#and thus we reveal a much - much larger antagonist
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i love the "how am i supposed to take the antagonist posing seriously when they're giving miguel sexy shoulder highlights" jokes as much as the next person, but as an insane person i also think it's fun to examine how miguel's physicality is framed in atsv and how there's really only two sequence that emphasise his bulk as intimidating.
how this therefore plays into this entire thing the narrative is building with this character about how it's not his differences that make him frightening to those that matter (regardless of how Miguel feels about his transformation), but rather the utilisation of that strength etc. in a way that enacts harm upon those he should protect.
analysis got too long, so the rest be under the cut.
in both miguel's initial introduction to the audience and gwen, as well as his first interaction with miles, atsv sets up this comedic tension between the confidence and strength miguel is trying to project as a leader and how that's undercut by how silly the performative nature of that behaviour is.
^ the comedy to this framing comes from the contrast in miguel trying to use his physicality to project self assured leadership (hence why the film emphasises that he's bigger than gwen, and him literally having to look down at her), while being ignorant as to the larger threat looming directly behind him <- and abt to succesively pay for that jddfhgkj.
miguel and gwen are also importantly framed as level to one another (no high or low angle shots), so we aren't being informed that gwen feels intimidated here, rather that she's content to watch him get ironically bodied by a looming threat.
So what's interesting to note is that neither gwen nor the narrative's framing views this character as inherently frightening for those differences.
gwen is a little bemused by his differences, but isn't frightened at all. makes fun of him to his face in fact fjdskhfk
This same sort of undercut dramatic tension happens again in miles' introduction to miguel.
this faceless shot leaves both miles and the audience in doubt as to how miguel emotionally percieves miles (esp given how the audience has only been just given their first glimpse of his face prior) and heightens the dramatic tension to that question. it's the same sort of thing as his intro to gwen, intentionally posturing and using his physicality to project a sense of self assuredness.
then we get this shot.
the sheer contrast in the camera's distance from miguel between the two shots, + the reveal of just how slow the platform lowering is, throws the performative nature of his posturing out into the open for what it is, as well as highlighting how silly he looks for trying to be petty with miles and not dignify him with being faced until miguel chooses to look at him. it's both the narrative and gwen poking fun at him for doing this.
again, highlighting the idea that there's nothing inherently dangerous or scary to his differences as a spiderman or the fact he's a lot taller and bulkier than many of his counterparts.
where miguel's physicality is portrayed as frightening is when he weaponises it against miles during the nueva york train chase. it's specifically the choice to turn his strength against someone he should protect which is now underlined as frightening.
^ you look at something like this shot. he feels far too close to the camera and the low angle really makes us feel he's bearing down upon miles, both aspects make you want to lean away, specifically because it's framed in such a way to best allow us to empathise what miles feels in this moment. miguel's physicality feels intensely suffocating here because of the fact that the size difference between these two characters is being pulled to the forefront of how we percieve them.
^or something like this shot where you're emphasising again that same size difference, and thus scary it is that miguel can so easy brush off the efforts of a kid trying to kick him away. how frightening it is to just default to instinct and try to kick and push someone off you (as well as where peter and gwen fail by not interceding in this moment).
same sort of thing again when he intimidates gwen.
this is the first time we actually see her really react with fear towards him and you get that low angle shot with gwen's raised hands that emphasises how much taller and bulkier he is compared to her, and how his presence in this moment feels threatening.
compare it also to the vulture shot, which has no low angle from behind gwen, compared to this and thus the very different tonal shift that low angle + the harsher red lighting evokes.
when the character makes the specific choice to utilise his strength against those he should protect, that is when his physicality is framed as frightening, but it is no more an indication of inherent danger than any other trait and the framing reflects that.
#miguel o'hara#long post#i never shut up abt this man someone put me down like a lame dog#tunes talks spiderverse#atsv
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Tbh I hated the whole prison-cop subplot in Crystalized and found it deeply frustrating, especially after sitting through the one we got in Skybound. I think way too much screentime was wasted on it, instead of properly fleshing out the actual villains, exploring/resolving other dynamics, addressing the Ninjas' feelings about certain events. But amidst all of the other wasted potential, I really think they should've replaced Hounddog McBrag (probably my least favorite character) with the snake warriors from the sets released earlier that year, as part of Ninjago's CORE line. Because unlike Hounddog, the snake warriors, at the time, were actual sets, and Crystalized later even brought the 4-in-1 mech into the story!
As for what they are, c'mon, it's obvious; They're Constrictai. They're black and orange Serpentine. One of them even has the short minifigure legs the Constrictai exclusively used. And it feels like them and the Fangpyre have gotten kinda forgotten in these newer years, with Ninjago usually defaulting to the Hypnobrai, and admittedly the Venomari in Legacy, when bringing back the Serpentine. So bringing back this tribe into the spotlight would be nice.
Just say these guys are Constrictai bounty hunters hired by the city to capture the ninja; Maybe they have a past vendetta towards them, related to the events of S1 and the Serpentine's failed plot to take over Ninjago with the Great Devourer. Maybe they haven't fully let go of old pains. With a lot of the setting at this point being in the desert, this also makes the tunneling Constrictai more of a threat because there's no structures to climb up, think Tremors. It makes a river an even more fitting way to escape them, if they're bad at swimming.
Instead of a whole army consisting of variants, just downsize them (for the sake of animation budget) into individual characters; Cobra Mechanic, Boa Destructor, Viper Flyer, Python Dynamite, and maybe Sneaky Snake. You could still retain the cowboy motif for one of them, given snakes are usually associated with cowboys anyway. You could even link Cobra Mechanic’s dual flamethrowers to Miss Demeanor by revealing they supplied her!
Have the snake warriors harass the ninja in the desert for a bit, and then they disappear when the Crystal King properly enters the plot. Then when they return, it makes more sense because they're not general keepers of the law, just bounty hunters hired for this specific mission, who already have a grudge against Lloyd and Garmadon and thus aren't really worried about maintaining the peace.
And when Lloyd does make peace with them, it's in the sewers where several crystalized Serpentine are; Seeing Lloyd and Garmadon spare these crystalized Serpentine gives the Constrictai bounty hunters more reason to pause and reevaluate their motives, especially when someone else is hurting their kind and not just humanity. And then maybe they can show up at the end to help against the Crystal King and with rebuilding the Monastery, I dunno. This could play into a larger theme of letting go of revenge, which is relevant to Harumi's story, and could play into Lloyd not wanting to embrace his anger as an Oni (plus the Overlord's return being fueled by hatred).
Dragons Rising still managed to acknowledge the CORE sets of its year with the Greenbone Warriors, who actually show up and play very brief, yet nevertheless antagonistic, roles. If we're not going to focus on the actual Crystalized villains even though these episodes are already airing during their set wave's release, you may as well allocate screentime to antagonists from actual sets instead of making up another generic human cop character.
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Obey Me Endgame Theory
Full disclosure, I am only on lesson 32. But, I need to share my thoughts and predictions for where I think the endgame Obey Me narrative is heading (or how I would have it go if I were outlining it myself). Heads up for spoilers up to chapter 32!
Both @sweethearthoya and I have talked about this for hours, and hear us out.
Barbatos is the endgame true antagonist.
You’re probably thinking “that literally makes no sense”, except it could if we recall Barbatos’ position. He has become Diavolo’s caretaker and provides for him in any format that suits Diavolo’s and his linages’ best interest. Even if at times, it might go against his lord’s own desires. Very often we see him attempting to right Diavolo onto his princely path through chats or in narrative which gives the impression that he’s assisting (*cough* leading *cough*) Diavolo towards a grand achievement of something much larger for the Devildom, perhaps something much larger than he’s fully aware of.
While the brothers are seven of the most powerful demons in the Devildom, there is no denying in my little brain that (at least under the current pact between Lucifer and Diavolo) that Diavolo is stronger than all the brothers and that someone either as strong as him or stronger and more cunning should be in charge of addressing his needs and seeing to what he cannot (literally, Barbatos has seen and will see all timelines). It’s never sat right with me that Barbatos ripped you from your original universe in order to bring you to another to witness your own death. Why was there never an option of him saving you or alerting the brothers/angels/even Solomon to your distressing situation? To me, it’s served as a warning of what demons in this game are capable of. It doesn’t add up that knowing all possible outcomes, that he decides the one in which you see yourself die is best, unless, it reveals something about your true nature — being a descendent of Lilith (which they must have either tracked or made up, because the brothers sure don’t sense it), which can serve as a later bargaining chip. I will return to this point.
I don’t think Barbatos cares much for Lucifer at all. Lucifer is doubly a threat and an asset to whatever plan that Barbatos has become involved with (which I don’t think may be entirely his choice). Upon the fall of Lucifer, Diavolo and Barbatos immediately move in to “assist” Lucifer and do a quid pro quo service by reincarnating Lilith, trapping the biggest threat to their power grab and restraining what could have possibly become a new challenge to the existing aristocracy of Devildom. Do I think Diavolo himself is a true antagonist? No. I think it possible that he’s being manipulated by Barbatos in a way that makes him believe this front of opening RAD will serve some greater peace initiative that Barbatos and his superiors are intent on destroying from the inside out.
Barbatos somehow (don’t ask me i don’t work at solmare, but they should hire me 🙏) planted the seeds of sin to tempt Belphegor onto earth, to lead Lilith to earth, to lead the brothers to fall, and ultimately instigate the First Celestial War. Effectively, he trapped the brothers by leading them to their temptations, their sins, and ensnaring them along with the creation of the wrath of Satan. This begins Belphegor’s distrust and hatred of humans supplemented by his guilt of Lilith’s death which is a misdirect of responsibility and attonement. The ones likely responsible for that death are those who Barbatos is assisting and thus serves as a diversion and possibly another test to Lucifer’s loyalty and the hold which they have over him.
I think it likely that Satan or any and all of the brothers will potentially be used as a trial for Lucifer and his loyalty to Diavolo’s “cause”. I suggest this per Diavolo’s and Barbatos’ comments of whether or not Lucifer truly is as devoted to Diavolo as he believes since he’s changed with the arrival of MC. Would it really be possible, when we all reach that crossroad, that Lucifer would have the willpower to turn against his brothers? Against MC, who he’s come to cherish and who shares ties to the sister who he still mourns?
The foreshadowing at the ending of Chapter 30 really strikes me too. Lucifer, the prince, will be forced to make a difficult decision as the seeds of sin are being planted again. They are being planted in you — MC. When taking your exam at RAD over the written portion of the seductive speech craft exam, it is revealed that to coax a human into a false sense of security in the presence of demon that the demon should look at them with a kind, friendly smile. I’ll be damned if Barbatos isn’t doing the same with us, and that so quickly they reveal they’re demons to persuade you into establishing a baseline of trust with all of them. Your performance (if executed correctly) during the RAD exams causes Diavolo to remark about, and Barbatos to congratulate you on, your ability to handle the RAD exams without human handicaps. Your ability to grasp this material, to use your pacts with ease, and to command the brothers through your compassion turns you into a threat.
I’ve always found it odd too that as a descendent of Lilith that somehow you have direct access to her memories, especially, if your souls are different. I’m not sure, but a part of me wonders if MC is a direct reincarnation of Lilith, or if it’s possible that as MC is a descendent of Lilith they are capable of of merging with her soul that is trapped in the devildom. Diavolo said he would have Lilith reincarnated. He never mentioned by who, or when. This gradual power that you begin to channel seems to become stronger and to spill out more and more as we continue the game. Maybe Simeon’s remarks of your ability to charm others should be treated with more attention.
Maybe Simeon should be treated with more attention. Maybe,,, just as with Belphegor, Barbatos has once again led an angel to temptation with a human. Maybe,,, echoing your ancestor, you will become the catalyst for the Second Celestial War.
Here are some images from game that give me a hunch. I also think it’s interesting that Levi purchases a time looped mystery game titled “House of Sorrow” where a whole family is murdered in what is the present-day House of Lamentation (which means house of sorrow LMAO). I wonder if we’re meant to solve this time loop case about everything ailing this demon family. I mean, our choices in game change the past and the future, all of which Barbatos has seen and will see.
Anyway if you somehow read all of this I appreciate you listening to my stream of consciousness, thank you 💛 it’ll probably amount to nothing :-)
#literally you don’t have to agree with any of this it’s just for funnies#i have adhd 🤪#obey me diavolo#obey me!#obey me shall we date#obey me one master to rule them all#fan theory#obey me barbatos#obey me lucifer#obey me simeon#obey me lilith
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Cadmium prevents apoptosis involving human being esophageal epithelial tissues by simply upregulating CDK6.
One particular. The CARD11 mutant furthermore results in a loss of CD10 quantities inside BJAB tissues. Similarly, overexpression of miR-155, that is proven to down-regulate Pick up please.One particular, leads to reduced phrase involving CD10 throughout BJAB tissue. Lastly, we all show that CD10 term is reduced in BJAB cells Epigenetics inhibitor after treatment with all the NF-kappa W inducer lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Furthermore, miR-155 can be activated by LPS treatment as well as phrase in the CARD11 mutant within BJAB tissues. These types of benefits point out an NF-kappa B-dependent device with regard to down-regulation of CD10 in B-cell lymphoma: specifically, that will increased NF-kappa W activity contributes to elevated miR-155, which results in diminished Pick up please.One particular, and thus lowered CD10 mRNA as well as proteins.Extrapyramidal syndromes (Airs) demand much problem about people obtaining antipsychotic treatments. Anticholinergics will be the medications preferred by protecting against EPS, in addition they generate many side effects. While using Expanded polystyrene model of haloperidol-induced catalepsy all of us assessed the possibility therapeutic price of a combination of low doses of the non-selective adenosine antagonist theophylline (3.95 and also One particular.90 mg/kg), along with the muscarinic antagonists benztropine (2.134 as well as 0.268 mg/kg) and also ethopropazine (2.116 and also 2.232 mg/kg). In rodents pretreated together with automobile (mineral water), the particular final catalepsy time over Five they would had been 4199 +/- 228 utes, as well as the indicate latency had been Sixty seven.Five +/- 7.8-10 minute. Used independently, not from the medications at the doasage amounts utilized triggered important modifications regarding catalepsy power as opposed to. handle subjects. However, a combination of the larger dosages involving theophylline as well as benztropine induced a substantial lowering of catalepsy strength (-41 +/- 10%) compared with the effects from the vehicle, versus. the reduced dose of benztropine, and versus. equally amounts associated with theophylline alone. The mixture of the greater doasage amounts associated with theophylline and also benztropine additionally overdue catalepsy starting point (156 +/- 21 minutes) compared with the low dosages of these same drugs employed alone. In the case of theophylline additionally ethopropazine, only the connection in the larger doses revealed the non-significant inclination to be able to slow down catalepsy (-21 +/- 8%) and also to increase its latency (One hundred and eight +/- Tough luck minutes). Additional, not catalepsy strength not their latency has been suffering from a mixture of your discerning Oxygen villain DPCPX (One particular mg/kg,) with all the larger doasage amounts regarding each anticholinergics. As opposed, the actual anticholinergics confirmed synergism having a subthreshold dose in the picky A(2A)R antagonist ZM 241395 (3.A few mg/kg), resulting in a significant lowering of catalepsy power (ethopropazine, -27 +/- 5%; benztropine, -35 +/- 9%) and also widening its latency (ethopropazine, Over 60 +/- In search of minimum; benztropine, 77 +/- 11 min), weighed against the effects with their individual vehicle (DMSO additionally nutrient gas: catalepsy period, 5100 +/- 196 utes: latency, 19.Five +/- 2.A few minute). These findings suggest that neuroleptic-induced EPS could be effectively manipulated by the blend of lower doses of theophylline as well as anticholinergics, together with the benefit from maximizing his or her effectiveness and also decreasing their particular side effects.
#Stem Cell Signaling Compound Library#HIF inhibitor#Filgotinib#Pepstatin A#SP2509#Purmorphamine#Tideglusib#Ostarine#Sodium butyrate#Epirubicin#OICR-9429#Tasquinimod#Celecoxib#Hygromycin B#SU5402#VER155008#Selonsertib#Losmapimod#GSK-LSD1#Raltegravir#Cidofovir#Ledipasvir#Amprenavir#Velpatasvir#Ombitasvir#Paritaprevir#Penciclovir#Indinavir#Dasabuvir#Camostat
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potential internal conflicts/character arcs for nhie s2
(based on the table read, news, and things that i personally just want to see :P)
- Devi learning to see others as ends of themselves instead of means to an end. No-brainer that this is going to be a theme next season (especially with that pros and cons list of her love interest), but I’m so excited to see how the show’s going to handle it. As I rambled about on this post, one of Devi’s biggest developments as a character was to stop treating Ben as an extension of herself (either as boxing him into the role of Antagonist/Nemesis in her own narrative or as a hateful mirror that points out personal traits she dislikes) and as an actual person and friend, and it’s that which sparks the small epiphany of her feelings towards him. From the table read and the stills, though, it sounds like she might be putting him in a new, albeit prettier box: Love Interest. The same box that she puts in Paxton, who at this point also does have genuine feelings for Devi. She’s looking at them as experiences, not people, and it’s all going to inevitably blow up in her face.
- The Devi/Fabiola/Eleanor friendship changing somehow. I had this impression that all season 1, the three of them have been hanging on to a dynamic that just doesn’t work anymore, in light of Devi’s grief, Eleanor’s abandonment, and Fabiola’s identity conflict. While Devi is definitely in the wrong of blatantly choosing a guy’s inconvenience over her best friend’s weightier problems, I think the larger problem here is that they don’t seem to know how to be there for each other for difficulties larger than to do with school, although the care and concern is there. It actually takes a third party to push them towards solving the overarching issues in their friendship, and even then only briefly. I’d really like to see this explored as a conflict shared between the three of them, instead of it being sidelined completely as Devi being selfish.
- The narrative that Devi will tell Princeton + the parts of herself she’s willing to take to college. (These are technically two conflicts, but I feel like it would make sense to intertwine them, especially since they’ve already been intertwined in the Ganesh Puja episode.) Devi has expressed her intention about leaving her Indian-ness completely and utterly behind her, as well as all the other embarrassing and painful parts of her identity (her grief and her insecurities). She’s come to terms with her father’s death to an extent, but she doesn’t seem to have yet accepted how his death has shaped and marked her. I think this is going to extend with how she deals with her Indian identity, and perhaps how she deals with her relationships.
- The double-standard between Kamala and Devi. On one level I understand Nalini probably treats them different because of her differing relationships with them—one’s her niece that only came to live with them and the other is her only child, her whole family. On the other hand, from the narration Devi has never really experienced her mother expressing such a blatant double standard in favor of Kamala before (about her secret boyfriend); she fully believed her cousin would get into trouble. It never did get addressed.
- In the first season, we experienced how Kamala’s western ideals influenced the part of her life still infused with tradition (her relations to other Indian people and her arranged marriage). The still of Kamala in a labcoat makes me hopeful for the inverse this season: how Kamala’s arranged marriage and traditional ideals affect her career as a scientist.
- Paxton engaging in the fact that he likes someone who is smarter than him (at least in a bookish sense). I’ve never seen this conflict delved into before—most writers just ignore it, focusing on what the love interests have in common (and don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to Paxton engaging Devi in this way, either by trying new things or revealing some hobbies or interests we haven’t made privy to). This insecurity is so close to his chest, though, and as much as Devi seems to make a point not to make him feel bad about it, it would be fascinating friction since Devi is very rightfully proud of her intellectual prowess. I imagine this will only be accentuated with knowing that his competition for Devi’s affections is someone razor-edge smart.
- Ben’s anger, and it being dealt with in constructive and destructive ways. I think one of the (numerous) things that I love about Ben and Devi is that they have different approaches to their internal and external conflicts. Devi runs away internally, refusing to face grief and sadness, while she delves head-first into external situations (e.g. asking Paxton to have sex with her, going to a Model UN trip with absolutely no prep and being willing to steal alcohol, talking to her friend’s estranged mom in other to get back into said friend’s good graces). Ben, on the other hand, has remarkable emotional intelligence underneath his high school immaturity (he can read Devi beyond her words actions, he doesn’t deny the isolation and loneliness that he feels, he is prepared to be vulnerable in certain situations) but he doesn’t do anything about it (he stops himself from telling his parents how abandoned he feels, he gives in to his girlfriend essentially using him as a prop, he is ushered into dining in his nemesis’ house by her concerned mother).
Then Devi kisses him, and suddenly he’s willing to put his eggs in one basket. He stands up to his parents and demands that they spend family dinner together—because of her, he claims. He breaks up with his girlfriend, finally admitting that what they had wasn’t real, and earnestly informing Devi that he thinks what they have is. “I’m all in,” he tells her, thus crushing my heart. Because what’s strongly being implied, at least by the first part of the first episode, is that Devi’s either going to choose Paxton or neither of them.
I imagine that Ben, used to being abandoned time and time again, will not react well to that. (This is expanded in this really awesome meta by @catty-words). There’s potential for the show to frame this as sexist entitlement, but I’d like to hope that the creators will be more compassionate to Ben’s conflict, as they have been in the past. It would genuinely be hurtful for someone you’ve displayed a lot of vulnerability to suddenly turn tail and say it didn’t mean as much to her. My guess is that he’ll lock into their nemesis status quo from before and lean into it hard, and it will likely hurt him badly.
What I’d also like to see, though, (if only to assuage my own heartbreak) is him taking steps to deal with this a little more constructively, in addition to the inevitable self-destruction. I’d love to see him get back in touch with his ride-or-die middle school friends or even make new ones. In fact, I suspect that’s who the character of Aneesa is going to be, regardless of whether she becomes a contender for his love interest.
Aneesa is described as someone whose confidence and radiance will pose an immediate threat to Devi. I doubt that means she’ll be another academic rival, at least not completely; Devi already has Ben for that. As for romantic rivalry, it is likely not going to be Paxton Aneesa will be paired with, since it’ll only be a rehash of Devi’s insecurities of Paxton liking ‘hotter’ girls like Zoe and vying for his attention. (There’s a possibility she and Paxton will have history together and that threatens Devi even if she’s already in a relationship with him, but for me, that’s a less interesting choice than letting Devi focus on the challenges that will be inherent with Paxton being her boyfriend.) I think Aneesa will be another mirror for Devi—who she could have been if she pursued friendship and openness and maybe even a relationship with Ben, and that’s likely going to make Devi bitterly jealous. If this results in friendship and openness and maybe even a relationship for Ben (a deeper, more genuine one than his previous), I’m completely here for it, even if I am still hoping for a Bevi endgame.
(Low-key theorizing that Ben's smiling at Aneesa here, btw)
#clary scribbles#nhie meta#ben gross#devi vishwakumar#devi x ben#nalini vishwakumar#kamala nandiawada#paxton hall yoshida#never have i ever
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One of the aspects of Hordak that strikes me so significantly when compared to other characters is the unexpected, terrifying escalation of his situation.
We don’t really see this happen with anyone else: generally speaking, our other characters are very much a case of “what you see is what you get.” Adora is perhaps a bit of an exception, seeing as her status as “First Ones gun trigger” is used as a plot twist in season four, but her general background and the overall nature of her situation remain fairly consistent throughout the show.
Same with Catra. Same with Glimmer and Bow. Mermista, Perfuma, Scorpia, Frosta... everyone else receives a backstory and, barring minute elaborations, stays true to our first impressions of them. Our understanding of who they are and what they are about doesn’t really change.
Hordak is not this way.
Hordak starts off as a pretty standard, one-dimensional evil warlord character. Season one finds him very much delegated to the background, supposedly pulling the strings behind the scenes as other characters have their dramas play out center stage. He is well-designed and frightening, an imposing individual with a stoic personality and a sense of reason and logic that marks him as an effective commander.
We get no backstory at this point, and the initial impression of the character (at least for me) is “capable evil leader, little to no depth beyond what is absolutely necessary.” And that’s fine. At this point in the story, there’s no suggestion that Hordak will have any sort of role save for serving as an ultimate antagonist for our heroes, so a backstory is largely unnecessary. He appears properly built to provide powerful opposition, and that’s all we need.
This is Hordak’s starting point. It is a serviceable starting point. It is also stunningly different from his end point, and at this stage in the series, there is zero indication that there is going to be any alteration, let alone such a dramatic one.
Seasons two and three see Hordak gaining actual development. Significant development. Development that provides him with a painful, sympathetic reason for waging his war. Suddenly, Hordak is not an all-powerful, untouchable warlord. Suddenly, he is a vulnerable individual with significant physical ailments and resulting emotional trauma.
His situation has escalated.
We see now that his body is falling apart, that he is sickly and weak and dependent upon armor and bravado to maintain control over his subordinates. We see that he is not the stoic, omnipotent man presented to us in season one.
Instead, we learn that he is a manufactured clone with deep emotional wounds linked to past rejection and trauma, that he comes from a society where his illness is scorned enough to earn him rejection and what amounts to a death sentence. We come to understand that he views himself very poorly, and that a significant number of his negative character traits are rooted in shame and fear and a desperate need for validation.
we also learn that he has cute lil ears that can wiggle and droop when he’s sad
To these significant developments we add his budding friendship with Entrapta, and we find that Hordak is very much capable of desiring, forming, and maintaining a positive, affectionate relationship with someone. His character thus becomes even more complex.
Now, something to keep in mind at this point: thanks to revelations provided by his backstory, we can view Hordak as a more vulnerable individual with legitimate feelings and insecurities. That said, there is still a certain dangerous edge to him. At this point in the series, we have been told, by Hordak himself, that he was a top general in a much larger version of the Horde.
This supposed fact somewhat tempers his vulnerability. We get the sense that, while he is suffering from the shame and subsequent rejection brought on by his disability, his ultimate goal of rejoining his brother still involves a certain level of power. There is this idea that, though he wants validation and acceptance, he is also seeking to regain a position that, theoretically, grants him greater power and authority than the one he holds now. Hence why he doesn’t just settle for conquering and ruling Etheria: being lord of Etheria does not hold a candle to the power granted him by regaining his rank as Horde Prime’s top general.
One can look back at the fandom during late 2019 to fully appreciate this: fanfiction from this time period often features headcanons of particularly accomplished clones holding respected positions in Prime’s empire. High ranking clones have names and titles. They have ships. They have their own planets and their own armies. Even though they serve Prime and are, sadly, purpose-bred clones, they have power and status that provide them with a certain level of agency.
Essentially, there was the idea that a traditional Horde military structure exists, and Hordak held privilege within it.
So, while Hordak’s situation has escalated in emotional poignancy from “evil warlord wanting to rule the world” to “defective clone seeking validation,” there remains an unsympathetic aspect to it. There is still some degree of potential power-hunger that one can attribute to him.
This changes, very suddenly and traumatically, in seasons four and five. And this, friends and neighbors, is where I begin to become very emotional.
Our first indication that things are about to wildly change comes during the season four finale. We meet Horde Prime. We see how submissive and terrified Hordak is in his presence. We witness Prime’s distaste not only for the state of him and his failed conquest, but for Hordak daring to take a name.
It is Hordak’s name being a problem that plants the seeds for an upheaval of our preconceived notions regarding a clone’s function in the Galactic Horde. Those seeds germinate abruptly and violently in the next few moments as Prime lifts Hordak by the throat, declares him an abomination, and viciously violates and erases his mind.
And oh, friends and neighbors, now we know that something is wrong.
We don’t quite know the specifics yet, but we know that there is some sort of discrepancy between what Hordak told us and the truth he has lived. At no point in the narrative did Hordak say anything about names being inappropriate. At no point did he say anything that might have prepared us for the suspiciously religiously-coded language Prime is using. At no point did he say anything to suggest that there was anything wrong with what he was doing beyond trying to compensate for a physical disability.
And then, alongside all of these dark little surprises, there are the hauntingly blank stares of the clones standing besides Prime’s throne.
All of these factors instill a sense of dread that culminates in the chilling reveal of the Galactic Horde’s true nature come season five.
It is a cult. An honest-to-the-gods, played-absolutely-straight religious cult.
The Galactic Horde isn’t a traditional army, or an aggressive nation, or even a standard imperialist empire. It is a cult, with Horde Prime as its god and countless clone acolytes acting as its horrifically willing members.
We never see a top general, or any generals at all. We never see any sort of military hierarchy. We never see clones leading armies, or owning ships, or holding ranks, or commanding anyone or anything.
What we see instead is clones blindly worshiping their Brother. We see them doting on him, sacrificing their own life force to maintain his form. We see them forfeiting control of their bodies to him whenever he feels like using another’s form. We see them chanting the virtue of suffering to achieve purity. We see them blank and emotionless save for religious zealotry, a purpose-bred cohort of completely brainwashed followers. We see that there is no apparent escape from this life, for Prime sees their minds and controls every aspect of their existence, and we see that there is no desire for escape among them, so utterly indoctrinated are they.
We see Hordak reduced to one of these cowl-wearing acolytes: nameless, powerless, ready and willing to endure physical agony in order to forget his shame and relinquish his self to his Brother in the hopes of... well, certainly not of regaining some exalted military rank, or of reclaiming some previously-held status. These things do not exist. Not in this actual religious cult.
Hordak’s true situation is now fully apparent, and it is so far removed from our views of him back in previous seasons: rather than being a calculating warlord, or even a defective clone seeking to regain military glory, Hordak is a manufactured soldier-slave who was born into a religious cult, so indoctrinated and bound to his Brother that he risks his own life in order to win Prime’s love and approval.
Because that’s what this final realization confirms: Hordak was never after any sort of power or prestigious military status. They never existed. Hordak was, in the end, an abused slave trying desperately to win love from his loveless master. He truly was just after validation and affection and a feeling of secure belonging. All things that he was deprived of because he was born a slave-acolyte in a godsforsaken cult.
And that’s... that’s such a vastly different state of affairs than the one we accepted in season one. It completely rewrites our understanding of Hordak’s power, of his vulnerability, of his true wants and needs and desires. Said understanding shifts from a purely villainous one to one steeped in self-loathing and control and lifelong victimization. It is absolutely shocking to see a character’s circumstances completely transform the way Hordak’s do between the show’s beginning and its finale. It is utterly bewildering to witness this intensity of change.
As I stated at the start: this doesn’t happen to anyone else. Oh, other characters develop and grow and undergo their arcs, sure, but by and large, Catra remains a scrappy catgirl. Adora remains an orphaned heroine. Swift Wind remains a revolutionary winged steed.
Only Hordak undergoes a transformation as dramatic as shifting from “all-powerful conquering warlord” to “defective clone seeking validation... but maybe also galactic power” before finally settling, tearfully and painfully, on “shamed, love-starved cult victim.” Only his situation, his true identity and our understanding of it, escalate so shockingly and to such terrifying levels.
I’m still not over it. I still cry about it. I still feel light-headed sometimes, knowing that Hordak's circumstances revolve around being born into and abused and thrown away by an actual cult. Even though we're over two months out from SPoP's finale, it's still that emotionally powerful to me, and the shock of the difference between seasons one and five only make it more so.
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Rider of Clouds
A a loose adaptation of the Ugaritic Baal cycle of myths, with some changes and the holes patched up with other myths and historical trivia. It will probably go on and on as some sort of silly “myth crossover” thing.
Mount Saphon, the spiritual center of a large but poorly defined area spanning from the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates and the residence of many gods, needs a new king. While the former king of the gods, El, favors his distant relative Yam, this decision is not popular with the other deities and would be a disaster for their human followers; however, few dare to question El decisions in public. The exception is Baal, the heir(ess) of El's popular but not very ambitious rival Dagan, determined to take Mount Saphon to the bright future of the late bronze age.
Protagonists
Baal (Hebat) – the eponymous Rider of Clouds (a real title used in myths and cult texts), a young weather deity born to Dagan and Shalash (not pictured), semi-retired agricultural gods who settled in Tuttul on the Euphrates shortly before Baal's birth. Dagan hails from Mesopotamia proper, while Shalash is Hurrian.
While the mythical Baal Hadad is male, my version is a woman – the idea started as a joke about conflating Baal from the Baal cycle with Baalat Gebal, a female figure associated with another levantine bronze age city (BG's actual identity is an object of much scholarly debate) being more valid than conflating him with much later Baal Hammon from Carthage (or rather with Roman hot takes about this deity), which happens a lot online, but I got attached to it o now here we are.
She nonetheless uses a male title inherited from her father, much like a few historical female rulers did. In my version “Hadad” is only a title (or rather a me, eg. divine attribute), and her real name is actually Hebat. Irl Hebat was, among other things, the name of a goddess mentioned in one inscription as Dagan's daughter, and thus a featureles sister of Baal. As the levantine/syrian Hebat lacks a defined character in real mythology (”another” Hebat was regarded as the Hurrian storm god's wife but was at times replaced in this role by the more interesting sun goddess of Arinna and that's about it; I'm not going to use that one in my story) it should be fine to conflate her with Dagan's best attested divine child, I think?
Baal is impulsive and follows a moral code which, depending on the point of view, might be either naive or heroic, which means she's not exactly the optimal person to get involved in n-dimensional divine politics (the ideal person to be the protagonist of an Ugaritic epic poem, as evidenced by history), but that's not enough to stop her from trying; the popularity with humans helps, too. The story documents her rise to the position of the head god of the pantheon residing on Mount Saphon, ruling over Ugarit and other surrounding areas.
Astarte (it should be Ashtart for maximal accuracy but everyone knows the later form of the name better so...) – a goddess of humble origin and no particularly well defined attributes, who attaches herself to Baal initially in hopes of advancing own career, though the two eventually develop a more genuine relationship. She patterns herself after the much more famous Mesopotamian Inanna, seeing her as an ideal to strive for.
While Baal has the name recognition and disposition fitting for a major deity, Astarte is the part of the duo actually capable of navigating politics, and takes the title of Face of Baal, negotiating support for Baal's bid with other gods. The image of Baal she projects differs slightly from reality, though not enough for most onlookers to notice.
Astarte is also a connoisseur of foreign clothing (as pictured above) and art.
Anat (art courtesy of my girlfriend who sadly isn’t on tumblr but who helped a lot with figuring out a lot about this story) – the younger daughter of the ruling couple of Mount Saphon. Her philosophy differs greatly from her parents' and as a result she isn't really seriously considered for succession. Her hobbies include bladed weapons, gambling and heroic epics; in the past she attempted writing her own self insert one. Her temperament means she was never considered for succession, which she doesn't particularly mind.
She's deeply invested in Baal's ascendance, and is probably the god Astarte wants to recruit for their cause the most.
Gupan and Ugar – two minor gods who might be some of the only allies Baal recruited herself rather than with Astarte's help. They play a minor role in the story as her messengers and heralds (just like in the real myth!). They're also a couple. The cuneiform on their coats says “Baal.”
Kothar-wa-Khasis – a craftsman god who, by own admission, only works part time in Ugarit and travels the world for the rest of it. He's kind and dependable and his wares are both affordable and of great quality, but his real motives are hard to ascertain. His real identity is likewise a subject of much speculation among other gods – while his preferred manner of clothing hints at an egyptian origin, nothing is known for sure.
His true name is that of the god Ptah of Memphis; he spends most time outside it and incognito because he thinks smaller pantheons on the periphery of Egypt's influence offer more artistic freedom. He speaks in a very poetic pointlessly complex way (basically... imitating the style of ancient poem translations). While an architect first and foremost he a reneissance man - architect, sculptor, engineer, armorer, musician. He isn't very fond of Yam due to the latter's lack of aptitude for art and cost cutting suggestions.
There are actually two gods hiding behind the title “Kothar-wa-Khasis,” with the second one hailing from Caphtor (Crete) from where Kothar arrives when commissioned to build Baal's palace in the real myth. She's shy and refuses to reveal her real name and hides behind the title “Mistress of the Labyrinth” and the labrys symbol. Her arrival is generally a sign of the duo taking a project particularly seriously.
Shapash – El's firstborn daughter, serving as “the torch of the gods”, a royal herald and solar deity. She also handles her parents' “foreign policy” on their behalf, which in practice means figuring out how to placate neighbors whose decisions aren't guided by the need to avoid angering various reviled figures.
Antagonists
Yam (right) – a sea monster more than a god, presiding over the nearby section of the sea and all that dwells in it, including the commercially significant sea slugs. He's also the son of the formerly influential Anatolian god Kumarbi, banished to the underworld by the current head god Teshub due to his many past misdeeds. As a result of his father's past influence over the world (and current influence over the ruling couple), Yam gained El's support and received many titles, which de facto makes him the most likely to succeed El as the king of local pantheon. He's capricious and inconsiderate, but maintains a larger than life public image meant to make him palatable to potential backers.
The exact circumstances of his arrival in Ugarit are shrouded in mystery, and may or may not be responsible for his unusually strong hatred of Baal.
Mot (left) – profoundly unpleasant and unsociable being kept around by Anat's parents for unclear reasons. He resides in the great offering pit in the abandoned city of Urkesh, formerly the center of Kumarbi's sphere of influence, reduced to a ghost town.
While his equivalents in neighboring areas generally view themselves as impartial or as a necessary evil, Mot gets his kicks from posing as a personification of death itself, and is notoriously corrupt.
El and Athirat – the ruling couple of Mount Saphon and parents of Anat and Shapash, currently pondering retirement, which stirs many contenders to the throne into action. El is a lifelong opportunist changing views and allegiances as he sees fit, though he pretty consistently favors his distant relative Yam as his main underling ever since the latter arrived in the area.
El was originally Amurru, a courtier of the sky god Anu, overthrown by the nefarious Kumarbi. For unclear reasons Kumarbi made Amurru his vassal and bestowed the name Elkunirsa, or El for short, upon him.
Athirat is largely responsible for El maintaining his title for so long, and is a much craftier politician than he is. She comes from an influential dynasty of sea gods, but lacks dominion over the sea herself.
She and Yam are related, as seen here.
Abduyam – an attempt at developing an obscure figure from the original myth, Yam's nameless and seemingly rather rude and infuriating messenger, into a full blown character. The theophoric name he uses (there are real theophoric names invoking Yam, surprisingly) is just a pseudonym, and his real identity is a mystery. He interned under a variety of famous mythical villains in order to gain a greater understanding of their ways, and currently serves as Yam's messenger, adviser, doorkeeper and punching bag.
Ashtar – a feeble opportunist who sides with Yam, hoping to receive a share in the gains he's making thanks to El's blessings. He's pretty content with playing the role of a toady though his aspirations might be different, as Baal and Astarte suspect due to his love of gaudy imported textiles. Megalomania doesn't necessarily equal malevolence, though.
He also loves sea slugs.
Foreign dignitaries
(ignore the ?, it’s just Baal)
Marduk (right) – the tutelary deity of Babylon, a prominent and internationally renowned god. While technically the area encompassing Mount Saphon, where the events of the story take place, isn't directly under the control of the Babylonian pantheon, as one of the oldest in the world and the source of the writing it nonetheless has a tremendous impact on smaller neighbors.
Formally Marduk is merely a representative of his father Enki and the assembly of the gods in Nippur, but as the old gods are not very mobile, he's the de facto acting head of the pantheon in foreign relations. He doesn't have a unified mythical narrative about himself yet at this point in time, despite his position, which is a source of insecurity for him. During travels, he's assisted by his personal aide and biographer, Nabu (not pictured), and his pet mushussu, Tishpak.
Seth (left) – in real life, ancient Egyptians equated many gods of their neighbors with Seth; therefore in Rider of Clouds Seth serves as an ambassador of the Egyptian pantheon, usually residing in Gebal near Mount Saphon – a city whose gods (and human rulers) take pride in trying to be more Egyptian than the Egyptians themselves, and regard Seth as their spiritual liege (under the title “Lord of Lebanon”). While ultimately Marduk's judgment matters the most, Seth gets the right to veto his decisions when it comes to validating claims to local thrones. On good terms with Kothar-wa-Khasis, which is a subject of much gossip among other gods.
Teshub (center) – the head of the Hurrian pantheon, technically capable of projecting the most power in Mount Saphon politics due to the Hurrian influence on huge number of other local pantheons, including that of the Hittites, thanks to his marriage to the Hittite sun goddess of Arinna; however, as the local gods for the most part share closer affinity with Mesopotamia than Hatti, he competes with Marduk for political influence. As he and Baal are a very similar type of god, he's the most outspoken supporter of Baal's ascension to the throne out of all 3 foreign dignitaries. El’s support for his nemesis is probably a factor, too.
Kubaba – the head goddess of Carchemish; much like the king of Carchemish served as a Hittite viceroy taking care of affairs of the vassals irl, she acts as Teshub's ambassador in the southeast, mediating between the Anatolian and Syrian gods. She hopes that Baal's rise will normalize foreign relations to the benefit of her human followers – El's erratic behavior and sympathy for a number of widely detested figures made that rather difficult.
While she's not much older than Baal, she poses as an ancient deity and dresses like someone twice her age. She also seeks opportunities to insert herself into suitably ancient narratives. In another time and place she'll be known as Cybele, and eventually as the Roman Magna Mater, but this is not the story about it.
Plot-relevant but not present in the story physically
Inanna – the celebrity superstar of every pantheon from Hatti to Elam. After being elevated to one of the foremost positions among the gods she started a profitable franchising business, offering help with setting up own cult system and the right to use the title of “Ishtar” and the eight pointed star emblem in exchange for a share in potential profit and a spot in the franchisee' home pantheon. As her fame is unique even among the greatest of the gods, this isn't that bad of a deal. Other benefits of the franchising program include free tickets to the annual Ishtar meetup in Uruk and a 24/7 tech support line ran by her sukkal Ninshubur.
Asides from Astarte, prominent members of the franchising program include the Hurrian Shaushka, the Elamite Pinikir, and the night goddess of Kizzuwatna.
Kumarbi: an agricultural god of the Hurrians who seized the kingship of their pantheon violently before being overthrown himself by Teshub and his allies. Now he resides in the underworld and plots, aided by a network of allies – some opportunistic, some stupid, some simply malevolent.
His will is usually carried out by an unspecified number of identical fate goddesses, possible to differentiate only by the numerals on their veils.
At the core he and Baal's father Dagan are very similar gods in function, but not in temperament.
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Tangled Salt Marathon - Lost and Found
Another plot episode and another mountain of missed opportunities, failed set ups, and foreshadowing that goes nowhere. But outside of that it’s pretty entertaining. Are we seeing a pattern yet?
Summary: Rapunzel and Eugene go on a journey to retrieve the fourth and final piece of the scroll that will lead them to the Dark Kingdom. They receive help from Vigor the Visionary, who reveals himself to be Lord Demanitus himself, the author of the scroll depicting the purpose of the Sundrop and Moonstone. He leads them to the maze that he hid the last piece of the scroll in. Guiding them through the maze, they obtain the last piece, which united the four into one singular map. As they are about to leave, they are attacked by a stone monster.
Maybe That’s Why You Should Have Brought the Only Person Who Can Read It Along?!
Once again, having the characters acknowledge their stupidity in meta dialogue doesn’t alleviate the fact that the audience is going to think them stupid.
Regardless of your personal feelings towards Varian or what he has done in the past that does not change the fact that he is literally the only character in the show thus far who can translate the scroll. The mains knew that before leaving and they knew from the get go that they were going to need the scroll piece which is why they took it from him.
Not bringing him along, not getting a translation key from him before leaving, nor even showing us a scene of Raps trying to ask him to translate the scroll for them before leaving and then having him refuse to do so, is a plot hole.
Timeline Hint...Sort Of...
Rapunzel said last episode that it had been almost year since they left Corona, and it’s now close enough to her birthday again that Eugene could be tricked by it but not enough to actually be her birthday.
So...when are we again?
I’m going to guess 10 months after Secret of the Sun Drop? Maybe... It could also be 9 or 11 who knows... but I am still seeing fall like trees which is our only indication of a changing season in this show because the creators don’t understand climate apparently.
Maybe cause we’re now further north of Corona we see fall/winter leaves even into early spring?
Where Was This Rapunzel In Season 3?
Rapunzel actually giving a crap about what Eugene wants is as rare as seeing a fawn in the woods. It happens, but most of the time you forget it's even there.
While come season three, Rapunzel will just shoot the poor deer dead.
Madame Canardist is a Wasted Character
I’ve already discussed at length the biggest problems with Madame Carnardist in my Vigor the Visionary and Curses reviews. So I won’t rehash those talking points here again. However what I spoke about were larger problems with the media industry and bigotry as a whole and not the specific impact the character has on the story. Which is next to none.
The crew went through all of this trouble to make a deleted character from the film relevant to the series’s plot, and even there they failed. Madame Canardist is nothing more than a translator for Vigor when Demantius isn’t around. The story doesn’t utilize her properly despite her connections to one of the more plot important characters.
What is her relationship to Demantius and Zhan Tiri? How did Vigor come into her care? Why is she the only person who understands him when Demantius isn’t in control? If Vigor is centuries old by this point than how old is she? What is her stake in all this and why does she bother with Rapunzel at all if she has nothing to gain from it? Why doesn’t she go along on this important quest through the maze seeing as how she is Vigor’s caretaker?
She’s not completely useless, but like with Lady Caine, Xavier, and Hector before her, she has far more potential than the series is willing to explore with her.
So Much For Caring About What Eugene Wants
Welp that lasted all of five seconds.
Man, Rapunzel is a shit girlfriend.
The Pay Off Works, But It Then Serves No Purpose Afterwards
I don’t mind the idea of Demantius being the monkey. I mean it is one of the very few plot points in the show with proper foreshadowing and follow through. And yes, Demantius does accomplish one thing here, by helping Raps obtain the last scroll piece.
The problem is, nothing changes with this revelation.
No one’s perceptions or interactions with Demantius/Vigor are altered after this reveal. No one changes their plans, goals, or motivations afterwards. Things carry on more or less afterwards the same as if they had never met. The only thing of importance here is the scroll pecice and that’s only relevant in Cassandra's Revenge and is then forgotten about completely for the rest of the series.
What’s the point of having a plot twist if the status quo still remains?
If the information being revealed doesn’t alter the story then why keep it secret to begin with?
How Could You Research Them If You Never Found Them?
So did Demantius write the incantations or not?
He is the one who put them on the scroll, so it’s natural to conclude that he did create them, but he couldn’t have done that unless he had studied both the moonstone and sundrop to see the effects the two macguffins had to the spells.
Now according to this exposition dump, the sundrop and moonstone had been around for ages before Demantius and had become legends by his time. It is possible that someone else studied the two macguffins before him and came up with those incantations, but who?
The ancient people of the Dark Kingdom might have studied the moonstone since they were tasked with guarding it, but no one knew where the sundrop was until Gothel found it.
The audience needs to know this sort of information in order to understand the motivations driving the conflicts of the characters.
Imagine a Lord of the Rings trilogy that never bothered to say where the one ring of power came from or how it came into Gollum’s possession. You’d be left wondering why everyone was fighting over what amounts to an invisibility spell that once belonged to a small deformed hobbit who used to catch fish.
This Explanation Goes Nowhere
Why did the disciples betray Demantius? What did they gain from siding with Zhan Tiri? Why was Gothel with them? Did she betray everyone once she found the sundrop? What was Demantius and Zhan Tiri fighting over to begin with?
Don’t expect any of those questions to be answered. The series inexplicably makes a big deal over Gothel being connected to Zhan Tiri, but then never actually explains what that connection is, what they’re relationship dynamic was, nor how it connects back to Rapunzel’s and Cassandra’s current conflict.
That’s the real failing of the show’s lore and backstories. They don’t connect back to the current conflict. It’s just there.
In a well constructed show, Demantius would have been a parallel to Rapunzel who was also ‘betrayed’ by people she trusted. It would have been revealed that it was Demantius’ own actions that drove away his followers and caused them to side with Zhan Tiri. Thereby serving as a warning to Rapunzel herself and forcing her to realize in the end that in order to save everyone she’s have to apologize to those she hurt. We also would have gotten three betrayals instead of two since that’s more thematically impactful.
But this isn’t a well constructed show and the characters in it don’t ever evolve.
This Contradicts What We Find Out In Season 3
We find out in the last season that Zhan Tiri was originally from this world and that the only reason she was ‘bent on destruction’ was because of Demantius ticked her off somehow. She also had no magical powers of her own until after Demantius had banished her to that other realm where she was imprisoned.
Also Demantius didn’t use any powers. He just chucked her into a portal he had built without any warning or trail, with zero idea if it would kill her or not, all because she just stood there yelling at him. Like there wasn’t even any physical fighting, so it wasn’t a case of in defense either.
Demantius should have been revealed to be the real antagonist all along but that would require the showrunners to be actually clever for once and not misogynistic towards their female characters.
This Makes Zero Sense
First off, when was Zhan Tiri ever looking for Demantius? She’s been too busy trying to escape from her prison and it’s been centuries. She has no reason to suspect that he’s still alive nor does she care. Zhan Tiri’s plans are not dependant upon whether or not Demantius still exists.
Secondly, how is the host body still alive after centuries? Why go with monkey when I’m sure there are actual human beings out there who would agree to living forever. Does the transfer actually destroy the mind? Cause if not you could have had an actual coherent host that could have helped out when Demantius was dormant.
And don't give me any guff about ‘ethics’ because this is the man who played judge, jury, and executioner to his supposed friend/possible lover and probably killed one of his disciples as Sugarbee’s spirit was trapped in his device.
Not the Best of Plans My Dude
So Demantius is basically committing suicide here for no real reason.
Unless he was just already dying anyways when he made the transfer, then Demantius is drastically shortening his conscious life span. The monkey will live on, but he won’t.
So why? He had no way of knowing that the sundrop would become a person in the future, it’s completely coincidental that he met Rapunzel just at the right place and time to help her, and as stated above, Zhan Tiri was no longer a threat to him or the world since he imprisoned her and defeated his disciples.
Like what was his thought process here? “I just really, really want to be a monkey?”
Eugene Isn't Wrong
Look, I am a deeply religious person and I have faith in many things, but even I know that critical thought is necessary for basic survival and that scepticism is just plain common sense. Believing in something doesn’t mean shutting your brain off and never thinking for yourself.
Demantius has yet to give any reason for why Eugene and Rapunzel should trust him. Him saying ‘have faith’ repeatedly does nothing to instill confidence and in fact does the opposite. If you want to people to believe in you, especially in a dangerous situation that you dragged them into, then you need to earn that trust.
There’s a world of difference in assuming the best in people and being a fool, and Rapunzel is not the better person just because she blindly goes along with anything because she stubbornly wants to do whatever she wants and assumes she’s always right.
Eugene is Still Right
Is ‘Faith’ the new ‘Destiny’ now? Are we just assigning different meanings to random words in order to push the story’s narrative along?
This entire maze only involves solving puzzles, answering riddles, and a bit of running and climbing here and there. ‘Faith’ has absolutely nothing to do with it.
This theme doesn’t even work when you take into account the reveal that it’s Eugene who needs to have faith in Rapunzel. Because Rapunzel isn’t the only one doing these things and getting them through here.
In fact Demantius being here, and being the one who built the maze in the first place, kind of negates Rapunzel’s importance in this area. Secondly, Eugene is doing half the work anyways so it should be a message about having faith in each other. But they already have that so...yeah what’s the point of Demantius constantly bringing it up?
Why Are You Caring About Money While Stuck In a Death Trap?
You’re rich now, Eugene. You’re the future prince consort and live in a palace. As soon as you get back to Corona or a place that recognizes Corona as a kingdom you’ll have plenty of money to spare. But you can’t do that if you’re dead inside a maze.
Moreover, Rapunzel still has money on her. She just threw two coins in to the well; one for her and one for Demantius. You two live together! You’ve been traveling inside a caravan together for over a year now and neither of you work. Ergo, you should logically be sharing your finances at this point in time. Especially since that is what you’ll be doing anyways once you’re married for real, as you’ll both be heads of state.
That’s Now How Faith Works
Faith is evidence for things unseen, or to put it more accurately the evidence for things that are unprovable. God, death, the future, creation, souls, the meaning of life, ect, are all concepts that can’t be proven nor disproven. No one upon this earth will ever know for certain what happens after death, how the universe was made, or if there is any intelligent life out there beyond ourselves.
People don’t like the unknowable.
Believe systems of all kinds, whether they be religious or not, exist to bring us comfort when face with the dread of such existential questions. Even if that belief system is agnosticism itself.
Gravity, weight, and basic physics however are all provable concepts that have been around since Ancient Greece, if not longer. Man has always known that if you drop something it falls, even if they didn’t have the math to back it. It’s just a fact of life.
‘Faith’ isn’t going to stop Eugene from falling. It’s not going to make the bridge more sturdy. It’s not going to magically make him as light as a feather. It won’t turn the acid below him into water. “Faith’ can’t literally give you wings and make you fly; that’s just a metaphor.
What Demantius is promoting here isn’t faith. What he’s asking Eugene to do is to blindly follow his orders without question.
This is especially jarring when you consider that Demantius is supposed to be a famous scientist. He should know very well the importance of critical thought and that having faith doesn’t mean shutting your brain off.
The Scroll is Such a Let Down
We’ve spent a season and a half finding the pieces for this thing and it won't actually be relevant until the halfway through season three. Mostly because the one person who can translate it isn’t here.
On top of that, it’s no longer important outside of one episode. It’s an example of the payoff not living up to its hype.
So This Is a Lie
The scroll only contains four incantations on it, and one is on the back in invisible ink and not the fourth pecice itself. None of those incantations involve combining the moontsone and sundrop together. In fact, after using two of those incantations only once they’re never seen being used again for the rest of the series. Furthermore, once the moonstone and sundrop are combined they only allow the user to perform the healing and hurt incantations, which Rapunzel can do anyways without the moonstone.
Demantius wrote the dang scroll himself! He should very much know what is on it and what it does. This is yet another case of the writers not planning things ahead.
Being Good at Riddles Doesn’t Make You ‘Pure of Heart’
Being ‘pure of heart’ means that you are kind. One does not need ‘faith’ to be kind. Being kind is doing the right thing and helping others even if it doesn’t benefit you at all.
Not only does running through a maze not have anything to do with faith, it also has nothing to do with kindness.
The only thing it proves is that Rapunzel enjoys running through a maze, and will do so in addition to dragging others along with her regardless if those people want to do it or not.
That’s not being kind.
If anything Rapunzel has only proven thus far in the series that she is a very selfish person who shouldn’t be trusted with such grave responsibility.
But as already pointed out, Demantius doesn’t care about actual faith, kindness, or purity. He just wants blind obedience. He’s mistaken Rapunzel’s exuberant and stubborn nature for nativity; not realizing that her complancany is only because they both desire the same goal.
Had he asked Rapunzel to do something that she didn’t already want to do, she wouldn’t have been so ‘pure’ to his mind.
That Is a Very Valid Question
Eugene has a point. There’s no reason to go on this quest. In fact knowing about season three in hindsight, turning around now and not going to the Dark Kingdom would be the better option for everyone.
Cass couldn’t steal the moonstone. Zhan Tiri would never be freed. Corona will never be destroyed and the brotherhood never mind trapped. As for the black rocks they will just sit there impotently not doing anything.
Even freeing Quirin, not that Rapunzel cares, only requires the hurt incantation, which she already has.
The only problem is that Cassandra has ZT trapped in her mind but without the moonstone that has no consequences outside of Cass hearing a annoying voice in her head that she is perfectly capable of ignoring. And even that wouldn’t have happen if they had turned around after the Great Tree.
SHOW DON'T TELL
Nothing in the show back up what Demantius is saying here. We haven’t seen the rocks being active since season one. Even when Rapunzel was lollygagging around or going off the path.
When they do become active again in the next episode it’s to help her, and after that in season three it’s all Cassandra’s doing.
Also in season three Rapunzel is able to rebuild Old Corona around the rocks with little problem even though she didn’t reunite with the moonstone.
In a Competent Show This Would Be Foreshadowing. This Is Not a Competent Show.
I genuinely thought this was hinting at Moon Eugene, when I first saw this. Now couple that with the talk of ‘three betrayals’ earlier and I thought Eugene would be the final ‘betrayal’ and that a true love's kiss, after Rapunzel had apologized to him, is what would reunite the two powers and save the day.
I’m not going to fault the show for not living up to my expectations and predictions, but I will fault the series for failing to utilize Eugene properly and not working him into the main conflict. He’s the duel protagonist of the franchise. He should have just as much weight in the narrative the same as Rapunzel has.
Oh How I Hate Where This Arc Goes
What the show does wind up doing to Eugene however, is incredibly stupid and frustrating.
Remember how I said that ‘faith’ in this show is just blind obedience?
Yeaaaahhh....
That’s what Eugene takes from all of this. Not that he should support and believe in his partner, something that he already was doing by the way, but that he needs to be a doormat to her and her whims.
Like with Rapunzel yelling at Hook Hand in Brother’s Hook, this is the point where Eugene’s character starts to break. You just wouldn’t know it until after watching season three.
This Is Such a Lazy Cop-Out
Like the audience has these questions too. Neither us nor Rapunzel will ever have these questions answered. You just backed out of committing to any real answers because you didn’t have your story planned out like you should have.
Why Does Everyone Act Like There’s a Prophecy When There Isn’t Any Actual Prophecy?
Once again, Demantius had no way of knowing that the sundrop would become a person. No one did. There’s no prophecy and there’s zero explanation for his psychic abilities, which are inconsistent at best. In fact I don't think he does have such powers, otherwise he’d be more helpful inside the maze. I think those are reserved for Vigor only and we don’t know where he got them or if he even is a ‘real’ psychic.
Tangled the Series wants to act like it’s running on a predestination plot. That events must occur and will occur regardless of what actions you take to prevent it. Now ignoring how that causes problems with the characters’ agency for a moment; you can not have any predestination if there’s no actual destiny.
Chosen one plots often have prophecies for a reason. Predestination is there to evoke either tragedy that can’t be prevented or present consequences for if/when the main hero doesn’t follow along. Either way it’s there to establish conflict.
Everyone in TTS acts like there is a conflict when said conflict hasn’t actually been established!
This is writing 101. You need conflict. You need to establish shit. You can’t just pretend that a conflict exists where it doesn’t. ‘Fake till you make it’ doesn’t work in long term storytelling and television animation. It has to be pre-planned.
Also The Timeline Doesn’t Match
Demantius said that it was a millenia when the sundrop and moonstone fell.He also just said he’s been waiting for a millenia to ‘meet the sundrop’. Yet Demantius acted like the sundrop and the moonstone were already legends by the time he started to search for them. That means they had to be around longer than he has. It also brings us back to the first question of who wrote the incantations if he and Zhan Tiri never found them?
Believing In Someone Does Not Mean Shoving All the Work Onto Their Shoulders
You’re supposed to be in this together. Couples should work as a team. Both of your lives depend upon getting out of here so you should both be coming up with ideas and working together.
Not only does this miss the entire point of what ‘believing in your spouse’ actually means, it’s also incredibly unfair to both of these characters. It’s unfair to Rapunzel for put so much pressure and unrealistic expectations onto her and to have her be the person to carry both of them through when Eugene is perfectly capable of physically doing things. It’s also unfair to shove Eugene to the side and make him a useless character all of a sudden.
Rapunzel Does Nothing To Earn Such Blind Devotion
Rapunzel’s magical hair has nothing to do with Rapunzel as a person. It’s an entity separate from her being. Literally. The hair can move of its own accord as shown here and it’s possible to physically separate Rapunzel from her powers as seen in the finale.
Believing in Rapunzel should be about believing in who she is as a human being, about her individual character. It should not be because she has magic glowing hair.
Not only is this a betrayal of Rapunzel and Eugene’s relationship and why they came to love one another in the first place, but it’s also a betrayal of Rapunzel’s growth as a character. It’s not only Eugene who blindly kisses her ass after this point, it’s everyone, even though she gives them little reason too.
This the Last We’ll See of Vigor and Madame Canardist
Three episodes spent establishing these characters and now they’re just gone for no reason. They’re never seen of nor mentioned again beyond a single meta joke. Despite the main conflict revolving around Demantius and them both having the closest connection to that character.
This Is Bad Foreshadowing, But At Least It’s Actual Foreshadowing
Up till now any ‘foreshadowing’ we got for Cass’s villain arc has been confined to poorly thought out background images; the painting of the moon, the broken mirror in Gothel’s tower, and I won’t even dignify Chris’s bullshit about her handmaiden dress being blue.
Not to mention all of that was only in season one. Outside of her conversation with Eugene about their parents, way back in Cassandra vs. Eugene, we haven’t had any real foreshadowing until we hit the Great Tree.
Since the Great Tree we’ve only had a couple of bitch fights with Raps, which I personally don't consider real foreshadowing since no ill will was attached to those, and her glaring angrily at Rapunzel after escaping the shell house.
In light of that, this scene is at least genuine foreshadowing, it’s just poorly done foreshadowing.
While the other attempts at foreshadowing were too subtle, this one is too obvious. It gives the game away too early because there’s no other viable options within Rapunzel’s group. Adira comes closest and she’s not actually here and not really considered a friend by Rapunzel herself.
So what winds up happening is that Cass’s arc feels rushed despite being planned since the beginning.
Conclusion
I spent three days fighting tumblr to get this review posted! Appreciate it!
As for the episode itself, it’s fun to watch in isolation, but it’s such a let down knowing what’s to come from it all.
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One Brain Cell Theories: Chapter 17 & 18
There are a few things that may confirm my suspicions and the new chapters have reinforced it.
SPOILERS AHEAD, please click at your own risk and any input/more theories are welcome! I’m going to try and make this a series.
This is also a relatively long read so grab some snacks! We diving in boys!!
(This is one of my many theories. One day, I’ll be able to write down what’s happening in my head.)
TLDR; HUNNY we have to talk about the other human
A few things to remember before I dive in:
Solomon has a pact with Barbatos. Solomon has a ring of wisdom and is known to make a pact with larger and more powerful demons. We all know he lowkey wants a pact with Lucifer.
Lucifer told us not to trust Solomon in Chapter 2
There’s a possibility Barbatos has tried to poison us with tea, a Mandragora blend. Mandragora has the potential to be fatal, one of the most notable symptoms are hyperactivity and hallucinations.
When Barbatos sent us back in time, we found out he is extremely OP. He even has the power to look into the past and future.
Okay now onwards to the only viable explanation I can think of: Barbatos and Solomon are scheming a takeover. (or this really is a messed up “prove yourself” challenge from Diavolo)
Let’s begin to when shit started to get real.
A sorta shortened (?) recap of everything that has happened thus far, please feel free to skip if you don’t need it:
After almost confessing your love to Lucifer and dying in the process Belphie comes down the stairs and its the big reveal, everyone essentially gasps in shock. Beel, Belph, and MC run away to Luke’s joint only to get busted by Dia & Barbatos and they drag away Belphie to throw him in jail for treason (and its implied he gon’ die). Lost and afraid, Beel and MC run back to the House of Lamentation. There we have a really heartfelt scene with all the demon boys and we are determined to storm into Dia’s castle and solve the situation.
Arriving at Dia’s castle, the pair say they were expecting us. Lucifer stood up to Diavolo & he says please, LOUD AUDIENCE GASP. No matter how much we try to reason, the only way Belphie will be released is if MC goes back into the past alone and figure out who actually opening Belphie’s door. No reason is truly given to this. Diavolo explains that Barbatos has multiple abilities, some of this includes viewing the past & future and, most importantly, time travel.
As we continue to Barbatos’ room, he is super happy (and creepy) but gives us a very dire warning - do not interact with the past in any way or it will alternate the current timeline. This includes speaking to anyone or being involved in any type of action. If we want to come back to the present, we have to go through the same door that we end up entering through. Then off we go and we land in the middle of Mammon’s room with ALL OF THE BROTHERS sans Lucifer and Belphie. And things go haywire.
As we are running to go up to the attic, we are forced to hide in Lilith’s room, where we have a flashback (or hallucination) of playing hide and seek. Flashback Levi reminds us to go find Belphie. During this time, it is revealed that MC may have been the one to open Belphie’s door and tldr; Belphie kills MC.
As we lay dying, we are somehow saved by Lilith (our long lost aunt twice removed apparently) and we are outside of our own body...in another one. Dia and Barbatos stroll in saying they knew this would happen & Barbatos did us a favor and revived us using an alternate timeline MC (what). Everyone is pumped we have like 1/10,000,000 genes related to human Lillith and this is their closure.
Everything seems to be looking up and MC patches things up between Belphie and the other brothers. They throw her a joint party with Diavolo’s birthday party & give her the sweetest gifts. At the end of Chapter 18, Belphie creates a pact with MC.
This is all fine and dandy but...is it really?
A few things really popped out during these two recent chapters:
Belphie is by our side the entire two chapters. Whether this is supposed to signify a new start or something else, it isn’t entirely clear.
Beel and Belph are the only ones that text us during this time. Belphie texts us after every chapter moment.
Solomon runs into Belph and MC while shopping, randomly asking Belph if he plans on making a pact with MC. Then brazenly offers to make a pact with him instead. Belph refuses vehemently but looks at MC for a reaction. Solomon notices this.
As Belph gives us a gift of himself (lol same), he mentions how he’s doing this for us and not because of Lilith.
In the game itself, there’s a completely different game style. MC has more options to speak and the dialogue options have become more brazen. Almost as if...this is a different personality (or could signify MC is more comfortable with them in general). It felt off playing the last two chapters though, for me at least.
Now onwards to the theory: Solomon is our main antagonist.
In Chapter 2, we are formally introduced to Solomon, the other exchange student. Although the interaction is rushed, we can sense out two things: he’s insanely smart and he’s already comfortable around demons. As he runs off to class, MC runs into Lucifer and we learn a bit more about this mystery boy.
Apparently, Solomon is a wizard and has a ring of wisdom, which makes him incredibly dangerous. He has pacts with more than 70 demons (I think the exact number was 78 but I might be wrong). Among these demons are Asmodeus and Barbatos. At the end of Lucifer’s explanation, he adds that MC shouldn’t trust Solomon.
Historically and culturally, Solomon is most known as the “Wise King.” He is also regarded as a fantastical figure, someone who is known to have powers over both angels and demons.
“According to the Rabbinical literature, on account of his modest request for wisdom only, Solomon was rewarded with riches and an unprecedented glorious realm, which extended over the upper world inhabited by the angels and over the whole of the terrestrial globe with all its inhabitants, including all the beasts, fowl, and reptiles, as well as the demons and spirits. His control over the demons, spirits, and animals augmented his splendor, the demons bringing him precious stones, besides water from distant countries to irrigate his exotic plants. The beasts and fowl of their own accord entered the kitchen of Solomon's palace, so that they might be used as food for him, and extravagant meals for him were prepared daily by each of his 700 wives and 300 concubines, with the thought that perhaps the king would feast that day in her house.”
Additionally, he was given a ring, known as the “Seal of Solomon,” which gave him the ability to trap demons under his control.
A magic ring called the "Seal of Solomon" was supposedly given to Solomon and gave him power over demons or Jinn. The magical symbol said to have been on the Seal of Solomon which made it efficacious is often considered to be the Star of David. Asmodeus, king of demons, was one day, according to the classical Rabbis, captured by Benaiah (my note: Benaiah is a human, he was a soldier that helped Solomon rise to power) using the ring, and was forced to remain in Solomon's service. The Seal of Solomon, in some legends known as the Ring of Aandaleeb, was a highly sought after symbol of power. In several legends, different groups or individuals attempted to steal it or attain it in some manner.
And this is a potential plot in our story.
MC is, of course, the main protagonist of the story. We typically are. But there was never a clear antagonist. Or maybe he was playing along with our situation, a wolf in sheep's clothing?
We all know Levi’s strangely long anime names are a strange foreshadowing of the future. We have:
Though all titles seem to have a connection with our current plot, I’m going to focus on the first one, which seems to have the most implications regarding our current situation. I also have a sneaking suspicion that the second image with the two titles might be a backstory for Barbatos but that’s another story that I cannot fully prove yet. The third title also refers to a legend regarding Asmo and Solomon.
The first title seems...has quite obvious implications when recounting the events of chapters 15 - 18. Halfway through our journey, here we are, thrust into an alternate timeline, alone and scared but we end up making a pact with...our sixth demon? And this isn’t just a regular demon, this is one of the deadly sins. So now we have 6/7 demon brothers under our power, some of the most powerful demons in Devildom. It’s alarming how quickly MC is able to gain the trust of these demons, effectively creating pacts in the course of...maybe a few months?
What alarms me the most is how fast Belphie turned from, quite literally, killing us to making a pact with us in a course of 3 chapters. This brings me to my first suspicion in SoloBarb’s plot: This timeline is the only timeline where MC is able to make a pact with Belphie. All other timelines do not reflect this. This placement was 100% intentional from the start.
It is a known fact that Barbatos is able to view time and its events. It’s revealed this extends to alternate timelines when saving MC. If he is this powerful, wouldn’t he be able to simply look back in the past and find out who opened Belph’s door without the need for MC? This would be the easiest and most direct solution.
SIDENOTE: Keep in mind, part of the reason Barbatos could not stop the Belphie situation from happening is due to Diavolo’s restriction. Barbatos states that “Diavolo has forbidden him from using his powers freely.” HOWEVER, it then leads to the question: who really has the most control over Barbatos, Diavolo or Solomon? Traditionally, when pacts are made, it means that the demon is completely under the control of the individual but does it outweigh an authority figure? In my opinion, Solomon technically has the most power fo Barbatos. Solomon’s pact with Barbatos = a magically restrictive bond while Diavolo’s rule over Barbatos = a matter of respect of authority. There is no physically restrictive bond Diavolo has on Barbatos.
Also considering how cunning Solomon is, he could have easily manipulated Diavolo into this entire plan as well.
In addition, Solomon’s strangely direct question, asking Belphie if he was going to make a pact with MC, was alarming. It was as if he was proving his own theory: the demon brothers will make a pact with MC and never him. He seemed almost satisfied with this answer and didn’t seem to protest against it too much. Couple this with Solomon’s constant approval when MC makes pacts with the demon brothers during her stay, its...disconcerting.
Omg he even says “If you change your mind” what kind of creepy
If we consider all of this, it truly does seem as if Solomon is our potential antagonist. It seems to me that everything is pointing at him. He’s quiet enough for us to overlook and disregard as a side character, though he seems to have a certain unnerving edge to him. My god, the demons are even wary of him. If that wasn’t the biggest tip-off, idk what is.
Also physically, we have yet to hear his entire backstory in the game or have a chapter dedicated to him. So far, in terms of side characters, we have ample interaction with Diavolo and Luke (still waiting on Simeon) but no deep dives into Solomon and Barbatos. (Which means >.> we’ll get them in later chapters)
This brings me to the next question: so how is MC a chess piece in his plot?
Hey, remember that RANDOM moment Solomon lent out his power during Diavolo’s house party. AND NO ONE QUESTIONED IT. Honestly, what the hell was that all about?
In regards to this, why did he do this? Some answers include: he did it for shits and giggles, he wanted to test out the theory of us having powerful magic in our bloodline, or he wanted a test run. Yeah. You heard me. A test run.
Prior to this, MC was unable to truly summon a demon on their own. The most she could do was give out a pretty strong verbal command and the demon (Mammon lol) must carry it out. However, MC cannot fully utilize the pact’s potential due to her lack of innate magic ability.
This is both an affirmation and leverage for Solomon’s situation. On one end, it’s confirmed that MC has huge magic potential and can properly use it when needed. On the other end, this can be a bargaining tool for the future...
Which could lead to a large plot development: Once MC gains all seven pacts (c’mon, it is going to be impossible to not make a pact with Lucifer), what will they use it for?
MY PREDICTION: Solomon will attempt to manipulate MC into his control. Magic is powerful in this game but so are humans. A human was the reason Lilith was going to be punished by God. Solomon, a human, has power and control over 70+ demons. Belphegor was set on destroying only the human world. MC has pacts with the, arguably, the strongest demons in Devildom who are also formerly fallen angels.
From what I’ve seen so far, nothing is more powerful than a pact. And nothing is more powerful than human manipulation.
What will he use MC’s powers for? ...I have a sneaking feeling it might be to overthrow Diavolo based on Solomon’s cultural legend. Solomon famously has power over Asmo, the king of demons. Of course, we know the Asmo in our game is not the king but Diavolo is. Obey me! has a funny way of interpreting these legends in a unique way. Who knows if they split up Asmo into two different entities.
but who tf really knows what’s going on
BUT
I guess we’ll have to see what happens in later chapters. Of course, this is all really a far fetch theory but there seem to be so many underlying connections to Solomon in the game. I mean ffs, he’s the only other human here and he’s SOLOMON. The very character itself is so suspicious.
THIS ENTIRE THING COULD ALSO BE A MESSED UP CHALLENGE FROM DIAVOLO
OR SOME CRAZY HALLUCINATION CAUSED BY BARBATOS GIVING US THAT SUS TEA BLEND
But tbh who really knows what’s happening. The only confirmed thing is that we’re still on this alternate timeline (that MC totally messed up) and we haven’t returned to our OG timeline. lucifer please pick me up I’m scared
If you made it this far, you are SUCH A TROOP. I hope this actually has a consistent flow and it makes sense. If you have any questions or observations I didn’t include please feel free to message me! I’m open to discussion!
A big s/o to wikipedia for the quick info on Solomon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon#Seal_of_Solomon) and a thank you to @the-orizon for the screenshots & amazing info! Love you!
#i need to sleep#i did this instead of work#lol#obey me shall we date#obey me#obey me! shall we date?#obey me theories#obey me! theory#Solomon is sus#obey me solomon#obey me! solomon#obey me belphegor#obey me belphie#obey me lucifer#obey me lucy#obey me diavolo#obey me barbatos#its always the butler#obey me leviathan#obey me levi#one brain cell theories#obey me spoilers#long post
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okay i finally (finally!) finished gr*duation after what felt like three hundred years and i have many thoughts that i just.. want to get down to process my own very VERY mixed feelings on this season
overall it was a fun romp at the end with some highly enjoyable goofs. i enjoy fitz maplecourt so much & relished griffin being able to do a character. the firbolg lives in my heart. argo is great.
that said, the plot was, overall, messy as shit, considering at the end i still had very little clear idea of a) what exactly order/chaos wanted to achieve and b) why the fuck they were even doing what they were doing. we spent all that time on a hog heist that, in the end, had... very little to do with what was going on at the time. (would the narrative have been significantly changed without the hog heist? if, instead, hog hadn’t responded due to their internal greed/indifference - something that’s already been established in world and isn’t a stretch to imagine - and thus had the exact same ramifications and end result as the heist gave us? like don’t get me wrong, the heist has some of my favorite goofs in it, but it’s essentially like six episodes of nonsense that, in the end, has almost nothing to do with the main plot & whose end goal could have been summed up in the finale.) the whiplash of suddenly taking gray on as an ally to we’re heisting hog for reasons to actually the real threat was the demons at the castle attacking now for reasons is... bad plot. (look at how many times i have to say ‘reasons’ bc there’s no real in-universe or external force that explains why something is happening at that specific time.)
i haven’t listened to the final ttazz about grad but it kind of felt like travis just gave up on his narrative arc and this sloppy plot mess is what we have left. like, okay order/chaos is a cool concept but what were they actually trying to achieve? why could order just be booted out of their shared body and why didn’t they just do that instead of having that whole climatic battle? why both using fitzroy at all for anything if they could always just take over the world with demons? why did we have all these characters allied together if in the end we were going to op the three pc and have them fight basically one-on-one with order? why did the commodore suddenly and inexplicably switch sides after working with the boys literally like three episodes ago other than to shoehorn in a conclusion to argo’s arc that, ultimately, fell short bc it was so utterly anti-climatic?
and like!!! maybe some of these questions were answered but none of them to an extent that felt grounded enough in the narrative that they made sense, lingered, or didn’t feel like a macguffin to cover a sudden plot twist or plot hole. a lot of plot felt sacrificed for cool concepts and fun character twists and i get that, but when all you have is cool concepts and fun character twists, there’s no real foundation for it to rest on.
i AM going to compare to amnesty bc i do think amnesty is the strongest arc plot-wise of the three major seasons of taz. balance recovers in the back half but the first three parts are very loosely connected to the major plot and then there’s that huge info dump in crystal kingdom so like - it’s also messy there, even though it manages to make it work in a way that graduation doesn’t. but amnesty is tightly plotted from the beginning - there’s a clear trajectory, foreshadowing built in, characters have actual arcs that make sense, most of the major villains and antagonists have motivations that make sense and even the act three twist is something that’s reasonably built in from the beginning. even if it wasn’t ALL planned (such as billy the goat’s involvement) it’s clear that new elements were worked into an already existing framework with an eye towards cohesiveness. i know people complain about the main three not being “together” enough or “friendly” enough with each other (as if that’s all that matters in a good story lmao) but i also think that amnesty has the strongest character arcs of the three seasons because we do see all three major characters start in one place and end up somewhere radically different, make movements in cohesive and reasonable ways, and change in a way that is not off-the-wall or just for a fun twist.
graduation... doesn’t really do that. the main three are a fun time but in the epilogue i was genuinely struggling to get why fitz decided to suddenly be a lawyer or why the firbolg, who has never shown any interest in having a name before that moment (quite the opposite, really) is suddenly emotional over having a name. argo, who has spent all of his time honoring his mother, decides to... run a cruise ship? and even leaving aside the epilogues, these characters... don’t really have an arc. argo is the closest and even his emotional narrative falls flat bc the commodore’s ending is so anti-climatic and bc, other than the trial scene, he and the commodore largely don’t interact. if the commodore had played a larger part in the actual narrative maybe it would have felt less like an aborted attempt at an arc but. he didn’t. fitz also has an attempt at an arc but it also falls flat bc so much of fitz has remained unchanged from when we first meet him. he’s a little more empathetic and better at magic, but how has fitz really changed since the first episode?
(tangent: thinking again about justin having to ask why the firbolg was doing what he was doing during that whole dog-is-the-headmaster reveal portion, to the point of asking travis point-blank why his character was doing the things he was doing. thinking again of how travis just told the boys point-blank that this side character they couldn’t even remember the name of was their best friend. and then again about how that “best friend” just like... fucking disappeared from the narrative after that, never to be seen or heard from again until the epilogue twenty episodes later for two brief seconds. in fact pretty much every character except rainier just disappears from the narrative at a certain point and i’m pretty sure it’s in reaction to the complaints about the numerous characters - but the answer to those complaints wasn’t to just mysteriously cut everyone else from the narrative without warning or reason laksfsafjlfj. what happened to that one villain posh guy from the first episodes???? what about the accounting owl teacher??????)
this is just my rambly processing of grad bc i’m trying to figure out what about it fell so dramatically flat for me that it was a literal slog to get through most of it even though i found the characters themselves delightful and enjoyed the mcelroy goofs as much as ever. and i think the thing is... for some listeners, the most important thing is going to be the interaction with the players or the goofs or how friendly and found family-ish the main group is with each other. which is great and fine! but for me, a good story or good character arcs or something well thought-out and plotted out is always going to be more engaging, no matter how much i like the found family or how much i like the goofs. it’s why i struggled to get why people complained so bitterly about amnesty - who cares if the main three are always together or getting along really well or being friends if they’re having interesting, satisfying character arcs and personal growth set in an interesting, dynamic plot? in graduation, that foundation is just missing and i’m sure part of it was due to the unnecessarily vitriolic backlash against travis (that’s enough to steal anyone’s thunder) but also just like... an underdeveloped plot in an overdeveloped world, a trap so many authors have fallen into. (like travis can describe in minute detail the inner workings of hog that are only applicable for about five episodes but chaos/order’s motivations are largely handwaved despite them being the central antagonists for the entire season.)
anyway. once again, great goofs. i would die for fitzroy maplecourt. but i can’t imagine ever listening to the whole thing again or even more than a couple of episodes here or there (ironically of the hog heist, which, despite how unnecessary it was, was a fun romp and had some of my favorite moments. so, you know. sometimes unnecessary is still good lmao).
#also if literally anyone says that it's all bc of travis' adhd or w/e One More Time i will lose it#look i also have adhd and i am still capable of writing a cohesive plot okay??? having mental illness does not#somehow prevent you from being able to write a cohesive and well-thought-out story#i do think he got some very unnecessary backlash and a lot of the problems in gr*d were also present in early balance#the difference is that balance... balanced out eventually and grew stronger#whereas gr*d collapsed in on itself and became a mess plot-wise#and even tho i enjoyed the characters i felt no real emotional investment in their arcs bc their arcs were... not really arcs#anyway i dont regret listening to it BUT it was a slog & i dont think i'll ever really relisten#taz
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Thoughts : WandaVision [Disney+, Episodes 4-6] (2021)
After a heavily stylized trio of opening episodes, WandaVision has officially put the pedal to the metal with its next trio of episodes. The connections to the larger MCU have been firmly identified and established, which has generated a mountain of new questions, speculations and assumptions about where WandaVision, and in turn, the MCU as a whole are headed in the next few phases.
Editor’s note : This show is jumping in quality from episode to episode, and based on the response to the last blog entry on WandaVision, I am considering giving the final 3 episodes their own entries. If the likes on this blog entry surpass those of the previous WandaVision entry, I will do dedicated breakdowns of the final 3 episodes on the date that they are released.
THE STORY THUS FAR
Episode 04 : We Interrupt This Program
In the wake of The Blip, Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) is returned to the hospital where she once sat by the side of her mother’s side. Upon returning to reality, Monica learns that Maria Rambeau has passed away due to cancer while she was gone, which devastates her to no end. Monica returns to S.W.O.R.D. in hopes of finding peace, but she is immediately thrust into the mysteries surround the town of Westview, New Jersey. CIA Agent Jimmy Woo (Randall Park) meets Monica outside of Westview, where he clues her in on his missing witness that was once in the town, as well as the anomaly of amnesia that has taken over those in the surrounding communities. Monica and Jimmy approach the city only to discover it is covered by a mysterious invisible barrier, and while inspecting the barrier, Monica is pulled in. S.H.I.E.L.D. calls in the Army, the FBI and a number of specialists in various fields, including astrophysicist Dr. Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), who stumbles upon a mysterious signal that allows those outside the barrier to view the events within in a sitcom format.
Episode 05 : On a Very Special Episode...
Wanda and Vision are doing their best to adjust to raising Tommy (Baylen Bielitz) and Billy (Gavin Borders), but find themselves overwhelmed until an overly enthusiastic Agnes steps in to help. While Vision questions Wanda on the recent strangeness, Tommy (Jett Klyne) and Billy (Julian Hilliard) suddenly jump to the age of ten, further confounding Vision. Outside of The Hex (a nickname for the anomaly surrounding Westview coined by Darcy), S.H.I.E.L.D. continues to gather intel and ramp up efforts to collect information in the wake of Monica Rambeau’s return, but after an attempt to communicate to Wanda directly goes awry, Wanda presents herself directly to S.H.I.E.L.D. with a warning to stay away. Vision has an encounter with Norm (Asif Ali) that causes him to reach his breaking point, and while he is confronting Wanda later that night, a knock on the door reveals that Pietro (Evan Peters) has somehow returned... but something is different about him...
Episode 06 : All-New Halloween Spooktacular!
It’s Halloween in Westview, and the Maximoff family is preparing for a night of fun and adventure. Tommy is excited for all of the candy he will be collecting, but Billy finds himself concerned with a number of issues, chiefly the surprise emergence of Pietro onto the scene and the troubled waters flowing between Wanda and Vision. Wanda attempts to gather the family for their night out, but Vision states that he has obligations with the Neighbor Watch, which disappoints Wanda. Pietro offers to step in, and his mischievous influence leads to Tommy and Billy’s discovery of their powers. Outside of The Hex, tensions are running deeper between Agent Rambeau and Agent Hayward, and as a result, Hayward expels Rambeau, Jimmy and Darcy from the camp. The trio manages to sneak back in, and while Rambeau and Jimmy head to meet a colleague of Rambeau’s who can assist them in entering The Hex, Darcy breaks into Hayward’s digital files, uncovering a goldmine of shadiness. Vision, using his Neighborhood Watch story as cover, attempts to investigate the outskirts of Westview, but after breaking through the outer wall of The Hex he finds himself being literally torn apart as he is pulled back in, all in front of the eyes of Hayward and his team. Billy picks up on what is happening, and in a fit of desperation, Wanda makes a move to save Vision that drastically alters the entire scenario surrounding The Hex.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Beyond The Trailer YouTube Channel
New Rockstars YouTube Channel
I was unfamiliar with Beyond The Trailer prior to Episode 03 of WandaVision, but the discovery of the channel has provided me with sharp insight, as well as a bit of humor, and Grace Randolph is the only creator to my knowledge that is providing live reactions on episode premier dates.. New Rockstars and Erik Voss continue to mostly knock their analysis of the show out the box. Oddly enough, however, I have found myself pulling back from the YouTube camps of speculation as the series progresses. This is not a shot at any of the YouTubers that are dedicating their time and attention to the show, but rather a testament to the skill with which WandaVision was crafted, and the compelling mystique it has generated on its own.
THOUGHTS ON THE SHOW
In all honesty, I have no idea how this overarching story of Wanda, Vision, the town of Westview, Monica Rambeau and S.W.O.R.D. are going to resolve themselves, and I couldn’t love that fact any more than I already do. The amount of detail infused into this show is insane : the way that the aspect ratio continues to shift depending on the “reality” we are viewing is a stroke of simple genius, the use of CMBR waves creating a television signal is a very subtle subtextual reminder of what it was like to take in entertainment prior to the advent of streaming, and the amount of Easter Eggs being dropped would put the Easter Bunny to shame. Just when we think we’ve got things figured out enough to hazard a guess, we are thrown monumental curveballs, and the whole while characters like Darcy, Jimmy Woo and Pietro are asking the same questions we are as viewers.
Wanda Maximoff had been using a very restrained, comical version of her powers up until this group of episodes, but now that her Chaos Magic has revealed itself, many are speculating that she may actually be the antagonist of the series, rather than the protagonist. It is clear that Wanda is controlling the majority of the Westview anomaly with her powers, but certain occurrences such as the birth of Tommy and Billy, their sudden aging or the appearance of the X-Men Quicksilver denotes that someone else is pulling strings that impact Wanda’s reality as well. It is also crystal clear that her anger and emotions are being held at bay by the thinnest of barriers, and with each step closer to her losing control, the real world ramifications get murkier and more dangerous.
What on Earth is going on with Vision? We are given a brief glimpse of the actual “reality” behind Wanda’s created “reality”, and the most jaw-dropping revelation up to that time is the seemingly dead Vision interacting with Wanda in her created world. He is no longer in possession of the Mind Stone, and the infamous damage to his head (courtesy of Thanos) is still very much present. S.W.O.R.D. acting Director Tyler Hayward decided to reveal that S.W.O.R.D. was storing Vision’s corpse at the time that Wanda supposedly broke in and stole it, but even the validity of that is questionable considering how unlikeable Hayward chooses to be. I am also curious if the reason that everyone acts so cagey around Vision is because they see him as a corpse. Vision also seems to have holes in his overall awareness, including no knowledge of the Avengers, which makes you wonder who he truly is on top of what is going on with him.
Monica Rambeau seems to be holding back from exerting control over the situation at hand, especially in light of the fact that she’s the only person who has been on both sides of The Hex and has flatly declared that Wanda is the one in control. There is also an intentional glossing over of key things revolving around Monica that continue to stand out, chiefly among them being her lab readings that appear to have been whited out by a bright light, and the caginess exhibited whenever any references to Captain Marvel are made. She is also clearly a thorn in the side of S.W.O.R.D., and in spite of her connection to S.W.O.R.D. originator Maria Rambeau, it is clear that her presence is not welcome in the camp investigating The Hex.
Dr. Darcy Lewis and Jimmy Woo are quickly becoming not only the fan favorites of the show, but the pairing we never knew that we needed. Darcy’s massive intellect, wealth of knowledge and razor-sharp sarcastic wit pair brilliantly with Woo’s empathic, perceptive abilities and kind-hearted, wholesome nature. With the mystery falling squarely into their laps, they have become the perfect guides through the madness for curious viewers, as many of their questions and concerns mirror those of the audience.
Pietro Maximoff may be the most intriguing appearance of any character in the MCU due to the possible implications that lie with his emergence. Is he actually Quicksilver? The alarms sounded during his appearance, so did he bring himself into The Hex, or was he allowed in by someone? If he is not the Pietro that we are familiar with, and he is playing games in regards to whether or not he is the real deal, then why does Wanda briefly see him just as dead as she sees Vision? Many YouTubers are speculating that the progression of decades used by the sitcom format is intentionally mirroring the decade jumps in the latest series of X-Men films, which is possibly causing some sort of fold in space-time that is combining alternate realities... whatever the explanation is for the emergence of the Evan Peters version of Quicksilver, I’ve never seen anything like this in media, and am wholly invested in seeing where this stroke of genius leads us.
What exactly are Tyler Hayward‘s intentions with Vision, The Hex and Wanda? Why is he being so cagey with information and so ruthless with his control? What is his deal in regards to the clear-cut resentment he has for Monica Rambeau and her connections to those with powers, seemingly specifically Carol Danvers? Is he the true villainous antagonist, or is he just a pawn in a much bigger scheme?
THE QUESTIONS
- If Evan Peters is now Pietro Maximoff outside of the Fox X-Men franchise, is this the indicator that mutants now exist in the MCU? Or is this simply a meta-glitch to setup the rumors of similar occurrences that will happen in the upcoming Spider-man film?
- Why is Dottie still not on the board of identified individuals trapped in The Hex? Even Agnes is on the board, though she does not have a real-life identifier as of yet, which makes her mysterious as well.
- Who are the kids in the commercials, and what is their tie to the mysterious pair that appear in every commercial?
- Is all the talk of S.W.O.R.D.’s astronaut program and specialized aerospace engineers a way to set up the eventual introduction of Reed Richards (and eventually the Fantastic Four) into the MCU? Is this who Monica and Jimmy Woo are heading to meet in Episode 06?
- Is all of the hexagon imagery a way to establish a motif of evolving DNA? Does Vision mentioning the Charles Darwin book Descent of Man push this motif into the realms of mutation by way of genetic evolution?
- As Darcy mentions in Episode 06, Monica Rambeau’s two journeys through The Hex have fundamentally changed her down to the molecular level... are we seeing the emergence of Photon, and on a bigger scale, the mode in which Mutants will be created?
- Why is Marvel so good at cliffhanger endings? The last two episodes, in particular, have made waiting a week for the continuation of the story one of the most difficult things I have ever done. I’m hard-pressed to think of a show since The Sopranos that has kept me this anxious from week to week in anticipation of what will happen next.
#ChiefDoomsay#DOOMonFILM#Disney+#WandaVision#ElizabethOlsen#PaulBettany#KathrynHahn#TeyonahParis#KatDennings#RandallPark#JolenePurdy#AsifAli#DavidLengel#AmosGlick#EmmaCauflfieldFord#DavidPayton#RandyOglesby#RoseBlanco#IthamarEnriquez#VictoriaBlade#BaylenBieletz#GavinBorders#JettKlyne#JulianHilliard#EvanPeters#WeInterruptThisProgram#OnAVerySpecialEpisode
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Let's continue looking at some questions that we might ask if our story isn't working. How do we take a story that's just okay to something that really jumps off the page?
One of the keys to make a story engaging over the long-term is to ensure that it oscillates between highs and lows. A story should swing between hope and fear, high and low, success and failure. So the first question is: Does your story do this? Do we get moments of hope and encouragement in between moments of dread and loss? A lack of this oscillation can result in a story that feels monotone (whether it’s filled with only good news or only bad news).
Is every loss being first setup by emphasizing the value of the thing that will be lost? This is key for highlighting the emotional impact of the loss. Is every opportunity first emphasized by dramatizing a great lack of void that this opportunity may fill?
Next, is the story turning in new directions? Are the characters receiving information that makes them adjust their expectations and plans? Typically these turning points take the form of either problems or opportunities. If a story doesn't introduce information that forces characters to reassess their plans or goals (whether for good or bad), it has a chance of feeling like it's dragging on.
The next question is whether there are real consequences in your story. Do the decisions and actions of your characters actually matter? Or are "permanent" decisions being undone? Are people being inexplicably healed, brought back from the dead, falsely killed, or is everything being revealed to be a dream? While these techniques certainly have their place in stories, using them too much or as a crutch to get out of a sticky situation can make the audience feel cheated. When consequences aren't permanent, it feels like the character's journey doesn't matter and is thus not worth following.
And finally, is the story escalating as it progresses toward the climax? In other words, are the decisions getting more difficult? Are the problems getting larger and the opportunities getting more enticing? Are the plans falling apart at the same time that the antagonist's power appears to be increasing? Are the situations getting more precarious as the characters continue to run out of options and hope? Ensure that your story is crescendoing in drama as it nears its end.
Is your story oscillating between highs and lows? Is your story turning in new directions? Do the consequences of decisions actually matter? Is the story escalating as it moves toward its end? These are important questions to ask of a story that doesn't quite feel like it's popping off the page yet.
#writingtips#creative writing#screenwriting#writers on tumblr#writers#writing#writerblr#writing advice#writing community#writing resources
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Worldbuilding Analysis: Horizon Zero Dawn
Horizon Zero Dawn combines high and low tech and the interaction thereof to build and explore a world at the perfect pace for those playing through it.
The game opens with the main character, an outcast by the name of Aloy, finding a focus, an important relic and piece of technology from the old world, an augmented reality device that displays important information about other nearby technology from the old world.
Thus begins the dichotomy between the old world and the new as shown within the game. The player is always given enough time to lose themselves in the lower levels of technology that much of the game is based around, before the next dose of sci-fi. Each additional piece of information for the reasons behind the robotic life, straight up war machines, and other elements of high technology, is given at a pace that grows with the world. This can also be seen in more subtle ways with the open world. One example of this is that the player begins the game with the Nora people, who are less technologically advanced than the other civilizations shown within the base game, living primarily as hunter gatherers rather than city builders or farmers. Another example that’s more obvious is the progression of the machines and robotic life shown. At first, the player sees robots that imitate other creatures, though they are robotic, they still emulate the behaviors of lower tech things, ie living things.
After the player has had time to grow accustomed to this form of robotic life, newer forms are shown to the player. More warlike machines that lack any easy animal analogue, excepting maybe that of a giant insect, which is still “unfamiliar” as insects and arthropods tend to be one of the most “alien” looking lifeforms as far as most humans are concerned. The less mammalian the robots look, generally the more advanced they are.
Note that the above machine, while still vaguely lifelike, there are elements of a scorpion there. It is much less obvious. This goes up to the next step with the AIs that created the world of the game from the ashes of old humanity’s failing. While they have human voices and holograms to further anthropomorphize them, they are hard AIs, not even a robotic body with animalistic traits, they are the conscious remnants of the old world and the most high tech, revealed after the more “mundane” machines.
Though this is an example from the expansion, it still shows an AI as a truly inhuman being of data. Additionally, we have the AI antagonist of the main game, which is usually shown as a chaotic red and black series of wires and energy. Within the game and its expansion we have gone from humans and smaller biological organisms (pigs and other things we see in gameplay) to machines emulating biological life, to combat robots, and to AIs.
The outlined progression is interwoven with the low tech of the rest of the setting. The player takes time to gather healing herbs and hunt down biological critters in between larger fights. Humans with lower tech weapons make up fights of their own, and interactions with other humans and their cultures keep the plot (and player) grounded in the world while the above technology is introduced to the player and their influence on the world is revealed.
The ways that humans are forced to use low tech to fight or otherwise interact with the machines as animals is also used to marry the two concepts together through gameplay. Again, the player is grounded in the low tech base of the setting by having to take down these mechanical monstrosities with snares, arrows, and general tactics. Large machines must be ambushed, forced into traps, and systematically taken down with arrows. And machines introduced earlier respond by throwing their bulk around, reacting like one would expect ice age megafauna to react. As the game and technology progresses flame breath, guns, energy shields, and other science fiction elements are added to amp up the “otherness” of the other machine varieties as opposed to the ones that imitate biological organisms more closely.
One important story beat relatively early in the game is an event called the Proving,
which is an opportunity for the main character to earn a place amongst the tribe they are an outcast of. One element of the Proving is a hunt for a specific kind of machine as would be seen in a coming of age ceremony if the machine was a deer. The integration of the machines as simply normal “wildlife” to the characters within the world constantly keeps the world balanced between the science fiction nature of the machines and the grounded tribal culture of the humans in the world.
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V Watches MagiReco - Episode 6 Review
*Spoilers for Magia Record Anime Episode 6*
I think I’m starting to see a pattern for these episodes that introduce main characters: one slower, “expository” episode with a lot less action that introduces the new character to us, and then a more action-packed episode the week after.
With this in mind, I kind of expected this episode to be calmer and less “exciting” than last week’s, but there was still plenty of cuteness and weirdness that kept me hooked throughout!
First things first: I was overjoyed to see Nanaka’s group animated! To me, they’re probably the most important characters out of that huge batch of 2-3-star girls introduced at the very beginning of the game. And Nanaka was always my favourite out of all those and I still love her a lot even now with the cast expanding and so many more amazing girls getting added. But I’m also a bit cautious about these kinds of cameos; they make perfect sense to game players, but I wonder how anime-only fans would react to suddenly seeing a whole new random group of Magical Girls, especially since this week’s “cameo” was a lot longer and the group actually spoke and used names. In any case, seeing this team animated was still a joy to me, and I’m so glad that they got to be featured in the anime! ^^
That being said, I really did love the way they ended the opening scene with Felicia finally showing her face and screaming one of her most iconic phrases in that aggressive voice and slamming her hammer at the screen as the OP begins. GOSH I LOVED IT. An amazing introduction that really captures Felicia’s character super well!
Another interesting detail I liked was that they didn’t simply ignore Iroha’s Soul Gem becoming clean again and pretend that “it is what it is.” The breakfast conversation between Iroha and Yachiyo shows that Yachiyo definitely knows something about Doppels, but chooses to go along with Iroha’s misunderstanding rather than explain what really happened back there. Ignoring the fact that game players already know, this kind of direction makes one wonder just how much Yachiyo knows at this point and why she refuses to reveal more details to other Magical Girls.
Oh, and I got excited for a second when Yachiyo mentioned that Iroha should be careful if she wanders into the East side of Kamihama. I know it’d be unrealistic for Kanagi to show up or even be brought up so early on, but the Kanagi fangirl in me is impatient for one of the best girls to arrive (≧ω≦)
That place where Iroha drank the water is another example of how the PMMM world blends labyrinths and reality so seamlessly and leaves you wondering where exactly the character is situated. But that place was darn creepy even before the Rumour started talking and the drinking figures showed up, so I applaud Iroha’s courage in being able to walk into a place like that like it’s no big deal xD
But anyway, Felicia is super adorable (๑>ᴗ<๑) Seeing them portrayed in a way other than the game sprites really reminds you of how young and tiny she is (an actual kiddo!), and no matter how loud or boisterous she is, you can still feel the innocence and purity of a child in her, which is really endearing <3 I also love how well her reckless attitude and brash way of speaking contrasts with Iroha’s much more gentle and timid nature xD And while Felicia’s transformation sequence was quite short and simple, I assume she’ll get the “Episode 3 treatment” once all of Team Mikazuki are assembled later on, so I’m not fussed or disappointed about that :)
I don’t remember seeing this week’s Witch in the game, but I do recognise its familiars from all my farming/grinding lmao. In any case, this episode’s Witch fights were also too short and too insignificant for my liking, but I guess they really wanted to show how quick and sharp Felicia is at completely demolishing any Witch that comes her way. I’ve also resorted to believing that this might just be their way of presenting the Witches as being less threatening than the Rumours, so if we get a longer and more interesting battle with this Rumour next week, I could probably let these underwhelming Witch battles slide lol.
Kyoko!!! I was fully anticipating her appearance this week so I wasn’t surprised, but the way they brought her into the story was different from what I was expecting. I was waiting for her to pop up beside Felicia during the water-drinking scene, as she was there with them in the game, but they do show that she, too, drank the water, so I guess they just wanted to go about it a different way, which is fair enough :) I didn’t realise how much I missed seeing Kyoko (the way she eats, the way she speaks, the way she holds herself etc.) until this week T^T She shares a lot of similarities with Felicia in both attitude and way of speech, so it’d be really interesting to see their dynamic once they’re brought together in the next episode!
The montage of Iroha and Felicia experiencing supreme luck was really, really well-done (and super cute!). Having the numbers incorporated into the scene was much more interesting and creative than the flying bits of paper in the game. And I know I’m not the only one who lost it at this:
A+ sneak game advertising right there xDDD
Tsuruno and Felicia’s bantering in the background during their meeting was adorable, and Yachiyo with her hand over Felicia’s mouth is already kind of establishing the mother-child relationship between them xD All these tiny details make me so, so excited to see the team finally together and living at Mikazuki Villa ^^ <3
And of course, the Wings of Magius finally made an appearance this week!!! The scene was another one of those strange, trippy, surreal kind of moments, but what truly struck me was the way the Feathers are portrayed. In the game, they’re much more like individual girls who just happen to be dressed the same way, thus erasing any notion of individual identity in our eyes. But in the anime? They legit feel like carbon copies of each other--almost like clones. Those short phrases spoken robotically one after another without even a sense of a complete sentence really adds to the impression that they’re all just incomplete pieces of a larger being.
But as much as I love this uneasy and mysterious introduction, I’m also a bit concerned that the Feathers and the Magius they speak of seem almost a bit like a part of the Rumour itself, rather than an actual organisation that functions as the main antagonists of the story. But it’s still very early on and they’ve only just made their first appearance, so hopefully they’ll get a much more informative and clear introduction next week with the Amane Sisters’ first appearance!
And finally, Felicia, that face at the end was possibly terrifying.
#magia record#magireco#puella magi madoka magica#puella magi madoka magica side story#pmmm#fandom#mine#anime#review#magia record review#v watches magireco
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RevieWBY: Volume 6, Chapter 10, “Stealing from the Elderly”
Yeah, yeah, I’m late. Sue me.
So, this last run of episodes is essentially what’s shaping up to be the official finale arc, so I’m not sure how well I can really judge these on their own. And mind you, I’m writing this after I’ve seen Chapters 11 and 12, so I know how they fit within a larger context, but the purpose of these is to give individual chapters a particular focus. And that’s kind of hard, because these episodes are almost laughably short: it feels as though the finale arc is being stretched across episodes, much like in Volume 5.
But then I remember...the Volume 5′s finale arc was coming off the heels of a lackluster season, the chapters were longer and thus more time was being wasted, the fights that were going on were downright boring and full of problems, too many resources had been pooled into the character shorts so there wasn’t enough time to give the finale the proper attention, etc. etc. With Volume 6 the renewed production pipeline has given us a volume that’s surprisingly kept up its momentum, plus pretty much every fight has been sufficiently exciting. Couple that with some fight scenes that are cool to watch, and a lot of exciting things happening within the 13 minutes and 52 seconds (which includes titles, credits, and the gen:LOCK trailer) of this episode, I think it’s safe to say this finale battle is going to leave me feeling a hell of a lot more satisfied than the Battle of Haven.
So, let’s break down this episode.
Time For A Battle (Did We Ever Doubt It?)
A lot of the more event-based stuff for this part of the chapter is based around setting up for the upcoming battle, with the plan going awry and the reveal of Cordovin’s mech (geez RT, it’s not like you’re doing a mech show already). Let’s be honest: there was never any doubt things were gonna go wrong. They’re leaving for Atlas a couple episodes before the finale, they were not gonna squeeze in another conflict without resolving the Cordovin one.
I mentioned a couple episodes back putting Atlesian personnel in a direct antagonist position to Team QRWBYJNROM was an interesting turn, since the only Atlas rep we really got before Volume 6 were Ironwood and Winter, who were basically the good guys and in direct counterpoint to the negative image Atlas supposedly have. To have Cordovin so unhinged in her belief in the military’s might that she would use a machine designed to attack Grimm on children and an old lady drives home this idea that team RWBY (I’m not gonna bother with that long acronym) may not have friends in Atlas once they get there.
Look, I’m trying to be one of the more positive RWBY critics, but I think it’s fair to say Qrow’s moment in this episode felt a little undeserved. There needed to be an extra scene of Qrow expressing his frustrations about what was going on, it should not have happened right at the start of what’s going to be a major arc for this volume: it feels like they were trying to tidy up his arc before focusing on that. Really, it feels like Qrow’s arc this season is the one where it feels like they set it up for something bigger but didn’t give it enough focus beyond some really good moments, like they fast-forwarded it when they realized they were nearing the end of the volume and needed it cleared out of the way. It would’ve made Ruby’s heroic speeches in this chapter and the last seem more deserved.
I’ve implied this before, but I say clearly: RWBY’s writing isn’t eh because it’s lazy. It’s just rushed. They are attempting to tell a story on a grander scale than what their production time allows. This large cast is better suited for a show that has at least 20 minutes every episode, so every storyline can get enough focus. Instead, and this has happened with pretty much every volume, they realize halfway through that they don’t have enough time to cover every major thread they’ve sewn, and they skip important steps just so they can finish the volume at the point they want it to. I honestly would prefer having longer hiatuses between seasons if it meant everything they try to introduce could get properly addressed.
As for the rest of this section, the humor’s still working well. It’s nice to know they’ve kept up with the consistent balance of humor and drama this volume when it seemed almost sporadic for the last two years. My personal favorite moment was Adrian fake crying. That baby’s got a career in theater in his future.
Cat vs. Bull
Oh, there’s Adam.
My prediction that Adam wasn’t gonna play a major role until these last couple of chapters came true! I’m a genius!
Okay, I’m not. But I will say with regards to Adam: there could’ve been a better buildup to his appearance. This sequence basically confirms that what Blake saw in Chapter 1 was probably not a hallucination and really him, following her and waiting for her to be alone. If that’s what things were building up to, I would’ve included lingering shots or references implying he was following her: like, I dunno, a shot of him hiding among the crowd on the train, Blake sensing him while walking around Argus, Cinder mentioning to Neo that she couldn’t find Adam anywhere...it would’ve built up tension towards Blake v. Adam Round 3.
As for the animation, well, good as always (...nope, couldn’t say that last part with a straight face). Seriously though: this fight with Blake and Adam is really well done. The PvP fights we’ve been getting this volume have so far been really good, and having one with Adam equals a lot of spectacle. It’s clear the animators have a lot of fun animating his fights, as there are some really creative things going on.
Conclusions
I’m sorry to say this again, because this volume has impressed me otherwise, but it feels a lot like we’re gonna get another finale arc that didn’t get the proper buildup. I keep saying this, but they seriously need to consider delaying releasing the volume until after they’ve finished everything. It’s the model that gen:LOCK’s gonna be following, the last thing we need right now is more rushed storytelling. But they have improved on the other things to the point that from a technical standpoint I’d be daring enough to put this volume on the level of Volume 2 (with better animation).
As for this chapter...well, it’s a set-up chapter. I was tempted to wait to watch all four chapters in the finale arc and then put them together, but that wouldn’t be consistent with what I’ve been doing. From a writing standpoint, this had a good mix of humor and drama, but in the context of the entire volume certain arcs felt like they were rushed. I don’t like the return of the cliffhangers that plagued the last couple of chapters of Volume 5, but it’s worth noting that those cliffhangers came at the end of disappointing deliveries of action-–they were short so animators would have time to work on them, but it wasn’t enough time for those episodes to be anywhere near as epic as they needed to be––all the work seemed to be focused around the Maiden battle, and that’s not even in the final episode. At least with this set of episodes it seems there’s enough action going on and they had enough time to work on them that they feel satisfying. That holiday break probably did wonders for these chapters.
So yeah. I think I’ll focus my energy on reviewing these as a whole when I do a full-volume review.
By the way...if you’ve been following my thoughts all season, how would you feel if I made my full-volume RevieWBY an actual video?
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I Liked Fates Before It Was Cool!: Revelation Part 2
Prologue
Opening Chapters
Revelation Part 1
Chapters 13-19, in which everyone’s going to Valla even though half of them suck.
Chapter 13
Hey look, Hoshidan scum!
Ok, meme comedy done. This is in my opinion the first really strong chapter of Revelation, with satisfying gameplay, escalation of the threat posed by Valla, and some good character development. It’s an utter tragedy that it takes place against the literal backdrop of Cyrkensia’s ruined opera house, but I can (mostly) live with the destruction of my favorite setting in Fates when it’s so effective at getting results. Azura still gets to sing here after a fashion, and although there’s no cutscene to go with it the results of this particular show do a good job of subtly foreshadowing that Azura and Mikoto use similar pacifying magic from the same source.
After Kaden and Keaton are done lampshading why the party always runs into shapeshifters in Cyrkensia, it’s time for Corrin to step between Xander and Ryoma as they left them back in Chapter 6 - at each other’s throats in a conflict ultimately engineered by Anankos. It’s a good demonstration of what the war between the two nations would look like without Corrin’s intervention, and the crown princes’ characters logically follow from their behavior as antagonists in the other routes. Xander is resolved that Corrin is a traitor and merits only death, whereas Ryoma is more hesitant to accept Corrin’s choice and, unlike in Conquest, willing to listen to their stated motivations when he’s not on the verge of death. Ryoma’s mellower outlook may be attributed, oddly enough, to the strong intimation that he’s got something going on with Scarlet, something I completely forgot about until I replayed this chapter. I don’t blame myself for doing so; in an Avatar free-for-all dating game romances between the other playable characters are naturally going to get short shrift in the story, and it doesn’t help that Birthright doesn’t suggest this relationship at all even though it’s the one route where both characters to survive to the end. And...yeah, there’s that part, but that’s for a bit later. It’s interesting to imagine how the different circumstances of Revelation could have encouraged Ryoma and Scarlet to grow closer in Revelation than they do in Birthright, though realistically it probably just boils down to Corrin not being there for most of their time together.
In any case, Ryoma shares what he knows about the Rainbow Sage - odd how the fourth person to visit the Sage is still Xander on this route when in the others it’s unsurprisingly the opposing older brother - and Corrin and co. are off to follow the path of Conquest 10 and 11. At least there’s no sequence-breaking teleport books this time.
Chapter 14
This time I’m not focusing on the cutaway to Garon and co., because his obvious gloating has reached such alarmingly stupid levels that I have nothing more to say about it. The payoff, such as it is, to that plot thread is still a few chapters away anyway...as is the appearance of Iago and Hans, who have yet to do much of anything on this route and yet get to appear as bosses at a plot-critical moment. Boo.
Let’s talk about unit balancing instead. Elise shows up with her she’s-legal-we-swear panty shot, and one look at the stats of her and her retainers showcases another glaring problem with the gameplay of Revelation. From this point onward, there’s really no point in training any of the numerous unpromoted units the game throws at you, because there’s no time to raise them up to par unless you do a lot of grinding. This is one instance where Revelation’s similarities to FE10 are more superficial than they first appear, because
1) when compared to just one route of Fates Radiant Dawn is a much longer game, and in fact at 43 chapters still holds the record for the longest individual story campaign in the series. Revelation’s pacing and design suffers terribly from the requirement that it cover the same number of chapters as the other routes.
2) Radiant Dawn also has a massive roster (second largest in the series behind New Mystery) with several units who come behind the level curve, but they’re spread across the course of the game rather than lumped into a span of a few chapters. Examples vary from earlygame recruits just a bit behind (Meg) to underwhelming midgame units (Kyza and Lyre) to a bonus run Est type in lategame (Pelleas).
3) and most notably, units in FE10 are divided into separate armies with different resource pools until lategame. While the balancing between those is infamously unequal, this setup almost requires that you train more units than you’ll ultimately be sending into endgame, giving even the lesser ones a small chance to shine.
I imagine that the design philosophy behind Revelation is that the player would be expected to spend a lot of time grinding on this route to get its numerous unique supports and raise a much larger army. It seems intended for a slower pace, particularly as this also helps with building up the castle base when you’ve got duplicates of most buildings to upgrade. I still don’t care for it though, because I don’t feel like taking that extra time to raise an oversized army and because some of the recruitments continue to be unexplained in story. Why would two border guards join in the invasion of a foreign port? Revelation doesn’t know or care, but it’ll make you run your new underleveled healer to both sides of this large map to recruit them regardless. At least Elise is mounted....
Chapter 15
Seriously, look at this. These two join in the same chapter, what the hell. This isn’t even mentioning that these are also some pretty random recruitments. Shura is awfully nonchalant on hearing that Corrin got his revenge for him, and Nyx has no more reason to be here than she did in Conquest 9. With her it really feels like the writers had a great (if highly fetishistic) concept for a character and came up with a plausible backstory only to find that there was no way to fit her into the plot, so...here she is. On a related note, Nyx is the only first generation character other than Gunter to outright not appear in one route, and at least there’s an explanation for Gunter’s absence in Birthright. Her presence really is just that random.
Before doing the write-up for this chapter I read back over what I’d written for the Sevenfold Sanctuary in the other routes. The gameplay of the Revelation iteration offers nothing really to speak of, lacking either Conquest’s class and skill-themed rooms or Birthright’s power jump. The Rainbow Sage uses an alternate old man sprite initially to make it less obvious that he’s repeating the same trick he pulled in Birthright, but his exposition at the end is worth the trolling for finally confirming that he is indeed a dragon and giving us the obligatory Fire Emblem name drop. Fates’s cosmology reveals itself to borrow mostly from Jugdral of all places, though I’ve never yet seen anyone try to piece together the scattered hints of worldbuilding to link the twelve dragons of the two settings. I’m certainly not going to attempt it, because even with divine weapons and draconic-blooded families in the mix there’s remarkably little to conclude definitively that the First Dragons of Fates are/were the dragons that appeared to Jugdral’s Crusaders. My pet theory aligns it a bit more with Tellius because of certain other observations about Fates’s setting and because something is going to have to connect the dragon laguz to the rest of the series’s lore eventually.
Chapter 16 + 17
I’ve been pretty down on Revelation thus far, and at first I was fully prepared to rip into these two chapters in similar fashion...and then I finished playing through them and changed my mind. If I had to pick one moment from FE14 to represent in miniature the beautiful mess that is this game, with all its inventive concepts and missed potential, its stirring emotional moments and lazy copouts, I would choose these chapters. In spite of everything they nail the very best of what Fates offers on an emotional level, and as a midgame climax they land almost as well as the Branch of Fate lands as an establishing moment.
And yet there’s so much wrong with them! Hans and Iago have never been flatter or more inconsequential antagonists; note that before this point in Revelation they’ve done nothing aside from knock Gunter off a bridge and use an illusion to piss off the Wind Tribe. The Ryoma/Scarlet angle is abruptly dialed back to the friend zone, presumably to make it okay for the Avatar to bone them, while Hinoka abruptly joins in the action after having been forgotten about for eleven(!) chapters bar one throwaway mention in Chapter 13. Xander and Leo’s apparent betrayal of Nohr has little bite to it even from Iago as Garon might as well not exist by this point, and their retainers fail so hard as backup I almost always just send them to a corner to wait out the battle. Speaking of which, the trend of underleveled units reaches its zenith, here where maybe four of the eleven units obtained in these chapters can reasonably be used without grinding after this point. It’s even worse than the torrent of garbage units the Archanea games throw at you, because at least those sometimes come with nice stuff in their inventories (hence the “Free Silvers” tier jokingly used on some of the DS tier lists back when those were popular). And to cap it all off the ticking timer that’s been running from Chapter 7 up until this moment, of the skies over Hoshido and Nohr switching as the moment that the portal to Valla will close, makes no sense either (meteoro)logically or narratively except to add unneeded urgency and entice a few of the characters to the Canyon. For that matter, since Revelation appears to take place in the same time frame as the other two routes it’s baffling that this bizarre bit of worldbuilding goes unmentioned in them. Wouldn’t it be kind of a big deal for Nohr to get a normal sky every few decades, and for Hoshido to get a bad one?
But somehow despite all that when the Nohrian brothers show up in Chapter 17 and the music switches to “A Dark Fall” (quick aside, but one thing I love about Fates as a whole is its soundtrack) I fully got what the developers were going for, and to see all the royals finally interacting with each other - something sorely missing from Chapter 6, if you recall - and calling a truce to face whatever awaits them in Valla together just sealed that feeling. The Hoshidan and Nohrian contrast to these two chapters followed by a scene of Corrin’s families united for the first time really sells the main draw of Revelation, even if for some of them the buildup to that moment was rushed (Takumi, Camilla) or just not there at all (Hinoka). Yeah, it comes with the distinct aroma of Avatar-centered plotting like everything else on this route - as Ryoma actually points out in Chapter 16, funnily enough - but even though some of the particulars are undercooked and most of the circumstances are downright silly I can completely get on board with this group of people in this moment banding together to, uh, jump off a bridge before an interdimensional portal closes because the sky is changing color and...ugh, never mind.
Chapter 18
I will say this for Valla: I really enjoy its visual style, a sort of supernaturally-ruined pastoral idyll that resembles nothing like the world above. It also helps that it’s not tied directly to any real-world cultures like Hoshido and Nohr are, and its nods to Middle Eastern, Indian, and exclusively in localization (I think?) Greek cultures come across in the series’s more typically understated fashion. Of course that otherworldly quality lends itself to more frustrating map mechanics, so it’s not entirely a positive. This one isn’t so bad provided you’re fielding a bunch of royals to activate all the Dragon Veins - and really, it’s not as though the player needs another excuse to use them to the exclusion of almost everyone else.
But of course the big moment of this chapter is Scarlet’s death. The bit with the flower is a painfully obvious hint to recall when it comes time for the reveal of her killer, but nevertheless the sequence does well despite that and some awkward staging with battle models. What doesn’t work quite as well is the reintroduction of the Ryoma/Scarlet angle just to add more punch to her death...completely ignoring the possibility that Corrin might be married to either of them (and Scarlet just undergone what had to have been one of the most hyper-accelerated pregnancies in all of fiction, if you want to be really sadistic). Because of their earlier buildup this may be the most egregious example of Fates needing to ignore its own support mechanics for the sake of the main plot. In any case, if Corrin didn’t shack up with one of them the scene after the chapter is pretty solid. I consider it comparable to Lilith’s death scenes on the other routes, since she also dies taking a hit for Corrin, but as the circumstances are less random and Scarlet actually gets most of her characterization outside DLC it’s much more effective overall.
Chapter 19
Enter the strange child with the oversized forehead. At least it’s not immediately obvious that’s he’s evil, I guess?
It’s interesting to note that the Valla chapters are structured almost as a route unto themselves, having to establish a new set of characters previously unseen in Revelation and not seen at all in the other routes. Although in terms of gameplay they function more like an extended endgame in the vein of Radiant Dawn’s Tower of Guidance, bizarre architecture and all. I’ll be talking more about Anthony and Arete and the others later on, but I wanted to note the setup for when I talk about it in the next post.
The intro to this chapter also delves into a bit more of Fates’s cosmology, specifically its deified dragons. Xander asks what only Iago thought to question in Conquest, namely why Garon would worship Anankos and not the Dusk Dragon, only to get the obvious but still technically necessary reveal of Garon’s true nature. I do like that the First Dragons are vague enough in their presentation that I could believe either that the Dawn and Dusk Dragons are just different interpretations of Anankos or that they’re all separate entities. As I recall however this is somewhat muted by the knowledge that the emotional payoff re: Garon is going to be rather muted when it finally happens, so this really is just more vague worldbuilding.
Oh, right, the chapter. It’s Conquest 15 with a bigger party and entirely too many items drops on the optional path. Why the developers think the player needed so many items thrown at them in a game with no durability and a route with no shortage of funds I’ll never know.
Next time: Revelation Chapter 20 - Endgame
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