#when said ship is in the intro of the story and then vanishes especially

[marvelsdc22]

The Deleted Scene

Intro: Hello, lovelies!! What’s this?? Two stories in one week?? Whatttttttt? Anyways, I hope you guys are having a good day/night and I hope you all enjoy!! :)

Note: Y/N Stark has lost a lot over the past five years, first a good portion of their family when the snap happened, then Natasha sacrificing herself, what more could they lose? Wait... (Based off the Endgame deleted scene) Major Character Death(canon)

Word Count: 1581

The battle started out slow, with Steve, Thor, Clint, and your father trying to get as many shots on Thanos as they could, you trying your best to help, but you were still hurting from the lose of your aunt Natasha, everything felt like it was crumbling and Carol wasn’t there to help you pick up the pieces, you hadn’t seen her in almost two years, she was your best friend and crush, had been since the day she barged in on you guys when Thanos created this chaos five years ago, but you didn’t have time to think of any of that, you had to fight back.

Falling to the ground for the third time in a row, you felt your energy draining, your powers were starting to get less and less powerful the more you tried to use them, the most you were getting were wisps of black that barely even did anything to him, you tried as hard as you could to push yourself back up, but your arms were shaking, finally just letting yourself collapse, you couldn’t keep going, you couldn’t.

Closing your eyes, you started to accept reality, you guys had lost, and you were all dead, your eyes opening when Thor shouted “I knew it!” and seeing Steve holding Thor’s hammer, watching as Steve gave Thanos a run for his money, until he wasn’t, you trying once more to get up to help him, to do something only to hear “On your left!” Causing you to look up, seeing one of Strange’s portals open up and see Sam step out, causing you to let out a cry of relief, seeing as more opened up and you pushing yourself up, seeing everyone else do the same “Avengers” Steve said, you smiling at him and getting yourself ready “Assemble”.

As the battle went on, you found yourself helping your parents as they flew around in the suits that your father had made them, you having one of your own, but it wasn’t as… metal as theirs “Peter!” You shouted, seeing him trying to get away with the gauntlet “Go help him! We’re fine!” Tony shouted, looking at you and you nodded before taking off, your energy having increased tenfold when everyone had come back and you trying to form a black cloud around Peter to protect him, only to be thrown to the side by a large laser from the ship above, taking all your concentration and leaving Peter unprotected “No!” You shouted, pushing yourself up as you saw the lasers shooting all around him, freezing when you saw a certain blonde smash through the ship before landing in front of Peter.

“Hi, I’m Peter… Peter Parker” Peter said from the hole he was hiding in, clutching the gauntlet for dear life “Hey Peter Parker, got something for me?” She asked, giving him a small smirk as you ran up and stood a few paces behind her, watching as Peter stood up and looked around “Don’t know how you’re gonna get it through all that” he said, handing it to her just as Wanda landed beside her “Don’t worry” she said, looking at Carol “She’s got help” Okoye said, standing in front of them as your mother lands beside her, you walking up with Mantis and locking eyes with Carol, you giving her a small smile which she returned before you all focused on what was ahead of you “Lets do this” you said, smiling as you cracked your knuckles before walking with the other females of the group, creating a black cloud around you all to protect you as the forces charged.

After a bit, you watched as Carol was thrown to the side “Carol!” You shouted, rushing over to her as she rolled over “Are you okay?” You asked, kneeling down next to her and checking her over while she laughed “I’m fine, Y/N… Don’t worry” she promised, looking at you and you couldn’t help but smile, wanting to hug her but you knew this wasn’t the time or place, so you just helped her up instead “Together?” You asked, holding your hand out to her and smiling when she took your hand “Together” she said, giving your hand a squeeze before you dropped her hand and charged into battle with her.

“No… No, no, no, no, NO!” You cried, seeing your father on his knees and seeing the stones on his hand, trying to rush over to him to stop him, he wouldn’t survive that type of power “Dad, stop!” You shouted, getting stopped by Carol who wrapped her arms around you and held you back as you fought her grip, her knowing you’d get yourself killed if you had tried to go up there and keeping a firm grip on you as you collapsed in her arms, sobbing and begging her to let you go as you watched Tony snap his fingers, feeling your heart shatter as he did and watching as Thanos and his army started to disappear around you guys until the only thing that could be heard was your sobs.

After a moment, Carol let you go and you ran over to where Tony was resting back against some rubble, Pepper already there and holding his hand “Dad, why? Why’d you do it?” You cried, knowing he wouldn’t be able to answer you with the damage that was done to his body, hearing you mother say something before she kissed his cheek, her resting her head on his chest as the life vanished from his eyes and pulling you into her side as you sobbed, neither of you seeing the scene behind you as you mourned the loss of your father.

Clint watched as the two of you cried, thinking of everything and everyone that was lost in this battle, thinking of Natasha who didn’t deserve her death before he dropped to one knee and bowed his head, resting it on his hand and shortly after T’Challa looked back at him before he dropped to one knee as well, Carol watched sadly as you cried, she wanted to help you, to hold you and tell you that everything was going to be okay, but instead she saw T’Challa take a knee before doing the same, deciding that paying respects for your father was more important to you right now and watching as everyone else did the same, you only looking up when you heard Steve’s knees hit the ground and you felt your heart swell as you saw everyone kneeling for your father, but it didn’t help the hole that was now in your heart, you had lost the man that you had looked up to, the man who would wipe your tears away, the man who could make you laugh when you were upset… You had lost the one who had taken you in when you had nothing and you could never repay him for that, he was gone and there was nothing you could do to change that, no matter how much you wanted to.

A few days later, it was the day of Tony’s funeral, you stood to the side with your mother and little sister, watching as the wreath sailed away in the water, tears burning your eyes once more as Pepper wrapped an arm around you and Morgan “We’ll get through this” she promised, the three of you standing there for a moment before you guys headed to chat with some guests, most of them sharing stories of Tony and his many adventures, some you had heard plenty of times, but others not so much.

Later that night, you were sitting on the edge of the dock, your feet in the water and the moonlight shining on the water ahead of you “Hey” Carol said softly, pulling you from your thoughts as she sat down beside you, you unable to keep the thoughts of how handsome she looked in that suit at bay “Hey” you said, looking at her before looking back out at the water “I’m sorry” Carol said after a moment of silence “If you’re saying you’re sorry because of me losing my dad, I don’t-“ “No, I’m sorry for not being here for you… You needed me, but I just ran” she said, looking at you and you looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Ran? Why would you need to run?” You asked, looking at her and watching as she bit her lip “I had to run because I was falling for you, I didn’t want to ruin anything, especially with all that’s been going on and-“ she said, you cutting her off from her rambling by capturing her lips with yours “You’re talking too much” you said, looking at her and giving her a small smile before you turned back to the water “Can we take it slow though? So much has happened and I don’t know if I can handle a full relationship right now” you said, the lose of your father really taking a toll on you and looking down when Carol reached over and took your hand “Of course, take whatever time you need… I’ll wait for you as long as I have to” she said, giving your hand a squeeze and you smiling slightly before the two of you fell into a comfortable silence, knowing that you had a long journey ahead, but you had the greatest support system out there and nothing could change that.

Permanent Taglist: @rianncreates​​ / @natasha-danvers​​ / @youngandwildx7​​ / @hopingforbarnes​​ / @xxxtwilightaxelxxx​

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End Note: I hope you guys enjoyed!! If you’d like to be added to a Taglist, shoot me a DM or an Ask!! I would love more WandaNat stuff!! Have a good day/night!!

Requests Open

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Learning How to Write a Redemption Arc from Avatar: The Last Airbender

    Zuko in Avatar: The Last Airbender is a legend in redemption arcs, and the first example many people think of. He went from being the Avatar’s enemy, his biggest goal being to capture the Avatar and deliver him directly to the Fire Nation’s most vile tyrant, to being the Avatar’s good friend and ally. He makes plenty of mistakes along the way, but he atones to them and becomes a better person. 

    Today we’re going to be talking about Zuko, and what makes his redemption arc so effective. 

    For those who don’t know anything about the series, the show’s intro for the first episode tells you all you need to know: 

    “Water. Earth. Fire. Air. My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace, when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads- But that all changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, only he could stop the ruthless fire benders, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. A hundred years have passed and the Fire Nation is nearing victory in the war. Two years ago, my father and the men of my tribe journeyed to the Earth Kingdom to help fight against the Fire Nation, leaving me and my brother to look after our tribe. Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads, and that the cycle is broken, but I haven’t lost hope. I still believe that somehow, the Avatar will return to save the world.” 

    The show follows Avatar Aang and his two friends, Katara and Sokka, as he learns the four styles of bending to defeat Fire Lord Ozai. Let’s break down Zuko’s general demeanor in each book (season) to get an overview of what his arc looks like.

Zuko, Book One

    In Book One, Zuko is, irrefutably, our enemy. We may have some sympathy for him at times, but it doesn’t change the fact that his goal is to capture the Avatar, and ours is to keep him free and kicking so he can save the world.

    He doesn’t have much hope for redemption in this book. He’s a total asshole, he doesn’t treat his crew well, and he’s selfish. However, we have his uncle Iroh, a man who is impossible not to love and happens to love Zuko very much.

Zuko, Book Two

    This is the main part of Zuko’s struggle. He’s faced with many hard decisions, and tends to go back and forth with his morality. He makes tons of mistakes and takes several steps backwards, and he’s drowning in anger and confusion. It’s the most critical part of his arc.

Zuko, Book Three

    Book Three is our payoff, and the peak of Zuko’s redemption. He finally knows what he really wants in life, and has faith in his destiny- His real destiny, the one he chose for himself. He joins the Avatar and his group, and earns their forgiveness and trust.

Motivations

    Zuko’s main motivation, and more importantly, why, was clear from almost episode one. Yes, he wanted to capture the Avatar, but the why was something we could sympathize with. When a child thinks the reason their parents don't love them is their fault, especially when they think they did once have their parents’ unconditional love, they will put themselves through hell to get it back. 

    Avatar gave us all the ugly details, as well. When Zuko stands up and speaks against a plan that would end up with the intentional deaths of new Fire Nation soldiers that he believes to be innocent, his father demands Zuko to an agni kai, or a firebending duel. Zuko originally misunderstands and agrees to fight the general he disrespected, only to be faced with his own father. He refuses to fight, dropping to his knees in respect and pleading for his father’s forgiveness, only for Ozai to severely burn the left side of his face and banish him from the Fire Nation. He told Zuko that he could only return home if he returned with the Avatar, something that was thought to be impossible by almost everyone in the Four Nations.

    To make it even harder to watch, his Uncle Iroh is the one telling this story, and as Zuko screams in agony while his father burns him, Iroh is so distraught that he has to look away. (There’s another thing to be said about how Iroh, a respected war general, drops everything to go with Zuko when he himself could remain safe and free in the Fire Nation, but that’s a different topic). 

    Afterwards, one of Zuko’s crewmembers says, 

    “So that’s why he’s so obsessed. Capturing the Avatar is the only chance he has of things returning to normal.” 

    His motivations don’t justify all the shitty things he does, not by a longshot, but the simple, humanizing act of saying exactly why he does what he does goes a long way. He’s not just an angry kid being needlessly cruel. He’s not an evil person, and we knew that from the beginning. 

Mistakes

    Mistakes are one of the most important parts of a redemption arc, because they’re what humanizes everything and makes the transformation believable. It’s impossible for a person to get better in a straight line. They will make mistakes, and they’ll backtrack. 

    But be careful: There are some things you can’t come back from. Don’t overdo it. 

    In the Crystal Catacombs in Book Two, Zuko makes a HUGE mistake. He has to choose between Azula (his sister), his father, and his nation… And his uncle. He chooses Azula, and attacks the Avatar (directly after trying to convince Katara that he’s changed lmaoooo). He’s so caught up in the idea of getting his father’s love ‘back’ and regaining his title that he ignores how much his uncle loves him and all that he’s done for Zuko. 

    There was also an episode, way early in Book Two, where Zuko splits up from Iroh entirely, because they had “nothing left to gain from traveling together.” He hurts Iroh’s feelings and makes himself more vulnerable for… What? Some teen angst? That’s the kind of shit I did in high school, and still sometimes now but come on. 

    He made a lot of mistakes with Iroh, in fact. He was constantly mean to him and taking out his anger on him. In “The Storm,” one of Zuko’s crewmembers says this, 

    “What do you know about respect? The way you talk to everyone around here, from your hard-working crew, to your esteemed uncle, shows you know NOTHING about respect! You don’t care about anyone but yourself! Then again, what should I expect from a spoiled prince?” 

    He made the mistake of trusting Azula MULTIPLE times! When Azula comes to Zuko after two years of his banishment, in the beginning of Book Two, she claims that Ozai had changed his mind and wanted Zuko home. He believes her, even though there’s not a single trustworthy thing about her. After she leaves them to talk it over, Iroh and Zuko have this conversation: 

“He cares about me!”

“I care about you! And if Ozai wants you back, well, I think it may not be for the reasons you imagine.”

“You don’t know how my father feels about me. You don’t know ANYTHING!”

“Zuko, I only meant that in our family, things are not always what they seem.”

“I think you are EXACTLY what you seem: A lazy, mistrustful, SHALLOW old man who’s always been jealous of your brother!”

Finally, the last one that bears mentioning, happens at the start of Book Three. Zuko goes up to the Gaang and tries to convince them that he’s a good person now and should teach Aang firebending. They yell at him and tell him to leave, but after he does, Toph insists that Zuko is right and they should try to get along. She sneaks out later to talk to him, but she came in the dead of the night and Zuko is now an enemy to pretty much all four nations, so when he hears someone moving, he makes an intimidating ring of fire around his camp. However, Toph is blind, and she accidentally steps back onto the fire.

Zuko shouts apologies and tries to help her, but she’s panicking and hurries back home. 

This is part of one of Zuko’s main arcs: Him learning how to control his firebending enough to not hurt innocent people. 

Significant Steps 

    Like I mentioned: Don’t overdo it. Characters undergoing a redemption arc need to take positive steps in the right direction, but a lot of writers (me) get caught up in the mistakes part and lose all the redemption. 

Among the many little hints and glimpses of hope you have, there should be a couple of major decisions that show your character’s progress- And the decision part is important. 

In the first season, Zuko has a choice between saving his kidnapped uncle, and chasing the Avatar. He chooses his uncle, and good thing, too, because if he was mere seconds later, Iroh would have lost his hands. This also happens in a later episode, “The Storm,” when Zuko and his crew are caught in a typhoon. Zuko sees Appa, Aang’s bison, flying overhead and the crewmember who previously disrespected him and politely asked what Zuko wants to do. 

He hesitates, before saying, “Let him go. We need to get this ship to safety.” He also apologizes to his uncle, who immediately accepts it. 

Zuko is given the option several times to put his search for the Avatar over the safety of his family and crew, and he never takes it. Moments like this keep him from being completely irredeemable. 

There’s another scene, at the beginning of the phenomenal episode “Zuko Alone,” where we see Zuko barely conscious, stumbling along on his ostrich-horse, presumably days without food. He passes a couple who’s cooking food on the road. He reaches for his broadswords to indulge in his newfound kleptomania, but stops as he realizes the girl is pregnant. 

There’s also the very critical moment in Book Two, after the Gaang had been separated from Appa and were frantically looking for him. Zuko finds Appa, ends up letting him go, and evens drops his vigilante “Blue Spirit” mask into Lake Laogai, renouncing his search for Avatar. Iroh finds him, about to steal Appa, and yells at him, saying that it’s time for him to look in and ask himself the big questions- “Who are you, and what do you want?”

Dropping his search for the Avatar means abandoning a destiny that had been forced on him for two or three years (which is a long time for a 16 year old). It’s so scary and uncomfortable at first that he falls into a harsh sickness, but when he comes out of it, he feels much better. We see him smile for maybe the first time in the entire show! 

There are also the moments that solidify his redemption, during and after the Gaang accepts him as one of their own. He goes with Sokka to The Boiling Rock to try and rescue his father, a prison where no one has ever escaped from, and goes with Katara to confront the man who killed her and Sokka’s mother. During the final battle, he sacrifices himself to save Katara and almost dies! It’s impossible to still hate him after that. 

Sympathy & Humility 

    We should care about these characters the moment you start their arc, starting slowly and building as their redemption does. 

    Avatar starts early, with Commander Zhao. We definitely don’t like Zuko at this point, but we meet him and then we meet Zhao and they’re enemies and Zhao is so much more of an asshole that we find ourselves rooting for Zuko. After Zhao, a grown ass man, demeans Zuko, insults him, and pokes at his banishment- little reminder that Zuko is fucking sixteen years old -Zuko challenges Zhao to an agni kai. Zuko wins this, but as he’s walking away, Zhao attacks him from behind! Iroh steps him and says this: 

    “So this is how the great Commander Zhao acts in defeat? Disgraceful. Even in exile, my nephew is more honourable than you.” 

    And he’s got a point. 

    Zhao ends up going from a minor headache to a big fucking problem in that book, and even though we know if Zuko wins, he’ll have a chance to capture the Avatar, we’d rather take our chances there than have Zhao around one moment longer. I mean, he tried to kill the moon, for fuck’s sake. 

When we meet Azula for the first time and she tells Zuko that Ozia regretted his banishment, an important but understated part of that scene is how goddamn happy Zuko is. We see all his excitement and relief, and then all his pain and anger surge back up when it’s revealed that Azula was taking them home as prisoners. 

After Zhao died and Zuko was huddling in a cave during a snowstorm with a captured Aang, he talks about his homelife, specifically mentioning something his father said: That Azula was born lucky, and Zuko was lucky to be born. We see countless flashbacks, especially in “Zuko Alone,” of Zuko as a little boy just trying to win his father’s approval. 

We root for Zuko countless times in that episode, actually, and this is before his redemption. “Zuko Alone” is such an important episode because it’s Zuko’s very first, real look at the war and what it does to people. After Zuko finds out that the family he is staying with has a son fighting in the war with a very real chance of dying soon, he makes a decision that he had purely good intentions with, but he’s so ignorant and naive to how the war works that he almost causes their only other child to be put in the war as well, and has to go rescue him. 

In the episode “Crossroads of Destiny,” Zuko and Katara have a moment in the Crystal Catacombs of old Ba Sing Se, and it’s, like “Zuko Alone,” one of the first times he can actually put a face and a name to the victories of The Fire Nation- When Katara tells him about her mom. He doesn’t have any excuses here, and is forced to admit that the Fire Nation hurt him, too.

In “The Ember Island Players,” when the Gaang is watching a play that… Kind of, tells the story so far, Zuko says this: 

“It takes every mistake I’ve ever made in my life and shoves them back in my face.”

He talks about his greatest regret- Betraying Iroh -and his he’s afraid he’ll never get to redeem himself. Later, Zuko and Iroh reunite, and Iroh says that he was never angry, he was just sad because he thought Zuko had lost his way. Zuko admits that he did lose his way, but he found it again.

We see Zuko struggle so much throughout the show with his morality and making the right decisions, so when he finally does, it’s a huge relief. He makes mistake after mistake, but nobody wants him to fail, not because we want another good guy, but because we see that he has good in him and we see how much Iroh believes in him.

Glimpses into the Future 

    It’s important that we have an idea of where this character is going to end up. We want something to look forward to so that we can push through the annoying stuff. 

    In the episode “The Blue Spirit,” the first time we see Zuko in his anonymous vigilante alter ego, we see what a great team he and Aang make when he rescues Aang from Zhao. They have a great battle chemistry and communicate well without Zuko needing to speak, then after Zuko is knocked out and Aang finds out his identity, he saves Zuko because Zuko saved him. 

    In “The Storm,” when Iroh is telling the crew how he got his scar and the conditions of his banishment, Iroh tells us, the audience, exactly what’s going to happen later in the series. 

When the crew member says that Zuko finding the Avatar is the only chance he has for things returning to normal, Iroh says, 

    “Things will never return to normal. But the important thing is: The Avatar gives Zuko hope.”

    Iroh recognizes that the kind of love Ozai would give him, if any, isn’t the kind that Zuko craves. Zuko only realizes this himself in Book Three, when he's back in the palace, back with his girlfriend Mai, and he’s won his father’s and people’s respect back. He admits to both Azula and Mai that something is wrong and he’s still not happy. 

A Good Mentor

    Most of the show, we see Iroh and his infinite patience trying to guide Zuko away from the same mistakes he made when he was younger. Before the start of the show, Iroh was a greatly respected, and feared, war general. This is referenced countless times throughout the series. He was so successful and respected that even leaving the Fire Nation to follow the banished prince couldn’t tarnish his reputation. Iroh had fallen into the same trap most of the Fire Nation did, that to be a man meant you had to be powerful, to be hurtful, and angry, and violent. He lost his only son to this ideology and was terrified of losing Zuko to it as well. At the end of Book One, before he and Zuko split up, Iroh’s begging him to be careful and admits that ever since he lost Lu Ten, he sees Zuko as a son of his own. 

    After Zuko’s betrayal in Ba Sing Se, Iroh leaves Zuko and forces him to make his own choices, which is when Zuko finally steps up (after some struggle). 

Iroh made it very easy to care about Zuko, alongside Zuko’s moments of humility and glimpses of hope.

Summary

In short, Zuko is such a legendary character because he was well-rounded, and humanized. He never overstepped to the point where he couldn’t be redeemed, and even when he was at his worst, we knew who he could be, and that he does have good in him. 

[sophygurl]

WisCon 43 panel Favorite Queer Depictions In Fiction write-up:

Whether it's a coming-of-age coming out story, a love story about queer characters, a drama or comedy centering the lives of a queer found family, or any old story that just includes a queer character or three without making a big thing about it—we all have out favorite queer stories. Whether it's books, TV shows, movies, video games, or something else, this is the panel to share the ones we love, and why we love them!

Moderator: Kate JohnsTon. Panelists:  Cat Meier, Charles Payseur, Sarah Waites, Alberto Yáñez

Disclaimers: These are only the notes I was personally able to jot down on paper during the panel. I absolutely did not get everything, and may even have some things wrong. Corrections by panelists or other audience members always welcome. I name the mod and panelists because they are publicly listed, but will remove names if asked. I do not name audience members unless specifically asked by them to be named. If I mix up a pronoun or name spelling or anything else, please tell me and I’ll fix it!

Notes:

I missed some of the panelist intro info, but Alberto identified himself as “queer AF” and Cat added “yes, I am also very queer.”

Kate asked the panelists to discuss what brought them to queer fiction, citing Mercedes Lackey as her intro point. She added “we existed and didn’t die in the first book.”

Sarah brought up Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner. When she read it, she wasn’t consciously queer yet. Once she realized that she was, she began to read a lot more.

Alberto also mentioned Lackey, specifically Magic’s Pawn. He had gotten it as a library book and found someone had written in the front of it “this book is about f**gs” and he thought “well, alright then!” He also talked about the short story Things With Beards, a re-telling of The Thing through the lens of HIV/AIDS. 

Cat mentioned Henry Fitzroy as her first queer character love. [ I didn’t catch the specific work/author but it involved the bastard son of Henry the 8th as a bisexual vampire - a quick search shows me this is probably Tanya Huff’s Blood and Smoke novels?]

Kate brought up that queer characters often don’t get a family and asked the panelists about queer characters that either have found families or that remained in their families of origin. 

Cat talked about the novella Sing for the Coming of the Longest Night by Katherine Fabian and Iona Datt Sharma.

Alberto said that, as a Latino writer, he writes a lot about family “because some stereotypes are true.” 

Sarah mentioned that Becky Chambers writes about found family quite a bit. Another example was a world where homophobia doesn’t exist in a Beauty and the Beast re-telling - In the Vanisher’s Palace. 

Charles mentioned the found family in Jacqueline Koyanagi’s Ascension [also a fave of mine!], as well as Geometries of Belonging by Rose Lemberg. He also talked about Ursula Le Guin’s The Dispossessed as a story that imagines different ways of thinking about family and queerness, as well as Pan-Humanism: Hope and Pragmatics by Jess Barber and Sara Saab about decoupling possessiveness in relationships. 

Charles also said that he has written both kinds of stories - found family and family of origin, specifically mentioning a found family in his short story Undercurrents.

Kate talked about how the 60′s SF genre was a lot of men going into space without any women, but it was still supposed to be read as cishet. Now we’re at a point where we actually can send women without men into space and it tends to be read as queer. 

She also asked about stories where it’s not just the same nuclear family and/or gender binary but just with same-sex couples slotted in.

Alberto mentioned Nicola Griffith’s Ammonite, which is about a whole world that is female in many different expressions without having to label them all. 

Cat talked about being both queer and poly and feeling very seen by Sing for the Coming of the Longest Night more than any other book. Having an example of a poly community where all relationships are equally as important as one another. 

Sarah brought up The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley where the male/female nuclear family structure is just not possible. 

Charles again brought up Ascension as an example of family structures on space ships. Also Hurricane Heels by Isabel Yap, which has a magical girls trope - heavy on friendship but the importance of friendship is highlighted and some, but not all, in the friend group are queer. 

Kate talked about James Tiptree’s Houston Houston Do You Read and some of Melissa Scott’s work.

Cat added that Melissa Scott has a wide variety of books with queer relationships in them showing a range of queer experiences. The newest - Finders - has queer poly. 

Sarah talked about some of Scott’s fantasy series and the structure of the culture being that male/female relationships were for procreation but the expectation is that love is between same genders. [I didn’t catch the title of these books/the series]

Kate brought up bisexuality in fiction. She first noticed the lack of bisexual representation when she started dating a bi woman. 

Charles said “all I write is bisexual - even if it’s not explicit.” Since it’s generally assumed for people to be either gay or straight if it’s not mentioned, he likes to write worlds where it’s assumed for the characters to be bi. 

Charles also talked about bi rep in Rose Lemberg’s work - Birdverse, Splendid Goat Adventure, and A Portrait of the Desert in Personages of Power. 

Alberto said he wants more queer characters where the drama isn’t about their queerness. In real life, acceptance can take awhile but he’s been there for a long time now and for reading and writing - he’d like for the drama to be focused elsewhere. 

Cat talked about not knowing that bisexuality existed at 13 when she discovered Henry Fitzroy.

Kate talked about the importance of bi representation in creating understanding for others. “I’m a skier. I ski in the winter. It’s summer. I’m still a skier.” 

Kate brought up Sarah Gailey’s River of Teeth. Also Tanya Huff’s work [missed the title] about omnisexual aliens who would screw a hole in a donut and everyone’s happy about it! Also for YA/teen reading - Foz Meadows. 

Alberto mentioned Six of Crows and it’s sequel by Leigh Bardugo as having bisexuality and found family in it. [Gosh I need to get on to reading this series]

Cat brought up Peter Darling - a trans re-telling of Peter Pan with a Pan/Hook romance. [!!] Also The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue as well as The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee. The former has an ace character.

Sarah also rec’d the Guide to Petticoats and Piracy book. She is ace and the character in the book is ace and aro - society wants her to be one thing and she isn’t. Also the character gets called out on the “not like other girls” thing. 

Sarah also mentioned Chameleon Moon, which has a F/F/F triad, as well as an ace man with anxiety. Sarah wants more ace characters who are not sociopaths or robots.

Kate brought up the TV show Lucifer which is “really really really bisexual” [lol]. Kate also likes that the show doesn’t explain how Lucifer, who is white, has a black brother and an Asian sister.

Someone [I only wrote “C”, so either Cat or Charles? unless that meant continued and was Kate?] talked about Tanya Huff’s work having so many queer families with a variety of experiences.

Charles said there are a lot of examples that are just sad and messy.

Kate talked about lots of queer and black fiction is depressing because - “have you looked at our lives?” She added that we need more positive examples of queer characters. 

Alberto brought up Lara Elena Donnelly’s three books - Amberlough, Armistice, and Amnesty - which are about surviving fascism and rebellion. There’s crime, adventures, spies, etc. This is a strong recommendation.

Sarah added on to that by saying that this example of a dystopia is not about the queerness. Also talked about the Machineries of Empire series by Yoon Ha Lee [oh look! one of next year’s GoH’s!], which has no homophobia and almost all of the characters are queer. It also subverts the sociopathic ace trope - other characters think he is and he encourages that belief, but isn’t.

Charles mentioned a short story in Glittership Year Two [missed what it was], as well as The Root by Na'amen Gobert Tilahun which he said has a good depiction of queer families.

Kate posed the question of what there should be more queer characters in. She said video games and TV shows and that both should also be less male gaze-y.

Charles agreed with video games and said whether it’s a relationship game or not. He wants more background characters to be queer. He doesn’t want to have to headcanon it.

Sarah said “besides everything?” Big SFF movies, like the MCU - and that they should stop making such a big deal about adding super small scenes with queer characters. 

Alberto said more TV - especially for stuff aimed at kids and their parents. A good example of this is She-Ra.

Kate said it should be written in the stories - not retconned like Rowling does or killing them off right away. More 3D queer characters. She added that, especially having been out for most of her life, the struggling with queerness/coming out stories are getting old for her.

Cat mentioned movies that are adaptations that have queer characters in the source material, such as the MCU - there are lots of queer characters in the comics but they don’t make it to the TV shows or movies. 

Kate added that Deadpool keeps his pansexuality in the movies. Kate also wants more queer poc characters who are okay with who they are not evil aliens. This is a problem for white cishet Hollywood. 

Charles talked about the issues still affecting us from the Hays Code era legacy. Queer characters are always sad and end up dead - this was once enforced but has now just trickled down. 

Charles also said he enjoys cozy mysteries but the queer characters always die. There was one that he liked that was turned into a TV series and they finally had a queer character - the actor was leaving and the series could have given them a happily ever after but killed them off instead.

Sarah talked about the importance of diversity behind the scenes. It’s easier to get representation in a book because there is less gatekeeping, fewer hands in the pot. When everyone in the writer’s room of a show or movie are straight, it makes it harder.

Cat [I think? just wrote “C” again] mentioned The Wicked and the Divine - gods are reborn into people every 12 years - they’re all queer. [This was rec’d often this con - deffo need to read]

The audience got to throw out recs next. The ones I got down are: [I can’t find this in a search but it was something like Kaitlyn Sterling - Luminent... something? if anyone knows please chime in], Lifelode by Jo Walton, Ethan of Athos by Lois McMaster Bujold about a planet of men, A Door into Ocean by Joan Slonczewski about a world of women, A Big Ship at the End of the Universe by Alex White, The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley, “everything by Seanan McGuire” [agreed!!], and then apparently Magic: The Gathering has recently been doing some exploring of genderless species and also a trans warrior woman character. 

The audience were still tossing out recs when I left, so I did not get them all, nor any possible closing remarks by the panelists.  

[prkrc]

hey there demons! it me, sam! this is just parker’s same old intro edited with some updates and wanted / taken connections, so feel free to take a look if you’re interested! messaging me @ellvie is probably easiest!

DISCLAIMER: this is a sideblog so i might post stuff to the wrong acc sometimes js

so, this guy right here…riley ignatius parker-warrington…will throw hands if you call him anything other than parker. it’s what everyone calls him. you gotta be really special to call him riley and not immediately get decked for it. tbh most people probably think parker is his first name anyway so! moving on

parker was born to a wealthy family in a small but affluent village called alderley edge in cheshire, england. he’s the youngest of four sons so he has three older brothers.

his family, the parker-warringtons ( known more commonly as the warringtons ) are stupid rich. it hurts me to think about it askdh. they’re basically the british rockefellers. parker’s great x6 granddad started the family business back a couple centuries ago and nowadays they’ve got their hands in everything from business to architecture to real estate to education to oil…they own a lot of stuff. the warrington building in downtown london was completely made up just now is basically the rockefeller center of the uk. 

the family drama has been highly publicized in the uk & europe for longer than anyone can remember at this point, but not as much in america. 

anyway, parker spent his early years sheltered and pampered and homeschooled by tutors and nannies bc his parents never had time for him but it’s whatever he got over it really early on in life.

parker’s always been a huge troublemaker with a restless nature so his wealthy, uptight, lowkey shady af parents who are obsessed with the family’s image could never really deal with him and eventually decided to just ship him off to boarding schools all over europe, just one after the other after the other bc he kept getting kicked out lmao.

about the only thing he enjoyed about his childhood and schooling were his music lessons. he was taught to play piano, violin, and even the harp. other things like math and history and science didn’t come easily to him at all, but music? he was great at it and he’s always loved it. during his teen years while away at boarding school was when he first procured an electric guitar and learned to play. along with that, he also discovered punk music, aka the greatest thing in the entire fucking universe if you ask him. far as music goes, he’d found his calling in his early teenage years.

at school he was basically that rebellious kid in all the movies who wore doc martens with his prim & proper school uniform and carried around a pocket knife and cut class to go smoke while vandalizing school property and would absolutely fuck up some prissy pretty boy’s face just for looking at him the wrong way.

literally the only reason he actually graduated rather than flunking out was because his father was able to pull some strings aka bought his very last boarding school a whole new library wing. parker did actually consider running away a few times, but there was a part of him really reaaaaally deep down that actually enjoyed some aspects of school ( though he very strongly believes many education systems across the world need a serious overhaul and blahblahblah don’t ask him unless you want a lecture ). anyway, the moment he was done with school, he did finally skip out on…well, everything and everyone and ditched the country altogether, heading out first to seattle washington, then to los angeles, california, and then he finally settled in new york city when he was twenty years old, meaning that he’s lived in nyc for the last three years!

started his band, rabid porcupine, right after moving to the city. they’re a punk band, popular among the subculture and virtually unknown to everyone else. parker is the lead vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, overall face of the band but don’t get it twisted he could never go solo his whole band is important to him.

his parents have threatened to cut him off & disinherit him about a billion times but will probably never actually do it even though they see him as a huge disgrace to the family name. they call sometimes but he never picks up. if anybody asks he’d probably say that he hates his family but he honestly doesn’t. i don’t think he’s capable of hate lmao. he doesn’t like them and he’d rather stay away from them bc he and his family just do not get along, but at the end of the end of the day, v deep down he has like….a teeny tiny molecule of affection for them even though his family is 100% genuinely awful people

so, parker left nyc for a bit! even though it was only like a week ago in real time i wanna say he’s actually been gone for about two to three months maybe? idk but he went back to england in a rush, just kinda vanishing overnight as he tends to do.

he told no one where he was going or that he was even leaving at all. not even his roommate or…the person he’s very attached to, stas. he didn’t wanna tell anyone why he had to leave.

BUT WE’RE ALL GONNA FIND OUT RIGHT HERE AND NOW SURPRISE! his dad died. yikes. now they had a very…complicated relationship. parker hated his father and his father hated him. tbh his death wouldn’t have been enough for parker to go all the way back to england bc he fucking hates it there if it weren’t for the fact that his dad was pulling some fuck shit from the grave.

long story short, he left the family company to parker in his will. not the family, not his wife, not any of his other three sons. nope. the whole ass billion dollar company, every single subset, everything…was left to one riley ignatius parker-warrington.

naturally he was fucking furious. he hates the family business, he hates their company, he hates office work, and he hates knowing that his father only did it to spite him. he immediately attempted to get rid of the company. tried selling it, just straight up giving it away, even driving it into the ground lmao. just, anything to get it off of his hands and out of his responsibility but nothing has worked so far.

and that’s why he’s back in nyc! he wants a lawyer’s opinion so what i think parker is gonna do here? lowkey try to sneak into town, get some help from a lawyer he trusts and then leave without anyone else noticing or knowing that he was in town at all because he absolutely does not want to be here and he especially doesn’t wanna show his face. too bad for him!

lemme…stop? and just give you a few quick facts bc this is getting super long who’s even still reading this?

looks like he could kill you and could actually kill you

he hasn’t been home in like five years but he still has the heaviest most posh british accent you will ever hear in your life + he knows he’s fulfilling a stereotype here but he doesn’t care he fuckin loves tea

his three older brothers are named sebastian, nikolai, & rian. he doesn’t get along with any of them but he and rian he by far has the worst relationship with rian, his identical twin who’s a few minutes older. unlike most stereotypical twins they’ve literally never been in sync, have never gotten along and have probably beaten each other up before.

his family is big on modern day arranged marriages but you can miss parker with that bullshit he will date whoever he wants

that being said i think he’s probably…straight? idk tho & like who’s really straight anymore honestly

most people think that he’s a jerk bc he’s incredibly standoffish and temperamental but he’s actually…not that bad? like he’s sure he’s permanently grumpy but he also holds the door open for people and says thank you to janitors and probably helps old ladies across the street and would literally rather die than be rude to wait staff in a restaurant

seemingly very passionate about everything always openly expresses his emotions. he doesn’t…know how to hide them? he doesn’t know how to pretend like he doesn’t care?

adrenaline junkie, reckless af & likes to party but isn’t into hard drugs. he’s tried once or twice but just really isn’t a fan. he smokes & drinks & smokes weed sometimes but that’s it

very observant and good at reading people

basically the walking talking rl embodiment of the jerk with a heart of gold trope.

knows he’s not the easiest person to befriend but if you are his friend, then he’s gonna be loyal af, the realest ride or die of all time

however, he tends to take the tough love route when he’s trying to help someone out. like just bc you’re his friend he’s not gonna coddle you bc you’re upset he’s gonna tell you how to how to deal with your problems & emotions

which is funny bc lmao he’s angry af 1000% of the time. will throw hands anytime anywhere

so to the surprise as nobody he took up boxing as a kid and to this day it’s the only sport he cares about at all. he still boxes once or twice a week as a hobby & it’s probs pretty good for him tbh

also took a lot of music lessons back in the day. he’s actually a very talented pianist who probably could’ve gone on to play professionally if he stuck with it but nah. he likes the guitar. you’ll probs never catch him playing the piano which is a shame bc he honestly is a beautiful pianist :/

worked as an auto mechanic before he committed to his band full time but highkey misses it sometimes. he still likes cars & absolutely loves motorcycles, will talk about them all day with you if you want.

he has a motorcycle which pretty much built it himself from scratch and it’s just…it’s literally his child ok he will freak if you so much as lay a hand on his motorcycle ok /f r e a k/ like don’t even look at it the wrong way

feminist af

parker is grumpy and angry and standoffish but look he really is and really tries to be a decent guy. anyone who knows him well would see that very clearly and honestly, that’s probably why they stick around even though he can be difficult.

CONNECTIONS

family

future step sibling - genesis iver

maternal cousin, don’t get along - open.

paternal cousin, basically the only family member he likes - ingrid larson

romantic

ex girlfriend / highkey in love - anastasia sangster

ex on good terms - open.

ex on bad terms - open.

former toxic on / off relationship - open.

fwb - maia kauri.

former fwb - open.

platonic

best friend / ride or die - mason grey

roommate - open. please check the main for info on this wc!

close friends - reese monroe, kennedy drakos, isla thompson, open to more.

friends -  warren daily, marnie almeida, sullivan ramsey, alexandra blakely, cameron jones, open to more.

unlikely friends - wren daily, open to more.

frenemies - rosalind cox, jake carver, open to more.

attempted good influence - logan van kamp

workout buddy - willow sparks

negative

enemies - lukas donovan, open to several. parker is a goblin so he could’ve pissed someone off for many reasons

ex friends - jay weston, open to more.

doesn’t like / trust - lex sinclair

since this is officially a novel i think it’s time for me to sTOP LMAO. i have no specific wc in mind but i’d love to plot so please feel free to message me if you’re interested! as always i’m super excited to plot and write with everyone!

[fortunately-bi]

The Folly of Alchemists part 1

A/N:The Folly of Alchemists is an idea I’ve been sitting on for a while now, the setting is a steampunk victorian era, machines and science are just started to become a normal part of every day life, but theres still some traditional victorian factors. think if bioshock and bloodborne had a baby. the story jumps from character to character, the main three being Moira, Angela and Gabriel. more will be explained in part 2, i just wanted to throw an intro out there.

Moira O’Deorain

I’ve always been a woman of the sciences. I’ve prided myself in my accomplishments, particularly in the medical field, but I could hardly wrap my head around the machines that have so quickly become a part of day to day life. But Angela, sweet Angela, with her honey blonde hair, she knew such things better than I. She's created magnificent tools to heal people, written medical texts used by almost every scientist in modern day. She was going to save the world, I just knew it. And I’ve vowed to myself that I will help her. Though my sciences mostly involved poking around corpses, researching disease, and studying the way the human body functions and evolves, I would give all I could to help Angela.

“Moira!” The sweetness of her voice caught me completely off guard, especially while she was so high in my thoughts. I tried to hold back the rising blush in my ears, I felt embarrassed, like she could read my mind. Like she could tell how I was thinking of her.

“Ah, Angela! What brings you here? My office isn't exactly the coziest of places for conversation.” I say, gesturing to the body on the table. A murder victim, he was thirty five years of age. Something had drove his wife mad and she turned a knife on him. I was struggling to figure out just how many times she had stabbed him, his stomach was nothing more than mangled gore. The woman was now under Angelas care, the woman was showing symptoms unlike anything we've ever seen, she had also said something about wanting to try to fix her mental state. Yet another field she was good at, getting into the heads of others.

My thoughts had wondered again until Angela snapped me back to focus with a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Are you alright, dear?” she asked pressing the back of her hand to my head. She had to stand on her toes to get a better look at my face. How cute. “I’m fine,” I hushed her, taking her hand in mine “My head is just in the clouds today.” I smile. I felt her hands on my chest and she leaned up closer to my face, pinning me between her and the table. “And where in those clouds might that brilliant mind be drifting to?” the softness of her voice matched her perfume, and I felt the tips of my ears begin to heat. “Darling, we are being watched.” I broke the mood, again gesturing to the body on the table that I hadn't had the second to cover since Angela stepped in. She was one for teasing me, but she was never so bold. She stared at the corpse for what felt like moments too long, before stepping away from me with a shaky laugh. Her face twisted in discomfort as I pulled the sheet over the body. I knew she was thinking of the man's wife. I knew she wasn't getting any better. And I knew how much that ate her up.

“How is-?” I began before she shook her head. “She’s dead.” she said with a heavy breath. I could feel my anxieties stir, this was going to eat at her for a long time. I put my arms on her shoulders and she leaned into my chest, I could feel her fighting back a sob. This also explained the rather bold move of pinning me between her and the table. She wanted to take her mind off of it. “Can we go home now? It's nearly midnight.” she choked, voice muffled against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug. “Goodness, so late? You must be spent.” She gripped onto my shirt till I pulled away to fetch my coat.

“No cane today?” She asked, softly taking my hand after sliding my gloves on. “Not today, I feel well enough to walk on my own.” I said.

While locking up my office, Angela walked over to my horse Shadow, speaking softly to him, scratching his nose. She was always so gentle with living things, animals seemed to flock to her.

I knew she wasn't particularly fond of my form of transportation, minus Shadow. Having a carriage used to carry the dead to and from my office made for an uncomfortable, grim ride, but the fatigue weighed heavy enough in her eyes that she seemed unbothered.

The ride was very quiet, and I knew better then to push her to speak about whatever events were eating at her. At her own pace she would eventually talk about it, and that was fine with me. As we came to the turn towards her home, she clung to me. “Can I stay with you tonight?” she mumbled. I sighed, brushing her hair out of her face. “You’ve no clothes with you for tomorrow, and you’re helpers will surely worry for you.” I wanted to give her more reasons but I could think of none, and her grumbling against my arm made it clear she was glued to the seat if it meant going anywhere without me. Not that I minded her staying with me, not that she hasn't before, but it always manages to catch me off guard when she does thing like this. Shadow grew restless, and so I jerked the reigns towards my home. I could feel her jerk awake every now and then for the rest of the ride.

It was a pleasant surprise to see Gabriel when I walked in carrying Angela. From the open cabinet and redness in his cheeks, I could tell he had been drinking. It didn't surprise me any, but I had not seen him in months after he vanished without a word. As soon as he noticed Angela, half asleep in my arms he took a step back and gave me space while I brought her to the guest room. Or so I thought till I felt the tug on my sleeve and a heard a muffled grumble. “Do you want to join us for a drink first?” I asked as she peeked one eye open at me. She shook her head and pointed at my room. “Your bed is more comfortable.” she mumbled. I don't know what I expected,  trying to bring her to the guest room. “... And I don't want to sleep alone tonight.” that caught me off guard. Something worse than she was letting on has happened. I won't push her, I shouldn't. It would only make her upset.

I helped her get comfortable on my bed and tucked her in with that fur blanket she loved. My little black cat, Brimm, wedged himself under her arms purring. Before I left the room the broach on her shirt caught my eye, the silver trim and mysterious blue stone reflecting the candle light. I thought of the day her mother died. Angela was so young, so undeserving of death. I will make sure that day never happens again.

I managed to pull away from Angela to join Gabe for a quick drink. Or what is to hopefully be only one drink. It's been almost a month since I have seen my best friend, especially in such high spirits. The stress had carved permanent wrinkles on his face last I saw him. I know Morrison was hard on him about their military ways, ways I wanted no part of and had no interest in. I knew Gabe was looking to get away from it all, find a girl or guy and travel. We were close like that at one point, but there were things we never quite saw eye to eye on, things too big to ignore. He seems happier being a free spirit, traveling as much as he can, seeing the world from a view other then down the barrel of a gun or dripping with blood. Im perfectly fine being stationary, focused on my work.

His pat on my back just about knocked the wind out of me. He smiled ear to ear, his scars and wrinkles cracking his handsome face. “So, should I assume any creaking I hear tonight is a ghost causing a ruckus in your room?” he slurred. I choked on my wine and he laughed continuing to poke at me for the way I fancied Angela. I tried to convince myself the heat in my cheeks was just the wine, but after I finished the glass I could kid myself no longer. “Enough Reyes! Now tell me, where have you been off to? What happened to that bright eyed lass who was always at your hip?” I took my turn to tease him, and at least try to find out where he's been. He left without any warning, if it weren't that it was normal for him to do so I’d be much more relieved to see him. He grunted and slurred something to himself, for a second I thought I heard him mention Morrison. “The draft caught her. She was an excellent navigator and sailor, so they asked her to join one of the navy ships.” he grunted bringing his glass to his lips. His face held something like regret across it. “If it weren't that she needed some kind of money…” I shifted. This was a very sensitive topic, Gabriel was not a rich man, he came here with nothing. He tried to flee from the war only to get pulled back into it, just on a different side. A side he very much did not have positive feelings towards. I was the one who kept them from throwing him in a cell after they found him a stowaway on a supply ship. I let him stay at my small place, only asking that he kept it clean and watched my cat while I was gone. As we became closer friends I cared less and less about how he spent his own time.

But I know he still had little money. The military pays like shit, but you can only do odd jobs here and there with the time you get away. Part of why he's stuck here is because Morrison is intent on that. My mind drifted once again, darker thoughts then the ones Angela brings. I want the war to end as badly as I want to help Angela, because ending the war means I can help Gabe. What if both sides never stop fighting? Whose blood will it take for the fighting to stop?

Gabe whistled, catching on to my head being elsewhere. He looked concerned before smiling. “It's late and you look exhausted. Your soul practically leaves your body at times when you're this tired. Go sleep, keep Angela warm.” he said with a wink as he got up and walked towards his own room. I stretched out, took one last big sip of wine before putting out the candles and the fireplace, then trudged off to my room.

I was taken aback walking into my room to see Angela standing there, seemingly wide awake. She stroked the strange blue gem on her broach, before her attention shifted to me. She looked startled to see me and I rubbed my eyes. “Oh, Angela, I thought you would still be-” she collapsed without a word, fast asleep again. Now I’m the one standing here, trying to figure out what just happened. Angela has stayed with me before, and she was no sleep walker.

I was much too intoxicated to try to figure this out right now. I lifted her back into bed, after cursing myself for being a lightweight, and struggling to get ready for bed I crawled in with her. A few minutes later I felt her wrap her arms around me, scooting closer to me. Her skin felt awfully warm, maybe she had a fever? I was too tired to check, and despite my efforts, exhaustion over took me and I fell asleep.

Angela Ziegler

She thinks I can't read her mind. And she's partially right. I can't read her mind, but i can tell when she's thinking of me. It’s like a strange pull in her direction, followed by a sudden emotion. Anywhere from a flutter in my chest, to something that, admittedly, leaves me squeezing my legs together. I’m doing my best to ignore it, such a thing reeks too much of witchcraft and brings back bad memories. Frankly I’ve had enough of both for a while.

But as I stirred awake before Moira, I couldn't escape the feeling that she was dreaming of me. I didnt know about what specifically, I could just tell she was. I crawled out of bed, grumbling at the bruises on my legs. I was getting them even here. Every morning I wake up I have more purple spots along my legs. And although I got better sleep here then I have anywhere else in a long while, I still feel as though I’ve been up all night. My legs ached.

I trudged into the kitchen and found Gabriel slumped against the counter preparing coffee, grumbling about having a headache. “Would you like me to help you with that, Gabe?” I nudged him. His face lit up and his warm laugh was comforting to hear after so many weeks. “No thank you Angela, just had too many glasses of wine with Moira last night. But it's good to know I have my own little doctor looking out for me.” he said. We talked over tea before I heard a knock at the door. Gabe motioned for me to go answer it, gripping his head and groaning at the fast paced knocks ringing through the house. When I opened the door a familiar fast paced scout was smiling brightly before me.

“Oh, Lena, what brings you here today?” I asked her before hearing a window slide open. “Hey you little prick, what did I tell you about you bringing your dashy arse up to my doorstep!” Moira shouted from a window, her accent suddenly thick. I groaned, the two were about to go at each other again.

“Oh, come now Moira, why do you always have to be like this?” Lena beamed, her smile stretching ear to ear. “Is there any reason in particular you even dislike me?” she rocked on her heels. A groan for Moira.

“Oh you fucking Brits thinking you can just go wherever you please without asking-” Moira started before Lena cut her off. “Morrison sent me.” Moira grew quiet, and even Lenas smile faded a little. “He wants to speak with you all,” she stuck her head in the doorway past me and I heard Moira run down the hall ready to chop her head off for daring. “That means you too, Reyes!” Lena shouted in the kitchen. Gabe leaned around the corner giving Lena a playful, grumpy look. “How did he even know I was here?” he groaned. Lena stuck her tongue out at him. “The Amari’s are in town, Ana saw you skulking around the shadows.” she said, pulling her head back just in time to miss a cane swinging at her head. “Moira, please, I am not at work if you crack open her skull I cannot do anything.” I said trying to keep her from escalating things, while also trying to keep my own head on my shoulders. I barely had three sips of my coffee before this all started, it was much too early for me to deal with a cracked skull. I looked at Lena who was making faces at Moira. After a disapproving grumble she stopped. “I'm assuming Morrison is wanting us to see him as soon as possible?” I asked, pushing Moira away from the door. Lena nodded, giving us a few brief details before taking off.

I watched Moira walk back to her room grunting, a limp in her step more visible today. “Moira, I know you don’t like Morrison to see it, but please use your cane today.” after a loud groan and some poking from Gabe, she agreed. I grabbed my coffee from the kitchen and joined Moira in her room. I think I’ve calmed down enough to share with her what happened yesterday. I was so tired from it all I wasn’t able to stay awake long enough to talk to her about it.

I probably should have knocked. No, I definitely should have knocked. Moira wasn’t terribly muscular, but she was lean enough from moving bodies around all day the her abs showed when she flexed. I could hardly move from the doorway at the sight of her top half bare and out while she had her boot up on the bed attempting to tie it. “Uh- I’m sorry!” I backed up only to bump into Gabe. “Am I interrupting something?” he teased, wiggling his eyebrows. “If I recall, Morrison wants to see us immediately.” Despite the pain in her legs, Moira had her finger in his face in a near instant. “Gabe, you better watch yourself or you’ll be the next person I’m carving up in my office.” she said, before she wrapped her arm around my waist and pulled me into the room. Gabe gave her a shrug before she slammed the door.

“Busy morning, is it not?” I stuttered out, trying to keep my eyes from drifting in her direction. She grumbled, still trying to tie her boots. Her head was in the clouds again, she seemed distant and focused on something other then her surroundings. I could see the pain it was causing her trying to bend down to tie her laces. “Here, let me help you.” I bent down and tied her laces but when I looked up, her face looked like it was about to crack from worry. She and I are scientists, we’ve both contributed a lot to the world in our own ways. For Morrison, a man of war, to ask to speak to us directly? The intentions can’t possibly be the best. There's also Gabe and what they might do with him now that he’s back. Her pains in her legs can’t be helping her deal with this either.

I could tell I was in her thoughts again, too. I looked up, her mismatched eyes meeting my own. I felt an incredible flutter in my chest, one that made me gasp lightly. “Are you ok?” Moira asked holding my chin up. She looked like she was about to cry, maybe this wasn’t the best time to talk about what happened yesterday. I’ll tell her later. The events of the past few hours have clearly pushed her past her limits, she had a lot on her mind, things she had no control over. I know she hated it.

It was easy to misread my intentions, me knelt down on the floor between her legs while she sat on the bed. I only wanted to comfort her, I traced circles and lines on her stomach, feeling her relax beneath me. She took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m okay.” she got up and we finished getting dressed.

[squirenonny]

How you even get people interested your fics, asking for a friend thanks

Aw, man, isn’t that a question for the ages?

So I’m gonna preface this by saying that there’s no magic quick-fix to attract more readers (however much we all wish there were.) Writing for the big ships or posting a fic featuring a popular trope/AU when it’s popular is going to get you more readers than writing niche fics, but chasing trends isn’t going to make you happy and it might even hurt the quality of your work. When you post and whether there was some big fandom or IRL event that drew attention away from the newly published pages (or flooded them, burying your fic under ten pages of Klance week ficlets or whatever) can also play a big role.

Secondly, and I know you’re probably not going to like hearing this, try not to worry too much about numbers like hits/kudos/bookmarks/reviews. They don’t mean as much as you think, and they aren’t a reflection on your skill as a writer or the value of your story. The best thing to do is to find some other way to measure success–maybe it’s how many words you’ve written, maybe it’s whether you stick to a consistent update schedule. Maybe it’s reaching that scene you’ve been dying to write for forever. But make sure it’s something that’s in your control, because depending on the faceless masses for validation sucks, and you deserve better.

Okay, on to some advice for attracting readers.

1. Rework your summary. Confession time: I hate writing summaries. Hate it. I’m already not good with short form and trying to sum up a story in a hundred words or less is even worse. But it’s one of the most important skills for a writer to learn, since it’s your one shot to get people interested enough to click that link. If you’re stuck, here are some suggestions, with examples of how I’ve used them for my own stories.

Pick a (short!) excerpt from your piece. Maybe a brief exchange of dialogue, maybe the opening line, maybe something else. It should be something that doesn���t require context to understand and that makes people want to find out what happens next (or what led up to this moment.) Example:

This psychic—Lance the Lucid, according to the posters, and Keith wasn’t even going to comment on that—was a charlatan, plain and simple, and Keith kind of wanted to punch him. Sure, Lance knew how to put on a show, but Keith doubted there was anything more to the act than charm and dramatic flair.

Pidge sighed, catching Keith’s eyes. “At this point, they’re pretty much our only hope.”

If you’re writing an AU, especially a canon divergence AU, put the focus on what you’re changing. Example:

Shiro used to dream of Earth. That was before the Arena, before Haggar, before he joined the Galra army. At least he has an ally, a Galra officer named Keith. Together they plan to bring down Zarkon’s empire from the inside.

Matt never thought he’d see his family again. Then he crash-lands on Earth and Pidge rescues him from Garrison custody. But his homecoming is short-lived. Now the Holt siblings, along with Lance and Hunk, must find the Voltron lions and free the universe from Galra control.

Or: Galra!Keith, double agent!Shiro, red paladin!Matt, black paladin!Allura, full series AU.

If you’re writing something tropey, or a twist on a cliche, maybe highlight that. Example:

[following a short description of plot] Canonverse Soulmate AU with romantic and platonic soulmates (and some gray areas in between)

Sometimes the simplest thing to do, especially for shorter stories, is to do a one-two punch in your summary. The set-up and the punchline. The scenario and the twist. The status quo and the catastrophe. Think “Long ago, the four nations lived in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.” Or better yet, the next part of that intro–defining the Avatar and then hitting us with “and then he vanished for a hundred years whoops.” Whatever you do, keep it short. Example:

When Keith was seven years old, he spent a year in La Quinta with a boy named Lance, the best friend he ever had. Ten years later, Lance and Keith reunite at the Garrison–only Keith doesn’t remember who Lance is.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that shorter is (usually) better, but you want to include enough to hook readers’ attention. It’s hard, I know, but keep working at it and it’ll get easier. Seriously–write five completely different summaries for your fic, all under 100 words. Give yourself a 5 or 10 minute limit for each so you don’t agonize too much. Set them aside for a while, then come back and see what works. Or write a list of all the things you’re most excited about in a given piece, cut out any major spoilers, and try to work one or two of the others into your summary.

2. Be strategic about your tags. If you’re posting on AO3, use tags people are going to search. Angst, hurt/comfort, fluff, any tropes that feature prominently, any relationships (especially gen ones) that are a major focus. Be wary of overtagging–Shatt shippers, for example, know all too well how common it is to search for Shatt and turn up only Klance fics with a passing mention of Shiro and Matt going on a date. But plenty of people search for specific tags in trying to find new stories. Use that.

Similarly, if you post on Tumblr, use your tags efficiently. The first five tags on a post are the ones that the post will show up in (i.e. if you have a tag tracker or go to tumblr.com/tagged/____) Tumblr’s search looks at the first twenty tags, I believe. So use your first five tags for either the most popular or the most niche aspects of your fic. (i.e. tagging it “klance” will have a larger potential audience, though it’ll get buried pretty quickly; tagging “matt holt” or “shatt” gives you a much smaller potential audience, but one that’s more starved for content so will probably click your link at a higher rate.) Prioritize, and leave your organization tags/tag commentary for after.

3. Your first chapter should pack a punch. This one may be a little harder to put into practice if you have an existing fic you’re trying to drum up interest in, but it’s worth keeping in mind. If your summary and tags get people through the door, your first chapter (in a multichapter fic)/your first few paragraphs (for any fic) is where people decide whether or not this is worth reading. Goals to strive for:

Your first line, or at most your first paragraph, should hook reader’s interest. It should ask an implicit question–what’s happening? How did we get here?

(the equivalent of) Your first page (a couple hundred words, tops) should establish the situation and forward momentum. Diving straight into action with no context can be confusing, but lingering too long on exposition can make people tune out before they get to the good part. I’ve heard it said that the first 250 words should establish three things: character, context, and motive. Who are we focused on, what’s happening right now, and why does it matter? There are exceptions to every rule, of course, but make sure you know why you’re deviating if you decide to do so.

Your first chapter (assuming you have more than one) should leave people wanting more. Don’t leave them in the middle of the set-up, or they may not be motivated to continue. But don’t give them everything they need to see where this is going, or they won’t bother waiting to find out.

**Update: There’s now a follow-up post talking a little bit more about how to start a story, with examples!**

4. Persistence is key. Out of all the advice I can give you, this one’s going to be the hardest to follow, I’m sure. It can feel like you’re throwing words at a void and getting nothing back. Sometimes you have a real slow start. Sometimes you’re writing self-induldgent rarepare stuff, and it seems like you and two other people are the only ones who ship it–and those other two never comment.

The thing is, writing fic (especially as a newcomer or writing niche fic) is like playing Marco Polo at a death metal concert. Not only are you shouting into a sea of noise, but you’re also trying to find the relative handful of people who are going to answer. But here’s the thing: if you yell “Marco” once and get no response, then go home, you’ll never find those other people. If you keep yelling–maybe stay in one spot and yell over and over, maybe wander around calling out every so often–you’ll find someone, and then you’ll find someone else, and then maybe someone else will start shouting with you and find three more people. It starts slow, but it builds momentum.

In terms of fic, though, what does that mean? It means keep writing. Maybe keep hammering away at this one fic–excellent if it’s something you’re excited about, something you need to write no matter what. You keep putting it out there and you’ll start to beat back the wave of random chance that conspires to bury your fic because of weird posting times or an onslaught from a fandom event.

Maybe write a bunch of shorter fics, participate in bangs and exchanges and other events. You might hook readers with your Klance soulmate AU that you did for a secret santa, then tempt them into trying your other stuff (true story.) You might make friends by chatting in a big bang’s discord, and they can help you write more attention-grabbing summaries, or can signal boost on Tumblr. (Or just be that one person who stans your writing and keeps you motivated through low hit counts on AO3.) Or you might just hit a whole bunch of people’s rarepair/nich buttons and start building a following that way.

Or maybe it means going a little more off the rails. Try a different fandom. Write original fiction. Write an 80k Marauders-at-Hogwarts fic for yourself, edit it, and only then start posting a chapter a week so you can grow your reader base without the low number of comments chipping away at your motivation because joke’s on you, hit counter. I already have the next chapter done. And the one after that, and all of them, so they’re still coming even if no one’s reading. ha-ha! (Also a true story.)

Look, the point is, building a reader base is hard, and it’s frustrating, and a lot if it is based on luck and fandom trends, and you’re always going to want to get caught up in the numbers. Even once you have readers, you might get frustrated because the tropey shipfic with a shoddy plot that you BS’d your way through has ten times as much love as the lovingly crafted, well-plotted AU that you’ve poured literally thousands of hours into. Because writers are all starved for feedback, and with the exception of people lucky enough (or unlucky enough) to hit a fandom sweet spot and get shot straight into the realms of That One Fic Everyone Knows About–with the exception of those freak accidents of fate, the people who have sizable followings are almost always people who just plain love to write and do it regardless of what anyone else says or does.

So don’t write for the readers. Write for yourself first, and love what you write. Write stories that need to be told. Stories you can’t bear not to tell–because when you care that much about a story, it shows, and when the right people find your story, they’re going to love that you love it. Trust me. The right people are out there. You just have to keep shouting until you find them.

[ampwich-blog]

In depth review of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

There will be lots of spoilers. You have been warned. Where do I even begin with this movie? Well first off, where is the episode number? (Review gets better, stick around!) Might be confusing for some, but I suppose everyone knows by now what number it is. Anyway, let’s start at, well the start. First, we see no 20th Century Fox intro....which took some getting used to at first but it’s fine, it’s to be expected. As you know, Disney is now the parent company of Lucasfilm, so the Fox logo is not gonna be in there, obviously. I am really glad that Disney didn’t put THEIR logo in. I was a bit worried going in at what it would be like. I mean, I want Disney to keep off of Star Wars as much as possible, if that makes sense. I don’t wanna be reminded of the situation, ya know, lol.

So, the title crawl. The theme is a bit.....off. Bad quality....it sounds....hollow, in a way. Compare it to that of the prequel title crawls, and you’ll see what I mean. That version (Prequel crawl) remains the best in my opinion. Legit quality score, while this one, all due respect to the mastermind that is John Williams, is more of a sad attempt.....a parody, if you will. “Luke has vanished!” Interesting....thought not quite in his character, but I’ll get to that later. Capital letters for the factions involved.....which only happened with every even number movie (2, 4, 6) up to now. Kinda breaking tradition a little, but it’s forgivable since it does mention the Empire in the crawl, and they gotta make a distinction as to what factions are actually in the movie. “With the support of the REPUBLIC, Leia leads a brave RESISTANCE.” Well, would have preferred to see the actual Republic in the conflict itself, but I’ll get to that later.

The opening shot, despite it being the only one of the saga (At this time) that has nothing to do with the last sentence of the title crawl, is pretty freaking epic. The big ship looming over the planet below, and deploying troop transports is just awe to the some! It’s ominous, visually astounding, and just tell you right off the bat that this First Order does not mess around. They are like the Empire as far as the ideals; the evil, sort of wanting to control and get their way, but the way they go about things is like the Republic of old, where they aren’t afraid to get down and dirty, so to speak. (Despite them looking new and shiny, ha) They are willing get things done, no matter the cost, (As we see what they did to that village) and that makes them terrifying. Speaking of which, the troops being deployed and the fight that ensues is pretty awesome. Let me just say that over all, this movie is stunning. It sure does THAT right. You got practical effects everywhere as far as the on-ground scenes go, and beautiful cgi as far as everything else goes. Except for some scenes here and there, like the starfighters when they are dogfighting, and especially when Poe and Finn escape the Finalizer, the cgi is a bit animated there but I honestly never minded that kinda thing. I mean, even in the prequel trilogy, I don’t mind the cgi. I’m there for the story and the action, and I can suspend any “belief” as far as visuals go to have a good time viewing, but hey, that’s just me. Anyway, let’s move on to the more nitpicky things.

First of all, Finn. I really like the concept of his character, his backstory. This bad guy turned good. Especially what we’ve seen up until now as faceless troopers. (As far as the movies go, since The Clone Wars series showed the clones in great depth) Which I like the idea of, but the way they go about it is super lame to me. They introduce the idea that faceless, nameless bad guys can turn good, that they are people too, and have morals and a conscience. They have their own lives and struggles. Sort of “lifting the mask,” so to speak. But they forget about that pretty quickly, as they go right back to shooting away baddies like they are points in a game. Even Finn is all, “WWOOOO!” as he shoots away his friends, his comrades, the only family he’s ever known. These are people he knew personally, who, he should know better than anyone, are people too, who can become good. Not only that, but the way he turns good is just....rushed. He switches on a dime. From the very get go, he is already questioning his ways with no development whatsoever. “It’s the right thing to do,” he says, despite never having had a conversation with a good guy saying that.....NOTHING. Just.....BAM, bad guy being horrified by his factions actions (Hey, that rhymed) and turning good right away. And another shame, to add insult to injury so to speak, is Finn is just another stereotypical black character. Like seemingly every black guy Hollywood depicts, he is the comic relief, the hyper guy, always on edge and shouting, exaggerating things, etc. And what is it with Hollywood and black characters always speaking in an American-ish.....I guess sort of “urban” way? I mean, they could have just had the actor use his real life, natural English accent. I mean, it’s a cool accent! And he is apart of the First Order, so it would make sense. “Oh, but the original trilogy had stormtroopers always speaking in an American accent.” Well, that doesn’t mean this trilogy has to do the same thing! Not EVERYONE is from the same dang planet! Chances are, not ALL of them would have the same accents. (The clone troopers didn’t have an American accent, by the way) And as far as these stormtroopers go, they were kidnapped from the First Order at a very young, impressionable age, being raised and trained. So it only makes sense they, too, might have an “English“ accent. (I say the nationality terms for accents here for lack of a better way to put it. Obviously, these aren’t Earthlings, lol) They said they went with an “American” accent for Finn, due to the pacing and comical tone. But 1. WHY does he need to be comical? This dude has a tragic story, he shouldn’t be the comic relief. I mean, you could have done that with Poe, if anyone. But do we REALLY need anyone to be comical? Do we really need a “Jar Jar” or “C-3PO” of this trilogy? (C-3PO is already in it, anyway) 2. He kind of pronounces words weird. Could be the planet he is from? If so, could someone tell me what planet? Like for example, Jakku. “JockUUE.” No, no, Finn, it’s “Jack-koo.” “JocKUUE.” No, no, “Jack.....koo.....” “JockUUE.” Ya know what, nevermind. Just....don’t worry about it.

Anyway....you also have Rey, who is, granted, not PERFECT at everything, but she is a little....too good....There’s really no development for her, I mean she has the same basic attitude and, well, fighting skills the whole time. Sure, it can be explained away by her being a scavenger all her life, growing up in a “rough part of town,” so to say. But it just makes her parts in the movie more boring, really. Not that much room to grow as a character. She’s just good from the get go. Similar to Anakin in Episode 1. Is she a Chosen One, too?! I’m getting those vibes with her...And doesn’t help that all the characters seem to know who she is, but never say anything. It’s like some big mystery, some big reveal to come in the next movie. Please tell me we’re not gonna get another “I am your family member” moment. That aside, there is no real attributes to her, aside from her not wanting to leave Jakku, because her family might come back at any time. She has to learn to accept that she has to move on. She has to live her own life. These new friends of hers ARE her family now, and she has a cause to fight for, a real difference to make for the greater good. But aside from that, there really isn’t that much going for her, character wise. She’s just kinda the same throughout the whole movie, already having good sound morals, being a good fighter and pilot. (How the heck does she know the Millennium Falcon better than Han Solo?!) Being able to use the Force and know how to mind trick, etc. (HOW??) all seemingly without flaw. Granted, her fight with Kylo later is pretty much defensive, and she was losing up until the point she remembers to trust in the Force, and only then does the tide turn in her favor. (Much like Luke in the Battle of Yavin) And heck, Kylo was injured by a freaking bowcaster for crying out loud! (By the way, how the heck does he stay still as a statue, when others hit by the bowcaster are FLUNG like a sonic frisbee?....) Kylo was not only facing her, but Finn as well. AND he just murdered his father, so that’s probably going through his mind. That is pretty impressive on his part. So I will give Rey’s character that much, that there was AN attribute and that she did struggle....(For as little as she did) But hey, it’s something. Though escaping from Kylo Ren’s clutches all by herself was a bit much.

The other new guy, Poe Dameron. He was alright. He was WAY too good of a pilot, though, I mean, geez. (Now this is podracing?) And that part where he is flung elsewhere when he and Finn crash, and later turns out he survived and is right back to fighting. Not a whole lot of sound explanation is given for that, at least in the realm of believability. Now that is called bad writing, I’m just being honest.

Kylo Ren.....I don’t quite understand the hate toward him. I mean, he’s a developing character. He’s conflicted....and yes, he’s quite whiny. But he is related to Anakin and Luke, he’s got that Skywalker blood in him, so it’s kind of to be expected. He isn’t another Vader; Meaning, he isn’t already matured and developed, and is an all out boss to face later. This high and mighty villain that is a lurking threat and you must come to face at some point. No, he is basically a main character in his own right. He is the other side of the coin from Rey. I am excited to see where they take his character. The idea of Han and Leia’s son being a villain is pulled straight from Legends, which I personally appreciate. As much as they ignore the old EU, (Correct me if I’m wrong, never really read it) they do have SOME things from it, so I at least like that. Though what is up with his Force powers? Apparently in Star Wars, you can stop blaster fire mid air? And you can freeze a person in place, and even knock them out? Why didn’t anyone ever do any of that before, then? I’m sure it would have come in handy.

Snoke.....I like the mystery behind his character, and his ominous presence. (But dat voice though) So many questions. Who is this guy? WHAT is he? Why is he leading the First Order? (I will address that part later) I just hope he doesn’t end up being some random evil Force user. Some new character, another villain they have to defeat, blah blah blah. I want him to be of some great significance. Perhaps he is someone we know of already, and is getting his revenge, or is on the rise. Perhaps he is the dark side itself personified, and defeating him would finally bring true balance to the Force and end all this madness. SOMETHING that when he and the First Order are defeated, it can be a nice finish to the saga, bringing all 3 trilogies together in a grand way. Whatever happens, I just hope it’s awesome, mind blowing, and significant. I don’t want this trilogy to just be “what happens later.” Or a one off thing. I want it to be legit THE SEQUEL TRILOGY.

Captain Phasma SUCKS in this movie. They made her out to be a fierce warrior or some crap in marketing, only for her to have nothing to do in the film, and to be a total coward. The ease at which she succumbs to the good guys demands is just pathetic. All they had to do is threaten her life and she is willing to compromise her entire faction. Just a WEAK villain. And Han suggests to throw her in a trash compactor. I mean, that’s pretty dark for his character, don’t you think? I thought he was a good guy! What gives?

General Hux is, well....alright I guess. He does have some cringey dialogue at times. Like when he is talking to Snoke and is all, “We should destroy the government that supports the Resistance.....” and there’s a pause in there, as if we don’t know what he is referring to. OH, what could it possibly be, I wonder?? “the Republic.” *GASP!* NOOOOOO! (That whole situation with the First Order, Resistance, and Republic is pretty confusing, but I will get to that in a bit) His speech was pretty epic, though, I gotta admit. I couldn’t help but listen to it and apply it to my imagination in some way. It definitely has a Nazi vibe to it. Really gives you the sense that these guys are this small, extremist group rallying together and hellbent on destroying the Republic and all that is good. We get to see their craziness at play here. They come across as a cult, almost. You can tell by the way the troops respond, too, that they are pretty much brainwashed and willing to die for a cause that is evil. These guys are quite the threat, despite their small size. (They do make up for that with their big ships and advanced tech. They have to use quality over quantity)

Now that the Republic capital has been Alderaaned all up in here, the good guys have definitely been brought down to the First Orders level, and now it’s more of an even fight. Since before, it was the galactic government, the Republic. With its big military (WAY smaller than any before it, but still the biggest of its era, so I’ve read) and Leia leading a Resistance. But now, a good chunk of the Republics fleet is gone and they probably will have to band with the Resistance if they have any hope of fighting off the First Order. (So I hope is the case) Though they make it seem like the Republic as a whole is destroyed, and if that is the case, then that is soooo stupid! The Rebels, turns out, did restore the Republic. But now it’s as if it was all for nothing, as now, it seemingly gets destroyed. Now we are stuck with ANOTHER ragtag group of Rebels. REALLY.

This “Resistance” (Oh, yes, sounds soooo different, uh huh) looks JUST like the Rebel Alliance! X-Wings, the pilot outfits, a hidden base on a forest planet, the whole 9 yards. Heck, even their emblem is the EXACT same as the Rebel firebird! They aren’t even trying here! This is just Rebellion 2.0! Even the situation they find themselves in, from trying to get info in a droid before their enemy does, to having to blow up a planet killing ball seconds before it destroys their base....IS THE SAME THING! Those aspects were basically just Episode 4 all over again. I mean, holy crap, I know you have to do the whole “rhyme” thing, but can you at least be a little more subtle about it? Yes, Episode 1 repeated some stuff, but they weren’t so blatant about it. There’s even a dang trench run! COME ON, LUCASFILM! Have SOME originality here!

The bad guys, while more original, isn’t excused either. The First Order (What does that name even mean? Like....what??) is also a missed opportunity. I mean, first learning about them, they seemed like this organized terrorist group, essentially an evil rebellion. A group founded by fleeing Imperials years before, hellbent on revenge, yata yata. (NONE of which is explained in the movie) Much like the real life theory of Nazis fleeing elsewhere and rebuilding in secret to become a threat once more. Which more or less is exactly what they are. But to me, they had initially seemed like a cult, a secret society, some extremist group. Which I definitely got that feel during Hux’s speech. (Again, which is awesome) But as time goes on, I’m starting to see them more like Empire 2.0. Still TIE Fighters for some reason, still calling their troops stormtroopers (More of a minor nitpick, really) another Death Star, (I will address that in a bit) another scarred dark sider leading it, etc. (And from the looks of The Last Jedi, more walkers....probably gonna be a weakness that needs exploited) Even another dark side enforcer dude with a mask on. Well that last part, again, is kind of a minor nitpick, but thought I’d mention the parallel at least. (I personally like Kylo Ren, as I said before. Though the son of the Resistance leader being in the First Order is kind of a bit too coincidental, huh?)

What I think would have made a more compelling setting is the New Republic vs the Resistance. (The Resistance being what we ultimately got as the First Order) Instead of being a closed off organization being led by yet another dark sider, (Which doesn’t even make sense here. Like what the heck does Snoke have to do with them??) it would be a movement actively recruiting members who are loyalists to the old Empire, and want to take down the Republic. Led by Hux, they would actively make speeches, protests, terrorist attacks, etc. Which I suppose we kind of got, but if all that was in the movie itself with some more added, I mean. It would feel more like a reverse rebellion of sorts. They could be more vocal, since the government here is more democratic and friendly.....Of course, my idea of a Resistance would have a military in secret and be doing shady things like the First Order does. That would be the political side of things. On the Force side of things, we would have the new Jedi Order struggling against the Knights of Ren, led by Snoke. And Snoke would be, I don’t know, the source of the dark side itself or something. Perhaps Snoke IS that in canon, or something similar, who knows. This dark side entity from the unknown regions. But him leading the First Order just doesn’t make sense to me and is just too similar to the situation with the Empire.

The new Jedi Order is kinda dumb, turns out. In the EU, they were legit. But here, we never get to see them in action. We’re just told they were all slaughtered. So now we’re back to square one, with Luke being the last of the Jedi....AGAIN. And Luke just....left? When the galaxy needed him most, he vanished.....Some time has passed and my new best friend and I discovered a new Jedi-to-be. A Force user named Rey. And although her Force powers are great, she has a lot to learn before she’s ready to save anyone. Hehe, just kidding. Get the reference? Eh? Moving on. Seems out of Lukes character to just abandon the galaxy like that out of self pity. I mean, this is the same guy who disobeyed his Jedi masters to go save his friends on Bespin, despite all the red flags. The same dude who put his own life and morals on the line just for a slight chance to bring his father back to the light side. This guy is pretty dang stubborn when it comes to saving people. So for him to just throw his hands in the air and say “I quit” and leave everything to die just doesn’t make sense to me. Though to be fair, he was pretty whiny and did give up rather easily.....But still, you would think he’d have learned his lesson by now, 30 years later and being a Jedi master and crap.....(Also he gets no dialogue! WHAT THE HECK. No reunion with the others, nothing. Minor nitpick, really. I honestly don’t mind, to be honest, but thought I’d mention it) Not only Luke, but everyone is back to square one. Han and Chewy are back to their lives of crime. (Don’t tell Leia  or anyone in the Republic?) Leia is back to having a big role in a resistance movement. The galaxy is now back to Empire vs Rebels crap again, (Now that the Republic is presumably gone) and so on and so forth. Just seems like all that was accomplished in the original trilogy was for nothing.

Starkiller Base. Let me just get this out of the way: REHASH!! I mean, seriously, it’s Death Star 3, can we please call it Death Star 3 and be honest with ourselves? (Not really, I’m trying to be in denial here) Take out the Starkiller, and this movie is alright. Every time I see it on screen, (As cool as it looks and is to watch it fire) I cringe. Especially during the attack on it by the Resistance. That whole battle just feels like Battle of Yavin 2.0. “Battle of D’qar?” I don’t know....The whole thing was SO painfully predictable, it hurts to watch. I mean, really....how many times are we gonna get this dang scenario? Just 1 movie before this, we already had a 2nd one, do we really need a 3rd? It’s getting numb at this point. Even the characters in the movie are tired of it! “It’s another Death Star!” “I wish that was the case....” NO, it is! That person was right! And even Han is like again, really? The way he speaks about it. “So....it’s big.....Now how do we blow it up? There’s always a way to do that.” UNBELIEVABLE. If it’s such a tiring thing, and been done too much already, WHY PUT IT IN THE MOVIE?! I think I know why.....”Rhyming.” UUGGHH. You could rhyme, that’s fine. Make another ball to destroy, okay. But does it have to be another planet killer? Can’t it be something a little more subtle? I’m just saying! And the way they go about it all is so painful to watch. Oh, we gotta lower the shields from the inside, and blah blah blah. Aside from it being a planet on the outside, the inside is just another Death Star, while D’qar is just another Yavin 4. They look just like those! IS THERE NO CREATIVITY LEFT AT LUCASFILM? And how the heck does it even work? There’s no logic here. I mean, I know it’s in a fictional universe where the Force and hyperdrives exist, but still, you should at least explain it a LITTLE so it makes SOME sense. It sucks in a sun? Odd, but okay. (By the way, I had that same idea for a story I was gonna write, granted a little different. But now I can’t do that, ha) I mean, how does it not melt all the snow and heat everything up? I don’t know, but I can sort of get behind the idea, I GUESS. But isn’t it kind of pointless to suck in THE star of your solar system? So....what then? They just drift off into space, and can never fire? And didn’t they already have to suck in a sun before, when they fired at the Hosnian System? (And notice how it was day light when they fired, as opposed to later when they suck in the sun to prepare to fire, it gets dark) So are there twin suns in their system, too? Or is their sun an unlimited energy source, where they suck in a lot of energy, but the sun “recharges” after a while? If that makes any sense. Though sources say it is a mobile base. Perhaps when it’s done with their sun(s), (Hehe, I like rhyming) it drifts off into space until it comes into contact and starts to orbit another star? Then it can fire that? Though Wookiepedia says Starkiller has rocket ports or something to make it mobile. (Of course, take Wookiepedia with a grain of salt?) But how the heck do you take a whole planet out of its orbit like that? And wouldn’t everyone freeze to death? I don’t care how many heaters you have, yall are gonna be like Pluto all up in here. By the way, the cannon has got to be the size of a freaking continent! And are you telling me the ENTIRE planet is a base? That is a LOT of freaking people. Imagine Earth’s population all working under one military faction. Well, I imagine the planet didn’t house intelligent life before, and now there’s a bunch of First Order people there, but not like a planet sized population? I don’t know, okay, the whole thing is confusing. But needless to say, Starkiller Base wasn’t really needed. It was cool the first time (The Death Star, I mean) kinda lame the second time.....became a trope the third time. (Episode 1, with the droid control ship) and was just beating the dead horse the fourth time in The Clone Wars with the Malevolence. NOW, it’s just becoming BRUTAL. So predictable. I knew as soon as I saw it on the poster that it was gonna go bye bye by the end of the movie. I mean, at least let it stick around for the trilogy, perhaps. Make the destruction of it be a milestone, a cheerful, crucial moment that was hard for the good guys to finally overcome. But what we ultimately got was a “Here we go again” sort of thing, and here comes like, what? 12 fighters to defeat an entire militarized planet! Okay then.....

Now on to seeing the glass more half full. The way I like to see things. Call it denial, but I like to see the Resistance as a New Republic military operation. Obviously, canon says it’s a private military under Leia, but it does say the Republic supports it. (By the way, the canon EU says the Republic sees Leia as a war mongerer and is not listening to her warning about the First Order, so she creates her own army. But then in the movie, it says they do support her? Well which is it??) So a group of Republic volunteers band together to spy on the First Order. (Whom are a somewhat small extremist organization, and NOT another Empire) Snoke is basically a dark sider who dwelled in the unknown regions, and made a bargain with the First Order. “I can help you guys. If you let me lead you right now, I will give you lots of resources, and help you bring the New Republic to its knees. In return, I want help destroying Luke Skywalker, and ending the Jedi once and for all.” So much like when the Sith made a deal to work with the Trade Federation in Episode 1, Snoke and the Knights of Ren made a deal to mingle with the First Order and help lead them to victory. When the Hosnian System gets destroyed, the Republic isn’t wiped out, but simply crippled. Now, my hope is to see the Republic and Resistance band together to fight the First Order. That is my way of making this new era bearable.

All in all, it’s an OKAY, sort of entertaining movie. Visually amazing, but plot and such is pretty lame. The first half is alright for what it is but the latter half is just horrendous. I think I rate this movie.....a 5/10 lightsabers. Basically, average. I know it’s HERESY to say, but I really didn’t care for this movie. Seems to me, and please don’t get offended by this, that a lot of people are hyped on the nostalgia provided. Seeing the original cast again, the Millennium Falcon being chased by TIE Fighters, (Which was pretty meh to me) etc. But for me, personally, I really don’t like nostalgia. At least when it’s used as an excuse to be lazy in story telling. Nostalgia should come natural, not be forced. I don’t know about you, but I get my nostalgia by taking part in the original thing that is the cause of my nostalgia, if that makes sense. Like, if I’m gonna get nostalgia from watching the Millennium Falcon fly away, and TIEs pursuing, etc. in this case, then I watch the original trilogy itself. THEN, all those memories come and I enjoy it. For me, a movie is tied to when I see it. So this movie brings on memories from 2015, if anything, ha. Nostalgia does NOT make a movie any good, in my opinion. Notice how a lot of movies these days relies on their predecessors a little....TOO much. I guess that just happens in Hollywood, when you wait 20+ years to make a sequel, you feel the need to “reel in” the fans, and remake the first one. It’s a shame, too. Movies could be so much better than this. A lot of people don’t like rehashing, and rightfully so. But for some reason, when Star Wars does it, it’s okay? I mean, I know there are a LLOOTT of people on board with me here. They, too, don’t like the rehash....iness....But there are arguably MORE who do. Either they are blinded by nostalgia, like it because “Well it’s great for what it is and I don’t care,” or they like ANYTHING Disney throws their way. (Ever notice that? Disney can never do any wrong?) Even if it’s a company that people know is under Disney, it makes the experience better for them somehow. I don’t know how true any of that is, it’s just my theory. An observation. It kinda scares me a little. Seems like Disney has almost brainwashed the population, in a way. And the rate at which they are expanding, buying everything in sight....I mean, kind of creepy. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate Disney or anything. I’m just creeped out by them, and don’t like some decisions they make in regards to my favorite franchises. (Mainly being Star Wars) But since Disney practically has the female population in their grasps, I’m gonna have to come to acceptance with them, other wise, will I ever get married, ha. Honestly, if you like Disney, then good for you, I don’t mind. Even I do to some extent. I just don’t like some of their decision making, and some of their partly shady history. Perhaps I’m overthinking things, but that is my take on it all. But anyway, that is my in depth review, lol. Holy crap, this was long. Well, kudos to you if you stuck around. And thank you for letting me waste like, 15+ minutes of your life. You’re welcome.