#too many characters not enough crowns 😔

[saetoru]

ONE MONTH LATER. SHENHE. PREFARMING. IS OVER WITH.

[thelittlecrookedtalecomic]

Wow, Ariel was only 34?! Poor thing sure didn't age well 😔 Sorry, maybe you're tired of questions about her, but I'm just curious: you said there were many plotholes in the original movie, what are they? (I must sound dumb 😂)

Alright, this is going to be a LONG answer and I hope I can explain myself good enough 😁

The Little Mermaid is one of those scripts you have to completely flip because you're changing the original idea in an opposite way. In the original story, the mermaid is not an exemplary character, but rather proof that we cannot force someone to love us just because we have become infatuated with them. No matter how much we self-sacrifice or try, "no means no." She is a selfish and reckless character who shows growth in the end by letting go of these traits and choosing to sacrifice herself when she had the option to save herself and crown her greatest selfish act.

In Disney's case, the premise was obviously that Ariel had to be a heroine, carry a moral message, and triumph over evil. To do this, they chose the path of victimization. Ariel had to be a misunderstood social outcast who fell into a trap set by a very evil figure who was then defeated. But the resources employed were insufficient, as they kept too many elements from the original script.

Demonizing the figure of the witch was an obvious step, turning her into a deceitful character with "I want to conquer the world" ambitions to quickly cast Ariel as the victim. The problem with this is the initial premise: literally everyone in the ocean knows Ursula can't be trusted, and she proudly displays her victims in her garden. This makes Ariel look like a foolish character for making a deal with her and downgrades a lot of the "I’ve always wanted to leave the sea" narrative into just a "teenage tantrum." Sure, she’s an impulsive teenager, but the point of this narrative device was to victimize her, and it achieves the opposite. Personally, I would have made Ursula a more discreet and manipulative character, someone Ariel saw as a victim, which could later trigger a sense of betrayal in Ariel.

Then there’s the often-discussed aspect that's always used as an argument: Ariel's fascination with the human world. It’s a great nuance to add to the story, moving it away from being solely about a romantic interest. Ariel needed her own background, hobbies, and goals, like exploring that unknown world. The problem is its execution—it’s insufficient and tedious. Ariel is a fanatic about the human world, with an oversized ego about what she thinks she knows, and her extreme idealization is used as if it were irrefutable evidence against her father. I always use the same example for this: in neutral terms, Ariel looks like someone who idolizes and defends an extraterrestrial way of life she knows only through the garbage she collects, while everyone else knows these beings hunt humans. Essentially, she comes across as an crazy and obsessed person.

This fascination with the human world is sold to us in a propagandistic and absurd way, focused on "we, the audience, are humans, and Ariel says we’re great, therefore she’s right. Her father keeps giving us a hard time, so he’s a tyrant." By the end of the movie, Ariel becomes the "superior species" because her father bends for absurd reasons. During the first half of the movie, Ariel’s love for the human world is heavily emphasized, but it falls flat when the weight of the original script lands on us. It all turns into a race against time for the woman to win over the man, and all the prior development becomes mere decoration that could be removed from the plot without affecting it at all. If Ariel hadn’t met Eric, she wouldn’t have left the water. This is also shown when it’s not until Triton destroys Eric’s statue that Ariel is devastated, unintentionally showing in the script that the rest of the cave treasures (and her character’s corresponding nuance) were mere additions. You can literally erase all the first part of the movie until Ariel meets Eric and there's no difference in the script development. In the end, what matters is the man, and that’s what moves the story. It’s Eric who makes Ariel seriously want to leave the water, and his statue is the crown jewel of her collection. Eric's cracked stone face is what pushes Ariel to take the step, as Flotsam and Jetsam don’t tempt her with exploring the human world but with winning over "her prince," just like Ursula does later too. Everything in the deal and the song, revolves around seducing Eric.

Personally, on this point, as I said, the script had to be completely changed, and that’s why they could have taken more risks by simply eliminating narrative elements that doomed the story to follow its original course. Ariel shouldn’t have fallen in love until she left the water. There are tons of stories they could have told about a mermaid being deceived by a witch to fulfill her dream of becoming human, and then introduced the romantic interest after she achieved her initial goal. This would have not only affected Ariel but Eric as well, who also loses out in Disney’s version. Originally, he was a prince who at least knew he had no romantic interest in the protagonist. Here, he’s a puppet obsessed with a voice while also being attracted to a mute stranger, despite being "in love" with the owner of the voice, and then goes on to marry a third woman who, no matter how much they try to sell us the idea that she "hypnotized" him, her physical appearance raises serious doubts in a realistic context about how much of a womanizer and fickle person Eric is.

Then we have poor Triton, the real victim of this script. He’s the most logical character in the film, battered by forced scenes where he loses control of his temper to demonize his perfectly logical ideas, and suffers absurd accusations of patriarchy against the protagonist (because we can all see how Ariel is locked in her room with no freedom, having tons of real obligations in her privileged underwater bubble). He’s also used as a cheap tool to emphasize human supremacy over the marine world.

Another aspect that should have been more balanced is the presence of animals. Ariel is by far the most dependent protagonist on others because of this. The supporting characters do absolutely all the work for Ariel, whose only accomplishments in the movie boil down to dodging a shark, saving a man from drowning (which was already in the original script), jumping into the water to swim after the wedding ship (for which she also needs help), and grabbing Ursula by the hair. One could argue that Cinderella also relied on her friends to escape her confinement. The difference is that Cinderella herself took the initiative by ordering them to bring Bruno, a course of action that made sense due to the development they had, making it a logical resource to use as a consequence. We are shown how Cinderella built relationships with her friends, so these friends help her in her moments of necessity. But in Ariel’s case, her friends act and solve things without communicating anything to her. Ariel controls none of the situations, and everyone else solves the problems for her.

Considering the decades that had passed, I’m still surprised at how all the nuances of the film end up making Ariel a much weaker woman than her predecessors, who didn’t navigate their plots pretending to be heroines like the case of the Little Mermaid. Ariel doesn’t learn or reason through anything during her experience. She doesn’t control any of the events around her or discover anything for herself, doesn’t apologize for her mistakes, and conveniently gets a rather undeserved happy ending. She doesn’t adapt to circumstances (the circumstances and characters adapt to her needs), she suffers no disappointments from the human world she so idealized because she walks on clouds as the privileged guest of a prince, and nothing happens to pull her out of her comfort bubble.

Essentially, it’s a script that not only retains 80% of the original nuances but also worsens them by making the mermaid’s actions affect more people due to her recklessness, and on top of that, rewarding her for being the most problematic and useless character.

[welcome-to-ratterrock]

I'm curious, if the cast have any hobbies they do in their free time or to relax?

(The world is too chaotic, hope they all have a peaceful day😔)

Thank you so much for sending this, the crew definitely needs those moments of relaxation and fun…

Locke loves playing his viola, playing music is very therapeutic for him, releasing the tension and giving voice to the emotions it is so very hard for him to speak about. Like the violin it’s an instrument that elicits haunting sounds and sadness, but it’s darker and richer in tone. He gets so ticked off when people mistake it for a violin. 

He likes reading nonfiction books, with the exception of a few novels, and also enjoys attending concerts where he can close his eyes and sink into the music like water…but because his work is so important to him, he doesn’t really make time for himself to do such things. 

Once upon a time, he loved playing chess with Regal. 

Regal plays the piano, a versatile instrument adept at both classic and contemporary music. Playing is very therapeutic for him, releasing tension and turmoil and allowing him a way to “speak” to the emotions so many would be horrified by. 

He loves to read a variety of different things, nonfiction and novels and plays and poetry and essays, and enjoys attending the theater as well. However, due to his work, he’s very busy and hasn’t had much time to himself. 

Once upon a time, he loved playing chess with Locke. 

Sorcha adores reading, and her absolute favorite book is “The Phantom of the Opera” - she’s very proud to have a first edition in her personal library! She is very much a patron of the arts in general, always looking for new art galleries and museums to explore, theaters and shows to attend. She also loves being wealthy enough to be able to shop at high fashion stores for all sorts of treasures to adorn herself with, and all the owners are thrilled that a beauty like her wears their wares…

Lorcan’s biggest passion is boxing, he’s an absolute legend in the ring and loves to lose himself in a good match, facing off with a worthy opponent. He also loves swimming as well but doesn’t get to do it too much, which is a shame as it really helps with his aches and pains. For quieter moments he likes to whittle and play cards. 

Rilla’s biggest passion is dancing, a love that her mother passed onto her, it is her joy and her escape from whatever weighs her down. She also LOVES designing and sketching dresses and clothing, and would love to bring her creations to life but she’s never been able to find someone to teach her how to sew. She also is known in her social circle to be a dab hand at crafting some stunning flower crowns. 

Lu loves to write, especially stories about magic and fantasy and girls finding themselves through challenges. She visits the library and bookshops whenever she can. She also enjoys watercolors, especially landscapes and flowers. 

Brig was taught to box by her father and she’s been a devoted boxer ever since, and is an absolute beast in the ring. She finds working out to be very relaxing as well, a good way to center herself and enjoy the burn of her body. 

Bogdan loves composing music, he’s very talented and likes to take his inspiration from the natural world. He’s also avid about charting the stars, and spends much of his time studying the skies.

Casimir will actually be gaining a hobby in the comic! But as for right now, he loves playing cards and gambling, especially when the stakes are high…

Clifford likes good old fashioned English hunting, shooting after crickets and beetles and birds (they aren’t sentient in this world). 

Thank you again for sending this! As we introduce more characters I’m gonna come back to this post and reblog it with their favorite hobbies, this was a wonderful character exploration exercise. And it doesn’t even touch on what the couples like to do together…

[bearsgrove]

5, 6, 11, 22 for falenas my friend falenas……

thank u so much jackie mwah!!!!!!!!

5. What are your character’s strongest and weakest stats (strength, charisma, etc)?

strongest: charisma, wisdom weakest: strength the rest: equally mid he is a bard alright 😔

6. What is your Tav’s origin story?

i'm still working on his whole background but his most "recent" (as in, before being abducted by the mind flayers and before events of the game) history is mostly woven with dealing with loss and finding his place in the world afterwards. he had a partner for many years, they lived a peaceful life. while fälenas mostly made a bit of living as a bard in local taverns, his partner was a very adventurous type. she often ventured further from their home, faced various dangers. one such adventure turned out to be fatal, though not right away. it was a slow death they both realized when it was too late, she fell ill to some sort of evil spell and passed away. fälenas was going to propose to her, he carries the ring around his neck to this day. that experience destroyed him for quite some time. he found solace in performing for other people, making them laugh or cry with songs and stories or just melodies played on his lute. fälenas was never really too fond of cities, he enjoyed the atmosphere of smaller towns. but prior to the events of the main game he moved to baldur's gate when he became a bit more popular and beloved as a bard. he's been living there for 3 years now, doing quite well. and then the mind flayer abduction happens and here we are!

11. What is your Tav’s most used weapon or spell?

needless to say, fälenas cannot really fight a whole lot 😔 his main "weapon" is probably his lute. his songs, his words. he is able to charm people/enemies, put them to sleep, he is proficient in enchantments then mainly (to name specific spells: vicious mockery, sleep, charm person, tasha's hideous laughter, blindness, crown of madness, confusion…) but also has the ability to do some basic/minor healing. fälenas is mostly then a support in his party, avoiding direct engagement with enemies, letting his more capable allies do the heavy lifting. he does have a trusty hand crossbow and a dagger/shortsword but isn't great with either, they are both sort of "just in case" and so he has some actual weapons to defend himself with but in all honesty he doesn't enjoy using weapons. he prefers casting various spells with his lute, his words.

22. How does your Tav act around their crush?

very nonchalantly at first because he assumes it's just a momentary infatuation, he doesn't often flirt but he is confident enough that he simply has this.. natural charm (high charisma ahahaa am i right) and he is aware of it too, so he doesn't feel the need to openly act on this. later when his feelings for shadowheart deepen he will actively flirt and always offer a helping hand or a safe place for shadowheart to talk about her worries, etc. he simply wants her to feel less alone and he lets her know that she has a safe place in him.

questions!

[1d1195]

That’s so real, loving them but not liking them lol I LITERALLY JUST SAID THAT today to my mom today about one of my cousins who I have found memories growing up but I don’t really want to have a relationship with tbh and it goes for the majority of them bc some of them ARE INSANE!! Especially from my mom’s side HAHA why did I think you had a brother?! I feel like you would be such a good big sister for a brother tbh and i obviously have no doubt your amazing for your sister! TELL ME WHY I ALSO THINK MY BROTHER IS MORE OUTGOING THAN ME!! We really are so similar it’s crazy but I love that for us! And you’re so kind Sam😭 my brother is definitely more social and can vibe with people easier and if he feels comfortable with people I would consider him to be more extroverted than I am at least! He’s kinda funny but somethings he says is kinda out of pocket but idk I blame it on him being a teen lol he’s also so musically gifted and definitely more talented than me HAHA BUT overall I think he’s a good kid, of course he has his moments and traits where I simply cannot understand lol

I feel like doing an Ancestry test would give you the answers you may want! I’ve personally never done any but I gifted my dad a 23 and me! The results were kinda wild considering I thought he would have more European blood bc colonization lol but he’s actually like 80% indigenous?!? Which I thought was SO cool!

BESTIE YOU SHOUDL DO IT!! I WOULD READ IF YOU EVER WANT OTHERS TO READ IT!! I genuinely think you’re like cool and I don’t think you give yourself enough credit for that! Also were you a flower crown girly when they were really popular?! Bc I definitely was and I was also a galaxy legging girl which was solely driven for my love for space lol also I love a good deal, so TJMaxx is fave to browse! bet you looked so pretty with it on!!

I love it too, and seeing it in Spanish is just so heartbreakingly beautiful! Idk it may be a controversial opinion or not but i definitely do think if you ever decide into venturing participating in it , you totally could. As long as you do it in a way where you genuinely want to learn the culture and respect it, there’s no harm in it. Respect is probably the most important thing!

Saw my TA today and god I am so down bad😔

Omg it’s crazy we have the same book?! I was so close to picking a fantasy one and idk I felt drawn to it!

I reread the original one shot today and it still hits! I think it was very clear that he was so in love with her by his actions and just the way he talks with her!

Oh bestie I have never been in love so we are in the same boat lol I’m pretty sure it has to due with my own self sabotage tendencies, self esteem, and vulnerability issues lol and you’re not weird at all for feeling like that!

We all deserve the love that we desire and while I think people advocate that what the media or literature present is a “fantasy”, I don’t think it’s un achievable! It just looks different for everyone because we all have different definitions and examples of what love is and can be. So many factors go into it, but i remember reading something where the author explained that we all have multiple people in which can love us romantically and platonically yet they all have different “levels” of love. And since there’s so many people/souls And paths that you can take, some achieve platonic love that romantic and vice versa. But all that love was meant for you to experience through multiple lives. IDK if any of that made sense but it’s probably my delusional self trying to find some way of viewing love lol and I think that writting that about the MC was so well done, it felt very therapeutic for the character but I’m glad that it works for you too💗

And you know I’ll be here for you! I love you and love chatting with you! Hope that you have the loveliest weekend!-💜

I think I would have THRIVED with a brother. But my sister is pretty cool. She's very artistic (double it and give it to the next one again) and she helps me with my clothes and makeup almost every time I need it. I'm sure your brother looks up to you and teens are DUMB (I mean that kindly given I spend most of my time with teens) so I'm sure his moments will get better with time 💕 You sound like you really adore him so he'll be fine :)

WOW that's so cool that your dad got results that were different than you expected! You should look into the results more (if you haven't already) it sounds cool! It would probs be really bad but I think i want a dramatic story about my extended family... 👀 probs antagonistic of me but as you can see I love them but don't like them HAHAHAHA I have some suspicions about my dad's siblings and I would LOVE to put some puzzle pieces into place 🕵️‍♀️

I would live in TJMaxx if I could 😂 I was neither a flower crown nor galaxy pants. I was too self-conscious to do either (still am) but I def would have been a flower crown girly FOR SURE.

Part of the problem is I am very emotional and people around me just ARE NOT. I enjoy watching all the TikTok posts about how love is this big romantic thing for a lot of people or maybe just in general and I feel really close to those kinds of posts. Let me see if I can find one... (it's probs going to make it into a story I'll write one day).

I appreciate the love I get but I think I often hold back how much I love people because I'd be viewed as weird. I like to believe I love the way that little picture shows. I feel like I really SEE people and I don't think I've ever been seen (hence the fanfic writing). I love my family, my friends, and my students so much. It's a little exhausting sometimes hahaha You made perfect sense 💕 I don't think you're delusional at all! You're still very young and you've got a great head on your shoulders and heart in your chest. You want to be in love with the right person and there's nothing wrong with that. Your "self-sabotaging" is probs saving you from a heartache that you don't know about. Just make sure that if you think it can go somewhere you try--even if it's like a date or two. I bet you have a good gut instinct and you'll know immediately 💕

HAVE A WONDERFUL RELAXING WEEKEND! Hope you do something fun or get to read your new book! 😊

xoxo

[versadies]

Yes u really pulled this off !! 😭😭😭 —pulled our heartstrings into the abyss full of worries until the "jk april fools" popped out 🧍‍♀️😒🤣 it was so funny so many are scammed— 🥴😌 Dan do be feelin so goofy 2day 😭 dw you're forgiven 🥰💗

Congrats too on using Diluc after such a long time 😌💗 it was actually fun to try out new characters too whenever one's friendship points is maxed!!🤩🤩🤩 10/10 would recommend doing so, it is beneficial as well as will make you less bored of the game!! 😚 and i have news for you m'lady: i leveled ayato to 90 and crowned his skill 🤧 what on earth is this man up to he aint even my favorite and he is CROWNED during the first week of getting him 🤔🤔🤔 i think you're right. I've been hypnotized 💀🤯 — or maybe i just fell in love with his kit rather than he himself 😌 if you don't get it, just think of liking a person just for their money- 🤧

The grind you do 😰😰 Chasm is a pain in the ass so whenever u feel frustrated while exploring and maxing the explorations, please be sure to do something else to cool the frustration and refresh your mind!! 🥰🥰🥰 why are yall so fast in exploring 🤔😰

Dw bout my kazuha funds i originally have 10k left and now due to the event they're 12k ✨🤧 im planning to try my luck @ mistsplitter reforged sword too so yes, worrying might actually be significant,,, 😔😔😔 still, thank you Dan for your kind words!! :DD

—cheering you on, 🍰.

i do be feeling goofy 😋😋😋!! i was giggling my arse off when i was typing the april fools post even tho i had small expectations of y’all falling for it (which most of you guys actually did) 😈😈 diluc was quite fun, esp since i get to slander him 24/7 /j i got his friendship card by january i think? and it was worth it bcuz i get to see him wink when doing his ult, its absolutely adorable <333 adorably ugly 🤡🤡🤡 /j

i don’t blame you for loving his kit, its absolutely GODLY when i tried his trial run — and crowning him when you recently got him? that’s impressive for someone who’s an ayato slanderer /j

i dont rlly feel frustrated since i LOVE chasm sm, what does frustrate me is mister kamisato refusing to come home even when im alr at pity 💀💀💀 so ill def take your advice b4 i go insane :DDD

im glad you got 12k !! thats surely enough to get you kazuha and hopefully the mistsplitter weapon 💪💪