#try to understand that I love and respect all star wars content but the sequel trilogy and I are in a love-hate relationship

[sagechan]

okay people, I've watched SW: The Clone Wars. I just finished SW: Rebels (crying the whole way down btw). I laughed I wept I cursed Dave Filoni for making me feel the entire spectrum of human emotion in these two silly little shows. now the question is. should I actually watch Resistance? is it worth it? is it the same?

[fantasticalleigh]

thoughts about the new rey movie and people’s reactions to the announcement

i was gonna reblog a post about this and just slide my opinion in the tags but it’s getting to be an essay so i think it warrants its own post

i’m not trying to attack anybody with this but this has been rampant since the announcement and i have thoughts:

i understand and share in the opinion that ben solo is a wasted character and that he (and TROS and the sequel trilogy in general) was severely mishandled, and i would not be sorry to see more of him. adam was one of the best things about this new trilogy. i was hardly a star wars fan until the day i went to see TFA on opening day. that experience was something i’ll never forget and i fell in love with kylo/ben and rey from the second they both appeared on screen during their respective intros. without them i don’t think i would enjoy SW the way i do now.

i’m so happy for daisy to have this new opportunity to continue rey’s story. She deserves it.

And before you chime in--yes, Ben deserves for his story to be continued, too. No one’s ever really gone, and all that. if he comes back i will be screaming on the way to the theaters with the rest of you.

but i have seen so many people state outright since the announcement that they refuse to watch the movie if ben isn’t coming back.

i understand that sentiment, i do--none of us want to get burned again TROS-style. we want to see the dyad together and alive and happy. we want lucasfilms to get a friggin grip and just--DO BETTER.

and remember, this is my opinion, but it rubs me the wrong way when people say they won’t watch the movie without ben (and i’ve seen it said over and over and over both here and on instagram) because it’s sort of implying that rey has no value without ben, like she is not interesting enough on her own.

now i don’t actually believe that’s what people mean when they say that (at least, not everybody) but that’s the feeling i get from it. i love rey and ben equally and so i’ll take any new content with them in it, even if they aren’t together. will it hurt? will it be bittersweet? yeah. but imagine if the new rey movie gets a really low turnout and then disney execs look at the numbers and go ‘hmm--let’s not do that again’ and then a new possible trilogy is cancelled or any chance we get of maybe a dyad reunion is also gone. bc we all know the mouse listens to money above all.

i love rey. i think she’s a great character who has just as much potential as ben and i can’t wait to see what she can do in a film where she’s top billing (until they throw in a mark hamill cameo because we all know he’ll be in it to some degree) but my point still stands. and daisy is a great actress who brought such depth to rey that i’m so excited to see her return and i can’t wait to see her as rey again.

do i still have a tiny bit of hope that it will be better this time and that ben will return? yes. i’m not gonna lie about it. this clown makeup is tattooed on. but it’s a cautious hope and i’m trying not to feed too much into it, because the reality is that it’s rey who’s back and i love her so i’m going to support her because i think she’s interesting and compelling on her own, just as she was in TFA before she ever met Kylo/Ben.

[inqorporeal]

Some of us have been exhausted for years already.

I was a devoted fan from age 8 (so, over 30 years at this point) and here's the thing. For all pre-Prequels SW's faults (so much racism) (so much antisemitism) (so much bad writing) (so so so much bad writing) (George's homophobic iron fist on the IP preventing anything LGBTQ from even being hinted at anywhere) (SO much racism omg) we could choose to ignore the parts we didn't like. It was scattered across games and books and comics, and you could choose which ones to keep in your personal canon. There was a fandom push to catalog everything and plenty of arguing over accuracy, but George himself had said that nothing that didn't have his direct fingerprints on it was canon, so have fun in your own little sandbox over there.

Until the Prequels came out, George tried to make watching the Tartakovsky cartoon a requirement for understanding the start of Revenge of the Sith, and the publisher for the written media changed and started a push to unify content. I left the fandom when the Yuuzhan Vong brought all the baby fash Empire apologists out of the woodwork saying "Palpatine did nothing wrong" and then it had to be incorporated into EVERYTHING. It was a decade of content hell designed to back up one really, really bad take.

I liked SWTOR for a while, it gave me my Star Wars fix but connected to all the old comics I really liked rather than any of the newer canon content. It still had a fash Empire apologist problem, but they could be ignored and blocked.

Rogue One gave me hope that things were turning around. And then the Sequels gave us Prequels Era 2: Only Worse, because now everything was interconnected and inescapable and it was headed by people whose work was guided less by love of the world and more by the urge to see who could piss their name the biggest across the IP. I gave Mando a fair shake, until mid s2 when the creators showed they had no respect for the setting or the fans and then it became clear that it was just Filoni trying to keep his fave OCs relevant.

I'm tired. I'm tired of Star Wars being the new MCU. I'm tired of this vast fantasy world full of boundless potential being shrunk to a village by people who feel that fans won't stick with it without familar characters (do not talk to me about the High Republic books either). I'm tired of everything having to be cross-referential and creators fighting by forcibly reconning each other's work.

Was old Star Wars better? Not really, but you could avoid stepping in the occasional piles of shit. Too much now feels like a consistent layer of dung coating the floor; no matter where you step, the stench clings.

lol laughing bc disney already ditched mando4 for "a truncated disney+ movie" because of the wga/sag strike (as if movies dont also need writers and actors lmaoooo). saying itll take too long to release mando4 and ahsoka2 before filoni's "mando-verse" movie and they need to speed things up LMAO

honey .... we all know you nuclear bombed the entire star wars franchise with the abominable mando3 and now youre scrambling now bc you know no one on earth wants to watch the Bo Karen Adventure Show Part 2

and we know that disney is failing and they cant make mando4 at all unless they get bought out lmaooo.

so basically i was right when i said mando wont have another season, ahsoka wont get continued, and i fucking guarantee we wont be seeing this BS mcu mando movie from filoni 😂

like .. maybe .. every single one of your projects shouldnt be a convoluted mess and depend on each other to be released?? maybe literally no one on earth wants the MCU-ification of star wars??? maybe you shouldnt have assumed you could bait n switch a worldwide audience??? maybe your writing shouldnt nosedive and depend solely on the insane whims of one awful writer (Favreau) and someone with a horrible track record (Filoni).

allegedly this movie wont come out til "after 2026" too 🤣. so theyre thinking that ppl, who they already massively alienated, are going to ... still... care at that point?

man it literally is like the Microsoft Paint version of creative thought is running star wars over at DLF now.

[witwerlove]

Sam’s honest opinions on The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker

At first I thought this was worth sharing because I was totally here for the “””shade””” he throws at Rian and JJ. Not gonna lie, it gave me some delight. But thinking it over and really comprehending what Sam has to say (he’s talked about things like this in the past, but this is relevant), it goes way beyond that. And to be honest, it isn’t even a “””drag”””, as I’ve seen people on twitter say. I think Twitter has blown this thing way out proportion. There’s been clips floating around of him just saying “Rise of Skywalker, if you like it, awesome. It’s not as meaningful to me because I can’t really reconcile that mythology with George’s. But that’s just my opinion” and “The Last Jedi, to me, felt like a movie made by a guy who hadn’t done his homework.” People clipped just him saying that and just rolled with it. They either absolutely love him for it or people are turning against him. Not listening to what Sam had to say beyond that (probably because they don’t watch him stream). And I for one think that’s totally unfair.

Sam is a George Lucas fanboy. He’s always been adamantly open about that. But the thing is, unlike a lot of the Star Wars fandom, he doesn’t destroy the sequels to prop up Lucas and the things he loves. At least not in a disrespectful or hateful way. His criticism for these films that are very divisive among the fan base has always been valid in my eyes. And I completely understand his points, even if I don’t always agree. But when I don’t agree with his view, I don’t get angry and lash out. I’m not the biggest fan of the sequels, but I don’t hate them with the fire of a thousand suns like a lot of people do and there are things from them that I like, but as a whole, it’s my least favorite trilogy. It just makes me uncomfortable to see people be so hateful, but those same people are up in arms when someone else says they don’t like what they like. For example, prequel fans lashing out for someone having valid criticism and not just saying “I hate the prequels” with nothing substantial to support their opinion, but in the same breath saying things like “the sequels ruined star wars”. Because a lot of people probably still think the prequels “ruined” Star Wars.

But I’m not one of those people who’s gonna be so over dramatic and say things like “the sequels ruined Star Wars”, because that’s someone else’s Star Wars. Like how my gateway to Star Wars was the prequels and I may have some blind nostalgia for that, those films are someone else’s intro to this universe. I have my gripes and criticism (much like other people do), but it doesn’t seem entirely fair to shit all over it (WHICH SAM DID NOT DO). I just don’t have the time or the energy to put forth in hating something so intensely when I would rather put it into what I love about Star Wars. Sam goes on later to say pretty much the same thing. Personally for me at this point in my fandom experience, I’ve become indifferent to majority of what I don’t like. I accept that it exists, but it doesn’t ruin my entire experience. Not saying I don’t debate about and call things out when I think I have something valid to add, but I don’t actively spend all my time and energy devoting to something or someone that I don’t like. It comes and goes in passing, but I don’t dramatically reiterate my hatred with a burning passion like a lot of fans do. Like seriously, it’s a damn movie franchise. Your life is not ruined.

But I’m just sick of people misinterpreting this as Sam “””dragging”””(whether you’re happy about what he said or not), because he’s not. Star Wars twitter is rejoicing and being offended at these clips out of context. Someone posted a clip of him saying “Rian Johnson didn’t do his homework” and then it spins out of control to be “SAM WITWER SAID FUCK THE SEQUEL TRILOGY” (ummm, no he didn’t) or “SAM WITWER IS CANCELLED”.They take their  hate “crumbs” (someone literally said this to me today) where they can get it or they turn against him. I personally don’t think this is fair to Sam, that his words are being taken out of context like this. He said there’s things he enjoys about the movies, he just doesn’t think they mesh well with Lucas’ mythos....and that The Last Jedi contradicted itself and he feels that Rian Johnson, in trying to be “””edgy””” with his Star Wars, didn’t fit well with what was previously established. And he feels that JJ’s conclusion doesn’t tie in the overarching theme of the films. But Sam also says that everyone has their own interpretation of what Star Wars is....and you don’t necessarily have to agree with someone else’s vision. The thing is, it’s not acceptable to “be a dick” to someone else about how you don’t agree (Sam’s words, not mine). Which I feel is hard for a lot of people in this fandom. God forbid someone else have a different opinion than you and you let that ruin your experience. So what???? There’s so much drama and at its absolute worst, the SW fandom can be a very toxic place. It’s very entitled and elitist. but it can also be a very a fun place once you find your place and your people. 

In this same stream, Sam says you have the power to accept what you love about Star Wars. And you are able to differentiate what you accept as “canon” and what you love vs what you don’t necessarily like. And you don’t “have to be a dick” about what you don’t like. But he also encourages healthy debate and that you are free to validly criticize the media you consume. Which I totally believe in.

At the end of the day, we are all fans. I think we should pour more of our energy towards what we enjoy about the franchise,not give a shit about someone else not liking what we like but also civilly debate it, call it out for its wrongs, offer valid and respectful criticism, don’t reply with death threats or hate speech to people you don’t even know (THIS INCLUDES CREATORS AND PEOPLE DIRECTLY INVOLVED WITH THE CONTENT OF THE FRANCHISE), defend what you love for the right reasons without shitting on others for no reason. A lot of people cross the line and it’s so incredibly hurtful what some “fans” say to each other or about other people. There’s so much harassment and it’s fucking ridiculous the extremes some people go when someone has a different opinion than them.

This is just how I feel about this situation that’s kind of snowballed (as things do whenever Sam says something because literally everything becomes a news headline or gets taken out of context). Sorry if I’m being overly critical and preachy about something that isn’t even a big deal. 

This mess is just rubbing me the wrong way and I wanted to rant about it. 

HAPPY ALMOST STAR WARS DAY!

[nettlestonenell]

Armie Hammer wants a sequel to The Man From U.N.C.L.E.—shouldn’t you?

This post is a long time in coming, Gentle Readers and @jammeke​, but now, though it might be here, before your very eyes, to think it will be well-laid out would be a mistake. It’s set to be just about as messy as Ilya’s misplaced loyalties and murky motivations.

How dare!

I probably first watched this film well over a year ago (courtesy @jammeke​ posting things about it). I used Sling OnDemand (I think on TNT). In the ensuing viewings I also watched it in that way, but as I was sitting down for a fourth(?) viewing, it kept coming to me that I was tired of watching it with commercials I couldn’t skip, and I had a sneaking suspicion that it had been edited for time and I was missing out on scenes. [pointless aside: I was also watching the film in chunks, and never as a whole]

Where is she now? What’s the time stamp? How far along did she get? Are you shagging the hotel hostess yet?

So, I, uh, set out to buy it on DVD—without any luck! In the sense that copies I could find cost more (w/ shipping) than buying it to stream. So, I bought it to stream on Amazon. Do I regret my choice, Gentle Readers? No, no I don’t. I do regret burden of knowledge in learning that TNT was already playing the entirety of the film. That was a hard pill to swallow.

Nope, I’ve looked. That’s absolutely everything. Nothing additional lurking around here...

So here it is, as it is, @jammeke, “My Notes on The Man from U.N.C.L.E.”

Look, I don’t know what this film is. I probably can’t fully articulate its appeal. Or maybe I can--certainly after transcribing four page I’ve tried. Number One thing to know about me and fiction/films is that a top draw for me is seeing something out of the ordinary, such as beautiful locations, a historical era, delicious costumes. There are times, frankly, this can trump weak story and undefined character for me. (The best films, of course, combine all three) Certainly, The Man... delivers in the delight of the eyes. Additionally, I must confess that growing up as a person older than @reblogginhood​ but younger than Miss Fisher, so much of what was on TV was essentially reruns of this film’s iconic Look(tm). So, when I see women dressed like Gaby I am just another three-to-seven-year-old overcome with the drop dead glamour of it all.

Darling, tell me how you really feel...

Some questions I have:

·         IS Armie Hammer a hulk of a man? Everyone in this film seems to think so, yet he always tracks to me as trim (rather than hulking)

·         Why translate via captions some Russian speaking, but not all?

·         IS Napoleon’s backstory directly cribbed from USA’s White Collar?

·         DOES Gaby have a German accent?

·         Does Ilya get preternaturally attached to all the people he’s ordered to look after? Also, what is his bonding rate with kittens?

Sorry, wrong iteration. 

 ·         If Lady Villain knows the lens is wrong—if her technical understanding is that in-depth--does she really need Gaby’s dad to make the bomb?

·         How old was Gaby during the war?

·         What happens when Ilya gets a NEW puppy assigned to him? (please let this be addressed in film #2)

Hooray for:

·         That bathroom fight! *all the Burn Notice feels!

·         Gaby is her own lady, and chooses sides as necessary—not always unilateral in her support for either male character. Case in point: she sides with Ilya over the clothes, and Napoleon over the incident of the wallet.

·         That delicious (speaking as Rusty, here) Ocean’s 11-stylized action. It’s pretty, so I’m not bored with it. Sometimes a sandwiched montage gets shown, so I’m REALLY not bored. I’ve got 18 tiny moving boxes of things to look at!

·         Pinkie rings. There, you’ve told me everything I need to know about that character.

·         Solo in a beret. English has not yet found a word for the feeling it evoked in this viewer. Somewhere between ‘precious’ and ‘oh, no’.

See, there? Now you’ve felt it too.

·         Goggles! All the accessories! Dune Buggies! (I mean, that’s what I’m calling Napoleon’s chase-scene ride)

Things I adore:

·         It seems (after some research) that more than a few folks view Gaby as a third wheel, and though she’s not exactly a Princess Leia commandeering her own rescue and exuding competence and a deserved take-charge-attitude at every corner, she IS a foci for both male characters (though romantically it would seem only for one), just as Ilya is a foci for both her and Napoleon [no one seems to worry about Napoleon, though they should--film #2, anyone?]

·         Mechanic Gaby not needing a beauty makeover, or being dragged into one. She gets some nice clothes, but it’s never suggested that she’s not attractive or acceptable before putting them on, and I respect, nay, embrace it.

Oh, my heart. She’s still not as tall as them!

·         Ilya, drab pigeon Ilya, knowing fashion

·         Oh man, don’t even get me started on the power of the statement, “it doesn’t have to match”

·         You knew it was coming on this sublist: the wrestle-fight. I mean, c’mon. Poor little Gaby, locked behind the Iron Curtain, living a life of always being watched. She’s in the swankest hotel (I mean, Napoleon chose it, so we can be sure it’s swank with an E). She’s trying to celebrate her freedom, her liberation. She’s playing verboten music, she’s drinking to excess. Girl wants—and deserves—a party. And Ilya is…not built for that (that he knows of). For some fun, just imagine if she had been given Napoleon to room with instead.

                            o   I will say that this scene, and some of their other interactions have what I would call early (non-sibling) Luke and Leia energy. Ilya seems to have moments of being struck by Gaby in a way Luke is struck by Leia in the early part of the trilogy. When Leia takes charge, and Luke accepts it. When Leia does something incredible, and Luke is left open-mouthed. *no, I don’t see OT Star Wars in everything. Shut up.

·         “He fixed the glitch.”

·         Again, shout-out to the non-action action.

·         “I left my jacket in there.”

·         The whole race to rescue Gaby I am in love with beyond words. [I have noted it as “Crazy Jeep Drive with Warhead!”] Probably b/c it comes across as totally egalitarian. Both men want her rescued. They’re no longer in competition. It’s just as important to Napoleon as it is to Ilya to catch up to her. Also, it is bonkers, like some sort of X-games version of a commercial for the vehicles they’re driving. And screaming Willie Scott does not make an appearance.

         Someone says “winkle” out.

·         Look! Another note about the screen divisions and how I love it, shout-outs to the original Steve McQueen The Thomas Crown Affair (a contemporary of when this movie is meant to be set), and TV’s 24.

Things that get a great, big NOPE:

·         Jerrod Harris: you’ve been in so much streamable content in the last decade I can’t hate you, but frankly, you’re terrible here—unless you’re supposed to be giving a mannered, not-campy-enough-to-be-enjoyable performance here. Your American English puts me in the mind of Alex Hawaii 5-0′Loughlin where it feels you’re concentrating so hard on your accent that you fail to convince anyone that you’re a harried, over-worked and exasperated spy handler. Your performance is at odds with every bit of dialogue you’re given to say.

·         That awful, mishandled title that doesn’t even connect to the film until the final moments (a sequel set-up, for sure)

·         Look, you don’t introduce Hugh Grant casually mid-way through your film in a throwaway appearance. I mean, he’s HUGH GRANT we all know something’s up now.

·         This is not exactly a great big NOPE, b/c I love a flat cap, Tommy Shelby—but I feel like a less tall man with a far rounder face in a flat cap would track more as Russian to me that AH does. To me, he just looks like he’s about to go golfing.

Over par? Unacceptable!

·         Is Victoria a British-accented Italian? A British woman who married—what? Gaby’s uncle isn’t Italian!? An Italian who went to school in Britain? My head hurts. Also, is her hair meant to be unconvincingly bleached?

Other commentary:

·         Napoleon’s adult ne’er-do-well backstory is so far from being emotionally equivalent to Ilya’s childhood trauma [and his enslavement to the USSR] it seems bestial when he calls it out on multiple occasions. Badly done, Solo.

·         Gaby is the film’s key (sorry, Buffy fans). Everyone is connected to her. Yes, she could have been given a bit more on the character front, but I don’t see her as as much of a flaw in the film as some others/reviewers seem to.

·         Look, essentially (and not very nuanced-ly), Ilya is a stalker. I think the film goes a certain distance in establishing that his early behavior toward Gaby is not normal, but concurrently it does not truly call him out on it. He’s essentially viewed as an odd-duck, sure, but not a true threat to her (should she not reciprocate or tolerate his intensity toward her). I think I might be able to cite his behavior when Gaby comes on to him (that he doesn’t jump at a chance with her) that maybe he’s given a little more nuance than a straight-on stalker, and it helps that he and Napoleon never get into a pissing match over Gaby’s person, only over her new clothes. But overall the film has to walk a fine line (and the jury is still out on how successful it is, I’d say) between playing Ilya’s laser-like attention to Gaby for its humor, and calling it out for the unsettling, threatening behavior it is.

·         Honestly, it wasn’t until I engaged the Closed Captioning that I understood Napoleon was calling Ilya the ‘Red Peril’. So, that was nearly three viewings in.

·         I give the screen credits A+, on both ends. Not to mention the end credits are actually INTERESTING with lots to see and learn! (Certainly we learn more about HG in them than we do at any time during the film)

Things I would have liked:

·         More of fish-out-of-the-Iron-Curtain Gaby moments

·         A better dichotomy shown of East vs. West Berlin/Germany. There’s nothing easy either visually or otherwise to distinguish the two.

·         HC being given a more specific American accent (from an actual locality). This, for an American viewer, works better than the flat, unlocated American accent many a British actor will bust out. *Mind you, HC does a generally good job, but he fails utterly on both “Immediate” which he pronounces at least twice as “immeedeejt” [rather than imm-E-deeot] and “Nazi” as “NAHT-zee” [rather than “NOT-zee”]. And let’s not get started on that late in the film use of ‘earnt’, a word that—well, it’s just not in the American English twentieth century lexicon.

·         C’mon. You gotta tease the Hugh Grant more.

·         Solo is a blank before the war. I’ve read thoughts on the film calling out Gaby as the blank character, but they’re wrong. Solo is the blank. He’s the ‘made’ man, his identity seemingly assembled during the war and after. For example, he doesn’t go into the war a thief, nor (it would seem) a particularly educated or urbane individual. Now THAT’s a juicy backstory I’d love to learn about, perhaps in film #2--or #3? What creates a Napoleon Solo? What would he be doing if he weren’t on the government’s leash/incarcerated? Is anyone left caring about him back wherever he calls home? I mean, who doesn’t love a gender-flipped 60s-era Holly Golightly backstory? [And yes, I would love there to be an ex-wife or even a current wife mixed up in his origins as well—Guy Ritchie, call me!]

Notes I have that I’m not sure if they still make sense to me:

·         Only mom calls me Napoleon (do he say it ‘mum’?) Is he a secret Canadian?

·         Solo’s torture, 1st view recall Napoleon’s childhood? *I think this means that after watching the first time I somehow erroneously believed that during the torture Napoleon’s childhood was a topic gone over. This was wrong. HOWEVER, this would have made far more story-sense than the backstory we’re given on an easily disposeable villain.

·         “Even the average Russian agent. You’re special.” ?

·         Uncle is Baddie (*so glad I made this note to myself)

·         Ilya’s dad IS an embarrassment. I’m not sure what genius commentary I had in my mind, here. Perhaps that Ilya himself is embarrassed of him? Not just Ilya’s handler’s? [Also, aside: Napoleon totally slut-shames Ilya’s mom, which is the doublest of double standards from ‘I got myself the biggest and most ornate suite b/c I-wanted-plenty-of-space-for-my-random-seductions’ and I really wish Ilya had thrown that back in his face] *yes, of course I know that Ilya and Napoleon would not likely equate a wife/mother’s sexual exploits with that of Solo’s, but let’s be honest, this film tweaks the nose of (I won’t say reverses, it doesn’t go that far) plenty of tropes and gender expectations, and this certainly seems like a missed opportunity to call Solo on the carpet (which I hope film #2 does far more)

Things I wrote down so long ago I don’t recall what they mean:

·         CC-save

In conclusion:

What does film #2 look like? What title does it get? Will the Peter/Neil White Collar dynamic continue to grow? *note that I have no confidence a second film will ever come to pass...

In the end, all I know is, “It didn't help when American Tom Cruise, who was slated to play U.S. spy Napoleon Solo, dropped out, prompting the casting of Cavill (who had previously read for the Russian role).“ I would not have watched that film.

[thisisthepartwhereyou]

STAR WARS-SPECULATION #2: Rebel or Lost Cause? *May Contain Spoilers*

--- During the course of human history there has been many cases of overwhelming tyranny and opression. It can be as small as the dominion of a single creature, or as vast as an entire world. But as they say, even the cornered rat will bite the cat, and give birth to struggle and resistance. Under these circumstances, a rebellion rises to resist and challenge the rule of the oppressors, despite facing unlikely odds. David against Goliath, the Spartans in the battle of Thermopylae, and when speaking of the Star Wars-sequel trilogy, the Resistance and the First Order.

While one can go on to say that the conflict between the First Order and the Resistance is basically a carbon-copy of the Empire versus the Rebellion from the original trilogy, as we don't go deep enough into the history or political aspects of either group to really nail down their differences to their older counterparts. Though from what I gather, the First Order is composed of the remnants of the empire, who by the time of The Force Awakens (2015) is recognized as an extremist following, though not generally seen as a major danger in the eyes of the government (like a space-equivelent to North Korea?). The Resistance is a countergroup acting outside of the galactic government who sees the threath of the First Order and keeps an eye on their acitivties.

Either way, that is not what I am here to talk about today, as my focus will be directed at one of the most principal characters within the Resistance: Poe Dameron.

Played by the very likable Guetamalan-American actor Oscar Isaac, Poe Dameron is an ace X-wing pilot, an agent of the Resistance and the original owner of the droid BB-8. His actions in the first movie, where he stores important information within his droid, is what starts the whole chain of events for the trilogy, an act which rhymes with the actions of princess Leia in A New Hope (1977). Over the trilogy he is portrayed as a brave, cocky and hotheaded brother in arms. He is a generally well-received character, especially in regards to his bromantic (and apparently quasi-romantic) relationship with Finn, but has over the progression of the last two films been the subject for critique. Not as red-hot of a critique as some other aspects of the sequels, but enough to make you raise your eyebrowns a bit. The main critique being, is he REALLY neccesary?

Don't get me wrong, new members of the Resistance are vital for new movies, otherwise the Resistance might have looked like an old folks home. Poe Dameron should have all the ingredients neccesary to be the posterboy of the the Resistance: he is the member with the most screentime, his actions set off, he is played by a very likable actor and he is a great pilot. But the issue is, while it is all there, it is not really utilized well. The further one goes with these movies, the more one realizes that he is the least developed of the main characters. His role in TFA is minor, he acts as an agressor in a generally disliked sideplot in The Last Jedi (2017), and his part in The Rise of Skywalker (2019), while the richest in content, feels un-earned because the direction of the character is neither clear or given enough development.

So considering that his role doesn't add a whole lot in the trilogy after the first part, was Poe Dameron's continuous role in the sequel-trilogy REALLY neccesary? Objectively, I would have to say no. I mean if a character doesn't have a clear purpose, you either give him one, scale him back or kill him off, so that you can give more room for the other characters. I believe the therm is “kill your darlings.“ With that said, I can understand why one would be reluctant to kill him off to begin with; Oscar Isaacs is the most likable actor ever, something that translates into his performance, and in turn, the character. While Poe Dameron is pretty pointless, he is still hard to completely dislike. This illustrates the power of a talented actor, that he or she can someimes overwin bland or nonsensical writing.

So we have a character that is perfectly likable and who could have been a great addition to the franchise. There certainly was potencial in him, so what could have been done to make the most of it? Well, below are some of the directions I think could have been taken:  

A) Poe Dameron dying in TFA: This one feels appropriate, considering it was the original intent of the moviemakers. As stated by Oscar Isaac's in Business Insider (https://www.businessinsider.com/star-wars-poe-was-supposed-to-die-2016-3?r=US&IR=T), his character was originally supposed to die. While it would be a shame to see a likable character go so fast, it might have solved a couple of issues and added something more to the first part of the trilogy. Besides the fact that it could have added an extra layer of danger to the plot, in that any character could die at any point, it would have also put all of our eggs in the basket of a deserting stormtrooper and a random scavenger. Plus, killing him off wouldn't have made his role in TFA much smaller anyway. Poe not being in the two following movies could have also left much bigger room for the development Rey, Finn and several other characters. Also, to see how the heroism and sacrifice of a single Resistance-member would affect Finn would be really interesting, considering that Finn would have owed his freedom and life to a complete stranger (who was just recently his enemy) that would have died before he could have even had a chance to thank him. How does that make a person who is trying to flee from the battlefield, feel? I can't help but to think of a similar situation in the Green Lantern-comics (DC), where veteran member of the Green Lantern Corps, Abin-sur, crashlands on Earth and gives his power ring to Hal Jordan, a human pilot, before dying. Abin-sur's death had a considerable effect on Hal Jordan, in that besides becoming a new corps member, but became one by taking over the ring of the corp's most beloved and respected members. That is a hell of legacy to live up to, not to mention a massive responsibility. Something like THAT would have been a pretty thought-provoking storyline for Finn.

B) His carelessness has personal consequences in TLJ: In the beginning of TLJ, Poe Dameron disobeys an order to evacuate and instead engages a First Order fleet. This is a foolhardy act, as even though they take down a Stardestroyer, a lot of Resistance pilots die in the process. While it has several consequences within the movie, such as barely having any pilots left for the remainder of it, he himself do not seem overly affected by it, dismissing it as the casualties of war. But if you really think about it, should there not be some resentment aimed at him besides from his superiors, and shouldn’t he feel more guilt? I mean, Rose Tico's sister died in that battle. Wouldn't it have been more interesting Rose and others resent him for his careless actions? This could've been a more likable struggle for him, as he should have been the one to learn that war is not just about defeating the enemy, but saving the ones you love. If he had done this and in the process displayed a sense of leadership in a time of great need, maybe his transformation into a commander in TROS would have felt more organic?

C) Poe goes with Finn to Canto Bight instead of Rose Tico: This one could have worked as a continuation to B. Canto Bight isn't exactly a favorite moment in TLJ, even for the ones who like TLJ. The main criticism being that it is not that interesting of a planetary environment; basically just feeling like a casino with aliens. Another critique is that it felt like a detour that was too disconnected and did ultimately not add that much to the other parts of the movie. One way of making the movie less fragmented, as well as give Poe something better to do, could have been to give him more or less the same role as Rose Tico. Besides further developing his and Finn's friendship, it could have even been a way of putting that awkward kiss in the third act to better use, and confirm some legitimacy to the whole Finn X Poe-ship. While I am not staunch supporter of the ship, I have to admit that it would have been interesting. With that said, I don't think it would have made everyone happy. I mean lets face it, if people get upset about a black dude in a stormtrooper-uniform, one can only assume how they would have reacted to an openly gay or bi character in Star Wars. But at the same time, if people were pissed off at even the good bits in TLJ, why not go all the way and piss off every stuck up parent sitting in the theaters worldwide while you're at it? Certainly would have been ballsiest move ever, especially considering it’s a Disney-film.

D) Poe staying at Leia's side in TROS: As I have written before, the main issues with TROS is messy storytelling and a rushed pace. One of many things that adds to this is by suddenly providing Poe with a backstory while simultenously trying to give him a bigger role than before by having him travel with Rey and Finn. What if they had scaled him down a little, let him stay with Leia as they plan for the upcoming attack? Not only would it have been more powerful for him to be there with her as she passes away, but also motivate him to step into the role of a mature leader more. I realize that this is a little sensitive, as it may have required additional footage of Leia in order to work. Though to be fair, being respectful is one thing, making a good movie is another. And also, if they can remake young Leia for a flashback, why can't they just remake old Leia a bit for some extra material?

Could any of these alternatives have added something good to the movie, or subtracted from the main story? You tell me. No, seriously, tell me what you think, I would love to hear your thoughts on the matter in the comments. Do you have any ideas of your own that could have helped make Poe Dameron the most iconic pilot of the sequel era? Feel free to discuss this with me :) ---

[the-far-bright-center]

Definitely my target audience—thanks for responding! :')

As you can probably tell, I’m an Anakin fan and thus focus on Prequels/Clone Wars era a lot, but I’m also a lifelong OT fan and die-hard believer in its happy and transcendent ending. I personally don’t have any interest in continuing the story beyond RotJ (because I view the Skywalker saga as Anakin’s story, and once he dies and brings balance to the Force, the story is over). That being said, I’m cool with things like Han and Leia’s kids from the Expanded Universe, and prefer that infinitely to anything in the fake-sequels.

I totally understand that a lot of fans have things they can handle when it comes to Disney SW, and then things they can’t, and we all have to find our happy place. Even though I had major problems with Disney’s interpretation of SW ever since TFA, I didn't immediately forgo all Disney material right away. I’d already been watching Rebels for a year before TFA came out (at the time, I’d assumed that Rebels was the only way we’d ever get resolution for certain Clone Wars characters), and I stuck with it until midway through the final season (when I became too annoyed by certain elements and quit). In contrast, Rogue One was something I’d dreaded initially as it was the first live-action entry post-TFA, but Carrie Fisher’s death led me to watch it as I needed some kind of closure (especially after the horrible memory of TFA), and thankfully I didn’t regret it. Rogue One worked so well for one simple reason: it respected the saga. It even incorporated themes from the iconic RotS novelisation by Matthew Stover—the entire film was one big riff on the famous ‘in the heart of its strength lies its weakness’ and ‘love can ignite the stars’ lines. In this way, it acted as thematic link between the PT and OT. If anything, Rogue One should have been the film that Disney started with, imo. And they should have made it into essentially an ‘interquel’ trilogy of films (followed by Rogue Two and Rogue Three). That way, they could have had their precious ‘nostalgic’ Dark Times aesthetics without having to reset the entire galaxy and destroy two whole trilogies of storyline and character arcs just to have an excuse to use the throwback visuals they wanted. Sigh…

But everything else since those two things I have completely ignored. I won’t get into detail here about why, but ultimately I just can’t trust Disney with ANY part of SW anymore, and it makes me physically ill whenever they co-opt yet another favourite character or story element into their fake version of events. So, unfortunately at this point I can’t handle any of it, and that includes the Obi-Wan show and Mandalorian. If others enjoy those, great, but for me…the more that the Disney content messes with my fave characters, the more I need to stay far away from it. I’ve refused to watch a single piece of Disney SW media since early 2018 for this reason, despite multiple people practically begging me to, and honestly I think it’s the best decision I’ve ever made for my own sanity.

The downside is that for years now I’ve been almost completely alienated from the SW fandom, but I’m trying to remedy that a bit by more actively reaching out to likeminded fans. Thanks for reaching back. :)

Looking for fellow non-Disney SW blogs

Tumblr is getting very lonely these days, and I'm looking for Star Wars blogs that don't post the non-stop stream of Disney content (and/or that only post it minimally and tag it well enough that it can be filtered easily).

I crave fandom interaction but it's almost impossible these days to find SW blogs that ignore Disney. Since this year is the 40th (!) anniversary of Return of the Jedi, it would be nice to be able to celebrate with fans who share my view of it as the true ending of the Skywalker saga.

[tilliwriteapine]

The Power of Sacrifice

Okay *cracks knuckles*

I’ve had a few months to dwell on this. I think I’ll say something. Of course, I realize I am A: not a popular person in the Star Wars/Reylo fandoms, and B: not trying to change any minds. I just want to say my peace, considering the tags can be overwhelming with negativity. And that’s soul-crushing when you get hyped for a new fandom and it is basically a dumpster fire from the first day. And I have entered plenty of fandoms. Some nicely, some rather unceremoniously, others – regretfully. I’m also not looking for an argument – respectful discussion absolutely encouraged! Don’t go attacking others – and stop abusing the anon function!

I personally love, love, love The Rise of Skywalker. Does it have a shit ton of faults? Oh boy, does it ever. I’m probably still in the anger stage of the five stages of grief, but at the same time, I also have entered acceptance. (And that is only because the fanfiction and artwork post-TROS has been mind-blowingly amazing and wonderful and I cannot get enough of it!!!! I’m itching to get my brain and fingers to write my own!)

Because I love TROS, and honestly the entire sequel trilogy, I have to say something.

I’m deeply sad that the story ended the way it did. The movie as a stand-alone suffers greatly from missing details. I wish they would have just let it be three hours long, giving us a complete story. The last Hunger Games book, the last Harry Potter book, the last Twilight book all were split into two movies to tell the full story. I get why DLF did it in one – trilogy – but they should have had the respect to tell the story to its fullest extent. And from what I have seen of the comics and books, including tie-in novelization, there is so much more content to be gleaned from other sources OTHER than the movie – and that is disappointing. Don’t get me wrong, that sounds very much like a Disney move – money, anyone? But many will not get into the comics or buy the novelization or other books. It ruins what the story should be telling us. We got a disjointed film that paid poor regards to all the actors and every character.

I loved Adam Driver’s portrayal of Ben Solo. It was the most honest, gut-wrenching portrayal I have ever watched (and I’m a Spirk lover on the Trek side of the Stars, also directed by JJ Abrams… sigh). Adam brought everything to a character that has a horrific backstory, and I sob thinking of the pain and anguish of a fictional character. And I now have a newfound love for The Last Jedi when I long didn’t understand it (thank you tumblr for opening my eyes). Adam did a fucking fantastic job for what it is worth. How the writers/director handled Kylo Ren, and ultimately Ben Solo? Poorly. Adam deserved so much better than – THAT!

I think we can all agree we had hoped for something different for Ben. Anything but death. I hate death (and yet I’m A: addicted to it, and B: work with it enough because I’m an oncology nurse certified in hospice and palliative care) and Ben deserved far better treatment. Words would have been nice! (I know Adam is more into the non-verbal talent of acting, but ugh his voice is mesmerizing). A different kind of redemption – atonement for the things Kylo Ren did in terrorizing the galaxy, of finding himself again as Ben Solo, the last living Skywalker who had a chance to change the future of the disastrous history of the Skywalker legacy. An actual relationship with Rey. Oh, and maybe not killing the literal last Skywalker – when the movie is named The Rise of Skywalker. I love you, Rey, but even the Palpatine bit was an awful plot device (she is Rey Nobody, thank you very much. That’s a whole other post about the Palpatine BS…)

But as much as I had hoped for so much more ��� I’m still okay with Ben Solo’s death. Not in the I’m gonna stop crying everyday kind of okay, but the kind of reassurance that I see where the writers/director went with it and acknowledge the type of redemption and atonement that we got in Ben’s death. Many will argue that death doesn’t serve the purpose of redemption or atonement – and I don’t disagree. And of course, I wish Ben had been able to defeat the raging mental beast that kept him from believing he was loved and could have an actual future – but sometimes we don’t all get that far. As someone who has personally dealt with mental illness for about ten years now, on medication for at least seven of those years, and having been at the brink of suicide in my darkest times (just under five years ago), I get the swirling darkness and difficulty of climbing up out of the mental pit. What does this have to do with me being okay with the ending we were given for Ben Solo? There is SO MUCH that goes into climbing out of that mental pit that plot wise, the writers/director totally didn’t want to deal with it. Which is a fucking cop-out if I have EVER seen one (again, give us a three-hour movie!!! Problem solved -_-). But story wise, it makes sense in avoiding the mental follow-through Ben would need to achieve success post-Exegol, post-war. That excuses nothing – but I get it.

It wasn’t a senseless death in any regard. Many are calling it that, but I disagree that is was senseless. Ben gave his everything to give Rey life. He understood that the galaxy needed her more than it needed him – little lost Ben Solo, a past ravaged by pain, fear, regret, and death. Even in a happy future of long-term atonement and actually having a relationship with Rey, the galaxy deserved Rey more than Ben. That is not a narrative I necessarily agree with – but it is somewhat Ben’s point of view. Again, mentally, Ben had a lot he needed to struggle through – and in a moment when all hope was literally lost (Rey was dead), he took the power of life and death into his own literal hands. 

Rey had shown him compassion and love in a moment of pure hatred when she attempted to kill him (and everyone is up in arms about that, but again, another whole post that isn’t this one), giving him back his life. And even with the novelization saying Rey tried to give him everything of herself, it was evident in the movie that Rey regretted the act of trying to kill him and softly whispered her confession I did want to take you hand… Ben’s hand. Remembering what she had done for him, Ben had nothing left to give her in a time of absolute anguish. Rey was dead. Except – he had himself. A boy ravaged by abuse, lies, and feeling utterly lost in a galaxy that feared him, further pushing him into the persona that became Kylo Ren. Ben Solo returned to being himself, freely himself (without the Kylo Ren mask) in time to realize Rey needed him more than anything else in the entire galaxy. So, he ran to her – literally ran, fought off the Knights of Ren, and came to stand with her against Palpatine. And then when she, with his strength and the mass of Jedi before her, defeated Palpatine, he felt her death and the galaxy stopped being real. No one was around to save them. It was Ben – barely alive – and Rey – dead. He did the one thing he had left to offer – himself.

It wasn’t a senseless death. Ben gave her himself. All of his love, hope, strength, courage, and joy. Dying for someone else is never senseless. The greatest thing in life we could ever aspire to is giving up ourselves for someone else. As a Christian, I believe deeply that giving yourself for someone else is the highest act of love and compassion, because Christ did that for me and for you by dying on the cross. Of course, giving yourself for someone else doesn’t always mean dying – but that’s a pretty huge way of showing your love and devotion for someone. Ben died for Rey – and he didn’t regret it. If he could do just one last act of love – it was to give Rey life in exchange of his own. The ultimate sacrifice. While the Force isn’t the exact metaphor for Christ/the Holy Spirit, it certainly vibes in a way that sparks that same feeling of spirituality and the fight between good and evil.

Every time I listen to the song “Faith” by Jordan Feliz, these lyrics remind me of Ben standing with Rey: Remember your rescue is standing beside you. He comes to her rescue, and then gives her his all. The very last breath within him was for her – it had always been her.

Of course, none of this takes into the fact that a Dyad in the Force is basically the ultimate soulmate connection and with Ben’s death, Rey is left with a literal gaping wound that will never heal. Yeah, that’s fun to – to think about… HELLA DEPRESSING.

Ben didn’t die in vain. For all the issues TROS has (more than just this post can describe), I will boldly defend Ben Solo’s act of selflessness for Rey Nobody. It isn’t the first time I have fallen in love with a character that turns themselves around and tackles scary shit head on. Eugene Fitzherbert gave his life for Rapunzel (Tangled). Kirk gave his life for Spock (Star Trek Into Darkness) and vice versa (The Wrath of Khan). Richard Maxwell tried getting himself killed for the right reasons (touchy subject, lol) (Adventures in Odyssey). Laurent gave himself up to spare Damen’s life, which almost cost Laurent his own head (The Captive Prince). Horatio Caine hunted down his wife’s murderer (CSI:Miami). Of course not all of these deal with redemption (Eugene and Richard have redemption arcs), but Ben Solo can safely tuck himself into my long list of loves for sacrifices made in the face of great peril and hopeless odds.

And honestly, WHY DIDN’T BEN SOLO BECOME A FORCE GHOST?!!! I think I’m most angry about that!

[mrmallardsmobileposts]

How I Think The Star Wars Sequels Should Have Happened: Another MrMallard Nerd Moment

(MAJOR SPOILERS)

The Force Awakens:

fine jumping on point. Not perfect, but honestly a return to form in regards to making Star Wars movies fun again. Keep TFA as-is, warts and all - the trick is paying this movie off by the end.

The Last Jedi:

Less faux-Guardians of the Galaxy humor. That's not to say "no humor", I honestly thought Luke Skywalker had the best jokes of the movie, but less "your mother" and less "Finn wakes up from a coma and drips IV fluid everywhere, Wakka Wakka!". The former is corny, the latter is undignified and actively cheapens character development from the prior movie.

Cut the stampeding race-beasts, because it reeks of Disney's "fuck you we're Disney" money, but keep Canto Bight as a whole. The alien designs are charming - it's a nice moment of fanservice, along with the Jizz music. It also serves as a nice character-building exercise for Rose and Finn.

Ultimately, I think it might have been a better idea to kill off Leia in this movie considering Carrie Fisher's passing. I don't dislike her in this movie, and I honestly enjoyed the scene of her in space - my first thought was "holy fuck she can use the force!!" - but I think it would have been better for her to pass on in this movie, both logistically and for her character. That, or they should have scaled back her cobbled together Frankenstein-performance of CGI, cut lines and recontextualised footage in TRoS. Either/or.

Keep the mutiny plot with Poe, but something has to be done with how they treat the secret plan. The resolution to the mutiny plot was the thing that bothered me the most with TLJ, but it's pretty much the only thing for Poe to do in the movie and it adds conflict to the main story I guess. Making the Holdo/Poe seem a little less personal might help? idk. honestly a lot of this storyline felt forced.

Don't try and resolve Rey's backstory in this movie. Keep it as a running mystery. I understand that they were trying to go for a clever subversion in this movie, but it just added another stupid thing that TRoS bad to address and it honestly kinda ruins the trilogy.

Honestly, either cut Crait entirely and make it the beginning of the next movie - bc the movie's already two hours long and it feels like the final battle stretches the movie out beyond its natural ending point - or shorten it a bit and make it a bit more functional. It looks cool, but at that point it's like tacking an extra mile onto a marathon.

Also, don't shoehorn a failed heroic sacrifice with Finn imo. That, or give him more screentime and character development to build up to that moment. Post-TFA, he's really half-baked, and I honestly think he should have been more of a focal character next to Rey. The heroic sacrifice felt like it came out of nowhere, and by thwarting it and adding the Rose Tico scene, it felt like a waste of time even having it in there. It comes and goes with no fanfare.

Honestly, I would have preferred if Luke stayed alive at the end of the movie. I think his death was a movie too soon. Saying that, I think they nailed his death in this movie - if they were gonna kill him off, I think they did it right. Also, don't kill off Snoke. It's a cool scene, but it fucks up the next movie.

Re: Rose Tico - she's not my favorite part of the movie, but I don't actively hate her and I think the response to her character that Kelly Marie Tran had to face was absolutely disgusting. I think her plotline with Finn was a little underbaked, and that scene at the end where she prevents his heroic sacrifice just kinda sidelines them both. I think making her a navigator would have helped her character in TLJ and TRoS.

In short: trim a few excessive CGI scenes, cut a few cornball jokes out, play around with the characterisation and tone of the mutiny plot, dignify Finn's character instead of reducing him to a rehashed coward, comedic relief character and pointless failed Rebel martyr, and maybe keep Luke Skywalker alive at the end. Bring the movie in at around 2 hours max.

Keep Luke Skywalker as-is, bc his character is a highlight of TLJ.

The Rise of Skywalker:

Kill off Luke Skywalker in this movie. Seriously, just cut and paste his death at the end of TLJ into this movie. Work him into a reduced role when Rey junks her ship, like the force projection messed him up and he doesn't have much longer to live, and have him help her when she returns to his island planet instead of adding a phoned-in Force Ghost appearance. Maybe have her there when he passes?

Reduce Leia's role in this movie instead of stitching together a Frankenstein's Monster of a performance. Not to be morbid by that reference - it's just that everything she says feels so stilted and wrong, like you can definitely tell they've thrown all the scraps they have left into her character in this movie. It doesn't feel natural or respectful for her character to spit out non-sequiters for the characters to respond to in an equally unnatural sort of way.

Honestly? Canonise Fey/Rinn, however you want to portmanteau Rey and Finn's ship name. If you give Finn more of a character arc in TLJ instead of side-lining him, and establish that he and Rey are particularly close - which they are IMO - and then pay off that "I have something to tell you" beat with a confession of love. This isn't a stab against Reylo, though I've certainly had words to say about Reylo, I just think Finn/Rey is a more wholesome ship and I prefer this dynamic to the fuckin dark side/light side paradigm of Reylo. I Just don't care for it. Kylo Ren's conflicted nature doesn't have to resolve in romance. Gimme Rey/Finn.

Snoke gets offed by Palpatine. There's no breeding vat for Snokes, but if the movie wants to suggest that he's still just a puppet or a creation, that's fine. That, or build Snoke up as the bad guy, and either follow through on that or have Palpatine be a twist halfway through the movie.

Maybe make Palpatine a Sith Ghost? They do exist to some degree. Or have him stuck in some other limbo that requires him to hijack Rey. Anything is better than that "if I do this you do this, but then I'll do this so you would have to do this, but really I'm going to do this so either way my entire plan was completely unnecessary lmao" clusterfuck where he's a living corpse impaled on a robot arm.

Cut out the macguffins, or make them feel less inconsequential. Okay, so the dagger storyline involves rebooting C3PO. It has stakes and gravitas to a degree. Cool - keep that. What the fuck is up with the wayfinders though? Why are there only two? Why do they need to be so convoluted?

Maybe have Maz Kanata talk about Luke's lightsaber, and/or have her involved in finding a way to Palpatine. It would pay off her appearance in TFA and explain her importance to Luke.

By making Rose Tico a great navigator in TLJ, her role on the team can be expanded in TRoS and she can do like star charts and stuff for all the different worlds they're going to - she can come along instead of being fucked over by JJ Abrams in this movie. She can even help with Maz Kanata's wayfinding plan. In short - make her a part of the team.

Honestly, fuck the Knights of Ren right off. They're a waste of time. That, or set them up in TLJ - hell, have one of them on Canto Bight and another one on Snoke's ship. Maybe even retcon Phasma into being a Knight of Ren. Anything but bringing them back as a mook squad in this movie, with no weight or character.

Honestly? Show Palpatine surviving the Death Star crash. The retcon is all the more painful for being completely and utterly unexplained. Doesn't matter if you have to touch the source material to do it, CG in a force shield as Palpatine falls through fire and have him hobble to a life support pod that takes him to where he is in TRoS. Literally anything is better than "Somehow, Palpatine returned".

Either cut the healing powers, or leave them in sans Reylo kiss.

In short: reduce Leia's role instead of using cut content and a CGI puppet to stitch together a performance, leave Luke alive until this movie, kill Snoke in this movie OR have him be the big bad, make Finn/Rey a thing over Reylo - again, no hate, I just prefer this pairing over Reylo - write more details about Palpatine's survival, either put some Knights of Ren into TLJ or don't have them at all, get rid of the Wayfinder macguffins and/or work Maz Kanata and "master navigator" Rose Tico into a plot to find Palpatine.

At the end of the day, there should have been a planning committee for the Star Wars story, not for the merchandise. You can see from how the sequel trilogy crammed out merchandise that Disney was clearly asking for marketable merch, but the story is a trainwreck - there was a Star Wars committee, just not where the property needed one.

The sequel trilogy was a worthwhile experiment imo - it didn't pay off, but it was worth doing just to see if it was possible. But even then, I would prefer three decent movies over a couple of experimental trainwrecks retroactively ruining one decent movie.

This post was mostly trying to work with what the movies already have, though by TRoS you really do have to start overhauling shit to make it work. In my eyes, the longest that these movies should run is two hours - any more than that is a slog, especially when the movie feels like it takes two hours. The Last Jedi felt like two and a half hours. The Rise of Skywalker felt like a two hour movie crammed into 80 minutes, despite the fact it was longer than 2 hours. The best way to make these movies more watchable is to make them shorter - cut out superfluous money shot scenes like the Canto Bight chase, have more efficient scenes to balance out the stylish scenes. The sequel trilogy is short on efficiency imo, and without a movie where it feels like progress is being made, the style doesn't work.

So tweak some things to make each movie more efficient.

[sangriatimes]

Nintendo Switch saves Valentines Day

Can you believe that we are almost half-way done with January? Maybe it’s just me and the countless hours I put into reviewing the latest titles for the Nintendo Switch...which is our focus point that can change the tide if you hit a hard spot this V-Day. Maybe you don’t have enough money for that dinner, movie and gift. Maybe you thought that restaurant you made a reservation at is more expensive than you though. Maybe you just started a new relationship but you still have some awkward silences that seem to kill the mood. Whatever the situation may be a Nintendo Switch can get you to second base and home plate...trust me.

So let’s look at some of the titles for switch that are great to play with that special someone. (Games are listed in no particular order; games are not based on “)sales”; Games are mainly hidden gems)

1. Monopoly | 9.5 out of 10

Hear me out. I was one that grew up playing the original board game with my family and the overall appeal of the game was astounding, but I lost interest when I got older and noticed how long it takes to make everyone go bankrupt. ...but this is something...otherworldly. The first awesome thing you will notice when you pick up this title is the use of the Joy-Con controllers to shake the dice and throw them. Though this is still the same mechanic in spirit as its predecessor but with the newly animated boards populated by Mii’s and watching a living city grow as you play and add properties adds an entirely new respect for Money Bags. Our team lost track of time having so much fun with this one and before we knew it, we had seen 5 hours pass. (No one wants to play Monopoly for that long.) 

2. Uno | 8.5 out of 10

Uno is another one of those games I grew up playing with family. When I purchased the game, I was expecting some sort of controller mechanic similar to Monopoly’s dice...but with cards instead...but I was let down. None the less, going into this, I didn’t even know that there were so many ways to play Uno besides the normal rules. Once again, I was amazed at how much more fun this was than the physical cards themselves. Rules like “Stacking. Where Player 1 can play a “Blue Draw 2″ card and Player 2 can counter play a “Draw 2″ card as well. ...but if Player 3 doesn’t possess a “Draw 2″ card, Player 3 then has to pick all 4 cards from the previous turns” was so exciting to try and there are many other ways to customize rules and play styles. 

3. Super Smash Bros | 9.0 out of 10

I really don’t need to go into detail about this one. My only issue with the Smash series is I would really enjoy a multiplayer adventure mode or campaign. I was quite pleased with the full roster of characters though. Disclaimer: Make sure your partner isn’t a sore loser. We all know about SSB’s steep learning curve for beginners. “Don’t be a butt...”

4. Diablo 3 | 9.0 out of 10

I remember having this title on my old PS4 and being able to enjoy it on my PS Vita while I was in a relationship with someone who liked the game as much as I and we would both take our Vita’s to the restroom with us so we could keep the experience going. This title can definitely be used to understand the mindset your partner has by the way they customize their character and the actions they take in response to events. It’s a top-down action-adventure-role-playing-hack-n-slash (inhale.) It is a port of it’s original released on PS3 & 360...the price tag is still $59.99. That’s a deal breaker in my book.

5. NES Emulator | 7.5 out of 10

I honestly chose this one because of how many gamers I know and how 89% of them are males. This is something for those who don’t game to get their feet wet. The emulator is free on the eShop for a 7-day trial but comes with a subscription cost after. Pretty inexpensive for the titles they have. Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros, Metroid, and many more. It even comes with special versions of some of the games which gives the player the experience of playing with Game Genie cheats.

6. 99 Vidas | 7.0 out of 10

Your probably thinking, “ Why is this even listed?” Well, just in case that partner your with doesn’t dig the 8-bit look or the low-res adventures of the NES Emulator and desires a little more action and has a fetish for Streets of Rage and Beat ‘em Up’s. Simply. The available characters are cool enough to get players to find a favorite out of them. ...so...that’s good!

7. Oh Sir...The Hollywood Roast | 8.3 out of 10

After seeing the Samuel Jackson clone named “Bad MotherHugger” who’s personality is totally canon, I had to dig deeper. If you didn’t play the prequel, you don’t need to. I honestly only used the first title to learn how to play. In this installment, you and a co-star face off on a movie set where your scenario is to insult the other the worst. It plays like a fighting game, complete with health bars, special insults, tag team insults and so much more. For the price it is, I was expecting something way less entertaining. Oh, and one point or another you will joke against a Deadpool copy...a less funnier Deadpool but funny enough.

Consider this the American version of The Office.

8. Oh Sir...The Insult Simulator | 7.8 out of 10

Obviously, this is the European version of The Office. I won’t say this is better than the sequel and I can’t say it’s worse either but I will say “I am an American...” What this game does is teach you how to layer your jokes and how lay the foundation for repetition in your topics to create combo’ s. I like to let the opponent bombard me with little weak jokes and build a super mean and super long insult that grants victory for only one joke. I call it, “The Kamehameha Effect!”

9. No More Heroes: Travis Strikes Back

The third installment to the series hits the eShop and retailers in a few days and I am super excited to get my copy. If you aren’t familiar with the series, let me fill you in:

Travis Touchdown is the protagonist of all three games. In NMH1 we find Travis at his lowest moment in life. Jobless, hopeless and drunk, he runs into a mysterious woman who offers him employment with a sketchy syndicate group he knows nothing about. Luckily he had lost all his money by winning a bid at an online auction for a Beam Katana,  his main choice of weaponry. Not long after, you find out you were hired as an assassin in a shady game by her higher-ups. Travis takes the job after being promised some passionate TLC if he can take out all 10 of the already top ranking assassins all over the world. Travis is a pretty simple guy. He likes mecha anime, luchador wrestling, old school video games, porn, sex, and sleeping on the toilet.

In NMH2, Travis finds out that after becoming the #1 ranking assassin in Santa Cruise, he finds out that he actually has hundreds of more assassins in a new ranking system where Travis is the lowest ranking.

This time around, Travis is joined by the father of one the assassins he killed in NMH1, and the co-op option is something that would have been outstanding to have in NMH2 but none the less the developers always deliver great content in their titles and this one will not disappoint. Couples will enjoy the kinky nature of the series for sure. It has been proven many times.

10. Broforce | 9.5 out of 10

Every wanted to play Super Mario Bros on NES but with guns? Ever want to change Mario for, let’s say...any huge action movie star from the 80′s, 90′s, 00′s? Ever wanted it to be a co-op experience with up to 4 players with local and online co-op? As a mercenary for the USA, you are sent to 3rd world contries to liberate them from the evil control of Satan and his hell spawn. Before that, you will have to fight through waves of kamikaze soldiers, war dogs, giant helicoptors, aliens (...from the movie “Aliens”) and much more. Along the way, you will recruit an entire cast of badasses. From Rambo to Robocop, you will find Chuck Norris, Neo, Blade, Bruce Willis, Terminator, Preditor, Machette, Michelle Rodrigez, The Bride (Kill Bill) & so many more including Mortal Kombats Raiden.

Very easy to pick up, very hard to put down.

11. Nidhogg 2 | 8.0 out of 10

2D-Side Scrolling Fighter. You start of with a sword. When you die, you respawn with a dagger. When you die, you respawn with a bow and arrow. Die again and respawn with an ax. Die again and respawn with your fist. This cycle will continue until you our your opponent makes it to the opposing end of the map. Maps are relatively small and consist of about 2 to 3 different frames. Sounds easy on paper right? 

Tons of laughs to be had!

12. Tales Of Vesperia

If your looking for an in-depth RPG you both can play while she sits between your legs and you both focus on the Switch screen laying in front of you: this is for you two. The co-op system usually only functions when you enter battle. Player 1 will always be the one running around the world map but this is still fine if you keep an open-mind and communicate on decisions that impact the story and more. (Keep track of your own money.)

side-note: All Tales games are co-op in this sense, even the Super Nintendo picks.

13. Harvest Moon: Light of Hope

I’ve been a Harvest Moon fan since Super Nintendo and got my first copy on the N64. I know a lot of people see this game and hate the thought of a farming simulator but unlike it’s counterpart with the same name-sake; Harvest Moon is so much more. This can easily tame the craving for an adventure-rpg-dating sim with a very rich story and characters that actually grow on you. I have not had the chance to play this particular version yet, but I saw it was multiplayer and that sold me. If you want to try a good yet cheaper version, Harvest Moon: Back to Nature is by far, one of the best, next to Harvest Moon 64.

So there you have it, our picks of love for your love to love with their love! Honestly...I don’ t celebrate Valentines Day (poly-gang), but I love exposing partners to new things that they can enjoy together.

OUT!

[padawanlost]

Oh I'm becoming wary of all this prequel content suddenly like damn I'm happy but I feel like Disney is gonna do to us what they did to OT fans milk our money because they now know there are takers for it all. Ugh why I can't just enjoy without side eyeing Disney. I wish we hadn't been so hurt in the past that now when we are getting things we wouldn't feel we are being used for gains. Sequels did damage SW image so they want fans back. I wish I didn't feel this way.

I’m surethat this is Disney course correcting (KK trying not to get fired) after thedamage TLJ and Solo did to the franchise. They are desperately trying to keepus happy and that’s why so much stuff is being announce at the same. However,if look at the whole picture, this is very little (very late).

Disneybought Star Wars in 2012. Do you know how many novels Disney published aboutthe main prequels characters in years between 2012 and 2018? None. In totalthere’s been less than 20 novels published set during the prequels (none aboutthe main characters), more than 80 novels set during the OT years and about 40set after ROTJ. So even with everything PT-related being released, compared tothe OT and ST the PT is still far being in terms of new content. Keep in mindthat the PT and the years leading up it covers a period of over 25000 years. TheEmpire lasts about 25 years and the post-ROTJ era about 30 years. So we have 20novels covering 25000 years of history and 120 novels covering 60 years.

What I’m tryingto say is that Disney is not milking the prequels YET. Now the OT on the otherhand…and I didn’t even count the comics. If we add the Darth Vader stuff oh boy…that’snext level milking :P  

I’m not the“uhh I love EVERYTHING and I’m ALWAYS happy” kind of fan. so I completelyunderstand your concerns and I do think they are valid. Tbh, I’m right therewith you. I don’t trust Disney around the Prequels. The only reason I’m notmore concerned about TCW and the Padmé’s novel is because we know what Filoniwanted for the rest of the show and E. K. Johnston showed the proper respectfor the PT characters in her Ahsoka novel.

[smokeybrand]

He Chose Poorly

Apparently, over the weekend, James Mangold had a complete meltdown on Twatter after someone sh*tted all over his Indiana Jones flick. Dude went real low, attacking dude with juvenile name calling and, apparently, targeting this cat’s girlfriend; Someone who had nothing to do with anything. It’s a real bad look and i imagine the Mouse House got after Manny-boy because all of those Tweets disappeared. Now, before i unpack this, i just want to be clear: I’m not a fan of Indiana Jones. I’ve seen them all but i don’t have a horse in this race. Like, from a critical sense, The Last Crusade is easily the best flick in the franchise by a WIDE berth but my favorite is the one with the aliens. I just really like Cate Blanchett. I wanted to put that out there so you understand that i am coming from a place of indifference about this whole franchise so i have a level of impartiality that most people talking about this sh*tshow, don’t.

I don’t condone what Mangold did. It’s disgusting, petulant, immature, and incredibly problematic. In an age where people are going after Chrissy Teigen for the sh*t she said about Courtney Stodden several years after the fact, this sh*t Mangold did will be a whole f*cking issue going forward for this entire production. Again, not condoning any of this sh*t but i get Mangold’s frustration. People have been dogging his movie since day one for reasons that are literally beyond him. Kathleen Kennedy is the primary Producer on this thing. This women torpedoed Star Wars because of straight up delusion. she thought that her version of Star Wars, all of the Disney sh*t, was going to be received by the fans with open arms, neglecting the fact that they are all sh*t. Her leadership is sh*t. Kennedy is not a creative and she has had a chip on her shoulder for decades because Lucas, and Spielberg to a lesser extent, never paid any attention to her input on their flagship franchises. They were right.

Kennedy is why we never got to see the original three heroes of the Star Wars franchise on screen together in the sequels. Kennedy is the reason why Luke was diminished into a green milk drinking coward. Kennedy is the reason Lord and Miller were canned after completing literally all of Solo. Kennedy is the reason Gina Carano was fired from Mando. Kennedy is the reason why we have that High Republic bullsh*t. Kennedy is the reason the Skywalker saga is not the Palpatine saga. Kennedy is the reason why people hate Star Wars and this is the woman who is in charge of Mangold’s film. I imagine that is a creatively stifling, incredibly frustrating job to do, especially after Kennedy was effectively fired from all Star Wars production. This movie is her last gasp on Hollywood clout, so i imagine she’s going to either f*ck it all up on purpose as a f*ck you to fans or try to used Indy 5 as a vehicle to finally prove that her way is the right way in modern Hollywood. It’s not.

Now, i like a lot of the concept art I've seen from Indy 5. Those leaks point toward a bunch of Nazi Black projects like man-made UFOs and the Die Glocke. I’m a whole ass conspiracy theorist sometimes so i am in a tizzy at the prospect of seeing the Nazi Bell used in a major production. That sh*t is intriguing. I adore James Mangold as a director. He has a legit list of hits under his belt. Girl, Interrupted is a one of my favorite films of all-time and Identity is a whole ass mindf*ck but Mangold gave us Logan, arguably the best Marvel film to date. Dude is bulletproof to me for that. Also, it’s testament to what a creative can deliver when he’s allowed to just create. Mangold is great at his job when he’s allowed to do it. The fact that Phoebe Waller-Bridge is getting a writer’s credit is also something that caught my attention. I genuinely enjoyed her in Fleabag and she was, like, everything for that show. I am, apparently, in the minority about that because, apparently, Phoebe is a feminist and that is, apparently, offensive to people nowadays? I don’t know, man, i just don’t really give a sh*t about identity politics in film as ling as that sh*t is executed properly. From everything I've seen of this production, that looks to be the case. Decent concept, creativity director, excellent writer, and Harrison Ford coming back to don the fedora one last time. The only issue i have is Kennedy because that chick is franchise poison.

The guy who sparked all of this had a whole list of sh*t which made Indy 5 terrible in his eyes. Steven Spielberg is not directing, Kathleen Kennedy is producing, Harrison Ford is seventy-eight years old, and It's written by Jonathan Kasdan, who wrote SOLO. That last bit about Solo, I'm okay with. Upon revisiting that film after all the controversy fell off, it’s the most Star Wars of Disney Star Wars. If that same levity and respect is brought to India in the script, with adjustments made by Waller-Bridge to tighten everything up, i feel like that the page is in good hands. Everything else is a legitimate concern, especially Kennedy, which is how i know Mangold’s meltdown was her fault. Solo is an interesting objection as, aside from Lord and Miller getting canned and Phoebe Waller-Bridge starring as the horribly received robot or whatever, it shows how destructive Kennedy can be on set. As i understand it, Lord and Miller were fired specifically because the character Phoebe be portrayed, that ridiculous caricature of a feminist written to be as absurd as possible, was directly inspired by Kennedy, herself. She did not enjoy the comparison. And guess who has shown up in Indy 5?

Mangold should have never went after that dude the way he did over the weekend. That sh*t was a bad look and this post is, in no way, justifying his actions. It is, however, an attempt to give perspective. Mangold is an artist. He takes the production of his films seriously. He’s credited as both director and writer on a lot of his productions. The man wrote and directed Walk the Line and Logan; Both Oscar caliber films. Dude is proven talent behind the camera so having a meddling egomaniac like Kathleen Kennedy who is known for giving creatives unreasonable ultimatums about their work, f*cking up your vision strictly because she’s a selfish idealouge, might chafe someone who knows what the f*ck they’re doing. Someone who has proven he can deliver top tier quality product. Someone who has consistently delivered Oscar nominations and wins throughout his career. I can see why someone who is as unassailable in their career as Mangold, would become irate when his craft is attacked even before anyone has seen a production still. I also understand how someone could be completely and totally disconnected from the massive potential of this film, after seeing Kennedy’s name attached.

I don’t think Mangold is going to last in the big chair. I imagine he took this job as an opportunity to do something great with a franchise he loved. I think he felt that, after rehabilitating Fox’s Wolverine franchise after X-Men Origin with The Wolverine and Logan, that he could handle a fervent fan base and prove his mettle yet again. I know he grossly underestimated how “hands-on” Kennedy was going to be and how much the fandom hates that chick. Mangold was under the gun the second he inked that contract and, i imagine, it got worse after Kennedy was effectively fired from all Star Wars content and Favreu put in charge of Lucasfilm for the time being. I am certain, considering that Indy 5 is the only thing she is contractually obligated to oversee at this point, that Kennedy is going to do everything in her power to make “her own” to the detriment of Mangold’s talent. I know that. The fandom knows that. Everyone knows that and they’re irate about it. Again, not condoning what Mangold did over the weekend, i cannot stress that enough, i just wanted to add perspective as to why he might have lashed out in that way.

Dude signed up for a dream opportunity, a chance to create the Indy film he always wanted to see, only to get kneecapped by a wounded Kennedy who only has all the power over his specific project. Considering her history with Star Wars, she’s definitely f*cking with Mangold to the umpteenth degree. That, coupled with being written off based on sh*t he has no control over, in direct contrast to his record as a quality filmmaker, would be infuriating. I imagine it would probably make anyone enraged.

[tigerlover16-uk]

One thing I like to think about is how kids that are growing up watching Dragon Ball Super are going to look back on the rest of the franchise and Dragon Ball stories made going forward, and how their experience watching Super is going to inform a lot of their views and opinions on the series.

Really think about it though, there’s going to be an entire generation of Dragon Ball fans for whom Beerus and Whis have seemingly always been mainstays for the series, and it’ll probably feel like Dragon Ball just wouldn’t be the same without them.

There are kids that are going to grow up with Caulifla or Hit or Toppo as some of their favourite characters. Kids for whom Goku Black and Zamasu feel like just as iconic villains for the franchise as the likes of Cell and Majin Buu. Future Mai being Future Trunks’ love interest is just going to feel like the way things are meant to be, same for the Pilaf Gang being kids in fact.

I’m eager to see what this generation of fans are going to have to say about Super when they’re older, and the previous series when they inevitably get around to them (Not that all of them will. There are still plenty of casuals out there that have only watched DBZ and not Dragon Ball), and whether they’ll like them as much as Super or they won’t appeal to them as much simply because Super is what they grew up on and it’s what Dragon Ball really is to them.

I’m a person that grew up on the Star Wars Prequels, and it’s Star Wars content from that era that I’m most interested in. Episode III is my favourite movie, I love the Clone Wars tv series (Mostly the CGI one though), and Star Wars just doesn’t feel like Star Wars to me without lots of Jedi running around, probably one of the biggest gripes I had with the Force Awakens when that came out being that after the end of the original trilogy where it looked like Luke was going to rebuild the Jedi Order, we suddenly went right back to the premise of “One force wielding hero and old guy on the heroes side, two dark sith users running the big evil empire” Because that just felt stale and limiting to me.

I prefer Anakin to Luke, Ewan Mcgregor IS Obi-Wan Kenobi to me. I prefer the Battle Droids to the Stormtroopers as the standard fodder enemies. 

Heck, if I’m being honest I also don’t care much for the Original Trilogy. I watched it several years after Revenge of the Sith came out when I got the movies on DVD and, yeah, they were fine, but they’d aged poorly in places and the stories and characters just didn’t interest me as much. I’d still prefer to re-watch The Phantom Menace over any of them, though I do enjoy all the original trilogy movies and appreciate them for what they are and their place in cinematic history.

But they’re still not really Star Wars to me.

For all the flak the Prequels got, and still get from some people, they were an important part of many people’s childhood’s in the same way the original trilogy was to older Star Wars fans, and as time has gone on more and more of us have come out of the woodworks to declare our support for the Prequels and make arguments in their favour, and even many people who hated the movies at first have either grown to appreciate them over time, or at least admit that they weren’t all that bad like they once made them out to be. At the very least, most of the “THESE MOVIES MURDERED MY CHILDHOOD!!! WAAAAAHHH!!” Nonsense has died down.

We’ll undoubtedly see a whole generation of Star Wars fans for whom Rey and Finn and Poe are more iconic heroes to them than Luke, Han and Leia are.

I think a similar thing is likely to happen with Dragon Ball Super going forward. It’s a very divisive series now, and it’ll continue to be so for years to come, but I think down the line we’ll see a lot more fans coming out saying how they grew up with the series and how much it means to them, and fans that are critical now being at least a bit more forgiving in retrospect.

Super is inevitably going to have a dramatic effect on Dragon Ball media going forward. FighterZ has already been made to take place at some point during Super, and we’ve seen it’s characters appear in various side media, like Fusions, Heroes and the big twist of the Reborn as Yamcha manga being that Beerus and Champa were behind everything as some sort of game. The upcoming movie will be a follow up to the current saga of Super, and it’s pretty much inevitable that there’s going to be a sequel series to Super down the line.

Like it or not, and it’s fine if you don’t I understand where you’re coming from and I can relate to some of the complaints, Super is going to be an influential part of the franchise that informs a lot of things going forward much like the Prequels did for Star Wars. There’s going to be more Dragon Ball series and other media made long after it, and it’s going to be a big part of many fans formative experience with Dragon ball as a whole.

I’m sure there are going to be some high and mighty fans resenting and lamenting that, going all “Oh those poor children, having to settle for trash instead of getting the quality experiences that we were blessed with. Oh, what a shame!” but as someone who had to see a lot of people put down or outright bullied and ostracized for liking the Prequels growing up (Not to mention harassing the actors, you ever heard what happened to the poor kid who played Anakin in Phantom Menace?), I just want to say... respect them. Disagree with them if you feel differently, that’s fine, but don’t try to dismiss or diminish their experiences and what it means to them.

Call Super bad all you want, but you can’t say it doesn’t matter.

In a way, all of this is one reason why I’m glad Super exists, even with all the ups and downs. Between it and Kai, a lot of people who otherwise might not have gotten into Dragon Ball have gotten to become fans of the franchise, they’ve been a gateway for many people, especially kids. Not to mention a way for older fans with children of their own now to connect with each other.

Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, and the manga they were adapted from, are classic works of fiction, and the single most important landmark for Shonen anime and manga. They defined anime for many people, and they earned their place in history. And we should always appreciate them and try to share the experience of those stories with more people, I know I do.

But lets be honest, if the franchise had ended with them, how many then modern anime fans would pay them any mind come 2050 and beyond? I mean... the original Star Trek series is a classic and important work of science fiction that’s beloved by millions throughout the world... ... but would HALF as many people today be Star Trek fans if it wasn’t for Star Trek The Next Generation, Voyager, Deep Space 9 or the Abrams films? Heck, I’m pretty sure even Enterprise has it’s fans.

The original King Kong is a beloved classic, but a large amount of people today haven’t actually watched it, and mainly know it through Pop Culture osmosis. But many of those same people HAVE watched the 2005 remake and Kong: Skull Island, and have those as some of their favourite movies. Same goes for Godzilla, would the character be nearly as beloved or as ingrained in pop culture if not for the many sequels and remakes made for his franchise.

How many people today have seen the 60′s Spider-man cartoon or read the early comics, but did watch Spider-Man The Animated series from the 90′s or any of the various Spider-man movie series or Spectacular and even Ultimate Spider-man and became fans through those? Not a lot of kids today have watched the original Transformers or Ninja Turtles or My Little Pony cartoons or movies, but a lot of them (Many of which might even be in their teens now) sure have watched Transformers Prime, the Nickelodeon TMNT and Friendship is Magic.

For all the problems and missteps it has, one thing I do appreciate about DBS is that’s it and various media surrounding it like the Xenoverse Games and FighterZ, are helping to keep Dragon Ball alive for many people, not just old fans who grew up with the franchise but new people as well.

I’ll always love Dragon Ball Z and the original Dragon Ball to death, and I’ll be sharing them with my kids if I ever have any. But while I do see the missteps that have been made and hope things can be improved in various areas for Dragon Ball series going forward, and while it’s tempting to say we should just leave a masterpiece alone, I’m grateful Super exists and I hope many more new Dragon Ball series will be made down the line for generations of children to enjoy for many, many years to come.

Wow, this got longwinded and preachy. Didn’t mean for it to be this long, this whole post just sort of... happened. I dunno, I just wanted to get these thoughts out of my head and stuff just kept coming. Ignore me if I sound like a babbling idiot XD

[the-far-bright-center]

eventually, even stars burn out

“Sometimes there are things no one can fix.”

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve become increasingly concerned that my days in the SW fandom (or at least, the tumblr side of it) may be numbered.

I very much hope I’m wrong about this. So, on the slight chance that it might help somehow, I’ll try to explain why I feel this way right now.

As most of you know, I have an extremely fraught and complicated relationship with Disney’s so-called ‘new canon’ material, which all began when TFA left me so heartbroken that I’ve been unable to trust anyone at all with Star Wars ever since. I struggle to believe that the Skywalker saga will ever be treated with the adequate respect and care that it requires, and I fear that new material will only attempt to further erode its original mythic meaning....just so the ‘story’ can be continued on indefinitely. It is therefore difficult if not impossible for me to be excited about ‘new canon’ content, because ever since TFA I view every single piece of SW media released by Disney with (imo warranted) mistrust and skepticism.

After a certain SW animated series ended earlier this year, I had thought I would finally be free from the strain of constantly worrying about ‘new’ content. My blacklists covered most of the major things I didn’t want to see, and tumblr’s filter feature seemed to take care of the rest. It still took some careful navigating not to run into sequels-related crap and other random shit, but it was not impossible. I’d breathed a sigh of relief, and carried on minding my own business, living in my SW happy place where the things that distressed me didn’t exist.

But then some news broke, and suddenly, my hard-won calm was shattered. It felt like someone had kicked the heart right out of me. My carefully constructed safe space felt safe no longer. I’d thought the PT and TCW era would be safe from Disney, at least for a while. But I was wrong. It was like all the faint hope I had left for my ability to withstand the current Disney!SW onslaught fled from me in a single instant, and have been in a state of anxiety, depression, and despair ever since.

I’ve been so scared, because the last time I felt this despondent was after TFA, when I honestly thought I would never feel anything warm and light and beautiful about Star Wars ever again. And it ended up taking me YEARS to move beyond that, and to reclaim my feels and to get into the headspace I needed to be in to truly enjoy it again.

And I just... don’t know if I have that kind of energy anymore. The last three years have taken a huge toll (in RL I mean, not just in fandom). On top of my seemingly never-ending mental health struggles, I’ve had some physical ailments that went un-diagnosed for a long time and for which I’m only just starting to receive treatment. I’m always tired, mentally, physically, and emotionally. All of this makes the prospect of going through that same process all over again seem daunting, if not completely impossible.

Because back then, after TFA, when I felt that I’d ‘lost’ the Original Trilogy, I still had other places to turn. I was able to go back in time, and re-ignite my passion for SW again by re-watching the PT and TCW. But now? will those be taken from me too? have they already? is too late ?

(Have I just been delaying the inevitable, all this time?)

Horrible thoughts like this keep coming into my mind. Despite this, I haven’t given up totally...not yet. I’m still hanging on, or at least ...trying to. But in the midst of all this, I’ve been attempting to figure out what exactly is going on here. Why do these things upset me so badly that it causes me such intense emotional reactions? To the point that I can hardly converse with friends online anymore, without fear what they will say? To the point that I can’t even talk to my (very supportive) husband about Star Wars anymore without freaking out about spoilers?? To the point that I even end up feeling suicidal at times? Why does it feel like my whole world is collapsing?

Maybe it’s as simple as the fact that, when I was growing up, ‘Star Wars’ was always, from as long as I can remember, something that was ‘finished’. Complete. It was over. And its completeness was a source of comfort to me from the start. Here was a story that contained darkness and struggle, but which had an ending. And an uplifting, mythic, and spiritual one, at that.  And even later, when I was a teen and in my early 20s during the release of the Prequels, it was still something that had an end in sight. From the beginning of the PT, we knew that once those three episodes were over, the saga would be complete.

And that’s just the thing. With Disney’s Star Wars, there is no end in sight. It is something that, for all intents and purposes, could be dragged on indefinitely. And that thought is terrifying enough to make me start feeling panicky all over again. Years and years of feeling like this, all the time?? Dear Force, make it stop. D:

It’s becoming clear to me that it’s not just about one particular piece of media that I want to avoid. It’s not just the fact that something so close to my heart has at times been treated disrespectfully or even threatened with annihilation, and that I’ve felt helpless to prevent it. It’s not about my various and sundry issues with Disney’s version of SW. It’s not even that I believe that all of Disney’s SW output is inherently ‘bad’ or bound to be terrible just because it’s under the brand of Disney. I mean, I’ve been willing and able to ignore the aspects of ‘new canon’ that I loathe, and pick and choose from the bits that I do enjoy (which are few and far between, but do, occasionally, still exist). And law of averages would suggest there would have to be some decent or even, gasp, quality content at times (see: Rogue One, for instance).

So what, then, is *really* causing me so much pain and anguish on an almost daily basis? What is making my continued attempts to be part of the ‘fandom’ feel so incredibly futile?? It’s not the additions to canon themselves, but rather the frequency and sheer number of them, along with the fandom reception of these potentially infinite ‘additions’ that are causing me so much turmoil.

In the years since TFA, I’ve attempted to deal with this by viewing Disney’s ‘new canon’ as just another version of an Expanded Universe—in other words, as something optional that is not required in order to understand and appreciate the original, and that only needs to ‘exist’ in my mind and as a part of my headcanon if I wish it to. So, despite how much some of this material hurts me on a personal level, and despite the fact that the sheer amount of it makes it difficult to navigate around, up til now I’ve been able to continue as at least a semi-functional SW fan in its wake.

But lately, I’m beginning to be concerned that this method is not an adequate way of dealing with this. Because, even though *I’m* perfectly capable of ignoring the ‘new canon’ material that I don’t want to see, my need to ignore it makes it almost impossible for me to interact with 99% of the rest of the fandom.

And without interaction, a major component of fandom itself is missing. And it’s that sense of isolation and alienation that is killing me.

While tumblr as a platform has changed the face of online fandom for many (and made it unrecognizable to me in so many ways), I am still very old school in that I believe that the main purpose of fandom is to a) enjoy what we love to the nth degree, b) share what we love with each other, and c) through discussion about our shared fictional passions, create transformative fanworks, such as fanfiction, fan art, edits, fan vids, metas, etc.

This may seem like I’m stating the obvious, but unfortunately for a vast majority on tumblr, “fandom” has become less about the above, and far moreso about keeping up with actors’ and creators’ social media accounts, using fiction as a platform for ‘performative’ social justice in which people show off how ‘woke’ they are, and, worst of all (for me), constantly fixating on announcements, trailers, and news about ‘the next big thing’. It seems like, for many fans, speculation about upcoming releases is more important than enjoying the content that already exists. It’s what they LIVE for. And the minute those new pieces of media appear, everything else that came before is just... forgotten, or cast aside, in favour of it. This leaves me feeling like I’ve been left in the dust. Because, for me, the mere idea of ‘the next big thing’ fills me with nothing but extreme anxiety, depression, panic, as though I have a giant black hole in the pit of of my stomach. I live in utter DREAD of SW news. So my ability to relate to other fans and to interact with them on any meaningful level has greatly diminished due to this factor alone.

In a smaller fandom, where announcements maybe happen once or twice a year at most, I can often weather it. For example, several years ago, I left a fandom for a certain popular tv series, but remained semi-active just for the sake of one particular ship from it that I still loved. I was able to avoid most news and spoilers because it was just one show with one season per year, and that was it. But with SW in its current form, with Disney’s need to pump out new content on what seems like an almost weekly or even daily basis, it’s becoming too much for me to bear.

As I said in a previous post,

 “.....one of my many problems with Disney’s current treatment of Star Wars is that there is such a thing as ‘too much canon’. In the days of the EU, it didn’t matter how much of that was released, because any and all of it could be dismissed at a given time, because it was never official canon. But nowadays, EVERY DAMN THING has a film, book, show, comic series, animated short, video game, etc. about it. And this actually angers and distresses me, because it begins to leave less and less room for headcanons and for fans’ imaginations to run free. When there is SO much ‘official’ canon that it covers all the backstories and little ‘in between moments’, where is the freedom for writing fic and just…imagining things? Star Wars is not Marvel-verse, and should not be treated as such. Not all canon is (or even SHOULD BE) considered  ‘equal’, and this is something that, in pre-Disney times, was understood and respected. The main saga films were canon. That was it. The rest of it fell into various gradations of ‘sub’-canon. And imo, that is how it should, ideally, still be.” 

To have constant ‘additions’ to a canon that is as long-established as Star Wars feels completely disingenuous to me. So each time something new is announced, it feels like a breaking of the fourth wall. A chipping away at my ability to continue *believing* in Star Wars. It feels like someone keeps bursting into a completed story to try to mansplain it to me, saying, ‘ha, just kidding!! it’s been 30 years, 20 years, 10 years, 5 years (etc) that you’ve loved this and believed in this, but ACTUALLY the story is not REALLY over! look over here, we want to make money off you so we’re pretending the story is continuing even though it’s fake and forced!! haha!!!’  

Most of my Star Wars ‘feels’ are predicated upon a very simple premise, and that is the fact that the Skywalker saga (aka the PT and OT), AS IT EXISTS IN ITS ORIGINAL STATE, is the story of Anakin Skywalker, and that it is a complete and coherent myth, and an ultimately uplifting and redemptive tale. Everything I love about Star Wars comes back to Anakin Skywalker, his cosmic role as the Chosen One, and his eventual redemption. The fact that he, through the power of his son’s unconditional love, returns to his True Self, breaks free of his chains and sacrifices himself for his loved one, setting himself and the galaxy free. Everything depends on it, and revolves around it. My love of Anakin and Padme, my love of Obi-Wan and Anakin. My love of Snips and Skyguy, my love of Luke and Vader. My love of the Skywalker family, and their entire PT and OT storyline. And of course, my love of Anakin himself.

And what is more, all of the above is likewise dependent on the fact that the OT generations’ tale is an unequivocally heroic one, and that its heroism is complete and lasting, on both familial and galactic scale. It is not something left unfinished for the subsequent generation(s) to ‘complete’. The original saga as *I* know it does not require the ‘next generation’ in order to make it truly heroic. As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, the tragedy of the Prequels is completely redeemed by the end of Return of the Jedi. It is NOT carried forward as some kind of ‘curse’ onto the next generation. The Skywalkers are representative of the state of the galaxy, and, through Anakin and Luke’s story in the OT, both they and the galaxy itself are  reconciled and made whole again once and for all. That is the entire point of the Chosen One prophecy, and of the metaphysical, galaxy-freeing role that redemptive love plays in the (original) Skywalker saga. If that seems ‘unrealistic’ to contemporary audiences, well, you know what?? Too freaking bad!! Star Wars is not supposed to be ‘realistic’, it’s supposed to be a MYTH.

Take that away, and there IS no Star Wars for me.

And yet, that is exactly what TFA attempted to do. It attempted destroy this basic long-held truth, and with it my ability to love and feel even anything remotely positive about Star Wars,  its story, and its characters. And so it is understandable, I would hope, that ever since then I would greet new ‘additions’ to the original canon with extreme mistrust, skepticism, and even outright despair.

But despite my (imo) perfectly legitimate and justifiable reasons for feeling this way, I still realize that having such, erm, extreme reactions to even the mere prospect of new or additional content is not ‘normal’. ‘Normal’ fans are happy when they get new ‘canonical’ content right?? Unfortunately, I am not and will likely never be able to be a ‘normal’ fan in this way. When it comes to Star Wars, I will never be able to feel even the remotest bit of excitement for any such new canon content. (Which, in this case, more often than not simply means ‘officially sanctioned by a giant corporation, created under a set of confusing, disjointed, and entirely arbitrary standards, and deemed permissible for you to consume and ‘believe in’ as a real version of characters and events’, but I digress...).

Everything I love and understand about Star Wars existed before Disney ‘did’ anything to it, and everything that I still value about Star Wars to this day is likewise not dependent on whatever Disney might try do to it in the present or future. But even though I know this on an intellectual level, whenever there is new content coming out, it nonetheless still feels like a mortal threat, looming on the horizon. It feels like it’s going to try to take away everything I love all over again. And I fall into despair because I honestly lack the strength to fight it.

(Or at least, I lack the strength to fight it alone.)

And so unfortunately, from my perspective (even though I know that of course people don’t intend it to come across this way), when other fans get so excited about the new stuff, and when it seems like they so readily just accept it without question, it ends up leaving me feeling as though I’ve been left behind. As though what *I* love is, in their eyes, not enough. That somehow, the original Skywalker saga is not enough. That loving Lucas-era canon, but not Disney’s, is just me limiting myself or ‘missing out’ somehow. Whereas, from my perspective, the original material IS ‘enough’. It feels complete. It IS complete. Believing it’s not complete seems to me to be exactly what Disney wants people to think, so they can justify all of their never-ending additions, re-writes, retcons, and continuations.

And thus every time Disney churns out more content, and I see people around me acting like this content is not just a fun (and entirely optional) addition, but is rather something essential that all fans ‘deserve’ and need (despite having been perfectly fine without it for years, if not decades), just makes me feel even more alienated than I already do. Again, it’s not merely the existence of the constant stream of ‘new’ content that is killing me, but rather the fact that this content is greeted with elation by what seems to be the majority of fans these days. Yeah I know this makes me sound like I’m just resentful and bitter that other people are happy. Please know I don’t begrudge others’ happiness. Rather, I’m just struggling with the fact that while others are excited, I cannot be, thus leading me to feel isolated and left out.

But since the last thing I want is to rain on anyone’s parade, I try to be sensitive to this. Other than my various early anti-TFA rants (which I got out of my system years ago), for the most part (with the occasional exception), I’ve been keeping mum on these matters. But more often than not, in order not to be a source of negativity to others, I just end up hiding away, not talking to anyone, retreating further and further within myself  to the point that I wonder what I’m even doing here anymore.

The level of pain and anxiety and stress that all of this—from the constant stream of new content, to fans’ reception of it, to my own desperate attempts to avoid and ignore it—causes me cannot be adequately summed up in just a few words. I struggle to convey how I feel to most people because I honestly don’t know how to explain it. I feel ridiculous for even writing it down. It sounds so silly when I type it out, even though in my heart and mind, this is a very real and debilitating issue. Every time something new is announced, I become sick to my stomach, I can’t eat or sleep, I have intrusive, racing thoughts, and I feel that I have to hide out for days, weeks, or even months. I have to limit who I can talk to, and WHAT subjects I can talk to them about. And each time, it begins to feel more and more futile to even bother trying to avoid everything. Like trying to swim upstream, or to remain upright in a tidal wave. It is a constant onslaught, and I’m not sure how much longer I can weather it.

(Yes, there are some underlying mental health issues going on here that no doubt contribute to things on some level. However, it’s a complicated situation, because for many years I have been turning to fandom as a sort of therapy for myself. My most beloved fictional universes, characters, relationships, and stories are a safe-space for me, a refuge I can retreat into when my existence becomes unbearable. A coping mechanism. I don’t use that term lightly either... some days, it literally keeps me alive. And so when that coping mechanism feels like it’s being ripped away, my downward spiral into the abyss is terrifyingly swift indeed. But this is an extremely personal matter, which I won’t go into any further here, because I don’t want to diminish the topic at hand, which is a legitimate and very real struggle of mine, and is something that affects me regardless of the state of my mental health at a given time.)

Just to be clear, I’m not trying to worry anyone. I’m not planning on going anywhere just yet, and hopefully not for a while. This blog is too important to me. The people I’ve met here are too important to me. Star Wars, such as it exists in my heart, is too important to me. Despite the fact that I’m struggling emotionally, and despite the fact that it’s increasingly difficult for me to find content for this blog, I have been determined not to abandon it, and have made sure that I have a queue ready for the days when I don’t feel up to posting.

That being said, I do feel the need to be honest here about just how much of a struggle it has been to hold on, and just how alienated I have felt from so much of what is considered the normal fandom experience. And to express my anguish and despair over the fact that I can never, ever be innocently excited about new content being released in this Disney era. Doesn’t matter what it is, or who makes it. Ever since TFA, I am simply unable to ever feel happy that it even exists in same world that I inhabit. And this makes me fear for my longevity in a fandom that seems to thrive on the very thing that I abhor most and that fills me with constant dread.

While I’m uncertain these days as to whether ‘happiness’ is even possible for me in this physical existence, I do feel that my fandom experience ought to be, at the very least, a source of comfort. But as more and more of my SW safe-spaces are eroded, as more and more words must be blacklisted, as more and more tags become ‘off limits’ to me, I have fewer and fewer corners of this fandom to which I can turn.

I wish things were not like this. I wish *I* were not like this. It would be so much easier if I could just be happy like everyone else. But sadly, it seems that when it comes to being able to participate in and enjoy SW fandom in its current form, something in me is fundamentally, irreparably, broken.

What I hope to accomplish by writing and posting this, I’m not entirely sure. Obviously, I am not trying to make anyone feel bad for enjoying what they enjoy. Nor am I even seeking ‘validation’ on this matter. Because, while there are no doubt others out there who feel similarly (and *big hugs* to them if they do), I am not actually looking for commiseration or to ‘wallow’ in misery at this time. For some reason that just makes things a hundred times worse. Because...I’m still trying to hold out hope that even someone as damaged as myself can nonetheless continue to love Star Wars and even be part of an active online community.

So for now, I just needed to get this off my chest in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, by doing so, I can find a way back from this.  

[aion-rsa]

15 Hardest Sega Genesis Games of All-Time

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There are a lot of reasons to love the Sega Genesis, but in my mind, the console’s best feature was its library of arcade-like titles. At a time when the idea of playing arcade games at home involved winning the lottery, the Genesis gifted gamers with title after title that captured the spirit of those unforgettable experiences.

As Genesis fans know, though, that library of arcade-like games meant that the average Genesis title was often as brutally difficult as the arcade games of that era that set standards for hard video games that some fans argue (much like the games themselves) haven’t been beat. I won’t reignite a console war here, but if you were a ’90s gamer looking for the biggest challenges, you usually found them on the Genesis.

But which Genesis game was the toughest of them all? Well, there’s a good chance retro gamers everywhere know exactly what our number one pick is, but it’s joined by a host of titles that most of us probably wouldn’t stand a chance of beating to this day.

15. The Adventures of Batman and Robin

Not to be confused with the excellent SNES game of the same name, Adventures of Batman and Robin for Sega Genesis was actually a fast-paced side-scroller similar to the Metal Slug series. It’s about as awesome as that description makes it sound, and I highly recommend you play it if you’ve never done so. 

Just know that this game’s difficulty level is as surprising as the quality of the game itself. What you’re basically dealing with here is a side-scrolling shooter that incorporates the hardest elements of a particularly tough side-scroller beat-em-up. Remarkably, the game proves to be even more difficult than that description may lead you to believe thanks to some surprisingly long levels that often require you to memorize complex patterns. Oh, and the bosses are absurdly tough across the board. 

I would love to see a sequel to this idea, but maybe that game could turn down the difficulty just a couple of notches. 

14. Robocop vs. The Terminator 

While this game is arguably best remembered for its gore (enemies explode in a way that would make Paul Verhoeven’s squibs guy proud), I feel like its true legacy should be its simply ridiculous difficulty level. 

Much like the Super Star Wars series, the problem with this one is that enemies can absorb a hilarious amount of damage before dying. I have no idea how even basic thugs can eat so many bullets, but the fact that they die in comically violent ways is often the only thing keeping you from throwing your controller out of the window in frustration at the sight of another goon with the health pool of a miniboss. 

If this game wasn’t such a fun love letter to two great action franchises, I highly doubt anyone would find the patience to finish it. 

13. Phantasy Star 2

I struggled with whether or not to include this one. It’s not challenging in that “arcade” way that so many Sega Genesis games are, so there’s a chance you could play it for a while without realizing what you’ve gotten yourself into. 

You’re in for a rude awakening the first time you enter a dungeon, though. Phantasy Star 2’s dungeons have to rank high among the most confusing labyrinths ever constructed in an RPG. Most dungeons are either shaped like Final Fantasy X’s skill tree or something MC Escher might sketch on opium. It’s not like you really have time to figure them out organically either as enemies are tough enough to wipe you out while you’re just trying to understand where to go next. It makes grinding for levels a near necessity simply so you’re able to survive long enough to find a dungeon’s exit through trial and error.

While modern walkthroughs make this game much more manageable, trying to beat this one the “original” way with or without the cryptic hints in some of the game’s instruction books will wear you down and drive you mad. 

12. Streets Of Rage 3

We’re going to talk about this a few times during this countdown (just you wait), but one of the most interesting things about the Sega Genesis era is how often Sega decided to make a Genesis game more difficult for its U.S. release. The reasons varied, but many major U.S. Genesis titles were significantly more difficult than their international counterparts. 

Few games suffered (or benefited, based on your perspective) from that difficulty bump as noticeably as Streets of Rage 3. I can only imagine how confused Sega Genesis fans were when they discovered that the third Streets of Rage game was noticeably harder than the games that came before it. The developers basically utilized every difficulty bump trick in the book for this one, and it makes the game nearly unenjoyable at times. 

You can’t even beat this game if you play it on “Easy” as it just ends on Stage 5! It’s a hilarious reminder of how unforgiving old-school game developers could be.

11. Fatal Labyrinth

The pure dungeon crawler genre fell in and out of popularity during the 8 and 16-bit console days, but if you do find a console dungeon crawler from that era, you can pretty much guarantee that it’s going to be ridiculously difficult. 

Few games embody that philosophy as well as Fatal Labyrinth. Essentially an early roguelike, Fatal Labyrinth confused many players with its complex mechanics that often left your hero feeling woefully unprepared for the challenges ahead and left the player feeling uncertain as to why they just couldn’t seem to kill even basic enemies. 

The thing about this game, though, is that enemies swarm you so consistently and aggressively that you really don’t have time to figure out what’s happening before you’re quickly overwhelmed. For that matter, I’m pretty sure you could have designed this game’s mechanics and still struggled to master the unique dances required to even survive even early encounters. 

10. Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi

While I don’t believe I’m going to settle the debate over which Shinobi game is hardest here today, I’d like to suggest that we all agree that Shadow Dancer at its hardest difficulty levels is easily one of the most punishing action games of its era. 

Technically an adaptation of an unrelated arcade game called Shadow Dancer, this title advances the spirit of Shinobi’s punishing difficulty thanks to some customizable difficulty levels that allow you to make this game nearly impossible. Think Shinobi is hard? Well, imagine trying to beat Shinobi without shurikens while facing a small army of enemies as challenging as some bosses in other games. 

I’ll go with Revenge of Shinobi if we’re talking about the best Shinobi game, but this one deserves a nod as the hardest.

9. Ecco the Dolphin

I grew up a Nintendo kid, but I love Sega, and I’ll always respect the way that they made the early days of gaming a much more interesting place. That being said, I will always hold a grudge against them for making Ecco the Dolphin one of the most promoted Genesis games and how that promotion encouraged young Nintendo fans everywhere to test the Genesis waters by playing this absolute nightmare.

Ecco the Dolphin highlights most of the elements that make underwater levels so annoying in the first place. You’ve constantly got to manage your character’s breath while navigating maze-like levels that Phantasy Star 2 thinks are unintuitive. In case you weren’t certain this game’s developers hate you, some levels even throw in a time limit so suffocating that I’m pretty sure you can hear the designers laughing on this title’s excellent soundtrack.

Simply put, Ecco should be on any shortlist of the most frustrating games ever made even if you don’t define it as “hard” based on what that word means to you. 

8. Gaiares

I suspect that the developers of Gaiares looked at every other nearly impossible shooter title of this era and thought “What can we do to really make fans hate us?” Enter the “TOZ System.”

TOZ basically replaces traditional powerups in these games with a mechanic that requires you to “siphon” abilities from enemies. That means that the abilities you rely on to kill many of those enemies in the first place have to be gathered from the enemies you’re trying to kill. Mind you, acquiring these powerups leaves you somewhat vulnerable, so you’re constantly required to keep track of your current and desired power while trying to stay alive through waves of projectiles.

Even without that system, the speed and design of Gaiares would make it one of the most difficult entries into a genre synonymous with experiences that demand superhuman reflexes.

7. Kid Chameleon

Any game can throw a tidal wave of enemies at you and call themselves difficult. It takes a special kind of game to break you on a spiritual level while offering an otherwise standard (and quite good) platforming experience. That’s what Kid Chameleon brings to the table. 

Kid Chameleon‘s 100+ levels would be objectively impressive if it weren’t for the fact that there is no password or save system in the original title. That means you’ve somehow got to beat this absolutely massive game in one long sitting. While there are ways to skip large segments of the game (you only need to beat about half its levels), the fact that there’s almost no in-game indication of the best path forward (aside from confusing instruction book guides) means that most gamers just assumed that something had gone horribly wrong and they just bought a game they couldn’t actually beat. 

Read more

Games

15 Hardest NES Games of All-Time

By Matthew Byrd

Games

15 Hardest SNES Games of All-Time

By Matthew Byrd

What’s really impressive is that even modern walkthroughs do little to diminish the spectacle of this game’s confusing structure and the mechanical challenges of its most demanding levels. 

6.  MUSHA: Metallic Uniframe Super Hybrid Armor

Along with having one of the best names in Sega Genesis history, MUSHA is widely considered to be one of the rarest Genesis titles ever made. Unless you’re a glutton for pain on the level of a human in the Hellraiser universe, though, I can safely advise you to save your money and resist the urge to seek out an original copy of this one. 

MUSHA is relentless in a way that even the most challenging top-down shooters of the ‘80s and ‘90s have to pay respect to. There aren’t a lot of gimmicks that separate this from other examples of the genre, but you don’t really need gimmicks when you’ve got a game that is fundamentally difficult in ways that only the best entries into this genre can be.

Call this the resident “SHMUP” entry if you must, but I think that there’s something about this game that just feels crueler than even some of its most infamous companions.

5. Comix Zone

Can a game be too difficult? The answer to that question is obviously debatable, but in the case of Comix Zone, I feel like we may have one of the rare examples of a title that’s difficulty undermines so many of the things that should make this game legendary.

As much as I love Comix Zone for its unique visual style that sees you jump between comic book panels, I can’t think back on this game without eventually remembering how its difficultly makes it unenjoyable most of the time The idea here is that you’re a regular guy in a comic book world who has to defend themselves however they can. That’s a neat concept in theory, but your paper-thin defenses mean that you can die in an instant despite the fact that you actually do have a health bar. To make matters worse, you actually lose health whenever you attack an enemy. I don’t know who the developers hate more: their protagonist or the people playing this game.

I know some defend this one for its comical difficulty, but I feel like Comix Zone could have been so much more if its relatively short length wasn’t hidden by mechanics designed to quite literally punish you for playing it. 

4. Target Earth

Target Earth looks like a standard shooter, but this one earns its high spot on this list by virtue of some truly befuddling (some would say “bad”) controls that make this game harder than it arguably needed to be. 

Imagine playing a Contra game where you move much slower, can only jump in certain areas, and tend to have to rely on a weak machine gun that needs to be reloaded from time to time. Before you’re done dreaming up that fresh hell, be sure to roughly double the number of enemies and death traps you’d expect to see in each level. Oh, and there’s a difficulty spike around the second or third level that essentially demands you to have already mastered the game by that point. That’s roughly what Target Earth brings to the table. 

While I understand that this game is trying to replicate some of the awkwardness of controlling a giant mech rather than a more agile individual, I also understand that many players will need to rely on the built-in invincibility code just to see the end of this otherwise great game. 

3. The Immortal

I really tried to resist talking about The Immortal again after including it on a list of the hardest NES games, but how can you talk about the most difficult Genesis titles without giving this one a nod?

The Immortal is much better on Genesis than it is on NES, but this title’s troll gameplay remains roughly the same. The Immortal is still a game where even the most seemingly innocent step can mean your immediate death. This game recreates the fun of walking through a minefield, and while I appreciate that going through a mythical dungeon would probably not be a walk in the park, there comes a point when you’ve got to ask yourself “Why am I playing this?”

I don’t know if we’ll ever see a game quite like The Immortal again. It practically exists to boil your blood whenever you play or think about it. 

2. Chakan: The Forever Man

Any young Genesis fan needs to know the name Ed Annunziata. As a famous producer reportedly obsessed with ensuring kids didn’t beat games too quickly, he’s partially responsible for some of the hardest Sega games ever made.

Chakan is rightfully considered to be his masterpiece in that pursuit. Years later, I can’t quite tell if this game is a brilliant piece of game design or a complete failure. It’s this strange blend of Mega Man-esque action and a more methodical adventure/puzzle title that’s stiff controls and limited defensive options often leave you woefully unprepared to best even the most basic enemies. The game clearly doesn’t want to send you on a power trip, but I’m not sure the developers intended for you to feel quite as helpless as you so often are.

The ways in which Chakan is so difficult make it the likely breaking point for many gamers who otherwise crave such experiences. It’s difficult in ways that have never been replicated, which I both love and hate about it. 

1. Contra: Hard Corps

The Contra series is obviously synonymous with difficulty, which I actually feel is a bit of an unfair reputation. Yes, these games are tough, but much like Dark Souls, boiling the series down to that element means you often overlook the ways that difficulty level enhances so many of the other things that this franchise does well.

Then there’s Contra: Hard Corps. That game can jump right into the fire of the rage it inspires in me whenever I think about it. 

Hard Corps is a departure from every Contra game that came before (and most that have been released since). It let you carry multiple weapons, it featured four playable characters not previously seen in the series, its story allowed you to choose between branching paths, and it’s actually closer to a bullet hell shooter than a traditional Contra game.

As you’ve probably guessed, it’s that last element that earns Hard Corps a place on this list. I don’t care if the word “hard” is literally in the title: nothing can prepare you for how fast Hard Corps really is. The game’s speed is mind-blowing and requires you to stick to safe zones smaller than anything you’ve likely seen outside of rarely released arcade games built specifically to challenge veteran bullet hell players.

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If you’re one of the many who couldn’t beat Contra on NES without cheating, let me tell you that you haven’t seen anything until you’ve played Hard Corps. Even the “Contra isn’t hard” crowd pays homage to this game.

The post 15 Hardest Sega Genesis Games of All-Time appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[jamesbyerj]

One with the Force - Kingo64

In the feature, we're chatting with Kingo64, the creator of the most popular mod for Blade & Sorcery - The Outer Rim. Being a bit of a Star Wars geek myself, this is a mod I've been following for a long time.  [b]Thank you for joining me Alex ([url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/users/470810]Kingo64[/url]), we'll start as we always do, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?  [/b] Hey! My name is Alex, I’m a full-time software developer and a fairly recognisable member of the Blade & Sorcery Discord server. I’ve been modding the game Blade & Sorcery for a bit over a year now and have obliterated any notion of ‘free time’ I once had since starting [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url]. It’s been said that I have ‘a bit of a personality’, and I’ve been blessed with many friends from modding communities over the years, notably from a now-defunct forum called Facepunch. I’ve been pretty fortunate and grew up with computers and video games from a young age. Without the internet you kinda needed to figure things out on your own, stumbling around through game files, seeing what you could change, trying to make the villains of the game bark like a dog for your own amusement. Modding was always one of the big appeal factors when it came to games for me since it essentially meant that the games were never ‘done’ as long as people remained interested it’s like an endless sunset. I’m still not sure if I’d ever want to work full-time in the video game industry but I suppose there’s always a possibility if I change my mind? There are always opportunities out there. [b]What are your favourite games of all time and what do you love about them?  [/b] Ha, I’m not too good at picking favourites. I suppose I’ve always enjoyed first-person shooters the most; along with role-playing games. I think I’ll just throw out a fly fishing line and reel off a big list of names and see if we get any bites. [u]Multiplayer games[/u] [list] [*]Unreal Tournament ‘99 [*]Quake 3 Arena [*]Battlefield 1942 & 2 [*]Halo: Combat Evolved [*]Garry’s Mod [*]Worms Armageddon [/list][u] Single-player games[/u] [list] [*]Half-Life 1 & 2, Opposing Force, Blue Shift, Black Mesa [*]S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series [*]The Elderscrolls III: Morrowind [*]Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series [*]The Witcher 2 & 3 [*]Id Tech 3 classics such as: Jedi Knight series, Call of Duty + United Offensive, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Soldier of Fortune 2: Double Helix [*]Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory [/list] Without turning this into a TEDx Talk (call me TEDx if you want rambling subjective opinions on games), it mainly boils down to either enjoying the gameplay, the story, or the atmosphere/world building. All of these games have left me with long term memories, unique experiences, and wield some kind of spark that just makes me want to hope for a rainy day or a good excuse to dive back into them. I’d encourage those who haven’t played some of these games to check them out, they’re pretty fun. [b]Before we start talking about your mods, I'm guessing you're a huge Star Wars fan. There are tonnes of games, movies and other media in the franchise. What are your favourites?  [/b] Fun fact, I wasn’t much of a Star Wars turbo nerd when I first started the project but I have had to do a fair amount of research into the lore, wikis, and books in order to create [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] in a way that respects both the Star Wars Expanded Universe / Legends and the canon. Fact-checkers are welcome. For those of you who have not watched the TV series ‘The Clone Wars’, do yourself a favour and watch that. Specifically with the ‘Ultimate Episode Order’ (you can find that online) which restructures it chronologically. It masterfully fleshes out the Star Wars universe and gives a plasteel backbone to the characters in the prequels and what they should be remembered for. This TV series in its totality is arguably better than the movies. As I’ve mentioned earlier with the games, I highly recommend Jedi Outcast / Jedi Academy from the Jedi Knight series along with the Knights of the Old Republic series. They are the primary inspirations for [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] when it comes to gameplay design. [b]The sequel trilogy had a fairly mixed reception from Star Wars fans, what are your feelings about it?  [/b] The sequel trilogy really garners a lot of mixed feelings from everyone. For younger audiences, this will likely be their introduction to the Star Wars universe on the big screen - bright-eyed without prior conceptions of what to expect, who they’ll see or what may happen. It’s all new to them and it’s all fantastic. They’ll grow up and look back fondly at the time they saw Star Wars Episode 7 in the cinema when the older generations were audibly grumbling at the thought of it. The same thing happened when The Phantom Menace came out and the same thing will happen again when the re-animated corpse of Darth Plagueis rears his head 15 years from now when another trilogy is announced for the next generation of kids. Personally, I thought the sequels were incredibly lack-lustre, disappointing, and almost a deliberate betrayal to the Star Wars ecosystem they’ve built up over the years. It’s no surprise some people prefer to stick their head in the sand and just pretend they never happened. All of the characters were either unlikeable or forgettable; excusing Kylo Ren - a pale imitation of Revan. The story was poorly developed, ham-fisted, and mostly surmounted to nothing (Last Jedi particularly). There was a very clear agenda on ‘throwing away the past / wiping the slate clean’ to absolve themselves of the original trilogy and prequels. I understand that their intention was to create a fresh footing to tell new stories on but it ultimately backfired on them pretty hard, unfortunately. Red Letter Media, in particular, gave a pretty good summation on the recent movies that mostly match my opinions for those looking for a meaty analysis. Rogue One was fantastic though, congrats. [center][img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753699-614768287.jpeg[/img] [img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753704-1234122797.jpeg[/img][/center] [b]Talking about mods now, you started out modding back in the height of the Oblivion days with a few small compatibility patches, have you done much modding between then and when you discovered Blade & Sorcery? [/b] Well, to be frank, I’ve been modding games since the dark ages before stable internet connections and when we used to get games on discs in magazines. It made sense to me to try and create new content for yourself where possible, whether it is custom maps/campaigns, gameplay tweaks, asset modification, rather than waiting for the next game. Games were often released as a final distributable copy rather than the evergreen update cycle we expect today and often did not receive patches outside of expansion packs.  Generally, when I make a mod it’s for personal use and may be shared with my friends at most. More often than not because the mod is an opinion piece on gameplay tweaking, or a compilation of other mods, or simply not worth uploading. Another big factor would be the fact that it was only within the last couple of years have I ever had an upload speed that could transfer information faster than a person flapping a blanket over a smokey fire. Between the Oblivion days and now, the most prominent mods I’ve released would be the shader packages for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky, known as [url=https://sites.google.com/site/kingo64ssite/Home/optimised-game-shaders/stalker-shaders-max]STALKER Shaders MAX[/url], which primarily focused on improving performance and improving graphics - a necessity for my low-end 7300GT and mid-range 9600GT that I had back in the day which struggled to play the game. But yeah, mostly was just kicking back, enjoying everyone else’s mods until the creative itch started to kick in. It’s difficult to manage time with social life, work, family, friends, hobbies. [b]How did you discover Blade & Sorcery and what is it about the game that keeps you coming back? [/b] I bought it on a whim whilst growing out my VR library and was surprised by how polished and enjoyable the melee combat was, easily the defining feature of the game. The fluidity and believability of the melee combat have really set it apart from other games that have attempted it such as Boneworks and those not courageous enough to try such as Half-Life: Alyx. Even though it’s still currently a sandbox game, I’ve found it to be much more replayable than any other VR title I’ve played. I think it’s really setting the precedent on how good melee combat and item interaction should be achieved. In the VR FPS space, Pavlov VR has potential but it’s still stuck in its Counter-Strike mindset and Hot dogs, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (H3VR) still has controls that make QWOP look like a walk in the park. Personally, I’m not really looking for online matchmaking when I want to play VR games, I kinda just want to pick it up and do my own thing - play however I want. That’s something that I’ve been able to do with Blade & Sorcery and the replayability I’d like to see in non-story driven VR titles. Each major update for the game has given us a glimpse of what to expect in the released version. The roadmap is really promising and I can’t wait to see what it develops into after it leaves early access. After many conversations with the lead developer over the past year, it’s pretty comforting to know that he shares the same opinions on gameplay design, decisions and direction as I do and I feel confident in saying that the game’s in good hands. The mod support for the game is incredible. I’m surprised by how large the modding community has become given the niche nature of the game. It’s a testament to how building a game with a positive attitude and public SDK only strengthens the community and widens the appeal, ultimately serving a more diverse and enjoyable experience for everyone. [center][youtube]fcyU6sE7rBo[/youtube][/center] [b]For anyone who hasn't played it yet, can you tell us about your biggest mod - [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url]? [/b] The Outer Rim (TOR) is a Star Wars total conversion mod for Blade & Sorcery which adds a humongous amount of content. There are 100+ lightsabers along with many blasters and other items to boot. The mod also includes custom maps, an optional player home, custom NPCs, and arena waves. It’s actively being developed and still has plenty of content planned and yet to be released. It is without a doubt, the largest mod available for the game with a focus on attention to detail.  If you like Star Wars, get it. If you don’t like Star Wars, try it out anyway. If you don’t have the game but have a VR setup, get the game then try this mod. It’s worth it. If you don’t have a VR setup, sorry - play it at a friend’s place? [b]The Outer Rim has been a huge success. When you initially started working on it did you imagine it would be as popular as it is?  [/b] It was pretty evident on the Blade & Sorcery Discord server that [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] was going to be a big hit when it eventually came out. The prototype weapons I released when I was still learning the SDK and Unity, [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/280]Lightsabers U6[/url] and [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/246]E-11 Blaster Rifle[/url], were a hint of what was to come. Those mods were largely successful on their own, given that the innovation and quality of scripted weapons were not like what we have today bar a few exceptions, notably MulleDK19’s Mjolnir among others. What I didn’t expect was for my peers in real life to recognise the mod and realise I was the creator, or how wide of a reach it would have - driven by gameplay footage uploaded to sites such as Reddit. It’s pretty surreal to see yourself directly influencing your own Youtube feed when Youtubers decide to play ‘that Star Wars VR mod’. [b]Do you work alone on the project or do you collaborate with other authors? [/b] I primarily work alone on the project. There’s something cathartic in knowing that if something in the mod doesn’t meet my expectations I only have myself to blame, improve, and resolve. It’s not difficult to manage large projects such as this with many moving parts, it’s just a very time-consuming process with a large learning curve. I’ve branched out to others who I feel could do a much better job than I, namely 3D modelling and texturing. One long term collaborator of the mod is Plasma, a prominent modder from the Jedi Knight community, who has created models for the majority of the lightsaber hilts among other unreleased items from the next major version. Other authors who have contributed assets to the mod include Sakhado, uiojkl09 (Butters), Vale-X and Spongy. [b]There are a lot of mods made by others that extend The Outer Rim or add new Star Wars related stuff. Do you have any favourites? [/b] I hope I don’t get crucified for this but I haven’t actually played any of the other Star Wars mods so I can’t really answer that question well. In fact, I haven’t really had much time to play the base game as is or even my own mod outside of dev/testing. [b]Now that U8 has been released, are you planning to add any cool new force powers using the magic system?  [/b] Yep, that’s all been planned since the beginning over a year ago - with the intentions of being deeply tied into the skills tree proposed for the future version of the game, U9. There won’t be any force powers in the next major version of the mod, TOR 3, which is focused on blasters, but when I get around to it it’ll be worth it. The big backlog of stuff I have planned is daunting for me to say the least and exciting for anyone else. If you want an idea of what is to come in regards to force powers just play the Jedi Knight and KOTOR series and you’ll know what to expect. [center][img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753345-139005324.jpeg[/img] [img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753352-264767641.jpeg[/img][/center] [b]What is the status of a U8 update for The Outer Rim, I know a whole load of people are waiting on it? [/b] The next major expansion pack for the mod, Clone Reinforcements, is mostly complete in respects to content and features however the magnitude of changes presented by U8 essentially forced me to remake the mod, virtually every file needed to be modified on some level to be made compatible, no stone left unturned. The mod got nuked essentially. There have been many challenges and issues to face with the mod that still exist today directly due to what U8 has given and what it has taken away that prevent the mod from being fully playable or meeting my expectations. I’ve been in contact with the lead developer of the game throughout U8’s release and have been trying to report and resolve issues where possible to expedite the process. I’m hoping U8.4 should be the one to fix it. Ultimately, I don’t know how big of a change U8.4 will be, what it will add, what it will do, how much it’ll break, how much it will solve. But if it turns out to be big, it might set me back a few months, who knows? It’s a big game of “are we there yet?” but the car is misfiring and billowing smoke but the kids in the back just want to get to Disneyland. [b]Do you have any advice for authors who want to create mods for Blade & Sorcery?  [/b] If you have an idea for a mod, just go out and try to make it yourself. Take it as a challenge. Yes it’ll take time, yes you’ll have difficulties, but if you put in the effort you’ll be surprised by what you can achieve and how easy it is to learn and improve. There is a vast amount of tutorials and learning material out there on Unity and modding. Specifically to B&S modding, you can find information and example mods in the [url=https://github.com/KospY/BasSDK]Official SDK[/url] and on the [url=https://discord.gg/Yq4k2S]Blade & Sorcery Discord server[/url] in the #modding-howto and #mod-help sections. [b]Is there anything else you'd like to say to the community? [/b] It’s pretty thrilling to see how the VR community has continued to expand over the last few years as the games have become more compelling and the hardware more affordable. I encourage those with a VR setup to give the game a go, it’s a lot of fun, highly replayable, and a great place to flex those modding muscles. We’re welcoming new modders all the time and you know what they say; the more the merrier. A big thank you to those who have supported my work, whether it be leaving a nice comment, contributing their time to help others, leaving a donation, or who have shared it with their friends and loved ones. It’s a passion project with the intention of sharing good times, good memories, and hopefully inspiring people in one way or another. And also if you are wondering, yes I do read all the messages - I just don’t have the time to reply to everyone. Your comments have not fallen on deaf ears when you share your ideas, criticisms, and compliments. [line] A big thank you to Kingo64 for taking the time to talk to us! If there's an author or mod project you'd like to know more about, send your suggestions to [b][url=https://www.nexusmods.com/users/64597]BigBizkit[/url][/b] or [b][url=https://www.nexusmods.com/users/31179975]Pickysaurus[/url][/b].  Published first at One with the Force - Kingo64