#that's the natural progression of his character arc

[fairly-local-fairy]

If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a million times: one does not simply get that far into the movie and expect him to not fuck the dirt. Barry ate with that improv.

[strawberry-carpcake]

I hate that the atla remake toned down Sokkas sexism for the sake of not being offensive bc honestly I think it’s MORE offensive that it’s not included bc they are basically saying that it’s not important enough to teach those lessons and it’s negative to prevent toxic masculinity 🫶 As a girl I loved seeing the sexism in atla, I loved the lesson that it taught and I loved that all the girls were capable and strong but some of them were STILL FEMININE (cough cough Katara. The new show ruined that too)

While I’m talking about Katara, they ruined her too, not just Sokka. Where’s her rage? Her hurt? Her anger? Let her be angry. She’s 14 fighting in a war, she’s supposed to be mad. I loved her anger it was real and gave her flaws and depth. And also she’s supposed to be motherly. What’s bad about that? There’s nothing sexist about that? Some girls DO want to be that way? Also, it’s supposed to show how she was forced to take the role of her mother as a CHILD bc of the fire nation. It shows the negative effects of war and the loss of innocence, it was so important why is that gone???

[bylertruther]

i don't like season three when viewing it as a continuation of seasons one and two, but i do very much like season three when viewing it as the prequel to seasons four and five... hmmmmm.

[itsthenovelteafactor]

i'm watching carnival row right now and honestly, i think it's really good but i only have a few episodes left and i know in my heart it's not going to end with polyamory even though it really should end with polyamory

[dapperrokyuu]

Read ~60 chapters of Chainsaw Man today, WHEWWWWW-

[a-very-fond-farewell]

pumpkin gnocchi with sausage-based ragú spoke to me in a dream so I think I should really write tonight

[queencvbra]

listen I know s.creenrant is basically all about clickbait and viewfarming but that article they posted saying Tory shouldn’t join MD/EF and she is, quote, “Kreese’s path to redemption” is an affront to god and I cannot understate how much I HATE that take

[elle-smells]

What are your thoughts on S3 of Young Royals? I'm still on Ep 3, and so far, I'm pretty underwhelmed (I'm mostly bored by how much screentime August takes)

better than s2. i mean the pacing and actual plot is more entertaining to me. they will never top s1 I fear. maybe its for the better.

anyway everyone except simon is pissing me off lmao BUT it does built up to a pretty good climax so 4 stars

[cinnabeat]

i cant remember if i said this or not but i was saying how i dont think the reveal about iruma being a human was being teased cuz the progress for it was all very natural but now that the fucking reveal was cockblocked TWICE by a fucking phone call im willing to retract my statement

[nicossunshine]

“Jason was so boring” “Jason had no personality” what are you talking about

Jason Grace was a child soldier and the son of the KING OF THE GODS. The pressure on him was so huge and the training of the Roman legions was so intense all he ever really did was train. As soon as he was old enough he was put in positions of leadership and power cause he’s the son of Jupiter, leader of the gods, he must be a natural born leader, right?

But his entire character arc revolves around him realising that he can be more than what the Romans made him into, that he can have his own opinions, his own hobbies, love who he wants, live where he wants.

He was the first person to start defending Nico, the first to accept Nico and tell him sincerely that there was nothing wrong with him and that everyone at BOTH camps would accept him and have his back - and if they didn’t they’d have Jason to answer to.

He was sure to always give Reyna the credit she deserved and constantly felt guilty for when he made her shoulder the responsibilities. Throughout HoH he’s got half of his mind on her, praying she’s okay, tracking her progress in his dreams because gods FORBID anything happen to that brilliant woman whom he loved platonically but wholeheartedly.

When they found Leo again after he was at Ogygia, Jason recognised in an instant just from the way Leo was sitting that something was off. When everyone pestered him with questions, Jason took charge to get the limelight off of Leo as much as possible, and checked in with him the minute they were alone.

Jason Grace is fiercely loving, always looks out for those who need support, always sides with the underdogs, always does what’s right even when it’s hard, often does what’s expected even when he doesn’t want to, but if he can take the burden off of someone else he will ALWAYS step up.

He has the honour and bravery of a soldier and carries all of the trauma and doubt that comes with it.

And on top of all of this he was just seventeen years old.

Jason Grace isn’t boring, it just took some time for us to understand why he acts the way he does - always composed and in charge. He is not perfect, but he was always trained/expected to be, and watching the perfect mask crack and seeing his true inner thoughts throughout HoO is what makes his character so interesting.

[elementroar]

Analysis behind the backstory and personal story arcs of A.B.A. and Paracelsus (part 1)

Sorry for the people who waited. Technical and real life delays and all that. On the positive, I happened to run into new resources in the past two days that have helped lining up the facts easier.

Anyway, I originally wanted to compress all the lore into a single post, but I find it’s so much more massive once you really dig into the analysis between the story across multiple mediums, the in-game animations and interactions etc. To make this more readable for you all and to make creating these posts faster, I’m going to separate them up into parts that focus on different facets of their relationship and lore as I progress through them.

This first part goes into their origins, and I hope this big post helps to thoroughly explain who/what A.B.A. and Paracelsus are, their backstories prior to STRIVE, and my own analysis sprinkled on top. I want to try to keep the info/lore dump minimal and focused, so if I mention a character without elaborating, I’ll leave a link but if I’m not elaborating more, it’s because they’re not relevant to A.B.A/Paracelsus' stories that much.

Related links:

Analysis of Paracelsus' initial bloodlust and its longlasting effects on A.B.A (Part 2)

This is the "Why ABA and Paracelsus can feel horny" lore/theory post

Flament Nagel - Paracelsus’ true form theory

The Red King and White Queen alchemical concept in A.B.A and Paracelsus’ relationship

The beginning with A.B.A.

First off, to introduce their individual origins, it’s easiest to start with A.B.A. She’s a homunculus, an artificial lifeform created by a scientist in his mansion, which was located in the mountains of a region called Frasco or Flask. But before she was ‘born’, her creator had been taken away by the military for his skills in creating artificial life, and so A.B.A. woke up alone.

Despite this, within the 10 years she spent alone in the mansion she was able to learn to read, write, and even create some alchemical magic (seen in some of her attacks in games before -STRIVE-). It’s assumed either she was created with a set of memories and skills, or she naturally learns very quickly. It’s probably due to reading leftover journals and research materials that she even learnt her creator’s name was Paracelsus.

Technically, A.B.A. could’ve left the manor quite easily, there was even a village not far from them. However, she understood that she knew nothing about the world outside and was scared to leave the safety of the manor by venturing outside to explore the unknown world. But she did yearn for freedom and to leave Frasco, so she took to fixating on keys, which she found fascinating in being able to unlock doors to different places.

In the last bit of her 10 years in Frasco, A.B.A would accidentally cross paths with the hidden the demon axe Flament Nagel (which she would later rename to ‘Paracelsus’ in honour of her creator, or just cos that’s the only other name she actually knew).

What’s a demon axe doing here anyway?

So what is Paracelsus? He is what’s known as a magical foci, which are objects or even people that get a soul or a collection of memories/emotions/desires attached to them, which eventually leads to them gaining sentience and often supernatural abilities. They draw from the Backyard, which is basically where the information that makes up all reality is stored in the Guilty Gear world, and also the source of magic. This is the origin of ‘demons’ within the GG world, like Paracelsus.

The story of how Paracelsus/Flament Nagel ended up in Frasco actually involves the ancient Nightwalker (technically not a vampire but he's basically a vampire without the bad stuff) known as Slayer.

Now Slayer is this incredibly old, incredibly strong vampire Nightwalker, who nonetheless is a very nice guy who doesn’t need to feed on regular people because his wife, Sharon, is a deathless woman that he can feed on indefinitely without worrying about her dying.

Because of his immense age (AFAIK he’s the oldest of the main GG cast) and overwhelming power (he always holds back in-game), he has very insightful observations of Paracelsus and A.B.A.

The following screenshots are excerpts taken from the English transcript (available here) translated from the Night of Knives Vol.2 audio drama CD (you can listen to it here), and are from the perspective of Slayer recounting his encounters with Paracelsus and A.B.A.

Sometime near the end of the 100 year long war between Gears and humans known as the Crusades, Slayer was roaming a battlefield and came across a mountain of corpses of both Gears and humans. In the middle of it was a wandering blood covered warrior that was swinging an axe wildly. After confronting the man, Slayer realized that it was the axe that was the true master, the man had already lost his mind and was under its full control.

That axe called itself Flament Nagel aka the Flaming Nail, or the Sanguine Gale. I'll still be referring to him as Paracelsus at this point in time though.

Now magical foci start off simple-minded, only repeating small word fragments, and evolve over time to become more intelligent and sapient. At this point, young Paracelsus was a demon axe who had just gained sentience on that battlefield. Hot-headed and hungry for blood, and wanting to prove his combat superiority, he challenged Slayer and got curb stomped. Slayer was disappointed in how primitive Paracelsus still was in mind and soul, so he left him there to rust.

However eventually, Paracelsus was picked up from that battlefield and was sent to the alchemist Paracelsus, creator of A.B.A. We don’t know if the alchemist knew what the demon axe was, or whether he even requested him specifically for research. But the alchemist ultimately didn’t let Paracelsus out, not letting him take control over him and hiding him somewhere in the depths of his mansion.

(Inaccurate information removed, updating with A.B.A.'s JP GG World entry from XRD)

It would be after A.B.A.’s 10 year long isolation that she decided for reasons unknown, to leave the mansion and explore the outside world. By pure chance, she comes across Paracelsus, who because kinda resembled a key, she immediately picked up and she fell in love with him and decided they were married from then on.

Becoming her key

It's always been known that Paracelsus has some form of empathic abilities, and that he could tell that A.B.A. was fixated on keys and assumed the shape of a giant key to entice her to wield him. This was also the first ‘manipulation’ that Paracelsus admitted he had done to A.B.A. during their heart-to-heart talk.

It’s been further clarified in this recent interview, that it wasn’t so much Paracelsus deliberately taking the form of a key to attract ABA, but because ABA had been so heavily fixated on keys that she saw Paracelsus as a key straight away. That image she had of him as a key seemed to immediately imprint itself on him the moment she touched him, because of his true nature as “an axe (that) transforms into the owner’s image” of what his wielder wants him to be.

Slayer actually did mention this was likely the case over 20 IRL years ago in the audio drama CD, when he observed Paracelsus behaviour with A.B.A. in their second encounter.

Because A.B.A. never sees Paracelsus as a weapon, Paracelsus began to change to fit her ideal of what she saw him as, to become something more than just a weapon, and allowing Paracelsus to truly change and evolve physically and emotionally.

It’s important to note, Paracelsus isn’t bound to his wielder, and he doesn’t HAVE to allow this to happen either. Despite being dragged around by A.B.A. and acting like he has no autonomy; he actually has all the power to stop her from the start.

As Slayer notes, Para still has the power to completely take over A.B.A. 's mind and force her to do what he wants if he is truly unhappy. However he has never even threatened A.B.A. with this ability, and if not for Slayer knowing his past, no one would know Paracelsus actually can do this.

Whether consciously or subconsciously, Para was becoming more than just a demon axe from the moment he met A.B.A., and in his heart of hearts, he was begrudgingly accepting of his then situation-ship with her.

Fast forward to STRIVE and it's shown that he still continues to evolve to fulfill her 'vision' of what he is. When described as becoming more key-like, it's more obvious when you place both his old and new design side-by-side.

Notably, the blade part of his axe form has gotten smaller by STRIVE, just as he has sworn off violence and bloodshed by STRIVE.

It's even shown in how A.B.A. wields him., especially when Para partially possess or influences A.B.A. in his Muroha mode in the old games (mechanically this is the Jealous Mode in STRIVE). A.B.A. would wield him like a proper 'axe' blade-first in XX/ACCENT CORE. In STRIVE, since A.B.A. is now the dominant one in Jealous Rage mode, she doesn't wield him like an axe and now wields him by...bashing his head into people.

(Also I'll be going over the in-game animations and what they convey in a future post, don't you worry! You can view the comparison compilation here first.)

This even is shown in how A.B.A. uses Paracelsus as an actual key in her Overdrive "Keeper of the Key", which is a new move for her.

If we go further, I have speculated in this semi-crack theory that due to A.B.A. also interjecting her ideal of Paracelsus being her spouse over the years, that him actually 'reacting' to her advances now could also be an example of his evolution.

Even if he's trying REAL hard not to.

Hope this was an enjoyable read, let me know if you have any suggestions for improving readability or other stuff. Feel free to ask me questions through the inbox in the mean time that I'm working on the next part.

The next part is going to be analyzing and comparing Paracelsus' XX/ACCENT CORE Muroha mode to STRIVE's Jealous Rage mode, which has quite a bit of detail from comparing their effects on A.B.A. in in-game sprites/animations, plus how it reflects on the change in their power dynamics between games.

Edit: Part 2 available here

[everybody-loves-purdy]

Tawnypelt should have had the arc Brambleclaw had in TNP. She had all the correct set up while he didn’t.

Bramblepaw outright rejected his father, Tawnypaw did not, she even joined his clan, it stands to reason that she would be more easily swayed by his spirit.

Tawnypelt had several cats actively doubting her loyalty in TNP, even saying things to her face, Brambleclaw did not.

It just feels the TNP Brambleclaw arc would have been a more natural progression of Tawnypelt’s character arc than his.

Also if Tawnypelt was faced with killing Blackstar then maybe the fact that Blackstar is a recent war criminal could play into her hesitancy to save him as well as ambition.

While Brambleclaw’s hesitancy is just purely driven by ambition, and it feels especially cold given the closeness he and Firestar had come to have at this point. Meanwhile Tawnypelt and Blackstar’s relationship was rocky in TNP.

[heademptyonlydoomsday]

I think that a lot of the time when people talk about Chip and his upbringing they don’t realize how influential Price was.

Here’s the thing, without Reuben I believe Chip fully would’ve been able to move on from the Black Rose. I mean when you look at Lizzie she moved on almost completely and has a new life but Chip is stuck. The difference between what happened between them was that Lizzie was able to stick to her morals, she was able to follow a path she wanted and she kept the lessons they taught her. But Chip went to Price. He was forced to do things he didn’t believe in to survive. And more than that, acting that way and appealing to Price meant that he recieved love. And when I listen back to the Fey Wild arc and Chip says, ”Well he isn’t here” to justify doing something bad I can only think of Price because those words are the words he said to Chip about Arlin. After a while that thought drove deep into him. But the thing is he knows that the things he does (that Reuben taught) are bad and he wants to be a better person but he can’t because Arlin isn’t here. Chip doesn’t think he can be a good person without Arlin. So he looks for him because that is the closest he can get to self improvement. He’s hoping that Arlin will be his savior. He’s hoping that when he saves Arlin he will be forgiven for his sins. Captain Reuben Price made it so Chip could never fully move on.

This is one of the reasons I love his character so much which is funny because initially I absolutely hated him. He took advantage of Gillions naïve view on the world and he did initially use Gillion and Jay to forward his goal of finding Arlin. Trying to become a good person while being a bad friend. But he does become better at it. Through their adventures he’s become a much better person but, like with what happened with the lie with Edyn, he keeps messing up and he’s exhausted. Now he thinks that finding Arlin will stop that. He thinks it will mean no more mistakes like becoming a good or perfect person is a switch he can flip. So far he’s becoming better naturally but what does happen when he finds Arlin and as I suspect Arlin is changed and doesn’t like Chip anymore or what if he’s dead. Then Chip has no savior. Despite all the progress he has made he’ll give up on the idea of becoming a good person. He’ll think he’s broken beyond repair and I fear for him.

All this to say I hate Reuben Price.

[ask-whitepearl-and-steven]

I was going through my quarterly reread of the comic, and I guess it kinda just hit me how White Diamond!Steven doesn't have nearly as many allies as Canon!Steven did.

Obviously there's Lapis, and how WD!Steven scared her enough that she doesn't consider him a friend, unlike Canon!Lapis who was friends with Steven.

Then there's Peridot, and how events in the story kinda made it so the characters figured out the cluster deal without her help.

Of course it's not as though WD!Steven made no allies/friends, there's obviously Sea Glass.

But it's just really interesting to see how the themes differ from the show to the comic. Lapis' and Peridot's redemption played into the show's themes of second chances, change, and growth. While the comic definitely shares some of those themes, it's really interesting to see how they differ telling them, and how the whole vibe of the show is kinda thrown off as WD!Steven fails to gain the friends Canon!Steven did.

My question is this: was WD!Steven not gaining the trust and friendship Canon!Steven did intentional? Is it, or was it, ever a struggle to not include their redemption arcs when they were both such a pivotal moment(s) in the show?

You know, that's a good question.

I think in a sense it WAS intentional? Because WD!Steven has never been quite as trusting as Canon!Steven. He was far more cautious and less available from the very beginning.

Even when he freed Lapis (doing so out of his sense of responsibility) he didn't quite trust her enough to let her get away.

And the same with Peridot - though he tried to reach out, he would have never been able to let her run loose like Canon!Steven had.

In that sense, Yes! The fact that WD!Steven doesn't trust people enough is a very intentional plot point.

But at the same time, I don't know that I intentionally trimmed his Allies List. I think it was just a natural development of the storyline's progression.

I don't really mind not including redemption arcs that were in the original story because... well... they already happened!

I really love the original show, and I don't feel like it needs to be retold in a different color palette. I'm much more curious to explore the roads not taken. :)

[david-talks-sw]

What's 'Star Wars' about?

A while ago I got an 'Ask' that concluded with "what is Star Wars about, if not the Jedi, right?" And weirdly enough... I have to disagree.

I mean... to me? Yes. Star Wars is about the Jedi. A Jedi-less, Sith-less, lightsaber-less Star Wars movie or series will struggle to get me on board (which is why I was surprised that I loved Andor so much).

But if you read everything George Lucas said, if you think about the Jedi's place in his two trilogies... they're not front and center, right?

Sure, there's Luke Skywalker... but he's a learner, in the Original Trilogy. Same goes for Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, in the Prequels. They're going through character arcs.

Otherwise, the Jedi are either used as mentors to the protagonist...

... or to deliver exposition...

... but they're mostly vectors Lucas uses to present his thesis.

Functionally-speaking, the Jedi are important in that they embody the Buddhist philosophies the movie's themes are based on.

But when it comes to the plot, they're secondary. That's because the the themes of these films are bigger than the Jedi themselves.

So the question becomes... what's are the themes?

The primary goal of the Star Wars films is to inspire kids to start thinking outside the box and teach them a set of values and psychological motifs that have been passed down through mythology and fairy tales.

These values can be summed up in the dichotomy between greed and compassion / selfishness and selflessness / pleasure and joy.

We all have both aspects and need to strike a balance between the two. After all, being greedy ultimately comes from fear and being afraid can happen to all of us. Problem is, unchecked fear can lead to anger, hate and a whole lot of suffering.

The more selfish you are, the more you want things and the more you're afraid that you'll lose everything you have, you'll get angry when someone tries to take it and that will hurt everyone around you.

In other words, fear is the path to the tempting/addictive Dark Side.

Thus, seeing as we'll be inevitably tempted by the Dark Side and give in at some point (because nobody's perfect), we should aim to be as selfless and compassionate as possible for our own good... but also for the greater good, because we're all connected to a life energy. You can call it Qi or God; in Star Wars it's known as the Force.

As such, we all form a symbiotic circle and working with that in mind is better than putting ourselves first and draining from everything and everyone around us.

But we also need to be careful because there will be people who give in to that selfish side and will try to control everything. When the time comes, we must stand up for what's right.

So that's Lucas' thesis.

If I had to sum them up, the six movies illustrate it as follows:

The Prequel Trilogy is about the consequences of greed, explored through Anakin on a smaller scale and the Senate on a larger one.

The Original Trilogy shows the triumph of compassion, through Luke, Leia & Han and the Rebellion's fight against the Empire.

Lucas talked about it multiple times, the Prequels are about how Anakin becomes Darth Vader and how the Republic becomes the Empire, and in both those cases, it happens because they're greedy.

The Senate is greedy in the more classical sense. They could give a shit about "symbiosis", no they're taking bribes, letting corporations dictate policy, using loopholes to keep themselves in power and halting any meaningful progress out of fear that the new status quo will conflict with their own self-serving goals.

Anakin's greed manifests in a different way. He turns to the Dark Side because of his attachment. He wants to stop Padmé from dying... but not because he wants to save her, rather he wants to save himself from feeling the pain of loss again and will do anything to not have to live without her, her own wishes and the natural cycle of life and death be damned.

In both cases, they cave under pressure orchestrated by Palpatine, but nobody puts a gun to their head. They make a deliberate choice that comes from a selfish place, and neither one takes personal responsibility for it, they blame others, the Separatists in the case of the Senate and the Jedi in Anakin's case.

The Republic becomes an Empire with thunderous applause, betraying the people it was meant to protect.

And when faced between doing something he knows is right and giving in to his selfish desires...

... Anakin elects to do the latter, thus betraying his family and leaving the Force in darkness.

These selfish choices impact the galaxy as a whole, including the only characters in the trilogy who were doing their best to be compassionate and live in symbiosis: the Jedi, Padmé and Bail.

These champions of the Light Side are stuck playing catch-up or helplessly witnessing the events unfold, throughout the trilogy. They're playing by the rules and Palpatine uses this to his advantage.

Thus, as the galaxy tears itself apart because of Palpatine's manipulations, the Jedi and Bail are ignored and gradually weakened until they're either rendered irrelevant or killed.

A new order is born, one built on blood, lies and greed: the Empire.

But a new hope remains.

While before, the Jedi and people like Bail stood alone as everything around them became willfully corrupt... now, a Rebellion inspired by their legacy has banded together to overthrow the current order. But they don't fight for power or personal glory, they fight for altruistic, compassionate reasons. There's a sense of general responsibility that moves them, they're all doing their part.

On a larger scale, we focus on the Rebels, who are tired of seeing people suffer and decided this needs to stop. They have gone from being passive, to proactive.

On a more personal scale, we see the evolution of Luke, from naive farmer to a hero, and guess what? More and more selfish people - like Han or Lando - are inspired to join the Rebellion, after seeing the exploits of Luke, Leia, or even Ben.

It all culminates in the final film, wherein:

The Rebels band together with the Ewoks - literal teddy bears whom the Empire, in their arrogance, never even considered to be a threat - to destroy the Second Death Star and free the galaxy from imperial tyranny.

At the same time, Emperor Palpatine pressures Luke, who is tempted by the Dark Side like his father was.

But instead of giving in to his selfish desire to kill Darth Vader for all the horrors he's done...

... he finds the strength to rise above it, instead showing compassion for his father, which, in turn, inspires Anakin to do the same.

He faces a choice, like he did in Palpatine's office, two decades prior...

... and this time he chooses right.

Children teach you compassion. Anakin lets go of his fear and anger, and saves his son at the cost of his own life, finally bringing balance back to the Force.

Good triumphed over evil. Its champions achieved victory by being selfless, hopeful and fighting together / helping each other.

And that's it, that's how the movies thematically tie together.

As you can see, the Jedi aren't that directly impactful on the overall plot, because it revolves around Anakin, Luke and the respective factions/institutions around them.

But what the Jedi do bring to the table is their ability to teach and inspire others, both in-universe and out. They're spiritually impactful.

The Jedi are the epitome of compassion, and it's partially through them that George Lucas teaches his values to the audience.

[hamletteprinceofdenmark]

Okay so like to fully understand the absolute bonkers mess that is Benedick and Beatrice’s relationship please know that it is Really Heavily Implied that before the play starts they actually DID DATE in secret and were courting each other and then Benedick fucked up by being One Of The Boys and Beatrice dropped his sorry ass about it and that’s why they’re so brutal and bitter about each other (and also why they’re both so ready to believe that the other one does really love them after all 🥺)

It’s not just that Benedick rejects toxic masculinity and chooses to break ties with his friends and quit his job to stand with the women and hold the people who wronged them accountable. Its that he does all that in part because he failed to step up and do the right thing before and it cost him everything and he’s not going to make that mistake again.

Benedick’s choices aren’t just the natural progression of his character arc, they are specifically a redemption arc that only he and Beatrice are party to.

They are choices that help and protect Hero in the present, and are an apology in action for how he failed Beatrice in the past.