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jamlally · 4 years

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Memories

This was written for the 25 days of Christmas Challenge that is hosted by @panicfob . The Day 19 Challenge prompt was Figgy Pudding. Figgy pudding is something I very much enjoy at Christmas. It was a family tradition we had that the kids helped make it with my mother/grandmother

Warnings: Some anxiety, fluff, friendship

Pairing: Platonic!Bucky/OFC (Belle Porter)

Summary: One of the Team is having a bad day. Belle finds a way to help them and learns a little more about an old Christmas tradition

With the Christmas season well underway Belle had treated herself to a day off. All of the reports had been finalized and the threat assessments completed. Tony had asked whether she was taking the day to get his Christmas present. She had just laughed and kissed him on he cheek. He didn’t need to know that it was already fully wrapped and hidden away.

She had mostly spent the day down in what was fast becoming her old apartment grabbing items that could really use when she stayed with Tony, which was fast becoming most nights. Of course as with all such tasks she had gotten tied up looking through items and reading bits of books and had achieved a lot less than she had planned on. Deciding that she needed to take a break before really tackling the task, so she headed to the communal kitchen.

Belle had thought that she might bump into a team member or two, but what she didn’t expect to see was what appeared to an explosion of flour and fruit and a crying super soldier in the middle of it all.

“Bucky, oh god what’s the matter?” She hurried to the older man hr hands going straight to his shoulders

“I can’t…” he broke down into even louder sobs

Belle had no idea what was wrong or how on earth to help the man. For a moment she thought about asking FRIDAY where Steve, but looking at how broken he seemed she didn’t want to have to wait.

“Hey Bucky, come on lets get you cleaned up and then we can work on the sides” She took his hand and gently pulled him towards the sink turning on the tap and encouraging him to rinse his hands. While she got kitchen towel to damp down and wipe off his face. The seemingly meaningless tasks seemed to ease the actual sobbing, though the tears still fell. Turning Bucky to face her she raised on her tip toes to plant a gentle kiss on his cheek. When he looked confused she pointed up at the mistletoe and gave him a soft smile.

“Come on and sit down Bucky. Tell me what’s going on”. He let her guide him towards the sofa picking up something along the way. He sat his head dropping into his hands as he drew in a shuddering breath trying to collect his thoughts. Belle just waited sat beside him one hand resting on his shoulder

“I got a call today” his voice was rough and broken “From the home that Becca is in. She, she isn’t having a good day and she was asking for our Ma, and saying it was time to make the pudding”. The tears started to fall and she shuffled a little closer giving his as much of a hug as she could

“I had forgotten about it, until I spoke to her the pudding. Ma would make it every Christmas about now and Becca and I would help her. She was crying and so sad. I said that it was ok that Ma had me do it and I’d bring it down to her. I have Becca’s things and found the recipe but I’ve tried three of four times but I can’t do it. I promised her Belle and I can’t do it. I even looked online and I can’t get one that looks like Ma’s”. The sobs started again

Belle could feel her own eyes welling up but crying right now wouldn’t help her. Moving Belle knelt in front of Bucky both her hands wrapping around his. “Is that the recipe” She pointed to the crumpled paper in his hand. Bucky nodded “Ok so let me see”.

The recipe seemed simple, though she wasn’t familiar with all the ingredients. The steps seemed to make sense but she wanted to check

“OK I think we can do this. FRIDAY find me videos of people making traditional figgy pudding - we need one using the ingredients on this list” Belle held the list up to allow FRIDAY to scan it.

“OK Bucky here’s the plan. You and I will clean up the mess, check we have the ingredients and then we will see what we can do”

Getting Bucky on his feet took a moment but once she assigned him a task he seemed to manage better. She wondered if sometimes resorting to treating him more like a soldier made things easier when his mind was overwhelmed. It didn’t take long for them to clean up the worst of the mess and get everything prepared ready to start again.

“I have found 3 videos that match your request Agent Porter” FRIDAY’s voice broke the silence that they had been working in

“Thank you Friday, and Belle is fine. Bucky lets look at these and see if any of them look like you remember”

Bucky picked the one closest to what he remembered them doing when he was a child and Belle had Friday project it in the kitchen. They worked together pausing the video as they needed and comparing the video with the steps in Becca’s recipe. Eventually the puddings were ready to steam but Bucky stopped her before she could start putting them in

“I need to do one last thing, it’s a surprise.”

Belle smiled and turned her back to give him some privacy. She could hear him rustling about and moving things

“I’m done. Can you help me tie the cloth?”

Belle nodded and helped before the put the puddings in the pots and set a timer.

“How about we have a coffee while we wait and you tell me what else you can remember about Christmas when you were younger, I bet you and Becca got up to all kinds of trouble”

By the time the timer went off Bucky had a smile on his face and was telling her about when Becca had used their mothers best makeup to decorate both herself, Bucky, Steve and the family cat

“Oh god your poor mother must had been furious, how on earth did you get the cat clean?”

“I don’t know Ma dealt with that, but we got dish duty for weeks and I don’t think we could sit comfortably for a week”

They moved in tandem to take the puddings out, setting them to cool a little before unwrapping the smallest one and each taking a spoon.

“You first Bucky. You know what it’s supposed to taste like”.

She watched Bucky scooped a spoon of the steamed desert. Puffed on it and then put it in his mouth. He chewed eyes closed before looking at her with a smile.

“It’s not 100% the same but it’s close”

“I guess that the ingredients are probably a little different now, you know since we’ve changed the way we make things, and I bet your Ma added other things as she thought of them”

“I guess so. “ Bucky rubbed at the back of his neck “Belle I’m sorry you had to see and deal with that mess”

“Hey now non of that - Christmas is hard for a lot of people and I can’t even begin to understand how you feel, whether it’s just memories that were lost, or whether it’s ones that were taken for you”. Belle wrapped an arm around Bucky’s shoulder, squeezing him a little in a side hug.

“It’s ok to feel lost Bucky but the rest of us are happy to be there for you when that’s how you feel”

Bucky looked up through his eyelashes, and she could see that was obviously a little embarrassed about the show of emotion.

“I get that things are different now, but it’s not all bad. It’s ok to let people see that you’re not ok”

Belle watched as Bucky looked back down and seemed to curl in on himself. Belle couldn’t help but worry that she had pushed the shy man too far

“You know I spent a lot of time not feeling anything, or feeling confused and angry. Before that I was scarred a lot, things weren’t easy and the war made everything even worse, but you couldn’t say anything. Now…now when the feelings come it ’s like a panic, I don’t know what to do with them”

Belle rested her head on Bucky’s shoulder “That’s not something that I ever really thought about, it’s not just the world that has changed, but how people deal with what they feel, that must be a million miles away what you knew. YOu’ll get there though Bucky. You’ll find what works for you”

Bucky rested his head on the top of Belle’s taking a moment of comfort “I hope so doll. Sometimes it seems like I’ll never get there”

She felt Bucky draw in a deep breath “You know you didn’t find the surprise”

Belle gave a small laugh “You’re right. So are you gonna share what it is then, or does it have to remain a mystery?”

“Well now that’s asking. I’ll tell you what, if I show you then you need to make one promise and do one thing for me”

“That’s a steep price, but I guess to understand the special surprise in the Barnes Figgy Pudding I will probably be happy to agree, within reason” Belle found herself smiling

“Ok well here it is. in the pudding you hide a few trinkets which all mean something a silver dollar, a button, a thimble, a ring an anchor and a wishbone”

“How on earth did you manage to hide all of that in there?” Belle gestured over to the pudding they had both take a bite from/

Bucky laughed “ Well in the trial one I only put a quarter in it that I had cleaned, the bigger one has all of the tokens in it, I put in ones that may Ma had. They’re silver and my Da had some of them made specially and the others came from their parents. The other small pudding just has a wishbone and a silver dollar in it.”

“That makes it fun I guess, but why put such odd things in a desert?”

“Well they used to mean things about the coming year. The coin made who ever found it the the King or Queen of the meal. If a single man found the button then he would be single for the rest of the year and the same thing happened if a woman found the thimble . The ring was supposed to say that who ever found it would be married, the anchor was supposed to keep you safe and protected from danger and the wishbone brought luck”

Belle looked impressed “Wow that’s amazing, I never knew that there was so much history in a pudding”

“Yeah it was a big thing and people really looked forward to having the pudding and seeing if they got a token. You have to eat carefully and at the end of dinner, people always handed their tokens back to Ma to use them for the next year”

“Thats wonderful, and the bigger pudding is….”

“I was going to serve it after dinner tomorrow. Ma made brandy sauce or custard sometimes, I mean they might think it silly but I really wanted to share it with them….but perhaps ..”

“That’s wonderful Bucky I think that everyone will love it, and you can tell them about what the tokens mean. I think it’s a beautiful thing to share” Belle squeeze him in another hug

“So that’s the promise but what about the last part of the deal?” Belle sat up and poked him in the side “Come on what nefarious deed do I have to complete?”

Bucky jerked a little at her poke pushing his hair out of his face and giving Belle a smile “ Ah yes, it is cunning and most devious. We are going to ….. go and visit Becca in the home and take the smaller pudding to her. I …. I find it harder when she is having a bad day”

“Oh Bucky really? You’re really ok with coming ?” Belle found herself grinning and nearly bouncing in place

“Yeah - I mean I wouldn’t have asked otherwise”

“I would love to - give me ten minutes to clean up” Belle looked down at her messy clothes “Well maybe make it 15”

“How about I meet you in the garage in an hour and I’ll drive us there?”

“Awesome, see you there”. Belle was off leaving Bucky to shake his head in confusion before packing up the puddings.

The trip to the home had gone better than Bucky could have hoped. Becca had managed to remember who Bucky was and she thought Belle was his gal. When he had tried to correct her Belle had stopped him leaning In to whisper “She likely won’t remember me, let her think what makes her happy”. Belle had helped his sister eat her pudding and Bucky had grinned when she told him it was good but missed the dash of cocoa that their mother had always added, and he made a mental note to add it to the recipe. Glancing over at Belle he say her contentedly looking out the window tapping her fingers in time to the music.

“Thank you Belle, for today. It meant a lot to me”

Belle glanced over “You know Bucky, I’d of gone at the the drop of a hat. Your sister is a lot of fun and it was a really honor to meet her”. Belle watched as Bucky blinked away tears

“So tell me, who do you think will get the tokens?”

“Now that’s a question…..”

#panic's 25 days of christmas #christmas #oneshot #fluff

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beneaththetangles · 4 years

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BtT Light Novel Club Chapter 17: Infinite Dendrogram, Vol. 3!

It’s time to dive yet again into the world of Infinite Dendrogram! While the anime adaptation may not have won us over, the original light novels still look to be great, so in we go to volume 3! (By the way, if you have only been watching the anime adaptation, as of the time of posting, the adaptation has stopped just before reaching the material in this volume, so everything here is still spoilers.)

Before we begin the discussion: This novel can basically be divided into two parts: the first part features the “main story” from Ray’s perspective, and the second part features some side stories from other characters’ perspectives. As such, the questions will be split accordingly.

We have a bit bigger of a discussion group this time around: @jeskaiangel and @gaheret are both joining me this time!

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What are your overall thoughts on the main story of the volume?

Jeskai Angel: The first half of this book is basically one big prologue to the next volume — I wonder if it should have just been numbered vol. 2.5 instead of 3. It deals with the aftermath of the Gouz-Maise showdown in the previous volume, and then sets the stage for things to come. Compared to the first couple volumes, the pace is a lot slower and the stakes are much lower. In the Xunyu-Figgy fight it didn’t really make much difference who won, unlike the climactic confrontations with Gardrandra and Gouz-Maise where a lot of lives (albeit tians) were on the line. I don’t hate this part of the book, but I don’t really love it either. It’s fun enough, but it also felt like the Xunyu-Figgy fight was just a needlessly drawn out plot device contrived to provide opportunities for foreshadowing (of which there is a TON).

stardf29: Yeah, I definitely agree that there’s not really anything significant happening and that all this is basically a huge prologue. (I mean, I did say I had trouble thinking of questions, so…) The fights are a nice diversion and a highlight of the battle system outside of what Ray and co. would likely be involved with (and should make for decent anime material for the action fans), but it’s definitely not the high point of Dendrogram.

Gaheret: For my part, I liked the main story, and will go on reading. I find the wordlers-ludos dilemma a quite difficult one, and also quite compelling. Not having read the previous two volumes or having any experience as a gamer meant that everything was quite new to me, yet it managed to give me an enjoyable time. I had to rely on my memories of Stephenson´s “REAMDE” at first, but everything (Masters, kingdoms and geopolitics, monsters, tians, powers, jobs, embryos, ultimate movements, levels of power, money, consequences of dying, death penalty, statistics, interactions, time, tournaments) was explained quite clearly and organically.

I liked the personalities of the main characters (Ray, Nemesis, Hugo, Marie, Shu), and even the minor ones have distinct voices. The international aspect of the VRMMORPG was very interesting for me, too. The focus of the characters who are players on appaerance and theatrics, and often roleplaying, is to be expected given the concept and was a very interesting aspect of it all. As people can change how they look and focus on the impression they want to give, they are for the most part idealized (and creative) versions of themselves. I was in the theatre club in University, and have participated in some roleplaying games and events, so the psychology of the performers is an aspect which I´m definitively interested in.

It is mentioned, for example, that Ray´s brother is a rich NEET in real life, while he himself knows in his head, but rejects in his heart, that this is a game. Certainly, to have a young prince of the Hermit Kingdom, seemingly a conscious and free personal being, ill from a plague with could kill him for good, or a child-murdering cult like the one described, could make it difficult to log out and, say, go to work or do homework. As for the tournament itself reminded me of Boku no Hero Academia, which I find to be a good thing.

This is truly half gamer, half isekai story, which means there are two contradictory logics for everyone involved. The fact there are ludos, “worldlers”, and even cults involed, and that the tians undoubtly have conscience means that there is something very interesting going on here from a philosophical and ethical point of view (torturing your enemies increases your Grudge ability? That´s kind of messed up). I found myself enjoying also the mysteries such as the real in-game status of Ray´s brother or that of Marie. I was astonished, in particular, for the level of detail devoted to the magic-technology explanation of the game mechanisms and the insights on the tian civilizations and societies, and the impact of the contemporary players in them.

In this volume, we start to see Hugo now as part of the Triangle of Wisdom, with plans to attack Altar, and we see his interactions with Ray given that. What are your thoughts on this?

Jeskai Angel: Ray is a weirdly / amusingly smart-and-dumb protagonist. Sometimes he proves quite perceptive and clever, and other times he’s painfully dense. I particularly noted instances of the latter in this volume, and one example of that is his dealings with Hugo. We the readers have meta reasons to expect Hugo to be important to the plot (his role in vol. 2, being a maiden’s master, etc.). I know Ray doesn’t have the benefit of our perspective, but he still comes across as strangely oblivious. Like, I don’t expect him to be so suspicious that he goes 1-v-1 in the middle of town, but couldn’t you be a little more observant / inquisitive when someone with a potentially suspicious (i.e. hostile) background starts saying / doing suspicious things?

stardf29: Ray’s obliviousness definitely is something. He’s definitely too trusting overall, but perhaps it’s that trust that starts to get to Hugo a bit.

Hugo’s side is more interesting to me, as he’s starting to wrestle with how he will soon be Ray’s enemy. I think that now that he’s actually gotten to interact with a Maiden’s Master like himself, but in Altar, he’s starting to realize how people might get hurt by the plan he’s part of. This is all still build-up right now but it definitely interested me in how it would play out later on.

Gaheret: I like good stories concerning friends at opposite sides of a conflict, such as Marvel´s Civil War. Someone who fights alongside you against a child murderer or an alien invasion might fight you when it comes to questions of what is the best here and now, and there may be legitimate ground for doubt. I think I would have liked to discover Hugo´s loyalties at the same time as Ray, too. I also find quite perplexing how he feels it morally necessary to give his friend a hint about something as important as an invasion, though perhaps knowing that this is a game is a part of it. But again, I have yet to read the second volume.

What do you think of Xunyu?

Jeskai Angel: Xunyu is weird and cool. Wiping out the bandits in the beginning, combined with showing all the deference from the court officials and even royalty, works quite well for establishing that this character is a big deal. Xunyu doesn’t seem to be strictly what we’d call “handicapped” (although I’m not really clear on that point), but she does rely on prosthetic limbs, which is a rather interesting touch to see in a video game, especially one that leans more fantasy than sci-fi. I also loved the hilarious confrontation where Ray mistakenly thinks Xunyu is kidnapping the ambassador, faces them down only to be nearly killed, but then Shu shows up, and the situation ends with Xunyu FLIRTING with Ray!

Tangent: I can’t help but wonder how Xunyu’s odd diction is represented in Japanese — that language doesn’t have upper / lower case letters like English, after all. I was also reminded of the way the easterners talk in the Cooking with Wild Game series; in that case, the translations deploy excessive / inappropriate commas to help convey the feeling that their diction is unusual.

stardf29: Yeah, Xunyu is an interesting one. Particularly once you find out who she is in real life (which is said in the premium-exclusive stories for this volume but not in the normal releases, so I probably shouldn’t go any further into that). She does have some fun interactions with Ray already and I want to see them “playing together” later on.

Gaheret: It is interesting how having to cope with inhuman abilities the human body is not exactly designed for apparently gives high-level players a somewhat inhuman instance. Xunyu, with her operistic behaviour, her violent, gory tactics, her implication in the politics of the Hermit Kingdom (it is very natural for tians to resent these immortal, theatrical, somewhat hedonistic strangers who play such important roles in their society, can avoid physical pain and achieve insurmountable powers in a few years, as the tian assassin narrator of the last story shows) and her monster-like appaerance, may be the most interesting case. It must require a lot of work to step into that role. At least, that cacogen-like way of talking seems to be a product of the talisman, not of her acting.

What do you think of Figaro?

Jeskai Angel: We already knew Figaro was powerful, so that comes as no surprise. What was more interesting to me was seeing how he’s buddies with Shu, and that’s more significant for what it says about Shu than about Figaro. Like, Figaro is super strong, best of the best. And Shu hangs out with him in animal costumes calling him “Figgy.” Especially considering that we also know Figaro is a solo player who doesn’t join parties, for Shu to pal around with him as he does implies something about Shu’s own status within Dendro (which has also been hinted at in other ways, of course). I also thought the reveal that Figaro’s embryo was his in-game avatar’s heart was pretty cool — we’ve heard that embryos can be nearly anything, but Figgy’s is the most creative, outside-the-box one we’ve learned about so far.

stardf29: Yeah, that is definitely the most unique Embryo yet. I’d wonder what kind of Embryo it is but we know that there are more types of Embryos than the ones we’ve been told of, and his may very well be one of those special types.

As for Figaro himself, one thing about him is that he’s one of the most “pure gamer” players we’ve seen so far. Given his dedication to solo play, such that he doesn’t get involved in the country’s wars, and only resolves the player-killer incident earlier because it intrudes on his dueling interests, he actually makes for a contrast with Ray, at least as far as we know.

And yes, it’s definitely quite telling that Shu is so close to Figaro. I’ll say that, as of reading this volume I pretty much had Shu’s identity figured out with all the clues, but since it is still technically a spoiler at this point, I’ll have to bear with it a bit longer…

Gaheret: I rooted for Figaro during the battle. Insanely powerful as he was, his powers had a more human vibe, and as a local champion against the high authority of an Empire, he was the underdog. The heart embryo seemed more integrated and organic than the multiple arms of his opponent, and as taking your enemy’s heart is a very ugly tactic, it was poetic justice that this turned out to be the case. Aesthetically, he being up against faster-tan-eye tentacular, lethal arms and a power that can extract organs, resist, then fight back was a satisfying experience. About his character, I got the sense that he is a veteran around Shu’s age, and more of a wordler.

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What are your general thoughts on the side stories in this volume?

Jeskai Angel: It’s a ton of fun and I enjoyed reading it much more than the first half. The second half of the book is a pair of shorter stories about what Ray’s party members Rook and Marie were up to back in vol. 2 while Ray was off doing the whole Gouz-Maise thing. They turn out to be surprisingly heartwarming tales, as Rook befriends a cowardly slime and Marie befriends a little girl. Each story provides some excellent character develop for its lead, and really helps sell me on Lucius / Nagisa, err, Rook / Marie, being realistic, relatable people (especially Marie!). It’s also cool seeing the author show off the ability to narrate for an extended period in voices besides Ray’s. The way Rook narrates his story feels different than how Ray narrates in the main story, and Marie’s narration is likewise different.

stardf29: I really like these sorts of side stories that look at another character’s perspective in any story, so these short stories are great.

Gaheret: To be frank, I’m not sure they are a good idea. I enjoyed Marie’s, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had happened as a part of the main story: the hints, maybe an encounter with Princess Elizabeth or the nobleman as the protagonist looks for clues about the Death Shadow, an indirect conversation where she reveals the reason why. That sort of thing. I think the sense of mystery about this kind of character is better served by evocation sometimes. It works for me in the case of Shu, for example.

The assassin and the escape artist.

So with this volume, we get the big reveal that Marie is actually the Superior Killer. What do you make of this reveal?

Jeskai Angel: First, Marie’s constant jokes and pop culture references were great. I’d forgotten what a strong narrator Marie is, and now I really want a whole volume told from her perspective. The main story has dropped a number of hints that there’s more to Marie than meets the eye, so a revelation was inevitable. Knowing what goes on vol. 4, I think it was smart of the author to place Marie’s big reveal here, where it can stand out and be exciting on its own, rather than get, err, overshadowed… (see what I did there?) by all the other big things occurring in the next book. The manner of the reveal is also satisfying. Marie’s story keeps teasing us with an escalating series of hints; it’s obvious something is up but the reader is still left a bit uncertain about where this is going, and it’s cool to see all the clues finally come together. One fun hint that jumped out at me this time, that I overlooked on my first read, was that Marie mentions that she used to publish a manga about a female journalist, and that’s what her Dendro character is based on. Later, Marie mentions that it was a shounen manga. And you blink and think, wait, what kind of shounen manga stars a female journalist? The switch to the tian assassin’s narrative POV was also used quite well, facilitating a suitably dramatic reveal — “I’m not using a high-rank job.” We confirm that Marie is indeed the Batman…err, the “Superior Killer,” and get the fun surprise of learning she holds the Superior Job Death Shadow (a super ninja-assassin). This volume really did save the best for last.

Gaheret: I suspected something like that (not specifically the Death Shadow/Superior Killer, but something of the sort) since she recognized the status of Shu. As strange as the tought of a girl wearing a suit and sunglasses in a medieval-like world is, I like Marie´s perspective, focused in the character she wants to roleplay, which is also significant for her as an artist, and a cool, idealized superhero (I didn´t connected this much with Rook or Rook´s story, I must confess). She is more of a “wordler” than Ray, and that is enjoyable in itself: she is acting, he is not, and she finds that interesting. Her decision not to tell Ray of her identity to keep the game interesting makes sense from a gamer perspective, but I wonder if Ray would think the same.

That said, her ironic distance makes me wonder sometimes, as well as the cold-blooded demeanor with which she lets the paralyed killer explode in flames after taunting him, and the conversation between her and the depressed nobleman. In the first case, she may have been protecting the princess, but even so. He was harmless now, and she points out how he could have been put in custody by the guard. Even if one doesn´t believe (against all evidence, at this point) that these are real people, to take life-or-death decisions while roleplaying cannot be helpful. It is a fine line to walk.

Jeskai Angel: I got serious Batman vibes from Marie. She’s got a secret identity, she metes out vigilante justice to street thugs while dressed in dark clothing, and when Marie left the assassin to get blown up by his own bomb, it reminded me of how Ra’s al Ghul dies in the movie Batman Begins (watch the scene at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJCxgt7Qb6k). Ra’s and Batman are fighting aboard an out of control train (which Ra’s set up) that’s about to crash. Ra’s taunts Batman about whether he’s willing to “do what’s necessary” and kill him. Batman answers “I won’t kill you, but I don’t have to save you.” Then he jumps out of the train, leaving Ra’s to experience a fiery crash of deadly flaming death. Is Marie morally obligated to save the man who is actively trying to murder the princess and her from his own bomb (a bomb he set off trying to kill her)? It’s an interesting dilemma, one I don’t know has a clear answer. How far does the idea of loving one’s enemies go?

Gaheret: That’s an interesting question. I would say that when you can save an enemy from a deadly threat without personal risk, not doing so is equivalent to actively killing him. That is, it would be moral when he is a credible and deadly threat to oneself (given her abilities, he is not), or others (maybe this protects the princess?), or a war operative warring against one’s people (as he commands an army, I would say Ra’s fits here). Just as one may shoot a person in those cases, provided that there are no other feasible means to stop him, one may let them burn or explode.

In a medieval world, perhaps it would be also legit as a mean of execution, where there are not functioning authorities (or at the authorities command). As was done with pirates on the sea.

What seems troubling, in this case, is that she explicitly notes that he would be taken care of by the authorities, were not for his stupid act. Plus, she is a player, so I don’t think she has a right to self-defense, if we consider him an intelligent being. But she may not consider him so, as he is an IA. In sum, this world is quite a paradox.

stardf29: If you ask me, the fact that there was an activated bomb in play is more than enough of a threat of danger that I would say that no one in Marie’s position was morally obligated to save that person. I would also say that, even given that players don’t “die” when they are killed, they still have some right to self-defense. After all, the effective 72-hour lockout can be very crippling, especially if there is a tian the player is trying to protect. In this case, Marie is trying to protect the princess, and being out for three days could result in serious danger to said princess–to say nothing of the chaos Prof. Franklin is about to wreak.

But yeah, I believe it is not selfish to prioritize self-protection over risking your life to save someone, if you are in a position where you can potentially save more people by remaining alive. There may be specific cases where someone should risk their lives, but in this case, given that the choice is between remaining alive to protect someone important to the country and risking her life to save a random criminal, I didn’t even see any sort of moral quandary for Marie here.

As for Marie’s reveal in general, it is easily the highlight for me here. Not just in how well it was executed overall, but also how we get to see her own story, how she got into Dendro and how she got interested in Ray.

One interesting thing about her is how her approach in the game seems to be role-playing a particular character of hers, that is largely different from herself in real life. I know this is a popular way for some people to play games: rather than treating it completely like just a game or playing as an extension of themselves, they play as a way of bringing a separate character to life. I think that fits nicely somewhere in between the pure “gamers” of the world and those like Ray who see the world as real.

What are your thoughts on Rook and his side story?

Jeskai Angel: I don’t recall Rook being the subject of as much foreshadowing as Marie, so it makes sense that his story doesn’t have the same kind of major reveal that Marie’s does. If anything, Rook’s story itself serves a vehicle for dropping clues that there are hidden depths to this character. Reading about Rook’s efforts to tame the Mithril Arms Slime, I was struck by how influential The Lord of the Rings is. Tolkien’s fictional metal, originally found only the Mines of Moria (Khazad-dûm to all our dwarven readers), has since turned up in a surprising number of other worlds (including, in this instance, a Japanese work). I wondered if Rook’s penchant for naming his creature after famous actresses is just a joke from the author that implies nothing about Rook himself, or if Rook the character is in-story choosing to name all his monsters after actresses. It was also amusing to be reminded that Rook really does take after Ray a little, in terms of being super smart and observant sometimes, but in other cases (e.g., “Catherine”) seeming oblivious to the weirdness obvious to everyone around him.

stardf29: Rook’s story is definitely fun to see how he goes about his taming work. Also, I am quite amused and curious about his fear of mice… That has to have an interesting backstory to it.

Jeskai Angel: Regarding Rook’s mouse incident, it’s interesting how Babi comforts him, and he says it reminds him of his mother. That feels like potentially a hint about why Rook ended up with the embryo that he did.

Gaheret: I usually do like stories about the bond between master and beast, but not in this case. I guess that when I hear «slime», I do not associate it with the wilderness, the animal life and the balance between the animal nature and the Master’s nature that make the proccess of taming so enjoyable. I’m not a fan of the pimp, neither as a concept nor as it played out here. I like Rook just OK.

What do you think of Elizabeth, the young escape artist princess?

Jeskai Angel: Elizabeth was fun, and I’m impressed at how the translation was able to convey that she speaks in a manner both childish and formal at once. The way she talked really sold me on the idea that this is a person raised as a prim and proper princess…who’s also still a young kid. I wonder how much of that is on the author vs. the translator.

stardf29: Elizabeth definitely seems like the sort of royal girl who feels constrained by her upbringing and responsibility and just wants to get away from it all for a bit. And we really do get a feel for just how “realistic” her character is. I bring that last point up because this week’s episode of the other VRMMO anime, Bofuri, had an example of what NPC sidequests would normally be like, with the NPC spouting pre-programmed lines even when they don’t quite match what actually happened. So yeah, that was a nice reminder of what games are generally like, and by contrast, how realistic Dendrogram is.

Gaheret: On the other hand, I found Elizabeth to be a very interesting character (even if the concept was a bit formulaic, as Marie herself notes). Aside from her being a tian, I like stories about family and royalty, which entails responsibility, danger and also a legacy, and the different traits of the three princesses are enjoyable, while the politics are complicated enough to make this interesting. I liked her better for coming back on her own after the fun. He being in danger made the story feel relevant and urgent.

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Thanks for joining us for our Light Novel Club discussion! Because of how this volume was, it ended up being mainly about the various characters, which I think is fine since Infinite Dendrogram has so many great characters. Let us know in the comments what you thought of these characters!

Next week, we will be announcing our next two titles, so look forward to that! Here’s a quick teaser of what our next titles will be: – Definitely doesn’t drink Dos Equis – Back to where it all started

See you next time!

#Light Novels #BtT Light Novel Club #Infinite Dendrogram #Articles #Author: stardf29 #Author: JeskaiAngel #Author: Gaharet

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sofia-pereira · 7 years

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INTERVIEW: MIKE FIGGIS & JEFF WALL

‘Some months ago contemporary introduced the artist and the filmmaker to each other electronically. What follows is the fruit of a week of emailed conversation.’

1- What do Figgis and Wall say about the interpretation of the art work?

For Figgis and Wall an art work must be experienced and not understood. In fact, according to Jeff, the audience nowadays believes that the experience of art is based on the understanding of the same, yet in the past, people who understood art, simply consumed it intuitively. Thus, it is assumed that people consider that modern art is not yet totally separated from the conventional current of culture and in this way, they try to establish links between the various art forms in order to understand.

Figgis and Wall consider that a work to be art is unique and must respect the principle of singularity.

In painting the singularity specific of this type of art, is related to the following aspect: a painter who paints his painting, will never be affected by mass production. The author of the painting has the authority and control over it, and in addition it has all the necessary tools to execute it. The same applies to other types of art: sculpture, etching, lithography and photography.

Jeff compares photography to painting in the following way: just as in painting, the photographer has almost total control and authority over his project, because he gets his 'virgin' films, just as the painter buys his canvas; The chemicals used in the printing of the photograph are equivalent to the inks. The camera and the enlarger have no term of comparison with the painting, but in any case, the use of such equipment allows the photographer to exhibit his work and which resulted from an activity carried out internally.

In etching and lithography, printing plates do not allow to reproduce an unlimited number of images. Thus, artists who paint, draw or make etching and lithography will never be affected by the mass production of art, except for the mechanical production of their works.

For Jeff, photography that is performed as an artistic purpose, with similarities to painting, should never be submitted copies. If the photographer’s aim is to execute an image through a photograph, then this image must be unique.

For Figgis, the really strong films, for example of Bañuel, Bergman and Godard, they only makes sense for him to see them only once - notion of singularity.

2- What ideas emerge from the reading about the relationship between technology and the process/es of making? What different examples of technology are discussed over the course of the conversation?

Today's technology has allowed artisanal production to be replaced by industrial production. Thus, with new technologies, production techniques have become more effective, for example, from a photographic image it is possible to obtain an unlimited number of copies - mass production. The same applies to painting, that is, from as art work it is possible to make photographic reproductions of the same, using printing machines.

Art films has evolved with the use of new technologies, whether in terms of special effects images, sound, copies of films (among others). The technology in this area also allows for more investments and therefore, increases mass production in the film industry.

The combination of technology with traditional ideas originates something innovative and can thus modify the initial meaning of the project.

Throughout the conversation, Mike and Jeff introduce and refer to new technologies, so Mike, in one of his works Timecode (1999) refers to the use of the computer as an essential tool to obtain certain effects. That is, at the moment when it shows this film, it makes ‘live’ sound alternations, that is to say, by modifying the music in each ‘performance’ when the film is being displayed, it acquires a different meaning for the viewer. Mike adds that the first films he watched in London and Amsterdam got the idea that they were itinerant. However, nowadays with the use of a digital projector and a DVD machine it is possible to place the cinema anywhere. DVD technology allows filmmakers to make as many copies as they want of their projects.

Mike adds another innovation that brings him benefits in shooting. He invented a equipment for digital cameras which prevents the oscillations of the image. He is also a fancier of the tripods in the accomplishment of his projects.

The replacement of analogue cameras by digital cameras, both in photography and cinema, was beneficial, because in addition to facilitate the process of capturing and printing the images, they also avoid the inconvenience of the heavy reel-to-reel ‘portabacks’.

3- How are the different art forms discussed by Wall and Figgis affected by audience? What impact does this have on the artist?

Art forms such as painting, sculpture and photography are usually head at a reduced audience, that is, art lovers.

In cinema, the way the film is run will have more or less public, if a film is performed in a studio (according to Mike), given that it is a slow process, and with a huge waste of energy in non-artistic functions, the public usually shows a certain boredom about this kind of film and of course audiences fall.

For Wall, making a film that involves a soft filming, implies that this activity is more orientated to be classified as artisanal, thus demonstrates that the filmmaker does not have the ambition to reach a high audience.

Wall considers that cinema is an art form, but with distinct contours, of the visual arts (painting, sculpture and photography). In fact a filmmaker who wants to make a film as a visual art form, will encounter several obstacles, namely, in the operation of it. Indeed, only directors who make non-conventional films have the support of art institutions and the art market.

Nowadays, the public or private film industry does not show interest in conventional films, because the people who work in cinema believe that if a movie is considered art, it is not for a large audience, because it is more directed to an audience that appreciates fine art.

So for a filmmaker, one of his major concerns is the ‘contract’ he has with audiences, since it is never considered definitive. And like the big investments that he makes, it only has a return if his work reaches a high number of viewers - his main concern.

Jeff believes there is hope for appreciators of film and video art, that in the future the cinema will be considered an art form appreciated by a large audience.

4- From the discussion, what impression do you get of Figgis’ film work? How might it be defined and what motivates him as a maker?

Figgis prefers to work with a small film crew and a hand-held camera to avoid the stress of big budget. Something curious about him is his fascination with portraiture. The face is something extremely interesting for him.

Figgis’ film work is quite interesting and innovative. In terms of technology, he resorted to new equipment and thus eliminated the tradition of clean imagery and advanced to a more impressionistic and disposable filming. Another aspect that I consider quite innovative in the work of Mike is relative to his work Timecode (1999). It was filmed in real time, in 4 continuous takes and simultaneous actions, of a group of people which their dialogue was very improvised. The screen is split into four segments. Whenever the film is displayed, the filmmaker makes sound modifications purposely, during the course of the film, such changes impact the viewer and the film acquires a different meaning, so the process of visualization of that film becomes dynamic, because if it is seen more than once, it will have different kinds of interpretations.

What motivates him as creator is the whole process of involvement in the creation of his work, namely the processes of creativity, the tools (technology), the processes of disclosure of the work and above all, he made his projects a dynamic process, which gives it the status of an art work.

5- Equally, what emerges from the conversation about Wall’s particular approach to making photographs? Why does he choose to work within photography rather than film and what does this choice offer him?

Wall has a very particular opinion about photography and considers that this can be conceived in the highest artistic levels and with very modest technical resources. On the other hand, in order to attribute to a photograph the definition of artistic creation, such as in painting, sculpture and drawing, it is fundamental that a certain number of impressions should not be made from the negative. Indeed if the photographer's aim is to make an image through a photograph, then he must maintain that single image - the principle of singularity. For Wall, the aspect that he thinks it has more value in photography is when the negative is transformed into positive.

Jeff prefers to work within photography despite having a film experience. So with an academic background in art history, he attended several film clubs and satisfied his curiosity regarding experimental and art films. Upon returning to Vancouver he considered entering the world of cinema, but his films would be related to the description of events, that is, they would have a narrative element. He actually did some video projects with the collaboration of a friend (ended up dying of a serious illness).

Jeff made some investments in the film industry, but concluded that he did not have the conditions to thrive and recover the investment money because he did not have the necessary filmmaker skills. However, Jeff considers that his experience in the field of filmmaking was an asset/advantage to the acquisition of important knowledge about the creation of images, namely in the field of photography.

His choice I think gives him the opportunity of his work to be unique, making it more personal, special and valuable, as it does not become banal. There is the possibility of being reproduced by an unlimited number, just like the movies, which is possible to make copies as many times as the filmmakers want.

6- Where do the ideas come from in Figgis’ and Walls’ works and what role does the making process have in regard to this?

The ideas of Figgis’ and Walls’ works come from the work of the filmmakers Buñuel, Bergman and Godard.

The aspects that Figgis considers relevant in Godard's work are relative to sound and ironic humor. Yet, Wall thinks that Godard's films are not having a good aging, although the structures and forms are fantastic. Wall attributes this to the fact that Godard conceives an iconic treatment of the people he depicts: they are used as signs and emblems of ideas. The ideas are of a political-archaic genre and what catches the attention are the feelings coming from the representation of the beings and objects filmed by the camera at the time.

For Wall, there is another aspect that he finds relevant to his career: in the 70's, when he was curious about the cinema, he used to go to "Filmmakers Co-Op" (London), which were movie theaters that did not work in the traditional way. The size of the film had no importance, anyone could come and go as they pleased, meaning the audience was distant and mobile. Wall considers these types of cinemas as an art gallery, where people visit, enter and leave when they feel is more appropriate.

For wall the contemplation of an idea is as important as the finished product. His elaboration of a concepts ca the years, until he decide to develop it further. So for him is more important the plasticity of the process, where the things transform into something else (which comes from the time he spent on it), than just a instantaneous photograph.

For Figgis the camera is the most crucial connection between the idea, intention and the result, for the filmmaker. During the film making-process all the tools (camera, tape, computer) are the filmmaker for the period of his creation, and they have to be install with the correct significance and seriousness, as should be in the film making-process.

Their works follow a conventional line, which demands from them an enormous artistic and emotional ability for their concretisation.

____________ // ________________

Conversation between two artists: Mona Hatoum and Janine Antoni

(http://bombmagazine.org/article/2130/mona-hatoum)

The reason I chose this conversation between Mona Hatoum and Janine Antoni was because, during this week for my project I had to experiment filming my own body. Mona Hatoum was someone who inspired me, because of her unique style characterized by forms and materials that evoke feelings of intimacy and familiarity. Also, how she let the viewers have their own interpretations based of what they see, regardless the theme of the project, making them into a close and psychological proximity with her work. And specially because the raw, fantastic and repulsive work of Corps Étranger.

Mona Hatoum was born in Lebanon, and comes from a Palestinian family (most of the Palestinians became exiles in Lebanon after 1948). However, both Mona and her family were naturalized in Britain. Hatoum settled in London in 1975 after war broke out in Lebanon.

Curiously, Hatoum does not like to give interviews, nor to talk much about her work, however she is self-sufficient to let the public have their imaginative interpretations, to reflect on their experience, about what all her work means. One of the reasons why she avoid giving interviews is because they usually ask her if her work contemplates her culture: ‘As if I have a recipe and I can actually isolate the Arab ingredient, the woman ingredient, the Palestinian ingredient. People often expect tidy definitions of otherness, as if identity is something fixed and easily definable.’ In this way, for the artist, these questions become self-conscious about how we represent ourselves and what their effects are. The fact that she is a Palestinian, comes from a country of war, the public always expects that her work is related to the struggle and representation of the voice of this people. Based on this, the artist prefers to escape these stereotypes and ideologies and go in the opposite direction.

Her aims in her work are related both to a reflection on her origins, but also to an insight into the power of Western structures in the institutional form (half her life, she lived in the West), especially surveillance.

Regarding the role of art and the role it feels the world of art has cast in the artist:

‘I want the work in the first instance to have a strong formal presence, and through the physical experience to activate a psychological and emotional response. In a very general sense I want to create a situation where reality itself becomes a questionable point. Where one has to reassess their assumptions and their relationship to things around them. A kind of self-examination and an examination of the power structures that control us: Am I the jailed or the jailer? The oppressed or the oppressor? Or both. I want the work to complicate these positions and offer an ambiguity and ambivalence rather than concrete and sure answers.’

Measures of Distance, was one of her video works with very complex, confusing and contradictory characteristics. It is possible to observe through layers the letters written by Haltom’s mother in Arabic, to her own daughter who was in London. In Arab conversations she speaks openly about her feelings, her sexuality and her husband's objection to the intimate observation of her mother's naked body. The text moves over the screen, preventing the full view of the background image, and these are read aloud, in the English language by Mona. The background images are her mother's slides, bathing, which were executed when Mona went to visit her in Beirut in 1981. At that time, feminism considered the representation of women problematic, so they were absent in the representations. The proximity relation (the mother's naked body, shows the relationship of intimacy between mother-daughter) and distance (mother's letter as a means of communication) is visible. With this work, the artist intended to reflect the problem of exile, displacement, loss of feeling and separation caused by war. This contextualized the image (of the mother) within a socio-political context and was against the fixed identity that is usually implicit in the stereotype of the Arab woman as passive or her mother as a non-sexual being.

Based on this work, Hatoum began with other projects where she deals only with a small aspect of her experience, not necessarily having to tell the whole story. Politics is still present, not as a topic, but as experimental. Her political ideas are supported through formal and aesthetic, 'becoming more an open system'.

Another relevant work by Mona Hatoum is Corps Étranger (foreign bodies). The video was performed with the help of a doctor using an endoscopic camera that was used along the surface of her body and into the orifices. - ‘It didn’t hurt at all. I was given a drug that seemed to dull the pain, but I remained completely conscious, and as my insides were being filmed— I was directing the video at the same time.’

The artist designated it ‘Corps Étranger’, for the following reasons: the camera is a strange device that is introduced from the outside; Although we are so close and intimate with our bodies, it still remains a 'foreign territory'; And in the literal sense, also refers to the body of a foreigner. The video of the body is projected onto the floor, where people can walk on top of it, 'entering' the woman's body. It is degraded, destroyed, worthless and even treated like an object. On the other hand, it is the formidable and fearless body of a woman, built by society, as if the body of the circular projection on the floor could 'swallow' the viewer. - ‘It activates all sorts of fears and insecurities about the devouring womb, the vagina dentata, the castration complex.’ The hair, pupils, teeth and mucous membranes are greatly enlarged. The images of the exterior are accompanied with the sound of the breath and the images of the interior are accompanied by the sound of the heart. This journey through the body is undoubtedly fascinating and provocative, but at the same time is repulsive. For the artist it was intentional to be her own body, and not any other, to be probed, invaded, violated and deconstructed by the scientific eye. There was a concern on her part, to possess the right images, so that they could reveal all those feelings that were projected in her ‘soul’.

In conclusion, Haltom's work became more and more intuitive, as she became more confident with it. She was not concerned with the consequences of a project's decision, even going against the ideologies of society. She loves the paradoxical idea of attraction / repulsion, and fascination / revulsion in her work. Mona wants that the meaning be incorporated into the material that she uses, as an extension of the concept or opposite to it. For Hatoum there is no single interpretation, so she is against the explanatory text on the walls of the museums and galleries of works, as it ‘blocks’ and limits the thoughts and interpretations that the public may have. The viewers are undoubtedly a key element in the artist's work. They ends up being involved visually or psychologically in some installations. The artist wants the viewers to be attracted by the visual aspect, in a physical, sensual and even emotional way, and then later make associations and search for their meaning.

Other sources:

http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/hatoum-measures-of-distance-t07538

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/may/03/mona-hatoum-show-at-tate-modern-will-feature-graphic-video-work

#advanced research #mike figgis #jeff wall #making #Practice-led methodologies #mona hatoum #photography #cinema #video #corps étranger

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