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theres-a-goldensky · 3 years

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30 More The Untamed Fic Recs

Here we go again. Another Wangxian rec list. Are you bored of me yet?

Were these recs helpful to you? If so, you can check out my other Wangxian rec posts:

Part 1 - 40 recs

Part 2 - 23 recs

Part 3 - 23 recs

As ever, feel free to reblog.

You can also head over to my bookmarks on AO3.

(All recs are complete) (I’ve noted pairings, length, and rating, but not any warnings or additional tags.)

** denotes personal favorite

1. say it's here where our pieces fall in place by Lirelyn - ~69,000 words, explicit - Modern AU where Lan Zhan meets Wei Wuxian after he adopts a small A-Yuan, because Wei Wuxian also has a past with him. Lots of adorable family feelings and emotional hurt/comfort.

As often happened, Wei Ying’s voice preceded his entrance, calling to his co-worker through the open door, “Frankie, they forgot to order spoons again, can you hold down the fort a little longer while I —”

Lan Wangji was already looking to his entrance, head turning as if magnetized toward the voice, so he saw the moment when Wei Ying’s eyes landed on A-Yuan and the smile fell from his face. He looked stricken, and Lan Wangji immediately looked to his son in alarm. A-Yuan seemed fine. His small eyebrows were pulled together in a small frown as he looked back at Wei Ying, but that wasn’t surprising, given the expression on Wei Ying’s face. Lan Wangji had seen that face beaming, laughing, whining, wheedling, and occasionally angry, but never like this. He looked blank and hollow and it stirred something fierce in Lan Wangji: he wanted to rise up and obliterate whatever was making him look like that. Then his eyes lifted to Lan Wangji and there was a flash of something almost like betrayal, before he pressed his lips together and turned his back.

“I’m going to run out to the store and get spoons,” he said in a flat voice to his co-worker, and left without looking their way again.

2. the breaking of your soul (upon my lips) by sunsandships - ~41,000 words, mature - This is an AU of the novel where Wei Wuxian puts two and two together when Lan Zhan sneaks that kiss from him. It changes a lot of things.

Against his own will, Wei Wuxian found himself glancing at Lan Wangji’s hands. They were… certainly large enough that one of them could wrap around both of his wrists. And Lan Wangji was certainly strong enough, tall enough, broad-shouldered enough to bodily pin him against the trunk of a tree with no chance of him breaking free. Lan Wangji was the first person he’d come across in his slow comb through the vicinity of where he’d been so headily kissed.

Wei Wuxian drew a sharp breath. There was a connection to be made here. He didn’t think he was crazy enough to make it. Perhaps he truly was going slightly insane with demonic cultivation if he could believe Lan Wangji, the paragon of virtue and respectability, who lived unflinchingly under Gusu Lan’s three thousand edicts, who had at best only tolerated his presence as children, would sneak up to him while he was blindfolded, pin him against a tree, and steal a kiss from him in broad daylight.

3. and his wanting grows teeth by yukla - ~25,000 words, teen - This is a very interesting AU where Lan Zhan is a traveling cultivator and runs into Wei Wuxian and the Jiangs looking for shelter during a snowstorm. No spoilers, but this fic goes to a pretty dark place that genuinely shocked me, but I enjoyed. (Still ends well though.)

Without further ado, they are hustled past the entrance and into a smaller greeting area. Huang-bobo approaches the brazier in the center with his hands outstretched, warming his fingers in the heat, but Lan Wangji hangs back. As he carefully brushes the snow free from his shoulders, he feels the burn of a curious gaze trailing up and down his body, lingering at the guqin still strapped to his back; when the sensation pauses at his face and stays there, he lifts his head.

The boy with the ribbon lights up at the eye contact, flashes another dazzling smile, and gives a little wave.

“You must be new here,” he whispers, something like laughter threaded into his voice, eyes scrunching into winking half-moons. “All dressed up in white like that! You might lose yourself in the snowstorm!”

Something stirs to life in Lan Wangji’s chest. It’s—uncomfortable, he decides, and so he steps away. Teasing should not be encouraged with a response.

4. Ghosts Shouldn't by ShanaStoryteller - ~15,000 words, not rated - After Wei Ying's death, his spirit seems to linger. The story is told from Lan Xichen's point of view. I love an outsider point of view. I also love the way the author fleshes out his character as well.

Lan Xichen means to force his way inside, angry ghost of the Yiling Patriarch or no, but then his brother lets out slow breath, settling, the pain easing from his face as he falls back into a more peaceful sleep.

His hair is moving on its own, so subtly Lan Xichen might not have noticed it if he hadn’t been looking at Wangji so intently. It’s like someone’s running their hand through his hair.

The window frosts over suddenly, thick enough that he can’t see through it. Anxiety spikes through him so quickly he’s nauseous with it, but then the frost melts away and the opening notes of Healing start up again.

He can’t tell if it’s a warning or not. Maybe it’s just an acknowledgement. Wei Wuxian knows he’s there.

5. **leading tone by silencemostofall - ~32,000 words, general - This is a modern AU set in a world where people who love you leave a mark of color on you the first time you touch. Wei Wuxian has no color on him. So much emotional hurt/comfort. So much of Wei Wuxian's terrible self-esteem.

He can cover up his palms with his gloves, so that the blankness does not draw stares. But he has no marks on his fingertips, which he cannot easily hide, and none visible on his face or neck, the blankness of which is even more difficult to hide. People look at him and, with a single glance, understand the single most devastating truth that he knows about himself.

They assume that he does not have very many marks. He may be an eccentric, dramatic person, but the likelihood that an individual has all of their marks on, say, their feet or their torso or other places that are not immediately obvious-- that probability goes down as your number of marks increases. He can laugh as much as he wants about how he loves touching people for the first time with odd places, like the knee or the elbow, but it doesn't quite mask the feeling of other that he knows he exudes.

They assume that he does not have a lot of marks. This, while a heavy weight, is not unbearably so. It is okay that they think he is not much loved. It chafes a bit, and feels occasionally like something he has to furiously push down within himself, but it is not unbearable. What would be unbearable is if they knew the truth: that he does not just have very few marks, but none. That he is simply an individual who is not loved at all.

6. **pastel by antebunny - ~7,000 words, gen - This is a remix work of the above fic. It's from Lan Zhan's point of view and just different enough to be interesting. Still lots of emotional hurt/comfort. I love this concept a whole lot, and both of these fics are great.

It’s a simmering day in May, and Wei Ying is wearing long sleeves, long pants, and gloves.

His choice of dress isn’t unusual for many reasons. For one, there’s plenty of people who don’t like strangers seeing their soulmarks. There’s plenty of people who wish to keep them private by covering them up. For another, Wei Ying spends most of his day in various chilly computer science department rooms, He could just be wearing long sleeves for that.

7. one good thing by Yuu_chi - ~27,000 words, teen - Wei Wuxian has died (or did he??) and is haunting his old home. Lan Zhan moves in. This story has a happy ending! And so much yearning!

To the flowers struggling to grow on the other side of the glass, he says, “We’re getting a new roommate. Well, I’m getting a new roommate - you’re getting somebody who might actually be able to water you for a change.” The flowers outside sway a little in the breeze, and Wei Wuxian nods contemplatively. “He can’t be any worse than the last guy who lived here. Remember when I spooked him while he was cooking and he nearly burnt the house down? Of course you don’t. You’re fucking foliage, your memory is worse than mine. I remember though, so it’s cool.”

There’s the sound of shuffling behind him and Wei Wuxian looks up to see the stranger has entered the kitchen, setting the last of the boxes down on the table. Disgustingly neat handwriting declares the box kitchen - homeware. The stranger carefully brushes his hair back from his face and, without so much as a second of hesitation, cracks open the box and begins unpacking.

“Wow, you really don’t waste any time, do you?” Wei Wuxian marvels. “You literally just got here - who cares about unpacking? Sit down for a moment, breathe, have something to eat. It’s not going anywhere.”

8. with you, I am home by tellthemstories - ~47,000 words, mature - Modern AU where Wei Wuxian is being forced to return home to entertain marriage proposals. So naturally instead he "convinces" Lan Zhan to pretend to date him. I love a good fake dating fic, and this one hits all the right beats.

Lan Zhan does that almost-smile thing that Wei Wuxian takes to mean he’s happy, or at the very least not-mad. “You don’t have any money.”

“Not true. I have the money from our last job, when we settled the vengeful spirit for the flower shop girl.” (He doesn’t. They have Lan Zhan’s money. Wei Wuxian spent his on a pack of loquats and three bottles of Emperor’s Smile wine.)

“Fine,” Wei Wuxian says. “Do it for me.”

Thinking back on it two weeks later, standing alone in the middle of Jin Ling’s graduation banquet and watching Lan Zhan walk away from him, Wei Wuxian realises that this, this was the moment when he should have known. He should have realised in the way Lan Zhan doesn’t hesitate or negotiate and just says with that half-fond, half-exasperated tone he gets sometimes, “Fine.”

9. and in the spring i shed my skin by wvlfqveen - ~11,000 words, teen - Modern AU where Wei Ying can't find Lan Zhan, but hey, there happens to be a rabbit here instead. Features a very slow Wei Ying, emotional hurt/comfort and accidental love confessions.

Immediately, his heart settles and he grins down at his new friend. “Oh, hello there,” he coos, reaching out to pet the fluffy ears. The bunny is very, very still under his hand.

“Did Lan Zhan bring you today?,” he continues cooing. “I’m sorry I missed that, but your Dad didn’t tell me he was bringing you.”

Lan Zhan rarely brings his rabbits to work since they are as tolerant of crowds and unnecessary noise as he is. They were probably relevant to today’s lesson but…

Wei Ying frowns. “Why would he leave you alone? And where is your cage?”

10. how, or when, or from where by sarahyyy - ~10,000 words, gen - Wei Ying wakes up in the hospital with amnesia and can't remember the last few years of his life, including his best friend and the guy he's in love with.

Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes so hard Wei Wuxian is surprised his eyeballs don’t just fall out of his eye sockets. “That’s the worst part. He did. Whatever mating ritual you both have going on is so fucking weird, Wei Wuxian.” He snorts. “If you’d stayed asleep for any longer, I’d have lost my shit and thrown my myself out a window just so I wouldn’t have to talk to Lan Wangji again.”

Wei Wuxian blinks at him. “Is this a good time to ask who Lan Wangji is?”

Jiang Cheng glares at him. “Your Lan Zhan,” he says, annoyed. Wei Wuxian must look as confused as he feels, because Jiang Cheng’s annoyance bleeds out into concern. “Your Lan er-gege? Your soulmate, Lan Wangji?”

Wei Wuxian shakes his head. “No bells are ringing.”

11. ** a shared plate by yukla - ~26,000 words, teen - This is an absolutely gorgeous fic about Wei Wuxian traveling the world post-canon to rediscover himself and restore his faith in humanity and eventually find his way back to Lan Zhan. The whole thing is great, but the last two chapters are just *chef's kiss*

Lan Zhan,

Just as the mountains stand unchanging and the green rivers flow ceaselessly, we will meet again — and between then and now, you cannot hope to avoid my letters, either! Haha! Lan Zhan, I’ve seen so many things and met so many people, and it’s only been a month!

I miss you already

It’s so hot that I find myself missing the wind in Gusu’s mountains. Your poor Wei Ying is I’m melting away, Lan Zhan...

I’m realizing now, sixteen years is a long time to be away — the world is vast, and quite a bit different than I remembered. And in sixteen years, a child can also grow up into a man! It’s your job to catch me up on A-Yuan’s fun childhood stories! I do remember hearing something about a pile of rabbits...

12. with your arms outstretched to me by annemari - ~14,000 words, teen - Lan Zhan finally gets up the nerve to ask Wei Ying on a date, but things don't go as expected. Features emotional hurt/comfort (are we sensing a theme with these recs??) and just regular hurt/comfort.

"Oh, man, I was hoping you had some water with you," Wei Ying says. "I totally forgot to bring any for myself. Stupid of me."

"There is enough for both of us," Lan Wangji says. He has another bigger bottle in the car, as well.

Wei Ying hums but he only takes a few sips. He presses it back into Lan Wangji's hand. "I don't need any more."

Lan Wangji is considering arguing, but then Wei Ying shifts a bit, moving his ankle, and gasps very, very quietly.

13. ** A Lot of Edges Called Perhaps by hansbekhart - ~22,000 words, explicit - Wei Wuxian has finished traveling and returned to the Cloud Recesses and Lan Zhan. But their lives never do run smoothly.

“Lan Jingyi,” Wei Wuxian says, recognizing him after a moment. His heart slams against his rib cage. “Where is Lan Zhan? What’s happened?”

Lan Jingyi flaps a hand at him, gulping air. Wei Wuxian hands him the water, and leans back against Little Apple’s side as he waits impatiently for the boy to get his breath back.

“I’m so glad I found you,” Jingyi gasps, just as Wei Wuxian is about to throttle a proper answer out of him. “Hanguang Jun was in such a state when he woke up, we didn’t know if you’d come and gone already.”

“Where is he, Jingyi,” Wei Wuxian says, as evenly as he can. “What happened?”

14. So Why Not Crack Your Skull When the Mind Swells by greenteafiend - ~14,000 words, explicit - Wei Wuxian is cursed to feel extraordinary pain unless he's touching Lan Zhan. Yet more of Wei Wuxian's self-esteem issues and Lan Zhan's steadfast devotion.

“Are you hurt, Wei Ying?” Lan Wangji asks, pressing his hand to Wei Ying’s forehead to feel his temperature. There is no fever, but that doesn’t do much to mitigate Lan Wangji’s worries.

“No—I’m not hurt,” says Wei Ying, sagging forward to lean his weight into Lan Wangji’s hand like he can’t help himself.

It’s so strange—Lan Wangji can feel what Wei Ying is feeling. Although the relief is still very profound, wisps of other things are making themselves known; happiness; wistfulness; guilt. It’s all so fleeting that Lan Wangji can’t even begin to deduce what has provoked those feelings, but he wishes he knew their source.

15. puzzle pieces by Anonymous - ~6,000 words, teen - Modern AU where Wei Ying and Lan Zhan are roommates, and Wei Ying has started borrowing Lan Zhan's clothes.

“Hm? Oh.” With sleepy eyes that does— things to Lan Zhan’s heart, he blinks and tugs at the lower hem of the shirt, which is riding just above the curve of his thighs. Does Lan Zhan’s mouth water? Maybe. Yes. Absolutely. “Ah, yeah, sorry. Laundry day caught up to me before I could catch up with it. I saw this shirt left in the washer a few days ago, and—“ He blinks up at Lan Zhan through dark eyelashes that Lan Zhan wants to kiss, maybe, and gives him an uncharacteristically hesitant smile. “Do you mind?”

I mind the fact that we are not married, Lan Zhan thinks. But he can’t say that, and his tongue doesn’t know how to say anything else. So he stays silent.

“Oh,” Wei Ying says after a moment. “If you—oh, damn, I should’ve known, this is like real silk, must’ve been super expensive. Fuck. Okay, here, uh, I’ll take it off—“

16. ** Nothing But Trouble by brooklinegirl - ~60,000 words, explicit - Modern AU where Wei Ying is trying to be a good brother and get Jiang Cheng laid. Somehow this plan involves pretending to date Lan Zhan.

"I won't!" Wei Ying insists. "I'll ask out someone...high stakes. I'll find someone. I'll...okay, how's this? I swear that I'll ask someone out and keep at it for at least two dates."

"No."

"Three dates."

"Nope."

"Okay, okay, five. That's fair! That's more than fair! One person, five dates." He points at Jiang Cheng. "You have to do it, too. That's how a pact works."

Jiang Cheng stares at him. "Five dates," he says flatly. "Five. And yours can't be Nie Huaisang."

17. i'm the one for your fire by occultings (microcomets) - ~43,000 words, explicit - This is a Modern AU and a Cherry Magic AU! (Side note: GO WATCH CHERRY MAGIC IF YOU HAVEN'T.) But in short, Wei Ying turns 30 without losing his virginity and gets the power to hear people's thoughts when he touches them. He gets more than he bargained for with Lan Zhan. The author does a good job of translating the story to these characters. Wei Ying is not forced to be like Adachi, the main character of Cherry Magic. He's still himself, and the same goes for Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan’s voice is so clear, so sudden that it’s as though it’s spoken, the slice of a sharp object through velvet.

He’s touching me.

Wei Ying startles for a moment, wonders if he’d somehow heard his own thoughts instead, but — no, that had definitely been Lan Zhan’s steady, factual baritone, loud and clear.

God, this is still so weird. It still doesn’t seem totally real. But how else can he account for hearing Lan Zhan’s voice in his head, as clearly as if he’d spoken to Wei Ying directly?

18. like blue flame over my fingertips by tangerinechar - ~37,000 words, teen - Modern AU where Lan Zhan and Wei Ying are roommates, and Lan Zhan just finds himself wanting to take care of Wei Ying.

Lan Wangji’s roommate. Is a problem.

He doesn’t get an answer to the roommate problem until the next morning, when Lan Xichen texts him telling him that the apartment he’d suggested (and helped pay rent for) to Lan Wangji said in the small text that it’d be two people per apartment, the second bedroom wasn’t actually a guest bedroom, sorry, Wangji, you can move in with me if you want, I have space —

No. Thank you for your kind offer, Brother, but I will be quite fine, Lan Wangji texts back.

19. ** some impulse of delight by handclaps - ~20,000 words, explicit - College AU where Wei Ying decides he needs to help Lan Zhan get used to touching people. Lan Zhan agrees. Wei Ying is dumb and in love. Lan Zhan is less dumb, but still as in love.

Lan Zhan shakes his head and fumbles, tries to push the cotton wool into Wei Wuxian’s hand.

“Sorry,” Wei Wuxian says, realising. “Touching people, I know.”

He feels dumb. He thought he’d worn Lan Zhan down more than this, that they were friends now and that his whole no touching thing was mostly overcome. He took Wei Wuxian’s hand easily, right? He looks down at his belly full of scratches, dabbing at them moodily.

“Sorry,” he says, again.

Lan Zhan makes some kind of noise, but he is busy packing the first aid kit back, placing everything exactly where it was before.

“Lan Zhan, you’re going to have to do something about this,” Wei Wuxian complains. “I know you don’t like touching people and usually it plays as a kind of gentlemanly thing, but what about emergencies?”

20. And I Will Call You Home by Spodumene - ~43,000 words, explicit - Wei Wuxian returns after a year of traveling and rejoins Lan Zhan in the Cloud Recesses. He's doing a good job of pining and ignoring the obvious. Look, at this point, it shouldn't be a surprise that I'm a sucker for stories where Wei Wuxian deals with his ~*~issues~*~ and Lan Zhan takes care of him, whether he asks for it or not. This story has lots of that. I also enjoyed the case fic aspect of it.

“I do, I think,” Wei Wuxian admits. “Would be nice to see his face again after so long. And at least this time, I’m going to show up draped in finery. What do you think, Lan Zhan? I can’t possibly disgrace him—or you—wearing a cloak like that.”

“You could never disgrace me,” Lan Wangji says gently, that soft, affectionate look back on his face.

Wei Wuxian grins, warmed to the tips of his toes.

“I’ll remind you of that later. The next time I’m three jars deep and feeling especially shameless, you’ll have to remember those words, Lan Er-gege.”

“Of course,” Lan Wangji says simply.

Wei Wuxian smiles some more, overwhelmed by fondness.

21. darling, am i a chore? by martyrsdaughter - ~7,000 words, explicit - Wei Wuxian really, really wants Lan Zhan to call him 'gege'. Lan Zhan knows a trump card when he sees one.

“You know what I want,” Wei Wuxian purrs, reaching up on his tiptoes to throw his arms over Lan Wangji’s shoulders. “Call me gege, won’t you? Call me and I’ll stop.”

Lan Wangji knows he will not stop, regardless of what he calls him. Still, he thinks about it. If there really is a way to make Wei Wuxian stop, should he not consider it? He doesn’t have any real interest in curbing his husband’s insatiable mischievousness, but he does like knowing things about him—everything there is to know.

If there’s something that persuasive in the world, that it can bring Wei Wuxian into submission when no one is under threat, could he stop himself from seeking it?

22. your name, safe in their mouth by astrolesbian - ~11,000 words, gen - Wei Wuxian & Lan Sizhui fic with the Wangxian in the background. Lan Sizhui wants another dad and Wei Wuxian wants a son, they just don't know how to explain that to each other.

“Hush,” Wei Wuxian says, in a low croon, like someone quieting a baby. Then he blinks, and looks away, awkward. “I mean—you shouldn’t speak. You’re tired. Rest if you need to.”

Lan Sizhui tucks his chin into his uncle’s shoulder, and lets his eyes fall closed.

“It doesn’t hurt too much, does it?” Wen Ning whispers to him kindly.

Lan Sizhui takes a deep breath, and takes stock of all his aches, his ringing ear, his hollow chest, the way he had selfishly wanted Wei Wuxian to keep speaking to him in that careful voice, like he was just a child to be soothed and there was no real danger. How dangerous, to pretend. “No,” he lies. “It doesn’t hurt that much at all.”

23. when you're doing all the leaving (then it's never your love lost) by tardigradeschool - ~26,000 words, teen - AU where Lan Zhan with Wei Wuxian to Jin Ling's one-month celebration. Things go down, and it leads to Lan Zhan discovering Wei Wuxian's missing golden core. This obviously will not do, and oh look, the best doctor in the world just happens to be right here.

“How—“ Lan Wangji chokes. “His core —?” He looks at Wen Ning, half accusatory in his shock. “Jin Zixun could not have—“

“No, no!” Wen Ning says, holding out his hands. “He hasn’t had one for years, don’t worry!”

This is not as reassuring as Wen Ning seems to think.

“Please explain,” Lan Wangji says, pained. He feels for Wei Wuxian’s pulse instead; in the absence of a golden core, it will have to do as reassurance that he’s still alive.

Wen Ning is so anxious that the story comes out in a ramble, out of order. Lan Wangji wants him to hurry up, but he’s also not confident in his own ability to speak, so he just keeps quiet and lets him talk. His heart feels as if it’s about to fall from his chest, beating nearly twice as fast as Wei Wuxian’s does under his fingers.

24. A Match in the Making by lareine - ~30,000 words, teen - A Modern AU where Wei Wuxian sees his single and bad ass friend Lan Zhan and his single and bad ass friend Mianmian and gets some very dumb ideas.

To return to the point: Lan Zhan was peak adulting. Mianmian was peak adulting. And if they were both at the peak, then they were on the same level. What level? That mysterious level thing that everyone mentioned when it came to dating.

Whatever level it was, Lan Zhan and Mianmian were on it together. Wei Ying nodded to himself. So, Lan Zhan and Mianmian were allowed to date each other. The next question was: were they compatible? Did they have chemistry or whatever the fuck people called it?

25. Crack me open, pour you out by Tenillypo - ~16,000 words, explicit - Lan Zhan gets cursed to say whatever he's thinking. So his worst nightmare. Mutual pining, first time, all good stuff.

Lan Wangji freezes with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth, lifting his eyes to stare at Wei Ying.

"I know! Just completely paralyzed." Wei Ying mimes being still as a board. "I don't know how long I lay there. It must have been two days at least. Good thing for Little Apple. He wandered back to the village when he got hungry, and eventually a few of them got brave enough to come look for me. When they rolled me over, the figure fell out of my hand and I could move again. Cunning little thing." He shakes his head. "I was weak as a kitten for a little while after they took me back to the village, and by the time I recovered, they'd burned the whole place to the ground. Such a waste."

Lan Wangji slowly lowers his chopsticks, heart racing unpleasantly. In his head, a picture of Wei Ying slowly wasting to death alone in the middle of the woods, with Lan Wangji a hundred miles away and none the wiser.

26. Crazy, Rich Cultivators by ShanaStoryteller - 13,000 words, no rating - Lan Zhan wants to bring his boyfriend home to meet his family. There are some things he definitely didn't realize about Wei Ying.

“He has a life here,” he says down the line. He doesn’t say that he has a life here too, one he likes a lot more than the one he had before. He misses home. He’d miss Wei Ying more. But he doesn’t say that, doesn’t say how vibrant he is and how beautiful and how little interest Lan Zhan has at seeing him among the high society he grew up with.

“Well, your life is here, Wangji,” his brother says. “You can’t stay away from home forever. You’re going to have to see how he does with the rest of us sooner or later. It might as well be sooner.”

It might as well be never, as far as he’s concerned. His family can meet Wei Ying at their wedding.

“I’ll ask,” he says.

Wei Ying has no interest in cultivation politics. They’re horrible, the five clans have an iron tight alliance that’s thirty seconds away from collapsing in on itself the moment someone from one sect steps on another sect’s toes. It’s the worst and he hates it. Surely even just the idea of it will be so horrifying to Wei Ying that Lan Zhan will be able to tell his brother no.

27. just our hands clasped so tight by electrum ~4,000 words, teen - Lan Zhan really, really, really just wants to give Wei Ying everything he wants.

“Despite your best efforts,” Wei Wuxian agrees. He shakes his head in mock-dismay. “How much longer do you think that will last if you keep buying everything I look at?” When this, too, fails to soften Lan Zhan’s resolve, he tries a different tactic. “We couldn’t even afford potatoes,” he says. “Back when I was with the Wens, at the Burial Mounds. Only radishes! If I survived that, I can certainly survive without another pretty comb.”

Lan Zhan’s expression is at once unmoved and yet somehow stricken. “I would have bought Wei Ying potatoes,” he says, like Wei Wuxian doesn’t know, by this point, that Lan Zhan would buy him anything. “If I had known…”

28. ** Rotten Work by ShanaStoryteller - ~64,000 words, no rating - Jin Ling & Wei Wuxian with Wangxian in the background. Jin Ling is the best boy! And as he tries to rehabilitate his sect and his family and keep himself alive at the same time, he realizes, horrifyingly, that he has to be the mature one.

29. ** an act too often neglected by Ariaste - Lan Xichen / Meng Yao, ~61,000 words, explicit - The Wangxian is in the background here, but the main story is about Lan Xichen meeting Meng Yao on a dating app and getting immediately dickmatized. Meanwhile. Meng Yao refuses to be won over by Lan Xichen's charm. It goes as well as you'd expect for him.

The caption below is equally sparse: “5’6. Demanding.”

Lan Xichen feels a low simmer of arousal kindle in the pit of his stomach, and he gazes at that word-- demanding --for nearly as long as he’d stared at the photograph. He swipes right.

A few minutes later, a notification pops up: < Hm, the size of your hands is promising.

This is familiar. This is the flirtation stage. Lan Xichen knows the steps to the dance.

30. My Land Beneath Me by longleggedgit - ~30,000 words, explicit - Modern AU where Wei Wuxian is cast out of his sect and out of China to America. And Lan Zhan just...follows.

Lan Zhan always waited for his tea to cool before drinking, which meant he had nothing to do but give Wei Wuxian a judgmental look. “No more McDonald’s.”

“You’re just bitter because you get indigestion from anything that actually tastes good,” Wei Wuxian grumbled.

Because Lan Zhan was insufferably mature and patient, he didn’t rise to the bait. “We have time to stop somewhere before class,” he said.

“Fine. But you’re paying this time.”

It was a bad joke, and predictably, fell flat; Lan Zhan was, after all, paying for everything, every time. Wei Wuxian frowned into his mug.

“You know,” he said, after another swallow, “you really don’t have to be here. I’m going to figure something out.”

Interested in 86 more The Untamed fic recs?

Part 1 - 40 recs Part 2 - 23 recs Part 3 - 23 recs

#the untamed fic #the untamed #master of demonic cultivation #wangxian fic recs #wangxian fic #mdzs #lan xichen/jin guangyao #lan zhan #wei wuxian/lan wangji #wei wuxian #jin ling #lan sizhui #mxtx novels

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bladekindeyewear · 3 years

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HS^2 bloggin’ mainline 2020-12-25

I’m not going to spend time BLOGGING an upd8 on Christmas morning!

...yes I am who the fuck am I kidding. (Bonus stuff and Hiveswap are still well on hold though.)

So are we gonna follow up on the main ship? Probably not, right, with that perfect Karkat point to cut away, right? We’re just going to leave Roxy’s question hanging, as well as makeouts etiquette, and leave while having seen a COUPLE FRAMES of non-possessed canon Jade with only whatever fun fanart was inspired across the internet by the moment to tide us over????

Yeah, probably.

Ugh, more Dirk. I guess it’s overdue. :(

> CHAPTER 16. Welcome to my Secret Lair

Oh huh, I guess not? So... Jane’s, or Rose and Kanaya’s?

Karkat stays for longer than John thought he would. They talk a bit, but mostly they are quiet. Eventually, Karkat gets called away on yet more important war business, leaving John with one final touch on the shoulder. John leans into it in response, though he’s a bit ashamed of chasing down a sliver of physical affection so soon after obliterating Karkat’s evening like he had.

Pretty much, yeah. Can’t blame either of them.

When Karkat is finally gone, John still doesn’t move. It isn’t as though he has nowhere else to go, since there are quite a few places he might attempt to make himself useful, for better or for worse.

You’re still abandoning the task that was explicitly yours to protect your literal kid and his friends, but, oh well. Low-point. Dave dead, house dead, broke news, I get it.

He just doesn’t feel ready for that yet. The remnants of his house are still smoldering, and he can’t stop staring at them. It would make sense, he thinks, to want to root around through the rubble for anything that’s still intact; some half-charred keepsake to claim as the last thing left that’s still his. But he doesn’t want to do it, and he doesn’t want to think about it. And he still can’t move.

Can’t move. No Breath huh? What’s going to get him to, then?

> (==>)

Oh boy, that might help. XD She’s pretty good at that.

> (==>)

Still with the waistline gap. And was his phone always yellow like his God-Tier shoes?

ROXY: hey john can u do me a quick solid ROXY: actly idk how quick itll be but its definitely solid ROXY: harry anderson says i just missed u being here but could u skip back on over?

Nice, huh! No judgment, just a hey-any-chance-you-could-swing-back. He sort of needs to be needed right now, in a simple, almost everyday non-judgmental way I guess. (That’s what he NEEDED anyway-- whether he deserved it though is up for debate.)

ROXY: i need help w/smth and yr darling boy is holed up in his room working on some fuckin craft project or other and cant be bothered

YES SEW JOHN A BETTER FITTING FUCKING OUTFIT

ROXY: and now that me and u are freshly on speakin terms again i might as well take advantage of that olive branch and put u to work ROXY: assumin you havent died in an air raid, that is ROXY: which id also be interested in knowin about so if u wld be so kind as to reply instead of leavin me hangin

Heheheh. Gosh Roxy is always the best.

JOHN: yea yea sorry im here. JOHN: i just had a hard time getting my phone out of these fucking tiny pants.

Hah.

JOHN: and also my house is bombed out so i'm kinda grappling with that. JOHN: but i honestly am not sure how much longer i need to sit around staring at it. trying to align my memories of my youth with whatever is happening right now so JOHN: short version is no i’m not dead, and yeah i can come back over there and help you out. ROXY: oh sweet yr alive and down to do manual labor its a win/win JOHN: see you soon.

Yep! Pulled away from all the metaphorical, ultra-meaningful bullshit, back to some brass tacks with some easy humor. Definitely something Roxy can do well.~

> (==>)

EXCUSE ME. What is that outfit and pose. Did you--

ROXY: sup ROXY: follow me ROXY: well were just going to my room so i guess technically u know the way JOHN: haha ok.

Did you invite him over for the manual labor of banging you while your son is sewing in the other room

Or maybe the labor is making him a new sibling. JFC

Is this plan part of why we got the sudden content warning that was mocked or was that mainly for Hiveswap

John follows, trying to shake the ominous feeling he got from what she’d just said. He’d been in and out of this house a lot in the past few days. Why should this be any different?

I DUNNO JOHN DOES THIS SEEM DIFFERENT TO YOU

> (==>)

Yea this seems like a fucc room.

JOHN: it’s not like i could forget! ROXY: ya i guess u only really saw the living room when you were here the other day but i have changed some stuff up ROXY: done a lil redecoratin here n there

So it’s MORE of a fucc room than previously >__>”

ROXY: may have to do a smidge more if my old bff decides im next on the list for bombing out ROXY: but so far so good

Ah geez.

ROXY: just a coupla exploded cars in the yard from some shenanigans our dear son and his friends were in but u kno it is what it is!!!

Well, that’ll buff out easy.

ROXY: can i get u anything? ROXY: just made some coffee JOHN: no, uh, i’m good.

Of course she has a fancy handled winecoffeeglass (and the handle does look ridiculous but it’d be too hot to hold otherwise)

Roxy shrugs and swirls her own coffee around in her novelty mug. John looks around. A lot about the room is the same. The family photos, the rug. There’s a lot more cat stuff in there now, though. The bed is new. John feels like he’s about to take a test he hasn’t studied for. He makes himself focus on what she’s saying.

That would be the feeling.

> (==>)

MY GOD. Roxy is so fucking good at this holy shit

She KNOWS she’s making him squirm and she loves it

JOHN: so uh anyway. JOHN: what was this favor? ROXY: yo why dont u just come rest yr tush for a bit ROXY: take a lil relax next 2 me here JOHN: haha uh. JOHN: roxy i uh. JOHN: im flattered, but i don’t know if that’s really the right step right now. JOHN: don’t get me wrong, everything seems so fucked up right now that when i try to think about what might actually BE the right step, it feels like a huge cartoon question mark might physically manifest over my head. JOHN: but I’m not sure if um rekindling our physical relationship is really the best--

So is Roxy trolling him, about to reveal she wasn’t thinking of sex and was just making things seem sultry? Or just had “lol jk” as an option-select, maybe.

> (==>)

ROXY: r u kiddin me rn egbert JOHN: i’m not? unless you were, in which case yeah lets say i was also kidding. JOHN: oh my god, i’m sorry, i don’t know why this making me freak out.

OH NOOO NOT THE DISDAAAAIN - CRITICAL HIT D:

ROXY: i remember our past boot knockin with fondness but that is a situation im not interested in revisiting

boot knockin XD

ROXY: look john ROXY: i was trying to be polite about it ROXY: offering u sustenance n rest n all ROXY: but you look like shit ROXY: i just wanted to catch up on the whole heinous war situation were in and maybe check in on e/o before leaping strait to the real n actual nonsexual manual labor favor i have in mind for u JOHN: oh.

Hey, she can’t help looking sexy she’s too good at it.

Is the manual labor moving the crashed cars? Can’t Roxy pull that off on her own, or... banish the cars to the void or something? (Oh, but WOULD she want to do it on her own when she can rope in John and bring him down to earth by giving him a useful task? And admittedly his strength and wallet would make things easier.)

John feels his shoulders unbunch. Of course. Yeah. He’s almost embarrassed by how relieved he feels. So what if his ex wife wanted to hook up? Shouldn’t that be a situation he could navigate? Don’t people like to find solace in human physical connection during dire times? Why did the idea of it make his mind white out in panic more than, say, any number of the traumas he just experienced?

Probably some gender stuff mixed up in there too, June.

He doesn’t know, but he believes Roxy that he must look pretty haggard. He probably feels haggard? Maybe sitting down will feel better.

Just put your feet up yeah

> (==>)

WHAT A CUTE IMAGE

JOHN: sorry. like i said, my "how to react to stuff" meter is completely fucked right now. ROXY: thats fair bud

she’s used to being patient with you don’t worry otherwise you never would’ve gotten this far

ROXY: real fast i do need to do a quick takeback of all that shit i said last time we talked about janey not being literally the most evil person we knew or whatever ROXY: i guess i was hopped up on arguin or somethin since that was before we hit our conversational vibe bc of course u were right and i shoulda listened

Ouch. Yeah, we saw just lately just how far off the deep end she was. (Where was that funny upd8 reaction art summarizing the bit where Kanaya was holding Tavros hostage and Jane was transparently debating “hmm do I let my son die?” and Kanaya and Tavros were just looking at each-other flat-mouthed nervous? I REALLY wanted to share that but I don’t usually want to reblog or put most stuff HS^2 not under a read-more, for spoiler purposes, usually.)

ROXY: im just glad ur ok ROXY: or like alive JOHN: yeah, jury's still out on "ok" but, you know. ROXY: ya ROXY: u said ur house is gone?? JOHN: yep. JOHN: completely. ROXY: jeez ROXY: i would ask how ur feelin but like the answer 2 that has got 2b "prtty bad"

Talk it ouuuut~~ get those feels out there and articulated john

JOHN: yeah. JOHN: i mean. JOHN: no? JOHN: it’s weird. JOHN: it feels like it should be a bigger deal, I guess? JOHN: like it’s my HOUSE. JOHN: but mostly it always felt like my dad’s house? JOHN: and when i started living there after i moved out of here, it was like i crammed myself back into whatever was left of my kid self? JOHN: and it didn’t feel good, but it at least was familiar, you know? JOHN: like living there let me feel closer to my dad, trying to be like the way i remember him, or like how i remember him wanting me to be, or something? JOHN: and i didn’t realize how much i hated doing that until i saw it all go up in flames. JOHN: so i guess i could have used my powers to stop the fire and save whatever was left of the place, but i couldn’t bring myself to do it. JOHN: like some fucked up part of me was glad i got there too late? JOHN: so i just sat there, watching, trying to figure out why watching my house burn down felt like i was being released from prison. JOHN: and even now i keep trying to explain it away, as though it’s because of how fucked up everything else is that it made me feel good. JOHN: but that’s just bullshit. JOHN: it DID feel good. JOHN: i DO feel free. JOHN: sorry.

I was kind of saying some Breath/Blood stuff at the time of him losing his last tie to his stubborn sticking-to-his-kid-self bit? Except now we’re mixing it in with June Egbert and his gender-identity questions too.

ROXY: no need 2 apologize ROXY: we just delved in2 my whole gender thing last time so it seems fine for u to have a turn JOHN: i didn’t say it was a gender thing.

Oh shit

ROXY: well no i just meant like i did some sharing ROXY: like referrin 2 the topic i brought up when we chatted last ROXY: but like now that u mention it ROXY: *meaningful pause* JOHN: … JOHN: i JOHN: ROXY: lol well we can move on 2 the favor part if youd rather ROXY: stick a lil pin in that topic n come back 2 it when u have had sleep

Are you just INCREDIBLY incisive Roxy or have you and John talked about this before?

ROXY: like i said the other day its not like this shits figureoutable in 1 sitting anyways JOHN: yeah... ROXY: sooooooo ROXY: movin on

It’s just fine for Roxy to slow-roll this yeah, if she’s going to pry open that door a little

ROXY: dont be mad but theres a part of the house u didnt know abt the whole time u lived here JOHN: what? ROXY: yea ROXY: i got a secret lair ROXY: for my sciences

OH FUCK YES SCIENCE LAB, of COURSE Roxy would want a cool science lab basement because she always wants a cool science lab basement

ROXY: and i get to it via a transportalizer underneath our bed ROXY: which is 2 heavy 2 move by my lonesome so i just needed to borrow some o your aforementioned powers of wind

Okay no. Wait. What the fuck?

First of all, as funny and MSPaintAdventures-y as furniture being in the way of things is, why would you block it with a bed too heavy to move, but,

Second of all, more importantly, how is a GOD-TIER ROXY not strong enough to lift a heavy bed?!?!?!? Either she’s lying to get John involved in things or this is a gendered cop-out because these characters are superheroes at the TOP of their echeladders, given obnoxiously powerful video-game strength and athletics only to then have ascended into DEITIES. God-Tier Roxy could probably have lifted a bed like that when she was SEVENTEEN! And now she’s an ADULT, out-of-shape or otherwise! If this were a whole CAR I might be willing to handwave it, but just a heavy BED?!? And none of the GUYS are going to have this much trouble lifting a bed like this, are they?? This just feels like following classic cartoony gender tropes in the complete absence of these characters’ super powers, what the fuck, and also Roxy if you didn’t make it Transportalizer-only access you could have given it an entrance you could phase through with your fancy powers to get to. FUCK.

This feels stupid.

ROXY: so if u dont mind woosh away JOHN: uh ok, well... JOHN: a secret science lair, sure, i can deal with that. JOHN: why not! JOHN: it doesn’t work out great when i do the windy thing indoors, though. ROXY: aight then no wind bending just use your mangrit

Roxy flexes, the corner of her mouth pulled up into a familiar grin. John feels his guts, so recently calmed, twist up into knots again. Her eyebrows shoot up and the smile loosens. He must have shown something on his face.

You’re already THIS sensitive about gendertalk?

ROXY: ok or just like push when i push ROXY: we both got sick muscles ROXY: no other adjectives necessary JOHN: yeah ok. ROXY: on 3?

Please, please reinforce the idea that they both have sick strength, because they fucking do and the idea that Roxy actually a hundred percent NEEDED John to do this is BS.

> (==>)

JOHN: holy shit? ROXY: sorry to lop yet another huge scoop onto ur lil brains ice cream revelation sundae JOHN: so wait, if this thing's always been under the bed, how’d you get down here before without me? ROXY: well thats neither here nor there john JOHN: i mean it is kinda. Here. ROXY: fine ok checkmate ROXY: i dont ACTUALLY need ur nerdgrit for this escapade ROXY: like im sorry but i said it ROXY: i mostly just wanted to see you and show u wats down here

THANK FUCKING CHRIST.

If that wasn’t actually just a lie to get him involved I was going to stay SO mad. Of COURSE Roxy can move a fucking BED no matter how heavy it is. OF COURSE.

ROXY: and also uve been ~sent for~ JOHN: ok but like ROXY: john i am inviting u 2 my inner sanctum ROXY: i am literally bringing out the word "sanctum" in case u werent already clued in 2 how cool this is ROXY: so do u wanna go into my secret lair or wat JOHN: yeah!? JOHN: yes? i guess? ROXY: aight good

Yes John of course you want to stop fighting it

ROXY: then as they told me in the hospital before lil h a was born ROXY: just push

eyeroll, but yeah, of course

> (==>)

Oh cool, sprite form version of her loungewear.

> (==>)

Sorry for my compulsion to post every full-frame image of Roxy in this awesome outfi-WERE YOU KEEPING CALLIOPE UNDER YOUR BED THIS WHOLE TIME?!?????

That’s like... almost a fucking metaphor isn’t it???? For the relationship you preferred in the other timeline and possibly THIS one TOO or

ROXY: hey callieee i got him ROXY: o damn john sorry i shoulda also told u callies here weve been hangin out again ROXY: 1 more freak for ur bean

Oh huh, so this isn’t an always thing. And these two can get close in more than one timeline where it would’ve worked out nicely. :)

JOHN: oh it's ok, my bean feels pretty well adjusted to freakage at this point so keep them coming if you like! ROXY: k cool i will JOHN: do i get to know what that big thing under the sheet is? ROXY: hmmmmmm no JOHN: oh ok. JOHN: are you sure? i mean, it seems like a pretty prominent feature of the room. JOHN: space. JOHN: wherever we are. ROXY: and a totally mysterious n COMPLETELY inconspicuous feature it will have to remain for now ROXY: we r kinda in a hurry here fyi ROXY: and by that i mean ROXY: we are in precisely the amount of hurry that means im excused from having to a that specific q rn JOHN: right, sorry. JOHN: i will pay no attention to the object behind the curtain. ROXY: u catch on fast egbert ROXY: anyway theres more cool info coming so just follow me

I don’t have any big theories. Is it just the Hiveswap device or something? If Calliope helped with it it’d help explain the Cherubic theme.

> (==>)

JOHN: so... this is all downstairs? JOHN: it seems like you had a lot of work done. ROXY: well no not x actly ROXY: were in the old meteor JOHN: under the house??? ROXY: ok so ROXY: in hindsight it may have been a bit misleading 2 say like ROXY: "downstairs" ROXY: in reference to a place which is hells of buried underground and may not actually be literally under the house ROXY: but there is no time to explain all that rn john so instead im going to refer u to my adorable little green friend here CALLIOPE: #U_U# ROXY: (hehe) CALLIOPE: *AHEM* CALLIOPE: hi john! CALLIOPE: long time no see. ^u^

Cherubs just really like dark cavelike places full of weird tech don’t they.

> (==>)

THEY’RE SO CUTE

JOHN: oh, uh. hey callie! JOHN: it sure has been a while huh. JOHN: now that i think about it, the last time the three of us hung out like this... CALLIOPE: was when i was aggressively third wheeling yoUr prenUptial coUrtship? CALLIOPE: if yoU dont mind, john, i'd rather not rehash that period of oUr lives. CALLIOPE: it was more than a little painfUl for me. JOHN: oh. JOHN: god, jeez, i'm sorry. i didn't mean to-- CALLIOPE: hee hee john i am only pUlling yoUr leg, don't worry. CALLIOPE: if anything i was personally a little thrilled with how things shook oUt in that respect. CALLIOPE: imagine, if yoU will, a yoUng cherUb raised in solitUde, whose only solace was the convolUted and tUmUltUoUs romantic schemata she projected onto her only friends from another Universe. CALLIOPE: and then fUrther imagine that this yoUng cherUb, throUgh varioUs even *more* convolUted contrivances, ended Up in the company of those selfsafe friends as an eqUal participant in their sphere of social discoUrse! CALLIOPE: it is a joy the like of which yoU possibly cannot fathom. u_u

Reinforcing that things turning out this way was in fact the FANTASY that Calliope was writing over in the Canon timeline. Just, heavily, HEAVILY implied that the Candy timeline is -- or at least originated as -- Calliope’s fanfiction as a Muse of Space, and its competition for audience interest with canon is the essential conflict between alt!Calliope and Dirk (or Dirk and Andrew Hussie).

CALLIOPE: so to pUt it simply, getting to experience sUch emotional drama myself was an impossibly enriching experience. CALLIOPE: possibly a first for my species! CALLIOPE: it's actUally qUite interesting, if yoU ROXY: *nudge* CALLIOPE: oh, right. yes. i'm getting a little carried away, haha. CALLIOPE: argh, i'm sorry, this is not how i planned to begin this vital conversation.

Vital conversation? What sorta truth-bombs are coming?

CALLIOPE: but to sUmmarise, what i was trying to say is: CALLIOPE: don't beat yourself Up aboUt it john. CALLIOPE: besides, hUman divorces are even more fascinating than i had ever imagined, and being able to witness yoUrs in motion was an honoUr. CALLIOPE: so i consider Us aboUt even at this point. JOHN: hahaha!!! JOHN: okay, well that's good to know! CALLIOPE: ^u^

Holy SHIT that was savage! And we’ll NEVER know whether or not she really intended it so savagely, either.~

JOHN: so um... JOHN: i hear that there's this big secret thing you wanna tell me about? CALLIOPE: oh right, yes of course! CALLIOPE: let me jUst say first of all how thrilled i am that yoU're on board. CALLIOPE: i wasn't sUre if yoUr natUral inclinations woUld have preclUded yoUr coming to such a place as this, and yet here yoU are. CALLIOPE: this whole endeavoUr will be *so* mUch easier with yoUr help.

Uh oh.

Hopefully babies aren’t involved.

JOHN: oh! well, shucks. JOHN: not really sure what that means but i'm just glad to be of use somewhere, haha. JOHN: which, speaking of somewhere, CALLIOPE: ah right, right. yoU're probably a little cUrioUs as to where the dickens we are. CALLIOPE: how much do yoU know aboUt black holes? JOHN: um... like, the big space things? CALLIOPE: they aren't always big actUally, and in fact their relative smallness is practically their defining qUality. JOHN: oh. CALLIOPE: bUt okay i think we are on the same page. CALLIOPE: so, what if i told yoU that we are inside of a black hole right now.

Oh dear, we’re getting into the canon/noncanon divide?

JOHN: um... JOHN: like, HERE? JOHN: we just transportalized into a black hole? CALLIOPE: no, i mean, what if oUr whole WORLD was inside a black hole. JOHN: ok.

Yeah, that’s gonna be John’s reaction. “ok.” Pretty much inevitable.

CALLIOPE: earth c, or at least oUr version of it, has, from the moment we crossed the victory threshold, been inside a black hole. JOHN: ok. CALLIOPE: and not just any black hole, bUt the very black hole in which the green sUn Ultimately met its demise, allowing oUr victory in the first instance! JOHN: huh! ROXY: ("huh!") ROXY: (rofl my fucking ao egbert) JOHN: (shhhh!)

And Roxy enjoys his non-reaction reactions as much as we do, hehe.

CALLIOPE: bUt, paradoxically, the critical moment which determined its capture within the black hole happened *after* that point. CALLIOPE: i refer of coUrse to yoUr decision not to retUrn to the mediUm and fight my brother. JOHN: wait, wait. JOHN: you mean, the meat and candy thing? JOHN: oh my god. JOHN: you mean i actually DID make a mistake that day. CALLIOPE: well, that's not exactly what that-- JOHN: ugh, i fucking KNEW it! JOHN: i'm so sorry. JOHN: i'm so sorry that i put the earth inside a black hole everyone. ): ROXY: john ROXY: listen ROXY: u have got to get out of this mindset i am begging you JOHN: ):

Yeah shake him out of this shit.

ROXY: your choice literally didnt matter ROXY: the whole thing was symbolic in the first place ROXY: literally symbolic in the case of the picnic i mean come on ROXY: it was just some steak and a plate of candy suckers JOHN: oh. CALLIOPE: i mean, i wouldn't go so far as to say that the meal we shared was unimportant, given the sacred significance of the two options i presented. CALLIOPE: but yes, yoUr choice of snack was infinitely less important than the choice which it presaged. CALLIOPE: and even then, calling it a choice woUld be sorely misleading. CALLIOPE: think of it like a coin flip. CALLIOPE: the series of events that led to Us being trapped beyond the event horizon of an Ubermassive black hole could be considered "tails", while the events which would have occUrred otherwise could be considered "heads". CALLIOPE: since both were possible, and paradox space is the way it is, they actUally both happened. and we jUst "happened" (hee hee) to get tails instead of heads. JOHN: you mean we ended up with the bad possibility. CALLIOPE: not at all! since both possibilities depend on one another's existence, it really doesn't make sense to call them "right" or "wrong". they both just "are". JOHN: o...kay... CALLIOPE: u_u

Yeah, it’s going to take a bit more than that to convince him he didn’t make the “wrong decision”.

CALLIOPE: i realise that this may be a lot to process. CALLIOPE: it's easy to forget that this wasn't obvioUs to everyone from the beginning. CALLIOPE: anyway, the reason i went on this tangent in the first place was to explain that the space we are standing in right now has a special significance, in that it is the location which corresponds to the black hole's singUlarity. JOHN: oh, wow. JOHN: um. JOHN: ok so, sorry if this is a dumb question to ask suddenly, but what does being inside of a black hole actually... mean for us? JOHN: is that bad? JOHN: is it like in movie, um, JOHN: shoot. JOHN: roxy what was that matthew mcconaughey movie from your earth that we watched? ROXY: u mean interstellar JOHN: RIGHT. JOHN: the one with the organ. JOHN: man. i cried at that movie so much. ROXY: lol u can say that again ROXY: iirc at least part of y u got so weepy was the fact that u couldnt believe a version of earth existed where ppl got 2 watch more mcconaughey films than you JOHN: listen. JOHN: i simply don't think you all appreciated the gift you were given. CALLIOPE: i don't believe i'm familiar with this particular film ^u^;; ROXY: oh dont worry cal you didnt miss much JOHN: (gasp)

This is all gold

ROXY: but the important point is that no its not really an interstellar type situation here egbert ROXY: ur not gonna enter a weird time vortex and change the trajectory of a little girls life with the power of love JOHN: aw.

Dammit, now we have to be on the lookout for that possibility. Or it did sort of already happen more than once to John. ...Whatever.

CALLIOPE: to go back to your original question, john. CALLIOPE: it's not strictly speaking "bad" for Us to be inside of a black hole, mUch thoUgh that contradicts most of what anyone knows about them. CALLIOPE: of coUrse, if we had fallen into it, that woUld be a whole other kettle of fish. CALLIOPE: the tidal forces woUld have stretched Us all into spaghetti and then ripped us apart! CALLIOPE: bUt the natUre of oUr arrival was more akin to simply "being" here, sUddenly. one moment we were not, and the next moment we were, and somehow always had been. CALLIOPE: in everyday, practical terms, being inside of a black hole has very little bearing on Us. CALLIOPE: i mean, the natUre of space and time is a little finicky in here, bUt for the most part it doesn't seem to be anything too oUt of the ordinary. CALLIOPE: bUt beyond that, it means that we are sealed away from the rest of existence. CALLIOPE: oUr sphere of inflUence is limited to the sphere of the black hole's bounding horizon. CALLIOPE: as far as everyone else is concerned, we might as well not even exist! JOHN: is there no way we could let anyone know that we're in here...? CALLIOPE: almost certainly not!

No? So this doesn’t have to do with the divide?

CALLIOPE: there are very few ways for anything to escape the kind of predicament that we are in right now. one of them is to be an all-powerfUl being with control over the very fabric of space, with the energy of two Universes at yoUr disposal. CALLIOPE: in which case, escape woUld become rather trivial, if a little Unscientific. JOHN: ok. i am going to assume that we can't just do that. CALLIOPE: yoU've hit the nail on the head, UnfortUnately. U_U CALLIOPE: the method i described was the one employed by my alternate self, who yoU may recall crashed through the event horizon in the body that once belonged to jade harley. CALLIOPE: she departed through a pUnctUre she created in the black hole's surface shortly after consUming my brother, a deed which provided her with the necessary "oomph", and which was frankly rather breathtaking to watch. =u= CALLIOPE: bUt Upon her departUre, the rift closed for good. as far as i can see, there's simply no way for Us to commUnicate with the world oUtside the black hole.

What the heck? Calliope SAW all this? Is this her Muse powers at work, letting her observe these things, or was she there? And John certainly did NOT see ANY of what Calliope just said happen.

CALLIOPE: i woUld certainly be very sUrprised to find oUt that anyone had managed sUch a thing!

So we’re going to find that out if we haven’t already. Maybe something to do with the way Vrissy just conks out narcoleptically?

JOHN: ...right. JOHN: so... let me just get this straight. JOHN: knowing that we're inside of a black hole... does that actually change anything? JOHN: like, can't we just go on living like normal? CALLIOPE: oh absolUtely not. CALLIOPE: i don't know if yoU've noticed john bUt this world is on the brink of a total cataclysm. JOHN: oh.

Um, what?

CALLIOPE: oUr exclUsion from the overarching coUrse of events which governs all reality means that oUr existence here is liable to dramatic and violent Upheaval. CALLIOPE: to pUt it another way, becaUse nothing in here "matters", we are likely to be sUbjected to things which are a bit bats in the belfry, for no reason other than it's totally insignificant to the wider canon of reality. CALLIOPE: and mUch thoUgh i am personally titillated by some of the conseqUences of this predicament, it is a degrading way for Us to live. u_u JOHN: that's... certainly one way to put it, yeah...

No plot-armor for your entire timeline, I guess, yep. Outside of canon, we can imagine and write about ANYTHING happening to the characters, or just drop their existence entirely, much like a doomed offshoot timeline. It’s a plot stability that depended heavily on the threat of Lord English and being trapped in a story, and without it things are bound to see a BIT chaotic (or “degrading” if you view it as subjected to the whims of fanfic writers, certainly).

CALLIOPE: at first, i believed that this was simply necessary. Us playing tails to oUr coUnterparts' heads, the black to their white, and so forth. CALLIOPE: bUt over the years i have come to the conclUsion that this is simply not kosher. ROXY: its total bs is what it is CALLIOPE: right, yes. CALLIOPE: a steaming pile of bUllshite. CALLIOPE: and so we have decided that something needs to be done aboUt it.

Ah fuck. You’re going to regulate non-canon? “Canonize” it? Is the fact that you eventually succeed at whatever it is you’re trying to do part of why we have the story presented to us in this bifurcated structure?

ROXY: this is finally where u come in jegbert ROXY: we gots quests for yous CALLIOPE: hee hee, yes. CALLIOPE: or *a* quest, to be specific. JOHN: oh boy! ROXY: (this fkin nerd i s2g)

Roxy and Calliope setting him on this quest as a Rogue of Void and a Muse of Space feels fitting.

JOHN: i'm not sure how i can go about freeing us from a hellish space prison, but i'm up for giving it a try i guess? JOHN: i have... literally nothing better to be doing at this point. except for maybe hanging out with harry anderson. ROXY: nice save lol

YEAH WE’RE STILL GLOSSING OVER HOW YOU LEFT HIM UNPROTECTED, JERK

ROXY: but u dont need to worry abt busting us outta space jail tbh ROXY: thats not ur problem to fix JOHN: oh. JOHN: i'm... not sure i follow, then. ROXY: i mean yeah ur gonna obvs facilitate it in a sense ROXY: but only by going and busting the person who can actually help us outta normal earth jail CALLIOPE: we need yoU to free vriska from the clUtches of oUr misgUided friend jane, and bring her here, to the singUlarity. ROXY: weve been calling it the plot point CALLIOPE: yes, the plot point is a key part of oUr plan. CALLIOPE: as far as we have been able to sUrmise, the only remaining method for escaping oUr grim confinement depends on leveraging the UniqUe properties of this location to create an event of sUch catalcysmic proportions that it simply cannot be contained within the black hole any more. CALLIOPE: something SO dramatic, so hyper-relevant, that it becomes ontologically impossible for anyone to ignore it. CALLIOPE: for that, we need an individUal of sUfficient narrative cloUt, so to speak. CALLIOPE: and to liberate her, who better than the embodiment of the aspect of freedom itself? CALLIOPE: ... CALLIOPE: phew. okay, i'm finished. CALLIOPE: CALLIOPE: sorry, that took longer than i expected to go throUgh.

..............................

OOooooh, kay.

Whatever this is, it’s going to be really weird and PROBABLY infuriating and/or shippy, and I’m probably not going to like it. Plus it seems like it’s some sort of inverse belated canonization of some other black-hole-rescue theories I went on about at some point. Although, related to that link, “aspect of freedom” if anyone wasn’t paying attention! That’s a (sorta-)canon mention of the purpose of it!

They’re going to attention-wh-- attention-hog themselves out of the black hole so that they’re “considered canon” too, or close enough. Huh.

ROXY: what r u talking about cals that was great ROXY: i could listen 2 u plotsplain for years CALLIOPE: oh you >u< ROXY: fyi this was why i wanted u to get a move on eggbread ROXY: so callie could have more time 2 infodump ROXY: thats love bitchhhhhh JOHN: hahaha. JOHN: ok, well, i think i understood all that?

Love with who? Callie, John, both?

In reality, John isn’t sure what most of this means. But on balance, it feels okay? He’s gone back and forth about a hundred times in the last week about where his place in everything is, so he might as well ride this out. Plus, the last time a Lalonde kind of told him to do something, he thinks that he chose not to, and look where that got him. And it’s not like he has other plans. He may as well do this! It’s at least going to get him involved in things again, if nothing else. He turns to go, and then hears a sound. It’s the sound of feet and knocking on doors, echoed through stone and digital static.

Oh shit. Is Andrew trapped behind some fourth walls behind the curtains.

> (==>)

Oh RIGHT also that DEVICE is where they want to bring Vriska. Are they going to overturn part of canon itself with a super-retcon thus making this timeline unbelievably relevant or--? Maybe make all the PESTERQUESTS canon or something?! I don’t know. Maybe they’re INTENTIONALLY starting the game like Vriska wanted to??????

Guh, this is something so big that I don’t WANT to theorize about it, do I.

JOHN: did you hear that? ROXY: wha ROXY: oh yeah uh ROXY: i may have messaged rose and kan and jade to check on them too ROXY: so its prob onea them showin up ROXY: they don’t need to know bout all this tho ROXY: we got time to chat with them b4 u go get vriska

No, even if it’s a knock at the somehow-top-level-house-even-under-buried-- oh, right, maybe it’s covering in part a monitoring system that looks up there. But still, part of that sound was DOUBTLESS these two hiding something, all standing in front of the curtain like that.

JOHN: i’ll go stall em. ROXY: thx babe ROXY: oh is it 2 soon for that joke or JOHN: no, weirdly enough, that one’s fine. ROXY: oh good ok see u up there soon!

How is calling your significant other “babe” not cool REGARDLESS of gender?! Like wasn’t that always cool? --Oh wait is it because they’re not together or... but... guh, I don’t know.

Anyway, see y’all after the holidays at least.

#Homestuck #hs2 #Homestuck Liveblog #upd8 #Homestuck^2 #spoiler #spoilers #Roxy Lalonde #John Egbert #Calliope

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noragami-ru-manga · 4 years

Text

Calamity bears human face

These are my thoughts on the first half of 87-2. Spoilers ahead!

I really, really liked the second part of chapter 87. Adachitoka still refuse us Yukine’s entire past, but maybe that’s for the best. If what we’ve been shown so far causes this many emotions in the fandom, I’m scared to think what would have been if they revealed everything at once. But… this post isn’t about Yuknie. Not because I don’t like his character, but because I really want to discuss the first 10 pages of the new chapter.

As I expected, we got some of Father’s flashbacks this time. Except they were about the part of his life that had Yato in it, probably several years (?) after Sakura’s death.

Yato not wanting to kill people isn’t that strange, since he started “slacking off” because of Sakura’s influence, and we know that by this point Hiiro would take initiative whenever Yato wouldn’t put his heart in performing Father’s jobs, as shown in chapter 47. Interestingly enough, when Yato suggested that Father should kill people himself, the former answered that he “was killing gods, at least” – implying that he didn’t kill humans with his own hands. Father’s words about killing gods do sound sinister but as we’ve already seen and will see later in the chapter, not all gods are warriors like Bishamon, Takemikazuchi and Yato himself, so I wouldn’t be too intimidated by this phrase.

His line about the uselessness of killing gods without killing people though … The idea is obvious and logical, so I don’t see the point in developing it further, but even now I think that Father did not choose the most efficient way to do it. Even if Yato stayed under Father’s total control, one god of calamity doesn’t seem to be that big of a threat on a global scale, contrary to whatever Nora has to say later in the chapter.

The thing that caught my attention on these pages is Father’s words about shrines. Yato already revealed before that someone would always tell him he didn’t need a shrine, that someone being Father. Up to this point I simply thought that this was needed to cultivate Yato’s fear of being forgotten – if he doesn’t have a shrine, it’s all the more easier for him to disappear without any chances to reincarnate. The idea that Father actually thinks that shrines are useless somehow never crossed my mind, although now that I see it on paper it makes total sense.

And since Yato raised the question, I’ll take it from here. He said he didn’t understand why did needed to destroy humans if life would be boring without them. I’ve always asked this question in regard to any character whose end goal is total annihilation – what’s the point? Sure, Father isn’t aspiring to be an evil overlord as to ask him a question “who are you going to rule over if there’s no one left”. But his goal, apparently, is killing all gods and also all humans so that old gods can’t reincarnate while new ones can’t appear. But what exactly is he going to do if he succeeds? Die while feeling the satisfaction of revenge accomplished? It’s just so hard to understand someone whose views are so different than your own.

I wish I could say that the small local kami that attacked Yato proves that Father’s words about shrines are wrong, but what happens next actually corroborates his statement. Partially.

One the one hand, the villagers’ prayer was heard, and the local kami attacked Yato for destroying the village. But Father just crushed her. So in the end, the kami wasn’t able to so anything about these humans’ problem, so yeah, their wish wasn’t granted.

This scene also demonstrates that yes, Father can actually kill gods. The more important thing about it though is that Yato sees it. We have already seen just how much Yato used to fear death for the majority of the series. However, knowing that Father has the ability to kill Yato by forgetting him is one thing; but witnessing him kill a kami just like Yato really drives it home. And it’s all the scarier how Father simply intercepted Yato’s weapon – he just summoned Chiki, who moments earlier was in the boy’s hands. Just look at Yato’s face, you can see the terror.

And Father didn’t really have the need to kill that kami. What could they have done with a chopstick anyway? Maybe he god mad at this kami actually answering people’s prayer, disproving his point. Or maybe he just hates the gods so much he couldn’t stand even seeing one of them, so he just had to kill them.

(BTW, does anyone know what’s with the blindfold? I’ve tried looking it up but never found anything).

Nora and Hiyori’s dialogue is my favorite part the chapter, there are just so many things to unpack here. First, “Father would praise the god called Yato”. Is it just me, or is Nora jealous? We saw in Yato’s memories that Father actually praised both his children. Then again, we also saw that he punished Nora when he wanted Yato to behave. Considering that Yato grew increasingly reluctant to kill humans, and Nora had to take the lead and finish Yato’s work, this kind of jealousy is unsurprising. Nora was Father’s right hand girl and supported him all the way, but between the two of them Yato would receive more attention.

“But at some point, Yato started mourning the deaths of other people”. Yeah, we know at what point – Nora must be referring to the time when Sakura was still alive. I’ll just throw in a couple of pics from chapter 47 to remind you why Yato started mourning people.

“When calamity strikes, people always become more devout”. This must be one of the most powerful quotes in the entire manga, because it encapsulates one of the foundations of the Noragami universe. Gods exist to grant human wishes, but who would have more reasons to pray – someone who has it all, or someone who’s in trouble? Remember the main reason why people start seeing the Far shore and things that relate to it.

Of course humans would turn to gods if they can’t solve their problems themselves; that’s the reason they exist. I’ve already mentioned it in the post about memory and memories – the idea of a being that isn’t bound by human constraints, is immortal and can help out when there’s nothing else left takes shape of a person, and that’s how a god is born. Although there’s another reason, too – people hope that if calamity is sentient, you can bargain with it. That’s how people started worshiping Tenjin – not to ask for something they don’t have, but to beg him not to take something they already possess.

It may be that, by sending Yato to obliterate villages, Father was hoping not just for thinning out people, but for a somewhat different reaction from them.

“That boy loved people”. This line is just so heartwarming. And Hiyori already said it before. She saw Yato’s past and how even back then he tried to help humans – like making snow shoes for people in need. She understood him and accepted him.

I don’t really have anything to add to Father wanting “to do something” though. I’ve already said before that Father is done with being the game master and wants to be an actual player. Apparently, he is waiting for Yukine to discover GGS completely before summoning him as a weapon.

The line about natural disasters having human faces caught my attention before the chapter was even translated. When people die because of natural disasters, it’s horrible, but there’s nothing you can do about it. We can say that “we need to build sturdier houses/dams/etc.”, “we need to take better precaution measures”, and we try, but you can’t possibly predict everything. But in a world where the sun, the moon, the lightning, etc. are personified as gods, a.k.a “have faces”, not only there’s a way for someone to direct their wrath at those faces, but there’s the question of why these sentient elements of nature do these things that hurt humans.

Let’s look at some of the examples of gods harming Nakatsukuni, the world of humans.

Chapter 7 – Bishamon cuts down a grove to get to Yato

Chapter 8 – Kofuku’s vent releases a horde of ayakashi, which results in rising crime rates in Tokyo

Chapter 60 – Bishamon causes a local hurricane to locate Father

Chapter 66 – Takemikazuchi transforms into lightning to fight Yato

The gods harmed the world of humans, but it wasn’t for fun. Bishamon was guided by her thirst for revenge both times. Kofuku was helping her friend. Takemikazuchi became angry because his guide was hurt. All of them felt very human emotions. Except, since they are gods and their power surpasses that of an average human, the result of their outburst is a dead grove, rising crime rates, a damaged school. They aren’t actually trying to purposefully hurt humans but for those who suffer from these actions that’s hardly a consolation. And like I said, it’s one thing when you don’t really have anyone to blame, because the wind that destroyed your house doesn’t hear you, and another, when that wind has a face.

I think that when Father sent Yato to destroy villages, he hoped that the calamities would make people turn away from the gods. After all, people don’t always become more devout during trying times, sometimes they turn away from religion, which is what happened with Father himself. There’s a phrase going around the Internet – it was allegedly written on the wall of a Nazi concentration camp by a Jewish inmate: “If there is a God, He will have to beg for my forgiveness”. I don’t know how true this story is, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s real.

And even with all this in mind, I still don’t understand Father’s logic. Suppose he doesn’t destroy all of humanity, but does manage to kill all gods. I don’t think it would change that much. Amaterasu, for example, is depicted as the sun incarnate, but… if she’s killed forever, will the Sun go out, too? I understand that I’m going off the rails and into the cosmogenic myth territory here, but I can’t help it. If there are no gods left, but the forces of nature continue to destroy human lives, then Father’s actions hardly change anything. (Look at me, trying to find a reasonable explanation for an unhealthily long revenge plan). Also, don’t forget that gods of other religions canonically exist in Noragami – what is Father going to do about them, I wonder?

As for “someone” being killed by the Heavens, I’ve recently made an assumption that the pock-marked girl’s death could have been a payment of sorts to bring Father back from the dead. I made this assumption knowing that Father’s words in chapter 60 imply that gods were more involved than that. What Nora said here about Father hating attributing gods’ actions to natural disasters makes it obvious that the girl died because of one of such catastrophes. I’ve looked some more at that page from chapter 60, and I still don’t see any visible damage on the girl. However, Adachitoka emphasize a skeleton lying in a field near a dead tree. Also, I’ve turned the page upside down to get a better look, and now this skull haunts me.

Was it a drought, a famine that killed her? Or the smallpox? If these are her remains, why didn’t Father bury them? Who then helped him return from Yomi? We know it was a soul summoning, after all. So many questions that are yet to be answered.

However, even if we didn’t get all the answers yet, these ten pages did reveal a lot.

- Nora knows Father’s backstory, but not all of it. Apparently, it’s a thing so painful that Father can’t tell everything even to his most devoted supporter.

- Sakura’s influence on Yato was even stronger than I thought. It’s possible that Father changed his course of actions and started giving Yato jobs that involved punishing criminals soon after the scene we saw in this chapter.

- Father, apparently, thinks of himself as some kind warrior of justice while ignoring the fact that he does as much harm as the gods, and that he is a calamity with a human face.

P.S. that page with the human faces of nature absolutely rocks.

#noragami #noragami manga #noragami spoilers #noragami meta #father #Yato #nora

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radiantresplendence · 4 years

Text

Doctor Takuto Maruki Was Right

Maruki is the Councillor Arcana in Persona 5 Royal and is a fantastic character that the original game was sorely lacking. I’ll be talking some spoilers here. Be warned.

We can talk about how Demiurge/Yaldabaoth/Yagor/Jägermeister (or whatever you want to call him) is straight trash and shouldn’t be the overarching antagonist of Persona 5 another time, but that’s not what’s important here.

What’s important here is that Maruki wasn’t in the original game and that does a disservice to everyone who played it.

For the vast majority of P5R, Maruki is just the high school counselor who was brought in to the school in the aftermath of the Kamoshida incident as a means of damage control. He’s kind, emphatic and insightful and genuinely wants to help anyone seeking his services.

The Phantom Thieves, due to their involvement in the Kamoshida incident are mandated by the school to talk to him; as the game progresses, most of the team members form some sort of connection to him, save for Akechi and Futaba (I believe) as Akechi is only a Phantom Thief when his goals align with the team and Futaba isn’t a student.

Even Yoshizawa and Yusuke interact with Maruki, as Yusuke goes out of his way to do so after hearing about him from the other thieves and he was Yoshizawa’s counselor after the death of her sister.

Over the course of his confidant, Joker gives Maruki his perspective on some of Maruki’s research, which is later revealed to be Cognitive Psience. At the end of his confidant arc, Maruki reveals that he’s known that Joker’s group were the Phantom Thieves since he saw them exit the Cognitive world during the first heist. He says he supports the thieves and their justice but he has to go a separate way. He then exits the story until after the defeat of the God of Control.

If you finish Maruki’s Confidant Arc by the time that he leaves the school, Maruki completes a belated Cognitive Psience paper that he was working on with funding from a college in Toyko and winds up applying his theory when Mementos merges with the real world.

In short, Maruki fully awakens to his persona with the special ability to rewrite cognition. When the cognitive world and the real world are merged, however this power becomes absurdly potent, and Maruki begins to warp reality in order to make a world where no one suffers.

Maruki’s machinations affect all of the Phantom Thieves positively: Joker doesn’t go to prison because... Akechi is alive and confesses to his crimes in Joker’s stead. Akechi is let off the hook for his crimes. Morgana is a human. Ryuji was never injured and is still the star of the track team. Ann’s friend Shiho never attempted suicide. Yusuke was never exploited by Madarame, who instead acts as a passable father figure to him. Makoto and Sae’s dad was never assassinated. Futaba’s mother is alive and is presumably in some sort of relationship with Sojiro. Finally, Haru’s father wasn’t executed after his bossfight and he was never an exploitative egoist.

There’s a lone exception to this: the girl who the game refused to let join the Phantom Thieves; a girl who had been receiving therapy from Dr. Maruki since before the start of the game due to her trauma from the death of her sister, Sumire Yoshizawa.

In a way, “Kasumi” was Maruki’s prototype for the world he wanted to create. She couldn’t process the guilt she felt for surviving the crash that killed her allegedly more talented sister and consequently wished that she was her late sibling.

Now the world that Maruki creates is essentially a utopia, where no one suffers and crippling psychological harm is unable to befall anyone. Now we can consider the value of free will that Maruki is removing by becoming a new “God of Control”, but as a card carrying deterministic nihilist, I see it as more or less as trading the whims of an uncaring chaotic universe for those of a benevolent eccentric. The game frames this as a stagnation of humanity, something I don’t entirely agree with. Maruki understands that physical wounds (aka hardship) are inescapable (and can provide adversity to fuel growth) and his big theory revolves around altering cognition to inoculate against mental illness. Any issue with Maruki’s world revolves more around his personal flaws and lack of moderation than it does with his theoretical framework. Regardless, Maruki’s world is more ethical than what it replaces.

In the third semester, if we ignore some of the alterations like reviving the dead as they’re more of a condition of the world than an effect of it, many people who would otherwise be sick or destitute are not, and the natural conclusion of Maruki gaining full control (as evidenced in the bad ending where you side with the doctor) is a world where no one is. Essentially, the Phantom Thieves in the third semester who fight against Maruki are condemning these people to poverty, despair and a miserable death. Ethically, for the sake of their own morality, the Phantom Thieves are the bad guys.

Maruki’s motivations need to be examined closer. He is someone who has been largely unable to move past his own trauma (as evidenced by the entire third semester and foreshadowed in the scene where he runs into a college friend) so he has come to the conclusion that he should dedicate himself to moving others past theirs. I mean, mind-wiping your fiance of most of her life with you to cure her of her PTSD and having your life’s work stolen by Shido as you try to pick up the pieces would probably leave a guy feeling pretty empty. Essentially Maruki has resigned himself to his own sorrow after repeatedly being dealt a bad hand, so to speak.

I think we can safely say that at the very least, Maruki has been emotionally displaced (if not worse) since the incident with Rumi and having his life's work defunded has led him to a place where his only real desire is the pursuit of a singular goal: obliterating sadness. Not his mind you, but everyone else's.

Basically, Maruki is not well, emotionally or mentally, despite him being able to function as a productive member of society. Completing his contract with a cosmic entity and taking the throne of the god of control, enables him to pursue his goal far beyond what he was capable as a mere doctor with a special power. He infests the human subconscious to further his goal and relentlessly tightens his grip on the world. Despite having augmented physiology in the fused metaverse as a persona user, I feel that he's a mentally ill man who's burning the candle at both ends, so to speak. I think, if anything, fully awakening to Azathoth’s power exacerbated his preexisting mental state.

To evidence my claim of Maruki’s declining illness, allow me to cite: putting a friend and confidant into a vegetative state because he couldn’t solve a moral dilemma in a month’s time, tentacling a teenage girl and brainwashing her because her dissent is a rejection of your life’s work, picking a fistfight with a high schooler while screaming about stuff unrelated to him, choosing to martyr yourself in resignation to your own suffering when you have the power to avert it.

Imagine a world where Maruki became the new ruler of the Cognitive World, but acted in a more limited capacity that is more in line with his original research, than the extreme conclusion of it. Consider him acting more like the collective subconscious's guardian angel than the god of control, possibly with the blessing of the Phantom Thieves. I think that’s more what a sane Maruki would settle on, feeling responsible to use the powers he was granted by his contract with an outer god.

With that out of the way, let’s discuss the way that Maruki implements his agenda.

While working at Shujin, Maruki isn't anything particularly special as a counselor, as it's neither something that he's particularly skilled at, nor is it something that he's passionate for. It's more or less a case of his job being something that he is qualified to do.

We know that his real passion was cognitive psience research. In essence, he's a scientist over a health professional, even though the funding for his area of expertise was slashed to bits forcing him to take an alternate career path. Especially early on, the way he’d approach his job would certainly be influenced by his passion. To that end, I think you need to analyze his session with Yoshizawa from a research perspective. He rewrote her cognition to be that of her sister’s because he thought it would help her move on. His actions here were absolutely unethical, as he was experimenting on a minor without guardian consent or full disclosure of information, but initial results of his cognition rewrite were positive (especially in the short-term, despite Yoshizawa struggling more in the long term than she otherwise may have).

"Kasumi" in a lot of ways is a proof of concept for the world he creates in the third semester, even if she isn't necessarily an optimally-functioning prototype. Now, I think Maruki was definitely acting as a bad counselor, and a "mad psientist", if you'll allow my pun, in the flashback. In the third semester however, there's no validity in examining him as a counselor, as he's not actively doing counseling. You can't even really examine him under the lens of ethical science, as he's essentially beyond morality. The man has the power to massively warp reality, raise the dead and alter memories. Essentially, his powers are such that only the end result of any action he takes really matters. If Maruki were to harm or kill someone, regardless of intent, he could make it never happen. So, only the ends of his actions can really be taken into account.

The ends of his actions are, of course, to obliterate human misery, and he proved effective at this. The exceptions being Sumire Yoshizawa (albeit before the full implementation of his agenda) and himself (his palace is the Laboratory of Sorrow after all.) I guess what I'm getting at here is that, Maruki has to be judged as a god for all of his actions in the third semester, as that’s really the only lens applicable to his role there.

With that in mind, the questionable actions that he takes in the third semester are basically just holding Akechi’s life hostage and forcing Yoshizawa to be Kasumi. He avoids physical altercation with the Phantom Thieves until they literally approach him with a mutual agreement of force. The Akechi situation is one that Maruki claims to be unintentional, and I do believe him. I think the awkwardness of that reveal is more due to Maruki’s social ineptitude and difficulty revealing that sensitive piece of information than it is anything nefarious. As for the Kasumi situation, Maruki has every ability to revive the real Kasumi and adjust Sumire’s life to become one more satisfying to her. In the end I think that that unfortunate situation has more to do with an ill man with unlimited power unable to distance Yoshizawa’s rejection of his initial gift as a personal sleight to everything he’s spent his life working towards. With his work being pretty much the only thing he’s currently attributed meaning to in his life his swift rejection of dissent makes a little more sense.

This leads to something I consider mandatory, Yoshizawa needs to rebel against the fate Maruki assigned to her, or every member of the Phantom Thieves would be working against their and all of humanity’s best interests.

I think no one would disagree with me when I say that his role in the third semester is that of a god antithetical to the themes of Persona 5, and thus narratively has to be deposed for a satisfying conclusion. Looking objectively at his grand plan however, even with his hiccups, I can’t really say he’s wrong, even if his implementation isn’t as clean as I (or even himself in a better frame of mind) would like.

#persona 5 #persona 5 royal #takuto maruki #review #not really a review but this is how I tag stuff like this to keep it organized #media analysis #kasumi yoshizawa #sumire yoshizawa #azathoth

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clock-work-crow · 4 years

Text

I know what I have to do, but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it.

TROS SPOILERS!!!!!!!

These are my thoughts on Kylo Ren/Ben Solo’s character in TROS, and it’s all spoilers.

All of it.

You have been warned.

I recently saw someone complain about Rey's treatment in TROS and say she was treated like a doll, taken off the shelf and put back without any change or character growth. And this is what disappointed me in TROS the most. None of the characters had either development or growth. It's easy to see in Rey, but I'd argue the same is true for Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, despite what seems like his redemption.

First, let me clarify what I mean by development and growth. Character development is something that tells us more about the characters. It helps us understand their past actions and their future ones. Growth is some form of change in the character; they are no longer approaching the world in the same way.

For example, in TLJ, when we discover that Ben Solo only attacked Luke Skywalker after his life was threatened, that was development. It sheds a whole new light on his motivations, and how he came to be where he is now, and also helps us understand why he tries to obliterate Luke on Crait. But it should be noted that after believing he killed one Master, Ben Solo runs off and immediately finds another in Snoke. There was no growth there.

On the other hand, after Snoke's death, when he decided to stay with the First Order and not to follow Rey, that is growth. Kylo Ren has no more masters. He is going to determine his own fate, make his own path. He wants Rey to join him, but he's not going to follow her blindly the way he followed Luke and Snoke.

It should also be said that not every character needs to grow, although they should always have development. Fiction is filled with beautiful, tragic characters who fail because they can't grow. Ned Stark leaps to mind. His character continues to develop even after he has died, as we learn more about the choices he made before the books/show began, and they inform the actions we saw him take. However, his character never grows. He is the same man of honor he always was, and that inability to grow destroys his family.

Alright, back to Star Wars and TROS. At first glance, it's easy to say the Kylo Ren had become Ben Solo and been redeemed; that his character has grown. But has it?

At the beginning of the movie, we see him tracking down Palpatine, storming into his floating citadel, and trying to fight him. What do we see at the end of the movie? Ben Solo storming into Palpatine's floating citadel to try and fight him. He's been on one trajectory the whole movie, and it doesn't change.

Sure he's there to fight at Rey's side the second time, but so what? He did that in TLJ as well. He turned against Snoke, his Master, to save Rey. But Palpatine was never Kylo Ren's Master. They were never on the same side. In fact, the first time he talks to Rey in TROS, he tells her they should team up to fight Palpatine. At the end of the movie, they team up to fight Palpatine.

He's doing exactly the same thing at the end he was doing at the beginning, only without any dialogue to explain his actions.

So why do we think anything has changed? Why do we even think he might have been redeemed? Because of what happened in between. Because of the scene with Han Solo.

But he's not actually talking to Han. He tells us this is just a memory. This is Kylo Ren reliving his past. We have the same line of dialogue, "I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it." And then he does something different. He throws away the lightsaber.

Or is that different?

In both cases, there is something he feels he has to do, and it isn't easy. He worries he will fail. But he does the difficult thing anyway. That isn't growth or development. That is him acting the same way he did in TFA only in a different context.

Sure, he gets rid of the lightsaber he killed his father with. But he's always regretted killing his father. This allows him to fight with the Skywalker lightsaber at the end, but since TFA, he's been telling us that the Skywalker lightsaber belongs to him. You could call that foreshadowing, you could also call it further proof that he is who he was in TFA all along. Because he's always been conflicted, he's always struggled with the Light and the Dark. In TFA, he tries to embrace the Dark; it doesn't work out for him. In TROS, he (maybe) tries to embrace the Light. But are we really supposed to believe that he will be able to be at peace with that? That all his conflict is just gone now?

This is the difference between him and Vader. In the original movies, Vader has no conflict until the very end. He is absolutely sure of who he is and what he's doing. Darth Vader has fully embraced the Dark Side, which is why when he sides with Luke, it's a significant change. We have seen zero sign of that in him up to that point, and no reason to believe he will act that way.

As the prequels later tell us, so much of his life has been about fighting against death, that giving in, accepting it to save his son, is a big moment.

But Kylo Ren is not Vader. He's not calmly menacing. He constantly reacts with big dramatic gestures that he hasn't thought through. Then he regrets them, even if they are small, like destroying his helmet. If anything, having him repair his helmet only shows us that Kylo Ren is not likely to have changed. It tells us this is a person who goes back to his old ways.

And that's the problem. It's easy much easier for him to make the big dramatic gesture. He can kill Han Solo, but he can't live day to day fully in the Dark Side. He can toss away his red lightsaber, but can he live day to day in the Light? Who knows? If Ben Solo had lived, would he always have been just as conflicted as he's been through the entire trilogy? Would he ever be at peace with himself for longer than one kiss?

And what is it that supposedly prompts this change in him? His mother dies. He even says in the conversation with his father's memory that he can't go back because she's not there. If he really has returned to the Light, he's only done so at the point at which he doesn't have to deal with his family and his past. That doesn't feel like growth, that feels like he just doesn't have two run away anymore because the past is now dead. He doesn't have to face her, so yeah, maybe he can go with Rey now.

So what would have growth been? What would have been real redemption for Ben Solo? It would have been him having to look Poe in the eye and apologizing for torturing him. It would have been him in some way taking responsibility for the First Order and what it did while he was Supreme Leader. Real change and redemption needed Ben Solo to live. He would have had in some way to try and make amends. He would have had to figure out who he is if he's not trying to lead the Galaxy (because I don't see anyone putting him in charge).

And his death doesn't do that. And it's hard to know if it's a sacrifice since it's so arbitrary. We don't know what kills Rey. She's dead because the plot needs her to die. She uses her lightsaber to stop Palpatine's Force lighting, and that kills her because…? I don't know; it just does. Ben on the other hand got tossed down a pit and pulls his way out. He's clearly severely injured but alive. Yeah, I get it; he uses the last of his life Force to save Rey, but…we have no real precedent for this being something that will kill you.

When Rey heals the big worm (who is painfully injured, but not dying), she says she's given it some of her power/force whatever and implies it has weakened her. But when Ben is dying after she stabs him in their fight, and she's able to heal him, bring him back from the edge of death, and it doesn't seem to affect her at all. She just gets up and leaves with no ill effects.

So Force healing just acts however the writer wants it to. There are no rules. There's only a cost when the writers wanted there to be one. Otherwise, it's just kind of fine. That's why it's hard to assign emotional value to what he does. Does he even know it might kill him? Is he smiling in that last moment after the kiss because he's about to start his new life? Or is it some attempt to let Rey know he's okay with this?

That's up to you to decide, but not in a good way because whether or not this redeems him depends on whether it's a knowing sacrifice, not just a side effect.

Also, we do have precedent in the Star Wars universe for attempting to bring people back from the dead. It's bad, and it's wrong. Wanting to keep the people he loves from dying is what brings Anakin Skywalker to the Dark Side. Palpatine even reminds us in TROS that returning from the dead is considered unnatural. But it's just fine for Ben Solo to do this. It shows he's a good guy. Honestly, this bothers me more than anything else. I think if given the chance, Anakin would have given up his life Force to save Padme. So despite his body vanishing, maybe he didn't embrace the light after all? Perhaps he's a Sith ghost? Who knows, we didn't see him at the end.

***Edit**

Also, the Jedi way is supposed to be one of patience and acceptance. Not accepting Rey’s death, trying to force the universe to obey his will one last time, that seems like he isn’t really on the Light Side of the Force.

***End Edit**

But the important thing is that his death is the easy way out. He doesn't really have to grow and change; he doesn't have to stand up and face the Resistance and the rest of the Galaxy because he's just dead. He doesn't have to live with the choices he's made, to resolve the conflict that has always been there.

Of course, I did say that characters don't have to grow; that tragedy often comes from the characters who can't grow. But he hasn't developed either. We know nothing about Kylo Ren or Ben Solo in this movie that we didn't already know. The fact that Rey is a Palpatine just feeds into his previous vision of destiny and great bloodlines ruling the Galaxy. We already knew that killing his father split him in two, that he also loved his mother, because he couldn't kill her in TLJ. He doesn't fall in love with Rey during this movie, you could argue it wasn't confirmed until TROS, but now that they've kissed, we can say it was the last movie where they fell in love.

We don't even know what kind of leader he's been between movies. Only that Hux didn't like him being in charge, oh, but we already knew that from the last movie also.

So yeah, Rey wasn't the only doll in this movie. Kylo Ren was also picked up off the shelf and put back just the way he was found.

#tros spoilers #meta #kylo ren #bendeption #ben solo

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aphrodaisyacs · 5 years

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Summary:

In a different universe, the ship that descends upon Earth to abduct Peter belongs to Thanos. In a different universe, Gamora hitches a ride with the Ravagers to escape her war-torn planet.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: Major Character Death Categories: F/M, Gen Fandoms: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies) Relationships: Gamora/Peter Quill, Peter Quill & Thanos, Gamora & Yondu Udonta, Nebula & Peter Quill, Mantis & Peter Quill Characters: Peter Quill, Gamora (Marvel), Thanos (Marvel), Yondu Udonta, Mantis (Marvel), Nebula (Marvel), Ego the Living Planet Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Canonical Character Death, Thanos vs Ego Custody Battle, Implied underage drinking, Yondu’s A+ Parenting, Thanos’ A+ Parenting, Torture, Emotional Manipulation, Gaslighting, Filicide

1000 years later it’s finally done BUT HEY I got it out before Endgame so that’s something, right?

Full chapter below:

When Peter first met Thanos, it went like this:

He thought Thanos was his father.

One of the first things Thanos said to him was “You don’t belong here. You belong with the stars.”

(“You belong with the stars, Peter. Just like your daddy.”)

One of the first things Thanos did was coax the light out of Peter’s hands.

“Now close your eyes and concentrate- reach your mind out to the galaxy.”

(“He was an angel. Composed of pure light.”)

It made him ignore the way Thanos’ shadow loomed like Death in the dark mist.

It made him miss the fact that the giant hands cupping his face out of pride were also muffling his Grandpa’s frantic calls for him.

So when Thanos reached out a hand just as the light from above engulfed them both…

Peter reached back.

When Gamora first met Yondu, it went like this:

“Please! It’s just the two of us! I might not have much but I can also cook and clean!”

“You think you’re the first one to say that, woman? Well I got one word for you: Scram!”

“No please, then just my daughter- Gamora, she’s only eight!”

“For the last time, no! Ugh, all the the cheap fuel in this shithole ain’t worth this.”

“Please, I beg you- I’ll do anything, just let Gamora get out of here safely! She- she can even be your slave, just take her somewhere else!”

Yondu, like most Ravagers, had a notoriously short temper. And like most Ravagers, that temper tended to be explosive- violent, and sometimes even deadly.

It was rare then, to see his anger run colder than ice.

Gamora found herself torn away from her mother’s grip with such force that she nearly fell face-first onto the dirt.

“I’ll take the girl then.”

“Can I visit Grandpa?” Peter learnt not to ask.

“Your grandfather hates you,” Thanos always said. “He blames you for your mother’s death because you couldn’t control your powers.”

“But that’s not true!” Peter learnt not to say, as his memories of firm hugs smelling like cigarette smoke faded after each day.

“I miss Earth,” Peter learnt not to say.

“Why?” Thanos always said. “There’s nothing left for you there. Now you have the galaxy within your reach.”

But the only thing within Peter’s reach was the warm light that pulsed within him and the cold, dead ground beneath his feet.

“I just want to go home,” Peter never said. Because he wasn’t even sure what that meant anymore.

Perhaps it meant nights where he played his walkman as he laid in his cot, pretending that he was lying on the grass as his mother, happy and alive, shared her music with him. Or perhaps it meant nights where he carefully held his mother’s unopened present, before the guilt forced him to shove it back into his backpack.

For Peter, home was the pieces of his mother’s memory that Thanos hadn’t taken away from him. Home was what Peter had left to remember that even if his family did hate him like Thanos said…

His mother did love him, once upon a time.

Peter hated Ebony.

When Thanos first introduced him to his new older brother, he had told Peter that Ebony would help him get stronger. Ebony’s knife-sharp grin and the power woven from his spidery fingers promised exactly that, and something else entirely.

Thanos told Ebony to spar with Peter. Ebony twisted the walls from around them and threw them at Peter, again and again, until he passed out from the pain. Next time he flipped the ground from beneath their feet and crushed Peter under it until he could no longer breathe. But just before the world was swallowed by darkness, light erupted desperately from Peter’s entire being, obliterating his earthen prison. It wasn’t enough though, because the world was still spinning and Peter’s fumbling control over his powers protected him against Ebony about as well as a sheet of paper against pouring rain.

Again and again, Peter tried to fight back. But again and again, he woke up with yet another body part damaged beyond repair. Yet another body part to be replaced by metal.

“You have powers, little one,” Thanos said. He looked disappointed. Peter felt a twinge where his heart used to be. “Why don’t you use them?”

Peter didn’t even know if he was improving or not. He just fought and fought and fought, as hard as he could.

Until one day, he managed to finally wrestle the needles of light from Ebony’s control and turn them against him. He even made them into the shape of a giant shark because he could.

“Well done, my son,” Thanos smiled. They watched the blood get mopped off the training room floors. It was what happened when your legs got bitten off by a shark, real or not.

Thanos found it amusing. It was the second time he had ever looked at Peter with such pride.

Peter wanted to smile back. But victory tasted bitter, like blood.

Nebula was Peter’s favourite sibling.

There wasn’t much competition, really- Proxima and Corvus always looked at him as if he was a squashed bug. Cull always looked at him as if he was a bug to be squashed. And the less said about Ebony the better.

Nebula only sparred against him on the occasions where Thanos wanted Peter to focus on his hand-to-hand. Whenever he won, she got dragged away and returned more metal, less flesh. Whenever she won, Peter got dragged away back to Ebony.

But outside of the training grounds, Nebula always hovered curiously in his peripheral, just out of reach. They did talk, but she was always so tense, wary, like she was expecting to be hurt. It reminded Peter of the stray cats in his old neighbourhood that he had tried to feed and pet, before his Grandpa found out and shooed them away. She even had that same glimmer of hope in her eyes when Peter didn’t betray the inch of trust that she reluctantly gave him.

So she practically bristled and hissed at him when he tried to share his mother’s music with her.

“What’s this?”

“It’s my walkman.”

“But it doesn’t have legs and it’s not a man.”

“No, you’re supposed to use it for music. Here.”

She looked at the headphones he held out as if they were going to electrocute her, but she slowly slipped them on.

Having a new friend, a new sister, made Peter’s new life more bearable. In between missions where Thanos sent them out to kill, they huddled together in quiet corners to listen to Peter’s walkman. They never spoke to each other in those moments- Peter, too busy grasping at the bittersweet memories of his mother’s toothy grin and her twinkling blue eyes. Nebula, he wasn’t sure; he could only assume that she too considered the soft, crooning voices of 10cc to be a cocoon of safety from their living hell.

Peter sparred. He fought. He was broken into pieces, then put together again.

He clung to his music until his walkman became just as much of a part of him as his blades and the warm light thrumming in his veins.

He killed.

And killed.

He killed until he became Star-Lord, the most feared assassin in the galaxy.

Gamora was ten the first time she and Yondu fought.

It wasn’t the first time he had raised his voice at her- far from it. Yondu always seemed to find one thing or the other to yell at her for, especially in front of the other Ravagers. And most of the time, nothing stopped her from screaming back.

But it was the first time his bark was accompanied by his bite.

“Kraglin! Take this thing out and shut the damn door before it can get back in!”

“No! Leave Stripe alone! Give him back to me!”

“Does this ship look like a zoo to you? You’re lucky I caught it before we took off. You bring one more mutt on board and we’re dumping you at the next stop, ya hear me?”

“Stripe’s my friend! Just because you don’t have any-”

“When I picked you up as a kid, these boys wanted to eat you. Zehoberei are so rare they’re a treat now. I stopped ‘em. You’re alive because of me!”

“What do you care anyway? You only keep me around ‘cause I’m a slave you got for free!”

But he didn’t continue yelling, like she had come to expect. Instead, she was met with silence.

Until…

“...You think you know a damn thing about what being a slave’s like? Huh? You think you get to throw that word ‘round like you know what it means?!”

His voice rose with his anger, but his words became more frigid. The red fire in Yondu’s eyes turned cold as stone.

Even Gamora couldn’t help but shiver.

She sometimes wondered if she had imagined the Yondu whose anger stung sharper than frostbite- the man who had taken her from her mother. It was a side of him that she never saw again, until that moment.

(Years later, she would find out that Yondu had been sold as a slave when he was a baby)

(Years later, she would look back at this moment and feel that she might understand him, just a little more)

Gamora’s mum used to tell her that she was too curious for her own good. Too inquisitive. But she always smiled when she said it, running her fingers down her daughter’s hair to tease the knots out of the deep red curls.

Once, when Yondu wasn’t looking, Gamora tried to use his arrow. She hid away in a half-forgotten storage room and tried to fly the arrow in a deadly streak of red, just the way Yondu did it. But no matter how hard she whistled, the arrow wouldn’t budge. It didn’t take long for Yondu to find her, spitting anger from his lips to hide the worry in his eyes.

Gamora clenched her fists and waited to be left behind on the ship at their next stop.

But instead, Yondu took her in one hand and a crate of weapons in the other to an isolated part of the woods. For a horrifying moment she thought she was being walked to her execution- for touching that damn arrow? Really?

But when they stop, Gamora found a blaster shoved into her hands.

She stared at it.

“Well? What are you waiting for?”

“... You’re gonna teach me how to shoot them?”

“‘Course I am! You’re a Ravager, ain’t ya? Now get over here before I change my mind.”

It would take years for her to realise that Yondu spoke his heart through his actions, not his words. He barked at her for every mistake she made, but he always grinned when she got it right. And after she hit her first bird in the tree on the other side of the clearing, he laughed and poured Gamora her first glass of ale.

For the first time since leaving Zen-Whoberi, she grinned back.

Loneliness was a familiar friend.

Gamora was just a girl amongst Ravagers, and every time she stepped onto a different planet she found her eyes searching for familiar dark red curls framing green skin. She was just a girl amongst Ravagers, and the only women she could talk to were the occasional prostitutes. They were usually really nice to her though, and she’d learnt to appreciate the genuine smiles behind smudged lipstick as they gave her life advice.

But in the end, they always left.

Gamora dreamt about leaving too. She dreamt about running away, stealing a ship and flying away. Perhaps she’d try finding her mother; a part of her hoped that she was still alive, and they’ll meet again someday. But then she’d remember that the last time they saw each other, the woman she had loved and trusted with all her heart tried to sell her to Yondu. As a slave. Gamora’s mind knew it was a desperate attempt to get her off the planet safely, but her heart still stung at the memory.

Then one day, Gamora’s dream came true.

She did steal a ship. And she did fly away. And Yondu went ballistic, just like she knew he would.

(Except he wasn’t angry, not really. Months later, the package he sent her contained a single switchblade- dual blades connecting at a red-studded hilt. It told her, more than words could, that he was proud that she could take care of herself)

Gamora kept a collection of knives, most of which she’d nicked from unsuspecting pockets. She also kept a collection of guns, most of which she’d slipped off bar counters when ignorant backs were turned. But no matter how much she gambled, what she sold off, her switchblade remained her greatest treasure- a priceless piece she always kept sheathed close to her heart.

In between jobs, she drifted through the galaxy. She was a thief and a smuggler and she was freer than she had ever been.

But she was still a Ravager at heart, and being alone was its own cage. She never started her own clan, even years after leaving Yondu’s. She never even formed a crew for her ship.

Loneliness was a familiar friend, after all.

Peter is eighteen when Thanos gains a new enemy.

It begins with a lost shipment of supplies. Then another. And another. Then several Chitauri ships get destroyed. Again and again. An incident here and there, spread out over the years, seemingly at random.

Peter has the feeling that Thanos knows exactly who the culprit is, even though he never acts on it. Immediately after each incident, Thanos always orders Peter to the training grounds before sitting back, a silent spectator in every fight. As if it is somehow Peter’s fault that the attacks are happening.

Thanos never acts on it, until one day, Corvus and Proxima’s latest attempt to retrieve the Mind Stone fails.

He summons Peter, and gives him a new mission.

A Celestial, Thanos’ warning rings through Peter’s mind.

Ego.

When Peter first meets his real father, it goes like this:

“It is you. Star-Lord. After all these years, I’ve found you.”

“...Why the hell are you so happy to see me? I’m here to kill you.”

“Of course you are! Now tell me, your name’s Peter isn’t it? That’s what your mother wanted to name you.”

Ego is his real father. His real father who, after hearing of an assassin whose powers are eerily similar to his own, was infuriated to learn about the weapon that Thanos had forged his son into.

“So I had to get on his bad side somehow,” Ego says. “He’s always sending his so-called ‘Children’ off to do the dirty work for him. I’ve been waiting for the day he sends you to me.”

Ego is his real father, who has finally come to take him home.

For the first time since living amongst the stars, Peter allows himself to hope.

At first, Peter doesn’t know what to think of Ego’s companion.

Mantis is eager, yet timid. Her smiles are forced, yet her eyes are kind. She shrinks back from Ego whenever he turns her way, yet she can put him to sleep with a single touch.

“Ego found me in my larva state,” she tells Peter, antennas twitching as she answers his unspoken curiosity. “Orphaned on my homeworld. He raised me by hand, and kept me.”

Peter thinks about Thanos, who took him from his family in the wake of his mother’s death. Raised him with blood and death, and kept him, like an attack dog.

Ego is very vocal about his agreement with Peter’s inner sentiments, and when he isn’t throwing insults at the Mad Titan he is reminiscing about Meredith Quill. Peter had daydreamed about this, having a real dad to whisk him away to a better life, one where they just… get to spend time with each other. One where his Celestial powers could be used as a ball in catch rather than a blade at someone’s neck.

(One where Thanos is little more than a distant memory)

Everything is perfect.

Almost.

Peter doesn’t notice Mantis meekly fading into the background, but he does notice that the more Ego shows him around the planet, the more she hunches her shoulders and wrings her hands. And when he does manage to catch her gaze, her dark eyes are wide with guilt and regret.

He forces himself to look away- she’s staring at him as if she’s mourning him.

“Something’s going on. What is it?”

Mantis chokes under his grip.

“You’re… you’re not scared.” She sounds almost confused. “You’re… betrayed.”

Peter abruptly lets go.

“You know,” he hisses instead. “Whatever it is, you know.”

She doesn’t deny it. It’s as if she’s been waiting for him to confront her.

In the night, after putting Ego to sleep, Mantis leads Peter through a maze of underground caves.

She leads him right to a mountain of skeletons.

“... Who are they?” Peter asks when he’s finally able to breathe again.

“His children. Because they can’t use his powers.” She swallows. “The only reason I’m not with them is because I’m still useful.”

He stares down at his hands.

“But I…”

She shakes her head. Even in the dark, he can see the tears glistening in her eyes.

“He wants to use you like a battery. He doesn’t have enough power by himself to…”

“To what?”

But Mantis doesn’t get to tell him, because striding up behind them, Ego answers for her.

Peter sees and feels nothing but white.

He’s being drained, but he is overflowing. He knows there’s pain, but his mind has been swallowed by the universe.

“Peter!”

A sharp tug, and suddenly he’s in the hallway again. His breath evens out and everything slides into focus again, including the armoured figure of Thanos.

His heart sinks.

No.

“Get off my planet, you thief,” Ego snarls.

“Not until I’ve taken back what belongs to me.”

“He’s my son.”

“You didn’t raise him.”

“Oh I’ve heard about you- the Mad Titan, a bloodthirsty menace, a plague upon the universe. Do you really think you can win against me, on my own planet?”

Thanos raises his blade in answer.

It is terrifying and thrilling all at once- the battle between the god made of light and the Mad Titan whose shadow reeks of death. The ground beneath them trembles with terror and the air roars their mutual fury.

In another world, Peter might have stayed to save the universe.

But in this one, he has no choice but to run.

Peter had come to Ego’s planet in search of a father, and now he’s leaving with a sister in tow.

He is already halfway across the galaxy with Mantis in their stolen ship when he suddenly feels it-

It’s as if something has been unplugged from him; the light which had steadily pulsed in his veins for as long as he can remember, suddenly…

Gone.

In that moment he knows - he no longer has his powers.

The powers that Thanos had stolen him from Earth for. The powers that Ego wanted to use to warp the universe.

Gone.

Peter feels as if every inch of his being has been scraped raw. He’s empty now. Empty, but clean.

If Ego had lost, then that means Thanos is after Peter. But without his powers, without his strongest weapon, he’s useless now. Disposable, even. Because Thanos doesn’t collect his failures in a mountain of bones, he crushes them beneath his feet until his footsteps are stained by their blood.

So Peter runs.

Gamora is twenty-three when she nearly dies snatching the Orb from right under Korath’s nose. She considers herself lucky, really- it’s only her second near-death experience this month. And the Orb is definitely worth more than enough to get her back on her feet again after her latest spree at the Aeon Casino.

Of course she isn’t handing it over to Yondu.

“I slaved putting this deal together-”

“You made a few calls is what you did-”

“-and now you’re gonna rip me off!”

“-but I’m the one who doesn’t know what ‘slaved’ means?”

“We do not do that to each other. We’re Ravagers. We got a code.”

“What code? We’re nothing more than honourless thieves.”

They shout at each other until Gamora cuts the call in a huff. She squashes down the churning guilt because she needs the money, more than Yondu does.

But as she speeds her way towards Xandar, it is hard not to feel bad when her only companion is the white noise of the Milano’s thrumming engine.

When Gamora first meets her best friends, it happens like this:

Nebula is trying to kill her over that damn Orb.

Rocket and Groot are after her bounty because she didn’t hand that damn Orb over to Yondu.

The moment Peter and Mantis see that damn Orb, they shed their tourist disguises.

As the cherry on top of the chaotic mess unravelling around her, Gamora’s chance to escape manifests in the form of an unexpected family reunion between two of her attackers.

“You. You traitor! Get away from the Orb, you don’t deserve it!”

“Look, I’m sorry, I really am, but the universe doesn’t deserve to be destroyed by Thanos.”

“I thought you were my brother. But you left me. You left me and replaced me!”

“Ugh no, Mantis isn’t- I’m sorry, okay? Look, I know what this looks like, but it’s kind of a long story which I’ll tell you, if you let me have the Orb. You can even join us, if you want, and Thanos can go screw himself.”

If Gamora had been paying attention to the drama, she would’ve noticed the way Nebula’s indecision hangs in the air. Instead, she continues crawling towards the Orb, determined to leave unnoticed with her prize.

But just as her fingertips graze the metal casing, all hell breaks loose.

Her body is suddenly on fire and her muscles seize up. Rocket’s cackling rings in her ears and Nebula’s angry cries pound against her skull. Gamora can’t even tell if the darkness enveloping her is the loss of consciousness or the burlap sack Groot has been dragging around.

In Gamora’s third near-death experience that month, she passes out before getting arrested with the misfits she’ll learn to value with her life.

Peter can almost taste the anger buzzing in the air. Next to him, he feels Mantis shrink back from the jeers pelted at them from every direction.

His fingers twitch for his confiscated blades.

“You first!”

“You first, Nebula!”

Their eyes spit acid, their lips drip hatred.

Nebula snarls back at the other prisoners with just as much venom. Out of habit Peter finds himself reaching a comforting hand out to her arm, but he stops when she turns her glare on him as well.

Her glares keep everyone away, but Peter is nothing if not a stubborn asshole when he wants to be.

“Nebula-”

“I’m not listening to the traitor who ran away like a coward,” she spits.

“I know. I’m sorry. But I had to leave, because Thanos would’ve killed me if I hadn’t.”

“You? His precious, half-Celestial son? You’re his favourite.”

“Ha! Not anymore. I’m basically useless to him right now.”

Nebula narrows her eyes at him.

“How?”

Peter shrugs.

“Like I’ve said, long story. Maybe I’ll get the chance to tell you after we escape, if that raccoon isn’t talking out of his ass.”

Unexpectedly, Nebula hesitates.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know where you’re going. But after I leave this place, I’m going back to Ronan.”

“No.”

“I have a mission to complete.”

“No. If Ronan gets that stone, he’ll kill us all.”

“Then I’m going straight to Thanos.”

“That’s even worse. Come on, Nebula, please- you don’t have to do this.”

Her answering silence makes his heart sink. But Peter is nothing if not a stubborn asshole when he wants to be, and he’s going to change her mind.

They break out of The Kyln, but Peter goes back for his walkman.

(Nebula stays)

“Why would you risk your life for this?”

Peter smiles wryly down at the strange box-like device in his hands.

“My mother gave it to me. I… I don’t have much left from Earth.”

Gamora’s curiosity is drowned out by a wave of sympathy.

“Did Thanos destroy your home planet too?”

“Oh, no. It’s kinda weird, now that I think about it, but the only thing he took from Earth was me. He must’ve thought that a half-Celestial would be useful. Not that I’m much more than a normal human at this point.”

Oh.

“So that… thing. What do you do with it?”

There’s another part to that box-like device- it looks like a headband, and Peter eases it onto her head like one. A melody engulfs her ears, and under the sky of stars and colours she finds herself pulled into a slow dance before she even realises it.

It’s… pleasant.

She likes this side of him, the side which doesn’t seem so cold and hardened. His eyes, a soft and pleasant green, look so much warmer up close like this when their breaths are almost touching.

But a sudden crash shatters the moment. Gamora feels exasperation well up within her when she realises who the shouting belongs to- can’t Nebula and Rocket play nice for just a minute?

She turns around to look back at Peter, and tries not to feel too disappointed at the way his expression has closed off again.

Seeing Yondu again is like falling back into old habits. It is getting into a shouting match with him again, it is standing tall against the jeers of the other Ravagers. It is being held at arrowpoint and striking a deal with him: the safety of millions of lives, for the Orb.

Yondu’s grin is sharp when he claps her on the back, but his eyes twinkle with amusement and pride.

They are a complete mess, all of them. They are jagged puzzle pieces that refuse to fit together.

They are going to stop Ronan from wiping out billions of innocent lives.

A bunch of jackasses, standing in a circle.

Friends who are ready to die for each other.

“We are Groot.”

There is no dance-off. There is only Gamora, and her attempt to entrap Ronan into a debate about his actions. There is only Gamora, and her distraction allowing for Mantis to sneak up and put him in a trance through a firm squeeze around his fingers.

And then Rocket fires at the Infinity Stone.

Mantis is the first to grab the Stone. Ego’s planet might be dead but she is still part-Celestial, even if she never had access to the powers. Gamora, the next closest, manages to grab onto her friend’s smouldering skin soon after.

Struggling against the power and pain electrifying every cell of her body, Gamora barely manages to make out the figure of Peter fighting to get closer.

“Peter! Take my hand!”

(“Take my hand, Peter.”)

“Mum.”

“Take my hand!”

Peter reaches back.

The blue ribbon unravels from its knot. It’s been twenty years, and Peter thinks he finally might be able to tear off the wrapping without trembling fingers.

Awesome Mix Vol. 2

The cassette tape slots in with a soft click, and a few seconds later Marvin Gaye’s voice drifts from the speakers.

He stares, entranced, at the slowly-spinning tape, and tries to blink away the emotions blurring his vision.

His trained ears pick up on the footfalls from leather boots, and he looks up to see Nebula. She looks back with hard unreadable eyes, but the tension in her shoulders give away her uncertainty.

Peter scoots over on the bench, and she wordlessly sits down next to him.

They don’t say anything.

They listen.

“So,” Peter begins, leaning against the top of Gamora’s seat. “What should we do next? Something good? Something bad? A bit of both?”

She tilts her head back. His face looks a bit odd from this angle, but it’s definitely something she can get used to.

“Hm… how about a bit of both?”

Peter smiles back.

“Whatever you say, Captain.”

“Your father killed my brother.”

“Stop! Peter hates him just as much as you do.”

“Yeah, and he’s not my father. He killed my real father too, actually. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but still.”

And a part of Peter, twisting in a sickening knot in his stomach, suspects that Thanos has killed Nebula too- because there’s no way she’d ignore their comm calls for two weeks straight.

He stiffens when he feels a sudden weight on his shoulder. He doesn’t expect to see the sincerity in Thor’s remaining eye.

“Families can be tough.”

A complete stranger shouldn’t understand, but for some reason Peter believes that Thor genuinely does. He allows his initial dislike of the man to soften a bit.

Just a bit.

“I need to ask a favour.”

Gamora pauses in the middle of sharpening of her favourite switchblade. She has never seen Peter look so grim, even in the early days of knowing him.

“What is it?”

“If things go wrong- if Thanos gets me… promise me you’ll kill me.”

“... What?”

“I know something he doesn't. Something he can’t find out. Ever.”

Gamora’s heart sinks.

“What do you know?”

Peter shakes his head.

“If I tell you, you’d be in danger too.”

Gamora reaches out to squeeze his hand.

“We’re already in danger together.”

He doesn’t squeeze back. He removes his hand. She stiffens from the sting of rejection.

“This is different. And I want you- need you to live.”

“Peter-”

“Promise me you’ll kill me.”

Gamora shakes her head, and stops trying to hold back her tears.

“This isn’t fair.”

“Gamora- please-” Peter takes her forgotten switchblade, and gently curls her fingers around it.

He pulls her hand towards himself, his hand encased around her fingers, encased around her blade.

“Promise me,” he whispers.

It feels like forever before Gamora finally nods.

Their kiss tastes like goodbye.

“Let him go.”

The world is on fire, and the air is choked with smoke. Thanos grins. Gamora tightens her grip on her blaster.

“Ah, the girlfriend.”

“Gamora…” Peter wheezes out.

“Let. Him. Go.”

“Gamora… not him.”

No.

This can’t be happening.

“You promised.”

This isn’t fair.

Thanos speaks, but she ignores him. She stares at Peter instead, taking in his pleading eyes and his tear-stained face.

This isn’t how she wants to remember him.

“I love you, more than anything.” Her voice cracks, but she doesn’t sob.

Peter doesn’t deserve this- he deserves to die at an old age after a long fulfilling life, or even in the middle of one of their grand, reckless, saving-people adventures.

The only thing she can give him is a quick death.

She slides her blaster back into its holster.

She draws out her switchblade.

And lunges.

But the blade smacks uselessly against something hard with a sharp crack.

Gamora stills. There’s suddenly a thick steel wall blocking her from Peter.

No.

She throws herself at it, determined to cut it open, push it away, anything.

“Peter!”

“You’re quite the fighter,” Thanos says from the other side. “I like you.”

“No! Peter!”

The wall eventually dissolves, but by the time she lands on her bruised and bleeding knuckles, they’re already long gone.

“I thought you might be hungry.”

Peter stares numbly at the small bowl of gruel. He can’t even muster the energy to feel offended.

“Thought you could get rid of me with poison now that I’m just a weak human?”

“I wouldn’t waste food like that. Besides, you’re more than just your Celestial powers, Peter.”

He recoils from Thanos’ words.

“That… sounds exactly like something someone who actually gives a damn about me would say. But coming from you- ”

“And what makes you so sure I don’t ‘give a damn’ about you?”

Thanos actually looks genuinely curious. Peter can’t believe this.

“Are you fucking kidding me? You took me from my family when I was just a kid-”

“I saved you. They were scared of you, because of your powers.”

“My mum had just died. I watched her- we watched her. Grandpa was going to raise me-”

“She died because of you. You couldn’t control your powers. And you ran away from them, which was how I found you. I was the first to see the worth of your powers. Of you.”

“Bullshit.”

Peter never needed anyone to see the worth of those powers. His time with the Guardians of the Galaxy had taught him as much.

(But that doesn’t stop the slight twist in his chest)

“Who comforted you after the heavier sparring sessions with Ebony? Who fought Ego for you? You have no idea how painful it was to realise that you had run away with Ego’s other spawn. My victory was worth nothing because I had failed to bring you back home.”

Peter doesn’t say anything. He can’t. The twist in his chest has become painful.

“I care about you, my son. I always have. The least you can do is tell me where the Soul Stone is.”

Peter’s knuckles are white when he raises his chin at Thanos.

“No.”

“Vormir!”

Blue and purple lights fade, but Peter’s mind is still ringing with the echoes of Nebula’s screams and the rattles of her metal parts. He takes a shaky step closer to where his sister has been strung up, each part of her taken apart and put on display. The design cruelly reminds Peter of the times he had won their fights- he did this to her, the display seems to accuse.

“The Stone is on Vormir,” he whispers, reaching out a comforting hand, but there isn’t a part of Nebula whole enough to place it.

“Show me.”

Peter doesn’t need to turn around to know that Thanos is grinning smugly.

When Gamora first meets the Avengers, it goes like this:

“I’m only going to ask you once- where’s Peter?”

The strange creature under Gamora’s headlock stiffens. She digs her blaster into his neck in response.

“Who- what- Peter?” he squeaks out. “Uh, nope, neverheardthatnamebefore-”

The armoured man’s helmet dissolves, revealing a pale, furious face.

“What do you want with him?”

“What do I want- Thanos took him. Now tell me where he is, or this one- ” She tightens her grip. “-is getting his head turned into a pile of mush.”

“Wait what,” Gamora’s hostage suddenly says.

“Thanos took him-? Wait. You think we’re with Thanos.”

“Aren’t you?”

But they aren’t, because they’re the Avengers. Thor’s friends. If Gamora was in her right mind she would’ve been embarrassed by the misunderstanding. But Thanos has once again burnt her world to hell and back, and she’s running on nothing but fury and determination.

She learns that the Terran adolescent she had held hostage is also named Peter, but that’s about where the similarities end.

She also learns that the Guardians of the Galaxy get along with the Avengers like oil and water, and she’s becoming increasingly convinced that their team-up will destroy the universe instead of saving it.

Gamora sighs and turns away from Stark’s attempts to wrangle Drax’s attention.

She’ll just have to see if they’re in the one universe where they win.

Thanos’ tears aren’t genuine.

They can’t be.

“No. This isn’t love.”

Peter wants to run. He wants the dignity of dying before he can get killed.

“I’m sorry, little one.”

The howls of the icy winds swallow Peter’s screams and he can only struggle weakly against the iron-tight grip around his arm as he gets dragged closer and closer to the edge of the cliff.

The last thing he sees is the shadow of Death looming over him, if Death were capable of remorse.

He falls.

They have Thanos trapped.

Gamora steps towards him.

“I thought you’d be harder to catch. But I guess you aren’t so strong after all. Where is Peter?”

“My… Peter…?” Thanos rasps weakly.

“Where. Is. He.”

It is Mantis who realises it first.

“He’s in anguish…”

“Good.”

“He’s mourning… Peter…” Mantis whimpers and the lights in her antennae flicker.

Gamora sees red.

She faintly registers Stark speaking to her, but in that moment the only thing which exists in the world is her raw desire to hurt the man before her.

“You didn’t,” she spits. “You asshole. Tell me you didn’t!”

She whips her switchblade out, and she’s ready to slice his face open, gouge his eyes out until the blades are stained as red as the ruby-studded hilt.

But in that moment, a sob wracks through Mantis’ entire body and her face twists from the agony of being forced to grieve her dead brother through his murderer.

Her antennae flicker again, and so does her control over Thanos’ mind.

Thanos breaks free.

Gamora screams in rage and stumbles back onto her feet again, gripping onto her blaster like a lifeline.

“Where is he?”

He was right there. She nearly had him, she nearly-

But all she sees is Stark, propped up in his torn armour like a fallen soldier. He doesn’t look like a man gearing up for the last stretch of battle.

He looks like a man on the other end of it.

Gamora’s heart sinks to the barren earth beneath her feet.

“We lost.”

Gamora’s world crumbles into dust.

#marvel #gotg #starmora #daisy's fics #mwtsa

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sieben9 · 6 years

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“last rites” impressions

{Quick request to anyone reading: I’m watching OUaT for the first time, and I want to avoid spoilers. So, if you want to discuss something spoilery, I’d be grateful if you could start a new post for that. Thank you!}

::sigh:: God, what a mess.

No, not you.

::even longer sigh::

So, uh… I didn’t like this episode. Shocking, I know. I still have things to say about it, though, so if you want to read them, please read under the cut.

…

::the Longest sigh::

Honestly, did anyone come out of that episode happier than they were before? ‘cause I certainly didn’t…

I’d hear the argument that this is the bleak moment before the triumphant finale, but this Underworld-arc seems pretty much over.

the one (and possibly only) thing i will give zelena credit for.

I mean, it seems fitting that if you go down to the Underworld, bad things will happen, just as it seems fitting that you’d escape with your life and not much more. Not exactly a happy conclusion, but a thematically appropriate one. That the Underworld follows you back home and starts messing things up in the land of the living is just a dose of good, old-fashioned “Nice Job Breaking It Hero”, and I don’t mind that, either. But now, the villain is defeated, the damsel is out of distress (meaning Hook), and the newly dead are buried.

leaving behind an orphaned four-year-old and a literal baby. damn, show, just… damn.

Oh, but Robin isn’t “just” dead (because we have now established that being dead means nothing in this world), no, he’s been obliterated from existence. And for what? What was the narrative justification for killing him off? So that his daughter could have his name? Look, the guy may not have been the most dynamic character or most interesting love interest in the world, but he sure as hell didn’t deserve that.

Poor Regina. Poor Roland. In my ideal world, this ends with Regina adopting the little hobbit, but I don’t really see that happening. (If it does happen, that’s a spoiler I wouldn’t mind hearing, actually. I need happy news after this… mess.)

Observant readers will have noticed that I never cared all that much about Outlaw Queen, but I retroactively feel bad for all the people who were really invested. That was one hell of a brutal shipwreck.

While we’re on the subject, I will have to call shenanigans on the Other Novelty Dildo (first one being that glove Rumple brought back from Camelot)

so many jokes, so little time…

Look, I don’t actually mind the magical MacGuffins that crop up all over the place. But would it kill you to introduce them slightly earlier? Like, just as a rule: if you want to use a MacGuffin to solve a problem in episode 20, you have to introduce it in episode 17 at the latest. Now, if you want to use a MacGuffin to create a problem, maybe you don’t need that much advance warning. Though even that works better at the beginning of an arc than at its end.

And magic bullet aside… I get why Zelena killing Hades had more of an emotional impact. And I get why Regina had to be involved—she’s the only one Zelena would actually do this for. Regina worked all this half-season to forge a bond with her sister, and this is where that pays off.

What I don’t get is why Emma wasn’t involved even a little. No, seriously, go back and check. All she does is lure Hades and Zelena away for about ten seconds, so that Regina and Robin can get into the office to get the then-nameless baby back. And that was in no way integral to Hades’s defeat. So, basically, the person who kicked off the events that led to Hades being a threat in the first place had no part in getting rid of him. Well-bloody-done, show. That’s how you protagonist!

So… yeah. Kind of a disappointing villain-defeat. Although I have to say that the acting in that scene was on point. I mean…

My sincere respect for everyone in front of the camera, here, and especially Lana Parilla and Rebecca Mader. They really acted their hearts out here. I mean… you can see how much she wants to just kill Regina and that nagging voice inside her that says she’s doing the wrong thing, and then you see her change her mind. And then the dialogue tells you what just happened, but you can still see each distinct emotion on her face. ::sigh:: Dear Rebecca Mader, why couldn’t you be a character I liked?

Oh, and of course Rumple has the death-dildo now. Or at least a piece of it. Are we… are we doing this “Rumple as the backup badguy” thing again? Really? Fourth time in a row? The man just wants to wake up his wife so they can make an appointment with Archie for some marriage counselling, he hasn’t got the time to be sinister!

then again, that’s less of an action and more of a lifestyle

Oh, and because I’m frustrated and needed a break… have a gif.

I’m sure there was absolutely no other way to get that thing out of the pulverised Hades-remains. None at all. (I’m also amused that they apparently left the godly dustpile just sitting there for at least a full day. Nobody decided to come over with a dustpan? Really?)

Speaking of Rumple and his current troubles…

Moe French, I will beat you to death with the spikiest cactus I can find, and I will laugh while I do it. I think between nearly killing/personality-wiping his daughter because he didn’t approve of her choice in boyfriend and leaving her in a sleep of eternal torment, because he doesn’t like her husband, this asshole bumped himself all the way up to first place on the “shitty parents” list, which is quite an accomplishment. (To be honest, all the serious contenders for first place are equally shitty, Moe is just the most recent offender, so I’m most angry at him.)

My only consolation is that Moe’s kiss would never have worked in the first place, so while his decision is still deplorable, at least it’s not an actual complication. Shame Emma had to burst in so early, though.

Which brings up another point about Emma and responsibility that I’ll saying a bit more on later, but for this scene, just a quick aside: I don’t think Rumple was exactly right—not all of this mess was Emma’s fault. That he had to go to the Underworld? Sure, that’s 100% on her, but frankly, I’m not willing to absolve Hades and assorted assholes from blame here.

So, no, this mess isn’t Emma’s fault alone. But it is her responsibility. She started this mess, she’d better end it. By the way, guess what she didn’t do? (See above for that.)

::long sigh::

OK, let’s deal with the elephant in the room, namely, the almost-literal Deus Ex Machina.

Who though this was a good idea? Seriously, even if they did write themselves into a corner, this was possibly the worst way to do it. The method was bad, the explanation was bad, and the making out next to the coffin of the man who actually helped kill Hades was the worst.

And Hook didn’t help defeat Hades! Hook didn’t do anything except give Emma the hint about the crystal, and Emma didn’t help! I know I’m harping on this, but the longer I keep pulling on that thread, the more this episode unravels. It’s morbidly fascinating, really.

I discussed the main points on the graveyard-makout-session in the liveblog-post already, but to sum up: there’s a version of this scene that both shows Emma’s and Hook’s relief to be alive and together again without appearing entirely disrespectful to Robin’s memory, but this wasn’t it. This was about as tasteless as it could get without them boinking right there next to the coffin.

(My suggestion: let them go home before they take the train to make-out-town. Bam. Problem solved. They can have a really heartfelt hug on the graveyard; honestly, I feel like a hug would have been more emotionally honest, in any case, but what do I know, right?)

This kind of soured me on Emma as a character, too. I liked her better when she had to face actual consequences and took responsibility for her fuck-ups. And no, whining about how “this is all my fault”, only to get consoled by other characters is not the same as taking responsibility. That’s wallowing in self-pity, and it’s not a very attractive quality. (It’s also a cheap trick to tell the audience “see, the good people don’t think she did anything wrong, and so should you!”)

Oh, and just to close this out…

Yeah, this guy gets to be king of the Underworld now. Grrreat. We all still remember that he was a pretty shitty king while alive, right? That’s not just me? Then again, he’s got all eternity to figure out this gig, so who knows. Maybe he won’t be terrible in a millennium or so. (He’ll still be a douche, though. The douchiness is part of his molecular makeup, there’s really nothing to be done there.)

On a somewhat lighter note: Hook, my guy, we have to talk. You were in a position to, as I like to call it, “pull a Kelsier”, i.e. punch a god in the face. The rules declare that whenever you are in a position to pull a Kelsier, you are basically obligated do so. That fact that you didn’t is… look, I’m not mad. I’m just disappointed.

(In an attempt not to be too obnoxious about it: Kelsier is a character from a completely different fandom who did, in fact, punch at least two gods in the face. They kind of deserved it, too, even if Kelsier really had no moral high ground to stand on.)

And, while I’m on slightly lighter things:

Cruella’s face when she saw Arthur and Hook. I was wrong: someone definitely came out of this episode happier than they were before ::eyebrow waggle::

I have honestly no idea where the last two episodes are going to go, because… there’s really not much setup. Rumple still has a comatose Belle in a box, and she’s probably not getting out of there this season (because that’s not how babies work), so… what exactly is he planning?

I mean, I’ll find out, but I’d appreciate some hints, show!

#ouat #once upon a time #ouat last rites #sieben watches ouat #sieben talks #ouat writing critical #anti cs #anti hook #anti emma swan #(ouch)#mostly tagging to be safe #the writing is getting most of the flak #AND WITH GOOD REASON

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joyofcrime-elinorhigh · 5 years

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Dragon Ball Super: Battle of Gods Arc REVIEW:

Hello everybody, my name is JoyofCrimeArt and as I've said in the past screaming and punching is awesome! This is just an undeniable fact. And when it comes to the "screaming and punching" genre of cartoons there is none that does it better than Dragon Ball Z. (Okay, that's probably not true at all, but shut up alright? I'm trying to segway into this.) The best way to look at Dragon Ball Z, and the Dragon Ball series as a whole is to look at it as just a really cool superhero series, that doesn't try to come across as needlessly "dark" or "mature." It has dark and mature moments for sure, but not in the way that some comic books do where they try to shoehorn in these elements in order to be shocking or edgy. Dragon Ball does something that a lot of superhero type stories now of days tend to forget to do, and that's just be fun. From the over the top characters and powers, to the tonnes of convoluted lore that they make sound important, even though ever arc just ends up being a contest of who can punch the hardest, Dragon Ball was just a fun series. Flawed for sure, yes, (Seriously, next time you watch a Dragon Ball series play this game at home, it's called "Find the inconsistency.") but still a lot of fun regardless. After finishing up the story of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z the original author, Akira Toriyama, decided to step away from the series for almost twenty years. He did help with some designs for some spin-off properties based off of the series, but for a long period of time Dragon Ball was pretty much over. But, and this a true story, after seeing the American live action adaptation of his series, Dragon Ball Evolution, and hating it so much, it inspired him to make another Dragon Ball Z movie. One that he would be directly involved in. That movie was 2013's "Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods." and the movie was a huge success. So much of a success that it got a sequel called "Dragon Ball Z: Reserection 'F'." The Dragon Ball franchise was given new life. And naturally with all this success, it was only natural for Toei Animation to announce a new Dragon Ball tv series. After 19 years there would finally be a new series, and that new series would be called "Dragon Ball Super." Fan's were hyped....

...Until it was announced that the first two arcs would be adaptations of the two newest movies.

Yeah, fans were not happy to learn that they would have to wait 26 episodes before getting any "new" content. Especially since the movies had just came out a few years ago. But, who knows, maybe this could be a good thing. Maybe these longer versions of the movie could expand on the movies, and add new scenes or different plot elements to improve the movies story, and make it even better. How did this movie retelling work out? Well, let's dive into this and find out. But first some context. First things first, when it comes to these reviews I will be reviewing the dub. This is because I started actually watching Dragon Ball Super at episode 63, when the website Crunchyroll started subbing it. I was following what was happening in the series before hand using online recaps and such, but I never really went back and rewatched the first 62 episodes, save for a few. So I'm using the new English dub to actually see for myself what I have missed. And since most fans of Dragon Ball seem to like the dub more anyway I think it be better to do it like this. Also, I just want to say that I will be comparing this to the Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods film. It's kinda hard not to what with them being the same story and all. Also I want to state for the record that I LOVE the Battle of Gods film a lot. I was a casual Dragon Ball fan before watching that film, but after watching that movie I fell in love with the franchise. I loved the more comedic feel the film had, while still keeping in the drama that was needed. I loved the way it built upon the lore, and how it created a story and a villain completely different from anything that Dragon Ball had seen before. I consider the film of version of "Battle of Gods" as not just a great Dragon Ball film, but a great film in general! So keep all that in mind. Also, SPOILERS for everything Dragon Ball from here on out. Okay, ready? Let's go.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsPw7x8LZC4

So just a quick rundown for anybody not in the know. Dragon Ball is the story of Goku, a psychopath man child alien who loves to fight things. He was sent to Earth as a baby to destroy the planet, but forgot about his mission after his adopted grandfather accidentally drops him into a motherfu*king canyon. Goku and his friends travel the world collecting the Dragon Balls, magical orbs that can grant any wish, but over the course of the series pretty much just becomes there "get out of death free" card. Then half way through the show suddenly becomes about fighting aliens. One of these aliens they fight is named Vegeta. A member of Goku's race called the Saiyans who, over the course of the show, goes from evil big bad, to anti hero, to just a frickin' tsundere by the time Super comes around. The Saiyans have the power to become more powerful using the power of "Super Saiyan" transformation, which increases there power and hair mass exponentially. Also this arc takes place four years after Goku defeats the evil pink bubblegum man, but six years before he abandoned his family to train some random Indian boy. HOPE THAT CLEARS EVERYTHING UP FOR ANY NEWCOMERS! Anyway, this arc begins in space where, in typical Dragon Ball tradition, we are introduced to a new villain who just happens to be way stronger than our last villain, and has just happened to never be mentioned by anybody until now. This new villain is Beerus, a God of Destruction. His job, as we learn, is to go around the universe destroying planets in order to maintain the natural balance in the universe. Beerus looks like a giant purple cat, and this reflects his personality a lot. Because like a cat, all Beerus cares about is eating, sleeping, and being a general dick. Only this cat has the power to effortlessly destroy planets with a touch of his fingers. Beerus also has a helper, named Whis. A flamboyant but snarky blue guy who's job is to look after Beerus and make sure he's doing his job. He also acts as the straight man to Beerus's antics, and these two characters have great chemistry together. This is helped by the great voice talent of Jason Douglasas as Beerus, and Ian Sinclair as Whis. They do a great job portraying the duo. We learn that Beerus has been sleeping for the last thirty seven years, so he just conveniently been sleeping for most of the Dragon Ball series. But he was awoken by a premonition dream, as he foresaw something called a "Super Saiyan God." and this "God" would provide him with someone he could call a rival. Beerus, like most characters in Dragon Ball, has a love for the thrill of combat. But since he's so powerful there are few who he can fight without just obliterating in an instant. So thus, he is really dedicated to finding this Saiyan. However, despite having the dream, he has trouble remembering the details of it, so he goes around destroying planets and eating, hoping that doing that will somehow jog his memory. The way Beerus is portrayed is a point of contention for some Dragon Ball fans, when comparing the film to this arc. In the movie, while still mentioned that he was a destroyer of worlds, we never really saw it. And it seemed like he did it less out of malice and more because, as a destroyer god, it was his job to. While in the anime we see him destroy the planets, over petty things like the food he eats on the planets not being tasty enough. Most fans prefer the film version, but I actually don't mind the change that much. I mean we still knew that he had destroyed planets, so I don't see why showing it matters much. What I don't like about Beerus in the first half in this arc though, is the fact that they really play up him bumblingness a bit to much. The Beerus from the movie was able to really balance being a wacky, fun character and a real threat. He acted silly because he was so powerful that he didn't have anything to prove to anybody. Here they push it a bit closer to the comedic side, which I think is a miss because the movie got it just right, in my opinion. After obliterating some more planets Beerus fully remembers his dream. He ask Whis how many Saiyans are left in the universe and Whis answers five And so Beerus and Whis decide to head out and find out which one of them can be the "Super Saiyan God." But enough about our villains, what are our hero's up to? Well, it's Bulma's birthday and everybody from the original series is invited. I really like this, because after being away from the Dragon Ball series for almost two decades it's great to have ever character from the old series, major or not, show up and just be themselves. It's nice seeing these guys when there not fighting and just hanging out. In the movie the party was just held at Bulma's mansion, but here it's on a cruise shop. I kinda like the former better, but it doesn't really matter. Goku and Vegeta are both uninterested in the party, and want to spend there time training. Goku goes off to King Kai's planet to train but Vegeta is forced to go to the party because Bulma's his wife and more importantly scary. Meanwhile Old Kai and Kibito Kai sense that Beerus has awoken from his slumber. They are worried that if Goku finds out the Beerus is awake, and is as strong as he is, Goku will try to fight him, and that fight could risk that fate of the universe. By the way, I love how the gods view our hero and our villain as equal threats to the universe...There not wrong. We also learn that it was Beerus who trapped Old Kai in the Z sword. It doesn't say why, but I like to imagine that it was because Beerus wanted to make a SICK prank video for his GodTube channel bra!

Old Kai tells King Kai to not tell Goku about Beerus. However, this doesn't work out very well as Beerus is already on his way to King Kai's planet to find Goku. When Beerus does find Goku he challenges him to a fight to see if he is the prophesied Super Saiyan God, and Goku accepts. In the original film Goku goes straight to Super Saiyan 3, but here he goes through each form one by one. It is kinda cool to see the fight extended a bit, but it is definitely there to pad the length, and also doesn't make to much sense on why Goku would start at a weaker stage, but it's kinda cool to see. Which version of the fight is better though will depend on what your looking for. Something quick or something a bit more drawn out. (And I'm not going to talk about the bad animation, because it's beating a dead horse at this point, plus they fixed it by the time it aired dubbed so who really cares?) Regardless of which version you watch though, it's a complete curb stomp. Goku doesn't even land one hit on Beerus, and Beerus takes Goku out in three hits. Goku is left beaten and wounded, and Beerus decides to head to Earth to see if Vegeta is the Super Saiyan God. King Kai uses his telepathy to warn Vegeta about Beerus and tells him that if he can keep Beerus happy, they all might just live. Vegeta suddenly has a repressed childhood memory about a time where Beerus visited Planet Vegeta, and made a mockery of his father, using the King of all Saiyan's as a mere footstool. This knowledge, plus knowing how easily Beerus defeated Goku, makes Vegeta decide to suck up to Beerus. The only problem is that none of the other people at the Bulma's party knows who Beerus is, and Vegeta has no time to tell them. (They assume Beerus is some friend of Vegeta from space. Which is dumb because Vegeta has only been a "friendly" person for a couple of years at this point, and none of those years was he in space to our knowledge.) So Vegeta has to make sure that nobody at the party annoys Beerus, or else they'll all die. It's actually some good stuff as we get some good comedy and some actual character development out of Vegeta. The prideful Prince of all Saiyans has to swallow his pride and act a fool for the sake of the planet. It's good stuff. In the original movie we get to see Vegeta singing and dancing to a ridiculous bingo dance to distract Beerus from his rage, while here we see him being an over the top sushi cook. Both are good but...come on, bingo dance has this in the bag. No contest.

Oh, something that I forgot to mention is that the Pilaf Gang are in this arc. The reason I forgot is because they really don't contribute anything to the story here. We learn that apparently at some point off screen they managed to find the dragon balls and wish to be younger, but they didn't specify how young and were turned into babies. So now they've naturally aged back up to about Goten and Trunk's age. They basically act like Team Rocket from the Pokemon anime, which is fun to see in a Dragon Ball series, but my problem is that the tv version cut out all there best scenes from the movie! They cut out the weird sudo-romance with Trunks and Mai, they cut out the hostage scene with a drunk Great Saiyan Man. Why? I mean we were trying to extend the film out the twelve episodes anyway, and heck that Trunks Mai romance thing actually comes up later in Super, and only makes sense if you saw the Battle of Gods movie, which I don't think is even cannon anymore. (Though I do like this one scene later on of Whis and the Pilaf Gang just kinda chillin'. It's funny seeing the most pathetic Dragon Ball villains and one of the most powerful characters actually getting along.) Anyway, back to the main plot Vegeta is actually doing a good job of making sure that Beerus stays happy. This is until Beerus decides that he wants to try some pudding, but finds out that Buu is hogging all of it. Buu refuses to share and this enrages Beerus to the point of him deciding to blow up the planet. If there's no Super Saiyan God AND no pudding then what's the point, right? At this point all of the Z fighters start to realize that this Beerus guy is trouble and try to take him on, only to be very quickly clobbered. Bulma actually get's so fed up with all this crap that she slaps Beerus and tells him that he's ruined her birthday party. This causes Beerus to back hand Bulma, and this infuriates Vegeta. It's a touching and awesome moment showing how far Vegeta has grown since his first appearance as a sadistic killer. (Though this scene drags on way to long in the series.) Vegeta channels his anger. He refuses to stand by and watch Beerus walk all over him and his friends. Vegeta's rage is so strong that it actually causes him to get stronger. Stronger than even Goku! Vegeta has finally surpassed his rival for the first time since the Cell saga and is about to unleash all of this new found power on Beerus head on! ...It goes as well as you would expect...

(But hey, at least you landed a few hits onto him Vegeta. Be proud of that.) Beerus is about to destroy the Earth, but he decides to give our heroes one more chance. If they beat him at rock-paper-scissors he'll spare their planet. Oolong is chosen to represent our heroes. Finally, after like four hundred combined episodes it's time for Oolong to enter the spotlight once again and save the Earth. Also THEY SPEND AN ENTIRE EPISODE ON ROCK-PAPER-SCISSORS! OH MY GOD! AND YOU WONDER WHY MOST PEOPLE PREFER THE MOVIES!? Anyway eventually Goku shows up, healed from his previous battle. Goku decides that if he doesn't know what a Super Saiyan God is, he can just use the dragon balls and ask Shenron about it. Beerus decides to let them, and we get a funny bit where even Shenron is scared by Beerus. (Though is this really a surprise? I mean even King Piccolo could kill him.) Shenron tell the legend of the Super Saiyan God, and how it can only be achieved by six pure hearted saiyans combining there power, and channeling it into one host. This is a problem though, because even with the half saiyans they still only have five. But threat not, as Gohan's wife Vedel reveals that she is pregnant, and thus the baby is a quarter saiyan. It's a long shot, but they might have a chance to actually pull this off. They all hold hands together, and channel all there power into Goku. And then, Goku starts to transform and OH MY GOD THIS FRICKIN' TRANSFORMATION IS CARTOONISH LEVELS OF OVER THE TOP! It goes on for almost five minutes and has everybody glowing, the sky turns gold. It goes from day to night and back again.(Somehow? Seriously is that effecting the rest of the Earth?) It rains, it snows. It's all just to over the top. Especially since (outside of the manga) we NEVER see this form again after this arc. It really feels just like padding.

Anyway, after what feels like an eternity we finally see it. We see Goku's new form, the Super Saiyan God! I really like the design. After Super Saiyan 3 there was no way to make the Super Saiyan form buffer and with more hair, so like Super Saiyan 4 in GT they chose to reinvent the look. I like how it's slimmer, and the hair isn't as spiky. It works because it's reminisce of his base form, which works as this is suppose to be a new starting point for Goku. I like the way the red looks, and I like the touch of his eyes and even his skin turning red as well. It's really cool.

Goku and Beerus begin to fight it out, though Goku has the disadvantage as he is still getting use to his new god power. Here Beerus's personality reverts into something a lot closer to the film version, which is very welcome. Old Kai and Kibito Kai monitor the fight and note that it doesn't seem like Beerus is actually trying to kill Goku, but rather teach him how to use his new found power. (After all, all Beerus wants is a rival who can challenge him, so why not help Goku reach his full potential.) It's really cool to see that element in the fight, as Goku and Beerus take on the student and mentor roles. The fight very quickly escalates into upper orbit. Then, as one of my favorite online reviewers Mr. Movie Sunday would say, "They punch for a bit then they're mates." There are pros and cons to both the fight in the movie and the fight in the series. In the film the fight, in my opinion, feels a bit to brief due to the movies time constraints. The series has the opposite problem though, as the fight seems to drag on in some points. It's weird to say that, considering that the fight only last about five episodes, which is nothing by the standards of the Z. I think it might be because the fight mostly takes place in one location, and the quicker tone of Super makes all the stuff that seemed common place in Z just feel a bit off from a pacing perspective. I wish maybe they spent maybe one less episode on the fight, and devote that episode to more of Beerus at the party. The film's fight also brings up the idea that Goku actually doesn't like using Super Saiyan God, because he doesn't like the fact that he needed other people's power to obtain it. (Though the Spirit Bomb is just fine I guess?) The theme is touched on in the series, but only in one line or two. Which is a shame because I actually think it's an interesting look in Goku's character. The series also adds some additions to the fight scene that weren't in the movie, and these additions are very hit or miss. Some things are really cool, like how Goku actually mimics the three attacks that Beerus used to knock him out in there first battle. There's also this really powerful scene where Goku is drowning that really shows what Goku's character is really all about and has AMAZING voice acting from Sean Schemmel. We also get a great scene of the prideful and arrogant Mr. Satan begging for Whis to stop the fight, not because of he's scared for his own life, but because he's scared for the life of his pregnant daughter. It actually really touching. There's a scene of Piccolo getting up in Whis's face that's pretty bad ass and episode fourteen in general is awesome, feature voice acting and even animation that comes close to rivaling the film, which is beyond impressive for a tv budget. But then there are some less good changes. Like there's this bit where the shock waves of Beerus and Goku's fight are so powerful that it might destroy the universe, and even does destroy some random planets. This is weird because, while Beerus is stronger than anybody we've seen fight in Super afterwords, he's not using full power in this fight and Goku get's way stronger in later arcs. So how come the universe is becoming torn apart here but not say next arc when a stronger Goku is fighting Golden Frieza? Why is this needed? The fate of the Earth is already at stake, we don't need more risk. Also we get Vegeta dramatically staring up at the fight without talking FOR THE ENTIRE FIGHT! Why? what is this suppose to be indicating? YOU CAN'T SEE THE FIGHT VEGETA, THERE PRACTICALLY IN SPACE!

(D-Don't worry. That planet was PROBABLY not inhabited...Goku PROBABLY didn't just accidentally help commit a global genocide...hehehe.) Anyway, as the fight goes on we learn that Goku's Super Saiyan God transformation is only temporary and he loses the power half way through the fight. However, he absorbed the godly power, making it a part of him. I honesty don't like this, cause it just confuses things on how this power thing works. Is base Goku now stronger than Super Saiyan 3 Goku was before this arc. And if so, are all the Super Saiyan forms stronger? And how does Blue work? Why couldn't God just be a transformation like it is in the manga, it's design is so cool! (Sigh) Well whatever. So Goku is now fighting Beerus in Super Saiyan Classic, but with the power of a god. But even so Beerus still out classes Goku and actually beats him! Yeah, that's honestly something really interesting to see. Goku isn't able to actually beat the bad guy, even with a new form and all of his talks about breaking his limits. Beerus is just to far out of his league. Beerus heads down to Earth, ready to destroy the planet, and there's nothing our heroes can do to stop it. Beerus however, so tired from the fight, ends up falling asleep right as he fires the death beam and just happens to miss the planet. Or at least how it appears to be. What we learn afterwords is that Beerus never fell asleep, but rather chose to spare the Earth on purpose, as he finds the two Saiyans on that world most interesting. Probably regrets telling Frieza to blow up planet Vegeta now, huh. (Oh yeah, apparently Beerus did that. You would think that that MASSIVE Revelation would impact something, right?....nope.) In the movie, Vegeta demands that next time they use the Super Saiyan God ritual on him, while in the series Goku suggest doing it, Vegeta refuses, as he believes that he doesn't need some cheap ritual to shortcut his way to more power. I honestly like the series version better here, as I think it's more befitting of Vegeta's character. So yeah, that's where the arc ends. Do I recommend it? It's kinda tough to say, honestly. Some of the new scenes that are added are really cool, and are definitely worth seeing. But there is also a LOT of padding, with scenes like the Super Saiyan God transformation and the rock-paper-scissors game that are a drag to get through, and only exist to help turn this hour forty minute movie into a fourteen episode saga. If you love Dragon Ball and really want to watch those really good moments, then you'll probably enjoy this arc. You'll just have to slog through some REALLY drawn out padding in order to get there. This arc isn't bad by any stretch, but in my opinion it just doesn't top the movie. The movie is much quicker, has better animation due to having a theatrical budget, and for ever good scene they have in Super there's a good scene in the movie that they cut out. (Seriously, they cut out Beerus break dancing!) You can watch the Battle of Gods film and then just jump into the rest of Super without missing much. HOWEVER, if you do chose to skip over this arc, I do recommend you watch the first two episodes of Super anyway. These are the "filler" slice of life episodes, and there amazing. One of the best things about Super is the slice of life episodes where we get some fantastic comedy seeing the Dragon Ball gang in pretty much sitcom situations. The first episode is about Goten and Trunks trying to get a wedding gift for Videl, and the second episode is about Vegeta going on vacation with his family. Yeah, remember that one line from Z where Vegeta says that he'll take Trunks to an amusement parks if he's able to hit him? THEY BRING THAT BACK! Akira Toriyama forgot about who Launch was, but remember that! THESE WHERE THE FIRST TWO EPISODES OF DRAGON BALL AFTER ALMOST TWO DECADES OF WAITING! AKIRA TORIYAMA IS A MASTER TROLL!

(I don't care how many flaws Dragon Ball Super has, this one images justifies it's existence to me.) So yeah, that's my review of the Dragon Ball Super "Battle of Gods" arc. Not as good as the film, but still with some really good elements in it. But what do you think of this arc, or Dragon Ball Super in general? Leave those thoughts in the comments down bellow. I'd love to start a discussion, even if we don't see eye to eye. Also tell me what you think of this review. I hope to review every arc of Super as the series airs on television, so I really hope you all like this review. If you did like this review than please fav, follow, and comment and have a great day! (I do not own any of the images or videos in this review all credit goes to there original owners.)

https://www.deviantart.com/joyofcrimeart/journal/Dragon-Ball-Super-Battle-of-Gods-Arc-REVIEW-678214005 DA Link

#Dragon Ball Super #Dragon Ball #Anime #Battle of Gods

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magicbat · 5 years

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A Mortal Engines Review/Outrage

Here thar be spoilers.

When I saw that Mortal Engines was finally getting a film, I was super excited. I finished the last book 7 years ago and always thought they had great cinematic potential. The film has finally come and, while as a standalone film it’s fun - and don’t get me wrong, visually gorgeous, basically exactly what I imagined it would look like - it doesn’t do the books justice. Like, at all.

I understand that there’s only so much time in a film and there is a lot that happens in the books, so naturally some things were cut or changed - things that immediately spring to mind:

the fairly natural introduction of Bevis Pod at a more audience-appropriate time so that he’s actually a character of reasonable significance when his time in the spotlight comes.

The removal of Chrysler Peevey - the pirates are a fun diversion but don’t contribute a huge amount overall to the plot at large I guess.

Less time spent in Batmunkh Gompa (erroneously referred by characters in the film as Shan Guo even though that refers to the land BEYOND the wall and it appears on a MAP in the film as Batmunkh Gompa so???????)

Equally, some things of real consequence were cut or changed to the significant detriment of the film:

Magnus Chrome being completely sidelined as a villain and all of his maniacal power being transferred to Thaddeus Valentine. Chrome instead just kind of appears and is ineffectual for two scenes, when actually he’s meant to be a key message carrier for the book - weapons of mass destruction are a BAD idea and you shouldn’t play with forces you don’t understand.

Continuing with the role swap of Magnus and Thaddeus, Thaddeus was absolutely a villain in the books but he was a bit more sympathetic. The one thing that the film DID get right is that Thaddeus was ambitious - but mostly because he wanted the best for Kate, not because he actually particularly cared about London. He was an out-country scav who had something that Chrome wanted (also touched on in the film), which afforded him the life of luxury he never could have had otherwise. He had a charade to keep up that got well out of hand.

Literally everyone hating Tom on Airhaven for being a Londoner. Yes, there are some people who are suspicious of him, but aeronauts are the driving neutral trade force of the world. Captain Kora is a warm and friendly man AND an anti-tractionist - the whole point of it all was to give Tom a reason to question Municipal Darwinism and challenge his convictions and stereotypes that AT’s are vicious and savage.

And then, there’s the absolutely unforgivable sins...

The extent to which London survives. London is meant to be obliterated by the meltdown of Medusa, taking the vast majority of its population with it. Chrome and Thaddeus are meant to be two sides of the same coin when it comes to facing their demise as a result of their hubris - Chrome weeping that he “only wanted to make London strong,” and Thaddeus clutching his dead daughter, the one thing he wanted to keep safe, watching the Jenny Haniver fly away with his other daughter, the one he treated so badly, and coming to terms with the fact that he did some pretty shitty things and that, really, a lot of this was his fault. And then dying in a fire. London was meant to be absolutely obliterated by MEDUSA and its survivors were meant to learn from its mistakes. More on the absolutely nuking of the series later though...

K-Division. This is meant to epitomise the degree to which Chrome’s reign had gone absolutely batshit. The creation of stalkers from Deep Gut prisoners was meant to be absolutely abhorrent and show how totalitarian and authoritarian Chrome’s madness for power had become. And speaking of K-Division and stalkers...

Shrike. Oh my God, Shrike. So, fair play to Jackson et al. - Shrike looks and feels absolutely fantastic in the film. He is terrifying, utterly unstoppable (but is apparently weak to a boot to the chest? More on that in a sec...) and exactly as uncanny as he is supposed to be. Also his war-shriek? Terrifying. Kudos there. But his characterisation is soooooo lacking and flawed. Shrike was meant to be an aged relic, relatively harmless unless you got in his way, to the point that he actually lived on a settlement. He helped out, didn’t need food and generally kept to himself, so what was the problem with him being there? While he was distinctly no longer human, he was, to a degree, able to think rationally - and the film does, I will concede, do a reasonable job of showing that it is specifically his dangerous obsession and confusion around Hester that activates the insane killing machine part of his head. Ok, sure, in the film he has his own little microtown and he takes Hester on board, exactly like he’s meant to, and they did a good job of showing how something deep within him is stirred by Hester’s ‘brokenness’ and his latent memories of his own child. But here’s the real problem I have, back to that point on the chest-boot - I was so incredibly disappointed to have Shrike die half way through the film? He’s the fucking NARRATOR of the ENTIRE SERIES! He survives THOUSANDS OF YEARS, experiencing and relaying emotion in a way that is so brilliantly uncanny and murderous and complex that... anyway. They done fucked up Shrike by having him be a metal Freddie Kruger for about half of the film and then suddenly and inexplicably having Anna Fang kill him with a This Is Sparta kick. Absolutely ridiculous.

Oh, but Shrike’s leitmotif? Brilliant. Absolutely terrifying musical queue. Good job on that one.

And last of all...

Hester. You knew this was coming. What have they done to you, Hester? First of all, ok, maybe it was difficult to give her a literally disfiguring face scar. But she is meant to be literally broken. She’s meant to have a crooked smile and one eye permanently locked in a scowl. I told myself that it was fine and that they only changed that to make Hester a bit more relatable and main-character material. It was a long shot and a vain hope but hey, I hoped to be proved wrong.

Hester is meant to be an insecure, selfish, murderous and wild girl. And they did a reasonable job of showing this at the very beginning of the film. They even included the bit where she robs Tom! Nice! But then they make her far too nice far too quickly in the subsequent sequences. And Tom doesn’t even like her all that much to begin with! More importantly though, Tom and Hester’s relationship develops much more organically in the books. Again, screen time, yada yada, but there’s so much important stuff! Hester’s desire for revenge is so strong that she sabotages so much just to get even an inch closer to Valentine, which really pisses Tom off when he’s trying to show her what is, to him, a more reasoned point of view. Hester has no qualms with killing - Tom does. In fact, unless I’m much mistaken, Tom scarcely raises a hand to anyone. Ever. In fact, one of the main things that happens is him getting shot and developing a heart condition as a result. Tom is absolutely a pacifist, give-peace-a-chance kind of guy, who may fantasise in the same way that many young people do about going on grand adventures, but never actually WANTS to kill anyone. Part of his arc with Hester is that, while he disagrees with a lot of the things she does, he never stops trying to see the good and shows her humanity and compassion. Again, Batmunkh Gompa was glossed over, but Tom is meant to buy Hester a new scarf, showing acceptance of her insecurities and empathy, if not agreement, with her situation.

All of this is for the sake of making Hester a bland dull tough girl Katniss Everdeen young adult protag. She is not a hero. She is not a good person. She is deeply flawed and scarred and traumatised... but she’s still human! As valentine is trying desperately to save Kate, Hester comes to help, and the book highlights how confusing this is for her!! I could go on and on about how the main characters of the book are so badly butchered by the entire thing but I’m acutely aware of how long this post is already.

So that’s my verdict. It’s a fun film. It’s a good watch. But honestly, as a huge fan of the books, it’s left a sour taste. The ending even conveniently ties everything up in a half-arsed bow that destroys the entire overarching plot of the series through to the 4th book. I suspect that they had so little faith in the committee-approved screwup of a script that they made sure there was no precedent for a sequel.

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solo-trio · 6 years

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The Fate of the Empress

Kylo x Reader ( Ch. 1)

A/N: This is the start of a story I hope to continue in the future. This story does and will contain STAR WARS THE LAST JEDI SPOILERS so please don’t read if you’re trying to avoid them.

Words: 1.5 K

Warnings: Spoilers, none

Draw near, the dread does- Ch. 1

You lounged on Kylo’s couch, waiting for him to return. Your fingertips mindlessly scrolled through different news sites while your eyes retained nothing they read. It was minutes now before the man you had come to adore so much would return. The events that had recently transpired had him on a more dangerous ledge than you ever thought he’d reach. Due to the defeat to the scavenger and the destruction of Starkiller Base, your significant other was weighed down by more negative energy than any being should endure. His explosive personality damaged more than just control panels these days. Half driven by a selfish need to be near him and a want to do everything in your power for him, you had placed yourself at his convenience every moment you could. More times than not you were grateful to be there to stop him from whatever his mind had convinced him was the only way to recover from the sting of snokes words. You found today to be another example of how abused Kylo Ren was at the hands of his so called master.

Your neck snapped up, eyes bright, to greet Kylo as you heard the door to the chambers slide open. His completely obliterated mask was the first thing you noticed. It shed pieces with each of his heavy steps. This was the last thing you’d expected to see. You knew how much Kylo had relied on his mask and the shambles of metal it was presently spoke volumes to you about how Kylo must be feeling on the inside. You recalled all the beautiful memories between you two that the mask had appeared in. It was similar to a security blanket for him. Wanting the brooding prince to feel as comfortable as possible you had welcomed the cold menacing mask. Knowing you would never see him proudly wear it again saddened you.

Worried for your lover, you rushed up to him. The holopad falling to the floor rung out, echoing across the silent room. A message you fully intended to ignore binged through the speakers. Kylo had stopped himself in the middle of the room,halfway to you. His eyes looked down but not at the mask. His exhaling was even and his face appeared unwrinkled by any signs of distress. The only thing giving him away was the hummingbird speed of which his empty hand was shaking. You stood close to him, but far enough so he could breath. “What happened”, you looked up at him, whispering, hoping to coax an explanation rather than suffocate him with a demand for an answer. You inhaled a deep breath scared of what may erupt from him. With this breath, your nose tickled at the slight smell of smoke, something charred. You peered from his face to his clothing and ran your hand over the fabric on his chest feeling slightly crisp material. “That fucking-“ you turned and went to kill Snoke. Your fury burning your throat with every puff of your chest. Your fierce instinct had you out for blood for anyone who dare harm your commander. Snoke had recently been abusing Kylo far more than before and you were sick and tired of watching the love of your life endure it. You would’ve traded anything to take the pain for him, instead of him. Before you could even take two steps Kylo grabbed your arm.

“Don’t be stupid” he advised from behind you. You couldn’t kill Snoke. You had no power and no plan but you knew in that second, that if you could have had your way, you would’ve enjoyed watching Snoke tortured in the most horrid ways possible. Realizing Kylo was right and there was nothing you could do against the powerful force user, you fell back to the reality where you did have power. You pulled Kylo into a tight hug. Tears fell from your eyes for him.

“I’m so sorry. It’s not right. You should never have to- I should’ve “ your thoughts sputtered out of your mouth incoherently. In that moment, Kylo enveloped you with his arms and shared your hug. He had never had anyone feel so much for him. While he barely spoke four words you had already shown your weakness for him and Kylo never felt more complete. You never assumed Kylo was in the wrong and you fought for him, against all the things he endured. He held your shaking frame as all the emotions he had bottled up inside were illustrated by you, felt by you. He never once thought of you as disposable but it was moments like these he would only think of you as his soulmate and nothing less. “It has to be soon. I can’t take seeing Snoke treat you this way any longer” you reached up to caress Kylo’s unscarred cheek. He smiled sadly upon you, reassuring you that the time was soon for the future to begin. He dropped his mask and it crumpled into itself as it hit the solid, shiny, black ground. The urge to bring up hurrying the plan pushed at your mind strongly, but Kylo had endured enough today. There would be tomorrow to address it. You and your knight deserved a night of unwinding while intertwined together. After you brushed back his hair trying to make light, you let a hint of your playfulness reveal itself. “Well at least now I can see your face all the time” you rose to your tiptoes. Kylo furthered your journey towards his lips by lifting you gently at the waist and holding you tightly to him while chuckling at your joke. After your heartbeat went crazy and Kylo had gifted you with a another show of affection, He broke from the kiss.

“Supreme leader is planning something. I can’t tell but I feel it may give me an edge against him” Kylo divulged. Watching him, you saw his gaze far off and searching. You deduced he was looking for a string to hint at this plan he mentioned. While this news should have propelled you on towards the hope of success, your stomach plummeted. You couldn’t explain the acid sloshing in your stomach or the bile rising in your throat but the moment he said those words you were pulled into shackles of hesitation and fear.

“No” you said, suddenly out of breath. At this he set you down and stepped back moving to go about undressing and getting ready for bed.

“What’s wrong? My connection to the force tells me it will be the change we need to reign” he asked, eyebrows arching while his hands slid his cape from his shoulders. You agreed with him in your mind but everything in your body felt leaded down by his optimism.

“Kylo… Snoke planning something… that’ll help us? That doesn’t sound right at all.” you stood in the middle of the room trying to make sense of your bodies reaction. Kylo approached you agreeing with how odd it sounded but he asked you to trust him. Once those words poured from his lips, you forced all negative feelings away and welcomed a soothing calm to your veins. You trusted him. His tie with the force you always believed was strong. You supported him. So you smiled and expressed relief, which in turn, encouraged him.

You lived out the night. Kylo in a much better mood than during his arrival to your chambers. You laughed, talked, and cuddled with him until he fell asleep. You looked over his features lovingly, praying no more harm would come to him. You placed your lips against his cool freckled skin. Recalling your ignored message on the holopad, you got up. Kylo mumbled, reaching for you as your warmth deserted him. You squeezed his hand, promising a quick return. Scooping up the tech, you sat on the couch briefly. The message was from your best friend. He never messaged you this late or when he knew you were happily stuck to Kylo’s side. The message was delivered and a notification appeared on your screen though. You clicked open the message from General Hux. The words didn’t signal any distress but the existence of the message confirmed to you the need of your presence. You laid down as close to Kylo as possible to try to warn away your stress. Despite your intent to sleep, Your lover’s words echoed through you. “Supreme leader is planning something” your minds voice repeated until a familiar dread had reappeared deep in your soul prolonging your sleeplessness to the level that Kylo experienced.

He woke up after two hours while you were still coherent. He clung to you as if your form would soon turn to sand and slip through his grasp. “I’ll make everything right I promise” he whispered to you, struggling with the reality that he had not yet made your world perfect.

“I’ve never believed anything else” you comforted him, knowing how often he doubted himself. You both sat silent, staring lovingly at the other. Your fingers brushed softly against every reachable inch of the others skin into the hours of the approaching dawn.

#kylo ren x reader #kylo ren x oc #kylo ren #star wars imagine #star wars fanfiction #kylo ren fic #star wars fic #star wars tlj #the last jedi #star wars the last jedi #the last jedi spoilers #the last jedi fic #tlj spoilers #sw:tlj #sw tlj #sw the last jedi #kylo ren imagine

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comic-movieheroesranked · 7 years

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Cinematic Comic Characters Ranked! (Year 2006) Final Part

Another list makes it’s debut! 2006 six was a slow year for comics with only the debut of V for Vendetta and Superman Returns, as well as the sequel X-Men: The Last Stand. Because of this I decided to add two movies from previous years the slipped passed my radar. From 2003 we had The Hulk and from 2004 we had The Punisher! Here’s the TOP 20!

*SPOILERS AHEAD FOR ALL MOVIES HIGHLIGHTED ABOVE*

20. Joan (The Punisher)

"Good memories can save your life."

The other new neighbor in Frank's life, she tries the most out of the three to break Frank out of his shell. She tries to get him to open up by talking about her own past, mainly her reputation with horrible men. After Frank deals with one of them I think she starts developing feelings for him, but I knew that nothing was going to happen because he still was mourning the death of his entire family, including his wife. Still, she's there for him and helps him in every way she can, like a good neighbor should.

19. Finch (V for Vendetta)

"One thing is true of all governments-their most reliable records are tax records."

Finch started out on Sutler's side, the Nose of the government aka the investigators. He was in charge of finding V and bringing him down. But the more he investigated, the he started to realize that his government is corrupt. Sure, V uses him like a pawn to help bring down Creedy and Sutler but he still understands what needs to happen, which is why he lets Evey trigger the train.

18. Kitty Pride/Shadowcat (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Who's hiding? Dickhead!"

Kitty has been a cameo in the last two films and is finally a main member on the X-Men team. A love triangle starts between her, Bobby, and Rogue early in the film, which is mainly what her character arc is about throughout the movie until the final fight. She proves herself during the fight, taking on the Juggernaut herself and saving Leech from being killed by Magneto and the Brotherhood.

17. Jimmy Olsen (Superman Returns)

"Welcome back, Mr. Clark!"

Jimmy is such a nice guy and just someone you need around because his positive and often silly attitude is just the perfect way to lift someone's mood. He helps Clark adjust to his old life again, completely unaware that he's actually Superman. I'm surprised no one put both their returns together, honestly. He's the perfect sidekick and helps Clark out a lot, whether he's in a costume or not.

16. Deitrich (V for Vendetta)

"You wear a mask for so long, you forget who you were underneath it."

A comedian that understands his government is a power-hungry dictatorship. Unlike V and his followers, Deitrich stands up to the government the only way he knows how, by mocking them on his show. However, this gets him beaten and taken away by the government and ends up executed for his 'betrayal' to Sutler and the government.

15. Charles Xavier/Professor X (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"And because the fate of many will depend on a few, we must make the last stand."

He was a father figure to many students at his school, including Jean. When she returns back to life, Xavier knows that the reason for it is because she's been possessed by the Phoenix. He tries his best to lock the Phoenix away in Jean's mind, causing doubt from Wolverine, but in the end the Phoenix is just too powerful and ends up obliterating his entire body. Xavier is able to transplant his mind into the body of his brain-dead twin brother, however, and manages to survive.

14. Jean Grey/Phoenix (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Save Me."

Jean Grey is back from the dead and has become the Phoenix. In all honesty, the main plot should have been about the Phoenix destroying everything NOT everyone trying to protect/destroy the mutant cure. But even as a sub-plot, she showed she could be very dangerous. Right off the back she killed Cyclops and Professor X and in the final battle she kills hundreds of people and nearly destroys on entire island before Wolverine gets the real Jean to break through before she dies.

13. Richard White (Superman Returns)

"Were you in love with him?"

Richard is such a great guy. Like, SUCH a great guy, but you can tell that he just isn't the right guy. He's not to blame, of course, it's hard to compete with Superman but man did he try. He loves Lois, he raised Jason as if he was his own son, and he showed a lot of bravery flying that plane in the storm so I can see why Lois will try to work it out with him but I just don't see it being endgame with Superman back in the mix.

12. Bobby Drake/Iceman (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"We're not kids anymore."

I really liked Bobby in this movie, he ended up taking on a lot of responsibility. He's still very respectful and assuring with his relationship with Rogue, despite her doubts of him wanting to be with her. There's an obvious connection between him and Shadowcat but he doesn't pursue it at all, instead he's just there for her as a friend, which she clearly needs after Xavier dies. He also joins the X-Men team to fight off the Brotherhood, achieving his popular 'Ice Form' when he faces off against Pyro. At the end he still chooses to be with Rogue, even if he completely disagrees with her decision to take the cure.

11. Howard Saint (The Punisher)

"He's asking for help. So let's help him."

The man in charge of the biggest crime family in Florida, Howard Saint. He blames Castle for the death of his son and thinks he settles the score by killing him and his entire family. Too bad Frank doesn't stay dead. He comes back as The Punisher and slowly starts to destroy everything Howard holds sacred in the most brilliant way. Instead of doing it himself, he has Howard do most of his dirty work, letting his paranoia get the better of him as he kills Quentin and Livia, cuts ties with his other businesses, and basically drives him insane until everything he worked for goes up in flames. It isn't long after that Frank shows up and kills Howard once and for all, tying him up to the end of a car as it drives in a bunch of exploding vehicles.

10. Lois Lane (Superman Returns)

"Clark is...well...he's Clark."

I personally loved Lois Lane's journey in this movie. She was basically abandoned by Superman after falling in love with him and had to figure how to move on without him. Slight problem: she was pregnant with his kid! Still, despite all that, she really overcame her grief and climbed on top as one of the world's best reporters. Her career was flourishing and she was happy with Richard and Jason so naturally things had to get complicated with Superman's return. He brings back a lot of conflicting feelings Lois had dealt with years before and, even worse, also brings his enemies out of hiding. This puts Lois and Jason in danger, until she realizes Jason inherited Clark's powers and now has to include Superman (who she still doesn't know is Clark Kent) into her life so he could be a father to her child.

9. Ororo Munroe/Storm (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Wherever we may go, we must carry on his vision. And that is a vision of a world united."

This is the closest we got to the Storm in this trilogy being as badass as the Storm in the comics. She shuts down any ignorant thoughts that claim mutants are a disease that need to be cured and finally has fight scenes where she proves just how badass she can be with her powers of weather manipulation. At the end of the film, after Xavier's passing, Storm now takes up leadership of the school and the X-Men team, having proven to being the most qualified to do so.

8. Valerie (V for Vendetta)

"With all my heart, I love you."

Valerie was my favorite character and I teared up hearing her story. Her whole life she fought for her right to love who she wants and when she found her partner, Sutler had to take over and ruin everything. Yet, despite losing the woman she loves, despite being taken herself and tortured to the point of death, she still finds it in herself to show her love to the inmate locked up next to her, V. He uses her note when he simulates torture on Evey, who is so touched she decides to keep the letter. Her unconditional love is what keeps both V and Evey alive and is what helps keep them fighting for justice.

7. Hank McCoy/Beast (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Oh, my stars and garters."

Beast was the best newcomer to appear in the film. His diplomatic personalty was hilarious to see collide with Wolverine's bash and snarky one. He climbed his way up the political ladder to secure himself a position where he can fight for mutant rights, but finds himself returning back to the school once the threat of the cure and Magneto start to grow. During the final fight, the true beast comes out where he dishes out some kick ass combos against the Brotherhood and is the one who delivers the cure to Magneto, turning him human and ending the war.

6. Evey (V for Vendetta)

"But I will never forget the man and what he meant to me."

I could never understand why it took so long for Evey to join the cause. This was someone who saw her parents and her good friend get taken away for sticking up to a corrupt government, yet she still cowardly tried to save Lilliman- A CHILD RAPIST, I might add. She was frustrating to watch and as fucked up as it was for V to torture her like that, it truly did help her reach her full potential. Her rebirth scene in the rain was such a contrast to V's in the fire. While his represented hate and vengeance, hers represented truth and justice, something that was lost at the beginning of the film.

5. Clark Kent/Superman (Superman Returns)

"You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father and the father becomes the son."

Honestly, I get why no one thinks Clark Kent and Superman are the same person. There's sucha huge change from Clark's clumsy personality to Superman's charming one. And let's face it, the world is abundant with guys with black hair and blue eyes. Still, I'm surprised no one noticed that they both mysteriously returned at the same time. It was great seeing the Man of Steel saving the day again, and he got really creative with his powers. X-raying the debris to dust before it landed on the civilians was pretty damn clever if you ask me. I'm surprised he didn't reveal his identity to Lois after finding out he's Jason's father, maybe they were going to save it for the sequel that never happened.

4. Erik/Magneto (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Who will you stand with-the humans? Or us?"

One of the best villains in film, Magneto returns to ignite his ongoing war with the humans. It's hard to disagree with him when literally every bad point he has against humans is proven to be true literally two scenes later. He knows a huge war is coming and only stops his momentum briefly to mourn Xavier's death before recruiting the Phoenix as his ultimate weapon. Magneto shows his incredible power by ripping off an entire bridge off the ground as well as teaming up with Pyro to rain down blazing cars on his enemies. However, his failure to recognize Wolverine as a threat ends up coming back to bite him in the ass and he ends up turning human, the thing he despises most. Although, it doesn't look like the effects of the cure will last long as Magneto is able to wobble his very metal chess piece at the end of the movie.

3. V (V for Vendetta)

"People should not fear their governments. Governments should fear their people."

The anarchist that brought down an entire dictatorship by himself. Sure, he had help along the way, but V orchestrated everything like Beethoven would with one of his masterpieces. Was he sometimes unnecessarily dramatic? Absolutely. Did he commit wrongful actions himself or set up wrongful deaths? Yes. Did he do everything with the intent on what's best for the people of London? Who knows. He had a vendetta and along the way he freed hundreds of people from a corrupt government, all while doing it in a mask that is now a symbol for revolution.

2. Frank Castle/The Punisher (The Punisher)

"Frank Castle is dead. Call me...The Punisher."

Frank Castle spent most of his adult life fighting to bring down bad men and women. Mostly undercover, he finally retires from the FBI and plans to spend the rest of his life in London with his family, but it's never that simple. We watch the man lose his entire family in a plot of revenge made by Howard Saint and his family. So with nothing to lose, Frank Castle decides to do the same. This man makes Howard kill not only his wife, but also his best friend before exacting justice for his lost family. He decides that the law isn't always justice and decides to take on murderers, rapists, and other monsters himself, giving them the punishment he think fits.

1. Logan/Wolverine (X-Men: The Last Stand)

"Then we stand together. X-Men...all of us."

Wolverine has come out on top once again! Now permanently staying at Xavier's school Wolverine tries to adjust from being solo to now being a team player. He doesn't get the luxury of time to do that when suddenly Jean is back his life, apparently now being controlled by the Phoenix. He tries his best to reach out to her, but his failure only leads to the death of Xavier. In the final battle, Wolverine finds himself leading the team against the Brotherhood, managing to finally defeat Magneto before going against the Phoenix. Despite finally getting Jean back in control, they both agree on what needs to be done. With tears, Wolverine kills her so that the threat of the Phoenix dies with her. It's the biggest growth we've seen of Wolverine in the trilogy as it's the first time he truly considers himself as part of the X-Men and becomes one of the permanent leaders of the team.

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adelelorienne · 7 years

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Unbroken

An FFXV fic. My humble attempt to fill in the story gap near the end of Chapter 9, and to reconcile with my emotions. (Update: Ep Ignis has now blown this scenario rather spectacularly out of the water, but I’m still keeping it up for reasons.)

SPOILERS for Chapter 9 and 13. Thank @ffxv-etc for editing help!

-the evening of Leviathan’s defeat-

"Healers are busy. They did the best they could."

The truth was that they were overwhelmed. The devastation to the city had been immense and the injuries many, though by some miracle, there were no deaths. Yet reported, anyway. The evacuation procedures had gone mostly without a hitch.

Mostly.

“Will you be all right?”

“I’ll manage.” Ignis’ voice was strained, teeth gritted in pain.

Prompto winced. He chewed the corner of his lower lip, forcing himself to remain still so as not to disturb Ignis further with his fretting. He tried not to stare, but he couldn't help it.

Ignis’ skin was raw beneath the bandages; the wounds that bled to the ridge of his cheekbones looked nasty. Almost like...acid burns, Prompto thought. Chemical burns, in addition to the lacerations. Maybe deliberate. He felt a sudden surge of something intensely hot inside himself, but it just as swiftly plummeted into a hollow, sickening pit in his gut. He held his tongue. It wouldn't do to prod Ignis for answers, especially now and probably not ever. It was why none of them spoke of their own losses and grief for Insomnia. Everything was an acceptable sacrifice when it came to Noctis’ safety and well-being. There could be no other focus.

Ignis answered Prompto's unspoken question anyway. "It doesn't matter." As expected. "Where's Noct?"

Prompto hesitated. Sucked in his breath, glanced toward the windows. He failed to keep the worry out of his voice. "Hasn't shown up yet. The...the tidal wave. He and Luna were out on the docks."

"I see." The falter in Ignis’ voice was slight, but Prompto marked it. Despite Ignis’ seemingly effortless ability to remain calm and focused during stressful situations, it was obvious that today’s events had pushed him to the edge. His composure was frayed, but, nonetheless, it remained. Ignis was attempting to handle this as he handled everything else: almost too well.

Prompto gently took one of Ignis' shaking hands, quelled the tremor in it after a moment. He didn't know how he wasn't trembling, himself. Keep the faith. Cling to hope. Smile despite the fear and make sure Ignis could hear the sun in his voice.

"I'm sure he's fine,” he insisted. “Luna, too, y'know! They're together. They did it... You should—" he barely caught himself before the rest of the words could come spilling carelessly out.

—you should have seen him up there, Iggy. He was shining.

"You should rest. Gladio will find them. He will."

Ardyn found Noctis first.

He'd almost missed him, the limp figure washed ashore on one of Altissia's many smaller, outlying islands. He seemed only another piece of wreckage on the rocks below; the strewn debris of yet another devastated capital. It didn't help that Noctis’ attire was that particular shade of black that seemed to allow him to pass with little notice through almost every location he visited. Here, in the colorless expanse of water and rock and threatening sky, it was downright camouflage.

"Ahh..." The smile in Ardyn’s voice was almost pitying. Or something else entirely; he couldn't tell the difference anymore. All his smiles were the same, a twitch and unfeeling stretch of his tired mask. So worn out. So many battles. He'd been forced to take the long way here, after all. He hummed to himself; his unending patience was about to pay off.

"Let's make certain you're not dead, shall we?”

There was barely room enough on the isolated strip of land to set down his airship, but he was too curious to simply pass on by—like a cat eager to resume the chase, compelled to prod its motionless prey in hopes that it was only feigning death. And after Noctis’ spectacularly exhausting show of strength in felling Leviathan, so much spirit energy coursing through such a slight mortal frame...he really should make certain.

Best be more careful with your vessel, he chided the stars. Don’t want to break him too soon.

Though it had been greatly pleasing to watch. From a distance.

His prey did not stir at his approach. Noctis lay motionless at the edge of the water, his back pressed into the small pebbles of the rocky beach. The tide caressed his fingertips, longing to pull him back in. Dark hair spilled across his face in random, broken patterns like bleeding ink—reminiscent of the daemon scars that marred Ardyn's own reflection whenever he looked into the mirror.

Flattery will get you everywhere.

He studied him a moment in silence, then noticed Noctis’ gloved hand, clenched tightly even in unconsciousness, concealing something against his palm. Protecting something.

Ardyn laughed suddenly. “Oh, I see you've finally got the ring! Good, good."

You'll be needing that.

Bored now, he prodded Noctis’ shoulder with the toe of his boot, then nudged the side of his face, turning it toward the water, exposing the pale line of his throat.

Still no response.

He bent over him. Noctis’ breathing was so shallow as to be nearly imperceptible, but the pulse of life still fluttered weakly beneath Ardyn’s fingertips. Hypothermia. Or shock. And being half-drowned, of course. Hmm.

Such a pretty throat... So open and vulnerable, begging to be torn out.

Ardyn lifted his fingers, allowed them to hover just above, half-crooked and distorted like claws. This miserable gray place would benefit from a vivid streak of color, wouldn't it...? Oh, it was tempting. Achingly. The things he could do to Noctis....

Patience.

He sighed. This king was a child yet, heedless of the true machinations at work, blind to the blazing star-trails etched by a millennium of turning skies. Oh, but Noctis would learn soon enough. When he opens his eyes and discovers that his beloved Oracle is lost to him. When he realizes that his safety net is gone. Will he crack? Expose a weak seam into which Ardyn can drive another blade? How many daggers will it take before that rift is forced wide enough for darkness to spill in?

All in good time. Time will make better sport of Noctis. Teach him the taste of blood. There will be understanding in those wide eyes when at last he tears Noctis' soul apart.

And despair. Oh, despair is the reason for all of this.

Ardyn withdrew his hand. He would watch the death of hope soon enough. Revel in the quelling of the light. And maybe, for a brief moment, be sad about it. This will be the final time. The last son. The Crystal's Chosen King. It will all end with this pathetic, sodden heap lying at his feet.

He straightened. Curled his fingers around the handle of the dagger tucked within his sleeve. Its blade was still sticky with the blood of the Oracle. He held it out over Noctis' face, allowed the now falling rain to purge the stain for him. Crimson drops fell onto Noctis’ face and neck, mingling with the web of his hair before the water swept even that trace of color away.

"Such a waste," Ardyn lamented, hissing. "Sweet oblivion... Wasted on you."

You don't even know what it means to want it.

He had been like Noctis once...so long ago. A prince, gentle and selfless, groomed to accept the terrible burden placed on him so that countless others might live. His memory flickered now, emotion distorted beyond recognition or naming. He had even been beautiful, once. Wasn't he, still? An illusion now, of course, but no one seemed to notice. No one ever gravitated toward him of their own volition.

His breath drew a snarl now, vicious and brief. The love and devotion constantly lavished upon this clueless child should rightfully have been his in exchange—no, in gratitude—for his own noble sacrifice! What other recompense for immeasurable suffering?

Heh. That was old news.

He felt tired of a sudden, empty. No—not empty. Countless personal horrors screamed in that void inside his chest. His shoulders slumped, jealous hatred burned fierce enough to warm his skin, crack it. He never felt the cold. He was always cold.

Contradictions. He thrived on them.

A low, rumbling sound on the water now—he tipped his head toward it, slid his eyes along the horizon. Someone was coming.

Of course someone was coming. Probably one of Noctis’ insufferably loyal companions; they were never far. Probably the loud one, whose muscles scarcely tolerated a shirt. Or the lying one, who handled mechanized weaponry with a familiarity glaringly at odds with the fumbling flake of a photographer he pretended to be.

Must be nice to have so many people care about you.

The world had long since ceased to care for Ardyn Izunia. And now, he longer cared for it.

"Farewell, Noctis," he crooned softly as he walked away, slinging the water from the edge of the blade before tucking it away, clean and ready for the last remaining brat of House Fleuret.

"Enjoy your slumber, while it lasts. We will meet again very soon. And oh...just maybe, in time, you will look forward to our meetings. I will be the only family you have left."

His smile was shrouded in his own darkness. All his smiles were the same.

The imperial airships had long since withdrawn. At least, so far as could be seen or heard in the expanse of growling storm. The noise of the yacht engine obliterated certainty of that fact, but what further reason would the empire have to linger here now? Unless they were also searching for Noctis and Luna. Gladio aimed to beat them to it.

His intense eyes followed the too-bright sweep of the searchlight along the shore. Noctis had to have washed up somewhere. Gladio simply would not accept the alternative. His heart beat a little faster as the moments passed, each full of nothing.

And then, he saw something. It might have been his imagination, but he would take no chances. He looked back and up toward the crewman manning the searchlight, speaking more harshly than he meant to.

“Pull the light back!”

Yes, there was definitely a figure lying there, dressed in black. The chances were good.

He saw and felt the wave swelling beneath the yacht. Ignoring Cid’s raspy shouting, he acted on impulse and dove over the side. He was a strong enough swimmer, and once he got close enough to the shore to be sure it was Noctis, he turned into a veritable athlete. Unceremoniously, he manhandled Noctis further up onto the sand, away from the reach of the crashing water. He put his ear to Noctis’ chest, struggling to discern Noctis’ breath and heartbeat from his own.

Relief flooded through Gladio, strong enough to break his voice. "You're still breathin'."

But those breaths were far too shallow, infrequent. Gladio wasn’t convinced that after every terrifying lapse they would start up again; there were few other signs of life to bolster it.

Time to fix that.

He knew the strength that resided beneath Noctis’ deceptively fragile appearance to be resilient and unyielding when roused. And he meant to rouse it. Flipping Noctis over onto his stomach, keeping him suspended just above the ground with one arm, he thwacked him soundly with the flat of his hand, just below his shoulder blades.

“C’mon!”

After the third time, a jerking response. A feeble, anguished noise spilled out of Noctis and he began to vomit up an impressive amount of water. He choked and coughed with the effort to breathe, sucking in ragged gulps of air. Gladio shook him by way of encouragement, just hard and annoying enough to provoke a measure of defiant resistance.

There it was—that familiar defensive flail. Progress.

He hoisted Noctis upright again, hoping to persuade him the rest of the way back to consciousness with another good rattling. Noctis hated to be touched without permission, particularly when it was meant to rouse him from sleep. A faint shimmer of blue magic preceded his instinctive attempt to evade further assault. Gladio grunted and grabbed for him again.

“Seriously, c’mon!”

But that was as far as it went. Noctis slumped against him and could not be riled again. The battle was over. But, he was breathing now, more steadily; shivering, his body now fighting the cold rather than surrendering to it.

Good enough.

There wasn't time for anything else. No shelter here, no dry place save within the rooms of the Altissian dwellings that had withstood the Hydraean's fury—Titan's intervention could be thanked for that, having diverted the majority of the tidal wave's force around rather than through the heart of the city. Gladio trusted that Ignis and Prompto had the foresight to secure one of those rooms, and to have a blazing fire already going.

Shouting to Cid above the noise of rain, he scooped Noctis up into his arms and made for the yacht.

The harshness of Gladio's shout cleared the hallway of any dazed and bewildered refugees wandering about the First-Secretary’s estate. "Coming through!"

Prompto got to his feet immediately, opening the door just before Gladio reached it. Ignis almost managed the same. Prompto caught only a glimpse of Noctis' disheveled hair and dangling limbs as Gladio made straight for the fire, swerving last minute to avoid colliding with Ignis.

"Report!" Ignis demanded.

Teeth clenched with cold, Gladio was unwilling to speak at present. He laid Noctis down by the fire, then grabbed Ignis by the wrist instead—gently, despite the urgency. He pulled Ignis down into a crouch beside Noctis, placing his outstretched, uncertain hand onto Noctis’ chest.

Ignis hissed, shifted his weight to his knees in order to use both hands. He could determine enough by feel and the input of the others that Noctis was not badly injured, aside from scrapes and bruises. But he was so desperately cold.

“Have neither of you heard of hypothermia??” he thundered.

Then he turned on Gladio. “Find someone on staff, find anyone, and tell them we need at least six blankets. Prompto, help me get these clothes off of him. Quickly.”

Prompto knew that now was not the time to get hung up about any part of that demand. Terrified of what Ignis would do to him if he didn’t, he sprang into action. He felt nauseous the whole time. This was a nightmare, and far, far from the triumphant outcome he had imagined for all of them at the end of the day. He tried to help Ignis, too, guiding his hands just a little toward efficiency.

Predictably, Gladio didn’t screw around about getting the blankets. Prompto had only just finished throwing the last of Noctis’ clothes into a sopping heap when he returned.

Useless now, Prompto hovered about, making worried noises like a nervous bird, until Gladio irritatedly shoved him back toward the couch. Prompto took the lower ground then, sitting on the floor, and then crawling over to Noctis at the first clear opportunity. He positioned himself at Noctis’ head, crossing his legs and serving as a better pillow for Noctis than the stiff carpet. He wasn’t sure how else to help.

After a moment, he made a hopefully-relevant observation. "What's he got in his hand?"

Gladio grunted, having noticed that himself. "I dunno, but he's got a death-grip on it. Even I couldn't pry his fingers open."

"The ring, I imagine," Ignis said absently.

A moment of uncertain silence. Prompto was afraid to voice his next question, but he spoke for everyone when he did. "L-Luna...?"

Gladio didn’t answer for a moment. Then he shook his head. There’d been so sign of her, and he hadn’t been the only one looking.

Prompto's eyes widened in disbelief. Then sorrow crumbled his face. His voice became uncharacteristically soft, the exquisite sound of his heart breaking. For Noctis, and maybe a little for himself. “Oh, Gods…”

The room was silent after that.

Except for the miserable shivering sounds still coming from Noctis.

They did stop, eventually, though they seemed to last as long as the night. Only when he was still and quiet again, and moved into the bed, could anyone else get to sleep. And only because they couldn't help it.

Ignis slept on the bed beside Noctis, providing extra warmth as well as being able to monitor him directly. Any twitch or restless stirring that might prefigure a return to consciousness or even the onset of fever, and Ignis would wake immediately. Though, Ignis’ sleep was hardly deep or restful: it was a broken, painful thing, a confusion of darkness and fire in which he swam alone. Waking was preferable—though the darkness remained, he could focus through it to tend to Noct and the others. But Noctis lit no such beacons of fuss to guide Ignis out of this searing fog. He lay still and silent, his breathing interrupted only by an occasional hitch.

Dawn brought no respite save an end to the wretched half-sleep for each of Noctis’ companions.

Gladio paced restlessly, wearily, the heavy tread of his boots defying his efforts to remain relatively quiet. He muttered beneath his breath, as though discussing important matters with himself and impatient to carry them out.

It was Ignis’ customary habit to rise at first light and see to necessary preparations for the day. Such a routine was so ingrained in his life that even now, despite his nerves and body wracked and exhausted beyond measure, his internal clock remained on point.

There was no sound at all from Prompto, which concerned Ignis slightly. The boy had a particular pattern of sighs and soft snores when he slept, which rather mimicked the frequency of anxious, excited or obnoxious noises he made while awake. With effort, Ignis struggled to raise himself into a sitting position.

At his movement, Gladio’s pacing stopped. Those heavy boots came toward the bed now. “Take it easy, Specs,” he rumbled.

Perhaps they should rethink that nickname.

“Where—” The broken, gravelly rasp of Ignis’ own voice startled him. It was so hoarse as to be mostly gone. He fell silent a moment before trying again.

“Has Prompto gone out?”

“No, he’s still here. Awake, too. Mostly.”

Gladio moved to the nearby dresser that held a tray with a pitcher of water and accompanying glasses. He poured a glass for Ignis and brought it to him, then placed the entire tray on the dresser next to the bed, making sure that Ignis could hear what he was doing.

“Thank you,” Ignis said. It was genuine, but terse. Perhaps water was not the exact type of drink he would have preferred at present.

“Sure. D’you need anything else?”

“No.” Ignis drew the word out like a sigh. His shoulders slumped and his head fell forward. Apparently the effort to maintain his posture required more energy than he currently deemed prudent to expend, all things considered.

Gladio gently took the glass back from him when he feared Ignis might topple over, with an anticipatory glance to judge where Ignis might land if he did. He could feel Ignis’ irritation at this, and decided to back off the role of nursemaid. Whatever Ignis needed right now, it was not to be worried over or attended like an invalid. Ignis did the tending to. That was an unspoken rule Ignis had subtly enforced himself, but a rule nonetheless.

A moment of silence followed, uncomfortable and decidedly loud.

“Listen, Iggy,” Gladio began, hesitant and apologetic, as though the harm that had befallen Ignis were due to his own failure to shield him.

“Don’t,” Ignis stopped him, firmly. His voice was softer now, stripped bare of any formality that might have veiled his emotion or weariness. “There was nothing you could have done.”

Another moment of silence, longer and more emphatic than the first.

Gladio cleared his throat, but his voice still came out grim and agitated. “What next, huh?”

“We stay with him,” Ignis admonished. “As a glaive should.”

“You stay with him.” The harshness fled Gladio’s tone, leaving it subdued. Obviously, Ignis was in no condition to further aid relief efforts for the city and returning civilians, but that was not what he meant.

For as long as Gladio could remember, Ignis had been at Noctis’ side. The young prince’s closest friend, steward and advisor, devoted to him on an intuitive level that had frequently earned him the (usually affectionate) nickname: “mother.” Though Gladio himself was also particular about Noctis and had his own ideas about how best to help and protect him, he well knew that in the times when Noctis felt the full weight of the world, it wasn’t to him, or even to Prompto, that he turned. Gladio acknowledged that now.

"It has to be you, Iggy. To tell ‘im…."

"Yes, of course." The softness remained in Ignis’ voice. Perhaps concern and love had, for the moment, eased his pain and frustration. But it was probably mostly sheer exhaustion.

Gladio laid a hand on his shoulder, gently enough. Whether Ignis was grateful for the sympathy and support or else too tired to swat him away, the gesture went unchallenged. Maybe it was Gladio’s imagination but Ignis might even have leaned into it a little.

They would all pull through this, as they had through every battle and trial hurled at them thus far, and must continue to do. The success of that hinged on being committed to each other’s well-being as much as to Noctis.’ Their king needed and relied on each of them in a different way, and expected every single one of them to be there when he opened his eyes every morning.

Well, maybe not this morning.

With a final glance at the motionless pile of blankets that was Noct—a rather familiar sight under most other circumstances—Gladio sighed. "I'm goin' out. Maybe there's breakfast to be had somewhere. I’ll bring somethin’ back if you want.”

“Don’t bother.” Ignis doubted he could eat at present if it were forced upon him, whatever quality of fare Gladio managed to procure.

“Right.” He raised his voice slightly. “Prompto, you coming?”

Prompto didn't respond to that, his tired, absent gaze directed at the cold light streaming through the window. He was still sitting where he had collapsed—on the couch across from the bed—still covered in grime and clothes that had dried stiffly in places. He hadn't even attempted to fix his hair. Now that was worrisome.

"Hey Blondie!" Gladio roused, a little more loudly. "Could use your help."

Prompto snapped suddenly out of his reverie. "R-right! Coming!" he responded automatically, not even knowing what Gladio had asked. For a brief moment he seemed lost and disoriented, swaying wearily to his feet. His eyes fell first on the bed and Ignis, then on Noctis.

"He’ll be fine," Gladio assured, deliberately vague at first as to whom he meant. He tried not to sound as cranky and tired of reassurances as he felt. Time to get outside and find some other task to occupy his mind, something difficult to throw his weight and skill into. No point continuing to mope about here. Ignis needed his space as much as Gladio needed fresh air. Seriously.

“U-uh yeah!" A smile flickered valiantly at the corner of Prompto's mouth, but didn't linger. "Of course he will."

Until he wakes up.

No one said it.

But he will wake up.

In the coming days very little changed. Noctis remained oblivious to the world, and Ignis kept vigil at his side. Food and water was brought, left on the table. Prompto hovered in and out of the room; Gladio came indoors only at night to sleep and tend to the fire. Umbra found them, as he always did, and left the notebook. Ignis placed it on the bed within Noctis’ reach.

And it will hurt. He will need us now more than ever. All of us.

Ignis knew that to falter now in his duty to Noctis was unthinkable, even should his sight never return. He will mend faster than Noctis. He was good at mending, and at exploiting the overlooked opportunities in every crisis. As he had taught himself the skills that best prepared him to care for Noctis in situations mundane or dire, so he could also learn to navigate this shade drawn over his world. Perhaps it was not inconceivable that Noctis' own magic would aid him, mark for him the dangers he could not see. With discipline, his other senses could be honed to compensate, to attune to that magic and to his surroundings.

There was no other alternative. He had taught Noctis to rely on him. Of the many things that had troubled and worried Noctis’ young mind, the idea that Ignis might not always be there for him had never been one of them. Ignis was not about to introduce that concept to him now, no matter what.

No matter what.

A slight rustling sound on the bed caused him to toward it, listening carefully. Blankets no longer covered Noctis; it was warm enough by day that Ignis always removed them. The blankets were in severe need of laundering, anyway.

The rustling came again, and there was no doubt now that Noctis had finally begin to stir.

Ignis steadied himself. Though his wounds yet burned raw, he reached up to carefully remove the bandage covering his eyes, replacing it with the only unbroken pair of glasses he still possessed—the sunglasses tucked away in his pocket. A familiar weight, and steadying, despite their function now being mostly aesthetic. He had put no less effort into achieving his usual immaculate appearance this morning, with a little help from Prompto, than he had any other morning prior. Someone in this group had to offset the image of street-punk with a respectable degree of grooming, afterall. And, he did not wish to alarm Noctis more than necessary, or to add to the grief that would soon rise like a second swell to wash over the bereft young king.

He took a breath at the same time Noctis did, as though just surfacing from deep water, rose to his feet as Noctis struggled to push himself upright. He turned toward him, imagining that Noctis blinked against a light that Ignis could now only feel.

But the light Ignis truly felt wasn’t the sunlight streaming through the window.

Noctis was awake.

#FFXV #final fantasy xv #final fantasy 15 #Ardyn #Noctis #Ignis #Prompto #Gladio #MY DEAR IGNIS #I can only hope to art all the things I mean to #And write the things I cannot art

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renzywenzy · 7 years

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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Review

*Spoiler Warning*

Holy shit. That was a damn good movie and a fine addition to Lucas Arts Disney’s Star Wars film series. Allow me to preface my review by saying that I have started writing this just a few short hours after watching the film but who knows when I’ll finish? I’ve digested it as much as I can and I’ve taken down notes of all the important things I wanted to talk about and now I believe I’m ready to start this review. That out of the way, here is my review of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

So to start with this movie, I’d actually like to point out all the stuff that I did not enjoy first and then go to the positives. I don’t have much criticism so I wanted to get that out of my plate first. So here are the negatives.

Cons:

1.) The lack of compelling characters. This is probably my biggest gripe with the film. I was never able to fully invest in these characters emotionally. That’s not to say that these people have bad characterizations or that their dull. It’s just that they lack the emotional depth of other main characters before them. This is most likely because the movie itself doesn’t give them enough time to fully develop. Let’s take a look at some of these characters.

Felicity Jones plays the main protagonist, Jyn Erso. Jyn is the daughter of the former Imperial scientist and now kidnapped farmer Galen Erso (the mastermind of the Death Star) and her initial actions are motivated by the chance to meet her father again. Problem is I didn’t really care and that’s because the plot didn’t give enough time (or any time at all) to strengthen that father-daughter bond. That’s why when they finally meet each other again and Galen is killed, it unfortunately doesn’t evoke any emotion and it actually felt a bit flat. I really really wanted to care about her journey on being with her father again but I realized if I had to try so hard then the movie isn’t executing that aspect right. One of the main issues with Jyn is that her problems with the Rebellion aren’t explored enough. It’s just one of those aspects about her that’s mentioned in one or 2 scenes but not expanded upon in any sort of meaningful way. She reminded me a lot of Han Solo. Like Han in his initial scenes in A New Hope, Jyn is someone with a criminal background who does not side with anybody and only does things for her own benefit. That is until she becomes part of much bigger cause. This was an awesome aspect of her. However, even though she is bad ass (really bad ass by the way), she just lacks the charm of Han Solo and she doesn’t go through the same carefully handled character progression that Han goes through which is a huge shame.

And then there’s Cassian Andor played by Diego Luna. Now with Cassian, I liked his inner struggle a bit more. His problem was that he kept doing bad things for the Rebellion and that he felt as if these actions are not justified. This could have made for some really good character progression but it’s just that his inner problems were solved just as quickly as they were introduced. Again, if the film had highlighted this aspect of him more than it did then Cassian would be a better character overall.

Honestly, I would’ve given these issues a pass IF we would see more of these 2 in future films but seeing as how they died in the end (like I said, spoilers) then their characters’ potential growth is pretty much over and done with.

2.) The story is nothing to talk about. Or at least nothing really exciting to talk about. After watching this film, all I could really say about it was that it was about finding the plans to the Death Star. That particular aspect of the narrative is strong but nearly (key word) everything around it feels pretty flat. There was just not enough life or any of that “wow” moment in the story. Any scene where I’m supposed to show emotion just does not work. It’s never given any weight so sadly it’s never earned. For example:

In that scene where Jyn is listening to a holocommunicator message from her father and she starts breaking down. Yeah that scene. I didn’t really care, it didn’t emotionally affect me in any sort of way, it didn’t make me want to see her reunite with her father and I found that scene pretty manipulative. Before you say I’m some sort of insensitive asshole, I have genuinely cried in films before but for those emotional scenes that had a lot of build-up and where the emotional payoff was earned. Same can not be said for most of the “sad” scenes in this film. Yes, there were characters here who I did like (and even love) but I still didn’t care for their deaths and we’ll get to those characters in a little while.

3.) The first act of the film is choppy. This is more or less piggy-backing off of what I just said about the characters not being given enough time to develop. 30 minutes into the film and I felt like it was all over the place. Introduce a character, skip, introduce another character, skip, sprinkles of exposition here, skip, introduce another character, and skip. There was a lack of focus that hurts the pacing. With issues #1 and #2 mixing together, I found myself asking “Are we supposed to give a shit?” a bunch of times at least in the preceding half. Thankfully, the focus is finally set and established by the latter part of the 2nd act and nearly, if not all of the 3rd act. Which bring us to the positives.

Pros:

1.) Now, going into a Star Wars film means that I had certain expectations. After watching the great Force Awakens, there was a certain magic that I was looking for that’s very hard to explain. What I will say is this: Rogue One offers the same kind of magic but presented differently. What I mean by that it has a darker and rougher tone than previous films. Probably the darkest that it has ever been. There was an image in the beginning that I’ll never forget that I wish I could show. I hope my description can suffice. The main character, Jyn, was being escorted (to prison, most likely) and the Stormtroopers escorting her had dirty armor. If memory serves me correctly, I don’t remember any Clone trooper or Stormtrooper from the originals, prequels, and even Force Awakens look so untidy. They’re usually in mint condition even during battle. But in here, they look like they’ve been through a lot of shit and are just tired. This was an image that showed me that this is going to be a Star Wars film with a dash of grit and for this film, it worked overall. The best part of the story is how the Rebellion/Republic aren’t presented as the heroic bunch of do-gooders that have an unwavering sense of morality. No no no in here they are willing to get their hands dirty and kill people who may not even deserve it. The character of Forest Whitaker, Saw Gerrera (Nice job in tying in this story with Rebels), represents what a radical extremist in the side of the Republic looks like. He’s not necessarily a good person. In fact, the people Jyn associates with aren’t clean cut themselves. They just happen to be a side that’s the lesser of two evils.

2.) Speaking of the other evil, the Empire subplot that focused on the tension between main villain the Orson Krennic (who is a solid bad guy) and the CGI-laden Moff Tarkin (we’ll get to the CGI eventually) was pretty cool. The confrontations between the two men of the Empire were honestly some of the best scenes and it made me care about the villain a bit more. Yeah, Orson is an asshole who throws hissy fits and unfairly kills scientists who did nothing wrong and but seeing him be bullied and taken out by an even bigger asshole - who also takes Krennic’s credit - made me root for him a little bit (at least against Tarkin). Oh and that final scene where Krennic looked at the Death Star as it was about to obliterate the planet along with him was marvelous.

3.) That brings me to my next positive point: The action-packed and thrilling third act of the film. There really is not much to say here except that it’s where shit hits the fan and the glorious blasting and dogfighting begins. The action sequences in these final minutes are so well-done. The rebel wings taking out the 2 Star Destroyers was a thing of beauty and the Darth Vader fight scene (if you can even call it a fight because it was extremely one-sided) was just plain bad-ass. One tiny negative I can point out is the continuity issue with the AT-T walkers. I thought Empire Strikes Back has taught us that tying them up was the only way of taking them down. I first thought that maybe the Empire upgraded their AT-T walkers because of how they were taken out in this battle BUT I remembered since everyone was destroyed by the Death Star, who’d be alive to tell them about the walker weakness? Just a small gripe in an otherwise massive positive.

4.) Donnie Yen as Chirrut Imwe and Aland Tudyk as the voice of K2SO. These two were the highlights of the supporting cast. Yen provides his usual martial-arts badassery as the blind but force-sensitive monk. In fact, his character adds more to the idea of the “Force”. It’s honestly refreshing to see (no pun intended) that this intangible power is present even with someone without the ability to see. This means that there is much more to learn and hopefully, Chirrut Imwe marks the beginning of more characters like him to appear in future movies. Maybe we’ll get a character with no arms at all and yet, still can kick ass just with his/her mastery of the Force. That would be a little silly at first but I believe it will work.

Tudyk delivers a sarcastic brand of comedy that adds layers to droid characters. Although his jokes can sometimes be unnecessary, when they do hit, they hit hard. What I loved most about his character is that he really didn’t have that much character development. Now, I know development is important but the reason I didn’t need it from K2SO is that he is basically an expendable, comedy-relief character. Besides, because Jyn didn’t go through much character progression herself, I’d find it improbable for K2SO to become completely open and warm to her so his ongoing mild surliness was appropriate and consistently entertaining.

5.) The fan service. Now there’s not a whole lot of fan service here like in the Force Awakens but there are just enough to put a smile on anyone’s face if they get the references. Some of them may have felt more forced than others (*cough* R2-D2 and C-3PO *cough*) but at the end of the day, I’d rather have them in than not at all. My personal favorite reference was seeing Cornelius Evazan and his buddy again. For those who don’t remember him, he’s the dude who has the death sentence in 12 systems. It was just awesome seeing him and his deformed face again and with his arm still intact. The biggest fan service here is arguably seeing Darth Vader and his daughter, Princess Leia, again. Speaking of which.

5.) I was a bit iffy about the CGI in this film. Particularly Moff and Leia but after thinking about it and after looking at their digitized selves again, I honestly didn’t mind it. It’s nowhere near as bad as the work done on Han’s head when Greedo shot first and it’s much better than I had initially expected. I honestly didn’t care if it was CGI, it was nice seeing Princess Leia again.

Ok, this part’s gonna get a bit serious. There was something a bit poetic about all this. About me watching this film on the precise day that I did. I had seen Rogue One just a few days after Carrie Fisher’s death (God rest her soul) and seeing Princess Leia at the time of watching meant much more than ever. When I saw her, it hit me and it really dawned on me that she was gone. She was a huge part of my childhood because I had the biggest crush on her when I first watched her in “A New Hope”. There was just an air of magnetism in her eyes and in her voice that attracted me. Not only that, she was really the first badass heroine that I had ever seen in movies. She was a strong woman who spoke to and for generations and for that, I’ll miss her badly. Damn, can you imagine how people will feel watching her in Episode 8?

Overall, Rogue One is a strong entry in the Star Wars mythos. Solid performance from the cast even if the film doesn’t have the engaging characters like a Luke, Han, Leia, Rey, or Finn. It falters somewhat in the beginning but quickly picks itself up and goes all out in most of the 2nd act and in the entirety of the 3rd. While it may lack some of the personality and magic of previous films, it has its own unique depth by adding some grit to its more grounded tone.

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