#we can talk about dropped plots and retcons without pretending they were all done with active malicious intent towards you specifically

[crowlore]

not at all to say i don’t have criticisms of veilguard but it’s kinda funny watching people say they hate it for dropping plotlines and that it “should have been more like mass effect 3” as if we didn’t hate mass effect 3 for how it culminated the trilogy…like it’s okay to not like this game idc but don’t lie and say it should have been like another game we tore to shreds lmao let your opinions stand on their own

[riathedreamer]

Zero is Null

A discussion of Zero’s love-hate-relationship with RvB and struggling independence; including a hotdog too big for the bun, tragic backstories, a single bow-chicka-bow-wow, and a cookie at the very end.

Welcome to what will be a lot of text. Basically, it will explore why Zero fails as an RvB (with emphasis on RvB) season. I will not be the first one to bring forth some of the points, and I promise to be fair and civil and fun. This isn’t supposed to be a piece of hate – in fact, I’m writing this because I love Red vs. Blue.

Okay, first of all, to increase your fun – take a guess on just how much of Zero is spent on fight scenes. You see, I’ve calculated the exact amount, and I will reveal it later, but for now, take a guess and remember the number. Maybe you are the winner!

Alright, time to share my thoughts. Wait! Since I suffer from anxiety and have this one annoying voice pretending to be all those critical statements my opinion could be met with, let’s give it an actual voice and address the points throughout this review.

“Why would I care about your opinion, Ria?” – I don’t know, you’re the one who clicked Read More.

“Your opinion doesn’t matter!” – Of course, it doesn’t! Geez. Do you think your opinion matters, though? Listen, we’re on Tumblr, the actual equivalent of screaming into the void. And it’s fun, too!

“If you don’t like it, don’t watch!” - *activates Uno Reverse Card* “You can’t talk about something you haven’t watched!”

“You’re just a Hater” – Actually, this is a point I’ll come back to. Like a cliffhanger. Also, at the end of this, there’ll be a cookie. But this will also include me talking about the stuff I like, because, surprise, Zero is not without talent!

“You just don’t like it because the Reds and Blues aren’t in it!” – Actually, that’s a good point, so instead, this review will start with a sole focus on Zero and discuss the problem that lies within that story. Then we can address why the lack of OG cast is understandable and problematic and weird.

But first! Backstory.

When the first 5 second teaser dropped back in spring (you know, when we were young and innocent and the world didn’t feel like an apocalyptic movie yet), I held onto that one image of what I thought (hoped) to be Grif and Simmons in the sunset, hopefully addressing Grif’s hateglue arc, but boy was I wrong because a) that’s not Simmons, that’s Sarge, and b) the image was from a PSA since the Reds are not in Zero.

Actual face-reveal of me below:

Admittedly, when I heard that the Reds and Blues were not going to be the main characters (or even show up), it felt like a gut punch. However, I actually found myself getting excited due to the creators’ hype. I want to praise them for this. It’s been a while since an RvB season was talked so much ABOUT before its release; it had advertisements, it had creators and voice-actors talking about it. Please. More of that in the future. Their passion rubbed off on me, and that deserves recognition. So it pains me that this was clearly a passion-project, and then when I gave it a try, I didn’t want to touch it again for weeks.

Here’s the thing. I cannot whole-heartedly say that Zero is bad. It’s not gonna melt your eyes. It’s not even so-bad-it’s-good. For me, it’s meh. It’s a Saturday-morning-cartoon aimed for a younger audience with a rushed plot and clichéd characters. The problem is that it calls itself RvB, and with that title comes something to live up to – but more importantly, something to continue.

My main issue is that Zero forces its story into existence by ignoring established content rather than adjusting to it. Let’s call this for the hotdog-too-big-for-the-bun syndrome solely for the sake of the bow-chicka-bow-wow that’s coming now. Bow-chicka-bow-wow. Many of the separate issues I will dive into all add to this hotdog-issue, so I will scream “Hotdog!” whenever this is the case so we can all keep track of my argument.

You can continue the story of Red vs. Blue without the Reds and Blues. While that would personally crush my heart, it can be done. There’s a story of Red vs. Blue that can be continued. The world can be expanded, the previous actions of the Reds and Blues can be explored from another angle.

So.

How does Zero do this? It doesn’t.

I just want to make it clear that new elements can definitely be added when it comes to worldbuilding. That’s literally the point of sequels. But Zero’s settings are presented with so little grace and with no connection to previously established worldbuilding. We get Alliance of Defense and GLASS thrown in our face as very big important organizations – yet we’ve never heard of them before. A big central plot point of RvB is the UNSC and Project Freelancers, and those were introduced naturally with the plot. We already have big established intergalactic organizations. What is AOD’s connection with those? We aren’t told. We are just told they exist and expected to accept it, no questions asked. If this was a whole new world and story – fine. But when you need to build on an already established worldbuilding, you need more grace than this. Chorus was a whole new setting, but it was explained, and it was connected to the previous plot. Same with Iris. Same with Desert Gulch. In Zero, it feels lazy. It feels forced. These organizations are just there because the story is built around them (HOTDOG).

This vagueness when it comes to wordbuilding is also reflected in the settings - we have a desert, a training base, a lab, temples, Tucker’s workplace, and we do not know if all those are set place on the same planet. If that is the case, what is this planet’s relationship with Chorus? Is it Earth? And most importantly, what is the deal with the temples? Why are they connected to Tucker’s sword if it isn’t the same planet. Are they made by the same aliens? Are people okay with this? Why haven’t these temples been explored before? Chorus makes sure to establish this, while Zero doesn’t, adding to a growing amount of confusion.

Okay, so no connection with previous worldbuilding. What about characters? I mean, we got Wash and Carolina and Tucker! So we have RvB characters, it gotta be RvB! Technically – yeah. But it feels dirty. These three characters are not here to be characters. They are here to be props to the new cast. They are not given any development. Their presence isn’t even that important, and if this was a whole new show, they could easily have been replaced with an unknown face. Worst of all, they feel miswritten.

Carolina and Wash are working at a new military organization? Leaving the Reds and Blues behind? To help people? First of all, fucking bad idea, Carolina, the last time you left the Reds and Blues alone, they changed the timeline. But most importantly – Carolina and Wash just joined this new super elite military organization? After being mistreated and manipulated by such an organization in the past?

Carolina is there to introduce the characters. That’s it. We are force-fed their personality by having her literally read out loud their personality. There is no gentle introduction to the new cast. We are not allowed to get to know them naturally. Why show when you can tell, huh? That’s Carolina’s role. That’s why she is there. To introduce the cast and explain their story. That’s it. (HOTDOG).

How about Wash? He is there to get beat up and be a damsel in distress so that the new cast has a reason to explore the plot. Oh, and that brain damage that was the consequence of previous seasons – gone now. The guy who literally has trauma from having an AI explode inside his head is fine with having a computer inserted into it instead. Because that’s needed. To explore his brain damage wouldn’t work now when his role is to be a prop to lure the new cast for one episode and then be put onto the bench for the rest of the runtime (HOTDOG).

And Tucker – he is there to die for a second and have his sword taken from him. That’s literally it. And for the few moments he is there, he feels like old super flirty Tucker, which erases the character development he went through in previous seasons. Okay, so Tucker dies, and then not dies, and then he is put on the bench with Wash where they can sit and talk or whatever (‘cause holy shit, the new cast is not allowed to that), because he isn’t important. The sword is. Tucker is just a prop, even more than his sword is (HOTDOG).

Damn. Wash gets beat up. Tucker gets beat up. Dies. Gets his sword taken away. Almost seems like a Red’s wet dream. Sorry not sorry, Blues, you were done dirty.

So there are miswritten old characters. Even worse is the retconning. The plot needs a “normal” Wash, so, bam, magic computer solution. Never mind Wash’s trauma and character traits. Never mind the logic of the new worldbuilding which also includes a character suffering for years to heal an illness. But the brain damage that was such a big consequence that it became the main part of the plot of the last two seasons – gone. I mean, a gunshot to the head can be healed by CPR. That’s canon. But no one gave Wash CPR so it’s a big thing, okay. It was canonically a big thing, and Zero erased that. This is not me saying that a Cerebral Enhancer couldn’t work in the RvB universe. Imagine it being done right. Wash struggling with the choice of getting used to his disability or accepting the possibility of help - at the cost of reliving his trauma. The struggle between what to choose - what should he choose when he wants to help as many as possible, the sacrifices he thinks he has to make, the way it could have been used as a part of his character growth. But in Zero, the enhancer isn’t a part of Wash’s character. It’s there so the story can work without having to deal with the previous plot’s consequence (HOTDOG).

Same with the sword thing. They sorta explain it by having Tucker flatline, but it’s weak. Honestly, I find it sorta offensive. What about Locus’ sword as well? It’s twisting previous lore to make the new plot work (HOTDOG). (Also, are we not gonna talk about the ultimate power being Spencer Porkensenson’s helmet? Have the writers forgotten Spencer Porkensenson? Have we as a community forgotten Spencer Porkensenson?)

If you have Red vs. Blue in your title, you cannot ignore what you inherit from it. You need to respect the worldbuilding, the established characters, and the previous plot. Zero does not do this.

Let’s talk about the Triplets. No, really, let’s do it. I don’t think I’ve ever talked about them before, because season 14 was a mixed bag for me (that I have now learned to appreciate. Thank you, Zero.) because I have heart at the size of the Grinch and can only love a few characters at a time, and that did not include the Triplets. Can’t even remember their names. Well, I can, but I can’t for the love of me remember which state is which, and my tongue is twisted every time I try to say Ohio, Iowa, and Idaho, and I know it’s on purpose. I know it is. And it got me good. That being said, the fandom actually embraced them really, really well! Seriously, I’ve seen more content for the Triplets than for Zero as a whole.

Why talk about the Triplets? (Was Iowa the lesbian? Or was it Ohio? Fuck.) Because like Zero, they introduced new characters with a story of their own. The Reds and Blues didn’t play a role. But here’s what I feel like the Triplets got right. They didn’t change the settings to force their narrative. They used stuff already established (Project Freelancer), added their own story as a continuation of that. They even included old characters in the beginning (Wash and some other Freelancers) but it felt natural and it didn’t feel like it happened at the expense of the old characters. Wash’s writing felt natural, and his presence wasn’t needed to tell these new character’s stories. He wasn’t a prop to them. He was there to establish the setting and to establish the relationship with these new characters, and then he and the other familiar faces (helmets??) left, and we as the viewers were left with these new characters. And the new characters told their own story by themselves. It felt like, hey, here’s something you know – remember Mother of Invention, and remember Wash’ lower rank, but now, try to imagine being even lower rank than him, aren’t you curious about those fates? Now let’s hear their story! It was new, it was something else, but it didn’t wreck what came before it, and it stayed true to the classic vibes of RvB.

As I said before, the hotdog-issue is my biggest problem with Zero. It infuriates me. I will return to this. But there are more issues, even if we try to look past the title-related problems.

If we try to imagine Zero as its own story and universe (as it should be, in my opinion), it still earns the meh review from me.

These isolated issues include awkwardness, the writing, lack of self-awareness, and pacing. First of all, holy shit, this is a tell, don’t show. Nothing is subtle, nothing is allowed to develop. It’s like the show thinks you are six years old with an attention span of a goldfish. You are not just led by the hand – they have literally pulled off your arm by the end of the show. We are force-fed every bit of information, every bit of personality from these new characters.

The voice-acting is a mixed bag for me. Sometimes it’s pretty good, sometimes it’s not. Some of the problems can definitely be blamed on the dialogue that you can only do so much with. It’s not good. I can’t remember any good jokes (the one joke I really appreciate was the cast on armor, and that was freaking visual humor. That was so RvB. Kudos to that. It was fun. More of that, please.), and RvB is known for having memorably good lines. This is a show built on good, clever, funny dialogue. Zero does not deliver. You have to sit through clichéd lines – “You’re not my dad”, “I trusted you”, “Come with me”, “It can’t be!”, “She’s way too powerful”, and “We have to do this together” – performed unironically. I cringed more than I laughed. Worst thing is that Zero could be a good parody. Sometimes, it feels like it is. One-dimensional characters, a villain wanting ‘the ultimate power’, very overpowered characters, bad one-liners, etc. But Zero takes itself seriously, and I was one of the people rooting for Jax to show up at the end and yell “Cut”. That would have been a funny-as-fuck twist. A spin-off parody. If I can’t have “Sarge the Movie”, I would have taken that and loved it. I would have forgiven everything. “We put so much info into finding that power, but we had no idea what it was” is really a line in the finale, and I cannot believe this is real in a show that somehow still tries to present itself as serious. What a plot.

We have to talk about pacing. God, first of all it should be stated that RvB is a mess when it comes to pacing. I honestly get what they were going for. Sometimes, RvB has come across as a bit boring when you get three episodes stretched over three weeks without much going on. I know season 11 did not have the warmest welcome because it was seen as boring until the finale. But when you see season 11 as a whole, as a movie, as a part of a trilogy, it works so well. Zero is more focused on being episodic. They want something to happen all the time so we will stay tuned. The thing that will happen – a fight. Oh god. The fight scenes.

I have done the math. I have run the numbers. I deserve a freaking cookie for this. Are you ready?

If you put all the episodes together, you have a runtime of 106 minutes. HOWEVER, with the introduction of credits in every episode, you gotta account for this. Removing the credits, this gives us 94 minutes of actual runtime. Out of that, 45 minutes are dedicated to fight scenes. That means 48% of the show is fight scenes.

If I wanted that many fight scenes, I’d watch Death Battle. Except the actual RvB Death Battle episode has a runtime of 20 minutes, and out of that, 5 minutes is dedicated to the actual battle. For the people who hate math – that’s 25% of the actual runtime.

RvB Zero has more fight scenes than a show called Death Battle. Take that in.

The pace suffers from this. Where’s the time to explore the characters? Where’s the time for good dialogue? All I can think of is this:

I get that RvB is a show that’s literally making fun of itself by acknowledging all their characters do is stand around and talk. I get that you want characters to do more than that. But for the love of Church, would it kill the new characters to stand around and talk? For just a minute? Stop fighting, I am begging you, stop fighting! Am I a pacifist now? Am I purple? Have I joined Doc’s team? What has Zero done to me?!

The good thing though is that fight scenes are very good. They’re entertaining. However, they seem to deconstruct themselves when we need to get a fight scene in every episode. Usually, the few fight scenes in an RvB season were in some of the most climatic episodes. In Zero, I can hardly keep up with the pace because they won’t stop moving. Fight scenes aren’t plot. They aren’t character development. You need more than just fight scenes. They entertain, but there’s a limit to that.

Noël Wiggins, the co-writer, stated the inspiration was a Saturday-morning cartoon. They nailed that vibe. If that was their goal, hurray, they have accomplished something! Because of the poor plot and constant fight scenes, it feels like you could just switch on the TV and drop in at any moment and let yourself be entertained by the cool and colorful soldiers punching and kicking each other. I will admit that the fight scenes entertained me. But they don’t make it a good season.

If I were the six-year-old with the attention span of a goldfish that the show believes I am, I honestly would enjoy it. The stiff dialogue and the constant tell-don’t-show makes you feel like an audience that’s not supposed to do anything else but admire the flashy fight scenes. I miss the cleverness of RvB. I miss the characters I get to connect with as I see them grow.

I miss the tone of RvB. Because this isn’t RvB to me.

It’s not that RvB hasn’t changed its tone before. Holy shit, I sorta do want to experience the absolute shock the RvB fandom went through when s6 aired and they were given new characters and serious plot. I would have loved to experience that, but I was too busy being ten years old. The Freelancers seasons also introduced a new tone and more fight scenes with very talented fighters compared to the Blood Gulch gang, but a balance was kept by having half of the season still revolving around the Reds and Blues. But Zero – Zero is so much change. And it’s on purpose. At least this has been made very clear from the beginning.

They constantly seem to appeal to new fans, rather than be directed towards older fans of the show. If you want an entirely new audience with a season with a new cast, new worldbuilding, and new tone, I’m confused as to why they don’t just make a new show. The hotdog-problem begs for this solution. This story and environment and characters feel so out of touch with the original RvB, that with a few rewrites and lack of Halo-armor, it could just be a new show. Problem solved.

If not this, then present it as a spin-off. In all ways, it feels like a spin-off (again, see everything marked HOTDOG). But the creators refuse to do this, and I don’t understand why. I could forgive many of these issues, had they officially separated themselves from canon.

Ah, what’s the idiom? You can’t both swallow and blow? (You can hear the Bow-chicka-bow-wow in the distance). Something about eating cake and having it. Forgive me, English isn’t my native language. POINT IS why are you calling yourself RvB while actively fighting against the core essence of RvB? In my humble opinion, you can’t be both. Marketing it as a spin-off would have granted it some defense when changing, well, literally everything, and I just, would someone please properly describe why it isn’t a spin-off? Isn’t this season marked by its association with the plot of RvB rather than a continuation of it? Zero presenting itself as not a spinoff feels like a toddler clinging to the hem of its mother’s dress while forcefully running away from her, ripping the dress in the process.

When they do connect with the original RvB, it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. When they let Carolina, Wash, and Tucker appear for a moment, it feels like luring viewers in with the RvB title. Look at me. Look at me! I’m not saying this is the case. I say that it gives me the annoying vibes of being lured, rather than letting the characters be a part of the show for their own development, rather than having RvB in the title to continue its story. I should not be getting these vibes at all. But I am.

If you want to use RvB in the title, something from the core of RvB needs to be embraced. Things can be changed. They should. Something new should be brought in. But there’s a limit to how much you can change and replace and twist until it would have been better with an original show. As a season of RvB, it should tell the story of Red vs. Blue.

From my perspective, Zero fails to do so.

It pains me that the old cast has been replaced, but as stated earlier, a season could have worked without them. However, I do not like the take that one should be excited about all the new characters. That it isn’t a big thing that the OG cast got replaced. That we should just deal with it. Just, try to imagine another show suddenly replacing the main characters with characters we’ve never met before. Imagine RWBY suddenly only focusing on a new team of huntresses with the previous main characters reduced to an Easter Egg presence, or Camp Camp suddenly being about a new team of campers, no warning given. Can you imagine the outcry? So maybe let’s agree that a replacement of the main cast is a big thing and should be addressed and it’s valid to be upset about this change.

Could Zero have worked? It’s hard to answer this. How can I accept something as RvB if the season actively pushes away the core of RvB aside for an isolated story that could have been told in any other media? As a spinoff, I could have ignored it. To enjoy Zero, I have to fully separate it from RvB in my mind, and then it’s alright. S’not good. But it’s not bad. It’s entertaining enough. I really ended up liking Raymond and Tiny, and there were a few good jokes, and the fight scenes were admirable (but too much) and I love the creators’ passion. But it’s not RvB. I also wish that the new characters had been attached to previous worldbuilding, for example soldiers on Chorus or agents from Project Freelancer. That way we could build on familiar lore which would have decreased the confusion and added a much needed connection with the previous seasons of RvB.

God, the anxious voice is back (by the way, it sounds like Tutter from “Bear in the Blue House”).

“You’re racist” – I hope not. Literally, I do not want to be. Tell me if I’ve ever crossed some lines, because I swear, that is not my intention, I will apologize and most of all, change and do better. I included this because I’ve seen this take thrown around in the big ugly mess that is the fandom clashes regarding Zero. And racism is problem within RT community (this includes AH and RvB, sorry, I just use RT as an umbrella term for the latter), and I’m not saying it hasn’t been a problem with this season. Writers should never be harassed, and never-fucking-ever because of their skin color, and voice actors shouldn’t be treated like they are responsible for the choices of the show. But I was legit nervous to post this review, and I hope it’s been factual without feeling like personal attacks on the creators because that has never been my intention. I was delighted to hear about the diversity behind this project, and Torrian’s passion legit blew me away because it’s been a while since I’ve seen that for an RvB project. I’d hoped for it to be good, and when I feel disappointed, it’s for the reasons stated in this analysis. That said, Zero is made by a diverse cast and it’s made with love, and both of those things are so, so great, but it does not mean that Zero cannot be criticized. It can, and it should. It’s a product, just like all the other seasons, and fans are allowed to discuss it – both what they loved, and both what they found troublesome. And to repeat previous points, and be respectful, always, fuck racists, and never-fucking-ever harass the staff behind a season, what the fuck is wrong with you if you do this.

“Don’t you get it, it’s different because it’s trying something new!” – Hey, remember the philosophical question: if you replace all the parts of a ship one-by-one, is it still the same ship when you’re done? If it doesn’t include the Reds and Blues, if it ignores previous plot, if the old characters feel miswritten, if it values animation over dialogue, if it values fight scenes over comedy, if it wants to be Fast and Furious instead of Red vs. Blue – is it still Red vs. Blue? Because it doesn’t feel like it to me.

“It's been 17 seasons, it’s time to let the Reds and Blues go so someone else can shine!” – I simply do not understand us having been with the Reds and Blues for 17 seasons should be an argument to let them go, rather than be an argument as to why their absence hurt like hell.

“The Reds and Blues ran out of things to do!” – Did- did they, though? I mean, if we were discussing pretty much any other show, I’d probably agree that they were running out of content. But for the Reds and Blues… I think the PSAs nailed it this year! I’m not kidding, I had more fun watching the Reds and Blues discuss how to do laundry than watching Zero. You could literally give me an hour of the Reds and Blues trying to bake a cake or clear a gutter or simply settling down with an ordinary life, and I would trust them to make it worth the watch.

“The flaws were due to the fact it’s only 8 episodes long!” – Look, I can only judge a product the way it’s presented to me. I cannot come up with excuses for it. If they had 8 episodes to work with, they need to come up with a plot that works with this runtime. Seriously, this excuse cannot work when 48% of the season is spent on fight scenes. They could have used more runtime, sure, but the show needs to be able to pace itself and be planned accordingly.

“The OG cast couldn’t be a part of this year, hence Zero!” – That might be true. But. Would one year without RvB kill it? Is Zero necessary? Again, I just can’t judge excuses for the show. But trouble with the cast has been an issue before. Season 15 solves Geoff’s sabbatical by actually making Grif’s absence a part of the plot. Zero’s lack of Reds and Blues just feels like this excuse to tell a story that needn’t be a part of RvB.

Am I a hater? I guess? I greatly dislike Zero for the critique stated above. I do, however, not harass the creators and no one should ever do that. However, I have to admit that I feel there’s been this weird rejection of any critique of Zero where everything’s been brushed off as haters gonna hate, including the critique stated above. And I think that’s a problem because critique, as hard as it can be to hear (and I know this. I’m an author of original works. Weird flex, I know), is valid and necessary and shouldn’t just be shrugged away. As always, both sides of the fandom should always be respectful, but my own opinion is that addressing the flaws of Zero should not be controversial.

Does this super long rant/critique/whatever mean you cannot enjoy Zero? Gods no! I almost envy you if you enjoy this season, but holy shit, feel free to love it and tell the creators that you love it! Me pointing out the issues I have with the season shouldn’t be stopping you. I loved (and still love) s15 when it came out, and it was majorly rejected by the fandom. There were many, many critical posts, people were going on about how RvB should have ended with s13, and it evolved into the writer receiving death threats (me, once again: never ever harass the creators, assholes). But I didn’t tell people to stop being negative. I actually agreed with many of the flaws that were pointed out, and I enjoyed the season despite this, because that is possible. We, as RvB fans, should agree that RvB, is... I mean, it’s not the greatest, most flawless of shows, but we love it nonetheless. So go ahead and love Zero. This is not a stop sign. This is my opinion that you chose to read.

Wait, I promised you a cookie, didn’t I? Well, you’re not getting one. Why? Because I’m a Red and this is my chance to piss off a Blue. As Caboose wisely said: “Well, at least I don't go around... knocking on people's non-doors... and promising them cookies... and then NOT. GIVING. THEM. COOKIES!”

Blue Team sucks.

End speech.

[nadziejastar]

I find reading headcanons fun and a lot of people interested in Lea and Isa who want to stay canon compatible go with the idea of "they were technically apprentices, but they were still used as test subjects." It just goes to show how important those implications were to their story, anyone invested is looking for a way to retcon them back in.

Yeah, I get why people wanna stick close to canon. I like to stay as close to canon as possible too, unless I feel like canon just absolutely dropped the ball, which is relatively rare. But that’s what I feel KH3 did with Lea and Isa. There were just FAR too many implications that they were test subjects to be hand-waved away so easily. I can totally understand why people are looking for a way to retcon those implications back in. They fit soooo perfectly and they were MUCH juicier than the canon backstory, which is really very boring.

Unbeknownst to me, my six apprentices then began collecting a large number of subjects on which to perform dangerous experiments into the “darkness of the heart.”

I wouldn’t even know HOW to write Axel as a former apprentice, without being a former test subject, too. Because it just doesn’t fit him. You have to ignore everything interesting about him and change his whole character. When I first played KH2, I was always interested in the experiments on the darkness of the heart and especially what the organization members were like as humans. We only got to know a little about that. We learned that members I-VI were apprentices of Ansem the Wise, which I thought was very intriguing. I started to speculate about what the other members’ backstories might be.

Are they the people who lost their hearts, or incarnations of darkness? Or something entirely beyond my imagination? All my knowledge has provided no answer. One thing I am sure of is that they are entirely devoid of emotion. Perhaps further study will unlock the mysteries of the heart. Fortunately, there is no shortage of test samples. They are multiplying underground even as I write this report. They still need a name. Those who lack hearts… I will call them the Heartless.

I am not even exaggerating, after reading the KH2 Ansem Reports, my first thought was that Axel was most likely a former test subject, due to the way he slaughtered Zexion and Vexen so mercilessly. He had a side to him that was rather…twisted. And I thought that was so fascinating. No way in hell do I believe he acted like that because he was trying to find some girl. No. He had a HUGE grudge against the organization which was very personal.

The only other organization member I thought might have been a former test subject was Saïx. Number VII. The first one to join after the apprentices.

And the reasons for that were obvious. He was freakish, like a science experiment. He was a werewolf/vampire type character with a large scar on his face. I have talked with people online about Axel’s apprentice backstory who said that they “saw it coming”. It was foreshadowed in advance. And I’m like, “Did we play the same games?” If anyone says that they thought Axel and Saïx made more sense as apprentices than test subjects, I simply do not believe them. I think they are either lying or they are such a fanboy/fangirl that they cannot bring themselves to question canon.

THIS is what always stood out to me about Axel in Days. He said very little about himself. It seems like most of the fandom latched onto Axel as this happy-go-lucky big brother figure who “adopts” Roxas and Xion and that was the extent of his character. Personally, I was always far more interested in Axel’s past. That’s what really made him an interesting character. Without that, he’s a bit flat, honestly.

When I played Days, it seemed to confirm my suspicions that Axel had a dark past.

The way the camera zoomed in on him when he mentioned his past said SO much. It was so subtle, but so dramatic. They obviously were hinting at something. 

And it even involved Saïx, too. They really were BOTH test subjects. How fascinating, I thought.

Then I played BBS, and it showed them sneaking into the freaking castle! I was so excited! OBVIOUSLY these kids were experimented on. They were in the right place at the right time. It explains why they became organization members. It explains why Saïx is so…freakish even though when he was a kid he was so cute and normal. I mean, come on!!!! How could anyone not see what they were hinting at here? I was SO SO excited for TEN years to see their backstory.

When I played KH3, I was dumbfounded. Absolutely dumbfounded. Turns out Lea and Isa were connected to the experiments on the darkness of the heart (duh). But they weren’t the test subjects. It was Skuld. Ya know, that random NPC from KHUX? That’s right. Skuld.

…

…

Skuld!? Are you freaking kidding me!? All the spotlight is gonna be on her as the lab rat!? After all the subtle hints that Lea and Isa were experimented on? I felt like I had been led on and betrayed by the series. I was so sad and angry. KH has a lot of, well, bullshit in it. Like Ansem the Wise turning Kingdom Hearts into data and releasing everyone’s hearts. And it has a lot of retcons. It’s a series where “willing suspension of disbelief” is important. But what they did to Lea and Isa’s past? That crossed the line for me. That was unacceptable. And my willing suspension of disbelief was shattered. I simply cannot retroactively view Lea and Isa as apprentices. It just doesn’t fit with what we saw of them. It’s the worst, most ill-fitting backstory I have ever seen.

Lea’s whole character revolved around his mysterious past. And in the end, his whole past was summarized in a two minute cutscene where we were TOLD (not even shown) it. And his past isn’t even about him or his relationship with Isa or their shared pain. It’s all about setting up a plot for a character who, IMO, is supposed to be dead.

Yes, that’s right. Dead. IMO, Skuld and Ephemer and everybody else from the age of fairytales were supposed to be dead. The final world is like limbo where people with lingering regrets cannot move on to the afterlife. Sora wound up there, probably because the spirits drew him there. But he wasn’t dead. He could come back with the power of waking because his body was still alive. Demon Tide doesn’t kill your body.

But yeah, as far as I’m concerned, everyone else from the age of fairy tales is DEAD. KHUX wasn’t supposed to monopolize KH3′s plot the way it did. It wasn’t supposed to be that important. IMO, The main role of KHUX was to provide history to the Keyblade War and MX’s Keyblade. You would have the scene where the Keyblades come to life and take out the Demon Tide. It’s a nice little cameo to people who played KHUX, but nothing essential. Then, the hearts of the dead are finally at peace and they can pass on. The end. Their role is done. They weren’t supposed to come back! It’s stupid! Leave characters like a Ephemer and Skuld in the past where they belong!

Xaldin: It’s an order. Why do you hesitate? You, who has been ruthless towards those who’ve turned their backs on the Organization?

If you take away Axel’s past a former test subject and give it to Skuld, you change the very nature of his character. Look how KH3 downplayed Axel’s dark and ruthless side by making it seem like Saïx was the only one willing to get his hands dirty. Axel was apparently some perfect angel who was just innocently trying to find info on Subject X the whole time. Not, ya know, ruthlessly executing people. No! No, no no! 

Don’t pretend like Axel was not a fucked up killer. He was almost as twisted as Saïx was. Not quite. But almost. Of course, I guess I understand why they downplayed this side of him. It really doesn’t make much sense for Axel to spend a decade ruthlessly killing people just to find a complete stranger who may or may not even be alive, does it? It would make a lot more sense if he was doing it because he was experimented on and his best friend was being held hostage by the organization.

But Axel being a fucked up killer was the very foundation of his excellent character arc. Why did he change and join the good side? It wasn’t because he became friends with Roxas or Xion. It’s because he became disgusted with himself. He was disgusted with himself after he killed Vexen and Sora was horrified at how much pleasure he got from it.

He was disgusted with himself when he saw Xion’s face for the first time and saw that she looked just like Namine. He was willing to slaughter Namine without a second thought in Castle Oblivion. But here was a girl who looked just like her, innocently asking to be his friend.

“You didn’t have to use force…” 

Axel sighed theatrically and circled his shoulders. “Didn’t I?” 

Still gripping Axel’s collar, Roxas shook his head with the emphatic refusal of a little kid. “No, you didn’t…” But he sounded uncertain as he said it, and his voice shrank even more. “We’re supposed to be best friends.”

Axel brushed Roxas’s hands from his collar. “This isn’t about friendship.” 

Roxas raised his head. The glare in his blue eyes was sharp as a knife. 

Axel had never seen that from him before. His chest twinged, just a bit. He let out another sigh. “Listen, if that’s all, I gotta go.”

Roxas wilted again, and something in his expression weakened Axel’s resolve slightly. 

I just did what I thought was the best thing at the time. For Roxas, for Xion, for the Organization—and for Isa. But most of all for me. 

He turned away from Roxas and made himself walk away.

He was disgusted with himself when he attacked Xion and brought her back to be destroyed. Why was Axel so upset with Saïx at the end of Days? Because he threw his morality away for him! Axel was willing to do anything for him. He was willing to kill innocent kids like Namine and Xion all for his sake. And at the end of the story Axel realized that Saïx didn’t even really love him anymore. Axel was more than happy to kill anyone if he thought Isa still loved him and appreciated the sacrifices he made for him.

He had been using the Organization for his own ends from the start. The only thing that had changed in the meantime was who it was all for. Maybe Saïx would call that a betrayal. But his world had changed.

But Axel realized that Saïx just used him as a murder tool to take out anyone who got in his way. He wasn’t even worried about him when he was at Castle Oblivion nor did he thank him when he returned. He took advantage of Axel’s devotion to him. That’s why Axel changed. It wasn’t like a My Little Pony episode where the power of Roxas and Xion’s magical friendship changed Axel. It was Axel’s own conscience. And yet, Axel still couldn’t bring himself to leave with Roxas at the end of Days. Even after Roxas left him the “Winner” stick. Because he was still attached to Saïx.

Axel: Look at what it’s come to. I’ve been given these icky orders to destroy you—if you refuse to come back with me.

Roxas: We’re…best friends, right?

Axel: Sure…but I’m not getting turned into a Dusk for…Wait a sec! You remember now!?

Roxas: Y…eah.

And Axel being a human test subject also seemed like the most reasonable backstory for him due to the way he seemed so…maladjusted. I was only 16 when I first played KH2. I was the same age as Roxas. And even then, the way Axel related to Roxas made me think that he had a really fucked up childhood. At first, Axel was willing to destroy Roxas, too. His “best friend”. In the original KH2, he seemed like he was just following orders because he was afraid of being turned into a Dusk. Which is still pretty screwed up.

“Say something. Have you even thought that maybe I can’t erase Roxas?” Axel said, in a playful tone, and Saix finally looked up. “It’ll be all right. Cause I’m tough.” Axel puffed out his chest.

“How stupid,” said Saix, and for a moment he smiled. “Let’s hurry up and prepare. Time is limited. The hero will wake up soon, too. I’ll send you in right in front of Roxas.”

“Okay.” Axel stood in front of the sending device. Saix rested his finger on the button. “I’m off the~n!” Waving to Saix, Axel’s figure disappeared.

But in the “Axel 7 Days” novel, you see that IMMEDIATELY before confronting Roxas about destroying him, Axel was looking at the white envelope and then flirted with Saïx. I hate the way the Axel/Roxas relationship was so misunderstood by the fandom. Why did Axel decide not to kill Roxas? IMO, it wasn’t because they were “best friends”.

It was because, once again, Axel was like “WTF am I doing? I’m trying to kill this innocent kid all so I can salvage my relationship with Saïx. I am a selfish piece of shit.” Why did Axel say that Roxas would have a next life, but not him? Because Axel knew what he was capable of and was prepared to do to him. Roxas was innocent. Axel was not. He had a lot of blood on his hands. He was not like Roxas. Roxas’s innocence is why Axel was so attached to him in the first place. But it was exactly why Roxas could never truly understand him. There will always be a part of Axel that he keeps hidden from Roxas.

On the sofa opposite him, Naminé spoke up instead. “Sora and Riku are best friends.” 

Axel’s eyes crinkled as he remembered his own best friend—the only friend he’d ever had, in fact. 

“If your best friend goes away, you’re sad, and if you get to be with them, you’re happy,” Naminé added. “Isn’t that how it is, Axel?” 

“…That’s about the size of it.” Axel nodded and sat down on the remaining empty sofa, staring at the sea-salt ice cream he held. 

“So you are capable of sincerity,” said Riku. 

Axel only shrugged at the jab and finished his ice cream pop.

Even after he left the organization, Axel was still twisted. He was going to kill Kairi. And notice how it zoomed in on his tear mark. A bit of a hint about the true meaning of the upside down tears. IMO, the tears meant that Axel was willing to do absolutely anything to make his wish come true. And that was to be with his best friend forever. Saïx betrayed him and broke his heart. Axel decided to channel all of that grief and despair into his relationship with Roxas. He was now willing to kill innocent kids for his new best friend in order to forget about the old one. He was still selfish.

He only started to doubt himself when Kairi empathized with him. 

And then he felt like shit and was disgusted with himself again. That was the last straw. Axel really doesn’t work as a character without a horrific backstory or being a killer. He just doesn’t. Being a twisted killer was fundamental to his story. And being a test subject was really the only things that could have made Saïx more sympathetic and redeemable.

[thisselflovecamebacktome]

Detective Pikachu movie thoughts

I finally got around to seeing Detective Pikachu yesterday after months of waiting. As a long time fan of pokemon and someone who played the detective pikachu game on the 3DS, I was intrigued and excited about how they were going to go about this movie. So here are my not spoiler free thoughts.

The Pros:

- I liked how Lucy got more of a role than Emilia (her game counterpart) did. Like Emilia really just felt like a means to explain how Tim got from place to place up until the last section of the game as opposed to being a character we’re meant to give a shit about like Lucy was.

- A lot of the things the movie cut from the game was stuff that held the game back. Like the Glalie scene was no longer needed thanks to the retconned Aipom scene + Tim already having met Lucy and the GNN filler part was objectively the part of the game people hated the most so shortening that to Tim just looking for Lucy was absolutely for the best.

- On that note, I liked the retconned Aipom scene more than the game one. Like I know the Aipom in the game weren’t meant to be R victims and instead just mischevious, but having the main plot of the story hinted at right at the beginning but not chucked in your face like other parts of the plot were felt more natural. Basically the fact it let them cut a bunch of unnecessary parts in the game was nice. The only slight thing I’d change is I’d probably make Tim open/drop the R after Pikachu starts talking because I know a few people assumed that the R was what make Tim understand pikachu which led to questions of why he couldn’t understand other pokemon and so on.

- The whole “They only show what they want you to see” stuff was done really well. Like even though those who had played the game (and maybe older audiences) would have questioned Howard because the “nice” guy in the game was the evil one, it gave the illusion that Tim had the full picture better than a lot of media I know.

- While I found the lab stuff an interesting change to make (see below), I did like the showing of experiments, especially the Torterra scene.

- Visually this movie was stunning.

The Cons:

- While most of the parts they retconned from the games was for the best, it feels weird knowing that they took out the part about R initially being made as an attempt to be a cure, especially given the change in motivations in this game. And it could be argued that that would make it too clear that Howard was the bad guy in the movie, but he could have easily lied and said he was trying to make a cure but Roger took over and corrupted the study. That would also make more sense in terms of Harry helping them find Mewtwo and not asking questions until Mewtwo was captured.

- Likewise, it felt unnecessary to change the bad guy from Roger to Howard. I mean I guess the argument could be made that with the new motivation Howard was the better option because he was older and had more reason to look for a “cure” and be a more morally grey villain, but just switching their personalities and plots around (or at least from what we know, it was implied that Roger is like the ditto who acted as him) felt unneeded.

- I also felt it was a weird choice to retcon the internship stuff at the labs to Tim and Lucy breaking in considering the internship stuff felt more detective like. However, I’m assuming it’s because the movie was aimed at a younger audience so the action of the break in is the more reliable way to hold their attention. Likewise, having to stop R in gas and edible form in time as opposed to just fighting at the end felt more satisfying even if it wasn’t actually timed.

- I know they attempted to address this with the fight scene, but really I feel like the biggest letdown for me personally with the movie was that the game really built up R as something that was affecting millions of people despite being somewhat underground. Like it was being made even under the chief scientist of the lab’s nose, it had caused mass panic and gotten pokemon and an annual parade abandoned/locked away, people were bidding for it in illegal auctions while others were being kidnapped over it and you watched and had to help as Emilia and Meiko got attacked by an R victim pokemon. And yet in the movie, to be completely honest, if it wasn’t for the last part, the only person outside the Goodman’s + their loved ones (through Harry’s death) and the Cliffords it seemed to have affected was Lucy who wanted a story. And to be honest, I think a lot of this came down to getting rid of Keith/not having a good (I say good because they did have the ditto but it just didn’t work as well) counterpart for him. Like he really was the glue of showing that R was as big of an issue as it was. Like he was the one hiding the tape while you were at GNN, he was the one in charge of shipping and selling R, he set off Charizard in the parade; he was there for every step and without that it feels like it comes down to a “Father frames son for attempting to kill your dad” plot.

- Kinda goes with the above, but with the plot being reduced down to the bare bones, I feel like we missed interactions that enhanced the game. Like Mike (Yoshida’s game counterpart) was such a big part of the game and was that interested in Tim’s mission that people questioned whether he was in on the R stuff which would have been good to play out with Howard’s fake comment about how Roger “owns” the police, Ludicolo and the cafe owner mentioning why the parade was such a big deal and why everyone would be there and so on and even interactions with Keith and Roger pretending to be nice and “helpful” once again showing how people only show what they want you to see (but we did somewhat get that last one with Howard) all could have helped add to the story to be honest.

- I feel like a lot of people are going to say this but I hated how blunt they were about the whole “Harry’s soul is in Pikachu” thing. I mean don’t get me wrong, I think anyone who played the game assumed that was going to be how the movie ended, but I just feel like the game struck a good balance between hinting at it without shoving it in your face unlike the movie that literally showed a man using Mewtwo’s powers to put people’s souls into pokemon. But again, I can put that down to it being aimed at a younger audience who wouldn’t understand foreshadowing as well as older fans do.

The Mixed:

- The ending. As I mentioned when I played the game, I was hoping Pikachu wasn’t going to have Harry’s soul inside him and I do think it’s a shame because I think this could have had a really cool spin off show like How To Train Your Dragon did where Pikachu goes around solving crimes with Tim and/or Harry, but at the same token I’m just glad we got an ending seeing as the game didn’t give us that.

Final Thoughts:

This movie is an action movie through and through; and there’s nothing wrong with that. While it’s not a perfect movie, when considering it on its own, Detective Pikachu the movie is a great movie which I would recommend to people of all ages. However, in comparison to the game, it is most definitely a simplified version. And while this improves the plot in many areas by decreasing unnecessary elements that the fandom as a whole didn’t enjoy, it also hurts it in other ways. All up though, it’s definitely worth the watch at least once and I’ll probably end up buying the DVD when it comes out and watching it with the children and children at heart that are in my life.

[crookednatvre]

⋆ ◦ ° ☾ chloe bennet+ cisfemale + she/her — have you met clara munro? they are a twenty six year old known around town as the deadpan snarker. they’ve been in the gang life for three years, and currently work for the cobras as a thief. they are a bisexual gemini, which means they are strategic + adaptable, as well as cunning + uncouth. ripped jeans, muddy boots, split lips.

under the cut you guys can find clara’s new story.. her surname isn’t the only thing i’ve changed about her btw !! i’ve completely retconned her entire backstory, so she has never been a member of the savages. cobra blood has always pumped through this girls veins !! 

BACKGROUND 

Clara spent most of her childhood in her father’s office, playing games such as pretending to be the CEO of a million dollar company and ordering his escorts around like she was the queen bee and they were her servants — most of the girls humoured her as she was simply a bored, harmless eight year old who had no siblings to entertain herself with. Most of the girls took sympathy on her, while others kept their distance and turned their nose up at the presence of a child at a brothel.

It wasn’t an ideal situation by any means, but trust worthy babysitters didn’t come by very often in Valdez and her mother had been killed in a mugging gone wrong ( or at least that was what the police reports said, but their was reason to believe they had been fudged )

Her father did his best to protect his daughters innocence, not wanting hers to be tainted from an early age just like his had been. But with a habit for being too curious for her own good, it was only a certain amount of time before Clara decided to sneak out of her father’s office in search of some other form of company other than her powerpuff girl dolls.

She had been told constantly by her father not to open the office door to anybody else but himself, so the first time she left his office in the middle of the afternoon while he was attending to business she crawled through an air duct she was just able to squeeze through — she wasn’t technically breaking any rules, she didn’t leave the office without his permission or open the door for anybody else.

Clara would spend hours in the air ducts, crawling through the building and spying on the women who worked for his father — some of them danced for men in expensive suits, others undressed themselves ( clara would scurry along when ever she came across those girls rooms )

Neither her father or his escorts were none the wiser of her escapades, she always returned to his office just moments before he would come to collect her to take her home, oblivious to the fact she was exposing herself to the world he tried his hardest to keep from her.

When Clara was fifteen years old, she witnissed one of the escorts being physically assaulted by one of her clients— she was in one of the air ducts at the time, holding her breath for what felt like a lifetime until the girl screamed at the man until he left. She followed him through the air ducts, dropping down into the alley beside the brothel and bumped into him as he fixed his shirt and adjusted his tie. It only took a simple collision, neither of them looking where they were going for Clara to scoop his wallet from his pocket. She slipped what money he had in his wallet under the door of the escort he assaulted, with a note that read: He’s a douche bag, but now he’s a douche bag missing $400. Shhh!!

This became somewhat of a habit for Clara, watching the escorts from the shadows like a wraith and pick-pocketing the ones who would put their hands on them and sliding her scores under their doors like a thieving fairy godmother.

When she was just shy of her nineteenth birthday, Clara overheard her father arguing with another man about poaching his girls and stealing his income. Instead of asking her father who the man was or what he was talking about ( she was more than aware of who her father really was now ) she followed him home, cased the joint and broke in when she knew he wouldn’t be home.

When she returned home that night, she emptied a paper bag in front of her father, thousands of dollars spilling across the kitchen table and told him that should more than cover what he lost to the man who had dared to step on his turf.

From then on out they agreed to have no more secrets, only complete and utter transparency between the pair of them. So, when her father was considering joining the cobras, he shared this with his daughter who told him she would go with him if he wanted to defect. Clara was never officially recruited into Balthazar Caito’s crew, so it was easy for her to follow her father into the snake pit.

WANTED PLOTS

NO WOMAN SHOULD EVER SUFFER AT THE HANDS OF MEN

gimme a plot where clara has helped/helps one of the escorts out of a bad situation with one of their clients — this could be something where clara’s witnessed their client get physical with them and she either threatens/pick-pockets them like she’s done in the past for the girls ( i’m open to this being something that’s already happened and has turned into a friendship or something we could write in a thread and develop the friendship from there ) i’m also open to this being plotted between clara and other female characters affiliated with the gangs, it doesn’t necessarily have to be an escort but bonus points if it’s between clara && a savage !!

WHAT’S THE MATTER? WAS MY FORM OFF?

i really want somebody to teach clara how to fight tbh. she’s been with the cobras for three years so whoever it is that’s teaching her how to throw a punch and defend herself could have started teaching sometime in the last three years or more recently. i’m leaving this one open for discussion because i haven’t really got a set direction i want this to go in???

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

clara is the daughter of ajax anderson 

she believes harlow procter is her cousin, but in fact she’s her sister !!

shares an apartment with ashley mills && nikki redford after they all joined the cobras around the same time as each other

raspberry ripple ice cream is her favourite flavour, if you eat hers she won’t be held responsible for any action taken against you 

[webcomixtape-blog]

DISCUSSION: Cerebus Syndrome

DISCUSSION/TROPE

I mentioned a trope in my Gunnerkrigg Court review, and feel like I should talk a little about it before going forward. As much as I would love to leave it to the good people over at TV Tropes to cover this for me, it’s probably a little too lazy on my part. I may end up doing discussions and explanations like this between reviews, but no promises.

You’re familiar with this idea, even if the name escapes you. Start with a simple comedy webcomic (probably about 2-3 roommates who play video games) and after a few years it has a plot, it has drama, it has ANGST. Cerebus Syndrome is the common progression from comedy to drama, from joke-a-day strips to a meta plot. It may not actually be more common in webcomics than other media, but it’s certainly noticeable. The eponymous Cerebus the Aardvark is, or was, a comic that began as a Conan the Barbarian parody starring a cute talking animal. It eventually became something DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT.

This isn’t just another name for character development, or the steady darkening of a setting through plot. A story can begin somewhere light, and undergo a slow transition to darker, deeper subjects, and that’s fine. Cerebus Syndrome is the more exaggerated version, where a plot does not develop, but is added. When ideas, characters, and concepts from the early days of the comic, once nothing more than single panel jokes are later ‘discovered’ to have been the foul machinations of the grand conspiracy that has underlined every action of the beleaguered heroes from day one!

A related trope, Cerebus Retcon, is involved. Once, these really were just stupid jokes. A later decision on the part of the author inserted meaning into those moments after the fact, as a way to support the latter half of their work. Drama requires foundation, and it’s easy enough to pretend those early moments of nonsense were secretly serving as the pillars latter plot would be held up by. A throwaway chapter lampooning the Alien franchise in Sluggy Freelance serves as the beginning of a world ending plot many years later. Jack is set aflame repeatedly in Zebra Girl for the sake of a laugh, only for it to later become evidence that Sandra will feed on human suffering. That stupid X Box robot in Ctr Alt Del eventually murders somebody, or something, I honestly can’t remember.

We’ll make a comparison with Gunnerkrigg Court. The first chapter, in which Annie helps a Shadow cross the bridge under the care of Robot is certainly silly. Jokes about the ease of creating a thinking machine, about the strangeness of the court, are peppered throughout. The tone is sardonic, yes, but with a hint of menace, much of it a result of the art. Much later in the story, such jokes come home to roost. The Shadows are denizens of the woods, the robots involved in an ancient conspiracy. On the surface, it seems similar.

But that was always the intent. Hints of future importance are included in the original jokes, and each time these subjects return, either in the form of a wood-armed Robot or hoodie-clad Shadow, the drama of the scenes is steadily increased. This is not a retcon, this is a slow process of increasing complexity that matches and interacts with Annie’s own growth as a character and person. A story can progress from a comedy to drama focus, and do so slowly, without being a case of Cerebus Syndrome. Intent and signalling makes the difference.

Now, I feel I need to stress that this isn’t actually a bad thing. Webcomics don’t have to be what they started as. A creator does not ‘owe it’ to their readers to always do the same thing, to end the way they started. Many, even MOST comics undergo some kind of progression towards drama and complexity over time. ‘Some guys and some games’ comics tend towards interpersonal drama and adventure. ‘MMO/RPG World’ comics tend to drop parodic elements to become their own stories, their own settings. Sometimes these transitions were planned for, sometimes not. All that matters is the execution. Would we still be reading Order of the Stick if it had never engaged with a greater plot?

Zebra Girl, a comic I will definitely be exploring in a full review before long, is my preferred example of a Cerebus Syndrome progression done right. Somehow, and I have no idea how he managed beyond grinding the fuck out of his artistic and writing skills, Joe England turned a pretty awful comic about two twins and their friend fucking with dark magic in an impenetrable malaise of self-aware fourth wall breaks and repeated creator breakdowns into… Well.

As it currently stands, Zebra Girl is one of my favourite comics. It’s good. It’s really good. And even things that SHOUT remind me of the goofy early days of the comic have been brought back into the plot in ways that make sense, that work. This is a comic with a cartoon rabbit as a main character, and he’s consistently a more nuanced and interesting character than most of the humans. It’s clear that little of this was intended from the beginning, but England has made it work.

Just… Don’t do what Ctr Alt Del did. For the love of god. I’m told it’s better these days, gone back to a joke-of-the-day format with new characters. That’s probably for the best.

No LOSS, right?

-James