#because there were so many plotholes last time i visited this world

[buffooonery]

HEFTY SIGH ok take an oc redesign wip

[owlswing]

ROTBTD TAG GAME

Okay, so I was tagged by

@ohlooksheswriting-wips

! Thanks for tagging me!

Answer these questions and tag your rotbtd friends! And please don’t reblog this, put your answer in a new post 😊✨

Name/nickname?

My blogging name is Owlswing, but I also go by Owl :)

How did you get into rotbtd?

Oh, gosh... I was about 15...? Anyways, I liked all of the movies individually, and I ended up stumbling across some fanart of all four of them together, and then I saw tags like “the big four”, and the rest is kinda history. I got in deep on a dying fandom and never left...

What made you stay/come back?

Hahaha! See, fandom was dying/dead when I came around, so I never left. I just started a really long Hogwarts AU that is still not finished... (also after checking the timeline for the last question, I realized that said Hogwarts AU is almost 5 YEARS OLD! Maybe I should do something special for the anniversary???)

Out of the four movies, which one is your favorite?

I mean, I absolutely love them all, probably wouldn’t be in the fandom if I didn’t, but... I have to go with Httyd. Hiccup is just a really relatable character for me, and I just love the exhilarating feeling I get every single time I watch Test Drive. It’s just so beautiful.

Dreamworks Dragons or Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure?

You know, I think I need to go with Tangled Adventure on this one. While I love the Dragons series, I feel like Tangled did a really good job of staying true to the original characters while also adding more at the same time for more dynamic plots and such. I think it was just really well done, and there are no plotholes/awkward overlaps like there are sometimes in httyd (that could be because there are less movies so not as many toes to step on) but still, I think Tangled Adventures was really, really well done and I must give credit where credit is due! :)

Which one do you prefer to be made a sequel of, Brave or Rise of the Guardians?

It’s hard because I really want BOTH... I think I would prefer a remake of Brave with the original director, Brenda Chapman, because I feel like it would’ve been so much better if she hadn’t been taken off a project that was inspired by her own relationship with her daughter. Yeah. I’m still mad about that Disney.

But for overall sequel I would probably go with Rise of the Guardians. Brave seems like more of a stand-alone plot to me, so trying to shoe-horn in something else has high chances of being not so great *coughfrozen2cough*. Where as rotg has many characters with different legends and stories to be told, a whole book series to draw from, it’s a whole world that we’ve only explored one small part of, and I would’ve liked to see well-adjusted team dynamics/family-team antics of the guardians! :)

OTP/BrOTP(s)?

Ah, see I’m really NOT against any of the ships, I’m just not big on shipping in general. There are very few ships that I’m actually, ya know, Into. So I’m definitely more of a Brotp kinda gal. I love me some good, healthy, and strong friendships! Found Family? That’s my ish! Love that!

Favorite character(s)?

Hiccup. But there’s a special place for each of them. I’ve seen myself in each of them and nothing can really replace that feeling.

Favorite AU(s)?

Okay, I gotta say Hogwarts AU cause I’m chin-deep in that right now. Soon to be drowning. Simultaneously the best and worst decision of my life. Haha! Just kidding! Anyways, I like this AU because I’m really big on fantasy, and it just makes sense; why four people from completely different walks of life ended up in the same place at the same time? I think it’s pretty cool and it’s such a big world to explore!

Besides that... I would say a War AU could be cool, like medieval fantasy or futuristic sci-fi. Pirate AUs and Circus AUs will also always catch my attention.

Pick one! favorite B4 house placement in Hogwarts AU? | favorite B4 nation/bending headcanons in ATLA AU?

Okay, so for Hogwarts Houses I definitely have preferred Houses, but the whole system is so generalizing to begin with I really believe that any of the four could be in pretty much any house if you really want, but here are my preferences:

Hiccup - Ravenclaw

Rapunzel - Hufflepuff

Merida - Gryffindor

Jack - Slytherin

As for bending headcannons, I really haven’t put a lot of thought into it, but that question is very intriguing... I’d probably do something like...

Hiccup - Air, because the peaceful Nomad lifestyle and the desire to fly and explore and be free is just very fitting. Also he could befriend Toothless instead of a Bison, confusing everyone because they thought Dragons were dangerous!

Rapunzel - Earth, because for one thing I love breaking norms in this way! I love the idea of Rapunzel being the dainty, pretty princess but then she busts out some of the most badass Earth Bending moves, invents metal bending to escape Gothel, is just very kind but if you piss her off she’ll totally wreck you. I think this would be A LOT of fun. Also, I think it would be fitting with the whole “flower” thing. I also think it could be an interesting character arc where she’s not very good because her personality doesn’t exactly fit the “traditional earth bender attitude” and being raised by Gothel (”You? A bender! Oh, honestly Rapunzel, don’t make me laugh!”) could leave a lot of insecurities that she would have to grow and work through. I think it could be really beautiful.

Merida - Fire, on the flip side this one is kinda typical I imagine, but I would say (also on the flip side) make her afraid of it. Make it the one thing that Merida isn’t, well, Brave about. She doesn’t like fire bending. It could potentially make her a disgrace to her royal/noble family. It also would explain why she’s so good with a bow and sword: she chooses weapons over bending. Unlike Rapunzel who wants to learn but is hindered and must overcome, Merida would be against learning and would eventually have to learn that it is a part of her and learn how to accept it (after possibly visiting the dragons with Hiccup or whoever the avatar would be cause who the heck knows? could be interesting if none of the Four are the Avatar. Make a fifth character the Avatar and the Four could just be the teachers...)

Jack - Water, obvious, I know, but giving Jack ice powers AND another element makes him WAY to OP. I would say Jack is actually not a natural at water bending. He’s always accidentally freezing everything! (not unlike Katara). He has to work hard and earn his title as a master, eventually becoming the best because he trained harder than any of the others and surpassed the other water benders that used to torment him back in his home village! I also think Blood Bending could be an interesting plot device here (maybe Jack is tempted to use the technique because he’s worked so hard and still isn’t good enough? Or just in general Jack’s inner battle between the darkness and his fun-loving personality...)

......Dang it. I think I just started plotting something. o_o

Pick one! since this is 2020, any hot takes you want to give us? | what old fanon tropes that you still enjoyed to this day?

I will always love brotp between Jack and Hiccup! Absolute favorite. I also love the idea of the four having sleepovers and telling each other everything and overall being supportive and loving towards each other. All the positivity and fluff!

Any fic recs? Or if you couldn’t think of any, what was the last rotbtd fanfiction that you read? (It could be an old work or a recent one, do share!)

Uh... I honestly haven’t been reading many as I barely have time to write, but I did hear of one that I think is pretty good! It’s a pokemon AU by Acecove! I’ll link it below...

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13320856/1/Pok%C3%A9mon-World-Evolving-Together

Whew! That was a lot! Anyways, I’ll tag @emixa26 and @adaminaart!

[wigwurq]

WIG REVIEW: DOWNTON ABBEY

YOU GUYS THIS MOVIE. If you loved the TV show the way that most of the world (including me) did, then please get yourself to this film because it’s basically just an extra long episode! I will take one every 2 years please and thank you! But what about the wigs? Let’s discuss. 

It is a few years and about 1000 plotholes since the final TV episode which means it’s 1927, okay?! GO WITH IT! The main thing is: the royals are coming to visit Downton so EVERYONE CLEAN EVERYTHING and have a lot of feelings about it!!! Also: there are about 10x as many wigs as in the TV show. Read all about it here. But as in the show, these wigs are VERY PRESTIGE. And by that I mean, they’re good because someone paid a lot of money for them.

Let’s begin with wig MVP, Lady Mary. Major changes since her TV wig include: BANGS and a serious back taper on her neck. Here is where many (if not all) male wigs get into TROUBLE HUNNY because somehow the male wig community cannot figure out how to not have that taper jut out which just reads: HELLO I’M A TERRIBLE WIG. Somehow, Lady Mary’s wig is able to overcome this taper issue and just look FIERCE AS HELL. Please provide all male wigs with whatever magic (spirit gum?) that made this happen. 

Down in the kitchen, MRS PATTIMORE IS STILL MY KWEEN and Daisy’s bangs were clearly SNATCHED by Lady Mary, but the result is still super cute. Daisy remains a full revolutionary who will flirt with any damn plumber but will still (probably?) marry that one nice manservant whose name I refuse to remember and fixed that farm roof once. (THE FARM SHE CO-OWNS IS SUSPICIOUSLY EXEMPT FROM THIS MOVIE FOR REASONS UNKNOWN). 

Other suspicious plotholes include Lady Mary deciding that even though she totally secured Barrow that sweet butler job so that Carson could retire, THAT DID NOT APPLY TO ROYAL VISITS BECAUSE BARROW SUCKS AT POLISHING SILVER. So Mary tells Carson to come on back, despite the fact that she 1) didn’t tell Barrow or anyone else and 2) didn’t see if Carson had been cured of the Parkinson’s Disease (or similar?) that made him spill wine all over the entire last episode of this TV show. Somehow Carson can pour wine again so BYE BARROW!! ALSO I LOVE YOU MRS. HUGHES.

The timing of this is actually great because the King’s valet is 100% hot/gay so bring on some homosexual romance! This will definitely go really well and not provide any issues for anyone! (STAY TUNED)

Speaking of issues, remember how Tom is from IRELAND? Do you remember that? He speaks with a slightly different accent, so...do you remember NOW? Ok cool because everyone else is REALLY ON EDGE about this whole thing given the fact that THE ROYALS ARE COMING so is this Irishman gonna totally eff it up for everyone? SPOILER: OBVIOUSLY NOT ARE YOU KIDDING THIS GUY RULES. In a plot twist that plays out so quickly that you wonder why they even bothered, Tom is badgered by some dude who you think is a royal detective but TWIST: he’s actually trying to get Tom to help him kill the king and now Lady Mary is super suspicious even though she and Tom are totally BFFs and whatever: Tom and Mary just saved the King. THE END! OH WAIT THERE’S ANOTHER HOUR OF THIS MOVIE TO GO.

Moving along:  new characters! IMELDA STAUNTON and a serviceable wig is in this now, which is great because she should be in everything. Her character’s name is MAUD BAGWELL which feels like an SNL sketch version of this show, but whatever. Anyway, Maggie Smith (WHO IS PERFECT AND SO IS HER WIG) is super pissed at her because she has no kids and refuses to give all her money to Lord Grantham when she dies. WHAT A BITCH. Oh wait, actually let’s talk about her maid, played by, I shit you not, a woman named TUPPENCE MIDDLETON which is peak English and we can all go home now and also Imelda Staunton is leaving her money to her so OK. Oh but also she kind of looks like Lady Sybil (RIP) so Tom definitely falls in love with her despite the fact that he fully had a girlfriend at the end of the TV show who even caught the bouquet at Edith’s wedding but WHATEVER WHO CARES TUPPENCE MIDDLETON WINS. 

Meanwhile, Lady Edith, whose wig is...fine but still not as good as Lady Mary’s because that’s how older sisters work, is pregnant! Mazel! Unfortunately, her husband already told the King he would go on safari with him RIGHT WHEN SHE IS DUE. This is the most white people problems thing ever and she spends the rest of the movie moping around the park this family calls a lawn until the King finally lets her husband out of the terrible and binding safari plans he had. WHAT A RELIEF OMG THIS EFFING SHOW/MOVIE LOLOLOL.

Speaking of the royals, here they are! The king and queen are honestly barely in it and their wigs are totally fine. The princess has a really upsetting plotline about her terrible and abusive husband who somehow Tom unwittingly advises to STAY WITH HIM for the sake of her family?!?!?! I don’t know either y’all but ok?

Meanwhile, downstairs, Anna Bates and her bent wig (ANNA DESERVES BETTER) is hatching a plot with her husband to revolt against the evil royal servants who have left them without jobs to do! Rather than take a well-deserved staycation, they seriously manage to fool all the royal servants into letting them do their damn jobs! WHAT A WORLD. Of course, the Bates family is behind all this because they have been falsely imprisoned so many times that they can now live life without fear of consequences, much like Ashley Judd in Double Jeopardy (IF YOU DON’T GET THIS REFERENCE, I WILL ABSOLUTELY SHOOT YOU IN THE MIDDLE OF MARDI GRAS). Anyway, one of which is fully stealing from the family and Anna doesn’t even stitch on her and instead makes her do penance sewing a dress all night! I LOVE THIS MOVIE. 

So the only servant that gets an actual vacation is still Barrow, in his fashion haircut,  who is enjoying his gaycation in York until his new gay pal stands him up so he meets a different gay dude who BRINGS HIM TO A FRIGGIN GAY SPEAKEASY IN AN ABANDONED (?) WAREHOUSE AND OMG I WANT TO GO TO THERE. (Spoken as Stefon on SNL):  It has everything! Men charlestoning together to a makeshift jazz combo, mustachioed men in rolled up shirtsleeves sipping unspecified brown alcohols, giant wooden barrels used as cafe tables with candles on them, and the constant fear that something is definitely going to go wrong. Remember earlier when I said to stay tuned about Barrow having issues because Barrow always has issues? BARROW GETS ARRESTED, OBVIOUSLY. He is nearly immediately bailed out (not by money, but by Royal connections) by his new boyfriend, who then almost certainly has sex with him but we’re not allowed to see it but DOES HAVE A KISS WITH HIM SO OKAY I GUESS THIS TURNED OUT NOT SO BADLY! #DowntonPride

In the end, everyone goes to a ball and my beloved Matthew Goode FINALLY SHOWS UP to dance with Mary and ask everyone if he missed anything (har har). Also there is the promise of at least 3 more weddings and maybe 1 (SOB) funeral so since this movie made more money than Rambo AND a boring Brad Pitt space movie, PLEASE MAKE ANOTHER ONE OF THESE!!!! ALSO THANK YOU FOR SPENDING SO MUCH $$ ON WIGS THEY ARE GREAT! 

VERDICT: WURQS

[katsen13]

Second Chance

Feel free to reblog, but please do not repost to other sites without permission first.

General Content: Angst, moodiness. Time travel (please excuse any plotholes I may have missed). Not 100% canon, obviously.

References: The Avengers, Thor: The Dark World, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok, and Avengers: Infinity War. *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THESE MOVIES.*

Chapter-Specific Content: Torture, serious injury, mention of loss, angst. If I missed anything, let me know!

Summary: Stark picks up another ally to help him replace the infinity stones.

*Click here for Chapter 5.*

*Second Chance Masterlist*

CHAPTER 6

     Stark traveled through the Quantum Realm, once again alone after dropping Loki off on Jotunheim to claim his throne. He kept going over the steps of the plan in his head. God, I hope this works, he thought for what must have been the millionth time. He hoped Loki would keep it together and do what he said. He hoped he had done the right thing in coming to Loki for help. He hadn’t wanted to trust him but he really had no choice. Loki had been right when Tony came to him on the helicarrier; he was desperate. He hoped the suit would hold together long enough for him to fix everything and of course he hoped having two Lokis in the same place at the same time wouldn’t have any negative effects on the timeline. There was always the possibility of making things worse to worry about. It was rather ironic; he was hoping for so much given his situation was quite hopeless. He had one more place to visit before he and Loki went on to their final stop. He scanned the different events and timelines as he went along, stopping when he found the one he had been looking for- a timeline where Loki met Thanos before learning he was a frost giant.

     He watched as Thanos and his children tortured a slightly younger version of Loki with various weapons and instruments. They each took turns, whipping him, beating him, and cutting him with their own weapons of choice. They would go on mercilessly while the others looked on, jeering and taunting while drinking heavily. Finally, when his body was broken and he just couldn’t take any more, Loki would collapse. When he died, Thanos would use some once-lost ancient relic from Titan to bring him back to life for the next person’s turn. Tony had no idea how long it had been going on. What he saw, what he heard made him feel so sick to his stomach. Every swing brought forth a new crack as another bone broke, every jab, another wrenching cry. He desperately wanted to shut his eyes and cover his ears, but he couldn’t. It took every bit of his will to force himself to not look away. As sick as it made him feel, he had to watch so he wouldn’t miss his chance. Finally growing bored, Thanos and his children left Loki halfway through a beating. Tony didn’t want to think about where they were going. Walking away, one of them stomped down hard on Loki’s chest. The agonizing cry made Tony double over. He couldn’t take it anymore. With one more hard kick, the last one left the chambers. The second he vanished from sight, Tony engaged the suit and quickly rushed to Loki’s side.

     Loki lay on his side, motionless. Tony’s stomach lurched as he drew closer, desperately looking around for the relic Thanos had used. Unable to find it, he prayed he wasn’t too late. “Hey,” he whispered, crouching down at Loki’s side. Loki stirred slightly with a groan, his breathing shallow and greatly labored. Relief washed over Tony, almost knocking him off balance. He gingerly rested a hand on Loki’s shoulder before carefully rolling him over onto his back.

     Loki flinched as his eyes fluttered open, regaining consciousness. As his eyes focused, his face scrunched in a mix of pain and confusion. “Who in Hel are you?”

     “It’s nice to see you too,” Tony replied grimly. “Ah ah, don’t!” He put out a hand as Loki tried to sit up. He shook his head as the young god’s broken arm gave out under him. Loki cried out in pain, gasping as Tony lifted his arm up and put it over his shoulders. “Sorry.” Tony grimaced, holding Loki up as he prepared to activate the suit. “Hold still.”

     “Who are--?” Loki looked around upon coming to a stop. “What is this place?”

     “One question at a time.” Tony admonished. “Try and hold still. You’ll heal better that way.”

     Loki painfully raised a hand to his side. He could feel a soft, slow pulsing energy flow in waves beneath his fingers. His eyes widened as he felt bone fragments come together, reforming his ribs. With a mix of surprise and awe, he turned to Tony. “Where are we?”

     “The Quantum Realm.” Tony sighed. He was so tired of the Quantum Realm. Tired of explaining it, tired of seeing the horrible memories of his past, tired of being haunted by the worst possible outcomes of his journey that seemed to follow him, surrounding him on all sides.

     “It seems familiar,” Loki replied slowly, taking in everything around him.

     “Yeah, you get used to it.” Tony shook his head as he said the same words yet again. “Just don’t let go or you’ll get more familiar with it than you want.”

     “Who are you and what do you want with me?” Loki demanded as turned back to Stark.

     “You mean besides the man who just saved your life?” Tony snapped. He sounded less snarky and more vicious than he had attended. Loki looked at him slightly taken aback, the wariness in his eyes visible. And why wouldn’t he be? The last person to save the young god’s life only did it to kill him again.

     “Sorry.” Tony apologized, lowering his gaze. “It’s been a long...” His voice trailed off. At this point, he wasn’t even sure how to describe time. He dropped his chin and shook his head. “Look, all you need to know is that I’m a friend of your brother’s and I’m from the future. A bad future.” Tony looked up at Loki. “You know what Thanos was telling you just now? What he wanted to do?” Loki hesitated before nodding uneasily.

     “Well I come from a future where he did,” Tony continued. “I am here because so many people, good people, aren’t. They died so I could fix it and make sure Thanos doesn’t win, but I can’t do it alone.”

     Loki straightened as he began to regain his strength. Tony watched as Loki contemplated what he had just told him. Tony knew this look, he had seen it several times. It never got easier though, watching Loki’s face change as he realized what exactly Tony was telling him.

     Finally, Loki’s gaze rose to meet Tony’s. “Tell me one thing.” He spoke quietly. He blinked and swallowed hard. He didn’t want to ask but he knew he had to. Not asking the question wouldn’t change the reality of the answer. “Asgard... is it gone?”

     Pained, Tony looked him in the eye. “Yes.”

     Loki closed his eyes and took a deep breath in. Tony knew Loki would assume all his people died with Asgard. Ironically, Tony didn’t like misleading Loki like that, but he knew it would be best for his plans if Loki believed they died when Asgard fell. His plans aside, Tony wasn’t even sure if there were any Asgardians left.

     Loki took a deep breath in to steady himself before opening his eyes. “Tell me what you need.”

     Tony was a little surprised to see the look in Loki’s eyes. It was a sorrowful look, yet it held a strong determination. As exhausted as he was, Tony couldn’t help but smile. The look of resolve in Loki’s eyes reminded him of Peter. It made what he was asking of Loki next all the more difficult.

     Tony warned Loki. “What I’m asking you to do, no one should have to go through.”

     “It sounds like I’ve already been through it,” Loki replied, nonchalantly.

     “Yeah, but not like this.” Tony lowered his gaze. In spite of himself, he was beginning to like Loki. “I’m taking you to Asgard before it was destroyed.” He looked Loki in the eye, agonizing over his next words. “I need you to let it happen.”

     Loki jerked, trying to pull away from Tony. “No, stop! STOP!” Tony shouted as he grabbed the young god by the shoulders, shaking him. “If you let go, you’ll be stuck here forever!” His pleas to Loki fell on ears deafened by anger.

     “I would die first!” Loki raged, his eyes a fiery blaze. “I would die before I let that happen!”

     “You can save them!” Tony yelled. Loki immediately stopped struggling. He stared at Tony in heated disbelief, his eyes red and filled with unshed, angry tears. Tony panted, trying to catch his breath. “There’s nothing you can do to save Asgard, alright? Believe me, I’ve looked! I’m sorry. In every timeline I’ve seen, it was destroyed. By knowing in advance though, you can save more of your people. All I need you to do is leave everything in the treasury. Everything.”

     Loki studied Tony’s face with his cold, emerald eyes, scrutinizing every inch of it, searching for any reason to distrust him. He closed his eyes tight and shakily let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “How. How do I save my people?”

     Tony rested a hand on Loki’s shoulder. “By leading them.”

     A look of brave determination found its way into Loki’s eyes again as he nodded.

@parkerspicedlatte @therandomnessofages @geekofmanythings16

[emrystheblue]

Harry Potter and the Cursed Plotholes

So, obviously there will be spoilers for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in this post/rant. If you have no wish to be spoiled, stop reading now and scroll away.

First off I would like to preface by saying that I've seen the play twice now so I have a pretty good idea of what happens in it. Once in London (2017) and again in Melbourne a couple weeks ago (2019), and though I own the script I haven't read yet. However I have read this lovely version of it. They took the script and wrote it as a novel without removing any of the original script and incorporating somethings in to connect the scenes ad plausibly as possible. Go read it, it's great. https://archiveofourown.org/works/7666957

Anyway, I like the play. It's fun to watch and the music and sound effects and such are amazing. Scorpius is the best and I adore him. That isn't to say I don't have major problems with the story itself. We all know there are many many many plot holes and that Rowling didn't write it herself, but she does consider it canon to the series which is annoying because it breaks rules set in the previous Harry Potter books. I have a few points I have the most issues with.

I dedicate this rant to @onehealer to whom I ranted with about this for an hour through DM's.

So firstly: Fidelius charm who?

In the final act, Scorpius and Albus can see the potters house even though it's under the fidelius charm. They've never been there before, Harry tried multple times to take Ablus it seems but was turned down, and only read about it in books at most.... does that count as them knowing the Secret? No, it doesn't otherwise people who knew the address of the home before the charm was cast they would know. It can be excused that Delphi technically was never shown to have known where the house was, only knowing they were in Godrics Hollow... which also goes with the fact that knowing the address in the future meant nothing. Imagine Voldemort pulling out a phone book to find their address and suddenly being able to see their home. It also seemed like she didn't want to go after the Potters herself, she was only there to get to Voldemort first. So that's fine.

The issue is that somehow the two boys were able to see through the charm. And going with this vein, how did Ron, Hermione and Draco see as well? Literally only Harry should be able to see the Potter home because he was part of what the charm was protecting and thus knew the Secret, even if he was only a baby at the time.

Time travel should not negate the charm, why would that work? The charm is still active in the time they currently exist in, and this is an ancient, powerful and complex spell too.

"Maybe they knew because Harry told Albus about it." Sure, that could have worked, but it doesn't. When the Secret Keeper dies, anyone who was told the Secret becomes a Secret Keeper (Because you can originally choose more than one), so when Peter Pettigrew died, at the very least Harry would have the Secret. Probably Dumbledore and Sirius too, at least. But the problem with that is that the Fidelius charm was broken the night Lily and James Potter died, thus there was no longer a Secret. How else would the location become common knowledge in the Wizarding World? There's a monument to the Potters for crying out loud. People visited to pay their respects to them. So, Albus was never told the Secret because there wasn't one any longer.

There's literally no way anyone but Harry should have been able to see the Potter home. Even giving it some rope, they shouldn't have been able to see the house until Harry points it out to them, aka tells them where it is, because it could be argued that he could technically give out the Secret, having been part of it originally, but even then he wasn't a Secret Keeper and from how I understand it, just because you knew the secret didn't give you the ability to tell anyone unless you're a Secret Keeper.

The worst part about this plot hole is that not only is it massive, the plot of the story relies on it's existence to progress. Sometimes plot holes can be forgiven, but when the story relies on their existence? Especially such an enormous one? No, just no.

(As a little aside, I just want to bring attention to the fact Scorpius and Albus somehow made their way from Hogwarts, in the Scottish Highlands, to Godrics Hollow in less than a day. That's a long way, not to mention they had no wands, no food, no money, no sleep, no warm clothes and probably not wanting to risk talking to any wizards for fear if changing the timeline or accidently finding a Death Eater. There's also the fact Scorpius had just been Crucio'd at least 3 times in the last hour. Kudos to Scorpius for managing to get there with Albus, hot damn.)

Second, Wtf Albus?

Seriously, wtf. Don't get me wrong, I do like Albus but he's definitely a spoiled/ungrateful little brat at times, with as Scorpius puts it, a chip on his shoulder.

The thing I, well I wont say hate because i do like his character but it's close enough, most about him is his decision to go back and save Cedric in the first place. Like its a nice thought, but dude, why?

Why does Cedric deserve to live more than literally anyone else Voldenort killed? What makes him more deserving of you risking everything to go back and save?

Why does a 17yr old who signed up for a tournament that is known to have resulted in the deaths of its competitors many times in it's history, deserve to live more than all those 11-17 year olds killed at Hogwarts trying to flee or fight? All the adults who fought and died in the battle? All those people killed during either war? A lot of people who died because of Voldemort didn't sign up to put themselves in danger.

If it's about some semblance of a connection, of which there really isn't any in this case, what about Fred? Your uncle? Someone your uncle George probably still dies inside over? I mean he even gave up their joke shop to Ron, possibly to avoid memories of the twin brother who died?

Why does some kid you have no connection to other than his dad blaming yours for killing him when he literally had no way of knowing what the fuck was going on until he was already dead?? Why does he deserve to live more? I don't get it.

And then he blames Harry for Cedric's death like he had any chance to prevent it? Dude, seriously, he was the SAME AGE as you are now when this happened, I'd fucking like to see you do better??

Another thing I dislike is that Albus is never really able to experience the consequences of his actions and what could have happened. Because, you know, he stopped existing and Scorpius had to deal with it on his own.

There's also the way he treats Harry but I'll get to that in a sec.

Harry was doing his best, honestly he was. He sometimes seems a little out of character, but even still. I understand why he could be seen that way. We know he's under a lot of stress from his work at the Ministry, especially since it's to do with creatures that sided with Voldemort that are going missing or whatever. Then there's the nightmares involving Voldy and his scar hurting again after years of nothing. Stress, lots and lots of stress.

Then there's Albus. Harry has trouble understanding his son, he's not easy like James and Lily. Which is fine. But the problem is that Harry tries his best to reach Albus but he's never met halfway.

Albus seen my to refuse to believe anything but hero propaganda about Harry and his life at Hogwarts, and seems to have ignored literally anyone in his adult family who says differently. He doesn't seem to grasp to suffering and trauma that Harry has and grew up with, and scoffs in the face of it. Harry isn't perfect, but he's a good dad trying his best with a child who is frankly quite ungrateful.

Albus was being a little fucking spoiled brat to Harry and the poor dude was probably at his wits end with the one kid of his he didn't truly understand and who went out of his way to hate on everything Harry did and went through in his life. Like I said, Harry was under lots of stress from his job and so of course he would snap, anyone would, and say something they regret when provoked. Especially when you're trying your best to connect with your kid, even if it's not going great it's still an effort to do so, and then your kid just out and out says he wishes he wasn't your son? I think a lot of people would retort with something similarly hurtful. Harry immediately regrets it but both parties have been hurt so Albus storms off.

It's very annoying that everyone else in the play seems to be blaming Harry for Albus hating being his son and running off / running off to do something stupid. He was very obviously doing his best even though Albus was giving him nothing to work with. And for some strange reason people seemed to think Harry was in any way popular in 4th year? Like seriously people, where the fuck did that idea come from? Everyone hated Harry in his 4th year lol. Albus must be getting his info from a source as credible as Rita Skeeter if that's the case, that or every character magically, ha, forgot what really happened.

I also get annoyed at how they deal with the first alternate timeline. The first time they mess with time, Hermione and Ron never get married, Ron marries and has a son with Padma Patil and Albus ends up in Gryffindor. Harry proceeds to force a separation between the two boys for Albus safety, having been told there was a "black cloud" around his son. Of course the only person Albus hangs out with is Scorpius, and assuming events happened the same they had just jumped off the Hogwarts Express and gone missing for a bit, and assuming they had the same argument where they both say they wish they weren't the father/son of the other person, then it makes some sense what Harry does. Also, it's an alternate timeline.

But Scorpius tells Albus none of the events in Harry's life changed, so it seems like their meddling didn't change him. At all. I'm sorry, what the actual fuck? Scorpius I love you but no.

Just because the events stayed the same doesn't mean Harry personally wasn't changed in many small ways. There are people and life changing events erased from his experiences. His two best friends never got married and had kids, because Ron never got jelous over Hermione being Krums Yule Ball date. You trying to tell me that Ron and Hermione becoming different people with entirely different personalities didn't have any effect on Harry what so ever??? Bullshit. Like this was a direct and very significant change in his personal timeline and history, I refuse to believe this didn't change him. Hell, he might not even enjoy his job. Hermione isn't Minster for Magic so who knows whether the Ministry was properly freed of corruption and what polices and changes no longer exist, and what new ones might. So many little things that build up and shape someone's personal experiences and shape their personality.

I don't remember if it was ever directly addressed, but I think it was mentioned at the end of the play, but it says/implies(?) that Harry would have separated them and launched an investigation into Scorpius' parentage in the original timeline as well as the alternate one? I don't know if I believe that, and it's unclear if certain things still happened for everyone other than the boys because the changes the boys made were prevented later on when Scorpius is in the alternate universe where Harry was killed.

Another small aside, thank fuck for Scorpius. When he snapped and said something along the lines of "Oh poor little Albus Potter with his chip on his shoulder. At least your dad will always be your dad, mine won't be because everyone wants to tell me it's Voldemort. They want to tell me my poor sweet dead mother was such a monster to have a kid with him." Like damn someone really needed to tell Albus to stop whining about how apparently horrible and selfish his dad is.

Lastly, how the Time Turners function. Yes, I get these are new and one of a kind Time Turners designed and created outside Ministry regulation and designed to go back years at a time. However, it was originally established that time travel in this world with them works as a closed loop. They travel back in time because they already did. Harry survived the Dementors because he cast a patronus charm, and then went back in time to cast that charm because he already did, and if he hadn't he wouldn't have survived to go back in the first place. Closed loops.

In this however, they did actually do things that never happened. They probably even changed how Ron and Hermione got together, because it's unclear if they also prevented Albus casting the fireworks into the air above the second task declaring "Ron loves Hermione".

The only benefit of this fuckery with how Time Turners work is that it would then make sense why time travel fucks everything up so much it creates alternate timelines and alternate universes. It's still annoying that they casually fucked with how it's supposed to work but it's not as big an issue as the Fidelius charm thing. Also why did Hermione of all people keep the fucking thing??? Like I understand to an extent but seriously, and then to have such lax security on it? For fucks sake, don't you remember being 11 and getting past all the security put on the philosophers stone??!?! You might as well have put the time Turner in wrapping paper in comparison, because at least those ones had the potential to seriously maim or kill you.

Scorpius was a great character, I adore him and he was actually really well written. He's the sweetest thing and needs all the hugs. His relationship with his dad (Draco) is also amazing and a well written dysfunction of different personalities and effects of grief, but Draco loves his son no matter what and constantly tries his best. Despite my rant, I also like Albus and I adore their friendship and their dynamic. I don't mind character flaws, but sometimes they do get over the top and annoying like they did with Albus for a while there, mostly because of the way it influenced the plot.

I dont know, I probably missed shit I wanted to say and maybe got a little harsh sometimes but eh, it's a rant for a reason lol. I love the play, but once I start thinking about things that's when it goes a lot downhill from there haha.

Also Scorpius is amazing and I adore him. :)

[cartoonus-maximus]

I had to go way out of my way, but I managed to get to a theater to see “YGO: Dark Side of Dimensions” over the weekend.

Ugh, so good!

[ disjointed rant and spoilers under the ‘read more’ ]

(I don’t know the spelling of anyone’s names and I’m just guessing, so I apologize in advance.)

Things that made me happy:

Yugi and Ryou kept exchanging special looks and smiles and it was so precious. (my inner heartshipper kept smiling so big omg)

Joey spent an afternoon with Ryou, seemingly preparing his deck/duel disk for dueling.

Yugi gets to duel on his own against Aigami/Deva and Kaiba, but he still gets to see Atem again one last time.

Atem is literally just watching everything from his afterlife palace and I find that amusing. I wonder if the rest of the royal court and the thief often watch with him or anything.

Tea, Tristan, and Duke were all great.

I like the part where Joey starts fading and then Atem shows up to send him home, and Joey just appears in the real world with a blinding flash of light, bowing on the ground. He was /bowing/ to Atem.

Flipping Karita-sensei.

Shadi is finally useful. (I’m sorry, but I’ve had issues with Shadi’s character since the first time I saw him, so I was happy that the story was at least encouraging me to appreciate Shadi in some way.)

OMG KAIBA. Just ... Kaiba in general. Every single second with over the top drama-lord. Absolutely incredible.

I loved the voices omg I’d missed them all so much!!!

Joey dressed as a dog mascot and working for Duke and his father.

Yugi shuts Kaiba the f down!

Mahad makes a brief appearance.

Music to Duel By tracks play in the background and I loved it.

Things that made me confused:

An elevator up to a spaceship. That was literally the only thing I couldn’t suspend my disbelief for.

Why can Kaiba still summon Obelisk? Even Deva questions this. We’re never given an explanation.

Also, the Items are empty. It’s made pretty clear that the Puzzle doesn’t have a spirit in it, so the Ring shouldn’t either. And yet the Ring still manages to corrupt people, even after it’s made pretty clear that the Ring only accepts Ryou as its holder. On the other hand, the Items are traditionally some level of corrupting when held by the wrong people, like the Eye with Pegasus or the Rod with Marik, so maybe that could have just been the Ring being like “hey you’re not the right person, hold still while I completely screw you over.”

Why does the Ring give Deva a makeover? (I actually thought Zorc had somehow returned when possessed!Deva stepped out.

Why is Ryou given a whole new backstory? I mean, I liked it and all, I’m just not sure which part of it was warranted. EDIT: After learning some more stuff from the manga, apparently it’s not a completely new backstory, it’s just new to anime-viewers like myself.

Deva and the rest of his plana crew were unhappy because Shadi was dead, and that’s understandable. They missed the one person who’d ever been kind to them and took care of them and comforted them and kept them safe. Good, touching story. But I have a question: Shadi has been appearing and disappearing as a ghost for the past several years, interacting with the Ishtars and Yugi and Atem and Pegasus and others. But he never could bother to go visit those kids he’d taken care of? Um, excuse me? This whole thing with Deva trying to murder Yugi and co. could have been avoided if you bothered to check up on your kids every one in awhile. Instead, you’re going down with the rest of the YGO parents as “abusive at worst, neglectful at best, and oftentimes dead.”

Things that made me unhappy:

Deva, Mani, and Sera were literally just repeats of the Ishtars. Between them and things like Kaiba holding a colossal tournament so he can “defeat the Pharaoh” and Joey and Ryou being mentally assaulted and sent to another plane of existence, it felt a lot like watching “Battle City” all over again.

Deva constantly compares Ryou and Yugi, and then the narrative constantly compares the Puzzle and the Ring. Each are present and act to balance each other. But, Atem gets to make a couple cameos and Thief Bakura does not. He 100% should have shown up at some point to contrast against Atem. But he doesn’t.

Adding to that last one, just imagine if after Atem brings Joey back to the land of the living, and Yugi and Joey and the others start accosting Deva over the whereabouts of Ryou - a second blinding flash appears. Only this one is made of shadows instead of sunlight, and Ryou is all but thrown on his face back into the land of the living by Thief Bakura. Because “what the f no my reincarnation/host isn’t supposed to be dying wtf?!”

The F where are the Ishtars?! They could have A) prevented Kaiba from digging up the Puzzle in the first place, B) warned/helped Yugi, or C) slapped some sense into Deva.

At no point in the movie does Joey actually get to duel anyone. :-(

Joey also doesn’t see Serenity or any of his close friends in the world Deva constructs for him of his memories. :-<

I wanted Kaiba to enter Atem’s palace and have to pass through Atem’s royal court before reaching him: Priest Seto, Isis, and Shada on one side, Mahad, Mana, and Karim on the other, Siamon stands beside the throne while Thief Bakura casually lounges at the Pharaoh’s feet, and Kisara waves from where she stands in the shadows behind Seto. Goddamnit, I just want them all to be happy.

This sounds like a lot of criticism, and honestly the movie was riddled with plotholes and retconning, but I really truly loved it. It was a fantastic experience that I highly recommend. 12/10, would watch again (if, y’know, there was an invention called the DVD or something, hint hint Konami and 4K *casually sips drink in a bitter fashion*).

- I’ll probably add more to this as I think of them. -