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firefield · 3 years

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David Bowie - Reality (2003)

“The thing, probably, that keeps me writing is this awful feeling that there are no absolutes. That there is no truth. That we are, as I’ve been thinking for so many years now, fully in the swirl of chaos theory.” DB, 2003

I always learn new things about David Bowie whenever I listen through his complete discography chronologically, and this run through is no different. As I get close to the end here, I’m reminded how much less I know about these later works, due simply to the fact that they have existed for a much shorter time, and my experience with them is more limited. “Reality” rocks more than I realized on release day, especially coming off the heels of “Heathen” with all its layers and mystery and subtleties. An empty house afforded the opportunity to really crank this one up, a vinyl pass, and CD pass, and finally the 5.1 surround sound edition - and yeah - DB said he wanted a simpler sound, and wanted a record that could be translated into a live show easily and effectively and he got that in spades.

As with all his post-80’s work, and especially his post-heart attack material, “Reality” embraces the darker and more cynical side of DB’s many characters - from the irony of the album title with album art portraying a very cartoony space-man Bowie looking about as unreal and non-Reality as possible and still be recognizable - to DB’s insistence that he made a “positive!” record despite themes of aging and death, loneliness and anonymity, geopolitical strife, day-in-day-out mundanity and the creeping threat of urbanization to nature. Regarding the subject matter of Reality he told Interview Magazine, “This is probably a period when, more than any other time, the idea that our absolutes are disintegrating is manifest in real terms. Truths that we always thought we could stand by are crumbling before our eyes. It really is quite traumatic.”

I read quotes like that and I think, for a guy that is largely known for (and criticized for) his ability to synthesize the past and his surroundings into something entirely David-Bowieingly unique, he certainly shows skill at synthesizing the future as well. Beyond things like financial chicanery like Bowie Bonds and the impact of the internet on the creation and distribution of music, Bowie often hit at the very essence of what unites as well as divides.

The seeds of this malleablity of truth that DB describes had been planted in my country during the civil rights movement and the tragedy of the Vietnam War, but began to flower and bloom after the 9/11 event - affecting Bowie’s home turf and his family profoundly. Heathen is prescient, Reality is a little angry about things. DB took time to specifically say what Reality was not: it was not an angry album, it was not a response to 9/11, it was not his “New York Album” - but then he’d spend just as much time gently walking back those claims, almost wondering aloud if it was, in fact, all of those things and more. He speaks around this time about how naturally writing music came to him. Unforced, calmly. I think this “flow” is why you can glean so many little contradictions about Reality and it’s intentions and meaning. He’s letting it happen, not dictating the plot; the tensions of that city and that moment in time allowed to mold and shape the work. Polar opposite to the Heathen recording environment at Allaire Studios in the Catskill Mountains, Reality was recorded in the cramped Studio B of Philip Glass’s Looking Glass Studios in NYC and both those disparate studio choices impact their respective products acutely.

Reality is Bowie’s most “hands-on” record since Diamond Dogs, employing all his multi-instrumentalist abilities, and it’s also one of his most thoroughly demoed. Most all of Reality was demoed out in Studio B by DB and Tony Visconti playing all the instruments, with Mario McNulty (the same engineer DB would later trust with the posthumous reimagining/re-recording of Never Let Me Down) as studio assistant. According to Tony, he had a feeling that many of these “demo tracks” would not ever actually be re-recorded, so they were laid down at a useable fidelity. Consequently, much of the demo material survived on the final album. The band brought in for final overdubs was chosen with the live show in mind specifically. This was a smaller, tighter unit of BowieLive veterans and by all accounts recording was smooth and productive.

New Killer Star opens the record, and is also Reality’s debut single (that contained one of his more surprising B-sides, Sigue Sigue Sputnik’s ‘Love Missle F1-11’) and is a spectacular Earl Slick led hazy, woozy guitar statement.

This is followed by The Modern Lovers - Pablo Picasso - recorded in 1972 but delayed until their 1976 debut. This track mimics the space occupied by the Pixies cover Cactus - the second track on Heathen - DB pulling tracks from his past that he enjoys and placing them where they give the record momentum. Quite a different interpretation if you have heard the original - DB took liberties with both the lyric and the arrangement and it’s a cool little track.

Never Get Old follows and addresses the common theme of time and aging in DB compositions…. (Cygnet Committee, Time, Hearts Filthy Lesson, Changes, Fantastic Voyage, and many more) and the composition itself references much of his past in Space Oddities countdown, the elongated guitar strands of Heroes, bits of melody from Crack City, the four-walls-closing-in sense of Low and some of Hunky Dory’s ominous moments. A pounding live favorite.

…and seamlessly right into The Loneliest Guy. Anyone who saw the Reality Tour knows the captivating power of this piece, and it’s honesty and fragility was one of a few reasons why I thought this would be DB’s final album.

Looking For Water. Man, I *love* this song. It’s one of my favorite vocal performances on Reality and would certainly end up on my list of “underrated DB songs” were I compelled to make one. I like repetition in music, and it’s hypnotic and mantra-esque qualities - and this is one that always gets a significant volume boost.

She’ll Drive The Big Car - a supercool stab of Bowie sash and swagger, and a killer vocal performance, masking some seriously sad lyrics. Bowie manages to sound defiant, tired, funky, deferential, sexy and soulful all in the course of a single song. He’s such an effortlessly great singer, that’s it’s easy to become so accustomed to it that you almost miss it. It’s just “him.”

The exceedingly sweet “Days” fits nicely with all of Realities reflections, and has for me become a song I pay much more attention to since we lost the man to cancer.

Fall Dog Bombs The Moon is one of DB’s most overtly political songs, and was apparently written very quickly - under a half and hour - and directly addresses the Iraq War and the profiteering involved. Relatively bleak with murky lyrics, it’s a interesting and unique DB composition.

Try Some, Buy Some is just beautiful and I think one of Bowie’s most interesting and genuinely heart-felt covers (along with Waterloo Sunset, also from these sessions.) The inspiration to do this song comes directly from the 1971 Ronnie Spector version and the impact it had on him personally. DB seems to be absolutely sincere when he claimed that he had completely forgotten that it was a George Harrison composition until he sat down to work on the album credits.

Next up is the sizzling rocker Reality that has one foot in Tin Machine and one foot in The Next Day. Love Earl’s guitar sound here. Like New Killer Star, the guitar layers in this one sound amazing on the 5.1 surround mix.

Ahh yeah. Another in an amazing number of fantastic Bowie album closers. I’ve made it a point in my life to quit ranking art into “good/better/best/sucks categories and hierarchies and see art as an experience, not a competition. My friends know this about me, and consequently tease me and attempt to prod me into breaking this creed. Under unrelenting pressure to name a “favorite David Bowie track” I named Bring Me The Disco King.

I could give many reasons why this would be the one…. The repetition I mentioned earlier, here found in Matt Chamberlain’s drum loop (interestingly snagged from ‘When The Boys Come Marching Home,’) the overwhelming sense I had when I first heard it that this was DB’s final record, the sense that the threat of jazz that had always pounded on David’s door in his chord structures and harmonies had finally broken down the door… the very tangible sense that this was a composition that had already had a long life but stayed tucked into the shadows by its unsatisfied creator, only to be given life and light on this great album after it had been stripped down to almost nothing - simplicity being the sought after key to its finally being allowed to soar. If it’s not already obvious, I think this song is magnificent. Literally. The fact that David knew it was deep inside there, he just had to mine it out over the course of a decade or so is extraordinary.

Couple of thoughts about a track that didn’t fit well on Reality but made it to bonus/B-sides…

How cool is his cover of The Kinks Waterloo Sunset? In the years after his death, when I feel that loss in my heart, it’s Waterloo Sunset I turn up to 11 and allow it to yank me back out of that murk.

“People so busy

makes me feel dizzy

but I don’t feel afraid

as long as I gaze on Waterloo Sunset

I am in paradise.”

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bananaofswifts · 4 years

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BY: JILLIAN MAPES JUL 27 2020

POP/R&B

Made from afar, primarily with the National’s Aaron Dessner, Swift’s eighth album is a sweater-weather record filled with cinematic love songs and rich fictional details.

The phantom pang of missing someone before you ever meet them is an emotion worthy of its own word. That fated feeling of love and the passage of time is the theme that runs between Carly Rae Jepsen’s smash hit “Call Me Maybe” and the National’s antisocial romance “Slow Show”; it’s also the kind of thing Taylor Swift might write about. One of the loveliest tracks on folklore, the surprise album the singer-songwriter made primarily with the National’s guitarist Aaron Dessner, stands out for a strangely similar reason: a thread connecting two strangers that exists long before either realizes it’s there. “And isn’t it just so pretty to think/All along there was some/Invisible string/Tying you to me,” she sings on the delightfully plucky “invisible string,” simultaneously recalling famous lines from Jane Eyre and The Sun Also Rises.

folklore will forever be known as Taylor Swift’s “indie” album, a sweater-weather record released on a whim in the blue heat of this lonely summer, filled with cinematic love songs in search of a film soundtrack. There are those who already dislike folklore on principle, who assume it’s another calculated attempt on Swift’s part to position her career as just so (how dare she); meanwhile, fans will hold it up as tangible proof that their leader can do just about anything (also a stretch). While it’s true that folklore pushes the limits of Swift’s sound in a particular, perhaps unexpected direction, her reference points feel more like mainstream “indie” homage than innovation, taking cues from her collaborators’ work and bits of nostalgia.

At its best, folklore asserts something that has been true from the start of Swift’s career: Her biggest strength is her storytelling, her well-honed songwriting craft meeting the vivid whimsy of her imagination; the music these stories are set to is subject to change, so long as it can be rooted in these traditions. You can tell that this is what drives Swift by the way she molds her songs: cramming specific details into curious cadences, bending the lines to her will. It’s especially apparent on folklore, where the production—mostly by Dessner, with Jack Antonoff’s pop flair occasionally in the mix—is more minimal than she typically goes for. Her words rise above the sparse pianos, moody guitars, and sweeping orchestration, as quotable as ever.

After years as pop’s most reliable first-person essayist, Swift channels her distinct style into what are essentially works of fiction and autofiction, finding compelling protagonists in a rebellious heiress and a classic teenage love triangle. In “the last great american dynasty,” she tells the story of eccentric debutante Rebekah Harkness, who married into the Standard Oil family and once lived in Swift’s Rhode Island mansion, as a way to celebrate women who “have a marvelous time ruining everything.” Filled with historical details and Americana imagery, you can see the song play out in your mind like a storybook, but it also effectively makes a point about society’s treatment of brash women. Swift cleverly draws a line between Harkness and herself at the end, an idea she fleshes out in a more literal sequel, “mad woman.” Out of all the songs on folklore, “the last great american dynasty” is the all-timer, the instant classic. It sounds like the latter-day National/Taylor mashup you never knew you needed—textural and tastefully majestic, with Fitzgerald-esque lines about filling the pool with champagne instead of drinking all the wine.

With folklore’s teen heartbreak trilogy, Swift circles the same affair from each party’s differing view. “betty” is the story of 17-year-old James trying to win back his girlfriend after cheating, a familiar crime rendered new by the narrator’s genuine remorse and belief in a love regained. It has the youthful hope of a song like “Wide Open Spaces,” yet is noticeably wiser (and queerer) than the high school romances Swift wrote as an actual teenager. First single “cardigan” is told by Betty, whose disillusionment with James results in a sad, sensuous sound reminiscent of Lana Del Rey, down to the vocal style and casual lyrical quotation of another pop song. But the songs’ overlapping details and central framing device—of a cardigan forgotten and found without a second thought—are pure Swift, an instant memory portal not unlike the scarf in Red’s “All Too Well.” (The cutesy marketing angle for “cardigan” is reliably Swiftian as well.) And even though “august” is considered to be the third in the trilogy, the record’s most tender, saccharine love story plays out during “illicit affairs.” “You taught me a secret language I can’t speak with anyone else,” she sings. “And you know damn well for you I would ruin myself.” The scenes and perspectives evoked by these songs alone speak volumes about Swift’s evolution as a songwriter.

The theme of folklore is a very different way of acknowledging that people will talk, an idea that animated 2017’s trap-tinged work of minor villainy, Reputation. Swift knows her own mythology like a model knows her angles, and that’s part of what makes folklore fascinating if you maintain an open mind: a kind of reverse-engineered “mindie” project, it sonically situates her closest to Lana and chamber-pop belter Florence Welch, but may also occasionally remind you of Triple-A radio, Sufjan Stevens if he killed his more ambitious tendencies, or Big Red Machine, Dessner’s duo with Justin Vernon (see: the sparse and soulful “peace”). The album’s actual duet with Vernon, “exile,” is a little like a Bon Iver take on “Falling Slowly,” the centerpiece of the 2007 folk musical Once: awkwardly dragging until the clouds slowly part to allow something beautiful to build. Swift is playing the long game here, and while there are no wild missteps, the album could use some selective pruning (see: “seven,” “hoax”).

It’s worth pointing out that folklore isn’t a total outlier in Swift’s catalog either, or even her recent work. The tracks with Antonoff shift away from the ’80s electro-pop of 1989 and onward, but they lean into the Mazzy Star swoon of Lover’s title track, Swift’s ongoing fascination with Imogen Heap, and a twinge of the Cranberries. There are interesting images, indelible hooks, and real signs of maturity. In the dreamy “mirrorball,” Swift likens the relatability trap of fame to a disco ball, singing of fluttering on tiptoes and trying hard to make it look effortless. “august” is a great, lusty Swift summer anthem about forbidden love, where the up-close, white-hot heat of songs like “Style” or “Getaway Car” is traded for wistful reflection in the rearview. Like the rest of us, Taylor Swift knows she’s had better summers before and she’ll have better summers again. At least she’s made thoughtful use of this one.

#taylor swift #folklore #review

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mediaeval-muse · 3 years

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Book Review

The Cruel Prince. By Holly Black. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2018.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Genre: YA fantasy

Part of a Series? Yes, Folk of the Air #1

Summary: Jude was seven when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King. To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences. As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

***Full review under the cut.***

SPOILERS in the character section, so read with caution.

Content/Trigger Warnings: violence, blood, bullying, drinking/drugs, sexual assault

Overview: I’m well aware that Holly Black’s books generally polarize the YA fantasy community - some readers love them, some hate them. I personally adored The Darkest Part of the Forest, so I figured I’d give The Cruel Prince a try, just to see what reaction I’d have. In general, I was disappointed by this book. After all the rich, mysterious lore that was presented in The Darkest Part of the Forest, faeries felt de-mystified in The Cruel Prince - de-mystified to the point where there wasn’t much to distinguish Black’s faerie world from other YA fantasy realms. Combined with my dislike for the protagonist and the lack of attention given to the political plot for the first 200+ pages, I didn’t find this book as enjoyable as I had hoped.

Writing: Black’s writing is a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, I did like the way her prose flowed and how she gave rich descriptions of magical settings and objects. On the other hand, I felt that some scenes were overwritten. I didn’t much care for the paragraphs that described Jude (our protagonist) getting ready for something, the details about her meal that don’t really matter, or the monotony of going to lectures. In my opinion, too much time was devoted to these ho-hum moments and not enough time was devoted to setting up the stakes of the main plot.

This book is also told in first person, which I personally dislike because it forces the author to give descriptions and background in ways that feel unnatural. For example, Jude articulates her emotions in ways that felt clunky to me, and background was given on certain aspects of the scenery that weren’t necessary to the plot (perhaps they create atmosphere, but it was an atmosphere that didn’t enhance the actions or emotions of the scene, in my opinion). But my dislike of first person isn’t a knock on Black specifically - to some extent, all first person narratives have this challenge, and some authors succeed more than others. In this case, I don’t think first person worked, and I much preferred the third person narration of the book’s prologue.

Plot: From the description, it would seem that this book is about a girl who struggles with her identity and gets caught up in court intrigues while trying her best to fit in. To some extent, that’s true, but I personally found that Black didn’t set up the stakes well enough to make these themes resonate. Jude barely thinks about her murdered parents, so it doesn’t feel like her past drives her present actions. Jude also doesn’t exactly ruminate on why she wants to belong to a society that is openly hostile to her and her sister, Taryn. There is a brief moment when she thinks about how she want to be better than the faeries, showing them up by advancing in their court; however, I didn’t feel that there were high emotional stakes for Jude, as she doesn’t really struggle with her identity or do things that would show me that there was a goal other than to beat the bullies. I could understand a plot where the goal was just to survive, and I did get some of that in The Cruel Prince; however, Jude is raised in such privilege that I didn’t feel it as viscerally as I think I could have.

As for the palace intrigues and deceptions themselves, I didn’t find them interesting until about 250 pages in. To Black’s credit, I liked the twist - I think it was an interesting move, and really did show off some court drama. But as much as I liked it, I wish the buildup had been more engaging. Because I didn’t feel invested in the makeup of the court and everyone in it seemed to be terrible, I didn’t much care who was on Faerie’s throne or who wanted to kill who until more emotional stakes were revealed shortly after the twist. As a result, I felt like I had to slog through 250 pages before getting a payoff, and those 250 pages could have been more than Jude dealing with Cardan and his friends at “faerie school.” (And yes, I know there was technically more than that, but it felt weak to me.)

Characters: Jude, our protagonist, doesn’t have much going for her until after the twist. I was initially intrigued by the idea of a human being raised in Faerie and what effect that might have on someone, but Jude isn’t much different from any other YA fantasy protagonist that is raised in a world of magic. She’s good at fighting, but becomes a spy, despite having zero experience being stealthy (and, in my opinion, she’s not even that good at being a spy; the only thing that really makes her useful is her ability to lie). I honestly couldn’t understand why she was specifically recruited for that purpose or why she was so entrusted with crucial missions, as she has zero skills that make her qualified (other than being human and thus beneath faerie notice - even though she is the adopted daughter of a high-ranking official, so I didn’t understand why more fairies wouldn’t recognize her). Moreover, Jude would act in ways that I found nonsensical, like punching a random human in the face and thinking about how good it felt (yet not reflecting much on how that makes her a part of Faerie), to randomly deciding to try to free a human from slavery (while claiming that she wants to fight for human justice, despite being raised like a princess and not thinking much about humans in Faerie until that moment). It felt like Black was trying to make an ambitious or morally grey character - one who was violent and ruthless, just to survive - but for me, Jude just ended up feeling flat. She’s mostly just defiant and rash, and I couldn’t connect with her because I didn’t understand or feel enthusiastic about her motivations, and I didn’t see her as developing over the course of the novel.

To be fair, though, I did think Jude displayed some good planning skills after the twist. She does show some initiative, and ends up hatching a plot that I thought was pretty good. I wish more of that scheming had been present earlier in the book, perhaps in smaller doses as some foreshadowing, or more emotional moments that would have made the twist resonate on a more personal level (like more scenes that showed her deep connection to her family).

Cardan, to Black’s credit, lives up to his description. He’s awful, and Black doesn’t try to redeem him with a tragic backstory (though he does have a difficult home life, it’s never used as an excuse). Like Jude, I didn’t find him particularly interesting until after the twist, and even then, I was more interested in his political relationship with Jude than their personal relationship. I’m a sucker for enemies-to-reluctant-allies stories, and I think this aspect was done pretty well with regards to Cardan’s character. The change in their personal relationship, however, was too abrupt and felt too much like the old advice people give children: that boys are mean to girls because they like them. I would have much rather liked to see Cardan developing respect for Jude as they worked together politically, and maybe that would be fruitful grounds for a more personal relationship.

Supporting characters were fairly bland. Taryn, Jude’s twin sister, was fine, but I hated that her arc was just about fighting with her sister over a boy. Locke, Jude’s initial love interest, seemed attracted to Jude for no reason (other than boredom?) and had no interesting qualities other than being a little less cruel than Cardan and his friends; as a result, their romance was so devoid of passion that I didn’t care if they got together or not. Dain, the prince Jude serves, is threatening without being a compelling figure; he’s mostly an archetype. Even Jude’s adoptive parents manage to be uninteresting, as her father, Madoc, is regularly absent and his wife, Oriana, only exists to be the irritated stepmother until the twist happens. Given what happens after the twist, I would have liked to see more work done to develop Jude’s relationship with her family, rather than have them be background characters until convenient. The only supporting character that consistently held my interest was Vivienne (”Vivi”), Jude’s half sister. Vivi is Madoc’s child by Jude’s mother, and thus, she is half-human, half-redcap. I found her struggle with her identity to be more compelling than Jude’s, and Vivi actually had desires and goals that felt tangible and personal.

Other: The thing that bothered me most about this book was the de-mystifying of faeries. Faeries, for me, are only interesting because humans can’t reliably predict their actions or get a handle on their “culture.” Once that mystery is taken away, they feel like humans, but meaner and hotter. The Cruel Prince, in my opinion, falls into this trap. By detailing what they eat, how they dress, what lessons they have at school, what their court is like, the faeries feel less like a fantastical creature and more like humans with a few quirks (like not being able to lie). As a result, this book didn’t feel like a fairy story to me.

Moreover, I don’t think the setting of Faerie was utilized as well as it could have been - the setting could have been changed to any other fantasy realm and not much would have been different. The Lake of Mirrors, for example, was a whimsical detail that had no bearing on the plot, as were the myriad of creatures that seemed to show up and disappear. I wanted Faerie to be more whimsical and dangerous than it ended up being, perhaps to get a sense of what kinds of skills Jude had to develop to survive there. Even though there is danger (there is a lot of violence, in addition to scenes where Jude is force-fed fairy fruit and fairies attempt to glamour or compel her), the danger felt wholly concentrated in the fairies themselves, not the setting, and was accomplished by brute force rather than the subtle trickery and word play that I associate with the fay. I would have liked to see Black use her setting to enhance her premise - maybe, because Jude was raised in Faerie, the human world becomes mysterious and alluring, and maybe the fairy court wants to go after humans more aggressively; the book then could have been a political intrigue story about appreciating and protecting the things we mortals take for granted. Even if we stick with the core events of this book as it stands, I wanted to see more of how living in such a dangerous, whimsical realm affected Jude. For example, Jude was raised by a redcap (a malevolent fay from folklore), but the only way that seems to have affected her is that she’s good at swordplay (which is a skill that could have been gained in any other fantasy setting) and she’s somewhat ruthless (though not any more than other YA protagonists, I would say).

TL;DR: I felt that this book suffered from a protagonist that was hard to connect with and from making fairies seem too familiar and predictable. While I did like the plot twist and the subsequent fallout, it isn’t enough to make me rush out for the next installment of this series. I would, however, consider picking up book #2 out of curiosity for how the political plot continues, but I’m not emotionally invested in Jude’s or Cardan’s character arc, so I’m not clamoring for the next installment.

#book reviews

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phoebehalliwell · 4 years

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Yo imagine Wyatt being raised by the cleaners and coming back as an adult but time moves differently in the void (idk where they live) and it’s only been a few minutes. THE DRAMA tm I mean imagine Piper’s outrage! It could encompass a whole freaking season!! And then just because I’m a sucker for Phoebe’s baby living, like they could have stolen this child too! Twice!Blessed Wyatt & Source!Touched Dency as Cleaner siblings 👀

i feel like this would be like the Quintessential like network tv drama move tho like bc like. child actors? who wants em? they’re not that good, there are a whole bunch of rules about how long they can be on set for, you gotta bend over backwards trying to film a scene of theme fighting a demon w/o actually having them be in the room with said demon bc they get scared. bc they’re a child. when instead of having a child actors,,, you could have a grown human actor. amirite lads? i feel like this is definitely like a thing i swear they did this on ouat with belle and rumplestiltskin’s baby bc like. who wants a baby as a character when you can get the abc equivalent of kylo ren i guess? like who wants a baby wyatt when you could have a full grown adult wyatt who is still trying to get a hang of being in a human world bc he’s grown up in like. a void. and i Love the idea of dency being with him too especially bc i think they would form this sibling bond without ever actually know that they’re cousins (bc i don’t think the cleaners would like tell them of their lineage) and i also think powers are like augmented in the void i think both of these kids powers would be dampened probs like to that or a normal witch (and the cleaners would know any better bc uhh quite frankly they don’t host witches very often) so once dency and wyatt go out into the real world and find out they have like powers like a god that’s also gonna be a trip. i also think it’d be like inch resting bc i think obvi dency and wyatt would be drawn to the manor in one fashion or another bc well a) the plot needs it but b) it’s like their ancestral home it’s the nexus they feel the pull and the charmed ones would like equally feel this connection to wyatt and dency bc like you know That’s Their Children but they don’t know that. bc like piper’s been wiped of the idea of wyatt but it’s still something that you know she always mulls over that feeling when you lose a tooth and you can’t help but poke and prod at the lil vacancy where it once was and i think she feels like this really strong connection to wyatt bc she’s like if i had a son i would want him to be like you and i think like the more time she and wyatt spend around each other the more she’d really get echoes of y’know having wyatt but she just thinks they’re like he mind constructing fantasies of what it would have been like to have a kid besides wyatt’s like twentysomething so clearly like they can’t be related but like They Feel Related but it’s probs just the fact that she regrets never having kids latching onto her. leo will occasionally pop in but he doesn’t like spending time around wyatt something about him like puts leo in pain and he can’t figure out why so he thinks it’s just like Instincts and he goes to do some like digging into exactly who this dude is meanwhile piper’s been having this whole crisis about the fact that she never had kids blah blah blah which is specifically dredging up memories for phoebe about her own pregnancy that only last like two months but was still like a very formative time for her (the cleaners got a hold of dency when the source/seer/whatever was vanquished and the found the essence of the sources heir left still imbued with the power of the source of all evil and a charmed one and then went zoinks shouldn’t leave that just lying around that’s way too much power and it’s definitely not be used responsible we’re gonna take this back to The Void™ just to make sure it doesn’t go haywire well much to their surprise within a couple months that essence has now taken the form of a Human Child and they’re like a child but y’know they can’t Kill It because then it’s just release the essence in a less tangible form (also it’s a baby) so they’re like word well okay what if like we raised the kids and another cleaner is like what and the first cleaner is like okay well the whole reason we brought the essence back was so that it didn’t go haywire and destroy everything and make our jobs all a lot more difficult so like what if we raised the kids and taught them the ways of the cleaners! and cleaner two is like what ew no let’s just trap it in a giant ice cube and call it a day and the eldest cleaner is like no cleaner one is onto something so blah blah blah by the time they have to vanish wyatt and entire baby they’re like hey we’ve got another one now we can give dency a sibling!) so like blah blah blah (oh also fun fact in this au dency has the same haircut as the cleaners) and phoebe’s just sorta like she feels like the has this connection to dency but she thinks it’s just cuz she’s like a young witch who like loves her powers and like has a close bond with her sibling and phoebe just thinks she sees herself in dency blah blah blah oh cole’s spirit who is like fuckin creepin around the house or whatever in a very disturbing manner Also Sees Dency and is like hey. hey what’s up with that. blah blah blah leo has done his digging and confronts wyatt like why don’t you exist and wyatt’s like what and leo’s all like aggressive & upset bc he’s trying to protect his family and wyatt’s just like really confused like i was raised in a void with my sister?? like normal people???? and blah blah blah dency gets involved which gets phoebe involved and then piper’s showing up like what’s all this then and leo’s like accusing wyatt of lying and saying like the two of them are trying to infiltrate the family and get closed to the charmed ones to like you know learn magic straight out of the book of shadows something or others and then the cleaners themselves actually show up like okay kids this was fun and all but like it’s time to pack it up like let’s go home and like dency and wyatt are both like hey no we like being like here we like being out in the real world and the cleaners are like okay but you have to think of what’s best the real world just isn’t safe for you you’re too powerful to ever fit it you’ll always be ostracized and made out to be villains it’s better with us it’s safe with us just come home and like you know now paige has also shown up and the charmed ones are like who the hell are you and leo’s like what the actual fuck is going on right now Are Those Cleaners and wyatt and dency are like standing strong with each other and they’re like we can live here we can be safe here like please just give us another chance and the cleaners are like i’m sorry we can’t it’s just too dangerous and wyatt’s like i’m not letting you take me away again! and dency’s like again? and piper’s like yeah again? and phoebe and paige are like what does that mean? and like the gears are turning in leo’s head and like for once he really leans into the emotions that sorta y’know know double double toil and trouble underneath the surface whenever he’s around wyatt bc he always ran from them, they were painful and he figured it was because wyatt was well like evil but now he’s not running and he’s leaning into it and really trying to figure out what he feels and it’s this insane loss and fear and longing but underneath that is like joy and elation and absolute happiness and unconditional love and he remember the time wyatt was born meanwhile phoebe the empath has basically been knocked off her feet with the tidal wave of raw emotion that just shot out from leo and she has the same realization and leo’s like I’m Not Letting You Take My Son Again. and wyatt’s like what and piper’s like what and phoebe like also takes a stand and she’s like dency and wyatt are our family. and you can’t take them. and wyatt and dency are looking at each other like ????? but they’re like game they don’t want to leave and the cleaners are like you know what no No absolutely not and they take dency and wyatt and they wipe the halliwells’ memories and fuck off back into the void but now the ball is rolling and dency and wyatt are like no who are we who were they that was our family and the cleaners are like you don’t have family and dency and wyatt are like that’s not true and you know it and wyatt like piper’s my mother isn’t she and the cleaners are like don’t ask stupid questions and wyatt’s like she is!! i knew it! i fucking knew it!!! and dency sorta sitting there and she’ll totally you know go to bat for wyatt and she believes the halliwells are her family but she just doesn’t feel this connection wyatt has like wyatt Knows piper’s his mother but dency doesn’t feel the same way. she doesn’t have the same connection that like wyatt has. but blah blah blah they aren’t able to argue long bc they’ve sense a shift in the void meaning someone’s out there exposing magic and they go and it’s the charmed ones fucking up things and the cleaners are like word we can get rid of you too and wyatt’s like if you do i’ll go & destroy everything and paige is like yeah love the energy not actually necessary bc you guys aren’t allowed to get rid of us bc well not to flex but we’re the charmed ones and the cleaners are like yeah big whoop and phoebe’s like how familiar are you with the cosmic balance and the cleaners are like . and phoebe’s like yeah though so and paige is like you can’t kill us without drastically tipping the scales. and the cleaners are like fine what do you want and they’re like we want dency and wyatt and the cleaners are like well shouldn’t it be their choice whether or not they want to go with you and the charmed ones are like fine ask them i’m not worried and wyatt’s like i’m going with the halliwells period end statement but then like cleaner one the initial cleaner who was like let’s care and raise dency is like talking to her like please. it’s safer with you here. wyatt feels his connection with them. what do you feel? we raised you, we care for you, we love you, we want to see you safe. we’re your family. and dency’s just like who am i. and the cleaner’s like nothing they would like. and dency’s like that doesn’t answer my question. and the cleaners are like you’re the source’s heir. and the charmed ones are like She’s The What. and dency’s like i’m what. and the cleaners are like you are the daughter of the source of all evil. you are the epitome of power and destruction. but we can keep you safe, we can keep you from hurting anyone. and phoebe’s like are you gonna tell her the rest. and dency’s like tell me what. and phoebe’s like you may be the daughter of the source of all evil. you’re also the daughter of a charmed one. you’re my daughter. and dency’s like What. The Fuck. and the cleaners are like oh don’t be so generous you carried her for all of two months she is not your daughter and dency’s like What. The Fuck. and like paige and piper and in the background and like the gears are turning in their heads like cole’s kid??? and the cleaners are like when we found you you were barely an essence all that was left over from a brutal vanquish and dency’s like WHAT. THE FUCK. and phoebe’s like you took my kid from me! and the cleaners are like you vanquished her! and phoebe’s like we vanquished the seer! we stopped the source of all evil! and it cost me my child don’t you dare say i did this to her and dency’s like you know what actually no and she flames out and piper’s like well i guess you have your decision feel free to get the fuck out of my attic now and the cleaners are like like you guys are assholes and there’s a reason we let prue die 😗✌ and dip and piper’s like if a see another cleaner ever again i’m gonna vanquish that motherfucker So Quick he won’t even have time to ruin yet another one of my family photos. blah blah blah wyatt’s like At Home he’s reunited with his family and they’re so happy to have him back and piper’s like let me cook you a really nice dinner the last time i cooked for you it was just pureed carrots i’m hoping you’re palate’s gotten a little more refined and wyatt’s like thanks mom that really means a lot but i can’t stay here i can’t turn my back on dency she was my family before i even knew i had one i have to go find her so of course the let him go blah blah blah he finds dency blah blah blah heart to heart blah blah blah they all reunite blah blah blah happy ending : )

#2.3k #fun!#charmed #wyatt halliwell #dency halliwell #the cleaners #margaretsminiessays #💌#next gen #ish

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darkpoisonouslove · 3 years

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Perhaps this changes in season 7 of once upon a time but David/prince charming hardly had an effect on the overall story and didn't really do much so I was never too invested when he was on screen. Henry as a character was hit and miss most of the time but I do love his moments with both his mom's.

Some of the main cast are not present for season 7 and that includes David so it definitely won’t be changing in season 7. I think the reason for that is that they were trying to make Snow a more active protagonist (bc let’s face it, for having the fairytale named after her, she legit does not do shit except for dying!) and that backfired by putting David on the backseat a little bit. That is especially tangible in season 1 where despite the Curse, Snow gets to bond with their daughter and David is only given that chance in the second half of season 2. Also, whenever there were decisions to be made about Emma (like putting her in the wardrobe or stealing Maleficent’s egg to put Emma’s darkness in it), it was never a mutual decision. It was always something Snow decided and David followed just because. it was noticeable in the first four seasons when they actually had arcs since after that, both of them faded as characters. But in the first seasons David had some good moments. Granted, not as much as Snow but I found his “origin” story and his struggle against king George pretty interesting (also, helping princess Abigail get her love back and losing his mother were some moments that were pretty emotional to me). His season 3 arc of grappling with his fear of losing another child was also a good moment. Again, he isn’t as fleshed out as Snow but to me he felt nuanced in the first seasons at the very least. And there were those subtle moments to him when his jealousy and aggression would shine through to give an idea of how his twin turned into who he was since they apparently shared traits but nurture made a difference for David. And my favorites are definitely his dad moments with Emma. I would have killed for more of those because Snow usually got more of the parent moments but I loved it when David got to be the one grounding Emma and helping her connect to herself and her origins. I would’ve been very enthusiastic about seeing more of him but the idea of the show was primarily the standoff between Regina and Snow and in the present Regina vs Emma. The three of them and how family and being family relates to their connections with each other and with others was always the center of the show so David got sidelined in favor of that. I still think that he is a much more fleshed out version of his cartoon counterpart and I didn’t find him boring before the show ditched him and Snow in seasons 5 and 6 (and some of s4).

Henry lost his direction as a character after the first two seasons, I would say. Season 3 actually started looking for ways to make him involved in the whole thing with the Heart of the Truest Believer arc and then having to make him believe in fairytales again but his kidnapping and the following wipe of his memories was in a way the writers avoiding making him a central piece of the narrative. They didn’t really know what to do with him anymore since he was a key part in Emma and Regina’s journeys but once he learned that fairytales were real and experienced them for himself, it seemed that he lost his own purpose in the narrative. Seasons 5 and 6 especially don’t do much about him since they don’t even know what to do with the other characters that were always more developed. I can say that for me season 7 did a lot in terms of making Henry a great character. He gets a central role in the story and the writers actually truly take the time to craft him a story and figure out how he fits into this world of fairytales he has inherited but it isn’t his. I loved what they did with him to the point where whenever I think about Henry, it is the season 7 version that first pops into my mind. That’s just a personal opinion but season 7 definitely managed to find something about Henry to make him a part of the general theme of the show (about fairytales) in a way that feels unique. Henry isn’t like Emma. He believed in magic and the stories from his book but he didn’t feel like he belonged in there whereas Emma’s story was always about not belonging in the only world she believed existed because she was from another, magical world. The show manages to play very well into how Henry, who is more an our-world person makes his way into a magical world full of real people with real problems made even more complicated by the magic at hand. It brings in a more relatable theme of how is an ordinary person supposed to have a fairytale love and sense of self. It takes a person without magical powers but the determination and desire to be a hero and makes him that and it is an inspiring story that runs across both worlds, not just the fairytale land. I really loved that. It was something that the show could have definitely used imo.

#once upon a time #ouat #david nolan #henry mills #ask #supersonichero1

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jmalkki · 4 years

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“I Don’t Think He Smoked"

Ah, imagination. You wild and unpredictable thing. So taken by the smallest of provocations sometimes. This following has been a thing for me for years now, yet the first time I ever actually do anything with it.

Quantum of Solace. It always intrigued me how it seemed there could be more going on behind the scenes, than what the movie ever spelled out regarding this one ‘throw-away’ character.

Craig (Henry) Mitchell (played by stuntman Glenn Foster), M’s personal bodyguard of 5 years, and a character who seems to have backstory and plot significance on him beyond a mere couple minute action scene alone.

What most noticeable to me was, how the movie drops hints that Bond obviously knows Mitchell previously (from work), but that he knows him even better than M does. Yet, it never comes clear from any of their interactions, if M or anyone is at all aware of this.

This particular title line, which goes completely unacknowledged in the movie, was indeed the ultimate tease for me; showcasing how Bond seems the only one of the characters with any personal knowledge of the man. Still, no-one seemingly bothers or indeed knows to question him for anything.

My Brain went straight away - as I was watching - to speculate how this might very well be remnants of a cut out storyline. Excited for the possibility, that perhaps it was for that once talked about trait for Craig’s role: a more sexually fluid Bond. Most naturally befitting character trait for a 21st century man with a hefty sexual appetite, no attachments to anything, and a tendency to use charms for his advantage. But which to this day has never quite manifested on screen.

Made it feel there was something left unsaid about this previously unestablished acquaintance, too - 45 years old, no living family, gave generously to charity. Another MI6 ‘lost boy’? Much like Bond himself.

The mind is indeed keen to imagine the possible nature of this relationship encompassing rest of the series too. For example retroactively as a possible explanation for how Bond is able to find and so easily sneak into M’s classified and likely heavily guarded personal premises in the beginning of Casino Royale: perhaps by establishing intimate connections with a certain someone in the in-house staff, who would have such knowledge (”Somewhere I found out your name”), security clearance and an access to M’s detailed schedule. Would fit quite easily with the sort of favors Bond continuously keeps exchanging / taking advantage of to maintain close proximity to his targets and obtain his objectives.

Adds to the subsequent movie, Skyfall, too; giving some (would be) tangible context to call back to in the famously brilliant intimidation scene with Silva, and the stand-out Bond line, which remains the closest yet we’ve got to hint on that fluidity: “what makes you think this is my first time?” (If even Mitchell would be, though; imagining Bond’s track record, it’d seem highly unlikely).

Aaanyhow. Craig Mitchell, a brief side-character who for the first time made me feel any investment in the Bond franchise at all, and who I’ve unintentionally (but welcomingly) become quite besotted by, for their supposed, unspoken connection with Bond, and their apparently lonesome and unnoticed existence.

And who’s in consequence added more to the range of this already most psychologically nuanced Bond as well; Mitchell’s eventual, unfortunate fate in the hands of the man himself, and how that might be seen to affect Bond’s objectives following the events on screen, shift the character arc quite remarkably; watching James deal with the Mitchell investigation with his trademark unattachment affords one to put so much meaning behind his stoic facade. (Ie. the whole unceremonious sequence right after Mitchell’s death, from the moment Bond learns of Mitchell’s connection, Edmund Slate, goes after them, and seemingly quite unnecessarily kills this only lead, one could - and does - easily see/imagine the suppressed emotions and deeper rooted personal vendetta behind the unexplained callous ruthlessness).

I’m not saying/imagining Bond himself would’ve necessarily had any deeper romantic feelings for Mitchell (he is, after all, quite apparent in denying himself any such for anyone). I’m postulating, that with little more obvious signals (still?) there could’ve been room to show how 007′s usual, often rather insensitive/indifferent use of charms might’ve been the result of yet another unfortunate downfall here, and have the knowledge of that (too) weight on him, adding further unforeseen nuance to the tired standard fare of cars, guns and pretty lady props. (And certainly multiplying the layers of that otherwise rather inconsequential chase scene between Craig and James).

Would’ve been, or was? I’ve personally never seen the movie without this imagined subtext, so the already subtle, unspecified nudges to this relationship (colleagues or more) were enough to make it real for me at least.

Something too to speculate for the reason of Mitchell’s never explained betrayal.

What ever might come in the future of the franchise still, I suppose my mind has convinced me of this headcanon: for me, Craig Mitchell was the first (overlooked) ‘Bond boy’.

Bond’s usual Walther PKK, and Mitchell’s SIG-Sauer P226, the gun seemingly issued to MI6 agents in general. No, I don’t have such knowledge of guns on me personally to identify them, but as I discovered, resources such as this meticulously curated Internet Movie Firearm Database exist.

By the by: these two men are also where my mind inevitably always goes with Sam Smith’s theme for Spectre; the lyrics of “could you break my fall”, “no more use in running”, “a million shards of glass”, “when all hope begins to shatter” and “never shoot to miss”, all as if harkening back to, again, their on-screen chase scene in the beginning of Quantum, with literal running away, falling, shattering glass flying about, and the eventual killing shot. This is where my brain insists on first and foremost placing the regret and pathos so palpable in the song. I’m sure Sam wouldn’t mind.

The place is Mitchell’s, as indicated by the on-screen familiar curtains, the view, and the ashtray gifted by M, which prompted the inspirational off-hand line from Bond, and which I imagined would’ve come up between the two men previously.

#james bond #daniel craig #quantum of solace #skyfall #casino royale #craig mitchell #henry mitchell #glenn foster #007 #james bond 007 #mi6 #spectre

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blorgon-schmorgon · 4 years

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BtVS Rewatch 1x09 The Puppet Show

continuing my weekly rewatch of buffy with my partner (his first time watching), we watched the puppet show last week, which I expected to dislike. I remember feeling bored the last time I saw it, and was anxious to move past it, but I think it might actually have been the episode my partner enjoyed the most? He spent most of it guessing how it was going to go, and never caught on, which is probably testament to how tightly written the episode was and the good use of red-herrings and false leads. Watching him watch it gave me a new perspective on the strength of the episode, and speaks to what morgue.isprettyawesome claims is the best bit of this episode - the genuine surprise and the use of Buffy’s format to keep the audience guessing and introducing a slew of weirdness that somehow clicks together. I don’t feel like any Buffy episode will introduce this many twists again, but it’s a very solid method of doing Buffy, and feels very season 1 in its horror movie riffing.

some thoughts on youth and the wider world:

I just made a recent imagery series about youth in season 1, and I think this episode really captures some of the themes of youth really well? Sid the Dummy is kind of antithetical to the monsters we’ve seen thus far (Moloch, The Master, Miss French, Catherine Madison), as a creature that has a simulacra of eternal youth foisted upon it rather than seeking that youth. Of course, the real monster of this episode is the demon going undercover as a magician seeking youth in his own way, but he receives so little screentime and focus that he really seems like an excuse to explore Sid the Dummy instead. Initially, Sid seems to be another variation of these previous monsters - attempting to steal the youth of high school students - but turns out to be the opposite, a demon hunter cursed to live in the body of a puppet, a quasi-child, until he completes his purpose of slaying a set of demons. In some ways, Sid seems to be an archetype for what Angel will eventually become, and the role Angel is currently playing in the show - Buffy’s connection to a wider world of monsters and demon fighters that exist beyond her, a model of her future development and growth. The connection these two make in this episode is similar to the connection she will build with characters like Angel, Kendra, and Faith, the shadow selves that will nudge her into and away from separate paths of growth. Here, she meets someone who has fought the good fight and is unable to leave, trapped in a fight he no longer wants to be a part of, an inversion of the short-lived Slayer, which he comments on:

Sid: Don't get sniffly on me, sis. I've lived a lot longer than most demon hunters. Or Slayers, for that matter.

Buffy herself will feel trapped in a role she doesn’t want to play again and again - particularly in season 6 - and so Sid feels like a useful metaphor for thinking through that future pain and feeling of entrapment. Sid doesn’t quite fit any high school metaphor the way previous monsters have, but as I said about I Robot, You Jane, seems to be a way for the show to begin commenting on itself. Here, Sid holds up a fractured mirror to Buffy, her growth, and the Slayer as a construct.

On the flip side, the episode also introduces Principal Snyder. Where Sid represents a path of adulthood for Buffy to consider and step into, Snyder represents malevolent adulthood, a force to be fought by rebellious and independent youth envisioning an alternative future. Snyder represents conformity, order at the expense of justice and change, and compliance to authority. These themes will emerge more strongly in season 3, but here remain a useful kick in the pants for a show that hasn’t quite found its grounding and a sense of conflict. Until this point, the key authority figures were Principal Flutie and Joyce Summers - Snyder represents a tangible human figure of conflict for the Scooby Gang to organize against, as opposed to the more benevolently negligent Flutie and Joyce. This is important set up work for future seasons! The show is beginning to come into its own here, and its great!

Another notable moment that emerges from this episode is Buffy’s fear of dummies stemming from a childhood experience, and Xander gaslighting her fear of Sid by drawing on that - it’ll happen again in Killed by Death with Buffy’s fear of Kindestod, and is an interesting, if not quite effective way, of heightening the episode’s tension. The show is beginning to understand the importance of personalizing the threat to the main characters, but drawing on experiences in the past is a little cheap, and doesn’t quite work.

I’m also fascinated by the character of Morgan - Morgan who is Sid’s helper, Morgan who seemed to be invested in this fight too, Morgan who dies offhandedly, Morgan the enigma and someone who seems to be a shadow of Ford in Lie to Me, or even Ben in season 5. A cancer/death-stricken youth who seems to choose good in a way these future variants don’t. What is his relationship with Sid? What are his motivations? His disposability seems linked to this episode’s twisting surprises, but I wish he had gotten more of a focus and been sketched out more clearly. Sid doesn’t remark on his death at all, which seems like such a wasted opportunity to flesh out Sid and Morgan more clearly, and relate it to the show’s larger themes.

On a final note, what I love about this episode upon rewatch is how much fun the cast seems to be having, and how relaxed the Scooby Gang seem to be - we won’t see this for the rest of the season as they’re put in more harrowing situations that shake up the dynamics of the group in interesting ways, but we will see this a lot in season 2 that helps to ground a heavy and emotionally tough season. Season 1 is doing a lot of important legwork with this episode, and it’s great to see the family unit of the show come into itself! I love their teasing of Giles, I love the epilogue, and I love their familiarity with each other!

#btvs #btvs rewatch #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy the vampire slayer 1x09 #the puppet show #btvs: the puppet show

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herec2e-blog · 4 years

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Genuine Benefits of Video Games

In the event that you included a Wii, PlayStation or Xbox 360 to your home this year, you're absolutely not the only one. As per Nielsen figures, 54% of U.S. families currently own a computer game reassure or a handheld framework. Be that as it may, before you castigate yourself for surrendering to your children energy for computer games, or stress when you hear an appalling wrongdoing accused on PC games, new research will make them inhale a murmur of alleviation (and maybe getting a controller), as the advantages of computer games turns out to be clear.

It appears that there are some somewhat significant advantages that originate from playing those activity pressed computer games. Normal players of computer games figure out how to process data quicker and all the more precisely when they're playing in both virtual universes and genuine circumstances as per another examination in the December 2009 issue of Current Directions in Psychological Science.

The specialists found that customary players get quicker in the games they play regularly, yet in addition in absolutely irrelevant lab trial of their response times. What's more, since speed can be of indispensable significance in numerous ordinary circumstances, this work was particularly mindful so as to take a gander at the proof on computer games and response times.

The games utilized included well known titles God of War, Halo, Unreal Tournament, Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty. All these activity themed games call for quick preparing of tangible data and acting rapidly. This powers the player to settle on choices and react at an a lot quicker pace than what we may do, in actuality.

The group, including Matthew Dye, Ph.D. of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, explored existing writing on computer games and discovered a few things in the information that will shock the doubters.

- Players don't lose precision as they get a move on in the game, yet rather they keep up exactness and get quicker as well. The specialists think this is because of upgrades in visual insight that come after over and again playing a similar game.

- Players show upgraded execution on mental turn abilities, visual and spatial memory and undertakings calling for partitioned consideration.

- Training on computer games may help diminish the contrasts among young men and young ladies visual and uncommon preparing,illinois gaming revenue and they may likewise help hold off a portion of the psychological decreases that come as a major aspect of getting more seasoned.

"Video gaming may in this manner give a productive preparing routine to instigate a general speeding of perceptual response times without diminishes in exactness of execution," the examination creators recommend. To an ever increasing extent, computer games are shedding their inconvenient notoriety and the gaming business has become a developing wellspring of work for some capable individuals.

Gaming frameworks like the Wii are currently part of numerous restoration programs, and the individuals who play the games are appreciating expanded aptitudes, however the fun of mingling while at the same time playing.

Research keeps on demonstrating that advantages of computer games reach out to having instructive worth, permitting children to utilize the logical strategy as they figure out how to play the game, while others make geology, asset the executives, math, history, composing or spelling something kids need to do. So unwind, snatch that controller, and play along. You could very well get a couple of a larger number of abilities than you suspected - All while having a touch of fun, as well!

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dailyaudiobible · 4 years

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01/10/2020 DAB Transcript

Genesis 23:1-24:51, Matthew 8:1-17, Psalms 9:13-20, Proverbs 3:1-6

Today is the 10th day of January, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian and it's great to be here with you today. And well, this is the 10th day of the year. So, 10 days equals a week and a half. So, that's where we are in the year even as we approach the end of the week, the first full week of this year. So, we have indeed begun our voyage and we are sailing straight out into the deep, and probably by now we can see that the Bible hot to say that’s very, very, very poignant to the lives that we’re living right now. And, so, let's continue that voyage. Today, we’re going to say goodbye to somebody that…that we’ve gotten to know a little bit and we’re gonna see ourselves beginning in the Old Testament to shift into a new generation. So, we’ve been reading from the New International Version this week and we’ll do that today. Genesis chapter 23 verse 1 through 24 verse 51.

Commentary:

Okay. So, a couple things just to point out today and consider as we prepare to go into our first weekend of the year.

So, let’s go to the book of Genesis. We said goodbye to Sarai, who’s name had become Sarah, who was, you know, when we got into the meat of the story, she was already kind of an elderly woman who then gave birth to a son of promise whose name is Isaac. And this is where we kind of begin to shift into the next generation. So, Abraham sends a trusted servant to go find a wife for this son of promise, Isaac. And, so, he sends the servant back to his own family because this is a child that…like there's a huge promise over this and we will see how that story begins to play out as we continue it tomorrow. But Sarah, she dies. And, so, Abraham…Abraham is…he's a foreigner so he's not a landowner. He has plenty of…of material goods. He's wealthy, but he’s not a landowner and he needs some land now to establish a burial ground. And this is kind of the first owned land by Abraham who’s received this promise in this land of promise, and it actually has some significance, some significance that we’re not going to really understand until we get a little bit further in the story, but let's just remember where this burial cave is. It is near Hebron according to the Bible and it is the cave of Machpelah according to the Bible and it is in the Valley of Eshkol according to the Bible. We’re gonna see this place again in the Bible, but I should point out that this place still does exist until today. It's called the tomb of the patriarchs at this point and it's a kind of enclosed by…by a large structure that was built in the Herodian era. And, so, we’ve just basically buried Sarah. She's the first person to be buried in this cave, but she's certainly not going to be the last. And Abraham himself will eventually be buried in this cave. And, so, it’s the tomb of the patriarchs and it's a bit of a contentious well-regarded place because of where it's situated and what it represents. Obviously, the tomb of Abraham has significance for Jewish people and Christian believers as well as those who practice Islam. So, it is that one of the holiest pilgrimage sites in the world until today.

Then we move into the book of Proverbs and now Proverbs is almost pleading with us and simply reaching out her hand to say, “I have everything that you are struggling to figure out. I have everything you need, and I have everything you want. So, you can struggle, you can grasp and thrash and connive and deceive and manipulate. You can withhold information, you can curate, you can…you can make something false look true and even fool yourself. And you can think that you've accumulated all the things that you want and you're surrounded by all this life and lifestyle that you think you deserve or that you think that you’re after and it won’t be what you're looking for and it will collapse on you. And in some cases great will be that thunder or you can listen to me and I will just give you what you need to know to navigate this life. And none of the things you’re trying to hold onto or achieve our grasp will be able to enslave you because you will be wise.” So, I just want to give voice once again to what wisdom was speaking to us from the Scriptures. Let's listen to these words again, because we’re only like a week and a half into the year and this is what we need to know to navigate the rest of the year. So, this is wisdom speaking, “do not forget my teaching. Keep my commands in your heart”, right? So, this is as deep as it goes if you’re gonna keep something in your heart. “But if you do”, She says, “if you keep them in your heart, they’ll prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you.” Okay, love and faithfulness. “bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man”. Very different than a curated respect that we try to make in our lives that is ultimately propped up and false. This is…what wisdom is speaking to us is something that is a real and true. And She goes on to say what many of us may have memorized but all of us need to take to heart. This is something to put in our hearts as wisdom was suggesting. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”, right? Don't lean on what you think you know. You do not know all that you think you know. “In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.” So, I…again…I mean…well the question is, is that what you're looking for because this is where the Bible is headed, So, we’re like a week and a half in and we’ve set sail and you’re like, you know, “this is not what I'm looking for. I was hoping for, you know, better ways to manipulate people and get things that I wanted.” Then this is not the right ship. But if you've been on a windy path that has taken you…taken you through territory that you never wanted to experience and you’re trying to find some sort of illuminated path that will lead you to somewhere that makes sense in life, here it is. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.”

Prayer:

Father, as we prepare to move ourselves into the end of a week and as we look back over just the first bit of time that we’ve had in the Scriptures this year, it's…ahh…yeah…we can already see where this is going and we want it because for the first time it feels like we might be able to go somewhere. And now we’re realizing that where we’re going is going to required trust and not understanding. And now we have pause because that can bring us a great amount of fear because You are simply exposing our need to be in control and our awareness that we must trust in You with all of our hearts if we want a straight path before us. So, come Holy Spirit into that as we meditate upon that and consider that during the events of today and in the days ahead. Come Jesus we pray. In Your mighty name, we ask. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, its home base, its where you find out what’s going on around here. And there's always something or another going on around here. So, stay tuned and stay connected at the website.

Kind of been talking this week somewhat unintentionally about the Daily Audio Bible Shop just because of the different themes and stuff that we've been approaching in the Bible. So, I got guess I'll do that again. The Daily Audio Bible Shop is available and the resources that are in the Daily Audio Bible Shop certainly…certainly everything that is shipped from the Shop helps to keep the lights on and keep…and keep the incredible amount of data bandwidth that gets used every day of flowing. But we certainly don't exist on the Shop. The resources that are in the Shop have been created over time for this particular specific journey, the one that we’re on moving through the Bible in a year. And just understanding that that becomes a rhythm and that anything that we can bring into our lives that help us with a rhythm, a path that we are wanting to walk on, anything that we bring into our lives that remind us, that continually keep us focused, that's very helpful. So, that's why these resources exist. So, certainly check them out.

I will…I will mention the God of Your Story, which is the…the newest written resource that we have. And that came out late last year. That is a dated 365-day devotional format that follows the same plan we use at the Daily Audio Bible and offers the same kind of thoughts that we’re talking about. I mean, the Daily Audio Bible, it's different every year, it's different every day. Sometimes talking about the same things we talked about a year ago and sometimes we’ve…we’re talking about things…there's things this year we've never talked about before already. But there is a path through the Scriptures. And, so, it took a couple of years, 600 writing days to do it, but it's kind of a written tangible holdable version of the kind of story that we’re telling as we’re moving our way through the Bible. So, if you’re ever without Internet or you just kinda want to double dip, you wanna go through the Daily Audio Bible and hear what we’re talking about but then also kind of go back and review, then the God of your story is a fantastic resource for that and it can be found in the Daily Audio Bible Shop. So, check that out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com as well. There is a link that just kind of hangs out and lives on the homepage. And I thank you with all my heart for your partnership. If you're using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request comment 877-942-4253 is the number to dial or you can press the Hotline button in the app, the…well…its at the top. You can’t miss it, the little Hotline button and start sharing your story.

And that's it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Well good morning Daily Audio Bible family this is Jeff from the band Scepter. Day three down of year eight for me. This post is more of a technical post than anything. Over the years I’ve listened to Daily Audio Bible just natively on my phone and I wanted to do something different this year. And my brother who is also my guitarist is on year fuor and he told me, “Jeff you’ve got to check out the app.” Well I tried the app when it first came out and it just had a lot to be desired for me personally, it just didn’t work out as well. I decided that this year to do something differently for 2020 I would try to go through the Daily Audio Bible on the app. Wow, I’m glad I did. I just wanted to say Brian and your technical team this…this new version of the app is so fantastic I wish I would’ve done it earlier on. Being able to take the notes and read along and go the other options like the Psalms and Proverbs easily and just be able to click a button easily to leave a message like this is just absolutely out of this world, fantastic. You guys have done an amazing job. And, so, my only regret is I wish I would’ve jumped on this out sooner. But just wanted to thank you Brian again for everything that you and your team does with Daily Audio Bible. This is just fantastic. I’ve spread it out to hope…to some of my friends so hopefully they will…they will join in the community and just pray for a great year for everybody. And ready to do it a little bit different this year with this Daily Audio app. Makes a lot everybody and we’ll talk soon.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family this is Bee from Ireland wishing you a happy new year and a year of…of settling as Jill shared with us and also a year of vision. And those two words really resonate well with me. So, Brian and Jill thank you very much. I’m calling just to share a short prayer for a lady or a guy who called during the Daily Audio Bible Christmas greetings and she did not share a name or his name, I couldn’t tell. It was a 10 years member first time caller, and this was on the timestamp of two hours six minutes. Now, I’m calling because the person was speech impaired and we could barely make out what she or he was saying, and my heart was just moved tremendously that I thought I need to call in and pray. I did pray for the person that day and I prayed continuously as a remembered, but now I just want to say, whoever you are, Christ came, was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities and the chastisement of our peace was upon Him. So, by His stripes we are healed and I just believing God that the faith we have in Him through Christ can come through for you and I ask in the name of Jesus that your tongue be loosed in Jesus’ name and you get your healing and you begin to speak clearly, articulately as God has intended. I decree that every demon of dumbness and deafness, that even as Christ healed the dumb, the lame, the sick, the deaf. I stand in that authority today and say, “be healed in Jesus’ name” and I trust God will do that which we’ve asked for. Thank you.

Hi Daily Audio Bible family this is Denise and I just wanted to read the names of the people who are on my prayer page today who are just sad and dealing with anxiety and depression to let you know that I am praying over you. This goes to 1227 Anonymous who is battling with her place with God, and I know that God is looking for. And Garrett who is battling anxiety, I know the Lord will help them triumph. Running Desperately to Jesus, who is brave enough to ask the hard questions about her anger and sadness. Summer in Ohio, who is tired and just looking for rejuvenation. Kim from Las Vegas whose battling depression and suicidal thoughts, I know that you will conquer. The person who called in for Bailey Anne in Tennessee, who Bailey and was struggling with isolation from her church family. And Carla who faces the long road out of sadness and depression that is fighting tearfully with her prayer call ins. Logan the young man who swallowed the battery in a fit of depression. Hanging on by the Skin of Her Teeth, who is going through just a long path, and sweetheart I know that the Lord loves you and forgives you and thank you for bringing your cares to us this morning. Max from Madison, I cannot forget you, you are the one that called me out to start praying publicly here. And then mark in Davie Florida who called in in despair after finding his friend dead and I just think about Genesis 45 and versus five where Joseph starts to tell his brother that…brothers that he went through this terrible thing for God’s purpose to help them. And I don’t know why we suffer but I know that it is for God’s purpose and the ones who are coming after us we will be able to lead them to the promised land. In Jesus’ name I pray.

Hi this is Marsha from Monument Colorado and I’m calling to wish all of the DABbers a very happy 2020. This is my fourth year with DAB and I’m so, so glad that I found this forum and this community. It has really truly been life-changing for me. This year I’ve decided to add something to my listening and reading and that is journaling. And, so, after I listen to the reading I’m going to stop and just reflect and meditate on what I just read and ask the Spirit to reveal to me anything He might be speaking to me through the Scriptures that day. And I already know because today’s January 2nd and I’ve already finished journaling for today that this is going to be worth every second that I devote to it. I clearly know already that I’m going to look back at this year as extreme life-changing for me. Also, I want to be a lot more faithful in sharing this ministry through my sphere of influence, through my Facebook, Instagram and then in general just telling people I know about DAB and how it’s changed my life. And I also want to be more faithful in supporting it with my finances and with my prayer. And very quickly, I want to say thank you, thank you, thank you, to Brian, to Jill, to the whole family who makes this happen and to the team that is behind them. I just truly don’t know what I’d do without this resource in my life every single day. So, thank you, thank you, thank you. God bless you all. And again, happy new year.

Hello this is Jamie and I called in quite a long time ago for prayer in the spring of 2018 and I just wanted to call now and follow-up, much belated. I called in about my marriage, that I was on the verge of divorce and also just really questioning God and my relationship with Him and who I was in Him and I was for sure in tears. A few days after that, I listened to the prayer call ins and one day three of the four call ins were for me and I remember…just remember that moment. I was alone in my apartment and I just crumbled to the floor in tears. I felt that Jesus was there. I know He was there, and I know it wasn’t a coincidence that three people called, and they aired all three of them for me. I felt seen and heard and loved. And, so, I just want to tell those three people, I don’t remember your names, but I wanted to tell you thank you. Thank you for calling in. Thank you for telling the truth, for not just telling me to stay married, which is what I had expected but for telling me how much God loved me and I just want you to know that you impacted my life and I hope that you hear this so that you know and you can see that God has used you. In other news, I’m still married. So, that’s good. And even better I did recommit my life to Jesus and got rebaptized. And, so, life is still life, but God is moving. So, thank you.

Hi, I am new to this app but I’ve already really been encouraged by the word of God and by the community of believers that are out there encouraging each other and I’ve definitely been praying for the people that have submitted prayer requests and just felt like ok, I think I will submit some of my own. I definitely believe in prayer and I wanted to start by giving a praise report. Last May, after suffering from chronic and debilitating migraines, I went to a healing prayer meeting and I have not had one since May 24th and I’ve literally been suffering from them for 19 years. So, I just want praise thje Lord because I do really believe in the power of prayer. And, so, I would just like to ask for some prayer for, first of all my own brother who is not saved and he’s an alcoholic and he’s been dealing with spasms anytime he tries to not drink. And, so, I would just love for God to deliver him and to meet Jesus Christ personally as well as another friend of mine that is always weighing heavy on my heart. And this person is also going through a custody battle. And, so, I just ask for prayer that he would get to have the time with his son that he so deeply desires. And then, just some other health issues for my family members as well as. But anyway, I just want to say thank you for listening and I just look forward to this year ahead of just soaking up the Holy Spirit and being able to listen well to what His word is saying. So, thanks for…for, yeah, being in this together. God bless.

Hey DAB family, happy new year guys. I wanted to just encourage our sister Anonymous and our sister from Ohio. I apologize since I did not quite make your name, but you said that this was the worst birthday that you had on the 27th and I wanted to share a couple verses of Scripture’s with you ladies from Matthew 11 starting at verse 28. Jesus said, “come to me all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Ladies, as I was listening to China on DABC yesterday on the 4th she said something so profound. She said sadness shows that there is value in something. And I wanted to encourage you to really ask the Lord to show you, to reveal to you where the value is in that thing that’s causing your sadness because, believe me, He’s always got something for good, for our good even when it doesn’t feel good or look good. So, sisters, please be encouraged. Anonymous please be encouraged. Please know the Lord has much more for you and He loves you in a very, very special way. I’m praying for you guys. Kingdom Seeker Daniel from South Holland Illinois. I love you.

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epiitaphs · 4 years

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thoughts on emotional displays aka thoughts and revelations on why seb is the way he is, told in the most opaque way possible.

like actually. it’s ~1400 words and while there’s technically a theme, it’s a ramble.

Sebastian’s not really a crier. It all ties into his very quiet form of grief that he tends to express. Importantly, it means that he’s very much not adept when people around him cry, especially if he doesn’t think he’d do the same in that situation. It’s been mentioned before, but a lot of this stems from childhood when he was told not to cry at one of his grandparent’s funerals. If it wasn’t right to express a lot of emotion then, well, he wasn’t about to express a lot of emotion at other times either. Sebastian’s been described as cold - and he is, with a long history of it. He gets the coldness from his mother, mostly, though undoubtedly it came from his father as well. They weren’t neglectful - they simply weren’t going to be found in any particularly touching emotional moments. Sebastian tends to seek out attention through either fairly concrete things or outbursts of anger. The anger may be covering something else, but that’s one thing he can express fairly well. Some of the actual lashing out developed when he was older and didn’t really know how to deal with some of the more impactful events in his life. As a teenager, he did things because he knew he could annoy his parents - mostly his father. He also did things because he resented the control his father had over him. Fighting was clearly the best way to deal with that. Anyway - back to crying. Sebastian didn’t have to deal with it and he was discouraged from doing it. Whatever the reasoning behind the funeral incident, it stuck with him for whatever reason, and he was very careful to conceal those sorts of emotions. That sort of scene wasn’t going to help him. So the next time - when his other grandparent died, Sebastian portrayed the right kind of quiet emotion that didn’t kick up a fuss and distract everyone else.

First it was about being in the way or taking the attention away from the actual task at hand, but later it became about showing weakness. Sebastian was one kind of person in the army. It wasn’t necessarily an act - he was an asshole, but it hadn’t been his entire personality until he had a whole lot to lose. David’s death was a major contributing factor to his PTSD - which was never diagnosed and is something Sebastian personally refuses to acknowledge despite having some awareness. Importantly, he didn’t have time to mourn David in any form or fashion. This wasn’t just someone he worked with who’d been killed - this was Sebastian’s closest friend and a major mentor figure for him. If it was appropriate to cry at anything, it should have been this. But it wasn’t. Maybe he did, but it wasn’t for long, because Sebastian’s response to the incident was to immediately throw himself into work and force himself to move on. He never did - David’s death figures heavily in his nightmares, because that was back when he cared so there’s a deep emotional connection there. It’s doubtful that Sebastian’s issues with people leaving him started there and then on the spot, but if there was a turning point to where they became actual tangible issues that messed with his perception of relationships beyond what they’d been before, this was it. At this point, too, Sebastian hadn’t had a long-term relationship since he was a teenager. He was too focused on work to feel like maintaining something long distance, so when he was off on leave, he wasn’t ever looking for anything long term. This contributed heavily to his relationship issues. People leave, people are dicks, the relationship isn’t real - none of it’s tangible. It’ll all be over at the very latest when he leaves the city, if not much earlier. Anyone who says they love him is lying because this is never going to be something. It’s just shit people say. His parents showed they cared by making sure he had a home and food. And they made sure he knew that he was lucky - that they had both worked for this sort of thing. He shouldn’t assume an easy path through life, even if the other boys at school did. His parents showed their affection - didn’t necessarily say it. So Sebastian does to. If he actually cares, he’ll do things. He’ll make an effort, he’ll cook, he’ll open up from time to time. Verbally telling people he loves them isn’t that simple.

Opening up isn’t easy either. He keeps secrets out of habit. That comes mostly after he gets out of the army, but him clinging to what could hurt him stems from earlier. His father should have known better than to argue with a teenager, but his father was also a whip. He made his living off of knowing exactly what pressure points people had. Any information given out was information to be used. Thomas didn’t necessarily set out to be cruel; if he used work tactics to argue with his teenage son, it was out of habit. Sebastian grew up understanding some of what his father did, lived with his father while he was at secondary school, attended events. He wasn’t raised as a spy and he wasn’t let in on secrets, but he picked up things along the way. Better to keep one’s cards to one’s chest because anyone who sees them may use them to play their own part in the game.

So then what does crying imply? To him, it’s drawing attention, it’s showing weakness, and it’s displaying a high level of trust. His response is either to wonder if he can fix it or to get angry, because it’s not the proper way to do things. And it all ties back to how he sees himself. The most likely time for people to be crying around him is when he’s working for Moriarty - so when he’s at his most dangerous. There is no reason they should trust him, there is no reason that they should show weakness in front of him. They should know full well that he’s going to turn this on them, even if he’s shown them that he cares. Sebastian - for all that he may seem relaxed about certain things - does not open up easily or well, and he probably underestimates certain gestures. Sure, if they know where he actually lives, that’s a huge step forward and he knows it, but the fact that someone feels like they can just have emotion in front of him is wrong. The anger’s a defence, not only for him because he doesn’t know how to deal, but it’s supposed to teach them that they’re wrong about this, that they shouldn’t cry in front of him because he can and he will twist it the next time he needs to. He’s got no qualms about calling himself a monster - he’ll kill anyone, he’ll torture anyone, even his family. Maybe the blood shows up later, but he’s trained himself to move on quickly and efficiently. He’s been cold since he was young. It’s not something that requires a massive personality shift. He doesn’t see himself as a decent person, even if he might slip into the mask of one from time to time. Just because he’s relaxed doesn’t mean that other people should. Because he’s always been an observer. He’s always taking notes. He sees the times that he’s a decent person as a thin veneer covering the truth. Whether or not this is actually true is up to the observer, but it’s what he believes. He’s never going to be a better person. That’s really the heart of the matter about crying - if he was going to do so, he’d hide himself away and not mention it at all. He’s not an overly loud person, so if he gets just a little bit quieter for a while, it’s not that noticeable. It all fits together so that he can hide what he needs to hide. Sebastian doesn’t allow himself to be vulnerable around other people - he doesn’t give in to emotion, he doesn’t sleep, he does not reveal serious matters. He complains all the time about everything and anything. The gaps come when something actually matters. Deflection or simply not mentioning - both tactics work. For all that he somewhat paradoxically works for certain peoples’ attention, it’s important to remember just how long he’s worked on avoiding notice from others. The reasons have differed greatly, but they still exist.

----- originally it ended here -----

ugh, fuck, to add on something: there’s two times to watch sebastian - when he’s drawing attention and when he’s actively quieter than usual. The first time you don’t have a choice, which means that you probably won’t find out exactly what the issue is without some pushing and stubbornness, but you’ll definitely know that there is one as he’s turning all your insecurities and secrets against you. the second time, you have a choice because he’s actively hiding that something major is affecting him. you won’t know what’s up and that’s very dangerous.

#when thy heart began to beat | sebastian headcanons

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djprincessk · 5 years

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Why Usagi being Sailor Cosmos would be a really bad god awful thing in the context of the series

Some people probably read the title and kept scrolling because they really really want Usagi to be Sailor Cosmos and that’s their thing and they want it. That’s totally fine.

Some people are still reading this because they really really wanna pick apart why I’m wrong and that’s fine too. So lemme start off with this:

Howdy! I’m a Sailor Moon nerd and I love the series and all its incarnations! This is not really a persuasive argument more than it is me sharing my opinion about why Sailor Cosmos being Usagi goes against everything the series stands for. I’ll present supporting context from the manga, and if you end up agreeing with me, cool! But if you don’t wanna be convinced and you wanna stick to your theory, rad! Do your thing! I’m not gonna fight that!

I’m going to leave out the arguments that I’ve seen a lot before: being unable to transform after becoming queen, the silver crystal only allowing a thousand years of life, etc. But here’s my opinion and I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, so here we go:

Sailor Moon is a series about breaking free of the past. The timeline of the story starts off with Queen Serenity reincarnating everyone (except herself) and sending them to the future in order to have a better life for her daughter and her friends. She doesn’t rebuild the fallen Earth and Moon Kingdoms and reset the timeline (probably because the Silver Crystal doesn’t have enough power for that, but LET’S NOT GOT THERE), she doesn’t send HERSELF forward with them. She stays behind and dies. Trusting the future to her daughter, despite knowing that Metallia and Beryl would likely return at some point due to Queen Serenity’s failure at completing the seal.

Queen Serenity fucked up and left Usagi with a dangerous mission because of her mistakes, but she also first and foremost wanted Usagi to be happy.

So point #1: Usagi being Sailor Cosmos means that Queen Serenity’s sacrifice failed.

Sailor Cosmos lost everything. The idea that Usagi will have to do that all over again is heartbreaking.Going by the manga, Usagi lost everything in the Silver Millennium and AGAIN when Galaxia came around (Galaxia even killed her cats, man). To lose her friends and family and loved ones for presumably a third time would be/should be unbearable. Usagi living long enough to become Sailor Cosmos, or reincarnating into Cosmos, would be tragic. Queen Serenity gave her life to give Usagi a chance at a peaceful life -- to have a chance to earn a peaceful life for her and her loved ones -- and failed. Because Usagi had to defy whole established canon to do what others in her own bloodline couldn’t.

And in a series that it from beginning to end about hope and securing the future for others, Usagi having to be the eternal martyr for the universe is FUCKED UP.

Speaking of securing the future...

Point #2: What about Chibiusa?

If the Dark Kingdom Arc was about resolving the past, the Black Moon Arc was about securing the future. Literally. I mean, they go to the future and fix it. You can’t get more literal than that. Not only does Sailor Moon defeat Death Phantom, but Neo Queen Serenity helps Chibiusa realize her own power gives her the ability to fight, and by the time we see Chibiusa in the Galaxia arc, she’s already in eternal form, along with her senshi team, bravely leading her team at a much younger age than Usagi was when she started out. And Chibimoon will eventually become Sailor Moon (they can’t all just be called Chibi Chibi Chibi Chibi Moon forever), and she’ll ascend to levels beyond eternal, and her descendants even more so, all of whom will strengthen the Silver Crystal as they grow as soldiers. Hell Chibiusa herself will make the eternal forms look like a joke by the time she’s done.

So why Usagi?

The idea that Usagi is Sailor Cosmos implies that no one else in the royal line could get it done. Queen Serenity is able to secure a peaceful future for her daughter...and that’s where it stops. The lack of hope is kind of crushing??? I don’t think that Sailor Moon isn’t allowed to fail, per se, my problem is that Usagi has to be the one to rise as Sailor Cosmos. In the time from the end of NQS’s reign to the time of Sailors Chaos and Cosmos, there was not a single Sailor Moon as good as Usagi, and as much as I love her, that’s not good!

This may be hurtful because I know some SM fans hate this show, but, if Usagi is Cosmos, you know what magical girl series does hope better? This one:

LET ME EXPLAIN: By the end of the series (I’m leaving Rebellion out of this cause that’s a different discussion), thanks to Madoka’s sacrifice, magical girls are guaranteed to leave the world a better place than how they found it, rather than cause despair that cancels out the hope they gave to the world, making their battles meaningless. Even if the world never recognizes magical girls, the warriors themselves realize that they’re sacrificing themselves to make their world better.

In the context of the Sailor Moon Manga, Usagi being Sailor Cosmos means that that did not happen. The future is so fucked that the original Sailor Moon had to come back and fix everything, while Madoka left the future of her world to future magical girls.

Point #3:

IT’S A METAPHOR.

I know that you know that “You will always live eternally” is a metaphor. But yelling “it’s a metaphor” is fun, so there ya go. Try it sometime. Love yourself. Anyway, Usagi serves way better to the future of the story as a beacon of hope, rather than a literal eternal warrior. Usagi’s show of bravery and hope in the final chapters of the series inspires Cosmos to keep fighting Chaos in spite of her losing everything in her battle. Usagi gaining power and giving her power to the galaxy cauldron gave power to the future Sailor Moon without her having to be the one suffering. Usagi’s final act of bravery lived throughout the ages in a clearly tangible way, and affected the future and gave a distant future Sailor Moon hope to stand on her own like she did. All without having to deny growth in her own royal line by fighting herself. She has lived forever through the Silver Crystal’s power, and that’s far more important than literally living forever. Usagi living her thousand years as NQS and being with her family and friends and dying knowing she’s done all she could in her lifespan as Sailor Moon and Queen is a beautiful and fitting end for our princess, and one I think Queen Serenity would want for her daughter.

I’m actually quite fond of the idea of Sailor Moon being a reincarnation of OG Queen Serenity. And to me it makes a lot of sense. Serenity couldn’t seal Metallia completely because of her grief, so maybe Sailor Cosmos couldn’t properly use the Lambda Power because of her grief over her losses. Serenity having a chance to show the courage that we’ve already seen from Usagi would be way more interesting to just seeing another supe’d up Usagi. And this series is always about trying again in spite of everything, right? We’ve seen Usagi’s second chance, why couldn’t we get the same for Queen Serenity?

In conclusion, I don’t think Usagi as Cosmos works on either a canon level or a theme level. And it wouldn’t fit within the hopeful theme of series.

TL;DR - Usagi as Sailor Cosmos makes Queen Serenity’s sacrifice moot, Chibiusa and all her descendants useless, gives no reason for future Sailor Moons to exist because Usagi has to do it all herself, and it craps on the idea of power being instilled through hope instead of fighting. And it’s okay to disagree with me. Thanks for coming to my TED Talk.

#Sailor Moon #Sailor Moon Manga #Sailor Moon Crystal #Usagi Tsukino #Sailor Cosmos

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majoraop · 6 years

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At the End of the World

Ancient ruins covered that side of Raftel, the island at the end of the Grand Line. Their dark silhouette was stark against the red sunset, and the silence contributed to make that place feel frozen in time. Most people would feel desolate in front of that view, but Nico Robin felt inspired instead. Those forsaken ruins told her about a glorious past of some ancient civilization. They told her of the Fallen Kingdom and of the Void Century. They told her of mysteries and of past history. That was what she lived for. Robin picked up the pace and soon reached what had once been a large square, a Poneglyph standing in the middle of it. It was as if that stone had been waiting for her, untouched by the passing of time, and she was eager to examine it: the last stone composing the “Rio Poneglyph”. The true history. That Poneglyph was quite a contrast to the rest of the ruins, and Robin wondered what the people of the past wanted to tell them so desperately. What she knew was that they had carved their story into those indestructible stones to leave a tangible proof of their existence: thanks to Poneglyphs, history would never be completely forgotten—or erased. The World Government had tried to do that several times, but they were doomed to fail. “What’s on it?” Franky had accompanied Robin in her exploration of the island, and was now looking at the large cubic stone with mild curiosity. He was more into engineering than archaeology, but he wanted to learn more about the past too. “Just give me a moment,” Robin studied the inscriptions some more, and then added, “It’s something about Joy Boy again, just like that Poneglyph we found on Fishman Island… But this one holds actual historical information.” Franky scratched his head. “That ‘Joy Boy’ must have been someone important back then. Someone super.” Robin chuckled. “I think so.” She deciphered a few more lines. “Here it talks about a ‘gamble’ and an “inquisition’. It’s complicated, so I’m going to translate the rest tomorrow.” “Then let’s go back to the ship before the others get worried…” Franky’s voice trailed off as he looked lost in thoughts. “Is something wrong?” Robin said with apprehension. Franky shook his head. “Nope… I was just thinking that this ‘inquisition’ thing sounds a bit like… Well, like what happened to you.” Franky regretted his words immediately, but it was too late now. “You may be on to something here,” Robin said bitterly, but a moment later she smiled again. “Talking about parallels, the ‘gamble’ part sounds like something Luffy-kun would do too.” “Definitely!” Franky laughed, relieved that she could smile like that even if he had mentioned her past. Sometimes, he forgot that Robin had opened up since the first time he met her. “Probably, that Joy Boy was similar to our reckless captain.” Robin nodded, thoughtful. Their journey to Raftel had been full of dangers, but she would embark on that adventure all over again. She knew it was the same for Franky: thanks to Luffy they had found a new family after all—and each other.

Written for the 25. Oct.themes of the Frobin Week at @frobinfandays. I somewhat used all the three themes again, but quite loosely (especially the visual prompt). I hope it’s ok anyway! :P

#frobinweek2018 #frobin #robin #nico robin #franky #cutty flam #poneglyph #raftel #opfanfic #opfanfiction #onepiece #one piece #majoraop #As usual feel free to comment about anything--even typos of errors since I didn't have much time to revise this!

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gardensprit · 6 years

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Basics of Spirit Work

in case it isn’t clear, this is a shallow, broad overview of a beginner’s guide to spirit work! if you’re just starting out, this is the place to be. this is a pretty long post, so i’m putting it under the cut!

here is a link to sun’s witch academy database, where you can find more in depth posts on many of the topics discussed here! (a work in progress)

a letter to spirit workers take everything i say with a grain of salt. i am not the Ultimate Expert on all things spirity!! in fact, i’m probably still considered a beginner - i just gather information from others, i still lack experience actually doing most things. things that are important to me might not be to you, and we’ll probably see things differently. that’s okay! your path is your own.

do your own research as well, and always check what you find against other sources as well as your own knowledge. be smart and use common sense. ultimately, YOU decide what you believe! (keeping in mind that some things in spirit work are common knowledge/should not be disputed. this mostly is pointed at cultural appropriation. that doesn’t mean that they aren’t disputed, but they shouldn’t be.)

have fun, and love yourself!

~ sun

a note: if you don’t understand something i’m talking about in this post, chances are it will be explained more in depth in another post from the database, or even farther down on this post! just be patient <333

what is spirit work?

it’s pretty self explanatory. it’s when someone works with spirits! spirit work can take many different forms, some people want to learn from spirits, be friends with them, or even have a romantic relationship with them. many spirits can also manifest in the physical world, though not with a tangible body. most spirits reside in a place called the astral - we’ll get to that later.

what is a spirit?

a spirit is a being that does not exist tangibly in our physical world. we can still communicate with them, however! and there are infinite different types of them too.

spirit vs. ghost vs. deity

a deity is a spirit who is seen as divine, and is often worshipped in a religion. they are considered to be more powerful than other spirits. spirits in general are of course these other beings with many subcategories - but they are very much alive. ghosts on the other hand, are humans or other beings who have passed on and perhaps still remain in our world.

key differential: ghosts=dead, spirits=alive. and deities are probably more of the immortal types.

the dangers of spirit work

this is bolded because it is so important for you to know. do not delude yourself. spirit work can be dangerous, if you let it.

you don’t need to be anxious about it - if you use the proper protections, and don’t go seeking out dangerous spirits and situations, it is unlikely that you will be attacked or harmed. it can happen, but that is why you use protections and make sure you are prepared for those situations. if you are attacked by a spirit you don’t know how to handle, immediately go to a more experienced spirit worker to help you. and for goodness’ sake try not to provoke any spirits without protecting yourself and without good reason.

beginner spirit workers are easy to target, because they don’t yet know how to protect themselves or how this all works. if you are a beginner learning how to communicate with spirits, and you find a spirit has come to you claiming that they know you in some way - a powerful guide, a long lost lover or family member, someone from a past life - be extremely skeptical. many spirits will try to manipulate you into believing in them and giving them energy to feed from. we can get into more detail on signs of a malignant spirit later.

just use common sense, protect yourself, and stay safe.

to learn how to ward, follow the link to the database (at the top of the post) and find the link for warding.

misconceptions

there are many common misconceptions regarding spirit work, and it’s likely that i haven’t caught all of them. one, of course, is the idea that all spirits are dead beings (as you read above, they’re not).

here are just a few common misconceptions for beginners:

spirit work is evil.

it’s not! what on earth would make it evil? sure, it’s “otherworldly,” but for those who would argue it “unnatural,” i counter: it has occurred in nature, this it is natural.

demons are all evil.

not true! a demon is a species, like mermaid or dragon or elf, and there are good and bad members of every species.

ouija boards are dangerous and evil.

i’m kinda sensing a theme here, huh?

if there’s any being powerful enough to move shit around in your house and manifest in scary ways, they do not need a ouija board to get into your house. that’s why protection is so important. you should still protect yourself and ward the board when you use it, as you should with any divination or communication tool. a spirit who used a ouija board to communicate may try to scare you. but ultimately, if you protect yourself, you should be fine.

i personally will probably never use a ouija board, as i am an extremely anxious person and it is easy for my mind to get carried away being paranoid about being attacked. movies and media have had too much of an effect on me for that. but if you want to use a board, go for it.

vocabulary

discernment - the ability to differentiate what is happening from what your mind or imagination is making up. alternatively, the ability to determine when a spirit is lying to you or concealing its true identity.

callings - a feeling you receive from a certain spirit, typically one that is up for adoption. it is what signifies that the spirit would like to work with you or have you as a companion.

telepathy - a form of communication with spirits by directing thoughts towards them and listening for responses that are not your own voice. can be difficult for beginners - needs good discernment skills.

the Clairs - metaphysical sensing abilities (clairvoyance, claircognizance, clairaudience, etc.)

lulls - a period of time in which it is more difficult for you to commune with spirits. different frequency and length for everyone.

thoughtforms - a type of spirit that is created by someone’s mind rather than born, but they are still alive.

servitors - a type of basic thought form created to accomplish a certain task. typically simple and single-minded.

spirit guides - a spirit that will serve as a mentor and guide to you. some people believe that everyone has one, is assigned one at birth, etc.

banishment - a method of kicking a spirit out of your space. should only be used if the spirit is causing trouble and refuses to leave when asked.

companion - a spirit who is a member of your spirit family, who was found by adoption

reverse adoption (ra) - a conjurer takes a small piece of your energy and asks any safe/friendly spirits to step forward if they feel a calling

custom conjure (cc) - the same as a reverse adoption, but with more specifications (if you have a species in mind, or a type of magic you’d like them to be proficient in, or a relationship type you’re looking for

communication and tools

there are three basic ways to communicate with spirits, and only one of them requires tools.

divination

communing with a spirit through methods of divination, such as pendulum, cartomancy, shufflemancy, scrying, etc. can be unreliable, as these methods provide an answer even if the spirit does not give one.

astral

communing with a spirit by astral traveling or projecting, and speaking with them while in the astral. requires a decent clairaudience or claircognizance ability to be able to pick up and understand what they are saying. also requires decent discernment abilities to ensure your mind or imagination is not making up their responses.

telepathy

communing with a spirit by directing thoughts towards them. this does not mean that they can read your mind, or you theirs - the both of you will typically only pick up on thoughts directed as specifically communication. requires strong discernment abilities given the mind’s tendency to think quickly and fill in the most viable response. you have to be able to learn to listen pst that, ignore your own mind and imagination, and truly pick up on what the spirit is saying.

spirit adoption and shops

spirit adoption is the practice of “adopting” a spirit as your companion. this does not mean that they are your pet - the spirit is adopting you as much as you are adopting them. you can think of it a little bit like a matchmaking service. spirit shops (typically found on tumblr) provide information (a bio) about a spirit who is looking for a companion. if you feel a calling for a spirit who is up for adoption, consider sending in an application. this provides the spirit (and the conjurer) with information about you, so that they can judge whether or not they think you a good match. some spirits have specific requirements they’re looking for in a companion. these should be posted in the spirit’s bio. spirit companionship is not something to be taken lightly, and i would not recommend it for a complete newbie. in fact, i would advise against it as a newbie unless you were perhaps 25+ in age. having a companion requires dedication and it is long term, if not permanent. you should not be looking for a companion unless you are prepared to care for them and give them your time and energy. when you adopt a companion, you gain a friend, and you should treat them like you would a physical friend. make time for them. get to know them. if things go well, you will have this friend for years, and hopefully for life.

the drama of spirit companionship

oh look - bold! more important information!

there is a lot of hate and lashing out against spirit companions and shops. this mostly comes from misconceptions, misunderstandings, and flat ignorance. let’s section this out.

vessels

there is a common misconception that spirits are forcefully bound to and trapped inside of a vessel for companionship. that’s not how it works. a spirit would not go up for adoption if they did not want to be a companion. furthermore, good spirit shops should never create bindings that hurt the spirit involved. a binding to a vessel usually serves one purpose: the vessel acts as a beacon to help the spirit locate you, and it can help strengthen the bond between you and your companion by familiarizing the two of you with each other’s energies.

money

some people believe that paying for a companion is bad - that you’re basically buying their friendships buying them like you would buy a pet. i agree. that is, if that’s how things really were, i’d be disgusted. when a conjurer asks for money for an adoption, it is typically because they would like compensation for the time put into conjuring (more common for ra’s and cc’s) or because they are providing a vessel with the companion that cost them money to provide and ship. this applies to good shops anyways. if a shop claims to ask money for the spirit itself, run like hell.

shops

there are bad shops and good shops. some are clear cut AVOID. some are pretty good! always make sure to check reviews and faqs/abouts to see if the shop seems suspicious at all. sometimes it can be hard to tell, but there are a few tells that can indicate whether a shop is a no go.

if they post culturally appropriative spirits.

spirits from closed cultures should not be put up for adoption. if they wish for a companion, it would be better for them to search for someone specifically from their culture.

if they post spirits who are children.

children and infants should never be posted for adoption. they are still in developmental stages and it is not fair to ask a spirit worker to take on the task of raising a child, when they are looking for a companion. additionally, most spirit workers are not capable of taking care of the needs of a spirit child or infant, especially if the child is from a different species.

if they post a spirit that seems dangerous or harmful

all spirits posted for adoption should be thoroughly vetted to ensure their safety and legitimacy. if a shop posts unsafe spirits, it is not a good shop.

if their stated vetting period is too short

it takes a long time to get to know a person. any spirit vetted for adoption should be in the process for three months at the VERY minimum, and that’s if the conjurer is spending time with the spirit most every day. (vetting periods for ra’s and cc’s are typically different, and can vary from shop to shop. no vetting period should be less than 2-3 weeks.)

if the shop asks for money to buy the spirit, and does not clarify that the money is for their effort and services or for a vessel provided.

if the shop treats a spirit like a pet or commodity up for sale, get the fuck away from them.

if you get a generally icky, nasty, or uneasy feel/vibe from the shop

some people are more sensitive to energy than others, but if you feel gross about the shop, consider avoiding it.

if the reviews are generally negative or troublesome, or if there are little to no reviews at all

troubling reviews will give you a clear idea of what’s going on behind the scenes. little to no reviews make it difficult to know what things are actually like! you can proceed if you like, but take caution.

please keep in mind that shops can change! if they pay attention to the criticism they receive and take steps to improve, you can be assured that they’re probably trustworthy! or at least, more so than they were before ❤️❤️❤️

cultural appropriation

cultural appropriation is a little different between witchcraft and spirit work, but the base idea remains the same. you should not use practices or commune with spirits from a closed culture. in spirit work, cultural appropriation can be much more serious. some spirits from certain cultures do not like outsiders, and you should not attempt to commune with them if you know they are not open to that. in addition, some spirits from closed cultures can even be incredibly dangerous and will attack those who are not members of their culture. please stay safe for your own good and don’t attempt to interact with spirits (or deities!) from closed cultures.

religion and spirit work

lots of people use spirit work to become closer to their faith! abrahamic religions use spirit work to commune with God and angels. pagans use spirit work to commune with the various deities and spirits of their belief systems!

i’m going to touch on a few different pagan religion systems that are commonly seen, because many people i know use spirit work to connect and work with their gods and goddesses. the most common pagan religions that i know people use are greek/roman, egyptian, and norse.

the astral

the astral is a place that exists outside of our physical world, and thus, really the only way to get there is through metaphysical means - by traveling and projecting. there are many different planes of the astral, and an infinite number of places and people. one of the astral planes corresponds to earth - it is basically a copy of our own earth, only it exists in the astral, right on top of/ in the same space as our physical earth.

travel vs. projection

many beginners get confused about the astral because they don’t know that astral traveling and astral projecting are actually two completely different things. in astral travel, you simply cast your consciousness into the astral, but still remain awake and aware of your physical body. in projection, you fall into a deep trance and enter the astral completely, leaving your physical body behind so you are no longer aware of it. if you chose to project, make sure you protect your body heavily so that no other spirit attempts to inhabit it while you are gone.

conjuring, and why we won’t be talking about it.

conjuring is the practice of summoning spirits, either to speak with for a short time or for companion adoptions. beginners should not attempt to do this. intermediate level spirit workers should not attempt to do this until they have a capable mentor who is willing to spend the time to teach you properly and make sure you are protected. no spirit worker should ever conjure alone or unprotected.

seriously - don’t try conjuring. you might think i know a lot, right? i have not attempted to conjure yet and i know i will not be ready for a good long while. knowing isn’t everything. i do not have the experience and skill needed to conjure. i’ve been working hard learning about spirit work for roughly six months. if i’m still not ready, what makes you think a new beginner would be?

but i’ll help you get started.

simple practicing ideas

practice energy work (check out the database to find the energy work post!)

make wards

research different types of spirits

research spirit shops and find out if you would like a companion

practice communicating with plant and crystal spirits

try to astral travel (for methods how, check the database and look for the astral post)

practice improving your clair- skills

meet other spirit workers!

spirit work is a huge topic. there’s so much to explore! be safe, and have fun.

love,

sun.

#spirit work #beginner spirit work #baby spirit worker #witchling #baby witch #academy #basics to spirit work

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lunaamatista · 7 years

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A reason to live

We spend time wondering if we should go on, or head back – but after the slightest hesitation, our forms are seen moving onward. That’s right, we have to go! Even if we have nothing, we have to go on living!

amazarashi - The Seasons Die Out, One After Another (Tokyo Ghoul √A ED)

A common theme throughout the current arc has been emptiness, and the measures one takes to keep on living while being beat down by it. Without being tied down by a chain, one will go and die. Kiyoko said it as well – people without things to protect never fight to their last. In a world that’s been constantly threatening their lives, finding a chain to tie them down, finding something that will allow them to fight to their last could be called an act of survival. As long as it will allow them to achieve the end of going on living, most characters will not stop to wonder whether the means can be justified.

But in their pursuit of reasons to live, most characters have also become so single-minded it’s like they’re walking with blinkers. They’re so fixated on not losing what their perceive as their reason, that they have failed to look around them and be flexible enough to take the alternatives that are presented to them:

We see it with Takizawa, who in making his purpose to save Akira and Amon, has let himself believe that his destination was the end, when he has not even spoken to the very people he made his reason to live,

We see it with Akira and Amon, who in believing only each other could help them find purpose, did not see the one who saved them both, and excluded themselves from a conflict they could learn from,

We see it with Ui, who in thinking his allies could only exist within the CCG, had not realized his ties to them did not have to be as colleagues alone, and instead reached for whatever allowed him to keep on being himself within the organization,

We see it with Mutsuki, who in latching himself to the first person that showed him kindness, has let his found family be torn apart,

We see it with Hinami, who in the pursuit of forgiveness from a single person, has failed to see nobody blamed her and she was accepted as she was,

We see it with Juuzou, who in chasing after a person that won’t wake up, might have lost the squad that cared about him,

We had seen it with Arata, who in seeking revenge for Hikari, allowed his children grow up without both parents,

We had seen it with Kureo, who in seeking revenge for Kasuka, allowed his daughter to grow up with guilt about simply letting him do his duty as a father,

Finally, we see it with Kaneki, who in thinking that Touka is the sole person in the world that could ease his loneliness, cannot see that he has never been alone at all, and that saving her won’t change his fundamental belief that he is.

Furuta’s plan was as follows: create an enemy so strong, that both sides have to unite to defeat it. When pushed into a corner, Kaneki, the strongest ghoul, would look at his reason to live to find motivation to go on, then feed on the Oggai to become the common enemy, and then the script would proceed as he had written it. He got it, to an extent – Ui and Hirako could become a single team once again. But now we’re presented with a defeated Furuta, who does not seem to believe that there will be a world left to unite after all. As he said himself, kagune are the fruit of the imagination, and without getting into Kaneki’s mind, he could not have anticipated that Kaneki’s own imagination was nothing but despair.

If the Dragon’s rampage were only about saving Touka, he could stop once this goal is achieved. But where Furuta’s plan failed was in trusting that Kaneki’s foremost intent would be to save someone else. After all, though we don't know exactly which reason he had, he had talked about the need to have reasons to act. After all, Furuta had saved Rize from the Garden so she wouldn't become a womb to the Washuus. Where he failed was in thinking Kaneki could be the same, but he was a King without a purpose, and the first person he intended to save was his lonely self.

Over and over, Kaneki has been surrounded by people who supported him, yet he has never been able to get over the idea that he is alone. Now, being literally married to Touka, he has tangible evidence that he is not, but being unable to actually accept it, he clings to this proof with utter desperation. The Dragon can't be stopped until it achieves its goal, but if the goal is unachievable, its rampage won't end. His many eyes can search for solutions anywhere but inside himself, where Kaneki needs to find that his loneliness is a falsehood.

Kaneki does seem to have realized where exactly his loneliness starts: it's in the absence of Hide. There is fault in Kaneki himself, as Hide was the first person he pushed away to protect without realizing he was doing more harm than good. Like Touka, Hide continued to support Kaneki from behind the scenes, but unlike her, he did not ever reach out to tell him his modus operandi was flawed. Believing Hide sacrificed himself so that Kaneki could confront Arima feeds straight into his idea of letting oneself be hurt for the sake of others, as he kept on living while Hide did not. Death by sacrifice aligns perfectly with Kaneki’s principles, and death is eternal, painless rest.

So what could finally challenge Kaneki’s core principles?

Perhaps realizing that pushing his friend away actually hurt him. Words alone have not been enough for that to sink into Kaneki, but if Hide is truly as scarred as he is believed to be, Kaneki might finally be able to see that sacrificing their friendship hurt him emotionally and also condemned Hide to live with his wounds – something worse than death, where one can't think or suffer.

If, like Ui

Kaneki can see that his reason to live won’t save anyone around him, and that those people are and have always been there for him, perhaps the fruit of his imagination does not have to be destruction alone.

#Tokyo Ghoul #TG meta #Kaneki Ken #Ui Koori #Furuta Nimura #Takizawa Seidou #Amon Koutarou #Mado Akira #Mutsuki Tooru #Fueguchi Hinami #Suzuya Juuzou #Kirishima Arata #Mado Kureo #Nagachika Hideyoshi #I'm not tagging characters that don't have a point to themselves #but feel free to ask me to tag more things #TGre 146

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