Day 1024 of Amphibia Screenshots

Episode: The First Temple

Ok so I was rewatching The First Temple and my sister noticed this

How many of you noticed this while watching?

The First Temple predicted every death in the series--including Anne’s

On impulse, I rewatched The First Temple before watching The Beginning of the End, which proved to be an excellent idea. I was always confused why the first temple had this added emphasis: no title sequence, twice the length as the other temples. 

With the new episode out, and Darcy’s threat to kill Anne, the answer is clear. The First Temple foreshadowed every death in the series.

Our first indicator is an off-handed line Marcy gives. “No frog, toad, or newt has ever survived the temple.” But the weight of the foreshadowing falls in the games they play.

First, Marcy gets so caught up in making sure that the Rubik’s cube is in the perfect configuration, that she doesn’t care how she’s hurting her friends. Similarly, Sasha got so caught up in controlling Anne, that she didn’t realize how she was hurting her. And then she did, and decided to fall off a cliff and almost die.

The second one is, of course, Amphibia’s witty and somewhat infuriating way of teasing Marcy’s death. In the temple with the green squares, there are two ways to die. One is by being crushed. The other is by being burned alive by a blade-like flame. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

Their third trial was the one that confused me, though. It taught humility, which I took as an indicator that the temples are malicious in nature--Marcy has an ego problem, meaning she bounces between extreme confidence and extreme humility, defaulting to the second as her more basic response, and a benevolent wit temple would teach her about the balance between those things.

Well, now it all makes sense. We’ve got a chess board, similar to the one Andrias set up. We have most of our characters on the good side, except one, dressed in black, helmet on her head, unwillingly forced to try to kill the people who she so deeply cares about.

Then, what Anne says to Hop Pop? “Just because I’m mad at you, doesn’t mean I want to kill you!” That’s the key to Marcy’s forgiveness of Anne and mostly Sasha for being shitty friends.

Meanwhile, the end of the game was the chilling part. Marcy flipped the wart. Got rid of her lead, the one player she needed in order to win.

Anne is the one player we need in order to win.

Hence, Anne will die, to save the game. They have to forfeit, because Andrias cheats at the game (brings dead people back to life), so they will have to cheat at the game as well.

Happy Marcy Monday!

MONDAY MORNING MOOD BOOST COMING RIGHT UP!!

But first, the Marcy Monday club: @chaoticcerise @ilovetvtoons @cowcowwow @marcy-wu-on-the-brain @raine-on-me @eeveearoace @scriptum-pandemonium @fullmusicbard @arcadiii @gayfrogcoven @heart-wit-strength @strawberry-seal77 @soup-does-stuff @weedplantar @queercoded-disney-villain @valipad @facet5peridot @theheartofcalamity @phrogfrommars @waskojey @yourpersonaltimebomb @banyanas @insert-fictional-characters-name @lili250307 @sapphicinthewild and sasquatchinslippers

And as always, remember to smash that like and subscribe button for more content! (Or, you know, just ask to join the taglist. That works too :3)

And now, the blorbo herself...

anyway im electing myself official marcy wu expert now

What's your opinion of the Marcy and Sasha reunion in The Third Temple? I know that it's short compared to the other reunions because The Third Temple was really rushed, but it speaks volumes about Marcy and Sasha's relationship (especially Marcy complimenting Sasha's armor afterwards. It's a nice parallel to Sasha in how they both predominantly value outward appearances).

OH MY GOD FOR SURE. in fact this was the example Matt himself used when talking about Sasharcy's dynamic being more "professional", which I DEEPLY appreciate because that implication is subtle in this interaction but it jumps out at you once you see it. both of them just instantly complimenting external factors of each other upon reuniting compared to the much more emotional reunions of Sashanne and Marcanne - it's like Matt said, they don't fuck with each other. these are two characters that are VERY good at slipping masks on and off when they need them, and these are two characters that inherently understand that about EACH OTHER, so every time they do this sort of acknowledgment of external presentation, it's like they're reminding each other "I know your game". I am absolutely obsessed with their dynamic it is so intricate and layered and AUGHHHH fucking HELL man these characters are so good

My last day of school is tomorrow  :) 

Amphibia Week - Day 3: Favorite Funniest Moment

I couldn't tell what my favorite funniest moment, but this HERE are some funniest moments that I laughed!

@ilovetvtoons @kevintoons915 @crazydisneynerd123 @1cartooncoven @dodelidoo @lmjdraws @bolt-neo @multifandoms13 @diamond28869 @sfcabanasstarcgs @marcywaybright @marcanne-lover@ashi2210 @a-pastel-unicorn

Friendly reminder that Polly has regularly been shown to be fascinated with violence and hurting others, and has openly admitted to wanting to take over the world.

If you think Marcy comparing things to fantasy means she sees others as npcs, you have your priorities mixed up.

Day 968 of Amphibia Screenshots

Episode: The First Temple

Mystery Monday #38: Don't be jealous of my hue

(This is not the big post I've been teasing. I'm still working on it. Also it will be a multiple parter.)

So the second room in the first temple had a dangerous floor with many tiles. Blue was death by crushing, red was death by fire, and green (the color of envy) was the safe color. There were also a lot more blue tiles than red or green.

Call me crazy, but I think there's more here than meets the eye.

You see, while rewatching The First Temple, I paused at the exact moment where Marcy lands on the green tile. And I remembered that those three colors represent the Calamity Powers and everything about them. So it only makes sense that this room is connected to each power.

First we will go with red, the color of Strength. The fire trap could be a reference to the volcanic setting of The Third Temple. It could be a reference to Sasha's fiery temper. It could even refer to the fact that she doesn't know when to quit, just like a fire can't quit.

Next we have blue, the color of Heart. The crushing trap could be a reference to The Second Temple's second trial of saving someone from being crushed in an avalanche. It could be referring to the fact that when someone loves and cares about you, having them let you down is "crushing." And the many more blue tiles than red or green could be a reference to Anne appearing in many more episodes than Marcy or Sasha.

And lastly we get to green, the color of Wit and Envy. The Envy part could be referring to Marcy being envious of her friends who get to stay together while she moves away. (I'm not saying that's why green is the color of envy; I'm saying that could be why green was chosen as the color of Marcy's Calamity Power.) And green being the safe color could refer to Marcy being so innocent that she would do anything for her friends -- Marcy being the "safe" person to talk to and having the purest motives.

So I hope you've enjoyed this little rabbit hole I decided to dive into this week. Have a great Month of Marcy, and see you next time on Mystery Monday!

P.S. Please send in topic ideas!

remember how it was a popular hc that sasha would cut his hair short after true colors?

well, why wait?

hc that sasha cuts her hair while shes on the run w grime during toad catcher, partially to try to hide his identity, but also bc hes going through some shit

and then he cuts his hair again later once she and grime make the resistance, bc sasha gave herself a shitty sword haircut and the resistance has a hairstylist so its about time she got his hair fixed

The First Temple

I feel like this episode best encapsulates the closest thing I feel is a flaw of Marcy's -- her hyperfocus to the exclusion of others. Her extreme focus to the exclusion of what's happening around her does cause problems for others and also has potential to harm her (by not paying attention to her surroundings).

The trouble with that is that it feels like a mixed bag to call it a flaw. Yes, it causes problems and is something she should work --to an extent-- while at the same time, being super invested & focused on a certain topic isn't really a bad trait to have. (I can get like that myself.)

This episode also really shows off how much Marcy values her intelligence; it's what she has to offer; it's what she's good at. What's more interesting to me, is how much she boosts herself, saying how good she is at things, expressing her deep interest in things (mostly biological with special interest in plants). I know I've mentioned this before, but Marcy's enthusiasm is fascinating to me.

As much as she seems to derive value from how useful she can be (this will appear more in the next episode, oh boy), she's also very confident and expressive. Maybe that's why it's hard (for me) to pin down to think about/explain Marcy --

She's both driven by a desire to not be alone so therefore tries to be agreeable AND openly expresses her interests which she pushes on/tries to share with others WHILE ALSO being oblivious of the world around AND highly hyperfocused on particular aspect of the world around her. She's open and expressive, yet feels awkward in social settings. She prizes her intelligence and skill in puzzles, yet feels it's all she has to offer.

I feel like there's more I could say, but basically: Marcy has a lot of complex character traits that either seem to contradict or simultaneously present as positive or negative emotions.

Also, I think this might have been when Marcy really started seeing the Plantars a little more specifically. Up to this point, she was aware that they were important to Anne. (She loves the found family trope, after all.) But up to now, she may have seen them more as an Important Point in Anne's journey and less as interpersonal relationships Anne has developed.

But then, I think that's because is not very good at reading social cues. I interpret this as a large part of why Marcy tries so hard to be likable by being useful. But I'll probably get into this more next time.

Finding three temples with dangerous trials that each charge a magical stone? Each representing strength (power), mind (wisdom) and heart (courage)?

Someone is a Zelda fan.

The First Temple is solid! GO WATCH THIS SHOW IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY!!!!

Marcy Wu, and Why Her Unfinished Character Arc Worked.

I'm gonna ramble a bit about our favorite newtopian ranger, marcy wu!!

so. I, like many others in the fandom, was a bit disappointed with how the show handled marcy's growth and character arc. it felt rushed.. incomplete, and overall messy. I felt that marcy's growth wasn't given the same attention and care that anne & sasha's growth was. coupled with the overall tragedy of marcy's character and role in the story, I was feeling extremely discontented with marcy's character.. until I realized that the show writers may have unintentionally made that the point of marcy's arc.

because LISTEN. out of all of them, marcy was the one who came away with the least positive things from amphibia. she didn't connect with her amphibian charges (she even admits it herself in the finale, and says that she wished she got to know them better), she was more focused on the technical and worldly aspects of amphibia, and while she did come into her own, she wasn't able to address and tackle her underlying core issues in the way that anne and sasha were. --

the two main themes of amphibia are learning to embrace change and letting go. and all the story arcs of the calamity trio showcase this in different ways (that's a discussion for another time, however). of these two themes, marcy's arc leans more towards the letting go aspect. but here's the thing. that was her main problem. marcy's greatest fear is being alone, and her greatest flaw is her inability to let go. marcy couldn't FATHOM a world without anne and sasha. they were her biggest support system, and by moving, marcy was essentially stranded. she had a hard time connecting with people, and she didn't have the social skills that anne and sasha did. so to her, moving was the absolute WORST thing that could have happened. she was unable to live in a world without anne and sasha, and so she didn't. she chose to take matters into her own hands, and as long as she was able to get anne and sasha on board, everything would be fine, right? wrong. we obviously saw how catastrophic that was, both for marcy and everyone around her. it was beat into marcy's head repeatedly how reckless and stupid and downright fatal her mistake could have been, how fatal it was. marcy's biggest lesson in amphibia was that there are some things you will have to let go of. no matter how desperately you latch onto them, there will always be claw marks left behind.

--

my point however, is that this was marcy's only major flaw. marcy was a flawed character, deeply flawed in some ways, but from what I observed, she was never flawed in the way anne and sasha were. outside of her major flaw.. marcy was a pretty well rounded person. and of course, there is growth to be left desired, but most of marcy's (visible) flaws were communication, and the ability to make yourself be truly seen in a friendship.. and they aren't really even flaws. more just things she needs to work on.

unlike anne, she didn't have self-esteem issues. she was pretty confident in her abilities and her interests, as shown by the first temple. surrounded by the right people (which at the time, were unfortunately not anne and sasha), she would've flourished. and in amphibia, she did. because for once, she was allowed to be the person she truly wanted to be. and unlike sasha, she didn't have horrendous control issues. anne and sasha's flaws are what I like to call character flaws, flaws that are innate and come from you; ie, they aren't as a result of other people's actions. anne and sasha were allowed to address and properly correct their character flaws because amphibia (and the places they landed in) was the perfect environment for them to see their flaws and to see the consequences that came with them. sasha learned that trying to control everyone and everything around you will only drive them away, and end up destroying both them and you in the process. her strength came from lifting people up, allowing them to rise WITH her instead of pushing them down like she used to. anne learned that self love is important, and in order to become the best version of yourself, you need to surround yourself with love, and in turn, it will come back to you. anne's heart comes from the people around her. their love allowed her to give love tenfold-- both to herself and the people around her. their major flaws only got resolved because of amphibia.

but marcy? her main flaw, which is letting go? that could not be resolved in amphibia, no. because amphibia only amplified this flaw. because choosing to go to amphibia, making the conscious decision to run away, is the entire reason why this flaw is most prominent. marcy flourished in amphibia, yes, but she was never able to address her major flaw. because of a multitude of different reasons, of course, but also because to marcy, amphibia was another out. another way to run from her problems instead of facing them head on and dealing with the fallout. anne dealt with the fallout. she stood up to sasha, for ONCE in her life, and watched her plummet down a cliff in return. (this is a weak point, but for the sake of parallels, I can't take it out.) sasha dealt with the fallout. she betrayed anne, once, twice, and was forced to go back to wartwood, anne's town, with the knowledge that she and anne are no longer friends, no longer anything. marcy's way of dealing with the fallout.. was not the core. to many, the core may be a physical personification of all of marcy's flaws coming back to bite her in the behind, but I disagree. the core was a cruel, merciless, and downright horrible way for marcy to learn her lesson, yes, but the core was not the fallout. the fallout, that showed marcy the consequences of her major flaw, was in true colors. was in the throne room. was in watching anne and sasha's faces twist into horror and disgust, respectively. the fallout was in living with the fact that everything she did was for nothing, and that she still had to live in a world without anne and sasha, that in her mind, they now hated her. that was when marcy hit rock bottom. and when you hit rock bottom, you have nowhere to go but up, right?

--

marcy did atone. in the core, in the face of everything she could have ever wanted being handed to her on a silver platter, she said no. she swatted aldrich’s hand, and said that for once in my life, I'm not going to run away. I'm going to face this head on. and why did she do that, pray tell? because of anne and sasha. because everything that marcy wu did depended on anne and sasha. because in her mind, even if they hated her, she'd rather face their potential wrath instead of accepting a reality without them. the real them. it's natural, of course. her major flaw was not of just letting go. it was letting go of anne and sasha.

--

and so, the reason why marcy wu's major flaw could never be resolved in amphibia, is because amphibia is a personification of marcy wu's major flaw. sure, she had good moments, and things about it she will always cherish and remember (and less good things that she’ll always remember), but marcy wu could not start getting better, could not start healing, until after she left amphibia. going through that portal meant many things, for all of them, but for marcy, I think it represented her final act of truly letting go. of letting go of her escapism, and her tendency to run away. of letting go of the old version of her, who came to amphibia with the intent of being with anne and sasha forever. going through that portal also symbolizes the end of that version of their friendship, the version that marcy kept chasing after. and I think that’s one of the many reasons why the only way to close off marcy’s journey, at least from our point, is by having her move. the move, and how marcy dealt with it, was what started this entire, crazy journey. and by choosing to have marcy move at the end of the series, even after everything that happened, is a brilliant move from the show’s writers. because it shows that marcy truly did learn from her time in amphibia. she HAS accepted and is taking the steps to overcome her major flaw, and I think more than anything, that is proof of the growth that marcy is capable of. marcy acknowledges that anne and sasha changed, yes, but through her actions and words, she also acknowledges that she changed as well. going through the portal, going back to earth, facing everything is a symbol of marcy's growth. because the marcy we were introduced to would have never done that.

--

going to amphibia changed all three of them. and even though we only get to see anne and sasha’s growth, marcy’s growth is SO poignant as well. I think it was for the best to leave marcy’s arc unfinished, because it shows that she still has a lot to learn and a LOT of healing to undergo. marcy’s final arc in the show has drawn to a close. but her character has not. and the amount of opportunities, possibilities, lessons, friendships, love, and more, are limitless. I also think it's poignant that we're left with a sort of open ended interpretation as to what happened to marcy after she moved. as for her friendship with the girls, I have many thoughts on that, but that’s also a discussion for another time. I think I’ll close it off by saying that moving was good for marcy in a different way as well: it allowed the calamity trio to truly come into their own. their reconciliation with marcy in all in was proof that they want to give their friendship another try, and that they are better off in each other’s lives. but showing that they drifted apart, came back together, and redefined their friendship on their own terms is beautiful. I think even without amphibia, they eventually would have to come apart. not forever of course, but long enough to carve out their own paths and figure out what they want to do with their lives. I know the fandom loves the idea of them being codependent messes together (it’s also a guilty pleasure for me lol) but I LOVE the fact that in canon, they allowed their childhood friendship to morph into something new, something better. in the wise words of anne boonchuy, change can be difficult, but it’s how we grow. but of the things you let go, you’d be surprised what makes its way back to you.

not to get all sappy, but out of all of them, I think I’m the proudest of marcy. and I relate to her a lot! so writing this was extra personal :,)