#too busy making the cliched villain speech

[effyoukeyhouse]

It forever fucks with me how Dodge's defeat happened not once, but twice, due to the LACK OF A FUCKING CHINSTRAP

[doubleodonut]

i really did want to like this season going in but ugh. like hearing oh it's written by burnie directed by matt, the seasons i don't like got entirely retconned (petty. i know. no shade to people who like the shisno trilogy i was just eh on it), clearly meant to be a return to reconstruction-era format in some way. all sounds fantastic. unfortunately

basically everything from sarge's death onward felt entirely un-earned and un-genuine. this is probably my biggest sticking point with it all. rvb has been extremely good at making these incredibly silly characters do emotional moments well in a way that feels true to the characters- the finale to season 13, for example, is one of the best bits in the show, imo. and that's a really delicate balance! because fundamentally, these characters are built on comedy, and often being mean to each other, and making genuine interpersonal moments between them can be a really tricky business. the emotional moments in restoration, for me, leaned way too far into the sappy side and as such felt entirely un-genuine, starting with sarge's speech and continuing for the .. most of the rest of it.

now, some other bits would have felt really good if it weren't for their surrounding stuff, if that makes sense? like. after sarge's death, simmons becoming first-in-command and immediately discharging grif. that's really good. that's REALLY GOOD it feels true to their characters and earnest in a way they would be. but the surrounding problems that i mentioned already made it land a looot softer than it should have.

the whole retcon thing was...really unclear, frankly. like, it was sort-of-stated in the trailer, but when the season opened with dylan, as well as the reveal of wash in the hospital, carolina doc and donut being gone, i'd figured that oh, the retcon implied in the trailer HADN'T actually happened, church's simulations just included the stuff that happened. (and also, you should be able to tell what's going on in a piece of media without having watched the trailers..) but no, the retcon was apparently real, this season took place directly after the chorus trilogy. just not communicated well.

where were carolina and donut. like, we know doc'd died but, like. where are those two. donut just ISN'T there (only just mentioned by dr. grey at one point and simmons at another), and carolina is. missing, for some reason, until she's needed for the final fight. given carolina's absence for most of the thing, her moments with tex also felt very underbaked.

the "doc's been dead the whole time!" twist was stupid i'm sorry. i feel like it could have been done well if the rest of the season was better but as it is it just feels cliche. i think i get what they were going for- we never saw the final climactic fight of season 13 because church never saw it, now coming back after however-many-months, we as the audience weren't filled in on how that battle happened, making a surprise "actually, x died!" thing narratively interesting. it just wasn't done well, imo

the meta as a villain was .. just strange as it was played out. the idea of meta!tucker? tucker stuck in his own body while being puppeted by the epsilon-fragments-as-meta? or even, like what epsilon thought was going on, tucker straight up heel-turn? that fucking rules. i am SO into that idea. but i really didn't like how it was done. epsilon-meta was just..goofy. their lines all sounded like a cartoon villain. so much threatening and so much..talking? like, compare to alpha-meta- silent save for the interconnected whispers of the ai, focused, driven, not having long protracted villain speeches. not that villain monologues are BAD, they just don't feel right for the fucking meta! it made them as a villain feel weird and, again, pretty cliche. also, like, the bit where they held the sword to simmons' face and started monologuing threateningly at him? just didn't fit with what we know about the meta at all. the meta would have fucking stabbed him without hesitation that was some felix-type shit

(now, maybe this was the influence of the "host" between either version of the meta. like, maine is silent, so maine-meta is silent. tucker is super chatty, therefore so is tucker-meta. that would have worked if a) tucker was actually the meta rather than just A Meat Puppet and b) the dialogue actually had any resemblance to how tucker talks rather than Stock Villain)

jumping off the topic of epsilon/tucker!meta. tucker was so stiffed this season. the meta could have been piloting a robot body and it would have made 0 difference. the torture scene didn't land and had basically no actual purpose. as others have pointed out, an ACTUAL villain!tucker could have been pretty fucking cool if done right, and would have been a really interesting twist on the meta. i think meat-puppet-tucker could also have been done interestingly, if we saw more of tucker and his conflicts with the ai, or, like, even what happened leading up to the meta Happening after the end of s13. but tucker, one of the imo most interesting and best characters in the entire show, just had almost no influence, purpose, no character development, nothing.

perhaps most damningly of all, it just. wasn't funny. there were a couple little jokes here and there that got a laugh out of me, but there was no sustained comedic energy throughout the thing, and a lot of the bits (church's youtube exposition, the zoom bit) dragged on for WAY too long. i cant believe they did the "ehh.......it's right behind me isn't it" bit entirely straight.

overall, i felt this season is overall underbaked. there were some very cool concepts, bits, and ideas, but all together just did not work.

[caffineaddictedmoron]

The Ending We Deserve Pt.2

So many things happened at once.

Marinette ran toward Hawkmoth.

Hawkmoth drew his weapon.

Chat took the opening Marinette provided him, and launched himself at Hawkmoth.

Hawkmoth easily sidestepped Marinette’s attack and slashed his sword, but not at Marinette. 

No, he completely ignored Marinette and anticipated the attack from behind, dealing Chat Noir a deep cut that went from his left shoulder to his stomach. 

“NO!” Marinette screamed, running back toward her fallen partner. She dropped to her knees, assessing the damage. The cut was deep, way too deep for him to survive unless he got immediate medical attention or the miraculous ladybugs cured him. And one of those options wouldn’t work because Tikki was too weak, and the other wouldn’t work because she was too weak to carry him, AND Hawkmoth would strike her down before she made it two steps. 

But none of that stopped her from pressing her hands to the wound, trying to slow the bleeding. 

Chat was sputtering and gasping for air. “No, no, no.” His eyes were fluttering, open and shut, like he was struggling to stay awake. “Chat, you have to stay with me! Please don’t leave.”

Chat weakly moved his hand and placed it over Marinette’s. “Take him out, Mari.” he whispered as he took in a deep shuddering breath, “Do whatever needs to be done.”

“No, Chat.” Tears were running down her face in rivers. “I’m not doing this without you.”

“You have to, Milady.” He looked into her eyes. “I believe in you.” He pressed a chaste kiss to the back of her hand. Chat placed his hand on her cheek and met her eyes. “Do whatever needs to be done,” he repeated, before taking another deep breath. “I’m sorry, Marinette.” Another breath. 

He took a long, sorrowful look at his ring, hoping that his lady caught on to what he was thinking. “Plagg, claws out.”

“NO!” Marinette screamed. She knew without the magic of the miraculous that his wounds would be fatal. Plagg was the only thing that was keeping him alive, and he gave him up. She squeezed his hand, drawing his attention back to her. “Why? Why would you do that?”

He gave her a small smile. “You’re Ladybug. Figure it out.” He closed his eyes and whispered one last time. “I believe in you.”

“Chat?” She shook his shoulders. 

No response. 

“Adrien!” She shook him again, “C’mon! You have to help me! I can’t do this without you I can’t. I can’t.” She sobbed on his still chest. 

She turned towards Hawkmoth, tears running down her face. “You monster!” She sneered, “How could you do this to your own son? He loved you! No matter what crap you put him through, he loved you! Even when you forbid him from going out with friends or when you would schedule photoshoots everyday, he would still try to be his best. And he did it for you! God knows he could’ve slacked off and quit, but he tried his best to make sure you were proud of him. And this-” she gestured at Adrien, “is how you repay him. He was nothing but an amazing son for you and you ki-” she choked on the word. “You killed him.”

She looked at Adrien’s limp body, at their intertwined hands. She thought of the time they wouldn’t have with each other. The days that are lost. She could imagine it now, the life she would have with him.

Adrien would ask her to be his girlfriend and those would be the happiest years of her life. They would both go to the same college in Paris, she would pursue her career in fashion and he would work to get a teaching degree, all while still fighting crime as Ladybug and Chat Noir. Right after graduation, he would drop on one knee and propose. While planning their wedding, Mari accepted an internship for the Elite Model Management Co. designing clothes, while Adrien applied to teach 3rd grade at the local elementary school. The happy couple would decide to get married in August. It would be the most perfect day, when she walked down the aisle, Adrien burst into tears. He was blubbering so much he could barely say his vows. The newlyweds decided they could go on a honeymoon because they knew their team could handle them being gone for a few days. They went to New York and saw the skyscrapers, Broadway shows, and baseball games. (Apparently, the Americans really loved baseball.) Soon after their honeymoon, they would adopt a hamster. They would live just a few blocks from her parents, so when they eventually had kids (3 adorable children: Emma, Louis, and Hugo.) her parents could come visit them whenever and vise versa. They would be a family. They would be happy. 

And now, that won’t happen. 

Hawkmoth had destroyed every possibility for that to happen.

Marinette looked back down at the boy who she loved, at her hand which was still grasping his, even though he no longer squeezed back. His ring had a glare shining off of it. She closed her eyes unable to look at it from the light and the memories that surrounded it. 

Wait. 

Her eyes flung open. 

His ring would still work. Plagg was still somewhere around here. A plan started formulating in her head. She looked back down at her kitty. I hope you knew what you were doing, she thought. 

She slid the ring off of Adrien’s hand and onto her own slim finger as she stood. “I am going to make you pay for what you did to him,” She growled. “I will tear down your empire, brick by brick. I will destroy everything you have ever stood for.” Hawkmoth backed up slowly, showing the slightest sign of fear in his eyes. 

“Plagg,” Marinette whispered, “Claws out!”

The transformation overtook her as she charged toward Hawkmoth. She stumbled at first, but the magic of the miraculous helped contain the pain in her leg. Lord knows she would need all the extra strength available to defeat this villian.

It was a strenuous fight. Whenever Ladynoir would land a punch, Hawkmoth would land two. For every strike she would dodge, he would pull a sneakier move. While she would land a good hit every once and awhile, she knew she would not win this fight hand-to-hand. Even with the suit dulling her injuries, Marinette’s energy was fading fast. 

Soon, she found herself backed up against the Eiffel Tower, in a similar position Chat was in not even thirty minutes ago. She was running out of ideas. She was running out of hope. But most importantly, she was running out of time. 

“Well, well, well,” Hawkmoth gave her the cliche slow-villain-clap. “How the tables have turned, huh? Today is the day that I will finally have my victory. I will finally have my life, my family back.”

“Your family?” Ladynoir scoffed, “YOU JUST KILLED ADRIEN! You will never have your family back! The wish only allows ONE wish. You can’t bring both back.”

Hawkmoth laughed. “Ladybug, er, Ladynoir, whatever ridiculous name you want to call yourself, it doesn’t matter.” The villain tapped his cane on the ground, in a chiding manner. “Do you really think I wouldn’t have a contingency plan in place? I knew it was likely that he wouldn’t make it out of this duel alive. Why do you think I haven’t taken your kwami from her hiding spot? Shut your mouth and don’t look so shocked. I spotted her while you were busy mourning over my son.” He clicked his tongue. “Not to worry though. He will be alright soon enough. Once you use the Miraculous Ladybug’s he will be healed. But I want you to be the one who gets the kwami. I just feel like then your surrender would be complete. Then, after you heal my son, you will of course hand your miraculous over to me.” He slammed a hand into the Eiffel Tower, just to the left of Marinette’s head. “I will finally get what I deserve. And after I get them back, I will reveal your identity and take  your miraculous to make sure you can never try to take away what I have rightfully earned. I will ruin your chances at ever making a career in fashion. I will leave horrible reviews at your family bakery. I will make it so you never have a chance with Adrien. I will make your life a living hell, just as mine has been since I lost my Emilie. You will feel my every pain and heartbreak. You will wish you never crossed me, Marinette Dupian-

Cheng.” 

Marinette smiled, channelling every bit of Chat Noir she could muster. “That was quite the speech. Did you write that beforehand? Practice in the mirror a bit?” When Hawkmoth didn’t respond, she just shrugged. “Well, at least you were right about one thing.” She looked at the man who killed her partner and first love, who manipulated hundreds of citizens, who never truly cared about Adrien, right in the eye. “You will get what you deserve.” 

Hawkmoth didn’t register what she meant until she already whispered the only word that could defeat him now. “Cataclysm!”

As much as she would have liked to, she didn’t go for the kill. Her hand shot straight for the butterfly brooch that was pinned to his chest. It was the only way for her to truly end the horrors he had wrought upon her city for years. When her fingertips brushed the miraculous, it immediately turned black and started to crumble. 

Hawkmoth recoiled in horror. “No, no, NO! What have you done!” He tried grabbing at the ashes of the broken miraculous to no avail. His transformation let go; Gabriel Agreste sat there, hugging his knees, cursing Ladybug and everything she stood for. 

“Plagg, claws in.” Marinette dropped to her knees, exhaustion hitting her like a train.

 Marinette called for the police. They came quickly and arrested Gabriel, or did they? It was a blur for Marinette. She couldn’t remember how much time had passed. All she could think about was the loss of her partner. She couldn’t just believe he was gone. She wouldn’t accept it. An idea hit her like a train. She already had the black cat miraculous, if she could just find Tikki and complete the merge— No. She shut down that thought before it went any further. That would make her just as bad as Hawkmoth, worse even. 

But, Hawkmoth did mention something about the ladybug miraculous healing Adrien. She didn’t know if it would truly work, but it was worth a shot.

She ran to where Adrien’s body was laying placed a quick kiss on his forehead and the ring back on his finger. “I hope this works.” 

And she took off to find her missing kwami.

[thejolteonmastertj]

The LOV Being Portrayed A Certain Way Started In Season 3

Relevant to the current My Hero Academia manga arc.

Discussion & manga spoilers past the keep reading link.

TR: Some discussion of trans/homophobia.

So some people have discussed how the League Of Villains (LOV, otherwise known as the Villain Alliance), are being written like the heroes of their own Shonen manga in the recent chapters, as discussed in this post by bloodycarnations, and by Khorale in this post.

I highly recommend that you read their posts first if you had not already.

But this didn't come from nowhere, in fact, the league has been gradually easing into this motif, to us as viewers, very particularly ever since AFO’s final stand. 

There were no hints at the league being portrayed this way while Shigaraki was still under the shadow of AFO as far as I can tell, which I find very interesting.

The first possible clue came right after AFO told Shiggy to leave and fly out of the nest.  It starts during AFO’s fight against All Might.

Its a really small detail, but it’s notable because the heroic motif continues to build over time.  After Deku, Kirishima, and Iida grabbed Bakugo, there is a moment where the league is at a loss for what to do.

But the way it was written is what I’m paying attention to here.  Usually, villains in anime aren’t portrayed as having a good teamwork environment.  In fact, these same villains, specifically Magne and Spinner were already shown having a squabble during the training camp arc over whether or not to kill Deku.  The squabble resulted in them being pinned down by the heroes while they were busy arguing.

But this time it's subtly different, they are genuinely and wholeheartedly cooperating on-screen for the first time (without threatening to kill each other like they were in the USJ arc, or merely hanging around and being annoyed by each other during the training camp arc).  While Deku & crew are getting away with Bakugo, Compress and Spinner have a brief panicked exchange: (Dub dialogue used)

This is bad, who can do distance?

Kurogiri and Dabi, but they’re down!

Then Magne steps in with a plan:

You two, come here.

And then the three of them creatively apply Magne’s quirk to throw Compress towards Bakugo... I just want to emphasize that Magne literally threw him, like, way up in the sky, and they did it willingly (it would have worked too if Mount Lady had not got in the way).  What they did requires a lot more trust and cooperation than anything else they had been shown doing before.

This level of cooperation continues to be highlighted in the Yukaza arc. 

First, Magne gets killed off, as we know, but this line and her whole speech is very notable.

This establishes something that will continue to be reaffirmed at different points in the manga.  This isn't a normal villain organization where the leader calls all the shots.  Notice how while Magne goes through her whole tirade Shiggy does nothing to object to or interject into anything she says.  This is a mostly democratic group where Shiggy grows to respect the wishes of his comrades as well as his own.  They are (slowly) becoming a team.

There are a few other villains in Anime I could think of who operate in a similar manner, but most of them arguably also fall into the villains-as-the-heroes motif, such as the villains in Nanoha A’s (Nanoha season 2).  Villains like those from the Nanoha series also, however, tend to have noble goals... but resort to villainy out of desperation.  Huh.

Then there is this contrast between the Yukaza and the LOV even Shiggy himself, as well as Overhaul eventually brings up.

Shiggy acknowledges the disposable nature of being a Yukaza underling.  Although whether he is referring to Magne’s value as a skilled fighter or a person or both is up for interpretation, he is using Magne’s name in contrast to “small-fry yukaza human shields.”

Whatever Shiggy’s intentions behind this particular line are, the contrast itself is clearly there.  The Yukaza members are disposable, and this is shown multiple times through the arc, especially when the heroes start fighting the villains.  The LOV on the other hand, clearly would not use each other as meat-shields in the same way, based on their emotional reaction to Magne’s death. 

Overhaul takes note of this when Shiggy attempts to make peace with and form an alliance of sorts with the Yukaza.

This is a similar contrast which drove Natsu from Fairy Tail episode 6 (the main character) into a righteous rage upon seeing a villain kill their fellow villain. 

Heroes/main-characters protect their friends, villains are backstabbers.

The Yukaza from this arc, the QLA from a later arc, and many other villains in manga/anime also differ from the LOV and other villains-as-heroes groups (like from the Nanoha series) in terms of affection.  Toga here is shown putting a handkerchief over Twice’s broken mask, accepting and assisting in correcting his panic caused by mental illness/trauma.

And then we have the elephant in the room.

The LOV members are progressive in terms of not just mental health issues, but with LGBT+ issues as well.  When Overhaul misgenders Magne, a Trans woman, Twice stands up for her.

We need to address something else first though.  It’s not uncommon for villains to be LGBTQ, and historically this cliche stems from homophobia because the association of gay and gender-non-conforming people with villainy backed up the idea that gay people are villainous/bad irl.  The uncensored Japanese version of Sailor Moon had several gay villains, even Pokemon used to dress up Jessie and James in gender-non-conforming outfits all the time.

But here’s what’s different.

1) Times are changing, LGBT+ people are becoming more accepted, particularly among young people in Japan (Sorry I can’t provide links, Tumblr keeps marking my posts as spam when I do that, but follow @JusticeKazzy_ on twitter for more info!  The Japan Times published an article titled: “More in Japan identify as LGBT as social awareness grows, study finds”.  A YouTuber known as ‘That Japanese Man Yuta’ also did an interview video on it back in 2015). 

Negative portrayals of LGBTQ+ people are becoming less common... it obviously hasn’t gone away, but things are improving in the uphill battle.  Horikoshi made it a point to also establish another canon Trans character, Tiger, a heroic character who would play a role in the battle vs AFO not long before Magne made her first appearance.

I think Horikoshi did that intentionally, not to soften the blow of Magne’s death (if he did have that intention in mind, it didn't work) but actually in order to establish that being an ally in this world is a positive attribute, a heroic attribute even, in contrast to Overhaul’s callous treatment of Magne’s identity.

2) In the past, when LGBT+ people were portrayed as villains, most writers did not bother researching the significance of misgendering or dysphoria... nor were these concepts attempted to be portrayed in a sympathetic manner.  (Horikoshi obviously neglected to do research on bad LGBT+ tropes in media, but that’s not the point of this post).

In any case, the League Of Villains aren’t just a team, the individual members are all established as progressive, and accepting of each other’s identity and who they are.  Spinner readily called Magne by her preferred feminized nickname, “Big Sis Magne,” even while they were arguing during the training camp arc. 

Nobody in the League ever misgenders Magne, only Overhaul did that.

Then the rest is history, this all led up to the League’s current manga arc where they beat up on Nazis, the QLA & crap.  Other villain groups in the manga are being used as key tools in order to emphasize the LOV’s heroic attributes by way of contrast.

Based on Khorale’s post linked above, it’s possible that Shiggy’s development as a compassionate leader actually started before AFO’s arrest, we just did not start to see the results until later. 

AFO had been encouraging Shiggy to act on his own for a long time...

... but will that turn out to bite AFO back eventually?  Where, exactly, is Horikoshi going with this set-up?

Who knows honestly, but I’m super excited to see!

[lunaticobscurity]

I'm sure a couple of these are gonna be doubles so you can skip over the ones that are, but for that weird ask meme; 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, 28, 30, 34, 38, 43, 45, 47, 49, 50, 56, 59, 61, 63, 66, 68, 69, 70, 73, 76, 78, 80, 83, 84 (the podcast/talk radio one), 86, 88, 89, 90, 92, 93, 94, 98

holy shit! i’ll put all these answers under a cut

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

chocolate. lollipops leave you with a gross spit-covered stick to dispose of

3. bubblegum or candy floss?

candy floss. bubblegum leaves you with a gross spit-covered lump to dispose of

7. earbuds or headphones?

headphones. i used to use earbuds, but if you’re listening to a podcast and walking near a busy road, the cars drown out the podcast

8. movies or tv shows?

tv shows, just because i have a sohrt attention span

9. favorite smell in the summer?

i dunno, like maybe the hot dusty air in the morning when you wake up?

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

whichever cereal i currently have, which is currently golden grahams

12. name of your favorite playlist?

i actually don’t use playlists!

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

hmmm, those skinny jelly babies. or maybe fizzy cola bottles? the ones from the market that are extra sour

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

i only have one pair and they look like this:

18. ideal weather?

a warm, clear night sky

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)? 

various notebooks

22. role model?

i can’t think of any D:

24. favorite crystal?

heh, you mean the chaos emeralds?

25. first song you remember hearing?

i have no idea!

28. five songs to describe you?

i don’t even know where to start with this ! :O

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

CMON CALL CHATBACK 0891 50 50 50

38. lemonade or tea?

tea! but like, big bottles of ice tea from the polish shop, i very rarely drink hot drinks

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

hoodie, i have a cool wintersun zipped hoodie. all the others would be too warm for me, ieven in winter, too. except cardigan, but like, i’m not a grandma

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

it’s a cop-out answer, but they’re all good. and at the same time, i’m totally sick of the cliches of the mainstream versions of all three

47. favorite type of cheese?

double gloucester

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

i don’t know, but probably something really stupid. does it count when it’s one of those times where you and someone else get caught up in a loop of laughing at each other’s laughter until you’re both struggling to breathe?

56. favorite tradition?

when i was on jobseeker’s allowance and had to go to the despair factory every other friday, i started making a bad day slightly better by going to the chippy on the way home, then watching the new episode of nxt while eating my chips when i got back. once i no longer had to go to that cursed place, i carried the tradition on every friday anyway because it’s nice.

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

a bunch of incomprehensible grunts

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

i dunno, maybe all the villain speeches darkseid gives when he’s written by grant morrison? “New Genesis is a stinking cosmic sewer! I have fouled Paradise beyond repair and broken in the mire the shining cities of the Gods! I have won! Is this vanity? Then I will remake the entire universe in the image of my soul, Desaad. And when at last I turn to look upon the eternal desolation I have wrought...I will see Darkseid, as in a mirror....and know what fear is.“, for example

63. five songs that would play in your club?

system of a down - toxicity

ensiferum - one more magic potion

slipknot - duality

babymetal - megitsune

the toy dolls - nelly the elephant

just stuff you can dance to tbh

66. favorite flower(s)?

i don’t have any

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

i can’t say for certain, but mayonnaise is a strong contender

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

if you take the digits of any number divisible by three and add them together, the result will be another number divisible by three. and you can keep doing that until you finally get to 3, 6, or 9.

70. left or right handed?

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

people always act like peanut butter on crumpets is weird? but i love it

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)? 

chip butty

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

i hate coffee and i’ve never had sushi!

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

erf

83. writing or drawing?

they’re both good, but i’m better at writing

84. podcasts or talk radio?

podcasts, i think the only talk radio i’ve ever listened to was coast to coast am

86. cookies or cupcakes?

cookies.

88. your greatest wish?

love and comfort~

89. who would you put before everyone else?

i dunno

90. luckiest mistake?

i know i’ve made plenty of lucky mistakes in the past, but i really can’t think of any of them D:

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

fairy lights, or overhead lights, but in the next room over

93. nicknames?

don’t have any

94. favorite season?

summer

98. favorite historical era?

secret ancient indian nuclear war

[quirksk-blog]

*  ◜  HOLD YOUR HEAD UP HIGH — AND PLUNGE FORWARD !!  ›

                                   WELCOME TO U.A ACADEMY, OH SEHUN !!

                          〈 “ may my heart be brave, my mind fierce and my spirit free. “ 〉

                                                       • QUAKE • 20 • CASHIER •                                           • NEUTRAL GOOD • VIBRATION EMISSION  •                                                                   • EMITTER •

                     RELIABILITY〈 003 〉ELOQUENCE 〈 002 〉 INTUITION 〈 003 〉                           AGILITY 〈 002 〉 CONTROL 〈 003 〉 RESILIENCE 〈 003 〉

                                  *  ◜  MANKIND IS NOT CREATED EQUAL !!

i.

it’s only you and mom from as long as you can remember. she works most of the day so you two can keep your small apartment downtown ( she proposes once to move to a bigger one but you tell her that you don’t need big because it’s just the two of you anyway ) and have meat for dinner for special occasions. that’s why you were raised basically by the neighbor’s teenage daughter. she teaches how to clean the house and even cook, she lets you watch tv until late sometimes when your mom needs to work late shifts in the hospital.

sometimes your mom tucks you in bed, sings you lullabies or tells you bedtime stories about princesses who can save themselves because women can kick ass too.

( not that you ever doubted that considering how you know a lot of girls and all of them could kick his ass anyway )

you never ask about dad because dad never seems important, not when his mom can save herself and be a badass on her own.

( there’s all the neighbor who is the mom of your babysitter who is always mumbling, whispering when she thinks that he can’t hear about a man who abandoned a woman and their child for a dream, that said woman still hurt over it even though she tries to be strong because she has a child to raise with or without a man. you decide that the woman doesn’t need that man to begin with )

ii.

you’re eight and there’s this kid same age as you in the neighborhood that keeps being bullied for those dumbbutts who think they’re better only because they have a “flashy” quirk. you’re eight and you don’t use yours much because people keep trying to push the hero career down your throat when you just want a peaceful life earning enough money so your mom won’t have to overwork shifts in the hospital.

you’re eight when you step in between that kid and the bullies because you hate their kind and for the love of all might leave the kid alone.

you’re eight when you kick some ass, gets yours kicked a little too but the kid is smiling, offering you a name and a friend. you don’t refuse because if there’s one thing that bullies are good at is spotting nice people, they just suck at interacting with them.

( there’s this thrill, something inside your chest that tightens when they turn to you to say “thanks”, you feel your cheeks heaten up a bit and there’s this fuzzy feeling inside of you that you can’t shake off for the longest time. you ask your mom about it when she’s patching you up and done with the whole speech of you shouldn’t hit people, sehun, no matter how stupid and mean they are that you know she only half means it because there’s a proud smile on her lips and she keeps talking about how bullies are stupid.

she tells you that’s the same feeling she gets whenever she succeeds in saving a life )

iii.

you’re sixteen when you encounter your first villain.

there’s a fight and there’s a little girl caught in the crossfire. the hero too busy dealing with the villain to be able to aid the kid properly who seems to be petrified by fear and doesn’t listen no matter how people are telling her to run.

it’s cliche and embarrassing but indeed your body moves before your mind catches up to it and the next thing you know you have a tiny kid, no older than three in one of your arms while you use the other to break a big block that fell from one of the buildings that was partly destroyed by the fight. it doesn’t shatter completely but in enough irregular pieces that they’re both mostly safe.

you get to save the little kid but you also get a scar on the lower left side of your torso as a souvenir to remind you that saving people has a price.  

iv.

it still takes you a while to take the courage to take that step. you finish high school without filling that paper they gave you to choose the university you wanted to attend. mom is the one who pushes you to it, smiles and tells you that you don’t need a degree to make her proud. you being happy is enough, she says to you and you feel your eyes sting with unshed tears because a part inside of her always knew that you’d be a hero, because the signs were there and she knew better than anyone else how much you were annoyed not because people were telling you’d be a hero because they were assuming something about you when they only knew about your quirk.

( the trust and support she gives to you makes you emotional )

mom is with you when you first stand in front of the u.a., she’s literally the one who pushes you to take the first step during exam day. it’s embarrassing because you’re not a child that she can ruffle your hair for good luck and be standing there like a proud mother hen.

( but a part of you thanks her for it because you know you wouldn’t have taken it by yourself )

you go so well in the exam that you surprise yourself ( which doesn’t necessarily means much considering that you were already prepared to be rejected ). but even with your ticket to u.a. and on the way to be a hero, you still get a part time job because you still hate asking your money for money.

she calls you a moron for it, but there’s a smile on her face so you don’t really pay any mind to it.

                                  *  ◜   WE RISE AND WE THRIVE !!

he’s a very laid back person, someone who at first glance doesn’t seem to mind about much around him, however he can also be naturally protective of the people around him unless you’re the one being hostile to others. sehun can make friends quite easily with his easy going ways and some people might even consider him charming for his “don’t worry about a thing” sort of aura around him, he naturally makes people feel at easy around him. sehun is also very good at observing people and his surroundings, being quite perceptive when it comes to people and their behavior (which might come quite in handy during combat) and that also makes him quite empathetic. he might not be the best person to give advice but he’s definitely a good listener.

He’s also very sincere to the point of being blunt, not bothering to hide his emotions especially if something is bothering him and that’s why sehun ends up being someone that can be quite easy to read.

                                  *  ◜   POWER IS WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT  !!

vibration emission - can send shock-waves, controlling their intensity, strength and speed, through anything that he touches. he can repulse or push enemies away, shatter things and even cause something alike to an earthquake if touched the ground.

—— needs some medium to send his shock-waves, be it gas, liquid or matter

—— his body receives the aftershocks of his quirk since he isn’t immune to the vibrations, the stronger the shock-wave, the stronger is the aftershock and depending on the intensity he can be paralyzed or even receive internal damage.

—— can only emit those shock-waves from his hands

                                 *  ◜   NEVER FORGET WHO YOU WANT TO BECOME !!

costume is a dark red full body jumpsuit with a black line around his waist underlapping his black belt that contains pockets for his phone and also elements of first aid kits like bandages, antiseptic cream, distilled water, painkillers, safety pins, scissors, sticky tape. there are also black lines on the outer side of his arms and legs. he also wears black boots and gloves that come to his elbows and are made of shock absorbing material to help with the one of the cons of his quirk. instead of hiding his full face, sehun only hides his mouth with a black metal mask with small holes around the top and bottom of it.

[khrow-shinku]

The Great War S6

D&D 5e Campaign

The Great War

Session 6

The party wakes up and heads down to eat breakfast. Ara notices a hot redhead in the tavern and walks over to flirt with her, the redhead responds saying that her name is Ursala and winks back at her. Tinkerman and JJJ are at a table discussing a diagram for a new weapon while eating. Ursala then walks over to the rest of the party and tells them that Lord Alfonse Le Darc has requested their presence at the castle and informs them that the queen is away at a summit meeting between the leaders of the different nations and empires and then takes her leave. The party just looks at each other knowing exactly what this means. Somehow he already knows that they know. They quickly shove down the last bits of their food and run to the castle.

Once at the castle they are greeted by Alfonse and his army of trolls and other nasty creatures. As some of the party begins to ready their weapons and take aim at the army of monsters, Ara is quick to rise before everyone else and asks Alfonse, “What’s the meaning of this?” Like every idiot villain who thinks they have already won he arrogantly begins giving his speech about their evil plans. “Well it’s quite simple really. We want to destroy the world. We want to destroy all existence. We want there to be nothingness.” It was at this time one of his goons walked over and smacked him and the head and told him to shut up.He then turned and killed him for smacking him. (Holy crap DM a bit cliche much? What with the whole arrogant villain just divulging his whole plan for the entire party. I mean sure the hugest set of tits he has even seen asked him to but..  Come on! Pfft, Who am I kidding I would have too for a chick that damn hot so long as she was down to cuddle afterwards.) The rest of the party starts taking shots at the army trying to whittle down their numbers then Ara asks another question, one she will later wish she hadn’t. Ara bluntly asks “Who are you working for?” He looks straight at Ara and says, “Your brother.” and one of his goons walks  up to him and smacks him in the back of the head again and says; “Seriously stop telling them everything,” only to also get killed by him. Ara in disbelief yells “Bullshit!” then racks her brain for a moment, “I was an only child… my parents… my parents would have told me if I had a brother. They wouldn’t lie to me or hide something like that from me!” Enraged by his implications that her parents had been hiding something from her, her whole life, scared that he could be telling the truth, scared the two people she had trusted the most in her whole life had been lying to her, that fear turned into even more anger, heat pours off of her entire body as she spews fire from her mouth killing the first row of enemies. Everything within five feet of her starts bending, warping, and melting. (Holy shit DM what a dick move to do to the character. The only people she thought she could count on as being pure, she now has doubts about them and now everything in her life is being brought into question. Great writing and plot twist though so I totally approve.) During this the party keeps attacking the army slowly chipping away at their numbers. Rin and Ara both keep asking Alfonse to name the person he is working for, they want a name. Sadly though he refuses and before they can convince him to give in and surrender a name, he dies from their attacks.

After the battle is over a hooded figure shows up and throws a dagger at the party, only he wasn’t aiming for them instead it hits the wall and pinned to it is a note that says “We are watching.” Before the party can ask the hooded figure any questions he is gone in a puff of smoke. After this the group begins discussing the fastest way to get to the summit meeting, Tinkerman then chimes in and says he knows of a faster way to get there but he isn’t sure if it is still working. The party agrees it's worth a shot if it can get them there in time. Tinkerman leads them to a train beneath the capital and luckily it still works and the party boards it and is on their way. After everyone is seated on the train, Tinkerman hands out maps to the town they are heading and hands Ara the music box she requested and eleven total cylinders to record music on and play the songs back. He then mentions that that flying thing she tried earlier, he noticed it didn’t go exactly as she had planned and asks her about an idea for a glider suit or cloak to assist her so that it goes a little better. He then asks her to stand up so that he can take her measurements. As Tinkerman begins to touch Ara all over and fondle her to get measurements Ara just continues on with her discussion with Rin paying no mind to Tinkerman spreading, moving, and shifting things to get measurements. Ara looks at Rin and says “I know you have questions and I wish I had answers.” Rin replied “Yeah this whole brother business, what's up with that? Have you been hiding more from me?” Ara answered, “I don’t really have any answers. As far as I know I am an only child. My parents never mentioned a brother Or any child rather it be before or after I was born. My parents were good honest people. I can’t begin to believe that they would ever actually lie about that or hide it from me. However it is true that it is always possible they did even if I don’t want to believe it.” Rin could tell that Ara was being sincere  and suggested that she look into her family records, maybe there is something there. Ara remembered looking before because she was curious about her father’s family but it's always possible she had missed something. Tinkerman then chimes in and asks, “Is it possible you maybe have a half brother that you don’t know about? Perhaps some event that one of your parents wanted to forget?” Ara agrees it is possible, then informs the two, “My mother was always very secretive of the past before my father. I know her family was very religious and evil and worshiped a demon for making them fiend touched. My mother wanting nothing to do with any of it and wanting to be a good normal person ran away and never looked back. The only way I can see my mother having a child from back then is if it is some sort of really dark event that happened and created a child.” Rin and Tinkerman both agree that more research into her past needs to be done, perhaps checking the records where she was born and then checking the records where her mother came from.

Once in town a warforged escorted them to the Inn, from there a female escorted them to the summit meeting. Once there Tinkerman informs the leaders of what the party has learned however a few members of the party notice that one of the leaders doesn’t seem at all surprised by any of the news. Rin though with her keen eyes of a half goddess, saw through the illusion spell that the leader was using and it was really an archnae. Tinkerman gets ready to mention that something seemed off about the person and Rin does everything she can to convey through body language for him to shush and not say anything. Tinkerman notices and doesn’t say anything.  Rin then stands up and takes the floor and makes an announcement, “I myself am also a Queen and would like to join this council. I am the Queen of the empire Lunaria located on the moon of Gaia by the same name. The capital city of my empire is Lunarias. My empire has been cloaked by a spell for years. I was sent down here by my goddess to find out who or what was trying to instigate this war and stop it.” Paul chimes in,”You mean her brother?” and points to Ara. Rin just shoots him a dirty look and then continues, “At first I wasn’t sure why. It seemed odd that my goddess would ask me to meddle into Gaia’s affairs when it has traditionally been our policy to keep to ourselves. However with this new knowledge that I have found out, It has become clear that this is not just a threat of war but a threat of extinction of all life on both Gaia and Lunaria. I can not stand idly by and wait for my people to get destroyed by the actions of someone on Gaia. The time for my empire to remain hidden and apart from Gaia has passed. Now is the time that Lunaria became an active participant in the things to come.” The speaker then hands Rin a list of rules to be a part of the alliance and asks if she agrees to them. Rin reads over them quickly and then responds,” As the queen of Lunaria, I , Aerin Eterna, hereby agree to these rules to become a part of this council.”  Ara’s jaw drops and she says in astonishment, “You’re a queen!? And there are people living on the moon!?” The speaker then closes Ara’s mouth and has the party escorted back to the tavern. It is there that Rin explains to them the reason she had told Tinkerman not to mention anything about the one leader seeming odd with her lack of reaction to the news. She informs the party she was using an illusion spell to disguise herself. She was really a spider demon known as an archnae. JJJ having arachnophobia runs outside real quick puking because he was sitting next to a giant spider and staring at and getting turned on by her spider boobs. After he comes back in and the party discusses their options for a few minutes, the party begins hearing noises outside. Rin and JJJ walk outside to see what the noise is when they are ambushed by a herd of archnae, it would seem as though the queen knew that they knew. They called for the others to come out and help. Battle ensued, with webbing and acid being flung everywhere. After a long battle, the party had beaten back the ambush. Tinkerman searched the bodies to find another cursed gem and then the body went back inside and went to sleep for the night.

[filmnovelizations]

Hook

A pirate named Tickles pumped wildly at a concertina while cannons exploded in sheets of fire and the cheers of the pirate crew rose to new heights.

This is a good novelization. It’s as well written as you could reasonably expect from a novelization, and it expands on enough aspects of the movie to make it less of a waste of time. The movie is far from perfect, but mostly gets away with its imperfections on the strength of its cast. They both have a problem that still thoroughly bothers me though...

The story starts at a school play. Peter’s daughter is playing Wendy in Peter Pan. During the play, he gets a call from work and they need him for an urgent meeting. The next night his family is flying to London for a very special event in Granny Wendy’s honor, so he schedules the meeting for the A.M. The problem with that is his son’s big baseball game. It’s apparently the last game of the Santa Series. When they get to London, the Darling house is decorated for Christmas. There is no payoff to this apparently necessary Christmas setting. The whole setup is cliche with the school play and the busy father missing the baseball game, but it doesn’t make sense. The school play in December isn’t a bullshit holiday celebration. It’s Peter Pan, which is considerably more dangerous than any school is likely to perform with kids her age because of the rope-flying. And maybe little league baseball is different from where I grew up, because I played little league baseball and I never played a game within three months of December. Literally no one thinks of baseball or Peter Pan as related to Christmas but here we are shoehorning Christmas into a story that has nothing to do with it.

The only justification I can imagine for the Christmas setting is the rather blatant uncredited theft of Ebenezer Scrooge’s story arc. Maybe there was an earlier draft of the script that was more of a Christmas Carol version of Peter Pan and it was too convoluted so they trimmed it down and changed it but kept the wholly unnecessary Christmas setting anyway. I don’t know, but it bothers me. It’s still essentially Peter Pan as Ebenezer Scrooge, and I was hoping the novelization might at least acknowledge that influence somewhere. It had the perfect, simplest opportunity to do it too. There’s a moment where Captain Hook’s private library is mentioned, and Sir James Barrie is called out as his favorite author. As the book (and movie) had already mentioned J.M. Barrie twice, and as it’s weird for Barrie’s own character to be a fan of the writer that’s famous for making his life miserable, it seemed a perfect opportunity to throw Dickens out there. I can see Captain Hook being a fan of Oliver Twist in the sort of misunderstood way that villains have to misunderstand reality to be villains. He’d read Oliver Twist and be delighted by the criminal treatment of orphans. Mistreatment of orphans is literally his greatest joy. Instead, he’s supposed to have loved J.M. Barrie’s books where he’s the villain that never wins. Nah.

“Poop Shoot--five thousand!” Ace cried jubilantly, cocking back his top hat. Don’t Ask propelled Thud Butt and the point chart up beside him. “Nope. Butt Tick---two hundred.”

As for something that I’m glad the novelization explained, look at Peter’s daughter Maggie. As a kid, I never thought twice about her part of the story, but she basically gets tossed aside and forgotten. She’s not immediately receptive to Captain Hook’s attempt to brainwash her, so he has her taken away. Later, we see her inexplicably singing a lullaby that briefly reminds her brother of their mother and makes all the pirates cry. And then she’s screaming for help during the final battle. In the novelization, after she’s taken away from the brainwashing session, she’s locked in a cell with some Lost Boys that Captain Hook keeps as slaves. They count his treasure. It’s talking to them, and explaining to them the basic idea of a mother, that results in her singing the lullaby. She sings from the cell too, not wherever the fuck this is...

And as for where the novelization does Jack better, look at the death of Rufio. In the movie, Rufio dies saying he wished he had a father like Peter. Jack’s like, “I’m sorry, dad.” And from then on, he’s completely forgotten the apparent years of neglect. Here’s the book version of that moment.

There was a momentary hush as Jack stared down at the fallen Rufio. He felt as if his stomach had been turned to stone. For despite being outwardly a replica of Hook, Jack was decidedly something else inside, where it matters. The thrill and excitement of being a pirate had long since disappeared. The anger and disappointment of being Peter Banning’s son had evaporated. His dad had kept his promise this time, he had come for Jack and Maggie. And Jack’s memory was stirred by the keeping of that promise--his memory of home and family, of quiet evenings playing board games at the kitchen table, of being read to and reading back in turn, of words of encouragement and wisdom offered when life got a little tough, of all the things that were good and true about his parents.

I don’t think this would have been difficult to portray in the movie. It’s very quick flashbacks, similar to the way we see Peter’s quick flashbacks when he remembers he’s the Pan. We saw Wendy at three or four different ages there, but we can’t see two or three quick, very simple happy memories that Jack experienced with his father? The movie makes it look like he’s always been a shitty father but focuses on a brief moment in his life where he’s being shitty because of work stress. With no reason to believe he’s behaved any different, Jack’s turnaround at Rufio’s death doesn’t make much sense, even in Neverland. Worse than that, this happens moments after his father tells him it took three days to realize his kids were his happy thought. That’s supposed to be, what? Heartwarming? For three days, a fairy and a team of children struggled to remind you what made you happy and you remembered numerous business deals before your own kids, and you want your kids to be happy about that? Would’ve been nice if you’d remembered their existence makes you happy three days ago when Captain Hook said you could take them home if you just flew up to them and touched them.

Thud Butt wrapped himself into a ball and the Lost Boys rolled him down the ramp, scattering the pirates like tenpins.

As for Terry Brooks’ writing, I enjoyed it. I have minor complaints that are nitpicky at best. I became increasingly annoyed by one of the Lost Boys’ speech impediment, and by Brooks’ preferred use of “about” instead of “around”. For example: Then he set them both down, picked up a startled Moira, and whirled her about as well, lifting her off the floor as if she were a child. It’s not wrong at all. It’s just a nitpicky thing that I’m surprised happened enough to bother me. There’s also the part where the Lost Boys shave Peter. It’s creepy and I’m glad the movie left it out. The movie just has the immediate aftermath where they also put warpaint on him. He’s standing there without a shirt and you maybe don’t realize Robin Williams doesn’t have body hair, but it’s because the Lost Boys stripped and shaved him.

If you want the paintings, go here.

[wandering-bard-from-the-id]

Writing Events

For the last two weekends I’ve had to opportunity to attend some writer events.

Last weekend I attended Farpoint Con in Maryland. It’s a sci fi convention. One of the guests was Nickolas Meyer. Mr. Meyer wrote and directed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. He directed Star Trek movies 2 and 6. He co-wrote Star Trek 4 with Leonard Nimoy. He also wrote and directed Time After Time.

During the con he spoke at three different panels. They were some of the best talks I’ve even heard by a writer. The man knows his craft.

I’m going to share some of his words of wisdom.

1. The best villains are the ones you find yourself agreeing with. That’s makes them even scarier.

2. Heroes should have flaws. They don’t have to be anti-heroes. But they must be human.

3. Choices - good or bad. The villain and hero must be faced with choices. How they choose will define them as the hero or villain. There should be shades of grey.

4. Characters must be like real people. Reader must be able to know or recognize or even see a bit of themselves in the characters to connect with them. Create characters that people understand, then they will care about them.

Writing Techniques

1. Let verbs do the heavy lifting. This cuts down on over writing. Avoid or go easy on adverbs or adjectives.

2. Avoid cliche speech. Instead of saying the character’s heart was in their throat, dig deeper into what emotions the character is feeling.3. Avoid ‘very’ - a man is not very tired, a man is fatigued, exhausted, etc.A good story is one people are glad you told.

He recommended reading Shakespeare’s Richard III for an example of a good villain with a warped sense of humor. And the movie Billy Bud for a good example of a faulted hero.

Yesterday a local Barnes and Nobles held a mystery writers panel at the store.This was a great panel about what it’s like dealing with the business end of getting published. All of the writers were traditionally published and had some interesting good and bad stories about dealing with publishers and editors.

One writer said when writing her first draft, when she gets to parts she’s not ready to flesh out she types in TK. Which means Too Come. She uses the K because spell check will catch it and she doesn’t miss it in read backs. This way she can get through the first draft then go back and flesh out the rest.

The nice thing about the bookstore panel was we had a small group. As the writers got more comfortable they began to swap interesting publishing stories. Some where good, but some were nightmares.

If you have the chance to attend a writer’s panel take it. You never know what little, valuable bit of information you might pick up.

[deathbyvalentine]

Three Minute Characters. Name and Setting provided by friends.

Harold Greenbeard - steampunk fantasy

It's a slightly mocking name - given to him by his friends after a particularly explosive experiment with copper verdigris. The after effects lasted several months and on poor Harry's cleanshaven face, the effect was somewhat.. well, you can figure it out. Harry is a young man who works at the royal mint. In his spare time he's rather obsessed with making coins that are theft-proof. His superiors wish he would just get on with his actual job rather than destroying perfectly good coins in the name of progress. He's an excitable chap, prone to long speeches on the properties of different metals, whether other people are interested or not. He has a kind heart and a very long suffering cat named Jangles.

______________________________________________________________

Aleth - Dieselpunk but in Space

Aleth is what one could call a 'tough kid'. After losing his fathers in a mining operation that went wrong due to lack of health and safety precautions, he has decided that in order to really hammer home to risks to these CEOs, letting them see the damage they can do is the order of the day. He's not an assassin, he is very quick to point out. He's never actually killed anyone. The unsafe working environments did. He has to his name; two heirloom pistols, one star fighter that is really getting on in years and a too-long jacket that skirts the tops of his ankles. Oh, and a bad attitude.

______________________________________________________________ Intercessor Julia - space opera

Intercessor Julia has everything she wants. A comfortable, fulfilling job. A faith she believes in whole heartedly. A beautiful apartment looking over the rivers of quartz. Nice clothes. Well, almost everything. During her work as a missionary to the palace she has gained an... affection for the youngest princess, a woman called Francis. They are very much in love despite the obvious class difference. If she wants to marry her, she has to participate in an ancient tradition. She has to find the Jewel of Quo and set it in a necklace, presenting it to the royal family. Unfortunately the last time this jewel was seen was on a death planet, known for it's population of psychic vampires and an everlasting night. The course of true love never did run smooth. Luckily Julia is not what you'd call a quitter.

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Mistress Sgt Tallowdown - Witches in WW2

Sgt Tallowdown used to have daughters. Maybe she still does. But the three of them went down over enemy territory and haven't been seen since. The best they could hope for is that they've been taken as political prisoners. The worst doesn't bear thinking about. Tallowdown was never a soft woman but the loss of her beloved daughters has hardened and sharpened her into a vicious point. She shows no mercy on the battlefield or the interrogation room. She lives for one thing only and that is killing nazis. Her squadron is entirely made of women, chosen for their magical ability and their exceptional force of will. She is merciless with her recruits too, but only to push them to their highest potential. They are all fiercely loyal to the woman and only a fool would cross any of them.

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Consider-a-point-mass-resting-on-a-frictionless-plane, high-concept SF where all the people are descended from humanity or machines we created but it's been a million years since the Moon landings.

Consider is considered a little bit of an oddity within their commune group. As a general rule, citizens are supposed to be always working towards a better future. Everything can always be improved, including each other. Several worried reports have been submitted about Consider due to one specific reason. They're obsessed with the past. They study the corrupted databanks for hours on end, marvelling at the fleshy creatures that supposedly built their ancestors. They're so inefficient, so misguided that they can't help but wonder how they survived so long. There's so many unanswered questions that they daydream about it even in development sessions. When asked what role they would want to take in their next and final community group, they say historian. This job does not exist.

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Kai Coldsteel - Star Wars, Old Republic era

Kai was on the losing side. A warrior poet who find enlightenment in emotion and passion, they had a home in the Sith. The Republic seemed absolutely intent on wiping that home out. Kai, sensing that the small occasional pockets of peace would not last, decided that they needed to make a safe haven. Not one based on arbitrary categories like jedi and sith but based purely on who needed to reconnect with their emotions in one way or another. They set up a temple on a desert planet, taking in warriors scarred by what they had seen, furious teenagers, those who didn't want to master their emotions. They gave them a space to safely deal with and explore this. Some people stayed a week. Some people stayed their whole lives. Kai has managed to establish a commune that can run without them. Now, they explore the galaxy with a ragtag band, looking to rescue those that need their help before they are killed as a threat.

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Zabeth the Apostate, D&D-ish high fantasy.

Zabeth is not an apostate by choice. All tieflings are an apostate to someone, don't get her wrong, but she never intended to be disowned by her own god. You accidentally feed the wrong soul to the Endless Darkness and all of a sudden you're a villain. Well, fine. Afraid to lose face, Zabeth has taken to pretending that being cast out of the church is exactly what she intended to do with her life. Her pride won't allow anything less. The thing is, she's not quite sure how to be a villain. She's rather shy for a tiefling and much prefers gardens to the fires of damnation. So, she's went on a quest to find villains to take her on as an apprentice.

_______________________________________________________________ Valentina Sargossi, Shadowrun

Valentina is a delivery girl, a courier. That was one of those jobs that sounded easy on the surface that was an absolute nightmares in this town. With her trusty motorbike she navigated gang wars, corrupt businesses, police officers and patrons all looking to intercept or steal the package. She has two rules. 1. Don't tell her what is in the package. 2. Payment up front. With these two rules, she's become the most trusted courier in the city. She's grown to love the adrenaline, the rush and the race of the entire affair. She takes difficult jobs as fun challenges. However, she thinks someone might be starting to use her to track her clients. So it's time for A TRAP.

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Ave Levestrom, Warhammer 40k

He feels like a bit of a cliche. A noble boy running away from an arranged marriage to become a pirate. It's the stuff of cautionary tales. But he did it anyway, cutting his hair, changing his name and finding his way onto the first rogue trader ship he could find. He manages to bluff his way into a position as a junior officer where he finds a crew that he grows to love dearly. But how long can he keep up the lie when his family have started to search for him? And what about the odd dreams he's starting to have at night, full of webs and birds?

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Falling Whispers, Changeling the Lost

Falling Whispers might have been human once. They can't remember. What they are now is a creature of spring. They are the last frost, dew on spiderwebs, the mist that hangs in the air on spring mornings. All they have left of their human life is a small tattoo of a bird on the inside of their wrist. They're rather serious for a spring fae. They find themselves going on long rambling walks, often getting lost and finding themselves in newly flowering meadows. It almost feels like their feet are trying to lead them somewhere but they just don't know where.Their steed is a deer, the flowers in their hair are unwilting snowdrops.

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Umra Smoothchin, a dwarf in D&D fantasy

It's hard being the runt of the litter. Umra is the youngest of seven siblings. All of them have beautiful beards reaching their feet. He barely has five o'clock stubble. This has only made him more eager to prove his innate dwarveness. He's a blacksmith and an awfully good one at that. His life goal is to make a hammer fit for the gods, something that will get him written down in the history books forever. His sisters have already impressed the gods via their fighting skill, magical knowledge and healing. He wants to set himself apart. He's also an excellent chef, experienced cooking with mushrooms and roots in particular. He privately thinks to himself if not for all the ribbing from his sisters, he might be perfectly happy running an inn on some busy road, cooking delicious food and repairing weapons for adventurers until the end of his days.

_______________________________________________________________ Seraph, technotheocratic cyberpunk-space-opera setting

Seraph is beautiful and terrifying and beautiful. Their wings are constructions of metal, gold and wire, somehow managing to look delicate and sharp. Their eyes are completely bright blue, no iris or pupil. There's a serial number on their ankle that suggests at one point they were part of a host. But there likes the problem. Nobody has seen angels like them in hundreds of years and nobody knows who the creator is. So they're an angel without a god, without a purpose, without a set of morals. They wander the universe now, looking for someone that will guide them and give them a holy missive. Several very bad people have decided having an angel on their side would be very helpful....

[vowill89]

CHOSEN ONE! ...I’m coming!

Boy, the idea of the chosen one of fate is just a tired old cliche.  We get it, fate has decreed that when a great evil looms over the lands, fate’s predetermined chosen hero rises up to vanquish the evil.  An excellent tale when it was first introduced, but it has kinda played out it’s welcome.

Though there are times where the chosen one concept gets played around a bit, fleshed out a little, or, in some rare cases, just plain ol’ subverted.  I just wanna bring to light some aspects of the chosen one trope being used excellently and on, at least, one occasion where it just cheapens the story.

One of the things I like in the original Kingdom Hearts game, that I think isn’t given enough credit, is the second act twist. 

Good boy is good

In the game you play Sora, a young islander boy who hangs out with his friends, primarily Riku, the best friend and rival, and Kairi, best friend and potential lover?  ...Eh, KH2 kinda threw a wrench into that pairing.

Anyway, Sora’s home world is soon assaulted by darkness and Shadows

Who are way too cute than an eldritch horror has any right to be. 

Soon Sora finds Kairi who vanishes before him and Riku is then swallowed up by the darkness, but not before saying that “The Door has opened.”  As soon as Riku peaces out of there, Sora is then granted the main weapon of the game; The Keyblade.

It has the unique ability to go from 1 to ANIME in no time at all.

Soon Sora finds himself in Traverse Town, team up with Donald “please heal me” Duck and Mr. “You gonna kill that guy over there,” Goofy, travel to different Disney worlds, fight bosses, get stronger, and feel pretty good about your journey. 

During the course of the game, the villains, a collection of Disney ne’er do wells led by Maleficent, constantly refer to Sora as “The Keyblade’s chosen one”, as though series creator, Tetsuya Nomura, is relying on the tried and true trope of the chosen one.  Only he has the power to do what he accomplished, he was chosen by fate!  Or so we were led to believe.

Remember that second act twist I mentioned?  Remember Riku, the rival?  Well it turns out that there was a slight little hiccup in the beginning.  Sora isn’t the Keyblade’s chosen one, Riku is.  Riku, the rival who is better than Sora.  Riku, the best friend who took a much darker path than the character we’ve been playing.  Riku is the chosen one, not Sora.

At this moment, the Keyblade abandons Sora in favor of Riku, who leaves Sora a wooden sword to use while Donald and Goofy also leave Sora for Riku, following their king’s orders to follow the key wielder.  From this point on Sora can’t use physical attacks to injure the Heartless, only being able to rely on his magic or The Beast, who was bested by Riku.

It’s this moment and the next one that I really like about this game’s story.  As soon as Sora meets up with Riku, Sora points out that he doesn’t need the power of the keyblade to go forward, just the power of his heart.  Sora’s friendship speech then does, in my opinion, the impossible in the whole chosen one trope; the keyblade switches back from Riku to Sora.  The rival who, if you played poorly in the tutorial segment, whoops your butt when given the chance and choose a darker path that goes opposite of the keyblade’s power, loses that weapon and goes back to the carrier boy who carted it from world to world.  Riku is no longer the chosen one. 

I feel like Nomura is also trying to bring focus on this aspect of the story back to the player’s attention.  In Dream Drop Distance Sora mentions that he doesn’t care if he isn’t the Keyblade’s chosen wielder, something that the antagonists of that game have been needling him with.  I really like that aspect of Kingdom Hearts and hopefully have brought more attention to it so that others can enjoy it as well.

Another version of the chosen one trope that, when done well so that it works, is Link in The Legend of Zelda series. 

Best boy is best.

If you play this series, you all know the basic bullet points;

Ganon bad

Zelda captured

several dungeons

Master Sword

Ganon defeated

Triforce

Skyward Sword comes along and gives us the reason for why it is just those three players, Link, Ganon, and Zelda, who are constantly on center stage for most of the games.  Link is the goddess’ chosen hero, bound to the cycle of reincarnation.  In the game Skyward Sword, Link is gifted the Goddess Sword and is tasked with increasing it’s power so that it may strike down the big bad of the game, Demise, a Ganondorf-esque character who... is the big bad.  Please see a past post on why I think Demise sucks as a villain.

But while Link may be the hero reborn, he still needs to go through a series of trials (dungeons) in order to awaken his heroic spirit.  I like that, it shows that while he may be the chosen one, that means little if he doesn’t work to prove that he is.  He has to grow as a hero instead of just coasting on the idea of being the chosen one.  It also helps to retroactively change the ideas of the dungeons in the other titles.  If the dungeons in Skyward Sword were set up by the goddess in order to test him, why not the others?  Just sit on that one for a while.

Now, for the idea of the chosen one just being a cheap prop.  I’ll make this short because I don’t want to go into FURIOUS RAGE RANT mode.  In Michael Bay’s TMNT movie...

...hhhhhhHHHHHHATE...

Sorry, in Michael Bay’s TMNT movie it’s revealed that April O’Neal’s father was a scientist who experimented on Splinter and the Turtles before they mutated.  The lab was then caught on fire and April saved Splinter and the Turtles before they could be killed in the flames.  Splinter then says that they were fated to meet again after so many years and that April is their... something, but I’ll just use chosen one because that’s pretty much what it is.

Using that cliche as a narrative tool only serves to cheapen the overall relationship between the Turtles and April.  The whole reason they meet each other is because of an accident.  Their friendship grows because they learn to trust April with their secret which she keeps because she can see that they’re still good people/reptiles/rats/mutants and she wants to help them, which on more than one occasion has come back to hurt her, by way of her apartment building burning down, and yet despite all of that they still remain close friends because the bonds that formed when they first meet have grown that strong.  Michael Bay took a cheap narrative idea and used it for convenience.

Anyway, that’s my thoughts on when the idea of the chosen one is used perfectly fine, used in an interesting way, and is used as just a cheap prop.  I’ll try to have more posts like this in the future, I’ve been busy with work as of late. 

Speaking of which, you like games?  You like audiobooks?  Do you like Litrpg audiobooks?  Then check out Stratus Online: Awakening, written by Drew Cordell, narrated by me.  If you don’t know what a Litrpg novel is, this is a good book to check out and get into the Litrpg genre.  Your purchasing this book, or other books that I’ve narrated, will help me out in the long run and I may make more posts more frequently if sales go up. 

‘Til next time!