Luz only wanted to be understood.

She was never understood in the Human Realm. She was always too weird (read: neurodivergent) to fit in. She escaped into fantasy and fandom and imagining magical worlds where she belonged.

And she found one. And weirdos stick together. And it had to be perfect there.

But it wasn’t. She was still an outcast. She still couldn’t do magic like anyone else. And her attempts to be a witch only got people hurt. Eda was captured, the portal destroyed, Belos found the Collector and her friends ended up stuck away from their home. And so she thought that the only way to help them was to isolate herself, to torture herself, because her attempts for happiness only hurt others, so she had to be miserable and alone.

But she doesn’t. Because she never wanted people to get hurt. Because Belos would’ve used someone else anyway. Because the bonds she made were real and their lives were so much better because they had Luz the Human.

But she doesn’t realize it, and she feels so alone, and she feels like no one understands her.

The person that she’s closest to is her worst enemy. Another lost human trying to get home. Another human who hurt everyone trying to get home. Another human who will never be understood.

And here’s her mom, who clearly hates the Boiling Isles. She’s pretending she doesn’t because Luz dragged her here, it’s Luz’s fault that she’s here. It’s Luz’s fault that her wonderful mom was stuck with a hopeless daughter.

And then she realizes that Camila is just like her. She’s nerdy, she was bullied, she’s just as weird (READ: NEURODIVERGENT) as Luz. And she understands Luz, because she’s gone through everything that she has. And her friends understand her, because they’ve gone through everything that she has. The Half-A-Witch and the Family Strife and the Feeling Used and the Used by Belos and all those who are separated from their home. Luz is understood because she belongs.

And then she gets a sick-ass snakeshifter.

Tine’s character analysis

After ep 7 I definitely came to conclusion that TINE HAS pretty LOW SELF-ESTEEM. That, in turn, helped me comprehend WHY HE WAS SOOOO DENSE when it came to Sarawat’s advances. And his character literally blossomed in my books. So here’s my points on that:

1. ‘I’M NOT WORTH YOUR TIME’

He said it twice in only seven episodes. When a person says and even repeats such things, you just know it’s not a coincidence, but a mindset. He said it to both - the guy he has absolutely no affection for (Green) and to the one he kinda has (Wat). You may argue that he said it to Green just to be kind, but did he really have to use this words each time. Physiologically it screams that deep down he thinks he’s not worth much. It brings us to point two.

2. PLACES OTHERS ABOVE HIMSELF it’s all well and good until it comes to “what he wants matters less than what people around him want”

If you look closely, when he’s not messing around, he’s one caring guy. We don’t get to see it that often due to the fact that story mostly revolves around romance, but it is there in little things.

The thing he did on a Scrub consent was a big example. He is a big fan, but still chooses to sit one out to let the band he likes rest. This trait is inherently a very good thing unless it spills into point 3.

3. HE CAN’T SAY “NO”. Like at all.

He halfheartedly rejected Green. He goes out of his way to get rid of him, but almost never face to face in a serious conversation. And kinda keeps hanging out with him, thus leading him on. I’m not saying hanging out with Green is bad, but he could have done it after completely sorting things out. Green is pushy, over the top sometimes, no one denies it, but if Tine was more assertive he would have back off.

He kept literally enduring Mil’s touches and that selfie. Tho he clearly didn’t want to take a picture or let Mil pat his head, but Tine never said so - just kinda went along with it.

Even small things, like when Wat’s friends asked him to celebrate after the game, he clearly didn’t wanna go much, ‘cause he was coming in terms with Wat’s kiss. Still he didn’t say ‘no’. He just never does. The only time I remember him saying ‘no’ is to Wat’s asking to help him clean the room...and in the end he still went to do it.

Such behavior goes back to point 2. It’s easier for him to endure something than hurt somebody’s feelings.

4. HIS CONFIDENCE IS ‘ALL TALK - NO ACTION’ (as is his Chic persona). There are dozens of examples of that. Lets grab the obvious and our (and Wat’s) favorite - Tine’s boobs.

He offered to let Wat touch them several times, but backs off really really fast. When it come to flirting he blushes almost on each Wat’s line. Wat’s one-liners are embarrassing as fuck, I won’t deny it, but it’s besides the point. If Tine claims to be such a player, it wouldn’t made him uncomfortable one bit.

5. NONE OF HIS PREVIOUS CRUSHES HAD ANY MAJOR FEELINGS FOR HIM

As far as we saw, from the little pieces we’ve got, Tine was always trying harder than the other party. Maybe that made him lose a bit of hope and believe he’s not worth anything genuine.

To one of his girlfriends he says “Whatever I did, I apologize”...yes, one more little dot: he apologizes first not even knowing what the fault was. So when Wat was coming to him with his whole package of feels, Tine simply couldn’t believe it. And thought Wat’s was simple making fun of him.

HE SIMPLY CAN NOT THINK THAT HE's WORTH THE WHOLE LOT that SARAWAT'S GIVING HIM. He wasn’t really dense - simply didn’t believe in it. He always thinks Wat’s serious about someone else and with him he’s just fucking around. Just like in scene when he saw Wat patting Earn’s head and sharing earbuds - it’s just one more reason for him not to think they had anything special as Wat’s just playing around. And everything was fake like the rest of his previous experiences.

6. Deep down TINE BELIEVES WAT’S BETTER THAN HIM

He looks so playful all the time, but when the serious talk starts you can almost feel his insecurity. In the “break up scene” he say to Wat what he thinks is the best option.

“Find perfect girl like yourself - stop wasting time on me - and yes, I really want that - i want you to be happy - as you probably won’t be happy with me”. Even as he sees that it hurts Wat, he’s not violating “not hurting feelings” point, ‘because he genuinely believes it’s for the best.

And when he hears Wat at last say that he likes him for real and liked him for a long time - look at his face...he's so shocked. And you can somehow see that he's grateful for such affection, not just ‘cause Wat’s is that super alpha guy, but because Wat feels so deeply for him. Especially in the scene with patting of the head - he inhales air in far away shot.   

All I can say that after seeing this patterns - I appreciate his character a lot more. It just makes sense to me. I kinda started understanding where his actions are coming from. His behavior is very consistent, when you view it from this angle. I don't know if that was intentional, but that's how i see it now. The character with insecurities is always an interesting one.

Such a long ramble, damn. I just had a lot of feels after discovering the perspective of Tine's character. The catalyst for that was "break up" scene and behavior at the concert. Then all previous scenes just clicked and came together. Let me say, this whole article is just my subjective opinion, I completely understand if u disagree, pretty much wanted to share my thoughts on the point, that’s all.

ML Fic Recs for Alya Stans

can you keep a secret by euphorickiri:

Summary:

once alya had her mind set on something, it was hard for her to let it go. she often got herself into trouble because of this, but, in her words, this was the "life of a journalist". but when she uncovers a secret that seems too impossible to believe, alya opens up a whole new world of danger.

"with a mask and a costume, don’t you think adrien looks a little bit like chat noir?”

she comes to realize some secrets should stay buried.

Oh man, this one is underappreciated! (Also don’t worry about the summary and title being completely lower case, the fic has proper punctuation.)

This is one of the rare occasions where Alya has a ton of issues of her own going on, with just having recovered from being akumatized as Lady Wifi and REMEMBERING the whole thing (that’s plot-relevant), being harassed at school because this is still early in the series and people haven’t gotten the concept that anyone can be akumatized and it isn’t the victim’s fault, on top of some pretty severe issues at home with her parents using her as a go-between when fighting, being put in charge of her younger siblings’ care a lot, and being insulted and harangued by her parents whenever Alya can’t live up to their insane expectations and generally not considering how she feels about anything at all. Plus she keeps having some very, VERY disturbing dreams about Lady Wifi that feel way too real...

It’s rare to see a fic focusing squarely on Alya’s problems and emotions - which, granted, is likely because canonically we haven’t seen evidence that there’s a ton of strife in her life. But it’s very refreshing and interesting to see here, especially with Adrien constantly checking up on her, commiserating with her, helping her as best he can, knowing a lot of the kind of thing she’s going through because he’s experienced it himself. Just everyone focusing on Alya, on understanding what’s going on with her and trying to help (though there’s not always a ton that can be done).

I highly recommend it for any Alya or Adrien stan.

Me, My Best Friend, And Her Cat by @ladyofthenoodle:

Summary:

Ladybugs aren't known for being particularly sneaky. Good thing this Ladybug has a fox in her corner, watching her back.

(And giving Ladybug's love life a nudge along the way. Maybe more than a nudge. In Alya's defense, Ladybug can use all the help she could get.)

It’s always great to see Alya and Marinette being friends and Alya getting to be awesome. She makes for a great Secret Secret Keeper!

you’re the volcano (i’m the raptor) by SnappleSnapSnake

Summary:

“But what if everyone thinks that she’s meant for this, but she’s really not? Because, you know, it’s like crazy magic jewelry- and maybe she’s wondering why such a clumsy idiot would even bother to try and save the world.”

And suddenly, everything clicked.

She grabbed her new friend by the shoulders, effectively cutting off her rambling. “Oh my god, you’re Ladybug.”

Marinette’s voice went high, and she squealed out, “What? No! Not that! I am! Not that! Definitely, totally not that!”

Alya just grinned, eyes sparkling and awed.

(yeah, they were definitely going to be best friends for life)

A oneshot featuring a series of short vignettes after various season 1 episodes, with how things change since Alya’s aware that Marinette is Ladybug the whole time. Features a lot of friendly teasing and banter!

Outfoxed by @captorations:

Summary:

Lila Rossi is not a Miraculous wielder. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t have power. Alya was under her spell, along with so many others, until the day Lila unknowingly overstepped herself. Freed at last, the true Fox recognizes magic when she sees it, even if it doesn’t come from a source she understands. She is none too happy about this pretender abusing her natural gifts to make fools of Alya and those she loves.

Alya Césaire might need an enchanted necklace and the aid of a tiny deity to cast illusions, but she swore to use her borrowed abilities for the greater good long ago. There is none better suited to facilitate the liar’s downfall.

And maybe she’ll help her best friend sort out her increasingly complex love life along the way.

I wrote an analysis on this fic, so I’m guessing a lot of my followers are already aware of it. I’m REALLY not a big fan of Lila takedown fics at this point, but this is an exception - largely because of how much it focuses on Alya and what a bi disaster she is. Alya, Adrien, the class, they’re all treated well, and it’s just really satisfying to get to see Alya take down Lila considering how Alya’s often treated in those kinds of fics, as well as having Marinette so highly value Alya. Also has a really nice sequel where the rest of the class gets to have fun and kick butt!

Final Restoration by InkyCoffee

Summary:

Six months ago, Alya and Marinette had a terrible fight after Marinette flaked out on an important event. This afternoon, Alya filmed Hawkmoth's defeat. Friendship fic, Alya's POV.

I really like fics where Alya and Marinette can have a fight without either of them really being in the wrong, with it mostly coming down to having incomplete information - in Alya’s case, with not knowing that Marinette’s Ladybug. This is just a really nice resolution to such a fight, with both parties reconciling once the full truth comes out.

Damsel In (Need Of) Destress by @angelofthequeers

Summary:

Ladybug and Ryuuko have a little competition going on. The aim? To rescue Alya during akuma attacks. And naturally, Alya is Done with her girlfriends' shenanigans, while Chat Noir is just oblivious to the three-way tension.

This one’s just cute and funny! Also it’s always great to see Alya being so highly valued and loved.

What's your ranking for the Bronze Saints?

The very short answer is:

1. Shun

2. Ikki

3. Shiryu

4. Hyoga

5. Seiya

6. All the other ones (aka Jabu, Nachi, Ichi, Ban, Geki, and June).

The long answer is under the cut ‘cause I keep rambling about stuff. Keep in mind: this is a very long post. 

1. Andromeda Shun

(Since I already answered for him, I’ll copy-paste the answer here, so I won’t force you to click on a link to a different post if you haven’t seen that post yet. Same image and everything)

Shun is, in my opinion, the strongest of them all. Yes, even stronger than Ikki.  I see countless people saying that Shun is weak and/or useless just because he doesn’t want to fight or because he calls Ikki for help, and I have one thing to say about that: kindness does not equal weakness. Shun is not weak, he refuses to fight unless he has to.  The most blatant example I can give you of his strength is the fight against Aphrodite, the only battle Shun actively wanted to fight. You can see how dangerous he can be, when he’s willing to put aside his non-belligerent attitude. Shun is merciful, he doesn’t want to resolve everything with violence. This doesn’t mean he’s not one of the deadliest fighters out there, if not the deadliest, given his ability.

Let’s NOT forget Shun was able to hold his ground against Saga, who is said to be one of the most powerful Saints of his generation. He went as far as striking Saga in the Pope’s chamber, he managed to reach him with not that much effort. This is something people often gloss over, but it’s one of the greatest examples out there of Shun’s incredible power.  To fight him, Seiya needed all the help he could get from his companions. Shun, instead, fought by himself, didn’t die or get lost in the Another Dimension, and was able to get his chains near Saga without him being unable to stop the boy.

Most importantly, Shun is depicted as “weak” only in works not written by Kurumada. Non-canon episodes are the only ones in which Shun is not capable of keeping up with the other Saints. This is obviously proof of him being weakened by outside people, and not of him being weak by default.

Another point in his favor it’s the Seventh Sense: he awakened it during the Sanctuary batte, right? Well, wrong. According to his teacher, Shun reached the Seventh Sense way before that. Or at least, the potential of the Seventh Sense.  Shun cannot be considered weak, and shouldn’t be considered weak, because he’s definitely not. Now, as for why I think he’s more powerful than Ikki, to me it’s obvious that he’s stronger than him. Maybe not physically, in fact I don’t think there’s anyone in the Bronzes that physically stronger than Ikki (no, not even Shiryu), but as far as his cosmo goes…  Ikki has the advantage of not dying, Phoenix and whatnot, but Shun has a more powerful cosmo. You can easily see this by taking into consideration the Nebula Storm, a technique so powerful that, if not controlled, reaches a point when it’s impossible to be stopped. This is incredibly destructive, extremely lethal, and Shun uses it without his Cloth.  This is something similar to what Shiryu does, because they both can access their full cosmo without wearing a Cloth, but Shun has a clear advantage: he doesn’t have a weak spot. Where Shiryu could be easily killed if hit in the right place, Shun doesn’t have that weakness. Which, at least in my opinion, makes him better than Shiryu.

The last example I want to give you is the immense plot twist of him being Hades’ host.  Not necessarily the fact that he can withstand the soul of a god binding with his own, but the fact that he was able to get the upper hand against Hades.  If Shun was really as weak as a lot of people want to believe, than explain to me how in the everloving Hell did Shun managed to take back control over his body, keep a hold of Hades to give his brother an opportunity, and accept that he needed to die in order to get rid of the deity.  He didn’t last long, sure, but he was fighting Hades.  Not only that, but not long after being freed from Hades, Shun took back his Cloth, donned it, and fought again like he wasn’t just possessed by a deity. He managed to burn his cosmo enough to “unlock” the Divine Cloth despite having endured Hades’ control over his body and soul. To this day, I’m still annoyed at how easily Hypnos defeated him, taking into account what happened just a few moment before.

This might not be enough to convince other people of Shun’s true potential, but it’s enough for me to believe he’s absolutely the strongest Bronze Saint, and maybe even one of the strongest Saints in general.  Don’t forget that this young man right here can wear the Virgo Cloth. He is the next Virgo Saint, and that’s a given for me. And you know how unbelievably powerful a Saint with that constellation normally is.

 2. Phoenix Ikki

Well, he is canonically placed above most Silver Saints in terms of strength. There’s no denying Ikki is one of the most powerful Saints out there, he’s basically unstoppable. Not only that, he had one huge advantage on his side, his inability to actually die.  Ikki was already strong as a kid, as the story reminds us more than once, physically being the strongest among the orphans, and we all know how he dethroned Jango and took control of Dead Queen Island with almost no effort.  Most notably, he has a unique cosmo; as Kanon stated, when he faced him, it’s full of hatred (which is Guilty’s fault), something weird for a Saint of Athena. This hatred was shown to aid him at first, so much that he used to unleash his cosmo without any second though and with unending rage, so i feel like it’s worth telling.  In his favor there’s also the fact he has a pure warrior attitude. Ikki fights and that’s it, no second guesses, no hesitation. The only time he hesitated was against Hades, because he didn’t want to kill his brother. You can imagine what a behavior like that will bring to a battlefield without me telling you. 

Though, I don’t consider him to be the strongest. In terms of raw power he is terrifying, no questions asked, but he doesn’t reach that level of pure cosmo power that’s able to completely annihilate everything and anything like Shun.  He’s fearsome, of course, and he knows how powerful he is (countless times this self-awareness could be observed). I, on the other hand, consider him to physically be the strongest of them all. Without his cosmo, Ikki would still be able to kick everyone’s ass, I don’t doubt it even for a second.  Even though Shun is the strongest overall, Ikki’s physical strength is unprecedented for a Bronze Saint. No one can tell me otherwise. He blasted too many people into oblivion for me to think otherwise. 

What makes him even more fearsome is the fact that he becomes stronger each time he dies (like a Phoenix, after all), and the fact that he is extremely intelligent. Ikki is capable of using his enemy’s weakness against them with no effort.  On top of everything, his Illusion Demon Fist can easily break his opponent’s mind and gift him a victory without Ikki even moving an inch. It doesn’t work on everyone, of course, but it can be lethal in way more ways than one can imagine. He has a cosmo that’s powerful enough, once he awakened the Seventh Sense, to defeat Shaka in combat. Hell, Shaka was scared of him at that point. He legitimately broke Shaka’s technique. He told him “now you don’t have your senses anymore” and Ikki just went “jokes on you, I don’t care”. 

But! Ikki has his weak points. No one is perfect after all. Not even Shun, and he is at the top of this list.  His Illusion Demon Fist can be used against him. We saw this particular case in action. When this happens, not even Ikki himself can completely break the illusion before falling prey to it. And, as much as his regenerative ability is useful, I can see why it could be a problem. This is more of my analysis for it, but I don’t think dying and coming back to life again and again doesn’t do a number on Ikki’s mental health. 

While Ikki is perfectly capable of dealing both physical damage and psychic damage, I don’t think he should be elevated to strongest Bronze Saint ever. Unlike his brother, whose cosmo can expand infinitely (even if at the cost of his life), Ikki has his limits. 

 3. Dragon Shiryu

The main reason I don’t see him and Hyoga as equals (I used to, not anymore) it’s the fact that I realized Shiryu can make you explode into space with ease. And the fact that, physically, he’s stronger than Hyoga. 

Let’s be objective here. Shiryu is one of the very few Saints that are capable to unleash their full potential without wearing a Cloth. This is a huge advantage he has in battle because, if an enemy tries to strip his armor off, Shiryu can still fight. In fact, he not only can still fight, but he can fight with even more power on his side. He is more vulnerable, but without his Cloth Shiryu remains absolutely lethal and should not be underestimated. This, paired with his intelligence and fast thinking skills, makes an excellent fighter in almost any situation.

Let’s also not forget how he was able to learn Dohko’s technique, the Rozan Hyaku Ryū Ha, while being blind. He was showed that technique only once, and he couldn’t even witness it, but he was able to learn it and use it perfectly.

He has an incredible determination and this, alongside his cosmo and physical strength, helps him fight without giving up. Shiryu managed to defeat a Silver Saint that was basically impossible to defeat by enduring the psychological weight of blinding himself, more that the physical pain associated with such an act. Don’t forget this. He defeated a Silver Saint while being blind and in horrific pain. He did the same against Krishna. In this case, we’re talking about a Marina General. A warrior as strong as a Gold Saint. Shiryu not only managed to master Excalibur while fighting against him, but got rid of Krishna while enduring the pain of being blinded – again – by a technique that was definitely more painful than it looked.

And can we talk about Deathmask? Because Shiryu was powerful enough to make a Gold Cloth finally take the decision of yeeting away from Deathmask’s unworthy body. His anger terrified a Gold Saint, and he awakened his Seventh Sense so hard that he regained his vision. He was helped with that, yeah, but can we recognize how powerful Shiryu was during that particular scene? To me, that thing was more impressive than what he did against Shura. It was raw power fueled by anger, a power he could unleash without effort. A power he can survive, opposite to the Rozan Kō Ryū Ha.

Obviously, being able to just shoot yourself in space while bringing someone else with you is equally impressive, but Shiryu has enough raw power in him cosmo to destroy a Gold Saint without having to sacrifice himself. If this is not a proof of his power, I don’t know what would be.

The honorable mention of him being able to don the Libra Gold Cloth at a very early stage has to be said.

He has, however, a significant weakness. A weak point, really. Even though he’s able to fight in any condition, with and without his Cloth, Shiryu has an unfortunate weakness that can be lethal to him with little to no effort. Obviously, I’m talking about his literal weak point, the claw of the dragon. His heart. A simple blow there could kill him almost instantly. Just a punch, really, and he kicks the bucket. Unless, of course, he has the extreme luck of being punched there by someone who’s not his enemy and can bring him back to life with a similar hit. Which, for extremely obvious reasons, is not likely to happen during a real battle. His Cloth provides him enough protection to fight without worrying about it, but as we know Shiryu mostly fights while not wearing it. And, even if he’s careful in hiding his weak point, it’s not that difficult to hit him there at any point, all the enemy needs is a minor distraction.

 4. Cygnus Hyoga

Here we have a man that, canonically speaking, surpassed his own master. A Gold Saint, to be precise. Is a matter of fact that Hyoga is powerful, this is not something you can glide on. This man mastered the absolute zero by using a technique he never used before, while being presumably as weak as he could be and in agonizing pain, seeing the fight he just had.

Impressive, to say the least.

What makes me put Hyoga after Shiryu, besides what I already told you above, is the same weakness Camus always brings up when confronting him. The same weakness Isaac brought up when confronting him. Something that makes Hyoga reckless and way too emotional during a fight. Despite this being a positive trait, because caring about family and loved ones is not something negative, it’s still a problem that presented itself in Hyoga’s case. Being too emotional is dangerous, and we saw this danger in action when Hyoga ended up being frozen by Camus because he couldn’t fight with a lucid state of mind. Opposite to Shiryu, who used his emotions to actually be more efficient, Hyoga couldn’t control them and ultimately lost.

This particular thing, even if not directly linked to his cosmo or to his physical strength, is a variable that should not be ignored.

 Of course, Hyoga became more and more powerful, but we only got to see his true power when he finally left behind all his emotions. Well, the ones that were limiting him, at least. 

And this gave us the Saint that, with ease, reached the level of his master and then surpassed it.

Hyoga is able to use his cosmo with efficiency, and can withstand the psychological weight of having to fight his loved ones over and over. This, as awful as it sounds, is useful in battle and gave him an incredible victory over Isaac. And let’s not forget, he could wear the Aquarius Gold Cloth and endure its power. Much like Shiryu and Seiya, Hyoga had no problem wearing that and using it to fight. His cosmo was powerful enough for him to be comfortable with it.

He also had enough power to face a Judge without too many repercussions. Sure, he got beaten up, but how many Bronze Saints can say to have fought a Judge of the Underworld, have slowed him down, and have survived to tell the tale?

At the end of the day, Hyoga got rid of most of his weakness. He still cares about his loved ones, but it’s not as much of a hindrance as it was before. But, and this is important, he still fails sometimes because of it. The best example is him falling for Kaysa’s trick, despite Hyoga fully knowing Camus was dead. His loving personality can get in the way, and it’s something more dangerous than having a physical weak point, because the mind can be manipulated easily in this world. Just look at how difficult was for him, in one of the movies, when he had to confront the illusion of his mother. He succeeded, but still almost failed.

Hyoga is powerful, but had an easily influenceable mind.

  5. Pegasus Seiya

(Since I already answered for him, I’ll copy-paste the answer here, so I won’t force you to click on a link to a different post if you haven’t seen that post yet. Same image and everything)

Seiya is… not as powerful as his protagonist status wants us to believe. I’m not doubting his abilities, because he is a Saint after all and he is skilled, but he’s by far the weakest as far as cosmo and physical strength go.  Most of his exploits are made because of his “immense determination” and “good heart”. It’s almost never a believable (believable in Saint Seiya) reason that leads him to victory.  He’s not necessarily weak, because he’s not, but he’s the least powerful of all the main Bronze Saints. Obviously he’s better than the secondary ones, because plot and everything, but he’s not on the same level as his companions.  Most of his victories were attained because he had help, either from Athena or from his fellow Bronzes.  Like I said before, Seiya couldn’t face Saga on his own. He needed the help of four other Saints in order to be on his level. I will be fair, and say that he was able to endure a lot on his own, but what he by himself still wasn’t enough to win.  

He had his fair share of deserved victories, of course, but some of those were so heavily helped by other people’s intervention it doesn’t even feel like Seiya actually did something on his own.  I’m not counting in this the fights he won fair and square, like the one against Aldebaran (sure, he had his annoying moment of “let’s daydream”, but he did win by himself), or the one against Thor. Hell, I’m perfectly okay with him winning against Thanatos.  But there’s countless other moments in which he needed someone’s help or something to his advantage.  For example, the first fight against Shiryu: Seiya won because he was able to spot and hit Shiryu’s weak spot, but he was being devastated before that. Even after tricking Shiryu in shattering his own shield (brilliant move, Marin taught him well), Seiya didn’t have the upper hand.  Against Ikki, Seiya needed the help from all his companions to actually defeat him.  When he reached the stairs leading to the Pope’s chamber, Seiya got easily overwhelmed by Aphrodite’s roses, while Marin (who gave him her mask) didn’t suffer as much from that poison. Against Saga, Seiya was able to use his protagonist bullshit to win because “a Saint fight with his heart!”, but when being faced with the real fight he needed some help. I’m not saying Seiya didn’t have the potential to resist Saga’s technique, like Ikki did when facing Shaka, but it was used in such a way it didn’t look like something coming from his own strength. 

This happens way more in the series, from classic to Hades, and in the movies as well. Seiya is celebrated as this powerful Saint capable of defeating even the gods, but in reality he mostly relied on someone else’s help to achieve victory. 

Physically, it’s painfully obvious that he’s not strong. He is as strong as a normal Saint would be, but not more than the average warrior. He easily prevails only on opponents that are visibly weaker than him, like Cassios (who didn’t have the slightest trace of cosmo), and has a hard time against opponents that are on his level.  It also took a long time for him to understand how to fight Aiolia, but he only managed a couple good hits before being overwhelmed again. He has it even worse in the CGI movie, where Aiolia literally brushes off his attacks like they’re nothing. 

Some might argue that his cosmo his not that weak, because he’s able to wear not only a Gold Cloth, but a Divine Cloth as well. And I say to you: I’m not saying he’s that weak. What I’m saying is: Seiya has potential, but not as much as we’re led to believe.  Seiya heavily relies on the Gold Cloth when he wears it, instead of relying more on his own cosmo. He does the same with the Divine Cloth. 

Compared to his companions, Seiya is relatively weak. Where Hyoga managed to become more powerful than his own teacher (a Gold Saint) and learned both of his techniques, Seiya relied on the Cloth itself to help him with his cosmo. Where Shiryu is able to fight effortlessly without wearing his Cloth, Seiya seems to be unable to do anything if he’s not wearing it. Where Ikki seems to have mastered his cosmo, Seiya still doesn’t know how to fully use it.

He always needs protection, he needs Athena to use her cosmo for him or to reassure him, he always ends up being the only one last standing because other people put their lives on the line for him.  The Hades arc is what described him best: a kid that doesn’t know how to face people bigger than him. Even the fight against Valentine wasn’t his own victory, because Athena helped him from afar. It’s so easy to defeat him, like we saw when Rhadamanthys effortlessly got rid of Seiya. Which, in retrospect, completely erased what Seiya managed to do when fighting him for the first time. 

I’m aware I’m known for my… well, not hate but strong dislike for Seiya. I won’t blame you if you think I put him so low because I’m biased.  But this is my opinion for that, and I’m keeping it. 

Shades-

This will be probably one shortest of my ramblings about garvez moments, and maybe a lot of people will think that it’s not really relevant... but it still one of my favorite. Like I said in another post, shades. Little shades are more relevant than big ones, than a scene of them one minute longer, if you think about the narrative/filmographic constrution. They (CM writers, of course) need to show us this reaction? Is this reaction essential to the development of the plot? These are few questions that you have to consider.

Season 12. Episode 12. “A Good Husband”.

The scene starts with Luke and Walker talk about jazz music. This has a sense, because we will see the new guy and the ex new guy become friends, slowly.

Then we see Penelope walking. We also hear the clicking of her heels.

Luke turns to her like he felt, he sensed her presence. Walker even looks at him with a sort of awareness.

Walker looks at her too, after a second. Here you can see Luke smiling. He always smiles when is with her, when he sees her.

But, uh-oh, her expression is weird.

Penelope looks at him for a millisecond.

Walker says “This can’t be good”. Gradually, even Luke understands.

They look at each other again. She replies “It’s not good. It’s not even a teeny tiny bit good”.

JJ’ reaction.

Luke’ reaction. And also Walker’s. Both of them follow her with their gazes, but Luke... the way he moves his body has something different. His expression is different. So sad, with slightly open mouth. 

He smiled when he saw her, but after have figured out that she wasn’t the usual Garcia, then his smile is dead, his mood is changed, to adapt to hers.

He stares at her with desperation, because he knows he can’t do anything to change things. For me, here we can find a principle of what we will see in the episode 17 of this Season, where Luke will try to comfort her.

Last question: it’s a normal, ordinary reaction for a simply colleague (don’t forget that Luke will present Penelope to Lisa as his co-worker, even if at that point they can be regarded as friends)? For someone you have only know for few months, someone who treats you in a weird way, who tries to keep you at distance?

You can easy imagine my opinion about it. ^^

Analysis of garvez scenes

Top 5 hitsuhina moments??

Top 5/Top 10 lists

Oh boy! This was really hard to rank, and me being me, I wanted to ramble a little on why I chose them, so here it goes:

Chapter 392 - The ultimate heartbreak: This was the moment that made Hitsuhina my OTP. The emotions conveyed, the implications that came from this moment…reading this chapter for the first time was unlike anything I’d ever experience in my life, and I have yet to have an experience like it since. I won’t rave about it here, but if you’re interested you can read a more detailed analysis here.

Chapter 659 - The look: It was the only Hitsuhina moment in the entire last arc, but for me, it was enough. And it was only one look at a single word. When I first read this chapter it didn’t click that Toshiro was returning Momo’s gaze. I thought he was focusing on Gerard’s next attack, but even then I thought it was a very soft look. After joining Tumblr and reading a few posts, his gaze suddenly made sense. Both fo their looks said so much, as did the very action of Toshiro coming to that particular battle out of all the others that were going on at the same time. I will be elaborating on this moment in a post very soon (to the anon who sent me that ask about this scene, I’m sorry I haven’t gotten aroud to answering it yet).

Chapter 224 - The apology: This moment told me a lot about these two. Momo was still recovering, still coming to grips with what had happened, and yet she felt she needed to apologise to Toshiro as soon as possible. I have no doubt she was scared of how he would react or if he would even accept her apology, but her desire to apologise and make things right out-weighed all of that. It showed me just how strong the bond was still on her end. And of course, this is also the first time we have seen Toshiro smile. First it was a small smile of relief and encouragment, then it was a bigger one, one of reassurance. It came as a surprise to both Momo and I’m sure some of the readers. It showed that Toshiro can be himself around Momo, able to tease and smile without restraint. For a moment, the two of them weren’t Shinigami of different ranks; they were themselves, a pair of longtime friends with a deep bond.

Chapter 423 - Training in the caves: when I was first reading through BLEACH, I needed this moment like I needed air. We hadn’t seen or heard from either Momo or Toshiro up until now, and to read and see that Toshiro was secluded away, training to become strong enough to protect Momo, I couldn’t stop crying. I was overjoyed and relieved, and hopeful that Momo and Toshiro would reconcile and reconnect. The second half of this post has my more detailed thoughts on this moment.

Episode 326 - The Reigai Momos: The entire fight and it’s conclusion always gets me. It may have been an anime only event, but it felt like a little bit of closure after the events of the Fake Karakura Town arc. We got see Toshiro in a vulnerable position, where he couldn’t bare to hurt anything made in Momo’s image. We also got his heartfelt vow to never hurt her again, and the reigai Momo’s showing that if the real Momo were aware of Toshiro true feeling she may [potentially] reciprocate his feelings, or at least appreciate them.  I wrote more on it here.

Honourable mentions: every other Hitsuhina moment in both the anime and manga that wasn’t mentioned above.

Thanks for sending this in!

Showsie Submission

Hey Anna! Just thought I'd submit on recent events. Although I have not been vocal lately, I have still been paying attention to the land of shamwow. So...Ben goes to a concert in NYC? We get some pics of him solo, and a delightful lack of fuckery to accompany them. We also get some nice, high quality pics of IW filming...accompanied by some Fail articles that focus on his work, sans any fetch attempts from she who shall remain fetchless. I have to say, I find these recent events encouraging...not from any shamwow point of view...but from a good PR point of view. I'm with Ballsy...cookies where they are deserved, really. Granted...I've become so inured to the previous poor efforts of team BC in this respect that the bar of my expectations in this matter has been set quite low as a result...but kudos are given for this week's efforts regardless. I think I'm finally seeing the result of some sensible and grown-up PR strategy here, and I really hope it continues. I also wanted to address JT Anon's comments on the nan factor as pertains to PR strategy. I do think that you find groups like the nans in any fandom...they just happen to be more vehement and vocal in this one. I do believe that pandering to such a group is not a particularly good idea when it comes to a risk/benefit analysis, and that no effective or capable PR would do so, if they could possibly avoid it. But, I don't think that a capable PR is what we have here, given previous form. I think they use the nans for clicks, but without any thought as to the consequences. I've also seen people mentioning the Beatlemania type promo that was used in that Hollywood Reporter article in 2014. In my opinion...that was poor form. I'm sure the nans saw it as validation for their behaviour, but I just saw it as mocking, disrespectful and not good at all. Which brings me to my main point...I've often said that Ben's team have failed to understand his fandom. Let me clarify this point for you now (just in case the intern that is tasked with reading these blogs is paying attention). If I were in charge of Ben's image from the start...I would have aggressively marketed him as the 'thinking women's crumpet' from the start. Because I think my job as PR would have been to determine what demographic my client was most likely to appeal to, and to build a business plan in that direction. I think they had made some good steps in that direction...up until mid 2014...and then the wheels came off that particular train, for whatever reason (which I'm sure we'll never know the truth of), and we ended up with the mish-mash of contradictory messages we have now. Team BC have failed to appreciate the demographic they should have been aiming for. Ben was never going to be the classical Hollywood heartthrob material. He doesn't have the right look for that. Don't get me wrong...I still think he is pretty, in a striking and unusual way, but he's not got the archetypal good looks for such a thing. Instead of the Internet's Boyfriend with a bunch of squealing fans designed to appeal to the barely post-pubescent, they should have been aiming for slightly more mature woman as their target audience for this man. This is the audience I think a man like Ben would appeal to. Someone who isn't about the hype, and is looking for substance over style. And it would have had the added bonus of being directly aimed at where the money is. Because people forget...free thinking and more mature women are more likely to be professionals, established in their careers, with a considerable amount of disposable income to spend on movie tickets and the like. And such women don't require hearing awkward shoehorning and stuttering (and, quite frankly, unconvincing) affirmations about a personal life that should have been kept private, to spend money on their fave. They would have been more impressed by someone showing enough respect for their wife and children to not put it up for sale to the highest bidder in an attempt at generating cheap publicity. This is a vast and untapped market that they have failed to capitalise on, had they recognised it earlier. But...I do feel they have finally cottoned on to this, because we are now seeing a strategy from Team BC that accommodates this view of celebrity. Let's hope they continue their current good form and that they won't disappoint us in the future. Fingers crossed! Hugs to you, Anna

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ben is definitely standing his ground, I’ll give him that.  And yes, I’m quite optimistic about where this seems to be going.  Cookies for PR though?  I’m withholding those until after Wimbledon (and I think everyone reading this blog knows the reasons why)

As far as Ben’s image is concerned, that’s something I’ve found fascinating since before I even became a fan of his.

I still remember reading through Empire and seeing he’d gotten their Sexiest Man Alive title for 2013 which, I have to be honest, baffled me at the time (but in my defence I hadn’t watched a single episode of Sherlock yet).  

I remember reading article upon article about him back then, all of them talking about legions of Cumberbitches, about him being the thinking woman’s crumpet and definitely seeing the potential for him to make it big in the industry.

When I finally watched Sherlock and couldn’t shut up about this magnificent actor everyone around me had to see in action, one of my colleagues even had a mug made for me that read “Proud Cumberbitch” with a screenshot of Sherlock in the sheet at Buckingham Palace, which I thought was hilarious and kept using at the office (because apparently I have no shame).

So yeah, as long as Ben was being adorable on red carpets, verbose and funny in interviews and wasn’t playing the same game everyone in Hollywood seems to be playing, I had no problem with the Cumberbitch title.  It was just a silly thing that I could find humour in.

Fast forward to the fall of 2014: There was certainly a shift in the way he was portrayed in the press during TIG promo, and they seemed to want to hold on to both aspects of his image at that point.  Having him give long winded interviews about Alan Turing and the way he was slighted by the system, while also having him do that cringe worthy photoshoot for Hollywood Reporter.  

To make matters worse, they kept jabbing at his fans with not only Beatlemania references, but also building him up like this bigger than life movie star who couldn’t run fast enough away from his screaming fans, as well as the paparazzi.

That would have been all fine and dandy, had Ben accustomed the world at large to such behaviour.  BUT, although anyone paying attention knew that lots of his fans were overly enthusiastic (a great number of them willing to go to great lengths to breathe the same air as he does for 5 seconds) and ready to throw themselves into battle to defend him against his critics, they also knew that he was a man who’d been in the industry for close to 20 years already and had managed to always guard his private life.

Therefore, when he kept talking about how fiercely private he was while obviously doing staged pap walks ... globally, he started looking disingenuous.  Something that was amplified by the fact that he kept talking about being happy to find love with Sophie Hunter, a woman who 9 out of 10 people think trapped him into marriage with a pregnancy, while he started looking more and more frustrated around her, the more we saw them together.

Let’s get one thing straight:  No one likes a liar.  No one thinks a liar is the thinking woman’s crumpet.  No one thinks a liar is adorable.

In order for Ben to turn his image around and go back to presenting himself the way that he has worked so long and hard to be regarded, I believe he has to stop lying.  Because let’s face it, he may be a gifted actor, but the poor guy can’t lie his way out of a paper bag.  Not about anything that matters at least...

When he stops lying, I’m prepared to bake heaps of cookies for everyone.  His PR, the poor intern who has to keep reading our ramblings to report back to Karon who then reports back to Ben, the people in Ben’s life who’ve stood by him through all of this adversity, the Skeptics, the Nans, even random people in the streets.  The only people not getting cookies will be the trolls who are posing as skeptics, as well as Shitty and her friends.  And let me tell you Ms Showsie, I make a mean cookie  :P

By Nick Filmore / A Different Point of View.

During CBC Radio’s 81 years the public broadcaster has been the country’s most important life-line, unifying the nation and helping us understand each other and the important issues of the day. I am lucky to have worked at the CBC for more than 25 years. I held several positions, including Canadian Editor of The National, working as an investigative journalist, as a radio documentary producer, and as an editor with National Radio News. Today CBC Radio is more important than ever. With newspapers failing to do their job, journalism in Canada is in crisis. Media organizations are failing to provide communities with news and analysis that is necessary for democracy to function properly. (Note: If you too disapprove of what’s happening to CBC Radio, I’ve provided emails at the end of this article where you can send your protests.)

CBC Radio is proud of the success of its podcast, Someone Knows Something which explores cold cases after people have disappeared.

As always, I’ve been listened to Radio One this summer. My favourite programs, which include The Current, As It Happens, The Sunday Edition and Ideas, are doing a good job. However, I’m puzzled and dismayed by most of about a dozen new summer programs. A couple of them – the Doc Project and Now or Never – provide some interesting stories told from a personal point of view. Too much “personal issues” radio Otherwise, the remaining 10 new programs are not the kind of shows that should be so prominent on the CBC. Too many dwell on the sad stories of people who have had a difficult life. People ramble on about their feelings. There’s lots of talk about “human connections”, and advice for people with problems. Here is a sampling:

Love Me with with Lu Olkowski. “Deep down we all just want to be loved, so why is it one of the toughest things to get right?” says the program description. “Love Me is a podcast about the messiness of human connection.”

Road Trip Radio, both a podcast and on Radio One, is described as “a family friendly podcast celebrating all things Canada!” Produced by the team behind CBC Radio’s This is That, most of the episodes have been humourless and an embarrassment.

Out in the Open with Piya Chattopadhyay. The program claims to tackle one timely subject each week with “energy, wit, and journalistic rigor.” A recent episode: “Hair Care: Shaving, waxing, threading, plucking, sugaring, electrolysis.”

Sleepover with Sook-Yin Lee. “In each episode one stranger takes the spotlight and presents a problem from their life. The other two offer advice and bring up related experiences from their own unique perspectives.”

Seat at the Table with Isabelle Racicot and Martine St-Victor. “A weekly talk show where the hosts bring you honest conversations with guests shaping pop culture.” One episode featured an interview with Laura Wasser, Hollywood's divorce lawyer.

I’m not surprised that many of my friends have abandoned CBC Radio. I think traditional listeners are leaving in droves. “I used to listen to CBC Radio all day,” says a former CBC producer/friend. “Now, I listen very little. The personal storytelling and victimhood are irritating and are in much of the schedule. A former colleague remarked recently that CBC Radio has never met a victim it doesn’t like.” Weak programming Critical analysis is non-existent in these programs. They have very little redeeming value. With the CBC strapped for cash, Radio One is sinking a whack of  money into these programs. More than 25 hosts and producers work full-time, part-time on on contract on these shows, and some of them travel across the country. This money should be used to add programs that explore major thematic issues week after week. It’s practically criminal that the CBC Radio does not have a program on the climate change crisis. Excellent programming can be inexpensive to produce. A top notch broadcaster interviewing interesting people can result in great radio. Why the dramatic changes? So why are we getting this strange hybrid of broadcasting at CBC Radio? Says an insider: “Over the years, management, at least on the English side, has devalued "intellectual' content. They think it's boring, high-minded, ivory tower stuff. They want ‘stories’ – compelling, if well told, and cheap to do. The mantra at CBC Radio is, ‘Tell us your story.’" The insider says the CBC’s commitment to a strong digital presence and on-line audience is one of the reasons behind the interest in storytelling. It’s proud of the success of podcast Someone Knows Something , an engrossing and entertaining program that looks into unsolved crimes. CBC Radio is fixated on building an audience by providing trivial, entertainment-like. For many managers, numbers are more important than content. “We have Chartbeat running on TVs all over the building,” says a CBC staffer. “It basically tells you how many people have clicked on a story online. Its real time instant feedback, and program leaders take it seriously. That’s how decisions get made these days.” The front-line person responsible for this approach to broadcasting is Leslie Merklinger. A veteran of 35 years in media, she’s now Director of New Programs and Talent Development at Radio. Merklinger has been on the job for just over two years and has taken a lot of heat because she has never worked in radio. Off-base programming values In an e-mail, Merklinger writes about “building bridges through empathy,” and a program, Sleepover, that she says “literally connects strangers in a provocative and powerful social experiment format.” She likes shows that “bring topics and taboos in the public spotlight in an effort to build empathy and understanding.” Marklinger describes her unorthodox plans for CBC Radio on You Tube. These programming ideas are shared by many of the radio producers she supervises. “The younger generation of radio producers, 25 - 40,” says a long-time CBC senior producer, “were brought up on This American Life and its many offshoots and imitators, such as The Moth. For them, storytelling is king, and it's all they want to do.” Many journalists from my generation, starting work during the 1960s and 70s, entered media because they had a strong social conscience. Today’s young CBC journalists are more interested in telling stories about people and their issues. . For many years CBC Radio has had documentary makers who were great storytellers but that used the format to explain complex issues. For instance, the late Stuart McLean won an ACTRA Award in 1979 for “Operation White Knight,” his documentary drama about the Jonestown Massacre.  (It’s unfortunate that too few docs from this era are available online.) Changes needed in fall schedule I’ve witnessed a lot of disasters at the CBC over more than 40 years in journalism, but what’s happening now in radio is the worst I've ever seen. Senior managers must be held accountable. While a number of senior producers have input into decisions, the person with the final say is Susan Marjetti, Executive Director, Radio and Audio, CBC English Services. Marjetti has had a long and productive career in the CBC. She is credited with making important improvements to local Toronto shows, with the morning program topping the ratings. Marjetti’s boss is Heather Conway, executive vice-president of English Services of the CBC. She came to the CBC in December 2013, having been chief business officer at the Art Gallery of Ontario. CBC Radio’s wandering off into a journalistic sub-culture must be curtailed. At most, radio’s schedule should include a couple of the storytelling programs. When new programs for the fall and winter period are announced, CBC Radio must be back on track. I would like to ask readers put pressure on the CBC. If you too are disgusted with the misguided radio programming, you can send e-mails to:

[email protected],

[email protected] (Values and Ethics Commissioner)

and [email protected]

If you like, send me a copy: [email protected] We must see if we can play a role in getting the irreplaceable CBC Radio back on track.

from Home http://ift.tt/2g7WogY

VSWID and Character Comedy

Playlist link:  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlRceUcRZcK1zbWYtY6BZHQg4sE3_macD

Disclaimer: I’ve never met or spoken with Jim Sterling in any capacity. This is just an opinion/analysis I need to get off my chest.  

     I’ve seen most episodes of Jim Sterling’s brilliant series ‘The Video Game Show What I Done’ at least a half-dozen times, and the only reason that doesn’t apply to them all is because the ‘Nioh’ episode is too new for me to have repeat-watched as many times as the others. If life had many instances where jokes from this show could be fittingly quoted I would be the first one quoting them. Any time I watch an episode I marvel at the timing, technique, and invention displayed throughout it. It’s clear that Sterling has been honing his abilities over years and hundreds of scripted videos, and VSWID (as I will refer to it from now on) may be my second-for-second favorite work of his. If you’re willing to go along with the crude yet ultimately harmless sense of humor it’s a riotous, deceptively well-crafted series that takes less time to watch than an episode of ‘Twin Peaks’ and is just as bizarre.

     Yet I feel alone in this opinion. Maybe alone is a strong word, but the dislike bars on these videos are always proportionately higher than they are on the less controversial Jimquisitions, sometimes much more so, and dissenting comments are less comprised of the random fury that a lot of highly viewed (relatively speaking) videos get than they are made up of confusion and even frustration, questioning if the series is “centered around a private joke [they’re] not privy to” or feeling the joke just didn’t click, despite them noticing the “sarcasm” at play. And that’s cool. A series as intentionally malformed as this one is going to leave some people stumped, especially when done by someone who frequently comments on the business of video games. When he makes a joke involving ‘Overwatch’ it makes sense to assume that the joke is directed at ‘Overwatch’ itself, since criticisms have been made by Sterling toward the game’s loot crate system and other elements of the game and its business practices. It’s a logical way of thinking, but it’s not one I agree with. The joke of VSWID is not at the video games it is focusing on. The reason VSWID works is not because it’s satire, as some believe it is, but because of Rory Fingers.

    Rory Fingers is the fictional host of VSWID as played by Sterling. Rory, as a character, is difficult to summarize because of the dimensions present in the writing. At first glance Rory is rambling and unprofessional. He’ll stumble through a poor a capella version of Vampire Killer from ‘Castlevania’ for over forty seconds before being rudely interrupted by the death of Simon Belmont onscreen. His videos are slapdash (the zoomed in screen cutting off the score counter in ‘Mega Man’), his gameplay footage is terrible - he rarely understands anything about the games he plays - and his puns capping off videos/segments are given such half-hearted delivery that it’s as if he came up with them on the spot and isn’t sure if he should say them. This is to say nothing of how he gets names wrong and twists words around (Robot Nick is an example of both), but the main takeaway here is that Rory is not very good at making videos. That alone is probably enough to hang a video on. After all, many of us have tried our hand at making Let’s Plays or other types of videos without realizing how feigned our charisma is and how little polish the video itself has, and that can be easily parodied, which is what he frequently does. In the aforementioned Vampire Killer gag the joke runs longer than you expect it to, and it veers dangerously close to anti-humor before the end of the bit and the end of the player character’s life are connected. He was singing until he died, and by having that clear, motivated end point the joke hits. That’s Sterling’s attention to the principles of comedy but there’s more to Rory than parody. He’s a character, not a punching bag, and Sterling understands that the bar must be raised beyond concocted incompetence in order to keep the viewer watching for more than a single video. That’s why the dark side of VSWID is so crucial to its working as a series rather than a one-off.

     Rory is unwell. He throws tantrums, has to take “yellow pills for a year” to calm him down, and has a life coach - allegedly not assigned to him by the state. The videos imply much but only state the essentials, leaving the viewer to make up stories or piece together exactly what happened to, say, go from clarinet lessons to “many many scorpions so many scorpions”. The point is completely separate from the topic he was initially talking about (that being the requirement to pay for Skyrim DLC). It’s there for two reasons, the first being that implanting disturbing imagery in a semi-innocent way is a good way to get a reactionary laugh but its primary function is the second reason, which is to provide the viewer with understanding of how Rory sees the world around him. The incest joke in the ‘Doom’ video works as shock humor but what makes it land is that Rory genuinely seems like the kind of character who would believe that wanting to do “deep-kissing” with his mother is just another part of being a person. Him making the connection between violence in Street Fighter and his father’s violent assault (which I won’t spoil) is funny because the act itself is ludicrous but also because the connection makes sense in Rory’s head. But shock humor can become tiresome if not grounded in an attempt at empathy, which is why the third dimension to Rory’s character (the first being incompetence and the second being his disturbed nature) is the most important reason for why the show works as well as it does: Rory is an innocent .

    Whenever Rory does something wrong I’ve never felt it was out of ulterior motives or actual malice. If it were the character would sour the whole show. Instead, Rory is a creature of childlike instinct. He throws chicken legs at people when he’s “sad” (a perfect word choice to convey how simple and blunt the character is) and gets mad when his grandparents give him socks instead of video games for Christmas. None of this comes from a place of hatred, just a place of childish selfishness. He hurts others without realizing it because he hasn’t developed the empathy that Sterling’s adult voice (and therefore supposed adult age of the character) would suggest. And yet, though he speaks from a current perspective of PS4s and emulators, he still speaks as though he’s a child, despite the ‘Street Fighter II’ video stating that he’s been playing the game since at least 1998*. The way he both resents and idolizes his brother’s ability at video games. The way he’s seemingly cared after by others. The way he makes jokes that everyone on Earth has made with zero sense of irony (from the character, not Sterling). His penis is a constant source of enjoyment and he doesn’t care who knows it, and though that’s true of a good number of people the character’s obliviousness of that taboo (however mild) indicates Rory’s lack of understanding of the world around him. He’s Norman Bates with Open Broadcast Software and a microphone, and the unfiltered nature of the internet means he’s free to say whatever he wants without consequence.

     Rory reminds me of Mr. Plinkett, which considering Sterling has used RedLetterMedia content in his videos is not an unfair comparison to make. Both are disturbed personalities let loose via internet critique, but I think I prefer Sterling’s approach. Because Rory is (unwittingly) just as much as a victim as those affected by his condition Sterling invites the viewer to laugh at his behavior while finding his affliction pitiable. Plinkett, meanwhile, is disturbed without there being a point of empathetic entry for the viewer. He does such terrible things (and the RLM guys show enough disturbing imagery) that the viewer can’t understand his plight and the gag comes off as mean-spirited as a result**. He’s just too much of a monster. Conversely, Rory’s actions are unwitting, meaning that when Sterling asks the viewer to laugh at how pathetic this character is we are able to because Rory, though a victim, is a little shit. 

     And we’ve all been little shits at some point, right? We’ve all done stuff in our childhood that we’ve regretted, despite it being because we were kids, so Sterling uses that truth (at least for me) to invite us to laugh at ourselves. Though maybe not to the extent of Rory we’ve treated family members and friends like garbage at one point or another, and Sterling uses that fact as a jumping off point to create a character who is this inclination heightened to the point of ridiculousness. Because none of us are perfect, especially when we’re kids. Rory simply never grew out of that mindset because the world around him was so sickening, so he retreats into his comfort zone online and posts videos with the delusion of competence. If you’re reading this then maybe there’s some part of that idea that rings true, and Sterling understands that. We need to find humor in our natural awfulness lest we forget about it and pretend it doesn’t exist. VSWID is a show about an uninformed, disturbed, child-like, easily upset manchild who vents his frustrations through Youtube. Even if that’s not you then it’s likely you know someone like that. And, let’s be honest, that person is kinda funny. But Rory is a creation all his own, and Sterling knows that by heightening the awfulness to absurd levels it becomes easy to laugh at human folly. I can’t wait for the next episode.

* I realize that this may just be a continuity error or something. I still think it’s worth commenting on.

** I love RedLetterMedia to death and I’ve seen the Plinkett videos several times, but the story segments of those particular videos are my least favourite RLM content and I skip them when I can. Just wanted to clarify before people call me a hater.