the money I’d pay for a life-sized Reiner figure (with detachable clothes…)
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not to be a capitalist grannycore pig, but this heated blanket really is everything I dreamed it'd be
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i’d briefly like to talk about the “it was fine” dialogue option that happens the morning after gale’s Last Night Alive scene in act ii and about the fandom's general reaction to it.
gale is a character who evidently enjoys the occasional teasing. taking the piss out of your partner every once in a while can certainly be a way of showing affection. however, it is important to consider the context of the situation: what is at stake for him and his current emotional state, as well as what exactly had transpired between the two of them prior to said conversation.
gale: forgive me. these were already trying times before elminster delivered his missive. now, for me at least, they are potentially end times.
after he and tav had spent the night together and confessed their love to each other, gale is once again showing himself utterly vulnerable and is carefully asking them for reassurance.
gale: [..] i hope that night meant as much to you as it did to me.
gale: but you - you led me away from the edge.
gale: without your words, your touch... i fear i would have sought purpose and solace in that void. you reminded me what living can feel like.
he wants to check in with them, after both of them have shared something tender and very intimate, something he might even consider life-altering.
gale: we didn't just make love. we bonded, body and soul. i got lost in you.
it’s not even about gale “not being able to read social cues” and “not recognizing the fact that it was meant in jest.” in fact, i’d argue it is a rather tone-deaf, inconsiderate response and just genuinely a REALLY BAD TIME to joke at your partner's expense when they are actively baring their feelings to you and are asking you for reassurance.
i have seen people write off his reaction as “unwarranted” or “overtly dramatic” but in my humble opinion, it is pretty understandable given the nature of their conversation and what he is asking of them. it's also sad how there seems to be a general pattern of gale's emotions and boundaries getting played off as a joke, while other companions get shown the courtesy of thorough analysis/understanding. he is proud of his skill as a lover and the fact that he was able to bring them pleasure, yet his inquiry is less about him wanting tav to stroke his ego and more about him, once again, asking if you indeed share the same feelings for each other… after the emotional high has now passed.
gale has an ever-present need for clarity in his relationships, very likely due to the fact that this was something he couldn’t request of mystra. he might appear more sensitive in that regard compared to the other companions. he doesn’t want to take himself too seriously, but this still often clashes with his general feeling of inadequacy. where he is able to take criticism as long as it isn’t related to his performance, overall prowess and usefulness.
yes, his response is passive-aggressive and yes, he IS obviously hurt by what tav said. yet merely repeating “it was fine” in response to a heartfelt, genuine question could’ve as well been interpreted in that manner. if tav does clarify that they have only been joking, he apologizes to them instead. otherwise his dialogue remains the same, albeit said in a more embarrassed & awkward tone.
gale is a character who is dealing with deep-rooted self-worth issues and yet that doesn’t mean that he wants to be handled with kid gloves, far from it. he craves a relationship in which his emotional needs are recognized, respected and cared for, where he can be unabashedly open and vulnerable without facing ridicule nor pity for it. and he is more than willing to give the same in return.
also y’know — there is a time and a place.
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there's been something that's been eating at me.
look at early mn and watch them all be so anti-anything leading them into conflict that they couldn't easily weasel their way out of, crack jokes about stopping the adventure and becoming sharecroppers, and how matt had to force them into caring about the war and the people it impacted (one of which being a player's husband) instead of ignoring it to do anything literally else.
and this carries on even after they're thrown into the thick of it. from handwaving away all of what essek did for the sake of "well, he's nice to us! and it happened so long ago it'd be pointless and hypocritical to hold him to that!" (which, you know, not how that works but sure) and pushing off dealing with the cerebus assembly until the very last episode, every single conflict the nein had was only relegated to them and their personal struggles. tharizdun and cognouza were really cool as apocalyptic monsters, but we only figured out their importance after the fact or in an exposition dump!
and this is what the mighty nein is praised for! they're praised for steamrolling over every single possible conflict they could encounter unless matt made it mandatory because of ashley's schedule or the baileyham's baby! so of course when the next campaign rolls around and the fandom is asked to look deeper into the world asides from the character's personal lives, they get upset.
and i'm not saying that it'd be superior if they were more objective or went with less character-based decisions or storylines as opposed to plot based decisions that impact the politicial discussions of exandria first and foremost. heck, it annoys the HELL out of me when characters i like in c3 are nothing but objective and refuse to budge on it (if you know you know) or when they stop to talk about lore stuff for too long! i love the silly feel-good vibes of the nein that're light on story and heavy on characterization!
but it does feel weird that people look at c3's less-than-wholly optimistic plotline where the status quo is directly questioned and insist it's forcing the series into new waters it was not built to tread when no, it's always been there. you just never found it pertinent to interact with because the players never took those routes, and were incurious after the fact.
when matt says he plans to make the animated series of the mighty nein far darker and more political, i can't help but wonder if the fans will reject it outright.
(obligatory disclaimer that YES i'm frustrated that there seems to be no other option for bell's hells than to get that salty codger's moon hijinks dealt with and not a single loose end left over and THEN they can finally do stuff they want and have downtime without being reminded that they gotta stop him every other sentence and they're all clearly dying to get to that point... but there was sledding on a wok, and making dresses out of cocktail shrimp for a zombie rat, and spin the bottle too. to act like they're completely flat little npcs running to the next objective marker over and over and have no silly character moments is plain wrong.)
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I’m sorry but u are not going to outwit anyone into loving you without risk. there’s going to be a possibility they could hurt u with proportionate and equal measure to that which they could love u.
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