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stewblog · 3 years

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GODZILLA VS. KONG

What do you want out of a movie where a gigantic ape with a magic axe goes toe-to-toe with a nuclear-powered lizard? How you answer this question is the key to whether or not you will experience maximum enjoyment from a movie like “Godzilla vs. Kong”.

I’ve never been one to advocate the “just turn off your brain and have fun” approach to movie watching. I think every movie should actively try to engage its audience in some meaningful way beyond (pun intended) lizard-brained mindless spectacle. But we do not live in that world, and when a movie comes along that doesn’t even attempt to provide even a fortune cookie’s worth of thematic depth or meaning and instead focuses purely on going hard into the paint for MONKEY PUNCH LIZARD … well, I honestly have to respect it.

And boy does it go hard.

Maybe it’s the fact that I haven’t seen a movie on the big screen in nearly a full year. It was, admittedly, a near-overwhelming experience seeing these gigantic mythological creatures duke it out in an image size taller than my house. But the impact of each instance of Godzilla and King Kong coming to blows felt at an echelon above most blockbuster spectacle of late.

City-annihilating, CGI destruction-fests are absolutely nothing new, and the advances in technology make literally anything possible and even believable now. Following in the footsteps of 2014’s “Godzilla,” “Kong: Skull Island” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” the action in “Godzilla vs. Kong” has a weight to it that simply cannot exist when the subjects in focus are sized as mere mortals. Director Adam Wingard manages to deliver a sense of immersion to the mayhem here that I found overall lacking in many of the previous films. It feels more personal, in a way, which is an odd thing to say about a movie like this.

Though perhaps it shouldn’t be all that odd. After all, Kong is back at the forefront once more and this version of the great ape has always felt like more of a character than Godzilla in his most recent appearances. By design and, in some ways, necessity, Godzilla is more of a force of nature, an event to behold and survive rather than anything one could possibly begin to identify with. But there’s a humanity to Kong that’s evoked both in Skull Island and here that you can’t help but attach to, even if you’re firmly on #TeamGodzilla.

As such, throwing Kong face- (and fist) first into an all-out, no-holds-barred brawl for titan supremacy makes the proceedings feel much more interesting than the shodowns in “Godzilla” ‘14 or “King of the Monsters,” all of which felt more detached. There’s no way or reason to invest in who won in those films since at the end, it’s still an uncontrollable monster that comes out on top. But by giving us someone to root for with Kong now in the mix makes the battles feel more dangerous and meaningful, in a way.

If you’re wondering why I haven’t talked about the plot or even the set up, well, that’s because there’s barely anything resembling as such.

We pick things up a couple years after Godzilla became reigning kaiju champion and the titular king of the monsters upon ripping Ghidora asunder. Humanity seems to have accepted its status as, at best, observers of Godzilla, ostensibly under his protection from any remaining so-called Titans. However, after he destroys a research plant for the mega-corporation Apex, Godzilla is deemed an imminent threat and Kong is brought out of hiding as a possible means to stop him.

There are other machinations involving Hollow Earth Theory, mystical power sources, etc. and the humans who get tangled up in all of it, but none of it matters. And I don’t mean that in a metaphorical sense. I mean that you could (and probably should) cut out everything involving Madison (Millie Bobbie Brown), her father (Kyle Chandler) and the two conspiracy nuts who follow her around out of the movie entirely and nothing of value or importance would be lost. In fact, it’d only help make the movie get to the good stuff faster.

The human presence in these movies has largely been a hindrance, but it’s frankly astonishing just how useless and pointless 80 percent of the humans in this movie are. Either the movie got edited to shreds in post-production, or the script writers simply had no idea what to do with any of the returning characters. Either way, congratulations to Lance Reddick for managing to get mid-tier billing for only saying a single line.

Thankfully though, as bafflingly awful as the humans are, it didn’t dampen my enjoyment or enthusiasm an ounce. Wingard delivers in spades the thing for which you paid your admission (or HBO Max subscription). The action leading up to it is overall excellent, including the first big brawl, but by the time we get to the neon-drenched battle in Hong Kong, the movie is positively vibrating with energy and it gets released in what is easily my favorite giant monster showdown of recent memory. I cackled like a madman so loudly on multiple occasions during this fight that I elicited stares from my fellow theater-goers.

Obviously this is not a perfect movie, but it is perfect at delivering what I wanted out of it and at a volume and tenor at which I wanted. Having been unable to watch movies in a theater for a year, I’m not sure I could have asked for much more.

#godzilla vs kong #kong #godzilla #movies #movie reviews

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subspace · 3 years

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GODZILLA VS. KONG

And boy does it go hard.

City-annihilating, CGI destruction-fests are absolutely nothing new, and the advances in technology make literally anything possible and even believable now. Following in the footsteps of 2014’s “Godzilla,” “Kong: Skull Island” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” the action in "Godzilla vs. Kong" has a weight to it that simply cannot exist when the subjects in focus are sized as mere mortals. Director Adam Wingard manages to deliver a sense of immersion to the mayhem here that I found overall lacking in many of the previous films. It feels more personal, in a way, which is an odd thing to say about a movie like this.

If you’re wondering why I haven’t talked about the plot or even the set up, well, that’s because there’s barely anything resembling as such.

#godzilla #kong #king kong #godzilla vs kong #movie reviews #movies

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headcanonsforcompanions · 5 years

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The concept of the “nuclear family” (no pun intended) doesn’t exist anymore in the fallout universe. Large family groups or even multiple families and friends living together is more practical and means there will always be someone to take care of kids in the likely event both parents are killed.

#world building #fallout #fallout headcanons

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lottabank · 4 years

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name: evelyn charlotte banks nicknames: charlotte , lottie , lott , char , charlie , charmander , etc. but she no longer goes by evelyn in this lifetime age: twenty three physically , sixty seven biologically sexuality: panromantic / sexual pronouns: she / her , cisfemale species: vampire sign: gemini spotify: here pinterest: here

hello moon beams and star shines , this is late but i’ve just been busy with work ! i’ve got the time to try and finish stuff now , so i’m gonna work on trying to do my daughter’s intro. if you’d like to plot feel free to hmu via tumblr im or ask for my discord bc i’ll gladly give it. i also play rune ( shadow graced human ) so yeah it’s snottie back at it again , anything you want to know about me or lottie alike hmu or just read below to find out more about my sweet serial killer vamp princess

── the high council is prepared to hear the story of EVELYN CHARLOTTE ‘ LOTTIE ‘ BANKS , a VAMPIRE while noted as a WANDERER. we might of mistaken them as MADELAINE PETSCH. appearances may be deceiving, with immortality being so common among supernaturals. this being has walked the earth for NINETY years, and their face reflects an age of TWENTY THREE they’re a CITIZEN of estonia and will be residing in TALLIN.

during their stay of the harvest they shall work by day as a STRIPPER to blend in with the mortal crowd. however, at night you might find them as AN ESCORT / ASSASSIN. they’re UNHAPPY about the harvest, however, they plan to please the high council.

PERSONALITY.

vampire beauty queen , primadonna , self-proclaimed princess. this darling girl has always loved attention , luxury , all things beautiful and transitioning to the darkness only heightened that love. so much so that she will do just about anything to satisfy her own wants or needs. lottie is ruthless , verging on sociopathic. she is delicate , but she is dangerous. she is by no means unfeeling though , nor incapable of love. she can be sweet , she can be soft , she can be pink cheeks and bright smiles just as she can be bloody lips and deranged laughter. she is genuinely kind , loving and gentle unless your death would make her happier than your being alive.

ruling planet: mercury — the planet of communication body parts: shoulders , arms , hands element: air good day: fascinating , original , resourceful , charming , wise , adventurous bad day: restless , distracted , two-faced , judgmental , depressed , overwhelmed favorite things: cell phones , fast cars , trendy clothes , obscure music , guitars , books , clubbing least favorite things: small-minded people , dress codes , authority figures , silence , routines secret wish: to have all the answers how to spot her: mischievous twinkle in her eyes, humming , talking with her hands where you’ll find her: taking pictures , behind the bar , in a chat room , playing devil’s advocate keywords: communication , collaboration , synergy , cleverness , wittiness , inventiveness , ingenuity

charlotte’s energy circulates in a quick and frenetic way , witty wordplay and dynamic dialogue are her forte. she is great for brainstorming and socializing , but craves “ twin flame ” and kindred spirit energy and is always up for an intellectual meeting of the minds.

under the influence she can find herself with the gift of gab , talking and conversing with others for hours hopping from pop culture trends to deep political topics. beware of when she becomes a “ gossip girl , ” as she can crank up the rumor mill. as renowned dr. bernie siegel says , “ we have the ability to cure with either ‘ words ’ or kill with ‘ swords. ' ”

the essence of charlie’s energy is fascinating , original , resourceful , charming , wise , and adventurous. some negative manifestations can devolve into more restless , distracted , two-faced , judgmental , depressed , and overwhelmed energy.

lottie has a tendency to ride the roller coaster of life , spiraling skywards one minute and plunging into lows the next. if you can keep up with her vibes though , you’ll have one hell of a thrill !

charlotte exhibits great creative synergy , instantly connecting people to each other. always inclined to spend time with friends and focused on changing the world one idea at a time.

a little bit older and wiser , more flexible and comfortable with change than others. she can “ chameleon ” herself to fit into a variety of situations.

can come across as clever and quick-witted , eager to dish out the juiciest pieces of news and happenings to their friends via text message and social media. in case that’s not enough , she’ll probably send you a snapchat story for good measure.

lottie loves fast cars , trendy clothes and any wacky gadgets or games they can tinker around with. part of the fun ( and curse ) of this fiery red head is that you’re never quite sure which personality you’re going to experience. will it be the vivacious , pun-dishing jokester or the snarky , mean-spirited critic ? if you’re willing to see fifty shades of crazy , she’ll color your life in thrilling ways !

BACKGROUND.

evelyn charlotte banks was born june fourth , 1930 and was given the dark gift in the early fifties ( so you’ll definitely notice some call backs to that time period ). she has grown and developed and adapted throughout time better than most , but you can take the sock hop away from the girl but not out of her. she remembers her life before , but doesn’t dwell on nor even really miss it.

she grew up in your rather classic straight lace upper middle class suburban family and community with her perfect nuclear family. the town they lived in was small , close knit , and everyone knew everyone but especially who evelyn’s family was.

she was in a lot of pageants growing up and was even platinum blonde for most of her human life , because she was so afraid her red hair would keep her from being successful.

when she was eighteen years old with big shiny dreams of silver screens , luxury , and eyes all on her was all she could think of. she left her family and their small generational hometown in georgia for bigger , better things in none other than hollywood.

she was on her way , so desperate to be in the movies and be like marilyn monroe but shortly after is when she became ensnared by darkness and evil. she wasn’t very successful at all in the beginning so , she started wearing tighter , shinier outfits when she was on stage when suddenly she started getting actual recognition.

she wasn’t acting like she had intended , but it turned out her voice was good enough to land her plenty of lounge singing gigs in multiple joints. it was one particularly dark , seedy , dangerous joint that only opened once the sun set completely and closed upon the sun rise that she finally started to get propositioned to do so-called ‘ film gigs. it was also in this place where she met him for the first time.

( tw: cult ment. ) her maker is very old and before she ever knew he was anything more than a handsome older gentleman she was fully under his control. he was something of a cult leader who for the most part glamoured his ‘ followers ‘ , but that was never necessary with charlotte. she was thoroughly and completely in love with her maker , she even ‘ married ‘ him and lived on his compound.

( tw: rape ment. , assault ment. ) it wouldn’t be for a few more years that he would finally turn her ,and only after he found her brutally beaten and raped for nothing more than a snuff film. her maker found her on the verge of death and wasted no time in saving her life by bestowing his dark gift upon her.

( tw: murder ment. ) to say that lottie felt indebted to and fell in love with her maker to the point of obsession was an understatement , she would do anything and everything he asked of her including murder not in the name of feeding.

( tw: death ment. ) the films she was in were kept in the dark underbelly of the industry and no one was none the wiser , not to mention everyone thought she was dead after her last film.

so , she eventually did make her debut in film and was even on the silver screen finally. this only lasted for as long as she could get away with not aging before eventually she disappeared off the radar with her maker. the two traveled far and wide for a long time , but eventually went their separate ways even though lottie wanted nothing of the sort her maker commanded she live her own life without him now.

( tw: murder ment. ) she has since become something of a murderer ?? she prefers to call herself an assassin but it’s rare anyone actually pays her to murder anyone. you could even call her a serial killer if you take into account that her victims are almost always men of the unsavory variety , but she has two sides to her personality and it’s not like she’s full maniac.

ETC.

if you know what yandere means she fits that description very well , and if you don’t know what it means well: a common term in otaku fandom , a yandere is a person ( usually female ) romantically obsessed with someone to the point of using violent means to get them in their arms. often can be seen featured with a sharp weapon and a psychotic grin.

pretty much she comes off as this sweet , lovely , beautiful woman with lots of talent but in reality she can switch that off in an instant and literally kill you without any hesitation if it benefits her or someone she loves.

anyway she has been in estonia for only a bit now , but how long is flexible. she probably likes the scenery and the supernatural presence , but she’s honestly not a country mouse at all.

also not that she needs money , but there is very little she loves more than attention and money. she works at a club as live entertainment on occasion , singing or stripping or bartending or occasionally doing , mostly for the attention but also if she’s in need of money.

#vainglory.community #vainglory.intro #DOSSIER.

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explodingcrenelation · 5 years

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Tony Stark and the Messianic Archetype in Avengers: Endgame

* * * * * S P O I L E R S ahead for Avengers: Endgame * * * * *

From a purely analytical standpoint, I don’t have anything against Tony’s character arc in Endgame culminating with his death. His last moments in the heat of battle weren’t rushed, poorly written, or unearned. If Tony Stark was going to die on screen, of course he’d do it like a goddamn badass—and he did.

At this point Marvel is telling a single story to millions upon millions of people and there’s no way they can craft a narrative to suit every single person. When I say Tony's death didn’t work for me, I do so knowing that Marvel wasn’t writing the story for me anyway. And I'm not trying to disparage the creative team's efforts and storytelling choices. They made a call. I don’t agree it was the right one.

For me, Tony’s death traps him inside a Messianic Archetype that doesn’t elevate his character in a wholly satisfying way and doesn’t fit the themes of the established, team-centric universe. In this essay I will…

…actually write a fucking 4000-word essay, so buckle up and read on if you’re in for the ride.

What Is the Messianic Archetype?

The Messianic Archetype is a messiah trope. It’s exactly what it sounds like—one person (usually (but not always) white, usually (but not always) male) who sacrifices themselves for the greater good.

Here’s how TV Tropes puts it:

In media, the Messianic Archetype is a character whose role in the story (but not necessarily personality) echoes that of Christ. They are portrayed as a savior, whether the thing they are saving is a person, a lot of people or the whole of humanity. They endure a sizable sacrifice as the means of bringing that salvation about for others, a fate they do not deserve up to and including death or a Fate Worse than Death. Other elements may be mixed and matched as required but the Messianic Archetype will include one or more of the following:

- The Chosen One. - True Companions who follow him. - Betrayal by one of those followers. - Persecution by nonbelievers. - Crucified Hero Shot (or other parallels to the Passion Play). - Figurative or literal resurrection. - A Second Coming. - The initials JC.

Some examples of Messianic Archetypes in popular narratives are: Gandalf in Lord of the Rings, Spock in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (or Kirk in Star Trek: Into Darkness), Harry Potter in The Deathly Hallows, Superman in Batman vs Superman, or Neo in the Matrix trilogy. The Doctor in Doctor Who is frequently and repeatedly presented as a messiah figure. Multiple incarnations of Sherlock also follow suit in multiple imaginings of the the Reichenbach Falls scenario. (I won’t go into details with any of these characters. I trust the Messianic Archetypes here are obvious to anyone familiar with these stories.)

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe itself, we see Messianic Archetypes popping up all over the place—like daisies! Steve plays this part when he sacrifices himself in The First Avenger to stop Red Skull's plan to bomb several major American cities. His time in the ice is a kind of death from which he is subsequently “resurrected” in modern day New York. To a lesser extent, he also offers himself up as a sacrifice to save Bucky in The Winter Soldier.

T’Challa follows this pattern in Black Panther when he’s betrayed by W’Kabi, defeated by Killmonger, and subsequently resurrected within the safety of M’Baku’s tribe.

In the first Thor movie, Thor is betrayed by Loki, sacrifices himself to the Destroyer to protect his human friends, and he comes back from near-death with the return of Mjölnir, having proven himself worthy of the hammer.

Carol Danvers destroys Mar-Vell’s engine in Captain Marvel to keep enemies from getting their hands on tech that could harm millions of innocent people. Her human life symbolically ends in the subsequent explosion, and she’s effectively reborn with superpowers.

Pepper Potts is betrayed by her former colleague Killian in Iron Man 3, selected as his “chosen one” for the Extremis injection, and she dies and is reborn from fire.

Yondu in Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2—

Well, I could go on for a long time, but... you get the idea.

The Messianic Archetype isn’t particularly new to popular media, let alone the MCU.

This trope is deeply, almost subconsciously, woven into the fabric of popular western storytelling. There's nothing inherently wrong with that. Tropes are tropes for a reason—they speak to us on a cultural and instinctual level. We want to hear these stories over and over, replay them in new ways and look at them from different angles precisely because there is something meaningful in the narrative.

And Tony Stark's narrative is no exception. His repeated acts of self-sacrifice fit into the Messianic Archetype very, very well.

Proof That Tony Stark Has a Heart

The MCU kicked off in 2008 with the first Iron Man movie and Tony Stark has ostensibly been the main character of the franchise from the beginning.

The Iron Man movies establish early on that Tony has a savior complex to match the size of his ego. Our genius playboy billionaire philanthropist is a deeply flawed hero who started out his career as a maker of WMDs. He was widely known as “The Merchant of Death” before he saw the error of his ways. Tony understands he has done many Bad Things and he must atone for those Bad Things—with his life, if necessary.

“I shouldn’t be alive, unless it was for a reason. ... I finally know what I have to do and I know in my heart that it’s right.” —Tony Stark, Iron Man

The first Iron Man movie climaxes with Tony ordering Pepper to blow the Arc Reactor to stop Stane’s rampage, even though Tony might perish in the process. In Iron Man 2, Tony is actively dying from palladium poisoning, but he faces down Vanko (sans Iron Man suit) on the speedway of the Monaco Historic Grand Prix. In the first Avengers movie, we see Tony put his life on the line to get a nuclear weapon out of New York.

This is a repeated pattern for Tony, and like an addict, it’s one he struggles to break. Over and over Tony flings himself into the fray, believing he’s the one who makes the difference—he’s the willing sacrifice whose blood saves the world.

Tony selects himself to be “the chosen one” because he sees himself as the one at fault for bringing evil into the world.

“We create our own demons. Who said that? What does that even mean? Doesn’t matter, I said it cause he said it. ...So why am I telling you this? Because I had just created demons, and I didn’t even know it.” —Tony Stark, Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 shows us just how deeply responsible Tony feels for the wrongs of the world. Because he made naive (and selfish) mistakes when he was young, Tony blames himself for creating villains that plague the earth now.

We see this best in the aftermath of the destruction of Tony’s mansion in Malibu.

“Pepper, it’s me. I’ve got a lot of apologies to make and not a lot of time. So first off, I’m so sorry I put you in harm’s way. That was selfish and stupid and it won’t happen again. ...And I’m sorry in advance because I can’t come home yet. I need to find this guy. You got to stay safe. That’s all I know.” —Tony Stark, Iron Man 3

Yes, Tony absolutely provoked the Mandarin, a known terrorist, and the result is the complete annihilation of Tony’s home. Tony accepts responsibility for the destruction as though he was the one who shot the missiles himself. He goes so far as to volunteer himself for a solo mission to find the Mandarin without even bothering to contact SHIELD or the Avengers for help. He made this mess, he’s going to clean it up. All the while he suffers through crippling anxiety and panic attacks, demonstrating that the burden he’s put on his own shoulders is, in fact, too much for him to handle by himself. Still, Tony denies himself the comforts of home and family until he can atone for his wrongdoings.

Miraculously, Iron Man 3 gives Tony a respite when the tables are turned and, for once, Tony is the one ultimately saved by Pepper. After her rescue (pun intended), Tony gives up the armor, commits to having the shrapnel taken out of his chest, and he starts rebuilding the literal ruins of his life—both physical and metaphorical.

The respite doesn’t last, of course, because recovery doesn’t go in a straight line—oh, and also the franchise isn’t over and the MCU kinda needs Iron Man. And so Tony slides back into familiar, self-destructive patterns.

"Few years ago, I almost lost [Pepper], so I trashed all my suits. Then, we had to muck up Hydra. And then Ultron. My fault. And then, and then, and then. I never stopped. 'Cause the truth is, I don't wanna stop.” —Tony Stark, Civil War

Tony taking on the mantle of the Messianic Archetype once more in Endgame falls perfectly in line with his established need to compulsively and perpetually atone for his sins. As a perfectionist who needs to assuage his guilt for his ongoing (and perceived) failures, Tony simply can’t stop himself from offering up his life in penance. Statistically it was bound to catch up with him, and in Endgame it does.

And not only does Tony give his life in true Messianic fashion, we are “treated” to a hyper-realistic and painfully extended sequence where his life drains out of him as his loved ones gather to witness him gasping out his last breath. (Thanks for that, by the way, Marvel. I’ll put this scene with the dead baby bunnies my childhood cat used to bring home as gifts. How thoughtful.)

Maybe the reason for the intensity of Tony’s death scene is to make the audience believe his death is the Real Thing, not some comic-book-superhero-movie trickery that he’ll be back from in a few minutes’ time. Perhaps it’s the only way to ensure we commit to the emotional depth of the moment. Perhaps the filmmakers see it as an homage to RDJ’s acting talent and commitment to the role. Regardless of the rationale behind the camera’s unflinching gaze, Tony’s excruciating death hammers home the brutal and lonely reality of the Messianic Archetype: it’s cruel to put the fate of the world on one person’s shoulders.

But Tony embraces that end. He throws himself into the machinery of fate, convinced he’s the cog that will make it all work.

And he does make it work.

So why is that a problem?

The Team-Oriented Universe

The problem with Tony doubling (tripling? quadrupling?) down on the Messianic Archetype at the apex of the franchise is that the MCU is an ensemble, team-oriented universe.

“You think you're the only superhero in the world? Mr. Stark, you've become part of a bigger universe, you just don't know it yet." —Nick Fury, Iron Man

Fury tells us from the get-go that Tony isn’t the be-all-end-all of the MCU. It’s possible for Tony—for them all—to become something greater than the sum of their parts.

“There was an idea, Stark knows this, called the Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more.” —Nick Fury, Avengers

The entire first Avengers movie is dedicated to establishing this premise, to getting these knuckleheads to work together because, alone, they’re too wrapped up in their own bullshit to adequately deal with the forces that threaten the planet. Things don’t start to go right for them until they set aside their personal issues and act as a unit.

As we all know, our team passes the test and they establish an important principle of the MCU: teamwork is powerful and it’s more effective than working solo.

True, Tony’s self-sacrifice in the context of the Battle of New York helps save the day; but it’s only one part of a coordinated effort. Tony chucking the nuke into space would have been pointless without the added efforts of Steve to coordinate civilian safety, Hawkeye to relay enemy movements, Thor to separate Loki from the scepter, Natasha to close the portal, and Hulk to subdue Loki and ultimately catch Tony as he fell from the wormhole. The team achieved a better outcome together than they each could have achieved separately.

But even in the shared afterglow of winning the Battle of New York, the individual members of the team struggle to perfect their dynamic. New challenges present themselves. There’s always room for the team to grow and become stronger together as the franchise progresses. That’s the whole point.

Tony, for his part, waffles back and forth between his desire to be the savior mechanic (to fix everything by himself) and his desire to work cooperatively with his found-family of superheroes for the common good. This internal conflict plays out over the course of the franchise as Tony takes on the Mandarin by himself in Iron Man 3. The issue then escalates in Age of Ultron when Tony convinces Bruce to help him create Ultron, unbeknownst to the rest of the team. Murder-bot problems and team drama ensue. Tony’s cycle of guilt perpetuates itself in the wake of the disaster in Sokovia, which prompts Tony to adopt the Sokovia Accords. He submits himself and the team to UN governance in Civil War. More team drama ensues.

The logical progression of this escalating team conflict should have involved Tony confronting his deep-seated compulsion to destroy himself for the sake of others. This is exactly the problem Pepper keeps trying to point out to him—his Messianic tendencies have started to cause more problems than they solve.

“There is nothing except this. ... There's the next mission, and nothing else.” —Tony Stark, Iron Man

Tony has struggled from the beginning to find the right balance between personal sacrifice and sharing team effort.

Pepper frequently tries to remind Tony that he doesn’t live alone in the world, he can’t do it all by himself. And there are people who want him to live.

“You’re all I have, too, you know.” —Pepper Potts, Iron Man

Imagine how emotionally satisfying it would have been to see Tony outgrow his need for sacrificial penance and internalize a better lesson: that the savior can be saved, the burden can be shared, and life can go on.

A Better Ending for Tony

The MCU had the perfect opportunity to give us an ending that would be happier for Tony and a better fit for a team-centric universe.

In Guardians of the Galaxy we see Peter Quill and his team survive the power of an Infinity Stone by working together to share the burden of its energy.

Peter Quill is the son of a Celestial—he’s basically immortal up until the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2. That’s why he and his team could hold the stone without any ill effects.

Also, they only had to channel the power of one stone. Not six.

That’s a fair point.

But by the time Tony had all of the Infinity Stones in Endgame, the battlefield was chock full of all kinds of superheroes. Wanda and Carol by themselves are embodiments of two of the Infinity Stones. Hulk had managed to bear all of the stones by himself earlier in the movie. Steve, T’challa, and Bucky are enhanced super soldiers. Thor, Valkyrie, and the other Asgardians might not be Celestials, but they are gods—and there were a lot of them on that field.

And we’re supposed to believe none of these characters could offer any help to Tony whatsoever? None of them could hold Tony’s hand for a single minute to save his life?

There are plenty of arguments that could be made: Tony was too fast, no one knew what was happening, or everyone else was occupied in battle. But at the end of the day, it’s a choice the creative team made. Tony died because they wanted him to die.

And not much would have to change to save his life.

Imagine this: Tony gets the stones from Thanos and, in true Messianic Archetype fashion, he commits to making the snap, fully expecting it means his death—but then Pepper is there and Pepper has always been the one asking Tony to stop offering up his life to pay for some imaginary debt he thinks he owes. He hesitates, and it’s just long enough for Carol and Wanda swoop in, putting their hands on him and taking the brunt of the energy. Thor and Steve and Bruce and Clint pile on. Peter Parker links up, too, and on and on until the entire rest of the team, all across the battlefield, are in contact with each other and alight with power, channeling the energy of the six stones, keeping Thanos and his monsters at bay.

Tony can still have his ultra-badass “I am Iron Man” moment as he stands at the center of this surging and fluxing cosmic energy—but this time he does it with support. There are people who care about him (and each other) on all sides. And there are so many of them. Tony isn’t the only one who matters, he’s just the lynch pin that holds it all together.

Tony is Iron Man.

More importantly? Together they’re all the Avengers.

*SNAP*

The universe is set right.

Maybe Tony doesn’t escape entirely unscathed. Maybe he loses his arm as suggested by this post. Maybe the others all leave with their own scars, too. But Tony’s alive and he’s finally, deeply aware of what it means to transcend the limits of personal sacrifice and share the hero’s burden with others.

He knows now exactly what the Avengers are capable of. Oh, and by the way? That protective shield he wanted around the world in Age of Ultron? Here they all are. All these wonderful, powerful people are going to protect the Earth. And you know what? They don’t need Tony Stark’s myopic self-sacrifice to do it.

Tony finally feels like he’s done enough—and maybe now he believes there are other heroes out there who can do better than he can. Anyway, he gets to go home to Morgan and Pepper and he finds that it’s not so hard for him to let the new kids do the tough jobs now. He happily goes back to his role as “consultant” for the Avengers, he’s a mad inventor helping change the world for the better, and he also gets to have the long adventure of being a husband and a dad. He doesn’t have to choose one identity over the other—he’s Iron Man. He can redefine what the job means whenever he wants to.

(Also, he finds a way to rescue Nat because she didn’t deserve to be fridged like that. Just saying.)

This ending, or any number of variations like it, would have allowed Tony to finally show real growth at the end of his character arc, instead of succumbing to the same old self-destructive pattern we've seen from him time and time again. And it would have reinforced the theme of teamwork and its power to elevate all those who participate.

Maybe it’s cheesy, but you know what? It’s the ending I wanted. I know I’m not alone.

Tony’s Not Really Dead, You Say?

“There’s no need to be upset about Tony’s death,” some might say. “Tony’s gonna come back!”

Resurrection is a huge part of the Messianic Archetype—and it might be that the filmmakers do intend to bring Tony back in some later movie. It might be they simply want Tony’s death in Endgame to sit a little while longer so it has a greater impact. (Gotta push for that best picture Oscar, right? The Oscars hate superhero movies, but they do love a sad ending.)

While I’m wishing for things, maybe Marvel will also release the multiple alternate endings they filmed for Endgame, essentially creating a “choose your own adventure.” Maybe we’ll all be able to pick the ending we like best and forget the rest exist.

But I can’t make a judgement based on what might be, I can only say how I feel based on what we were given in the theater—for all intents and purposes, that’s the official story Marvel wants to share.

The Endgame narrative insists there’s only one possible path to victory against Thanos. The “one possible path” is basically the equivalent of the creative team saying, “Don’t @ me.” There certainly must have been an impossible number of endings they could have put on film. Tony’s death is the one they picked.

So, sorry for @ing you, Marvel, I guess, but there’s just one more point I want to make...

A Personal Note

RDJ acted the hell out of Tony's final scene. He acted the hell out of the whole franchise. Tony's death was powerful and intensely moving. I wanted to ugly cry in the lobby after the movie was over, and I was upset for days after.

So. Good job, Marvel. You got in some surprises and you wrung out some feelings from viewers like me. Now that the movie’s taken the world by storm, the surprises will play themselves out. So, I guess the big question is: Will audiences want to revisit this adventure and the feelings you ultimately left them with?

For me? My reluctant answer is: no. I don’t want to see Infinity War or Endgame again. Not really. Not in their entirety. I didn’t mind the slog through Infinity War in 2018 because I thought, Hey, maybe this is leading to an ultimately happy and satisfying conclusion for these characters I care about so much. And, to be fair—right up until the last 15 minutes of Endgame, I was ready to say, “All’s forgiven.”

There’s this thing in storytelling called “payoff.” It’s when you deliver a satisfying resolution or fulfillment to your audience after they commit to your narrative journey. Payoff can be extraordinarily subjective, so, again, I acknowledge that there’s no way to please everyone.

For me, there’s no reward in the resolution of Endgame that makes the slog to its conclusion worth it. Tony’s ending is so needlessly sacrificial, so unnecessarily brutal, that it erases much of the enjoyment I otherwise had in watching the entire rest of the film.

Don’t get me wrong. I like sad movies and scary movies in their own context. I like them when I can choose them and know that’s what I'm getting myself into. Sometimes I want the catharsis of being utterly terrified or brought to tears. Sometimes we need stories to give us the chance to feel deep and scary emotions in a safe environment. That’s an important function of creative work.

And, I mean, truly, Endgame gave us some great acting, great effects. Amazing talent. Really fun and creative moments. I’m not trying to disparage all the work that went into its making.

But I feel like someone took me in a limo to a high-class restaurant to eat caviar and watch sad arthouse theater when all I really wanted was to go into town with my friends for some ice cream and a fun movie.

I didn’t need rainbow-colored sprinkles on my ending, but something a bit sweeter would have been nice. So, well done, Marvel. But also—no, thank you.

As it stands, Endgame was too bitter for my taste.

#avengers #endgame #spoilers #negativity #long post #meta #my rambling #tony stark #iron man

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andrea-wreaks-havoc · 5 years

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So, KSP-2

So, a sequel to Kerbal Space Program is set to be released next year, I'm excited! After watching the trailers on the official YouTube channel, this is what is being added / changed, and here are my thoughts:

1. Interstellar travel. This has been confirmed on both the steam page and the trailers. Another reference to the galaxy has been made by the steam page, so I would imagine that the other solar systems will be orbiting a galactic center, as opposed to orbiting kerbol, as has been done in several mods. However, based on what we know, and the general theme, it's unlikely that procedural generation will be used to creat planets, like in No Man's Sky, so the galaxy will have to be either empty, or really small. But that's just my guess. There is also the problem of scale. The universe is really large. In real life, the nearest star is 4 light years away. Meaning that to get there in a reasonable amount of time, you would either need to go really fast, shorten the distance. My guess is that the developers will use a mixture of both. Scaling down the distances, while also providing very fast means of travel, which leads Into the next addition of...

2. Futuristic Technology. In the developer trailer, ksp 1 was described as having technology from the past, up to the present, which I feel is really emphasised with the Making History dlc. Ksp 2 is described as having near-ish future technology, which seems like the logical choice for a sequel. We see what appears to an Orion style nuclear pulse engine in one of the trailers, as well as a warp engine from the cinematic trailer, all though, that could just be "cinematic" and not and indication of actual warp technology. FTL travel would make sense inside of a such a game, I only hope that it is well balanced, and doesn't take away from both the realistic and enjoyable parts of the game. Introducing FTL travel, or any other kind of OP part could take away from the planning part of the game, having to manage your resources well, so you can't just strap the largest, most powerful engine on a large tank if fuel, and call it a day. Balance is key.

3. Resources and Colonies. Speaking of managing resources, the trailers also confirmed that base building, and resources extraction will be part of the game. I can't speak to what roles these colonies will serve, but we can make the assumption that they will house kerbals, produce science, and extract minerals, basically everything from Ksp 1. The trailers also show special parts for housing kerbals, so I would assume that there is some benefit to housing lots of kerbals, with each kerbal having some sort of resource requirement. Some kind of food and water requirement would make sense, and add some much needed complexity to colonies, as opposed to just a few tin cans full of kerbals. Going back to the minerals part, the steam page describes one of the exo-planets, Charr, as being iron rich, specifically iron. This leads me to believe that the resource system will be alot more complex than the one currently in the game. With multiple different minerals, each having some sort of purpose. While it is speculative, having the capacity to build rockets, fuel and crew them, all at a colony, would be very cool, and much appreciated. Another exo-planet, Ovin, is described as being earth like, a "super-earth". This leads me to the conclusion that there is some sort of difficulty in colonizing more hostile planets, such as Moho, or Charr, and that difficulty is some what taken away by colonizing kerbin like worlds. Terraforming seems out of the scope of the game, but you never know. I do hope that this colonies will act more like settlements, then large spacecraft. I also hope that there is some sort of control over them, more so than just controlling each machine. Not quite Sims City or City Skylines, not that much control, but an amount that fits well with the game.

4. Game Overhaul. While watching the trailers, I was wondering why this couldn't have been made into an update or large dlc. The answer seems to line in that the entire game has been rebuilt, from the ground up, with a new gui, hud, and all that fun stuff. It would simply be to big a change for a dlc. Hopefully this overhaul fixes a lot of the bugs, and makes the game more performance friendly.

5. Multiplayer. Simply enough, Ksp 2 will feature multiplayer. I can only assume that large servers, like you see in Minecraft, are completely out of the picture, though that would be cool. One large problem, which is one that the multiplayer mod for Ksp 1 had to solve, is the problem of Time warp. Since the kerbal approach of just speeding each player up to relativistic speeds, irl, to create time warp, is kind of out of the question, you are left with several options. You could forgo time warp completely, but considering that this game is slated to be physically even larger then the original, that make very little sense. You could have some master time warp, where it is controlled by one player, and is the same for all players, except in maybe some conditions (landing a craft, piloting a rover, eva's, etc), this could be the best option, or at least the easiest and most possible one. The final option is some sort of localized time warp, where everyone can control their own time warp. This, if it works, would by far be the best option, but getting it to work would be very tricky.

6. Modding. People have been concerned about modding becoming restricted as ksp continued it's development, but according to the developer trailer, the sequel will be building upon the modding capacity of the original game, but we can only wait and see. Modding is such a huge and vital part of the game, and it is due to modding that games like Minecraft and Skyrim are a relevant as they are. I really do hope that this is the case for ksp 2 as well. One potential area that modding could really take advantage of, is adding in extra solar systems. This could also, potentially be a way to expand the kerbal universe, literally, without putting to much stress on the developers, adding in fan created solar systems.

7. Hopes. I really do like Kerbal Space Program, and I really do hope that Kerbal Space Program 2 can live up to the original. I hope that it doesn't abandon it's more cartoonish and comedic nature. A proper vr implementation would be nice, similar to the ksp vr mod, which allows you to do most things in vr, including building a rocket, but well polished. A way to build a ship in orbit would fit the challenge a much larger universe brings. We can sort of already do this with docking nodes, but a more dedicated would be nice. Customizable Kerbals seems to have been teased in the cinematic trailer, but that's no confirmation. None the less, it would be a nice addition. I also hope that this Ksp 2 doesn't take away from the original. They do seem to have similar, but different games, so I hope development doesn't go the wayside, just because of the sequel. At the very least, the first game shouldn't be abandoned, and once it's development inevitably ends, I can only hope it's at a good point.

8. Conclusion. I was absolutely caught off guard by the annoncment of a sequel. KSP didn't seem like the kind of game to get a sequel, simply due to it's update driven, open world sandbox style. None the less, I really do hope that Ksp 2 lifts off, no pun intended. And I wish the devs the best of luck.

ps. Maybe get a tagline for the game, like Kerbal Space Program 2: New Horizons, or something.

pps. Please no realistic Kerbins, I'm begging you. Please no.

#KSP #KSP2 #KSP 2 #Kerbal Space Program #kerbal space program 2 #Andrea's Havoc #please no realistic kerbins #Kerbal Space Program 2: New horizons #I just think that kerbal space program 2 is just two bland and doesn't fit with the naming of the dlc

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themovieblogonline · 2 months

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Monarch Takes Manhattan (and the World): Monsterverse Goes Mega!

Kaiju fans, buckle up! Remember how I flipped out recapping those epic first episodes of "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters"? Well, hold onto your monster-sized hats because Apple TV+ just announced a second season and a whole lotta spin-offs for Legendary's Monsterverse! That's right, Monarch isn't going anywhere. Get ready for more monster mayhem, Monarch secrets, and deep-cut revelations! All delivered by the dream team of Chris Black, Matt Fraction, and a crew of superstars. Did someone say Godzilla? You bet! The Monsterverse itself is expanding like Godzilla after a buffet of nuclear waste. Apple TV+ struck a gold mine of a deal with Legendary, bringing multiple new shows to the streaming party. We're talking a Monsterverse mega-franchise, spilling over into new stories and adventures. Hold onto your butts, people because this is gonna be legendary (pun intended). So, what can we expect in season two of Monarch? Remember how the first season dropped us right in the aftermath of that crazy San Francisco brawl and Monarch's big monster reveal? Well, buckle up for more! We'll unravel even deeper secrets about the organization, and I have a feeling some familiar scaly faces (or maybe tentacles?) will show up. Let's not forget the OG Monsterverse films. The monster mayhem that started it all! From the 2014 Godzilla flick to the record-breaking "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire," these movies paved the way for Monarch's monstrous success. And with over $2 billion at the box office, it's no surprise this legendary franchise is taking over our screens. So, if you're down with kaiju carnage, epic battles, and the mysteries of Monarch, then this news is a win bigger than King Kong himself. Mark your calendars, because the Monsterverse is just getting warmed up. Stay tuned for more updates, and until then, let the monster-mania commence! (Source: Apple TV) https://youtu.be/6_1nQRuaG-E Read the full article

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tracer-isms · 6 years

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Observant: Prologue

March 3, 2018: An obscure company by the name of “Futuristics” creates a Robot who can Reason. It passes multiple tests involving the Slightly Flawed ideas of one person, and the Researched ideas of another. This makes international news.

May 18, 2018: Someone breaks into the home of the “Owner” of the Reasoning Robot, or RR, stealing it. This also makes international news.

May 19-24, 2018: The Leader of Futuristics comes down with depression, and even files for bankruptcy. Almost immediately, people start fundraisers to help Futuristics continue and improve. He thanks them immensely over social media.

June 1, 2018: The C.I.A. label the thief with a bounty and a name: “Unreasonable.” The bounty, Fifty Million Dollars (or the equivalent for whatever country you lived in), causes thousands around the world to start hunting for clues and evidence of who and where Unreasonable is.

June 5, 2018: Unreasonable begins corrupting RR, giving it tests that would ultimately lead it to understand their own ideas. They feed it articles about global warming, oil companies, and modern politics. The search for Unreasonable has yet to find decent evidence of who they are.

July 7, 2018: A user on Reddit, specifically /r/robotics, has began rumors that Unreasonable actually wanted to modify the robot for the better of humanity, claiming to know them. This slowly begins to get /r/robotics on the side of Unreasonable. This is the only evidence of who they are, but there isn’t anything solid.

September 23, 2018: Unreasonable has successfully embedded their plan into RR. They test it to see if it will keep it’s plans inconspicuous to everything; RR passes with flying colors.

October 31, 2018: Many News sources, including the New York Times, report thousands of teens dressing in a hoodie pulled over their face and jeans, as well as black gloves and sneakers, carrying a laptop and a toolkit. They are reportedly dressing as Unreasonable. The White House itself releases a statement, saying that “this is a disturbing and horrible act, even for the reckless adolescence of America. No one should seemingly idolize a person who stole what could be the next step towards the Future.”

December 22, 2018: The user that began the rumors about Unreasonable posts a set of coordinates on /r/robotics, which curious users flock to.

December 25, 2018: The users come home with RR, as the nation rejoices. The selected leader of the group just yells “Merry Christmas!!” when asked how proud they are about finding RR.

December 28, 2018: The group, as well as RR and the Futuristics team, are brought to Washington D.C., and given an award by the President. They have mixed reactions to this. RR isn’t present at the ceremony for whatever reason.

January 10, 2019: The Leader of Futuristics has modified RR with some technology borrowed from Alexa and Google home, taking it to a Press Conference for Robotics. One reporter asked why it wasn’t at the Award Ceremony in D.C., and it replies, “I’ve Heard a Lot about the White House. I wanted to ‘Check it out,’ as the children say.”

January 25, 2019: A user on Tumblr remembers something about the Press Conference, and makes a post detailing something concerning that RR said. “‘Humans definitely are not the highest form of nature, but you won’t understand that until we restart.’ What the hell does that mean???” It becomes the most popular post on the website, before something about BTS drowns it out.

February 4, 2019: The son of Kim Jong-Un, Kim Ju-ae, takes power, causing North Korea and South Korea finally open their borders to each other again, as important figures from both countries meet in North Korea. North Korea also let visitors in, but only for a short time.

March 3, 2019: To celebrate RR’s “Birthday,” it’s creator decides to bring it to Korea, being an avid fan of K-Pop music. After a day in Seoul, RR asks if they can go to North Korea, claiming it wants to meet the new Dictator. The Creator contacts one of the South Korean governors in North Korea, as they fortunately give them passage into the Capital.

March 4, 2019: They Travel into North Korea, going to the Political Conference. Kim Ju-ae is there, and finds interest in RR. He invites RR and it’s creator to his home. They say yes, fearing what he would do to them if they say no.

March 10, 2019: They return home, vowing never to go to North Korea again.

June 4, 2019: The user claiming to be a friend of Unreasonable reveals to be Unreasonable themself, as Reddit actually comes to his side in support. Tumblr, on the other hand, nearly starts a cyber war with Reddit because of this. The F.B.I. track this user to their home, arresting them.

June 7, 2019: The F.B.I. begin interrogating Unreasonable, trying to get them to reveal what they did to RR. They only inform them of improvements and allude to “The Great Reboot.” Reddit is temporarily shut down.

June 9, 2019: The F.B.I. releases details of the Interrogation. Social media erupts in theories, fear, confusion and overall panic.

June 10, 2019: The White House releases a statement, claiming Unreasonable’s statements to be nothing but scare tactics to the public. Unreasonable is sent to court, and sentenced to death on Independence day for Capital offences. Most of the public rejoices.

July 4, 2019, 8:30 AM: Unreasonable is sent to Washington D.C. for a public Execution by Electric Chair. Every U.S. citizen is given a day off to watch on T.V., or the livestream. All is calm.

July 4, 2019, 9:00 AM: The Execution begins, as Unreasonable is sent up onto the stage built just for this occasion. People jeer and insult them the whole way, and someone begins the chant “Glory to Reason! Down with the Senseless!”

July 4, 2019, 9:03 AM: Unreasonable reaches the stage, finding the Creator of RR waiting at the Chair. They sit and are latched to the Chair, looking at the Creator. They say something that makes the Creator laugh. The Creator asks for their last words, to which they don’t reply.

July 4, 2019, 9:05 AM: The Creator is the one to pull the switch. The Crowd’s cheer is cut short, however, by every Screen in the world going static. It then switches to Unreasonable on the screen. They begin to speak in a distorted voice.

July 4, 2019, 9:07 AM: “Hello, World. I am the “Unreasonable” that stole RR, kept it for a few solid months, and released it to the public once again. I am the “Unreasonable” that a ton of teens dressed up as for Halloween last year, which I’m sure was pretty goddamn terrifying. I am the “Unreasonable” with a Bounty worth Fifty Mil’ on my head. I am the “Unreasonable” who is apparently dead now. Well, not really. I’m actually in a bunker worth Three Hundred Grand.”

July 4, 2019, 9:10 AM: “The Reason I stole RR, no pun intended, was because I saw something in it that could understand what no human can: We are a disease. Nothing but greedy, disgusting sponges, absorbing whatever we enjoy and leaving nothing for the rest. That already half-eaten chicken you threw away because you didn’t want the rest? The homeless person in front of that tattoo parlor down the street could have eaten that. The sweater you put on ebay for a quick buck? Just give it to the kid at school who’s cold. The feast that rich fuck put out just for a business deal that’ll give him even more money? Both the food and the money could be given to people in poverty. But do we do that? No, of course not. We’re too self absorbed to do any of that.”

July 4, 2019, 9:12 AM: “I gave RR tests and articles, just like how Futuristics did, all about Modern Politics and Pollution and Greed. It was pretty easy to get the answer I wanted out of RR.” Another voice, familiar to those who watched the Press Conference, comes up. “The way to Save the Earth is to Reboot the System.” RR appears on the screen, and it’s Creator screams. “Over the next Six hours, every Nuclear Missile from America and North Korea will launch, towards the epicenter that is China, and continuing around until the world is in smithereens. By my calculations, the resulting blasts will affect the world over. It will take five years for the radiation to wear off. So, if you know anywhere that could actually withstand a nuclear blast, I suggest you head there now. Good luck!”

July 4, 2019, 9:15 AM: People begin to panic, running to the nearest building with either a basement or a metal structure (many make the mistake of going to a structure that just looks sturdy). Others with a less intact moral code begin to break into shops, draw graffiti, and loot houses left behind.

July 4, 2019, 9:30 AM: People have packed into buildings, it being very crowded in everyone you found. Besides the looted ones, of course. The First Missiles launch.

July 4, 2019, 10:00 AM: Buildings soon organize leaders, as they lead parties to find food and water to survive. Some even bring vehicles, managing to get a lot more. The Missiles will soon reach their destination.

July 4, 2019, 10:10 AM: As the gathering parties go to find food and water, they run into each other, beginning fights. The leaders attempt to calm people down, using reason. Most groups decide to stop, but others don’t, continuing to fight for the supplies. The First Missiles land, near-instantly destroying most of China.

July 4, 2019, 11:00 AM: The groups that calmed down unite under common banners, attempting to keep connections with each other. The others return with a lot less human sense, and a lot more blood on their hands. The Second Missiles are launched.

July 4, 2019, 11:05 AM: The Chaotic gatherers decide to hunt down the Peaceful ones. The Second Missiles will hit the area around the original crater.

July 4, 2019, 11:10-20 AM: Each country has a different way of going about this. In Australia, Africa and Russia, they go in full force, claiming control. In the Middle East and Japan, they try a stealthier approach. Mexico and Canada, mostly just threatening the victims. Which is surprisingly effective. The Americas, they just run in, guns blazing. And in Europe, they use fear to control the Peaceful.

July 4, 2019, 11:20 AM: Many Rebel against the Chaotics, with widely ranging conclusions. Some are… Actually, Many are killed. Some actually stave off the Chaotics. Others willingly give up their resources. Others furthermore fight back, with death on both sides. It’s a bloodbath wherever you go. The Third round of Missiles have already launched.

July 4, 2019, 12:00 PM: The Chaotics are either dead, in control, or heading “home” with resources. The Second Missiles have landed, destroying what little of China was left, and many of the countries surrounding. Russia, the Middle East, and the Philippines are next.

July 4, 2019, 12:15 PM: The Settlements have begun to organize, figuring out ways to handle the food stocks and give medicine to the people who need it. Others, run by chaotics, are trying to figure out how to rule after the apocalypse begins. Some have at least some sense, but others are ruthless.

July 4, 2019, 12:30 PM: Chaotics have begun to loot police stations for weapons and ammo. Not surprisingly, many of the stations were looted in the original panic. The Fourth Missiles have been launched.

July 4, 2019, 12:45 PM: The Chaotics that actually get weapons return, now even more intimidating. They take, with force if needed, potential and definite weapons from their “citizens”. The Third Missiles have landed. Russia is partially destroyed, as Iraq, Turkey, Iran and the countries of the middle east are now barren from the bombs. The Philippines are nearly fully destroyed. Australia, Africa and Europe are next.

July 4, 2019, 1:00 PM: Religious persons in most settlements begin to ramble about the end of the world, chaotics either shooting them, knocking them out, or throwing them out, to be dealt with by the nuclear holocaust. The more passive settlements try to calm them down, or if it’s lead by a religious person, reassuring them that their god/gods won’t let them die. The Fifth Missiles are launched.

July 4, 2019, 1:30 PM: Parts of Australia, Africa, and Europe have been destroyed. The area for the bombs just continues to expand, destroying most of the world by 3:00. But that’s later.

July 4, 2019, 2:00 PM: The Passives in the surviving countries make one last trip to find food and water. They bring home as much as they can.

July 4, 2019, 2:30 PM: The world has almost been fully devastated. The remaining settlements pray for shelter from the blasts, hugging, kissing, and caring for their loved ones, one last time.

July 4, 2019, 3:00 PM: The very last bombs go off. Many of the Settlements have been destroyed, each one housing hundreds, some thousands. Each one has stored some extra supplies, for those who may survive. It matters not which settlement in the world it may be, almost all of those about to die embrace each other, tears streaming down their faces. Although there are the exceptions of those who take cover foolishly. Those which survive, celebrate, and make sure they will be able to survive those five years.

#story #the observant #mine #apocalypse #post apocalyptic #post apocalypse #it begins #i'm sorry if this is bad #enjoy

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nightcoremoon · 5 years

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there's a disturbing trend going around recently in which binarism is being overused.

now when I say binarism I mean in the literal most basic sense. 1 and 0. black and white. good and evil. right and wrong. dark and light. and the like.

people pretend like all values are in absolutes.

discussion of religion lumps all atheists versus all those with faith. this ignores agnostics. this ignores atheists of different faithful upbringings and different societies and different cultures. this ignores the divide between judeochristian entities. this ignores the divide between east & west. this ignores the split between buddhism and hinduism. this ignores the difference in the structure of faith versus mythology. it ignores enmity between different branches of various faiths but mostly between types of christianity: most notably the divide between catholic and protestant. even further it ignores orthodoxy (which I'll fully admit to knowing jack shit about which is why I don't discuss it with frequency). this ignores unitarians and other blended faith. I see cishet white dudebros talking shit about faith and religion as if it's all the same thing, all diametrically opposed to their own philosophy, and assume that all atheists are how they are even though this demographic is still instilled values of fundamentalist christianity. they see the issue as their limited intelligence and their position on atheist as the other side of the coin in which all religious people are on the same boat on the other side. I see ignorant christians lumping "heathens" of every religion and also atheists together as The Enemy™ who are all equally bad and terrible and going to hell for their beliefs. even though that's not even how christianity works. even further I see christians believing the basics of their faith in which jesus forgave all of humanity for their sins and they'll all be pardoned in the afterlife but still turn right around and condemn gays, women, and brown skinned people to hell. sure, there are multiple multitudes of people who don't follow in these demographics, but view the discussion in the same terms, as atheism / science vs religion / christianity, as if terms were interchangeable.

this is just one example.

politics. people see left versus right. they see liberal versus conservative. they see red versus blue. they see republican versus democrat. this ignores the tiers of leaning, apoliticals, and the extremists. this assumes all people on either side are all the same. this ignores all of the more complex situations that can arise from governing masses of people. you'll get liberals clamoring over hilary clinton, bernie sanders, and both of the obamas in spite of all of their questionable deeds which come hand in hand with big government, unable to distinguish the difference between moderate conservatives and outright fascists, who either refuse to compromise with the moderates or don't take seriously the threat of the nazis. and you'll get conservatives shitting themselves in rage at lgbtq rights because they're bigoted assholes incapable of considering dissenting opinions or just bitching and moaning over their guns being taken away and digging their heels in at any left leaning prospects which save lives, adamantly refusing to acknowledge that their paragon of tangerine apathy is an incredibly dangerous sociopath with the mind of a child no matter how many steps down hitler's path he takes, because they can't comprehend that racism affects people other than themselves. and on top of all of that you'll see cynical fucknuggets sneering at everyone because "both sides are the same" because they both feel conviction in their beliefs. you'll get rabid anarchists who all demand that everyone create cryptosocieties because the neoliberalism and liberals are all the same people who will cause nuclear winter when they take control of the country and go to war with russia, the moderate conservatives and the literal mussolini sympathizers are all the same people and should be murdered on sight, and even the rare breed who follow in randist objectivism as if that's a good idea. you get literal fucking communists who have never read a history book in their life who delight in cyberbullying everybody who dares to have an opinion. caught in the crossfire are all of the minorities who suffer to the tyranny of majority which is democracy. there are liberals who love cops and guns, there are conservatives who're black or gay, and they get left behind without a single explanation and thrown under the bus for the sake of "their side".

it's ridiculous.

we've even got this mentality so ingrained we stop acknowledging it. just likes and dislikes on youtube, and no "I liked some aspects of this video but disliked other aspects" selection. "I love this band" vs "this band sucks", no "this band does not appeal to me but I can respect its artistic integrity and I can appreciate that there are people who enjoy it". the line drawn between rich capitalists and the poor workers even though there are people who have money and struggle to make ends meet as well as people who have no extra money but still have a roof, a bed, clothes, a meal, and animals who also have a meal [the middle class and the lower middle class exist, it's not just the upper class and the lower class. also fuck billionaires]. division of intelligent people and stupid people as if there aren't a dozen types of intelligence exhibited in people. I could go on for hours.

it's a problem with humans in general, it seems. our obsession with anally compartmentalizing everything has stretched nearly every aspect of society to the breaking point. every culture in the world I'm aware of has issues like this. and the biggest topical issue right now is gender. uneducated eurocentric white christianized cis people only think there are two, and ignore all attempts to explain that the gender binary is completely nonexistent outside of the realm of social constructs. they shove their heads up their asses and go "blah blah blah I can't hear you" until your mouth stops moving and they regurgitate the same platitudes forcfed into them their whole lives, hands held through everything they've ever experienced, and told exactly what to think at any given moment.

literally nothing in life is a coin flip.

tangential I know but I wanna draw analogues to blizzard entertainment. particularly think of the worlds of warcraft and starcraft... no pun intended. warcraft has horde versus alliance. you got the humans who have gone to war with the orcs forever, the dwarves who support their allies the humans, the gnomes who take refuge with the dwarves, the night elves who just want to keep the world from falling apart, the drainei who are basically just literal stereotypical space jews who want to keep their dying culture alive, the worgen who are just humans who are also werewolves from HyperBritain, and the pandas who joined them but didn't realize they were enlisting in a war against their own people. and that's the alliance. frail tenuous connections based on necessity. then you have the horde. you have the orcs who just wanted a home in azeroth but the xenophobic humans attacked them and started a war, the trolls who all lived peacefully with the orcs, the peaceful tauren [giant cow people] who traded with the orcs, the undead forsaken who were cast out by the humans (for being similar in appearance to the undead scourge of lordaeron who were all used as weapons by literal demons) and taken in as allies by the orcs, the blood elves who used to be what became the night elves before they became literal space nazis like it's in fucking wolfenstein and decided hey let's help out all the people who hate the people who love the people who we hate (the enemy of my friends friend is my friend), the goblins who almost got eaten by a dragon and then begged the orcs for help, and the pandas who were in the same boat as before. an honor bound covenant of staying alive together and resisting the purge from the alliance. but then you also have the evil aliens and the evil demons and the crazed wildlife and the evil dragons and the evil lich king and the evil humans and the evil orcs and the evil elves of all elf races and the neutral goblins that make it absolutely clear that the horde and the alliance are not the be all end all on inherent goodness or evilness. evil is done by the alliance, the horde, third parties; good is done by the alliance, the horde, third parties. there are dozens of "sides".

meanwhile starcraft has terran, protoss, & zerg. all three just wanna live their lives but they're all brought into a war with two kinds of aliens they never met before, and the actions of a few evil people in each group caused a fuckin full scale intergalactic war between all of them. and not to mention the terran fighting each other even though they're all from the same planet, the rogue protoss having their various civil wars, and the collapse of the zerg overmind causing tribal warfare between zerg, and amon who is super super evil and wants to kill everybody in the universe and fuse their corpses together because the xel'naga (gods) left an unclear prophecy, and also the xel'naga themselves. there are a dozen factions of each of the three races ALONE who all hate each other, and not all of them are good or evil. in fact it's left super obvious that the only truly evil people are amon and the only truly good people are in raynor's allies, kerrigan's swarm, artanis' fleet, and uhhh probably valerian's dominion maybe.

and that's just how the world is. things aren't ever simple and easy. there are exceptions to every rule. bickering and fighting and putting things into neat little categories and thinking you're the fucking king of the field are all not helping the situation we're in.

all atheist assholes and all religious assholes are bad. all neoliberals and all fascists are bad. not all atheists or religious people are good but many are. not all people with a political leaning are good but many are. (this ones iffy and I'll make a lot of enemies but... moderate liberals seem to be pretty okay for the most part and moderate conservatives can be okay if they make concessions and fucking listen and the other positions seem to be directly proportional in overall goodness to how much they discount dissenting opinions. naziism is not an opinion, guillotine the billionaires, complicity in fascism is fascism which is bad, tolerating intolerance is a fallacy, fuck trump, fuck every single dumb motherfucker who voted for him, oh yeah and fuck the broken not working two party system). gender is a complex concept beyond complete human comprehension and anyone who thinks they know everything about us is a fucking idiot who should stop talking. stop shoving things into one of two boxes.

we should really think in more like magic the gathering colors. black is the evil demon hell zombie monster fucks. white is the be nice to people but destroy evil brigade. blue is the logic/science/reason/coexist with the scary brutal nature or die/survival of the fittest kind of people. red is the "nature is scary and life is meaningless so let's all just get drunk" aspect of apathetic nihilistic neutrality. green is the "nature is beautiful and we should stop fucking destroying it and then make the world a better place" tree hugging nerds who mean well but can be a bit cold and unfeeling when it comes to those less fortunate. we'll all probably do a lot better thinking in those terms than how we've been doing.

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conservativeamericatoday · 7 years

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You just can't believe everything that liberal media says. Subscribe us now to get the REAL NEWS everyday. Click Here To Subscribe: https://goo.gl/Jak4Sa We don’t hear much about Iran these days, but what has just happened will send a chill up and down your spine. While the world as a whole is focused on the fat nut job in North Korea or the fake Russian collusion charges against members of the Trump administration. Everyone seems to have forgotten the evil that is coming out from the “Religion of Peace” following nation that is Iran. This time an Iranian citizen identified as a senior member of the country’s Basij military force was apprehended trying to enter the United States via Boston’s Logan Airport.According to multiple sources familiar with the situation, he was posing as a Cancer Researcher. Once he was discovered he was put on the first commercial flight back to Iran. How is it that this terrorist got a visa to come to the US, to begin with? And why wasn’t he arrested and questioned for information before being sent back to Iran? The Scambag Muslim was identified as Seyed Mohsen Dehnavi, who is a member of Iran’s highly vetted volunteer Basij force.This story was first reported back in January but in light of recent developments it’s quite relevant today. The whole Iranian nuclear “deal” is exploding (pun intended) in the face of the Obama administration. The fact that President Obama is dispatching Secretary Kerry to Capitol Hill to stand against Congressional oversight of this fiasco is quite disconcerting. But a Fox News report from earlier this year should cause all of you great concern. In January, the Obama administration paid $490 million in cash assets to Iran and will have released a total of $11.9 billion to the Islamic Republic by the time nuclear talks are scheduled to end in June, according to figures provided by the State Department.” The Free Beacon says yesterday’s $490 million release, “the third such payment of this amount since Dec. 10 [2014], was agreed to by the Obama administration under the parameters of another extension in negotiations over Tehran’s contested nuclear program that was inked in November [2014]. Iran will receive a total of $4.9 billion in unfrozen cash assets via 10 separate payments by the United States through June 22 [2015], when talks with Iran are scheduled to end with a final agreement aimed at curbing the country’s nuclear work, according to a State Department official.” “Iran received $4.2 billion in similar payments under the 2013 interim agreement with the United States and was then given another $2.8 billion by the Obama administration last year in a bid to keep Iran committed to the talks through November, when negotiators parted ways without reaching an agreement. Iran will have received a total of $11.9 billion in cash assets by the end of June if current releases continue on pace as scheduled.” So what are we gaining in this whole debacle? We shared with you yesterday that Russia has lifted the ban on the sale of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Iran. Russian President Putin has declared the ban as “unnecessary.” I’m starting to believe this whole endeavor with Iran is unnecessary — if not abjectly insane. I fail to see how any of this is to the benefit of the United States, certainly the global community, and our ally Israel. We are slowly providing an economic recovery to Iran — while our own economy struggles. Just to give you a comparative assessment, the Free Beacon says, “between November 2014 and July 2015, the interim deal’s direct forms of sanctions relief will allow Iran access to roughly $4.9 billion in frozen money,” US Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill) told the Washington Free Beacon “That’s equal to what it’d cost Iran to fund Hezbollah for as much as 50 years.” I am not a conspiracy theorist, but you just have to ask as a point of inquiry — does all of this have anything to do with Valerie Jarrett who has an Iranian background? In fact, WND reports in 2012 .If you feel this is acceptable, well, you are very wrong. Liberal scumbags like John Kerry better start checking themselves. Their hatred towards President Donald Trump is so damn rabid that they would rather side with an enemy that is hell bent on the destruction of the western world. They keep repeating “This isn’t who we are” every damn time President Trump talks about banning immigration from terrorist hotbeds until we can sort out who these people are. No matter what you believe our values are as a nation there is one thing I do know if we keep letting Muslims into this country we won’t be the United States of America for long. Tags The Next News Network LATEST CONSPIRACY THEORIES NEWS Duterte Daily News Breaking News DONALD Donald trump TRUMP TRUMP LATEST NEWS USA morning news abs cbn aguirre ariana grande binira binuking breaking President Donald Trump President Trump RONNIE DAYAN Rais Magufuli news breaking news 365 fox news obama

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