#10/10 but also that cliffhanger was inhumane

[to-be-a-dreamer]

No, because I've already talked about this to the Discord besties but I'm still vibrating over the fact that Percy didn't just sacrifice himself for Annabeth, he outsmarted her. He tricked her into letting him be the one to stay behind that's such an amazing detail

[hannahwatcheshorror]

SAW (2004)

This isn’t the first time I saw Saw and it isn’t the last time I’ll see Saw (wee!). This movie is a great setup for all the little Jigsaw babies that come after it but is special because it features Cary Elwes, Danny Glover (Sr), and Michael Emerson (and Tobin Bell is of course ever present to guide us). This film has natural reactions to inhumane conditions, smart casting, brilliant acting, and down right gross set dressings.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Two guys, chilling in a room, 5 feet apart ‘cause they’re fighting for their lives (actually it’s more like 10 feet but you get the meme, right?). Jigsaw is a crazy killer who picks people who deserve to be punished and/or die. I’ll be totally honest though, none of the people picked in this movie seemed like they totally deserved it, but I’m also not a psycho killer or anything (is what my lawyers urge me to say). The hot guy from Princess Bride is still hot (and a doctor) but now he’s chained up in a dirty room with a dead guy and a random fellow (Adam) taking a dip in the tub. There is a subplot with the Doc’s wife and kid being kidnapped and a very devoted ex-cop helps the girls escape but is unable to finish off the killer himself. But back to our main men, when push comes to shove, a SAW is used to, well, SAW off the foot of our Hot Doc who attempts a tourniquet but he was bleeding out all over before he slid out like a slug saying he would get help.

Adam is left alone (with a bullet in him for good measure) when the dead guy that was chilling there the whole time (5 feet apart from both of them) GETS UP and just WALKS OUT saying “Game over.” Not a twist I ever SAW coming the first time I watched this movie. I’m sure he used the sedative that was mentioned earlier in the film but, still, what a gross and terrifying thought that your murderer is in the room with you the entire time and you don’t even know it. Or, rather, you are looking right at him, but are none the wiser. It ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. What probably happens is both men die there, the doc from blood loss in the hallway and Adam from being locked in the room, but I like to believe that Hot Doc wormed his way out and Jigsaw lets him go ( he had learned enough of a lesson, right?). Then the cops come rescue Adam and they are both mentally scarred for life but they are alive, right? Right? (Wrong, lol).

-----------------------HANNAH WATCHES HORROR--------------------

[cptn-m]

One Piece chapter 1110 review

This is a chapter that doesn't disappoint. Things are really heating up as we hit the tenth chapter of volume 109 with Egghead's likely final end-of-volume cliffhanger to come in the next chapter or two.

But we start out with a new cover story, and yeah, it's Yamato following Oden's tour of Wano, which is probably the least exciting thing going on this week. However with the last cover story having such a large and immediate connection to the current story, I'm going in with an open mind and considering my hopes. Seeing some of the stuff that got shortchanged in Wano's clipped epilogue would be cool, like Ryuma's grave for example, or passing by Izo's tomb and seeing Kiku visiting. Perhaps a more direct confonrtation of the public's feelings about Tama's Kurozumi heritage. That one might be hard in the pantomime format of a cover story, but you never know. It's going to be a few installments before there's enough info to make any real prediction about the story's trajectory though, we know they never quite stay the course they seem to start on.

Getting back into it, Oda spends a couple of pages building into the big reveals. We also get a timeline update, with 3 minutes down already, which is a brisk pace as Shonen countdowns go. The summoning circles definitely seem closer together and like they're placed in a more rubble-strewn environment than in the final spread of the last chapter, enough to ease my concerns about the space shifting slightly.

And the monster designs that come out when the shadows are pulled back are truly awe inspiring. I don't know a lot of yokai or much about any of them (could tell you a little bit about classic sandworms though), but these are easy 10/10 beasts with all of Oda's best character design ideas on full display. When One Piece ends and he inevitably gets restless after his well-earned break Oda should absolutely do the Toriyama (RIP) thing and design monsters for games. What do you even say to a pair of pages like this? I can't stop looking back to them.

And these guys are made to feel like a threat too. None of them speak in the whole chapter; similar to Saturn's original rampage it makes them feel all the more inhuman. (Saturn did speak when he confirmed the summons in the last chapter, so we know they can but you still get the same effect from how sparse their dialogue is.) They spring immediately into action with no apparent coordination or communication between each other, and they go straight for their goals. There's no posturing or speeches or taking test shots at Luffy to measure his power. Nasjuro is off and running already, cutting down Pacifistas to unblock the Buster Call fleet, solving problems for the bad guys. Mars takes a shot at the barrier, and even though it doesn't work you know he's going to be there the moment it goes down for real. And Ju Peter and Saturn go straight for Luffy. They really don't feel like playtime villains, which is exactly what you need at this late stage of the story.

The absence of Warcury is curious though. Is he also fighting Luffy, or is he going for something else? Charging towards Bonney perhaps?

But what are they? The fact that the odaboxes simply give creature names without specifying a Devil Fruit type is super suspicious. Nasjuro's ice powers mirror Brook's abilities (which allegedly come from having returned from death, rather than being directly a feature of his fruit), which could maybe suggest that he as well has returned from some kind of underworld.

I'm not ready to totally rule out it being a misdirect and them having Devil Fruits of a matched kind, but the weird details are adding up.

Speaking of weird details, I can't quite tell if it's weird scaling/camera angles or not, but it almost seems like Lucci knocks Enma away from Zoro only for it to boomerang back to his hand. I'm not crazy, right, other people are seeing this? At a glance you think maybe it goes up and he catches it as it comes down, but that flight path is curved in every panel. So what, did Zoro just get lucky with the amount of spin, or is there some strange new property of Enma's power/contained Haki being shown here. Or something to do with Zoro's close grim reaper encounter? Stick a pin in this one I think we'll be coming back to it later.

I'm ambivalent about the Zoro and Lucci fight as a whole. The outcome was never in doubt, and it was too offscreen to provide any real character interaction or clash of ideology to add substance. Zoro snapping and finding the motivation to take the win right away when Sanji talks him down is a decent bit for the two of them, but it's not quite enough to make the whole fight feel like more than padding.

Truly, if Lucci had been handcuffed properly after the death game portion and never made his breakout attempt, I don't think the arc would have played out any differently. Even the silly anticlimax of the sliding ship serves the purpose of justifying the Sunny getting from A to B over dry land, but Lucci? Was taking Stussy off the table that important? Was it the only way to make it believable that Zoro wouldn't follow Sanji and Vegapunk down to the Labophase and get involved with the Elders too soon? I'm having a hard time seeing it, but the arc isn't over yet.

The final spread is a fantastic callback and great hype-builder for the next chapter. And I think it's going to prove just how far the Elders' regeneration is able to go. The Elders aren't going down here, definitely not, but with Dorry and Brogy there might just be enough muscle on Luffy's side to hold them back until the broadcast goes ahead.

We're getting colour pages next week, and I have to wonder if an Akira Toriyama tribute is coming. Jump has to do it, there's no way they won't, but the gap between when the pages are finalised and when we see them, and the break between when Toriyama died and when it was announced to the public makes it all kinds of tough to figure out the earliest that could happen. I could definitely see Oda pivoting last minute and trading out a finished colour spread to something in honour of Toriyama, but the timing is tight. We'll see soon, I suppose. May the hits keep on coming for the Egghead finale!

You can also read on my Wordpress!

[carabas]

So I’ve just finished reading the Dragon Age Tevinter Nights anthology, and short reaction: enjoyably hit and miss right up until that final extremely thorough direct hit, thank you Patrick Weekes.

Much, much longer version:

1. I don’t know how reasonable it is to try to extrapolate about what’s going to be in the next game based on a random short story collection, but hey, the novels that came out before DAI were about the mage rebellion, the Orlesian civil war, and eluvians, so.

So things I’m now expecting to see in the next game, aside from the Tevinter-Qunari conflict and Solas of course: Nevarran necromancy, Antivan Crows, Wardens who are struggling with decimated numbers after DAO and DAI (would be the perfect time for Razikale and Lusacan to both wake up at once really), and the Lords of Fortune, a never-before-mentioned Rivaini treasure hunting organization which appeared in I think three different stories here. 

Plus a few stories were very much signalling This Specific New Character Will Be Showing Up Again, whether in the games or elsewhere; I'll be shocked if Lucanis the “Demon,” reluctant heir apparent of the Antivan Crows who just got into a cliffhanger conflict with a Tevinter magister, doesn’t have more to do.

2. THERE IS A MAP, there is a great big fantasy map surrounded by nifty little illustrative details to poke at.

There’s a label reading “White Spire,” not in Val Royeaux, but on a mountain beyond the Arlathan Forest. Is that an error or is there really a White Spire mountain? If not an error, has it always been named that or is that new, possibly a new center for the mages after the war, after the original Spire fell? At no point is either Spire mentioned in this book aside from this map.

Lots of astrological sun and moon patterns prominently featured around the edges. Is that one moon chart depicting moon phases or an eclipse? Is it too conspiracy theory of me to be counting the nine dark moons (or spheres? like in that DA4 idol illustration’s seven slots?) on the dragon’s wing? Probably. Or are those spheres a reference to the second moon that never seems to actually be visible, is that missing moon actually deliberate. 

Most of the astrological charts are fairly straightforwardly showing sun/moon phases but what is the crowned figure in the one on the lower right meant to represent? The Maker? What’s going on with the horizontal lines passing through it/behind it? The two moons beneath it - is that an illustration of the moon in two phases or being separated into two (metaphorical moon in that case, presumably), do those horizontal lines also indicate separation, do I need to move on from the astrological depictions here, definitely.

Love the big horseshoe crab sea monster.

3. Patrick Weekes’s first story in the collection: halla shapeshifting! An elf named Strife who I fully expected to be revealed as an agent of Fen’harel mimicking ancient elven names like Sorrow and Pride, though I was wrong - would it be charming or just annoyingly unsubtle if that became a thing among his agents. An ancient forest guardian with lyrium blades who hunts magic in a way that struck me an awful lot like a forest-themed equivalent of a golem, though I may be wildly off base with that one.

4. Nevarran necromancy story. An odd bit of the chant to highlight for a funeral: “And the Maker, clad in the majesty of the sky, set foot to earth, and at His touch all warring ceased.” I continue to squint suspiciously at overlaps between Maker and elven god imagery. Also, evidently mortalitasi believe that when someone dies, an inhuman spirit is pushed out from the Fade into the physical world, and that’s part of the reason behind their housing spirits in bodies - neat! The existence of Curiosity spirits, also neat!

5. Is Ghilan’nain’s horrible body horror place supposed to be spelled Hormak like in the title and previous canon references, or Hormok like throughout the text here? I know this was just a mistake but maybe I’ll use this to say that in-world there’s multiple ways of transliterating Dwarven.

6. Lukas Kristjanson story #1, the one featuring approximately a million minor Inquisition character cameos and a meditation on Solas’s regrets, introduces a character with the phrase “free mage by special commendation,” and I was briefly thrown by that little signal that we are Not In My Worldstate, that the mages aren’t all free by default - except then the story went on to destroy Solas’s fresco so I wound up quite grateful for that little heads up that this isn’t my worldstate actually.

(Unfortunately I can’t get into this guy’s writing style at all, which is a shame because it’s one of the big Solas stories in the book.)

7. There’s a little plot point in the Wigmaker Job story that demonstrates those elven artifacts Solas had us activate all over Thedas do indeed strengthen the Veil - like, he wasn’t lying to us about what those orbs do, that is how they work, here we see a Crow stab one in order to deactivate it, weaken the Veil and unleash a horde of vengeful demons. Nice confirmation.

8. Genitivi is the Randy Dowager. (Possibly. At least, Philliam wrote a scene in which Genitivi alludes to being the Randy Dowager. I do appreciate an unreliable narrator but after a certain point it does make the lore hard to keep straight.)

9. By the time we got to the story about adventurers stealing an incredibly powerful healing amulet just to donate it to a mysterious contact at a makeshift hospital trying to help people where the Qunari-Tevinter war has spilled over, I knew better than to expect any cameos from DAO/DA2 characters. And with the mention of the squire, I was pretty sure the mysterious contact was going to be Vaea, and it was. Still. Anders would approve. And for a moment I was fantasizing that it would turn out to be him, or connected to him. A new mental setting for him and Hawke post-mage-freedom - makeshift hospitals at the edge of the invasion, secretly sponsored by a certain pair of absurdly overpowered, dungeon-crawling, treasure-hunting fugitives.

Yes, my Dragon Age interpreting is still all about Anders even when he’s not remotely present.

10. You know, I really expected the leaders of the Crows to be a bit more ruthlessly competent than this. Someone is setting up a grand demonstration, recreating infamous historical assassinations carried out by the Crows but now with the leaders of the Crows themselves as the victims, incredibly flashy, incredibly clearly sending a message, and yet not one of the characters trying to figure out whodunit is speculating about the meaning behind that message??? the motive in going to all that trouble??? it’s all, hm, perhaps it’s the qunari invaders. hm, this one was posed with a pearl necklace just like the one in the historical murder it’s recreating, i bet the culprit owns a pearl-fishing business! I know they’re assassins not detectives but at least show the professional courtesy of paying attention to the message in the show your fellow assassin is putting on for you, geez.

Anyway. Interesting Crow details: they talked about neutral ground and territories divided between the Crow households here, does that just apply to Antiva or like, does Arainai have claim to all jobs in Ferelden? 

And the line “Teia's back was bare except for a tattoo marking her as a member of House Cantori” puts Zevran’s tattoos in a slightly different light for me - he’s mentioned that some symbols are sacred to the Crows, and logically it follows that having that symbol tattooed on him would indeed mark him as a Crow to other people in the know, but that his tattoos mark him as belonging to House Arainai is a thing that did not hit me from that.

11. An agent of Fen’harel muttering “Felassan” to activate a rune. In memoriam? Charming. I mean it’s a rune that’s intended to kill an entire city, so possibly the more literal slow arrow is meant, but I’m still charmed.

12. PATRICK WEEKES CLOSING OUT THE BOOK BY JUST DUMPING THE CONTINUING DREAD WOLF HUNT PLOT ON US. 

So much. 

An actual giant wolf in the Fade, I’m so happy for tumblr user corseque. 

A character again raising the possibility that Solas is not an ancient elf but rather a young elf who stumbled onto old magic, a theory I thought debunked by Trespasser but here we are considering it again. 

A minor side note that a lot of Kirkwall’s templars went rogue after the explosion - that’s not relevant to the post-DAI plot really, I’m just noting it for my generally-DA2-focused fanfic purposes. 

The possibility that somniari (presumably) can kill even dwarves who don’t dream in their sleep. Somniari in general or did Solas personally step in here?

A ritual involving the red lyrium idol resulting in the phrase “As if we were the blood and the cavern the body through which it flowed” right before the POV character enters the Fade, which is a rather Titan-esque turn of phrase. 

The Dread Wolf again asserting that all creation is in danger and he’s trying to fix that. A biased POV character recognizing that, huh, funny how those spirits around the Dread Wolf which surely must be demons actually look an awful lot like Justice and Valor. 

And Charter’s notes at the end, so direct, not only spelling out the new details on the idol for us (that the figure represents a crowned figure comforting another) but thoroughly hitting us over the head with Solas’s essential characterization in his own words, as if Weekes is still trying to clear up any possible lingering misinterpretations there. (Prideful, hotheaded, foolish. Doing what he must. Sympathetic to elves. Said that he was sorry.)

And the quiet simplicity of Solas coming to this meeting of spies in person because, pause, “...the Inquisition was involved,” written in such a way that you could read all sorts of things into that pause, whatever the Inquisition and the Inquisitor might mean to him.

The book would have been worth reading for this last story alone, what a note to end on.

[abmaries]

I finally finished The Last of Us part II and here are my thoughts/review.

WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD.

I'll talk about the good before getting to the bad.

Graphics and Sound

The graphics and sound design were brilliant. No matter what you think about this game, you can't deny that the game looks and sounds great. The team did an amazing job creating these environments. One of my favorite segments was the TV Station. That area had me tense and on my toes while I was walking around. This was the first segment of the game that had me really tense. I always felt like I was being watched. This is where Naughty Dog excels at. Every place or area feels alive making you stop to take in the beauty or horror.

Gameplay

Gameplay was mostly the same but elevated in some areas. Crawling around in prone or swinging from ropes are a welcome addition. Wished we could've gotten the rope wall run mechanic that we got in Uncharted 4 though. I don't think that the jumping mechanic shouldn't be so hyped up because these days, it's the most basic thing now.

Acting

The acting was wonderful as always. The actors worked hard and put in their best work and it showed.

Story and Characters

Now here we go. The story is where the flaws are shown in this game. I'll try organize my thoughts for this because boy we had some structure and pacing issues.

The Beginning

I wasn't really feeling the recap that we got in the beginning. I get why it's there but if we're playing, we already know the story. I kinda wished that we had a better or even a longer moment with Joel and Ellie. Seeing how the first game was about them, then at least the game should have started with just the two of them. Or even start with Abby's flashback in the Firefly hospital and then cut to Joel and Ellie.

Joel's Death

I always knew that Joel was going to die. Ever since that first trailer they showed us, I knew. I don't mind Joel dying but I have issues with the way he died. He deserved to go down fighting. At least taking one of Addy's people out or something before getting tortured and hit in the head with a golf club. I get it, with the past five years, Joel could have gained more compassion but I still don't think that would override his survival instincts. He should at least got a bad feeling being surrounded by Abby and her friends. He still goes out on patrols and I'm sure that they also ran into raiders at some point. My point is, that something inside him should have told him that something is up. His death was just used to shock the audience and nothing more. The fact that they basically breezed through it to get to the main plot says so. He's killed and then we're rushed out to Seattle. Oh my god, really? His death should have settled more and not just done cut and dry. Hell, they have concept art showing them wrapping Joel up with Ellie standing over him. They should have showed that in game. He's a beloved character, at least give him a proper death. I know he wasn't a good person in the past and I'm glad to see that there were consequences to his actions but I felt like this should have been executed better.

I think that his death would had more of an impact if his death didn't happen so soon in game and that we had some more Ellie and Joel interaction before hand or at least a better build up. His death as a beloved character was lack luster and disrespectful.

The First Half

The first half was really great in my opinion. It was good to see Ellie slowly unravel as she follows this obsession for vengeance. I know people are pointing out that how can she suddenly feel guilt now after killing so many soldiers as the player. My view on this is that killing for survival and beating/torturing someone is completely different. That makes it personal. You are actively prolonging that person's suffering. That kind of killing will always be different. Her killing Mel and then suddenly realizing that she was pregnant and freaking out about it makes sense. She killed an unborn baby, that was innocent. Of course that could mess someone up. It's good to see that she's starting to have regrets with her actions.

I didn't like the whole Dina is pregnant storyline. I felt like this is were the dynamic falls apart. A strength of the first game were the relationships and having Ellie alone most of the time weakens the narrative. In the first game, you always had a constant pair. First it was Joel and Tess and then Joel and Ellie. The main protagonist was never alone. It would have been great to have that constant with Ellie and Dina. The first parts with them working together and getting along were great, I wished we got more of that. The two bond slowly growing stronger and maybe Dina slowly convince Ellie that this isn't worth it. I just wished that we got more of those moments. Instead, it got a backseat to the whole revenge is bad plot.

The Ellie and Joel flashbacks were lovely and probably the best moments in the game. I really wished that we had more moments with the present Ellie and Joel.

Abby/Second Half

I'm going to say this now and I will get hate for it, but I honestly didn't give a shit about Abby and the writing and pacing are to blame.

I respect and understand why Abby killed Joel. It's the consequences of Joel's actions. But if you really wanted anyone to sympathize with her, then you had to work pretty hard but they didn't.

What really hurt Abby's narrative is the sudden switch to her POV right before what we thought was the big fight or climax we were working towards. I like the POV switch but it was done at the wrong time and dragged on too long. They basically sling shot you back to the beginning of the game and now you have to upgrade your character and weapons all over again. It turned me off from her and her story. Her segment was too long. I don't know who thought putting all of Abby's scenes in the back half was a good move, but they clearly don't understand structure or has completely lost their minds. It makes the story feel unorganized and takes the player out of the story. It made me not care about her or her friends. I was focused on getting to the stupid cliffhanger they left me on. Reminds me of this stupid move in Once Upon a Time in season 5. We finally find out that Emma made Hook into another Dark One and he's about to do something to her. Suddenly the next episode is about Merida from Brave and it pissed me off. Bad structure and horrible organization.

I did not sympathize with her at all. If anyone, I sympathized with Owen more because he showed regret and a little depth. That was another issue with Abby. She wasn't showing any conflicting feelings or emotion for what she did. It made her feel inhuman. Girl was so chill. Even Ellie showed some emotion for what she did during her killing spree but Abby just didn't care.

As much as I love Lev and Yara, I feel like they take away from the story and was used to manipulate the audience to feel something for Abby. It felt like a different game. It should have been a DLC where you follow Lev and Yara. I also notice that they tried doing the Joel and Ellie dynamic with Abby and Lev and that just put a bad taste in my mouth. You can see some parallels, especially in the end with Abby carrying Lev in her arms. It's like they're trying to show us that this is the new Ellie and Joel. Uhhh no.

It also felt like Abby got the better treatment than Ellie. Yes Abby had her friends killed but she got Lev in the end where Ellie got no one. It felt like they beat us over the head that Abby is such a good person. We get it, you don't have to shove it down our throats. It comes off as forced or manipulative. Perfect example, you have us kill dogs as Ellie while you play with them as Abby. Hell, they force you to play with Alice near the end. Then you have Abby going on this long quest to help these random kids. All of this added with the 10+ hour run with her didn't help.

What could have helped me care was if they somehow intermingle her storyline with Ellie's a bit. For example in the hospital section let Abby discover Nora's body after Ellie left. Another could one could be when Ellie sees the Scars for the first time, let Abby's event be seen from a far. My point is, let their stories relate to each other. Abby's 10 hour adventure felt so disjointed from the game that it felt like it's own game. Don't let us wait so long to see Abby. Have their moments almost run along each other. Cut to Abby when we need a lull from Ellie and so on. And my god, give these two some dialogue. Two big protagonists but they don't speak to each other.

I love pov switching and it was a brave choice but it wasn't executed properly which in turn, messed up the pacing.

Before I get to the ending, I need to talk about characters and death. You introduced us to this big cast of characters and did nothing with them. You treated them like cannon fodder. The only characters on Abby's side that we got in depth with was Owen and the others were meh. I need to talk about Mel and how stupid and unrealistic her character is. You have the clearly far along pregnant woman sent out in the dangerous combat field. It's ridiculous. No military organization like that would send her out. Also we see her running and slamming her stomach on things. Really Naughty Dog? They should have switched Mel and Nora's roles. That would have made more sense.

Now the deaths were handled so poorly. In the first game, everyone's death had a moment. Tess, Sam, Henry, Marlene and even David. This game, the character deaths happened only for a second and they were never mentioned again. In the first game, you have characters bring up the dead characters more than once. The deaths were handled with care and meant something to the characters and plot but in this game they were treated like trash.

Ending

I honestly think that the game in its last hour or so, wasn't necessarily and dragged on for too long. In my opinion the game should have ended in Seattle and the last fight or the climax should have been in the theater. The point of revenge being a horrible cycle and it brings harm to your loved ones were already pointed out. We didn't need anymore. Abby broke the cycle by not killing Dina and leaving Ellie alive. Ellie clearly learned the lesson there too in almost losing the woman she loves because of her actions. They could have done a nice little wrap up with Ellie and Addy going their separate ways, each not fully getting what they wanted and each losing someone/something close to them.

The Farm

As much as I loved the farm, it felt too dream like and happy endingish. It wasn't needed. It felt added on to just give us another thing for Ellie to lose. Tommy coming back to show where Abby is was just used as a plot device to move an already dead plot forward. In my opinion Tommy should have been dead. No way, he could survive that wound plus the trip back. That was too unrealistic. Felt like the pussed out on his death.

Santa Barbara

Jesus Christ this was really not needed. Just like the farm, this was just used to padded the run time and give us another and unnecessary fight between Abby and Ellie. The rattlers were another fraction that I could not care for. I loved how brutal the final fight between Abby and Ellie was but sadly way beyond this point, I just didn't care. Just like the last hour of this game, the ending of the fight was lack luster and anticlimactic. You put us, the player, through all of this and you couldn't let us kill Abby or even give us a choice to kill or not. Killing Abby isn't the point, I get it but you dragged me on for another unnecessary hour or two just for nothing. No satisfaction for the player. Which showed us how pointless this was and the story should have ended in Seattle or in that theater.

Ellie going back to the farm and seeing Dina gone and her losing her fingers were a bit too excessive. It's like the writers think that the audience is stupid and never seen a revenge plot before. We fucking get it that nothing good comes from revenge. We get it. It was too over the top that it almost felt too unrealistic. When the game ended and I felt relieved in the wrongest way because this game was supposed to end long time ago.

Over all the game had wonderful graphics and sound design and was fun to play with great acting but it falls short on its structure, pacing and characters as it beats you over the head with an overused story of revenge. If structured differently and cut some things then maybe this game would have been better.

[tenspontaneite]

What are some of your favorite lines from your Boundless and PIAJ fics? I’m excited for the next chapter of PIAJ. ☺️

This was a great ask to receive, so I’ve spent some time thinking about it! I’d prefer to focus on piaj for now, but if you want to ask again for Boundless specifically that would be totally cool too.

Lines and commentary under the cut.

After some pondering, I’ve got some different favourite lines for different reasons. (Also, idk, maybe ask this question again after piaj timeline day 14 because one of my favourite scenes so far is scheduled for then)

So: Lines I like for worldbuilding reasons:

[Then, almost formally, she intoned “…I truly hope you won’t need to use what you’ve learned today.” She said it with all the gravity, all the due severity of the word.

With that proper emphasis, ‘hope’ fell like a hammer-blow.]

(Chapter 8, recently edited in, the Healer Marla offers a formal and rather religious sentiment to Callum. I finally decided on some worldbuilding I’d been wavering on recently, which required me to go back and edit a lot of stuff, because it directly affected some cultural linguistics in interesting ways. ‘Hope’ is now a culturally significant word in the Pentarchy for cool and interesting worldbuilding reasons. If you want to see my edits, look for chapters on ao3 with an edit log in the start notes, and ctrl+f for the word hope.)

[“Mercy spare me and Justice avenge me if I fall-“]

(Chapter 10, hunter dude in fear for his life. Much simpler than the last one, but I find this pretty interesting too. Like this for me highlights how differently Paragonism is interpreted by different people. I could write a literal essay on this so here, I’ll just say that I found this an interesting insight into the every-day religious culture of the commonfolk.)

Lines I like for characterisation/symbolic complexity:

[Those words seemed to drag the prisoner forcibly out of his unnatural stillness. His face contorted into a rictus of a snarl, in the space of a second, lips drawing back like an angry dog’s. He didn’t say anything, but his eyes narrowed into furious, burningly-blue slits that half-glowed in the low light. Inhuman, he thought, unbidden, and shrugged off the instinctive shiver of unease that those eyes wanted to prompt in him.]

(Chapter 8, Viren provoking Runaan. I really liked this because it was such a cool insight into how he thinks of elves, how he perceives them. The instinctive unease of ‘this is not human’, of otherness, and also the deeply rooted racism. Like, not to get too literary here, but look at the words. There’s fucking lexical fields in this. You’ve got ‘unnatural’, ‘snarl’, ‘like an angry dog’, ‘inhuman’. Viren very instinctively thinks of Runaan as an animal, and compares him to an animal, and is constantly aware of how not-human he is. And I think that’s very cool. It’s a much more subtle and interesting sort of racism than someone outright saying ‘elves are monsters’, I think.)

I seriously wish I could share some lines from the day 14 Runaan scene here because I love it and it’s absolutely full of symbolism, but alas, spoilers.

Lines I like because idk, various reasons:

There’s some lines I’d have loved to share because I like them a lot, but the reason I like them a lot is that they’re extremely potent foreshadowing, so it would be kind of spoilery for me to point them out so blatantly. But let it be known that those lines exist.

[“No.” Ezran said, very quietly. Ezran who, Callum suddenly realised, had been very, very quiet through this whole conversation; he hadn’t objected, hadn’t protested, hadn’t tried to convince him or Rayla that there was still hope- “No, it’s not.”]

(Chapter 10. I like this part a lot because it’s the turning point of the scene, the moment where Ezran decides no. This isn’t how it’s going to be. And even when I wrote this specific part months and months and months ago, it always really did its job? Like, whenever I read over the scene, Ezran interjecting here really felt like a Moment, I could feel the gravity of it, just him imposing his hope into a hopeless situation and changing everything with a few words. The whole mood of the scene feels like it shifts at once, for me, and I really liked that.)

[Ezran looked between them, quiet, hands settled on the smooth surface of the egg. “I think it’s good, to have that drawing in your book.” He said, after a moment. “It’s…a reminder. Not a happy one. But it is happy, in a way, because when you started drawing that, you thought you were gonna have to cut her hand off.” Callum winced at that, and Rayla knew his brother’s words had hit uncomfortably hard. “But that’s not what happened, and now…” he looked up at Rayla. “Now, you get to keep your hand. So that picture is like – a reminder of how much better things can turn out than you expect them to.”]

(Chapter 12. I like this as it’s a really nice bit of Ezran wisdom, as well as uncomfortably precise emotional insight, and that’s really starting to be a trademark of his in my writing, and I like that. I’ve really been enjoying Ezran’s characterisation and development in piaj.)

[Corvus felt the ground drop out beneath him as he reached the cliff-edge. Gripped, desperately, at the rough rock at the edge of it, legs dangling precipitously in thin air. But in the end, the stone was too loose. Gravel carried his fingers over the cliffside, and he fell.]

(Chapter 13. Not much to say about this, I just think it’s a very nice conclusion to the scene. It does the job, I think, of getting across the sort of…frantic shock and fear of suddenly finding himself being swept off a cliff, and the dread of the cliffhanger before the fall.)

That’s it for now, I think. I had some other lines I liked but these are the top ones, so I’ll leave it here. Feel free to ask about this sort of thing in the future, I love talking about writing.

[zetalial]

My top 10 favourite FMA 03 episodes

Hey, I figured I’d make a list. Everyone likes lists, right?

This was going to be just the list but then I decided to add some thoughts and add pictures so now this is a long post… I’ll be counting down from my tenth favourite.

10. Episode 23: Fullmetal Heart/Heart of Steel (whichever title you prefer)

Odd choice, much? This is only a breather episode yet for some reason it’s one of my favourites. Maybe it’s because the characterisation of everyone is just great. You’ve got Edward, Maria Ross, Hughes, Winry and Alphonse all interacting and going through all the aftermath of Lab 5 and it’s just the kind of episode that appeals to me. It’s got some moments of humour as well as the angst. I’ve already made a separate post on this episode actually.

There’s a negative in that Al’s identity crisis is present here and that’s not my favourite arc. That actually gets more focus in the next episode though. I wouldn’t exactly call it an eventful episode either unless you love intense conversations like me. (Hughes is the best, by the way.)

9. Episode 8: The Philosopher’s Stone

Better known for being the Barry the Chopper episode. It also comes immediately after Nina so a lot of it deals with the aftermath of that. Of course, where Fullmetal Heart is a breather, this is the opposite. This is where the evil writers decide to twist the knife that was the Nina incident by putting our beloved 12 year old hero through even more emotional turmoil. As a lover of angst,  and exploring fallouts, I loved this episode. (I debated including the Nina episode, Night of the Chimera’s Cry, for this list but chose this one instead.) The encounter with Barry is always very striking, seeing how worked up Ed gets and how unnerved he is. Meanwhile you’ve got Al keeping a clearer head trying to move on while Ed’s not ready to yet. Meanwhile you’ve got other characters around but not able to provide comfort. Mustang, Riza, Winry, even Hughes.  Seeing human Barry adds to the lab 5 arc later on too.

Negatives might be that it’s too angsty, I can see it being a turn off. Villain is very blatantly evil. I personally don’t mind that sort of thing though. Also Winry is present but doesn’t do all that much.

8. Episode 17: House of the Waiting Family.

I swear this list isn’t all Breather episodes! But, yeah, this one deals with the fallout from the Scar battle some and does a bunch of other stuff. I’ve already made a separate post about this one too. It’s an episode of recovery, and family. Ed and Al embracing the past they’ve left behind once more. You’ve got Ed visiting his mother’s grave, Winry encouraging Ed and Al to come home again, Ed almost confessing his guilt about the transmutation to Al, Winry finding Ed’s watch and the message inside, Al having trouble remembering the past, Ed and AL reflecting on their home they lost. It’s a good reflective episode. Family is one of the central themes in FMA, and this episode certainly gives that feeling. It’s a pleasant episode with only a little angst and plenty of humour and heart.

7. Episode 31: Sin

I feel like this might be another odd choice? This is the moment where they reveal the origins of the homunculi and how they do it is absolutely enthralling. Izumi explaining how she tried to bring back her unborn child. Wrath letting himself be led to the island. Izumi attempting to strangle him, but unable to do it. Wrath strangling her. Ed and Al’s horror and instinctive denial as Wrath reveals what the story has been building up to. And there’s all the other stuff that’s going on to. Sloth and Envy fighting Greed. Kimblee and Archer meeting and agreeing to work together. Lust and Gluttony in a group of refugees, intending to cause trouble. This episode is so named to focus on the Homunculi and it very much does. The scene between Envy and Wrath is absolutely enthralling. These are the stories that FMA 03 thrives on, in my opinion.  It ends with Al of all people furiously attacking Wrath, so it’s hard to resist not going straight to the next episode.

6. Episode 47: Sealing the Homunculus

This one is right near the end of the series. I was sorely tempted to go with 48: Goodbye. These two are pretty equal in my mind really. This one is more exciting though. Lust is incredible, her fight with Wrath is one of my favourites, she can switch between being utterly ruthless and vulnerable in an instant. Her end completed her character arc in such a compelling way. She’s one of my favourite characters and you can see so much of it in this single episode. But she’s not alone! It’s also got Sloth and we finally get to understand her motivations and feelings while she also meets her demise. Ed and Al both go through more emotional turmoil even though it’s framed as a triumph for them. Wrath is being Wrath. And it leads so tantalisingly into the next episode.

Negatives might be how Al defending Sloth is a touch frustrating. Also Wrath is being Wrath. Yes that’s a positive and a negative.

5. Episode 13: Fullmetal vs Flame.

What’s that, a light-hearted humorous episode with only a small amount of angst? This episode is a gem. It pretty much ties up everything that came before and leads very naturally into everything that comes after. I’ve been thinking that if people wanted to watch 03 but have already seen BH, this one wouldn’t be a bad place to start if you don’t want to retread the beginning at a slower pace. (Though you do miss out on some nice episodes). Beyond that, this episode is loads of fun. The fight displays Mustang’s abilities well, shows off the relationship between him and Ed, Hughes is awesome as usual, Al has a cute cat and did I mention the scene where Mustang loves dogs? The little bit of angst mostly comes from Mustang and some trauma he has from Ishval, leading into the Scar battle next episode very well. He’s being built up great. This episode is simply awesome.

4. Episode 3: Mother

Ah, there’s the mix of darkness and family I love. I’m always mentioning this episode and I love how it explores Ed and Al’s past and shows their characters and how they decided to perform the human transmutation. At first it’s heartwarming and then it’s heartwrenching. Ed and Al have always been my favourite characters and seeing their backstory explored in such detail is wonderful. Have I mentioned the part where they walk away from their burning house while Bratja plays with Al narrating? How about Ed coldly standing at the grave swearing to bring their mother back while Alphonse is crying?

3. Episode 51: Laws and Promises

Right to the opposite end of the series. The last episode is so very striking to me. See Ed and Al sacrifice themselves for each other is spectacular. Dante’s plan so quickly unraveling and I’ve talked about how much I love Envy’s final scene before. The epilogue ties off the series fairly well while still leaving things open-ended. Mustang’s fight with Pride is awesome. His scenes with Riza are lovely. Ed’s scenes with his father are interesting. Dante’s demise. Wrath getting to live and getting automail Winry made for Ed. Izumi teaching Al more alchemy. That final speech that closes the series, where the title of this episode comes from. It’s strangely optimistic and hopeful. It’s nice.

2. Episode 28: All is One, One is All.

Another backstory episode. It features Ed and Al’s survival on Yok island with older Ed and Al reflecting on the past. I think this episode builds to its climactic point of Ed and Al coming to understand what Izumi wanted to teach them very well. I’ve made a post about this episode too. (I talk about episodes I like, okay?) The appearances of Wrath leading up to another nice cliffhanger ending are also nice. It’s another episode of reflection and I love it. Young Ed and Al are always great.

And finally:

1. Episode 22: Created Human

I loved the aftermath of Lab 5. I loved the origins of the homunculi. I love when Ed faces emotional turmoil. And I absolutely love this episode where the Lab 5 arc reaches its dreadful conclusion. Everything about it is great. The moral ambiguity, the homunculi’s goals, Ed getting pushed to the brink, physically and emotionally, just everything that Envy and Lust do, even the older Slicer brother advising Ed. Everything has been building to this moment and it’s executed brilliantly. It makes you start to feel sympathy with the homunculi when they compare themselves to Al’s own inhuman state. It makes you feel Ed’s desperation to save his brother. Al protesting but everyone ignoring him. Envy and Lust talking about equivalence. When they reveal that everyone the brother’s has been working for was leading them here. That moment at the end where the military steps in to save the brothers. Scar doing his own stuff and deciding to help them. There’s even the delightful moment where Mustang breaks the fourth wall at the beginning.

Yeah it’s my favourite.

[f4liveblogarchives]

Fantastic Four Vol 1 #130

Fri Jul 26 2019

[07:17 PM] Bocaj: I wish that the frightful Four kept losing their female members so the writers would have to keep introducing more female villains [07:18 PM] Wack'd: Ehhh it would inevitably be because they turn face though [07:18 PM] maxwellelvis: Well, I think Thundra's more of a wild card, but [07:18 PM] Bocaj: Maybe they go independent because they realize the others are dinks? [07:18 PM] maxwellelvis: fair enough [07:18 PM] Wack'd: It'd be nice! [07:18 PM] Wack'd: But we've only just now hit the point where folks are thinking "hey, maybe female honorific shouldn't be defined entirely by marital status", so

[07:20 PM] Wack'd: So it turns out Thundra's fascination with Ben wasn't some weird sex thing after all--but it is now!

[07:20 PM] Bocaj: Dammit [07:20 PM] maxwellelvis: He's got kavorka, that rockmonsterman [07:21 PM] Wack'd: Flint tries to murder Ben to keep Thundra from turning face and Thundra stops him, claiming that her sole mission here was to humble and humiliate Ben [07:21 PM] Wack'd: So maybe it was a little bit a weird sex thing [07:22 PM] Bocaj: Thundra tops [07:25 PM] Wack'd: Anyway Wizard decides that with Johnny and Ben down their next task is to destroy the Baxter Building [07:25 PM] Wack'd: I'm sure Collins is gonna be thrilled [07:26 PM] Wack'd: Meanwhile--Johnny! [07:27 PM] Wack'd: Turns out Black Bolt hasn't turned evil, he just wanted to get a word in with Johnny before he saw Crystal, and thought this was the only way to do it [07:27 PM] Wack'd: Johnny...reacts about as well as you'd expect [07:28 PM] Wack'd: Well okay he reacts better than you'd expect. He doesn't threaten genocide this time. [07:28 PM] Wack'd: He just leads the guards on a goose chase [07:29 PM] Wack'd: Intra-issue cliffhanger! Whatever is going on here we're not gonna find out until next issue. Which is lovely because I was planning on taking a break after this. Ah well.

[07:30 PM] Bocaj: Why is crystal still wearing her ff duds? [07:30 PM] Wack'd: Nostalgia? [07:31 PM] Wack'd: Inhuman cosplay contest? [07:31 PM] Wack'd: Budget cuts? [07:31 PM] maxwellelvis: Lost her old costume two Inhuman home bases ago? [07:31 PM] Wack'd: Back to Reed! Who can't focus on his work with all of the drama going on. He hears someone at the door and rushes to get it, hoping Sue or Johnny has returned so he can make amends. [07:32 PM] Wack'd: Reed: Sandman! I should've known! [07:32 PM] Wack'd: Flint: You should've known? That's what you always say--after I catch you flat-footed! [07:33 PM] Wack'd: Reed is incapacitated. Flint wants to know why they don't just murder 'em--turns out Thundra "holds no truck with ungallantry towards the weaker sex." [07:35 PM] Wack'd: So the Frightful Four make their way into Reed's lab to loot it

[07:36 PM] Wack'd: One of Reed's laser cannons goes off on its own, causing the team to presume betrayal--but nope! [07:36 PM] Wack'd: Sue gets some footprints in Pete's paste and is forced to reveal herself. [07:37 PM] Wack'd:

[07:38 PM] Wack'd: Unfortunately, Sue proves to be too much for them, so Wizard takes the low road and threatens Franklin to force a surrender [07:39 PM] Wack'd: OH SHIT HERE WE GO

[07:39 PM] Wack'd: MIRACLE BABY [07:39 PM] Wack'd: (Why didn't you free your mom, kid?) [07:41 PM] Wack'd: Anyway Wizard panics and forgets the Thundra-inflicted "no killing men" rule [07:42 PM] Wack'd: And gets his ass handed to him by Thundra [07:42 PM] Wack'd: Before he can kill Ben [07:42 PM] Bocaj: Good [07:43 PM] Wack'd: Ben frees Reed, Reed frees Sue, Sue frees Medusa. Four on four. Let's do this.

[07:44 PM] Bocaj: The Fantastic Four minus one of the jerks in it plus a Queen [07:45 PM] maxwellelvis: !!!!!!!!!!11 [07:45 PM] maxwellelvis: I think I know what the "End of the Four" they're talking about is. [07:45 PM] Wack'd: I fucking love that Sue's main strategy at this point is inflicting body horror on people

[07:46 PM] maxwellelvis: Sure is lucky Sandman is intensely stupid. [07:47 PM] Wack'd: This has fairly reliably worked on the other villains and even her own family members! [07:47 PM] maxwellelvis: Yeah, but I'm pretty sure they're just weirded out and don't think she's actually disintegrating them like Sandman is. [07:47 PM] Wack'd: Fair [07:47 PM] Wack'd: Reed and Sue get into an argument about whether Sue should be fighting or getting Franklin out of here [07:48 PM] Wack'd: Sue's like "I can do both, Franklin's in a force field" and Reed is like *doesn't say anything because the Wizard ambushes him* [07:49 PM] Wack'd: I'm not sure if Thundra's "applying female stereotypes to men" shtick is good praxis but I'm finding it very amusing

[07:51 PM] Wack'd: Thundra decides to cut it short, fells Ben with a knee to the solar plexus, and engineers an escape for the rest of the Frightfuls in case she needs them later [07:51 PM] Bocaj: Hah [07:52 PM] Wack'd: Medusa's like "hey we kicked some real ass" and Reed's like "maybe we would've done better if Sue had listened to me" [07:52 PM] Wack'd: And then-- [07:53 PM] Wack'd: I'm assuming max guessed right

[07:54 PM] maxwellelvis: Yup [07:54 PM] Wack'd: Well dammit, now I have to keep reading, because I'm intrigued! [07:54 PM] maxwellelvis: I think this is like, the first time Reed and Sue are separated like this. [07:55 PM] Wack'd: I'm really hoping this sparks some real development from Reed, at least short-term [07:55 PM] maxwellelvis: Granted I think your thing was going to happen after Valeria was born, but still... [07:55 PM] Wack'd: Because he's being a massive dick here [07:56 PM] Wack'd: And, like, it's interesting because. I honestly think that if Thomas had just softened this behavior--written off the sexism as a relic of the 60s, simply moved forward as though Reed weren't a dink--I'd be a lot more generous to him now [07:56 PM] Wack'd: Doubling down is by far the more interesting choice--not as interesting as putting Reed in exile instead of Sue. [07:56 PM] Wack'd: But interesting. [07:57 PM] Wack'd: But what happens next will irrevocably color Reed as a character going forward. And I doubt it will be pretty. [07:57 PM] Wack'd: Yeah [07:58 PM] maxwellelvis: Reed being the one leaving the Baxter Building/4 Freedoms Plaza does have interesting implications of its own. [07:58 PM] Wack'd: There's definitely something to be said about the fact that Sue is like "you didn't think of me as a member of the team or as your wife, only as the mother of your child, so I'm going to stop being a member of the team and your wife and just be the mother of your child." That's incredibly clumsy. [07:59 PM] Wack'd: And makes this feel more like a spite move than a principled stand--which is definitely unintentional. [08:00 PM] maxwellelvis: Suddenly I'm picturing Reed being hounded by paparazzi whenever the news of a separation breaks in your thing. [08:01 PM] maxwellelvis: And then the thought just popped into my head, "Would the Daily Bugle be one of the news outlets trying to get in on that?" [08:01 PM] Wack'd: Depends on the writer [08:02 PM] maxwellelvis: I mean, would you see Jonah doing that? [08:03 PM] Wack'd: So let's go into how Reed deals with this. Firstly he projects--Sue *certainly* isn't the one neglecting Franklin. Just a few issues ago Reed completely missed an appointment to go see him, then sent Sue to retrieve hi on her own when Agatha retired. [08:04 PM] Wack'd: He doubles down. He refuses to engage with her critique of his behavior, or say anything to make this more amicable. In fact, he even stops Sue from trying to soften the blow. [08:04 PM] Wack'd: He frames this entirely as her decision, which is nice on an female agency level but means he's refusing to take any for himself. This is his fault. He needs to admit that. [08:05 PM] Wack'd: And then he decides he's going to continue to power around with her little brother? [08:05 PM] Wack'd: Jeez. [08:06 PM] Wack'd: And in the context of the Thomas run as a whole--I gave him shit for his "greatest hits" routine earlier but I think we definitely needed a reminder of what normalcy looks like before he pulls a move like this. [08:06 PM] maxwellelvis: And this is just like a handful of issues into his run, too [08:07 PM] Wack'd: And even if his plot structure is fairly rote, I have to credit him for pulling in Thundra and Kala--the fact that this is kind of a boy's club is clearly on his mind. [08:08 PM] Wack'd: This is actually closer to the end of his first (short, as all 70s *Four* runs are) run than the beginning [08:08 PM] maxwellelvis: Ahh [08:08 PM] Wack'd: Gerry Conway will be in shortly [08:09 PM] Wack'd: Thomas does come back a few times though, for fairly significant spurts of time [08:09 PM] Wack'd: He'll be in and out until 1977 [08:10 PM] Wack'd: So I guess this is kind of the beginning of an era for him? Just one with lots and lots of guest writers [08:10 PM] Wack'd: Which makes sense, he is also editor in chief. [08:10 PM] maxwellelvis: It's the beginning of an era for the Four, at least. [08:10 PM] Wack'd: I'm very curious to see how long this lasts.

[amandajoyce118]

Friday Five: Bring On The Agents Of SHIELD Hiatus

Since it’s the first week of hiatus, I thought it only fair that I ease myself out of my Agents Of SHIELD withdraw by theming this week’s Friday Five around the show. With next season being the final season, I wrote a listicle for ScreenRant about 10 things that need to happen. There are a lot of things I want to see that didn’t make the list. Here are five of them.

This Friday Five is assuming you’ve watched all of Agents Of SHIELD up until this point. So, you know, spoilers.

Five: Raina

We’re starting off with the real long shot here, okay? I make no secret of the fact that Raina is one of my favorite characters on the series. I feel like there was a lot of potential in her backstory that we never got. I’d love, since time travel is in play, if the series got to revisit her story one last time. If it doesn’t, I hope Marvel considers some sort of SHIELD comic book series featuring some of the characters from the show (there have already been two) to flesh out some of the thinner stories.

Four: Make Piper And Flint Part Of The Team

We don’t know exactly where they ended up when Piper took him to get medical attention. Briana Venskus was on set filming for the series finale, so she appears in season seven at least once. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to make the four year recurring actress a regular for the show’s final season so she gets a bit of a pay boost for all her hard work. As for Flint, the Inhuman brought to life by his back-to-the-future-parents should get to spend time with Elena, Mack, and the rest of the literal only people he knows in this timeline.

Three: Show Us The SSR Becoming SHIELD

Time travel is in play. That means, in theory, this team could go to any significant event in the MCU that they wanted to. It also holds that every time they do, they’re creating another little branch in the tree that is the multiverse. So, I want to see some actual significant events. I’d love to see them in scenes from other shows/movies, but I think that could only really happen for the ABC distributed shows like Agent Carter and Inhumans. So…. show us how this organization goes from being the Strategic Scientific Reserve to the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division. How does Peggy Carter end up a founder? What changes? They become a much more militant organization with training academies and serious combat skills. What made that happen?

Two: No Cliffhanger Ending

This is a simple one. The showrunners planned season seven as the last. Please do not leave us hanging indefinitely. That would just be cruel.

One: Make SWORD Official

Also, a slight spoiler here if you still haven’t seen Spider-Man: Far From Home, but nothing major.

The post credit scene of the movie indicates some humans are quite at home in space. SHIELD has been spending an awful lot of time in space in season six. I just want someone to name the space arm of the program SWORD. That’s what it is in the comics. Comic book fans deserve this. The Disney-Fox deal is done. It shouldn’t matter that it first popped up in an X-Men comic. Give it to me.

That’s it for this week! Enjoy the long hiatus. The longer it is, the longer we put off the end.

[lightningcrown]

My top 10 Marvel Cinematic Universe couples. Trust me, there’s a lot more, because I pretty much ship anything; but these are the main ones I ship. Yeah...I was tied between Valki and Hulkyrie, and realized I liked both for Valkyrie. So Valki is now an Honorable Mention while #4 is now replaced by Fitzsimmons.

Yeah, I don’t regret a fucking thing.

A couple warnings though. Firstly, there are spoilers to the character's respective shows/films in the meme’s description, so just a heads up. Infinity War spoilers, too. Second, I have either not seen or not finished the shows The Defenders, Jessica Jones, Daredevil, and Iron Fist, also Cloak and Daggar isn’t finished, so I can’t put Ty/Tandy on the list just yet (Honestly, Tandy is just a bitch at this point in the show).  As I finish the shows, I’ll move the couples around or add/remove them. And third, but most important without a doubt, this is my list, as in my personal opinion. I will not trash you for your ships if you do not trash mine. Ship and let ship.

Okay, let’s begin.

~Honorable Mention~ Valki -  Not canon...I think...seriously, Tessa Thompson has hinted that these two are in a...somewhat relationship? Like the other couples, I think these two would be good for each other. I mean, come on, Loki needs a partner to smack some sense into him every once in a while. I think they’d work in a unique way. A real power couple. I seriously might change this to a better couple, but I’m not sure. All I know is that I like this ship….but I like #3 more.

Alright, now onto the top 10.

#10 - Victor “Chase” Stein and Gertrude Yorkes -  When I found out that the Runaways were going to be adapted into the MCU, I got super excited! I love the comics, and I couldn’t wait to see how the show was going to turn out. I was satisfied with most things, including the romance between Chase and Gert. Their romance in the comics was/is beautiful and sad, so I couldn’t wait to see it. Gert and Chase are polar opposites in a charming way, with Chase originally being shown as a stuck up jock and Gert as a tumblr fueled activist, but they seem to bring their true selves out by being love struck and oblivious dorks. It’s so cute when they finally wake up, like ‘Oh shit, the one I was looking for was right in front of me the whole time’ kinda wake up. They’re the kind of characters you just can’t picture with anyone else, the just work that well together. They’re the only couple in the show I love at the moment. Yes, I hate Deanoru. Come get me.

#9 - Robbie Reyes and Daisy Johnson -  While they’re not official, I can’t help but imagine how they’d look as a couple. By the time they meet in season 4, Daisy has lost too many people, and she has too many regrets and too much grief. She desperately wants to make it right, and is afraid to let people get close because it always ends with either her or them getting hurt. Her parents, the agents that died to save her as a child, the breakout of the inhumans due to her sending the terrigen crystals into the ocean, and finally, her boyfriend’s death. Going by the codename Quake, she uses her powers to try and make up for what she believes is all her fault. Robbie is a man trying to make up for getting into gang trouble, which resulted in his brother being paralyzed from the waist down in a deliberate crash meant to kill Robbie. After he is possessed by the Spirit of Vengeance and becomes known as Ghost Rider, he takes to the streets at night, killing gang members and slowly cleaning up the city of people that the Spirit of Vengeance deems guilty and unworthy of life. Their paths cross, and while they don’t start off on a good note, the two eventually team up to connect the dots in front of them. They’re so alike, and I believe that they would be good for one another. It’s her meeting Robbie that kinda snaps her out of the daze she’s in, and it’s ultimately each other that heals the other and gets them out of their rut. It’s a shame, because I know they’ll never be official, but I love them, and I will continue to ship them despite of that.

#8 - Peter Quill and Gamora -  If you’ve seen the films, I think you know why I don’t even need to explain these two…but I will a bit anyways. He’s goofy and carefree, but knows when to be mature, and she’s been trained her whole life to be a weapon, and is just now being able to finally have the family she’s always wanted, with Quill being someone who’s helping her realize she’s more than a monster. Avengers Infinity War broke my heart. When the two kissed, their relationship being established between Guardian’s Vol. 2 and Infinity War, I was so happy...until Gamora told Quill to kill her if Thanos ever got his hands on her. Sadly, it happened, but Thanos used the reality stone to keep it from happening. When Quill later learns that Thanos murdered Gamora to gain the Soul Stone...his cry of despair and grief as Tony tried to hold him back broke my heart. I think he was perfectly justified in flipping out like he did. They’re just another one of those couples that are a perfect example of soulmates, and I hope they are reunited.

#7 - Phillip Coulson and Melinda May -  These two are like FitzSimmons, always together. They have each other’s back, and they support each other in almost everything they do. They’re like the mom and dad of the group. And while they do fight, it’s in a very...married couple sort of way. I don’t think there’s ever been a better team up in S.H.I.E.L.D. history since them, and I’m glad their relationship isn’t rushed. Once they officially got together, it was easy to see that it was slowly building the whole time, even if it wasn’t too noticeable at first.

#6 - Vision and Wanda Maximoff -  Their relationship is so much like teenagers flirting, just in an...adult way? Maybe that was a bit confusing, but my point is, these two are adorable. Another couple that managed to stomp on my heart in Infinity War. Turns out, after Captain America Civil War, Wanda and Vision became an official couple and began to travel the world. Their relationship is pure and innocent love. Nothing dirty, no sex jokes, just...they’re so in love; you can see it whenever they’re in the presence of the other. Seriously, it’s like they’re looking at the whole world when they’re looking at the other. Cheesy, but it fits. In Infinity War, Wanda is the one who has to destroy the mind stone in Vision’s forehead, despite it still being a part of him. She doesn’t want to, but he tells her that she must “It shouldn’t be you, but it is.” And she’s, understandably, upset, so Vision comforts her with some of the most romantic words I’ve ever heard in the MCU “It's alright. You could never hurt me. I just feel you.” He knows that he’s about to die...yet he’s doing his damndest to make sure she’s comforted. And sadly, she uses her powers to destroy the stone and kill him…until Thanos uses the Time Stone to rewind time, revive Vision, then rip the Mind Stone out of his head, killing him in front of Wanda for a second time! I...I just want these two to be happy.

#5 - Tony Stark and Pepper Potts -  Just...watch any movie with these characters, and you’ll know exactly why I put them on this list. I can’t really anything else other than that they’re perfect for each other; and in my opinion, I don’t believe either character could ever work in a relationship with a different person. These two are the best canon couple in the MCU, hands down.

#4 - Leopold Fitz and Jemma Simmons -  These two are literally two halves of a whole. Where one struggles, the other supports and the two succeed. Hell, people in the show don't even refer to them as individuals, they're called FitzSimmons. Seriously, these two had a canon ship name from the beginning, the other characters thought they were a perfect match. If soul mates are a thing, these two are definitely it. These two characters have been through so much in the first 4 seasons, and when they finally got together in season 3 after the massive cliffhanger in season 2; I cheered. Ever since, the two have continued to be a model of relationship goals. Fitz has put his life on the line several times in order to protect and rescue Simmons, literally jumping through an alien portal to find her on the other side of the universe. Simmons is no different. She suffered through a computer world that showed her death and made Fitz hate her, yet she managed to get through to him and save him. I haven't seen season 5 yet, but I do know that the two of them get married, and let me just say....it's about damn time!

#3 - Bruce Banner/Hulk and Valkyrie -  These two...need to be canon. I’m sorry (Pfft, no I’m not), but I...I really despise Bruce/Natasha. Their interactions feel so forced...it’s just awful! But these two? It’s so natural and amazing! Hulk and Valkyrie have known each other for couple years by the time Thor Ragnarok rolls around, and they’re so playful! Hulk doesn’t hate her, he smiles at her, and whenever she’s called to his room, she becomes happy and the two playfully spar and even have nicknames for each other. And once Bruce returns from being Hulk, he and Valkyrie immediately go “Do I know you? I feel like I know you!” And they get along perfectly from there. Seriously, when Bruce sees Valkyrie for the first time, he’s in complete awe! He notices the markings around her eyes and asks Thor about them, describing them and her as “beautiful and strong”. Seriously, in this one movie, Hulk/Valkyrie was shown to be more natural and smooth than Bruce/Natasha. These two would be in the category of being friends first and then a couple later on. The Hulk likes her, Bruce likes her, and neither have a problem with her, and she doesn’t have the problem with either of them. It works out. Also, in the first few movies where Bruce is shown…he’s always forced to become the Hulk by someone, but in Thor: Ragnarok, Bruce changes into the Hulk willingly. I can’t help but think that Valkyrie’s acceptance of both personalities might have had a small hand in it. Oh well, I’m stupid, moving on.

#2 - Peter Parker and Molly Hernandez -  A crack ship I made, but a cute one. Peter is Spiderman in the MCU, obviously, while Molly is a character in Marvel’s Runaways, being Gert’s adopted sister with Hulk-like strength. Both of these characters are young people swept up in horrible situations, and learning to cope with powers, abilities, and responsibilities they didn’t have before. I think it would be cute and emotional for the two of them to bond over their shared experiences. I’ve got so many story ideas for this cute pair. Also, I just...don’t like Michelle that much. I don’t know why, she just seems so...ugh, I’m gonna get hate for this, but I don’t like how they dealt with her in the movie. Also, now that I think about it, I’ve never really liked MJ in any Spiderman film, so...yeah. Anyways, I think Peter and Molly would be adorable together. Moving on.

#1 - James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes and Princess Shuri - My OTP in the MCU...and I don’t regret a fucking thing for shipping it. Shuri is canonly the one who gets all of HYDRA’s programming out of his head, built him his new arm, and taught him about Wakanda in the MCU...and I can’t help but love that there’s finally another person for Bucky to be close with that isn’t Steve. I love their friendship, but I’m happy that Bucky is finally free from HYDRA and can finally depend on an befriend other people; expand a little. The little after credits scene at the end of Black Panther had me squealing and imagining all the scenarios for their relationship. I went back and saw it a second time to see that scene again (I also saw it a second time because that movie was fucking awesome, but seeing the scene again was good^^!). Shuri is officially my favorite female character in the MCU. Also, fun fact, me mentioning that I like this ship had given me so much shit on here. I’ve been called a pedophile, a pedophilic enabler, and a stucky fan once told me to kill myself...it’s fucking hilarious. I’ve never been in a fandom shipping war before, so it was an amazing anf funny experience XD I love these two so much, and no 12 year old on tumblr is going to change my mind. These two, I could see their relationship developing over time and it’s just...I would love to see these two develop together.

[yetanothercomicbook]

Exodus

Fantastic Four #240

A mixed bag. Some parts are fun, some parts don't work.

The main story here, the moving of the city of the Inhumans from the Earth to the moon, is goofy and fun sci-fi. It's a big idea, one that highlights the charm of the Marvel Universe.

Hero Fights Hero? Before all that happens, there's a very stupid fight. Ridiculous, in fact. Quicksilver breaks into the FF HQ and seems shocked to find an orange-skinned monster there. Huh?! Even sillier, because the lights are off the rest of the FF join the battle and fail to recognise Quicksilver. Rarely has a script strained so unconvincingly to jam unnecessary action into a comic.

Saturday Morning Cartoon Logic: Quicksilver ran for a full week to reach the FF. A full week? In a dire emergency? Why didn't he just run to the nearest phone?

The script also pays lip-service to a storyline started by a previous writer on the series. Frustratingly, this means that a lot of events happen “off camera” and are related to us in flashback. It would have been better if Byrne has just dealt with the old cliffhanger and devoted an full issue to that storyline.

John Byrne (10 of 68). 

4/10

[rosezure]

Angel of Darkness Pt.2

Welcome to Part 2 of Angel of Darkness. First of all, thank you so so much for reading, it means a lot to me. Second of all (idk if this expression exists but oh well!), I hope you enjoy this part.

Summary: A year after the Accords fiasco, Tony reaches for the phone Steve had given him and dials the number he had memorized during sleepless nights. As much as he hated to admit it, only he could help them now. A new threat had appeared and he knew they would need all the help they could get.

Warning: Swearing, violence, mentions of rape and molestation, blood and gore, mentions of panic attacks, depression, suicide, and anxiety.

Disclaimer: I used Google Translate for the Russian words so they may be wrong. I apologize in advance.

I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING MARVEL RELATED.

______________________________________________________________

Tony tried using whatever information the UN provided, but nothing came up. That is, until he thought enough was enough and hacked their system to search for files containing any suspicious data.

Once inside their main system, he froze completely as his eyes landed on a file named Nazi Germany- Science Projects. Why would the UN keep a file on all the science projects led by Nazi scientists? As far as he knew about scientific ethics, these files shouldn’t even exist anymore.

Nonetheless, his curiosity got the best of him and he opened the file to read through every one of their documents.

The content Tony read about could be used for over hundreds of R rated horror movies. He felt sick just by the prospect of these experiments actually having been conducted on innocent people. Hell, he couldn’t even imagine the world’s worst criminal going through that sort of pain and torture.

It was inhumane beyond belief.

His eyes stopped at an encrypted file. He narrowed his eyes and ordered F.R.I.D.A.Y to break into it. The AI successfully managed to overpower the file’s firewalls, but had some trouble bypassing the codes. Tony had to do it manually.

Once they had managed to open it up, Tony froze once again.

The file was named Shadow Project. There was a picture of a petite young woman with wide, fearful eyes, pouty lips, freckles, high cheek bones and wild curly hair. His eyes widened in horror at the information he read:

Subject: Luz Vitória Sousa.

Objetive: Produce the perfect asset.

Head of Experiment: Doctor Johann Schmidt.

Experiment Procedure:

Subject was submitted to hypnosis and psychological conditioning in order to be under complete control of its handlers.

A new machinery developed by Doctor Zola was used during the procedure. Its neuro-electric waves erased all emotionally linked memories, leaving behind only the essential and necessary ones to be then molded to the handlers needs.

Subject was then submitted to intense physical training. It was taught hand to hand combat, various forms of martial arts and knife throwing. The Subject’s petite body demonstrated great flexibility and balance.

It was also noted that the Subject’s weaknesses were near impossible to notice. However, all signs of weaknesses were extracted by Doctor Zola’s machine.

Subject was successfully induced with Doctor Zola’s super-serum. The Subject possesses enhanced senses, super-human strength, stamina, and immunity to 95% of the known diseases.

In addition to the serum, Doctor Zola and Doctor Schmidt created a serum that enabled the Subject to produce and control a substance known as Dark Myst. Subject’s body was injected with the serum and successfully accepted it.

Subject’s Triggers for Compliance:

The Subject is conditioned to comply after triggered by a series of words and circumstances. To achieve maximum cooperation, follow the instructions bellow.

The handler should recite the following sequence of words, each one perfectly pronounced:

1- помощь (aid)

2- призрак (ghost)

3- восемнадцать (18)

4- наступление ночи (night fall)

5- маяк (Lighthouse)

6- девять (9)

7- надежный (trustworthy)

8- семья (family)

9- один (one)

10- убийство (murder)

The asset must be kept in a locked up room with loud music playing during the entire compliance procedure.

Asset will say Я готов ответить (I am ready to answer) when ready to comply.

If the handler chooses to only say the words, the asset will only comply to simple orders. If the handler chooses to only provide the correct environment, the asset will be set on a blind killing spree, taking down targets that would be considered threats to its dormant conscious.

Results of Experiment:

Subject has been successfully transformed into the perfect asset. All tests have shown it can no longer age or degenerate.

Tony continued looking through all the available files that made reference to this Luz Vitória Sousa. He was determined to learn as much as he could about this mysterious young woman.

Tony Stark would bet one of his suits that the woman in the files and the woman they were told to hunt were the same people.

That is until one of the files seemed to be abruptly cut off. He was taken back, to say the least. He read it over and over again, making sure he didn’t miss a single detail. Unfortunately, the file simply ended mid-sentence. Whatever this project was, it had clearly been stopped by some superior force.

Something in his gut told him the woman had something to do with it.

Surely enough, the incomplete file was the very last one inside the Shadow Project archive. This couldn’t be a coincidence. And so, Tony’s brain began working in overload, running various scans on the picture of the enigmatic woman to see if anything popped up.

A teenager named Luz Vitória Sousa appeared on one of his screens, but the picture looked slightly older than the one he saw on the file. The girl looked like a younger version of the frightened woman he read about.

What seemed strange was that Luz Vitória Sousa was a bright Brazilian student who had mysteriously disappeared during her exchange program in the US. The files he read indicated that the woman they experimented on was found in a small village in Germany.

The teenager’s picture was attached to a news article.

Luz Vitória Sousa was an exchange student at George Washington High School, Brooklyn, New York City, from November 1934 to May 1935, when she disappeared under mysterious circumstances and was never found.

A body was never found and her family made no attempt to search for her. What caused even more suspicions was the fact that there was no diplomatic discussion concerning the case between The United States of America and The Federative Republic of Brazil.

Until this day, her case remains open in the State Police Department of New York City.

The news article was from 10 years ago, meaning her case was open for 71 years. How was that even legal? Tony asked himself. He read it again, pausing once something clicked inside his genius brain.

Brooklyn.

Steve Rogers was not expecting his (ex) friend Tony Stark to call him so soon. Sure it had been a full year since the political disagreement they had- more like war -but if he knew Tony, and he knew him, it would have taken him more than a year to make contact.

So, when the old piece of technology beeped to life, he couldn’t help but be startled. Who wouldn’t?

“Hello?” He answered gingerly.

“I need your help.”

A/N: DUN-DUN-DUN! Ooooh! A cliffhanger (sort of)!

I know it’s really late since I had basically promised I would post this part some time during the weekend (which was almost a week ago, yikes!). Uni has been just eating up my time, my professors need to chill and I need vacations.

I hope you guys enjoyed this. There wasn’t much action, but there was a lot more of Tony and his endless research, which I found quite entertaining to write, surprisingly. Anyways….

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for Part 3!

[inhumansforever]

Secret Warriors #10 Review

spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers

The Warriors continue their battle against Mr. Sinister, offered up by the creative team of Mathew Rosenberg, Javier Garrón, Will Robinson and Israel Silva.  Quick recap and review following the jump.

The last issue ended in a rather terrifying cliffhanger as it was revealed that the Inhuman children Sinister and The Dark Beast abducted had been transformed into living bombs.   The boy the Warriors had returned home was detonated... The Warriors were able to escape thanks to Magik’s teleportation powers, but we have to assume the kid and his family were all killed.  And two other kids also detonated, likely killing themselves and their families as well.  Which is freaking horrifying!  Furthermore, it has all resulted in the Secret Warriors being suspected terrorists sought out by the authorities…

The investigators have tracked the children back to the secret laboratory The Dark Best had used.  There, the authorities found all sorts of scientific equipment - all of which could be traced back to the Ennilux Corporation, a conglomerate founded, led and staffed by Inhumans.  This has left Ennilux looking extremely suspect and the local police in Venice converge on the Ennilux headquarters to make arrests, seize assets and investigate its involvement.  And all of this had been in accordance to Karnak’s plan.  

Ennilux had made the equipment that Sinister and the Dark Beast used and Karnak made sure that the authorities could track it back to them.  Furthermore, Karnak has arranged an intricate plan of asset re-allocation hiding the majority of the company’s corporate holdings.  Backed into a corner, Ahura, the current chief executive officer of Ennilux, is forced to go along with Karnak’s plan, authorizing the remainder of the assets to be transferred into the dummy fronts and extra-jurisdictional banks.  Karnak promises that doing so will act to save the company.  

Which it does.  Unfortunately for Ahura and the others, Karnak’s plan did not make allowances for the company’s employees and all of them are arrested… except for Karnak whom it would appear has arranged things so that he has complete control over Ennilux.

Meanwhile, back on New Attilan, The Warriors are recovering from the terrible ordeal of the kid they had saved blowing up.  Led by Iso, the forces of New Attilan has succeeded in rounding up the remainder of the children Sinister had abducted and now have them in healing pods to ensure their safety and undo whatever it was that had done to make them into bombs.  Iso chides the Warriors for their poor decisions, suggesting that it would have been wiser to have the kids checked out before sending them home.

Many of The Inhumans of New Attilan do not appear to be too happy with the Secret Warriors.   The Warriors had led the charge to liberate New Attilan at the end of the Secret Empire ordeal, but now their actions have left The Inhumans suspects in a string of terrorist bombings.  On top of that, Naja and Grid are still quite bitter toward Inferno for his abandoning them at the beginning of the Secret Empire takeover.    

Magik doesn’t have much interest in the affairs of The Inhumans, but she still feels responsible in that The Dark Beast had escaped custody on her watch.  She’s committed to making things right by ensuring that both the Beast and Mr. Sinister face justice for their terrible acts.  To this end, Magik gathers up Inferno and the two teleport to Venice to try to confront Karnak… also she ‘accidentally’ take the television remote with her…

The two don’t find Karnak in Venice but do encounter Ahura, who is in the midst of allowing Karnak to transfer holdings in the effort to save the company (he doesn’t yet realize that Karnak is going to betray him).  A quick skirmish arises between Ahura, Inferno and Magik when Ahura refuses them access to Karnak.   The Italian police are closing in and Magik and Inferno realize they are not going to get the answers they seek.  As they leave, however, Ahura does offer Inferno a clue, noting that Mr. Sinister may be found at a specific abandoned Shield facility in the states.  

The two return to New Attilan where they are once more admonished by Iso.  Inferno has had enough and storms off.  Ms. Marvel is concerned for him and wants to go talk with him, but Quake dissuades her, suggesting that Inferno just needs time to cool off.   Some time later, Ms. Marvel brings lunch to Inferno’s quarters.  She discovers that Quake is there and that the two had just had a role in the hey.  Ms. Marvel is kind of heartbroken and leaves in a huff.   Inferno is a bit confused by this and Quake explains that Ms. Marvel has had a bit of a crush on him and is likely jealous and saddened to see that he has hooked up with Quake instead.  

Quake then proceeds to make it very clear to Inferno that their getting together was merely a hook-up and not anything more.  She’s rather harsh in making this clear, so harsh that it appears Quake may be overcompensating - preventing herself from getting close to someone for fear of losing them the way she has lost so many others she has been close to in the past.  Of course this goes right over Inferno’s head and he is left hurt and angry by it all.  

Meanwhile, Moon Girl reveals that this whole time she has left Karnak’s son, Leer, in the care of her pal, Devil Dinosaur… who it turns out is the best babysitter ever.  

With Magik’s aide, Moon Girl recovers Leer and Devil D, bringing them both back to New Attilan.  

Still stewing over Quake’s comments, Inferno comes out to say hello to Leer.  Leer feels partially responsible for Sinister having abdusted Inferno’s niece, Ariella.  Of course none of this is Leer’s fault, but he feels that had Sinister been able to utilize Leer’s genome to unlock the secrets of Terrigenesis then Sinister would not need Ariella as a bargaining chip and none of this would have happened.  

Inferno tries to convince Leer not to blame himself.  Leer explains that what Sinister truly needs to fulfill his goal is a sample of Terrigen, the crystalline substance that triggers transformation in Inhumans.  Furthermore, Leer recounts a riddle his father used to tell him about how the Inhumans would bow before Terrigen when they knelt before the royal throne.  

It’s not a particularly difficult riddle and even Inferno is able to figure it out.  In short, a Terrigen Crystal has been hidden inside the Throne of Attilan.  Desperate to save his niece, Inferno makes the rash decision to obtain the crystal, steal a ship and head to Sinister’s secret lair, hoping that he might trade the crystal in exchange for his nieces’ freedom.  And it is with this gamble that the issue comes to a close, to be continued with the next installment.  

Although substantially lower in the action department, this is another thrilling installment of Secret Warriors, with lots of plot twists, some terrific laughs and a great deal of fun and interesting character development.  

All that has unfolded has been an intricate chess match between Karnak and Sinister with everyone else, from the Warriors to Ahura, Leer and Ariella, even the Dark Beast, made to be mere chess pieces, pawns, knights and rooks.  What the end game is, how the final gambit resolves is yet to be seen.  And once more I’m left at the end of the issue very much looking forward to the next one.  

As deduced by Moon Girl, Karnak’s goal is the recreation of a means for Terrigenesis... a way to offer his people a new future.  Apparently to achieve this goal Karnak has needed to steal the Enillux Corporation and all its holdings, leaving poor Ahura to twist.  One would think that with his psychic abilities Ahura might have foreseen Karnak’s betrayal.  As it stands, it looks as though Ahura is out at Ennilux.  

Mr. Sinister’s goal, as we learn from Leer, is to unlock the secrets of Terrigenesis.  Sinister’s purpose has always been the advancement of the Mutant genome and perhaps he is hoping that there might be something in the mutagenic properties of Terrigen that will further facilitate Mutant evolution.   Whatever the case, Leer may be much more like his father than he lets on.  He plays up being all innocent and naive, but I’m starting to suspect that he may be as much a manipulator as his father.  He all but spells out to Inferno what it is that Sinister wants and how Inferno can get it to him.  

Anyways, let get into the juiciest part of the issue…  Daisy and Dante totally hook up!  Wha!?! 

Wow, that was fast (figuratively and literally).  Nine issues of rather subtle hints the two were into one another and them *boom* before you know the two have knocked the preverbal boots.  Must admit I did not see that coming (ahem).

Daisy is rather forward in letting Dante know that their getting together was simply a means of stress-relief and not to read more into it.  Daisy’s being so harsh with him leaves me feeling that she is actually trying to protect herself. 

 Everyone who Daisy has cared for has been taken away from her, and the prospect of being in a romantic relationship is likely very daunting to her.    Understandably, she doesn’t want to get hurt again so she keeps a distance by pushing Dante away.  Of course this is not how the mind nor heart actually works, but people often act irrationally when trying to protect themselves from emotional hardship.  

Unfortunately, Dante is an impulsive guy who doesn’t always think things through.  Daisy’s efforts to protect herself are kind of overt, but it flies over Dante’s head and he just reacts to base insult of feeling rejected.  Which is understandable… Dante’s in a pretty anxious place.  He is so worried about his niece that it’s difficult for him to be mindful of the bigger picture.  And this also helps to explain how he could be so dense over why seeing him together with Daisy might be hurtful for Kamala.  

My fellow Ms. Marvel fans are likely to object to the idea that Kamala could have had a crush on Dante.  Kamala doesn’t want to date anyone.  She’s rather traditional in her attitudes toward romance, seeing it as something that should be waited on.  Yet that doesn’t preclude her from having passing fancies on cute boys.  She’s crushed pretty heavily on Kamran, and Kareem after that.   Tall dark and handsome is definitely her type and Dante very much fits the bill.  Of course he’s too old for her and I doubt Kamala had any real interest in the two getting together, but that certainly doesn’t stop her from feeling hurt when seeing he has been with someone else… especially when that someone else is Daisy, someone who has very much been Kamala’s opposite in terms of attitudes and values.  That must really sting.      

I’m kind of a sucker for these soap opera style tropes.  Matt Rosenberg has such a great feel for these character and knack for dialogue.  It all becomes fun, funny and totally engrossing.  

Not to be outdone by the writing, Javier Garrón’s illustration continues to impress.  The action scenes at the Enniulx headquarters are especially cool.  And I love the wall art Enilux has chosen to hang up in their foyer.  ‘Hey, you know what would really bring the room alive... a big ol' group portrait of The Celestials.’   This is a great touch.  

Garrón’s use of exaggerated facial contortions to relay emotion and add punchlines to the jokes just kills me.  I didn’t think Daisy’s look of exasperation toward Kamala in the previous issue could be topped, but Lunella’s reaction to Daisy and Dante’s hook-up is just priceless.

Once again, I’m totally looking forward to the next issue and another terrific job by Rosenberg, Garrón and company.  Highly recommended.  Four and a half out of five Lockjaws.  

[agl03]

Hi! I was wondering if you had an idea of how many pods they'll do for Season 5? Since the first is 10 episodes, I'm guessing they'll do 2-3. If it's three, the last two to cover six episodes each. Also, I have a feeling that the second half of the season will be Fitz centric. I remember in Season 4 they spent the first pod building up his story and then gave him a more central role. I suspect they'll do the same thing here by introducing Alistair early and then making him the main big bad.

Hi Anon,

I really don’t know how many pods they will do of if they will go back to the A and B like we had for Seasons 1-3.  My personal take was the pods were a happy accident last season.   I do believe that when they ended Season 3 Season 4 was going to be LMD and Framework alone (which makes sense considering how the whole Framework ended and we simply ran out of time there).  But during Hiatus they were given Ghost Rider to work in, that was Pod A and they wove them together with everyone’s not so favorite evil catchall book, the Darkhold.  The Pods were also easily broken up due to a few really long hiatus’s.  Holiday and then the month of March.  

With us coming back late, we wont’ have that.  So while they can absolutely leave us with a major cliffhanger, we’ll be back the next week to move on.  I did the math and due to our late start we’ll have maybe 1-3 weeks of after January in order to get us to May.  

The cast said they’ll be “Lost in Space” for at least 10 episodes but they could also end and start a new pod while there.   

Yes, the set up for Fitz last season was a slow build and subtle, it went down pretty much as I predicted…just in a much much much more painful way.  The reason I’m not able to map it out essentially like I did last season is the writers have changed tact.  They are “taking us on the adventure” with the team.  We learn things with them (its as if they don’t want me figuring it out or something!).  They didn’t leave clues for me to work on all hiatus.  I also felt I had a pretty good handle on where the Radcliffe arc was going to go once we learned he had gotten close to Fitz in the tag of 3.22.

They also haven’t given me much to go on when it comes to Fitz for Season 5.   We learned at NYCC he was left behind.  That’s it.  Not if he was left in the diner or if he was turned over to someone…we likely won’t learn that until we get and episodic press release, promo, or the episode itself.  However, Fitz being alone on earth is giving him an arc of his own right off the bat.  HIs primary focus will be getting to the others while dealing with the guilt from the Framework.  After that…we’ll have to see what his role becomes once he rejoins the others.   We do need to remember that the guys that took the team didn’t need/want him so him crashing through the portal may not be a welcome site or throw another wrench into their plans (that already seem to be going to pot).  

I wish I could answer as to when and IF Alistair is coming back.  But right now I really just can’t.  I can’t just as easily work him into the narrative and tied up with the Spacenappers as I can we never see him again.  Its simply too early to speculate with too little information on that front.  

Its also a bit too early to speculate who the season is going to have that subtle centric role (and remember whoever that person is usually suffers big time).  Again, I don’t have the clues I did going into season 4…I saw mad science coming a mile away.  My hunch right now is that Coulson will be the subtle core of this season like Fitz was for Season 4.  That thing that he needed to “Tell them when the time is right” and why the Rider accepted the deal popping back up in a big way.  While at the same time everyone will have story arcs of their own that take turns being at the forefront as the story progresses.  

As for our big bad….that is under lock and key right now.  They haven’t announced anyone but they are likely in the mix at this point.  It goes too they don’t want us learning about him/her until the team does.   I think our big bad is up in the “Lost in Space” arc, who/what is threatening humanity and caused the team to be Spacenapped to help with.  We also have ourselves a big bad back on earth that is simply lurking.  The Superior’s head and whatever his bots got away with in 4.22 is still out there.  He and AIDA had a plan to recreated the world of the Framework, where Inhumans were hunted and she was in control.  Her dying wont’ stop him from proceeding one little bit.  Us the Audience know that the head is out there…NONE of the team does.  And for me IF Alistair were to return I see that happening more with the earth based/Superior arc than Lost in Space.  That could change if we get more evidence but for now its where I’m at.

[daskpr01]

Spring 2017 Top 10/9

I think is pretentious of me to pretend I know what I’m talking about here, and I didn’t really watch enough this season to really do a fair comparison on what was the actual “best” anime. This is just me ranking the few I watched in order of personal enjoyment.

[WARNING: SPOILERS]

10. Nothing Sadly, I only watched 12 anime this season, three of which (Sagrada Reset, My Hero Academia 2, and Yugioh VRAINS), are continuing into the next season so I have nothing to put here!

9. Attack on Titan 2 Honestly, I just don’t care for this series in general. It’s enjoyable to watch, but lacks any real substance for me. I did like the second season a little more than the first. Though the first season was much better at telling the story, leaving each new episode on a dramatic cliffhanger, but season 2 was better in terms of character development. I finally was able to find myself being somewhat invested in the characters which was impressive to me. Plot wise, it didn’t really go anywhere, besides revealing things we had already speculated about (or had spoiled for us) long ago. Let’s see how things go in season 3.

8. Grimoire of Zero I was pretty excited fit this one quite a while before it came out. I really liked the idea of an inhuman protagonist that actually had s bestial appearance and I felt the concept was finally something different from typical fantasy anime. And for the most part it was. It was well paced with depth, emotion, some beautifully portrayed scenes and engaging plot developments. Up until the final episode… It suddenly felt rushed and seemed to me like the written fell back on predictable cliches just to quickly move along the story. Then we’re just with a surprisingly unsatisfying conclusion. [SPOILER] Mercenary’s motivation was to become human, so not being able to see his desire fulfilled was rather disappointing to me. I understand this an adaptation of a light novel so I assume the story goes well beyond the end of the anime, but with the possibility of a second season being rare, it feels rather incomplete. (Also, no kiss between Mercenary and Zero??) [/SPOILER] Everything else was great though, so it’s really disappointing that the ending wasn’t as good for me.

7. Anonymous Noise I think this one was good and any issues are probably more personal than anything. The protagonist’s, Nino’s, obsession with one of the love interests, Momo, could get pretty annoying especially when the better guy, Yuzu, kept getting the short end of the stick. I feel like the story was kind of unfair to his character, like they only tease at the possibility of him “winning” the affections of Nino, but not really giving him a fighting chance. I dunno, maybe feeling these emotions actually makes this show good! It was dramatic and enjoyable to watch, plus pretty good music as well. I’ll definitely reading the manga at some point. (P.S. I ship Momo x Yuzu LOL)

6. Starmyu 2 For some reason, I’m having a hard time figuring out what to say about this one. I don’t feel like it hit me as hard as the first season, but there was a lot of great things about this season. It sort of had a rather “romantic” concept (not the love kind). Seeing Hoshitani realize the truth and come to peruse and realize his dream is beautiful. There were also several emotionally moving moments that got me a little choked up. It delivered about what I expected, a nice conclusion to the only unresolved plotline from season 1 and drawing the final curtains on the series.

5. Natsume Yujincho Roku This is such a hard anime to talk about due to its episodic nature. To be honest, I end up liking some episodes more than others which make it difficult for me to really judge a season as a whole. Overall, I think I liked a majority of the episodes in this season. I really enjoy episodes about his past or about Reiko. We also get to see a lot of interaction between Natsume and Natori this season and a furthering of their relationship (as friends). Plus plenty of good feelsy story as per usual. We also get a pretty interesting “reveal” in the last episode that make me anxious for more. I hope they don’t stop adapting this lovely series, I would like to stick with the anime through it’s completion.

4. The Royal Tutor It started out as such a cute, funny bishie anime, but as it progressed, the hints of a more serious plot line that really sucked me in. Although the manga is still continuing, the series built up to a rather well done filler ending that was pretty emotional. In this day and age when anime rarely go beyond a 12 episode season, I really respect the writers decision to do a filler ending, especially one as satisfying as this. The characters were all likable as well, and there were a lot of good messages throughout which are both very important aspects to me in a story. I think this one surprised me the most in how good it ended up being, definitely enjoyed it a lot.

3. Berserk 2017 I feel like I’m one of the only people who like the new Berserk anime. Sure, the CGI is a little clunky, but the story of Berserk is still incredibly awesome. I’m not yet familiar with the manga, but from what I’ve heard, the adaptation was extremely accurate. Personally, I don’t find the animation to take away from the badass moments. I really enjoyed this season. Schierke was an interesting new character and it was great seeing more Serpico in action, plus I finally got my introduction to the Berserker armor. Berserk is just a great story regardless. Hopefully we’ll get a new season next spring as well.

2. Tsukigakirei I feel like the romance and slice-of-life genres have been overused in recent years, but here we had nice, more realistic portrayal of romance. It really illustrated the awkward and dramatic, as well as the innocence of adolescent romance. The interactions between the leads was very believable and much was relatable. I remember experiencing a lot of the same things the protagonists went through, bringing back feels and frustration (in a good way). I also feel like their relationship reflect a lot of modern romance with much of their interaction occurring through text. If I were to have one problem with it, it would be [SPOILER] that they get married in the end. I know, I know, blasphemy, right? But realistically I don’t feel that would happen. Long distance relationships don’t tend to work out, nor do people often stay with their first love or “high school” sweetheart. I dunno, perhaps I just have a cynical view of relationships in real life. Tone wise I think the ending was fitting, but personally, I would have left it open ended or give it a more bittersweet end were they just grow apart and eventually go their separate ways to reflect the truth of real life. [/SPOILER] Still a great romance story and worth watching.

1. KADO: The Right Answer Oh gosh, I wonder if I’ll get complaints for putting this as my #1… I’m truly baffled by how much hate this show is getting because I loved it. I was curious about this show because the synopsis alone sounded new and different, and I ended up being sucked in by the first episode. It did have a bit of a slow period in the middle, but (and I know this a minority opinion) it really picked up in the second half. I wasn’t all that interested in zaShunina in the first half, but he really developed into a fascinating and tragic character that I really found myself feeling for in the end. It utilized interesting sci-fi concepts as well as some spirituality. I really appreciate the blending seemingly contradictory ideas. The plot twists totally blew my mind too. I had a feeling from the beginning that this was going to be a great show and it really delivered for me, it’s sad that it didn’t for a lot of people though. Personally, I feel that has a lot to do with the fact the show kills the zaShunina/Shindou ship… Forgive me for not being a big shipper, so I wasn’t bothered by any of the plot developments in the series [SPOILERS] i.e. zaShunina becoming an antagonist, Shindou’s relationship with Tsukai, or killing off both protagonists. In fact, I really respect the boldness of killing off your main characters. It’s a refreshing idea you don’t often get to see and I feel like not every story needs a happy ending. [/SPOILER] I thought Kado was great and is my favorite for this season.

Welp, those are my opinions, so tell me what you think if you like.

[wbwest]

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West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 5/5/17

In TV news, we got the first trailer for Marvel’s The Defenders series on Netflix. I dunno, y’all. I’ll be the first person to tell you that I’m behind on these shows. At this point, I’ve only seen Daredevil season 1 and Jessica Jones. No DD S2, no Luke Cage, and no Iron Fist. Sorry, kids, but there just aren’t enough hours in the day. Daredevil was a worthy bingeing experience, as each episode ended on a cliffhanger that MADE you have to check out the next episode immediately. Jessica Jones, not so much. It took me about 3 months to get through that show. Now, I enjoyed it, but it didn’t demand that I consume it immediately. I’m eager to catch Luke Cage, but I wanna go in order, so that means I’ve got to meet the Punisher and Elektra first in Daredevil season 2. So, even though The Defenders comes out in August, I’ll be lucky if I get to it in 2017. Anyway, I told you all that to make you see that my level of enthusiasm for this probably isn’t as high as yours because I’m so far behind. That said, I thought this trailer looked hokey as Hell. The scene where Murdock comes into Jessica’s interrogation felt like a bad fan film. Shit, the whole thing felt like a bad fan film. Remember when Playstation Network aired that Bendis Powers show? Yeah, it looks like that. Something about the cinematography of it all. And then they had to do another goddamn hallway fight. WE GET IT ALREADY! I just don’t know about this one right now..

In other TV news, there are talks of a Roseanne revival, with ABC and Netflix interested bidding on the project. Laurie Metcalf, Aunt Jackie herself, reported that contracts have been worked out, so now they’re just trying to sell the series. Right now, Roseanne (does she currently have a last name?), John Goodman, and Sara Gilbert would star, while Metcalfe says she’s on board in some capacity. It’ll be interesting to see how they pull this off, ya know with Dan being dead and all. Still, it ended with one of the most maligned series finales in television history, and they’ve got a chance to basically erase it. How many shows can say that? Anyway, I was never a huge Roseanne fan. They were just so poor and depressing. Are they gonna lose the bike shop? Are they gonna lose the loose meat restaurant? Is Fisher gonna stop beating up Jackie? I know their struggles resonated with certain folks, but not me. I actually liked the Lottery Season because I could say “Thank God their lives aren’t such shit anymore!” Anyway, I’d bet money on this happening, so it’s now just a matter of where it’s gonna air. The big question is in which “universe” it will be set. After all, the finale basically laid out that everything since about season 4 of the show had been a lie, since Darlene actually ended up with Mark, Becky was the one with David, Jackie was a lesbian, etc. So, would we get the “true” Roseanne, or just more of what we’re used to? And with Mark dead, and David on The Big Bang Theory, I don’t really expect much from those characters anyway. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

I was on my own last weekend, so I took the time to watch TV and catch up comics. Well, I didn’t really watch TV, but it was on in the background. It provided the soundtrack to my comic time. What did I watch? CMT – Country Music Television. Yeah, yeah, you hate country. I don’t care. I grew up on it, so it has a special place in my heart. Anyway, when I saw Brad Paisley’s new video for “Last Time For Everything”, I KNEW I had to share it with y’all. This thing is a love letter to children of the 80s, complete with tracking/tape distortion lines. I don’t wanna spoil anything, so just check it out. Don’t worry – the song’s not about drankin’, or a dead dog, or his wife left him; it’s just a song about appreciating things when you have them because they won’t always be there.

The backdoor pilot for the Black-ish spinoff aired this week. Oh, you don’t know what a “backdoor pilot” is? It’s when an established show gives up one of its episodes to try to launch a new show. Since it already has a built-in audience, it kinda tricks viewers into watching a new show that they otherwise wouldn’t have checked out. Married…with Children had, like, 4 of them. Anyway, in Black-ish, Zoey went off to check out college, made a new best friend, and pissed off the Black Student Union. The whole episode was kinda hokey, but it worked. Chris Parnell was the spineless dean, which is basically every Chris Parnell character these days. And I love how they worked Deon Cole’s Charlie into the plot. If the spinoff gets picked up (I mean, why wouldn’t it?), I hope he gets a bigger role there than he has on Black-ish. If Black-ish is a modern-day Cosby Show, then this is its A Different World. And there ain’t nothing wrong with that, really.

If you like useless gimmick items as much as I do, then make sure you pick up your Frork from McDonalds today. To celebrate the release of their three new Signature Crafted Recipes (Pico Guacamole, Sweet BBQ Bacon, and Maple Bacon Dijon), they’re releasing a utensil that they know nobody needs, but hey, why not? The Frork is basically a fry holder, where the fries act as the tines of the fork. In the infomercial, complete with Anthony Sullivan appearance, they claim the Frork will help you scoop up the toppings that fall off your overflowing sandwich. I swear Anthony Sullivan killed Billy Mays ‘so he’d get ALL that sweet infomercial work. But I digress…If you would like a Frork, check this link to see if one of your local McDonalds locations is giving them out today.

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

HBO has hired writers for FOUR potential Game of Thrones spinoffs. So, get ready for Match of Chairs, Bout of Seats, Mother of Dragons and, my personal favorite, Tits & Swords.

Warner Bros has pushed back its theatrical animated Scooby-Doo film two years to 2020.

Girl Meets World is officially dead, as creator Michael Jacobs was unable to find a new home for the series.

While this news is about a month old, FXX has decided against a fourth season of Man Seeking Woman, which wrapped up its 3rd season in March. The season finale was a fitting series finale, so I ain’t mad.

Hot on the heels of its premiere, Hulu has renewed The Handmaid’s Tale for a second season.

Surprising no one, Fox canceled the freshman drama Pitch, about the first female major league baseball player. Following on their heels, NBC canceled the Wizard of Oz update Emerald City.

It was reported that Gabriel Luna’s Ghost Rider will be returning to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. for the season finale

Speaking of Marvel TV, we got our first cast picture from Inhumans. KILL IT! KILL IT WITH FIRE!

We also got our first look at the cast of Marvel’s Runaways on Hulu. They look like the comic, but I still hate that they aged Molly. I like her more as a precocious child to balance them out.

A strike by the Writers Guild of America, which would’ve affected all corners of entertainment, was narrowly averted at the 11th hour

Morning Joe hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski revealed that they’re engaged. Man, they shit in the company ink! That’s the saying, right?

The biggest TV news of the week was that Ryan Seacrest was announced as Kelly Ripa’s permanent cohost on what will now be called Live with Kelly & Ryan. This bothered me so much! First of all, I was really kinda hoping an underdog, like Fred Savage, would get it. And if they had to go with a media person, they had Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen on the list. But Seacrest?! The dude’s empire is based in LA and, yes, he has an empire. He’s a modern-day Merv Griffin, producing Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Shades of Blue, and Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest. He also has a daily syndicated radio show, On Air With Ryan Seacrest, as well as hosts the weekly American Top 40 countdown. With all that going on, you’d think he’d stay in LA instead of taking a job from a New Yorker. Instead, iHeartMedia has built a radio station in the ABC Studios building so that he can do his radio show immediately after taping Live. The plan is for him to stay in New York Monday-Thursday to film Live, he’ll pretape Friday’s show on Thursday, and then he’ll spend Friday-Sunday in LA.

But that’s not ALL the Seacrest news this week. You see, talks of an American Idol revival have heated up again. I wrote about it a few weeks ago, when NBC and Fox were both interested in the show – NBC especially because they could, then, reduce The Voice to one cycle a year. Those talks fell through, but now it appears that ABC has gotten into the game, with one stipulation: there’s no Idol without Seacrest, so the show would have to move to New York so he could continue to host. The show’s production company, Fremantle, insists that it stays in LA. ABC wants to announce it during the May upfronts, which occur in two weeks, for a Fall 2018 premiere (yeah, it ain’t gonna be ready by this Fall). So here’s the plan on how that would work: Fremantle wants to air Idol on Sunday nights from LA, where Seacrest would then fly to NYC after the show in order to make it in time to film Live Monday morning. After filming Monday’s Live, he would then fly back to LA for the Idol results show. Once that’s over, he would fly back to NYC in time for Tuesday’s Live. My God! The live portion of Idol is only 10 weeks, but that is a grueling schedule that I wouldn’t wish on anyone. So far, however, it seems that ABC’s plan would be to air Idol on Mondays, to go head to head with The Voice, so this plan wouldn’t work.

Say what you will about Seacrest, but I’ve always admired the dude’s work ethic. He doesn’t seem to know the word “no”, and he’s constantly building his brand. With the exception of the short-lived On Air With Ryan Seacrest TV show (which is conveniently missing from his Wikipedia entry), he doesn’t really fail at anything. I guess hard work and determination really can take you places. I’ll tell ya, back when he was hosting Click and Gladiators 2000, I had NO CLUE he would become as big as he is. He makes me wanna go out and get 3 more jobs. Then again, I wouldn’t have his net worth of $330 million, but it’d be a start. Anyway, for taking all the jobs, while growing in power, Ryan Seacrest had the West Week Ever.