#i was about to go on a rant about the portrayal of characters in epic but i decided to make that a seperate post | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

na102 · 10 months

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I've now watched both seasons of Wheel of Time and they're great!!! I haven't read the books and am curious- what do you like/not like about them, and would you recommend them? (Also are they gay)

Yay! I'm glad you like the show! I do recommend the books they obviously have their flaws but are worth it and while it's not direct I saw it as very gay.

The rest of this is a detailed rant going more in depth. With some (mild mild) spoilers

I really love the world building and detail it just sucks you in. The story arcs themselves are fantastic ive never felt such euphoria at climaxes than I do with this book series it's also the only one to ever make me cry same goes for the characterization. I could go on and on about what I love about this series. However I will sum it that for everything I disliked there is 10 more things I liked.

when it comes to female characters this is probably some of the best female centred fiction I have ever read pre Locked Tomb and Baru Cormorant. Just women who aren't completely men obsessed that are independent, brave, talented, heroic and just their own character. In addition many of them are ambitious.

When it comes to gayness that depends on how much you are okay with reading in between the lines. The earlier and middle books it is HEAVILY implied that many Aes Sedai are or have been at one point lesbian lovers "pillow friends". There is also some Polyamory (spelled incorrectly the one where it's people who share the same spouse but don't sleep with each other )

despite that distinction there are a LOT of women who are very *close* to each other including ones In The same polycule.

The books are very long that's both a pro and con.

One of the things I'm not a huge fan of is how the series does change genres. The 1st few books are more of coming of age and then you get court drama but the build up is worth and it's still a great read. It takes you through their whole lives. I recommend starting with the Prequel New Spring if u are going to read them it adds extra layers to the earlier parts.

The series also changes with the last few books( Robert Jordan passed away while still writing the series so Brandon Sanderson completed the books based on his notes). This is where a lot of issues come into play. With only notes he does wrap it up nicely however he does flub some characterization. The main issues center around the female characters.

Despite some of the great writing of women it is still written by a man a while back. There are some negative portrayals,stereotypes by Robert Jordan .They are also a little less free with sexual expression. There is way(way) less sex than the show but the characters are also a little younger and it fits the setting. everything else outweighs it. Believe me there are many scenes that are better and more intimate then sex ones.

It gets much worse when Sanderson takes over. A lot of the near canon lesbianism is removed and there are a lot of submissive portrayals of women in addition to just out of character behavior. However with the book wrapping up you are very much distracted by everything else going on and the ending is so well done and cathartic I didn't even really care.

But it was overall a groundbreaking work of fiction. To this day it is still my all time favorite series. I think it's the best epic fantasy series there is. There are so many different worlds and so many different stories within it. It changed my life.

Sorry about the rant hope this helps. I do 100% recommend the book series. I also recommend using your local library if possible cuz there are lot of books in the series and it can get pricy buying them.

#anon

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egg-emperor · 3 years

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People brought up some great points that I agree so much with on my recent IDW rant post. But now there are quite a few responses and I unfortunately can't cover my thoughts on all of them.

But I'm very happy that I'm not alone in my disappointment in Eggman's portrayal in IDW and how harmful it's been to his character. Because when I go on Twitter, usually all I see are people being all for Eggman being tossed aside and shit on by every other villain, along with the belief that he's a bad villain and better off becoming a good guy. It sucks that IDW itself has been further influencing their hatred and/or misconceptions of Eggman with the Mr. Tinker plot and them putting down Eggman and writing him OOC to try to make other villains appear superior.

One of the reasons I'm especially worried about with Eggman's awful treatment in IDW + a VAST majority of people on Twitter shitting on Eggman is that I fear it may no longer be just a fan opinion at some point. You know, in the way that they actually end up having an impact on official media besides IDW, since the damage has certainly already been done there. I know the fans never get a complete say in what we want in the series as they know how divided Sonic fans can be and we'd definitely have SA3 or Adventure series remakes if they always listened to the loud majority of the fandom.

But in the case, you even have IDW tossing him aside in much worse ways than the games by acting like he doesn't have anything going for him, has never been capable of being a competent and serious threat, and taking any opportunity to have other villains screw him over and shit on him. (As if those other villains have ever been as evil and destructive as the man that had the world in his hands and has come very close multiple other times. UGH) They overemphasize his flaw of sometimes overlooking things in his plans, ignore the impressive plans he's had with backups and accomplishments, and make him look like a complete joke and 'not so bad of a guy' compared to other villains, which undermines his villainy even more.

Then you have Sonic Twitter, with a huge amount of people saying that other one note one time villains in the series are so much better than Eggman, just because they prefer their designs and act like having Eggman as the final boss is the problem because he's so 'boring' compared to the monster of the week villains. Even though it's because they're being lazy by reusing the Nega Wisp armor battle attacks and sequences since Colors and literally how tf is that the character's fault? Eggman can ABSOLUTELY have epic badass final bosses if they actually started trying something different. There's no reason to blame the fact that it's Eggman!

But like I said, an overwhelming amount of people agree with this statement.

And let me make myself clear first, I don't see any harm in wanting more villains. I'm not saying Eggman needs to be the only one. BUT- I think it's important that Eggman finally gets more opportunities to shine, without all these other villains stealing his spotlight and being used to undermine his own villainy.

What bothered me most about this tweet wasn't the initial statement alone.

Though I will say that it's easy to have a hunch that anyone that acts like "ugh why is Eggman the boss that gets used so much, I want big evil monsters instead!" aren't very big fans of Eggman, and probably find him boring and weak compared to them. And they also have a problem with him being the final boss as if he isn't the main antagonist of the entire series, which has never been a problem with other franchises, so why Sonic? Well, it's very often because they just dislike Eggman for no good reason.

What actually bothered me the most about the tweet were the responses. There were hundreds of quote retweets and replies putting Eggman down for the sake of praising these other villains and. They act like Eggman has never been a fun, interesting, and entertaining villain in the series. That he's just an incompetent and goofy joke and nothing more, like he's never capable of being a serious threat. They ignore the countless times he certainly has been throughout the series and in the games. They shit on him for everything, like his design, personality, the final bosses, everything.

It's always disappointing to see just how many people overlook the brilliance of his character and why he's so worthy of being the main and most important villain in the series. And do you know what doesn't help at all? The way that IDW have been supporting these misconceptions and hatred for his character. Or pushing the belief that he's not capable of some of the most fucked up and evil shit, like he has been many times in the games, and that there's any chance of going back on all that and being a genuinely good guy. (There isn't.)

Eggman has already been pushed aside and/or had his spotlight stolen by other inferior villains in the series too many times in the games. And while there were small instances of things looking up while giving Eggman a great portrayal and a serious status as a threat, there are still other villains stealing his opportunity for the extent of his villainy and abilities to be fully explored. And that's why I think Eggman should get to be the main villain more often, not just in terms of being the final boss but even more.

Because sure, he was supposed to have the entire world in his hands in Forces, he had a great well thought out plan with backup after backup, and he was the final boss. But guess who overshadowed him and made him get much less screentime than he deserved a result? Infinite. And this isn't to put Infinite down, (though I do think he was poorly written and they didn't give us enough to him to be a credible and interesting villain) it's just a fact that Infinite got much more focus than Eggman and it was disappointing.

With Eggman finally accomplishing something that he's been fighting for since the very beginning, it should've been a WAY bigger deal. He should've been one of the biggest focuses of the story and the main villain. It was especially disappointing to find out that they were shoving Infinite in there when, at the very first reveal of the game and the earliest info we got, they really made it seem like we were going to get a lot more Eggman focus and spotlight. I really thought that we were going to get something amazing.

Lost World had more Eggman focus than Forces, despite it being a game where he was betrayed rather than ruling the fucking world, and that's ridiculous. We didn't get to see what Eggman had been up to during those six months in Forces (doesn't help that they didn't even make the world look like it belonged to him at all :\) and his side of things much at all, because instead we had more scenes of Infinite making edgy speeches to Sonic and the avatar that meant nothing in the end. And even then, I've seen people say he's better than Eggman just because they think he looks cooler.

Eggman has already been sidelined by other villains and had the spotlight stolen too many times in the game series because they think he can't be interesting enough on his own. The repetition of him always being betrayed and thrown aside was more annoying than them repeating the same last boss fight could ever be to me. Eggman's character isn't the problem for the lackluster final boss battles and he deserves the chance to truly shine and get much more screen time and focus as a character. Then they can finally improve on their final bosses and have more villains in the picture- that don't take away from Eggman.

Of course, Eggman has also been mistreated in the games in a way that had fans saying that other villains are better and more capable than him. What's already been done so many times certainly can't be prevented. But I really don't want that to continue and tried to have hope in them finally giving Eggman the spotlight he deserves and show his true potential. At times it seemed like things were going to improve. But if IDW keep overexaggerating Eggman's flaws and push the idea that he's a terrible villain and Sonic Twitter praise it and put him down too, what if it does continue?

When official media and fans have this opinion more often than not and they speak the loudest, I can't help but fear that this is one of the things that will actually have a negative impact on Eggman's portrayal in the games and we'll get even more betrayals and sidelining. And it makes me think, will his character ever truly get the respect he deserves? Will he ever get the chance to prove himself to fans of the series that see him as boring and inferior to their favorite monster of the week villains?

It's not something I should have to worry about because Eggman is the main and best villain of the series and deserves respect and recognition. But the way IDW support these misconceptions and slander his character, on top of all the hatred Eggman has suffered in the fandom for long enough, it makes sense. I wonder whether they'll believe that most people don't want Eggman to be the main series villain anymore, that he should be betrayed and shit on by other villains even more and get even less spotlight.

It'd be the exact opposite of everything us Eggman fans want and I seriously hope it won't come to that. :(

#dr eggman #eggman #dr robotnik #dr. eggman #idw sonic #rant #my post

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black-coffee-and-sugar · 3 years

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Just take this in for a moment. Some naysayers LOVE to argue that Kara isn't gay or pan or whichever term you wanna use, in the comics (except for that one timeline but that technically doesn't count either) and therefore, supercorp can't be endgame?

Hahaha can't? Really? Look, this is an ADAPTATION of a comic book character and the stories surrounding that character. Not a shot for shot remake! They can pretty much do what they want and take the characters in whichever direction they want. And they have! A few examples:

- creation of Alex Danvers and the Danvers backstory for Kara

- The fucking DEO

- Sam as Reign's human side and Sam's offspring Ruby

- Kelly Olsen

- Livewire as Supergirl's villain and not Superman's

- Winn

Need I go on?

I know that for the most part, they've spent these past six seasons retelling Superman stories (which is such a disservice to the rich comic book history SG has but that's a separate rant). But let's entertain the notion that this is a 'true portrayal' and that the showrunners are concerned with honouring the content.

I would love to then cast a spotlight on Mr. Querl Dox. He is the most consistent love interest for Kara in the comics and even in antimated shows. She dated Valor (who Mon El is based off of but starkly different too) a handful of times in comparison to Brainy and yet, no one really talks about that. If they really wanted to follow comic lore, he would've been a LI and Kara's endgame romance but it was clear from minute one that that was NOT their intention. And I guarantee you if it was, their casting choice for the role would've been way different (based off what they have chosen all the time: tall, muscular, dick to kara).

But even more than that, when is Kara's sexuality ever explicitly discussed? Sure she tells Winn she isn't gay in S1 but that doesn't automatically mean she's straight. In fact, I would think that sexuality doesn't even register to Kara. Just look at how confused she was during Alex's coming out - like she really couldn't understand why this was such a huge deal and the gravity behind Alex finally accepting this part of herself. Based off what we know about Krypton (and that's not including comics) what indication is there that their society cares about sexuality?

Why would the matrix give a damn about a person's gender, much less sexuality? Those things have literally no bearing on compatibility for their society's purposes. Bonding (or marriage) was arranged and the main thing was to benefit both Houses and the advancement of the planet. Again, gender would not play into this, they didn't procreate naturally, probably didn't even have sex recreationally either! So no, an advanced society like that that has perfected genetics? Yes they did not give a fuck about sexuality and gender.

And since Kara spent the first 13 years of her life there, I doubt she does either or even thinks about it. Maybe to fit in she conditioned herself to only show outward attraction to men and thought that that meant she'd be 'normal'.

Until Lena made it near impossible to do that anymore. Until Lena flirts and fills her office with flowers and goes on a date with Jack that she crashes like an unhinged, possessive lunatic. Until Lena buys CatCo without hesitation, treats Kara with respect and supports her career, inspired her to be her best self. Until Lena who she can't walk away from despite cutting things off with James before they even start or yeeting her so called epic love into space or shutting down William only to go out with him after yet another rejection at a partnership with Lena.

And the CW has the ability to make lasting change with a Supercorp endgame. Not only can this help pave the way for other queer characters in the future but also has the promise of permeating into the comic book lore. DC comics could potentially look at this and say 'fuck, we want this too' and boom, we have Lena and Kara together in future Supergirl issues. I seem to remember a similar thing happening for Harley Quinn so it's not like DC doesn't know where the fans and money are. Hopefully, the CW will too.

#honestly tho #this 'kara isn't gay' argument has no legs #she spent her formative years on krypton #a society that transcended the societal constructions restricting gender n sexuality #n lena has never been confirmed as anything either #NEVER #dating 'only men' is a stupid argument #plus there is a lot of time between boarding school and her move to NC #we don't know exactly what she was doing n who she was doing it with #only what they showed us #plus there is no way lena n andrea didnt experiment at st helena #so the ball is really in your court @cw #choose wisely #supercorp

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musette22 · 4 years

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I was thinking about a tweet I saw the other day about shipping, and I don't remember exactly the context, but I remember that said a big ass truth: that one of the reasons why stevebucky is so popular is bc the chemistry they have is diff than say, stevenat or samsteve. I think it's true and I'm blaming those two gays for playing them the way they did what were they thinking omg

I can’t decide whether I think ‘gays’ is a typo for ‘guys’ or not but yes, I hear you loud and clear 😂 I think you’re right about the chemistry, absolutely, but I think it’s also down the epic storyline? They’ve got some serious history together, which other Steve or Bucky centric pairings don’t have. Actually, I can’t really think of many other pairings at all with such a strong basis, to be honest.

Just think about it: two men who have been best friends since they were children. One of them going off to fight in a foreign war and leaving the other behind, thinking they might not ever see each other again, but due to some seriously extraordinary circumstances they’re reunited again in the middle of a war zone - but not after one of them defies strict orders from his superiors to save the other, despite having been told he’s most certainly dead already. Then, a while later, the person who’s been saved dies after all, and in the most tragic way possible (his friend just failed to save him this time), and not long after, the other perishes in what was essentially a suicide mission but somehow survives and ends up decades into the future, alone. Then, it turns out his long-dead friend actually turns isn’t dead at all but has instead survived for decades as a brainwashed puppet for an evil organisation, until he breaks free from said organisation when he’s sent to kill his childhood friend and recognises him despite the brainwashing because his friend tells him something akin to a wedding vow they’d exchanged when they were kids. Eventually, the two of them reunite and then fight side by side in the future (where they can actually be together as lovers as well as friends, something that was impossible in the time they were from) - I mean, fuck, can you BELIEVE how epic and tragic and beautiful their story is?! They’re soulmates! The ultimate starcrossed lovers! I cannot 😭

Anyway, I’m sorry for going on a bit of a rant lol, what I was going to say is - and yes, the other big reason for the ship being so popular is definitely the chemistry between Chris and Seb ❤️ They brought those characters to life like no one else could’ve done and the chemistry between them as people and actors absolutely infused their portrayal of Steve and Bucky and their on-screen relationship, too. It just was so tangible and believable, and there’s a reason why a lot of the behind the scenes material is practically indistinguishable from the on-screen material...

#stucky #evanstan #rpf #minnie answers #Anonymous

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animatedminds · 4 years

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Splash Mountain, Br’er Rabbit, and the Tragedy of Being Represented By Other People.

So, this is probably going to be the realest post I’ll make for a while - or at least until The Boondocks arrives, but it seemed apropos. Immediately after this I’ve got rants about sci fi and Star Wars and other unrelated things coming up, but for now we have my earnest opinions on a decision I feel should have been better thought out than it was. This is going to read more like an article or an essay than a review, but I think it needs to be said.

It hasn’t come up too often on this blog, but I am African American. It’s my life and my perspective. And as an African American, a lover of animation and - though this definitely doesn’t come up on the blog - a passionate folklorist in what you could call an academic sense (in that I’m a writer and a student, and folklore is the subject of most of my research), people I know in real life have asked me more than once what my opinion on the removal of Splash Mountain in favor of Princess and the Frog, how I must be glad it’s finally being removed, what my take on the history there was, and…

Well…

To really give that opinion, I’ve got to start at the beginning. Not Song of the South - that, if anything, is the very middle. We have to start with Br’er Rabbit and who that character was. Sit back students, info dump incoming.

Br’er Rabbit is an folklore character of African American origin with - like many folkloric figures - a difficult to place date of origin, but he was known to have existed at least since the early 19th Century, He has obvious similarities to the far older figure of Anansi - with several Br’er Rabbit tales even taking elements of Anansi stories verbatim - though with a the notable difference that unlike Anansi, Br’er Rabbit was more often a heroic figure: an underdog and seemingly downtrodden figure who used his wits and his enemies’ hubris rather than physical force to win the day. The meaning of that kind of figure to an enslaved people is obvious, especially when you compare Br’er Rabbit to another, contemporary trickster figure in African American history by the name of John. Br’er Rabbit’s stories could even arguably be seen as a more child-friendly version of the John tales, in which a human trickster pulls the same kind of momentum turning ploys on villains - but those villains tended to be explicitly slave masters or overseers, and John’s payback often came with explicitly deadly results. The existence of John as escapism for the enslaved or just-post-enslaved (IE Reconstruction) populations is clear: a person who with no power who could fight back with nothing but their mind, preying on the fact that their enemies see them as incapable and helpless, and the connection of Br’er Rabbit to that message is difficult to deny. If anything, Br’er Rabbit comes off as a somewhat more child-friendly version of the concept.

But the most important thing to glean from this is who and what Br’er Rabbit is: a product of the African American community and its history, as a means of those people to express themselves and their values in the face of oppression.

Now we fast forward to 1881, and along comes Joel Chandler Harris: a white Georgian. Harris was a folklorist himself, and travelled the country collecting stories - most famously Br’er Rabbit stories. His stated reason was to bridge African American and white communities by sharing stories, but he was tainted by the perspectives of his world and his place in it, infamously creating a framing narrative for those stories in which the character telling them exuded the imagery of subservience and simplicity that was typical of perceptions of African Americans from the post-Civil War Southern environment in which he collected them: Uncle Remus, in other words. Harris is hardly the only white curator who adapted stories of black or brown peoples in a way that played up the people the stories came from as something of a theme park piece, as if noble in unintelligence and simplicity, but he’s one of the most famous ones to do so - and that’s because of the adaptation. To note, when people criticize cultural appropriation, this is the kind of thing that really triggers the outrage. Not any situation in which a white person is inspired by someone who isn’t white and creates something accordingly, but situations where someone else’s creation is taken and used for the fame and profit of others, to the detriment of the people who made it. It’s these situations like the one Joel Chandler Harris created centuries ago, specifically, that people are trying to draw attention to - even if sometimes social media gets a bit trigger happy sometimes, that’s the real, underlying problem. With that in mind, let’s put that aside and move forward.

Fast forward again to 1946. Walt Disney Productions, then less the company of grander, wider scale stories of epic quests and emotional upheaval that make us all cry and more a company more known for folktale adaptations in general, were looking for a but of American folklore to headline a live action, animation mix - a medium that allowed a bit more financial benefit, as straightforward animation was not always particularly profitable those dates. This wouldn’t be the last time they produced an adaptation of an American folktale or short story - their version of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow a few years later being actually one of the more faithful adaptations of that short story put to film. Disney, who evidently read Chandler Harris’ stories, put together a project to see if they could adapted. Which they did. Pretty much verbatim. This is actually worth pointing out: the actual Br’er Rabbit stories in the films are very accurately adapted, and the actors involved in the story (including James Baskett, how also played Uncle Remus) did a fine job characterizing them. The issue is that Disney also adapted Chandler Harris’ stereotypical and offensive framing device pretty much verbatim, bringing Uncle Remus. And therein lies the problem.

To put the issue with Song of the South in perspective, the movie - with the framing device - can be categorized as something called Reconstruction Revisionism - which is basically a genre of post-Civil War media meant to present the pre-war South was perfect and idyllic, and that people are racially more natural in that environment’s dynamic and never should have left. One of the most infamous movies in history, Birth of a Nation, is the crowning example of this genre. Obviously, Song of the South is nowhere near as awful and inflammatory a movie as that, but there’s a degree to which it was seen as the straw the broke the camel’s back for black depictions in media, only a couple of years after Disney’s Dumbo also did the same. The end result, an African American creation was used in a film that ultimately demeaned the African American community, a decision that Disney has been ashamed of ever since.

Fast forward to now. Disney is removing Splash Mountain, the sole remnant of Song of the South that focuses exclusively on Br’er Rabbit - a choice we’ve had reason to suspect was coming for about a year now, but which was unveiled conspicuously in the middle of protests and campaigning for better treatment of people of African descent worldwide. The reveal was a rousing success, with people applauding the decision to finally wipe away the rest of that movie - though remember that for later, that the response relies on the perception of Br’er Rabbit as something that starts with Song of the South - and replace it with something else. Surely, as a black person I should be happy that they’re finally getting rid of that racist character for good and replacing him with something more positive? And again, well…

To put short, Br’er Rabbit has finished his journey from African cultural symbol to discarded pariah, all because others used the character in racist ways that they themselves now regret. And for that… let’s be clear, I’m not angry so much as saddened. I’m not railing against the company for making the choice, since I can see how from their point of view it was the wisest and most progressive thing to do. Song of the South is a badly old fashioned movie that they’re right to want to move on from, and it’s their right to downplay characters within their purview if those characters reflect badly on the company. I’m just outlining the tragic waste of it all.

For now, compare Princess and the Frog - the thing they’re replacing it with. I do love the movie, or at least any problems I have with it have little to do with representation, and I definitely don’t have anything against Musker and Clements and their beautiful visions and creations, but it’s difficult to deny that its an adaptation of a European story, adapted by a collection of mostly white creators (with Rob Edwards comprising but one third of the screenwriting team, but not of story conception), that’s ultimately just dolled up with African Americans characters and a very Hollywood-esque depiction of a African diaspora religion (Voodoo, which unfortunately has a long history of such portrayals). If we’re talking about representation specifically - which this move had definitely been presented as a champion for - it’s not the perfect example, more of a story with a surface covering of the black experience than one with an especially strong connection. That wouldn’t necessarily be a problem (Tiana and her story do well depict strong black characterizations, and approach an interesting (if light_ implication about racism and hardship during the 1920s) if Disney had yet created any other franchise that was another actual adaptation of an African or African American tale or story (with involvement from such actual people), but Song of the South is actually it. They legitimately have nothing else to call on.

This is something I feel we should do more to remedy. I am a writer/prospective screenwriter myself, and trying to put more stories out there is one of my primary focuses and goals should I ever truly enter the industry, but at the moment we just don’t have very many options.

This is hardly the only time that people of color have had little control over depictions of their own culture - literary and film history is full of such situations in both minor and terribly major ways - but it’s something that stings especially hard due to being such a current example, and because of sheer irony of the end result. Now we have a situation where African Americans are being told that something their people created to represent themselves is negative and wrong, because years ago other people appropriated that creation and used it to paint a negative picture of the people who actually held claim over it, and now the enterprise that those people created wants to save face: another example of culture being treated like a possession of the ones who are poised to make money of off it. And what’s worse, while the culture is used and abused like trash, the people are now presented with this removal like it was a prize - like they’re finally being given something - when little has really changed.

Ultimately, the Splash Mountain news - though it had been coming for a while - made me rather upset for that reason. As a studier of folklore, I suppose I knew better than most where these things came from, and so the buzz around the move being a belief that Br’er Rabbit was an intrinsically racist character just highlighted the tragedy of how African Americans and their culture tended to be tossed about by American media. So no matter what, I can’t feel particularly happy about it.

Let me iterate, in the film industry, being represented by people who aren’t of your culture group is basically inevitable. That’s essentially how the industry works. I’m not saying we should rail against anyone who would try to represent cultures that aren’t their own. The people who produce and create are few, and eventually the truth is that you have to be represented by other people - at least for the moment. We shouldn’t be railing against representation by others in general, as that wouldn’t be cognizant of the situation and thus self destructive. What I’m saying is that we - both we trying to be represented, and those doing the representing - should be aware of the problem there: that when others choose to represent you in media, you essentially have to trust them to have a real interest in you and your best interests when doing so, and when they don’t that depiction is there forever. So it behooves us to try to be the ones who are representing ourselves as much as possible, and in situations where we can’t, to remind those who want to represent us that they have a responsibility to do so effectively.

This is Animated Minds for Animated Times, and really this blog is ultimately about emphasizing what makes animated media work, what makes it fun, and what makes it worthwhile no matter how old you are. And so in several years of sporadic and infrequent reviews, reactions and fandom posts it’s been rare for me to get this real about a topic, but this is something that is a serious issue feel was overlooked. Representation is complicated. And more often than not solutions that are handed to us are more band-aids that look like cures than necessarily being actually helpful, and that’s what happens when ultimately the decisions about how you’re represented lie in the hands of other people. Representation is one of the biggest things we need to work on in coming years, especially with stories and adaptations - which refer to history and culture that are often not widely known or accepted. Ask someone if they think there should be an African princess, and they’ll tell you they didn’t even have kings and queens in Africa - something that’s bluntly wrong, but is widely believed simply because those elements of culture are never represented.

And that’s the sum of my thoughts on the subject. I hadn’t updated the blog in months because this whole thing was stewing in me, and I couldn’t really go back to cheerful posts about new things until I got it out. I’ve got great thoughts about the Owl House, Amphibia, the new seasons of BH6 and Ducktales that are totally coming up soon. But for now, just a few sobering thoughts from someone who grew up loving cartoons, and desperately wishes people like me had more to look at in that field beyond apologies and promises.

#splash mountain #disney #song of the south #the princess and the frog #brer rabbit #social commentary #black lives matter #representation #walt disney world #joel chandler harris #uncle remus #cultural appropriation #real talk

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redheadscribe · 3 years

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Fate Winx Saga Review

This is the Winx Club

This isn't

Ah Winx Club, I remembering waking up early in the morning to watch it on Saturday, I thought that it was a cool show and my favorite character was Bloom during the first three seasons when it was under 4Kids. I thought that the characters were cool, the setting was pretty awesome as well and overall it was fun. Years later I was pretty shocked that it is still going on though from what I heard it has lost a lot of it’s quality with season eight being a mixed bag and an okay art style. Now Netflix has acquired the rights and there were two separate shows that they produce.

The first being World of Winx, an animated spin off show showing the girls hiding out on earth helping people and dealing with an evil version of Tinkerbell? In all honesty I was a little confused like how was this a spin off? Was it a spin off from season four as Roxy is a supporting character in this universe? That part confused me but overall it was a pretty good show but at this point I don’t think Winx Club fans wouldn’t mind a reboot that got the She-Ra treatment. Needless to say Winx Club is a popular show that was big in Italy and other countries but it is not what it used to be. Especially when we have this show to talk about Fate: A Winx Saga.

When I first saw the trailer I was pretty confused because none of the shots in the trailer reminded me of Winx Club. Also none of the characters were recognizable as they white washed and replaced Flora, and also white washed Musa. The only three characters that were recognizable were Bloom, Stella and Aisha. However there personalities have changed so much that I can’t even say that this is a faithful adaptation. I know in adaptations there has to be certain changes that you have to make because either to budget or they can’t fit it in and some stuff has to be cut. The least the show could do was get the fashion right, I mean the only one who should be wearing red is Musa while Bloom is the one that wears different shades of blue. Then again the fashion overall is a big joke and they really should fire the costume designer as I looked and she has had no experience dressing up teenagers. Rants out of the way lets see how they butchered the characters.

Let’s start with the leading Pyromaniac herself, Bloom. What the hell did they do to my girl? As a fellow redhead myself it is safe to say Bloom was the one I lean towards to the most even though I did see myself in Tecna, and Flora. Bloom is a stuck up bitch in this show and has to make it all about her, which was one of the problems in some of season four and later on. She is also unbelievably gullible and really stupid. She basically believes anything that Beatrix, a psychopath and a known liar about the whole Not Domino city, yeah I don’t care about the name of this said city in other world. She is a problematic Pyromaniac something that cartoon Bloom season 1-3 would be horrified about, and surprisingly bland.

Now, this Bloom could have worked if there were either more episodes or just better writers. Think about it, she is a girl who discovers that she has these unknown powers and when her emotions get the better of her and harm her family she could be a little distant and closed off. She is angry and confused because she doesn’t understand what is happening which can lead her to feeling a lot of emotions. Though I do hate the fact that they ruined Mike and Vanessa but I forgot that this is a teen drama and as a teen drama parents are assholes, it is the law of teen television. There could have been a nice arc of Bloom dealing with the fact that she has been lied to her entire life, feeling angry and betrayed but then going back to the Bloom we love from the first three seasons as she realized that she was the same person, she just now has a place where she can feel at home while also having awesome fire powers. However we got the worst of Bloom that is shown post season five.

Now lets get to Stella, and I will try my best to contain my rage when I am writing this. Did a person who worked on this show really thought that it would be a great idea to change Stella and make her Diaspro? You know we could’ve added Diaspro and Stella in the same show, she and Stella could’ve been friends due to the two girls being royalty, but then both Stella and Sky would realize that she is a toxic person and break away from her. This is not Stella and the cartoon Stella wouldn’t be caught dead in some of the outfits that she was wearing, maybe the last episode outfit but that’s about it. They could’ve done something with her wardrobe, they could have her dress up as a old woman when her mother was around trying to impress her, and then dress up in clothes that the original Stella is known to wear. Stella is a stereotypical mean girl and there is nothing nuanced about her portrayal. This is not Stella this is Diaspro with Stella’s name.

Now let’s get on to Aisha, she is a fine characters but this isn’t Aisha as she has none of Aisha’s personality she is not even a princess of Andros and well she has no story outside of helping her white friend. Aisha was a standout of season two and had one of the best character entrances in the series. She doesn’t get a story of her own and she is relegated to just being the best friend that get’s Bloom out of trouble. The actress Precious Mustapha deserves way better than what they are giving her.

Now it is time for everybody’s favorite white-washed duo Terra/Flora and Musa. There have been videos and posts that are going over how stupid Netflix and Rainbow for doing this. Just to give everybody context, Musa’s appearance is based off of Lucy Liu and Flora is based off of Jennifer Lopez. I think that speaks for itself in how Netflix and Rainbow screwed this up especially when there are plus size Latinix actresses they could have casted. Now let’s get into their character, weirdly enough they are the ones that have the most interesting friendship dynamic, Terra is a fine character but she is not Flora and Musa is a lot more cold hearted and instead of being a fairy of music she is a mind fairy who is an empath. Now music in a way can evoke emotions and connect people on a deep level but her empathic powers are so undefined. Terra is a fine enough character and her family is pretty interesting.

Now lets get into the boys, Sky, Riven, Dane, and Sam. If there is one thing that I could applaud the show is that anyone can be a fairy or a specialist, it’s just a pity that they excluded the witches. Then again the witches do get the short end of the stick even in the cartoon. Sky is bland, and the actor only ever had one expression throughout the whole show. Riven is, well Riven has always been a jerk but cartoon Riven had some more well likable features than TV show Riven. Dane, he’s fine I would have liked him more if he wasn’t taking so many stupid pills when it came to Riven and Beatrix, boy he needs to find a better man to crush on becuase, Riven is not worth it at all, even if I didn’t like his performance I could definitely see him crushing on Sky way more than Riven. Sam is a fun character and I was glad to see a male fairy added to the school but that’s all I can say about him the boys are okay. If there was one thing that I enjoyed about World of Winx is that they didn’t include the boys and there was nothing lost from it, it was just the girls kicking ass and taking names.

There is not much to say about the school staff and Dowling is a fine character that is a lot like Faragonda, only really ever helps Bloom and reassuring her she is special. I wish there was more done with Terra’s father and all but nope any positive family interaction is bad in a teen show. Overall the school staff, I don’t think that we can even call them a school staff they were a joke.

Now let’s get into the villains, if there is one thing that fans of the first four season can agree on is that the villains were always a standout for each season one. That being said the only effective villain is Beatrix, even though they could have just done the Trix. Let me just say this, The Trix were a great villain for the first season and well they went downhill like the whole cartoon show. Also what is the deal with Rosalind and Sky’s father. To be fair Sky’s dad in the cartoon show has always been a jerk but a jerk that raised a psychopath like Beatrix is too much. I am a little nervous about how they will do if they actually introduce The Trix, Lord Darkar, and Valtor or even the Wizard’s of the Black Circle. Needless to say the villains were just bland.

That is if they actually even use the villains from the cartoon show because so far we have the rather bland Rosalind, I just don’t care for her and there is no need for her to be in the show, Daphne does not deserve this. Then there is Sky’s father and I don’t care and Luna and wow does every teen show have to have terrible parents. How is a cartoon show from the early 2000s is more diverse and interesting than this? I just don’t care at all about the villains except for Beatrix.

There is also the fact that the show is only six episodes and that really does hinder the show as the show could’ve used more episodes to flesh things out then maybe just maybe this show would’ve been interesting. I also see that there are some writers and producers from the Vampire Diaries that are attached to this project and well that explains why some aspects of the show seems dated. Overall Fate, is a bland show that definitely does have better writing than Riverdale but that is not saying much. The characters are bad, and the fashion is terrible something that was a main aspect of the show. The world is generic getting rid of the epic sci-fi fantasy world and Rainbow should’ve just rebooted the animated show.

#fate winx club #winx aisha #winx musa #winx sky #winx stella #winx bloom #winx club #netflix

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kyndaris · 4 years

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To All the Books: Always and Forever

For those that know me, there are two things in the world that I love more than anything else: video games and...books. All throughout high school, I was known as the one who always had a book in her bag, ready to whip out when I no longer had to socialise with my fellow mouth-breathers. To be honest, it was a source of shame as I’d be disparaged for reading when I could have been talking. Worse, even back then, people hardly read things beyond the prescribed texts set by the school’s English Department. To many, I was an anomaly. And it was difficult to discuss anything beyond those that had young adults enthralled such as Harry Potter, Twilight and Eragon with any of my friends. Due to my niche repertoire, it was a little harder to find anyone with the same interests. Who’s Trudi Canavan? What’s the Silmarillion?

Note to self: Do not read Chapter 13 of Gene of Isis, which is titled Seduction, when friends can very easily look over your shoulder and wonder why a thirteen year-old might be interested in hands sliding down knees.

In my defence, I skimmed over most of the risque scenes as I was more interested in the actual world-building.

Recently though, I’ve stumbled upon a YouTube channel that features one of the major things I cherish: the written word and the characters lurking within. In fact, it’s been a great joy to delve into a few of the book reviews and to learn about the strange quirks that come from being a reader. It’s also great to hear what they might have liked or disliked about some of my favourite books. And, hopefully when the COVID-19 pandemic finally blows over, I too, hope to stop someone in the produce section of a grocery store to chat about Brandon Sanderson (who, by the way, signed my Mistborn books when he was in Australia for Supanova and I asked him a terribly stupid question because I hadn’t sat in on his panel).

It has also made me wonder that perhaps people might be more interested in hearing my thoughts on books. After all, if the internet has taught me anything, there’s still a sizeable audience for any type of content. Books and Fanfiction included.

The only problem, is that I read for leisure. I’ve always hated how, during English class, we’d try to break down each and every sentence an author inserted into their story. Did it matter that the dress was red? I would say ‘no’ but English Literature professors would say ‘yes.’ Why? Because it represents passion and sexiness and every in between. Clearly, the author is trying to state from the very first chapter that what proceeds next is going to be hot and steamy.

As someone that has dabbled with a bit of writing, I know for a fact that I’ve never put in that much thought about my random background descriptions. Most of the time, it’s been: how does that look good? And if I choose to use ‘pivot’ instead of ‘dodged’ in a combat scene, it’s only because I’m trying to change it up a little. And not because I wanted to allude to my failed career as a ballet dancer (which, by the way, would never have happened because I am a terrible dancer).

I suppose I could always break down the things I liked about narrative or the characters. That’s something I’ve always done with video games. The problem with books, however, is that a lot of the characters also stem from the reader’s imagination. While some authors like to paint an explicit picture of what their protagonists might look like, others just give them broad descriptions and let their readers fill in the rest. It’s why I couldn’t get over the fact that Remus Lupin had a moustache in the Harry Potter films. And probably why I fell in love with book Faramir, but couldn’t seem to love his film portrayal in the Lord of the Rings films (which do make the franchise more palatable. Though, they did do Tom Bombadil a great disservice by not including him).

Still, it’s food for thought.

After all, in this day and age, it’s so hard to find someone that has similar interests as me. Honestly, I’d gladly go on a rant about some of the authors that I’ve been introduced to, and others that I’ve discovered. Better yet, I’ve been also trying to expand what types of books that I read. Though, of course, I’m a little leery about reading romance in public - what with their covers and all.

In any case, 2021 is the year that I hope to continue to indulge in my hobby. Hopefully, I’ll continue to read widely even though I’d much prefer to focus on my core genre that I take the most joy out of exploring. Because, even among readers, there’s judgement. Though this isn’t much explored, I still feel a little out of place to reveal how much I love epic fantasy. This might have been due to my mother hoping I’d read Jane Austen back when I was twelve, but honestly, at that time in my life, magic wands and dragons seemed much cooler than Regency England. Since then, however, I’ve read Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.

Maybe I’ll read more of Jane Austen’s works in the future and develop a deeper appreciation for her writing. For now, my favourite is still Jane Eyre. Even if Rochester is a problematic love interest.

As for my other books, well...all I can say is that I appreciate how fast Mr Brandon Sanderson writes and I look forward to the next story in the Stormlight Archives. Scott Lynch, I need more from Locke and his merry gang of thieves. And you...Patrick Rothfuss...will you ever be able to finish what you’ve started?

But, just like my games, it might be best to go through the huge pile that I’ve yet to finish. Why is it every time that I enter a bookstore I seem to know no restraint and buy, buy, buy? There have been many books that have sat on my shelves, just waiting to be devoured, but have been eclipsed by the latest and shiny titles of a few of my favourite authors.

#personal blog #books

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terribleperformances · 4 years

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0vershadowed said: Do you have any controversial headcanons that go against what is generally accepted by the fandom? Do you incorporate this into writing your muse or keep it to yourself? For whoever you'd like!

oghhhhhhhhhhhhhh

i mean to some extent, you could say that the vast majority of my muses being trans isn’t something their respective fandoms would enjoy. at this point i get shat on so consistently in rp i literally just don’t care about holding this, and most other things, to myself lmao

for more specific people though...

gordon: gordon does not love benrey. gordon doesn’t reciprocate benrey’s feelings for him. i could do some whole ass rant here, but honestly i’ll summarize my reasonings for this. a) gordon openly hates benrey, threatens to kill him, and wishes he would die throughout the entire series. b) wayne literally said himself benrey doesn’t reciprocate. c) benrey literally attempted to murder gordon. that’s not a thing that just went away. it’s not like character development doesn’t exist or whatever, but a really typical fandom thing is to just... act like they always had mutual affection..? which to be frank, given canon events - this would be. an abusive relationship. i don’t want to seen or be seen by frenrey similarly, mr. coolatta’s presence on this blog is (wavey hand gesture) but hlvrai fandom really saw gordon be wildly ableist and constantly belittle tommy despite him being at least 10 years older and then said. oh yeah they’re in love are you guys fucking OK out there. dni tomrey stans

mario: i mean the super mario fandom is kind of split between people who actually appreciate these characters (ie most of the mario rpc) and idiots (mario is mean bc he stepped on luigi’s foot once), so again in general my whole ass mario goes against the fandom’s general ideas. but, one thing i’ve always wanted to do with my mario was to make a portrayal of this character that was. disabled. and still a hero. not gonna beat around the bush about that one. Mario’s Fuckening Disabled And He Is So Epic And Swaggy For Doing So

mr. king dice: the idea of explaining how my dice is different than other’s portrayals to YOU is really fucking funny so i’ll just pick one aspect and touch upon that - i’ve like never seen anybody else even try to examine Why dice became a villain/worked with the devil or what his motivations were whatsoever? which i always found odd, i guess just bc that was really compelling to me. for my dice, it’s basically that he had a shitty childhood and was literally and figuratively beaten down, but once he got a taste of what it was like to do that to someone else, to make someone else afraid, to have their life in your hands. well, that’s an incredible feeling for someone who never had power over others, and once he had it, he worked to continue getting that.

idk, i could also add that some of the amnesia fandom thinks tasi is legit selfish???? for not wanting to give up her unborn child to the empress..???? but that’s almost too ridiculous (and mostly influenced by misogyny)

uhh and then grooming implied by the last one, free to skip

psp: psp is genuinely negatively affected by the weird journey he was sent on. i dunno, i think the chulip fandom is pretty small and dead beyond a few people who watched wayne play it, but. the tone of the game itself, (in a fashion i think is kind of similar to okage’s occasional weird moments?) doesn’t take the impact of. a 12 year old. kissing grown adults. seriously. i haven’t used psp in a bit, but that is something i went into the character wanting to cross examine the affects of. That’s Not Good For A Child

#ooc.#0vershadowed

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osleyakomwonkru · 5 years

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hi, for the salty ask list: 1, 5, 10 and 19

1. What OTPs in your fandom(s) do you just not get? / 5. Has fandom ever ruined a pairing for you?

I’m answering these two questions together, because they very much go together for me, and the answer is: Clexa.

As I’ve mentioned before, I started watching the show between S4 and S5. And before I’d met my infection vector (Ilian and then by extension Octavia), the only thing I’d ever heard about the show was that there was this badass lesbian called Lexa who had this epic romance with an equally badass bisexual Clarke, until Lexa was killed in a particularly tragic case of the Bury Your Gays trope.

That had been enough to put me off the show initially, since LGBTQ representation and portrayals in media are very important to me. But Octavia’s storyline intrigued me enough that I was like, okay, I’ll give it a shot anyway, and then I went into it all ready to be righteously angry when Lexa died.

Only... that didn’t happen. I watched the first three seasons, and couldn’t see any sign of that epic romance that fandom had told me about. Clarke and Lexa were actively hostile with each other (well, the hostility was mostly on Clarke’s part) for much of their screentime together. Then things began to soften, and then they slept together, and then Lexa died. This last sentence all happened within the space of three episodes - not a lot of time at all.

Was it a bad case of the Bury Your Gays trope? Oh, for sure. There are a hundred better ways Lexa could have died. But she was always going to. This isn’t a romance tale of happily ever after, and people in her position live dangerous lives, and once she’d been brought into focus she wasn’t a character that could be put Out of Focus again. She wasn’t ever going to survive the plot. Not in this sort of ‘verse.

But fandom had built them up to be this huge epic sweeping romance, when in reality they had very little time together under very trying circumstances. The epic wasn’t there. It was the start of something, which may have turned epic had Lexa lived. But she didn’t and it didn’t, so the idea that it was this grand love that Clarke still mourns intensely years later just doesn’t sit right with me.

I think had fandom been honest about what their relationship was - the start of something then cut tragically short - then I wouldn’t have gone into the show with the expectations I did, and I could have appreciated the relationship for what it was rather than what fandom told me it was. So yeah, fandom ruined Clexa for me.

10. Most disliked arc? Why?

Bellamy taking Clarkephine on their forest walkabout in S6. And if we want to expand that a bit further, Bellamy’s entire arc with Clarke since the beginning of S5, where he’ll throw everyone else under the bus and even ignore her own wishes to save her from either a perceived or actual threat.

If there *hadn’t* been a six year separation where they each lived very different lives, maybe I could buy it. Maybe. But as it is, especially given that she hasn’t done the same for him? No. The only conceivable explanation - where he’s willing to throw both his blood family and his found family under the bus on a consistent basis for her benefit - is that he’s in love with her. Yet we’re supposed to believe their relationship is platonic, but he does things for her that he won’t do for any other platonic friend - so why is this girl who he’s known personally for mere weeks the one he chooses, especially given he’s repeatedly chosen her over his sister who was the centre of his world for seventeen years, as well as over Spacekru who he lived and formed bonds with for six years? I’m not a Bellarke shipper, but if they’re not supposed to be endgame, I don’t know what the hell they’re doing here. It doesn’t make any sense at all.

Then there’s the overt hypocrisy where he’s ready and willing and wanting to know about and accept what Clarke went through during those six years, but won’t do the same for Octavia. Where he’ll forgive Clarke for what he did to her (no, that’s not a typo, he somehow thinks that he’s the aggrieved party when he’s quite the opposite), but not do the same for Octavia. Where he’ll prioritize Clarke over everyone else, even her own daughter that she’ll risk everything for.

I hate it. Hate hate hate.

19. What is the one thing you hate most about your fandom?

I have to pick just one? Haha. Well, there are many different ways that I could answer this question, depending on what precisely is meant by “fandom” - does that mean in this context the canon source material, does it mean the fans of the show? Because other questions in this quiz make it sound like it could go either way.

I’m going to go on the “fans of the show” aspect here, since the canon would make me rant for days in many different ways, so let’s stick to fan behaviours.

At which point, I have to go with the rabid shipper behaviour - you know the type, where their every response to JRoth’s Twitter posts is something about their ship, even when the post has nothing to do with any of that. Where they threaten X, Y and Z if their ship doesn’t happen. Where they hate on actors whose characters are standing in the way of their ships.

This is not a romance show. Who is fucking who is not the be-all end-all of the universe. If you’re still reading this post after I’ve already ranted about both Clexa and Bellarke, then I’ll assume you’re probably not one of those rabid shippers. I mean, obviously, love and relationships are a part of life, but the most compelling storylines and story arcs are not about romance. They’re often about how far people are willing to go to save the people they love, but what type of love that is can vary drastically, and more often than not, isn’t based on romance.

#the 100 #asks #salty asks #anti clexa #anti bellarke #just in case #fandom bullshit

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positivelyamazonian · 5 years

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Not to question your preferences but isn't Legend was tr1's vision but made in 'updated' tech? You did heavily criticized the game for it's outfits & hypocrisy from the devs. Is there anything you find in legend similar to tr1? Like Lara's character for example. I thought legend was what they were going for in tr1 but more 'out there'. trU felt more closer to tr2&3's Lara imo & the less I say about anni the better. Aside from the pr abomination, you think CD did a gj with Lara's portrayal?

I’ve answered before when being asked about my opinion on LAU’s trilogy - I just can’t find the ask now, but it should show up eventually in the “my answers” tag - and why Legend is the one I most dislike from that trilogy; in fact, I’d say it’s the TR I most dislike ever. I don’t see the resemblance with TR1; if at all, Crystal was trying to go for TR1 resonances when making Anniversary… which they upright stole from Core Design’s, btw. But Legend? I can’t really see the similarity at all.

Just to summarize what I’ve said before, in other asks, for me Legend is an abomination and so it’s their Lara’s portrayal - which is not Lara but actually LAUra to me, they are different characters. But I guess you don’t want to hear again about changed bio, canon divergences, mommy issues and so. You ask me about the rest. Will try to syntethize it.

Even if I forget LAUra is just raiding tombs to find her disappeared mother and has deep family issues, a big amnesia concerning everything that has happened to her before - since she’s been rewritten, revamped, rebooted and erased of all her character arc in Core’s era - I still think Crystal did a very poor job with her portrayal. Crystal Dynamics’ version of Lara is James Bond-esque. She looks and acts more like a secret agent or an action soldier than a tomb raider, or a pseudo-archaeologist, which was her real nature.

She has forgotten her politeness and delicacy to act towards her enemies with rudeness and passive-aggressiveness, justified with her damaged soul because she lost her mom and needs to find her. Her lines and dialogues are very cliché, she just throws narcissistic and pre-cooked sentences that sound very inflated (”every breath of yours is gonna be a gift from me”, “repeat that thing again when you were begging for your life”. “this is a tomb I’m gonna make them feel at home”) that are good for a bombastic Hollywood blockbuster but don’t portray the real spirit of Lara, who talked little but very effectively. LAUra is all jabbing and jabbing. She just says things to see the effect they cause, but are void of any meaning.

Furthermore, LAUra has no moral guidelines. She uses the artefacts she finds as weapons against her enemies, something that Classic Lara would have never done. She’s just focused on the goal, which is to find her mother, and releases very dangerous powers on her enemies just to crush them if it suits her. Classic Lara never used an artefact in this sense. In fact, all the Tomb Raider arc was based in taking ancient artefacts to be stored away from power hungry and genocidal sociopaths because they’re too dangerous to be handled. LAUra uses the Excalibur sword mercilessly against soldiers only armed with mere firearms, not on equal footing. And does it again in Underworld when assessing herself the right to handle Thor’s belt, gloves and hammer. Which is directly immoral and a barrier Classic Lara never dared to cross.

When Crystal Dynamics portrayed LAUra in the LAU trilogy they were only wanting to appeal to the crowd fans’ mass who only had a superficial grasp of the character, and contented themselves with viewing a supposed Tomb Raider who in fact managed herself more than a villain, or a James Bond, and of course based more their work in the movies than in the classic games.

The movies should not be considered canon since the directors never played a real Tomb Raider and only elaborated about the idea they had of Lara. Same with the comic series artists and writers. And to these people who never bothered to play a real Tomb Raider, turned Crystal Dynamics to when elaborating LAUra and LAU trilogy. Of course, they had never cared for Core Design’s canon in the first place, so why bother to do so.

There you’ll have EXPLOSIONS!!!! And DEEP CLEAVAGES!!! AND LOUIS VUITTON PANTIEES!!! And very very snarky PASSIVE AGGRESSIVE REMARKS no one asked for because YOU ROCK!!! And interminable BATTLES with lots of ENEMIES and eternal BOSS FIGHTS with talking bosses and inconsistent difficulty!!! AND A VERY EPIC SOUNDTRACK WITHOUT LARA’S THEME!!!! And now rescue your POC DAMSEL IN DISTRESS because you’re the hero and must save HERRR!! And KILL ALL THE GUYS!!! And now use the EXCALIBURRRRRR BECAUSE THEY STAND BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR MOMMA!!!! And now threaten your old friend but now villain enemy who doesn’t give a shit about your personal goals BECAUSE SHE HAS TO PAY!!! SOMEONE HAS TO PAY!!! MY MOTHER DISAPPEARED YOU OBVIOUSLY STOLE HER!!!! I’m gonna shoot and yell and threaten and go berserker in a mindless rampage because you want to know WHERE!!! IS!!! YOUR!!! MOTHEEEEEEEEERRRR!!!

But in the meantime you also need a high-tech specialist to guide you through the adventure and he’s constantly telling you what to do because you will get lost surely and a PhD lecturer to teach you about History and Archeology because you aparently have no idea about it. Welp.

Oh yes, she still wears pants and top, she still has dual pistols, she still uses medipacks, and vehicles, and raids tombs, sorta, because the puzzles are an insult to intelligence. Does that make her Lara again? For me it doesn’t. Lara Croft went of adventures because it was fun and had a very strict moral code about it. LAUra probably would have stabbed herself with the Dagger of Xian and become THE DRAGON!!!! And then DRACARYS!!!! Or use the meteorite artefacts to mutate herself and become A POWERFUL ABHORRENT BADASS MUTANT!!! Or stick Amulet of Horus in Seth’s face BECAUSE I AM GONNA BATTLE YOU ANYWAY AND KEEP THIS SHIT BECAUSE MINE!!! And of course, accept Karel’s offer in TRAOD as long as he can bring your Mom back.

I am sorry but context is everything. If Lara Croft is just a girl with shorts and tank and dual pistols, then anyone can do Lara Croft. The thing is that she was something else. And for that, I have not the least sympathy for this Hollywood-esque, James Bond female agent who is all the time looking too cool and too angry to mind anything but find the absent mother.

No, definitely I don’t see anything coming from Legend that reminds of TR1, or in LAUra that reminds me of Lara except some gadgets any character could have. Sorry for the rant, you asked. :)

#excuse the rant #i am in need of some joking #tr legend #LAUra #my answers #tomb raider #lara croft #crystal dynamics

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fullcfterrors · 5 years

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SEASON EIGHT, EPISODE SIX –– CANON DIVERGENCE.

** this blog will not be following any of the events post episode five, unless plotted otherwise. for the general arch of daenerys in my portrayal however, her storyline was incredibly different. this does not mean to say that i would be opposed to following any storylines where jon attempts to murder her, or where she does go mad queen but i will not be explicitly portraying that theme throughout my writing in general plots and threads. this is my canon divergence, the original post which is mostly a rant written after watching the series can be found HERE but for the sake of my new blog, i thought i would type it more clearly !!! this is likely to be an incredibly long post as i have it in my head that daenerys deserved far better so thank you for sticking through and reading this. its hugely important to me. ** in my head, i truly believe that daenerys was not mad. they did not write her to be mad and her storyline was NEVER her turning mad queen. she was simply doing what she thought was right and best for the people of westeros in a way where she got her justice and unfortunately, she did lose her way and became wrapped up in what she believed her ideal world to be. we completely saw in her final scene with kit beside the throne that she was so human and not insane. she was genuinely a human being, asking him to create a better world with her and ... my girl. i would also like to put it out there that i am very happy with the ending. i know there were a few loose ends that could have been tied with more time but i think everybody is where they are mean to be. and there was no better person to rule the six kingdoms than bran stark. jon’s ending was also beautiful but i won’t clog this post !!! give that like button a ♡ if you do read this –– just so i know for future plotting !!!

◈ obviously, daenerys doesn’t die and although it is an incredibly hard decision to make, she asks jon to be with her and to rule with her whilst stood in an intact throne room which is not burnt to ashes. this would happen in the scene where he comes to kill her, only that does not happen. how this unfolds is dependent on the writer who portrays jon if it is being explored in a thread but otherwise, i would imagine it going smoothly.

◈ tyrion urges that she invites the great lords and ladies of westeros to the dragon pit so that they do not feel uncomfortable or on edge with seeing her on the iron throne. the idea of bringing them to a place where her dragons were once held as prisoners is a metaphor for the freedom that she wants to instil upon the seven kingdoms. now that the war has been won, they discuss the nights watch and other worldly issues –– including northern independence, because of jon.

◈ the main reason that she grants the north their independence is because she knows how much eddard stark meant to him and how the north has been a staple of his childhood and his narrative and she also respects that. she respects everything that he has lost much like her and i think it is important to note that daenerys respects and understands where sansa is coming from. she wanted to take her rightful throne and in the process of obtaining her families kingdom, she wants to give the stark’s what is rightfully theirs too.

◈ in episode four, she urges jon not to tell his siblings about his parentage. in this divergence, daenerys would still be incredibly concerned about him telling people, not because she believes he would ever dethrone her but more so, because she loves him and is worried that it will ruin things between them. there is something within her that worries for the throne too, which is okay. daenerys is allowed to have that burning dream in the back of her mind because it is all she has ever known. she does not want his family or men to judge him for being in a relationship with his aunt as she had always expected to be married to viserys anyway.

◈ “because of everything she has been through, because of everything they have done to her.” this is something that she says to jon. daenerys does not feel threatened or anger towards sansa. instead, she actually feels disheartened. she acknowledges that sansa is not being stubborn for no reason, she absolutely understands that sansa has a vision ( similar to her own ) where she wants to best for her people. eventually, i would like a friendship and alliance formed there because daenerys is not here to be sansa’s enemy. she loves her brother and wants peace for all of the seven kingdoms, whether the north is hers or not. they share hardships and more importantly, how they have both blossomed into two leading women of the world. on this blog, we support strong ass, female characters who deserved better.

◈ daenerys’ small council will have been heavily planned with tyrion by her side. in my canon, i very much imagine jorah and and missandei as having lost their lives but dependent on the thread and plot –– if it aids the other person that i am writing with, we can have them alive. in threads with people who write these characters, just know that daenerys loves you both very much. sharna just likes to live in a world of angst, hurt and upset. if these characters are still alive, it is important to note that jorah would be lord commander of the queens guard and whilst there would be no offical title for missandei, she would always remain her closest advisor and friend. more details about the small council can be found below.

◈ as the queen of the six kingdoms, daenerys would absolutely appoint master of war to jon snow. in her eyes, there is not a single person more deserving of the role given every battle he has faced. she would not expect him to take it because canonically, targaryen or not, she would like to marry him. if they were to keep his parentage a secret, then it would also serve as an alliance between the northern kingdom and the rest of westeros.

◈ bronn would remain her master of coin at tyrion’s suggestion, though at first daenerys would be sceptical due to him being part of the sack on highgarden. she does not feel comfortable with the idea that bronn was a part of the sack, murdering her allies and then claiming the castle for himself. but in this ‘new world’ she is trying to build of forgiveness and second chances, it only seems right that bronn is given the opportunity to prove himself worthy. in any verses with margaery writers where she is still alive, she is very clearly the heir to highgarden.

◈ lord commander of the queens guard is greyworm. he was the unsullied who stepped forward to lead the rest, ensuring her that it would be a pleasure to serve her for the rest of his time. one quote that stands out to me is where he tells daenerys he would like to keep his derogatory name because it gives him honour, in being the name he had when daenerys freed him. i believe that appointing him as the queens guard, somebody who is sworn to protect the realm, it is justice for missandei too.

◈ davos the onion knight, the pirate is the master of ships. i would like to think that daenerys had formed a bond with him, due to him being the one to bring jon to dragonstone. she admired his humour for what it was and more than anything, she admired his bravery as she knew that he had never fought in many fights. i would like to think that they shared memories of dragonstone and seeing as she does not know the castle very well, he would have offered to give her the grand tour of her own home ... telling her stories that shireen had taught him about the night she was born and her families history here. master of ships would also be a way to commemorate his son, in his death through the battle for blackwater bay.

◈ master of whispers. in this divergence, varys did not die or betray her because she ‘went off the rails’. varys may have lost faith in her but daenerys’ kind nature and desire to give second chances was what gave him the opportunity to see something else in her –– a fire. he could see that daenerys knows what she needs to do in order to make this world far better than she found it and he believes in her to do so. master of whispers was always something that he was good at doing and seemed to enjoy doing. and seeing as he brought tyrion to her ( or attempted to ), it makes sense for him to stick by her side and be part of her small council as the queen.

◈ master of law is something that i have not yet thought of and whilst tyrion would likely be perfect for the role, he is her hand. i am going to leave this one open as a plotting device to other people so if anybody would like to do a thread surrounding that role, then be my guest. this is also open to OC characters –– including females as we need some more woman on this bloody small council. lyanna mormont would have been perfect for the role had she not died an epic death fighting a giant wight. imagine her rolling up to the small council meetings and putting everybody in their place, sigh. it’s canon now.

#daenerys on northern independence #daenerys on her small council #aka #probs important to read if we have any s8 verses together !!#... the fire inside of me burns brighter than the fire around me ;; daenerys headcanon.#... canon divergence.

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silver-tangent · 5 years

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D&D rant:

I am sick of players choosing to play complete assholes.

I admit I’ve done it myself... it’s fun to roleplay the bad guy or the snob... but three huge things frustrate me about this.

It has happened in every game I’ve played for the last 10 years.

It’s almost always a wizard or sorcerer, and the constant portrayal of spellcasters as egotistical or “insane” is starting to feel ableist as fuck for some reason...

I’ve had players say they’re just “being themselves because they have to hold back in real life.” ... which... I get letting loose in fiction but when being yourself involves being an asshole, whining and playing victim when people get mad at you, and bringing the game to a dead halt I’m a little concerned about your personality...

If you want to play an evil psychopath play an evil psychopath... but that involves being smart, tactful, manipulative, and selfish... maybe burn down a village because you felt like it. You are an EVIL psychopath... but psychopaths aren’t cookoo for coco puffs.

You don’t have to be a jerk to be “evil” you don’t have to be “crazy” to be chaotic... Lex Luthor is a textbook evil sociopath and he’s lawful evil. Please just stop.

We’re playing a game. We’re roleplaying, but we’re PLAYING. You need to reign it in... nobody wants to play with the jerk from high school who screws up everything and won’t let anything progress because he wants to be the center of attention. There’s a point where it actually slows down progress.

You wanna roleplay an asshole? Selfish? Mean? Manipulative? You can do it without making a scene every 5 minutes.

Successful villains/assholes have the sense to ask; “what is the benefit of everyone hating me?”

If you can’t take anything seriously I as a DM will kill your character off... and I don’t mean unfairly. I mean that you will get yourself killed... because you’re playing a game about epic heroes and monsters... you will get yourself killed and I will NOT help you.

And if you then decide to pick a fight with the group for not liking your character? (Which has happened to me) YOU CHOSE TO BE UNLIKEABLE!!

Seriously... what makes D&D wacky and funny is that it’s a group of friends being friends. Funny situations happen. That’s not the point of the game. It’s an adventure game. I appreciate that Matt Mercer helped make D&D popular...

But I want to actually go on adventures, not sit around listening to a wizard threaten the bar maid for 10 minutesbecause she handed him water, and then get us arrested and bitch at me for being mad.

And if you wanna play a psychotic character... I’m okay with it but two options.

Don’t...

Actually research what you’re talking about so you’re not just making fun of schizophrenia like a complete douche.

Seriously... understand what you’re playing or don’t play it. Don’t make fun of people. This game has a deep connection with victims of bullying and mental abuse... we don’t wanna play with bullies...

And if you think it’s exclusionist to say no bullies allowed... stop treating people like shit man. Just stop...

#d&d #personal rant #late night tangent

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natsthinkitythinkthinkthonk · 6 years

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Bungou Stray Dogs: Dead Apple [My Thoughts]

I can’t guarantee that there are no spoilers, so I will just put the “keep reading” line. With that being said, this is in no way a deep analysis of any kind. Do not take this seriously. I’m just an idiot running my mouth. This is just a stupid thing that I’m writing because I just finished the movie.

If you’re Canadian, just know that they did not prepare a special message for us. The voice actors who appeared in the message before the start of the movie (Uemura Yuuto, Ono Kensho, and Taniyama Kishou) and the Crunchyroll staff prepared the message for Americans. I’m Canadian, but I guess that’s close enough (still a little disappointing though).

Whether you ship Atsushi x Kyouka as a sibling relationship, a friendship, or anything else, it was quite nice. Personally, I do support this ship despite the age gap of four years, but I wouldn’t be angry about any ships that aren’t... illegal let's say. Their relationship was done in a way that it wasn’t forced to make you think that they were in any specific kind of relationship which I liked because I had a feeling that audiences would’ve criticized it if they hinted any tiny bit of a romantic relationship. I think that kind of thing should be saved for the future if they decide to act on it. Let’s just say... I’ll preorder that ship.

Chuuya x Dazai (or Soukoku) is a ship that I don’t mind. It’s okay, but I personally liked Oda x Dazai. Too bad... well that ain’t gonna happen. Unless you believe in the afterlife... I guess. Was it forced? A little. Was I bothered? Not that much. I don’t care what you ship. If this is your ship, embrace it. I’ll sit here with my popcorn routing for you.

Was the story predictable? Yes. I didn’t feel that bothered by it though. I understand that they didn’t want to surpass or reveal anything that the manga has or anything that hasn’t been explored yet. This was made in a way that you wouldn’t feel really lost if you didn’t watch this and just continued with the manga. It was more of a side story. Plus, as a person who is constantly anxious, predictability is great. Don’t judge me.

The pacing was a little bit fast, but as an anime movie, it would be a bit crazy to have any expectations. Just be glad it wasn’t a complete recap. I think this movie would’ve benefited from being an OVA instead of just a movie, but that would’ve changed so many things in production. I will take what I can get.

I won’t get into the details of everything that was predictable. That would take too long, but the little things like the pill that Dazai took, why Ranpo put the snacks into a safe, the abilities attacking, how that would all work, everyone surviving (because as I said, this movie would not interfere with the major overarching story), etc. Also, I think we all know that Dazai and Ranpo know everything that’s going to happen. There’s no way that they can lose, and not for a single second did they convince me that the agency or anyone was in a pinch. The entire time felt as if it was under their control. In that sense, it almost belittled the villains slightly. Fyodor probably knew that and backed off to make another more prominent appearance later. Shibusawa was disappointing. For a villain that is so hyped and with an ability so outstanding, he was one of the biggest letdowns about the movie. The dragon was also disappointing just because I feel like it was meant to represent the “Tiger vs Dragon” cliche, but I was not too hyped about that. Just everything about Shibusawa and his actions I felt were not as well thought out as I wanted them to be. I knew that the “good side” was going to win, but his final form looked kind of like a joke (comparing to their usual high-quality character designs), and he didn’t put up as much of a fight as I thought they would have. The other ADA members barely make any appearances until the end, and I feel like they missed an opportunity with that. I understand that they were pressed for time though so I will let that slide... (begrudgingly)

I was pleased with the music and animation. Studio Bones did a pretty good job. The music did a wonderful job complimenting the visuals, and my attention was captured by the changes of tone and texture (if I can use that word) of the music. I was really surprised by the sophistication. I mean, it wasn’t the best anime music OST by any means, but it was good enough to suffice. Nothing extremely extraordinary. But GRANRODEO made a great inserted song that was placed in some reused visuals (too bad they didn’t animate all the visuals new) and some new visuals (mostly just the characters with a caption to describe their abilities) was good for hyping the audience. It was well-written and perfectly set the mood up for epicness. The ending by Luck Life was to be expected, and I loved it. I all the BSD endings, so the fact that they got back into it with a nice song addition to this movie was amazing. They reused the second OP during the final fight. I’ll be honest, they didn’t do as great of a job with this, but that was for one reason: the sound mixing made everything else drown out the song. I understand that everyone has probably heard the song beforehand, but I wish there was more balance.

Now onto voice acting... Bungou Stray Dogs has a great cast. None of the cast is really “newcomers” except for Atsushi’s seiyuu Uemura Yuuto whose role was one of his first major ones. I believe he was a student beforehand though. I think he’s getting a lot more roles now.

I think I’ve finally gotten used to Kensho Ono playing Akutagawa. At first, I didn’t think he would fit the role too well. I thought they just did it to put in a big name, but I don’t mind it now. He does bring a certain tone to the character that is unique to him.

Fyodor was a mixed choice for me in terms of how I liked it. I know that Akira Ishida is definitely not new. He has so many roles under his name that range in character type and personality, but I almost felt as if they could’ve done better. I would’ve appreciated it if they opened the cast to more new voice actors. Maybe this role would be too big for someone who is new, but as much as Ishida’s portrayal wasn’t bad by any means, I would’ve been open to other interpretations of the complex and witty character. The reason why I think Akira Ishida fit (despite him being Katsura in Gintama) is because he still brought the tone of the character to life. He still had the charisma of the character. He was good; he just wasn’t great.

Now for the choice of Shibusawa... I wasn’t really pleased. Kazuya Nakai is definitely talented as a voice actor, but his voice just didn’t resonate with me well. Shibusawa was disappointing for me as a character. I expected him to be more sophisticated, but that voice just didn’t do it. It’s one thing for the writing, but I know Nakai for voicing quirkier thugs and goofy samurai (just look at him in Gintama. You’ll get what I mean). Alternatives for this role? I wouldn’t know who would fit. Here are some alternatives off the top of my head: Satoshi Hino, Morikawa Toshiyuki, Hikaru Midorikawa, Tomokazu Seki, Nakata Jouji, Shinichiro Miki, etc. These are all veterans who I know have the range for this.

Character development in this movie wasn’t bad, but be sure that you have the popular opinion because if you don’t like Atsushi, Kyouka, Akutagawa, or Chuuya, sorry, but you can just sit your butthurt baggage over on the side. I know. It sucks, but they only had so much time. I already said that they would’ve done better with an OVA for the proper development and pacing, but just be glad that we got this for now. BSD doesn’t do the best job with their side characters, but that’s a rant for another time.

Atsushi was a little bit annoying in this film. He was constantly having to get himself together, and I felt like Kyouka was carrying him along half the time. I didn’t entirely mind this though because Kyouka is my favourite, and her strength and resilience was nice for me to watch. But Atsushi really came through (a little rushed) at the end. His backstory was a little shallow. I expected more out of it. I understand that they had limited time, but I felt as if they have a gold mine of development there. They had so much potential and the timing was perfect. They just decided not to really touch it.

Dazai got enough screen time. Was he the main character? Not really. But let’s be real, Dazai gets more than enough the rest of the time. You knew that he was pulling strings the entire time anyway. The Oda recap was really sweet though. That moment where they shared a flashback conversation was beautifully done and stood out to me. They didn’t beat it to death either. Nicely done.

Chuuya. Not going to lie, he’s a little overrated by the fandom, but he adds a good amount of vulgarity to add to the comedic factor. I’m not sure how I feel about him having such a big impact everywhere. I wanted to see some of the others. But I don’t hate him. He relies on Dazai a bit much for my liking, and he did play a major role in the final fight which I still have a mixed opinion about. His voice acting at that point in the final fight was not living up to expectations, but Kishou Taniyama provided that amazing opening, so he gets a pass automatically.

Akutagawa got quite a bit of screen time, but I felt like they didn’t develop him with any of it. We didn’t get to see any more depth than we already had. We didn’t learn anything about him. We were just shown same old Akutagawa. I didn’t mind it. He was epic. He did provide enjoyment.

Kyouka. This made me so happy. I saw a newer side of her that I already knew existed. She was such a badass that I couldn’t complain. I would’ve loved to see more about her and her backstory. We saw a brief visual of her mother. That was about it. The manga explores her past a little more, but I thought the movie would’ve touched on that a bit more from what I saw in the trailer. I am still extremely happy with her appearance in the movie. It was one of the most enjoyable things for me because she is my favourite character.

Fyodor got screen time. Not much. His presence was slightly brought to the side. You could tell that he was held off for later though. I think he’s going to be more involved in the manga, so let’s give this one a pass too.

I’m not going to talk about anyone else because there isn’t much to talk about when it comes to anyone else. They all stayed pretty much the same. I don’t think we expected anything though. This is kind of just a side story after all.

Did I enjoy this movie? Absolutely. Of course. I enjoyed it. There’s no doubt about that. I would push aside problems with the movie in a heartbeat. Those cute Atsushi x Kyouka moments are enough to keep me going for weeks. Kyouka getting screen time made me so happy.

NOW TIME FOR THE LINKS!

Music:

Want to listen to the BSD Dead Apple OST? https://bsd-bibliophile.tumblr.com/search/music You’ll most likely be able to find it here! The OST is nice to listen to. I highly recommend listening to it and following this account (you probably do already though)

For additional music recommendations, I highly suggest you check out the artists connected to this movie including: - GRANRODEO - Luck Life - Taku Iwasaki (the score writer) Iwasaki is known for a lot of other anime as well. He’s really talented!

Studio Bones (animation):

Want to know what other anime Studio Bones has done? Check out this video: https://youtu.be/Y1-i1sbDNLQ Noragami, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, My Hero Academia? These people are top-tier animators.

Seiyuu Recommendations for Shibusawa:

Curious about why I thought of these names? Here are some compilations of their other roles: - Satoshi Hino: https://youtu.be/B5gVmf0zwus - Morikawa Toshiyuki: https://youtu.be/INiLyrlRCmY - Hikaru Midorikawa: https://youtu.be/EAU4Fu49Yz0 - Tomokazu Seki: https://youtu.be/8iN0f7bHy0Y - Nakata Jouji: https://youtu.be/YAMJqU_3480 - Shinichiro Miki: https://youtu.be/yteyBKbVRIc These might not fit since this about personal preference, but it is food for thought!

Shibusawa’s seiyuu (Nakai Kazuya) other roles: https://youtu.be/7GV5vYhLMAw And if you’re curious, this is what I heard when I saw Shibusawa: https://youtu.be/7GV5vYhLMAw https://youtu.be/6x7_1GJ3F8w (He’s the guy with the black hair) ^ His role in Gintama is iconic, and I find a lot of these scenes funny.

Miscellaneous Videos:

This is a hodgepodge playlist of BSD-related content. You have the crack videos and hand-animated content and parodies, the seiyuu songs, their other roles, and some anime snippets. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGH6abWmUXgPnoHTOHyeeXyG6s_WINyzB

Shameless Self-Promo!

Tumblr: https://nsisbest385.tumblr.com (main) https://natsspammityspamspamham.tumblr.com (...spam if you didn’t sense that)

YouTube: BSD-Inspired music: https://youtu.be/sfnN6eqUfEs Reason Living (Cover): https://youtu.be/-rlSxB6CZrE Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRETNNIpCqiarbeuJoGrjBA

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #kyouka izumi #atsushi x kyouka #bsd dead apple #spoilers #bsd spoilers #atsushi nakajima #akutagawa #meh as if people read tags and whatnot haha

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youngrevolutionary · 7 years

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This is just a personal rant. Insecurities and fandom stuff. You're free to offer advice if you have any, reassurance if I'm doing something right, gentle criticism if you think I could do something differently --

I'm relatively new to RP and Tumblr in general. I don't have a deeply-rooted establishment with other users that go back years.

I don't have a huge following I don't... think? And honestly, I really don't care about how many people follow me, just how many people follow me who enjoy what I create and what I write on this website. It sounds like a canned response but I genuinely do mean this. I don't want to pad my follower count because... why?

Point being, I don't subscribe to age-old Tumblr RP/fandom 'rules' because I don't understand it.

When I joined Tumblr it was because someone reposted a thing I did for Zell from DeviantArt. They didn't credit me with a direct link, just said "Zell by SynnoveD" and moved on.

Honestly, I got a bit irked by that because the least they could do was link it back to my original post. But whatever, I got on, started a blog, and decided yay! I'll write my fanfic and post it here!

And it was received... somewhat better than I had anticipated. I was hella intimidated, truthfully. There were a lot of 'famous' fanfic writers that I admired so greatly who were liking my posts and following me back. I got starstruck over a few and when I found out about RP I dove right in and... well, here we are.

I never got into the whole... fandom culture thing. I've loved this game and the characters I write for 18 years and it wasn't until a few years ago that I realized there was even an active community with a collective interest for VIII.

I learned so much. I made so many new friends. I introduced new ideas (which I quickly learned were called 'headcanons' and I was even more ecstatic to hear about how so many people shared in the same thoughts and feelings that I had about Seifer and everything else.) I remember having conversations regarding a few of these 'popular' blogs where they had never considered behaviors about Seifer in the way that I had been all this time.

I was so happy. I found a 'home' online. That is until anons came.

And when anons came, they tore apart my fanfics. They told me 'No, Rinoa wouldn't do that.' or 'Squall would NEVER do this...' Headcanons were interpretations of a character, are they not? Why was it so wrong of me to portray the things I had in this light?

More came, more OOC talk in tiny IM windows happened and I quickly started to feel a bit pushed out because if I said one thing, then it would contradict this 'older, better' thing.

So I moved to RP, and I kept a few of these friends. But later, as I started developing Seifer, as I started gaining a presence and becoming a sought-after blog, people started distancing themselves from me.

What changed? Had my behavior been different? I did begin to feel extremely confident in my portrayal. Had that come off as arrogant and offended somebody? After a few toxic situations, I had to put my foot down in some cases for my own mental health's sake, had cutting bad people out of my life resulted in negative consequences? Because they were 'popular' or otherwise, influential blogs?

Last year began a huge shift in the fandom where suddenly I had become this horrible person and I didn't know why. Nobody would tell me. And then once the drama had subsided, after all the bullshit had died away, I started getting messages, people telling me things about a person I had blocked and the things they said and...

Goddamn. I'm just here to write.

I don't understand. I feel like I missed the whole 'here's everything you need to survive Tumblr and not offend anybody' lesson.

Anyway.

I feel shut out of my own fandom. I don't know if it's because the fandom is so small on the RP side or if I've written or made a headcanon that personally offended somebody... I just don't know. I feel so painfully self-conscious about writing ANYTHING in VIII because it's only a matter of a few days after where someone will post something to contradict what I've already written. And this isn't just with Seifer. God, I can't write anything unique on Zell either be in RP or fanfic community. I remember getting an anon harshly criticizing my decisions on how to write Zell in my epic fanfic.

No offense but none of us own these characters. We're free to write them as we see fit. If I can have a murderous/bipolar Zell, the fandom can have their bdsm semi-noncon SeiferxSquall lemons and Genderswap!AU's.

But back on topic -- Genuinely, sincerely, from the deepest part of my soul, I'm not here to intentionally piss people off. I don't want that. I want community and I want people to write together and just be happy and enjoy this amazing talent we're all capable of.

Just.... hgh. I'll delete this later, I just needed to write this out so it wasn't stuck in my head. Maybe someone will read this and have an idea, or know something and they can maybe fill me in on a part that I'm leaving out or missing.

And for future reference, if I ever offend you. Yes, you who have taken the time to read all of this -- if I ever offend or say something you disagree with or maybe make a comment that upsets you, I encourage you to come to me in private and let's talk. Can we please push aside our anxieties and insecurities and bring forward what is really bothering us instead of this dancing around the subject?

If you read all of this, thank you. I know it's a lot to write and I apologize for clogging the dash. I just needed to get this out.

I worry about me writing so much in my AUs and not focusing enough on VIII but how can I write in VIII when the RP community is so small and disagrees with my interpretations?

#out of mercy // ooc #;tbd

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