#we’re the dark and gritty ATLA

[lawchan89]

“Well yeah, of course it’s not going to be as good as the original show!”

Then why?

Why does this thing exist?

Why does it need to exist in the first place?

This “defense” is not the flex you think it is

If you can’t remake it better

Why remake it at all?

[kitkatopinions]

Tbh I have no idea how people unironically say RWBY is about trust and how good it is to trust when people have literally had their trust betrayed leading to horrible things in SEVEN major plot points.

Number 1. Before the start of the show, Blake trusted in and believed in Adam, her mentor and (likely romantic) partner. Blake's trust in him was broken, as he went too far and started down a destructive and likely abusive path. This made it incredibly hard for Blake to trust anyone again, which is only made worse as Adam comes back into her life in an incredibly traumatic way, stabs her, cuts off the arm of her friend, and tries to behead her. Adam continues to be a major threat to her and her loved ones for months after, until she is forced to kill him in self defense. Blake's trust in Adam was proved to be wrong, and he hurt her and others.

Number 2. Ruby's trust in her friend Emerald - as well as Mercury and Cinder who were more acquaintances - was broken in an incredibly traumatic way. After discovering that Mercury was faking being injured and had lied about Ruby's beloved sister, he cheerfully stops her from saving Penny, who Emerald orchestrates the death of, and Ruby makes it past him only in time to see her dead, dismembered friend's body. Then Cinder purposefully causes a violent attack leading to the deaths of likely hundreds or more people and murders Pyrrha right in front of Ruby. Emerald, Mercury, and Cinder become central antagonists that the group sees again in Haven, who laugh and jeer about the deaths of their loved ones and almost kill Weiss. Ruby's trust in Emerald and her team was proved to be wrong, and they hurt her and others. Number 3. Leo Lionheart was a trusted member of Oz's inner circle and friend to him and Qrow. Although they (and Ironwood,) are all on edge over recent sketchy actions he's taken, Qrow and Oz give him the benefit of the doubt and Qrow even drops potentially dangerous information about Raven having the Spring Maiden. Lionheart has been working with Salem for a while, however, having gotten many of the Hunters in Mistral killed and having knowingly let Cinder infiltrate Beacon and cause the Fall. He gives this info to Salem and let's her operatives into Haven to capture children, kill children, and specifically murder Qrow - his friend and ally - and even tries to fight and kill, himself. The group trusted Leo, and it was proved to be wrong, and he hurt them and others. This betrayal clearly affects the whole group, but prominently Oz, who says Leo is not the first to betray him and uses it as another reason behind his own lack of trust in the group of teenage protagonists, which leads us to...

Number 4. In season 6 it's revealed that Salem and Oz had once been very close and romantic, but after a lot of stuff I can't take the energy to write out, Salem had changed for the worse, had lied and manipulated him, and started down a dark path he couldn't stand behind. When he tried to leave her with their kids, she exploded and murdered him and caused the deaths of their four young children. Since she couldn't die and Oz always reincarnated, this started a vicious cycle of Salem hunting down, hurting, and murdering him at every chance she got while she also tried to destroy the whole world and Ozpin tried in growing desperation to stop her and keep the world safe. Salem's actions caused great trauma that Oz has been clearly shown to have never fully healed from. She's the direct cause for his fears, paranoia, and isolation. His trust in Salem was proven to be wrong, and she hurt him and others. Number 5. Oz lied to the main cast several times and kept things hidden from them, and even after he swore not to keep any more secrets, he lied to them again. Despite Oz's problems being highly sympathetic, the show clearly intended us to think of this as a betrayal, framing the action as unquestioningly wrong, the complete lack of sympathy of our main cast being entirely unquestioned, and with doubt still being cast on Oz two seasons after. It's clear, however, that even though it’s sympathetic and understandable, Oz caused the others emotional pain through his actions, and the show intended to show us that Ruby and her team's trust in Ozpin was misplaced. Number 6. Ironwood showed major trust in the main characters, dropping charges against them and stopping them from being arrested, telling them all his plans immediately, letting them keep the Relic, giving them their Hunter licenses, sending them on high security missions, and listening to (and sometimes adhering to) their advice or concerns. But Team RWBY betrays him first by lying to him about crucial information (which he actually forgives iirc) and then by going behind his back to aid a vigilante who was stealing much needed supplies and telling her incredibly sensitive and dangerous government high security secrets. And then they never told him about it. Ironwood's trust in the protagonists was proven to be misplaced, and... Yeah, since Blake and Yang more or else helped Robyn get away with stealing supplies that were needed to finish Amity, their actions hurt James and others. Number 7. The Ace Ops and Penny trusted in Ironwood. The show had already framed Penny as having her trust broken by Ironwood when he decided to save the many while leaving the few, which the audience was meant to see as the evil option, but after that, Ironwood worked with a criminal to hack into and control her body and then threatens to bomb the remaining people of Mantle who Penny wants to protect. The Ace Ops and Winter agreed with Ironwood's choice to save Atlas and the already evacuated people of Mantle at the cost of the remaining few city blocks, but were clearly perturbed when he stopped saving as many as he could, and started actively killing whoever he wanted. And meanwhile, Oz himself was also betrayed by this turn of events, making it the second person in his very small inner circle to directly try to murder him. He clearly doesn't need any more reasons to think trusting people is something he doesn't have the luxury of. Oz, Penny, and the Ace Ops' trust in Ironwood was proven to be wrong, and he hurt them and others. And that hurt to type lol.

It's just all very strange. For a show that supposedly is meant to make you believe in the goodness of trust, there's certainly a lot of betrayal, back stabbing, lying, and mistrusting. There's something to be said about shows where bad things happen over and over and our main characters must struggle to continue to be good and trusting still even after they've been taken advantage of... But RWBY is not that, because the main protagonists themselves lie, mistrust, and betray, and the show frames that as good, letting us know Ruby was one hundred percent right and writing in fan favorites berating the people who question that, while they have Ironwood kicking puppies and shouting irrationally to remind us that Ruby's instinct of mistrust was completely good and right. I honestly can't take it seriously. RWBY's messages are juvenile at best, but this one was just severely ill handled. When I say that RWBY has a problem with 'Show Don't Tell' this is one of the things I mean. They didn't construct a narrative where Ruby and her team rise above cynicism, trust in others, and get the good consequences of not being frequently betrayed - thus showing the benefits of trusting and relying on others. They didn't even construct a gritty, sad, but ultimately hopeful narrative, where Ruby and co push through disappointment and betrayals and decide every day to continue to hold onto their morals of giving people the benefit of the doubt and offering redemption. What CRWBY did was construct a narrative where it seems like people would be stupid to keep putting their trust in each other, where it seems likely that anyone could be secretly evil next, and where it seems like the protagonists just don't have to adhere to any rules or standards and will be framed as right and congratulated no matter how they act or who they themselves hurt. And then we're told that the show is about trust, and Trust Love, and how your feelings will always lead you in the right direction despite being shown the opposite. I don't get it at all.

I don't feel like RWBY has anything to do with trust anymore.

[powerbottomblake]

RWBY:Ragnarok or predictions on the Atlas arc

Building on my previous post about how the RWBY arcs parallel seasons and the archetypal narrative structure linked to each season, I’ve established that Atlas corresponds to winter, aka themes of darkness, dissolution, the return of chaos, and the defeat of the heroic figure, but what I’m going to be developing here is how winter is linked to Götterdämmerung myths, a.k.a Ragnarok, otherwise known as the death of the gods in Norse mythology. So yes, Atlas is definitely a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Time for our heroes.

The thing is, that isn’t the only Norse mythology allusion tied to Atlas, be it the cast, the location or the events of Ragnarok itself. This post will be about delving into all of these allusions and find how Ragnarok’s narrative beats find equivalents in RWBY and how it might help predict the Atlas endgame (or at least part of it) as well as figure out some general plot points.

But before that, I feel like you need to familiarize yourself with the G.U.N theory (though I don’t know if I’m 100% in the scope of it with this post). I think the person that best explained it in a concise way would be @alexkablob in this post but basically the nitty gritty of it is that all RWBY characters aren’t allusions to a single myth but have layers of different allusions to several myths, and decoding them makes it possible to predict the beats of their narrative. Think v6 made it all too obvious with how Adam was Prince Adam (a.k.a the Beast before any character development or growth), the Rose curse and Gaston all wrapped in one (plus some references to Anakin Skywalker too apparently!); or how Yang is Goldilocks, Beauty and the Beast simultaneously (amongst others).

So characters that you know are allusions to a certain myth/fairytale, might have allusions to other ones, less obvious but still just as significant in determining that character’s fate and their overarching character arc, and the Atlas arc of the story is just full of these other allusions, all Norse mythology themed.

I’ll start with the allusions tied to the central figure of Atlas’ plot, aka the man himself, James Ironwood, then branch out on the connected cast’s allusions and how they’d fill their respective roles in Atlas’ version of Ragnarok.

So, as we all know James Ironwood is supposed to be our Tinman from the wizard of Oz. Thing is Ironwood also refers to a location in Norse mythology, Járnviðr (literally old Norse for Iron-wood), where a witch gives birth to giant wolves that are alluded to as Fenrir’s kin, one of them in particular being dubbed snatcher of the moon, who will swallow the moon come Ragnarok.

Before delving deeper into this, who is Fenrir?

Fenrir is a monstrous wolf who’s bound until comes Ragnarok, where he breaks free, wreaks havoc on the realm of the gods, and kills Odin, the patriarch of the Norse mythology pantheon and one of its most powerful figures.

I’m gonna go ahead and assume that CRWBY will merge all the monstrous apocalyptic wolf figures into one because that’s the decision that makes the most sense, and I’m gonna refer to it as Fenrwby to differentiate it from the original Fenrir (listen I couldn’t come up with anything else).

So now we’ve established that Atlas harbors or will get invaded by this giant wolf, Fenrir, who announces the apocalypse and swallows the moon.

Damn, I wonder which character is always closely associated to moon symbolism, incidentally also alluding to a tale called Dead Moon (again @alexkablob got you covered) and whose death circumstances are still a mystery till now?

That’s right I think Fenrwby will be confirmed to be the reason Summer died. Another point that absolutely convinces me of it is that he(it?) refers to. A gigantic evil wolf. Or you could say. A Big Bad Wolf. And guess where Little Red Riding Hood is headed right now?

But before eating Little Red Riding Hood, the Wolf eats the grandmother first.

Yeah, this might very well be the last time Maria’s making the trip to Atlas.

But let’s go back to Ironwood. There’s yet another allusion to him and that’s the Norse god Tyr. Tyr was a war god, but also presided over law and justice, which aligns with Ironwood being leader of the military, headmaster and even has the Council (which I assume is executive and judicial power) bow to him.

Tyr’s most striking act and for which he’s most known though is that he’s sacrificed his arm when the gods first bound Fenrir, the arm the wolf bit off being the right one, and lo and behold:

James Ironwood is indeed missing a right arm (well a whole right side because he’s also Tinman, but you get me). From this we can already surmise that the mission Summer was sent over to was probably the containment of Fenrwby, and it cost Summer her life and Ironwood his right side.

That leaves us with one question: who/what is Fenrwby and where did he come from?

We’ll have to go back to the original myth for a bit here. In Norse Mythology, the trickster god Loki fathers three children with a giantess:  Hel, a woman that becomes a sort of queen of the Underworld, the world serpent Jörmungandr and the world wolf Fenrir. All three siblings are prophesied to be big trouble to the gods but what sets Fenrir apart is that:

He’s the one foretold to announce Ragnarok; his unbidding decides it

He’s the one destined to swallow Odin himself whole

He’s the only “hellish” sibling who’s raised right where the gods live, in Asgard

Beyond the similarity in how the names sound, I do believe Atlas’ design takes after Asgard and is meant to symbolize it.

For further reference here’s Marvel’s take on Asgard:

And here’s our first look at Atlas:

Atlas even has those threads attached to Mantle below which I suspect act as anchors + elevators/transportation conducts (most of it probably dedicated to Dust transport) between Mantle and Atlas, but also are a visual reference to Yggdrasil's roots, the Norse world tree, extending from Asgard to the other realms below.

So Fenrir is raised right in Asgard, but the wee pup is growing at an alarming rate (plus is prophesied to destroy all of it) so none of the gods is keen on approaching him. None except one brave god that is the only one to get close and feed him. And who would that be? That’s right, Tyr a.k.a our basis for Ironwood.

Ironwood hosting and hand-rearing a monster that will ultimately cause Summer’s death and the Atlaspocalypse sounds extremely unlikely, but there’s one scenario where this makes sense.

Atlas is known for its technological advancement and its constant development of new weaponry. I believe Fenrwby was born out of such a project, under the general leadership of Ironwood, but someone must have taken the experiments too far and ended up creating something so terrible Summer Rose herself (and maybe all or a combination of the remaining STRQ team), a silver-eyed warrior, had to be dispatched to neutralize, dying in the process.

Now is the time to remember that Fenrir is Loki’s son. In the original myth, Loki, an Asgardian god, gets eventually banished and during Ragnarok sides with the enemies.

So we’re basically looking for a disgraced Atlesian, who was possibly a scientist and is now currently working with the enemy.

And here is our Loki, none other than Arthur Watts himself, whose fallout with Atlas is yet to be explained.

I believe the reason he left Atlas was because he’s the one responsible for Fenrwby’s creation and in its immediate fallout, evaded arrest.

Another reason that leads me to believe Watts is our Loki is that Loki’s ties to Hel, Norse queen of the underworld, who was described to be “half-black and half flesh-colored”, which is a dead ringer for Salem.

Arthur Watts’ name also seems to refer to Arthur Conan Doyle and John Watson, the first one being the creator of Sherlock Holmes and the latter his dutiful companion and side-kick, so I believe Watts might be a combination of (evil) Sherlock and Watson. This is further supported with how Watts’ appearance seems to be a blend of both (Watson is described as tan, with a strong build and a moustache and Sherlock as tall and lean) and his outfit being Victorian-era inspired. He is referred to as Doctor by Salem, first to affirm his status as fallen scientist from Atlas but also most likely as a nod to Watson who was a skilled doctor and often would be referred to as Doctor as well. Sherlock Holmes is known to be an emotionally detached analytical machine with a caustic (and at times callous) kind of humor, having a usually dispassionate and cold demeanor, all of which match what we see of Watts. How is this linked to our Ragnarok? Well one of Sherlock Holmes’ most well-known stories, one where incidentally Watson has a very proactive and prominent role, is the Hound of the Baskervilles. The story is itself based on the legend of a “monstrously evil man” who sold his soul to the Devil (Salem) and after his death led a pack of phantom, evil hounds.

Evil hounds, monstrous wolves...Watts always gets linked to big bad canidae one way or the other.

Which brings us to our next question: now that we know who made Fenrwby, what exactly is Fenrwby?

Ok so this is the part where the theory gets tentative because there isn't much to go off of, so bear with me.

Watts is partly based on Sherlock Holmes, who is indifferent and detached usually, unless he's in the midst of an investigation. He then turns driven, getting tunnel-visioned and borderline obsessed (he can even go without food for so long he faints) until he solves the mystery. I think Watts is much the same. He carries himself with cool composure mostly but there was one instance where he showed a sort of zealous fascination: when he saw the seer Grimm.

Ok so I have an inkling that Watts is fascinated by the Grimm, and his forbidden experiments involved Grimm creatures. This is further supported by the Baskerville allusion to a pack of phantom hounds, which could very well reference the Grimm.

So going off this, Watts experimented on Grimm - since Atlas is very much wolf-themed, maybe Beowolfs? - and out of them he made Fenrwby.

But what could possibly be combined to Grimm in a way that’d defeat the combined forces of Ironwood (whose entire right side got severed) and an experienced silver eyed warrior like Summer?

I think we can make an educated guess based off the two major technological breakthroughs we got to witness during V1-3, namely Penny, the first synthetic being able to generate aura and the aura transfer machine. You’ll have guessed it, I think Atlas was dabbling into aura experimentation and Watts rerouted it to his own Grimm endeavors. What if he succeeded in equipping Grimm with something similar to Aura? Something that would hijack the Silver Eyes. I’m just bouncing ideas here but I’m pretty sure Fenrwby is the result of Watts tinkering with Aura and Grimm, and I think Watts staying with Salem is in large part because she’s the crystallization of the divide that fascinates him, being both human (having a soul, so in theory having aura) and grimm. Salem is the long running case study Watts is pursuing in a way.

So. Now that we’ve established what Fenrwby might be and who is behind it, we can delve into the narrative beats of Ragnarok. I made a synthetic list of Ragnarok events that seem relevant and connect to RWBY as a narrative:

Fenrir swallows Odin

I think Ozpin having Odin references in his character is common knowledge enough in the fandom. Odin is the king of Asgard, is associated with wisdom, knowledge and sorcery amongst other things, and is known for having two raven familiars (Raven and Qrow), all of which fit Ozpin.

What could Odin being swallowed mean for Oz and Oscar?

Of course, this could simply be an indication of Oz/Oscar fighting Fenrwby with Ruby, and losing.

But we can take it further. Oz lives inside Oscar through the merge between their souls, their auras connecting. We’ve established Atlas has been studying and experimenting on aura; Watts has most probably even toed the line of what is morally acceptable in terms of experiments. What if Fenrwby, or one of the machines Watts has been “tinkering with”, is able to sever the connection, effectively trapping Ozpin’s soul or at least sending it in another reincarnation cycle? This is a reach, I’ll admit, but something about Odin being swallowed somehow does not bode well for Ozpin.

Thor fights Jörmungandr

Can’t talk about Norse mythology without talking about Thor! And incidentally we have someone in the main cast based off him. I’ve always found it weird how V4 gives Ren a comprehensive backstory but never an explanation for how Nora is just there, beyond “random Kuroyuri orphan”  (How did she get orphaned? Why was she in Kuroyuri? Who were her parents?). I think Nora’s backstory will be fully explained in Atlas as I have a feeling Weiss isn’t the only one coming home. Thor’s home is Asgard after all.

So Thor fights the giant serpent that is Loki’s other son and Fenrir’s brother. One of Jörmungandr’s most striking features is his venom, as he’s described spraying it through air and sea, and it’s how he kills Thor even as he’s slayed by him, poisoning the god to his death.

Our Jörmungadr equivalent thus needs to wield poison, and be sired (or fixed) by Loki aka Watts. That would be Tyrian.

I believe we’ll have the second round of Team JNR vs Tyrian - as foreshadowed by Tyrian’s interest in Jaune - and it’ll end with Tyrian dying and Nora being gravely wounded.

The frost giants join the fray against the gods

I’ve already expanded on this in my previous post, but Jack Frost, Jacques’ fairy tale basis, is said to be based on the norse frost giants. This, coupled with the “Jack and the beanstalk” references, pushes me to think Jacques is going to betray and cause the death of Ironwood and help team W.T.C.H steal the relic.

Gamr, another big hellish hound, kills Tyr

Gamr is another monstrous hound who breaks free of his bindings in Ragnarok. As I said before, I believe all hounds/wolf imagery is going to be compounded in a single entity in RWBY (especially when they sometimes share identical characteristics), so this is Fenrwby getting free of whatever binding Summer put him under (maybe the Silver Eye power petrified him the way Ruby did the giant Nevermore?) and killing Ironwood.

Surtr, a fire giant from Muspelheim, the realm of fire, covers the entire world with fire with his flaming sword

Surtr is a fire giant that guards Muspelheim, a hot and glowing land of fire, and who sets the world on fire with his flaming sword at the end of Ragnarok. This signals the destruction of the world, but also announces its rebirth with the surviving gods and humans meeting afterwards and leading into a new era.

So the guardian of a sword of destruction (Vacuo’s relic), coming from a hot unforgiving land (Vacuo), crashes the fight. I believe this is when the Summer maiden gets introduced, and she uses the relic to end the fight and save the thoroughly defeated team RWBY so that everyone may escape to Vacuo as Atlas’ destruction is complete.

So, to TL;DR this extremely long post:

There is a Big Bad Wolf kind of monster/entity in Atlas I’m tentatively calling Fenrwby

Watts created this monster by dabbling into forbidden experimentation, probably on aura and grimm

Summer Rose sealed said monster but at the cost of her life and the fight cost Ironwood his right side

Fenrwby is unleashed on Atlas, either by Team W.T.C.H, accidentally by Ironwood, or a combination of both

Jacques sides with W.T.C.H and helps them steal the relic

Fenrwby kills Ironwood and Maria

Oz is either defeated, sealed away from Oscar or sent in another reincarnation loop

Nora is from Atlas and we get her extended backstory

Team JNR fight Tyrian and are able to defeat him but Nora is gravely wounded

the Summer maiden arrives in a bind and with the relic of destruction ends the fight and takes team RWBY to safety

[disasterganes]

do you mind going further on the "bryke is trash" point? i may have liked a:tla and thought a:tlok had issues, but i feel like i'm missing info or haven't thought about certain things critically enough.

i will definitely do my best -- full disclosure it’s been years since i’ve come into Close Contact™ w/ k*rra, so feel free to take with a grain of salt. it’s just my opinion, and it’s a heightened opinion because i was B I G into the fandom & show when it was dropping. i had a friend group formed through atla / k*rra before it launched, it was a real cornerstone of my online life so of course i took its bad writing way more personally than a more casual fan. i also can’t watch a show as a show? i’ve done too much work (undergrad & graduate) in writing & narrative studies, so i can Only See Story -- when it falls apart, i can’t get past it. 

behind the scenes, atla likely triumphed because it was a team effort, and a bit of a first effort. not that these people hadn’t written before -- but part of what k*rra suffers from is the “how do we level up” problem that is typically answered (esp by white male writers) with make it darker. atla shone because it didn’t need to darken its tone in order to convey a more serious story -- it had room to breathe and a gentler humor that never really felt malicious in the way lok would feel malicious at times. atla was content to be what it was -- lok was always trying to be grittier than it had to be, given how well atla conveyed its difficult themes with a lighter hand. 

anyway! two parts: shitty writing, & racism. 

abandoning its premise 

my biggest pet peeve is when a show sets up something -- and doesn’t deliver. it’s why i noped out literally s1. (and, of course, kept up quietly from the sidelines bc once i start something i’m physically incapable of letting it go. but emotionally i was gone.) in its first two episodes, lok had incredible worldbuilding. it was beautiful! well drawn! interesting! organic to the world atla built! there were problems introduced that were new and different from atla. atla read a lot like a sprawling, classic hero’s quest. falter, then triumph. lok was more intricate. in its first two episodes, it posed a question: how do you navigate heroism in a world where heroism has been redefined? how do you balance staying true to yourself and allowing yourself to grow, under the scrutiny of the “celebrity” of avatardom? and how do you perform as an avatar, the person meant to keep the balance of the spirit world, when the mortal world is out of balance? this could have been four series’ worth of content. there was enough rich, complex worldbuilding in the first episode to sustain four seasons of a show. 

and then they just -- forgot about it. it was set dressing, and every half a season they artificially upped the stakes. nothing was organic to the world or the story. it was all some -- contrived plot. the conflict between benders and nonbenders could have been really interesting and then it was just -- black and white. here and gone. k*rra’s too brash and bratty to understand! and nonbenders don’t matter anyway! let’s forget about this plot and skip to some !! uh !! political upheaval! and then like! assassins and genocide or smth!! haha yeah big fights! 

it was so shallow, and that’s not how the show started. in the first seven episodes, i thought i’d called the overarching. i thought the show would spend however much time it had (initially, bryke said they were only doing two seasons to “focus on a tight story” and, like a fool, i believed that this wasn’t just a cash grab :/) setting up this story: k*rra will unlock her full potential when she realizes that it’s not just the spirit world that needs an avatar, but the mortal world as well. 

that’s it! that’s all you need! it’s a similar premise to atla but it expands atla. i distinctly remember the quote from one of those s1 episodes, where a nonbender says, “but you’re our avatar too.” that’s it. that’s the show. you have a show!! you have equalists, you have a bender-centric world, you have progress at the expense of those that can’t fit this new world’s design -- and then the equalists are all fake and we’re going to just brute force a solution and move onto the next crisis. 

... what ?? what put the nail in the coffin for me was when the gang or crew whatever the fuck they were (spoiler alert: they were nothing, none of them liked or cared about each other) were being aided by a homeless community or w/e and b*lin jokes about a “wise and noble hobo.” this orphan. who grew up homeless. and has built himself up from nothing with his only family left. is not utilized by the writers to comment on the epidemic of poverty, homelessness, and very thinly veiled racism / ableism (another spoiler alert: don’t expect white dudes to write a coherent metaphor for a real world issue). this was the opportunity for actual depth and even darkness -- below the glittering world of republic city is a serious problem that “”””defeating the fire lord”””” won’t solve. this is a mature and complex story, and it was never ever explored. in fact, in s2 that rich dude asks b*lin if he’s “ever seen the arena at night.” and b*lin says no. the, uh, the arena he lived in bc he was homeless and crushed under the wheel of this new society. 

what ,, the fuck ,, bryke. 

it’s the problem where a writer is constantly trying to outdo themselves -- and they sacrifice the story they could have had. the actually mature one. it’s a problem of thinking fight scenes and a villain Bigger and Badder than the last constitutes grittiness or maturity or w/e. (spoiler alert again: it doesn’t.) 

torturing k*rra 

atla was a story about raising a*ng up. lok was a story abt breaking k*rra down. 

shitty writing is one thing. racist writing is another. from the fucking moment she’s on screen, k*rra is told that she’s too much -- she’s too confident, she’s too loud, she’s too stubborn. and maybe she’s confident, loud, and stubborn, but the narrative does nothing but punish her for this. 

a*ng is a flawed character. a*ng runs away from his responsibility and, subsequently, the fire nation takes over the entirety of the known world. do i blame a*ng for this? absolutely not. and neither does the narrative -- not in a way that counts. people in the story do, but does the narrative beat him bloody? no. the narrative gives him friends. the narrative gives him room to make mistakes and then apologize for them. the narrative lets him learn without making his failures into something that he is literally tortured over. he struggles, but in his worst and most dire situations -- his friends are there. when he dies, it’s not shown in all of its gory details, and in a beautiful, quiet scene, k*tara heals him with spirit water. they stay by his side, and a*ng is given love, care, and support. 

k*rra is constantly, viscerally tortured on screen. k*rra is blamed, threatened, abandoned, poisoned, and temporarily disabled. k*rra is treated like a punching bag in direct response to her supposed “flaws.” we know this to be true because she “learns” from these moments of being violated, abused, and tortured -- the narrative tells us that she had to go through hell, on her own, in order to “learn humility.” 

why did k*rra, a brown girl, need to learn humility? when did she ever come across as someone who couldn’t learn, given the kind of time and space that a*ng had? why were her lessons literally beaten into her, while a*ng’s were simply a process of trial and error, with his friends at his side every single step of the way? 

people will always argue that it’s not so bad, that it’s not necessary to be as gentle with k*rra. but tell that to young brown girls watching this incredible, smart, kind, strong brown heroine get physically and mentally assaulted and broken down in order to properly “serve and save the world.” that shit? that shit’s traumatizing. k*rra is treated like garbage by m*ka, by as*mi, and by the entire world -- she is killed and tortured and isolated, and she is still expected to be grateful for what little she’s given by the end of the series. 

i hate that k*rrasami is praised so highly. because it uses the lesbian card (which i carry as a member) to reinforce some really disgusting colorism and, quite frankly, shitty ass writing. bryke can’t write without a team. end of story. 

that shit!! does NOT fly with me !!! 

[lumosinlove]

The Mark of Aphrodite

Troy and Greece are at war over Helen of Sparta’s beauty and Paris’ thievery. Remus, a Greek medic, and Sirius, a Trojan general, will fight for much more than another man’s pride.

part i

The Greek Camp

Remus only ended up in battle because the Greeks needed reinforcements. He should have been in the medicine tents, where he belonged, not strapping on metal that didn’t fit him. He was thin, with half the amount of muscle as most of the other men, but he was healthy and of age, and so he was called. Peter too, a boy a few years younger, sixteen maybe, was summoned to the battle that would start with sunrise the next day. He had been called second after Remus, and Remus had had to look away as Peter shied away from the order, a dishonorable cringe working through his round limbs. Remus had kept his head high, eyes ahead, and his trembling hands behind his back. His hands didn’t shake when tending to the wounded, but he had a feeling they might around a sword.

The Trojan nights were hot, but the coastal breeze that flowed up to the camps from the beach was cool and Remus had taken to sleeping just outside the medicine tents. The stench of blood and death was too thick sometimes to fall into Hypnos’ clutches, but that wasn’t why he wasn’t sleeping tonight. Tonight, he would watch the sunrise, and know that what came with it was a day that brought him death. He wasn’t a fighter, he had never trained, and the Trojans were merciless. He didn’t expect to survive, but couldn’t find it in him to run. He’d look like a coward.

His sleeping mat slide a little underneath him as Peter sat down heavily.

“I wonder if they care.” He said, “If they care that we know we’re going to die.”

Remus glanced his way, at his cropped blonde hair and sweaty face. Peter dealt with the heat worse than most.

“Probably not.” Remus picked up a piece of bread he had nicked from one of the food tents, tearing it in half and handing the bigger piece to Peter, “Or maybe they’re more optimistic than we are.”

“We’ve got Achilles, what do they need us for?”

Remus shook his head, chewing slowly, “Achilles won’t fight, remember? Because of the girl.”

“Oh.” Peter sighed, deep and regretful, “Oh, right.” They chewed in silence for a moment before Peter nudge him, “Do you think it’s true?”

“Do I think what’s true?” Remus was tearing small pieces off his bread, trying to make it last.

Peter sounded slightly excited now at the prospect of gossip, “About Achilles and his man, Patroclus. There are some men in the camp that say they’re lovers.”

Remus pinched his bread, molding it into a small ball between his fingers, focusing carefully on it, “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I mean—I think I see it. Not that I’ve gotten close enough to see it. But I think that… I don’t know.”

Remus looked out towards the horizon, heart jumping a little at the fact that it was starting to lighten, “Say what you mean, Pete.”

“I just think that…” Peter was quiet for a few moments, then, in a softer voice, “I think it would be nice, I guess. To have someone here. Someone who chose you. Who wasn’t taken and afraid.”

Remus looked over at him, at the way he was sitting with his head down, fumbling with his bread instead of eating it. He seemed to feel Remus’ gaze and continued.

“I’m not saying I don’t like all the girls, I do. I’m just saying maybe he’s lucky.”

Remus looked towards the beach again, towards Achilles’ tent and ships a little in the distance. There was a lamp lit inside and he could see two shadows sitting together, close and quiet. He thought of Achilles. The man was a bit of a mystery. A bit of a hot-head. But Peter was right. He had companionship. He had freedom, the freedom to choose his battles.

“Yeah.” Remus looked away and tossed Peter the last of his bread, suddenly not hungry, “Maybe he is.”

They sat quietly after that, watching dawn come.

~

Troy

Sirius wasn’t sure how he had ended up next to Helen. He hadn’t wanted to be next to Helen, and he was pretty sure—by the number of male narrowed eyes set on him—they were others who would willingly take his place. He had nothing against Helen, but Paris’ constant showers of affection over her were less than apatite-inducing. It did, however, give him time to inspect the beauty she was so known for. He’d been watching all dinner, blending in perfectly with the rest of the male company—an unusual feat.

He didn’t get it.

He’d never voice this opinion, obviously, but he just didn’t quite see what was different. Certainly not what was worth all this blood or the hundreds of Greek lords camped outside, dealing with the beach’s sand grains in every nook and corner of their beings. She certainly wasn’t worth all the sand.

She was beautiful, but not in any way that Sirius cared about. Her neck was lean and swanlike, her eyes were dark, as was her hair. Her skin was milky and her voice soft. She was everything a women was suppose to be.

Sirius’ eyes drifted from her, and onto Paris.

Now, Paris. Sirius thought he might withstand sand and blood for him.

He laid with Paris once, just once, before all of this. It was a around two years ago and he’d been young, maybe sixteen, still in training with the army. Paris was known for his broad tastes and extravagances and Sirius, being as he was, had been keen to play this known fact to his advantages.

He fought with sweat and sword to catch Paris’ eye, and it had worked much quicker than he had thought it would. He’d been in the middle of dinner with James and some other of Troy’s most promising, when a servant had come to collect him quietly.

Paris’ chambers had been ornate, like a woman’s, and his sheets and skin soft.

“You have the eyes of Athena.” Paris had said to him, stroking the skin beneath his gray irises, “The skills of a god.” Paris’ smile had been quiet but sharp, “Is that why you look like one too?”

The night had been long and hot, and Sirius had thought—maybe—

But he was woken early, before the sun, and ushered out. Paris had not even stirred, remained with his back towards him, sleeping on. He never looked Sirius’ way again.

So, why, Sirius asked himself. Why would he burn a city for him still?

Sirius took a drink of wine, holding the sweet liquid on his tongue.

He’d change it if he could.

“The Greeks,” Hector, whose command he was under, broke into his thoughts, “sleep just outside our walls. If we do not push back soon, they will think us weakened.” His voice was deep, and powerful. Sirius thought that was much nicer than Helen too, “They will see it as an opening for attack. I say we act before they have a chance to consider any option.” He looked around the room, finding Sirius and nodding at him, “I ask for my troops support in quick action. Sirius, son of Black, as general Albus was slain at the last battle, you are next in line for command.” He stared down the rest of the room, “I vouch for this soldier. He is brave, and fierce, and I hope none of you question this, despite his youth."

“You have my support, Prince Hector.” Sirius spoke up, raising his glass to his lips slowly, letting the eyes of the room linger on him. He knew that Hector was not simply giving him this position. A silent exchange had just taken place. Sirius’ support, for Hector’s authorization of an increase in rank.

“Tomorrow, then. Dawn.” Sirius raised his class, Hector following, a slight smile on his face, and the room following him. Sirius smiled back, “What is quicker than that?”

~

The Greek Camp

The leather and bronze of the armor made it hotter, and sweat dripped down along Remus’ neck and throat. Everything felt heavy and cumbersome. He tried to stand tall, in fact he rose just as high or higher than most of the other men, but his bronze breast plate felt like it mirrored Atlas, with the weight of the world on his shoulders. He was walking, or more stumbling, to his death.

Agamemnon stood at the front of the troops, raised high in his glinting chariot, armor polished to perfection unlike the dented, dead man’s metal Remus had had thrust into his arms just an hour earlier. Agamemnon was speaking, shouting, rallying his men. Spears hammered the earth around him, calls of battle rang through the troops, and Remus heard none of it. He thought briefly of Peter, whom he had lost in the crowd, and sent a silent prayer up to Athena, or maybe Aphrodite, to keep him alive through this day. He thought about sending one for himself, but thought he might save it, thought maybe there might be a time when he needed it more.

“Greeks!” Agamemnon’s voice roared, spear and sword raised in each fist, “Fight with me for the spoils you deserve!” The crowd roared back, “For the Trojan blood’s sweet stench as it hits the earth!” Spears hammered the ground, “For the beauty of Helen of Sparta!”

Agamemnon’s weapons came down in a cross over his body, clanging the sides of his chariot and sending his horses into frantic action, galloping forward. And suddenly Remus was running too, it was either that or be trampled. He couldn’t breathe right, cornered by men driven mad by Ares, by lust for blood and beauty and gold—the three things promised to the victors of war. For a few moments, it was just breath, and cries, and dust.

And then Remus heard the first strike of metal on metal. He wasn’t sure where the Trojans had come from, but suddenly the ranks had broken as unfamiliar faces delivered chaos that battle promised. Horses wined and pawed the earth while their masters yanked the reigns and slashed at flesh. The air was gritty with sand and dust, and Remus coughed, fingers white around his heavy sword. He turned desperately, desperate to move for fear of being cut down, but bodies were pressed against him too closely. He found himself shoulder to shoulder with a boy about his age, but he had his sword rage with determination, muscles flexing and jaw set. 
Remus, feeling completely alone in his fear, was unable to help the question from slipping out. He grabbed the boy’s arm, “How—“ they were jostled but Remus kept his grip tight, “how do we get out?”

The boy looked alarmed, annoyed, and opened his mouth to answer. What came instead was a spray of red, directly across Remus’ face. The boy choked, eyes so wide Remus could see his own expression of horror in them, and then he fell sideways, obscured and trampled almost as fast as he had died.

A laugh rang out above him and Remus’ head whipped up. A white mare, coat wet with enemies blood, held a dark haired Trojan. His grin was wicked, his tan skin speckled with red, his sword was wet to the hilt, and his eyes were fixed on Remus. They were grey and light with adrenaline. His sword raised, and only then did Remus find his prayer.

Aphrodite. I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die, please—

Remus felt frozen, the sword was no longer raising, but lowering.

Aphrodite, I call to you, I call to you, I don’t want to die, I don’t—

The Trojan struck, Remus felt the blow of the sword, the metal against the skin of his neck. He gasped for breath, expecting there to be none, and choked when he got a lungful of dust and air.

The sword, and all its force, had added no new blood to its gore. It had simply glanced off Remus’ skin.

The boy on horseback blinked, thrown off balance by the rogue sword, and for a moment the battle dimmed.

“Not possible.” Remus heard the boy say, so softly that he shouldn’t have been able to hear it.

Then the boy’s eyes widened. A god, were the words his lips shaped.

“No.” Remus said softly, hand flying to his throat where the blade had ricocheted, “I’m not.”

“You—“

The boy’s expression changed, and it took Remus a moment to see why. His hand went to his side, clutching at where a sword had sliced through the leather ties of his armor and into his skin. Remus, without thinking, stepped out and caught him as he slid from his horse. He was heavier than Remus expected and he stumbled a little under his weight until the boy’s feet were on the ground and he was slumped into Remus’ chest. It was an odd sort of embrace, but in the context, it looked like one was stabbing the other.

Remus felt breath against his neck, “I don’t want to die.”

The words surprised him, out of place among the men charging at each other around them, screaming for one another’s blood.

The breath again, fainter, “I don’t want to die. Aphrodite…”

The boy slumped against him fully, and Remus stood, frozen, in the middle of a scene of death.

He looked around, his helmet obstructing much of his view, and again, asked the forbidden question of any soldier: How do we get out?

Because he is not a soldier. He is a healer.

And he shouldered the boy’s weight, wrapping his limp arm around his own neck, and started to push through the swords and shouts.

~

Remus found a grove, shaded from view and distant from the fighting, that rested where the beach’s sand was just starting to turn to Troy’s green grasses. Remus ducked under branches that slid along his helmet and swayed in the breeze. The boy’s feet dragged along the ground, and Remus did his best to set him down gently against one of the larger olive trees of the rather dense cluster they were in. He tore his helmet off, gasping for breath, and then knelt, pulling the boy’s helmet free too. It was gold and shining, with a large plume along the crest. So, he had status. A general, most likely. Remus frowned at the piece of armor, then at the boy’s face. He looked young, very young, for a position of that rank. But, then again, maybe they did things differently in Troy.

The Trojan groaned, coughing weakly, head rolling to the side. Sweat lined his forehead and cheeks making stray strands of hair stick to is olive skin. Remus stared for a moment at the sort of rough beauty of him. He was a warrior for sure, and had the graceful strength about him in the fine muscles in his hands and, as Remus saw when he unlaced his armor and shirt beneath, his chest. The cut was deep, but the blood had began to slow on its own. Remus took hold of the bottom of the boy’s tunic and tore, the fine fabric ripping neatly.

“Stop.”

Remus started, breath catching as his eyes was forced forward by the tip of a sword—his own sword—being pressed against his throat.

The boy had his cool, gray eyes fixed on him, steady, but hooded with blood loss, “Greek.” He said the word, not with the contempt that Remus expected, but with a sort of fascination. He looked to where Remus had torn his shirt, “That’s expensive.” His tongue had switched from his own to Greek. So, Remus had been right. High born.

Remus’ hands tightened around the fabric, “Kill me and we’ll both die here.”

The boy nodded at the cloth, “Then continue.” He did not lower the sword.

Remus narrowed his eyes, “I am helping you at my own risk. Do not expect me to do it beneath your sword.”

The boy smirked, “It’s your sword.”

Remus blinked, taken aback by the smile, by the humor, and even more so by the sound of the sword hitting the earth. The boy leant back against the tree. “You’re not a fighter anyway.”

Remus sat a little straighter at that, a hard task when one was kneeling and leaning over a wound, “What makes you say that?”

“Well, you armor’s practically hanging off of you, firstly. And look at you,” Remus glanced up at the tone. The boy raised a hand, “You’re as fair as a woman. You’ve never seen a day’s training in the sun.”

Remus pressed the cloth to the line of blood. The boy didn’t even flinch, just kept the same lazy posture up, “A medic, I’d guess.”

“I’d sound a little more pleased about that if I were in your position right now.”

“I never said I wasn’t.” The boy leaned forward compliantly at Remus’ motion, and suddenly they were very close, almost chest to chest, as Remus reached around him to circle the make-shift bandage around his torso. When he spoke next, his voice was right in Remus’ ear, “Are we going to address the real question at any point?”

“Why I didn’t let you die?”

“No—“ The boy cut off with a hiss when Remus—maybe not so unintentionally—roughly tightened the bandage. He blew his hair from his eyes, narrowing them at Remus, “Why I couldn’t kill you.”

Remus looked down, adjusting the bandage just so, staying quiet.

“You’re not a god. I can see that now, so there must be some explanation. Have you won one’s favor somehow?”

Remus’ fingers stilled. His mind flew to his own desperate words, the ones that had entered his mind in that split second of terror.

Aphrodite, I call to you, I call to you, I don’t want to die.

Aphrodite.

“You prayed.” Remus looked up, sitting back on his heels, “I caught you when you fell and I heard you.” Remus swore he saw the boy’s jaw tighten, “You prayed to Aphrodite for life. Why?”

Sirius pressed himself into a taller sitting position, wincing and trying to hide it, “It is in her clutches that I feel most alive.” It was said with a cheeky but obviously strained grin, “Nothing gets my heart pumping quite like she does, don’t you agree?”

Remus felt his cheeks flame.

The boy smirked, “Or maybe you don’t know. Medics wouldn’t be the ones getting much of the women down there at camp, would they?”

“You’re about to die and you pray for lust?” Remus shook his head, but his heart was racing.

Had they both prayed to Aphrodite? Had she heard them?

“You still didn’t answer my question.” The boy was picking gingerly at the new bandage, and pulling his tunic back over his head. Remus tried not to let his eyes linger as the tan strips of skin disappeared, “I struck with full intention to take you’re life. No godly work came from my side.”

Remus swallowed.

Aphrodite, I call to you, I call to you, I don’t want to die.

“I don’t know.” He picked up his sword, edging it behind him now that the boy seemed in better fighting condition. His motion didn’t go unnoticed.

The boy’s smirk was back, “Scared I might try again?”

“You are a Trojan.” Remus said shortly, “Merciless.”

“Oh, is that what they say about us? How nice.” They stared at each other for a few moments, for long enough that Remus wondered if they were ever going to move.

“Here.” The boy said finally. He picked up his helmet and held it out. It gleamed in the sun, “I may be a merciless Trojan but I know when a debt needs to be payed. Take this for your spoils, I doubt you have many.”

Remus hesitated. He didn’t need a helmet, especially not a Trojan one. He didn’t want to be mistaken on the field, if he ever had to fight again. But, he supposed, if people started asking where he was, if anyone even noticed, it would be nice to have something to prove he had been there at all. Maybe even something that would offer the idea that he had taken a life. He took the helmet.

“You should trade it for food. Maybe become something other than skin and bones.”

Remus glared, “I’ll do with it what I like.”

They stood. Remus didn’t help him up this time but the boy didn’t seem to need it. He strapped his armor on with only a little difficulty, and then they were left with nothing to do but face each other.

“Do you often save enemy lives?”

Remus placed his own helmet on his head, and cradled the other beneath his arm, “I don’t often get close enough to an enemy to get the chance.” He took a step back, “You should clean that, when you get back.”

And then he turned and went.

~

Sand, Sirius thought. He would deal with the sand for that Greek.

(A/N: NEW FIC! Hope you guys enjoy :)

[inkyardpress]

YA Series That Need Their Own Netflix Shows

The amazing thing about a book series is that you don’t need to leave that world when you finish the first book. There’s no book hangover (unless you’re waiting for the release of the next book in the series, *cough* Everlife *cough*), and you can let the real world slip away as you read book after book. Sounds a bit like binge-watching Netflix, right? We all know some movies are based on books, but we think that Netflix should make room for our favourite YA series to shine!  

 Everlife Series by Gena Showalter

Netflix is known for taking risks and churning out the plot twists, which is why we think the Everlife series needs its own show right now! In the Everlife world, life doesn’t end with death—it just begins again. It’s an amazing conception of a tangible life after death with a tough leading lady, to boot. Ten Lockwood is a kickass heroine who takes it on herself to help others in need, no matter the cost. Almost like Clark from The 100 in that way, but less annoying.

 Talon Series by Julie Kagawa

Hidden in plain sight as humans, the characters in the Talon series are more nuanced than your average dragon. They have been in conflict for centuries with the human warriors who have sworn to slay them and are not giving up the fight anytime soon. But not everything is as it seems in this world, and this series has a mind-blowing conspiracy that would come to life on the small screen. Fans learned some of the secrets in April, with the release of Legion, adding legions of fans for this potential TV hit.

 A Court of Thorns and Roses Series by Sarah J. Mass

Do you have Beauty and the Beast fever? We do, and we’d love to see the A Court of Thorns and Roses series on Netflix! This dark and steamy fantasy retelling has a far darker version of Belle, who, after killing a wolf, ends up in an enchanted realm of faeries. We love a girl who can take care of herself, and this series places her in a fully realized world that combines nostalgia and adrenaline to create an amazing fantasy experience.  

 Firebird Series by Claudia Gray

This series is what would happen if Cloud Atlas and Orphan Black had a baby. What starts off as a revenge mission turns into something bigger, as a conspiracy that spans dimensions unravels and threatens the multiverse. Watching Marguerite Caine jump through worlds to save her family would be mind-blowing, and her one-true-love romance is swoon worthy!

 The Orphan Queen Series by Jodi Meadows

An action-packed story that will keep you at the edge of your seat—perfect for Netflix! Wilhelmina is the ultimate fantasy heroine: she’s a princess and a spy, so it doesn’t get much cooler than that. She’s hell-bent on taking back her kingdom with the help of the Ospreys, a group of orphaned royal children. Read or watch to see if she claims her throne!

 Everland Series by Wendy Spinale

What if you didn’t have to travel to (N)everland, but instead it came to you by way of a deadly virus that kills everyone but children? That’s the premise of this steampunk retelling of Peter Pan that’s full of action as well as references to the original story. Bella’s mechanical wings and this gritty dystopian version of London would be stunning to see on-screen!

 The Graces Series by Laure Eve

While we’re waiting for the second book to come out this October, we can fantasize about who would play each member of the creepy and mysterious family called the Graces. We’re picturing a more emo version of the Riverdale cast for the social circle of the Graces. But what would make this story stand out is the witchcraft and the twist ending that would have you watching it all again from the beginning to catch the clues you missed the first time around.

 Ruined Series by Amy Tintera

The Ruined series would make the perfect revenge show! Emelina Flores lost everything when her home, Ruina, was ravaged by war, and she witnessed the murder of her parents and the kidnapping of her sister. With nothing to lose, she marries Prince Casmir in a mad quest for revenge. We’d love to see how the alternating points of view of Em and Casmir would be handled in a television version!

 Dark Gifts Series by Vic James

Political maneuvering and magic have shaped this dystopian vision of England, where aristocrats with magical gifts have all the power and the commoners serve them. Magic is passed down through families, not earned, so the inequality in this world is hard to fight—but some do try. You get to see the story from many points of view and it’s filled with lots of family drama, politics and twists.

 The Wired Series by Donna Freitas

If you liked Black Mirror then you’ll like these chilling books about technology gone too far. In this thoughtful series, people live in either the App World (a virtual world for rich people) or the Real World (a dying world for everyone else). It has been compared to Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series, but the added layer of the dangers of technology hits home and would have us turning our phones off!

[wordshappensometimes]

But what about a gruesome version of ATLA??

This is not my normal kind of post, but I got to thinking about Avatar the Last Airbender recently and out of nowhere remembered some ideas that I had had regarding seriously dope but also fucked up things™ they could have done with bending (particularly water bending). Like, imagine, if you will, if Avatar had been a dark, gritty action thriller directed by like Tarantino or some shit.

First off, waterbenders are so fucking powerful in terms of the control they could have exerted over the human body, like, sure they did the blood bending thing but really that just pissed me off because the human body is like 60% water- it shouldn’t have been limited to just blood, and it certainly wouldn’t have required any sort of special rituals! We’re just like big ol water jugs with legs. So many opportunities for cool shit! Like, yes it would’ve made the show waaaay darker, but imagine waterbenders realizing they can bend the fluids in living things, which would lead to:

Being able to stop their enemies mid-fight, like just, physically keep them from moving by controlling the water in their cells, or alternatively throwing and moving people in the same manner.

DEHYDRATING STUFF! Like, just bending all of the water out of something, or someone. Like, in theory a waterbender could dehydrate someone, and I don’t mean like “eugh, I’m a little parched” I mean, remove all of a person’s bodily fluids from them as a way of defeating them. They’d be a dried up husk of a human person (and like, super dead, which is why they definitely never did that on the show) but how crazy cool/powerful is a move like that>???

Controlling blood-flow: this kindof stems off of the last bullet, but this could be used in healing scenarios and like torture/interrogation. Imagine a waterbender is trying to get information out of someone but they aren’t talking, so the bender constricts the blood flow to that person’s arms. Suddenly their arms go completely numb and the bender asks if they’d like to ever be able to feel again. (again, super dark, but theoretically within the realm of possibility with waterbending)

Fake crying like it’s nobody’s business

YOU COULD POTENTIALLY FLY IF YOU FIGURED OUT HOW TO BEND THE WATER WITHIN YOUR OWN BODY AND NOT KILL YOURSELF WHILE DOING SO

But bending bodily fluids would also be super risky so there’d be all sorts of tragic mishaps and accidental deaths all up in the water tribes.

tl/dr: waterbenders are terrifying and super badass.

[hannahstarshade]

“I’m Leaving the TMNT Fandom”

If you are a fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and have been on Tumblr for any amount time, you’ve probably seen titles like that. I’ve been meaning to write a post about this, but I never knew where to start. It wasn’t until I was looking through the tmnt 2003 tags that I read The reasons I leaving TMNT fandom by @dreamyleofangirl and finally found some motivation and a starting point. 

First and foremost, I want to make it perfectly clear that I am in no way attacking someone’s favorite show, comic, or movie. Debates among members of a fandom are a great part of communities like these. Each and every part of the TMNT franchise has something to offer, and we all have our favorites for whatever reason.

It fascinates me how after all this time, people who “leave the fandom” still have so much in common. They seem to be both avid fans of the Nickelodeon cartoon and believers that the fandom is falling into discourse. The latter of those two often comes about when people are overly critical of the 2012 show. The post by @dreamyleofangirl​ brought up some excellent points that can be discussed. I do agree that other members of a fandom can impact a fan’s experience negatively. However, it shouldn’t effect your love for something you adore. Back when I watched the Nickelodeon show, I always associated it with young, whiny viewers who thought anyone who liked the 4Kids! series and criticized the Nick show was attacking them. As many of us know, this is not the case is most instances. I stopped watching the show not because of the negativity surrounding it, but because I found it sloppy compared to other media in the franchise. I acknowledge both its merits and its flaws. Even though there are rough patches in the fandom, that still doesn’t mean I love TMNT any less. 

“So, you don’t like this version, or you think that a few years back the cartoon was better. Aaaaand? What do you want? The people behind it are different, times have changed, the audience had, as well. The target is no longer your generation, the target are KIDS. You do realize that, right?”

Therein lies the problem with some of the arguments. Times have changed, and that’s what sparks so much talk around these series. We are in an age where animation is at its peak. In recent years we’ve had Avatar: The Last Airbender, Legend of Korra, Gravity Falls, Steven Universe, Adventure Time, and so much more. These shows have set the bar for what a children’s cartoon can be: engaging, thought-provoking, intelligent. Fart jokes and love-triangles aren’t the height of humor and drama anymore, and viewers know it.

“We keep demanding more and more. We no longer appreciate the things the TMNT crew give us.”

We keep demanding more and more because we know that creators are more than capable of delivering better. There’s no need to go all “boo-hoo, poor Ciro.” That guy and the rest of the team are making bank and making children happy. There’s nothing wrong with wanting good entertainment for both yourself and for children. Why should anyone settle for mediocrity? Nobody made this argument against Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender. Nobody thought we should just be grateful that we even got an ATLA film. Fans expect better from people who are willing and able to do great things. You can either be content with mediocrity, or push for something better. This franchise is over 30 years old, and with this comes high expectations.

I’ve familiarized myself with every aspect of TMNT I possibly can. I can safely say that there is a wide variety of material available for all audiences. From dark and gritty to bright and innocent, there’s something for everyone. Nobody has to enjoy every incarnation this franchise has to offer. Similarly, there are people who can enjoy stuff despite its glaring flaws. I’ll bet you anything there is at least one person who genuinely appreciates the Coming Out of Their Shells tour. (Hint: It’s me, but only because “No Treaties” is my jam.)  At the end of the day, it all comes down to what you like. We all have different tastes and expectations, and that is totally okay. We’re not all going to agree on a favorite series or comic or movie, but we will defend and analyze them.

Fandom is what you make of it. Do what makes you happy and take pride in what you enjoy.

[jillmckenzie1]

My Name Is

Director Zack Snyder has thoughts. During a charity event screening of his films Dawn of the Dead, Watchmen, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, he was asked about the depiction of Batman. Specifically, the depiction that the Caped Crusader was awfully, well…homicidal. During the film, Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight straight-up mows down crooks with cunningly hidden machine guns in the Batmobile and decimates goons in a brutal warehouse battle. It’s all a bit much.

Snyder responded with the immortal quote, “Someone says to me: Batman killed a guy. I’m like, ‘F**k, really? Wake the f**k up.” It’s not surprising that the guy who made 300 and who is a noted devotee of Ayn Rand would make a superhero movie with an almost complete lack of a light touch. Snyder directed Man of Steel, the film that kicked off the DC Expanded Universe as a direct competitor to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. One could say his films are gritty, dark,* and his aesthetic set the tone of the universe initially.

You know what? That’s okay, provided you’re telling the right story with the right characters. The superhero genre is wildly malleable, and a character like Batman can work with a darker-toned story. That shouldn’t be the default tone, though. Superman doesn’t need to be grimdark. Ever. The good news is that the pendulum is swinging the other way and the films of the DCEU are lightening up.

Wonder Woman had a clever sense of humor. Aquaman had crazy set pieces involving armored seahorses. While the films of the MCU are often criticized for having interchangeable tones, the DCEU seems to be going in a more director-focused direction. That’s a smart move, and we’re seeing more evidence of that with the newest installment, Shazam!

The holiday season can be a bummer. 14-year-old Billy Batson (Asher Angel) is acutely aware of that. He’s been in and out of foster care for years in Philadelphia, and he’s developed a reputation for being a touch troublesome. Can you blame him, though? As a young child, he was separated from his mother, and he’s got a list of all the Batsons located in the area. Billy knows she’s out there somewhere.

His search is interrupted when he’s placed into a foster home run by the kindly Rosa Vasquez (Marta Milans) and Victor Vasquez (Cooper Andrews). They have five other foster kids, all of them welcoming and warm. Billy particularly clicks with Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), a sarcastic fan of the new heroes that have been coming out of the woodwork. In a nice touch, Freddy even owns a crumpled bullet fired at Superman. The bullet even has a certificate of authenticity.

Then…things get weird. While bullies are hassling Freddy, Billy steps in. They give chase and Billy escapes on the subway. Only everyone else on the train disappears. The train arrives at the Rock of Eternity, the lair of the Wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou). The magician needs help. He’s looking for someone to transfer his power to, someone pure of heart. Billy fits the bill.

With a crack of thunder, Billy is transformed into a hilariously swole superhero (Zachary Levi) with a vast array of abilities.** He’ll need them, since the embittered Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) is out there. Sivana had his own encounter with the Wizard, and he’s on a quest to release the Seven Deadly Sins upon the world. Like you do.

If Shazam! were a household pet, it would be an adorable Labrador retriever. This dog is friendly, a little crazy, and just wants to love you all the time. He wants to go for miles-long walks. He wants to play fetch for hours. When you stagger home, exhausted, and you just want 15 minutes of peace, the dog jumps on you continuously, almost saying, “OH MY GOD I LOVE YOU SO MUCH LET’S GO FOR A HIKE IN THE FOOTHILLS AND CHASE SQUIRRELS AND DO DOGGY THINGS COME ON GET UP GET UP GET UP.”

That’s not to say I disliked it. While director David F. Sandberg has made a film that feels incredibly long at times, it’s always punctuated with a great deal of humor, heart, and some full-on horror occasionally.*** The film feels like a throwback to the output of 1980’s Spielberg and Zemeckis, where it occasionally is just gory enough for kids to feel like they’re getting away with something watching it.

Long stretches of the screenplay by Henry Gayden are very funny, particularly the second act. After Billy has gotten his powers, he doesn’t immediately start fighting crime and protecting the good citizens of Philadelphia. He and Freddy try to buy beer. He fires lightning out of his fingers to charge the cellphones of passersby. He becomes an online sensation by just screwing around with his powers. I think the average teenager would behave in much the same way, and I liked that. There’s some smart writing on display mocking the tropes of superhero cinema, but the script has real heart when necessary.

Let’s also take a moment to direct praise at the script for a positive portrayal of the foster system. For years in movies, foster homes have been depicted as hellholes populated by people who are dismissive at best and as demonic at worst. The reality is that the vast majority of foster parents are people who genuinely want to help kids who have caught a tough break. For a major blockbuster to push this concept is a wonderful thing.

I liked the cast, and it’s always a treat to see Mark Strong lean into playing a villainous maniac. As Billy, Asher Angel is a quiet center to the madness going on around him. As his grown-up alter ego, Zachary Levi’s Shazam is perfect. He’s brimming over with that jumpy Labrador retriever energy, and he believably shifts from enthusiastic to a little selfish to embracing the mantle of responsibility. I would have liked for the two of them to have had performances that were in sync a little bit more, so you could feel like this was two sides of the same person.

With all that, I was impressed to see Jack Dylan Grazer walk away with the entire movie. His Freddy is legitimately witty, a kid who uses his wit as a shield to protect himself from a frequently hostile world. Playing that balance without coming off as bitter is not easy, and Grazer allows his sadness and fear to peek out.

Superhero comics were originally aimed at kids. It’s refreshing to me to see a superhero movie that remembers that, leans heavily into the adolescent wish fulfillment, and isn’t obnoxiously self-serious. Shazam! is a rarity: a family movie that the entire family can genuinely enjoy without having seen two dozen other movies first.

  *One could also say that his films sometimes try way too hard.

**The good people at Wikipedia tell me that Shazam is actually an acronym, and Billy gains the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury. Thanks, Wikipedia!

***Tonally, I kept thinking Shazam! feels like Gremlins. Dollops of goofy comedy, then some fairly intense and gnarly stuff takes place. You’ll probably notice this with the Seven Deadly Sins creatures, or when Sivana kills a guy by throwing him out of a skyscraper.

from Blog https://ondenver.com/my-name-is/

[kitkatopinions]

Adam

Adam for the RWBY character ask prompts. This one will be tricky, but I love a challenge. I wanna say right off the bat that Adam is such a complicated character with a complicated discussion surrounding him. I discuss some problems with how RT wrote Adam’s character in another post and talked more about the White Fang, but it’s also worth noting that Adam is really tricky to a lot of people because he is Blake’s abuser, and it’s tricky to talk about what parts of Adam should or shouldn’t have been kept.

My top three ships for the character

I’m really sorry, but Adam is just too hard for me to ship him with anyone, even as a totally alternate universe where Adam never went too far and was never an abuser. I can see him being friends with a lot of people, like Mercury, Emerald, Ilia, May, Fiona... But I just can’t ship him with anyone.

My three least favorite ships for the character

This one is so much easier. I hate Blake/Adam, it makes my skin crawl, even in the aforementioned alternate universes. It hits too close, it’s been tainted too much by canon. Adam/Weiss is also really, really hard for me to see. Aaaand Adam/Yang. No thanks, no thanks, no thanks.

My biggest criticism for the character

I know it’s cliche to say ‘everything,’ but really, truly, there’s nothing good about how the writers handled Adam. From the start, his character was a plot device for Blake and the worst person that the writers could seemingly think of because of course the only prominent, featured leader of a civil rights group is a monster who abuses people and wants to kill all humans. His character is heavily and clearly influenced by the internalized racism of some of the writers, and not only did that harm them from a meta perspective - their clear bias was harmful to people of color in real life - but from a writing / in universe perspective - they stripped him of his few good traits and his righteous motivations to turn him into nothing more than a crazy stalker and then they revealed his branding mark that he got by being branded like cattle by the company WEISS’S FAMILY OWNS AND OPERATES and then without even talking about that at all, they just had him murdered and never mentioned him again despite the importance he played and the fact that Blake came face to face with Jacques Schnee himself in Atlas and Jacques’s role is reduced to being a comic nuisance instead of the massively horrible and anti-faunus and cruel and evil man he was that should’ve been taken seriously.

My favorite thing about the character

His potential. Outside of the terrible handling of the whole White Fang/Faunus/Racism arc, there are hints of a good character there. Adam is intense, serious, determined, passionate, and he started with a moral code. He’s got a good look, he’s got an incredibly sympathetic backstory, and he could have interesting, good dynamics with other characters. 

A headcanon I have about them

I like the headcanon that he doesn’t have much of a real education, but I do think he has some semblance of education that he was taught, some by Ghira when Adam was really young and when Ghira was the leader of the White Fang, some by Sienna, but he also just loved learning and was constantly educating himself and teaching himself all about history and literature - which is one of the ways he connected with Blake.

What I would change about them if I was making a re-write

So so so so much. I would change so much. First of all, Adam starts the show at eighteen (seventeen when he was with Blake.) Next, no more face brand. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good scarred character, but branding him? Branding him with the SDC logo? It’s literally gross. No more brand, no more scar (because the brand has soured him having a scar even if I changed everything about it and how he got it in a re-write.) No more child slavery, either. The SDC can be plenty bad enough without that, the world of RWBY can be plenty bad enough without that. In my Blake Ask, I talked about how I’d alter her story, since I’d take away the White Fang/Faunus rights/racism storyline entirely and perhaps switch it out with a classism storyline that I’d be more equipped to tell since I’m not a person of color and have never had racism directed at me. So with no anti-faunus plot, I would have Blake, Adam, and Ilia tricked into working with either Hazel or Watts and thinking they’re doing good. I think that I would still make Adam a bad guy, but not an over the top one, and more like Emerald and Mercury. He’d be working under an abuser (in either Hazel or Watts) and he’d lash out and mistreat and be physically violent to Blake (but not too much so) - who would realize that they were duped and that what they’re doing is wrong and try to convince him and Ilia of the same. And Adam would lean into the violence and Salem’s faction, but with the chance for redemption.

What I I think of their character allusion and what (if anything) I would change about it

Adam’s character allusion is of the Beast from ‘the Beauty and the Beast’ as well as being a reference to Gaston and RWBY writers please branch out from Disney in these fairy tales. The point of his character allusion is that - unlike the Beast - Adam is a monster at heart and the people judging him based on appearances are actually right about him and he is a heartless monster and RWBY writers please stop making all your allusions drained of all hope as a ‘subversion.’ He fits with the Beast/Gaston thing in a couple ways, but as you could probably tell, I hate their dark and gritty fairy tale takes. A mutual recently commented that that Adam seems much more like a Phantom of the Opera character than a Beast, and that’s very true, but I don’t like that either. I would rather stick to a good under the surface character who has a lot of darkness and bad to overcome and makes a lot of mistakes, but learns how to love, for a Beast character. In my Blake character ask, I said I’d make the Beast Ilia instead of Adam, and I do think that’d be good. But if we’re going with the Beast for Adam, I’d adjust by not leaning too hard under that ‘good at heart’ narrative and have it be a bit more gray than that, but have the ‘twist’ to the allusion be that the Beast character realizes he doesn’t need somebody to affirm him and isn’t a monster.