#without the complex and fascinating character developments that you obviously dislike.

[unnecessarilygrandiose]

finished dark heir just now and googled if there's any updates from the author on the last book of the trilogy and clicked a reddit link to check... got gobsmacked with the worst possible opinion in human history... never talk to anyone about a piece of media you like Ever

[hetchdrive]

SLEEPOVER SATURDAY YAYYYY I have 2.

1. Because I’m still stuck in fucking Texas, top 3 best US states

2. Top potential AU’s for The Terror

Oh noooooo wishing you a speedy departure tomorrow!

I've lived a lot of places and done a lot of road tripping and without further details on which to define "best" I'm going to go with the three states I feel the most personal connection to and say Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan. I love Lake Superior, I grew up in that area and sometimes I am very homesick for it. I've been trying to develop the same feeling of connection to the landscape in New England since transplanting and I'm not going to lie, it is rough going. I keep saying I am going to try to get into hiking and rock identification so I can see the mountains and maybe 2024 is the year I buckle down and do that.

First off: Star Trek AU obviously. I'm really bad at coming up with plots and writing long fics but I am beginning to take notes for a Star Trek AU in case the Terror SciFi Fest happens again this upcoming May.

Secondly: Ghosts/spiritualism/haunted house AU. While I do enjoy a good modern AU from time to time, to me part of the draw of The Terror is the time period it is set. I am fascinated by the Victorian era, the advances in medicine during the time period, the rise in popularity of ghosts and ghost stories, and I think I'd get a lot of enjoyment out of researching to write an AU that takes advantage of this somehow.

Also, I am obsessed with haunted houses as they are used to represent familial trauma, codependence, grief and loneliness, etc etc, and I think it would be fun to take Crozier out of The Horrors only to put him into a different flavor of The Horrors <3

Lastly: Musicians/orchestra AU. Gonna be honest, I do not have any of the requisite knowledge to write this and it does not interest me enough to do this research. I want somebody else to write this so I can read it. However, I saw a post once that was the show writer going through and saying what each character's job would be if they lived in the modern day and what he said about Fitzjames was that he'd be a surgeon or somebody else with very specialized knowledge, someone who is the best at something. And while yeah, a specialist surgeon is this, and specialist surgeons are, in my experience, divas with complexes, for reasons of personal taste (dislike of the medical field irl and preference for show contemporary AUs over modern ones) I think it would be more interesting to just skip over the medical layer and make Fitzjames a diva with a complex.

This man plays the violin and he is the best at it and he and Crozier cannot stand each other because Crozier has been playing longer, does not care about the limelight, and actively scorns Fitzjames for doing so. I just have this idea in my head of Fitzjames saying to someone else that Crozier plays a perfectly serviceable, workmanlike violin, but he obviously doesn't truly care for it, he doesn't play with any passion, and Fitzjames who has been doing this his whole life and made it his whole life, the only thing he's ever been good at that he's had to hang all his hopes on, finds that intolerable. Meanwhile Crozier cares about the violin very deeply but doesn't really show it to anybody and keeps to himself because loving music and loving your coworkers are two different things.

Additional inspiration for this idea is the fact that when Phantom of the Opera shut down on Broadway a couple months ago (last year? What is the passage of time...) I saw a news article about it which said some of the people in the orchestra had been playing the show together since it started running in 1986. The drama within that pit must have been insane and I desperately want to read about it.

[basuralindo]

Hi hi Echo!!! for the character ask meme!!! How about Jade? :o

Heeeey thank you!! Sorry this took forever to answer! (I'm always happy to talk about Jade lmao)

What I love about them: He's so fucking weird. I already went off about the eel and monster mermaid thing in my last ask about Floyd, but that's definitely a thing for Jade too. I love how fascinated he is with the surface world and all the things he never saw before. And just the way he's so false and malicious and reserved, but seems to have a very genuine love of wonder, I like that he displays a more realistically multifaceted personality, instead of just being evil for the sake of evil or whatever. Like, his psychology is fun to observe, I guess? Again, I have a lot of thoughts about this, but they're hard to explain right now. I just appreciate that he's complex and interesting and obviously came from a traumatic background, but like his brother, he seems to have warped his feelings towards it in a way that leaves him uninterested in lamenting any of it, but not really able to connect with most of society. I also like that the result of it all is him being a quiet little chaos gremlin who makes problems on purpose. He's just, fun.

What I hate about them: I'm... not a huge fan of sadism. I generally dislike sadistic characters automatically, but Jade's fun and interesting enough to bypass that feeling somehow. It makes him a challenge to write, for sure, cause half of it is me projecting autism and seriously low empathy, but then I have to just fumble and guess for sadism and horniness.

Favorite Moment/Quote: This bitch really went and risked everyone's life including his own for the chance to poison a ghost. Out of curiosity. And then bragged about it in front of her and had the audacity to act shocked and betrayed when he got slapped. I don't even know if that's my favorite moment. He's always pulling something. I also love his sledathon moments of eagerly recommending sabotage with Idia. And just found his halloween vignette really interesting for lore.

What I would like to see more focus on: I actually enjoy the level of mystery they've left with Jade. I'm always curious to know everything about the tweels' background, but the way he teases alarming information really adds to his charm overall. I'd love to see him experience genuine emotions to an extent he couldn't hide though, just because I wanna turn him inside out and see what's going on in there. (I'd also love to see him interact with Jamil more, but that's for shipping reasons, not overall story experience)

What I would like to see less focus on: I'm sure something will pop into my head in the middle of the night while I'm about to fall asleep, but right now I can't think of anything that's bothered me yet.

Favorite pairing with: Azul, and Jamil. And Trey is growing on me a bit.

Favorite friendship: I want him to be friends with Lilia so badlyyyyy. Also after sledathon I'm really enjoying whatever the fuck is going on with him and Idia.

NOTP: I can't think of any I've seen around and hated? I'm sure there could be, but nothing immediately comes to mind. RIP to anyone who gets shipped with the guy tbh.

Favorite headcanon: I have a whole theory planned out for the fic about his backstory and the development of his UM, but I'm not gonna spoil that here. Barely off canon but I think he can cook, technically, but wants to experiment too much and it comes out nightmarish. Partially because of the experimental factors, partially because he's only had access to a stove for two years of his life and doesn't have the experience to go off script without disaster. Same goes for drinks.

[llycaons]

ooh 16 and 21 for cql/mdzs??

16. you can’t understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

ugh so many. well actually that's a lie, I dislike a lot of headcanons and characterizations, like lwj not telling wwx that he hates spicy food and eating it without complaining, because I see why people consider them romantic or sweet even if I do not. but jin ling/lsz and jc/lxc...man those are completely beyond me. if we ignore that jl and lsz are practically cousins, and we ignore that jc and lxc have a vague but clearly significant age gap, there's still ABSOLUTELY nothing there. utterly baffles me why those ships are so popular. like it's completely flavorless and devoid of anything passionate or interesting or even sweet. these characters literally interact like twice with the people they're being shipped with. where is all this passion COMING from. direct it towards yanqing instead. or ly/bssr. or mianqing. or any of the neglected female characters who have interacted more or had genuine romantic subtext or at least COULD have a fun dynamic based on what we know about them. sigh.

21. part of canon you think is overhyped

oh DEFINITELY the 'wangxian married with a son!!!!' thing. not that they're married. love that for them. I just think lsz is treated as plot device way too often for me to be invested in his relationships with lwj or wwx, and I don't even really see them as his dads? like, teachers and quasi-parental figures, and certainly important in his life, but I don't think of them as having adopted him so much as looked after him and babysat him...he was raised communally with both the wens and the lans and just bc wwx is the only one left alive* doesn't make him his dad. lwj obviously took an interest in his development and cared for him, but I also don't consider him concretely A Father. and the wiki lists him as a 'ward' which I agree with and I don't want to devalue the significance of teachers in the setting anyway

*wen ning is of course also there but fans seem to regard his blood connection and years of family history with lsz as less significant than lsz's year-long babysitting adventures with wwx, which kind of annoys me ngl!

also im sorry but that child is so boring and brings so little to the series except for the fact that he's alive and nonjudgmental (which is cool! its just not enough imo!) despite having THE most interesting backstory and great potential to be an incredible, complex character whose behavior and choices can provide commentary on the series and its society. and he kind of does, but in such a flavorless and generic way that I really can't get invested in him as a character and I feel absolutely nothing when he shows up and the "!!!! best boy!!!!" tags really do annoy me. um. that's a lot sorry. this is my biggest issue with what I consider to otherwise be a well written series with fascinating and complex characters and relationships, and it bothers me so much that it's so poorly done in comparison and that people eat it up as if it was well thought-out besides 'cute and perfect son for wx' whose treated as a romantic plot device and/or reward for wwx

[leporellian]

susanna and of course, leporello

was going to do all of these last night LOL but. migraine. anyway now i am free

susanna

favorite thing about them- i think i said this the last time i did these but i love that she's fairly complex, really; she's often portrayed as 'figaro's wife who can do no wrong' but she really does have some very interesting flaws and i like that about her

least favorite thing about them- as always with opera characters it comes down to how they're portrayed. really dislike the whole 'she can't do anything wrong' thing a lot of productions sell bc it makes her way less entertaining (and the whole opera gets more sexist somehow). also really not a fan of the 'and the countess and susanna are BESTIES' concept but i'll get to that below

favorite line- every time she insults anyone i gain life

brOTP- love it when she has a like... big sibling-little sibling dynamic with cherubino. also i love her friendship with marcellina that grows near the end of the opera. finally she and figaro are best friends just as much as they are romantic partners

OTP- figaro. obviously.

nOTP- ok time to soapbox bc i'm thinking about this, right now. i genuinely don't get people who pair up susanna and the countess. the best way to sum up how I think the susanna-countess dynamic should be is a discussion i had with a director i was interning under a year ago, in which he was telling me about the best marriage of figaro production he'd seen. and he said in the letter duet that... susanna was sorta scared. susanna does think of the count as an annoyance, most of the time, but she is also fully aware of the count's power and is rather uncomfortable with the plan. and right before the duet susanna protests this whole situation, only for the countess to immediately shut her down and get her writing. and the way this production played it highlighted that without ever having it go too far, make it clear the letter duet is this moment between two women of vastly different worlds; and god damn that is way more fascinating than HASHTAG GIRLBESTIES or what have you. i think susanna and the countess aren't friends, really. throughout the opera they grow to understand one another and form a bond, but it's a subtle thing, and i don't understand the susanna/countess appeal besides lesbianism (of which there's better examples to be found in opera anyway).

random headcanon- i like to think when they initially met susanna and figaro were rivals who eventually grew fond of one another

unpopular opinion- tbh everything so far ive said is an unpopular opinion LOL but mainly the whole weird HASHTAG GIRLBOSS thing opera companies have been doing wrt marriage of figaro has only hindered susanna's character because of how... superficial it all is

song i associate with them- i mean she's an opera character. real answer: peppermint patty by vince guaraldi for some reason

favorite picture of them: man i gotta stop doing these i never have a good favorite picture down

leporello:

favorite thing about them- honestly everything. literally the fictional character of all time, in my mind.

least favorite thing about them- increasingly don giovanni productions feel like a 'the director and dramaturg horribly misinterpret leporello's character' speedrun and obviously i'm NOT a fan of this development. (don g. has ALWAYS been a Misinterpretation Speedrun, however, so who can be surprised.)

favorite line- i always like that he calls out the don for what he did to anna like immediately. really funny how his literal first lines of recitative are that and yet people misinterpret him as a vile sycophant who would be just like the don if he had the opportunity. I'm not mad about it though. (Gripping chair armrests violently) I'm not mad

brOTP- elvira :) also i think him being friends with zerlina and masetto is objectively hilarious bc Can you imagine two 17 year olds deciding to adopt a 28-30 Year Old Man That Something Is Definitely Wrong With

OTP- you see, i'm the only person in the whole wide world who cares about fiorello from the barber of seville, and-

nOTP- really anyone else in the opera but ESPECIALLY the don, obviously. i don't even think leporello is romantically in love with the don, it's more of a weird not-platonic-not-romantic-undefinable-and-rotten trauma bond situation developed by years of abuse and lep not really having anyone else. it's weird but trust me it makes sense in my dumb little rodent brain

random headcanon- you get three for the price of one. he's autistic and jewish and he loves to knit :)

unpopular opinion- Everything, really, Mainly being that i like him and think he is more than comic relief or a sycophant or what have you. He and Elvira are the literal main characters of the show

song i associate with them- ik ive said this before but listening to moonlight on the river by mac demarco and then segueing into don juan (also by. mac demarco) is such an experience i think everyone who directs the opera needs to do this

favorite picture of them- i'll reach back to you but can i just say at the lyric opera of chicago theres an entire don giovanni themed floor (the 5th one) and theres pictures of every character there BUT leporello. maddening

[borisbubbles]

Character analysis: Vivienne de Fer (Dragon Age Inquisition)

So, if you’ve wondered where I popped off to the past two months or so, I’m going to give you an answer - I finally bought Dragon Age Inquisition (legit on my gaming wishlist since its 2014 release) and I’ve been obsessed with it ever since. 

The main draw to this game however, isn’t so much the gameplay (if you want a game that feels similar but has better gameplay - Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is what you’d want instead), but the storytelling and particularly the character development are top notch. All nine companions are fascinating and fleshed out in such a realistic manner I’m still gasping in awe on my fifth playthrough.  Thus, a post on it is in order. It’s a bit different from my usual content, but don’t let that discourage you - clearing my head from Dragon Age will allow me to let Eurovision back in and continue my unfinished 2020 ranking.  In this post, I will be analyzing one of DAI’s most interesting characters - none other than Madame de Fer herself, Vivienne.  Now, I’m under the impression that this is a rather unpopular opinion but I absolutely love Vivienne. And no, I won’t apologize for it. As a Templar-thumping elitist with a icy, sardonic demeanor the sheer ‘Idea Of A Vivienne’ is meant to make your head spin. Dragon Age has always been a franchise in which mages are a socially surpressed group and to be confronted with a socially confident enchantress who likes Templars and seemingly supports the social shunning out of her own ambition is the walking embodiment of flippancy. 

and yet, I feel a lot of sympathy for Vivienne. 

Yes, she’s a bitch. She knows she’s one and she’s a-ok with it. I won’t argue with that. Sadly, the “Vivienne is a bitch” rhetoric also drastically sells her short. Vivienne is highly complex and her real personality is as tragic as it is twisted. 

Madame de Fer

So let’s start with what we are shown on the surface. Vivienne is a high-ranking courtier from an empire notable for its deadly, acid-laced political game. She seemingly joins the Inquisition for personal gain, to acrue reputation and power, and eventually be elected Divine (= female pope) at the end of the game. She presents herself as a despicable blend of Real Housewife, Disney Villain, and Tory Politician, all rolled into one ball of sickening, unctuous smarm. Worse, the Inquisitor has no way to rebuke Vivienne’s absurd policies and ideas. You can’t argue with her, convince her to listen to your differing viewpoints or even kick her out the Inquisition. She has a way with words where she can twist arguments around in such a fashion that she lands on top and makes the other person look like the irrational party.

“Thus speaks the Inquisitor who has made so many mature and level-headed choices so far. Such as releasion malcontents upon the population without safeguards to protect them should they turn into abominations. Very wise. I rearranged some furniture. Lives aren’t thrown into jeopardy by my actions. Perhaps a little perspective is needed.”

She’s Cersei Lannister on creatine, Dolores Umbridge on motherfucking roids. If you look at merely the surface, then yes, Vivienne looks like the worst person ever created. I love a good anti-villainess however, and she’s definitely one. 

Yet, she never actually does anything ‘evil’? Yes, she is ‘a tyrant’ as a Divine, but 1) the person saying this is Cassandra, whose dislike for mage freedom is only matched by her dislike of being sidelined 2) Divine Vivienne isn’t bad to mages either? (hold that thought, I’ll get to it). She never actually sabotages the Inquisition, no matter how low her approval with the Inquisitor gets. She never attempts to stop them, no matter how annoyed she is. She’s one of the most brutally honest companions in the cast, in fact. (It always surprises me people call her a ‘hypocrite’ - you keep using that word and it doesn’t mean what you think it means.) The ‘worst’ display of character is when she attempts to break up Sera and the Inquisitor and even then - are we going to pretend Sera isn’t a toxic, controlling girlfriend with a huge chip on her shoulder? I love Sera, but come on.  

Vivienne is a character where the storytelling rule of Show, Don’t Tell is of vital importance. The Orlesian empire is an empire built around posturing and reputation. Nobody really shows their true motivations or character, and instead builds a public façade. It’s like how the Hanar (the Jellyfish people) in Mass Effect have a Public name they use in day-to-day life, and a Personal Name for their loved-ones and inner circle. Vivienne’s ‘Public Visage’ is that of Madame de Fer - this is the Vivienne who openly relishes in power, publicly humiliates grasping anklebiters with passive-aggressive retorts, the woman who is feared and loathed by all of Orlais, and this is the Face you see for most of the game.

The real beauty of Vivienne’s character and the reason why I love her as much as I do (which is to say - a LOT) are the few moments when - what’s the phrase DigitalSpy love so much - Her Mask Slips, and you get a glimpse of the real woman underneath the hennin.

This is the Vivienne who stands by you during the Siege of Haven and approves of you when you save the villagers from Corypheus’s horde.

This is the Vivienne who comforts you when you lament the losses you suffered.

This is the Vivienne who admires you for setting an example as a mage for the rest of Thedas.

This is the Vivienne who worries about Cole’s well-being during his personal quest, momentarily forgetting who or what he is. 

This is the Vivienne who, when her approval for the Inquisitor reaches rock bottom, desperately reminds him of the suffering mages go through on a day-to-day basis because of the fear and hatred non-mages are bred to feel towards them and how this can spiral into more bloodshed without safeguards. 

This is the Vivienne who shows how deep her affection for Bastien de Ghislain truly is, by bringing you along during his dying moments. I love this scene btw. This is the only moment in the entire game where Vivienne is actually herself in the presence of the Inquisitor - needless to say, I consider anyone who deliberately spikes her potion a motherfucking psychopath ^_^)

“There is nothing here now” fuck I *almost* cried at Vivienne, get out of my head BioWare, this is WRONG -- people who delude themselves this is an irredeemable character. 

So, who is Vivienne really?

Understanding Vivienne requires recognizing that the mask and the real woman aren’t the same person. I think her relationship with Dorian is the prime example of this. I love the Vivienne/Dorian banter train, obviously - an unstoppable force of sass colliding with an unmovable wall of smarm is nothing short of a spectacle. However, there’s more to it than their highly entertaining snipes. As the incredibly gifted son of a magister, Dorian represents everything Vivienne should despise, and should be a natural enemy to her. And yet, she doesn’t and he isn’t.. Their gilded japes at each other are nothing more than verbal sparring, not dissimilar to how Krem and Iron Bull call each other names when they beat each other with sticks. In what I think is one of the most brilliantly written interactions between characters in DAI, I present Vivienne’s reaction when the Inquisitor enters a romance with Dorian:

Vivienne: I received a letter the other day, Dorian. Dorian: Truly? It's nice to know you have friends. 🙄 Vivienne: It was from an acquaintance in Tevinter expressing his shock at the disturbing rumors about your... relationship with the Inquisitor. Dorian: Rumors you were only too happy to verify, I assume. 🙃 Vivienne: I informed him the only disturbing thing in evidence was his penmanship. 🙂 Dorian: ...Oh. Thank you. 😳 Vivienne: I am not so quick to judge, darling. See that you give me no reason to feel otherwise.

Madame de Fer can never be seen directly expressing approval to a relationship between the Herald of Andraste and an ‘Evil’ Tevinter ’Magister’. By this subtle, subtle conversation, Vivienne indirectly tells Dorian that she considers him a good match for the Inquisitor and approves of the romance. It’s one of those reasons why I could never truly dislike Vivienne - between the layers of elegant poison lies a somewhat decent woman who never loses sight of the bigger picture. Not a good person maybe, but not one without some redeeming qualities.

The crux of Vivienne’s personality is that she, like all DAI companions, is a social outcast. She’s a mage in a fantasy setting where mages are psionically linked to demons, and grew up in a country where the majority religion has openly advocated the shunning and leashing of mages (’Magic exists to serve man’ - the Chantry is so, so vile in this game.). Vivienne’s “gift” was discovered so early in her life that she can barely remember her parents. Vivienne grew up in a squalid boarding school, learning from a young age that she’s dangerous and her talents need to be tamed and curbed. She is also terrified of demons, as her banters with Cole point out:

Cole: You're afraid. You don't have to be. Vivienne: My dear Inquisitor, please restrain your pet demon. I do not want it addressing me. Inquisitor: He's not doing any harm, Vivienne. Vivienne: It's a demon, darling. All it can do is harm. Cole: Everything bright, roar of anger as the demon rears. No, I will not fall. No one will control me ever again. Cole: Flash of white as the world comes back. Shaking, hollow, Harrowed, but smiling at templars to show them I'm me. Cole: I am not like that. I can protect you. If Templars come for you, I will kill them. Vivienne: Delightful. 😑

Vivienne’s Harrowing is implied to have been such a traumatizing event to her that she’s developed a pavlovian fear of demons ever since. (Hence her hostility towards Cole.). Vivienne is fully aware of the inherent dangers of magic, and projects this onto all other mages. 

Besides, given how Dragon Age has a history with mages doing all sorts of fucked up shit, ranging from blood magic, murder, demonic possession and actual terrorism (yes, *ElthinaBITCH* had it coming, but let’s not pretend like Anders/Justice was anything other than a terrorist), Vivienne’s policies of controlled monitoring and vigilance are actually significantly more sensible than the options of ‘unconditionally freeing every mage all over Thedas’ and ‘reverting back to the status quo before the rebellion’. They’re flawed policies, obviously. When Vivienne says “mages” she pictures faceless silhouettes foremost and not herself. Regardless, unlike Cassandra and Leliana, Vivienne is aware of the fear others harbour for her kind, and how hard it is to overcome such perceptions.  

Additionally, Vivienne’s a foreigner. She is an ethnic Rivaini, a culture associated with smugglers and pirates (Isabela from DAO and DA2 is half-Rivaini). This adds an additional social stigma, again pointed out by Cole:

Cole: Stepping into the parlor, hem of my gown snagged, no, adjust before I go in, must look perfect. Vivienne: My dear, your pet is speaking again. Do silence it. Cole: Voices inside. Marquis Alphonse. Cole: "I do hope Duke Bastien puts out the lights before he touches her. But then, she must disappear in the dark." Cole: Gown tight between my fingers, cold all over. Unacceptable. Wheels turn, strings pull. Cole: He hurt you. You left a letter, let out a lie so he would do something foolish against the Inquisition. A trap. Vivienne: Inquisitor, as your demon lacks manners, perhaps you could get Solas to train it.

This is the only palpable example of the casual racism Vivienne has to endure on a daily basis - Marquis Alphonse is a stupid, bigoted pillowhead who sucks at The Game, but remember - Vivienne only kills him if the Inquisitor decides to be a butthurt thug. She is aware that for every Alphonse, there are dozens of greasy sycophants who think exactly like he does, and will keep it under wraps just to remain in her good graces. 

Finally, there’s the social position Vivienne manufactured for herself, which is the weak point towards her character imo. Remember, this woman is a commoner by birth. She doesn’t even have a surname. Through apparently sheer dumb luck (or satanic intervention) she basically fell into the position of Personal Mage to the Duke of Ghislain. Regardless, ‘Personal mages’ were the rage in Orlesian nobility, and the prestigious families owned by them like one may own a pet or personal property. By somehow becoming Bastien de Ghislain’s mistress and using his influence, "Madame de Fer” liberated herself from all the social stigmata which should have pinned her down into a lowly courtier rank and turned the largely ceremonial office of “Court Enchanter” into a position of respect and power. This is huge move towards mage emancipation by the way, in a society where, again, Mages are feared and shunned and are constantly bullied, emasculated and taught to hate their talents. Vivienne is a shining example of what mages can become at the height of their power. Power she has, mind you, never actually abused before her Divine election. Vivienne’s actions will forever be under scrutiny not because of who she is, but because of what she is. The Grand Game can spit her out at any moment, which will likely result in her death. 

Inquisitor: “You seem to be enjoying yourself, Vivienne?” Vivienne: “It’s The Game, darling. If I didn’t enjoy it, I’d be dead by now.”

Whether Vivienne was using Bastien for her own gain or whether she truly loved him isn’t a case of or/or. It’s a case of and/and. The perception that she was using Bastien makes Vivienne more fearsome and improves her position in the Grand Game, but deep down, I have no doubts truly loved him. Remember, Vivienne’s position at the Orlesian court was secure. She had nothing to gain by saving Bastien’s life, but she attempted to anyway. That Bastien’s sister is a High Cleric doesn’t matter - Vivienne can be elected Divine regardless of her personal quest’s resolution. She loved him, period. 

No, I don’t think Vivienne is a good person. She treats those she deems beneath her poorly, like Sera, Solas, Cole and Blackwall (characters I like less than Vivienne), which I think is the #1 indicator for a Bad Personality. But I don’t think she qualifies as ‘Evil’ either and I refuse to dismiss the beautiful layering of her character. I genuinely believe Vivienne joined the Inquisition not just for her personal gain, but also out of idealism, similar to Dorian (again, Cole is 100% correct in pointing out the similarities between Dorian’s and Vivienne’s motivations for joining, as discomforting it is to her). 

In her mind, Vivienne sees herself as the only person who can emancipate the mages without bloodshed - her personal accomplishments at the Orlesian court speak for themselves. Vivienne isn’t opposed to mage freedom - she worries for the consequences of radical change, as she believes Orlesian society unprepared for the consequences. Hence why she’s perfectly fine with a Divine Cassandra. Hence why her fellow mages immediately elect her Grand Enchanter of the new Circle. 

Hence why Vivienne is so terrified by the Inquisitor’s actions if her disapproval gets too low. The Inquisitor has the power to completely destroy everything she has built and fought for during her lifetime. Remember: Vivienne’s biggest fear is irrelevance - there’s no greater irrelevance than having your life achievements reverse-engineered by the accidental stumbling of some upstart nobody. This is the real reason why she joins, risks her life and gets her hands dirty - the only person whose competence Vivienne trusts, is Vivienne’s own. 

Even as Divine Victoria, I’d say she’s not bad, at all actually. Vivienne has the trappings of an an Enlightened Despot, maintaining full control, while simultaneously granting mages more responsibility and freedom, slowly laying the foundations to make mages more accepted and less persecuted in southern Thedas. Given that Ferelden is a feudal fiefdom and Orlais is an absolute monarchy, this is a fucking improvement are you kidding me. (Wait did he just imply Vivienne is secretly the best Divine - hmm, probably not because Cass/Leliana have better epilogues - but realistically speaking, yes, Viv should be the best Divine and it’s bullshit that the story disagrees.) 

Underneath the countless layers of smarm, frost and seeming callousness, lies a fiercely intelligent and brave woman, whose ideals have been twisted into perversion by the cruel, ungrateful world around her. Envy her for her ability to control her destiny, but know that envy is what it is.  

The flaw in Vivienne’s character isn’t so much the ‘tyranny’ or the ‘bitchiness’ or the 'smarm’. Her flaw is her false belief that she is what the mages need the most. Her belief that her competence gives her the prerogative to serve the unwashed mage masses... by ruling over them. For all intents and purposes, Vivienne is an Orlesian Magister and this will forever be the brilliant tragedy of her character. She was created by a corrupt institution that should, by all accounts fear and loathe her but instead embraced her. It’s that delirious irony that makes Vivienne de Fer one of the best fictional characters in RPG history.  the next post will be Eurovision-related. :-) 

[sammysdewysensitiveeyes]

My problem with Duggan is that obviously, so obvious is cringey, he is trying super hard to write some "feminist" take but it's all bad, forced and actually sexist. It's rotten in white feminism and, in some way, even Terf rhetoric with the idea that "(Rich white) Women can't be evil, it's all the horrible men who are to blame".

And this happens because Duggan is a man! He is privileged, so he writes from a position of privilege and misunderstanding, and what comes is something empty, plastic and tiring to read.

You can't dedicate a whole page to show a semi naked Emma and then try to empower women, that's not how it works. I'm tired of this book and how he is used these characters.

Yeah, Duggan's attempt at feminism is this clumsy "women rule and guys drool!" kind of writing. And honestly, I understand, I remember when that sort of thing started becoming popular and for awhile it was very satisfying. I still can enjoy it now and then. After years of Disney princess gets rescued by the man, or one single female character in a cartoon full of guys, I can understand the push back. But it gets tiresome and heavy-handed. And Duggan's version is very much, as you say, white feminism. It's hard for me to cheer for Emma as an empowered flawless diamond girlboss queen when she's also very rich and white, coming from a privileged background, and unbelievably snobby and condescending at times. Writers tried to take away some of that privilege by having her run away from home and build herself up from nothing (not to mention a horribly dysfunctional home life), but it's still there. Meanwhile, Sebastian, who we are supposed to see as the epitome of the privileged rich white man, actually grew up in poverty without any of the benefits Emma had as a child. But Duggan ignores all that, and we're just expected to cheer when Emma solves every problem by waving money around or pushes Jumbo Carnation to the front of the resurrection line so she can increase her massive wardrobe. Or when the rich, white, horribly sadistic girl that tortures animals gets a sudden retconned redemption, and now nothing is her fault, it's all because of men.

I think it's a combination of Duggan being clumsy in his attempts at feminism, and also him fan-boying over Emma and Kate, and having it bleed into his writing to a ridiculous extent. katatonicimpression brings up a great point in their analysis of how Marauders does the characters wrong - Emma is basically never allowed to be wrong, so this means that other characters who should play a larger role in the series get sidelined. As a Captain of Krakoa, Bishop has his own agenda, and should be pushing back more against Emma's Hellfire plotting. Storm, who most definitely does not like Emma and tends to be a very moral person, should be pushing back against Emma. But they don't. Storm only goes after Emma once, blaming her for Kate's death, and while that is a great moment of understanding between them, it further reinforces that everyone on the team must always agree with and get along with Emma, because she is always right. And of course the major emotional story beats must all link to or feature Emma or Kate in some way (with the exception of Storm and Callisto), they are the only ones that matter. Certainly can't show any of the men reacting to things or having moments of vulnerability, unless it somehow involves Emma or Kate (even Bobby's angry freakout was about Kate's death). I'm starting to think that the only way for Pyro to get any serious on-panel character development is to involve Emma either lecturing or saving him in some way. Like Fenris tries to convince Pyro to be more violent towards humans again, and Emma steps in and gives Pyro a lesson about toxic masculinity, and he's all, "Thank you, Emma, you've shown me the light!"

And this is probably coming across again as me disliking Emma, but I actually don't. She's a fascinating character, and she actually IS a brilliant badass. But I don't like it when writers are all "Girlboss!" and completely ignore all of her flaws. I don't like it when writers do that with male characters either, like Wolverine (some writers forget that Wolverine being a murderous asshole is actually supposed to be a character flaw of his, not something that makes him super cool). I wouldn't even mind the way Emma is being written in Marauders, if the story wasn't warping around her to make her always totally right, and almost always the center of everything. But taking a flawed and complex woman who has fought for her redemption, and erasing her flaws and trying to retcon away her past crimes is not really feminism, it's just bad writing.

[transbian-uprising]

Some of my own Danganronpa non-despair AU headcanons/imagines this time! (THH edition)

I was inspired, so I decided why not write down some headcanons/imagines/character adjustments for my Danganronpa non-despair AU! I’m gonna be doing this as a series, starting with the THH characters, then the SDR2 characters, then the V3 characters (although I will mention characters from other games in my headcanons). Enjoy!

Makoto Naegi | 苗木誠

He’d definitely lend a listening ear to whoever wanted to vent to him.

When he first comes to Hope’s Peak, he’s such a fanboy over everyone

He has an inferiority complex and self worth issues because he’s surrounded by insanely talented students, but Sayaka and Kyoko quickly help him get over that

He’s pretty good at keyboard, and plays alongside Sayaka a lot

He actually got noticed by Kaede, who offered to teach him, which obviously he was ecstatic about

He’s the only one in Class 78th, and possibly all of Hope’s Peak, who is neurotypical

Sayaka Maizono | 舞園さやか

Her and Makoto are basically best friends

She’s still a total cinnamon roll, but she loves to play little pranks on the rest of Class 78th and have a good laugh over it

She, Ibuki, Leon and Kaede tried to form a music group together but they fell apart really quickly due to their different styles

She has a huge crush on Makoto, but she’s afraid to admit it

Leon Kuwata | 桑田怜恩

He’s almost always the only one in class, just so he can avoid playing baseball

Ibuki taught him guitar and he’s been playing nonstop ever since

He *tries* to get along with Sayaka, but prefers hanging out with Ibuki since they almost always end up playing together

Everyone in Class 78 calls him the Ultimate Guitarist because... reasons

Toko Fukawa | 腐���冬子

She doesn’t have the weird thing for Byakuya in this au

She doesn’t slut shame the girls either

She’s still really shy tho

She initially dislikes Hifumi for writing fanfic, but they eventually bond over their mutual love for writing

She’s also close with Tsumugi, and the two of them collaborated to write a book that was loosely based on Tsumugi’s favorite anime

Genocider Syo is friends with Sonia, but she’s a bit put off by Sonia’s obsession with her and other serial killers

Kiyotaka Ishimaru | 石丸清多夏

Initially, the rest of the class shys away from him because he has a stick up his ass about the rules, but Mondo and Chihiro quickly befriend him

After a while, he loosens up a bit, but he never stops being the Ultimate Moral Compass

He tries to bond with the class by telling jokes, but he’s always super awkward with it and is usually unsuccessful

He’s SUPER gullible — he’ll believe anything anyone tells him, and you better believe Class 78 uses that to their advantage

Once, he dyed his hair white on a dare, and ended up liking it and kept it that way

He also tries to do impressions of his classmates (mostly Mondo) but, again, is painfully bad at it

Everyone actually finds these funny tho

Mondo Oowada | 大和田紋土

He, surprisingly, likes to play card games, which everyone was shocked to find out

Except Celeste, who is fascinated by his interest

He’s very protective of his friends, and will do anything for them

Especially Taka and Chihiro, his two best friends

He’s an amazing hairstylist, and secretly loves to play with and style people’s hair

Everyone in all of Hope’s peak knows to go to him for hair care tips and tricks

He also taught Chihiro how to ride a motorcycle the two of them rode around together a lot, until Taka ratted them out

He still hasn’t forgiven Taka for that

Chihiro Fujisaki | 不二咲千尋

In this au, he’s a bit more open about his gender, but still has loads of insecurities

At first, he’s completely in the closet, but after rumors spread online about him being a boy, he decides to live as himself and goes to Mondo for help

Mondo became his first real friend to him because of this, and him (and eventually Sakura too) helped him become strong

Eventually, he became an honorary member of Mondo’s gang and would often hang out with them in his free time

His hidden talent is being a voice actor, but he’s super embarrassed to talk about it since he’s the Ultimate Programmer

His first voice role was in a video game he developed himself, which led some talent scouts to notice him

He eventually voiced in several anime and video games, some of which he also helped develop

He’s almost as passionate about acting as he is about programming, but the only people he feels comfortable talking about it to are Hifumi and Tsumugi, who both become huge fans of his, and Mondo and Taka

When he found out Junko had created Monokuma, he was fascinated and offered to help her with ironing out all his kinks

He, Chiaki, Mukuro and Miu also created the Exisals in this au, for the sole reason of fooling around

Although, Chihiro himself was a bit intimidated by his creation at first, but after Tsumugi and Junko pressured him to try one out for himself, he fell in love

Yasuhiro Hagakure | 葉隠康比呂

He’s less of a dumbass in this AU, although he still has a tendency to get himself in sticky situations

Celeste and Hifumi played a prank on him by getting him to dress up in the Robo Justice suit and go around scaring people, but it backfired after Hiro fell down the stairs and broke his leg

Being the only one in the class who can, he often buys wine for Celeste and Mondo (and whoever asks, but only those two ever do)

He and Mondo use the same hair gel, so sometimes he’d take Mondo’s without knowing, which would lead to some awkward misunderstandings

Interestingly, he once predicted the world would end and they’d all end up dead, but that never ended up happening

That’s where the “30% accurate” thing came from— before that he was almost always right

He constantly makes jokes about being an old man (even though he’s only in his early twenties)

Hifumi Yamada | 山田一二三

He’s no longer solely attracted to anime characters, but he still loves them very much

He’s also nicer in this au

He’s besties with Tsumugi, and they bond over their love of anime and fiction

He’s also a huge fan of Chihiro’s, after he found out Chihiro was on the development team for his favorite game AND voiced two of his favorite anime characters

Low key has a crush on Celeste

Angie constantly makes jokes about how his first name is just “one two three” in Japanese

Whenever he’s watching an anime Chihiro was in, he’ll hound him with questions about what it was like recording, which Chihiro doesn’t mind because he doesn’t get to talk about his voice work a lot

Someday he wants to write and direct his own anime, and Tsumugi and Toko give him a lot of writing tips

He formed a LARP group with Gundham, Tsumugi, Chihiro, Junko, and Kaito

Celestia Ludenberg

She doesn’t treat Hifumi like a servant in this AU, but she’s still mean af and has a superiority complex

She eventually revealed her true identity to the class after she got inspired by Chihiro, but it didn’t change anything with her classmates

Except Hiro, who constantly made jokes about them having the same name, much to Celeste’s annoyance

She occasionally brings Grand Bois Chéri Ludenberg to school with her, but she doesn’t let anyone except Hifumi, Sonia and Gundham pet him

She high-key has a crush on Sonia

She doesn’t actually know how to do her own hair, so she has to get Mondo to do it for her

Sakura Oogami | 大神さくら

She and Tenko become friends SO QUICKLY because of their shared passion for martial arts

She’s still friends with Aoi tho

The three of them hang out together a lot

She and Tenko developed a new form of martial arts combining Neo-Aikido and Sakura’s own style, which they named the Oogami Method

Junko bullied her because of her ripped uniform, but after she explained that nothing would fit her, Junko offered to have one made for her

Kyoko Kirigiri | 霧切響子

She and Shuichi are very close, obviously

She gives Shuichi a lot of pointers on improving his investigative skills, and they work together often to solve cases

She and Makoto still become close, but their friendship is overshadowed by her and Shuichi’s

She notices this after a while, and makes a concerted effort to spend more time with Makoto

She’s less distant in this AU, but she still tries not to show her emotions

Her hair is naturally black in this AU, she dyed it purple after she lost a bet (with Celeste)

Aoi Asahina | 朝日奈葵

In this AU, she doesn’t just love donuts, but she loves all sweets

She was a fan of Junko’s before coming to Hope’s Peak, and the two of them became friends quickly

She and Akane are also close, and everyone jokes that they’re sisters, though in reality they aren’t

She once got recruited by Kaito to be in a play his class was putting on, but she’s such a terrible actor that they gave her part to Junko

She once walked in on Junko and Mukuro testing out Monokuma for the first time, and they were super freaked out, but Aoi was fascinated and wanted to try controlling him

Mukuro was against it, but Junko was cool with it, so she got to in the end

Byakuya Togami | 十神白夜

He and Makoto are both obsessed with true crime, and the two of them actually become friends because of that

They both love digging into Hope’s Peak’s files and his family’s files to find mysteries they could try and solve

Sonia joins them a lot too

He unofficially became the class’s French teacher after they found out he was fluent

He’s nicer in this au, and he’s kind of the dad of the class

When the Imposter was impersonating him, the two of them got into a little mini-war over who was the superior Togami (Twogami surprisingly won that war, albeit barely)

Mukuro Ikusaba | 戦刃むくろ

She’s away from Hope’s Peak A LOT, usually doing soldier things

When she is at Hope’s Peak, she spends most of her time either developing new weapons or looking after Junko

She’s usually the one who has to clean up after Junko’s shenanigans, even though she partakes in them herself

She helps Junko with a lot of her projects, but usually she ends up working on her own things while Junko does her thing

Despite this, she loves working with her sister when she gets the chance

Her proudest achievement is the Exisals, even though she collaborated with Chihiro, Chiaki and Miu to create them

Junko Enoshima | 江ノ島盾子

While she’s obviously not Ultimate Despair in this au, she’s still very chaotic and loves causing shenanigans and playing (mostly) harmless pranks

She’s friends with Sayaka and Kokichi because of this (both she and Sayaka are members of D.I.C.E. too)

She still puts on different personas, but she does it as a joke

She’s actually a very good actress, and she loves to act, but just like Chihiro, that gets overshadowed by her Ultimate talent

She loves to build and create things, just like her sister, which is why she created Monokuma

She uses Monokuma for her pranks a lot

Sometimes she goes through severe depressive episodes where she doesn’t have the energy to leave her home, but she usually uses Monokuma as a sort of telepresence unit so she can still talk to her friends

At first, no one knew that Monokuma was her, but Aoi ended up spilling the beans

She also learned animation from Ryota, and wants to make an anime starring her, Kaito, Tsumugi, Chihiro, Mukuro and Hajime

She loves to share her projects with her friends, and often lets other people control Monokuma or model for her

She gets hurt a LOT, and usually Mikan has to care for her

Her proudest achievement is replacing the Exisals’ weapons with water guns (even though Mukuro did most of the work)

They actually decided to leave them like that afterwards, since the Exisals were only ever used by her friends to mess around in

She suffers from PTSD, and part of that is recurring nightmares that the world ended and all her friends were forced to kill each other

[silverducks]

Game of Thrones - Jaime Lannister

A rambling character study of Jaime Lannister from Game of Thrones.

Part 1a – Jaime’s Character Arc

This post is going to look at my thoughts on exactly how I see Jaime’s character arc in Game of Thrones, based on just the show. But it’s also to set up my future posts where I explain why I find it so darn hard to understand why he had the ending they gave him. At least beside the obvious - because the writers wanted to.

Yeah I know; I’m late to the GoT train wreck of a final series. But I have a lot of thoughts and hence why I’m here typing away.

(And this is where I start to really go all English Lit exam analysis on you, so a warning for anyone who actually might be reading this post, LOL!)

My Intro to this series of posts btw, is here.

So, spoilers be below.

Ok, so to help explain why Jaime’s ending makes no sense, I firstly need to explain what exactly his character arc is in the show, or at least how I perceive it. As mentioned in a previous post on honour vs loyalty, for Jaime I see his character arc being about two, interconnected things – redemption and identity.

In series 1 and 2, he’s not a nice character – he’s a self-righteous, proud, full of himself, snob. He’s arrogant and cocky and says pretty cruel, snide things to characters we do like. And as we see him through the PoV of characters like *Mr Honourable Eddard Stark, Jaime is pretty despicable to say the least. And that is before we even get started on the whole pushing a boy out of a window because he caught Jaime having sex with his own twin sister. Oh and just as an FYI, Jaime is also called the Kingslayer because he killed the King he was sworn to protect. So yeah, most people watching the show don’t like him at the start, and neither do most of the other show characters we do like.

And from a story telling perspective, Jaime’s character can either get worse, better or stay the same as the show goes on. And in this story, he gets better, with a few slip ups along the way, and it’s fascinating and glorious!!

Like, I can think of nothing that even comes close to the amazing way Jaime Lannister’s character develops in Game of Thrones and how we as a viewer change in our perception of him.

But that only makes his ending so much more frustrating and disappointing…

Before I start rambling away though, just as a point to note; I’m using terms like good and better person and right and wrong quite loosely here. Obviously the world, even in a fictional world, isn’t all that simple. As that would be a whole other massive thematic and philosophical thesis, and it’s not really that relevant, just take the “general” meaning of the ideas, but with the understanding I know it’s a bit more complicated. Where I think it does become more relevant, I’ll expand on the ideas in that particular context. If I sound a bit flippant at times, it’s because of the whole black vs white vs grey, and how there are “rules” in storytelling that wouldn’t necessary apply to our own, real life reality. There are things that we need to take into account when we analyse characters in stories vs actual, real people. And on a side note, this is one of my favourite things about Game of Thrones, the complexity and moral ambiguity of both its characters and its story themes. But yeah, that’s a whole thesis in its own right.)

Redemption Arc

So, redemption. In order for us to start to like this character, and see him as a good guy, he has to go through a redemption arc. Like pretty much rule number 1 of storytelling. That means we have to watch him and believe in him becoming a better person. Conversations like the whole oath vs oath issue, or his chat with his father about his nicknames in series 1 makes us take notice of a character, maybe even be more invested in a character and their shades of grey, but it’s not really redemption. And considering how far in debt he is in the good vs bad guy department, he has a lot of work to do.

And my goodness, he does it. Like, I mean, this guys’ redemption arc is astonishing! He goes through so much, rethinks and challenges everything he once thought/knew about himself and his world, faces all his past wrongs and bad character traits and becomes not even a better person, but a hero! He goes from a bad villain who kills kings and pushes kids from windows, to becoming one of the main heroes we’re rooting for by the end of the story.

(A quick disclaimer here, like I’m not saying Jaime is ever, or ever will be perfect, heck, he’s human and this is Game of Thrones and Jaime’s more messed up than most. But when you think back from where he started and where he’s been, it sure is impressive – if we ignore his actual ending that is, LOL!)

And his glorious redemption arc all pretty much starts around the time he starts his fun road trip with Brienne in series 3.

So, just to give a few of his finer redemption points (and just remember his series 1 and 2 actions and our opinion of him in contrast):

He stops Brienne from being raped and gets his hand cut off for the trouble (Ouch! But suffering, especially from doing something good, gives lots of redemption points.)

He risks his life to save Brienne from being mauled to death by a bear. Like, he’s recently lost his sword fighting hand and has no weapon, but he jumps in the bear pit anyway and puts himself between the bear and Brienne. He then helps Brienne out of the bear pit first and then only just makes it out alive himself. Oh and if that wasn’t enough, he basically tells the bad guys that he’s leaving with Brienne, or they will have to kill him. Like he says this to the guy who not so long ago chopped his hand off. (Just think on that one a minute ok.)

He keeps to his promise/oath to Catelyn Stark and continues to help her daughters by giving Brienne a priceless sword and some stunning armour so she can find and help them. (This also helps Brienne, because he knows she’s not safe in Kings Landing, and gives her a purpose, because he knows that’s what she needs.)

Firstly offers to sacrifice his own life needs and goals and those vows he’s now starting to hold more dear to save his brother. When said brother then screws up that opportunity, Jaime then also helps said brother escape from being killed, going against his sister and father, who want his brother dead. (Yeah, the Lannisters are an interesting family… And you wonder why Jaime is a little messed up?)

Takes RiverRun without any bloodshed. (Like pulls off the perfect bluff in GoT siege history so that he can make sure his army succeeds, but no one is killed. (I don’t count the Blackfish, who chose to fight to the death rather than escape/get taken prisoner.)

Joins the fight for the battle against the dead, even if it also means renouncing his entire house and lineage and putting himself at the mercy and judgement of pretty much all his enemies and all he has wronged. (One of which has a habit of roasting her enemies alive with Dragon fire)

Oh and also risks his life in above mentioned battle against the dead.

A pretty impressive list imho, lots of redemption points there and that’s not even including everything else he does. Following the general storytelling themes of forgiveness and redemption, Jaime basically ticks all the boxes by all the good deeds he’s now done. And that’s one of the major reasons why we as viewers now love him so much as a character.

But that’s not all, of course. As we discover also in series 3 (a pretty important series for our Jaime), it’s not even just about him doing good things, but we realise as an audience we’ve (intentionally by the show) completely misunderstood him! Yes, he did kill the King he was sworn to protect, but only because said King was mad and was about to blow up the entire capital city where hundreds of thousands of innocent people live. And not only did he do this incredible honourable thing, but because it did go against his vow as a Kings Guard, he’s ever since been derided as the Kingslayer, Oathbreaker, Man without honour. A horrible set of nicknames that he’s borne, because he doesn’t think people would care or understand anyway. (Of course, I want to add in here that it’s partly the negative trait of pride too, thinking himself as the Lannister Lion, above having to explain himself to the sheep.)

Anyway, all this has worn him down a lot over the years and it’s messed him up good and proper. It kinda makes your own initial dislike of Jaime through *Mr Honourable Eddard Stark’s eyes seem a little unfair. Especially when the guy was barely more than a kid at the time (16 or 17 I think). And his defence mechanism to deal with this is one of the reason’s he is so cocky and arrogant – he uses his dry, often cruel humour, to mask that he does actually still care. In fact, it’s worked so well, I think at the start of the show, Jaime believes it himself; that he is a horrible, hateful person. But he did have that honour inside of him once; he did care and try to do what was right. And when you think back to his scenes in series 1 and 2, they take on new meaning now. He’s no longer such an evil arrogant, cocky knight we all pretty much immediately hated.

And as this revelation happens around the same time as he starts doing all those good deeds, it all helps work together to make us re-evaluate Jaime and grow to love him and become invested in his redemption arc even more.

(*I feel the need to add a disclaimer here, I do like Ned Stark a lot as a character. But it is interesting that as the show goes on, he almost does the opposite to Jaime – we see he actually isn’t always as good as we thought, that perhaps honour tripped into bitterness and prejudice a few times. That perhaps Ned, as much as we like him, is less full white and more speckled in shades of grey after all...(which makes him a more interesting and nuanced character imho, so rather than undermine him, it makes him more human.))

And when I rethink Jaime’s scene with Robb Stark when he’s captured, where he gives Robb the choice of ending the war if Robb can beat him in single combat, well, it adds even more depth to his character. Of course, Jaime knew he would likely win, as did Robb, so Robb refused. And as a viewer who was all Stark=Good, Lannister=Evil (except Tyrion) at the time, I was glad Robb wasn’t stupid or arrogant enough, like the Kingslayer Mr Jaime Lannister, to fall for that.

But then I remember the parallel in series 6, when Jon Snow (Stark=Good) gives exactly the same choice to Ramsay Bolton (Bolton=Spawn of Satan). Ramsay can either fight Jon in single combat, or they can all send their troops to die in their war. And as a viewer now, NOW! I think Ramsay is weak and awful for not agreeing (because he knows he can’t win too) and so sending all these soldiers to an early grave. Which is like 100% opposite for pretty much the same scenario of its series 2 counterpart. Of course, we HATE Ramsay and he has no, I mean literary NO! redeeming qualities, unlike Jaime, who we never, ever hated in the same way. But it does make you think about the whole idea of perception as well as actual deeds here. And that actually Jaime, you could argue, was doing the honourable thing by asking Robb for single combat, to spare the lives of both of their armies… I mean, obviously he wants to win the war, but maybe, he also wanted to spare as many lives as he could, too – like Jon in the series 6 equivalent. Maybe not so arrogant a request from our Jaime after all…

And another point to add in here, which further adds up to Jaime’s redemption arc, is Lady Brienne of Tarth. Yes, I’ve saved her to last for a reason, as she is, imho, THE catalyst for this amazing change we see in Jaime. If you’ll notice, a lot of Jaime’s good deeds involve Brienne and start happening around the time the two characters meet. And that very fact further proves that Jaime was and can be a better person.

He does not like her at first and she’s not quite your typical maiden. Not only is she a “beast” (to quote Jaime), but she’s a fighter, full of honour, self-sacrifice and steadfast in her purpose, and more than a match for him. Oh and she’s also his captor, dragging him to Kings Landing with a rope around his hands so they can trade him for the Stark girls.

So yeah, not the most cordial of first meetings. He pokes fun at her, trying to get her to snap, to prove she’s not as good as she seems. But she doesn’t, because she is that person, she is true to herself and not pretending. Unlike so many people Jaime knows, she is genuine.  

And he’s impressed by her skill and courage as a fighter as well. She is able to best him in the sword fight (granted when his hands are tied and he’s been sat in a cage for over a year, but he is like renowned for being one of the best sword fighters in the entire realm). Also when she fought the men who had murdered the women they found hung along the road – both as justice and to give the murdered woman a proper burial. She isn’t all talk, she can, and does fight. I bet Jaime wasn’t expecting that! And as sword fights are his thing, what he pretty much defines himself by and is most proud of, that’s a pretty big for tick from Jaime for Brienne right there.

Basically, she is a) an honourable person b) sticks to her oaths c) also able to fight (and therefore protect people) and d) refuses to let him get the better of her. The perfect, chivalrous embodiment of a brave, honourable Knight. A true Knight in all but name, whilst Jaime is now a Knight in nothing but name.

Now, I’ll discuss this more in the identity arc bit, but basically all this challenges Jaime, makes him rethink his own bitter images of himself and his world. She reminds him of his younger self, when he wanted to be that honourable Knight. And seeing this reflection of his younger, naïve and less world weary version of himself in Brienne, it helps to trigger this change in Jaime. It makes him remember who he once was, what he once stood for and believed in; that ideal that Jaime once believed is actually possible - of the brave, worthy Knight people sing songs about. And it started to make him want to be that person again. And this in turn, makes him want to start to do the right thing, to start to put honour first, which paves the way for his redemption arc very nicely.

I won’t talk too much more about Brienne here, because I think her relationship with and influence on Jaime deserves its own post. But I do think it is the specific personality of Brienne, together with the very fact that she is an ugly, “beast” of a woman, that triggers Jaime’s arc in just the right way and enables it to be so profound.

One last note on his redemption – I’ve said before it was partly his Lannister Lion pride that caused some of his suffering in relation to his nicknames. And indeed part of his arrogance is because he does think he’s better than everyone else (although not to the extent we first thought). He is the Lannister’s golden son after all and the Lannisters are basically the most powerful and wealthiest House in Westeros. It is a bad trait, yeah. But even this, even this! gets sorted out in series 8. From my list of redemption points, see the second to last point above – he faces judgement. Like a guy who had too much pride to admit he actually killed a King to help save hundreds of thousands of lives, actually, of his own volition, faces his enemies to be judged and to atone for what he has done wrong. Yeah, he also offers excuses at said trail, but if I’m honest, they do sound quite genuine to me. Is it any worse than what your typical soldier would do in a time of war? Fight in a battle and kill people? Try to capture the person (Ned) who’s wife captured your brother to avert a war? And we already know now he was justified in his killing of the mad King.

So, all in all, with this new insight into Jaime’s character, especially also seeing him through the increasingly positive eyes of Brienne (more on that later), who we know really is good and honourable, we have both a better understanding of his past actions, see his ongoing internal struggles and conflicts as he strives to do what is right and along with all his good deeds as the show goes on, we see him slowly (with lots of unfortunate set backs as well) become a better person. So come series 8, his redemption arc up to THAT scene, is glorious and basically complete.

And then there’s his identity arc. The other side of his character development, which is just as important for me and very much interconnected with his redemption.

(Like, seriously, there’s so much going on with this character that I could write essays, no a whole thesis I bet! I seriously can’t wait until I get to read him and Brienne’s chapters in the books and discover even more sides and shades to this character.)

But I’ve rambled on for far longer than I intended on his redemption arc, so I’ll save his identity arc for another day. (And hopefully it won’t be as long). Then we can get into the fun stuff like that hand he lost, that famous bath scene and his, how to put this, interesting relationship with his sister…

#If you were brave enough to get this far #Thanks for reading #And hope this made sense #Just my rambling thoughts #Yeah, I have a lot

[enkelimagnus]

🔥 about relationships in SH bc I'm emo and I really like reading about your thoughts/opinions.

Okay this is going to be a BIG answer because, I dunno what you mean by “relationships”

Romantic Relationships

When it comes to romantic relationships on the show, I find them relatively nice. If you forget that from 1x01 to 3x22 (year later not included) there’s maybe 3 months, and that as a result, Magnus and Alec got married 2 months into their relationship, Clary and Jace have dated for a month, and Simon and Izzy 3 days, of course. 

The romances are interesting. Though some parts are badly written (in season 3, every thing that Malec has a couple gains is done through Magnus as a person losing something), I find Malec especially very interesting. Clace has also a good dynamic, with a true development from Jace’s character, which is very interesting to see. And the third ship I’d say is probably in the top three writing wise: Saia. Saia is amazing, for some of the same reasons that Malec and Clace are, actually. Saia, Clace and Malec all have one interesting in common. Healing. 

Jace, Clary, Simon, Maia, Magnus and Alec all have an healing journey as they go through their relationship. They all grow, and heal old traumas and pains, and I find it very beautiful and comforting to me. Victims of abuse like Jace, Maia and Magnus finding trust and love and support and being able to open themselves to vulnerability again? That’s GORGEOUS. 

Family dynamics

I enjoy the family dynamics a lot too. Especially the Lightwoods. Though the Luke/Clary bond is amazing, it is often the only plot that Luke gets: something to do with saving Clary’s ass. And I find that sad. Luke tends to be only Clary’s dad, not his own character. 

You can have characters who put family first without it becoming their only personality trait. Because who is Luke if not someone’s dad? Maryse gets to have this growth, this enormous change in the way she portrays herself and the way she loves her children. Luke doesn’t get that. And you can probably peg this more on racism/people not knowing what to do with Luke, but it’s sad. 

As said before, I love the Lightwoods. I love the dynamic between Jace, Izzy and Alec, and the way Maryse, Max and Robert add to the trio. I find the maturing and the changes in that family the most interesting. And Izzy going from a daddy’s girl to a mommy’s girl is the best. 

Had it not been this outrageously incestuous, I would have enjoyed the Jonathan/Clary dynamic so much! I think there was a lot of wasted potential with Clary there, with the reasons behind her going dark. It’s a little too “the demon made me do it”. Too magic based, no matter what she says in 3x20. 

And of course the Asmodeus/Magnus relationship is GREAT. It’s one of the best and most fascinating parent/child relationships on this show, at least to me. There is such a history between those two, and a deep deep resemblance. it is BELIEVABLE that Asmodeus is Magnus’ son. 

They have a way of carrying themselves, a theatricality that is just similar. I love the way they move, and talk. Magnus gets some of that slow, deliberate diction sometimes, and I LOVE it. I love the feeling you get that Asmodeus raised Magnus. And I also love the enormous differences between them. It’s so GOOD. 

Ships (gonna go with canon ones here)

Malec

Obviously gotta start with Malec. The show wasn’t originally made for them. The show became theirs though, so easily. There’s gravity in that ship, and depth, and this sense of history-making. Not only in TV, but in the Shadow World. 

It’s far from perfect. Magnus gets the short end of the stick so very often, and the writing glosses over Alec’s flaws so often that it feels like they are actively trying to erase them. 

I very much dislike the way they went with Malec in season 3, even in 3A. It was just not what I wanted for them. Magnus losing his title, his magic, his home, all for Alec... this isn’t what i wanted. It’s what I got. 

And I got some very nice things with this. This building of them as a couple that happened, of them knowing each other’s habits and wearing each other’s clothing, and the wonderful, sweet domesticity of them. 

They are a ship that manages to be both extremely dramatic and extremely domestic at the same time. And it’s so nice to see, how complex it is. 

Also, like... Alec’s immortal. I’m not having it any other way. He deserves that. 

Clace

I don’t like Clace. I don’t think I ever have, and I don’t think I ever will. My dislike for Clace was born out of dislike for Jace, mostly, then was fueled by the way Clace fans tend to act.

I do get why it’s a good ship. I do get how nice it is for Jace to be able to be okay. Do I think it’s rushed? yes, of course it is, Jace deserves therapy but... yeah. 

Sizzy

Sizzy was built on friendship chemistry, addiction, and blaming Maia for taking care of her mental health. It was built out of nowhere in season 3, because the writers thought they needed to satisfy those who wanted to see them bang. I guess they are both hot and close enough to being white that it’s sexy. 

Simon/Maureen

Could have been very cute. That’s all? 

Meliorn/Izzy

In my top 3 Izzy ships. There is an understanding and comfort between these two, a deep caring, and just something that could have been so genuinely beautiful had it been given any chance at all. 

Climon

Cuter than Clace. They were sweet together, and honestly, I could have seen it become a real interesting ship had they been developed after the cute stage. These two share history, they share memories and interests, but they have this big break, when Simon became a vampire. It would have just been wonderful to truly see that history go further. 

Too bad it fell to both antisemitic tropes and the love triangle. 

Jocelyn/Luke

I don’t see the appeal to them? I think they don’t have much romantic chemistry at all. 

Izzy/Raphael

Canon them? Bad, worse than bad. It was horrible. Just something that was wrong on a lot of levels. 

I think it could be super interesting completely in another context. Especially in regards to Raphael being asexual and Izzy being a character known for being very sexual. 

Saia

Saia is just.... everything Sizzy wishes it was. It’s healthy, it’s sweet, it’s built on mutual understanding and trust. it’s built on two people finding each other. it’s built on two people who understand the other’s experience. Traumatic events and fear, anger and pain. it’s built on people who have the tools to build a future together. 

Saia is the kind of relationship you can see going far. They fit perfectly. They are different enough that it’s not like dating a copy of yourself. They are sweet, and fun, and they care about each other and RESPECT each other, and I love that about them. 

Saia is comfortable. It’s the kind of love that’s just... wholesome. That seems to be built from steady foundations. 

(yes I’m ignoring the hellfire that is 3B). 

Marcian

Luke and Maryse. What can I say? These two kinda came out of nowhere but... it works. Luke appreciates Maryse for everything that she is. Strong, smart and beautiful. Something I think Robert didn’t appreciate enough. 

And Maryse trusts Luke. She cares about him. They went through similar things, they have shared past and shared regrets. I love that about them. That they get to build what they deserved to have in the first place. 

Heline

I don’t get it. The only reason they are together is because they were written to. They seem to have 0 stuff in common. But I guess I would know more if they were more than blank slates with “science one” and “combat one” written on them. 

aaaaand. think I’m done. 

[midnight-in-town]

Hi I've being following you for a veeery long time, and since you're a fan of Ao no Exorcist I wanted to know what makes you enjoy reading it (I've mad up my mind to start it so I need a bit of motivation)<3 Thank you<3

Hey Anon! Thank you so much for staying around for so long, it makes me very happy to read that. :3 <3 <3

When it comes to AnE, gosh, I have so many reasons to love reading this series… And so many to hope more people will give it a try. xD

Maybe I should start with the fact that it’s the only manga I read in which twins are written as what real twin siblings are actually like? 

(@hamliet​ this one is for you xD)

Shouldn’t be news to you (since you said you’ve been following me for a while), but if there is one thing I dislike, it’s all those twin tropes in manga, where these poor siblings are a literal copy of each other, or have a telepathic bond, or end each other’s sentences, or anything that just makes you wonder if the author ever met twins. 

I tend to tolerate it, because it doesn’t have to ruin a story (I love Kuroshitsuji, TG and Urasawa Naoki’s Monster), but Kato-sensei doesn’t bother with those tropes and that’s great and refreshing:

The two brothers are depicted as having a beautifully complex sibling dynamic that feels so very real (at least to me, a person who happens to have siblings), as in: yes of course you love your sibling(s), but it doesn’t have to always be simple and without issues. 

It’s also at the very center of the plot, just saying, and I just love those boys. 

The second reason would be an amazing cast, as well as many character developments to go with it.

Well, obviously I live for this lmao, but in AnE it’s even easier to love, since the cast is diversified, incredible and they all get a development. 

Seriously, the writing is top notch on that and, most of the time, it targets deep personal issues that revolve around the theme of “family”. I don’t want to spoil though, so I’ll stop there. :)

That’s the third reason why I love AnE: the big focus on the family (and what’s related) theme. 

It’s both a subject of issues and plot, but also a very heartwarming topic. A family doesn’t always have to be a mom, a dad and kids: it goes deeper than that, with a lot of different examples and I love how Sensei plays with it. 

Fourth reason would be… Mephisto. 

If the name doesn’t ring a bell, then all the better because you will discover him by yourself. I think it’s honestly the only character who manages to scare and fascinate me, both at the same time. The thing is, I’m easily fascinated by many characters, but I’m not easily scared and that’s why I think he represents a whole reason why AnE is so enjoyable. 

Don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t scare me because he’s actually scary, but he’s very hard to read (even for me and I love the clown type) and he does live up to, well, what he is. I can’t say the same of Sebastian Michaelis in Kuroshitsuji or even Femto in Berserk (but for different reasons). 

I actually tend to suggest to watch the first two episodes of the anime (which cover the first chapter of the manga), because Mephisto’s introduction in the anime remains one of the biggest surprises I ever had. Also, the way the anime is written and animated for those two episodes gives a good look into the series.

Fifth reason: plot and plot twists. 

Again, I don’t want to spoil, but I assure you that the plot is more complex than what you can first expect. 

As for the plot twists, well, I love to theorize and it can sometimes damage the surprise effect, but frankly several moments I fell from my seat while reading. And I’m always expecting some more. xD

Here’s a summary [x][x] of the series, by the way!

Sixth reason: art style and pace…

…Which are both A++. If you follow me because of Kuroshitsuji, then you may have noticed I can complain about the pace, more often that not. Doesn’t happen with Ao no Exorcist: it’s monthly but it delivers each time. 

As for the art, you’ll be the judge of that, it’s always subjective. :)

Seventh reason: women’s place in the story. 

Can sound random, but again if you’ve been following me for a while, you may have noticed that I tend to really enjoy strong and positive female representation, whatever form it takes. Again, AnE does deliver on that. 

For example, Rin’s mentor is a woman and it actually means a lot to me, because I don’t see that very often. And that’s only one example.

Eighth reason: emotions. 

On par with Gintama in my opinion, maybe not in how it’s depicted (Gintama remains #1 in that) but, since the story focuses a lot on the family theme as well as nature vs nurture, it can get very sad or heartwarming real fast sometimes (at least I know the story can make me cry). 

Ninth reason: dead characters and flashbacks. 

Sorry, I don’t know how to name this one better. xD I mean it as in, character development post mortem or in retrospect being actually a thing and very well written. Would be a spoiler to say more if you really don’t know who I’m talking about here, but if you start the series, you’ll soon understand. ;) 

Mainly, I love the fact that no one is perfect in this story and thus no one should be presented as such. And if someone (or an organization) seems to be, then there will come a moment in the story when their flaws are going to be exposed.

It goes with the second reason I mentioned, but I specifically love that approach with dead characters: it’s not because they’re dead that they’re out of the plot. Nope. x)

Tenth and final reason (since I gotta stop somewhere): how faith is presented and used in the story. 

Worldbuilding encompasses that and it’s a point that’s hard to explain on its own, but since we’re dealing with Exorcists in the story, I find it’s interesting to read about how Kato-sensei chose to talk about topics such as religion, faith, beliefs, etc and how she built her universe around these notions. 

I think I may have reblogged posts explaining how she must have researched a lot about what she’s writing, so it’s really interesting, even if it’s not something you’ll get to read about immediately.

There is also a big part of the plot that focuses on science vs religion and, well, even nowadays it remains an important debate sometimes and Kato-sensei does include it in the plot. I don’t know, I just think it’s neat and well done. :))

There you go! Don’t hesitate if you were looking for other reasons, but I think you’ll have to specify a bit in that case. :))

Sorry if that makes no sense, but I really didn’t want to spoil on anything. :3

Thanks again for the nice words Anon and please tell me if you ever start AnE and if you enjoy it! Have a nice day! ^3^

[terramythos]

Review: The Stone Sky by N. K. Jemisin (The Broken Earth #3)

Length: 398 pages.

Genre/Tags: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Apocalyptic, Post-post-post Apocalyptic, Dystopia, Female Protagonist, Antagonist POV, First-Person, Second-Person, Third-Person, Gray Morality, Dark, Great Worldbuilding, Great Character Development, LGBT Characters, Diverse Cast, Trilogy, Perfect Score 

Warning(s): This is probably the most optimistic of the trilogy, but it’s still not a happy series. Abuse/torture, slavery, graphic violence and gore, and major body horror. References to child death. 

My Rating: 5 / 5 

**WARNING: THIS REVIEW (INCLUDING THE SUMMARY) CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST TWO BOOKS. IF YOU WANT A SPOILER FREE REVIEW, PLEASE READ MY FIFTH SEASON REVIEW (X), OR, BETTER YET, JUST READ THE SERIES.**

My Summary:

The reckoning of the world has come. Essun, who has lived a life of suffering and loss, finally has a home to call her own. But she is one of the last living humans who can harness The Obelisk Gate and return the Moon to the world, finally quelling Father Earth’s rage and ending the apocalyptic Seasons forever. She knows such an act will  cost her life. 

Her daughter Nassun, meanwhile, has seen that the cruelty of the world cannot be reconciled. More powerful than her mother, she seeks the power of The Obelisk Gate for another purpose— to end the suffering of others, forever. 

And finally, Hoa reveals the origins of himself and the other stone eaters— the immortal, humanoid statues who have their own stakes and motives in this conflict. His is a chilling tale of a utopia built on the suffering of others… a cycle humanity seems unable to break, even 40,000 years after the Seasons began. 

Does humanity deserve another chance? Only one will decide the fate of the Earth.

Time grows short, my love. Let’s end with the beginning of the world, shall we? Yes. We shall.

Minor spoilers and my thoughts follow.

Here’s my dilemma— this is the final book in a series, and I find it impossible to talk about any final entry without reflecting on what came before it. For better or worse, everything ties together somehow in the last book. In this case I’d say “for better”, because this book was great, and an excellent way to conclude a thought-provoking and wonderful trilogy. But nevertheless, I’ll probably be discussing the series as a whole in this review.

So, yes, this was a really good conclusion. Definitely not where I expected things to end up, based on the opening premise, but that’s not a bad thing, and it’s been interesting to see how the story and characters have molded and changed. Honestly, I don’t have some master plan on how to style this review, except by discussing all the different parts of the story that really clicked for me.

I’m a sucker for “fate of the world” type stories, and I’m glad that The Stone Sky finally takes this direction. It’s really something to see how far Essun has come. She starts as a scared little girl hiding in a barn and is now a forty-something woman with the destiny of humanity in her hands. You can see all the steps that lead her to this point, but there’s something truly epic about any story that includes such a level of growth. It’s been an often-painful ride, but one I’ve really enjoyed nevertheless.

Obviously, I have to talk about the characters. Everyone was SO interesting. Even characters you were supposed to dislike initially had fascinating development over time. Schaffa is the obvious example, as we saw in The Obelisk Gate, but that continues in The Stone Sky as well. In this one there’s a minor antagonist from the previous book who gets called out on her bullshit and… changes her behavior accordingly. Hell, the leading antagonist of the entire series, Father Earth, the force that has caused the death and destruction of billions of people, has justifiable motives.

And you look at Essun, who is generally a good person at heart, and some of the terrible things she’s done (which is ESPECIALLY relevant since the narrator likes to see the best in her). Her daughter Nassun fills the “destroy the world” role, but even her motivations for doing so come from a place of compassion. It’s… interesting, to say the least. And that’s not to say that there aren’t minor characters who are pretty awful the whole time, but those are noticeably the irredeemable bigots, which makes sense for the type of story being told here.

You know what I mentioned in my Obelisk Gate review (x) about gray morality? Yeah. Everyone major is a complex character. Who knew?

As for specifics, I already named most of my favorite characters in my Obelisk Gate review, and that pretty much continues here. There are some new faces introduced (or re-introduced) in this one, but for the most part the focus is on an established cast, emphasizing how they’ve grown and changed over time. There’s plenty of examples. Essun, despite everything, has started to move past a lot of her trauma and open up to other people. Nassun has her own found family in Schaffa, but nevertheless continues to spiral down a destructive path. Probably the most significant development in this one is Hoa, our intrepid narrator, who finally reveals his origins and backstory. I found him fascinating because he directly states his motives several times, yet we don’t really know his intentions until this book. It’s been a ride back and forth, but I think he’s probably one of the most interesting characters in the series. He’s a far cry from the minor helper character he seems to be at first.  

While the first two books had snippets from Hoa’s perspective, he becomes a full-fledged perspective character in The Stone Sky, and reveals a lot about the world and general themes of the story. This entry also humanizes him a great deal. We already knew he identifies as a human, that he’s one of the oldest stone eaters alive, but not necessarily what that means to him until now. Most of his story explores how the world got to its current, cyclical apocalypse-state, tied to the origins of the stone eaters. Despite the time leaps, Jemisin keeps it all relevant and interesting; it never feels jarring to switch between disparate perspectives. That’s true for the other books as well, and I think it speaks quite well of her writing. One really satisfying part about Hoa’s perspective in this entry is we get an actual, canon explanation for why he’s narrating Essun’s life in second-person. Over the course of the series he lapses into first-person sometimes, or narrates in a very stylistic way, and all of that starts to make sense too. There’s even solid reasoning to the whole unreliable narrator thing! It was a nice touch to tie off the series.

This entry into the series also gives us a chance to look at long term worldbuilding. Specifically, there’s a LOT of slow burn/long con details about the world that we finally figure out here. One really interesting detail is the concept of “icewhite eyes”. Basically, it’s a rare eye color that’s commonly seen as a bad omen. The Fifth Season seems to play this straight; two named characters have icewhite eyes. One is the then-monstrous Schaffa. So, bad omen, check. The other is Hoa, who we figure out pretty early isn’t quite human (at least how we see it), and has mysterious— possibly sinister— intentions. So, check off the bad omen there, right? Except BOTH of these characters develop in unexpected ways. Schaffa becomes— of all things— a strong father figure for Nassun. Hoa is, well, Hoa, and full of spoilers, but it should be obvious by now he’s a pretty complex guy. Finally, in The Stone Sky, we learn where the negative beliefs about icewhite eyes come from, and it is… well, pretty fucked. It’s obviously allegorical, but the reader doesn’t really get the extent of it until this book, which makes it all the more insidious. It ties wonderfully to the anti-bigotry, anti-oppression themes of the novel, and does so by completely playing the reader.

This is just one example of many, and I’m willing to bet this series is a fun one to re-read due to all the future context. But now to focus on things that generally apply to the series, rather than something this book in particular focuses on.

Generally speaking, there are things about the world that I really like, now that I’ve had three books to consider them. One big thing that played with my expectations was orogeny as a concept; for all intents and purposes it feels like this world’s version of magic. But as the series goes on you learn orogeny isn’t magic at all; just an evolutionary trait future humans picked up (I mean, the term “oroGENE” implies this, but…). Not only that, but traditional magic does exist, and is very relevant to the story. The stone eaters were also super interesting. They were way different than most generic “fantasy races,” and getting their backstory in this entry made them even more compelling to me. They’re uncanny and sort of creepy at first, but the more you learn about them the more explainable their behavior becomes.

I’ve talked so much about the things I like about the series that I’ve neglected to mention the writing itself… it’s very good. Exquisite, even. I’m not sure how else to describe it— Hoa has a very strong voice— humorous (often bitterly) and cognizant of the little details. I loved the fun poetic bits that experiment with typeface and line breaks. There’s even a part where The Important Words Were Capitalized, which felt so natural with how people type now that I’m surprised I haven’t seen it much in literary works. The trilogy was very fun to read based purely on the writing. Even if it had been lacking in content, which it wasn’t, I think I still would have enjoyed it purely for the craft.

Certain themes are omnipresent in this series, and there were several that really struck a chord with me. Obviously, the cycles of oppression the characters face are allegorical to the real world. One thing I REALLY like about this series is how much it defends the downtrodden, something I feel mainstream fantasy often fails to do. So many series seem to WANT an oppressed class in their fantasy world, then are completely apathetic to what that means, or don’t bother to challenge the issues such an inclusion brings. It’s like “oh, well, this happens in the real world, so I should have some sort of allegory for racism/sexism/homo/transphobia”. Not so here— The Broken Earth is about the full implications of oppression and why it’s so wrong, why it’s so unjust. The Fifth Season’s dedication reads “For all those who have to fight for the respect that everyone else is given without question” and honestly that was the point I knew this series and I were going to click. Just because we are looking through a fantasy lens does not make these things any less horrible or ugly, and I’m glad the series takes such a strong stance against dehumanization and oppression.

Another overarching theme I was surprised impacted me so much was that of parenthood. A character early in the series says “Children will be the ruin of us.” It’s a haunting line in context, and thematically it sticks through the rest of the series. Essun’s motherhood is a central part of her character— striking because initially she has no desire to be a mother. She is, arguably, not even a very good mother in the traditional sense— but her protectiveness of her children ultimately defines a lot of the story. It’s hard to go into detail without broaching major spoiler territory, but it’s a consistent and heart-wrenching theme that persists all the way to the end. That particular line is literal for many, many events in the story.

I discussed representation in my previous reviews, so I won’t retread that much, but stories like this prove just how easy it is (and should be) to be inclusive. It makes sense that the cast is so diverse in this series, because it is very much about the oppressed and the issues they face. Wouldn’t make any sense to have that central concept, then focus on a bunch of straight white guys. But that being said, I think this series is a great example of how  writing can be better in terms of representation. This is the only fantasy series I’ve ever read where the main protagonist is a 40-something black mother. And there should be much, much more out there. Since getting into this series I’ve found myself looking critically at a lot of mainstream entertainment, and its failure to represent minority groups beyond a few token characters. It was a problem I was aware of, but this series makes it look so easy that I find myself even more annoyed that most people don’t bother.

I’m not going to lie— The Broken Earth is a pretty bleak series. A lot of really horrible shit happens to the main cast. Hell, the opening premise is that (a) a toddler was murdered by his father, and (b) the world is about to end forever, killing millions of people. Most of the early content focuses on a brutalized slave class, hated by society for the crime of having a certain evolutionary trait. But the series is also about the small moments of hope that shine through despite these things. Happiness and compassion are worth celebrating, because they remind us that there is something worth fighting for in the world, no matter how hopeless and awful things seem. We see characters who are victimized and beaten down ultimately come into their own truths and find their own families and reasons to live. So yeah, it’s a dark series, but I wouldn’t have had it other way. I hope someday I can meet N. K. Jemisin to thank her for writing these. They’ve given me a lot to think about.

[felassan]

Blackwall: 2, Solas: 1 and 3, Sera: 3, Cole: 2, Bull: 1, Vivienne: 3 and 5, Varric: 2, Dorian: 1 and 5, Cassandra: 4 and 5 and wow that's a lot of questions but I missed Gryff tbh

omg ♥♥ thankyou sm. me too tbh. she’s still my favorite of my children. I think maybe another run of DAI is due.

[msg refs this post]

cut for length.

Blackwall2. What did they choose to do with him and how did they feel about their choice? Were they guilty about leaving him in cell, if they choose to do so?

Blackwall joined the Inquisition and stayed until the Inquisitor could declare victory. Blackwall considered the Inquisitor a friend. Gryff strongarmed him out of prison using Inquisition resources and had him continue to fight as part of the Inquisition. ah, but his judgement specifics was a tough one. on one hand, she doesn’t care about what he did before she met him and things he did while outside the Inquisition. she doesn’t care about treason to a human kingdom, nor about the murder of nobles really. on the other, she values honesty and not being a coward, and more importantly, the betrayal of the loyal men under his command was unconscionable and indefensible to her - you protect your men, soldiers who trust you with their lives as their commander. to do otherwise goes against everything she believes in, she’d sooner die herself than betray her men. that was what she took most issue with really, over the general deception, lies or the murder of some people. if he’d done that or a similar thing as part of the Inquisition, while he was under her command, she would have executed him without a second thought. she had respected him as a warrior and as a Warden, but her respect for him completely nosedived and evaporated on learning what transpired between him and his men.

the first time around I had her free him and reveal his identity, but in hindsight I think it makes more sense for her as a character to opt to send him to the Wardens to undergo the Joining for real after Cory’s defeat. thank goodness for the Keep eh?

Solas1. Did your Inquisitor engage Solas academically with questions or were they uninterested in his experiences?3. If your inquisitor was told they were “unlike others of their race” by Solas, how did they respond? Were they angry or grateful? 

1. not at first, because she mistrusted him from the outset. she also has little interest in intellectual matters outside of theories of war (and definitely not in the metaphysical), and did not appreciate Solas’ criticisms of and comments about the Dalish. silly really, because they each looked down on the other for a time. it made for a bad combination initially - they had a strange, bitter and belligerent association for a time. the development into mutual respect, comrades-in-arms and eventual friends there is really interesting to me, maybe I’ll write about it to chart it out ‘on paper’ someday.. it doesn’t follow the game exactly.

she came to accept that he was an expert on the Fade, the anchor and the sort of forces she was dealing with when it came to sealing the Breach. consequently, ever the pragmatist, she sought his counsel on those subjects and had him join her in the field as she journeyed around closing tears. eventually her Dalish desire and drive to recover and relearn as much of the past and their culture/history as possible got the better of her pride and distrust, and she would ask him about what he’d seen in his travels through the Fade, about ancient elves, the ancient elven kingdom and what had been lost. then about other stuff, like spirits (her growing friendship with Cole helped springboard that one, she wanted to understand Cole better) and magic in general. and it went from there really. (I will say that I dooon’t headcanon or think of Solas and Gryff as having had a teacher/student or elder/child relationship, for me personally that’s an uncomfortable power dynamic. I think of them as two equals who just had different areas of knowledge and expertise, who learned from one another in a give and take sort of way. I think it’s possible to pick someone’s brain/knowledge banks about a topic without that kind of dynamic being present.)

he did continue to frustrate her sometimes with his occasional bursts of intellectual and general superiority, tendency to longwindedness, and especially over their clashing ideas on how to help the elves. I tend to think that some of the arguments Solas has with Disapproval Inquisitor still occur in a manner of speaking between Solas and Gryff. you know, like DA:I’s main basegame plot spanned a whole year or so and a lot can happen in a year, and Solas content was not as extensive as some of the other companions’ were, particularly as a romance compared to the others. a game is inevitably constrained by length, resources, simplistic axes like “approval” and “disapproval”, unrealistic mechanics like “touch all these orbs for bonus approval points”, etc. real relationships between people are obviously a lot more complex. ah sorry.. these 2 just fascinate me so much, 2 very different individuals who both deeply love the People but have totally different ideas about how to help them.

3. he did tell her that, and she was angry. smh Solas. Gryff believes the Dalish made her who she is, that she’s no different from the rest of them and that Solas misjudged them. she loves and respects the Dalish. there are the new pieces of information regarding portions of elven history and the Evanuris, and she has her newfound.. atheism? secularism? (the main change is that she no longer believes in the Evanuris as gods the way she did before) and has disdain for aspects of the upper echelons of ancient elven culture (ex. the keeping of slaves by an elite upper class), but she is still proud to be Dalish. she feels there is plenty of value and worth in modern Dalish culture and (still practises and takes part in) their traditions, and in what they have reclaimed and made their own. she will always be Dalish and culturally Dalish.

Sera3. How did your Inquisitor respond to the truth of Sera’s childhood (the cookie scene), if they received it? Did they empathize?

despite the differences and initial teething problems between Gryff and Sera, she received it. she did empathize and was angry at the notion of a human noble lying to a young elf and telling her that a baker hated her simply for being an elf. go figure. but she was initially a bit ? about what the hell they were doing on the roof with cookies, and doesn’t have a great interpersonal manner. Sera clarified that she was trying to say she liked it in the Inquisition, and share this with the Inquisitor. kinda ‘thats great and I’m glad, but this is a bit ?. I know! why are we yelling? because we’re friends now. oh okay. let’s go get drunk. :)’ by Trespasser they are good friends.

Cole2. What did your Inquisitor think of Cole’s ability to see into people’s thoughts?

she thought it was unnatural, but quickly realized the strategic value of and advantages to be gained from the ability and indeed, of Cole’s other abilities, both on and off the battlefield. later, she would come to love Cole as if he were a member of her clan.

Iron Bull1. Was your Inquisitor wary of Bull upon learning he was a spy?

yes, and she was wary anyway. it didn’t unsettle her though, and she understood where he was coming from and why - flip the script, and from a certain angle she was a bit of a spy for her own people for their own ends, among other races and cultures, at the Conclave. their early interactions were engaged on a level akin to two soldiers from opposing factions during a time when a temporary truce or ceasefire had been declared. I think they both recognized that. professionals.

Vivienne3. Did the feelings of your Inquisitor towards Vivienne change at all after completing her personal mission about Duke Bastian, if yes, in what way?5. How did your Inquisitor feel about Vivienne? Friends? Allies? Rivals?

3. Gryff got her the heart she requested. Gryff didn’t really know what to say when Bastian died, or in the aftermath, but she felt for her. this sad and unfortunate event showed a side of Vivienne Gryff had understandably not been privy to before.

5. initially she did not really trust her, but Gryff doesn’t trust many people at all early on. early on they had a bit of disagreement for example about the Dalish and mages, the Circle etc. but I think this was not great writing on the writers’ part regarding Vivienne here, as opposed to Vivienne herself. Vivienne is a formidable, compassionate, smart and wise woman of considerable ability and power. Gryff rejected the Game but appreciated Vivienne’s insights and political acumen, for often Vivienne saw what Gryff could not. they were definitely allies, and perhaps something akin to friends by the end - I think Gryff developed great respect for Vivienne, in time. they have some different views on some topics, but this is not a bad thing at all.

Varric2. How did your Inquisitor feel about Varric’s situation with Bianca? Who did they decide was right about what Bianca did?

Varric and Gryff are friends but she doesn’t really have opinions on his personal life. Varric tracked the red lyrium source. gryff thought Bianca was in the wrong with what she did, but at the time just shouted at them both to knock off the arguing.

Dorian1. How does your Inquisitor feel about Tevinter? Did Dorian change their feelings at all about the Imperium?5. Did your Inquisitor agree with Dorian’s decision to return to Tevinter? How did they feel about his choice?

1. dislikes Tevinter. dislikes what it did to Arlathan, dislikes it for its continued slavery and subjugation of elves. Dorian showed her that some Tevinter mages (later, Magisters, even) are different (they became good friends), and it is now of course known that the fall of Arlathan was more complicated than Dalish lore suggested, but she still dislikes the Imperium. she hopes Dorian and his faction gut it and reform it and burn away all the rotting corruption. she wishes them every success.

5. [bit of repetition here sorry] she wholeheartedly agrees with the need to reform the Imperium and remove the corruption, and with his desire to do so. she thinks there’s nobody better suited to doing so. she hopes he will succeed, and would render any aid she’s capable of giving, wolfhunt and clan-protecting duties permitting. she hopes he’ll be safe, be careful and that he’ll find success. she will miss him a lot though. they keep in touch via the sending crystal.

Cassandra4. Did your Inquisitor agree with Cassandra’s vision for the Chantry? Did they choose her as Divine?5. Does your Inquisitor know all of her middle names?

4. on balance Gryff doesn’t give a shit about the Chantry (dislikes it really) and didn’t really care about who the human grand clerics were favoring or not favoring to put on the sunburst throne, but is insightful and strategically-minded enough to realize that it was important to Cassandra, and, more importantly, that the belief structures of whoever ascended would most likely have far-ranging impacts on Thedas. by that point in the storyline she had been using her power and position as Inquisitor to help the People (Dalish and City alike) whenever, however and whereever possible. she supported Leliana for Divine because she agreed with the need for radical reform (specifically, Leliana’s ideas that all races are equal and that the Chantry’s tenets should reflect that). she had no desire to see elves be Andrastian and join the Chantry per se (if they didn’t really want to be that is - in the cases where ones do that’s totally fine), but Leliana’s ideas for how the Chantry should be were doubtless going to improve the lot of elves in southern Thedas in general. she also disagrees with Circles and Templars, and didnt want to lose her friend Cassandra to the Chantry throne, l0l.

5. yes. (♥ω♥ ) ~♪ there is a great affection between the two women, and they’ll always be friends. in turn, Cassandra knows the fabled deeds of the Emerald Knight Brocair, from whom Gryff’s name preserves her descent. its a love story for the ages tbh.

wew! there we go

[rhetorical-ink]

Rhetorical Ink Reviews: Beauty and the Beast (2017 Live Action)

**Careful for SPOILERS below**

I will be the first to admit that I’m a HUGE Beauty and the Beast fan. I had the book as a kid, wanted to be Belle, and have had a large fascination with the story and believe it spurned me into wanting to draw more.

So, the Live Action adaptation had HUGE shoes to fill for me before even going in. I tried to look at the film as a standalone and not judge it based on the predecessor...a VERY hard task when watching, I might add.

My best friend saw it with me and she loved it! What did I think? Well, putting ten thoughts alone would not do my favorite childhood movie justice. So instead, I am doing a Top Ten Likes and Top Ten Dislikes. Careful for spoilers!

My Top Ten Likes of Beauty and the Beast (2017):

10. The set and costumes: Everything has layers and detail and colors that pop but also makes sense for the time period. I LOVED the costumes and even the yellow gown, considering the wardrobe “makes it” in this, grew on me quickly. As for the sets? They are beautifully ornate and have a classic “other worldly” look to them. I could watch the movie over and over to gawk at the scenery and character designs.

9. The Opening Scene: Nothing will ever live up to the deep voice of the narrator and the stained glass...but there was something so fresh about how we started on the Prince, how the dance unfolded, and how the Enchantress appeared. She looked gorgeous and the classic French scene was a welcome addition (more so than others...but we’ll talk of that soon). In any case, it is a worthy contrast from the beginning, when he’s surrounded by beautiful girls, to late when there’s only Belle.

8. Kevin Kline as Maurice: Kevin Kline is a fine actor, and he brings such a charm and dignity to the formerly bumbling character. I still like Maurice in the animated movie, but it makes more sense for Belle’s father to be an artist and hopeless romantic than a “world famous inventor.” Kline’s performance was a highlight for me and definitely added to the movie as a whole.

7. “Kill the Beast!” I’ll talk more about some other songs below, but this was by far my favorite number; this is EXACTLY what I was hoping for with this song in live action form. It does not disappoint. Speaking of “Kill the Beast...”

6. We see Gaston and Lefou learning where the castle is: A big question I had as a kid was, “How did they know where to go to find the Beast?” In this, we get our answer. Lefou and Gaston actually follow Maurice to the woods, where he believes he can route them to the Beast’s castle. This backfires on him, but in any case we learn how Gaston and Lefou knew where to go in the first place.

5. Belle is more an inventor....and a teacher: It makes sense for Belle to be as learned as she is to be more of the inventor. I loved the little scene where she does her own laundry with the contraption she made and is trying to teach a little girl to read. After having to sit through a preview for a CGI movie where the boy character is an inventor and the girl, lo and behold, wants to just be a dancer...it’s nice to see “ahead of their time” people represented in a modern movie’s version of a classic time period.

4. Lefou paying off the people to dance and help during “Gaston:”

It was a little tidbit to note for the film, but Lefou pays off the people to help dance in the “Gaston” music number; and Belle does pay for the food in the market she gets. It’s little touches like that which help to cement this story in a more “realistic” world.

3. The ensemble of side characters:

This entire cast was well-chosen. Josh Gad as Lefou? Perfection; he was born for the role! Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts?  She’s about as close to Angela Lansbury as you can get for this role, I feel. Ewan McGregor as Lumiere? I was on the fence about this casting, but it works so well. Luke Evans as Gaston? He fits the part great. Sir Ian McKellan as Cogsworth? Again, I had no clue what to think, but he may have been my favorite in the whole side cast. Even Stanley Tucci and the Wardrobe’s actress were great choices. They really did a perfect job casting the side characters...but as for the main characters...

2. Dan Stevens as The Beast/The Prince:

This WAS perfect casting! I know they’ve altered the voice and distorted it to sound similar to the animated Beast. But seriously, the motion capture work on his face and his range of emotion are perfect here. It’s hard to believe, but I care more for his character as the Beast than the animated (for reasons below); plus, the main thing: He looks SO much better as the human Prince. From the opening to the end scene, he may be my favorite character, actor, and part of the film. Definitely a genius casting choice and excellent performance!

1. All of the added scenes of Belle and The Beast learning about one another:

If I had one, minuscule complaint with the original Beauty and the Beast, it is that we don’t get many scenes of Belle and the Beast “falling in love” and getting to know one another. He saves her, gives her a library, and then they just sort of fall in love post-dance...obviously, it’s not a huge issue, since you’re pacing this out in movie format.

However, I feel this movie allowed more time for these two to connect. Also, they found common ground; first, with their love of literature, but second, with losing their mothers and how their father’s shaped who they were: The Prince’s with hate, and Belle’s with love. It was a beautiful duality and connection created between them and it helped to make the ending better and more satisfying.

Of course, especially considering the movie is based on a staple of my childhood, it CERTAINLY has flaws, as noted below.

My Top 10 Dislikes of Beauty and the Beast (2017):

10. The obvious Enchantress:

I do like the twist of The Enchantress being Agathe, a character we see throughout the story...perhaps she’s keeping the magic strong? However, there are a lot of problematic elements of her being in the movie so much. For one thing, she saves Maurice, which is good, but then when Maurice confronts Gaston, she doesn’t do anything. She could have stopped all of our conflict! Also, at the end, while she shows up and it does make sense in a technical sense...she just vanishes. Belle doesn’t even see her...what was the point? In the animated movie, the spell was broken without her having to be there. Having her there didn’t answer questions; it created more! It just seemed awkward at times.

9. Gaston’s “post-war” blood rage?

While I appreciate them trying to flesh out Gaston’s character...this was their choice? He’s got post-war bursts of rage? I love how the animated movie treated Gaston just as the jerk-bro who becomes jealous and can’t stand that Belle chooses someone over him. Here, his villainous outbursts are “justified” by his post-war blood lust. It just seemed almost like a distraction and didn’t seem warranted for me. Gaston is a near-perfect villain. Let Luke Evans do a good job of playing him without trying to make him too complex. Gaston’s not smart enough for that.

8. The unnecessary additional songs:

Maybe I’m in a minority here, but I wasn’t crazy about the new songs. The Soundtrack of Beauty and the Beast is nearly flawless. Even the special edition with “Human Again” is okay. The Broadway songs they add...are okay. “Evermore” is not a terrible song (we’ll talk more about it below), but the song about “Sunny skies” and “Evermore” are not necessary to make the story better. If you wanted to include them in a “Director’s Cut,” that would have sufficed for me...I just didn’t see the need for them here...again, I’ll touch back on this point twice below.

7. Don’t bring an arrow to a gun fight:

In the original, Gaston was a hunter, so it made sense he had multiple weapons at his disposal. It also made sense for the time period. And he hunted a lot of deer-like animals, so it seemed fitting that he would shoot an arrow at the Beast and then stab him with a knife....hunting tools for the type of game he hunted.

In this? We just full blown (literally) gun the Beast down. Gaston shoots the Beast three times in the climax. At the very least, he still uses a club like the original. It just seemed like overkill and to me, didn’t make as much sense as keeping like the original would have.

6. The rushed beginning and scenes out of place:

The opening, I loved; however, once that scene was over, the first thirty minutes seemed SO rushed! They rushed through “Belle,” then moved some scenes around, and quickly went through the reprise! There wasn’t the “wedding proposal” scene with Gaston and Belle! I did LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the reaction of Maurice and Chip, but there were little scenes that were skimmed over and rearranged that just seemed to rush the opening and didn’t let us the audience “settle down” into the film. It’s not until we’re at the scene of Belle running away from the castle that the movie starts to slow down. The editing of the movie in those places was a little disappointing to me.

5. Lefou and the lack of controversy:

Okay, so the last week has been filled with news stories about how Lefou is the first openly gay character in a Disney film. It was a huge source of controversy...but....in all seriousness......you wouldn’t really know that watching this film. It’s clear he cares for Gaston, but the animated picture portrayed that as well. He shares two seconds with a male character at the very end of the movie in a brief dance...but that’s it. All that press and controversy for a tiny scene that seems inconsequential. Eh. Come on, Disney. Commit or not; don’t try to play up something that’s halfway even developed.

4. The Enchantress’s book:

I loved the extra scenes with Belle and Beast developing their relationship over the course of a few scenes. However, one comes out of nowhere and does nothing to the plot as a whole. At one point, the Beast shows her a book the Enchantress gave him as a “joke.” It is able to take them anywhere you think of; and Belle chooses the room she was born in, where her mother dies of the plague. While I DO love a few things about this: the fact that it connects Belle and the Beast more, and it explains what happened to her...it’s never used again. The book is just a one-time only plot device. The scene it was used in was SO out of place! I would have rather Belle had known why her mother died and just talked it out with the Beast than having used this forced book that logically doesn’t fit in with the story.

3. The Beast’s Song, “Evermore:”

I don’t dislike “Evermore,” I don’t...but...in the animated movie, when Belle leaves Beast, he is so heartbroken. He lets out a howl of despair, knowing his only chance of happiness has left him, potentially forever. Here, he immediately bursts into a Phantom of the Opera style musical number. Maybe upon reviewing, I’ll appreciate it. But I loved how the original was so organic and raw...this seemed almost too Broadway and too theatrical.

2. Emma Watson’s facial expressions vs. animated Belle:

I love the original because of the animation, mainly. The expressions and line work showed SO much emotion. Now, I like Emma Watson a lot as an actress. BUT, aside from the wolf scene on....her facial expressions are so subdued. This is most apparent in “Be Our Guest.” Belle in that musical number is in AWE! She is so excited, bewildered, and amazed...but here? She just smiles and watches the show. Granted, Emma Watson would have been watching a Green Screen throughout this; but STILL. She doesn’t even seem in shock or awe...and that I sorely missed in this film. Now, after the wolves attack Belle, Watson’s acting becomes more pronounced. I just wish she could have acted a little more in-character through some of the CGI numbers.

1. The cut out comedy:

When I asked my brother if he was thinking of seeing the movie, he asked about the fight scene at the end:

Brother: “Do they have the part where Lumiere burns Lefou’s butt? Or Cogsworth with the scissors?”

Me: “No.”

Brother: “What?! How could they?”

There is so much physical comedy in the original that works; here, and yes, I understand that it is “physically” impossible some of the things they do, I still was hoping there would be more of the original comedy. For example, Cogsworth taking Belle on a tour of the castle isn’t even in the FILM! “If it’s not baroque, don’t fix it.” SERIOUSLY.

THE VERDICT?

The original is near-perfect for me. Still today, it is the better film. If you love the original and are expecting a closely faithful adaptation; they try, but it’s a miss there, because some of the best parts are either condensed or left out.

If you love Beauty and the Beast, but you’re comfortable with them altering parts and want to see new additions to the story? You’ll probably like this!

The original is still better though. If you don’t want to spend the $10 at the theatre, just wait until the DVD or Blu-Ray comes out and watch the original in the meantime.

If you’ve never seen the original Beauty and the Beast? PLEASE watch that one first; it’s better. If you’ve already seen the live action one? STILL go view the animated version; you’ll appreciate it more.

[asherlockstudy]

1) Hi, recently I've been reading a lot of posts about how the most important thing for Mofftiss was to be "clever and surprise the audience", sometimes at expense of character developement and plot, and I think this is the reason why they killed off Moriarty so early in the show (unless he's actually alive, as I obviously hope). Moriarty is the main villain in almost every Holmes adaptation, so they wanted to do something different, write a totally new, better villain,

2) which, on a theoretical level, can be a good thing, but in the end they utterly failed. They wrote Moriarty as one of the best and most compelling villain ever, while Eurus, the new, better villain they wanted, is so unconvincing and flat I’m not at all surprised the episode was so strongly disliked by many fans. I think if they didn’t want so much to be cleverer than anyone else, they would’ve realized what a great character Moriarty was3) and they would’ve gone with him as the ultimate villain in the end, instead of writing the least fascinating villain of the series and just putting Moriarty in a flashback as an afterthought. What do you think? 

I mostly agree with both you and all these posts. I think Moftiss dreamed to achieve a paradox: create a version that would offer a brand new, hopefully shocking and unexpected insight in Sherlock Holmes’ character but without alienating their version from the canon to the point of having some people accusing them of taking too many liberties. 

As long as they had the convenience of the open, developing story arc, they were as innovative as possible. Sherlock and John were in love (IMO, dunno if you ship it), Moriarty had a much stronger presence, complex and layered character as well as a completely daring relationship with Sherlock which basically resembled a lover’s jealousy much more than a nemesis, Mrs Hudson was much cooler, Lestrade closer to Sherlock, Mary had an interesting twist as a person of AT LEAST very dubious allegiances etc

But when they had to wrap up the story, they abandoned any innovative thread they once created. Were Sherlock and John in love? Well, who knows, the thing is they remained friends living seperately like in ACDc. What about Mary’s character and motives? Well, who knows, she ended up the good wife who had an undeserved death like in ACDc. What about Moriarty? Why did he do everything? Did he have a much more personal reason? Well, who knows, he died in the middle of the stories but kept haunting Sherlock for a while like in ACDc. Lestrade, Mrs Hudson, Molly - nobody had a fully developed story arc like the previous series suggested because that was the case in ACDc too, let alone that Molly didn’t even exist.Moftiss chose to be truly creative only when it came to an issue Doyle never addressed: how Sherlock Holmes became Sherlock Holmes. There they felt completely free and unafraid to add to the story because they thought nobody could blame them they violated the canon (or created a version worse than the original or many others). So they decided to add as much shock and surprise to their solely own part of the story: Sherlock’s past and Eurus. The problem is that when you abandon, one by one, all your plot threads, and give your everything to a risky idea that has no reference, hint or at least familiarity to the canon and you hope to enthrall the crowds with that shaky idea distributed in ONE SINGLE EPISODE, it’s really unwise to believe you ‘ll actually succeed.  

In short, I think they truly wanted to hint that Moriarty had a very personal problem with Sherlock, that Sherlock and John were in love, that Mary might have been a double agent, that… that… that… But their point was just to hint because they weren’t confident enough to make the subtext text. For everything they would add, it would still always be 1895. Like a loop of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and Jim Moriarty always having the same fate through time, despite the changes coming with each era. I don’t know, they might even think it’s a good idea. I would perhaps like it too, had it not been so poorly executed in the end. 

While completely afraid to vastly and irreversibly change the canon, they still tried to up their game as much as possible, aware what people wanted. More Johnlock? Have it! More Moriarty despite being dead? Have him! They did an awful lot of fan service. For instance, they kept mentioning Irene Adler for no reason. They kept Molly stuck to her feelings despite previously hinting that she moves on. They brought Moriarty back because they thought his fans just missed the swagger. All this fan service that made the story end up incredibly shallow. 

So, they knew they created a fantastic Moriarty, much better than the original, that’s why they kept mentioning him constantly and bringing him back in any way that seemed possible. But they did not dare or want to actually bring him back and be accused of butchering the canon. They eventually tried to belittle Moriarty for the sake of their own Eurus, by making Eurus smarter, more dangerous, crazier, I don’t fucking know what else. They gave Eurus unrealistic qualities to hopefully beat Moriarty in the fans’ mind. They made them relying on each other mutually so that would keep both the Moriarty fans and everyone expecting something fresh happy. They made Moriarty be in awe of her and partially work with her. But they also gave Moriarty some swagger ( that in fact didn’t feel like him) just so they wouldn’t overdo it. They tried all this in one episode. They tried to surpass with their own one-episode story the hype they had knowilngly created all these years with their not definite yet important improvements on the canon. They tried so desperately to achieve this in such a short time that the result was quaint and delirious. Their Eurus very reasonably failed.

They simply tried to please everyone who appreciated the hype they had created in the middle of the show without altering the ACD canon except in the only way they felt they would not be criticized at all for potentially worsening somebody else’s work: in Sherlock’s past which ACD hadn’t mentioned at all. It’s ironic how that’s why they got the most criticism in the end. 

Anyway, this is the only way I can remotely interpret the reason behind their choices. They wanted to be innovative in the most undaring way possible - that’s not how it works.

Having said all this, MORIARTY LIVES