#and i only found out later how kris is super on edge from the stuff theyre doing in the game so its not rly an out of the blue sort of thin

[halfmoonstruck]

so sooooo many moments i will be thinking about forever. but these ones in particular wanted to be drawn first

[silverwhiteraven]

Borne of the Stars - Chapter 14 - An MLB Kryptonian AU

Tag List:  @eve-valution @weird-pale-blonde-person @kris-pines04 @soulmate-game @abrx2002 @amayakans @vixen-uchiha @heldtogetherbysafetypins @raisuke06 @dorkus-minimus @mopester-is-here @moonlightstar64 @annabellabrookes @toodaloo-kangaroo @the-navistar-carol @elspethshadow @chocolatecatstheron @ivymala07 @maribat-is-lifeblood

[ Summary: Author is Back! The Heroes now meet. They also meet their first Akuma. ]

[ Posted on A03 ] [ Chapter 1 ] [ Chapter 13 ] [ Chapter 15 ]

Marinette was falling.

Well, falling as much one could when holding on for dear life to one end of a magical yo-yo that acted as its own weird grappler mixed with a trapeze. Neither of which she had ever used in her life.

First time for everything she supposed, though she also hoped this wouldn’t end with lasts, either.

Speaking of firsts being lasts, she realized her latest upswing was about to turn into a crash course collision with a black clad figure floating in the open air. As she yelled a terrified “ Look out!! ” at the person she didn't know was friend or foe, she really did wish this would be her one and only time her bad aim with a yo-yo ever turned into this situation. She really doubted it, though, but a girl can dream.

She barely saw a flash of blonde hair and green, green eyes turn towards her in shock before they slammed into each other, and fell several meters to a high rooftop below with mutual ‘ oofs ’ and wire wrapped around them. They rolled to a stop, Marinette resting awkwardly atop the other who had her back to the roof.

“I am so so sorry!” Marinette immediately apologized as soon as breath was back in her lungs. “I’m really new at this, I-” She was interrupted and silenced a moment later by a laugh and green, feline eyes looking into her own from below.

“Don’t worry about it, little lady,” the girl clad in black soothed reassuringly, her French accented. “I know a thing or two about knocking everything over when you first start out. I’d make a great practice dummy if you ever need it. Now, let's get out of this- uh…” She looked down, confused, at the string around them as she gave her arms a tug. “Wow, this stuff is stronger than I thought.”

Marinette could just feel the yo-yo string staying firmly tight with every tug, and realized she still had one end of it in her hand. “Oh! Let me just-” One tug, and the yo-yo came zipping around them and back into her hand. She was up in an instant, backing up with a flush of embarrassment on her face. “S-sorry, again, I’ll get better at this soon.”

The other girl just grinned, revealing pointed canines as she stood up as well. “Take your time, I can carry us both for as long as we need until you’re ready.”

A distant rumble caught their attention, and the blonde girl went tense and turned back to Marinette.

“Let’s make these introductions quick. I’m Oncilla the Black Cat,” The girl in black said, a hand over her heart and the other behind her back, taking a rather formal looking bow. “You must be the Ladybug I was told to expect?”

Marinette gaped like a fish for a moment before nodding quickly. “Oh, yes! Ladybug, yeah, you can call me that, not many other options with this costume, huh?” She joked nervously with a glance at her red and black-spotted hoodie.

“It suits you, Buggy,” Oncilla said with a grin, then walked over to the edge of the roof towards where the noise was coming from. Marinette- Ladybug- followed, fidgeting the yo-yo in her hand. “We should get going,” Oncilla added, squinting into the distance. “If there's anything I know, it’s that the damage only gets worse with time.”

“Experienced?” Ladybug asked, looking out over the edge nervously.

“Very. You?”

Ladybug laughed nervously once more. “Only with classroom bullies. This is…”

“Bigger, yeah. But think of it this way,” Oncilla turned to Ladybug and set a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “In a classroom, you're both on equal footing. Out here with villains? The field is bigger, but being Ladybug means your footing is the same, too. And you know what else you have that they don’t?”

“What?” Ladybug asked curiously.

“Back-up,” Oncilla said confidently through a big grin. “Bullies never have many friends, and villains are nothing more than slightly bigger bullies with even bigger heroes to oppose them. Trust me, your Ladyship, we got this. ”

Ladybug’s shoulders relaxed, and a grateful smile spread on her face. “Thank you. Having friends to back you up is always a good choice. Glad to have you as one of mine.”

Oncilla beamed at her. “Let’s head off. I can fly, but since you can’t, I'll stick with you. I've learned my lesson with going in head-first without my team, I won’t be teaching that to you on our first day together.”

“I appreciate it, considering I’m still not used to this yet at all,” Ladybug showed the yo-yo in her hand. “Catch me if I fall again? I don’t think ladybugs land on their feet…”

“‘Course,” Oncilla answered, then pulled a silver staff from behind her back. Not only did she plan to stay by Ladybug, she also seemed to be planning to forego flying so she could keep the same pace. Ladybug appreciated the gesture, and with a toss of her yo-yo and a step off the edge, she was off towards her first ever in-person super-villain, partner close behind.

Their travel wasn't long, though it felt like forever to the poor Ladybug, who was holding any more panicked yells from escaping. She really hoped she would get used to this soon, she really did.

They found their villain near the Eiffel Tower, the large monument clearly being the Akuma’s goal.

“They're trying to get a higher vantage point,” Oncilla fills in as Ladybug notices the Akuma was only floating so high off the ground. One of the Black Cat hero’s feline ears was flicking, cluing the other into Oncilla’s enhanced hearing as well.

As Ladybug turned back to look at the villain, squinting at them, she could have sworn for just a second she heard the Akuma muttering to themself. Maybe she got her hearing enhanced, too, just not as much? She supposed it went along with the themes, really.

“So how do you usually handle this kind of thing?” Ladybug questioned without moving her eyes from the target. She also kept them moving closer, though slower to keep from rushing or alerting the Akuma.

“Observe, strategize, attack, and don’t ever hesitate. Waiting is only good if it lets you get information, otherwise that’s just stalling, and stalling is bad if you don’t want extra collateral damage.” Oncilla was clearly concentrating well on the situation, looking and sounding perfectly in her element. Ladybug felt out of place, but she still held to the hope that she could fill her new role without any classic Marinette-clumsiness getting in the way.

“Observe…” Ladybug mused. “I saw earlier from my own, uh, high places, that all the glowing street parts popping up are a big, connecting map. The roofs of some buildings are even getting marked with icons.”

“Oh, I noticed that too, a... friend pointed it out to me,” Oncilla nodded. “But why turn the whole city into a giant map?”

Ladybug shrugged. “Maybe they got lost, couldn't find a place to ask directions?” She tapped her chin, thinking more. “I also saw a few odd things while I was swinging around. A few miscellaneous places had markers on them, almost like pins in a personal map rather than existing landmarks. They could be caused by the Akuma’s personal interests in those places?”

“Sounds reasonable. But in that case, they already know the layout of the city. Again, why a map ? Maybe...”

“They're tracking something?” Ladybug filled in.

“Exactly!” Oncilla snapped and smiled at her. “Maybe a bit more like a GPS system. Or a treasure hunt. They don't know where the thing they're looking for is, but they know it’s going to be marked on the map. So, they need to get somewhere to be able to see the map best.”

“Like a really tall tower in the middle of a lot of shorter buildings,” Ladybug finished, then looked onward, past the Akuma, to the Tower itself.

“Let’s intercept them at the base,” she suggested, “If we can't stop them there, we can at least follow them up and see where they go from there.”

“Smart,” the other replied. “Let’s go.” And with that, Oncilla was running and pole vaulting towards the Tower, skirting far around the Akuma to avoid notice, Ladybug close behind with her yo-yo.

The two heroes got to the base of the Eiffel Tower before the Akuma did, though not by long. However, the Akuma seemed not to notice them, eyes locked on the upper levels. That is, until a violet glow ringed their mask, and their eyes snapped downward to the duo, before their previously pensive expression warped into a cold sneer.

“The Ladybeetle and Black Cat! You finally arrived!” The Akuma spoke loudly, impatience thick in their tone.

The two dropped into defensive stances at the recognition, Ladybug’s more sloppy and unpracticed than Oncilla’s. Ladybug thought to herself that she should really take more fencing classes as Marinette. Maybe Kara and her friends could assist, too? Not the time to think about this! She self reprimanded, turning her focus back to the villain.

“What about us?” Oncilla taunted, bringing the focus of the Akuma to her.

“I am Atlas, and in exchange for your Miraculous, I shall be able to find what I have lost with the gift I have been granted. So hand them over.”

“Yeah, no,” the Black Cat wielder continued, “These aren't toys to trade like Halloween candy. We keep them, and you get lost.”

"No! Give me your Miraculous and get out of my way so I can get back to finding my things!" The Akuma bellowed at the heroes.

"I'm sorry Atlas, but we really can't do that," Ladybug chimed in, looking conflicted. She wasn't used to this, it was only her first time as a hero, let alone negotiating with a super-villain or a possessed civilian. Yet, there was something here she did know how to do.

"But!" She interrupts the Akuma as their face contorts into a deeper scowl, their body crouched and coiled, ready to jump at them. "But, maybe we can help?"

"Help?" Atlas became confused, and the butterfly-shaped glow returned. They waved it away with a shake of their head, "Quiet, Hawk Moth, maybe she can help you with this, too."

"Yeah- Yes! I can try to help, what is it you lost, maybe we can look for it." She glanced back to the other hero, making sure she was on board. Oncilla shrugged, relaxing from her previous stance and restraining herself from jumping right into fighting.

The Akuma looked thoughtful before answering.

"Well, at first, I just lost my pens,” the Akuma recalled aloud. “But then..." Their expression contorted in pain as they remembered their moments that led to their Akumatization.

"I lost a lot, actually," they amended. "Today was rough, a lot went bad. I just wanted to relax and work on my calligraphy when I was finally home. But I couldn't find my pens, or my backups... God, I found my good paper with spilled ink! " Their voice rose again, the anger and frustration growing and radiating from them like a toxin. Ladybug kept herself from recoiling and held herself as steady as she could, listening.

"I'm probably the one who spilled it when I left this morning, hell, I probably forgot my pens in the locker when I emptied it, or on the subway like a freaking idiot . I keep doing things like this, losing everything . I can't keep anything straight, I can't remember anything right, I can't do what's expected of me! " Tears streamed down their cheeks now, and their cries had risen to a yell.

"I need everything mapped out for me because I'm useless without that!! So just, HELP ME , or GIVE UP and GIVE ME THE MIRACULOUS!! "

The butterfly glow returned, and only a split second of unheard prompting had the sorrowful and angered Atlas attacking the heroes off-guard.

The two heroes jumped apart, dodging the first attack. Oncilla was quick to engage Atlas in  close combat while Ladybug recovered herself.

The fight moved away from the newer hero, and in an attempt to get herself closer, tossed her yo-yo into the beams of the Tower. It stuck and pulled her up, but she failed to get it back down, and ended up hanging from the string a few meters in the air. Looking around to see if there was anywhere for her to safely fall to, she realized, even if it wasn't much, she could see things better than from the ground.

“Oncilla!” Ladybug called out, and saw the other hero’s feline ears twitch towards her in acknowledgment. “I need to get higher, I have an idea! Can you handle them for a minute more?”

“Of course!” came the response. “Easy peasy, lemon squeezy, I got this! Go!”

With a quick, hard tug, and another throw of the yo-yo as she fell, Ladybug was heading up the Eiffel Tower.

As she swung to the peak, she called out, “ Lucky Charm! ”

[reactingtosomething]

Reacting to Wonder Woman

Part I: So Cool It Literally Physically Hurts

The Setup: Do you really need one for this?

SPOILERS below, after the jump.

MIRI: Hey, loves!

KRIS: Just started playing the soundtrack

MARCHAE: AHOY MATES!!!

KRIS: (...for the second time today)

MIRI: I just added one of the songs to our drafts

MARCHAE: go on and add all the songs to our drafts! The music was absolutely amazing

KRIS: Marchae I feel like you rarely get the first word so I’d love to hear your thoughts as sort of our superhero classicist

MIRI: Ok, in the interest of simplifying I feel like we should all take a chance to yell emphatically at the beginning of this.

KRIS: or that

MIRI: No I vote Marchae talks. We can always yell later

MARCHAE: (i will try not to use any caps)

oh my goodness!!! THIS MOVIE WAS EVERYTHINGGGGG

MIRI: On use whatever caps you feel!

MARCHAE: I adore, no LOVE, the original show. I’ve loved everything about it so I was worried how this was going to play out... like deeply worried... I love Linda Lynda Carter... LOVE

MIRI: (she was at the premiere and I saw them hug and it was MAGIC)

MARCHAE: and I can’t tell you how I was SO SO SO SO pleased with everything about this movie from the beginning to the end, from the top of her head to the tip of her boots

Miri I would have screamed my Entire Face Off

I loved the costuming and that she was not super scant, I loved that her body wasn’t the focal point of the story

I loved that she was feminine but STRONG and that the images we often saw were of her in power poses or in front of things that signify strength

MIRI: MORE WOMEN DIRECTORS!!!

MARCHAE: I had goosebumps several times

and the people in my theater clapped at one point and I nearly CRIED

this movie made me realize I do like superheroes

that’s like my first take

MIRI: Omg twist!

MARCHAE: Just of the Justice League variety 😊

MIRI: What worked for you here that didn’t in other Superhero things you’ve seen?

MARCHAE: well i’ve always been a HUGE and i do mean HUGE Superman fan

KRIS: Now you really do have to react to some of Zack Snyder’s stuff with your brother though because I am DEEPLY curious to see what you’d think

MIRI: (Granted it’s super unfair to compare this and Civil War, since this was an origin story and the other was 3-20,004 films in to a series)

MARCHAE: and I like old school Batman

KRIS: My favorite paper I’ve ever written was about Superman in my second year of grad school

MIRI: Yeah, see Suicide Squad before you declare DC superior

K: To clarify because I don’t want some asshat to “Well ACTUALLY” us here, Suicide Squad was directed by David Ayer, not Zack Snyder

MARCHAE: (Oh we will react because he is definitely all things Marvel)

KRIS: “old school” could mean a lot of things

MARCHAE: Guys I do have a will smith obsession

I am referring to ZAP

BAM

POW

i look like I am anemic Batman

MIRI: Like Adam West Batman?

MARCHAE: Yup!

MIRI: Or comics Batman?

Hahahahah nice!

MARCHAE: Adam West!

MIRI: That is old school

KRIS: Okay yeah Batman v Superman will be interesting for you

But back to Diana, sorry

BUT SERIOUSLY SPOILERS BELOW

MARCHAE: he makes me happy and I will definitely watch an adam west marathon in a heartbeat!

MIRI: I love her so much

MARCHAE: Me too

Also, and then I will stop...

there were moments when she looked EXACTLY like Linda Lynda Carter

and I found myself getting teary

it was weird

ok someone else go

KRIS: I don’t think getting teary in any context for this movie sounds weird

MARCHAE: really?

MIRI: Yeah Casey teared up 2-3 times

MIRI: Our friend Casey (who will be a guest reactor in the nearish future!) snagged tickets to the world premiere and it was AWESOME

KRIS: I don’t think I’ve told any of you this, but as I told Allison Shoemaker, I’m the sort of person who tears up at really great action scenes

So basically the first time an Amazon backflipped off a horse

I was done for

MIRI: I love that about you. It makes sense

THAT MOMENT WAS AMAZING

MARCHAE: 😊

MIRI: Marchae, we were getting to see a female hero treated with all the reverence that is normally only given to male leads

MARCHAE: that makes me really really happy to read 😊 😊 and I’m not sure why

MIRI: You’ve waited 30 years to see that

It’s worth getting teary over

MARCHAE: Truth!

MIRI: Also the love story was sweet and genuine, so that’s enough to make some people cry in any context

I like that she got to be headstrong and make some not great choices too

KRIS: Not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but speaking of the love story I LOVED the way they doubled back to Steve’s goodbye

MIRI: It wasn’t like “Here is our Female Hero, isn’t she so Perfect? That’s what you want, right?”

MARCHAE: OH MY GOD

i was about to say that!!!!!!!

MIRI: Ughhhhhh Steve gives me emotions

KRIS: That really saved the climax from being Just Another Kinda Disappointing CGI Slugfest

MARCHAE: I was so worried she was going to get all romance-y on me

(remember folks I do like the fights)

MIRI: hahahaha right, secret action movie fan

MARCHAE: I wouldn’t have minded - i would have minded if she were all like I love you (insert lusty voice)

MIRI: I love that Wonder Woman could actually take a hit

KRIS: But also yes I really liked the way they played Diana’s innocence

MARCHAE: but she kicked some A$$$$$

YES!

it showed the duality of femininity

MIRI: While on the subject of badassness, can we discuss EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED ON THEMYSCIRA???

MARCHAE: we can be tough but also love to love and want to see “babies!”

YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

KRIS: Yes

MIRI: Yes! Her love of babies was amazing!

MARCHAE: SWOONNN!!! I want to go there

and live

MIRI: But yes, back to AMAZONS JUMPING OFF THINGS

THEY JUMP OFF SO MANY THINGS

KRIS: and Robin Wright punching a dude in the throat

MIRI: Robin Wright doing literally everything she does

And the shield jump thing!!!

MARCHAE: the stunts were so on point

MIRI: I loved how that came back

K: I totally did not realize that Steve was remembering what Antiope had done, that’s so damn cool

MARCHAE: ALL THE JUMPS

kids she literally punched into a wall and climbed up it!

MIRI: YES

MARCHAE: and was proud when she realized she had the strength to do it

(dana)

KRIS: Yeah that was really nicely done

MIRI: I kind of love that discovering her powers wasn’t a freakout to her

KRIS: Not a freakout, but “oh THIS is cool”

MARCHAE: yeah she kind of embraced it at every turn

MIRI: She was just like “Yes, I can do this thing! Excellent, I will do this thing now”

MARCHAE: but it was a call out to her aunt saying you can do this! you are stronger than this

which i think more women of all varieties need to hear more oftne

often*

MIRI: 100%

MARCHAE: Kris what were your favorite things

KRIS: The critical part of me did wonder why Diana didn’t seem to have more questions about her powers after the sparring incident with Antiope

MIRI: Ughhhhhh I’m listening to the soundtrack too now and I’m so inspired

KRIS: Well definitely Amazons jumping off, over, and through things

And also the way the camera never leered at Diana

(the way they saved the costume reveal for No Man’s Land was great)

(and could so easily have been just a silly cutesy teasing thing)

MARCHAE: KRIS PREACH

MIRI: YES

YES that reveal!!!

MARCHAE: ( i want to talk about the costume)

KRIS: I don’t mind saying (at least) one more time that the Amazon choreography is so cool it literally physically hurts

MIRI: Her going over the edge of the trench was glorious

KRIS: Yes I want to hear all of your thoughts about wardrobe later

MIRI: Kris, I love you

Circling back to your critique really quickly

Re: not questioning powers: the whole man appearing in the water thing happened pretty immediately after that, didn’t it? (Sorry it’s been over a week!)

KRIS: I think that’s right

MM?

MIRI: Then I buy that. She went off to be alone, and then a dude appeared and things happened pretty quickly after that. No time to think much

MARCHAE: YES!

Yes she just had to rely on what she already had within her and literally dove right in

KRIS: Yeah, it didn’t bother me again until well after I’d left the theater

MIRI: very literally!

KRIS: I guess there was a Little Mermaid homage there?

MARCHAE: I’ve never seen the little mermaid

KRIS: I don’t know The Little Mermaid well enough

MIRI: WHAT????

K: Was this it? This seems like it might be it.

MIRI: Didn’t occur to me, but looks like it, yeah

MARCHAE: *hunches shoulders*

MIRI: WHAAAAAAT?

I mean it’s fine but WHAT?

MARCHAE: Sorry... I didn’t do many cartoons as a kid...

yeah i was kind of too busy reading

MIRI: Um I read obsessively as a child too

MARCHAE: and literally trying to be exactly like my  grandmother

KRIS: I know you didn’t MEAN that as a burn on us

But it kind of felt like one

MIRI: Very much so

MARCHAE: NO I swear it absolutely wasn’t LOLOLOL

it was just my nerdy life

you all were probably somewhere being normal and not trying to be your grandmother

MIRI: Also, is that why you’re convinced you’re a grandma? Because you’re trying to be your grandma specifically?

I got yelled at in elementary school for reading while we walked between classes

MARCHAE: yes *quietly*

MIRI: I was no variety of normal

BACK TO WONDER WOMAN!

KRIS: Oh so I sat by these two women (maybe around my age, maybe a little younger) who felt no fewer than three feelings every single second

MARCHAE: I got yelled at by mom for reading Jackie Collins in elementary school 😕

MIRI: who is also not normal

Hahahahahaha what kind of feelings did they seem to feel?

KRIS: And there was a tiny part of me, just general moviegoer me, that was like, okay, this is a lot

But mostly I was like you know what, this is great

A lot of “YAS bitch”

for Diana training, Diana climbing the tower, Diana saying things

Hippolyta saying “They do not deserve you”

MIRI: I actually had some concerns about that line

MARCHAE: do tell miri

MIRI: “They do not deserve you” implies weird things to me. It was a bit similar to the way guys describing women as innocent and pure as a compliment weirds me out. Like, she has an obligation to feel/be a certain way to maintain her quality or something? Also the idea that any person is inherently better than other people is a little skeevy. And I know she’s an Amazon, not a human, but still. 

KRIS: This only occurred to me now but I think Steve’s line later -- “It’s not about deserve” -- is supposed to be heard as a response to Hippolyta

MARCHAE: I liked that line a lot and noted it actually

MIRI: That makes sense to me

I mean Hippolyta can have some not great implications

KRIS: Hippolyta’s not wrong about [hu]man[ity in general], but Diana’s still right to leave

MIRI: That’s a fine thing for a character to do

She puts Diana above the whole world, as her mother

Which is pretty natural but also kind of shitty to the rest of the world, so it’s v consistent

I just don’t want it to become the pull quote of the movie, you know?

MARCHAE: for me I took it in the context of relationships and if more women heard that people didn’t deserve them (not necessarily literally) but in terms of the emotional and physical depeltion we go through so frequently as a result of giving so much of ourselves to ALL THE PEOPLE

MIRI: I think people frequently suck but I don’t want to start assuming they will en masse/by default

MARCHAE: our kids, our family, our spouses, our job

MIRI: I totally agree with that!

KRIS: I don’t know, I don’t really have a problem with it in the context of Steve’s reply

MIRI: Yes, his reply is great!

KRIS: In the ethics of this story, what people “deserve” isn’t as important as what can be done for them

MIRI: I just have already seen people using that quote alone as the description under gifts and stuff

MARCHAE: I literally grew up hearing that particularly because i am so empathetic and sympathetic and often would get hurt... i didn’t mind it

MIRI: and I think without the context it’s dangerous

Women definitely deserve to be told that people who don’t deserve them don’t deserve them

and that no one deserves ALL OF THEM

MARCHAE: but see i don’t know miri again women don’t hear that enough... and again i mean it in re to us giving without contemplating the repercussions

MIRI: because we’re socialized to give all

KRIS: I guess what I’m saying is that I don’t think people are inherently good any more than Hippolyta thinks they’re inherently bad

MARCHAE: so in that way its not necessarily problematic

MIRI: Right, we need to hear that

but H is painting with a very broad brush

MARCHAE: ( I mean I do agree with Hippolyta ... we learn to be good)

MIRI: I think assuming that people are inherently bad allows us to treat people badly

or like they don’t matter

I’d like to have faith in people’s ability to be better than that

Like Diana does

I mean take no shit

but don’t assume that people are shit from the get go

You know?

MARCHAE: This is why the world needs people like you and Diana to balance out people like me who are generally skeptical

i mean i will help all the people but constantly am on guard for the next AWFUL thing

MIRI: I mean I’m skeptical too!

KRIS: Sure

MIRI: I just would like to not be!

MARCHAE: TRUTH

MIRI: And see I feel like you are nicer and more generous than I am!!!

MARCHAE: that’s kind of you LOL

MIRI: Ok, shall we move on?

Ready to discuss wardrobe, Marchae?

KRIS: I guess I feel that “people are inherently good” is also a problematic assumption, like it’s kind of morally lazy

MARCHAE: OK GO

KRIS: But yeah let’s do wardrobe

MARCHAE: KRIS

MIRI: Wait no I want to address that!

MARCHAE: you can’t just drop that

and leave

MIRI: You can’t just drop that!

KRIS: I think this is a bigger issue than Wonder Woman

MIRI: I don’t think you have to assume people are inherently good

in order to not assume they are inherently bad

KRIS: I know

Which is why I do neither

MARCHAE: but i think that’s what made the movie good is that it prompted this goodness!!!! *mic drop @kris*

MIRI: Right, but H implies (at least to my read!) that mankind is inherently bad

MARCHAE: @kris really?

(that really also does not imply shock, but a general curiosity)

KRIS: But I think “people are inherently good” rhetoric is like trusting too much in “hope and change” rhetoric, and believing in a “moral arc of the universe”

The arc of the universe doesn’t just bend toward justice; people make an effort to bend it

MIRI: Yes, which can lead to lots of complacency and accepting of suffering

MARCHAE: but wait, I assume we are bad and taught to be good...

how does that play into this

MIRI: But assuming that people are inherently anything is a generalization that is not helpful imo

You do?

KRIS: Like I said I think this is getting beyond the scope of Wonder Woman

MIRI: Do you think your baby cousin is inherently bad?

I think children are mostly loving and empathetic

And learn badness pretty easily

but don’t start that way

MARCHAE: I think we teach them that

MIRI: We teach them empathy??

MARCHAE: to be loving and empathetic by modeling that behavior

MIRI: Hmmmmm

MARCHAE: yeah...they cry we  pick them up and “coddle” them

they cry we gasp

we teach that in many ways

MIRI: But they laugh when they see us happy

The happiness of others brings them joy

MARCHAE: because we laugh we we seem them happy as well

when*

MIRI: They share food and toys with the people they love so freely

MARCHAE: Because we teach them those things too...we don’t generall ywithhold things for little ones

MIRI: I mean yes, they are modeling us. But I think there is very little capacity for artifice in babies

When they’re happy, they laugh--not just smile. Anything that makes them a little happy makes them laugh

they have no gating mechanism for feelings

MARCHAE: and also makes us do the same

MIRI: so I believe it’s genuine when they are made happy by seeing others happy

MARCHAE: (also kris has left the building)

MIRI: I know

he’s right, we should get back to WW

We can cut this out

MARCHAE: ok

SORRY KRiS

KRIS: ANYWAY

MIRI: Ok, wardrobe!

MARCHAE: we will do better in the future

DID HE CAPS @ US!!!

ok

MIRI: (don’t sass me like that, Miranda)

MARCHAE: YES

MIRI: Can we talk about the armor of the Amazons?

because I am in love with it

MARCHAE: THE ARMOR period

MIRI: across the board

Her aunt can get it

KRIS: Something I found interesting was that between the costuming and the cinematography, they came about as close as they could to justifying the skimpiness of the Wonder Woman costume

MIRI: She joins my list of formidable blonde warrior women who I want to just pick me up in their strong arms and carry me away

1) Gwendoline Christie 😍😍😍

How so, Kris?

KRIS: It makes sense that on Themyscira wardrobe in general would just prioritize comfort and freedom of movement

MIRI: Right

KRIS: It’s eternally summer (or something like it)

MARCHAE: http://www.newnownext.com/wonder-woman-spin-gif-wall/09/2014/

KRIS: They haven’t had to fight a real war in ages

MARCHAE: So i am sending this list for my point

MIRI: It looked pretty eternally summer-y there too

MARCHAE: in the old show I am sure it was eternally summer

there is a tremendous distinction between the old show and this film

and  the main one is the armor

K: I think the fact that it’s metal armor is something for which even most Zack Snyder skeptics can appreciate his HARDER BETTER FASTER STRONGER sensibilities

MIRI: GOD the cleavage difference in that first side by side is GIVING ME LIFE

MARCHAE: if you check the old amazons they wore like this silk

and flowy stuff and they fought and trained

but these women signified visually power

Diana’s street wear in the film was a direct shout out to the show right down to the glasses!!!!

MIRI: That dressing room montage was hilarious!!! 

MARCHAE: it was so great

so much so that i wrote it in BIG LETTERS

MIRI: I liked her kicks and lunges a lot

Hahahahhaha ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ 

MARCHAE: but what she landed on was a very militaristic look which made my soul sing

KRIS: And that Diana’s armor has a skirt has never really been a problem (the bikini bottom version was always dumb), because that’s vaguely Greek, but practically speaking it should be longer

K: And don’t get me wrong, I also would still prefer that the armor went all the way up to her neck and shoulders. But from interviews it seems like Jenkins is a big fan of the classic look, not just following a Warner/DC mandate, and I think she and Lindy Hemming (the costume designer) did go some distance toward justifying it.

MIRI: Very much agreed

MARCHAE: THANK YOU

KRIS: But the cinematography AND choreography emphasized her greaves a lot, which was great

Lots of shots of her shins and feet

MARCHAE: YES!

and also surprisingly her arms !

MIRI: She was shot as a fighter/action hero

and I fucking love it

MARCHAE: which interestingly the strongest part on a woman is her legs @kris

KRIS: And she used her greaves for that slide across the floor to chop that column down

MARCHAE: so i think it was cool that we saw that

KRIS: The strongest part on any human is their legs

MARCHAE: well men have more strength in their arms

KRIS: More than women, but not more than in their legs, unless they’re being idiots

about their workouts

MIRI: More than women typically do, but I think their legs are still more powerful than their arms

Kris and I are having a lot of the same thoughts tonight but he has them faster

Which is probably accurate but I don’t like it being so clear

KRIS: I have a bowler hat if anyone (in LA) ever wants to cosplay Diana’s civilian getup

Although the brim isn’t very broad

MIRI: YES OBVIOUSLY THANK YOU PLEASE

KRIS: I guess this all brings us to that great alley fight scene

MARCHAE: YES!

KRIS: Which I have learned is an homage to the attempted mugging scene in Richard Donner’s Superman

MIRI: Oh, that’s nice!

I feel like the movie took a lot of joy in Diana being so capable

KRIS: Like Marchae, Patty Jenkins is a massive fan of that movie

MIRI: I love it

KRIS: I loved Steve’s “Stand back! ... Or maybe not!”

Not just a look of shock

But an actual “You know what, clearly you’ve got this”

MIRI: Steve Trevor is willing to accept that he is wrong sometimes

MARCHAE: YESS!!!

MIRI: without being a bitch baby about it

MARCHAE: and that was reassuring

MIRI: I am very much in favor

Did we enjoy the fact that Chris Pine had the Love Interest Bathing scene?

Because I enjoyed that and not just because he is very attractive

MARCHAE: all of the men recognized that she was competent

KRIS: It was a good, funny-but-not-dumb-funny scene

MIRI: True! I liked their little ragtag team

KRIS: It helped that Steve’s team was two-thirds men of color

MIRI: YES

MARCHAE: I liked them together

KRIS: And that they got their lines in about that but didn’t do it in a thudding way like Cat Grant’s speech in the Supergirl pilot

MIRI: I REALLY loved that they addressed PTSD somewhat

KRIS: Yes

And I also am just always happy to see Ewen Bremner

MARCHAE: Oh yeah they did!

MIRI: I think if you want to use a real event like WWI as your setting, you owe it to everyone to treat it with some genuine concern in a way tent pole movies rarely take the time to do

KRIS: And Diana’s line to keep him in the team [“Who will sing for us?”] after having dismissed him as dishonorable was a very key Wonder Woman moment

in addition to being funny and sweet

MIRI: And it was realistic without taking away from the plot

YEs! Loved her line there

KRIS: The understated delivery was so great

MIRI: Gal Godot is incredibly charming

MARCHAE: She’s very kind and saw the value in all of the people especially after being skeptical

MIRI: Just like across the board

MARCHAE: She very much at times looked like Lynda Carter

her mannerisms and carriage

KRIS: Yeah, I’ve actually revised my opinion of the performance upward from when I first saw it

Not that I ever didn’t like it

MARCHAE: but also looked very much like herself

that’s cool

KRIS: But I wasn’t necessarily thinking it was an all-time great superhero performance, because Downey and Evans are there

But in hindsight, the sheer range of stuff she has to do while maintaining a certain consistency is really impressive

MIRI: It is a big ask

MARCHAE: truth

KRIS: I mean that ice cream line

“You should be very proud”

MIRI: she has to be innocent without infantilizing the character, which is a line they walked very well

Omg she’s just so earnest there!

❤️ ❤️ ❤️ 

MARCHAE: but seriously all makers of ice cream should indeed be proud! She speaks for all of the universe there 😊

KRIS: I do wish we’d gotten a scene of Diana interacting with a young girl

MIRI: I am lactose intolerant and sad

Ooh that would have been nice

MARCHAE: (DANG IT MIRI)

KRIS: She’s never met one! (and that baby was the first she’d ever seen!)

MIRI: In the village, maybe

MARCHAE: That would have been so brilliant

MIRI: Yes, they played her love of children/wonder at seeing one very nicely

MARCHAE: I guess the film feels satisfied because we see her as a child

MIRI: And just the fish out of water of it all in general

Little Diana’s love of fighting is great

KRIS: At least one of the animated DC movies gives Diana a great moment with a kid, though, so I kind of thought it was an obvious thing to do. But the absence doesn’t do any harm, it would just have been a really great extra

MIRI: I kind of want her and x-23 from Logan to be friends

MARCHAE: ( I still need to see LOGAN!!!)

KRIS: (Laura using Logan’s back as a springboard in that third act is another teary Kris moment)

(also Laura’s first big set piece in general)

MIRI: I love that you cry for great action sequences

I’m bringing that up in an interview about you some day, I swear

MARCHAE: I love that this is a thing i just learned about you!

KRIS: Well it’s interesting, because something like John Wick doesn’t necessarily do that to me

MIRI: It’s the most Kris think I’ve ever heard

KRIS: And that’s probably the gold standard for actual fight design

MIRI: Really?

So is there a pattern for action sequences that make you teary?

KRIS: I’m not sure yet. But there’s definitely something about the big super heroic jumps and stuff

MIRI: Interesting. We will check in on this periodically

MARCHAE: they are fantastical

this movie gave me goosebumps at several points

it was really weird

KRIS: Like sometimes fight scenes are “just” really great, and sometimes they’re specifically beautiful

And I think Winter Soldier is one of the only other movies in recent memory that does the latter

Though this also does not make me tear up, as far as I remember? Still, it’s definitely high on the list of my favorite action movies.

MIRI: The first big Amazon training sequence took my breath away

KRIS: in terms of being fascinated with how the (super)human body moves

MARCHAE: hmmm... i think you should do a post and tell us the top ten most cinematically beautiful scenes you’ve watched

MIRI: YES

SECONDED

KRIS: I don’t know that I’ve seen quite enough to be credible on that yet but we can leave a pin in it

Actually the action set pieces that have gotten Feelings out of me have not tended to be fights. As I’ve previously discussed, the airplane rescues in Iron Man 3 and Superman Returns are at the top of my list. But they might have just gotten some company, because...

I guess we should talk about No Man’s Land?

We’ve sort of touched on it

MIRI: Let’s

MARCHAE: YES

KRIS: But I’m assuming we all got weepy for that

MIRI: Not quite, but I was definitely feeling some feelings

KRIS: Like that’s not just a great action moment, that’s a top 10 superhero movie moment

MIRI: The climb up the ladder specifically or the whole sequence?

MARCHAE: my theater clapped

MIRI: Oh yeah, clapped and cheered

KRIS: The whole thing, or even just the whole part up through getting past the German trench. I saw in an interview that Patty Jenkins had to fight to keep it as it was

MIRI: Really?

What did the powers that be want to change?

MARCHAE: REALLY

KRIS: The sequence isn’t about Diana kicking ass

MARCHAE: I wonder why

MIRI: The shots of her taking all of the fire were just gorgeous

So they wanted more kicking and punching?

MARCHAE: it was about strenght

KRIS: Yeah, she paraphrased the doubt as “how many bullets can she fight?”

MARCHAE: strength*

KRIS: So she storyboarded it out herself to convince them why it had to be that way and why it would work

MIRI: I’m so glad that Patty Jenkins won that fight

MARCHAE: ALL OF THEM

ME TOO

MIRI: Because as amazing as the kicking and punching are, I think that sequence says a lot about her willingness to fight for others

It’s not just glory for her

KRIS: And how she inspires others

MARCHAE: the bullets are almost a metaphor(?) for the crap we deal with ON A DAILY)

MIRI: She’ll draw the fire if that’s what needs doing

MARCHAE: and can withstand it

KRIS: I mean when that first trailer dropped there were immediately gifs of the close-up shield shots captioned like “being a woman on the internet”

MIRI: God I loved that sequence and I love it more now

MARCHAE: @KRIS YASSS

being a woman ON THE LIFE CIRCUT

KRIS: One of the things that makes this better than not only Man of Steel but a lot of the Marvel movies is that it’s better at defining how the world reacts to Diana

And Steve leading his guys across is one of the ways it does that

Because the movie cares about those guys as individuals before it cares about them as accessories to Diana 

MIRI: Yes! and Yes!

MARCHAE: *CLAPS for KRIS*

KRIS: Novice writers: this is one of the ways “show, don’t tell” works

Don’t just have newscasters talking about how the world looks to the hero

MIRI: I’ve seen some worries that the men are given way more consideration than female counterparts in male driven superhero stuff are

MARCHAE: There was a lot of character development in this film and it was delicious

MIRI: But I think I’m ok with it because leading by example

(Like Diana does 😉 )

KRIS: Give us some characters we empathize with so we care how THEY react

Right

MIRI: Him understanding what she was doing there and trusting it just great

KRIS: It’s a problem of context

MIRI: totally

KRIS: Not a problem of Wonder Woman

(The context is Stop Letting Men Write Female Love Interests)

MIRI: (Or at least stop letting them write ALL OF THEM)

MARCHAE: yup

MIRI: ((I mean I’d be happy with like a 5 year ban to even the books a bit but whatever))

KRIS: I like how I’m always the one who’s like KILL ALL MEN and one of you is always like Not Literally ALL Men

but it’s also not that funny because again, Being a Woman on the Internet

MIRI: Well people won’t take you seriously for saying it

exactly

MARCHAE: LOL

MIRI: and also I’m constantly striving to be a less cynical person than I am

MARCHAE: *shakes head at miri*

Part 2 of our Reaction is here.