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twothpaste · 11 months

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chapter opener i finished recently, featuring a tazmily town hall meeting where lucas n' his neighbors debate the fate of chimeras in a postgame world :')

When Porky took Leder, there'd been no place left for him anyways. His bell tower soon to be razed, and paved right over. His memory, ironically enough, soon to be unceremoniously dissolved. Surely his height marked him as an untenable outlier. His sealed lips, insubordination of the highest degree. Silence was heresy back in those days. It branded little Lucas a black sheep, too. Sob your guts out, or concede there was nothin' left to say. Either way, you're outta line. Y'couldn't win, with neighbors turned swine.

Kid had proven his heart the biggest outta all of 'em. Did it long before layin' hands on any o' those Needles. Stop short at the crossroads, to take an upward gander. The tall, vast, heavenward gap between six years old n' twenty feet tall. He'd shield his sun-dazzled eyes, lifting a freckled forearm. Wave his spare hand. Sway its precious cargo.

"Hiya, Mister Leder. How're you today?"

A smile flittered down, carried by the mornin' shine.

"Eheh. M'glad to hear it. Psst. Hey. I gotcha summ'n…"

A hesitant hand descended. All taffy-stretched bones, and veins, and worn crinkles. Lucas raised the loaf as high as his tiny hands n' tippy-toes'd go. Nuts n' bread were a dime a dozen, o' course. But couldn't no one else bake a batch so scrumptious. Good ol' Missus Hinawa Westwood was in a league all her own.

Maybe this'd never been any place for either of 'em. Or her. Or the lot of 'em.

Or. Maybe his apocalyptic pessimism was just gettin' the better of him. As it's wont to do, every now n' again.

The honorable judge presided now over his four hundred and seventy-second hearing. He remembers 'em all, if you were curious. In excruciating detail. From Eaglelandian war crimes to White Ship spats. Humble as he may be, there's a good reason Tazmily chose him for his noble task, besides sheer verticality. Madman's got a Betamax for a brain. Be it a blessing or a curse.

"… management, maintenance, n' rehabilitation. As Nowhere's Ranger Service, really, our goal is gettin' back to where we were, erm. Before." Isaac nudged his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Voice like ashes crumpled underfoot. He'd put up a noble speech, to be sure. Albeit punctuated by his pensive pause.

Lucas, all anxious nerves, reputation rubbed raw, nonetheless held his place beside him. Stalwart pillar of sticks n' stones. The hero who wore no cape nor shining armor. Just a scrappy flannel, over lanky arms. And a half-chiseled, acne-addled countenance.

When he spoke - in that low, steady, novel rumble - the paternal resemblance gave even Flint himself goosebumps.

"People n' wildlife can coexist. Like we used to. If we're willin' to put in the work."

Turn your stovetop knob, and heat the town hall's bustle to a low boil. There were Betsy n' Jackie, murmuring amongst themselves. Biff n' Butch, doin' the same. To the tune of Jill's silencing snap. Most folks had filed into these creaky old seats with intent to vote "present." But one could hardly ignore the Ostrelephant in the room. Jonel would be its bullhorn.

"That's precisely the issue. Chimeras aren't wildlife." And the sky isn't pink. He stood, proudly, for such things. Atop creaky knees and shins. (Though Dona did have to help him clamber to his feet.) "You expect us to coexist with monsters? Forever? It's childish at best. Lucas, I can forgive your naivete. But Isaac? You ought to know better."

"'Scuse me?"

"Order," Leder croaked. A singular raised index finger, a sip from his water canteen, and a hush over the hall. No gavel strike necessary. "Order. Jonel?"

"Pardon," Jonel said. (Though he wouldn't beg.) "There's only one solution for the menace infesting our woods. Anyone who says otherwise? I believe they're kidding themselves. That's all."

Their elder's dissent, and subsequent descent, were met with no protest. Just Isaac's steely frown. And Lucas' deep, focused, evenly-paced breaths.

Let it.

A psychic, had any others attended, would've felt the aura's feverous simmer. But Tazmilian politics're no place for his sister. She'd proclaimed so herself. Andonuts had installed a calendar program in his brother's left brain, years prior. Claus marked the date. Highlighted it - a bright, cautionary red.

And took a shift at the wind farm.

Can't blame him.

Magenta, magenta, yellow.

"Have we any further thoughts?" coaxed Leder.

"Well."

Even standing, Andonuts was far too squat for most to see, across a field of perked heads. The Doctor's accent would have to suffice. Paired with his quaint, crinkly, nonagenarian timbre.

"I'm afraid I must concur with the former point. Chimeras were not designed to integrate into natural ecosystems. Ha! Quite the contrary! Many were reconstructed with the explicit intent to cause as much disruption as possible!"

Jonel glanced about, eyebrows perked. Ed's faint murmur, "Right outta the horse's mouth, huh…" caught his nodding attention.

"… That said, with regards to chimera research, my student and I have been making great strides. They can be pacified. And relocated, to environments that better suit them. I daresay, there may indeed be sustainable solutions. If Tazmily were to establish this Ranger operation, the two of us would be more than happy to collaborate."

"And, if not? Or, if these Rangers fail to keep the chimeras in check?" Ed inquired, with a raised hand. Jonel would push the bill a step further.

"Would you also be happy to assist in their extermination, if it came to that? Doctor?"

"Mm… If we do find ourselves in an otherwise untenable scenario? Perhaps, yes."

Andonuts spent his golden years an eccentric recovering centrist. Claus forgave him ages ago. Lucas makes his best efforts. This recollection, in particular, still demands he strain his mercy through clenched teeth.

Like their father, he said nothing. You can call it patience.

"That just don't seem right, is all…"

A couple dozen turned to size up the latest opinion. 'Course, Abbott's no easier to spot beneath a crowd. Those nearest would see Abbey risin' to his side. N' the smiley-faced bairn - an absolute tater tot - strapped snug to his chest. 'Course, no sooner than Abbott opened his mouth to stake a humble point, little Abelle piped right up. Drawing him instead to gently shush her bubbly baby babbles. "Oh, sorry, sorry. Gosh, what'samatter, lil' bits? Shh. Shhh…"

(Unbeknownst to anybody at all - the invisible strands she was pawin' and hawin' at were, in fact, magenta-yellow wavelengths.)

"What Abbott means, I reckon," Abbey volunteered, "Is that it'd be awful cruel to.. well. To do away with 'em. Don't get us wrong - we've dealt with chimera attacks as much as the rest o' ya. N' we want Nowhere to be a safe place for our daughter to grow up, o' course. But… ah.."

Her eyelids slipped faintly shut. Only a moment. As if recalling some long-bygone horror. With no hummingbird egg nor ringing bell to keep the smog at bay, it had all come seeping back. Couldda taken the shape of a TV news report. Rigor mortis. Perhaps a mushroom cloud. Whichever. Every scathing scrap, beheld by the big, teary doe eyes of a mere fawn.

".. This world's seen far too much killin' already. I think."

"Agreed," said Flint. His sole verbal contribution. Upon his neighbors' silent judgments and sympathies, he pulled the brim of his hat lower. And cleared his throat.

Brief as it was somber, a smile flickered - cyan - past Lucas' ramparts.

Abelle quieted down. With a giggle. Much to Abbott's grinnin' relief. "Heh - erm. Yep.. Agreed, indeed." He cast a warily appreciative gaze toward the hulking, skulking cowboy. Then extended an arm around his wife's shoulder. The lot of 'em hunkered back into quiet obscurity.

"It's like stray cats," came Nana's contribution. Hand raised high, outta the wild blue yonder. "Or. Maybe not, exactly. We had a colony of them, living under the post office. And they were real ornery, wouldn't let you near. Bateau told me to stop feeding them, after they caught one of his doves." Cue the rolling eyes, and yawns. Elbows n' palms propping up bored-already chins. "But they'd only come close if I fed them, see. Only when they trusted me enough - then I could get them in carriers, and move them to the woods, by the crossroads. And so long as I make sure they stay fed, they won't need to come back to the post office, or hunt Bateau's doves, or cause trouble for anyone."

Bateau - arms n' legs crossed, camped out somewhere far in the back - huffed a sigh so dramatic, you'd think he was a Shakespearean actor.

"So. Maybe it's like that. Every animal has needs. Even people, and chimeras. If the Rangers can take good care of the chimeras, maybe they won't be as much of a bother."

"Yeah. That's, ehm. That's the idea…" Isaac murmured.

Jill stood up to contend. "Or maybe that'll get 'em too familiar. And then they'll come closer to town. Stir up even more of a ruckus. Don't you know, they used to warn you about this exact thing, with bears. You kids're too young to remember. Had to shoot the poor things, when they got too comfortable with people. I think Jonel's got a point. It all comes back around to--"

"-- This is different."

She stopped short. Left her big mouth hangin' wide open. 'Cause it sure as hell ain't like Lucas to interrupt.

"… Sorry," he said. With not quite a fist, clutched almost to his chest. "Sorry."

"No, no. Do tell. Go on." Jill conceded, with both hands raised. A hint of snark on her lips. Wouldda made Lucas wince, if he were five or six years younger. Still stung just the same.

Leder's eyes were sympathy incarnate. His spectacles, however, hovered impartial atop the proceedings. He'd hold his tongue. This time.

"It's.. different. The way we're doin' it. Isaac used to be a park ranger. We know all that, already."

Rather than elaborate, Isaac opted for a gingerly nod. Leave it to two of Tazmily's most tormented introverts to deliver a founding presentation. Lucas would steady his spine, though. Stand firm before the naysayers. Nerves ablaze. It doesn't get easier. Nor any less vital.

"Look. Nana's right. They ain't monsters. They're livin' creatures. Got needs that ain't bein' met. We took -- agh. Porky, took 'em… Tore 'em up, put 'em back together, n' set 'em loose to fend for themselves."

And then Tazmily deliberated their fate, over an open floor, as if it were all some absent hypothetical. Some game, just to square their morals. Like he didn't have the bone fractures to show for it. Like the beast that impaled his mother hadn't been a shambling centrifuge of absolute agony. Like his brother wasn't out there, bustin' his ass right under their stuck-up noses, mis-matched hands buildin' their newfangled comforts, their future, they --

Shh.

And something stirred within his guts. Softly as fresh bedsheets, or honeyed tea. Prompted an exhale. A pause. Yellow.

You wanna talk about planted seeds? Hinawa's got a whole garden in there.

Lucas takes great care to tend it. Food, and water. And silence. And words. Like so:

"… Chimeras don't attack people outta some kinda malice. They're.. They're scared. They're hurt. In their shoes? You'd prob'ly do the same." Evidence he carried in spades. There's a scar on his ankle, from his first reluctant bout with a Slitherhen. And another on his forearm, where a sparking blade once braced. He'd locked eyes, just above it. Met tears with tears. Somethin' yet darker - or brighter - than primal terror.

"They've got just as much a right to life, as anyone here," he concluded. Shaking his head. Glancin' downward, at the millimeter gaps in the hardwood.

"Well. I reckon that might be goin' a bit too far," Jill replied. Oblivious to the glares she'd just earned, from about half the crowd. As well as the sage nods, from the like-minded remainder. Biff, cowering beside her, fell into the former camp. Butch, the latter.

Jonel would grab her coattails. Ride 'em, valiantly, into one last round.

"Lucas. You've got your mother's bleeding heart. I respect it. Truly, I do. And I do believe there's a sanctity to our forest, our wilderness, the creatures with which we share these Islands. But these chimeras? Please understand - we'd be doing them a great mercy."

Mercy?

The word - which he mouthed, but did not echo - was Antarctic permafrost to his tongue. Shiver down his spinal fluid. The winding cockles of his brain. How love could erupt into a blinding nova. Turn harsher than steel. Become his fiercest weapon, pulled blood-soaked from his own chest.

Magenta. Yellow. Cyan.

"It's simply unnatural," Jill n' Butch concurred. "Un-natural."

"Tragic shame they're here at all," Ed mumbled, from afar.

"They never were supposed to be here, to begin with," Jonel insisted. Lucas thought, for a split second, Mom forgive him, his throbbing head might just up and explode then and there.

But.

Isaac stepped forward. The forest warden. The hermit. The boot-licking traitor. Who'd shirked his pig's mask, his calamine uniform, his pride - for an old vest that reeked of forest fires. N' a rusty badge. Gold to bronze. Turns out Zeus, and the Commander, ain't the only ones with a penchant for amends.

Wasn't often that someone stood up, in Lucas' stead.

The kid stared. Frozen stiff. Reconstructed Caribou in the headlights. As his fellow amalgamation declared:

"Neither were we."

And if you were seated amongst the crowd, you'd've felt it. The seasick lurch. The tide's tousle, at the rickety feet of every chair. Hardwood floor transfigured, in all of an instant, into a White Ship's deck.

No one - save for little Abelle - had the stomach to pipe up, after that.

Leder's hoarse murmur would follow a queasy, stagnant silence.

"Ehm.. If there are no further objections, or endorsements?"

And there were none.

"Then. Regarding the establishment of Nowhere's Ranger Service… All in favor - say aye…"

#as if they are not all violently hodge-podged products of disparate lives themselves.#ah-choo #2thprose #osha's eleven

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rustedleopard · 1 month

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source on Flint?

The dirt.

Okay, joke answer aside, I'll put the source under the cut...

I'm going to assume that you're likely referring to the fun fact tidbit that I posted yesterday about Flint originally intended to be involved in the Jealous Bass boss fight.

The Cutting Room Floor has an archive of stuff that was cut from Mother 3 but still exists as data within the game. If you scroll down to Flint, you'll see that he has unused sprites for dodging the train, which is an event that happens in chapter 4.

And if you put Flint into your party as the second party member in debug mode then go to the train, he will dodge the train with that sprite animation. Compare that to Claus, who when programmed to be the second party member, does dodge the train like intended (and Boney, as the third party member, does not) but does not display the proper animation for this motion, we can see that while the behavior of jumping out of the way is programmed into the second party member, they only have the proper sprite for the scene if they're supposed to be there. This tells us that Flint was supposed to be involved in Chapter 4, at least up until the train, but was cut late into development. The only thing that stops Flint from jumping out of the way is the fact that he isn't there.

We also have a cut animation of what appears to be Flint clinging onto the airship, which is what Lucas and the rest of his party does at the end of chapter 5. Now, can I say with absolute certainty that this is what this animation is intended for? No, because I wasn't on the development team. But considering how closely that sprite of Flint resembles the rest of the party in that scene:

And how close Chapters 4 and 5 are to each other, as well as how the Spaceworld (1999) Earthbound 64 trailer* (apologies for the blurriness, but TCRF does have a clearer image of this scene on their website) does show Flint, along with Lucas, Claus, Duster, and Boney clinging to an airship, it's easy to deduce that's it's highly likely that Flint was intended to be in the party at least up until the party separation at the end of Chapter 5.

Also, so no one could say that that animation of Flint was actually supposed to be for Chapter 7 when Lucas and company were clinging onto the bird cage, here's a screenshot of that. You can see that if Flint was involved here, his animation would've had him hanging on from the wrong direction (apologies for the Lucas mooning).

[Also as a small aside: while not exactly evidence on its own but something worth pointing out, there is a notable difficulty spike in Chapter 4 when there's only Lucas and Boney in the party. The enemies at this point in the game the can wipe your party quite easily if you're not careful, and I always struggled against them even in the standard mode and I'm sure I'm not the only person who experienced this (while the game tells you not to mess with the Cattlesnakes, there's nothing to stop the Horsantulas and Ostrelephants from running right at you and initiating a battle). Having a heavy hitter in your party like Flint would've made the chimeras outside of Club Titiboo as well as the Jealous Bass easier. Again though, I'm not going to use my experiences as evidence because it could just be that I'm not good at the game.]

So, we have a timeframe that says that Flint was supposed to be in the party from around the beginning of Chapter 4 to at least the end of Chapter 5, which is well within the timeframe that the Jealous Bass boss fight occurs. Now, of course, just because there's evidence that Flint was supposed to be in the party for Chapters 4 and 5 doesn't mean that he would've been involved in the Jealous Bass boss fight with a 100% certainty. Flint could've been rendered incapable of participating in the attic dungeon (and, subsequently, that fight) for one reason or another. Maybe he gets locked in the bathroom while showering? Who knows? While it would've been an odd story direction, I wasn't the one making those sorts of decisions, so I can't say with absolute unshakable faith that he was going to be there. And for that, I apologize. I have changed the wording of that post a bit so it's a bit more ambiguous. There's nothing I can do for versions that have been reblogged unfortunately, but at least the base post reflects that. But there's at least enough evidence to prove that this is likely what was intended to happen.

* While I do not consider Earthbound 64 and Mother 3 the same games, it's undeniable that Earthbound 64 did lay the grounds for the direction that Mother 3 went in. If the only piece of evidence I had for Flint clinging to the airship was from that trailer alone, I would not have used it.

#(i was also going to bring up the fact that Flint can also equip more stick items than just the ones that appear in chapter 1 #barring 2/3 of them (which were likely the baseball bat(s) and maybe the mythical stick if memory serves) but i couldn't access the debug #menu. i spent hours trying just messing around on my emulator to try to access that but i couldn't so i didn't want to bring it up as #evidence when i couldn't prove it myself. it is interesting though how flint can equip sticks that he wouldn't have had access to #during chapter 1. if it was just a matter of all of them being considered stick-like items then why is it that flint is barred from #using 2/3 of them that lucas can use?#eh. either way it feels like flint was supposed to be more present in the story than he was with all the stuff they had for him #that didn't get used. and while I'm fine with the direction that the story went in i wonder how his presence would've shaped the story... 🤔#good on you for asking though anon. it's very easy to just make up stuff on the internet and try to pass it off as true.#after all I've been hearing rumors for years that m3 was supposed to be 12 chapters long with a morality system and multiple endings #and as cool as that all sounds they're just that: rumors)#i typed this all up on mobile so let me know if any of the links aren't working or whatnot and I'll try to fix them

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kaos-mass · 2 years

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Ostrelephant

#mother 3 #pixel art #mother #nintendo #chimera

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ardyartblog · 3 years

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Some random Mother/Earthbound enemies that I decided to draw for the sake of experimentation and to also try drawing different designs. Had fun drawing and coloring these.

#EarthBound #Earthbound Zero #Earthbound Beginnings #Mother 3 #Enemies #Starman #evil ramblin' mushroom #Mook #Doll #Rope #Noose Man #Tough Guy #Smilin' Sphere #Mighty Bitey Snake #Ghost #Fobby #Foppy #Cattlesnake #Ostrelephant

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dailyelephant · 3 years

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Mother 3, Ostrelephant

#elephant #mother 3 #ostrelephant #jrpg #sprite #gba #nobuyuki inoue

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fry-la · 5 years

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Draw Claus arguing with an Ostrelephant

#shitpost #claus #claus mother 3 #Mother 3 #ostrelephant

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ask-motherboundbois · 5 years

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@i-can-do-tricks

#Mother 3 #Claus #Mother 3 Claus #Napoleon #Ostrelephant

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jergle-oopz · 5 years

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Drawing of the day 1864. #drawing #doodle #cartoon sketch #art #illustration #ink #loxiloxus #ostrelephant #mother3 #nintendo #chimera #elephant #ostrich https://www.instagram.com/p/B2fASf_AtTV/?igshid=12i85j7vehak6

#drawing #doodle #cartoon #art #illustration #ink #loxiloxus #ostrelephant #mother3 #nintendo #chimera #elephant #ostrich

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kaaramel · 3 years

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sorry ive definitely fallen behind on posting stuff heres some little incidental doodles

#karma draws things #cmwge #nightmares angel #i know i used to draw ostrelephants in middle school and i could swear i figured out how to make them cute but ive lost the deep magic #theyre weird again.#also i mean i was in a hurry

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ammomancer · 7 years

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i love this and hate it at the same time

#misty's art tag #mother #mother 3 #claus #pigmask #ostrelephant #icarly

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arsonsara · 4 years

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Acknowledging The Ostrelephant In The Room: A Breakdown of The Mag*psies, The Mistakes They Made, And How They Could Be Improved Upon.

(TW: Slurs [G*ypsie]. & Negative Representation of those in the LGBT+ Community)

[The Following Essay also contains spoilers for the game Mother 3.]

Mother 3 is my favorite game of all time. If anyone has known me long enough to talk about what games I enjoy or followed me on Social Media to see my occasional bouts of reblogging fan-made content for the series, this is an obvious talking point. I’ve been a part of the community surrounding Mother 3 ever since I was about 10-12 years old, with my old Acer Laptop playing through the Fan-Translation on a GBA Emulator. While I wouldn’t consider myself a Mother 3 Veteran, I have been around long enough for me to see how the community has changed and shifted through the years as well as how I myself changed through my perspective on the world around me and myself. 10 or so years later after having played Mother 3 for the first time I still stand by my statement that it is my favorite game of all time, without question.

However, I would be lying if I were to say that Mother 3 was not a flawed game. Arguments can be made that games inspired by the Mother Franchise have gone leaps and bounds above the original series in terms of narrative structure and gameplay. However from what I've seen from the community of Mother 3, none of that tends to bother them enough to hamper the experience of the game itself. Except for one thing. One group of characters that has the community tugging at their collars or just straight up ignoring their existence. While I can understand and even empathize with the idea of just straight up mentally retconning something, especially when said thing directly affects you emotionally due to any personal connections you might have with the connotations, there’s a certain level of unease I garner when I see people clearly side-stepping the situation. Choosing to pretend it never happened as opposed to acknowledging it for it’s flaws, properly criticizing it and even potentially putting ideas forward as to how the situation could’ve been improved. Time to stop beating around the Walking Bushie: Let’s talk about the Mag*psies.

Now let’s start off with what’s right in front of us. The first thing that hits you in the face as soon as these characters are mentioned by name, the thing that unequivocally is a black mark against Mother 3 as a game. Mag*psies. Yeah, it’s bad. Now for those unawares on what I mean let’s clarify something right off the bat: The term Gy*psy is a slur. Specifically a slur against the Romani people, a slur that originated in Europe upon the rising population of Roma migrating from their homeland to European nations. The slur came from an uneducated perspective that the Romani hailed from Egypt. With this slur comes the negative stereotypes that came from that same origin point: That Romani people were a nomadic people that consisted of criminals, ne'er do wells, and the dregs of society. Sometimes, mostly in media, they were even seen as wanderers who practice unsavory and unholy acts of magic. As well as the more uninformed, sensationalized version of “Voodoo” (which, when you put into perspective of how the Romani were mistaken for Egyptians and that Voodoo originated from Hati, really puts into perspective how xenophobia is born on blatant misinformation, scapegoat tactics and a really shitty grasp on geography.)

So with that in mind, the fact that this is the name that was chosen for this group of characters is bad. Although for most people, (I hope) this goes without saying. So why am I bringing this up? Because for a group of characters whose entire troupe are named after a slur that has real world connotations, the Mag*psie don’t outwardly express any malice or xenophobia against the Romani people. With how they’re characterized and presented, there aren’t really any clear connections to the stereotypes for those of Roma descent outside of a connection to magic, in this case PSI. And even than the Magy*psies being proficient in PSI seems more like it was intended as a genuine plot point then as a racial stereotype. So if that’s the case, why was that the name that was chosen? Simple: It was a case of misinformation.

One common misconception regarding the term G*psie is that it means being a free spirit, a wanderer, one with the world around you and mystically inclined. Of course this is all false and mostly stems from taking a negative racial connotation and turning it into a marketable buzzword for anything that seems ‘Mystical’ or ‘Free-Spirited’. In the same way that a Ouija Board is a tool for summoning and contacting spirits and demons that was manufactured by Parker Brothers for about 20$. So, it’s easy to surmise that the reason the name Mag*psie was chosen is because the developers of the game believed it to be an old-world term for someone of magical expertise or connected to the Earth spiritually. It also helps to keep in mind that Mother 3 was developed in Japan, and most people were more than likely unaware towards it’s true connotation. Hell, it wasn’t until a few years ago that people in the United States started to call people out on usage of the term and considering that Mother 3 was developed in the early 2000’s it’s easy to understand the confusion. Now, i’m not saying that this to excuse the use of G*psie in the game. Point blank, it shouldn’t have been used and is a legitimate flaw and mistake on part of the developers. But it also helps to keep in mind that the choice of word wasn’t out of malice, just ignorance. Does that make it better? No, but i’d like to imagine that if way back when, if someone on the development team found out what G*psie actually meant that it wouldn’t have gone into the game. Considering the core messages of Mother 3 and it’s tennants on the importance of companionship, family, community and love, It doesn’t make sense to have such a vile slur used within it’s context.

So what do we do with this information? Well, the Mother 3 community is oddly enough in the best state it’s ever been to fix this problem. Why do I say that? Because the game hasn’t been internationally localized yet. And let’s face it, the Mag*psies are one of the biggest reasons the game hasn’t seen an official English release. And maybe it’s just my overly-optimistic, dare I say, Pollyanna-esque point of view, but if a discussion were to start about the positive changes one could make towards the Mag*psies as characters and a narrative concept, the right people might just be listening in on the conversation and make the right changes for an international release or even a remake. Now, considering how it’s been 14 years since it’s Japanese release, and soon to be 15 years in a few months, I can understand if you just groaned or rolled your eyes reading that. But on the same merit, what’s the harm? Let’s say we do have this conversation and Nintendo just doesn’t pay attention and Mother 3’s International Localization continues to be a pipe-dream. What do we lose? That’s the fun thing about Fandom, sometimes you can just toss out the bad things about something you enjoy and make it better and overall more positive for the community. We toss out the old Mag*psies with their slur-using titles and uninformed, sloppy concepts of gender expression (trust me, we’ll get to that second point later.) and have newer, better ones that we can use for fan-content! So in the end, we either change the tide of the franchise itself and turn them around, giving us a greater chance at localization than we ever did before on top of a group of characters of positive representation! Or we just have these nicer, more appealing versions of the characters for our own uses now that the franchise is pretty much finished. It’s a win-win.

So with that, I'll start by making what’s probably the easiest change to these characters anyone could ever make.

Mag*ypsies. Mag / ypsies.

Magi.

And there we go. Good as new! Plus, it still works as a title for a group of people who specialize in mysticism and PSI as Magi is the plural for Magus! So, from this point forward, I am going to be referring to these characters as The Magi. Baddabing, Baddaboom.

Now with that out of the way, it’s time we address the second issue regarding The Magi: Their presentation of their gender identity and the problems those bring. In Mother 3, The Magi are referred to by Alec as being “neither male nor female”, and it’s heavily implied that The Magi aren’t even human. That due to them being so ancient, wise and strange they can't fit into the binary of male or female, so they have the traits of both. This results in the characters looking like they’re all men in drag, acting overly flamboyant and flirtatious. This results in The Magi being seen as a negative representation of people who identify as Genderqueer or Non-Binary. The stereotype of being loud, obnoxious, overtly sexual and all placed under a single umbrella of a flawed perspective which just results in them all being poorly written “”Drag Queens””. Now that isn’t to say a character who dresses in drag is a bad thing. If anything I encourage the idea of a Post-Modern RPG having a Drag Queen or King as a plot important ally or even a party member! The issue lies in that, because all of The Magi are presented like this it implies that those who don’t fit within the gender binary of male or female are all like this. Even if that wasn’t the intention, that is what the subtext implies.

Part of the intention behind the creation of the Magi was to balance out the more gritty, action-oriented and “Macho” tone that Mother 3 had compared to Mother 2 and 1. The idea was that The Magi would be at the center of the conflict between Tazmilly Village, The Main Party and The Pigmask Army and to balance out the darker tones of the story they would be aloof, androgynous and accepting of the fact that they would pass as the story progressed. This way the characters would be able to balance out the darker story beats and lighten the mood. Although it’s easy to see how this viewpoint would result in a less than stellar outcome. While on paper, the idea of a group of characters hearkening back to the more light-hearted and out-there tone of the previous games to make it so the game is less bleak is a fantastic idea, the execution was botched due to how sloppily it was handled.

The Magi in Mother 3 are represented in such a dissonant way, especially at the start of the game upon their introduction. Not only are you slapped in the face with their appearance and unfortunate name choice, upon asking about the whereabouts of Claus after he went up to the mountains to fight a Drago as revenge for the death of his mother, almost all the Magi basically respond by saying “Eh, who cares, humans live such short lives anyways so what does the life of one kid mean in the grand scheme of things?” Seeing as the players are meant to see The Magi as sympathetic characters and eventually team up with them in the end game to arrive at the locations of all of the Dragon Needles, the fact that this is their introduction is not only a slap in the face to those who are being negatively affected by how their presented but is also just...crappy writing. And don’t even get me started on the scene where Ionia teaches Lucas PSI, that is just BAD. Like point blank, bold text, red color, size 46 font BAD. Like even if The Magi didn’t have their original name and weren’t sloppy representations of non-binary/genderqueer folk that scene would still be really uncomfy.

And yet with all of this going against The Magi in terms of their presentation, it’s still hard to pin them down as having any ill-intent behind them because of their importance at the end of the game and what they eventually stand for. Once the race for The Dragon Needles begin, not only do all of The Magi support you on your quest and show levels of genuine concern and compassion for the protagonists, but also end up fleshing out the world around them in a way that gives the player a sense of hope in a time of hopelessness. Whether it be Ionia and her boundless compassion for the party and Kumatora especially, acting as her surrogate parental figure and doing everything she can to support the party in a time of crisis. Or Lydia, taking care of a wounded Pigmask Soldier, someone whose job it is to rip the life from The Magi in hopes of awakening the Dragon to shape the world in their master’s image. That despite their motivations, they wouldn’t let a wounded man die in the frigid cold of the mountains. These characters are meant to be beacons of hope, characters to lighten the mood during dark times and become characters you genuinely feel for. And yet, the execution fell flat due to a shoddy introduction, sub-par writing and misinformed representation.

So, where does that leave us? This is obviously an issue that’s a lot more nuanced than just changing their name so where do we start? While I don’t claim to have the perfect solution for this, and encourage others to throw their hat in the ring and keep the discussion going, I do have a few ideas: First things first, remove the concept that The Magi aren’t human and are incomprehensible to “Mortals”. Instead, make it so The Magi are just humans from the past who were so proficient in PSI and Psychic Abilities they were able to survive the cataclysm from milenia’s past and are more akin to Buddhist Monks in how they’re perceived. That being said, I do still like the idea of their style being tightly connected to that of Magicant from Mother 1. Spiral Shell houses, pink hair, very sparkly and pretty, we can keep that aesthetic. It makes sense for them! By making this change, we humanize The Magi a lot more and make it so the players can connect with them better and empathize with them easier as opposed to them being the off-the-wall weirdos that the game tries to represent them as. Plus, if the game really wanted an off-the-wall weirdo that ties back to the previous games, just give Dr. Andonuts more screentime. Along with that change, make them more empathetic without sacrificing their all-powerful mysticism. For example, when Alec and Flint arrive at the party at Aeolia’s, instead of having them nonchalantly shrug off the potential of Claus’ death, have them actively participate in assisting them in finding their lost child. Instead of it being “We’re all powerful so the death of one person is meaningless in comparison to how we perceive the world.” it’s more “We’re all powerful, so assisting you in your journey to save your loved one is a simple task that will require minimal effort. If such a simple request can result in a good outcome, it shall be done.” Of course that begs the question of why they don’t just take care of everything, but I think that can be circumvented with the idea that they can’t intervene with the lives of others too much. That using their immense psychic powers too often would result in them misusing their powers and that they have to practice a certain level of restraint, or even that they’re so strong an overuse of their powers would result in devastation. Sort of like how a knight in a medieval fantasy story would seek guidance from an all powerful wizard, but the wizard can’t just solve the problem for them.

Now my next suggestion is turning a negative into a positive: Instead of having The Magi all represented as men in drag, The Magi are now all represented as different type of people that could fall under the non-binary or genderqueer spectrum! Now instead of all of them falling under the same umbrella, Aeolia can be purely androgynous and agender going by they/them pronouns, Doria is now demigender, partially identifying as male but going by xey/xem pronouns, having a big old pink lumberjack beard and a heartwarming smile, Lydia looks older and more aged with their physical appearance looking like that of an older man but using she/her pronouns and identifying with female presentation whilst feeling that they don’t have to be rescritced to said female presentation, Phygria could be genderfluid and upon each appearance they have they transition between genders, and Mixolydia falling under Genderqueer, having their own personal presentation of themselves and who they are! As for Ionia, I would actually argue keeping her the same! I say this because, if all The Magi are under the same umbrella representation of a stereotyped drag-queen, it’s a problem. However, if all The Magi are comprised of different, varied representations of the non-binary/genderqueer community it would make sense to have one of them fall under the representation of someone who dresses in drag!

Of course, these are all just my ideas. Whilst I have done as much research as I could while writing this, I understand that there are certain aspects behind those of non-binary expression that I am unaware of and ways that I could improve upon this idea. Like how changing The Magi in this way would still result in them all basically being a part of a big “Bury Your Gays” Trope due to them all passing away upon pulling their respective Needles, so i’m sure that there are plenty of other ideas other people could throw in! And I encourage that, I encourage people to look at this and tell me how this concept can be improved upon to create a more inclusive and positive representation of The Magi! Because that’s what we deserve! I can look at this years in the future and admit that there may have been something I missed out on or was just blatantly unaware of! But I’m hoping at the end of the day that this discussion can not only lead to a critical analysis of the wrongs behind the original Magi in Mother 3, but how they can be improved upon and made better. If not for Mother 3, or the Mother 3 community, for those who plan on making their own stories, their own games, so that they know to not make the same mistakes the developers of Mother 3 made and make something even better.

#Mother 3 #Nintendo #The Magypsies #Earthbound #Kumatora #TW: Slur #Hey look i'm talking

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