#thomas Astruc

[huneybackup]

This is what it feels like reading any thomas astruc tweet about chloe

[hikarry]

Okay so

Color me in:

'Derision' was literally written to give a (very weak) excuse as to why Marinette has acted like a damned creepy stalker for 5 seasons now towards Adrien

These people sat around a desk and, for the first time in years, heard how the fans didn't really like how obcessed Marinette was with Adrien, mixing it with being in love with the boy, so they decided: 'Let's write an episode where we will explain that Marinette told Kim she was in love with him in the first date (Ted Mosby said he wants his gig back) and be pranked her to the point she got so traumatized she decided that she will only tell a boy she loves them again when she know everything about them, such as:'

Fellows, news flash:

That's lazy and a cheap get out

Do you realize how insane and unlogical everyone in this situation sounds, Marinette herself included?

Instead of actually making Marinette realize her love is bothering on obcession and GROW from that, learning how to be more healthy with her affections, you go and lean into the problem, giving her and YOURSELVES a terrible excuse instead of actually taking advantage of this flaw to spice up the character

Also, I understand what you did here. You went with the whole 'show, don't tell' and I give you 1 single clap for that

However, going with the most basic rule of story telling isn't enough to fix it. Having people patting you on the back because 'hey, you actualy showed what happened' isn't enough

Congrats, you did one (1) thing right. But that right thing is filled to the brim with shite.

Astruc's obsession with portraying Marinette as the righteous main character, the perfect chosen one just keep digging the character into a deeper hole and making her even more unlikeable. My guy is shooting himself in the foot over and over again and I don't know if I find it funny or tiring anymore

Yes, this is a show for kids, but, jesus christ, if that's your excuse, what are you teaching said children? That your flaws can be execused with cheap metaphorical band-aids as justifications?

God dammit. I haven't finished the episode yet, and my annoyance and this rant might go down the drain very quickly here, however, I doubt it. This is a flashback and we know what happens in the future after this. Marinette DOES put her words to work and becomes unhealthy towards her romantic affections. Just-

[motherofplatypus]

The best part of the London Special was when Ladybug said "Its London time!" and spent 99% of the special being anywhere but London.

[kathrahender]

After rewatching Malediktator, I can't believe people still think Chloé is the most evil person in the show and irredeemable. Like yeah, she made mistakes, but she was starting to be a better person. The only reason why she didn't completely change was because of Thomas Astruc's writing and because he couldn't handle people liking or defending Chloé.

[adalineozie]

Ok, my thing is that I can't take Thomas Astruc and his writing seriously.

Refusing to give Chloe a redemption arc and pronouncing her as the greatest evil is so...infantile of him. He's villanizing a 14 year old girl who is established to be the way she is due to emotional neglect and feelings of unworthiness. Now, while this makes her sympathetic, the show doesn't use it to excuse her bad actions but does give us an understanding in later seasons on the why in Chloe's choices. As it should, the show often shows us how the consequences of her actions and earned karma come back to bite her in the earlier seasons of the show. But later on, Chloe learns her lesson, does do the work on being a better person and is actively shown to have remorse for her past bad deeds and that she wants to be a better person. But then the show goes out of its way to undo all of that and more or less spits on the idea of people being able to reedem oneself. But if they really wanted her to be the unredeemable bitch in the series then what was the point of introducing Lila.

On the other hand, Marrinette and her weird stalking behavior. Like the man has no idea how to write a girl with a crush and honestly writes her so out of character for a character like Marinette, who is kind and empathetic and always willing to help people when they need her when she isn't being creepy and weird. He went over the top in an attempt to make Marinette funny and relatable and crossed the line to uncomfortable and unlikable. And then excuses that behavior by having the show tell us that it's because it stems from her trauma from Chloe's bullying. Now trauma from bullying is a serious thing and something I also have dealt with but the episode "Derision" isn't written as an exploration of the theme as it much as it feels like it's an excuse for bad past writing. If he did want to explore Marrinette's trauma and trauma responses to her past bullying, Marrinette making her friends problems and emotions her responsibility is already a good aspect of her character he could explore that wouldn't character assasinate her.

Episode 14 of Season 5 just felt like Thomas Astruc killing two birds with one stone getting to write off Marinette's behavior and getting to villanize Chloe further. But it seems hypocritical when the very same episode is about how your past should not excuse your behavior.

[ijustliketoreadstuff]

Adrien trying things for the first time and completely flopping at it. Look at him! Sunshine boy is doing his best and finally living! No more being a prisoner in his own home.

[pandaofsecrets]

We often talk about "the writers" as if they were some kind of hivemind, and that made me wonder, are they really? Well, let's find out.

But first, some general trends.

For one, with the grand exception of The Mime, which was written by five people, episodes in S1 were usually written by three people at most and there were a lot more solo episodes, which made it easier to figure out who was responsible for what in most instances. S1 also had a larger selection of writers, so I'm only going to focus on those who went on to work on the show from S2 onward.

For another thing, most of the writers don't have a lot of writing credits to their name, let alone experience working on anything good. The only ones that do are Fred Lenoir, who worked on Code Lyoko, and Matthieu Choquet, who worked on the adult series Lastman, based on the comic of the same title. And trust me, it shows.

Thomas Astruc

The creator and the one beefing with people on Twitter, he is the guy the fandom generally tends to point to when the writing goes sideways. However, for how much attention we give him, there's actually surprisingly little to say about the man.

First of all, he isn't even a writer. His actual job is as director and storyboard artist, and the only writing credit he has besides Miraculous is like 3 episodes of Wakfu.

Second of all, for how much shit he talks on Twitter, it's actually really tough to separate out this man's influence. He never gets solo episodes, and his episodes usually tend to have more than three writers total. Closest we ever get to unfiltered Astruc is Zombizou, which he wrote alongside Wilfried Pain, who is himself not a writer and only wrote for this one episode.

In S1, Astruc wrote four episodes:

The Bubbler (w/ Sébastien Thibaudeau)

The Mime (w/ Sébastien Thibaudeau, Michaël Delachenal, Karin Lollichon, and Françoise Charpiat)

the Origins episodes (w/ Sébastien and Quentin Thibaudeau)

He became a full-time writer in S2, which is when you'll notice the show started to become more serialized. From then on, he wrote for every episode except for "Action".

From what little I can gather, toxic positivity and the prioritizing characters' short-term comfort over their long-term development is an Astruc special. In The Bubbler, Marinette lets Gabriel take credit for a gift she made because it makes Adrien happy, which is sweet until you realize all she's doing is giving Adrien false hope, and clinging to false hope is Adrien's fatal flaw. I've heard people say the ending of S5 retroactively ruins this episode, but it left a bad taste in my mouth from the very beginning, subsequent writing decisions just made it worse. The same thing happens in Zombizou, where not only was the class encouraged to "set a good example" for Chloé by being nice to her even when she's treating them poorly, but the entire episode started because Marinette got on Chloé's case for something that was not her business, and Chloé was treated as the bad guy when she naturally didn't take that well. Zombizou is just bad all around.

Sébastien Thibaudeau

The head writer and story editor. Basically, everyone else's boss. He's literally only third to Aton Soumache (the executive producer) and Jeremy Zag in terms of influence. He gives feedback and suggests rewrites, works with the other writers to ensure continuity and correct runtime, and approves scripts for production. So, even if an episode was written by someone else, that writer had Thibaudeau looking over their shoulder and that script has his stamp of approval on it.

Like Astruc, he doesn't have a lot of experience writing. His only writing credits I can find that aren't for Zag shows are like 6 episodes of Sherlock Yack: Zoo-Detective, which I don't think anybody's heard of, and 2 live action movies I don't think anyone's heard of either.

In S1, he wrote 10 episodes:

Lady Wifi

Copycat (w/ Pascal Boutboul)

The Bubbler (w/ Thomas Astruc)

Timebreaker (w/ Michaël Delachenal)

The Puppeteer

The Mime (w/ Thomas Astruc, Michaël Delachenal, Karin Lollichon, and Françoise Charpiat)

Guitar Villain

Antibug

both Origins episodes (w/ Thomas Astruc and Quentin Thibaudeau).

From S2 onwards, he wrote for every single episode.

Thibaudeau is very good at his job. /s He's directly responsible for such memorable gems as that time Hawk Moth and Lady Wifi left Ladybug alone to de-transform despite having her literally at their mercy, or that time Adrien randomly got jealous of a fan that wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell with Ladybug anyway (especially not over her literal partner), or that time Alix had to apologize and learn a lesson about responsibility when she's literally the only one who did the responsible thing in that situation. Generally if an episode fails to make sense, he was definitely involved. Thibaudeau is also the big-brained lad who had the idea to sell Miraculous to broadcasters as a "formula show", despite the fact that it very clearly isn't one. And then tried to walk back on it anyway.

Fred Lenoir

Lenoir is generally one of the show's better writers, at least compared to the two I just mentioned. Her other writing credits include 9 episodes of Code Lyoko, and her favorite character is Plagg.

In S1, she wrote 4 episodes:

Stormy Weather

Horrificator

Kung Food (w/ Matthieu Choquet)

Simon Says

In S2, she worked on every episode except for Befana, Gorizilla, and Zombizou, and in S3, she didn't write for Animaestro, Miraculer, Startrain, Oblivio, and Desperada. In S4 and 5, she wrote for every single episode.

Out of all the writers, Lenoir is probably the least interesting one to talk about. I can think of really only three things to say about her. One, she's only second to Thibaudeau for the number of solo episodes, and all but one of her episodes in S1 have her as the only writer. Two, she's responsible for some of the best LS moments in S1—Kung Food and to a lesser extent Horrificator are some of the rare episodes where Marinette comes across more like a girl in love and less like someone's caricature of what teen girls are like. Third, she has no idea how contests work. Every single one of her S1 episodes involves a contest that fails to make sense in some way.

Matthieu Choquet

The show's best writer, bar none. Everyone else go home.

Choquet wrote 5 episodes of S1:

The Evillustrator

Kung Food (w/ Fred Lenoir)

Darkblade (w/ Léonie de Rudder)

Princess Fragrance (w/ Léonie de Rudder)

Volpina (w/ Léonie de Rudder)

In S2, he wrote every episode except for Befana, Syren, Zombizou, Frozer, Reverser, Anansi, Sandboy, and Santa Claws. With the exception of Glaciator, generally if an episode of S2 was really salt-inducing, chances are he had nothing to do with it. After that, he wrote less and less. In S3, he wrote Miraculer, Startrain, and the Battle of the Miraculous two-parter, and in S4, he only wrote one episode, Psycomedian. He seems to have left the show entirely in S5, and truly, I cannot imagine why. /s His favorite episodes are the Heroes' Day two-parter, and his favorite character is Chloé.

His episodes tend to be very low on romance, and when it does show up it's usually of good quality. His episodes are also where Adrien is at his most competent (with the glaring exception of Evillustrator), and he seems to show more of a preference for solo Cat Noir. Evillustrator needs Marinette to detransform so she can go on the date with Nathanaël, and Darkblade and Princess Fragrance see him fight the akuma mostly alone with Ladybug not even showing up until the last third of both episodes.

[rouxkalamay]

The Beauty of this Fandom

Me, casually new to Tumblr and fanfiction writing for this fandom: Huh, I wonder who this Thomas Astruc guy is? The old director? Why does everyone hate him?

Starts digging: Yeah... he needs to touch grass and not get pissed off on Twitter. It's Twitter. Someone is going to argue about anything, even if you say kicking literal puppies are bad. XD

Digs more: Wait so... that one director character is a self insert? I mean... that's ok? I guess?

Digs even more into the absolute chaos: Marinette... is the not real and very much fictional child... he never had with his ex. And his ex was named Sabine. His has not one, but TWO self inserts??? What the fuck have I stumbled into?

Digs more: And Chloe was based on his childhood bully which was why he did a complete 180 on her redemption arc. God damnit. And ma boy! Our boy Adrian keeps being pushed to the side!

Finishes digging: Welp. Now I know why Marinette is creepy and why this show was ruined. I herby join in this lovely community's cause of making content better then whatever the actual flonk happened from season 3 to season 5. This man is indeed worth the nickname Ass Truck. :D

I'm going to make a redemption arc for Chloe in my Corrupted Miraculous AU. This is going to be sick. XD

[mostly-magical-polls]

Most Hated Magical Girl Character - Round 3

[certifiedducky]

Reasons why I don’t believe Chloe was never meant to be redeemed:

1) the intro, from season one, included queen bee

And she’s the only hero who has since been replaced. If nothing else, it shows that they didn’t plan on vesperia until way later.

2) She was given a sympathetic backstory(which they used to enact short-term change)

and i am specifically talking about despair bear, which makes me all sorts of frustrated because her butler using her self-soothing method to manipulate and shame her into acting better for her classmates makes me feel so sad for her.

but the fact still stands that they gave Chloe a sympathetic backstory that not only tied her to adrien, potentially giving her an ally to help her change, but to explain(not excuse) her behavior.

there is ZERO reason for that screenshot to exist of a character that was never considered for redemption. you don’t paint your villains that way.

3) lila, like her entire existence

Okay so like, as a superhero show that has clear time both in and out of the suits, it makes sense to have clear civilian AND supervillain antagonists to keep it interesting on both sides. In season one, Ladybug and Chat Noir had hawkmoth. Adrien had Gabriel, and Marinette had Chloe. At the end of the season, they introduced lila as marinette’s civilian antagonist. THERE WAS NO REASON TO INTRODUCE A NEW ANTAGONIST FOR MARINETTE UNLESS THEY KNEW THERE WOULD BE A VOID SOON. The fact that Lila and Chloe essentially serve the same purpose after season 3, so much so that lila is almost completely sidelined until much later, shows that they didn’t know what to do with them *because chloe wasn’t supposed to be a villain*.

4) zoe & vesperia

Here’s the thing: If Chloe was meant to be irredeemable from the start, there should have been a clear plan for the bee miraculous. I can think of two ways it could’ve gone: either develop another bee holder from season 2 onwards, or have chloe steal the bee. Because what we got instead was Chloe’s half sister who was introduced in season FOUR. Not only was she introduced to the show, she was introduced to marinette. And she received her miraculous in the very next episode. There was no development, and it reflects very poorly on marinette that she chose to give a miraculous to a girl she had just met(and a girl related to Chloe at that, even if Zoe was nice, it’s very irresponsible). Had Zoe been introduced in season 2, or even the beginning of 3, it would’ve made way more sense for her to be given a miraculous by season 4. But that’s not what happened. Instead we get a character that’s shoehorned into a role because it needs filled.

5) RESISTING AN AKUMA

Chloe was the first person to resist an akuma. enough said. Because why would you give that accomplishment to a character that you planned to stay an antagonist from the start????

And listen, i’m not the first person to say these things. And it’s not the first time i’ve said it. and i’ll say it again and again because it’s frustrating. Because not only did we get this potential, but we’re being told to our faces that it was never there. That we’re crazy for thinking she could change. I don’t know what was going on in the writers room, but honestly even if they DID plan to keep her an antagonist from the start, maybe they should start lying and say they changed their minds. because all of the clues point to her being redeemed. It leaves the writers looking incompetent, utterly incompetent.

[soundwaveprime]

about the whole Astruc thing

As most of you are likely aware, earlier this week Astruc revealed his disturbing views on what he considers to be child abuse, and well I feel we should be bringing up this relevant & thankfully deleted scene from Collusion, the one that Astruc expressed disappointment about once it's removal was brought up to his intention.

Aka the scene where Andre acknowledges how much of a terrible mother Audrey is, and how Zoe doesn't deserve to be abused & mistreated by her... while implying that Chloe dose

[sophieabigail2021]

THEN WHY THE FUCK IS SHE IN SEASON 6??

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Ladybug and Cat Noir: The Movie

Once again, I'd just like to apologize for the lack of activity the past few months. The holidays have kept me busy, especially at work, and I've officially decided to go back to school next month. Don't get me wrong, one of my new year's resolutions is to at least try getting back to consistently working on this blog, which is one of the reasons why I'm going to tackle She-Ra in the future. Either way, I'd like to thank you for supporting me this past year even though I haven't been as active as I should be.

When I heard Miraculous Ladybug was getting a movie, I didn't really pay too much attention to the news due to all of the side projects that have been canceled left and right, but then I saw the trailer. It looked decent, and while I had issues with the animation, I was willing to give it a shot since Astruc wasn't on the writing team. Then the movie came out, and while it got mixed reviews, this was how a lot of people in the fandom saw it after suffering through Season 5.

Yeah, a lot of fans hold this movie in high regard. It's nothing as groundbreaking as other animated films that came out the same year like Across the Spider-Verse and Nimona, but for a Miraculous Ladybug project, it turned out pretty well. That is, except for the brief schism it caused in the fandom. While it's mostly subsided, when the movie came out, there was a debate on which handled the story better, the movie or the show. As always, fandom arguments tend to get complicated, and things only got worse when Thomas Astruc himself decided to throw his hat in the ring by claiming that the show he worked on was better.

Yes, even though fans enjoy a movie based on his characters, because he isn't the one who made it, Astruc thinks his version is better. Just remember, he tweeted this about a month after “Derision” premiered. I feel like that speaks for itself.

Thankfully, the argument has died down for the most part, though there's still discussions on which is the better version. Before I really get into the movie, I just want to remind everyone reading this that my opinion shouldn't be taken as fact. I am not the authority on what people should like, and I don't want anyone to use my review as an excuse to bully other people online for having a different opinion on the movie. While I've made jokes about the show's decline in quality, the show and movie both have their own strengths and weaknesses, and we should be able to discuss them.

With all that out of the way, let's get into Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie

Just to be clear, I'm not going to tackle this like my usual reviews. Instead, I'm going to break this review into three sections: what I liked, what I didn't like, and what I'm mixed on.

Things I liked

For one thing, the characterization is pulled off very well. None of the characters are really as annoying or incompetent like they were in the show's later seasons. Part of what I think makes it work is that there's more focus on character arcs that have to be completed by the end of the film. Marinette has to learn to step up as a hero, Adrien has to learn humility while dealing with the loss of his mother, and Gabriel struggles to resist the allure of villainy.

Marinette's anxiety is more pronounced in this movie, especially since in this continuity, Chloe is just starting to harass her, so she's not used to this kind of treatment. While Chloe is a minor antagonist in the civilian plotline, the biggest threat to Marinette when she's not Ladybug is her own self-doubt. Her status as an outcast is used to add to Marinette's lack of confidence in herself. The whole reason she even meets Adrien here is because she tried to hide from Chloe in the library, and she was too nervous to really speak up to Adrien. Hell, the first time she transforms into Ladybug, it's only because Tikki forced her to transform.

I like how Marinette's insecurities transition into her origin as Ladybug, where she's put in a situation where she has to take charge and be more confident. She still gets frustrated with her situation and her new partner's ego (more on that in a minute), but she struggles to really get her head in the game at first compared to how things were in “Origins”. It makes her development into the confident hero we're all familiar with feel more natural, as the climax of the movie shows her fully asserting herself as the protector of Paris and a beacon of hope for those to look up to.

Adrien is also handled very well here. As much as I liked “Origins”, I have to admit it didn't really do much with him as a character. With the exception of wasting his first Cataclysm, he just goes about the two-parter like it's another day at the office for him. That's why I'm a huge fan of the movie actually giving him stuff to do. Unlike the show, his arrogance is shown in a more negative light and is shown to be a major character flaw he needs to overcome. Nobody tries to excuse or deny his actions, and he learns how to become a better person.

This is what makes his dynamic with Ladybug so interesting. For their first battle together, he's overconfident and assumes that he's the leader, even though he's just as new at this as Ladybug is. The two trade insults and bicker while fighting their Akuma and even when they meet Master Fu afterwards. While Cat Noir does fall for Ladybug, Marinette still isn't open to it, not because she loves someone else, but more because she finds him to be unbelievably annoying. She doesn't really hate him the same way she does Chloe. It's more like that one coworker you can't stand but have to tolerate regardless.

Both Ladybug and Cat Noir help the other improve as they gain each other's respect. Ladybug gains more confidence in order to keep Cat Noir from bossing her around, while Cat Noir becomes more humble to become a better hero. Eventually, Cat Noir reverses his position and assumes he's the sidekick, only for Ladybug to deny that claim and declare that the two are partners. This statement also reflects how both of them are responsible for saving the day in the end. While Adrien ultimately reaches through to his father, Ladybug saves Adrien and repairs the damage caused by Hawkmoth. Both played a role that was instrumental in the climax, and neither one feels ignored by the narrative.

Another character who really got a much needed revamp is Chloe. Yes, she's still Marinette's primary bully, but it's more downplayed than in later seasons. She stays a challenge exclusive to Marinette's civilian life instead of trying to be a challenge to Ladybug. The closest thing she does to opposing the heroes is kick Cat Noir off a runaway Ferris wheel out of fear, and even then, she gets her comeuppance through Ladybug throwing her in a dumpster while saving her. Chloe is also much smarter than in canon, being able to read the room to mask her emotions and maintain her image or to prey on someone's insecurities if they get in her way. Don't get me wrong, she's still a source of comic relief, but the movie treats her slightly more seriously than canon does.

Speaking of comic relief, here's something that I think made this Chloe better than the one seen in the show: The jokes were actually funny. Yeah, it's not laugh out loud, but I like how rather than make jokes about how immature and stupid Chloe is, her jokes are focused more on her own ego and self-image. Well, that, and wanting to kick Marinette's ass. I'm not making this up. Chloe in this movie threatens Marinette several times, and it's honestly amazing.

She unironically put the fear of God in Marinette's eyes in her first scene alone.

I also like how they handle her role as a love rival to Marinette. Unlike the show, Chloe and Adrien never interact, and it's implied that this continuity won't use the childhood friends element introduced in Season 2. It's a good way to show the difference between her and Marinette, how for all her boasting, Chloe doesn't know Adrien the way Marinette gets to know him.

Gabriel is easily the best part of the movie. This version is more fleshed out compared to the show. Rather than flip-flop between sympathetic and pure evil, the movie leans more on the sympathetic side for Gabriel's character. His very first scene shows the grief he's going through while thinking about Emilie, and Keith Silverstein gets to show off more emotions than just over the top sociopathy. You understand why he chooses to become a supervillain, but you want to see him get better, making for a very somber character. I especially love the delivery of the line where he finally gives in and transforms for the first time.

Gabriel: If chaos is the way, I will burn the world and lose myself in the flames to do so!

That line has no right to go as hard as it does.

We see him descend more into villainy as his appearance becomes more disheveled. Despite claiming to care for his son, the Gabriel and Adrien don't interact until the 70-minute mark. By the time the two do talk, Gabriel looks like a mess compared to how he looked at the beginning.

I really like this writing decision, as it highlights the distant relationship between the two, and how being Hawkmoth has only made things worse for Gabriel. Seeing Gabriel finally realize how unhealthy his coping mechanisms have been when he learns Adrien is Cat Noir is a satisfying scene, as it feels like a natural way to put an end to his arc. Compared to canon where he wins and never really feels bad for what he did, this version of Gabriel is far more remorseful at the sight of his son battered and bruised and breaks down sobbing. Remember, this was the version Astruc said we “wanted” and not the one we “needed”.

As for the Miraculous, things were changed to better fit the story, and I like most of what they did. I like how there's more focus on the teamwork between Ladybug and Cat Noir. Their Miraculous don't just grant a wish when used together. They literally become stronger when the two work together, and it makes a lot of sense. I like how the teamwork aspect is rewarded in-universe, because it shows how the heroes can do more than create and destroy stuff. I also think the addition of a call function on their Miraculous makes perfect sense, and clears up a ton of potential communication errors.

The fight scenes are also pretty creative. There's a lot of focus on using the environment to fight the Akumas. The very first fight has Ladybug and Cat Noir defeat the Akuma by letting a train hit it, and the second major fight involves a Ferris wheel going out of control. This leads to more varied action and well choreographed fight scenes. I especially like how with the exception of the Mime (and a brief reference to the Bubbler and Guitar Villain), all of the Akumas are brand-new, so older fans don't know what to expect with these guys.

This level of action also extends to the climax. Hawkmoth uses an Akuma on himself, sending out a massive flock of butterflies. You'd think it'd be like this movie's take on “Heroes' Day”, right? Nope! Instead, the Akumas become tiny attack drones that swarm over Paris like the eight plague of Egypt. I don't know how the animators managed to make an army of purple butterflies menacing, but by God, they did it.

Speaking of animators, my thoughts on the animation have changed drastically. While I still have minor gripes with the character design, I still love how the city of Paris is brought to life, making it seem more populated than in the show. I never really held the limited amount of civilians against the animators in the show, but I'm so happy we can see this show's environment on a cinematic budget. The animation is another reason why I think the action works so well in this movie.

Things I didn't like

When it comes to the changes to the Miraculous, one thing I'm not a fan of is Ladybug not getting her Lucky Charm. It misses the point of her having the power of creation. Yeah, she still has the spotted vision thing she had in the show, but it takes away what made the way she defeats Akumas interesting. She doesn't just beat them into submission. Sometimes, she outsmarts them or reasons with them, and part of the fun with the Lucky Charm is seeing just how she'll use something like a coat hanger or an old football trophy to defeat them.

I also don't like this movie's take on the Butterfly Miraculous. The very first scene has Master Fu build it up as an evil artifact capable of turning people into monsters. Remember, “Origins” established the Butterfly as something capable of creating superheroes, a power Gabriel twisted to create villains instead. Hell, I hate this rule, but the Paris Special made it clear that Miraculous can be used for good or evil, and it all depends on how the power is used. In other words, Miraculous don't kill people, people kill people. Bottom line, I prefer the idea of the Butterfly being the same as the other Miraculous, with the user and intent making it evil.

The one character who I felt the movie absolutely misrepresented was Plagg. This version of the character has none of the heart he had in the show. Yes, Plagg was crass there too, but he had just as many scenes showing how he cared for Adrien like a little brother or a nephew. He was Adrien's primary confidant and wanted to help him however he could. Even bad Plagg-centric episodes like “Kuro Neko” or “The Kwamis' Choice” made it clear he wants what's best for Adrien and is capable of coming up with plans if they'll help him.

Here, Plagg is mostly just there to make snide comments and fart a lot. Say what you will about the show, but at least it didn't make Plagg farting into a running gag. Plagg only gets a handful of lines in the entire movie, to the point where even Tom has more lines than he does. Tikki gets plenty of scenes with Marinette and an entire song, while Plagg feels like an afterthought.

Things I'm mixed on

This might be a little controversial, but I have mixed feelings on the portrayal of the Love Square as a whole in this movie. Don't get me wrong, the Ladynoir scenes are great, but there's not as many Adrienette, Ladrien, or Marichat scenes. In fact, I don't think there were any Ladrien or Marichat scenes in this movie, which is weird. I can at least excuse those, but it's weird how little Adrienette scenes there are. Not counting the masks, they only have four major scenes together before the end, and one of those is a deleted scene that had the dialogue cut over a montage.

While I'm glad the entire movie wasn't about the Love Square drama, the romance between Marinette and Adrien specifically feels a little rushed. I think it would have benefited the movie to have ten or fifteen more minutes to flesh out this subplot a little instead of only focusing on Ladynoir.

I'm also unsure what to say about the songs. Most of them are pretty catchy and have great visuals, but the dissonance between the singing voices of Marinette and Adrien throws me off. I don't get why neither actor for the French or English dub was asked to sing. For some reason, Tikki and Gabriel's voice actors got to sing, but not Marinette and Adrien. At the very least, Drew Ryan Scott's singing voice sort of sounds like Adrien, but Lou's singing voice makes Marinette sound twice her age. Don't get me wrong, I still liked the songs, but this choice was very jarring to me.

And now, because literally nobody asked for it, here's every song in the movie ranked.

8. If I Believed in Me

A very dull “I want” song that's just Marinette wandering around Paris on the way to school. Compared to “Little Town” from Beauty and the Beast, where you can easily follow Belle and understand how she goes about her day, it's not clear what kind of route Marinette is taking. Even the lyrics are pretty bland, just talking about wanting to follow her dreams and be more confident. The issue is that her dreams of being a fashion designer barely factor into the plot, and she only becomes more confident thanks to being a superhero, something she didn't dream of. The only real dud in the soundtrack.

7. Opening Remix

Not much to say here. It's a remix of the opening theme with the new singers. It sounds nice.

6. Reaching Out

This is a much better song than “If I Believed in Me”. It does a great job expressing Marinette's doubt and how she feels pressured to be somebody she's not. Great way to follow up on her heart getting broken by Adrien.

5. My Lady

This one's a quickie, but it's still fun. I love the visuals in this one and how it gradually crescendos, reflecting the new feelings Cat Noir has for Ladybug developing.

4. Stronger Together

Surprisingly, Ladybug and Cat Noir's only duet in the movie, but it's still really good. I love the use of the set in the theater Cat Noir took Ladybug to at the beginning before they run around Paris. The lyrics do a great job showing how far the two's relationship has come, making it clear how close they are, only for reality to metaphorically kick them out of the sky.

3. You Are Ladybug

Another duet, this time between Marinette and Tikki. While I still think Cristina Vee should have gotten to sing this one song given her chemistry with Mela Lee, Lou still does a great job expressing her anxiety. The back and forth between Tikki and Marinette makes this a blast to watch, especially with it using the same music as the theme song. Even the rap part with Tikki was fun to watch. I especially love the part where Tikki excitedly tells Marinette about how dangerous the job is and how close she'll come to getting killed.

2. Chaos Will Reign Today

The villain song in this movie had no right to be as good as it is. The visuals are eerie and fit the more menacing tone of the song. Keith Silverstein gives his all to make up for his crime of singing the Hawkmoth Rap. It's also a hell of a lot better than the villain song Disney had to offer that year.

1. Courage in Me

Easily my favorite song in the movie. The visuals of Marinette struggling to hop across these black spots symbolizing her yo-yo before her transformation into Ladybug is awe-inspiring. The lyrics are a great way to solidify Marinette embracing her role as Ladybug, and it's such a triumphant song to listen to.

Other things I noticed

During the first Akuma fight, Ladybug and Cat Noir pass by some guys with stereotypical French accents while almost every other character speaks like they're in America.

Careless Whisper plays one time in Cat Noir's mind as he develops feelings for Ladybug. The fact that he listens to it after getting his heart broken has to be one of the most subtle jokes I've ever seen in this franchise. Of course, it's clear what the best superhero cover of Careless Whisper really is.

Cat Noir says he has the power of destruction in his introduction while being impressed when Master Fu says the same thing.

There's a Volkswagon tie-in that actually features the two heroes promoting some cars in-universe. This is a real shot from the movie.

I think Chloe ships Alyanette, judging from this exchange:

Marinette: Seriously, Alya, you think Adrien would say yes?

Alya: Of course! I'm gonna ask Nino.

Chloe: I think you should go together, 'cause Adrien is coming with me, not with some baker girl.

I don't think Ladybug ever learned Cat Noir could play the piano, so seeing Cat Noir try to woo her with a little piano number is a nice inclusion.

When Cat Noir's mask is destroyed in the final battle, his exposed eye is still green. Was this where the chibi shorts got the idea from?

Other people have pointed this out, but the picture of Adrien as a kid is traced from a character from The Boss Baby. That's an automatic ten point deduction for making me remember that movie exists.

The post-credits scene with Nathalie was weird.

Did Master Fu not know he lost the Peacock Miraculous too?

Why isn't Emilie in any form of suspended animation?

Is the Peacock still damaged?

Did the Peacock still kill her/send her into a coma?

Was Adrien still created by the Peacock?

Why didn't Gabriel use the Peacock or at least consider it?

Did Gabriel forget to tell anyone about the other Miraculous he has after turning himself in?

Why did Gabriel choose to tell Nathalie when she didn't seem to help him while he was still Hawkmoth?

Final Thoughts

Overall, this was a really good movie, and a fresh take on the show's universe. I had issues with it, but I still think this movie series has promise. The animation was great, the songs were catchy, and the characterization was on point for the most part. It even manages to be a better musical than the ones big names like Disney and Warner Bros have made in the past two years. It's one of the best things to come out of the franchise, no question. I wouldn't mind future installments set in this continuity over whatever Season 6 churns out.

[motherofplatypus]

No Closure For Abuse Victim?

It comes to my attention that all the abuse victims in the show never really got a closure with their abuser. In fact, most of them even had it worse.

Adrien never got to confront his dad as himself and call him out for his mistreatment. He lived his final days with his father seeing him as a monster that he is, and when Gabe died, he sees him as a hero.

Chloe never got to confront her mom either for neglecting her for YEARS, and when she met her, Audrey attacked her with verbal abuse. In the end, she had to live with her own abuser for some fucked up reasons.

Felix is a hard case bcs we never see if he confronted Colt or not, but from that avant-garde play, apparently he didn't. Colt just died, and that's about it.

The only one who gets to have a closure with their abuser, based on how TA and the writers see it, is Andre, by sending his daughter he never raised off with her abuser and kidnap someone else's daughter bcs she's better than your own.

Im not sure to put Marinette here or not with Chloe.

It's really messed up that the writers created these abused characters and never gave them a chance to heal from their mistreatment even after the first arc finale.

Well, that's just my opinion. Im most likely wrong about some of those points, so share your thoughts.

And speaking of mistreatment, please spare your time to sign this petition to kick israel from the UN and ban them from Nobel Ceremony for illegally colonizing and committing genocide upon the Palestinians. Over 17.000 children have been murdered by them in less than a year, children like Marinette and Adrien, and even younger than them. They put civilians inside a concentration camp like the Nazi did during WW2.

All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good people to do nothing. No more silence, no more ignorance. End the occupation now!

[late4the-party]

It is normal to develop some emotional attachment to fictional characters in a TV show or a book. It is not nice of him to use that attachment to keep his show going, to keep making profits.

This is not the first time a show creator does this. They add beautiful moments with the couples that we love to keep us obsessed and asking for more. And there we go falling for this manipulative trick. I’m so glad I found that tweet by Alexandria. Be conscious of this people and have a little bit of pride in yourselves. Don’t let them use you to keep making more money.

Seven seasons was more than enough to develop a great story with a satisfying ending. I’m sorry but I hope Netflix won’t greenlight more. Creators and producers need to stop doing this.

[vestsfriends]

Thomas Astruc to Natalie, Adrien, Ivan, Felix, Chloe, Zoe, Tom Dupain, Luka & Juleka, and Emilie:

“YOU GET DADDY ISSUES, AND YOU GET DADDY ISSUES, EVERYONE GETS DADDY ISSUES!”