#but the overall narrative
Text
So, despite some faults, I really enjoyed totk, and on its anniversary I want to say something about it. Other people have said similar things before but it’s really important to me and actually a big part of why the story of totk was meaningful to me, so I want to also say it:
Zelda needed to come back from draconification. The story needed that. It wasn’t lazy and just ignoring “consequences” because (imo) that was the *point*
The point is to feel like there are going to be terrible consequences and then say actually, no. You can come back from this, with the help of other people.
To me at least, that was the theme of the whole story.
If botw was about how the world goes on past loss and grief and starts to heal (how flowers grow in the ruins and the world can be beautiful again, be worth saving, even if it has changed)…then totk was about a more personal kind of healing.
The weight of the world should not be on your shoulders alone…you, alone, should not have to fix everything…you should not have to sacrifice yourself, but when you do, someone will be there to save you from it.
This turned into a really long ramble so:
You (Link) gained so much and now it’s gone. It feels like you’re back to where you started and yet you know you have to do it all again…you were weak and you failed and you’re weaker now…but
You go down to the surface. Monsters swarm across it once again. Other people are fighting them too though. You help, but it’s not just you…
You go to the Rito, the Gorons, the Zora, the Gerudo…just like with the divine beasts, there are friends who help you save each region. But this time, part of them comes along with you when you leave. It’s nice, you realize, the first time one of them protects you from a monster you weren’t prepared for. You’re still weaker than you were before, but someone has your back…
When you go up to the sky you see a strange new dragon there. There’s something about them that feels familiar. You try not to think about it.
You go down to the depths too. It’s terrifying at first. You hate it. You only want to get what you came for and get out of the dark….but slowly, the light grows. You get stronger. The dark feels like a challenge you can face (and someone has your back).
There are spirits down there. You don’t know when they’re from, but some part of you wonders…are these all the people you let die in the Calamity? (You help them find rest from their wandering. The weight on your shoulders feels a little less heavy).
There’s so much gloom. The first few times the sky turns red and hands chase you (a reminder of what you’ve lost, how you failed) you just run. Eventually though, you have to fight. It feels like the (second) worst day of your life again. But you manage to get free of the grasping gloom and stand and fight, as wild and desperate as it is. Beneath the manifestation of your worst fears, there’s another thing to fight, but this time it has a face (a voice in the back of your head says…you know this isn’t all on you and your failure…it’s really Ganon’s fault right?). You get through it.
At every turn in your travels, it seems like something reminds you of Zelda. Her passion, her curiosity, her kindness. You miss her.
At first, the tears you find reassure you. She may be in the past, but she’s safe. She’ll come back somehow…but then you hear the word draconification for the first time. You want to believe she wouldn’t do it but you know her and the fear sits cold inside you. (Zelda is a lot of things. She’s been allowed to be more of them, since she was freed from her hundred year battle, without her father holding her back. But deep down inside her, there’s a vein of self-sacrifice that still runs strong. It’s what saved the world before, after all).
She did it. She really did it. She’s gone from you (from Hyrule) forever, and it’s all your fault. If only you hadn’t failed so utterly in the battle (you can hardly even call it that) under the castle. If only you’d caught her. If only you hadn’t let the sword break. You should have protected her you should have been better it’s all your fault and now she has to live with the consequences, forever. Everything really is on you, you should have been better.
(Zelda POV: you couldn’t call upon Hylia’s power in time, you were too content to let it wither and fade away from you, ready to be free of it. You shouldn’t have. He got hurt, the sword got hurt, it’s your fault…Sonia and Rauru help you channel it again, Sonia helps you learn how to turn back time…but you don’t save her. She dies because you couldn’t save her. Rauru dies not long after. There is no one left to guide you, once again. You could spend years trying to figure it out on your own. But you did that last time. It didn’t work. Self-sacrifice, stepping in front of someone you love, that worked. (You do what you can, to call upon the sages, to help Link in the future, first). And then you swallow the stone. You’ve come a long way, in the past five years, allowing yourself to exist. But in the end, self-sacrifice worked last time. It’ll work this time too.)
You (Link) go down beneath the castle. You were supposed to bring the sages but you didn’t. It’s nice, for someone to have your back. But no one else should get hurt to fix your mistakes.
They follow you anyway. They fight with you, against the hordes, against the greatest enemies you defeated together, along the way. They’ll have your back, even if you don’t think you deserve it.
You fight Ganondorf, and then the demon king, in the hardest battle of your life. You think it’s over and then the demon king decides it’s better to lose himself completely than let you win. You’re exhausted and afraid of yet another battle, but up there in the sky, when you’re falling, the Light Dragon catches you (you wonder why she changed her path to catch you, you wonder if there’s still something of Zelda left in there to save). With her help, you win.
And then you’re in some other realm. The spirits of Sonia and Rauru are there. You remember how the two of them and Zelda channeled such incredible power together. You think about Recall. Turning something back to the memory of what it was before, like Sonia said. You stand with them and you allow yourself to hope. Maybe the Light Dragon can remember the form she took so long ago, the person that she was.
And then you’re falling, and Zelda is falling, but this time you catch her. You catch her. She’s back home with you, finally, finally.
And maybe, one mistake doesn’t have to be the end of the world. You don’t have to be perfect. Sometimes, someone else can stand with you, and it’ll all turn out alright. (You can put the weight of the world on your shoulders, you can sacrifice yourself, but someone will be there to catch you, someone will be there to pull you back to yourself, when all is said and done).
#loz#tears of the kingdom#Link#Zelda#I will say also that I think part of the reason totk is special to me is very personal#like when it came out I was still struggling with the worst burnout of my life#I had had a few months of exhaustion between January and March and in May that exhaustion was still sticking to me#it was hard to get out of bed hard to do anything I felt so tired that I almost felt sick but I wasn’t sick#and the thing is Zelda games are my biggest special interest#and having a new one to play like genuinely I’m not joking it gave me bsck so much energy#I was doing really badly but when totk came out I played it for an entire weekend straight basically#and like my mom came to visit me and help me out with basic life stuff#and like sit with me while I played just like enjoying being together#and that was really nice#over that summer and the fall after I started getting to know someone I work with better#largely over conversations about totk at first#and they’ve become a good friend#(and become someone that I feel safe to be fully myself around)#and so I just have this really strong personal connection to totk#like I will not claim to be impartial about it#there are definitely criticisms that I can acknowledge#in particular I don’t like that they un-amputeed Link let Link be disabled#and also ganondorf’s characterization was shallow and one dimensional#and I’m sure there’s other things I could think of#but the overall narrative#including Zelda becoming the light dragon and then turning back in the end#I really like that#it felt like a narrative of healing to me#and playing it at the time that I did felt really healing to me too
112 notes
·
View notes
Text
regardless of its other successes or failures one thing i feel that the magnus archives did really well was create a narrative and worldbuilding that refuses to allow you to categorize its characters by the dichotomy of 'abuser' and 'victim' without ignoring major themes that define the shape and course of the entire story. despite one of its most central themes being that "we all get a choice, even if it doesn't feel like one" many of the characters we encounter are faced with genuinely horrifying ethical dilemmas that emphasize just how difficult that choice actually is to make, and allow the audience to sympathize with their plight even if not with their actions and decisions. many of the avatars are arguably just as much victims of the entities they serve as they are perpetrators of the violence they cause, and those who fight them in many cases choose to descend to monstrosity themselves in order to be able to keep pushing back - a choice some of them try to rationalize to themselves by arguing that the magnitude of the threat they face necessitates that the ends justify the means, but which is nevertheless a choice that they make, and one with a devastatingly high cost that is repeatedly, unflinchingly presented to both them and the audience. the human capacity to exercize our free will for better or for worse whilst taking into account the various internal and external influences that may affect the decisions we make is thoroughly explored with a great deal of care and nuance that i appreciate.
#🐉#tma#i just think that one thing it did really well was create a 'morally grey' horror narrative that actually feels like#it understands what its doing and isnt just trying to engineer a sense of complexity without actually knowing how to do so effectively#it doesnt always hit the target but overall it makes an admirable effort
2K notes
·
View notes
Text
I fucking love the wheel of time show everyone should watch it. Couldn’t understand why so many people were giving it negative reviews and then I came to the realization that it was made specifically for the weird gays on tumblr that actually appreciate interesting storytelling. it was made for the people who love awful women, unconventional relationships, negative character development, toxicity, polyamory, qprs, unhealthy devotion, etc etc
#wheel of time#wot#wot show spoilers#like do you get it. are you seeing the vision#everything they’ve done is just so fucking INTERESTING narratively I want to sink my teeth into it#plus#the diversity.. the banger soundtrack..#the women who get to have complex motivations and agency and#make bad decisions and fuck up and be awful and have fucked up relationships with each other..#the gay people. the list goes on#and overall it’s just a fun fantasy show. everyone watch it right now
595 notes
·
View notes
Text
Kirby deals with existential crisis and Bandana is a good friend
#kirby#kots#kirby of the stars#kirby fanart#hoshi no kirby#king dedede#bandana waddle dee#gooey#i like the fact that gooey is canonically Kirby's roomie and we never see him therr#i don't think even Kirby knows where he goes#he's like a wild cat you let live in your house but still manages to go out and returns when it wants#did you know gooey means everything to me#everyone's pal gooey#enough about gooey let's talk trauma#Kirby's existential crisis is my favorite subtextual overall narrative from the kirby novels#it's so good how Kirby is always a bit uncomfortable every time they find someone who looks like them#and no one makes them feel worse than void#i think Kirby understood more about void than we give them credit for#and if you ask me why does Kirby have nightmares despite being inside of Dreamland and around the fountain of dreams#the answer is idk#anyway bandana is really perceptive about it#marx is an asshole as always#i wish Kirby's fear and inadequacy could be explored more#they're only hinted at by the novels#but i know Kirby saw themselves in Galacta Knight#the novels confirmed Galacta used the allies sparkler when defeating void termina and the sparkler represents something objectively pure#so my favorite hc is that Kirby was born after the heroes of yore defeated void and star allies draws parallels to that giving you og Kirby#Kirby defeated void and got friends Galacta got imprisoned for eternity#i wonder if Galacta went through the same identity crisis Kirby went through but Galacta sealed with it worse#anyway nothing bad will happen to Kirby after all they have tons of friends to rely on
506 notes
·
View notes
Text
You Don't Know Your Own Strength.
(scene written under the cut)
You're here again. The first Sadness you and your friends encounter in the house. It's… annoying. Having to listen to the same thing over and over again. Is that mean? You feel like that's probably mean, oh Change! Um… you just! It's just that you've heard it all before!
But m'dame Odile's spiel is comforting to Mira! And Sif's always the one who suggests going over strategy again! There's no harm in doing the same things if it makes people feel better. When you decide against talking strategy, Mira always seems upset. You don't want to hurt anyone.
… But. But.
You're tired.
You're really crabbing tired of this. How much time it takes to talk about the Sadness, how you always have to get knocked down. The hit hasn't even actually downed you in a long time. You're just faking it. You've gotten pretty good at faking it.
You're not paying attention. It seems like the fight's already started!
There's no reason not to speed things up, though. Right?
You're up!!
You throw a punch. Just one. And… Oh.
It's down.
That was. That was easy!! Really easy! Like laughably easy, even!
Just one punch. One measly little punch. Basically nothing. There was barely any Craft in that!! It was almost brute force!! Haha!
Easy.
It's so much easier to throw a punch than it is to Craft a buff. You've been wasting so much time trying to play support!
The Sadness is down. But you give it a few more whacks for good measure! Just in case!!
Because it's
Just!!!
So!!!!!!
Easy!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You turn to your friends, smiling.
"See! These Sadnesses aren't so tough!"
And they look… horrified.
Bonnie's grabbing Sif's cloak, m'dame Odile has stepped in front of everyone protectively, Mira's reaching out to you but she looks sick to her stomach and Sif.
Sif's hand is stretched into a craft sign. Holding themself in front of Bonnie.
Everyone is looking at you.
They're. Scared of you.
. . .
Oh.
You feel a thread tugging at your chest.
And that thread—
"A Sadness, huh? The House must be crawling with them..."
#in stars and time#in stars and time spoilers#isat#isat spoilers#in stars and time fanart#isat edit#sprite edit#isabeau isat#of stitches in sequence#basil paints#basil writes#not feeling all these 100% but im pretty happy with them overall!!!!#the friend shot gets to be in this post also. for narrative reasons.
228 notes
·
View notes
Text
i don't want to know the end, all i want is a place to start
(insp.)
#vicsy creates#it is DONE now i am free from the horrors of this idea plaguing me since last summer#this is definitely the most difficult and the biggest edit i've done so far#this is 20 picture BEAST and photoshop didn't even crash ONCE#spent three weeks in photoshop overall apart from picking each image by narrative#and when i heard the inspo song for the first time in a long time... it just fits perfectly#tearing up a bit while posting this... i hope you will like it#daniel ricciardo#dr3#f1#formula 1#f1 edit#danny ric#alpha tauri#does this count as web weaving#open for even better quality!
163 notes
·
View notes
Text
didnt kno if i should upload these as well. my very basic side character reference sheets.
brother godfrey/kit the exorcist/master frank the undertaker.
#GUY WHO DOESNT LIKE DRAWING MEN FORCED TO DRAW MEN#my own punishment for doing medieval settings#sorry brother godfrey is rockin da medieval hightops. divine swag.#kit has the one two buckle my shoeeeee#ocs#oc#they dont get specific character tags bc i cant emphasize how not important they will be for the overall narrative#theres no children in hamelin#seerdoesart#character design
154 notes
·
View notes
Text
annabeth "my grand plan is that i will be remembered/and someday soon someone will notice me" chase
vs
percy "i swear i swear that im a good kid. all i need is one last chance to prove im good enough for someone" jackson
#the way both songs are about their overall issues and their fatal flaws and their traumas on TOP of also paralleling each other im-#percy only seeing himself as worthy and valuable if hes useful to someone else#annabeth only seeing herself as worthy and valuable if she leaves a legacy to be remembered above all others#but also both of them just wanting to be seen#percy genuinely is a good kid who tries so hard but bc of fundamental institutional issues (neurodivergence / son of poseidon /etc.)#no one besides sally really sees him#and annabeth has been invisible and forgettable to so many people in her life (her mom / dad / stepmom+siblings / athena / thalia / luke)#she has no friends and family who really understand all of her and appreciate ALL of her#enough to stay#enough to not leave her behind once she doesn't serve them anymore#once she doesn't fit into their narrative#EXCEPT FOR PERCY MOTHERFUCKING JACKSON#THEY BOTH WANT TO BE GOOD ENOUGH FOR SOMEONE TO NOTICE THEM AND TO STICK WITH THEM EVEN WHEN IT GETS HARD#AND THEIR IDEAS OF WHAT CONSTITUTES 'GOOD ENOUGH' RESULT FROM THEIR FATAL FLAWS AND THEIR WORLDVIEWS AND UPBRINGINGS#AND NOW THEYVE FOUND EACH OTHER AND THEY HAVE A SOULMATE WHO WILL LITERALLY NEVER GIVE UP ON THEM#im losing my mind#percy jackson#annabeth chase#percy jackon and the olympians#percabeth#pjo#percy series#pjo <3#pjo musical#the lightning thief#the lightning theif musical
269 notes
·
View notes
Text
hey do you guys remember razias shadow? cause i just did
#context: it was a 2008 high fantasy concept musical that got internet cult popular#the original (it was a puppet show?) is functionally lost media but the album is still in all the usual streaming places#and was very niche beloved for a while. the lyrics are not well written at all and are unrelentingly awkward#but it's very well composed and the melodies stick with you for a long time#and the overarching narrative is compelling even if its brazenly and bold facedly just doing an abridgment of the silmarillion#actually maybe i like it BECAUSE its just the silmarillion. as a weird charmingly awkward cult operatic musical#if you want to check it out but arent sure if youll like it start with the track 'holy the sea'#its the best music the album has to offer and it also gives you an accurate first impression of the overall feel to the musical#if you like it then start back at the beginning and listen through. if you dont like it then you wont like the rest#anyway#hi these are my designs that ive had for like 5 years. i think they should be little guys#razia's shadow#my art#also. brendon urie jumpscare warning. and also. oldschool high fantasy type misogyny
380 notes
·
View notes
Text
Tbh rewatching the OBC Hadestown cast bootleg I’d say that no one quite hit that awesome Hades/Persephone dynamic in the show as Amber Gray and Patrick Page. They are so 👌
And with them the show works in its fullest.
#I could write a big post about how their characterisations of these characters work remarkably well for the narrative#hadestown#also now you can’t @ me for not seeing it live#that’s not to say I other characterisations are bad or anything! I watched boots and we show and they were great#but I also got to see London proshot with OBC and once again appreciate the og take on the character in good quality#so like I do think other casts work as well but it seems to me that where Orphedice work 100% with literally any pair of actors you see#hadesphone gives from 85 to 100% of overall narrative experience#maybe I’ll explain what I mean later if you’re interested
97 notes
·
View notes
Text
There were two great posts about Izzy yesterday, and I would like to expand on and add my 2 ct to the things said in them a little. One, by @celluloidbroomcloset (with additions by several others), about how Izzy immediately falls back into old patterns of manipulative behaviour after his supposed redemption in 02x07, only this time with Stede as the focus of said behaviours instead of Ed. The other, by @batsarebetterthanpeople, about how Izzy's behaviour in 02x06 and onward is more akin to the development a homophobe coming around to a queer loved one, than an arc of queer self-discovery.
Izzy's story isn't about himself. I think this is the first, fundamental mistake people make when engaging with it. He's not a protagonist; he doesn't exist in the story for his own sake. So when ofmd asks "How to reform a toxic person? What does it look like and is it even possible?", the starting point isn't one of empathy with Izzy.
It's one of empathy with Ed. ofmd is asking these questions not because it wants to understand Izzy better. What it wants to explore is the possibility of Ed having the relationship with Izzy Ed wants. Whether Izzy can be brought around to understanding Ed's wants and needs, whether he can understand the hurt he caused him.
This is a fundamentally different approach to how these stories are usually told. Usually, we start out with the unspoken assumption that the toxic person is well-intentioned, good at heart, and whatever pain they caused our protagonist is more akin to a misunderstanding than deliberate harm. Yes, they may have have caused hurt, but if you just see things from their perspective, you'll understand that they only had your best interest in mind, and that will enable you to forgive them.
Obviously this can't not veer off into victim blaming. "The abuser had a good reason for what they did, and therefore, it's your own fault. Or at the very least not theirs."
ofmd fundamentally rejects this. It is very careful to never let the bullies and abusers have a valid point. Abusers are abusive because they get something out of it. To truly reform an abuser, they would have to be willing to build a life for themselves that is a lot less comfortable. Where they have to consider other's feelings, communicate and compromise, meet other people on equal footing, instead of putting themselves in a position of authority. It means letting go of patterns of behaviour that they have so far been quite successful with*.
And Izzy - tries. He is interesting because part of him clearly wants to leave the toxicity behind. He gets to see what positive relationships, human connection, being part of a community look like; he's offered an outstretched hand, and, after biting it a few times, tentatively starts to take it.
But he can't quite get there. The temptation to fall back into what he knows is too strong. celluloidbroomcloset's post linked above talks mainly about 02x07, so I'm not gonna repeat all that, but I'm going to add two little scenes from 02x06 that further cement this. In the beginning of the episode, Izzy finds Ed as he's standing on deck, watching the sea, and the conversation that plays out is a clear mirror to, almost repeat of the Frankfurter clouds scene from 01x04. Ed tries to share an observation with Izzy in an attempt to reach out to him ("Something's wrong. Feels like a storm's coming but I can't see it."), which Izzy, of course, immediately dismisses ("Or maybe you're just a mopey twat and there is no fucking storm").
The second scene is, when Izzy is the only one discouraging Ed from following Stede to his cabin after he kills Ned Lowe. Discouraging support, discouraging connection and emotional honesty; Izzy will continue to try to isolate Stede.
Now, I do not think this, or the things happening in 02x07, are put in there deliberately to show that Izzy has ulterior motives. Rather, they are an illustration of how deep these maladaptive patterns of behaviour go. Izzy isn't able to fully admit to himself the extend of the harm he caused and this is what prevents him from truly changing his behaviour - even when he has just experienced the benefits of a loving, supportive community!
All of this is the explanation to the answer the show gives to our starting question: Is it possible for Ed to have the relationship with Izzy that Ed wants? And the answer is: No. Just because growth is possible, doesn't mean it is enough. Doesn't mean anyone's entitled to forgiveness. Sometimes, the only compassionate thing to do, is to take yourself permanently out of the other person's life.
But Izzy did learn, and he did grow. It's just that the purpose of said growth wasn't to heal him; it was to enable him to understand the hurt he caused to Ed. That doesn't have to mean people like Izzy can never be reformed, it just means that this isn't a story about the reformation of a toxic person. It's the story of leaving this toxicity behind.
And this is why Izzy's heartfelt apology followed by his immediate death is a positive ending. It represents the conviction that no relationship is so broken it can't be mended, but also the assurance that no relationship is so important it can't be ended.
Ed gets to hear the things he needs to hear most - I am sorry, I was wrong, you didn't deserve this - and then Izzy disappears from his life, and with him, all the toxicity he represents.
They can part on good terms, but part they must. So Ed can go into the rest of his life, unburdened.
*read Lundy Bancroft's "Why does he do that", seriously. The whole thing is on archive.org.
#overall izzy is treated with so much more grace and kindness than the other toxic assholes on this show#because sometimes youre fond of them. right. you DO want to make it work its just not always possible#honestly i think some people just have a very hard time wrapping their head around the fact that izzy is just a narrative device#anyway!#our flag means death#izzy hands#edward teach#thoughts
127 notes
·
View notes
Text
Don't let those demons in again
I fill the void up with polished doubt, fake sentiment
False Confidence - Noah Kahan
#the inherent nature of becoming a sacrificial lamb as a first overall draft pick#the cycle repeats#sidney crosby#erik johnson#taylor hall#nathan mackinnon#rasmus dahlin#connor mcdavid#auston matthews#jack hughes#connor bedard#hockey poetry#hockey poem#hockey web weaving#narratives
97 notes
·
View notes
Text
I have a post about feminine rage and how klck doesn’t quite fit the definition that’s just been hanging out in the drafts for a bit so if anyone’s interested I might polish it up and post it
#it’s not complete klck slander I swear#imo I think the transfem gorgug truthers are onto something bc gorgug wholeheartedly fits the narrative#but in canon Adaine embodies feminine rage the most and I touch on that as well#overall it’s more about exploring the topic of feminine rage outside of kipperlilly bc in pop culture it’s been explored a lot more#in the 2010s and there’s a link to my fave video essayists video on female rage#cause listen d20 fandom I love you but kip is more representative of white feminism imo not female rage#yeah she’s a girl that is angry but is that enough?#it’s more to it and I think it’s interesting to explore so I might flesh it out more before posting it bc it’s a topic I’m interested in#fhjy#d20 fhjy#fantasy high junior year#dimension 20
71 notes
·
View notes
Text
hey did you know that. izutsumi
#SHES SO DHSLDKFJF SHE IS ON MY SCREEN!!!!!!!!!! WHAT A BRAT I LOVE HER#dunmeshi#yeah yeah marcille’s nightmare the introduction of themes crucial both to her character and the overall narrative whatever CATGIRL#to some of my friends izutsumi has become synonymous with ‘jess’s catgirl’ and I’m ok with that
55 notes
·
View notes
Text
you know what since s2 already ended i wanna know:
#link click#shiguang dailiren#i only added the recurring characters who played a significant role to the overall narrative#last time i did this i only made it follower specific bc not alot of lc fans at the time#now i wanna know who wins#i already have a pretty good idea
171 notes
·
View notes
Text
Thinking about the fact Dudley canonically went through much more character development and gained more maturity than James Potter ever did but here we are
#The tea cup#When Dumbledore talks of the 'damage' inflicted on him by his parents#I don't think you're a waste of space#Also Albus talking about damage done to a child is sooo#Like Albus.#Didn't you send Harry there. You who can read minds. And left him there. And did nothing for Severus. Bref.#Anyway. What I mean to say is the power that projection and fanon have on the overall idea of a character is as strong as the narrative#... 's input#Clearly#Don't read more into it
206 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
lissethzelaya
soy la verdadera lisseth zelaya
cjinter-blog
제목 없음
blueartisticsin
⸸ 🏳🌈 Blue Artistic Sin 🏳🌈 ⸸
baswilmer-blog
Naamloos