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#this is also why gwens lack of character development frustrates me
shivasdarknight · 8 months
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#wolqotd So I haven't really made a decision on a ship for my Wol/NPC. How did you guys decide on who you wanted your Wols to be with? Was it a certain moment? Or just something that made too much sense?
So, as a forward: I did not go into this with any ships in mind. When I first started to think about Surkukteni as a character, some of that came to mind but I was already midway through Stormblood. Misaki was barely a character, and I'd only just started to play around with ideas for Katsuro - the others were just...not there or just hollow shells (Sera and Teo weren't, Gwen was on Crystal, and V'ahnie is. non existent).
Surkie was always meant to be sapphic. When I first started writing her, I knew I wanted to lean into sapphic stuff but I wasn't set on her identity just yet. This all came with developing her character because I found that it was easier for me to figure out romantic stuff once her character was actually concrete. This is also how I ruled people out.
Yugiri was a first consideration mostly because I personally thought she was cute, but the Steppe Arc made that difficult to stomach so she was no longer a consideration. This was also when I was lamenting the fact that Ysayle's canonically dead because she would've been perfect.
I go off of chemistry and narrative similarities, so the first thing that actually clicked was one I didn't want to click: Surkie/Estinien. I was still pissed at this douchebag for Heavensward and how he treated Ysayle, and again I was really hoping for something sapphic but was getting frustrated that out of the entire cast that was still alive, it was him that actually worked really well with Surkie. Similar narrative points, similar drives, easy rivals and competitive dumbasses. They embodied a lot of the stuff that I enjoyed in ships - especially m/f shit like Ashitaka/San - and I kinda compensated for a long time with them being FWB but not officially together.
Aymeric was thrown in there as a why not, but that developed into a very different kind of relationship that I was off and on with until I settled on their coworkers dynamic and working through shared issues - it also clicked more when I finally said Fuck It and made Aymeric trans. The deciding factor on keeping him in her relationship was the fact that they began to have chemistry once I stepped out of the usual modes people take with Aymeric and focused on coworkers, queerness, and frankly politics.
It's also for this same reason as to why I kept G'raha out when he used to initially be in there. At first I thought it was fun that they had parallel desires - she was an adventurer wanting to get into archaeology, he's an anthropologist (archaeology is under anthropology) who wanted to be an adventurer - but the more I developed them the less they worked out? Like yeah, similar desires and all and he's a political figure but they only really work as friends. Them being romantic felt like I was acting out the usual tropes and I couldn't really feel out any chemistry between them. Friends, absolutely. Romantic partners? ...Eh.
AND THEN I GOT OVER MYSELF ABOUT STICKING STRICLY TO CANON LMAO
So anyways, Ysayle.
I had a lot of hangups about what to do with her because I only got more attached the further I got away from Heavensward. Everything that she stood for resonated greatly with Surkie and the lack of her in MSQ - especially when it was relevant - was deeply apparent. So eventually I just got kind of sick of writing her as a was and began my rewrite. Shipping her with Surkie just kind of came naturally as that way into sapphic stuff I'd wanted initially, but I didn't want her entire thing to be based around being in a wolnpc ship, yeah? Like. She's still Ysayle, she's still got her own stuff.
The decision to have Surkie have feelings for her is yet again chemistry, but the deeper relationship and narrative emphasis - such as perpetually reincarnating soulmates - came later on as I built Ysayle up and even made her an ancient self in Khione. I made Cylva her shard, and that got elaborated in Surkie's fling with Cylva. Philomène is her Fourth shard that interacts with Saoirse. Macchi is her immediate past life and ties her to both Bahamut and Tiamat.
The more I fleshed this out, the more the relationship became entwined with narrative nonsense about cyclical relationships that end in tragedy except this one with Surkie and Ysayle because Surkie fought against the script. This became the core ship because of how intrinsically tied it is to the story even though both can stand on their own. So much revolves around these two - trauma or otherwise - and yeah it's the most important thing in the story.
Venat comes attached to that as the lover of Charon (Surkie) and Khione (Ysayle). I'd seen some people do stuff with Venat/Ysayle (which I Adore) and thought it could be fun to include Venat in the stuff with surkysayle. Venat and Surkie had some nice similarities and chemistry, and I wound up really liking the idea that Surkie and Ysayle have Venat's traveler's mark because that connection back to Charon and Khione. So beyond just chemistry, it ended up deeply affecting the wider story. It's another core ship that comes into play much later on.
Heustienne is new and it's mostly because I wanna give her more spotlight. Also, Ysayle/Heustienne is cute. I still don't know how she fits in with the Engaged Quad (Surkie, Estinien, Ysayle, Aymeric - Aymeric proposed right as they left for Sharlayan), but I do know that she's at least with Surkie and Ysayle. It's definitely also fun as she stands as one of the three folks affected by the Dragonsong War with ties to the Knights Dragoon that all got aetherically fucked somehow - Estinien obviously, but also Melisande who's an oc of mine. Having her with Surkie and Ysayle fits a lot thematically, especially since I'm making her a Scion and engaging with ENW.
Yotsuyu was originally in Surkie's relationships due to how similar they are (and also because I like Yotsuyu/Ysayle), but that similarity wound up being what made me reconsider. Seeing as Surkie's captain/father is Doman, I don't think she could look past what she did even if she feels for Yotsuyu. She's sympathetic, keeps her alive, and helps her start a new life elsewhere but I don't think she could find herself romantically involved whatsoever.
That's where Melisande comes in. Melisande is a bastard of Ishgard who loathes her homeland and has no desires on ever going back - she'd rather see them burn. In this way, she and Yotsuyu are Fucking Perfect, especially in terms of Yotsuyu post-everything as they try and negotiate what to even do without necessarily redeeming Yotsuyu? Like, she's hurt but she's also horrible. And who better to love her than a horrible woman like Melisande?
I think I just liked the idea of Katsuro inbetween thanuri, especially with how his weirdness is actually understood by Urianger, and Thancred is very patient with him too. The schemes, the secrecy - it just kinda works? I like their ups and downs too. G'raha is a thought, but I'm still working on that. It's not really a "fuck it we ball" situation because I think they look good together, I tend to sit on this stuff for a while before making it a serious ship. So I'm bouncing around ideas of how Katsuro would interact with the Exarch, the fact that I've got G'raha having a huge crush on Katsuro (which will be there regardless of if they're together or not), trying to like...ig feel out if they've got chemistry or not? Scenarios, conversations, trying to see if there's any conflicting shit. Katsu's stint with Emet sure would count, but that also affects thanuri anyways and that was a case of Katsu being horribly manipulated. So we'll see where that goes for G'raha.
Gwendoline is with Y'shtola, Nidhana, and Zero. I didn't have her with anyone for a long time because originally it was an oc named Skuld, but that felt hollow? Like just trying to pair people together who weren't with anyone yet. Especially when Surkie and Gwen have great chemistry and history, but that's oc / oc. The more that I began to develop Gwen and have her more involved in things, the more I began to like her having this long relationship with Y'shtola as practitioners of forbidden magicks and deeply curious individuals who both enable each other but also hold the other accountable. Y'shtola has turned into a really nice partner for Gwen mostly because they're able to deal with the other's bullshit and can see right through the other. They've been together since Y'shtola's return in Heavensward, which has been fun considering the immediate challenges and then Stormblood, but regardless she's a very loving partner and I enjoy their banter (which is what sold me on it). She's also perfectly fine with Y'shtola having a partner in Runar, even if they have to discuss it after they reunite. So yeah, Runar is a metamour and there's nothing there between Gwen and him (also she's like. a lesbian.). He's just a nice guy who helped take care of her girlfriend.
NIDHANA WAS ME BEING A TINY BIT PETTY LMAO I ADORE Nidhana and was getting tired of people just constantly picking the most random ass men to ship with, so I just scooped Nidhana up and threw her between Gwen and Y'shtola. Again: eccentric researcher who meshes well with both of their interests. She would be SO into Gwen's necromantic research and just a good fit for these two. Yeah, it does result in 3 people who can't take care of themselves or sleep at reasonable hours, but they're fun and that's what counts!
Zero is a recent addition for Gwen and Y'shtola. This one's mostly built on them helping her acclimate to the Source. This one only works because Gwen has taken a long time to get where she's at presently. If this were ARR, it wouldn't work. Gwen and Zero are built on Gwen's other relationships, notably with Surkukteni. This one is one that I've recently started fleshing out mostly because I like the idea of Zero building something new with Gwen and Y'shtola. I just think they're cute together. Chemistry is tougher with this one as Zero's slowly growing into her own character, but I like the idea of her working through internalized issues and trauma with two people who are extremely patient with her.
basically it's just a lot of chemistry and weighing the benefits of how it would impact the narration and characters or not. G'raha didn't bring much to Surkie but seems to be better fit with Katsuro. Ysayle adds a lot of dimension to Surkie and her interactions, while Yotsuyu is better suited with Melisande.
I'm constantly changing things because polyam fun, but like. Idk, I just think it's fun to play with chemistry and see how people grow with each other.
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softgrungeprophet · 2 years
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tasm is my favorite spidey movie alongside raimi’s sm2 obviously but it definitely falls into a lineage of tropes that is far too prevalent, as far as dr connors is concerned
super frustrating cause i think that movie does a lot of things right in its writing, approach to peter and his relationships, to gwen and may specifically but also uncle ben and even flash in some ways, plus design language (i love sporty suits...) (prefer the eyes in 2 though) etc etc, even the skateboard as a really solid way to call back to the motorcycle— but the whole like “woe is me, nothing is worse than being disabled” thing is extremely obnoxious and mars an otherwise very good movie for me (also the voiceover scene in the deleted scenes is better than the final version imo, the version where it sounds more like a recorded playback fits better aesthetically and thematically imo whereas the final version mostly is just corny and is probably legitimately one of my least favorite scenes in the movie)
tasm2 also imo has similar pitfalls with max, though imo the electro aspect of that movie is by far the best part. i don’t really like the goblin stuff unfortunately lol—except i do think gwen’s death was like, very effective, especially in the context of the first movie and previous fakeouts, so it definitely did that well, even if i think the movie would have been better split into two and allowed more room to breathe for both
this is also a criticism i have of the batman’s depiction of the riddler once unmasked, though in this case the way he’s played onscreen is not the “wow being physically disabled is the worst” sort but rather the “wow look at this neurodivergent creature” sort that is, again, very prevalent in media especially in these genres and is nothing short of maddening as someone with a whole lot of both physically disabled and neurodivergent family members (and myself)
also appears in like.
SO many comic books lmfao
frustratingly widespread. either it’s weird inspiration porn or it’s weird self hatred, spanning all kinds of stuff from romance to horror to action, and it’s like YEAH there are difficulties in being disabled obviously and a lot of people get depressed or have rough patches or self-hatred because of that and because of not being able to do things they used to do but like... this one specific POV (usually a POV that is mostly held by abled ppl) is so deeply overrepresented in media, movies, games, comic books, novels.... where like... being disabled is just the worst possible thing you could ever be, and it’s worse than death, and so on and so forth, as though a man who’s been disabled a long time wouldn’t just be kind of used to it by then lmfao
reason number 454968549 why i find the agent venom origin SO frustrating cause previously, like, you had this whole really solid mini arc in web of spidey about flash coming to terms with his disability and accepting himself and understanding that he can both be loved and love himself while disabled without needing to “fix” that via weird secret government experimentation, and then like... a year or two later you have a comic that literally uses the exact thing that comic showed was not necessary for his happiness (aforementioned secret gov experiments) and said, actually, he IS going to do that, and also, i’m a bad writer who thinks flash is a fucking moron who doesn’t understand how friendship works between tWO PEOPLE HE’S BEEN FRIENDS WITH SINCE HE WAS LIKE 18 i’m sorry i just hate the AV origin so much it’s so contradictory to every aspect of this character
sure character regression happens but that just felt like contradictory writing and the usual lack of interest in character development, in favor of blatant military propaganda and a story the only redeeming aspect of which was, to be quite frank, the art
anyway what was i talking about
oh yeah disabilities aren’t the end of the world and it would be nice if media could approach them better. even stuff that’s otherwise good or that i really like often stumbles in this area, whether it’s various agent venom comics that ALMOST have it (this is often most noticeable in the fact that flash is using hospital-style wheelchairs or the wrong kind of prostheses) or a movie that does everything else just right but drops the ball on self-loathing and what that actually feels like over time (imo) or a game that inexplicably has an entire asylum based subplot for no fucking reason other than the fact that it came out in 2012 and that was en vogue then because of arkham asylum lmao
#it's funny tho cause for years and years all the criticism ppl flung about tasm was always shit like oh peter's too charismatic#or oh he's too confident or oh he rides a skateboard or—#it was never the ACTUAL things about that movie that CAN and SHOULD be criticized like its approach as a series to mental illness#and physical disability no it was always well peter has too much of a personality or too much of a handsome face or he's too jewish#or the soundtrack isn't danny elfman therefore?? it's??? inherently bad? that was a real weird take i saw once#and it's like there are real criticisms to be had but all you can come up with is that you took the eggs too fucking literally?#and can't understand their purpose and why they were included as a specific way to symbolize peter and may's relationship?#that's your problem???????????#it's so fucking annoying#nadia rambles#nadia reads comics#kind of#there is a lot of media i really like that has these kinds of things that are very frustrating cause they end up dragging down good stuff#as an aside my movie ranking is that ITSV - TASM - SM2 are my number 1 tie#SM1 and TASM2 are about equal for me for complicated reasons#SM3 is mostly last because of the stuff with Gwen and the casting and writing for her I really disliked a lot#but as a movie i still find it fun to watch and gwen is basically the only reason it's lower than tasm2 tbqh#otherwise i think they'd probably be about tied for last in terms of messiness with characters i mostly enjoy#i also am just not a big fan of tobey as peter... like he's not the WORST choice but... like if i was casting a spidey movie he'd not be#on my list of choices#neither would everyone's little cinnamon roll you know who#andrew garfield was absolutely top tier casting for peter in terms of physique and physical appearance and body language and hair and#eyebrows and well his only fault is that his butt is flat.#and as we all know peter parker canonically has a fat ass#sorry about this#long post#idk what the point even is it would just be nice if people were a little more open to the notion that being disabled#is not like... a Fate Worse Than Death even when it sucks in a lot of ways#i mean it's a little complicated too though and depends on the disability like#how that ends up playing out. obvs. i WOULD like to be fixed actually. but that's my personal experience.
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fishoutofcamelot · 3 years
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Is it just me or is everyone else really annoyed when someone interprets their fave in such a way that erases all their flaws and provides wholesome excuses for all their mistakes? Like. Idk it just feels like such a disservice to the character to strip them of all their depth and humanity
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erdariel · 2 years
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Fandom things: The Musketeers, Merlin, Lotr!!
Oh boy, now I need to think about this... Sorry, some of these are kinda boring/disappointing answers
the first character i ever fell in love with:
Musketeers: idk, probably either Constance, one of the main boys, or like all five of those at once
Merlin: either Merlin, Gaius, or Gwen, idk. Probably Gwen, tbh
LOTR: I don't remember, it's such a long time since mom first read LOTR to me (it must've been the summer between 5th and 6th grade, I think). Probably Frodo, though. Or if not Frodo, then Sam.
a character that i used to love/like, but now do not:
...tbh for the most part I don't really have any of those. With Merlin, there's kinda Arthur, he was more fun at the beginning of the series, but towards the later seasons his lack of growth became frustrating. I still don't hate him, but I'm more interested in other characters. But other than that, there isn't really any
a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not:
I'm not much of a shipper, so tbh there isn't really anything that comes to mind
my ultimate favorite character™:
WHY MUST YOU MAKE ME PICK, I CAN NEVER CHOOSE FAVES
(It's Constance, Merlin, and Sam, though)
However funnily enough those aren't necessarily my most faves to write or read fanfics about, even though if I have to pick absolute faves from the canon I'd name those
prettiest character:
Aramis, Lance (can you tell I like Santi lol), and, uhh.... idk??? don't really have one for LOTR
my most hated character:
Rohcefort, idk really? maybe Uther, though I think narratively he's an interesting character, but like as a person he's a dick, and, uhh.... I don't really have a character I would really hate all that much in LOTR, not even the more unlikable ones
my OTP:
my NOTP:
I don't really have that strong feelings about ships
favorite episode:
Uhhh I can't choose with Merlin or Musketeers, and not applicable to LOTR anyway
saddest death:
Musketeers: Treville and Lemay. Don't make me choose between them, I'm sad enough about both
Merlin: Lance and Gwaine :c
I mean in LOTR itself there isn't that many deaths altogether. Boromir, though. Boromir is the saddest death. (Though I have been known to make myself sad about even Halbarad's death, and Halbarad has like maybe two or three lines of dialogue altogether and is very minor character)
favorite season:
Musketeers: S1 by a long shot, though I enjoy the later seasons as well
Merlin: either s2 or s3, but I marathoned them so the seasons kinda melt together in my memory so hard to say
least favorite season:
Musketeers: s3. I don't hate it, but I enjoyed the first two seasons more, and s3 had so many things that were just kinda poorly written
Merlin: either s4 or s5. S4 bc of the whole Shade!Lancelot and Gwen's exile thing, s5 bc of the whole evil!Gwen thing. Both were just stupid tbh
character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate:
Idk I don't really have one for any of these? I'm kinda really basic with my opinions. With Merlin I'd say Arthur, except I know that a plenty of other fans dislike him too. Also I don't really hate-hate him, I just dislike his character in the later seasons and feel frustrated at all the lost potential in him and character development thrown entirely away
my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave:
I don't really have any of these... With LOTR, I find Denethor much too fascinating to dismiss him with just an "ugh he's a fucking dick", but he's not like, a fave, I just kind of find it interesting to look at his character and see where he was coming from in some of the things he did and said and was, and like while he wasn't a great person, I can still also appreciate the tragedy of his character and story
my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave:
Lemay. Need I say more?
Like literally half the cast. Merlin, Lance, and Mordred in particular
Frodo. He suffered so much, it just hurts me 😭 Sam kinda too
my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship:
ehh again I'm not a big shipper, so I don't really have any of those
my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship:
Literally anything and everything I ship goes into this category bc, like I've already said multiple times, I'm kind of... mostly not that much of a shipper. So I'm just gonna name the things I ship at all (and in most of these cases, my shipping mostly extends to situations where the romance adds something interesting to the story, either during canon or after canon events)
Aramis/Porthos, Aramis/Anne, d'Artagnan/Constance, Athos/Sylvie
Aragorn/Arwen, Eowyn/Faramir, Sam/Rosie
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blackasmidnightcats · 4 years
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QfG Rants and Remakes part 5
Big thanks to both @agathasarmy and @yarasquad for sharing their ideas with me and believing that I could actually make a coherent rant without being too swallowed up by my emotions and hopefully I'll be able to do the same here.
P.S. Imma change the title of the next Rants and Remakes cause it's definitely not focusing on QfG anymore and it's gonna focus of AWWP so yeah...there's that to look forward too.
Chaddick & Yara + Tagatha interlude
Note: This post was originally gonna be titled "Chaddick & Yara + Mourning the Departed" and would have turned out as how it is explained below but as I was writing about Chaddick I realized that I needed to talk about something concerning Tagatha and realized that this post would have been too long for all three so I gonna move the "Mourning of Departed" in its own post. Hope you guys understand. Tagatha has a strong pull with me.
Imma actually gonna outline this cause I need to organize my thoughts and at least with this I could remember the direction that I would be heading.
First part's definitely going to talk about how Chaddick and Yara's death is bs
Then imma explain why them staying alive would have impacted the TCY storyline a lot more meaningfully (p.s. this is where the Tagatha interlude will be found)
And last (and this has been moved to its own post so stay tuned for it), I would also like to nitpick Soman's obvious lack of thought when it comes to the characters that have departed (mainly Callis and Lady Lesso and August Sader) and how it should have affected the characters (mainly Sophie and Agatha)
How Chaddick and Yara could have helped the storyline better
WARNING: I realized while writing this that I kinda made Chaddick and Yara more flawed than they are writen because I have to think about their character growth and they can't have that without having any flaws. So expect some more drama with these two than needed as I share my thoughts on how their characters could have went. They get better in the end believe me.
So I think that everyone in the fandom is one with the idea that Chaddick's death was one of the MOST worst decisions that Soman made.
As @agathasarmy said it once, Chaddick's death is more frustrating than sad because of how out of nowhere it is.
Via @agathasarmy:
but… Chaddick??? dying??? IN THE BEGINNING OF THE SERIES????
IT DOESNT MAKE SENSE, AND THE ONLY WAY IT MAKE SENSE IS COS SOMAN OBVIOUSLY DID IT TO INTRODUCE RHIAN AND THATS THE SHITTIEST THING ABOUT IT
HE REDUCED CHADDICK’S DEATH AS A PLOT DOOR WITHOUT PROPERLY SUBSTANTIATING CHADDICK’S CHARACTER FIRST SO INSTEAD OF US TRULY MOURNING HIS LIFE WE’RE JUST LEFT WITH THIS HOLLOW FEELING OF WHAT HE COULD’VE BEEN AS AN INTEGRAL CHARACTER TO THE PLOT
THIS
Chaddick's death felt hollow because it was a PLOT DEVICE. It didn't (or at least Soman didn't) conscider Chaddick much of a character but a means and once this happens some deaths can be very very hollow.
Like his POV chapter was very hard to read all because especially once you find out that he's dead by the end of it (SHAME SOMAN, SHAME) because his story and plot had so much potential. We weren't able to properly feel sad about his lost because we didn't get to know him better.
It just feels tragic. So much potential lost, all because Soman wanted Tedros to feel vulnerable because he lost his close friend.
WHICH SOMAN DIDN'T REALLY NEED TO DO
I explained already why this is bull and I'm gonna explain later what could have happened for Chaddick's character.
But in summary on why Soman didn't need to do it: EXPECTATIONS
Chaddick and Tedros would have been stressed out with all the expectations and comparison with Arthur and Lancelot. One wrong move could have broke them apart easily.
But Soman could have also not wanted to deal with Chaddick against his Sophie obssession so there could be that too.
SHAME SOMAN
Now, Yara.
Our little Soft Girl
She should not have died.
She really shouldn't have
W h y ?
Because her being alive would have impacted the story more than her death ever did. Just like Chaddick.
And if the problem was what she could have affected in the storyline in TLEA, then she could have been on the sides like. . . as Tristan from time to time or something.
Her being alive would have not affected or change TLEA at all. Like if more important characters like the Coven and the League can fade into the background then so could she.
But I really don't imagine her being in the school for New Evil with Aric as Dean. No, maybe Yuba could have hidden her with the League and she could have accompanied Princess Uma when they were getting Tedros and Agatha and then accompanied the Leuge or something.
Really it would have been that simple. C'mon.
Plus Kiko has been reduced to wreck after that. At least, with Yara being alive she could have fixed herself a bit more.
Okay
So in summary again: CHADDICK AND YARA SHOULD NOT HAVE DIED AND SHAME ON SOMAN FOR KILLING THEM OFF
Now, let's get to the juicier part, what could these two have contributed to the TCY storyline.
On Chaddick
It's pretty obvious what Chaddick's role should have been. He should have been important to the plot because his role would have been about breaking the comparison between the Past and the Present (see Soman, it could have been integrated into your canon plot) between him, Tedros, and Agatha to Lancelot, Arthur, and Gwen.
I'm pretty sure that Camelot has its eyes on these three.
It's pretty freaking convenient that they all have a predecessor to be compared to. And I'm pretty sure that it's not just Camelot who notices the pattern. I mean the whole freaking Woods read about this affair.
So Chaddick, along with Tedros and Agatha, should have been the ones that break this chain. It could have symbolized that Camelot was entering into a new, better era after a similar relationship broke it.
Like, a King, his beloved Queen and his most trusted Knight brought hope but ended in a Tragedy.
Now, another King, his beloved Queen and his most trusted Knight are skeptically judged for having the same pattern and they instead bring the Glory that first trio didn't
With Tedros, Agatha, and Chaddick united with each other bringing Camelot out of its traumatic experience with Tedros's parents, Camelot finally accepting that these three are not the same as Arthur, Gwen, and Lance and fully supporting them DESPITE the fear, would have been a much stronger message of that 'the past doesn't always repeat itself.'
Because with Rhian being known and most propably remembered as Tedros's most trusted Knight and betraying him in the end, it's like a copy of what Lance technically did to Arthur.
It just further proved that Camelot's King would always be betrayed by the ones they trust most.
Sadly for Arthur, he was betrayed by both Gwen and Lance and they left him alone.
While Tedros still has Agatha but without Chaddick the lesson simply is not learned.
Chaddick was integral to this formula because Camelot would have had to face yet another propable tragedy for their beloved King in the hands of the people he loves. With Tedros, Agatha, and Chaddick, complete, proving that they could do better despite having just a strong a bond as what Arthur and co had and Camelot accepting and trsuting this, the previous wounds would be replaced with new Hope.
Because even if that whole affair happened and ruined the Kingdom, at least they have proof that it's not always gonna happen that way.
And that's why Rhian being remembered as Tedros's Knight hurts this idea. Cause he betrayed him too.
Anyway, hopefully I made my point with this legacy thing.
Plus Chaddick and Arthur's Round Table training him. WHY SOMAN WHY?!?!?!
And now, imma explain what I think should have happened with Chaddick and how his character development and his role should have played out.
Because Chaddick is a pretty well rounded character, his POV chapter proves that he's brave, and is willing to die for his friends and what's right, and there isn't really much flaws to him aside from that he can sometimes make the most worst decisions despite being pretty wise.
I honestly cannot tell if he is stupid sometimes or Soman just does this to him cause PLOT.
Fandom I need help with this. Give me some opinions.
Like. . . he's wise enough to know what was right, examples being warning Tedros about Sophie and the first to listen to Agatha in AWWP, but also dumb or ignorant enough to bully Agatha in Book 1 and that VERY IMPORTANT THING ABOUT completely ABUSING Tedros is AWWP.
Like I'm kinda confused with him.
Well maybe we can say that he's a bit ignorant and maybe was raised with privilege so that's why he bullied Agatha in Book 1 and kinda wisened up in Book 2 about her.
But I am not excusing his attitude towards Tedros in AWWP because that was messed up. Well, AWWP was messed up so there is that but if we have to acknowledge that mess and have some closure then I vote for it to come from Chaddick and Yara.
Like maybe the reason why Chaddick is more wise now is because of that very experience. Maybe he could still be a bit guilty about it and that kinda messes with his mind cause he still thinks that Tedros is still the same boy those years ago in their second year and Rhian uses this to his advantage.
Actually, thinking about it this makes so much sense.
Like instead of AGATHA having the trust issues (thought I wouldn't completely vanish it, just not at the same level as she does in canon) it's CHADDICK that has them. Cause he's always kinda gets haunted by what happened in AWWP.
I mean Tedros replaced him with ARIC of all people when he failed to retrieve Agatha. There has to be some animosity between them since. I can imagine that Chaddick kinda felt like him and Tedros could never be as close as when they were during their first year. And he would totally understand it if Tedros never really forgave him for what happened and was at peace with it even if he didn't have enough guts to find a closure for it. He'd respect his friend first and foremost.
But then comes Tedros, all fine and inviting him to be his Knight like that would mess Chaddick up.
He propably couldn't believe it at first and maybe even kindly refused the offer at first but then he sees the heart break in Tedros's face and Chaddick realizes that Tedros really wanted this.
Tedros still sees Chaddick as his closest friend despite what happened in AWWP. And maybe after some thinking, Chaddick realizes that he still wants to have the bond with Tedros like what they had in Book 1. So he accepts.
But of course, they've changed and Chaddick still gets eaten by guilt because I think that he's the kind of person that knows that he did something wrong and wants to repent for it.
So instead of that wise friend that Tedros had in Book 1, Chaddick can't trust his judgement about Tedros because he's scared he'd go too far. So he kinda just agrees to Tedros's ideas and doesn't really give advice. Tedros kinda notices this and tries to talk to Chaddick about it but Chaddick would be all formal to him. Tedros, I don't really know, would think that it would be for his sake with the comparison with Arthur and Lance and all. So he kinda just goes along with it.
It's messy right now guys, I know, I'm kinda butchering Chaddick's character here but I promise it gets better and in my mind he'd be like this for only Book 4. He'd be Wise Chaddick again right after. Just give me a chance to explain.
So they have this kind of miscommunication thing that Canon Tagatha had in QfG instead and that would have made so much more sense and here's why;
Warning: this is officially where the Tagatha interlude starts so if you wanna skip it (why though???) find the sign that states it's the end. It's gonna be in pink too.
The fact that Tagatha was having a miscommunication failure was kinda off with me because 1) they've been over this in AWWP and TLEA. In TLEA Tedros has absolutely no problem with pushing Agatha to share more when she wouldn't and 2) he could easily read her like a book, especially when it counts. Like he could get her favorite food wrong but he always seemed to know what Agatha was having trouble with and was there to help her out and is not afraid to call her out on it (i.e. the Cinderella thing, he was on point there)
Imma provide some examples of Tedros totally getting Agatha when it counts;
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AND THIS
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AND THIS TOO
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WAIT THERE IS MORE (The Tagatha Moment)
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AND LET US NOT FORGET
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THIS IS WHY TLEA TAGATHA WILL ALWAYS BE BEST TAGATHA.
I get that Agatha's insecure about herself and maybe she was kinda influenced with the Excalibur thing (but I highly doubt it though) but it's no reason for her to get to the conclusion she did at the end of QfG.
I mean girl, you were always thinking that Tedros would be a Great King in TLEA and that's why you've been so insecure about yourself. WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT???
Someone call me out on this PLEASE. I'm hurting myself by judging her too hard.
I can imagine that she would be sceptical with Tedros's ideas and kinda doubting him about it (you guys have no idea how much it hurts typing this) but I can also imagine that she would never doubt that Tedros's heart is in the right place even if she thinks that the way he gets there isn't always the best.
Like we have literal proof that Tedros gets Agatha almost like Sophie does and the best thing is that I'm sure that Tedros would think of the best in mind.
The mess in QfG makes no sense because they should be over this miscommunication bs and it should not have been a thing.
And if it was because of the stress with Excalibur and his responsibilities as King that made Tedros suddenly not get Agatha then WTF Soman!?!?!? I did not ask for this. They were literally about to die in TLEA and yet they could still joke and tease each other and have these cute little scenes with the other.
Instead I got Rhian's b*tch ass being Tedros's therapists when he knows sh*t about this boy and Agatha doubting Tedros like he did something horrible. (Well he did for trusting Rhian but i digress)
I could have had more of these cute Tagatha scenes instead. Like, is it too much to ask for these two to just show their love for each other in other ways than "I will save you" and "You're the best thing ever and I don't want to lose you for this horrible thing that I did or say" like give me small softer moments anytime.
Tedros gently teasing Agatha when she's being difficult and Agatha being totally trying not to show that she's smitten over it.
Agatha trying to be romantic at the most outrageous moments and Tedros being like "?????" but totally finding it cute.
Other character just not getting these two when they do and they are just as confused.
These are the kind of scenes I wanted from them. And if I have to use Chaddick to get it then so be it. (I'm sorry about this, I'm mostly projecting at this point and these really affecting my personal opinions on this matter but I'll try to tone it down a bit so that it's still coherent)
Note: this is the official end of the Tagatha interlude but i'm not keeping any promises that it'll be the last
Anyways, Chaddick and Tedros, they have more reasons with having communication problems because;
They have not been together for a very long time and they've both propably changed since
AWWP. So far, the two of them have had horrible experiences as the last thing that they remember about each other.
As I explained, I headcanon that Chaddick has a somewhat formed a sort of PSTD with it and is very scared that he's gonna mess it up.
I'm not even going to try to explain the PSTD thing cause I feel like I'm not gonna do it justice but I hope you get what I mean.
Chaddick must have become more unsure of himself after AWWP and he must still be trying to fit this new Tedros with the old one that he used to hang out with in Book 1. It would have been a good comparison to show that Tedros has indeed change and grown since then.
Like Chaddick kinda feels like he needs to intervene when Tedros shares a very outrageous suggestion but doesn't know how and kinda ends up in a mess.
Basically imagine Tagatha's problems in QfG and apply to Tedros and Chaddick instead.
And Chaddick would have been suspiscious about Rhian from the beginning. He's a smart savy guy afterall.
So Rhian kinda exploits this and gets the two boys against each other. Because say that Tedros and Chaddick have this big fight propably like the one when Agatha comments that Tedros was being a horrible king but Chaddick's the one that said it instead. Say that this happens around the middle of the Book and it's the final straw between them because they haven't been properly communicating and all the pressure on them. Rhian could easily worm his way to Tedros's side and replace Chaddick nicely. Cause unlile Chaddick, Rhian would make Tedros believe that HE'S the one that believes in him the most.
So they kinda fall apart and Chaddick and Tedros are trying to understand where it all went wrong.
Agatha would try to understand each side and get them to better terms again but she can't do it alone plus a-hole Rhian is butting in.
I imagine that, for me, the logical person that Chaddick might approach on his dilema with Tedros might be Ravan.
Cause the two of them basically think the same way and are usually calm and wise. The only difference would be that Chaddick's more active while Ravan's more passive and choses to observe before making a move. So he calms Chaddick down when he's being too impatient.
Chaddick and Agatha would be talking of course. And I don't know why but I imagine that they're more numb to all the gossip about the three of them especially around each other because they're both sort of level headed and wise then when they're with Tedros individually.
And I imagine this is where the Tagatha drama happens. Only after Rhian cause I wanna be clear that without him, Tagatha would have been fine. He also tries to break them up by saying that Agatha sides with Chaddick and that she doesn't have much faith in Tedros too.
Agatha's going to deny this of course (because it's all bs from Rhian) but Tedros has been too stressed and vulnerable that he sorta starts to believe it and Agatha gets frustrated that Tedros is choosing to believe Rhian when she's known him longer and after everything that they've been through.
But Tedros isn't fully under Rhian's spell. I would have put several times when they would doubt each other especially when Rhian talks crap about Agatha and Chaddick and it would be beserk button for Tedros so Rhian doesn't really go there.
Now Chaddick would be having his little personal battle with himself and Ravan and Agatha would be there to support him and give some advice.
The real kicker would have been when Rhian is adored by Camelot as Tedros's Treasured Knight, someone better than Lancelot and Chaddick kinda has a heartbreaking moment because HE'S supposed to be the one that was known as Tedros's Treasured Knight not this stranger. Not this stranger that stole everything from him especially his best friend.
Agatha hears about this and reflects the time when she gave up her own position as Tedros's queen in TLEA and remembers that Tedros knows her and all her monsters and has been the light to help her fight them.
So she and Chaddick have this talk and she tries to concinve him that Tedros wouldn't want for Chaddick to just give up on him like that. Chaddick thinks about it but is still not completely convinced but Agatha reminds him that Tedros CHOOSE HIM to be his Knight and Liege and they both have to fight for it.
It's Ravan who finally manages to get Chaddick to gear when he asks Chaddick if he's going to regret anything he should choose to either regret letting Tedros go and not fighting for their friendship or make a complete idiot of himself but fight for their friendship instead.
So Chaddick does the latter but everything is too late and the Rhian thing happens as I explained in the first Rants and Remakes post and Chaddick gets tossed into jail with Tedros.
It's in book 5 that I imagine their relationship actually starts to heal itself and they both try to get through everything. I haven't thought of all the kinks out yet but I imagine a lot of fights and Chaddick just kinda shouting what he thinks before he startsvthe regret it and Tedros being this physic and just getting Chaddick too like how he does Agatha.
Again, I haven't thought of everything yet but I'll share it when I do
Now let's move on to Yara
On Yara
Yara would have been more influencial alive then dead and I already explained why how she could have been handled in TLEA cause where I really see exploiting her is in the storyline of TCY.
With the Balance vs Chaos in mind as well as the Lady of the Lake villainess plotline, Yara could have been the answer to this.
She'd be a living reminder of everything that all the characters went through in AWWP and how horribly toxic it is to everyone. Especially those like Yara who lives in the between.
Like with the Lady plotline she would have promoted ultimate purity for both Good and Evil and doesn't believe that each side could be able to understand each other so she thinks that she's promoting Balance that way and that letting each side corrupt the other is Chaos.
She would have believed that Yara is an abomination to the Balance because she is the embodiment of the idea that you can choose some charcteristic from two sides and still be yourself.
Plus with Yara alive the other characters would be forced to rethink their ideals and how to approach this new possibility and reflect on the old ways that have been hurting the ones that are similar to her.
I imagine that Yara's gonna have an internal struggle with this like she's still trying to understand it herself and as she tries to understand it the more that the other characters do as well.
I haven't actually thought out her actual detailed storyline just yet and even though I wanna say more I know that I might butcher her character as I go on but I definitely know her importance to the possible story.
As I explained before, if in TSY was Good VS Evil and that the TCY was about Good AND Evil and how both sides need each other to grow and develop and that the importance of the School still teaching Good and Evil in its most purest form is so that they'd all have a guideline to go by but the curriculum has become more flexible with their beliefs OF Good and Evil and that every student just have shades of grey but choses to go by these either of the two and can still be a Hero or a Villain then Yara could have been the right person to show that it doesn't matter if your not completely on one side and was given the characteristics of the other, it matters what values you choose to follow despite it and how tou choose to use it to help everyone else for the better.
Cause it's canon already that it doesn't matter what they are, it's what they do that counts.
NGL I'm not completely satisfied with how I explained Chaddick and Yara I feel like I didn't do them justice here and I will definitely get back to this when I have organized and fleshed out my thoughts on them
Anyways, if you guys would like to add your own thoughts to this post pls do.
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thegeminisage · 5 years
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i have deep and conflicting thots about the gilli episode (3.11)
they’re long (they’re LONG!!!) so here’s a cut. you’re welcome
good things:
this is the ANTITHESIS to everything i was complaining about last night. this is what i was CRAVING. this show did me so good (and yet, so bad - more on that in a sec)
there was a touch of outside pov here (my weakness) since we got to see who merlin was from gilli’s point of view
and when i say we got to see who merlin was i mean we really for real got to SEE WHO HE WAS oh babey
something gilli said in this episode was that merlin has been pretending so long he forgot who he was and i think similarly he pretends so well that we the audience (me anyway) also kind of forget who he is because we see it SO rarely
but we saw it here! in this episode merlin was SMART?? those aren’t two words i’d normally use in the same sentence without sticking a “is not” between them but he WAS - he cottoned on right away that gilli was using magic, he confronted him immediately and in a way that didn’t invoke hostility (and what a nice little flip, what a TREAT to see someone else freaking out and covering their ass while merlin is keeping his cool), (some of) his normal little jabs at arthur were a tad wryer/slyer on the delivery, and he figured out, ON HIS OWN, how to save both gilli and uther, and used his magic in front of ALL THOSE PEOPLE without getting caught
and speaking of that, merlin being like “he’s braver than me, using magic in front of all those people” and gaisu going “brave or stupid” like... ok, at first my reaction was: come on, merlin uses magic in front of people ALL THE TIME...but when i think about it, my very own self was complaining just yesterday that he was keeping his shit buttoned up way too tightly. and i did notice merlin himself waiting until backs were turned more often, incantating aloud less often...he ACTUALLY HAS gotten less stupid, JUST a smidgen. i didn’t even realize
merlin seemed more grown-up and serious in this episode than he has in the entire series. maybe it’s the fact that he had someone younger and dumber to play off of (and i don’t think gilli was a strong enough character to carry an episode, but maybe it was enough to give us an excuse to develop merlin so much) but he did in fact seem WISE, and he seemed TIRED, which is a thing grownups usually are... the way he talked to the other characters seemed different too - he spoke to the dragon as an equal (last dragon & last dragonlord), not as some dumbass in over his head asking for help (very nice also that he didn’t go to gaius for advice but someone more on “his level”). he gave arthur clear and frank advice on how to go about fighting his dad, he STUCK UP FOR GILLI AGAINST GAIUS (backbone! compassion!) and then STUCK UP FOR HIMSELF against gilli!!!!!
(i like a slightly more serious merlin because while quirky dumbass country hick merlin IS charming and endearing that charm can only carry him so far without more meat involved, especially after some of the terrible things we’ve seen him suffer through and all the experiences he’s had to grow and change)
i have mixed feelings about merlin showing his magic to this particular person at this particular time, but i do also like that he was willing to open up about WHO HE IS if it could potentially save a life. that shows backbone. and it shows integrity. two things i was sorely missing from merlin before now
speaking of merlin’s integrity, we finally got to cover why he keeps saving uther, who he should hate and despise and want dead, which i have been DYING for
merlin and gilli have a sort of professor x/magneto stance about uther, by which i mean one of them argues that they should change things from within the system to court goodwill and avoid violence because acting violently would just make their detractors’ point for them, and the other argues that the system should be destroyed entirely through any means necessary because violence is the only language the oppressor understands
on a rewatch what really stands out to me is merlin chastising gilli at the end by saying “you’re better than that.” it makes me think of season 1 when merlin had the chance to let morgana’s allies assassinate uther and he asks gwen what he should do - gwen, who also has every reason to hate and despise uther, tells merlin that to allow him to die through inaction would be just as bad as murdering him directly, and that that would make merlin as bad uther is
i don’t want to give the people who fucked morgana over so thoroughly too much credit but it makes me wonder if that wasn’t when merlin decided that he was going to be the bigger man
he says it himself in this episode, near tears - it is LONELY, being what he is, and doing what he does. he could kill a man with a thought and he spends all his time mucking stables and polishing armor and when he gets a break from that it’s to save someone’s life without endangering his own. it is dangerous, tireless work for which he believes he will NEVER get any thanks. and what i was so frustrated about before was not understanding WHY - did he care THAT much about arthur’s feelings, that he couldn’t stand to watch arthur lose a father? was he just THAT afraid of uther and what uther would do to him if he found out?
but i get it now - it’s because he CHOOSES to. not to protect arthur or to protect himself but because he wholly believes that he’s playing the long game and he’s on the correct path to seeing a future where what he is is no longer outlawed - god, his FACE when he says “when that day arrives, we WILL be free” 
again not to overcredit the writers bc i DON’T think they were smart enough to do this on purpose but like in my heart he decided all the way back in season 1 that he wasn’t going to take the easy way out and just let uther die because THAT’S NOT WHAT MAGIC IS FOR. he’s stronger than everyone else around him and HE CHOOSES to keep his head down and wait it out because in his OWN WORDS “magic is not meant to bring you glory.” even gilli agrees - when used for personal gain, it is very easy for the power of the magic to corrupt. i thought merlin was weak, to have saved uther’s life so many times - but to resist that kind of temptation and corruption over and over, he’s actually the opposite. he doesn’t try so hard to protect the monarchy because he lacks self-respect or integrity, he protects the monarchy BECAUSE OF his self-respect and integrity. all along, he’s been fighting for a better future too - just in his way, not the way gilli or morgana would
and speaking of morgana...here’s the bad:
i. am. LIVID!!!!!
that merlin would tell this boy he BARELY KNOWS his secret in order to maybe possibly save this kid’s life and NOT TELL MORGANA in her worst hour of need when she most needed a friend
merlin got a whole lot more respect from me today but the fact remains that he’s a LYING LIAR WHO LIES and he has tried to kill morgana two and a half times (the poison, the bump on the head, knocking her off her horse) and as of the end of season 3 also MURDERED HER SISTER THAT IS APPARENTLY ALSO LOWKEY HER GIRLFRIEND (i know)
which really clashes with his whole deal that i just described above, of using his magic for good and not evil purposes, for trying to win over hearts instead of win battles. and it’s funny that it’s ONLY morgana that merlin acts out of character for...i think it’s because! and this is a crazy concept! the writers hate morgana!
morgana in season 1 and most of season 2 was a kind and loving person. she was a true ally to gwen and often used her status as the king’s ward to stand up for gwen when gwen was in trouble. the first time she tried to have uther killed it was because of what happened to gwen’s father. she was more than capable of feeling love and knowing right from wrong and doing what she believed was right at any cost as evidenced by her helping to sneak the little druid kid out of the castle at risk to herself
morgana in season 3 does nothing but smirk evilly. and while it’s a good look on her and she’s MORE than valid in wanting to fuck up merlin and uther and maybe even arthur too from a certain viewpoint her aggression against gwen is ENTIRELY unwarranted
even trying my BEST to be sympathetic towards her and remember what she’s gone through and that her bad characterization is the fault of the writers and not morgana herself it is VERY hard not to hate her when you see her delighting in gwen’s misery and watching her PANIC about gwen’s future as the queen was FAR more satisfying than it should have been because i was then delighting in MORGANA’S misery and that is NOT a feeling im comfy with
in fact! im furious! the fact that this gilli kid got a more sympathetic portrayal than morgana ever will makes me SEE RED!!! imagine if the professor x/magneto vibe had been played out with merlin and morgana throughout the entirety of season 3! imagine morgana still had feelings other than ~edgy evulz~ and kept trying to kill uther BECAUSE SHE BELIEVED IT WAS RIGHT but had no quarrel with people like gwen who had always loved her! imagine her being conflicted when there was every chance that gwen would die during the takeover! imagine how her feelings could have become even more complicated when she found out she had living family - a father and brother, one of whom she is plotting to kill! imagine her NOT wanting harm to come to gwen or arthur and trying to persuade them to her side with good yet flawed arguments! imagine uther having to face the fact that the daughter he dotes on is also the thing he hates! people talk about arthur’s conflict if he realizes merlin is magic, but he’s known merlin a lot less time than he’s known morgana and merlin’s not his sister, imagine arthur had to deal with that conflict of interests! we could have HAD IT ALL in season 3 and instead season 3 MOSTLY SUCKS
what if morgana had remembered how fucked up arthur was about learning about the true circumstances of his birth? what if she had persuaded him that uther’s stance against magic was wrong? what if she knew merlin had magic but she hated him so she blackmailed him with it? he could have told her and then spent the ENTIRETY of season 3 shitting himself about it and it would have TOTALLY JUSTIFIED how shifty he got later after gaius taught him how to lie.what if he had SEEN what choosing to hurt other people had wrought in morgana and truly felt remorse and it informed his character for the rest of the show and that’s why he’s always choosing the moral high ground! there were SO MANY possibilities that could have opened up by having morgana be even just a little bit 3-dimensional!!!
which brings me to my next complaint: as good as this episode was, as much as i loved it, as glad as i am to finally understand merlin or at the very least have an interpretation of him i’m happy with, i should not have had to wait ALL SEASON to get there. i know what kind of show this is but they could have slipped some of this stuff in WAY EARLIER so i didn’t have to spent the entirety of season 3 and quite a lot of season 2 thinking merlin was just some spineless fuckup
also i will say it again, gilli was NOT strong enough to have carried this episode. the work on merlin’s character was INCREDIBLE and it was fun enough to see gilli mirror who he was in early season 1 but imagine how much better it could have been if he’d gotten to play off of someone like morgana - gilli’s a one-off character, and he has to tell us about his history and struggles, but morgana’s struggle is something we’ve witnessed firsthand. when she makes her own arguments about how hard it is to be magic under uther’s rule it comes from a place of deep pain that could have and should have resonated with merlin just as deeply as gilli’s.
morgana works MUCH better as a foil to merlin because all the way back in season 1 when they were both angry on gwen’s behalf and both wanted uther to pay for what he’d done so that no more innocent people would die it was MORGANA who chose the magneto route and merlin who decided to go professor x. they had the potential to make something REALLY COOL out of that AND THEY DIDN’T and what makes me so mad about this episode is that the sheer CONCEPT of this was good enough to have carried the entire season and yet they crammed it into a single 45-minute block
here end my thots i guess, in conclusion morgana deserved better
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ultimate-miles · 5 years
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Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2018) - Or, what happens when you give a Black character to a Black writer
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Miles Morales: Spider-Man follows the exploits of a now sixteen year old Miles Morales, setting the timeline of the story far beyond his earliest exploits and his then current title, Spider-Man (2016-2017) where he is fifteen going on sixteen years old.
 The Good Stuff
Miles Morales: Spider-Man is a story focused wholly on the boy behind the mask, the titular lead, Miles Morales. The book, no more than two hundred and sixty-one pages long (unfortunately), can probably be accredited with doing something Miles’ comic book titles (Ultimate Comics, The Ultimate Spider-Man, Spider-Men, and Spider-Man) really couldn’t or wouldn’t bother themselves with – which is focus on Miles’ life as student at Brooklyn Visions Academy and how he interacts with the people in his Brooklyn neighborhood.
Everything important that happens to Miles happens within the confines of the Brooklyn area. Miles isn’t off globe-trotting with the Ultimates, and he certainly isn’t fighting within the central New York City area with a villain-of-the-week, and there’s not even a mention of Peter Parker – clone, resurrected, or otherwise – present in his narrative here, which makes this one of the first stories focused on Miles where Peter Parker wasn’t lording over it like an intrusive shadow.
The most pivotal conflict that pushes Miles’ narrative forward in the book is his persisting (if not misplaced) guilt over the death of Aaron Davis, who killed himself in an effort to murder his own nephew. The re-visitation of Aaron’s death opens the narrative to the odd addition of a cousin, Aaron’s son, who contacts Miles from prison in the hopes of connecting with one of the few surviving members of the Davis family. Miles torments himself with the information, uncertain if the intent behind the letter is genuine or a stranger looking to talk to another stranger.
For the most part, I like how it was handled. It paints the actions of Aaron Davis in a completely different light. Maybe in a “not as bad as one thought” kind’ve way, and I’m not particularly sure how I feel about that considering it flies in the face of what the comics establish –which is an unrepentant man with no real affection for family – but it was an interesting angle to take with the Miles/Aaron dynamic nonetheless.
Reynolds’ use of language goes to a decent length to make Miles’ life feel lived in. The attention to detail to Miles’ internal observation of his life works to Reynolds strength as a poet. The author captures the mentality of a restless teenager, drowning in his own angst (often self-imposed) without falling into purple prose or wordiness. 
Brooklyn is the world that Miles lives in, so the people he talks to throughout the story deal the with circumstances of low-income areas, places people of more – I guess – “wealthy” circumstance have learned to dismiss as criminal despite the people who live there often not reflecting that.
Miles contemplates the projects where his uncle Aaron lived, the barber shop he goes to get his hair cut – where the older men recognize him as one of the more fortunate children with a chance to pull themselves out from the under violent cycle of gang and hustler life. He also contemplates the number of young and older residents who’ve been driven out of homes by the city looking to redevelop the area for white buyers. This is the kind’ve of stuff you’d read about in Milestone Comics stories for Static Shock, Icon, or Hardware.  
This is the kind’ve day-to-day life stuff that Brian Michael Bendis – as a white man – were so disconnected from, Miles as a character – in the comics – might as well have lived in New York City. I can only imagine that Jason Reynolds – as a Brooklyn native – used his own experiences, to a degree, to flesh out the story he was telling.
Another element I think Miles Morales: Spider-Man gets right is Miles and puppy love. This book is probably the only Spider-Man story featuring Miles to actually give him a crush that is neither – a creepy adult [white] woman for him to mack on (Diamondback and Gwen Stacy), a Plot Twist Nazi (Katie Bishop), or a really boring version of Mary Jane Watson (Barbra Rodriguez, who unfortunately appears in his recent series).
Alicia is a character I would’ve liked to have seen more of in the story, particularly outside of the purview of Miles’ heart-eyes. She’s nothing if not a brief exploration into the expectations that come with being born to “Old Black Money” and keeping up public appearances. 
Alicia’s want to stand against casual racism in the classroom is the kind of “young awakening” you see in teens who pull themselves out of apathy long enough to understand how the world functions around them, when they realize they can’t turn a blind eye to microaggressions any longer. 
But, her disadvantage is trying to churn up enough support from her classmates, who honestly just want to get through the day without conflict, or don’t give a shit, that she faces an uphill battle. And when her stance threatens her position in Brooklyn Visions Academy, her parents and the expectation that comes with their family’s reputation forces her to choose between her own belief system and her future.
Miles’ affection for Alicia is cute, and watching him struggle to make a connection with her amidst what he thinks his spider sense going off-kilter and dealing with a Mr. Chamberlain’s constant interference and need to diminish him among his peers, endears me to their [potential] relationship. 
Again, I really wish Alicia and Miles’ interaction, Alicia herself, had more time in the story to develop. Maybe with two hundred more pages (which could’ve knocked the page count up to 361 est.) this could’ve happened, but as it stands, what’s given isn’t bad and fairly enjoyable.
The Spider-Man content within the story is brief, and for me, that’s fine. The one thing about it that I did enjoy, when Miles donned the mask, is how Reynolds uses that persona to tackle the social structure surrounding muggings in Black communities. There’s a whole – and often misguided – unspoken rule wherein the victim cannot call out for help when being mugged. 
One loses the respect of the neighborhood (if you’re into that kind of toxic masculinity) and respect of your peers. Miles, afraid that the actions that led his father and Aaron down the path of crime and hustling is genetic, is faced with a situation where he can either ignore muggers who stole a kid’s sneakers, or use his alter ego to set things right.
He does the latter, and a lot about how Reynolds approaches the sequence reminded me a lot of how Peter David (the writer of Spider-Man 2099) handled Miguel O’Hara. Miguel isn’t what you’d call a “nice Spider-Man”. When he aims to teach you a lesson, chances are, a lot of his targets are left peeing on themselves. 
This is kind’ve the energy Miles uses when he utilizes the “strength of his street knowledge” on the muggers who attacked the kid. But, in the end, this really doesn’t change things. The cycle continues, and it kind’ve highlights the kind of futility Miles faces as a vigilante superhero.
 The Disappointing Stuff
Action sequences really aren’t Reynolds strong suit. I mean, writing action sequences are – in general – a pain in the ass, because a lot of it is a deliberation about how long a description needs to be, preventing things from becoming too wordy, and getting the point across without losing the audience’s interest. It’s difficult balance, one I don’t think even the best writers manage 100% of the time.
But, to his credit, I think his ability to use poetic language is a strong enough short hand that most of his descriptions don’t get lost in the soup. Additionally, because a lot of the Spider-Man sequences don’t occur until the very final climax of the story’s conflict, even when his weakness starts to show, the sequences don’t overstay their welcome.
I don’t think Reynolds really manages to marry the fantastic with the reality of systemic racism. There is definitely a way of creating a mythologized monster to represent the ugly realities of anti-Blackness as faced by Black youth within the general education system. Mythology is nothing if not one culture’s way of rationalizing or simplifying things encountered in their waking lives. But, I don’t think Reynolds manages to pull it off here. 
The idea that there is a supernatural “Mr. Chamberlain” for every Black male youth across the ages isn’t a bad idea. You can some really interesting things with that – like Crossroad Blues type stuff. But, here, it’s kind’ve ridiculous – or it’s presented in such a way that the suspension of disbelief strains to such a degree that I simply don’t buy the product being sold to me.
It feels like something that would’ve been a monster-of-the-week in the first season of Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Angel: The Series even had an episode where a demon stoked the fires of racism against a fair-skinned Black woman, who trapped herself in a hotel room until her dying day). 
I mean, the fantastical version of Mr. Chamberlain even comes like Principal Snyder – the walking parody of the militant school authority who hates children – which is frustrating because the Mr. Chamberlain in Miles’ waking life is a proper representative of the unrepentant racist school teacher obsessed with the confederacy to a Hollywood degree.
Another sticking point: Judge still isn’t utilized in any way that makes him a character and less of a random extra that pops in and out of the narrative. I really fail to understand why writers refuses to make him and Miles friends, because at this point he needs someone else besides Ganke, the Lego obsessed non-Black character, to talk to. Honestly, the fact that Miles still lacks any Black friends his age – especially in this novel – is rather annoying.
Jefferson Davis is probably even less likeable in this story than he is in general in Miles’ comics. To be sure, he’s completely reflective of the overbearing Black father who doles out punishment with the excuse of helping his son “build character” – there are no lies detected in his characterization on that front – but his rationale is often narrow-minded and assumes bad faith on the part of his son, who is often caught in situations where he neither the aggressor or the cause of his problems. 
Like, he makes Miles clean the entire neighborhood block of trash left behind by the garbage men because he dipped out of school to play superhero. Again, I get Jefferson’s intent, but it was wildly misguided.
The situation regarding Aaron’s son, Miles’ cousin, is simply left hanging. There’s no real resolution following their official meeting in the prison, which is a shame, because it brought another kind of dynamic to the story itself. It offered a particularly ripe opportunity to use Jefferson and Aaron’s past just a little more – if only for the sake of exploring the history of the Jefferson family. 
It could’ve only  aided of Jefferson’s characterization and Aaron’s son, who needed more face-time in the story.  But, this also leads to the biggest issue with the young adult novel itself. How it ends.
The ending of Miles Morales: Spider-Man just kinda fizzles out. I don’t know whether it was due to time constrains (not really an excuse) – that Reynolds had to have the manuscript completed before a certain period of time – or Reynolds truly reached the end of his rope with the story and couldn’t think of any other way of ending things (other than how he did), but there’s no true resolution to the story.
The students, who’ve thus far shown the atypical apathy of a teenager toward one student being singled out by a racist teacher, suddenly rising up and protesting with Miles and Alicia against Mr. Chamberlain’s ritualistic dehumanization of Miles, is questionable. It’s idealistically something you want to see happen, but I feel like the story should’ve done more exploring of the students to really set this up.
 The Conclusion
Miles Morales: Spider-Man is a solid Miles Morales story. It’s the kind’ve Spider-Man story Miles Morales’ comic book series, past and present, should’ve been from the jump, and if Marvel was remotely interested, I could actually see a book series coming out of this (so long as the Black author(s) remain). The Spider-Man elements are few and far between, and perhaps that’s for the best. Anyone looking for superhero antics equivalent to what happens in a 19-to-20 page comic book, or a trade, should probably look elsewhere because that’s not the focus of the story.
The strength of the story is how Miles deals with the day-to-day issues of his life and how a Brooklyn-native author uses his familiarity with his home turf to do what Miles’ comic books honestly failed to do. Make Miles a part of the world he was supposed to be living in in-between his life as a superhero, which was the world of Brooklyn, New York.
Even with the shortcomings of the narrative, Miles Morales: Spider-Man is without a doubt the best story that has come out for Miles Morales in four years (like since issue #19 of Ultimate Comics Spider-Man).
This is the kind of storytelling, the kind of writer, which Miles Morales needs. But as long as Marvel continues to be allergic to hiring Black creatives for his comic book title – or anything for that matter – a milquetoast (and often inauthentic) Miles Morales is more or less what the consuming audience will be given.
If you’re a Miles Morales fan, I definitely recommend this book.
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fuckyeahcharmcaster · 5 years
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Which Watch
Aka the weakest Charmcaster episode in the reboot to date.
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It’s not BAD, mind you. I just have three big problems with it:
1. The need for context - I’m usually not one for complaining about continuity, but this is only Charm’s third appearance and you NEED to have seen her previous two to even understand her here. Part of the time, she’s her usual self: being a trololol with her magic and engaging in petty actions against Gwen because she’s projecting her own weakness onto her. But other times, usually as she’s spamming her magic book to control Kevin with, she suddenly becomes darker, to the point of saying things like “Stop resisting me!” or (in a deeper tone of voice) “Quit whining and give me your power!” - exact Michael Morningstar dialogue from “The Charm Offensive”, which indicates that more of him is “leaking” out into Charmcaster from the book. Also, her plan here did not require using Kevin, so that only makes sense if you saw “Charm School’s Out” where she ended up being recruited by the Forever Knight, who is trying to get Kevin under his control and thus clearly gave her the orders to utilize Kevin in her scheme to see if he can be controlled against his will and, if not, have his spirit broken to the point where he’ll consider joining the Forever Knight in order to be stronger (the same reason Charm joined him.) It’s good continuity, but maybe a little too much too soon; with so much reliance on referencing the past and setting up the future, there’s not much left for the present of the episode, which actually makes it feel more like filler than it should.
2. Lack of interaction with Gwen - This really bothers me. Aside from a great moment between them near the end, Charmcaster is mainly focused on controlling Kevin to defeat Ben in this episode. And this is frustrating since Charmcaster and Gwen have barely interacted since “The Charm Offensive” - even in her previous appearance, Charmy only actually interacted with Ben and Grandpa Max despite Gwen being the focal point of her scheme. For all the talk of them being arch-enemies, we don’t really have much of a real adversarial relationship right now ala Ben and Kevin, and a big part of that has to do with Gwen still not developing any magic powers of her own. Kevin is allegedly going to be off the show in Season 4, so I hope that after the fall-out of the Forever Knight’s plan that Charmcaster is involved in, we finally get some major developments for her and Gwen.
3. Kevin - This has nothing to do with Charmcaster, but Kevin was another favorite of mine from the OS, and I’m frustrated at his 50/50 handling in the reboot. In some episodes, he’s great. In others, there is a real sense that Man of Action has no clear idea what they’re doing with him in this season beyond marketing toys, and this is one of those episodes. I guess we’re meant to feel sorry for him when Charmcaster mind-controls him and gives him a breaking “The Reason You Suck” speech that will push him further toward the arms of the Forever Knight, but the problem is the show has given us no actual reason to feel sorry for him. He’s an obnoxious bully who even at the start of this episode was going to beat up and possibly kill human-form Ben in one of his alien forms without any hesitation whatsoever!
This is annoying because other villains have been handled better: we get a reason to feel sorry for Charmcaster given her lonely background and status as an abuse victim, we get a reason to feel sorry for Billy Billions when he unloads all his insecurities and then gets amnesia just when he’s starting to resolve them, we get a reason to feel sorry for Dr. Animo as we understand why he turned to amoral experimentations that damaged his mind...Hell, even though he was a much darker character, we got a reason to feel sorry for Kevin in the OS because he was a homeless kid who suffered a lot of pain and bullying due to the powers he was born with and whose obsessive hatred of Ben was born of him initially thinking Ben was his friend but Ben’s sense of morality ruining that. Here, Kevin clearly has a home, he’s got no powers, he doesn’t appear to have been the victim of any mistreatment, he hates and bullies Ben for no reason, his crush on Gwen is more creepy than cute...why exactly should we feel sorry for him? This feels too much like the UAF writing where Kevin got immediately redeemed and trusted as a good guy for no reason and then later the writers had to work backwards to justify this - here, they’ll probably establish some reason for sympathy for Kevin in the season finale that retroactively justifies previous appearances. And....no. Just...no.
I hear a Kevin 11 spin-off might happen, and I actually think that’d be for the best since it would allow Kevin to be properly developed without these weak ties to the Tennysons he has in the reboot. It really feels like MoA used him on this show out of obligation but didn’t know exactly how to utilize him due to how he’s evolved throughout the franchise - if they went full-on OS with him, they’d piss off all the UAF/OV fans, but if they went full-on UAF/OV with him, they’d piss off all the OS fans. They’re thus attempting to play him both ways at the same time in addition to a total change in background and abilities, and it doesn’t always add up. But if he was over on his own show and away from Ben and Gwen, then this might change.
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neon-knight-riders · 5 years
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How Into the Spider-Verse helped me love Spider-Man again
I was just doing some thinking, and I honestly think...
Ok. So I grew up with Spider-Man as a pretty big part of my childhood. The 90s animated series was something I watched pretty often, and I even had some of the tie-in action figures and playsets from that series. The 2002 Spider-Man movie blew my mind as a kid, and I even had a couple of Lego sets from it. I saw the whole Sam Raimi trilogy in theaters.
Spider-Man 3 disappointed me a bit, in no small part due to the poor handling of Venom and the whole symbiote thing. That same year, Peter made a deal with Mephisto and sold his marriage in the execrable One More Day event. As the years passed, I found Spider-Man growing away from what made the character fun and enjoyable. 
In my mind, there are three ways Spider-Man writing can go wrong.
Way 1: “NO MJ I ANGST ALONE”
Biggest offenders: Spider-Man 3, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Clone Saga comics
Angst is a part of Spider-Man since the beginning, some what justified as he does start of as a teenager. However, some writers just blow this out of proportion, and make it so literally nothing can go right for Spidey. Every single day is a parade of setbacks. It’s draining. It’s overwrought. It’s unintentionally funny at times, too. 
Way 2: “Here are your options: 1. Fuck you, I’m Spider-Man.”
Biggest offenders: One More Day until Go Down Swinging (comics)
Spider-Man is often used as wish fulfillment by writers. Joe Quesada used the character to vent his frustrations with marriage. Dan Slott turned him into a discount pre-character-development Tony Stark. The problem is, unlike a teen spidey where this might be somewhat believable, the Spider-Man of the comics is a grown man. Nick Spencer at least is alleviating this problem by making Spidey a lovable guy again, complete with quirky supervillain roommate and getting rid of the James Bond-esque Spidey we had with the 500 gadgets and his own tech company. Letting Peter be an innovator was a great idea--but he lost so much of the “friendly neighborhood” aspect it wasn’t worth it. “Swinging Single” Peter would have been a lot better if it hadn’t come at the expense of all his maturity.
Also, personal issues showing, but did Superior Spider-Man need to run a whole year?
Way 3: “Ow, the Edge”
Biggest offenders: The Amazing Spider-Man, Superior Spider-Man, Spider-Man 3, The Clone Saga, One More Day
Spider-Man is not an edgy character. So every attempt to make him edgier...comes off as laughable. Everyone brings up the dancing scene (including Into the spider-verse) but any attempt to make Peter seem evil and menacing or just even grittier seems ridiculous.
There’s a great bit in the 90s series, and it’s great because it’s such a terrible moment. The Venom Saga has a bit where Spidey is getting royally pissed at Shocker, and in a moment of pure hilarity, he starts shouting like he’s William Shatner in The Wrath of Khan.
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This moment illustrates precisely why it doesn’t work--it’s downright comical. The idea of the symbiote tempting him to evil isn’t bad--but it can be really really hard to execute.
Spider-Man Homecoming was the first time I’d really liked a Spider-Man movie since the first two Sam Raimi films, and I liked it because there was a profound lack of angst.
Into the Spider-Verse, however, confirmed my love of Spider-Man again. It captured the feeling of the best parts of the comics, got to show off a bunch of alternate Spider-Man concepts from the comics, and kept a feeling of fun and excitement throughout.
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The very fact that the opening takes several potshots at the franchise at a whole, but affectionately, is great. There’s call backs to the classic Raimi films, Spider-Man Homecoming, the catchiness of the 60s theme, and even the whole “With Great Power” thing.
“Let’s do this one last time” sums it up--we know Spidey’s origins. We’ve heard them told and retold a ton of times since the 90s, since 2002. One of the greatest things about both this and Homecoming is that we’re not forced to endure Uncle Ben dying again and saying those same words. Peter B. Parker, the first alternate Spider-Man Miles Morales meets in this film, even says he’s sick of hearing those words about power and responsibility.
The film doesn’t shy away from drama--Kingpin and Prowler’s arcs are really, really sad, as are Peter B’s, Gwen’s, and Miles’s own. Yet, the whole time it never forgets the -hope- that Spider-Man embodies. 
“Anyone can be Spider-Man” is one of the biggest themes of the film. And that is precisely why it sparked my interest after years and years of watching Spider-Man being dragged through the dirt by writers, or rebooted again and again, all without realizing what makes the character amazing.
Miles Morales being the protagonist learning to be Spider-Man was what the franchise needed. We all know Peter at this point; we know him so well that it’s hard to imagine him ever being confused and learning what it means to be a hero--even in Homecoming, where that’s a recurring theme.
The other major theme of Into the Spider-Verse, the idea of others helping you grow, was great. One thing I didn’t really like about Homecoming was that as entertaining as the Tony Stark scenes were, I didn’t really feel like he helped Peter grow much as a person. Which was probably the point--Stark isn’t really a mentor figure. He’s got his own hangups, his own issues, and very little familiarity with kids who aren’t as jaded as he is.
Here, though, the differences aren’t an issue. We have a wisecracking but sad Gwen who couldn’t save her Peter. We have a teenage girl with a big spider robot. We have a cartoon pig. We have a 1930s detective who delivers flower monologues and broods in the rain to hilarious effect.
But all of them wear the mask. All of them know loss, and pain, but also know how to rise above it and help others do the same.
And that’s what makes Spider-Man great--that selflessness, and that knowing that anyone can be a hero. 
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mysterylover123 · 6 years
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My Top 10 Favorite Series of All Time
Mysterylover123, to my followers.
This list, of course, could change. At some point in the future, I could always discover a new series that topples the competition - but for the moment, here they are. My top 10 favorite series of all time - mostly comics or television, but also film, and a few novel series made the honorable mentions list.
Of course, these are all just my personal favorites - that’s the key word. While I did consider objective quality when making the call, I mostly went with my gut and listed series I love for whatever reason - maybe sentimental value, pushing my personal buttons, or just characters I adored. I also made myself list the things I don’t like about the series as well, just to avoid gushing too much and remember that all but one (my #1) series out there are at least, a little, flawed, but nonetheless still lovable. With that in mind, here they are:
#10. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000-2015)
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Type: Live-Action TV show
Genre: Crime/Mystery; forensic drama, police procedural
Favorite character: Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger)
Favorite episode: “Grave Danger”, Parts 1 & 2 (Season 5 finale)
Favorite Season: 7
Favorite villain: The Miniature Killer/Natalie Davis
Bad points: Weak later seasons, forced romance subplot, copious amounts of filler
Why it’s here: CSI is nostalgic for me. I watched it during my early crime drama loving years, and found out that as much as I liked the premise, what made the show for me was the cast. That was the first time I realized how essential characters are to creating intriguing drama. CSI is still my favorite traditional crime/mystery show, since in seasons 1-8, it maintained a good balance of character drama and mystery-of-the-week. Season 7 is a high point,  balancing an ongoing story with lots of fun one-offs and an emotionally explosive payoff. Later seasons, however, wear down the show’s quality for me. Too many beloved characters left and the series becomes too reliant on filler, ending with a thud that is the series finale. But the best of CSI is still enough to land it here for me.
(Just to clarify, I mean Las Vegas)
#9. Futurama (1999-2003; 2008-2013)
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Type: Animated TV Show + movies
Genre: Sci Fi Dramedy
Favorite character: Philip J Fry (Billy West)
Favorite episode: “Jurassic Bark”
Favorite season: 4
Favorite villain: Bender
Bad points: Sexism, weak later seasons, bad 2nd movie
Why it’s here: Futurama came to me during a phase of depression in my life, and the show’s combination of humor and cry-your-eyes out tragedy kept me going. I’ve seen it through five times, and it’s always a blast. To me, Futurama is better than The Simpsons. Simpsons is funnier, but only for seven years or so. Following those seven years are 21 of mediocrity, whereas Futurama thankfully cuts it short. While some of the later seasons are weaker than the early Fox years, they still have quality gems and the show’s unique flavor. The series speaks to me so much; it’s a mix of hilarious comedy, serious character drama, and high sci-fi concepts that all mesh together in a unique experience. This is a series that’s not afraid to try new things, to experiment and let the characters age and grow. My personal favorite part of the series is the friendship between the core trio, Fry, Bender and Leela. Any episode starring them is a-ok by me.
Favorite memories: Binge-watching the series during a period of unemployment.
#8. Death Note (2003-2004; 2006-2007)
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Type of series: Manga/Anime
Genre: Supernatural Crime Thriller
Favorite Character: L Lawliet (Alessandro Juliani)
Favorite Episode: Episode 2, “Confrontation”
Favorite Arc: The first one
Favorite villain: Light Yagami (Brad Swaile)
Bad points: Weak second half, so-so character development
Why it’s here: Death Note is a dark, twisted, engrossing thriller, which under normal circumstances shouldn’t be re-watchable. But I keep coming back to it, regardless of how many times I’ve seen it before. It’s a digestible 37 episodes and 108 chapters, for one thing. It introduced me to two characters that endlessly fascinate and frustrate my analytical brain. The antagonists, Light and L, are two of the most brilliant characters I’ve come across in fiction, and their dynamic with each other is endlessly engaging. Well, it should have been through the whole series…if not for certain incidents. But no matter; we have what we have. Flawed, yes. Terrifying, certainly. Death Note scares me like no other story. But what frightens me in DN isn’t so much there gruesome deaths, but how effortlessly it portrays the banality of evil.
Favorite memories: Watching the show during the winter holidays while on vacation, and contemplating the series during the drive home.
#7. Spider-Man (1962-)
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Type: Comic book; various mediums of adaptation
Genre: Superhero
Favorite character: Mary Jane Watson
Favorite Storyline: The Night Gwen Stacy Died, #121-122
Favorite villain: The Green Goblin
Bad points: Weak later issues, lots of filler, “One More Day”
Why it’s here: Spidey is still my favorite superhero. He was me in high school (I got into Spider-Man in high school, incidentally), the everyman, the representation of my nerdy outcast struggle and need to both escapism and greater responsibility. But what really drew me to the comic, and still does, was the vast and multifaceted supporting cast. In the great eras of Spidey (Ditko, Romita, Conway, and late 1980s), the supporting cast make the series. Whether it’s Peter’s various complex lady loves, the endless cavalcade of memorable villains, supporting dude-friends like Flash and Harry or my personal favorite, mainstay Mary Jane “you just hit the jackpot” Watson, the cast of Spidey was majorly influential with good reason. The series loses it’s skill in the 1990s, thanks to the Clone Saga and general 90s comic badness, and plummets into an irretrievable black hole in 2007, never to return. But fortunately, there’s still thirty years’ worthy of fascinating comics to draw from before that insanity begins. And those stories have in turn fed fantastic adaptations, whether it be the sentimental 90s animated show, a few of the films, or the superlative Spectacular cartoon.
Favorite memories: Reading Spider-Man comics after high school, while waiting to get picked up. Also, watching the 90s show as a little kid, even if those are kinda dim.
#6. Gravity Falls (2012-2016)
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Type of series: Animated TV Show
Genre: Supernatural
Favorite character: Mabel Pines (Kirsten Schaal)
Favorite season: 2
Favorite episode: “Not What he Seems”
Favorite Villain: Bill Cipher
Bad points: A few filler episodes, some odd messages, so-so ending
Why it’s here: I love a good spooky story. Gravity Falls caught my attention around Halloween in 2016, 8 months after the series finale; I binged the whole series through in a weekend. The series remains one of the all-time best I’ve ever watched. With one or two exceptions, there are no outright bad episodes. Everything is either entertaining or incredibly entertaining. The characters feel real, the messages really hit home, and the creativity on display is astounding. Gravity Falls has something in every corner - great character development, compelling drama, laugh-out-loud comedy, and a truly engaging mystery that doesn’t disappoint. I wish the franchise ran a little longer, but I’ll give it props that unlike nearly every other show on this list, Gravity Falls doesn’t over-stay its welcome. Two seasons of brilliance, wrapping up with a strong, though not perfect, finale, before the series had a chance to go on too long or burn out the creators. It’s a welcome treat to watch again, and again, and again. It’s mostly low on this list, not because of the few weak points, but because I don’t have as much emotional attachment to the series as I do to my top 5 pics.
Favorite memories: Watching the show with my dad and brother on vacation. Both of them are very surly and nit-picky, so presenting them with a show this good meant no cause to complain.
#5. Frasier (1993-2004)
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Type: Live Action TV series
Genre: Sitcom
Favorite character: Niles Crane (David Hyde-Pierce)
Favorite season: 4
Favorite episode: “Something Borrowed, Something Blue”
Bad points: Weaker later/early seasons, sometimes annoying
Why it’s here: Frasier has a record for the most Emmy awards won by a single show. And rightly so, in my opinion. This is one of those series with astonishingly top-notch writing all around. It’s a sitcom that banks it’s humor on taking down pretentious snobs and prejudiced jerks; the jokes stay funny because, like all good humor, they stay relevant. This series feels kind of timeless; despite coming out in the instantly dated 90s, the characters’ fashions, mindsets, and relationships feel like they could be written today or twenty-forty years earlier. My heart belongs to the series’ ongoing love story between uptight, snippy Niles and eccentric, lovable Daphne (Jane Leeves). I have yet to see a better executed TV romance, one that pulls out all the stops like this one does. If I were to compare Frasier to anything, it would be to a Jane Austen novel. It has the same social satire, the same sardonic humor, the same understanding of romance and human psychology. That, to me, is what makes a great comedy.
Favorite memories: Discovering Frasier out of Sideshow Bob on The Simpsons - and coming to realize which of the two is truly the better comedy. (Sorry to take another potshot at Simpsons; I do like the early seasons, I just think the show is overrated).
#4. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (2008-)
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Series type: Live Action films and TV
Genre: Superhero
Favorite characters: Tie: Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston)
Favorite film: Captain America the Winter Soldier (2014)
Favorite phase: Phase 3 (so far)
Bad points: Occasional weak/so-so film, lack of representation
Why it’s here: I first watched only a handful of MCU films; after Avengers, I gave it up and focused on other things. I loved it the first time, but when I came back and screened every picture in the lineup till the present, that is when I fell in love with the franchise. I was missing out on some of the series’ best characters. And that’s what makes the MCU special to so many people: the characterization. The series is at it’s best when it’s giving it’s multi-layered cast focus and development. Marvel comics have always been a favorite of mine, so naturally their best known adaptation is one of my favorites in general. I’ve found something to enjoy in just about every film in the franchise. The biggest surprise hit for me was the Captain America films - a part of the franchise I never dreamed I’d love, but which won me over with the stellar writing in the 2011 film, the indelible Winter Soldier, and the stunning, heartbreaking Civil War. I’m almost afraid of what will come next, as the franchise is heading towards a finale.
Favorite memories: Watching the films over a long, bitter summer, as my only source of joy while working a thankless job and living in a place with bad internet reception.
#3. The Buffy-verse (1997-2004) Series Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel
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Type of series: Live-Action TV shows
Genre: Supernatural
Favorite characters: Buffy, Cordelia, and Spike
Favorite season: Season 5 of Buffy, Season 2 of Angel
Favorite episodes: “Once More with Feeling” Buffy, “You’re Welcome” Angel
Bad points: Weak later seasons, Season 6, some bad filler
Why it’s here: If I was going on sentimental fandom value alone, the Buffy-verse would be number one. I still squee over this franchise years after I first discovered it; the characters have that special Joss Whedon flair that makes them stand out over the crowd, the series’ core relationships are so fascinating I’m tempted to write fanfic about them, and the philosophies and emotional moments in the series have shaped my life. I would never have known what existentialism was, for instance, if not for Whedon’s show. Angel’s line about “ all that matters is what we do” has helped motivate me ever since I heard it. But looking at the series’ quality (and diversity), I will admit that out of my top 3 favorites, it has the most problems. Both shows have one season I can cheerfully proclaim to be outright terrible, (Season 4 for Angel, Season 6 for Buffy), and very shaky first seasons that take a while to find their feet. There are some plot decisions I just can’t forgive, and some truly weak arc villains. But there is also so much that this franchise does so well, whether it be stellar standalones, bold plot moves, and of course, the character arcs.
Favorite memories: Rewatching the show on vacation in France.
#2. Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008)
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Type: Animated TV series
Genre: Fantasy Steampunk
Favorite characters: Zuko, Azula and Sokka
Favorite season: 2
Favorite episode: “The Guru”
Bad points: Forced romantic subplots, The Great Divide, odd conclusion
Why it’s here: You may have heard, if you’ve spent any time on the internet, what a fantastic series ATLA is. I try to avoid such phrases when attempting to sell the show to people, because describing a series that way is usually a bad move. But rest assured, it’s warranted. Avatar The Last Airbender is a stellar show in every possible way. Aside from the few bad points I mentioned above, ATLA does everything right. It has the best world building I’ve ever encountered. The animation, storytelling, emotions, messages (sometimes), plot points, philosophies, individual episodes, comedy, drama, action, epic sweep, surprise reveals…(several hours of listing things later) all of these things are pitch perfect. But as always, what makes this show is the cast. My lord, what a cast. These characters are so embedded in my mind, their arcs, personalities, development and entertainment value all stand out a cut above the rest. ATLA is a stunning masterpiece, one that no adaptation could capture, and that even it’s own creators have yet to follow up on, with either the sequel or the comics. But no matter. The original is there, it always will be, and more people discover it every day.
Favorite memories: Nothing quite compares to seeing ATLA for the first time. I saw it in 2014, one of the worst years of my life. Once again, my miserable experience was improved by a fantastic story.
Before #1: The Runners-up.
Game of Thrones: I used to adore GOT, but it started losing me after season 3; I lost respect for the show in season 5. still, those early seasons are still crucial parts of our culture and should be remembered.
Harry Potter: I grew up with these books and I still enjoy parts of them; overall, however, they strike me as being just a little less than they could have been.
Percy Jackson: I binged through the whole first book in a few hours, and loved these novels as a teen. As an adult, they don’t hold up as well, but I still appreciate the things they do right.
The Legend of Korra: The sequel to ATLA is spotty in many ways, but contains enough moments I absolutely love to make it at least a runner up.
South Park: Another series that got me through a bad time in my life and helped me deal with certain aspects of myself (especially episode 1507.) However, the early and late seasons are pretty bad, and the show doesn’t age very well.
Neon Genesis Evangelion: A bizarre little anime that nonetheless really stands out to me for how crazy it gets and how unique the story is.
Hannibal: A guilty pleasure - definitely a show that gets too far up it’s own butt in later episodes, but nonetehless appealing and interesting in the subjects it’s willing to tackle.
Parks and Recreation: My other favorite TV sitcom besides Fraser - it’s a strong runner up for the list but not quite sentimental enough.
Steven Universe: 3 great seasons, followed by a lot of recent mediocrity. Great when it’s great, bad when it’s not.
Code Geass: an immensely ambitious series, that doesn’t quite realize it’s goals but god damn if it isn’t a beautiful try.
Daria: Another show that really spoke to me in high school
Firefly: This was the biggest runner-up for the list. Firefly is 14 amazing episodes of television cut short too soon, giving us amazing characters and great world building in a short amount of time. The series has some bits that haven’t aged well, and those were enough to keep it off my top 10.
And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…
#1. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood (manga: 2001-2010, anime 2009-2010)
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Series type: Anime/Manga
Genre: Sci Fi (I think)
Favorite character: Edward Elric
Favorite episodes: “Flame of Vengeance”; “Backs in the Distance”
Bad points: None
Why it’s here: I’m gonna be brutally honest: FMAB is here because I can’t find anything wrong with it. It is, without question, the single most perfect piece of fiction I’ve ever come across. It almost frightened me when I first finished the series. Surely there must be some major, glaring flaw, some bad installment or weak character, that I could point to and say Look! Here’s the flaw! This was made by human hands after all! But nope. Many, many rereads through, and I still haven’t found one. FMAB stands supreme. This series has everything. The most fleshed out and real-feeling cast of characters I’ve ever come across (even minor background characters have spectacular arcs and feel like real people). The best pacing and plotting of an overall story arc. The best world building, aside from ATLA. The best exploration of social issues, the best feminism, the best use of mature storytelling. Everything comes back around. The themes, the mystery, the overall tone and story structure. I feel like an engineer gushing over the most perfectly calibrated car ever made each time I watch it. But Fullmetal is even more than just expertly made. It’s appealing. It’s popular. It’s the kind of story you can write essays on or write fanfic for. FMAB can be enjoyed in every capacity. I recommend taking the time to read the Manga first (that’s what I did), then watch Brotherhood. There really is nothing quite like FMAB. (oh, BTW, it has the best series finale of anything e ver. Period.)
Best memories: Watching Fullmetal while coping with death for the first time in my life. There is no better series when it comes to dealing with this subject.
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psi-psina · 6 years
Text
AND ALSO
series 2 was BY FAR the best. it was soooOOOooOOo good and the following seasons just couldn’t quite...get there. it’s a real shame that all the following series revolve almost entirely around morgana trying to take camelot from arthur. it just can’t compare to the gorgeous pathos that series 2 has being centred around merlin’s struggle to deny his true self to everyone around him and live what feels like a lie for the sake of some destiny he doesn’t understand :( 
merlin’s whole character being built around this theme of having to hide your true nature from everyone around you and basically being forced to live a double-life, and they work this into series 1 & 2 in a way that is TOTALLY analogous to the gay experience while ALSO leaving merlin of HIGHLY ambiguous sexuality was causing me EXQUISITE PAIN. (btw im not saying this was an intentional analogy on the writers part, just that it’s analogous lmao). i wonder if it would be SO HARD for writers to THINK for 5 seconds how this shit can affect the lonely LGB’s in their audience!! that ep where they go back to merlin’s village and he reunites with his childhood friend? who dies for him??? DEATH. the freya episode??? DEATH. 
honestly it would have been so much better if they’d had the nerve to either kill arthur off earlier (like at the end of s3 or something) or to allow merlin to reveal himself to arthur MUCH earlier to refresh the dynamic/take things in a new direction bc as it is the formula they stick to gets stale in s4 and s5 and those are a lot weaker than the first few series. :(
i totally get all the fuss about merlin/arthur but i don’t ship it. the dynamic is basically “hey arthur just wanted to let you know i’m worried this person is trying to kill you and everyone you love and i think we should do something about this oh and btw i would do literally anything for you and i’ve saved your life about 1000 times” “oh fuck off merlin you piece of shit when have you ever been right about anything? you are the most fucking useless person i know and a coward to boot, god why the fuck do i even put up with you? shut up and wash my boots and bedsheets” like? and it never changes? and yeah sometimes it’s played for laughs but most of the time it genuinely...isn’t funny. like merlin will be plainly upset or on the verge of TEARS about something and arthur will still be just taunting him. it’s so...sad. it’s also frustrating bc aside from merlin and gaius (I LOVE YOU GAIUS), merlin and arthur are the only really meaningful relationship on the show lol. and it’s sad, but i can’t believe anyone thought there’d be any romantic revelation between them in the finale. :( they brozone merlin and arthur SO HARD in the latter series lmao. i understand WANTING it to be there, but looking at it objectively they were clearly never even unwittingly encouraging a gay reading between them past season 1, which imho has some light-hearted subtext. in the latter seasons (especially s4 and s5) they were actively discouraging it tbh.
but due to merlin’s ambiguity and his sole attachment being to arthur you can still read merlin as being completely in love with arthur the whole freaking time if you want to which is just the absolute worst because it is so painfully unrequited lmao. it’s so alarmingly easy to read merlin as having a huge crush on him in s1 i sort of can’t stop it so that doesn’t HELP MATTERS.
arthur is literally too stupid for life and even though i detest uther i liked his presence in the show and it was weird after he died. also his death was extremely anticlimactic and contained no catharsis for his character. :/ why would u waste all that.
i could not BELIEVE the way lancelot just up and fucking DIED the way he did, but then he got necromanced back for that contrived nonsense with gwen (not one of their better plots tbh) and i was like “oh so i guess that’s why that had to happen” lame. that brings me to...gwen. 😩 ugh god, i mean she’s lovely and i don’t dislike her or anything they just do a crap job with her. she’s just very limited in this role as a peripheral love interest who is just so...bland. :/ like...she’s kind and sweet and caring and good and beyond that she basically has no personality or memorable traits and no role outside of helper or damsel in distress. at first i wondered if she was gonna be a love interest with merlin, then she’s a love interest with lancelot and then she’s the love interest for arthur and it’s just like...whatevs. i’m guessing another reason merlin/arthur was such a big deal is because arthur and gwen are so boring and in such a limited role gwen really can’t compete with merlin, who gets to be riddled with pathos and a deeply affecting internal struggle lmao. also doesn’t help that gwen and arthur have no chemistry and their romance comes out of nowhere and is basically irrelevant to the story. they literally don’t even have any kind of farewell or meaningful final scene together lmao. but y’know...arthur is basically just a ken doll most of the time soooo :/ which is ALSO annoying because when they actually get bradley james to EMOTE instead of being a macho dickhead he is fuckin’ AMAZING
one of the worst things about s4, apart from the dumbass evil uncle, was the knights of the round table suddenly turning into the douchetool bro club 😩 gwaine especially. i really liked him in s3, y’know, he was a charming rogue, but then he get’s fuckin flanderised in s4 and just turns into a total fucking moron. and i can’t believe perceval survived everything. why the hell did gwaine die instead of perceval. UNbelievable. (they literally killed off every actor that had ANY chemistry with merlin lmao...i’m just sayin)
i loved morgana as a character, and liked morgause. morgana is deeply tragic and i really felt for her tbh. she had a great deal of potential and it’s such a shame that a connection/relationship between her and merlin was never explored or developed in any way. they are the two most compelling characters and imo the ‘two sides of the same coin’ analogy fits them far better than than it does merlin and arthur lmao. exploring them would have been a way better direction for the show to go in than just setting them at odds the way it did. she got shafted for arthur tbh. (no one is surprised lol)
the final season was a bit...too serious for me. it made everything feel quite nihilistic in a weird and unpleasant way. the tone is darker but it lacks any poignancy because the storytelling is so rote at that point. it didn’t work with the show’s formula and seeing merlin kind of jaded and so utterly Done and Tired of all the shit he has to put up with and being taken for granted by everyone endlessly was...sad and made it all feel pretty empty at times. i missed the trolls and goblins and fairies :( the finale legit got the emotions going again though ;_;
anyway i fucking LOVED this terrible fantasy sitcom-y drama i LOVED it i GOBBLED it up 9/10
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breitzbachbea · 7 years
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for my children::: soph
oUR DAUGHTERFull Name: Sophie O’ConnelGender and Sexuality: Female and bisexualPronouns: She/Her/HersEthnicity/Species: IrishBirthplace and Birthdate: She was born on the 6th of September 1996 in Dublin. Guilty Pleasures: I think she has a lot of guilty pleasures, though most of them are rather old family rituals she can’t let go, e.g. decorating the house appropriate for the season. It’s more of a guilty pleasure than a coping mechanism because it doesn’t feel right to herself yet she still does it. Phobias: She’s terrible afraid of losing what’s left of her family. She’s afraid she’ll be stuck forever in a more or less depressed phase. And she’s afraid she won’t find a place for herself in this world. She’s afraid there is no place for her in it. What They Would Be Famous For: 120 Sheeps From Five Different Countys Went Missing In One Week, Still No Hint Towards The OffenderWhat They Would Get Arrested For: Girl Arrested After Trying To Book An Entire Flight To New Zealand, Then Showing Up With 120 Sheep At The AirportOC You Ship Them With: Not an OC but a canon character (please don’t hit me). I really like her with APH New Zealand/Benjamin Walker how me and my friend dubbed him as human. It started out as a silly idea based on Soph being a sheep maniac as a defining trait back when I created her and … it kind of stuck through all the character development. Plus, now in the Mafia AU I have to care less for actual relations between the nations, so I can crackship as much as I waaaant as long as it is plausible in THIS universe. Suck iiiiiit. I also like to imagine her and her friend Maeve as a couple, too, though. I don’t know if it would last, but it’d be a lovely short, dorky romance OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Harry because Soph ate the last fish sticks they hadI don’t think no one is really keen on murdering her. Yet. Favorite Movie/Book Genre: I think she’s a big fan of high and urban fantasy like her brother, but also likes scifi and adventure stories. As well as animal centered stories and crime novels - She likes something thrilling as long as it isn’t too complicated and responds to one of her interests. Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: I think Soph dislikes a lot of gender related stereotypes. She grew up with men all around her and only a few women and yet the diversity of those man and the strong female rolemodels such as Hannah and Gwen in her family, show her what kind of bullshit traditional gender roles are. Machos without any redeeming emotional features are a no-go for her. Talents and/or Powers: She’s very good with animals, helpful to other people and hardworking once she’s fired up for a goal. She’s also very creative when it comes to find alternative solutions for something. Especially later on, she’s also extremely tough, no matter the circumstances. Why Someone Might Love Them: Her big wide grin is so full of life and her booming laughter can make everyone forget their worries temporarily. When she loves someone, she loves them unconditionally. She’s going to take you with your fuck ups and your weirdness because she’s fucked up and weird herself. She’s a practical girl that roles up her sleeves and wrestles with sheep to sheer them, who isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty and if that isn’t an incredibly admireable thing, I don’t know. She’s got a brilliant sense of humour as well, even when it’s self-depreciating. If getting fifty blurry pictures of animals she’s seen a day isn’t adorable, I don’t know what is. Why Someone Might Hate Them: She’s still insecure and depressed as hell and needs as much of a shoulder to lean on as she can provide one. She’s a loud person and stubborn as well; while considerate of others, she can be very defensive about her opinions. Just like her brother, she can act very thoughtlessly and thus get herself or others into trouble as well as hurting others. How They Change: I think Soph is the character who changes the most throughout the story or at least she’s the one where it is most visible. Soph starts out as insecure teenage girl, who has a vague plan about what she wants to do in live, but struggles to get there on her own. She’s emotionally dependent on her family and the worries she has regarding her boys consume her daily life, making it very easy for her to slip into depressions and have emotional breakdowns that leave her nerves weak for a very long time. She lacks self-esteem and long-term motivation. Over the course of the series she learns how stand up for herself and chase her own goals instead of waiting for someone who can give them to her instead. She becomes more independent - emotionally as well as in general - and learns to accept herself more, to love herself. Soph goes from a teenager without a plan to young woman who knows what she wants and how she’ll get it. Why You Love Them:I always called Soph a little piece of YA in an otherwise adult story - and I think that is a quite important thing. I love Soph because she’s so young and yet carries as much baggage as the older characters of the series - even when it manifests in more mundane ways. And she pulls through - she doesn’t become closed off and jaded, scared of the world, but instead accepts help and tackles her problems. She’s so broken and yet she decides to go through the effort of fixing herself thoroughly. Though just putting duct tape on it is how she fixes most other things that are broken. She breaks down, she cries, she is frustrated and yet, she keeps going. She keeps going because she wants to see and get what the world offers to her, she wants to live the life ahead of her. She’s so strong if you look closer and I love her for it.
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