#the pains of loving science but PURELY for the narrative aspects

[zan-the-second]

Everyday I question God why they made me a HUMMS girly with a deep love for science

[tinkertayler]

I'm gonna go on record and say it: John and Aeryn’s love story in Farscape is the most powerful, affective, and dynamic on-screen romance of all time. Not just within the genre of science fiction, either - across ALL genres. I recognize that this is a totally subjective view but it is also objectively correct and yes, your honor, I will provide evidence to support my claim.

I want to start by briefly acknowledging how COMPLEX and multi-faceted their relationship is. It grows and shifts over time and with experience, changing in ways that are organic and believable. The journey they go on over the course of Farscape’s 4 seasons and The Peacekeeper Wars is...utterly INSANE. It's a wild, epic, dramatic, impossible, unbelievable ride. But even when the story is operating at peak levels of insanity, John and Aeryn’s emotions and reactions always feel genuine and true to who they are as characters. The world they exist within may be outlandish, but their choices, growth as individuals, and the development of their relationship is honest. John and Aeryn's romantic narrative is intricate, challenging, emotionally complex, and artfully crafted. If critical analysis of fiction is your thing, they satisfy on an intellectual level.

But I'm not here to talk about the more cerebral aspects of their story. Not to say I don't enjoy stories that stimulate and engage me on an intellectual level - I do - and not to suggest that the thoughtfulness and intelligence behind John and Aeryn’s romance isn't a large part of what makes it work - it is - but “smart” only carries a story so far.

The real key to telling an effective story - especially a romance, but really any narrative about people and interpersonal relationships - is emotional resonance. If it doesn't hit the right emotional marks, if it doesn't feel authentic and move its audience to feel something, then it doesn't matter how great the intellect or ambitious the ideas behind the story are - it’s an automatic fail. I am of the belief that if a great idea is poorly executed, or an interesting set-up has an underwhelming payoff, or an ambitious, highly complex, and technically impressive narrative falls emotionally flat, it is a poor work of art. While I can respect the effort and what the creators hoped to achieve, it's still a failure.

Having said ALL of that - though John and Aeryn are certainly complex, intelligently written, and interesting to critically analyze - in my mind, what makes them truly stand out from other fictional characters, couples, and on-screen romances is the pure, visceral emotional impact they deliver. There are many moments between them which are so beautiful, evocative, and timeless that they are now PERMANENTLY SEARED into my sad little brain:

The slow, gentle, silent seduction that precedes the first night they spend together in “A Human Reaction”. The deep look into each other's eyes and cosmic connection that simmers between them at the end of "The Locket". Their mutual devastation, guilt, and remorse after the events of "... Different Destinations". Their foreheads pressed together, unified by trauma, exhaustion, and unwavering loyalty to each other in “Relativity”. Aeryn - small, fragile, and heartbroken - covering John with a blanket and curling up next to him in “Infinite Possibilities”. Aeryn’s grief and drug-addled hallucinations in “The Choice”. Their argument, steeped in indescribable pain and yearning in “Dog with Two Bones”.

These moments have stuck with me. They have left an indelible mark. They live in my head and my heart, rent free. Sometimes, they drift passively through my awareness; other times, I actively think about them and feel a genuine pang when I do. I simply can’t shake them, and wouldn’t want to even if I could. They haunt me in a way that scenes between two fictional characters have never haunted me before.

If that isn’t indicative of a special kind of story - one that touches something deep, meaningful, emotional, human, profound, and real - then I don’t know what is. And if that doesn’t earn John and Aeryn bragging rights as the greatest on-screen romance of all time, then I don’t know what does.

[thenightling]

Does The Frankenstein Monster have a soul?

    I have seen many strange blog posts and articles recently claiming that Mary Shelley’s creature in the Frankenstein novel does not have a soul.  I believe this does a disservice to Mary Shelley and the intention behind her story.       Before we proceed please note that this is written in the literary context of assuming that within the narrative humans definitely do have souls themselves.       First let is begin with the literal and possibly occult aspects of the Frankenstein Story.  Victor studied the works of Agrippa and Parcelsus in the novel.  Agrippa and Parcelsus were a self-proclaimed sorcerer and alchemist.  Victor was not studying hard science as we know it today, despite what you might see in some Frankenstein movies.   Victor was studying metaphysics and he was still a student when he brought his creature to life.  Many consider Frankenstein to be the first science fiction novel but without the actual description of how he brought his creature to life he could easily be the result of alchemy.   

   At no point does any character in the Frankenstein novel ever refer to The Creature as soulless.  Even Victor, who loathed his creation near the end, never described him as being without a soul. The closest thing to it is when he uses the term “mockery of a human soul” which indicates that what soul The Creature has he sees as an inhuman one.      

     An article from “The Conversationalist” argues that because the eyes are the gateway to the soul that this means The Creature is soulless since his eyes are watery and yellow.  But it is not that The Creature lacks eyes at all. It is that his eyes are different from a human’s.  Watery eyes suggests sad, expressive and tragic.   Eyes are usually watery as a result of deep emotion.   I cannot understand why a description of something often used to convey profound emotion would be used to mean “soulless.”   

     A different Google Search result on the subject of “Does the Frankenstein Monster have a soul” is a teacher’s resource site that claims it would be a good exercise for the class to discuss “Ways in which it is portrayed that The Creature in Frankenstein has no soul.”  But this is, again, pure speculation, and not based on anything of the actual novel.   The essay directly under this described “exercise” talks about how The Creature would not have killed Victor’s loved ones if he had a soul and that a creature with a soul would feel remorse for his actions.

     There are two things wrong with this sample essay.  First, many humans have killed other humans and shown no remorse. That does not mean they do not have a soul.  It means there is something wrong with their conscience.   The second thing the matter with this assumption is at the end of the Frankenstein novel The Creature does show remorse.   He laments the pain and suffering he has caused.   His education had consisted of books that glorified revenge as something noble and righteous and justified such as the actions of both God and Lucifer in John Milton’s Paradise Lost.  And he only learned after the fact that revenge only helped to make him feel more isolated from humanity and actually served to bring him no peace or satisfaction and in fact only helped to make him feel worse than what he already felt.      

  Now onto potentially more subjective content.  

     The Creature, who is well-spoken and articulate in the novel, repeatedly talks about his own soul.   He becomes obsessed with the depictions of Adam and Lucifer in John Milton’s Paradise Lost and is actually a surprisingly spiritual figure. He talks about his own soul frequently and does not seem to have any doubt that he has one.  He also seems quite certain of the fact that he will have an afterlife.  The indication here is simple. If humans have immortal souls that can ascend than logically- as he is capable of the full range of human emotion and thought- so does he.  

     Mary Shelley, herself, has been quoted as calling The Creature a “Poor soul” and “wretched soul” or “a romantic soul” and as she is the author I do not think she chose those wordings lightly.   Note:  I cannot precisely source these quotes at this time but most of what I have written here can easily be found in both the 1818 and 1831 editions of the novel Frankenstein.     

      It is also important to consider that if The Creature was indeed “Soulless” this feels like it would diminish Victor’s accountability for abandoning him, and the world’s fault in rejecting him.  It dampens and potentially ruins the entire idea that you ought to pity The Creature and are supposed to sympathize with him despite the horrible things he has done.  To claim he is without a soul overly exonerates those who have wronged him and immediately dehumanizes him, making the portions of the novel where The Creature tells Victor his own sorrows and experiences practically pointless and creates a barrier between the reader and character.  The ability to sympathize with him is dramatically reduced and I feel this would undermine Mary Shelley’s intentions by dehumanizing him further than Victor already did, and almost justifying mistreatment toward him.            

      It’s an odd thing to me, to see so many comments, articles, and blogs talking about him not having a soul.  I think people forget that in 1818 the soul was usually depicted as a person’s spirit, consciousness that could live on after-death, the part of you that thinks and feels.   Your very awareness.  In the nineteenth century if you could feel emotion and think it was considered a given fact that you have a soul because “You are a soul, you have a body.”   

     It seems that the modern “interpretation” of The Frankenstein Monster being soulless mostly comes from not quite understanding what the nineteenth century described the soul as in most literature.  This wasn’t the TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer where the soul and conscience are easily confused and interchangeable.  

    It’s peculiar to me that a low budget schlock film like “I, Frankenstein” can explore The Frankenstein Creature’s soul and conscience with more respect for the source material and Mary Shelley than some so-called academics.  Kevin Grevioux is a very underrated writer and his film deserved a better budget and care than what it received.  This is why I like that low budget and cheesy little film.  

     In any event, if you are trying to figure out if The Frankenstein Monster has a soul or not I think it is safe to assume that at least the novel’s author and the character, himself, believed that yes, he does have a soul.   And I hope whoever was trying to figure this out heeds this post before the righteous rantings on the Google results from those whom I suspect might not have actually read the novel or may not have wanted to feel compassion toward The Creature.

___________________

Further note:  Lots of people mistakenly think Frankenstein’s main moral is not to play in God’s domain.  

I do not have patience for those with the assumption that the moral of the novel was "Don't play God." That's the 1931 film, not the novel. The themes of the novel included parental responsibility, the need to forgive, the futility of revenge, and judging by appearance.There are literary professors who have assumed the film was accurate in the novel's moral but thankfully most people who read the book know better. The Creature began benign and gentle and only went evil after several instances of mistreatment.  A third of the novel is there just to tell is this.  If simply creating him was Victor's sin then that diminishes Victor's accountability for how he treated him.  It's also why I don't like film versions where The Creature has an "abnormal brain."  It overly justifies the mistreatment of him and exonerates his creator.   If simply creating him was Victor's sin than we would not have been repeatedly told he would have remained Good if he had not been mistreated. Victor's sin wasn't creating him but how he treated him after he was created.  The "I shouldn't have played God thing"  was the 1931 film, not the novel.  Victor, himself, acts as if merely creating him was his sin but The Creature, and (at times) even Victor admitted that The Creature was once benign and gentle, until the cruelties of others got to him. Finally, "Modern Prometheus." PROMETHEUS! Why do so many people think Prometheus was some sinner who was righteously punished? Does no one know Greek mythology anymore? Prometheus was a Titan and the creator of the human race. In short, he was God. Zeus and the new Gods coveted light. The fire Prometheus stole represented knowledge and the power to invent. He gave humans (his own creatures) this and it pissed off Zeus. He severely punished Prometheus but it was unjust and in later myths he was freed. The great centaur who invented medicine even gave up his immortality as payment to keep Zeus from trying to return Prometheus to his punishment.  Mary Shelley's own husband, Percy Shelley, wrote Prometheus Unbound.

[rodpupo2]

Research: Persona Project 

Ronin by Frank Miller

Ronin was a comic released by DC comics in 1983, and was created by Frank Miller, who besides having worked on the script, also worked on the illustrations.

Ronin is a internal evolution of the author, something that translates into a leap in quality in his work, transforming and aesthetically renewing his work.

It’s like stepping out of his comfort zone to face challenges to innovate.

Frank Miller stood out for his ability to break models, to shape a canon to a new look. And when he got to DC, he had a lot of new ideas involving the past and future, honor, society, discipline, technology, science and ecology. Miller’s mind amalgamated all this essence that culminated in this miniseries, overcoming any obstacles and marking the industry.

Ronin is the story of a past and a future that come together through science. From feudal Japan to the most decadent and technified New York, a samurai without a master, will return to solve the mistakes of the past, and do whatever it takes.

Miller brings with Ronin his interest that he already showed in other comics, which is the Japanese tradition, molding a crucible in which the past and future are mix organically, when technology is the next step in evolution. New York is engulfed by artificial intelligence that replaces the obsolete, the rotten and the dead, with the new and pure.

But for me, the best part of the comic, apart from the script and the whole idea of setting, is certainly the art.

The art of Ronin, maybe not for everyone’s taste, because it looks quite experimental and surrealist.

However, Miller broke new grounds with new page layouts, playing with the text, the thickness of the lines, close ups, cut plans and pictures, violence, death and pain like never before seen and felt in a comic book.

With a super stylized, bold and almost surrealistic streak. This led to a rejection of the miniseries, but it was necessary because Miller opened up, a new path in terms of narrative and composition of art, and invented new graphic tools with which he went in the direction of the unknown.

Josan Gonzalez

Josan is a renowned for exploring themes related to science fiction, dystopia, and above all, cyberpunk. He has already stated in an interview that he is strongly inspired by big names like Moebius, Katsuhiro Otomo - creator of Akira - and Geoff Darrow.

Gonzalez likes to create characters full of personality and compose scenarios rich in details. Josan has a very characteristic artistic artistic style: he uses complex line arts, flat colors and limited color palettes.

Being born in Spain, Josan starts reading comics since he was a teenager and this will influence later in his artistic aesthetic.

Initially he adopted a more painterly style which evolved later in the line work. Despite being always passionate about art he never thought it would make a real career from it. He succeeds in publishing his own books and working for big names such as Dark Horse and Boom Studios.

People is considering Josan’s work as being part of Cyberpunk genre, but the artist doesn’t like to classify them. He enjoy creating illustrations without establishing rules, just giving shapes to a futuristic world. Many of Gonzalez characters are linked by cables, which are a perfect metaphor for linkage human-technology. For a lot of artwork the artist get inspiration from religious imagery. Providing his characters with catholic and Hindu symbols. Mostly this happens, because of his catholic background in Spain. Another aspect, is showing people’s addiction with technology, which keep them repressed. Even if the artist explores different social questions his main goal remains the illustration and making interesting and timeless.

some of his most recent works are, for example, is the cover of the new edition of the science fiction book Neoromancer, and the steelbook art of the game Cyberpunk 2077.

The Story of Miyamoto Musashi

Miyamoto Musashi was Japan’s most famous samurai. He is credited with authoring the most important treatise in Japanese strategy, the “Book of Five Rings”.

Musashi Sensei, as his disciples still call his fighting style, lived from 1584 to 1645.

Musashi dedicated his life to reach perfection through the art of the sword. He fought and won more than 60 life and death duels, and was never defeated. He made contact with other art forms, such as painting, sculpture, calligraphy and poetry, in addition to Zen meditation and Buddhism.

Musashi was born in the province of Harima during one of the most troubled periods in the history of Japan, when the last great battles of the time of the samurai took place.

At the time, it was common in Japan for the same person to change his name at different stages of life. In childhood, Musashi Sensei was called Shinmen Bennosuke. It is believed that he received the first Kenjutsu (famous Japanese martial art) instructions from his father,Shinmen Hirata.

At the age of 13 he won his first duel, and won the second duel when he was 16 years old, as reported in The Book of Five Rings.

In his book Musashi says that his strategy to deconcentrate the opponent and beat him was to arrive late at the place of the duel. On the way, Musashi carved a sword out of a broken paddle and with this sword  he dealt a blow to Kojiro winning the duel,  which, although fast, is one of the most famous in the history of the samurai. The duel was immortalized in a monument on the island of Funajima representing the figure of the two warriors.

The Funajima duel was a turning point in Musashi’s life because from then on he began to reflect on how he had won so many duels and to dedicate himself to the task of leaving a legacy for future generations. It was from there, too, that Musashi began to dedicate himself to other arts such as painting and poetry.

He worked primarily with a style of ink painting, creating minimalist, monochromatic works portraying nature.

The last years of his life, Musashi spent as a guest with his friend, and then isolated himself in the cave of Reigando where he dedicated himself to meditation and practice of his art writing his Book of Five Rings right there.

Ned Bear Mask Artist

Sculptor Edward (Ned) Bear has combined study in Native education with an Honours Diploma from Vancouver college.

He has an extensive knowledge of Native art and culture, Bears has also made contributions to change as a curator, guest speaker and juror.

Bear was born in the town Frederecton, New Brunswick, Canada. When he was young boy he was inspired by a Native elder carver, and later on he received a formal training at New Brunswick College of Craft and Design, where he became the first aboriginal student to graduate. Bear received additional training at a Indian Federated College in Nova Scotia.

Bear created sculpted masks and marble or limestone figure forms. His masks are approximately three feet high and are usually carved from butternut. Each mask is adorned with horse hair ( symbolizing the free spirit), bear fur ( symbolizing healing) and metal ( symbolizing something which is of the earth). Each mask tells a story and offer a modern interpretation of traditional spiritual beliefs.

When creating art, Bear considered himself to be simply a vehicle through which energy flows from the eternal Great Spirit to the medium he is using. He doesn’t create any sketches for the masks, he said that he allows the great spirit to guide him through the process.

Ned Bear made significant contributions as an instructor of Native art and culture, a curator, a guest speaker, and a juror.

The indigenous sculptor died on the Christmas evening of 2019, at the age of 65.  “ We delve into so many past wrongs of our lives that we forget to revel in the present. Learn to capture what you may never have again, now. Do what makes you content for this time, and begin to realize the true purpose of life”, said Bear.

Jim Henson

Jim Henson was an American puppeteer and filmmaker, and most known for creating the Muppets, and directing most of their movies and tv shows.

In the 1960s Henson and his future wife, Jane Nebel, created a puppet show on Washington television station and kept their jobs through the school years, developing the first Muppets (including Kermit) on a one minute television show called Sam and Friends.

The success of Sam and Friends led Henson to create his own company in 1958, initially called Muppets,inc. and many years later, The Jim Henson Company.

Part of the resounding success of Henson’s puppets was due to their innovative view that puppet controllers did not need to be hidden by physical objects while controlling them.

By instructing the camera controllers to focus on the puppets and keep the controllers out of sight, he allowed the puppets to dominate the TV screen and acquire more lively and similar behaviors to real people.

From the productions of Sam and Friends, many characters emerged who became famous over the years and who would become part of the famous cast of the Muppets, including their most famous member, Kermit the Frog.

The Muppet Show, which premiered in 1976 and was produced in England, gained an international audience ( it was shown in about 100 countries) and was soon followed by the film The Muppet Movie (1979).

Henson was able to create an interesting set of characters by developing innovative ideas with a sense of rhythm and humor that won an audience for both children and adults. His works are remembered in part for promoting positive values in childhood such as friendship, magic or love, themes that appeared in most of his works.

Research: Persona Brazilian Folklore research- Lobisomem 

The legend of the werewolf is known practically all over the world. It defines him as being, part man, part wolf, who was cursed with lycanthropy ( the act of becoming a wolf).

The one who is cursed, becomes the werewolf on the nights of the full moon. Some variations of the legend say that lycanthropy was the result of the pact of one man with the devil.

Once transformed into a werewolf, the person frantically sets out in search of victims to kill them. Modern popular culture has spread the idea that the werewolf is vulnerable only to silver bullets or sharp objects made of silver.

Naturally, the legend of the werewolf arrived in Brazil through Portuguese, during the period when they colonized Brazil, in our country, the legend arrived and took on different characteristics in each region.

Some studies have concluded that there is no such legend among indigenous people. The closest to that were legends who believed that men or women could become some animals of the forest.

This legend in Brazilian folklore ended up acquiring elements present in its Portuguese version. Thus, it was common to believe that the werewolf was the man born after the mother had seven daughters, although versions of the legend say that if seven sons were born, the eight son would also be a werewolf.

In the north, of Brazil, the werewolf was the man who was in poor health, and the one who was anemic would eventually would become him. Once transformed, it feeds on the blood of other humans to make up for the poor diet as one of them. The transformation took place from Thursdays to Friday nights.

In the south, in turn, the fact that turned the man into a werewolf was incest. In Brazil, there was no record in the folklore of the belief in transformation of women into werewolves. In the folklore, only men becomes werewolves.

In the interior of São Paulo, it was believed that this being tried to invade the houses to eat children. Many believed that the werewolf went after, especially, unbaptized children.

One of the ways in which the person turned into a werewolf, was if he seriously injured with certain objects. One of these objects was a bullet bathed in candle wax from an altar.

[magikalgaming]

Squaresoft’s Chrono Trigger and Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander debate loudly and distractingly over the space-time continuum

Drink of Choice: Rhenish 

Fantasy and science fiction have long straddled each other's borders. The explanatory and theoretical aspect of science fiction has typically separated it from the magic of fantasy. Contemporary works (such as Frank Herbert's Dune) often mingle these qualities to create adventurous hybrids, providing rationale for fantastic events that lower the suspension of disbelief. An example of fantasy, perhaps even magical realism, is the popular Outlander (1991-present) series by Diana Gabaldon. An example of a narrative that works between the lines would be the occult classic video game Chrono Trigger (1995). Both, I should mention, hinge their plots on time travel.

Time travel in these narratives work to showcase the past as a truth never fully known and enemies as never fully understood beings. These mysteries and conflicts are replicated, repeated, and recycled to illuminate the cyclical nature of time. Though both genres are under fiction, the amount of realism and explanation does little to distract protagonists from their quests for justice reliant on the power of time travel. The last frontier is not outer space, but literal space and the (supposedly) linear stream of time.

Space (sans Outer) as a frontier - Worlds in different iterations

It follows, then, why Chrono Trigger literally bestows the party a spaceship-looking time travel vehicle mid-game. It gives the impression that players are not merely flowing from time to time in this fictional universe, but from world to world - vastly different iterations of the same thing. 

The main protagonist in Outlander, Claire, time travels through purely magical and ancient means. However, she knows many locations in the present that are brand new or yet-to-be in the past. These observations are often described in her monologues. The strangeness of knowing something similar yet distinctly different, such as a person or a place, is the premise for most of her existential thoughts throughout the novels. 

Chrono Trigger combines magic and technology to introduce portals and time travel. Crono, the main protagonist, does not feature monologues on locations he knows or people that seem familiar - he doesn’t have to. In the game, the player embodies the avatar (main character Crono). Like many RPGs of its time, the main character is often silent and pliable to the player’s interpretation. The player feels the full effect of a town they’d visited destroyed in the future, and even more distraught over witnessing the planet turn to ruins. 

There are seven distinct realms in Chrono Trigger, and the player becomes accustomed to tracing landmasses and border lines for any alterations as results of their actions. These silent changes between realms makes the player feel both powerful (for being able to travel through time at will) and powerless (for seeing pain and suffering of the world and being unable to stop it).

Power over Power

The mixture of technology and magic may be what gives the cast of Chrono Trigger more agency than Claire in Outlander. Because the magic is something in which she does not understand, Claire is at the mercy of outside powers and spinning variables. In desperation, she tries first to return to the circle of stones that teleported her from modern-day 1945 to Scotland 1743.

Destiny is a perpetually appearing theme in the series that is likewise highlighted in Chrono Trigger. Certain events are inevitable, and others alterable. In either case, Crono has greater autonomy and mastery over the power of time travel and rises to fulfill a heroic purpose. Claire, however, wishes to return home to the present day. Much later, when she falls in love with another man in 1743, she only wishes to protect the people she has come to love from a historic slaughter of the Scottish clans. While appearing heroic, this desire is personal and based on a bias. It is because she wishes to stay with those in 1743 and because she loves her new husband that she desires to change the course of history. Crono, however, arises to a higher purpose for the sake of all of humanity.

The Hunt for the Precarious

In the Present Era, a maid in Chrono Trigger says, “a peaceful world is a boring world.” This dissatisfaction is a noteworthy element of the game and illuminates the process of writing adventure-centric narratives. 

In Outlander, Claire ultimately makes her choice between her first husband in 1945 and her new one by weighing the breadth of her emotions attached to each. Her first husband evokes feelings such as comfort, peace, and safety. A post-WW2 era underscores these qualities for Claire, who was stationed as a battle nurse for years. When compared to her new life in 1740s Scotland, it seems like modern day is the most logical choice. 

However, Claire comes to enjoy the passion that comes with danger in Scotland. She begins to prefer the battle scars of her new husband over the soft hands of her old one. It’s a more precarious life, but also a great deal more exciting. We can agree that the book would not have been as popular if Claire had chosen the modern world and never looked back. The same could be said for Chrono Trigger and all action-adventure games. This genre comprises most of the video games on the market, and most players expect something exciting and important to play through. Most of the time, players aren’t looking to engage with a peaceful world.

Playing with Time

The hunt for chaos drives most adventure narrative plots. In this case, the integration of this hunt with time travel points to the main character Claire and the gamer in Chrono Trigger “playing” with time. 

Chrono Trigger has thirteen different endings available. Depending on what choices gamers make, they can reap an ending with a dead main character, or a wedding, or the destruction of the world, etc. Without a guide, it is massively difficult to know the outcome of your decisions before you make them. The reality is most gamers nowadays will use a guide to achieve the “ideal” ending. While readers have no control over the decisions Claire makes, we can imagine her as a player in her own game.

She relies on her knowledge of the future to find the best possible amalgamation of choices that could save Scotland from war while keeping herself and her new husband from death. Instead of playing through options like you would in a game, she uses research, books, and history to make informed decisions on her next move in the past.

Essentially, it's a strategic game. Though she does not have mastery or control over time travel, she has enough understanding of the unfolding events to properly prepare herself and others. Granted, some of these attempts are ineffective. But the lack of complete foresight for Claire mirrors the lack of complete foresight for the guide-less gamer in Chrono Trigger.

Both Claire and Crono engage in different iterations of their worlds through choices they could potentially make. Through her knowledge, Claire manipulates history to achieve her desired outcome. If we define history as a narrative, she directly engages with the story of her realm as an outside force. Characters in Outlander refer to her as a witch due to her abilities and foresight. It is as if she is operating on a gamer’s guide for history - or perhaps perused it enough before diving into the past. In the same way, players of Chrono Trigger act as the narrative “witches” and manipulate the world from a simultaneous internal view (as an avatar) and external view (as a player of a fictional universe).

In this way, we find that time travel in fantasy and science fiction can work as both internal and external indications of presence - being of that world but a different iteration of it - of that world yet beyond it. Likewise, it can grant characters power, render them powerless, and/or underscore the futility of events destined to transpire.

Credits and Sources

Gabaldon, Diana. Outlander: a Novel. Bantam Books, 2016.

Chrono Trigger. Squaresoft, 1995.

Pictures in order of appearance:

1. https://store.steampowered.com/app/613830/CHRONO_TRIGGER/

2. https://www.amazon.com/Outlander-Diana-Gabaldon/dp/0440212561

3. https://cgcposters.com/products/cgc-huge-poster-chrono-trigger-retro-art-super-nintendo-snes-ds-cho009

4. https://outlander-obsession.myshopify.com/blogs/news/the-lost-character-the-outlander-essence-of-time-travel-1

5. https://lparchive.org/Chrono-Trigger-(by-Leavemywife)/Update%2032/

6. https://the-night-wanderer.tumblr.com/post/165166802723

[askjonfreeman]

Pixar's Coco - spoiler free review

TL;DR = Through and Through it's on quality par with Disney Classic 2D animated.  I'd rank it alongside Beauty and the Beast easy, no questions. Ton of heart, balanced fare, and with basically none of the negatives you're probably thinking it will have. Go see it! ... but if they show the Frozen short, leave the theatre for 15 minutes to get popcorn.  that short is terrible and needs to be cut from existence. ========== Saw it on Tuesday.  Now that I've had time to digest it I can properly review it. THE GOOD! - It feels more like a Disney Classic Animated Film than a Pixar Film. ... and I mean the good Disney classics, like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Lion King, etc.  (though it's definitely in the half-step lower that Beauty and the Beast was as opposed to pure gold Lion King / Aladdin) - The music is amazing I've had the main song of the film stuck in my head off and on and I've had no complaints about it. ... bonus points, they clearly wrote the lyrics in spanish first, then translated to english.  Savvy viewers will be able to pick this up.  Also, the soundtrack has Spanish language versions of the songs. - The characters are fantastic Expect fanart of Dante from me - I seriously don't have complaints about it! This is better explained through the subsequent section... THE GOOD ASPECTS THAT ARE DERIVED FROM AVOIDING PITFALLS! - It doesn't feel like a Pixar film! Pixar films lately have been terrible.  They also focus heavily on The Science of Sad (i.e. calculated forced tear jerkers or teaching kids the valuable life lesson of DEATH). ... It doesn't feel like that.  The only times you might cry are when they touch on resonating tones (because the film is heavily family centric), but they aren't cry moments.  So it's like Disney animated better films where you might get weepy eyed because it touches you.  Not because they pull a narrative sucker punch. - It isn't Book of Life! I still haven't seen Book of Life myself.  But I've read plot synopsis ... the two stories have basically nothing in common.  So if that's a concern, don't worry about it. - It doesn't follow the "but I wanna be an artist!" trope-line I hate that plot line.  Seriously, it's predictable sappy artuer wankery.  Coco presents the foundations early on for plot twists later where it breaks away from that horrid story-flow.  So it's not a "I'll show everyone artists are better than you pleb" story.  ... but why it's different is spoiler territory, so I can't talk about it further. - It isn't political! This was a big concern going into it for me.  And this is because of how pants-on-head retarded Hollywood liberals have become (let's politicize everything, get the facts wrong because we focus on feelings, and alienate everyone destroying our story!).  There's absolutely ZERO political sentiments in there.  That means it focuses on stuff that everyone can relate to ... WHICH MEANS IT'S A GOOD STORY. - It doesn't get lost in its myth This is a general concern about any film with magic elements: story tellers get sidetracked by the world/myth lore to the point where the audience can't connect.  They keep it focused to a few simple/unique aspects that have a resonating quality to them ... which means you don't have to remember WHY something's important or get re-explained anything.  It's stuff you likely care about. THE BAD FROZEN it's that bad. It's the only thing I regret and hate about the experience And it frustrates me that they paired something so HORRENDOUSLY AWFUL with something so good. The rumors are true about how terrible this thing is. You'll wish everyone (except Oaken) dies by the time the "short" is over. - rumor, that lines up with product, is that it was a made-for-tv special that got cancelled (because animated TV specials are almost always terrible) - so it's 20 minutes, way too long - the music is terrible garbage - they made Olaf into a truly unbearable waste of space (actually impressive since I didn't mind him before) - They made the clown the main character.  That never works out. - Olaf goes out literally looking for traditions.  I mean ... WHAT.  nobody can relate to this shit. - you'll pray for a quick death and nail in the coffin to Frozen Fever ... and hopefully a cancellation of the sequel ... and with how bad this short is that just might happen - the lesbian princess scrapped story line still hangs its awful uncanny head over the sisters (substantiated rumor is that Anna/Elsa lovers was plan A and it didn't test well, so they recast them as sisters ... and now you can't unsee it. ... Granted, I think it's more that Frozen isn't that interesting of a story, so having a divisive politicized element in a boring story will lose half your audience instantly as opposed to "THEY AREN'T READY!" but tumblr-ites will never accept that answer).  This short did nothing to shift the dynamics away from Anna/Elsa being lovers ... which is totally weird since they're sisters.   - I mean, for example, Kristoff coulda been a bigger part in this to make Anna have an actual love interest (with an odd-couple romance) and further push that uncanny creepiness away ... BUT THEY ALSO COULD HAVE MADE A GOOD SHORT. - i think i laughed a total of 3 times in 20 minutes - I can't even imagine what the story boarding meetings where like when they crew had to try and sell each other on this garbage?  Did those happen in a vacuum? - We got this instead of a cool short like Piper.  Screw you Disney.   Screw you and your Frozen Fever! - however, the sauna house guy, Oaken, makes a 60 second appearance.  He's still an amazing character.  ... that's the only good point of the short. Out of spite, I'll pitch a better story line set in Frozen with the same parameters of it being a Holiday Special... - Keep the intro gag that the sisters try to host a party and all the citizens go home to their families for christmas, leaving sisters without a party to host - ... but then have Anna be torn between spending time with her boyfriend Kristoff (in some adorkable odd couple romance hijinks) or spend time with her sister ... - and have Elsa feel a little bitter and jealous over this and sulk a little, with Olaf misunderstanding everything for comic dramatic irony - then the sisters both get over their little argument, and apologize - have a quiet ending where the characters spend time together  (not some big chorus number full of painful sap) - the idea is to strike tones with anyone who's dealt with marriage, significant others, and other time conflict of interests - keep to 5-7 minutes and boom.  Cute story, simple conflict that's resolved, stuff people can relate to So yeah, IF they show the short.  walk out for a 10-15 minute stretch.  A lot of theater houses are complaining and are trying to figure out how to cut the short from their screenings.  So you may not have to suffer.

[theupwardmind-blog]

Note: As of this posting, I’m doing swell, which is just a testament to how quickly a mood can change. Still, I’m going to post it in its entirety because when I wrote it, I really needed to.

…

Guess what? The last few days have been, by and large, not great.

I work my ass off to not feel like total garbage: Daily meditation, a pretty rad diet, a lot of running, sobriety, journaling, baths… and of course I’ve done my rounds in therapy and with medication. In spite of these efforts, the thought that has dominated my mind lately has been along the lines of: “I’m going to blow my brains out.” (Please know that I wouldn’t be putting this on my blog if it was really a concern.)

I keep wanting to drink (I haven’t) and sometimes I get devastatingly lonely. I know I have created my current circumstances—and we all have, whether we like it or not—but of course I don’t know why. I recently texted a loved one that my “5-year plan” involves getting back into binge drinking and shooting myself in the head off of a cliff. I was kidding, but there really are times when I feel, sincerely, that I am Not Okay, like at all, and I don’t think there is anything that will help. At night I ask the universe to just make me normal and good, but I never wake up normal and good. I wake up the same me who falls short in every regard, who doesn’t love correctly, who isn’t open enough, patient enough, consistent enough, un-thinky enough, kind enough, calm enough, or safe enough. I do not always act like who I am, and I haven’t yet figured out how to fix that permanently.

Why am I posting this even though I try to be all about light and the possibility of well-being? First, it’s real. We are supposed to share our experiences with one another, and I know that the feelings I have are shared by millions of others. The second we fall into the trap of believing our isolation, depression, grief, and self-loathing are any different than those felt by the rest of humanity, we become doubly lost.

Positivity and spirituality are sometimes treated as synonyms, and that’s just not genuine. The path embraces all feelings and states of mind, and it is generally understood that (for a while anyway) waking up hurts. And, even when it’s really horrible, I know that all of my feelings and thoughts are teaching me something. For whatever reason, I haven’t gotten the lesson. If I’d gotten it, this shit would cease. Maybe the lesson is simply in impermanence itself: Never, ever expect to feel All Good, because you will never, ever be static.

Mainly I’m posting this because hiding brings its own kind of pain. When we do this, we deny our true selves to the people who want to love us. It feels worse to hide, even though it definitely feels super uncool to write about my feelings, too. I also know I’m running the risk of sounding dramatic, and at some point—maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, probably right after I hit “Publish”—I’ll regret posting it. Soon, I’ll file away this time period away into that which I psychologically label “a tantrum.”

The point is: I’m better than I’ve ever been, and still, I am This.

…

In spite of the intensity of these emotions, I remain unwilling to consider myself ill. I will not accept the bipolar story and I will not label myself “disordered.” This narrative doesn’t serve me, and if anything it damns me to believing I am fixed being. Part of that fixed narrative comes with the notion that I’ll never be fully healed, and I don’t buy that. The only reason I’m even here and in an overall healthier place than I’ve ever been in is because I’ve refused to buy it.

Of course I don’t deny the existence of mental disorders, but rather consider all life experiences as variations in consciousness. This way of thinking makes the difference between the chance at deep healing and perpetual, cyclical illness. One promotes a false “normal/abnormal, neurotypical/neurodiverse” dichotomy; the other promotes a much more realistic spectrum. Training oneself in higher consciousness (by way of self-care, meditation, journaling, etc.) can lead to the cessation of suffering, or at the very least, the dampening of it.

Because really, that’s what it’s all about: Suffering. Whether you call it depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or a personality disorder, the main concern of the human experience is suffering. The harsher felt aspects of life that are pervasive and repetitive—the ones that get called “disorders” in our culture—persist because we are, on the whole, in a very low place. Greed rules the day. “Every man for himself” is the prevailing ethos. “Us and them” is a mentality that very few people ever escape. When our overall level as a people reaches something higher, we will see mental illness fall away. I’ve said this before and I’m going to keep saying it.

I doubt that this will happen in my lifetime, since our system still seems hell-bent on letting individuals know that they’re the ones with “problems.” In our haste to diagnose—to codify, to limit, to “explain”—we tend to just not bring up the ugly truth of the situation, which is that the world is burning to the ground and our paradigm is truly fucked up. Sick societies create sick individuals, and vice versa. Healthy people depend on a healthy planet, and our planet is really not healthy.

When healing occurs, it does so on an individual and collective level at the same time: We heal ourselves and—brick by brick, mind by mind—build healthier societies that make wellness a possibility for future generations. Until we do this work, we can only expect to see rising rates of suicide, depression, addiction, and everything else we claim to be against. I for one am getting a bit tired of the short-lived outpour of concern that follows celebrity suicides. I am also tired of the idea that a person simply not killing themselves is a great victory: If all we’re doing is constantly pulling each other back from the brink, we’re still failing miserably.

…

Not a single professional I’ve worked with has really broached the fact that I suffer because A. Suffering is inherent in human existence (and so I have no reason to expect not to suffer), and B. Our culture basically breeds people to suffer for the machine. It was always about “my condition,” “my problems,” “my depression,” “my story of why I hurt.” We all have stories about why we hurt, and to some extent, these stories need to be explored. Some stories are more harrowing than others, but even the most well-off, well-loved people suffer.

Finally, meditation and yoga are being regarded as helpful treatment modalities for mental illnesses. I want to address that here: The science behind psychiatric medication is based on the theory that your brain makes the wrong chemicals and these other chemicals will kinda fix it. The science behind yoga is based on the theory that you are a universal being and ultimately, you are pure consciousness. Get in touch with the part of you that is pure consciousness—through systematic postures and meditation—and suffering begins to transform. This is true for all forms of suffering, be they given medical labels or are simply the “normal” malaise of routine adult life.

These theories/sciences are not mutually exclusive. I will always advocate doing all the things to help yourself. However, through my (largely unintentional and also explosive) exploration of inner space, I’ve found that the latter theory is a whole lot more complete.

…

There is tremendous power in stepping into the realization that it’s not you. You are not an addict or a depressed person or anything else because something is wrong with you. Instead, we have tendencies to harm ourselves because…

Our overall culture is unconscious of the way it thinks and acts.

We do not understand and/or accept the depths of the ways we all affect one another. Even people who fancy themselves hella woke tend to carry some amount of hatred and derision in their hearts. This doesn’t work, and it still hurts everyone.

We literally carry legacies of pain in bodily memory.

Fear is the default mode of living.

We have forgotten the truth of what we are.

It’s not that you’re a defective model, and you do have the power to rise above all of these things.

When it comes to mental health and overall wellness, that’s what it’s all about: The cessation of suffering through the exploration of higher consciousness. Not endless treatment, not an illness-oriented model, and certainly not a narrative that you will always be one thing or another.

…

Let’s end this on a high note, shall we?

Before I sat down to write this post, I went for a run. Even when I’m in the depths of it, meditating and running tend to lift my spirits. Near the end, I found this rosebush in someone’s yard, and it was too beautiful not to take pictures:

Being a good millennial, I put these on the Instagram where a friend commented, “Peace roses.” Again, being a good millennial, I Googled it. Lo and behold, this is what’s called the Peace Rose. And although I regard the entirety of my life experience as equally meaningful and meaningless, I’ll gladly take signs like this in times of need.

If you’re reading this, the message is meant for you as well.

– Lish

When It Gets Bad Note: As of this posting, I’m doing swell, which is just a testament to how quickly a mood can change.