these are the right choices for two iconic video game characters. Some of that doubt is based on the parade of big names that have been associated with these roles in the past, but others simply don’t think that this pair has what it takes.

Yet, a quick look at their filmographies reveals all the reasons why Pascal and Ramsey aren’t just capable of taking on these challenging roles but could be the best possible casting choices. If you weren’t already excited to see the pair bring Joel and Ellie to life, here are just some of the reasons you should be.

The Mandalorian Was Often a Preview of Pedro Pascal as Joel

This idea that Pedro Pascal is signing up for yet another escort mission in HBO’s The Last of Us has been joked about elsewhere, but the similarities between Joel and Din Djarin really are fascinating.

Both The Mandalorian and The Last of Us focus on two strong loner types who start to discover (or rediscover) their sentimental sides as they accompany a young ward who is only starting to realize their full potential. Joel, much like Din, certainly has the ability to defend themselves, but the true joy of watching these characters grow is found in how they try (and sometimes fail) to raise someone in a hostile world. 

There are distinct differences between the characters and their situations, but we know that Pedro Pascal has the ability to go on a grand, classical, and seemingly heroic adventure while exploring the emotional depth of his character without dulling their edge. 

Bella Ramsey’s Game of Thrones Role Shows She Can Capture Ellie’s Dark Side

It’s hardly a surprise that many people immediately associate Bella Ramsey with Lyanna Mormont. Not only is the Game of Thrones character one of the series’ best additions in later seasons, but the role is Ramsey’s biggest (and arguably best) to date. 

More importantly, there are elements of the Lyanna Mormont character which remind me of what Ellie eventually becomes. Without diving too deeply into spoilers, Ellie walks down some dark paths in The Last of Us Part 2. It’s not that the character ends up becoming something entirely different from what they were (such as how Wesley evolved in Angel) but rather that we helplessly watch as Ellie turns into what some feared she would become. 

We’ve seen Bella Ramsey portray a character we want to root for even as we understand that the ways they were shaped by war and horror are hard to walk away from. She’s going to need to tap into something similar for Ellie. 

Read more

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The Last of Us Part 2 Review: A Gritty, Gruesome Sequel About Revenge

By Aaron Potter

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The Last of Us: 7 Most Heartbreaking Moments

By Laura Francis

Pedro Pascal Can Be an Effortlessly Charming Sociopath

While there is still some room for debate regarding Joel’s intentions, desires, and humanity, the events of The Last of Us franchise make it clear you can’t deny the character’s sociopathic tendencies. Yet, his charm and moments of heroism inspire many to defend and even root for him. 

Many actors can find those qualities if they look for them, but Pedro Pascal’s effortless charm certainly gives him an advantage when it comes to playing a character with dangerous tendencies. Just look at Pascal’s performance in Wonder Woman 1984. Despite his character’s cartoonish villainy and that movie’s…unevenness, most of us probably found ourselves drawn to the ways that he manages to steal the show. 

Here again, The Mandalorian also serves as an excellent showcase for Pascal’s ability to convey so much through relatively little dialog by virtue of the impact of his physical presence. In the case of Joel, it will likely be what Pascal isn’t saying that will be so haunting. 

Bella Ramsey Can Capture Ellie’s Musical Side

If you only really know Bella Ramsey from her work on Game of Thrones, then you probably don’t know what a well-rounded actress she is. For instance, did you know that she’s actually a pretty talented singer?

The song above was written, composed, and sung by Ramsey. While it wouldn’t exactly fit into the world of The Last of Us, it does showcase a side of Ramsey’s acting abilities you may not be familiar with if you typically associate her with more hard-edged characters.

More importantly, it proves that Ramsey can convincingly perform the singing scenes that rank among Ellie’s best. They’re a rare look into an aspect of the character that is both a breath of fresh air and oddly troubling when weighed against Ellie’s dark fate.

Pedro Pascal’s Characters Can Convingly Explode into Violence

In one of his first Game of Thrones scenes, Pedro Pascal confronts two Lannister guards in a brothel. Granted, that sounds like the start of a joke your uncle awkwardly forces into the conversation at Thanksgiving, but the joke takes a turn when Pascal puts a dagger into one of the guard’s hands in the blink of an eye.  

It’s a scene that perfectly captures Joel’s ability to interrupt a seemingly quiet moment with a burst of violence. Granted, that quality is arguably a symptom of a style of video game design that often requires protagonists to be ready for action sequences at all times, but the idea that Joel can’t escape his violent urges is very much a part of his character and the ways he influences Ellie. 

If The Last of Us series’ at least loosely follows the games, Pascal’s ability to turn a scene of levity into murderous rage will certainly come into play. 

Bella Ramsey Has the Ability to Convey Emotional Weight Beyond Her Years

It’s easy to forget given the nature of the games, but Ellie is only 14 years old when we meet her in The Last of Us. She’s 19 when The Last of Us Part 2 begins, but by that point, she already feels like a worn veteran of the world she was born into. 

The reason that Bella Ramsey captures so much attention in Game of Thrones isn’t that she was a talented child actress who exceeded expectations sometimes associated with that task but rather that she instantly convinced us that she could believably be the ruler of a cold, hard kingdom despite being so young.

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In a show full of badass warriors, there was a real sense that the toughest of them all was a 13-year-old with vengeance in her heart. If that’s not the perfect actress to portray Ellie, then who is?  

The post The Last of Us: Why Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey Are the Perfect Joel and Ellie appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[wbwest]

New Post has been published on WilliamBruceWest.com

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West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 8/4/17

In movie news, Sharknado 5: Global Swarming premieres this Sunday, and The Hollywood Reporter had a great article about the history of the franchise. For one thing, Donald Trump was originally approached to play the President in Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!, but his people were stalling because he was mulling a run for the actual presidency. When the producers moved on to cast Mark Cuban, Trump got pissed and his people threatened to sue (on what grounds, nobody knows). Also, the production was renamed to Dark Skies because the name Sharknado was turning off potential actors. To the cast’s chagrin, however, it was changed back to Sharknado at release.

The main takeaway from the article is the pay situation. In the beginning, star Ian Ziering was offered $100,000 to do the first film. He reportedly only took it because his wife was pregnant and he needed to keep up his SAG membership for the health insurance. Over time, however, his pay ballooned and he currently makes about $500,000 a film – which, as folks point out, is more than the $300,000 Gal Gadot reportedly made to star in Wonder Woman. This really shouldn’t come as a surprise, though. For one thing, superhero films kinda pay on the low-ish side because there are so many moving parts. The pay tends to start low and then grows over time. By the third or fourth movie, the stars are, then, basically too expensive to keep, so it becomes renegotiation or reboot time. Plus, as I said on Twitter, washed up TV star in a “water cooler” franchise outranks unproven movie star in unstable cinematic universe. Yes, Wonder Woman was a great film, but to say that Gadot deserved more money is simply Monday morning quarterbacking. Nobody was worried about her pay before the film came out because, frankly, nobody gave a shit about her. She’ll eventually make her money, while Ziering will be begging for a Sharknado revival, as the series is clearly on its last legs based on the ratings. Sharknado is a funny thing because the social media impressions actually outnumber its ratings. So, folks feel the need to talk about Sharknado even if they’re not watching Sharknado.

The real crime about pay, though, is that Tara Reid only makes about $125,000 to Ziering’s $500,000 (his salary is about 1/6th the budget of Sharknado 5). When she spoke up about it, they created a poll to the public following Sharknado 3, asking whether or not her character should die. Lucky for her, the fans wanted her back (Production company Asylum claims the poll and her request were unrelated, but we aren’t stupid here).

Anyway, I’m sure I’ll watch even though the last installment was a chore to get through. The franchise really peaked at Sharknado 2: The Second One, but they generate buzz, so they keep coming. I’m still pissed about the last movie, where Ziering’s character, Finn, has a Black daughter-in-law who gets killed by a shark. Not only does the family not react, but she’s never mentioned again. It’s clearly the result of some terrible editing, but I can’t tell if they edited out reactions to her death OR if they edited in the character after the movie was basically done. I figure we’ll get to 6 and then they’ll have to think of something else. It’s too bad the Lavalantula franchise hasn’t enjoyed the same buzz, as I enjoy those pseudo Police Academy reunions.

In TV news, a LOT of folks are upset about that Confederate show that I mentioned last week, even calling for a boycott of HBO. Some folks have reminded the boycotters that their actions would hurt other Black shows on the network, like Insecure and Ballers. Instead, they encouraged that folks make their voices heard directly to HBO, using the hashtag #NoConfederate during its most watched hour last week, Game of Thrones. Well, in seeming retaliation for the show, producer Will Packer and The Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder are creating Black America for Amazon. Whereas Confederate would follow a United States on the brink of its 3rd Civil War, Black America would follow an alternate reality where freed Blacks were given Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi as reparations, and the sovereign nation of New Colonia is formed. Meanwhile, its neighbor to the north, The United States, is in a bad state of affairs.  New Colonia is about to become a world power, while the US is slipping. Due to their proximity, their fates are tied together, but clearly the Black folks are doing better than everyone else.

Is it wrong that I have no interest in either show? I mean, I have no desire to see slavery still going in Confederate, but the whole premise of Black America just sounds like it’s doing too much, and feels more reactionary than anything. I mean, why didn’t we hear about this project before Confederate was announced? And the problem is that both projects are so far in their infancy that they won’t be happening any time soon, if they happen at all. I know the announcement appeased a lot of the anti-Confederate crowd, but neither sounds like a “good” show from what we’ve heard, and I almost feel like they take us away from having the race dialogue that a lot of folks feel we so sorely need as a country. What are y’all’s thoughts on these shows?

In other TV news, it was announced that ABC’s The Middle would be ending after its upcoming 9th season. This elicited to a lot of responses of “That show’s still on?”, and I immediately understood why Trump won. As the title suggests, the show focused on a middle class family, in the middle of the country, as they struggle to make it through. Over the past 8 years, they have been emblematic of the types of voters who feel their voices aren’t being heard as their situations get tighter. That’s the show’s audience, even though they’re not the glamorous demographic that Madison Avenue covets. I actually really enjoy the exploits of the Heck family, but I understand that the show’s not “hip” or “cool”, so it flew under a lot of folks’ radar. The upcoming Roseanne revival has been described as focusing on the Conners as they try to make their way in Trump’s America, but I’d argue that The Middle did it first, and will probably be looked upon as the most accurate depiction when the dust settles.

Across the dial, it was finally confirmed that Erinn Hayes’s character on CBS’s Kevin Can Wait will, in fact, be killed off. The show will pick up after some time has passed, paving the way for Kevin James to reunite with his The King of Queens costar Leah Remini. I understand shows sometimes need a retool, but all evidence was pointing to the show as a moderate success. The only sticking point was Remini guested in the season finale, and suddenly everyone wanted that chemistry back. To me, I’m good. I still have 8 seasons of The King of Queens to look back on (I don’t count that last season because it felt like they hated each other by that point, surprising me that they’d reunite. To me, this is almost like Martin Lawrence and Tisha Campbell doing a new show together). Hayes will bounce back, as she’s already been cast in Amazon’s The Dangerous Book for Boys, but I still don’t feel like the show did her right.

In comics news, it was revealed that the Milestone comic line’s reboot has been stalled because the creators behind it were trying to cut out the estate of co-creator Dwayne McDuffie. If you’re not familiar, the Milestone line was comprised of a bunch of minority-focused superhero books from the early 90s. There was Hardware (Black Iron Man), Rocket (Black Captain Marvel?), Blood Syndicate (Black…I dunno. I didn’t read that one). Oh, and Static (Black Lightning Jr, basically). The original creators were Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan, Derek T. Dingle, and Michael Davis (if we ever meet, ask me my Michael Davis stories. Dude is crazy, but I ain’t putting that stuff in writing for him to find it).

A few years back, they announced a revival of the Milestone brand, but Davis had been cut out and replaced by former BET head Reginald Hudlin. They kept saying an announcement was forthcoming, while Davis took to the internet saying it’ll never happen. He was hurt he’d been left out of something he’d had a hand in creating, but he also knew there were roadblocks that the group wouldn’t be able to get over.

Well, this week, McDuffie’s widow sued the group because his estate had been left out of recent negotiations, as Cowan, Dingle, and Hudlin were going to create a new entity to cut out McDuffie’s stake. There’s a lot of potential in the franchise, with recent cries for representation in fantasy media, but I’d like to go on record and say that those books just weren’t very good. They were just Black characters the same quality of the Image output of the time. I used to read Hardware and that book, ugh…Maybe they’ve got some fresh new takes on the characters, but I don’t think they’re even interested in comics at this point. They just want to control the intellectual property. Anyway, for all McDuffie did in the comic industry, it seems like he was constantly screwed over, even in death. I hope his estate is at least getting some money for the use of Damage Control (which he created) in Spider-Man: Homecoming, but I know it was work-for-hire blah blah blah. Anyway, here’s hoping Mrs. McDuffie gets what she’s owed.

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

Divergent franchise sequel, Ascendant, is now being developed as an ongoing TV series for Starz

The Black-ish spinoff, college-ish will now known as grown-ish

Vin Diesel is reportedly working on a Miami Vice reboot on NBC for the 2018-2019 season. I really hope they set it in the 80s. Otherwise, it’s just gonna be nothing but Pitbull and Flo Rida cameos…

The Will & Grace revival has already been renewed, despite the fact it hasn’t aired yet. It was also revealed that it will ignore the series finale, just like Roseanne…

Late 90s MTV staple, Total Request Live (TRL) will return in October, with FIVE hosts. I guess they’re trying to bring back that VJ position again.

Speaking of MTV, hot on the heels of removing gendered categories, MTV has changed the coveted Video Music Award from the Moon Man to the Moon Person. It will be able to use any space bathroom that it chooses.

Soap actor Hartley Sawyer will recur as The Elongated Man this season on The Flash

Speaking of the Arrowverse, the next 4-show crossover will take place over two nights this season, November 27th and 28th

Apparently hot ass Scientologist Catherine Bell from JAG has been on a show on Hallmark Channel called Good Witch for the past three years. Who knew? Anyway, it’s been renewed for a fourth season

Aussie actress Teagan Croft cast as Raven in the Titans series

Amazon is adding Carsey-Werner shows such as Roseanne, 3rd Rock from the Sun, A Different World, Cybill, Grace Under Fire, and Grounded for Life to its streaming library

Pacific Rim: Uprising‘s release has been moved from Feb 23 to March 23

Hasbro has called off talks to buy Lionsgate. In other news, apparently Hasbro was trying to buy Lionsgate.

Agent Carter‘s Hayley Atwell will reportedly join Ewan McGregor in Disney’s Christopher Robin 

Formerly a staple of Baltimore Comic Con, the Harvey Awards will move to New York Comic Con in 2018

They’ll be calling it Hawaii Five-WHOA, as Joey Lawrence is slated to guest star on the CBS series this season

Because he’s never turned down a job, Nick Cannon will host Lip Sync Battle Shorties, a kid-centered spinoff of Lip Sync Battle to air on Nickelodeon

During the 2017 Teen Choice Awards, Fox will experiment with 6-second commercials. This is how that subliminal programming shit starts!

Remembering where he came from, Kenan Thompson (who’s also now the longest-standing SNL cast member) is reportedly developing a live action sketch show for kids.

Transformers spinoff, Bumblebee, will open against Aquaman on December 21st, 2018

Blumhouse Television is bringing horror reality show Scare Tactics back to TV

Due to how he perceives Starz doesn’t appreciate his show, 50 Cent has threatened to snatch Power off the network.

Pokemon: I Choose You will get a two-night theatrical run in November. I’m not telling you the dates because the movie is a retelling of Ash & Pikachu’s meeting, yet it removes Brock and Misty from the story. Fuck this movie!

So, there was some crazy stuff in the comic industry this week, as a picture of of some women Marvel editors brought out the crazies. It all started with this pic:

Marvel editor Heather Antos and some other female editors got together for milkshakes, and based on the hashtag, it was to honor recently deceased former Marvel secretary “Fabulous Flo” Steinberg. A seemingly innocent thing, right? Well, here was the reaction on social media:

Wow, right? From dudes making inappropriate sexual remarks to folks blaming this on Social Justice Warriors, a certain corner of the internet lost its mind over some damn milkshakes.

But then came the backlash to the backlash. Fans and creators started posting pics in solidarity with the ladies.

The support even came from the “Distinguished Competition”, as they tweeted the following pic:

What started out as a snake bed for trolls turned into a show of solidarity that not only shed light on what women editors face on a daily basis, but also seemed to strengthen some relationships “across the aisle”. I mean, this is the best Marvel/DC crossover since Amalgam! As I said on Twitter, when history classes look back on this period in time, they will see that it was not blockbuster events but milkshakes that saved the comic industry. That’s why female comic editors had the West Week Ever.

  By the way, I’m apparently 16 years old because I just signed up for Sarahah. So, swing by and leave me some anonymous comments. Oh, and please don’t make me cry!

[nowhere-hunch]

I watched ‘Hamilton’ on Disney+

I’m not really a fandom person, but I would say I hang out online in a lot of “fandom-adjacent” spaces. Maybe a better word would be “lurker”. So although I was separated from it by many degrees, I’m aware of some of the insane stuff that came out of the Hamilton fandom during its heyday. Which makes me a teensy bit nervous about posting this on Tumblr - “the room where it happened” you could say (yes, I’m very funny, I know). But I’m hoping I have my blog settings right to make it hard for people to find and I won’t use any tags, so I should be fine, right? To be clear, I like Hamilton and this whole thing is positive toward it. It did get pretty long though.

First of all, I’m a little surprised that there’s a Hamilton fandom at all. Theatrical shows aren’t really the most accessible medium, especially for the demographics that we associate with fandom. The stage shows that I see with fandoms usually have other media associated with them as well, either that was based on them or that they were based on. For example, Les Mis has the book and multiple movies. That said, I’m not necessarily surprised that inaccessibility itself didn’t prevent the formation of a fandom. These days there’s plenty of ways to pirate things, plus you could argue that the cast CD of the musical that was released counts as an alternative media — since most of the dialogue is in fact part of a song.

But, being an inaccessible medium for so long has had an effect on the stories that are created for it. The demographics of people who are watching Broadway shows are probably different than those of people watching primetime TV. The historic events and people in Hamilton aren’t given much if any explanation or backstory. Several times a character is introduced that the audience is supposed to be excited about just because we already know the name: Alexander Hamilton or George Washington or Thomas Jefferson or whatever. For those specific examples, it kind of makes sense. Just by living in the U.S. you tend to get an idea of who those people are (they’re the people on the money). But people like John Laurens are given the same treatment (or lack thereof) in terms of backstory. I think I learned a little about John Laurens at some point in AP U.S. History but then I passed that test and literally never thought or heard about him for nine years until I watched Hamilton.

Hamilton is not a play that is meant to teach the story of Alexander Hamilton; it’s a play that is meant to use the story of Alexander Hamilton in order to teach something else. The historical people and events that are mentioned briefly are meant to provide context for what’s going on with the main characters. “OK I know that the Boston Tea Party happened in the lead up to the Revolution so if they’re talking about that now, I know where we are.” It seemed weird to me that it became so popular when it assumed a good deal of knowledge on the part of the viewer, but I think there are (at least) three factors that makes that not too much of an issue.

One, as I said earlier I did learn about John Laurens and other kind of minute details about the Revolutionary War in high school. If “fandom” is stereotypically mostly made up of students in middle school/high school/college, it might be the case that this background knowledge is actually more accessible to them than to the average Broadway patron, who would have been out of school for even longer than me. If this musical had been about some other figure that isn’t included in an integral part of the American public school curriculum, it probably wouldn’t have seen as much success. I believe that Linn Manuel Miranda had a goal of expanding and making more diverse the audience for these shows, so this choice of subject material makes sense.

Two, Hamilton is simply a solid musical. I’m saying this as someone who doesn’t see a lot of musicals and really isn’t and never was into theater that much, but that’s the point — to the untrained eye of someone fandom-adjacent, it’s a very enjoyable piece of media. The songs are catchy, the jokes are funny, the emotional parts are moving, there’s at least a couple of performers who sound really good to me, not that I have any idea how to tell. If you think about it for more than three seconds it’s hard not to get blown away considering how much skill it must have taken to write that entire story in rhyming verse! That’s the kind of thing Shakespeare did, or even Homer — both of whom produced works that had a big impact on their era’s version of “pop culture”. I wonder if this points to something in the human brain that makes us want to engage more with stories told in this way?

Three, I think fandom (in general) had been primed for stories like this by a series that had one of the largest fandoms during the time just before Hamilton came out: Hetalia. Hetalia is a comedy manga and anime series where each country in the world is personified by an immortal (kind of) human character. It deals a lot with history and real-world people and events— if you were a fan, your “canon” material was not only the manga and anime but also real-world facts about countries’ geography, culture, and history. Since the characters for “England” and “America” (the U.S.) were some of the most popular, the Revolutionary War specifically was the subject of a lot of fan works.

Unlike Hamilton though, Hetalia is presented in a format that was made for fandom and its story reflects that as well. It has a huge cast of characters, many of which are barely developed at all in “canon” but still have a reason for viewers to connect with them (“I’m from that country!”), opportunities for creating OCs, etc. that encourage fan activity. Through Hetalia, many people were introduced to the idea of using knowledge of history for fandom purposes, which was obviously a big part of the Hamilton fandom. What’s unfortunate is that, while there wasn’t much more to get from Hetalia beyond its fandom — in fact you could strongly argue that there was more “artistic merit” in a lot of fandom content than the series itself—for me the Hamilton fandom and all of its weirdness overshadowed anything that was said about the interesting things Hamilton had to say to its “traditional” audience.

I think one property of a good piece of media is that it has different messages and takeaways that are relevant to different people consuming it. Hamilton is like this. The central theme of the story is the idea of “legacy”, but there are several lenses it provides to investigate with. For example, it has many messages about race and national origin that may resonate most strongly with different people, including:

People of color are absent from the legacy of the founding of the country they live in. It’s weird to watch actors who are people of color talk about defending slavery, but it’s no more weird than having groups of all white people do the same (which is how it actually was).

Various founding fathers have a legacy of being people who valued freedom, but they owned slaves and/or supported the institution of slavery.

Alexander Hamilton’s legacy as an immigrant is celebrated, while immigrants today are regularly treated in horrifyingly inhumane ways.

I’m positive there are people who can write entire books about how the show addresses any one of these. For me though, the theme that resonated the most was the idea of legacy through a historical female perspective, as portrayed through the relationship between Alexander and Eliza Hamilton. The gist of it is this: Alexander Hamilton married Eliza Schuyler and frankly did not treat her well. His most obvious offense is cheating on her multiple times with a woman who “seduced” him (“Lord, show me how to say no to this” — dude you literally just did: “…no…”), but even this is actually a symptom of his fatal flaw: he cares about his legacy more than her. It is brought up multiple times that he chooses his work over his family responsibilities (there’s a whole song about it), and at the time he starts his “affair”, Eliza is actually away on a family trip that he decided to skip in order to keep working even more.

His obsession with legacy causes even more hurt for Eliza because it is inherited by their oldest son, Philip. Philip challenges someone to a duel who was criticizing his father. Based on how she talked to Alexander, saying she would rather have him alive and unknown than dead with a legacy, we can assume she would be against this. But Philip goes to his father for advice, and rather than discourage him, Alexander gives him advice on how to act that will make him look the best to people remembering it (shoot into the air, it’s a bad look to kill someone and if they have any honor they will do so as well). Philip is killed in this duel. Alexander cries at his bedside while Eliza next to him wails — the cheating has already been revealed at this point, and she and Alexander haven’t “made up”. Aaron Burr, who is a foil to Alexander Hamilton in many ways in the story, illustrates the differences in their priorities in a more subtle way. Before the final duel, in which Alexander himself is killed, Burr states as he works himself up that he must win because, “I won’t leave my daughter an orphan.”

Throughout, the viewer kind of overlooks Eliza. We know she is a woman living in the 1700s and so her agency is limited. She can’t divorce Alexander or really do anything to hold him accountable for the pain he has caused her. Her defining characteristics are things like “kind”, “gentle”, and “patient” — as described by her sister who sets her up with Hamilton in the first place. After the “Reynolds Pamphlet” is released (in which Hamilton publicly confesses to his affair), she sings a song about being sad, we’re told that there’s no record of how the real Eliza reacted to the information, and after a while she and Alexander make up. To us it seems like she just kind of takes what happens to her without resistance — it doesn’t really matter if that’s what she *wanted* to do because it’s what she *had* to do. We see a lot of female characters like this in media, especially media created or set in the past, and while there is now some backlash against them, there’s not much to complain about when it’s “historically accurate”.

But that all changes at the end. The climax of the play is the duel in which Hamilton is shot and killed. After that is the “big finale” song, but since Alexander Hamilton is dead, who sings it? Eliza. We are told that Hamilton dies with Eliza and her sister Angelica by his bedside, but we don’t see this. We see Eliza come back alone and sing about what she does for the remaining 50 years of her life. We learn that she is the one who gathered his writings, interviewed people who knew him, and did other research to share his life story. In effect, she wrote the story that the musical was based on. After seeing again and again that Hamilton cares about his legacy more than Eliza, it is revealed that Eliza is his legacy. Now we realize that when characters sing “You can’t control… who tells your story,” they don’t mean that in some philosophical or metaphorical way. The individual responsible for passing on your legacy after you die could literally be anyone, even the people you see as hindering it.

I cried during the final song. Actually these specific lines:

Eliza: I interview every soldier who fought by your side Soldiers in background: She tells our story … Eliza: I raise funds in D.C. for the Washington Monument Washington: She tells my story

Now, Washington in particular probably didn’t need her help to tell his story (I mean, he’s on money), but the way the lines are sung gives a sense of the kindness or love that is expressed when another person knows or tells your story. How many people have lived and died who are now totally forgotten about? Eliza did the work to save people from that fate. Alexander Hamilton I don’t think would be described as a “kind” person, even in this musical, but there is kindness in his legacy thanks to Eliza.

And, the final song contains the final plot point, the final part of the epilogue: after Alexander’s death, Eliza founds an orphanage.

I help to raise hundreds of children I get to see them growing up

Want to talk about legacy? Go to the memorial service for a teacher who worked for decades. Go to a birthday party for a 90-year-old who has 10 kids, 50 grandkids, and 150 great grandkids. They might not have their stories written down in books, but they get to enjoy legacy during their lifetimes. In the end, it turns out that in a way, Eliza is a foil to Alexander. While he makes himself and others miserable working to build a legacy that he won’t live to see, Eliza lives her life in service of people who she loves and who depend on her though she is not remembered now. Which of them made more of a difference? Which of them would you rather be?

This is kind of a radical message: that these two types of “legacy” are both valuable in some ways. For a long, long time in history, the kind of legacy that Alexander wanted was generally not available to women, people of color, etc. The “people in power” highly valued this type of legacy, so they reserved it for themselves. As the years went on, people fought for equality, and one of the issues was, although not necessarily stated explicitly, “We want to have valued legacies too!” It seems the response was a kind of reluctant “OK, I guess we’ll open up some opportunities for you to make contributions that will be recorded in history like ours.” For many women and other groups, this was actually great. Many people had wanted those opportunities for a long time, and it’s good that they are available to those who want them. So, it’s hard to say in absolute terms that this wasn’t a good thing. But at that point, we started to see a lot of media with “strong female characters” who are tough and sarcastic and ultra-skilled at combat or whatever that all add up to, “You will be admired and your legacy valued if you forget about girly stuff and just do what men have been doing all along.”

But encouraging everyone to value legacy in this way has created a culture where a lot of things send the message “Be more like Alexander Hamilton” while very few if any say “Be more like Eliza Hamilton.” It’s pretty radical to suggest that maybe the way that Eliza and people like her have been building legacies for all this time was actually good and beneficial and shouldn’t be completely abandoned for Alexander’s way that has always been presented as the most valid.

I think the reason that this resonates with me so loudly is that I am a middle class white woman and grew up as a “gifted” student, and in our modern “enlightened” world, I feel the pressure that historically has been on white men to create some tangible legacy that will live on after I die. But in media, in stories that are fundamental to my culture, in my own family tree before pretty recently, I don’t see women doing this. I have modern society saying to me “You need to make a legacy for yourself.” while the culture that has built up over centuries consistently sends the message “women don’t get legacies”. What Hamilton is saying is “They do have legacies, just not the kind society has taught you to value.”

And actually, I would argue, it goes further, showing how women have found power and agency by refusing to leave a legacy in the traditional sense. The only time in the musical where Eliza talks about her own legacy is in the song “Burn” that she sings after finding out Alexander cheated on her. It includes these lines:

I’m erasing myself from the narrative Let future historians wonder how Eliza Reacted when you broke her heart … The world has no right to my heart The world has no place in our bed They don’t get to know what I said I’m… burning the letters that might have redeemed you

The first time I watched it, I assumed that “erasing myself from the narrative” was a metaphor for her burning the letters. But after watching the ending and knowing that Eliza was actually the one who did the work of passing on “the narrative”, it’s clear that she meant it literally. She knows how much Alexander values his legacy as much as we the audience do, so she’s hitting him where it hurts. Normally, when perspectives are missing from historical narratives we are told it’s because of carelessness (either nobody asked or someone lost it) or external censorship. In Hamilton, we are told Eliza’s part of this story is missing because that’s the way she wanted it. In her time and place, she doesn’t have the opportunity to speak out against her husband or otherwise get justice, but she has still found a powerful way to “get back” at him. Her side of the story is missing because of her agency, not her lack of it.

Initially, Eliza telling Alexander’s story is interpreted as an act of love, very romantic. But thinking back to “Burn”, you have to remember that in the 50 years Eliza lived doing that work after he died, she never “redeemed” him for the bad things he did to her. In that light, you can almost see spite running subtly through the love. “I will do everything in my power to make sure people don’t forget you because I love you (and I want them to know what a jerk you were to me).” I don’t think Eliza hated Alexander. In the play it is clear that she does love him, but she does have reasons of her own for recording his legacy besides blind devotion or adoration. For this, in a way, Eliza herself is in a way redeemed by Washington and the soldiers in the final song, even though her motives aren’t completely “pure”, these men are benefitted by (and in the song appreciative of) her work.

As I said, there are a lot of themes in Hamilton that could be talked about at length, but this one is the most interesting to me, or at least the one that I’ve found myself thinking about the most since I watched the show. I want to talk about one more thing and bring us back to where this discussion started: the Hamilton fandom.

The most notorious example of “craziness in the Hamilton fandom” was the whole “hivliving”… thing. There’s a great video about it on YouTube that really does press that “gossip” button in my social primate brain just right. I highly recommend giving it a watch. 

That may be… if not the culmination then the climax the of the insanity in the Hamilton fandom. If you didn’t watch the video, here is a very very brief synopsis:

Within the Hamilton fandom, there are two groups of people who support opposing “ships”: fans of Hamilton/Laurens and fans of Hamilton/Washington.

Members of the Hamilton/Laurens faction make a habit of harassing Hamilton/Washington fans using “social justice” rhetoric (i.e. “Your ship is problematic”). It seems agreed upon by those outside that most if not all of their accusations are baseless, but it persists.

One vocal member of the Hamilton/Laurens fans, claiming to be an HIV+, bisexual, bigender, muslim victim of sex trafficking living in India, also runs a blog called “hivliving” about, well, living with HIV. Since blogs like this are rare, the blog becomes a popular and well-loved resource.

Someone named Ursula discovers that the person running the “hivliving” blog is not in fact an HIV+, bisexual, bigender, muslim victim of sex trafficking living in India, but a white 18-year-old college student living in the U.S. When confronted and pressed, they come clean to their followers.

In the aftermath, someone realizes that Ursula is associated with people in the Hamilton/Washington faction of the Hamilton fandom, and so word starts spreading that Ursula investigated and confronted hivliving due to revenge over “shipping wars”.

More rumors come up and eventually, the story transforms so that the commonly known version is: “Hivliving was pretending to be an HIV+/etc. person and was exposed by someone who wanted revenge for them criticizing their cannibal-mermaid-AU fanfiction.” All the “normal” people have a fun time laughing about how insane people can be online.

Because of this negative attention, Ursula is forced to abandon fandom.

Seriously though, watch the video if you have time.

If there were a lesson to the hivliving story, it would be about legacy. It would be a cautionary tale about how a legacy built on good intentions and serious work can be turned completely around through no fault of your own. I don’t have much to add to that, besides noting that it is a weird coincidence that it happened in a fandom for a show that itself put so much focus on legacy. Hamilton fans, in telling the story of hivliving and Ursula, shaped it to serve their own ends (vilifying fans of a rival ship), much like Eliza shaped Alexander’s story in telling it for her own reasons. But the last thing I’ll note is this: the fans largely shaped the story by adding things, Eliza shaped the story by leaving things out.

[furederiko]

Tis the Ides of March, and thus a Random-News-Digest is on hand...

Disney Live Action

To be frank, the idea of Tim Burton doing a "Dumbo" live action adaptation, is enough to make people scratch their heads and well, probably question their sanity. But it gets even more weirder. Thanks to the first two actors who are being courted for the movie.

Ever since he put a pause in his partnership with Johnny Depp and ex-wife Helena Bonham-Carter, there is one actress that Burtons continuously runs to. Eva Green! Yep, after their collaborations in "Dark Shadows", and "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children", Burton wants Green for "Dumbo". She is currently in talks to play Colette, a French trapeze artist who works for Vandemere. Who is Vandemere? Was he in the original animated movie too? I believe said character hasn't been cast yet. But apparently, he's an evil big top circus villain, who loves to take over smaller circus. One of said 'smaller circus' owner is Medici. And guess who's being approached to play Medici? Burton's previous collaborator in "Batman Returns", the iconic Penguin himself, Danny DeVito.

As I said, the thought of Burton doing "Dumbo" alone already sounds surreal. I can't even imagine how it would look, considering the director has penchants for the weird and whimsical. And now it will have "Penny Dreadful" very own Vanessa Ives and a former Batman villain as the possible leads. Do let those sink slowly into your brains...

DC Films

With negative rumors swirling around the movie's post production, and the bad press already looming on it thanks to its two previous titles, it's safe to say the concerns for "Wonder Woman" aren't so baseless. It seems Warner Bros might have realized this as well, as they have taken a different approach to ensure that this movie will not repeat the same mistake(s). That's probably (yes, subjectively speaking) the reason why they have invited several members of the press to check out some parts of the movie beforehand.

According to Birth.Movies.Death, they were given accomodations and privilege to see around 20 minutes of the movie in London. The footage that were shown were not continuous, and were taken from various moments of the movies itself. Director Patty Jenkins was also present to share her thoughts on the matter. You can read detailed description of all three scenes on B.M.D, but I have to warn you that it might be a little spoilery. So read it on your own risk. This friendly warning goes for the site's follow-up editorial as well, that talked about the overall plot and movie's antagonist. But of course... if you're perfectly fine with being a little or completely spoiled, then do go ahead and enjoy the fun read.

The important thing about the viewing was, Jenkins managed to assure the press that her Wonder Woman would be... simply speaking, 'special'. She will HAVE personalities, unlike the blank one that everyone oddly praised on "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice". She will have chemistry with Chris Pine's Steve Trevor, so not just a random eyecandy moving around from one place to another, like the one on... yes "Bvs", a.k.a this year's Razzie Awards winner (for "Worst Sequel", "Screenplay", and "Screen Combo"). But more importantly, "She CAN’T be dark and nasty", Jenkins promised. Why? Because Gal Gadot's Diana Prince will be "the HERO the world’s been waiting for". Of course, she didn't say them with CAP-SLOCK on, that's just my way of emphasizing the context. But seriously, if you ask me, those words alone are enough to serve as a harsh wake-up slap towards fellow DC Films directors who have only painted the DC heroes in a truly bad light. Dark and gritty, my as*! LOL.

So much is riding on Jenkins' shoulder, to be honest. This will be WB's first female-led superhero movie. Not to mention, one that comes after a long period of absence due to really bad ones in form of WB's own "Catwoman" or FOX's "Elektra". This movie is directed by a female director, whose presence in Hollywood is still being looked down and can even be counted with human fingers. And unlike the well-oiled-machine that is Marvel Studios, DC Films hasn't had a 'great' movie so far. All divisive, and disappointing in their own ways. Thus everyone, especially real DC Fans are counting on this one to be at least 'good', making up for the disasters that came before it. The good news is, Jenkins showed the exact enthusiasm, confidence, and respect for her character that both critics and audience are seeking. The positive side effect is already shown, as many of the press members invited have already begun comparing her movie to Richard Donner's iconic "Superman". You know, the one that doesn't turn Clark Kent into a mopey bastard? So yeah, looks like WB might FINALLY have a DC Film title that is worth-watching for after all! At least until Zack Snyder and his "Justice League" arrive to ruin it all over again, right? I'm kidding! Ahahaha. Or am I? Hmmmm... *sigh*.

Admittedly, I'm personally NOT feeling any of the movie's trailers so far. And that includes the latest one that debuted on this year's Kids Choice Awards. It's unclear whether that's because it's exactly a mirror reflection of what to expect from the movie, or simply because the marketing department has seriously been failing me so far. The chance of me seeing this directly on theatre is very slim. Close to zero, in fact! Not even that new poster that everyone seems to be praising for is able to convince me otherwise (really, I think it's just 'okay'). After all, WB might always release an Extended/Ultimate version for the home video, right? They did exactly that not once, but TWICE already with their previous releases. So why even bother seeing this on the theatre when you can spend a bit more dollars to get the FULL and generally better version?

Regardless of that, it would be a shameful crime for me to shun and curse the movie, hoping it will fail miserably. Please don't ever associate me with those so-called 'devoted DC fans' who continue to wish Marvel movies to fail, with a stupid 'just because' as its foundation. Yes, there was a time when Jenkins praised "Suicide Squad" by calling that movie 'GREAT' (wait, seriously?!), eventhough that's hardly the case. Making many including yours truly questions her ability to deliver something that would be A LOT better. But let's not let that cloud our judgement, shall we? Let's pay attention towards the bigger picture. As I've said before, the success of "Wonder Woman" will have consequences and after effects for others that follow. Not just for WB itself, but for other studios, and the specific genre in particular. In that regards, I obviously want it to at least be good, pleasing both critically and financially, but also enjoyable enough to please its fans and general audience. I'm not and never will be a fan to Wonder Woman, but I would love to see other studios getting their confidence to create a female-led superhero movies thanks to this. That's the long-term target I'm counting on this movie to live up to.

And seriously, the future is not set in stone. "Wonder Woman" can end up becoming a much better origin story than "Man of Steel". Hmm... what did you say? That Superman movie was already okay? Well, I totally beg to differ. I mean, even WB seems to think they've made a mistake with it. If not, why on earth would they bother themselves to approach Matthew Vaughn to reboot the character? Yes, that's the recent development buzzing around the planned sequel right now. Although, it's not even clear if he'll take the offer or not. But before you argue that Vaughn's work so far has been bloody R-rated movies, do remember one solid fact. Despite being very gruesome in nature, both "Kick-Ass" and "Kingsman" had very likeable and charming lead characters (played by the equally charming Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Taron Egerton respectively). Characters that actually felt like real people, not some cold-blooded killers disguised under the mantle of superheroes. Vaughn seems to have the correct point of view about Superman too! So at the very least, I'm sure his version won't be worse than Snyder's angsty sociopath mother-complex alien...

X-Men Universe

Yes, "Logan" is still going strong despite the rampage of an overperforming "Kong: Skull Island", making it the highest grossing movie of the year so far. But should we even be surprised, when critics are loving it, and giving glowing reviews? If you ask me, it's the other X-Men movie that's making the bigger news.

Via his personal Twitter account, Ryan Reynolds himself has unveiled the actress who would be playing the mutant mercenary Domino in the tentatively titled "Deadpool 2". This began when he tweeted a rather cryptic image of domino cards that immediately made the internet buzzing. Why? Because it didn't take long before keen-eyed fans noticed that the dots were forming a particular name: Zazie Beets. Beets is an actress who gains popularity thanks to being a breakout in Donald Glover's critically acclaimed hit comedy series "Atlanta". Mind you, I haven't seen it yet (don't even ask me the reason why), so I can't really say I'm familiar with her. Nor whether she's the right actress for the role, since I'm not even that much familiar with the character Domino. But people seems to be singing praises for this casting decision, including Deadpool's creator himself. So that's like a solid seal of approval, right?

Considering Beets is African-American, that means we will be getting a racebent Domino, because as far as I recall, she's a white caucassian female in the comics. Apparently, FOX were consciously testing for Black or Latina actress for the role. Looks like the studio is joining the 'racebending bandwagon' with this, after Marvel Studios and DC Films did the same with Valkyrie and Iris West. Not that it really matters though. What's more important is ghzg she's the right actress for the role, am I right?

Jurassic Park

Sequel to the successful bombastic abomination "Jurassic World" has begun production since February 23rd, 2017. The tentatively called "Jurassic World 2" (perhaps it's going to be renamed into "Jurassic Universe"? LOL) has moved forward with J.A. Bayona to direct. Universal had set a release date for it on June 22nd, 2018. Lead actors Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, alongside B.D. Wong are returning, while the new cast consists of Toby Jones, Rafe Spall, Justice Smith, Daniella Pineda, Ted Levine, James Cromwell, and Geraldine Chapline. But it's producer Frank Marshall that gave us the first taste of the sequel, confirming that it IS in production. Yes, he did so via an unexpected tweet last week. But did that tweet confirmed which new species we might see on the sequel? Because frankly, aside from the kid, those are just fossils and not actual dinosaurs! Oh well, I'm sure we'll hear more about this movie pretty soon...

Marvel Studios

I almost always have this category in every R-N-D. Yet there are two future titles that are often absent: "Ant-Man and the Wasp" and "Captain Marvel". That shouldn't be a surprise, considering they won't come out until at least July 2018. And my attention is pretty occupied with the 2017 to early 2018 releases instead, especially the massive title that is "Avengers: Infinity War". You know what it is, right? The highly anticipated movie that might have Terry Notary confirmed as a mysterious new character, and might be filming on a 1000 years old landmark in Durham, England.

So let's talk briefly about them now. And why is that? Because Production Weekly (via MCU Exchange) has revealed that the sequel to "Ant-Man" will begin pre-production this very month in Atlanta. Official photography itself will then commence on July 6, which is precisely a year prior to its release on July 6th, 2018. All three of the main cast, Paul Rudd's Scott Lang, Evangeline Lilly's Hope van Dyne, and Michael Douglas' Hank Pym, have all been confirmed to return. Michael Pena's scene-stealing Luis will be in it too. The other cast has yet to be confirmed for the time being, but I'm sure we'll know about that in the coming months.

The working title for the movie is called "Cherry Blue", which might or might not works as a nod to a particular story arc. It's currently unclear what the story this sequel will have, aside from the confirmation from director Peyton Reed that it will be stand-alone, just like the first one. Perhaps it will focus on Hank's attempt to locate his missing wife Janet van Dyne in the Quantum Realm? That's certainly the highest possibility so far. The biggest question on my head about it though, is HOW Scott will be able to freely operate as Ant-Man, considering his fate at the end of "Captain America: Civil War". Lest we forget, this sequel arrives just 2 months after "Infinity War". Surely that movie will have additional ripple effects for Scott. Could he still be serving as a rogue vigilante when the time comes? And how will Hank and Hope even respond to said development. Could Hope take the mantle of the Wasp, in order to take over his place, then? So many questions, so little answers. But one thing for sure, we won't be seeing the Pym Tech Building anymore.

"Captain Marvel" will then arrive following a looong 8 months gap after that. According to My Entertainment World (via MCU Exchange as well), the current plan is for the production to begin in January 2018. With a release date of March 8th, 2019, that frankly makes a whole lot of sense, since most Marvel Studios' production took around 1 year to produce (similar case to "Ant-Man and the Wasp"). As of writing, only lead actress Brie Larson is confirmed for the movie. Marvel Studios has yet to announce the director for the job (although I suspect they already have one. Perhaps Niki Caro after she completes "Mulan"?), and casting for supporting characters will not take place until close to production. So apart from an official concept art (costumed action pose!) shown on Disney's regular shareholder meeting, which we might not see until this year's San Diego Comic Con or Disney's D23, this is the best news we get for the Studios' first completely female-led movie. Still crossing my fingers that the movie will include several other superheroines though! Perhaps, Monica Rambeau, or even better, Jessica Drew's Spider Woman. After all, the movie needs some diversity, right?

Now let's get back to 2017, with a title only months away from release! Entertainment Weekly debuted official images from "Thor: Ragnarok" last week, and obviously, it easily took the world by storm. Aside from spotlighting the Son of Odin himself to grace the upcoming edition's cover, we got to see the first official and also closeup looks for Cate Blanchett's Hela, Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie, Mark Ruffalo's returning character Bruce Banner, and more importantly Jeff Goldblum's The Grandmaster. Karl Urban's Skurge is the only new character absent on it.

Thor has a haircut as rumored!!! Which might, or might not be inspired by the character's particular story arc in the comics. Lead actor Chris Hemsworth felt more comfortable with this change, as it didn't require him to sit on the makeup chair before filming now. If you're a fan of the punching chemistry between Hulk and Thor in "The Avengers", then that reunion image between Thor and Ruffalo's Banner would make one grins with joy. After all, Banner was missing in action following the aftermath of "Avengers: Age of Ultron", so it's great seeing him in good shape. And rather well-groomed! Meanwhile, The Grandmaster's appearance seems to be inline with Benicio del Toro's The Collector. Which makes a lot of sense since he has been depicted as Taneleer Tivan's older brother in recent Marvel animated shows. He looks original, but still rocking all the familiar signatures of his comic book counterpart (the gray weird-shaped hair, color-tone of his costume). Also worth noted, is the exciting bright and vibrant COLORS that easily stand out in those images. It's as if, we're seeing another "Guardians of the Galaxy" of the year. Who knows, perhaps that IS indeed the case.

Some plot points were also openly shared by the cast and creators to the magazine. Blanchett revealed that there's a valid reason why her Hela hasn't shown up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. "She’s been locked away for millennia getting more and more cross, and then, with a mistake, she gets unleashed and she ain’t getting back in that box", she said. This is all made possible due to the careless reign of Tom Hiddleston's Loki, who has been spoofing as Anthony Hopkins' Odin since the ending of "Thor: The Dark World". Thanks to this grudge, Thor will get to see Hela's bad side, and well, gets sent away without his powers to a galactic wasteland, which is the Planet Sakaar. But that's where he will meet Valkyrie, who is an elite warrior in the Grandmaster's world. Confirming that she will have a reimagined backstory in the MCU. It seems this new character might be poised to take over Jane Foster's position as romantic interest (since Natalie Portman isn't involved in the movie), but even that's still everyone's question. Not just Valkyrie, Thor will also encounter 'old friend' Hulk once again, who for some unknown reason has ended up in the planet as a Gladiator. This will set off the two Avengers on a cosmic road-trip, as has been promised in the synopsis. Meaning, probably not so much of Stephen Strange despite fans' speculations.

Despite the rather serious Asgardian 'doomsday' storyline (that might play a heavylifting role towards "Infinity War") however, the appointing of Taika Waititi as the director also brought many questions to practically everyone. Considering he's a director best known for comedic chops, as proven by the irresistibly charming but also powerfully endearing "Hunt for the Wilderpeople". In form of Marvel-style, that mockumentary "Team THOR" that could be seen online and as part of the "Doctor Strange" Bluray is an easy example to 'his style'. Hemsworth revealed, that with Waititi as the lead, "all the characters and the tone of the whole story to head in a new direction". As in, having more FUN that they should have, properly utilizing Hemsworth's natural talent for comedy. Even Hiddleston has confirmed that the director WILL leave his signature fingerprints on it, with Blanchett supporting the same idea. If you're already taken aback by the amount of comedy in the second movie, then you might want to be worried to hear this. But if you're like me, who never saw that as a problem, then you'll rest assured that it will be vastly entertaining. Even Waititi himself added with confidence, "We want people to care what happens and care that the hero succeeds. I think tonally it’s like a slight shift. I don’t feel nervous — I feel good about it". Fair point! Once again, his "Hunt of the Wilderpeople" is a solid proof of his talent to balance heart, comedy, and action just fine. Mark your date, "Hunt of the Wilder-Avengers" is definitely going to be an intriguing title when it opens on November 3rd, 2017.

With "Spider-Man: Homecoming" going on regular official reshoot, "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" releasing new trailer while tracking to a massive opening weekend, and "Infinity War" expanding its antagonistic cast, things are moving along smoothly for Disney's Marvel properties. Fans of Marvel Studios and the MCU in general can rest at ease that their favorite Cinematic Universe isn't going anywhere soon. At least, not until 2019...

Netflix

Unfortunately, things aren't shining bright in the other medium. Critics have been given the opportunity to screen the first 6 episodes of Marvel's "Iron Fist", and they have begun posting their thoughts online. How did it go? It pains me a bit to say this, because I've been looking forward to it the most, but the response... is mostly NOT good. Although critics' opinions obviously don't necessarily reflect audience's reception when it comes out (with Marvel's "Luke Cage" being a good example), this is a bit disheartening to hear (and/or read). Many of what have been said as the show's problems, are surprisingly in sync with the concerns lingering on my head for a good while now. Especially after showrunner Scott Buck's discouraging statement regarding the lack of costume for the titular character. Looks like the Marvel-Netflix 'grounded' approach has taken its toll this time, because many are saying that "Iron Fist" feels more like repeating previous series, something 'more of the same'. But unfortunately, in a relatively lower value, which simply means... NOT in a good way.

Allow me to use the first two reviews I read as the example. Mind you, neither are talking about how Iron Fist should be played by Asian actor, so they aren't giving bad rep because of said issue. CNET called this a 'misstep' because it focuses more on corporate intrigue, rather than martial arts. While Finn Jones does show a naive swagger, he shows 'awkwardness' in physical movements which shouldn't be the case for a kung fu master. In fact, it's easily Jessica Henwick's Colleen Wing who's stealing the show during this first half. The site did however, point out that things are moving in the right direction toward the end. As in probably a better second half, even if they likened the show to be taking the story "a little too seriously". FanBoy Nation called this the weakest collaboration between Marvel and Netflix so far. Even called it "a bland rehash of the weakest parts of Daredevil", and "a show without its own identity". The site pointed out that the Marvel-Netflix series pacing issue, have reached a breaking point here. But the important thing I quickly noticed in their review, is the bland and weak characterization and writing. Eventhough the actors tried their best to give more despite the weak material, it's still apparent. THAT sounds seriously concerning, because that means the fault comes from the creators, and NOT the choice of actors.

So yeah. The general consensus is that this show (for the first 6 episodes, at least) just couldn't live up to the 'greatness' of previous shows, whether in story nor action sequences. So far, it feels like a 'Been There Done That' situation. How it falls victim to the Marvel-Netflix formula of taking itself too seriously, thus losing all the wuxia fantasy and mysticism that should've naturally come with the package. Heck, when it can't even compare to "Doctor Strange" that embraced its weirdness effectively while still kicking plenty of mystic fanatics' behind in a thrilling way... that's saying much. Not to mention, it once again repeats, or worse, enhances the major issue that the Netflix shows had often been called out before: awkward pacing. Yes, arguably speaking, 13 episodes have been proven to be too long for these shows. And such negative sentiment seems even more visible in this one. It falls victim to excessive running time and episode obligations, that it's hard for it to not resort to obvious filler plots. A complete opposite to Marvel TV's claim, that this show will have more episodical villains. Is it probable, that Marvel TV might have rushed this just to clear the way for Marvel's "The Defenders", hence the trepid receptions? Fulfilling obligations for its promised fourth member? That COULD be the case, although it's pure speculatory from my part.

I can't help but wonder if having a flashy suit instead of delaying one for 13 episodes, would've given the show a better boost? Hmmm... Or perhaps, we're going to get some surprise in the later episodes after all? Yep, speaking of that, I can't help but also wonder if Marvel TV is deliberately saving all the good parts for the second half. I mean, if we pay attention to previous series, this does seem to be the likeliest scenario. "Luke Cage" and the second season of Marvel's "Daredevil" are the quick examples I can point out, because they seem to have a dual arc that is separated halfway through. Cage was initially focused on Cottonmouth, but in the second half, changed shift towards a more personal-intentioned Diamondback. While Daredevil spent the first half with The Punisher, and migrated towards The Hand in the latter half. Will "Iron Fist" be treated the same way? Personally, I don't think 'saving the best for last' is a WISE decision when it comes to TV shows. Because forcing anyone to sit through 6 hours of 'intro' to get to the good part, is like one really bad marketing strategy. Sure, it's still better than having the show fizzles out halfway through its run (like "Luke Cage"?). But really, who can even assure the creators that audience would NOT drop the show early on out of boredom? Which was precisely the problem with Netflix's own "Sense8", by the way. Yes, slow-burn storytelling style have often works, but that format teases great things from the very beginning. Not filling them with fillers!

Personal ranting aside, if we take Jones and Henwick's interview with Yahoo UK as any indications, then YES, the real story for their show might at least get more interesting (if not stronger) from episode 7 onwards. Why? According to them, "There are two characters who come into the second half of Iron Fist season one who hasn't been announced yet". TWO? I wonder who it is, and could it be, the mysterious character that Ramon Rodriguez is playing? What about David Sakurai? His character has been mysteriously noted 'to-be-confirmed' as well. Popular opinion easily points towards two particular characters: Davos the Steel Serpent, and Shang-Chi the Master of Kung Fu. We know that Davos' symbol has been hinted since the first "Daredevil", so he's the surest bet. Shang-Chi? He has been reported as a rumor by several sites before, eventhough Jeph Loeb seemed to have shot that down. This character could be whom Henwick was referring to as "a comic book character who’s not been seen before and at the end of Iron Fist they set him up in a really interesting way".

It's unclear which actor will portray who. IMO, Sakurai would be a perfect actor for Davos, even if Rodriguez is currently the one being speculated as one. But what if, and this is just another fan speculation, that the second character is instead Hector Ayala the White Tiger, and not Shang-Chi? Some fans have brought up his name, and well, it does ring a bell. It would make a lot of sense for Rodriguez to play him, since he's a Latino. Not to mention, his niece Angela del Toro has been namedropped in Marvel's "Jessica Jones" before, and Netfix had indeed expressed interest for a series with Mexican/Hispanic lead. That can't be a coincidence, right? For the Marvel uninformed, White Tiger is also a superpowered character that gained his power thanks to mysticism. And one related to Iron Fist! This is definitely an intriguing possiblity. One that leaves us to a more important question: Could this two characters shake up the show and change critics' current perception of the series? Hmmmmmm...

Of course, the bigger problem is... the building concern for "Iron Fist" doesn't stays on one spot, because it leads towards another big one. Buck, is also serving as the showrunner of Marvel's "The Inhumans"! Which is the reason why I'm putting the Marvel TV category below this one, rather than the opposite like I always do. "Iron Fist" is just a few days away from release, and it is then that we can finally judge with our very own eyes, whether it is as bad as the critics' said, or becomes a truly powerful dragon-conqueror in the second half as many expected. But really, if Buck couldn't even do justice with Iron Fist, a character that should have been practically easy and outlandish enough to explore, CAN he do better with Inhumans? I honestly doubt it.

Marvel TV

Eventhough my hype for Marvel's "The Inhumans" is still high, I really can't ignore the concern of having Scott Buck as the showrunner. Seriously, I wonder why or how Marvel TV was able to trust him for two projects at the same time? It's a different scenario with "The Defenders" showrunners. Because not only they were involved with the first season, they were appointed to do "The Defenders" AFTER the positive response of "Daredevil" Season 2. So it's speaking out of success, right?

But the show must go on, and that's precisely what's happening. Filming continues in Hawaii, and every public sighting is continuously reported by Reel News Hawaii via Twitter. One of their early report, confirmed that the production took place in Diamond Head crater. Since I haven't been fortunate enough to visit Hawaii, I have no clue what place that is. Apparently, it's a volcanic crater with tunnels, and a pretty massive one too in terms of scale. Could it represent the halls of Attilan then? Hmmm.

More intriguingly, the filming takes place in city area that literally has "Oahu Service" on its taxi. Does this mean Attilan will be located on Earth, in Hawaii, rather than on the Moon? In the comics, there were stories that depicted the Inhuman City to take place in the Himalayan, and even the Atlantic Ocean. But my issue is, shouldn't this be a problem, then? I mean, those who are watching Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." should be aware by now that they are tracking down Inhumans, and registrating them with the Sokovia Accords. How could a city this massive in scale escape the knowledge of governments around the world, then? It could easily be visible through satelitte's tracking, and all. It's enough that people are questioning why the Avengers never appear in the show, and vice versa. Doesn't having Attilan and the Royal Family on Earth only makes it a more strenuous affair?

This is where it gets more interesting. MCU Exchange reached out to Reel News Hawaii about the scene that featured Anson Mount's Black Bolt and Lockjaw. Turns out, it was filmed as some sort of "grand entrance for Black Bolt to the public eye". Apparently, Bolt's arrival caused a commotion, as local Honolulu (confirming it DOES take place in actual Hawaii) enforcement arrive on the scene, and public begins taking photos with their smartphones. Once again, cue the S.H.I.E.L.D. connection concern, because a huge event like this would be too big NOT to be noticed by governments. As for why Bolt is on Earth, the site speculated that the Inhuman King is having an urgent matter, forcing him to visit Earth for the first time (noted by his poor knowledge of technology).

Rest assured though, Reel News Hawaii also revealed that Attilan itself will consist of non-human looking citizens. Which is the way it should be, since unlike mutants, Inhumans come in different size, shapes, and forms. In addition to that, the Statue of Saint Damien of Molokai at the Hawaii State Capitol, has been replaced by a giant black-colored Monolith. Fans of "AoS" should be very familiar with this, as it was the exact macguffin that became the focus in Season 2. I could've sworn it has a different symbols compared to the ones messing around with Phil Coulson's head though. Which might be intentional, because that was in fact the symbol to a deserted ancient Inhumans city that accidentally caused Daisy Johnson to gain her natural power. Spotted on the same location, was actress Isabelle Cornish in costume as Crystal. Complete with her signature comic book style. Does this mean, the State Capitol is being used as the Inhumans Palace? Thus far, we have seen how Black Bolt, and Crystal look. I wonder how soon we'll see the rest of the cast too? Hmmm...

Kamen Rider

TOEI has officially released the trailer for the much anticipated 2nd season of "Kamen Rider Amazons". This successful web-series took the tokusatsu fanbase by storm when it was released last year. Eventhough I didn't enjoy it as much as everyone else, I'm still curious to see what they are going to pull off with the new season. Which by the way, will begin streaming on April 7th, 2017, ONLY via Amazon Prime Video. Turns out, and much to the surprise of many, the season will star a new Protagonist! Well... not really a shocking thing when you see it storytelling-wise, due to how the first season ended. After all, Tom Fujita's Haruka Misuzawa (Amazon Omega), and Masashi Taniguchi's Jin Takayama (Amazon Alpha) were left in rather... conclusive condition/situation.

Fear not though, those two characters, alongside many others (whom you could see flashing here and there in the trailer) have been confirmed to return. They will cannonically be involved in the drama between You Maejima's Chihiro, and Ayana Shiramoto's Iyu. Chihiro is our new protagonist, who will transform into Kamen Rider Amazon Neo (using the new Driver, Neo Amazons Driver), while Iyu is the Crow Amazon, who has been killed by the Amazons. Why the focus on this pair? Because the theme of this season is rather startling! This time, it's going to be about 'boys and girls'. HUH? Yeah, try to digest that new information slowly, okay!

Persona

Wow, it has been a while since I talk about "Persona 5", huh? Admittedly, my enthusiasm for the game has dropped as soon as the Japan version was released. That, alongside the repetitive delay for the English-language version, had basically made me forget about it. No kidding, life happens.

Anyways, the English version will be released very soon, precisely on April 4th, 2017. Pre-orders will include additional bonus materials, such as DLCs, themes, and avatars. In an attempt to remind fans that they aren't delaying this game any futher (Duh? The video is titled "The Phantom Thieves Are Ready to Roll on April 4"!), Atlus US has released a new 'Sizzle Reel Trailer' that showcased characters, gameplays, and a general plot of the game. If you prefer a more Velvet-y Room one, you could also see the introduction video for Caroline and Justine.

The King of Fighters

The first out of three (yeah, looks like there's only three characters instead of four) new paid DLC characters for "The King of Fighters XIV" has been announced. And it's not members of the Orochi clan as I predicted. This one's even better though, because it's Whip! Her inclusion as DLC didn't completely feel like a surprise, considering she does appear in the Team Endings for "Team K'" and "Team IKARI". Doing what she's good at too, bickering with Ralf Jones! LOL. Whoops? Is that, spoiler alert? Then again, even I had been wondering why she was left out from the original roster. I mean, with her unique fighting style and that famous whip attacks, she'd make a fine character that would stand out on her own. Look no more for the proof, but her official reveal trailer.

Of course, the big question now is, whether these 3 new characters form a Team, instead of being individual fighters. Speculation gets a little, difficult if they are. After all, in the past, Whip has been associated with the two major teams I've mentioned above. So the other possible character who might pair up with him would logically be Heidern, who is Leona's father / Commander and only showed up in "The King of Fighters 94". Problem is, the other silhouettes (since Whip is the one crouching on the left) don't look like Heidern. The middle one looks like a person wearing jacket, or a cape. Perhaps it is Adelheid Bernstein, who debuted on "The King of Fighter 2003"? Or Ash Crimson, judging from the hairstyle. But it could also be Blue Mary, who shows up in the ending for "Team Women Fighters". The right one, looks like a tall guy hunching, so obviously he reminds me of... Ryuji Yamazaki. This is just speculation though, because any of the others could simply be a totally new character.

Wait a sec! This is probably just me, but I'm STILL seeing 4 people in the silhouette. If you simply count the number of legs, ignoring the crouching Whip, then there are 5 feet visible! Have these reports that boldly state 'Three Characters' been mistaken, then? Or I'm just getting caught by optical illusion? Whip will be released on April 5th, 2017 for $4.99. That's pretty soon, so I guess we only need to wait a little longer to see how this turns out...

Final Fantasy

Lastly, or should I say, finally... we have brief news for "Final Fantasy XV". Official trailer for the first DLC episode has been released, and a release date has been announced as well. "Episode Gladiolus" is set to be released on March 28th, 2017, and will reported take two or three hours to complete. Under the guidance of Cor Leonis, looks like Gladioulus Amicitia will need to deal with Gilgamesh in order to gain stronger. That's the climax, I guess. For now, you can watch a gameplay video of the first 11 minutes, courtesy of Famitsu.

I happen to catch the full story cutscenes for the game over the weekend (thanks to a Youtube user, who else?), and I just realized that it had a rather... shall I say, somber conclusion. Which apparently is confusing if not disappointing many fans? Well, I thought that despite being super poignant, it was quite well done. Beside, this IS a "Final Fantasy" game, so why should one even expect a completely 'happy ending'? I just hope Square Enix won't disrupt this melancholic ending with unnecessary sequels. You know, like what they did with "Final Fantasy XIII"? Anyway, having seen the cutscenes, I now have a strong hint on when these DLCs will take place. My common sense is, they will take place during the 10 years gap/time jump, precisely between Chapter 13 - "Redemption", and 14 - "Homecoming". That means right before Noctis' long awaited return (as a Jesus Christ-esque figure?) to reclaim the throne in the final battle.

Since I haven't played the game myself, I'm curious if this is the Chapter 13 that many people have been complaining about. Also, I wonder if these DLCs are initially meant to be part of the game, but was scrapped to focus on Noctis' adventure? Hmmmm. Nevertheless, fans of Gladio will have the opportunity to play him as a main character, and not just an arguably passive support. Episodes that will feature Ignis Scientia and Prompto Argentum will then arrive one by one after this. So far both don't have a fixed release date, but we can expect them to arrive this year.