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nkjemisin · 1 year

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Things in my ask box

Hi folks. Every so often I get questions from folks that are good, but which I worry might catch them some flak from my other readers or whoever. Sometimes I answer those people privately, but in general I prefer not to do private replies to asks; for one thing, other people might want to know the answer, and for another, I've had a few awkward situations result from doing so (basically just people going parasocial on me), and I think that sort of thing is less likely when it's clear I'm talking to everyone. So, I'm going to handle these awkward asks by just treating them as Q&A questions -- without showing that person's username and where necessary, altering the question in order to protect their identity. I've got a few of these stored up, but just gonna do two this time for length and time reasons. I'll get to the rest later.

Are you a proshipper?

Yep. Feel free to alter your decision re following me on social media now that you've read that answer. But I believe in "don't like, don't read," and that fiction doesn't indicate what an author really believes (because it's fiction), and that there's no subject matter too immoral to explore on its face (everything depends on the execution), so... yep.

2. I love the Broken Earth trilogy, but I have to say, the middle book really didn't go anywhere, literally. Essun stayed in Castrima and Nassun moved around a little more but mostly stayed in the same place too. It killed a lot of the story momentum for me. Why did you decide to do this?

[spoilers for Broken Earth books, though I'll try to minimize them and will put a "read more" before I get there]

Because I felt like it. I'm not saying that defensively, I'm just noting that the answer to pretty much any question you might ask a writer about why they do a particular thing is... because they felt like it. Period full stop. Sorry that wasn't what you wanted to read! It was, however, the story I wanted to tell.

To elaborate... different people have different expectations of trilogies. That's because there are a lot of different ways to handle them, narratively speaking. Sometimes a trilogy is really a group of shared-universe stories taking place in the same world but not necessarily featuring the same characters, and with unrelated plots. Some are telling a single story, but through different POVs and smaller plot arcs that each have their own terminuses; that's what I did with the Inheritance Trilogy, for example. And sometimes, as I did with the Broken Earth books, the author is just telling one big story broken up into three parts. (There are more ways to do a trilogy than this, but let's keep this brief, lol.)

Now, there are a lot of ways to handle this kind of story, but a pattern that most of us are used to is:

Book One: Introduction to the world and important characters and the apparent stakes;

Book Two: Deep dive into the important characters and world, thus giving the audience a reason to care more; and

Book Three: Now we really know the stakes and shit just got real! Now we care what happens to the characters when EVERYTHING! BLOWS!! UP!!!

(I am feeling very silly today, sorry.)

We're familiar with this pattern because we see it all the time, especially in American media. It's a variation on the three-act structure seen in plays and other narratives. It's the basis of our most popular longform stories! The original Star Wars trilogy did it. The Mass Effect trilogy did it. (Andromeda was a separate story, probably meant to be the start of a new trilogy.) The Lord of the Rings did it, prequeled by the Hobbit and mirrored by the Silmarillion. I mentioned those examples because the middle stories of each all exhibit the same traits: a drastic change of pace or location for the protagonists, putting the protagonists through personal character growth arcs, and poking at minutia or seemingly unimportant aspects of the world (which usually end up pretty important before all is said and done).

Now let's answer your question. Spoiler warning again:

In the Broken Earth, we got introduced to the Stillness and Essun in Book One. There was a lot of physical movement in that book as Essun was on the road for most of it (as were other characters), but the plot itself was relatively simple: A bad thing happened to this person and she needs to go somewhere and find someone, to fix it! And then pretty much the entirety of that book's narrative was "Who is this person, why does the bad thing matter, and how close does she get to finding her missing person?" Then in Book Two, we learned a little more about this person, a lot more about her impact on other characters including the one she's been trying to find, and we spent a while learning about orogeny, the Obelisk Gate, and what the stone eaters have been up to. I cheated a little on this; there wasn't room to do a deep dive into the backstory of one pivotal character, but I did finally reveal that this character is the "secret" narrator of the whole trilogy, and made his agenda clearer. I ended up putting his "deep dive" into Book Three instead, where it was particularly relevant to the STUFF! BLOWING!! UP!!!

The reason a lot of readers complain about "Middle Book Syndrome," I suspect, is because of this pattern -- and because of their expectations. A lot of people come at a middle book expecting Book One Redux. That's what you often get in shared-universe trilogies -- Book One over and over again, roughly the same balance of characters vs events each time, in a familiar setting. We're conditioned to want that, I think, from other episodic works. Comic books, for example: When I was working on FAR SECTOR, my editor at the time explained that I needed to try and have a fight or action scene in most of the issues. I hate fight scenes -- sorry! -- so that was hard for me. TV shows -- the ones that aren't themselves telling a single big story over time -- do this, too. I think of it as the "If You Liked X, Then Try... X!" structure. Absolutely nothing wrong with this structure, by the way. I'm just describing it, not throwing shade. I'm a big fan of stories like this myself.

But even for audience members who were expecting the Three-Act Trilogy structure instead, that middle book is going to be jarring. It's supposed to be jarring. The refugees have survived the first book but stopped to dress their wounds and regroup; the adventurers on a quest have reached an impasse and need to find allies and grind to build up their strength; the stalwart hero has just suffered a massive setback and needs to overcome their own doubt or character flaws. A good way to handle this is to take the characters out of their familiar space, and put them somewhere new, or give them a very different kind of challenge. [Mass Effect and LOTR spoilers] Oh, no, Shepard died and their team broke up! What now? Oh, no, Frodo and Sam are on their own trying to get to Mordor! They're just these little guys! How are they gonna make it? If you got overly attached to Shepard team from ME1, or the Fellowship, you're in for a rough ride in these followups. But the jarring nature of this kind of followup is absolutely necessary. An author who does this knows they're going to lose some readers, when they do it. Clearly I almost lost you! But I stand by that choice, because I think it made the whole trilogy better.

Sidebar: I'm old enough to remember the controversy back when "The Empire Strikes Back" came out. Critics haaaaaated that movie! It was too dark, they said; wasted too much time on unimportant stuff. Too much character work, not enough space battles. Then it became clear that audiences loved the second movie even more than the first, precisely because it was darker and because Luke spent so much time futzing around with Yoda and because there were all these girl cooties romantic moments between Leia and Han. A lot of the critics backpedaled at that point, with some of them even acknowledged that they'd been hoping for Star Wars All Over Again and not What Happens Next That Is Not Star Wars. They'd simply brought the wrong expectations to the story.

This is not to say that you have the wrong expectations, Ask-er. Maybe you were expecting exactly that structure, and you just don't like the way I handled it, or you think I did a poor job. Every reader's experience of a story is different, and not everybody's gonna want to pick up everything I throw down. But you asked why did everyone stay in one place, and this is why: to do a deep dive into the character of the Stillness itself. In a story where the setting was as much a "character" as the people in it, I felt it necessary to show enough of that setting for readers to care about it. Would you care, for example, if the town of Brevard (Damaya and Schaffa spend one night there in Book One) got blown off the map in Book Three? Probably not, because I spent no time on any of its citizens or issues. A lot of people cared about Castrima, though, by the end of Book Two.

Whoo, this got long! Hope it answers your question, Ask-er.

#answered asks #the broken earth #spoilers #things in my ask box

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ecoamerica · 24 days

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kerosene-in-a-blender · 1 year

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Some scattered thoughts on Aeormatons and their apparently universal tendency to rush headlong into danger, under a cut for reasons of spoilers

Episode 56 made it abundantly clear that both FCG and FRIDA are Like That, what with FRIDA willingly allowing themselves to get swallowed by a monster and Deanna mentioning that she feels like they have a death wish. What's interesting is how FRIDA and FCG came by this tendency appears to be the same and different at once.

FCG's constant attempts at martyrdom reads to me like it's his way of coping with the guilt of having murdered his former adventuring party. He seems to believe on some level that he can make up for killing those people (+ any others he may have killed in the past he can't remember) by dying for a different group of people.

FRIDA, in contrast seems to rush into danger because it's there that they feel the most alive. They said as much to Chetney after he mauled them as a werewolf; the danger was fun to them. FCG is attempting to martyr themself on the nearest suitable alter, while FRIDA is an adrenaline junky (as much as someone without an adrenal system can be so).

But in both cases it seems to also come from viewing their lives as fundamentally less valuable than the lives of everyone else around them. Because they both woke up in a world where automatons are tools without any particular sentience; where any creature made out of metal like they are isn't a person, but a thing. Because they both feel deeply driven by a purpose that puts them in service to others, FCG to nurture, FRIDA to protect. I can see how those would combine to create an attitude of: "It's okay if I die, as long as I am fulfilling my purpose and taking care of those who are more important than me."

I'm incredibly curious to know how FRIDA and FCG's relationship with each other is going to affect their mutual tendency to rush headlong into danger. Because now they both have someone in their life who is like them, and who is so obviously a person, a deeply special one at that, and that might affect how they view the value of their own lives

#the Aeromatons have had such fascinating material in the last few episodes #it's been great #critical role #cr3 #critical role spoilers #cr spoilers #frida #fcg

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transmutationisms · 1 year

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ok i apologise if this is a bad question because i don’t know anything about politics but i liked your bourgeois failpolitics post and would love it if you could expand further especially on how their ideological horse blinders lead them to justifying/reproducing what’s trapping them in the first place especially given how some of them, in theory, have “principles” & i guess how the show explores politics in general. again sorry if this is poorly formed i know nothing!!

hmm, not a bad question, but many directions to go in here.

first of all, none of them claims to be anti-capitalist ideologically. shiv wants to be a moral capitalist, kendall wants to be a coolguy capitalist, connor wants to be a virtuous capitalist (different from shiv's morality), and roman wouldn't identify with any ideological term but thinks capitalism is inescapable and omnipotent, and therefore not worth objecting to in any way. so even aside from their class interests, there's no ideological inconsistency between any of their political positions and the actions they take to preserve or strengthen waystar.

since shiv and connor are the ones with political principles, i think they're a good place to start.

shiv is a liberal, meaning she believes in individual liberty, private property, and equality under the law. her line "what if a good person ran waystar" is telling: she doesn't want to alter the fundamental structure of the economy or waystar, but she thinks someone with (her own) principles should be running the propaganda machine. she's being genuine when she talks about reform and wanting the company to be better, but this should not be mistaken for any kind of opposition to the economic structure.

connor self-identifies as a libertarian, so he's in the liberal tradition but with an increased emphasis on individual liberty. by this, he means private property rights, so his politics broadly oppose government intervention (regulation, social welfare policies, labour protections) except where the police / military state and the carceral apparatus are concerned (these are necessary to protect property). connor never had any real hope of inheriting waystar, but his politics are still broadly in support of it, insofar as it's a corporate interest and connor sees 'creating wealth' as a political virtue.

roman and kendall are simpler in this respect. as i've written before and many people have pointed out, kendall wants to kill dad and wants to be a 'good person,' but has no concrete sense of what that means and therefore no principled opposition to anything about waystar or its economic functioning. roman sees capitalism as totalising and inevitable, so it's not something he would ever bother taking a stance against, plus taking any kind of stance is lame anyway. fundamentally he wants daddy's love (kendall is motivated more by daddy's respect, which is why he needs to become a killer).

so the siblings' tendency to reproduce and reinforce their own oppression basically comes from the fact that none of them has the ideological or epistemological creativity to espouse any kind of anti-capitalist critique. there are nuances here (shiv places more value on the idea of market competition, like when she opposes the move to buy pierce in s2; connor sees flows of capital and flows of reproduction as part of the same political economy, hence his usury and onanism line), but at the end of the day they all accede to logan's economic worldview. in their minds, there's no reasonable or viable alternative. they have extremely limited understandings of political ideology, as evidenced by them all thinking that shiv's liberalism is, like, radically different from logan's. in many ways the intra-familial ideological disputes are a smokescreen distracting from the underlying economic convictions they all share.

as to the show's handling of politics in general: it's strange to me that more people don't point out that jesse armstrong has at least a passing familiarity with marx and has referenced him in discussing the show. the main narrative drive for the show is psychological, not ideological; nevertheless, it rests on a view of politics that basically builds off marx's base-superstructure distinction, with politics as an ideoological superstructure determined by the economic base. this doesn't mean people with the same class interest will have exactly the same ideology (obviously, the sibs don't; idt armstrong goes in for that type of crude determinism), but capitalism has a tendency to narrow the field of envisioned possibilities, hence the way that all four sibs fail to see any other economic arrangement as viable or even worth considering.

#in re: the last paragraph i obviously mean the presentation of Politics Proper #which is distinct from the way the show explores the internal functioning of liberal capitalism as articulated via the family #sorry this is kind of rambly it's hard to deal with 4 fully nuanced characters in any depth without like.... just going insanely long lol #tripping the light fantastic

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not-so-mundane-after-all · 7 months

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Now I'm gonna be predictable and ask you for Dick and Rachel for the character thing 💙🖤

My two favorite birds!!!!! Okay *cracks knuckles* here we go

DICK GRAYSON

First impression:

Hot, mysterious, "hmmm I know that face", had this edge about him that had me lean closer to my tv and go "okay, interesting, go on"

Impression now:

The love of my life, a mark on my soul, the blueprint for a Comfort Character™, my #1 TV Dad, must be protected at all cost mostly from himself

Favorite moment:

How can I pick just one? My favorite kinds of his moments are when he gets feral protective over his baby girl (like in 1x07 or 4x08) or any alteration of "I won't let anything happen to you" because all I hear is "I love you"

Extra kudos for all the shirtless scenes 😏

Idea for a story:

One that has been recently lurking at the edge of my mind is giving him an AU where basically everything is the same except his parents are alive — mostly because I want to write them interacting with Kory and the kids

Unpopular opinion:

He gets waaaay too much crap from the fandom, for even the littlest things. He's a flawed character who makes stupid mistakes sometimes. If he was perfect all the time, he'd be boring. He doesn't have to be the best leader, an A+ father figure 100% of the time or constantly kissing the earth the woman he loves walks on to be a good character. Don't like his storyline? Shit on the writers, it's their fault.

Favorite relationship:

There's only one answer to that, always will be.

His light in the darkness. His turning point. His true north. He wouldn't be the man he is now if it wasn't for this one little girl throwing a brick at a cop car and getting herself brought to his station. You can't deny that. The show doesn't. It reminds you, time and time again, who is his anchor. Who keeps him from slipping back into the dark.

Favorite headcanon:

He knows how to play guitar and a little bit of piano because the Haly Circus crew used to jam out all the time. His dad taught him the guitar, Clay was a master of keys and his mother had the voice of an angel and wrote her own songs.

RACHEL ROTH

First impression:

OHHH SHE'S A BABY!!!! I was instantly protective of her and related to her in her loneliness.

Impression now:

FOREVER MY BABY GIRL. Always proud of her, always protective of her. My best girl, my favorite witch. Daddy's Girl and The Best Big Sister-to-be™

Favorite moment:

That walk?! The confidence?! Making dad look all proud in the background?! COME ONNNNNN

Idea for a story:

A while back I wrote down some notes for a concept about adult Rachel and her relationship with teenage Mar'i, inspired by my own relationship with my older sister. There's 19 years between us and the difference between Rachel and Mar'i could end up being similar. I was thinking of writing her as a bestie but also the second mother, ride or die and voice of reason, "dad's gonna kill you" but also "dad's gonna kill both of us if he finds out so we're not gonna tell him". A lot of shenanigans, a lot of heart-to-heart.

Unpopular opinion:

She should have had the final fight with Brother Blood, since this whole thing was about and came from her brother, her heritage, her prophecy.

Favorite relationship:

The simplest reason is because I was just happy to see this child finally being loved. Finally having someone to believe in her and protect her. Finally knowing what it's like to have someone who cares. Finally being held and comforted and understood.

Favorite headcanon:

Girl can SING. But is shy as hell about it. Only Gar knows about it and only because he found out by total accident when he heard her belt out those Ariana Grande whistle notes like it's nothing. They keep it secret until Dickkory's wedding, where she gives a performance of a lifetime.

CODY I LOVE YOU! THANK YOUUUUUU

#ask game #mundi asks #dc titans #titans #dick grayson #rachel roth

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witheredoffherwitch · 7 months

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The Strongs are not the good guys in Alys' story! They made her their servant and wet nurse for their babies when she herself was unmarried. What does that mean anon? It means in the best interpretation they were cruel and in the worst they must have abused her themselves!

Read critically what u consume.

The only sin Aemond did against the Strongs as far as we know and can be sure was murdering the young boys. That was wrong.

But in Alys scenario, aemond has done less/no canonical abuse than her own family.

Hi nonnie, thanks for the ask.

Careful now, you are making too much sense! Your theory would be the most obvious take-away for anyone familiar with the world of asoiaf. Bastards are not treated well unless you were fortunate enough to be sired by Stark male member (because Starks usually do not subject kids through brutal ostracization because of some mediaeval honor-code: Jon and Theon are good examples of that!) -- BUT other than that, you were pretty much fucked! Rhaenyra's bastards fared well because 1) the mother held a more privileged position (due to which her kids were ensured certain protection), and 2) admitting their bastardry would have tried Rhaenyra, Harwin and Laenor for treason.

Secondly, I think it is fair to conclude that House Strong wasn't some tight-knit 'loving' family. Sure, we've seen brothers gossiping during Rhaenyra and Laenor's wedding but apart from that, the house functions like any other Westerosi house. Lyonel Strong doesn't confront the truth about his grandsons until Harwin makes a fool out of himself in the courtyard.. and by then, the severity of the said matter was long-overdue and extremely consequential to the point of non-avoidance. The younger brother didn't even flinch before killing off his dear father and brother for some political gain. If Larys 'the Clubfoot' Strong did not feel any kinship with his family, then one can assume that reception of a known bastard is going to be less than ideal.

Thirdly, we still don't know how are they going to portray Aemond during his Riverrun arc. I keep saying it because Aemond (along with Alicent and Rhaenyra) is altered from his canon version. In the show, Aemond never insults Rhaenyra and only ever maintains a cold indifference towards her. He isn't shown to be some raging misogynist. He only insults the Strong bastards after Luke displays an absurd lack of self-awareness during that dinner scene. And in the Storm's End segment, he doesn't chase after Luke due to some back-handed comment from Maris... but rather, that conflict is shown as an extension to the last dinner scene. BUT the most telling of all is how Luke was killed off in a supposed accident - meaning that Aemond never intended to kill him in the first place. Interestingly enough, there was a deleted scene where we see Aemond giving the camera an evil look, but that part got cut in post-production for some reason. Instead, they chose to end the scene with his distressed expression.

Now, do I believe Aemond will experience some radical arc change? NO! But the way the future events unfold will be certainly DIFFERENT! That's why I am both skeptical and mildly optimistic about how the show might portray their relationship. Aemond and Alys are both heavily misunderstood characters - and this alone opens a massive potential for this couple than some other speculated ships. That being said, this ongoing hate for Alysmond is very forced - and it says a lot when the majority fandom has just discarded her as someone put their beloved prince 'under a spell' or is a homewrecker for pulling Aemond from their own crackship.

#anon asks #alysmond #aemond x alys #aemond targaryen #fandom bs

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stonegoldsxcrxt · 8 months

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ppl argue that Vader is “redeemed”— I guess I can see where they’re coming from, but really I think Vader is forgiven by Luke, and the narrative is kind enough to forgive him too. This is helped, of course, by the prequel storylines and our extensive understanding of Anakin’s character, which is that rarely was Anakin presented with very many choices, and he often chose wrong when he was, sometimes out of anger but mostly out of a very intense love and desire to protect those around him that he cared about. They don’t say that “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” for nothing, after all. Luke seems to understand his father at one point thought he was doing what was right, and has the kindness to forgive him, but not absolve him of all crime. The original trilogy, being largely about Luke and generally following Luke’s feelings, offers Vader a lenient sentence for a lifetime of crime. For example, you might expect that if Han was the ‘main character’ you’d be presented with an entirely different point of view. Even Leia at the end of rotj— knowing full well her father is Anakin/Vader and her brother is hosting his funeral pyre— doesn’t seem to care, laughing and enjoying the Ewok party, and she doesn’t have to care. We aren’t mad at Leia for presumably not feeling the same way about her father that Luke does. Thus my argument is that Vader is forgiven by Luke after a selfless act which saves the latter’s life, not washed of all sin and guilt from the narrative. Anakin and Vader are the same person, condemned to death to deal with the sum of his choices, but forgiven by a son who loves him, who he died for.

This is where the sequels fail to convince me I should offer the same treatment to Kylo Ren. In a film trilogy that largely ends up being about him (much to my and many others chagrin), I rarely find myself understanding why he repeated chooses evil. Perhaps in tfa the lines from Leia about snoke whispering to him as a child were meant to imply he’s been being corrupted since birth, but in theory when snoke is killed in tlj, shouldn’t Kylo’s behavior also become altered? As in, he should be able to think more clearly about his decisions? There’s wobbly logic throughout— in tfa Leia says it’s snoke, in tfa Kylo claims his choices are largely motivated by the fact he worships his grandfather, then in tlj the narrative tries to push us to sympathize with him by telling us Luke tried to kill him (at 23, btw— common misconception that the incident happened in his childhood, which it did not).

Arguably, if I were to be led to believe snoke corrupted “Ben”, then the events of tlj— wherein Kylo kills snoke yet remains Kylo instead of reverting to Ben— suggest Kylo actively is choosing evil of his own volition. If I were to believe Kylo is acting out because he idolizes his grandfather, Vader, then Kylo is actively seeking to chose evil of his own volition. If I were to believe Luke attempting to kill “Ben” caused Kylo’s fall, I would still believe Kylo is choosing evil simply to choose evil, seeing as how an attempt on your life is scarring, but not grounds to murder others. Where Anakin’s misguided actions were motivated by fear of those he loves being hurt, Kylo… kind of just seems like he wants to be bad. All of this would be fine, compelling even, as a villain, but outside of tfa, the narrative absolutely refuses to let Kylo be what he wants to be— a villain!

For some reason, starting in tlj, the audience is repeatedly expected to excuse Kylo’s behavior. Sympathizing with an antagonist isn’t always bad, per say, but it generally comes with some sort of buy-in as to why we should care. Absent that, it kind of just seems like the narrative is bending over backwards to forgive a guy who doesn’t really seem to want forgiveness. Mutilating Rey’s character in particular to have her insist there’s good in him when he never hesitates to stalk, physically or emotionally torture, or gaslight her any chance he gets becomes baffling. Unlike Luke with Vader, she really has no reason to care this much about Kylo, or even believed Kylo IS CAPABLE of earning her forgiveness— so the narrative starts spewing more ridiculous premise to try and force a reason for her to forgive him, when he’s done nothing to indicate he WANTS to be forgiven. Though subtle, even Vader visibly has hesitation when confronting Luke— he deals him serious blows, but no where near what we know is the extent of his power. Kylo doesn’t hold back from hurting Rey any chance he gets.

Also bizarrely in comparison to Vader, Kylo is weirdly absolved of his responsibility regarding the devastation the first order has caused and allowed to revert back to “Ben” before actually facing any consequences in terms of story. It comes down to this: he is stabbed, hallucinates his father (who canonically CANNOT be a force ghost— Han in tros is NOT a force ghost, supported by both his lack of glowing blue appearance and the fact that Han doesn’t have the force), hallucinates his father forgiving him and thus forgiving himself via Han’s imagined proxy, then is suddenly Ben again. He has made no choice up to this point which allows us as an audience to understand why he deserves forgiveness from others— just an abrupt 180 in character. It comes off clunky and gauche because it is; Kylo, after a lifetime of choosing evil willingly, using his autonomy to hurt others and gain power for himself, suddenly thinks better of it for no reason. We as the audience are suddenly also expected to do a very quick 180– see! He’s good now! It is no where near as natural as seeing Luke’s journey with Vader because there is no realistic way to interpret the scene; we are forced as the audience to accept this random new “Ben” character as if he’s a different person— an affliction I might also add that doesn’t befall Anakin until he dies, meaning we see a broken Anakin still scarred and wheezing in the Vader suit— again, lasting, permanent effects of his behavior. Where as Kylo is just suddenly “Ben”— new wardrobe, no facial scarring. As if woken from some sort of trance that narratively speaking, if you wanted me to be more compelled, he should have woken from a whole film ago. It’s as if nothing he did as Kylo mattered at all, which is nigh impossible to accept when it involves literal genocide. It’s implied at the end of tlj that he Made. His. Choice. by not only remaining with the first order after snoke is slain but becoming the supreme leader!

In fact it’s the entire opposite of Vader— Vader rises up against his master and chooses to save his son. Kylo rises up against his master and chooses to clench power for himself.

I could only dream of a world where tros was brave enough to allow Kylo what he wants— to be truly corrupted and evil. I could only dream of a world where the sequels explored the impact and importance of that choice, and how to confront an evil that is no longer forgivable

#star wars #star wars sequel trilogy #tlj critical #tros critical #in case

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hoonphobe · 5 months

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i have a theory that honestly isn’t very likely to be true but it’s just a thought i had.

so we all know how isayama said that he had a different idea for the ending but because of popular demand he had to alter it a bit. well…

what if his initial idea was to have eren not have an endgame, meaning he’d have no romantic love interests or at least not canonically end up with anyone. and i when i say this i mean he wasn’t supposed to end up with mikasa nor armin.

to ymir mikasa was the “key” to freeing her and she’d been waiting on her for 2000 years. now if mikasa was the purpose this entire time then i’d like to believe that everything that happened was molded to fit her experience. if ymir used mikasa to free her by seeing what option she’d choose between supporting or letting go of her love it’d make sense eren was molded in that way.

eren has essentially been a pawn of ymir since he was born and when he learned this truth he realized that everything that happened and the outcomes were dependent on mikasa’s choice not necessarily his own actions. this makes me wonder if the events that brought eren and mikasa together were also controlled by ymir or at least “fated” by ymir.

ymir needed mikasa to love and become attached to someone just as much as she was to king fritz. maybe mikasa’s parents being murdered and her almost being sold off was to draw eren in to save and protect her. or her parents being killed was something already bound to happen and ymir made sure eren was present and had a drive to protect her. this is what ultimately started their bond and mikasa’s connection to eren.

over time it’s seen that eren hardly ever reciprocates the same way mikasa does romantically and if he does it’s very subtle and typically catered to what mikasa herself wants. like them running off together for 4 years to the cabin in the paths, eren says that that’s something mikasa wanted not necessarily himself. i believe that the romantic acts eren does for mikasa could’ve also been swayed by ymir to have mikasa grow more attached to eren so that in the end her decision to kill him was more impactful.

eren is known for being extremely complicated and i think one of the main reasons for this is because his mind is constantly conflicted between what ymir wants him to do and what he actually wants to do. his motivation for freedom, his dream of the outside world, and his compassion for those close to him are all things that are the real eren while gaining the power of the titans, going thru with the rumbling, and pursuing mikasa are all things he’s been told he wants to do out of his control.

i wholeheartedly believe and know that eren cares deeply about mikasa the same way he cares about armin; however, i don’t believe that he likes her romantically. eren has said that he has a feeling that he wants to protect mikasa and i think that’s the true eren speaking because he’s the same way with armin. but outside of this platonic connection everything else between them feels very forced and i think that’s because it is: it’s forced by ymir.

i think isayama wanted to end the series with eren not loving anyone beyond the platonic bond he shared with mikasa, armin, and his other friends. not to say that eren isn’t capable of love, but i don’t think that was his main priority for eren, eren was meant to be a very morally gray person that is a human doing inhumane acts for the sake of a very humane trait, compassion. i feel like adding in a romance, yes, makes eren come off as more humane, but at the same time the love he was given felt very out of character for him. hence why i believe the ending he wanted was going to showcase that this love actually is out of character for him because it’s not truly his own.

for an in-character eren, i can see him apologizing to mikasa that he could never be enough for her or give her what she deserves. that he wanted her to forget him because all he’s done is mess with her feelings because the person pursuing her wasn’t really him. that he loves her a lot but not in the way she wants him to. that he’s been fighting his own mind and in the end couldn’t win. that he wanted to tell armin that he wishes he could’ve done better for them, that he could’ve saved armin from the tragedy of the outside world and could’ve saved mikasa from loving him.

and mikasa knows that eren never loved her the same but regardless she loved him enough to end both the world’s suffering and his own. she understood that the eren she’s seen the past years wasn’t the eren she grew up with and she’s happy that he was finally able to rest. this closure allows her to live her life as her own, to live the life that she deserves with someone who will openly love her and living her life knowing she’s more than just someone that was devoted to eren and subjected to ymir’s ideals. that eren will always be held close to her heart as someone very close to her.

this is really what saves ymir is this parallel of loving someone that protected you and saved you and was seen in ur eyes as a savior who in the end became inhumane and didn’t love you the way you loved them, and being able to let that person go and not feel the need to be attached to them. obviously the difference is that eren was always more humane than king fritz which is what adds more sentiment to the story but the parallel still applies. this is why ymir fabricated this eren for mikasa.

#attack on titan #aot #mikasa ackerman #eren jaeger #armin arlert #snk #shingeki no kyojin #ymir fritz #eren mikasa armin

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pttucker · 6 months

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In a completely unexpected turn of events Kim Dokja is studying techniques and Yoo Joonghyuk is reading TWSA.

Can't say that I saw this one coming way back when I first started ORV but I also can't say that it in any way surprises me that even now they're mirroring each other.

Well, first things first...

Ahhh! Dokja has a new teacher!

And he's teaching him.

Dokja is actually, for the first time ever, properly learning something rather than just stealing it. Dokja is actually, for the first time ever, not completely talentless. Dokja is actually, for the first time ever, understanding what his teacher is telling him and is able to put it into practice himself rather than relying on his skills to do the work for him.

And of course it's a technique that would be related to being a reader and seems to coincide with what he's already been doing this entire novel, i.e. listening to (reading) the stories around him and interpreting them. The mention too of how Dokja has had several beings just naturally like him for some unknown reason...

I get the feeling he's been unknowingly performing "Story Control" for a while now in his own way without even realizing it. At least the very tip of the iceberg of the technique, and now, finally, Dokja is the one who gets to experience enlightenment and get a huge bump in his abilities.

Of course we also get the message "currently, the Fourth Wall is in a very thin state" and even Sangah and Dokja believe this is happening because of that thinness. Plus the fact that Sangah was able to alter the entire scenario by sending out a "revelation." It makes me wonder just how much Dokja could be affecting the world around him if the Fourth Wall wasn't present.

Like, the Fourth Wall protects Kim Dokja from the world, sure, but I'm starting to think it might also protect the world from Kim Dokja.

Oh man, and on the opposite side we have Joonghyuk who's just been given a copy of TWSA? The full TWSA or just the first scenario? It says (First) after the title and I'd like to think that means First Version, just like how Dokja now has multiple versions, but Secretive Plotter said that he couldn't give him the full revelation? But then he also said "this way, it will be a fair fight" and Joonghyuk can't really have a fair fight if he only knows the first scenario while Dokja knows the whole thing. So maybe Han Sooyoung has been creating her versions in her world and Joonghyuk has been given the first complete copy of TWSA but not the final one that she ended with/is potentially still living???

Regardless, why are you encouraging Joonghyuk to fight Dokja, Secretive Plotter?

Ughhhh idk if this is all part of some scheme (because he's totally a schemer, right?) or if he's genuinely upset with Dokja for kind of side-stepping their Outer Covenant and not killing Joonghyuk properly or if he's not even been on Dokja's side this whole time?

That or maybe he wants Joonghyuk gone, in which case, he is very optimistic in thinking Dokja would win in a one-on-one right now.

Then again, Dokja did just learn a new technique...

The naive, hopeful part of me (I know, I know) is thinking that they'll fight but not like fight fight. Because Joonghyuk hasn't seemed quite as angry these past few scenes we've had from his POV? Maybe???

Though I'm not really happy that Secretive Plotter gave him Han Sooyoung's version of TWSA. Like, does he not have access to Dokja's or did he purposefully not use Dokja's because he doesn't want Joonghyuk to see his POV and to relive their life together and potentially start having second thoughts. Especially since Sooyoung's version is probably much darker? Like, yeah, it did turn out in the end that Sooyoung and Joonghyuk of the 1863rd seemed to understand and possibly care for each other, but the story is still full of him basically being used by her. Willingly used, but still.

That's probably not going to put Joonghyuk of the 3rd round in a good mood when he's already thinking that Dokja has been deceiving and using them.

....Unless that's what Secretive Plotter meant by not being able to tell him the full revelation? Does he have access to the end of Dokja's story and he can't give that to Joonghyuk because it would be way outside the probability? If that's the case, then I'm back to thinking that Secretive Plotter is on Dokja's side and perhaps this won't go too poorly? Maybe? 😬

I mean, Dokja has his new technique all about listening to stories, so maybe if he can make Joonghyuk listen to his...

#also I love Sangah telling Dokja that of course he's talented in this area he's been reading TWSA all this time #encouraging mind Sangah is honestly the best Dokja needs someone to talk to about these sort of things #and Jihye calling Yoo Hoseong Great Great Master is so her 😂 I love you Jihye even if Dokja only gave you an affection score of 6 #orv #orv novel chapter 362 #orv liveblog #orv spoilers #omniscient reader's viewpoint #kdj #yjh

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acourtofthought · 2 years

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Az represents "choice" for Elain.

Technically true..... But, is it a "choice" for the right reasons?

I mean, Elain could select Lucien and that's still a choice. No one is forcing her to be with him. But I get that in ACOFAS, Elain didn't want a "mate" so that seems to have stuck as the big argument (though it is easily overlooked that she also said she didn't want a male which Az is but....I digress. Being with Az because she doesn't want a mating bond..... That's a pretty terrible reason to be with someone, isn't it?

I would think there are a thousand other more important and valid reasons to be with someone. Common interests, similar personalities, common goals, etc.

Elain enjoys nature:

Bachelor # 1 - enjoys being outside for training. Beyond that, we're not really sure.

Bachelor #2 - has campsites set up in caves, rides horses, and fishes with his bare hands.

Elain, who will protect her loved ones by whatever means necessary, is still bothered by cruelty:

Bachelor #1 - tortures people for a living and resorts to a physical brawl in the middle of a political meeting.

Bachelor #2 - Fights when absolutely necessary but "he usually opted for words to win his battles".

Elain enjoys socializing and being surrounded by friends:

Bachelor #1 - Canonically, while caring his friends, is reserved and enjoys his own space.

Bachelor #2 - is extremely social and often makes friends wherever he goes.

Elain does not want to be coddled or told what she can do:

Bachelor #1 - finds it necessary to speak on Elain's behalf only after she's left the room by saying she shouldn't be allowed near the Darkness of the Trove, after she specifically said she wanted to do it.

Bachelor #2 - gives Elain a shout out for taking down the King.

Elain enjoys things like tradition and propriety based off how she was raised:

Bachelor #1 - can be polite however in his POV, we see him think that the way he responded to something was not socially acceptable so he altered his answer. We won't know for sure until his story but to me it sounds like Az's "politeness" around others is more an effort to blend in with society based on his observations of watching people rather than what is a natural reaction for him. Az does seem to respect tradition (like holidays) but again, it seems less because it's important to him personally and more because he acknowledges it means something to others. Az did want everyone to wait for Elain to sit before eating but Feyre mentions they've never bothered waiting before. Rhys thinks it's about Az's mother but in my opinion he acted that way because he sensed it would be important to Elain. While it's a nice gesture, it's not something Az usually demands so it doesn't seem entirely authentic.

Bachelor #2 - all the makings of proper gentlemen and courtier. His dress, his manner of speech, his "Lady's", standing when Elain stands, bows in greeting and adhering to tradition because he truly believes and respects them as an individual.

Elain is full of light and thrives in Sunshine.

Bachelor #1 - Prefers the shadows

Bachelor #2 - is the sole Heir to a High Lord who has been described as the Sun personified.

Elain's father and her humanity meant a great deal to her:

Bachelor #1 - has never met her father and has not really spent much time around humans as far as we have been told.

Bachelor #2 - Met Elain's father, offered condolences for her loss, and has been spending time in the Human Lands which gives him insight as to what Elain may have experienced before being turned.

Elain did not encourage or endorse violence (as she made Feyre swear not to harm Graysen no matter what) and (as stated above) will only resort to it as needed to save someone's life.

Bachelor #1 - tortured his brothers in an act of revenge for what was done to him. Vocalizes that he wouldn't care if Graysen were dead. Doesn't seem to mind the thought of killing Elain’s mate in a Blood Duel regardless of what that might do to her emotionally and physically.

Bachelor #2 - watched his father and brothers murder his love, was nearly murdered himself by them, but has never sought to harm them in return unless it was in self defense to save his own life. He has also left Graysen untouched.

Elain sees the good in others, despite how they act on the outside.

Bachelor #1 - hates Bachelor #2 based solely on jealousy and has no valid reason for thinking he wouldn't good enough for Elain. Also harbors resentment against the Illyrians even though we know they aren't all terrible.

Bachelor #2 - quickly let go of past prejudices he had towards Rhys and the NC, even shaking his hand in ACOWAR and joking about sports with Rhys and Cassian in ACOSF. Has never spoken to Nesta with disrespect though she was fairly harsh towards him in ACOMAF and ACOWAR. Thinks Az seems like a decent enough male.

I do understand why Elain is rebelling against the idea of the bond and as a result, Lucien. But if you took the bond out of the equation and Elain based her decision solely on what's important in a relationship, the person who is right for her because of who she is, I feel like there's a very obvious answer.

#elucien #pro elucien #elain x lucien #lucien and elain #elain and lucien #anti e/riel #anti e*riel #antie/riel

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lebienquifaitmai · 8 months

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thoughts about The Emperor

I want to just put all my thoughts about The Emperor while my memory is still fresh after beating the game. Obviously spoilers ahead, obviously personal thoughts and perception, and doing it mostly for myself from the future, but feel free to reply if you have something in mind.

I keep seeing takes about how the Emperor is using Tav for his own goals, but his main goal is, basically, destroying the Absolute. Which is not a bad goal, if I must say it's a heroic goal. But he's not able to do so alone, he needs allies for this, however who would want to go through countless challenges one after another, challenge chosens of the Dark Gods, and face the Elder Brain on top of that? Only someone whomst life would depend on this, someone who not only would die if they fail, but their soul and their very being would be destroyed after turning into mind flayer.

So the Emperor and his crew (not sure if they are also rebels, or Emperor is fooling them around) is gathering anyone they can catch through the worlds, Emperor is putting magically altered tadpoles in their brains, then the nautiloid crash happens. Again, it's unknown if Emperor knew, expected, maybe even planned it from the start, or he wanted to do it the other way.

But it is what it is. He can't stop just yet, when stakes is this high. He starts to manipulate the party into thinking that they are protected by some mysterious dream visitor, I assume that he searched trough the minds and made the most personally appealing appearance for each, just to make it easier. He's successfully pushing the party forward their goal. Trying to put in their minds an idea that they shouldn't get rid of their tadpoles, but they should embrace it's potential instead.

And then there is Act 3. His true identity is getting revealed, a lot of stuff is going on.

About Ansur: Emperor tried to turn him down, to make him leave and go live his on life. The letter we can find on Ansur's dead body is very sweet and very sad. I don't think that it could be staged, since Ansur is laying down below the castle, it's very hidden, to access it you have to pass trials, and Emperor is trying his best to make Tav go back, instead of looking for the dragon, and it's not like there is something that could truly expose him, nothing here hints us that he was doing it not out of pure self-defense.

About Duke Stellmane: We know that he was visitting her every tendays, and that's it. There is a thought that he could be the cause of her condition, but it could also be something else. Emperor himself is not saying anything about it if Tav trusts him, but if Tav is being hostile towards him, he'll show Tav how he'll say "the truth" but. He'll show it even if Tav doesn't want to look, and Emperor will make sure to make the vision the most unsettling thing he can come up with, and on top of that he'll completely clash in tone after that. I think the reason behind of this is that Emperor is getting scared about the possiblity that Tav can do something unpredictable and fail everything when they are so close to the destruction of the Absolute. If Tav doesn't want to cooperate willingly and on a good terms, then Emperor is trying to make them act out of fear. If it's easier for them to put everything in black-white terms then Emperor is gonna play the role of an "evil mind flayer who is here only to bring disaster" I don't think we can wholeheartedly believe what we saw there, especially since he keeps her portrait among his old stuff under the Elfsong tavern.

And my final thoughts: the Emperor wants to survive, this is his first priority, his second priority is keeping his city safe. It's good and very understandable desires. He wants to kill the Absolute, and you can only try to persuade him to do otherwise; also he's not even in a cutscene if Tav is becoming an Absolute themselves. Emperor is getting sad if Tav is turning him down on romance, and I think it means he's not living rent free in Tav's head just to lie or/and manipulate them in all ways possible, because then he'd know about Tav possibly not having a romantic interest in him, so he wouldn't even try to engage. And in the end of the game Emperor is still here to say his farewells, and he feels genuinely sad that his journey with Tav is over, and he's being nice even if Tav is acting cold and rude. There is no point of manipulating in the end, and if all of it wouldn't matter for him, he could just simply leave without saying a word.

I personally think that Emperor is not just "another evil mind flayer" and also I think that he has some real feelings for Tav.

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 spoilers #the emperor #emperor

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ecoamerica · 24 days

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youtube

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

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thesherrinfordfacility · 9 months

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Longwinded anon again (thanks for the kind words!): You've brought out a few things in your last posts that crystalized some of my thoughts about the hole I complained about in one of my first posts here, left by the decision to never acknowledge that Crowley successfully tempts Aziraphale to try to kill the Antichrist. After S1 aired, Gaiman commented in an interview that Crowley does not have an actual character arc in S1. He is at the end what he was at the beginning. And my response at the time was, well, wait, he does have a transformative moment in the novel, this is strange. I think S2 in fact explores that lack of arc in an interesting way, and it /does/ think about the larger moral issues involved in the Antichrist temptation without referencing it directly.

Both S1 and S2 rely heavily on mirroring, included warped mirroring, to approach narrative structure and character development. In S1, after Aziraphale's discorporation, Crowley tries to reconstruct their normal dynamic--Crowley plays the white knight, Aziraphale the damsel in distress--on his arrival at the airfield, when he swaggers over from the burning Bentley and assures Aziraphale that he'll take care of the soldier ("Leave it to me"). Then the script /literally/ blows up the dynamic when the Bentley explodes, Crowley gets distracted, and Aziraphale has to take care of the soldier himself. And, of course, at the end the dynamic has been altered, because they save each other in the bodyswap. This looks like the relationship is now on a mutual egalitarian footing! Hooray!

...except S2 demonstrates that Crowley /liked/ the original dynamic, and he spends the season trying to manhandle (demonhandle?) Aziraphale back into it. Aziraphale asks for help with Gabriel, but Crowley interprets "help" as an excuse to play the strong protector again, through a combination of forced innocence (Crowley spends this season /not/ telling Aziraphale some important things about Gabriel and Heaven that Aziraphale needed and deserved to know) and, in the lead-up to the demon attack, outright dismissiveness of Aziraphale's ability to handle the situation. You referenced the dialogue there, which mirrors the "Leave it to me" of S1. But in S1, Aziraphale /was/ willing to leave it to Crowley, whereas here Aziraphale tries to assert his own capability and Crowley brushes it off. Nina, the character self-aware about being trapped in an abusive situation, temporarily stops the plot to call this out, and while Aziraphale cheerfully admits to being aware of what's going on (something left ambiguous in S1), unlike Nina he doesn't admit or doesn't see that what makes Crowley "happy" rests on perceiving Aziraphale as less capable and less powerful. Both physically (Aziraphale needs Crowley to fight for him) and psychologically (Aziraphale needs Crowley to protect him from full knowledge of his execution and from any knowledge that Heaven might murder him for helping Gabriel). I know that the fanfic community has quickly glommed onto "Aziraphale must apologize to the poor wronged demon" plots, but Crowley's inability to think himself out of this inegalitarian dynamic contributes directly to the break-up at the end of ep6, not least because we see him /help/ maintain Aziraphale's innocence about the extent of Heaven's malice.

good morning (well, it was morning when i started) LWA!!!✨ no problem at all, you're very welcome!!!

(further ask screenshots under the cut).

oh gosh yes i remember the ask you mean (everyone else, i believe it's this one). stating the obvious, if my previous posts criticising him are anything to go by, but the whole scene where crowley tempts aziraphale re: antichrist really does unnerve me, and was one of the key reasons why I think - although I do genuinely think crowley is a very empathetic character - i've always gravitated to aziraphale more. the parallel narrative of nina, with her story of surviving and escaping psychological and emotional abuse, really puts the spotlight on the level of aziraphale's naivety and indoctrination with anyone or anything that he believes confers any kind of worth onto him.

trauma from abuse does not stop when one escapes it, because it truly does alter your brain chemistry and emotional make-up into being more susceptible to finding any alternative that will give you a sense of value again. others have clearly remarked on it, but that is the most revelatory moment as concerns nina, for me; her knowledge of self and that she knows her own value, despite her recent abusive experience, is what diverts her parallel storyline with maggie into an adjacent position to aziraphale and crowley's.

and that's a really powerful point; i know that many people have remarked on the correlation between aziraphale and religious brainwashing (especially as concerns its relationship to queer identity, which is very, very valid), but i think what some may be refusing to also see is that aziraphale, in a very unique and particular way, is potentially experiencing some small, or large depending on your perspective, level of similar abusive behaviour (bracing myself for impact re: that statement).

i despair for aziraphale throughout most of the show, in that i interpret him as not only feeling that he's not enough ("that's okay, as long as i'm enough for crowley to see any worth in me") but also because he can't seem to see that anyone that wholly cares about him should be making him feel that he is more than enough, and accepting of every part of him - even his shortcomings. he shouldn't need to be manipulated into anything; he is by large an inherently good and loving person (as far as we've been shown), is shown to gravitate towards those that might need his help (*cough* crowley), and that the fact that he can't seem to see that if others do not trust or like him enough to be honest and vulnerable with him, when he hasn't really done anything to make them believe that they can't, that is entirely their issue/failing, not his.

such, to me, is why his decision to break away and follow his own path to heaven, following an opportunity to do something not only largely altruistic but also something that might help him develop a sense of value entirely on his own, is exactly the right decision for him to make when taking all of this emotional and psychological context into consideration.

as discussed in the last ask, crowley does appear to have a tendency for making aziraphale seem or feel lesser than him, by way of the dance (humiliation), disingenuous apologies (gaslighting), keeping secrets (imbalanced power dynamic) and constantly saving him and dismissing his ability to save himself (removing agency). crowley in contrast to aziraphale has his own brand of insecurity but that is in my opinion not rooted in a lack of self-worth. it is rooted in knowing that he had and has much to give, but it being rejected.

i hate to defer to psychological terminology that is innately human when referring to supernatural beings, but for lack of a better option; crowley's cognitive dissonance in ep6 of his belief ("helping to improve heaven is useless and they'll never change") and his action (manipulates aziraphale into trying to stay with him, ignoring aziraphale's own wants and aspirations) result in his choosing to believe that aziraphale doesn't love him for who he is - choosing the rejection narrative - rather than choosing to trust in aziraphale that they have the ability, together, to make a change that will benefit them as much as everyone else (which is what aziraphale is inviting him to).

the fact that this is rooted in rejection is key. i think it's fairly clear that crowley thinks himself to be of a higher status than aziraphale, harking back to his angel era (or at least purposefully tries to maintain the illusion that he is, rather than accept that they're - you know - equal). the overwhelming need, it seems, to plough on ahead and force aziraphale to keep pace with him whether he likes it or not, speaks to me of his committing to a 'failsafe' action that will protect him from being rejected, regardless of whatever good or clever thing he does, and this will naturally originate from the fall. as you say, aziraphale is similarly wrapped up in asserting his own superiority, especially where morality is concerned and thinking that he knows best for crowley in offering him restoration, but again - I feel like this stems from insecurity, especially in the face of a demon that is, to him, utterly brilliant and smart and sly, but also good and kind and brave.

neither are in the right - both are very much in the wrong - for even entertaining this mindset, but i do feel that once again crowley tips the scale on the morality front here. both were made to suffer from various trauma at the hands of heaven and hell, but the fact that crowley seems to perpetuate it with aziraphale (however much with original good intention, and perhaps without malicious intention) and so successfully to the point that aziraphale a) doesn't even really see it until ep6, and b) if aziraphale does see it, he possibly feels that it all that he deserves, is incredibly alarming.

in terms of a resolution, LWA✨, you've beaten me to the point i was going to make when your first ask came in! we are seeing two characters that were originally conceptualised as one, and now broken apart (both literally by way of the character design as well as in the narrative). i therefore find that the body swap in s1 was indeed the big hint to the audience (and should have been a big hint to aziraphale and crowley) that they are reflections of each other, and that is by extension the solution.

them simply forgiving each other and having meaningful communication is not going to be the Big Solution that makes them connect again. to me, there needs to be - after an actual, heartfelt apology and subsequent communication - a full, complete acceptance of each other, of their individual and conflicting minds, fears, wants, and ideologies, and understanding that they do not need, in fact, to be in conflict with each other, but instead are literally built as being complementary halves of the same coin✨

edit because i didn't address it: in my mind, my own personal, metaphorical jury is out on why the joint miracle had the result that it did, but the concept of it being literally because it's aziraphale and crowley working in harmony together is really intriguing!!!

#good omens #good omens season 2 #good omens spoilers #good omens 2 spoilers #not a shitpost but its good omens babyyyy #ask #the legend of the longwinded anon✨

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lasenbyphoenix · 1 month

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Unshakable Faith (2023)

Episode 37 Breakdown

In the nurses station Nurse Bai snaps at Nurse Zhang Ling for mentioning Secretary Lu and is outwardly upset. Later, Nurse Bai lures Ji Danyang to meet her in private and drugs him.

The police find barbiturates in Secretary Lu's bloodwork and they look into who had access to those drugs. The police team decode more notes and find remnants of Secretary Lu's confession that names Nurse Bai and they finally can link enough evidence to arrest her. They go to the hospital only to be told that she has overdosed in response to Secretary Lu's death, and Nurse Zhang Ling has taken her by ambulance to the city hospital. The ambulance stops due to a broken down cart on the road and Liu Simao kills the driver while Nurse Bai kills Nurse Zhang Ling, and they take the hidden unconscious Ji Danyang away.

Expert Chief Chu finds that his camera with the data photos has been swapped for fake Li Qiuchen's camera and the police find the ambulance driver at the roadside. Fake Li Qiuchen says goodbye to Nurse Leader Ge and gives her the task to try and kill Expert Chief Chu before he leaves Lumen.

Ji Danyang wakes, tied to a tree and Nurse Bai tells him she wants to take him to Taiwan. She apologises, admitting to altering his calculations and he yells at her until Liu Simao threatens him to be quiet.

Officer Hongmei arrives at Dr Bai's house to find it deserted with a chest sitting on the table, containing the coded music notes, and his security bureau ID and a note "3 Jumps Gorge". She sends the evidence back with one officer and she goes ahead to search 3 Jumps Gorge. The police find evidence in Dr Bai's belongings that confirms he was working with Officer Hongmei's father, but was also Ghost Owl for the KMT.

In the forest Dr Bai meets Nurse Bai and argues with her about going to Taiwan. He is distraught to learn that she was saved by General Kou and recruited to the Nanshen Training Class when she was kidnapped and tells her that General Kou is the reason her parents are dead but she doesn't want to believe it. She says she can't turn back and threatens to take a poison if he doesn't come to Taiwan with her. Ji Danyang runs in to interrupt, chased by Liu Simao, and the fake Li Qiuchen arrives, reveals his true KMT identity and orders them to comply.

Officer Hongmei finds needles pointing the way through 3 Jump Gorge left by Dr Bai.

Fake Li Qiuchen takes the group to a cave once used to hide soldiers during the liberation and meet his contacts. They have to bed down in the cave for the night and Dr Bai uses the time to slowly convince Liu Simao that the other spies will likely kill the two of them as they are expendable and the ferry they're going to wont be big enough to take everyone. Nurse Bai offers food to Ji Danyang and he tries to appeal to her conscience not to turn over the camera, but she tells him she took a different path and can't turn back but hopes to put it all behind her when they get to Taiwan.

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

Our math man literally stabbed in the back by Nurse Bai! Wtf sister! And then faking her own overdose! Ok the logistics of getting an unconscious math man into the bottom of the same gurney that you yourself would be taken into an ambulance on after you overdose is very tricky to ensure by yourself, so I was highly expecting Nurse Zhang Ling to be in cahoots to have arranged that. But now I'm realising maybe it was Nurse Leader Ge who assisted, as Nurse Bai recovered too quickly to have actually drugged herself, but Zhang Ling didn't notice anything weird while in the ambulance?

Dr Bai must be planning to run with Nurse Bai if he can convince her not to go to Taiwan, because he's left his secrets behind for Hongmei. I think that if he didn't have Nurse Bai to try and protect, he might have turned himself in once he'd found Hongmei's father's body. And he is wrecked knowing that she's fully committed in the spy things. I feel so bad for him watching her coldly threaten to kill the contact for disrespecting him, that isn't the daughter he raised.

I called it on the KMT being the cause of Nurse Bai's parents deaths, but as I said a couple of episodes ago, Nurse Bai has now down too much to turn around even if she knows this.

But now that it's down to this, will Dr Bai still try to save Nurse Bai or will he have to try and save Ji Danyang instead?

Nurse Bai do you really think you'll get to have a nice quiet life with your dad and your pet math man when all this is done? I can't tell if she's really that naive or is using it to delude herself.

I wonder if would still have kidnapped our math man if Secretary Lu was still alive to run away with her.

Hah. Dr Bai psyching out Liu Simao by pointing out they are expendable is not only true but a good way to make him turn on fake Li and the contacts. Lets hope it works.

1 episode to go!

#unshakable faith #unshakable faith episode reviews #liu xueyi #peng xiaoran #ding yongdai

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depomera · 1 month

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Anyways, kinda dumb but I’m making a SW AU that takes place a few years before the Clone Wars. I’m doing the dirty and making everyone meet and being allies and such. This is just filling in gaps. One of my weaknesses in projecting is I really like fantasy role playing stuff and I’m trying to incorporate things like that into the SW universe but also keeping to lore as best I can. This AU is more of a slice of life/shoujo/shounen/fantasy adventure campaign.

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• Grievous and Jango work for the IBC (intergalactic banking clan) to pay off their debt. They do things from rescue missions to bounties, escorts, and dealing with their own slice of life. (The “debt duo”).

• Jango is an esteemed bounty hunter but paying off debts of Mandalore owed to the IBC. He is aloof but a caring man. He has a soft spot for children and hopes to become a father one day.

• Grievous is a renowned warlord but is paying off his planet’s debts to the IBC as well as looking for his long lost mate, Ronderu who mysteriously vanished during a Huk invasion.

•Darth Plagueis is now Sith Lord after being given the title from the previous Sith Lord whom renounced her faith and is on the run. The Sith operate from a Church on a planet in Wild Space due to the Galactic Republic outlawing/banning their research on dark magic (summoning, rituals, etc). Plagueis is obsessed with magic and science and is trying to find ways to use Midi-Chlorians to further his own powers by accessing dark magic that hasn’t been seen for thousands of years. I kinda wanted the prior Sith Lord (cat lady) to have an affair with Plagueis, which is one of the reasons why she’s on the run:

1) She realized she wants a “career change”, perhaps to become a mother? she knows her apprentice/ex lover, Plagueis wants her dead but due to her renouncing her faith, she believes she no longer has to abide by Sith rules. It is unknown why she won’t kill him. Perhaps her ethics changed or she needs to conserve energy due to trying to conceive/ has conceived, still has feelings for him, possibly manipulating him, etc (still wip lol).

2) Her beliefs in the Sith are different than Plagueis, rule of 2 = life and death, good and evil**, love and hate, weakness and power, parent and child, yin and yang, Fire and Water; she believes the Force is the balance between good and evil**, the grey between two extremes and everyone has a place within the universe such as herself being on the extreme (Sith vs Jedi). She is driven by passion and striving to be the best (including protecting and getting revenge for those who wronged her and loved ones). I wanted her beliefs to challenge many struggles we see in current religion such as “cherry picking” but also following one’s heart, beliefs and values.

I had “Rudo” (Thrawn) in mind. A spy who happens to partner up with Jango and Grievous on occasion for random missions and quests. Rudo is a spy for the Chiss Ascendancy and goes by a different name to keep his identity hidden.

Maul is struggling with wanting to be his own person but coming to terms with his destiny, chosen by adoptive father Sheev Palpatine. Early on, Maul showed powerful magic ability such as communicating with animals and harnessing the powers of nature (Sith magic) such as fire, earth, water, metals, etc. In other words he has shaman/druid abilities (similar to Ezra from Rebels). Maul is an innocent but honest and hardworking kid. He loves animals and wants to make friends. Prior to the romantic scandal (cat lady x Plagueis), the cat lady then Sith Lord, saw Maul as a son and was enamored by his love and connection with nature and the wild life - this led her to believe that Maul had the heart of a true Sith and was the catalyst to his downfall by having him train as Sheev’s apprentice rather than stay an acolyte/“alter boy”.

To be continued…

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Sorry for the typos and crappy grammar. I have food poisoning as well as a kinesiology exam tomorrow. >_<;

#Star Wars AU #clone wars AU #am I coconuts you guys #open to ideas #this is probably a wip #jango fett #grievous #maul #thrawn #au shenanigans #sw prequels #head canon stuff #sw fanart

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moxymaxing · 10 months

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(Long ghostkicks ramble incoming)

I think in the beginning of season 1 william saw Dakota as this breakable person, someone who would always be there and was a true hero. He’s always admired Dakota from the start. And some of this hasn’t changed; william still thinks Dakotas the strongest of them all and is the greatest hero. However I think a major shifting point for Williams view on Dakota was episode 13 of season 1 where Dakota nearly died because of the sword through the torso. William audibly is choked up during this scene and is the most obviously worried one out of all of them (s1 ep19 parallels). I think it’s at this point that William sees Dakota as more “human”. Although he’s still one of the toughest and strongest people he knows, Dakota still has weaknesses and can die just like the rest of them. And even more so than that was the new growing fear of losing Dakota. After the timeskip William makes it clear how much he fears losing Dakota again. To quote William from s2 ep1, “The only reason I ever even thought about getting stronger, or whatever that means, was because I met [Dakota]”. “…’cause I don’t wanna lose you for, well, I mean, ever again. We’re what we’ve got.” It all makes me wonder how William coped after Dakota disappeared for ten months with only a note left behind. And it makes me wonder what Williams full thoughts were when he said that him and Dakota eventually falling out “bound to happen”. How much has he thought about it? Was he just uselessly clinging to the friendship they still had with the impending doom caused by their differing morals hanging above them? How the fuck is episode 34 going to go??? More “Feelys” to quote the editor???? Would Dakota pick his best friend over his morals????? What if I literally ate drywall

Honestly I want bitter fighting. I want Dakota to be so frustrated and confused and angry and disappointed and I hope their fight draws blood (metaphorically or physically) and I hope I throw up and die and voluntarily become the joker. I also hope Dakota looks in Williams eye and can’t see how the person who fought so hard for Dakota to live and stay by his side is the same one who would lie and kill someone. Or maybe Dakota does look at William and can’t help but still see the awkward teenager who would hide behind his back like a shield, then the person who grew into wanting to protect him in return, the person who has put his moral faith into him and only him, the person who fucking sucks ass at driving, the person who would do anything for him, the person he trusts so so much, William Wisp.

Really all roads lead to tragedy. Maybe william knew this, and maybe that’s what he meant by it being “bound to happen”. Dakota chooses to leave William and/or turn him into the authorities? Classic tragedy. They’d be leaving behind everything that they made each other, which not only includes the heart transfer, but the way they grew because they inspired one another. William and Dakota have this reoccurring thing where they say they’re proud of each other, originating all the way back from s1. and although it’s kinda silly, even Dave and sweet summer child William from the rolleds are constantly saying how they wish to be like the other one day. It might not mean anything about og ghostkicks, but I believe since it’s still alternations of themselves that it’s worth mentioning. Dakota and William are practically parts of each other. they’re almost the definition of “paired package do not separate” with how they always end up together no matter what universe or alteration of themselves there are. (See ssc William and Dave, William Wight and Kota Kill [they have a whole thing going on it’s not healthy but I support it])

Now if Dakota chooses to stay with William? Still a tragedy in that Dakota would be sacrificing his morals and the standards that he holds himself to. And William would have to live with what he became, forcing his own friend to temporarily give up a part of his ideals from what he did, compromising far more for him than what either of them usually do. Because In Dakota’s hero way of seeing things, William should be locked up or at least put onto trial. He literally killed someone (even if it was accidental), unknowingly attempted murder on three more people, assisted in unauthorized and unconsensual surgery, and mentally tormented someone (David and X) twice. Now I’m no expert in law, but I know all of this breaks a LOT of them. As of right now, Dakota doesn’t know all of what William has done. but I doubt William would be able or willing to lie to him more in ep 34. I’m just really excited for July 1st

I had more in my head but I forgor 💀 anyways very big thanks if you got to the end of this ramble it’s probably a unintelligible and messy. please forgive me I am not a writer but I had to get these thoughts out. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk goodnight 💤

#this is all from my notes app. don’t feel pressured to read all of this rambling into the void is just fun ^^#it’s probably very hard to read my thoughts were everywhere #was in a particularly ghostkicking mood 2nite. made a playlist for them. had to lay down and think about them.#normal things to expect from your local ghostkicking soldier #EDIT: the thing I forgot to write down was gown #ghostkicks is yuri. im too tired to fully explain it now but keep it in your mind #their closeness could be the doom of each other? yuri. thanks you #also they’re kinda yaoi I guess since I think they’re both incredibly transmasc #and sometimes lose a majority of their thinking skills when around each other and not in battle. but i digress #talking.txt

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legend-collection · 7 months

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Patasola

The Patasola or "one leg" is one of many legends in South American folklore about female monsters from the jungle, appearing to male hunters or loggers in the middle of the wilderness when they think about women. The Patasola appears in the form of a beautiful and seductive woman, often in the likeness of a loved one, who lures a man away from his companions deep into the jungle. There, the Patasola reveals her true, hideous appearance as a one-legged creature with ferocious vampire-like lust for human flesh and blood, attacking and devouring the flesh or sucking the blood of her victims.

The Patasola derives from vampire legend. According to popular belief, she inhabits mountain ranges, virgin forests, and other heavily wooded or jungle-like areas. At the edges of these places, and primarily at night, she lures male hunters, loggers, miners, millers, and animal herders. She also interferes with their daily activities. She blocks shortcuts through the jungle, disorients hunters, and throws hunting dogs off the scent of their game. The Patasola is usually regarded as protective of nature and the forest animals and unforgiving when humans enter their domains to alter or destroy them.

Additionally, the exact name and attributes of the myth vary according to region. For example, a creature similar to La Patasola is called La Tunda in the Colombian Pacific Coast region. Other mythical creatures similar in description to La Patasola but differing in name are found throughout Latin America.

La Patasola's most notable feature, from which her name derives, is her one leg. She is believed to possess only one leg, which terminates in a cleaved bovine-like hoof and moves in a plantigrade fashion. Despite only possessing one leg, La Patasola can move swiftly through the jungle. In her natural state, La Patasola has a terrifying appearance; she is described as possessing one breast, bulging eyes, catlike fangs, a hooked nose, and big lips.

La Patasola can metamorphose into different shapes and appearances. She commonly takes on the appearance of a beautiful woman to lure men to their death. She then uses her feline-type fangs to suck the blood from her victims. It is also believed that she can transform into other animals, materializing as a large black dog or cow.

According to Javier Ocampo Lopez, when pleased, La Patasola climbs to the top of a tree or mountain and sings the following song:

"I'm more than the siren / I live alone in the world: / and no one can resist me / because I am the Patasola. / On the road, at home, / on the mountain and the river, / in the air and in the clouds / all that exists is mine."

La Patasola's origin story varies, but usually follows the pattern of a scorned, unfaithful, or otherwise "bad" woman. Some believe that she was a mother who killed her own son, and was then banished to the woods as punishment. Others believe that she was a wicked temptress who was cruel to both men and women, and for this reason they mutilated her with an axe, chopping off one leg and throwing it into a fire. She then died of her injuries and now haunts the forests and mountain ranges. In a third origin story, she was an unfaithful wife who cheated on her husband with the couple's employer, a patron. Upon discovering her infidelity, the jealous husband murdered both her and the patron. She died but her soul remains in a one-legged body.

More common in Colombian folklore, they are similar to the Sayona (Venezuela), the Tunda (Colombian Pacific), and the Madremonte or Marimonda (Colombia).

The La Tunda myth of the Colombian Pacific region also tells of a vicious woman who sucks the blood of men. However, in this legend, "La Tunda's shape-shifting abilities are far from perfect…for whatever form she assumes will invariably have a wooden leg in the shape of a molinillo (wooden whisk). The monster, however, is very cunning, and is adept at concealing this defect from would-be victims."

Similar in behavior to La Patasola is "Matlacihua, a phantasm in the beautiful and svelte form of a woman dressed in white. Sometimes called the White Lady or the Bride, she would appear at night and with her seductive songs and irresistible beauty, lure men of bad conduct into the forest, scaring them half to death." Though not described as sucking the blood of her victims, the White Lady supposedly deterred men from seeking amorous relations in the woods, jungles, or mountain ranges.

#Patasola #south america

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