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#and villainizing their actions and reactions to said suffering and trauma
melmedarda · 13 days
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Why isn’t Mel’s trauma as talked about I mean she still has nightmares about living in Noxus and someone having to be executed
Hey there!
Mel isn't much liked in many spaces, and outside of Tumblr, where there remains of pocket of her fans, you'll find a lot of hate for her. People hate her because she is manipulative, she used Jayce, etc etc. And so rather than talking about her history, exploring the depths of her character, or attempting to understand her past, they opt to give her unnecessary hate. (Can you imagine seeing your mother kill a girl your age without remorse? That could have been her. What if it was her.)
Mel isn't perfect. She has her issues. In this fandom, her issues are magnified over the good she does, over the trauma she has experienced. Arcane fans allow and celebrate nuance in all the characters except for Mel, infantilize characters because of their trauma yet give Mel no understanding. It's unfair, and I hope that season 2 will show her recovering from her trauma, continuing to rise above it. I want nothing more than for my girl to get a full night of uninterrupted sleep.
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justaasexual · 4 months
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Been looking at the Wish content on YouTube and Tumblr.
And I just....
There's a lot of things that baffle me about some of the criticism.
But the first really illogical thing I saw was about Magnifico and Amaya.
So let's talk about this. Magnifico first, because I adore him as a villain.
Magnifico adores his people. He doesn't want what happened to him to happen again.
He also is fearful of anything that challenges his power. This is most blatantly shown in his reaction to the light.
He does not know this is Star. He thinks it is a new type of magic. And he is scared of that. Not Star, remember, he doesn't know about Star yet. It's the idea of a sorcerer he does not know about.
But his fear is hinted at in his refusal to grant Sabba's wish. "It's too vague" is what I believe he said. Because he is scared of something he can't control. But he won't give it back, because then it could happen, even if it's a very slim possibility.
Magnifico needs to be in control. And he dislikes when that control is threatened, as seen in This is the Thanks I Get. On the surface level, it's about him being unappreciated. In actuality, the people threaten his control with their insistence on another wish ceremony. This causes him to attempt to reestablish control in any way he can, which leads to his descent into evil magic.
And with that choice, the choice to set himself on a path that would end in harming the people (and wishes) he had sworn to protect, he was past redemption.
Because he went too far. The dark magic is literally a symbol of the tipping point of his tightening control. It is the point of no return.
It is not a justification for his actions. It is not what 'makes' him the movie's villain. He was always going to be the movie's villain. That was obvious from his control of his citizens. No, it is a physical representation of how he let his paranoia take over and get people hurt.
He is no longer redeemable. He can't be reasoned with. While the dark magic accentuated and pushed his controlling tendencies to the forefront, it only built on what was there.
The dark magic is where he goes from 'victim suffering from control issues as a result of his trauma', to 'his trauma causing him to abuse others'. We know it's something that he can help because he was pulled away from it before and even admitted that he made a vow to himself. He could have pulled himself back before he hurt anyone. And he knew he would hurt people if he went through with it.
And he did it anyway.
That is what makes him a compelling villain, besides the magnetic effect he has every time he appears on-screen, is the ability to stop and then choose to proceed forward.
He is a wonderful mix of self-deceiving and self-destructive, and it is fascinating to watch on the big screen.
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sunshine-zenith · 8 months
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Also let’s talk about how the crown affected Farmworld Finn and the Winter King
Finn Mertens isn’t the warm(get it), happy guy we’re used to. He’s still protective and badass, but he stays out of trouble. Some of it is clearly just the world he lives in — the Farmworld isn’t the safest place overall — but he shuts down at the mention of the crown. The opening scene of Destiny shows the “Snowman” attack a family, including a baby, potentially killing them — even if he doesn’t really remember that (like Simon only has fuzzy memories of being Ice King), the knowledge alone is enough to haunt someone for the rest of their life
Winter King, meanwhile, was clearly living in denial — he redirects attention to all the gifts he could give than focus on his time as Ice King, he refuses to admit the awful thing he did to his Princess Bubblegum, and he claims not to remember Betty before suggesting Simon replace her with magic. This last bit, he tries to play it off as a joke and calls it unethical, but we see an Ice Marcy in the castle — he’s aware that the shit he pulls is messed up and he’s fine with hiding it.
The thing is, he lived with the curse for like 900-ish years before finding a way to offload most of the curse onto another person. Candy Queen is a danger to him, and even if she isn’t he clearly doesn’t enjoy her being around him. But he’s choosing to let her keep existing — he’s chosen for years to let someone else suffer the way he suffered, because he’d rather face inconvenience/danger/the knowledge of how fucked up his actions are than go back to the crown
Let’s look at how these two compare to Simon — while he’s overall been more alright with talking about the way the crown affected him than Finn Mertens, he’s also willing to go back to it. Sure, Ice King doesn’t have the weight of fairly recent human murders on his back, but the guy was technically a villain and did hurt people. On the other hand, neither of them are coping with the crown’s aftermath well. Finn and Simon both seem to have unhealthy relationships with alcohol to cope with the crown — Simon’s shown binge drinking and seems to be a regular at the bar. Finn on the other hand has children and is clearly doing his best to provide to them, so I doubt he gets wasted often, and the one time Jay said he did, it seemed like an accident, but it’s notable that the only time he was willing to talk about his trauma was after he had gotten drunk
That lack of warmth (get it lol get it) I mentioned earlier is something they both share as well. Finn still has his Jake and clearly loves his dog, but he pulls his daughter away from Jake to have her do chores, even though Jake was clearly itchy and very much doesn’t have the strength or flexibility to properly scratch the itch. Finn’s children are well cared for, but quiet. They clearly don’t expect much affection from their father, and seem pretty used to him being unhappy/short with them. Simon, meanwhile, shows remorse for making Astrid cry but doesn’t make up for it when she returns. He isn’t reaching out to Marceline, even though she’s basically his daughter and would totally welcome him around (plus Bubblegum seems pretty happy to hear from him as well). It had only called back later or something, they could’ve talked about how he was trying, he clearly was, but he still needs help.
They also share an aversion to cold it seems — Simon’s reaction to the ice in his drink, all the times Finn Mertens stares into open fire (though maybe there’s a chance his wife could’ve been the Farmworld’s equipment of Flame Princess, but you gotta admit this series is really leaning into Finn/Huntress Wizard). It’s notable that, after wheedling ice magic as a teenager, the adult Finn Mertens builds a flamethrower into his prosthetic arm
Simon and Winter King, meanwhile, have some interesting parallels in how they treat Fionna and others. Simon’s so at the end of his rope and not coping that he’s willing to return to mental hell, essentially go though with magical suicide, under the guise of helping Fionna and Cake. Sure, his desire to help them is genuine, but his self sacrifice here is deeply unhealthy. Winter King is meanwhile behaving horrifyingly selfish, but with equally desperate motivations (the PB/CQ situation), and he’s hiding behind it by giving out presents and entertainment. He’s genuinely fulfilling Cake and Fionna’s wishes, and is sincerely trying to fulfill’s Simon’s “need” for a new crown. He’s gleefully giving them tours and playing games and inviting Simon into his lab. Shoot, he doesn’t have to use magic to give Cake Wi-Fi but he does anyway
The difference is that Simon is doing something self destructive with his need to help Fionna, while Winter King is distracting from how destructive his actions are by giving Fionna what she wants
Then there’s their respective Bettys. Simon’s not coping with losing Betty, like, at all. She either doesn’t exist anymore or she’s more or less become a god. He’s trying to summon a way to her instead of living his life. Winter King meanwhile is acting like Betty meant nothing to him. Sure, he’s had at least a hundred years to properly work through her death, but like. He’s a Simon. And he seems to have even less of a support system than our Simon — his only friends are a couple of ice people he made. Dude totally hasn’t sat down with his grief to work through it. He clearly isn’t letting the past go even though he’s acting like it doesn’t matter to him (the Ice Marcy thing)
I don’t have a conclusion, other than like. Ya know. The crown hurts people. And clearly the multiverse doesn’t have a therapist that specializes in helping people working through that pain
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Hey!!! Random ask time bc I wanna learn more about everyone’s WIPs!!!
What’s your current absolute favorite thing about your primary WIP? It can be a teeny little detail, a massive part of the plot, a character, anything. What is it, and why??
Hi!! Thanks for the ask, I hope I can help curb the boredom a bit <3
I got a bit carried away, so I hope you don't mind, and I absolutely will not judge if it's a bit much to respond to/take in!!
My primary WIP for the last several years has been The Millennium Saga, and right now, my favorite thing(s) about it have to be a lot of the action and horror scenes!! They've gotten big reactions out of beta readers, and whenever I go back to read what I've written for ~motivation~ I tend to find myself lingering on them because I'm just... so proud of them. Especially the dream/nightmare sequences and the multiple instances of plant/natural horror <3
Something entirely different that I'm super proud of with Firebreathers specifically is how, now that I've done a lot of editing, the foreshadowing for later on in the series has solidified so well.
For instance, towards the end of the first draft, one of my MCs decided to take a hard left turn where I didn't expect - what was supposed to be a relatively simple attempted assassination (and reveal of a mind control subplot) ended up with them literally seeing/meeting a Goddess in a feat of prophecy thought to be dead for a millennium by the rest of the world.
That MC was never supposed to be a Prophet until the moment I let them take the reins. Their brother was supposed to be the only one, and it wasn't going to be revealed for probably three books that that magic wasn't dead. But they decided to become Important in a whole new way, and because of that...
I got to put the exact thing the Goddess told them during their Prophecy into the dialogue of a scene literally 100k+ words earlier in the book. I put it in a moment that, until editing, was meant to be an entirely metaphorical vision of that particular Goddess on a Priestess' visage.
The wider worldbuilding implications of that in particular have opened up for exploration now that I've finished book two, and I'm really hoping that at least someone on a reread will notice that single line, because hoo boy. It's that kind of foreshadowing and implication scavenger hunt I want to foster in any kind of community my books build, because that's the kind of stuff I enjoy most in fandom.
There's some other fun foreshadowing things I've managed to include that I'm also super proud of, like, say... the fear of a sibling bleeding out/dying when people with similar features suffer injury -> a reveal in book two that said sibling did die and was resurrected by the very person who was scared of it before. Also, specific chapter titles mimicking the titles an Important Person holds, and signalling that the narrators of those chapters are immortals -> one of those chapters not being from an immortal at the time, but one who becomes immortal later on, and that narrator is the villain they're trying to stop from doing that.
Also, because I got to write that villain's POV chapter, I learned a lot more about why they're Like That™, and thus got to display the specific traumas of those who already interacted with them way better on the second edit! Which makes me feel very accomplished and ~intentional~ as a writer, which is a rare thing because I pants almost everything I write 😅
I will end this here for now, simply because it got way longer than I thought it would/wanted it to, but I hope I helped entertain/distract!!
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kirain · 2 years
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What do you think about all the people calling Silco a antihero and a good father?
I hate doing this to villains I actually enjoy, but I think this needs to be said:
No, Silco is not a good person, he's not an antihero, and he's not a good father. He's a complex, beautifully-written villain, but a villain nonetheless.
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First of all, he destroyed half of Zaun with shimmer, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds (possibly thousands) and the addictions of many more. He distributed the drug as a cure-all to people who live in an impoverished city that has no hope or opportunities. I quote Ekko, "He flooded the lanes. Didn't care who got hurt." He never had Zaun's best interest at heart, despite manipulatively claiming otherwise. He only cared about his personal enterprise and eventual dictatorship. It was all about power and revenge for him, and he didn't care who got caught in the crossfire. His drug labs were even run by children, all of whom he considered expendable.
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On that note, he isn't above killing children either. When Marcus began to defy him, he threatened to kill his daughter and make it look like an accident. When he kidnapped Vander, he purposely let Claggor, Mylo, and Vi break into his base with the full intention of killing them, painfully. Never mind the fact that Vander’s “betrayal” was his own doing because he wanted to rile Piltover with acts of war that would result in Zaun’s annihilation. Vander simply tried to stop him. Not to mention he had zero remorse for the boy Jayce accidentally killed and even taunted his grieving mother. You'd think he'd be able to sympathise with the loss of a child, but no. He's a towering hypocrite, only caring if the loss impacts him directly.
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Though I think the biggest aspect most people are overlooking is the fact that he caused Jinx's trauma. Remember, he killed her dad, her brothers, and he tried to kill her sister. Technically Jinx caused the explosion, but why were they there in the first place? Silco. He then lied, knowing full well that Marcus took Vi. He didn't know she was still alive, but that doesn't matter. He let Jinx go on believing her sister abandoned her, which he knew caused her deep-seated issues. When Vi returned, he continued to lie about why she was there, saying she only wanted the crystal, even though Sevika told him otherwise. It wasn't to "protect" Jinx, it was because he was afraid of losing her. It was selfishness.
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In the end, Silco became so reliant on Jinx that he wasn't willing to let her go. Not for anything. Not even for her own sanity and wellbeing. In the final showdown, instead of letting Jinx reconnect with her sister--which he knew she wanted--he tried to kill Vi yet again because he realised Powder was clawing to the surface. So many people think Silco was a good father, but he didn't help that child, he destroyed her. Mutated her. He let Jinx feel the pain of abandonment because he was desperate for someone to share his misery. These are not the actions of a "good father". He certainly loved her, nothing he did to her was intentionally malicious, from his perspective, but he's also the reason her mind is so jumbled. Not all love is inherently good.
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Moreover, he had no right to get so attached to Jinx in the first place. He stole her. I find it kind of disturbing how many people blame Vi for “abandoning” Powder, when the reality is she didn’t. She was fifteen, she saw her family die (for the second time), and she found out that her own sister, who wasn’t even supposed to be there, was inadvertently responsible. After she punched Powder, she was overcome with guilt and sorrow and walked away to take a break. Powder mistook Vi’s actions as abandonment, but Vi never intended to leave her. The true tragedy is that both Powder and Vi’s reactions are understandable. They were both children and they were both suffering, but there’s only one person to blame for that and it’s Silco.
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People like to glorify the "you're perfect" line, but the reason Silco said that is because he molded Jinx into his own personal sense of perfection. He erased Powder's entire identity to create an unstable soldier who would follow his every order, construct deadly weapons, and kill without empathy or reflection. He even convinced her to kill her friends. Jinx wrongfully places her psychosis on Vi's shoulders because of that night in the alley, but what that poor, broken girl doesn't understand is that it's Silco who put her in that situation, Silco who impressed his own trauma onto her, and Silco who encouraged her delusions. Eventually he realised he was wrong, but not until it was too late. Not until she was wanted for his mistakes.
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Just like his eye, his love was toxic.
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teachaii · 2 years
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to me, the only one who had a realistic reaction to the traitor reveal was hakagure, because we saw her realize the gravity of aoyama's actions in the moment; when talked about Japan's current situation after the war, and when she asked what was in his head while he spared time with the rest of the classmates.
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"we could been killed time after time, and now all of Japan is totally messed up. What was going through your head this whole time in school with us?! living in the dorms with us even?!"
and she said this with anger and indignation, and besides the fact that she was a close friend of his, and even did her internship with him, everything she mentions is something that the rest of the classmates also went through, they all suffered the same risk.
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So, when we see the reactions of the rest of the class, we don't have the emotional impact that we should see after all that happened. It seems like Horikoshi tried to put their reactions compressed in one page to include it in the chapter, which takes away the emotional impact that a revelation like that should have, and it sucks, because they were together for a whole year, and more than the half of the things they have been through were because of aoyama.... i mean, just to give an example, he was responsible of bakugou's kidnapping, the USJ attack, (indirectly) current Japan's crisis and more...
so after all of that, y'all can't blame me when i say that Bakugou's reaction is completely out of context because 1. man aoyama was the reason why he was kidnapped and with that the origin of one of his biggest traumas why is he so..... calm about it ??? and 2. there's 2 quirkless people in the room besides aoyama so why is bakugou the only one who's having war flashbacks and talking about it???? it just doesn't sit with me at all.
i really hope that in the next chapter we can see their reactions and opinions on the reveal more deeply, because there is so much to unpack here that can be used for the deployment of some chapters like mina, ochako, momo, iida, etc as individuals, and not as a part of the class, which is what has been happening lately, and also this situation can be really interesting to test the judgment of the studentsa after the war to handle this, and where do they draw the line between to consider someone a "villain" or a "hero" (and yes ochako and shoto im looking at you two, especially ochako because i need to see more of the "ultimate hero" heh), and to be able to recreate a more realistic dynamic of the perception of each character and what they consider "good" or "bad".
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dreamteamspace · 3 years
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They really went there huh
/rp (good lord I rly hyperfixated on this essay huh)
torture tw, abuse tw, manipulation tw, gaslighting tw
So the Dream SMP built a character, once maybe morally gray, who slipped straight into villany with little to no desire to change, and willing to cause a LOT of pain to get his way. Despite this, he doesn’t question what he does enough to stop, justifying his actions with a good intent that doesn’t come close to justifying what he’s done.
C!Dream is unremorseful of what he’s done, he’s quite literally manipulated and gaslit (like actually, not in the way everyone keeps throwing the word around) c!Tommy, almost drove him to take his last life- like, jesus christ. That’s not even to mention blowing up L’Manburg three times, encouraging c!Wilbur, wanting the discs JUST to have power over c!Tommy, etc.
SO, he gets thrown in a box for it so he doesn’t hurt anybody anymore, making his own hubris his downfall (narrative consequence my beloved). This leads us to a good finale - the bad guy, the person who’s caused objectively the most pain and destruction, is now unable to do so anymore, taken down by the person whom he tried to weaken. It is also revealed he was planning on blackmailing and threatening pretty much everyone, but now everyone gets their stuff back.
Good, right?
Especially for the finale, yeah! The message of the finale is good, c!Tommy manages to escape his abuser with nothing more but his clothes on his back and fights his way back to c!Tubbo and his home.
He doesn’t let his trauma (which is still very present!) let him become a terrible person (arguably the way that c!Dream DID let his frustrations make him a terrible person, c!Tommy, despite bearing quite a heavy weight, recognizes when he begins to turn that way and actively works against it).
It shows that while alone, c!Tubbo and c!Tommy were outfought by Dream, but because c!Tommy went the length to ask for help (which he didn’t even really seem to be relying on actually showing up), he wins! It truly is a good message.
C!Tommy escapes his abuser and manipulator, refuses and fights his trauma to not become someone he doesn’t want to be, and defeats his abuser by asking for help and receiving it, even more than he thought he’d get. He refuses to play c!Dream’s “game”, refuses till the very last moment to let c!Tubbo die, to surrender and say goodbye to him.
So, great! Good finale! C!Dream The Villain is boxed like a fish in a prison of, quite literally, his own making. It sent a good message to people. C!Tommy wasn’t expected to forgive him and did, in fact, axe him down twice, causing c!Dream to finally fall from his high horse.
Most media would stop at this point, say the villain is now defeated and never show them again, or have them come back another one or two seasons later, escaped and seemingly unharmed and worse than ever.
Alternatively, there’s a throwaway line, (or, in good media, a genuine, reasonable backstory, complete with remorse and bad role models and complicated situations), that allows the villain to be redeemed.
In GOOD redemption arcs (See: Zuko from avatar tbh), the villain was already never quite as heartless, or stressed their good intent, or felt remorse for what they felt they “had to do”. Then, ideally, the villain takes a looooong time adjusting their habits, regretting their actions and changing until they’re considered redeemed.
Not on the Dream SMP, though.
They don’t stop at c!Dream’s defeat.
He doesn’t dissapear off-screen and is never spoken of again. His life continues on, everyone’s does, just like it would in reality. He doesn’t magically want to become a better person, far from it. So no redemption. But he doesn’t dissapear, either.
They go on to, slowly, stress how awful the conditions in Pandora’s Vault are. c!Bad says c!Dream should be imprisoned, but at least at slightly better conditions. We’re in very VERY morally gray territorry here. Nobody says c!Dream is a good person, of course not, but even c!Bad - who knows Dream was planning on keeping c!Skeppy in a cage to control him with - goes, “yeah, he should stay boxed, but does he really need to like... suffer suffer?”
Still, c!Dream seems to be kindof inconsistent in his behavior. Is he faking his pain? Is he not? His actions don’t fully make sense for either take. He acts differently to each person, but at the same time some things he does don’t make sense if he were just fishing for pity.
Then c!Sam admits to trying (and thinking he succeeded) to “break Dream’s will”, to quite literally starving him for weeks.
Okay, so now we’re a step further. C!Dream is now suffering even more, although already boxed and unable to hurt anyone. Pandora’s Vault is one thing, but now c!Sam just seems to be out for revenge and nothing more. Instead of spending his time with c!Tommy, he spends his time pickaxing(?) c!Dream.
C!Sam isn’t an angel, and we should all know that by now. He does what he thinks is right, but he’s deeper than that, all characters on the DSMP are.
He cares deeply for the Badlands, and would always choose them above anybody else. He’s a capitalist. He built the prison because it would benefit the Badlands resource-wise, despite knowing Dream would probably use it on his enemies, and it was no secret that ALL members of L’Manburg, especially c!Tommy, are his enemies. C!Sam, undoubtedly, knew that. He still built it.
Arguably, he didn’t know about c!Dream’s attachment obsession at the time, but the point still stands.
People have already latched onto the untold story happening between c!Dream and c!Sam, and frankly, we barely know enough about it. Does c!Sam torture him regularly? Do they talk? Does c!Dream try to verbally fight back? CAN he fight back? We don’t know! We’ve gotten proof for both, between c!Sam saying that c!Dream is terrifying even in prison and c!Dream going silent to go on strike. We don’t have enough of an idea how bad or how good it truly is.
So the people who prefer to humanize c!Dream and explore morality imagine c!Sam to downright torture him, people that prefer to see c!Dream as nothing but evil due to his actions imagine prison on the DSMP to not be equivalent to real life prison, and thus nowhere near as torturous as people are making it out to be.
Now all that is thrown out the window as c!Quackity quite literally tortures him.
So now the internet is faced with a question that, judging by some of the impulsive reactions *cough cough* celebrating torture *cough*, it didn’t turn out to be ready for.
Tell me.
How far do we go?
C!Dream hurt a LOT of people. He did a lot of things that caused irreparable damage. Now what? Do we torture him forever? Why? Because he deserves it? How do we determine that without comparing one kind of pain to another?
It’s custom and kindof generally respectful not to compare people’s pain too accurately, because different things vary greatly in severity depending on the person that experiences them.
At what point do we say he’s suffered enough without comparing exile to the prison?
And if we DO compare, does that even make the question easier to answer?
And if he’s never suffered enough ever, killing them would be a mercy...
At what point has a person done enough damage that they “deserve” to die? What if someone only did half of the things c!Dream did. But if c!Dream gets infinite punishment, and half of infinity is still infinity, do they ALSO deserve endless suffering?
Do you think every person that did something you can’t emphasize with deserves to suffer for eternity and die?
I’m not saying we SHOULD emphasize with c!Dream. He did things we cannot justify, that NOTHING can justify. He did things that were, by their nature, unjustified.
I’m also not saying anybody should forgive him. I think it’s a GOOD thing that c!Tommy doesn’t want nor is narratively pushed to forgive c!Dream.
But c!Dream doesn’t need c!Tommy’s forgiveness to be... a person.
There’s a saying that I’m sure you know, that goes “I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”, because there’s things you wouldn’t want any human being to experience. Not because you like them, not cause you think they’re right, but because they’re human.
And perhaps this is my personal opinion, but I don’t think c!Dream being a bad person justifies dehumanizing him, because then we get into an area where someone needs to meet criteria just to be human.
-
I met someone once, whom, because of outside circumstances I knew I probably wouldn’t meet again. We’d been getting along just fine for people who just met, and were both getting into an interesting discussion about morality. They kept insisting upon something I kept refuting, so they said they needed to get something off their chest.
They proceeded to tell me that they had, years ago, while a teen, manipulated someone in a relationship, pushed boundaries and tried to convince them to do things they didn’t really want to do to get what they wanted.
They cried, while telling me, too terrified to tell anybody they know, terrified nobody would ever speak to them again, insanely regretful of their actions. They didn’t know whether to go back and apologize or just stay as far away as humanly possible, didn’t know which one the right thing to do is.
It had been years, by then, and I talked them through it. I said that what they did was bad, and there’s no going around that. But I also said what I saw, which is someone who would never do something like that ever again. I saw a human being. Someone who regrets a mistake they did and now, after enough time has passed, would do anything to make it undone.
Someone who is too terrified to be close to anybody in fear that they would do it again. I don’t remember if they already went to therapy or not, but it was definitly on the table, or in the near future.
They asked me how I could possibly even keep talking to them after they told me all that. They implied they felt like some kind of monster despite literally chocking back tears, firmly convinced they don’t deserve to be close to anybody in their life ever again.
I never swerved from the fact that what they did was wrong, and harmful. But I also told them they’re human. The universe isn’t keeping score. They want to be a better person now, and they were never going to learn how if they never let themselves be close to anybody.
I told them to seek therapy, and to slowly, carefully, try. Assured them that the fact that they regret it so strongly will at least help them in not falling back into the same pattern, and if they do, they can learn to recognize that.
They thanked me after the conversation, genuinely, especially for the fact that I didn’t sugarcoat what happened, because I know otherwise it would’ve felt like I was lying, like I was just sparing their feelings. I wasn’t. I was thinking about how to make sure they get to live without hurting anybody.
As per the circumstances, we didn’t speak again after that, which we knew basicly from the very start.
-
I still think about that conversation a lot.
Do you think they should’ve been locked up for life after it happened, instead?
Do you think this real human being, that I spoke to, that took years to realize their mistake - and never would have realized it if they hadn’t had the time to, if they’d been killed right afterwards - deserves to suffer forever?
Let me tell you something, from someone who’s been in more than one abusive situation: People that hurt you are human.
That doesn’t mean you have to forgive them. That doesn’t mean you have to like them. That doesn’t mean you have to make an effort to understand them. That doesn’t mean you need to go anywhere near them ever again.
You can hate them. You can be angry at them. You can (and should) go as far away from them as possible, and/or defend yourself.
But that doesn’t mean you have to dehumanize them.
You’re allowed to hate and dislike people that are human, because you’re human, especially if they hurt you. That’s how life is.
And to go back to my original point - c!Quackity torturing c!Dream is not something that should be celebrated.
There’s a difference between necessary measures (locking c!Dream up so he doesn’t hurt anyone), and torturing people for fun.
It’s not right. It’s never going to be right, and do not justify literal torture on human beings, and do not make someone lower-than-human to justify torturing them.
Taking revenge on someone for what they did tenfold is romanticized, I know, but I promise you it’s not actually as cool as it sounds.
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noodlepai · 3 years
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(OKAY okay so I've come to provide more information on the AU, I'm still working on it a lot so things might change or be added but I got a basic idea of what things are like rn !!)
Info dump moment rn, also TW for slight trauma mentions/hints
• Sam had managed to save the Wii from melting itself all those years ago, and is a pretty big person on tech, so she likes to experiment and try new things, and actively tries to help Eteled out or transfer him through devices so he isn't just stuck in one place all the time, with lots of trial and tons of error, especially since she knows the Wii's getting old and that it can be unstable occasionally with glitches
• Kyle has also taken a liking to learning more about technology through Sam's influence so he sometimes comes over and they both will just study and brainstorm ideas
• Sam moved out of her home and now lives in her own apartment, is in college to pursue her dream of working around and creating technology, hasn't really considered making a job out of it since she mostly does it for fun and likes to achieve her dream goals, Nathan and Kyle also occasionally visit to just hang out and do whatever, usually resulting in the three staying up very late into a movie or game night, and Eteled having to talk Sam into getting sleep for the next morning
• Even though Sam is big on all tech, consoles and video games, she still has a soft spot for old generation consoles in particular
• Sam, Nathan and Kyle had all gotten pretty close growing up so they're like a dumbass trio /lh
• Will moved out of state or some shit
• Kyle wakes up from his villain arc and makes a truce with Eteled /J.. FR though Kyle softens up and becomes more understanding of Eteled's side after they start talking it out, while what happened did bother him at the time all those years ago, he just kinda grew up to the point where it didn't have such of an effect on him anymore, I mean all he saw was a Mii get slice and diced, no need to go beast mode over it, so they forgive each other of the past
• Kyle and Nathan are besties to homosexuals, homie love
• Sam made a Mii of herself from when she was younger to keep Eteled company when going out or having to attend school, Eteled appreciated it but wouldn't wanna admit how it wasn't the same and about how much he would miss Sam when she had to get off the Wii
• Gives Eteled abandonment issues because I love being evil
• He's actually clingy on the inside but would never admit it to anyone
• Also views Sam as a sort of daughter figure besides just a friend but is too nervous to mention it, he wants Sam to be safe, loves whenever she talks or rants to him about anything or shows him something she made or is proud of, or even just anything at all, father Eteled is proud of his child/bestie
• He like, genuinely feels loved around her and would definitely cry about it but would never show it, or at least try not to
• Eteled has the favorite Mii pants because Sam put them on him, with quote "I think it's about time my best friend gets to rock a new style", and yes it did make him almost cry on the spot
• Austin is like, mentally conflicted as hell
• Austin and Eteled both feel guilty for what they've done to each other over the years, aren't sure they can or are ready to forgive the other but they're very slowly learning to tolerate each other
• They're like enemies to kinda friends in a way
• They're traumatized mfs
• They still sometimes fight but it's usually just yelling or saying shit now, they don't do the chair, deletion or axe really anymore since they at least got to the point where they respect each other's boundaries and triggers, and there's no point to keep doing the same old for over 10+ years, for the most part, they still slip up sometimes
• They do fuck up though occasionally so that's why Eteled has scars and Austin is a bit more bashed up
• They still have a rooted dislike for each other they're trying to get over but they sometimes chill out or talk, usually when Sam is asleep or off the Wii for a while, the two just will maybe visit or sit around to at least try to understand the other better
• Sam knows Austin is still around, and it took a while but with time she grew to accept him when he didn't seem like a big threat anymore, and that he was just as important of a soul as Eteled was, she still didn't like the fights and didn't know the full story
• She'd probably section them away from the other with a child gate if she could
• Austin of course has an ego and would never tell another soul that he has many nightmares of the server room and about what happens if he gets caught off guard or is sleeping when Eteled decides to attack him again, Eteled wouldn't do that, and Austin knows it but it's just the deep rooted fear he can't get rid of, even though he's much taller and technically more powerful than the smaller Mii
• Eteled is just tired, usually just sleeps in the Mii channel, especially when under stress or tires himself out if he's going through a moment, like triggered memories or emotions
• From all the deleting and the chair, and more crap from his early life, Eteled is just terrified of it all so even the idea of them scares the fuck out of him, so as a natural response he just tries to defend himself with his axe even if he would be shaking like a chicken, he really tries not to pull it out but he can't always stop himself
• The axe itself would probably also bother Austin a bit, but he would still try to cautiously calm Eteled down since he knows he's just afraid, so afterwards they'd probably have to awkwardly apologize for what the fuck happened at that very moment
• Sam sometimes offers them both to play a game together with her, or plans on playing with Eteled and invites Austin along, as a way to make them bond, they do end up having some fun though
• Eteled has seen and/or been around or within newer Nintendo consoles, but personally prefers being in the Wii since he's used to it the most, and it's the most comfortable and homey to him
• Oh yeah, if Austin or Eteled is having an episode or is deeply upset then the other will try to help sometimes if it's really bad, Austin tries to hide it more but it doesn't always work, yeah they have reasonable reasons to not like the other, but they aren't complete assholes
• They both got trauma memories and aren't gonna just watch the other suffer through it
• Austin may or may not have taken in what Eteled had said all that time ago about "Learning to move past the past", even though that technically makes Eteled a hypocrite when he's constantly beating himself up about shit mentally, even after years, they are both doing it tbh
• Also Kyle doesn't know about Austin 100% but is curious to know his story and who he is and used to be, and how he got in the Wii, especially after the passing of his family member of the same name, little does he know..
• Sam also doesn't know about any of it, neither Sam or Kyle know of what happened or Austin's story, Austin being in a tight spot since he doesn't wanna reveal his identity yet, knowing the possible reaction, for Eteled's sake, Sam's and especially Kyle's, and Eteled being absolutely fucking terrified since the fear of losing someone like Sam could become real, and the small but growing friendship he was slowly making with Kyle could go right back to hatred and wanting the small Mii deleted, not including the fact that he still eats at himself for his past actions so it being brought back up again would be a ✨mess✨
• Austin doesn't know if he forgives Eteled or not, but wants to try to move past it and not be reminded in any way
• Nathan is still a little lowkey scared of Eteled ngl, doesn't wanna upset him or anything and Eteled can tell, he probably sighs to himself but he can't blame the guy
• Kyle has thought about making another Mii of himself on what is now long been Sam's Wii, now that he's older and him and Eteled are rather chill, but decided against it since he wasn't sure, not because he didn't trust Eteled, but because he figured it could potentially remind the Mii of the past, so whenever he plays on it he just uses Eteled
(That's all I can really recall on the top of my head for now, whenever I remember more or add on things I'll probably make a new post about it)
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stellocchia · 3 years
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So, since we got that revival stream there are A LOT of takes that I’ve been seeing popping up regarding c!Wilbur. From straight up wrong takes like “he was worse then Dream” and “he manipulated Dream and made him a villain” to some more understandable but still very much wrong takes like: “Willbur was never a villain” and “Wilbur’s mental health spiral means we cannot identify him as a villain”
Since I’ve already spoken on other posts of mine about the first kind of statement, I want to focus on the second today. 
Let me preface this by saying that c!Wilbur is most definitely not an irredeemable character (a redemption arc for him is most definitely POSSIBLE, though we’ve gotten quite a lot of clues by now that that’s not the route cc!Wilbur seems to want to go down). I honestly think that the only TRULY irredeemable character in the smp ic c!Dream and that’s because of a mix between the level of harm he caused and his reaction and motivation for it. 
BUT he was a villain. A sympathetic one for sure, but a villain nonetheless. Being redeemable doesn’t make him any less of one, just like having understandable motivations or his harmful actions being a response to trauma or mental health related problems doesn’t make his actions and their consequences any less severe.
I mean I don’t see anyone out here having a problem with calling c!Jack a villain even if the harmful actions he tried to do or did are responses to isolation and trauma, why is Wilbur different when he’s caused much more harm? 
Same with Niki: we all recognized that her planning and trying to kill a child in cold blood was most definitely villanous even with her being extremely sympathetic. And, once again, she suffered from similar conditions to those Wilbur was in: a lack of a system of support, loosing her country, isolation in a base underground and we can add loosing a dear friend to that for her. So why don’t we give her a pass for everything? Why isn’t (well, wasn’t, she seems to be better off now that she is with the syndacate) she JUST a tragic charact but ALSO a villainous one?
Well it all comes down to the goal and the impact of someone’s actions. While the declining mental health of a character is important to keep in mind when deciding if they’re sympathetic and to understand what motivate their actions, it’s irrelevant to establish if they’re a villain. 
Let’s take c!Jack again as an example: he griefed multiple buildings trying to pit Dream and Tommy against each other, pre Tommy’s exile, and cause an all out war between them because Tommy’s actions had caused (in Jack’s mind of course, as what Dream did is entirely Dream’s responsability and in no way the fault of Tommy) Dream to burn down part of Manifold Land. He was angry at both of them in an understandable way, but his goals and actions were both immoral. And his actions didn’t cause harm ONLY because Tommy had already been exiled, otherwise they could have been taken by Dream as a reason to exile him either way later on. 
Now, for another example, c!Quackity: his announced goal with him torturing c!Dream is taking away the power that grants him the ability to harm others while still within Pandor’a Vault. But, truth be told, he IS mostly doing it for selfish reasons, either be it because he lost a bet to Schlatt or because this IS part of the bet it’s still a completely callous reason for torturing someone. The person he is harming is undeniably a villain who’s hurt a lot of people, but that’s irrelevant when judging the morality of Quackity’s action. 
Now let’s talk about Wilbur’s actions:
- He abused and manipulated Tommy, there is no way around it. He was extremely verbally abusive towards him. He tried to isolate him from everyone else and he tried to control Tommy’s emotional responses. He’s still doing that as a matter of fact by straight up dismissing any emotional response Tommy has that doesn’t suit him (by, for example, ignoring his clear signs of dicomfort back during their conversation post season 2 finale and by ignoring and making fun of his panic attack in their discussion in the afterlife). We know this caused long term trauma for Tommy causing him to have night terrorse about him and being terrified of ever becoming anything like Wilbur. Trying to find a way to avoid Wilbur’s path was basically Tommy’s whole arc in season 2. 
- He retained vital informations from Techno (retaining information from him about his allies, and from his allies about him). This one is a bit more up for discussion to be honest, but Ive seen quite a few people make the point that Wilbur made sure that the info he gave Techno was the only one he had about Pogtopia’s intetions. He also was the only one who knew about Techno’s withers and about his anarchists ideals and he never revealed them to ther allies, which definitely helped in causing the rift later on.
- He mistreated Tubbo quite a lot as well (the whole scene at the festival is just painful). But, basically, he had him spy for them and basically treated him as a pawn. He described him, to his face, as just a “yes man” with no free will of his own. Then he used his death just to bring forth discord and violence between his allies. He also pushed on him all the pressure to decide on wether to blow up the country or not. 
- He kept keeping L’Manburg hostage to his allies, increasing the already incredible pressure on them immensely. When Schlatt said he moved the tnt to Pogtopia he started doing the same with that place by constantly clicking all the random buttons while they were all trying to plan. That is blackmail my dudes. Blackmail done to an extreme.
- There is the whole pit scene that deserves a point on it’s own where he literally kept spurring on both Techno and Tommy (all the while blatantly putting down Tommy in an extremely manipulative way) to beat each other to death (albeit non-canonically). Re-watch that one and pay close attention to him if you have any doubt about him being abusive towards Tommy.
- And, for last, he also did blow up L’Manburg and he had fully intended to do it also as a last slight towards Tommy, just to add on to how much of a d*ck he was to him.
It’s true that he needed help and that he had spirald. He had become self-destructive and paranoid, but that DOESN’T erase what he has done, nor what that paint him as. His actions were all done with the spcific goal of being harmful to others and have all had long lasting effects. He hurt A LOT of people. He is, by all intents and purposes, a villain. 
Also I want to add that if they do give him a redemtion arc it will have to be done carefully to be done well. And also none of the people he hurt with his actions should be forced to forgive him. As a matter of fact I’ll go further and say that Tommy in particular shouldn’t even be forced to TALK to him as he has already expressed extreme concern about ending up being manipulated again. No matter what he went through and what his mental state was, none of his victims owe him any understanding either.
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Your post about trauma and how characters handles it in Bardugo’s post really makes me think how she writes and handles what she deems as feminine men, traumatized men, or generally how she sees neurodivergency. Like I sorta loathe Alina’s attitude towards Harshaw, how she sees him as creepy. I also loathe how Yuri Vedenen was written, that a traumatized young man is only ever weak and feeble. It’s weird. It’s so weird.
Yeah she's not great at writing trauma full stop she either doesn't portray it very well like with Alina who we don't really see how her traumas have effected her outside of her having a couple of nightmares, or she does the opposite where she gives a character a very accurate reaction to trauma like sergei but then treats them like they are weak and a hindrance which is a very damaging message to be sending. But now that you've mentioned it alot of these characters with trauma that are then displayed as weak are men. It's like that comment she made about how if you wanted to know which characters she was going to kill then look for the white straight males. It just seems like she doesn't consider the trauma men face as valid and she often makes villains of traumatised men. Like you said its weird and not ok.
As for Yuri I haven't read those books and to be honest I probably won't, I have however looked up his character on the grishaverse fandom wiki and once again you've got this traumatised young boy who was abused, he's similar to the darkling in alot of ways and it makes sense why he was drawn to him. But in other ways his story follows the same path as Alina. He starts out believing in the darkling but as time goes on he becomes horrified by the darkling's actions and tries to act against him and stop him. And just like Alina it seems like he is punished for falling for the darkling's charms because he ends up trapped in a tree along with the darkling even though in the end he tried to do the right thing. Which seems to be another theme of LB's works, Alina tried to do the right thing and was punished for it by losing her powers, Aleks tried to do the right thing and was punished for it by death once and then eternity of suffering, Yuri tried to do the right thing and got the same fate as the darkling. Which again just seems like a weird message to me.
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voicedaily · 3 years
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VOICE4 Interview with The Writer, Ma Jiwon
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-The impression of successfully ending up to season 4?
I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the viewers who watched Season 4 of 'Voice'. This season seems to be the season where I thought the most about 'how can I make a more developed and meaningful drama?' In addition, after a long deliberation, the ending decided to connect Kwon-joo Kang, Derek Jo and Dong Bangmin from season 4 with the characters Bang Jesoo and Gardness Lee from season 2-3. It was the ending to expand the voice universe until season 5, and I was worried about the reaction inside, but I felt really relieved and grateful that the viewers seemed to have responded. Since the season system is planned over a long period of time, I think that meaningful results can be achieved when all the production crews have a long breathing and run with one mind. In particular, this season 4 is even more precious and grateful because, despite the difficult situation of the COVID-19 pandemic, all the production crew 'considered and communicated' and finished happily until the end.
-What message did you want to convey through Season 4?
Season 4 of 'Voice' took the theme from the crime rate data on the increase in abuse and violence within the family amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. In fact, after season 3, family crimes (violence between families, child abuse, etc.) are the most frequent and quiet crimes around us. In particular, I wrote this with a sincere hope that it will be an opportunity to think about the reality of child abuse that occurs frequently recently, but does not get better easily, and to realize that the person we need to listen to the most is our family.
Also, since family crime is a sensitive issue, I thought a lot with the director on how to deliver it to the viewers without discomfort. In the end, I worked on the script with the belief that "if we make it with sincerity, viewers will recognize it," and I think it was realized well thanks to the director's humanistic directing and the actors' passionate performances. In particular, after the ending of episode 14, there were many viewers who recognized the feelings of the production team, so I was really grateful. Thanks to the viewers who listen to what 'Voice' wants to say, I think 'Voice' can continue the season system.
-What did you expect from Song Seung-heon following Jang Hyuk and Lee Jin-wook?
If actor Jang Hyuk and actor Jin-wook Lee were 'symbols of a ruthless macho detective with pain', actor Song Seung-heon has a soft and gentle image, so he is an actor who suggested casting because it fits perfectly with the character of Derek Cho, who does not lose his dignity and pride as a human being and a police officer under any circumstances. In fact, in a meeting before filming, I told actor Song Seung-heon that it could be a tricky character that needs to be attractive while avoiding all the strengths of the male lead character from seasons 1, 2, and 3. In addition, the former child abuse victim who was adopted by the US police is not an easy one.
Nevertheless, actor Song Seung-heon willingly took on the challenge and is sincerely grateful for playing the best detective Derek Joe. In fact, Derek Joe is not a detective who runs blindly in front of the scene, but a person who knows how to comfort people even in the midst of an incident. The action was also expected, but it did so much better than expected. Under the judgment of the martial arts director that Derek Jo, an adopted child born with pain in Korea, would have played a lot of popular sports in the United States, professional wrestling, judo, and Kravma were crafted to subdue opponents in an instant with techniques. do. In particular, I heard that he impressed the scene with his passionate acting that digested a number of actions without a stand-by, such as climbing up the railing on the second floor of the dog kennel without a wire prepared in advance at the time of filming, or collided with a car. I wanted to show that the consideration, sacrifice, and leadership of Derek Cho, played by Song Seung-heon, are the charms of this season's male protagonist.
In addition, child abuse is a crime that is serious enough to say that it leaves a trauma that is difficult to heal, and it is a crime that our society must work together to eradicate. What I ultimately wanted to draw through Derek Cho was a good will to overcome the wounds of the past without being engulfed in the wounds of the past, unlike the people of the East, who became trapped in their own wounds. (The setting to become a principled police officer instead of direct revenge on the adoptive father was also the intention)
-Lee Hana, who is active in the 4th season, must have many things to praise.
Hana below is very clear and warm. Because it contains all the tendencies that a voice profiler should have, there would probably be no 'voice' without Lee Ha-na. Throughout season 4, he is an actor who not only perfectly digests the difficult acting of investigating super-strong cases, giving orders and emotionally comforting without a partner in the center, but also takes good care of the field staff. He shows his affection for the script to the extent that he thinks he is himself the script for 'Voice', and as a writer, I feel grateful and proud. Especially this season, I know that it must have been a lot of mental burden in the beginning because I had to play a villain who is a multi-personality. I was worried when I entrusted the role of a cruel villain to the main character, who has been a just police officer for three seasons.
However, I had a belief that if we were Hana or an actor, we would create a completely different character without compromising the goodness of the main character. When I finally saw the actual video, I was surprised by how well it was digested beyond my expectations. When I saw the reaction of the viewers who welcomed the villain acting of actress Lee Ha-na as 'Dark Kwon-ju', I was amazed that people's eyes are similar. While acting both good and bad roles at the same time, there must have been a lot of hardship, but I want to give a big applause to actress Lee Ha-na, who steadfastly led the 'Voice' without any expression. I would like to take this opportunity to bow my head and express my heartfelt gratitude to the actors of 'Voice', including actress Lee Ha-na, who has been acting unwaveringly in powerful crime scene dramas for several years.
-How did you plan to set up a serial killer with 5 personalities?
The personalities of Dongbangmin, 'Master', 'Center Director', 'Circusman', 'Good Dongbangmin' and 'Boy Dongbangmin' were either the Dongbangmin himself who had been abused by children, or good people who tried to help the Dongbangmin in some way during their lifetime. However, he was unable to help, and he was eventually absorbed into the character of a murderer by a Dongbang man suffering from a personality disorder. This is a common occurrence in multiple personality disorders. The five personalities were also created in part 14 to give reality to the fight between the personalities, as well as a device to trigger an inner conflict between the personalities when Kwon Joo and Derek arrest the people of the East. To protect themselves, the people of the East created the personalities of their victims as vicious criminals, but in the end they were devastated by their personalities.
Also, in Season 4 of 'Voice', the reason for creating multiple personalities and creating multiple personalities is to show that we can all be in danger if we miss the golden time to rescue someone, and the way to prevent child abuse is to show the interest of those around us. There was also I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to actor Kim Yoo-nam, who gave an impactful performance in the role of Seok-gu Eom, a circus man who is the character of the people of the East.
- How was the Dong Bang-min that actor Lee Kyu-hyung digested?
The Dong Bang-min character was a multi-personal character that rarely appeared in Korean dramas. I knew that acting would not be easy, so I had a lot of trouble deciding which actor to join, but I was very happy that the director casted actor Lee Kyu-hyung, who performed the best in plays and musicals as well as broadcasts and movies, and that actor Lee Kyu-hyung was willing to take on the role. . In fact, it would be a lie if I said I had no concerns as a writer while writing a multi-personal villain and watching the process of its implementation. However, through the appearance of clearly throwing (detailed) serious concerns about the script, I was convinced that Lee Kyu-hyung would perform the best (more than the script), and it was great to have time to convey the intentions of the warriors and writers for each character. .
In particular, details such as facial expressions and voices between the personalities were very important, and I was amazed to see that they not only prepared surprisingly perfectly, but also lost nearly 10 kg of weight to give the impression that they could disguise themselves as women, and carefully prepared even the accessories and gait. Actor Lee Kyu-hyung, who has been well-received for his multiple roles in plays and musicals, seems to have clearly demonstrated the true value of a genius actor who changes into a different face in an instant as if he absorbed each personality in Season 4 of 'Voice'. (I was even worried that I might feel too focused on the villain)
And in fact, I heard that actor Lee Kyu-hyung had a wrist fracture ahead of the last episodes 13 and 14. Nevertheless, I was really thankful that I successfully completed the final confrontation scene with actor Song Seung-heon while wearing a pressure bandage. In private, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to actor Lee Kyu-hyung, who has a pleasant relationship with the golden time team.
- About Kang Seung-yoon's casting?
After Han Woo-joo was set up as a 4D cyber agent born in the 90s, he was very happy that actor Kang Seung-yoon said he would do it willingly when he was looking for an actor. It was because I thought that Kang Seung-yoon, an idol, singer-songwriter and excellent actor, would be perfect for Han Woo-joo. And before filming began, he showed his passion for running through the last season of 'Voice', and even the way he was immersed in his favorite field was Han Woo-joo, who was born in the 90s.
The role of providing clues in the right place in the process of arresting a criminal must have been difficult because there were a lot of technical terms in the lines, but I was really thankful that I played while taking advantage of the fun point. I also heard that he brought laughter to the weary on-site staff as a mood maker in the field. In reality, the spectrum is diverse, so it seems that he can handle other strong genres and roles, such as thrillers. I would like to give a generous round of applause to actor Kang Seung-yoon, who not only acted but also participated in the OST called 'Your Voice' with the best singing ability.
-What is the biggest difference from the previous season?
'Voice' always brings the luck of working with the best coaches, but it has the disadvantage that it is not easy to meet the schedule for the next season. As a result, it is difficult to meet a new coach every season and start over from the beginning, but thanks to the coaches, the season with a different color seems to have the advantage of 'Voice'. In Season 4, I met director Shin Yong-hwi, who made genres with strong humanism such as 'Tunnel', and focused on realizing those emotions, such as the pain of victims and why family crimes occur. As I said before, I was very worried about how to deal with the level of family crime. I want to talk about the importance of family, but if it is cruel, the meaning will fade, and that doesn't mean I can't abandon the tone and manner 'Voice' has maintained. In the end, season 4 of 'Voice' worked together under the purpose of differentiating it into a season faithful to detail, emotion and emotion rather than the urgency of real-time pursuit.
In addition, by setting the male lead, Derek Jo, as the opposite of Jinhyeok Mu and Kangwoo Do from the previous season, we tried to create a different (mature) atmosphere in the relationship with Kwon Joo and the Golden Time team. In addition, unlike last season, when team members were involved with episodic incidents, this season only unified the theme of family crime for each episode and developed independently. Lastly, to connect the world view, Detective Shim Dae-sik from Season 1 and Agent Cheon Sang-pil were reunited again in Season 4, and I was very proud and moved by the hospitality of the viewers.
-The best scene this season? Is there an episode you worked hard on the most?
All episodes are precious, but the most elaborate episode seems to be episode 14, in which Dong Bang-min is arrested by Kang Kwon-joo and Derek Jo. As it was an important ending of season 4, it was a sequence that was revised several times. The main actors wearing spring clothes (leather jackets, etc.) in the heat wave and the actors who played the characters of the people of the East were waiting. It was fortunate. Also, the most memorable episodes are 'The Road of the Underworld' and 'The Man in the Rape Field'. It was not easy to write a story because 'The Way the Grim Reaper Lives' is an episode in which a man with paranoia and wild dogs who live in the forest appear. (I also heard from the director that he had a lot of trouble on set, such as mobilizing a portable toilet.) I know that 'The Man in the Rape Field' is an episode with a lot of likes and dislikes, but the perfect performances of actor Jeon Moo-song and actor Jo Jae-ryong, who appeared as father and son, I was genuinely impressed.
In addition, there are lines that were repeatedly mentioned in Season 4 of 'Voice'. 'Because it's a family, you shouldn't be silent'. Due to Corona 19, we are all in a situation where we cannot afford it, but the more this happens, the more we need to look around and pay attention to our family, neighbors, and surroundings.
-What kind of picture do you envision for the next season?
In fact, like season 2-3, season 4-5 was also planned together, so the ending of season 4 implies that the narrative of the character Kang Kwon-ju will begin, and the work is done with the intention of laying out multiple lines about what will happen in season 5. did it right In fact, I think season 5 is the part where the secret of Kang Kwon-ju's hearing, which is the most important story of 'Voice', is revealed and the end of the worldview that continues through seasons 1-5. The story related to the re-appearance of F Child Nursing Hospital, Gardness Lee, Fabre Lab, and Bang Jesu, which will be the basic framework of season 5, is actually conceived to some extent.
However, even the writer does not know the schedule for the new season at all. This is because there are many things to consider, such as the actors' schedules and production conditions. This is an area that cannot be decided by the author alone, and if the production of season 5 is confirmed, detailed adjustments may be made later. One of the driving forces of 'Voice' is that it gained sympathy from viewers through the epic narratives of the male protagonists from season 1 to 2-3. Now, for the first time, Center Director Kang Kwon-ju is leaving the Center. Last but not least, actor Kwon Yul, who willingly decided to appear in the area, came running after finishing filming in another province even though it was midnight, wearing a white suit in the heat, and filming until dawn. I would like to express my gratitude once again for actor Kwon Yul's professionalism and his unchanging love for 'voice'.
-What kind of work would you like to be left behind for your fans?
I was very surprised when the viewers who saw 'Voice' season 4 for the first time heard that they were going to run again from season 1. It was the season when I felt 'this is the power of the season system' again, and I also thought that this would give the drama a longer life. Once again, I sincerely bow my head and thank you. Hope for the rescue of the victims, anger towards the perpetrators, and support for the Golden Time Team are not limited to dramas. In a world desolate with cynicism and disgust, 'Voice' listens to small sounds and leaves it as a drama that shows that humans live with hope rather than anger. If you ask me, I can answer, “That drama is interesting,” and when the next season comes out, I sincerely hope that it will remain as a drama that “I miss you”.
-Any message to the viewers who love the 4th season?
I think communication with the viewers is also important because I know that the 'Voice' season system would not have been made without the affectionate interest of the viewers during the 4th season. While 'Voice' was airing, I would like to reflect the points of sympathy and observation with you, and the points of disappointment, in my work in the future. In the meantime, I would like to sincerely thank you for watching the process of resolving Kwon-Joo Kang, Derek Jo, Golden Time Team, Circus Man, Sonam Village, and family crimes in Season 4 of 'Voice', Vimodo.
SOURCE: chosun.com
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chibimyumi · 4 years
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The Circus Arc
Last week somebody asked me what my favourite manga arc is, and without a second of hesitation I answered 🎪. As I have already publically declared my love, it is only natural for me to write a love letter to the Circus Arc.
Why do I consider the Circus Arc the best still after more than a decade?
I. The true story
First of all, the Circus Arc is in my opinion the first arc wherein we truly get to meet the characters, as well as the series itself.
A protagonist who is dispensable in their own story is not a true protagonist. As touched upon in this post, before the Circus Arc O!Ciel was actually little more than a plot device to show off Sebastian’s many assets. “The Watchdog has a case because the Queen said so, Sebastian solves it.” “The Watchdog was kidnapped because Yana TOLD us he made life for the mafia a bit hard, so Sebastian saves him.” When Sebas said to his master “you truly have no other talent except for getting yourself abducted,” it sure rang very true until that point. It wasn’t as much a story of O!Ciel’s revenge as it was Sebas saving the day because: demon powers.
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In the Circus Arc however, we truly got an insight on why this little boy could indeed have made life for the mafia hard, and why after two years the Queen still hasn’t fired him. As discussed in the post mentioned before, almost as a compensation for his prior starfishhood, O!Ciel had insisted on doing the investigation himself, even at the cost of his own health. We saw him actively cooking up strategies as well as dealing with any situation as they were met. O!Ciel really displayed a commendable aptness at playing the cards he has been dealt in the Circus Arc. In contrast, while Sebas did make many accomplishments, all his actions were the undertaken because of O!Ciel’s orders. In the Circus Arc we truly got to see how the boy is the chess player, and demon the black knight.
II. Our protagonists - into the core
The Circus Arc is likewise the arc wherein we actually get to meet our two main characters outside their token function.
We have seen Sebastian’s establishment as “the pawn that can move across the entire chessboard in one single move”. But without O!Ciel’s input or any price that the master would have to pay, Sebastian is easily just an ‘instant-win card’, an ironic “deus” ex machina, if you will.
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As discussed in this post and this post, in the Jack the Ripper Arc Sebastian was quite dissatisfied with his master and therefore decided to teach his master a lesson at the cost of more innocent lives. However nasty, it had been O!Ciel who ordered for a subpar move, and technically the pawn “did nothing wrong.”
In the Circus Arc O!Ciel became meticulous about decisions regarding his chess piece. Principally there was nothing wrong with the order O!Ciel had given his butler about releasing the snakes before the first stringers would return, and Sebas who was bound to perfect completion of any order also didn’t do anything wrong, technically. However, it had already been established that as long as Sebas sees the interest himself he would find any loophole in orders to still benefit his master in one way or another. As it is, considering how Sebas did decide to release the poisonous snakes while his master was in the danger zone, we are left with a chilling conclusion that Sebas simply ‘did not see the interest’ of shielding O!Ciel from danger. For the first time we truly learn the extent of Sebastian’s nondiscriminatory nastiness; how indeed all humans are the same to him. For the first time we truly understand that O!Ciel is paying with much more than his soul for Sebastian’s services. This demon is a double-edged sword, but much more than swinging outwards, this sword has a tendency to swing inwards the moment the wielder allows for any opening.
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Previously discussed in this post, we also see the full extent of Sebastian’s manipulativeness and toxicity in the Circus Arc. Sure, in other arcs Sebas is also manipulative, but all of those actions could still be categorised under “merciless honesty”. In the Circus Arc however, O!Ciel objectively did nothing wrong to be triggered and exhausted from the Circus shenanigans, and yet Sebas was unnecessarily re-triggering and victim shaming his master for some extra “flavouring”. If there had been any doubt whether Sebas is bad for O!Ciel, then surely the Circus Arc put all doubts to rest.
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For the first time in the manga we also see a genuine obstacle for Sebastian that is for not also the final hurdle to overcome, like in the Ripper, Curry, Campania or any other arc really. In the Manor Murder and Werewolf Arc there were of course Earl Grey and Wolfram respectively, but in those cases Sebas mostly tried to outrun the obstacles. In the Circus Arc however, William is likewise a supernatural being, and Sebas knew very well that he can’t just neutralise William without causing more trouble than good. Hence we saw how Sebas tried to negotiate with William, and we learned that even Sebastian cannot just avoid hurdles. Negotiating with William did not work of course, so the story forced Sebas to be creative. It truly was great to see Sebas use his brain rather than demon-muscles to overcome a problem for a change.
While getting “creative”, Sebas displayed his aptitude for preying on humans in our weakest of moments. As explained in this characterisation of Sebastian, Sebastian is not terrifying because he has super powers, but because he understands human weaknesses like no other and uses our own weaknesses against us. Click here for an analysis of Sebas’ cross-media manipulation of Beast.
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In this same arc we likewise truly understand the looming threat O!Ciel is dealing with, an explicit revelation of the monster Sebastian is. This scene from underneath is the most explicit moment telling us that Sebas is not just dwelling on Earth comfortably; he is holding out under a cover. This scene almost served as an alarming reminder to us: “beware, the demon can snap”.
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What about O!Ciel? In our boy we saw his tremendous dedication to his job. Except for purposes directly related to the investigation, never once did he order Sebastian to make life easier for him. He never made Sebas secure food for him or do any of the chores for him. Surely Earl Phantomhive would consider himself above wrestling for food or scrub some floors, and yet he was willing to just take on any task without complaining. In no other arc do we see just how effective O!Ciel is as the Watchdog exactly because he is so versatile both in playing the ‘cute little boy’ card as well as the ‘feared Watchdog’ card.
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Doll was an exceptionally well chosen “obstacle” for O!Ciel (more about her later). When Doll briefly wondered about why a peasant boy like Smile would speak in flawless RP, we saw O!Ciel’s ability of thinking on his feet, giving a very logical explanation of: “I served in a Lord’s household where I learned to speak proper.” When Doll caught him red handed when he sneaked into Snake’s tent O!Ciel also immediately pulled the “I didn’t steal anything!” card, skillfully tying it into his previous story as ‘the page boy who was fired for stealing’. We learned that the Watchdog really is willing to carry out his job through any means necessary, not just ‘the cool and edgy means’.
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One of the best ways to get to learn a person is judging from their gut reactions. When O!Ciel was triggered in the final showdown he no longer had any energy to put on a strong front or think about matters rationally. He was in emotional pain and his gut reaction was to want that pain gone.
Even Sebastian who would not directly benefit from the case being completed advised his master against burning down everything. Even with the Queen’s commission as leverage however, the boy still yelled to have everything reduced to ashes. In this moment we also understood just how traumatising everything was to O!Ciel personally. This trauma response didn’t come from nowhere; everything that happened up until that point had been a logical build-up towards this inevitable result.
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III. The Side Characters
A story cannot be told with just the main characters; you need to care about the interactions they have with others too. In my opinion the Circus Arc has delivered the most memorable side characters that linger with us even after death. In particular Joker and Doll.
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Joker is a very fun, charismatic character as well as a person with many different sides. He is lawfully inexcusable, but we cannot help but sympathise, or at least understand how he too is a victim compelled into evil. Rationally we reject Joker’s actions, but partially it is because we have the luxury to do so. “Is this self defense? Would we, or how would we have done anything differently had we been in his exact shoes?” is a question worth considering.
Doll too; we see a child who lived a relatively happy life in the recent past. In the anime they made it explicit that Doll was complicit in all the kidnappings of the children, but in the manga it is more ambiguous whether Doll is fully aware of Kelvin’s agenda. This gives the effect that with the revelation of Joker always having taken most of the bullets, we understand that the torment Joker has been suffering was the price he paid to buy his siblings a more-or-less normal life. If O!Ciel sold his soul to the devil in the literate sense, Joker did so in the figurative sense in exchange for his family’s happiness.
IV. The Antagonists?
We do not spend too much time with Baron Kelvin, and he is a relatively simple character. But that is not bad as long as the villain’s threat reaches us. The horrors of Kelvin have always been quite clear; when children are harmed it triggers a gut reaction of disgust in most viewers. But the kidnapped children were not the functional victims in this story, it is the first stringers with Joker in the centre.
Kelvin has made a bunch of crippled children fully dependent on him, and used their own dependency as a currency to satisfy his own greed. Never once did he allow these children to forget how he could easily return them to the gutter from where he collected them. The kidnapped children were just numbers in the newspaper, but the first stringers are characters we spent time with. We have seen their suffering and we know they are just trying to get by. So it is all the more heartbreaking that children who merely wanted their basic human rights were turned into the antagonists that had to be exterminated. In the showdown between Joker vs Watchdog, the dynamic is shifted from “heroes vs child-kidnapping villains” to “villain-protagonists vs anti-villains”.
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The Circus Arc is very special in how the villain impacts the readers, because the people affected matter to us. In the earliest arcs we didn’t REALLY care about O!Ciel, but he was the main person who suffered from the villains. With Sebastian around however, we don’t really worry. In the Ripper, Mansion, Campania and Potter Arc the main victims are characters we don’t spend any time with, so emotionally we don’t really care whether “evil gets vanquished”. In the Werewolf Arc we do have Sieglinde and Wolfram, and it is heartbreaking to see Sieglinde discovering that all her happiness had been a big lie and that to even her own mother she was nothing but a tool. But in the very least she did grow up happily, she survived and has a fresh chance to start a new life, and the person closest to her (Wolfram) is still with her.
For the first stringers however... all had been meaningless, all is finite.
As expertly described by Sebas in the musical adaptation of the Circus Arc, humans are pathetic because we are merely “accumulating sins in the version of hell [we] have chosen to live.”
V. From foil to team members
The servants at the Phantomhive manor were originally just designed to be foil for Sebas to demonstrate his awesome butler skills. I don’t know whether they were liked at first, but for one I do know that many found them quite annoying or pointless too.
The Circus Arc is the first time we see the significance of the Phantomhive servants, that they’re not just there waiting to be fed by O!Ciel because... he’s a philanthropist of some sort? Yana had made some questionable decisions at first, and she clearly regretted those ‘choices’. I personally see the Circus Arc as her first demonstration of her skills as story writer, and her public proclamation of: “this is Kuroshitsuji’s potential!”
Had the entire series started with the Circus Arc, then surely the animated series would have gotten a much higher budget and a better time-slot for airing.
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VI. Humour
The humour in the Circus Arc is also great, but nothing was shoehorned in there for the sake of laughs, neither do these moments disturb the tone of the story.
Everything was funny because they were the inevitable consequences of putting these people together. William had been established as a demon-racist plank, and when made to cooperate with a demon, of course he would say: “my hands will rot”. When called “four-eyes”, of course he would say: “it’s SUIT”.
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Many of the comedic moments are centred around our protagonists’ inconveniences, but nobody is inconveniencing them for the sake of inconveniencing them. When Sebastian was not trying to leave the vicinity William mostly let him at peace. O!Ciel for example also couldn’t do many things simply because Doll was clinging to him. But she did not know what was at stake and her actions were well grounded in her immense desire to make new friends. “You are young, I am young. You lost an eye, I lost an eye. Let’s be FRIENDS!”
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This is in stark contrast with how ‘funny inconveniences’ were staged before using Lizzie or Grell for example. Lizzie was a drag to O!Ciel because... she’s a girl who wanted everything to go HER way... and Grell was a drag to Sebas because she... is a girl who wanted everything to go HER way.
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VII. Ending
The ending of the Circus Arc also carried a bitter-sweet tone that most other arcs do not present. The thematic of “demons dwell in the human nature of stepping on others” is perfectly addressed in the Circus Arc, but it does not end with: “so don’t be evil!”. The Circus Arc simply highlights the issue and reminds us that ‘stepping on others’ does not exist in a vacuum.
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Had the objective of the series not been established as “boy who swore on revenge”, and instead be: "rethinking evil”, then the Circus Arc alone would have told the story sufficiently.
The finale of the Circus Arc resonates with its audience because the core principle on which Kuroshitsuji is built is a narrative humankind has always wanted to externalise, but without success: “demons are only as evil as humans allow their own evil to show”.
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sanktagenyas · 3 years
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ok so i finally watched those last three episodes. i said buckle up it’s time to suffer and by the saints did i ever suffer. i just knew the darklina scenes were gonna be rough to watch. it was already rough reading the scenes as they were written in book one. i mean the darkling just shines with his intelligence in that chapter, doesn’t he? threaten the man she loves? well the other man she loves? check! tell her she betrayed you when the reality is you’ve been telling half truths all along and didn’t trust her to make her choices? check! 
buddy this isn’t how you apologize. in the show itself it’s pretty much the same back and forth that leads nowhere. you lied to me! you ran off because my mother told you i’m not who i say i am without giving me a chance to explain! you’ve been lying or bending the truth since we met! YOU TURNED YOUR BACK ON YOUR COUNTRY!
by that point i was just like chill the fuck out man you’re about to decimate many many countrymen and you know it. i loved that the stop they made was all about him getting revenge on the man who attempted on alina’s life, that was very unhinged of him and i was HERE for that shit but everyone else in that port? every other woman and child and man on that port? not all of them played a hand and he just went ahead and had them slaughtered without batting an eye. and it’s not like he has some kind of safeguard for grishas does he? how does he know there’s no grisha wherever he’s expanding the fold? some could be in hiding because they fled, because they didn’t want to serve the king. oh well he doesn’t really care about those people does he? we all saw how he spoke about those deserters to arken.
also he could NOT handle alina’s harsh truths about how his own actions are harming grisha close to him even though he claims that every choice he’s made was to protect them and empower them. when she brought up genya i was like yes you better look down you motherfucker! you did this to her, you delivered to her abuser over and over. 
we saw his backstory, some of it and he acted out of grief and rage. he toyed with magic he did not understand and of course he didn’t intend this but his reaction to the fold once it was all said and done was definitely foreshadowing what he was to become. i created something he said defiantly. you created something you don’t have control over. and now he’s done it again somehow, he’s got brand new creatures following him at the end.
i actually felt for young aleksander for losing the woman he loved but the arrogance and the recklessness he showed there is still the same arrogance he has now. he thinks he has thought his plan through but that’s just working off the assumption that no one opposes him ever otherwise he went ahead and put a target on grisha’s backs. he definitely put a target on alina’s back although i know that was never the plan. the fact that when he has a perfectly good remedy to the fold, a chance to actually fix his mistakes once and for all he turns its back and decides to make it ten times worse, chooses ruling via fear over hope is jusr a sign of how far he’s gone. and he didn’t waver once not even when alina was pleading with him that he could have made her his equal, that they could have stayed together and made ravka safe together if only he gave her a choice, he was still manipulative and lied to her face.
at this point i just don’t think his love for her outweighs his belief that he knows what’s best for ravka, what’s the best way to protect grisha. because he doesn’t care about anyone who isn’t grisha at all. he was persecuted like so many others. he won a war for a king centuries and that king turned on him. i’m sure he’s looking at the current one knowing that once grisha have exhausted their uses that king will turn on him too. the fold is just a different kind of war and if he wins that one for the king the darkling already knows what the outcome will be. 
so to summarize this whole darkling commentary here i understand where he is coming from, i understand the fear and the rage and the desperation. it’s not working out for him though. he’s feared but he’s alone. for every ivan there’s a zoya. for every man who’s blindly loyal to him there’ll be someone rising up to oppose him eventually. and if it’s not his own people it’ll be non grisha folks. he has the second army working for him still, but he is alone. and that’s no one’s fault but his own because alina was willing to work with him. 
speaking of alina i loved every second of her rising up to oppose him telling him she never needed him. she may have fallen in love with him but she never actually needed him to be powerful, she only needed to free herself of the restraints she’d put on her powers out of fear. i also thought that the way she freed herself of his control made more sense than it did in the books. 
i have hope for darklina still despite all that’s happened despite how positively full of rage ans resentment she is because she still loves him, she still listened when he pleaded with her that they needed each other if they wanted to deal with the fold. of course there’s the slight issue of him lying directly and manipulating her to do his bidding and of course the fact that he took her power from her. the only thing that was her and he perverted it for his own gain. i think it just might take more than a year for her to forgive him i’m afraid. i don’t necessarily see a path to redemption right now but reconciliation? alina can be merciful, she can be forgiving. i think all it would really take is just one selfless act, one show of good faith. if he keeps pursuing her and mal and keep trying to rob her of her agency however i don’t see them ever having any kind of closure.
i don’t think i need to expand much more on my thoughts on malina. i’m not feeling what the show wants me to feel. i’m not seeing them as these soulmates that belong together. to me they’d be better of as best friends. the darkling didn’t make her strong he tried to steal her strength for his own use but mal doesn’t make her strong either, she relies too much on him. mal actually was pretty damn resourceful when left on his own. i unfortunately couldn’t say the same for alina. co-dependant love is not better than toxic love and darklina’s toxicity (most of it) comes from the lies and from the darkling repeatedly choosing for alina. he’s not brave enough to just tell her what he intends to do and let her decide whether to align herself with him so he lies and he deceives instead. not much he can do to undo it now but he could help actually destroy the fold if he wanted to. i don’t know if he’ll ever come around to it though.
the darkling visiting mal with the sole purpose to rub it in his face that alina and he are immortal and so eventually mal will die and then he could just swoop in was just peak comedy. the way he delivered that line too you’d think he was talking to an insect not another human being. it was brilliant. mal echoing that same line but ending it with “the past will do it for me” was pretty good, nice quip i’ll give mal that but also terribly ironic when you see the ending.
team crows remains the highlight for me. kaz and inej and their unspoken love for each other is just killing me. i can tell there are personal traumas there that i don’t know about (gotta read those damn books and quick) what with kaz not being able to help tend to her wounds and the fact that there were moments were i could see there was maybe a kiss about to happen or an embrace (at the end when kaz let alina go free and made a deal not to rat her out) and it just didn’t happen. there’s a story there about kaz and his distaste for being touched/touching others. jesper is just here to look pretty, shoot shit and be the most charming person in any crowd. i’m in love. also someone give him his goat back for the love of god.
nina and mathias were entertaining for sure. with all that banter and all these jabs i should have really seen them falling for one another coming. i felt like it was perhaps a bit rushed but i guess there’s nothing like almost freezing to death together to make you reconsider your views. you know the whole saving of lives thing can really bond you. the waffle date was adorable. was not expecting nina to just brand herself a traitor for him and she’s damn lucky fyedor came on that mission because i’m pretty sure ivan wouldn’t even have offered to keep her name out of the report. she and mathias ended their story both heartbroken and separated. i really hate that he thinks this was all intentional. really hope she’ll join the crows on their next con job. and i also cannot wait to see the look on heleen’s face when kaz buys inej’s freedom.
i was not at all expecting zoya to turn against the darkling. that’s what happens when you turned down one of your fuck buddies, aleksander they get bitter and then they leave you to be eaten alive by volcras. ok but in all seriousness she did the right thing and i hope she finds her family even if they’re not alive so she can say her goodbyes. 
oh and completely unrelated but since i talked about heights of comedy before i really need more sassy! darkling in my life. he is everything. that quip about his speech. the way he said adorable like he was gagging on the word. him just letting david be his dorkiest self and raise his hand before speaking, that little put upon sigh. i love sassy! darkling almost as much as jealous and petty darkling which is saying a lot. just more of that. it humanizes him, i’m tired of villains who are forever stoic and stone face. 
i think i about covered everyone and everything that happened in those remaining episodes. all in all shadow and bone is an amazing adaptation, really faithful to the first book. they made some changes to the characters which in turn changed some dynamics (alina actually admitted she wanted to be with the darkling. out loud. to his face. book!alina would never and book!darkling would never cry in front of her.) but it made for surprising viewing. it also made me become even more attached to some characters (the darkling let’s be real) which made me care more which is why i was livid when they started making a lot of terrible no good choices.
i was just really blown away by this show and the way the grishaverse was brought to life and above all major props to the actors who all just seemed to be born to play their respective roles. 
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Teen Wolf and the issue of the hero saves the day
I've got the same(ish) submission for the 3rd time now, so I'm making my own post. Also, ableist terms. Please.
I've said this before, a lot, but just because Scott is the main character, doesn't mean he does better or more than everyone else, or that everyone else's character arcs are about/because of him.
Or at least it should be, but because of that pesky protagonist issue, most character development is kept off screen unless it directly affects Scott.
Was Derek a shitty person? Absolutely, I don't think we have to argue that canon-wise. Did he get a lot of positive character development, and stopped doing those shitty things? Also, absolutely.
But why? Teen Wolf is Scott's story, so you'd assume that he was responsible for that. Invalidate a few teens' trauma, violate Derek, and just be a general nuisance, and congratulations, you have one (1) fully redeemed werewolf. /sarcasm
It has nothing to do with Boyd and Erica leaving and having to reevaluate his alpha-ness while looking for them for 3 (4?) months, or with actually working with Isaac, Peter and Stiles for that, or getting Cora back while loosing Erica and Boyd, or working with Chris, Braeden, etc. /more sarcasm
All of this is canon, but because we only see Scott berating Derek for everything (which goes from don't kill anyone to let me date the people who want me dead fuck you) Scott is the one who gets credit for everything.
And fandom pushes that even further, saying that Derek needed only Scott to be forced to become a better person. Or a whole person apparently, which what?
Though I imagine that if Teen Wolf did actually use Scott as everyone's morality chain we'd then fight about whether or not Scott only exists to fix people through the Power of Abuse Compassion.
That's why so many redemption stories on Teen Wolf just don't work; the show thinks that having Scott forgive people redeemed them, and that everyone who goes against him deserves to be used or tortured.
Let's take Peter for example. (I'm working under the assumption that the deadpool is a mess and that thoughts don't equal actions so it's mostly just Kate) His redemption never revolved around Scott, it's about his family and Lydia. On that aspect, it works.
He helps Derek and Cora, he tries to have some kind of relationship with Malia, Lydia (rightfully) hates him, but they're working on it. As of 3b, he might not be one of the good guys, but he's definitely not a villain anymore.
And then s4, he gets blamed for the deadpool (which, seriously, if ranting about wanting someone dead makes you guilty, Scott has just as much blood on his hands), I still can't see him working with Kate as anything but Scott being useless when it comes to saving Derek, and wanting the alpha spark to kill Kate permanently or heal Derek.
His worst crime is trying to kill Scott. So naturally he deserves to be tortured if not killed at Eichen. /sarcasm
Deucalion and Co killed a few dozen people off screen, kidnapped 3 teens for months, killed 2 of them, but he gets kicked out of town with a slap on the wrist because he can totally do better now. (again, seriously what was that about? Also /sarcasm ) Then he goads Theo into killing a few more teens but it's totally cool, he's working with Scott now. /sarcasm (While everyone Deuc really hurt is conveniently absent or, you know, dead.)
Same with—okay Gerard doesn't get a redemption arc, but the point is still that Scott and Chris decide to cure him (because, again, pain and suffering is a totally humane punishment as long as no one's killing anyone /sarcasm) because now he's useful again; Lydia has no personal feelings about him, the Hale pack is conveniently not there or dead, there's zero evidence that so much as hints that Stiles knows.
It's Scott doesn't need a redemption arc for wanting/trying/failing to kill Stiles, Jackson, Derek, for constantly lying to Allison, and they shouldn't have any issues with him because Werewolves, while turning around and blaming Liam for killing him (because it's only Werewolves if it benefits Scott /sarcasm) and Stiles for idk, seeing Scott's distrust of him and returning the favor I guess (because not wanting to talk about nearly being killed is only acceptable if it's Scott /sarcasm)
Scott on himself did very little, everyone else did just as much if not more, to actually stop the villains/help people. Which isn't a bad thing. Teamwork™ and all that. But celebrating Scott for whatever he helped with, more often than not also means accepting that at least one of the horrible people that need Scott to not just kill half the town (/sarcasm) also had a hand in it, willingly or not.
Which brings us, not really, nicely back around to the double standards. In both fanon and canon.
A lot of my issues with Liam and Scott's handling of that, mirrors Derek's and Peter's behavior perfectly. And things we rightfully got either mad at because you can't just fucking kidnap/stalk/abuse people, or didn't care about because Werewolves™, now have the exact opposite reaction. Scott is just overwhelmed and is Trying His Best, Scott has just been killed by Liam of course he doesn't want him near him.
Of course Scott not wanting to deal with the supernatural and his obsession with having a normal life is a normal trauma response (/not actually sarcasm), but Stiles' obsession with the supernatural is annoying and reckless. /sarcasm
Both are Valid just as much as they're reckless and dangerous.
No matter what Scott does, he is always Right and should not be questioned except for when he has a convenient excuse for why he fucked up and should not be held accountable; while everyone else gets demonized for the same things, while Scott gets the I made them not as much of a jerk as they could have been award.
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aquafaith · 3 years
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Rhys and Tamlin - 180°
I'll never forget reading ACOMAF for the first time and being so upset. Remember Tamlin? The one who Feyre literally died for? The one who cared for Feyre, gave her food and warmth and a roof, while also making her family rich and protecting for?
Remember Rhys? The one who abused Feyre Under The Mountain? The villain of the last book?
Well, ACOMAF is SJM saying "NO NO NO ACTUALLY YOU HAVE TO LOVE RHYS NOW. TAMLIN BAD."
Now there's no denying there were some red flags from Tamlin in the first book. He was very emotionally abusive towards Lucien (but none of y'all care), and he did scare Feyre and trigger her fight or flight. But he was NEVER the person he is in ACOMAF. SJM tries so hard to make you hate him, painting every little reaction between him and Feyre in the last book to be him treating her poorly, even him crying over her dead body??? While Tamlin is controlling, people seem to forget he does it for her safety. No he shouldn't be controlling her like that, but it doesn't come from a place of malicion. But I'm talking to a fandom that'll excuse anything rHyS does just because hE hAd a cItY tO pRoTeCt uWu. Let's not forget that Tamlin watched Feyre die, and had suffered through 48 years of Amarantha before Feyre came along. So it's understandable why he would fear for Feyre's safety. Because he has PTSD. But the only actions y'all are willing to excuse are Rhys literally being abusive because vElArIs.
Now Rhys. The one who physically and s*xually assaulted Feyre Under The Mountain? Who blackmailed her into selling herself to him? Who forced her to wear skimpy clothes, made her get drunk, and perform sexual dances every night? Well you have to love him now. Because SJM said so. Even with the bullshit excuses, (see my last post), we don't get enough. He only briefly mentions the kiss and not the licking, and certainly not the forcing her to get drunk and giving him the lap dances. The blackmailing her into selling herself (bare in mind she was dying at that point and that's how he manipulated her), isn't brought up either. Let's not forget the twisting her broken bone! Love that one. Anyway, now you have to love him! He and Feyre have a special soul bond or some shit! So nevermind all the disgusting things he did in ACOTAR, and the fact Feyre hated him for the first 500 pages of ACOMAF! They're together whether you like it or not. Blame his horrible actions on trauma all you want, (which is very harmful to victims of trauma), but guess what? EVERY character has been through traumatic things. Y'all want to blame Lucien for things he's never even DONE, and Mother forbid Tamlin is scared for Feyre's safety.
Don't you dare try to compare traumas either. I've seen so many people do it, saying "hE wAs aBuSeD bY aMaRaNtHa fOr yEaRs, tAmLiN wAs aLlOwEd iN hIs cOuRt", as if that validates all Rhys' awful actions towards other people, and invalidates TAMLIN'S TRAUMA and JUSTIFIABLE FEAR.
Look, I know it's obvious SJM set up the bond in ACOTAR. But she didn't set it up well enough because she made her main love interest an abusive villain.
Imagine if ACOMAF had been Lucien, Tamlin and Feyre all trying to overcome their trauma together while trying to take down Rhys? And not SJM completely switching their characters.
Don't get me started on the CONSTANT, and I mean CONSTANT comparisons between them in ACOMAF, just SJM shoving it down your throat that you HAVE to love Rhys because she says so.
This fandom loves believing what they tell each other to believe and not... the words in the actual fucking book. People will go on and on and on about how Tamlin only wanted Feyre to look pretty and bare heirs (which is somehow better than what Rhys did), and that he had no use for her after the curse was broken? Why do y'all conveniently forget him crying by her dead body and trying to attack Amarantha? Oh, because SJM likes to make that look bad too. And, the CONSTANT hamming up of Rhys, about how he's sO pOwErFuL and sTrOnG and sAcRiFiCeD hImSeLf tO pRoTeCt vElArIs and gives Feyre free will but only in ACOMAF. This fandom will praise Rhys for doing the bare minimum, like... he didn't force Feyre to contribute to the bargain he blackmailed her into until she wanted to leave Spring? Wow.
I know it seems like I'm shitting on this series. I actually love it. It's my favourite of all time. My only problems are all based on Feyre and Rhys and how they treat everyone around them. I adore every other character and their dynamics and the places and vibes.
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