#i don't watch this show to be preached at. I watch it for a fun/tragic scifi romp and also to see interesting ideas explored

[wayward-wren]

Classic Who explores ideas, New Who explores morals

classic who is like 'i see this trend, lets explore what might happen if that trend continues and let the audience figure out what it's talking about and come to their own conclusions.'

new who is like 'this trend is BAD and i'm going to PREACH A SPEECH about why it's going to RUIN EVERYTHING' and it's so much more exhausting

#wren rambles #doctor who #this brought on by me watching orphan 55 #which had SUCH a fun concept #and then absolutely FACEPLANTED with the doctor moralizing at the end #like yes doctor who has ALWAYS explored topical and political issues #but never is there a definitive I Am Telling You This Is Right message #whereas now I just had to sit here and watch 13 preaching at me? #ughghg #explore the idea but don't shove it down my throat #classic who had an episode (Ice Warriors) exploring climate change as one aspect of the story #talking about how all the plants were removed and that messed with the atmosphere etc. #but that was just a SMALL PART of the whole episode and it was never outright condemned (it was made clear it was BAD and the root problems #but that was never the BIG ISSUE the Doctor Lectured His Companions about) (not that victoria or jamie could do anything lol) #plus this feeds into my issues with 13's run (which started during 12's somewhat but less so) #where the Doctor is painted as the Narratively Right one #where when she says something that's what the narrative wants you to BELIEVE #which coming from Two and Three's run is WILD #because Two is chaotic and murderous when he thinks he's right #and he's manipulative and deceptive at times #and Three is selfish and pouty and rude #and don't get me wrong Thirteen has her issues and I lvoe them #HOWEVER. she's pretty much always RIGHT she's the Word Of God when it comes to moral things #and this more than anything is my biggest issues with Modern Who #mostly 12 and 13's eras #so i hope we move out of that somewhat in the new era but i'm not super holding up hopes (especially after star beast) #maybe one day i'll write a proper full article about it but GOSH #i don't watch this show to be preached at. I watch it for a fun/tragic scifi romp and also to see interesting ideas explored #and reflect the climate of the world and how society influences media #explore the idea of climate change turning the world into a post apocalypse! that's such a fun idea and topical!

[satorus-gojo]

I've been replaying final fantasy xv and, other than the poor storytelling, the games worst aspect for me is by far the apparent "romance" between noctis and lunafreya.

I cannot for the life of me invest myself in their relationship. firstly, it feels very forced. the game gives them no substance outside of the words of third parties voicing how much the two supposedly love each other. for instance, a random child runs up to noctis just to tell him the player about how lunafreya felt. there's no escape from this happening either, which further forces their romance into the player's face and down their throat

(image: "she really loved you, prince noctis").

(image: "she was really excited to marry you! she looked so happy the day her dress arrived!")

who are you? how do you, random child, know how luna was feeling and how she reacted to seeing her dress? what purpose do you serve other than to yet again remind the player that noctis and lunafreya love each other?

any well-written romance would have absolutely no need to include ridiculous scenes like this as well-written romances show the audience the love between the characters rather than telling them through random npcs. the fact that the game doesn't go beyond anything other than this to build anything concrete or convincing for their relationship shows not only bad writing, but also lazy writing. quite frankly, it's insulting.

now, noctis and lunafreya met once as children; noctis eight years old and lunafreya twelve. they had no interaction over the following twelve years other than being pen pals. the whole idea of their little notebook is like texting someone from primary school until after secondary then deciding to meet up and get married. it makes very little sense. yes, you can still learn about someone by writing to them, but you won't truly know them as you would with in-person interactions. flaws are pretty much absent due to the writer being in control of the knowledge they give of themselves, which would lead to being placed on a pedestal. without any face-to-face interactions, neither could really know the other. they don't have the chance to see their quirks, what makes them tick, how they treat other people and situations. their love for each other appears to be nothing more than the idealisations they've created of one another. they don't truly know each other; they just think they do.

I'm just going to say it: noctis and lunafreya should've shared a platonic relationship. the fact that they're both nostalgic for the time they spent together as children coupled with luna giving advice and approval like a mother/older sibling gives the relationship a more comfortable fit to be platonic. a big indicator of this is luna's death scene in which the two appear as children.

despite it being a tragic event, it was still an opportunity for the supposed romance between the two to shine through. but instead, the main focus of their dialogue is duty. during the scene, luna does her usual of preaching about his destiny before it shifts onto her dying. noctis begins to cry and tells her "it's not right. all I wanted was to save you." luna then turns into her older, current self, and offers noctis - who is still presented as a child - words of hope and wisdom and tells him that she will always watch over him.

only at the very last second of the scene does noctis become his older, current self when the realisation of the situation sets in and he tries to reach out to her. instead of telling noctis that she loves him, luna simply says "farewell, dear noctis." this scene was not romantically coded at all.

personally, I don't see their personalities being a good match romantically, either. it's a little unfair to say so since luna doesn't exactly have a personality, but from what we're shown throughout the game, I can't imagine noctis having fun or joking around with luna like he does with a lot of other people, even those outside his group. noctis loves to fish, to play games, to adventure and live his life. whilst you could argue that his attitude changed when he seemingly matured after his decade-long nap, he's still human with a personality. to me, luna seems like she would simply spend all day every day devoting all her time and energy to nothing but her role and to her lover, rather than having her own interests and life as well. sure, opposites attract, but sometimes two people are simply too different and are romantically incompatible.

a big weakness of the romance between notcis and luna is that luna is a very bad character. she's given nothing outside of her duty and noctis, which is pretty much the same thing. she's a classic "too pure, too good for this world" character who is presented as perfect and serves as nothing more than a mere plot device for the main protagonist/love interest. she's cast away when the story has no use for her anymore and her purpose is fulfilled. this makes it very difficult to care about her and her fate because she feels like less of a person and character and more of a catalyst for the story. the writers merely use her as a push for the protagonist. from my perspective, luna convinced herself she romantically loves noctis - she has a duty to uphold and it revolves around him and seeing his destiny through.

as for noctis, he clearly cared about luna and they did love each other - but I'm not convinced of it being in a romantic sense. they seemed more reliant on each other for comfort and hope rather than anything in relation to romance.

without the supposed wedding scene between the two, I think I could've swallowed their relationship a little easier (and lived pretending that their love for each other was platonic/familial). but it comes out of nowhere and is shoved in the player's face as if to say "see! they're in love! even though they didn't have to get married anymore, they still did because they really did love each other!" okay, but it doesn't make up for the poor writing, the lack of chemistry and romantic connection and the fact they still don't really know each other. let's not forget the fact that luna is sitting on the floor at noctis' feet like a dog. at her own "wedding"?

the same occurs in artwork in the dawn of the future book where, not only luna, but also their daughter is sitting on the floor whilst noctis and his son sit nice and comfortably on the throne. and the two of them gaze up at them as though their only purpose in life is to love them

why? who thought this was a cute idea? to me, it simply reinforces the idea that luna served nothing more than a role to noctis, whether it was as oracle, his love interest or just a plot device to push him forward.

also the fact that their children resemble noctis and luna exactly as they were as children themselves, down to the daughter being older as well, is just strange...also?? noctis has his hand?? on his wifes head?? she really is a fucking dog huh. I'm not a fan

in conclusion, I think square enix were complete cowards to not have the bond between noctis and lunafreya that of a platonic and/or familial one which, in my opinion, would have been far more suitable. I can't and never will get behind their romance, no matter how many updates, dlcs or books are released in order to fix it. some things are just broken beyond repair, and noctis and luna's romance is one of them.

#me? ranting about this shitty game and its shitty romance in the shitty year of 2020? it's more likely than you think #this game should've been centred around familial love and I will die on this hill #but if you do ship them then you do you #just don't scream at me for having a differing opinion 👍 #anti lunoct #anti-lunoct #anti noctluna #anti-noctluna #final fantasy xv #ffxv #my post

[surflove808]

A Supernatural edit that pays homage to the villains. Using proper music, even.  Be still my blackened heart.

Probably very unpopular opinion, but ehhh...

Watched the brilliant Hillywood parody part 2 and started thinking about why I got into this show in the first place, and it's because I'm a fan of horror, urban legends and ghost stories.  This show was recommended to me a few years ago, and I got reeled in hook, line and sinker. I came for the scares and got sucked in by the acting and the deeply explored familial relationships between the characters.  Not to mention the soundtrack, that beautiful, beautiful car, the cast, the complex mythology and world building and the ability to break through the 4th wall and poke fun at itself.  

How a CW show can be so fucking off-the-wall funny and bizarre, yet tragic and thought provoking, usually all within a singular episode - is something I don't see a lot of on any network.  I could go on for a million years about how cool this show and cast are, but I'd be preaching to the choir.

What I don't like is the constant woobification of this show and it's characters that I see on the regular.  I find myself wondering if we're watching the same show.  Or maybe, I just don't automatically think of rom-coms or Taylor Swift when I watch it, and it's tough for me to bridge that gap, mentally. 

I mean, even 13-year old me would absolutely get into the hardcore aspect of it all and not associate these characters or this show with fucking Katy Perry or romance, or whatever... but, times have changed I suppose. Maybe it’s the sharp contrast between the show and the song that makes those vids so appealing?  I'm glad this little-show-that-could has fans from all walks of life, and that's cool, don’t get me wrong.

For me personally?  There aren't enough fan vids out there that incorporate music that the show/actors/characters would co-sign, so when I find one.... I get kinda excited because it reminds me that the empire Supernatural was built on is about these characters and how well portrayed they are, but the sub-basement? Badass music and horror.  This isn't "Friends".

And a proper Metallica song?  Sign me the fuck up!  It's just a shame that these don't get much representation because they're actually much more in-line with the show.  The one I'm watching anyway...

Bad Ass Edit.  Much love to the creator.  If you dig Metallica and/or the creatures, enjoy!