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wedreamedlove · 4 years

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Bai Qi - Character Study

Archiving another post from Reddit. This one is more outdated...

This post was supposed to unleash my ode to Bai Qi, my one true love, onto the world though LOL.

Spoilers include up to Chapter 15. Plus calls, dates, and ASMR in CN server. Still using JP and CN as sources here because of Elex's translation issues.

I want to start this post off by saying that I disagree with Bai Qi's archetype being a "bad boy". If anything, he's just a lone wolf or maverick. Putting aside how there's another character that fits being a bad boy to a T, the common points of a bad boy archetype are:

exudes confidence, and allows his interests to take priority

moody and paradoxical, making him hard to understand

displays an attitude, has an edge, gives girls a vicious thrill

rebel with or without a cause

likely engages in dangerous hobbies

I don't know about you guys, but Bai Qi is REALLY simple. He has basically two goals in life: upholding (mostly conventional) justice and caring for the MC (who he has devoted his life to).

He's not rebellious for the sake of sticking it to the world, he just has his own views on how justice should be carried out (and it's still on the side of light; he's not a vigilante). Maybe his motorcycle is a dangerous hobby, except he always ensures MC is safe when riding with him. Honestly, this guy is so far from being a bad boy LOL.

Heck, even the other common trope of a bad boy having a painful past that is the reason behind their nasty attitude doesn't apply to Bai Qi because he confronts his painful past and gets over it (with the MC's help) before she even officially meets him.

CHIVALRY? CHAUVINIST?

First, let's tackle the big issue: the "sexist" things Bai Qi might say. It's an inescapable fact that this game is an Asian game and (given Elex's confusion over what to localize and how you can only change the base so much) this seeps through, so there are heavily gendered concepts.

However, it should also be noted that these games for women are usually made by women in the industry. Yes, there's internalized misogyny but this isn't it here.

Coming back to Bai Qi, you have to realize that he comes from a strict military family: his father is a lieutenant general [Campus Date] and was extremely harsh, meanwhile Bai Qi describes his mother as gentle and someone who cried in the shadows for him whenever his father went off on him [Seize: Sad Thoughts Call]. It paints the image of his mother being a dodder flower, the classic housewife.

Then, after his mother's death in high school when he was 15 years old [CN Character Profile], he went to join the special forces. Undoubtedly, this was another environment where he's surrounded by men and military ideals. And yet, through all of this, not only does he keep his own idea of justice, but he comes out WITHOUT looking down at women.

"Bai Qi is excellent and one day he will be the "sharp blade" of the special forces. The only pity is that he is too attached to the justice in his own heart, and he's blinded his own eyes. But at the same time I am looking forward to what direction his convictions will take him to." - Commander Leto

[CN Character Profile]

Gavin's character type is being the quintessential male.

But he's completely supportive of MC's work, helps her out with her production shows, and sends her to and from work whenever he has the time. He never disparages her work.

In [Seize: Sad Thoughts Call], there is a point where MC tells him that she'll always be by his side and he can rely on her. Bai Qi chuckles through his tears (ZHANG JIE! YOUR VOICE!!) and says "Silly, I'm a man. You should leave these sort of words to me. But, hearing you say this, makes me really happy."

I think it's doing Bai Qi a disservice to think he's being sexist here. Perhaps, you can feel sorry that this sort of standard of masculinity is something he upholds but I'd argue that he was making a joke to break up the heavy mood and he doesn't say ANYTHING about her not being allowed to say that. Instead, he's actually happy to hear that from her. He openly shows his emotions to her here about his past and sorrow. Again, considering his military upbringing and his mother, it's probably engraved in his bones to do his best to take care of his loved ones.

Look, some people just have dominant personalities and Bai Qi is one of them. He's probably one of the closest of the men to being classically masculine, but the way he's an enormous puppy for the MC breaks him out of the stereotype. (Like how Victor is the classical CEO, but his Souvenir side breaks him out of that stereotype).

Going along with, what I'd call his chivalrous (NOT chauvinist) attitude, is how natural his actions are in taking care of the MC and being considerate of her.

In [Photoshoot 5-7], MC drops her chopsticks and Bai Qi picks it up, gives her his, and wipes hers off before using it to eat.

In [Main Story 12-13], Bai Qi shows up on his motorcycle and passes her a pastel-colored helmet. Meaning that, not only did he consider her safety, but he also went out of his way to pick a color that he thought would suit her.

In [Wish Date], MC drops a plate and it shatters but just as she bends down to clean it up Bai Qi picks her up and moves her away.

In [Warm Palms ASMR], Bai Qi keeps MC comfort by sitting beside the bed on the ground to look over his documents. He doesn't assume he can just get on the bed and actually double-checks before he does.

In [Gentle Touch CN ASMR] Bai Qi is concerned about MC getting tired from standing on tiptoes to help him shave and tells her to stand on his feet. Later, he boosts her up onto the sink counter.

TRACKING BRACELET; PROTECTIVENESS

Tackling the second big issue: the tracking bracelet and Bai Qi's "overprotectiveness". Honestly, if anyone is overprotective in this game though it's definitely Li Zeyan LOL. Bai Qi may take second place, but that's still far below Li Zeyan.

Anyway, addressing the tracking bracelet first, I think it's interesting that, after Bai Qi gives MC the tracking bracelet in Chapter 2 and the events happen, he gives MC the [CH2 Story Call: Tracking Bracelet] and there he asks MC if she's at home. I don't know how the English version did it but in Chinese, after MC reminds him that he sent her home just an hour ago and did he forget, you hear him clear his throat awkwardly and then he says "Oh, I was just making sure. Don't go out anymore tonight." Hm, wouldn't he know she was at home already if he was using the tracking?

In [CH5 Story Call: Production Show Investigation] Bai Qi calls and asks "Are you home yet?". Hey, again, wouldn't he know if he was tracking her? He knows MC went to the orphanage and implies that he knows she went there because of the bracelet. But here's another thought: he was clearly investigating the old orphanage because he appears there later in Chapter 6 to save MC. So, perhaps he and the special forces already had surveillance on the old orphanage and the surrounding area.

In [Main Story 12-18] Bai Qi hears that MC is in the hotel and panics and asks the reception for her. If he was using the tracking bracelet, wouldn't he know exactly where she is? For something that everyone feels like he's violating MC's privacy with, he barely seems to use it for its actual function LOL.

It happens again in [Starry Date], although you can argue dates might be different, but MC pranks him in a call and, at the end, he asks her for the address of the karaoke place she's at so he can pick her up. If he was tracking her he wouldn't need to ask the address now, would he? She's definitely wearing the bracelet in dates because in [Trio Date] Bai Qi reminds her to have the bracelet on.

On a side note, I also find it interesting that he never FORCES the MC to wear the bracelet. In [Main Story 12-11] in Chinese he strokes the bracelet gently and then says "Remember to wear it". It's always said as a suggestion, as if he thinks that she does take it off at times but he doesn't press her to constantly wear it.

In [Main Story 15-4], Bai Qi reveals that even without the bracelet he can still find MC so it's not a tracking bracelet. I'm sure he thought implying that was the only way for him to give her that bracelet.

Now, regarding his protectiveness, he doesn't actually limit or cage the MC in anyway:

In [CH5 Story Call: Production Show Investigation] he suggests for her to avoid the orphanage but considering they meet again in Chapter 6, he clearly didn't do anything to stop her.

In [Photoshoot 5-1] MC has to interview a criminal and Bai Qi is there to escort her, but he doesn't stop her from going to meet the man. Because she's working and he knows better than to interrupt her.

In [Follow-Up Date], I agree that MC did something crazy by following him in, but he doesn't freak out at her afterward. He scolds her and whatnot but then calms down.

In [Seize: About Film Studio Call] Bai Qi picks MC up and removes her out of the shooting location because a bomb threat was called in. But he apologizes immediately when he realizes what he did, recognizing he was wrong for doing that, and actively works with MC and includes her into evacuating the rest of her employees.

In [Main Story CH12] Bai Qi brings MC to the special forces base and gets her involved with everything he's investigating after he gets permission. Heck, even when there was that rogue soldier, he just shuffles the MC into a corner and then goes to subdue the person.

Actually, in [Main Story 12-11] MC notes that this is the first time Bai Qi has said she's "forbidden" from going outside. This is when things get really crazy and Evols are going out of control, so it's not a surprise he wants her to stay put while he investigates the hotel. But this also shows that all the times before Bai Qi has never said anything forceful to MC and has only ever advised her not to wander around recklessly.

None of these are actions of a person who is crazily overprotective. Someone like that (cough Li Zeyan cough, at least until he calms down) would have locked her up in a room and kept her ignorant so she doesn't get any thoughts to run off and investigate things. Bai Qi tries his hardest to grant her wishes, within reason, and tries to answer any questions she has as long as he's free to do so. (And hey, no one talks about Li Zeyan's SP guard detail or Luoluo being able to track her through surveillance cameras; Xu Mo already got attacked for this so I won't bring the poor man up LOL).

Look, despite Bai Qi's maverick attitude, he still is part of a military organization and needs to follow orders. It makes sense too considering his military upbringing and no doubt, as long as it's not outrageous or touches his bottom line (the MC and sacrificing lives), he'll obey orders.

His joining of the special forces symbolizes the difference of his justice compared to his father. He will not give up on someone for any reason. If a sacrifice is necessary, then he will choose to face it alone.

[CN Character Profile]

But, anyway, he is protective to a certain degree and it's understandable considering how alone he's been since 15 years old and how in [Seize: Sad Thoughts Call] Bai Qi reveals that he feels like everyone he gets close to leaves him in the end (the death of his mother, his younger brother, his father (before he threw this man into the garbage bin where he belongs)).

He's also probably seen a lot of deaths of his comrades in the special forces. Heck, in [Main Story 12-6] Guzheng talks about a mission where the only people who survived was him and Bai Qi, and him only because Bai Qi came and saved him.

So, now that he's reunited with his one and only love again, you bet he's going to try and protect her. Not only is it in his blood, with his military upbringing, but also because he's just that sort of person. A trustworthy man who is determined to protect his loved ones without any sacrifices (or taking on all the sacrifices onto his own body).

HIS ENTIRE BEING IS ATTUNED TO MC

Okay, now that we got all the ugly things out of the way, this section is just for me to gush about what a gigantic soft puppy Bai Qi is with the MC. He's a tough, indifferent, lone wolf police on the streets, but an enormous puppy in the sheets in front of the MC.

Catch me crying every time over this Bai Qi Wish Date art by Honey Dogs because that's what Bai Qi is constantly doing everywhere. EVERYWHERE.

Like the art above shows, in [Wish Date] Bai Qi uses his third wish to stand in the corner and watch MC as she prepares his birthday meal. He's just a puppy who wants to be as close as possible! Watching his loved one! There's amazing description about the gentle smile in his eyes.

In [Prank Date] Bai Qi catches MC's eyes immediately when she just looks over at him across the room.

In [Follow-Up Date] Bai Qi saw MC trying to give him something, before that policewoman came up and tried to give him food and scared off MC.

In [Main Story 12-13] Bai Qi is just standing outside but he spins around the moment MC comes out of her building as if he sensed her. His eyes also creases when he smiles at her.

In [Main Story 7-4] when MC bumps into Bai Qi at their school, she sees him just standing there with his hands in his pocket and quietly watching her. A smile surfaces in his eyes when they accidentally ask each other why the other is here at the same time and then he waits for her to continue first.

In [Makeup Challenge CN ASMR] Bai Qi reveals that he watches MC put on her makeup quite a bit. He doesn't get all the products right, and he doesn't know what they're all for, but he gets a gold star for trying LOL. I'm just imagining Honey Dog art again with him leaning against the bathroom door watching MC with heart eyes. But also, when he takes her into an area with more light to put on her makeup, he just spends some time looking into her eyes because they're pretty in the light.

In [His Fingertips CN ASMR] Bai Qi notices that MC has pierced her ears. She did it to match him and the affection in his sigh as he calls her silly. SOBS. He also decides to get her matching earrings as a gift next time instead of a bracelet. On another note, in his birthday stroll, MC and him end up getting her clip-on earrings. CUTE.

In [Gentle Touch CN ASMR] Bai Qi is again over the moon with seeing her at such a close distance when she's helping him shave. He's also a gigantic puppy nuzzling her hand when she checks her work by smoothing her palms across his jaw.

In [Caressing His Face CN ASMR] Bai Qi again reveals that he watches MC go about her bathroom rituals. He sees the skincare she puts on her skin and, although not knowledgeable, is totally game with letting her play by putting it on him. AGAIN, with the nuzzling, because her hands feel too nice.

Don't touch me I'm so tender for how concentrated Bai Qi's attention is on the MC whenever she's around. Honestly, the way he's so openly honest and genuine about his feelings for the MC is what strikes him out for the bad boy archetype.

SHORTCOMINGS

Anyway, to be fair, we have to look at some of Bai Qi's shortcomings and "flaws" now. Bai Qi isn't perfect. Heck, no one is, which is what makes these characters feel complex and developed. However, his shortcomings or flaws certainly don't make him a toxic person (or else, we'd all be toxic people with our idiosyncrasies that other people don't like, lol).

Bai Qi can be really rude to people who aren't the MC. Not to mention, he tends to resort to violence and threats to people he really, really doesn't care about.

In [Relieving Date] Bai Qi tells the people who were hitting on the MC to scram unless they want to be beaten to a pulp.

In [Slightly Drunken Date] Bai Qi tells the bassist to take his beer and leave if he doesn't want his arm broken.

In [Moments] I believe Bai Qi nearly threw (or did throw) Minor over his shoulder when he was touched on the back? Minor also, at one point, says that Bai Qi nearly punched him a few times or something?

Fortunately, he doesn't go overboard with his force. But I can totally see how some people wouldn't be impressed with someone who chooses violence as an answer or threat. I'm totally a-okay with this, but then again I think characters with body counts are attractive so I'm not one to speak about this being a positive thing LOL.

But, despite being rude, he knows when to draw a distinction and be professional. For example, in [Follow-Up Date], he treated the policewoman with the bare minimum courtesy, despite being indifferent. He chews her out for endangering people in the field, but he doesn't do anything more than that.

In [Campus Date], it's shown that he beat up and got beaten up in high school, although those people sounded like they were part of a gang, so it wasn't like they were upstanding citizens LOL. However, there was that kid who stole the cash register money and got beaten up by Bai Qi, who then took the money to spend on something he wanted. This surprised me since he ends up working with the police and special forces to uphold justice, but well I'll just paste a section in his profile here:

Bai Qi has many informant friends that belong in the gray zone, and he often breaks what's known as the rules of convention. He uses methods that don't look so "just" to achieve his goals. Because of this, there's many people who can't understand him and feel that his actions are inappropriate. Towards all these misunderstandings, Bai Qi doesn't bother to explain and doesn't care. Even if no one understands, he will use his own ways to protect his convictions.

[CN Character Profile]

He's not squeaky clean, but I'd say he still stands mostly on the morally upright side (cough maverick archetype cough). In fact, he's a huge proponent for the preciousness of life and I guess almost how everyone has an inherent worth in them, which is ironic considering how little he applies it to himself. But, hey, it's normal to have different standards for other people compared to yourself.

Anyway, moving on, Bai Qi's protectiveness over the MC CAN get the better of him, but he apologizes immediately. I mentioned it above already but in [Seize: About Film Studio Call] Bai Qi apologizes for his actions of forcibly removing the MC to protect her.

Continuing on, because I see it brought up, there's the opinion that Bai Qi lacks personality because he has no opinions when it comes to MC. I'm going to argue here that this focus is on the wrong thing.

Bai Qi has a LOT of opinions (such as how best to protect MC, etc.) but his personality is the type not to care about what he considers "small details" which is why he's content to let MC make the decisions on what to eat (because he has no strong preference for food) and do the things she finds fun.

Actually, in [Your Loving Eyes: The Best Gift Call] MC is trying to get Bai Qi a present, but he just says "Sure" to everything she suggests until MC chides him saying "Hey, why is everything good? When did you lose your opinion?". In Chinese, you can hear Bai Qi respond with a startled and amused "Really?". It's clear that he doesn't believe this is the case either.

It's completely fine for that not to be your thing (which is why we have three other eligible bachelors), but it's reading Bai Qi's character wrong to think this makes him have no personality.

You can even see in [Moments], that Bai Qi does arrange for some outings, such as taking MC out to the arcade to play games. He also suggests going to look at the stars a lot, because he's an astronomy boy.

Hobbies #2: Astronomy. He likes the stars, and once did some research on them. He also really enjoys soaring through the night sky, the feeling of looking up at the stars, and Jupiter.

[CN Character Profile]

However, despite this not being that big of a deal in my eyes, Bai Qi and MC do get development in this area which is what makes their relationship so nice. A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP. Cough, sorry I had to get that out.

In [CN SSR Crisis: Art of Speaking Call] Bai Qi is taking MC out on a date and she is conflicted over what shoes to wear, the hair clip to use, and the purse to bring. She asks him for his opinion, but he keeps saying that they're all good, as long as she likes it. But MC gets annoyed and tells him that it sounds like he's being perfunctory and doesn't care.

This takes him aback and he hurriedly tells her that wasn't his intention. He genuinely thinks those things. But he realizes that she does want to hear his opinion, so he strives to give her a choice, even if it barely makes a difference for him because he thinks she looks good in everything. The two end up promising to not say any "sure" or "whatever" that day, so that they answer each other with an opinion.

In [SSR Heat up: Pretty Boy Call], you also see Bai Qi getting called out for answering "whatever" to everything. He immediately works to correct his opinion and says he'll wear whatever she picks.

Honestly, the reason he's so happy to go along with MC is explained in his [Mediterranean Date] where he literally says "The missed holidays, the dates I couldn't make, and the many times I had to disappear without being able to tell you... I've never had the time to make up for all of these things. So, no matter what we do, no matter where we go, as long as the person beside me is you, I won't have a single objection.".

Lastly, I think the real issue with Bai Qi is that he has a terrible sense of self-worth. It doesn't express itself in him being timid or not confident, but in the way he's reckless with his own health. ESPECIALLY when it comes to the MC.

In [Campus Date] there's a line that goes "She probably didn't know that her piano saved the youth who was about to fall into an abyss of darkness, and she had no way of knowing that this youth swore to protect her with his entire life". On one hand, romantic, on the other hand... oh boy, Bai Qi has really devoted his life to the MC and he's a man who doesn't change his stance once he decides on something, and here are some instances:

In [Endless Abyss: Beside You Call] Bai Qi comes back from a mission and decides to send MC to work. He just came back from a mission and hasn't slept for an entire day, but he wants to see her because she remarked on how they haven't seen each other for a while and he feels the same. HELLO? SIR PLEASE SLEEP.

In [Bleary Dawn CN ASMR] Bai Qi has two instances of this. First, he's cuddling in bed with MC and thinks about how he should get out and go for a morning jog, but he doesn't want to leave her. MC is worried he'll catch a cold in the rain, but he says he won't since it's a light drizzle. However, MC gets upset at that and you can hear the genuine apology in his voice when he realizes that she's worried about him.

Second instance, in [Bleary Dawn CN ASMR] is when they chat about whether Bai Qi has ever slept in. His family didn't allow that (SCREW HIS FATHER) and then he joined the military so even less so. He never feels sleepy though since he sleeps early. However, if he can't sleep then he just goes through the entire night without sleeping. MC worries about him, he tries to brush it off again saying it's no problem, she gets upset, and he startles and gets genuinely apologetic again. SOBS please Bai Qi learn to treasure yourself.

In [Main Story 12-11] Bai Qi gets injured when he was subduing the out-of-control Evol soldier, but he doesn't seem to even notice it until MC brings it up and wants to treat it for him at her house. He even reluctantly shows her his arm.

It's understandable because his DOUCHE FATHER has treated him terribly throughout his life. In [Campus Date] we get a memory from Bai Qi about his father literally saying "Such a useless thing has no point in existing". Ever since his mother passed away (at age 15!) he's been alone.

Fortunately, like I mentioned at the start, Bai Qi gets over most of this trauma in [Campus Date] with the help of MC. But the marks still linger and it's not until he's 24 years old at [Main Story 12-18] where he asserts that his existence is absolutely not a disgrace/stain that he fully gets over his father's specter. Still, Bai Qi's pretty reckless with his health.

Anyway, both MC and Bai Qi need to realize that the best thing you can do for your loved ones is to take care of yourself, because your happiness and health is their happiness and health. Support each other, but treating yourself well for them is the best thing to do.

CONCLUSION

Overall, while Bai Qi is a lone wolf and maverick in public, he's the sweetest puppy around the MC. He's terribly reckless with his health (he's been trained to be a weapon and, no doubt, his father still haunts him), but he's slowly overcoming that with the MC. She also encourages him to be more expressive of his opinions, no matter how small or insignificant he feels they are (re: the things he really couldn't care less about).

In return, he gives MC courage to walk her own path no matter what anyone else says. His easy confidence and ability to ignore the gaze of the world is something that's admirable.

The two of them just provide each other unconditional love and support and it's gorgeous. She can act however she wants with him and he'll take it in stride and accept her. He doesn't want her to change, and neither does she for him. But together they encourage each other to express their opinions and feelings to each other more.

Anyway, congratulations to anyone who read all the way down to this point. You deserve a Bai Qi SSR and may you be blessed with Bai Qi pulls---. I also hope this provides a better understanding of Bai Qi and more appreciation for his character.

I didn't touch on Bai Qi's hobbies or character apart from the MC much, unfortunately, because the focus of this post was about his relationship with MC and his character around that. But, trust me, he has a lot of hobbies for himself! He's just low-key in the way he expresses those (cause he's too loud in beaming heart eyes at the MC), so it's like a "blink and you miss it".

His official weibo shows a ton of his hobbies though, like taking care of his (eternally dying) cacti. He has a hedgehog! He loves basketball (and other sports). He plays the guitar and sings. He loves astronomy.

#love and producer #mlqc meta #mr love queen's choice #mlqc gavin #mlqc bai qi #mlqc #love and produc(ing) meta

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nclkafilms · 4 years

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The absurdity of fanaticism

(Review of ‘Jojo Rabbit’. Seen in Biffen Art Cinema, Aalborg on the 23rd of January 2020)

“Let everything happen to you, Beauty and terror, Just keep going, No feeling is final.” (Rainer Maria Rilke)

Taika Waititi received his commercial breakthrough with ‘Thor: Ragnarok’, which followed indie hits such as ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ and ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’. He is one of those directors with a very clear style and vision, and he continues with a unique style in his latest film: nazi satire and self-proclaimed anti-hate-film, ‘Jojo Rabbit’. As if the notion of making a comedy/satire about Nazi Germany was not controversial enough, it certainly raised some eyebrows when he cast himself, half maori and half jew, to star as Adolf Hitler. And ever since it premiered, ‘Jojo Rabbit’ has divided audiences and critics alike into more or less three groups: those, who are deeply offended by its lack of political correctness and comedic take on one of history’s most tragic events, those, who think it is not dangerous enough or does not expose the horrors of the holocaust enough, and, finally, those who has been charmed, entertained, provoked and moved by a perfectly balanced mix of slapstick humour and gut punching drama. I, myself, sit firmly in the third group - ‘Jojo Rabbit’ is a wonderful piece of filmmaking.

We follow 10-year-old Johannes Betzler, better known as Jojo, as he prepares for a weekend camp with the Hitler Jugend. We watch him as he proudly dresses up in his uniform before heiling his imaginary friend, Waititi’s Hitler, as if he was a sportsman preparing for a game before he ultimately shoots through town heiling at everyone to the tunes of the german version of The Beatles’ “I wanna hold your hand”, while we alternately see Jojo and b/w clips of Hitler being celebrated as a superstar complete with cheering girls and everything. A bizarre and weirdly entertaining opening scene that perfectly sets the tone of the film’s dark humour; nothing is sacred here. The story that follows is Jojo’s coming-of-age-story. A process that typically lasts years, but in the midst of a world war nothing is “typical”. Waititi manages to beautifully balance the naivety and blind-eyed fanaticism of young Jojo with the horrors and brutal reality of war as things start to spiral out of control for our main character from the moment he discovers a jewish girl hidden in the walls of his home. Where is her horns? Is she going to eat him? Why is his mum helping her? and what does it mean to love someone? Jojo is forced to discover the many feelings of life and following him on his journey is as hilarious and endearing as it is thought-provoking and tragic.

This is more than anything thanks to just 12-year-old debutant, Roman Griffin Davis, who is nothing short of a revelation as Jojo. The range that he shows in his portrayal of Jojo is simply spectacular. He truly has funny bones with both physical comedy and a great timing, but it is when the story gradually shifts from Wes Anderson-ish, bizarre, slapstick nazi satire to a much heavier and emotional war story that Griffin Davis really pulls the rug from under you. In the process of the film you both laugh at and with Jojo, you are shocked by him, you feel his excitement and loss, and most importantly you really care for him. This is, of course, down to Waititi’s screenplay and directing, but it would never have worked without Griffin Davis’ wonderful performance that really bodes well for his future.

In addition to him, the other actors also turn in some memorable performances. Scarlett Johansson is perfectly endearing as Jojo’s mother, Rosie, who has to raise him on her own, while hiding a jewish girl in the attic and manoeuvring through the hardships of war with a heavy heart from losing her daughter. The chemistry between Johansson and Griffin Davis is stunning and feels so natural that their mother-son-bond becomes one of the most heartwarming aspects of the film. Johansson shines just as much as Rosie shines as the film’s clearest ray of humanism and empathy. As Elsa, the hidden jewish girl, Thomasin McKenzie is fierce and strong with the inevitable vulnerability of an oppressed person hiding to save her own life. As such she represents all the jews who suffered from Holocaust while staying brave to save their own and loved ones’ lives. Just as with Rosie and Jojo, the chemistry between Elsa and Jojo is electric and it is an absolute delight to see how their relationship develops and becomes deeper and deeper the more they both get to see each other for what they see rather than what they have learned. As such they become the clearest symbol of the film’s obvious anti-hate, anti-prejudice moral.

In the other spectrum, Sam Rockwell, Alfie Allen and Rebel Wilson are all hilarious as absurd caricatures of Nazi officers blinded by their fanaticism and extremism. This is, of course, one of the film’s very divisive decisions; because the actions that they perform whether it be teaching children to shoot and use grenades or burning books and teaching lies about jews are obviously despicable - especially in the light of what happened during holocaust. So to turn this into something funny (and boy, is it hilarious) is a brave decision, but also a clever one. The things they do are so absurd that to simply show them as dreadful and horrible is sometimes too easy; showing the absurdity and making people laugh at it can be quite disarming and, frankly, relieving at times. Another example of this is Stephen Merchant’s unforgettable, yet short, cameo as Gestapo agent, Deertz, who is hilarious at first. You laugh at him only to find yourself on the edge of your seat seconds later as the tone shifts and the scene becomes immensely nerve-racking. Now Deertz’ absurd behaviour is intense and in no way funny. Waititi disarms you by exposing you to the hilarious absurdity of this character only to catch you off guard shortly after and hit you with reality. He does this in another simply devastating scene that stands as one of the single biggest gut punches that I have had in the cinema for a while; leaving me with my mouth wide open and a tear running from my eye. To round off the acting performances, Waititi’s own portrayal of Hitler never really becomes anything other than a funny sidenote that adds some interesting comments to the extremist thoughts roaming around Jojo’s head. It’s funny and at times delightfully dark in its humour, but it - thankfully - never draws focus away from the other, much more interesting characters.

But let’s get back to this balance between the laughs and tears, because this is what lifts ‘Jojo Rabbit’ up as a stunning film experience. It works as a comedy/satire and it works as hard-hitting, thought-provoking drama. This is an insanely difficult balance to truly hit and only a few films manages it. ‘Jojo’ succeeds in being a hilarious comedy thanks, partly, to its well-written and delightfully politically incorrect screenplay by Waititi with so many great and memorable one-liners. But it is also because of its tight editing by Tom Eagles and brilliant score by Michael Giacchino, who supports the shifting nature of Jojo’s perspective through both joyful and more sorrowful compositions. As a drama it works - of course also thanks to the screenplay - because of a brilliant production design by Ra Vincent that often stands in great contrast to the absurd action unfolding in it. Finally, the costumes by Mayes C. Rubeo are simply delightful whether they are historically accurate or hilariously comedic as when Jojo roams the street as a robot gathering “metal for Hitler” or Rockwell and Allen take their final bow as some kind of absurd superhero devoid of all the human faults that they otherwise infuse their characters with.

And now let us return to the quote from the beginning of this review.

“Let everything happen to you, Beauty and terror, Just keep going, No feeling is final.”

This is not only a beautiful quote that gives us an important lesson on why not to give into hate and despair, it is also a quote that is mirrored in the film’s three main characters. Elsa remains hopeful and decent even when the entire world seems to hate her and want her dead. Rosie gives her son the love a mother should give despite him representing everything she fights against. And, finally, the film tells the story of how Jojo learns this lesson; to not be tempted by hate and the “easy exit” of jumping on the bandwagon, but to stay curious, to acknowledge love and to let it in. As such ‘Jojo Rabbit’ does not become “oh, that film that made fun of Hitler”. No, it becomes a film about the importance of experiencing and exploring the world around us. The importance of being curious and engaging with people despite our differences. Simply put: the importance of never forgetting love. It might not be in the absolute top of 2019 objectively, but personally, Jojo and Elsa danced their ways into my heart and my top 3 for 2019.

4,5/5

#Oscars 2020 #Academy Awards #Film Review #Movie Review #Jojo Rabbit #Taika Waititi #Roman Griffin Davis #Scarlett Johansson #Sam Rockwell #Alfie Allen #Rebel Wilson #Stephen Merchant #Michael Giacchino

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chaos-of-the-abyss · 5 years

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Many people have argued that Luthien is a Mary-Sue; not just because of her beauty but because of how unbelievably perfect she was. What do you think?

Well. Personally, I don’t see how the idea that Luthien was anywhere near perfect came to be. As I was reading The Silmarillion, I noticed quite a few flaws in her character and was quite… pleasantly taken aback. Considering what I knew of her beforehand - that she was impossibly beautiful, and that she had some epic love story with a human man - I expected that I wouldn’t really like her. And oh boy, I was wrong.

Luthien is one of my favorite characters ever, and her flaws make me adore her all the more, far more than I would have were she really perfect and flawless as the general perception seems to be.

And of course, Luthien has amazing traits as well (traits of personality, not of power, although she was extremely, extremely powerful). Let’s begin with those and discuss them in detail; they’re important in this (kind of) meta because those flaws of Luthien’s are irrevocably intertwined with (most of) these traits.

1. She’s determined (as all fucking hell)

This one is pretty much a given for anyone who knows Luthien’s story. Nobody can ever tell this girl “no”, nobody, and if you try, she will, without fail, get your ass out of her way. Luthien Tinuviel is not here for your shit.

Her (overprotective and controlling but somewhat understandable) father? Not a chance. Magic hair-growing, activated. Guards? Put to sleep. Two unpleasant elf-princes who tried to force her to marry one of them? Bye bitch, she’s so awesome (and they’re so asshole-ish, let’s be honest here) that their hound decided to help her instead. Sauron “I’m-the-greatest” the Deceiver, Lieutenant of Morgoth, one of the most powerful Maiar in existence? No dice. Sleep-inducing magic: on. Huan: in attack mode. Sauron: ass-kicked, thoroughly beaten, and contemplating running the hell away (Luthien stops him, more on that below). Beren himself, wanting to treat Luthien like a damsel-in-distress and drop her off back home before he continues his quest? Luthien basically tells him, “Sorry, you’re stuck with me forever”. See quote:

‘You must choose, Beren, between these two: to relinquish the quest and your oath and seek a life of wandering upon the face of the earth; or to hold to your word and challenge the power of darkness upon its throne. But on either road I shall go with you, and our doom shall be alike.’

But Beren doesn’t stop there. In an (understandable) attempt to keep Luthien out of harm’s way, he sneaks off to continue his quest alone while Luthien and Huan are asleep. Luthien wakes up, probably rolls her eyes and sighs, and goes after him instead of leaving him to fall victim to his stubbornness. She sure loves the man, but she’s not taking any of his bullshit either.

Now Beren and Luthien are deep within Morgoth’s realm. Enter Carcharoth, basically the scariest, most vicious werewolf ever (and I mean ever). He doesn’t stand a chance of getting in Luthien’s way, either. This girl is not having it; she casts a sleep spell, and he’s out like a light. Then we have Morgoth, the ultimate Big Bad of Tolkien’s universe. Sauron who? This is Sauron’s boss. Sauron is afraid of disappointing this guy. Luthien doesn’t flinch. She dances in front of him and puts him (along with all his minions) to sleep through her awesome singing and the power of her magic hair cloak.

Then on their (remember Beren, the guy who accompanied Luthien? Yeah, neither do I) way out, Carcharoth, who is now pissed, confronts them. Drama unfolds, Beren’s hand is bitten off, and poisoned through the venom in Carcharoth’s (I’m assuming) teeth… and Luthien sucks it all out. No measly venom from the “greatest werewolf” ever is going to stop her.

Then more shenanigans. Then Beren dies. His spirit will travel beyond the spheres of Arda as Eru Iluvatar decreed for men, while Luthien, upon her own death, shall go to the Halls of Mandos and be reincarnated in Valinor. They can never meet again, for The All-Father Himself set separate fates for Elves and Men.

From grief, Luthien dies. She arrives in Mandos’ Halls, but not even death and fate are going to keep her from getting what she wants. She sings a song so beautiful and sorrowful that Mandos, the Vala of Death, for the first and only time in his existence (and keep in mind that Mandos is literally older than the universe), is moved from pity. See quote:

“Unchanged, imperishable, it is sung still in Valinor beyond the hearing of the world, and listening the Valar are grieved. For Lúthien wove two themes of words, of the sorrow of the Eldar and the grief of Men, of the Two Kindreds that were made by Ilúvatar to dwell in Arda, the Kingdom of Earth amid the innumerable stars.”

He speaks on behalf of Luthien to Manwë - my precious baby, hurt him and I will fight you - who then speaks to Eru about the matter. And Eru offers Luthien a choice: live out the rest of her days (which is to say, eternity, since she’s an elf) in contentment and bliss in Valinor, forgetting all of her troubles, or be granted a second life along with Beren, following him in death outside of Arda and losing all hope of seeing her family and friends ever again. Sounds daunting, yep? But Luthien opts for the latter. Even the prospect of eternity without her kin and companions isn’t going to stop her.

So, let’s recap, shall we? Things that have tried to stop Luthien and have learned from it the hard way.

Elwë Singollo, her father, an ancient and powerful elf-king

Celegorm and Curufin, two sons of Fëanor (and arguably the douchiest elves to ever grace the pages of The Silmarillion)

Sauron, no explanation needed

Beren, her boyfriend, attempts several times to no avail

Carcharoth, the greatest werewolf to have ever lived

Morgoth, basically the Satan of Arda, Sauron’s lord

Death/Fate

Don’t try to stop Luthien Tinuviel. You are wasting your time.

2. She’s brave (again, as all fucking hell)

I’d say anyone who defies their powerful father and runs away from home to save her boyfriend, and later accompanies him on a quest that her father literally intended to be impossible, is pretty damn brave in itself. But Luthien accomplishes some of the most notable feats accomplished by any singular Eldar or Man (the race, not the gender) in the entirety of Tolkien’s legendarium. And keep in mind that Luthien was most likely quite sheltered when she was growing up, considering her father’s personality. Maybe Melian opened her eyes a little, but I doubt she’s really gone anywhere. This is something we really have to take into consideration for perspective when we think about just how courageous Luthien is.

Despite her relative inexperience with the world, Luthien, after being practically kidnapped and held against her will by Celegorm and Curufin, a pretty traumatic experience in itself, and way more so for someone who has hardly been outside her father’s kingdom, rides straight for Sauron’s fortress (with Huan) to rescue Beren. It’s not certain if Luthien has heard of Sauron - presumably, she has, since he’s - well - Sauron, but I doubt she knows the full extent of his malice. Still, her mother is Melian the Maia, who’s most likely familiar with Sauron (and perhaps even knew him as Mairon), and I think Melian probably regaled her daughter on Sauron’s treachery and betrayal of the Valar, and his position as Morgoth’s lieutenant.

The initial first-hand warning sign for Luthien that Sauron is not a nice guy is the aesthetic of his fortress. I mean, this looks so welcoming:

But I digress. Terrifying fortresses are nowhere near the scariest things that Tolkien’s characters face. Then Sauron starts sending werewolf after werewolf at Luthien and Huan, and later, Draugluin, the oldest, biggest, and baddest. Now, considering Luthien’s sheltered upbringing (again look at Thingol, does he seem like he would let her have any interaction with werewolves?), I think it’s quite impressive that she didn’t lose her nerve at the sight of werewolves attacking her and Huan with the intent to maim and kill (well, subdue in the case of Luthien, but she probably doesn’t know that). But again, this isn’t too terribly noteworthy among Tolkien’s characters, so, while it’s pretty brave, it’s not exactly awe-inspiring in the context of the LOTR universe.

But then things escalate. After Draugluin is defeated, Sauron himself decides to show these little fools who’s boss, shapeshifts into a werewolf, and comes out to greet them. And Luthien encounters first-hand just how potent his malice and evil is: the force of frightens Huan enough that he leaps out of the way, and to Luthien herself, it knocks her out cold.

‘So great was the horror of his approach that Huan leaped aside. Then Sauron sprang upon Luthien; and she swooned before the menace of the fell spirit in his eyes and the foul vapour of his breath. But even as he came, falling she cast a fold of her dark cloak before his eyes; and he stumbled, for a fleeting drowsiness came upon him. Then Huan sprang.’

(Can I just say, about the “foul vapor of his breath”…? Sauron, brush your damn teeth, please. People will like you a lot more if you do. Trust me.)

Yet Luthien, once she recovers from Sauron’s mega-evilness, basically tells him, “Don’t be a whiny baby and sit your ass down”. Personally, after experiencing his malevolence first-hand and being sent into a brief coma by it, I’d be more than a little terrified to even look at Sauron, yet alone speak to him. Yet:

“Lúthien came to him, and said that he should be stripped (of his body)… and his ghost be sent quaking back to Morgoth; and she said: ‘There everlastingly thy naked self shall endure the torment of his scorn, pierced by his eyes, unless thou yield to me the mastery of thy tower.’”

I mean, this is pretty indicative of her mental strength and resilience, and by extension, her bravery. Even the elves of Finrod’s kingdom say, “a maiden had dared that which the sons of Fëanor had not dared to do.”

But that’s not all, nor is it the highlight. Far from it.

Later, Beren attempts to convince Luthien to go back home and leave him to complete the quest. And as stated before, Luthien isn’t having it. She tells him that whether he wants to forgo his oath to her father and elope with her or insist on finishing his super dangerous, intended-to-be-impossible quest, she will go with him. After all that she’s experienced for what seems to be one of the few, if not the first, time she’s been outside her father’s kingdom - which is to say, kidnapping, brushes with death, the evil of Sauron himself - this is extremely courageous. The fact that she knows Beren’s quest requires him to be within a three-feet-proximity of Morgoth? And she declares herself willing to follow him? Doubly astounding. But it might also have something to do with all the shit she’s endured since she ran away from home - she’s probably not quite as naive to the world as she might have been. (Ooooh, character development.) Personally, I again think that the fact that she’s experienced so much in such a short period of time and hasn’t been cowed yet serves as both character development (better understanding that the world can be very harsh and deceiving) and speaks of her bravery.

After that, Luthien and Beren are minding their own business when Celegorm and Curufin appear out of literally nowhere and attempt to nab Luthien again (leave her alone for God’s sake). They come close, as Curufin actually manages to get Luthien up onto his horse. This is the Tolkien equivalent of being shoved into the car of the person who has deceived and kidnapped you once before, and is clearly attempting to do it again. This, combined with the horror of seeing that your other kidnapper is trying to run your lover down and squash him, is pretty damn horrifying. But then Curufin tries to shoot an arrow at Luthien and presumably kill her (though Huan intercepts the arrow with his jaws). If this isn’t scary enough, Curufin tries his luck a second time and would have succeeded in killing Luthien (or at least wounding her seriously), had Beren not stepped in front of her and gotten hit in the chest. Double, triple horror - in the span of a few seconds, you almost died, then you almost died again, but now your boyfriend is critically injured trying to save you.

So basically, the Jerkwad Duo’s attempts at kidnapping/killing Luthien are foiled, Huan chases them off (ha), Beren now has an arrow in his chest, and all the readers are smh-ing at Celegorm and Curufin, thinking:

After this drama, Huan brings Luthien herbs to treat Beren, and treat him she does, with those herbs, and with magic.

Fast forward to when Luthien and Huan are pursuing Beren, who ran off while Luthien was sleeping, in another attempt to keep her out of the fire line. Luthien and Huan, knowing they would look far too out-of-place going into Morgoth’s realm the way they were, (cosplayed) donned disguises of Thuringwethil and Draugluin respectively. Obviously, Luthien knows into where (Morgoth’s realm) she’s headed, but she doesn’t let that dissuade her from her mission (to help Beren). Considering Morgoth and all that he’s done, that’s impressive. I mean, if Sauron’s malice knocked her out, what might his boss be able to do? Yet Luthien remains undaunted. That’s brave.

Still not the apex of her bravery, though. Let’s continue. Luthien and Huan keep chasing Beren through a dark forest “filled with horror” that, like everything else, fails miserably in cowing Luthien. Once they reach Beren, Huan says he can go no further with the two of them, so Luthien, still (cosplaying) disguised as Thuringwethil, and now Beren, who is now (cosplaying as) disguised as Draugluin, since Huan’s absence leaves the skin suit available for him. The two go over deeper in Morgoth’s domain, probably once again facing a bunch of horrifying crap, if the comment that they endured “through all perils” is anything to go by.

Eventually, at the gate of Morgoth’s lair (fortress? Stronghold? Whatever he wants to call it), Beren and Luthien are halted by Carcharoth, who’s perplexed at the sight of them, probably squinting at (cosplaying) Beren and thinking “Dad?” (Draugluin was likely his sire.) Luthien uses the opportunity to reveal herself, which is kind of courageous considering where the fuck they are, and, as stated before, casts a sleep-spell Carcharoth.

Luthien and Beren then continue deeper into Morgoth’s fortress. I can’t imagine the kind of fear that they’d be feeling as they progress further, considering that they know their quest requires them to steal from Morgoth. (And Thingol is probably shaking his head violently back at Doriath.) But they keep going - again, brave - and at least, arrive directly in front of Morgoth, sitting on his throne, with his grotesque minions around him. And then this happens:

‘For they came to the seat of Morgoth in his nethermost hall that was upheld by horror, lit by fire, and filled with weapons of death and torment. There Beren slunk in wolf’s form beneath his throne; but Lúthien was stripped of her disguise by the will of Morgoth, and he bent his gaze upon her. She was not daunted by his eyes; and she named her own name, and offered her service to sing before him, after the manner of a minstrel.’

Beren, understandably, is cowed, but Luthien, who is “stripped of her disguise by Morgoth’s will”, remains unflinching under and endures the force of his gaze. I repeat: she remains unflinching under and endures Morgoth fucking Bauglir’s gaze. This is the origin of all evil in the universe, the entity that Sauron is afraid of disappointing. And Luthien stands her ground. Not only that, she tells him who she is and offers to sing for him, for the sake of distractions. Holy shit. This here is one of the most astounding displays of courage in the entirety of Tolkien’s universe - a girl traveling deeper and deeper into (basically) the Devil’s stronghold, being revealed before and facing him, who has so many people cowering in terror. And she stands firm. She retains who she is, what she wants, and acts upon what she wants, all as he stares down at her. She’s experienced Sauron, and he’s a servant in comparison to this guy. And still, she’s not deterred from her goal, which, I may add, includes thieving away something he treasures. I cannot emphasize enough how awesome this is.

And so, Luthien dances for Morgoth and uses her magic singing and her sleeping-spell-cloak to put him (and everyone around them) to sleep. Beren takes a Silmaril by forcing it out of Morgoth’s crown with his knife, but then attempts to take the rest as well. Very unfortunately, while he’s trying to remove the second one his knife breaks and a shard of it pierces Morgoth’s cheek. Morgoth starts to stir, and at that point Beren and Luthien quite sensibly nope the fuck out.

They encounter Carcharoth again, Beren’s hand is bitten off along with the Silmaril, and Luthien treats him (let me just gush over the fact that she sucked the poison out of a bloody, gaping stump again) and binds his wound, then Thorondor and two other Eagles rescue them just when it looks like Morgoth’s minions have surrounded them. Thank you Huan! (He asked his animal-friends to keep watch for Beren and Luthien and help them if need be.)

Then passes all craziness of the hunt for Carcharoth, and Huan and Beren’s deaths. Luthien, as well, dies of heartbreak, and as I stated before, sings to Mandos and manages to get herself a choice: live in Valinor in happiness for the rest of eternity or live by Beren’s side, become mortal with him, and follow his spirit beyond Arda upon their deaths. Now Luthien’s actions when facing Morgoth were brave, but here, I think she shows a different kind of courage in choosing the latter.

She’s leaving behind everything she knows, for the rest of time. All her life Luthien believed that even if she does die, she’ll be reborn in Valinor, and there’ll be an opportunity for her to meet her mother, father, and friends (Daeron was her close friend, she probably knew Galadriel as well, and considering Beleg and Mablung’s positions as chief of the marchwardens and chief captain of Thingol respectively, might have known them as well) again. If she chooses mortality with Beren, there will be none of that. She’ll literally have to exit the planet and leave all of her kin behind, never able to see them again, never able to reunite with them. She doesn’t know what lies beyond Arda, what awaits the souls of mortals - no one does. And even before death, she has absolutely no certainty that she will be happy. Perhaps she and Beren will fall apart and she’ll have sacrificed everything for nothing. But she willingly turns down the guarantee of eternal happiness, and chooses the uncertainty and pain that comes with morality, because she just loves Beren that much. And I think that’s touching.

To recap:

Runs away from home, alone, leaving it for one of the few or possibly the first time, in order to rescue Beren from the clutches of Sauron

Is not dissuaded from her quest despite the first major thing to happen to her once she leaves her father’s kingdom is kidnapping

Doesn’t give up her mission when faced with violence and blood and death for the (presumably) first time, when seeing Huan fighting the werewolves

Faces Sauron and the full potency of his evil and yet comes out of it relatively undaunted, going as far as to give Sauron some rather scornful “advice” (in warning him that if he runs back to Morgoth with his tail between his legs, Morgoth will be extremely displeased with him), then continues on her quest

Despite all she’s faced, firmly tells Beren that if he wants to continue his potentially suicide quest to steal from Sauron’s boss, she’ll do it with him

Is nearly kidnapped again by the same people who kidnapped her before, then almost dies, then almost dies again, then sees her lover shot in the chest right before her eyes, but still doesn’t waver

Endures the horrors of Morgoth’s realm without faltering

Remains composed before Morgoth himself and the rest of his monsters and dances while they’re all staring at her

Chooses to become human with no guarantees of happiness, and after death, pass beyond the spheres of Arda and face whatever comes afterwards, leaving her kin and friends behind forever, for the sake of Beren

So, Luthien Tinuviel - indisputably one of the most courageous and resilient elves to ever walk the face of Arda.

3. She has this remarkable ability to stay calm in terrifying situations

Once more, I emphasize that Luthien has probably lived a very sheltered life. Yet she remains quick-thinking in pressurizing moments. After she’s nearly been kidnapped for a second time by Celegorm and Curufin, who have already kidnapped her once, and Beren is dying with an arrow in the chest, Luthien still keeps her head on her shoulders and heals him. This either means that she has medicinal knowledge to be able to know which herbs she needs (more likely since you still need education to use herbs), or Huan knew himself and brought them to her (less likely). But in any case, the fact that Luthien had the clarity of mind to treat Beren in that situation is impressive. She not only needed to use herbs, but also had to use magic, and for a princess who’s not very experienced with battle and blood and death, the fact that she pulled it all off successfully is notable.

Then later, under the pressure of Carcharoth’s suspicion, Luthien is still quick-thinking enough to use his distraction to her advantage and put him to sleep. Keep in mind that not only are she and Beren under Carcharoth’s scrutiny, they’re deep in Morgoth’s sphere of influence. I image it to be something like the tension and nervousness of breaking into and sneaking around a serial killer’s house and trying to remain quiet, multiplied by a thousand. Personally I would curl up in a ball and cry, but Luthien remains fairly level-headed.

Finally, when Luthien dances for Morgoth, she, once again shows a shocking ability to stay rational in the face of utter terror, when most people lose their sense of logic. She uses Morgoth’s lust and dark appreciation to her advantage, using her magic singing and her sleeping-spell-cloak to put him to sleep. Never mind the fact that most people would be too scared to even dance or sing properly; Luthien actively schemes while being watched by the culmination of evil in Arda.

4. She shows surprising mercy

Amazingly, this isn’t discussed much, but I find it mind-bogglingall the same. In the second instance that Celegorm and Curufin attempt to kidnap Luthien, Curufin ends up pinned to the ground by Beren - and Luthien demands that the son of Fëanor be spared. Why is no one talking about this? Curufin (and Celegorm) has lied to, kidnapped, and held her against her will. They just attempted to do so a second time, and tried to kill her lover simultaneously. Yet she wants Beren to spare him. If it were me, I wouldn’t give a shit. In fact, I would cheer as Beren strangles the life out of that asshat. Don’t get me wrong, I do find Curufin and Celegorm to be nuanced and complex characters, but from Luthien’s perspective, these men have been nothing but liars to her at their best, and outright attempted murderers at their worst. I wouldn’t be too concerned with their safety or their lives if I were in her place.

To me, those are the four fundamental strengths, the beauty, of Luthien’s character. Yet all of these traits, except for the third one (ability to remain calm in tense and even terrifying situations) are juxtaposed with the fact that, when interpreted negatively, they can be considered flaws. Here we go.

Reason 1. Her determination = selfishness?

Perhaps not all aspects of Luthien’s determination can be considered selfishness. After all, we can hardly call her selfish for the inherent actions of escaping from her captors (Celegorm and Curufin) and defeating Sauron, nor can we fault her resilience and refusal to give up despite how potentially traumatic some of her experiences are. Yet all of these actions, as well as her running away from home, her journey into Morgoth’s realm, her dancing in front of Morgoth and putting him to sleep, and her decision to forsake the immortality of elves are incredibly hurtful and even insensitive towards the two people I think Luthien wronged most - her parents, Thingol and Melian.

I doubt I need to elaborate much on this. Luthien put herself in such mortal danger time and time again with her “determined” (in quotes, because, while they indisputably make her an extremely resolute person, it’s not supposed to be a compliment in this context) actions, and I can’t even begin to imagine how worried Thingol and Melian were. Perhaps Thingol more so than Melian, since Melian seemed to have some kind of foresight about Luthien’s fate.

But then again, maybe that would have brought her even more sorrow - knowing her daughter’s eventual fate. And imagine how Thingol felt, hearing that his daughter chose to follow Beren into a mortal’s fate, and that once she dies, he’ll never see her again. Ever. It’s clear through his controlling actions (imprisoning her in a treehouse) just how much Thingol loves Luthien and wants desperately to protect her.

One could interpret what was above called Luthien’s “determination” as egocentricity that spat in the face of her mother and father, especially the latter, who wanted so much to keep her safe. You could see it as a sort of, “They did so much for you, and this is how you repay them”? After all, she chose to separate from her parents for all of eternity, just because of her love for Beren. When things are taken that way, it doesn’t exactly paint Luthien in the best light; it makes her look selfish and ungrateful. So Luthien is indeed determined, but she’s also self-centered as well, in a way.

Reason 2. Her bravery = foolishness?

Like I discussed in (excessive) detail above, Luthien is brave. Like, seriously, awe-inspiringly, astoundingly brave. And while I think she’s very well capable of being clever in the moment, she doesn’t strike me as being particularly wise overall. All of her “brave” actions are surprisingly rash and have zero pragmatic basis. Why would anyone run away from home, alone and without assistance, to face Sauron? Her desire to rescue Beren is understandable, but she’s putting a lot at risk by going against such slim odds alone.

Time and time again, Luthien throws herself headlong at seemingly impossible problems and tackles them one by one. Time and time again, she manages to come out relatively unscathed, but never does she have any prior guarantee that she will. Even when she chose mortality with Beren, she had no certainty that they would remain together; that everything she sacrificed for their love might end up being pointless. Being an INTP, I find myself questioning that recklessness a lot. As amazed as I always am at her courage, I’m also reminded that, in my opinion, courage should ideally be balanced with logic, and most of Luthien’s decisions don’t strike me as being particularly logical. (If I could diagnose her MBTI personality type I’d definitely say she’s an xxFx.) So, Luthien is awe-inspiringly courageous, but may rightfully come across as very rash as well.

At the same time, though, Luthien may have been fully aware of the impossibility of what she was trying to do, but she felt that her father just wouldn’t allow her and Beren to be a thing. Therefore, from her perspective, she was doing the one and only thing that she really could do: take matters into her own hands, no matter how colossal the odds stacked against her were.

Nevertheless, the lack of practicality in her actions also ties into the next topic…

Reason 4 (like I said, Reason 3 really has no equivalent). Her compassion = naivety? (Kind of; at least, the more apt name is “Her bravery - again = naivety?”)

There’s far more to Luthien’s possible naivety then merely her sparing of Curufin, but nonetheless, it is important; this “compassion” nearly gets her and Beren killed. After all that they did to her, we have to wonder, why in the world did Luthien think that Curufin was worth sparing? Did she believe that everyone has good in them and everyone deserves a second chance? That sounds pretty naive (though arguably not so out-of-place with Tolkien’s narrative, where such notions of compassion and forgiveness are central themes).

However, this situation can be considered rather shaky grounds for indicating that Luthien is naive. We don’t know what transpired between Luthien, Curufin, and Celegorm when they held her hostage. Perhaps she learned a little bit about them somehow and recognized that they weren’t totally evil (not in the way Morgoth and Sauron are, anyway) and came to care about them, prompting her to demand that Beren spare Curufin. We don’t know.

But her “brave” actions, again, draw a fair bit of skepticism. Along with making her look courageous, yet reckless all at once, add naive to that list; Why is she doing all this? We get that she loves Beren, but does she seriously think that things will end all well and good for them? Usually the world rarely works the way we want it to.

You would think Luthien would consider that one of them might actually die trying to pull everything off. Perhaps this can be attributed, again, to her sheltered life; being an elf, surrounded by elves, and the daughter of a minor deity and an elven king, I seriously doubt that Luthien really understood the concept of death and just how final it is for humans - especially given that elves don’t stay deceased permanently. This can point to more naivety on her part; naivety that places both herself and Beren in danger.

Her decision between the Fate of Men and the Fate of Elves might also be something else that is indicative of naivety, for the same reasons that I noted above that they might be indicative of foolishness as well: Did she consider that she and Beren might not have a happy ending, even if she chose the Fate of Men? Did she think about the possibility that all of her actions might be in vain? Who knows? We have absolutely no insight on Luthien from her perspective; all we can do is speculate and interpret. Personally, I think she knew and was willing to risk it all, and I find that beautiful, but it may come across negatively to some.

One possible (quite morbid) interpretation for Luthien that erases her flaws of being reckless and/or naive, but serves to make her a much darker character and appear even more selfish, is that she knew exactly how little chance she had of succeeding in her quest, and how much chance she and Beren had of dying. Perhaps, she didn’t care. Perhaps, to her, as long as she and Beren could prove their love, it didn’t matter to her if one or both of them died along the way. Even this interpretation of her makes her an extremely heavily flawed individual, increasing her selfishness by a drastic amount.

That’s why, in my personal opinion, Luthien is far from being perfect and I don’t quite understand how the notion that she’s flawless came about. Personally, when I first read about her in The Silmarillion, she struck me as more of a child, a hopeful and idealistic girl, than a mature, adult woman. Sure, she’s insanely beautiful and has a level of luck that’s out of this world, but that doesn’t make her perfect (imo), not with so many flaws in her character.

There’s one last criticism of Luthien that I’ve noticed in the fandom: That her story begins and ends with a man (Beren), and that her entire character revolves around him. I disagree.

In my opinion, Luthien’s story begins in her father’s kingdom, long before she met Beren. She was sheltered and doted upon, and didn’t know much about the outside world. Her father was a powerful king, and her mother was a literal angel; they were both good parents and both treated her with overflowing love and affection. That was the world that Luthien knew.

Enter Beren, a scruffy, sweaty, vagabond mortal man from the outside world, someone who has endured a tough, tribulating life in the wilderness, betrayal, and the death of his father and his companions, someone who is being pursued by Morgoth. He falls in love with her, and Luthien falls in love with him. How exactly Luthien fell in love with Beren is never elaborated upon by Tolkien.

But in my personal opinion, imagine being in Luthien’s perspective, looking at this man - the first of the Secondborn that she’s ever encountered in her long life. Imagine how utterly fascinating he would be; at his (to her) young age, he’s endured more hardship than she, who was born into peace and privilege, can understand. He brings her stories about the world outside, a world that she can only imagine. And he’s kind to her. He’s in love with her. This man who has been through so much is in love with her.

Beren was Luthien’s first contact with the outside world - the real world, not the one that her father tried to keep her safe and sheltered in. He introduced to her just how dangerous and harsh it can be, but it was because of how perilous the world is that Luthien was able to develop as a character, overcoming hurdle after hurdle. In my opinion, that’s a part of why Luthien loved Beren so much. He connected her with the rest of the world and enabled her to form her own perspective of it, outside of where Thingol wanted to protect her. And I think that’s heartrending; he showed her the world, and she’s willing to give up the world for him.

I’ll tag my friend @martaaa1506 in this, because one of the few Tolkien topics we (happily and amicably, I still love her no matter what) disagree on is Luthien, and I want to hear things from a different perspective.

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platatoandsoquoquediscovern-blog · 7 years

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Platato and Soquoque Discover: Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of the Universe

An unqualified book review by two unqualified people.

Platato’s unqualified thoughts:

Rating: 4.5/5

“Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer morning could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.”

Pain. That is – at the risk of sounding like any English teacher grossly underplaying a novel whilst explaining it to their class – the predominant theme of Benjamin Alire Sáenz’s novel Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. At least that’s what I think.

It’s not even limited to physical pain, there’s all types of pain, the pain of secrets, denial, rejection, marginalisation, defying the norm, expectation, the pain of becoming and the pain of being. Sáenz explores the complexity of pain in his novel through a story of becoming that follows two unlikely friends, Aristotle Mendoza and Dante Quintana, through their formative teenage years. The novel is written in Aristotle’s perspective and starts off already questioning the pain of becoming and being. In the words of Aristotle Mendoza himself, “the problem with my life was that it was someone else’s idea.”

Sáenz with his realistic plot and down to earth characters does something many authors have done but not many have mastered, he relates. And in more than the, ‘oh those two are humans, I can relate’ way, you can see yourself reflected in Aristotle and Dante in ways you could never in a warrior princess. It’s a book about two guys, it could be any two guys really, it could be any two people, and I like that. I feel as if I could be them, in another life.

Even if you aren’t gay, or Mexican, or 14, or 17, or live with both your parents, or have no siblings, or have siblings in prison – even if the story isn’t exactly your story, it still is. Because everyone knows pain, and above all everyone knows one, or many of the pains Sáenz writes on. And even though pain is subjective and no one can quite understand your pain like yourself, you learn something through reading this book. You learn that “maybe we just [live] between hurting and healing.”

Everyone is in pain. That is one of the secrets of the universe. I think there’s a quote that also perfectly describes this: “There is a famous painting, Nighthawks, by Edward Hopper. I am in love with that painting. Sometimes, I think everyone is like the people in that painting, everyone lost in their own private universes of pain or sorrow or guilt, everyone remote and unknowable. The painting reminds me of you. It breaks my heart.” Everyone is in pain and sometimes you can momentarily alleviate it, and sometimes you can’t, but what you can’t do is let that pain drive you crazy.

I don’t want to put words in Sáenz mouth, it’s quite possible that I already have, but what I took away from reading Aristotle and Dante is that you need to feel your pain. One cannot get to a state of quasi-healing if one denies they are even hurt. But in the same breath one cannot bask in their pain to make themselves feel ‘special’. What one has to do is feel their pain, feel it in all its horror and gore, feel it destroy and deplete, feel it empty and hollow, and then they need to remind themselves that they’re alive and whilst there’s more pain in that, there’s more beauty as well.

It’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, and it’s not meant to belittle people’s pain (no ‘pull yourself up but the bootstraps’ bullshit here), but in the great fictional words of the subpar fictional Peter Van Houten, “pain demands to be felt.” And if you won’t read it for that, Aristotle and Dante are extremely adorable, they’re precious really, and their relationship and its becoming is a beautiful thing to read. Which I suppose plays into the redeeming qualities of love, another (oh me oh my I was probably a teacher in another life wasn’t I?) predominant theme in the novel.

Soquoque’s unqualified thoughts:

Rating: 4.3/5

“There are worse things in the world than a boy who likes to kiss other boys”

Life- that heartless bitch we are forced to face every single day. That is what I think Benjamin Alire Saenz’s novel “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe” is ultimately about. The struggle of living a life that you are unsure of, constantly wondering if your life is your own, or if you’re merely a result of everything the people surrounding you want you to be. This is the question which plagues one half of the novels namesakes- Aristotle Mendoza. And let me tell you, he takes one hell of a time figuring it out, with the help of his partner, his friend, and the most cupcake-iest cupcake to ever cupcake – Dante Quintana. These two guys are proof that the world isn’t as shitty as we might think, and that perhaps what any of us really need at the end of the day, when we feel like everything is pointless and nothing matters- is someone by our side who simply allows us to just be, well, us. The reason why I loved this novel as much as I did is because it is such a simple story – there are no crazy vampire-angel-demon-god hybrids, no one is threatening to end the world as we know it, and no one is trying to save it. This story, is simply about the lives of Aristotle and Dante, these two boys- the latter of whom is full of life, who understands who he is and more importantly who he is not, and the former, who is so incredibly pained that your heart aches for him – for who he wants to be and who he can’t quite make himself. The journey of Aristotle is one rife with confusion, pain and anger – as he grapples with the type of pain I can only imagine; the imprisonment and subsequent ‘loss’ of his brother, the pained relationship he has with his father, and add on to that puberty, identity, a best friend who is just too adorable to handle, and one can understand why Aristotle is the way he is , and why it takes him so long to figure out if he likes that person or not- but the journey is well worth the wait.

Speaking of things which are excruciatingly long – the ‘will-they-won’t-they’ dynamic between Aristotle and Dante is one to put down for the ages. I have been through my fair share of agony over couples in novels who aren’t quite ‘together’ but should be ‘together’ but don’t seem to be wanting to be ‘together’ and this relationship in particular seriously tested the limits of my patience because hot damn did Mr Saenz make me wait. But I can say with absolute certainty, that theirs is one I would gladly suffer through a thousand more pages of beautifully written, funny, charming, witty and every other adjective there is to describe the brilliance of the novel, if it meant I would get to experience their final, glorious moments of love, all over again. If only to re-read the lines “I pulled him toward me. And kissed him. I kissed him. And I kissed him. And I kissed him. And I kissed him. And he kept kissing me back” – I mean COME ON! Who wouldn’t find that beautiful (that’s a trick question, because if you don’t you’re heartless, and terrible and live a sad life).

Because ultimately, as well as this novel being about life, it is also about love; allowing oneself to feel it- to allow all the pain which inevitably comes with it to wash over you, no matter how hard that may be. To accept it- in all its gut-wrenching, earth – shattering, ‘rule-breaking’ glory. And whether this is the love between a mother and her rebellious son, or a quirky father and his smartass little boy or even the love shared between a boy and his dog- it is everywhere. And what is so brilliantly done in this novel is that it shows us that any love, ALL love, is amazing and is worth giving yourself over to. One of my favourite quotes in the book (and there are many) is something Aristotle’s dad Jamie says to him, when Aristotle is grappling with this love he has for Dante: he says, (and I’m paraphrasing here so bear with me) “The problem isn’t just that Dante’s in love with you. The real problem-for you (Aristotle), anyway- is that you’re in love with him… I think you love him more than you can bear.”

This book is powerful, its encapsulating and it’s so damn beautiful that one can’t help but feel yourself questioning whether you’re happy that you have read it, or sad that it’s over. I’m still trying to figure this out and I finished the book weeks ago. But that, friends, is the sweet torture of reading – is it not?

#book review #book recommendations #ya #books #bookworm #writers #aristotle and dante discover the secrets of the universe #platato and soquoque discover #benjamin saenz #reading #read in 2017 #book #reviews #bildungsroman #romance #books and literature #books and libraries #books and reading

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