#tried to pick ones that i think represent the individual characters rather than the ships i like them in | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

p-and-p-admin · 4 years ago

Photo

Interview given to The Severus Snape and Hermione Granger Shipping Fan Group. (sharing here Admin approved)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/199718373383293/

Hello Oracle Obscured and welcome to Behind the Quill, thank-you for letting us get to know you a little better.

Many readers will know you already and if they don’t I encourage them to look your works up including Teaching Miss Granger and How I learned to love teachers’ meetings

Okay, let’s jump right in.

What's the story behind your pen name?

Hmmm ... that’s kind of a weird answer for me. I wanted to choose a name that didn’t immediately indicate whether I was male or female. I’d noticed a certain freedom afforded to authors of indistinguishable gender. With no societal construct about the “nature” of the creator, the story stood on its own, without prejudice or conditioned expectations.

I brainstormed about six or seven names and then picked the one that appealed to me most. I’ve always felt drawn to the idea of oracles (those who see beyond). And I definitely felt obscured in that department. (Hell, at the time, my whole life felt obscured.)

Which Harry Potter character do you identify with the most?

I don’t know if I do. I guess if I had to pick, I’d say Hermione, as I have a tendency to be an obsessive perfectionist when it comes to work/studying. I like to be organized and plan things out. And I can be quite demanding and harsh with myself when I feel like I’m not measuring up to my own insane ideals.

But I took that openpsychometrics.org statistical quiz a while back, where you answer like a bazillion comparison questions (I did the longer version), and my highest HP match was Remus Lupin (83%). Yeah, I can see that.

Luna is my favorite character, but I don’t know if I identify with her more than anyone else.

Do you have a favourite genre to read? (not in fic, just in general)

It used to be horror/suspense, but ... I don’t know ... I’m just not as into it anymore. Maybe it’s because the real world is horrifying enough without adding fictional monsters to the mix.

Now I mostly read classics.

Do you have a favourite "classic" novel?

To Kill a Mockingbird.

At what age did you start writing?

Just writing stories in general? Maybe second grade. It wasn’t a passion or anything, just something I was pretty good at. I only really did it at school, though, not so much at home. I read A LOT growing up, so I naturally imagined that I might be an author one day. I tried to write a book when I was about 13 or 14, but less than one chapter in, I decided it was too hard. (I was NOT a Hermione growing up. Planning and perseverance were not my style.)

I took a massive break from thinking after high school (the smorgasbord of medications I was on didn’t like me using my brain too much, and my plans for college went out the window when my depression become unmanageable). I didn’t really start writing again until I was about twenty-seven. That was when I found fanfiction. I consider that when I really started writing.

How did you get into writing fanfiction?

I found fanfiction while looking for erotica. Needless to say I discovered the motherlode, and I was hooked. Over the years, I’d written bits and pieces of my own sexy scenarios (which is what you do when you grow up without the internet and you have to depend on your imagination for all your kink requirements), but I’d never really thought about taking someone else’s “story world” and using it as my setting. For a little over a year I read/devoured all the HP fanfiction I could, and then I realized I could take all the fantasies in my head and play them out with my favorite characters.

The first story I wrote was a funny/smutty Ginny/Draco thing, and it was HORRIBLE. The story and the sex were fine, but the writing was a nightmare. I submitted it to The Restricted Section, which was the only site I knew at the time, and they vetted their stories, so I had to get approved. They wrote me back saying it needed work and I should get a beta. So I went on the forum and found one (which was rather brave of me now that I think back). The person who helped me must’ve had the patience of a saint, because he/she(?) never said a damn thing about all the mistakes and shitty-ness. Suggestions and corrections were made, and I changed some of the pronouns to names so it wouldn’t sound so repetitive. The next time I submitted it, they accepted, and I got a decent response for a first-time writer (like three or four nice reviews). No one seemed to hate it, and the reviewers said the sex was hot, so I tried again, hoping to do better.

That’s when I wrote the first chapter of Teaching Miss Granger. It started out as just a oneshot. And it got a much better response. I wanted to write more, but I became extremely depressed and lethargic, and I didn’t really do anything for the next six or seven years. (I mean nothing. Unless you consider watching every episode of Law & Order CI and SVU ten times over to be an accomplishment.)

I came back to it years later, intending to add a few chapters to TMG where they have sex, but ... it just sort of evolved into the monster that it is. I worked on it pretty much every day for about a year. I’d never stuck with ANYTHING that long in my entire life.

What's the best theme you've ever come across in a fic? Is it a theme represented in your own works?

I would say love or “the power of love” is probably my favorite theme. But that includes synonyms for love as well. (Like wholeness, which is the theme of Quartet.)

What fandoms are you involved in other than Harry Potter?

None. I like other fandoms, but I don’t write for them, and I don’t usually read their fanfiction.

If you could make one change to canon, what would it be? Do you have a favourite piece of fanon?

I’ve never really thought about changing cannon. I mean, I change it to suit my fictional purposes (like Snape lives etc.), but I wouldn’t want to change canon for real. The deaths in HP serve a purpose, and while I find many of those deaths heartbreaking, that’s kind of the point. Hatred is bleak and destructive, and good people don’t survive wars simply because they’re good; bad things happen to good people all the time. As for changing something about the individual characters, I can’t get behind that either. The reasons people do things are multifaceted and complex and they’re colored by a lifetime of experiences I will never know or understand, so I don’t feel I can really judge. I can’t say I understand all the choices I’ve made in my own life, and there’ve been plenty of times where I had no choice at all. I can’t hold others to more rigorous standards than I myself can meet. We all have our shortcomings. (And that’s cool. Without them, there would be no growth or diversity.)

Do I have a favorite piece of fanon? Hmmm ... probably Head Boy and Head girl rooming together or having private rooms.

Oh! And uniforms.

Do you listen to music when you write or do you prefer quiet?

I used to listen to really quiet classical music while wearing headphones. Every little sound in the house distracts me, and I have to block it out. But lately I’ve just been running this old box fan that drowns out the noise.

What are your favourite fanfictions of all time?

Crap, I don’t know if I can choose. (Plus I feel like I’ve forgotten a lot of what I’ve read.)

My friend Desert Sea is my fav Hermione/Severus writer. Out of her stories, the ones I like best are In Their Hands and At the Headmaster’s Discretion.

After a brief search of my accounts, I’ll go with:

Do Not Go Gentle by senlinyu

Another Dream by dragoon811

The Last Twenty-Four Hours of Severus Snape by CryingCinderella

Pretty much everything by Aurette

Pet Project by Caeria

Post Tenebras, Lux by Loten

All the SS/HG stuff from snapeslittleblackbuttons

There’s a Teddy Radiator story that I like a lot, but I can’t remember the name of it. (Or what it’s about.) (Yes, very helpful, I know.)

And in a category all it’s own is Farmer Granger and the Most Glorious Cock by MyWitch. (Seriously, I read this like once a month and it makes me laugh every time.)

I read a lot of Drarry too. Drarry stories I love:

Everything by bixgrl1, but especially Balance Imperfect and In Evidence of Magical Theory

Everything by lq_traintracks (even the non-Drarry stuff). The writing is amazing.

I love all the advent stories by Saras_girl.

I like all the Drarry stories I’ve read by Faithwood.

I really like RZZMG’s writing. (No particular story or pairing.)

And I just rediscovered a story I found in 2007 (the first m/m fic I ever read). It’s a Snarry, which I know isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it was excellent. Snape: the Home Fries Nazi by pir8fancier

Are you a plotter or a pantser? How does that affect your writing process?

I enjoy a bit of both. My oneshots are all pantsed. TMG was totally pantsed. But Getting Personal and Quartet were both plotted and planned. For GP I did sort of a chapter by chapter synopsis before starting my rough draft, and for Q I went into even more detail—EVERYTHING was planned out ahead of time. The only thing that changed during the first draft was I ended up combining some of the chapters.

How does plotting affect my writing process compared to pantsing? It streamlines it. In a oneshot there’s not much to streamline; the basic story (or general idea) is all you really need. There’s not enough story to get muddled. But when I’m writing something longer, with multiple chapters, I find it’s better to know where the story is going. How deeply I go into that planning can vary. Sometimes there’s just a basic outline of the major plot points and then I fly by the seat of my pants from there. Sometimes I write out a very rough synopsis (sort of like a short and loose first draft) and then start writing as if it’s my second draft. Things inevitably get changed once I really start writing, so the planning isn’t set in stone by any means, but when I plan, the story goes in the general direction I intend without veering too far off course and there aren’t any plot holes. After I wrote TMG (with no planning) I saw that there was A LOT I could have cut or combined without affecting anything important. I learned a little more with each story I wrote, and when I got to Q, there was a lot of complicated ideas that I wanted to incorporate, and there were so many characters (and character arcs) going on that I had to plan extensively to make sure everything fit together. If I hadn’t worked it out ahead of time, it would’ve been like throwing a heap of puzzle pieces on the table but not being given a reference picture to know what it was I was working toward.

What is your writing genre of choice?

I have no idea. Plotty sex? Erotic dramady? Some of it is just straight up PWP, but I usually like to have something meaningful in there too.

Which of your stories are you most proud of? Why?

Usually the answer is whatever I’ve most recently written, as it’s the most likely to represent my current “best.” In terms of writing, I’ll go with A Brush with Magic, but Quartet is probably my best storytelling. A lot went into that (symbolism, planning, obsessive re-writes) and it holds a good deal of personal meaning to me. So, I guess I’ll go with Q due to the time and effort involved.

Did it unfold as you imagined it or did you find the unexpected cropped up as you wrote? What did you learn from writing it?

The unexpected always crops up (even with all my planning), and it’s the unexpected that makes the magic.

While I had many insights into my own nature while writing Quartet, in the end I think it taught me to trust/listen to myself more.

Later, however, it brought me a very different message. While writing it, I felt a lot of tension and anxiety; I wanted to “do it right” and present my story in the best light. But after some time away, I realized I’d been so worried because I felt as if that story represented me, as if it defined me. And the pressure of being judged worthy or unworthy had been eating me alive.

But I don’t feel that way anymore. Now it’s like I wrote all my stories in another lifetime. While they all might be a snapshot of a fraction of my mind, nothing I create ever says a damn thing about who or what I truly am. Since letting go of that, I’ve found a sense of freedom around writing. I still like to express things as clearly and beautifully as I can, but it’s more a celebration of words than a search for acceptance.

How personal is the story to you, and do you think that made it harder or easier to write?

Quartet was extremely personal to me when I wrote it, and in a lot of ways I think that made it easier to write. When I have to go strictly by imagination, I feel as if I’m missing some depth of understanding (like I’m getting the surface-level stuff, but missing the nuance). When I write from experience, it has an entirely different quality. Richer. More intimate. It’s work to write what I don’t know, but it’s easy to write the truth.

Posting, however, is an entirely different story. Other people don’t always want the truth, and if you feel like your story is an extension of you, it can hurt to have any part of it rejected.

What books or authors have influenced you? How do you think that shows in your writing?

I think everything I’ve ever read or seen has influenced me. In terms of writing, I guess I’d say I’m inspired by beauty in all its forms. When I first started reading fanfiction, I just searched for the kinks I liked; it was all about the sex (with bonus points for having a decent plot). Then one day I read an extremely well-written PWP (I don’t remember what), and the way the author described the sex was so unlike anything I had ever read, it totally blew my mind. It was art. Exquisite art. And before that, I didn’t know sex could be art. That author didn’t just recount the characters’ actions, they painted a word masterpiece—they turned porn into poetry. THAT was what I wanted in my life. And I didn’t know it until that moment.

Books/authors that stick with me:

The Harry Potter series (obviously).

Shel Silverstein (Love the poetry, but The Giving Tree is one of my favorite books of all time.)

Dr. Seuss (Always.)

Judy Blume (I still have my copy of Are You There God it’s Me Margaret from when I was, like, 10. Tiger Eyes is my favorite of hers.)

R.L. Stine (I got hooked prior to the creation of the Goosebumps series, but I had EVERY Fear Street Book he wrote when I was in middle school.)

Weekend by Christopher Pike (This was the first YA thriller I ever read. *Sigh* memories. I still have my original copy, and I still read it every once in a while. The characters and plot are great.)

Stephen King (Carrie is my fav.)

Anne Rice (I’ve read all the vampire and witch books, but The Witching Hour is the only one I’ve read multiple times. Blackwood Farm is my next favorite.)

To Kill a Mockingbird

Charles Dickens (David Copperfield is my fav.)

Jane Austen (I can’t pick between Pride & Prejudice and Sense & Sensibility.)

Thomas Harris (Brilliant writing, and Hannibal might be one of the most intriguing anti-heros ever.)

Stieg Larsson (Another brilliant writer with a brilliant character.)

The Giver by Lois Lowry (I haven’t read the rest of the trilogy. And I haven’t seen the movie. I refuse to besmirch my childhood love with Hollywood’s interpretation.)

Bridge to Terabithia (This book devastated me as a child.)

Gillian Flynn (Sharp Objects is my fav.)

Liane Moriarty (I like all of her books, especially Big Little Lies. The way she plays with the timeline is masterful.)

Frank Herbert’s Dune. (I grew up on this. It’s my dad’s all-time favorite book. And, yes, we’re looking forward to the new movie.)

Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale is horrifyingly wonderful. And Atwood herself is fascinating. Watch her Masterclass if you get the chance.)

Steinbeck’s East of Eden (This might be my second favorite book.)

The Lucifer Effect by Phillip Zimbardo (This isn’t fiction, but it was the first book that really affected the way I see the world.)

Eisler’s The Chalice and the Blade (Also not fiction. If you’re interested in the divine feminine and a more egalitarian society, this is the book for you.)

Loving What Is by Byron Katie (The only self-help book that’s ever actually helped me.)

Daphne Du Maurier (I love Rebecca, but she also has a story called “The Blue Lenses” that isn’t really intended to be scary, but it freaked me the fuck out.)

The Secret History by Donna Tartt (Gorgeous writing, and the plot left me seriously disturbed.)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey (Gah! I love this. The writing and the story and the characters and EVERYTHING!)

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (I Bradbury’s writing style, but the plot of F451 is pure horror for any book hoarder lover.)

The Lord of the Flies by William Golding (This might be my third favorite book ever. No, wait, I might like it better than East of Eden. I can’t choose!)

The Diary of Anne Frank (How in the hell could anyone read this and not be affected by it?)

Do people in your everyday life know you write fanfiction?

No. This is my own private world, and I like it that way.

How true for you is the notion of "writing for yourself"?

Very. I write what I want to read. There are certain adjustments I make when I write for other people as opposed to what I do when writing strictly for myself, but nothing major. I refuse to write things I have no interest in, and I don’t write to make people happy. I write to please myself. (But it’s nice when what pleases me pleases others. It’s wonderful to share that connection.)

How important is it for you to interact with your audience? How do you engage with them? Just at the point of publishing? Through social media?

I like hearing from my readers. I don’t have a lot of time to interact, but I like talking to my audience and listening to their insights. I try to reply to all the comments I get on AO3 (it’s just too hard on FFN). And when I have free time (which isn’t often) I check my FB groups to see what’s going on. To me, the interaction kind of completes the creative cycle; it helps me set the story free and allow it to be. It really belongs to the reader once I’ve published, and it’s nice to see the ripples creativity creates.

What is the best advice you've received about writing?

Unless it’s absolutely necessary, stop using the word “was.” Completely changed my writing.

What do you do when you hit writer's block?

It doesn’t really happen that much, as I usually know where I’m going with my story, but there can be glitches between scenes or times when I can’t find the words for something (like ending a chapter). When that happens, I usually just leave it and come back later—I can’t force it if it won’t come.

If I really need to get it done for some reason, I read what I have over and over, adding a little bit more each time, trying out words that “sound right” and building what I need bit by bit. What I come up with isn’t always right or what I want, but at least I have something to work with. Sometimes seeing what’s wrong makes what you want more obvious.

Has anything in real life trickled down into your writing?

Yeah, just about everything Sex, depression, anxiety, personal growth, likes/dislikes, insights, interests, philosophy, all my little neuroses. Every once in a while I’ll even include some dialogue from real life.

Do you have any stories in the works? Can you give us a teaser?

I’m juggling about five long stories right now (plus a couple oneshots). And I haven’t worked on any of them in ages. I don’t know what’s going on with me; I’m just not in the mood. I don’t want to say what they are, as I might never finish them. (Two are Drarry and three are Sevmione. One is a compilation of oneshots. Four of them are completely planned out and just need to be written. The unplanned Drarry was always just meant to be for myself and I doubt I’ll ever release it.)

Any words of encouragement to other writers?

Yes. Enjoy the whole writing/creative process as much as possible. Try not to beat yourself up, and don’t try to force yourself to be better. You will naturally get better the more you write. Change is inevitable; allow it to happen. Read books about writing, and read good writers. Notice what brings you the most pleasure when you read and tap into that same pleasure when you write. Play with words and ideas just for fun. Watch and see what appears. There is no perfect.

If you’re writing about sex (because I get asked about that a lot), write what turns YOU on. Don’t try to be sexy. Don’t try to write what you think other people want to hear. Don’t worry about what other people think (at least in the first draft). If they don’t like it they can go read something else. But if YOU like it, it will shine through in your writing, and that will have a bigger impact on your reader than any activity you describe. Also, the physicality is only a fraction of the sexual experience. Don’t turn your sex scenes into a play-by-play. You’re not really writing about what the characters are doing so much as how what they’re doing affects them. It’s a personal experience, and the more personal you make it (the more honest and vulnerable you are as a writer) the more satisfying the story will be for your reader. Wise words! Thank-you so much for speaking with us today Oracle Obscured.

#snamione #writing #fanfiction #fanfic

8 notes · View notes

vedj-f-bekuesu · 5 years ago

Text

Ninjago Unpopular Opinions

Following on from my watch of the entire old series (combined with already having seen the last two series), I have enough material to work with to make a sort of unpopular opinion list. Some of these are lightweight, some of these are...uh, not so much.

These aren’t in any particular order, this is more of a “I’ll just put them down as I remember them” sort of deal. That’ll be why they appear so messy.

-Even after all this I prefer the newest seasons to the older stuff. There have been a surprising number of good to great older seasons, but I just love that hit of S1/S2 campiness with the more developed writing of later seasons.

-Cole sucked as a leader, aside from in the pilot episodes. In the series proper he varied from complete meathead I hated (first part of S1), to having the same mentoring personality as everyone else (S1 - S2), to being consumed by the love triangle which made him pull a really shitty move (I don’t need to tell you what that refers to). He eventually gets ironed out in season 4, but Lloyd had already taken over as leader at this point. And rightfully so, even if Lloyd’s material got knocked from season 3 as a result.

-I couldn’t really warm up to Ronin that much for some reason. I get the reason why he’s popular, since it was pretty obvious he was supposed to be like an off-beat mentor figure to Nya, but...I dunno, unlike with Dareth, it felt like his skeevy moments were more off-kilter, plus I didn’t really like his arc in Skybound (even if that was written out of reality). That being said, his was strong in Possession even with said moments. Maybe I just need a future appearance to see how I ultimately swing with him.

-I mentioned this in my Hunted overview, but I think Skylor’s just bland. Part of the problem is that she’s mainly just wedged in as an action girl and doesn’t have too many moments to interact outside of that. That’s mostly reserved for moments where she acts as Agony Aunt (which is fine, that shows that being supportive is in her nature), but she needs more to work with. And as an obvious offshoot, if Kailor is the intended endgame it sucks in its current form. They don’t have chemistry or a decent dynamic.

-The other Ninjago ship I don’t particularly like out of all of them is...actually Geode. Yeah, Rebooted obviously wasn’t good for it considering the love triangle, but what actually did more damage to it for me was Skybound. It went so far in trying to oversteer back that it beat you over the head with the fact they were making Cole and Jay best friends after said love triangle (made really obvious when Jay is worried about Cole’s reaction to him seeing Nya in his reflection in both Possession and Skybound, when Cole isn’t even phased when he’s told). It was just really off-putting.

-Jay is a better big brother figure to Lloyd than Kai. Yeah, Kai’s true potential moment in Rise of the Serpentine hinged on realising he (and the others, mind) were supposed to protect Lloyd, they all spent Legacy of the Green Ninja’s first half being Lloyd’s proper mentors, Zane’s death prompted Kai to hover with thoughts of the Green Ninja again (which seemed to me for different reasons to being envious of power at the start, although its handling was very clunky after that), and he had the first episode in Possession which was arguably the strongest showing of a dynamic with Lloyd, but Possession didn’t have much about it outside of said episode, and the show seemed to just forget it from that point beyond some very, very fleeting and sparse bits. In the more modern seasons, it feels like Jay’s stepped up to be more supportive of Lloyd on a more consistent basis (which would make sense with the common fanon that Jay is the youngest of the original Ninja, he’d be closer to Lloyd’s age). It’s something I kind of want tapped into in a proper way at some point.

-Sensei Garmadon is a bit overrated. Just a smidge. When he’s good, he’s good, but most of the time he’s no more interesting than Wu would be in the same position. And I feel like they didn’t really develop his fatherly bond with Lloyd too well despite that being what his character was there for. Again, aside from moments where he was really good.

-Most underrated season of the old batch for me was the last minute shock, March of the Oni. I did enjoy Day of the Departed (which has a worse reputation), but I can understand why someone wouldn’t like it considering how bare it was. March of the Oni is far from my favourite season but I thought it came together really well, so the fact it’s generally panned legitimately confuses me. I guess Hands of Time would be a contender too, but I think opinion on that has swayed in its favour after the new seasons came out (and Secrets of the Forbidden Spinjutsu would be here if I included the new batch) so that’s why it’s edged out.

-Most overrated season for me was undeniably Tournament of Elements. It’s not my least favourite season, but Rebooted and Hunted are pretty maligned to begin with, while Tournament of Elements is usually considered one of the top ones. It starts strong, has an interesting premise and there are ideas that are executed well. The thing is that the elements that people tend to praise the season for are ones I actually think the writers dropped the ball on, hence why this ended up the toughest season to get to the end of, even more than Hunted. It’s a shame, but it’s just not for me.

-Best ninja suits...honestly, I don’t really notice the suits unless they’re really bad, because I’m used to franchises where costume changes mark radical permanent redesigns, and are not just par for the course of the brand (it makes perfect sense with a toy brand who want to sell you the same characters over and over again but still). Not counting the S11 suits since they weren’t part of the old batch, I guess I’d honestly say the ZX suits, maybe? They’re simple, but they’re cute and very distinct. Also Sons of Garmadon Cole channelling the Movie costume was a very good move (and arguably looks even better ripped up in Hunted aethetically), and Kai’s suit was bleh in Sons of Garmadon but its overhaul in Hunted was way better. Also, just as a wildcard, Rebooted Lloyd looks like a more finely tuned ZX suit. Actually, just one last bit on a tangent to note a difference the show makes to the figures that demonstrates the figures’ limitations. For Kai and Jay’s S11 suits, their figures invoke similar feels (because underneath the accessories they do have a lot in common), whereas they feel very different in the show because while Jay sticks to the figure and looks snug, Kai has a lot exposed around the neckline, as if his gi is hanging loosely on the shoulders and should join Cole in the “For fucks sake it’s an ice realm wear a jacket please” club.

-Worst ninja sui--what the hell happened to Cole and Nya in Hands of Time?! Nya’s main issue is that it’s trying to work too many colours and they just don’t mesh well. I think this was the time they were partially adapting the movie’s change, but they were clinging onto her having red to both represent Samurai X and her ties to her brother, but they should have just picked one or the other because it just doesn’t work the way it did in Skybound. And Cole’s outfit is just hideous. Its balance of colours and accents is all off-kilter, and to top it off the shoes just don’t work and somehow look like socks with sandals. I didn’t know that was doable with a whole suit. Finally, on a general note, I’m not a fan of when the suits are all very similar bar some very, very minor differences. One could argue that it makes them look more like a team, but I prefer the individual personality to come out.

-It’s hard to judge the best and worst episodes, honestly. The seasons from Tournament of Elements onwards are done so tied to each other that picking an episode is rather difficult outside of designated finales (or the odd Jay-focused/Zane-focused episodes that happened in seasons 7, 8 and 9). I guess for best I’d say stuff like The Quiet One, or The Fall, or Grave Danger, or stuff like that would be up there. Worst episodes in those seasons are even harder, because usually it’s how arcs over episodes are written that get to me, not individual episodes. This all being said, it’s much easier to do this with the more episodic first three seasons, and to that end I would still say that Tick Tock is my favourite standalone episode still, and Home is still my least favourite. For all the times the writing has dropped the ball, nothing has legitimately pissed me off more than what this episode did because it’s in its own category of bad writing.

-There have been some concepts thrown in that, while they definitely wouldn’t work out in the long term, make for interesting snippets of what-ifs. Like, I loved the bit where Jay was a show host and got around the stage using his lightning powers. That seems like such a natural fit outside of his ninja identity I wish I’d thought of it. Imagine Bradley Walsh using lightning to get around the studio, that would be metal as fuck.

-On the other side of that coin, the bizarro Ninja are the single most overrated concept in the show. I don’t like Scourge the Hedgehog to begin with, but he at least had some efforts to make him unique (that fell flat, but eh). The bizarro Ninja are the equivalent of Evil Sonic; cliche and undeveloped. They’re not even useful for the cliche idea of framing the actual Ninja since even though they’re seen doing delinquent behaviour, this is never addressed. Heck Nadakhan was more effective with this idea. Thing is that I can’t blame the show at all for this. While the concept is naff, the show itself treats them as they actually were; Garmadon’s puppets and the scheme of the episode. Aside from bizarro Jay’s behaviour to Nya being full of unfortunate implications, there is no greater purpose for their existence, and the show never tries to do it again. It’s really the fans that have inflated their appearance in this case because I guess the idea of “take this nice character and give them an evil version” is just so appealing to the teenage demographic. Screw that, corruption is way more fun and interesting.

-What I can blame the show for is the single worst execution of an idea, because to this point I still consider Kai’s green ninja “arc” in Tournament of Elements to be the single worst executed arc (yeah, even worse than the love triangle, but that one is still bad). The sad thing is it managed to convince me that it wasn’t such a bad concept when they explained it by being an offshoot of his depression following Zane’s death (before that I was very sceptical it could fit it in naturally after the last three seasons). But then it was used once when Skylor tried to get Kai to stab Lloyd in the back during the skating match (which Kai completely rebuffed and seemed over his depression-rooted negative vibes on Lloyd), and once more when he was overcome by the power of the staff. The latter is especially infuriating since this would have been the perfect opportunity for a character moment. Like, Lloyd and/or Skylor could have fought to get Kai out of the trance of the staff and see that his friends mean more to him than having power. It practically writes itself and is a perfect set-up. What happens instead is that Cole is technically the one to save Kai from himself as he rams the Roto Jet into the chamber and makes the rocky serpentine structure come crashing down on Kai. Maybe interesting to read into if you want a Lava reading of the show, but in that moment is just a wasted opportunity. Come on!

-Actually, also talking about other bad concepts, I don’t miss those weird energy dragons they could summon starting from Tournament of Elements. The dragons in Rise of the Serpentine/Legacy of the Green Ninja were fine because they had a logical reason for being there and actually were integrated into the plot (so you got to watch them being maintained and having moments with the ninja). The energy dragons in Tournament of Elements existed for one character as a plot thing (Zane’s, because he always had the good plots in the earlier seasons), but then everyone else suddenly could do it too and they became convenient plot devices and nothing else. Airjutsu I was more okay with because it seems more like a tool they’d use and could be integrated better, but I can also see why that stopped being used (outside of that one bit in Prime Empire).

-The Elemental Masters are both over-hyped and underdeveloped. The normal civilian cast really got the shaft once the series decided it wanted to explore this lore, yet the only ones I really got interested in in any way were the villain EMs and Karlof. And even Karlof is overlooked by the fandom, by the looks of it.

-Jay actually came off the best in the Rebooted love triangle. He’s not entirely perfect, but he is essentially the biggest victim as a result of it in that season, and what Nya and Cole did either bordered on or was outright callous for different reasons. I think if people gave Jay the biggest shtick for Rebooted’s events, it’s influenced with how Skybound botched trying to patch it up.

-The movie was a net positive influence on the show. Aside from me preferring the designs of the movie anyway, it forced the characterisation to actually pick a lane for each character and stick to it, mitigating a lot of the haphazard characterisation issues. The inconsistency in later seasons is tone instead, which is maybe why people thought the characterisation was inconsistent between Sons of Garmadon/Hunted and March of the Oni/SotFS (when really, they weren’t that different if at all). The show also made a good call in ignoring movie Zane’s characterisation; as much as I enjoy it in the film, it really didn’t gel up with what the show had done with him, so trying to force it in would have been more of a characterisation jolt than any of the early season stuff.

-I’m generally fine with Jaya and Pixane. The former I can see why people would be off about it because there have been some badly written periods for them, but I think on the whole it manages to hold it together. The latter was written in surprisingly smoothly given the circumstances, so it’s no wonder I don’t see discourse about it.

-Oh yeah, I don’t get Wu/Faith as a ship. Like, she was the cool drill instructor/aunt to everyone, including Wu. This is a quick one because it’s just a very small aside.

-Also I can’t really get behind Polyninja either. If the characters had a fairly even spread of interaction and moments between each other I could, but the spread ends up like lots of moments between Cole and Kai varying from little moments to huge dollops, and Cole and Jay having a whole best friends affirmation arc due to the fallout of the love triangle, to Kai and Jay having barely anything to work with and anyone with Zane getting a couple of table scraps occasionally. It’s not even enough.

-Following on from that though, Zane feels the least integrated with the group dynamic in general. He’s has some of the best plots and stories in the show, but nearly all of them have been focusing on him solo. And not even SotFS or Prime Empire helped with this one. Hopefully MoM can smooth this one out a bit.

-Finally for this post, after going through all those seasons I still prefer Nya’s movie voice to her show voice by a significant margin. Sorry Kelly Metzger.

I think that’s it. I’ve actually been on this for a week but I’ve been allowing time for more thoughts to come to me, because there have been a lot of thoughts coming in batches. I think I’ll leave it at this though, because I think most of it is covered pretty well.

I have at least two more text posts like this planned, but they’re not strictly about the old seasons so I’ve left them for after. I’m looking forward to them though, because they’re on specific topics and that is my bread and butter pudding.

#ninjago #vedj-f talks #rambling is second nature to me #it's also my first nature

28 notes · View notes

twentiethcenturymoviesandtv · 4 years ago

Text

Frankenstein: Genre and Themes

It doesn’t seem possible that Frankenstein can be sorted into any genre except horror. A monster on a killing spree, a mad scientist in his lab, spooky shadows and an opening in a graveyard? It can’t be anything but horror, can it?

Turns out, it can.

Like we’ve discussed before, every story ever created, no matter how simple or complicated, has to fall into at least one genre. Genre is the sum of similarly themed parts that come together to give a style and theme to a story, a form of shorthand to give the audience an idea as to what kind of story they are about to see. And in almost every case, it’s never as simple as it seems.

Characters, stories, settings, and even themes often correspond to different genres As a result, it’s extremely useful as viewers to examine the categorization of films, as it not only sets up our own expectations for individual stories, it also helps us expand the boundaries of genres as their limits are tested.

Which is why Frankenstein is a bit of an odd duck.

I’ll show you what I mean.

Today, we’re going to be looking at the characteristics of the story of Frankenstein to determine what genres it is, what genres it is not, and the whys and wherefores behind them. Let’s take a look. Spoilers below!

An easy way to figure out the genre of any given film is to take a look at the setting of a story. Movies set in outer space tend to be blanketed in the genre of science fiction. Movies set in medieval times are often considered fantasy. Movies set in creepy castles or spooky swamps tend to be considered horror.

Which would seem to be the case with Frankenstein.

It seems obvious. Frankenstein, along with Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Invisible Man, and The Creature from the Black Lagoon created and codified the film genre of ‘classic horror’. These were the templates from which all future monsters would spring, werewolves, vampires, zombies and fish-creatures alike.

The spooky, Gothic shadows and creepy angles, the mad-scientist lab, the scenes in the graveyard, skeletons at the fringes of shots, and of course, the monster himself, would seem to speak to an incredibly obvious horror leaning. In fact, the story’s visual language was based on German Expressionism, which had been used in films like Nosferatu, a bonafide silent horror classic.

But…aren’t horror movies supposed to be scary?

There are no jump-scares in Frankenstein. Characters do not die in horrifying ways. They aren’t stalked, nor are they picked off in a way that’s traditional of horror films, and of the three characters who actually die, two were killed in what could be argued as self-defense by the monster.

Weirdest of all, except for possibly the initial scene of his creation, up until he breaks into Elizabeth’s room, the monster is not set up as being ‘scary’. He’s set up as being sympathetic.

From the first real scene we have of the monster, where he’s lifting his hands in fascination towards light and then cowering from Fritz’s brutality, this is a creature that the audience finds themselves sorry for. This is not typical of movie monsters. There was no pity for Dracula, no concern for The Invisible Man or The Mummy. They were truly monsters, who knew what they were doing.

The Frankenstein monster doesn’t. For a long time, the monster reacts, rather than acts. With that knowledge…he doesn’t really come out of this, at least, the first half, looking like a monster. He’s a scared creature, mistreated into becoming a twisted version of what he could have been, a blank template upon which cruelty has been imprinted.

After the change has occurred, after the monster turns into an active character and goes after Elizabeth and attacks Henry, after so much time of the audience’s built sympathy for this creature, then we feel scared of him. We realize that he is an incredibly threatening figure, that he can be dangerous, but we never truly let go of that sympathy. At the end of the film, we don’t necessarily feel victorious that he is trapped, burning to death in that mill. We feel sorry. As much of a threat as the monster became, he didn’t start out that way. It didn’t have to end like that. But it did.

Hence my case for a rather unconventional idea.

I hypothesize that Frankenstein is a tragedy.

Like I’ve said before, this is a sad story, and I think it was that way by design. I subscribe to the theory that you can best tell the genre of a film based on what kind of characters are in it, and that works especially well for Frankenstein.

You see, as I’ve said before, there is no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ side in this film. The monster is framed as both victim and threat.

And so is Henry Frankenstein.

As an audience, we are not encouraged to wholly dislike either character. (In fact, the only character I believe we are meant to truly hate and fear is Fritz, a character who manipulates his power to inflict cruelty on the monster.) We recognize Henry’s mistakes, we realize that he’s not making the best decisions and we want him to perhaps not reanimate the dead, or maybe at least once he does, treat his new undead son with some respect, but we don’t completely hate him, even as we accept that this whole thing is basically his fault.

Henry is framed as sympathetic. We understand why he feels the way he does, even if we don’t agree with it, and we can figure out why he’s acting the way he is. He has his redeeming moments: his relationship with Elizabeth, once he stops digging up graves is genuine, and the fact that he doesn’t want the creature destroyed could point to a sign of his caring about his creation, even if he sucks at showing it. Even if we don’t relate to Henry, exactly, we understand him, and we don’t necessarily want him to die. He’s a tragic character, a figurative Icarus who aimed too highly for a mortal.

Besides, he was so delightful in that whole ‘raising the dead’ scene. I mean, that’s movie history, right there.

As for the monster?

The monster is actually the most sympathetic character in the entire cast. (Except for maybe Elizabeth.) We get to see his entire lifespan, his birth, life, and death, (Until the sequel) and it’s not a pretty picture. He’s hurt, frightened, and alone, with no-one willing to actually help him function as a being, as a person, instead of as a successful scientific experiment. Henry doesn’t seem to know what to do with him once he proved that he could create life, and as a result, the monster is left alone, with no education in how the world works. He has to figure it out on his own, and the makeshift teachers don’t really help much, either. Fritz abuses him, Dr. Waldman tries to dissect him, and Henry doesn’t pay him much mind after showing him light. Even when the monster meets Maria, he doesn’t know enough about the world to understand that his actions would kill her.

Even further supporting my theory is the ending.

The end of the story, after Henry chases his creation down and faces off with him in the mill, eventually struggling and falling while the villagers burn the mill down, is not played as a victorious climax. This is not the end of a good vs. evil struggle, there is no breath of relief that an audience feels after the defeat of Dracula, Michael Myers, or Freddy Krueger, or even Norman Bates. The ending is solemn, if not sorrowful, as the audience is left with the death of a creature who had experienced misery for the few days that he had lived.

Both protagonist and antagonist share in what is, quite simply, a tragic ending. Henry isn’t even the one to right his own wrong. The monster is slaughtered by an angry mob. Henry never reconciles his mistake. People have died, senselessly, and it could have been avoided, and not in the no-don’t-split-up-you-idiots-there’s-a-killer-in-the-woods way.

The audience is not meant to feel happy or triumphant at the end of this film, in my opinion. In my opinion, we are to mourn both Henry’s arrogance, and the monster’s demise, representative of a life wasted.

Does this mean that Frankenstein is not a horror film? Absolutely not.

Frankenstein codified almost everything we know about classic horror to this day, potentially inspiring things like the zombie horror-genre and influencing Gothic horror in general. None of this to say is that Frankenstein is not meant to be a scary movie, because, in 1931, it certainly was. People were scared, and it was definitely the filmmakers goal to do so in some scenes. The scene where the monster stalks Elizabeth in her room is definitely scary, and the dark lighting adds to the unsettling look and feel of the entire film. The scene where Frankenstein creates the monster remains a staple of best horror scenes, and has influenced countless films since then.

No, Frankenstein is definitely a horror film, make no mistake about that. It’s delightfully scary, full of creepy visuals, unsettling imagery, and a genuinely frightening core story idea: humanity being just capable enough to create life, but not capable enough to see it through competently.

But, horror is not the only genre that Frankenstein demonstrates.

Mary Shelley’s original Frankenstein novel, despite being an excellent example of horror fiction, is also considered the first example of science fiction. If you’ve been following our ‘Legacy of Science Fiction’ series, you’ve probably noticed a few of the trends that tend to go along with science fiction.

A story doesn’t need to be set in the future for it to be a science-fiction story, nor does it have to have aliens or space-ships. All it has to do is be about something just beyond our current understanding, founded in science of a sort. With that understanding, it’s easy to see how Frankenstein fits that bill.

The very creation of the monster himself is the codifier of science-fiction. Although it’s different in the original novel, the fact is, the idea of a man creating life that turns into a monster is an idea thoroughly grounded in the realm of science-fiction, a story concept rooted in the idea of science. It’s also an example of speculative fiction: bringing the audience to contend with questions such as nature vs. nurture, man’s place in creation, and the dangers of not being aware of the limits of common sense and the laws of nature.

Mary Shelley’s original novel came at a time when technology was changing much of the landscape of the world as they knew it, and it makes sense that in her story, this strange, unnatural technology would create a monster to be feared and pitied. In Frankenstein, the methods of this new generation of scientists, presenting seemingly no limits, is as horrific as the monster itself, the power that mankind can access without necessarily the wisdom to do so.

To quote Jurassic Park, the basic premise of the horror and science-fiction of this story is:

“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

And in the end, much like Jurassic Park, it works out terribly.

Like we’ve discussed in the ‘Legacy of Science Fiction’ series, Frankenstein practically invented the science-fiction theme of humanity’s creations inevitably leading to our own destruction, whether directly or indirectly. In the case of Frankenstein, it’s pretty direct. Henry’s creation turns on him, and although Henry survives, (and the monster seemingly does not) the premise is still there as a science-fiction device, twisted into a bit of a horror spin. The idea of human beings creating the things that will destroy them is legitimately frightening, especially when it’s played up as being ‘monstrous’.

But there’s a little more to Frankenstein than a tragic horror/sci-fi story. It’s also a drama.

A drama film is a serious story, one that presents us with situations that show us realistic characters struggling with themselves, others, or sometimes, nature itself. Drama usually doesn’t mix with horror, or science fiction for that matter, but it does here.

As I mentioned earlier, not only do we understand Henry and get where he’s coming from, we experience the exact same thing for the monster, if not more so. Unlike many examples of horror films, we’re half on the side of the creature, and get to know him as a character, rather than just a monster.

The conflict is simple, and fairly obvious. Henry’s created this being, and due to his own lack of care, is forced to ‘fix’ his mistake and go up against the monster himself. While the idea of the creation of life, and the character of the monster isn’t ‘realistic’ in traditional terms, the character is understandable and sympathetic to the audience. We understand him, and the conflict is made far more personal than it would be in a traditional ‘kill-em-all’ horror film.

In the end, that’s what sets Frankenstein apart.

Sure, the film is an excellent horror and science fiction film, but it’s not the scares or the sci-fi that we remember the most about this movie. It’s the heart of it, the sad, personal stakes of the movie that sticks with us as an audience, and a culture. There hasn’t really been another ‘Frankenstein’ type film, asking you to consider, not in a high-browed way, but in a simple, emotional way: who is the monster, and who is the man?

We don’t necessarily remember the ‘kills’ of this film. Maybe we forget things like Henry’s wedding, or the scenes with his father, but we do remember the monster lifting his hands up to try to touch the light, his dynamic creation, and the ending, far from a happy one.

We remember Frankenstein because, not only is it a good horror film, it’s also a good story that, unlike a lot of horror films, forces us to care, not only about the men, but the monsters as well. As long as we can still feel emotion for the ‘Other’, there will always be a place for Frankenstein, even almost ninety years later.

Thank you all so much for reading! Stay tuned for next time, when we’ll be discussing the characters of Frankenstein. I hope to see you all in the next article.

#Film #Movies #Frankenstein #Frankenstein 1931 #1931 #30s #Drama #Science Fiction #Sci-Fi #Horror #PG #Boris Karloff #Colin Clive #Mae Clarke #Dwight Frye #Edward Van Sloan #James Whale

2 notes · View notes

kendrixtermina · 6 years ago

Text

Thoughts and Feelings about“Change Your Mind”

I really wish I could rewatch this motherfucker somewhere but I have to sleep and go to work

Well on the one hand the main story lines are pretty much done for, on the other, the fallout alone could fill another season, and I’m actually glad that they’re not relegating that to the epilogue but actually going to show it

I assume season 5 will be Steven working with the Diamonds to improve homeworld, explaining things to Jasper, integrating the former corrupted gems on earth, finding out the deal with pink pearl, further developing Steven’s new fusions etc.

Other open questions involve gem origins and peridot’s renewable energy project, but I suppose that will come up as Steven tries to make the Empire less... imperialistic.

I understand why they wanted to air this in one piece, you couldn’t leave the younger viewers hanging with some of these creepytastic scenes and no resolution

There’s various concepts I feel reminded of.

There’s this idea of “tzimtsum” in kaballalistic thought, about how God created the world - In order to create a being apart from himself, he “hid” some aspects of the being, the ones that would seem - So every part of creation reflects one aspect of god, but none shows the complete pictures of it, and because everything has some aspects of god but not others, it is unique - so all humans are made in gods image, but still be different from each other.

Maybe Pink Diamond would be something like Lucifer in this analogy, part of the creation but as far from the god as you can get while still existing, and somehow their antithesis (stretching the analogy here, of course Judaism has no counterpart to Lucifer let alone the positive-ish early modernity interpretions of him - but of course, White Diamond isn’t exactly a benevolent God either. )

First of course Star Trek, like the ep where Captain Kirk is split into what at first seems like his good and evil half but is more like his animal instincts and higher reasoning, or in Voyager, when B’Elana Torres is split into her human and Klingon halves.

I guess Garnet wasn’t completely wrong in his being something in-between fusion and human reproduction, his gem half could be considered A Pink Diamond, but not the same one who created him - He must be fricking powerful to shrug off WD’s beams like that, like how Stevonnie still has “boosted” versions of Steven’s abilities despite Connie being human, Steven’s probably like Pink Diamond, but ‘boosted’.

Steven’s victory certainly showcases how it comes from both sides of his heritage. It involves making WD laugh/embarassed like what Pink used to do, but unlike her, he has the communication skills from Greg - I don’t think Pink ever talked to Blue in that way, she didn’t seem aware of what the other Diamonds were thinking at all, any more than she really understood Pearl’s lingering knot of complexes. It’s just not a skill she could have picked up before Greg - when? From whom?

His responsibility is all uniquely him and due to his upbringing with the CG’s and wanting to help him more, tho, both his parents where free spirit hippy bohemians, but it was Steven who decided “Nope, I WANT to fix it, because I can”, not because he owes it to anybody, even when no one could fault him for running.

Also, Frankenstein (the Novel not the film) - The original Victor was a sympathetic, even admirable character, but somehow he just couldn’t bring himself to have empathy with the monster, though Adam was in many ways alike to him and initially didn’t wish to be his enemy. Because while the gems relate to White Diamond as their goddess and the other Diamonds see her as their mother, she seems to regard them as extensions of herself. Maybe she would, as their creator. Gods are expected to smile benevolently upon their followers and solve their problems, Mothers, while they are flawed humans, are supposed to love their kids as they are and realize that they become their own persons, but artists frequently tear up their own work if they’re dissatisfied with it, because it’s supposed to be a reflection of their existence, so they might hate it for not reflecting them well enough -

i often regret tearing up half my teenage fanfics, but I’m able to view them different now that I’m - Back then, I felt like they reflectzed badly onto me - but if had kids and treated them like my fanfics or crumpled drawings, well, that would scar them for life.

You could certainly see this as a metaphor for narcissism, particularly in the way WD judged everything by how much it was like her, to the point that she would ‘overwrite`’ ppl’s personalities with her ideas of how it ought to be, while lacking a solid identity of her own apart from being “perfect/the best” by default, but that only goes so far because the gems literally are her creations who take their characteristics from various aspects of her being.

She’d have a completely different conceptual framework to anyone else, though she’s certainly not “above it” in any way.

I don’t think she was completely unaffected by Pink’s dissapearence either, if you want to complete the Stages of Grief analogy she would be Denial or Bargaining. Most likely, she was growing increasingly frustrated with her ability to make her empire “perfect” like she ought to and that’s why she started keeping to herself more and assuming that Pink couldn’t be dead.

She seemed like the knowing one when she was as much in denial as anyone else - you can tell they had a complicated relationship because of how White saw herself in her, that might be why she indulged and preferred her, but then again she didn’t always like what she saw and felt that Pink represented parts of her that she didn’t want to see.

It’s not without reason that Steven tells her to “get out of her own head” and try to see the world for what it is rather than her preconceived notions of what it is or means. You could perhaps relate that to

When she realizes that she’s actually dead - that’s when she has her breakdown.

You could even draw a parallel to “Romeo And Juliet”, where the older generation only realizes how much its ways were fucked up when it gets their beloved children killed for just trying to live happy lives.

Cal Gustav Jung would certainly remind us that what irritates us about others are often things that irritate us about ourselves, that we may be liable to “see the world as we are” and never is that more apparent than when we view everything through some skewed belief system, or when we hate - people hate people who blur boundaries because they don’t want to confront the ambiguity within themselves, or act as “superior” and merciless because they’ve rejected their own mortal fragile humanity.

Another observation is that when you set up anything as the “default” you create pressure not to deviate from the norm and prevent its members from experiencing their individuality. (see societal pressure on heterosexual men, or Euro-Americans saying they ‘have no culture to celebrate’ - maybe instead of becoming a devouring plague upon your fellow men, you could actually appreciate European culture? Like, read some books, eat some cheese, learn a language, listen to some classical music, vote for worker protection laws?)

It speaks for PD that she even tried to save other aliens at some point. steven stepped completely out of her shadow the moment he was able to feel sorry for her, like “Geez, she had to live like that? No wonder she turned out the way she did!” he pretty much calls the other Diamonds out at some point, like he gets a secure sense of the differences between them when he realizes how much better off he’s been in his own life. Like, UGH.

For my part, I don’t believe the “best of the worst” thing was true, and more of an “evil cannot comprehend good” moment from White, if not outright projection. (after all, White seems to view all other Gems as imperfect copies of herself) If anything, Pink seemed upset that she got stuck being the leader even as “Rose Quartz” (see the Beach scene in “Greg the babysitter”) - but of course Steven, not being Pink, wouldn’t know whether or not White is right.

Other Thoughts:

In the earlier scenes you could see a lot of parallels to less than ideal family situations, and how people might end up acting as proxies of the problematic person, almost sprouting their words, in the name of keeping the peace, and how people in such an environment may have no idea of how it’s not normal

You CAN talk down such a person (I know of multiple people who made a bona fide job out of talking sense into literal nazis and clansmen, person by person - their tactic was generally to find whatever problem their rage came from), but there’s a difference between “flawed” and “awful” and I do think it came through that White is a piece of work quite unlike, say, Connie’s mother, and that Steven’s dealing with her because he wants to for the good of society, because he’s the bigger person and secure in himself, not because he owes it to her or anything

It seems like they went for “awesome” rather than “beautiful” with Steven’s fusions. The designs are kinda gaudy, but even so, once you getpast the gaudy design, it’s kind of touching how Steven’s and Garnet’s fusion is essentially a motivational speaker who sprouts encouraging advice nonstop. Garnet was always Steven’s Mentor and as well as the main person (besides greg) to teach him morals, as well as generally encouraging & supportive, but Steven of course encourages and supports her too, and both like doing that for others

I love Peridot’s short shorts and that she and Bismuth repaired the ships/ went a-tinkering together. It took me a bit to notice that it’s supposed to be shorts and not just her old outfit with starts instead tho

Voice of Reason!Connieis a gift that keeps on giving

#steven universe #su spoilers #change your mind

5 notes · View notes

phantom-le6 · 4 years ago

Text

Episode Reviews - Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5 (5 of 6)

Continuing our voyages with the crew of Captain Picard’s Enterprise, here’s the penultimate round of episode reviews for season 5 of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Episode 21: The Perfect Mate

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

Kriosian ambassador Briam comes on board the Enterprise with some cargo, ready for a peace ceremony with the Valtian. As the ship heads to the rendezvous, they save two Ferengi from a failing ship. Despite security being assigned, one of the Ferengi enters the cargo bay and accidentally deactivates the stasis field on Briam's cargo, revealing a young Kriosian woman named Kamala (Famke Janssen). With the Ferengi secured, it is revealed that Kamala is an empathic metamorph who can sense what males around her desire and react appropriately. She was being brought for an arranged marriage to the Valtian representative. Kamala generates pheromones that can affect males around her, which was is partly why she was to be kept in stasis until the ceremony. The other part of the reason is that she is in the final stage of her sexual maturation and must soon permanently imprint upon the desires of one man for the rest of her life.

Briam tells Kamala to stay in her quarters, but Captain Picard allows her to travel throughout the ship, with the unaffected Lt. Commander Data as her escort. This results in a fight nearly breaking out in Ten Forward, when Kamala begins to interact with several miners the Enterprise rescued en route to pick up the Kriosians. The Ferengi seek to bribe Briam to turn Kamala over to them, but he rejects their offer. As he leaves, they attack him, causing him to fall onto a glass table which shatters and to lose consciousness. The Enterprise turns the Ferengi over to the nearest starbase to stand trial, but Briam is unable to participate in the ceremony. Kamala helps Picard to take on Briam's role, and the two become close. He seeks to resist her abilities and asks her to be herself, and she explains that the woman he wants her to be is who she actually is.

They meet with the Valtian ambassador, Chancellor Alrik, who is more interested in the trade agreement than the marriage. With the arrangements made, Picard visits Kamala to say goodbye; she tells him that she has permanently bonded with him instead of Alrik. Kamala explains that he has changed her for the better, and she will continue with the arranged marriage out of the sense of duty she has imprinted from Picard. At the wedding ceremony, Picard escorts Kamala down the aisle and watches as she marries Alrik. After the newlyweds have returned to the planet, Picard says goodbye to Briam in the transporter room. When asked how he resisted Kamala, the expression on Picard's face reveals how much of a struggle it has been and how much he feels he has lost.

Review:

This episode is something to flag up for fans of the original X-Men film trilogy, as it marks the one occasion where Patrick Stewart and Famke Jansen, who played Professor X and Jean Grey respectively in those films, worked together before those films. Now for many people who have apparently reviewed this episode before, this episode falls a long way short of the word ‘perfect’ that comes up in the title. Many apparently criticise the character Famke is given to play, namely that of a woman who is designed to be everyone’s perfect mate, and who is on the verge of an arranged marriage to end centuries of conflict between two alien cultures with a shared ancestry.

Now to some degree, I can understand that criticism, given that marriage is something I don’t feel should be forced on anyone, much less be a tool for political purposes like peace treaties. After all, the intended husband isn’t even interested in the marriage, so you have to wonder what the hell the Kriosians are even playing at putting Kamala up for such a marriage in the first place. Marriage is meant to be for those who want to formalise any form of romantic relationship they might be lucky enough to create, and that’s it. They should not be ‘arranged’ until those who would be getting married decide that is what they want, and if some people just don’t want to marry, that’s ok too. So, if the objection was to the idea of arranged marriage, or that every long-term relationship has to lead to marriage, I totally understand that.

However, the objections seem to be more around the idea that Kamala is, according to Dr Crusher, on a mission that amounts to prostitution, and she is being treated more like property than a person. Given that Kamala comes aboard the Enterprise as a piece of cargo in stasis when she could have transported to sick bay for the same effect (it wouldn’t be the first time Picard’s ship transported guests in a state of suspended animation), and is then confined to her quarters initially, I can also understand some of that objection as well. That said, the episode establishes the Kriosians also have male empathic metamorphs, but they’re very common whereas female metamorphs are only born once in seven generations. Although the episode doesn’t go beyond that, it’s reasonable to assume both sets of metamorphs have the same ability to sense and become whatever the opposite sex wants them to be. This is something I don’t think other reviewers think of, and if true, it means Kriosian women are probably never short of an ideal mating partner compared to the non-metamorph male population.

In addition, Kamala also states she takes joy in being whatever others want her to be, and does so in such a way that it appears to be almost part of her nature. There are plenty of people in real life who also take pleasure in doing good by others, and where that is someone’s own choice rather than something forced on a person, it’s no bad thing. Because of these facets of the episode, I think some reviewers judge the episode too harshly on the whole female metamorph premise. They’re essentially saying female empowerment cannot take the form of someone like Kamala, when actually female empowerment should surely come in whatever form each woman chooses for themselves, because such empowerment is not about one person setting a single standard that all must follow. It’s about giving everyone in the group that needs to be empowered the freedom to empower themselves in the way that works best for them as an individual. Please yourself, please others, do both; as long as the choice is down to the person doing the pleasing and not anyone else, that is empowerment.

All this said, the episode is actually supposed to be about showing us a chink in Picard’s customary stoicism and almost monk-like celibacy, but really, we don’t need this episode for that. We’ve seen Vash get under his skin romantically, and we’ve seen Picard blow his stack a few times with good cause. This episode is consequently quite superfluous in that respect, not to mention it works in the Ferengi to no good effect and much audience irritation. In addition, Red Dwarf’s episode “Camille” featured a guest character with similar abilities to Kamala well over a year earlier, so the episode’s premise about a ‘perfect companion who can sense someone’s desires and become them’ is actually highly unoriginal. This is the second or third time at least that Red Dwarf beat TNG to the punch on an idea, and frankly did it better. Overall and on balance, I give this episode 5 out of 10.

Episode 22: Imaginary Friend

Plot (as given by me):

While the Enterprise begins investigating a nebula formed around a neutron star, Counsellor Troi works with a young girl named Clara Sutter, who has not long come on board the Enterprise with her father Ensign Daniel Sutter. The Sutters have moved between a lot of different postings, and as a result Clara has developed an imaginary friend called Isabella. Her father is worried that Clara is relying too much on Isabella for friendship and no longer even trying to make real friends. While Clara is planting in the ship’s arboretum later, Isabella appears as a real human girl. She encourages Clara to take her to other areas of the ship, which lands Clara in trouble as Isabella disappears around any adults and the sections they go to are off-limits to children for safety reasons. Only Lt. Worf initially sees Isabella at first because he encounters the girls when they are too distracted for Isabella to disappear in time.

Worried that Isabella is now becoming a kind of excuse for Clara to get away with misbehaviour, Troi insists Clara spend some time around real children. She convinces Clara to leave Isabella behind when going to attend a ceramics class with the other children on the Enterprise. This angers Isabella, who first spills Counsellor Troi’s hot chocolate in her quarters, then ruins a cup being made by Worf’s son Alexander so that Clara would be blamed. Fleeing to the arboretum in tears, Clara is confronted by Isabella, who threatens to kill everyone on board. Troi initially tries to convince Clara isn’t real and does a check of her room, only for Isabella to appear and attack her with some kind of energy discharge.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise has begun to get entangled in a lattice of plasma strands within the nebula that create a drag effect on the ship. Several energy beings then arrive and begin to drain the shields. Realising that the manifestation of Clara’s imaginary friend is some kind of alien life form, Captain Picard visits the arboretum along with Clara, her father and Worf. Isabella appears and declares her race wanted to try and feed off the Enterprise’s energy and determine if humanity was a threat; the crew’s treatment of Clara suggested to the aliens that humanity was cruel and mistreated their children. Picard explains that the rules Clara was subject to are a part of how humans keep their children safe until they have developed enough awareness not to know what is or isn’t dangerous, and offers energy to the aliens freely. Isabella accepts, and the alien beings within the nebula soon cease their attack. After transmitting some energy into the nebula, the Enterprise leaves, Clara and Isabella making friends with each other again as they say goodbye to each other.

Review:

Although some scenes in this episode were a bit cringe-worthy and demanded some fast-forwarding, it has a very interesting premise that I think more people, especially parents, should consider. Not only do we see a child’s imaginary friend become real, but then we get see how we might be judged if an alien opted to judge us from the perspective of a child. I think Picard sums up best how great an idea this is when he confronts the alien posing as Isabella, and I quote;

“You are seeing this ship, all of us, from a unique perspective - from a child's point of view. It must seem terribly unfair and restrictive to you. As adults, we don't always stop to consider how everything we say and do shapes the impressions of young people, but if you're judging us, as a people, by the way we treat our children - and I think there can be no better criterion - then you must understand how deeply we care for them. When our children are young, they don't understand what might be dangerous. Our rules are to keep them from harm, real or imagined, and that's part of the continuity of our Human species. When Clara grows up, she will make rules for *her* children, to protect them - as we protect her.”

Picard is totally right because if you look at how the adults deal with Clara, she gets told certain areas of off-limits, but never why, so how can she or Isabella know that what the adults are doing is for their benefit? Somehow, they’re expected to just know without being told, and in that sense it’s not unlike what dealing with the world is like for autistic people like myself. Our ability to learn the unwritten rules of society, the so-called ‘hidden curriculum’, is impaired to a point where we need things spelled out, and yet at times our non-autistic peers seem even less aware of such things than we are. All too often people like to assume others will just know what they know and never stop to think “what if they don’t?” This is a key reason why I often tend to post longer posts on social media than I necessarily need to, and why I will often try and explain something to one of my nieces or nephews in full and not just go with the truly idiotic response of ‘because I said so’. If you want anyone to learn anything, you don’t just tell them something, you teach them something.

It’s also interesting to have Guinan in the episode advocating for us not to abandon imagination as we grow up. A lot of this episode seems to be directed around the idea of getting Clara to abandon her imaginary friend, and could potentially be seen as somehow anti-imagination. However, there’s Guinan spotting cloud-shapes in the nebula and talking about her own imaginary friend, and I think it’s important that we all keep some imagination as adults. After all, imagination is part of how we find solutions to problems, and finding solutions is something the world needs to get back into the habit of doing. These days, it seems more inclined to play blame games and complain without actually trying to wipe problems out so they don’t keep plaguing us. For me, this episode earns 7 out of 10; it really needed some better scenes from some of the child actors in the middle, and frankly I think they went a bit too creepy with Isabella. The dress that character wore just screamed ‘creepy twins from the Shining’ the moment I saw it, and that’s not a great image to have while watching Trek.

Episode 23: I Borg

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

The crew discover a wrecked Borg scout ship with a single survivor; an adolescent Borg drone. Dr Crusher insists on treating the surviving Borg despite the concerns of Captain Picard. On Picard's orders, the drone is confined and monitored by security forces at all times and is prevented from contacting the Borg Collective. Lt. Commander La Forge and Lt. Commander Data assist Crusher in bringing the Borg back to health. As they come to understand the workings of the Borg, La Forge and Data devise an idea of using the Borg drone as a weapon of mass destruction. By implanting an unsolvable geometric formula into his mind and returning him to the Collective, the formula should rapidly spread (similar to a computer virus) and disable the Borg. Crusher is aghast at this suggestion, considering it equivalent to genocide, while Picard and the other senior crew deliberate on the ethics of this plan.

The Borg drone initially calls himself "Third of Five", but ends up referring to and understanding himself as "Hugh", the name given to him by La Forge. Hugh discusses how the Borg only wish to learn about other cultures through assimilation, but La Forge counters this argument, discussing aspects of individuality that make them human and unique. In further debates, La Forge finds himself becoming a friend to Hugh, and begins to doubt his previous idea. This is further complicated when Hugh shows elements of individualism. The crew now debate whether it is appropriate to sacrifice one individual to protect the majority, though Picard is still insistent on destroying the Collective. Crusher and La Forge arrange to have Guinan, who has a similar loathing for the Borg because they destroyed her homeworld, speak to Hugh.

She finds Hugh to be not a mindless drone but a confused young man, and she agrees Hugh is no longer a Borg. Guinan convinces Picard to meet with Hugh, as well, and Picard comes to the same conclusion, in part because Hugh refers to himself as "I" instead of the Borg's collective "we" during their discussion. Picard abandons the proposed plan and instead offers Hugh asylum within the Federation. Hugh expresses enthusiasm at the prospect of remaining with La Forge but ultimately refuses, recognizing that the Borg will still come looking for him. He offers to be returned to the crash site, where he will be found and re-assimilated by the Borg. Picard hopes that, once Hugh is reconnected, the sense of individualism Hugh has learned will spread throughout the Collective. La Forge accompanies Hugh to the crash site and, from a safe distance, watches the Borg recover him. Just as the Borg transport out, Hugh turns to give La Forge a parting glance.

Review:

While many fans dislike this episode because they feel it de-fangs the Borg, I am not one of them. What this episode does with the Borg is continue what “Best of Both Worlds” started to show us, and what later Borg stories would continue to show, which is that without the hive mind, these villains are actually nothing of the kind. In essence, it’s the collective will of the Borg that drives assimilated individuals to commit horrendous acts against their will. Split the individual back off from the collective, however, and the individuality starts to creep back in. If anything, this episode helps showcase how truly horrifying the Borg are, because they turn individuals into mindless extensions of the group, and such is a fate worse than death. If I was to take a tag-line from a Warhammer 40,000 race and apply it to the Borg, it would be the one about the Dark Eldar; pray they don’t take you alive.

The episode is also interesting in that we get Picard and Guinan in the episode as people who have suffered at the hands of the Borg wanting nothing to do with this drone. Guinan wants the thing straight up off the ship or dead, and Picard is perfectly ok with the idea of using the drone to wipe the Borg out completely, and yet both ultimately realise this lone Borg is as much a victim as they are. Given how often some people in society who have been hurt come to hate anyone linked to their tormentors even when those people are innocent and may even be victims themselves, I think this is an important episode in TNG that should be viewed by as many people as possible. There’s a great lesson here about not punishing an individual for the crimes of their states and only assigning blame where it is actually due. For me, this episode racks up 9 out of 10; it loses one point for a production blunder around using the “I” pronoun too early in the guest Borg’s progression towards individuality.

Episode 24: The Next Phase

Plot (as given by me):

The Enterprise receives a distress call from a Romulan warbird and goes to their aid, finding the vessel adrift and badly damaged. Commander Riker leads an away team over to the warbird that includes Lt. Commander La Forge, Lt Worf and Ensign Ro, with Ro muttering an objection to Riker’s order that the away team goes in unarmed. When La Forge and Ro try to beam back with a damaged engine component, their patterns are lost and the pair are believed to be dead.

While Riker and Worf continue to work with the Romulans to save the stricken warbird, Captain Picard has Lt. Commander Data begin an investigation of the transporter accident, and Data also begins to try and plan a memorial service for La Forge and Ro. However, the two officers have somehow returned to the Enterprise, though neither of them can be seen by the other members of the crew, and both are able to pass through solid objects and all other people except each other. Ro, having seen Dr Crusher begin to make out death certificates, believes they are dead and begins to try and make peace with her fellow crew-members. La Forge, however, is convinced they are still alive, and convinces Ro to join him in tagging along when Data makes a shuttle trip over to the warbird.

Following Data and examining the warbird soon enables La Forge to deduce what has happened; the Romulans were testing a way to combine their cloaking device with a phase inverter. In theory, such a combination would render a ship invisible to sight and sensors while enabling it to pass through solid matter. Somehow La Forge and Ro became cloaked and phased during transport. Overhearing the Romulans plan to use an energy transfer beam from the Enterprise to rig the other ship’s engine to explode when it goes to warp, La Forge and Ro become determined to undo their condition so they can warn their crewmates. However, the pair do not realise they are being followed by a Romulan who has somehow become phased like themselves.

Back on the Enterprise, La Forge and Ro discover from Data that chroniton fields have been left everywhere they’ve been, and that these can be neutralised using anyon particles. While La Forge sticks with Data, and learns the chronitons result from a phased person passing through other objects, Ro follows the transporter chief, only to be cornered by the phased Romulan up on the Bridge. She ultimately manages to escape the Romulan, only to then be caught again after a chase through the crew quarters. La Forge stumbles upon the pair just in time to save Ro by hurling the Romulan out into space through the outer bulkhead.

La Forge’s time with Data has also revealed anyon particles can de-phase and uncloak himself and Ro, and the pair promptly head to Ten-Forward where much of the crew has gathered for their memorial service. After several attempts, La Forge and Ro manage to make themselves briefly visible to Picard and Data, the latter swiftly realising what has happened and ordering a maximum-level anyon flood of Ten-Forward to aid their friends. Once unphased and decloaked, La Forge orders the Enterprise’s engines taken off-line so he can reverse the Romulan sabotage. The pair then join the party-style memorial, and later discuss their experience with each other.

Review:

There’s not a huge amount to say about this episode because it’s one of those rare occasions where a Trek episode has no real depth or substance, which is ironic considering it deals with a main character and a recurring character being made into pseudo-ghosts. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a fun episode to watch, especially for the somewhat New Orleans-style funeral in Ten-Forward (Ro firing the phased Romulan disruptor through Riker while he’s playing the tuba is especially funny), but there’s no real issue exploration going on much. We just get a scene here or there that suggests Ro trying to wrestle with her Bajoran spiritual beliefs, but we don’t get enough of that for the episode to be about that. Really, it’s just using technobabble to stick two characters in a jam, then seeing them piece together a technobabble solution that saves the day.

Apparently, the episode also gets criticised for the phasing concept not resulting in all the affected characters going through the floor. Clearly, those critics have never read a bloody X-Men comic. In 1980, Chris Claremont and John Byrne first introduced Marvel readers to one Kitty Pryde, who would eventually develop the code-name of Shadowcat and whose power was the ability to phase through solid matter. However, there were a lot of rules around how that power got used; going through the ground was like going through water and Kitty would have to hold her breath. If she phased through anything electrical, it got shorted out, and with training Kitty could phase part of herself while keeping the rest solid. Likewise, DC Comics’ speedsters like the Flash have the ability to phase using their speed powers, and again that phasing doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing application.

Basically, when you apply the power of phasing to a living being, it’s not going to be total and absolute intangibility that the being has zero control over. Some element of conscious or sub-conscious control to prevent phasing into the Earth’s core or flying off into space must apply as a necessary in-built safety characteristic, or else it wouldn’t be worth having that power. By the same token, it follows that a phased person on a starship won’t automatically phase through the floor; some part of their mind would resist that and the phasing ability would follow suit, and the only reason this didn’t save the Romulan when La Forge pushes him is that getting pushed in such a manner interfered with that mental process somehow. The bottom line is the episode makes sense in that regard; what doesn’t make sense is making a Trek episode that’s all technobabble and no substance. As such, I’m only inclined to give this one 7 out of 10.

0 notes

cat-in-a-basement · 7 years ago

Text

I was...cautious, about posting this. I tried my very best cover all angles and counter every viable point I could think of, but it is still a rather heated topic.

Let’s discuss the differences between why is okay to make heterosexual characters LGBTQ+, and why it is not okay to make LGBTQ+ characters heterosexual.

Naturally, I will be using Warrior Cats as my example.

I would like to take this time to try and explain the sort of...the sort of difference that comes with shippings, and sexualities/romantic attractions in Warriors.

So, it's a logical thought process. Why is it to okay make characters in a heterosexual relationship in canon a different sexuality/attraction, but making LGBTQ+ characters straight is not?

I occasionally see it, and, in theory, it is correct. 'I have every right to change what I don't like about the series.' Yes, you do have the freedom to say, change Tallstar and ship him with Reena. But, is that 'right?' Objectively speaking, no, it isn't. But I'll come back to that point later. Let's start on the differences between the two.

This is the difference between changing heterosexual characters and changing LGBTQ+ characters.

With LGBTQ+ characters, you already know their sexuality/romantic attraction, or what they identify as. The only way to add onto that is to make the character into an even more specific category. For example, you could in theory change the previously mentioned Tallstar from gay and attracted to Jake to something along the lines of 'Is attracted romantically to Jake, but doesn't have a sexual attraction to any cat'. So he loves Jake, but at the same time, doesn't desire a sexual relationship. The overall original character's attraction stays the same, but more is added to it that doesn't change from what is canon. It does not erase the feelings of the character in canon.

BUT, if you decide to completely erase this already established canon and erase it to be heterosexual, then it is going backwards. You're not adding onto the already established canon. You are reversing it. This is erasing what is already confirmed, and choosing instead to ignore the romantic attraction/sexuality confirmed. This is not acceptable in an environment that typically encourages the LGBTQ+ community to express themselves. It shouldn't be socially or morally acceptable in any environment, but sadly that isn't the case in many countries and religions.

So, on tumblr, you are going to get negative reactions due to the nature of reversing the sexuality/romantic attraction already confirmed. This happens on the forums as well, as people who chime in they prefer Tallstar with Reena, or Ravenpaw is better off with a she-cat, often get ignored or a flame war starts if people take the bait. This is because It continues the very real problem in society of erasing LGBTQ+ communities and individuals because of who they are attracted to.

I mean, you have the freedom to ship who you want, but if you're erasing canon romantic attraction/sexuality to do it, you're probably not going to get many positive responses. I fully believe in the neutrality of the internet, but I also believe in progressive ideals and in giving people a character to represent them in their respective fandom. Ultimately, it’s up to whoever to decide for themselves. Your freedom to create what you want should be respected. But, at the same time, it wouldn’t hurt to be mindful they are plenty other characters to work with.

This is why the same idea doesn't hold up with heterosexual characters.

The thing with heterosexuality, is that unless it is explicitly implied in the books, it can't really be confirmed. This means that writers have free reign to interpret the relationships as they like, because they are not erasing the sexuality. (Unless the sexuality/romantic attraction is explicitly defined, that is.) They can only add onto that character. For example, Blossomfall had a brief crush on Toadstep, and later on, has scenes that could be implied as her liking Ivypool. However, she does have a canon (unfortunately...) relationship with Thornclaw. (My apologies for that bout of bias there. I'm just...processing the information. Slowly.)

You could very well headcanon Blossomfall as bisexual but only romantically attracted to other she-cats. It does not erase what is canon. It adds onto what is already established by giving Blossomfall layers and making it so that she only develops a romantic attraction to she-cats, but is sexually attracted to both toms and she-cats.

And yes, like before, you can do what you want. Say Mothwing is explicitly stated to only be straight. People can and will still ship her with Leafpool.

And, this is where things differ. It is not acceptable to erase canon LGBTQ+ characters. But, due to the nature of heterosexual relationships being generally undefined, it is acceptable to change heterosexual relationships to LGBTQ+ ones.

I know. That isn't exactly 'fair'. It's kind of hypocritical to say only heterosexual characters that are canonically straight can be made LGBTQ+, while the exact opposite will net you a ton of angry people telling you that you are wrong.

But...here's the thing. Heterosexual people haven't endured the same. They don't have to worry about some of things LGBTQ+ people do. I don’t speak for them, as I’m not going to silence their voices, but one has to admit that LGBTQ+ community is constantly facing hurdles, obstructions, and hate. Heterosexual people do not have to worry about the same struggles. Sure, both may have bills to pay, a job they need, and like memes galore, but the attitudes of the people around them can change depending on their sexuality and romantic attraction.

Not to mention, heterosexual people have quite literally over a million heterosexuals in media and literature to choose from to represent them. In the Warrior Cat books, they have over a thousand to pick to represent them. LGBTQ+? The only confirmed (and it's debated whether it was, even at that) representation is Ravenpaw and Barley, and Tallstar and Jake. Two. Two couples. One might understand why they choose a non-confirmed character to represent them and give them a different sexuality/romantic attraction other than heterosexual.

If you want an example of that, it’s why I headcanon Hollyleaf as ace-aro. I see lot of myself in her and her redemption story, and so I portray her as ace-aro like myself. Since only Mousefur (again, debatable as to whether it was explicitly stated or not) is possibly asexual, that just leaves me with her as a canon asexual character. However, I don’t know a lot about Mousefur. But Hollyleaf, who has stated she doesn’t want kits or to be a queen and whose only possible ship was Fallen Leaves, and they basically acted as friends...now her I can relate to.

And I can understand some criticisms. The books focus on the plot, not the romances. The romances are added to give some drama to the story, try and give character depth, and try to complete character arcs. It shouldn't matter what their sexuality/romantic orientation is because 1. they're cats - cats don’t care, and 2. the books aren't geared to detail every little romance that happens.

I get that. But what needs to be understood is that there is a major difference between 2 gay canon couples to choose from and a thousand heterosexual couples (well, unconfirmed heterosexuality). I get wanting to create your own thing. But you have to understand that people may not respond as you like if you choose to erase this when you have thousands of other characters to work with.

I also get that not everyone needs a character to represent them. And that’s fine too. But, there are people in this fandom who think differently, myself included. I want characters to represent my lack of attraction. It’s perfectly fine if you don’t concern yourself over it. But for others, things can be different, and I think it’s important to be able to distinguish this.

So, I guess in my personal opinion...are you going to tell somebody whose sexuality/romantic attraction is constantly dismissed, erased, and prosecuted they can't change a heterosexual character to a sexuality/romantic attraction that represents them? You can, but you're not going to be considered a good or decent person for it. And, it isn't fair. But neither is what LGBTQ+ people go through either. So I can overlook a fictional heterosexual character being made LGBTQ+. (Well, as long as it is written and done well. I can't condone shipping cats just to ship them. I have to give them a backstory and character development. But that's more my opinion than anything.)

"But...BC, it's a book about fighting cats. It's really not that important, or worth making an analysis over."

Here's the thing. In objective writing standards, it is illogical to rewrite a story where a LGBTQ+ character's entire sexuality/attraction is replaced just to have wish fulfillment. You could say the same for heterosexual characters being make a different sexuality/romantic attraction, but as stated before, there are generally less LGBTQ+ characters to work with. So unconfirmed sexualities will receive fanworks to give them background and a story, as well as a character who can be represented.

And, as stated before, you are only going backwards if you decide to erase the canon sexuality/romantic attraction. You can add onto it, but going backwards is taking character away. It doesn't add anything new to the character's feelings. I made this to explain why the two are different, and while one is acceptable and one is not.

I mean, you could still do what you want. Nobody can stop you from expressing ideas. Just don't expect to erase a canon LGBTQ+ representation without people telling you how it isn't acceptable. Myself included.

And finally, I’m not one to censor criticism. If you disagree, then you are absolutely free to state so. If you think I got something wrong, then tell me. This was an attempt at an analytical essay explaining the differences between the two, and if it wasn’t satisfactory, tell me so I can learn for next time I make an analysis. I’m not trying to be a mouthpiece who parrots words. I do my research and homework, for I am a nerd. I try to be non-biased (Unless it’s BlossomXThorn because WHO ON EARTH thought that was a good idea?!), while also trying to see both sides PoV.

If you are part of the LGBTQ+ community, and whether you agree or disagree, you have every right to give your opinion.

If you are heterosexual, and whether you agree or disagree, you have every right to give your opinion.

Regardless, I hope everyone who reads this has a great week!)

#BC analyzes things #warrior cats #comparision #explanation #I must have rewrote this 5 times until I was satisfied it covered everything #lgbtq friendly

23 notes · View notes

sheereleganceinitssimplicity · 7 years ago

Text

scattered thoughts on the first 2 eps of dsc:

I’m not sure how i felt about it, overall, but i can say i was left with a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.

- by the end of the first double episode, they fridged captain georgiou, replaced her with a white dude, and michael is a convict.

- it didn’t end on a hopeful note, nor did it really seem to be anything other than war or dark/gritty after the first few minutes. i was expecting at least a kernel of optimism in the trek pilot, but apparently, we didn’t get that.

- everything was gorgeous, but the camera wouldn’t stay still or stop cutting to different angles long enough to really appreciate it

- the 24 klingon houses may or may not have been great systems of government, but while t’kumva speaks of uniting to preserve klingon individuality amongst other groups of sentient species, they clearly lost a lot of individuality on a smaller scale by uniting. One of the heads of houses was a woman.

- saying “it’s in their nature” is a really weird way of saying “it’s a part of their culture, not their biology”

- mutiny does not make a POV character easier to relate to, especially the way she went about being mutinous. it’d be one thing if she were to steal a runabout and just ignore her captain’s orders, it’s another to straight-up attack your captain and friend and try to get away with commandeering the entire ship and crew. Also her reasoning behind it just wasn’t very good? She got too emotional and tried to protect everyone? (which was an explanation that came after georgiou spoke about trying to pick apart michael’s vulcan shell. she was both insufficiently emotional and then overly emotional. is the lesson here that humans can’t repress emotions like vulcans because it’ll come out in weird overly-emotional and unstable bursts?)

- what was the purpose of the ethics debate with the computer scene?

- if what t’kumva wants a war (which seems to be the case considering he baited starfleet), then why does he accuse the captain of lying when she offers peace? and not to her face, but to the other klingons as if this were a bad thing? and why does he then accept the ceasefire? [i assume some of these questions are meant to be left unresolved, but some just seem to be confusing?]

- i can’t tell if t’kumva is being framed to be a person who just wants what’s best for his people, but the cultural divide only makes him seem like the “villain” to starfleet, or if he’s actually someone with malicious intent. it’s be really weird for a star trek to just jump in and present an alien as pretty much unarguably bad and mean, rather than a sympathetic character who is’t necessarily trying to hurt anyone or is at least doing something for the “greater good”. however, if they’re not trying to paint him as “definitely villain” why do they have him throw around phrases like “racial purity” that are basically shorthand for “evil space nazi”?

- is t’kumva supposed to stand for unity and progress or is he a religious fanatic who wants to be the next klingon czar?

- “biologically determined to sense the coming of death” is ????, but i’d let that part slide were it not for the overly grimdark nature of that character design choice

- they didn’t call it the prime directive yet, which was kinda neat

- i’m definitely weirded out by the fact that the narrative seems to support michael’s “shoot first, questions later” approach. that didn’t feel very star trek. and since when to vulcans shoot first and ask questions later? (the second question does actually seem like something they’ll address in the following episodes, though.)

- did michael intend to kill t’kumva, or was the phaser just set to kill, and she didn’t realize?

- have they ever used katras to actively communicate over long distances before, or is this a new thing?

- i was looking through the dsc tag and @xenoarcana mentioned possibility of the federation as a colonizing force, and i think this may hit on why i felt less jazzed about this pilot than i should be. i liked this discussion in ds9 because, regardless of whether the federation’s influence was good or bad, it had already been happening or was underway. what was left was for the federation to fix it before it was too late, or clean up it’s own mess. to me, star trek was about showing how we could improve and keep trying to improve. I don’t want to watch how me make these messes; that’s very much the reality we’re all living in now. what i want to see is how we manage to come together and fix what we’re doing wrong. And frankly, i don’t want the main message of the show to be how the federation can be a bulldozing, colonizing force (and then they fix it), because by the 2022875, we’re supposed to have learned to be better than that. maybe we still do end up getting involved where we shouldn’t and damaging other cultures and people, but not nearly to the same degree as the colonization that’s happened in recent history. The federation represents our better selves; not perfect, but certainly better than who we are now.

i’m sure there’s more i’m forgetting...

#star trek #dsc #disco #discovery

1 note · View note

entergamingxp · 5 years ago

Text

DualShockers’ Favorite Games of 2019 — Ben’s Top 10

December 29, 2019 4:00 PM EST

From games like Apex Legends to The Outer Worlds, 2019 proved to me that there were a huge variety of games to enjoy across all genres.

As 2019 comes to a close, DualShockers and our staff are reflecting on this year’s batch of games and what were their personal highlights within the last year. Unlike the official Game of the Year 2019 awards for DualShockers, there are little-to-no-rules on our individual Top 10 posts. For instance, any game — not just 2019 releases — can be considered.

I’m not really sure where to begin with 2019. It’s a year I’ve certainly grown a hated for, and the gaming landscape has been incredibly volatile at times. We’ve seen the Sekiro discourse send a barrage of abuse towards both disabled gamers and journalists. We’ve seen a well-known publisher hold an AMA on 4Chan. We’ve seen E3 doxx nearly every journalist that has attended the event.

However, amongst the dark days we’ve had some great games come out in 2019, and I’ve been enjoying a handful of games I never would have experienced if it wasn’t for Xbox Game Pass. I’ve also been front and center in helping to direct change to how video games are made more accessible for players, but more on that at a later date.

So, here’s my top 10 list of games that I’ve been enjoying in 2019.

10. The Outer Worlds

Originally this title from Obsidian Interactive was going to be higher up on my list, but after pondering on it I realized that it doesn’t entirely deserve to go too high. I enjoyed it, I completed it, I gushed about it for numerous weeks, and I found Parvati, a video game character I adored. But while I really enjoyed the game, it started to become a chore even thinking about picking it back up and trying to go through it all again. The combat felt groggy, the side-quests were a bit naff, and it wasn’t much of a broad open-world as I initially expected.

Saying that though, I did find the writing between the companions and the main storyline characters incredibly engaging and enjoyable to sit through. I liked how the acting reflected wonderfully on dialogue options I chose, and as a result, I found myself heavily engrossed in the story right up until the end where it told me the fate of those on my team that I may have neglected somewhat. The brilliant writing was enough for The Outer Worlds to have left an incredibly positive impression on me.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for The Outer Worlds.

9. The Orange Box

I’m going to cheat a bit here. Earlier in 2019, I went through Portal for the hell of it; another journey through Valve’s puzzler with portals and an evil robot that sings about cake. I’ve played it God knows how many times and it still never gets old. I also jumped on Team Fortress 2 when news sparked up about the game no longer being supported by Valve for the time being. Hearing the news sent me down a nostalgic trip from my many hours spent with it. Returning to it was somewhat heart-warming to be back in the world, but at the same time heart-breaking that it seems riddled with hackers now. Despite that, it was still brilliant to go back.

With Half-Life: Alyx being revealed, I wanted to spark up my memories of the Half-Life world again. So I booted up Half-Life 2, Half-Life 2: Episode One, and then managed to get through Half-Life 2: Episode Two before becoming busy with this journalism lark. Safe to say, The Orange Box is by far my favorite collection of games that will always remain fun to play no matter how many years have passed, even now in 2019.

8. Ape Out

Devolver Digital’s crazy ooh-ah-ah game was one I enjoyed for hours, and still find myself picking it up every now and again. The gameplay was challenging at best, and had a soundtrack that reacted to the combat which kept me wanting to keep the fight going at all costs, even if it meant bleeding out everywhere. The sounds of the punches, gunfire, and limbs splattering were all of high-quality and kept Ape Out feeling more like a large-scale action flick rather than a small indie title.

The art style was also something I found to be the most memorable; it had a clash of gritty textures that seemed to blend in well with the vibrant orange ape. The harder modes for a bigger challenge were also incredibly frustrating but were always tempting for that “one more go” mentality. The one that stood out the most to me was the mode in which you have to break back into the place from which you escaped, but you’ve only got one life. The Metroidvania twist here left me with hours of extra fun trying to beat it.

Check out DualShockers review for Ape Out.

7. Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is a game that I’ve always wanted to play, but one I never got round to until I got the Switch. Stardew Valley is one of those games that seems perfect for portability; I’ve always enjoyed relaxing games in which you can do simple things such as farming, but the pixel art style adds to the aesthetic that I found myself being drawn towards. I particularly enjoy the music combined with the gentle sounds of nature flittering through the world. Eventually, I found myself putting it down for a good few months, and it’s always sat there beckoning me to play it again.

It wasn’t until recently when I heard there was a new update for it that I picked it back up and jumped into an entirely new game, deleting my old farm. Upon doing so, I’ve rejuvenated my love for it and I’m glad I’m back on the scene for it. My only question is, will I continue enjoying it when Animal Crossing: New Horizons comes out, or will I abandon it for a town of overly happy animals? Time will tell.

6. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice

Thank you Xbox Game Pass; if it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have finally tried Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. Originally, I never picked the game up because I didn’t think I’d enjoy it. There was no reason, in particular, it just didn’t draw me in. However, all the talk of how it represents mental health and how the graphics are stunning was enough for me to download it and try it out. I was blown away. The binaural sound design is really quite something to behold, especially with a good set of headphones. The character animations are lovely and the combat felt heavy and impactful.

I wasn’t a fan of the Metroidvania-theme that lingers throughout the game, but it certainly adds to the tension of trying to stay alive just so you don’t have to go through it all again. It’s certainly a game I’ve had a great time with, and am still enjoying playing it now as we wait for the sequel to arrive with the Xbox Series X.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice.

5. Tetris 99

I’ve always been a fan of Tetris, the old version and any modern-at-the-time iterations. When Tetris 99 was announced, I won’t lie, I groaned: “Ugh, another Battle Royale attempt.” Little did I know that I grew to love it almost instantly. The matches can be quick, some can be lengthy and challenging. Some can be frustrating and some can leave me cocky and proud. I had started to grow fed up of it being constantly online though, and while I don’t agree that the single-player mode is locked behind a paywall, I paid for it.

The Big Blocks DLC is actually great, allowing me to play it with friends on the same system without needing to worry about 97 other players battling against us. The marathon mode is also addictive, with me racking up over 500 lines in one match. The fact that the game is still sporting a good deal of players online is also fantastic because whenever I want to jump online and play it, there’s always players there to fill 99 slots.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Tetris 99.

4. Sea of Thieves

Sea of Thieves is still my all-time pirate game, even in 2019. I still get a lot of satisfaction from it, especially when it comes to just hanging out and having fun with friends or family. There’s always something to find, quests to do, and enemy ships to battle, but not only that, the game is continually being supported with more and more updates. These updates bring small changes and some big changes, such as the addition of fire which I find devastatingly good fun. I can’t get enough of the game, and while sailing alone can be boring, it’s still somewhat relaxing and a lovely escape from life.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Sea of Thieves.

3. Rocket League

Okay, the new Blueprints update has kind of angered the community, and I myself am annoyed that all the items I was planning to trade are now suddenly not tradable. But it goes without saying, Rocket League is still one of my favourite titles, specifically on the Switch. I used to play it on PC, then I switched to Xbox, but I’ve found myself more comfortable with it on the Switch due to the portability and being able to lounge around while knocking my balls around (you know what I mean).

What I most enjoy about the game though is the full cross-platform play that allows me to enjoy it with friends and family on different platforms. It’s an absolute godsend and keeps the game thriving with players.

2. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

I just can’t not have a year where I don’t pick this game up. Now it’s getting even harder to ignore despite being several years old because it’s being re-released on everything. It landed on the Nintendo Switch and sparked up the whole hype surrounding it again, then just as the chatter dies down, it heads over to Xbox Game Pass too. In addition to that, the Netflix series went live this month, making 2019 a pretty big year for The Witcher fans.

I still love jumping into the game, whether it’s to carry on with my quests I still haven’t completed, or to wander the expansive world for no reason but exploration, or to just take photos with Nividia Ansel. I’ve also found myself starting the game from scratch earlier this year because I forgot where I was, but this meant I got to experience the brilliant missions towards the start of the game, especially those with the Bloody Baron. It’s a game I don’t think I’ll ever tire of.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

1. Apex Legends

A surprise favorite of mine. I tried getting into other Battle Royale games such as PUBG, Fortnite, Battlefield V‘s Firestorm mode, etc, but none have stuck with me. It wasn’t until Respawn Entertainment’s Apex Legends hooked me. I love nearly everything about it; the art is lovely, the way it feels to play is fluid, and the Ping system is revolutionary with me not even needing to use a headset to communicate.

The game has done well for itself since launch. While lately it has been slow on updating the game with new content, eventually the developers caught up and started introducing quality content over quantity. It’s a game I keep wanting to play, a game I continually enjoy despite dying so many times I fear my team despises me, and a game that I hope continues to be supported and inspires more multiplayer games to incorporate a Ping system.

Check out the rest of the DualShockers staff Top 10 lists and our official Game of the Year Awards:

December 23: DualShockers Game of the Year Awards 2019 December 25: Lou Contaldi, Editor-in-Chief // Logan Moore, Managing Editor December 26: Tomas Franzese, News Editor // Ryan Meitzler, Features Editor December 27: Mike Long, Community Manager // Scott White, Staff Writer December 28: Chris Compendio, Contributor // Mario Rivera, Video Manager // Kris Cornelisse, Staff Writer December 29: Scott Meaney, Community Director // Allisa James, Senior Staff Writer // Ben Bayliss, Senior Staff Writer December 30: Cameron Hawkins, Staff Writer // David Gill, Senior Staff Writer // Portia Lightfoot, Contributor December 31: Iyane Agossah, Senior Staff Writer // Michael Ruiz, Senior Staff Writer // Rachael Fiddis, Contributor January 1: Ricky Frech, Senior Staff Writer // Tanner Pierce, Staff Writer

December 29, 2019 4:00 PM EST

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2019/12/dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-bens-top-10/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-bens-top-10

0 notes