#LIKE! that's a good character! that could be a solid dramatic tragedy right there!

[away-ward]

Devil's Night had so much potential that could set the series apart from other booktok series but it just falls short and on its face. I know you get this asks every day and I really hope I’m not bothering you, but some changes that would make the series a lot better for me are

Not making the Horsemen a wannabe gang or characters of a soap opera. If the plot began with rich kids suffering the consequences of their actions for the first time and later extand that theme to include more plot points that would eventually create a more solid theme, plot, and character arc, it would eliminate the whole mafia-esque theme that just didn’t suit the series. There is no need for them to be a gang or something dramatic. They are just a found family and will have their backs no matter what (with the privilege of money and power on their side).

Rika actually leaking the videos. It would make the series more interesting, and most importantly, make Rika an important character. Can’t come up with reasons for why she would do it right now (other than for a more reasonable reason than Trevor’s) but there is great potential. Her character can still be included to great extent in the following books without being annoying or unreasonable by being "redeemed" as the story goes on. We don’t need her paired with Michael (it can add tragedy, though) but they can still be each other’s love interest.

Getting rid of Blackchurch. I know you like Blackchurch but here me out 🫥. Emory wouldn’t know about Blackchurch if it wasn’t for Aydin, and I want to get rid off him. And while Blackchurch still can exist, I was thinking something along the lines of Will being suspected of Martin’s murder (happening after his initial assault on him that sent him to prison) while still keeping the whole "rich family tries to hide him/pay their way out of the case because they know he is guilty". Will refuses to enlarge information and refuses to plead guilty because he committed the murder with Emory. It can introduce readers to how much power the Graysons have (especially because they have an important political figure as the patriarch) and how much powerless Emory is in comparison.

A less intense Damon and Winter storyline. What do you mean you left a poor girl blind?! I would’ve get a restraining order too ngl. I would also add more significance to Winter’s character but I can’t come up with something right now. She can still be blind but not because of her love interest.

Incorporating the Horsemen concept. It was right there and we were left to starve. Michael can represent war, especially because the horse of war is red. He is leading the war against Rika because of what she did to the other Horsemen. It makes him an actual leader. Kai can represent scarcity, the black horse. It suggests a continuing abundance of luxuries for the wealthy and imperial oppression. It also carries a balance scale and Kai is a libra. Damon can be death, which rides a pale horse, and Will can be conquest, which rides a white horse and represent Christ and the Antichrist. The religious symbolism is already there with the Four Horsemen and the whole book of Hideaway.

Other things I would get rid off is the sexual assault scenes. The guys are supposed to be redeemed and gain sympathy; a sexual assaulter doesn’t deserve any of that. Other unnecessary scenes can be thrown out and a better thought out story could have been written. Not to discredit PD’s work, but Devil’s Night is just not that good of a story. I enjoy the headcanons and the possibilities that came out of the books, not exactly the storylines themselves. SORRY FOR RANTING LUV 💕💕💕🍪

You're so lovely! No need to apologize. I love when people come to the table with new ideas.

I have always said that Devil’s Night had great bones. And for people who are just here for the spicy stuff, I’m sure it does wonders. But I read for plot and characters, and there was so much here to pick at but nothing fully fleshed out.

Not making the Horsemen a wannabe gang or characters of a soap opera

I didn’t fully mind the secret society vibe, but I much would have preferred if it were more like a found family. If the plot were rich kids suffer the consequence of their actions and either learn their lesson or learn to be better criminals, that would have been fun (especially if they just learned to be better criminals but they never did. They never learned anything!!)

But yeah. Totally agree with you here. I’d take found family that has a flimsy relationship with morals and the law when their loved ones are involved over the secret society/mafia/gang vibes that we had any day of the week.

Rika actually leaking the videos.

In the past, I proposed that an interesting storyline would have been if Rika wanted revenge for what happened to her that night, so I can fully understand wanting to give Rika more influence in the story. Maybe after she’s attacked, she ends up with the phone instead of Trevor, but Trevor comes to her later and, seeing how upset she is, convinces her to upload as revenge. She could be sort of thinking: The horsemen don’t get to be judge, jury, and executioner in Thunder Bay, and she’s going to be the one to stop them, not knowing the stories behind the videos she posted.

It falls in the same realm of Banks protecting Damon, and Winter not speaking up about her involvement with Damon, and Emory signing those papers, in that she actually did the thing she’s accused of, but that’s not the full story.

And maybe she should apologize for listening to Trevor, but who’s going to force her after what Damon did? And well, she didn’t know about Martin being a child abuser, but that doesn’t mean the horsemen get to play vigilante.

This creates a more dynamic plot, then just “Rika’s innocent. Revenge Night is off. Everyone go home!”

Getting rid of Blackchurch

…I like the blackchurch plot???

I don’t like the blackchurch plot at all. I would have preferred if Emory had been dragged back to Thunder Bay so that we can see her interact with the characters that I’m actually interested in. No offence to Micah and Rory, or their fans, but I just don’t care about them. Their stories, their families, how they ended up at blackchurch. None of that matters to me.

Give me Banks and Emory! Give me Banks – who knew in Hideaway that Martin was a child abuser and then inherited her father’s empire a year later – try to explain to Emory why Martin is still out there, getting married, getting promoted, having a great life. Give me Banks explaining that Martin is protected by Evans, and that’s why she can’t move on him, otherwise she’d have him strung up (how did Banks not know?). Give me Michael, Winter, and Emory bonding over their terrible siblings. There’s so much potential here that we miss because Emory and Will and Alex are over on an island suffering through Aydin’s power trip.

Let me understand these people.

while still keeping the whole "rich family tries to hide him/pay their way out of the case because they know he is guilty". Will refuses to enlarge information and refuses to plead guilty because he committed the murder with Emory.

Interesting to have Emory involved with the murder. I’m totally in for Will doing it for her, but I never considered Emory being there. There’s so many ways this could go. Very intriguing idea.

So is the idea then that the Grayson’s send Will to Blackchurch so that he can’t arrested? Like if the cops can’t find him, the family can plan his defense? Or are they getting him out of the way because he won’t tell them what really happened, as he’s protecting Emory?

What does Emory do?

A less intense Damon and Winter storyline

I thought the point that it was actually her father that caused her blindness, not Damon? Anyway, Damon seeking revenge on Winter was kinda dumb. Yeah, she didn't speak up. But he straight up manipulated and lied to her. And he was going to go serve time regardless. I think Rika having something on Damon and using that pull to go after Winter's dad for what he did to her dad would have been an interesting plot. Pitting Damon against the girl he wants, who's still suspicious of him, while trying to avoid going back to prison from whatever Rika has on him. Or something. Talk about a chess game. And after he did the same thing to Kai, who would he be to complain? I bet he'd be impressed she successfully took a page from his book.

Winter’s a tricky one. I really don’t know how to give her more power either. I do think I would have preferred if she, after she had her accident, she’d pivoted from dancing to music? Possibly pianist or something. I don’t think it improves her story arc at all, just something that’s a bit more interesting to me. There’s only really one notable blind ballerina and she lost her sight at 19, not 6. And she was an incredible dancer before that, as well, so the whole “Winter doesn’t need a walking stick; Winter can pirouette without spotting; blah blah blah” just really pushes the limits of believability for me. I don’t know.

Incorporating the Horsemen concept

Interesting. First, I’ve always since Michael as the conqueror because his name is Michael (like the archangel) Crist, which is another for of Christ. It’s very subtle, I know.

I saw Kai as War. He literally named his dojo Sensou, the Japanese word for war. He was at war with himself, with Damon, with Banks. It seemed he always had someone to fight and reason to be angry.

Damon as Death because… well obviously. He’s killed at least two people that we know of. And that whole conversation in Nightfall.

And Will as the Famine/Scarcity. He was a glutton before going to Blackchurch, over indulging in everything. Blackchurch represented a cutting off from all of his vices; literally starving himself of what brings him joy. However, it seemed by Nightfall, PD had forgone the Horsemen trend and instead focused on Peter Pan themes? A girl who grew up too quick and a boy who never wanted to. It was weird. I mean, a story can definitely have multiple themes and inspirations. It was just hard to see the horsemen theme in Will.

Anyway. Here’s a fun little graphic I made. Not the best, because I’d never created something like this before, but it was still a fun time.

Other things that could have changed:

Yeah, I would have enjoyed less assualty-scenes too. The KaiBanks one in particular never sat right with me.

There are so many things about this story to enjoy; the characters and the dynamics; the situations and problems posed – all of it was really interesting. And I the hands of a different author would have been a much different story. I’m not angry at PD for writing about what they’re interested in. I just sometimes wish this idea had occurred to someone else. I want this core story, but in a different package.

I enjoy the headcanons and the possibilities that came out of the books, not exactly the storylines themselves.

I share the same sentiment.

Thank you so much for all the time you put into this. Be sure, you’re never bothering me, and I wouldn’t call this a rant by any means. I genuinely enjoyed taking in your ideas!

Ko

#asked and answered 266 #asked and answered #devil's night series stuff #series changes #ko's headcanons #headcanoning

[missingmywing]

Okay: here's a few! Emet, ANY of the Foretellers, and Sephiroth.

Okay, take my essays on each of them XD

Emet, Foretellers, Sephiroth

First impression

Emet: Well I was a bit biased from the beginning because I had a pair of certain someones talking him up and blowing him air kisses, but even without that I adored him instantly. He’s was and is my favorite type of character - insanely complex and hiding it behind snarky over dramatic dramatic bastard. His entire scene with Varis was just me cackling gleefully because “holy shit he’s so fun”. Very Ardyn vibes, but with a much better written ending.

Aced: Okay you said any so you get all the Foretellers. My initial impression of Aced? “Oh he’s an ass, I hate him. Talk about an inflated ego and bad attitude.” KHX/UX did not give him any brownie points. Aaaand then Back Cover came out. But he had a very bad first impression and was the character I definitely considered to be the main antagonist of KHX/Chi.

Gula: I loved him. I didn’t trust him, but I loved him. Snarky sneaky catboi my beloved. He was doing his best, but I could already see that he was too smart for his own good and that it would get him in trouble (and I was right). But the sneaky ones running rings around everyone else to pull their strings are my favorite characters, so Gula had my heart almost immediately.

Invi: “Oh she seems cool, reminds me of Aqua.” And… that’s about it. She’s a lot like Aqua, and X/UX/BC did not change that impression in the least.

Ira: “Oh I’m going to like him, I mean he’s automatically my chosen Foreteller bc of the unicorn that matches Etheria’s lore too well, and he’s the type of stoic serious character I tend to like.” X/UX/BC didn’t really add much to that. There was a little, but not a ton.

Ava: “She’s adorable, and seems sweet. I wonder if she’s going to die or turn evil later.” My opinion didn’t really change much until UX started dropping its bombs, and then I got increasingly concerned about what exactly had happened to her - especially the KH3 epilogue.

Sephiroth: Okay so the thing is. My first FFVII experience was Crisis Core, bc I found it through Kingdom Hearts (technically my first impression was in KH2 but that was just WHY DID THEY PUT AN IMPOSSIBLE BOSS IN THIS GAME D: so it doesn’t count.) So my first impression of Sephiroth was “oh this is so unfair, he’s being so screwed over. I love him, he’s doing his best to help his friends despite being stuck in an impossible situation.” So he was a really tragic character right off the bat for me, since I didn’t have the impression of him starting out as an enemy in the OG game.

Impression now

Emet: He has remained one of my favorite characters and I still adore him, but I can really appreciate his depth now. Elpis gave me a lot of feelings because we got to see him before he had to endure the tragedy of technically being the only ancient to truly survive the Final Days/Sundering untouched - Lahabrea was half of himself even before that point, and Elidibus was… more of a primal than a person by that point, from what I can tell. So Emet-Selch was the sole remaining whole Ancient for twelve millenia, on top of having to deal with the world being reset back to the pre-stone age era. He’s tragic, and one of the most relatable and emotional characters in the whole game despite his attempts at convincing everyone that he has a solid arm’s length of distance between himself and the world at large. He absolutely does not, he’s just a tsundere. I can understand why did what he did - from the beginning to the end, I definitely understand his perspective

Aced: He’s probably my favorite now, thanks to Back Cover and the character analyses I’ve done on him. Because oh. look. he’s just scared and desperate and doing his best to save the world, despite everyone else making fun of him or accusing him of things. (The fact that he’s clearly spent his life as the too-serious one of the group who doesn’t quite get the jokes the others are making about him and just getting upset only to get made fun of more or told to chill out in a relatable way definitely has nothing to do with that. Definitely not.) His relationship with my main Keykid is honestly fascinating to me, because they kind of hate each other and it’s on sight, but that’s because they consider each other a threat to the world/her health, and they highly respect each other’s perspectives/intentions. They just don’t trust each other and would sooner stab each other than compromise to work together at the time of the Keyblade War.

Gula: Look he did his best and I will stand by that. He was a an idiot who got himself in over his head by his own designs, but he’s self aware enough to know and acknowledge that in canon to our Keykid, and he feels incredibly guilty about it. I’m excited to see where they’re going with him in future games and how he’ll grow, as well as what’s going to happen with Ava because he’s clearly worried about her.

Invi: My initial impression of "she's basically Aqua" has not changed, except Aqua has had character growth and Invi is still… “I believe in MoM, and believe he has the best of intentions and will do all I can to uphold his teachings.” Maybe (hopefully!) that’ll change in KH4 and beyond, but as of the end of X/UX my impression of her hasn’t changed.

Ira: I - Look. He’s still my chosen Foreteller, I’ve never switched from Unicornis, and Etheria still respects him, but. He’s… honestly kind of boring? His “rivalry” with Aced is the most characterization he gets, and while he does save our ass and acknowledges us, he’s more distant than anyone but Invi. I’m hoping we get more characterization for him because right now my impression is “*Shrug.* He’s there. I respect his attempts but they failed and he didn’t make me sympathize with him.”

Ava: I. I have so many questions. I’m so torn. I like her a lot, she’s sweet, but man oh man I don’t trust anything about her situation. While I don’t think she’s turned evil, I do think she’s become extremely complicated and whatever is going on with her is going to be a twist of some sort. My current theory is that she’s somehow tied to Namine. Not sure how, but questions and convenient hints are beginning to line up between them somehow.

Sephiroth: His dedication to chasing Cloud across the whole universe and every single game he’s in and now TIME TRAVEL LIKE THE MANY FICS I’VE READ is hilarious and that’s always going to be his defining feature to me now. I still find him incredibly tragic because his insanity was cultivated and purposeful by Hojo and Jenova, so if the situation in Nibelheim - and Genesis’ own insanity making him be an ass - hadn’t happened as it had, things wouldn’t have snowballed as they did. The whole thing could have been avoided if he’d had proper support and a bit of interference from someone who wasn’t as cut out of the loop as Zack.

Favorite moment

Emet: “Do no squander it, the legacy I leave you.” Honestly all of Elpis was gold and one joy after the next, but that line is what really really stuck with me. His little monologue at the end of Ultima Thule also got to me, the list of places left to visit and then his final “I certainly did.” was just- *chef’s kiss* I also loved him throughout SHB, all his sarcastic drama was amazing and I loved it all. Amaurot tore me apart as was intended. Every time this man smiles That Smile at us I die of pain and joy.

Aced: His moment of vulnerability with Ira in Back Cover was wonderful, and was the moment that made him click for me. His tired resignation, from his posture to his words were “I did my best. I did all I could, and everything I did was to protect the world and stop this war. If I failed then I will accept my end.” AND IF THAT’S NOT A CHARACTER TYPE THAT INSTANTLY WINS MY HEART. One scene made me go from disliking him to taking him on as one of my favorites.

Gula: His scene with the Master, probably, because it - more than anything else - was what set the tone for both Back Cover and the entirety of KHUX. THAT was the moment when it clicked exactly what kind of story this was, and exactly what kind of long game MoM was playing. The complete breakdown of Gula’s role combined with MoM’s sudden personality switch was top tier, and made all of Gula’s actions make complete sense - tragic and stupidly reckless though they were.

Invi: Hmm probably that fight with Aced? She had some good moments there, and they were the most definitive of her character across the whole series so far. Although her scene in the Keyblade War to the Player was pretty good too.

Ira: His scene with Aced in Back Cover was great - his response of “No I’m not going to kill you, we need everyone we can and I still trust you and believe that you were trying to help.” was FANTASTIC and exactly what I love in a character, and validated me for choosing him as my leader. He may be among the least interesting/utilized, but he has his moments.

Ava: Hmmm it’s hard to pick one, but probably either the scene where she gave Brain the book and keyblade or the fountain scene where she was talking to Ephemera. I enjoyed the complexity of the first, and the genuine warmth and sweetness of the second.

Sephiroth: He’s so tragic. Nibelheim could have been avoided so easily if he’d just BEEN GIVEN SUPPORT. AND HIS TWO BEST FRIENDS NOT ABANDONED HIM AND THEN ONE OF THEM SHOWED UP AND CALLED HIM A MONSTER THEN DEMANDED HIS HELP. I like Genesis and his potential but the blame for Nibelheim and everything after is at least 20% on his shoulders. The other 80% is divided between Hojo and Jenova. I love him, I love his potential, and I think his insanity was something cultivated and triggered purposefully and could have been avoided.

Idea for a story

Emet: I have fucking lists. One of my current favorites is either Etheria (my WoL) being trapped back in time and Emet having to vouch for her/work with her, or Elpis!Emet being dragged forward with a couple of others and having to deal with modern Etheirys and just reacting to everything. Otherwise though give me young Solus, show me Emet building up the Garlean empire with Gaius and the others, and what that looked like from the Garlean side.

Foretellers: Combining all of these into one, I want to write an au “nothing goes wrong, the war never breaks out” story series, consisting purely of Daybreak Town shenanigans and the Foretellers dealing with the would-be main Dandelion group causing trouble. Aced says if Ephemera, Skuld, and Etheria break into the tower one more time he’s locking their Keyblades away and trapping them in Agrabah. MoM and Luxu are too busy laughing and enabling them to offer the Foretellers any help. Lauriam and Brain are trying to act as the group brain cells and keep them out of trouble. Poor Strel, Elrena, and Ven have no idea how they got here but they’re stuck within the madness now.

Sephiroth: Time Travel is and will always be my favorite story trope, give me the good old FFVII classic fic of Seph and Cloud travelling back in time to when Cloud was a cadet and both of them just completely dismantling ShinRa.

Unpopular opinion

Emet: Hmmm not sure I’m familiar enough with fandom opinion to give an unpopular one? I know I’ve seen some people say he’s overrated, which I strongly disagree with but can understand for the people who don’t like him. Hmm, probably the closest I can give is that I disagree with the idea that he hates/resents the WoL for not being Azem and didn’t care at all about Garlemald - what he says and what he does are two very different things, and he offered WoL too much support to hate them (and that smile is a story of its own), plus he was beloved in Garlemald and canonically considered a kind and caring leader for a reason (until his son died maybe, but that’s a whole analysis of its own).

Aced: He’s not an idiot, he doesn’t try to kill our Keykid for the lulz, and despite what he says in UX I don’t actually think he ever wanted to “rule the world” - he was scared and desperate and trying to save the world from something that he’d been told and convinced was an inevitability so he got angry and frustrated and lashed out. Something he (and the others) was manipulated into by MoM, so… he handle the situation badly - exactly how he was supposed to. Tragically.

Gula: Same with above - he had good reasons for doing what he did, and he was scared and angry and not thinking clearly. It was planned, and he did exactly what he was supposed to. Maybe it was stupid, but given the situation he didn’t believe he had other options.

Invi: Despite what I said above, Invi is not a blind follower. She makes comments that perhaps MoM wasn’t correct, or wasn’t the right path. Her faith in him wasn’t blind - it was a choice, one she thought through and acknowledged. It’s very possible that she’ll set aside that faith when she learns the whole story.

Ira: The same as above, though I haven’t really seen much fandom opinion on him. He… really doesn’t have much.

Ava: I don’t think she’s evil, but neither do I think she’s a pure cinnamon role who can do no wrong. She made mistakes as well, she had her moments of panic (see the fight with Luxu triggering the Keyblade War) and the jury’s out on how her switch of the BoP and Master’s Defender will play out - we still don’t know if that was planned as well (probably) or if she managed to pull one over on MoM. I don’t think she’ll turn out to be evil and malicious, though. She has the best intentions, I think - but then so do the others.

Sephiroth: He hasn’t been an irredeemable madman his whole life, and what happened at Nibelheim wasn’t some inevitable end for him. I don’t know if he can be pulled back at this point - as of ACC and who even knows what’s going on with Remake/Rebirth - but he wasn’t always a madman just waiting for the moment to snap.

Favorite relationship

Emet: Hythlodaeus and Azem for sure, but his relationship with various WoLs is always fascinating, and I really want to see how he interacts with the rest of the Convocation more. I also think it would have been interesting to see his relationship with his family in Garlemald, before Lucius died and everything started falling apart.

Aced: Probably his relationship with Ira - it’s so nuanced. There’s respect and resentment in equal measure, and that’s always fun to play around with. Second is with the Player because complicated doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Gula: Hmm probably Ava? Either that or the Keykids, bc he has some very interesting dynamic moments with the Player.

Invi: I have to say MoM? We don’t see her a lot, but that’s the relationship that has the most potential to be interesting.

Ira: Aced, for the same as above. Aced is the only one who can get him riled up, so it’s interesting to see them bounce off of each other.

Ava: Either Ephemera or Brain, because there’s so much there. I’m actually going to have to say Brain? Because there’s a story there that we don’t know, especially how much she trusts him and how he seems reserved about trusting her. Ephemera trusts her more than Brain, and I want to know why Brain is so important and how they know each other. There’s nuance and complication there, much more so than Ava and Ephemera.

Sephiroth: Cloud. We’ve established that I like complicated relationships, and you can’t get much more complicated than this. There’s so much there, whether in canon or what-if aus, and it’s always fascinating to analyze and explore.

Favorite headcanon

Emet: WoL is not the first time in which Emet has taken a major role in the life of Azem’s shard - they’ve been at the center of every major conflict in history in one form or another, and Emet is very used to both fighting against them and alongside them. My WoL’s previous life was actually as a half-Dalmascan Garlean assassin who helped create Garlemald’s alchemist division during the very early days of Solus building his reign, and was his (secret) lover for a time - until she found out just a little too much about the Ascians and he killed her before she could become a threat (and she would have). There have been multiple times throughout history that he’s sought a shard out, though it always ends with them enemies and he’s never given any of them Azem’s crystal.

Aced: He loves his Union, and is really protective of his kids (unless Player is one of them. In which case oops). He bluffs and blusters loudly, but he’s a softy if you trick him into admitting it, and if an upset kid asks genuinely for help he’ll cave immediately.

Gula: He kind of hates himself for the specific role he plays in the Keyblade War, even once he finds out it was inevitable. His Union is the first to begin falling to darkness and is the most aggressive about the war, and he hates what it's done to them and that he has only himself to blame.

Invi: I… don’t really have any? I think she has a bit of a mischievous streak of her own, she just hides it really well. Make her angry though, and - well, you’ll never be able to prove it.

Ira: His attitude and “uptightness” is a very purposeful thing he projects and cultivates, because he thinks he has to. He was named leader, but even before that he… basically he and Invi the result of gifted child syndrome, and I’m sure MoM encouraged that. He has do be perfect and make the right choice every time, mistakes aren’t allowed. And when he can’t match it… well, he copes the best he can while bottling anything negative up because he can’t afford to think about it now.

Ava: She’s a prankster who’s the most vicious of all for Foretellers, and has very little respect for rules unless she can see a clear reason for them (if it’s not dangerous or potentially hurting anyone then it’s fine to break it). She’s really close to all her Union kids, and is perfectly willing to befriend kids from other Unions.

Sephiroth: He has a strong respect for Wutai’s culture, and believes that ShinRa’s actions were extreme and pointless and is a little resentful over them. He followed orders because… well, they were orders and it wasn’t until Angeal and Genesis deserted that he even realized that leaving was an option (although it really wasn’t, but he could’ve taken anything ShinRa threw at him). So he followed orders and fought, but he did it as cleanly as possible and earned at least some measure of respect from Wutai in turn.

#ask meme #character meme #ffxiv #kingdom hearts #ffvii #emet-selch #hades #foretellers #aced #gula #invi #ira #ava #sephiroth

[foxholemonster]

So I watched See How They Run (2022), cute movie!

A lot of fun comedy to it, lots of quick little jokes that usually stick the landing, nothing outrageous and nothing too calm, safe and quaint and mystery fans will appreciate the tropes it plays with and bounces off of. I'd recommend it to people who enjoy a good Agatha Christie mystery and a solid bit of comedy poking at that.

But it could have been something else too. (spoilers below)

It takes place surrounding an Agatha Christie play. The director for the soon-to-be movie adaptation dies. The usual, you know, this is a satire Agatha Christie movie. We know how it'll play out, and jokes had among the characters actually lay out the final scene step by step in a beautiful hilarity of expectations.

But the killer. The killer is the victim of the crime that the book/play was based on. His brother was the one who died. And he thought it would be cathartic seeing the story told for everyone but then he saw the play having been working at the theater, and it was such a twisted version and so dramatized, that it hurt him more. And it dragged him down as he was the usher for showing after showing. And just tore him apart until he was bitter and vengeful. Until...

He talks with Agatha, after all this hurt. The two have a very very intriguing scene together. She goes on about how she can't shut it all down, it's her creative right as an artist and this is her story. To this man who's watched a dramatized murder mystery play out night after night based on how his brother died as a child.

And fuck I just Really Want that movie now, I want that version where the comedy cuts out and the cliches cut out starkly, upon the explanation at the last half hour mark. And the story shifts tones to a tragedy and sets in coldly for the audience what this kind of spectacle can cost when it's real.

And yeah he killed people, he's going to jail 100% etc etc I am not excusing his actions. Cause I know some people have zero reading comprehension on here for nuance. But there's another layer here to the pain caused by reproduced crimes and how they affect those who were there for the real thing. And how the people profiting off of those have a responsibility for that pain too.

I know it's not this movie. And this movie was exactly what it wanted to be, and it was a fun ride for that! But I would kill to see this other movie made, especially in this day and age where True Crime is produced and consumed without or against the wishes of the victims' families, dragging out their tragedy and trauma and putting the focus on the crime and killer rather than the loss of life that affected so many. I feel like I saw another movie here, and I'd like to see it too.

#see how they run #see how they run 2022 #fyeahmovies #dailyflicks #listen ive just got. my thoughts

[fiercestcorpse]

seriously though i NEED to see su she apologism, i genuinely really like that little weasel and i think he was right about everything.

#kind of mediocre guy with a chip on his shoulder surrounded by super talented prodigies #who he (correctly or otherwise) believes look down on him #throws in his lot with the one person who makes a point to remember his name and makes him feel valued and important #displays INCREDIBLE loyalty to that person and carries out some increasingly morally questionable acts #one of which even leaves him physically scarred from a rebounding curse! #but unfortunately he's picked the wrong evil manlet to devote himself to and dies an ignoble death #during the course of a revenge plot in which he is only ever an afterthought. #LIKE! that's a good character! that could be a solid dramatic tragedy right there!

[imaginesfora3]

Stormy [Furuichi Sakyo/Reader]

Nights like these weren’t uncommon.

You had found that the stormier it was outside the easier it was to cozy up with Sakyo on the couch, romance permeating through the air; he was normally seated there watching some movie you’d never heard of, allowing you to join him if you promised not to talk. It’s not as though you wanted to have a full-blown conversation with him constantly but him saying that always made you want to annoy him a little, poke fun at how seriously he took analyzing movies for the sake of acting, but you saved that for when you wanted a piece of his rowdy side. The pouring rain made you a little more complacent and you agreed to his rules, flopping yourself down beside him with your legs thrown across his lap as you watched.

Sakyo wasn’t the ‘Netflix and chill’ type of man, if you told him you wanted to watch a movie with him, he was going to watch it. It didn’t fit the situation perfectly since you had injected yourself into his personal time but it at least gave you the chance to observe his handsome face without him telling you to scram. You watched his face uninterrupted, noticing the subtle little changes when something happened in the movie to change his mood; it was hard to see if you weren’t looking closely but Sakyo could be rather expressive, and you delighted in seeing all the little faces he made without even knowing.

You think he might be getting distracted when his hand rested on your thigh but he’s as laser-focused as ever, his hand slowly moving up and down your calf in a comforting motion. You wondered how many people would be in awe to see such a scary man give such an intimate show of affection, fingers gliding along your skin as you wriggled under his touch, inching ever closer. You managed to get a side glance out of him but it was your turn to pretend to be enthralled with the movie, knowing he could read you like a book but still pretending anyway.

There had been a time where Sakyo never would have imagined this.

Never would have thought he would be sitting beside the person he loved, holding them, feeling the warmth of their skin and the weight of their admiring gaze. He had denied himself such pleasures for so long for the sake of their happiness, or so he had said. Maybe he just didn’t know how to be a good boyfriend, maybe it was safer to hide behind every excuse he could pile up until the wall was so packed in there was no one willing to tear it down. It had been a team effort to level the playing field once more, a solid effort of you slowly picking away at him while brick by brick he allowed himself to be vulnerable with you.

Did he think he deserved you?

Not in the slightest.

It was a mindset that you scolded him over, seemed to get genuinely upset over which was understandable enough as it had caused a fair bit of fighting between you. You had even broken up for months, Sakyo unable to properly talk with you, skirting around the concept of love and insisting you were better off as friends. He thought you were presenting him an ultimatum, either love or nothing at all, but in the end, he understood that things between you would never be normal again if he let you go. He wouldn’t just be lacking in your love but your presence entirely, and even with those walls built back up, they would never be as strong, not after you. Not when you had created such a solid crack in its foundation.

But that was why you insisted on building a new one, a foundation you could stand on and build together. No cracks, total transparency, an understanding. He had thought it was just a romantic notion to be able to start over at his age, to be able to see something from someone else’s view point when he was so stubborn himself. But your sincerity reached him, his heart was never as cold as he tried to make it seem, and you never exploited that part of him. You loved and cherished and teased, but you never hurt him, not willingly.

Sakyo wished that the movie didn’t speak to him so clearly, that the miscommunication between the two protagonists didn’t ring so true to life, but it seemed even Hollywood was able to get it right once in a while. The teary-eyed main character reminded him of you, of your frustration, desperate to get him to understand. The stoic secondary character, the love interest, the one who rejected their feelings and refused to admit to them, truly believing the person they loved back was better off without them. There’s also a sense of embarrassment lingering in the back of his mind as he identified with this overdramatic movie far too much for this being a parallel to his reality.

“Sakyo, are you really gonna make me sit through the credits without talking, too?” You had moved your legs from his lap and had instead moved to lean against him, arms wrapped around his as you rested your head on his shoulder. “That ending was depressing. Who wrote that? I should sue.”

“…Not everyone has a happy ending.” A true enough statement but he knew it might just cause an argument if he’s to start a debate about what makes a truly great love story; some of them ended in tragedy, forever a mark on the hearts of those involved.

“…I guess you’re right.” An unsettling silence filled the room as Sakyo looked down at you, lips pursed as he tried to think of something to say. He hoped it didn’t come off as him assuming you and he would have a bad ending, he would never wish that on you after all that you had already suffered through. He had broken your heart more than enough for one lifetime, to the point he knew he’d be making it up for the rest of his life. “You should try watching something upbeat for once.”

“I watch everything as long as it’s good.” That was a lie, you had totally seen him watching some of the trashiest movies to ever grace the big screen, but from the smile on his face you realized it was a joke. He was in rare form tonight, not only outwardly showing you affection but cracking jokes as well.

“Since when have you become a comedian?”

“Who’s laughing?”

Sakyo tried to keep a straight face but it was so hard when you were giving him that incredulous look, the uncharacteristic smile being hidden behind his hand as he pretended to wipe his mouth. You grabbed his hand with one hand and turned his face towards you with another, not missing the low growl that came from his throat at your show of aggression. With Sakyo there was always a bit of fight but you knew how to get your way more often than not, and tonight would be no different. Getting to see his full beautiful smile, not obstacles in the way, was a moment that should be cherished.  

“You’re going to have to tuck me and hold me real tight tonight to chase all my sad thoughts away.” Your noses brushed and Sakyo fought back an eyeroll at your dramatics, “You object to cuddling with me? Aren’t I the sun to your shine? The light of your life? Your very reason to take that first breath in the- “

“Be quiet.” Sakyo cut you off with a chaste kiss to your lips, holding you there for a moment before he pulled away to see your pleased look. He tried to ignore the fact you were clearly leading into him doing that, all too used to him cutting you off by kissing you to shut you up. “Stop pointing out the obvious.”

“Then just agree to give me what I want!”

“… I didn’t tell you to join me.”

“Ugh, does it always have to be so difficult with you?!” Your head flopped back down to his shoulder in defeat and Sakyo smirked, turning back towards the screen. You settled your legs back across your lap as he went to turn on another movie, sighing in defeat at the fact he was making getting him in bed an uphill battle tonight. It wasn’t even that your mind was in the gutter, you simply wanted to be held by the man you held so dear.

“If you can stay quiet through another movie… I can think of a reward for you.”

“Ooh, a gift… Is it change tied to a string? I don’t know what type of gift cheapskates give out~” You teased, ignoring the shiny piece of jewelry around your neck and the heavy ring on your finger.

“You can go to bed alone tonight.”

“And have you sleep on the couch? Your back could never survive.”

The dangerous glint in Sakyo’s eye as he squeezed your thigh told you that you were on the edge of receiving a punishment rather than a present, but with Sakyo, both always turned out in your favor. Your hand rested on top of his, leaning back against the couch and giving him your best ‘love you~’ smile.

You were sure you’d get your way tonight.

Stormy weather was for lovers, after all.

#Sakyo Furuichi #Furuichi Sakyo #A3 #A3! #act! addict! actors! #a3 act addict actors #a3 x reader #furuichi sakyo x reader #sakyo furuichi x reader #a3 imagines #scenario

[estherdedlock]

So I finished If We Were Villains and...(spoilers and downers to follow)...

I don’t know. It was engaging and entertaining enough and I understand its appeal to the Dark Academia set but it’s just not a very good book. It’s got a lot of drama but it’s drama for the sake of having drama and not because the story builds the foundation for it. Many of the characters’ actions and reactions seem to come out of nowhere but are just very...well, dramatic.

Maybe that’s what the author was trying to say? That these Shakespearean students are so immersed in theatrical tragedy that it’s warped the way they view themselves and each other and reality itself? Like the way the students in The Secret History got sucked into their own eccentricities and weird passions, not waking up to reality until it was way too late? I don’t know.

I’ve already expounded at length on the senselessness of Richard’s death. I wrote that post when I still had more than half of the book to read, but the remaining story did nothing to change my mind. If anything, Rio doubled down on her descriptions of Richard as a monster, a nearly demonic figure who cast such a black, threatening shadow over the other six students that they lived in terror of him and he simply had to die. None of this is supported by her descriptions of Richard at the beginning of the book. Richard’s abrupt descent into violent brutality comes out of nowhere. James does indeed seem to have killed Richard in self-defense at that moment in the boat house, but the other five students are the ones who unanimously agreed to let him die, even though he posed no immediate threat to them.

I don’t understand at all how Meredith figured out James had killed Richard. She tells Oliver that she just “knew” after James drunkenly groped her in the bathroom and said, “What’s done is done, and even-handed justice for us both.” Considering that a) they were always quoting Shakespeare at each other and b) he was drunk off his ass, I just don’t see how she could’ve gotten, “I killed Richard,” out of that.

I also don’t understand why Meredith immediately ran off to tell Colborne. Was she angry at James? Jealous of Oliver’s feelings for him? It seems like such an unreasonably spiteful thing to do. Especially when she literally had nothing to go on except her own suspicions. She didn’t find the bloody shirt in the fireplace. She didn’t find the boathook in James’ mattress.

And then when she finally sees Oliver again after he’s released from prison...she slaps him in the face? What? And Oliver thinks, I deserve much worse. For what, exactly? And then they...move in with each other? Huh?

The star-crossed love story between James and Oliver also seems to come out of nowhere...and go nowhere. Oliver loves James with such a passion that he sacrifices himself to keep James out of prison...is this supposed to parallel Romeo and Juliet somehow? And the fact that Meredith could have provided Oliver with a rock-solid alibi...and didn’t...again, why? Spite? Is she angry that Oliver didn’t love her enough to resist taking the rap for James? Not to mention...there’s no way this half-cocked confession of Oliver’s would have stood up to interrogation. And why on earth are James and Oliver so reticent with each other? It’s 1997 fer fuck’s sake, not 1957. It all just makes no sense.

And why is there a wholly unnecessary eating disorder subplot in here? More drama? Or Rio couldn’t figure out any other way to have Richard find that scrap of bloody shirt in the fireplace?

And this: “Which of us could say we were more sinned against than sinning? We were so easily manipulated---confusion made a masterpiece of us.” Manipulated by whom? Each other? Gwendolyn? Shakespeare??

I’m just babbling now, but I seriously don’t know when it became possible to publish a book with so many weak spots in it. I think there would have been a time when an editor would have put this story right in the slush pile...or, if she felt it had some potential, she would have given the author some serious, detailed criticisms and asked her to rework the manuscript and resubmit it. I don’t think that happens now. I think things started to change with Harry Potter and Twilight. When publishers realized that adults were enthusiastically consuming fiction for teens and children, they understood that readers were more interested in the way a story made them feel, and were not terribly picky about things like well-developed characters and airtight plots. Fifty Shades of Grey cemented that new reality: just dreadful, badly written books full of paper-thin characters and ridiculous plots...that went on to earn millions for their publisher. IWWV is nowhere near that bad, but I can understand why the editors at Flatiron Books felt this story was good enough as it was and didn’t need any tightening up.

I honestly think IWWV would have worked so much better as a horror novel than a mystery. Like, maybe old Archibald Dellecher made his fortune with a little occult help. Late in life, he dedicates himself to the arts (as many Gilded Age millionaires did) and leaves his estate to this conservatory. But the place is cursed, like the Overlook Hotel, and the students don’t just study Shakespeare, they become possessed by Shakespeare, believing themselves to be living out those betrayals and temptations and ill-fated romances in their own lives. That would have at least explained some of the goings-on here.

I will say that Rio’s knowledge of Shakespeare is admirable and it inspired me to get my own Complete Works off the shelf...I don’t think I’ve cracked it open in decades and in fact, I unexpectedly found several high school mementos stuck in the pages that made me very sad. But reading Shakespeare again proved to be rather absorbing and so if I got anything out of IWWV, it’s that.

#if we were villains #dark academia #the secret history

[chroniclerdl]

Seven Fundamentals to Writing Better Yu-Gi-Oh Duelfics

Ever wanted to write a duelfic just as good or better than canon?

Done right, duels are memorable action scenes.

Done wrong, duels shatter the suspension of disbelief. It’s already a big ask to imagine the world revolving around a card game.

You don’t want the tragedy where your readers yank the scrollbar past your duel, or worse, close your tab. Even the small pool of duelfic readers/writers like me will skip huge chunks of your chapters when the duels sag.

By implementing basic storytelling techniques tailored to dueling, you can hook your readers into following the play-by-play.

High Stakes

Consistent Rules

Sneaks Checked

“Balanced” Gameplay

Foreshadowing Victory

Engaging Description

Dramatic Tension

1. High Stakes

When you advertise your story as a duelfic, your first duel tells readers whether or not what you wrote is worth their time.

If your characters duel without a concrete reason to rip the opponent’s throat, readers already know the outcome:

You lose.

Why? The game is pointless. Who’s dropping whatever they’re doing just to read the equivalent of your characters sipping afternoon tea? If you’re introducing the setting and characters, why can’t you introduce exciting threats?

No reader expects your first duel to decide the fate of the world, but your characters still need to bet.

Characters wager life chips.

If your character loses, they suffer death or suicide-inducing despair.

Is it too much to start with life-and-death? No. Think of the life chip as the culmination of hopes and dreams.

As the story progresses, the stakes will rise, must rise. How? Others will entrust the main characters with their own life chips, and/or the life chips acquire additional meaning. Consider this loose analogy: at the end of a poker tournament, gamblers sit at the final table with stacks built from the chips of others.

Life chips mean different things to different characters. Let’s take the Duelist Kingdom arc.

Yugi’s life chip is the hope to save his grandfather (and later, his own soul)

Joey’s life chip is the hope to win the prize money to fund his sister’s medical operation

Kaiba’s life chip is the hope to save his little brother (and later, his own soul)

You don’t even need your final showdown to revolve around the fate of world; it just has to be one or more things that matter to your characters.

Also, make sure to communicate the stakes, or why the characters accept uneven bets.

If you have the chops, you can also play around with disguising the stakes. As in, your character thinks they’re wagering something small, but it’s actually their life chip. However, your readers still need a vague reason to believe that a defeat will devour the character.

Always make sure the characters stake one or more life chips!

2. Consistent Rules

If you watched the Duelist Kingdom arc and tried to understand the moves everyone made, your head exploded.

Ask yourself: will the clever scheme that your hero invented drive readers crazy?

If I write a magic system that requires a wand, this applies to all. I cannot become a genius and suddenly wave my hands to cast magic.

Demonstrate the rules early, preferably in the first duel, and keep them sacred.

If you must make an exception, establish it early. In that case, the exception becomes a well-defined branch of the rules that the readers can anticipate.

Can the players magically draw the card they need, whenever they want?

If you can establish the when and why, by all means. The readers proceed with the understanding that the players can reach into their deck like a glorified toolbox.

For example, Duel Links has a concept called “skills” that function like a player’s special ability. At the time I wrote this, Yami Yugi’s “Destiny Draw” skill lets the player take any card from their deck once per duel after losing 2000LP (and even if they stacked the top of the deck earlier!).

Card should also have the same, predictable effect. If the card prevents attacks, I doubt the text discusses physical properties or mentions holding things in the air. But you knew that, right?

The rules are the laws of the universe.

3. Sneaks Checked

I love duels. I also love getting what I want.

Why does getting what I want have to be through a duel?

If we talk, maybe we can come to an agreement. If I blackmail you, maybe you’ll give in to my demands. If I shoot you, I can loot your corpse. Give the readers a good reason as to why your characters would bother with the hassle of honest dueling and can’t wiggle from the consequences of losing.

Often, the duel takes place in the context of a tournament. Hopefully, the tournament officials are keeping a good eye on the players and cracking down on cheaters.

However, even that’s not a guarantee. What’s the key concept?

Power.

The competitors have equivalent capacity for coercion (usually violence) or have a neutral referee presiding over the match with the most capacity for coercion (shoutout to gambling manga Usogui).

Anyone who enters a game otherwise has lost before the first move.

In Yu-Gi-Oh, magical and sci-fi enforcement are common. The Shadow Realm can trap the loser in a desolate hell. In a digital world, the loser suffers deletion. Or just have good tournament officials.

Be vigilant when your duel doesn’t call upon these tropes.

Your amoral characters won’t mind blindsiding your other characters, and they won’t mind blindsiding you with a plot hole.

If you’re not careful, the readers will ask you why they played uncharacteristically fair.

4. “Balanced” Gameplay

Duels should be fair and fun…for the villain.

Ostensibly, everyone plays a balanced game, designed to give both sides a sporting chance. In reality, the villain tilts the field to their favor with one or more tricks up their sleeves. Why would your villain ever fight fair?

But that’s fine. We love rooting for the underdog and watching the villain get their comeuppance.

Overpowered ability to let the villain read minds? Deck full of unbalanced cards that makes the villain’s monsters invincible with no drawback? Creator who knows every strategy in the game? Readers will turn the page as they wonder how the hero will prevail.

The more obstacles you can throw in the hero’s way, the better.

Got custom cards? No problem, just follow a couple guidelines. After all, some duelists are more equal than others.

The hero’s deck is full of regular cards that have a cost to use. For every play they want to make, their cards insist that they give up their attack, discard to play, etc.

The villain’s deck is full of rare cards that power up their game for free. So long as you can justify why the card made it to print, the villain can play whatever they want.

For every step your hero takes, the villain gets two.

5. Foreshadowing Victory

How many times have you watched a duel where the protagonist comes up with this never-before-seen card that does exactly what the protagonist needs to clinch the win? In the final showdown, no less? It’s like the writers begged to be called amateurs and idiots.

No other genre tolerates such laziness.

However, readers don’t want an infodump of the characters’ decks. Show the cards in action. To cover the deck, you'll probably need multiple duels.

This also implies you have more freedom in how your character defeats their early opponents in the duelfic.

Does that previous statement contradict what I said about never-before-seen cards clinching the win as the mark of laziness? No, because here’s the rule:

Tolerance for the hero’s new cards decreases as the story progresses.

(Notice that I specify the hero’s new cards; your villains exist to make life harder by inventing unfair tricks.)

When you must include new cards for the hero late in the duelfic, at least find a way to make them first backfire.

Now, some writers have lots of knowledge about the card pool and metagame. Can they assume the readers a priori know the hero has access to any of the available cards in a given archetype?

I’d err on the side of caution and properly foreshadow the cards before they appear late in the duelfic. Not every reader is a walking card database. They have no reason to assume something exists unless you show the card.

Take the tolerance rule into consideration when planning your duels. If you know the awesome combo you want to use for the final turn in the duelfic climax, that’s your cue to scatter the cards into the earlier duels.

Plan the last duel first and your early duels last.

6. Description

Every reader wants a front-row seat to the action.

They’re paying you their time, so make it worth the admission: sleek combatants & budget-busting fights. Kaiba invented Solid Vision technology for a reason, so help readers envision your duels.

Who’s fighting? Describe the point-of-view’s impression of the monsters’ appearances. Red-Eyes Black Dragon should be self-explanatory.

What about a decorated monster like Time Wizard?

You could go into detail about how the red clock humanoid has yellow gears that form epaulets and purple, pointy boots and a green mustache made from clock hands and so on, but such a level of minutiae bogs pacing and invites skimming.

Readers just need to hear about a purple-caped, red clock humanoid with a wand to form an image. Their imaginations can handle the little details.

Paint appearances in broad strokes and one or two brief sentences.

How are the monsters fighting? Duel Monsters is a game where the target takes the aggressor’s attack like a champ. That doesn’t mean you can’t spice it up.

For example, my opponent’s dragon attacks my weaker knight with a fireball. My knight, interested in not dying, raises his shield. Unfortunately, he screams as the flames engulf him.

You wouldn’t just stand still with a straight face if someone armed with a knife lunged for your gut.

A fight scene is a string of action and reaction.

Most people also experience life in more senses than just sight.

A dragon’s fireball is a bright reddish-orange, hot, dries the air, smoky, and explodes with a boom on impact. I never tasted a fireball, and I hope I never do, but that’s still four senses: sight, touch, smell, and sound.

Include multiple sensory details.

Let’s spare a moment to talk about the heads-up display (HUD).

In Yu-Gi-Oh, cards have multiple stats and abilities. You’re free to mention whatever you deem necessary. No set formula exists. On one extreme, you can mention nothing to keep the narrative clean at the risk of confusing the readers. At the other extreme, infodumps about the monster’s abilities provide great detail but wreck the pacing. But there’s a cozy middle.

State only what you need from the card.

If your duels occurred before the era of Synchro, you don’t need details about levels. You can just display the basic stats to determine the stronger monster. If a deck has Pendulum monsters, just mention the scale numbers when they're played as scales. And so on.

You can also make an index of new cards at the end of a chapter.

BONUS TIP! Understanding show, don’t tell.

What is show, don’t tell? At its core, this concept refers to immersing your readers in the senses and feelings instead of exposition. Unfortunately, that definition is a bit vague to execute. After writing for a while, I had my lightbulb moment.

Don’t TELL the readers how to think or force-feed them a conclusion.

SHOW your readers the evidence.

Here’s a written example from Joey vs. Rex in Duelist Kingdom. See if you can spot what makes this prose telling instead of showing.

“Joey watched nervously as Two-Headed King Rex stomped Baby Dragon. He messed up his Baby Dragon-Time Wizard combo!”

You can see two failures: “nervously” and the second sentence.

Adverbs like “nervously” and other “-ly” friends get a bad rep because rookies tend to use them as telling crutches (especially beware adverbs after dialogue tags!). “Nervously” tells me how Joey reacts. But what does “nervously” look like? One character might bite their thumb. Another might fidget in their seat. The adverb in this context lacks nuance.

We also have the second sentence: “He messed up his Baby Dragon-Time Wizard combo!” When you’re explaining the “why” to something, you’re telling. It’s like talking down to your readers.

Contrast with the next example.

“A bead of sweat rolled off Joey’s face as Two-Headed King Rex stomped Baby Dragon. He stared at the Time Wizard in his hand.”

The first sentence shows me Joey’s physical reaction. I see him sweating, so I think he’s nervous.

We also see a second physical reaction: “He stared at the Time Wizard in his hand.” This comes on the heels of the first sentence, and I also have knowledge of when Joey used the Baby Dragon-Time Wizard combo in a prior duel. Combined, I think Joey is ruminating about a missed chance.

Readers are smart; they’ll catch your intention if you show the proof.

7. Dramatic Tension

I bet you know what it's like to draw a bad hand.

Imagine: The hero staggers into the arena, and the villain just needs to win one duel to take over the world. The villain draws a bunch of powerups with no monster, but the hero draws a one-turn-kill combo.

Anticlimactic. The readers throw that duelfic straight into the trash.

Don’t just write real-life duels. “It really happened” doesn’t mean it’s emotionally satisfying.

That’s why we have literary structure.

Success and setback pace together with progressive intensity to maximize dramatic tension and emotional payoff.

I’ll spare the nitty-gritty theory detail, but your duels should look like this on a basic level:

Part 1: Villain’s basic threats. Introduces the villain’s deck and style.

Part 2: Villain’s minor strategy. The villain’s first serious attempt to defeat the hero.

Part 3: Villain’s major strategy. The hero’s reversal! But the villain has worse in store.

Part 4: Hero’s imminent defeat. The hero must break through, or else will instantly lose!

Ideally, you’re also integrating the story itself into the duel; themes and duels synergize to create a stronger effect.

You may notice how the format resembles the three-act structure.

Act I is Part 1

Act II until the Act II midpoint is Part 2

Act II midpoint until Act III is Part 3

Act III is part 4.

I’ll use Yugi/Pharaoh vs. Pegasus in Duelist Kingdom as an example.

Part 1: Mind scan. Pegasus can read minds to counter combos.

Part 2: Toon World. Indestructible, cartoonified monsters attack.

Part 3: Shadow game. Toons destroyed! But playing a shadow game weakens Yugi.

Part 4: Yugi passes out. The Pharaoh must find a new way to stop Pegasus’s mind scan!

Figure out each part of the structure for your duels before writing the turn-by-turn plays.

By the way, modern real-life Yu-Gi-Oh duels don’t suit drama because the rules provide weak constraints to creating strong boards. A good modern deck usually establishes a scary turn one board and jumps straight into Part 4, whereas other card games like Magic: The Gathering and Hearthstone force the powerhouse cards to wait several turns until the player builds the mana to pay costs.

You can still write a good modern duel. Here’s a basic outline of Arc-V’s duel between Sora and Shay. Technically, “tragedy” is the structure of this duel, so I’ll make Shay the “hero” to flip it and keep matters simplified.

Part 1: Basic monsters. These clash before a monster appears from the Extra Deck.

Part 2: Frightfurs. They come one after another to crush Shay’s Raidraptors.

Part 3: Sora’s wrath. Rise Falcon survives! But Sora’s malevolent nature comes to light.

Part 4: Frightfur Chimera. Sora chomps candy and summons his biggest fusion horror!

If following the four parts is too difficult for you, that’s okay. They're just logical extensions of one basic concept. Keep the following in mind, and you’ll never go wrong:

The villain’s subsequent threats become increasingly overwhelming.

Conclusion

Much of writing a duel boils down to storytelling technique.

Let’s tl;dr the main takeaways.

High Stakes: Minimum ante is the life chip, worth a character’s hopes and dreams.

Consistent Rules: Everyone plays by the same logic.

Sneaks Checked: Characters can’t skip the duels with violence and coercion.

“Balanced” Gameplay: Villains enjoy advantages.

Foreshadowing Victory: Readers have a chance to predict the winning combo.

Engaging Description: Immerse senses and invite reactions.

Dramatic Tension: The villain makes progressively stronger threats.

As a duelfic reader/writer, I can gauge a writer's ability by measuring their duels with the fundamentals. Many fan writers struggle; even the canon writers struggle.

But writing a duelfic isn’t rocket science. With practice, minding the fundamentals will become second nature.

And don't forget to tag your story as a duelfic. It's a whole genre in fanfic, so sort it properly and help readers from the future find you.

May the heart of the cards be with you.

…

Want to see in-depth examples of my advice? I rewrote the Orichalcos arc to reimagine its untapped potential without the failures of the canon presentation. You can find it on FFnet and AO3.

#yugioh #ygo #yugioh fanfiction #yugioh fandom #fanfic writing #duelfic #writing #writing tips #writing advice #writing help #how to write #listicles

[winterhawk-olympic-bang]

Emotive Writing

Guest Poster: @thepartyresponsible​

Emotive writing is about making people Feel Things. People use this all the time to sell you stuff, but we’re out here giving emotions away for free. Here are a few tips and tricks I’ve found to make people feel the most emotions.

Word choice:

This is the most straightforward part of emotive writing. Your word choices add an extra layer of complexity to your message. You aren’t just telling readers what happened; you’re signaling to them how they should feel. Most writers do this unconsciously, but being deliberate can make it especially effective.

Here’s a non-emotive, just-the-facts sentence: The soldier lifted his weapon and turned toward the enemy.

Here’s the same sentence reworked to make you care a bit more: The exhausted soldier raised his broken shield and faced the invading army.

The actions here are fundamentally the same, but exhausted and broken invoke sympathy while invading skews negative.

The words you choose are sign posts for the reader. They indicate how to interpret the story and help your readers orient themselves and form expectations. Subtly building expectation is important because, while surprise can be effective, shock is generally numbing and confusion tends to be irritating, so word choice helps you frame things and guide your reader along.

One of the keys here is to attempt some subtlety. If every sentence about your protagonist reads like an ad campaign (effervescent, brilliant, impervious) and every sentence about your antagonist reads like a political diatribe (cruel, spineless, malicious), you’re probably overusing your sign posts. People want to know who to root for, but too much emotive language can make them feel manipulated.

Think of word choice like adding spices to food. If you put oats in boiling water, you’re making oatmeal, and the spices you use won’t change that. But if you throw in some honey and cinnamon, I know we’re headed somewhere wholesome. If you sprinkle in little discordant notes of garlic powder and cayenne, what we’re cooking is a tragedy. And if you upend an entire bottle of cinnamon, a quarter cup of nutmeg, and toss in seventeen whole cloves, I am not staying for breakfast.

Narrative distance:

Narrative or psychic distance is the space between the reader and the character, usually navigated by the intermediary figure of the narrator. Your narrator can be an omniscient figure that knows the thoughts, feelings, and intentions of every character in the world. Or your narrator could be sitting on the shoulder of your main character, close enough to hear their thoughts and know their story but not so close that they speak with the character’s voice. Or your narrator could be your character.

If you want to ramp up emotion, you usually want a narrator who is very close to one character (or, alternatively, to separate characters in turn). But you don’t have to stay at one distance for the whole story, and, just like word choice, shifts in narrative distance can be helpful indicators to your reader about the story and the characters.

A sudden, dramatic shift in narrative distance is quite jarring, like a sudden zoom-in during a movie. It can be effective, but it’ll lose its punch if it’s overused. Generally, if you want to shift narrative distance, you should build to it slowly. Here’s an example of shifting from a distant third person to a closer third person:

They wake the Soldier because the archer is missing. He has a habit of slipping his lead, disappearing post-mission. The chase grew tedious years ago, but the Soldier runs it just the same. He’ll do as he’s told. But it bothers him, when he lets it. The why.

Why does he do this? the Soldier wonders, when he shouldn’t, when it isn’t his place. Where is he going? he thinks, when he can’t stop himself. Who is he running to? But he tries to think nothing at all.

Another trick of narrative distance is to suddenly pull back to show a character who’s been compromised, shocked, or deeply hurt by something. Imagine spending a long time in a close Bucky perspective, hearing his thoughts, and then being abruptly walloped across the face with: The machine went quiet, and the Soldier opened his eyes. Zooming out can emphasize what’s been lost. Because you aren’t just taking the soul of Bucky Barnes right out of him, you’re also taking that closeness away from the reader. You’re silencing the voice they’ve been listening to.

Whether you zoom in or out during highly emotional moments depends on what you’re trying to accomplish and also on who’s involved.  Some characters have loud, messy emotions that will get louder when they’re hurt. Some characters will freeze over and push a narrator further away. You can use narrative distance to show a character slowly opening up or suddenly slamming a door. But you need the reader to have a solid understanding of the character in order to follow what the shift means, which leads to the next component.

Know your characters:

So, here’s the thing. You gotta Velveteen Rabbit this. Every character is Tinker Bell. If you stop believing, they die.

If you want people to care about these characters, you have to treat them like living, breathing, fully feeling people. They have favorite colors. They have phobias. They have Friday night plans and blisters from new shoes and sesame seeds stuck in their teeth. They have superstitions and secrets. You don’t need to know all of these facts, but you should try to give the impression that someone could know them. The more real your characters are, the more we’re going to care about them.

Since this is fanfiction, you start with a receptive audience. Your readers are fond of these characters. Figure out why. Figure out which parts of the character you can relate to and dig in until you feel like you can understand the parts of them you can’t relate to.

Try to collect things that make you feel close to that character. I always have music playing when I’m writing, so I make playlists for characters and playlists for stories. If I feel like I’m losing a character, I’ll go back to their playlist. But you could also use Pinterest boards, reread favorite fics or comics, rewatch movies or fanvids, or spend an unreasonable amount of time researching bows and tactical knives. Whatever works!

Also, remember, your characters don’t know what story they’re in. They don’t know it’s going to end well (or terribly). Maintain that tension, because that’s where the emotions are. When you watch a good horror movie, you’re not really scared of the monster. You’re scared for the characters, because they don’t know if they’re going to survive.

Emotions come from the characters. That’s why it’s still sad that Tony Stark dies, no matter how many times you watch it happen. Tony Stark was brave and flawed and usually right and often sarcastic, and it hurts to watch him die because that’s a full, unique human we’re losing. We know him well enough to know he’s choosing to sacrifice himself and why he made that choice and who will mourn him.

Know your characters, and let them be messy and weird and wrong and hopeful and cantankerous and unique. Fear is relatable, flaws are relatable, and awkward, ungainly, stubborn progress is relatable. Just remember what it is that makes their progress their progress because, if you can swap Dominic Toretto in for Ted Lasso and have the exact same story, you’ve probably lost your characters.

Plan your emotional trajectory:

Okay, time to get a bit technical. This is for people who like to plan. For those terrifying, godlike writers who just sit down and write, this might not be helpful. For my fellow planners:

There’s a theory (which you can get a general overview about here or, if you’re very into data, right here) that there are six core emotional trajectories in narratives:

1)      Rags to riches (rise)

2)      Riches to rags (fall)

3)      Man in a hole (fall then rise)

4)      Icarus (rise then fall)

5)      Cinderella (rise then fall then rise)

6)      Oedipus (fall then rise then fall)

Since rise and fall can mean different things, I find it helpful to combine these building blocks with emotional axes, which you can find some examples of here.

So, basically, for my winterhawk baseball au Got a Heart in Me, I Swear, I planned to follow the “man in a hole” trajectory (fall then rise) along the anxiety-confidence emotional axis with some bleedover from the humiliation-pride axis. Which basically means Clint started comfortable enough, nosedived deep into anxiety and humiliation, and then slowly built his way to confidence over the rest of the fic.

If the listed axes don’t appeal to you, you can very easily create your own. Just think of an emotion, identify what links it to its inverse, and then list the related emotions between the two opposites. Disgust and adoration are opposites, but they’re linked by attention, right? You can’t ignore something you find disgusting or adorable. So, here’s an example emotional axis you could follow: Disgust – Resentment – Obsession – Fascination – Reverence – Adoration. Enemies to lovers, anyone?

Emotional axes help provide a natural framework for your character’s emotional trajectory. They can be subtle; you don’t have to start on one end of the spectrum and go all the way to the other. A story that moves just a step or two on an emotional axis can be incredibly compelling. That small progress from discomfort to hope can hit really hard if the progress feels fought-for and earned and real.

Tips for writing emotions:

·         Get physical: If you want to show an emotion instead of telling it, describe its impacts on the body. Most characters won’t think I’m embarrassed. They’ll feel a drop in their stomach like someone cut the elevator cables and a hot stinging in their face like they’ve been slapped by some disappointed version of themselves. The more visceral your descriptions, the more the reader will feel them. If you want your reader to feast on feelings, you have to set the table.

·         Dramatic zoom: When something very intense happens, shift the narrative distance. In or out is fine, but a sudden, dramatic event should result in a sudden, dramatic change in focus. Characters might hyperfocus on their physical bodies (the mechanics of breathing, the ringing in their ears, the mad animal urge toward flight) or they might be kicked so far out of their own heads that they feel like they’re dreaming or watching the scene play out from overhead. This distance is useful for two reasons: it feels real, and it allows readers to absorb the situation in pieces, without being overwhelmed by it.

·         Unreliable narrator: Some emotions can be so charged that people don’t want to own them, like grief, shame, jealousy, rage, lust, and guilt. Characters might unconsciously misrepresent these to themselves as something else. A grieving mother might insist she’s tired. A rehabilitated assassin who’s fallen in love with an absolute dork might tell himself he’s just tracking a target. Everyone knows what it’s like to lie to themselves, so this makes characters relatable. And, also, everyone likes being in on a secret, so, sometimes, this is just fun.

·         Face the monsters: We’re often conditioned not to dwell on unpleasant things, which is part of why it can be powerful to examine them in stories. From small things like inglorious emotional states (envy, cowardice, resentment) to character flaws (recklessness, withdrawal, arrogance) to personal tragedies (loss, betrayal, abandonment), the negative parts of human emotional life pack quite a punch. Acknowledge them. Not only are they relatable experiences, but redemption and recovery arcs are some of the most compelling stories we have.

#whob #winterhawk #winterhawk olympic bang #writer workshops #writer workshop: emotions #guest post #thepartyresponsible

[nyctolovian]

sweetheart, you look a little tired

Summary: During a power outage at the observatory he works at, Martin finds a spirit trapped in a lantern, thus meeting Jon. The two find themselves developing a relationship together, and realising they'd stay with the other. No matter what.

Written for TMA Fantasy Week (Prompt: Lantern)

A/N: Hey uhhh warning! It’s a tragedy and there is major character death. So you have been warned. Title is from the lyrics of "two" by Sleeping at Last

There was a lantern in the observatory up the hill. It's hard to notice it, tucked into a corner of the storage room, but when you needed light, it'd be hard to miss. It was a glass lantern, framed with a brass that never seemed to lose its shine. Inside was a tall white candle, and, if you looked closely enough, its wick glowed ever-so-slightly, despite the lack of flame. 

As though it were trying to light itself.

***

There was a power outage again. You'd think an observatory filled with all these science-y people would have figured out a way to stop all these sudden blackouts but perhaps not. The observatory wasn't exactly as well-funded as it used to be so that might be the reason for this.

Still, Martin found himself in the worst place to be during a blackout, the storage room. The storage room wasn't terrible, per se, just difficult. It was littered with things, and when Martin had first arrived, it seemed as though the scientists at this place had been simply chucking things into the storage room carelessly for the past 50 years. To make things worse, being one of the few underground rooms, the storage would fall pitch black in a blackout. Then, here comes the worst part: there was no one else in the observatory. It was close to 11pm and Martin had been the last to leave. It'd take a while before the light came back, he supposed.

So, not wanting to trip and die in some dusty old storage, Martin bent to his knees and held his hands forward, to make sure he didn't bump into anything while feeling his way out. But that's when he noticed it, a faint glow. 

Sitting atop a shelf, was a lantern with a candle in it. For some reason, the wick was slightly glowing, giving off just enough light for it to bounce off its brass beams and allow the lantern to stand out in the pitch black.

Martin frowned and reached for it. As he pulled it towards himself to inspect it, he found that if he squinted hard enough, he could see a box of matches shifting about inside it. He fumbled with the lantern for a while before locating the latch. With the matches in the lantern, he lit the candle. Instantly, the storage room was permeated with the soft light of the flame and Martin could see again. 

Picking up the lantern again, he stood up to leave. With the better light, he could see the lantern better now. Its base was hexagonal and the metal beams at its corners rose to support a round roof. The roof was patterned intricately with roses, leaves and vines. The romantic in Martin couldn't help but twist it around to inspect and stare in awe. 

"Well, I suppose I have to thank you for this," a voice came from behind.

Squeaking, Martin spun around and saw a man standing right behind him. The lantern slipped from his fingers and the other man let out a noise of fear as he tried and failed to catch the lantern. Luckily, Martin saved it in the nick of time. 

"Jesus christ!" the other man hissed. "Don't drop the bloody thing!"

"I— S-Sorry. I j-just, well, you startled me," Martin said, hand over his heavily thumping heart. He inhaled deeply to bring back his customer service voice. "Sir, you're not supposed to be here by the way. This room has restricted access. Were you in the room this entire time? I didn't even notice you when I came in."

"I–" The other man cleared his throat. "Technically, yes, I was in the room the whole time. For about 30 years actually."

"What?"

"I live in this lantern, you see. Or rather, my spirit is trapped in it."

"What?!"

"You released my spirit when you lit the candle," the man went on, gesturing at the lantern, as though to prove a point. That was when Martin noticed it, however, the way the light from the lantern passed through the fingers of the other man. He was translucent. 

A ghost.

Martin felt faint.

***

The other man did not faint, but Jon had to support him as he sat heavily on a cardboard box and cradled his head. This time, the man gently placed the lantern on the floor before he could risk dropping it again. It made Jon feel slightly bad for startling him. 

But Jon was trying to thank him for god's sake. He was trying to be polite. There really was no need for this Victorian era fainting business. And he had nearly dropped the damn lantern too! Jon had no idea what would happen if the thing broke, but he was pretty sure it couldn't be good news for him.

In hindsight, perhaps Jon should have exercised some tact with the man. It could be quite unpleasant business, accidentally releasing a spirit. In his defense, however, it is quite impossible to go about this business pleasantly. 

So, as soon as the other man had calmed down enough, Jon thought it'd be best to establish that he was friendly. "The name is Jonathan Sims," he said, sticking a hand towards the other man. "But you can call me Jon. Nice to meet you."

The man gave him a nervous but gentle smile. "I'm Martin Blackwood. I, uh… am a staff at this observatory. Nice to meet you too!" He received Jon's hand firmly.

As Martin's hand enclosed around his, however, Jon couldn't help the jolt that ran up his arm. He had not had contact with a human being in his 30 odd years of being trapped in the lantern. The warmth and solidness of the other man was… shocking to say the least. But not unwelcome. He had to stop himself from melting into the handshake, like a pathetic wax candle.

Martin must have noticed that reaction because his voice grew concerned. "Are you— are you alright?"

"Just, um, just not used to the physicality of everything," Jon half-lied. He patted his shirt anxiously. 

"Right," Martin said, clearly not quite knowing how to respond. He stood up from the cardboard box with a soft grunt. "I-I hope you don't mind but I do need to use your lantern for a bit. To get out."

"Oh, sure thing. As long as you don't mind me tagging along."

Martin smiled politely. "Of course! It's your lantern after all."

The two of them successfully left the room, and entered a corridor. Martin walked down the long corridor without much fuss while Jon tried to open and peer through as many doors as he could without falling too far behind. Each of the rooms looked so interesting. 

Finally, they reached the entrance. Martin cleared his throat and turned to Jon. "Well, uh, goodbye then? Where should I leave you? Or do you want to come with me…?"

Immediately, Jon replied, "I'd like to stay here. In one of those rooms. I, well, I'd like to take a look around."

Martin blinked. "W- Sure," he said, nodding. He passed the lantern over to Jon, but Jon's fingers phased right through it. 

"Seems like… I can't interact with the lantern specifically," Jon muttered. He pursed his lips. "You can just… leave me…" He frowned.

Martin hummed thoughtfully. Then, he went, "Ah, I know just the thing. Let me just…" He reached behind the front desk and retrieved a battery-powered torchlight. He clicked it on and smiled to himself as it lit up. "Alright! We'll drop you off in an interesting room then!"

***

When Martin next returned to the room, neither Jon nor the lantern was there. He asked Winnie, the janitor, if she had moved it or something, but she said she didn't see any lantern anywhere, though she did note that there were a couple of files strewn across the floor for some reason. Frowning, Martin went to the storage room to take a look and, just as he had suspected, the lantern had returned to the shelf. 

He debated internally if he should light it up again, but he recalled Jon's wide-eyed look the previous night, the way he looked as though he wanted to experience everything. He took out a lighter from his pocket and lit the candle (which strangely had not shrunk an inch since yesterday). 

As he closed the latch of the lantern, he had expected some sort of dramatic entrance. Or a magical-looking one where a wisp of smoke would trickle out and form the man from yesterday perhaps. Instead, all he got was a disgruntled noise behind him.

"I was in the middle of reading something and the flame went out!"

"Morning, Jon. I was wondering where you were," Martin greeted, turning. In the fluorescent light, it was now even more obvious that Jon was not human at all. The light passed through him and he had a bluish tinge to his entire being. 

"The flame went out and the whole lantern simply returned to its original state and position. Can you believe the audacity of the thing? Being bound to this object is unbelievably frustrating." Then, he looked up at Martin. "Will you move the lantern back into that room?" he said, running his hand through his wavy graying locks. "I was still reading about Sirius and I really didn't appreciate being interrupted like this."

"Ah," Martin mumbled. "But… more staff will be entering and it'd be strange to see a ghost hanging around, right?"

Jon's eyebrows twitched with annoyance before he crossed his arms. "You're right."

Martin frowned sympathetically. He looked like an upset puppy, sulking in its dog bed, after its newest toy was ripped out of its muzzle. He had to admit, he was a slight bit weak to puppies like that so he smiled reassuringly at Jon and said, "How about this? I'll move your lantern back before I leave from work."

Jon's eyes practically sparkled with exuberance. "You'd do that?"

***

It became a routine. Martin would enter the observatory early, chat with Jon in storage, go to work, wait till he observatory cleared out, before bringing Jon out. Sometimes, they'd go back to the room Jon was in the previous night before he was rudely yanked back into the lantern and sent back to storage. Sometimes, they'd go to somewhere new, and there was a unique joy in seeing Jon get excited exploring it. He'd usually stick around for an hour longer, chatting with the ghost, before heading home.

Conversations with Jon were pleasant. He was always excited to share whatever new discovery he had made recently, be it a constellation he read about, the theories of black holes or catching a glimpse of Saturn on the observatory's telescope. 

There was a point about 3 days into this arrangement that Jon stopped mid-way through one of his rambling and looked up. There was a reddish tinge to his ears as he apologised for talking too much. 

"I don't mind," Martin replied. "I've worked here as a file clerk for so long and I've never had anyone explain all this stuff to me actually."

"Never?" the ghost mumbled, frowning. "But you're interested?"

It wasn't that Martin had ever had an overt interest in the cosmos. There was a job application, and he just submitted his job application (altering it slightly to suit their needs). But he supposed he was infected by Jon's enthusiasm and curiosity. 

So for an hour or so every night, Martin would sit there, listening to Jon.

***

"Did something happen?" Jon asked as soon as he was released from the lamp.

Martin's eyes looked tired. "Hm? No, it's nothing…" 

At least lie better, Jon thought huffily. Martin didn't drop by for three days. Which was incredibly odd considering this was also the man Jon had tried and failed to convince that there was no need to come back on weekends. This made it the first time in 4 months that Jon hadn't seen Martin.

But if he didn't want to elaborate, Jon wouldn't press the issue either. Instead, he tried to play things according to their usual routine. "I'd like to stargaze tonight," he announced. So he was brought to the outdoors. It was a clear night, and up on the hill, away from the bustling city below, the stars were bright. 

Jon had picked up a telescope on his way out and he began to set it up on the grassy plains behind the observatory. Meanwhile, Martin sat with his back against a tree, simply watching, as he fiddled with the hook ring on the lantern. As usual, Jon filled the silence between them with his usual rambling. 

"I am not expecting anything much today to be honest. But if I had chosen a day that had a supermoon or something, I'd assume there would be more people around and trying to catch it. I think it'd be fun to look at the moon. They say it's the easiest one to start with. And it'd feel more… like a self-made experience to set up a telescope ourselves," Jon said as he tried to align the telescope. He turned around and saw Martin, hunched over himself. "Martin," Jon called.

The other man's head shot up and he plastered on a smile. "Do you need help with anything?"

"Martin, I–" Jon shoved the telescope's cloth bag into the box. "Do you… want to talk to me about it? Whatever's bothering you."

Martin glanced at the ground, and plucked some grass. "I… My mum died."

Jon's eyes widened. "Oh. I-I'm sorry—"

"It's okay," Martin interrupted. "Or… maybe it isn't supposed to be but I… Does it make me a bad person to be relieved that she has?" He looked up, perhaps searching for a reaction from Jon. Jon wasn't sure what he found on his face but whatever Martin saw made him continue, "My mum… she had been ill for a while now and I guess it didn't come as a surprise when the nurses called. Still, to feel… relieved about it. I must be pretty screwed up." Martin ran a hand through his curly reddish locks and looked up at the sky.

Frankly, Jon knew very little about any of this. Loss, family, grief. He'd spent all his existence as a spirit in a lantern by himself. He sat down beside Martin. 

"I took care of her for most of my life. More than half of it mothering my own mother. It… I don't resent her, I don't think. It's just tiring. I worked quite a lot of jobs trying to support her. Stopped schooling early to find a job." Martin pressed his face into his palms. "God, it's like I'm blaming her! It's not her fault she's ill. I'm such a horrible son."

"You did your best."

Martin hummed noncommittally.

Jon's eyes flicked up and down. Then, he took a deep breath and stretched his arms out. "Come here."

Quizzically, Martin frowned, but he slowly eased into arm length anyway. Jon shuffled closer and pulled the other man into a bear hug. 

Sighing into the embrace, Martin mumbled, "I kind of get why she hates me."

Jon frowned at that but said nothing. Instead, he tightened the embrace and rubbed Martin's back gently.

***

The next time they went stargazing, Martin was in a far better mood and he even helped with setting up of the telescope. They ooh-ed and ahh-ed at the moon and its millions of craters for a while before settling on their back and just looked at the stars above with their naked eyes. They draped a black cloth over the lantern and plunged themselves into relative peaceful darkness. The wind blew and the trees and grass rustled gently around them.

It was well past an hour when Jon cleared his throat nervously and asked, "You're not going home?"

Martin shook his head. Just as Jon thought that this was the end, he began, "Frankly, I don't understand about 30% of the things you say. But, I don't know… It feels nice being talked to."

"Does it? I thought it'd be quite annoying," Jon said jokingly.

"Not annoying at all!" Martin quickly said.

Jon blinked at the force with which he said this. 

Eyes fixed upon the sky, Martin pursed his lips. "You know, I never really had someone who would talk to me. Even with my mum, it's usually me telling her something and her just glaring at the corner of the room. If she even wants to see me when I visit. Don't really get along with my coworkers here. Most of them are busy with their science-y astronomy stuff to bother with the file clerk."

Jon looked up at Martin. He supposed he understood that sentiment. Loneliness, that is.

Turning around, Martin smiled. "Gosh, don't look at me like that. What I'm trying to say is I like being with you."

"Oh." Jon felt his face warmed slightly, which was odd. 

Everything was odd ever since Martin came around. A spirit shouldn't be warming up all over the place like a little heating pad. And they shouldn't be feeling their undead hearts fluttering like little moths around a lightbulb whenever they hear the storage door click open either. 

***

Martin had a boyfriend. 

Said boyfriend also kicked him out of the observatory when he suggested staying overnight. "I'm not allowing you to deprive yourself of sleep, Martin Blackwood! You've been sticking around here far too often!" he scolded as he pushed Martin through the door. 

As he lay on his bed, arms folded over his stomach, Martin regretted not arguing that he wouldn't be getting much sleep even if he went home tonight. He'd be too busy thinking about his boyfriend.

It would make Jon sputter and his cheeks darken, just like the moment when they both confirmed that, yes, they both had feelings for each other and, yes, maybe they could try this dating thing. After establishing their new relationship, they had sat together in the storage room, holding hands, and leaning against each other. Martin would occasionally catch Jon glimpsing up at him with awestruck eyes before smiling sweetly to himself.

Martin buried his face into his pillow. He was already missing Jon.

***

"There's a meteor shower tonight," Martin said. "Do you want to watch it outside?"

Jon looked up with a slight frown. "But… But there will be people, right? Watching it too. Isn't it better if we stay here?"

Martin shook his head. "No, there won't be anyone," he replied. 

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am."

The firmness of that reply unsettled Jon. "Wh- Okay… I'll just, um, grab the telescope."

Jon could sense something was coming, but he couldn't tell what. Martin's face was tense, stiff with an unspoken worry. Jon wanted to prod, but he could tell that whatever it was, Martin was planning to say it outside. Still, his stomach was doing flops as he set up the telescope and lay on the grass, waiting. However, the news was much worse than he could imagine.

"The observatory is closing down."

Jon dropped the telescope cover and dived down to catch it before it rolled out of sight. "Wh-What?"

"The town council thought it was a waste of money so they're closing it down. There aren't any plans of tearing down the building I think. It's quite a useless plot of land since it's so far away from everything else," Martin said. "But it's closing. In about a month."

Jon fidgeted with the cover, twisting it in his hands. His heart was beating like a rabbit's. "Then, what does that… what's it mean for…"

"I don't know. I-I'll try to figure something out. But I won't leave you alone. You're not going to be on your own again," Martin said firmly. He took Jon's hand in his and squeezed it. 

Jon squeezed back and then in front of Martin, who wrapped arms around him so that Jon's back was resting against his chest. It was warm, and Jon could feel the rapid thumping of Martin's heart against his back. 

Gently, Jon lifted Martin's hand and kissed the inside of his wrist. 

***

They tried many things. Putting multiple candles. Lighting the lantern as quickly as they could. Putting an electric bulb inside the lantern instead.

But Jon and his lantern were whisked back into the storage room each time the flame of the original candle snuffed out. 

That pretty much ruled out any possibility of Martin just bringing Jon home. 

Martin was looking ragged by the end of the month, but exhaustion did not beat him up as much as the look of frightened resignation upon Jon's face as the day of the observatory's closure inched towards them.

It was during the last week that Martin moved his bed into the storage room. "I… I'm not sure what else to do," he admitted.

Jon looked so guilty, eyebrows knitted and lips trembling with protest. He tried to tell Martin that it was okay. Martin shouldn't stay here. It was ridiculous. What about his house? What about electricity? What about water? He should take care of himself.

But Martin's made up his mind. It was too cruel to leave Jon alone again. And Martin understood how alone he had been better than anyone else. 

Miraculously, it wasn't so bad in the end. Sure, it was a slight pain in the ass, living in an abandoned observatory. There were many new arrangements they had to make, but it was not bad, all things considered. Winters were arguably the worst, but they could live.

The observatory recommended Martin to another job, and it was near the observatory, so that worked out well. It was slightly tiring, climbing up the hill everyday after work, but it was heartwarming when he could light up the lantern in the storage room, and Jon would trickle into existence, smiling fondly.

Even after many years, nobody really wanted to touch the old observatory. It was built on an inconvenient piece of land, and there was frankly little value in investing in it. Nobody bothered climbing up the hill for the abandoned building either.

So for many years, just like that, Martin and Jon had lived together in the old observatory. 

***

Humans died eventually. Jon knew that.

In Martin's older years, Jon had an inkling that it was ending. Every night might be the last. He had grown so used to the routines they had built by now that he sometimes forgets that it was odd how Martin grew grey and wrinkly, while he remained the same. 

Stuck in space and time, he supposed. 

Every night, as they curled around each other, Jon would cup a hand over Martin's face and trace the wrinkles on his forehead. Martin would huff and press his lips against Jon's forehead. "Not everyone can remain young like you, Jon," he teased.

"I only look young," Jon scoffed. "I'm older than you, alright?" Then, he'd press closer to Martin. 

Martin was less warm than he was in the past. As though the older one got, the more of life's warmth seemed to seep out of one's body.

The last day Jon's lantern was lit, Martin had been especially warm while they lay in bed together. Martin rubbed circles into Jon's cold palms and then kissed his neck, his jaw, and then his eyes. "Good night," he whispered, closing his eyes.

"Good night," Jon whispered back as usual.

***

There was a lantern in the old abandoned observatory up the hill. It's easy to notice it, placed in the middle of the table in the old storage room. It was a glass lantern, framed with a brass that never seemed to lose its shine. Inside was a tall white candle, and, if you tried to light it, it would simply snuff out, even though there wasn’t a single draft in the room.

As though it fervently refused to be lit.

#tmafantasyweek #tma #magpod #the magnus archives #jonmartin #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #jmart #fantasy au #MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH #tragedy #my writing #fanfic #tma fanfic #sfw

[sifeng]

Review: Love and Redemption

While I first started watching this drama out of pure curiosity of why people claimed it to be “the second most tragic drama” (after GMP, of course). While there are certainly aspects of this show that could be better, I find it fair to claim that it is a wonderfully made xianxia, and certainly one of the best in the genre within this decade. 

Plot:

According to legends, the god of war saved the heavens in a deadly battle against the demon a thousand years ago. Both fell from the heavens and disappeared from the world. Chu Xuan Ji was born to the world lacking in the six senses which makes her rather clueless and inept. She befriends Yu Si Feng, the outstanding head disciple of Lize Palace who falls for her, thus beginning a xianxia romance that is entangled with the conspiracies from the past. The Zan Hua Tournament is being held in the Shaoyang Sect and its leader Chu Lei has two daughters - his trusted eldest daughter Chu Ling Long, and the youngest daughter Chu Xuan Ji who is lazy and terrible at martial arts. When Yu Si Feng and Chu Xuan Ji meet through a coincidence, they forge a friendship with each other. Yu Si Feng falls for Xuan Ji despite the harsh consequences that he must face as it is forbidden for students of Lize Palace to fall in love. Meanwhile, Ling Long clashes with Wu Tong after she criticized his foul actions at the tournament. In retaliation, Wu Tong accidentally injures Xuan Ji and gets expelled. Having recovered from her injuries, Xuan Ji promises to concentrate on cultivating. Four years later, Xuan Ji and Yu Si Feng meet again. Si Feng wears a mask due to a curse that can only be broken if he finds true love. 

Cast:

Cheng Yi (成毅) as Yu Sifeng (禹司凤)

Yuan Bingyan (袁冰妍) as Chu Xuanji (褚璇玑)

Liu Xueyi (刘学义) as Hao Chen (昊辰)

Zhang Yuxi (张予曦) as Chu Linglong (褚玲珑)

My Opinions:

Plot (My Rating - A-):

First of all, I quite like the pacing in this drama. As the matter of fact, towards the end I actually feel like some things were rushed, not dragged out. It’s never a show that allows you to press the fast forward button, because 1. the tragic moments are super intense and dramatic, and 2. you don’t dare skip over the cute/funny moments because you know there won’t be many left. Second of all, I really appreciate that the writers of this drama really decided that they were going to make the most tragic drama ever. They really dedicated themselves to that craft, and I think they succeeded wonderfully. In terms of plot points, I absolutely loved the whole 9 lifetimes idea. It really brings out the tragedy and beauty of Yu Sifeng - he will do anything to protect those he loves, especially Xuanji. I would not complain if every single lifetime was made into a 45 minute episode, though that would be 405 more minutes of Sifeng being tortured by love on top of the infinite amount of minutes that already exist in this drama. 

One problem I had, again, was with the misunderstanding that separated our two leads. I understand that this misunderstanding was one that had to do with the morals, backgrounds and fates with both of them, and thus was obviously meant to be a separating factor, but with the way the two characters were written, it felt odd that it created such an amount of misunderstanding. Overall, the plot was good, it didn’t have any revolutionary ideas, but it turned up the tragedy factor and had consistent pacing (if not too rushed towards the end). I’m sure there were probably a few plot holes here and there (one of which is why is it so easy to destroy that huge jar thing towards the end? If that’s what’s keeping the universe at balance, shouldn’t it take more than just one Yuan Lang to destroy it?), but overall, solid plot.

Characters (My Rating - B):

Sifeng is an absolute angel. He’s probably the most heroic lead in a drama who acts totally out of selflessness, who will help his loved ones no matter what pain it puts him through, and who can remain so kind, so unbothered mentally by whatever pain everyone puts him through. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have faults. He acts irrationally in the face of love and he often mistrusts the people around him. He’s a very complete character that not only evokes viewer’s sympathy, love and admiration, but also makes sense when taking into consideration his morals. He rarely does things that are out of character. If I were to rate just his character I’d probably give an A+.

But, there are other characters in this drama. I do like Xuanji, not as much as I like Sifeng, but I like her more than most drama leads. Despite the whole lacking six senses thing being a super confusing plot hole of sorts (like she clearly likes people in the beginning, Linglong, Minyan, her father, and dislikes people, Wu Tong, but isn’t she supposed to be unfeeling? Also she screamed out of fear when she fell using the teleport tool etc etc), I liked how she wasn’t stupid, but simply naïve. She’s actually a pretty smart person, especially in the first half of the drama, when she defended Sifeng against the Five Sects, and then Minyan after he was caught from Tianxu Tang. She didn’t let herself be manipulated by her father or Hao Chen, but rather thought for herself, took into account what she knew of their characters and came to the correct conclusion that the Five Sects were being stupid. I found myself a slight bit annoyed when she took the Five Sects side on the whole Mosha Xing issue, but given that the argument was no longer Sifeng vs. her father, but rather demons vs. humans, I can sort of understand why she didn’t trust him. Also, he did lie to her a bunch of times so, I suppose that adds to the fact. Though, she failed to use the trait that I used to really like, which was the ability to take logic and character into consideration. Did she really think that Sifeng never loved her? Because like, with all the evidence right there in her memory, I find it hard for anyone logical being to come to that conclusion. Also, I really like how she eventually became as loving of Sifeng as he was of her. She was literally willing to destroy the world, and herself, just to save him. 

As I have said before, no one likes Hao Chen, and that’s good. He’s obviously written to be a character that you should dislike, not only because he gets in the way of Sifeng and Xuanji, but because he is clearly so biased against demons (despite the fact that most demons aren’t even bad at all); because he manipulates Xuanji/God of War so many times and doesn’t even feel guilty whatsoever; because he always says “for the three realms” and yet happens to do things that will completely destroy the peace of the three realms. There are things to like about him, like I am pretty sure that he does actually care about the three realms, and he does want there to be peace, but his ideology about peace, and love, and war are just so skewed that he ends up doing the opposite of what he wants to do. 

Other characters were mostly likable, like Linglong, Zi Hu, Teng She, Minyan (most of the time), Xiao Yinhua, Ruo Yu (sometimes), Wu Zhiqi, etc etc. Some were evil for no apparent reason like Yuan Lang (why does he want to control the three worlds? What happened to him in the past for him to become this power hungry? If these questions were answered this character could be sooooo much more compelling) and Wu Tong (again, why did he start out so violent and cruel? I understand why he become a demon and helped them, but like does he not realize that it was clearly his fault first?) Also, the Heavenly Emperor seems like such an odd character. I understand he is the emperor and so he shouldn’t hold his relationship with Bailin and Xixuan above their faults, but like why was he so okay with like letting a totally faultless Xi Xuan endure several mortal trials all ending with painful deaths? And if that was because he was being a good and fair emperor, why does he let a game board decide fate? He also just stood there while the world was ending, and it took Xuanji to convince him to help her. I would like to know more about this guy and his complete lack of ability to care about anything.

So overall, while I think the main characters were written very well, with complex characteristics, some of the villains were just left tools to push forward the plot. 

Acting (My Rating - A-):

So first of all, Cheng Yi’s portrayal of Yu Sifeng was absolutely amazing. He brought out all of Sifeng’s traits super well, from shyness initially to the cruelness Mosha Xing to his loving gaze at Xuanji to the heartbreak in tragic parts. I’m pretty sure he’ll become a star after this show, and can I just say, he totally deserves it!

(Like can you see the pain in his eyes?)

I was pleasantly surprised by Yuan Bingyan here. I really like how her acting style changed along with the new role she took, as Xuanji she was bright and cheerful, as God of War she was heartless and cruel. You can see in the nine lifetimes that the way she reacts to Sifeng’s death slowly changes. Her crying scenes need a little more emotion, but overall, a super stable performance. 

Chemistry/Romance (My Rating - A):

The chemistry was just amazing. I find it interesting that their kisses slowly got more and more passionate as time went on. 

I think part of the reason they have such good chemistry is because of the acting. Like oh my god their tiny reactions to when the other gets hurt really gives it away that they love each other. 

The romance was also written nicely. While some people complain that Xuanji didn’t suffer enough, I feel like they don’t have to be equal in suffering in order for them to be a good pairing. You could tell from the very beginning that Xuanji liked Sifeng in a different way from other people. And the fact that they went through nine lifetimes together, each one when Sifeng died because of Xuanji... it just makes their romance so much more epic. Add that with good chemistry, good kisses, and good acting, well of course people love this ship so much! Xuanji would destroy the world for Sifeng, because the only person that matters in her world is Sifeng. Sifeng would put himself through ten lifetimes of torture just so Xuanji can be happy, because so long as Xuanji is happy, he will be happy. 

Music (My Rating - A): this one is simple. Just listen to the soundtrack and you’ll understand my rating. I didn’t give it an A+ though, because while all the songs are great, there isn’t one in particular that I love. 

Costumes (My Rating - A-): Sifeng’s costumes are really pretty. Some of Xuanji’s are pretty too, they get prettier as the show goes on, but some of the ones early on were kind of meh.

CGI (My Rating - A+): the best CGI in a cdrama. Just look at the scenes where Sifeng shows his wings! 

Overall Rating: A-

Recommend For: People who like xianxia dramas and dramas that try to incorporate a lot of themes. People who don’t mind their heart breaking a thousand times while watching a drama. People who want to find a couple that you have to root for. People who like super epic guzhuangs with lots of subplots, mythology, reincarnations etc. 

#cdrama #Cdrama Review #I actually like this more than AoL #cheng yi #成毅 #Yuan Bingyan #袁冰妍 #I love the otp okay #they have such amazing chemistry

[charlettebffxiv]

Prompt #11 Preaching to the Choir

“You ever wonder if these sorts of things are actually necessary?” Alistair stood with his hands on his hips, looking at a carved, marble plaque. It stood on it’s own plinth, inside an alcove of a long hallway he, Charlette and A’nidreah were currently walking through. “No, never. Why wouldn’t they keep something like this for others to see? It is important to remember these sorts of things.” Charlette came to a stop next to him, glancing over the words cut into the white stone, telling a short summary of the events depicted in the statue that sat above it. Three order members, standing valiant with shield, staff and bow raised and pointed towards what looked like a wave. But within that swell of expertly-cut marble, so convincing as liquid despite it’s solid state, were thousands of screaming faces with slitted eyes and long, forked tongues wriggling from between jagged lips that lined mouths, like tears in their features.

“I don’t know. There’s plenty of things we don’t forget, and all they needed to be remembered was to be written in a book. This though.” He swung his heavy, sledgehammer like hand at the depiction “It’s like a spectacle. Like a side attraction at a festival or for one of those traveling minstrel groups, you know? ‘Pay ten gil and see the freakish wonders of the wider world beyond Eorzea!’, but this one is just our history. It’s a tragedy too, but they made it all look so epic.” Charlette’s eyes dropped down over the piece. The man who had carved it was a dramatic sort, that’s true. “Gogogi Nogi was a brilliant sculptor Alistair. The Order and Willow’s Heart were lucky to have ever had the chance to home him. Granted an artist like that doesn’t decide to hide away in a little village like ours for happy reasons.” They exchanged looks, Alistair shrugged. Gogogi Nogi’s life was filled with interesting mysteries, none of which were solved before his passing away. Not that anyone allows his remaining family to forget it, Bobobcufu and Ogi Nogi are constantly requested to expose the truths. Both refuse, but do not confirm or deny whether they know it. The scamps. “But yes, it is a bit garish in some of the details. But goodness the details, just look at it. I feel like I could scoop up some of the Shadow Tide with a cup and drink it.” Charlette took that moment to break a little rule, stepping far out of character, she reached over to the statue and placed a hand against the cold swell of the wave. No, that was indeed stone, but carved to such a smooth finish she could barely tell it was ever chipped from a block. “Yeah, I guess. But even the inscription is a little much. They all died, didn’t they? Stopping The Tide from escaping and sacrificing themselves in the process?” Looking over the plaque, Charlette did have to give Alistair this one at least. Whoever had written it, had wanted to up the scale of the battle, rather than focus too much on the noble sacrifice made by the heroes themselves. “In the depths of ancient ruins, roared perhaps the greatest battle between the Order and the depraved manifestations of the ancient cities' abhorrent end. Blades cut, spells burned, arrows flew. But the Tide of Shadow roared onwards, devouring all that fell in its path, adding their screams to its horrific choir. In the abandoned, lifeless depths, it had grown hungry, it’s eyes were set. The surface was to be its meal. But oaths cried loud in defiance, the Order’s few stood defiant. Five brave souls chose to fulfill their vows, and allow no aberration the freedom to defile our pristine world. A plan was formed, the tunnel was sealed, and the Tide was trapped. We honour these five: Lorianne Monet, Order Agent Bibiwe Biwe, Order Arcanist Orianne Croftte, Order Guardian Sweet Night, Order Arcanist Delphine Garnier, Order Guaridan They died an example, in hopeless combat, for their hearts were one with the Order’s mission.” Charlette had read the entire piece out loud. Grandiose yes, but there was a true melancholy within those words. Each member named on the plaque was there. Bibiwe and Sweet with their staves raised, hands clasping warping aether, beautifully carved to show even the sigils within. Delphine and Orianne, with shields held forward and broadswords clasped in hand, holding the front line. And Lorianne, Wood Wailer mask hung around her neck, and her longbow drawn. All of them looked serene in their duties, the great evil that was bringing an inevitable end to them evoking no fear in the five heroes of Order legend. “You have to wonder, if it was really like this.” Charlette pondered aloud. Alistair snorted, brushing down his beard “It was not. We’ve seen enough to know it was not. Our vows inspire, and we keep our Oaths true. But only a fool believes fear is something you can be free of.” He reached out, fingers running down the list of names. “Makes me think about them. Brienne and Frederick.” Charlette wrapped a hand around his shoulder. “Me too.” Silence took over for a moment, only disturbed by A’nidreah, who forced herself between them, an arm around each of their waists. The Seeker stared up at the statue, then looked to Alistair, and Charlette. “Enough.” she said, pulling them both away from the statue and pushing them towards the doorway. “It’s all nice and stuff, this Hall of Honour, but really they’re preaching to the choir here, aren’t they? We’re all super, duper willing to give our lives for the Order and earn a statue here. But this sun, we’re alive. So let’s go do some alive stuff, like getting Charlette ready for her hearing. She’s got a week to prepare, and the last Gods damned thing I want to do is go out on another mission without her.” They let the tiny Miqo’te push them out of the hall, after all she was right. And if they were going to find Brienne, and get justice for Frederick, they weren’t going to do it here. Charlette needed that hearing to go well. Good thing they had the spirit of a Sunseeker to keep their fires going, Alistair and Charlette ran too cold where that was concerned. That or, no... “A’nidreah, did you break something? Is… is this a rushed getaway?” Charlette turned to look back at the entrance to the hall. “Nope!” She reassured Charlette. It did not work.

#ffxivwrite2021 #ffxiv rp #ffxiv roleplay #ffxiv writing #elezen #duskwight

[sunnygang]

analysing the sep 24 wigfrid animated short (don’t starve)

I am rewatching some Don’t Starve animations and catching up on some i hadn’t seen yet. I am watching the Wigfrid animation tonight for the first time (the sep 24 one). I am a few months late, whoops!

I will be putting this analysis under a cut, since I will be pairing a lot of screen caps from the short itself! Also this turned out WAY longer than I originally intended it to. There’s a tw for incest mention in one paragraph (about a stage play that is relevant, NOT about Wigfrid) and I put the warning surrounded in asterisks and bolded before the paragraph referenced!

The short opens with a shot from what is safe to assume is her front hallway. Wigfrid is an actress and she appears to live alone in a nice home.

The walls are of course covered in her various photographs and stage play memoriam. Over the mantle on the left the framed poster reads  Die Walküre (The Valkyrie). Keep this in mind as this is Wigfrid’s best role. Also peep that nice chaise lounge she’s sitting on!

Some national culture, we get to see the newspaper she is reading. This paper is The Kronicle. The real life Chronicle newspaper, upon searching it, returned a good number of results. I am going to say that this particular article is the Ohio Chronicle (founded by the Lorain Printing and Publishing Co which was founded in 1829, the paper itself may or may not have been founded that same year), and I will get into why later.

The front page features the Tragedy in San Francisco. The tragedy of Maxwell and Charlie! The article header specifically reading “Tragedy in San Francisco! Many Still Missing After Devastating Earthquake!” This is around the same date, it has to be within a matter of days for this short to take place from the date of the Charlie and Maxwell disappearance in San Francisco. We don’t get to see Wigfrid reading this article, however. This is merely set there for the viewer’s sake. This is helping form our timeline of when these events all occurred. Many still missing. That means the search continues. This article could have been published a few days after the mentioned earthquake or a week even. Still, it gives us somewhat of a timeline to reference. The earthquake and the events of this Wigfrid short happened in relatively short time from one another.

This newspaper article header reads “Is It Curtains for This Prima Donna? Former Rising Star Seems Unable to Recapture The Magic of Her Precious Role”

Wigfrid isn’t shown reading the front article because she is focused on the news centered around herself. She’s called a prima donna here in this headline. Being called a Prima Donna can mean a number of things. It can mean a principle female singer in an opera or concert organization OR someone who is vain/undisciplined and finds it difficult to work as a team. She doesn’t have any quotes in DST that would indicate Wigfrid doesn’t work well with others. She mostly greets the other players warmly and hopes for good blessings from Yggdrasil, etc.

I think the journalists who wrote the article were looking to have this kind of double idea happening. The term Prima Donna comes directly from Italian for the types of female leads to the definitive aspect of the term. However around the same time (19th cent) it came to mean the second definition as well. Those writing the article likely wrote it with both aspects in mind. This gives Wigfrid her personal reason for wanting to ask Maxwell for help in some way. This is her drive. She is obviously a talented lead opera lady given the decorations and extravagant nature of her home. But this article says she is unable to recapture the magic of her previous role. The role in question looks to be very different from the Wigfrid Valkyrie we know. Her best role may be her Valkyrie role and maybe when she’s trying to branch into something else it isn’t working. And the critics and journalists think it isn’t good for her. She was a powerful Valkyrie, but not whatever this role happened to be.

We get to see her finishing reading the article (or maybe this short interrupts her just barely skimming it) and angrily crumple and toss the paper to the floor. She turns her nose up at it and dramatically walks to a bookshelf in the room and pulls out this record:

Die Walküre. This is the recorded orchestral arrangement for the stage play Die Walküre. In the bottom right of the record sleeve is the names of who I believe to be the composers for the recorded version of the orchestral arrangement. Vincenzo De Vera and Emmental Halle. Wigfrid’’s. Best. Role. The role with such “magic” that she has been since “unable to recapture.”

**incest mention in this next paragraph in the contexts of norse mythology and the real life stage play of The Valkyrie, not Wigfrid herself**

Interestingly enough, Die Walküre is a very real stage play. It is based on Norse Mythology about two twins who are separated in childhood and then eventually meet and fall in love (yikes!). This union angers the gods and they demand Siegmund die. Sieglinde and their unborn child are saved by the defiant actions of Wotan’s daughter, The Valkyrie. Valkyrie Brunnehilde faces the god’s retribution as a result of her actions.

More Valkyrie content hidden away in her shelves. She adored her role as The Valkyrie. Her house is, as we have seen, filled with memoriam from that stage play.

She plays the record and walks over to her wall and looks at her poster of herself as the Valkyrie. The newspaper clipping on the left reads “Audiences Left Spellbound by Soprano’s Powerful Performance.” Wigfrid is a GREAT performer and she is a soprano! She even has a little statue/sculpture of herself as The Valkyrie.

Here’s where I am going to go a little more into the Prima Donna bit. Wigfrid was the lead female for Die Walküre so she is a Prima Donna in that sense. however, she is also vain. She has surrounded herself with HERSELF. All over the walls in her home. Posters and pictures and photographs and SCULPTURES? You Prima Donna girl you, Wigfrid!

Her ceiling is even intricately decorated with scenes from Die Walküre.

And then we get here. We enter Wigfrid’s fantasy about performing as The Valkyrie who has to face a challenge. This challenge being a dragon that forms from this stack of newspaper pages. More entertainment pages that discuss Wigfrid’s stardom reaching an end.

Wigfrid’s real name is scratched out. So we know for certain that Wigfrid is NOT her real name. We can still call her real name whatever we please until we get more solid evidence surrounding her name. Wigfrid is probably Die Valküre’s name in the stage play that Wigfrid acted in. In The Constant it’s safe to assume that the character she takes on in the world happens to be this character, Wigfrid. At this point it raises some question as to whether or not Wigfrid is treating The Constant like a stage. Where she gets to really perform the role of The Valkyrie.

Back to the newspaper taking the form of a dragon, though. The papers are her enemy. The journalists writing about her in such awful ways literally conjure up as her enemy, a dragon, to vanquish. This reveals how she feels about the way others speak about her. Especially when they are critiquing her so harshly with claiming she is a fading star unable to capture her magic.

Wigfrid is thrust into the air by the dragon and she seems lost for a moment before she regains her composure and strikes down the dragon. These are the feelings she is expressing through her singing accompaniment with the arrangement playing on her record player. And Maxwell notices this.

Maxwell appears before Wigfrid through the newspaper. This intrigues me because we know that Them (the Shadow Creatures of the Constant) are capable of reaching into the real world from pages. Thinking back to Maxwell’s Codex Umbra where he first discovered Them and became Maxwell instead of William. Maxwell (or probably rather, They) reaches through these pages to communicate with Wigfrid and have her make a deal. The deal to regain her former glory.

Whisked away with this Shadow Maxwell form by the Shadows from the pages. And with that Wigfrid joins the missing group, taken to The Constant.

And then theres these shots in succession:

All that mail piled up. How long has it been since Wigfrid has disappeared. I think we can assume that some of the mail in her box might be fan mail. SHe has packages on her front step (in front of double doors for her entrance wowie!). I spy at least three packages there piled up with all the assorted mail she otherwise has accumulated while missing. I also spy at least four newspapers. It’s hard to say whether these newspapers are Morning Dailies, Afternoon Dailies, or Weeklies. And then we get the final, fifth newspaper copy tossed on top of the stack that labels Wigfrid as someone who is also now missing. This is an important newspaper because this paper is a DAILY newspaper.

The Kourier paper is likely a mirror to the IRL newspaper in Findlay, Ohio. This paper puts out a copy DAILY. I am going to assume that the first newspaper we see Wigfrid read is a weekly newspaper. It covers more national events such as the San Francisco tragedy. This final newspaper is a daily newspaper. This helps the timeline. Wigfrid has likely been missing for only five days at this point. At most it could have been a week, pushing it to of course seven days. Maybe one of the other papers in the could be another Kronicle copy, which I am deeming the weekly style paper. In my hunt for information about the IRL version of this paper in our real Ohio, I struggled to find specifics online whether this paper published weekly or daily. I do know for certain that tthe IRL Courier is put into circulation daily.

OKAY! Next I want to discuss the colors used in this short. Ignoring the fully colored bit in the center while Wigfrid fantasizes about performing for a moment.

In the beginning of the short we have warm colors. These colors can both reflect Wigfrid’s mood and also the time of day. Wigfrid is angry about the way she is being talked about in the newspaper articles. She is silhouetted by orange-red. It could also be the evening. Adding a little to what I stated just a bove about the newspapers, I think The Kronicle is a paper that is delivered in the afternoon. I personally deem this accurate because in this scene Wigfrid of course is just now reading this article (or rather just barely skimming it over for the first time). Judging by her reaction which I’ve detailed above. She isn’t reading it over again and having an already bummed reaction, One of her eyebrows is raised while she looks over the article before throwing it down. Thus, it was her first moment seeing the article along with us.

We see her anger melting into a kind of sadness, or forlorn feelings even when she first puts on her record. She is still angry of course, but she’s feeling a lot of emotions, as we do, at this point in time.

At the end of the short we have cold colors. At this point, Wigfrid has gone through her fantasy of performing The Valkyrie. She is feeling solemn about it all now though. What if the papers are true? What if I am losing my magic for my roles? I think it’s also into the night or even possibly into the morning. It’s either the shine of the moon coming in from the windows, or early morning blue hours peeking in. I don’t want to say that she spent the whole night fantasizing and performing for herself (The Valkyrie is not an 8 hour performance). BUT. When we get to see the scene where the last newspaper is delivered to her doorstep, it is again in the blue lighting. The Kourier newspaper delivered onto her stack of mail. The Kourier is a morning delivery vs The Kronicle being an afternoon delivery.

ALSO. Remember my post about Winona? WELL she was ALSO located in Ohio pre being dragged into The Constant. So far we have two characters safely concretely placed IN Ohio at the time of their disappearance. Obviously, The Shadow Creatures do not discriminate since Wes was likely trapped way back during the train derailment with William, and of course Charlie and Maxwell/William himself were taken from San Francisco.

Okay. That’s all I have time for this time around of over analyzing don’t starve content. I am glad I got into the imagery and symbolism this time around. I also went WAY in depth in this one. I plan on going in way depth on the other animated character shorts, so stay tuned!

#dont starve #dont starve together #don't starve #don't starve together #wigfrid ds #wigfrid dont starve #klei entertainment #video game analysis #well its video game ADJACENT #because its ABOUT the video game CHARACTERS

[hopeswriting]

FANDOM: Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

EVENT: Flufftober 2020 

PROMPT: Going out for Coffee

AUTHOR: @hopeswriting​

RATING: G

PAIRING: Adult!Fon/Adult!Reborn

SUMMARY:

Reborn is going through a rough time, and nothing cheers him up better than their morning coffee dates.

WORDS: 1115

*

Fon pauses in his morning stretches at the sound of a gun being fired. He breathes deeply, because it became a recurrent sound these days.

Fon speed walks to the kitchen, to Reborn glaring at the coffee machine—or what is left of the coffee machine—scattered along the counter top and still fuming.

He glances at the mug in Reborn’s hand, his favorite mug, and would rather see it on the solid wood of the counter top, because Reborn better not even think to drop it to indulge his dramatic self.

Reborn shoots at the coffee machine again, which apparently managed to upset him again even in death.

“You do realize I paid actual money for everything in this apartment?”

“It was broken.”

“Was it?”

Reborn rolls his eyes. “It was broken before I shot at it, obviously. You wouldn’t question it if you were the unfortunate one who took a sip of this… brown liquid.”

He spills it in the sink, a displeased and judging look on his face, and Fon purses his lips to not smile.

He indulged him enough. Today is the day he draws the line, and will get him to talk about whatever is upsetting him.

“Reborn, sweetheart—”

Reborn holds his finger. “No, no pet names. We literally just established I didn’t have my morning coffee yet. Please pay more attention to the tragedies of my life.”

Fon smiles his ‘I’m not dealing with your shit right now’ smile, and turns around to get back to his stretches.

Reborn follows him to the bedroom, drags him to the wardrobe, throws it open in a grand gesture.

“Make yourself pretty for me, darling. We’re going out for a morning coffee date.”

Fon walks in the coffee shop dressed in a three-piece red pastel suit, tailored specifically for him, Reborn’s arm around his waist. His loose hair fall alongside his back, held together at the bottom with a red ribbon.

They get stared at, but only by the people who know to drink in pretty sights whenever the opportunity presents itself.

They’re regular clients, and Fon is sure everyone thinks they’re business partners who have heavy make out sessions on their office desks.

It never fails to make him laugh. That’s as close to the truth as they’ll ever get, which is actually close.

Reborn removes his arm from his waist to lean on the counter.

“Reborn, Fon, good morning,” the cashier says, in a sweet tone Fon knows he doesn’t use with anyone else but Reborn. “The usual?”

“You know it,” Reborn says in a sultry tone. “And they better be perfect too, because I just might kill you for real this time for any mistakes at all.”

The cashier laughs, as if Reborn doesn’t mean every word. He licks his lips, runs his hand through his hair. “Noted. Cash or card?”

Reborn smiles, leans his head against his hand, gazes up at him, blinking slowly. The cashier blushes.

Fon wants to roll his eyes hard.

He can’t believe this guy doesn’t have any sense of how dangerous Reborn is. Sure he stepped up a few times already to save him from a bullet through his head, but he certainly wasn’t trying at all, not even once.

“Reborn, sweetheart.” Fon curls his fingers around the back of his neck, and leans in to whisper in his ear. “If you don’t stop flirting with him right now, I’ll kill him before you have the chance to.”

He goes look for a table, Reborn’s laugh sounding in his back, smiling at the weight of his eyes on him.

Reborn sits across from him, puts his fedora aside on the table, a smug expression on his face.

“I thought you’d never notice. Do you know how many people I ruined the life of for even looking at you?”

“If you want me to play in your games more often, then maybe you should have more tastes while choosing the background characters.”

“And yet my poor tastes lead me to you. Fon, darling, I assure you I don’t need help to insult you, but I appreciate the sentiment.”

Fon tilts his head. “I’m obviously the exception to the rule. You do need your morning coffee to function properly, don’t you?”

“Thanks for finally noticing.” Reborn crosses his legs, plays footsie with him under the table. “Come sit next to me.”

“Come sit next to me?”

Reborn scoffs. “No, thank you. It’s not that bad yet.”

Fon smiles. “That’s good to hear.”

Reborn rolls his eyes, but doesn’t comment. Fon leaves it at it for now, but more importantly it’s better for everyone in the shop he drinks some coffee first.

Their server arrives, a new one, and he puts both espressos in front of Reborn, and the cup of tea in front of Fon.

Reborn slides one of the espresso to him, and he puts it aside with a grateful smile.

Today is still not the day he’ll allow that awful drink inside his body, but he appreciates the sentiment.

“Want to talk about it?”

“I don’t think so.”

“You’ve been… on edge lately, Reborn. I think it would help you to let it all out.”

Reborn smirks. “Do you mean sex? I’d like that.”

“I meant emotionally on edge.”

“Do you mean sex? I’d like that.”

Fon purses his lips, willing his laugh not to come out. This will stay a serious conversation, whether Reborn likes it or not.

Reborn laughs, childish-like and proud of his own joke, and he can’t help but chuckles alongside with him.

“Is it work?”

Reborn sighs, either relenting or done with the conversation. He drinks his coffee in silence, looking at Fon straight in the eye.

He relents.

“Yes. I’m a bit… overworked right now. But nothing to worry about.”

“And nothing you can’t pull through either, I’m sure.”

“Well, obviously. Who do you think I am?”

Fon grins. “The Worst Man on Earth.”

“Aww, darling. Why don’t you just propose already.”

Fon bursts out laughing. It prompts Reborn’s own laugh, light and honest like he didn’t get to hear since days on end now.

He leans on the table once it passes them, cradling his drink in his hands, a ghost of a smile still at the corner of his lips.

Fon plays footsie with him under the table.

“How can I help?”

Reborn’s eyes shine with mirth, and he straightens up. “Flirt with me. Seduce me. We only just met and you couldn’t help but madly fall in love with me.”

The fondest of smiles spreads Fon’s lips. He tilts his head. “Is that what happened? Because I remember it the other way around.”

*

I have mixed feeling for this about the setting. I didn’t write it to be in the same verse as prompt 2, but it could be very easily in the same verse, even if they’re softer with each other in this one. But they are softer with each other in this one, so it could happen either pre-canon or post-canon after the Curse is lifted, but not anywhere close with the whole Arcobaleno Curse business in any case. Or, and it’s single-handedly because this happens in a coffee shop, but I feel like it could also be a Modern!Flameless!Coffee Shop!AU lol. Anyway, I never wrote for this pairing before this serie, but you know what? I think I like it. I love the Soft Power Couple dynamic I have going on here anyway haha. Thank you for reading! Any and all review are appreciated ^^.

#katekyo hitman reborn #khr #khr fanfic #flufftober 2020 #khr reborn #khr fon #fon x reborn #going out for coffee #also yeah reborn likes to dress up fon and shows off his boyfriend #and fon doesn't mind at all #he likes having all the eyes on him #and indulge in having his hair loose #but he doesn't love anything more that the way reborn looks at him whenever he lets him dress him up #anyway they're in love and i love that for them<3

[wlw-imagines-blog]

There is No Ending For Us (Part 2) (Natasha Romanoff x Fem!Reader)

Part One Here

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Major Character Death, Endgame Spoilers,

Word Count: 1.5k words

Summary: Reader remembers her time with Natasha, and mourns the deaths of the two famous Avengers.

Tagged: @xxxtwilightaxelxxx

A/N: thank you everyone for the feedback! So, at the beginning, this is after the battle with Thanos at the destroyed complex, but before Steve goes back in time (at Tony's funeral). Also this isn’t going to be any happier than the first part.

Hours passed like minutes. You let Steve carry you into a hallway before pulling you into a tight hug. Your hands landed on his back, tears blurring your vision. 

“I’m sorry, Y/N,” you heard Steve say, voice aching. You had said nothing, silently weeping in anguish. That was all you remember him saying. 

“I’m sorry, Y/N.”

As the Avengers worked on the new gauntlet, you forced yourself to leave. You couldn't stay. There was nothing else you could do. A taxi drove you through Manhattan, stopping and starting in rush hour traffic. Upon returning to your apartment, you crumpled, sitting on the kitchen floor, crying. 

Everything seemed to blur together; the return of those who disappeared for five years, a destructive battle at the Avenger's compound, and the untimely death of Tony Stark.

There was plenty of loss in the newfound joy the world was experiencing.

At Tony's funeral, you stood there, watching Pepper and Morgan set the wreath into the water. Your chest was tight, head aching from the tears. It was strange to see so many people who had fought against each other at one point, standing together and honoring a man they barely knew.

After the ceremony, you found Clint by a long, winding river, near a large oak tree.

You threw yourself at him, arms wrapping tight around his neck.

"We did it," he choked into your neck. You could feel his tears seeping through the fabric of your jacket.

You pulled away, eyes shining. "She'd be proud of us."

"She is. I know she is."

Your brows furrowed, mouth twisted, threatening to submit to heavy sobs, but you grit your teeth.

"Y/N," he said, face heavy with guilt. "I tried to stop her. I tried to take her place but she beat me to it."

You nodded, swallowing thickly. "I know, Clint. It's... it's okay. She made the call."

Looking past him, you saw his wife, Laura, and his three children, all dressed in black, standing close to their mother. Laura offered you a kind smile.

"She wanted you to be with them," you managed to say. "They need you."

Clint shook his head. "If anything, I need them."

You smiled at his family before speaking. "I just can't believe I'm never going to see her again. I thought, after the Snap, that we would have more time. But, everyday, I could tell she thought about that day in Wakanda. What she could have done to save everyone, and how they could have beaten Thanos. It was tearing her up." You let your hands shake. "She would wake up in the middle of the night, crying about it. It hurt to see her like that."

"She wanted to make it right," Clint whispered.

You nodded again. "I just wish I could've been there with her."

Clint regarded you. "She loved you. Before Nat died, she wanted me to tell you that."

Your mouth twitched as tears ran down your cheeks. Clint hugged you tightly.

Emptiness swirled in your stomach, curling at the back of your throat, choking you alive.

~**~

When you become an 'adult' time seems to pass a lot quicker. In elementary school, recess was about ten minutes, but sometimes it felt like thirty. When you grow up, you can occupy so much time with your life, and make hours feel like minutes. But when you dread something, it takes forever for time to pass.

It takes three, stagnant years before you visit Natasha.

Within that time, you tried to find balance and security in a world that had seen tragedy and celebration. You tried to mourn while everyone around you celebrated.

The first five months were incredibly difficult. You often stayed inside, too sick with grief to leave for work, or meet with anyone.

Th people you least expected came over to visit. One month after the funeral, Wanda Maximoff showed up at your door, looking displaced and uncertain. You let her in, and the two of you spent hours talking and weeping, before she left. The Tuesday after that, Stephen Strange appeared, and you asked question after question. Was this the only way? Could they have saved everyone? He answered everything you asked. A young man named Peter, who you learned had been Tony’s protege stopped by, eyes big and already red. You let him in without asking anymore questions; besides, the kettle had just boiled, and you preferred company when having tea.

You spent more time than you thought possible at Clint and Laura’s place, sometimes even staying the night. They became a second family to you. You could confide in Laura, and the kids found your fun to be around when the sadness was not so thick. 

Steve visited once a week. Sometimes you would meet him for coffee, or hang out in the evening, but he became something of a constant for you. He was solid, and grounded, especially when you felt like you were sinking. This was all until he told you his plan for returning the infinity stones.

“Are you sure this is a good idea, Steve?” You asked, finger tracing the rim of your cup of coffee.

Steve smiled to himself. “I’m not if it’s a good or bad idea, but it’s what I want.”

You thought about Natasha, and how much you would give to be with her. 

You looked at Steve. “Then, go for it.”

Three years and two weeks after Steve left, you found yourself in the middle of a forest, where the trees thinned and opened to a vast field of wild grass.

"Um, hello, Natasha," you said uncomfortably. "I know it's been a while. I'm really sorry about that. I-I guess time really does fly, huh?"

There was no response. Your voice seemed too loud in the empty meadow.

"I thought this would be a nice place for you," you continued, hand tightening around the bouquet you held. "Plenty of trees, and grass. You would love it, in the summertime, these orange roses and violets blossom in the field over there." You nodded to your left. "It's so pretty, Nat. I know you'd love it."

You crouched, placing the lilies at the base of the headstone.

"Fuck, Nat," your voice hitched, shaking when your dropped the flowers. "I still love you. I should have said it more to you. I should have done a lot actually. I should have forced you to leave the compound more, I should have taken you away; to Morocco like you always wanted. I should have called you and spent every second more with you. I should have gotten down on one knee and begged you to marry me."

You knelt down, fingers brushing the headstone of an empty grave. "We should have done so much more together. And I know, I'm going to live with that feeling of regret. Holy shit, Nat, sometimes it's so strong, I think I'm going to be sick. It keeps me up at night, and I'm not even kidding!" You wiped your nose, not caring how hysterical you sounded. "Its been four years, and I can't sleep the same! It's just so empty without you, Nat. And honestly, I'm ashamed to say that sometimes, I curse you. I get so angry, and full of hate, and I scream! I just go crazy! How could you have left me? When everyone came back? And you stayed dead! Everyone was in the streets, celebrating, while I was trying to figure out how to bury you without your body!"

You were shaking all over. Minutes passed as you sat, hearing nothing but the crickets and buzz of bees in the field. You wiped your nose with your sleeve "Fuck. You would hate to see me like this, wouldn't you?" You said ruefully. "I bet on every star in the sky, you'd say, 'stop being so dramatic, Y/N. Pick yourself up and get on with it.' Well, I'm sorry, Nat. I'm not like you."

You pressed your forehead to the cold stone. "I could never be as good as you."

"This is going to get easier," you sniffed, pushing through the tears. "I know it is. I've got that hope you always carried around with you. After this, I'm going over to Clint and Laura's for dinner. They really miss you too, Nat, we all do.” You were standing now, somehow still talking despite everything. “Bruce has changed, he's so distant. Thor's gone for now, Steve's gone too. Tony... well, he's up there with you, isn’t he? Tell him I say hi, we miss him so much."

You pressed your fingers to your lips, then rested them on the top of the headstone. A weak smile danced on your lips as you pulled away. 

"I love you, Natasha. I’ll, visit again soon. Really soon, I promise,” you breathed, air pressing against your lungs as though you were breathing for the first time in a decade. You felt the ghost of a hand against your back, helping push you forward

 You walked back to your car, and drove away.

#natasha romanoff #natasha romanov #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanov x reader #black widow x reader #black widow #marvel fanfic #marvel fic #endgame aftermath #endgame spoilers #wlw #wlw imagine #writing #wanda maximoff #steve rogers #clint barton

[attackfish]

Avatar the Last Airbender, Humor, and Sympathy: Who is it Safe to Laugh at?

A while back I made a vid about Book One Zuko set to Uptown Funk, and as it turns out that vid, and the close attention to the visual language of Zuko in Book One it required is something of a meta mine for me, and led to a greater appreciation for the show's use of dramatic irony: [Link]. That vid got its start as a lighthearted exploration of Book One Zuko as a figure of comedy, but I realized very quickly that I was not going to be able to make the vid about the entirety of Book One, at least not if I wanted it to be purely comedy. Zuko's suffering in book one is funny, right up until it suddenly isn't funny at all. This is not about how we as an audience grow to appreciate Zuko as a character. After all, I came to this vid having watched Avatar: the Last Airbender many times, and already very attached to Zuko to put it mildly. This is about how Zuko's suffering is framed, and how the show switches from playing it for laughs to playing it for pathos: [Link].

This is a common thread throughout the show with many many different characters. What initially is played for laughs about a character is later revealed to have tragic roots. Humor in the Avatar world often has a sting in its tail. This holds true for most of the Gaang: [Link] and for Iroh, but it's at its most obvious, and its most unsettling, with the teenage Fire Nation characters, Azula, Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee.

Of the four characters mentioned above three have a redemption arc that doubles as a recovery arc, and the one who doesn't has a complete breakdown. All four are victims of abuse. Abuse is a big theme in Avatar: the Last Airbender. and the use of humor to first allow us to laugh at characters' idiosyncrasies before revealing them to be the result of the abuse they suffered ties directly into the shows themes.

And this relationship between humor for the audience and the characters' pain is systematic and consistent. First we get hints of a character's trauma accompanied by scenes of their quirks played for humor, and then, as they approach the culmination (or in Zuko's case a culmination) of their story, their quirks and their trauma are tied together, and suddenly they aren't played for laughs anymore. This pattern reaches its most elaborate and extended variation in Zuko's Book One portrayal. He is introduced to us yelling at his uncle that the avatar has returned and he must capture him, and the desperation pours off him in waves. We are given hints throughout the first half of Book One that Zuko is trying to impress an unloving father and end a humiliating exile, until Chapter Twelve, "The Storm", where Iroh tells Zuko's crew, who are sick of dealing with his mistreatment of them, the story of Zuko's branding and banishment. Until this point, Zuko has been tossed into the snow, had his eye poked until he falls into the water, landed backside up in the snow with his helmet on top of said royal backside, and made a fool of himself in his anger and impulsiveness time and time again. Much of the levity in Book One comes from Zuko playing Yosemite Sam to Aang's cheerful Bugs Bunny, or Sokka's Daffy Duck.

The Looney Toons style humor at Zuko's expense does not disappear at this moment, and Zuko's reckless drive leading to repeated pratfalling isn't tied explicitly to his pain until the Book One finale. There is one last good solid laugh-at-Zuko-being-obnoxious-and-paying-for-it episode, Chapter Fifteen, "Bato of the Water Tribe" between this point and the finale. And yet this moment does mark an important turning point in how the show handles Zuko's status as main season antagonist, and object of ridicule. "Bato of the Water Tribe" is the last episode of the season where Zuko serves as main antagonist, and in fact the last episode of the entire series where he serves this function. And between "The Storm" and "Bato of the Water Tribe" is "The Blue Spirit."

Aside from the heartwrenching rendition of Zuko's backstory, the Storm is full of parallels between Aang and Zuko, including Aang's own painful backstory full of guilt and loss. And because it's Aang telling us this backstory, Aang is in an introspective backward-looking mood at its end, which makes this the perfect time for an episode where Zuko and Aang work together, and which foreshadows their future friendship, and the Fire Nation's own potential for changing course. And the episode following "The Storm" does all of that. "The Blue Spirit" also gives us a taste of Zuko's failure and perpetual futile determination being played for pathos, even as this failure allows for Aang's escape. Indeed, the framing of this situation makes it clear that there is failure on both sides. Zuko is unable to capture Aang, and Aang is rebuffed by Zuko. Zuko's singular pursuit of his goals is shown as tragic, as something that prevents him from forging meaningful connections with other people, and prevents hin from building a life, a concept that will be expanded in Book Two. As an audience, we feel the weight of this moment. It is poignent, it is sad, and it is painful.

"Bato of the Water Tribe" is the only other time we see Zuko until the three Northern Water Tribe episodes, and in these episodes, nearly nothing about Zuko is played for any humor at all. After Zhao takes Zuko's crew, Zuko's relentless drive is portrayed as admirable and tragic. His failures are portrayed as tragic, and even his defeat of Zhao is portrayed as tragic. He captures Aang, and with no one else to talk to, in the middle of a blizzard he can only wait out, he tells Aang about his father and sister, and about how he has to rely on hard work, and how he has come to take pride in his never giving up, because he isn't lucky like his sister. His trauma is now tied to this key part of his personality, previously played for humor, now played for tragedy. The last time we see Zuko in Book One, he confesses to his uncle that he is tired, and stretches out to rest on the raft that his uncle uses to sail them away. The scene is framed in such a way that a viewer might be forgiven for thinking Zuko had died.

After this, Zuko's foibles are played for laughs again throughout the rest of the series, but the Looney Toons style merriment is gone, and the humor is much more affectionate, and used to puncture and punctuate his angst and the heaviness of his storyline. His role as the butt of jokes has been transformed. The point has been made. This change is highlighted by of all characters, Azula. In "The Chase," an episode full of characters laughing at each other and mocking each other in ways that are not funny at all as exhaustion takes its toll and characters show off their worst, meanest selves, Azula's comment to Aang about her brother stands out: "I must find the Avatar to restore my honor!" she says, covering her eye like her brother's scar. And when Aang only stares at her, she continues: "It's okay. You can laugh. It's funny."

How many times have we as a fandom laughed about Zuko and his honor?

And over the course of the rest of Book Two and Book Three, Zuko's sense of honor and his refusal to give up will become his greatest strengths and most admirable qualities as they lead him away from his father and the Fire Nation war machine and to becoming the Firelord who will end the war and restore the honor of his entire nation. The traits that once held him back from making real connections to other people, with healing and understanding of self, become the ones that enable him to make those connections in the end.

This same technique of playing a character's traits born of pain for laughs until they are explicitly tied to that pain is used again with Mai and Ty Lee in Books Two and Three. They are introduced in "Return to Omashu" in ways that also introduce Azula as their abuser, and in Mai's case, give ample information about how neglectful her parents are of her and her brother. However this is done subtly and not dwelt upon. Throughout Books Two and Three, Azula's abuse of the two of them will be touched on and reinforced, most notably in the flashbacks in "Zuko alone. However, most of their portrayals in Book Two will be of them as antagonists, and specifically as funny antagonists. They take this role over from Zuko. Their foibles are played for laughs and they are amusing in a way Azula can't be because she is too much of a threat. It's not until "The Beach" that their quirks are inescapably linked to their traumas, and their bubbly or emotionless exteriors are shown pointedly to be masks hiding pain. Mai yells, Ty Lee cries. And the next time they are given real focus, their pain and their abuse at the hands of Azula is shown to be the source of their triumph as they reject her domination and turn against her to protect the people they love. Mai especially is cool and collected, mask firmly in place as she tells Azula that she miscalculated. The parts of their personalities born of pain are first played for laughs, then for tragedy, then for triumph, just like Zuko's.

Azula in so many ways is the outlier, because for her, the triumph comes first. She appears to be in control at the start of her journey, winning victory after victory, playing with Mai, Ty Lee, and Zuko like dolls. I mentioned earlier that Azula isn't played for humor very much in Book Two the way Zuko was because she is too big a threat. She's too scary to laugh at. This changes in "The Beach." Taken away from the battlefield and forced to interact with strangers in which there is no hierarchy putting her at the top or competition for her to win, the same traits that make her such a dangerous opponent make her laughably incompetent at social interaction.

At the end of "The Beach", we are given a hint of the pain at the roots of the same perfectionism and need to win that this episode lampoons: "I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care. My own mother thought I was a monster. She was right, of course, but it still hurt."

We will later learn this is far from the whole truth. Not only does her own subconscious tell her that her mother loved her, but her whole world starts to fall apart when, somebody, Mai, picks Zuko over her, and tells her she miscalculated. Last of all, her father, who always treated her as his perfect child in contrast to worthless Zuko, dismisses her and treats her with the scorn usually reserved for Zuko, something Azula notes explicitly, when she yells that: "You can't treat me like Zuko!"

This is one of the most telling lines in the entire series. She has built her self image around being better than Zuko, of being infallable, because the little girl watching her brother being abused thought this would protect her from her father. And now, with her sense of infallibility stripped away, the idea that she is inherently better than Zuko called into question, and her father's favor suddenly in doubt, her whole identity crumbles and she starts hallucinating [Link]. And this is why Azula sees her mother in her psychosis, because Ursa is someone else who she feels chose Zuko over her. While Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee end the show free of their abusers and ready to start new lives, Azula ends it chained, defeated, and sobbing uncontrollably.

And yet with Azula's arc, as with Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee's, an explicit line is drawn between the funny and the tragic about a character. The writers, strictly speaking, didn't need to make us laugh at Azula before turning her into an object of pity. Taking her from triumph to tragedy would have been a strong enough individual arc without the segue into the hilarious. This segue however, together with Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee's time spent as objects of humor, ties strongly into the show's themes and evokes a common emotional response. The humor comes before the revelation of tragedy in all four cases because before the tragedy of each character is made explicit, it feels okay to laugh at them. It doesn't feel mean.

But then the tragedy behind the funny quirks is revealed and we the audience can't help remember laughing at them. And we already have laughed at them. There's nothing we can do now to undo that. And this makes us feel just a little bit mean, just a little bit guilty. It makes us a participatory character in a way, and it drives home an important theme. There is no one safe to laugh at on Avatar: the Last Airbender. Everybody is human so no one is just a figure of fun. And just as in the real world, you never know when you are laughing at somebody's pain. Everybody is human, and everybody's pain is worthy of respect and acknowledgment, and you should be wary of anyone saying: "You can laugh. It's funny."

#avatar the last airbender #azula #zuko #ty lee #atla mai #posts i created #azula needs her own warning #zuko is a dweeby little turtleduck #circus freak is a compliment #mai doesn't hate you #aang d'awww

[douxreviews]

Legends of Tomorrow: Luchas de Apuestas

"You were right. There’s no such thing as happily ever after."

Legends of Tomorrow is back with its first episode in nearly four months, and it comes out swinging.

The second half of season four just got real, y'all.

Wow. That is a lot to process. Just... wow.

The most admirable thing about this episode is how much every additional tragedy felt like a natural consequence of the events that led up to it. So often when a show wants to create big, dramatic rifts between its characters it ends up coming across as incredibly contrived. The writing staff wants A and B to have a falling out for whatever reason, and so they find some way of starting a fight between them that usually comes wrapped in a big sign that says 'this is an excuse for A and B to fight.'

That's not the case here at all. What we have here is a bunch of characters that we know quite well by this point, responding to events in ways that feel perfectly true to who they are. And the actions that they take cause other characters to react in ways that are true to who they are, and soon the reverberations of all of those in character actions are careening off in tragic but understandable ways. It's like watching a meticulously arranged domino pattern but with crying.

Obviously, I'm girding myself to discuss Sara and Ava.

OK, right now I'm rocking gently and repeating to myself, 'It's not permanent. They'll work it out' over and over again. But as much as I hate that Sara and Ava have broken up, I can't help but watch all the little steps that led up to it and think, 'Yes. That is exactly how Sara would respond to that' and 'Yep, that's exactly how I would expect Ava to react to that situation.' Of course Sara would choose to give Mona and the Kaupe the benefit of the doubt and try to shield them from the Bureau. Of course Ava would feel betrayed by that and respond by attempting to take more control over Sara and the Waverider in order to protect time. Or course Ava would ultimately try to prevent Sara's team from doing something she sees as reckless by sending in troops, and of course Sara is going to respond badly to that. Just to make it more heartbreaking, they both genuinely tried several times to talk the situation through like adults so that they could head the whole thing off, but failed.

Ava needed Sara to be on her side, and Sara couldn't be because that would mean abandoning Mona and the Kaupe, both of whom are basically innocent, to punishment and torture. She feels like Sara let her down, because Sara did actually let her down, even if it was for the best of reasons. Sara needed Ava to back her up against Hank and the government forces that are torturing their prisoners, and Ava couldn't do that because without Hank and his funding the Time Bureau ceases to exist, which would leave time unprotected just as it's being overrun with magical monsters. She feels like Ava is compromising herself ethically by ignoring the torture because Ava is, in fact, compromising herself ethically by ignoring the torture, even if she is doing it with the greater good in mind.

Which was a great final twist of the knife, by the way. A lot of Sara's dilemma in this episode was not knowing if Ava was part of the corrupt system, or in danger from the corrupt system. And because Sara is an emotionally healthy adult her default position was to have faith in Ava. Which made that final conversation all the more painful when Ava not only revealed that she didn't have a problem with the torturing of prisoners, she also pointed out that the Legends were sending those same prisoners to literal Hell only a few months ago. Ouch. I had forgotten that. Hell, they were ready to send Charlie to Hell now that I think about it. Goodbye moral high ground.

Meanwhile, in the rest of the episode, wow we have a lot of characters now, don't we. So, Charlie and Ray hang out back at the Waverider, while Mick, John, and Sara go to check out the Lucha Libre to which they've tracked the Kaupe. Zari, meanwhile, heads to Time Bureau HQ to dig into their security software and find out if Mona is telling the truth about not having released the Kaupe herself. She pairs up with Nate, and of course uncovers that Hank doctored the footage and is behind the whole 'creature torture' thing. Nate shows that he's undergone some character growth and doesn't fly off the handle at Hank, but instead pretends to be cool with it so that he can go all monster hunter Donnie Brasco. I like that new direction for Nate a lot. Having him investigation the TB from within is a lot more interesting than him slowly turning to the dark side and siding with Hank during the inevitable upcoming civil war, which is where I thought he was going.

Mick, John, Charlie and Ray don't get a ton to do this week, but Mick does get a couple of solid bonding scenes with Mona, over his Buck and Garima books, of which there are now apparently many. I guess that's what Mick was doing over the winter break. John, similarly, doesn't get a lot, but had a couple very nice moments with a Luchador who is supposed to be a big hero, but who's been supplanted by the time displaced Kaupe who's now wrestling under the name El Lobo. The detail that John is apparently a big fan of that particular wrestler and his later monster movies is perhaps a tad too convenient, but it was earnestly endearing, and earnest helps to excuse a lot in my book.

So, after all that uplifting triumph over adversity, Mona has the opportunity to run away with the Kaupe, but makes the emotionally correct choice to not run away from her problems, and everything is warm and fuzzy and deeply moving. But then the Kaupe is abruptly shot and killed and Mona is apparently a werewolf (were-Kaupe?) now, and all you can think as a viewer is, 'Oh, that's why they reminded us about her Kaupe-injury and why we had all the wolfman references made to the Kaupe. They were setting up that moment really well as the natural consequence of this sequence of events and I didn't even notice.'

If only every hour of broadcast television understood and used cause and effect as a result of character choices this well. What a world that would be.

So what have we learned today?

That the show isn't even remotely concerned about what the knock on effects of changes to the timeline might be anymore. That was actually the one big flaw this week. If the presence of the Kaupe in 1961 was changing the timeline in a way that the Bureau could see, then it would have eliminated a lot of the underlying problem. Specifically, if Ava could have seen that having the Kaupe fight the Lucha de Apuestas fight was the only way to get history back on the correct course, then the whole final fight could have been avoided.

Of course, the whole final fight was much more about Sara and Ava and their relationship, so it doesn't detract that much from the episode. But it would be nice if they'd addressed it at all.

Everybody remember where we parked:

This week the Waverider went to Mexico City, 1961, to catch a little Lucha Libre. And Zari somehow flitted back and forth between the Waverider in 1961 and the Time Bureau in the present day.

Present day, interestingly enough, is still stated here as 2018, probably unavoidably, as the action picks up right where "Legends of To-Meow-Meow" left off.

Quotes:

Gary: "Aw, what an adorable little puppet." Puppet: "Eat my fuzzy dung, ya dick!"

Ava: "Gary. Close that hospital gown or I will report you to HR."

Gary: "I don’t know who I am. I don’t know why anything is things. I don’t know where my nipple went. Where’s my nipple? Where’s my nipple?!?"

Constantine: "Oh, come on Raymondo."

Nate’s mom: "Zari? What a beautiful name for a beautiful woman with excellent childbearing hips."

Ava: "Sara, my ass is already on the line. Feeling me up in front of my boss is not a good idea right now."

Constantine: "Trust me, there’s nothing people like more than a good comeback."

Bits and pieces:

-- Please don't let them be hinting that Zari and Nate are going to be a couple. I'm just not down for it.

-- Zari and Sara again looked absolutely amazing in their party dresses.

-- On the one hand, I like the implication that the show has finally remembered Nate's hemophilia, since it's implied that that's why his parents host an annual fundraiser for it. On the other hand, it's weird that that never came up once from anyone.

-- Seriously, powers that be, if you're going to take a four month mid-season break, for the love of god make the first half's episodes available on-demand so that we can get back up to speed. I spent most of this episode thinking, 'Oh yeah, I forgot that that happened,' which really killed several of the reveals for me.

-- I really, really wish that there'd been a luchador with the number 5 on his mask, somewhere in the background.

-- Luchas de Apuestas means a fight with a wager on it. Usually either the opposing wrestler's mask or hair.

-- Was the Kaupe a demi-god before? Because I think that was a bit of a ret-con.

-- Apparently the heavily hinted Gary/Mona/Kaupe love triangle is not going to be a thing. I hope they find a way to fix Gary and that he forgives Mona.

-- I did not see Mona's monster transformation coming. Can't wait to see where that goes.

-- When exactly did Sara and Ava learn that Tango? Not that I'm complaining, it looked amazing.

-- I would totally play Ray's 'Cards to Save the Timeline' game.

An episode that was both a lot of fun, and a lot of heartbreaking. Welcome back, Legends. You were gone too long.

Three and a half out of four missing nipples.

Mikey Heinrich is, among other things, a freelance writer, volunteer firefighter, and roughly 78% water.

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