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machinations-ii · 3 years

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Debut Album of The Strokes' Is This It and Interpol's Turn on the Bright Lights.

TURN ON THE BRIGHT LIGHTS

New York City was in transition in 2002, the devastation of 9/11 still lingered but a new sense of goodwill and compassion flowed through the city with dozens of bands reanimating a faded glory that had come to define the Giuliani era. Arriving after several well-regarded EPS that honed Interpol's Sonic and sartorial sense, it's possible no album captured this moment as vividly as their debut turn on the bright lights. Interpol took shape at NYU in the late 1990s where the band formed partially as a result of mutual fashion appreciation. Frontman Paul banks had come across bassist Carlos dangler in their dorm wearing skin tight black clothing and a giant crucifix. Meanwhile guitarist daniel kessler had already gotten to know Dengler in a world war 1 class after approaching him with a compliment about his shoes, and the trio eventually found replacement drummer Sam Fogerino while he was working in a used clothing store. Soon after coming together, the group started to jam at Funkadelic studios, PDA was already in embryonic form by then. After hustling in the NYC circuit and recording here and there, a chance meeting with Emma Pollock of the Delgado's led to the release of an Interpol EP in 2000 on the esteemed chemical underground label. On the heels of the EP success and in the midst of the post strokes gold rush in New York City, Interpol scored a deal with Matador Records then home to bands like Belen Sebastian, yo a tango, and pavement. Chris Lombardi of Matador claimed that he was most impressed by the business-like manner with which the band conducted themselves the suits first and foremost. Interpol decided to record turn on the bright lights at producer Peter Quedas's home studio in Bridgeport Connecticut to avoid all of the temptations New York City had to offer a hot young band while Cadis has gone on to produce the national, Frightened Rabbit, and Yan C, his most recent credit prior to turn on the bright lights was engineering the get up kids on a wire. Sessions were contentious Carlos D had wanted more keyboards, more nights on the town, and the title of the record to be celebrated baselines of the future. If banks had his way, PDA wouldn't have even made the record. However Quedas protested and told him that's their hit single, which it was. Quedas was not enthused with the new, until the final mix which had him in tears. But for all the seriousness and grandeur of turn on the bright lights moments of humor abounded. The spoken intro of Stella was a diver and she was always down; was recorded while banks was ad-libbing with ice in his mouth “this one called Stella was a diver she's always down”. Anchored by Carlos D and Fogerino’s hulking rhythm section, Banks created it in New York City recognizable to its citizens but in cryptic indelible lyrics. “The subway was a porno”, “relationships were a bracelet” and “they had 200 couches for you to sleep” when it all felt like too much. Beginning with a crowd stoking instrumental that would foreshadow runs opening for U2 and the Cure, turn on the bright lights resulted in music of unusually sweeping and grandiose gestures that felt foreign to rock music in general at the time but especially to indie rock. It's hard to imagine the transition towards the post-punk bombast of Arcade Fire, The Killers, and the National without Interpol opening the lane first. While local papers would occasionally snark at them as fashion victims and post-punk dilettante, critical acclaim for turn on the bright lights was overwhelmingly positive. The brilliance of turn on the bright lights is all the more apparent 19 years later a beacon that continues to shine radiantly during its city's darkest moments. IS THIS IT

Fueled by hype that was extraordinary even by the standards of the British press, The Strokes became instant superstars in the UK long before their fellow Americans heard “is this it” thirty-six stylish lo-Fi down-and-dirty minutes of unwholesome Downton Blues that evoke The Velvet Underground, The Ramones, television, and countless others who will firm New York City as the epicenter of punk rock cool, the strokes debut was already in stores in the UK for months before its eventual American release mere weeks after the September 11th attacks. Is this it subsequently took on an unintended resonance and became a sentimental document of a New York City that would no longer exist after Rudolph Giuliani, gentrification, and the war on terror. The Strokes may not have saved rock and roll themselves but The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, the killers, and the Arctic Monkeys likely wouldn't exist without “is this it”. while several members of The Strokes have been playing together since high school in a project called “just pipe” the band truly took shape after guitarist Albert Hammond jr. joined the group he and singer Julian Casablancas attended the same Swiss boarding school and reconnected after Hammond returned to New York City and serendipitously moved across the street from Elite Model Management which just so happened to be owned by Casablancas’ father. Contrary to the stereotype of The Strokes as a prefab overnight success, the group struggled throughout the late 90s playing to empty rooms before their demo got the attention of Rough Trade ANR man Jeff Travis, nor were they predator naturally cool from the start. before The Strokes first gig Hammond claims the band was so nervous they watched the Eddie Murphy movie Bowfinger to calm themselves. Preliminary sessions for is this it were recorded with Gil Norton best known for his work with the Pixies but also Foo Fighters “ultra slick the color in the shape” for the album itself The Strokes would reunite with Gordon Raphael who previously produced the modern age EP. The unorthodox production of “is this it” was the result of Raphael using a minimal number of microphones and following Casablancas says requests to have it sound like your favorite blue jeans not totally destroyed but worn in comfortable. According to Raphael an A&R guy named Steve obelisk II held is this it most unprofessional sounding music that he has never heard. The strokes declined the invitation from MTV to play alongside the vines in the hives at the 2002 Video Music Awards. The band didn't want to be lumped in to quote the new rock revolution it consisted of mostly bands with the word the and a plural noun in their names. Casablancas told MTV I'm not going to do a band off with them and strokes manager Ryan gentle said “that was pretty much the last time we were played on MTV”. The infamous bare-bottom on the international release of is this it is that of photographer Colin lanes girlfriend, however concerns about whether conservative chain stores like Target and Walmart would carry the record but The Strokes to switch to the American cover shot of a subatomic particle in a bubble chamber Casablancas is rumored to have liked it even more than the original. A more crucial alteration from the international version involves the removal of its own, New York City cops all involved agreed that a chorus of New York City cops they ain't that smart would be considered in poor taste after 9/11 even if the song was written years previous by removing the song from the US release of is this it there's not a single song in a Strokes album that has mentioned New York City by name. Well The Strokes achieved a level of popularity rivaled by few American bands in the 21st century is this it was considered a commercial disappointment in its time it peaked only at number 33 on Billboard while lead single last night topped out at number five of the modern rock chart with some day stalling at Number 17. Long story short, these two albums (and arguably two of the best rock albums of all time) had left a dent in my

life for it defined my teenage years when I had nothing, lost, and frustrated with my life. It reminded me the melancholic time that I had in the past. So I'll leave you guys with a lyrics from each album and try to find the song that corresponds to it :). "I have 7 faces, and I know which one to wear" "Soma is what they would take when hard times opened their eyes and saw pain in a new way"

#the strokes #interpol #creative-nonfiction #blog #two of my favorites

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claudia1829things · 4 years

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"FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" (1967) Review

"FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" (1998) Review To my knowledge, there have been five adaptations of Thomas Hardy's 1874 novel, "Far From the Madding Crowd". One of them is even a modern day adaptation. I have not seen this modern version of Hardy's novel. But I have seen at least three adaptations, including the 1967 version directed by John Schlesinger.

"FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" - at least the 1967 version - has been highly regarded by critics, moviegoers and fans of Hardy's novel for nearly five decades. It is the adaptation that other ones have been measured against . . . much to their detriment. "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" was a different direction for Schlesinger. It would prove to be the first of five period productions directed by him. Schlesinger and screenwriter Frederic Raphael stuck as closely to Hardy's novel as they possibly could. The movie was not a hundred percent adaptation of Hardy's novel, but it was pretty close. Anyone familiar with Hardy's novel know the tale. It begins with a young 19th century Englishwoman named Bathsheba Everdene, living on a farm with her aunt, Mrs. Hurst. She meets Gabriel Oak, a former shepherd who has leased and stocked a sheep farm. Gabriel falls in love with Bathsheba and eventually proposes marriage. Although she likes Gabriel, Bathsheba values her independence too much and rejects his marriage proposal. Gabriel's fortunes take a worse for turn, when his inexperienced sheep dog drives his flock of sheep over a cliff, bankrupting him. Bathsheba, on the other hand, inherits her uncle's prosperous estate. Their paths crosses again, and she ends up hiring Gabriel as her new shepherd. Bathsheba has also become acquainted with her new neighbor, the wealthy farmer John Boldwood, who becomes romantically obsessed with her after she sends him a Valentine's Day card as a joke. He sets about wooing her in a persistent manner that she finds difficult to ignore. But just as Bathsheba is about to consider Mr. Boldwood as a potential husband, Sergeant Frank Troy enters her life and she becomes infatuated with him. Frank was set to marry one of Bathsheba's former servants, a young woman named Fanny Robin. Unfortunately, the latter showed up at the wrong church for the wedding and an angry and humiliated Frank called off the wedding. Bathsheba finds herself in the middle of a rather unpleasant love triangle between Boldwood and Frank, while Gabriel can only watch helplessly as the situation develops into tragedy. "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" is a beautiful movie to behold . . . visually. One can credit the movie's sweeping and colorful look to its iconic cinematographer Nicolas Roeg. Thanks to the latter, the English counties of Wiltshire and Dorset never looked lovelier. Not surprisingly, Roeg earned a BAFTA nomination for his work. The movie also benefited from Richard Macdonald's production designs, which did an excellent job in recreating rural England in the mid 19th century. This was especially apparent in those scenes that featured Gabriel's arrival at Shottwood, and his attempts to get hired as a bailiff or a shepherd at a hiring fair; the harvest meal at the Everdene farm; Bathsheba's meeting with Frank in Bath; the rural fair attended by Bathsheba and Mr. Boldwood; and the Christmas party held by Mr. Boldwood. I will not pretend that I found Richard Rodney Bennett's score particularly memorable. But I must admit that it blended well with the movie's plot and Schlesinger's direction. I also noticed that Bennett added traditional English folk songs in various scenes throughout the movie. I have seen at least two movie versions and one television adaptation of Hardy's novel. And it occurred to me that the main reason why I ended up enjoying all three adaptations so much is that I really liked Hardy's tale. I really do. More importantly, all three adaptations, including this 1967 movie, did an excellent job in capturing the novel's spirit. With a running time of 169 minutes, "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" took its time in conveying Hardy's story . . . with a few little shortcuts. And thanks to Schlesinger's direction and Raphael's screenplay, the movie not only recaptured both the idyllic nature of 19th century rural England, but also its harsh realities. More importantly, the movie brought alive to the screen, Hardy's complex characters and romances. Hollywood once made a movie about a woman torn between three men in 1941's "TOM, DICK, AND HARRY" with Ginger Rogers. But the complexity between the one woman and the three men was nothing in compare to this tale. Especially, when the leading lady is such a complex and ambiguous character like Bathsheba Everdene. Another aspect of "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" that I enjoyed were the interactions between the movie's leads and the supporting cast who portrayed Bathsheba's employees. Like her relationships with Gabriel, Frank and Mr. Boldwood; the leading lady's relationships with her employees - especially the women who worked inside her home - proved to be very interesting. There was a good deal of controversy when Julie Christie was announced as the actress to portray Bathsheba Everdene. Apparently, the media did not consider her capable of portraying the tumultuous mid-Victorian maiden . . . or any other period character. Well, she proved them wrong. Christie gave a very skillful and nuanced performance as the ambiguous Bathsheba, capturing the character's passion, vanity and at times, insecurity. Terence Stamp was another actor more associated with the Swinging Sixties scene in London, but unlike Christie, his casting did not generate any controversy. I might as well place my cards on the table. I think Stamp proved to be the best Frank Troy I have seen on screen, despite the first-rate performances of the other two actors I have seen in role. He really did an excellent job in re-creating Frank's charm, roguishness and unstable nature. Thanks to Stamp's performance, I can see why Schlesinger became so fascinated with the character. Despite Christie and Stamp's popularity with moviegoers, the two actors who walked away with nominations and an award were Peter Finch and Alan Bates. No matter how interesting all of the other characters were, I personally found the William Boldwood character to be the most fascinating one in Hardy's tale. And Peter Finch, who won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actor did a superb job in bringing the character to life. Finch beautifully re-captured the nuances of a character that I not only found sympathetic, but also a bit frightening at times. Alan Bates earned a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of the stalwart Gabriel Oak, which I believe he fully deserved. I think portraying such a minimalist character like Gabriel must be quite difficult for any actor. He is a character that required real skill and subtlety. Bates certainly did the job. The actor managed to convey the passion that Gabriel harbored for Bathsheba without any theatrical acting and at the same time, convey the character's introverted and sensible nature. The movie also benefited from some skillful and solid work from its supporting cast that included Golden Globe nominee Prunella Ransome, who portrayed the tragic Fanny Robin; Fiona Walker (from 1972's "EMMA"); Alison Leggatt; John Barrett; and iconic character actor, Freddie Jones. As much as I enjoyed "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD", there were some aspects of the production that I found troublesome. Earlier, I had pointed out that Schlesinger had seemed so fascinated by the Frank Troy character. And while this contributed to Terence Stamp's presence in the movie, Schlesinger's handling of the character threatened to overshadow the entire movie. Quite frankly, he seemed a bit too obsessed with Frank for my tastes. This heavy emphasis on Frank - especially in two-thirds of the movie - also seemed to overshadow Bathsheba's relationship with Gabriel Oak. At one point, I found myself wondering what happened to the character. Worse, the chemistry between Julie Christie and Alan Bates had somewhat dissipated by the movie's last act to the point that it barely seemed to exist by the end of the movie. And Schlesinger allowed the "ghost" of Frank Troy to hover over Bathsheba and Gabriel's future relationship by ending the movie with a shot of a toy soldier inside the Everdeen-Oak household. No wonder Stamp was credited as the male lead in this film. There were other aspects of "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" that either troubled me or failed to impress me. I am at a loss on how Prunella Ransome earned a Golden Globe nomination for her portrayal of Fanny Robin. Mind you, she gave a very good performance. But she was on the screen for such a small amount of time that there seemed to be no opportunity for the narrative to delve into her character. Ransome's Fanny came off as a plot device and a part of me cannot help but blame Hardy's original novel for this failure. Although I cannot deny that Nicholas Roeg's cinematography was visually beautiful to me; I also found myself annoyed by his and Schlesinger's overuse of far shots. It reminded me of how director William Wyler and cinematographer Franz F. Planer nearly went overboard in their use of far shots in the 1958 western, "THE BIG COUNTRY". I read somewhere that Alan Barrett had earned a BAFTA nomination for Best Costume Designs for this film. I do not mean to be cruel, but how in the hell did that happened? I have to be frank. I was not impressed with the costumes featured in this film. Although I managed to spot a few costumes that struck me as a well-done re-creation of fashion in the mid-to-late 1860s, most of the other costumes looked as if they had been rented from a warehouse in Hollywood or London. Not impressed at all. Aside from my complaints, I enjoyed "FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD" very much. A good deal of delight in the film originated with Thomas Hardy's original tale. But if I must be honest, a good deal of filmmakers have screwed up a potential adaptation with either bad writing, bad direction or both. Thankfully, I cannot say the same about "FAR FROM MADDING CROWD". Thanks to the first-rate artistry of the film's crew, a well-written screenplay by Frederic Raphael, a very talented cast led by Julie Christie; director John Schlesinger did an excellent in bringing Hardy's tale to the screen.

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justfinishedreading · 4 years

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The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

SPOILERS.

Written in 1915, this a novella about a middle-class salesman who one day turns into a giant beetle-like creature. But it is much more than that. Much like fairy tales and horror stories, The Metamorphosis takes the absurd and fantastical and uses it to illustrate the problems with human fear and morality; it is not only the sensational story of a grotesque physical change but also the story of the negative behavioural change in himself and his family: how they react to his transformation and how he is dehumanized in their eyes.

Let’s start at the beginning; Gregor wakes up and he needs to get ready for work, all around him he hears the people of the house starting their day, but he cannot get out of bed; he doesn’t feel right, something is different with his body. The minutes tick away, he knows he should get up but he can’t bring himself to do it. Each member of his family knock at his locked door to find out what’s wrong, even his chief from work shows up at the house, and yet Gregor still can’t get up. This section reminded me so much of depression; the difficulty in taking action, the desire to just stay in bed, just a little bit longer, of wanting to shut out the world and enclose yourself in the safety of your room.

Gregor’s family is made up of: his father, who stopped working because of health issues, his mother, who also does not work because of health issues, and a younger sister, in her mid or late teens. The family is served by a maid and a cook. The house is never fully described but it has several rooms and we can guess that this is a middle-class family who live in relative comfort. Not only is Gregor the sole breadwinner whom the family depend upon, he is also currently paying off his father’s debts. While Gregor feels a lot of pressure from both family and work, he also takes a certain pride in knowing that he is so important to the family; he takes pride in his fantasy of noble self-sacrifice. It’s obvious from the beginning that he is being used but as the story progresses we learn just how much he is being taken advantage of. He is a fool for his pride, whilst he built himself up in his mind as the saviour of the family, in truth he was just a malleable tool. I have to admit I can identify with Gregor, my family can be high-maintenance and frequently require help and I do feel a sense of pride at being the one they come to, but it’s a mistake to try to permanently attribute the roles of “helper” and “helpless”, because, as we find out in The Metamorphosis, those roles are of course interchangeable.

As Gregor’s family bang on his door, demanding to know what is going on, we’re told that they can’t get in because Gregor often locks it, a habit picked up whilst traveling for work and staying at inns and hotels. That’s his explanation for why his bedroom door is locked (whilst he was sleeping) in his own family home, but we can guess that the only way for him to get some peace from his insistently needy family is to literally, physically lock them out.

The Metamorphosis is divided into three parts, in part one Gregor has not shown up for work in the morning of the transformation and immediately the general manager shows up at the house demanding to know where Gregor is. Whilst Gregor struggles to get out of bed, struggling with his new giant beetle-like body to stand up right, and hasn’t even managed to unlock his door yet with his insect arms, he can hear the general manager tell the family “we are very often obliged to supress indispositions out of consideration for the firm.” I don’t know how these beliefs are inflicted upon us but this is something I felt when I entered the work industry, and to some extent still haven’t fully shaken off: the idea that we have an obligation to a company, to work, and to feel guilt when we are to unwell to do so. As Gregor struggles with his new body, he considers “that he will later, once the hindrance has been overcome, work all the more industriously and with greater focus.” As if he must of course make up for lost time, as if this transformation is his fault.

When the family discovers his transformation the story sidesteps all realism in dealing with such a phenonium, neither the protagonist nor his family give much thought as to how his transformation actually happened, nor do they seek guidance from doctors or police or clergymen. Like a fairy tale, how and why are not important, what’s important is the effect. This is a story about physical and mental illness, about depression, feelings of inadequacy, feelings of entrapment, the sense of obligation and the illusion of altruism.

In part two, Gregor’s sister, Grete, becomes the self-appointed caregiver to Gregor. Neither their father nor mother venture into Gregor’s room, and Grete feels the same self-sacrificing, self-righteous satisfaction that Gregor felt when he was the sole provider for the family. Grete is now the member of the family who is able “to deal” with the situation. At first, she is proud to be the one to show compassion towards her brother but as time goes by she grows tired of looking after him and start to neglect her duties. One day she orders her mother to help her remove the furniture and belongings from Gregor’s room. On one hand removing the furniture allows Gregor to scurry more comfortably across the walls and the ceiling, on the other hand it removes his human possessions, his memories, his connection to his humanity; he is now just a burdensome creature in a cage.

He thinks to himself that “he should behave calmly and, by employing patience and the utmost consideration, assist his family in enduring the inconveniences his current state inevitably forced him to impose on them.” And yet, although part of his personality still sees himself as the self-sacrificing martyr, the truth is he passively accepting his new situation, he hides under a sofa whenever anyone comes into his room, for most of the story he makes no attempt to engage with the family and even ignores the new servant who is the only one unafraid to be in his presence. Part of Gregor WANTS to be looked after, feels it’s his turn to be cared for. However Gregor does not have the same experience in these matters as his family does: when they were leeching off him they made him out to be their hero, they doted on him, framing a prominent photo of him in the living room and gave him the illusion of control and respect by letting him pick which house they all live in. But as Gregor leeches off his family, he gives them no pleasure in return for their efforts.

Just how much his family used him becomes apparent when, without Gregor’s income, all three members of the family manage to successfully find employment, they reduce household staff, and it is revealed that the father was secretly stowing away part of Gregor’s income without his son’s knowledge. His father gets a sort of security-guard-type job at a bank, which, like Gregor, like Grete, he pompously takes pride in, and wears his uniform all the time, even whilst at home.

All throughout the story the family make no attempts to communicate with Gregor, to see if it is even possible to communicate with him. They hide him away like some dirty family secret, indicative of the attitude towards sufferers of mental illness or physical disease at the time. These people would be hidden away, taken care of yes, but ignored. And even now a large part of society still seems to instinctively want to cast off people with mental and physical disabilities.

There’s a lot more I could analyse about The Metamorphosis, for such a short novella it certainly packs an everlasting punch, it’s a text that is often taught and studied, and in a broad sense uses the horror genre to expose ugly nuances of human egos and relationships.

There’s one last thing I want to write: in part three the situation worsens and Gregor dies, once he dies the family who up until now have been referred to as Gregor’s father, Gregor’s mother, Gregor’s sister / Grete, now become Herr Samsa, Frau Samsa and their daughter. The focus is no longer on Gregor, and as the mother and father look at their daughter’s young adult body, and remark what a fine woman she has become, it’s clear who is the next person to leeched onto.

Review by Book Hamster

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stainedglassgardens · 4 years

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Watched in April

Queen of Earth Black Christmas Dogs of Chernobyl Firecrackers Les Misérables The Evil Dead The Daughters of Fire (Las hijas del fuego) The Fallen Idol The Wailing (곡성, Gokseong) Inherent Vice Sorrowful Shadow Mistery Lonely The Grand Bizarre Zombieland: Double Tap Waves '98 Uncut Gems The Last Séance Too Late to Die Young (Tarde para morir joven) Room Queen & Slim The Holy Mountain (La montaña sagrada) The Chaser ( 추격자, Chugyeokja) Made in Dagenham The Color of Pomegranates (Նռան գույնը, Nřan guynə) Lost Girls Ghost Town Anthology (Répertoire des villes disparues) And Then There Were None Doctor Sleep Meshes of the Afternoon Circus of Books Catfish Wildling Delphine The Strange Love of Martha Ivers The Red Balloon (Le Ballon rouge) Nona. If They Soak Me, I’ll Burn Them (Nona. Si me mojan, yo los quemo) The Lodge Invisible Man Sans Soleil

Did not finish

Horsehead (Romain Basset, 2014) Sinister (Scott Derrickson, 2012)

Did not like

Sorrowful Shadow (Guy Maddin, 2004) Mistery Lonely (Harmony Korine, 2007) Uncut Gems (Josh and Benny Safdie, 2019) The Last Séance (Laura Kulik, 2018) The Holy Mountain (La montaña sagrada, Alejandro Jodorowsky, 1973) Doctor Sleep (Mike Flanagan, 2019)

Okay

Queen of Earth (Alex Ross Perry, 2015): The way it was filmed reminded me of The Midnight Swim and Always Shine. I watched it because Elisabeth Moss is in it but was rather disappointed in the end -- it was beautifully shot but went nowhere

Black Christmas (Sophia Takal, 2019): Like Assassination Nation, this is a film I'm glad young people today have -- and it was fine, and if there’s anything I’ve got to say about so-called raging feminists it’s that we need more of them, but yeah the ending was disappointing and I felt that I had aged out of the target audience a good number of years ago

The Evil Dead (Sam Raimi, 1981): Finally saw this! Love me a a good campy horror story once in a while

The Wailing (곡성, Gokseong) and The Chaser ( 추격자, Chugyeokja) (Na Hong-jin, 2016 and 2008): A healthy dose of wtf in both of those, I’m still not sure I “correctly” grasped the intended tone. I also just lost all interest in The Chaser when (spoiler) the girl died. What’s the point of that? Are we in Game of Thrones now? I may still be angry about that, actually

Inherent Vice (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2014): I know it’s a good film but it bored me to death. I don’t like stories about men or drugs

Zombieland: Double Tap (Ruben Fleischer, 2019): A sympathetic, slightly disappointing sequel

Waves '98 (Ely Dagher, 2015): I don’t remember much about this short but I did think it was good

Room (Lenny Abrahamson, 2015): I couldn’t watch this as separate from the book, it felt more like a companion film to me than anything else. It was good I think, but I’m definitely not the best judge on this one, because the book was so amazing and I’m still not over it, apparently

And Then There Were None (René Clair, 1945): Was it good? Who knows. They changed the ending and added in a crap love story, so who cares, really

Wildling (Fritz Böhm, 2018): I liked it? I didn’t really see the “feminist themes” in this but it was good

Delphine (Chloé Robichaud, 2019): This is one of those short films that are a little too “slice of life” for me to really enjoy. I can tell it’s good, tho

The Red Balloon (Le Ballon rouge, Albert Lamorisse, 1956): This is apparently a classic short film, and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot had I seen it in 1956. Seeing it today, when everything in it has been used in a hundred thousand other films, made it fall flat a little

Nona. If They Soak Me, I’ll Burn Them (Nona. Si me mojan, yo los quemo, Camila José Donoso, 2019): Watched this because it was directed by a woman! Did not know what to expect at all. The non-linear narration kept me trying to remember if there was something I could possibly have skipped that would have made more sense of it. I think the premise (old woman throws Molotov cocktail at former lover’s car) is better than the finished product, although it is very well-shot and the acting is amazing

Good

Dogs of Chernobyl (Léa Camilleri & Hugo Chesnel, 2020): Short documentary that had me on the verge of tears several times (you can watch it for free on YouTube!)

Les Misérables (Ladj Ly, 2019): It’s hard to talk about films like these. It is very good, very important, I think everyone should watch it. Think a new La Haine

The Daughters of Fire (Las hijas del fuego, Albertina Carri, 2018): Loved the reflection on pornography. The pornography itself was a little more... boring... but I appreciate the intention, and the guts it took to shoot something like this

The Fallen Idol (Carol Reed, 1948): An amazing British classic (adapted from Graham Greene!) that I had somehow never heard of. Great acting, especially considering the main character is a small child

Too Late to Die Young (Tarde para morir joven, Dominga Sotomayor Castillo, 2018): There will be people in this world to say that "uhh nothing happens in this film", a statement to which my reply will be twofold: first, it's beautiful so who cares, and second, how many other films have you seen that take place in a commune in the 1990s in Chile? That's what I thought. Shut up

Made in Dagenham (Nigel Cole, 2010): Films like this and Suffragette, that is, mainstream films about the working classes and political activism, are almost bound to be flawed, but I'm grateful they exist all the same. And how many of those have we seen that are about workers’ unions, with an all-female main cast, and nuanced dialogue about communism and the place of women in the home and of men in feminism? I’m glad that male directors have finally figured out that one of the best ways to avoid showing a one-dimensional idea of women is to have lots of them in one film. And Sally Hawkins! I love her

The Color of Pomegranates (Նռան գույնը, Nřan guynə, Sergei Parajanov, 1969): Another one of those classics I had never heard of (until I got Mubi!). Indescribable, beautiful

Lost Girls (Liz Garbus, 2020): Really liked the speech at the end about the police failing the victims and their families, really liked that the old inspector guy wasn't made to be someone who was on the side of the victims instead of on his own side. Bleak, sobering. When I watched this I didn't know Garbus was the person who directed that Nina Simone documentary, which I also love.Will definitely seek out more Liz Garbus in future

Ghost Town Anthology (Répertoire des villes disparues, Denis Côté, 2019): I watched this not knowing anything about Denis Côté or the film, and I loved the atmosphere even before the supernatural element really kicked in. Films like this and The One I Love or Everything Beautiful is Far Away are my kind of low-key science fiction

Meshes of the Afternoon (Maya Deren and Alexander Hammid, 1943): Aaaand another classic I finally saw! It just warms my heart to see that stuff like this was being made (by a woman!!) in the 1940s

Circus of Books (Rachel Mason, 2019): I saw a headline calling this “the queer Stories We Tell” and I loved Sarah Polley’s documentary and wouldn’t go quite that far but I can see where it’s coming from. A good autobiographical documentary about the complexity of families

Catfish (Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, 2010): I think everyone going into this today knows what this is going to be about, but let me tell you, it does not reduce the impact

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (Lewis Milestone, 1946): Barbara Stanwyck and Lizabeth Scott! Murder! Intrigue! Love and sleaze!

The Lodge (Veronika Franz & Severin Fiala, 2019): This was so efficient. It is so well-done, and Riley Keough is amazing as usual. More subtle than Franz and Fiala’s last effort, Goodnight Mommy, and at least as good

Sans Soleil (Chris Marker, 1983): It’s hard not to be disappointed by this after hearing every film bro I’ve ever met describe this as his fave ever. It is... pretty racist and sexist... but yes, very pretty, very nice if you can get past that

Faves

Firecrackers (Jasmin Mozaffari, 2018): Is this a coming-of-age story? Anyway it’s about two working-class teenage girls in small town Canada who are this close to making their dream of leaving for New York, and one of them is fuuuuucked up...

The Grand Bizarre (Jodie Mack, 2018): I think this is what I want from a non-narrative documentary. I’m tired of seeing pretentious Godfrey Reggio knockoffs. This quite simply blew my mind and is one of those very rare films I can see myself rewatching ten times

Queen & Slim (Melina Matsoukas, 2019): I can’t not compare this to Natural Born Killers and Thelma and Louise, both of which I used to love and haven’t seen in a number of years -- but Queen & Slim is quite possibly better than both of those. The tone, the breadth, the acting -- even the soundtrack. It’s a masterpiece

Invisible Man (Leigh Whannell, 2020): This is about a man who creates an invisibility suit. This is also about a woman who is being stalked and abused by a controlling man who just won’t rest until he has completely destroyed her -- but of course, since this is cinema and the woman in question is Elisabeth Moss, she ultimately beats the shit out of him. This was very difficult to watch for me but I’m glad I stuck through

I got Mubi this month! So glad I did. It’s so much better than both Filmstruck (RIP) and Amazon Prime. I like that choices are made for me up to a certain extent -- and those choices often turn out very good, and always interesting. And yes, we’re still in lockdown, I’m still unemployed, hence the number of films watched this month. Hopefully we can get out in May and I’ll end up watching less!

#watched in 2020 #films

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spaceorphan18 · 5 years

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Fantasia

Okay, where to even start with this. I think this is a super ambitious project that both works and doesn’t work. It’s like going to a two hour classical concert with visuals. Was it groundbreaking for its time, and somewhat revolutionary for music and animation? Yes! Can it be tedious to sit through? My god yes.

When I was younger - I used to think Fantasia was four hours long. It’s only two but ngl, the second half of the film, I really struggled. I think if they had cut out at least two of the segments, I’d probably have been able to handle it a little better.

I’ll say this -- classical music, at least to me, is like trying to read a science textbook - it requires full attention at all times to retain what you’ve read. I think one of the reasons (for me personally) this film is hard is that to actually sit all the way through it requires a lot of focus, and that can be taxing. Classical music is great! And the animation here is (mostly) great. But it’s a lot to jam in two hours.

Alright - so let’s dig in here. (Get ready for some full on music nerdiness.)

Overview -

The film breaks down into segments that go along with classical pieces. You guys all know these pieces, even if you don’t know their names. Most of them have been used countless times in pop culture and commercials -- but I can see how this would be a bit revolutionary for the time because in the 40s there really wasn’t pop culture or commercials to devalue these these great musical art pieces. But -- that’s an entirely different tangent to go on.

So, the segments are broken up by a looming, silhouetted dude named Deems, who introduces us to each of the pieces. While Deems is entertaining just because he’s shrouded in darkness for most of his monologues - most of this could have been conveyed via title card - but I get that they were going for a concert-esque feel.

The Segments --

1. Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach.

The play list is like a Now!Classical Music CD, and I’m not surprised that Bach kicks the whole thing off. Interestingly, they start off simple -- there’s not a whole lot of animation going on, just pictures and shapes and colors. It’s a lot like listening to music while watching a screen saver on your computer. I don’t consider that a criticism, either. It’s sort of a way to slide the audience into what they’re going to be doing for the rest of the film. And I almost like the abstract idea over some of the more story-focused segments they’ll do later on.

I love this piece in general - so I’m find with sitting the whole through the whole thing. The funniest part, though, was at the beginning when Deems talked about how this piece may not evoke a specific thing -- when in fact, if most of you heard the opening chords, you’ll most likely automatically think of Dracula. ;)

2. The Nutcracker Suite by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

This is the one I remember the most from when I was a kid - probably because it was the section I enjoyed the most since I knew the music.

The whole thing is nature based, and I really appreciate how they incorporated different cultures into the different dances. While it’s on the longer side, I think it’s one of the ones that works the best. It’s visually stunning and engaging. And it’s also super interesting to see the Suite without any Christmas or Ballet connotations.

3. The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Paul Dukas.

This is, perhaps, the most famous section of the film - since it’s about Mickey Mouse, and the imagery is used a lot in Disney commercialism.

It’s a fine little cartoon about Mickey being a sorcerer’s apprentice -- getting into a bit of hijinx. It plays out a lot like a traditional cartoon would (old Warner Brother’s classics come to mind - like Bugs Bunny singing Opera). It’s not the best section, nor the worst. It’s just kind of.. there.

4. Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky.

So, I should preface this with -- I’m not a fan of Stravinsky. Sorry. Yes - I get the guy was a genius, and really revolutionary, and pushing the boundaries of what Western Tonality could do. But I just don’t engage with his music very well.

That said, I don’t think this is a ‘bad’ section, it’s just unintentionally funny at times. It is -- a 1940′s view of the history of life on earth, which to someone living in the 2010s, feels very dated.

On the one hand - there’s some interesting visuals here - particularly the underwater life, even if it’s not at all accurate. On the other hand, the dinosaurs are kind of laughable, though there is one genuinely tense moment between a T-Rex and a Stegosaurus.

My biggest issue is that it feels like it just goes on and on. Part of it is the music, and the arrangement in particular. (Apparently Stravinsky was not a fan either.) And this is where my attention begins to wane.

5. There’s an Intermission at this point - complete with jazz music (almost a welcome break from the classical, which can be taxing to listen to for long periods of time), and an animated white string to show you what sound waves look like (which I’m sure was fascinating to people who’ve never seen what a sound wave looks like before).

6. The Pastoral Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven.

So, I love Beethoven - he is my favorite classical composer. But this, man. I don’t know. The Pastoral is not my favorite symphony -- I feel like the 5th, the 9th, and even the 7th might have been more interesting choices here. But even more so - this is one of those times that I like to listen at my own leisure, and the animation on screen almost feels like a detriment to the piece itself.

The Pastoral is a collection of scenes from nature. Fantasia uses a Greek Myth theme, and ties into the whole nature-esque thing the music is doing. While I understand what they were going for, especially the ending with Zues throwing around lightning bolts during the ‘thunderstorm’ portion of the symphony, the whole thing feels a bit tedious and purposefully elongated.

The animation, I guess, is fine - it’s a bit more cartoon-ish than some of the more artfully done segments.

Also - this is a good point to mention that most of the second half of the music is slower in tempo and timbre and I’m not sure why they would do this.

7. Dance of the Hours by Amilcare Ponchielli.

And... this is where I had the most trouble focusing. Apparently this was all supposed to be comic. Maybe I just didn’t get it. Mostly, it’s a bunch of dancing animals, one mini-segment for each part of the day. And I found it incredibly boring.

Comparatively, the animation on this one seems the weakest. The backgrounds are dull and uninspired next to pretty much every other segment. The dancing animals didn’t seem all that engaging. Oh - and in case you’re wondering, the opening section of this was parodied in that old “Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah” short cartoon - so I kept thinking of that instead of the ostriches prancing around in tutus. Yeah.

8. Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky and Ave Maria by Franz Schubert.

This segment is actually really pretty cool, and something I would have enjoyed much better if I hadn’t been ready to be done with the film. It kind of depicts this darker spirits (and possibly The Devil) during the night, all leaving at dawn. The animation here really sells it -- it’s completely unlike anything that’s in the film prior to it, and unlike anything Disney did in his previous work. It’s really quite beautiful and haunting is a great piece to end on.

Final Thoughts: This is a tough one to talk about - because it’s one of those things where on one hand, you want to be intellectual about, and study and appreciate it as an art form. On the other hand - it can be tedious - especially if you’re attempting a casual watch through. I feel like you really have to be in the right mindset going in to enjoy it.

#thoughts on disney #clearly i had a lot to say #this film goes on and on much like this review

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bemused-writer · 5 years

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The Cain Saga Volume 3 - Kafka

Before we get into this volume I just want to let you all know that I had it all written already and then my computer crashed. Thus, this is the rewrite but hopefully it will be better than what came before. 8D

Also, typical warning for the series: it is rated “Explicit” for its themes. Please bear that in mind as you read the review. Also, there are just tons of spoilers here. For my previous reviews, you can find Volume 1 here and Volume 2 here.

The next thing I want to talk about is the glory of this volume cover:

Look at how exceptionally 90s this thing is. The baggy clothes, the overabundance of wrinkles, the broad shoulders, the poses. It’s incredible. There is the slight problem that, if I didn’t know this story took place in the 19th century, I would probably just assume it took place in the 90s or possibly even the 80s. It has a very Anne Rice vibe to it.

Speaking of Anne Rice, those streams of blood on Cain aren’t just for decoration: vampires are very much our theme this volume. As a brief analysis of the cover (outside of its 90s glory) I will point out that while Cain has been bitten by a vampire (a physical representation of corruption or lost innocence) he is also wearing a cross, indicative of an attempt at preventing this from happening on his part. Yet despite his efforts at keeping himself pure he is still brought back to his curse.

A minor thing: in The Cain Saga Cain is shows as having light brown hair for the most part, or at least light brown highlights. This changes in Godchild where he’s almost exclusively shown as having black hair. This is probably just a stylistic change but we could also interpret it as his life getting darker the further he goes.

And finally, a note on the title of the volume, “Kafka.” I haven’t talked about this at all in the previous two reviews, but each volume has a loose theme. In the first one it was “Forgotten Juliet,” a reference to Suzette who tried to win over her Romeo (and failed). The second volume’s theme is nursery rhymes, which is used primarily to demonstrate the loss of innocence and a corrupted childhood. This volume references Franz Kafka, who was known for his surrealist writings that included themes of losing one’s humanity and things of that nature.

And now into the volume itself. I talked a bit about how Riff is someone Cain trusts implicitly in the last volume and the beginning of this one goes out of its way to reiterate that once more. Upon waking up from a nightmare about his father where he’s led to freedom by someone’s hand, wondering whose it could be we see this:

The implication being it’s Riff that leads him out of darkness and back to the light. However, there’s someone to the left trying to overshadow him, and that’s something that this volume really takes a look at: What if Riff wasn’t so trustworthy? What if someone tried to take his place?

The doctor, who introduces himself as “Allen” but who we will refer to as Disraeli because that’s who he is immediately inserts himself into Cain’s life and insists he needs to go to the countryside to restore his health. I’ve always enjoyed this bit of Victorian advice. Have you been ill for weeks? You need to breathe some better air. Honestly, that was probably somewhat true all things considered; smog was a force to be reckoned with.

Disraeli tries to assist Cain with his clothes but he refuses and Mary Weather considers this:

We already know from the previous volume that Cain bears horrible scars on his back from his father’s beatings. This is something he does his hardest to hide from everyone, including Mary Weather. The only person he doesn’t make any attempt to shun in this regard is Riff, who already knows all about it.

Cain ultimately goes to the countryside just as Disraeli suggested and one thing I’m happy to see is how much Cain cares about his little sister, Mary Weather.

Cain has a lot of iffy moments in the series where you really question his opinions and mindset but I’m happy to report that his relationship with Mary Weather is always a source of happiness and remains untainted by all the other crazy things that go on around him (as much as that’s possible, that is).

The trip to the countryside quickly goes awry when night falls when Cain discovers a woman who can only be described as a vampire:

Even as he manages to escape her, he’s attacked by an unidentified assailant upon reaching home whom he leaves a scratch on.

And this is where we start to see why Riff’s honesty is being questioned this volume. Was he the one who attacked Cain at night? Who is the vampire?

Personally, I got a kick out of reading Kaori Yuki’s author’s notes on fan reactions to all of this. Apparently, Disraeli was not popular and she was confused as to why everyone was judging him so harshly when he hadn’t done anything wrong. (This is even more amusing when we get to the end only to discover fans were right.) Furthermore, Riff fans were apparently very unhappy with him being “replaced” with Disraeli and that Riff was being portrayed in a negative light whatsoever. It sounds like Yuki had her hands full with keeping fans content. XD

Fans were also unhappy with Cain’s “player” tendencies this volume (there were some dissatisfied readers! XD). The next morning, Cain meets a boy named Dirk who owns Witherby Castle and swiftly meets his sister, Justine, as well. Turns out, Justine looks exactly like the vampire from the other night. The only difference is that while the vampire was bloodthirsty and appeared to be something of a seductress, Justine is sweet and innocent.

I don’t think there’s a single reader who believes she’s actually innocent of the whole affair and that it’s only made more difficult when you realize she’s so delicate she can’t bear to look at mirrors or be under the sun.

...Yeah, sounds like a vampire.

Cain thought so, too, and decided to test his theory in such a way that led to the fan complaints I mentioned earlier:

She doesn’t immediately try to murder him or drink his blood. She has a very bashful reaction instead, so we can safely assume she is not a vampire (except no one is assuming that).

Cain notes she had a faint scar on her face, which doesn’t completely match the vampire from before. Half of her face had suffered extreme burn marks, so once again there is some difference between Justine and the vampire from before.

He promises to meet her again but I personally think the above panel has Cain looking a great deal more like how he’ll look in Godchild, which is the main reason I’ve included it.

At any rate, her brother is outraged at what Cain has done and immediately asks his sister whether they’ll be together forever or not with an insistence that can only be described as “odd.”

I think I’ve mentioned before in my VNC reviews somewhere that vampires are basically always used to explore something forbidden, especially when it comes to love and this story is no exception. I will point out that Yuki doesn’t really need an excuse to explore forbidden love, but having vampires involved increases the chances that she will by a lot. Needless to say, we’re about to get into some uncomfortable territory.

We see Riff behaving oddly once more by discarding Mary Weather’s hat. He rushes home, she’s fine, but he and Riff have a revealing conversation:

Now, I’m just going to let you all know that they are both, technically, acting right now. They both suspect Disraeli, but they’re going along with things and they’re putting on a performance to make it look like Cain is losing faith in Riff.

However, the amount of truth in this statement as well as the relevance of it all in Godchild is immense. I’ll get more into that when we actually reach Godchild but suffice it to say for now that Cain relies on Riff to an almost unhealthy degree and if anything truly threatened that we would see something very different from this.

Also, I just want to point out once more that you can really see some parallels between Cain and Riff with Ciel and Sebastian from Kuroshitsuji. I would genuinely be shocked if Toboso hadn’t read this series previously. There are some noteworthy differences though: Ciel and Sebastian have a far more confrontation relationship where the master/servant dynamic is largely a facade. Sebastion will win in the end, after all, so in many ways they’re equals but there’s no love lost between them, no matter how much Ciel relies on him and orders him to never lie. With Cain and Riff things are a lot softer: it’s a relationship built on genuine trust and affection but the master/servant dynamic is also a great deal more real as well. Riff is a servant and Cain is an aristocrat. It’s hard to separate them from their roles unlike with Sebastian and Ciel. Still, Cain’s need for Riff to be there and to be loyal to him is just as genuine as Ciel’s.

Getting back to the volume at hand, Justine and Mary Weather prove to be fast friends and suddenly Cain and co. are moving into the castle. Needless to say, Dirk is furious. Furthermore, the amount of people being attacked by that vampire is only increasing and paranoia is mounting.

Disraeli himself sees something strange:

Riff appears to be with a vampiric woman himself. Disraeli thinks of how terrifying her eyes are and proceeds to find Cain, telling him of what he saw. Cain refuses to believe Riff would ever betray him (understandably given he’s in on it) but the exchange he and Disraeli share is important:

The meaning behind what Disraeli is saying is extremely layered. On the first, he’s accusing Riff of being untrustworthy and of that he’s not looking after Cain out of the goodness of his heart but out of something far more malicious. On the second, Disraeli is referring to what he himself is doing: he’s getting closer and closer to Cain, Cain is “trusting” him, and doesn’t realize he’s only there to bring more pain. The third layer is by far the most nefarious and is only truly revealed in Godchild, so I won’t discuss it here just yet.

Cain goes to meet with Justine once more, gives her an earring (one that the vampire had dropped previously, I believe) and departs but her brother, Dirk, is in high dudgeon and it’s revealed that he loves Justine and is jealous of how interested she is in Cain. She refuses him and he says, “Have you really forgotten that night? I was the one who protected you from Father!” He follows up with, “It’s not fair! You forget everything in the daytime, Justine!”

We’re finally starting to sort out what is going on here. Their father has been mysteriously absent, there are rumors of a vampire who was burned at the stake, and there had been a fire earlier on.

Things come to a head with Riff and Cain dismisses him from his employ. He then finally meets the vampire once again, who claims her name is Gertrude.

She notes that his eyes mark him as someone who is just as cursed as they and she offers him eternal life. If he’s going to be cursed, why not get to live forever? And Cain is tempted by the idea. We don’t get to see what his ultimate decision would have been as Disraeli bursts in and chases her away with a cross.

Still, I can’t help but wonder. I don’t think Cain would have accepted. He despises himself for his cursed lineage and views his own existence as a sin. In order to prolong his life in the way Gertrude is suggesting he would have to kill more and more people, thus making his life even more cursed than it was before. I don’t think he could bear that, and so I think he would have refused her.

Afterwards he’s comforted by Disraeli and they have another layered conversation:

On one hand, Cain is telling the truth. He doesn’t like people seeing through him and it’s part of why he goes to such pains to conceal how much pain he endures. But he’s also not being wholly honest; he’s nearly always allowed Riff the privilege of both these things. As for Disraeli, he’s also being honest about watching Cain, but it’s hardly out of the caring concern of a doctor.

Meanwhile, Mary Weather is confronting Riff about leaving. She insists if he only asked, Cain would take him back. That is certainly true if he were actually leaving. But Riff needs to make his departure convincing and so this is what he tells Mary Weather: “Until now I’ve been everything for Lord Cain. I was his mother and his father. We’ve strengthened our bond without even using words.”

He’s laying it pretty thick here but there’s still a lot of truth to it. There would have to be in order for it to be even slightly convincing. Riff is everything to Cain as we’ve talked about before. He’s been there when no one else was. Without him, Cain would be lost.

When Cain next meets with Justine, she begs him to take her away because her brother is looking at her with evil eyes. Cain’s response is a little, uh, not helpful:

Here’s the thing, Cain is not the right person to be talking to about this. He has no idea what a normal relationship even is and as far as he’s concerned, running off with him is not freeing yourself from a cursed relationship.

It would be easy to say he’s thinking of his father and the incestuous relationship he had with his sister that led to Cain’s birth but this appears to be on a different level. Cain isn’t in the habit of defending his father’s horrendous choices in life.

After Dirk reveals the truth of Justine to her (which we’ll talk about momentarily) he and Cain discuss things and it becomes clear why Cain was so particular about what Justine said:

It turns out Suzette wasn’t simply his cousin. I’ll be honest, I completely forgot that tidbit. All I can say is that it’s been awhile since I read this...

At any rate, Cain is admitting he is in no position to be judging Dirk. However, the fact that Cain thinks he’s as bad as his father goes to show how deep his self-loathing is and how much he isn’t considering the entirety of the situation because it honestly isn’t the same. 1) Cain had no idea Suzette was his half-sister until after she’d died. Alexis knew perfectly well what he was doing. 2) Alexis forced himself on Augusta. Cain did no such thing to Suzette.

Cain’s love for Suzette is better likened to Oedipus than to Alexis: he tried really hard to avoid incest but the gods (Yuki) just wouldn’t let him live in peace.

Cain also says “It’s no use. If I’m not related by blood to the woman I’m not capable of loving her. I don’t know how to love.” He declares that he and Dirk both need salvation.

The thing is, Cain doesn’t actually know this for a fact. He’s had multiple flings but he’s never actually stayed in a relationship where he’s in love and his partner loves him in turn. He’s despairing and thinks he knows how things have to be but the fact is he doesn’t.

Honestly, the lack of Riff in this volume becomes pronounced around this point. There’s no one there to try to offer an alternative explanation to Cain or to try to get him to look at things from a different angle. He’s left to his own devices and that means he reaches the worst conclusions possible.

Anyway, going back to what Dirk revealed, it turns out their stepfather had been abusing Justine and had put her through some kind of dark ritual in an attempt to bring Gertrude to life. In other words, another personality was superimposed over her own.

What I don’t like about this is how the narrative kind of frames this as Justine’s fault. She was the one who manipulated Dirk into killing their stepfather (rather understandably, I’d say!) and she was supposedly the one who seduced Dirk. Furthermore, it’s implied she was the one in control of their stepfather as well. Dirk definitely accuses her as if it’s her fault and Cain doesn’t exactly help. Of course, Cain’s perspectives are so skewed as to be useless in this situation, so...

Regardless, it’s implied that she was never a vampire (which I suppose I could believe) but that this was her true self coming through (which I find much harder to believe).

Ultimately, she and her brother burn to death after she goes on a rampage. It’s hard not to feel bad for both of them despite the awkward way this whole thing has been framed. They were both abused by their stepfather and never given a chance to remake their lives. They were trapped from start to finish.

Cain is understandably upset but when Disraeli comes to “comfort” him it’s revealed at long last what he really is: a soul catcher from Delilah. He also reveals he was the one who set the whole thing up along with their stepfather:

Just as Disraeli goes to remove Cain’s eyes, Riff finally makes his reappearance and everything comes to light once and for all:

They “kill” Disraeli and learn a few things from him as well:

Alexis is still alive and Delilah is an organization he’s a part of. Cain tells Riff never to leave him again and we get an idea of just how hard this has been. He’s been without Riff for a long period of time now and he’s witnessed two siblings die during it.

On a lighter note, I enjoyed seeing Riff explain to Mary Weather how he was lying:

Up till now I would have assumed he had no sense of humor but clearly I was mistaken. XD He’s teasing her terribly! It’s also revealed that the vampire Riff had been with earlier had been Cain the whole time, which makes things a lot more amusing as well. Lastly, it’s revealed Disraeli survived, which isn’t all that surprising.

Anyway, that wraps the volume up, and what a volume it was! Rather than tackle multiple short stories, this one had one big story! I enjoyed that it was one story that tackled a lot of things relevant to the plot but there were a few points that could have been smoothed out, notably how harshly everyone was in judging Justine compared to Dirk. The other thing I really wish we got more of is who Suzette was as a person. She only showed up in a singular chapter, but she’s having a profound impact on Cain himself. I think we needed to learn a lot more about her.

The Kafka reference is also a little clearer: neither sibling felt human anymore and Cain hasn’t for a while now. While it’s too late for Dirk and Justine, it isn’t yet for Cain. Perhaps we will see him make some progress in the next two volumes.

#cain saga #count cain #godchild #Bemused's post #long post #manga review

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archaeopter-ace · 5 years

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the epigraphs in Metamorphosis

Picking up where this post left off, I’m gonna ramble about my choice of Kafka quotes.

Because apparently I love to make things difficult for myself, I wanted to find quotes that would be considered ‘bad advice’ in these circumstances, to tie it back to ‘don’t listen to kafka’ - but if you ever become a notable literary figure, the sorts of quotes you’re remembered for tend to be the ones with some underlying human truth, not ones that offer bad advice. So I had that working against me. But I figured if nothing else I’d certainly find pessimistic quotes tangentially related to something in the chapter. Those would fit my concept then, because the inverse message would be ‘you don’t have to pessimistic about this.’

Time to break ‘em down!

“I usually solve problems by letting them devour me.” - Franz Kafka

I put this one in the story summary because I think it expresses how overwhelmed Barbara and Jim are feeling about this whole mess. Also I find it very relatable on a personal level, aha, a missed deadline is resolved and there’s some relief to be found in that. It was originally going to go as a chapter epigraph later in the story, but I really liked it as a summary of the whole story because - spoiler alert for the most recent chapter - the solution to Jim’s problem, i.e. turning into a troll, is, in fact, to do nothing and let the change happen. Only once his human self is completely consumed by his troll self will he be able to regain his human body. So maybe, just this once, Jim actually could Listen To Kafka. (I thought putting an epigraph in the summary might mean I couldn’t also do a dictionary-style definition in stylistic parallel to Autoeponym, but then I just decided why not both? and rolled with it)

Chapter 1: "One advantage to keeping a diary is that you become aware with reassuring clarity of all the changes which you constantly suffer."

I picked this one for chapter one because it carries this notion of cataloguing changes, which the narrative does quite a bit at the start since there’s been a time skip since Autoeponym and we’ve got to set the stage. In fact, in the original draft Barbara was a lot more active in keeping a journal and writing everything down, but then I realized that that would be really uncomfortable for Jim, and thus the line about “dialing back Dr. Lake as much as possible, and pushing Mom to the foreground” was born. I kept the chosen epigraph, even if the diary aspect got nixed, because I think it still fits from an ‘ack, too many changes!’ angle. [Jim should not listen to Kafka because it’d be better for him to just focus on the changes he’s going through, and not frame it as something that he must suffer]

Chaper 2: "So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being." This quote is from his short story, Investigations of a Dog, told from a dog’s POV (not to be confused with Mark Twain’s A Dog’s Tale, also told from a dog’s POV). The chapter connection in this one is with food, because it is the dinner scene. [Jim is unlikely to listen to Kafka in this instance because boy does he ever have a lot of unresolved questions]

The other food-related quote I considered for this chapter was “Now I can look at you in peace; I don’t eat you anymore,” which could maybe have been commentary on Stickler’s potentially-shifting allegiances, but really just seemed to bring Aaarrrgghh’s past up completely out of the blue. (original quote context: Kafka went vegetarian)

Chapter 3: "I am a cage, in search of a bird."

Oh man, there were so many quotes I considered for this chapter I couldn’t even remember which one I went with off the top of my head and had to look up the posted chapter. The themes I wanted to play with involved imprisonment (hence “a cage”) and the toxicity of Strickler’s manipulations. The ‘don’t listen to kafka’ aspect of this one is cautionary, warning Barbara away from Walter.

Other quotes I toyed with:

"You can choose to be free, but it's the last decision you'll ever make”

“I am in chains. Don’t touch my chains.”

“Kill me, or you are a murderer.”

“Start with what is right rather than what is acceptable.”

“My guiding principle is this: Guilt is never to be doubted.”

"There is an infinite amount of hope in the universe... but not for us."

“Association with human beings lures one into self-reflection.”

Something that helps to understand why some of these were considered is knowing that in the early drafts, Strickler was going to try to manipulate Jim into letting him go by arguing that Jim should just kill him, it would be much more merciful than the death Bular would give him for failing in his mission. I had some really nice dialogue mapped out, but then I rewatched Mudslinging and reconsidered in light of Strickler’s thirst for revenge on Jim. By his own admission, Strickler seems to have made out pretty well from the failure to open Killahead, so the idea of revenge for ruining a plan that maybe wouldn’t have been his first choice if he’d had free choice... it seems a little bit of a stretch. He does mention wanting to stop Jim from releasing all the familiars from the Darklands, and he believes the only way to stop Jim from ever doing that is to... murder him brutally.

I think the revenge Strickler seeks is really for ruined pride, rather than any material damage incurred. So given that I’m dealing with season 1 Strickler and not season 3 or fanon Strickler, the scenes I had written no longer seemed as in-character. He wasn’t quite backed up against the ropes enough for him to be throwing himself on the Trollhunter’s mercy, even if it was a ploy. He’s got other approaches he can take first to talk his way out, ones that keep his dignity more intact.

Chapter 4: "People label themselves with all sorts of adjectives. I can only pronounce myself as 'nauseatingly miserable beyond repair'."

Jim finally has a label for what he is! And he’s having a pretty crummy day, so ‘nauseatingly miserable beyond repair’ also fits. This is one of the chapters I’d considered using the ‘devoured’ quote for. Another one I considered for this chapter was “I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself,” which absolutely fits Jim’s mood, but therein lies the problem: there’s not really a way to see how ‘don’t listen to Kafka' fits. Also it’s not quite as pithy as the one I went with ;P [Jim shouldn’t listen to Kafka because if he labels himself as only miserable, it will be that much harder to feel something other than miserable].

Chapter 5: “I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound or stab us.”

In my original outline, chapters 5 and 6 were combined into one chapter, and then this quote fit very well because part of the chapter would take place in Blinky’s library (full of books). I think it still fits just 5 though, and in the absence of anything better I went with it. Here, the ‘books’ are symbolic of knowledge, and its capacity to inflict plain - in this chapter, Jim learns a lot of painful truths. [Jim shouldn’t listen to Kafka because of course Jim can read fluffy stories as well if he wants to, not all books have to rip your heart out. And more symbolically, not all knowledge has to be painful; though neither can you avoid all the knowledge that is.]

And finally, as a spoiler-free sneak-peak at the next chapter, I will give you the next epigraph!

Chapter 6: “How about I sleep a bit longer and forget all this nonsense.”

I almost used this one for chapter 4, but when I realized I’d probably have to split up chapter 5 I saved it for later. It is my favorite line from Kafka’s Metamorphosis, and it is Gregor Samsa’s first reaction to waking up and discovering that he now a giant cockroach (it actually does take him a while to figure it all out - he can’t move his head so he can’t see himself all that well, and he naturally thinks that he must be dreaming still at first). Jim would very much like to just go to sleep and forget all this nonsense, please

#talking about writing #my fic #metamorphosis #tales of arcadia #don't listen to kafka #quotes #Barbara Lake #walter strickler #jim lake jr #writing #longpost

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hidewari · 7 years

Note

Your review for chapter 143 please. No Hide in this chapter but I suppose it's not a big deal. It means he's still safe and sound.

@nitsuki-baka said:I think this abrupt ending is pretty good and strong, even if everyone seems to hate it. There is Kaneki who worked so hard for this moment but has still has to realise that everything can be gone within a second. And the desperation that he still had to make him crawl, I cried my eyes out. Hyped for the next bit we’ll get.

anonymous said:do you think the “GAME OVER” could have meant that there is going to be a new start/new beginning for kaneki? the caterpillar thing also makes me think he’ll change again into smth else and have a new beginning. And that that’s what we’ll see in part 3? maybe one where hide shows up and instigates a reform in kaneki’s group and leadership into something better yk?

anonymous said:Reading the spoilers of chapter 143 makes me feel like we’re going to have a trilogy. Especially the way Furuta is acting.

Alright, so I read both the MS and JB translations twice to try and understand the chapter as well as I could and hopefully catch on to anything I might have missed and I think I have a bit to say on the direction I think the series is going to take now.

This chapter has been the big turning point that I think Kaneki really needs to push him in the right direction. He took up the role of the One Eyed King, and that means that he has a whole lot of responsibility on his shoulders whether he likes it or not, and I’ve mentioned before how most of his decisions as King have mostly just been influenced by his emotions. (I’ve given these examples before, but for those who haven’t seen, a couple examples would be when Kaneki wanted to endanger their mission by talking with Amon and another would be his refusal to kill Hajime which essentially lead to the twenty fourth being attacked. Both times Kaneki’s actions have been criticised by Ayato and Tsukiyama respectively. To me, this shows an awareness by the series that this is a major flaw of Kaneki’s which he’s chosen to ignore.)

Kaneki made yet another decision based on his emotions to return to the twenty fourth ward (because he has a “bad feeling”) and that decision went abysmally wrong. To me, this is actually a good thing for Kaneki’s character. This devastation has now been a direct result of his original emotionally driven decision not to kill Hajime, and now, his second emotionally driven decision to return to the twenty fourth ward has resulted in Furuta’s supposed victory.

He’s now not only having to face the fact that he has these flaws as a result of the situation, but it’s also blatantly laid out for him by Furuta himself.

Kaneki is finally being forced to face these flaws that he has in his leadership and the way that he approaches and tackles situations. Even as King, knowing that he’s responsible for the lives of hundreds, even thousands, he still too often thinks of himself and does things for selfish reasons, even if he doesn’t know it.

He only takes the side of ghouls because he wants to protect those who are close to him. He doesn’t really care for the unification of species in and of itself, he only cares about it because it would put the people he cares for in a better position and make them safe.

And this always reminds me of the scene in chapter 120 of Tokyo Ghoul where Touka confronts Kaneki about this exact motive and indicates exactly how it is driven by Kaneki’s own selfishness.

Kaneki still hasn’t moved on from this mindset, and even he himself acknowledges that this makes him a terrible leader, yet he appears to have no desire to change this, presumably because he doesn’t realise that it’s the exact reason why he could be putting the people he cares about in trouble.

In fact, I think it still isn’t clear to him what his role as leader should be. He still isn’t looking at the big picture, and seems to only focus on his own role within all of this, which is ironically inhibiting him from being able to take up the position that he wants to and become the leader that he has to in order to achieve his goals.

He touches his chin when he tells Hinami that he’ll be right behind her; at least a part of him knows that he isn’t going to make it out of this, but I think he’s made himself content with that. This is the moment he claims to have been living for; this is the moment he finally gets to protect everyone he loves. This is the moment that he shows himself as a true leader, by becoming a martyr to protect the ones he loves.

It may have appeared that he had chosen to live alongside Touka, but the reality is that he never really moved on from that mindset he had back in cochlea; wanting to die “in style” for the sake of someone else.

This much is clear in his dialogue in this chapter.

He says he’s been living for this day, this day that he seems to apparently realise he won’t be able to survive, but he’s content with that. All this time, he never really moved on from wanting to protect others with his life; that’s been his motivation since the beginning of the series, and it still is, and although this isn’t exactly a negative thing, it is preventing him from seeing the bigger picture. His desire is still the same, just he’s shifted his focus from death to life.

He’s so concerned with himself in this situation; he wants to defeat Furuta, and in his death, he’ll be able to protect all those who are close to him, but he isn’t considering what his role as King really means beyond this. Killing Furuta isn’t just going to magically bring about the unification of humans and ghouls; it isn’t going to guarantee the safety of those close to him. As King, as a leader, there is so much more work to be done, but Kaneki fails to really see his role in this in perspective as a result of his bias.

That’s why I think this whole chapter’s themes have been a pivotal point for Kaneki’s character. Not only is he forced to come face to face with the fact that his methods are inefficient, but we also get more subtle symbolism.

Firstly, as some have pointed out, Furuta’s referral to Kaneki as a caterpillar could be foreshadowing of a coming transformation he may make, a metamorphosis, which links to Franz Kafka’s story of the same name which Kaneki’s story has been compared to before.

Not only that, but the butterfly has been a symbol of positive change in the series before, and assuming we are currently in the Judgement arc, this points to significant development and flourishing in Kaneki’s character to come, which brings me onto why I think there will be a third part and how this will line up with the Fool’s journey.

Judgement is a card which calls for a period of self-reflection and self-evaluation. Kaneki is now being forced reflect and evaluate his approach, and this is the key to his fulfilment. The Judgement card calls for a moment in someone’s life in which they “come to a point of deep understanding about the common themes throughout [their] life and what [they] can do or change to avoid these situations in the future.”

“The Judgement card suggests that you have had a recent epiphany or an ‘awakening’ where you have come to a realisation that you need to live your life in a different way and you need to be true to yourself and your needs. You have opened yourself up to a new possibility – to lead a fulfilling life that serves your higher needs and that offers inspiration and hope to others. You feel as though you have had a ‘calling’ in life, and you are getting much closer to the point where you need to take action. Something that was lying dormant within you, some unconscious knowledge or truth is finally being awakened and brought into the light.”

“The Fool has been reborn.

His false, ego-self has been shed, allowing his radiant, true self to manifest. He has discovered that joy, not fear, is at life’s centre.

The Fool feels absolved. He forgives himself and others, knowing that his real self is pure and good. He may regret past mistakes, but he knows they were due to his ignorance of his true nature. He feels cleansed and refreshed, ready to start anew.

It is time for the Fool to make a deeper Judgement (20) about his life. His own personal day of reckoning has arrived. Since he now sees himself truly, he can make the necessary decisions about the future. He can choose wisely which values to cherish, and which to discard.”

To me, this is reminiscent of this piece of art which foreshadows this awakening with the caption “I stand here with my past self,” indicating that Kaneki has moved on from his past self and his old mindset, ready to start anew.

Tokyo Ghoul and Tokyo Ghoul:re are the stories of the Fool’s journey on his path to personal development and self-fulfilment. Judgement is the second to last stage of the Fool’s journey, so that may leave you asking, what could come after this to warrant a third part?

I believe a third part to the series would serve as “the World” stage of the Fool’s journey. Though Kaneki’s journey of self-development and fulfilment comes to an end in Tokyo Ghoul:re, the third instalment should be about how he uses this fulfilment and flourishing to make his influence on the World and finally pursue the goal he’s established as the One Eyed King. The Fool’s own personal journey ends with Tokyo Ghoul:re, but that just means that he’s now ready to begin his influence on the world.

“The Fool reenters the World (21), but this time with a more complete understanding. He has integrated all the disparate parts of himself and achieved wholeness. He has reached a new level of happiness and fulfilment

The Fool experiences life as full and meaningful. The future is filled with infinite promise. In line with his personal calling, he becomes actively involved in the world. He renders service by sharing his unique gifts and talents and finds that he prospers at whatever he attempts. Because he acts from inner certainty, the whole world conspires to see that his efforts are rewarded. His accomplishments are many.

So the Fool’s Journey was not so foolish after all. Through perseverance and honesty, he reestablished the spontaneous courage that first impelled him on his search for Self, but now he is fully aware of his place in the world. This cycle is over, but, the Fool will never stop growing. Soon he will be ready to begin a new journey that will lead him to ever greater levels of understanding.”

#Anonymous #tokyo ghoul #kaneki ken #tg re spoilers #analysis #theory #my analysis #answered

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setgamesettingstotroll · 5 years

Text

FE8 Draft Log 3

Lords ‘n’ Consorts, oh my~ Otherwise known as: Shinon/Mandi’s Fire Emblem 8 Draft Log. Part 3

Welcome back, everyone. Welcome to part three of my Fire Emblem Sacred Stones draft run.

For those of you new or just now finding this log:

First Log with the rules and things: http://setgamesettingstotroll.tumblr.com/post/114341729022/fe8-draft-run-log-1

Second Log: http://setgamesettingstotroll.tumblr.com/post/116299103872/fe8-draft-run-log-2

And of course, my partner in this draft is ALynnL/Sue, it would be rude of me not to include hers here, too.

Part one of ALynnL's draft: http://setgamesettingstotroll.tumblr.com/post/114649739552/fe-8-draft-log-1

Part two: http://setgamesettingstotroll.tumblr.com/post/116698310697/fe-8-draft-log-2

And with that covered, I'll be putting the rest of this under the cut to spare everyone's dashes.

So here we are, beginning where we left off with Ephraim getting ready to enter the Za'albul Marsh to face off with Selena the Fluorspar and hand her severely misguided ass to her on a Platinum Platter.

Before we begin, I'm putting here for note that I trained Ewan up from Pupil class to Shaman in the Tower of Valni as per allowment.

Ewan's new stats:

Shaman Level 1 Exp: 0

HP: 22 Mag: 6 Skill: 5 Spd: 12 Luck: 8 Def: 2 Res: 10

And now we're off to the Marsh!

========

Ephraim leads everyone towards Za'albul marsh in search of Myrrh, and on their way they learn from soldiers and villages that she's been captured by General Selena. With no choice, Ephraim grimly steels and prepares himself to fight the General to get his friend, and my draft unit, back. |D

Our scene opens with Selena holding the Dragonstone and both marveling and wondering at it. It does indeed look like an ordinary stone. She's also heard the reports of Ephraim and company nearing and curses the fact she's forced to return to the Capital immediately otherwise she'd get rid of them. Well, you're in luck, you're not gonna make it back to the Capital at all and die facing Ephraim.

Before we get ahead of ourselves though, Myrrh appears before Selena asking for the stone back. She tells Selena the story of the darkness and how it has warped things. Selena understands, and tells Myrrh of how she came to be a General, being a commoner from an impoverished town and the Emperor saved them.

Selena asks if it's possible to save the Emperor and Myrrh sadly tells her it is impossible. A soldier arrives saying Ephraim and his company has arrived. Selena tells the men to ready themselves to meet them head on. She releases Myrrh and tells her to return to Ephraim's side, and apologizes that she can't give her Dragonstone back, as she vowed never to fail her Lord again, and if she wants it, to tell Ephraim to come take it from her.

Before Myrrh can protest, Selena tells her to go before the area becomes red from the fighting.

She rides out and orders all the troops to arms.

When we ride up, Seth states the obvious we already know that the enemy is already lining up and that it's Selena leading them. L'Arachel shares her knowledge about the woman, saying she wields the power of the Thunderstorm and uses it to attack from afar without mercy.

Annnd then Seth tells Ephraim to be cautious when facing her. No shit, Seth, but really, stop throwing off Lord Ephraim's groove, he does what he wants. GET LIKE EPHRAIM, SETH. -shot-

With that all said, I'ma take my own advice and get like Ephraim and smite this chapter right proper!

Let's go~!

[Chapter 13 battle, start!]

Soooooo before we begin the smiting, I'm putting note here that I've graciously used the Dragonshield Ewan came with to bolster Marisa's Def up from 4 to 6 because she's gonna need it for this chapter.

Annd 5 turns in Tana takes one too many hits. So much for getting like Ephraim. -shot- xDDD

Annd after that reset....

Eff. I won, but it took an assload of time and I ended up offing the mage that was carrying that speedwing (it wasn't a droppable item either, effff) but I got the red gem and the energy ring.

Selena wasted all her boltings trying to hit Kyle the whole time. WOMAN. YOU HAVE EARNED LORD EPHRAIM'S IRE BY ATTACKING HIS KNIGHT ~husband~ MULTIPLE TIMES. I hope you've come to terms with any regrets and Gods you serve, cause you've earned a one-turn death.

In other words, Ephraim gave her arse the heave-ho.

And fuck, I forgot to get Tethys' starting stats. Eff. Oh well.

Turns taken: 18

Penalty taken: 15

Total turncount: 33

Stat time:

Ephraim:

Level: 18 Exp: 34

HP: 31 Str: 13 Skill: 15 Spd: 19 Luck: 14 Def: 14 Res: 5

Franz:

Level: 4 Exp: 25

HP: 43 Str: 17 Skill: 17 Spd: 20 Luck: 12 Def: 16 Res: 8

Kyle:

Level: 18 Exp: 68

HP: 37 Str: 15 Skill: 12 Spd: 12 Luck: 9 Def: 12 Res: 5

Cormag:

Level: 14 Exp: 8

HP: 34 Str: 17 Skill: 14 Spd: 13 Luck: 5 Def: 14 Res: 3

Ewan:

Level: 7 Exp: 80

HP: 26 Mag: 11 Skill: 6 Spd: 14 Luck: 12 Def: 2 Res: 16

Natasha:

Level: 9 Exp: 51

HP: 27 Mag: 9 Skill: 6 Spd: 13 Luck: 9 Def: 5 Res: 13

Colm:

Level: 4 Exp: 21

HP: 37 Str: 17 Skill: 19 Spd: 22 Luck: 15 Def: 8 Res: 8

Joshua:

[Only gained exp]

Tana:

Level: 14 Exp: 27

HP: 29 Str: 9 Skill: 15 Spd: 20 (capped) Luck: 15 Def: 7 Res: 10

L'Arachel:

Level: 6 Exp: 9

HP: 20 Mag: 7 Skill: 9 Spd: 12 Luck: 13 Def: 5 Res: 9

Marisa:

Level 8 Exp: 63

HP: 26 Str: 7 Skill: 14 Spd: 14 Luck: 11 Def: 6 Res: 4

Tethys:

Level: 2 Exp: 90

HP: 19 Str: 1 Skill: 3 Spd: 13 Luck: 11 Def: 5 Res: 5

Dozla:

[Didn't see combat this round]

Ughhhh I'm not ashamed of the penalty I took, it was an outright honest mistake on my part and I learned my lesson and came out much better this time around. I'm more or less pissed at myself for taking out that mage with the speedwing before Colm could get to them. |D I HAVE MY PRIORITIES, OKAY?

Moving on.

=========

Ephraim returns Myrrh's dragonstone to her. But it's with a heavy heart that she accepts it.

Myrrh mourns and grieves the loss of Selena, asking Ephraim why it must be so that we must fight even against good people to right this wrong. She does not blame the Lord, but wants to understand. Ephraim sadly tells her he has no answers for this, but he will press on towards the Capital in search of one. He wants to learn the truth behind all of this.

YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH EPHRAIM -shot-

==========

We interrupt your scheduled draft summary to bring you this side note:

Before heading to Grado Keep I make a sidetrip to restock on stuff. Javelins (the lifeblood of my lance users), some slim weapons and a few handaxes and some more mend staves.

Fed Joshua the Talisman to up his Res from 2 to 4, and fed Natasha the Energy Ring to make her mag go from 9 to 11 in preparation for early promotion since I'll be starting chapter 14 and there's only, what, 21 chapters to fe8? Meaning I need to pick up the damned pace and I need another offensive magic user besides Ewan out there on the field.

Also fed Dozla the Goddess Icon Tethys came with to up his Luck from 4 to 6. Better safe than sorry, right?

And with that, we'll now return you to your regularly scheduled draft summary.

===========

So, marching up to Grado Keep, Ephraim recalls how it doesn't even look different from the two years ago when he'd visited with Eirika and their father and all that. And then cue a flashback to him and Lyon having a conversation. I am too lazy to type the interaction this time, peeps, sorry.

And then an earthquake happens. And Myrrh is startled. And then proceeds to inform us that the darkness is stemming from the middle of the keep. So we rush in.

Cue a scene with Lyon standing beside his father, questioning if he's been foolish, saying when Vigarde had died, he couldn't deal with it... Before he can go on, he's wracked with pain and a soldier runs in, saying they're under attack by Ephraim. Just then, the solider is staring at Lyon.

Lyon's new sprite appears different, darker and more sinister. They comment that they do not appreciate being stared at as if they were some vile creature. Then orders them to wipe out Ephraim. Vigarde slowly tells the soldier to do as he says. The soldier rushes out in compliance and Lyon turns towards Vigarde, addressing them completely differently. "Vigarde, defeat Ephraim. I must go." and teleports out. DUN DUN DUN. Oh my whatever could this be?

We'll find out soon enough~

Til then, we've got a battle to win.

[Chapter 14 battle, start!]

So, considering I have more than 12 units now, I'm forced to bench one. Sorry, Dozla. I need Tethys more than you right now so she can boost her bro so he can get mass expies. 8D

... ... ...

Well. Damn. Seven turns in, I take a penalty. I apparently didn't move Rennac far enough out of the way and he got attacked. Dodged it, but still. Eff. D:

BUT. All in all, I got all the chests, gained levels, stole everything that needed stealing, and it's alll gewd.

Kyle promoted to Paladin and Natasha made it to level 10 and thus was promoted to Valkyrie (despite the inner screaming from my perfectionist side)

AND HOLY SHIT I AM SO PROUD OF KYLE. He critted so many times in defense of his Lord husband -shot-

Reached A rank support with Ephraim and Kyle, C rank with Cormag and Tana. Need to pick up the pace with the others.

Turns taken: 18

Pentalty turn: 5

Overall turncount: 23

Tbh, I could have ended it at turn 11, but I wouldn't have gotten the last chest or the body ring...and My perfectionist side demanded me to get them. xD

ANYWAY. Stats!

Ephraim: Level: 20 Exp: -

HP: 33 Str: 14 Skill: 17 Spd: 19 Luck: 15 Def: 15 Res: 5

Kyle: Level: 20/1 Exp: 0

HP: 40 Str: 18 Skill: 15 Spd: 14 Luck: 10 Def: 14 Res: 6

Franz: Level: 5 Exp: 5

HP: 44 Str: 17 Skill:18 Spd: 20 Luck: 12 Def: 16 Res: 8

Natasha: Level: 10/1 Exp: 0

HP: 31 Mag: 13 (including the +2 from the energy ring) Skill: 7 Spd: 13 Luck: 9 Def: 7 Res: 17

Cormag: Level: 15 Exp: 84

HP: 35 Str: 18 Skill: 15 Spd: 14 Luck: 5 Def: 14 Res: 3

Tana: Level: 16 Exp: 99

HP: 31 Str: 10 Skill: 16 Spd: 20 Luck: 16 Def: 7 Res: 10

Colm: [Only gained exp]

Marisa: Level: 10 Exp: 82

HP: 28 Str: 7 Skill: 16 Spd: 16 Luck: 12 Def: 6 Res: 4

Ewan: Level: 12 Exp: 27

HP: 27 Mag: 15 Skill: 8 Spd: 17 Luck: 15 Def: 2 Res: 19

Tethys: Level: 4 Exp: 44

HP: 20 Str: 1 Skill: 3 Spd: 14 Luck: 13 Def: 6 Res: 7

Joshua: Level: 18 Exp: 56

HP: 34 Str: 12 Skill: 20 Spd: 20 Luck: 11 Def: 6 Res: 4 (with the Talisman used)

L'Arachel: Level: 8 Exp: 13

HP: 20 Mag: 9 Skill: 10 Spd: 13 Luck: 15 Def: 5 Res: 10

Dozla: [Did not see combat this round]

WELP. Fair trade off, I suppose. The added turncount for the treasures. All in all though I'm rather pleased.

==========

AND SO, upon defeating Vigarde, the man just suddenly poofs out of existence, startling our Lord. Seth says they should look for any stragglers within the castle just in case, and Ephraim says he'll go with him because he may find Lyon.

...And he does.

And the darker Lyon greets him and tells him it was all his plan to destroy Renais and everything else. I'm too damned lazy to type the dialogue out so let's just say Ephraim's both confused and pissed, and Lyon poofs.

Then a soldier arrives to inform him that they've found a cell in the back with captives.

They go to see, and upon finding a new figure, said person asks if their execution has been moved up. Then realizes Ephraim's not a Grado soldier and asks who he is.

He's motherfucking Ephraim of Renais, bitch. GET LIKE HIM. EXCUSE _YOU_ whoever the hell you are.

So the dude says his name is Knoll. And until recently, was one of Grado's top researchers in arcane matters.

Seth then has to freaking butt in and ask why he was locked up. Jesus christ, man, this is EPHRAIM'S GAME, NOT YOURS. GTFO, SETH. -boots-

"......" OH GOD THE NOMAD SPEAK HAS BEGUN AGAIN. HALP.

Ephraim to the rescue to fix Seth's GD mistake by assuring Knoll it's okay if he doesn't want to answer that, but if he can at least tell him what Lyon was trying to do.

So basically Knoll tells us all that happened. Vigarde fell ill a year ago and died. And how strange Lyon was acting after revealing his father had returned to life after his usage of the Dark Stone.

Knoll informs them sadly that Lyon has transformed. Ephraim falls silent for a moment, looking contemplative. With my attention to detail more these days, I finally understand why. I think he was recalling what Myrrh said about the corruption. And yet, his own mind can't bring himself to believe it all just yet, despite what he saw and heard from Lyon.

Knoll leads them to the temple where the Sacred Stone was once held, and says if they're lucky, the Sacred Twins are still there. The Tome Gleipnir and the black Axe, Garm.

Knoll comments on Ephraim's knowledge of history when the Lord recalls the stories. Ephraim said he only remembered because Lyon had taught him. Falling silent in contemplation after Seth arrives with the weapons, the shaman bids Ephraim to take them.

I mildly want to cry when he says "I'm sure there's someone else who would've wanted you to." AHHHHH T_T;;;

Annnnnd suddenly a Frelian Pegasus Knight rides up.

Ephraim tries to tell her he has a message for Frelia, but she interrupts him by saying there's terrible news, Princess Eirika and Prince Innes are in trouble, under attack in Jehanna by Tiger Eye and Moonstone, aka Caellach and Valter.

"We'll make it. Eirika is my sister, she will not lay down her blade. And I am her brother, I will not let my sister die!" AHHHHHHHH JUST WRECK MY FEELS WHY DON'T YOU, EPHRAIM. -flails-

WELP. Things are about to get hot and heavy again, folks! |D OFF TO JEHANNA!

=========

So, Caellach attacked Jehanna Hall where Eirika was headed with Innes to forge an alliance with its Queen, Isamaire. The Queen unfortunately does not survive, and Eirika is forced to flee into the desert. However she gets trapped from all sides. Ephraim wastes no damned time waiting for frelian support and goes to save his sis single handedly -shot-

Annnd as we see the Hall in flames, Seth informs us he figured out which generals were leading the attack. Valter and Caellach. WELL NO SHIT THERE SHERSETH. THE GAME JUST TOLD US THIS ALREADY WE DON'T NEED YOU TO CLARIFY FOR US.

"We must rescue Princess Eirika and quickly, and yet... If you fall, Prince Ephraim, we're all finished. And this accursed sand... Most of the units can't get proper footing and are being slowed down. Mounted units are having the worse time, as their movement is severely limited." THANK YOU FOR REMINDING US OF THIS SETH, NO REALLY, WHAT WOULD WE EVER DO WITHOUT YOU HOLDING OUR HAND THE WHOLE WAY?

"Some of us can move better than others, though..." YOU DON'T SAY. He sounds like he hates to admit that he's sucky here in the desert. Ahaha.

"A combination of magic wielders and sky riders should give us some advantage." YEAH WE ALREADY KNEW THIS SETH. ANY SELF-RESPECTING FE PLAYER THAT KNOWS THEIR SHIT COULD TELL YOU THIS.

"Whatever we do, we must move cautiously." FFFFFFFFFFFF JFC. I'm so done with you, Seth. |D

"I understand. This is just like the battle for Renvall. We eithwe rescue Eirika or defeat all the enemy troops. If we accomplish either goal, victory is ours. Let's move!" YAY THANK YOU EPHRAIM I WAS ABOUT TO GO BATSHIT IF SETH SAID ANYTHING MORE REDUNDANT.

Annnd then the scene pans over to Lyon asking Caellach "how it goes", jfc Lyon, you're sure pretty chummy with him.

"Ah, Prince Lyon. Thank you, your highness, for gracing me with...your royal...er..."

"You can stop. There's no need for you to put on airs. You were made general for your military prowess, not your flowery speech." Ho'snap. At least someone's saying something mildly intelligent.

"And an honor it is. You know, Prince Lyon, you've got a lot of nerve. You've really worked over your dear friend the princess of Renais. Are you satisfied?"

"Is there some reason you ask?"

"No, not really. I just wanted to see how you'd react. That's all."

"She... Eirika has always been a very important person in my life. Both she and her brother have been friends of mine for a long time. Tell me, Caellach, do you have any friends to speak of?"

"Huh? Yeah, I got one. An old mercenary I fought with, went by the name of Joshua. He was a fool and a scoundrel, but now that he's gone, I miss the lad. I don't know where he's at or what he's doing, but..."

"Do you miss that life? Do you ever want to be a mercenary again, to see him?"

"Nope. The time we worked together was fun and all, but... No. I don't want to end up another no-name mercenary lying dead in a ditch. I'd rather serve the Grado Empire and make a name for myself. I'm going to see how far my axe will take me. And then, one day..."

"One day, you'll kill me and be emperor in my stead. Is that it?"

"Uh... That's..."

"It's alright. Think whatever you like if it helps you do your duty. As long as you do what I assign you to do, I'm happy. But for now, I'm going. You know what you need to do."

"Yep, leave it to me. I am General Caellac, the Tiger Eye of the Grado Imperial Army, after all! Once my prey is within my reach, I never let it escape. Too bad for the princess, but they've no chance at winning. None at all." BOLD WORDS, ASSHOLE. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO RAMMING THEM DOWN YOUR THROAT.

And with all that scene done, to battle!

[Chapter 15 Battle, start!]

Before I started the fight I shifted some items around and let's hope I can manage this without too much difficulty. EIRIKA, INNES, YOU'D BETTER BE ABLE TO HOLD YOUR OWN TIL I FUCKIN' GET YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS OVER THERE TO YOU. -shot-

Because Joshua has to show off and L'Arachel has to use her divine cosmic powah to keep Eirika and the others safe. -shot again-

I managed to get most of the treasures in the desert. Metis' Tome, Swiftsoles, Warp stave (COULDN'T FIND THE GD RESCUE ONE), and the Silver Card.

Promoted Cormag, Tana, Joshua, and L'Arachel in the middle of the battle.

EWAN IS A GODDAMNED REAPER OF DEATH.

Got C support with Tethya and Ewan,

Got C suuport with Colm and Marisa.

Got B Support with Franz and Natasha.

I need to step up my game next map and work more on Joshua and Innes, L'Arachel and Eirika's. And Tana and Cormag's. Efff.

Smashed Caellach AND Valter's faces in with Cormag for the win.

Turns taken: like, 36? It was an assload of turns.

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE:

Stats!

Ephraim: [Level 20, no change]

Franz: [Only gained exp]

Kyle: [Only gained exp]

Cormag: 19/2

HP: 42 Str: 21 Skill: 19 Spd: 18 Luck: 5 Def: 16 Res: 4

Ewan: 17

HP: 31 Mag: 18 Skill: 9 Spd: 17 Luck: 19 Def: 4 Res: 20 (capped!)

Natasha: 3

HP: 33 Mag: 14 Skill: 8 Spd: 14 Luck: 11 Def: 7 Res: 18

Colm: 5

HP: 38 Str: 17 Skill: 19 Spd: 22 Luck: 16 Def: 8 Res: 8

Joshua: 19/1

HP: 40 Str: 14 Skill: 20 Sped: 20 Luck: 11 Def: 8 Res: 5

Tana: 17/1

HP: 37 Str: 13 Skill: 16 Spd: 22 Luck: 16 Def: 9 Res: 12

L'Arachel: 10/1

HP: 25 Mag: 12 Skill: 12 Spd: 13 Luck: 17 Def: 7 Res: 13

Marisa: 13

HP: 31 Str: 8 Skill: 18 Spd: 19 Luck: 14 Def: 7 Res: 4

Tethys: 7

HP: 22 Str: 1 Skill: 3 Spd: 16 Luck: 15 Def: 6 Res: 9

Innes: 3 [merely gained exp]

Eirika: 16 [leveled up to 16 that map, but I forget her stats.]

Dozla:

[Didn't see combat this map]

=======

And so the Renais twins are reunited, Ephraim praising Eirika's strength in holding out and Eirika returns the gesture by bestowing the Sacred Twin relics from Jehanna to him.

FFFF L'Arachel.

"Now that we have, at last, been reunited once again, perhaps this would be a good time to share information. I'm sure we all are most anxious to learn of what has happened." You know, L'Arachel can be strangely levelheaded and on-point when she wishes to be. She's very keen minded despite all her oddities. I love her for it.

So the meeting to update everyone goes with Ephraim introducing himself to those newer to the cause, as does L'Arachel. Ephraim then tells of how they took Grado Keep and defeated Vigarde and the guard have surrendered and laid down their arms. He also informs them of the Dark Stone that Knoll told him about. Eirika protests, and Ephraim sadly tells her about the wicked, dark transformation the Stone has done to him.

L'Arachel then suggests to use the Sacred Stones to combat the Dark Stone.

So everyone plots a course back to Renais. Huzzah.

On the side, Saleh reunites with Myrrh and promises to protect her still. Sorry to burst your bubble dude but you're not one of my units. GTFO and into the time-out corner you go!

AND NOW WE'RE OFF BACK TO RENAIS.

==========

And so before moving onto the next chapter I take time to stock up on items, sell unwanted things, and distribute any stat booster stuff I feel I should.

Fed Innes the Metis' Tome because pretty much everyone else is more or less well off and as a pre-promote his stat gains are a bit lacking and since he comes in so much later in Ephraim's side, he's gonna need all the help he can get.

And without further ado, we're off to Renais Castle!

-----

Returning home to see their beloved country in ruins from the war delivers a terrible blow to Ephraim and Eirika's morale. Also, y'guys remember that former dude Orson? Yeah, he's back. Supposed to have watched over the castle but we all know he's obsessed with that dead corpse of his wife to care. FFF. Ephraim's not gonna have any of this shit and vows to kick that dude's ass and do his best to heal his country.

Our opening scene begins with Eirika, Ephraim, and Seth in the window. OH GOD WHY MUST WE SUFFER HEARING SETH SOME MORE??

"Brother..."

"What has happened to our home? What has happened to Castle Renais? How did it come to be so ruined? So desolate?" Ephraim don't start asking the retarded questions we just got answered in the oversight of the next chapter thinggy, I had such high faith in you.

"Spies report that the castle is being held by the traitor Orson." Oh my god Seth did you finally say something useful?

"Orson... In retrospect, I realize he's been acting odd for a while now. He seemed so...dispirited."

"His wide passed away some six months back. The loss may have been too much for his mind to bear. His love and devotion for his wife were ell known among the knights." YOU DON'T SAY SETH. NOW YOU'RE BACK TO STATING THE OBVIOUS. Jfc.

"...." OH JESUS EIRIKA NO STAHP DON'T START THE NOMAD SPEAK.

"Now, he sits alone in the king's former bedchambers. He makes no effort to govern. No one is allowed to enter the chamers, and he takes no meals." Hardcore, dude. Srsly.

"What could he possibly be doing?" I don't think we want to know that answer, Eirika...

"I do not know. The spies had no insight into his behavior. He does nothing to deal with the dark creatures and bandits roaming the land. Reports say all of Renais is engulfed in chaos. Region after region is revolting, and Orson's reign is already crumbling. Left alone, it may very wel collapse under the weight of its own neglect." CHAOS, YOU SAY? I CAN DEAL WITH THAT. 8D Chaos and I are very good friends, don't you know. -shot- |D And fff, we can't have Renais collapsing in on itself, that's not good for its health. xD

"We cannot allow the situation to reach that point." NO SHIT EPHRAIM BUT THANK YOU FOR SAYING WHAT I WAS SAYING. -snort-

"We're going home, Eirika. We're going to the castle."

"I hear you, Ephraim." Of course you do, he's standing right infront of you talking. You're not deaf, girl.

And then suddenly Myrrh pipes up.

"Um, Ephraim?"

"What is it, Myrrh?"

"I-I will fight with you. Now that Selena has returned my dragonstone to me... I'll do what I can until its power runs out. Let's take back your home." More like Ephraim ganked it out of her dying hands but okay we'll go with that nicer version. And aww, thank you Myrrh, sweetie, you're adorbs.

"Are you sure about this?" JFC Eirika, don't ruin the moment.

"For the two of you... I simply want to help." AWWWW. -foams and flails at the feels-

"All right, I understand. But you must make me a promise. You are never to stray from our sides. Got that?" Protective Ephraim is protective, baww.

"Of course..."

Annnd so we're off to Castle Renais fo' realz now.

-----

Next scene opens with Lyon appearing out of nowhere in Renais Castle. A dumb person tries to stop him. Not a very bright idea, thar, dude.

"Huh? Who do you think you are? These are the chambers of Orson, steward of Renais. There's no place for a street urchin like you, boy." OH SNAP. You just signed your death warrant.

"You... You fool! This is Prince Lyon!"

"What? This whelp is... I-I beg your forgiveness!" FFFFFFFFFFF. I'm sure you do.

"...... It's all right. I'm not the sort of person others hold in esteem..."

And he passes along with Reiv.

And the dude talks to the other dude about it.

"Who in the world was that? What a creepy-looking man." NO SHIT.

"Shh... He can hear you."

"You want to talk about ceeepy, that Orson's the one who chills my hide. What do you think he's doing back there? I've heard lots of bizzare rumors from the master of the mess hall. ...Do you think he needs help? Could he be dangerous?"

"I don't care. I'm here for the money. As long as I get paid, I'm happy. But on the subject of rumors, have you heard the stories of the secret treasure? There's supposed to be some fabulous wealth hidden in Castle Renais. I tell you, if I find it, I'm gone."

And scene fades out and when a new screen comes in, it's of Orson.

"What is it, Monica? You seem so happy today. Of COURSE I know what today is. I'd never forget your birthday! I have a present for you, dear. I think you'll like it..." I'm going to get roasted for this comment but: IS IT A DICK IN A BOX? -shotshotshotshot- SORRY NOT SORRY I HAD TO |D

"Orson," Before we can find out if it is, someone interrupts. Damn. |D

"...."

"Do you recognize me, Orson, or are you entirely lost to this world? Yes, it's me, Prince Lyon. I'm the one to whom you are indebted for ressurecting your beloved wife." Oh snap Lyon.

"...Get out. This is Monica and my place. I will not have our home disturbed by anyone. I did as you asked, I betrayed Renais. My promise has been kept."

"Yes, and I am very grateful to you. I came by today to offer you a piece of advice, nothing more. Ephraim is coming, Orson. He's on his way here to steal the happiness you two share." Can I punch his face in right now please? I really really want to for how greasy he sounds.

"Prince Ephraim?"

"That's right, Orson. And he's angry. I don't think he'll forgive you for betraying Renais. You've done so much to free your wife from the grave. It's a shame she'll die with you." JESUS LET ME STRANGLE HIM AND BEAT HIS FACE INTO THE FLOOR.

"No! That can't happen--"

"That's all I have to say to you. What you do now is up to you."

"...Monica, I'm sorry. I have something I must do. Please wait for me here. Oh, darling, don't look so sad. I'll be back soon, and then I'll never leave. I must do this to protect our happiness. You understand that, don't you? All right, then. I'll be back."

Annnnd with that, the scene fades and battle prep screen tiemz!

[Chapter 16, Battle start!]

Woooop. Looted everything that needed looting, got Eirika from level 16 to 20 and yay!

Got B Rank support with Tana and Cormag For C Rank support with Joshua and Innes Got C Rank support with Eirika and L'Arachel

Turns taken: 25

Stats:

Ephraim: [Level 20, no change, hell he didn't even see combat]

Franz: 6

HP: 45 Str: 17 Skill: 18 Spd: 21 Luck: 12 Def: 16 Res: 8

Kyle: 1 [Merely gained exp]

Cormag: 2 [Merely gained exp]

Ewan: 18

HP: 31 Mag: 19 Skill: 9 Spd: 18 Luck: 19 Def: 4 Res: 20 (capped)

Natasha: 6

HP: 33 Mag: 16 Skill: 9 Spd: 16 Luck: 12 Def: 8 Res: 19

Colm: 5 [Only gained exp]

Joshua: 2

HP: 41 Str: 14 Skill: 21 Spd: 21 Luck: 12 Def: 8 Res: 5

Tana: 2

HP: 38 Str: 14 Skill: 17 Spd: 22 Luck: 17 Def: 9 Res: 13

L'Arachel: 2

HP: 26 Mag: 13 Skill: 13 Spd: 14 Luck: 18 Def: 7 Res: 14

Innes: [only gained exp]

Eirika: 20

HP: 30 Str: 13 Skill: 18 Spd: 20 (capped) Luck: 17 Def: 10 Res: 7

All in all, I wasn't thrilled with the turn count, but I honestly wanted the treasure and all the goodies and to get Eirika to level 20 so I could promote Ephraim and Eirika together. It was also worth getting the support ranks so... I'll take what I can get, I guess? Yeah.

-------

AND SO WITH THAT CONCLUDED....

Seth informs the twins that the castle has been secured. NO SHIT, WE JUST WIPED THE FLOOR WITH EVERYONE OF COURSE IT'S SECURED. No thanks to your stating-the-obvious ass, dude.

He also informs them of what they found. Aka the animated corpse of Orson's wife. Eughhhh NO DO NOT WANT. I DO NOT WANT ANY OF THAT. -insert Kikyo Clay Pot joke here about the animated corpse-

Needless to say it shocks the eff out of Ephraim and Eirika. Can't say I blame them. Anyway, after disposing of the corpse, Eirika and Ephraim talk.

About the damage done and all.

"We can repair the castle, and what was stolen, we can do without. But the wounds and suffering inflicted upon the people of Renais..."

"It's too late to undo their pain. Once I become king, I must set our country right. I doubt the people will give me a warm reception, though. I did abandon them. All I can do is try to win back their trust, no matter how long it takes..." AHHHHH EPHRAIM WHY MUST YOU WRECK ME SO MUCH WITH YOUR LINES? For as reckless and all as you can be, you're so very aware of the things that need to be done, even if you doubt your own capability of being able to do such a thing. Hnnng.

And then Seth interrupts telling them to look outside. The crowd is cheering and Seth informs them that it's not the deeds they've done that they're praising, but that Orson's madness is at an end. And Seth then goes onto say that tomorrow, and the days after, their hearts could change...

"I will not let their hopes and dreams be shattered again. I will be king. Like my father before me, I will dedicate myself to their happiness."

"And I will do all I can." HNNNNG JUST TAKE MY HEART, GAME. TAKE IT.

And so with that, Seth takes them back to the throne room to locate the sacred stone and twin relics of renais. AND PROMOTE THESE TWO MOFOS TO THEIR SUPER SAIYAN FORMS -shot-

Their new stats:

Ephraim: 20/1

HP: 37 Str: 16 Skill: 20 Spd: 21 Luck: 15 Def: 17 Res: 10

Eirika: 20/1

HP: 34 Str: 15 Skill: 20 Spd: 21 Luck: 17 Def: 13 Res: 12

ANYWAY After getting promoted and the stone and getting the sacred twin relics and exiting the reliquary, L'Arachel goes on her eccentric spiel about the radiance of the stone for some much comedic relief on my end. Because I truly love this woman's quirks. xDDD

And after Innes remarks that all of the stones besides Renais' are destroyed, L'Arachel quickly corrects him, reminding him that Rausten's still exists as well, only Frelia, Jehanna, and Grado's stones were destroyed. Five stones, five nations. Renais and Rausten's are their only hope. So with that, she says she will guide them all to Rausten.

Yay, road trip!

=========

Well, that's all I'm gonna be doing for the moment because it's been a hella long time since I picked this draft up and I need to kinda replay a different file for fe8 to get myself reaquainted with the game before I try setting ouit from here but I wanted to post the progress I'd made since the last draft summary, so here it is!

Total turncount this Summary: 117

Overall Turncount for this Draft: 313 (without the two unaccounted for turn summaries)

#Mandi gaming #Draft run #FE8 #Fire Emblem #FE #Fire Emblem Sacred Stones #Set Game Settings To Troll #HOLD ONTO YOUR BUTTS #Mand shut up and be stupid elsewhere

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ohthatbunnygirl · 8 years

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Engines can be Rose (part 4)

An art school AU Reylo Drabble

______________________________

It was Lisztomania.

Well, not exactly the eighteen-forties fan-frenzied response to classical composer Franz Liszt, but the Phoenix song of the same name was certainly causing a present day scene. Walls and bodies shook in the living room, people screeched along with the lyrics at the top of their lungs, and arms flailed as intoxication ruled the night. Up against a wall, a far less enthused Rey clutched onto a cup of something she’d never drink. Desperately scanning the dancefloor for an escape route, her face took on the appearance of Edvard Munch’s ‘The Scream’ as she took a brave step forward. Horror for Rey was feeling a sweaty wet arm on her sweaty wet arm. That meeting of moisture made her want to wring old Liszt’s dead ass, and Rey thought she’d reached the end of her wits until when a shoulder bumped into her spine.

“Sorrrrrry!”

A slurred stranger’s apology didn’t count for much when sugary punch seeped between Rey’s toes. She shuddered with revulsion, but Rey miraculously refrained from flicking the drunkard off. It wasn’t anybody else’s fault that she felt awkward and out of place, but once “soiled by rum punch” was added to the list of reasons why she hated the party, Rey decided to call it a night. It wasn’t her scene at all, she couldn’t stop thinking about her art project deadline anyway, and if anybody met the girl’s gaze they would have assumed that the only possible explanation for her attendance in the first place was likely trickery.

In truth, she’d been bribed - and not even with money. No, Rey had been bribed with pizza- and not even with good pizza.

Four, eighty-cent frozen pizzas in exchange for accompanying her friend Poe to the party so he wouldn’t be alone was the deal once considered too tempting to turn down. Sadly, this wasn’t the first time Rey had made a bad bargain on cheap pizza. Hell, it wasn’t even the first time that she’d been lured with pizza by Poe that month, but there was the bonus that night of getting to pat herself on the back for being a selfless best friend who cheaply fed herself too. It was basic broke ass college economics that led to Rey entering a three bedroom apartment party, but the minute they’d stepped into the chaos Poe had predictably swept away into a sea of loud greetings as Rey longed to bash her head on the rocks.

Every damn time.

After an hour of accidental shoving around a dancefloor, Rey weaved through the crowd. Pretending to dance in order to push past sweaty bodies, she slid along a wall. It took three songs to make her slippery way, but one darn good eel impersonation later she’d reached the hallway. Dabbing off her cheeks with a dress sleeve, she deeply inhaled. She tasted sweet freedom in the air mixed with a hint of nag champa incense, but her buddy Poe was nowhere to be found. Positive that her friend was likely charming the literal pants off of his crush, Rey inched closer to the front door. She was almost home free until she picked up on the faintest whine coming from behind the nearest bedroom. Much like Rey knew that she was caked in at least four people’s sweat, she also immediately recognized that that particular noise could only come from something cuddly with a nose squishy from inbreeding.

That was the noise of something so spectacular that the normally shy girl threw open a door to a room that she had no business wandering into.

“Oh. My. God.”

Both of Rey’s hands fluttered up to her mouth as she gasped in delight. Bouncing on her toes, she loudly squealed as an adorable roly-poly puppy snorted up at her. The jumpy fawn-colored French bulldog joyfully pawing at her ankles while snorty-whining as Rey could not even….she just could not even.

“Look at you!” Releasing a whine of her own, Rey picked him up. “Oooooh my god, you are the best thing in the world.”

Forgetting that she’d barged into somebody’s room, Rey sunk down onto the corner of the mattress resting on the floor. Lying on her side, she allowed the full on puppy attack to commence. A fluff invasion was thoroughly welcome after her crap night, and Rey swore that each little cheek lick was worth all the cheap pizzas in the world. Heck, each puppy breath snort was well worth all the flaky friends too.

“Who do you belong to?” she cooed at the little tub of velvety butter, scratching around his ears. “Who could leave you for even one minute alone?”

The question was meant to be rhetorical, but Rey had her answer when the door flew open.

“Be right back, just gotta throw down my bag-” a booming excited voice called out before his laughter died. “Uhhh, Rey?”

No, no, no, no, no.

Standing frozen in the doorway, her shocked TA gawked at her.

“There was a dog,” Rey rapidly explained, scrambling to sit up as the pup in question padded over to snort all over Kylo. “I-I heard it…he was whimpering-”

“You’re in my room,” Kylo cut her off, unconsciously scratching at the scruff along his jaw as his eyes widened. “You’re in my room…on my bed.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know that you lived here.”

“Well, I do.”

Sinking into a thickening discomfort on top of Kylo’s comforter, Rey winced. The flustered girl felt smaller by the second as he continued staring at her with a dazed expression, and poor Rey rushed into a bad case of the rambles, “It’s just that my friend Poe was invited by this guy Finn who works at the coffee shop we go to. Poe didn’t want to come here alone in case it turned out that Finn wasn’t single -even though Poe’s pretty sure that a topped off coffee is an invitation for a blowjob. But anyways, some pizza propositioning was involved in getting me here, and then the puppy made me stay…”

Great talk, Rey.

Too mortified to meet his gaze any longer, Rey stared down at the mattress she was sitting on. The black sheets were rumpled from recent use, there were pillows on the ground, and Rey’s lips turned down into her own confused frown as she took in more and more of her surroundings. The room was stark. There were exactly zero pops of personality aside from a red painting on the wall, there was no clutter, and Rey would never have guessed that a talented artist could inhabit some place so utterly lacking in passion, so militaristic. To be fair, Rey didn’t know what she would have expected. She’d never given Kylo’s life outside the classroom much thought, but when she didn’t recognize a glimmer of the Kylo she’d obsessed over it hit her that she didn’t know him at all.

He was absolutely altogether foreign to her.

Rey didn’t know what band posters she’d expected, or what awards he might have framed. She couldn’t guess the author of one single book on his bookshelf, and with each swallow of bittersweet clarity, her stomach turned. Feeling foolish, feeling naive, and more than ever feeling like a little girl with an out of her depth crush.

Cringing, Rey moved to get up when his voice stopped her. “So you met Ramen?”

“Who?”

“The puppy,” Kylo answered, scooping up the yipping animal for a cuddle so brief that Rey almost missed it. Sitting beside her on the mattress, Kylo continued petting Ramen while casually explaining, “I’ve actually only had him for a couple months, but he’s a pretty cool dude.”

“He’s awfully cute.”

“I think so too! Yeah, my ex-girlfriend’s family breeds French bulldogs for competitions. The pedigree is apparently strong with this family, and every puppy in his litter went for nine thousand dollars.“ Cupping the puppy’s ears, Kylo whispered, “Then some elitist twat suggested that Ramen’s walk wasn’t up to standards, and when I defended his perfectly fine trot, my ex’s mom gave him to me for free.”

Rey’s jaw dropped. “You own a nine thousand dollar dog, but your mattress is on the floor?”

“Yep.”

“And you named your nine thousand dollar dog, Ramen?”

“Yep,” Kylo answered back with a grin so wide that it crinkled the corners of his eyes. “Ramen was the food that basically kept me alive freshmen year. So what better name for something else I love?”

Not about to argue with sound logic, Rey gave Ramen’s humongous ears some soft tugs. Purring at him, “And here I thought you were just adorable, but little did I know that you’re pet royalty too.”

As the puppy took an ungraceful leap off the bed, Kylo laughed. “He’s the fanciest one in the flat.”

“Well, your room is-”

“Boring.” Kylo finished for her, rolling his eyes. “Whatever you were going to say the honest answer is that it’s boring.”

“I wasn’t going to say that.”

“Something nicer then?”

“Probably,” Rey carefully considered her answered while absently leaning in closer to Kylo. ”My building on the outside honestly looks like scrap metal decided to get together in the nineteen-seventies. I don’t have much room to talk when it comes to running a place down, and I’ve always thought that you do what you can with what you have. At least the room is roomy.”

Kylo’s lips quirked to the side. “The room is roomy?”

“I meant large.”

“Yes, quite boring and large,” Kylo added with an over the top head bob. “Glad we can be honest now about it.”

“Boy you enjoy tearing it down, don’t you?”

“No, I just call a spade a spade,” Kylo shrugged, pushing his hair back behind his ears without a trace of agitation. “Honestly, my money doesn’t go into the room because any spare funds I have immediately get funneled back into my education or my art supplies. I’m too busy to worry about aesthetics inside a place I’m barely at, and I’m practical about where I spend my time- and who I spend it with. If it’s an option between taking a girl out on a date with forty bucks or buying a fancier IKEA tv stand, then I’m going to choose the girl every time. ”

To avoid the torture of hearing anything further about Kylo’s dates with other girls, Rey said the first thing that sprung to mind. Taking charge of the conversation while suspiciously eyeing his shiny black boots, “Hmm, you never struck me as all that poor.”

“I didn’t use to be.”

“You still don’t look it now.”

“Thanks,” Kylo’s gravelly voice rolled into a chuckle. “It’s nice to hear that the mostly all black ensembles I rock are doing me some covert social status favors after my fall from grace.”

“What happened?”

“Ah, that’s a good story,” Kylo sighed, his broody expression falling back in place. ”Pretty much everything about my current lack of funds has to do with a marvelous double whammy school screw over. Back when I was an undergrad, the Financial Aid office claimed that my parents made too much money for me to qualify for help. That made sense, but then after my parents cut me off after a political disagreement, I still couldn’t receive assistance.“

Rising up from the bed, Kylo placed a drowsy looking Ramen in a kennel in the corner of the room. Going through the motions of something nurturing even as the muscles along his spine tightened with tension. Back conveniently turned away as he explained, “Oddly enough, the school doesn’t exactly accept pictures of a heated up Thanksgiving Day frozen food meal as definitive proof that you’re financially screwed at eighteen. So all of the sudden, while I was taking on a sixteen-hour course load I had to simultaneously work two jobs just to afford my books, my tuition, and this apartment shared with a guy I met on Craigslist - who thankfully was not much for murdering. ”

“Wow, school’s pretty expensive here without any grants.”

“Indeed,” Kylo agreed. Sitting back down again beside Rey, he was unable to fight back the bitterness in his laugh. “There’s a reason the last gallery collection I showed was titled ‘Daddy Issues’ “

Before Rey could talk herself out of it, she took his hand in hers. Squeezing sympathetically, offering whatever comfort her small fingers could while dwarfed by his massive hand. The acrylic paint chips underneath her nails stood out so vibrantly against his skin -the quirky boldness so very her- and Kylo’s smile softened.

“You’re sweet.”

Dragging her teeth along her lower lip, Rey shook her head.

“Not entirely…”

A loud thump sounded from outside the door. Instantly, the illusion of intimacy dissolved away from them when they shifted apart from one another, hands releasing. Staring at the widened gap between them, Rey was struck with the ugly reminder that a party raged outside. Up until that moment, she’d plum forgot that her handsome crush hadn’t actually invited her to his room for an intimate chat. It wasn’t a date. They weren’t even friends. No, she’d barged her way into his life, and on the off chance that he was only humoring her, Rey gave him an out.

Stammering out, “Sorry again for slipping into your room.”

“Well, I’m not exactly kicking you out am I?” Kylo said, shifting his piercing gaze back to her.

“No, guess not,” Rey swallowed hard, chest rising and falling without hope of a steadying breath when he looked at her like every step of his day had been geared towards having her with him in his bed.

Before the girl could trip over her own nerves again, Kylo intertwined his ink-stained fingers with hers again. An innocent enough hand squeeze kept her beside him on the bed as her heart fluttered up into her throat. Oxygen and excuses blocked off, feeling temporarily safe from embarrassing herself with words that would have proven useless after he proceeded to steal away her breath.

“I should probably say something clever now,” he told her, “but I can’t stop staring at your lips.”

For a few stuttered heart beats, Rey was sure that she’d heard Kylo wrong until his thumb brushing against her knee proved otherwise. It was no daydream. There was nothing more real than those small maddening circles grazing against her skin as he shamelessly admitted,

“I actually think about them a lot.”

“Oh,” Rey exhaled.

Shifting his gaze from her eyes to her mouth and back again, Kylo continued, “I keep thinking about…”

“What?” Rey whispered.

“Thinking about how sweet you’d taste.”

#reylo #kylo ren #2 more drabbles left #warm thoughts for a cold night

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whittlebaggett8 · 5 years

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Waigal, Afghanistan: ‘This War Will Never End Here’

WAIGAL, NURISTAN, AFGHANISTAN – Nuristan indicates the “Land of Light-weight.” But the poetically promising identify is fallacious as the men and women in the heart of Nuristan’s district of Waigal have not a great deal, if any, hope left. Almost absolutely surrounded by Taliban, they have their weapons often ready – especially at night, as even in the “Land of Light” darkness falls and fighters from both sides check out to exploit its deal with. Government forces keeping the line really do not imagine that the war in their valley will at any time close – even if recent nationwide and international attempts should really consequence in a peace accord. And this is only a person of numerous such examples throughout the country.

The ‘Land of Light’

Tucked away in the mountains of japanese Afghanistan, Nuristan is arguably the most distant of the country’s 34 provinces. It is so remote and tough to access in reality that right until the late 19th century Nuristan was regarded as Kafiristan – the “Land of the Infidels” – as its people had resisted outdoors handle and nonetheless adhered to an historical animist religion. This only adjusted in 1895, when the then-Afghan emir subdued Kafiristan, forcibly transformed its inhabitants to Islam, and renamed it.

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Driving up toward Waigal, one can properly imagine why Nuristan experienced not been conquered earlier. And why – aside from some forays, which include U.S. deployments to isolated outposts in the yrs considering that the toppling of the Taliban routine in 2001 – it has been mainly neglected ever since.

Want, the centre of the district of Waigal in the japanese Afghan province of Nuristan. The Taliban reportedly use the larger ridges found on the picture to regularly hearth on Afghan govt forces in and all around Want. (April 25, 2019). Photo by Franz J. Marty.

While the reduce valley of the Pech river, found in neighboring Kunar province and alongside the way to Waigal, has a floor that is huge enough to effortlessly accommodate lush fields and a (by Afghan criteria) very at ease highway, branching off from the Pech valley towards Waigal, it just will take a few minutes’ push until the landscapes changes. The valley narrows down so a great deal that only arduously developed terraces are handful of meters broad are arable. The road, now unpaved and bumpy, at periods clutches to craggy cliffs. Above the road, the slopes are bare rock, whose slick surfaces glisten in the sun and make one question in which the lower trees and number of tufts of grass that sprinkle them find maintain.

The fast surroundings of the quickly attained district centre that is formally called Want (although some locals assert that it is vice-versa, i.e. the district being named Want and the centre Waigal) are yet again a minimal far more obtainable with a considerably less steep hill facet covered in fields. However, the towering mountains closing in from every facet are an at any time current reminder of the all round harsh terrain.

Even further up the splitting valleys the mountains get even greater and steeper and the highway considerably worse, locals assert. But this is not the key difficulty that helps prevent most folks from venturing there.

The very last outpost of Afghan federal government forces in a aspect valley just above Want, the middle of the district of Waigal in the japanese Afghan province of Nuristan. Anything farther up the valley is managed by the Taliban (April 25, 2019). Picture by Franz J. Marty.

Surrounded by Taliban

The Afghan tricolor flags traveling around a handful of outposts – absolutely nothing far more than rudimentary stone huts, perched on outcrops in the slopes just over the district center – are as considerably as the Afghan government’s regulate reaches in Waigal. “Further up, all is comprehensive of Taliban. During the earlier days and weeks they even took all the mountain ridges all over us,” Abdul Boki, a Waigali policemen, whose basic household lies suitable at the bank of the dashing river, said in late April.

The dull sound of an explosion later in the afternoon and the faint smoke cloud brought on by it, growing about a ridge in direct line of sight from the porch of Boki’s dwelling, corroborated his assertion. “We often shoot an RPG at them to consider to preserve the Taliban off the ridge,” Boki described, nonchalantly referring to a shoulder launched grenade. As not only Boki but also his minimal small children did not even flinch at the seem, the odd shot every single now and then – be it from the Taliban or Afghan governing administration forces – is seemingly in fact extra or much less section of a ordinary working day in Waigal.

Boki as properly as other locals put the number of armed Taliban fighters in their district at 1,000 to 1,500. These are tough estimates at most effective and may possibly very well be exaggerated – all the much more as it would be challenging to see how the 250 adult males of the Afghan Nationwide and Afghan Community Law enforcement in Waigal would be capable to keep this sort of a exceptional pressure at bay. In any occasion, all resources in Waigal concur that almost all Taliban in their district are locals.

Questioned why so several Waigalis be part of the Taliban, no one particular has a very clear solution several even none at all. One nearby governing administration formal blamed the Pakistani Inter-Expert services Intelligence for cajoling locals with wrong narratives of a holy war versus infidels. This, nonetheless, as so frequently across Afghanistan, appeared to be alternatively a conspiracy idea than a truth-based summary.

An officer in the Afghan Nationwide Military, who hails from the very last reaches of Waigal, also stated sinister Pakistani impact, but only as just one among the many good reasons. Some locals would sign up for the Taliban thanks to private animosities with folks connected to the governing administration or because they – as the govt has under no circumstances been current in distant places – have to pick out between the Taliban and finish lawlessness, the officer explained. Poverty and the absence of employment would also enjoy into it, he included.

Although not explicitly pointed out by locals, yet another evidently important motive for the Taliban affiliation of a lot of Waigalis is a religious conviction. Inspite of only a number of generations ago getting been “infidels,” a lot of Waigalis are now zealous Islamist fanatics. This was verified by 1 insurgent from Nangarhar, who experienced some a long time ago for a prolonged period lived amongst area militants in Nuristan. “They have all an al-Qaeda frame of mind,” he reported, using this description to position out that the Nuristani Taliban adhere to a great deal a lot more excessive jihadi sights than other Taliban relatively than to indicate that they are truly al-Qaeda members.

Irrespective of whether or to what extent this has been further more fueled by fears of modern-day intrusions into their distant valleys is tough to notify. The fact that fairly a quantity of the professional-governing administration Waigalis in the district center appear to be into Western trend, among others fashionable sunglasses, and proudly recount their former collaboration with U.S. forces might be a hint, even though, that this sort of fears – whether justified or not – exist amongst some Waigalis. This is unquestionably is not a battle versus outsiders, although, as almost everybody on the govt facet in Waigal – from the law enforcement chief and district governor to the men keeping the last outposts – is from Waigal.

Waigali policemen in the previous outpost of Afghan govt forces in a side valley just higher than the middle of the district of Waigal, Nuristan (April 25, 2019). Photo by Franz J. Marty.

Guerrilla Warfare on Both Sides

Whatever their explanations are, the Waigali Taliban are focused to fighting their professional-government fellow Waigalis. “Every working day, our outpost arrives beneath Taliban fire,” asserted Enayatullah, a younger policeman who – with 17 colleagues – holds a desolate outpost in a aspect valley just previously mentioned the district heart. “Sometimes the Taliban use Dragunov [sniper rifles], sometimes compact or significant machine guns,” he specified. On the working day of this author’s take a look at to the outpost, the bullet of a Taliban sniper experienced allegedly hit the bolstered wood roof of their dwelling quarter, only cracking, but not penetrating it. And a dent in one of the outer HESCO limitations was reportedly brought on by an incoming RPG some time in the past.

“They hearth on us from in all places in the bordering mountains using some random situation, shooting and right later on often disappearing,” Enayatullah extra. Other resources also said the Taliban do not use any long-lasting positions or fortified outposts, apparently to protect against getting to be a concentrate on.

Whilst the use of this sort of guerrilla strategies by the Taliban does not appear as a surprise, in Waigal the ordinarily much more conventionally running Afghan federal government forces also vacation resort to related tactics. “Every night time, we lay ambushes in shifting spots at the mountain sides, lurking in the darkness, weapons at the all set,” Boki mentioned. “This way we stop the Taliban from sneaking down into the district middle under address of night.”

“Yesterday night time, we killed one Talib and wounded a further just one in these an ambush,” Enayatullah alleged on April 25, “and this transpires far more or much less just about every night time.” This kind of statements of results could not be independently confirmed. Nevertheless, at the very least in the earlier the Taliban reportedly at situations managed to get down to the district heart, as Boki had earlier pointed out a place on a sleepy path exactly where 3 of his colleagues had been killed by an improvised explosive device. The only signal that even now reminded of the prolonged-in the past incident had been a few straightforward items of fabric that are – in commemoration of the fallen – tied to the branches of 3 independent trees in the vicinity.

But the locals permit me move about freely and even in the talked about outpost only 50 percent-heartedly warned me to not remain too prolonged out of go over. This indicates that Taliban fireplace and improvised explosive gadgets are not as unsafe as some of the policemen’s statements implied.

This is not to say that the Taliban do not pose a critical risk to Waigal’s district center, though. Waigalis recounted that their district experienced several instances fallen to the Taliban in the past, the final time in 2016. And there have been some near calls considering the fact that then, with the next a person possibly around the corner, as the Taliban reportedly intensified their hearth on the district middle in the times subsequent my check out right before being pushed back all over again.

The look at from the very last government outpost into Taliban territory. Picture by Franz J. Marty.

Hardly ever-Ending Feuds?

In any function, the conflict in Waigal has develop into so entrenched that the Waigali policemen are certain that it will go on eternally. “The war here will by no means close. Even if the Taliban, the United States of The united states, and the Afghan authorities must achieve a peace arrangement, the combat in Waigal would just go on,” Boki asserted when asked what he thinks of peace efforts these kinds of as the ongoing U.S.–Taliban talks. Enayatullah as properly as his colleagues in the outpost concurred.

Requested why this would be the case, they refer to deep-rooted particular enmity. “Almost just about every a single of us has shed somebody – a father or a brother or an individual else – all killed by the Taliban,” Enayatullah described. “The Taliban have at the time torched my dwelling and I have lost all the things,” Boki stated one more grievance. “I will by no means forgive them and battle them permanently.”

In a uncommon glimpse of empathy with his adversaries, Boki then included that it is similar on the other side: “Some of us [government forces] have finished the exact [i.e. destroying houses] to the Taliban and that’s why also they won’t stop and the war will never ever end.”

Who initiated these vicious cycles of violence and when is not possible to determine. Provided that in the “notoriously clannish, fragmented and revenge-driven environment” of Nuristan feuds have been documented due to the fact at the very least the time when it was nevertheless recognised as Kafiristan, these enmity could day again very long and just be continuing in the guise of the present-day Taliban–government incarnation.

This unforgiving hatred amongst the warring events is not limited to Waigal. “Such cases exist in locations in just about all provinces,” Ehsanullah Ehsan, an Afghan researcher and journalist, stated. Between a number of illustrations, he pointed out that in some parts of the northern province of Kunduz the killing of a great number of individuals on both equally sides has led also locals there to see the conflict more as a revenge-pushed personal matter than an ideological war amongst the Taliban and the Afghan authorities. This was, in accordance to Ehsan, overtly acknowledged by commanders from each sides in Kunduz.

This clearly poses a sizeable potential spoiler to any peace initiatives – no subject in which format and venue. This was also echoed by remarks of the U.S. Particular Inspector Standard for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) pointing out that “[a]ny political [peace] settlement involves the possibility that not all subordinate groups will abide by an agreement produced by their organization’s management. As a result, insecurity could most likely persist (…).”

No matter if or how such extreme hostile attitudes can be overcome is unclear. One particular way could possibly be via the mediation of civilians that know both of those sides – the govt and the Taliban. These civilians do exist, like in Waigal. 1 outdated guy with a extended white beard and a weathered facial area who has lost one particular eye regularly goes back and forth from his house additional up the valley in Taliban territory to the district centre, amid other motives for browsing, as there is no bazaar in the upper pieces of Waigal. In the same way, but extra peculiarly, yet another guy with clear blue eyes and a neatly trimmed white beard, who operates in the education division of Waigal, also lives in a Taliban-held place.

“Going again and forth from the Taliban to the federal government aspect is doable,” both equally said in independent conversations. Although they never say so, this could possibly be partly owing to their aged age. At the very least according to the earlier mentioned-described Afghan National Military officer from Waigal, who hasn’t been capable to go to his birthplace for many years, the Taliban would only harass and target (potentially) govt-connected more youthful people today, but extra or a lot less leave by itself the aged, even if they had some oblique link to the governing administration. Confirming this, many policemen in Waigal stated that their mom and dad are residing in Taliban-held parts, but are not or at the very least not considerably bothered by the Taliban.

This does not imply, however, that it is quick for the aged gentlemen or other folks like them. “Of class it is hard,” the instruction official stated. “There [in Taliban areas], they accuse me of staying a brother of the authorities and right here in the district heart they question me, what I am doing living in a Taliban space,” he discussed. “They always suspect me, with possibly side accusing me of belonging to the other,” the one-eyed guy said, expressing the same sentiment. Accordingly, they appear to check out their very best to get associated as little as possible. But even if they or many others like them must be keen to change that and mediate, the current suspicions and accusations would attract the odds of accomplishment into query.

When this impasse may be someway prevail over at some place in time, at minimum for now the Waigalis are right — the war in this remote valley will not end any time shortly.

Franz J. Marty is a freelance journalist centered in Afghanistan. He writes on a wide assortment of subjects, but focuses on stability and military issues. You can adhere to him @franzjmarty on Twitter.

The post Waigal, Afghanistan: ‘This War Will Never End Here’ appeared first on Defence Online.

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#Afghan Taliban #Afghan war #Afghanistan peace process #Afghanistan War #Features #Nuristan #Afghanis

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todaynewsstories · 6 years

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Catholic Church should fight for ′responsible freedom′ in Europe, says cardinal | Europe| News and current affairs from around the continent | DW

Cardinal Reinhard Marx visited the Polish city of Gdansk to pay tribute to the Solidarnosc movement of the 1980s. The leading Catholic representative also hoped for some new encounters to solidify the church‘s commitment to common European values.

DW: What can Europe learn from the Solidarnosc movement today?

Marx: First of all, the belief that we can make a difference. That things don’t have to just stay the way they are. Such a stance, like that which was present back in the day of the Solidarnosc, I find very courageous. Now we live in different times, but even here in a democracy, there is sometimes the conviction: What can we do? There is much to be learned from these people who faced much bigger hurdles. Something new can always get underway, and I think that is promising. We have a reminder of the value of freedom, and we cannot take that for granted.

Democracy could also just be one episode in the history of mankind. It is always necessary to stand up for individual liberties, for minorities, for respect and for the fundaments of democracy — for what it takes for a free and open society to function with stability. It is a kind of symbiosis that requires constant work. And if you turn away for just a second, you’ll soon find out. The dangers [of neglect] become apparent very quickly.

Read more: Poland’s judiciary conundrum: Where is the resistance?

Marx believes that the church must never cease working for the unity of Europe

Solidarnosc means “solidarity.” What do you make of the solidarity that exists in Europe today with a view to the refugee debate or nationalism?

We are interconnected with each other through various forms of solidarity. Through the European Union, for example, through treaties, through parliament, through guiding principles. We can’t do this without each other. We are staring down the barrel of Brexit right now. Our interconnectedness necessitates that we stand up for each other so that something positive can be the outcome. This is why I am also talking about making progress towards a social Europe. We feel this connection precisely during the crises. And then we recognize that solidarity is always an ongoing task.

The issue of migration is a common challenge. It is a wide field that we must tackle together, and I hope that this will happen. It is essential to move forward now and to develop common guidelines for a refugee and migration policy in Europe. It is about solidarity within Europe, but also with the countries from where refugees and migrants come.

Read more: Pope Francis speaks out against nationalism in Europe

Populists and nationalists have one thing in common: Eroding the idea of solidarity. What can the church do about it?

Faith tells us we belong to a human family. Patriotism is good, but nationalism is not Catholic. I agree with Franz-Josef Strauss, who has always said: Bavaria is our home, Germany is our fatherland, Europe is our future.

The path we have taken in the last 50 or 60 years since the Treaty of Rome was also morally connoted. That is why the church has always viewed the unity of Europe positively, even today. The work of unification began with a longing for peace and reconciliation. Let us not forget: Nationalism is one of the biggest causes of war. Here, the church must intervene with a counter offer of hope. Europe does not run by itself. I believe that the church must never cease working or doing something for the unity of Europe.

Read more: The fall of the Wall – a chronology of resistance

Let us consider German-Polish relations. Poland is moving towards a non-liberal democracy while, on the other hand, is in favor of a pluralistic model of society. What dialogue, if any, is possible with these differences?

Such dialogue is necessary and takes place within the framework of the EU. There are cornerstones on which the various constitutions are based. But there are differences in Europe. And they are legitimate. Even within Germany, we have differences of opinion. But a critical factor is this: A political majority does not reflect the whole population. I think that is very important to remember. The population includes everyone, including minorities. An incumbent party cannot say: We are “the people” to justify turning things upside down and no longer taking other positions and minorities into account.

As a church, we should stand up for a society of responsible freedom. That is why democracy is the mode of governance to be sought. People should be free to choose a political party, for — or against — a religion. In any case, I would like to live in a society in which freedom of opinion, conscience, and religion prevail — even a society where people do not agree with me or my religious convictions.

September 1, the anniversary of the beginning of the World War II, is a tragic date in German-Polish history. What can the Catholic Church do to heal this wound?

Sometimes the term “healing” carries too much weight because such a process is lengthy and always requires new commitment. The church has done a lot at the level of bishops, parishes and youth associations. But I think today we need a new wave of encounters. We must intensify our commitment once again, also at the level of the bishops. That is why I am here in Poland.

Cardinal Reinhard Marx is the Archbishop of Munich and Freising and has been president of the German Bishops’ Conference since 2014.

The interview was conducted by Leticia Witte (KNA) and Bartosz Dudek (DW Polish).

The post Catholic Church should fight for ′responsible freedom′ in Europe, says cardinal | Europe| News and current affairs from around the continent | DW appeared first on Today News Stories.

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brain-leakage-blog · 6 years

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Heroes, Antiheroes, and Villain-heroes

One of the online discussion groups I belong to is dedicated to the life and works of the late Karl Edward Wagner. Wagner, in case you're unfamiliar with him, was a World Fantasy Award-winning editor and author. Among his most enduring and famous creations is Kane, an immortal, ageless killer cursed by a "mad, idiot god" to wander the earth. Kane is amoral, killing both the innocent and the corrupt in pursuit of his goals, and sometimes he's only cast as the hero in relation to the greater, more ancient evils opposed to him.

This leads some to describe Kane as an antihero. But according to Wagner's longtime friend John Mayer, Wagner himself would strongly disagree. He always preferred to call Kane a villain-hero.

This wasn't just an author playing pedantic games. Wagner would stress that "antihero" was a word with a specific meaning, one that was slowly being corrupted and lost by misapplying it to characters like Kane.

I agree with him.

When someone says antihero, the first thing that probably comes to mind is the tough, morally grey outsider. A character like Deadpool, the Punisher, or the Man with No Name. By any reasonable metric, these aren't people to be admired. They're criminals, outlaws, and mercenaries. They don't reflect the values of society. Under other circumstances, they'd be considered villains.

Yet we admire them anyway.

Despite their moral failings, we're drawn to their strength and courage in the face of overwhelming odds. Their outsider status gives them the advantage of being able to ignore society's rules in pursuit of their goals. And because those goals often serve some greater good (either by accident or on purpose), they're moved a step closer to "heroism" on the morality scale.

Here's the thing.

All of that stuff up there, about the grey morality and the admiration solely for strength and courage? That's not antiheroism.

That's just straight, garden variety heroism. At least in the classical sense.

The English word "hero" comes from the Old French word "heroe," meaning "man of superhuman strength or physical courage." The Old French is in turn derived from the Greek and Latin "heros," meaning "demigod" or "protector." Its original meaning in English was "man who exhibits great bravery."

What all of the above definitions are lacking is a moral component. There's nothing in there about right and wrong, serving the greater good, or any of the other "traditionally" heroic qualities. That's because the basic concept of heroism (having great strength and personal courage) predates dualistic notions of good and evil. It isn't rooted in any specific morality, dualistic or otherwise.

This is readily apparent when you look at some of the Greek myths. Heroes like Achilles, Theseus, and Odysseus exhibited some genuinely awful behavior. Their stories are filled with betrayal, murder, kidnapping, and forced marriages.

So if these characters were such shit-heel human beings, why have they been admired for thousands of years? For that matter, why were they admired by the ancient Greeks?

Answer: They were admired because they faced the enemy in battle, risking death and crippling injuries. Because they challenged monsters spawned by the gods. When their own people or lands were menaced by outsiders, they stood on the field and fought tooth and nail to protect them.

Their strength, their skill, and their willingness to put everything on the line when it mattered is what made them heroes.

And as bitter a pill as it can be for us to swallow with our modern sensibilities, it's possible to exhibit all of those qualities and still be a reprehensible human being.

So, if heroes can be awful people, where do antiheroes come in? Why does the word even exist?

The Cambridge English Dictionary defines an antihero as:

"the central character in a play, book, or film who does not have traditionally heroic qualities, such as courage, and is admired instead for what society generally considers to be a weakness of their character"

In the original meaning of the word, an antihero is a very specific kind of character. The weak, nebbish leads in Woody Allan's films are antiheroes. The henpecked, buffoonish husbands in most sitcoms are antiheroes. The resigned and listless characters in Franz Kafka's work are antiheroes.

And just as heroes can be rotten piles of human garbage, antiheroes can be good people. In the case of Everybody Loves Raymond, Ray is a loving father and husband. He honestly tries to do right by his family. But he lacks almost any kind of courage or strength. Which means he will never, ever be a hero. Not in the classical sense.

Which brings me back to Wagner's original point. It's really not possible to apply this definition of antiheroism to characters like Deadpool, the Punisher, or Wagner's own Kane. Reprehensible actions aside, all of them display physical courage in spades.

Of course, language evolves. At some point, "heroism" picked up a moral component, one that seems to have completely replaced "strength and physical courage" in most contexts. This, in turn, bled into the idea of an antihero being someone who lacks that morality.

But with that evolution, we're losing an important distinction. We don't have another word to replace "antihero" as it evolves away from its original meaning.

Considering how many characters in modern fiction are antiheroes in that original, classic sense, it's a loss the language can't really afford.

#brain leakage blog #writing #writing advice #karl edward wagner #antihero #hero #words mean things #courage #strength #greek mythology #etymology

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myseobacklinksplace4561-blog · 6 years

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SEO AutoPilot Staying Alivethe Battles Of A Service Attempting To Survive.

Thanks to every person that put in the time to respond to my last article. I 'd like to reply to several of the remarks, because, well, just because.

First thing first: my AdWords campaign, as it is configured today, works really, effectively. It generates questions, which we transformed into paying clients. The average inquiry we get using phone as well as email yields regarding $3,450 in income. And also my complete AdWords investing is much less compared to 5 percent of my annual revenue, which I consider to be appropriate. All of the guidance to fiddle with this as well as change that and also look right into the other is fascinating, yet I might or might not change anything. It ain't damaged. I do not should fix it.

Second, some explanation on my account as well as budget. I promote just on the search network, not the content network. I made use of to work on the material network, however we obtained huge numbers of scrap strikes that were associated with searches for sporting activities meetings and also yes, I recognize that I can have cleansed that up with negative key phrases, however that's a nonstop task. I presume that people that intend to purchase seminar tables are doing so for their business, out a whim prompted by their individual browsing. So I've set up my advertising and marketing under the presumption that tables are an one-time, extremely taken into consideration acquisition. Nothing in my experience has made me reassess this. And also I must have claimed this, but we're investing $500 per weekday, and also absolutely nothing on the weekends. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fJR2oLT8nY&list=PLddX_cIorQS_Mw7YX8LHMwenOI7OrKo-K So my overall advertisement spend playings around $9,000 a month, or concerning $108,000 a year. We're on track for $2 million in sales this year, which is where I got the 5 percent of gross number.

On to the comments:

Im curious, have you considered anything year over year in your calculations or anything else apart from just what your standard has been this separated week compared with the previous 40 weeks or so of data that you had put together? Mark Bowers

Its an extremely interesting question however a pitifully tiny sample upon which to also take into consideration composing as well as analysis. Bob

For the last 24 years, I would certainly get a paper schedule at the beginning of the year, as well as use it to tape visits as well as additionally make note of inbound calls. I made a decision at the start of this year that I desired a much far better document of incoming calls, to see whether any type of patterns arised. I set up a spread sheet on Google Docs, with a cell for every day of the year, and also shared it with my salesmen so that we could all videotape every incoming query.

A whole lot of the calls we obtain result in tasks weeks or months later. And also some of the phone calls result in really massive orders I 'd hate to miss out on one of those due to the fact that I was accumulating a statistically significant data set.

For something as aesthetic as your item, I avoid right down to the photo results. I could see numerous companies tables all at as soon as. Only one little picture on web page two, surrounded by numerous photos from your competitors (Franz, hardrox).

This is a very intriguing remark. It never ever struck me that anyone would shop in this manner, however it makes ideal feeling for an aesthetically drivened product. We do code our photo file names to attempt to make them S.E.O. friendly, but there's only a lot you could do with a data name. This type of search doesn't seem to have any type of link to AdWords. I don't know exactly how Google ranks the photos they show up. I simply attempted a search (" custom-made conference tables") which returns my site as both the leading paid as well as cost-free listings. When I struck the photo tab, we have just one photo in the initial 25, as well as 5 in the first 200. Maybe Google is missing out on a possibility right here why not increase AdWords to the picture results? I 'd gladly pay for positioning.

I hardly ever click AdWords results at either the top or side because I recognize Google is going to get paid by what is usually a small business with slim margins ... So if the advertisement appears relevant to my demands Sickness scroll down and also click the complimentary search engine result for the same company, or also by hand type in the companys URL instead of clicking on the adword web link. However Id miss a lot of business without the Adword web link. MK, New York City

So what do you do if there is no totally free web link from the business purchasing AdWords? I'm inferring that you click another person. Not that there's anything wrong with that said, but this drives me insane. I acquired that leading web link to make sure that you would certainly click it if you believed it would profit you to do so. Please don't stress regarding my ad spending plan. I'll fret about it, and also if it appears to be cash badly invested, I'll change my advertising.

My business was one of Googles initial marketers. We were anxious regarding just how Google would react, however our experiment worked.

This commenter highlights among the best/worst features of the cost-free listings: older links have a self-reinforcing benefit over more recent ones. I weep when I consider the leading free listing for "conference room tables" that I thoughtlessly threw out in 2005 (by producing a new Website with a various collection of URLs.) When you get to the top of the complimentary lot, you are probably to stay there, as you will instantly get even more clicks compared to the being successful web links. My concept, and also my experience backs me up on this, is that the most effective way to relocate your free link the checklist is to drive traffic to it with AdWords and also reveal Google that individuals are finding the web link to serve via a good bounce rate, time on website as well as various other metrics that mirror the user experience. Just how does an S.E.O.-optimized website displace a site that additionally has good S.E.O.? AdWords seems to give the additional boost.

One recommendation (as a person that purchases domain for a living) is that you upgrade to CustomConferenceTables.com rather than making use of the domain name with hyphens ... The business that possesses the name w/o hyphens is a large firm and the cost is affordable, especially taking into consideration the items youre marketing as well as your current advertising investment. Eliot Silver

We got the URL with the hyphens because it was available, as well as my Web designer believes that it makes no difference pertaining to the S.E.O. toughness of the name. Just out of inquisitiveness, I got in touch with the proprietor of customconferencetables.com to see how much it would set you back. I was told $1,680. Forget it, I responded, that's horrendous. Would you sell it for $800? Need to check with my supervisor, said the salesman. Thirty secs later on I obtain a phone call back: $800 is O.K. That made me ask yourself what does it cost? reduced they would have gone. I made a decision not to do the bargain I don't really think that having that specific LINK is essential, as customconferencetable.com is owned by a 3rd business, and the majority of the other apparent variations are in different hands. It's a jungle around busy table land. There will be some confusion for individuals who don't look any even more compared to a LINK. Yet that is not just how individuals store. I trust my website's content as well as my sales procedure. We'll make it function.

UShapedTable.com

UShapedTables.com

SquareConferenceTable.com

CustomBoardroomTable.com

CustomBoardroomTables.com

All are offered. Get them and also forward them to the website. John

I took the $800 I really did not invest on customconferencetables.com as well as purchased these rather. I will be forwarding them to the pertinent pages on our website. Thanks for the suggestion!

Paul, like several people Ive long since switched to Bing. Have you tried your search terms there? lesle.

Thanks for commenting, lesle (or is it Mrs. Gates?). Since Sept. 1 of this year, I received 4,287 organic check outs from Google as well as 3,019 sees from AdWords. Bing sent me 122 natural site visitors. I'm sorry, but it does not look as though I ought to be investing much time bothering with my Bing traffic. Is it feasible that Google subdues Bing causes Google Analytics? That would be quite questionable, yet who is bookkeeping Google Analytics for accuracy? Just in situation, I'll ask: Is any person out there doing well with Bing?

Put your SEM/SEO history right into a Shewhart procedure behavior chart (Excel templates available on the web). This will put possibility control bands around the information as well as supply some analytic insight, consisting of cyclicality effects. It will likewise help different signal from sound in the outcomes. Mak.

I'm not clever sufficient to do this, but anybody that intends to try it is welcome to my raw information.

When it comes to paid ads affecting a business ranking in the natural outcomes, weve constantly felt really highly that there ought to be no link between the two. Google does not use your condition as an advertiser to influence natural rankings. Frederick Vallaeys, Google AdWords Evangelist.

Hence speaketh Google. However till Google informs us exactly exactly what elements go into making natural positions, I'll have my questions regarding their intense line separation between AdWords and natural.

Enough on this subject (at the very least for now). Next message: my falling health insurance policy prices!

Paul Downs established Paul Downs Cabinetmakers in 1986. It is based outside of Philly.

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