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marvelstars · 8 months

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I can go anywhere I want just not home: Ahsoka and Anakin

So my favourite part of the chapter was the way the actual ages of Ahsoka and Anakin played a part in their interaction, Ahsoka tells Anakin that he looks the same and Anakin answered that she looks old, which is true, Ahsoka is close to aging beyond Anakin´s age of death at 46 and while Anakin "looks" like clone wars Anakin, he isn´t just Anakin, this is post ROTJ Anakin, someone who already lived 23 years in the light and 23 years in the darkness, he is Vader, he is Anakin, he isn´t young at all and he is living in a whole other level in the force compared to the one Ahsoka lives, because she is still alive.

In fact the first question Anakin ask Ahsoka is if she still remembers Baylan Skoll, because that means she is still alive, she can still come back, "That´s good" he says.

I love how adult Ahsoka automatically reverts to her teenager personality when she noticed Anakin, she smiles, her eyes bright up, she makes jokes and teases Anakin just like in the good old times, because she missed him so much, in many ways he is her home and if he wasn´t there anymore she could not return home, as simple as that, she could not act as if Vader was Anakin, he was a broken version of her master, consumed by darkness, she probably was happy to hear from Luke Anakin died in the light but he was dead and she didn´t get the chance to say goobye but THIS, this is her brother/father, he is back, he looks the same, she can lower her guard, smile and tease because he is here to take care of things like he used to do when she was a child.

She only gets serious when Anakin isn´t automatically teasing her as well, when he says he needs to teach her one more thing, when he gets serious, then Ahsoka remembers Anakin isn´t just Anakin anymore, she knows him but he´s grown into someone she doesn´t know anymore either.

So Anakin begins by teasing her back, putting her at ease and then, he sends her to the heart of what´s bothering her, the clone wars. In many ways, she is still that child fighting over and over again, she no longer has a particular reason to keep fighting and she is tired. It´s such a good contrarts how while adult Ahsoka is teasing with Anakin, child Ahsoka is grumpy, she complains, she questions, she asks, just like she did in the past, this child is adult Ahsoka allowing herself to be a child again, to not have all the anwers and to complain to Anakin to give her a reason to keep fighting and explain why does it matter anymore. She could not do this with Hera and Sabine because Hera is her friend but they are not that close and she is also her superior in the alliance and Sabine depends on her to make the decisions and guide her but Anakin? He is family, she can complain all day long knowing he will try at least to listen to her and try to guide her to the best of his hability and this isn´t teenager Anakin either, this is post Vader Anakin so she knows she can get snippy, angry, mad and hostile with him all she wants, she has all the right to be and he will take it.

Anakin doesn´t just listens anymore, he counsels but he also pushes her into talking about what she doesnt want to talk about

"Do you really want a padawan?" "Being a teacher isn´t all that"

Low key Anakin is giving her the freedom of not being a teacher if she doesn´t want to be, Ahsoka looks at him affronted but it´s true, she accepted Sabine because Hera wanted her to and Sabine wanted her to but she herself isn´t sure she wants a padawan, in fact she already abandoned Sabine once, what is keeping her from doing the same again? and part of the reason she doesn´t know the answer is that she wants to be able to give Sabine or any other padawan something more than war, death and the training to be a warrior as a legacy but she is convinced there isn´t anything else she can give, because emotionally she is still that little girl forced to fight in a war, mourning for each death, mourning for her master fall and she believes that´s all she is ever going to be in the future. She fears her master fate because she believes that is going to be her fate too.

So Anakin, Vaderkin, tries to explain she has to adapt to the times, his master teached him to be a guardian of peace because that´s what he was, Anakin teached her how to be a soldier because they were fighting in a war and she would have died if he didn´t teach her how to survive war but this doesn´t mean she can´t adapt to the times she and her padawan are living and this is precisely what Ahsoka is refusing to do, she is stil in mourning so she can´t enjoy her present.

Anakin tells her she is more and even if she believes she can´t because she has his teachings in her, she is more because he also is way more than Vader.

So when Ahsoka answers him "you are more but more dangerous and powerful than anybody thoguht" and if that´s what he is, then what hope is there for her if she has inside herself his legacy, his teachings?

Is this what this is about? I gave you a choice live or die

Here Anakin gets mad because she isn´t understanding, she has his legacy but she isn´t him, his fall, his redemption, his good and his bad side are his own, not hers and in time she will have to make her own decisions, adapt, grow and teach her padawan what she had learned, they are the legacy of previous masters but they are also MORE, they are also what each one of them adds to that legacy.

So Anakin brings his other half, Vader, to teach her and test her with the same lesson Anakin learned along with Luke, his Son, you are more, you make your own choices and you can choose again and again and that´s what defines you, only you can define yourself, not others. He pushes Ahsoka with Vader´s persona to defy her to live once again but he also pushes her by showing her , her deepest fear, her falling, her becoming a darksider and he gives her an ultimatum, kill him and die herself, not just physically but the light inside of her, or live and stay in the light.

Ahsoka chooses the light and lets her lightsabers fall, just like Luke did, her lightsabers are no longer her life, she is more than war, she is more than just a warrior fighting in an eternal war but more than that, she is still herself and it´s her choice if she wants to stay being herself or die and fall.

Anakin reverts back from Vader to himself again, proud of her, happy with her choice, he reverts to show her how if he, who was in darkness for so many years, buried and dead inside could still come back, then there´s so much hope for her to make her life anew by not letting her past or her lightsabers define her anymore and this is symbolized with her being taken away from the water towards safety.

In the end, he didn´t just wanted to teach her how to live physically again or how to leave behind her past, enjoy her present and enjoy life, he also wanted her to learn she must live by not falling to the darkness and even if she falls, there´s "Hope for her still" because there was also hope for him as well and now Ahsoka can remember him without mourning, without regret.

Just so many great interactions between them. Loved this chapter. Hope we see what other scenes Anakin is going to have because this story isn´t done yet.

PD: Post ROTJ dead Anakin is so relaxed, happy and vibing, love it, honestly, good for him.

#This show is bringing the best tropes of master - apprentice samurai stories with Anakin and Ahsoka and I am here for that #anakin skywalker #ahsoka tano #star wars #ashoka spoilers #ahsoka series #Dave Filoni #luke skywalker #sabine wren #hera syndulla #Anakin loves Ahsoka and wants her to live her best life ever without fears and without regrets #Anakin is Ahsoka´s home #very long post

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the-hawthorns-ocs · 1 year

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Heir Night

I love him so much even if he's just a fusion of Kovu and Zuko LOL

Character Bio:

Kinship: The Hawthorns

Grayromantic & Graysexual; Agender/ tom; he/him

Age: 11 moons (15 Hyrs)

Voice Headcanon: Zuko -Avatar: The Last Airbender

Role: Heir + Trainee

Adult name/Future name: Night'shade -> Night'light

Title meaning: -shade = a dark and mysterious cat; a cat who is good at slipping through the shadows; a cat with a somber/serious personality.

-light = in honor of Night's father; a cat with a bright personality; a hopeful cat; for Night = looking towards a good future.

Mother: Monarch Spider'web

Father: Monarch Light'fall

Other notable kin: Spindle'stare (aunt), Moth'heart (uncle), Pine'fang (Grandmother), Osprey'cry (Grandfather)

Extra Notes: I added some white speckles to his new design to resemble stars in the night sky! I also gave him his father's big ol ears!

Character Summary:

Night's father, Monarch Light'fall, died "mysteriously" shortly after Night first became a Trainee and the official Heir. Night is one of the few cats who know the truth, his mother Spider'web killed Light'fall to take his place as Monarch. Night understands that his father was weak, he was too kind and naïve, that's why he had to die, at least that's what his mother says....

Night, to his mother, is her perfect little clone. He is obedient, serious, and strong, he is the perfect Heir to continue Spider's legacy. However Night is far from being Spider's clone, he is very different from his mother, he is not manipulative and has not a lying bone in his body. His mother taught him to be an obedient and avid rule follower, which is funny because Spider is none of those things, but its useful for him to be this way, it makes it so he will follow his mother's every command and do as he is told.

Night deep down under his shell has a personality closer to his father Monarch Light'fall's, he's quiet, awkward and caring though the "caring" part has been forced deep down. Due to his close training with his mother, Night has been very sheltered, he doesn't know how to interact with others and mostly keeps to himself. All Night knows how to do is lead and give commands, he has no clue how to make friends or hold a normal conversation.

#cryptid's the hawthorns #Heir Night #Night'shade #Night'light #Night #warriors ocs #warrior cats ocs #warrior cats #warriors #xenofiction #ocs

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trenchcoatsbi · 8 months

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I love the trafficblr fandom, but SHUT UP ABOUT BDUBS AND ME-

I get that *gestures to everything in Last Life* happened but argh it makes me so uncomfortable to see posts about the idea of us being together or loyal to each other.

I wasn't even on fucking hermitcraft! I knew him from other servers in the past, but I was fully convinced he was dead because I didn't know he was immortal and I made my peace with that. I was glad he wasn't dead, sure! I had still moved on by then! I got roped into a found family that included his 'evil' clone!

Idk. I just hate seeing posts about the two of us. He was cool, a bit chaotic, but I overall wasn't super attached. He felt the same way, I remember we talked about it during Double Life. We had both thought the other died and had made peace with that. We were friends, but we didn't really interact outside of the games.

It's one of the main reasons I don't want to watch the bdubs limited life supercut. It's cool, but I don't have the patience and I don't want to see the 'ethdubs crumbs' as people always say. He was an old friend, but nothing more. Nothing more and I swear on my life that even if we were closer, I would never treat him like that.

I know that in 'canon' these things keep happening, but I quite frankly don't care. My loyalty was to my king and the army, my husband, and my family. Everybody else was second. And I was loyal. I was, I swear. I almost hate watching some of the videos because I wouldn't do that. I wouldn't do that, I wouldn't. I wouldn't even joke about betraying anybody unless I knew by heart that they wouldn't take it to heart and that they would bounce back off. I lived and died to protect or keep the legacy of those I cared about. I'm a survivor, yes, but that doesn't stop the fact that I would've thrown it all away if they asked me to.

Sorry for the rant, I saw a post with a clip from the super cut and then somebody made a small rant about not liking ethdubs and I became an unskipable cutscene.- Voidling Anon

ITS COOL, VOIDLING‼️ i didnt get the notif that you submitted this until i was checking inbox for our fries discussion but wowie. i read all that and sorry :( that would be a bit a bearable for me idk if i’d be able to watch lore including me, so youre much stronger than me LFHDJFHSJF (NTO TO MAKE YOU FEEL BAD its just a sucky situation)

dhfjshfjs its unfortunate that ship you despise ends up being popular in fandom, shield your eyes look away….

#tom posts #voidling anon #kinfessions #this is fortunately why you can #yk #*gun click*#*directed at ship tags*#but idk if you wanna do that incase you miss other types of content lol

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bylightofdawn · 2 years

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I finished my replay of ME1 as m!Shep and have started ME2 and I realized suddenly just how traumatic losing Shepard would have been for people like Kaidan and Joker. Shepard literally ordered Kaidan to evacuate and save himself and as many people as he could.

Like, that long look Shepard gives Kaidan is laced through with SO MUCH feeling, it literally took my breath away. I feel like they were trying to convey so much to him without saying a word because they knew they probably weren't making it out of there. But they trusted Kaidan to get as many people to safety as possible...including himself, something I feel like was paramount to Shepard.

They literally dragged Joker out of the cockpit and shoved him into a life boat before they was sucked out into space and they had to live with that knowledge that they for all intents and purposes suffocated to death floating into space to never be recovered again.

That is horrific and the survivor’s guild would be real. So cut to two years later and Kaidan is clearly more hardened and angry than he was in ME1. You see this multiple times in both ME2 and ME3. He’s lost that soft boy sunny optimism in a lot of ways.

It’s still there but it’s tempered and less effusive than it was before and I think that is because of the trauma he faced losing Shepard and then having to learn to live in a world without them in it. Yes, the romance option is only available for f!Shep which I honestly feel was a fucking crime in the Legendary edition and should have been retroactively corrected. The mods are OUT THERE to romance Kaidan as a m!Shep.

But let’s toss genders out and just go with the idea that he’s been in love with Shepard since ME1 and then he loses this person. Only for SOMEONE to pop up suddenly not only claiming to be Shepard but to be working for Cerberus. A human-centrist terrorist organization known to do horrific things. Things that Kaidan has seen first hand.

Of course he’s going to be mistrustful and angry at Shepard. He doesn’t even know if this IS Shepard or if they are a clone, someone whose been surgically altered to be them who is tainting Shepard’s legacy by parading around with the very group Shepard would have fought against.

So yeah, it kinda paints their interaction with Horizon and even into the beginnings of ME3 in a whole different light.

I’m not saying it doesn’t excuse his behavior or the shit he pulls. He is still an unbelievable shithead in the Horizon mission but I sorta understand where he is coming from there. Because Kaidan is loyal right down to his very core. And Shepard just suddenly asked him to turn his back on the Alliance, something he’s dedicated his life to in order to join up with a bunch of people who are terrorists in his eyes.

He’s simply not morally flexible enough to see the gray area to be found in Shepard’s mission in ME2. It’s part of what makes him more than a little insufferable and something even he lampshades in ME3.

Meanwhile you have Garrus who is a bastion of moral flexibility and willingness to do the dirty business that needs to be gone in order to accomplish the mission and you have Tali who has no loyalty or love for the Alliance or even for the Council I would argue.

She joins up because it’s Shepard who is asking and that’s enough for her.

I guess what I’m trying to say is I think I’ve been judging Kaidan too harshly after my first playthrough and I’m kinda excited to approach ME2 and the emotional pain I’m going to go through on the Horizon mission with a fresh perspective.

I’m not defending him and I completely understand why people find him insufferable. I’ll NEVER play through a version of ME where I don’t save Ashley so I do not know what her interactions are in ME2 or ME3. But since I’m on record saying she is the literal worst, I’m certain it is 100% more infuriating than dealing with Kaidan’s intransigent inability to bend in any way.

But maybe I feel a little less firm in choosing Garrus on my f!Shep run through. And I am 1000% gonna pursue him on my m!Shep playthrough.

I’m so sorry for the people who are following me for Star Wars content. Not that I’m actively contributing in any way, mind you. But I guess I’m still on my Mass Effect kick. One say soon, I’m hoping to get back into writing and actually contribute shit because I am still into Star Wars, it will always be a ‘home’ fandom for me. One that I will return to because it’s so ingrained into my very soul that I cannot picture my life without it in it.

But forgive me my new shiny toy as I gush over this somewhat flawed series. One say, hopefully soon, my writing muse will come back and I can continue on with the fics I’ve been writing off and on the past year or two.

#mass effect #kaiden alenko #i have lots of thoughts on this subject #forgive my mini manifesto

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navree · 8 months

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What r ur thoughts on anakin Skywalker

Oh Jesus.

It's actually been some time since I watched any of the Star Wars properties in full, I think the last one I watched front to back was when I was watching the Obi Wan show as it aired ('oh but it wasn't that good' shut up I enjoyed it), so my ability to wax poetic is not going to be anywhere near the level people might be used to from me. And also I'm dealing with jetlag, sorry.

I think Anakin's an interesting character, and he's actually the entire reason I got into Star Wars in the first place. Cuz I never watched those movies as a kid, I never had any frame of reference for them at all beyond knowing Darth Vader was Luke's father, and then when I was around thirteen I thought to myself how is Darth Vader Luke's father if he's the bad guy? What happened there? and just looked up the character of Darth Vader and read his entire story on Wikipedia and thought oh wow that's so interesting. And then after that I decided to start watching the movies and The Clone Wars and promptly got invested in all the other characters too.

It's his story that got me into all of this before anything else, so obviously I find it incredibly compelling. And I find him incredibly compelling as a character, the things he went through and how he dealt with that and the fact that he's an incredibly flawed protagonist, and we see how those flaws shape him and ultimately lead to his downfall. I think that a lot about him makes sense when you remember that he's incredibly young for most of the time we see him in the prequels, and dealing with a lot of shit without necessarily the best people to guide him (Obi Wan loves him but they are fundamentally different people with fundamentally different views and life experiences and that's not necessarily the best thing for Anakin if he's looking for a guiding light) through it.

But it's also so clear that what Anakin does a lot of the time is his own decision. He's manipulated and not always given the full information and acting on base instinct, yes, but the things that define him really come down to his choices. He's the one who chose to stick with the Jedi, he's the one who chose to murder the Tusken Raiders, he's the one who chose to try and have it both ways with Padmé and the Jedi, he's the one who chose to serve Palpatine (there's a lot of manipulation that went into it but he did choose it), he's the one who chose to commit fully to the Dark Side, and he's the one who also chose to turn against it in order to save his son. And for a character who starts out literally being deprived of the choice of something as simple as personhood, being a slave, that's a really interesting facet of his character that I appreciate. And I like that it makes Anakin imperfect and flawed, and that it still creates an understandable arc for him to become Darth Vader, as well as set the seeds for how he ultimately turns away from that path. And I like that it allows a good middle ground between understanding that he was failed by a lot of people and institutions, without fully demonizing him and letting Anakin's choices stand on their own as decisions he made (I don't buy into 'the Jedi were evil and it was all their fault' bullshit, I really don't).

And as with all characters that I enjoy, his interpersonal relationships are very fun to think about and explore and see developed, not just with Padmé and Obi Wan but with other Jedi, with Ahsoka, even the little we get to see of him interacting with his children and the legacy he left behind for both Luke and Leia.

Ultimately, yeah, I think he's interesting. He's not necessarily my favorite Star Wars character, but he's definitely someone I like, and he's always got a soft spot in my heart for spurring my interest in the franchise entirely before anything else.

#personal #answered #anonymous #wow sorry that this is response is thoroughly Meh my brain is kinda dead i think

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spock-smokes-weed · 1 year

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The Kenobi show is like fine, but I’m screaming and crying over the fact that it could have been great, if they had focused on what makes Obi-Wan a compelling character to begin with.

They touch on it, there are a lot of scenes that touch on his grief, guilt, pain, and sadness, but it takes a back seat to the milk toast plot.

The main crux of the plot isn’t even that bad. Sad old man Obi-Wan having to protect baby Leia? Amazing. Show stopping. No notes. However Leia and Obi-Wan feel kind of secondary, even if they are important characters.

Like it shouldn’t have been a plot driven show, it should have been character driven. My biggest gripe is that it feels less than the sum of its parts, and that it feels afraid to really pull anything from the prequels and the clone wars.

I understand the impulse to make the show beginner friendly, but a legacy character focused show literally can’t do that. You can’t make an obi-wan show beginner friendly without making obi-wan feel flat. Obi-Wan has already had decades of life before we see him on Tatooine. He’s had over a decade of life with Anakin, and if the show is about Obi-Wan’s relationship with Anakin’s children, then it should have really dug into the meat of that relationship and exactly why Obi-Wan mourns so heavily over Anakin.

Stop with the vagueness!!! If you’re an obi-wan show actually dig into the psyche of this pathetic old man. Use more from the prequels and clone wars than just small references I’m BEGGING.

Like after watching the show, I couldn’t help but think about the original idea for the show having Darth Maul as the main villain. And while I love Reva, and she was absolutely one of the best parts of the show, I wish they stuck to the original idea. I’m not exactly sure how it being Maul would have played out, since I know he’s in Rebels, however I love the idea of the villain being an Obi-Wan specific villain. I get that Vader is kinda that, but Maul and Obi-Wan have a history together and if you wanted it to be more character driven, having someone dangerous directly from Obi-Wan’s past come back to haunt him would have been so good.

I KNOW that’s what they were trying to do with the inquisitors and Vader, but Vader was seriously weak sauce. Like the way he was utilized in the plot. I wouldn’t even want to cut Reva, I just wished her and Obi-Wan’s plots and journeys meshed better and they had more personal connection. I wished they got to interact more as characters.

And even tho I though the freedom fighter characters were fun, they should have absolutely been cut. Obi-Wan is a sleepy old man, he doesn’t need to be involved with these elaborate networks. All the characters felt like they should have been in a different show, it did not mesh with Obi-Wan’s established vibe of laying low. They threw in a reference to Quinlan as an oooooooo look clone wars fans, look we mentioned a character you know. But afterwards it just got me thinking: why didn’t they just use Quinlan in the show. Like I think if you replaced all the freedom fighter characters with just Quinlan, the show would have been a lot smoother, and it would give us an other character for Obi-Wan to talk about the past with. Quinlan can even mention the net work of ppl out there trying to help force sensitive ppl, but I think it would have been far more impactful to bring in another Jedi character we already know and love to share their perspective on life post-order 66 and living under the empire. The show should have been quiet and characters focused but it wasn’t and I just AHHHHHH

I also think the show should have buffed out the roles of the Organas and the Lars. Obi-Wan’s relationship with the twins, filtered through the lens of his relationship to their parental figures was soooo interesting. I wanted more of it. Also Owen Lars is objectively the most interesting character in Star Wars and he deserves to have more screen time.

#obi wan kenobi #obi wan kenobi show

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sweetscenes · 2 years

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I kinda wanna talk about my interpretation of Tim and kind of a meta almost? This is really just how I see the character and how I write interactions with him. What follows is unhinged rambling, which is something of a Pineapple thing.

So, the thing with Tim is that he didn’t really have a tragic backstory that motivated him to become Robin. He truly just wanted to help people. There was no quest for vengeance, the call wasn’t forced upon him (until later), and he wanted to become a hero for entirely alturistic purposes. He could see Batman slipping without a Robin and without Jason Todd. He was smart, very smart, but wanting to show off his smarts wasn’t a reason either. Besides just wanting to improve society and keep the legacy alive, the only thing he suffered from was neglect.

Tim is marked different from the Robins in being that he was an active fan of Batman and Robin before becoming Robin. He was a fanboy, he still IS a fanboy. He has some cases of hero worship in regards to other heroes and even some villains. He used to be an incredibly sweet kid, a lot of his sarcasm and his more cynically tainted views didn’t come until after he suffered immense loss.

He became Robin with no intention of taking Batman from Bruce, he doesn’t want to be Batman. He just wants to help people. It’s something that’s a core part of his character. He’s willing to take up the mantle if he’s forced to, but that’s as a last case scenario. From the very beginning he saw the Robin role as a nessescity, something that kept Batman honest and on the right side of justice.

He adores Nightwing and Dick, he adored Batman and Bruce. He also loved Jason Todd, and he readily forgave him for multiple attempts of murder on his own life AND was the first to try and welcome him back despite the hostility.

He was one of the only people who believed Bruce was still alive, he was the only one willing to still search. He tried to clone his best friends after they appeared to have died. He actively uses his fortune and abilities to help others. He doesn’t like fighting. He hates keeping secrets, he hates lying, he hates vigilantism. If he could see a better way to combat crime and keep peace in the city AND keep Batman in line, he would take it in a heartbeat.

A lot of Tim’s interactions with others and motivations are marked by one thing. Love. He loves his friends, he loves his family, he loves Gotham. He loves so deeply. It kinda makes me upset that sometimes Tim is characterized as this cold and unfeeling monster without love or compassion. He’s filled with horror by alternative selves actions, he finds tragedy in the poverty and circumstances that forces others into crime. He has friends who he cares deeply for.

Yes, Tim is smart. He’s incredibly smart. He earned the title Detective, he earned Alfred’s approval to become the next Batman, he earned Lady Shiva’s attention, he earned the consideration and admiration of Ras Al Ghul. He is smarter than his own good. Tim is someone who is so smart, has plans for his plans, he is every bit a detective as Bruce. However, he also is different than Bruce because he is so motivated by love AND justice rather than vengeance and justice with hints of love.

Tim used to be an incredibly sweet kid. He was eager, excited, and polite. His idealism shined through everything. However, this changed as he suffered deeply and the constant lying, betrayal, and side effects of Robin hurt him. He became the sarcastic, analytical, deadpan, and overly paranoid and hardworker we see because life forced him to be that way AFTER he entered the vigilante life.

However, he still is an idealistic and full of heart beneath the layers. He has deep self esteem issues. He feels like he has to continually fight and claw for his position in the family. He isn’t as good a fighter as the rest of them, his intelligence can only carry him so far. The deep feelings of inadequecy is also something that colors a lot of his interactions.

So yeah, underneath all the sarcasm and typical Bat traits he’s been forced to pick up to adapt to his harsh lifestyle, he’s still someone who’s deeply compassionate and much more than his brain. He’s still idealistic, if not a bit more realistic about it. Tim is someone who has a lot of feelings behind his snark, and he just cares so deeply and his motivations for fighting crime hasn’t changed. He truly just wants to improve the city. He shoulders the burdens because he wants to see things improve.

Anyways, that’s that! This is just my personal view of Tim, and how I will be portraying him. Maybe it’s a bit canon divergent due to his traits being pulled from various runs, but it’s my blog and I can do what I want ♡

#;bird kid - tim drake #;ooc

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linkspooky · 3 years

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The Hands that Will Save the League

In chapter 321 we're reminded once again of the reoccurring motif of hands reaching out to save someone in need, especially with the double spread close-up of Iida's hands reaching for Deku's hands. I couldn't help but think how this could apply to the league of villains. Hand symbolism has always been associated with Shigaraki (duh), both in the fact that his hands destroy everything they touched, and also his reason for being a villain stems from the fact that not a single hand reached out to save him that day. However, we've also had another character in the league with hands drawn up close and personal reaching out to save the others: spinner.

1. Just an Empty Cosplayer

I'm not the first one to make this observation. @codenamesazanka pointed this out long before me, especially in regards to Spinner's importance to the league, but basically, Spinner's role is that despite being a teenage mutant ninja turtle he's also the everyman of the league. He's not connected to the main conflict of the story by bloodline or legacy, the way Shigaraki, Dabi, and Compress are. He's not someone with an incredibly powerful or deviant quirk like Twice or Toga. He is a victim, but he doesn't have the elaborate villain backstories of Twice, Shigaraki, Dabi, and Toga.

He literally is just some guy with a lizard quirk. He has the weakest quirk in the league and the weakest reason for why he joined the league. Spinner faces societal abuse because of his quirk, but what spurred him to action was seeing Stain appear on TV, and a desire to be a less empty person than he was before. Spinner was pushed, he was rejected by society, but I would say as an inverse to the league who are driven by extraordinary circumstances, Spinner is basically an every man who drives himself to keep up with the rest of the league despite seemingly lacking everything "special" they have.

And I believe this every man quality, and this drive Spinner has is what's going to be the key to piecing the league back together. It's because Spinner sees himself as so far behind the rest of the league, and so much less special than they are, that he's driven to try to understand them.

Not only is Spinner a member who has tried to understand every member of the league in one way or another, Spinner is also someone who similiar to Sihgaraki foils every single character in the league despite just being an everyman.

2. Spinner and Toga

While Spinner and Toga may not have the same level of development to their interactions as Twice and Toga, Spinner reaches out to her once but not twice, and there are a lot of parallels you can draw between the characters.

Both Spinner and Toga joined the league for the same reason, an empty admiration for Stain, without really caring about Stain's ideals. Toga admires Stain because he's covered in blood and fighting for something and she wants to become more like the people she admires, Spinner because he saw himself as pathetic for hiding in his room all day and when he saw Stain taking a stand trying to change the whole world on his own he wanted to become that way too. Which means both of them have a tendency to want to become more like the people they admire, because their own sense of personal identity is so weak.

Himiko and Spinner both define themselves by the way society has rejected them. Spinner has internalized the idea that he's an empty person who can't accomplish anything on his own, every terrible thing other people said about him due to his heteromorph quirk he accepted it. At the same time, Toga was somebody born with a "dangerous quirk" who was told to repress it and then did that living under a fake identity as a normal school girl that would please her parents and the people around her for as long as she could. Both Toga and Spinner are taught by the society around them to be self-loathing and to repress themselves because of their quirks. They're also characters who are both defined by a desire for release.

When Spinner asks if Toga still wants to be in the league because of Stain and she responds, Now I wanna become everyone I love. Spinner comments, "You're so free."

Spinner and Toga both claim they joined the league because of love for another person, they both loved and admired some aspect of Stain, but their real reason for joining, or at least the reason they stay is that deep down both of them desire the freedom to be themselves. Toga wrapping her desires up in language like love for other people, and wanting to become them, is because deep down she believes because of her quirk there's no one who would accept her for herself, as the normal girl she believes she is, no one will let her live as Toga thus she tries to become other people. It's the same for Spinner, who believes he can't be anything other than the Lizard Freak, so he too tries to dress himself up and become a Stain Cosplayer. It's only through the league's acceptance that Toga and Spinner slowly begin to learn that they are good enough on their own, just as themselves, and their priorities begin to shift.

3. Spinner and Twice

Twice and Spinner have several backstory parallels already. They are both characters affected by poverty, Spinner lived in a backwater town plagued by old views of heteromorph quirks, Twice lost his parents and began working to support himself at a young age before becoming homeless. Spinner and Twice were also both labeled in a way that stuck with them, after Twice got a criminal charge in an accident on his permanent record he couldn't find another job after being labeled deviant. Spinner was labeled as a deviant because of his quirk and the idea that he's a lizard freak has always stuck with him the same way that Twice has internalized the idea that "bad people don't get saved."

They also both chose to isolate themselves because of the circumstances they faced. Twice's first response to homelessness was to decide to never trust anybody but himself, and he became a criminal who pulled off heists with only clones of himself as team members until that stopped working for him. Spinner's response was also to shut himself away in his room and become a NEET. They both cut themselves off to the society that labeled them as unacceptable, but in the process they also cut themselves off from other people and became unable to trust others.

While they have major backstory parallels, I believe the greatest parallel between them is going to be that Spinner will inherit that role that Twice had for the league. While Shigaraki is the leader, Twice more than anybody else believed the League to be a family, and encouraged everyone to be friendly with one another.

It's Twice more than anyone else who emphasizes the bond of the league, that they're all strays, that they need to take care of each other and save each other. It's Twice who urges Shigaraki to save Giran because he's one of them. He makes the unspoken bond of the league as a group of miscreants into a spoken one, because Twice wants those things, he's well aware of the fact that he wants trust and acceptance and came to the league to find those things. This is the greatest thing that ties Spinner and Twice's characters together, because they both view themselves as worthless, they define themselves by how they help the other members of the league.

Twice's death so far isn't something that has been really capitalized on by the plot, Hawks has yet to face consequences, we haven't gotten to see much of the league's reaction because they were scattered soon afterwards. However, if Twice's death is going to cause development eventually I believe it will be in the vacuum in the league created now that Twice is gone. There is no longer someone who is urging all of them to be together. Twice's death causes most of the league to become less stable. Toga goes on a killing spree, Dabi attacks Hawks, Compress tries to kill himself in a heroic sacrifice, Shigaraki hasn't gotten the chance to react yet but he's also gotten worse considering he's currently possessed. You could even say that Twice's death has caused other characters to double down on their worst habits.

Dabi's worst habit is that he acts separately from the league and refuses to participate in the group dynamic, believing himself to be a solo avenger. Dabi not trusting or telling the league what he was planning on doing with Hawks, as a consequence of his decision to play solo avenger, caused Twice to trust Hawks which led to his death. Hawks was the one who killed him but Dabi played a part, and when Twice dies Dabi obviously reacts to it, but also his decision is to double down on his bad habit, insisting he's only using the league and he doesn't care about the rest of the group. Toga also doubles down on her bad habit, she runs away from the rest of the league and insists she's only doing this for the freedom to do whatever she pleases, not because you know Twice got killed right in front of her. Compress's arc is less pronounced, but he also does, in fact, try to kill himself in a grand heroic sacrifice for the rest of the league.

When twice dies the league begins to fall apart and everyone acts on their individual worst flaws, ignoring that they were always stronger together as a group. However, there is still one person who wanted the exact same thing Twice did, to be trusted, to belong to a group. This is most likely the role that Spinner is going to grow to, someone who is trusted by everyone in the group.

Notably, when Toga is about to run away it's Spinner who reminds her that the league is a place for them to come back to. Toga who was probably the closest to Twice and spiraling the worst because of his death, and Toga and Twice's friendship was the first time we really saw how much of a "bond" the league had formed with one another, because in the camp arc they barely cooperated, only begrudgingly. It's Spinner who who emphasizes that even though everyone in the league is doing this for individualism "doing what they want" that they are also together as a group. Spinner is set to inherit Twice's role as the heart, because one he tries to understand other people in the league making the effort to reach out, and two Spinner is aware of what he wants just like Twice he wants to be trusted by the rest of the group.

4. Spinner and Dabi

This one is a little bit harder because Dabi's character arc really hasn't started yet. We have just now gotten to the reveal of who he is and what his motivations are, after it being a mystery for so long. However unlike the rest of the league, we haven't really seen how Dabi has reacted and changed by becoming a part of the group. Even if his motivation isn't "I'm only using them" and deep down he really does care, I don't think he's even realized yet that he does care or that he's not just using them. Dabi still believes himself to be alone, and therefore he's still isolated from the rest of the league and flying his revenge quest solo even though he's really not.

In that case, the biggest parallel between Spinner and Dabi is that they both had to be won over by the league. They both joined because of admiration for Stain, probably because Dabi genuinely believed in Stain's ideals of taking down impure heroes because it fit his own agenda so well, whereas Spinner is a self-proclaimed empty cosplayer.

Spinner, however, has already gone through an arc where he was dissatisfied with his reasons for joining the league and didn't believe he belonged with the rest of the group. He didn't have anything to love like Toga. He didn't know yet he wanted friends he could trust like Twice already did. He doesn't have a strong backstory motivation like Compress, or Dabi or even knows what he wants out of society. However, the entirety of MVA is Spinner letting himself be changed because of his interaction with the group.

Spinner failed at life, his quirk is worthless and only good for sticking to walls. He also internalized the idea that he himself was a failure, and locked himself inside believing he couldn't accomplish anything on his own. Spinner says he has nothing he loves, and nothing he wants to do. Not only that he feels unloved and unwanted. However, Spinner finds something to love in Shigaraki, even if he can't find a strong sense of individualism and still believes himself to be worthless he becomes motivated to help others. Spinner, the most normal person in the group with the most worthless quirk, becomes the greatest help to Shigaraki, basically once he gets over himself and his preconceived notions of himself. Because, you don't actually have to be a special person or have a strong quirk to be a hero, you have to reach out a hand.

The same way Spinner was won over by the League, Dabi has yet to be won over. However, if that does happen, it's probably going to look like Spinner's arc. Dabi antagonizes Spinner a lot, but they actually have more in common than they do differences. They both have failure quirks, while Dabi has an overwhelming fire quirk he wasn't allowed to use, Spinner is literally just a gecko. They both also were labeled as disappointments and given up on, Enji gave up on Touya, Spinner never had any potential from the start and locked himself away in his room. However, their paths so far have been opposites, Spinner let Shigaraki reach him and became a part of the group, Dabi at every possible opportunity insists he's doing this all alone. He takes every chance he can to separate himself from others. If Dabi's arc is going to be a mirror to Shoto's arc eventually, then someone has to reach him and convince him he can't do this all on his own, and Dabi can only truly find himself when he's part of the group once more. After all, so far Dabi is the one most resistant to change. Toga's goal has changed, Shigaraki's changed, Spinner has changed, even Compress now admits that while they're just a gang of thieves that he cares more about everyone else's dreams than his own. Dabi is still nursing a ten-year grudge against Endeavor and doing everything he can to take him down on his own because he hasn't let the group in. And he won't improve or change until he does let others in.

5. Spinner and Shigaraki

I love Compress but I'm skipping over him because his arc hasn't been elaborated on yet. If you want a quick summary though, both Spinner and Compress didn't believe the group to be anything more than a gathering of selfish criminals, however, both of them changed because they wanted to see Shigaraki's dream come true. Not only was Shigaraki the one who inspired both of them to change, but also Compress is the one who first sees how close Spinner is to Shigaraki more than anyone else in the group was.

He also sacrifices himself BECAUSE he's come to realize that what he wants more than his own dreams is to see everyone else's dreams come true. I know Compress's backstory is rushed as all hell, but it almost... almost... works because Compress isn't actually doing this because he's Oji Harima's grandson. His motivation changed a long time ago, he just didn't realize it until he was about to lose the league.

There are a few more parallels, they're both dropouts. It's implied that Compress was literally just a retired and failed stage magician before he decided to become a villain. Hopefully we'll become more on that later because the idea of Compress sucking in showbiz so he decided to follow his grandfather's legacy is really awesome. Spinner was a Neet before he saw Stain on television. They also both have more minor quirks, Compress just shrinks people, Spinner sticks to things. They both also are characters who don't seem important at first, but consistently hover around in the background constantly making sure everyone in the group is okay. Compress calls to check up on people, he talks to Dabi a lot, he tries to keep up with everybody in a melee, it's the little things he does that make Compress same for Spinner. They're both cosplaying as legendary villains who are greater than they are, Stein is cosplaying his grandfather, Spinner is cosplaying Stain, but it's unknown whether Compress really cares that much about his grandfather's ideals, I think he cares about the league more. Compress and Spinner are also people who question and try to understand things, Compress lectures the kids that they had their ideals handed down to them for adult, Compress realizes Spinner's importance to Shigaraki before Spinner even did, Compress and Spinner also both try to understand other people's dreams because they're lacking in their own. Spinner doesn't even have a dream, but he's the one who listened to Shigaraki's dream first.

Now it's been directly said by canon that Spinner and Shigaraki's connection is the most developed, and they are the closest to one another. By developed I mean, it changed over time, when it started out they had almost nothing to do with one another. Spinner was just a rank and file league member that Shigaraki used on the hideout raid. They didn't even get a character introduction scene like Shigarki did with Dabi and Toga.

However, Spinner and Shigaraki's characters are extremely closely tied together. Shigaraki's like the main character of the league, his backstories parallel everyone else's, including the main character of the entire story Deku. He's the one who makes the plans, goes through training arcs, he's the one who the league unites around. However, Spinner actually has all of that too. I just spent a very long time showing how Spinner despite not having an overly complicated backstory has strong parallels to everyone in the league. If Shigaraki is the main character, then Spinner is the everyman / the perspective character, hence why he's the narrator of MVA. Shigaraki is a person of extraordinary circumstance, the symbol of society's oppression who everyone in the league deepy relates to because he's suffered the same way that they have and he accepts them. Whereas, Spinner has suffered because of Hero Society too, he's more like a normal guy who makes an effort to understand everyone around him.

However, Deku wasn't saved by his love interest, or even his childhood friend who is apparently his destined rival, he was saved by Iida trying his best to keep up with him.

Spinner and Shigaraki are both the emotional core of the league in different ways. The league all respects Shigaraki, they rally around his ideas, his dreams are what inspire everybody. However, more and more it's looking like Spinner, ordinary, average, Spinner is working to build emotional connections to everyone in a much more normal way. He talks to Toga and tries to understand her love. He even consoles Toga when twice is gone. He challenges Shigaraki directly to his face. Compress who is always sort of watching the league in the background and checking up on them in little ways notices how hard that Spinner is trying to take care of Shigaraki.

Shigaraki accepts people at their worst and gives them a place to belong, but I think by Spinner's efforts to get to know and understand others, we as an audience are shown how humanizing of a presence that Spinner is on everyone else. Spinner, just being a normal guy, brings out the fact that the rest of the league despite their extraordinary circumstances are deep down just normal people to, who want to be loved normally, and live normally. Spinner literally wakes up Shigaraki, because he remembered the one time that he opened up in front of all of them, and cares enough to try to understand Shigaraki's hurt feelings and what he cares about.

If anything from the last arc in the manga, we're shown at great length, how understanding, reaching out, it all takes effort and it's not as flashy as defeating a villain or rescuing someone from a natural disaster.

Spinner is so important to Shigaraki, because while Shigaraki has given everyone in the group a place where they can be individuals, Shigaraki hasn't realized he himself can be an individual yet. He ultimately, shares the same character flaw as Deku. It's because he's decided that he's going to carry out his dreams for the sake of the league and to create a better future for them, that Shigaraki no longer cares what happens to himself, or about his own future. Everyone talks about Dabi's suicidal nature, but this is something that Shigaraki is challenged on over and over again. What are your motivations. What are your reasons. What do you want to accomplish. He always responds with nothing. There's nothing that he wants, there's nothing worth living for, he only wants to destroy and make a better world for the people who are around him. Shigaraki is the most thoroughly dehumanized character, to the point where he just straight up accepts "god of destruction" because that is at least an identity. Shigaraki needs Spinner and his normalizing influence, because Shigaraki can't see himself as a normal person.

Shigaraki shares the same character flaw as Deku, he does everything for the sake of others, with no regard to himself, which leads to extreme bouts of self-harming and fighting alone. Shigaraki faced off against Endeavor, and basically all the heroes alone even though he did call for backup. However, even before that Shigaraki made the decision to get dangerous risky surgery that would be like hell, because he believed deep down he wasn't good enough alone. Shigaraki just does not care about himself and is unable to see himself as an individual, which is exactly why he needs someone to care for him and see him that way.

Shigaraki's greatest challenge to date is that he's been dehumanized so thoroughly, and lost sight of himself to the point where he's lost even his own body autonomy. When Shigaraki is battling for possession of his body as AFO attempts to take total control and make him into a symbol again, denying him his personhood, we're set up directly with Spinner being the one who reminds us that Shigaraki is just a person, who likes video games, and gets along with his friends. It's Spinner who notices right away that AFO is different from Shigaraki and challenges him the same way that he challenged Shigaraki directly in the My VIllain Academia arc. This is all set up most likely, for Spinner being the one to reach out a hand the same way IIDA did, because what Shigaraki needs the most right now, is not a hero who will save him, but rather a normal person who will understand him and remind him that deep down he was just a normal kid too before all of this happened. What Shigaraki is most in need of is a hand that will reach out to him, and Spinner has already done this once putting Nana's hand back on his face when he couldn't wake up, but what he's failed to realize is that it's his own scaly lizard hands that should be doing the reaching out.

#mha meta #lov meta #league of villains #league of villains meta #spinner #shigaraki #toga himiko #higuchi iguchi #shigaraki tomura #dabi #touya todoroki #twice #jin bubaigawara #compress

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class1akids · 2 years

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BNHA 341 - Thoughts

This chapter hit me with so many different feelings that I’m still struggling to put them into order. The art was fantastic - the scans really didn’t do justice to it - do yourself a favour and check out the official!

The highlight for me was definitely the Touya-Toga interaction

Toga looking at the house and all the heartbreaking deatils of the graffiti, her empty room, the way her parents stopped measuring her when she was 3, the flashback to how she harmed herself was so disturbing

it’s the most open we have seen Touya and I loved the vibe of him sitting in the window-sill, pretending to be callous, but then using his fire to try to burn away those memories, because maybe the past never dies, but you can exorcise it with fire, and keep smiling because the world is indifferent to your tears (Dabi’s smiling and crying looks hauntingly similar) so you might as well try to get the last laugh.

Toga calling Dabi out on his kindness was a wonderful moment, and it was also sad how she calls herself too far gone now.

Their interaction really made me think about how Touya can see himself maybe in Toga - they both experienced the pain of rejection because of their quirks, or how poor emotional regulation gave them both power-ups, but also the foiling - Toga’s empty room vs Touya’s altar where the Todoroki-family still prays.

Touya going back to collect Twice’s blood is also a very interesting detail. It was set-up in Ch 273, and he had given the vial to Toga prior to this scene. So he followed her to the house truly to check on her.

Besides raising Toga’s threat-level quite a bit and showing that Touya can be both empathic in a moment and see the possible strategic advantage, it’s a very Todoroki-thing to experience connection with people through their quirks; Touya who feels that his fire is Endeavor’s, just like Shouto used to feel he was made up of “mom’s quirk” and “dad’s quirk”. Since Toga can literally use the quirks of people she cares about if she drinks their blood, it’s a bit like recreating the family bonds I think in Touya’s mind.

Bringing back Twice’s Sad Man’s Parade opens up intriguing possibilities of a Touya-Hawks confrontation - to haunt Hawks quite literally and hopefully bring back that gray, tortured Hawks from the war. It’s also possible that there will be a first confrontation between:

Toga+Touya vs Hawks -> Endeavor joining the fray and coming down to a choice between Touya and Hawks -> his family and his hero legacy - What will he do? I feel like this will be where Endeavor will die / lose his power and this is where Shouto will come in - maybe to save both Touya and Endeavor (and possibly Hawks) and finish the confrontation with Touya. Also, seeing how Touya is burying his feelings under his smile and how much Shouto kept himself in check post-war emotionally, I’m really really hoping for that big emotional blow-up I was waiting for.

Bringing Twice back as a clone is also ironic, because Twice’s biggest fear was that he wasn’t real - and Sad Man’s Parade was about conquering that fear. So how will Twice’s clones behave without an original? Hmmm, definitely excited about the Todo-fam endgame...

The AFO-Spinner mutant plot felt kind of stale in comparison - maybe because this whole mutant discrimination was never properly explored and (unpopular opinion) but I find Spinner one of the more boring villains. I guess AFO and Skeptic talked him into becoming a mutant Jesus.

The Shigaraki art was great though.

Oh, mutant army is coming - we get back Sludge Villain. I predict either a Deku vs. Muscular 2 type curb-stomping to show Bakugou’s growth or (hopefully), it will actually be an interesting fight with SV controlling someone close to Bakugou’s heart with a powerful quirk, so it turns into a real win-save challenge.

There seem to be quite a few other mutants - so maybe we get a first wave of fights to warm up to the big endgame battle.

AFO saying “Everyone can be somebody’s hero” felt so ironic somehow because I do believe that is going to be part of the overall message of the story. But AFO taints it with his evil and cynicism.

#bnha 341 #bnha manga spoilers #class1a reads bnha

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pokemonsoldier · 3 years

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I Just Realized the reality behind the finale twist, and this makes so much more sense

Huge, HUGE spoiler warning. If you do not want the DuckTales finale spoiled for you, skip this. Otherwise, you have been warned.

So, we all know the twist. Webby is Scrooge’s clone made by FOWL to find the papyrus, his daughter (because no she is not a perfect clone of him stop suggesting that. He was the genetic basis, so she is, genetically, his daughter). After all, the papyrus could only be found by a direct descendant of Scrooge McDuck, so FOWL made one. May and June, perfect clones of Webby (so yes they would be her sisters) failed to find it because the DNA was stretched to thin. Open and shut, right?

Not exactly. I made a realization that shows the writers knew what they were doing way more, and this was not rushed. In fact, this realization I had makes this twist not only good, but one of the best. You see, everyone says only Scrooge’s descendant could find the papyrus, right? Except, Scrooge doesn’t. If you recall ‘The First Adventure’, it shows us what he writes. He wrote, quote, “Papyrus, I ask that you be lost once more, until the rightful heir of Scrooge McDuck can find your final resting place.”

Let me clarify the main line, “until the rightful HEIR of Scrooge McDuck can find your final resting place.”

It wasn’t a descendant, it was THE heir that was needed. HIS heir. This realization, as well as understanding Scrooge, Webby, and their relationship, made me realize something. Webby being Scrooge’s daughter had NOTHING to do with her finding it. We have to remember something, Scrooge is not a nepotist. He doesn’t give stuff out of favor family. He goes by merit, by one proving themselves as worthy, by people earning what they want. If you recall, the papyrus is literal, so the rightful heir (singular, mind you) is based on Scrooge’s decision, not based on external interpretations. They’d have to be someone who he felt was worthy of inheriting his legacy.

Smarter than the smarties Tougher than the toughies Sharper than the sharpies And earns their way through life This person had to know what it meant to be Scrooge McDuck, had to desire his ethic and his attitude towards adventure, had to understand the McDucks entirely. And moreover, had to gain his respect and love... Only one person in the series fits all those requirements: Webby

Think about it. She grew up in the manor with Scrooge her entire life. She dedicated her life to knowing EVERYTHING about the McDucks, Scrooge especially, and is probably one of the most brilliant minds out there. She can take on adults many times her own size with ease, including Bouncer Beagle. And she is quick thinking, able to slip her way through any situation out there. But most of all, she had proven herself to Scrooge. Rewatch the series, and look at her mannerisms, their interactions. She is like Scrooge in so, so many ways. Moreover, he possibly has a closer bond with her than anyone else. She was family long before the finale, and Scrooge stated such. She was just as much an heir of Scrooge as Della, Donald, Huey, Dewey, and Louie were, if not more so.

Blood had nothing to do with finding the papyrus. Him choosing her to be his heir was. And yes, I am saying that even before the finale, Scrooge was likely to have Webby be his main heir. Not the twins, not the triplets, but Webby, who was not even (they thought) direct family. Knowing Scrooge, this makes sense. He doesn’t give handouts. Not even to his own kin.

This is why Webby found the papyrus and not the others. Merit. Her being his daughter had NOTHING to do with it. In fact, had it not been for Beakley raising her, she’d have never been able to get the papyrus as she would not have become a TRUE heir. It is also the reason May and June never found it either. They were clones of Webby, but were not Webby by virtue. They didn’t have her passion, knowledge, understanding, and especially not the admiration of Scrooge. This is why the boys didn’t find it either. They each were excellent at one aspect of Scrooge, but not all three. Thus, Webby met the criteria fully.

The writers knew what they were doing. They planned this since Episode 1 of Season 1 when they have Webby, involuntarily, strike a pose that mirrors a statues of Scrooge, not even trying to imitate it. She was family by merit, long before she was family by blood. Thus, in my opinion, this twist is one of, if not the best twist ever, and exemplifies the show’s main themes better than anything. Rewatch it, keep this in mind, and you’ll see what I mean.

Feel free to reblog and add your (no pun intended) 10 cents.

BTW, for those arguing ‘oh that isn’t how the papyrus works’, just remember it accepted “Family is the greatest adventure of all” as true because Scrooge truly believed it. So if that was okay with the papyrus, I am certain it’d follow his heir qualifications.

#ducktales #ducktales spoilers #ducktales 2017 #ducktales finale spoilers #ducktales finale #the last adventure spoilers #scrooge and webby #ducktales webby #webby #webby vanderquack

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incorrectpizza · 2 years

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Why 2022 will be a make it or break it year for Star Wars

Ok, so I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, especially with the Kenobi trailer finally dropping. I’m convinced that 2022 will be the year that either saves Star Wars for me or which pushes me to apathy, if not distaste, of the franchise.

While this is, of course, my personal opinion, I believe that this will be the same for many other Star Wars fans. So, hear me out. I’m going to be analyzing each of the major projects in 2022 and detailing why I think their success is so vital to the franchise.

Putting the actual post under the cut because it got a little out of hand.

Reblog & put your own predictions in the tags - I would love to read them!

THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT

I want to touch on TBOBF briefly because it was predominantly a 2022 release. I don’t think this show helped Star Wars as much as it could’ve. It proved to be yet another divisive piece of media; I’d say it got much more love, than, say, The Last Jedi or The Rise of Skywalker, but it also didn’t get the level of praise The Mandalorian did. And it stole some key moments that could’ve made the season premiere of that show a real banger.

OBI-WAN KENOBI

This show is arguably the most anticipated piece of Star Wars content since The Force Awakens. People have been begging for Ewan McGregor’s return to Star Wars ever since Disney bought the franchise. This show is likely to draw an outsized audience of “normies” as opposed to the other Star Wars content that’s coming out this year.

This show has an outsized level of hype and is playing with a LOT of beloved legacy characters (even more than the sequel trilogy?!) Already we have confirmed Obi-Wan, Darth Vader, Owen, Beru, and a young Luke Skywalker (albeit from a distance). There are a few others who are heavily rumored but not outright confirmed which I’ll refrain from listing here.

Obi-Wan and Darth Vader having another confrontation will almost certainly be epic, but if done sloppily it could really break lore. Same with Obi-Wan possibly interacting with Luke.

On top of this, they are also dealing with some popular characters from outside the movies. The Inquisitors’ presence - emphasized so heavily in the very first teaser - could confuse or delight fans.

If they screw this show up, it could have a profound impact on the way people view both the Original Trilogy and the Prequel Trilogy (albeit to a lesser extent).

To put things succinctly: Obi-Wan Kenobi is an extremely anticipated show which will likely change the way all of Star Wars is seen - for the better or worse.

ANDOR

This show isn’t as big a deal as Obi-Wan Kenobi, but it holds a unique place as the series that could most surprise Star Wars fans. In my humble opinion, Andor could be a shocking success that brings together fans of the prequels, animated shows, originals, books, comics and, of course, Rogue One.

This slice of the timeline is full of possibilities: pretty much any character from the Prequels, Originals, or the time in between could show up.

Perhaps the biggest question is “Will we get to see Jedi?” There haven’t been many concrete rumors about Andor, which means they could totally surprise us with some mind-blowing connections. Could Ewan McGregor have filmed an extra scene or two while he was working on Kenobi? Or maybe a younger Ahsoka Tano will show up here as Fulcrum? Kanan Jarrus hasn’t revealed his identity, but it’s entirely plausible he and/or Hera Syndulla could show up in their roles as young rebellion heroes.

It’s not just Jedi that could show up, though. The show will deal with both the Rebellion and the underworld, opening up a world of possibilities. There’s the possibility of a clone trooper or two cameoing, or even young Boba Fett; Temeura Morrison is still very well connected with Star Wars. Maybe young Fennec Shand could make an appearance as well? We know she’s already bounty hunting by this time. A persistent fan hope is Star Wars Rebels’ Alexsandr Kallus, who would still be an Imperial agent at this time.

Add in the odd, persistent rumors of George Lucas’s involvement, and you get a recipe for something special.

Will Andor be a magical Neapolitan pizza with fresh tomatoes and mozzarella or a sad stale piece of cardboard covered in a dry, just-barely-tomato-esque paste and cheese that looks like it was chewed by a dog?

THE BAD BATCH

So, here’s the thing about The Bad Batch Season Two:

We know absolutely nothing about it.

Aside from the fact that it’s coming, there have been zero announcements, and few leaks or rumors, since the initial announcement of the renewal last year. The latest development? Bob Chapek actually left the show out of the list of the remaining content for 2022 during Investor Day yesterday, and Star Wars Insider changed the sidebar from “Coming Spring 2022″ to “Coming Soon”.

Are there production woes? Could it be cancelled? Or do they just not have an easy spot to slide it into their lineup of content? We know courtesy of Michelle Ang that the show was recording lines months ago.

This show is big for a few reasons. It’s not the most beloved Star Wars animated series by far, but it had a sizeable fandom. It’s also the only animated Star Wars on the horizon in the near future.

Some of Star Wars’ best content has been animated. The Clone Wars and Rebels are both very well-loved. Visions had a fun breakout moment, and Resistance is severely underrated.

I worry that, if The Bad Batch doesn’t get a great second season - and a renewal for a third, if it’s been sketched out - it could be very bad news for Lucasfilm Animation and its fans. I’m thoroughly convinced that Resistance got cut short. If The Bad Batch doesn’t perform up to snuff, I’m afraid they might decide that animation isn’t worth it anymore. With the Rebels sequel storyline moving to live action, there isn’t a very clear direction for Star Wars animation to go after The Bad Batch, and I’m afraid it could become scarce.

LEGO STAR WARS: THE SKYWALKER SAGA

This game has been coming out for so kriffing long that Lego Star Wars fans could be extremely salty if it isn’t everything they’d hoped and dreamed. (I’m not a huge Lego fan, so this is pure speculation, but I can’t say I’d blame them.)

JEDI FALLEN ORDER 2

This is a long shot but if the Jedi Fallen Order sequel gets a killer trailer and/or a release in 2022, it could provide a lifeline to some Star Wars fans who are struggling to enjoy the other content. (I know it’s one of my most anticipated Star Wars projects).

BOOKS & COMICS

I felt weird leaving these out entirely, because they do exist, but there isn’t anything huge going on. Other than The High Republic, which I’m pretty sure everyone has either gone all-in one or abandoned by this point, we have just a handful of books that look to either enhance or cast a dark shadow over a few beloved characters. But these aren’t likely to make a huge splash, so I don’t see them making a big difference to the fandom writ large.

THE MANDALORIAN SEASON 3

I tacked this on at the last moment to remind people that we should’ve gotten a third season of The Mandalorian in 2022. If it weren’t for Disney’s firing of Gina Carano and subsequent rewrites, it likely would have premiered as scheduled in 2022. It could’ve been a fantastic banger of an ending to a year of epic Star Wars (if everything above went well and on schedule). But as things stand, it’s looking like The Mandalorian will come out in 2023 at the earliest.

#star wars #2022 in star wars #this is a Thing #I'm sorry it's so long #the book of boba fett #obi-wan kenobi #andor #the bad batch #lego star wars: the skywalker saga #jedi fallen order #jedi fallen order 2 #the high republic #the mandalorian #baby yoda #star wars news

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marvelstars · 8 months

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Ahsoka Ep5: To live or to die

So I liked this episode a lot, wish we have seen more of Ahsoka and Anakin interacting but what we got was very good.

Loved the call backs to Luke and Anakin´s duel

But I loved more the way Anakin addressed Ahsoka´s inner wish to die.

Baylan didn´t just defeat Ahsoka physically, he did so phycologically as well, what he said is something she´s been telling herself for a long time, that she only brings death and destruction because that was what she learned as a padawan and because of who was her master.

Here Anakin helps her to remember that isn´t everything she is, just as that isn´t everything Anakin was, he wasn´t just Vader or Anakin, he was both, he learned to be a guardian for peace from his master but he had to learn to become a soldier because there was a war going on and he teached Ahsoka how to be a soldier because that was needed for her to survive at the time and thrive despite the war but that wasn´t everything he wanted her to learn from him, he told her jokes because he also wanted her to enjoy life and truly live and he expects her to teach her padawan what they will need to learn acording to the era they are living. Keeping the legacy from one master to another, each one of them adding their own knowledge to what they learned from their master.

But the clone wars are long gone, the civil war is done and Ahsoka, emotionally is still living in a constant state of battle. She goes from one mission to another, to another and it is easy for her to leave people behind because she doesn´t want to form long lasting bonds anymore, instead of living and enjoying life with Hera and Sabine, Ahsoka lives for the mission, just like she did as a kid.

So Anakin represented her wish to live while Vader represented her wish to die. Vader, in a lot of ways, just lived for the mission, he breathed but he was dead inside and something similar happened to Ahsoka. She is still stuck in what gave her life meaning in the past but has not seek to advance beyond that.

She can´t teach Sabine the things she needs to learn to survive and thrive in her own era if Ahsoka herself is still stuck fighting in the past and refusing to live in the present.

"That´s incorrect" -Vadekin

Loved the fact Anakin used Vader persona to push Ahsoka back towards wanting to live again, to give her the will to live again, which serves her to stay alive until she could be rescued.

She smiles more when she is back, she doesn´t know what is going to happen but that doesn´t bother her, she is ready to live her life as an adventure once again, she learns about Sabine´s betrayal but doesnt hold it agaisn´t her because she knows she made that decision while she was alone and afraid and wanted to see Ezra again.

PD: Loved hayden performance how everything from his language to his appareance changes from Anakin to Vader, it´s everything I expected to see from Anakin post ROTJ, he can´t let behind Vader because he came back to the light as Vader and he can´t forget all the lessons he learned as him so he can´t be whole unless he is both Anakin and Vader. Just chef kiss this chapter.

#anakin skywalker #ahsoka tano #ahsoka show #ahsoka spoilers #clone wars #star wars #post ROTJ #darth vader

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theopolis · 3 years

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Extremely long, extremely salty Kindred criticism post

Yk the thing about the Kindred storyline is that it failed at being everything it was trying to be.

It wanted to be like DeMatteis' Goblin Junior arc while simultaneously inverting every concept from that arc. Harry is a gentle soul going down a dark path and hurting not only others but himself in the process? No, he's the comically evil mastermind who would throw his friends - Gwen and MJ, who even by his own standards have done him no wrong - under the bus to get revenge! Norman is the looming influence that follows Harry and motivates him to bend himself into who his father wanted him to be? No, he's the repentant, permanently dewey eyed reformed Norman who we're supposed to feel bad for when he gets dismissed and punched around by evil Harry/his demonic clone vessels/whatever the fuck. Peter is the best friend who, despite of course feeling angry and betrayed, believes in Harry's softness and their love and wants the best for him? No, he's immediately and with zero explanation ready to believe Harry is a literal demon all of a sudden and, I quote, "through with helping him". And I don't even think this (later clumsily backpedaled on) change of mind in Peter isn't justified in-universe - Kindred did uh, dig up the skeletons of Peter's loved ones and put party city wigs on them and also smash him with a big rock a couple of times, so there's that. But that's exactly the problem - Spencer set the stage for a story that doesn't actually involve Peter, or Harry, or Norman. He created mostly completely different dynamics between mostly completely different characters, and decided to project that on the the three of them. While also periodically inserting hamfisted callbacks to the DeMatteis stories, as if he didn't just take a giant dump on everything they established.

And here's the thing, even if I did enjoy the idea of Harry forgiving Norman, or the idea of Harry returning to villainy, or the idea of Norman becoming a character we're supposed to root for - which I cannot stress enough how much I don't - the execution of all these ideas was perhaps the worst it could have possibly been. Rushed, convoluted, and hollow.

Norman's sudden goodness is the result of a supernatural, vague process that apparently "freed him of his sin", whatever that means. Like, how do you quantify sin? How can you take it out of a person when it's their moral ideology and conscious choices that make them sinful/bad/evil? What happened to Norman simply reads like brainwashing to me. He is aware he's done something really bad, but he hasn't actually learned anything, and that impression is only backed by the way he talks about his past actions. It's always "oh it's my fault you're like this Harry" and "oh I can never make it up to you" etc etc but does he ever actually recognize his mistakes for what they were? Recognize where the errors of his past convictions lie? Of course not, because Spencer has zero reading comprehension and therefore no clue about the intricacies of Norman's character, his abuse of Harry, or what motivated it, or what he demanded of his son. It's funny how these four panels from a recent What If issue managed to paint a more compelling, if brief, picture of Norman as an apologetic father than Spencer has in a year worth of comics:

Harry's sudden villainy and the way it evolved throughout this story is just a train wreck. He has not had a substantial role in the comics for a long time now, but suddenly he's back AND he's evil! Who cares about complexity? Who cares about how Harry's feeling? Why he's doing what he does other than some extremely vague idea of revenge on apparently both Peter and Norman? Even though he was neck deep in denial about Norman being a horrible father and person at the time he supposedly launched the whole (checks notes) "create clones from Norman's and Gwen's DNA to stick it to his old man AND Peter in the future" plan, which he concocted because he somehow (????) knew his father wasn't gonna stay dead, which begs the question why he was so torn up about it in the first place, and- Look I could sit here all day trying to decipher the whole Gabriel and Sarah Stacy twist. It's impressive what an inconsistent, incomprehensible mess it is considering it was only introduced two issues ago. ASM 74 sort of hinted that Harry was being piloted by Mephisto when he created the clones so they could later become his hellish lackeys? I uhm, think? It's impossible to tell because no part of that retcon makes any sense to begin with. It doesn’t want to make sense because it was written - most likely on a whim - with the sole intent to garner good will for undoing Sins Past. Harry, for this entire arc, was not a character but merely a tool to bait us with an OMD reversal and ultimately do a Sins Past one. And of course, there's the fact that post OMD Harry - one of the only good things to come out of OMD in the first place - was just a clone all along, putting into question how valid all the amazing and inspiring development he went through since his revival was. Thanks a lot.

Lastly, I don't think I have to say how insulting it is to not just use Harry's character as a cheap plot device, but eventually force him to sacrifice his life for the very man who ruined it in every way. The man who abused him since birth, betrayed him on every level, attacked and murdered so many people Harry loves, including almost getting Harry's son killed. Why? Because he’s had a suspicious sudden onset of goodness that Harry has no context for? Norman and clone!Harry have not even interacted for this entire arc, but the sole act of Norman offering himself up to the rabid Kindred twins makes Harry instantly forgive everything he’s ever done. There was no build up to this whatsoever. It’s bad writing. And I don't think the abuse apologism implications of all this are intentional, I think Spencer just thought up the groundbreakingly subversive concept of "what if Norman good and Harry bad" and ran with that. But those implications are there nonetheless, because Harry and Norman's relationship has pretty much always been about abuse, about being mistreated by your parents, about not feeling good enough for them and eventually realizing that you were wronged and you don't owe them anything.

Spencer had Harry, a man who fought for years to rise to his best, most authentic self and fully turn his back on Norman and his legacy, die to save the father who never valued him for that self. And to add insult to injury, paralleled that with Harry dying after saving his best friend who loved him unconditionally. The latter mentioned death being a direct consequence of the actions Harry took to fit the expectations said abusive father had drilled into his head. I feel like that ending explains everything about this plotline.

#Harry Osborn #theopolispost #I'm tired #long post

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unpopularwiththepopulace · 3 years

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Chicago at Long Beach, LA, 1992: A Story of Bebe Neuwirth, Choreography, Riots, Revivals, and Relevance

Recently and rather excitingly, more footage made its way to YouTube of the 1992 version of Chicago staged at Long Beach in LA, featuring Bebe Neuwirth as Velma and Juliet Prowse as Roxie.

Given its increased accessibility and visibility, this foregrounds the chance to talk about the show, explore some of its details, and look at the part it might have played as a contribution to the main ‘revival’ of Chicago in 1996 – which has given the show one of the most resonant and highly enduring legacies seen within the theatre ever.

This Civic Light Opera production at Long Beach was staged in 1992, four years before the ‘main’ revival made its appearance at Encores! or had its subsequent Broadway transfer, and it marked the first time a major revival of Chicago had been seen since the original 1975 show disappeared nearly 15 years previously.

This event is of particular significance given its position as the first step in the chain of events that make up part of this ‘new Chicago’ narrative and the resultant entire multiple-decade spanning impact of the show hereafter.

But for all of its pivotal status, it’s seldom discussed or remembered anywhere near as much as it should be.

This may be in part because of how little video or photographic record has remained in easily accessible form to date, and also because it only played for around two weeks in the first place. As such, it is a real treat on these occasions to get to see such incredible and unique material that would otherwise have been lost forever after such a brief existence some 30 years ago.

This earlier revival of the show still feels like what we have come to identify “Chicago” as in modern comprehension of the musical, most principally because the choreography was also done by Ann Reinking. As with the 1996 production, this meant dance was done “very much in the master’s style” – or Mr Bob Fosse.

The link below is time-stamped to Bebe and Juliet performing ‘Hot Honey Rag’. As one of the most infamous numbers in Broadway history, it’s undoubtedly a dance that has been watched many times over. But never before have I seen it done quite like this.

https://youtu.be/4HKkwtRE-II?t=2647

‘Hot Honey Rag’ was in fact formerly called ‘Keep It Hot’, and was devised by Fosse as “a compendium of all the steps he learned as a young man working in vaudeville and burlesque—the Shim Sham, the Black Bottom, the Joe Frisco, ‘snake hips,’ and cooch dancing”, making it into the “ultimate vaudeville dance act” for the ultimate finale number.

Ann would say about her choreographical style in relation to Fosse, “The parts where I really deviate is in adding this fugue quality to the numbers. For better or worse, my style is more complicated.” The ‘complexity’ and distinctness she speaks of is certainly evident in some of the sections of this particular dance. There are seemingly about double the periodicity of taps in Bebe and Juliet’s Susie Q sequence alone. One simply has to watch in marvel not just at the impressive synchronicity and in-tandem forward motion, but now also at the impossibly fast feet. Other portions that notably differ from more familiar versions of the dance and thus catch the eye are the big-to-small motion contrast after the rising ‘snake hips’ section, and all of the successive goofy but impeccably precise snapshot sequence of arm movements and poses.

More focus is required on the differences and similarities of this 1992 production compared against the original or subsequent revival, given its status and importance as a bridging link between the two.

The costumes in 1975 were designed by Patricia Zipprodt (as referenced in my previous post on costume design), notably earning her a Tony Award nomination. In this 1992 production, some costumes were “duplications” of Zipprodt’s originals, and some new designs by Garland Riddle – who added a “saucy/sassy array” in the “typical Fosse dance lingerie” style. It is here we begin to see some of the more dark, slinkiness that has become so synonymous with “Chicago” as a concept in public perception.

The sets from the original were designed by Tony Walton – again, nominated for a Tony – and were reused with completeness here. This is important as it shows some of the original dance concepts in their original contexts, given that portions of the initial choreography were “inextricably linked to the original set designs.” This sentiment is evident in the final portion of ‘Cell Block Tango’, pictured and linked at the following time-stamp below, which employs the use of mobile frame-like, ladder structures as a scaffold for surrounding movements, and also a metaphor for the presence of jail cell bars.

https://youtu.be/4HKkwtRE-II?t=741

Defining exactly how much of the initial choreography was carried across is an ephemeral line. Numbers were deemed “virtually intact” in the main review published during the show’s run from the LA Times – or even further, “clones” of the originals. It is thought that the majority of numbers here exhibit greater similarity to the 1975 production than the 1996 revival, except for ‘Hot Honey Rag’ which is regarded as reasonably re-choreographed. But even so, comparing against remaining visible footage of Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera from the original, or indeed alternatively against Bebe and Annie later in the revival, does not present an exact match to either.

This speaks to the adaptability and amorphousness of Fosse-dance within its broader lexicon. Fosse steps are part of a language that can be spoken with subtle variations in dialect. Even the same steps can appear slightly different when being used in differing contexts, by differing performers, in differing time periods.

It also speaks to some of the main conventions of musical theatre itself. Two main principles of the genre include its capacity for fluidity and its ability for the ‘same material’ to change and evolve over time; as well as the fact comparisons and comprehensions of shows across more permanent time spans are restricted by the availability of digital recordings of matter that is primarily intended to be singular and live.

Which versions of the same song do you want to look at when seeking comparisons?

Are you considering ‘Hot Honey Rag’ at a performance on the large stage at Radio City Music Hall at the Tony Awards in 1997? Or on a small stage for TV shows, like the Howard Cosell or Mike Douglas shows in 1975? Or on press reel footage from 1996 on the ‘normal’ stage context in a format that should be as close to a replica as possible of what was performed in person every night?

Bebe often remarks on and marvels at Ann’s capacity to travel across a stage. “If you want to know how to travel, follow Annie,” she says. This exhibits how one feature of a performance can be so salient and notable on its own, and yet so precariously dependent on the external features its constrained to – like scale.

Thus context can have a significant impact on how numbers are ultimately performed for these taped recordings and their subsequent impact on memory. Choreography must adjust accordingly – while still remaining within the same framework of the intention for the primary live performances.

This links to Ann’s own choreographical aptitude, in the amount of times it is referenced how she subtly adapted each new version of Chicago to tailor to individual performers’ specific merits and strengths as dancers.

Ann’s impact in shaping the indefinable definability of how Chicago is viewed, loved and remembered now is not to be understated.

An extensive 1998 profile – entitled “Chicago: Ann Reinking’s musical” – explores in part some of Ann’s approaches to creating and interacting with the material across a long time span more comprehensively. Speaking specifically to how she choreographed this 1992 production in isolation, Ann would say, “I knew that Bob’s point of view had to permeate the show, you couldn’t do it without honoring his style.” In an age without digital history at one’s fingertips, “I couldn’t remember the whole show. So I choreographed off the cuff and did my own thing. So you could say it was my take on his thoughts.” Using the same Fosse vocabulary, then – “it’s different. But it’s not different.”

One further facet that was directly carried across from the initial production were original cast members, like Barney Martin as returning as Amos, and Michael O'Haughey reprising his performance as Mary Sunshine. Kaye Ballard as Mama Morton and Gary Sandy as Billy Flynn joined Bebe and Juliet to make up the six principals in this new iteration of the show.

Bebe, Gary and Juliet can be seen below in a staged photo for the production at the theatre.

The venue responsible for staging this Civic Light Opera production was the Terrace Theatre in Long Beach in Los Angeles. Now defunct, this theatre and group in its 47 years of operation was credited as providing some of “the area’s most high profile classics”. Indeed, in roughly its final 10 years alone, it staged shows such as Hello Dolly!, Carousel, Wonderful Town (with Donna McKechnie), Gypsy, Sunday in the Park with George, La Cage aux Folles, Follies, 1776, Funny Girl, Bye Bye Birdie, Pal Joey, and Company. The production of Pal Joey saw a return appearance from Elaine Stritch, reprising her earlier performance as Melba Snyder with the memorable song ‘Zip’. This she had done notably some 40 years earlier in the original 1952 Broadway revival, while infamously and simultaneously signed as Ethel Merman’s understudy in Call Me Madam as she documented in Elaine Stritch at Liberty.

Juliet Prowse appeared as Phyllis in Follies in 1990, and Ann Reinking acted alongside Tommy Tune in Bye Bye Birdie in 1991, in successive preceding seasons before this Chicago was staged.

But for all of its commendable history, the theatre went out of business in 1996 just 4 years after this, citing bankruptcy. Competition provided in the local area by Andrew Lloyd Webber and his influx of staging’s of his British musicals was referenced as a contributing factor to the theatre group’s demise. This feat I suspect Bebe would have lamented or expressed remorse for, given some of her comments in previous years on Sir Lloyd Webber and the infiltration of shows from across the pond: “I had lost faith in Broadway because of what I call the scourge of the British musicals. They've dehumanized the stage [and] distanced the audience from the performers. I think 'Cats' is like Patient Zero of this dehumanization.”

That I recently learned that Cats itself can be rationalised in part as simply A Chorus Line with ears and tails I fear would not improve this assessment. In the late ‘70s when Mr Webber noticed an increase of dance ability across the general standard of British theatre performers, after elevated training and competition in response to A Chorus Line transferring to the West End, he wanted to find a way he could use this to an advantage in a format that was reliable to work. Thus another similarly individual, sequential and concept-not-plot driven dance musical was born. Albeit with slightly more drastic lycra leotards and makeup.

But back in America, the Terrace theatre could not be saved by even the higher incidence of stars and bigger Broadway names it was seeing in its final years, with these aforementioned examples such as Bebe, Annie, Tommy, Juliet, Donna, or Elaine. The possibility of these appearances in the first place were in part attributable to the man newly in charge as the company’s producer and artistic director – Barry Brown, Tony award-winning Broadway producer.

Barry is linked to Bebe’s own involvement with this production of Chicago, through his relationship – in her words – as “a friend of mine”.

At the time, Bebe was in LA filming Cheers, when she called Barry from her dressing room. Having been working in TV for a number of years, she would cite her keenness to find a return to the theatre, “[wanting] to be on a stage so badly” again. The theatre is the place she has long felt the most sense of ease in and belonging for, frequently referring to herself jokingly as a “theatre-rat” or remarking that it is by far the stage that is the “medium in which I am most comfortable, most at home, and I think I'm the best at.”

Wanting to be back in that world so intensely, she initially proposed the notion of just coming along to the production to learn the parts and be an understudy. Her desire to simply learn the choreography alone was so strong she would say, “You don’t have to pay me or anything!”

She’d had the impetus to make the call to Barry in the first place only after visiting Chita Rivera at her show in LA with a friend, David Gibson. At the time, the two did not know each other that well. Bebe had by this point not even had the direct interaction of taking over in succession for Chita in Kiss of the Spider Woman in London. This she would do the following year, with Chita guiding her generously through the intricacies of the Shaftesbury Theatre and the small, but invaluable, details known only to Chita that would be essential help in meeting stage cues and playing Aurora.

Bebe had already, however, stepped into Chita’s shoes multiple times, as Anita in West Side Story as part of a European tour in the late ‘70s, or again in a Cleveland Opera Production in 1988; and additionally as Nickie in the 1986 Broadway revival of Sweet Charity – both of which were roles Chita had originated on stage or screen. In total, Velma would bring the tally of roles that Bebe and Chita have shared through the years to four, amongst many years also of shared performance memories and friendship.

They may not have had a long history of personal rather than situational connections yet when Bebe visited her backstage at the end of 1991, but Chita still managed to play a notable part in the start of the first of Bebe’s many engagements with Chicago.

After Bebe hesitantly relayed her idea, Chita told her, “You should call! Just call!”

So call Bebe did. One should listen to Chita Rivera, after all.

Barry Brown rang her back 10 minutes later after suggesting the idea to Ann Reinking, who was otherwise intended to be playing Velma. The response was affirmative. “Oh let her play the part!”, Annie had exclaimed. And so begun Bebe’s, rather long and very important, journey with Chicago.

In 1992, this first step along the road to the ‘new Chicago’ was well received.

Ann Reinking with her choreography was making her first return to the Fosse universe since her turn in the 1986 Sweet Charity revival. Diametrically, Rob Marshall was staring his first association with Fosse material in providing the show’s direction – many years before he would go on to direct the subsequent film adaptation also. Together, they created a “lively, snappy, smarmy” show that garnered more attention than had been seen since the original closed.

“Bob Fosse would love [this production],” it was commended at the time, “Especially the song-and-dance performance of Bebe Neuwirth who knocks everyone’s socks off.” High praise.

Bebe was also singled out for her “unending energy”, but Juliet too received praise in being “sultry and funny”. Together, the pair were called “separate but equal knockouts” and an “excellent combination”.

Juliet was 56 at the time, and sadly died just four years later. Just one year after the production though, Juliet was recorded as saying, “In fact, we’re thinking of doing it next year and taking it out on the road.”

Evidently that plan never materialised. But it is interesting to note the varied and many comments that were made as to the possibility of the show having a further life.

Bebe at the time had no recollection that the show might be taken further, saying “I didn’t know anything about that.” Ann Reinking years later would remark “no one seemed to think that the time was necessarily ripe for a full-blown Broadway revival.” While the aforementioned LA Times review stated in 1992 there were “unfortunately, no current plans” for movement, it also expressed desire and a call to action for such an event. “Someone out there with taste, money and shrewdness should grab it.”

The expression that a show SHOULD move to Broadway is by no means an indication that a show WILL move. But this review clearly was of enough significance for it to be remembered and referenced by name by someone who was there when it came out at the time, Caitlin Carter, nearly 30 years later. Caitlin was one of the six Merry Murderesses, principally playing Mona (or Lipschitz), at each of this run, Encores!, and on Broadway. She recalled, “Within two days, we got this rave review from the LA Times, saying ‘You need to take the show to Broadway now!’” The press and surrounding discussions clearly created an environment in which “there was a lot of good buzz”, enough for her to reason, “I feel like it planted seeds… People started to think ‘Oh we need to revive this show!’”

The seeds might have taken a few years to germinate, but they did indeed produce some very successful and beautiful flowers when they ultimately did.

In contrast with one of the main talking points of the ‘new Chicago’ being its long performance span, one of the first things I mentioned about this 1992 iteration was the rather short length of its run. It is stated that previews started on April 30th, for an opening on May 2nd, with the show disappearing in its final performance on May 17th. Less than a fleeting 3 weeks in total.

Caitlin Carter discussed the 1992 opening on Stars in the House recently. It’s a topic of note given that their opening night was pushed back from the intended date by two days, meaning Ann Reinking and Rob Marshall had already left and never even saw the production. “The night we were supposed to open in Long Beach was the Rodney King riots.”

Local newspapers at the time when covering the show referenced this large and significant event, by noting the additional two performances added in compensation “because of recent interruptions in area social life.”

It sounds rather quaint put like that. In comparison, the horror and violence of what was actually going on can be statistically summated as ultimately leaving 63 people dead, over 2300 injured, and more than 12,000 having been arrested, in light of the aftermath of the treatment faced by Rodney King. Or more explicitly, the use of excessive violence against a black man at police hands with videotaped footage.

A slightly later published review wrote of how this staging was thus “timely” – in reference to an observed state of “the nation’s moral collapse”.

‘Timeliness’ is a matter often referenced when discussing why the 1996 revival too was of such success. The connection is frequently made as to how this time, the revival resonated with public sentiment so strongly – far more than in 1975 when the original appeared – in part because of the “exploding headlines surrounding the OJ Simpson murder case”. The resulting legal and public furore around this trial directly correlates with the backbone and heart of the musical itself.

I'm writing this piece now at the time of the ongoing trial to determine the verdict of George Floyd’s murder, another black man suffering excessive and ultimately fatal violence at police hands with videotaped footage.

I think the point is that this is never untimely. And that the nation is seldom not in some form of ‘moral collapse’, or facing events that have ramifications to do with the legal system and are emotionally incendiary on a highly public level.

Which perhaps is why Chicago worked so well not just in 1996, but also right up to the present day.

Undoubtedly, we live in a climate where the impact of events is determined not just by the events themselves, but also the manner in which they are reported in the media. Events involving some turmoil and public outrage at the state and outcome of the legal system are not getting any fewer or further between. But the emphasis on the media in an increasingly and unceasingly digital age is certainty only growing.

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savvywolf · 4 years

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Finn Interacting with Clones

Okay so I’ve spent the last 24 hours with a hyper fixation on Finn interacting with Clone troopers and I made a list of all the fics I could find with that premise (or even just a scene) and complied them so I thought I would share.

So in no particular order!

Esprit de Corps by @meridiansdominoes This is probably the fic that started my obsession. Give it a read and fall in love with Finn being adopted by the clones on the get go! It’s multi chaptered and still updating. https://archiveofourown.org/works/13211745/chapters/30221523

Padawan Finn (Or when Finn time travels and doesn't understand family) by @deuling-sabers A one shot with a great look into Finn’s head and what he sees when he looks at the GAR https://archiveofourown.org/works/14138199/chapters/32582193

Meeting of Child Soldiers by @deuling-sabers Same author as above but this time with BABY Finn and an even more detailed look into the clones feelings on FN-2187. https://archiveofourown.org/works/22001947

Past Lives by @beatrice-otter Work in progress, more time traveling Finn! Who takes one look at the clones and is like, sup I’m FN-2187, and nearly causes Bail Organa a heart attack. https://archiveofourown.org/works/6773950/chapters/15482386

Getting Drop Kicked by the Force by @reydjarinkenobi This one is a little more focused on all the sequel characters time traveling but still has a good reflection of clone thoughts in chapter four. https://archiveofourown.org/works/25051612/chapters/60674749

Visually Perceived Radiant Energy by thefreakwiththewings Discontinued and we don’t get to see much of Finn and the clones but Finn is on Kamino and he might be doing the adopting. https://archiveofourown.org/works/6932170/chapters/15812851

More than Just a Number by @demonwolfkid More Timetraveling Finn! He literally just puts on a bucket and starts fighting and the clones are like… okay, this might as well happen, and the Jedi are trying to make him a Padawan and Finn’s like, nah I’m a soldier. https://archiveofourown.org/works/24937183/chapters/60356275

Old Soldiers by @cacchieressa Rex is a very old man in this but he still is looking out for Finn and it makes my heart warm. https://archiveofourown.org/works/5655517

And We’ll be Together by @punsbulletsandpointythings More of ship focus on Kix/Jesse but it’s got some really sweet Kix and Finn friendship and you should read. https://archiveofourown.org/works/7743220

and i left my friends behind me by @wrennette An unfinished concept but the clones take one look at Finn and are like: He’s a brother, this checks out, how do we hide him from the Generals and it’s fabulous! https://archiveofourown.org/works/14456541

Legacy by @payroo No actual interaction but there is ART and Finn reminiscing on those who came before and I cried. https://archiveofourown.org/works/6439879

After the Twilight, Always a Sunrise by @effieago Kix!!! And Finn totally thinks he is adopting Kix when really it’s the other way around because Kix is older! But also, the friendship here is so GOOD! https://archiveofourown.org/works/22884619

Agents of Change by @inqorporeal This is a whole sequels re-write and it’s pretty good! But there isn’t as much Finn in it so if you’re looking for Finn specifically (Like I was) he shows up in chapter 18 and chapter 20 is where the clone interactions start to happen https://archiveofourown.org/works/23998966/chapters/57730978

A Rite of Passage by @the-stage-manager Finn finishes his force training and is immediately summoned by the clones who are just so happy to see a brother/Jedi and it’s very sweet. https://archiveofourown.org/works/23507047

Battered and Bruised, but not yet Broken by @rileys-nest 14-year-old Finn time travels and gets picked up by the clones, this one only has one chapter so far but looks promising none the less! https://archiveofourown.org/works/26058019/chapters/63372913

Beginn, Shed-ic Kix, and Jessplea by @lifeofclonewars Another first chapter of a multichapter fic but so far I have been promised ghosts and Finn and Kix interactions which is really all I want in life. https://archiveofourown.org/works/25736233/chapters/62495266

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If I could find the link to the writer’s tumblr I included it. If I missed any feel free to DM me or to just reblog with your own additions! Happy reading!

#Star Wars #Fic Rec #Finn #The Clone Wars #Kix #Rex #Cody #clones #Clone Troopers #time travel #fic reccomendations #Finn is my favorite sequel character #and he deserved better #that being said #the clones deserved better #and when I put them together it just makes me happy #I don't know if I should tag all the authors or not #they are all great though!

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