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Arc Purgatory: The one (and only) major flaw of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies

-oh, hiii, just a note, this post is super uncleaned and kinda messy, you can see points where my ADHD patience wore off. sorry bout that, ill come up and clean later, for now, i gotta recharge-

I think I speak for most PotC enthusiasts when I say that the PotC trilogy (franchise? Wym theres more than three movies?) is one of the best written trilogies I’ve ever seen. Amazing choreography (they just don’t make swashbucklers like this anymore!!), amazing set and design, amazing writing, the comedy is peak, the world building is great shit, but by far, the best and most hooking part of the series is its characters!! You have the elusive trickster captain Jack Sparrow, you have the naive but headstrong and well-meaning Will Turner, the cunning and crafty Elizabeth Swann, and an array of amazing villains to boot! Barbossa and his excellent character arc, Davy Jones and his excellent character arc, the excellent dynamic between Commodore Norrington and Cutler Beckett and who being a villain when and why, the whole shtick. With how well the villains are written, it’s no surprise that a lot of them hold a spot in many fans’ top favorite characters - I’m no exception, Barbossa has always been a favorite of mine and upon a rewatch later on in life, Davy Jones is up there too. And while all of the characters are iconic, memorable and loveable (most times), Ive noticed a sort of… pattern in who places at the top of people’s favorite characters. Namely, I’ve seen the villains and Jack Sparrow. I’ve never seen Will or Elizabeth be explicitly placed high up, or higher than the villains/Jack  Sparrow. And even when I see Jack Sparrow be high up, I always see him be high up because he’s “iconic”, while I’ve seen the villains be high up because they’re “compelling”. That discrepancy really meant nothing to me when I rewatched the first two movies; they were, after all, an incomplete story. The third movie would bring it all together and cement these characters as excellent. Right? … Well… wrong. Now, before I go on, what I said before still stands. The trilogy is still impeccable in all the ways I’ve listed above. Great characters, plot, world building, choreography, score, cinematography… but there is only one area it falls short on: character development. But the peculiar thing is that it falls short only sometimes. So I wanna examine where it doesn’t fall short, where it does, and why I think so.

As previously stated, the character development falls short only sometimes. Where it absolutely doesn’t fall short is with the villains. For at least the first three movies (cuz i have not and refuse to rewatch 4 and 5), the villains have excellent, fully rounded character arcs, with memorable story beats. Barbossa going from bloodthristy merciless captain of the black pearl to hesitant co-captain of the black pearl, leaving behind his lonesome ways and instead choosing to make alliances if not for his own benefit. Davy Jones going from a terrifying force of power to blah blah blah, we've watched the movies, we remember what happens, we all get the gist. The villains have complete character arcs, they develop from one thing to another, either by way of actually becoming a decently better person and improving in some of their qualities, or by digging in their heels and dying as a consequence (or in Norrington’s case, becoming a better person but dying anyway because his narrative foil is cutler beckett and hell hath no fury like an 18th century british twink in a position of power). Even the side characters which are related to them have fully fleshed out character arcs of their own to complement them, namely Tia Dalma, who develops from a mysterious bogwitch to a lovestruck goddess. From this section, I want you readers to remember that the people who insofar have complete character arcs are the villains, who mostly switch up every movie. Now let’s talk about the lame ducks, shall we?

A few characters dont get any character development; namely, the side characters whose name you don’t really remember, or cannon fodder (i am counting Sao Feng as cannon fodder, I take no further questions at this time). However, there’s three other characters in the series that don’t get compelling character development and that’s the three protagonists. I’m gonna start with Will and Elizabeth; both of them do develop in a sense! They become more mature and more tolerant of piracy as they learn about the fallacies of the state. They are forced to mature rapidly thanks to their turbulent circumstances, namely as only-dubiously-pirates and only-dubiously-free and legally pronounced enemies of state unless cutler beckett decides otherwise. Thats a lot of Circumstance. No matter who you are as a person, that forces you to grow in one way or another. But let’s not forget that becoming pirate king and abandoning high society/abandoning citizenship and becoming an undead pirate are only half of Elizabeth and Will’s character arcs. Why do they get into this entire mess in the first place? Well, love! They love each other so much that they’d literally uproot their safety to be together, and the only thing keeping them apart is Circumstances™ . Naturally, this then means that their character arc would involve them triumphantly overcoming the circumstances and finally being together, either by abandoning pirate life or pilfering together as captains! Or alternatively, they discover it was never meant to be either by way of death or by departing tearfully. Yeah, neither happens. Instead they leave off movie 3 right back at square one; pining and yearning from a distance. But instead of the distance being lord vs peasant dynamics, it’s a time gap of 10 years. How is this any different from what the problem was 2 movies ago? This is their wrap up? Same circumstance with a different name and an outfit change? At best, this is incomplete. I can’t even count it as full circle if I wanted to; normally, here would be the beginning of a spin off or something, because this development is something penultimate. A darkest hour at best. Not a climax, and definitely not a conclusion; again, it is incomplete. And, sadly, the same can be said about Jack Sparrow. The movie goes out of its way to point out where Jack is flawed: he fears death so much that he refuses to see the pain and drawbacks of immortality, which leads him to do all his tomfoolery. Which is great character motivation! But it never changes. He is constantly afraid of his own mortality, so he will constantly hold himself back from going guns blasing, and it will always lead to him chasing the promise of immortality. Even when he sees what that does to Barbossa and Davy Jones, he digs his heels in and goes “la la la”. even when the plot of one of the movies was that he died. He died and came back to life. At this point, he has gone face to face with his greatest fear and come back a victor. But by the end of the movie, whatever happens, happens because he is still mortally afraid of death. Even after he comes back to life, people point out that all he wants is to be immortal, and he affirms that. So like… did the death… not happen? Because even if this is happening because Jack refuses to process it, then that gives us new motivation. And that’s not the only way for Jack to continue his adventures; one alternative could be that Jack, after conquering death, instead turns to life to see how he can maximize his limited fun, and starts pilfering and pirating to the nth degree, purely because of zero inhibitions. But instead like with Will and Elizabeth, with him, we are right back to square one.

So… why is this happening? Why are we having these fake character arcs for the protagonists? In most media and most cases, the answer is “because the writers suck” in one variety or another. Time constraints, budget constraints, bad writers, the works. But I firmly believe this is happening not because of the writers, but because of one mouse that keeps ruining everyone's fun.

(if i could add sound bytes, i would, but please imagine the intro song jingle thing of disney playing here)

Obviously we all know Disney; they want to milk their cash cows until the bitter end, which means that in order for that to happen, they need to keep an avenue open for Will and Elizabeth’s story in case they need to milk that for an extra buck, and obviously, Jack needs more motivation to keep doing his silliness. Now, as stated above, there are multiple ways for that to happen without keeping the same motivations that kept us going for 3 movies, but it has been proven time and time again that Disney will take the easy way out instead of the interesting (and potentially more costly) way out. Now, I refuse to watch star wars, so I cannot validate this point by myself, but according to a friend (thank you for your service @greetings-humans), when “somehow palpatine returned”, the franchise was owned by disney. Star wars fans, and even people with a brain, recognize how much of a cop out this is, and having seen the above cop outs happen in PotC, i am now firmly of the belief that the protags of PotC dont have character arcs because Disney believes this is the cheapest way of keeping the franchise going. This, btw, delightfully, ended up making disney shoot themselves in the foot; not only were movies 4 and 5 poorly received, but because of the way they were written, it wouldn’t make sense for any of the protagonists to suddenly have a change of motives and resume character development, which would be especially detrimental since we are talking about the PotC franchise; famously adored for its writing. They could mask the cash cow before, but now they cannot. So it’s no surprise that instead of continuing a story that is continuously shooting itself in the foot thanks to Disney’s executive decision to take the easy way out of creating a continuous cash cow, the 6th movie is rumored to be a remake of the first one.

But yeah, this is pretty much my analysis. I dont have much more to say. The key take away here is: write your own fanfics of the ending, or engage with the series however you like. I think if the series had different producers and was just left at a trilogy, then it would’ve been perfect. I don’t really have much more to say here;; this is pretty much it. I’m just glad that PotC’s one major flaw wasn’t due to incompetence and was due to the mouse being the mouse.

#PotC #PotC analysis #Jack Sparrow analysis #PotC critique #yarr and all #posts to be fixed

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bad quality ship thingies,,, will make better later

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one thing that i'll never understand is that when like autistic people mask they're not trying to deceive anyone and it's sad they've been forced to mask because of social pressures (obviously) but when people with personality disorders mask they're automatically trying to "manipulate" everyone around them so that they can "abuse" them and "trick" them ??? like what

#reblog #personal #full body reaction to this post thats all

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Hellppp some transphobe found my posts about getting surgery and is yelling in my asks about how I mutilated my ‘perfect feminine body’ . I got my wisdom teeth removed.

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i understand the appeal of publishing "fic with the serial numbers filed off" as original work but i also feel like. what makes something a good fic is at odds with what makes something a good original story.

#reblog #random #greetings-humans #i have stuff to add onto this #like i know i do #but adhd medication is still high #and im writing a fic rn #BE BACK WITH THE STUFF

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ig this does count as softcore amfissa propaganda???? like youre right i didnt know you were right abt this but you are

(you didnt know ive played ib cuz i havent played ib ;D my volatile supple baby mind just grew up with so much ib content + playthroughs it acts as if ive played ib)

also updated list ftw cuz this has CHANGED

-Caleb Widogast, Mollymauk Tealeaf from campaign 2 (Mighty Nein) and Ashton Greymoore from campaign 3 (Bells Hells) from Critical role -Taako (you know, from TV?) from The Adventure Zone: Balance -Ellery Finch from The Hazel Wood -Garry from Ib -Heidi from Heidi, Girl of the Alps -Shigeo Kageyama and Shou Suzuki from Mob Psycho 100 -Kris Dreemurr from Deltarune (honorable mention: Sal Fisher from Sally Face, don't ask me why he's *here* but he is) -Hunter Whittebane/Clawthorne/Noceda/Deammone (yes I am listning all of them cry about it) from The Owl House -Blade/Yingxing from Honkai Starrail -Diluc Ragnvindr and Kaveh Nolastnamegiven from Genshin Impact (honorable mention: Alhaitham Nolastnamegiven (they share a last name because theyre married)) -Jesper Fahey from Six of Crows, Crooked Kingdom and Rule of Wolves (fuck the show) -Hua Cheng from Heaven Official's Blessing -Minamoto Kou from Toilet-bound Hanako-kun (honorable mention: Mitsuba Sousuke) -Miyano Yoshikazu from Sasaki to Miyano (honorable mention: Sasaki Shuumei) -Snufkin and The Joxter from the Moomins

More misc honorable mentions: Jack Townsend from Tales from the Gas Station, Sly from William and Sly 2, Reigen Arataka from Mob Psycho 100, and more probably, but I can't think of any, I think the meds are kicking in

interesting thing to note here: ... wow, this list has updated a lot. I made this post in march 11th of 2022... at that point, i was still battling an identity crisis (and winning!) and some leftover trauma from being on the Internet when i was 12 and undiagnosed autistic. i remember making this list and honestly scouring my brain for content. the leftover trauma from the 'tism left me with no characters to call my own. i had very few hyperfixations and favorite characters in my developing years because i forced myself to just... not enjoy stuff, but after the summer of 2022, i told myself "you're gonna have to work on just Enjoying characters again", and... voila. here are the results. i feel so strongly for so many characters now; and financial semi-independence and total living independence has allowed me to enjoy more media that i wouldnt have gotten my hands on otherwise without any purchases. a lot of these series with physical media? yeah, i OWN that media now! and the allowance to just... be in a group, be among fans, has pushed me to try new things wholly, not just observe from a distance. this is probably a very personal experience, but this is monumental to me. i can enjoy stuff again. also, ill definitely keep updating this list as the years go by; even rn, im reading a book that is just... clawing at me to be on my favorites. ill b keepin ya posted.

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime, books, movies or tv series)? Thanks....

hmmmm let’s see

-Akaboshi Bisco from Sabikui Bisco -Kaoru Sakurayashiki from Sk8 the Infinity -Caleb Widogast from Critical role: Mighty Nein -Espresso Cookie from Cookie Run Kingdom -Marin Kitagawa from Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru -Haise Sasaki from Tokyo Ghoul:re -Ellery Finch from The Hazel Wood -Heidi from Heidi, Girl of the Alps -Garry from Ib -Taako (you know, from TV?) from The Adventure Zone: Balance

i have a lot, lot more favorite characters, but these specifically are very near and dear characters to me, all for different reasons

#reblog #rei #asks #favorite characters #personal #o damn das a lot #anyway #judge freely i can take it

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Every time I read a poem that describes something to the extent of "You and I are mortal but I will write about you/us so you/our love remains eternal" I get emotional

Like yeah, I -in the far future- am reading about you, you did immortalize your other half, you succeeded

#poetry #classical poetry #amoretti #got me cryin n shit #IM TRYNA STUDY FOR FINALS HERE #random #ramble #personal

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and by this I mean do the groceries, go to the park, go to the café, etc

extra points if you say your country in the tags

#reblog #i do already

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by the way, this exclusionary mentality of policing who does and doesn't belong is exactly what anti-lgbtq people want you to think

that benefits them IMMENSELY. the more we turn on each other, and the more criteria we have as to who belongs where, the more they can broaden the criteria and turn us against each other.

they want us to alienate each other cuz we're easier to fight in smaller numbers. that way, they can eradicate us all completely, step by step. the more we separate each other, the easier we will make it for them to create legislation after legislation, slowly zero-ing in on every member of the community. it's like that one famous poem by Martin Niemoller:

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

this is what they want. they want to separate us until we're easy to wipe out. DON'T FALL FOR THIS RHETORIC.

How about we give a big "fuck you" to this guy and give a big "hello" to every aromatic heterosexual as well as every asexual heteroromantic person, y'all belong to the community do not let this idiot tell you otherwise <3

Edit: ok just to be clear, I don't anyone sending death threats to this person, shes an asshole but she doesn't deserve to die

#important #lgbtq #aroace #aromantic #asexual #STAY VIGILANT #but yeah no if you keep tryna excluding people from our community then sorry to disappoint buuut #no one's gonna fight for you either #is it seriously that hard to be accepting? jesus

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it's the last day you can rb this

#its true im the physical example of this

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poor old granny scorpion-shoes. no one ever saw her death coming

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Με δυσκολία μπορώ να πιστέψω πως θα δίνω κι εγώ του χρόνου. Είναι αστείο πόση σημασία αποδίδουμε σε αυτές τις εξετάσεις για αυτό θα ήθελα να θυμίσω σε όλους ότι δεν σας απαξιώνει ο βαθμός που θα προκύψει από ο,τι γράψετε και πως αν δεν πετύχετε δε σηματοδοτεί το τέλος του κόσμου. Παρ' όλα αυτά, θα ήθελα να ευχηθώ σε όλους όσους δίνουν σήμερα καλή τύχη.

#friends #rei #bringing back this beautiful saga #doom scrolling on tiktok? #naahhh #doom scrolling on your friends tumblr pages? #👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

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YIPPEEE

once you start saying “yippee!” you will never stop

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maybe this is problematic but idk i think reclaiming slurs for urself is fine and good but i think when u start using them for other people without asking. especially strangers. that's not okay actually. like it's totally fine to use them for urself but i think keeping in mind that they are slurs. is important. like maybe we shouldnt be just throwing them around

#problematic #reblog #discourse #lgbtq #this is not a read on op at all but like #the fact that this could be considered a problematic opinion... #i think its ridiculous that i #an autistic with empathy problems #am able to point out that hey #this is moral bankrupcy and main character syndrome #AT THEIR FINEST #reclaiming slurs for others being a no no should be common sense #but the fact that it COULD BE PROBLEMATIC? #tf is wrong with the internet LMAO

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reblogging this cuz i realize i havent talked about this thing on my blog and i, as mentioned previously, am a cowriter - this is fucking huge!!

things are working, things are rolling along! stuff is being written and plans are being planned! this is turning out to be something... SO much bigger than i OR dee had anticipated and AAA

also this is misrepresenting my goals, i wanna write men kissing but i also wanna write men being stabbed and. no man has been stabbed on paper YET. BUT!! im gonna stab a lot of men.

also,, this fic is my entire child and then some, and i discovered what zirtek is (through how i need zirtek now) but also this has made me think a lot of thoughts about fix-it fics and world building and...rest assured i will be talking about it one day, a certain author will not escape my wrath.

BUT. things are rolling along smooth-ish-ly! and that's !!!!!! im SO excited!!!

firmly aware that this is extremely niche but.

hey there grishaverse fandom, would anyone be interested in reading an au in which the darkling got less villainous and more properly morally ambiguous (and not crazy) some time pre-alina and actually became the person some of us thought he was in book 1? ft. reworked merzost, different ending for the alina trilogy and admittedly a lot of OCs (none of which date the darkling, he's aroace in this which means there's no romantic darklina)

(and in case you are interested, it's not ready yet but it is being written👀👀)

#grishaverse #shadow and bone #shadow and bone darkling #she/her #(those who know)

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Doctor: $140,000 a year

Furry artist on Patreon: $160,000 a year

#reblog #IT'S ON MY DASH

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HOW IS IT HARD YOU JUST CLICK YOUR MOUSE AT WEIRD TIME INTERVALS!!

discourse in other fandoms: lgbtphobia or racism, ships, etc

discourse in stardew valley fandom: if you can fish without mods fuck you

#reblog #random #stardew valley #sdv #sdv fishing #except sturgeon FUCK sturgeon