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imthepunchlord · 3 years

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Kagami’s Best to Least

Marinette, Adrien, Alya, Nino

Kagami, unfortunately, wound up having some very different personalities depending on the episode you’re watching, so can’t entirely work off narrative as she got some of the worst in writing. Forewarning that I’ll be working off preferred traits that I have seen and picked up for this that seem persistent and are potentially what her character truly is.

Kagami herself is very dynamic, direct, and intense. She can be (aggressively) competitive, has an eye for detail, and is incredibly skillful at a lot of what she does, making her very adaptable and versatile. She is another who is ruled by her heart, which when she feels, she goes all in to that feeling. When she falls for Adrien (somehow), she goes with the feeling a 110%. There is no doubt, no hesitance; she knows what she wants and she will go for what she wants. She has issues of being too reactive, can be reckless in her bravery and aggression, and can be quite closed minded and cold. This sets her up as a no nonsense character but most of her eps set her up to have surprising tolerance, allowing her to have more patience than expected.

Kagami’s best is the Bee, Bee matches her in how driven she is and how she delves into her goals at a 110%. Similarly to how bees work off their own sense of order, Kagami also works off how she expects things to be, living off her own sense of order, from dealing with issues and wants immediately to the bafflement of seeing others fumble around. This miraculous also allows her to be directly involved and on the front lines where she would like to be. And playing off that tools adjust to the user’s wants, the trompo’s point could easily extend and be a rapier for her to use in battle, allowing her to fully embrace her fencing theme.

Despite this there are some issues still, as Kagami can be way too aggressive and bees aren’t meant to be aggressive. They can only sting once so that aggression should be saved as a last resort. Chances are incredibly good that when she uses Venom, it’ll be used well, but she can end up too quick to sting.

Growth wise, this would offer her the most. To learn patience as she can’t be too hasty with her sting, can have her work with a team more as she’s quicker to be reactive and go in herself. And according to Ikari Gozen, she would like to make friends and bees are sociable creatures that work off with their hive. This can have Kagmai work on her relations with others to find her own hive to be apart of.

Though kwami wise, I see things being tense with Pollen, especially at first. In Kagami’s eyes, Pollen would probably appear to be a suck up and pleaser and she’s not one who wants a pleaser. And chances are good that Pollen would be intimidated by how intense Kagami can be. I can see the possibility that Pollen will step up as she does want to please and connect with her current human, and clearly a more direct approach is more desired with Kagami, but over all, at least for a while, I do see tension between the two as they struggle to click.

Kagami’s second best are the Turtle and Peafowl. Turtle keeps that theme of being very involved and in the heat of things and reacting to them quicky. Peafowl has enough flexibility to allow Kagami to be in the heat of things where she would like, and allows her to play by her rules as she would like. But what keeps these two from being part of her best is the less ideal aspects.

Turtle at the core isn’t meant to be an aggressive miraculous, it’s a deeply involved support miraculous that’s about self protection and protecting others. Kagami at the core isn’t one to be conscious of others or be conscious of her own safety, she can be as we see in Miracle Queen, but its not a core aspect of her. She’d rather directly deal with the issue itself than being a protector. She wants to be the aggressor and Turtle will limit her on that. Especially since a shield isn’t what she’s used to. Mindful, the miraculous could adjust normal items and adapt her rapier to be a tool to use, so she can use a sword and shield, but that’s something that has yet to be confirmed. If its a possibility, Turtle could be bumped up to a best fit as well. But assuming its only a shield and there’s no adapting extra tools to it, its currently a 2nd best.

Growth wise, Turtle can help cool down that aggression, and help her form connections with others like she wants to, but it would take some time and require an adjustment period. Ideally can also help her slow down and not be so quick to react, hang back and take in more details.

Kagami and Wayzz I do see headbutting a bit, largely more due to her being a very reactive character who is quick to judge and quick to respond. While Wayzz is one for quick actions, he’s not one for reckless choices. I do seem him trying to slow Kagami down and to be more conscious of all factors than just what she sees at surface level. On Kagami’s end, I can see her getting irritated as Wayzz would intervene with her choices often, but she’d listen to him more than she would Longg as Wayzz gets to the point (where Longg is a rambler which Kagami doesn’t have patience for). Adaptive as he is, they would quickly become friends and she would hold his views in high regard and consider his words. Assuming Turtle has been used a lot, especially in battle, I can see her being very interested in the stories Wayzz could share in where he’s been used.

With Peafowl, issues can stem with how quickly Kagami responds to things. She’ll work off her quick evaluations, and while many would work, she doesn’t take the time to look past surface level details. This will lead to moments where the golem she makes isn’t so ideal for a situation. it will be better than Butterfly as the golems she creates will be on the same page as her, but she’ll need to be more conscious to not always go with her first evaluation, which is the biggest thing to offer growth wise for her. Otherwise this miraculous can be solid for her. It’s flexible enough that she can be wherever she likes in the field, and offer a new type of Japanese fighting style to try and explore, using the war fan. Something I see her being intrigued in exploring.

Based on the little we see with Duusu, I don’t see Kagami having a lot of patience for her with her bubby energy and chattiness. Kagami likes straight to the point and focus, while Duusu is a reactive kwami that takes in a lot and has a lot to say. And with Duusu, I see her regarding Kagami being too stiff and intense. She’ll work on Kagami seeing more than the surface, but she may not be listened to that often with her spazzy energy. It’d be a pair that would struggle to work something out.

Kagami’s least fit are the Fox and Butterfly. Much like many of the least fit, they can offer a lot of growth, as they are opposites of what Kagami currently is, but as opposites they are the ones Kagami would struggle most with. When you want a miraculous to be used as effectively as possible, it doesn’t make things so ideal for her to get these.

Despite being ruled by her heart, Kagami isn’t the sort to get others feelings well, which would make Butterfly a struggle. She’s not one to take a moment to try and understand where someone’s coming from with how their feeling and why, she’s too quick to judge what she sees at surface level, too direct with her words and can end up harsh, can be intense, and doesn’t easily let things go and give someone distance to handle things themselves. This is also a power that’s more about relying on another where Kagami is largely a solo show, ready to rush in and address things herself before the thought of working with another comes to mind. There’s also an issue that this miraculous requires capability of easing away and allowing breathing room, to have patience to allow another to sort issues out. Kagami herself can be intensely involved and pushy, seeking to have things resolved quickly, which can lead to issues with her connection to her champion.

Growth wise this can offer a lot as she’ll have to learn to be more patient and conscious of others, not be so quick to judge or intense; but that’s not an aspect that will come naturally and will be a struggle to adjust for her.

With Nooroo, I see some similar issues that she’d have with Pollen, particularly Nooroo being very gentle and soft spoken, I can see Kagami’s intensity being a little much for him. Though he’s not a pleaser and will be direct and to the point, chances are better for Kagami to listen to him and may do what she can to not intimidate Nooroo. But this is a pair that will take some time to get used to the other.

With Fox, Kagami can match as a risk taker, and we see that Kagami is capable of lying (specifically to her mother to spend time with Adrien), but the deceptiveness and manipulation aren’t who she is at the core. She is ultimately upfront, direct, and honest. She is also the sort who prefers to be directly involved and in the heat of things. With her lack of subtlety, how reactive she is, and the factor that she takes everything at face value, Fox would be a struggle for her as this is more designed to be in the shadows and look more underneath, to evaluate and consider everything. To know people well. Kagami doesn’t easily know people well. Chances are incredibly good that her illusions will be direct and upfront and will lack the needed subtlety.

Growth wise this offers her patience and a means to step back, and to reconsider everything about a situation and the people she sees. But this will take a lot of time to adjust to as she’s quick to react and likes to be upfront and direct. And while capable of manipulation and being deceptive, its not who she is at the core or her preference.

With Trixx, I see a lot of respect and frustration in her interactions with him. While not one to ramble, Trixx is vague, as he likes to verbally guide his humans along into making the right decisions, leading them to come to their own conclusion through the smallest nudge. With Kagami, who likes those to be upfront and direct, Trixx’s intentional vagueness I see getting on her nerves as he wants her to figure things out herself, never telling her his thoughts and opinions. While capable of being adaptable and having a very good read on people, Trixx can be more direct when required, but I can also see him intentionally keeping up the vagueness as a means to both rile Kagami up and to get her mentally working. Ultimately I see him as a kwami she wouldn’t enjoy having in her presence for too long.

Between Ladybug and Cat, Kagami should receive Cat. Cat has a lot of the appeals of Bee, and allows for more variety in attacks, making it not as limiting as the Bee is who only has one aggressive move to make use of. Only thing to struggle with would be her recklessness but I don’t see it being as big of an issue as Adrien as we see her being more battle smart in the field.

Biggest thing to bring down this match up is Plagg himself. I can easily see him as a kwami that would drive her up the wall with his lazy nature and selective attitude on responsibilities. And he himself will probably find her to be too hotheaded and stiff. With his attitude and behavior, I don’t see her having a lot of patience or respect for him. There’d be a lot of clashing and headbutts at first as these two are polar opposites. Plagg I do see ultimately helping Kagami with her desires to rebel and explore new things and have fun, but it’s going to take a while to get to that point with them.

#miraculous ladybug #tsuragi kagami #kagami tsuragi #character study

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dariamalek · 3 years

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Empathizing With The Enemy: How Toronto Artist BØNES Highlights My Newest Theory

I have never experienced confidence in hip hop music until I began listening to Toronto artist, BØNES.

I had mentioned before on my Twitter that I am taking a different turn on this blog for the next few posts. Given the restrictions of COVID settling slightly since the end of summer, (please don’t jinx it, I live in Ontario people) I have had the chance to finally go out and explore the music scene of my city physically again and I’ve realized that I have taken a lot of these artists for granted.

In all honesty, I hadn’t experienced hip hop music in the modern scene. In fact, music that is labelled as “hip hop” in the modern century turned me away because of it’s egotistical and materialistic themes; especially when it came to new artists trying to “make it big” in the hip hop industry.

My only experience and/or knowledge of hip hop comes from my dad’s old Biggie and N.W.A records as well as the really old Kanye songs I had downloaded on my iPod when I was in high school. However, there’s something so enlightening about BØNES’s music that is different to what the new up and coming artists are putting out.

BØNES, also known as Joe to the peasants that have the honour of interacting with him on a normal basis everyday (myself included), is a hip hop artist from Toronto, Ontario - which is something you don’t hear everyday (subtle Ontario satire for you there, I’ll wait for the applause to end). I actually have the honour of knowing Joe outside of his music career and I think it is his positive, down to earth personality that gets portrayed so vividly in his music, that makes him such an interesting artist. However, I will be referring to him for the rest of this post as Joe - not just because I want to be a little less formal but also it is extremely difficult to continue to press and hold the O key and click 6 consistently. I may or may not have arthritis by the end of his post which would totally be worth it if it meant the last thing I ever typed was BØNES in all caps.

Though it’s different to determine what exactly makes BØNES music so unique, I seem to catch myself finding similarities between him and an artist from Detroit, Michigan who calls himself JMSN. Though their music is completely different - the concepts are quite similar. Take a genre, modernize it and make it, well BØNES. For example, I very vaguely classified Joe’s (arthritis is kicking in) genre as hip hop however, I really don’t think “hip hop” is what it is. Let me explain.

According to writer and essayist Greg Tate, who had also written a fabulous essay called Everything But the Burden: What White People Are Taking from Black Culture, hip hop is a “complex culture comprising four elements: deejaying, or “turntabling”; rapping, also known as “MCing” or “rhyming”; graffiti painting, also known as “graf” or “writing”; and “B-boying,” which encompasses hip-hop dance, style, and attitude, along with the sort of virile body language that philosopher Cornel West described as “postural semantics Tate, 2021).” Interestingly enough, other than “rhyming,” Joe’s music doesn’t necessarily embody all aspects of hip hop; it evolves them the way we wish modern day hip hop does.

However, one part of his music that embodies the ideologies of hip hop is something called the “knowledge of self/consciousness (Tate, 2021).” I personally believe that this aspect should be at the top of a genre so popular such as hip hop. None of these newer artists embody this aspect which is disappointing to say the least because, as a genre predominantly African American occupied and originated, this genre should scream confidence and self strength. This was done by older hip hop artist who would use their music and platform to talk about their struggles as a community, eg. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, "The Message" (1982).

And the beauty of hip hop is portrayed through language. See, modern day hip hop (please don’t ask me to name any of these artists, I will butcher anything that doesn’t start with “Lil”) seems to be riddled with very forward, egotistical remarks about how much wealthier they are than everyone else, how many “chains” they have or my personal favourite: how many “bitches” they have. Please, this USED to be a PG blog but look how far we come. We’re saying “bitches” on this blog.

There’s a difference between saying that and “now I’ve been stuck in this place and I’m aiming to grow (Thankful, 2019)” or “came a long way and I’m so damn proud (I Ain’t Miss A Damn Thing, 2020).” This switch in language embodies confidence in a way that is personal to the listener themselves rather than make them feel discouraged about now being at the same social class as the artist.

Joe’s (arthritis is back again) music is so empowering and cleverly phrased, as well as the context is all based around growth as he shares his experiences through his journey of self growth; by using a theory I like to call “empathizing with the enemy-” ahhh yes, we’re getting psychological in this one. You thought we were done with all the psychology. WRONG.

This theory is based around how individuals gain personal profit by “empathizing with the enemy.” This theory is embodied in this one BØNES lyric, and dare I say invented it: “I can’t really blame [him] if he’s nervous.” After listening to BØNES’s music, I began looking into the difference between gaining confidence and growing confidence. Gaining confidence is filled, or I guess ironically, is an empty confidence that is filled through materialistic things or bullying in order to fill a void in their character; a doubt that if they’re not on top, they will never amount to anything. This is so popular in modern day hip hop, when artists give value to sex, drugs and other controversial things in order to stay relevant or seem like they are “above” something. This does nothing for the listener; in fact, it does the opposite. I originally began researching this theory through literature; the effect words have when put together, the difference between “I can’t really blame [him] if he’s nervous” and “he should be nervous.” Notice how the words are similar, but the first one seems less demanding and forceful, where as the other one seems much more confident and self preserved; the concept of “you don’t have to like me, I like myself,” as corny as it sounds.

BØNES idolizes self growth, which is a constant theme in his music, and self consciousness. My theory is because of how far he has come as a person, and I am sure that the reason he is as charming and kind to everyone as he is, is simply because he is happy and kind to himself. And that means a lot when it comes to being an artist.

Many artists chose to fill a void with their art while others use it to spread the love and passion they have when they practice their art with others. This is so evident in BØNES’ music and it’s what differentiates him from newer artists trying to make it today. Rather than give in to the normal, consistent and boring themes of hip hop, his bubbly personality has changed the lyric game for the better.

Why is this important? Music is such a huge effect on the listener, the language more than anything, and it’s important that we understand the effect language has on people, especially in music. I am biased, as an English major, but if you’ve read my essay “Making Love vs. @&!$ing: How Music Has Watered Down The Value of Romance,” you probably already know my views on how important language is when it comes to music, mostly because lyricism evolves from poetry...I say as I look at the gigantic portrait of Shakespeare hanging from my wall. Or even compare different ways heartbreak is portrayed through music - that new Olivia Rodrigo song on Tik Tok versus “I Would Rather Go Blind.”

LANGUAGE IN MUSIC IS IMPORTANT. And BØNES understood the assignment. Let’s just say, I have a gym playlist especially made with Thankful and I Know on them because I feel just a little bit more confident when I look in the mirror afterwards.

As I begin this new series with pride in my little province (another little satirical joke for my Ontario people) and the artists within it, I want to urge you all to go listen and support your local artists and talents.

Oh and also go vote. Thanks. #OCanada

#canadian writer #canada #canadian critic #music #hip hop #poetry #lyrics #new artist #rapper #singer #musician #psychology #language #literature #canadian author #writer #author #blogger #novelist

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boltwrites · 4 years

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hey, i want to pay you a compliment but i don’t want to be weird about it - a guide to interacting with a smut writer

so, recently i got a pretty inappropriate ask and figured this would be something beneficial to share with you all, especially if you’re new to interacting with smut writers or don’t know where the line in. i know it can be kind of intimidating and confusing interacting with smut content when you’re new to it or you’ve never spoken to a writer directly, so i hope this guide can offer you a little bit of perspective.

also, a disclaimer - this is based off of what i consider appropriate. if you’re ever worried, just straight up ask a smut writer about what kind of compliments they like, and what would be considered going too far

what compliments related to their work are ok?

so, for me, i highly prefer literature-related comments, however, general enjoyment comments are good as well! here are some examples of each type:

general enjoyment compliments are your safest bet for any fic. they’re a little basic, but authors will still love to see them in tags, asks, and reviews. they’re a fic writer’s bread and butter, and i’d even go so far to say that almost every smut fic writer would find these appropriate. here are some examples:

i loved this fic so much! you’re an amazing writing and i’m looking forward to reading more of your work

EXCUSE ME WHO GAVE YOU THE RIGHT - this was amazing! one of my fav fics of all time, you have so much talent

THANK YOU FOR THE FOOD (insert praying emoji here)

IJBGRJGOTER OP YOU ARE GOING TO K I L L M E

one of these days i am going to pass out from how good your writing is i SWEAR

you can be funny with these, but the general point is just to compliment the writer, tell them that you enjoy their work and that you value the effort they put into the piece. you can find these kinds of compliments on any sort of fic, i just feel like the last couple of really frantic keysmashing ones are far more common on smut fics!

now, on to literary compliments. this section can be a little trickier, since you’re specifically discussing the smutty content of the story, but here are some general themes to keep in mind: characterization, character relationship, plot/setup, author voice, and realism. since you’re complimenting a writer, leaning into literary elements can do you some good in keeping you grounded in the art of their work rather than stepping over the line into inappropriate comments. some examples:

you write him so well! i definitely think he would be a hard dom, and you captured that perfectly! the dialogue... just *chef’s kiss* (characterization)

dude, the relationship between her and y/n is ADORABLE. like yeah, the smut was awesome, as always, but i love how you captured how soft she would be in a relationship, and y/n is so gentle in return... it was just so sweet, i loved it! (relationships)

i don’t know how you do it but you write the BEST setups. i feel like you can write any character in any kink setup and i would just go “yeah, that makes total sense” even if it’s completely implausible. it’s just that good! respect. (setups/plot)

the way you write is so amazing. i love the way you describe everything, it’s so poetic and beautiful. i definitely think it suits the characters, and i love the idea of a sex scene like that being so intimate and beautiful (author voice)

i love that you don’t take everything so seriously! that you write little jokes even in your sex scenes - i hate reading scenes that are super stiff and overly dramatic, and you capture something so fun and sweet when you write, it’s awesome! (author voice)

ok, can i just say i LOVE how realistic your scenes are? like, i love how you include things like foreplay and aftercare and emphasize the playfulness and even the mistakes that can happen when you’re trying something with a partner for the first time. (realism)

i, personally, love literature related comments. i write smut as a form of literature, and even if it isn’t “high art” i do like it when people appreciate the time i take to work on characterization and similar elements

basically, treat a smut fic like any other fic when it comes to writing a compliment. smut can be literary too!

what compliments aren’t ok?

alright, so this is the important section. mostly this relates to personal experiences that are serious and unrelated to the work itself. basically, you’re treating me, the smut writer, like your friend that you share your sexual experiences with. if it doesn’t relate to the character, the fic, or my writing skill, it’s probably not appropriate. some examples

telling me sex acts you did while you read the fic. this is basically the classic “i jacked off to this, it’s sooooo good” comment. some people can jack off to a particularly curvy piece of driftwood - this isn’t a compliment, this is a violation of writer/reader trust. i don’t want to know about your personal sex life

personal sex stories. don’t tell me about how one time you were fucking your bf and it was like this fic i wrote - i don’t care, i don’t want to hear about how you had sex with your bf.

basically any real life, direct connections to you and your sex life that aren’t jokes (i’ll explain this in the next section)

also, a big section of compliments that are always a hard no - shit that relates back to MY sexual expertise. such as “wow you write this so well, you’re probably good in bed” or “wow you’re a freak huh? lmao” don’t fucking perceive me

what personal comments are ok?

so, this section deals with what asks you can send me that aren’t compliments - aka what messages relating to headcanons, your personal life, etc, that you can share with me that may or may not be smut related. this is specific to ME, as in, check in with other smut writers for these things

sharing jokes surrounding your personal life that may be slightly sexual. for example, at one point, i wrote a set of dick headcanons and an anon commented (in a joking way) that i described their bf’s dick perfectly. while this is a sexual comment, the anon didn’t tell me anything about their sex life or sex acts they committed - they just made a joking sexual comment that connected back to their daily life. for me, personally, if it is slightly sexual, but does not involve any actual sex/masturbation acts, it’s fine to joke about with me

in addition to the above, sending in comments like “thanks, bolt, now i have a praise kink” or similar, after i write something about it. they’re joking, and they’re fine to send in to my blog

sending me in smutty headcanons. i LOVE when people send me in smutty headcanons about how a character would act in certain scenarios. so PLEASE feel free to send those

questions about kink, kink culture, or even general sex ed questions. if it’s educational in nature, i would be more than happy to help, but a reminder that i am just a random stranger on the internet. you should probably just ask me what sex pollen is, and not how to fix your sex life lmao

telling me what you would do to a character is fine. like “omg i wanna peg Bolin so bad can you imagine the noises he would make?” is perfectly fine, to me. we’re all thirsting after these characters, and it’s a major subject of the blog, so i don’t mind these asks, especially since sometimes they lead to me writing out some headcanons or fleshing out a certain part of a character

what personal comments aren’t ok?

i covered this mostly in previous sections, but -

discussions of your personal sex life, as in, sex acts you have committed or partaken in, joking or serious. while i am ok with jokes that are vaguely sexual or hold sexual connotations, please don’t reveal details or your personal sex or self-love life to me, even in joke form

anything pertaining to me and my sex life. there’s no need for you to know, and if i wanted to tell you, i would

starting an argument with a smut writer over what they will or will not write. everyone has different limits and boundaries, and some of these choices are shaped by very personal experiences that someone might not want to share, or things they cannot control - such as dysphoria, trauma, or mental illness. if someone’s limits or lack thereof are offensive to you, it is best that you simply block and move on instead of trying to incite an argument.

this isn’t kink related, but most unrelated comments regarding your day/what you did. while it’s nice that you went out and got an iced coffee, i’m a lok writing blog. unless you relate it back to a headcanon you’re sharing with me, or a request you want me to complete, please don’t just tell me about your day (unless we are friends and talking on discord, lol)

#author speaks #this is long but i feel like i need to write it lmao

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calenheniel · 4 years

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Queen of the Ashes | extended author’s notes

In which I delve into the themes, symbolism, and creation of my latest fic.

Foreword

I’ve been writing in the Hans/Elsa fandom since 2014 now, and yet, to my surprise, had never delved into the world of the “Hans with fire powers” genre. I’d enjoyed the art and fics for it, but didn’t have a good idea of what to write on the topic myself, though the idea percolated in my mind that I should, at some point, contribute to it. After bandying ideas back and forth with a friend off-Tumblr, the first line of the story came to me: “They met as children.”

Fics about Hans and Elsa meeting pre-Frozen are also common in the fandom, and to my mind, the notion that they would have met before completely changed how they would interact during the coronation sequence (and “every moment after,” as Hans might say himself). Add to that the notion that Hans, like Elsa, had secret powers – in addition to all their other shared experiences, which the fans elucidate through fics and art and posts – and it creates a new and tantalizing dynamic to tease out over the course of many chapters. It also begged the question, to me at least: even if they had met when they were kids, and realized some of their likenesses, could they still have successfully overcome their individual traumas as adults?

I had promised, for some time, that I would explain in full the background behind this fic, including symbols and themes which readers may have missed along the way. In particular, I am aware that the Epilogue may have unsettled or taken unaware some of them who had enjoyed the quasi-happy ending of the preceding chapter—a phenomenon which I was well aware might happen from the very beginning. It is therefore my hope that the following notes elucidate some of the mystery of the story, and why it ended the way it did. (And I’m tagging @yumi-michiyo, who helped me to summarize my thoughts more cleanly in discussing them with her.)

Theme: abuse (and its consequences)

There are many allusions in Queen of the Ashes to various types of abuse experienced by its main characters: parental and familial; physical and verbal; intentional and unintentional; organizational and relational. While some are described in an overt manner with little ambiguity, others are less obvious, but no less malicious in their impacts on the character.

When reading into the various traumas of the characters, it is easier to ascribe value judgments to the actions of certain characters over others. It would be difficult for anyone to argue that Hans’s father and brothers, for example, weren’t terribly abusive towards Hans; likewise, it would be hard to ignore that the insistence of Elsa’s parents for her to “conceal, don’t feel” had tangibly negative psychological consequences on their daughter, regardless of their good intentions. The consequences of such abuse on both characters are obvious: towards themselves and their powers, they are taught to feel fear, anxiety, discomfort, denial, and confusion; towards others, they can be perceived as childlike and their decisions arbitrary and cruel, cynical of the outside world, unable to trust, and blaming all else but themselves for their troubles.

On the flip side, the abuse which Hans then inflicts on Elsa – pursuing her in spite of her telling him to leave (on multiple occasions), leveraging family connections (Anna) to pressure her into speaking and meeting with him, taking advantage of her self-doubt and fear to convince her to trust only him, lying to her about his true nature and his past misdeeds, pressuring her to continue hiding her powers up until and even after they are married – is in many ways subtler, disguised as him trying to help her accept her powers and herself (even as he tells her that no one else will accept or understand her, except him). They are also characteristic of the deceptions deployed by the character in canon to achieve his objectives, even if they were, originally, used on Anna (whom he also lies to in this story, for other reasons).

It is understandably harder to view Hans’s actions in the same light as those of his parents, or her parents, as we are led to believe that he truly does care about Elsa in this story, and feels a special kinship with her on account of their shared miseries and strengths. I am not here to say definitively, one way or the other, if he cares about her or doesn’t; that is always up to the readers to decide. The point is rather to illuminate how difficult it can be to tell deceptions from truth when the deceptions are told from a sympathetic perspective, and when the deceptions appear to be borne from circumstances so harrowing and tragic that the readers might be inclined to forgive them their trespasses against other characters.

When viewed in the context of their upbringings, we can more clearly see the full cycle of abuse: that which was perpetrated against our protagonists, and that which they, in turn, can and do perpetrate against each other. In attempting to break this cycle, and start a new life with Elsa, Hans ends up playing into similar patterns of manipulation and coercion with her, her family, and her people which he had internalized over many years of suffering the same. Whether he does this on purpose or inadvertently is up for interpretation, but still beside the point, which is: in trying to be the opposite of his family, and then in killing that family, he begins to resembles them.

Theme: perspective

As in several other of my fics released over the last few years, this story experiments with narrative and perspective, describing to the audience the events of the story through only one character per chapter. For the majority of the story, we are shown events from Elsa’s perspective (Chapters 2-8 and 10), and given special insight into her years of isolation and accompanying mental distress. No other character is allotted as much time and room to think and develop and reflect on everything that is happening to them, as Elsa is; and yet, at the same time, we are rarely allowed all the way in to see and know her thoughts in each moment beyond the whispers of “conceal, don’t feel, don’t let it show” that echo through her mind, in empty rooms, and from her own lips.

We are mostly shown her reactions to things that are happening to or around her, and given vague descriptions otherwise about “off-screen” moments like meetings or public hearings where her attention is not fully present. Upon a second reading, it might become more difficult to be certain about what exactly is going through her mind, especially towards the end in Chapter 10 and the Epilogue (in which we are removed from her perspective entirely, and see her only as Hans does).

In Chapters 1, 9, and the Epilogue, by contrast, we are shown events from Hans’s perspective: as a child, then chronologically from childhood through adulthood, and finally just after he is crowned King of Arendelle and married to Elsa. We first meet Elsa and Anna through his eyes and experience his pain, though the source of it is not confirmed until later in the story. When we finally learn about his powers through the confrontation with Elsa in Chapter 8, we are briefly allowed back into his perspective in Chapter 9 in order to experience his ordeals and better understand his motivations.

With so little “screen time,” however, it is difficult to know or understand Hans in the same way we think we do Elsa. We trust him when Elsa does (or perhaps before, if we are sympathetic to the child Hans from Chapter 1), and believe that his version of events as recounted in Chapter 9 must be true and accurate due to their disturbing nature. Even when we are presented with evidence which suggests that his actions aren’t as pure and good as they seem (see notes on the symbolism of roses, apples, and gloves below), we are unlikely to question the validity of his memories and intentions towards Elsa, since, as the victim of severe abuse, we cannot fathom that he would inflict the same on someone he appears and claims to deeply cares for.

It is easy to forget, in these switching perspectives, the complexity and development of the characters, and how certain aspects from earlier on in the story – such as Elsa’s initial suspicion of Hans and his motives – might return even after the “happy ending” of Chapter 10. A common critique of romantic comedies (and Disney movies) is that they end just as the relationship is about to begin—the relationship being the more difficult part of the story to explain and understand, with less romance and more compromise and bargaining.

The Epilogue therefore serves as an antidote to this trope in asking: what would actually happen after Hans and Elsa came together? How would he publicly court her, given his sour reputation? How would he help her to control her powers, while still keeping them (and his own) a secret, and convincing her to do the same? If they decided to get married, how could they continue to keep it a secret? Could Elsa ever truly forgive and forget Hans’s past misdeeds, and cover up his crimes in perpetuity?

And, perhaps, the kicker: Did Hans ever really care for, or love, Elsa during the course of the story—or does he just see her as an extension of himself and his own trauma? Did Elsa love him in return? Can there be love without trust?

It is impossible to answer these questions wholly when the chapter is presented only from Hans’s perspective, as it is; and even if it were from Elsa’s, we would still be missing half the story. In place of seeing both points of view at once, we are left to put the pieces together ourselves of what happened in the year between Chapter 10 and the Epilogue, relying on our knowledge of both characters’ actions from earlier chapters in the story to make sense of their final decisions and feelings.

Symbolism: roses

Roses play an important symbolic role in the story, and feature both in Chapter 6, during Hans and Elsa’s conversation in the rose garden of the castle in Arendelle, as well as in the Epilogue, wherein Hans offers Elsa a rose made of flames during his proposal (which she then turns into ice).

Hans, comparing Elsa to a rose in Chapter 6, frames it thusly:

“You know, Elsa,” he began, “roses are actually rather difficult to grow. The conditions have to be just right, with plenty of sunshine, well-drained soil, and in areas free from pests, since they’re so susceptible to disease. Without regular attention, it’s unlikely they’d survive.” He eyed her pointedly as he added: “So it’s a wonder that these are still here, and blooming as beautifully as they are.”

The unspoken implication of this analogy is that Elsa, as a delicate and fragile flower, must be taken care of and tended to. Thus, the paternalistic warning underlying his speech is that she will decay without proper handling, and that he is the one who can handle her. Even when Elsa rejects this perspective and the analogy itself (“I’m not a rose, Hans. I don’t require sunlight, or pruning, or ‘regular attention’ to endure”), a feminist reading of this scene might say that he still forces her to take on the feminine duty of caring for him when he plucks the rose from the bush in order to make his point, reinforcing the dominance of the male gaze and viewpoint during this scene.

Likewise, his traditional proposal to her as described in the Epilogue, even with the untraditional aspect of his created rose of flame, could be interpreted as him delineating their roles in their future married life together—with Elsa’s ice solidifying this arrangement. In both chapters, Hans is literally leading Elsa “down the primrose path”: showing her what a world wherein she is free from fear and doubt would look like, but only if she puts her trust in him, and discards the memories of and attachment to her deceased parents. (The idiom itself refers to leading a life of leisure and sin in place of morality and good judgment, and so you can see its application here. You are all also more than entitled to feel that I, as the author, also led you down the “primrose path” in the sudden atmospheric shift between Chapter 10 and the Epilogue.)

Symbolism: apple

Similar to the rose, the apple featured in Chapter 7 is an explicit nod not only to the temptation of Eve in the Garden of Eden – and the accompanying downfall of mankind – but also to many other stories of temptation leading to damnation, such as Snow White.

As Hans points out in his speech to Elsa:

“Fine things, apples, when they’re ripe like this. Beautiful, even—your mouth waters just looking at it, thinking about how sweet or tart it might be. But then […] You see something like this, and even though you want to take a bite out of it, you think, ‘well, I’d better just check.’ So you take out a knife and cut it open,” he said, and dug both of his thumbs into the side where the hole was. “And what do you find? […] Nothing but a rotten, brown core,” he continued, a sigh escaping his lips as he gazed into the fruit’s ruined interior.

[…]

“I know that the memories of your parents are precious to you,” he murmured, his grasp soft, “and I don’t mean to deny you them. I only ask you to question what happened—to ask yourself what good it did you to be kept inside all these years, separated from your sister. And all because of what? You hurt her once, when you didn’t know any better,” he said, “and they made you pay for it, for every moment after. But you shouldn’t have to anymore.”

While he is making the analogy in order to imply that Elsa’s parents, though well-intentioned, still raised her within an immoral and abusive environment, the apple also serves to illustrate the darker side of Hans’s own behavior and speech. On the surface, he is trying to help Elsa remove the “rose-colored lenses” through which she still views her parents, and to see her powers as a gift and not a curse; but as he grabs her hand and pressures her to listen to him (“The juice from the putrid core of the apple oozed out from his fingers onto the back of her hand, and she grimaced, the sensation causing her skin to go cold”), the graphic description of the decay, corruption, and stench of the apple implies that he, too, may be acting from less than noble motives.

Symbolism: gloves

Perhaps the most obvious symbolism in any Frozen fanfic dealing extensively with Elsa’s and Hans’s emotional trauma relates to their gloves. What does it mean when the characters are wearing them, or when they’re not wearing them?

These questions have been analyzed pretty thoroughly in various Tumblr posts over the years, and I don’t want to belabor the point by adding on to them. In no uncertain terms, the wearing of the gloves relates to deception, manipulation, control, and fear, while not wearing them relates to the release of inhibitions, and being one’s true self. The former is evident in Elsa’s coronation sequence in the first film (as well as in this story), as well as during the original Hans villain reveal scene. The latter is evident in the most famous sequence and song from the film, “Let It Go.”

In this story, however, the roles are somewhat reversed: where in the original film Hans wore his gloves up until he was revealed to be the “big baddie,” he doesn’t wear them at all in this fic except for in flashbacks (Chapter 1 and Chapter 9, respectively), and in the Epilogue. Meanwhile, Elsa is gloved for almost the entirety of the story, with only short instances of being ungloved (in Chapters 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10). Until the Epilogue, almost all of these instances occur due to her interactions with Hans; whether from pressure or curiosity or affection, she reveals her hands to him and him only, deepening their connection and her confidence in him with each new physical encounter.

Unlike the film, moreover, this story does not tie honesty to being ungloved: Hans goes the majority of the fic without them, and is lying to Elsa about his powers up until Chapter 9. Instead, he uses the seemingly improper visage of his bare hands to his advantage in gaining Elsa’s trust, showing her that he trusts her by touching her skin directly—and that she can (and should) trust him.

When Hans’s deception is revealed in Chapter 9, rather than the gloves being an obvious marker of his villainy that the reader can point to, their absence reinforces his power over Elsa. It is a literal “sleight of hand” he performs by demonstrating the extent to which he has gained control over his own powers in comparison to her, as she still struggles to maintain the veneer of “normalcy” in her day to day life. He convinces Elsa, and therefore many readers who see themselves in her character, that he was dishonest for “good” reasons; his hands, bare as before, do not hide anything from her (and us, by extension).

This is turned on its head in the Epilogue, wherein we learn, thanks to Elsa’s observation, that he is wearing his gloves again:

“You’re wearing gloves,” she observes, ignoring his question.

He stifles a swallow. “It’s the least I could do, on such an auspicious day,” he replies, struggling to keep his smile in place. “It would look odd to have bare hands for our wedding, after all.”

Suspicion flashes across her gaze at the answer, but she says nothing, looking back at the dance floor. She watches her sister with something between longing and regret, though the emotions are so fleeting that the king cannot be sure if he saw them at all.

The implication is that by putting his gloves back on, Hans has committed himself – and Elsa, who shares similar abilities – to a future of continued deception and manipulation, never revealing the truth about himself and his powers to the public. In Hans’s weak reply and Elsa’s sharp and suspicious look at him (not to mention her own, bare hands) afterwards, we can surmise that she has already realized this. In her quoting back to him the lines he once told her (““I do. But love… isn’t always good”) and rejecting his overtures of affection, we can see that she will not accept such a fate for herself.

The notion that she rejects his beliefs and worldview might have profound, if unseen, consequences for the story. Will she follow the path of her character in canon, freezing over Arendelle and retreating to her palace of ice and snow? Will she reveal her powers - and his - to the public? Will she tell Anna what really happened to them as children? The possibilities are endless, but the core message of the story is the same: the truth will always come out.

Concluding thoughts

It’s undeniable that I tend to write tragic or “angsty” stories compared to the rest of the fandom (and in particular the Hans/Elsa fandom), though I’d like to think my stories provide a space for those who are interested in exploring that darker side of the story. The purpose of the ending is not to upend what came before for the sake of “staying the course” in this genre, or playing to my strengths as a writer within it. Rather, it is to make the reader think more carefully about the nature of Hans and Elsa’s interactions, the nature of their relationship, and the nature of abuse itself, including all the insidious and subtle forms it might take.

This is not to say that the ending implies anything one way or the other, in terms of their feelings for one another. One reader might see Hans as a true “knight in shining armor” saving Elsa from the gaslighting of her past, while another might see him as gaslighting Elsa. Another might still see how they lie to each other about their beliefs and pasts, and their feelings around both, and think the relationship is doomed to fail as a result. And that is the true purpose of this story: it is meant to leave us wondering how love can survive without truth, and if the characters would ever be able to overcome their past trauma individually, much less together.

#QueenoftheAshesFrozen #frozen #frozen fanfiction #helsa #frozen symbolism #this was not intended to be so long #I just had a ton of thoughts to share #hope this is helpful for all readers #and maybe fic writers too!

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jeremys-blogs · 4 years

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The Owl House: Top 10 Episodes

The Owl House's first season was made up on nineteen great episodes, but as with any show there were some I loved more than others. And here's my top ten of them.

10 - Witches Before Wizards: The first episode might have done a great job of establishing both the main cast and the world they're having their stories in, but it was really the show's second outing that truly cemented that this wasn't going to be a typical children's fantasy tale. Luz, overwhelmed by her years of wanting the perfect escapist fantasy, is seemingly given exactly what she wants and, with her current mentor looking like something of a disappointment, goes along with it right into a trap. This episode's clear message is that, whatever ideas Luz and the audience have of epic adventures in other worlds needs to be jettisoned right here and now, as such thinking simply leads to those like Luz being taken advantage of. It also helped to establish Eda, both as an unconventional type of mentor, but also as someone who genuinely cares for Luz's well-being. It's a story that firmly tells us that, if good things are to happen to us, we need to make them happen instead of waiting for others to hand such things to us, and that even a place that comes off as creepy and horrifying can have its appeal when looked at the right way. A fine episode that does well at helping to acclimatise us to the world of the Boiling Isles.

9 - Something Ventured, Someone Framed: Gus didn't really have that many standout moments in the show in the same way that Willow did, but I can safely say that his first (and thus far only) spotlight episode was a good one. Most of the time he's used either as "the supportive friend" or as comic relief, but here we got to see other sides to him, like his insecurities at being the youngest among his peers, or the fears he feels over losing even the small position he has among them. It was also a good show of how Luz isn't the only one who's going to be causing problems at Hexside, as Gus was very much responsible for the shenanigans this time, but he does win points for taking the blame and accepting the consequences of it. Also, special mention must also go to Eda for her subplot of trying to get Luz into the school. It really went to show how much she cared for the girl, since she was willing to make nice with a place she personally loathed because she knew how good it would be for her apprentice. Between Gus and Eda, this was a good little Hexside story with some good development for its two prominent players.

8 - The Intruder: This episode marked an important moment of development for all three of the main characters. For Luz it was her first real step in learning how to use magic in this world, as well as showing just how quick she is to be able to use it in an immediate situation. For King we got to see a softer side to him than we'd been seeing up to this point, and just how much he values Luz as a friend and someone to teach. And for Eda, this was the moment we came to realise just why she's separate from the rest of the Boiling Isles' society. Her curse, which is portrayed in much the same way as something akin to a chronic illness that real-world people would have to deal with, is clearly a bother to her and something that would play a pivotal part of later stories. And the horror aesthetic is of course a good framing device for all of this, giving our characters a desperate situation to not only show of what they can do, but also reveal secrets like Eda's condition. It was a dark, intense and very character-driven story that served as a massive wake-up call to the fact that danger can very much be right at their doorstep in this series.

7 - I was a Teenage Abomination: Here we got our big introduction to Hexside, a location that would provide a great many other great stories and serve as an important place for Luz. In addition, the episode also gave us a number of supporting characters, like soon-to-be friends Willow and Gus, and perhaps one of the show's most complicated characters, Amity. Luz's first arrival onto the scene, both for this school and its students, would prove to be her first real impact on this world, which would of course have consequences aplenty further down the line. Now of course, schools for magic are no stranger to works of fantasy, but this show does well in making Hexside its own thing, with its own feel distinct from other such institutions in fiction. And of course we once again have Eda utterly stealing the show with her early-season disdain for the place and her horror at the thought of Luz wanting to go there, though she admittedly does at least soften to the friends she makes in her brief encounter. Overall, a fun and enjoyable introduction to one of the most important places in the show, as well as giving Luz her first taste of a place that would come to mean a great deal to her later on.

6 - Covention: Like with our introduction to Hexside, this episode gives us a lot of information about the world of the witches and how things typically work here. We're told of the coven system, the magical authority that governs magic, as well as why Eda specifically is opposed to them, but at the same time we have Luz, who despite respecting her teach is open-minded enough to want to learn more and make her own decision on the matter, which was a nice touch as far as I'm concerned as it showed she wasn't just blindly obedient. And speaking of Luz, we get her next step in her relationship to Amity here, as we once more have the two at odds, but with that conflict eventually changing into one where Amity understands Luz more and where we learn that there's more shades to Amity than simply being a school rival. Eda too gets growth as a character, as we have our big introduction to her sister and the knowledge that the two don't have the best of relationships, culminating in one of the show's thus-far best pieces of animation when the two eventually duel, which would of course serve only as a prelude to a fight that came later. Overall, Covention had a lot packed in, and it was executed nearly flawlessly.

5 - Adventures in the Elements: Fun fact, I'd sort of debated with myself over whether this or Lost in Language would be included here, since both episodes share a lot in common. Both feature Luz learning more while also taking action that puts her in a bad light with Amity and both heavily involve Edric and Emira. In the end though I decided that I enjoyed this one more, and what's more it served as another important milestone in Luz's education, since it's really the first time Eda actively goes out of her way to teach her about magic. Additionally, we get some hints as to the true nature of magic in this world, something that Luz comes to know more than even her own teacher. We get hints that Luz's ways are something that the oldest witches did back in the day but has since been forgotten, as Esa herself seems to only vaguely know how that ancient power was used. Also, it's another case of Amity warming up to Luz, to the point where I'd officially call this the moment where the two became friends. And of course Edric and Emira were far more hilarious and likeable here than they were in Lost in Language, so there's that too.

4 - Enchanting Grom Fright: Let me get the obvious stuff out of the way first. Yes, the Lumity shipping moments are adorable and a great milestone for Disney. And yes, that dance sequence was brilliantly animated and easily worth the thousand-plus times I've gone back and watched it. But as good as all that stuff is, what really makes this episode work for me is Luz. Not only do we get another example of her well-meaning nature getting her into trouble, which is something of a recurring theme in this show, but it's also the episode that really addresses her decision to leave her world and be in the Boiling Isles. Throughout the story she's shown to be worried about both her mother back home and what the latter might think if she knew what Luz had really been doing these past few weeks. It's an understandable fear that she's been avoiding for, quite possibly, the entirety of her time in the show, and by the time the episode ends she's fully accepted that she needs to speak to her mother far more than she'd been doing. That, alongside great stuff from other characters, Like Amity's own fears and King struggling to find an audience, made this episode a truly special watch for me.

3 - Wing it Like Witches: In terms of pure entertainment value, as in just sheer fun, this episode easily makes it to my personal top. However, given that the remaining episodes all did more in terms of character and story, I felt it wouldn't really be right to have this one be any higher. But, it's still a hugely enjoyable outing for the show, and one that I've re-watched several times over since it first aired. And it's surprising that that's the case, given that sports movies (or even parodies of them) aren't something I usually enjoy, and this episode has it as both its A and B plots. But I guess that's a testament to the episode if I managed to be delighted by the story in the face of that. The character of Boscha proved a good "love to hate" antagonist that Luz, Willow and Amity must overcome, and it's especially satisfying to finally see Amity in particular break away from that kind of toxic crowd for good. But, not one to be one-upped, Eda herself gets a similar trouble to face when she challenges her sister to the same game, and much like with Luz it's very good to see her come out on top. In terms of how much the characters are developed, this one probably isn't winning any awards, but in terms of just how much fun it was for me, it's easily one of the best The Owl House has to offer.

2 - Agony of a Witch: Disney have had plenty of moments where the episodes prior to the finale are among the darkest and most serious stuff they make, and Owl House, it appears, has one more to add to that collection. Agony is, without question, the most intense story of the entire first season. A darkest hour that I haven't seen from Disney TV for quite some time. It's a level of seriousness and danger that we all probably knew was coming, but likely weren't ready for when it finally came. Our main villain is revealed, the truth behind Eda's curse comes to light, and by the time it was all over it seemed as though all hope was lost. It was a real punch to the gut, and went to show just how much these characters had come to mean to me, given how distraught I felt at seeing them hurt like this. If I had one complaint, and this is no fault of this episode specifically, it's that the follow-up, the actual finale, never managed to capture the same feeling of intensity. But that's a very small criticism, and as I said, this was one hugely impressive episode that brought the stakes up to eleven and showed that this show had more than earned the right to do so.

1 - Understanding Willow: I'll admit upfront that I have some bias on this one, as Willow has consistently been one of my favourite characters in the show. So an episode devoted to delving into her backstory was pretty much guaranteed to get my interest. But credit where it's due, it actually impressed far more than just that initial hook, as we get our long-awaited explanation as to the reasons why she and Amity stopped being friends way back when, a point that was hinted at quite a few episodes back. It's one of those things I like about shows like this, where small bits of dialogue can come back and take centre stage in big ways like this. And of course, we have Luz coming into her own as the responsible one, taking charge and doing what she can for her friend. And it's great that this isn't a problem that she was directly responsible for, unless you count her flipping a photo over as her being the cause of all this. Amity gets plenty of growth as well as a truly gut-punching reveal as to what motivated her actions, and the remaining cast, like Eda and Gus, all have a pretty entertaining side-story of their own. All-in-all, this might seem like an odd choice, but to me Understanding Willow is just the complete package in terms of what I like about this show.

And that's my list. Hope you all enjoy these episodes as much as I do 🥰

#essay #writing #my stuff #disney #the owl house #luz noceda #top 10

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ink-flavored · 5 years

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11/11/11 Game (Triple Threat)

Tagged by @multimousenette and @bogbodybitch and @nectareouswrites! Thanks!

I’ll put my questions at the top here so you don’t have to scroll through 33 questions lmao

Questions

Do you like to cook or do you prefer going out?

How meticulous do you like to get in your world building?

How do you relax when you’re stressed?

Do you have a creative hobby outside of writing? What is it?

Luck or chance?

Is there something that you’ve decided to keep in your WIP(s) even after someone told you to get rid of it?

What’s your battle music?

What are you most proud of yourself for?

What’s your favorite dinosaur?

What would you grow on a farm?

Blood family or found family?

Tagging: @royalbounties @rainy-rose @aesopsrachaels @purpleshadows1989 @frankensteinn @shadeshadow234 @startroubled @farrradays and anyone else who wants to!

Alright. Now comes the doozy.

1. What’s your preferred writing and reading genre?

Fantasy for both, though I like to read a lot of different genres

2. What’s your favorite thing about your least favorite character?

Least favorite is tough. The character I’ve been having the hardest time writing recently is General Zhai from The God-Dragon’s Wife, mainly because I haven’t solidified her motivations yet, but if there’s one thing I know about her, it’s that she takes no shit. Which is very difficult for me, because she isn’t taking my shit either.

3. What’s your least favorite thing about your favorite character?

Again with the favorites! Teconia is fun to write, but I feel bad about making bad things happen to her and making her sad. She gets sad a lot and then I feel guilty. Stop doing that.

4. Which of your characters do you feel most indifferent towards? Why?

Right now, it’s Park. I don’t think we’d be friends if he was a real person (robot?) because our values are so misaligned, but he’s not a bad guy.

5. Which of your projects means the most to you and why?

Firesoul, no doubt. It’s been an idea I’ve had since I first started writing, and the fact that I’ve been continuing to write it after all these years is a huge deal for me (i.e. a person who comes up with ideas and then abandons them forever)

6. Is there a theme that can be found in all of your projects? Was it intentional or dd you realize after the event?

Usually there’s a theme of overcoming – whether that’s overcoming self, overcoming oppression, or overcoming adversity. I don’t do it intentionally, but I think it’s definitely informed by experiences in my life, so it would feel odd to not have it.

7. What’s your favorite book to read? Does it have any similarities to your any of your writing projects?

The Inheritance Cycle is my favorite book series of all time and it absolutely informs my writing style. I’ve read the first book, Eragon, eight times, and seven of those times was before I turned 16. I’d be shocked if it didn’t.

8. What have you learnt while writing that you hope everyone knows?

That I can write whatever I want, and someone will like it, even if it’s not the someone I thought would like it.

9. What’s your biggest strength in writing?

Description, for sure.

10. What about your weakness?

Too much description.

Seriously, though, it’s plot structure. I suck at that, and I’m awful at outlines.

11. How many questions do you answer on character profile sheets when creating new characters?

I try to shoot for all of the ones that apply! But I don’t do a lot of character sheets so…

12. What do you love most about your writing?

I love my worlds and settings. I pour blood, sweat, and tears into them, and I think it really pays off.

13. What’s your favorite type of character to write?

Smart dumbasses, people who Can’t Handle Feelings, and people who Have Too Much Feelings. I have no middle ground.

14. What inspires you to write?

Life. That’s probably the most cliché answer on the planet, but I’m very informed by the things I believe and the experiences I have. Even my horror pieces (short as they are) come from places of feeling helpless in my own life, struggling with an undiagnosed anxiety and panic disorder for most of my life.

15. If you could talk to your protagonist, what advice would you give them?

I would gently hold Park’s metal robot face in my hands and tell him to Stop Taking All Responsibility For Everything. Good God. It’s not all about you, all the time.

I would tell Xinya that it’s okay to feel emotions sometimes. Yes, even that one.

I would tell Teconia that trusting people isn’t always a good thing.

I would tell Hayden that he is capable, no matter what he tells himself.

16. If you had to do an escape room with one of your characters, who would you choose and why?

Park is a robot and therefore would be very logical about all possible solutions. This could either be a great thing or a terrible thing, but I’ll take my chances with the guy with a computer for a brain.

17. How did you come up with the plot for your current wip(s)?

The God-Dragon’s Wife is inspired by a (perhaps not astoundingly written) fanfiction I read and said “Psh. I can do that.” That, and my deep held desire to marry a dragon.

Firesoul came to me at an audition for a role in my dance company’s annual Christmas show. I heard this epic, haunting music, and had a vision, essentially, of a scene from the book. Teconia herself is literally a D&D character that I liked so much I gave her a book.

Out of the Park is inspired from way back when I used to regularly play Overwatch, and my main, Zenyatta, had a skin release that was a baseball team. The rest is history/

Dragon Raising actually started as a novel that I never did anything with, because something always felt off about the delivery. When I took a comic writing class in college, everything clicked at once.

18. What’s one line/paragraph you’ve written recently that you’re proud of?

This is from a submission for a prompt month in a fandom I’m in:

Yugi didn’t believe in ghosts. It was fun to think about, sure, but he’d never seen any “real” evidence to support the idea. His friend Ryou claimed otherwise, but they’d long since learned to agree to disagree on the subject. Of course, they were both partial to a good scare – his second favorite genre for anything was horror – and they could talk about the coolest ghost stories they’d heard for hours. Still, he had never latched on to the idea of the “soul persisting after death.” It was ridiculous, for a lot of reasons. The idea of a ghost in his house – in anyone’s house – was almost laughable.

But he didn’t have a lot of other ideas to explain this.

19. Do you ever draw concept art for your writing?

I can’t draw, but if someone made me art of my WIPs, I would die LITERALLY for them.

20. What do you like most about one of your protagonists and what do you like least about them?

Xinya is a powerful woman. She’s capable and smart and will kick your ass in chess. But she’s so emotionally constipated it’s actually painful for me.

Teconia is kind, strong even if she doesn’t know it yet, and loyal to her friends and family. But she refuses to use her strength until it’s too late, which is frustrating for a lot of reasons.

Park is a dumbass. This is both the reason I love and hate him.

Hayden can do remarkable things, but he never gives himself credit for them.

21. What’s the setting of your current wip(s) and why did you choose it?

TGDW takes place in a fantasy Imperial China, which I chose because I am so sick of Fantasy Medieval Europe #4564

Firesoul takes place in Fantasy Medieval Europe #a billion, but I’m not romanticizing it. Teconia is the poorest of the poor, a racial minority, and has to keep her mage identity a secret to avoid persecution. You see exactly what that’s like in Ethallia for the average citizen, and it’s not pretty, unlike most fantasy settings where Everyone Is Good Except Our Evil King, Who Is Evil For Vague Magic Reasons.

OOTP is my personal idealized Future America, which means there is So Much Socialism. Everywhere.

Dragon Raising takes place in modern day Chicago, which I chose because wouldn’t it be hilarious if someone had to raise dragons in the middle of Chicago?

22. What are some of your strengths that make you a good writer?

I pride myself on my description and world building, as I’m sure people have picked up by now, but I’ve also been told I’m good at writing character interactions. I’ll take it!

23. Do you listen to music/have playlists to get you writing?

I’m one of those people who can’t write without music to block out the sounds of the real world. I don’t have any specific playlists for writing – I usually just shuffle my whole library.

24. Who is the character that is least like you and why?

Personality wise, it’s between Park and Yu-Qi who are the least like me.

Park thinks he has to be the one to change the world – him and him alone – which is just. Come on man. Dismount from your high horse.

Yu-Qi is closer to being the opposite of me because of our similarities, ironically enough. She’s obsessive, possessive, and in a true dragon fashion, she hoards and hoards and hoards. These are qualities I share, but desperately afraid of.

25. What is the maximum word count you are hoping for your project(s)?

Oh, this is a good question. I’ve never sat down and thought it out specifically, but I think a good novel length is 80k-200k words, so I’ll shoot for that!

26. Do you write better in the day time or at night?

Night owl. I blame it on being born at 1:30am

27. What are your OC(s) zodiac signs?

Well, considering only two of them exist in our star system, I’ll just guess!

Xinya: Virgo

Teconia: Pisces

Park: Scorpio

Hayden: Libra

28. Where do you fall on the beige to purple prose spectrum?

My prose is indigo, man. I am so close to purple it’s unreal.

29. Are you well read in the genre you hope to go into?

Absolutely! I’ve been reading fantasy since I was in first grade.

30. What are your goals for your writing career?

I want to open people’s minds and make them think about stuff that they might not have otherwise thought about. And entertain them, of course.

31. How comfortable are you with critical feedback?

PLEASE give me critical feedback, I’m begging you. My life has been plagued by minimal to no feedback on my writing and it’s so frustrating.

32. Do you enjoy reading or writing romance?

Reading it: depends. Writing it: yes, but I’ve only just gotten into it!

33. Do you annotate your books?

Depends on the book. If I’ve read it enough times to quote direct lines, then yes. I’ll never annotate a new book.

#annika talks #ask game

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kob131 · 5 years

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https://vanillo.co/v/T2piRZ5GCS

You know, I actually respected your video on RWBY beforehand, even if it had issues...

Now I see that trust was misplaced.

Before he even makes a point, he goes onto explain why he’s making this video.

The reason being and I quote-

“Why? Because I know it’ll make the RWBY fans made that I dare to consider something better than RWBY or because I want to make a legit comparison between two shows, both came out in the same year, both have themes of oppression, both involve fighting monster, have a focus of fighting within, have unique weapons and....ect ect.”

Yeah, this has two major issues.

1. If MangaKamen is doing this to piss off RWBY fans then why should we trust anything he says? One of the quickest ways to piss off a fan is to lie about their series and misrepresent them so how do we know that the mistakes in the video are due to honest overlooks or he did it on purpose to be a disingenuous troll? Not only that but this immediately paints all RWBY fans (and yes, all. He didn’t make any distinction) as irrational and fanboyish so no RWBY fan can argue against his video in good faith, even if they have legitimate grievances with the content. Right off the bat, he’s already put himself in a point where everything he says will be taken with a grain of salt.

And 2. You notice something about the list of things MangaKamen gave for similarities? Let me bullet it point them:

* Same year

* theme of oppression

* fighting

*fighting monsters

* unique weapons

Yeah I bet you’ve caught on now: all but one of these are INCREDIBLY vague.

First off, fighting is a common conflict resolver in media so that shouldn’t even count/

Second, fighting monsters is only barely more specific than just standard fighting and even then there could be any number of differences between the monsters and what they could represent in the story so...no dice.

Oppression is a very common theme in media, ranging from slavery to racism to classism to any form of unfair system stifling freedom. It can be almost anything.

Being released in the same year...I have no idea what that has to do with anything and thousands of pieces of media are released every year. This...is just weird.

And I only discount ‘unique weapons’ because there is no MENTION of how the weapons are unique nor do I know enough about GAIM to debunk this so I can’t say anything.

This isn’t even getting into how important each piece here is to the show as a whole, like how the theme of oppression isn't a major focus in the show and is limited to one character while the monsters are just one part of the antagonistic force of the show. So… Yeah. This comes across as reaching.

And sadly, this is a reoccurring theme.

And now we get into the main point of this video apparently: the basic plot.

And right off the bat we have a problem.

MangaKamen talks about the main characters of RWBY with him zooming on Yang;s breasts as he talks about ‘supposed’ elements of Yang and makes a laughing gif when he describes Weiss as ‘A selfish and self centered girl who becomes kinder and nicer’ in a mocking way. He’s presenting this as a serious basis for the show while also apparently trying to be a troll which just makes him come across as untrustworthy. Again.

There’s also the issue with how he portrays the main plots of the series.

RWBY: ‘A fictional world with Dust, Fanaus and Grimm were humanity fought for survival against the Grimm and eventually came up with the Huntsmen to fight the Grimm. The series follows the four girls in their adventures.’

GAIM: ‘This is a AU version of our world in the massive city of Zawane, built around the Yggdrisill Corporations’ tower, where we have these dance team composed of youths called Beat Riders who instill joy into the citizens. Mixed with them is a Pokémon-esque game called The Inves Game where they summon the Inves with items called Lockseeds. One day, Kouta Kazuraba’s former team loses to someone who invites him to come look at something. This is the Sengoku Driver where the Driver’s first wearer can transform into a Rider with a Lockseed. The mystery of Yggdrisil, the Driveers and the Lockseeds envelop Kouta and the cast.’

… I feel like explaining why these two don’t work would be insulting my readers but it’s what I gotta do.

First off, Remnant is a completely separate world from our own and thus would logically have quite a few differences with our own in how they view things, how things operate and how their governments and such work. Meawhile, Zawame is based on our world with minor differences which means these people’s values should be extremely similar to our own, how things operate should work similar to our world and their governments and such should be akin to ours. This is just a few aspects of what makes these different hut you get the picture: Remnant and Zawame have almost nothing in common aside from the basic inherent elements inescape to human fiction since fiction ahs to be based on something.

Secondly, Dust is basically elemental gunpowder, Fanaus are just people with animal traits and the Grimm are basically those endless RPG mooks. They are nothing like what MangaKamen states Drivers, Lockseeds and Inves are. They are nothing alike once again so it just drives home for the THIRD time how bizarre the comparisons are.

Third: What a Huntsmen is and what a Rider/Beat Rider is have a very fundamental difference. A Huntsmen is an official profession and thus carries with it an inherent sense of duty and honor to the audience, similar to a firefighter or a police officer. A Beat Rider is basically an unofficial entertainer, who is closer in nature to being a YouTuber which carries a very different connotation to the audience. Now you could argue that the comparison isn’t fair and that I should be using Riders as the counterpoint...except that beinga Rider has no definition other than ‘person who transforms using a Driver and a Lockseed’. It’s more like a Semblance in nature: a power rather than a profession.

Fourth: It sounds like Kouta just so happened to stumble upon the Driver through this one person rather than seeking it out or training for it, like Ruby or really everyone in the main hero cast of RWBY. These carry very different meanings and feelings in fiction MangaKamen, and they serve very different end goals for the heroes on the story as the first begins a story of an unlikely hero into a more ideal hero while the other is more a story about being honorable and doing the right thing. These aren’t mutually exclusive and can work together, like in the case of Spider Man, but you didn’t communicate this.

Fifth: There really isn’t a mystery element in RWBY, at least not until the fourth of so Volume with Salem whereas it seems like the mystery of the Lockseeds, Drivers and Yggdrisil are all ingrained into the story of GAIM.

Really, at this point, MangaKamen should have stopped and really thought about what he was doing at this point because when you have this many issues of this severity in the very beginning of your video, you should probably consider whether or not this is a good idea. Sort of like with MatPat and how he should have reconsidered his many wrong theories when issues started rising in them.

I mean, when I catch myself doing this, I stop and reconsider what I’m doing so it can’t bee that difficult.

Anyway, we then move onto the supposed ‘themes’ that the shows both share ‘extremely.’ Those themes being ‘Coming Of Age’ and ‘Getting Over Yourself.’

… Yeah, not only does he not define what the second theme actually is which means there’s a very real chance that people could misinterpret what he says unintentionally but the first theme is one of the MOST used themes in all of fiction. Like, 99% of Shounen, Shoujo and teenage-aimed fiction in America among so many others is Coming of Age stories, each having examples pf being told in vastly different ways with vastly different tones, styles, characters, worlds and so on. To just present the base trope as valid comparison would be to conflate these two to literal THOUSANDS of pieces of media.

But it gets worse. He goes onto explain himself by saying in GAIM, Kouta believes that the Goku Driver and the transformation will make him a ‘better man’ which isn’t true (demonstrated by him trying to help some construction workers by transforming and jumping up to them with some buckets, making things worse) and he questions his own beliefs and what he needs to do, even if it means sacrificing himself in some way. And in RWBY, Yang has to learn how to think in her battles after losing her arm.

Okay here we know so little about Kouta that I have no idea if this is an actual development for him. Judging by the clips shown, Kouta seems like the kind of guy who’d be self sacrificing by nature considering the almost child-like glee he shows in his transformation and helping others while I know so little about him that I have no idea if he is doubtful of himself normally or it’s an actual development. Same goes for Yang, we have no information on Yang outside of being the big sister type and losing her arm. We see Yang leaping at Adam in a clip but without context we have no idea if this is justified or not or if it’s a reoccurring issue with Yang or not. This is aimed at people who haven’t seen either series so this lack of information is damning and makes his point brittle and weak.

And it breaks if you actually think about it. The issues with Kouta are based on him as a person and helps him directly grow as a person whereas the way MangaKamen presents Yang it’s displayed as though she only really grew as a fighter. (He does say that Yang ‘matured from her previous personality’ but that’s not the result of her training, it was more the result of her experiences and even then one could argue she didn’t ‘mature’, she just changed.) And even then, these two developments don’t have anything common other than...being developments in the characters.

And then we have the fact that this isn’t an application of themes, this is just CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT. Character Development is NOT a theme and yet here MangaKamen is trying to portray it as such. I have no idea why but if I had to guess he realized that the shows didn’t have anything in common beyond basic ideas so he tried dressing up character development as a specific theme.

This gets especially egregious when you consider who SHOULD be Kouta’s counterpart here. Ruby Rose undergoes development revolving around her beliefs being questioned and questioning what she needs to do in order to be a hero. Instead of this comparison with Yang that makes no sense and makes MangaKamen look like an idiot for comparing two different types of character development under the guise of the nebulous and undefined ‘getting over yourself’, he could have reinforced the theme of ‘coming of age’ or ‘being a hero’ with Ruby.

Now why did he not bring up Ruby? Well, again I can only guess...and neither one flattering. 1. He knows Ruby is being questioned not by outside viewpoints like Kouta and her questioning comes not from how to be a hero but the difficulties of being a hero. Or 2. He’s using Ruby to bash her home series. This supported by his first actual point being ‘Is Ruby Even The Main Character?’

However, I will point out that he tries to portray Yang’s loss of her arm and resulting PTSD as the same as Kouta coming to terms with killing a man. because ‘both went through a depressed spell.’ Which is a Trope called Heroic BSOD...one of the MOST used Tropes.

Look, I’d love to continue but for some reason the link started having a 502 issue. And at this point you get the picture. If the link starts back up again or when the video gets uploaded to YouTube, I’ll make a separate post addressing those points.

But numerous times throughout the videos introduction MangaKamen shows that he’s blatantly ignoring facts and information that contradict his assertions and his points, to the point I can only assume he’s being a disingenuous troll or he’s doing this to prop up GAIM. All things he’s called out in the past.

So for now, congrats MangaKamen. How’s it feel to be MatPat for a change? Because you’re being just as intellectually dishonest as him.

I’m Knight Of Balance and remember to examine your fandoms.

#rwby #rwby6 #mangakamen

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thecraftgremlin · 5 years

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The Big Project Venom Redemption Rundown Post

For a little while now, I’ve been vaguely talking about this big weird complicated fan... thing... project that I’ve been wanting to get started. This is that; Project Venom Redemption.

(What is project Venom Redemption? This project is a series of concept art pieces and storyboards exploring how a modern Spiderman cartoon might handle the character of Venom and their shift over the years from villain to antihero. The pieces are meant to represent a series-long arc of the hypothetical cartoon centered on the characters of Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote. The narrative draws inspiration from decades of comic, cartoon, and film depictions of the character as well as fan interpretations.)

It’s a bit of an unwieldy explanation, but it doesn’t really fit into any category of fan work I’m aware of.

Obviously I’m only just getting started on the artwork and boards, but this is a basic outline of the entire story arc:

- Classic Venom origin story episode(s). Spiderman gets a new suit, suit is an alien, Spiderman gets rid of alien, meanwhile Spiderman also leads to Eddie Brock being disgraced, alien’s angry, Eddie’s angry, they team up and make a big angry monster that wants to kill Spiderman, you know the drill.

- Villain!Venom antics. We see a progression between Eddie and the symbiote from two beings grudgingly working together for a common goal to a partnership.

- Day-in-the-life type episode with Eddie and the symbiote. Here we get a glimpse at what they get up to and talk about (mostly) separate from Spiderman and their revenge quest. We get to hear some backstory for the symbiote, mostly about how they were outcast by Klyntar society. We get a better sense that Eddie and the symbiote genuinely do like each other, and some foreshadowing to their building romantic feelings for each other. This is also the episode that introduces Eddie calling the symbiote Vee, which is for all intents and purposes their name for the rest of the series. Also, this is a Valentine’s Day episode. Because it fits the themes and also chocolate.

- Several fights where Venom seems conflicted over trying to kill Spiderman. Similar to Planet of the Symbiotes, Peter picks up on this and assumes that Eddie’s morals have kicked in and he’s having second thoughts. He starts to appeal to Eddie during these fights, trying to split them up. This eventually leads to…

- The break up. Venom gets close to actually killing Spiderman in a fight, but hesitates. They start having a full on Gollum-style argument with themselves, one side saying this is wrong and they need to stop, the other saying Spiderman deserves this. Peter tries again to encourage Eddie to fight the symbiote’s desires, but it seems to be making the situation worse. At the height of the argument, an unfamiliar voice in Venom shouts “LISTEN TO ME!” and Venom de-forms. Eddie lunges to attack Peter, but he’s bound to the ground by the symbiote. Peter realizes that it was never Eddie who was trying to protect him, it was Vee. Eddie and Vee argue more, then Vee unbonds from Eddie completely and leaves. At first Eddie tries to attack Peter, blaming him as he’s wont to do, but he soon collapses in despair over the loss.

- Vee and Peter-centric episode. Peter hears rumors of a “demon” living in the church where Eddie and Vee bonded, thinks that it may be the symbiote, and he turns out to be right. When he finds them, Peter demands to know why they were protecting him and why they left Eddie, but they don’t answer. He figures out that when unbonded, they can’t actually speak, and he tentatively lets them bond with him enough to talk. Vee explains that for their whole life, their hosts have treated them as an object at best and a slave at worst. Peter was the first host who treated them with kindness, so when he rejected them for what they were they wanted revenge just like Eddie. But as they fought with him and heard how he spoke about them, it became clear to Vee that he was never aware that they were sentient with any feelings to hurt. It made less and less sense to them to be angry at Peter, but Eddie still was. They hoped that they could change Eddie’s mind and keep Peter safe from him while they worked through it, but Eddie refused to listen and Vee had to leave. They apologize to Peter for everything they did to hurt him, but Peter apologizes right back. He’s sorry that he was another person to treat them like an object, and that he blamed them when they were trying to keep him safe from Eddie. Uncertain about where to go from here, Peter leaves Vee on their own as a tentative new friend.

- Peter and Eddie team up episode(s). While out doing his Spiderman thing, Peter stumbles on Eddie, who looks like absolute hell. He’s made a full 180 from blaming his mistakes on others to despairing self-pity. Peter doesn’t really know what to do with him in this state. Meanwhile a symbiote-related threat, let’s say Carnage, emerges in the city. Peter’s immediate instinct is to go to Vee for help, but they’ve left the church and he has no real way of finding them. The only other person with symbiote experience he can turn to is Eddie. It’s a huge effort getting him put of his spiral, but Eddie grudgingly agrees to help him. This eventually leads to a confrontation where Eddie and Peter are pretty badly beaten, on the verge of losing. At the last minute, Vee comes in and protects them. The three eliminate the threat together. When everything’s said and done, Vee starts to leave, but Eddie stops them. He literally falls to his knees and begs Vee to forgive him. He tells them that he knew what they were doing was wrong, but he was still so angry that he didn’t care. He knows he’s made so many mistakes, done so many awful things, but he doesn’t want revenge anymore. He doesn’t even want the power they give him. He just wants Vee. (There may or may not be a love confession in there somewhere.) They bond again with a kiss.

- Episode that starts out with Eddie brooding about everything he’s done wrong and how he has no purpose until Vee says “Screw that, let’s be heroes, like Spiderman!” We really get to see Vee’s romanticism about ideals like true love, heroism, and justice here. Eddie on the other hand is more cynical, still in self-pity mode and unable to believe that a screw-up like him could ever do good in the world after everything he’s done. Eddie and Vee try and fail to emulate Spiderman’s “friendly neighborhood hero” style. In the end, Eddie tells Vee that they can’t be a hero like Spiderman, they have to be a hero like Venom.

- Episode where Eddie reconciles with Peter and they become Spider-Allies for real. This is where we really get to see Eddie and Vee trying to build a new life together, transitioning to a more stable, healthy existence with positive relationships with others.

Some other tidbits about the arc:

-Some themes of Eddie’s character arc are personal responsibility and later taking responsibility versus self pity, overcoming toxic masculinity, and rejecting societal “normality” for happiness.

-Some themes of Vee’s character arc are personhood, what truly makes a monster (and why Vee is NOT a monster), the value of romanticism, and finding self-worth as a victim of abuse.

-And of course the big theme of their arc together is

-Eddie’s favorite term of endearment for Vee is “Angel.” Not super relevant to the story, but it’s cute and I wanted to share.

-A few things about symbiotes in this universe:

-They don’t have names. They may use a nickname, but they don’t self-identify with a name like a lot of other species do. I’m aware that the “Vee” nickname is a fanon thing, but I thought it was useful for this context so I shamelessly borrowed it.

-They can’t really communicate with their host unless they’re at least somewhat aware of their presence. This is why Peter wasn’t aware that Vee was sentient, he thought they were just an inanimate suit and didn’t think they could speak to him.

-The Agents of the Cosmos as a group no longer exist in this universe. Klyntar is currently ruled by “parasitic” symbiotes. Vee was born after the Agents were disbanded.

So, yeah, these are my ideas so far. I’m hoping I’ll be able to flesh them out more as I work on the art elements of the project. I can’t guarantee I’ll get every idea out in a polished form, but I figure I can at least try while I’m still excited about it.

#venom #eddie brock #venom symbiote #symbrock #venom redemption #it's probably a lil disingenuous to tag this as symbrock but it is in there i promise #congrats if anybody actually read the whole thing this is too many damn words

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toomanytentacles · 5 years

Text

I’ve been thinking a lot about this film THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY lately, about how perfect and beautiful it is, and figure this piece of writing I did is worth a revisit. You ever do that, go back a year later and see if your opinion on something has changed any? Well, in this case, it hasn’t.

Text that follows was published at www.cinepunx.com

REKT: The Duke of Burgundy

by Elbee | May 29, 2018

Adrianna has been trying to get me to watch The Duke of Burgundy for what seems like decades; this is an absolute fact. When we first discussed the film all those years ago, I told her I had started watching it once and was intrigued, however (as I often do) I fell asleep moments after the opening title sequence. But I always wanted to come back to the film because what I (briefly) saw of it was striking, and lo and behold, she put it on her recommendation list this month, giving me the final push I needed to move the film from “need to watch” to “watched.” Boy howdy, am I glad she did.

There are so many artful elements to this film to sink into, but first I need to talk about the music. The Duke of Burgundy’s beautifully haunting soundtrack (available via Caroline Records) is performed by indie act Cat’s Eyes, a band I have been enamored with since their first album dropped in 2011. Once I recognized Rachel Zeffira’s voice singing over a familiar kind of hazily sullen melody as the opening credits started, I felt a definite sense of being at home with this movie. Couple that with a late ‘60s-slash-early ‘70s vaguely European aesthetic, and I was on board faster than you could say “Rosemary’s Baby” (That kind of look and feel is mysteriously special to me, and I’m not entirely certain why. You know how sometimes things aren’t exactly nostalgic, but they speak to your soul like they are anyway? The Duke of Burgundy is that.).

But let’s get to the meat of this story. We’re introduced to main characters Evelyn and Cynthia through what appears to be a scene taken from classical literature: Evelyn arrives at Cynthia’s petite countryside mansion via her bicycle on what seems to be her first day as Cynthia’s hired help. Cynthia is cold to the young woman (dressed like a wealthy businesswoman with designer heels and pencil skirt, her hair in a neat updo), and commands her sternly to begin her chores — which must be done correctly. The meek Evelyn begins work, and it is when we see that one of her duties is to hand wash and dry Cynthia’s delicate panties that we begin to think perhaps there is more to this relationship than a simple employer/employee dynamic. Indeed, shortly after, it is revealed the two women are a couple roleplaying, and the submissive Evelyn is more than eager to be punished by Cynthia when she neglects to do her chores properly. But, as we learn, their dynamic is even more complicated than that (I don’t want to give too much away, but there’s a reveal that blurs the lines of their dom/sub roles in a very subversive way.). So now, instead of a classic Miss Havisham-type scenario, we have a tender look into the relationship of two women who are trying to give enough of themselves over to each other in order to satisfy each individual’s needs while still maintaining their own personas.

This film is valiant in its attempt to show how we all struggle with the same types of relationship imbalances; the moral here is that relationships which go beyond the scope of so-called traditional values are really no different than those which are held in that tradition. I don’t exactly want to spoil anything because this film goes above and beyond what any other I’ve seen does as far as examining the dom/sub relationship in a realistic way, but this film thoughtfully introduces important ideas that need to be shared. I think that fetishes and kink often have one of two reputations to “normal” people: either kink is looked upon as disgusting, or it’s fetishized in itself as being “new” or “exciting” or “playful.” Normal society doesn’t really take kink seriously, but this film does its part to provide the example that kink can be absolutely serious and real, and it can constitute as much emotional turmoil as any regular type of sexual relationship. One element to that sameness is what I’m going to refer to as “the shackles of a relationship,” when one person feels tied down or has been sacrificing a part of his/her identity in order to maintain what is perceived as a happy couplehood. In the case of Evelyn and Cynthia, the struggle for control is what leads to their apparent downfall, and the film presents this imbalance in a way that is entirely relatable. Eventually their game becomes redundant to at least one participant, which shows that even in kink relationships, people grow tired of one other. Evelyn starts to blame Cynthia a bit, saying things like, “It would be nice if you would do it without being asked,” in reference to Cynthia degrading her, in quite the same way Jennifer Aniston tells Vince Vaughn “I want you to want to do the dishes” in the 2006 romantic comedy The Break-Up. The film goes on to show us more relationship tropes including infidelity, jealousy, and pettiness, all of which play out in an interesting way; we are once again compelled to ask ourselves how anyone could not be willing to understand how love plays into our similarities as human beings instead of focusing negatively on our differences in sexual identities.

Performances in this film are strong, especially in the case of Sidse Babett Knudsen as the graceful-yet-fragile Cynthia. One of the things this film does beautifully is exhibit how complex women can be in their characters; Cynthia is an expert in lepidopterology (the study of butterflies), and her experience in the scientific academic field sets her up to be a possible authoritarian. And even though this is probably what appeals to Evelyn about her the most, Cynthia does show a softer and more nuanced side to the typical authoritative stereotype at home. Throughout the film, Cynthia seems as if she’s only going along with Evelyn as she indulges in her kinky fantasies (this is where the theme of sacrifice first comes in to play), and the reservation she secretly holds about their roleplay is expertly shown with restraint by a few forlorn looks in the mirror. Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna), like Cynthia, shows both strength and weakness: even though she is the submissive, she knows exactly what she wants from their relationship, and she’s determined to get it. However, when Cynthia shows timidness with delivering on her agreed role, in a moment of instability, Evelyn seeks out her desires elsewhere. The vulnerability the two show as they work out the impact of their mutual issues is phenomenally relatable; again, it all goes to show these themes are universal.

I’m not sure I can fully express how extraordinarily shot and thoughtfully crafted The Duke of Burgundy is. And what is fantastic about it is that it is a highly erotic film — these women are both incredibly sexy, and given the subject matter, almost every scene evokes a sort of amorous curiosity. But, it’s also a film treated with so much care that the eroticism doesn’t get in the way of the story; to put it plainly, you can watch this film and be intrigued — I would go so far as to say “stimulated” — but you can also watch it without the distraction of your metaphorical dick. Eroticism? Yes. Smut? No. Is this the highest compliment I can give a film of this sort? Yes, probably. So, thank you again, Adrianna, for pushing me to watch this film. And in turn, I’m probably going to start pushing it on everyone else.

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missvalerietanner · 5 years

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tagged by @jmhwriterblog and yeah, ‘course I’m gonna do writing stuff ;p

Rules: Answer the questions and then tag as many writers as there are questions answered (or as many as you can) to spread the positivity! Even if these questions are not explicitly brought up in the novel, they are still good to keep in mind when writing.

FIRST LOOK

(using The Seven Kings, ‘cause that’s what I’m wrapped up in right now)

1. Describe your novel in 1-2 sentences (elevator pitch)

The brutal assassination of a king sparks the partnership between a hated half-breed hungry for revenge and a well-educated prince whose father arranged said assassination.

2. How long do you plan for your novel to be? (Is it a novella, single book, book series, etc.)

Editing the first book right now. Still need to finish its ending. And I was so excited, I might have already started to write the sequel... ‘bout two solid chapters in so far. AND there’s enough happening that it’d probably be a trilogy.

3. What is your novel’s aesthetic?

I... suck at this question every time I see it.

I guess... I’mma have to go with redemption.

4. What other stories inspire your novel?

Legend of Zelda for sure, mainly inspiration for the diverse kingdoms and people. And then, I dunno, there’s probably a little bit of every fantasy movie and book I’ve ever seen/read tucked in this story somewhere.

5. Share 3+ images that give a feel for your novel

clicky - takes you to WeHeartIt

MAIN CHARACTER

6. Who is your protagonist?

Valerie Tanner and Eli Orphesis (named him during my Greek obsession)

7. Who is their closest ally?

They gain several throughout the story, but the main two are Roderick, a rancher and old friend of Valerie’s (practically a second father to her), and Elyn, one of the queen’s handmaidens who joins them on their journey. Oh and then Aaron pops up later, and he’s an old ally of Valerie’s as well.

8. Who is their enemy?

Mainly: Darrean Orphesis (yep, Eli’s dad)

9. What do they want more than anything?

Valerie wants revenge for Garrett’s death, and Eli wants to forge a path to his own future, a future not doomed to exist in the shadow of his father.

10. Why can’t they have it?

Valerie: gaining revenge changes nothing; Garrett’s still dead, and she’s still an outsider

Eli: he has to grow up and learn who he is without his father’s title protecting him, and there are a LOT of tough lessons on the road ahead for my boy.

11. What do they wrongly believe about themselves?

Valerie believes she’s completely alone and useless. She believes her life is worth little, and that spending her life in service to better people/better men is the best she can do.

Eli ... is pretty arrogant, so his are kinda negative. He believes he’s untouchable, that he’s immune to certain feelings (like pity and loss). He thinks he has all the answers.

12. Draw your protagonist! (Or share a description)

Valerie: 28, 5′8″ (172 CM), weighs 135 pounds (yes, I did), lean and muscular, smaller-than-average bust size, wavy brown hair that ends between her shoulder blades, deep/dark brown eyes, Caucasian, Ossa tattoo on her upper left arm (all black ink), muscular stomach, narrow hips, fit legs, covered in old/faded scars from battle and/or training, wears: black trousers that fit tight, knee-high boots, a fit undershirt to keep the girls pinned down and covered (;p), and a loose white overshirt to keep her cool.

Eli: ~26, 6′2″ (188 CM - people of his race are tall as fuck), blue skin (similar to Oxford blue but a hair lighter), black hair that is a bit shorter than shoulder-length and he keeps it in a low ponytail at the nape of his neck (sexy!), bright golden eyes, muscular and well-built, hands lack callouses (only trained, never fought), no scars or wounds, wears proper royal clothes like a prince should (tunic, trousers, knee-high boots, waistcoat, the works)

PLOT POINTS

13. What is the internal conflict?

Learning to accept help, realizing that people are more than their pasts or their titles and especially their race

14. What is the external conflict?

A power-hungry king and his massive army of well-trained, well-armed soldiers who are all purebloods, so they all have magical abilities.

15. What is the worst thing that could happen to your protagonist?

For Valerie, losing the people she loves who she tries to protect. She’s watched so many die. She tends to be pretty self-sacrificing because she’d rather jump in harm’s way and die if it means saving someone else. (She has some self-esteem issues as well, so wanting to be someone’s shield makes her feel useful, and therefore, good. She also values others’ lives over her own.)

For Eli... Failure’s a big one for him. He’s probably afraid to die, but I’d say failing and letting down those around him is worse. His mother went to great lengths to make sure he was cultured and well-educated, so with all his knowledge, if he fails, yeah, that’d probably be what would crush him more than anything.

16. What secret will be revealed that changes the course of the story?

Probably the reveal of Eli’s power. He was never trained as a child like he should’ve been (for reasons!), and so since he’s a pureblood, his powers developed on their own. He’s powerful but uncontrolled, so his abilities start leaking out, so to speak, on their own.

The reveal of what his power actually is, is a good moment. It’s subtle, but as each of the other characters begin to realize just how much power he wields, they also start to realize how REAL everything is becoming: like the war, their chances of survival, etc.

17. Do you know how it ends?

Yes. I know the jist. I know what I’m aiming for. How I get there, I dunno, and what’s said or done when we get there, I dunno.

I know which port I want to dock in. Just not what it looks like.

(I swear I am not drinking.)

BITS AND BOBS

18. What is the theme?

Hmm... unity for sure, redemption’s a big one, some focus on equality, but I’d say mostly it’s about people finding their place in the world by following their own intuitions rather than falling into the role provided for them or forced upon them.

[cue Disney music]

19. What is a reoccurring symbol?

Valerie has a tattoo on her upper left arm that marks her as a member of Ossa, so basically an outsider. After what happens in the opening chapters, she keeps the tattoo hidden whenever possible. But its meaning causes some tension with... basically everyone she meets.

...there’s probably others, but I can’t think of any that don’t require a lot of explaining... and I was pretty vague on the tattoo for reasons.

20. Where is the story set? (Share a description)

In the country of Nubrya (hate the name, can’t find one yet to replace it). It’s the border country on a massive continent and is encircled by three (possibly four or five... haven’t finished plotting the map) other countries to its east, west, and north. The south of Nubrya is open to the water. Its eastern edge rises into steep cliffs overlooking coves dug into the mountain side to house the nation’s ships during the winter. The western border levels off into desert. The north is rocky terrain, isolated, and sitting on a raised plateau, so every step from the heart of Nubrya upward is a hike. And to the northeast, there is a massive mountain range, upon which one of the Seven Kingdoms sits. And to the east/southeast (before the cliffs) are the farms and vineyards of the country.

Every type of landscape and temperature zone and climate is represented.

21. Do you have any images or scenes in your mind already?

Since the first book’s finished except for a few scenes and the final fight leading up to the already-written ending, most of the scenes are already down on paper. The second book, however, oh, boy! I have SO much planned and cannot wait for the willingness to write it down. XD

22. What excited you about this story?

I originally wrote this story back in high school. As you can tell by my username, I’ve kept the characters with me through the years. :] Recently (meaning last year, I think), I got to thinking about the original story from high school (titled: “The Unknown Soldier,” I think), and I missed it. So I dug out the original copy, started reading it, and by about, oh I dunno, page 2, I was ready to hang myself ‘cause the writing was THAT BAD.

But the plot was a good one. The characters were half-developed, but they had the potential to be so much better. So I remolded them, fleshed them out, added a ton more characters, revamped the settings, added MORE settings, dumped in a whole bunch of emotional turmoil, updated some names, increased the stakes tenfold, added more magical/fantasy elements, and landed these characters in a MUCH better story.

A lot about the story excites me, but to know I revitalized an old story, pried it off the gurney, and zapped it back to life--a life better than the one it had before--that excites me. :]

23. Tell us about your usual writing method!

Frantic. Messy.

I write scenes as they come to me. Stitch them together later with transitions, and edit to fix any time lapses or to plug in missing information. I do outline, but they look like this:

Guy does this thing. it’s cool, but not too cool. Then girl finds out. And note for later: the girl’s really a guy. OH! And remember by scene five to put in a live rooster or else the whole chicken joke won’t make ANY SENSE. End with badass scene with knives. RESEARCH: knives.

Hey, I just made that up on the spot. Welcome to my brain.

But that’s the basic idea behind what my outlines look like. XD Except, I do usually write my outlines in ALL CAPS and important items are bolded or highlighted. But that’s a minor detail.

Rooster.

...

Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

NOW GO WRITE! (or tag yourself and do this. T’was fun.)

#seek the seven kings #stsk #writings #ask #missvalerietanner #favorite

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dnd-addicts-annonymous-blog · 7 years

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Campaign setting: Primordia

This setting is meant to capture a pre-historic/skull island type of atmosphere. The people are primitive and have yet to develope past their stone age, making due with simple supplies such as bone and hide. Obviously, it is much more than just a prehistoric earth - otherwise there would be no reason for me to write about it. Primordia’s swamps, jungles, and plains are home to an assortment of monstrous beasts, giant insects, and what we would recignise as dinisaurs.

Intended audience:

This setting is quite versatile in the kind of players it can be preseted to. For younger players, it can easily take on a lighthearted, flinstone-esque theme. Dinosaurs are something that a lot of little kids are interested in (although if you’re an adult who likes dinosaurs, I’m not judging you), and it can be refreshing for a GM who doesn’t feel like running yet another midevil fairy tail. However, it doesn’t have to be limited to children. Think of Jurassic Park and King Kong. Only scarier. The setting could be used to create some pretty memorable horror themed adventures. The relative lack of magic means it could also easily fit a sword and sorcery theme. Naturally, you are free to use any or all of these themes in any combination you prefer, based on your party’s preferences and your experience with the themes.

Races:

Humans are, as usual, a young race by comparison to the others, but their ingenuity and resilience have made them one of the most numerous. They manage to get by in almost all environments, usually in semi-perminent huts or sometimes natural caves. The tribes they group themselves into are based loosely on blood as well as territorial alliences, but their cultural beliefs and practices are surprisingly varied from group to group.

Halflings often live alongside humans, sharing their traditions and attitudes, but have been known to build settlements of their own in secluded and hard to reach places. They value privacy and family units, and tend towards good more than humans do.

Elves are as ancient as dragons, and their oral histories are more extensive and detailed than any other race. They are currently the only race actively and collectively trying to understand and make use of the arcane arts. Their lifestyle is mostly nomadic, and they are constantly moving to follow the migrations of animals and visit holy sites. Elves believe that when the world was created, it’s natural terrain was devided among the variations of their own race, and so regard all others as at best harmless guests to be ignored, and at worst tresspassers. The dark elves were jealous of their bretheren, and so were banished to the deep underground where their hate has festered for millenia.

Dwarves are nearly as old as the elves (older, according to some), and most see themselves as the rightful rulers of the world. This self-rightious attitude is the result of a society built around religion, loyalty, and valor. Although metal working has yet to be widely used or even fully understood, the dwarves of this setting make up for it with their mastery of stone carving (meaning that their in game abilities regarding armor and weapons do not need to be modified). They are also one of the only races to regularly makr use of written language, and the halls of their vast underground cities are covered with hyroglyphs depicting their gods, along with the heroes and rulers of their past.

Other races are also found on primordia. Lizardfolk (as per volo’s guide to monsters) are almost as common as elves and dwarves, and show the same coldly logical attitude as they do in other settings. Dragonborn do not exist as an independent race, but people who worship dragons may be awarded similar apperence and abilities. The reason for this is that they are essentially replaced by lizardfolk, as dragons are seen as something more like powerful and highly evolved dinosaurs than unique magical creatures. Aasimar and tieflings are extremely rare, due to the general lack of non-shamanistic religions, and those that do exist are almost always dwarves (as opposed to humans). Genesai exist in small numbers within elven communities, due to the race’s deep connection with nature. Rock gnomes do not exist, but forest gnomes are fairly common, being to elves what halflings are to humans. There is no reason for half-elves and half-orcs not to exist, but they rarely form their own communities because their parent races are a little less judgmental towards them than in other races (after all, a baby is a baby, and a member of the tribe should always be protected and sheltered).

Magic:

Magic, for the most part, is regarded with fear and suspicion. The only spellcasters that exist in significant numbers are druids and rangers, and even they tend to inspire fear in most. Due to the extreme lack of knowledge regarding the arcane -not to mention the general lack of written language- wizards are practically unheard of. There is also a lack of clerics and paladins among all races except the dwarves, as they are the only ones who widely practice religion of the appropriat type. Warlocks are more common then wizards by far, but are still a little rarer than druids. Sorcerers are a little more common than warlocks, as becoming one requires no special effort (one is either born a sorcerer, or isn’t), but both are still rare enough that they genarally are found ruling over their brethren through a mix of fear and reverence. Knowledge of the other planes is limited outside of a few vague legends about the afterlife, and spells that allow travel to them are extremely diffucult to find. Due to this lack of understanding, the cosmology of this world is not likely to come into play and so I leave it to the GM running the campaign. The only note worth adding on the subject is that any other planes the players visit should be mysterious and strange, to help convay the confusion and forbearance felt by the player characters.

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freewhispersmaker · 7 years

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ITECH3224 WWW Technology 2 Assignment 1 – Dog Share Overview This is an individual assignment in which you are required to develop a dynamic web application as described below. Important: This assignment specification is generated just for you. Do not distribute this specification. Timelines and Expectations Percentage value of task: 20% Due: Sun, Sep 17, 2017 – 16:00 (Week 7) Learning Outcomes Assessed The following course learning outcomes are assessed by completing this assessment: K2. Contrast the capabilities and limitations of client-side and server-side programming. S1. Develop client/server programs using client-side and server-side programming languages. S2. Construct a server-side web interface to a database system that is accessible by web clients. A1. Design, develop, test, and debug client/server web applications to provided specifications. Assessment Details For this assignment, you will create a web-based link sharing/aggregating platform, vaguely similar to -Reddit-. Your platform is dedicated to sharing interesting links about a particular topic – for your assignment the topic is Dog Share, a place for dog enthusiasts to share links about their shared interest. Users can create accounts, share a dog-related link, and comment on the submissions of others. You must implement this platform using PHP and MySQL or MariaDB, with some JavaScript for validation. Database Structure The web application uses a relational database to create a review site. The database has the following structure: User ( id, name, email, password ) DogLink ( id, user_id, datetime, link_url, title ) Comment ( id, user_id, doglink_id, comment_text ) Block ( user_id, blocked_user_id )

Primary keys are indicated with underlines or bold formatting, and foreign keys are italicized. Each entry in the Dog table represents a single shared link made by a user. Each record in the Comment table represents a comment on a post. A User may make multiple comments on a single DogLink, and each DogLink may have multiple Comments. The Block table stores whether a User has blocked all communications from another User. If a record exists (1, 2) in Block, this means the user with id 1 should not see comments or posts from the user with id 2. The following constraints should be applied when implementing the application: The user_id and blocked_user_id in the Block table form a compound primary key, and both refer to the id field in the User table. The datetime field should be stored as either a string or a MySQL datetime type, and must include both time and date. The password field should be a VARCHAR of 255 characters. The name and email fields should be VARCHAR of a length that you determine to be reasonable and sufficient. Initial Data When the database is created, it should be populated with data of your own invention, appropriate to the theme. You should have at least: 8 dog links, with at least one link having 5 comments. 5 users (see note below) One of the users must be you, using your student id – 30301130 – for the username, and your real name and email address. Invent other users as necessary – perhaps use characters from your favourite movie or band. Also include a user with the username tutor and the password guest. This user must block at least one other user. Include this data as part of your written report. Database creation DDL Create an SQL file that creates the MySQL database, creates the four tables above, and populates them with your initial data. Use your student id and course code as the database name as follows: ITECH3224_30301130. Passwords should be hashed using, at minimum, the crypt() PHP function. Prefer to use the PHP password_hash() function to generate password hashes. For the password ‘guest’, the following hash may be used in your database: PASSWORD = ‘$2y$10$123031103030000999999uW9V.5Wf7qgnK8QEdmmTOc9ugkg7YvTO’ It is acceptable for all initial users to share the same password for testing. Use of MD5 or SHA for password hashes is not acceptable. Write SQL queries that display all of the initial data using SELECT statements, and include these queries in your report. User accounts Write an HTML form that allows new users to sign up. The form should request a username, email address and password. The password must be hashed before storing it in the database. Using PHP, validate that the username is unique, and the password is at least 5 characters (before hashing). Write PHP code to allow users to log in and log out. This will require the use of sessions and/or cookies. Global timeline Write PHP and HTML code to display a list of the most recent 5 links from all users, sorted in descending date order – that is, the most recent posts are at the top. This timeline of links should be visible to anybody without logging in. Sharing links Logged-in users should be able to share new links. Write PHP code to support this. Use both PHP and JavaScript to limit the length of the title to 60 characters. Comments Create a page which displays the comments for an individual link. This may mean adding a comments button or link to each post in the global timeline. Write HTML and PHP code to allow logged-in users to comment on links shared by other users. This should create a new entry in the Comment table. User view Write HTML and PHP code to allow logged-in users to see all links shared by a particular user. This page should be accessible through a link on the comments page, the global timeline, or both. Blocking From the User view, write PHP and HTML to allow a logged-in user to block the displayed user. This should add an entry to the Block table. If the user is already blocked, allow them to be un-blocked. Update your global timeline and comments pages to hide links and comments by blocked users when logged in. Aggregate data Complete the following using SQL aggregation such as COUNT and SUM, subqueries or nested SELECT statements, inner joins and (left or right) outer joins. Create a page that contains a list of the top 5 most-commented posts from all time, ordered in descending order by number of comments. For each post in the timeline that has comments, display the number of comments with the post. Bonus challenge task (optional!) – Comment threading Extend the data model and write appropriate PHP code to implement a feature that allows comments to be posted in reply to other comments: Comments should have a reply link or text-box below them, which allows adding a reply; Comments shown in response to other comments should be visually indented or distinguished from their parent comment; Counts of comments on the global timeline should include all replies as well as top-level comments; A user should not be able to reply to their own comment There are no partial marks awarded for this bonus task – you must complete all features to attain the bonus marks. It is possible to attain full marks for this assignment without completing this challenge task. Further details Documentation Include a written report containing: Initial data details The SQL queries you used to test your database A list of parts of the assignment you have completed or not completed. Details of specific assistance you received from people other than your lecturer or tutor, and the names of those assisting. Assignment support This assignment is supported by the first 5 lectures and the first 6 labs. Work on the assignment should be spread over several weeks after the relevant lab has been mastered. Submission All files should be zipped and uploaded to Moodle by the due date and time. Check with your tutor as to whether a hard copy is required in addition to the electronic submission. Marking Criteria/Rubric Refer to the attached marking guide. Feedback Feedback will be supplied through Moodle. Authoritative marks will be published through fdlMarks Plagiarism Plagiarism is the presentation of the expressed thought or work of another person as though it is one’s own without properly acknowledging that person. You must not allow other students to copy your work and must take care to safeguard against this happening. More information about the plagiarism policy and procedure for the university can be found at ift.tt/2cEhy32. Marking Guide: Assignment 1 Feature Criteria Maximum Obtained Initial data Requirements satisfied 1 Creating the database Table structure, data types, field lengths, initial data entry 1 User accounts Account sign-up 1 Validation that password meets complexity requirements (at least 5 characters) 1 Log in and Log out 1 Inappropriate password hashing (MD5, SHA1 or plain-text passwords) (-2) Timeline Most recent 5 links/posts listed in descending order 1 Sharing Links Logged-in users can share links 1 Use of PHP and JavaScript to limit title length to 60 characters 1 Comments Comments view 1 Logged-in users can comment on links 2 User view Page of all links shared by a user 1 Author of post is a clickable link from timeline/comments page 1 Blocking Block/unblock button on user view 1 Links/comments from blocked users are not visible in global timeline/comments view 2 Aggregate data Top 5 most-commented posts from all time 1 Include comments count in global timeline 1 Bonus optional task Threading Meets specification (reply, indent, counts, no selfreplies) (no partial marks) 2 Documentation Initial data and test queries 2 Completion of tasks, Assistance statement (lose 1 mark each if not included) (-2) Quality of code Layout, structure, indentation (-1) Appropriate and consistent naming scheme (-1) Valid HTML5 (-1)

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recentanimenews · 7 years

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Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon – 06

The Gist: amidst the spring rain, four dragon x human couplings blossom. Riko, who’s older sister is also a maid-otaku, invites Kana and company over for a play date. While Kobayashi and Riko’s sister bond over maids (and Tohru feels left out), Riko introduces Kana to twister and, as their loli-bodies entwine, Kana introduces Riko to lust.

Kana’s objectives are a little vague here. She knows her strengths make her popular in class, but it doesn’t feel like the friendship she see’s between Kobayashi and Tohru. However, she doesn’t seem entirely invested in Riko, dspite Riko off-handedly saying she would gladly marry Kana, and despite Kana mounting Riko and pinning her to the floor…

Ah Twister, the loli’s gateway into awkward Yuri action…

The entire Kana x Riko section is played for laughs, which is a little creepy considering the laughs are about proto-sexual interactions between elementary school age children, but not nearly as creepy as Lucoa’s relationship with Magatsuchi Shouta…

Shouta is the descendent of mages and about Riko’s age. While trying to summon a demon, he ended up summoning Lucoa, who is now living at his house, taking baths with him, and sleeping with him clutched in her arms. How his parents are not involved in this is unclear and beside’s the point. What is clear is that Lucoa’s only value to him is her physical body, and no matter how much she rubs her breasts in his face, he doesn’t even want that.

Like Kana x Riko, this section is played for laughs. We’re supposed to find it funny that Lucoa, who is the level headed dragon, is flustered by her lack of value to her partner. We’re also supposed to find it funny that a mature woman is making sexual advances on a young boy, who is obviously aroused by it but has no tools to cope except call her names and shout objections. In short, we’re supposed to find child molestation acceptable, if not funny, because of the gender norms in play. Nice!

Lolz a clueless sexual predator won’t leave this little boy alone lolz / wtf?!

The final section is devoted to Fafnir and Takiya, which is bookended by Kana, Kobayashi and Tohru enjoying the rain. While Fafnir and Takiya are naturally awkward characters, this section is anything but.

They have a routine, if sorts, with the day starting and ending with Takiya making meals for them to share, and lots of onling gaming in between. I love that Fafnir always asks if the flavor is ‘mild,’ no matter what type of dish is served. I love that they are making a game together and are planning to sell it at Comiket. I love that their relationship is almost completely inverse of Tohru x Kobayashi.

But what really sells it as a complete and interesting set of scenes is the tiny amount of time we actually spend in Fafnir’s head. He sees humans as hit or miss and finds the amount of effort to decide if a person is a hit too much. He’d rather limit his exposure to the easy misses — the humans who raid his lair for gold — than put himself out there. Except, without explaining what he means, he tells Takiya a hit and lets Tikiya call him faf-kun.

That added a charming layer to what would otherwise be disposable side-character antics.

The Verdict: Episode 6 presents a significant challenge in the ratings department. While Fafnir x Takiya’s story provided an unusually thoughtful, well paced experience, and Tohru x Kobayashi’s time watching the rain had a similar effect, the over all experience was just ‘watchable.’

Additionally, I respond poorly to the use of sexualization for exploitation’s sake, and this week’s Kana x Riko and Lucoa x Shouta used it for even less. Introducing Shouta this late in the season with no clear purpose doesn’t help things either.

In the grand scheme of things, those scenes didn’t make the episode hard to watch, though I would argue it did make it worse. Worse and I suspect they will become a recurring theme for some reason, which greatly reduces my interest in reviewing it.

By: oigakkosan

#Anime #News #RABUJOI – An Anime Blog

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freewhispersmaker · 7 years

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ITECH3224 WWW Technology 2

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