#analysis: tv series

[counting-stars-gayly]

It’s time we accept that Percy Jackson is an unreliable narrator. He’s not dumb. He’s just insecure. He’s not clueless about his and Annabeth’s feelings. He’s just in denial. He’s not clueless about Rachel’s feelings. He just doesn’t want to do anything about them. His mother isn’t perfect. He just loves and respects her more than anyone in the world. That boy contradicts his own inner monologue all the time. Do not trust him!!

EDIT: Please don’t interact just to disagree. You can make your own post.

[inbarfink]

So let’s go through this one-by-one, shall we?

Red Guy

Flat affect in voice, not very expressive 

Or from the perspective of other Red Guy, he is far too expressive and tend to smile at inappropriate situations

Express emotions either ‘too little’ or ‘too much’ in terms of volume, very little in-between

Speaks very bluntly 

Feels physically uncomfortable with bright colors

"Well, this isn't that fun, is it? can't make out where I am in the room like this. What if I'm standing in an embarrassing area?" "I actually don't mind it. Kind of a nice break from all of those... garish colors"

Duck

Loves cataloging and organizing things as a recreational activity

Anthropomorphise inanimate objects (like ACTUALLY inanimate, not teachers)

"You have to jab it hard or it won't respect your choices!"

Has a hard time fitting in in ‘normative’ social groups

Odd sensory sensitivities

"You're supposed to say that the floor is too loud or the window is disrespecting you"

Yellow Guy

Relies on a heavy amount of social mimicry in unfamiliar social situations

"I'm making bits and parts, although sometimes I feel a bit like the bits and parts are, eh, making me."

Tends to understand metaphors and turns of phrases very literally

Which is actually a trait that he displays even in his hyper-intelligent ‘Charged’ mode

"Oh there he is, it's about time." "Yeah, what have you been doing?" "Um, okay, let me see... We were learning about electricity... I completed a crossword puzzle..."

Who is also very sensitive to sounds when two or more people are speaking at once

He also seems to have ‘clumsy’ motor functions in both ‘forms’

In conclusion:

[callmewisteria]

Norm is absolutely one of my favourite characters in the Fallout universe. The fact he loves his family and wants what's best for them being what drives him to look for the truth of what has happened to them and why is fantastic. The ultimate difference between him and Chet, too, is a great show of his character. It began with him choosing to help his sister find their father and ends with him coming to the same realisation as she has – their father was not the man he said he was and much of their life has been a lie. Watching him decide to take the hunt for the truth into his own hands, even when it could be the end of him, is incredibly compelling.

What makes Norm so enjoyable to watch, too, is just how human he is. All of the characters in the show are that way, which is part of what makes it great (yes, even the ghouls as they were at one time human). The distress he feels at seeing what happened to Vault 32 being swept under the rug, and the anger he feels towards Betty and the others for doing it seemingly out of a desire for control and power more than anything else is tangible. The fact it drives him to take the risk of sneaking into Vault 31 shows his bold and couregous side, and also that it's driven by not only his own curiosities but his desire for the truth. It’s a great parallel trait he shares with Lucy and, as she comes to find out, their mother. The anger he feels towards his father and also the desperation he feels to survive are a great contrast of his truth seeking and his baser humanity.

All things considered, Norm's competing feelings of a desire for truth, a desire for safety, curiosity, and a love for his family are what make him a great character. The fact he shares those traits with Lucy but expresses them in different ways creates a strong parallel narrative for their characters, and also does a great job showing the two sides of courage. The fact neither he or Lucy are impervious or shy away from moments of weakness and subsiming emotion latch onto the naivety from their upbringing and also their humanity. With them both now having to reckon with the truth about their father, a reunion between them will I'm sure be great and also remind them that not all of their family members are bad. Reckoning with the truth about their mother and Lucy's love for her being what compelled her to end her suffering before breaking down at the gravity of it is another layer of complexity to their family dynamics that both of them will need time to sit with. The contrasting feelings of how they knew their father versus what they've come to learn about him serve well to separate them from others like Chet; where he, their cousin, chooses to remain wilfully ignorant, they chose to put aside their fears and look for a truth they knew was out there.

Chet is a coward because he chooses to ignore the truth he has seen with his own eyes.

Lucy is brave because she is willing to go to any and all lengths to find her father and is then willing to end the suffering her mother is under because of him; she is openly emotional and driven by that and the love she feels for her family and is horrified and shattered by her father being a different man than the one she had always known.

Norm is brave because he is willing to do anything for his sister and father and, when faced with the choice to stay in blissful ignorance, because he chooses to seek out the truth even when it could hurt him; he, too, doesn't shy away from the pain the truth about his father causes him and, like Lucy, has to learn to live with the competing memories of their father and the reality of who and what he is.

Hank is a coward because, while he goes to the extremes to attempt to preserve himself and his family, he refuses to accept the fact his actions have consequences for the way his children (and, previously, their mother) had seen him and instead tries to force things to go back to the way they were before his children could learn of his ability to be selfish.

And Rose was brave because she loved her children so much that she would and did do everything for them, even when she had to put her love for their father aside and risk herself so that she and her children could have a chance to live in truth rather than lies. Her children share that with her, even though they didn't know it, just as much as they share her love, empathy, and desire for the truth even when living in wilful ignorance could have been easier.

Tl;dr – the entire MacLean family being driven by love for each other but expressing it in different ways that ultimately drive them apart is not only great at showcasing the different sides of courage and cowardice but showing the way Lucy and Norm are so similar and are driven by their love for their family just as much as their desire for the truth and that neither Lucy or Norm shy away from their emotional and impulsive reactions to it presents them as not only fully human but two sides of the same coin; they are both couregous even though they take two different paths to the truth.

[osbcrne]

holy shit. so im definitely late to this realization, but i entirely overlooked this phrase. I swear every time i watch this show i find new things

SoI just realized that in S1E1 where Hannibal is analyzing Will upon meeting him for the first time, will says "I put up forts", and then Hannibal says after a little bit "no forts in the bone arena of your skull for things you love" and that's fucking crazy because the "fort" they're talking about in that scene is wills standoffishness and especially his lack of eye contact.

there really MUST be no room for forts regarding the things Will loves, as as the show goes on Will sure does not have a problem eye fucking hannibal and tends to not wear his glasses around him! his eye contact increases and lengthens in time around hannibal specifically as their relationship progresses, and will always takes off his glasses specifically when talking to hannibal.

except for that one scene in season 3 when will rejects hannibal right before he gets arrested, he puts the glasses back on, he wants to convince himself he does not love hannibal. but when gets to see hannibal again, the glasses come back off- he admits once again that he loves him.

they make me SICK

yeah okay, will "i build forts" graham.

[ninesparrowsoftroy]

Someone has definitely thought of this or spoke of this before but I’m rereading The Lightning Thief (after like 7/8 years) and one of the biggest things they hit on in the first half of the book is how powerful names are.

When Percy first learns about essentially everything regarding being a half-blood, Olympus being real, etc etc…the one thing that Mr. D and Chiron really beat into Percy’s head is that names have real power.

So just being reminded of that made me think back to the series and how huge of a deal it was that Percy not only prayed to his mom instead of any Olympian God but that when he was being told he was Poseidons son by Mr. D he outright corrected him by stating he was Sally Jackson’s son.

Not only was this 12 year old essentially saying fuck you to the Gods, he was using their own power against them in the only way an undetermined (at least until he is) 12 year old could.

[kaleb-is-definitely-sane]

Okay so like has anyone written an analysis on Percy Jackson’s relationship with his own fears and just fear itself??? Because it is like genuinely interesting how offended he is at being hinted at the being a coward and yet how deep down one of his greatest fears seems to be that he is just this scared, little kid that wants to hide and run into the arms of his mom. If someone’s talked about this before please show me because i find this incredibly fascinating.

[thefiresofpompeii]

yes, Doctor, isn’t that right? somebody more shrewd would notice if they were fighting smoke and mirrors. if they were fighting NOTHING AT ALL. they would notice if the enemy is fabricated and the quarry is a soundstage, if their own weaponry attacks them and all they have to draw morale from is blind faith (blindness isn’t fatal remember — “you’re saying that to a dead blind guy”) … going through the motions, repeating past steps, shooting lasers out into the smoke-machine fog at emptiness.

we know from the Curse of Fenric and the God Complex who the Doctor places his faith in: his companions. right now, Ruby is his faith.

and his faith in her is obstructing the view. just at the right amount to keep him buying more.

[bailadeluna]

there’s something so brilliant in cooper howard’s costume design - it’s so much more than just a simple blue and gold cowboy fit.

at the beginning of the show, before the bombs dropped, cooper howard was a good person - always kind to others despite the circumstances or how he was feeling in the moment.

you could say… he was exemplifying the golden rule.

this is evident in his costuming - cooper is decked out in gold even when the bombs dropped. the golden rule is still so close to his heart - i mean come on - look at how tight that bandana is around his neck.

even in certain lighting, his hat looks gold.

cooper howard being a good person and living by the golden rule is what barb probably fell in love with (she has her own interesting character analysis and thought process which i would love to discuss later). because this trait is so admired by her and those around cooper, she probably saw him as who she would hope future generations would become as they grow up in the vaults. people like him are the better future she envisions - so it’s no coincidence that the vault suit is in his colors.

what does the blue symbolize?

well, to me, i think it’s the corporate presence in the world. there’s more blue in the suit than there is gold - hinting at vaultech’s corporate greed, capitalism, and evil machinations. (there was also blue in his old cowboy costume - i.e. the presence of the studio and how they use cooper to push a mccarthyism narrative. kinda in the same way vaultech will use him)

the blue in the suit - symbolizing vaultech’s overwhelming presence and the reason for such a bleak and cruel world - does not swallow up the gold - the small semblance of humanity’s capacity to do and be good. it’s the small hint at barb’s intentions (analogous to the road to hell being paved with good intentions).

yet the man who was an inspiration for vaultech’s workers - the man who they all wished they could be like, the man who symbolized all the “do good” ideas they pass down to their children but in the end have no intention of following them (wink wink, looking at you, hank) - was in the end stripped of all his humanity by the world vaultech created (wow, would you look at that? another analogy for capitalism!)

this man, once rich in morals now robbed of them all, wanders the wasteland a ghoul. everything has been taken from him - symbolized being devoid of layers of skin.

now, he’s nothing but the ghost of the man he once was - haunted by what has been done. everything he wears as the ghoul is frayed, tattered, and dark - symbolizing that cooper howard, that kind and caring man before the bombs is dead.

but wait - is that…

you don’t see it? Ok, i’ll zoom in some more

GOLD? (perhaps even the same shirt he was wearing during the bomb drop??)

perhaps the golden rule, those values that he once held so dearly, are still there just dormant - waiting to be awaken again.

maybe cooper howard can come back… that just maybe there’s still hope for the good in humanity…

[sylvies-kablooie]

the fact that O.B. remembers meeting Mobius before indicates that the TVA forgot to wipe his memory because they forgot he was even there at all

[counting-stars-gayly]

There’s something about Percy spending the whole episode remembering how upset he was with his mother for separating them, but with this newfound understanding of why she did it, and then deciding to leave her (temporarily) at Hades’ palace because it’s the right thing to do, regardless of how much it hurts.

“Hold fast, Mom,” because they’re braving the storm that was made to break them.

[ichigokeks]

This scene was so significant and I haven't seen anyone talk about it. Sand knows about Ray's excessive drinking but not how bad it really is. In this moment he begins to understand. The brilliance of Sand immediately stopping while pouring the drink when Ray said that his mother drank herself to death. There was more than simple shock about this revelation. It was the realisation that Ray is doing the same. Sand looks at Ray and back at the alcohol because he understands so much more than what Ray said. He sees that Ray is in so much pain and tries to drown it all out in alcohol. Sand sees how Ray's immediate reaction to the fight with Boston is to open the liquor bottle.

[truebluewhocanoe]

73 yards reaction

ngl after finishing that episode I went from "What the fuck even was that" to "That was dumb and made no sense at all" to "Oh, Russell says it's supposed to be a Welsh folk tale, okay, huh" to "Wait no that's actually great."

This episode did something that none of the other Supernatural Things(TM) episodes did: it committed to making no sense. Church on Ruby Road made perfect sense, The Giggle and The Devil's Chord made just enough sense to not really make satisfactory levels of sense, but this episode was just... inexplicable. Where did the Doctor go? What was the woman saying to everyone? What was the woman signing with her hands? Why were all the Welsh people such jerks?How did Old Woman Ruby go back and become the semperdistans? My first thought was "there was a TON of crucial details lost somewhere in cut drafts" but no, it's a folk tale, it doesn't have to make sense and it shouldn't make perfect sense. It makes poetic sense, maybe (the fairy circle is made of hopes and dreams, Old Ruby finds hope at the end of her life that no one will abandon her, she becomes the very thing that never abandons herself) but it doesn't make scientific sense, it doesn't even try. And that's how you really commit to a fantastical turn in a sci-fi show.

(Also: doing an episode that is based on folk tales, that is, it's not just fantasy but a fantastical story, is excellent fodder for tv show theory. For some reason, Ruby's life consistently tends towards fiction...)

(Also also: the episode did a good job of feeling really long, which is impressive because it's very hard to create a false sense of time when experiencing fiction, so, good job. Cutting out the intro in particular was a clever move.)

[traveller-of-the-knight]

So many things I want to talk about in this scene. But I think these screenshots say it all.

[ultimateloserboy]

WHY DID NOBODY TELL ME ABOUT THE DHMIS STORYBOARDS WHAT THE FUCK I MUST ANALYZE IMMEDIATELY

Ok so Adam Beer storyboarded some of the scenes for dhmis, and looking over them they give some REALLY JUICY information that was cut from the actual scenes!!!

he did one for a scene in jobs as well as death, but those arent too different from the finished product. the scenes that werent included are cute but theyre not vital to the lore or anything, yaknow?

death is almost completely the same, but i appreciate this drawing of red guy hes so shaped

but anyway, like i said, these two aren’t necessarily important, all the info we have from these storyboards is the same general info that we get in the finished show. However, Adam Beer worked on one other episode that includes a good chunk of cut lines and you know what that is? ELECTRICITY!!!!!!!

THATS RIGHT BABY WE HAVE MORE LESLEY LINES THAT PROVE MY WHOLE POINT!!! FUCK YOU LESLEY HATERS I KNEW SHE WASNT THE VILLAIN FROM DAY ONE!!!!!!

HER MEMORY IS FOGGY. SHE DOESNT WANT “US” GETTING IN TROUBLE WITH SOMEONE ELSE. WHAT DID I TELL YALL. I TOLD YALL SHES JUST AS TRAPPED AS THE OTHERS WHAT DID I SAY.

and the fact shes labeled as the narrator the whole time is so interesting because the narrator of a story does not necessarily control or create it, they simply tell it in an organized manner. SHE ISNT CREATING THE STORY SHE IS KEEPING IT IN LINE, TELLING IT PROPERLY, KEEPING EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE OR ELSE SHE GETS IN TROUBLE DO YOU UNDERSTAND?? SHE IS TRAPPED AND MEANS NO HARM. SHE FIXES THEM UP WHEN THEY ARE BROKEN. SHE IS SIMPLY THE MESSENGER.

AND THIS. THIS FUCKING DOOR. I KNEW IT MEANT SOMETHING AND LOOK. ITS ON THE FOURTH WALL. AND THE STAIRS LEAD UP. SHE IS NOT RUNNING THE HOUSE. THERE IS SOMETHING ABOVE HER, POSSIBLY IMPLIED TO BE THE IRL PEOPLE WORKING ON THE SHOW BUT THATS JUST MY GUESS.

but anyway dont yall EVER shit talk my girl lesley again you hear me?? shes just a silly old lady and she doesnt aim to hurt anyone. although it doesnt matter what she aims to do, because no matter her own wants, she is still dancing in chains.

ive told yall a million times. but she doesnt say “WE” for nothing. god im going to EXPLODE

[frunbuns]

Not to be a nerd (though I am literally doing a bachelor in media production), but I am in such awe of this specific shot. The composition is just so good. I've thought about this frequently since s2 came out.

The way the bakground is dark and blurry, but the light on them is warm. His eyelashes???? Man...

Love the way his eyebrow hits the lower-left cross section. Rule of thirds my beloved <3

His eyes on a diagonal axis? Scrumptious. The direction of his eyes taking the viewer from the right to the left? Amazing. The tear running down the bridge of his nose??? Stunning.

Simona Susnea (director of cinematography) I am kissing you on the mouth

[applecidersstuff]

The fact that Percy would've absolutely gone to Hades with Nico if he'd just asked, because Percy would've understood him, but Nico didn't think that Percy would help him.

It breaks me sometimes.