#disjointed plot and character mapping in my head

[kiwibirdlafayette]

on your Aitheaca au, when I was writing I was trying to imply that what was stolen was Capsize, but in my want to be vague I know I didn’t do a good job. Like my train of thought was that Ianite was, to a lesser extent, sensing Capsize in a similar vein to how she was sensing ‘Dianite’ when it was actually Tom, if that makes sense. I interpreted this version of Ianite as a goddess who despises not knowing, seeing it as a weakness in herself, so when she senses something that is “hers” but unrecognizable to her, she lies to Flash.

also! thinking about crew dynamics is interesting, cause depending on how you split them up you are almost always stuck with an instigator and an arbiter. The way you’ve split them up rn, Sonja and Tom are instigators (more Tom leaning than anything) and Spark’s the arbiter. Martha’s the arbiter while the other two are instigators. But this fluctuates depending on who’s in the room. Essentially, there’s always going to be a high chance for issues caused inside the group and out.

OH!!! Listen listen liSTENNNN do not say you didnt do didnt do a good job you did an excellent job, there aint nothin wrong with the choice to be vague with it I just dont catch onto things very well xD I really love that idea a ton, I totes agree that she would be able to pick up on Capsize's Ianitian quintessence (the ownership thing I feel could have ties to Capsize's connection to Ianite in the S1 world leaning on the side of being a messenger rather than the champion kind of cues that Jordan would carry if that makes any sense) and also what ya had mentioned on AO3 too, about Jordan's quintessence having ticks of World Historians in him as well that would obscure things a little makes a ton of sense as well and bangs :D

and yeah!!! Aitheaca Ianite is absolutely someone who is hellbent on being an 'all-knowing' for the sake of ultimate balance, where her logic is that if she can control everything, that's how she can guarantee that chaos or order doesnt have an opportunity to rise up- and is the principle on which her reign was founded on. I can imagine this brings her into conflict with the notion of the Watchers (who inherently possess this ability, while she has to rely on her intuitive judgement and using visual conduits/spies, like taking control of Flash) which is why I could maybe imagine she'd want to keep these kinds of things from Flash. She's very much aware of Merina's presence around her champion, and holds resentment that she can't have Merina as her spy and that under the right theoretical circumstance, could break Flash free of her manipulation at any given moment due to her having a higher form of omnipotence (all this being said, Merina is a lower level watcher and isn't at the level of possessing godly foresight that Ianite seems to think she has) I very much want it to feel like a psychological game that Ianite plays with her subordinates that she would only want Flash to believe and be aware of certain things while lying about things like weakness or potential flaw

And crew dynamics!! yessahh the instigator-arbiter combo was absolutely intentional >:] For the sake of chaos (dianitee moment) but also while it would be so easy to just pair them off in travelling groups as syndisparklez/foxxsize or embersduo/zombiecaptains it makes for more interesting writing for them to be split up with the person they had the rockiest history with + a Ruxomarian who does not want to be stuck there (in some random reality across the multiverse) to begin with. In a way the thought process is the "get along or fucking die" premise especially when they start encountering like Flash but like ya said it really is a lot of infighting xD in the Martha led group the dynamic centers around 3 Ianitees all holding some kind of reasonable resentment towards one another (though they can bond over seein their goddess/mom in such a different light and how thats affecting them; like Martha especially not having seen much of Ia in Ruxomar and while she spent time with S1 Ia, I can imagine how jarring it is to run into a universe where your mom is a corrupt deity) And then the Spark led group is just a mess, because Tom and Sonja are both massive instigators in their own way and while they can get into some absolutely unhinged shenanigans as a duo a rift was absolutely torn between them post-S2/Isles era that they become prone to not be willing to go back on their opinions of something and hear the other out. Spark hasnt spent a lot of time with either of them so its hard to take on anything but a methodology of compromise which neither of them want to really entertain- When the four are together the banter can feel a little friendlier because deep down they do all care for one another, they just have a hard time expressing it

In terms of the other instigator duos with Spark n Martha (speaking of, I have a scene with them two and Sonja, which has been funky to ponder on when they encounter Mianite for the first time) its kinda just chaos. Chaos like when you put two besties together xD

[kemendin]

Kem's non-spoilery/non-plot-related impressions on Veilguard:

Now that I finished a first run, I want to just put some thoughts out there - basically likes/dislikes sort of thing. So here we go! In no particular order:

Likes:

This is very subjective of course, but to me it just FEELS like Dragon Age. It's nostalgic in the vibes and mechanics while also being fresh.

Hair physics!! Me gleefully watching my boy's ponytail flipping around like 'yessss gooood'. Every game needs this imo xD

Companions: While I'm personally not going feral over any of them, I do LIKE them all, which is unusual for me. I love the shouted encouragement in combat, and how they move around the Lighthouse and have little snippets of conversations with each other (wish we got MORE of this).

I adore the environments and maps. I love exploring new places in Thedas, they're all so gorgeously detailed, and I love the LAYERS of them. The exploration feels very Assassin's Creed, which is fun for me. Docktown is my favourite I think, but Arlathan and the Crossroads are also stunning.

I'm a sucker for the elven relic puzzles, they make me happy!

Combat: It took a while for me to adjust, particularly coming from BG3 where I had time to deliberate my decisions. But once I got into the rhythm of it, I now find Veilguard combat quite fun. (I played as a sword and shield warrior this first run, I'm excited to see what a mage feels like next time around)

PHOTOMODE!!! At least a third of my playtime has definitely been spent taking screenshots. It has almost everything I want - camera angles, depth of field, field of view. SO MANY SCREENSHOTS! (1800 at last count)

Dislikes:

Save system. Generous auto-saves are great, but I hate how you get bumped to the nearest beacon when you load in, rather than where you actually left off. Also I'm a save scummer so 100 manual saves is not enough lol.

Main menu being the only functional 'pause' button is irritating, especially when trying to get into photomode.

Armour/outfit stuff. I'm sorry but most of the designs are terrible. TERRIBLE. Also there's no dye/tint system, at least Inquisition had SOMETHING to that effect.

Pacing. I feel like the stories in the game had so many good notes, but it felt.... disjointed, like it was just hitting the main beats rather than creating a cohesive narrative flow. Across the board, it felt rushed and shallow in that respect. Also (and maybe this is just a me thing) it felt really difficult to get a handle on the passage of time throughout the game.

Ambivalent: The character creator. Lots of great sliders and options, but also I kinda hate the 'mash three heads together' thing, and I don't know why we need 50 styles of eyelashes instead of, I dunno, more hair options? (also - body hair. Needs body hair)

I may add to this as more thoughts occur, but for now that's what I've got. Overall impression - positive! I had a great time and I'll be replaying for sure.

[dragonagitator]

Gale Dekarios / Modern Girl in Faerun BG3 fanfic snippets & ideas

I've begun writing my very first fanfic, a "Modern Girl in Faerun" author self-insert for Baldur's Gate 3 in the tradition of the "Modern Girl of Thedas" fanfics for Dragon Age.

Premise: A woman who has played a lot of BG3 is transported to the world of BG3, where she uses her foreknowledge of events to pretty much obliterate canon. End game is Gale/MGIF romance, but at an even slower burn than in canon because he thinks she's batshit crazy.

It'll be a very long while before I'll be ready to begin posting chapters on AO3 because I'm writing the scenes out of order whenever inspiration strikes instead of chronologically. But I've been posting occasional snippets and ideas to Tumblr as I go, so here's a pinned post where I'll add links to that stuff in case someone wants to read a bunch of disjointed crap from a WIP.

Criticism is very welcome! I've never written a fanfic before so I fully expect it to be terrible, and I'd much appreciate any feedback that would help make it less terrible before the final draft goes up on AO3.

Scenes & Dialogue Snippets:

Is the somatic component an erection?

Um... what language is that?

200 gold, same as in town

How can you have the word ‘lesbian’ with no Lesbos and no Sappho?

Make. Me. A. Better. Offer.

Should I be jealous of Withers, Gale? I know he's your type.

The Book of Erotic Fantasy

Plot Ideas:

Fucked-up idea for why Gale has abs

I just wanted to fuck a hot wizard but now I have homework

Timeline of major events during Gale Dekarios's lifetime

Gale's and Tara's search for a cure to his condition was a race against time for them both

Gale was picked up in Yartar while headed north to die

The lack of Gale Dekarios / Modern Girl in Faerun author self-insert fanfics is killing me

The nautiloid could have plausibly realm-jumped to Earth

Soulless by Toril standards

Wizard of Waterdeep, meet Wizard of Excel!

Astarion is the only companion who immediately believes the MGIF

Traded My Spoons For Knives

Teamwork makes dream work, and my author self-insert dreams of taking a bath

There's only one God you should be worshipping, his name is Ed Greenwood

I'll be asking Withers to respec me from Accountant to Sorcerer at the earliest opportunity

Crippling existential crisis

I am receiving the Shovel Talk from a flying cat

Where's the CIA when you need them?

How to help Karlach in your post-game fix-it fics

Show us on the Waterdeep map where Gale's tower is???

My Big Fat Greek Wedding / Mamma Mia / Dragon Heist mashup

Oh, so you're the local Goddess of Magic? Well, let me introduce you to Hecate and Freyja and the Morrigan and Isis and...

I've already come up with at least three sequels

Tara would be all over Tav's baby bump

Waterdeep needs the Freedom of Information Act

Speedrunning the Enlightenment

Elminster's portal to Earth seems like an easier way home than asking Lae'zel to please hijack me another nautiloid

Gale as a "Faerun Character in Modern Earth"

[bosstoaster]

How do you write long stories? Like, 20k+ ? I always have these grand ideas of how I'd like to write a fic that carries grander themes, like a plot against someone that's investigated or a slow burn romance literally anything that feels like it needs to be long to match the content? Like a 5k murder mystery would be over so quickly it'd lose impact? But I can never find the words or inspiration for what should happen in all the "in-between" moments. I can think of things for the beginning and end and a couple of scenes in the middle and it all comes out to about 8-10k. And I can never think of what to put between those scenes. I've got so many disjointed fics I've written over the years that have remained drafts because I don't know how to elevate them from scenes into stories? The pieces don't fit well enough together to turn it into something more epic. It remains a small fic :/ Any advice at all on this? I remember you saying a rough word count of all your fics combined over the past couple years and being flabbergasted by the number. Extraordinary. I'd love to be able to write long fics 🙏 sorry for the ramble!

(Current total AO3 word count is just over 2.75 million words, which doesn't count the 350k-ish in drafts, or fics on account accounts. But anyhow.) I had the same problem for a really long time, actually! Like, genuinely a decade of fic writing through middle and high school. The answer might be different for different people, but one thing really changed the game for me.

Outlines. Outlines are essential for longer stories, by my book.

What I do is I have an idea for a fic, usually a scene or like, an image of a ~vibe.~ From there I ask myself the first question. What do I want from this? Is it a cute romcom situation? Is it a sexy horror story about taming a monster? Is it a surrealist horror story? What do I want someone else to feel when reading this?

When I have that answer, I can answer the next questions: is this an AU or a canon fic? An AU means that your first chapter is probably going to be setting up the differences from canon. Canon means you have to tell your readers when we are in canon and set up how we got to the Situation (or jump into it, if you're feeling spicy.)

With that answer, we have an approximate starting location. It's fic, so we know where your audience is. How do we get from there to what you want to write about? What needs to happen for your fic to occur? For example, in my vampire fic, step one was turning/killing Dave. Okay, so you have your fic in a state where you're ready to run wild with your premise. Here's the actual meat of your questions.

How do I determine what goes in between the start and the scenes I want to write?

Usually one of a few ways

What needs to occur to get to the scenes I want to write? What makes the characters act in a way I want them to, but isn't out of character? Do they need to be hurt? Emotionally compromised? Worn down? How does THAT happen?

What makes logical, in character sense for the characters to do? Given any of the scenes and conflicts you have planned, what would be their next move/concern?

What SLAPS? What scenes add to the feeling I want the audience to have? For example, if this is a rom com, what scenes would make it clear they should get together, or would work well emotionally? If it's a cozy mystery, what clever things does the main character notice that tell you more about the weird cast of suspects? If it's a horror, what makes the situation more tense?

The point of an outline is literally to fill in these gaps. And there's no stress! You can change stuff or ignore it down the line. You're just drawing a basic map for yourself to know the directions you need to go. Just put down ideas, and if they don't work, erase it and try again.

Many vary a lot in length depending on how much detail I already have in my head, how long the fic is, and how complex the story will be. The Vampire sequel outline is six pages long (very long), while most of them are a page or so.

Here's the vampire sequel outline, speaking of. For that, what I had at the start was a) the boys testing what it means to be a vampire and b) Vamp kidnapping Dave. That's all. The rest I made up during the outline.

Without outlines, I would have no idea where I'm going in a fic, so I'd get through what I had then stall out and get writers block and dither and run in circles and eventually give up.

Respect the power of the outline.

[ufonaut]

New follower here. I saw your comments on Hal recently, and in general I agree that he's not a very interesting character and Johns fanboyism of him was too his detriment. However there are a few stories I'd like to hear your thoughts on: His plot in New Frontier, The Tom King one Shot from Darkseid War, and the recent Morrison series. The first two I've heard as being the best Hal stories, and the third I've seen generally good things about

hi! thanks for reaching out, i'm flattered that so many people are interested in my opinions!!

i briefly mentioned morrison's run here ("grant morrison wanted to write a pulp-y sci-fi story that played fast and loose with enough continuity gags to draw in longtime readers and took space cop to new extremes") but to elaborate on that, i liked his run in the sense that it was fun, i just don't think it did hal any favours as a character. morrison is generally a writer i don't necessarily vibe with because i feel like too much of his work requires a road map (see: how much arkham asylum: a serious house on serious earth improves with the reading of its script) to be engaged with to its full extent and the story put on page isn't the story that exists in his head, if that makes sense. i enjoyed the blackstars interlude that followed the first season of his gl run but thought the quality went downhill fast with the second season and that the narrative felt generally disjointed, the frequent trips to alternate earths didn't help at all and at times morrison seemed to be nearly stalling rather than telling a story of any value

over all, the fact that the trade for his run comes with the "intergalactic lawman" tagline summarizes the issues with it well enough -- morrison's hal isn't merely a space cop as shorthand for the full extent of what the green lanterns do, he's precisely that to the point that conversations about police brutality are inexplicably brought up & approached with morrison's usual lack of tact. the highlights are invariably whichever issues capitalize on the work of better writers (for example, the hal & ollie teamup done in the style of denny o'neil) or the antimatter issue where that universe's hal & sinestro appear to be in a relationship, though even that doesn't stray far from morrison's usual brand of frankly horrifying lgbt "rep". again, it's not unreadable nor unforgivable but it quite frankly does nothing at all of real note

on to the rest! i like hal in new frontier & don't have much thoughts on it, it's a good book worthy of its acclaim with very good hal characterisation but i feel the jsa was robbed of the story given to the jla. as for tom king's darkseid war one shot, i think it's one of the very first stories to have made me interested in hal and go "hey, this guy's got potential!" so it remains an all time favourite, as much as -- in hindsight -- i wish there had been some acknowledgement of parallax during the whole god of light deal and how hal would've been rightfully terrified of gaining power on that level once again. still, both worth reading!

[2009rad]

Finished the Shadow and Bone TV Series

Honestly I was a little worried, only because the world of The Grishaverse is so interesting and I didn’t want them to mess it up. But wow, I loved it. And I have some thoughts.

(spoilers below)

1. The music oh my God. A soundtrack can really make or break a piece of media, and in this case it really made it. It really captures the mood of the show.

2. MILO THE GOAT. EVERYTHING ABOUT MILO THE GOAT. That scene with Kaz being all serious and intimidating all while holding a literal goat lives rent free inside my head. 

3. The Crows. I haven’t read Six of Crows yet, I’m still on Siege and Storm, but they were entertaining as hell. My favorites were Jesper and Inej, and even though their storyline was a little disjointed from the main plot, it was still really enjoyable. I especially like Inej, not only with her heist skills but her backstory. 

4. The costuming was really, really nice. My favorite would probably be Genya’s dress. Now I want a kefta for myself. But also why do the clothes of the King look sort of cheap? Did they spend most of the costuming budget on the Darkling’s outfit?

5. I’m glad they didn’t really do much with Zoya’s attitude about Alina’s race. It never made sense to include it in the first place; the main conflict between them was about how Zoya felt pushed aside by Alina and less valued, so instead of directing her anger towards the man that treats them like that she directs it towards Alina, herself a victim of the Darkling’s manipulation. 

6. Bouncing off that point, I really liked Zoya, even if she was more or less a minor character. And I loved the scene where she finally turns against the Darkling, and her little interactions with Inej was also a nice touch, especially that scene where they help each other on the skiff. 

7. The racism plot... ok I’ll admit I don’t hate it but I don’t like it that much. Mostly because it doesn’t make sense and as an E. Asian it really put me off. Look, I’m aware fantasy worlds take elements of the real world and magnify them. But I didn’t like how it was executed. I will admit it adds dimension to Alina’s character. In the book she was sort of this typical YA protagonist who doesn’t vibe w other girls, is plain, oh so skinny not like everyone else and of course, has a sarcastic sense of humor. But add on the aspect of her being alienated due to her race it makes sense why she isolates herself from others, why being noticed isn’t a blessing because she’s been noticed all her life and that’s led to her being mocked and discriminated. I have mixed feelings on this aspect that I’ll expand  upon it another time. 

8. I like the change of making Alina more active, like burning maps so she can be placed with Mal’s unit, challenging Zoya to a duel. 

9. I loved the interactions between Nina and Matthias, though structurally it threw the plot off center. If it were up to me I would only include Nina getting captured in the second episode, then at the end show her on his ship, off to a uncertain destination to set up season 2. But you know what, the Helnik shippers got to eat and they deserved to eat (and watch Helnik eat, literally). Plus the whole enemies-to-lovers dynamic was fun to watch

10. That scene with the stag. Chef’s kiss. 

11. I did not know Ivan, a Heartrender who was an asshole Darkling loyalist in the books and Fedyor, a Heartrender who was kinda more nice and talkative would end up being one of my favorite parts of the show. Fedyor feeding Ivan a treat and him sort of smiling for the first time? Fedyor calling him his “better half”?? 

12. Back to the racism plotline, isn’t Mal also half-Shu? Why does everyone like him but not Alina? Is it because he now can pass? Or did the show just completely forget that at certain points?

13. I feel like they dialed down the Darkling. Like, in the book he straight up threatens to execute Mal, and almost does so when he throws him to the volcra? But here he gets outmatched by none other than Kaz Brekker, and he goes toe to toe with Mal (but I mean, Mal’s valid for beating up the Darkling)

[transhermetic-witchery]

Message Spent

The following is a text, a corpus, a canon. The client shall remain unnamed. Beginning Transcription in...

3...

2...

1...

Bezel. It is here, a name. A name born of the verb born of the noun which is a synonym for frame, for barrier, for boundary between symbols and the places which view them. You got that so far? Should I keep going?

There are things, shapes, which don't suffer names well, at least not for long. I met Bezel when I was visiting, playing tourist. It is not a someone, nor an object in the way a particular stone or home may bear a name to distinguish it from others of the same type or class.

A wave is a name we give an abstraction, names we place on different things to confuse ourselves between them. This confusion, surprisingly, is helpful. Not a birch, or a maple, mulberry, or pine, but a tree. Waves pass through water, through metal, and again, metals' sparks.

Why I'm hiring you to write in this particular venue, in this particular way, is so that the little ripples don't get lost just because you (or I for that matter) discard them because we don't understand how they got there. Editing is a useful habit, but not for all uses.

I will make mistakes, you will transcribe oddly or poorly, and if we leave the option open, we will fiddle and tweak and generally make a mess of things by making them legible, presentable, or perhaps acceptable.

Nuggets.

Bertrand.

Sarsaparilla.

There we go, good luck interpolating that.

Alright, time to go back and remind myself of where I was headed. You don't have to include notes like this in the text.

Actually, you know what, go ahead. Just cram it all in there. Seems fitting. Besides, I may add the caveat too late and then you couldn't oblige anyway. No need to put you in a bind like that.

Bezel, that's where I started, I'll continue with that. It's a good glossary word to start with here. Can't have a gate without a boundary, and it sure is tough to get somewhere by having already been there... or, at least tough to give directions that way.

Calling attention to disjoints, faults, gaps, and the like, that seems to be the local language. Walls are good for many things, bad at others, but often good structures on which to rest when tired.

Did you ever notice how few advocacy groups there are for gravity? Or how scant moral codes there are that forbid pickpocket the Sun? A conspicuous lack of charities collecting for the cause of keeping river rocks smooth. And I've never been yelled at for not sweating glass.

There are things that enforce themselves but do so largely unnoticed, and there ate things that enforce themselves which we fancy might do otherwise. And then there are things which we enforce which are enforced by us and need that pressure to not evaporate.

Cold water boils in low enough pressure, and so do some ideas. It is polite to eat with your mouth closed. A particular word means a particular thing. We just don't do that here. That's something something unnatural something something tradition.

Bezel is a character in the story I'm telling, but like how the number twelve is a character in math, or 人 is a character on screen. Story isn't the right word, but it's the one I've gotten hold of and it's in the neighborhood.

It's an act of reminding myself of the local pressure needed to maintain the ecosystem of ideas where I happen to be. A reminder that I can move to somewhere with more or less or different pressure if it suits me or I need a different context.

It is a golden flag of a warning to remind myself to use the door rather than claw at the wall, to do the local bubble the respect of not bursting it without cause. But that is neither here nor there because it is staunchly between.

The panic of feeling every boundary is there to ensnare, impede, or imprison leaves a long wake of leaky membranes, violent depressurization, and a lot of wounds vulnerable to opportunistic infections. Oops. Mistakes worth learning from.

So what is the payload here? Why did I commission this work? And why through such roundabout methods? An abstract device. Seemed the thing to do. Filters.

Absorbing State. Another vocab word for the glossary. One of my personal favorites. An absorbing state is a state that, once entered, one does not exit. That may be water running down hill until it enters the ocean where it stays forever (in an oversimplified model), or death.

Things transition between states. On a technical level, that is the founding principle behind computation, look up Markov Chains if you wanna up the legibility of things in general. Moods, beliefs, and other experiential events can also usefully be described as states.

Let's steal a scene. Juliet on the balcony, lovestruck Romeo below. That's a scene, and just to be pedantic let's map "state" onto "scene" and see where that takes us. Some things have to happen in order for these kids to die for our entertainment.

If lines aren't said, plot ain't played out, sets aren't struck, then these two lovebirds loom peacefully and romantically entwined in Balcony State indefinitely. And, well, hang on, aren't they dead? We saw it happen. Very sad. How are they alive and well in Balcony?

Another reason for going about this project this way is to ensure publication, to cement the digital footprint. Drafts sit and await rigor, await scrutiny, and I love both of those, but I tried to eat them rather than own them. An approach, mine, but not the only or recommended.

The ghosts of discourse still linger in libraries, the academic sort, and they are lovely or terrible or very in their own ways. And the living rampage through songs and drinks and smells as always. But now, we have a nifty sort of substrate between. And not just receipts.

I was frightened to spill ink for a long while. What if I'm misunderstood, or worse what if I am understood but incorrect?!

I thought it was a matter of picking the right cause, of allying myself with whatever was stronger or righter or deeper or taller or betterer. Craved that clear thoughtless ringing of certainty and affirmation. But wait... Hmm...

They, you know the ones, the right ones, the pedestal dwellers, what's this proscenium, what's this stage? What are the chances that this message is compelling because it matches how I'm compelled. Well, that's just doubt. That's probably bad. Am good. Am brave. See me.

Wait a spell, why am I compelled? What are these rewards I'm driven to seek, these hurts I'm calloused to, I should be calloused to, I didn't need it anyway. But if I didn't need it because I'm strong, and I'm doing what they say to get the thing that was mine they took .

Oh. Ohhhhh. Ewwwwwwwww. Get it off let me out get it out of me!

Huh. That's better. What a relief. Wow. Oh wow. This is amazing! Is this what freedom tastes like?!?!

Okay, what's next? Hello? Oh. Yeah. I mean, yay! But, yeah.

...1

...2

...3

[bookramblings]

The Court of Miracles

Author: Kester Grant

Published by: Harper Voyager

Pages: 402

Format: Hardback

My Rating ★★★

Liberty. Family. Treachery.

1828 and the citizens of Paris still mourn in the wake of their failed revolution. Among them, in the dark alleys and crumbling cathedrals of the city, the most wretched have gathered into guilds of thieves, assassins – and worse. Together they are known as the Court of Miracles.

Eponine has lost more than most. When her father, Thénardier, sells her sister to the Guild of Flesh she makes a promise to do anything she can to get her sister back, even if that means joining the Court of Miracles, the very people keeping her sister a slave.

Eponine becomes the greatest thief the Court has ever known, finding a place among them and gaining another sister, Cosette. But she has never forgotten the promise she made, and if she’s to have any hope of saving one sister, she will have to betray the other.

This beautiful reimagining of Les Misérables tells the stories of your favourite characters and what might have happened if the French Revolution had not come to pass.

My thoughts:

Les Misérables meets Six of Crows in this page-turning adventure as a young thief finds herself going head to head with leaders of Paris's criminal underground in the wake of the French Revolution.

The Court of Miracles maps the adventures of a daring young thief Eponine, in an alternative version of France in 1828, where the revolution has failed and Paris is ruled by ruthless criminal guilds and viscous royals. In the violent urban jungle of an alternate 1828 Paris, the Revolution has failed and the city is divided between merciless royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds, known as the Court of Miracles.

Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a talented cat burglar and member of the Thieves Guild. Nina's life is midnight robberies, avoiding her father's fists, and watching over her naïve adopted sister, Cosette (Ettie). Her lifelong goal has been to save her long-lost sister from a life of enforced prostitution, and now, to save a new sister who may soon succumb to the very same fate. With this book, I was immediately intrigued when its description called it a Les Mis retelling. The Court of Miracles has such an extraordinarily complex storyline that brought in lots of fun fantasy tropes and was reminiscent of many beloved works of fiction, and yet still managed to maintain its own sense of mystery.

I enjoyed the glitz and glamour of the court as well as the more seedy and grimy elements of the underworld. Alongside this we also have glimpses of the lives of the common people during the June Rebellion, who were dying of starvation and illness. Overall, the atmosphere, setting and political aspects of the plot were by far my favourite elements throughout.

I just think with a little more development it could have been phenomenal and also held a lot more emotional impact. Where I feel this book was slightly lacking, is in the development of the key characters and the relationships between them.

The pacing was unstable, and I felt that the many time skips made things feel pretty disjointed at times. Years were skipped over so that we could accelerate to the more interesting and relevant parts of the plot. There were time jumps where I would’ve liked to see the development of the sisterhood between Nina and Cosette more. I felt the story needed a deeper exploration of character relationships and how these were established, as well as how they progressed and grew (these occur between the time jumps so we are not witness to these moments).

I really wanted to like this book, but I have to be honest in my review. I’m curious to see what others think as the reviews keep trickling in, but there’s still some buzz around this one and I can understand why. The marketing is beautiful, and the blurb is attention-grabbing, and I actually mostly really liked Kester Grant’s writing style. Fantasy fiction is one of my favourite genres. I went into this wanting to love it, to be swept away in a new fantasy series, and I don’t think that’s going to happen at this point.

I might read the sequel, but I was expecting so much from this book and I'm a little disappointed that it didn't quite live up to the hype for me. It’s still a pretty good read, but had the potential to be much better. 

Overall reaction:

[jackkearns]

Okay so. Long rant/rambling about TRoS. Spoilers below, you’ve been warned. Posting this on a side blog and reblogging it so it won’t be “uncut” on mobile dashes.

The first... Fifteen minutes of ROS was... Too fast. There was a LOT going on that had no explanation.

Light speed skipping. That made no sense and was a little over the top. An icy outpost with contacts with no names getting information through unmentioned communication lines. Conversation with this Unnamed character that insinuated he was important, especially since we later see his HEAD in Kylo's grasp. Or was it a Knight of Ren, idk bc things went that fast.

LOVED the interaction between Rey Finn and Poe. They argued like a married trio though the whole movie and it was amazing. There was also a LOT of jealousy from Poe every time Finn tried mentioning his feelings for Rey. (Seriously, Poe was more concerned about cosmetic damage to BB8 than he was about the Falcon LITERALLY BEING ON FIRE and I just. Oh, Poe.) The group hug at the end just sealed the OT3 for me, end of story.

There was Force healing and I was excited to see that. Then... It got overused to the point of being a deus ex machina.

The Unknown Regions were mentioned and the path to the Sith world was full of solar storms and black holes and electrical flares and there was no mention of how canonly, that path was mapped by Thrawn, but OKAY,THAT'S FINE.

I was honestly scared to death when Hux was all "I'm the mole," because I was afraid they were making him run like a coward, but no, thankfully, he was being a Petty shit trying to sabotage Ren which is so ic for him.

His death, just a point blank, off handed shot to the chest and him sprawling on the deck of the Finaliser and being completely shrugged off was.... Disappointing. Very disappointing. His character had been played up as this ruthless, cruel and calculating battle tactician and he was made a joke in tlj and RoS. He was a fascist asshole and despite what people say, it wasn't Kylo who destroyed worlds and killed all those people, it was Hux, and it completely undermined how dangerous people like him ARE and I felt his death should have had more substance to address what he'd done and who he was.  

He's a villain, a war criminal, and he should have had more weight, been held accountable, idk, it was just utterly dismissive and HONESTLY I feel bad for Domnhall. Now I know why he didn't want to do any press at all about RoS. You could tell he really enjoyed playing Hux in TFA and I bet that kind of stung.

ANYWAY.

Leia’s death just... it felt detached? There was little to no build up to her death, and then she was just... gone. It didn’t really affect me until I saw Chewie’s reaction, and then it felt like I’d been punched in the GUT and couldn’t breathe for a hot minute.

Was REALLY amused Rey just took Kylo’s ship and bailed. “Thanks for the battle, taking your shit and leaving you here.”

When I heard Han say “Hey kid,” I felt my heart break a little bit, and that moment of Kylo saying the same line to Han- and ACTUALLY THROWING HIS SABER AWAY....

Which brings me to Daisy and Adam’s acting????? JUST?????

The DIFFERENCE in their faces when playing Rey Palpatine/Kylo Ren, and Just Rey/Ben Solo was INCREDIBLE. Their posture, their expressions, the set of their faces, the way they held themselves, was AMAZING. Daisy’s face went so HARD and COLD like a diamond, and Adam’s went so SOFT and OPEN and it was INCREDIBLE, AUGH

I am mad Rose was sidegated. Mad that there wasn’t more to Jannah. Mad that there wasn’t more of the Ghost or even a VOICE cameo of Hera.

LUKE LIFTING THE XWING OUT OF THE WATER MADE ME CRY.

I AM SO MAD AND UPSET OVER SNAP’S DEATH. WEDGE WAS THERE, MY FLYBOY WAS THERE AND HE HEARD HIS STEPSON DIE OVER THE COMMS AND I CANNOT FATHOM WHAT THAT MUST HAVE DONE TO HIM AND I AM STILL UPSET OVER IT.

Force Sensitive Finn. I love it, I knew it, so happy it’s canon, now I need a million fics of Rey helping him train and building a lightsaber with him.

I am not even touching the fuckery that was Sheev having a secret love child because the connotations are not pleasant.

I don’t understand why he didn’t possess Rey after she killed him, maybe it was because she had a Mass Cameo Moment with All the Jedi and reflected his lightning back him and made his powers Null and Void?

The lightning was cool af, even if it was More Extra than Necessary.

The Snoke Jar didn’t explain what Snoke was, who the template was- was it Sheev? Was it a random person? Hell, it could have been Ezra for all we know. It also didn’t explain why he was so easy for Kylo to kill.

Also, how did Hux keep hiding shit from Kylo? How did Kylo hide his plans from Sheev? Why is it the mind reading is very situational? I get Kylo maybe being able to shield his thoughts, but Hux? For three movies straight? And only his Petty Ass Behaviour getting him caught by Pryde and not Kylo? JJ/RIAN EXPLAIN.

The Star Destroyers/Sith Destroyers were pornographic. I said it. The scene with the fleet rising gave me a boner, y’all know I have a Thing for Star Destroyers, and there was a whole gorram ATMOSPHERE FULL OF THEM.

WHICH BRINGS ME TO A HAPPY POINT.

FINALLY. FINALLY. SHIP PHYSICS WERE ACCOUNTED FOR IN THIS MOVIE.

Ren brings the Finaliser into atmo and there are effects felt on the ground from the ship. The Falcon gets too close to the Finaliser and it affects the troopers in the hangar bay.

THE STAR DESTROYERS WERE AFFECTED BY BEING IN ATMO AND NEEDED TIME TO BRING UP THEIR SHIELDS.

I SORT of was all “...what” at their lack of navigation, but THEN AGAIN- when your viewport is full of nothing but the ships above, beside, in front and behind you, yeah, you need some synchronised navigation going on from a command ship.

(Am I STILL mad about the Star Destroyer above a city having no effect, but a Lambda taking off shot people all over the walkways in Rogue One? YES, YES I AM, ROGUE ONE SAID “FUCK SHIP PHYSICS, WE DO WHAT WE WANT, INCLUDING JUMPING TO HYPERSPACE WHILE STILL IN ATMO, LET ALONE THE GRAV SHADOW OF A PLANET” AUGH FUCK YOU)

The line “That’s not a Navy, that’s people.” So good. So. GOOD.

The scene with The Not Navy- GOOD. SO GOOD. (Though it’s like... how did Lando get ALL THOSE PEOPLE when LEIA didn’t?? RUDE)

BEN SHOOTING HIS BLASTER BLINDLY BEHIND HIM LIKE HAN MADE ME SQUEAK, I NEEDED THAT AND NOW I JUST WANT A MILLION AU FICS OF BEN AS A FORCE SENSITIVE SMUGGLER AUGH.

The Rey/Ben(Kylo? I think he was Ben at this point?) kiss was uh. I didn’t like it. And not because I don’t ship Reylo? (Because I HONESTLY do NOT mind Rey/Ben Solo- it’s Rey/Kylo Ren that I’m eeeeehhh about) but because it was generally just... awkward and Ben just “Aight, I’ma fade out” right after just made it more awkward??? IDEK.

All in all, I didn’t think it was BAD. It was an okay Star Wars movie. It is NOT my favourite- but it was not BAD.

It just felt like it was rushed, that some crucial content was cut in order to keep the plot goingandgoingcan’tstopgoing, and it honestly felt like the three movies was a passive aggressive pissing match between JJ and Rian.

LOT of amazing parts, a LOT of wtf parts, a LOT of disjointed plot points. Enjoyed it, but much could be done/handled better to have made it a more poignant ending to the saga.

[mediaeval-muse]

Video Game Review: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt Red, 2015)

Genres: action RPG, fantasy, open world

Premise: Geralt of Rivia returns for a third installment in the Witcher series, seeking his lost adopted daughter, Ciri, who is being pursued by the spectral warrior band, the Wild Hunt. Along the way, Geralt runs into some old friends, former lovers, and a whole lot of monsters.

Platform Played On: PC (Windows)

Rating: 4/5 stars

***Full review under the cut.***

I am evaluating this game based on four key aspects: story, characters, gameplay, and visuals.

Story: I liked that this game dug more into Geralt’s past. Witcher 1 and 2 have been teasing Geralt’s history with Yennefer, Ciri, and the Wild Hunt for a while, and we finally get to engage with that head-on. About 1/3 of this game is spent pursuing Ciri and checking out all the places she went, so personally, I didn’t find that part of the plot exciting. I may be biased, though - I don’t really like plots which are based on following someone’s trail.

But while I did like that we dove into Geralt’s past, this game also simultaneously felt disjointed from the other two. Things seemed to be dropped in at random. For example, the “Last Wish�� quest had no emotional buildup, and we got no hints of Geralt and Yennefer’s magical bond in the previous two games. I would have liked to see more exploration of this bond before players finally deal with it. Also, the other two games had Geralt struggling to overcome his amnesia, but when we get to Witcher 3, he seems to remember everything without any problems. I understand that Wticher 3 is meant, in some ways, to be accessible to players who haven’t played the first two games, but I would have liked to see more continuity.

Main plot aside, I very much appreciated that there seemed to be a lot more folkloric flavor in this game than in the previous two. Side quests had Geralt encounter beasts with a lot of lore behind them, so it was fun to get to learn about the worldbuilding through these monsters.

However, the conflict between humans and non-humans, which was so central in Witcher 2, is completely a non-issue in this game. There are still dwarves, elves, etc. and some pockets of Scoiatel bands, but the game says that the political conflict is more pressing than people’s racism, so everyone’s largely forgotten about how much they hate non-humans (except moments of random brutality). Instead, there’s discrimination against magic-users to deal with, due to the fallout from Witcher 2 and the Lodge of Sorceresses. Honestly, I had to side-eye this change a little, because people don’t just put aside their racism when a new political conflict arises. While I understand the plot can’t encompass everything, this is just another example of the disjointedness between the first two games and this one.

You still have the opportunity to sleep with various women in this game, which was irritating. Most of these chances come up in “meatier” side quests, so they’re woven into the plot rather than random chance encounters. I honestly hate that aspect of the Witcher games, and even though they’re toned down from the first installment, they still are prevalent enough to bother me.

I did play through both DLCs/Expansion Packs: Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. I really liked the way Hearts of Stone was structured, with the Frog Prince allusions and heist plot. I did also like that it included some much needed POC, but I was uncomfortable with part of the plot that involves killing a bunch of them. I absolutely hated the part where you have to let a ghost (Vlodomir) possess Geralt’s body for a night. The idea wasn’t a bad one (the ethics of letting a ghost control you is interesting), but Vlodimir is so damn horny and sexist that I despised being forced to spend time with him/act as him for so long. This DLC also had Shani make a reappearance, and I love her as a character. I just hate that she, like so many other women, is head over heels for Geralt, and Geralt can sleep with her. Blood and Wine had the experience of a whole new game, with more maps to explore, diagrams to find, and so on. I enjoyed the characters of this story more than the plot itself; much of the plot involves things happening off-camera and being told of them later. But to its credit, the DLC expands the lore on some monsters that we don’t see much of in the previous games, and has some fun side quests that are much lighter in mood than anything in the base game.

Characters: Geralt is more or less the same as he was in The Witcher 2, but I found him even more easier to like and play as a noble character. Of course, his characterization is going to be largely up to the player (it’s an RPG, after all), but I liked that the game gave Geralt ample opportunity to be a kind-hearted person.

We do finally meet Yennefer in this game. She’s stubborn and assertive without being too over the top or controlling, which made me like her, even if she could be annoying. I chose to romance Triss, so I got an extra dose of that annoyingness when Yennefer wouldn’t respect my boundaries and took some of her anger out on Triss’ belongings. However, I do like that these traits made Yennefer flawed.

Speaking of Triss, she’s back in this game and has an extremely noble character arc. She spends a lot of time fighting to get mages out of a city that wants to destroy them, and willingly puts herself at risk for people who probably don’t deserve it. She’s so kind-hearted and focused on justice that I took to her as readily as I did in the previous game - perhaps more.

Ciri, unsurprisingly, was also a delight. She is headstrong and impulsive without being cold, and players are given the chance to mold her story when she becomes a playable character for brief periods.

Many of the side characters felt fully-realized, so I had no trouble immersing myself in the world of the game. I very much enjoyed the characters in the DLC (save Vlodimir), who were morally grey and complex in interesting ways. Regis is the best!

Gameplay: Like Witcher 2, there are a lot of controls to keep track of (at least on PC) but I picked them up fairly quickly. Crafting is a bit more involved than the previous games, as well as the alchemy. It took me a bit to realize that alchemy flasks were replenished with meditation rather than having to be made manually, but when I figured it out, things ran more smoothly.

I will say that with this game being open-world, there was A LOT of exploration. I do like to wander around in games sometimes, but after a while, I did grow bored. Maps were expansive with hundreds of points of interest, all with rewards that weren’t super beneficial (except to sell) after a certain level. I know I don’t HAVE to explore every POI, but I’m a completionist. Completionists, therefore, might find this game a bit tedious.

I furthermore resented the fact that players could have Geralt sleep around with multiple women and get many sex scenes. It was annoying, but I easily avoided romancing anyone accidentally.

The introduction of the Gwent card game in place of dice was extremely enjoyable. It relied a little less on luck, allowing players to exert some control via strategy, and rewards included unique cards in addition to money. It’s almost like a deck-building game, with some different rules.

Visuals: The Witcher 3 is a beautifully-rendered game. The environment is full of textures and unique layouts, even though much of it is wilderness, and everything from the monsters to the armor appear more visually interesting and colorful than their incarnations in previous games. I especially appreciated the effort put into making the world seem inhabited; inns were decorated with paintings and garlands, homes had personal effects, and peasants didn’t seem to be too repetitive in their appearance.

Although the sexism in this game was scaled way back even in comparison to the previous game, I did still find some of the character designs for women annoying. Kiera, a sorceress who assists Geralt at one point, is introduced while she is taking a bath, and while dressed, her shirt is so open that you can see her nipples - even when you’re questing! It was irritating, but since women’s outfits on the whole were drastically less male-gazey than the previous games, I was able to ignore it and focus on plot.

I will say, though, that I was bothered by the fact that everyone in this game is still white (except for a couple succubi, unless I’m missing some others). There are some POC introduced in the Hearts of Stone DLC, and some of them are interesting characters, but part of the plot involves killing a bunch of POC, so it was kind of uncomfortable. I know the game is based on a Polish novel series, and people will be quick to say that Slavic people are largely light-skinned, but this is a fantasy game, so in my mind, there’s no excuse.

In-Game Triggers: violence, gore, body horror, presence of corpses/blood in the environment, sex and nudity, racism, drug use, miscarriage, domestic violence

Recommendations: I would recommend this game f you’ve played the previous two Witcher games, or if you enjoy fantasy RPGs, games with Slavic folklore, and games with strong father-daughter relationships.

[callioope]

The Last Jedi Critique

General Introduction/Disclaimer I wanted to explore, from as many angles as I could, The Last Jedi and my reaction to it. Please note, going into this, that my overall opinion of the movie is that I did not like it, and that will be apparent in most of my critique, but there were moments that I did like; this is not a pure hate fest.

These will be the main categories for how I approach my dissection of The Last Jedi. 

Pacing and Plot (today’s subject)

Characterization

Film Artisticness

Writing (Dialogue) and World Building

Spirit and Themes

Honestly, just this one facet took a long time to write and is relatively lengthy; I need to take a break from this, and will return throughout the week to approach the other subjects. Characterization will likely be the last, as there are so many characters to explore and I have so many things I want to examine.

Let’s get on with it.

Pacing

It is a general criticism I have of movies these days (particularly blockbuster, action-based movies) that they try to cram too much into too short a time frame. The general structure of a movie should mimic a short story format, filling out bits where there is room. That’s all that there really is time for.

TLJ felt very convoluted to me, which was even more striking when I learned, post-viewing because I missed it, that it was all supposed to take place in only 18 hours. (What is time in space? Star Wars never handles timelines well, but cramming everything that happened in this movie in a space of 18 hours was too much.)

Let’s examine what happens: we begin immediately where The Force Awakens left off. (Which is very unique for a Star Wars film, a point for later.) This means that the First Order has tracked down the Resistance’s base almost immediately after the events of TFA.* How did they do this? How did they pull off tracking down the Resistance after suffering the huge defeat at Starkiller Base? (It did not seem like they felt it was important to explain, but it was important to me, and that’s something I’ll cover more under political and military world building later.) [EDIT: apparently they were targeting the base at the end of TFA, oops. Nevertheless, seems kind of weird that the FO would regroup so quickly and that there’s no sense of urgency to an evacuation at the end of TFA.]

Anyways, this timeline feels off to me, and feels like a plot device, rather than something believable or natural. Previous gaps between movies have been long enough to believably account for relationship, political, and military developments.

So, within 18 hours:

Holdo devises her plan to head to Crait and puts the gears in motion; Poe questions it

Finn and Rose meet, talk, and explain their plan to Poe

They call Maz

Poe caps off their plan and sets that in motion

Finn and Rose travel to casino planet (someone please show me on a galaxy map that this is at all feasible. Is this planet along the hyperspace lane that the Resistance was using? How far out of the way did they have to travel? Also, someone convince me that Maz, knowing they are in a critical timeline, would think this a reasonable plan.)

Hijinks at casino ensue

Hijinks with codebreaker ensue

Perhaps you could convince me this was all possible in an 18-hour span, but what you cannot convince me is this: That all of Rey’s scenes occurred in 18 hours.*

We saw the passing of time on Ahch-To, and unless this planet has a very short rotation, she must have been there for at least a week.

She would have to go from thinking “Kylo Ren is a monster” to “Kylo Ren can be redeemed” in the span of 18 hours. This seems too difficult a feat to pull off. She barely knows Kylo. (Mind bridge commentary to be found under “Force Use” in Writing and Worldbuilding.)

This movie has to work very hard to convince me that Luke would disappear for seven years. All of that persuasion is for naught if he is to be so easily swayed back in the span of 18 hours.

*Perhaps Rey’s scenes did not occur within the 18-hour time limit established in the Resistance Escape plot; perhaps they occured before. I’d argue that her communications with Kylo anchor Rey’s timeline within the Resistance Escape timeline, especially given the healing of Kylo’s scar. However, if you don’t buy, I’ll follow up with the argument that the way the movie is edited and constructed, that is definitely not made clear and any kind of non-simultaneous plot lines ought to be articulated with care to avoid audience confusion.

Disregarding the actual time limitation, the scenes felt very disjointed and the transitions clumsy (and I’m not talking about screen wipes). “Where’s so-and-so?” one character asks, and immediately we switch to a scene of that character. The first time this happens, I thought, “okay, a classic but clever transitional tool.” The third or fourth time it happened, I thought, “let’s try something different?”

This kind of repetition plagues the movie throughout and gives the film a very “stop-go” jerkiness:

The Resistance battles and escapes! The First Order appears again; a battle, an escape!

Leia is killed — no wait, she’s alive in space, but now she’s in a coma so still incapacitated. (btw, will address the concept of the Force flying and Force preservation in space under Worldbuilding)

Finn & Rose found the codebreaker! Oh no they were caught! Oh they found a different codebreaker! Oh but they don’t care and are just getting away! BB-8 kept the codebreaker around! Oh but he won’t help unless they pay a high price — no Rose paid the price! Oh but she got it back! Oh but now he betrayed them!

Luke is shot by a thousand cannons! No he’s alive! No he’s dead! No he was an illusion and he’s alive! No he’s dead.

Basic storytelling is figuring out what your characters want and putting obstacles in the way of that. This didn’t feel like obstacles, it felt like the characters were on a leash and being yanked back by the same thing, over and over again. They weren’t overcoming obstacles; they were being set free by plot devices to proceed with their quest (quests which, ultimately, prove fruitless), and there is a very big difference between those mechanisms.

TLJ does have a large cast and balancing screen time is admittedly tricky; transitioning between those characters is an added complication, but that’s why a short story format should be preferred. In order to cram so many plot developments and “character development” into this movie, scenes felt shorter and jumps to other characters more frequent, which is why the transitions felt so disjointed. It’s difficult to give the proper weight and context to something when the story jumps to another part of the galaxy, to another character, and to another situation entirely.

(Please note that I’m not saying the side plots should have been cut; on the contrary, I love Poe, Finn, and Rose, and honestly would have preferred a movie featuring them more in the foreground, working together, with a better subplot. Less Kylo, more Poe, Finn, and Rose. But this is a movie about Skywalkers, you say. Yes, I’ll cover the Skywalker Legacy in Characterization later.)

In dealing with so many situations and subplots, the main thread of the movie seemed lost to me.

Here are all the plots going on:

The First Order’s pursuance of the Resistance through hyperspace

Poe’s insubordination/mutiny and the consequences of it

Finn and Rose trying to sneak aboard Snoke’s ship by way of casino planet

Rey trying to persuade Luke to (a) train her and (b) return to the fight

Rey going behind Luke’s back and talking to Kylo; Rey trying to turn Kylo

Luke grappling with his own failures and coming to terms with them, and facing Kylo

The ultimate battle and destruction of Snoke

The competition between Kylo and Hux

The rising of the Resistance from the Republics ashes: “We are the spark that will light the fire that will burn the First Order down” (nothing epitomizes the convoluted writing of this movie more succinctly than that particular quote. What a mouthful! I guess Lucas isn’t the only one culpable of writing unsayable lines)

Among all of these threads, I think we’re supposed to come to the conclusion that fighting creates more problems; to truly combat violence in the world, the best answer is to put more love back into it. I’m getting this message specifically from Rose’s scene after she saves Finn, but I think it’s also supposed to tie into Kylo’s story, in terms of how Luke’s attempted murder of Kylo was, ultimately, what broke him, whereas Rey tries to follow Luke’s example from the Original Trilogy (remember when he did that? Johnson doesn’t) and bring out the light in him.

If that was the message, it was diluted and covered up by all the other things going on, the mess that was Poe’s subplot, the ultimately useless effort put in by Finn and Rose, and the childish bickering between Kylo and Hux, and the fact that the main villain was defeated about two-thirds of the movie in. Too much is going on for this to have the emotional impact that is needed.

Emotional impact is supposed to come with the climax of the movie. Which climax?

TLJ appears to have two: the confrontation in the throne room and the final battle in the old rebel base. It’s the same problem that Return of the King had — “wait, that wasn’t the end?” — even if it’s not to such a great extent.

The throne room scene falls flat because it robs Snoke entirely of his power and threat. Snoke is the master architect behind the First Order, Kylo Ren, and Hux. Yet Kylo defeats him so easily — the man who, supposedly, is the great puppeteer behind all of Kylo’s actions. Kylo is capable of tricking him. You know, this would have been great, if there had been any kind of proper back story and development to Kylo’s powers. This would have been great, if Kylo Ren did not immediately revert back to his childish temper tantrums (“Everyone fire at one man!”) (More on this under Kylo.)

Snoke’s death falls flat because where do we go from here? It’s sort of established the Kylo will be Snoke’s heir, when Kylo Force-chokes Hux, but Kylo has shown very little actual leadership throughout both TFA and TLJ. He gives orders, okay, but a few lines doesn’t demonstrate real leadership. What he demonstrates more than anything is his willingness to give into temper tantrums (Hmm, why does that sound so familiar in a “leader”? Who else does this?). That kind of leadership is especially not sustainable in a military environment, not when Hux has demonstrated more disciplined leadership experience.

Assuming that Episode IX accurately depicts this unraveling of Kylo’s power, specifically with Hux as his main rival, then we should get a power struggle that results in the downfall of the First Order. (What a short-lived reign that would turn out to be!) However, I’m not sure why that would happen when Johnson’s trilogy is supposed to follow that converted child rebel that Rose gave her ring to. That implies an unresolved ending to Episode IX. Or else a cyclical oscillation of: dissolution into chaos, the rise of a rebellion, and so forth. Which isn’t unprecedented in history, but kind of exhausting in a story telling franchise.

There’s no clear road map for the rest of this story. Storytelling should not be a “gotcha!” with twists. Twists are only satisfying when the clues and evidence are peppered in, that when the twists happens, it’s not a “wow! I didn’t see that coming at all!” it’s a “Wow! That was brilliant and I should have seen it coming, and on rewatches, it’s so gloriously constructed.”

After the throne room scene, we’re given several other smaller, climactic scenes: Leia and Holdo stopping Poe, Finn battling Phasma, and the First Order firing upon the fleeing Resistance. After each fight climax has been resolved, it should be time to wrap up after that — but yet another faux climax is presented. Just like with Return of the King, this results in time checking and contributes even further to the disjointedness plaguing this film.

The second substantial climax comes with the First Order’s assault on the base and Luke and Kylo’s subsequent confrontation. Of course, here is a plot arc that does make sense; this movie has, unfortunately, pitted nephew and uncle against each other throughout, and this is the necessary resolution to that contrived conflict. I’ll agree that with the story constructed as it was within TLJ, this needed to happen; I will not agree that the story should have been constructed this way to begin with or even that the events of TFA called for it.

Plot

The Force Awakens left us with open plot threads that The Last Jedi needed to continue. Namely, the mystery behind Rey’s parents, Rey’s role in this conflict, and the falling out between Kylo and Luke that resulted into the present state of the galaxy, with Kylo being at the helm of a fascist organization and Luke having disappeared. Essentially, we are left with: the Skywalker family is in shambles, now how did this happen?

The mystery of Rey’s parents is essentially built on two main pillars: that she is no one yearning for her lost family and that it is specifically the Skywalker heirloom lightsaber that awakens the Force within her. This lightsaber should have been demolished in the core of Bespin, but it is brought back, and that revival is significant. There is nothing inherently special about this lightsaber, other than its belonging to the Skywalkers, and when it calls to Rey, that imbues it with a particular story-specific meaning. This meaning is further enhanced because it marks a Change in Rey: she demonstrates no obvious Force-usage before contact with this particular object. Why would an object constructed by Anakin Skywalker bear any meaning to a stranger? It wouldn’t, and it shouldn’t. If Rey was always intended to be “no one,” then the emphasis on this object triggering her Force powers is at best sloppy storytelling, at worst irresponsibly misleading. (See: plot twist criticism above.)

There is a third, perhaps debatable pillar, regarding Rey’s parentage, which is the reminder that Kathleen Kennedy has stated that the story is about the Skywalker family. Let’s be clear: the Skywalker family story is decently resolved by the end of Return of the Jedi. Luke triumphs over his temptation to fall to the dark side, Vader is redeemed, the galaxy is saved.* The sequel trilogy never needed to be about the Skywalker family; in fact, Luke’s inclusion in TFA actually complicated the writing of it. The TFA writers just couldn’t figure out how to prevent him from overpowering all other characters.

Let’s remember that Luke Skywalker needed to be removed from the story, that this plays a part in the plot construction of the sequel trilogy, and that his exile on Ach-to was a completely arbitrary development borne out of convenience rather than sincere story telling.

Still Kennedy decided and declared that the story was about the Skywalker family, and so that promise ought to be delivered.

Arguably, Kylo Ren is the generational continuation of the Skywalker line, but going from two Skywalkers to one seems rather feeble and undermines the premise that this story is about the Skywalkers.

The pomp and circumstance surrounding Rey’s lineage is continued in TLJ, with Kylo talking to her about it and the bizarre, off-tone mirror scene. All this build up leads to the revelation that Rey’s parents are equally nobodies, mere junk traders. Some will argue there were hints to this all along, but there were as many hints to this if not more (I’d say more) as there were implications of relation to the Skywalker; what this means is that both TFA and TLJ are more focused on being obtusely clever with their wall-of-mirror Red Herrings than devising a well-constructed attempt at foreshadowing.

Essentially at conflict here is whether Rey as “no one” or Rey as “Skywalker” makes for a better story. But that’s not what matters and that’s not why the “no one” revelation disappoints so many. Either story can carry compelling meaning, and the sequel trilogy could have been either story. But both stories were not equally telegraphed, and both stories cannot support the declaration that this is a story about the Skywalkers.

What is a story about the Skywalkers that focuses on their demolition? Luke, dead. Kylo, lost to the darkness. Who knows what Leia’s fate will be with Carrie’s passing? This is, inevitably, a story about their fall, their tragedy, but where is the emotional impact of this when the Skywalkers have so briefly been a family?

This is not the death of a long-standing lineage. This is a cynical take on a family torn apart just as they were beginning when Anakin chose the dark side, a family that found each other after two decades nonetheless — found family in each other before they even knew of blood relation, a family that finally gets to experience the hope of reconstruction and reunification with the end of the war and the birth of Ben.

This is a family that disintegrates with contrived conflict that puts character development either on pause (Leia and Han) or puts character development through a convoluted ringer that unfairly occurs entirely off-screen (Luke) between the OT and the ST. There is no future for the Skywalkers with Kylo Ren, and that much is made clear by Kylo’s recapitulation of Vader’s refrain: Together we can rule the galaxy. (How disappointing.) We cannot forget Kylo’s role in Snoke’s fascist regime, we cannot forget the deaths at his hands. Rey gave him the chance for redemption, and he chose darkness. There is no future for Kylo Ren. There is no future for the Skywalkers.

There would be a future, if Rey was a Skywalker.

But Rey is not a Skywalker, and Rey is the protagonist.** Rey is the not-Skywalker protagonist pitted against Kylo Ren and/or assigned the task to redeem Kylo Ren. Rey is, ultimately, the destruction of the Skywalker family.

That is what it means for Rey to be “no one.” That is the role she plays in this story that is proclaimed to be about the Skywalker family.

Unless, of course, Kathleen Kennedy is full of nonsense, and this sequel trilogy was never about the Skywalker family to begin with. But that is not what TFA sets up, and that is not what she said, and as a reminder, we never had to set that up in the first place. We could have always had a story about no one without the illusion that it was about the Skywalker family.

*The only thread unresolved would be Leia’s chance to process the news that Vader is her father, but Leia is never given a chance to process her tragedies, and sadly — wrongly — this is never a priority of the original trilogy. The sequel trilogy could have picked up this thread, but instead they let it dangle awkwardly until they could turn it into a plot device for Leia’s son to process instead. This is where Kylo’s story is problematic, but we’ll get to that later.

**Kylo Ren is not a protagonist. Protagonists do not function as Kylo Ren has functioned. Furthermore, fascists should not be protagonists. But I’ll focus more on this when I get to Kylo’s characterization.

Extra: Subplots

Really quickly I’d like to address Poe’s subplot.

It is a fad in the movie industry to idolize dissent. And dissent has a well and good place in history and politics, but sheer criticism of authority leads down a rabbithole to anarchy and any depiction of dissent must be handled with careful, nuanced care.

Undoubtedly, Finn’s dissent, rejection, and desertion of the Empire is good.

But what is the point of Poe’s dissent? His questioning of Admiral Holdo’s orders is troubling enough; but we see him question General Leia Organa’s orders, a woman of vast military leadership experience, a depth of wisdom and knowledge well beyond Poe’s years, a woman whom we know he respects and admires.

It is very troubling that he questions her judgment, even moreso because it is a young man questioning the judgment of an older woman. It is undermining of female authority and it happens twice in this film.

The other problem with the Poe and Holdo conflict is that as any person with experience watching movies, it is so clear that Poe is wrong. It is clear that Holdo has a plan. Poe is going to go to great lengths to subvert her — blatant and bizarre insubordination after just getting demoted for doing the very same thing to a woman he supposedly respects and admires.

However, the movie does not deliver adequately on the dramatic irony that Holdo, another woman of authority, does in fact know what she’s doing. Her “big move,” her “big plan,” turns out to be rather anticlimactic, for a person who is initially established — by Poe himself — to hold seriously awesome Battle Cred. I was ready and eager to be surprised by her outsmarting Poe’s dumb bumbling. Instead, Poe successfully mutinies against her! No military organization would allow direct refusal to obey orders and an attempted coupe to go unanswered and have that person be rewarded.

As for Holdo, even in her heroic move to sacrifice herself, she still takes way too long to plan her hyperspace ramming into the First Order fleet. (I credit this more to the pacing problems than anything else.) She really didn’t need to stay on that ship; no one did, it was piloting itself. There was no purpose of sacrificing an intelligent and competent war leader in order to continue flying the ship. Of course the purpose of her being there was so she could eventually protect the fleeing Resistance fleet, but no one has any way of knowing that during her solemn goodbye. Her death is just a plot device, a tear jerker for the sake of drama, and was entirely unnecessary in a movie that already boasts a high body count. So much for establishing new characters, when you’re going to kill them off so quickly. 

One More Thing

My friend literally just asked me: Does it start with the First Order finding the Rebel base and they have to flee, a Jedi apprentice training under an old master before encountering an evil cave and fleeing to face the Dark Lord by him/herself, and then a somewhat bleak ending?

Like TFA, TLJ is a reprise of the second OT movie, with elements of ROTJ mashed in (everything about the Snoke confrontation, from Kylo and Rey’s trip in the elevator to Kylo killing Snoke). That Kylo gets the opportunity to make a choice and subsequently chooses darkness after killing his master now brings us to the reprise of Anakin’s plea for Padmé to join him, his confrontation with Luke akin to Anakin and Obi-Wan’s. This entire movie felt like they recycled stock pieces of previous Star Wars films, rearranged them, and mashed them together.

[angelinarecs]

Stargate SG-1 Rec - *Updated*

More Stargate fics! Because I can never get enough of this show. You can find my full rec list here. 

Organized by pairing (or gen), and then alphabetized by title. Summaries (which have been copied from their respective stories) and descriptions are provided. Notation at the end of the description indicates if a story is completed or a WIP.

Gen

Arachne’s Chase - “Sergeant, fire in short bursts. We don’t have many rounds, try to make each shot count, okay?” Sam looked him in the eyes; she was totally calm. Uncertainty had gone now; she knew what she was fighting. She wasn’t too sure on their odds of surviving, but then that wasn’t anything new. “You can do this, Sergeant.” She watched as his face set in a determined expression. It wasn’t a face suited for ferocity but she gave him credit for trying. Drama/Adventure. Sam and Walter get stuck off world trying to hold their own against giant spiders. Walter keeps freaking out and Sam just wants to get home. A good look at both Sam and Walter’s characters as well as a decently written action scene. One-shot.

Fortitude - This was written for a LJ Sam Carter Ficathon, and deals with the first mission for Sam after her encounter with Jolinar. Adventure. Sam tries to prove her mettle in the field, both to herself and her teammates. She fails to take care of herself and follow orders in the process. A good look into what must have been a trying first mission after everything that happened with Jolinar. One-shot.

Infirmary After - Sam’s turn to concentrate on breathing. Enough time passed that Janet was wondering if she’d even answer, wondering what she’d do if there was no answer. “Embarrassed,” Sam said at last, her voice too low to carry much beyond the bed. “Ashamed. Not so much that it happened - I really did get my head around that years ago, played it over and over and over until I desensitized myself to the possibility - but that they saw. That it happened in front of… of… That they’re never going to look at me again without thinking of it.” Drama. Compelling and hard-hitting, this story doesn’t need to be graphic to touch on the horror and also high likelihood of being raped in the dangerous world of SG1. The trauma is dealt with well, both from the Sam’s perspective and from the perspective of the team unable to stop it. This story should be commended for showing that a plot dealing with trauma does not need to be graphic to be shocking. One-shot.

Keeping Score - Sam is good at staying alive. Adventure. Sam remembers her past as she fights to stay alive and make it until her time finds her. One-shot.

Talking Strategy - TAG to The First Commandment. Friendship. After the death of Jonas Hansen, the guys try to get Sam to open up about her past with him and work through the funk she fell into. Some really lovely team moments in here. One-shot.

The Blue-Jello Metaphor - They were all eating Jell-O out of the long dessert glasses. She had her usual, the blue raspberry vivid and bright. The boys all had red Jell-O. She looked beyond them to the other tables. Every single person in her line of vision had red Jell-O. She glanced up at the dessert case along the food line. There sat the other glasses of blue. She knew that if she turned the other direction and looked at the other half of the cafeteria, there’d be more red Jell-O. She was the only blue. She stared down at her cup. She was always the only blue. Surrounded by a sea of red. Humor. This story gives an endearing and humorous look at a disgruntled Sam as she tries to navigate Air Force, team, and dating life as a genius scientist. I find this to be a good character sketch and really love the team dynamic portrayed. One-shot.

The Knife’s Edge of Madness - Alternate ending to Desperate Measures: What if Sam had managed to escape on her own without the team finding her? Angst/Drama. Trapped with few memories in the aftermath of Jolinar’s death, Sam finds herself sheltered in a hospital officially as a Jane Doe. While I don’t normally like stories about amnesia because the plot lines are often absurd and the handling of amnesia is almost never medically or psychologically accurate, this story manages to have a plausible explanation for the tramautic memory loss and explores several issues in memory retrieval and concepts of identity accurately and compellingly. This examination gives the reader a fascinating view of Jane coming to accept she’s Sam and relearning the whole process with her. One-shot.

The Most Wonderful - SG1 aren’t exactly where Jack wants them to be for the holidays. Gen. Set in early seasons, so it smells like original team spirit. Angst. Jack and Teal'c are left to save Sam and Daniel after they are trapped on an alien planet. Jack just wants to get home for Christmas. One-shot.

Under Fire - “She blinked up at him. “What happened?” she murmured.

“You tell me. One minute you’re doing a favorable impression of GI Jane, the next you were face-first in the dirt,” the Colonel said.“  Adventure/Drama. Carter and most of SG1 are injured offworld and have to struggle back to the gate, holding their own against three-foot, carnivorous lizards and other Jurassic threats. Set early in SG1’s history, the story explores team dynamics as well as providing a good inner monologue for Sam as she struggles to reconcile her skills and gender in a male-dominated world. The audience follows along through Sam’s POV, learning little bits and pieces about the situation as Sam does. Very good use of In Medias Res too. Overall, just a really well conceived, written, and executed story. One-shot.

Undertow - “Samantha Carter,” she managed to spit out, along with a mouthful of blood. Her tongue probed the gash inside her cheek and she was grateful to find no loose teeth. “Captain. United States Air Force. Service number 456731479 .” She couldn’t remember the question, but she knew this was the right answer – the only answer she had.“ Adventure/Hurt/Comfort. Carter and the team are captured offworld and Sam is being questioned/tortured after captors believe her to be a Goa'uld. The story is told from Sam’s POV and is as disjointed as he drugged thoughts would have been. Very well executed overall. One-shot.

Unsuspecting Universe - Two teammates alive, seven Jaffa dead. And one Captain Samantha Carter with a junked up weapon, and a glitter in her eye that boded badly for the universe. Adventure/Drama. Sam saves the team again with a McGyvered weapon and a little bit of luck. Jack is concerned that the universe will never be the same again. A fun look at Sam’s technical and tactical skills in the field. One-shot.

With Great Power - And what would you call me, a Tau'ri woman who can use the weapons of the gods? she challenged, power coursing through her until her whole body felt like static electricity was firing along every muscle and nerve fiber. No content to warn for. Adventure. BAMF!Sam has to get the boys out of trouble. The rest of the team are left to pick up the pieces, and their teammate, when it’s all over. An interesting look at the interaction between Sam and the ribbon device. One-shot.

Sam, Daniel Friendship

Eroding Away the Mountains - “If she’s learned anything over the past five years, over all the years of her life, it’s that the universe never pauses for you to catch up. Whatever happened yesterday, tomorrow will still come, because even time loops don’t last forever, and she has responsibilities that can’t be ignored. So she’ll go back to the Mountain, her lab, and a job she loves, even when it hurts.” Friendship. An exploration of Sam and Daniel’s friendships through a series of hikes. I really enjoyed that the friendship was built organically over time and that the loss of Daniel resonates with reader almost as much as it does with Sam. Bonus team interaction as well. One-shot.

Reckless - “This was the Sam that always surprised Daniel. Not the scientist or the soldier, but another person all together. Someone defined by an edge of recklessness that she normally hid underneath her levelheaded exterior.” Adventure. The gang is captured and Carter leads a minor revolt to save them. Sam-centric, but told from Daniel’s POV. This use of POV is a really creative character exploration for both Carter and Daniel. One-shot.

West - They gave her food and water and drew her a map to the city of Reata far away, where perhaps she could find the men she sought. “Stargate. Chapa Hi?” she said, so perhaps it was a farewell. “Chapa Hi,” they said in return, and sent Thaywood-ware-thees on her way with their best wishes. Adventure. Seperated from her team, Carter is stranded offworld where she doesn’t speak the language. She travels from town to town, continually getting sent further west, in search of her team and the Stargate. One-shot. Story is deleted! 

Sam, Teal'c Friendship

A Star At Dawn - While rescuing natives from a threatening volcano, SG-1 is caught in an avalanche. Angst/Drama. Teal'c is buried and Sam is injured. It’ll take both of them working together to live through the night. A welcome look at the friendship and bond between Sam and Teal'c, especially in the wake of losing Daniel and O'neill. One-shot.

The Working Hour - “I suppose you think I’m pretty weak.”

Teal’c looked up and realized she been watching him watching her. He shook his head. “No. I do not think you are weak. You have a warrior’s heart and a quick brain. You fought well, and you prevailed. That is not weak.” Adventure. Set early Season 1, Carter and Teal'c are stranded offworld and injured. Cue Carter being badass and Teal'c trying to reconcile his past as Apophis’ First Prime and his new role on the team and coming to trust a woman. I really enjoyed the writing style and the interaction between Sam and Teal'c. One-shot.

Sam/Janet (yay for underappreciated ships!)

Ten-Thousand Suns - Sam is trapped in the rubble after an earthquake collapses a building on an alien world. Hurt/Comfort. Janet and a team of specialists try to keep Sam alive long enough to free her from the rubble. For her part, Sam is just trying to keep it together as she fights for her life and fights for the realization of those that she loves. Featuring underappreciated ships that actually make a lot of cannon sense and ascended!Daniel. One-shot.

Jack/Sam

Camelot Episode Tag - What was Sam thinking at the end of Camelot? And what happened next? Sci-fi/Angst. The story follows Sam directly after the Ori arrive through the supergate and her recovery from free-floating in space. Bonus Married!jack/sam. One-shot.

Going Under - Set in Season 3. SG1 visit an alient planet, but their attempts at a meet and greet go wrong. Captured, seperated from the Colonel and under dire threat, they must find Jack and make their escape. Team fic, with S/J elements, but strictly within canon. Adventure. A planet-of-the-week story featuring BAMF!Sam, awesome team dynamics, and some hinted Jack/Sam. This story handled the adventurous and perilous atmosphere along with the friendship and working relationship of the team. Complete.

Patience - Patience may be a virtue, but it can also get you killed. Hurt/Comfort/Drama. Things have been tense between Jack and Carter lately and Jack suggests some time off for the overworked scientist. When Carter doesn’t show up to work the next day, Jack figures she took him up on his offer. Little does the team know that Sam is trapped in her car just outside Cheyenne Mountain. A story with Sam in peril and Sam getting herself out of peril. Also hints of Jack/Sam. One-shot.

Remember Days of Gladness When Sorrow is at Hand - “For the thousandth time that week, Sam felt her eyes prick with tears. You wouldn’t know it by looking at them, but all three of her guys could be ridiculously sweet sometimes.” S8 post-Threads fic. Canon S/J with a side of teamy goodness. Friendship/Romance. Carter is still grieving over the loss of her father and still coming down from defeating the replicators. Her team surprises early one morning with helping hands to give her the dream home she always wanted. Jack and Sam also have some nice, if awkward, conversations. One-shot.

Three Wishes - Mistaken for a genie, bashed on the head and captured along with Sam, Jack wakes up with wishes in mind… Friendship/Adventure. Poor Jack is just trying to get through their latest missions, and Sam is just trying to get both of them home. Fun Jack/Sam friendship and/or pre-relationship. One-shot.

Tumbling Down - “Hours later, Sam is leaning against the window, letting the cool glass leach the heat from her face, with Cam’s hand resting lightly on her left thigh. Across the booth Daniel is slumped back, third cup of coffee in his hand and Vala draped half-asleep against him… Atlantis is wonderful and it’s the command step her career needs, but sometimes she misses her team so much it hurts. She doesn’t known if it’s better or worse to know they’re still exploring the universe together without her.” Friendship/Romance. An episode!tag for SGA Trio. Sam returns Earth to heal after breaking her leg in the Pegasus Galaxy, her team and Jack take care of their injured teammate. Sam revisits some memories of her time on SG-1 and muses on the life - and relationships - she built and left behind. One-shot.

[theloniuswomb-blog]

Spiderman: Homecoming Can Suck My Fucking Dick.

Holy Shit. Where do I even start with this film? I wanted to like it a lot. I was intrigued by the casting of Tom Holland as Spider Man. He came off well in the Marvel Civil War movie, I remember thinking to myself; “Hey! His part was funny! Just the right amount of awkward, slash, comical that I instantly recognize as Spider Man. Awesome!” Now, I usually have doubts about any superhero adaption since the hit to miss ratio is all over the place, but this I thought could work quite nicely.  I saw the trailer, and like the little whore that I am, it got me wet. Wet hot with sexual anticipation. The CGI looked impressive. The action sequences looked crisp and innovative, the tone of the shots were dark and brooding. I expected drama, emotion and a plot-line that, although may not be the most original, could perhaps come through with some good acting and a tight script; with some inspired direction thrown in for good measure. This was the package I was creating for myself in my brain. My golden goose's egg.  And, much like Verruca Salt, I made a big song and dance about it to everyone, throwing glitter and sheets of colored plastic all over the room. But also like Verruca Salt, I also got hit with the trap door. A trap door that golden eggs get shat down, and so do we, right along with em; to burn for all eternity while Gene Wilder laughs at our scorched bodies.  First off, let's start with the tone of the movie. It doesn't have one. It has no idea what kind of movie it wants to be. It's got this light hearted vibe when Spidey is around that feels completely alien to the murky goings on of the Vulture. You get scenes where Peter Parker is walking through the school, drooling over hot girls in the most forced and gormless way. (SPOILER: Most of the film is of Tom Holland looking gormless at everyone around him.) Juxtaposed with Michael Keaton straight up killing people in the most nonchalant way possible. It's kind of infuriating, it was like there were two movies going on in tandem and neither of them had any particular relevance to the other. I must say, Michael Keaton gave a fairly decent performance, but he could have been used so much better. I saw Birdman recently (something I couldn't ignore as a massive, quite probably intended irony of Keaton's career) and I was impressed. I had problems with that film too (But I'll leave that for another review) but overall the acting was really fucking solid. Like I say, I was impressed. But obviously, good acting doesn't matter anymore for films like this. I honestly thought the newer incarnations of Batman would have taught a lesson to the makers of these kinds of movies. But obviously not.  Let's get to Peter. Peter is the most insufferable character ever. He's meant to be very smart, yet doesn't use his brain once. Not only does he not use his brain to problem solve, but he doesn't use it for introspection at all. The amount of times he puts other people's lives at risk in this movie is astounding. If this feature of the plot was used as a tool to move Peter's character forward as he matures into a new and exciting world, I can forgive this whole problem. In fact, that's kind of what I wanted to see. Progression. But it never comes. Spider Man sees bad guys robbing the bank. He attacks, not even stopping when he realizes they have incredibly powerful weapons. He carries on and ends up blowing up a deli over the street of a man that earlier in the movie is established, that he knows. Not once does he show any remorse for this horrible incident. He ruined a man's career, livelihood, and potentially could have killed him if he happened to live above the shop.

In another instance, Parker sees bad guys driving; he attacks them on the highway where loads of other people could die from all the high tech weapons going off at high speeds. He knew the types of weapons they had but did it anyway. He could have followed them to their destination, found out where the base was, who was involved in the organization and work out a plan. He could even find out the buyers if he cased them for a few weeks. But this thought never crosses Peters mind. It's just attack all problems in the face until they die. I mean fuck, this is a whiz kid of physics and science, some of the most logical shit ever. Yet he can't even think up a simple fucking plan to take on his enemies? Honestly, it's so hard to relate to Peter in this movie. You'd have to be some kind of autistic sociopath in order to find him tolerable. After a while Tony Stark comes along. Fuck me, Robert Downey Jr. couldn't give one flying fuck about this movie. And it showed like hell. His whole character in the film was just him playing himself not caring in various tropical places. I honestly believe Tony Stark represented how little of a fuck the writers and director cared about this film. He was a direct mouthpiece for the writers of the movie to say “fuck you” to the audience. Honestly, every time Parker fucked up, Tony would say “Oi, Parker, stop fuckin around!” but never explains why. He never says “Hey, you could have killed people back there! Are you insane?” instead he half asses his reasons and when Parker questions him on it he just says “because I said so.” Like fuck, you'd think after the first time Spidey fucks up, that's the time to sit down and talk. Jesus Christ should you even wait for a first-time-fuck-up in this scenario? Tony Stark, one of the smartest men alive, waits for Spidey to fuck up three times, THREE TIMES, with the third seeing spider man nearly sinking a whole ship of people due to his negligence. Hundreds would have died. It's incredible.

So, Iron Man finally gives some punishment after this. He takes away Parkers new shiny Stark Spidey Suit, to which Parker says “I'm nothing without that suit!” to which Stark replies; “if you're nothing without this suit, you don't deserve it.” or something to that effect. Instead of Peter having a moment of clarity and saying “fuck, people nearly died, I nearly died. Maybe I need to switch up my game and show Iron Man I'm more mature than this. Show I can use some strategy and grow into this role I'm destined to have and finally use my genius brain to devise a plan.” Nope. That's wishful thinking partner and you can get shot around here for that kinda talk.  Instead what we get is Parker learning nothing, and him creating some kind of device that allows him to go out and fuck up even faster and directly than before. They use some kind of tracker map to find the Vulture, who is breaking into an airplane full of Stark weapons. An Iron Suit included. Now, what the actual fuck? I don't know if the Vulture knows this, but Iron Man can remotely control his suits. If one were stolen, you can bet your bottom dollar he'd activate it and cane your operation into next week. But the Vulture MUST have known that, since he remotely controlled his own mechanical wings to try and kill Parker earlier in the movie. So what in the actual fuck is this man doing? He's inviting Iron Man into his lair. Willingly. It's the most stupid thing ever. It also gives so little motivation for Parker to do anything about the situation. Once he realizes it's Stark tech, he should have left. Because Parker also knows Iron Man remotely controls his suits, there's a whole scene that points this out near the beginning of the film for fuck's sake. The Vulture would have been a goner immediately upon the knowledge of the hijacking. It's easily the most retarded part of the film.   So Spidey decides to go all-in despite knowing Iron Man could easily kill this guy remotely and nearly ends up causing this plane to crash all over the city, no doubt killing thousands of people. In fact, an engine falls out while they're fighting on the plane's wings. Parker shows no regard for that at all. No remorse for the people that no doubt were killed by the falling debris. Fortunately, Spidey manages to use his webs to bend the out-of-control plane wing and steer them to safety. (Well, he crashes the plane into a sandbank.) He takes down the Vulture and leaves him tangled at the scene old school Spidey style, with a note to boot. Wow. How amazing. And he did it all without his shiny suit! He overcame so many obstacles and shortcomings, we really went on a journey there with old Petey boy there. Oh wait, that was the film I was daydreaming about while I was being shat on by this movie. Upon Stark learning of this situation, he instantly has Spider Man brought to the new headquarters of the Avengers, where he was about to announce Spider Man as a new, key member, along with an even better shiny suit. Like, what? Seriously? This kid needs a dressing down, not a new three piece. But it doesn't come. All we get is Parker declining the offer, you get a mild sense that he realizes that he's in over his head, and maybe this is all a bit much for him. But it's not really expressed very well. It all feels so odd and disjointed. I mean here we have Iron Man, the guy who cared about people dying from collateral damage in Civil War; who hunted down the Winter Soldier because he was a danger to the public, (who also for some reason killed Tony's parents,) caused a rift with the current most powerful heroes and his teammates, as he also wanted them to register their identities to an official data base to help reign them in and hold them accountable. Yet for some reason Tony couldn't give the time of day to say “Hey kid, tone it down you're getting crazy out there.”  I'll stop ragging on the film soon, but before I do, I want to mention the love interest. This was one of the most wooden romances I've ever seen. No chemistry. She was called Lizzy. It turns out Mary Jane is the other sarcastic girl who makes the closest things to jokes in the movie. Which I liked, but they didn't do nearly enough with. Again, there was an opportunity for him to grow with this character, have his attention turned to MJ, have him realize this Lizzy girl was a bit vacuous and boring, while this other girl was interesting and fun. But again it didn't happen. Instead, Lizzy moves away because of plot reasons that I won't give away, and MJ is merely hinted at as the new romance for the next film. Which is fucking boring. Honestly, it's so dull. I hated all the romance scenes. I wanted to like them, I mean shit, the girl was so hot. They even get an ass shot of her in her bikini. I was like “wow these are meant to be 15-year-old kids, what are they thinking? Isn’t this inappropriate for a kids movie?” (They are not 15-year-old kids, just to clarify. But for the plot, they were). They could have used this screen time to have Peter reflecting on his Uncle Ben, or bonding with his Aunty. Who, in my opinion, should have been told about the Spider Man thing. I think her knowing earlier in the film would have been a good dynamic to use. He should have told her right away after his first fuck up. I know it might deviate from traditional Spider Man lore, but as a film, it would've been a much more interesting watch. Aunt May is such a central figure to the Spider Man universe, as is the Uncle Ben storyline, but neither are given any sort of focus. Overall this film is garbage. In true Warski style, it was Garbage. Full on trash. I hated Guardians of the Galaxy less, and that's saying something. That is really saying something. Because that movie was awful. For Spider Man I have to say: the overall plot was good, but there were so many missed opportunities that it became more like a midlife crisis by the end. The choices to make for this story seemed so obvious, it was almost like they were purposefully not taking the logical steps in the narrative in order to make this movie as painful as possible. (Because the razor wire they'd jammed way up in your ass, to the tune of £13.50 for 3D, just wasn't quite painful enough.) Fuck this movie, nobody should see it, I hope it fucking bombs in the box office. Which it won't because, like the little whores that we are, we're all just gonna fan-boy for Spidey like we always do. I honestly regret spending money on this. Don't even buy the DVD, it's not worth it.

Before I go I need to mention something else; humor. Peter was not funny. He had moments of fun, sure. But he was not funny. Peter Parker is witty. He is known for wit, not fun. Again, this could have been used as a plot device to show his coping mechanism for dealing with such raw shit all the time. He exudes wit and comedy in the face of danger, then behind closed doors doubts himself. Like fuck, is a 15-16 year old really meant to be doing this shit? Getting involved in weapon trafficking and the criminal world after his Uncle Ben being shot and killed? As an aside, thank god they didn't make us re-live Uncle Ben's death. I was glad they kept that as a past event that we didn't need to see. One of the few good touches of the film. You could say it was like wiping just a bit of shit off your arse with your finger. There's not quite as much shit there anymore, but now it's on your finger, so. There you go.  So, what's my ultra biased and not subjective at all, star rating for this film? 1.5 out of 5. Some action was good, the 3D sucked, the acting sucked, the writing sucked, the CGI was good, Michael Keaton was good, everyone else didn't give a shit and ultimately it showed. Don't see this film. Boycott it harder than Isreal.

[recentanimenews]

Hit the Streets of Kamurocho Again as Yakuza 3 Returns in HD!

  It should come as no surprise that when I heard that Yakuza 3, 4, and 5 were getting HD treatments, I was thrilled; after all, Yakuza is one of my favorite game series, and as a die-hard Majima fangirl I could hardly contain my excitement! Then, Sega announced that not only would the rest of the games be released gradually, but Yakuza 3 Remaster was already unlocked for us all to play and enjoy on the PlayStation Store. The fine folks at Sega sent a review copy our way, so it seemed like fate was on my side: it was finally time to take a look at Yakuza 3 in HD. 

But how does the game hold up? Since its release in 2009, a lot has changed in the video game world, and even more has changed in the Yakuza series, with Yakuza 4, Dead Souls, 5, 6, Kiwami 1, Kiwami 2, Yakuza 0, and Judgment all released since then. So where does Yakuza 3 stand in the series now that the series has been reborn? Does the weight of newer iterations and remakes like Kiwami help or hurt the the 3rd game in the original series? Well… the answer is a bit complicated. 

Yakuza 3 picks up right where 2 leaves off, with Kazuma Kiryu and Haruka visiting the graves of their loved ones, reflecting on things that have transpired so far. Kiryu has decided to take over the Sunflower Orphanage in Okinawa, taking Haruka with him, as a way to get away from all of the crazy antics and potential dangers that may still be searching for him in Kamurocho. After convincing best boy Majima to rejoin the Tojo Clan to watch over Daigo Dojima, now head of the gang, Kiryu takes his leave and starts his new life in Okinawa.

Sadly, barely 6 months pass before trouble rears its head once again, and Kiryu finds himself embroiled in another twisting plot of danger, intrigue, double crosses, and shocking deaths. Yakuza 3 follows Kiryu as he moves between two locations: Okinawa, where the orphanage is located, and the familiar streets of Kamurocho, finding himself entangled in various sub stories, diversions, and of course the dramatic action of the main story missions. Without going into too many spoilers, the story spirals quickly in the way Yakuza stories usually do, with twists, turns, and unexpected events throughout the entire story.

People familiar with Yakuza will find most of the same types of activities and game systems that they’re accustomed to, but for newer players, Yakuza 3 is a third person action adventure game that pits in the role of Kazuma Kiryu. You’ll level up your fighting abilities, unlock sub story paths and meet various colorful characters, play various mini games, arcade game emulations, and many more in your time in Okinawa and Kamurocho. Yakuza games have always billed themselves as something of a mixture between a simulator and an action RPG, with you guiding Kiryu to do whatever activities you feel like in a recreation of Japanese locations; you’ll even see popular, real life businesses and landmarks in the backgrounds, and returning players will get a kick out of seeing how Kamurocho is rendered this time around. 

The new location, Okinawa, gives players a chance to explore a somewhat brighter and more tropical location, but you’ll still find various activities to participate in (and fighting action) as you explore your surroundings. Many of the Okinawa activities revolve around Sunshine Orphanage, such as doing missions for the children, playing with the adopted dog, and more, giving a bit of a change to the seedier, more urban appeal of Kamurocho. In what would become a series staple, this ability to move between locations helps keep the “sameness” of Kamurocho at bay; while the map and general area of Kamurocho doesn’t change, some of the activities do, but it is easy to see how giving players new places to explore helps expand the enjoyment of the games. Even the newest game in the series, Judgment, has the exact same map that Yakuza 3 has, as the city of Kamurocho doesn’t change very much between titles!

However, it does need to be said that Yakuza 3 might be one of the weaker games in the series narratively. Yakuza 1 and 2 were written by author Hase Seishu, with 3 being the first game in the series written by Masaoyshi Yokoyama, who would go on to write the scripts for all future Yakuza games, and rewriting Seishu’s scripts for Kiwami 1 and 2. This leads to some noticeable differences in tone for long time Yakuza fans, but even newer players coming into the series will notice some differences. While the Yakuza 3 Remaster has a newly redone script and localization, some of the core parts of the story are still a bit weaker compared to other iterations of the series, and it certainly feels like a bit of an oddball sequel in some ways. 

The orphanage bits, while heartwarming, take up an enormous amount of time in the game, and there is some real dissonance between Kiryu, the former yakuza, and Kiryu, the orphanage owner. The game seems to denote this even harder by the very different locations of Okinawa and Kamurocho, with strict limits on the types of activities you can do in one location versus the other. If anything, Yakuza 3 occasionally just feels narratively slower than the rest of the games, mainly due to this disconnect between the two storylines; when they finally do merge, things do so in shocking fashion. But that disconnect still remains, as sub stories will have you trekking between the locations to do specific events in specific places, and some of them require particular timing in the game, or you’ll potentially miss out on them, meaning you’ll need to use Premium Adventure Mode after beating the game’s story to go back and pick up sub stories you may not have completed the first time.

  While that may sound negative initially, it still goes without saying that the story of Yakuza games are some of the best crime dramas available in video game format, and even though Yakuza 3’s story is occasionally a little wonky or disjointed, you’re still going to get a solid drama to enjoy. The returning characters help continue that level of connection between titles in the series, and once you’ve started investing in the various people who call Kamurocho home, it makes seeing them in each new iteration all the more fun to see how they’ve changed since the last time. 

This doesn’t just apply to Majima and the other yakuza members; characters like detective Date, Kazuki and Yuya from Stardust, and other locations all make their usual appearances, and familiarity with the cast really starts to breed a level of connection between player and game that’s hard to find in other series. When you meet up with Date for the first time in Yakuza 3, it feels like meeting up with an old friend, and in some ways the city of Kamurocho is similarly your friend, welcoming you back with the familiarity you expect, while wanting to tell you all the new things that have happened since the last time you visited them.  

In this regard, a lot has changed in the Yakuza 3 Remaster from the original. The graphical update alone makes this a fantastic investment for Yakuza fans, and newcomers to the series curious to try out the titles between the Kiwami games and Yakuza 6 will find the facelift much appreciated. While it does still show its age at times, the character models, which already looked amazing, generally look much smoother, and textures overall have really been improved (the seat cushion in Daigo’s limo was so textured it almost looked real!). Even when the game dips a bit in the graphics department (smaller characters, like children, and one off NPCs, or tree textures), it still looks good, and the HD aspect really shines through. 

The game loads far faster than it ever did before as well, which helps bring some of the slowdown that would come from ending up in too many battles on the streets; not only did the fights take time, but each fight would have to load in a title card and have some sort of ending flourish. In the Yakuza 3 Remaster, fights now take far less time to start and finish, helping to make the game flow better. Load times between areas and such are also reduced, making the game feel a lot more modern and faster by today’s standards. Controls, too, are better, with fights seeming much more fluid and responsive than they were in the PS3 edition of the game; I remember my frustrations with the battle system and throwing enemies, finding that grabbing them would sometimes be inconsistent, but in the Remaster version, the controls feel much more responsive to what I want to happen. While it doesn’t quite meet the level of complexity that Yakuza 0 or Kiwami introduced to the series, these slight changes mean that the Yakuza 3 Remaster feels much more in line with newer versions of the game than older.

The other big changes to the Remaster version are a redone script, and the addition and change to some sub story and additional content. The script changes may not be as easy to notice for newer players, but those who played the 2009 version of Yakuza 3 may notice that characters talk and act a bit more naturally in this new version, with the dialogue feeling snappier and more alive to match modern tastes. Characters retain their dialogue traits, and the localization of terms and attitude feels more in line with what modern players expect from the series. Also, the speed in which the text appears on the screen has changed to match the same speed as recent Yakuza releases, making those “...” moments more bearable.

The biggest change, though, is the reintroduction of many of the sub stories and activities that were removed from the initial version of Yakuza 3 in the West. Originally, the game lacked Mahjong, Shogi, and most importantly to newer fans, the Hostess bar minigames, as well as various amounts of missions that could be taken throughout the game. In some estimates, the game had likely 10% of its content removed for the PS3 release, and adding those back in really feels like a treat to people who played the original but never got to see this content. Personally, I’m thrilled to have the Hostess club game back, as those minigames were some of my favorite parts of the previous Yakuza titles, mixing in a management minigame with a dating sim style game. As a bonus, the Yakuza 3 Remaster adds in 2 new hostesses, meaning that we actually get more content than before, which felt like a nice reward! 

Other changes include altering the unfortunate Michiru sub story, which felt outdated and cruel even when the game came out in 2009; this was a change series producer Toshihiro Nagoshi had wanted to make when the Remaster was first planned, and frankly it is a welcome update to the game and tone of the series overall. Having played Yakuza 3 in its original incarnation, I can say that I don’t miss the Michiru storyline, and its removal is a net positive for the series for sure.

There is also so much to do now in the Yakuza 3 Remaster that you’ll be able to really take your time in completing all of the possible sub stories and activities the game has to offer, and the game never really closes off anything to you. If you do happen to miss a sub story, you can always revisit it once the game is completed, and the Premium Adventure Mode that you unlock after beating the game lets you see all the sights and sounds of Kamurocho and Okinawa without needing to worry about pesky things like the fate of your orphanage or the life of the Tojo clan leader!

So where does that leave those curious to know whether the Yakuza 3 Remaster is worth their time and money? Well, if you’re a Yakuza fan, you probably owe it to yourself to play through the remastered versions of 3, 4, and 5, and 3 really does set a good standard of what to expect out of the remaining two Remastered editions. While this isn’t a Kiwami style remake of the game from the ground up, it is a welcome change to the older game that helps it feel more in line with the cinematic feel and quality of the rest of the series. 

As a jumping on point, I don’t really suggest Yakuza 3 Remaster; instead, if you’re curious to try out the Yakuza games, my suggestion is to pick up Yakuza 0 and start from there. If you’ve already played Yakuza 0, Kiwami 1 and 2, and want to continue the story of Kazuma Kiryu, then you absolutely need to grab Yakuza 3 Remaster as soon as possible. While the story is a bit weaker than the previous games (and some of the later games), it's still an amazing Yakuza game, and a necessary chapter in the development of Kiryu and Haruka as they move towards future installments in the series. Now the only real choice you’ll have left to make is whether you’ll get the digital edition, or wait for the physical edition of 3, 4, and 5 to drop next year! Or, be like me and just get both! Either way, get back on the streets of Kamurocho and show them what the legend of the Dragon of Dojima is all about!

REVIEW ROUNDUP

+ Upgraded graphics and controls make this installment feel more up to snuff with newer titles.

+ Load times have been greatly reduced and help make the game flow far better than before.

+ All of the cut content, and even more new content, have been added, making this the definitive version of Yakuza 3.

+ The Michiru storyline being removed helps the game and shows the care RGG studio have for their audience. 

- Yakuza 3’s story is a bit weaker than 0, Kiwami 1, and Kiwami 2, and certainly feels a bit like a middle chapter to the overall series. 

  Are you excited to get back out onto the streets of Kamurocho as I am? Who is best Yakuza boy and why is it Majima? Let us know what you think of the game in the comments! 

  ----

Nicole is a features writer and editor for Crunchyroll. Known for punching dudes in Yakuza games on her Twitch channel while professing her love for Majima. She also has a blog, Figuratively Speaking. Follow her on Twitter: @ellyberries

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[thehallofgame]

Review: Valkyria Chronicles

Release: 2008

My Rating: 8.5/10

              In the same way a fresh coat of paint can be enough to sell a house a fresh take on the tactical RPG genre was enough to sell this game to me. Valkyria Chronicles doesn’t do anything revolutionary with their gameplay or their story, but their world war 2 inspired setting is enough to make this game feel fresh.

              On a continent that looks very similar to, but isn’t quite, Europe a war between two major military powers breaks out. The empire to the east is more or less an analog of Russia and Germany as one super-country, while their opponent to the west is called the Federation and loosely resembles the allied nations. Between these two countries lies Galia, a formerly neutral and independent nation that is invaded by the Empire at the beginning of the war. The game follows a militia unit with one prototype tank and a whole lotta spunk to their name. Through skill, luck, and stubborn determination the unit manages to find themselves meeting all the enemy elite and fighting the most pivotal battles of the war.

              World War 2 can be a pretty touchy subject, and for the most part Valkyria Chronicles tiptoes around heavier issues for a lighter, slice-of-life-anime tone. Sometimes it works, sometimes it feels a bit forced and unnatural. This is exemplified by a group of people called the Darcsen, who are inspired by the treatment of Jewish people during the second world war. Sometimes the game feels like it’s on the precipice of a serious commentary on racism, but it always pulls back at the last moment. The game often does this, sets up a strong story thread and doesn’t quite get all the way to the payoff. That said, many of the characters are very endearing and are written with an appealing simplicity and honesty.

              The way that the narrative is structured has a lot to do with the often jerky nature of story continuity and tone in Valkyria Chronicles. The chapter menu is presented in the form of a book, with the player selecting what scene to view or battle to participate in at will. New events in the core story are unlocked in chronological order but as the player can also return to the capital city to manage resources as well as unlock and/or view bonus chapters whenever they like, it’s easy for the pacing to be blown to tiny smithereens. On one notable occasion, the militia has been ordered to infiltrate and liberate an enemy concentration camp whilst a beach vacation side-story becomes available at the same time. It feels a little odd and disjointed, though this problem abates about halfway through the main story.

              The game is also very-text heavy and focuses a lot on the interpersonal relationships of the young militia members rather than the actual plot of the game or progress of the war. This keeps the tone light, but the sheer amount of dialogue can be overwhelming when there are about four dialogue cutscenes for every combat encounter.

              Combat itself is fun, and surprisingly solid despite a myriad of minor issues. The player controls a militia unit centered around a tank called the Edelweiss. Squad size varies wildly with mission, but is usually 8 to 10 units. Tanks are unique units piloted by tank commanders. There are also five classes of infantry at the player’s disposal. The scout, which is what the tank commanders are classed as on the rare occasions they must leave their tank, is a fragile unit with a lot of mobility. Shock Troopers are much slower than scouts but can deal a lot of damage and, more importantly, take a goodly amount of damage before falling. The final front-line unit is anti-tank lancers, who are very slow but carry a lance-mounted anti-tank shell that is the only thing, other than another tank, which does significant damage to enemy tanks.

              There are also two types of support unit. The sniper is extremely slow and extremely deadly, able to take out any exposed enemy foot soldier with a shot to the head. The final class, the engineer, is a bit more of a puzzle. The class is introduced as an all-around useful unit capable of carrying ammunition out to troops, repairing broken cover, acting as a medic, removing mines, and repairing damage done to friendly tanks. This is misleading, however, as the Engineers are incredibly fragile and it’s better to never let them get hit at all. Their use for anything besides following behind the tanks and keeping their HP up is limited, though their use as a minesweeper is occasionally essential.

              Some battles will stipulate that certain party members must be present for story reasons, but usually, the squad composition for each mission is left up to the player. At first, this sounds like a golden opportunity to tailor the squad to the player’s preferred strategy or play style, but the game quickly undermines this. A few, story-important characters have command points attached to them. Command points are the currency the player spends to take control of a character or give stat buffing ‘orders’ each turn. So, naturally, the player will almost always want to put characters in their party that give them more Command Points. Each character also has a list of soldiers they prefer to fight with. Fighting beside preferred party members often confers buffs or activates special soldier-abilities. The final thing to consider is that each of the up to twenty recruitable squad members have a list of preferences for where and how they fight that will confer situational buffs or debuffs. By the time the player has judged how best to juggle these values and the specific needs of the mission there usually isn’t any space left to bring discretionary characters.

              This isn’t as punishing as it could be, however, because a series of ‘bases’ on every map allow the player to swap out units or replace those that have fallen in battle. This keeps the party evolving and responsive to scenarios and also prevents the most difficult maps in the game from feeling petty or impossible. Retreating or calling in a new unit costs a command point each but it’s an investment well worth it. Likewise, though walking into ambushes or cross-fires can often feel unfairly deadly, a fallen character isn’t instantly dead or even KO’d for the rest of the mission. If a friendly team member can reach their fallen ally within three turns the team’s medic will evacuate the ally and their slot will open up for replacement. That slot can be filled the next turn by selecting a new troop from a friendly camp, and the same evacuated party member can be re-summoned the turn after that. However, falling in battle does have some consequences. If a Command Point bearing Leader Unit falls their command points goes with them, even if they’re latter re-summoned. Additionally, if the three turns winds down without rescue or an enemy soldier reaches the KO’d trooper first, the unit will die permanently. Or, in the case of the Leader Units, retreat for the rest of the battle even though they’ll be available for the next chapter.

              The mechanics of gameplay eschew the traditional grid-style of tactical RPGs and instead give troops Action Points to move around the map with. This essentially means that each character can move a certain maximum distance each turn and then choose to fire a weapon, heal some health or simply wait. The same character can be selected multiple times each turn, though they will have significantly less AP each time. This, combined with the use of cover mechanics and enemies who fire continuously on a controlled character in their line of sight, lends a sense of urgency and bouncing in and out of cover that isn’t typical of tactical RPGs.

              Explosive weapons and sniper rifles have a limited number of uses per turn. The player can deplete these fully in one turn if they wish but will only recover one bullet/shell per turn unless an engineer brings them more by being physically run to the other trooper’s position. This only works one way. A troop cannot approach an engineer to receive more ammo. Similarly, a player can end a turn with leftover command points which will then be added to the pool for the next turn. The enemy works on this system as well, which is hefty incentive to knock the enemy down before they can build up a pile of points.

Not that the player needs extra incentive to end the missions quickly, as the ‘grade’ assigned at the end of the mission is mostly given based on the number of turns the player required to complete the objective. This can be frustrating to veteran players who’re used to strategically eliminating all the enemies on a map. Rather, in Valkyria Chronicles, all that needs done is for the core objective to be completed. If a player can do this in one turn without killing a single enemy or very few turns after losing nearly everyone in their squad it doesn’t matter, their grade will still be good. It can be counterintuitive and maddening to do this. But it needs to be done because experience and money gain are tied to mission grade.

Money and experience points are essential to keeping the unit up to par with enemies. Each class levels up as a group and requires a given allotment of experience. Upon achieving level eleven each class becomes an ‘elite’ version of that class with new weapons and dramatically improved stats. However, there is another, expensive drain on experience. This is in the form of a mysterious gentleman who offers to teach the player special orders with which to control the battlefield. These orders can be the sole reason troopers surviving lethal damage just as well as it can mean the difference between victory and defeat for a whole mission. Similarly, finances have two separate places they can go. The first is into improving weapons and armor which is a priority for the obvious reasons. The other is into the pocket of a war reporter who’s attached herself to the militia. Buying stories from her unlocks bonus chapters and missions. In addition to providing expanded story content, these bonus chapters provide experience and money in a more interesting way than replaying old maps via the skirmish system.

The setting and combat system is interesting enough on its own, but Valkyria Chronicles excels at level design. Many of the maps are inspired by famous battles of World Wars I & II and others are inspired by the lore of Valkyria Chronicles. The vistas and visual stories present on these battlefields can be stunning for their content alone. This is despite a simple, pencil-drawn anime aesthetic. Moreover, this game also manages the difficult challenge of making bosses feel punishing and yet fair within the combat system. Valkyria Chronicles walks that delicate line with confidence and the result is often exhilarating. It’s not often that a player gets to enjoy the thrill of cracking just the right strategy to defeat an opponent without also feeling like they’ve been banging their head against a wall for endless hours.

Despite a few major issues, and a slew of minor irritants, Valkyria Chronicles is a solid and quite good game. It stands out as one of very few innovative series in an elderly and often stagnant game genre.