#neverafter speculation

[violetren]

My read on the Princess situation is that there is a terrible confluence of clinical depression and cult of personality.

They are all so disempowered and traumatised and aware of the unfairness surrounding their lives on a multiversal scale. It's knowledge that crushes them and makes an already hellish existence so much worse.

They are also princesses. Main characters with all the charisma and expectations that come with that. Of course it's them trying to do something in this situation, who else would it be? Town person B whose whole existence is to stand there and clap when a princess's wedding parade goes past.

They say they're fighting to put an end to all of it, to erase existence so that something new might be written. And there is such tremendous hubris in that. This idea that they will wipe everything out and then of course the beings, The Author's that wrote them, will write something new and kinder. Because that's what happens in stories when the heroes sacrifice themselves right?

#chirping wren #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #neverafter #dimension 20 #d20 snow white #d20 cinderella #d20 Rapunzel #d20 la bete

[notalexgrey]

please tell me i’m not alone in thinking that the fairies are just a ruse and the stepmother is just going to show up and wreck shit? like baba yaga isn’t running away, let alone dying, from fairies. that’s some stepmother shit

#dimension twenty #dimension 20 #neverafter #dimension 20 neverafter #neverafter stepmother #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #neverafter baba yaga

[artemisfangspeaks]

do we think that the princesses realize that by blotting out their story they’re also destroying the lives of those within? their parents, anyone who helped them, anyone who even exists within the realms of their stories- all gone. i’m hoping that cinderella realizing that not everyone has their own stories eventually leads to the revelation that their stories aren’t just theirs, and that by taking back their agency through the destruction of their books means that they are taking away the agency of other “minor” characters

#i know the princesses aren’t evil they just have a serious case of main character syndrome #dimension 20 #neverafter #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation

[sparkystar26888]

I think it’s really interesting how it’s obvious that Elody still has love for Gerard, and so that’s not what’s wrong. In fairy tales, princes do not choose to be monsters, they are forced. But Brennan has always asked how frog-like *Gerard* is feeling. He has a choice, in some part, in his monstrosity. And I like to think that the true love is now meant to be Gerard finding himself, his true self, and then learning to love it. He’s so close, yet so far.

The other thing that has stuck out to me is the princesses. When they were proposing their plan, it reminded me of the Good Place a bit. At the end, they decide to let people end, because no one wants to go on forever. And I know it’s not the same here; that it is rather they want a new, more just world, and believe that cannot happen with them in it. They are tired of living forever without free will, and can think of no way out other than to just end it. They can see no answer, and are willing for everyone else in their stories to go because of it. And I don’t know what the right answer is, but I feel a deep sadness for these women. Who just want some freedom, and do not know how to get it in any other way

#neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #prince gerard of greenleigh #princesses of neverafter #neverafter #good place spoilers #can’t wait to find out how wrong I am

[feelingtheaster99]

Poor Gerard. He was really going through it in this episode and lashing out at Tom Thumb and NOW as we see from the sneak peak that that he is being forced to confront whether or not Elody still loves him

#oof #gerard of greenleigh #prince gerard of greenleigh #the princess elody #princess elody #princess elody of greenleigh #Gerard X elody #neverafter #dimension 20 #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #d20 #d20 neverafter #dimension 20 neverafter #neverafter d20 #d20 spoilers #poor Gerard #neverafter dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #the last wish #neverafter the last wish

[let-me-sleep-or-die]

Pinnochio and his patron

Ok so I've had this thought for a while and after episode 7 I really think it could happen. So we all thought Pinnochio might sever ties with his mother at some point and gain a new class or patron, right? ok great, I’ve always wanted this and the second the golden goose entered the picture I wanted it to be her.

I think the golden goose could become Pinnochio’s new patron, the sword becoming his new staff and and and…

senator the ram is his new familiar. I think that it would be very very cool to have Pinnochio have a whole new path of his magic based in truth and the people (and pets) he chose knowing the sword would see how these people truly care for him where his mother did not. these are my thoughts and I really just want this poor child to be happy.

#Give my boy a break #give my boy his ram #pinnochio neverafter #Stepmother neverafter #senator the ram #the golden goose #d20 neverafter #dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #dimension 20 neverafter #neverafter #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #lou wilson #neverafter ep 7

[anthony-burchs-dog]

no fr neverafter is straight up like… the fairies are fucking “back to normal” democrats and the answer to the bad shit is straight up burning the system down and creating a new one. like. likeeeeeee the authors are the fucking billionaires who rewrite laws and the lobbyists who keep things horrible just to make more stupid money you know like. i don’t think capitalism is a boring thing for neverafter to be about because it’s not just “oh nooooo capitalism bad” it’s feels like we’re trying to imagine ourselves BEYOND “oh no it’s bad make it not bad” and BEYOND “the authors are all powerful and there’s nothing we can do to find them” and BEYOND “you don’t know that what comes next will be better so it’s better to just keep what we have now”

#d20 neverafter #d20 #neverafter spoilers #dimension 20 spoilers #d20 neverafter spoilers #neverafterspoilers #neverafter #neverafter speculation #i love this season so so so so so so much

[vrisbian]

I love the Nesting Doll of power systems at play here. The characters have no agency, and even when they have a level of power theres that greater force beyond them.

Within the stories, Tim has the book, he technically can write the tales down and preserve them within his realm. Because Mother Goose is ultimately an Author Character. A character meant to take the role of author, the presumed narrator within the fiction. But that isn’t real power despite its consequence on the others, because they aren’t actually his words.

All these fairies, who seem to have taken a step beyond tale, are meant to guide the stories by being the push for the narrative. They curse, or bless, or cure- depending on what the narrative needs. In the time of Gander, this means there may be more good fae than bad. The Step-Mother archetype, who I am extremely curious about in terms of how she got like this, is also an archetype that often is the reflection of the Good Fairy Godmother- and serves similar narrative purpose.

Beyond them they are in a metaphysical library being cultivated and preserved, the oral histories allowed to echo forever and perhaps written down. But these librarians aren’t real either, they just are meant to hold these stories for the collective consiousness.

Meanwhile there are Authors seen through the Inkwell, so real in another Dimension that Tim is shocked to his core with the truth that he is paper. That all his struggles are to make a good story for someone elses enjoyment, that his memories of his husband and son are pure fluff and fodder. And there are Authors that write their reality that may care for them, but also Authors who want grit because for them its entertaining to write. And these characters are completely helpless to it.

#and we may reach the point the characters literally fight Brennan #what is a happy ending for them when they know ‘ending’ is a concept created to neatly tie up their lives for an outside audience #waiting for the moment all the characters realize we the audience are there watching them cry #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #neverafter

[sunburstsandmoonshadows]

can't wait for another #beardsleyblessed nat 20 roll leading to mother goose learning that the being who has rendered him into nothing more than paper and ink in service of their version of the story calls themself "Ally"

#im not sure how youd even make a player vs character fight work #but id love to see them try haha #at any rate mother goose certainly wouldnt consider ally any ally of his #(not a super convinced prediction its just whats come to mind with the collaborative nature of dnd) #neverafter #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation

[magical-misfit]

Brennan pls tell me that Snow White’s use of the Northern Wind was an “East of the Sun West of the Moon” reference BRENNAN PLS

I’m BEGGING

#it’s only my fave fairytale #plus in the story when she visits the four winds the northern one is the strongest #GOD I JUST WANT MORE OF IT #I need an actual lore sheet of every intentional fairytale reference from this season so I can dissect it #neverafter speculation #neverafter #neverafter spoilers #dimension 20 #east of the sun west of the moon

[queen-of-the-grapefruits]

Everyone is saying that Elody doesn't love Gerard anymore. I don't think that's necessarily true. We know she is Gerard's true love, and he clearly loves her, but he's changed from when they were together he's matured and more understanding, he's grown and his priorities have changed, he hasn't stopped loving her though. He still wishes for her to have the story that she wants and to get to be beside her and know her again. I think Elody does love Gerard, maybe she's not in love anymore, maybe she still is. I think the biggest thing is that she loves her kingdom more Gerard doesn't want her to fight or at least didn't want to talk about the war, but Elody needed to protect her people and her kingdom. I think she loves Gerard but loves her people more. And Gerard was cursed to be a frog so with the being separated and him being selfish and acting in a similar way to what would have got him cursed he started changing back. Even if Elody is no longer in love with Gerard I just don't think it's fair to say she doesn't love him at all anymore. I still have love for friends I haven't seen (or really been friends with) for years, I still have love for both of my exes, I am not in love with any of these people but I love them.

#neverafter #dimension 20 neverafter #dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation

[thisisnotthenerd]

Neverafter Episode 17 - The Last Wish thoughts & musings

A lot of significant narrative happenings in this one, folks. While we did hit on a few really important conversations between the party and various NPCs, I think this was really Brennan’s way of connecting the dots between many of the separate revelations that have happened throughout the course of the campaign so far.

Knowing that Henry became an adventurer after both Tim and Jack were gone really speaks to the theme of choosing destiny and striving to seek out what you want from your life. While I think it’s sad that the entire family has just been subjected to death and horror at the hands of greater forces, I’m glad that Tim has at least one thing that he isn’t mourning. Also, deeply sad that both Tim’s and Gerard’s spouses found their mutilated dead bodies.

The conversations between the Goose, Rosamund & Ylfa were so good. I admire Siobhan & Emily’s commitment to making sure they examine their pasts and their existing stories as they consider the future. Definitely some personal growth in those conversations.

Pib and Pinocchio’s conversations with Tomas and the Cricket respectively were more aimed towards understanding how to grow from and find out about their stories on a smaller scale. While Pib was figuring out the dimension travel, it still felt more like it was him and the brothers figuring out what happened between their Marienne and this Marienne. In terms of the dimension travel, I think we’re going to maybe get a trickster confrontation, and maybe a confirmation of them as another faction that can be brought to bear against the Stepmother.

Gerard’s convo with Tom Thumb was purely Murph causing chaos, by showing that Gerard has a lot of work to do on himself beyond his relationship with Elody. He’s made progress with the party, but outside of it, hasn’t changed all that much.

I deeply hope that Timothy gets something like a Wish spell from putting the Goose into the book after the final wish was made. The Gander killing the Goose aside, it feels like a similar situation to Ylfa’s relationship with the Big Bad Wolf. The Goose made a sacrifice for Tim to live, just like the Wolf did for Ylfa. Something to contemplate. And Tim has gone ahead with that blessing and tried to protect the party NPCs by booknapping them. I have a feeling that in the end, it’s going to come down to putting the Stepmother into the book and taking everyone else out before they can be devoured.

Since they had mentioned that Elody had had contacted Scheherazade, I really hope that it’s her that had Scheherazade’s book, or maybe Mira. Brennan mentioned rolling high--my guess is that that would determine who they were speaking to. Since they hit a 16, it probably couldn’t be Scheherazade, but could be someone who is more likely to be their ally at the eleventh hour.

The fact that Lou has rolled two incredibly important Nat 20s in the last 2 episodes is so crazy. The Alphonse one was crazy enough; with everything they did to get the Baba Yaga roll to go well, I still can’t believe it. The start of the next episode, at the very least, is going to be insane. Really leaning into the Boy of Destiny thing.

It does feel like we have a much clearer picture than before. We know the Gander was lured intentionally by the placement of the Goose, likely by the Stepmother’s bidding. The Princesses did not stop moving and have found their way to the Lines Between at the very least. It seems that the Stepmother may be targeting both the Auroratory and the Canonade rather than just the Canonade, as the Princesses were wont to do. We still aren’t totally clear on the fairies’ current position, but I think they’re likely to make an appearance in the next episode, as Destiny’s Children parlay with the Baba Yaga, and also maybe confront some fears and the inherent horror of being written as a variation on a multitude of stories. Not to mention the mancala beads. The worst is yet to come indeed.

#dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #neverafter #d20 neverafter #neverafter spoilers #timothy goose #neverafter tim #mother timothy goose #rosamund du prix #neverafter rosamund #ylfa snorgelsson #neverafter ylfa #Puss in Boots #neverafter pib #pinocchio #neverafter pinocchio #gerard of greenleigh #neverafter gerard #dimension 20 speculation #neverafter speculation

[th3b4dk1dzz]

What spells I think Timothy would get from other player characters

Himself- Fly

Pinocchio- Barkskin

Ylfa- Beast Bond

Gerard- Water Walk

Rosamund- Entangle

Pib- Blur

#dimension 20 #neverafter #ally beardsley #mother timothy goose #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation

[punksrespectpronouns]

thinking of the princesses talking about LOVE. like about not having to deserve love, cause deserve feels too close to destiny. that makes me think of myself feeling like I have to be fully healed to have love in my life. and how often love as something to deserve is a narrative that gets pushed by society

also that line "I wonder in what world i could get a love i could believe in". HOMOSEXUAL VIBES. no idea if this is what happened but it would be terrible to have a story happen to you over and over where your true love is a man. and it comes with pain and suffering. and if I were told that's your story and people tried to return me to that, i would be livid. i don't think it happened but i find the idea of it compelling. I just loved the themes in this episode of love and it not being something you have to deserve but what it basically comes down to in the times of shadow is that love is a nice idea. but they dare not hope for it

#queer vibes between rosamund and cinderella #neverafter spoilers #d20 neverafter #banquo rambles #neverafter speculation

[realmarywarren]

In many versions of the story Anansi is a male spider, so instead of him, I propose trust the Spider Queen is actually Arachne or Ariadne (for a twist) from the Greek Myths!

I’m so excited either way!!!

#neverafter #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation

[feelingtheaster99]

Gosh we should’ve known after they spent so many times listing factions that they would have to fight ALL of them

#things look INTENSE next episode #they also have to figh the stupid corruption??? #and Rosmund is technically dead #has ONE hit point #and is expected to deal with the MOST corruption #big yikes here #sending out a call for another beardsely narrative Nat 20 please #if nothing else #the cast is all dressed FABULOUSLY in the final ep #neverafter #dimension 20 #neverafter spoilers #neverafter speculation #we finally find out what those mother fucking beads were for #neverafter the ending of all things #the ending of all things #the ending of all things part one #the ending of all things part two #neverafter factions #which ones are the bad guys???? #guess what like fucking all of them #although I guess we didn’t see the stepmother? #how would you even make a mini thag horrifying tho? #yikes it’s a big yikes from me