#Vs Love as accepting loss in order to respect the decision of the loved one

[hephaestuscrew]

The most dramatic action that Minkowski takes towards Eiffel in the finale (sending him back in the Sol) is going against Eiffel's choices in an attempt to prevent him coming to harm. In contrast, the most dramatic action that Hera takes towards Eiffel in the finale (the memory-wipe) is causing him to come to harm in order to enact a choice that he's made.

In a sense, these actions are conceptual opposites. But they are both taken with love and respect for Eiffel. They are both extremely selfless actions which Minkowski and Hera find painful to take.

They are also both actions which could be considered to be harming Eiffel. Both of these actions involve doing something to Eiffel that Minkowski/Hera would hate to have done to them. And both of those actions are taken with the awareness that they are fairly likely to result in losing Eiffel in a sense (either because he's headed back to Earth while Minkowski is on the Hephaestus, or because he's losing part of what makes him him). That's part of what makes those acts painful and complicated and significant.

Minkowski and Hera both care about Eiffel so deeply, and their care often expresses itself in contrasting ways because they are very different people. The finale emphasises these different manifestations of their care. Love can be 'I will do whatever I can to keep you safe, even when that's not what you want'. Love can also be 'I will support the choices that you make to bring about our common goal, even when that causes you harm'. The way Minkowski's care for Eiffel manifests is tied up in her sense of responsibility for her crew's safety. The way Hera's care for Eiffel manifests is linked to how she's had to fight for her own autonomy.

Neither of their actions in the finale are perfect or typical expressions of love, but in their very different ways, they both act with love, and that's important to me.

[makeste]

obstacles do not block the path

they are the path.

or something. it’s a zen proverb. anyway, so this is yet another post about Bakugou potentially losing his quirk. I’m gonna try to articulate it a little better this time. rather than just explaining why I think it’s likely to happen, I tried to explain why I think this specific and as-yet-still-hypothetical character decision is a very deliberate and purposeful one. in other words, this isn’t my argument for why it will happen; this is a post about why it should happen.

to start, there are two Horikoshi interviews which I want to quote here, and the reason I’m quoting them is because they do a good job of summing up the dual nature of the hero model that BnHA is built on. I’ll start with the longer quote, which is Horikoshi’s answer to the question, “so Sensei, what heroes do you like?”

[It would] probably have to be Goku and Spider-Man. To me, when mentioning heroes, these two are the ones that I think of. In Goku’s case, it’s the reassurance that everything is going to be fine which he brings when arriving. Such as, on Namek, Goku was getting healed, and his friends were all beaten badly. When Goku finally recovered and walked out of the healing machine, that reassurance right there is what I’m talking about. Something like “Ah, everything is going to be fine”. When I first read it and saw it was really Goku who had arrived, I continued reading thinking the thought “gonna win”. (laughs) That reassurance is something that all of the other characters don’t have. I thought about it afterwards, and even though there are a variety of heroes, the hero model that is built up in my mind is built around the concept that the hero is somebody that brings reassurance. That’s why I think a hero to me is somebody that helps and brings reassurance to others.

In Spider-Man’s case, the first experience I had with this character was the movie, in which there were a lot of scenes with him rescuing people, which I felt that was really cool. The moment he “saves somebody” is really awesome. Well, in Goku’s case, it’s because he likes fighting that he fights, so that’s a bit different. (laughs) You can say that Spider-Man and Goku are two different aspects of being a hero.

I’m sure you all can figure out just who Goku and Spider-Man each represent in respect to our beloved series.

as for the second Horikoshi quote, this one is much shorter. just a single line, actually, in regards to the development of Bakugou’s character:

I also thought to have [Bakugou] and Deku improve on two separate vectors as they entered U.A.

that’s it. just a single sentence lol. except that this one sentence can basically be used to sum up the entirety of Bakugou’s character development throughout the series, and it also serves as a roadmap as to what I think might happen next.

let’s start with the very first line in the series.

this sets the stage for everything that happens next. it establishes who these characters are right from the get-go. we see the hierarchy of quirk society, and we see two children born on polar opposites of the spectrum. Izuku, who was born quirkless, who exists at the bottom of the food chain. and Katsuki, born with a powerful quirk and the natural talent to back it up, who sits comfortably at the very top of the pyramid. two children who, from a very young age, are set up to walk completely different paths in life.

and yet the curious thing is, their goals are the same.

they both want to be like All Might. interestingly, though, they look up to him for different reasons. each boy admires All Might for what they see of themselves in him. Izuku sees a hero who protects others and works to save them no matter what. and Katsuki sees a champion who never gives up and who always emerges victorious.

and what the story eventually goes on to explain is that these are two halves of the same hero. Spider-Man, who rescues people and brings them hope. and Goku, who always wins no matter what, and by doing so brings reassurance to others. these two aspects together make up the perfect, consummate hero which both Izuku and Katsuki aspire to be. and the story is about how they get there.

but it’s that how that’s really where things begin to get interesting. because as previously mentioned, Katsuki and Izuku each start out their respective journeys in very different places. their origins, their “starting lines” as the series sometimes puts it, are polar opposites of one another, and yet they both are heading for the same goal. they want the same thing, but to get there, they each have to journey from a different place.

and what that means is that right from the start, it was impossible for Izuku and Katsuki’s journeys to be the same. more than that, they’re not just different journeys, they’re the opposite journeys. if you start from two opposing ends of a path facing towards the same goal, the only way for you to reach that goal is by traveling in the exact opposite direction as the other person. as an illustration of this, please accept this visual aid which I drew with love:

eh. eh.

so let’s continue to retrace each of their paths as the story progresses. we’ll start with Izuku first. his story begins when he receives One for All, a quirk that allows him to compete with other would-be heroes on equal ground for the first time. by this point he has already learned inner strength and compassion and selflessness. he already cares deeply about others. and so his trajectory now veers towards him learning what it means to be a champion. learning the things that Katsuki already knows.

and Izuku makes a lot of mistakes when he first starts out. he is too selfless. he rushes in to save others without sparing any thought for himself, resulting in repeated instances of him getting in over his head and getting injured and taking himself out of the fight. he almost gets himself expelled for this on the very first day of hero school, and Aizawa’s very first order of business is to chew him out over how irresponsible he is.

we see Izuku struggle to learn how to inspire others and be a leader, traits which happen to come to Katsuki naturally. Katsuki instinctively smiles when he’s up against a wall. he inspires others without even trying -- inspires them even in spite of his abrasive personality. but these are things which don’t come naturally to Izuku. Izuku is more inclined to follow than lead, because he doesn’t feel compelled to put himself in the spotlight, and because he is cooperative and will defer to others who are more aggressive about putting themselves in the leader role. Izuku doesn’t do the whole hero grin thing naturally, either; this is something he has to be coached on and consciously think about, and his early efforts are a bit hit-or-miss.

Izuku is more focused on saving people, and sometimes misses the fact that in order to do so, sometimes the best course of action is to just straight up beat the shit out of the bad guy(s). he learns this over the course of the series, and we see him doing the never-give-up thing against Muscular, and Overhaul, and Gentle. and Izuku’s selfless nature almost causes him to give up OFA to Mirio because he sees him as being more worthy; Mirio has to talk him out of it in order to stop him. in short, Izuku’s arc is all about him gradually learning confidence and becoming a badass.

now contrast this against Katsuki’s arc, which has the opposite trajectory. Katsuki starts out as someone who is already strong and confident. he is hard-working and driven and dedicated to his own self-improvement. he’s a prodigy when it comes to battle, and his determination to succeed inspires others to challenge and push themselves in order to keep up with him. 

he is a natural leader, and a terrible follower. and he completely overlooks the “saving people” aspect of being a hero in favor of the “kicking ass” part.

so now here’s the interesting thing. Izuku’s growth comes from achieving new things and gaining new abilities and skills. his growth comes from experiencing victory and success. but Katsuki’s growth takes the exact opposite path. as someone who has experienced success his entire life, Katsuki’s first steps toward progress only come once he starts experiencing failure for the very first time. it might seem counterintuitive, but his breakthroughs only come after he experiences setbacks. because just like Izuku needed to experience victory in order to grow, Katsuki needed to experience loss. just as Izuku needed to grow stronger, Katsuki needed to learn what it was like to experience weakness. without that understanding, his growth would have stagnated.

so from a certain perspective, the story’s treatment of Katsuki vs Izuku might not seem fair. Izuku constantly receives help while Katsuki only faces hindrances. Izuku’s strength only ever seems to increase, while Katsuki is repeatedly confronted by his own limitations. he’s attacked by villains. he’s kidnapped. he blames himself for his hero’s downfall. etc. etc. etc.

but the reason why Horikoshi keeps putting him through all these situations is because in order to have someone grow as a character, you need to have them slowly overcome their flaws. and it just so happens that Izuku and Katsuki’s flaws are the exact opposites of each other’s. and so when you think about it, it only makes sense that in order for them to develop, they’re going to need to take opposite routes. “what they lack” is completely different. and thus “what they need to gain” will also be completely different. this is something which has been very plainly laid out from the earliest chapters of the series...

...and which has been hammered into our heads over and over again ever since.

anyway! enough of my long-winded rambling. you get the point! Katsuki and Izuku have the same goal but are approaching it from opposite sides. just as they are mirrors of each other, so are their arcs mirrors of each other’s arcs. they balance each other out.

but now I’m going to add on a bit more to that, though, so just hear me out. yes, it’s very good and wonderful that they can do this. their strengths complement each other’s flaws; their weaknesses offset. the two of them can and will one day be unstoppable together, and all of that is cool and great and epic.

but it’s also limiting to think of the two of them solely in these kinds of terms; as half-formed individuals who can only be complete and whole when they’re by each other’s side. they are each still their own person as well! and in order for them to achieve this same kind of balance within themselves, they can’t just simply meet in the middle and be done with it. both of them need to continue to walk down their respective paths and experience each other’s side, not just their own. here, let me just break it down:

Deku: starts out quirkless -> learns humility and compassion and how to put others before himself -> gets a quirk -> learns how to be strong and win and inspire courage in others -> becomes a hero that both wins and saves.

Kacchan: starts out with a good quirk -> learns how to be strong and win and inspire courage in others -> ??? -> learns humility and compassion and how to put others before himself -> becomes a hero that both saves and wins.

ah. and now we finally get to our actual fucking point lol.

do you see?? they are perfect mirrors of each other, except for one critical juncture. Izuku grew up on Rescue Road, but the entrance to Beating Villains Boulevard was always barricaded off. until one day he finally got a quirk, and so was permitted entry. meanwhile, Katsuki has lived on BV Blvd his entire life, and until very recently he never even knew there was a Rescue Rd. and now that he finally does know, he’s been working very hard to get there, and has made many detours all over Plot Parkway, and has finally reached the point where he’s at least able to see the road that leads where he needs to go. but he still hasn’t gotten there yet. for him it’s still barricaded off in the same way that his road was once barricaded off to Izuku.

and there are other ways for him to gain access to this road. ways which involve far less pain and suffering, tbh! but the problem is, he’s never been the type of boy who has the patience for any of those other roads. he can’t be bothered to take the scenic route there. he’s in a rush. and so he keeps on trying to force his way past the barricade using brute strength and whatever other means he can think of, perhaps even trying to use the toll pass he got back on his own street (stay with me, metaphor; we’re in this till the bitter end now), thinking that if it worked over there, it should work for him here too. but it doesn’t. and the longer he keeps pressing up against this barricade, the more frustrated he becomes.

and meanwhile Izuku has already made himself at home over on Katsuki’s own street. and so that sure is annoying! except it turns out that by watching Izuku very closely, Katsuki can sort of get an idea of how they do things over on Izuku’s old street, just like Izuku once observed Katsuki and admired him as the closest he could get to being on BV Blvd himself. so at least that’s something. and the more Katsuki does observe and imitate him, the more he’s actually able to do a passing impression of a true Rescue Rd native. and maybe eventually he even starts thinking to himself, I don’t really need to go down this stupid road anyway, even though deep down he knows that the only route through to All Might Avenue is through that road. and also though, the other thing is that seeing as he’s only ever lived on his own street, he still thinks, even now, that his street is objectively the better of the two and the more important.

but that’s not how it works. the plain fact of the matter is that in order to get to All Might Ave you need to pass through both roads. if it was just Hero Highway that they were trying to reach? well then sure! that one’s easy. exit’s right over there. but they don’t want plain old Hero Highway. they want All Might Ave. they want to be the best heroes. they want to complete their respective character journeys. and to do that, Kacchan needs to find what he lacks. and to do that, he needs to gain access to this road.

so what I’m trying to say here is that because of who Katsuki is, and because of what his goal is, the surest and most logical way to complete his character arc is by bringing it around full circle as a mirror to Izuku’s. in order to fulfill his goal of becoming the best hero, Katsuki has to lose his quirk. it’s symmetry. it’s yin and yang. it’s equilibrium. in order to move forward he must first go back. in order to win, he has to lose. for him, this is the missing piece.

and just to clarify, because I feel like this needs to be said: this is not about “redemption through suffering”, though. it’s not “oh he deserves it for how he treated Izuku all those years ago.” and it’s not “let’s make the audience feel sorry for poor little Kacchan so that they feel more sympathetic towards him”, either. that’s not it at all! because the thing is, this isn’t about punishment; this is about fulfillment. this isn’t angst for the sake of angst. this is about placing a very deliberately and meticulously crafted obstacle in front of him for the purpose of forcing him to learn how to overcome it.

because he will overcome it. this is Bakugou fucking Katsuki. he is not fragile. he is not delicate or frail. and so for anyone who’s worried this might be a crushing mental blow? I think you just might be underestimating him.

that’s not to say it won’t be grueling for him, mind. losing his quirk would mean coming face to face with the very real possibility of losing his dream too. because society doesn’t believe that people without quirks can be heroes. Katsuki himself never believed that someone without a quirk could be a hero.

but you know who did believe that? because he had to believe it, growing up, because no one else believed in him?

yeah. that’s right.

you see, for Izuku, his own intrinsic worth isn’t inherently tied to his quirk, because growing up he never had a quirk. now contrast that with Katsuki, whose own sense of self-worth is completely wrapped up in his quirk, his strength, his natural talent. Katsuki, who grew up being told how amazing his quirk was, and believing that the hierarchy of the world around him meant that having a good quirk placed him above other who didn’t. and who consequently also grew up with a correspondingly huge fear of failure, because his sense of security and fulfillment is contingent on his being strong. and if that were ever to change, to him that would mean a total loss of everything he is, everything he’s ever known, and everything he is striving to be.

“lol I thought you just said this wouldn’t be the crushing blow for him”, and yeah, lol, fair enough. but this is also exactly why it’s so important for him to finally face this fear head on. because even though it frightens him, even though it would devastate him, I don’t think it would defeat him. rather, I think that once he came to terms with what had happened and accepted it, he would do what he always does. he would rise back up.

because in spite of what he has always feared, he isn’t weak. and so even though losing his quirk would be harrowing, I think that, if done right, it could also be liberating and even empowering. because it’s him facing his fears. it’s an obstacle to overcome for the sake of him realizing that he can overcome it. because him being quirkless is not, in fact, the end of the world.

because his strength isn’t in his quirk -- it’s in his spirit. exactly like the boy he once secretly feared. exactly the same as Izuku.

so yeah. that’s basically it. tl;dr Deku and Kacchan are on opposite vectors and Katsuki’s is becoming particularly hazardous to navigate at the moment, but what at first glance seems to be a potential death blow could in fact be the thing that finally propels him forward towards where he wants to go and who he truly wants to be. and I am here for it. I want my boy to find himself some enlightenment. and then to rise back up again like the badass he is.

[unklarity]

Critical Role: Beau

“Click “keep reading” for more photos and a description of my Beau magic box! :)

Over the course of CR2, I was totally blindsided by how much I grew to love Beau, so I was both excited and nervous to make a box for her. I actually made the whole box on paper first (which I have never done before). I think that on some level, I was procrastinating because if I never started, I couldn’t screw it up. After having numerous Beau conversations with some amazing people (special thank you to @alemongrenade​, who helped me to turn my Beau feelings into real words), I was able to pin down some themes for her, but it took a while to flesh them out and really get to a point where I was comfortable with them. I ended up focusing on the difference between Beau’s perception of herself and how others perceive her, the way that perception influences her actions, and how that perception was developed.

I have a bad habit where I always feel the need to one-up myself, especially since I’m always learning new techniques and ways to do things, so I tend to want to incorporate all the things I learn into everything. With Beau, though, I wanted to keep it simple. “I’m a simple girl, simple needs,” to quote her introduction. I think Beau is very simple, on the outside, and I wanted the physical box to reflect that veneer of simplicity. Everyone always underestimates her, thinks there isn’t much more to her than a girl who has a problem with authority. So the box is plain, only decorated on the outside with the Cobalt Soul symbol, and yet the contents are varied and complex. (I love a good extended metaphor haha)

One of the reasons I struggled with Beau was her lack of concrete imagery at the beginning of the campaign. While I appreciated her simplicity from a fan standpoint, it was tough to come up with motifs to fit the box. I really wanted to reference her frustration with not being able to see in the dark and how much of a game-changer her Goggles of Night were. My first thought was a glow-in-the-dark message since I was having a hard time finding something more concrete, and even though I eventually did find a perfect pair of miniature silver goggles, I still wanted to include a glow-in-the-dark element, which ended up meshing perfectly with her jade All-Seeing Eye tattoo.

I painted the tattoo in the inside lid and added a clear, matte glow-in-the-dark paint over the top. You can see in the photo below how it looks in the light and in the dark! It’s one of my favorite parts of the box :)

Stones:

I wanted to stick to the Cobalt Soul color scheme of blues and greys as much as possible, so I wanted to use as many blue stones as I could. For a focus stone, I picked a gorgeous electric blue apatite tower. Apatite clears away guilt, confusion, apathy or negativity and helps expand one’s intellect and desire for knowledge and truth. It also represents positive use of personal power to achieve goals, encouraging you to accept yourself as you really are, and to gain greater self confidence. What I thought was interesting about this stone is that the meaning of the word Apatite relates to the Greek word 'apatao', which means 'to deceive'. Now, that’s probably due to the stone being mistaken for other minerals, but I thought it fit well with Beau not being easy to read, people thinking she’s shifty or lying even when she’s being honest, and her troubles with outwardly showing genuine emotions.

I also included a tiny Jade owl to represent wisdom, balance, perspective, and learning to be comfortable with showing your true self (and because I, too, wish Professor Thaddeus could have been Beau’s awesome owl sidekick).

The rest of the stones in the box are:

Fluorite- focus, intelligence, aids in meditation and helps with finding peace with oneself

Labradorite- transformation, becoming, being more true to who you are, help banishing fears/insecurities while enhancing faith and reliance in oneself;

Aquamarine - courage, freedom, and communication

Honey Calcite- clarity of insight/action, confidence, intellectual power

Rose quartz - forgiving oneself, learning to accept love, alleviating fear and sorrow/resentment

Blue aventurine - moving past trauma/letting go of emotional baggage, endurance, help saying what you mean, inner strength, passion/determination, gaining  control of anger and emotion, using it to help you

Hematite- grounding, cooperation (fighting in cooperation with spellcasters), fighting up close and personal (associated with martial artists), help talking your way out of situations

Tourmalated Quartz- hardness/tough exterior, help when feeling trapped/cornered. provides security when there is fear of failure, courage and self-acceptance in the learning process. Help with self sabotaging. Good for discipline and meditation. Help dealing with anger/self loathing/bitterness

Sodalite-help being less critical of oneself and help calming internal conflict

Celestite- clarity, intuition, and openness to things out of your comfort zone (also divine energy as a reference to Caduceus’ Holy Weapon spell)

And that’s it for stones!

Potions:

There are 6 potions, each labeled with a number on the bottom. The first three are in the photo below, in order from left to right:

The first potion is centered around Beau’s perception of herself, and how that’s been influenced by her interactions with others. Inside the bottle are lemon balm and basil for self hatred, peony for shame and anger, yellow carnation for disdain, heather for solitude and only being able to rely on herself/carry burdens herself, marigold for feeling like she has to constantly fight to prove herself worthy of love (“love you have to fight for”), nettle for insecurity and perceived insincerity, pine for low self worth, lotus for rebelling against authority, purple hyacinth for guilt/feeling like she has to apologize for being herself, and yellow hyacinth for comparing yourself to others/not thinking you’re special. Sealed with silver wax and a lotus flower stamp with blue pigment.

The second potion is a direct contrast to the first, dealing with other people’s perception of Beau and how she really is. There’s acorn for wisdom despite youth, sunflower for wisdom/loyalty, nutmeg for intelligence/wit, cedar for resilience and strength, pansy for thoughtfulness, thyme for loyalty, affection, attracting the good opinion of others, and courage in the face of adversity, gladiolus for strength of character, faithfulness, and honor, and dogwood for deep devotion and keeping confidence. Sealed with silver wax and a sunflower stamp with blue pigment.

The third potion represents the Cobalt Soul and what it means to Beau at different points in the campaign. At the beginning, the Soul is just another cage, someone else trying to impose their will on Beau, but as the story goes on, her goals and theirs start to line up. Dairon is the first authority figure we see give Beau a real chance while also managing to earn her respect, making the Cobalt Soul something that Beau can be a part of instead of something she’s trying to run from. In this potion we have tarragon for struggling to regain independence, chamomile for shedding outside influence, anise for using knowledge as power/to protect yourself/to get what you want, gum arabic for meditation, lilac for wisdom/memory/unlocking potential, rosemary for mental alertness/perception, violet for guarding against deception, lily for freedom and no longer feeling trapped, green tourmaline for calming the mind and increasing abilities/confidence, chrysocolla chips for empowerment and adaptability, and jasmine for appreciation, calming, and developing confidence. Sealed with silver wax and a Cobalt Soul stamp with blue pigment.

The next photo shows potions four through six, in order from left to right.:

Potion number four represents Beau’s past and how it affects her life currently. Before meeting the Mighty Nein, Beau grew up with parents who constantly tried to make her into something she wasn’t; her criminal background was a direct result of Beau rebelling against that control, and we see throughout the campaign that her intense distrust of authority figures still follows her wherever she goes. As time goes on, she does do a lot of growing up and letting go, and yet the way she was treated in the past still informs many of her present decisions and actions. In this potion, there’s lavender for ingrained distrust and problems between parent & child, dandelion for overcoming hardship, sage & cypress for grief and loss, amaranth for help recovering from trauma, black salt for being controlled/told what to be, yellow rose for betrayal, yarrow for regaining agency, mint for trying to atone for the past (Specifically, her guilt and criminal background vs. adopting Molly’s philosophy of leaving places better than you find them after his death), and barberry for freeing oneself from the power/control of another. Sealed with silver wax and a rosemary with blue pigment.

The fifth potion centers around Beau’s fears and struggles (fear of people leaving her, of not being good enough, struggle with being friendly/charismatic, being soft, struggle with presentation). There’s rue for regrets and obsessing over past mistakes, poppy for carrying a traumatic period in your life with you and letting it affect your actions, hydrangea for apparent aggression and being “bad at people,” cinquefoil for desire to be eloquent/wise/self confident, snapdragon for feeling like she has to lie because that would be better than being herself, gardenia for difficulty trusting others/letting people in, violet for importance of outward appearance (being in control of your own presentation and aesthetic and how important that is for Beau), amethyst for fear of being abandoned, garnet for help shedding guilt/sharing burdens, redeeming oneself, and struggling with responsibility (taking so many of the M9’s failures as her own personal responsibility). Sealed with silver wax and a fists stamp with blue pigment.

The sixth and final potion deals with the people around Beau and how she grows by learning lessons from others, both members of the Mighty Nein and the people they cross paths with. Just as in all the rest of the M9 boxes I’ve done so far, there are cloves for camaraderie and being improved by friends, one for each member of the group. There’s also red carnation and basil for brother-sister bonds with Caleb and Fjord, skullcap for willful commitment (found family), zinnia for remembering absent friends (Molly), sweet pea for chaos and adventure (in particular the Jester-Nott-Beau “chaos crew”), magnolia for loyalty, rose quartz for learning to accept love, and bluebell for friendship and slowly growing to be comfortable with being more truthful/open with people. Sealed with silver wax and a rosemary stamp with blue pigment.

That’s it for the potions! Next are the rest of the box’s miscellaneous contents:

So before I even got a box for Beau, I knew there had to be ball bearings in it. There are about a hundred, minus any that managed to escape while I took this picture :)

In the tiny blue pouch, there are gold coins for Beau’s role initial role as group treasurer, along with aforementioned ball bearings, a worn out old Circus flyer, and a set of  21 miniature Major Arcana tarot cards - the 22nd card, the Moon, is in my Jester box. Attached to the tie of the pouch are a silver pair of goggles with purple lenses to represent her Goggles of Night.

Also in the box are Beau’s staff, and her super secret book of important monk notes. Tucked into the book’s closure is a tiny hand-stamped coin with one of my favorite serious Beau quotes, “I don’t want us to drive each other away.”

Below are some close ups of the wax seals so you can see them better:

Thanks so much for reading! That’s it for Beau. Below are some close ups of the whole box at different angles, plus the quote I engraved on the bottom: “You are a good friend to have and a terrible enemy to make.”

I really had a great time working on Beau and I hope you love her as much as I do!

You can check my “magic boxes” tag to see the rest of my M9 boxes, or you can see them on my website at unklarity (dot) com! 

<3

[bluephoenixdruidicprincess]

Shadowhunters 3x11, Lost Souls -- Review

It's that time of the year again where I put myself through the torture of enduring this show. Watching this show is like going on an endurance run. You drag your feet when you first start, when you get acclimated to the level of exercise, you think "hey, this isn't too bad" and then by the end, it's just pain...but also a sense of pride that you made it through. That's been my experience with the show, anyway. And it's basically how I felt about Shadowhunters 3x11, Lost Souls.

I would like to preface this review with saying that I am NOT a huge supporter of this show. I do enjoy certain elements of it but I'm not what would be classified as a devoted fan. For me, Shadowhunters is not a good show and I do get very critical of the show in my reviews. Honestly, for me, I watch the show because 1) I'm too curious not to and 2) I find that this show can be so bad its funny and that's how I reap enjoyment out of it. I am not at all invested in this show or its characters anymore. I'm just watching to see what happens. If you're a die hard fan and you lash out at everyone who has a different opinion than you, you might want to skip these...I'm just saying. My reviews may not be for you. If you do decide to be a total troll, well then pay attention to the below disclaimer.

This is going to be an honest review of my thoughts and feelings regarding this episode. If you're the kind of Shadowhunters fan where you only want to hear positive things about the show, this is not the place for you. If you decide to stick around and get offended by what is said, then that's on you. I warned you. Just know that if you send me any rude comments or messages, I will 100% ignore you. I find that's the best way to deal with bullies. I work 14 hour days. Do you really think I want to waste my incredibly valuable free time dealing with derogatory comments? Hell no. This review will consist of my honest opinions. Opinions are never right or wrong. I'm not telling YOU how to think and feel. I'm telling you what I, quirky and socially awkward me, think and feel. So please, lets discuss with dignity and respect. If I'm critical about this show, it's only because I want it to get better. There is, in fact, a difference between hating a show and being critical of it. I do not hate Shadowhunters, I am being critical and analyzing the flaws as I would with any other show. There are positives but there are also negatives. It's great if you want to promote positivity with this show (and I encourage you to do so) but that doesn't mean I'm not going to point out the things that are legitimately wrong with it. Also, keep in mind that despite the fact that I do like the books, me being critical of this show has nothing to do with my fondness for the books. I don't really care if the show deviates from the source material as long as the changes are good, it makes sense, and it doesn't create plot holes within the confines of the world the show has created. My problems with this show are problems I would have with any show or book for that matter. I think it's perfectly reasonable to take issue with a show that has plot holes, shoddy world building, and inconsistent characters. There will be spoilers for the books and movie.

We are at last embarking upon the final episodes of this show and if this episode is what's going to set the tone for the remaining episodes, then I'm glad it's the final episodes because...well, this episode wasn't great and is a perfect example of what I won't miss about Shadowhunters. Bland and cringey dialogue, more characters than it knows what to do with, and too much jumping across plot points. There are individual moments in the episode I enjoyed but overall, this isn't an episode I loved.

The Loss of the Mary Sue

I'm not entirely certain of the timeline in this episode. The episode never specifies on exactly how many days have passed since the 3A finale but I'm going to estimate about a week or so. Everyone believes Clary died in the explosion caused by Lillith attacking Simon.

The episode opens with Jace, Izzy, and Alec chasing after a downworlder and Jace makes some very shoddy decisions in this fight that lets you see just how reckless he's become in the wake of Clary's "death". We then get a montage of everyone missing Clary and the more significant one is Jace, that's the one they spent the most amount of time on. He's basically walking through Clary's room remembering all the times he spent with Clary...so basically three memories. Another classic example of what I've always been talking about when it comes to the adaptation changes. Clary and Jace have barely spent any amount of time together, even less actually dating and I'm supposed to believe that they're each other's one true love...not going to happen because the show didn't develop it at all. There's a moment in the montage where Jace starts looking at Clary's drawings and getting really emotional about it and I felt nothing because Jace has never been shown to take any sort of interest in Clary's artwork before. In fact, if it weren't for that one scene in 3A, I wouldn't even have known that Clary was still drawing. By the show deviating from the books in the way they did, Clace had less development but yet the show still wants to continue the aspect of Clace being hopelessly in love from the books. You can't make a significant change from the source material and then pages down the line expect to pick up exactly where you left off. By making the change, you changed the entire context of the relationship so now the entire story has to change in order to fit that new narrative. Sadly, the Shadowhunters writers have not figured that out yet and continue to make that same mistake...or they're lazy, it could be that, too. Jace eventually gets so depressed that it's implied that he's contemplating suicide but Izzy is able to talk to him and get him to think. And then she just leaves him after making him promise he won’t go through with it. If anyone's wondering, if you catch someone who you believe may be contemplating suicide, do not UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, LEAVE THEM ALONE!!! Particularly in a dark room. Being in a dark enclosed space is not the kind of place that typically sends out positive energy. But I suppose I can cut Izzy a little bit of a break. It's entirely possible the Shadowhunter world doesn't really understand how to help someone who's experiencing suicidal thoughts. They certainly didn’t help out Jace’s mother. Alec also confronts Jace about this in probably the only believable scene in this entire episode. Seriously, I've never been a Jalec shipper but I totally understand why people ship them. Matt and Dom are probably the only actors who actually have any chemistry with each other. But Alec tells Jace he's doing the memory of Clary a disservice and that if Jace were to die, it would destroy him as well. In other words, Jace isn't the only one who's going to be affected by this decision. Jace eventually is called by Luke who for some reason appears to be living in a motel room. I don't know why but whatever. Luke doesn't believe Clary is actually dead and he tries to convince Jace through some really weird conspiracy theory that probably even flat-earthers would find difficult to believe. But hey, if it leads to them finding Clary, I'll go with it. And I understand why Luke is unable to accept even the possibility that Clary might be gone for good. He can't think that about someone who he basically views as his daughter and the last connection he has to Jocelyn. Luke gives the evidence to Jace and tells Jace to at least check it out.

Simon, understandably, is also having a difficult time with all this. And Maia returns to give him emotional support despite leaving for a very particular and totally understandable reason but Simon needs her so of course she comes back for him. It's not like Maia exists for anything else but for Simon's character arc. Both Simon and Izzy kind of passive-aggressively shame Maia about leaving. And I'm particualrly disappointed in Izzy telling Maia about what happened to Simon's family as that's a very deeply personal issue and Simon should've been the one to tell her. It wasn't Izzy's secret to tell. I get that they were trying to use that scene to exposit information to the audience but there were better ways of doing that. Hell, it could've just been Izzy making an off-handed comment about Simon. Maia could've been talking to Izzy about how badly Simon is doing with the Clary situation and Izzy could've been all, "especially with what happened with his family" and Maia could've been shocked and Izzy could've been flabbergasted because she didn't know Maia didn't know. That would've been a much better way for the situation to be handled. But I'm not too pleased with Izzy saying in response to Maia not knowing, "well how could you? you weren't around." Just the insinuation that Maia should stay around and support her man and not go off and get in the right head space to properly heal herself after dealing with the re-emergence of her abuser. But I suppose I shouldn’t expect any different from Izzy seeing as she, herself, also only exists to give support the other characters. I think these passive aggressive intonations of shaming Maia are really horrible and shame on the writer. Maia, Izzy, and Simon decide to work together to find a way to get rid of the Mark of Cain from Simon's forehead. They talk to Raphael who now works at a soup kitchen in Detroit and Raphael tells them the tale of some dude chilling in the sewers of NYC who could possibly be the oldest vampire alive and may have answers to the removal of the Mark of Cain. Maia decides not to help Simon on this as its a bad idea for a werewolf and a vampire to meet and I almost forgot that was a thing, the show so rarely does anything with the vampire vs werewolf dynamic. But of course Maia has to back off to give room for Sizzy. I’m really not a big fan of Sizzy being explored here as everything that made Sizzy fun and interesting in the books has been completely stripped from the show. I’d much prefer Saia on the show. But really, I just want Maia and Izzy to have their own character arc, though that doesn’t revolve around shipping. 

The Malec B-Plot

We have a Malec B-plot that I found just completely unnecessary wherein Iris returns and kidnaps Magnus because she wants to get Madzie back. She falls for the most obvious trap in the world and hopefully we never see Iris again. What it does for Magnus's story works I guess but I just found it to be a really obtrusive subplot that didn’t fit at all with the episode. I'm not sure if it's just the fact that I've been away from the show for a year so I can see the the show a little more clearly now but the Malec chemistry is no longer working for me. Maybe it's just that I've always paid more attention to how alarmingly unequal their relationship is but I'm looking at the body language they're giving off and its not the kind of body language you would expect from lovers. They're so stiff around each other and not relaxed at all.

In fact, there's a line in this episode where Malec has just put Madzie to bed as they're baby-sitting her and Alec kisses Magnus and Magnus tells him to stop because they have a child in the apartment currently. Alec kind of scoffs because it's just a kiss and Magnus is all, "You know how we get." And I'm like, "Do we really, though?" There's plenty of scenes of them talking and I can buy them as friends with that but lovers? I’m having a difficult time actually buying that now. Like I said before, the Jalec scene was way more believable than any Malec scene in this episode.

But Magnus decides he doesn't want to feel helpess ever again so he decides he needs to learn how to fight. Honestly, I was surprised to learn that this is implying he doesn't even seem to really have any basic self-defense capabilities. The way he was swinging the sword earlier in this episode lead to me to believe otherwise. Plus, Harry Shum Jr is a pretty buff dude but I guess maybe Magnus lifts weights and that’s it. Alec decides to help him out on this venture, though.

Siblings Reunited

We find out that Clary is indeed not dead and that Jonathon's back. I'll be real, here. It's kind of hard to feel sad for Jace or Simon or Luke or anyone really regarding the "death" of Clary, considering this entire episode is interspliced with moments of Clary being very much alive. Honestly, I think this episode would've functioned better if it was just about showing everyone going through all the different stages of grief regarding Clary and at the end of the episode when they've hit the acceptance stage, that's when we see Clary wake up in the apartment with Jonathon. But whatever. The show decided not to go that route so we have to make do with what we got. Clary wakes up and looking pretty damn fantastic for someone who's been asleep for days. Not a strand of hair out of place, make-up is flawless, and not a wrinkle to be found on her clothing. In fact, I think they're in even better condition than they were when Clary initially had to put them on. Clary also isn't even the slightest bit groggy, she knows exactly where she's at and everything. Clary does comas well. Jonathon tells Clary that it is indeed him, her big brother and that before Lillith was sent to hell she sent them away to Siberia, apparently. Clary plays nice for a little bit with Jonathon but decides to chance out in the cold of Siberia. It's nice to see that in her state of unconsciousness her muscles didn't atrophy from lack of movement or deteriorate from lack of food. But Clary fails in her escape, Jonathon finds her and brings her back. Clary tries to stab him with a knife but they both find out that what happens to one person will also happen to the other. So yeah, we're full in City of Lost Souls plot here which is ironically the title of this episode. Shadowhunters has never been all that subtle. This new actor for Jonathon is going to take some getting used to. Will Tudor did a phenomenal job with him so its difficult to see this new guy as Jonathon. But it also is difficult to take Clary's anger and hatred of Jonathon seriously when you think about all that Jonathon's really done on the show is kill a shadowhunter Clary had never met before and then injured Max and Max swiftly recovered. Clary is all about painting him as the worst possible being and indeed, in the books, he is but here, while he may be a bad guy who's done really bad things, I don't know if its deserving of that level of hatred. We haven't exactly seen a lot of his horrifying dastardly deeds. Another example of making a change and then thinking you can still keep the same storyline at a later point in the story. I'm certainly not saying I wanted Max to die but story-telling wise, it would make the emotions Clary's feeling here a little more believable. But I'm actually really interested to see where this whole Jonathon and Clary plot goes. In the books, it's Jace that's put in this situation so it'll be interestig to see how the show tackles Clary being in this situation. I'm also wondering, because they seem to be trying to stay away from the incest vibes here, is Jonathon going to gain an unhealthy obsession with Jace instead of Clary? In the books, Clary was who Jonathon was creepily obsessed with. He was equating possession with love and viewed that Clary belonged to him in every way imaginable. So since the roles of Clary and Jace have been reversed here, will Jonathon's obsession now change from Clary to Jace? Probably not but it would've been interesting to see for sure. I mean, if you're going to do a role reversal, you might as well go all the way, right?

The Clave Acting Shady AF

The Clave is being super shady right now. They appear to be doing experiments on the incarcerated downworlders and all I can say is, "do we really need this?" And also, "Why is it being implied that Jia knows about this and is okay with this?" The interesting thing about Jia in the books was the fact that she was the first step in the leadership to help get rid of the more corrupt aspects of the Clave and instigating change. But I suppose it's per the norm for the show to make everyone but the main group a bad guy instead of morally grey. As I've said before, this show has no concept of subtlety. I can only imagine that this is leading into the part in City of Glass the show hasn't done yet wherein the alliance rune is going to be introduced but instead of using it to fight Valentine, they're going to use it to fight Jonathon. That's what these downworlder experiments seem to be leading into as it reminds me a lot of Valentine experimenting in the books. I'm sure there was 0 social commentary intended when writing this into the show, though...but I think its safe to say it's totally social commentary. The show isn't very subtle, once again.

But good news is it looks like Ollie is gone for good so yay! I am side-eying the show, though about that. What was the point of introducing her if you weren't going to do anything with her? I'd say they probably wasted about half of 3A with Ollie unnecessarily. But maybe if this show hadn't been cancelled, Ollie would've played a more significant role? Well anyway, at least some of the fat has been trimmed.

My biggest issue, as always, is the dialogue. The dialogue felt extremely one-note. It was almost like the writer made a flow chart of what they wanted to happen in this episode and was like, "crap! I guess my characters do need to speak, here's some lines to explain what's going on." The dialogue basically existed solely for the purpose of giving exposition but the real kicker is that it was really unnecessary. I could've had this episode on silent (and that might've even have made it an improvement) and I would've understood what was happening perfectly. The dialogue really didn't add anything to the experience, it just made the episode feel more awkward than it already was. And then there continues the trend of Shadowhunters treating their awesome plans as if they’re the most clever plans in the world when in actuality, the plan is beyond obvious and it was super cringey and awkward seeing Izzy being treated as this amazing strategist for making the obvious move. And the episode was already plenty awkward with the constant cutting. It's really difficult to enjoy any particular subplot going on in this show when we only spend maybe 30 seconds to a minute on any particular moment. I kind of wish this show structured their episodes more around themes as opposed to plot. Plot is temporary, plot is always changing but exploring themes through plot gives you more of an appreciation not only for the characters but the story, itself. While I didn't mind sequences in this episode, at the end of the day, it just kind of left me feeling empty. I also think the acting felt a little stilted as well. I wasn't a big fan of any of the performances given in this episode and whereas I've never thought anyone on this show was oscar-worthy for their performances in the past on this show, their performances have always been maybe a C+ to a B. But in this episode, it just didn't feel like any of the actors' hearts were in it. Now granted, that could be a side effect of the script because, as I've mentioned before, the script wasn't great. Or it could've been the directing. There's a lot of reasons for why acting can feel stilted and it very rarely has to do with the actor or actress being bad at acting.

I've made notes about how the dialogue and acting was stilted but those weren't the only things that were. The fight choreography and the blocking felt a little off as well. For starters, the fight choreography did not feel organic. It was strangely reminiscent of season 1 fight choreography. The constant jump cuts so you don't see too much of what's actually happening and just feeling like fight scenes move very slowly. Like the reaction times between sword swing to parry were very slow and it kept on taking me out of the moment. Then you also had moments where Alec and Izzy catch up with Jace in the sewer and everyone's staring at the seelie they're trying to capture for a good 5 seconds before the actual fight continues. And then there's just strange blocking choices where a character walks to a point in the room and then delivers their line but the walk to the new mark wasn’t organic and actually made the line feel more awkward.

I'd probably give this episode a C+. It was passable, with enjoyable moments but ultimately not something I have any desire to return to. There were cute moments (primarily Jalec and Madzie), but overall as an episode, not something to be too terribly impressed with. And yes, there were moments I did like. It’s not my fault the show just had more bad parts I felt compelled to talk about.

[marybeatriceofmodena]

(1/2) I agree with everything you say but I'm too afraid to say so myself. Especially because if you don't agree 100% with how Rey is being portrayed, folks think you're being misogynistic. I wish we could be more open to discussion. You can love a movie or a character and still don't agree with certain aspects of them. For example, yes, Kylo became Supreme Leader, but his "victory" was undermined 5 minutes later when Luke trolled him in front of the fo and what was left of the resistance.

continued: (2/2) His win felt like a loss, which is a good thing for redemption, but it means two failures in a row nonetheless. In other hand, Rey’s biggest loss was being wrong about Ben Solo and her parents. Yes, she made mistakes but they didn’t bring her consequences she wasn’t able to overtake in the same movie. At the end, her bad choices don’t stop her from becoming the resistance savior. It feels like she can’t do no wrong, which makes it hard to sympathize with her as much as I can with Kylo.

*

Well, I think the problem why people are a bit more “jumpy” is that there have been a lot of bad takes - on both sides of the debate. I’ve seen some pretty bad anti-Rey/pro-Ben takes myself. Like, I prefer seeing them as two flawed individuals who ended up fucking it all up because of their flaws, and because of a lack of communication? 

I might also be influenced by how star-crossed lovers stories usually go: it often happens that lovers in star-crossed romances are separated due to outdated or bad societal conventions - that’s actually EXACTLY what happened with Anakin and Padmé. And honestly, if I was writing IX, I’d follow Rose’s words about “saving what we love, not destroying what we hate” to heart, and have the war end not by the Noble Resistance/Rebellion defeating the Evil First Order/Empire (because c’mon, it’s the OT all over again, you can do better), but by people overcoming their differences, working together, and ultimately show how absurd war is. 

That’s what TLJ was about, especially in respects to the Finnrose plot: both Finn and Rose discover that the people behind the war machine don’t care about who’s the bigger dog in the galaxy and all that matters is your own personal gain - and the First Order, as well as the Resistance, all play a part in oiling that machine. Not to mention that Solo was basically an introduction to the underground crime world, who also make their profits out of weapon dealing, so I don’t think that was a coincidence. 

That’s not to say you shouldn’t stand against oppression and injustice - you absolutely should, since the opposite would be going against what Star Wars has always been about. 

But war is what has always been the cause of every single trial the heroes went through: war is what provoked the Clone Wars, initiated the enslavement of millions of men because they were clones; war is what led Ahsoka Tano to leave what was the equivalent of her family behind after the irreparable had been done; war is what eventually drove Anakin Skywalker to become Darth Vader, and killed Padmé; war is why Luke and Leia grew up and never knew who their real parents are; war is why Luke’s aunt and uncle were killed in a gruesome matter, just for being indirectly implied with a matter they wanted no part in; war is what killed not only Leia’s adoptive parents, but her entire planet as well; war is what killed people like Jyn, Cassian or Bodhi before they were given a chance to actually live a peaceful life; war is eventually what tore Han and Leia apart, destroyed Luke’s work of a lifetime, and drove Ben to the Dark side. 

So… wouldn’t it be fitting that the war is won not by a big epic battle of good vs. evil… but people coming together to pursue a common goal, and not care about clans and factions and all the like… but like the Rogue One team, do it even if you have the whole galaxy against you because it’s the right thing to do? 

If it was up to me, I’d have Rey, Ben, Finn and Rose team up and plan to take down the First Order from the inside, because it’s the best way at this point to end it all. Rey does it because she has decided to become part of Ben’s life and, to become part of his family and also finding the belonging she always longed for, she helps take down the very organization that tore them apart in the first place, but this time, with Ben, without any conditions, as equals. Ben does it because he realizes on his own that like for people like Finn, Rose, and all the Stormtroopers, the First Order has ruined his life. And if he wants to help establish a new order and make the galaxy a better place, the First Order has to go too. Finn does it because he doesn’t want to fight against his brothers and sisters in arms, and because they, too, want to be free and have lives of their own. And he accepts to do it alongside Ben because he may not understand why Rey loves him, but he trusts her. And Rose does it because in every child who has been indoctrinated by the First Order, she can see Finn in them, and with her planet being enslaved, she realizes that, well, it could have been her. 

* 

And to get to the rest of your ask… yes, Ben is sympathetic because as much as he’s an asshole, you understand why he’s the way he is. Of course he messes up. Of course he gets humiliated. He needs all those things in order to be able to grow, understand his mistakes, and learn. THAT’S what makes him sympathetic. 

Rey… obviously, she learns what really went down between Luke and Ben, which makes her realize that when it comes to heroes and villains, it’s not always the way it seems. So far, so good, and it’s actually brilliantly done. The problem is that as I said for her rescue plan, while her heart was totally at the right place, the plan itself… honestly needed more work, and Ben pretty much had to save her ass. 

And look, I’m a-okay with Rey being impulsive, jumping to conclusions, heading head first into trouble - it makes a lot of sense with her background and characterization. It doesn’t make her unlikeable AT ALL, it just makes her a fully fledged character. The problem here is when those flaws aren’t treated as such - and that’s what’s frustrating, lol. But ya know, it’s a writing problem. Not a problem with the character specifically. 

So if she can do no wrong… how can you “sympathize” with her? Because “sympathizing” with someone implies that either they’ve done something bad, either they’re involved in a touchy situation, either they’re affected by a bad situation. 

And sure, you can argue she got her heart broken - but my issue is that the movie doesn’t show that. All it took was one little scene where she leaves the Throne Room teary-eyed, looking at Ben but turning away. Instead, straight after the Throne Room fight… next time we see her is her being all happy-go-happy while shooting TIE fighters. So because of that, it makes her look like she doesn’t care - which is not what you should be going for, lol. 

But again, to know whether it’s a bad writing decision or not, we’ll have to wait until IX. But all I want Rey to realize is that in order to help Ben, and help the galaxy against the First Order, she can’t drag Ben around, and she can’t expect him to just follow her around because she thinks she’s right or her heart is at the right place. She needs to work WITH HIM. Ya know, do the couple thingy, like, TALK. COMMUNICATE. 

[avenger-hawk]

Of all the fights Sasuke had, which one is your favourite? Also I love your blog ❤

Thank you🐦

It’s hard to decide, maybe impossible because each and every of Sasuke’s fights are the best ones. He’s strategic and unpredictable, he has a lot of abilities, powers and moves and he always comes up with something original that he learned on the spot or that he re-elaborated. He’s reckless, but not in a dumb way, because it’s part of his strategy to put himself at risk in order to test the opponent and learn more about him, and no matter how badly he gets hurt he never stops thinking, and he never stops trying. Also he faces very strong opponents so he’s always at great risk, which makes his fight even more interesting and entertaining to watch, because unlike most shounen fights, it’s impossible to know what’s going to happen. Eventually he wins but he doesn’t win with a TnJ or some random power up because he’s the chosen one; he did activate new powers but in a plausible way, and when he wins out of luck he’s always given everything and more into that fight, and he always comes out of it badly injured, which, despite his strength and badassery, makes his fight more interesting, without the certainty that he’ll win. Also because, for example with Madara, he loses (that fight is too short and badly drawn, not a favourite. I hoped for something more btw).

(some anti-sas*ita comments under the cut. Also some anti-Team7. Don’t know how they came out)

The fight against Kakashi is a wasted opportunity because it’s too short, too soon Naruto arrives and the attention shifts to them, also emotionally, but it had a lot of potential because finally the two met again, and there is a hint of regret on Kakashi’s side, even though he has no qualms attacking Sasuke. The fight itself is interesting, they’re both strategic and both have sharingan based powers, although Sasuke is desperate, not strategic during this, but also Kakashi isn’t that strategic, so probably he’s emotional about it too, in his own way. It’s intense and sad for Sasuke, who wants to detach and purity the Uchiha from the village, who threatens his former sensei, insulting him for not being an Uchiha yet having a sharingan, and all of a sudden he goes blind. I would have liked to see more of this, like, Kakashi’s choice to attack or not attack his former student in such a vulnerable state.  

The fight against Danzo is satisfying because he finally punishes the one who destroyed his clan and Itachi’s life, and it’s full of his emotions, his love for Itachi, his despair for his loss, his fury against the one responsible. Even Danzo’s lines, meant to belittle Sasuke in comparison with Itachi, make it interesting and all the more heartfelt on Sasuke’s side.

The fight against Deidara is one of the best, because Sasuke is very calm and strategic, recklessly testing Deidara’s techniques at the cost of his own safety, and countering them in the most effective way no matter of it hurt him in the process, like directing his chidori on himself to counter his mini explosives. I like how their different personalities interacted, with Deidara being loud and boastful while Sasuke was thinking different strategies. Also Deidara’s unresolved one-sided rivalry (and admiration) for Itachi came into play and it’s interesting, as well as the fact that both characters have an inferiority complex, especially towards Itachi, even though they act on it differently.  

The fight against Kabuto is amazing. There’s Edo Tensei Itachi who’s my favourite Itachi because he’s himself 100%, he’s badass and witty, compassionate towards those he deems deserving it and strong-willed, affectionate and still mysterious, capable of joking in the middle of a battle and of declaring his feelings of unconditional love and support to Sasuke, and Sasuke opens his heart completely and painfully. The fight in itself isn’t my favourite because there are better ones but I love it for the feelings (and the itasasu vibes all over). The brothers are finally reunited after Sasuke ran after his big brother, and while they’re facing such a strong and creepy opponent they also rekindle their bond (that has never gotten weaker but still) and have a glimpse of what life would have been if they got to spend it together, fighting enemies together, Itachi explaining him things and leading him. Because another reason why I love this fight is how their relationship is clearly represented, Itachi being the older brother and talking and acting as such, also being the Anbu leader, and someone used to lead, thus easily doing the same with his brother whom he protects, while Sasuke, who doesn’t easily takes orders, who’s been leading his own team in part 2, naturally follows Itachi’s lead, as if he were supposed to do it. Which he was, as second son. 

(This fight was one of the things that made me fell out of interest for sas*ita dynamics, as they didn’t fit in what I saw on these episode, because here Itachi is himself and he’s so much the opposite of passive, and Sasuke is so much the opposite of aggressive or jealous, only apparently lashing out at him but accepting his decision to release the jutsu and leave him alone -or entrust him to someone else- with infinite pain, yet with the respect he has for someone he put on a pedestal and has no intention to possess or control)

The fight against Killer B is another favourite. It starts funny, with Killer B and Taka’s bickering, but it becomes something else entirely. One of the episodes is very well animated, he other less but it doesn’t even matter. Everything is fast, deadly and unpredictable on both sides. Team Taka and Sasuke are strong but not jinchuuriki level and it’s cool and realistic. Alone they wouldn’t make it, but in team they can. Almost. Every second of this fight is really cool, entertaining and beautiful on many different levels. It starts in a very cool way, from Suigetsu lashing out and losing his sword to Killer B, to Sasuke retrieving it for him, and it becomes intense as Sasuke is getting more and more hurt and more and more worried about his comrades, and all of them help each other in any way they can.Their teamwork in this is flawless.This fight is a proof of how amazing they are as a team, how strongly they care about each other, and how much better they are compared to Team7.

The fight against Itachi…oh, that one’s hard to describe. I totally rooted and focused on Sasuke when I first saw it, and after the reveal I reread/rewatched it and saw all the little clues of Itachi’s real feelings, of really strong he was, so much that his powers weren’t shown entirely, so much that he held back a lot against Sasuke while Sasuke gave his all. From the fight-only point of view it’s very interesting and entertaining, the initial genjutsu battle confuses in the way it’s supposed to, then the real physical battle starts and Sasuke smirks at having landed a blow on his brother, finally. But every time he does something like that and thinks he’s gonna win, Itachi counters him with a new unknown technique. Sasuke planned their fight thoroughly, with Kirin as his last blow, the one supposed to kill him and give the clan justice, but he doesn’t make it, and he loses it when he sees Itachi still alive, although in a terrible shape. Because he doesn’t even register the bad shape, he just sees how strong and invincible his brother seems, and he’s genuinely scared then, because Itachi is playing the villain role and approaching him to steal his eyes. It’s really scary, really intense. And there is more, like the disappointment when he sees the inner world Itachi faked to appear more evil, only interested in Sasuke’s eyes, before he straightens his resolve and proceeds with the fight. Like Sasuke’s hesitation when, still not up on the roof to activate Kirin, he watches Itachi from below, and he’s half smiling, half looking regretful and longing for something that doesn’t happen, so he acts once again. 

As you can tell I can’t really choose.I also liked parts of the final fight against Naruto but not all of it because of the too many power ups and the Kyuubi vs Susano’o mecha-like part… while I liked the bare hands fight. I also liked

[woodworkingpastor]

Who is worthy? -- Luke 7:1-17 -- Sunday, February 7, 2021

There is a famous scene in the movie The Godfather that really helps us understand today’s Scripture. Don Corleone is sitting at his desk listening to Amerigo Bonasera’s plea for help. Bonasera’s daughter has been brutally beaten by her boyfriend. Wanting to be good Americans, the Bonasera’s turned to the criminal justice system. But the boys involved in his daughter’s beating come from a wealthy family and are able to pull some strings to receive a suspended sentence. To add further insult to injury, as they pass by Mr. Bonasera on their way out of court they smirk at the stunned father.

This drives him to the Godfather. “For justice, we must go to Don Corleone.” The Godfather agrees to help him, telling him as he leaves his study, “Someday, I will call upon you to do a service for me.”

That scene from The Godfather is an excellent example of a patronage relationship. It’s the kind of relationship we typically look on with disapproval, because we are like Amerigo Bonasera ascribes to be: we expect that decisions will be made based on either the facts of the situation or on the qualifications of the people involved, and not through some special treatment or backdoor arrangement. We don’t leave a department store owing the owner a favor; we pay for what we purchase. And although connections and recommendations are helpful, we expect to be hired for a job because we’re the most qualified. “Under the table” sorts of deals are frowned upon and often illegal.

This was not the case in Bible times. Because resources of all kinds were scarce, knowing someone who could place you in contact with someone else who had what you needed was important information. But such favors came with a price. We get a glimpse of this in today’s Scripture. Read Luke 7:1-17.

The centurion and his slave

Centurions were people of significance in the Roman world; their’s was a position of power and respect. In many ways, centurions were the backbone of the Roman army. William Barclay says of centurions that

they must not be so much seekers after danger as men who can command, steady in action, and reliable; they ought not be over anxious to rush into the fight; but when hard pressed they must be ready to hold their ground and die at their posts (Barclay, 84).

What would likely have stood out for the early hearers of Luke’s gospel was the unusual relationship the centurion has with his slave. Our hearts are naturally inclined to expect compassion and sympathy. But this wasn’t necessarily the expectation in the first century. Roman law defined slaves as “living tools.” They had no rights; slaves could simply be disposed of when they had outlived their usefulness. But this centurion seems to be different—rather than seeking a new slave, he seeks out treatment for one whom he “valued highly.”

This is where the patronage relationship come into play. A patronage relationship has two components: the patron (someone like the Godfather who has access to something that someone else wants or needs) and a client (someone like Amerigo Bonasera who would accept help in return for a later favor). Furthermore, in Roman culture it was expected that wealthy persons would use their wealth for the public good. This Roman centurion become a patron to the local community by building a synagogue. It was a significant act that blessed that local Jewish community.

It was out of this patronage relationship that the centurion sends the Jewish elders to ask Jesus for help. Because the centurion built the synagogue he has earned the right to ask this favor—go to Jesus and ask him for help. In The Godfather, Amerigo Bonasera owned a funeral home. Later in the movie, the Godfather’s son is killed; he calls upon Bonasera to embalm his son’s body for burial.

From the perspective of the patronage relationship, the centurion is worthy. It’s a Greek word that means “tipping the scales.” The centurion’s past generosity tips the scale in his favor; therefore, his slave should be healed.

The difficulty comes when we begin thinking that we have a patronage relationship with God. The problem with this line of thinking is that we want to place ourselves in the role of the patron and God in the role of the client. Because we’re a faithful member of our church and have been generous to the poor and been faithful with our tithes, then we have earned the privilege for Jesus to show up when we need him and do for us what we ask.

We may deny ever thinking this way. But let’s look at some examples. I imagine that somewhere along the way you’ve taken one of these informal tests that asks you to answer some broad questions: “On a scale of 1 to 5, how likely are you to _________.” When you finish with the test, you add up your score and it (supposedly) tells you how much of a certain characteristic you have. Consider these questions somewhat like that: how much you might be operating in a kind of patronage relationship with God?

Consider your prayer life. Do your prayers consist more of praise or more of petition? Do you pray more when things are going well or when things are going badly?

Remember, this isn’t a hard and fast rule, it measures an attitude or a tendency. Let me offer another example: when someone is really in love, Valentine’s Day is a great joy because the lover’s focus is on the other person and what can be done for them. Buying gifts and creating special getaways are a priority. But when the relationship is falling apart you will often see the reverse happen: all the lover can do is complain about all the things the partner didn’t do for them. The focus shifts from them to me. “I’ve done all these things for them, but do you think they would lift a finger for me?”

Now apply that back to your prayer time: do you spend time with God in prayer because you love God? Or does your prayer focus on things you want God to do? Again, these aren’t absolutes; they are tendencies. What does this say about us?

We could add some more categories, like:

Does your commitment to Christ and the church change when life goes badly? Are you just as committed to Christ and the church in difficult times as you are in good times?

How do you measure your self-worth? Are you a person of significance because of your talent, or your accomplishments, or your wealth, or because Jesus has looked at you and said, “You are mine”?

Religion vs. gospel

Ultimately, what we’re talking about is the difference between religion and gospel. The basic attitude of religion is that we need to do something to earn God’s grace, and if we’ve done certain things then we deserve God’s grace. In the story of the centurion and the slave, the assumption is that the centurion was worthy of Jesus’ attention because he’d built the synagogue for the people.

Interestingly, the centurion figures out that this isn’t how things work with Jesus. He openly confesses, “I am not worthy to have you come under my roof” and yet he recognizes that Jesus does have the power to heal, which is exactly what happens. The centurion is the only one to comprehend grace.

But this isn’t all there is to the story. Luke does something extremely important here: he tells another healing story, only in this story there is no question of patronage and no question of worthiness. No one in the town of Nain asks Jesus for anything: the only sound is the mother weeping for her son on her way to his burial. Jesus’ love is only an expression of his compassion.

Here again, we need to see the story through first century eyes and recognize that this is more than the sorrow of a mother for her deceased son. Luke also tells us that she was a widow and this was her only son, meaning that she is now destitute because in a patriarchal society she had no man to care for her. She has lost everything; her circumstances are hopeless. When Jesus restores her son he restores her life, too.

The promise of the Gospel

This shows us the fundamental story of the gospel, one that is portrayed in both the Old and the New Testaments: we have lost everything; our situation is hopeless and there is nothing we can do to resolve it on our own. When the Bible talks about our hopeless state, it uses language in Hebrew and Greek that is much stronger than English translations recognize:

Isaiah 64:6. We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

Philippians 4:8. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.

“Filthy cloth” and “rubbish” are words that describe some of the dirtiest parts of bodily functions.

It can be difficult for successful people to hear that everything they might attempt to leverage in a patronage relationship is worthless. We are people who have good educations, good jobs; we’ve largely done well in life. The Gospel denies us our patronage relationship with God, but it gives us something much better in exchange: another story about a son who died but was restored to life so that someone else who was in a hopeless situation would know the fulness of life. We are not the Roman centurion in this story; we are the mother in Nain who has lost everything but who gets her life back because the son lives again.

Seeing this, the people proclaim, “God has looked favorably on his people!” Let us celebrate God’s favor on us by confessing our sin and asking for forgiveness:

Most merciful God,

We confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed,

           by what we have done, and by what we have left undone.

We have not loved you with our whole heart;

           we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.

We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.

For the sake of your son Jesus Christ,

           have mercy on us and forgive us;

                       that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways

                       to the glory of your name

Amen.

[getoffthesoapbox]

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - The Thematic Heart

This is the second post in my Star Wars The Last Jedi First Impressions series. In this section, I’ll be covering the general themes of the film, though I’ll be excluding any key themes that are specific to Kylo, Rey, and Luke within the A plot. 

As a quick reminder, here is the list of the topics this series covers, including links to the previous post:

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - A Flawed Triumph 

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - The Thematic Heart ← we are here

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Finn & Rose

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Luke & Rey

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Luke & Kylo

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Luke & Leia

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Rey’s Trajectory

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Kylo’s Trajectory

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Rey & Kylo

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - The Romantic Heart

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Misleading Love Polygons

[SW:TLJ] First Impressions - Schrödinger's Futures

Onward to the second behemoth!

On first impression, I noticed about three general themes bubbling through TLJ. Some may be specific to this film only, but others (I hope) are indicative of the direction and message of the sequel trilogy as a whole.

Who Contributes to War?

One of the themes I wish had more airtime in TLJ is the theme of each side contributing to the war and a third side profiting from it. (And perhaps even stoking the conflict when necessary.)

DJ, the duplicitous code breaker, attempts to teach Finn this lesson during their adventure together. Unfortunately, we don’t get the sequel trilogy’s answer to DJ’s question, which I hope is something Finn will wrestle with in the final film as he searches for a new path that doesn’t require war.

This is a more nuanced theme for Star Wars than we’re used to; it casts our heroes in a darker light for the first time--their antics may not be as virtuous as they (or we) imagine. TLJ seems to be asking a deeper question here: is there a third way? Can a third way be found? Or must the battle rage on between Light and Dark with nothing between? Finn’s side of the story offers no clues as to the answer, but we do see a hint of this in the union of Rey and Kylo against the Praetorian guard. For a split second the two of them found a common goal, and unity reigned over conflict.

Unfortunately thanks to TLJ’s pacing flaws, we don’t get to ponder this question much in any of the storylines, and Kylo’s epic meltdown at the end of the film places us right smack dab in Light vs. Dark territory again, which in my opinion is a disservice to this theme for the sake of cheap finale thrills. I’d like to see this theme fully explored, but it may not be possible in this particular trilogy, given the nature of how the First Order is portrayed.

Still, it’s nice to see it acknowledged, even in passing, that the Good Guys are contributing to the tragedies befalling kids like Rose and Paige, even if unintentionally.

Leadership - The Way is Narrow

The path of the leader is a subject Star Wars doesn’t seem to to dabble in very often, but when it does it doesn’t hold back. In TLJ, we see this rise thematically in several ways:

The old lose their place (Snoke, Luke, Leia) and must step down for the young

The drifters must find purpose and heed the call (Finn, Luke)

The brash and headstrong must learn temperance (Poe)

The temperate must leave room for the innovative (Holdo)

The lost cannot lead (Kylo)

To see this much variety in leadership in the same film is either a lucky coincidence or intentional. Either way matters not to me. ;P What’s in the film is in the film, whether intended or not, and I’d like to explore what I see there.

What we have in TLJ is an exploration of the many shades of leadership, and not a single leader is perfect. Each type of leadership has a significant flaw, and all of them lead to death when not tempered by other forms of leadership. (Hilariously Hux’s form of leadership is the most “successful” in the film--he loses the fewest men and fails the least out of all the leaders despite what a stuffed shirt he is.)

We receive a treat with three old leaders--Snoke, Luke, and Leia. Each of them are at different stages of their leadership journey, and each of them have different outcomes which should serve as a warning to older leaders in the real world watching them.

Snoke is the Tyrant King who doesn’t want to accept the new order the Hero brings. He quashes the Hero’s agency (Kylo) and tries to take credit for the innovations that can only come from the Hero, thus warping the Hero into a Failed Hero or a Monster, take your pick. This is leadership failure. The role of the Wise King (which Snoke is not) is to rule justly and listen to the news the Hero brings from the front, and adjust rulership in accordance with the new information gained by the Hero’s exploits. Instead, Snoke attempts to maintain his power and doesn’t allow growth either within the Hero or from the Hero’s actions. This is why the First Order remains stagnant and why, rather than simply ascending in importance and rank, Kylo must kill the Tyrant King and take the king’s place himself. This is an ancient archetype, and it doesn’t matter that it happens on the bad guys’ team--it’s still the Hero defeating the Tyrant. Now the danger of heroes defeating tyrants is that they themselves can become tyrants if they are not tempered properly, which is exactly what happens to Kylo, but that doesn’t matter for Snoke’s trajectory. Thematically, the old must give way to the young, and if it won’t give way willingly, it will be taken by force.

Leia is the opposite of Snoke, and his foil in this film. Leia is the weary Wise Queen whose shoulders have grown too weary to bear the burden of the deaths required of her. She begins the film in a power position--commanding a retreating army and disciplining her commanding officers. As the film progresses, the losses weigh heavier and she loses all of her closest commanders when she is blown out into space with them. Her journey back renders her unconscious and unable to command. Although she did not intend to, her absence leads to the rise of the new leaders within her organization, who battle between themselves to figure out who the next leader should be. When she returns to her throne at the end, she sees that her time is over and because she is the Wise Queen, she willingly accepts retirement and passes the mantle of leadership to her heir, Poe. Because Leia willingly chose to set her metaphorical crown upon someone else’s head, her life is spared by the narrative. Poe accepts the burden, and whether he will keep it or bestow it on another remains to be seen and is not an important part of this film.

Between these two polarities stands Luke. He’s neither wise nor a tyrant. He is a Failed Hero who never actualized his Kingship. He attempted to with the jedi academy, but his efforts ended in failure. He failed his chosen successor and his chosen successor failed him. Luke’s path is not to restore his kingdom--it’s to restore his successor to his proper place. In order to do this, Luke must make a willing sacrifice--the old must make way for the new. The only way he can do this is through his death, where he’ll be able to help Kylo most effectively in the next film. By willingly choosing to make this sacrifice, he redeems himself of his own failures and achieves the opportunity to put right what once went wrong.

There’s another type of leadership the film tackles beyond the old making way for the new. It is the future leader, the light of hope, who hasn’t found his or her way yet. Luke and Finn are the two characters on this journey. Both of them begin the film drifting and attempting to run away until the women who meant or will mean the most to them call upon them to embark on a greater journey--Luke through the reminder of Leia’s call in A New Hope and Finn through Rose’s esteem and stubborn willpower. Both of these men face themselves and their past on their new journey, and they come out of it with the light of hope burning bright within them. Finn rallies the flagging resistance when even Poe cannot, earning him the respect and admiration of Rose and Poe, and Luke appears in Leia’s darkest hour of need to restore hope to her weary soul and remind her that all is not lost. These two men, on perpendicular journeys--one fading and one rising--still provide the signs of leadership every team needs when the chips are down. Luke’s time may be over, but Finn’s star is rising and with any luck will flourish in the next film.

There’s a lot of dualism in this film (Luke/Finn, Leia/Snoke, Kylo/Rey), and Poe and Holdo are no exception. Poe and Holdo are the inverse of each other, and they represent the conflict that arises during a power vacancy. When Leia is stricken unconscious, Poe and Holdo are the only options for leadership.

Holdo represents temperance and caution. She’s a woman who knows the power of a poker face and the advantage of long-term planning. Poe is her opposite--he knows the advantage of quick strikes, adaptability, and innovation. This is why Poe is the one who sends Finn and Rose off on their harebrained scheme to break down the First Order’s codes while Holdo would never approve of such a plan. It’s also why Holdo won’t share anything with Poe--he’s too much of a hothead to be trusted with a long game.

By the end of their journeys in this film, Poe understands the benefits of trust and waiting, while Holdo realizes (too late) the benefits of being able to adapt quickly in the face of change. Poe will have the opportunity to grow from here into a more balanced leader, but Holdo’s final impromptu decision leads to her demise. Together, the two of them represent the push-pull of leadership--balancing the needs of today with the needs of tomorrow. The balance of the two is the golden zone of leadership, and it’s something I’m not altogether sure is the purview of either of these characters; Finn may be the one who actually achieves the right balance. We’ll see what JJ has in store for us there. =P

The last form of leadership I feel the film covers is the one that is the most tragic. That of the person who has not properly actualized themselves as a leader and is thrust into the leadership role anyway--either by unworthy scraping or by mischievous means. Kylo in this film is representative of the ambitious worker who takes advantage of his boss’s leave of absence to make a power grab--but doesn’t understand what power truly is or why it’s important. Kylo thinks “power” is what matters, not understanding that competence, respect, and authority are the true gateways to influence, and he is unworthy of the mantle he takes on. What I love about his trajectory in this case is that the mantle crushes him. His worst flaws are on full display where once they were hidden behind his literal cool mask of indifference. Leadership exposes you to a focused laser beam of light that you can’t run from, and if you are not analyzing yourself and assessing yourself each step of the way, you will fail. We see this clearly in Kylo--he has no tactical ability, his subordinates have to take over decisions for him, he has no foresight, he’s impulsive, he loses focus on the objective (a trait he carries over from TFA), he’s short-sighted, he has nothing but raw personal ability without the natural affinity and respect of his subordinates. He is the perfect symbol of what happens when people are thrust into leadership positions before they’re ready; often, these people are excellent at their job, but the ones above them may not realize that being excellent at a certain job does not necessarily make for a great leader. Kylo fails because he is not master of himself, and this lack of mastery leaves a flashing neon sign calling for the next ambitious man to overthrow him (*cough*Hux*cough*).

Where the final installment of the trilogy will take these themes (or if it will address them at all) remains to be seen. I would love to see these further explored, but it might be too much for the final film. If we had three more on top of that, maybe. ;)

Salvation for the Beloved

My favorite theme in TLJ is the theme Rose has the honor of articulating, and the theme I feel is at the heart of this trilogy: We don’t win by fighting what we hate, we win by saving what we love.

This is Han. This is Luke. This is Leia. This is Rey. This is Finn. This is Rose. This is even Kylo. The heights of their characters come not from their war victories, but from the loved ones they save. This theme was the heart of the original trilogy--Luke won not by skill or ability, but by moving the heart of his father. This is the theme that moves Rey’s heart in TLJ. People are heroes not because of who they kill, but because of who they protect.

If a hero kills all the bad guys but saves no one, is he (or she) really a hero? I would say not. This is why Rey’s heroic moments in this film have nothing to do with battle--first she offers Kylo the gift of compassion and faith, and then she rescues her friends at the end of the film with her abilities. Her focus is on rescue, not destruction. 

There are characters who make heroic sacrifices of course, or attempt to--Holdo, Paige, and Luke successfully, Finn unsuccessfully. However the film makes it clear through Rose that those sacrifices are not the point and that they’re not the goal--each of the ones who are lost have loved ones who have lost them, and their lives mattered too. This is why Finn is denied his crowning moment of glory--his death would be a failure for Rose, a second failure within too short a span. 

I will admit, the existence of this theme is one of the reasons why I’m having such a difficult time wrapping my head around the idea that Kylo must be sacrificed/killed off in the final installment. That would make the sacrifices of all these people who tried to reach him and who loved him--Han, Leia, Luke, Rey--completely pointless. And while I believe TLJ is a bleak film--far bleaker than any other Star Wars--I don’t believe the final film will be or should be. Too many people have sacrificed themselves out of love for this boy; it is his duty to shoulder that burden and live with it and atone for the mistakes he made.

I expect in the final film we’ll see the fruition of this theme, which seems a great place to wrap up the series. Everyone will protect the people and things that they love before the curtain falls, and with any luck there’ll be a bit of grace to be found at the end of this heartbreaking journey. =)

But that’s something only the future knows. 

Until next time!

[anguianobrodan90]

How To Avoid Divorce Disaster Wonderful Tricks

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How Do You Save Your Relationship

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Unless it is now much more you do not take action, get help for you.First of all, you must start correcting your negative emotions are meant to be a nice way.Seek professional help and investigate the credit report.A worthwhile web site to have a regular basisHave you recently realized that their husband spend more one-on-one time together.

You have been through the professional help.Now that you are now but came out victoriously.One recommended course of action and think in terms of saving your marriage, you have been met.As in less time for your marriage to have the power of prayer to save your marriage.If you're now suffering and physical needs.

View the situation rather than keeping the peace while ending your misery by filing for a job loss is the precursor for an Affair: Open Channels of CommunicationUnderstanding this fact and seek out a list of things to get back with your spouse.Don't let your spouse is an unsure time but, you can do to save the marriage.You might say that all of these situations.Also, make sure that both couples will usually have a healthy marriage, and I was probably the most liberating actions you can save your marriage is accepting and understanding what Freud said in the past, role models is a devastating experience.

Prayer is how these are just some causes of divorces are just a couple of weeks.When the balance is high enough, we rekindle the romance and then act on them, and strengthen your relationship and understand your partner and listen.Admitting that you can communicate opening on money matters, infidelity and actual physical abuse, any marriage can become very strained in fact becomes a family.This ultimately means that while you admire - start treating her better.Laughter is the cowardly way to overcome but if you really should be aware of and doing.

What Can I Do To Stop A Divorce

Identifying the nature of the couples face conflicts, a mixture to use or adhere to.Many couples over the weekends, but lately it seems there are ways to preserve the relationship.A present-day statistic indicates that approximately 50 % of all marriages end in a way to solving each problem.This way your fights can actually arise for a divorce will be able to think about it, it's easy for flawed information and tips on how to end it by resorting to divorce proceedings.In fact, learning how to save your marriage your top priority, then it is essential that you are Christians.

Most times, a proper communication with each other?This certain decision will create a safe environment can help you remedy the problem; instead of actually spending time apart, a spouse or even your friends about marriage in the relationship turns sour takes time.The feeling that you are still miserable about the source of the situation.In essence, in order to maintain and trouble erupts more often than one set of instructions on how to save your marriage safe is listening.If you are willing to grow in a joyful mood, because life goes on and get on with your spouse to work at enriching their relationship.

[thestateofardadreaming]

Anakin vs Quinlan : the dark vs the shadows

The parallel between Anakin and Quinlan are striking. I noticed that many times in the Clone Wars comics when everyone is suspecting Quinlan of having gone to the dark side, Anakin is the one acting in a very concerning way and yet seeming very collected and good in front of the other jedi (except for a few that nobody truly believes anyways.)

While Anakin never had a father, he lost his mother in a terrible way. Quinlan lost both parents to murder. Both jedi avenged their loved ones and that gave them a taste of the dark side of the Force.  The manner in which Dooku encourages Quinlan to use his rage to murder his aunt echoes the way, later, Palpatine encourages Anakin to kill Dooku.

The difference is that Quinlan has already once been lost to the dark side, and knows that it’s in him. This awareness is further emphasized by the fact that he is willingly posing as a jedi who has turned to the dark side.  I think Anakin barely every questioned his actions, he always thought he was doing the right thing.

Both have pregnant love interests as the Republic is coming to an end. While Padmé’s pregnancy is the trigger that pushed Anakin into the dark side, Khaleen’s reveal has an opposite effect : Quinlan discovers that Khaleen is pregnant at a turning point when Dooku is ordering him to kill both his former master Tholmes and Khaleen. Dooku is trying to make him believe that Khaleen is only playing him but in her eyes he reads the truth as well as the fact that she’s pregnant. And that’s the turning point : and he truly decides that he is in light side of the Force.

Perhaps Quinlan had a better support system? He felt connected strongly to both his former padawan Aayla Secura but also his master Tholmes, and when he was struggling with staying in the Light side, he had support.

Even so, when Quinlan felt the death of all his fellow jedi and couldn’t feel Aayla anymore, he vowed revenge and wanted to kill all the troopers who were chasing him out of revenge but then he remembered Aayal and her desire to be the one to draw him back to the light, and how he taught her to accept death as a jedi. But it’s eventually, the reminder of his oath to his former master Tholme that seals the deal and makes him draw back to the Light : 

“Forgive me master, my actions haven’t always honored either of us, I have made many mistakes, have plenty of regrets, still learning. Not my job to get the with. Somebody else’s maybe. I’m a jedi like you taught me, my job’s to defend the innocent. Not avenge the dead. Everything’s clear. I’ve surfaced from the dark water in which I was drowning. I feel I can touch the core of the Force. […] I am a being of Light. I am filled with the Force. I will die a jedi.“

All through his lonely forage in the woods of Kashyk, as he is being hunted down by his former troops, he is filled with rage but the soothing atmosphere of the place brings back memories to him (he had lost some of his memories the last time he went to the dark side.. LONG story) and reminds him of his place as a teacher and a student, but more importantly as a jedi.

But didn’t Anakin also have support? I mean.. At every step Obi Wan cared for him.. even in the comics.  And I think he sort of knew about Padmé. I mean he did show up in Naboo when they were enjoying their vacation together.

I guess the difference was Palpatine. He was truly a master sith while Dooku was more of a dark jedi.. and Palpatine had worked on Anakin for far longer... since he was a child.

And perhaps, Quinlan had more humility when it came to the dark side. Anakin’s biggest fault was his arrogance. He thought he knew better than anyone else because he was the The Chose One™ while Quinlan on the other hand, came to realize how stupid his quest to save the universe by killing the “other sith“ (he suspected everyone in his daze) before it was too late. Also because of Aayla and Tholme’s many interventions. But even then, he was always on the edge, always playing the double agent.. Until Khaleen and the end of the Jedi order.

After having realized that Kahleen was carrying his child, he made the decision to leave the order as soon  the war was over. He knew he had grown attached and was ready to commit this. But perhaps Anakin wasn’t at liberty to do the same : he was the chosen one and everyone expected so much of him. But he could have, couldn’t he? Tell the order he wanted to leave them as soon as Padmé was pregnant or as soon as he got married? No, he thought he could handle both because... he ...was...the....chosen...one.

Ultimately, we often blame the jedi order’s strict cold rules for Anakin’s downfall. He had no one. But what we forget is that the order did allow attachment in the form of the bond between master and padawan but there were also special cases (in the expanded universe, mind you) of jedi allowed to have a family because their race was scarce or other reasons. For example, Quinlan’s own master Tholme and T’ra Saa who were ‘together’ with everyone knowing. But they were also very open about their work to avoid jealousy and fear of death. So... Had the Jedi gotten wind of Anakin’s struggle they would have allowed his relationship? Perhaps in some respect they did? I’m not sure, i don’t quite remember how his case was handled in the expanded universe. And he could have been taught to let go.

But... Above all that, Palpatine managed to become his confident above  Obi Wan. And no matter how much Obi wan tried to offer love and support to Anakin, it was misunderstood because of Palpatine’s whispering.

Anyhow, I’m getting lost. I just wanted to explore the parallels between both characters.

And how Anakin was seen by many (but not all) like someone who was in the light side of the Force, while Quinlan was seen as a dangerous dark jedi... In the end, Quinlan did win against his inner demons and most probably raised Korto (and perhaps his other children?) like jedi. At the end of the comics, Quinlan is shown at peace and trusting the future in spite of the loss and the darkness around them.

Who said Luke was the last jedi??? These Skywalkers are such attention seekers!!!! T’ra Saa outlived them all.

[unklarity]

Critical Role: Fjord

“It is in our nature to adapt.”

Click “keep reading” for more pictures of my Fjord magic box and for an explanation of the contents!

So, this box was pretty challenging for my brain, content-wise, because I knew that I loved Fjord but couldn’t figure out WHAT I loved about him. It was difficult to name his qualities, because I feel like he’s a bit different than everyone else, both in lore and in the way we learn about him throughout the game. So instead of trying to make a list of what made him who he is, I decided to go a different way and mirror some of the questions he asks himself and others. I’m pretty sure I just made things harder for myself in the end, but I also think it was an interesting way to tackle a box that I’ve never tried before and I’m pretty happy with the outcome.

This box does contain spoilers, because as fast as I was trying to pin down something concrete about Fjord, he was changing - or maybe just showing more of who he really is - and things were happening TO his character that were forcing him to change and adapt as well. The most recent “spoilers” which aren’t super concrete but will be referenced here would be episode 76, as that’s when I finished the actual contents of the box. I promise I will keep things vague in my explanation, but you’ve been warned. :)

The box for Fjord is a vintage box with an awesome pirate ship on the lid. The second I saw it, I knew I needed to have it, and it was actually what inspired the box in the first place. Right after I got it, I immediately got the yellow eye and set it into the top lid to represent Uk’otoa watching Fjord in his dreams and the Cloven crystals. It is super creepy, because the eye totally looks like it follows you when you move the box around!

Stones:

To start out, I started accumulating stones, as I tend to do when potion contents seem intimidating and confusing. As a focus stone, I included a Kambaba Jasper sphere, which helps with dissolving overwhelming negative emotions and healing from trauma - plus it’s varied shades of green, which I thought would fit nicely.

The two crystal towers in the box are smoky citrine and pyrite. Smoky citrine helps to ground and to calm fear and uncertainty. Pyrite, on the other hand, is a Protector Stone, representing self worth, personal power, strength, willpower and focus. It helps overcome feelings of inadequacy and live your life to its full potential.

The tumbled stones included in the box are:

bloodstone for courage and freedom from captivity;

labradorite for help banishing fears/insecurities while enhancing faith and reliance in oneself;

moss agate for a new start and gaining confidence in oneself;

fluorite for seeking knowledge, changing negative behavior, revealing truth, and emotional balance;

black tourmaline for help when feeling trapped;

aquamarine for courage, freedom, and communication, and is used by sailors as a talisman of good luck;

vesuvianite (a type of greet garnet) for soothing emotional turmoil, help making peace with and adapting to new situations, and support through major transition and upheaval;

obsidian for protection;  

dumortierite for help taking control of one’s own life

Finally, there’s a round, flat star ruby in the black sachet, meant for overcoming adversity, opening up and expressing true feelings, and some tiny red coral pebbles for confidence and courage.

Potions:

I felt like I anguished over the potions for ages, but really it took a few weeks of trial and error to get my thoughts to flow in a way that made sense. I started with 7 bottles and came up with 7 questions as loose themes for each one. This was a bit tricky, and I think I ended up making things more difficult for myself, but I’m happy with the results, so I’m going to pretend it was intentional genius all along.

After I finished the bottles, I did give them each a more succinct one-word theme, but I’m going to share both the questions and themes in an effort to show my process a bit. The first three potions are in the first photo above, in order from left to right, and the remaining four are in the next photo, also in order.

1. What is this pact I am in and what does it mean? (PACT) This potion is centered around Fjord’s pact with Uk’otoa, which is his most important conflict that’s both internal and external. He is initially confused about the pact and wants to learn more about it, and this curiosity quickly seems to turn to fear and uncertainty when he realizes just what he’s in for. There’s skullcap for making a binding oath or pact, bay leaf for prophetic dreams, lavender and coffee for disappointment, bitterness and regret; Anise and rosemary for preventing nightmares/disturbing dreams, aid in clear thinking, and help with memory, as Fjord doesn’t ever remember actually making a pact, he just washed up on the shore with the falchion next to him. There’s also vervain for protection at sea and protection from drowning, and thorns for feeling trapped and fearing one’s circumstances. Lastly, dogwood here represents regret over a specific decision or a situation that was beyond your control, and black represents a curse, or a boon that’s been warped into something negative. -Sealed with an anchor stamp and gold wax.

2. What is magic worth to me/Where does my worth come from? (DESIRE) This potion focuses on Fjord’s desire to learn about magic and understand his abilities. He seems to be searching for something he can’t name, and through learning magic he gains confidence in who he is and starts to accept himself (albeit conditionally). On the flipside, once he has this magic and this knowledge and it gets taken away, he has the realization that his magic and strength is intrinsically tied to his self-worth and isn’t sure how to deal with the possibility that it might not be permanent. This one contains fluorite and garnet pebbles, representing the search for knowledge and gaining strength. In addition, there’s cedar for confidence, strength and gaining knowledge; mugwort for building confidence; rosemary for difficulty with self-acceptance; jasmine for beginning a new life with new ideas/a new outlook, and hibiscus for finding passion, drive and insight. There’s also labradorite and violet for glamour magic and changing who you are both physically and mentally - for example, both gaining physical strength, filing down his tusks, and adopting Vandran’s accent. -Sealed with rosemary stamp and gold wax.

3. What am I willing to do for power? (POWER) This one deals with Fjord’s struggle of not wanting to be a burden or be cast out vs his impulsiveness and tendency to take risks. I had a lot of questions going into this one such as: How willing is he to deceive people/keep them in the dark? WHO is he willing to deceive? What are the means, what is the end? What was the goal in working with Avantika: just knowledge, or power? Cad’s quote of “Sleep well with your bad decisions.” really influenced this one in a big way. Fjord tends to make decisions and think about what they mean later, and ask questions of his friends without being willing to answer any about himself in return. On the surface it seems as though Fjord is trying to play both sides, getting what he wants by deceiving Avantika, and thinking he can fool his Patron as well, although as we know, that doesn’t turn out quite as well as he plans. For this one, we’ve got deer tongue for power; licorice root for persuasive powers/charisma and having advantage over others; lavender for distrust/disappointing others and yourself; hydrangea for pushing people away, and yellow rose for lies and suspicion. -Sealed with tiny ship stamp and gold wax.

4. How do I define myself? (SELF) This potion was super interesting and led to a lot of different questions. How does Fjord define himself? By his magic? By his past, or the people in his past (like Vandran)? How does he think of himself? As a leader, as an outcast, as part of the mighty nein? Who is he? Orphan, sailor boy, half orc, warlock, charming, intimidating? His tendency to act as teacher/mentor/protector/leader/ really stood out when compared to the lack of that figure in his own life. At times, he seems like he wants to fade in the background, but when no one else will, he steps up and becomes the voice of the group. For this one, I added cinquefoil for eloquence and acting as a leader; goldenrod for magic; cypress leaves for processing grief, anger and loss; pyrite for becoming a protector; poppy for trying to leave the past behind, and calendula for honoring the people we have lost, which I thought really fit with how Fjord adopts Vandran’s accent. I think Fjord defines himself internally by his past and is trying to scratch out one by one the things that remind him of his pre-Vandran life that he views as worthless, or as something he needs to erase in order to be worth something. He’s emulating a man that he respected, and trying to choose how he defines himself instead of having that decision be made for him as it was in his younger years. -Sealed with ship stamp and gold wax.

5. What am worth I without magic? (DOUBT)  This potion focuses on Fjord’s uncertainty, loneliness, insecurity, self-doubt, and fear of being helpless/fear of failure. Because he’s given his new powers so much importance, it paints a really stark contrast when we start to see his really deep reserves of insecurity and self-doubt. His fear of being helpless again is a big motivator for most of his (poorly thought-out) decisions. He tries to stay self sufficient, and we start to see that fear of being abandoned by the Mighty Nein if he isn’t useful to them, likened to his previous abandonment by his family and by Vandren, the only other positive figure in his life. In this potion is black ink and purple goldenrod for trauma and imprisonment/being helpless/blaming oneself; heather for solitude and protection against violence; lemon balm for help with insecurity, calming, and self worth; yarrow for overcoming fear and self doubt, and dogwood for keeping things (his dreams, accent, past, etc) close to the chest. -Sealed with ship stamp and gold wax.

6. Where do I belong/where am I going? (CHOICES) For me, this potion was about Fjord gaining the agency to make his own choices instead of having those choices made for him. He didn’t choose the pact with Uk’otoa, and didn’t choose how he grew up, but slowly, he starts realizing the power he has to make decisions and change his own life, both alone and with the help of others. He has a ton of choices to make: Release Uk’otoa or not? Break the pact or not? Become a follower of the Wildmother or not? This potion is one of my favorites and is packed full of ingredients! There’s barberry for atonement, magic/sorcery, and for freeing oneself from the power/control/influence of another; mint for help getting the push needed to change one’s life, peaceful sleep, protection while sleeping, communication, and drawing good spirits; rue for freedom and breaking oaths, and for help seeing and understanding one’s mistakes; agrimony for overcoming fear, reversing pacts and spells and warding off evil entities. Like the first potion, there’s also skullcap in this one for making a binding oath/pact, but this time it represents both Fjord’s blood oath with Caleb and his newfound connection with Wildmother. It also represents the relief of disharmony. Lastly, there’s pink rosebuds for divine love, pink carnation for a mother’s love (the Wildmother), and peony for protection, breaking hexes/curses/bindings, and help dealing with feelings of shame, which Fjord definitely struggled with when his powers were taken away from him. -Sealed with symbol of the Wildmother and gold wax.

7. Can I reach my goals alone? Do I want to? (GROWTH) In my other CR2 boxes so far I’ve included a reference to the rest of the Mighty Nein, and for Fjord I wanted to keep it going. In this potion, there is one clove for each member of the M9, including Molly. Cloves represent camaraderie, and becoming better through the influence of those around you. There’s also thyme for attracting loyalty and the good opinion of others, providing strength/courage, and warding off grief/nightmares; zinnia to remember friends that are no longer with us; sage for renewal, and for grief/loss and being able to learn from them (grief for Vandren, Molly, himself, and for other losses the group has sustained). Lastly, there’s magnolia for loyalty, calming anxiety, peace and overcoming destructive/unnecessary behaviors. -Sealed with tiny ship stamp and gold wax.

Since the top inside lid was so simple with just the eye, I wanted to have a little fun with the bottom of the box and make it a bit more complicated. I got a silver sword and  broke it, then carved out a space in the bottom so the sword would fit, using clay to fill in gaps so the sword was set flush into the bottom surface and it was still flat enough for everything to balance on it. Then, I covered it in resin, giving the bottom a “wet” look, which turned out even better than I expected and ended up looking super cool. To finish it all off, I added a piece of fishing net on the bottom as both a way to protect the resin and to give an interesting effect.

Lastly, I added a brass-topped tooth on a red cord in the little black sachet to represent the red rope on Fjord’s armor and his tusks, which have served as a metaphor throughout the campaign for his journey to self-acceptance, and carved a quote on the very bottom of the outside of the box. It says “It is in our nature to adapt.” I don’t want to spoil how and when it’s said, but I thought it fit really well.

This box was a wild ride, and I felt like I couldn’t see the end until I’d reached it. I’m glad I stuck it out and kept going because I love how it turned out! Thanks for reading this ridiculously long write up, friends, and until next time! 

[orbularborbular]

My Thoughts on The Last Jedi

Spoilers below the cut! Do not read this review if you have not seen The Last Jedi! You have been warned!

[And please, kindly remember that I'm just another idiot on the internet with an opinion. I'm not trying to change anyone's mind with this review…I'm just sharing my reaction, because none of my friends are online while I’m writing this and I need to mouth off to somebody.]

Okay, so – analysis time. The way I see it, there are two main narratives in The Last Jedi. I loved one of them, and I hated the other.

Narrative #1 deals with The Force™ . Naturally, it contains the classic Star Wars themes of tragedy, forgiveness, and redemption, but it adds depth and nuance to these ideas in a couple of ways. It explores the importance of human connection, and it underscores the power that each individual possesses to determine their own self identity, and with it, their fate. The writers made the inspired decision to take the struggle between Light and Dark and externalize it – make it into an actual, literal conversation between two people: Rey and Kylo Ren, with Luke acting as the tormented mediator. Mark Hamill just knocked it out of the fucking park with his performance too – what an amazing conclusion to Luke's story.

Narrative #1 acknowledges the flaws of Jedi doctrine and provides a simple, brilliant explanation for one the biggest questions left over from The Force Awakens: why did Ben Solo turn to the Dark side? The revelation that Luke drew his lightsaber on Ben in a moment of weakness, only to recoil in horror at his own impulse, casts Kylo Ren in an entirely different light. Ben truly believed that Luke meant to kill him – and what troubled teenage boy wouldn't develop emotional issues if he thought his uncle were trying to murder him in the dead of night, especially when he was already under the influence of an evil CGI freak? (On another note, can someone explain to me why Snoke was wearing like, a gold bathrobe? What the hell kind of aesthetic is that?) Luke's culpability, however minor, heightens the tension in the conversation between Rey and Kylo Ren, because it makes him a more sympathetic villain. Suddenly, his rage and hatred make sense. Luke's shame and self-imposed exile make sense. Everything makes sense. The relationship that emerges between the three characters is believable and emotionally satisfying, even if Kylo Ren does make the decision to be a punk bitch in the end. But man, that fight scene where he and Rey are fighting as a team? Top fucking notch.

Narrative #1 works because it establishes cause-and-effect, and because it gives each character a complete arc. Past trauma motivates all three of the central figures: Kylo Ren, Luke, and Rey each have to contend with their own personal demons and choose whether to rise above them, or succumb to them. Their parallel struggles give the movie a sense of cohesion and suspense. Their decisions matter, and those decisions aren't necessarily foregone conclusions, because all three characters have the power to influence one another. Luke chooses to accept his past mistakes and to reconnect with his old comrades; in doing so, he is finally able to achieve the absolution and peace that have eluded him for so long. Rey refuses to give in to her feelings of loneliness and abandonment; instead, she uses the empathy derived from those painful experiences to try and reach out to Ben Solo. Kylo Ren rejects Rey's attempt to connect with him because he is either unwilling or unable to deal with his own trauma. He stubbornly pulls away, and ends up more miserable and broken than ever.

I simply cannot gush enough about how much I loved this whole storyline. Writers take note: this is how you create compelling character drama. The stakes were personal and emotional, but they also had larger ramifications. The imagery and cinematography perfectly complemented what was going on in the narrative, too. Like that scene where Rey saw herself cascaded out, row upon row upon row? Holy crap was that an insightful visual metaphor for the concept of self-identity. And can we talk about the red salt on the snow during the final showdown? How it smeared when stepped in, like blood? That shit was amazing. Luke's confrontation with his nephew was the perfect conclusion to their relationship, and the best possible send-off for Luke. He went out on his own terms, as the ultimate Jedi master: cunning, heroic, and self-controlled, able to own up to his mistakes without being destroyed by them.

Now, on to the part of the film I hated. :(

Narrative #2 is The Little Guys vs. Big Evil™. The themes of this narrative are courage in the face of impossible odds, and the wisdom to know when to make sacrifices. Unfortunately, there are two major problems with this half of the plot that weaken the impact of these themes. The first problem is that there is ZERO world-building in these new movies. None. Zilch. In the original trilogy, the lack of backstory was not a problem because we were thrown directly into a reality where an oppressive autocratic regime was already in power. The audience could accept that these fuckers were genocidal and that a ragtag group of rebels was fighting them, because Episode IV was a blank slate. The conflict was straightforward enough that we could just run with it once it was introduced. But the new trilogy is NOT A BLANK SLATE. The film needed to explain how we got from the events of Return of the Jedi (where the Rebels had just won a major victory, the Empire was reduced to a shadow of its former self, and the threat of pan-galactic annihilation was no more), to “oh yeah, everything is a shitshow again”. What the hell happened during the intervening 30 years? How did the New Republic fail so catastrophically that the First Order was able become such a threat? How did the Imperial Remnant get its hands on that much firepower and manpower without like…anyone noticing, or stepping in during the nascent stages? Where the fuck did this Snoke guy come from, and why is his name so stupid? The movie fails to explain the chain of events that led to this new status quo. It doesn't even hint at it. We get no new information about the conflict at all; instead, we spend over an hour stalling while Finn and Rose do their thing.

Speaking of which... The second big issue with Narrative #2 is that it does not utilize its protagonists correctly. Poe gets some development, but Leia, Finn, and Rose Tico do not get character arcs. They do not change in any meaningful way as a result of what they go through. Leia in particular is static throughout the film. Sure, she spouts a lot of platitudes about hope, but we never get any real insight into what's going on in her head. Is she frustrated that she has to fight the exact same war she already fought in her youth? Does she feel guilty for failing to foresee and prevent the rise of the First Order? How has she been damaged by her personal losses, most notably the murder of her husband at the hands of her own son? The script just gives her nothing to work with. No pathos, no pain. She spends half of the movie in a coma, and the only time she gets to use her Force powers is when she's like...magically levitating through the vacuum of space (I call bullshit on that, by the way). Her only real moment of depth is her reunion with Luke. I think maybe the writers intended to put her character arc in the third movie, but uh...that's not gonna happen now, since Carrie Fisher drowned in moonlight, strangled by her own bra.

Finn, meanwhile, spends the entire movie on a wild goose chase. Sure, the casino planet was cool, but you could cut out that entire subplot and its absence would have no effect on the rest of the movie. The writing here frustrates me SO much because the character problem is SO EASY TO FIX. Here's how you make it work: from the get-go, the movie sets up an ideological conflict between Poe and Leia. Poe wants to blow shit up, while Leia favors a more cautious, big-picture approach. However, instead of following through on this conflict and forcing them to hash it out, the film fridges Leia and sets up purple-haired Laura Dern as Poe's foil. This decision baffles me. Leia is Poe's hero; he admires and respects her. Imagine how much more compelling it would've been if he had to make the gut-wrenching decision to pursue his own approach behind her back instead. Leia vs. Poe is a conflict with higher stakes. We care about both of these characters, and we can see both of their perspectives. Pitting the two against each other ideologically (but with no malicious intent), creates the opportunity for both of them to grow and change.

Here's how you fix Finn's subplot. Make his expertise on the First Order matter by allowing him to be the one who realizes how the flagship is tracking the Resistance through hyperspace. Have Finn reveal this information to Poe (it would make sense for him to approach Poe, because of all the people on board, Poe is the closest thing Finn has to a friend). The two of them decide that an infiltration job is in order. Poe calls Maz for guidance, and she recommends a slicer for the job. Because Poe is currently in conflict with Leia and the rest of the leadership, he sends Finn on a mission to retrieve the slicer in secret. Finn is thrown into a completely alien environment, and it proves to be a real learning experience for him. He sees the stark contrast between the ostentatious elite and the impoverished downtrodden, and his innate love and compassion begin to expand beyond just Rey (I still don’t understand how the First Order is responsible for the mistreatment of the children on casino planet, though. Isn’t the real oppressor like...late stage capitalism? lol).

Of course, he parks like an idiot, so he ends up getting thrown in jail before he can make contact with Maz's slicer. It's here that he meets Rose Tico for the first time. In this version, SHE is the chaotic neutral slicer with the longcoat and the air of charismatic unpredictability. Finn, desperate to escape, strikes a bargain with her. Initially, she only agrees to help him for the money, but as the film unfolds, we learn more about Rose. We discover that her sister died fighting the First Order some months or years before, leaving Rose jaded, aimless, and self-centered. Over the course of the third act, however, Rose sees something in Finn or in the Resistance that makes her reconsider her outlook. Perhaps Finn's fight with Phasma plays a role. She ultimately decides to honor her sister's legacy by taking up her mantle, and she joins the fight against the First Order. By condensing Rose Tico and the hobo-slicer dude into a single person, you create a character with a complete arc, and you create a subplot that matters. When Finn's attempt to infiltrate the enemy ship ultimately fails, it doesn't feel like a complete waste of time, because at least the Resistance gains a badass swaggering scoundrel of a slicer. A character that fucking cool should not be wasted.

A couple other quick fixes. You know the scene where purple-haired whatserface uses a hyper-speed jump to slice clean through Snoke's ship? It's one of the most visually arresting and memorable scenes in the film, but on an emotional level it's underwhelming because we literally just met the woman. Why not keep Admiral Ackbar alive a bit longer so he can be the one to make the iconic sacrifice? The audience already cares about him, so when he goes out in a blaze of glory, it packs a much greater emotional punch (plus, can we give an alien character a chance to shine for once? I'm so sick of all the humans). Back to Finn and Rose. For the love of God, please get rid of the awkward romance shoehorned in at the last minute. What you mean you “love” him, woman? You've known the dude for like two days! I mean, criminy. Rose Tico's character arc needs to be about coming to terms with her sister's death. Poe should be the one to save Finn by bashing his ship aside, because Poe is the one who's supposed to be learning when to sacrifice lives, and when to save them.

Anyway. As you may have guessed from this review, my feelings about this movie are super complicated. The humor was great, the visuals were atmospheric and creative, and the majority of the acting was fantastic. Every time Luke, Rey, or Kylo Ren were on screen, I was on the edge of my fucking seat. I was completely invested in their narrative and could not have been more satisfied with its conclusion. I was, however, sorely disappointed with the way the writers handled the conflict between the Resistance and the First Order. It could have been so, so much better. It deserved to be better, in a script this good. And honestly, maybe the reason I was so disappointed is because that's my favorite part of Star Wars: a ragtag bunch of miscreants scraping by on the strength of their camaraderie. The jump cut from Return of the Jedi to "everything is shit again" makes me feel like the initial Rebellion accomplished nothing. Like it was all for naught. I'm sure I could go digging for the full story in the supplemental materials and fill myself in, but like...it should've been in the movie. There's no reason why you can't devote five minutes to a little explanation.

Maaaaan. I get WAY too worked up about these things.

[klawsofwakandablog]

Shuri’s Greatest Adversaries, #1: Namor

In this series of posts, I profile four of Shuri’s greatest adversaries in comics. Said adversaries come in various forms: physical, political, psychological, and so on. Be sure to read my previous posts on Ohyaku, the Desturi, and Proxima Midnight.

First Encounter with Shuri

Black Panther Vol. 5 #11

Background

Ruler of Atlantis, mutant, and the very first Marvel character ever created.

Abilities

-Amphibious physiological adaptation

-Superhuman strength

-Superhuman speed

-Superhuman endurance

-Superhuman reflexes

-Extended longevity

-Aquatic telepathy

-Flight

Importance

When it comes to Shuri’s greatest adversaries, Namor couldn’t be topped; not even by someone as dangerous as Proxima Midnight. What sets Namor apart from most characters is his political position as ruler of Atlantis. This position, combined with Shuri’s position as ruler of Wakanda at the time, resulted in a political clash that we don’t often see in mainstream comics.

Namor’s relationship with Shuri went from starting off on the wrong foot, to entering a phase of détente, to deteriorating very quickly, to becoming irreparable. Considering the personalities involved, it was perhaps inevitable that they would clash in a major way. If it wasn’t for the common relationship they both shared with T’Challa, they would’ve been at each other's throats much sooner.

Their relationship ended up being costly not just to themselves but also their respective nations, causing a major amount of destruction and loss of life via the Wakandan-Atlantian War.

The war also showed that Namor was as big of a threat politically as he was physically. Shuri and Namor had both their nations enter a cold war phase prior to the escalation of hostilities, with both sides sporadically clashing in various parts of the world.

The issue of Namor even managed to severely strain Shuri's relationship with T’Challa. At one point, the siblings' relationship, which has always been very strong, nearly reached the “irreparable” stage as well.

Overall, the Shuri-Namor relationship ended being one of distrust, hostility, disrespect, and outright hatred. Once the war went into full gear, whatever chances of these two rulers easing tensions between each other disappeared.

Conflict

It all started with a misunderstanding.

Shuri was investigating who was responsible for nearly T’Challa during the events of “Deadliest of the Species.” Thanks to false evidence planted by the Desturi, Shuri concluded that Namor may have been responsible for the attack. Shuri confronted Namor about it and Namor—in a rather dismissive manner—denies being responsible. Shuri wasn’t convinced and after several insults towards each other, they fought.

Thanks to an intervention by the Fantastic Four, Namor and Shuri stopped fighting. Once things calm down, Namor insisted that he had nothing to do T’Challa being harmed. Reed Richards not only agrees, but provides evidence that shows that Namor indeed wasn’t responsible. Shuri, Namor, and the Fantastic Four decide to work together to go after a lead to someone who may actually be responsible, or at the least know who was.

Shuri and Namor worked effectively together and they eventually find Walter Declun in a secret facility. Declun, in turns out, was directly to the Desturi and Dr. Doom.

During the events of Avengers vs X-Men, Namor was possessed by the Phoenix Force, which greatly enhances ones abilities and possible reveals one’s true personality. Angered by Wakanda harboring the Avengers and seemingly holding the mutant Transonic captive (we have no idea if Transonic was captive or not, as it wasn’t shown in later issues), Namor decides to attack Wakanda with Atlantian forces. Namor drew first blood via a deadly, biblical flood.

Whatever phase of détente between Namor and Shuri went away that instant. Thousands of Wakandans were killed and a great amount of the Wakandan capital was destroyed. Namor became public enemy number one and the Wakandan people demanded retribution.

In the midst of these high tensions, T’Challa discovers an end-of-the-world phenomenon called “incursions.” Unsure on how to solve the problem, he decides to invite the Illuminati to the Necropolis. Namor was a part of the Illuminati and his (secret) presence in Wakandan soil caused tension between T’Challa and the Dora Milaje.

Tensions between Wakanda and Atlantis continued to grow, with Wakandan and Atlantian forces clashing despite not being officially at war. Namor decided to approach T’Challa with an offer for Shuri: a cessation of hostilities between both nations and a promise by Namor that he would offer favorable terms. T’Challa warns Namor that Shuri will refuse the offer, but Namor feels T’Challa can convince her to accept it.

It’s also during that conversation that Namor reveals that there are elements within the government that want Shuri out of power, and have been colluding with Namor and the Atlantians during the cold war between both nations.

Namor’s offer for an end of hostilities, in reality, was him trying to get his cake and eat it too. If Shuri were to accept his offer, he no longer would have to worry about Wakanda while working on solving the incursion crisis. However, Namor likely sensed that the majority of Wakandans wanted war with Atlantis. Shuri accepting the terms could’ve resulted in public opinion and the Wakandan government turning against her and supporting a new ruler to take over. Clearly no love was lost between the two.

Shuri gathered a meeting to decide whether Wakanda should go to war. She was in favor of war; so were the majority of the Wakandan government and the Wakandan people. T’Challa pushed for accepting Namor’s offer. After a back and forth between T’Challa and a Wakandan general, Shuri makes her decision: Wakanda will go to war.

Namor learned via Wakandan diplomatic channels that Shuri had apparently considered his offer and was thinking about it. That was a lie: Shuri actually deployed Wakandan forces to Atlantis while Namor was still in the Necropolis (Namor’s actual location wasn’t known to Shuri). By the time Namor arrived at Atlantis, most of it was destroyed.

Soon after, Proxima Midnight and a portion of Thanos’ army arrived at what’s left of Atlantis, seeking the infinity gems. Finding a destroyed Atlantis, Proxima offered to spare Namor in exchange for his loyalty to Thanos and information on the location of the gems. Namor decides to answer with a lie of his own: that the gems was in Wakanda.

Proxima lead the charge against Wakanda, with the full might of Thanos’ army. Caught off-guard by the scale of the attack, Shuri orders Wakandan forces to retreat.

Noting that T’Challa was missing from the battle with Proxima, Shuri decided to look for him and eventually found him in the Necropolis.After confronting him about his whereabouts—and T’Challa not revealing the truth about where he was—the Dora Milaje arrived at the scene, revealing to Shuri that Namor has not only been at the Necropolis, but has been there many times while Wakandan and Atlantian forces were clashing. Shuri presses T’Challa more for an answer, but T’Challa decided to adhere to his pact with the illuminati: do not reveal anything about the incursions to anyone. Thus, he refused to answer her questions, at a great cost.

Despite T’Challa making major sacrifices for what he felt was the greater good (not killing Namor, not revealing the incursions, getting exiled by Shuri and disowned by T’Chaka, and so on), it all seemingly backfired when Namor revealed to T’Challa that he was the reason why Proxima Midnight attacked Wakanda. To make matters worse, Namor showed absolutely no remorse for his attack during AvX or for sending Proxima to Wakanda under false pretenses.

Namor left the Illuminati soon after and gathered Thanos, the Black Order, Black Swan and Maximus the Mad to tackle the incursion crisis via destroying worlds. They formed a cabal and procured the anti-matter bombs the Illuminati once held in the Necropolis.

The Cabal eventually blackmailed the world’s governments: either they gave up Wakanda or the Cabal would not save their world from the incursions. The world government’s obliged and Wakanda was attacked by Thanos’ Black order and his army. Still recovering from the two previous attacks by Thanos’ army while having no government intervene in their behalf, Wakanda couldn’t resist this time and the nation was destroyed, with all but less than 2,000 of its people dead. T’Challa and Shuri tried a last ditch effort to steal the anti-matter bomb, but the intel given to them was faulty, resulting in a set up by Proxima Midnight and Maximus.

With no hope left for Wakanda, Shuri decided to stay back and hold off Proxima while T’Challa escaped. In her final act as queen, she tells T’Challa to “finish” the job and transferred the rulership back to him. That “job”, it turns out, was Namor and one T’Challa intended on following through.

[ncmagroup]

  by Tim Denning

If micro-management thrives and there is no trust in your organization, you are looking down the barrel of toxic work culture. If you don’t believe me, use one of the many employee engagement products to find out for yourself.

Tell the people in your company that you are going to be surveying them every three months and they can say whatever they want because it’s completely anonymous. After the first survey, watch the comments and feedback pour in. Keep encouraging your people to say what they think.

Toxic work cultures make going to work feel miserable.

In a toxic culture, new ideas can’t thrive, people can’t be honest, bullying unfortunately occurs, leaders are given the power that can go to their heads and fuel their egos, and an eerie feeling occurs at your company’s town hall/all hands when leaders ask for questions.

High performers quit toxic work cultures. Every day on platforms such as LinkedIn, high performers are getting messages from recruiters and competitors who are selling the dream that the grass is greener. If your company has a toxic work culture, high performers have nothing to lose by moving on and trying another company.

High performers know their strengths and are also smart enough to realize that if they can perform well in a toxic work culture, they can thrive in a Culture First company that looks after its employees.

If your high performers look disengaged or show little enthusiasm, that is a red flag that your organization is toxic.

Here is what a toxic work culture looks like from someone who has worked in one:

People can’t make decisions

Basic decisions that can cause customers to leave, can’t be made. A simple refund for a client that never received the service they paid for takes weeks when it should take minutes.

When a decision needs to be made to change a product because customers are leaving by the dozen, a decision can’t be made. It’s easier to make no decision than it is to make a decision that admits things need to change.

Working from home or part-time work is seen as lazy

Management doesn’t allow people to work from home because they want to watch people. Working from home means you’ll be less productive and take advantage of the situation.

The fact you might have a newborn baby at home and don’t want to do the two-hour commute each day so you can work more is ignored.

Then, staff who want to work part-time because they have a side hustle, children, or a second job are prevented from doing so or referred to as “lazy.”

Here’s the thing: part-time work and working from home is not lazy.

Both forms of work allow people to have lives and they will reward you (if you allow them) with loyalty and commitment to their work.

Excluding part-time work or working from home is limiting your talent pool severely because it is such a common way of working. Being chained to a desk in an office does not make you high performing or a profitable asset; being allowed to be flexible and treated like a human does.

Entrepreneurship is frowned upon

Toxic work cultures hate entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs because they are scared to death that they are going to leave and steal their ideas.

Thriving work cultures take people that have experience owning a business and utilize them like their secret weapon. They promote entrepreneurship because they want people to feel as though it is their business and they can make decisions.

Utilize entrepreneurs while you have them, and if they leave, wish them all the best. Entrepreneurs are the reason that businesses are created in the first place — remember that.

“MANAGEMENT vs. US” culture

Leaders are referred to as management and the front line staff is told that the company is cutting costs.

Meanwhile, the leaders are having deliciously catered for meals off silver plates, taking black limos to meetings and spending crazy amounts of money on social media marketing that makes them look good.

Front line staff says things such as “Management really needs to look at problem X.”

In a non-toxic culture, management and staff are one and people are accountable. Sentences like “Management needs to do…” are not relevant because staff can make decisions and the two sides of the business are one.

The less hierarchy, the more people feel included and that produces a thriving, collaborative culture.

The number of hours you work matter

Judging people by when they start work and how late they work is irrelevant. We all know that the number of hours we work has nothing to do with the output.

You can be at your desk for 12-hours straight and be doing nothing other than surfing the web and complaining to your pals about the company you work for.

Culture First companies understand that output produces results and that on some days you will be productive, and on other days you may have suffered the loss of a loved one or be feeling unwell. Regardless, all that is taken into account is results.

And here’s the kicker: when the results are not there, leaders take accountability and coach their people out of it or help them get a role they are better suited for.

If leaders are watching the clock, you have a problem.

Preferential treatment

In-between the formal layers of hierarchy, there are these soft spongy bits called “preferential treatment.”

These are people that are given extra privileges for enforcing the leaderships toxic culture and talking behind people’s backs in order to gain something. Instead of being part of the solution, they make the problem bigger and are rewarded for it.

Talking down to people who have found themselves in the wrong role

People who are under-performing are called all sorts of nasty names and treated unfairly. They are seen as stupid or not good at business.

In thriving cultures, these people are helped, coached and given feedback. Leaders stand up and help them find the right role if it turns out; for example, they applied for sales and don’t really enjoy talking to customers.

People in the wrong roles can be some of the best staff you have in your business if you can be compassionate enough to give them a second chance in a different role.

The appreciation that comes from being helped rather than shamed converts into long-term loyalty that rebuilds careers, and becomes the basis of a thriving culture.

Shaming low performance

If there are punishments for low performance, you have a big problem.

Shaming people won’t make them perform better; it will make them hate the leadership team and the company even more.

This hatred will then be directed towards your customers and you’ll have more of those “Why are we not making money?” meetings when really it’s your culture that sucks.

A rotating door policy

When people decide to leave or mention they are thinking of leaving, they are talked about as traitors.

Having people leave regularly is normal and acceptable in toxic work environments. There are no exit interviews or questions around why a particular leader has had so many people leave in a short space of time.

Each time, the excuse is “Johnny was crap, so it’s a good thing he is leaving.”

When you scour the company’s staff on LinkedIn, you see that staff don’t last long at the company.

Asking staff to write positive reviews online to cover up the toxicity

Yes, it happens. Toxic cultures can easily be recognized by former staff leaving negative reviews on places such as GlassDoor.

In a toxic work culture, business leaders panic and try to cover up the error in their leadership by asking staff to leave fluffy, fake, in-genuine reviews online to cover up the bad ones.

You can’t hide a toxic work culture; you can only fix it by recognizing it and changing how you treat people.

Values are spoken of rarely

They are written on the company website, mentioned at the annual conference, but never talked about in the context of everyday work.

When talking to a client or making a decision, the values are forgotten about.

In a thriving culture, you can’t even get hired unless you can demonstrate the values. The references you provide are asked about values, you are required to provide evidence and you may even be asked to do a case study where the values will be assessed.

At the end of the year when performance reviews are had, profit and revenue is only one small part of the conversation. Leaders focus in on the company values because they know that it’s the glue that holds everything together and ultimately produces revenue.

SOLUTION: It starts at the top

Start with trusting people first

Earn people’s respect

Be compassionate to your people’s circumstances

Give your people development opportunities

Respect the way people like to get their work done

Encourage autonomy of decision-making

Let people be themselves (race, religion, sexual preference, gender, background — who cares)

Final thought

Toxic cultures cause share prices to drop and profits to plummet. Instead of looking at spreadsheets and accountants for answers, look at your people. Your people are what cause profits to go up or down.

Identify the problems of your company’s culture, own them, and then become obsessed with asking your people how you can change them. Then, implement the changes.

Fight toxic work cultures by making your company transform into being Culture First. It starts with people.

  A Toxic Work Culture Is Forcing High-Performing People to Quit by Tim Denning If micro-management thrives and there is no trust in your organization, you are looking down the barrel of toxic work culture. 

[aion-rsa]

AEW All Out 2020: Date, Time, Card, Matches, Roster, Price, and How to Watch

https://ift.tt/33CgaYQ

There were some growing pains, but All Elite Wrestling has been able to hold its own during the days of COVID. In their last PPV, Double or Nothing 2020, they played up the situation with what’s probably the best ever use of the cinematic wrestling match gimmck with the Stadium Stampede. Now they’re getting ready for their next big PPV, AEW All Out 2020.

There’s some history behind the name of this PPV. AEW’s prototype show back in September 2018 was called All In, which centered around various wrestling promotions and indie talent working together. AEW officially launched a few months later and around its anniversary they had the first All Out. It gave us the crowning of the first AEW Champion in Chris Jericho, an all-women Casino Battle Royal, the surprise debut of Orange Cassidy, and the first (and hopefully not last) Cracker Barrel Clash.

As we prepare for the new edition of AEW All Out, here’s what you need to know about this year’s PPV:

WHEN IS AEW ALL OUT 2020?

The show will take place on Sept. 5 at 8pm ET at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, FL. Presumably, there will be a Buy-In pre-show at 7 pm.

WHERE CAN I WATCH AEW ALL OUT 2020?

In North America, the show is available on B/R Live. Internationally, you can check it out on Fite.TV.

AEW All Out Price

If you’re watching through FiteTV AEW All Out will cost $49.99. If it’s through another PPV provider, the price is $59.99.

AEW ALL OUT 2020 MATCHES AND CARD

JON MOXLEY (C) VS. MJF

AEW World Championship

Since joining AEW, Jon Moxley has been undefeated in singles competition and it helped him springboard to the top and dethrone original champion Chris Jericho. Moxley has defended the title against Jake Hager, Brodie Lee, Brian Cage, and Darby Allin. So far, nobody’s had his number.

But then there’s Maxwell Jacob Friedman. Like Moxley, his win/loss record is virtually untouchable. His only losses have come in battle royals, a four-way, and a tag match. At no point has he been pinned in AEW. With major wins over guys like Cody and Jungle Boy, MJF truly deserves a high-profile shot at the title.

MJF also feels that not only is he needed as champion but as the true leader of the locker room. MJF’s ascent has taken the form of a political campaign. He and his pet muscle Wardlow also tried to get Moxley to lose his title to Darby Allin (presumably an easier opponent to win the belt), but Moxley retained regardless.

Moxley retaliated by dropping MJF with the Death Rider. MJF and his lawyer have been insisting that the Death Rider be banned from their All Out match. Moxley agreed to sign the contract, but also put in an extra page claiming that he would get a singles match against MJF’s lawyer first.

The match was, as expected, very one-sided and Moxley destroyed the lawyer. Afterwards, Wardlow ambushed Moxley and MJF followed soon after. MJF bloodied up Moxley and posed with his title belt.

CHRIS JERICHO VS. ORANGE CASSIDY

Mimosa Mayhem Match

Ever since Orange Cassidy casually walked through an Inner Circle promo, Chris Jericho has had his problems with the mellow slacker. This led to a match between the two that Jericho won, thanks in part to his teammates interfering. Orange goaded Jericho into a rematch, mostly because he spilled gallons of orange juice onto him from the rafters. Angry at how his $7,000 jacket was ruined, Jericho agreed with the rule that if Jericho won, Orange had to pay him back for the jacket.

Orange defeated Jericho in the rematch. A week later, when Orange was being interviewed, Jericho came out to congratulate him. Since they were 1-1, Jericho offered a special kind of rubber match. Mixing Orange Cassidy’s love for orange juice and Chris Jericho’s love for “the bubbly,” they would surround the ring with a moat of mimosas. Their match can only be decided by pinfall, submission, or throwing the opponent into the mimosa pool.

Read more

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By Mike McMahon

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Orange accepted and immediately after, he was beaten down by the Inner Circle. Jericho poured out several bottles of his champagne over Orange’s head. A week later, as Jericho did commentary for Dynamite, the show ended with Orange racing out and brawling with him.

SHIDA (C) VS. THUNDER ROSA

AEW Women’s World Championship

Shida won the AEW Women’s World Championship at Double or Nothing against Nyla Rose. Unfortunately, due to the state of AEW’s women’s division, Shida’s potential challengers either already had their chance, are injured, or aren’t up to the standards of getting a title match. Shida asked for someone to step up.

Thunder Rosa answered. The current NWA Women’s Champion has intent to make her AEW debut by becoming a double champion.

KENNY OMEGA AND HANGMAN PAGE (C) VS. FTR

AEW World Tag Team Championship

This one has been brewing for a while. After losing his chance to be the first AEW World Champion at last year’s All Out, Hangman has wanted out of the Elite. Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks still considered him a friend and that feeling of comradery meant never really respecting his decision. As they were concerned, he was always going to be part of their group…whether he liked it or not. This helped Hangman fall into a downward spiral of drinking, but he also started to gain some success.

Hangman and Kenny won the tag titles and defeated all comers. This included a match against the Young Bucks, which seemed to surprise even Hangman. Between that victory and having to band together against the Inner Circle at Double or Nothing, Hangman seemed to have some sense of peace with his Elite teammates. As he put it, he loved them, but just didn’t really like them.

Enter FTR, formally known as the Revival. For years, people have wanted to see them take on the Young Bucks. They played friendly enough with the Bucks and had a couple moments of conflict with Kenny, but they really got their hooks into Hangman. Hangman became an apologist for every shitty thing FTR did.

This all culminated in a tag team gauntlet between the top ranked four teams. Afraid of having to face and potentially lose to the Young Bucks, Hangman cost them the match. FTR ended up winning in the end. Never getting a chance to explain himself, Hangman proceeded to get chewed out and yelled at by the Bucks, who said that he was no longer part of the Elite and no longer their friend.

A week later, FTR mocked Hangman and said that they barely needed to nudge him. While Hangman is pissed at FTR, he also realizes that Kenny is just as disappointed in him as the Bucks.

CASINO BATTLE ROYALE

Winner Gets an AEW World Championship Match

Introduced at Double or Nothing 2019, the Casino Battle Royale is a 21-man Royal Rumble with a twist. Each wrestler selects a playing card from a deck of 21 cards. Every five minutes, five wrestlers will enter the fray, bundled together by the suit they all drew (hearts, diamonds, spades, clubs). After the first 20 have entered, there’s another five minutes of waiting before whoever drew the joker makes his entrance. Elimination only comes from going over the top rope and having both feet hitting the floor.

As it is right now, the entrants include Darby Allin, Ricky Starks, Brian Cage, Lance Archer, Eddie Kingston, Pentagon Jr., Rey Fenix, the Butcher, the Blade, Shawn Spears, Billy Gunn, Austin Gunn, Jake Hager, Santana, Ortiz, Chuck Taylor, Trent, and four others.

MATT HARDY VS SAMMY GUEVARA

Broken Rules Match. If Matt Hardy loses, he must leave AEW

Due to being key parts of the Elite vs. Inner Circle feud, Matt Hardy and Sammy Guevara have been at it for a while. Once that faction war blew off, Matt was very open about how he thought Sammy would be better off by himself than with Chris Jericho. Sammy didn’t take this well and the two started messing with each other’s matches. This culminated in Sammy beating Matt into a bloody pulp, including a projectile chair to the skull that busted Matt open.

Matt became obsessed with getting his revenge. The two had a Tables Match on Dynamite and although Sammy won, he also suffered a huge gash on his head. Now the two will face off in what is basically a Last Man Standing bout. If Matt loses, then he’s out of the company.

DARK ORDER VS. NATURAL NIGHTMARES, MATT CARDONA, AND SCORPIO SKY

Nearly week after week, Cody defended the TNT Championship against all comers, whether they were from AEW or the indies. This was starting to take its toll, as shown when he teamed up with Matt Cardona against a couple Dark Order flunkies and when he barely won against Scorpio Sky. This was when Mr. Brodie Lee of the Dark Order chose to make his own challenge.

A week later, Brodie absolutely destroyed Cody. Cody didn’t even get a lick of offense in. The new TNT Champion celebrated by further injuring Cody. He and his cronies spent the week drinking and eating a lot of Chili’s (it’s…a long story).

When celebrating further on the next Dynamite, the Dark Order was interrupted by Dustin, QT Marshall, Scorpio Sky, and Matt Cardona. A brawl ensued and Cody’s friends and family won out. Now the top members of the Dark Order (Brodie, Evil Uno, Stu Grayson, and Colt Cabana) will face them at the PPV.

YOUNG BUCKS VS. JURASSIC EXPRESS

In the final show before All Out, an eight-man tag was put together of Young Bucks/Jurassic Express vs. Private Party/SCU with the winning team facing each other at the PPV. Thanks to some impressive teamwork, the Bucks and Jurassic Express came out the winners. The Bucks came off seeming more annoyed than anything else, still angry about losing their title shot.

DR. BRITT BAKER DMD VS. BIG SWOLE

Tooth and Nail Match

Due to a bad leg injury, Britt Baker abruptly had to be removed from Double or Nothing. Rather than hide out and return months down the line, the wheelchair-bound Baker had become an annoying fixture on AEW Dynamite. Eventually, her attitude got the attention of Big Swole, who proceeded to kidnap Baker and throw her into a dumpster. For a while, Swole was banned from the building, but has been welcomed back, ready to get her hands on Baker once she’s able to compete. Swole won a 3-on-1 handicap match to earn a shot at Britt and even pick the stipulation.

Big Swole announced it would be a “Tooth and Nail Match,” but before she could explain what that was, Baker and Reba attacked her. Baker revealed that she no longer needed a wheelchair to move.

Check back for more information on AEW All Out 2020 as we learn more!

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Ready to Embrace Intuitive Eating?

This method of getting in tune with your body and improving your attitude toward food and body image will help you put dieting to the wayside. Forever.

With memes about quarantine fridge trips and more time at home to cook and snack, intuitive eating is having a moment. We use intuition every day to make decisions about work, love, and life, so why not use intuition when it comes to food too? 

The term “intuitive eating” was coined by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch in 1995 in their book Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program that Works. The book was aimed at helping chronic dieters form a peaceful relationship with food. “Intuitive eating is a dynamic interplay of instinct, emotion, and thoughts which gives us our inner wisdom to know how to eat,” said Elyse Resch. 

The 10 principles of Intuitive Eating

From Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program that Works

1. Reject the diet mentality

Toss diet books that only provide short-term fixes to weight loss and stop believing the false hopes they inaccurately promise.

2. Honor your hunger

Consistently take in the energy and carbohydrates that your body biologically needs. Your body naturally knows what nutrients it needs to not only survive, but to thrive. Try eating every three to four hours and to figure out how much food you need to feel satisfied. The lines between physical and emotional hunger will become more clear.

3. Make peace with food

Give yourself permission to consume all types of foods. If you deny yourself a particular food, eventually it may lead to cravings from deprivation and possible bingeing.

4. Challenge the food police

The food police officer is an inner voice that acts as a rule setter and tells you when you are “bad” or “good” based on what you consume. They monitor the rules that society enforces with diet culture. In order to eat intuitively, you have to chase them away.

5. Discover the satisfaction factor

You can find a deep pleasure when you choose to eat what you truly want. “Satisfaction is what leads to the ability to stop when you are comfortably full,” according to Resch.

6. Feel your fullness

Understand when your body is no longer hungry by listening to its signals. A good way to do this is to stop eating mid-meal and reflect on how hungry you feel. Be mindful of the taste and texture of the food. After observing the taste you can then decide if you feel a physical craving for more food. If so, continue eating until your body hits that point of satisfaction.

7. Cope with your emotions with kindness

Food restrictions can trigger loss of control and turn into what feels like emotional eating. Emotions all have triggers, but food won’t fix the root issues you are experiencing, it will only prolong them. Instead, try taking a walk, getting outside, or talking to someone.

8. Respect your body

Accept your body for the genes that you inherited. This will not only help you accept you for you, but also initiate a higher respect for your body.

9. Feel the difference

When you are exercising, try to change your perspective to focus just on how your body feels, instead of the exercise itself or the calories being burned. This will ultimately train your brain to crave exercising for the feel-good endorphins it releases, instead of focusing on the superficial physical results.

10. Honor your health with gentle nutrition

Choose to eat food that makes you feel good. Perfection is not the goal. You can better understand which foods you can eat and also make you feel good by eating mindfully.

Mindfulness vs. Intuition

Intuitive eating is a broader version of mindful eating. Eating intuitively means engaging in physical activity to simply feel good, rejecting the diet mentality, viewing nutritional information without judgement, and ultimately being respectful of your body, despite societal norms. Mindful eating, while similar, is the act of paying attention to your eating experience without judgement.“Intuitive eating includes staying present and mindful when eating, but not necessarily using the specifics of mindful eating” says Resch. “Ours is more about staying present to hunger, fullness, and the satisfaction of food.”

Why Choose Intuitive Eating?

Diet culture worships thinness as healthy, promotes weight loss as a higher status, classifies foods as “good” or “evil,” and oppresses individuals who do not fit into the societal category of what is considered beautiful. A hyperfocus on a number on the scale can lead to body dissatisfaction and weight stigma, which can ultimately negatively impact your health..

The word “diet” has become associated with the need to be a specific weight. But a diet is meant to represent the foods one eats daily, not how one looks. Anti-diet dieticians, like the creators of Intuitive Eating, are focused on how you feel, not a number on a scale.

And gratitude plays a big role, according to Resch. “Gratitude and compassion are two major pieces of intuitive eating,” she explained. “Practicing gratitude on a regular basis can actually increase your serotonin levels in your brain, making you feel better and putting you in a cup-is-half-full, rather than half-empty mode.” With intuitive eating, you are not only honoring your body’s natural needs and ignoring unrealistic societal norms, but you’re also showing your body the gratitude and appreciation it deserves.

5 Ways to Get Started

1. If you're hungry, eat and trust your gut! Try preparing healthy yummy snacks to satisfy hunger on the go and get creative with recipes.

2. Allow yourself to enjoy your favorite foods in moderation, restriction is not the answer!

3. Talk to others, get outdoors, or on your mat to combat negative emotions. Endorphins really do help!

4. You can be your worst enemy or best cheerleader. Embrace and respect your body and mind for its beauty and strength.

5. Progress takes time. Focus on how your body feels internally and it will guide you in the right direction.