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lokiondisneyplus · 3 years

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A review of “Journey Into Mystery,” the penultimate Loki Season One episode on Disney+, coming up just as soon as I paper cut a giant cloud to death…

Journey Into Mystery was the title of the first Marvel comic to feature either Thor or Loki. It began as an anthology series featuring monsters and aliens, but Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, and Larry Lieber were so smitten with their adaptation of the characters of Norse myth that the Asgardians gradually took over the whole book, which was renamed after its hammer-wielding hero(*).

(*) The early Journey Into Mystery stories treated Thor’s alter ego, disabled Dr. Donald Blake, as the “real” character, while Thor was just someone Blake could magically transform into, while retaining his memories and personality. It wasn’t even clear whether Asgard itself was meant to exist at first, until Loki turned up on Earth in an early issue, caused trouble, and Blake/Thor somehow knew exactly how to get to Asgard to drop him off. Soon, the lines between Thor and Blake began to blur, and eventually Thor became the real guy, and Blake a fiction invented by Odin to humble his arrogant son. It’s a mark of just how instantly charismatic Loki was that the entire title quickly steered towards him and the other gods.

But once upon a time, anything was possible in Journey Into Mystery, which makes it an apt moniker for an absolutely wonderful episode of Loki where the same holds true. Our title characters are trapped in the Void, a place at the end of time where the TVA’s victims are banished to be devoured by a cloud monster named Alioth. And mostly they are surrounded by the wreckage of many dead timelines. Classic Loki insists that his group’s only goal is survival, and any kind of planning and scheming is doomed to kill the Loki who tries. But this ruined, hopeless world instead feels bursting with imagination and possibility.

There are the many Loki variants we see, with President Loki, among others, joining Classic, Kid, Boastful, and Alligator Loki. There are the metric ton of Easter Eggs just waiting to be screencapped by Marvel obsessives (I discuss a few of them down below), but which still suggest a much larger and weirder MCU even if you don’t immediately scream out “Is that… THROG?!?!?” at the appropriate moment. And all of that stuff is tons of fun, to be sure. But what makes this episode — and, increasingly, this series — feel so special is the way that it explores the untapped potential of Loki himself, in his many, many variations.

This is an episode that owes more than a small stylistic and thematic debt to Lost. It’s not just that Alioth looks and sounds so much like the Smoke Monster(*), that it makes a shared Wizard of Oz reference to “the man behind the curtain” (also the title of one of the very best Lost episodes), or even that the core group of Lokis are hiding in a bunker accessible via a hatch and a ladder that’s filled with recreational equipment (in this case, bowling alley lanes). It’s also that Loki, Sylvie, their counterparts, and Mobius have all been transported to a strange place that has disturbing echoes from their own lives, that operates according to strange new rules they have to learn while fleeing danger, and their presence there allows them to reflect on the many mistakes of their past and consider whether they want to, or can, transcend them.

(*) Yes, Alioth technically predates Smokey by a decade (see the notes below for more), but his look has been tweaked a bit here to seem more like smoke than a cloud, and the sounds he makes when he roars sound a lot like Smokey’s telltale taxi cab meter clicks. Given the other Lost hat tips in the episode, I have to believe Alioth was chosen specifically to evoke Smokey.

Classic Loki is aptly named. He wears the Sixties Jack Kirby costume, and he is a far more powerful magician than either Sylvie or our Loki have allowed themselves to be. He calls our Loki’s knives worthless compared to his sorcery, which feels like the show acknowledging that the movies depowered Loki a fair amount to make him seem cooler. But if Classic Loki can conjure up illusions bigger and more potent than his younger peers, he is a fundamentally weak and defeated man, convinced, like the others, that the only way to win the game into which he was born is not to play. “We cannot change,” he insists. “We’re broken. Every version of ourselves. Forever.” It is not only his sentiment — Kid Loki adds that any Loki who tries to improve inevitably winds up in the Void for their troubles — but it seems to have weighed on him longer and harder than most.

But Classic Loki takes inspiration from Loki and Sylvie to stand and fight rather than turn and run, magicking up a vision of their homeland to distract Alioth at a crucial moment in Sylvie’s plan, and getting eaten for his trouble. He was wrong: Lokis can change. (Though Kid Loki might once again argue that Classic Loki’s death is more evidence that the universe has no interest in any of them doing so.) And both Loki and Sylvie have been changing throughout their time together. Like most Lokis, they seem cursed to a life of loneliness. Sylvie learned as a child that a higher power believed she should not exist, and has spent a lifetime hiding out in places where any friends she might make will soon die in an apocalypse. Our Loki’s past isn’t quite so stark, but the knowledge that his birth father abandoned him, while his adoptive father never much liked him, have left permanent scars that govern a lot of his behavior. The defining element of Classic Loki’s backstory is that he spent a long time alone on a planet, and only got busted by the TVA when he attempted to reconnect with his brother and anyone else he once knew. This is a hard existence, for all of them. And while it does not forgive them their many sins(*), it helps contextualize them, and give them the knowledge to try to be better versions of themselves.

(*) Loki at one point even acknowledges that, for him, it’s probably only been a few days since he led an alien invasion of New York that left many dead, though due to TVA shenanigans, far more time may have passed.

For that matter, Mobius is not the stainless hero he once thought of himself as. While he and Sylvie are tooling around the Void in a pizza delivery car (because of course they are), he admits that he committed a lot of sins by believing that the ends justified the means, and was wrong. He doesn’t know who he is before the TVA stole and factory rebooted him, but he knows that he wants something better for himself and the universe, and takes the stolen TemPad to open up a portal to his own workplace in hopes of tearing down the TVA once and for all. Before he goes, though, he and Loki share a hug that feels a lot more poignant than it should, given that these characters have only spent parts of four episodes of TV together. It’s a testament to Hiddleston, Wilson, Waldron, and company (Tom Kauffman wrote this week’s script) that their friendship felt so alive and important in such a short amount of time.

The same can be said for Loki and Sylvie’s relationship, however we’re choosing to define it. Though they briefly cuddle together under a blanket that Loki conjures, they move no closer to romance than they were already. If anything, Mobius’ accusations of narcissism in last week’s episode seem to have made both of them pull back a bit from where they seemed to be heading back on Lamentis. But the connection between them is real, whatever exactly it is. And their ability to take down Alioth — to tap into the magic that Classic Loki always had, and to fulfill Loki’s belief that “I think we’re stronger than we realize” — by working together is inspiring and joyful. Without all this nuanced and engaging character work, Loki would still be an entertaining ride, but it’s the marriage of wild ideas with the human element that’s made it so great.

Of course, now comes the hard part. Endings have rarely been an MCU strength, give or take something like the climax of Endgame, and the finales of the two previous Disney+ shows were easily their weakest episodes. The strange, glorious, beautiful machine that Waldron and Herron have built doesn’t seem like it’s heading for another generic hero/villain slugfest, but then, neither did WandaVision before we got exactly that. This one feels different so far, though. The command of the story, the characters, and the tone are incredibly strong right now. There is a mystery to be solved about who is in the big castle beyond the Void (another Loki makes the most narrative and thematic sense to me, but we’ll see), and a lot to be resolved about what happens to the TVA and our heroes. And maybe there’s some heavy lifting that has to be done in service to the upcoming Dr. Strange or Ant-Man films.

It’s complicated, but on a show that has handled complexity well. Though even if the finale winds up keeping things simpler, that might work. As Loki notes while discussing his initial plan to take down Alioth, “Just because it’s not complicated doesn’t mean it’s bad.” Though as Kid Loki retorts, “It also doesn’t mean it’s good.”

Please be good, Loki finale. Everything up to this point deserves that.

Some other thoughts:

* Most of this week’s most interesting material happens in the Void. But the scenes back at the TVA clarify a few things. First, Ravonna is not the mastermind of all this, and she was very much suckered in by the Time-Keeper robots. But unlike Mobius or Hunter B-15, she’s so conditioned to the mission that even knowing it’s a lie hasn’t really swayed her from her mission. She has Miss Minutes (who herself is much craftier this week) looking into files about the creation of the TVA, but for the most part comes across as someone very happy with a status quo where she gets to be special and pass judgment on the rest of the multiverse.

* Alioth first appeared in 1993’s Avengers: The Terminatrix Objective, a miniseries (written by Mobius inspiration Mark Gruenwald, and with some extremely kewl Nineties art full of shoulder pads, studded collars, and the like) involving Ravonna, Kang, and the off-brand versions of Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor (aka U.S. Agent, War Machine, and Thunderstrike, the latter of whom has yet to appear in the MCU). It’s a sequel to a Nineties crossover event called Citizen Kang. And no, I still don’t buy that Kang will be the one pulling the strings here, if only because it’s really bad storytelling for the big bad of the season to have never appeared or even been mentioned prior to the finale.

* Rather than try to identify every Easter egg visible in the Void’s terrain, I’ll instead highlight three of the most interesting. Right before the Lokis arrive at the hatch, we see a helicopter with Thanos’ name on it. This is a hat tip to an infamous — and often memed — out-of-continuity story where Thanos flies this chopper while trying to steal the Cosmic Cube (aka the Tesseract) from Hellcat. (A little kid gets his hands on it instead and, of course, uses the Cube to conjure up free ice cream.) James Gunn has been agitating for years for the Thanos Copter to be in the MCU. He finally got his wish.

* The other funny one: When the camera pans down the tunnel into Kid Loki’s headquarters, we see Mjolnir buried in the ground, and right below it is a jar containing a very annoyed frog in a Thor costume. This is either Thor himself — whom Loki cursed into amphibianhood in a memorable Walt Simonson storyline — or another character named Simon Walterston (note the backwards tribute to Walt) who later assumed the tiny mantle.

* Also, in one scene you can spot Yellowjacket’s helmet littering the landscape. This might support the theory that the TVA, the Void, etc., all exist in the Quantum Realm, since that’s where the MCU version of Yellowjacket probably went when his suit shorted out and he was crushed to subatomic size. Or it might be more trolling of the fanbase from the company that had WandaVision fans convinced that Mephisto, the X-Men, and/or Reed Richards would be appearing by the season finale.

* Honestly, I would have watched an entire episode that was just Loki, Mobius, and the others arguing about whether Alligator Loki was actually a Loki, or just a gator who ended up with the crown, presumably after eating a real Loki. The suggestion that the gator might be lying — and that this actually supports, rather than undermines, the case for him being a Loki — was just delightful. And hey, if Throg exists in the MCU now, why not Alligator Loki?

* Finally, the MCU films in general are not exactly known for their visual flair, though a few directors like Taika Waititi and Ryan Coogler have been able to craft distinctive images within the franchise’s usual template. Loki, though, is so often wonderful to look at, and particularly when our heroes are stuck in strange environments like Lamentis or the Void. Director Kate Herron and the VFX team work very well together to create dynamic and weird imagery like Sylvie running from Alioth, or the chaotic Loki battle in the bowling alley. Between this show and WandaVision, it appears the Disney+ corner of the MCU has a bit more room to expand its palette. (Falcon and the Winter Soldier, much less so.)

#Loki #spoilers #episode 5 #review #Rolling Stone #Alan Sepinwall

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ethanredotter · 4 years

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My ideas for Zootopia 2

Ah, Zootopia. It broke the record for the biggest opening weekend for an animated film, went on to be Disney Animation’s third most profitable film ever, became the second highest grossing original film of all time, and was nominated for and won innumerable awards including many for best animated picture, and rightfully so. It introduced us to a beautiful, creative, and lovable world populated by amazing characters, and had a poignant message that was conveyed, in my humble opinion, in the best possible way. I liked it a lot when it first came out, but after recently getting into stuff with a similar concept (Beastars), and being subsequently recommended various fan content on YT (Savage Company, Return to Zootopia), I got back into the film again and absolutely fell in love with it to the point that it’s joined my top three films alongside Coco, and The Land Before Time.

Which is why I am really, really craving a followup of some kind.

Seriously, of all of Disney Animation’s recent films (or heck, films in general), I feel like this one has the greatest potential for a sequel. The setting oozes creativity from its every pore, has so many nooks and crannies that we didn’t manage to explore in the film, its two main leads were perfect and I really feel still have plenty of room to grow, and there are still so many ideas old and new that can be explored. So far we’ve received a few tie-in books, a hidden object game which is no longer available, a few comics, including a series about stories from Nick and Judy’s childhoods, a very large and intricate land expansion under construction in Shanghai Disneyland and a game starring Nick and Judy in Epcot, and a Disney+ original series focusing on various characters from around the city. All of these are fantastic, but four years after the film’s release, we’ve received no official confirmation of a proper continuation to Nick and Judy’s story like a sequel or TV series, just a few rumors here and there.

We’ll get some kind of proper followup eventually, that’s for sure, but what could it do? What kinds of places could they take us to? What ideas could it explore? What could happen to our leads, and what kinds of new characters could they befriend or combat? Well, I’m gonna give my ideas right here; buckle up, because I have a lot.

The City

Let me start off with the City itself. I mean… It’s marvelous. The architecture, like the Oasis Casino, central station, first precinct, the various neighborhoods. The accommodations like the sprinklers, water tubes, Little Rodentia, and the climate wall! The city of Zootopia is a star in and of itself with just how much care, attention, and creativity was put into its every crevice, and we barely got to see half of what it has to offer, as we only got a proper look at five of its twelve districts. They’ve revealed a few other districts via some maps and books (Meadowlands, Outback Island, Canal District) but there are a bunch of others yet to be revealed, and plenty unexplored.

Let’s start with what could be done with the ones already revealed. The Canal District could accommodate the city’s highly aquatic residents like hippos, otters, muskrats, beavers and manatees, and also be one of the city’s primary trade hubs. In terms of layout, it could be like Venice meets the Mekong Delta on steroids where the citizens live and make their living either in boats, or in buildings whose entrances are right on the water. There could be some walkways for less aquatic animals, but most of the transportation is through the water; either via swimming, or via motorboats, riverboats, jet skis, and ferries. And indeed, this is possibly what they had in mind judging by the concept art of the canals. I hope to see them implement something like this in the future; this stuff is just insanely cool! In terms of infrastructure, alongside the various docks and warehouses, I’m thinking that it could be a place for aquaculture where all manner of freshwater seafood are raised, as well as plenty of touristy stuff like river cruises. Maybe we could have a boat chase here, or perhaps just a relaxing moment between our leads, or maybe both.

The meadowlands would be a place for more temperate grazers like sheep, horses, bison, and various kinds of deer. It could be akin to a massive park district with plenty of recreation and places to enjoy a bit of fresh air, and its buildings could possibly be like hobbit holes and built into the hills. I’m thinking it could also be a place with a lot of mills to process both food and textiles, and its overall atmosphere could be quite agricultural and country while being in the middle of a city and not having much in the way of crops.

Now on to potential districts

Credit to @florenze

The one that I and many others have thought of the most is a nocturnal cave district. This would be located beneath the rest of the city, and would, of course, have little to no light in order to accommodate its main inhabitants such as moles, mole rats, and bats. This place could have homes on the ceiling and walls for the bats, with various cranes and elevators for the non-bats to get around both to visit, and do maintenance. I imagine bat homes could be quite atypical compared to other species since they’d likely sleep upside down and crawl on walls a fair bit, and if they need to get anywhere they can just fly, so much like the canals, they might not have much in the way of front yards and instead just have elevators and sheer drops on their front doors. Likewise, the less residential buildings could have entrances at higher floors for the bats as well. Entrances to the district could be drive-in cave mouths, as well as big openings for the bats to just fly straight out of to see the other districts at night.

As an opposite to that, I was thinking that a central mountain district would also be cool to see. This would accommodate mountain sheep and goats, takins, pikas, llamas, as well as snow leopards, brown bears, and other mammals who like high and rocky locales. This place could be even more vertical than the cave district, and require either elevators, stairways, or surefootedness to get around, as well as perhaps some oxygen tanks depending on how high it goes. Therefore, cars would be nowhere to be seen, and if anyone wants to get in, they’ll need to park outside, or better yet just take public transportation to allow room for residents’ vehicles. Buildings could possibly be carved out from the stone, and the overall atmosphere could be a mix of the Himalayas and the Andes, and also a bit of the Rockies and Urals.

Regardless of what districts they show us, I would like to see a few more angles to the city than just a bright and clean middle class. Show off its dirty underbelly too, and I don’t just mean more of the street hustlers and thieves like Nick, Finnick, and Weaselton. The first film did an excellent job of showing us that Zootopia wasn’t some perfect society with its discrimination and criminals, and while we did get a nice glimpse of its dirtier side, I want to see more of the run down neighborhoods and their residents. Heck, maybe make poverty an aspect of the plot and a motivator for the villain. Although, they also could also easily cover it with Nick due to the fact that his family was struggling back in the day. Alongside that, I’d like to see high society too, especially the oasis casino that they really wanted to show off, but couldn't find a way to. Show us just how both lavish and run down this city can be.

New Characters

Of all the things I love the film for, its characters and their arcs are probably the biggest things, especially those of the leads. This film has a very diverse cast from a big old cape buffalo to a tiny little fennec fox, and they’re all quite memorable and fun. Now I know what some of you are thinking, “why are you covering new characters before the old ones”? Mostly because I have fewer ideas, but also because the ideas I have for some of the old characters are quite big.

Firstly, I’d like to talk about Nick’s family, starting with his mother. Yes, Mrs. Wilde is already an established character, but I’m still putting her in here since I want to talk about Nick’s family in the same section, and she’s gotten very little characterization; heck, we don't even know her name. She seems like a very nice and supportive vixen from what we saw from the flashback, there was a tweet from Rich Moore that we can infer a fair bit from, and the end of a comic that showed her being a very nice mother and a massive fan of a rock band made of rabbits. Nick is seemingly an only child since no siblings are mentioned anywhere, and they certainly seemed to be financially struggling at some point since he said that his mom “scraped up” the money for the scout uniform, and in the comics he was always extremely short on money and didn’t even have an allowance. Rich referring to her as “Mrs. Wilde” as opposed to “Ms. Wilde” shows that she was/is married and that the husband was probably Nick’s father. The last line of the tweet highly indicates that she and Nick are in contact and on speaking terms (although it really begs the question of where she was during his graduation as there’s not a fox in sight (although there were plenty of seats out of sight and obscured)), and also potentially hints at, uh… Things we’ll get to later. Unfortunately, we don’t know anything more about her. Did she know about Nick’s bad behavior? Did Nick even tell her about the incident with the scouts? Was she ever estranged from him? I’d like for it to be talked about, preferably with her present. I don’t want her to just show up in a call or something, I want her to actually have a scene with her son, and I’d love for her to meet Judy as well.

At least we know a thing or two about her, but we don’t know a thing about Nick’s father that has been confirmed. In one of the original cuts of the film, Mr. Wilde was a tailor who wanted to start up a company with his son called Wilde and Son’s Suitopia and give his kit the best future he could possibly have. Unfortunately, after many attempts at getting a loan to start it up, Nick tried to stop some lemming bankers from denying their loan by trying to grab the stamp from them, was spotted by a guard, and was forcibly and permanently separated from his dad because the city in that cut was was a horrible place full of horrible prey who thought that predators were nothing but horrible monsters ready to blow at any time to the point that they were forced to wear shock collars that would zap them whenever they got even remotely excited. Seriously, screw this setting, it made Beastars look like a freaking paradise. Anyway, back on track. Nick only mentions his mom, so where is his dad? Again, a fair bit can be inferred from the sources on his mother. The simple fact that he wasn’t mentioned in the flashback or the comics seems to indicate that he was out of their lives at that point in Nick’s childhood. Go figure, fans have gone nuts with the possibilities. I’ve seen depictions of him ranging from dead, to estranged, to a genuinely good dad who’s back in their lives now, and a psychotic criminal mastermind who wants Nick to be his heir… Yeah. Out of all those depictions, the loving father one is my favorite. Sure, Rich didn’t mention him in the tweet, but that could have been a simple omission since the question was about Mrs. Wilde. I’ll be honest, my perfect version of this idea is from the fan comic It Should Have Been Me, in which which his backstory and character is almost exactly what it was in the original cut: he was a fabric worker who moved to Zootopia with his wife and son in order to make it big on a tailor business, as he strongly believed in the ideals of the city and wanted to show Nick what a fox could become. He was repeatedly denied a loan, and eventually his obsession with making the business made his wife leave with Nick. After some time, he finally realized that being a role model was not the same as being a father and returned to them. I adore this interpretation for how it shows a family that struggled to stay together for reasons mostly within their control, but still managed to, and are now seemingly happier than ever, something I can’t recall seeing at all in any of Disney Animation’s films (if you know any examples, please list them), and also the fact that Mr. Wilde is a great, likable, and kind of complex character here who is a good man who just messed up as opposed to a simple deadbeat dad I've often seen him depicted as. I want to see something like this out of his father in an official follow-up, but even if he is still separated from his wife, I’d like to see him, and if he’s dead, still give us something; I want to know who this guy is and where he is now, and if there’s anyone else in the Wilde family, I’d love to meet them too, and I want to know how they feel about Nick turning his life around and bucking expectations and stereotypes. His mother is probably exceedingly proud of him, and his dad probably is too if my preferred version is used. Either way, give us a lovely father, mother and son scene (or just mother and son scene, because you know, she’s the only one confirmed to still be around).

On to the villain! The villain should be as opposite to Bellwether as possible; big, male, predator, and not trying to fool anyone into believing that he’s not the mastermind behind anything. We’ll know, at least partially, who this guy is from the moment he’s introduced and what his motivations are early on. Unlike Bellwether, we’ll dive into his character more and more as the film goes on and see what makes him tick. So, what could he want? The idea I’ve conjured up was that he could be a segregationist extremist who sees the founding principles of Zootopia as foolish, believes that this all mammal society is unsustainable, and that all species should completely separate from each other. Perhaps he just wants to get back at the city that he believes wronged him and/or his kind, or perhaps he wants to go back to the wild square one where it’s every species for themselves, and perhaps he thinks that will genuinely be better for everyone. Regardless, I think that this idea would be an interesting continuation of the first film’s ideas of prejudice and living in peace with your neighbor, where this villain would want to bring down the city because he hates prejudice, wants to bring down what he sees as a hypocritical city, and wants mammals to be better off by being separate and under harm. Also, unlike Bellwether who was a power hungry sociopath, this guy will be far more genuine in his pursuit and see himself as a liberator. But as I said, he could very well just be using it all as an excuse for petty vengeance and lashing out at the world in a spiteful rage.

Despite what I said before, I do think that there should be an air of mystery around him. Since he’ll see himself as a demagogue for all animal’s “liberation”, he could conceal himself in shadows during his broadcasts, and also cover himself from head to toe in feature hiding clothes such as a helmet/mask, and specially designed gloves and shoes that hide what his hands and feet look like in order to not show off what species he is. Basically, he could be a twist on the twist villain; he’ll be all mysterious and some could think that he may be a character that we’ve met, but in reality he’s the same character we’ve known all along. As for what species he could be, I was thinking that he could be a less looked at member of a well known family of animals. My best bet would be a smaller and less predatory species of bear like an American black bear, sloth bear, or a sun bear since we saw so many brown and polar bears in the film, and while he’d be small by bear standards, he’d still be quite large, and heck, maybe they could make him particularly large and scary for his species of bear. Also, since he would be a kind of bear whose protein historically consisted entirely of insects (especially in the case of the latter two), he could have extra reason to be angry with society since his kind never wronged prey (although again not quite the case with American black bears since they will sometimes eat fawns and even fully grown deer), but yet he was lumped in with the brown and polar bears. Of the three species I listed, I think the sloth bear would work the best since their protein entirely consists of insects, but, despite their small size and goofy appearance, they’re one of the most aggressive species of bear and have been known to charge at elephants and rhinos at the drop of a hat, and this could play into his characterization as bear Kratos. I think there could be some hints to his species throughout the story, despite how well he may try to hide it. For instance, American black bears when scared tend to do things such as pulsing and clapping their jaws together, while the south Asian bears tend to rear up and stretch their chests out to expose their white stripe. Perhaps he could unconsciously do things like that when particularly agitated or under pressure.

What exactly could make him want all of this? I was thinking that much like our favorite fox cop, he could have experienced much discrimination throughout his life, only far worse, and been downright spiteful instead of rolling with the punches like Nick did. And again, it could have been more pronounced on him since the discrimination was due to “Sins of the cousins” and his kind had nothing to do with any of what they accused him of. A tipping point could have been the Night Howler Crisis, which could have either personally affected him, or just confirmed his beliefs and made him want to go through with his plans to try and tear Zootopia down, and now, about a year or so after that Crisis, his plans can finally go into motion. As for how he’ll go about things, well, he’d go for the hearts, minds and the infrastructure of the city. Perhaps he could broadcast all over to spread his propaganda and instill doubts in in the population (notably in his fellow preds by reminding them what happened not long ago), and also strike fear in those who oppose him. Other than that, he’ll of course go straight for the city’s infrastructure via sabotage and kidnappings. One victim could be the mayor, who this time could actually be a good person and politician, or, as one official comic showed, Lionheart again… Was this an error, or was he seriously canonically reinstated after the shady crap he got up to!?

Anyway, expanding on the idea of the concealing outfit, I’m thinking that his followers (who I’ll just call The Cell for now) could do the same thing with tail hiders, stilts, and padding which would be especially effective for bigger animals to possibly lean over and look like something shorter and fatter in order to make themselves appear roughly the same as to make themselves not see each other as another species for the duration of this insane operation (it also has the added effect of making them harder to differentiate and track). This will eventually be their downfall for reasons you may have surmised, but I’ll explain that later.

Speaking of more villainous characters, I'd like to see a bit more of the criminal syndicates and mobs throughout the city. I'd like to learn who rules what parts of the city, how far their reach goes, and how they operate. Although, we’ll probably only get a glimpse in the film, but we could see the criminal organizations focused on more in a TV series or official comic book, because I think a film would be about a much larger and complex threat that could change the city and characters as we know them.

What about more heroic characters? Well, perhaps we could see the return of concepts from the original pitch of the film like secret agents. Considering that the villain’s plot could be citywide and insidious, I think it would make sense. It could be cool to see conceptual characters such as Skye developed and implemented, and have them helping our leads with the case (or perhaps they could just be a cameo in a movie theater, I dunno, they had a billion other ideas when conceptualizing). I’d like to see her come back because she seemed like quite an interesting concept of a mechanic and badass secret agent (Also, look at that concept art; she's flipping adorable). Perhaps she could be undercover in The Cell, and Nick and Judy could meet her after being ambushed by them. As they’re driving away, Nick gets shot in the shoulder with a dart, but when they reach safety, he realizes that he’s fine. He pulls the dart out and finds that it’s hollow and clear and has a note inside it. They read the note and it includes an apology and directions to a garage in the meadowlands. Later they go to the address and find a light tan fox working on a car. She introduces herself, apologizes further to Nick for shooting him, and then brings them into a safehouse where she gives them vital info on The Cell, and gives them a number to call her at and a few special signals and monikers to help out.

If I were to describe the character I imagine her having, it would be extremely enthusiastic, friendly, and possibly coming off as a little childish, but also intelligent, savvy, and consummately professional and well trained. Basically, a quintessential bunny ears lawyer.

Some people have wanted her to have some kind of past affiliation with Nick, but I’m not sure. I mean, it would be interesting and a good callback to the cut where she was his sidekick, but in this version him knowing someone who just so happens to also be a secret agent would seem a little odd. Then again, he knows everybody. Maybe she’s that mysterious Lady Friend mentioned by Finnick…? (she is a mechanic after all, and he loves his van).

Other than that, I’d love to see the ZPD itself expanded and characterized a heck of a lot more. Maybe we could actually get to know Nick and Judy’s fellow officers like McHorn, Pennington, and Wolfard, and finally see some actual detectives as opposed to just patrolmen, and also get to see the city’s other precincts. I’d love to see the folks at first precinct all working with and respecting our leads, and for all of their strengths to be shown to the max. As in, I want to see them in full SWAT gear conducting a raid; Bogo and the big boys breaching doors, the wolves and cats on marksman duty, and Nick and Judy doing infiltration.

Returning Characters

Let’s start with everyone’s favorite tiny fox, shall we? Finnick wasn’t in the film all that much and only said a total of 37 words (yes I counted), but despite this, he still left a shockingly large impact on audiences for his in your face attitude and vocal dissonance of being a little fennec fox played by a giant former pro wrestler, Tommy Lister Jr (may he rest in peace). And honestly, I flipping adored him too. The creators also liked him a lot and have featured him extensively in newer material such as Zootopia Crime Files, which had him heavily involved in a case and really managed to flesh out his character and specify what his relationship with Nick was like (which is to say, they are genuinely friends), and he even appears as a playable character in Disney Heroes: Battle Mode, and they have said that they wanted to feature him more in a sequel. So what could he do in a follow up? I’m thinking that he could become a major supporting character. I’d like to see him having some genuine friendly times and conversations with Nick and Judy such as going out to eat with them, and also get them out of some scrapes; perhaps by going nuts on a perp that’s threatening them and/or driving them out of a sticky situation. Perhaps he could also help the investigation by acting like an informant or mole (but as I said, in this cut that could already be taken by someone else). Or perhaps he’s gone or will go relatively straight and operate a totally legitimate ice cream shop instead of running a complex hustle. Perhaps he could also act as a shippe- again something we’ll get to later. I’d also like to learn more about him as a person; did he get into the hustling life because of some kind of discrimination like Nick, or is he just a roughhouser who genuinely likes what he does and wouldn’t have it any other way? Who’s this lady friend he mentions? Does he harbor any resentment for Nick for getting off the street and into the force? Obviously it’s not too strong if he’s still giving him Pawpcicles and interacting with him in a cordial way, but is there any there? I’d really like to see. Also, what's his real name? The directors said that Finnick isn't his real name, so what is it? Maybe tell us, maybe don't. As for who could replace Zeus, I’m thinking Kevin Michael Richardson. Whoever they get, I hope he does him justice.

Leave Bellwether out of this; she's served her purpose.

I wouldn’t be mad at seeing Mr. Big return, but I don’t really have any ideas for him. That said, I think that Fru-Fru could be a nice inclusion as a good friend of Judy. Perhaps Judy could hang out with her and do a few things like a little bit of Godmothering for the little shrew bearing her name.

Flash… If he shows up at all, make it a minor appearance, maybe even a cameo.

Bogo was technically the tritagonist of the last film, and I’d like him to remain in a prominent role. I loved his character and evolution in the last film; he starts off barely giving Judy the time of day and repeatedly gets really pissed off at her antics, and also blows off Nick on the simple basis of him being a fox. But he’s an extremely principled and just fellow, and in my opinion, an example of what a good police chief should be, especially since he gets over his prejudices and comes to respect our leads as much as his other officers (which is to say, a LOT). And it’s that respect that I really want to see in a follow up. I want him to send Nick and Judy out on important missions, I want him to trust them with their conduct and intel, and most of all, I want him to protect them and treat them like valuable members of the force. For instance we could see him chew out another officer for talking badly of them, and also risk his life to keep them alive. Speaking of, I also want to see him in action, not just in his office playing with apps (although I certainly wouldn’t complain if we saw him messing around) or showing up after the fact to arrest a perp; I want to see this big bull kicking tail and taking names. Again that prospective swat raid. Other than that, I’d like to learn a bit more about him as a person outside his job, and maybe get a full name.

Benjamin Clawhauser… I don’t have much in the way of new ideas for him other than seeing him interact with Nick. I and many others think that the two of them would be great friends with some awesome banter (and in the Tame Collar cut he was supposed to be one of Nick’s employees at Wilde Times, so they’ve got some of their dynamic figured out already). If I were to imagine Nick's nickname (or I guess we could say Nick Name) for him, it may be Chomps. Other than that, for the third time, flesh him and his backstory out a bit more; he’s a likable guy and I’d like to know more about him. I also absolutely think that he’d be yet another shi- Oh yeah, the main characters!

Nick and Judy

And finally, the part that I’ve wanted to talk about the most; Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps. These two are incredible. I know I’ve already gushed about every last little thing this film has done even remotely right, but these two are genuinely just plain perfection. They’re my favorite cinematic duo ever, and some of my favorite fictional characters ever. Their dynamic, their chemistry, their dedication and adoration of each other, the way they grow because of each other, it’s all just wonderful. If you want more details as to why they’re so wonderful (especially together), check out @beastars-takes post on their relationship and why it’s so darn awesome; there is not an off word in there, offers a lot of insight into the hidden depths that you may not have noticed, and helped me understand these two and the film all the better and gave me the intense love I have for it. Buckle up, these two are the longest part of the essay, because they were the best and biggest part of the movie, and thus I’ve got the most to say.

Honestly, my favorite parts with them were in the last 20 minutes of the film where they are just a perfect buddy cop duo (and ironically enough, weren’t even cops at this point) who clearly had an unbelievable amount of love for each other and even faith in each other while kicking serious butt, and seeing Nick give off that extremely genuine smile upon finally being able to live up to the oath he made as a kid at his graduation was absolutely heartwarming. I want to see more of THIS duo in the next film; a duo of true companions absolutely brimming with charm and endearment who you want to be on screen as much as possible. These two had such good chemistry by the end of the film that many people wondered whether there was something more between them than mere friendship. Were they… Romantically involved? If not, should they be in the future? Many people have been against this idea because they either don’t interpret their relationship that way, and/or they feel that a romance would be cliched and/or forced. What��s my opinion on this whole thing? We’ll get to that soon, for now, let's talk about character focus and development!

I think that Nick should be in the protagonist seat this time, and Judy should be switched to deuteragonist, although she’ll be more in focus than Nick was last time. I want to see how Nick feels about his new life as an officer, his past and connections, his home (does he live in a leaky pipe ridden apartment and sleep in a drawer like in this concept art, or does he live in a better place?), him kicking but with his new training, and as said previously, his family. I want to see him being truly happy and fulfilled for the first time in his adult life, and how it affects him. I want to see the full weight of everything that he’s gained and will continue to have at the forefront of his story arc, and likewise with Judy. I want to see him open up to people more, and I want to see him continue to prove to the world that a fox can be more than a shyster, and heck, maybe he and Judy are becoming something of celebrities from their adventures and maybe the two of them are using their status to help their communities in ways other than police work. Maybe the two of them will visit schools, more run down neighborhoods and communities of stereotyped animals to tell their story and show them what they can become if they believe in themselves and in others. I also want a big emotional scene from him, or at least an adult big emotional scene. While we did see plenty of big emotional scenes from him and certainly saw the depths of what he’s been through, it was Judy who really brought out the most emotion. This time around, I want to see Nick carry the most emotional scene, tears and all. My choice would be him realizing the weight of what he has gained and how much he doesn’t want to lose it. For instance, perhaps they could have a party at the station in honor of their promotions (I'd guess detective given their skill sets) with him, his fellow officers, his parents, and even his and her civilian friends such as Finnick. He’ll sit down next to Judy and his folks with a plate and a cup, and they’ll start conversing. Suddenly, officer McHorn comes up and commends him and Judy for their great work in their short time on the force, and how they deserve to be detectives after all the cases big and small that they've solved. Nick will look at him with a smile as he’s talking, and then notice something: all of the most important people in his world are right there in that room, and each and every one loves, respects, and appreciates him. His parents, his friends, and most importantly his brothers in arms, and especially the one who brought him into the fold and changed his life forever. The realization that he’s achieved the camaraderie he wanted and fulfilled the promise he made in his youth, how he's made people see him for who he is and not what he is, and how whole his life has become from this job and how it will get even better from this promotion hit him like a train and he starts shedding tears. His parents, Judy and McHorn notice. He tries to play it off initially, but he realizes that he has nothing to hide anymore and explains everything. McHorn says he really meant what he said and that he’s an integral part of the PD, and Judy and his folks begin comforting him and eventually Judy says “Oh you foxes, you're so emotional”. Nick gets a big smile on his face and gives her a tight hug, and then chooses to get up on a table and say a big speech of thanks and cheers to his family, friends, his fellow officers, and especially to the greatest gal he’s ever known.

Speaking of the sly bunny, I want to see how the events of the last film have affected her and have shaped her into a wiser person and more effective officer. Much like with Nick, I want to see her continue to buck other’s expectations of her and prove that rabbits can be far more than just meek farmers. I want to see her grow even more street smart, wise, and a better problem solver from seeing all that Zootopia has to offer and from her proximity with Nick. I want her to see more of the world’s complicated problems and for her to start to understand the bad parts of it even more, but at the same time continuing to see plenty of good as well (sometimes, a bit of both). Also, there’s a lot of Zootopia as a city that she still hasn’t seen; species, districts, holidays, you name it. I want a big part of her story to also be her experiencing everything the city has to offer, preferably with Nick at her side, and the wonder on her face. That said, I want the wonder to be shared. I want to see Nick enjoying this city like never before since he can look at it in a whole new light, and do so with the one who made it all possible. And likewise, Judy would feel the same in regards to being able to explore it with the one who changed her for the better, helped her keep her career, learn more about herself, and has continued to be there for her. And again like Nick, I want her to really feel what she’s gained: a great career, comrades who respect her, the ability to help others, and fulfillment of the dream she’s wanted since childhood, and an amazing partner who helped her achieve it all and got all the same things because of her.

And all that of course brings us to the big question. How should their relationship evolve? Well, uh… I think… You see, I… I uh… Well...

This is on the bookshelf in my room

And this is one of my most viewed images on furaffinity (credit to RelaxableFur)

Of important note; I’m not someone who casually ships characters. I may consider the idea of them being a couple when they’re together on screen and have good chemistry, but I’m never like “Oh my god, they need to get together!” (in fact, I was neutral about the idea of WildeHopps until last year when I dived back into the movie), and I’m especially not one of those people who ships characters who obviously have no chance in hell of being romantically involved. I only really get on a ship if I think there’s a strong precedent for it in terms of character plausibility and storytelling potential (and it also helps if they’re absolutely adorable on screen). And in the case of these two, I absolutely think that they hit all three categories.

Now, let’s get into details. Do I think they’re just friends at the end of the film? Not necessarily. Do I think they’re romantically involved? Again, not necessarily. I think their relationship is complicated. As I said, they trust, respect, and care for each other to such an incredible degree that they were willing to do THIS all for the sake of milking the scene and keeping up appearances to keep the bad guy talking (and as you may or may not have noticed, Judy’s nose didn’t move even a bit during the entire act until Nick was right on top of her, whereas before at even the slightest sign of distress it would twitch like crazy), and then just casually laugh about the whole thing while holding each other. Speaking of which, they are clearly very comfortable with physical contact; Judy comforts Nick with some arm caresses

Nick let Judy cry into him and wrapped his tail around her when making up (how else would she step on it)

The two of them share the aforementioned very nice embrace when gloating to Bellwether (yes, Judy had a wounded leg, but the way they’re holding each other and how comfortable they are indicates way more than just physical support)

And there was also this part in the concert…

Y’all thought that was just a hip check, didn’t you!?

There’s also the fact that, while it’s obviously a rather playful exchange, they just casually threw the big, big L out there in their last conversation, and not only that, but the whole thing is delivered in a kind of longing fashion, and depending on the translation the wording gets either more or less explicitly romantic.

As myself and Beastars Takes have stated, they are perfect kindred spirits who have irrevocably changed each other’s lives for the better, and they believed in each other when no one else would. For those reasons they have grown closer to each other than anyone else and can’t get enough of each other. They made each other’s dreams come true, they’re the greatest things that have happened to each other, and they will continue to be so, especially now that they’re together nearly every day of the year since they’re now on the job together. To me, that’s not a will they get together, that’s a when will they get together, and I’d find it more forced if they didn’t become an item (unless their sexualities don’t match, but I doubt that, because again all of their dialogue and physical closeness)

And this officially licensed merch…

And these park character interactions.

And honestly, I think that many mammals will probably think the same way. As I almost said throughout, I think plenty of folks like Clawhauser and Finnick will see the spark between them and be Shippers on Deck. I could imagine Finnick teasing their obvious affection for each other, and Clawhauser could just be his usual self and just make little squees and mental notes whenever he sees them interacting, and there could be a few rumors about them floating around the PD.

So how should their romance develop, and how should their couple dynamic be? Subtly, and not too much of a change from how they already are, respectively. As I said, these two already think the world of and can’t get enough of each other, and I really think that there’s already a romantic spark between them that they just need to think through and expose. I give them half a year on the force before they’re all over each other, a year at most. I don’t think that they’ll even have to make any real confession of love to each other, I think they’ll just have to have the right moment to properly figure out that their relationship already is romantic and/or that it really would be able to work out between them, and actually cement it right there and then. That said, don’t drag the hookup out. Don’t have their entire arc be about them getting together. Don’t have them magically be together at the start of the story, but certainly don’t drag for the whole time. Give us time for them to be the slightly better than best friends we saw at the end of the last film while building up some extra tension, and then have them properly hook up in the second act. But as I said, their dynamic shouldn’t change too much. Again, it’d be more of a realization than a decision since they already have an unbelievably high opinion of and affection towards each other (and they seemingly already know that there’s something between them), and it’d be an enhancement of what they already have as opposed to a change; they’ll continue to be the best friends that they’ve been, just with an extra openly romantic component. Have them be even more willing to show affection both physical (hand holding, cuddling, and kissing) and verbal (more flirtation, and some I love yous). I want this romance to be sweet and unique with a lot more friendly banter, discussion and enjoying more platonic fun stuff (like playing games and joking together), and way less lubby dubby crap. I want their trust and love and respect for each other to be extremely apparent; continue to have it be clear that they think the world of each other and show the reasons for it, and don’t have them be too doting, or at least not that often. That said, absolutely feature some powerful romantic moments like a little dance, or the hookup stated before.

As I said before, I also really get on to a ship if I believe that it can add to the story, and in this case, I really do think it can. I think that their relationship could bring up and/or amplify a lot of strong themes that would complement the first film’s message perfectly. For instance, friendship, love and family not knowing the boundaries of species.

Now, it’s clear that interspecies relationships and marriages are a thing in this city: the directors talked a bit about how society could see their relationship and how Zootopia is probably open to the idea; the first couple that Judy meets in Zootopia are her neighbors Bucky and Pronk Oryx-Antlerson, who are a greater kudu and a gemsbok (they’re also same sex, so that indicates even more societal openness)

There was also an official comic about Flash trying to ask Priscilla out on a date to a movie, but he was too slow and lost out to a Hyena, so that indicates that even predator-prey relationships aren’t widely looked down upon.

However, as the first film showed, Zootopia’s not a perfect society, so they absolutely could receive some nasty stares and insults in the city, and Bunnyburrow Seems to be less open on the whole. Yes, I’m bringing up the ever so popular “Nick meets Judy’s parents after their hookup” idea that hundreds of people have written stories about, but I genuinely think it’s a fun idea, and I’d like to see their reaction to Nick if he’s romantically involved with their daughter, and Nick trying to get used to country life and bonding with a new family. We saw in the last film that Bonnie and Stu are opening up to foxes, and I would imagine that they met Nick around the time of the concert in the credits, but how could they feel about their daughter being with a non-bunny? That could be a fantastic storyline to cover, and it could be a fantastic way to explore that theme of interspecies bonds, and also of families being built on love. That being said, them visiting Bunnyburrow (AKA my hometown in upstate NY: we seem to have an infestation of rabbits here), would be best for a TV series arc or a comic as opposed to a theatrical release, but they could still have the Hopps family visit Zootopia in the film and have many similar things go down. Another scenario could be from Nick’s family. Remember what Rich said about his mother waiting for a grandkit? Does this mean that she actually wants him to continue the family line, or does it mean that she just wants another little tyke to help raise? Either way, she could be an interesting addition to this idea since the creators have specified that they normally fall back on what is scientifically plausible for the film, meaning that Nick and Judy probably wouldn't be able to conceive a child, so they could introduce some hesitance or vice versa into the story through her.

With my previous villain idea, the theme of bonds beyond species could come up quite often. Nick and Judy could become targets of The Cell from the beginning for their friendship, but they could perhaps become more of targets once it becomes clearer to The Cell that they may be more (and because they’re likely foiling their plans). If the villain actually saw proof up close that they were together, he could absolutely lose it and just try to tear them limb from limb. But of course, their bond could also be used to their advantage alongside the villains’ hypocrisy and foolishness. For instance, in a final confrontation. Here’s my prospective scene: Nick, Judy and possibly other characters are surrounded by Cell members who are armed to the teeth and pointing all they have right at them. Everyone in the room is weary from all that’s happened over the course of the film, and are hesitant to start fighting again. Then, Nick speaks up and asks The Cell why they’re still fighting. He brings up the fact that they’re all fighting for the downfall of Zootopia and the separation of all species since they believe that animals only see each other for what they are and are cruel because of it, and that they’re going as far as to hide their species from their comrades to not see each other as separate, but only until the job is done, and then they'll go their separate ways. Of course, why should they see each other as one only for now? They’ve all bonded and seen each other as comrades all this time while not knowing each other’s species; why should knowing what they are be any different? This would result in some taking the plunge and removing their helmets, which would then result in the others seeing what they are. Our leads would tell them that they have not known each other's species this long and yet they’ve bonded together as brothers in arms; why would they want to break that because of stupid differences, and why would they want to use those differences to separate themselves? Some folks can tear and digest meat, some can clip and digest grass; what difference should that make? If they want things to be better, then they must be better, and show those who hate them that things can be better (and for extra effect, Nick and Judy could show off the bond that they’ve gained despite being not just two different species, but predator and prey). One member throws his mask out, then another, and another. More and more continue to throw away their masks and even suits, either because they were convinced or because they see the cause as hopeless, and within a minute the floor is littered with masks and discarded body suits, and the members of the once mighty Cell walk out of the room, many with their arms around one another, and some holding hands, and soon it’s just the leader and the officers alone.

Conclusion

So those were my ideas for a Zootopia sequel. To recap, I want to see even more of the city’s districts and more of its socio-economic angles. I want to see new characters both brand new and from old drafts, and I want an interesting and fresh villain who we can gain a bit of sympathy for. I want to see all of our favorite supporting characters from the first film continue to be great and have expanded roles. And above all, I want our leads to continue to grow themselves and their bond into something even more wonderful. I want to see Nick grow as a person and officer, and I want to see Judy grow alongside him. I want to see Nick’s family and connections, I want how his new life is affecting him, and I want to see him open up emotionally with himself and with those he loves, and I want Judy to continue to grow wiser about the world and everything ugly and beautiful about it, and how being on the force, and with the one she cares about most no less, shapes her into an even more effective problem solver.

So when could we see a sequel? Well, we may have to wait a while longer. While it’s very clear that the franchise isn’t dead, we’ve heard absolutely nothing official on a sequel, and current events at Disney Animation Studios are making it seem like we may have to wait more for one to come. The director and mastermind behind the film, Byron Howard, and the co-director and screenwriter, Jared Bush, are currently working on a musical film currently called Encanto which is set to release in November. Why did they do this instead of going straight for Zootopia 2? Rich Moore, the other head director, had to scramble back to work on Ralph Breaks The Internet after leaving it for a year and a half, and that pretty much left the team in pieces. Considering how much he seemed to want to be a part of the development of a sequel and how they said that they didn’t want to rush it, the other guys seem to have started Encanto to do something new while Rich was busy, and of course shake up their creative juices. However, Rich left the studio in 2019 to join Sony Animation, although he said he left the studio in good hands, and I certainly hope that’s true. Considering that Disney tends to announce films around two years before release, and also tends to have directors work on films released two years apart, 2023 seems like a likely release year, but 2024 would work better for getting a bit more development time into it, get some test screening done and to iron out any possible issues.

That said, the extra year may not be totally necessary. Considering how well developed the first film’s world and characters were, and how much they conceptualized during its production, I don’t think they’ll have to conceptualize quite as hard, and most of what they’ll have to create from scratch will be storylines, themes, character development, and brand new characters, as well as possibly a few districts and species designs. But again, there was so much that they have already made that they just need to show us, as well as so many concepts to fall back on with developing brand new content that even in the conceptual stage that it may have be in they’ll have a relatively easy time coming up with incredible new content; unlike Frozen II & Ralph Breaks the Internet where they had to make up totally new locations, concepts, and everything in between. I’m of the opinion that with all the time that it’s likely been in partial production that the relatively little new stuff that they've had to come up with has probably already been quite refined, and by the time Encanto is done, they may well have something extremely robust and just need to refine it, and then make models and animate it, and give us Disney Animation's best sequel ever. But then again, that extra year may be good for it. But then again, I'm not a filmmaker, so I don't know crap.

And after that, we could end up getting a TV series with further adventures of Nick and Judy, and also flesh out the world even more by showing us districts, criminal groups, precincts, and all manner of other things. Perhaps it could be a police procedural with our leads taking on whatever the city has to offer as well as de showing off more about them and other characters than the films could, and also potentially be a bit of a Segway into the next film (why yes, I think a Zootopia trilogy could be amazing). Thankfully the majority of the cast is made up of accomplished TV actors, so they’ll probably be able to get almost everyone back (but I am hoping for Jason Bateman the most since he IS Nick Wilde and no one can replace him (the same applies to Ginnifer Goodwin with Judy to a very slightly lesser extent)). My hope is that it'll be a D+ original, and thus have an extra good budget that'll hopefully bring in a great cast, and excellent animation and writing.

But anyway, thanks for reading! I hope you all enjoyed my ideas. Was there anything you'd like to add, or anything you didn't quite agree with (or any mistakes I didn't notice while proofreading)? Well then please do discuss them. Until next time, may your battles be won and your day be blessed, and may you be excellent to all those you meet!

#zootopia #zootopia 2 #nick wilde #judy hopps #clawhauser #benjamin clawhauser #finnick #chief bogo #film speculation #film theorizing #disney #disney animation #walt disney animation #wdas #movie essay #wildehopps

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legionnaireslover · 3 years

Text

And the Haters are at it again...

Trying to convince everyone within earshot that BC is about to be replaced as Doctor Strange.

Gator posted an "anon" comment about actors being replaced by Disney/Marvel. They ended the post with...

And of course Gator posting this is to shore up the Hater narrative that BC's marriage is ruining his career! But looking closely at the examples given in the post and it's easy to see just how stupid and flimsy this whole "he can be replaced if he doesn't stop "The Sham" narrative is.

I'm not going to post the actual anon screed (it's VERY poorly written) but I will go over the actors cited by this "anon" as ones dumped by Disney/Marvel and you can decide if their problems are comparable to Ben's situation.

First we have Letitia Wright. The anon introduced the post with a article from "D-listed" gossiping about the possibility of LW being replaced Michaela Coel in the Black Panther sequel. Not that she HAS replaced LW but that they think she might. Reasons... well for one thing LW apparently went on an anti-vax, anti-science rant on Twitter and then deleted said offensive material but not before it was seen by a LOT of people. To quote from the speculative piece -

"As you may recall, last December Leticia squandered much of the goodwill she earned playing the smartest scientist in all of the MCU when she shared a bat-shit video from self-proclaimed profit Tomi Arayomi in which he “questions the legitimacy of the COVID-19 vaccination, appears sceptical of climate change, accuses China of spreading COVID-19, and makes transphobic comments.” After sparring a bit on Twitter with folks who thought it wasn’t so cool for the person playing the smartest scientist in all of the MCU to be spreading antiscience religious doctrine, Letitia completely deleted all her social media. While Variety says that Letitia is among the original BP cast members who “will likely reprise their roles,” TMZ is not so sure."

So, she posted a religious cult-like rant from a transphobic, anti-science, anti-vax, racist, climate change denier and got enough blowback that she pulled out of her social media account and even with ALL THAT it's only rumoured that she will be replaced! Does BC's actions in the last 7+ years sound anywhere close to this type of behaviour?

Next we have other examples the anon listed to support the argument that BC is on thin ice when it comes to his career with Disney.

1) "They replaced that chic on the Madalorian". Anon means Gina Carano who was fired by Lucasfilm because of her outrageous behaviour on her social media account.

To quote from a Collider article -

"The former MMA fighter has been stirring up controversy on social media for quite some time now, including but not limited to transphobic tweets, mocking the wearing of masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, and spreading misinformation about voter fraud. Fans of The Mandalorian have routinely been calling for her to be fired, and Lucasfilm finally made the decision Wednesday evening — although THR reports that the studio has been “looking for a reason to fire her for two months.”

So, she had been displaying behaviour that went completely against the philosophy of the company and doing it for some time. As a spokesperson said "her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable."

Is this person's behaviour comparable to how BC has comported himself?

2) "they replaced Terrance Howard in Iron Man 2 with Don Cheadle." And then this "anon" goes on theorize that it had to do with salaries . But when you look at this Terrance fellow, what pops up? Well, according to Wikipedia...

"February 2009, it was reported on The Smoking Gun that Howard was arrested in 2001 for a variety of charges related to a violent attack on his estranged first wife, including simple assault, terrorist threats, harassment and stalking. According to police reports, he arrived at her house after an argument on the phone, forced entry into her home by breaking in doors, and chased her into the backyard where he punched her twice in the face with a closed fist. The violent attack ended when Howard's brother stepped in. In 2002, he pleaded guilty to disturbing the peace"

it goes on to say "In a September 2015 interview with Rolling Stone, Howard admitted to hitting his first wife in 2001 saying, "she was talking to me real strong, and I lost my mind and slapped her in front of the kids."

All this was coming out just before his salary was chopped by Marvel to a minuscule amount and he was replaced when he left Iron Man 2.

So again, how's BC's public reputation stack up to a person convicted of attacking a woman?

Not even close I would wager!

BC has a near sparkling reputation when compared to the likes of these replaced actors! Sure he's had some minor bumps (he isn't perfect) but he's NEVER publicly embarrassed the company making his movies! He's NEVER been convicted of beating on a woman!

He is a kind, generous, non-scandalous celebrity who works hard, stays out of social media scraps and is constantly praised by all who have worked with him. He's a committed father and husband and holds the values that many forward thinking, intelligent people do.

Other than the Haters (and occasionally their gossip mouthpiece "Enty") there's RARELY been even a whisper about him in the gossip rags ESPECIALLY since his marriage to Sophie! Why? BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT! NO SCANDAL! HAPPILY MARRIED FAMILY MAN!

End of story!

So why would Marvel be looking to dump him? ANSWER: THEY WOULDN'T!

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cozycryptidcorner · 5 years

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Chapter One

Sweat glues your hair against your forehead, droplets running down your temples and down onto your shirt. Your arms protest against the pressure as you lift a rather heavy vase, one painted in tiny, intricate blue details, and stand on the very tips of your toes to push it on top of an old oak cabinet without running the risk of chipping the base. You let out a little wheeze once you manage to wiggle it right into place, taking a moment to crack your knuckles to release some tension, then step back to take one last look to make sure it appears fine. Satisfied, you turn around as your phone begins to chirp, the screen announcing the caller as one of your few employees.

You pick it up, hitting the accept call button and lifting the phone to your ear. “What’s up, Jill?”

“Just giving you an update, boss,” the child-like voice offers, though the owner is well into her late twenties, “the equipment arrived at the next location, Boomer and the others are about to start gutting the kitchen.”

“Sounds good,” you say, clicking the pen lying on a nearby table to help you focus. You try to bring up your memory of the room, having visited for a full day before heading back to the current job at hand, trying to picture just what you plan on doing with it once you get there. “Don’t forget that I want the exposed brick to stay put. The owner said she liked ‘rustic,’ so that’s what we’re going to give her.”

“Yes, ma’am,” there’s not too much respect in the voice, more like Jillian is poking fun at your authoritative stance. “Anything else? Getting lonely?”

You let out a loud snort. “Not yet, can’t say I miss Boomer’s constant arguments with Steph and Jack.”

“Okay, Lemme know if you need any help, I could use a break from the bickering too.”

“Will do, talk to you later.”

The castle isn’t the worst place you’ve had to turn into a liveable space, but it’s not without its challenges, that’s for sure. A crew of people from the local electric plant has had to wire up the entire place, a septic system had to be installed, oh, and also pipes for running water had to be dug. Working around people all trying to do their own jobs without any attempts to stay out of each other’s way has tested your patience to the very most thinnest line you didn’t even know you could take, but at least it’s over.

Your speakers blare music loud enough to be heard on the other end of the castle as you hold out strips of sample colors from the nearest hardware store, comparing and contrasting the two until you come up with a couple of possibilities for the room. The sun shines in through the freshly bought glass panes, warming the room to a comfortable temperature without the need to turn on the newly installed heating system. Carefully and thoroughly, you write down the exact serial numbers of the colors you’re deciding on, and tuck the notebook in your back pocket. You’ll head over to the hardware store tomorrow, but for now, you’re probably good to prime the walls.

The castle isn’t gigantic, it’s not like the kind you’d see in Disney movies that can seemingly house an entire city within its walls, but it’s definitely mansion-sized. A couple dozen rooms, enough to make a decently sized inn, which is exactly the plan you’re running with under the instruction of the castle’s new owner. Oh, speaking of which, they’re visiting the day after tomorrow, so you better have a good report to give to them. You open up one of the cans of primer, the scent of artificial wrongness causing your eyes to water, but you continue working like you aren’t in danger of choking on some wack fumes.

The first layer doesn’t take too much work, the roller sponge reaching all those tough places on the ceiling you wouldn’t manage to get to without the tall ass handle. Your people did a decent job making sure the plaster on the walls is smooth as silk when they painted the stuff on, so you don’t have to sand anything down before the second layer. Since this is supposed to be the ‘renaissance room,’ you’re stuck painting frescos on the walls like the many geniuses did a few millennia ago, and hoo boy do you have your work cut out. The owner seems fine with the outrageous price you named when you heard what they wanted, but a part of you regrets making such a time-consuming decision.

You have a couple of sketches on hand, pre-approved by the person in question, but still, you tap a bit of willow charcoal against the side of the paper as you try to come up with some different options that might be a little more fun for you to paint. But you need to stretch- and get some fresh air before you start feeling lightheaded from the primer fumes. Still trying to filter some sort of decent idea through your head, you wander through the halls, marveling at how your people managed to string up some modern chandeliers in the short amount of time they had. There’s a rather large and curving staircase that connects the first and second floors, one that you just had to keep in all its glory, though now it’s polished within an inch of its life.

There are several exits you can use, but you decide on the one that spits you right out into the garden, which is pretty darn dead for the most part. You know that an army of landscapers is coming to start planting things sometime in the near future. Still, you neither know what company it is or when they will be here, so you untangle the sweater from around your waist and somehow get it on without having to put your sketchbook and charcoal down. There’s a large fountain that hasn’t seen water in probably a hundred or so years, dead leaves collecting in its nooks and crannies, but at the center of the empty pool is a rather incredible statue.

It’s up on a pedestal, body in a suave contrapposto pose. The hair is carved in a mop of unbelievably gorgeous curls, you can almost imagine yourself running your fingers through it despite knowing very well that all you’ll feel is solid rock. Its face is a perfect example of what’ bedroom eyes’ means, its gaze staring directly towards an invisible partner, mouth in a sultry, inviting smile. Whoever carved it, though, definitely outdid themselves with the butt because good god the careful balance between curve and firmness is extraordinarily executed. The thighs, too, look like they could crush a melon between them, but there’s just something about the butt that always makes you stop for a minute to admire it in all its glory, no matter what you’re doing at the moment. Jillian’s mocked you a few times for ogling it perhaps a little too intently, but you know what?

You get your phone out, already formulating a dumb little stunt to put on your Instagram page. Oh, Jillian is the only one on your crew who is going to think it’s hilarious, but maybe your followers will also find it funny. Cautiously, you step over the wall of the fountain, avoiding the pipes that at one time pumped water into the knee-deep pool, and then take a moment to look over the inscription at the statue’s base. It strikes you as rather odd, mainly because you would think that a plaque would instead belong on the outside wall of the fountain, rather than right at the feet of the statue. It’s in ancient greek, or at least, that’s what the owner of the property told you when you asked some time before.

Trying your best not to use the statue’s available limbs for balance, you step up onto the pedestal, getting rather cozy with those lovingly carved abs. You have to stand on the tips of your toes to get your mouth anywhere near his, and yes, up close, those lips look even more inviting than usual. After a moment of fiddling with your phone’s camera filters and trying to find a good angle to show off your jawline and chin, you press your mouth up against the statues, glancing up only briefly to make sure the camera’s got everything. Then you close your eyes and pretend like this is the most magical moment you’ve ever experienced, finger clicking the shutter button. You take a moment to look over what you’ve got, your arm still around the statue’s neck, biting your lip as you pick which one is going to go online.

It doesn’t take you long to pick out two or three. The angle and lighting in those are a bit off from the others, not in a bad way, though, but it kind of almost looks like the statue isn’t just the recipient of the kiss. Actually, now that you really look at it… the shadows make it look almost like it’s leaning into your mouth, which you suppose is going to sell the picture even more. Neat. You hop off the pedestal and step over the wall of the fountain. Enough break time, you decide, picking up your sketchbook where you mindlessly tossed it, and head back into the castle.

You didn’t have any wild inspirations while you were making out with the stone, so you decide instead to start working on something that doesn’t take as much brain juice as, say, designing an original fresco that’s supposed to rival Raphael’s Philosophy. At the moment, you’re probably better off painting the freshly stripped and primed walls of the library, something that doesn’t require intricate thought. The paints for the library have already been purchased and delivered, courtesy of Steph, so buckets of baby blue wait for you on the protective layer of plastic taped to the floor. Turning on some loud music, you begin, stirring up one of the paint buckets and pouring some into a container long enough for the roller brushes.

Throwing yourself into the work is easy, so long as you try to keep yourself entertained. After the music loses your interest, you take a quick break, flipping through podcasts while sipping water. Wiping some sweat from your face, you happen to look through the window and into the garden to see that... Wait- the statue- the statue is missing? You frantically walk over to the glass and look out, your heated breath fogging your view. Your first impression is correct; the statue isn’t on the pedestal, which is fucking impossible? That thing has to weigh almost a ton, it’s a slab of rock, no one can just walk away with it.

You’re outside before you can even register the shock of your feet hitting the cobblestone of the path, your lungs wheezing from the sudden strain of exercise and nerves. There’s no fucking way you lost a whole ass statue after being alone for just three days, but, oh, that’s precisely the kind of stuff you would expect to happen to you. Of course your dumb ass would somehow lose the most valuable thing on this property, oh, god, you’re going to be so fired. This is going to destroy your company’s reputation, you’re never going to be able to get another job again and then you’ll have to dissolve it all once the owner decides to sue and you’ll never be able to so much as breathe in the direction of interior design again-

“Fuck!” You shout, kicking uselessly at the pavement. It’s gone. The whole thing’s fucking up and gone, and you’re doomed.

“What’s wrong?” A new voice says, too close to your body for your liking, so you do what anyone else in your position might and punch the source of the sound on reflex, letting out a loud shriek.

Instead of some rando’s face, you end up striking something stone-like as hard as you can muster, your knuckles exploding with a rush of pain. Your muscles twitch, and then you can’t feel anything but a heated throb pulsing through your fingers, but you don’t pay any attention to your ruined hand. Rather, you’re eyes are glued to the quite literal stony features of a man’s face, a face that would be on kissing level if you stood on the very tips of your toes.

“No,” you say, because, between the pain and the shock, you can’t think of anything else that would entirely summarize what you’re feeling at the moment.

Its smile is radiant despite the fact you had just struck it with the intent to knock a couple of teeth out, eyes somehow wild with an emotion you can’t place, and then it sets a well-sculpted hand on the side of your face. A split second later, you realize that it is leaning forward with the intent to kiss you again, so you do what anyone else might do in the moment.

“No,” you yelp, placing a hand on his mouth, and then repeat, “no.”

Confusion settles on his features, his brows furrowing, his mouth still in an inviting curve. “What’s wrong?”

Oh, dear god. Its voice... is like it was made for sex, melodic, soft, yet also firm. There’s a singer that you love to turn on and kick back in relaxation, the lyrics smooth and accented, running over you like a gentle stream of water, and that’s the only way you can think to describe the way that- that statue speaks, without sounding like an insane person. In fact, you’re so focused on trying to place which foreign singer that he sounds like that you forget that your hand is still firmly on his mouth, pushing his face away.

“I’m going to get fired.” That’s all you can think about. The owner of the property is going to take one look at the living, breathing statue and have a goddamn conniption.

“There is no need to fret, darling-”

“No need to fret?” You’re about to start screaming. “This is supposed to make my fucking career, and now the most priceless part of the fucking property somehow gained sentience is, um, walking around? I’m going to get scalped, no one else is going to hire me-”

“I have naught an idea of what you speak of,” it brushes some baby hairs away from your sweaty forehead, “but all shall be well, so long as you stay with me.”

You’re choking on the air because your body doesn’t know what else to do with itself. Still, somehow, you manage to pull yourself from its arms, needing a moment to breathe in an environment that didn’t involve something trying insistently to make out with you. Deep, deep breath, you coach yourself, dusting your sweaty hands on the front of your shirt, remembering suddenly that you might have accidentally fractured a couple of fingers when a sharp pain runs up the length of your forearm. “Shit.”

“Would-”

“Stop talking!” You need to think, and you need to tend to the already swelling knuckles on your hand. Hopefully, you won’t need a trip to the hospital. Angrily, you pace, two steps to the side, then three steps back, looking at the pedestal, then at the statue, and finally on the castle. “Fuck, just- just follow me, I guess.”

You storm back into the common room, frantically looking for wherever the hell the first aid kit ended up getting stashed. It’s not with the paperwork or folders keeping track of the tabs you’re racking up at the local hardware store, so you run over into the kitchen where the brand new industrial stoves and ovens are and start rifling through the cabinets until you finally find the white tin box. The statue follows you, thankfully, because you aren’t about to allow a potentially million-dollar statue to start wandering the cliffside without adult supervision.

After a minute of fiddling the sides of the locks with one hand, the statue makes a reach for the box just as you manage to open it. Quickly, you shoot it a chilling glare and pull the medical supplies closer, rifling through the contents until you find something for the spots on your fingers where the skin broke open. Okay, yes, it’s a little awkward to be doing this all with one hand, but you’re not going to let that… thing anywhere near you, much less your bloodied hand. Speaking of which, despite the substantial damage done to you, the statue doesn’t seem at all bothered by the strike which would have at least knocked an average person off their rhythm, but…

You reach over and take his jaw into your good hand, moving his head to the side to check for any damage. The stone is still in place, not a single chip flew off, which might be expected because this thing is a fucking rock. Though even now, a part of you wants to believe that this is some kind of ridiculously elaborate prank the owner is pulling for a publicity stunt, and this is a man in really convincing makeup. To call attention to the inn, you know, get some national headlines. Pull in more customers. Haha, look, it’s the stupidly handsome statue that scared the everloving shit out of the poor contractor. But if this were a man, there would be swelling puffing out that ridiculously beautiful jawline because you hit hard.

Angry that you aren’t able to come to the conclusion you want, you let go, returning back to sloppily wrap your wounded hand in some gauze and tape. Tea, you need some goddamn tea, you think, rummaging through the sparse pantry full of some random items you bought while in town, after all, you can’t get takeout for every meal three months straight. Not unless you want to take your bank account to a back alley and shoot it like a diseased dog. Urgh, finally, something relatively strong that might help cool your nerves down a notch or two.

“Do you… like, drink or anything?” You ask as an afterthought, filling a kettle with water from the sink.

“I don’t know.” He regards the kettle with curiosity, eyes following your movement with close precision.

“You don’t know,” you say in your best imitation of someone who is just positively stoked. “Awesome.”

“I have a rather interesting feeling that this is an unexpected happening,” the statue posits, placing its arms on the counter, an action that sends a shot of panic through your chest.

“Get off the granite, get off-” you half push, half lift him away, bending over and running your fingers over the countertop to look for scratches. A bit of relief breaks off into your chest, and then another, once you find no damage to speak of. Angrily, you wave your hands in the direction of a small, nondescript wooden table that’s already stained and pummeled within an inch of its life. “Just…. Take a seat over there, m’kay?”

The statue, thankfully, seems fine with listening to you, moving over to the bench and sitting while you find two mugs to use. There are dishes, at least, which wasn’t the case when your crew first started working on this project, but it’s nice to not have to eat out of styrofoam to-go boxes and drink out of travel tumblers anymore. The statue watches you intently while you work, eyes following every movement like you might offer up the secret to the universe in passing, and as the kettle shrieks, you decide that you’re just about over <em<that. You don’t care to give him any tea options, so you toss halfheartedly bag into both mugs after filling them with near-boiling water.

You set the cup in front of him, your teeth gritted, as you try to wrack your brain for where to start with your questioning because you have thousands of them rattling around in your head. After a moment, though, you decide to start with something easy. “Do you have a name?”

“I don’t know,” he says, too cheerfully for you to deal with.

“Where do you come from?” You try again.

His eyes grow distant for a moment, then suddenly snap back to reality. “I don’t know.”

You let out a frustrated breath. “Is there anything you do know?”

“I do know that you’re the one who brought me here,” he says, looking at you once more like you’re… like you’re a god or something.

“No I didn’t,” you say, as bluntly as you can muster, letting out a dry laugh.

He doesn’t say anything in response, only offers you a sly smile, tapping on his lips with two fingers.

You catch on immediately, a thrill of panic running down your spine. “No.”

His smile widens, and he nods. “Yes.”

“I did not-”

“You did.” He reaches over and gently takes your injured hand, looking over the hasty bindings with interest. “A kiss of someone with love in their heart. That’s what I know.”

You want to throw up. “I don’t- like I’m sure you’re a decent statue person, but I don’t-”

“Love me?” He finishes innocently. “Perhaps not now, but I’m sure you will be… convinced.”

You gently take back your hand, all the nerves in your body running on overdrive, and oh boy, if you weren’t sweating before, you’re sweating now. “The only thing I want to be convinced of right now is that you aren’t going to get in the way of me and my job.”

“What would that be?”

“Making this into an acceptable place to live or whatever,” you take a shaky sip of tea, “and the thing about that is that you’re supposed to be the main attraction.”

To your dismay, he seems absolutely thrilled by that statement. “Am I that handsome that people flock from neighboring villages to see me?”

”No, you fucking-” you take a deep, shaking breath to try calming yourself down before you finish that sentence, and start again. “No. You’re a prized relic. The guy who owned the property before the current one was an art collector, and you are kind of a big deal. Um,” you tap your fingers against the table as you try to recall what the new owner said, “you’re one of the oldest statues that have been pulled from Greek ruins,intact, so that’s kind of a big deal.”

That seems to catch his attention. “Greek… ruins?”

“A temple or something, I don’t really remember, she mentioned in it passing.” You cover your face with your hands, trying to get your fucking shit together before a full-blown meltdown happens. “There was an art historian who estimated your value to be in the millions. If the owner stops by and sees that her block of gold is no longer where it’s supposed to be, she’s going to assume theft. And do you know who the only person with unmonitored access to the entire property is? Do you know who is going to get blamed?”

“So tell her of this miracle.” He reaches over and covers your hands, gently peeling them back from your face. God, that smile is awful, mostly because it’s flawless and makes your insides want to melt. “Surely, she will understand that this love is a gift from the gods themselves.”

You don’t know whether to laugh or to cry. “I don’t think that’s going to work.”

“It will,” he promises, “surely anyone, even those with the heads of asses, will see that a miracle is present.” He’s about to say even more, you can tell by the way he tilts his head and takes a breath, but then your phone rings.

You wriggle out of his grasp and pull it out of your pocket. Oh, good god, speak of the devil. How the hell are you supposed to explain this? Can you even try? Should you? You swallow thickly, your good hand shaking as you hit the button to receive the call. Holding up your hand in the universal gesture for shut the fuck up, you answer, praying your voice doesn’t sound like sandpaper. “Hello, Marge! How’re things going?”

#exophilia #statue #living statue #statue boyfriend #monster boyfriend #monster/reader #statue/reader #living statue/reader

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scarlet--wiccan · 5 years

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Hi. Me again. I'm just worried about the kind of content we'll get after WandaVision. Recently I've been thinking about the situation that resulted in Age of Ultron and Marvel's multiple strikes against Wanda's "former" status as a Jewish Roma and her role in the MU. I mean, AXIS, Uncanny Avengers, Scarlet Witch and Secret Empire (let me know if I forgot something). Also, her cameos. You'd think they brought her back after HoM to give her status as one of the classic Avengers back.

My guess is that after Age of Ultron (It doesn't really matter if there's an in universe excuse, it looks bad) and Hydra, they've been trying to... Idk. First, the "not Magneto's daughter" thing. She gets a solo but her presence isn't felt in the MU (you'd think it would be the opposite). Then comes Secret Empire where she's possessed and unwillingly working for Hydra and people are trying really hard to make Hydra look nice or not as bad or they're not really n/zis...

I guess what I'm trying to say is... MCU!Wanda had some impact on 616!Wanda. I know that Secret Empire could be blamed on N/ck Sp/ncer but I think there's more. I already had suspicions (the way the company handled their LGBT characters) but after recent news regarding Disney+, I don't feel excited to find out what this means for Billy's characterization in the comics. A step back? I'm not familiar with the character but hearing what some people had to say, I think Bucky is a better example

He not only returned to his Winter Soldier persona but (sometimes) when I read a comic book that he's in, I can't help but wonder "Are they're writing Bucky with S/bastian St/n's character in mind?" I know it could be read as lazy writing but. You know what I mean. I don't want MCU!Billy and MCU!Tommy. They'll cause some sort of impact on how people perceive, write, draw (and color) them in the comics. I know. I'm overthinking and wasting energy. But this family, they're my favorite characters.

I think I see what you’re getting at. When characters are adapted in the MCU, the comic book version of that character often shifts to become more aligned with their cinematic counterpart. Sometimes, that’s the result of an editorial mandate, and sometimes it’s just a matter of popular perception. Sometimes those changes are superficial, and sometimes they’re more in-depth. Bucky and Jessica Jones are both examples of characters who have suddenly reverted to an outdated character design because that’s what’s being used in the movies.

My understanding of the AXIS retcon is that Marvel needed to distance Wanda from the X-Men / make her not a mutant due to the nature of their IP deal with Fox. I’m not sure if that’s exactly the truth or not, but it’s clear either way that the Maximoffs suffered a disruption of continuity and characterization because of the movies. In spite of that, I don’t think that the comic book characters became more like their movie counterparts-- 616-Wanda genuinely does not resemble the MCU version in appearance, personality, powers or backstory.

I actually really like the character that Wanda has become in the last few years, Secret Empire not withstanding. I think that her personality and powers have evolved for the better, especially compared to the 2000s. And, for what little it’s worth, writers like Robinson and Ahmed have done a decent job of acknowledging and reinforcing the twins’ ethnicity without totally falling back on racist language and stereotyping... Ahmed especially. It’s definitely been a rough few years since AXIS, but it’s been a lot better than House of M and the years following that!

I’m going to tentatively and hopefully say that, if/when Billy and Tommy are introduced to the MCU, there won’t be the same level of disruption, mainly because there’s no motivating editorial factor, and there’s little risk of a reset à la Bucky because they just don’t have a very long history compared to these older characters. There is absolutely the risk that the MCU characters will overshadow the original, or influence their appearance, but it’s not as if they’re going to straightwash Billy. He and Teddy are milestone, iconic characters with a super significant relationship, and there are a lot of people at Marvel who genuinely cherish them.

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queenmercurys · 5 years

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So, I usually refrain from expressing too many “problematic” opinions on this platform mainly because I don’t wanna deal with anon hate. I’ve done so in the past and it’s never been fun. But since I’ve been talking my friends’ ears off about Disney recently, I thought I would give it a go here. Yes, in the safety of the “read more”-button, because overall, my opinion doesn’t matter and I don’t wanna force it on anyone.

Let’s cut to the chase. I kind of hate Disney. Don’t get me wrong, I watch Disney films and I occasionally reblog some Disney stuff. I think some of their earlier things, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame to Atlantis, are truly enjoyable films. But I’ve never been into the whole Marvel phenomenon. I don’t care about superhero movies, and the way Marvel is insistent upon franchising everything and essentially making every film a cliffhanger for another cliffhanger film, just makes the whole sub-genre less appealing to me. I’m not exactly an action film fan as it is, and when it’s done in such a chaotic way as the Marvel films tend to be, I’m even less convinced. I’m not saying every Marvel film has to be a John Wick in the quality of action, but... one of them could be, no? As for Star Wars, well, it is my personal opinion that Disney has thoroughly ruined the franchise, to the point that I actually prefer the prequels. Maybe they were messy, badly acted and boring, but at least they felt like films - rather than products made for a cash grab.

As for their other products, well, I like Tangled. Moana is passable. Frozen is fine (but only fine). But none of these animated films have touched me in ways that, for example, The Swan Princess, The Prince of Egypt and Quest for Camelot have. Ever since I was a child, I’ve preferred non-Disney animated films without even realizing it. Maybe it’s because to me, the non-Disney films just tackle more complicated, fascinating stories that rely less on the chance to make merchandise and more on the opportunity to make good content. I have often heard the term of something being “too Disney”. Which, basically, kinda means that a film is just too family-friendly when it really doesn’t have to be. And that is probably something missing from the non-Disney examples I just gave. Admittedly, all of these films are from the 90′s, and I’m sure Dreamworks and co. have now fallen into the same cash-grab trap that Disney is currently sitting in. But nevertheless, I still consider most non-Disney animated films to be superior to their Disney counterparts. Part of it is definitely my annoying habit of disliking something that is too popular simply because it is popular - but I don’t think that’s the whole story. And my dislike of Disney has only grown over the years, to the point that I’m considering boycotting the company entirely. And here’s a few of the biggest reasons why:

Disney+. Yes, every company has the right to try to make money, and they should. But I think Disney+ will only mean the death of other streaming services, and eventually, the death of diversity and creative freedom in the film and TV industry. I prefer Netflix over anything Disney has ever spat out, and while I recognize its flaws, I hope that it will not get overshadowed by Disney+. But who are we kidding? It will. Especially in America, Disney is this sacred thing that nothing can defeat. Disney’s mediocre films (such as Frozen and Marvel movies) are praised as gifts from God, and everything else is either compared to Disney products, or discarded because of Disney. From everything I have read and watched, Disney+ is going to be a real threat to all of its contemporaries. It’s going to be cheaper than Netflix and others, and it’s going to have the products the masses adore (again, namely Marvel). Netflix will lose customers, and Disney+ will gain them. This will most likely make it difficult for Netflix to make new original content, and will most likely also affect movie theatres. Because if Disney+ continues their trend of releasing films on the platform rather than in theatres, well, what choice do Disney fans have but to join the service? And in the end, we’ll be left with nothing but films and shows that are so lifeless, or old classics we know from beginning to end. And neither one of these options encourage anything new.

This brings me to my second point, which is the lack of creativity and new ideas. You only have to look as far as the Disney liveaction remakes to see that they don’t care if they give you new, quality entertainment. All they care about is getting your money. And again, I am also at fault here. I liked Cinderella just fine. I loved the new Aladdin. I paid to go see those films. I gave Disney my money and thus, encouraged them to make new liveaction remakes. So, I can’t really criticize much when I’m also the offending party here. But still. Remaking every single classic Disney film? That is just exploiting nostalgia to the point that it’s becoming absurd. And all this does is stop Disney from working on new, interesting films that don’t exist in an already established franchise, or aren’t direct remakes. It’s not like Disney doesn’t have the money to take risks. It just refuses to, because why take risks when you can make easy money? And make no mistake. Aladdin 2019 was easy money. Frozen 2 was easy money. And however nice these products are, it does show in the end result. The stories are recycled, and feel kind of lifeless. The fact that people are comparing The Rise of Skywalker to Avengers Endgame only proves that Disney is not only recycling its’ own ideas, but that it’s stripping the directors and writers involved of their creative freedom. I’ve read stuff about how much JJ Abrams had to change in The Rise of Skywalker to accommodate Disney, and it’s actually pretty scary. What the hell is even the point of trying to tell original stories if Mickey Mouse is just gonna come and tell you to rewrite everything you’ve worked on? Disney is perhaps the most obnoxious and money-hungry company I have ever heard of in my life, and that’s saying a lot when there’s companies like Amazon and Apple around.

My third and final point is the fact that Disney owns, or is on its’ way to owning, everything. Absolutely everything. Star Wars. 20th Century Fox. You name it. Almost everything in the film industry at this point is Disney. And that sucks. It sucks so much. I can’t put it any other way. It terrifies me that Disney is in charge of so much of the content we are given. Because, let’s face it. Disney is not the most risk-taking company (at least not anymore), and certainly not the most diversity-encouraging one. People of color, LGBTQ+ characters, you name it - all of the representation in film and TV will most certainly lessen even more once Disney has its’ claws in everything. Disney only represents minorities when it serves them, and when they know they’ll get money off of it. Like that lesbian kiss at the end of Rise of Skywalker? I didn’t even fucking spot it when I watched the film! That is not representation. Having a token black character (who is completely wasted in the case of Finn in Star Wars) is not enough representation. Disney is a coward, and has been for a long time. All Disney cares about is profit, and that’s it. That’s 100000% it. And I’m not saying that other companies are much better. Of course Netflix wants your money. Of course HBO wants you to hand over your credit card info. But at least the content we receive from those companies varies. Not everything Netflix produces is another Stranger Things. HBO has done things that vary from Game of Thrones. But Disney (in recent years)? Remakes. Sequels. Rebooting a known franchise. It’s all been done before. And I’m scared that, say, ten years from now, every single action film will have the protagonist say a variation of “I am Iron Man” before doing their own variation of snapping their fingers. And, in my very non-expert, very non-educated opinion, that would suck.

By the way, it goes without saying, but all of this is just MY opinion. If you love Disney+, if you love Marvel, that’s amazing. I am so happy for you. This is a really good time for you. I’m nothing but a pretentious dick who is complaining about what is essentially just harmless fun. Just wanted to make that clear.

#i kind of needed to put this into words #the current state of the film industry terrifies me #rip creativity i guess #my ramblings

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whenhelbreaksloose · 5 years

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One Heck of a Beginning

Disclaimer: I do not own Disney characters, I do not own or represent Disney. I make no money off of this. The only think I get from it is embarrassment and exposing poor unsuspecting people to my obsession, stories and characters.

A/N: This is perhaps my first story that I have written. I've been in love with the show and movie ever since I was a kid and it really began my lifelong obsession with Myth. This story takes place a few years after the Movie, and makes heavy references to the show as well as history and other mythologies. It is very heavily influenced by the episode Twilight of The Gods, and so a lot of the scenery will take place in Germany.

Rated T for minor language and violence

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Things have quieted down years later. Quite a few years later since… The incident. The incident of all incidents. Should it really be called an incident? The word Incident really seems to be downplaying what happened. What about Titan cataclysm? Would that work? No? Well anyways, time had passed since that cataclysmal event. Titans were taken care of, gods were punished, maybe redeemed, but this is not that kind of story. This is a story of something completely different. This is a story about misunderstandings.

Just as Apollo began his journey across the sky it became routine for the no longer young Hercules to wake up at dawn break, jog a mile, and pick up the newspaper. He was always back just in time for when Meg woke up. He could not even shut the door quietly behind him before the sound of sandaled feet running towards him accompanied by a squeal of "Dad! Dad!" hit him followed by the sensation of a tiny body running into him from behind. The impact startled him more than any force his son Hyllus could throw at him.

"Woah, hey Hyllus, remember what I said about keeping it down while Mom is asleep?" He whispered and picked up the boy letting the kid drape himself over his shoulder. "Dad!" Hyllus quickly lowered his voice, "Dad, there's some bar-"

"I'm awake but it's the thought that counts." Meg spoke while leaning against the doorway holding a small krater of coffee in her hand.

He smiled weakly and sat Hyllus back down on to his feet. "Sorry." He stepped towards her leaning in to place a kiss on her but she stepped away.

"We got company." She nodded her head towards the other room with a smile.

He blinked, his blues eyes falling onto the door way and just hovering in the opening. Hercules recognized the hovering blue god before him, or at least he did. He almost mistook him for Hermes but it was the tiny beard on his chin and furs that gave it away. Hercules squinted at the familiar and near identical messenger. "Herm-?"

"Hermond." The northern messenger finished, "Remember me? Of course you do! It's been a while!"

"Oh right! Hermond! From the Norse Pantheon! I remember now." Hercules slapped the side of his head. It had been more than a decade since he had put an end to the Ragnarok prophecy. "What brings you here? Is everything okay? Should we get you anything?"

"No, no but thank you. I was just stopping by to deliver this invitation to Oktoberfest. Odin extended an invitation to Zeus and Hera this year and they suggested that maybe you and the family would enjoy the festivities. Odin also sends his belated congratulations on achieving your divinity-" He adjusted his glasses as Herc scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Although, it seems you are currently without it. Not a problem since the festivities will be held on Midgard in Munich. Not bad this time of year, and I hear it's really growing a marvelous art community. You really-"

"Thank you. Thank you for the invite." Meg cut off. Something did not feel right, not that she didn't trust the machinations of all powerful deities, well actually, she didn't trust the hidden machinations of all powerful deities. "And we really appreciate it but, you know Hyllos, here is about to start school soon, and-"

Herc gave her a confused look. Hyllus' school didn't start for a couple of weeks, and he couldn't see anything wrong with the very promising idea of a small vacation, and festival. "I thought school wasn't for another couple of weeks.."

"Yeah mom! It's not yet! I can go too!" Hyllus spoke up.

Meg bent down to grab his hand and pull him aside. "Oh kay, You remember what I said about conveniently jumping into the middle of adult conversation and how you really shouldn't do that? Also you need to pick up your room, I don't think you made your bed yet and I can tell you didn't brush your teeth." She looked up as Hyllus pulled away with a pout and trounced off to his room. Her worried purple eyes meeting her husband's. It was then he knew something was wrong, so he turned to Hermond.

"I, just got to speak with the missus, I'll be right back with an answer."

Hermond nodded to him, letting the demi-god break disappear into the kitchen.

"Okay, what is wrong? I can stay here if you like, but I really don't see anything wrong Meg. They're good people."

Meg sighed, looking up at him. Something felt off, like things could go wrong. "I know, I know. It's just that, you know, whenever you get called for these kinds of things, trouble rears it ugly head and you run off rushing to adventure."

"Meg, I'm a Hero."

"I know, and I don't have a problem with that, it's just that we have a kid now."

His shoulders dropped as he realized the weight of keeping not just her safe but their son as well. "Okay. You're right." He sighed and turned to let the blue God know, "I'll let him know, we got too much to take care of at the moment."

Meg frowned, seeing that perhaps Herc missed out on adventuring, and maybe she was being just a little paranoid. Before he could leave the room, she spoke up.

"You know, I don't really have a problem with you going."

He stopped, looking to her smiling face. "why don't you invite a friend, or the old goat. I can take Hyllos shopping, and maybe even make it a day to spend at your parent's house kind of thing."

'Are you sure?" He asked, a smile returning to his face, knowing that despite how she felt, she was willing to put forth an effort to make him happy. "I mean, you don't have to do this, I-"

She punched him playfully in the shoulder. "Go on, Wonderboy, go have your fun. Invite a couple of friends or even the old goat. Make it a guy's night if you want to."

"Are you sure?"

"Go! Go have fun you dork."

Herc snorted through his nose, "Dork? Okay, I'll let Hermond know." Before he headed back into the living room, he turned back to her. "I love you."

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Prior to the festival, Hercules could think of no one else to invite other than his long time friend Icarus, and Philitetes, although it took a little convincing for the old goat. He was not too keen on the snowy place, or the possibility of being stuck rhyming again but the promise of seeing the valkeries and a festival of drinking and eating was not to be passed up. It had been years since he had been to Germany, and this time it wasn't completely that cold. Snow had barely fallen. By barely fallen, that means there was about a foot of snow. So not bad at all!

When the three of them got off of Pegasus, they stood in the middle of town in awe. Well Not entirely awe, for you see, the town of Munich was possibly one of the largest Barbarian towns he had ever seen. Meaning that instead of about nine huts, there were possibly double that. As for a thriving art scene, it was a few stalls selling Kuckoo clocks, carvings of bears, and some musicians blowing away on horns.

Phil slapped his forehead and yelled, "It's just a dump again!"

"WOAH! They got the old world old school charm!" Icarus yells, clasping his head. "You probably haven't heard about it." He changes his voice and flicks his scarf around his neck, now donning a new persona, "It's really obscure."

"Oh, I didn't realize being out of date and rundown was obscure!" Phil yelled back, face reddening. His hand flourishes and lands on his chest, "Oh pardon me!"

"Well, I guess it's not so bad, it kind of have its charm." Herc says trying to calm his satyr mentor, but he was partially distracted as he dug through his satchel, pulling out a scroll. He would not have to work too hard to distract the old goat because a dozen damsels wearing dirndls daintily dawdled down towards the center square.

"Yeah, I see it now. This town really does have its charm." Phil rubbed his hands together while his tongue hung out. "Don't wait up for me boys! I'll join you later!" And in an instant, he was off trotting after the ladies.

"Wait! Phil!" Icarus yelled, waving his hands frantically but not giving chase, "You forgot your invite!"

Herc looks down to the scroll in his hands and compares it to the sun. "Well we have some time to wander around before joining my parents later on. We'll bump into him again. In the meantime, let's take a look around." And so the two of them wandered around the festivities, helping themselves to drinks, music and the sights. One of the sights led them towards a street filled with markets.

"Oh Herc! We need to stop there! I promised Dadalus that I'd bring back a souvenir!"

Icarus ran off excitedly down the street, which would not have been much of a problem for Herc to run after him except he felt a smaller hand on his shoulder .

"There you are! Herc babe I've been looking everywhere for you!"

The demigod whirled around expecting Hermond but instead found Hermes.

"Oh! Hermes! Sorry we were searching for where to meet you guys later, we just got a bit distracted."

Herc turned his head back to look for his friend but had managed to lose his friend already.

"Oh that's fine babe, the shindig isn't until later on tonight and you got time, if you got time, I got someone that would like to speak with you. It shouldn't take long."

Herc raised his eyebrows and looked over his shoulder again. He was sure Icarus was a grown man and quite frankly this town wasn't really all that big, he figured he could easily find him again. "Oh of course. I don't see right-"

One minute he was in the market place and the next he was by a cordoned off area standing before a large armored god standing between them and the stanchion that lead to the section reserved for the divine.

"We're just checking in to speak with Tyr and Balder, Heimdall." Hermes assured the all-seeing God.

Heimdall looked down to his list to mark them off, but in the meantime, Hercules' eyes spotted two younger deities, that looked not much older than thirteen. One was bright white with golden hair carrying a large sword while the other standing opposed to him had much darker tones of purple and black hair. He couldn't hear what was being said but it was enough to make the purple one storm off into a wall of shadows. Hercules frowned. Something felt worrying, and something about the exchange seemed way too familiar. The younger white god turned around to approach a much older one with one arm sitting at a table.

"Herc! C'mon let's go!"

He followed after the blue messenger towards a long table set up next to an open space with archery targets, weapons and shields lined the outside of it. The two gods looked up to them, the younger white one even waved with a week smile.

"Tyr, god of Wars and Balder young god of Heroes and light, I bring you Hero of Greece and son of Zeus, Hercules." Hermes winced as he heard something, someone with a long beard and penchant for zapping people with thunder bolts was calling him not too far away. "Oh! I'll be right back, I got to take this one!" And the blue god was gone before the three other males could blink.

Tyr stood up and held his hand out to shake Hercules' hand, "Pleased to formerly meet you. Thank you for meeting with us. Shame we hadn't met sooner. I would have loved to challenge you after you defeated Thor. " Tyr motioned to the younger white god, "Had to be training Balder here." He slapped a hand on Balder's shoulder, causing the teen to jolt forward a bit.

Hercules shook Tyr's hand, feeling a bit taken by this war god's courteous yet boisterous attitude. "Um, Thanks I guess, but honestly, it's rather embarrassing.."

"Eh, don't beat yourself up over it. Loki has pulled a fast one on everyone on Asgard." Tyr's voice lowered as glanced sideways, "It was only a matter of time before he moved on to some new victims anyways." Tyr straightened up, picking his cheeriness back up. "Well, he's locked away in Nifleheim, being tortured forever now, so no need to worry about that now!"

Hercules laughed nervously and looking down to Balder who had his arms crossed and looked off to the side. The young god looked up at the demigod for a second, and the guilty was quickly replaced by a cheerful smile. Hercules instantly recognized that of a guilty child attempting to hide something. He wasn't here to bust the kid's chops though.

"Training huh?" Herc asked. "What kind of training? Is it for being the God of heroes?" It was a bit strange to him that a young god that had to be trained was already being declared a god of heroes.

Balder looked down to the side and smiled a bit, "Something like that."

Tyr rested his heavy stump of an arm on Balder's head, "About that! I understand you have since retired from the Hero-ing business, but Balder here, has been prophesied to be our god of heroes but he's been having a bit of problem-" And now all the charm that Tyr previously had began to wither away as he leaned into Herc, "He's got a bit of a flinching problem.. Even tries talking to his foes."

Balder's cheeks brightened into a warm glow as he pouted.

"Well, what's wrong with that?"

That question made Tyr stop and blink as his brain tried to determine whether Herc was joking or not. Balder peeked upwards at the demigod, the glow in his cheeks fading.

The awkward silence was broken up by the ground giving a small shake beneath their feet.

#fanfiction disneyhercules norse whenhelbreaksloose

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rylie-barton · 5 years

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⌜ CIS FEMALE, SHE / HER | the hearse by matt maeson, gryffindor, infp ⌟ ⏤ meet RYLIE NATALIA BARTON ; a TWENTY TWO year old who kind of resembles WILLA HOLLAND, don’t you think? she originally hailed from NEW YORK CITY where she lived with her parents, CLINT BARTON & NATASHA ROMANOFF ( MARVEL ), but word is that she’s been making strides to rejoin shield and finish her law degree this past year. she’s always been pretty AUDACIOUS & COMPASSIONATE, but has gotten way more CODEPENDENT & PRIDEFUL since she woke up. maybe her ability of WEAPON PROFICIENCY and power of INNATE COMBAT can help in taking down the dome. you can check out her stat page HERE& her pinterest board HERE.

i was a woman who thought only of dead things ( all the time ). i couldn’t HELP it.

part one of two : the backstory. ( trigger warnings for talk of death, drug / alcohol abuse.

born on july 21st, 1996, to clint barton & barbara morse. the youngest of three children, lewis and callum were five and nine respectively at the time of her birth.

her mother and brothers died in a house fire when she was just three months old ; the files concerning the accident are blacked out and encrypted, and the story given to rylie amounts to ‘your mother went missing in action.’

understandably, she’s always wanted to know more ; unfortunately, she’s never had the means in which to find anything out.

raised by clint. really loved, but vaguely overprotected. ‘aunt nat’ was in her life from minute one, essentially, a shoulder for clint to lean on and a motherly presence that rylie found she craved. in time, they got married. it never felt anything but natural.

she was raised alongside the rest of the next gen ; troy banner, dan rogers, calder thorson & phoebe stark. they were and remain the closest thing to siblings that rylie has ever had, and as the youngest, she got to annoy them endlessly and still be assured that whatever may have happened down the line, they would always have her back.

as a little girl, rylie’s dreams amounted to little more than being the prima balllerina of her company. if she couldn’t be that, she would have settled for being an award winning pianist. she was a remarkably ordinary little girl, the only thing completely out of the norm about her being the fact that her father had her trained from the time she could walk to use a weapon, and her stepmother had her taught well how to fight.

her time in school was... tough, to put it mildly. she was homeschooled at certain points, and moved around a lot for others. kids could be cruel, and rylie’s self esteem was never destined to be that good.

rylie’s lift changing can be pinpointed as the moment that shield enlisted her, along with the rest of the next gen. she was just a LITTLE KID - playing dress up in between recitals, saving the world before she’d ever really even lived in it. they were kids trained for war. how could any of them have ever been well adjusted?

she dropped out of ballet. she stopped attending her piano lessons. the only thing that mattered was working with her team. how stupid she feels, now, to have been so caught up in trying to be an adult that she forgot to have a childhood.

her friends meant EVERYTHING to her.

she started attending the same school as phoebe because the other girl made a strong case to clint for rylie, so she wouldn’t have to go through another year of torment. she didn’t just LOVE her. she wanted to be her. to compare to the beautiful and intelligent and utterly flawless phoebe stark was something that she always knew would be impossible, but tried to do, anyway.

troy was her BIG BROTHER. he still is. when she was scared of storms, he would stay awake and hold her through the night to help her through. they teased one another mercilessly, but at the end of the day, they always knew just how much they loved one another - it was all in good spirit, and at points, it was what both of them needed.

daniel, the voice of reason - not just for rylie, but for everyone. she always looked up to him, both as a leader and as a friend. he made good calls. he tried to do right by everyone. it wasn’t easy to do - and looking back, rylie hates how it all rested on his shoulders when he was just a KID - but he did it anyway.

and calder...- she’s always loved him, even when it was difficult. back then, it wasn’t. he was always a stoic, but how much he loved them all was evident. he was her training partner and best friend, always present, even when he didn’t know what to say, or do.

the five of them were like some kind of mismatched breakfast club, but no one in the world understood what it was like to grow up with heroes for parents as well as they did.

and then PHOEBE died. rylie was sixteen years old. the rest of them weren’t much older. loki attacked avengers tower while their parents were away on a mission, and she tried to protect calder ; it wasn’t anybody’s fault except loki’s that she fell that day, but they all shouldered the guilt regardless. rylie never was the same.

in the months after, rylie tried to numb the pain, the responsibility. she couldn’t sleep, so she took pills that were meant to help. when they didn’t, she took more. the subsequent overdose was swept under the carpet, the choice to send her to wda alongside the rest of the guys their way of trying to bring some life back to her, after. it was phoebe’s dream they were living, after all. maybe being there with them would help.

believe it or not : it DIDN’T. walt disney academy was living under the threat of the darkness at the time, and rylie was one of many students who fell victim. while on a mission with shield in late 2014, she was shot ; it was a horrible event that weakened rylie more than just in her resolve, and months later, the darkness took hold. under its influence, she hurt people that she didn’t know, and she hurt one’s that she did, too. her freedom was temporary, she and many other students were taken over once more, and troy saved the day by drawing out the good ; but enough had been enough.

rylie turned to alcohol. the rest was history. she drank to sleep. she drank to get herself through the day. she drank when she was happy, when she was achingly sad, when she was just trying to feel something. she would go on weekend benders that bled into the weeknights when the littlest inconvenience happened, and drunk, she made some truly horrible decisions with some truly terrible people. she kept hurting the people she loved. she kept ruining her relationships. it became a cycle, wash and repeat.

whatever she might have had with emmett wicks, a rock she leant on during the early darkness saga, was gone as quick as it came. rylie got too involved too quick with alexander kaligaris, with disastrous results. we know how unhealthy that particular relationship turned out.

shield suspended her from active duty in early 2017. she was over the legal limit to drive and still thought she could go on a mission for them, and she could have gotten her whole team killed. she didn’t, but it didn’t matter. they were right to do what they did, but rylie took it personally ; she lashed out. she made bad choices. she had lost the ONLY thing she really had left. her father wanted to pull her from school to try and help, and she point blank refused. it caused a rift between them, for understandable reasons. without her dad, without her family, without many of her friends - rylie just got worse.

in the summer of ‘17, the school suffered from an earthquake during prom. rylie took a hard fall, and the resulting head trauma damaged her eardrum. it wasn’t her father coming back to support her during the subsequent operation to try and fix it that gave rylie a wake up call. it was her pregnancy, discovered a few weeks later ; rylie always loved, and alex always left. one mistake from the two of them caused a bigger one that spooked her. rylie made the choice to have an abortion. she took control of her own life, for once, instead of allowing it spin even more out of control - and she started attending alcoholics anonymous, almost immediately after.

part two of two : what u missed on glee.

rylie has been sober for 21 months and counting. it’s as hard for me to believe it as it is for you all, i’m sure ; but she’s been doing BETTER. she’s been back training, brushing up on some old skills that she let get rusty. she’s healthy, too, the sallow look to her skin that everyone got accustomed to long gone. to say it was easy for her, or that she didn’t have moments of doubts, would be... totally incorrect. she’s just been fighting through.

she was one more bad month away from flunking out of her law degree, the last time y’all saw her ; but she’s picked up in the past year, really knuckling down to try and catch up, for one, and do better, for another. she’s still worried that she’s going to have to do an extra year, to finish, but she’s dedicated to doing so if she’s GOTTA.

her relationship with her father? fixed. clint has always put rylie above all else, and never would have even required the apologies she gave, really. likewise with the relationship she has with natasha. both of them forgive her for her weakness, though it’s unlikely that rylie ever will. we love on ( 1 ) girl with a guilt complex.

the one thing that ISN’T fixed is her hearing, at least not 100%. she has a loss of fifty nine db in her right ear, and that’s probably never going to change. it makes her and her father even more alike, though i’m sure clint would have rathered the similarities not be so much.

as of right now, she’s prepping for a hearing with the board of directors at shield on whether she should be reinstated as an active agent. she’s passed all of the physicals, and she’s been in therapy for about as long as she’s been sober, working through her issues. she’s still got miles to go, but they’re certainly optimistic. rylie moved past feeling hard done by a long time ago, and now she just... wants to be a part of the agency, again, in a way where she can actually be of help.

#wda: intro #do u know how hard it is to abridge rylie's life #it's so unfortunate #about rylie

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ryanmeft · 6 years

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No, Nintendo Does Not Hate Metroid

Nintendo, a company that makes video games, recently announced that after almost two years, they were scrapping all current work on Metroid Prime 4, taking it from whatever mystery studio was working on it, and giving it to the hallowed minds at Retro Studios to start over with, hoping to get it right.

This was greeted with rapturous applause by Metroid fans, who almost universally recognized how good Nintendo was being to them, and were highly appreciative of the fact they’d be willing to write off all the resources they’d spent so far, just because the game wasn’t up to snuff.

I am of course kidding. That up there was a joke. Metroid fandom contains the whiniest, most entitled, hardest-to-satisfy fans of any Nintendo property, and while the majority of fans were cool, the loudest ones were typically the whiners. Most notably, a not-insignificant section of the fandom has gripped, with an unshakable hold, the idea that Nintendo doesn’t respect or even dislikes the franchise. I’ve listened to this particular whine for years and years, ever since there was an unimaginable eight-year gap between Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion. Never mind that other beloved series of yore, from Mega Man to Final Fantasy, have also gone similar periods without a new game. Never mind that non-Japanese fans of Nintendo’s own Earthbound are still denied the chance to play the final game in the series, and probably always will be. Never mind that Sonic fans suffered under a notorious drought of good games lasting two decades before Sonic Mania finally happened. None of that means shit: Metroid fans are the most persecuted, victimized, and unfairly treated fandom in video games.

Now, I’m the last guy to feel I need to defend a massive company like Nintendo, but in this case I’ll make an exception. Because just like Ghostbusters fans who can’t figure out their particular obsession just isn’t as relevant as they want it to be, Metroid fans need to grow up and start appreciating what they have gotten, rather than what they haven’t. Below are the three reasons why Metroid fanboys aren’t even the least bit as ill-used as they think are.

Almost Every Metroid Game has Been Excellent

The nature of video games is such that many more entries in a successful series are usually produced than in other mediums like film. Even a series like Metroid, which has been iterated less often than Nintendo’s other properties, has had eight fully fledged games since 1986, and 10 if you count the heavily re-worked upgrades of the original game and Return of Samus. Of those, only a single one, Other M, has been poorly received, and there’s no indication that’s what Nintendo expected. After all, fans were excited when the series got handed to Team Ninja; the idea that this was callous on Nintendo’s part, for not developing the game themselves, is something that only took hold retroactively, and you know what they say about hindsight. The original Metroid, Super Metroid, Fusion, and two of the three Prime entries are among the more critically lauded games in history, and excepting only Other M, all of the others have received highly positive reviews. The Metacritic average for the mainline Metroid games is an 89 of 100. Boy, look how much Nintendo hates this franchise, going out of their way to make good games for it and crap like that.

The Bad Spin Offs are Nothing Compared to Other Series

One of the big pieces of evidence Metroid fans like to roll out to prove Nintendo loathes Samus like unto the heat of a sun is that they’ve spent some of their time on it making poorly received spin offs, like Blast Ball and Federation Force, that don’t capture the spirit of the series. “Look!” they shout, from atop the Tower of Cluelessness high on the Oblivious Cliffs, “They aren’t doing what a bunch of us fans who have never programmed a game or made a decision about a franchise think they should be doing, so they clearly don’t care!”

You might already see the flaw in this thinking. By this standard, nearly every company with a long-running series hates that series. Capcom has inserted Mega Man into soccer and allowed him to be licensed out for extremely shitty PC games, and have pooped out almost as many crappy Resident Evil-themed spin-offs as there are main Resident Evil games. Square has pimped Final Fantasy out to every possible genre, from racing to fighting to freaking tower defense, all while taking ages to finish the next main entry in the series. Nintendo themselves have slapped Mario on every possible thing they can, and despite strong sales to dumb people, Mario Party is notorious for being a bunch of slapped together mini games for people who like their games to be completely random.

If bad spin-offs proved anything about what Nintendo thinks of Metroid, the fact they’ve spared it from as many as other series get would actually support the idea they are more protective of it.

Metroid Doesn’t Deserve as Much Love as You Think it Does

Economics 101 is now in session. All right, children: why does a company make things?

“To make their fans happy, Mr. Eft!”

Wrong, little Dingleberry! They make things to---say it with me---MAKE MONEY!

See, companies like money. And this is especially important for an industry with relatively low margins and high costs like video games, because folks like the evil satanic Metroid-hating demons at Nintendo need games to sell well not only to justify further games in that series, but to fund further games in that series. Unlike, say, Disney, they don’t typically have the option of busting out an Avengers and making 1000% profit. Unless it is something really massive and popular and guaranteed to sell, like Call of Duty or Pokemon, most franchises live entry to entry, relying on the previous one being profitable to decide if the next one will ever be made.

And here’s some economic reality for you: almost from the outset, Metroid has failed that test more often than it has passed it. Yes, the series has sold decently---for a minor franchise. The fact that it is legendary among gamers and highly influential among designers has not traditionally translated into the kind of money it needs to guarantee the entries keep rolling out. One of the most frequent desperate cries of the Lesser American Hardcore Metroid Fanboy plays out something like this: “If only Nintendo put as much effort in as they do for Mario and Zelda, it could be a real blockbuster!”

Except it couldn’t. And it has proven that time and again. It has sold, it is often said, respectably. That’s a business term for “We didn’t lose money…but it didn’t exactly pay our salaries, either.” Metroid’s critical and fan status is simply not reflected in sales, where Samus is holding at the 14th overall spot in Nintendo’s history. She’s managed to scrap together around 17 and a half million units moved in three decades, compared to just over a hundred million for Zelda and hundreds for Mario (that’s including every Mario game of any kind, but if you only include platformers, the series is still on top).

Simply put, Metroid doesn’t get the same attention as Mario and Zelda for the same reason Luke Cage or Cloak and Dagger don’t get as much love from Marvel as Spider-Man and X-Men: financially speaking, it doesn’t deserve it. No one argues that means Marvel hates Luke Cage; the sales just aren’t there to justify an equal amount of time, energy and resources.

Given all that, fans ought to be grateful the series is still around at all. Nintendo has tossed all of the Prime 4 resources spent so far down the crapper and re-started it just to get it right, when they would have been fully justified with just abandoning it. As a big fan of many minor characters and series, take it from me: when your preferred fan obsession is far from being top dog in the overall culture, sometimes you gotta stop whining and take what you get.

#Metroid #the legend of zelda #nintendo #Final Fantasy #video games #resident evil #Super Mario #Mega Man #call of duty #marvel #spider-man #X-men #luke cage #metroid prime 4 #ghostbusters

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mediacinemtographyartetc · 2 years

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The REAL problem with Killing Stalking.

My issues with killing stalking...

is that one side said it was bad because of Morals, while another side says what morals? It's fiction why apply real life logic to a small webcomic that faded into obscurity anyway. Both the hype for OR against is what made Killing/Stalking so well known and if cancel culture wasn't a thing it probs would've been a netflic original series [which thank god I do think fiction is seperate from reality and what happens in 'stories' is fair game but live action stuff yeah thats a no from me]

Also the fact that it's just a story- not everything is supposed to have a life lesson/meaning or needs to cater to a persons needs. Sometimes stories have bad endings, some are just shit.

But I've noticed that when something is a cartoon it's held up to high expectations even though ART as a whole doesn't equel to the only platform for children. Art/animation is a GENRE. Killing Stalking has it in the title, it had tags descriptions it was an adult psychological horror made for adults.

But alas the logic applied to anime/art is always used as an excuse that this artist has power and has a reach over millions and is encouraging messed up behaviour.

But when it comes to live actions/stories that hit a much BROADER reach of people, like coporations who spend billions on movies that reach a wide audiance of both children and adults alike that has MORE questionable and more fucked up lessons and yet those are not only ignored- but even encouraged.

Like Wanda from Marvel. In her tv series on disney plus she tortured people as in- how long were those people standing there, waving. Not eating drinking sleeping going to the bathroom like david tenents jessica jones this shit is messed up and she took NO accountability for it but it's fine she's just such a girl boss queen who's been a uber feminsit god I fucking can't stand Wanda.

Loki, murdered an entire race of his own kind, no- okay murdered 80 people in three days, but no he's just a misunderstood emo teenager and no one loves him. Compared to tony. who when he found out his weapons were being sold to terrois shut his company down and moved to green energy/therapy etc.

meanwhile wanda IS a terroist/hydra aka nazi's.

Look I like marvel and don't really care it's just- it's just the double standards for me. People say oh Tony made his villains BITCH that entire town would be super villains from Wanda alone.

Anyway we have adult movies that no one complains about like,

jhonny depps shooter, sucker punch. Phantom of the fucking Opera!?!??!?

Disneys raya and the last dragon. namarri who is an lying sack of shit and telling a victim who is clearly justified in being distrustful is told over and over again that she's crazy- trust the people who ruined the world- ripped a young girl away from her father, and yeah narmarri blames the main character for dragon elsas death then betrays her a third time. Great lesson to tell so many impressionable young kids.

Oh can't stand a wittle age gap with couples, a year, three five- oh no five is too much what about ten or twenty? Any stories with that is just wrong? Okay okay. Go tell that to Disney then come back to me. And no I don't mean the old style classics were based on folklore back in old days where 30 year old men married young women it's not ecouraging or romantisicing it's a time capsule. It isn't something I just heavily critisice just know at that time frame things happened no need crying over spilled milk when I mention the age gaps I don't mean OLD disney. I mean recent.

Princess and the frog. That lottie was so desperate for a prince she says. naveens younger brother. He's six. And if you go "Well yeah she's obviously not-" Exactly. Yet that logic at disney aimed at children is okay.

But when artists/writers make stories that are NO different then the Media we consume on the daily is held to a HIGHER standard against one person who is just trying to make a living. Self cest with loki/slyvia. I got into so uch shit for Oncest on tumblr now this? Fuck off.

Incest with umbrella acadamy. Incest is gross well lookie here. And yet Umbrella acadamy is a really popular lgbt show so yeah.

Mortal instruemnts where Clarys brother sebastaion [jace] actually KISSED her and had a weird obsession with her. Both are siblings by the way.

Remember the movie that came out? In cinema where it just ended implyfing that Clary and jace were siblings? For people who hadn't read the book they probably thought "What a shit way to end it knowing we shipped incest." my sister had to clarify for me. Like oh thank god- still fucked up though!

Also in IRL incest does happen by mistake, two guys who were a couple kept getting comments they looked like twins they got a dna test and well sweet home alabama it was an honest mistake but oh.

Now onto the Gore feast [alice in wonderland having the mouse pop out the beasts eyeball/ carol with jim carrey how marley jaw unhinged and current marvel going the suicicde squad route of so much gore/torture porn]

As someone with intrusive thoughts this excludes me from watching current series that have gore and such. But as an adult I realise this isn't for me and I'll move on with my life to something else.

Meanwhile nothing. No pitchfolks to the problematic content made by corporations that are reaching a far broader audience yet no one cares.

Also horror movies, in scream sydney and her boyfriend weren't exactly okay? Or what about Bride of Chucky?

Tiffany and Chucky?

Or what about Dcs cock-up of portraing Harley/Joker?

And yet when it's a webnovel. All hell breaks lose.

Why the fuck do people on the internet who are just writing stories/fiction/basically doing puppet shows with their own characters held to an IMPOSSIBLE high standard that you wouldn't hold to companies like Disney?

Or better yet, dreamworks. You assume the companies movies is ALL for children? Watch Kung Fu Panda one moment then put on Blades of Glory the next?

As soon as it's in the medium of art/cartoon it's immedietly assumed to be for kids. The mentality of "Monkey see, Monkey Do." Is ridiculous when compared to the double standards of idk name any zach synder film. All critic is met with "It's supposed to be dark and edgy!"

Films are giving a pass, meanwhile anime is raged on, because people assume cartoons are for kids.

Family guy, simpsons, futurama and Susage party beg to differ.

So As a whole on Killing Stalking, something I read YEARS ago and from the top of my head there was no accurate review of wether killing stalking was good or not.

Over all this bullshit of talking about dark content the macab, and more darker tone of content that is engaging in a different way.

The sides were split in two "Just because it's dark content doesn't mean it's wrong. Not EVERYONE can watch bright sunny media where every one sings Kum-by-ya!" "If you watch it, you encourage and even practice it, people are [blank] apologisers."

When both are muddying up the actual content. Like it's just a dark webnovel it said Psycholgical horror in the fucking tag? What did you expect? Steven Universe???

By this stakes saying something is dark and edgy is profonned is so pretentious BUT also being completely against it is ridiculous.

I listented to Emo music and didn't think of self harm once. Just because some inidvuals gravitate or show signs of something doesn't mean a collective group is that because of what they watch.

I personally don't think that would make someone [blank] because a person can be [blank] REGARDLESS of what they watch.

A person can be a predator if they DIDN't Read/ watch dark content they could just as well like 'normal' light hearted media that's 'none' problematic and STILL be that.

Watching kids cartoons could make you sus, owning teddy bears or even toys or merchendise could make you sus and thats what people have been saying for years.

Not realising that most people re-explore their childhood as adults because one, they can because they couldn't afford luxaries as a kid, missed out on their child hood or it was a comfort and they're trying to stablisie themselves. Or most people on the spectrum like 'childish' things and they've been accused of being sus when finally we're in a position to say thats not the case- although some people call them out for being childish immature and need to grow the fuck up but fuck those people.

Look all I'm saying in case I'm not saying this right- this is a delecate subject matter but to summarise in a metaphor. It's so easy to say, video games make you violent. When a person can be violent with or without the influence of video games.

So killing stalking was raised as "It's good BECAUSE it's dark and edgy." "It's BAD because it romanticises domestic abuse."

No one read killing stalking as it was well 18++++ dark themes, Zack Synder would cry dark themes, I needed breaks reading this it's messed up fucked up and ughhhh.

But as a STORY [god my fucking rambling] Was Killing Stalking good? Story wise? Character wise? discussing delecate topics and yeah did it ACTUALLY Romantisice abuse?

No. to all of it.

Thinking back on Killing Stalking I can't help but think how much of a WASTE the premise was.

That there was so much potential just poofed a waste of a good title, the concept of a serial killer on his high feeling over-confident cocky that he can get away with murder and BOOM. Stalker note, and better yet this stalker has photo's is obsessed with him and both play a game of cat and mouse, you don't know which one to feel sorry for, realising these two are playing on a board seperate from others. Having Staler blackmail Killer with "Oh yeah kill me, but my apartment has photo's and evidence of you're crimes I do like to collect everything you own."

So it's two people with a fucked up mindset having their eyes on each other.

Like the idea of hitchhikers who is the seriel killer the hitchiker or the one in the car what are the chances they are both?

But nope, there was like 97% killing and like two moments of stalking...at minimum there was no stalking whatsoever.

It was just truama dump and truama dump like we get it, stalker has a past abuse and OH look at that icky killer has past abuse too who'd thunk?

The relationship between the two was well done.

I pretty much kept reading just so Stalker could get away, most readers at the time were only reading hoping stalker would realise and escape and that the killer would go to jail. It was the first time reading a bl where it made me uncomfortable with the two as a 'couple' most bl are able to normalise it where you don't realise how fucked up it is until years later.

But this brought it to the forefront.

[Personally I [with no info this is speculation] don't believe the author intended the two to being a endgame psycho killers riding into the sunset, it was meant as a badend story, also the 'fanart' of them being cute personally I think if I was writing something that was heavy or touched on uncomfortable themes drawing the couple as 'okay' could be a mental break- in movies when actors go through something you see them in skits/etc red carpets or other movies. I do see fictional characters as 'actors' that are playing a role a part just for this story [but if there's further information I'm ignorant on that the author did something fucked up- thats substantial then yeah, my opinion would probably not change on new information]

So when it came to killer/stalker the way they were written was well done, the slow burn of being a victim trying to survive both having a co-depency and having stockholm syndrome not just the victim but the stalker too on how they were obsessive and even called out for them in the end.

The whole romantiscing it part...well?

This is just a matter of perspective, but domestic abuse isn't always crying and pain/misery. There are good moments, they're are soft moments and good parts and even yeah romantisciation.

Thats the POINT. when someone tries to leave a relationship they think on the good times forgetting the bad and it's also used as a reward system to keep the person happy with their scenario.

Saying it's romanticision is like telling 'SO' victims "Why didn't you just leave?"

Like it's not a romantisciation of Domestic abuse, it's a fucked up relationship and it shows the whole thing as it is. Fucked up, with sweet moments and being completely unhealthy.

BUT take away the killer/stalker main pair and looking at the story/envioment as a whole?

Trash.

It just dwindled into another bl trope fest.

Worse of, the Killer is well obvs a killer right? And yet there was no comparison or whip lash when you look at Killers life style then the lifestyle around them.

Stalker went through abuse at the military, nothing was done about it. Killer went through abuse at home thats whatever, tragic back story. Who cares?

But the fact that EVERYONE was scummy towards the stalker who was just standing there? like an idiot? What the fuck did he do? He was just standing there!

The aggresive cop who was almost fired and even lashed out?

An old lady smothered a burn patient because he was being loud and no she didn't know who he was, he was just being 'loud'

Who else has this bitch killed? She's even talking about it outloud and no one cares???

Like the world is so violent it's normalised that it makes me think Killer was fine, he was normal.

The fact that the police were incompatent. Like ridiculous but not in a way of, oh like real life where even if you get help they just don't care-

No like geniunaly incompetant. There was no high stakes/agency like the reason things went so wrong was because of the Killers own fuck up of burning his own house down it's like he may as well have turned himself in.

Without the main pair, the whole story as a whole was just bland, the writing potential of mind games, manipiating people, wasted.

With a stupid past/flashbacks backstory, a just victims with so much repressed truama even a therpaist wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole. Even though people can be evil, empty WITHOUT truama. Just born one day with nothing.

Instead of having a stalker, actually going toe to toe with the Killer, accapteing ALL the abuse because they would see it as a love language, wanting to kill others so all the attention was on them and dreaming of being their partner in crime not realising their trust was being twisted until the killer could get/destroy the evidence. And the only thing keeping them on a sliver was that the KILLER was being co-dependent and was starting to see the Stalker as an equel that maybe it wasn't so bad having someone on the inside and if anything goes wrong he has a scapegoat. Could twist it where it was the Stalker telling him what to do with blackmail- god so much potential.

When you don't know who to route for- in a AITA? Reddit blogs most responses would be. ESH [Everyone sucks here]

As a story? It's meh. It wasn't dark ENOUGH, the BL trope was a lazy way to fall into an old formula and using edgy content as an excuse to say "IT's supposed to be dark and edgy you just don't get it."

Like it could've been better. Bit of a let down after reading.

I guess the writing would've been TOO complicated and would require thinking but at the same time given that horror/genres get this reception over something that I would consider tame-

[I've been on the internet too long I'm disenstised. I've made it a game where if 'I' feel like scrubbing my eyes then they've gone WAY to far...recently ao3 has been stepping up their game...I approve :3]

idk maybe a Death note/ L VS Light or Sherlock VS moriarty. The concept of a Killer/Stalker would've been so good.

The title is too good for a story like that- it should've been called.

Killing Stalking to just Killing.

Or. Stockholm Syndrome. Thats more accurate to the story I guess.

But yeah this whole "This is dark content you won't get it-" Is an excuse, it could've been darker. More fucked up and better written.

Killing Stalking as a whole? From what I can recall years later which makes this review even MORE biased as I'm probably forgetting details. But from what I remember?

It's mid.

Probably wouldn't read again, and the art style is too much like attack on titan so it sucked.

#I woke up a chose violence.#Been a while since I've seen killing stalking #As a whole I don't care for it #but I don't agree with the hate for it like guh it's not that big of a deal #killing #stalking #not a rant #well okay it is a rant #rant post #Not AGAINST killing Stalking

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rpbetter · 3 years

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I'm happy to hear about your laptop! I didn't think about using characters and other IPs like that, that's a good point. It reminds me of the tumblr fiasco with paid creator content. The bigger the site, the more likely they'll have problems where companies bully and sue them, especially if it's a big one (Disney cough). I like having to manually opt-in too, instead of having it be the default. Having it the default does come with "othering" implications, like I'm being boring by opting out?

Thank you, I'm happy it isn't deceased! It'd be incredibly difficult to answer all of you and write RP on my phone, after all. Would I? Yes. Would my hand fall off? Also, yes. Let us all thank the laptop gods!

Exactly that, yes. It's one thing if I want to make emojis for my Discord server from a Marvel movie or comic, for example, because my tiny server of friends isn't at all comparable to something like tumblr, and hopefully, Rolescape. Disney doesn't care what I'm doing, neither manipulating images they own nor my bitching about them is a microscopic dot on their radar because I am not making anything from this, I do not have a massive following, I don't have a platform their IP is appearing on as a part of the site, etc. We don't matter...unless we try to sell a sticker on Redbubble or use their content on a paid tumblr post.

So, while it might be alright presently, eventually, it won't be if the site flourishes. That's concerning, take down orders are creepy. If you don't have legal experience and/or become easily stressed and shaken, they are even more so. The whole point of involving attorneys the majority of the time is being scary and forceful, they are incredibly good at sounding terrifying and wording things in a way that comes off as having no option but to obey, pay, grovel, and then thank them for the harassment afterward. I don't even mean that offensively toward attorneys, I've worked with a lot of them over the years and my closest friend for years and years was one who specifically worked in this field of law. It's a terrifying talent is all, very effective. And it has been able to shut down sites before purely out of paralyzing fear and disillusionment. Nothing says "you are in over your head" like receiving legal orders.

I would hate to see someone's efforts, no matter when and where I disagree, be destroyed because of that kind of thing.

The definite opt-in/opt-out is great. I so strongly support that! That is absolutely the right direction to be friendly to all points. Again, including neurodiverse ones. I have to say it because I kind of really do not appreciate once again being lumped in this manner as a ND person who would experience the opposite. If you are not the fun sort of ND, you either do not exist or you are a pain in the ass, and I admit, it does make me feel like that when ND users are being mentioned in that way. I'm glad that's other people's thing, but just as they want to be respected for what they enjoy, people like me sometimes would enjoy that as well.

This brings me to the point that I'm already boring. I'm already othered. This whole blog exists because I was tired of the people in the RPC who were also othered being told that they were, additionally, critically wrong for how they enjoy the hobby. I wanted this to be a place where other opinions could be expressed, other types of writing and RP advice could be given, and everyone who wasn't hostile was welcome. So, yes, indeed, it is uncool to feel like I'd be even more boring and othered than I already would be as a dedicated RPer in it for the writing, realism, and long-term engagement. Now I also suck because I don't find the stickers to be my thing lol you know?

Yes, I totally feel you, is what I'm saying!

My hope is that RS will actually have sufficient space for all to not participate as much as it will for those who want to. I mean that in regards to everything, not just the points system. So much of the issues in the RPC return to muns refusing to just stay in their lane, with the things they enjoy and the people they mesh with who enjoy the same things. This attitude that if you don't like the way someone does something, it is infringing upon your right to do your thing your way, somehow. With enough metaphorical space, you might get a better environment where muns will section themselves organically. It's never going to stop, of course, but like with the points thing, people who aren't there for that kind of engagement and who just want to write with their people somewhere other than this nightmare platform we're on can do that in their own, better cultivated space while their opposites enjoy themselves doing otherwise in their cultivated spaces.

That is, ultimately, the only way that RPCs actually work out peacefully. It's how they once worked out, it is how I would love to see them work out again...instead of taking literally everything possible and turning it into harassment bait. Which is, unfortunately, the valid concern about the points. No, it can't be stopped, you cannot control other people's shitty behavioral imperatives. You can only minimize the opportunities, be realistic about it, and try to cultivate spaces in which like-to-like can mesh naturally. That is my best hope for this entire thing, and the legitimate opt-out definitely benefits that.

Well, that hope and the sincere hope that the inevitable IP issue is attended to. I know everyone is proud of their work on that project, I know everyone feels defensive and attacked, but it is an issue. However, it is also an easily resolvable issue by doing the same things that folks selling merch and maintaining platforms have been doing for years. You absolutely can design around these things! Might someone like Disney pop up on you anyway? Definitely, but so long as they don't have a legal leg to stand on, all they can do is huff and puff while you sit in your solid brick house and ask if anyone heard something.

Anyway, I'm sorry this has been stressful and upsetting for everyone. I know most of us were very excited about this whole thing, and that it has turned some people off. I'm not going to tell anyone to try it or not to try it, I believe you all have good enough sense to know what is right for you.

#answered #anonymous #rolescape #queued

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templeofgeek · 6 years

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Star Wars Fan Art By Erin Lefler for #ForceAgainstCyberbullying

With the every growing popularity of geek and nerd culture, more and more people come together to join in on the celebration of their favorite franchises and characters. Fandoms are a wonderful place of community and belonging. Unfortunately, they are still not immune to the eventual toxicity that comes with any large populous.

One such toxic behavior is cyber bullying. No one is immune to cyber bullying. Whether you’re a young kid or a big Hollywood actor. Cyber bullying has a way of bringing a dark cloud over our happiness. Actress Kelly Tran was harassed online for her portrayal of Rose Tico in the latest Star Wars installment, The Last Jedi. So much so that it drove her to delete all her Instagram posts.

Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place over digital devices, and on social media platforms (such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, via text etc.). It includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false, or mean content about someone else. Sharing personal or private information about someone else causing embarrassment or humiliation. Some cyberbullying instances can be criminal behavior.

According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Suicide is the second leading cause of death between 15-19 years old. It was this realization that sparked artist Erin Lefler to make a stand against cyberbullying. In an hopes that cyberbullying would not contribute to any of those deaths by suicide. We spoke to Erin about her project and what it means to her.

What is The Force Against Cyber Bullying Campaign? Erin: The #forceagainstcyberbullyingcampaign is a campaign I created to shed light on cyber bullying as a problem, as well as to provide support and love to those being cyber bullied. I feel with all the social movements and topics that we see every day on the news, in papers, and on social media, Cyber bullying as a topic gets put on the back burner. But it’s a HUGE problem!!! And it’s something I feel personally should be discussed.

Star Wars Fan Art By Erin Lefler for #ForceAgainstCyberbullying

What inspired you to create this campaign? Erin: I created this campaign after being on the receiving end of a lot of harassment and cyber bullying on some Official Lucasfilms licensed work I’ve done and non licensed Star Wars work that I have done. Which, after those started getting it, it then also started happening on other work of mine, like marvel work, original work, etc. As someone who really loves what they get to do for work, (I mean I get to work for one of the coolest companies [Lucasfilms] ever!) it really felt like a punch to the gut, and like all the air was taken out of me. These were so called “fans” of the exact things I create for work, some of which had been following me for awhile. And they were now targeting and harassing me, for what? Because they didn’t like the way the last movie went down? Because they didn’t like the character I had drawn? This was something that I feel shouldn’t be allowed to happen. No one should be able to call you names, threaten your safety and well-being, or trash your reputation just because you’re doing something you love. You see, I just make art for the company. I’m not the one who wrote the script, I’m not an actress from the film, or even the director. My job is so small compared to those directly involved with the film; like really small. How many people actually know my name compared to say Mark Hamill, Rian Johnson, or Kelly Marie Tran? I’m just doing what I’m paid to do like they are, and I’m also getting to do what I love. It’s every fans dream. But because I have the the name ‘Lucasfilms’ attached to my name, I receive the same amount of hate and harassment if not worse then what the big names do. Having this happen to me got me to think how this type of behavior is so prevalent on the Internet today, and how it has spread across so many fandoms/ many online communities. And most people turn a blind eye to it! Which, I really feel is not okay. I felt alone. I was hurt and confused as to why all this was happening to me. As someone who tries to always look for and be positive about everything, it was hard to accept people could be like this. I had been been physically bullied growing up, but this was a whole new thing I had to learn how to deal with. When I began to publicly share what was happening with my followers across my social media accounts, not only was there an outpouring of support to me, but I was also receiving so many messages of those who were also once cyber bullied, or were currently being cyber bullied. To hear so many voices saying “I’ve been there and I wish I had help” or “ I’m facing the same thing right now and I don’t know what to do”, honestly broke my heart. I wanted to be able to help them all, but how could I? I barely knew how to help myself. I had to take a small break from social media for a few days because I could feel it almost bringing me into a depression. I felt so helpless. Not only were the words of these people harassing me getting me down, but seeing so many others going through the same thing and crying out for help shocked me. I thought ‘How can so many be facing this, and nobody be speaking about this?’ We see and are bombarded everyday by headlines like “which celeb wore it best”, “this celeb got implants”, or “this celeb power couple broke up.” And while there’s nothing wrong with taking an interest in these things, I wondered why are these things are trending when people are out here LITERALLY losing their lives to cyber bullying. Which, made me realize there’s almost no conversation about cyber bullying. It was almost NONEXISTENT. Which is a scary thought when you think about it. What are we saying is ok and teaching is ok to the next generation? So after getting past my anger at those harassing me and the sadness over what they were saying, and for those who were also going through this experience too, I decided someone had to stand up. Enough was enough. We can’t keep pretending this wasn’t happening. So I determined the best way to do this was to create a campaign to spread awareness. Maybe it would become a thing and catch on. Maybe it wouldn’t. But I know I wouldn’t have been happy if I just stood by and let it continue to happen. What type of person would I be if I did that? I’m given the resources and the following to make something of it, so I said “well I mind as well do something.” And it sparked a fire within me, and A determination I never really had before.

Gaurdians Of The Galaxy Fan Art By Erin Lefler for #ForceAgainstCyberbullying

Why do think cyber-bullies bully other people online? Erin: Its hard to really determine the exact reason why people decide it’s OK to do it, but what I can come up with is many people find a strange sense of power behind a keyboard, and there’s almost no fight against cyber bullying. People most likely wouldn’t say these things if they had to look the person in the face, but hiding behind a screen? ‘Aha! There’s no consequence!’ People think. And it’s actually quite the contrary. Cyber bullying can have worse affects! Many people don’t know, but cyber bullying is the leading cause of suicide world wide. That’s a problem! And all for what; just so someone can feel better about themselves online? So they can feel bigger? Unfortunately this is what’s happening. When did this become an okay thing to do? If it’s not OK to do face to face and we raise awareness about that, why do we let cyberbullying slide? There should be accountability like there is for face to face harassment. But since there’s none, it’s open game for them you could say.

How much of a problem do you think cyber-bullying is in Fandom? Erin: I think it’s a huge problem! I’m sitting here, not only as someone who is working for Lucasfilms, but also as someone who is a fan of it. And sadly I’m watching this pull Star Wars fans apart. But it doesn’t stop at Lucasfilms. It spans from marvel, to Disney, to even cosplay. It spans over EVERYTHING. Fandoms are made to bring people together over something that we love. Not to slam someone from having their own opinions, not to say “oh, well this is cosplayer looks so much better than you” or “this art is so much better than yours.” Are you a fan of something? You probably express it in your own special way then. So if it’s okay for you to express it in your own way, it should be acceptable across the board for everyone to express in their way how they’re a fan. Now I’m not saying you can’t have an opinion on how someone expresses their love of a fandom, but is your opinion shared in kind? Should it even be shared at all? If we remembered this, I feel fandoms would become a lot less toxic towards one another. But as of right now it’s a big problem, and it needs to be addressed.

What can people do to stop cyber-bullying? Erin: Surprisingly there’s a lot you can do to stop cyber bullying from happening! First, here’s how not to be a cyber bully: if you don’t have something nice to say, simply DON’T SAY IT. Don’t comment on the tweet or post. Don’t direct message your displeasure to the person. Keep scrolling. Keep moving past it. Don’t hang up on the person to try to shame them. Just think, someone might do the same thing to you down the road. So how do you think you’d feel? If you wouldn’t like it done to you don’t do it to someone else. Simple as that. Next, here’s how to help if you see someone else being cyber bullied: stand with them. Stand up for them. If you see someone commenting ridiculously rude or obscene things at someone, maybe tell them something like this: “Can you please stop? This isn’t appropriate behavior. You wouldn’t like if someone did this to you, so don’t do it to this person.” Or if you see people ganging up against another person, saying it’s ‘just a joke’ or ‘constructive criticism’, try telling them something like: “Saying this doesn’t make your actions here ok. Please stop doing this to (insert person here). You didn’t need to say anything at all if you didn’t like this. So please just leave this person alone.” If you don’t feel brave enough to stand up like that, just send the person being affected by this a message saying something like: “hey I’m sorry you have to deal with this. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know. Please know that you’re not alone and if you need to talk I’m here for you.” If you’re being cyber bullied, there’s a lot of actions you can take to stop cyber bullying. First of all, do not isolate yourself. That’s the worst thing you can do. Talk to others. Surround yourself with those who love you and support you. Next, stand up for yourself. You don’t need to sit back and let it happen. You can politely tell the bullies to stop but honestly that will just add more fuel to their fire. They’re honestly not worth it. So the easy way to stand up for yourself is: 1) block, 2) report, 3) delete.

1). BLOCK. No one has the right to follow you if they’re harassing you. So just block them. This way they won’t be able to message you or comment at you to bully you. 2). REPORT. Now on some social media sites this is more effective than others. Twitter has an amazing report feature. Not only do they do an investigation on it, they let you provide proof to them of what’s happening, and give you updates on their findings. I’ve personally had to use this feature a lot on twitter and have seen some pretty great results with it. Instagram’s report feature isn’t as detailed, but you can still report if you have a problem. 3). DELETE. Okay, I know this might sound generic but yes, delete! (Insert Cyberman here…) if people are leaving harassing comments on your posts, or sending you harassing DM’s, there’s nothing saying they need to stay on your post. Just delete the comment. Delete the direct message. This way you don’t dwell on it, and it doesn’t bring you down. Shake it off!! Don’t give them the satisfaction of a response. Not only are you showing you’re a bigger person, but you’re also sending a message to the bully that their actions have no effect on you.

What message do you have for people who have been victims of cyber bullying? Erin: I think the message I have for those being cyber bullied, or those who have been cyber bullied is: you’re not alone. You’re NEVER alone. You are loved by so many and they all want to help you. There are so many who have been through the same things and have made it out OK. Talk to someone you trusts, don’t go through this by yourself. Don’t ever feel like these things being said to you are true. There’s a reason it’s happening behind a screen. Because the people who are doing it are cowards. And liars. And if they even just barely knew you, they’d know you’re so much more wonderful than their words. Simple as that. And if you’re feeling as the life you’re living isn’t worth living anymore, due to the harassment you’re going through: please rethink this. You are amazing, you are loved, and your life is more than worth it. Please seek help. You don’t have to go through this and feel this way alone. You don’t need to take your life because of people’s thoughtless actions. You have so much more to live for and accomplish. You are worth more than words. Please, remember that. I know I’m rooting you on… You can do this!! I’m going through it too. I know it’s not easy, but you can do it. And you can come out the victor. Just keep fighting against this.

Advice from Stopbullying.gov:

Prevent Cyberbullying

Be Aware of What Your Kids are Doing Online A child may be involved in cyberbullying in several ways. A child can be bullied, bully others, or witness bullying. Parents, teachers, and other adults may not be aware of all the digital media and apps that a child is using. The more digital platforms that a child uses, the more opportunities there are for being exposed to potential cyberbullying.

Warning Signs a Child Being Cyberbullied

Noticeable increases or decreases in device use, including texting.

A child exhibits emotional responses (laughter, anger, upset) to what is happening on their device.

A child hides their screen or device when others are near, and avoids discussion about what they are doing on their device.

Social media accounts are shut down or new ones appear.

A child starts to avoid social situations, even those that were enjoyed in the past.

A child becomes withdrawn or depressed, or loses interest in people and activities.

What to Do When Cyberbullying Happens

If you notice warning signs that a child may be involved in cyberbullying, take steps to investigate that child’s digital behavior. Cyberbullying is a form of bullying, and adults should take the same approach to address it: support the child being bullied, address the bullying behavior of a participant, and show children that cyberbullying is taken seriously. Because cyberbullying happens online, responding to it requires different approaches. If you think that a child is involved in cyberbullying, there are several things you can do.

Advice For Adult Victims

Justin W. Patchin from Cyberbullying.Org suggests:

“First, it is important to keep all evidence of the bullying: messages, posts, comments, etc. If there are ways you can determine who exactly is making the comments, also document that. Second, contact the service or content provider through which the bullying is occurring. For example, if you are being cyberbullied on Facebook, contact them. If you are receiving hurtful or threatening cell phone messages, contact your cell phone company to obtain assistance. Along those same lines, familiarize yourself with the Terms of Use for the various sites you frequent, and the online accounts you sign up for. Many web sites expressly prohibit harassment and if you report it through their established mechanisms, the content and/or bully should be removed from the site in a timely manner. To be sure, some web site administrators are better and quicker at this than others.

Also, please be careful not to retaliate – or do anything that might be perceived by an outsider to have contributed to the problem. Do not respond to the cyberbully except to calmly tell them to stop. If they refuse, you may have to take additional actions. If you are ever afraid for your safety, you need to contact law enforcement to investigate. They can determine whether any threats made are credible. If they are, the police will formally look into it. The evidence that you have collected will help them to evaluate your situation.

You should also take the time to check your state laws. We have discussed some of these laws on this blog and have a summary of many applicable laws here. In Wisconsin, for example, it is a misdemeanor if someone uses computerized communication systems to “frighten, intimidate, threaten, abuse, or harass another person.” It is also against the law to “harass annoy, or offend another person.” See what the laws in your state are to determine if the police should get involved.

If the threats or comments are detrimental to your health, safety, or occupation, you might want to consult with an attorney who specializes in harassment, defamation of character, false light, intentional infliction of emotional distress, or similar types of civil action. A letter sent from an attorney (on law firm letterhead) to the bully may be all that is necessary to get the bullying to stop.”

If You Are The Bully

Wiki How has a great post about ways to identify bullying behaviors and how to help control them.

Understand Bullying. Know what constitutes bullying. Learn to identify bullying and fully understand its consequences. Know what causes bullying.

Conduct a Self-Examination. Identify bullying patterns in your life. Identify your insecurities. Reflect on how it feels to bully others.

Take Control of you Behavior. Put yourself in the victim’s perspective. Ask yourself how the victims of bullying feels when you’re bullying them. Ask yourself what the reason is for the bullying. Stopping yourself from bullying. Take a moment to think. Remove yourself from groups of people who reward you for bullying others. Practice empathizing with others. Change outlook on things. Get help from a professional.

Make Amends. Apologize to people you have bullied. Forgive yourself. Treat people with respect from now on.

We can all help prevent suicide. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Call 1-800-273-8255 Available 24 hours everyday

For more from Erin Lefler you can visit her website at: https://linktr.ee/butternut_gouache

The Force Against Cyberbullying Campaign With the every growing popularity of geek and nerd culture, more and more people come together to join in on the celebration of their favorite franchises and characters.

#Butternut #butternut_gouache #cyber bullying #Erin Lefler #fandom #Force Aginst Cyber Bullying #GEEK #geek news #rose tico #rose tico instagram #Star Wars

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jacketskider · 4 years

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bisnes-socks · 7 years

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I need to rant a little bit

because being a movie fan in this day and age is EXHAUSTING. For so many reasons tbh, but what i want to talk about right now is big franchise films and their lack of representation and diversity.

This going to be a long and probably very incoherent post so, apologies. Heck I might even be wrong in some of this; my knowledge is limited and my sources biased. These are just my observations and I'm finding it difficult to be super articulate because I'm so tired of all if this.

I'm so tired of having to beg and scream for diversity, for representation for people who are not white cishet males. Because the thing is, these franchises have NOTHING to lose. NOTHING, no matter what they would like us to believe.

When you look at a film like The Force Awakens and you look at the budget and the box office, you know that movie was a success. Even AFTER you do the necessary maths. About 50% of the box office money goes to movie theaters and approximately 30% of the remaining money goes to distributors. The exact numbers vary of course, but these are the averages i was taught. Only then can you even start thinking about "paying back" the budget. And this isn't even taking into consideration any profit deals individuals might have. But even after all this, even if somebody got nice bonuses off the box office money, TFA did incredibly well. It did well domestically and it did well internationally. What ever was going to follow that was most likely going to do really well too. Disney/Lucasfilm could have done anything at all, but with the right kind of energy and hype (that they already achieved with TFA) they could have sold it. But they were too scared to do it. Too scared to take any risks. So what we got was a self-proclaimed edgy new take on things, that wasn't actually fresh or original at all. The audiences didn't like it. Of course we didn't. We could have had anything at all. And the thing is, we are most likely never going to get what we want. Because after TLJ, Disney/Lf can't actually afford to miss. Yeah, TLJ did well compared to most other films. But it didn't do as well as TFA. And nobody wants each film of a trilogy to do worse that the previous one. So what's going to happen now? Disney/Lf needs to make sure Episode 9 does as well if not better than TFA. And you know what that means? Eliminating all risk factors. And unfortunately risk factors mean poc, especially woc, possibly white women too (while KK seems to love to self-insert, the whole conversation around the women in TLJ is a mess and honestly, who knows what Disney/Lf take out of it) and any and all lgbtq+ people. Why are they risk factors? Because nobody knows how audiences might react to them in movies of this magnitude because nobody is willing to try. See how it's a cycle?

But the truth is these companies have absolutely nothing to lose. Nothing but their weird pride. Literally nothing is stopping Disney from making it's films and franchises more diverse than their own greed and need to be absolute number one. And that happens by playing it safe and covering as many bases as they can. And in their eyes queerbating is enough to cover the lgbtq+ base, one or two moc should keep poc happy, and one or two white women should be enough for all women. They think alienating conservative people is a bigger risk than pissing of minorities because they have no idea what these minorities want. Nobody does because nobody asks. And they have no idea how much money is in "pleasing" minorities because nobody has tried it on this level before and they are not going to be the first ones to risk it.

Which is why i hope Black Panther does well. I hope it does better than any Marvel movie before. Which, in all honesty, it probably wont at least internationally, but I want Marvel and Disney to see that conservative white people aren't the only ones with the ability to affect the market. But it's becoming pretty clear Disney and Marvel don't trust Black Panther, at least not as an international box office hit. I don't know what level of marketing the movie has in the USA, but they sure as hell aren't marketing it here, in this country.

But then, here's the thing. Marvel/Disney hardly care about this country. In fact, they don't care about individual European countries at all - which makes sense from a marketing point of view of course. But there are two markets they do care about. The first one is their domestic market, so the USA. The second one is the Chinese market, which is growing insanely fast and has been growing for years. Seriously, go have a look at box office numbers from China from the past ten years or so. The Chinese market has exploded, fast. And Disney desparately wants to counquer that market.

So, what do they do? They try to make their movies as pleasing to big Chinese audiences as possible. Remember the whole Doctor Strange mess? It goes to show two things: 1) Disney/Marvel is more than willing to do what Chinese market tells them to and 2) they still have no grasp on what the Chinese audiences actually want. Because you know what? Doctor Strange didn't even do that amazingly in China. But man are they still trying. I mean seriously. Don't even for a second think that both Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman being in the MCU is a coincidence. It isn't. Sherlock was massively popular around the world including China and they both have a massive following there. Look at how small Martin Freeman’s part was in Civil War. They knew they needed somebody to sell Black Panther with to markets like China (and other very strongly non-black markets, but China is the one they care about) since the amount of successful films in these international markets lead by black actors is really small - and that's due to so many different levels of racism affected by so many things that it deserves it's own post.

But. They still think that their best shot at selling films in the Chinese market is through white film stars. Which goes to show they still don't get it. Now, I am not an expert in Chinese culture. But looking at Chinese box office numbers it seems pretty clear to me that Chinese people want to watch Chinese talents. And it is mind boggling to me that Disney/Marvel don't seem to get it. If you want your movie to be number one at the Chinese box office, how about you hire Chinese actors. How about you hire somebody who understands Chinese culture.

Because in 2017 and 2018 we have been seeing, and still are seeing what happens when people see themselves represented in the biggest movies on the planet. Remember all those tweets and posts and photos and videos from women about Wonder Woman? Remember how women literally cried in the cinema for two hours because there was finally a female hero who wasn't strong despite being a woman, she was just strong, and who wasn't constantly belittled and harrassed? Look at black people right now, getting ready to finally see a black superhero lead a film of his own, see their heritage and culture referenced and celebrated, see a black hero who is not shaped or guided by white people, see an African country and culture that wasn't invaded by white countries? Wonder Woman was a huge success both financially and critically. Black Panther has already set a new record in pre-sales. The reaction seems pretty clear. So what makes Disney/Marvel think that the best way to sell movies in China, one of the biggest markets in the world, is not only pushing through more white people but actively erasing Asian characters, like in the case of Doctor Strange?

Honestly I think it's because, again, they want to cover all bases (so basically, racism). So hiring Chinese actors (or apparently even actors of any Asian descent) seems too risky to them. What if the conservatives wont like it, GASP. So here we are again. They are not willing to take the risk, because even if the Chinese market is important, the domestic market is even more important. Which probably explains the lack of any lgbtq+ characters as well. Look at the countries that make up the biggest markets. There is no marriage equality in China and as I understand (correct me if I’m wrong) Asian cultures can often still be very conservative. As are many people in the USA too, I mean look at the raging homophobe, transphobe and misogynist who’s leading the country right now. American conservatives are quick to turn any lgbtq+ representation into a child protecting issue and China seems like a tricky market when it comes to content some could see as “raunchy”, because apparently, all films must be family friendly to get cinematic release (this is according to sources like Cinemablend, so correct me if I’m wrong here). So films like Deadpool get banned. And I’m relatively certain that the conservatives are the same almost anywhere in the world. “How will I explain this to my kids?!?!?!?” is their go-to argument. And if Disney/Marvel has ANY reason at all to think that the Chinese market could view a gay kiss, for example, as unsuitable for children, they are not going to do it. And heck, you think they could sell a gay Captain America or gay Star Wars characters to Russia or pretty much any country culturally close to Russia at this moment in time? Think again. But hey, you might ask, didn’t Deadpool do really well? Even after being banned in countries? Wasn’t Wonder Woman banned too in some countries? Well, yes. Deadpool did do well, because it had a tiny budget and nobody expected much. It did well considering it didn’t get a release in the world’s second biggest market. And it did well in becoming a topic of conversation, more than blowing up the box office. And yes, WW did get banned too in some countries, but these aren’t the kind of countries Hollywood cares about. But isn’t that just the thing. There is money that they care about and there is money that they don’t give a shit about. And our gay money is not something they care about. They like to pretend that they do though. Remember Disney practically handing itself awards for Greatest Gay Rep Ever for those tiny gay hints in Beauty and the Beast? And remember how literally nobody liked it? For various different reasons of course. But that’s exactly the kind of thing that’s enough for them to deny any future lgbtq+ content. “Oh, nobody liked that there was a gay character in Beauty and the Beast? Well, we tried, but the world is just not ready. So no, Tessa and Taika, Valkyrie can’t have a woman leaving her bedroom. The people just don’t want to see it.” And in all seriousness, that Ragnarok thing for example, was 100% not even about money. It was about Disney/Marvel values. Because any raging homophobe could have found an alternative explanation to a woman leaving a room. But no, it just cannot be. Because reasons.

So really, Disney and all it's little friends like Marvel and Lucasfilm are cowards. They are so greedy and hungry for money they don't really care about the content of their productions. They care about production value. Their goal is to make movies that are so cool and epic and awesome that we forget about the poor representation, lack of diversity, weak stories and repetition of tired tropes. And damn. It works. Here we all are, myself included, going on about how much this sucks. And then run to the next Massive Disney Production Opening in A Cinema Near You. And that's why this is so exhausting. We want cool and awesome things too. We want to escape reality. And these are the best movies out there for that purpose. And don't get me wrong, some of these movies are legitimately good. I grew up in a family of film elitists, I’m a relatively recent fan of these films because of that, and i have the best education in film analysis and film research this country even offers, but I will fight anyone who dares to piss on Captain America: The Winter Soldier. I loved Wonder Woman. Ragnarok was my favourite thing of 2017. And The Force Awakens was straight up delightful. And I will seriously argue these are good and well done films, not just nice entertainment. But that's the thing, isn't it. They give us just enough of the good stuff so we will tolerate the rest. And that is why we will not get what we truly want. We will not get the representation we deserve or the content we want to see. We will, however, get little bits and pieces here and there. And who can judge us for watching these movies, loving these movies, loving these characters. We can recognize the universally humane themes of these characters and their stories even if they are not directly aimed at us - partially because we have been taught to see white cishet men's stories as universal.

But we can and we deserve to enjoy these movies. But it is exhausting.

#rant #im tired #disney #marvel #lucasfilm #mcu #star wars #movies #my post #my rant #my anger #representation #diversity #representation matters #sw:tfa #sw:tlj #black panther #wonder woman #thor: ragnarok

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