#bad characterization

[hislittleraincloud]

This whole thing is a massive, massive disrespect to Ortega's performance as Wednesday.

[francesminos-tt]

thoughts abt EP 3?

One word to describe my thoughts of ep3 will be simply, disappointed. This show just keeps delivering the worst takes and destroy every single one of the characters, and it has become quite annoying, to be honest.

I will start with what I do like about ep3. I think Baela is my favorite character so far, or perhaps the show runners haven't gotten time to destroy her yet. Baela seems reasonable, brave, compassionate, and has a general grasp of politics that sadly few characters do in this reason. Alys is another pleasant surprise. I like her looks, and the mystique around her is quite intriguing, making me wonder what her real agenda is. I just hope the show doesn't let her be Daemon’s lover (since they deleted Nettles, so if Rhaenyra is going to suspect Daemon of cheating, the only possible choice now is Alys). Also, I like the opening scene of Blackwoods and Bracken having a scribble. It shows us the grudges of these two houses, and the actors did a fairly good job at creating a teenager fighting scene LOL. But, I have to point out, I do not like the show just omitting the whole battle of the Burning Mill. This battle is not of large scale, but it shows the power dynamics of the Riverlands, and is the first battle to draw blood in the Dance. It also introduces characters like Black Aly, who is another amazing female character that has her own importance in the Dance, but the show never gives them a chance to shine.

Now, move on to things I don't like, which are quite a lot. Firstly, I hate most of the characters in this episode, including Rhaenyra, but what makes me furious the most is the show’s depiction of Rhaenys and Corlys. Rhaenys is the epitome of a proud and fierce Targaryen, and she will not tolerate usurpers. She died fighting said usurpers. She is not naive enough to believe that peace is still possible after the death of Luke and Jaehaerys. I mean, wake up. Even Aegon knows better to sack Otto and promote Cole, because he needs a Hand who knows how to lead a battle instead of a mere politician. Actually, I think what makes Otto and Tywin essentially different is that Tywin is not only a politician, but also a military strategist. Rhaenys’s view sounds way too modern. It is the show runner’s attempt to impose modern values on a fantasy world that is known for its cruelty and savagery. Also, I despise Corlys and his hypocrisy in this episode. Wdym he just simply ignores Rhaena and Joffrey as his heir? Has the show runners even read the original book? Even if Corlys doesn't want Joffrey, who is allegedly a bastard, he has no reason to set Rhaena aside. Rhaena doesn't have a dragon (yet)? Fine, but guess what, Addam doesn't either! From last episode, I don't think Addam has already claimed Seasmoke. Even if he did, it is just stupid for Corlys to ignore Rhaena. Whoever Addam’s father is, even if he is legitimized, Addam was still once a bastard, so it is wise to strength Addam’s claim by betrothing him and Rhaena (that’s the reason of Luke and Rhaena’s betrothal in S1). I know the show is just trying to follow the book, where Rhaena and Joff is sent to the Vale and Corlys recognizes Addam as his heir. But. The book has some legit reasons of doing so. First, in the book, Joffrey is betrothed to the Manderlys in White Harbor, so Rhaena cannot marry him, which is a typical practice in medieval times to marry the bride to the groom’s brothers should the groom die prematurely. Second, Corlys recognizes Addam after he claims Seasmoke, and is based on the claim that Addam is Laenor’s son, not Corlys’s own (true or not, this is the right parentage to claim). Third, he did this after Rhaenys died. If Corlys does what he does in the show, he will anger three Targaryens, Rhaenyra, Rhaenys and Daemon, and why would he do that? Who will give Addam’s offspring a dragon egg or the chance to claim a dragon? Targaryens hold all the dragon resources, and that’s the source of their power. Corlys wants dragons for the Velaryons, and I assume he wants more than one. The show changes so many things that, at this point, letting the characters do what they did in the book seems very out of character.

Lastly, I don't even want to talk about Rhaenyra’s trip to KL. I see her fallout with Daemon as her unable to trust him anymore because Daemon did things behind her back, but what Rhaenyra did is more outrageous and unreasonable that I think it is this behavior that drives her ally away, not the allegation of baby killer. Let me explain. Imagine you are a noble supporting the Blacks. You send troops and resources to help the Queen’s cause, because one, you honor your oath, and two, you want to have some kind of reward or benefits after her grace takes back the throne. What will you think, if you find out your queen puts herself in danger by sneaking into enemy territory to try and negotiate peace? Is she negotiating peace, or planning to bend the knee? What will happen to your house if Rhaenyra just gives up her throne and the Greens begin the political purge? If I am a Black supporter, and I hear of Rhaenyra’s doing, I will seriously consider the possibility of switching sides. Another point I want to make is that, Rhaenyra’s visit is not only unnecessary, but also useless. I don’t think Alicent is an eligible negotiator in the first place. Even if she agrees to the peace, what difference will she make? Is she able to convince her son and the council to accept the peace treaty? I don't think so. She doesn't even seem to have an ounce of power over Larys, let alone Aegon. And if you think Aemond will support her, you don't know Aemond at all. At this point, I don't even care about Aegon’s sly and Aemond’s cock at this point, because they are not even close to other shitty characterizations.

All in all, I don't like this episode, and it’s fair to say I don't like this season so far. The only thing that keeps me going is Gwayne’s face card.

Thank you for attending my Ted talk.

[hollis-art]

i keep seeing redesigns of them as humans so i decided to throw my hat into the ring

[zombiecowboy65]

Everyone talking about andreil why is no one talking about Jeremy wanting someone to choose him for once and Jean choosing him over and over and over again. Why is no one talking about Jean wanting someone to see more than the court and Jeremy’s gaze finding Jean in every room. Why is no one talking about Jean going batshit crazy the minute someone so much as breathes wrong in Jeremy’s direction. Why is no one talking about Jeremy stopping Kevin the minute he started speaking angry French because he thought he was yelling at Jean. Why is no one talking about promise me you’ll protect him tomorrow. Why is no one talking about Jean’s angry they are not your partners. Why is no one talking about does it really matter? I’m only learning French for you. Why is no one talking about you and me against the world or Jeremy testing the easy way Jean took his weight without complaint . Why is no one talking about jerejean in their own trilogy oml

[andstuffsketches]

vanity

[moreespressoformydepresso]

A pet peeve of mine is character inconsistency in terms of emotional competence. I cannot stand it when a character either knows everything about their emotional state out of nowhere with no instigating factor or introspection at all because that’s not how feelings work outside of Disney movies. What I can stand even less, however, is when characters are completely in touch with their feelings and emotions one moment and then the next scene they’re super confused for three seconds and then have a moment of reflection where they realize what they were very aware of not five minutes ago. Do they know what they’re feeling or not?!?! Make a decision, author!! And don’t walk it back please I’m begging you-

[madootles]

started wolf 359 this week …

[hislittleraincloud]

Children.

You need to fucking run your fics through the appropriate tech checks before you publish your shit.

Yeah, I get that some of you aren't EPL (English Primary Lang). But that doesn't mean your fucking writing program is, or that you can't translate it then run it through.

My gods. If you want to sell me a shitty WFJ story with fkn multiple Jennas in it bc you are obsessed with your fantasies, then you better make it as smooth a ride as possible. I know you're all fkn virgins (most of the writers are, apparently, according to a poll a little while back), but don't let that fucking extend to your Spellcheck & Grammar function.

However, I think that ultimately it might be the dialogue that rips me out of everything. It's the terrible goddamn dialogue. I just cannot read Cairo with completely AU characters, because y'all can't fucking write it. You want people who aren't braindead obsessed with fucking Ortega to read it? Or do you just want to rub n' shoot with others who're rubbin' and shootin', because a quick, shitty fuck is better than no fuck at all? Cairo would have a field day in a critique with y'all, and it would end up a big, bloody mess where y'all would be running to the bathroom in tears. (Or maybe that would be Wednesday, since she doesn't give two fucks. But I feel like the reason Cairo has only one friend is probably more than just her being a typical loner. Both have competitive superiority complexes, so when unleashed on those whose skills are lesser in a competitive arena, they are both likely reach for the heart of their enemies...Wednesday with Bianca (and Sheriff Galpin to a degree), Cairo with Jon and Winnie.)

But I'm starting to whine about content rather than tech specs, so. Do better if you're writing wild AUs. Actually, do the least that is expected of you as an author.

Ugh, speaking of checking shit, people who write articles about RPF need to understand the difference between historical fiction, self-insert/Mary Sueing, and RPF. There are differences. Pretty big ones, even if the genres can overlap/intersect in places.

ETA: I tried to force myself to keep reading it.

Nope, nope, nope to the nope.

CAIRO DOES NOT HAVE HAZEL EYES. DO THESE LOOK FUCKING HAZEL TO YOU? NO. THEY NEVER HAVE.

There is no reasoning given for this change...none. 🤦🏽‍♂️ She's never worn contacts for her roles because people love her big, obsidian-dark eyes. It's dark, dark brown, almost black. I have the exact same eye color. Yay Mexicans!

*GASP* an EYE reveal 🫠 Sorry about the scary Orwellian BIG BROTHER pose, but it seems that no matter how I take a pic to show my eye color, my brows furrow when I'm looking at the camera. Or at you, oh she who writes less than her potential.

For the love of all that's holy, stop. 😭 Or at least GET a second opinion for edits before you publish, preferably by someone who you will be expecting tech wreck from. Not active authors, because we're too busy...but active readers who can take the time to help you run through bad tech (spelling, typos, some grammar) and through spec check (specs = character consistency with canonical aspects you're trying to achieve, but if it's totally AU this isn't a priority, obvs.).

There's a culture going on right now where people can't critique others' works without being seen as meanie or anti. You all get rubber stamped on your creations at AO3 because no one is able to offer meaningful critique, and that means being able to take criticism. Not everyone's writing is great, or even good for that matter. I'm not perfect either, but at least I can do the bare minimum for the readers. But Tor, that's how we prac —

If you keep writing the same shitty, un-edited stuff over and over again, that's not practicing to write better. That's spewing sub-par 💩 for fleeting wet fantasies.

Write your shit, whatever it may be, but god damn, respect your readers a little more but moreover, respect yourself as a writer enough to want to publish something that isn't riddled with easy fixes.

[littlewalken]

Here's something that bad writing and people who fake multiple personality disorder (this isn't a fake claiming thing) have in common- bad characterization.

If all the characters sound alike you need to go back to characters 101. I don't mean the same literal speaking voice from a system, or just adding an accent. What I mean is you can't tell which character is speaking by the words they say and how they say it.

Here's an example-

"I brought the seven handfuls of earth, I watched him make the little rats, I went to the farthest corner of the world to get away from them, and still they came."

"When I brought the seven handfuls of earth I watched as they were created. They infested the world and I took myself to the farthest corner to try and escape them."

This would be said by the same character but I've cast two different people in the role. The first speaker has a different cadence than the second. This will effect every piece of dialog and even some of their gestures and actions. The first, as we say here, falls under the category of 'I am a nervous system' while the second is more chill.

Will a proper characterization you don't need to use ___ said so much because the readers can tell by how it's being said. It'll come across like an audio book in their mind.

[sleepyvib-es]

I will never get over the fact that rick riordan's favorite way of uplifting other characters is to tear percy jackson down

[lookingforcactus]

Most unrealistic part of Veilguard is that Bellara didn't send Rook to bed with a giant list of tech questions for Solas every night

[necrotic-nephilim]

as much as I love the common "Tim worships/stalks Jason" trope in TimJay fanfiction because it's Good and making Tim a weird little freak is Fun, I think the underutilized dynamic is where Jason is the one weirdly obsessed with Tim and makes it Tim's problem.

Like, the moment Jason is confronted with the information that a third Robin exists, the first thing he does is cover his wall with pictures of Tim so he can just obsess and torture himself over it. That is the behavior of a man who is Unwell over Tim's existence and I love it.

red hood: lost days #4

And as much as a shitshow as The Titans Tower Incident™ is characterization-wise (though I think it has far more merit in depicting Jason's character than people give it credit for but I digress-) there's something very fun about the fact that even after kicking his ass, Jason respects Tim and is impressed by him.

teen titans (2003) #29

And on top of that, Jason can't seem to stop trying to ask Jason to Tim to work with him in some capacity.

robin (1993) #177

batman: battle for the cowl #2

While Battle for the Cowl is an exceptionally bad comic, especially for its characterization of Jason and the "be my Robin" bit is taken deeply out of context, I do think it's interesting how obsessed Jason is with believing that Tim is extremely competent, only held back by being "brainwashed by Bruce". (hence him leaving Tim for dead later on in the comic.) Jason seeing a darker side of Tim and wanting to bring that out of Tim, wanting to see what Tim could be if he let go of his loyalty to Bruce is so fun to me, tbh.

And in Robin #177, Jason seems genuinely upset Tim doesn't want to work with him. Jason sees such a raw potential in Tim and is obsessed with it, constantly wanting Tim to work for him and see Tim be the type of person Jason is. And despite Tim rejecting him, Jason doesn't shoot to kill Tim. I just cannot get over the fanfic potential of Jason obsessing over Tim, tracking him and seeing what he's capable of and what he could be capable of. Wanting to make Tim see things the way he does. To Tim it's corruption, to Jason it's freedom. Tim trying to 'save' Jason is fun and all, but Jason trying to corrupt Tim? That's even more fun to me. Watching that power struggle between them, Tim unable to get Jason off his heels as Jason gets more and more possessive and bold with each attempt.

And when Jason sees Tim successfully get Gotham back under control after a gang war, he's impressed. He praises Tim, even. And then Tim just. Breaks him out of prison.

robin (1993) #182

The way they're constantly trying to see something in the other that isn't there, hoping the other will come around? That is the most fucked up hate/love dynamic ever. Jason keeps coming back to Tim, keeps trying to find ways to get Tim onto his side. They're always chasing each other. And I think Jason would be the one to confess love first, the one to do anything to make Tim his. And when you consider after all of this, Tim has his Red Robin arc and is at his lowest, getting the closest he ever gets to considering murder? I think it'd be so fun to see Jason take advantage of that and worm his way back into Tim's life and finally push Tim over the edge.

[mroddmod]

little scrapped comic bc it felt a bit ooc to me in hindsight

[breadandlottery]

Running for his life but still stopped to see if she was ok and pick up her drink

[enviedear]

JASON TODD has become quite good at pushing people away, keeping his distance so he doesn't get hurt again. it’s second nature by now—detach, deflect, disappear. but with you, it’s like every wall he’s ever built starts crumbling the moment you look at him. he’ll find himself staring at his phone, rereading texts from you, overanalyzing the little things. did you mean something more when you told him “i miss you”? or are you just being nice?

and when you’re around, he’s hyper-aware of every detail—the way you laugh, the sound of your voice, how your hand sometimes brushes his arm like it’s no big deal, but it is to him. and that’s the problem. he’s spent years telling himself he doesn’t need anyone, that caring only leads to pain, but now he can’t stop. it’s like you’ve found a way under his skin, and no matter how hard he tries to fight it, thoughts of you lingers in the back of his mind.

what scares him the most is the realization that he’d do anything to keep you safe. anything. he’d put himself at risk, make enemies, burn bridges—hell, he’d burn the whole hellscape that is gotham city down if it meant protecting you. that’s not the kind of person he wants to be again, the one willing to sacrifice everything for someone else. but every time he tries to pull away, to put distance between you, it backfires. because the thought of losing you feels worse than anything else. and he’s not ready to face what that means, not yet.

🖇️ masterlist | askbox | recent works

[carcinogodheade]

At least he’s self aware