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earaercircular · 7 months

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The 'new' life of plastic: recycling boosts turnover

The perception towards a material at the centre of a technological revolution with important economic implications for Italy has changed. Exports are soaring.

From a symbol of pollution to a precious resource able to solve many problems in various sectors, including food and healthcare, those considered most sensitive for the protection of our health. The "new" life of plastic is contained in this transition which, according to experts, marks the revenge of a material that was commonly demonised before Covid. Thanks to the pandemic crisis, which forced us to change our behaviours and habits, now the perception towards plastic materials actually seems to have changed. Many observers and operators in the sector are convinced that the shift occurred after packaging (especially food) and disposable products (such as cutlery, gloves, masks, plates and bottles) became central pieces in "phase 2" of the crisis pandemic.

All this has pushed Europe and national governments to reconsider the issue of plastic with a different approach, more pragmatic and less dogmatic than in the past: that is, when one analyses the problem, not upstream (use or production cycle of plastic) but downstream of a supply chain (end of life, i.e. collection and destination of waste). In this match, Italy has demonstrated that it can compete with the big Europeans as certified by the numbers in the latest report from The European House-Ambrosetti[1] that gives a picture of the value of the Italian plastics supply chain: over 180 thousand employees for a total turnover of almost 46 billion euros (8th largest manufacturing sector), 12.7 billion in added value and 19.9 billion in exports (5.1% and 4.9% of total manufacturing respectively).

The report also points out that the plastic supply chain is among the most important in our production lines. Only the recovery phase in Italy is worth more than double the EU average on the total value of the supply chain (2.1% versus 0.9%) and in the last 5 years it is the component that has demonstrated the greatest dynamism (more than 40% of turnover and more than 72% of added value compared to 2016). Not only that: the potential for innovation from a circularity perspective is very significant and by 2030 it can reduce the quantity of waste (minus 22.7% compared to the trend scenario without corrective interventions) and increase the recovery of plastic materials (up to more than 19, 3 percentage points compared to 2020).

A further strong point of the supply chain is the research and production of bioplastics, the overall value of which is approximately 2% of the total supply chain compared to 0.3% in France and Germany.[2] It has to be considered that the report observes the advent on the market of multiple chemical recycling technologies,[3] complementary to mechanical recycling ones, which offer our country enormous development opportunities because they enable recycling without the plastic losing quality. allowing a second use in the medical and food fields.

How much does the plastic industry sector weigh on turnover Right table: The structure by region . Companies and turnover

In this sense, the signs are encouraging according to the latest findings of the national statistical survey, conducted by the Mecs-Amaplast study centre[4]: the plastic and rubber technologies sector, with a turnover of 4.67 billion euros in 2022 in growth of 5%, after the double-digit increase post Covid. A result achieved above all thanks to exports, which recorded a positive trend particularly towards the end of the year, with a total value returning above the threshold of 3 billion euros, reaching 3.25 billion (+8.7% on 2022).

In detail, the exports of Italian manufacturers, that represent a 70% share of production, are progressing towards the main destination macro-areas: Europe (plus 8%), Americas (plus 12%), Asia (plus 9%) . As for the sector's export product category, a robust growth is noticed in machinery for primary transformation among extruders[5] (plus 23%) and systems for mono-multifilaments[6] (plus 58%), the latter being a category which has recorded in particular a very sustained progression in the last three years, starting from 74 million euros in 2020 to reach the historical peak of almost 140 million in 2022, after the value range of 30-50 million in the previous decade. On the other hand, the performance of injection machines was flat and that of blow moulding machines[7] (minus 19%) and thermoforming machines[8] (minus 22%) was decidedly negative.

The propensity to export. The sectors and percentages Items: Food packaging, construction, agriculture, other packaging, other, automotive, medical, electronics, household goods and toys

Six guidelines for the green transition

To increase the innovation potential of the plastic supply chain, The European House-Ambrosetti outlines 6 lines of action: increase separate waste collection through local collection centres and a training plan on how to recycle plastic; introduce simplified authorisation procedures and reduce the "Nimby Syndrome"[9] by extending the use of "Public Debate"; promote EU legislation on the use of compostable bags and make monitoring of the quality of OFMSW (organic fraction of solid urban waste)[10] mandatory; promote innovation processes in the plastics sector by encouraging public-private partnerships; strengthen the current Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)[11] mechanisms to support the circular evolution of plastics producers; create outlet markets for "End of Waste" materials[12] to increase the availability of recycled materials.

Source

Vito de Ceglia, La 'nuova' vita della plastica: il riciclo spinge il fatturato, in: La Repubblica, 7-9-2023, https://www.repubblica.it/dossier/economia/top-story/2023/09/07/news/la_nuova_vita_della_plastica_il_riciclo_spinge_il_fatturato-413624488/

[1] The Ambrosetti Forum organised by The European House – Ambrosetti, a consulting firm – is an annual international economic conference held at Villa d'Este, in the Italian town of Cernobbio on the shores of Lake Como. Since its inception in 1975, the Forum has brought together heads of state, ministers, Nobel laureates and businesspeople to discuss current challenges to the world's economies and societies. The Forum presents forecasts of economic and geo-political outlooks for the world, Europe and Italy. The forum also analyses scientific and technological developments and their impacts on the future of business and society.

[2] Read also: https://www.tumblr.com/earaercircular/725186562118303744/compostable-bioplastics-and-organic-waste?source=share & https://www.tumblr.com/earaercircular/728694029207961600/new-world-class-super-factory-in-dilsen?source=share

[3] Read also: https://www.tumblr.com/earaercircular/692375070034853888/eight-funds-with-a-sustainable-profile-to-make-an?source=share

[4] On the occasion of its annual Members Assembly, which took place on July 7, 2022, MECS-AMAPLAST Study Centre released the new edition of the Sector Report, containing the most important figures referred to 2021 for the Italian plastics and rubber machinery, equipment and moulds industry. https://www.amaplast.org/en/pagine/attualita/news.aspx?id=22308

[5] Extruders are used to produce long continuous products such as tubing, tire treads, and wire coverings. They are also used to produce various profiles that can later be cut to length.

[6] Monofilament Polyester Fabrics that are single threads formed thick enough to be directly woven into smooth, regular fabrics. Multifilament Polyester Fabrics that are fine polyester strands twisted together into threads and woven into fabrics.

[7] The two main types of machines that perform this process are extrusion blow moulding machines and injection blow moulding machines.

[8] Thermoforming or deep drawing is a technique in which material in the form of a plate or film is brought to a high temperature and then formed around a mould. During cooling, the material hardens and retains its shape.

[9] The not in my- backyard or NIMBY syndrome refers to intense, often emotional and usually. organised opposition to siting proposals that residents of a local community believe. will result in adverse impacts.

[10] The grey waste stream that originates from households still contains organic material. Once in the typical black bag, the organic materials such as food residues, coffee grounds or tea mix with the other waste such as tissues and plastics. This polluted waste is called the Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Waste (OFMSW). Although contaminated, this waste stream can be quite valuable when the organics and inorganics are separated. https://www.royaldutchkusters.com/blog/what-is-the-organic-fraction-of-municipal-solid-waste-ofmsw

[11] Read also: https://www.tumblr.com/earaercircular/697446169498058752/recycling-regulatory-framework-and-customers-are?source=share & https://www.tumblr.com/earaercircular/721717700267753472/as-of-last-saturday-on-textile-producers-in-the?source=share

[12] End-of-waste criteria allows the point at which a material ceases to be classified as a waste to be brought forward to the point at which it is recovered. This allows the material to be marketed for use as a 'product' on an equal footing to non-waste derived products. https://www.epa.ie/our-services/licensing/waste/end-of-waste-art-28/#:~:text=End%2Dof%2Dwaste%20criteria%20allows,to%20non%2Dwaste%20derived%20products.

#circular economy #recycling plastics #green transition

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thesecrettimes · 9 months

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Bitcoin Faces Increased Risk Relative to Stocks: Commodity Strategist Mike McGlone Warns of Challenges

Bitcoin Volatility Low, Silver Faces Challenges: McGlone In a client communication dated August 2, 2023, the prominent Bloomberg Intelligence analyst observed that bitcoin’s 180-day volatility, hovering near record lows around 46%, frequently heralds a favorable turn in price. However, he issued a cautionary note that the cryptocurrency’s deviation from the Nasdaq 100 starting late in Q1 might signal more widespread frailty in risk assets, especially if stocks pull back amidst usual second-half market swings, continuing Fed tightening, and receding fears of a recession. #Bitcoin 180-day volatility is the lowest ever at about 46% at the start of August, which is typically bullish for prices. My main concern is that divergent Bitcoin price weakness vs. equities since the end of 1Q may imply pressure on all risk assets. pic.twitter.com/IJEd11tRjt — Mike McGlone (@mikemcglone11) August 2, 2023 McGlone envisions that as mainstream acceptance grows, bitcoin (BTC) will gradually reveal attributes more akin to gold or Treasuries. Yet in the immediate future, he anticipates its lagging returns relative to tech stocks could endure if the equity market falls victim to seasonal volatility following a remarkable first-half showing. This could be exacerbated if the Federal Reserve persists with interest rate increases and the probability of a recession lessens after reaching a high point earlier this year, he explained. Turning to precious metals, McGlone posited that only a recession-driven surge in gold might propel silver past its stubborn $30 resistance level under current conditions. With gold finding stability near historical peaks around $2,000 an ounce and silver oscillating between $23-$25, he asserts that the faltering economic indicators from China and the sharpest inversion in the U.S. yield curve in four decades lay the groundwork for silver to regress to its post-2008 average of approximately $20, instead of achieving fresh highs. Highlighting a correlation of 0.80 between gold and silver prices since 1949, McGlone remarked that divergence is unusual and generally fleeting. In his estimation, only a marked gold upswing amidst escalating recession concerns seems poised to alter the present course of the white metal. McGlone: ‘Bitcoin Is Riskier Now vs. the Dow’ Earlier, in March, McGlone had projected a potential bitcoin supercycle was in motion, as it overshadowed gold by nearly 10x in the year-to-date figures at that juncture. He anticipated that bitcoin’s volatility would regain its footing and trend toward unprecedented levels, assuming historical patterns remained consistent. In an update on August 6, McGlone warned bitcoin (BTC) now looks riskier relative to stocks than in early 2021 when it first matched the Dow Jones Industrial Average. With crypto volatility triple the blue-chip index’s, versus less than double in Q1 2021, McGlone sees little diversification incentive supporting bitcoin unless it can boost portfolio returns. Moreover, the strategist sees the risk of a normal recession-driven stock retreat not priced into consensus forecasts. This could pressure bitcoin, given correlation is near a historical peak of around 0.3. McGlone believes the Dow 30,000 level, matched by bitcoin when it breached $30,000 in January 2021, may remain resistance for the cryptocurrency if equities decline. With McGlone’s insights into the complex interplay between bitcoin, precious metals, and global economic factors, what are your thoughts on the future of these assets? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below. Read the full article

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your-dietician · 2 years

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Home prices see ‘forceful deceleration’ in July: Case-Shiller

New Post has been published on https://medianwire.com/home-prices-see-forceful-deceleration-in-july-case-shiller/

Home prices see ‘forceful deceleration’ in July: Case-Shiller

Home prices declined slightly on a monthly basis in July, while year-over-year growth dropped significantly, according to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices report.

Home prices increased by 15.8% annually in July, down significantly from the annual increase of 18.1% in June, Case-Shiller’s National Home Price NSA index said. On a monthly basis, home prices fell by 0.3% from June.

“Although U.S. housing prices remain substantially above their year-ago levels, July’s report reflects a forceful deceleration,” Craig Lazzara, S&P Dow Jones Indices managing director, said. “For example, while the National Composite Index rose by 15.8% in the 12 months ended July 2022, its year-over-year price rise in June was 18.1%. The -2.3% difference between those two monthly rates of gain is the largest deceleration in the history of the index.”

Annual home price gains were the strongest in Tampa, Miami and Dallas, which saw increases of 31.8%, 31.7% and 24.7%, respectively.

If you want to take advantage of your increased home value, you could consider pulling money out of your home using a cash-out refinance. Visit Credible to find your personalized interest rate in minutes without affecting your credit score.

FED ANNOUNCES THIRD CONSECUTIVE 75-BASIS POINT RATE HIKE

Home prices to decelerate faster than anticipated

In an attempt to control rising inflation, the Federal Reserve has increased the federal funds rate several times this year. And these increases have led to higher interest rates. Recently, mortgage rates even surpassed the 6% mark, according to Freddie Mac data.

And these rising mortgage rates have begun to slow the housing market and home prices.

“As the Federal Reserve continues to move interest rates upward, mortgage financing has become more expensive, a process that continues to this day,” Lazzara said. “Given the prospects for a more challenging macroeconomic environment, home prices may well continue to decelerate.”

And home price growth could hit more normal levels sooner than previously expected.

“Rapid home price deceleration, which is spreading beyond the West Coast markets, was anticipated given the Fed’s actions and will bring home price growth closer in line with income growth,” CoreLogic Deputy Chief Economist Selma Hepp said in a statement. “Returning to long-term average of 4% to 5% annual price growth is closer than initially anticipated – potentially by early 2023.”

If you want to take advantage of your home’s equity before mortgage rates rise higher, you could consider using a cash-out refinance. Visit Credible to compare multiple mortgage lenders at once and choose the one that has the best interest rate for you.

TAPPABLE HOME EQUITY RISES TO A NEW RECORD HIGH

Home equity rises to record high

Home equity gained a collective $3.6 trillion annually in the second quarter of 2022, hitting yet another new record high, according to CoreLogic’s latest Homeowner Equity Report. This means the average homeowner now holds $300,000 in home equity.

U.S. homeowners with a mortgage saw their equity increase by 27.8% annually, or about $60,200 per borrower, since the second quarter of 2021. Borrowers in Hawaii, California and Florida gained an average of $100,000 in equity.

“For many households, home equity is the only source of wealth creation,” Hepp said. “As a result, recent record gains in equity and record declines in loan-to-value ratios will provide many owners with a financial buffer in case economic conditions worsen. In addition, record equity continues to provide fuel for housing demand, particularly if households are relocating to more affordable areas.”

If you are struggling in today’s economy, you could consider taking cash out of your home to help pay down debt. Although mortgage interest rates are rising, they remain much more affordable than other options such as personal loans or credit cards. You can contact Credible to speak to a home loan expert and see if this is the right option for you.

Have a finance-related question, but don’t know who to ask? Email The Credible Money Expert at [email protected] and your question might be answered by Credible in our Money Expert column.

Read the full article here

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altarofsalem · 2 years

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having a queue for my posts??? as if i blog in an organized manner?? as if i'm trying to space out my posts so your dashboard is not bombarded with my obnoxious reblogs??? absolutely not. i am a maniacal blogger. frenzied reblogs. post after post after post in 0.3 seconds. then i retreat back into the digital aether. until the next blood moon, when i return to overwhelm the Followers.

#original thoughts

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mutantbanner · 4 years

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PROF IN A PINK SUIT

#my art #bruce banner #professor hulk #bruce banner appreciation #my stuff #returns for 0.3 seconds to post this

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daisiesonafield-blog · 3 years

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Hi you know how constantly O was getting papped and people thought she called them why didn't she get papped with harry tho wouldn't that bring them more attention her setting up a pap walk?

Hi anon,

Yeah she has been getting herself papped in London for months now.

I think the most recent wave of pictures through Deuxmoi were quite clearly to mitigate the damage done to the stunt by TMZ reporting that Olivia and Jason live together. You can check how obvious it is in this timeline.

TMZ reporting that right when there were rumors in the press of them having broken up really blew up their entire narrative. People were already bored of it, they hadn’t been seen together in 3 months, then TMZ says Olivia and Jason live together? Pfff. Olivia’s team got on TMZ’s case in 0.3 seconds to issue a correction article saying they don’t live together. lmao

Makes you wonder what they promised TMZ in return. TMZ hasn’t had any exclusives from them yet. I say keep an eye on what they report in the coming year.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if the DWD release got pushed back and now they need to extend the stunt.

As for them pushing the new Holivia pics thru Deuxmoi and not a mainstream tabloid: I think that is a tactic to help sell it better. It makes it feel more believable and organic, as opposed to traditional scheduled pap pics in the tabloids.

They also have been watching the public’s reaction to the stunt. They saw how annoyed Harry’s fanbase (and everyone else tbh) was with the over the top in your face pap walk dump in January. They don’t want to piss people off like that again. That’s the opposite of their goal. They want to reengage people.

The best way to get people invested again is to have more “low key” articles, poor quality “spotted” pictures of them doing “regular” things. Just enough to reignite the stunt fire and shut any speculation of a breakup. Or talk about her living with Jason.

We may get another pap walk soon as well. Something to make sure everyone sees them together again.

Check out this post about how to make a stunt more believable. It’s exactly what they are doing now.

#mine #horry #holivia #horry april timeline #stunts #how to make a stunt more believable #PR strategy #apr 20 2021 #apr 2021 #holivia phase 3 #deuxmoi #TMZ #jason sudeikeis #olivia wilde

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sarasapen · 4 years

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White Roses and Scarlet Letters

Been awhile since I’ve posted or updated due to exams so I’m reposting the first four chapters because why not!

@jason-todd-squad @lucy-roo @rockyrocket15 @toleble @n1ghtsh4d3-67 @belovedbratwonder @aprilchagoyaaa @vespertxne @thatwaspossesion @attackonnat @roseangel013bf

Red Roses and Scarlet Letters

----- Like most people, your life had a routine. You’d wake up early and go for a jog or do some yoga, depending on the weather. Then you’d spend a half hour on your phone, before you glanced at the clock and scrambled to get ready on time. You normally met Dick for breakfast before making your way to work.

Generally, your nights and weekends were more entertaining. You spent your nights donning a domino mask and Kevlar, punching assholes and stopping crime. Saturdays were sleepover nights with Damian, and Sundays were girls’ days.

So, considering you were standing on a rooftop with dead bodies littered around you when you were supposed to be watching a movie, you were not happy.

“Robin, come to my coordinates.”

“Tt.”

You smile slightly, rolling your eyes before you turned your head, catching sight of a man with a red hood and a symbol on his chest. You eyed the symbol skeptically. “I didn’t know the Bats had a new associate.”

The man remained silent, staring you down. His fingers twitched, and you noticed the gun holsters on his thighs. Two guns. Five dead bodies. He had seven bullets left. Okay, so maybe Bruce didn’t have a new associate.

“You gonna threaten me, or shoot me?” You say nonchalantly, gripping your escrima sticks. He moves quickly, and you’re darting to the side before you fully internalise he’s pulling the trigger.

“Alright then,” you huff dryly. “Guess you’re shooting me.” He raises the gun again, and you backflip away from the next bullets, lunging in his direction. Five. Four. Three. The next bullet snags your cape- two- and you swing your leg and attempt to knock him back. He dodges the kick and intercepts your path, moving to flip you. You kick back off the wall, using that as leverage to swing your body around his. You slam your escrima stick into the back of his head the same time his fist comes into contact with your jaw. You slip from his body, and he used the opportunity to kick at your ribs, sending you stumbling. He lunges at you, causing you to slam against the wall. One of his hands is around your throat, cutting off your air supply, and the other is holding his loaded gun, pressed against your temple. You know you can easily break his arm from the position, but for some reason, you can’t seem to move. Even through his voice modulator, the man’s anger is clear when he speaks, the words he growls out making your blood run cold.

“You let Jason Todd die.”

Your eyes widen and you’re going to swing out but instead of shooting you, he drops the gun and slams you back into the wall, your head hitting the wall with a loud CRACK-

-and then all you see is black.

-----

The first thing you register is the pounding in your head.

You groggily try to sit up and wince at the bright lights. A hand on your shoulder pushes you back down- what? No, you need to get up, you need to-

“Lie down.” A voice commands and your body goes limp. The figure looks funny. He looks like a bat. And a man. Hey! Batman!

A whine emerges from your throat as your face scrunches up.

“I don’t wanna,” you protest weakly, trying to get up again. Your voice comes out scratchy, and your throat hurts when you talk. Suddenly there are two hands on both of your shoulders, keeping you on the bed.

“Do you want Alfred to scold?” The voice softens slightly. You shake your head, wincing when it hurts. Fingers dance along your hairline, soothing you.

“Rest. Once you’re better, the family’s going to have a chat.”

“Mkay,” you wrap your fingers around the wrist above your head, and you let sleep overtake you.

-----

When you wake up, you’re alone. Well, for approximately 0.3 seconds before Alfred enters through the door. He’s carrying some meds and soup. He stands over you, making sure you finish every last drop even though your throat hurts like a bitch.

You manage to convince him you’re fine, with Barbara's help, before you spend a good hour or so on trying to conceal the bruises on your neck.

Barbara drives you and the girls to Metropolis to pick up Kara before heading to Central City. Despite all the fun the others seem to be having, you can’t take your mind off the previous night, or off Jason. You had no idea who that man was, or how he knew you were connected to Jason.

The weight of Jason’s death had weighed down on you somewhat heavier than the rest of your family. Bruce became reckless, and almost killed multiple times. Dick went off the grid for 6 whole months, and when he returned, he acted like nothing had happened. No one knows what he did or where he went. Barbara stopped coming to the cave. She still went out on patrol, but didn’t talk to you. Alfred assumed you needed some space, so he gave you that.

As your family pulled away, you started falling into the dark abyss of depression. You resorted to self harm as a way of coping. After Alfred inquiring on your long-sleeves, you moved the cuts to your thighs. You fell so deep into the hole that one day, you grabbed some sleeping pills and swallowed about 20. Alfred noticed the bottle was empty, and he rushed to your bedroom in time.

That was around the time Tim popped up as Robin.

Despite trying to help you, your family never quite understood you. Perhaps Bruce did, better than the two of thought, but Bruce was rarely one to talk about his emotions. When Jason died, you felt like you were to blame. You were quite literally the Batgirl to his Robin. You always patrolled together, always hung around, plotting the next prank to pull on Dick. Considering the two of you were practically inseparable, you felt so damn guilty that Jason went to the warehouse himself. You should’ve gone with him. Maybe if you had gone with him, he would have still been alive.

The guilt had been gnawing at you for five years. There wasn’t a single damn day that you didn’t miss Jason. The day he died, you had furiously scribbled a letter that was about 5 pages long, listing all the reasons you hated him. You were angry, and you wanted to make sure he knew you were angry. The next day, you wrote a tear stained letter saying you loved him, and you were sorry for everything.

You then wrote him letters, one for every day that passed. This time, Day 1564, you reccounted the Red Hood guy occurrence, before telling him about this cute waiter that Dick said had been flirting with you at the cafe. You asked him, rhetorically, if you should go for it. You signed off as usual, saying you loved and missed him.

You slipped the letter into a red envelope, making your way to the garden of Wayne Manor. You couldn’t shake the feeling you were being watched, but then you remembered Bruce had tinkered with the security, so that was probably it.

You moved towards the rose bushes, and eased your way into the tiny opening in between the white rose bushes. You grabbed a long wooden box you had been stashing there, slipping the latest letter inside. You shut it, placing it back in the bush, before you straightened.

Shoving your hands into your jacket pockets, you made your way to the living room, where Bruce was trying to get everyone’s attention.

“I have some information pertaining to the Red Hood. We all need to talk.”

-----

And So the Sky Shall Weep

-----

“We all need to talk.” Bruce moves to the grandfather clock, adjusting the time on it. The door swings open, and he goes in, beckoning for you to follow. Bruce stops in front of the Batcomputer, his face hard.

“You may want to sit down,” Bruce gestures to you, Barbara and Dick. Barbara complies, and Dick leans against the table. You do the same, crossing your arms. What could possibly be so shocking that Bruce wants you to sit down?

Bruce turns on the computer screen, and you hear Dick swear beside you. Barbara buries her head in her hand, letting out a choked ‘Oh my god’. Tim and Damian stop poking each other and pause. You seem to be the only one that’s got their shit together, but by the way Bruce is looking at you, you feel yourself unravelling and quick.

Because on the screen, bold and bright as day, the dna samples of Jason Todd and the Red Hood were a 100% match. That could only mean one thing.

“He’s alive?” Dick croaks, eyes shining with unshed tears. Bruce gave Dick a brisk nod as he placed a hand on Barbara’s shoulder.

“This concerns me how?” Damian drawls, earning a well deserved shove from Tim. Damian of course, retaliates, but Bruce ignores them. His eyes are trained on you, obviously concerned at how you’ve just frozen up.

“He’s dead.” You say, voice too loud and too far away.

“He’s alive-“ Bruce starts gently, but you cut him off.

“No!” You don’t realise you’re shouting until your throat burns painfully. That doesn’t seem to deter you though.“He’s dead! I saw his body! He can’t- he’s dead.”

You don’t want to believe Bruce, don’t want to believe the test. “It’s faulty,” you say.

“I sent it to seven different labs, all of them came back with the same report,” Bruce soothes. You’re trembling, and Bruce reaches out to touch you. You push him away, walking backwards.

“I- I need to think.”

You sprint out of the Batcave, pushing past Alfred and out the door, getting on your bike and driving past the gate faster than you thought was possible. There was a strange sort of numbness that overwhelmed you, and you knew it was only a matter of time before the dam that held your feelings back broke. And you’re pretty sure you didn’t want to be around others when that happened.

You were unlocking the door of your apartment without properly registering it, your body moving on its own to put on your suit and grab your escrima sticks. Next thing you know, you’re on the roof of your building. Your eyes scan the skyline of Gotham, and you inhale deeply, letting the cool night air surround you. In. Out. In. Out. In-The rumble of clouds overhead breaks your focus, and you suddenly find yourself running.

You don’t know what you’re running from - or towards - but you just kept running. You leaped over the gaps in the buildings, hopping over ledges and power lines. Tears begin to blur your vision, but you don’t stop running. You regret that decision as soon as you trip over a plank of wood, flying forward. Luckily, or unluckily, the building had a ledge, which meant that instead of falling down 20 stories, your stomach collided with the ledge.

Hot tears fell from your eyes, and you didn’t bother trying to hold them back. You gripped the edge of the ledge tightly, your chest heaving as you choked on a sob. Lightning cracked nearby, and rain followed a millisecond later.

Five years. Five goddamn years. You mourned him for five years, you felt all that pain, all that guilt, and he was alive? You knew you were screaming when you felt your throat burn.

Screaming didn’t alleviate the weight on your chest, so you lifted your fist and brought it down on the concrete. The pain was shooting up your arm, but that didn’t stop you from hitting the ledge again. You felt like a five-year-old throwing a tantrum, frustrated and angry and sad, and having no clue on how to handle the situation. You screamed again, shoving the ledge and hitting it as if it could solve the problem.

Black gloves hands encircled you, gripping your wrists tightly and preventing you from hitting out. You thrashed in the hold, kicking out uselessly.

“You’ll hurt yourself!” Bruce’s voice came through. He hadn’t switched on his voice modulator.

“I don’t care!” You punctuated each word with a shove, but you slumped into his chest, closing your eyes. You’re sobs died down as Bruce held you, and you let the rain lull you to sleep.

-----

Love is Slowly Losing Your Mind

-----

Tick.

You can’t see.

Tock.

You can’t move.

Tick.

You can’t breathe.

Tock.

You hear footsteps.

Tick.

“She’s finally awake!”

Tock

You know that voice.

Tick

“Decided to join the party eh?”

Tock

Its always that voice.

Tick.

A cloth is ripped away from your face.

Tock.

Red lips smile right in front of you.

Tick.

Fuck.

Tock.

“Let’s play.”

Tick.

Your eyes snap open. You can’t breathe, you can’t move.

It was just a dream. You force yourself to close your eyes, focusing on the whirring of the fan above you as you calm your breathing. Just a dream, you tell yourself.

You sit up, pulling your hair into a ponytail and heading over to the bathroom. You brush your teeth, wash your face, and look in the mirror.

He can’t hurt you anymore.

You dress and go to the cafe, arriving half an hour early. A waitress places some coffee in front of you and you thank her with a smile. You don’t drink the coffee though.

The sound of the chair scraping on the floor causes you to look up, and Dick smiles down at you. Except this time, his smile isn’t genuine, it doesn’t reach his eyes. He looks tired, and worn down, something that shocks you a little. Dick isn’t normally one to be anything less that happy.

He sits across you, swallowing, eyes darting anywhere but your face. When the waitress placed your usuals down, neither of you make a move to eat.

“So,” he starts, voice rough. He clears his throat, sighing heavily and running a hand across his face.

“So,” you agree, picking up your cup and lifting it to your mouth. You wrinkle your nose at the now cold beverage. You make eye contact with Dick and the unspoken question hangs in the air.

Now what?

He’s a mob boss, Dick’s raised eyebrow says.

He’s dangerous, your frown responds.

He almost killed you, Dick slumps further into his seat, eyes never leaving yours.

“He’s family,” you say, voice quiet. Dick closes his eyes for a moment. “Yeah. He is.”

You don’t say much else, and you part to go to your respective jobs. You reach your office, and there are no new cases or any overdue paperwork to deal with, which is a first. Your boss tells you to take the rest of the day off, so you do.

You walk around Gotham for hours, only going back home when the sun begins to set. You contemplate skipping patrol, but you know you need the exercise.

Suddenly you were 10 years old again, clinging onto Dick’s hand before your first patrol.

There’s nothing to be scared about, you rationalise. Absolutely nothing.

You were wrong.

You don’t make it very far, just two blocks away from your apartment, when you see the Red Hood.

-----

When Can I See You Again?

-----

You stumble onto the roof, fisting your cape on your side. He’s leaning against the edge of the building, his arms crossed. He seems to be watching you, or waiting for you, whichever it is, you’re not entirely sure.

He watches you for a moment, and you watch him, a voice in your head telling you that there’s no way in hell that’s Jason Todd.

Red Hood pushed himself off the wall, striding towards you and easily towering over you. Your heart is drumming in your ears, with him being so close to you that you can smell him, and the doubt begins to fade.

The scent is a deep, musky sort of aroma, whiffs of cigarette smoke and alcohol mixing in nicely. It’s strange, reminding you of dark and dingy corners of bars late at night, but at the same time it’s so incredibly him, so incredibly Jason, that you don’t have the heart to deny yourself a little hope anymore.

Especially not with that stupid leather jacket of his, making his arms look so good.

You swallow nervously, tilting your head up to look at him. If either of you move any closer, your chests would be brushing.

And then he moves. He takes a small step closer, one of his hands now on the small of your back and guiding you backwards, into the shadows, until your back touches a wall. You don’t know why your body lets him, why you’re not reacting to him dragging guiding you around.

He’s practically pressed against you, one of his legs between yours, the hand not on your back is resting on the wall on the side of his head. He’s so much taller than you, your head practically looking straight up to look at him.

You hear an intake of breath which could be him about to say something, but then your hands touch his mask gently. He flinches away, body tensing. His hand leaves your back and is suddenly gripping your neck, pressing you against the wall.

“You got some fuckin’ nerve,” he starts, voice gravelly. You don’t care, or seem to have heard him, really, your hands going straight back to his hood. “Take it off.”

“Given’ me orders, huh? Never would’ve thought you-”

“Take the fucking thing off or get your hands off me!” You retort, tugging at his hand around your neck. Surprisingly, you don’t seem to mind it at all. Hood’s eyes narrow and he pulls back very slightly, his hands leaving you. You’re almost disappointed until he pulls his helmet off, dropping it onto the floor. Not a second passes before he’s closed in on you again, this time applying pressure on your neck.

You’re nearly gasping for air, but you don’t struggle or make any attempts to get out of his grasp. Instead, you look at him, memorising his features. His eyes have hardened, a new steel in them that wasn't there before, but somehow they’ve stayed exactly the same. You see his features soften just a little as you breathe out his name, and you watch as his pupils dilate. Jason - it’s so clearly Jason - smirks, his head dipping down to yours. You can feel his breath on your face, your eyes locked onto his.

“So fuckin’ pretty,” he murmurs, his thumb stroking your jaw.

“I could destroy you,” he continued, voice soft and eerily soothing. “I could wreck you and ya wouldn’t stand a chance. Could snap this pretty little neck o’ yours.”

A normal person would be trembling, scared shitless in this situation. You… were not normal.

“What’s stopping you then?” You say, voice low and equally calm. You inhaled and god he smelled good.

“Nothin’ if you keep runnin’ that mouth.”

“I’m calling bullshit,” you say, smug under him, despite the fact that he has you pinned and his hand is tight around your throat. He cocks and eyebrow, waiting for you to continue. “If you wanted to kill me you would’ve done it that other night.”

“Maybe I’m regretting’ leaving you alive,” he shoots back. You shrug, leaning your head back as if you were extremely comfortable. (Which, for the record, you totally were.) Jason - Red Hood?- lets his forehead rest against your for a moment, your lips almost brushing. You could just… tilt your head up…

With a heavy sigh, he releases you, taking a few steps away from you. He picks up his helmet, back turning towards you, and you let out a shaky breath.

“Next time I’m gonna kill you,” he says, voice not in the least bit threatening.

A sudden urge to touch him again courses through you, and you lunge towards him. His reflexes are still sharp, and he spins around, anticipating an attack. Your body slams into his, and he barely shifts. He only seems to stiffen when you wrap your arms around him. You press your cheek to his chest, breath shaky as you listen to his steady heartbeat. You don’t realise you’re crying until his gloved hand strokes your cheek. His other arm wraps around your shoulders awkwardly, unsure of how to react. You sniffle, arms tightening around him. He seems to get the hint and tightens his grip on you, his touch full of warmth and comfort.

You pull away first, and he avoids your gaze.

“You still gonna try to kill me?” You say, trying to lighten the moment. Your voice comes out a lot weaker than you would’ve liked.

Red Hood straightens up to his full height, staring at you head on.

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

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keepyourpantsongohan · 4 years

Text

Kakashi & Da Boyz: Lab Updates

Introduction

Approximately two years ago, I wrote this pairing lab report which compared Kakashi’s manga interactions with his top five AO3 pairings (excluding sensei/student and original character pairings). Since the numbers have shifted a lot for AO3, here’s what they look like in 2020.

Materials

2018 Lab Report Data

A vague understanding of how math works

A slowly dwindling grip on my own life

Methods

See prior work for methods on manga interaction count as published in Keepyourpantsongohan, 2018.

It is worth nothing in this section why AO3 was chosen rather than FF.net or any other fanfiction website as a point of comparison: AO3 has the ability to filter character relationships by romantic pairings. While FF.net has developed this filter in recent years, its history and use is much more sporadic and would be unlikely to produce a representative sample.

Data

See prior work for raw data of manga interactions as published in Keepyourpantsongohan, 2018. Only total interactions are included as a comparison point.

Total Interactions with Kakashi

Iruka: 4

Obito: 37

*Obito’s interactions with Kakashi under an assumed identity as Tobi: 11

*Total (if including Tobi): 48

Gai: 50

Yamato: 29

Itachi: 6

Total Number of Interactions for Any Pairings Listed Above: 126

*Total: If including Tobi: 137

AO3 Pairing Story Count (as of 08-June-2020)

Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka: 3,453

Hatake Kakashi/Uchiha Obito: 1,808

Hatake Kakashi/Maito Gai: 888

Hatake Kakashi/Yamato | Tenzou: 669

Hatake Kakashi/Uchiha Itachi: 151

Total Number of AO3 Stories for Any Pairings Listed Above: 6,969

Analysis

Figure 1: All Pairing Interactions by Percentage (exc. Tobi)

Figure 1 Numbers:

Iruka: 3.2%

Obito: 29.3%

Gai: 39.7%

Yamato: 23.0%

Itachi: 4.8%

Figure 2: All Pairing Interactions by Percentage (inc. Tobi)

Figure 2 Numbers:

Iruka: 2.9%

Obito: 35.0%

Gai: 36.5%

Yamato: 21.2%

Itachi: 4.4%

Figure 3: AO3 Pairing Stories by Percentage (as of 08-June-2020)

(Note: Figures 2 and 3 marginally exceed 100% in order to both round and maintain the same degree of accuracy as the previous chart. For Figure 3, all figures will be rounded down to control the excess of 100%.)

Figure 3 Numbers:

Iruka: 49.5% = ~49.0%

Obito: 29.5% = ~29.0%

Gai: 12.7% = ~12.0%

Yamato: 9.6% = ~9.0%

Itachi: 2.2% = ~2.0%

Percentage Difference from Manga Interactions (Fig. 1 Numbers) to AO3 (Fig. 3 Numbers raw data)

Iruka: +46.3%

Obito: +0.2% (or Fig. 2 inc. Tobi: -5.5%)

Gai: -27.0%

Yamato: -13.6%

Itachi: 2.6%

Figure 4: Annual Rate of Growth in Fics from Aug 2018 to June 2020

Overall Increase in Fics on AO3 Since 2018 (Npast - Npresent)

Iruka: 3,453 - 2,298 = 1,155

Obito: 1,808 - 667 = 1,141

Gai: 888 - 391 = 497

Yamato: 669 - 371 = 298

Itachi: 151 - 111 = 40

Annual Rate of Growth (((Npresent - Npast) / Npast x 100) / Number of years)

Iruka: ((1,155) / 2,298 x 100) / 2 years = 25.1%

Obito: ((1,141) / 667 x 100) / 2 years = 85.5%

Gai: ((497) / 391 x 100) / 2 years = 63.5%

Yamato: ((298) / 371 x 100) / 2 years = 40.1%

Itachi: ((40) / 111 x 100) / 2 years = 18.0%

Conclusion

As compared to the 2018 analysis, Iruka, Obito and Gai all got closer to proportionally matching up with their manga interactions, though this is most significant for Obito, who is nearly on par with his manga interaction percentages. In other words, Obito is almost exactly as popular as you might expect him to be based on number of chapter appearances interacting with Kakashi. The annual rate of growth for Obito (85.5%) is also by far the highest. I would be curious to know what factors made this increase so high.

Iruka, like in 2018, is most prevalent as a pairing, and furthest from manga parity (in the positive direction). It is worth noting that the pairing no longer represents the majority in Kakashi’s top five pairings, going from representing 56.7% of fics, to 49.5% of fics. This seems to be a consequence of the rate of growth, because while there were the largest number of fics for Iruka in the past two years (1,155), there was also the second lowest annual growth rate at 25.1%. Even so, the raw numbers do speak to the popularity!

Gai has moved slightly closer to manga parity, with a 2.5% increase in representation. However, the pairing still experiences the largest percentage decrease in presence from manga to AO3. Still, the rate of growth for Gai is significant, being the second highest at 63.5%.

Yamato moved slightly farther away from manga parity, but only by a difference of 0.3%, which means the pairing has more less maintained the same level of popularity as two years ago. The rate of growth is middling, not anywhere near as high as Obito or Gai, but significantly higher than Iruka or Itachi.

Itachi was as almost close to manga parity as possible in 2018, so the pairing will likely only get further away with more fics being written. But as there have been such a small amount written (20 per year) it would be a slow increase in discrepancy.

Having acquainted myself with the commentary on the prior report, it might be theorized that “attractiveness” is a factor in popularity of character ships. However, this premise is flawed, because in my experience as a reader, the act of loving a character makes them handsome. See: The Once-ler phenomenon, as described by Ed Helms on Funny or Die (Fealasy 2012):

“I heard there are people who have a sexual predilection for my character in the Lorax [...] And that is very odd, because he’s not a real person. I do agree, however, that he’s extremely sexy. But I don’t condone sexual fantasy about the Once-ler. I don’t condone it.”

So in this case, we can assume attractiveness is a relative condition, superseded by the way that readers choose to love their characters. Personally, I think it’s very sexy of me to love Tenzo. All this to say, don’t worry about it. Who cares? I just made you read a quote about people wanting to have sex with the Once-ler. Think about that.

The number of fics at the time of my making these charts was 6,969 though, so I think we’re all winners here.

Limitations

As I used the manga interaction counts from 2018, bias in my methodology then is still present here.

In my original calculations, I actually had Obito at 35.8% instead of 35.0% for Figure 2, in a case of human error of inputting 49/137 instead of 48/137 in my calculations. This error has been noted and changed, but the potential for more human error is present in all of my calculations.

I am aware of there being an event going on for Kakashi and Iruka as I write this, so it is possible that by the time this data is analyzed the number of AO3 fics will have increased.

I will reiterate that I exclude sensei/student pairings (Sakura and Naruto being two of Kakashi’s top five pairings on AO3 in general; currently third and fourth respectively) because of my own discomfort and the fact I am making a comparison with their manga interactions, which take place when both students are 12-16 and Kakashi is 26-30. Minato would currently be the next highest after original characters, excluded for similar reasons. I also include Itachi with reluctance due to their age gap, but as he is at the very least 18 when returns to Konoha to speak to Kakashi, and he is the next highest in Kakashi pairings, he acts as the fifth pairing. So, in short: I am most certainly biased in what I included and excluded in my 2018 and 2020 data.

Again, this analysis does not examine a number of variables, like the Naruto anime and ongoing sequel anime, other types of pairing content, etc. But it’s still very interesting to see the tide of fic on AO3. I would like to look at the anime specifically at some point, but this was already an incredible waste of time.

Seriously, why would you read this? Why would I write this? Are we human, or are we dancer? We will never know.

Literature Cited

Keepyourpantsongohan. (2018, Aug 19). Kakashi & Da Boyz: A Lab Report. Tumblr. https://keepyourpantsongohan.tumblr.com/post/177174079767/kakashi-da-boyz-a-lab-report

Fealasy. (2012, April 26). Once-ler. Know Your Meme. https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/once-ler

#kakashi hatake #kakairu #kakagai #kakaobi #kakayama #kakaita #tenzashi #ayesha talks anime #anime science #long post #mistakes: the sequel #naruto meta #meta #graphics #naruto series #this is just who i am as a person #u have to accept it #also there are 1500 of u now wild

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nny11writes · 3 years

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hello hello; first ALL OF THOSE WIPS OMFG LMAOOOOO second: i am INTERESTED in your wip ahsoka fails at being a teenager 👀

Me every time I sit down and can’t choose between up to 50 of my wips to work on at a time:

AHSOKA FAILS AT BEING A TEENAGER - The Full Fic Summary Basically

I’d say spoiler warning but at the rate I”m going we’re all gonna forget what it’s about lol!

So I think I actually posted the original version of this story but I can’t find it anywhere????? Which probably means I posted it here on tumblr and now the search function won’t let me live. :) Essentially I was expanding on it further, but the basic premise is that Ahsoka and Obi-Wan are working undercover on a midrim world. Ahsoka, who is posing as just a regular kid has to do regular kid things like go to school and not use the Force, etc. But she just...can’t? She’s a Jedi so her ability to notice things before they happen is disconcerting, she’s considered a try hard brown noser because god this is easier than trying to negotiate peace treaties while learning ancient poetry in between her pratical mechanical exams and maths. And she’s feeling it for the first time ever really. She doesn’t like how people talk about the Jedi and the war, and is constantly about 0.3 seconds away from bungling the mission. (Obi-Wan, meanwhile shaves his beard, has hair to his waist and is doing his best to pretend he’s Qui Gon. Everyone thinks he’s weirdly hot and they all want him to be Master Kenobi for a costume.) This is where she meets an OC of mine (who’s name I need to change to sound less like my cat’s name lol), a sweet chubby togruta boy who is head of heels for her because she’s just the COOLEST ever. He essentially was a stand in as Ahsoka’s first crush, but without her having unmderstood it enough to make a Thing out of it before she met Lux and went, “Okay Tano, you missed out last time don’t let this one slip between your fingers like Moch or Riyo!” and then goes too hard for a boy she’s only got a passing fancy in. ANYHOW, it’s basically a high school AU set in the star wars canon, and would’ve ended with what I’d already posted with Ahsoka watching a Jedi Flick with Moch and complaining viciously about the actor playing “Ahsoka Tano”. Then Moch gets all dreamy about how he wants to marry Ahsoka Tano someday, and Ahsoka chokes hard. Obi-Wan calls her in the middle of her about to make a move and she leaves, but he has her fake school comm code so he keeps writing her and jokingly telling her she has to come back because she left her backpack at his house.

The epilogue was going to be a time skip to them meeting again as adults, and Moch finally gets to pretend they’re married to throw off some Storm Troopers. He tries to return some of her stuff and Ahsoka tells him to keep it so she has an excuse to return.

#Ahsoka Tano #Star Wars #fanfiction #fanfic #wip #work in progress #wip summary #Ahsoka Fails at Being a Teenager #in this particular fic Ahsoka is going to be bi or pan #haven't decided which yet tbh #technically part of Declarations canon but not there lol #vanilla-chip-101

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hamliet · 4 years

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Hello! Have you seen TROS yet? [Spoiler alert] I was really devastated by the ending - coming out the theater feeling upset and disappointed. Do you have any thoughts on it? Or maybe any plan to write fix-it fic? Thank you!

I am seeing it tomorrow. That said, I’ve read the plot summary, and no good execution can save that. So I was planning on posting this after I watched it with amendments made as I hope to enjoy it, but I’ll just post it now and amend this as necessary based on the film as I see it. (I still believe I will enjoy the film, even if I don’t think it’s a good film. I do think that. I really do... I hope.)

BASED ON THE PLOT SUMMARIES ALONE (grains of salt everywhere!):

I think it’s technically… messy writing at best and downright bad writing in other parts.* 10/10 it’s a blockuster-y, JJ Abrams-esque, (hopefully) fun, messy narrative movie that will be forgotten in 0.3 seconds.

Disclaimer before everyone comes after me: if you like it, AWESOME. If you think it’s good writing, great! Good writing and bad writing are inherently subjective; that said, there are general consensuses among literary studies about what constitutes bad and good writing. Hence, I’m relying on those consensuses when I call it messily written.

Before we get into specifics, I’ll compare it to two other major pop culture endings: Game of Thrones and Avengers: Endgame.

TROS is similar to the GoT final season in that it attempts to incorporate every aspect of fan speculation ever. However, it’s more like Endgame in that it is still somewhat true to the themes and characters—but unfortunately also like Endgame, it is not transformative or particularly interesting as a story on its own. In fact, it’s rather boring and honestly… bad storytelling. It tries to rehash Return of the Jedi but it doesn’t succeed in any way because the world and the overall story has grown since the early 1980s, and so the same story doesn’t work anymore.

Showing a cyclical story remaining cyclical with no sign of that breaking–instead, the cycles are even reinforced–does not give optimism nor does it give hope.

Redemption=death needs to die already. If we really want to reach people and tell them that the message is that you can always make a better choice (as Daisy Ridley and JJ Abrams have said about Kylo’s arc), maybe don’t send the message in each and every story that you have to die to redeem yourself. Look outside of cultural secular Calvinism, for the love of God and the betterment of the world and stories as a whole.

Now let’s talk Rey’s parentage.

We know Rey Palpatine wasn’t planned from the beginning (Trevorrow, the original write/director of IX, who was thankfully fired, said that he never planned for Palpatine to return), which means Rey’s parentage was most likely retconned from TLJ and there was no real plan for the sequel trilogy’s overall character arcs (save for Kylo’s, according to the actors and writers).

Listen to me. You don’t have to have everything planned when you start a three-film saga, but you gotta know the major beats.

This is like a sad game of movie telephone.

Yes, I know the OT Star Wars didn’t have a plan either and it’s like one of the only examples I can think of where no plan worked out–albeit not without hiccups (Leia kissing Luke, anyone?) If you expect lightning to strike twice in the same place, I’m sorry, but you are hopelessly naive.

Having Rey decide she wants to carry on the name Skywalker at the end is lame as shit. It’s a way to appease fans while being like nah she still isn’t related. Trying to please every fan is a sure way to guarantee that you will please no one. It might make for a perfectly pleasant film experience (I really hope it does), but not good, lasting storytelling (though not like, horrific either). It’s meh. It’s like… giving someone who is starving oatmeal. It will get the job done but will it satisfy and enthrall people? Not quite.

And let’s switch gears for a minute to Finn and Rose, my first and third favorite characters in this trilogy (Kylo is second, Rey is fourth). The sidelining of Rose is nothing short of a terrible attempt to please the white-supremacist-aligned Fandom Menace. Let’s not pretend it’s anything else. JJ’s lipservice about how wonderful it was that Kelly was cast at SW Celebration is, in hindsight, absolutely nauseating.

Shame on JJ. Shame on Disney.

But the main problem I have with this film is this:

Why did it need to exist?

The answer is money. Obviously. I know, I know stories exist to make money. That doesn’t mean I can’t criticize the fact that the story was sacrificed on the unholy altar of capitalism and Disney’s desire to own our souls. (Disney–the reason I like your movies is that a lot of them are good stories. I’m not interested in pandering soooooo.)

The Rise of Skywalker does not enhance the Star Wars narrative. Nothing about this film satisfies the Skywalker Saga nor the sequel trilogy, and it kind of all comes down to Kylo Ren’s death being the nail that sunk the entire world of Star Wars.

Keep in mind Kylo is not my favorite character when I’m saying this. Finn is. But I never spoke about Finn as much because the story didn’t utilize him properly. I never had concerns about Finn getting a happy ending while I was worried for Rey and Kylo’s arcs. (Finn’s arc, however, did have a ton more potential than was capitalized on; in particular, he would have been better if he was more conflicted over say, shooting other stormtroopers. His whole character humanized the usual red shirts, which when paired with Rose’s everywoman character, had so much potential I could shriek about it all day. That he didn’t lead other brainwashed stormtroopers into rebellion and freedom saddens me. Also, his ending again seems to bring about a good victim/bad victim dichotomy when it is compared with Kylo’s. The reason these two are my faves is that they were brainwashed as kids which, well, I can kinda sorta heavily relate to.)

Kylo Ren and Rey’s relationship doesn’t really get much better than it did in The Last Jedi. It actually rehashes that arc significantly. We already knew Kylo would fight for Rey and the galaxy, so… how was this different? Now, if he had lived, it would have been different, because it was the after the fight that proved that Kylo wasn’t ready to redeem himself in The Last Jedi. It was Kylo’s choice to stay at the expense of Rey and the Resistance that was literally the set up for conflict in the next film. This… turned it into nothing? Their conflict is rehashed and then whoo-hoo! Easy way out! Kill him so that they don’t have to deal with the “after” this time! They never have to deal with the conflict literally set up in The Last Jedi.

That’s bad writing, fam.

Life is infinitely more interesting. Leaving the story open with a living Skywalker instead of killing literally everyone involved with the Skywalkers except Rey who now adopts that name is… so unsatisfying I can’t even. Even if later material shows him showing up as a Force Ghost, like: cool saw that with Vader so this… adds nothing to the existing films. It doesn’t really reconcile anything.

It also… does not help the Rey=Mary Sue argument. She is NOT a Mary Sue, and that is a sexist term itself, but in no way is it a satisfying ending to her arc, because it isn’t a well-written ending which means it isn’t a well-written arc. The problem with Rey’s ending is a mirror of my problem with Kylo’s ending: it’s the very much a combination of her ending in The Last Jedi and her life before The Force Awakens.

She and Kylo are now separated (permanently this time).

She’s has her Resistance friends.

She’s alone on a desert planet.

But wait! Now she’s now happy!

Uh, why? The only reason I can think of is that the narrative demands it. Because honestly, what changes? The family she chose–the Skywalkers–are just as dead as her Palpatine birth family, soooooo. I suppose she reconciled with her heritage and come to peace with it and so that’s why she’s happy now, but… I can’t lie. It’s not hopeful. It’s not optimistic. It’s not Star Wars and it isn’t consistent for the message (especially if this is supposed to be the ending to the saga!) to be both:

life sucks for the Skywalkers and then they die–seriously, look at Shmi, Anakin, Padmé, Leia, Luke, Han, Kylo–it is LITERALLY ALL OF THEM; and

deciding to be a Skywalker means you’re at peace.

I can only assume Rey’s life will suck and then she’ll die, tbh, unless of course she is better off because of her blood… which negates the point of her being a Skywalker and is a really gross idea.

YOU CAN’T HAVE BOTH IN YOUR ENDING. PICK ONE.

Rejecting the Skywalkers would be anti-Star Wars, for sure, but marrying into them as a way of bridging the unfinished pain between Anakin and Padmé and Leia and her father? Much better. Or just leave it open. Honestly, leave it open for Kylo and Rey to both be alive and see each other again.

But you’re just upset your ship didn’t get a happy ending!

No, I’m upset about the storytelling, of which shipping is a part. A canonical part just as much as the lightsaber fights are. Anakin and Padmé. Leia and Han. Finn and Rose. Poe and Zorii. Rey and Ben.

The Force created Anakin, remember? All films–even the spin-offs–encourage our heroes to trust the force. “May the force be with us.” But the Force created an ENTIRE FAMILY THAT LIVED LIVES THAT SUCKED AND MADE LIFE SUCK FOR EVERYONE AROUND THEM AND THEN THEY DIED.

May the Force stay far the f*ck away from me, amen.

But seriously I can’t trust the world of a galaxy far far away or its narrative anymore. It’s a contradiction that causes all nine films to unravel. Why?

Again, let’s return to my earlier GoT comparison, because there is one thing TROS does that is more similar to GoT than to Endgame: Endgame drew together a bunch of unique distinctly separate stories into a crossover. TROS, just like GoT, relied on cliffhanger, incomplete endings to its films and therefore the ending matters a hell of a lot more than a stand-alone story.

I’m not dying to rewatch it like I am with stories where I realize I might learn more the second time. And by “rewatch it” I mean the entire nine-film saga. Knowing that canonically Leia, Luke, Han–they all die and their last descendent dies, the last descendent of Padmé and Anakin–for me, it’s personally gonna be hard to watch again. It’s gonna be hard to watch TROS going into it the first time.

And so the saga of bad endings continues.

Game of Thrones remains the worst at a -100 out of 10. It’s followed by Tokyo Ghoul:re which is still 2/10, and Star Wars is, on paper (meaning after I see it I am hoping it rises a few notches) now… 4/10. Endgame is a solid 6.5/10.

Banana Fish, sweetie, I’m sorry you were ranked down there. Your ending is a 7/10 but the rest of your story is like, 10/10 so you are sprung from this list.

Help me, Shingeki no Kyojin. You’re my only hope.

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