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0aurelion-sol0 · 3 years

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"There's no place like gnome."

Stranger Things 3: The Game.

Gnomes 1-10. 🧙‍♂️

IT'S FINALLY HERE!

It's no secret that the Duffers take a lot of inspirations from Pop Culture. From the most well known movies to the more obscure comics, they are always able to sneak a reference somewhere everytime. And they are also able to make it connected to the story.

I've bragged about how the Stranger Things expanded universe in media is one of the best out there compared to many others. I think that the Duffers, the writers or people in the highest places of the marketing are really paying attention to what comes out of the ST franchise because there is no way to have such content with so many details without someone looking into them.

And ST3: The Game is a very good example of that.

So let's start! The first 10 Gnomes out of 50 that you have to find in the game.

BE AWARE THAT THERE ARE SPOILERS BELOW!

"There's elements that could please those who makes metas/analyzes or theories. Especially things related to possible future plot points, easter eggs, references in previous seasons mainly season 3 like unsolved mysteries or unanswered questions and for future seasons such as season 4 like foreshadowing or teasers, trailers or as of lately the sneak peek."

If you have anything you'd like to add, might think I have missed or think it might be referencing something else don't hesitate to share it by commenting or reblogging.

(Say thanks to @hawkinsschoolcounselor for having helped me with some of them. )

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Gnome #1: Johnny

"He's here... with an axe."

Overall plot:

"The film's central character is Jack Torrance, an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker of the isolated historic Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies. Wintering over with Jack are his wife, Wendy Torrance, and young son, Danny Torrance. Danny is gifted with "the shining", psychic abilities that enable him to see into the hotel's horrific past. The hotel cook, Dick Hallorann, also has this ability and is able to communicate with Danny telepathically. The hotel had a previous winter caretaker who went insane and killed his family and himself. After a winter storm leaves the Torrances snowbound, Jack's sanity deteriorates due to the influence of the supernatural forces that inhabit the hotel, placing his wife and son in danger."

So I assume a lot of you know The Shining by Stanley Kubrick. A movie which was adapted from the novel of the same name by Stephen King in 1977.

There's a lot of things that could have served as an inspiration for ST.

A boy/child who has psychic abilities = Eleven has psychic abilities such as telekinesis. Will has his True Sight which consist in seeing what the MF was seeing and feeling.

Now there's also the theme of family and parenthood that is also a big theme in Stranger Things. Especially abusive parenthood such as Brenner, Lonnie and even Hopper to a smaller degree.

In Shining, Jack tries to kill his family with an axe due to supernatural forces that are in the hotel but there's a difference between King and Kubrick. While King specifically said that Jack was heavily influenced by the Hotel, Kubrick shows that Jack always had that sinister violence in him even before they arrived at the hotel.

It's interesting to draw a parallel to Billy and Will, both characters called William who tried to kill their families and other people while being possessed. But Billy compared to Will was shown to have been abusive even before that. Dacre Montgomery also said that he was inspired by Jack Nicholson's performance in the Shining for his character Billy.

Joyce and Jonathan were shown to get ready to fight the monsters by taking an axe.

It's also interesting to note that Jack dies in the snow while a blizzard is happening outside the hotel. Much like the storm of the Mindflayer who is in the Upside Down, the same Mindflayer who "likes it cold". While in the book, the Overlook explodes and burn.

(Cold vs Fire much like everything Upside Down related not liking Fire.)

Also "Johnny" = "Jonathan", it's kind of similar and Jonathan did wield an axe before. Maybe this is teasing parts of Jonathan storyline next seasons ?

The gnome was also found in Mike's basement, Mike who wants to be a writer when he's older just like Jack.

Let's just hope that Jonathan and Mike don't get the same fate as Jack.

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Gnome #2: Christine

"Two bright, beaming lights for eyes."

Overall plot:

"Written by Bill Phillips and based on Stephen King's 1983 novel of the same title, the movie follows the changes in the lives of Arnie Cunningham, an awkward and unpopular teenager, his friends, his family, and his teenage enemies in Rockbridge, California after Arnie buys a classic red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine, licence number CQB 241, a car that seems to have a jealous, possessive personality – and a mind of its own, which has a bad influence on Arnie. After working on a car in a junkyard owned by Will Darnell, Arnie drops his glasses, starts dressing like a 1950's greaser and develops an arrogant and paranoid personality. He than decides to invite and date the most beautiful girl in highschool, Leigh, who will soon become the next victim of Christine."

I was actually quite surprised by how this story parallels Stranger Things a lot.

First off, Christine is very much like The Mindflayer, a dangerous supernatural being set out to destroy anyone who is in her way, the people who tries to take the things that she thinks belongs to her or threatens her. This is very much relevant to The Mindflayer who after being hurt by the Fire created by the Hawkins Lab was upset and attacked everyone he could. Or as Will putted "Not me, everyone else."

This is very much like Christine who tried to kill Leigh because she was taking her place in the life of Arnie. Christine also tried to kill the bullies of Arnie who after a conflit with him, tried to destroy the car which angered Christine heavily.

The Mindflayer has been described someone who views himself as superior to other species and wants to conquer them, even if it's not his real "goal", the description fits anyone who is possessive and paranoid.

Both the MF and Christine are associated with the color red. Red storm = red color of the car.

Arnie ressembles Will and Billy alot. Will is an awkward and unpopular teenager who after being possessed by the Mindflayer became very different and more violent. Billy was shown to be paranoid, jealous, violent and his look even ressembles the one Arnie takes after repairing Christine.

Both of these boys have the same name as Will Darnell, the owner of a junkyard. Just like the boys in Season 1 who takes shelter in a junkyard, or in season 2 where they fight the Demodogs.

Billy dies, killed by the Mindflayer just like Arnie who was completely possessed by Christine who tried to kill Leigh and Dennis, his best friend after they tried to destroy the car when they realised the supernatural nature of it.

Billy's car ressembles a lot Christine with those lights on. Especially with shots like in the Void or at Starcourt during the night.

Chrissy, a new character that will be in season 4, the most popular girl in Hawkins High like Leigh, has a name that is the diminutive of Christine. It is said that under the perfect surface lies a dark secret. Much like the car Christine, while a beauty is actually a dangerous supernatural being. We'll see if the both of them actually connects in the show.

Also it is set in California where Billy and Max come from and has been rumored by many people due to set leaks (The Surfer Boy Pizza Van.) that it is where the Byers went. I won't get into it in this post but this could be a tease or hint of that IF the set leaks ARE true and not fake to mess with people and the fandom.

Arnie also dies in a car crash having been completely possessed by the evil powers of Christine which is something we see in the sneak peek of ST4. It also reminds of Carrie who has a bully named Chris who she kills in a car crash with her boyfriend Billy aka William.

So will someone die from that car crash ? Who is it ? Chrissy, Joyce, Lonnie ? We can only speculate.

The gnome is also found outside the Wheeler's house where Karen lives near the community pool where Billy works and where the car of Billy is located during the first few chapters of the game. Again, a "bad boy" hitting on the beautiful girl in town. (with a lot of creepy subtext all over it.)

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Gnome #3: Doc

"Always mumbling something about being late."

Overall plot:

"Set in 1985, in the town of Hill Valley, California, the story follows Marty McFly, a teenager accidentally sent back to 1955 in a time-traveling DeLorean automobile built by his eccentric scientist friend Doctor Emmett "Doc" Brown. Trapped in the past, Marty inadvertently prevents his future parents' meeting—threatening his very existence—and is forced to reconcile the pair and somehow get back to the future."

So I don't think I need to explain why this is here given how much it has been shown and mentioned in season 3. But few things are interesting here, the fact that California is mentioned is a big deal for me again. I know you are aware of the set leaks just as I am aware, if we can trust them than this could be a hint of that location.

Next, we have the theme of Time. Now ever since ST4 was announced, clocks and times have been a key feature in the promotion. Who know what this might mean but again, we're not going to develop that in the post.

There is also the whole funny scenes of Robin realising that indeed Marty's mother had tried to "bang" her own son. Now given the nature of the shown, certain images in the show during certain events and certain stories, you know to what it connects and to which theories it connects. Won't develop further on it but it can be used as an element that can go into those theories.

The gnome is also found outside of Starcourt Mall where Robin and Steve talk about "Back to the Future". It is also where Billy has his "Back to te Future" moment with his car going extremely fast just like the DeLorean.

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Gnome #4: Indiana

"Master of Adventure."

Overall plot:

"After arriving in India, Indiana Jones is asked by desperate villagers to find a mystical stone and rescue their children from a Thuggee cult practicing child slavery, black magic, and ritualistic human sacrifice in honor of the goddess, Kali."

Fun fact, on Twitter for ST3 promo, a parody poster of this same movie has been posted here of the official ST account.

Jim is obviously Indiana Jones, the look speaks for itself and when he is in the Tunnels in season 2, there's a lot of Indiana Jones imagery.

And of course Kali as 008, a Hindu goddess but as we will see here, it parallels more the Mindflayer.

In 1935, Indiana Jones survives a murder attempt by Lao Che, a crime boss in Shanghai who has hired him to retrieve the remains of Emperor Nurhaci. With his young orphaned Chinese sidekick, Short Round, and the nightclub singer, Willie Scott, in tow, Indy flees Shanghai on a cargo aircraft. While the three of them are asleep, the pilots (employed by Lao Che) dump the fuel and escape via parachute, leaving the plane to crash over the Himalayas. The three narrowly manage to survive by jumping out of the plane on an inflatable raft.

(I wonder if this could be something we see in season 4 with Hopper where he tries to escape on a plane and ends up crashing somewhere or is betrayed by someone who he asked the help of. Now it's a trio and in season 3, Jim, Joyce, Alexei and Murray are the main group that fits this trio. Jim for all the fighting and crazy shit, Joyce and Alexei are kind of like Short Round, they are the sidekicks of Hopper. Murray the role of Willie Scott since she speaks Chinese and him Russian and that Jim just like Indy finds annoying sometimes. Alexei is also kind of like Willie since he kinda goes along with them.

But if we also look at season 2, El is alot like Short Round since she is kind of an orphan too and has a father figure later on. It could also be Will since Hopper is with him a lot of times through season 2. Also Willie did felt out of her element like Alexei because of course he is Russian. Willie in itself doesn't have a lot in common with Joyce but still it's another connection to Will since she has a name close to the one of her sons. Something that does fit a bit more is Jim and Hopper both escaping death, of course Hopper at the end of season 3 but also during season 3 at the farm where he's being shot at by Gregori and than the car doesn't work and explodes and they have to make their way through the forest.

Willie Scott could also be referenced when El disguise herself as this pretty blonde girl in season 1.

Now however, Scoop Troops does fit certain parts of these trio. All the fighting with Steve like Indiana Jones but Robin got his brain because she cracked the code. Dustin and Erica are kinda like short round (especially Dustin who has kind of the same hat as short round.) and are referenced with all the others as children by Robin. Steve doesn't feel in his element like Willie with the three of them who are nerds just like Erica who also doesn't want to accept it. And Robin just like Willie speaks some languages.)

They ride down the mountain slopes and fall into a raging river, eventually arriving at the village of Mayapore in northern India. The villagers plead for their aid in retrieving the sacred stone (shivalinga) stolen from their shrine, along with their missing children, by evil forces in the nearby Pankot Palace. Indy agrees to do so, hypothesizing that the stone is one of the five Sankara stones given by the gods to help humanity fight evil. (It's kinda like Alexei who turns his back on the Russians, for his life of course and agrees to help Hopper close the gate to save Hawkins and their kids before monsters start to appear or may attack one of their kids. Now the stone could be something similar to the promethium or the two keys who opens the gate and is a highly valuable ressource. It also may be the Flayed who are needed to create the monster for the Mindflayer.)

The trio receive a warm welcome at Pankot Palace and are allowed to stay for the night as guests, attending a lavish, but revolting, banquet hosted by the young Maharajah. The officials rebuff Indy's theory that the Thuggee cult is responsible for their troubles. Later that night, Indy is attacked by an assassin. After Indy kills him, he discovers a series of tunnels hidden behind a statue and sets out to explore them, overcoming a number of booby-traps.

(This could be like when Hopper, Joyce and Murray disguised themselves as Russian soldiers but was than discovered by Grigori who attacks them.

The tunnels could be both groups discovering that there is a secret russian base underground and a gate which explains why there are monsters again in Hawkins but it also be the Source, Brimborn Steel Works, where the Mindflayer is lurking underground where he has cult-like followers who makes sacrifices for him to grow bigger and bigger.

It's also like the Tunnels in season 2 who explains why the soil of Hawkins seemed to literally rot. )

The trio reach an underground temple where the Thuggees worship Kali with human sacrifice. They discover that the Thuggees now possess three of the Sankara stones and have enslaved the children to search for the last two, hidden in the palace catacombs. As Indy tries to retrieve the stones, he, Willie, and Shorty are captured. Thuggee high priest Mola Ram forces Indy to drink a potion that puts him into a trance-like state in which he mindlessly serves the cult. (It's very much like Robin and Steve who after discovering the gate are catched by the Russians and than drugged to answer their questions. But also like the Flayed who drinks the chemicals and serves the Mindflayer like a mindless cult.)

Willie is prepared for sacrifice, while Shorty is put to work in the mines with the other children. Shorty escapes and returns to the temple, where he first frees Indy and, later, the Maharajah from the effects of the potion. Indy saves Willie and retrieves the stones. After freeing the children, Indy fights a hulking overseer and leaves him to be killed by a rock crusher. (Basically Dustin saves Steve and Robin. Willie being prepared for sacrifice is kind of like El prepared for sacrifice by Billy in 3x08 but also frees Billy from the effects of the Mindflayer by making him remember his mother, a pretty blonde woman like Willie and sacrifices himself. And Hopper fights Gregori, a "hulking overseer" and kills him.)

The trio escape from the temple, pursued by Thuggees, and barely escape Mola Ram's attempt to flood them out. They are again ambushed by Mola Ram and his henchmen on a rope bridge above a crocodile-infested river. Indy cuts the bridge, causing several of the henchmen to fall to the crocodiles and leaving the survivors to hang on for their lives. As Mola Ram and Indy struggle, Indy invokes the name of Shiva, causing the stones to glow red-hot and burn through Indy's satchel. Two of them fall out; Mola Ram tries to catch the third, but burns his hand and falls from the bridge and into the river, where he, too, is eaten by the crocodiles. (This can be connected to all the kids fighting in Hawkins with the Spider Monster. But the bridge could also fit for the key in the secret base where Hopper and Gregori fights. The gruesome death of Mola Ram is similar to the gruesome death that Gregori has.)

Indy catches the stone safely and climbs up just as a company of British Indian Army riflemen, sent by the Maharajah, arrive and open fire against the Thuggees to drive them away; the surviving Thuggees are soon cornered and arrested by more soldiers. Indy, Willie, and Shorty return safely to Mayapore with the stone and the missing children. (While it may end well in the movie, we know Billy and multiple people die, the Thuggees unlike the Russians have been captured while the Russians where all able to flee before the US Army arrives and Hopper is presumed dead. Only the children in both stories are alive but are probably traumatized for life.)

All in all we can see that this movie might have had a big influence on the plot of season 3 through many characters and more. It may have some hints about possible events for Hopper in season 4 or even beyond but that's about it for. It's a nice package of comparaisons and references though.

The gnome is found in the Hawkins Community Pool where Billy is. The same Billy who obeys mindlessly the Mindflayer and sacrifices people to it. Just like the Thuggees with Kali.

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Gnome #5: Chunk

"Posed in some odd dance maneuver."

Overall plot:

"In the film, a band of kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, attempt to save their homes from foreclosure and, in doing so, they discover an old treasure map that takes them on an adventure to unearth the long-lost fortune of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. During the adventure, they are chased by a family of criminals who want the treasure for themselves."

So first, let's get this out of the way, Sean Astin who play Bob Newby, our beloved who plays a character named Mikey.

The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure comedy film co-produced and directed by Richard Donner from a screenplay by Chris Columbus, based on a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. In the film, kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, attempt to save their homes from foreclosure and, in doing so, they discover an old treasure map that takes them on an adventure to unearth the long-lost fortune of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. During the adventure, they are chased by a family of criminals who want the treasure for themselves.

I wonder if this might hint at some Season 4 plot right here. The Hawkins gang faces the threat of Hawkins becoming a literal ghost down and might need to find something to save it. Also Willy like William, again Will is still there.

The Goonies include optimist lead Goonie Mikey Walsh, his older brother Brandon, the inventive Data, the talkative Mouth, and the overweight klutz Chunk.

Rummaging through the Walshes' attic, they come across a 1632 doubloon and an old treasure map purporting to lead to the treasure of legendary pirate "One-Eyed Willy", believed to be located somewhere nearby. Mikey considers One-Eyed Willy to be the original Goonie. (It kinda reminds me of Mike who got mad at Max in season 2 and told her they didn't need another party member. And he mentionned Will first right after him.)

The kids overpower and bind Brandon and make their way to an abandoned restaurant on the coast that coincides with the map; Brandon soon follows alongside Andy, a cheerleader with a crush on him ( there has been cheerleaders that have been reported in season 4 such as Chrissy.); and Stef, Andy's friend. The group quickly discovers the derelict restaurant is a hideout of the Fratelli crime family: Francis, Jake, and their mother. (Maybe it is both a reference to the Russians in season 3 who have a hideout under the mall who have many restaurants. Or the Lab who OBVIOUSLY does a lot of illegal activities. )

The Goonies find a tunnel in the basement and follow it (like the tunnels made by the Mindflayer in season 2), but when Chunk flags down a motorist to go to the sheriff’s station, he gets abducted by the assailants and imprisoned with their hulking, deformed, younger brother Sloth. (This is obviously like Dustin who befriends Dart in season 2, a literal Demogorgon in the making.)

The Fratellis interrogate Chunk until he reveals where the Goonies have gone, and begin pursuit. Chunk is left behind with Sloth, but befriends him. After Sloth frees both of them, Chunk calls the sheriff, and both follow the trail of the Fratellis. (This is very reminiscent of Hopper in season 1 who gets interrogated by Lab agents or Steve and Robin by the Russians.)

The Goonies evade several deadly booby traps along the tunnels, while staying ahead of the Fratellis. Finally, they reach the grotto where Willy's pirate ship, the Inferno, is anchored. (Will also has a ship, the rainbow ship he drew for Joyce, also Inferno literally means Hell just like what Hawkins has been called.)

The group discovers the ship is filled with treasure, and they start filling their pockets, but Mikey warns them not to take any on a set of scales in front of Willy, considering that to be their tribute to him. As they leave the ship, the assailants appear and strip them of their loot. They start to bind the Goonies and make them walk the plank, until Chunk arrives with Sloth and distracts the assailants long enough for the Goonies to jump overboard and swim to safety. (It's the opposite of the season 2 finale, where Dustin has to distract Dart so that the other could pass through the tunnels.)

The Fratellis proceed to grab all the treasure they can, including those on Willy's scales; this triggers another booby trap that causes the grotto to cave in. With Sloth's help, the Goonies and Fratellis barely escape.

The two groups emerge on Astoria's beach, where they reunite with the Goonies' families and the police. The Fratellis are arrested, but Chunk prevents Sloth from also being taken; he invites Sloth to live with him, which Sloth accepts. ("Unfortunately", Dart compared to Sloth probably died.)

As the kids describe their adventure to their parents, the Walshes' housekeeper, Rosalita, discovers that Mikey's marble bag is filled with gems he took from the ship and had not been seized by the Fratellis. Mikey's father triumphantly rips up the foreclosure papers, declaring they have enough money to negate the foreclosure. As the Goonies celebrate, they see the Inferno, having broken free of the grotto, sailing off on its own in the distance. (Could it be hinting at a possible happy ending for Stranger Things ?)

So Fratellis, is similar to fratello which means "brother, fellow, neighbor" which perhaps could be a reference to the Mindflayer who is kind of our neighbor since he is basically in the same places but in the Upside Down. The Mindflayer also has been paralleled to Billy and other abusive father figures. Billy who is the brother of Max. He has also been paralleled to Kali through his anger and him attacking people who hurted him or might hurt him. Could in itself The Mindflayer should be taken or seen as some sort of family figure ? Maybe him being always associated with Will The Wise especially in 2x04 or someone who has the name Will like Billy is a connection. The same Billy who also parallels Russians who just like the Fratellis have secret hideouts.

Though the Fratellis are more motivated by greed which fits Brenner, Lonnie (who tried to use his son's death to gain money.) or Russians most.

Now Willy, Willy is a captain. Maybe it could be hinting at the fact that Will has more importance to the story than we think. There's also Inferno, "Hell" which is Hawkins but also the name of the ship. And Will has a rainbow ship... Could Hawkins be the ship of Will where his adventures are taking place ?

As for the dance... well as you've seen upper in the post: it's the "Truffle Shuffle Dance". It's something that Chunk has to do before entering Mikey's house. It's similar to what Dustin do at the beginning of season 1 to the bullies when he makes his bones crack due to his medical condition, cleidocranial dysplasia.

As for where this gnome is located, it's in Weathertop where Cerebro is located which is fitting since Dustin has a lot of Goonies as inspiration for his character.

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Gnome #6: Elvis

"He's not dead!"

"Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), also known simply as Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century. His energized interpretations of songs and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, led him to both great success and initial controversy." - Wikipedia.

It is a lot known that people in the 80's thought that Elvis Presley was still alive due to his status and the aura he had as a celebrity. However, no matter how appealing this myth may be, he died of an excessive usage of prescription drugs which reminds me of Nancy who said she thought Tom was on drugs when he fired her and Jonathan while he an the Flayed were drinking chemicals. He also died in 1977, the same year "Heroes" by David Bowie came out which is a song that was used two times when we thought a character died when he was actually alive which are Will and Hopper. Will and Hopper both have a lot of rock in their Spotify playlist.

Also, I personally think that Steve has kind of an Elvis Presley aura to him especially in season 1. After all, Steve has a nickname "King Steve" and Elvis Presley is often nicknamed "The King" and both were popular with girls.

Fun fact: Dacre Montgomery who plays Billy who literally becomes the new "King" of Hawkins will play in the biographical music drama "Elvis" about Elvis Presley where he will play a character called "Steve Binder".

Also actor David Harbour also got married with singer Lily Allen by Elvis in Las Vegas.

It's also found hidden behind bushes near the Public Library. Maybe indicating that Elvis is still out there in the world and hiding.

Which also may be a reference to Brenner who has a similar haircut but also about the novel "Suspicious Minds", a prequel of ST taking place in the Lab when Brenner was doing his sinister experiments which is the same title as one of the songs of Elvis. Like Elvis, Brenner is still out there, hiding in Hawkins.

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Gnome #7: Jack

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull gnome."

Again another reference to Shining. So what you are seeing here is a proverb, it means: "It means that without time off from work, a person becomes both bored and boring."

In Shining, it represents Jack's slow descent into madness. But it could be a reference to Joyce, Jonathan and Nancy who all work their asses off and don't take a lot of time for themselves and so don't have the time to explore anything else than work which also cause for them not to be there when Will got kidnapped. It may also represent Jonathan's words to Nancy in season 1 where he "called out" the boring life she will have and that she will live like her parents so in this case the proverb becomes about societal norms.

Mike just like Jack is an aspiring writer, Mike just like other members of his family falls into these societal norms that are expected like work and overworking in this instance which makes them boring in the eyes of people like Jonathan. "No play" may also reference D&D which Mike started to ignore in season 3 and worried more pointless and superficial things.

Again, hope it doesn't foreshadow anything for these two characters.

This gnome is found in the Library which is fitting considering Jack wants to be a writer.

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Gnome #8: Flynn (Flynn Rider from "Tangled" (2010))

"Looks like he rides well."

Overall plot of Tangled (2010):

"The film tells the story of Rapunzel, a lost, young princess with magical long blonde hair who yearns to leave her secluded tower. Against her abusive foster mother's wishes who kidnappee her when she was young, she accepts the aid of an intruder to take her out into the world which she has never seen."

This story is literally what the boys was arguing about at the end of season 1.

1)The lost knight...

Flynn Rider is actually the son of a king and queen that were from a kingdom that got destroyed by a powerful opal. He was evacuated and placed in an orphanage. He made his reputation as thief.

So Mike and El both parallels this guy, well Mike is a palladin in D&D and he is the son of a wealthy family so he is basically a night. El however also lost her parents like him and has more attributes of a knight in season 1 than Mike.

Flynn is arrogant, which Mike can be a bit sometimes but the both of them can be extremely courageous and care a lot about the people they care about though they are not very strong, nor athletic. Maybe Flynn a bit more.

Also fun coincidence Flynn = Finn, the name of the actor who plays Mike. (almost the same name).

Both him and El run into each other in the woods. Just like Flynn who discover Rapunzel while trying to enter Rapunzel's tower but is knocked out by her who is none other than the...

2)The proud princess...

Well first Rapunzel = Eleven. Both of these girls have magical powers and are used by an abusive and evil parental figure who needs them for their own interest, Mother Gothel used the powers of Rapunzel to stay young forever (like an addiction, a drug) and Martin Brenner aka "Papa". They are both locked away somewhere. El in the lab and Rapunzel in the tower which they both seeked to escape out of. Both believed that these parental figures loved them while it was not true. El also has long blond hair in season 1 like Rapunzel. And both quickly form a relationship with a boy they just met. Both don't know who their real parents are and wants to find them. While Rapunzel has long blonde hair, El had a shaved head.

Also in season 2, El is locked in a cabin in the woods because of Hopper because he believe it is not safe out there which is exactly what Mother Gothel tells Rapunzel. Just like her El disobeys and seeks to discover who her true parents are.

Rapunzel seeks to know what are those floating lights that always appear on her birthday, it is actually her parents who are the king and queen of a kingdom not so far away that do that every year hoping one day she will come back to her. She is a "lost princess". It is very similar to Terry Ives who was communicating through the lights to El.

Rapunzel's power comes out of something that is also connected to something famous in ST.

3) Weird flowers in the cave...

Rapunzel's power come from a flower called "Sundrop flower". = Sunflower which is said by Terry Ives.

This flower can pretty much heal anything including mortal wounds. The Queen got pregnant with Rapunzel but was also terribly sick so she took this flower to heal herself and while doing so, Rapunzel got this ability.

This is very reminiscent of Terry Ives who was pregnant with El and took part in the MKUltra experiences that gave her these powers including certain drugs. She is also "ill" in a way as she is now stuck in a loop. At least from what we saw.

But Rapunzel also parallels another character.

Will Byers. Will could communicate through lights to his mother, just like the parents of Rapunzel and Terry Ives.

The weird flowers could be referencing the sort of vines that entered inside of him in the Upside Down which gave him his "now-memories".

Both had abusive parental figure that would lock them somewhere for whatever reason. (Lonnie with Will in his trunk.)

(Also Hopper may have tried to separate Mike and El but he wasn't like what a Lonnie or Brenner would have been. This is why yes, the situation in season 2 parallels but Hopper truly wished good for El while Brenner and Mother Gothel didn't care for any of these two.)

Same is for Lonnie, he doesn't care about Will.

Since Will is a cleric, both him and Rapunzel have the same time of power. Powers that El doesn't have:

To heal the sick and injured

To revive the dead

To work as a shield

Given this story, it may hint at the fact that Brenner and Lonnie may try to take El and Will for their own greed and purposes.

Since Rapunzel parallels both Will and El, you know what that means for Flynn who parallels Mike.

Flynn in the movie is stabbed by Mother Gothel and dies before cutting the hair of Rapunzel killing Mother Gothel in the process. Rapunzel mourns him and one of his tears heal him.

If Flynn parallels Mike, than something bad could happen to him. If Will does have powers and has feelings for Mike, a supposed death may reveal his powers.

And if he has the same powers as his cleric role, than he could heal those who get hurt or even bring the dead back to life.

If Lonnie sees Mike around Will, given he is homophobic. He may try to hurt him so that he doesn't go near Will again which could lead to him being in grave danger.

Of course all of that is just speculation.

This gnome was found on the parking lot of Starcourt where El decided to break up with Mike and we saw Will smiling in the background.

Also I don't know but... "Looks like he rides well", I mean there's certain undertones to that which are... I don't know how to process that but from what you've just read, Mike apparently rides well. I mean I have nothing against gay sex jokes but still...

Even if it's unintentional, it's how it'll sound on the internet.

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Gnome #9: David

"At 399, he's the oldest gnome around."

So this gnome was already in the first ST official mobile game. And this reminds me a lot of The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit but also and of course; Dungeons & Dragons.

The World of David the Gnome, originally titled David, el Gnomo (also known as David, the Gnome), is a Spanish animated television series based on the children's book The Secret Book of Gnomes, by the Dutch author Wil Huygen and illustrator Rien Poortvliet. The series was originally created in Spain by BRB Internacional (who were also responsible for the Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds franchise (Like Dart in season 2 and Mike, Lucas and Dustin where very much like the Three Musketeers in season 1.) and other cartoons such as Bobobobs and Around the World with Willy Fog)

The series presents the gnomes as a kind species, of 15 centimetres (6 inches) of height, and between 250 and 300 grams (8 and 10 ounces) of weight depending on gnome body mass. According to their habitat, different types of gnomes are distinguished: the ones of the forest, the ones of the garden, the ones of the farm, the ones of the house, the ones of the dunes, those of Siberia (David = David Harbour = Hopper = Hopper is in Russia), and nomadic "gypsy" gnomes (commonly looked down upon by other gnomes). A gnome's lifespan is usually 400 years, though there is one example of a couple in the Balkans living 550 years.

Gnomes such as the main characters live in pairs in comfortable caves or holes under trees [kinda like Hobbits] (in their case in the company of a pair of mice and a cricket). Their diet is mostly vegetarian. They are helped by the animals of the forest (kinda like Radagast who is the password to Castle Byers who is located in the woods) when travelling long distances or when they need to arrive quickly at a specific location. Gnomes work in various ways to repair the damage inevitably caused by humans. They also have the power of telepathy and mind control. (kinda like El or the Mindflayer, or even Galadriel in The Lord Of The Rings.)

Their main enemies are the trolls, malevolent and clumsy creatures who always make trouble for the other inhabitants of the forest, as well as gnome poachers. They have supernatural powers that are really strong but they have a weakness, if the sunlight gets on them, they turn to stone.(could be referencing all the Upside Down creatures who don't like sunlight and everything hot.) [Also very much like the Hobbit.] Also one of the trolls was voiced by someone who had the name Henderson, like Dustin Henderson. I also think it references a comic where some bullies attack Will and Mike calls them trolls.

Here are the most important characters:

David is a gnome of the forest. David is 399 years old, making him the oldest gnome around (since gnomes live no more than 400 years exactly, except Franklin, the gnome from the west, who lived 550 years), although he possesses exceptional constitution. David is a doctor, and he uses his knowledge of many fields, such as hypnosis and acupuncture, to heal his patients, usually animals, such as his faithful friend Swift the fox, or other gnomes. David also befriends a bird that, when he whistles, immediately arrives to quickly transport him to wherever necessary. For longer trips, he sometimes travels in a basket attached to the neck of the bird. (It may be a reference to clerics who are known to heal their allies and travelling with birds reminds me of Gandald who sometimes has the help of Eagles in some stories.)

Paul is David's twin brother. Not only does Paul have a normal moustache in contrast to David's handlebar moustache but his jumper is a darker shade of blue, he has a bigger nose, his gnome hat is dark blue whereas David's is red, and his trousers and boots are an inverse of David's: David's trousers are brown and his boots are beige, while Paul wears beige trousers and dark boots. (Of course this is a reference to Will and El who have been compared a lot of times throughout the show and who a lot of people in the fandom consider them siblings and twins, Will has a lot of Red in his wardrobe while El has a lot of blue.)

This gnome was found in a secret Russian base underground in Weathertop where Dustin discovers the Russian transmission coming from their main base located under the mall like a cave (like where gnome lives.). There are also gnomes in Siberia and having the name David, the name of Hopper's actor creates a connection since right now Hopper is in Russia. It may also be a nod to the group of kids who are all little gnomes running around the forest with their magical powers.

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Gnome #10: Baskin

"Robin's favorite gnome."

Now this is a funny one.

This is a reference to the famous Baskin-Robbins which is a chain of ice cream restaurants that did special ice creams for Season 3 because of Scoops Ahoy. It is Robin's favorite gnome because they literally share the same name.

Baskin could also be a reference to the film of the same name where Five police officers, Remzi, Arda, Yavuz, Apo, and Seyfi, are dining at a restaurant, during which they have a discussion. Their meal is interrupted when they receive a distress call from Inceagac, a town known for being the focus of strange rumors. During the trip Seyfi has a terrifying vision of a bloody figure and accidentally drives their van into the water. Stranded, the officers eventually make their way to Inceagac, where they find themselves in an abandoned building (back in the Ottoman days, this used to be a police station), captured by cult members and are subjected to a number of increasingly bizarre and surreal scenarios. In the end, they realize they have all inadvertently wandered into Hell.

It has alot of similiraties with stories like Silent Hills or Hellraiser, two stories that inspired Stranger Things especially Hellraiser for Stranger Things 4. And it fully embraces the satanic imagery and themes which is something we are going to see with the satanic panic and also has the theme of time, dreams and visions.

We'll see how much season 4 decides to use those sort of elements in the show.

Well this gnome is easy to find. It's in the Scoops Ahoy parlor next to Robin. USS Butterscotch seems to be very popular there

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Gnomes 11 - 20 coming soon.

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siennahrobek · 3 years

Text

She had thought they would make it

It was hard, securing the officers’ reluctant cooperation and trying to make sure they did not back stab her or Master Feemor. None of them were any friendly, but she supposed they were hostages, prisoners, whatever they wanted to call themselves. No one had much choice in the matter. Ahsoka just wished she could make them understand; change their minds. But all were adamant, and their views did not change. The Jedi were traitors, the clones nothing more than just fodder, droids encased in flesh to be used and thrown away.

So, the two of them made routines, spent days on the edge, barely eating anything. They had made it nearly two days and everything seemed at least vaguely fine. She and Master Feemor may have been insanely tired, but they kept going. At the end of this, the both of them would need a long nap after this; after spending so many hours awake and alert.

Even with some of her anxiety with how things had been going, how things had gone and so on and so forth, she had felt plenty of relief too. Because this was happening, and it was happening well. They were saving an entire cruiser of troopers, so many she could free. She hadn’t really had the chance to save her boys in the 501st – aside from her 332nd company – but she could save these boys. They deserved it. They all did.

She had confidence in her reckless on-the-fly plan. It had panned out in a way that was good. It was going well. It may have been last minute and rather hasty, even she knew that, but she had learned from the best. Biting back feelings and memories of Anakin, she tried just to keep moving forward.

Don’t think, just do.

Master Feemor, unfortunately, did not share her confidence and feelings on the matter. He never let it show on his face or in his body language, but Ahsoka could feel his anxiety just barely leaking through his shields in the force. Even though, despite their predicament, things were going well. She had tried to shake off the creeping thoughts that the jedi master didn’t care much about the soldiers.

It wasn’t impossible. It was not very common for any jedi to actually dislike the clones outwardly. Few were neutral about them, while the vast majority cared about them. They weren’t just beings like that a jedi vowed to help and protect, but there was some kind of mutual and parallel understanding and care for one another. It came from some of the similarities of their morals and life philosophies. Some aspects of their cultures could be near intertwined. It came from their comradery, their loyalty and work with one another. Sometimes it felt like they were made for each other

And really there was nothing quite like war to bring two peoples together.

And no war had brought two peoples together like this one with the troopers and the jedi.

She didn’t know Master Feemor’s feelings on the troopers. And she really should not make assumptions.

He was here, wasn’t he?

One of them, between Ahsoka and Master Feemor, was on the bridge at all times to watch the non-clone officers and regulate their communications down to what the two jedi wanted. What Ahsoka wanted. All non-essential personnel from the area were escorted to the brig, which was locked and closed off with a pile of rations to keep them alive. They had forced the bridge itself to send out a specific message to the crew, with a story about what was happening and where they were going.

Whoever was not on the bridge was sneaking around the ship. With the help of the Force and a medical droid, they had saved and de-chipped two medics, Sleep and Stitch Up. Trying to explain what had happened to them and what was currently happening to them was a lot more difficult that Ahsoka thought as she didn’t fully understand it all herself.

But, like the soldiers that they were, they pushed personal feelings aside to continue further and suddenly, Ahsoka had allies she could use. Together, they caught and de-chipped several troopers, hiding them away until the time was right. They tucked themselves out of sight and out of mind, away from suspicious eyes so they would not give their free will back. The system was slow, but Ahsoka’s confidence continued to rise as time went on. The bridge natborns were currently mostly cooperative and the vessel was full speed to Kamino. They would make it and reunite with the others. They could be de-chipped and freed. She could save them.

She could do this.

She and Skyguy had done way more dangerous and reckless things and plans than this.

They could make it.

***

They did not make it.

Looking back, Feemor had probably knew things would not end as smoothly and successfully as Ahsoka had intended. He tried, though. He kept mentioning holes in her plans, things she could at least attempt to fix and even offered patches to them. He tried not to infuriate her, to his credit. He had a quiet and friendly tone and his patience reminded her of Master Obi-Wan. As she tried to patch holes and plans, it became clear he was willing to die for her or her plan, if it had come to it, if it had been necessary. The terrifying thought, it had virtually come to that.

She just seemed to have forgotten how sneaky and manipulative officers could be.

***

Ahsoka would see the footage later. She would obsess over it, watching it over and over and over again until it was engrained so deeply in her mind that she could never forget it. She would remember the soft click of a lock and the whoosh of the sliding door, and a force moving so quickly a defense was near impossible.

She hadn’t been anywhere nearby. She hadn’t known how the officers got the word out to the bridge, how they had gotten help from others.

Master Feemor was on the bridge when they came in, a number of several officers, accompanied by two clone troopers. Everything had moved so fast that Master Feemor’s saber had only gotten through two of them before they got too close for his saber to be a defense and he was overwhelmed by everyone around him. She would remember the sad, resigned look on his face as they came at all sides, fitting in any blows they could to his body.

She would remember how they left him, bloody and bruised, with darkening skin from popped blood vessels and at least one broken bone.

She would remember the two clones who wouldn’t - couldn’t - stop beating him, long after the Jedi was defeated and on the ground. Long after he was incapacitated. They would kill him, as their orders demanded. She would remember the blaster shots ringing through the recording that traveled through each of the clone’s heads. Shot by a bridge officer, one who was given a gun by another newcomer that had come in with them. The way Master Feemor’s already bruised and bloodied torso jerked in shock, startled, and the dullness of his face as he stared at the now deceased troopers fallen before him, glassy eyed and skin ashen.

The officer had grinned and sneered, mustering all of his distain and disgust for both the Jedi and the clone troopers with his next words. “You should thank me, master Jedi,” he sneered. “I just saved your life from those drones.”

She would remember Master Feemor’s grief eventually, with some other form of determination and something else; a resignation of what he believed to be his demise. She would eventually be able to understand why he thought that.

“They were men,” he replied, quiet and grieving but still a type of strong and resolute. “I am fairly certain you will regret that.”

The half a dozen troopers she had freed listened closely as the captain of the vessel made an announcement, demanding Ahsoka’s surrender. To give herself up or he would execute master Feemor.

The officer made one mistake. He gave her time.

***

She had already locked on to Kamino’s coordinates; the captain of the ship could not change them. It was clear he was in charge, but she vowed not for long. She would take control again. All the officers could do was continue as the ship had kept through hyperspace towards the watery and stormy planet.

But they wouldn’t get there in time.

She kept the medics, Sleep and Stitch Up collecting and de-chipping brothers discreetly, while she requested others to tweak the hyperdrive. She knew the risks, making those specifications and changes to the machinery. It could move them significantly faster, but it burned fuel and parts at a rate where there was a chance of explosion.

They still didn’t question her and carried out her orders.

To them, she was a jedi, she saved them, they could trust her.

If it worked, they would all get to Kamino quickly enough to rendezvous with the rest of the fleet. And if they did, they could get help.

Flanked by two troopers, Ahsoka tried to formulate a plan. She could create a distraction while the other two could go and get Master Feemor, who had been moved to brig, awaiting execution.

“We cannot do this without him,” Ahsoka confessed.

In truth, she didn’t want to do this without him. He was Master Obi-Wan’s brother and honestly, she had a feeling he didn’t know about this one. Her grand master would want to get to know him, she was fairly certain.

They believed her.

Creating a distraction, in and of itself, was not difficult. She just happened to be in some other area of the ship, as massive as it was, and her presence was rather alluring and tempting. She couldn’t blend into the human officers and clone troopers like others possibly could. While the bridge officers scrambled to get a hold of someone in the area to arrest her, she would swiftly move just enough. Her partners, Reject and Smackdown, had quietly made their way into the brig. It wasn’t quite as guarded as they had been expecting, as Reject would tell her later, but perhaps it had something to do with the captain’s confidence in his retaking of the ship. Their confidence after killing their jedi general, the type of people some often saw as unkillable. Or, rather, watching the clones, sentient beings, become so easily brainwashed and forced to kill the jedi.

Master Feemor hadn’t been in good shape but after quick look over from Stitch Up and a stim, he was at the very least, conscious and mobile.

Ahsoka continued to lead the officers and others on a wild gundark chase.

Things had been looking up, she thought. She believed they could make it. They were almost there. Any minute and they would drop into the safety of Kaminoan space, controlled by jedi and clones. She nearly made it back to Master Feemor, making absolute fools out of the bridge officers and everyone involved.

Then, once again, things went wrong.

Her luck ran out.

(Her Skywalker luck)

There were consequences.

The hyperdrive had been pushed too much too far and it was overheating. A small explosion had already occurred, and the heat was already sweltering through the halls. Master Feemor, Reject and Smackdown were already in the engine room, trying so hard to fix what could not be fixed, when Ahsoka finally made it to them.

The heat and sparking engine had done damage. The jedi and clone duo were kneeling next to a slowly dying trooper as she ran in. His armor was cracked with fissures, other parts literally melted into his skin. His helmet had exploded, and his face covered in still smoking and searing burns.

He was dying.

And there was no saving him.

It was only moments now.

The hyperdrive would explode once they left hyperspace. It was over. There was nothing left to do.

“I can push the explosion out,” Master Feemor had said, his voice quiet and continually resigned, his presence calming into something of peace, of some acceptance. Ahsoka wondered if this what being a jedi was, just dying for people. It seemed rather similar to how many of the clones felt about themselves. “I’m rather good at it. When it goes off, I can push it away from the ship and you will have a chance to escape,” he explained.

“That will kill you.”

He shrugged. “Very possibly. But it is my duty as a jedi. If I have to die to help others, then my life is a gift I willingly give,” he continued, his presence relaxed and ready.

This was not how Ahsoka thought it would go. This was not how she wanted it to go.

She was supposed to save their lives. Not lead them to death.

“Don’t get me wrong, parts of the ship will explode and fail, there is nothing I can do about that,” Master Feemor added with a frown as he tried to urge them further away, away from what would happen, whether it would save them or not. He was trying and in that moment, the only thing she could think of was that she wanted Master Obi-Wan to meet this man, this person who was supposed to be his brother. It was an odd thought to have in their current and rather dire situation. But it was the one that she was having and she couldn’t quite stop it. “But if you time it right and get out of here, get help quickly, many can still be saved.”

Ahsoka wanted to argue but one look at him and she knew. There was nothing to say.

Reject and Smackdown volunteered to stay. Master Feemor would argue but they would be adamant. They would stay to hep in any way they could. To give what they could. It appeared they rather liked him.

She would never see Smackdown again. Later, she would be told he nearly disintegrated completely, but Master Feemor would give him some peace and solace in his last moments before the fires consumed him. Reject would lose his left arm as well as half his sight.

Ahsoka, at some point, didn’t know if Master Feemor would survive, even after she found out he was still breathing.

He had saved so many lives.

She had doomed so many others.

Still, so many had died in the ensuing explosion, no matter how much Master Feemor had done to redirect it. There was still damage. And the officers still controlled the bridge.

Once they had left hyperspace, into Kamino territory, near surrounded by ships that Ahsoka knew were jedi and troopers, the bridge officers had frantically fired upon the nearest venator they had seen. To harm? To get attention? She didn’t really know but she didn’t think she could bring herself to care in that moment.

So many were dead.

“I’m not entirely sure what happened after that,” Ahsoka confessed. Master Obi-Wan had taken her to the nearest free room, none of the medical ones, as they were piling up with injured and dying troopers from the ship she had tried so desperately and recklessly to save. Accompanying him had been Master Vos and an abnormally large clone captain she didn’t recognize, radiating a twinge of anger. His shields were good. She did not want to have a peek under them.

Master Vos tried to look over her injuries, but she did not make it easy on him.

“Suddenly, it was like the troopers were on the ground, some injured, other stunned and different troops flooded in,” she explained, rubbing her arms in some form of a comforting gesture. Master Obi-Wan stood next to her, as if he moved any further away, she would disappear from his sight forever. “They escorted me to this medical ship and here I am.”

Master Obi-Wan had hugged her so tight she felt like she couldn’t breathe when they had reunited. He was so happy she was alive and so worried and scared and sad and grieving and there was such a myriad of emotions that she had barely the faintest touch of before he slammed them down behind impenetrable shields.

He was fighting a sigh now, as her story came to a close, she could see it. He ran a hand through his beard as he tried to think of something to speak, his eyes full of even more grief and sadness. He didn’t want to say what she knew he was going to say but for him, it had to be said. “That was reckless,” he croaked out. “You should not have done that, Ahsoka,” he confessed. “But-.”

She didn’t let him finish. All she could feel was defensiveness coming to her aid. “I couldn’t just abandon them,” she defended hotly, her cynical and unapologetic comeback burning in as her shoulders bristled. She had done the right thing. She had to have done the right thing. They were brainwashed. She wanted to help them.

He looked sympathetic, like he understood her plight. Did he? She wasn’t certain. She couldn’t quite calm her mind to think straight. “No one is abandoning them,” he insisted, calm and steady. How could he possibly be like this? She had a hard time believing him and it was quite clear. How could he say that when so many troops were under the influence of brainwashing and mind control? The 501st was decimated with it, trapped in the oppressive regime of the new Empire, under the horrible rule of a Sith master. Just because their chips were already activated, and they could not be warned meant they were meant as some kind of necessary sacrifice?

“That is what it looks like to me.” She snapped. She nearly winced at her tone. It was cruel and she knew it. Master Obi-Wan took it in stride, however, and did not show his pain at it.

“We need a plan,” Master Vos said instead, just as steady. “We don’t have the strength, or the numbers or the strategy to currently take over everything and everyone with activated chips.”

“What did you do anyways?” the captain asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest. He looked at her expectantly, his gaze scrutinizing her. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see some hand signs from Master Obi-Wan, no doubt directed towards him. So, they knew each other, interest. The captain kept going despite it. “What plan, what strategy did you have?”

Ahsoka just narrowed her eyes, gaze flickering. “Who are you?”

“This is Captain Alpha-17,” Obi-Wan introduced, a bit uneasily, his hands moving to try to subside his awkwardness. He was still standing close to her but shifted to be a bit between the two of them. Glancing over at the captain, he kept going. “Seven, this is…this is my grand padawan, Ahsoka Tano.”

It was the captain’s turn to narrow his eyes, suspicion and caginess overflowing in a way that almost made her feel offended. He did not trust her but on the other hand, she was fairly certain this man didn’t really trust anyone. She wondered what Master Obi-Wan had done to earn his loyalty. It didn’t seem like something that he handed out readily or easily. “They left the Skywalker traitor have a child?” he scoffed.

Ahsoka bristled, her shoulders and montrals shivering in aggression. She couldn’t help but come to her former master’s defense, it was practically instinctual. So many people, usually non jedi, had been surprised that Anakin had a padawan and often questioned his ability. “He was a great master.”

“He is a traitor,” Alpha-17 insisted. “And a murderer. But we are not here to argue with you.”

“Why are you here?”

“Ahsoka,” Master Obi-Wan warned, quietly, interrupting the match of strength and stubbornness. He kept his voice level, not showing whichever side he took, if he had one at all. He continued, patient and gentle. “I would like you to head to the medical bay, either here or on my ship. Any ship really, to get checked out.”

“I’m not injured.”

“Nonetheless,” he cleared his throat and continued, keeping his gaze on her and her alone. She had his full attention at the moment. “A medic will be the judge of that. And I would appreciate it.”

“I’m not a Jedi anymore.”

It sounded cruel, saying it out loud because they knew what it meant. He had no authority over her. He didn’t matter. His opinion didn’t matter. She inwardly winced at the statement. She didn’t intend on pushing him away; she didn’t really want him to go either. Or stop caring.

“Ahsoka,” Master Obi-Wan’s voice raised just a bit, a tone she had rarely heard from him. Something unyielding and unable to be challenged. She would not win this argument and she knew it. Her posture inevitably portrayed it as her shoulders slumped in defeat.

“I can bring her,” Master Vos offered, cutting in carefully as he stepped in closer as he spoke. “If the ship Ahsoka brought got a signal out, the Empire may come quicker. We should get moving as quick as we can. They’ll need you to help coordinate.”

Obi-Wan nodded and she thought she could just barely feel the relief in that. Master Vos was one of his friends, although Ahsoka herself had never actually seen it in action. She didn’t think those two would get along, like, ever. But everyone in the Temple had known them to be close friends. A few had even said they had been as thick as thieves. It was hard to believe. “Agreed. Thank you, Quinlan. The Captain and I will regroup with Master Drallig and Master Shaak Ti and find out our earliest time of departure.”

The three adults nodded and departed, once again leaving the office vacant and deserted. She followed Master Vos dutifully while the burly captain followed Master Obi-Wan, nearly right at his side.

A side that should have been held by Anakin.

Or, at the very least, Commander Cody instead.

She would have to look into this captain guy. Maybe Rex knew him.

“Is Rex around?” she asked suddenly as she caught up with Master Vos again.

“He’s on the Vigilance with Commander Cody, I imagine,” Master Vos replied, calmly. “He has been helping Obi-Wan and Commander Cody out with preparations and work and research.”

“I know you think I did the wrong thing.”

Master Vos shrugged. “I did the same thing.”

She perked. “What?”

“I took over a cruiser on my way off of Coruscant. Of course, I did it drastically different than you, but I have the training and I had some time to do a little preparing. I also took over one that wasn’t activated yet, this medical ship, actually,” he explained vaguely. Ahsoka stared at him. He did…he did the same thing? Master Vos hadn’t had a clone attachment until well into the war, after some sort of weird mission that turned out horribly. She didn’t really know what it was, but it had made Master Obi-Wan quite concerned for a while. “Your heart was in the right place, Ahsoka. But you can’t just keep jumping into these types of things. You are at a very emotional point of your life, going through a very emotional and crazy situation. There are consequences to the things you do and, as specially as the people we are, we need to understand the consequences, both good and bad of our actions.”

“I wasn’t thinking,” she admitted.

“I know you care about your former master,” he said, carefully. “And it seems a bit like a type of thing he would think about doing. You’re not Skywalker, kiddo. And even if you were, that doesn’t mean not thinking either. It was what made him and Obi-Wan such a good team. Skywalker wasn’t afraid to jump in and get dirty, to move and get things done while Obi-Wan actually thought things through, thought of the consequences of each of the actions they would take. They balanced one another out.”

“And look how that turned out,” Ahsoka muttered bitterly.

They reached the hanger and Master Vos, rather politely, asked for a ship. Within minutes, they were in space. He opened the view port and showed her the fleet, readying to leave. “Look out there, Ahsoka. What do you see?”

“A lot of ships,” she said. And it was, so many.

He nodded. “Yes, but look further. Those are survivors, they are refugees now. And they will be hunted down by the Empire. We, as jedi, survived. Not all of us, but some of us and what is the first thing we did?”

“Flee.”

Master Vos chuckled, a light but also a bit hollow. “Yes. But, what else? We went to Kamino, a place where the Empire is getting their soldiers. The first thing we did, aside from escape the planet, was to come here, to get others. Do you know how many troopers have been saved from the brainwashing of the Empire?”

She wasn’t thinking in his terms, she would realize later. “I don’t know, maybe a couple hundred? Master Obi-Wan’s 212th, a couple from the siege back at the Temple.”

“Way, way, way more than that,” he pointed out. He had looked into a few things, had been given a briefing on what had happened with the jedi and the clones on planet. He had found the briefing rather amusing, in all honesty, at least vaguely in the terms of Captain Alpha-17 and Commander’s Colt mutiny. “We have brought together thousands of cadets, children and babies from the planet of Kamino. They are all coming with us. Obi-Wan called a buddy of his, Alpha-17, to warn him about the Empire and guess what he did? He was told a thought about investigating these chips and what he seemed to hear was just to…. go to war,” Master Vos explained with a bit of a goofy, lopsided grin. “He literally committed mutiny and for that, all of the kids on this planet will be saved from being brainwashed from the Empire.”

She hadn’t thought about it like that. And now, here she was, having brought not only chipped brothers into the fray of their already terrified and quick evacuation, but she also could have brought the Empire down on their heads.

“It isn’t all of them, we won’t save all of them, just like we weren’t able to save all the jedi,” Master Vos continued, keeping his tone rather soft. “But we will save as many as we can. I know patience doesn’t seem like the thing to do at the moment, not with what is happening, but it is all we can do at the moment.”

She sighed and the pilot called out their destination. Master Obi-Wan’s ship.

“Thought you might want to stay close with Obi-Wan,” he hummed as they landed.

“This is all so messed up,” she mumbled.

They were rather quiet as they walked through the halls towards the medical bay. It wasn’t crowded, not like the medical cruiser that was housing so many wounded and dying. But there were plenty in there, most of them lightly injured or going through surgery. She imagined it was the de-chipping process. Even if they came out with another solution, it was better safe than sorry with the methods they had at their disposal.

“Is there anyone available?” Master Vos called out.

A trooper came out from the room, grumbling under his breath. He looked up and visibly brightened, just a bit with some kind of relief at the sight of them. “Ahsoka Tano, it is very good to see you alive. We were a little worried.”

She tried to smile back. “Hello, Helix. We are sorry to bother you.”

“Ahsoka needs a workup, she was on the ship that came in,” Master Vos said.

Helix blinked. “I heard about that. Of course, of course. Come back here. I can take a break from surgeries for a bit.”

“Thanks, Helix,” Ahsoka mumbled and followed him into the other room.

“No worries kiddo, it’s good to see you again,” he said, as Master Vos watched them disappear. “General Kenobi has been rather worried about you. Then again, that’s kind of how he is, always worried.”

She hummed.

“I won’t talk about Skywalker,” he added carefully. “But maybe you should visit the 501st survivors, I think they would like to see you.”

“Maybe that would be a good idea.”

#we are burning stars #we are burning stars au #order 66 #order 66 au #pro jedi fic #pro jedi #pro clone #star wars #star wars au #obi wan kenobi #obi-wan kenobi #ahsoka tano #quinan vos #alpha-17 #helix #feemor #this is sad #her skywalker luck ran out

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aros001 · 3 years

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First time read through light novel vol. 7. Random thoughts.

Through some kind of mistake, Rem had completely accepted Subaru, but he knew all too well that the Subaru Natsuki she saw was an ideal far removed from the real thing. Compared with the man she envisioned in her mind, the cards that the real Subaru held were few in number, and poor in quality—

But he learned, now that he stood at the playing table, no one cared about his personal problems.

All anyone in his position could do was try to win with the cards he was dealt.

This is sign I think Subaru has grown a little bit, though he is still growing. It's not about him, and Ferris later seems like he's trying to drill that into him a bit more later when Subaru wants to help with the battle preparations. It's good that he wants to help but sometimes he's unintentionally making things too much about himself, just to ease his own feelings. There are places where he would be getting in the way if he tried to help and Subaru's learning to accept that; to be patient and give his services where he can actually be of use, not just to help himself feel better. And damn, does he put that new maturity to good use in the big battle.

Originally, these negotiations had been Rem’s appointed duty. He could easily imagine how being unable to divulge her task to Subaru and having to speak with Crusch day after day had whittled away at her spirit.

Subaru had continually rotted by himself while the future of the Emilia camp had been entrusted to her—she must have suffered under that burden.

He hoped that in some small way, this victory repaid the girl whose feelings had supported him for so long; if so, then for the moment, that was enough for Subaru to be happy.

I really like this part. Again, it's not all about Subaru. He's acknowledging how much Rem's had to deal with while he was having his breakdowns and indulgences during his prior loops, and how much she still did what she could to support him in spite of it all. We're getting a little more that she does have a life outside of just Subaru and a little more added on to why he feels he's been so selfish. It really feels like he is now doing this for her. It's not like Subaru was completely self-centered before but I imagine there were times, especially with Emilia, where he wanted to help, but he wanted to be the one to help. He wanted good things for her but part of him cared more that he was the one giving them to her, verses her just getting what she needs in general. It's like how he couldn't feel happy that Otto was in support of Emilia first time he met him, though of course that was when he was at one of his lowest points.

And, of course, I'm absolutely reveling in all the sweetness of Rem supporting Subaru through his negotiations. Even if it's just holding his hand and reminding him she's there, he clearly appreciates the strength and courage it's giving him. Obviously they're not a romantic couple but this is the kind of stuff I love to see in romantic relationships. Just the basic comfort and support they find in each other's presence.

“...If I am gone, will you remember me just as long?”

“...I don’t wanna answer that. It’s bad luck.”

Speaking with a voice of dismay, Subaru gave Rem’s forehead a little poke.

When he touched Rem’s forehead, she smiled with a happy expression, almost as if she’d received the reply she had been hoping for.

Given something I believe I've been spoiled on for what happens later in the story (after where the anime leaves off), this feels like a very cruel monkey's paw bit of foreshadowing.

“Subaru.”

“...What?”

“I am fine with being your second wife.”

They were words to make a man unwittingly halt in his tracks.

When Subaru, unable to resist, looked toward her, Rem made a face like that of an adorable puppy, seemingly wagging her tail as she awaited Subaru’s reply.

Oh, good grief, just how far is this girl gonna—?

“If Emilia-tan’s a very generous first wife...”

“Well then, when we get back you must convince Lady Emilia. I shall try hard as well.”

Rem clenched the hand not grasped into a fist, very animated as she spoke with a smile.

Speaking jokingly like that broke all the tension, driving home to Subaru how weak he was. He truly couldn’t hold a candle to the girl.

I'm...going to have to see where the story goes from here, and how truly joking/serious Rem was with that second wife line. Just to put it out there, I don't really have a good view of polygamy. I'm always going to think that, 1st wife or 2nd or 3rd or wherever, someone is always going to be treated like second best and second priority. What they're receiving doesn't feel like real love and that's not fair to them. The only way I can see myself supporting a polygamous marriage in this series is if it's made clear Emilia and Rem are attracted to each other as well as Subaru and want to bang. Then it at least becomes three people who love each other as opposed to just "the guy and his two prizes".

So, first time you read this part in the novels or watched it in the anime, was anyone else afraid of the White Whale not showing up where and when Subaru told everyone it would? Like the world would just want to gut punch him one more time and have everyone think he's a fraud? I remember I was.

One theory I have for why the witch's scent grows stronger, not just when Subaru RBD, but also when he tries to talk about RBD is that maybe the witch likes when he acknowledges her "gift" to him. But she's also quite screwed up and doesn't like it when he tries to "share" what's between them, thus why she punishes him or those around him for doing so.

In front, behind and up above, he saw yet another whale-shaped figure high in the sky, scattering mist all around.

—The infinite mouths of the three White Whales laughed together, drawing out the despair of men.

Subaru, Crusch, the soldiers, everyone, etc.

Though pests had interrupted it, the White Whale’s mission was to cover the world in mist. This, too, was the command of its instinct, and doing so was the purpose of the White Whale’s existence.

One thing I've enjoyed about the various light novel series I've been reading is that, compared to their anime, I get a better idea of various characters' and monsters' mentalities. The best example I could give would be the goblins in Goblin Slayer (that they are not mindless creatures; that they know EXACTLY what they're doing to people and they enjoy it) and this bit with the White Whale is another good one. It seeks to cover the world in its mist and thus destroy/consume/erase everything (maybe?) And it doesn't know why it seeks to do this. It just does, suggesting there is something else, possibly the one behind its creation, driving it.

It's also interesting that, to the White Whale, the witch's scent is described as foul, despite the stories that she's the one who created it. This brings to mind a couple different theories.

Satella didn't actually create the whale. Someone else, perhaps one of the other six witches did or one of the archbishops.

Satella did create the whale but maybe used one of the other witches to do it. Puck did mention something about Gluttony when he sensed the whale approaching in the last loop.

Satella REALLY cannot tell the difference between positive and negative emotions, even more so than we were already led to believe.

Kind of cruel of Rem to trick Subaru into thinking she was dying, but at least we do get Subaru's completely true feelings out in the open. Back to the polygamy matter, I don't have a problem with Subaru being indecisive between Emilia and Rem or being in love with them both. It's not just that they've done so much for him, in which case the relationship would feel just like how Emilia described, just the two of them repaying debts to each other. Both women have been a hugely positive influence on Subaru's life. They've impacted it for the better and helped push him into being more of a man he can live with being, and it works the other way around too. It would be hard to imagine his story without either of them in it. I feel the same way with Code Geass in regards to CC, Shirley, and Kallen in Lelouch's story. It was the only "harem" series I've ever watched where I had trouble saying who the MC should end up with, because all three were irreplaceable in his life and story. Take any of them out and it loses a lot. Emilia and Rem are a similar case.

As Rem looked back at Subaru, now beside her, large tears filled her blue eyes. It was not being left behind that she feared. No, what she feared more than anything was—

“When you are in distress, Subaru, I want to be the one offering my hand faster than anyone. When you hesitate along your path, I want to be the one pushing on your back. When you challenge something, I want to be at your side, stopping you from shaking. That is—that is all I wish for. So please...”

Again, more great parallels between Subaru and Rem, as this isn't dissimilar to what he wanted to do for Emilia.

Wilhelm might just be the biggest example of a tsundere I've ever seen. Married a woman he loved from the bottom of heart for what was assumedly a decent amount of time...never freaking told her "I love you" until he finally killed the beast that killed her.

As for Theresia, it's definitely a case of why context is so important. She never wanted to be the Sword Saint. She only did so because she found purpose in saving as many lives as she could with the insane power she had (the whole "great power, great responsibility" chestnut). If Wilhelm is strong enough to protect and save people, to where her absence would make no difference, then she doesn't have to be the Sword Saint anymore and can live the life she wants. It's what makes it an actual kindness vs. some chauvinistic BS. Probably helps too that she'd already helped put an end to a long war, so she wouldn't have been needed as much anyway.

“So it is said. The existence and origins of demon beasts are mysteries to us. Some propagate in the same manner as ordinary living creatures, but some suddenly appear out of nowhere like the White Whale. Though, properly speaking, the only exceptions on par with the White Whale are the Black Serpent and the Great Hare.”

Oh...I'm so not looking forward to meeting those two. After how much tragedy just the White Whale caused, what the f**k are those things going to do? My money would be that whatever it is, it will hurt Subaru quite horribly.

This book potentially answered a question I had in my last post. The Witch Cult is after Emilia because they see her as an impostor of the Witch of Envy, or at least so the characters in-story are speculating.

Not sure how many people here are fans of Rising of the Shield Hero but after this I kind of want to see the White Whale and the Spirit Tortoise duke it out. That sounds awesome. Mountain Turtle vs. Witch Fish.

Original Reddit post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Re_Zero/comments/gub735/novels_first_time_read_through_light_novel_vol_7/

#re:zero #random thoughts #reddit repost

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inessencedevided · 4 years

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The Untamed, episode 41 - watching notes

Only 10 episodes left 😭😭😭

And we're now entering Nie Mingjue's memories. I have a feeling there's going to be some serious "oh shit!" and "wtf is happening???" going on

Jgy's backstory still moves me, no matter what he did later

I feel like both his and wwx stories are cautionary tales of what happens when you combine a rigid class-system with a mob mentality and top it all of with a healthy amount of "manners over morals"

I feel like JGY main strategy is "hold your tongue and bite your time". I completely fell for his sweet facade in the first few episodes of the flashback

Jo, did NMJ just ram his saber into a stone wall? 😱

NMJ may have anger issues, but he's a good dude

I think he took the "the more perfectly you should be, to leave them with nothing to say" to heart. Like, he never outwardly complains.

Another perfectly timed screenshot I thought I should share :D

Oh, we've seen that before!

How can this be the same person that I thought would be the designated fandom cinnamon role in ep 2/3?? 🥺

I know I'm praising actors left and right during this commentary,but ALL TGE AWARDS for how smoothly JGY changes his demeanor from humble and sweet quasi-servant to "you're not worthy of breathing the same aor as me"

This

And this

Might as well be two different characters

I wonder if, when the NMJ send him away, he realised and regretted, that he had just lost one of the only people who were truly on his side and if he thought it was worth it

One thing I find very interesting in the scene in the Scorching Sun palace is that, jgy is still wearing his hair in the braided style that is customary for the Nie clan. I think I'll try to spot when he changes it

Okay, scratch my earlier musings about if JGY feels genuine regret over how he had to leave NMJ. He clearly doesn't 😐

Gotta give it to him though, he puts gollum to shame with how he switches his personality

Only it's deliberate

And he's not insane

... don't know where I was going with this

So we're at the point where Nie Mingjue wakes in Lan Xichen's arms. Seen that before

Which leaves me asking: WHAT PART OF THIS IS THE ACT??

I wonder though, how they could convince NMJ to become sworn brothers with him after that while story

He does not seem like a man who forgets a grudge easily ^^

That scene of the three of them meditating and playing the Quin is weirdly domestic :D maybe it's just because, so far, we've only seen wwx and lwj in a similar situation together 😅

Why do I still ship Lan Xichen and JGY after all that happened? Because of scenes like these!!!!

JGY *plays Quin ominously*

Didn't know that was possible :D

The fuck???

Why is he coughing blood?

Lwj is playing "Clarity" in the present time to calm him down! Ten points for parallels!

Poor Lan Xichen. Why do I have a feeling that he's the designated buffer between them? 🙈

Sorry for the lack of intelligent commentary, but I'm trying to wrap my head around how much of a puppeteer JGY is ...

I've already mentioned this, but I appreciate the parallels between jgy and wwx and how they differ. Both operate very much outside the orthodoxy, in large part due to them not being born into it. The crucial difference is their goals. One seeks to gain power to not only find his place within the system, but rise above all those who ever looked down on him, too. The other wants to change the system for all those others who are also hurt by it.

Two characters with very similar backgrounds diverging on very different paths

And I appreciate it that it's spelled out in his rant to NMJ here

This is SO telling. I adore this scene! Before I would have calked him simply selfish (and he is, don't get be wrong). But he also probably grew up in a world where he could never be truly save and never feel equal to anyone. Everything be has, he had to fight for.

I just wrote that he and wwx had the same background? I retract that because there is one huge difference. Wwx was loved. From what I've heard, his parents loved him. Then, of course, he has to endure live as a homeless kid, but he was adopted by a foster-father who loved him and had siblings he shared everything with. Of course, he still never felt as if he quite belonged or was enough (Madam Yu saw to that) and that left it's own scars, culminating in all gbe times he rather took on all burdens himself rather than ask for goddam help once. But he was loved. Loved and appreciated and cared for. It seems, that jgy never knew that, probably until NMJ took him as his Vice General. So he learned to survive in the shadows and bite his time until the opportunity arose, never fully trusting anyone.

Does that excuse anything or rid him of responsibility? Nope. But it makes for a damn interesting character

I AM SHOOK!

That exchange between Nie Mingjue and Jin Guangyao was such a brilliantly crafted piece of dialogue!!! 😱😱😱

Because, if, and I think by now that that's likely, jgy turns out to be the main villain of this arc, then he is one o can at least partially understand. He's right in saying that NMJ has no right to claim that his actions are all just. He's gained his position by virtue of his birth and he's working within a system that justifies itself through mixture of imagined moral high ground and the virtue of blood heritage. No action to uphold that can be truly just.

At the same time, I believe, jgy turned those believes into a self-fulfilling prophecy. He himself schemes and uses other people's worst impulses and the faults in the cultivation world to his advantage. Proofing to himself, again and again, that he is right about them and thus justified in his actions. Enter wwx who tries, who really tries to shove the error of their ways in their faces. (I think I just answered my question from a few episodes back about why jgy seems to be working specifically against wwx 🤔)

Sorry for going on such a tengant

NMJ, did you have to call him a son of a whore? 🙄

The hell is happening to NMJ?

Oh shit, what did he do with the song of clarity? How could you even use that to harm someone??

So he tweaked it?

Oh no 😥😥😥

Let me get this straight. JGY intentionally brought NMJ to the point of qui deviation? 😳

Oh no Huaisang!! 😭😭😭

Xue Yang??? He worked with JGY? 😱😱😱

So he didn't doe of Qui deviation!!!

Fuck, JGY spotted paperman-wwx 😳

Honestly wwx, maybe it's not the best idea ever to put your conscious into something that can be crushed by accidentally stepping on it 😬

That's his sword!!!

Didn't wwx just reveal who he is???

Maybe don't do that?!?!

HE CAN WIELD HIS SWORD AGAIN!!! 😭😭😭

but jgy definitely figured out who he is ... 😐

Still, I'm weirdly proud of him :')

But wait! Why does jgy have his sword to begin with???

Aww, little exhausted paperman-wwx flopping down into lwj's hand 🖤

This episode liveblog has been far too serious so far. Here, have my favourite lan Wangji mood:

I really appreciate how seamlessly this show moves between serious scenes and comedy

Jin Ling going "what do you want?" followed by 5 beats of silence and then

had me wheezing 😂

Oh no, he's hidden everything already, hasn't he?

Wow, even Xichen is defiant now. I sense drama!!!

@sweetlittlevampire @fandom-glazed @elenirlachlagos @allhailthedramallama @luckymoony @kyrrahbird @i-love-him-on-purpose (this episode was enlightening, but still raised more questions. Feels like we're honestly entering the final arc of this show 😔)

#the untamed #sophie watches the untamed #wei wuxian #wwx #lan wangji #lwj #wangxian #jin guangyao #lan xichen #nie mingjue #nie huaisang #jin ling #the untamed liveblog

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violent-optimism · 4 years

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Rey as a Palpatine and Why it’s Grown on Me

Hello my lovelies!

I think it’s been quite a while since I posted any kind of essay on here. Between work and other things I honestly haven’t had much time for it. However in recent days I’ve felt very motivated to work on a very particular kind of essay; a subject that I’ve been stewing over since December of last year.

Obviously from the title you already know what I’m going to be talking about. I’m not going to deny that this is a rather heated subject for some Star Wars fans, particularly those who disliked this plot choice and The Rise of Skywalker in general. As per usual in my essays, my goal is not to change anyone’s mind or argue over who’s opinion is “more right”. Plain and simple, this is just going to be me talking about MY thoughts and MY observations about Rey’s journey and lineage in The Rise of Skywalker. I hope this doesn’t need to be said but if you read something in this essay that you disagree with, I politely ask that you keep it to yourself and move on. At the end of the day, we are just talking about a movie, and this is all just for fun.

Now, with that being said, let’s get started! This essay is definitely going to be a bit more structured than my usual efforts and I hope this will result in a much more straightforward and clear-cut essay. Enjoy!

1. My Initial Reaction

While I don’t want this to be a major part of the essay, I do think it makes sense to start this off with a little story about the time I first saw TROS in the theatre. I can remember it pretty well. My whole body was tense, my eyes glued to the screen for what I knew was about to be some kind of major reveal in the story (even if it felt very late in the film for such a scene). Then came those shocking and irreversible words from Kylo Ren: “You’re his Granddaughter. You are a Palpatine.”

Wait…what?

My mind recoiled at this statement. My heart sank into my stomach with complete rejection. This can’t be right. He must be lying. I don’t like it. I don’t like it one bit. A man behind me just snorted with laughter and I can totally see why. Rey being related to Palpatine sounds more like a crazy Youtube fan theory than something that could actually be canon in the Star Wars universe. We had always thought she might be related to Luke or even Obi-Wan, but…Emperor Palpatine? Darth Sidious? No, just no.

So yeah, suffice to say that my first reaction towards this plot twist was not very positive. I admit that even once the movie was over, I still didn’t like this reveal. I don’t even think I began to warm up to it until my 3rd or 4th viewing of TROS. I had become so used to the idea that Rey had no special lineage and she was just a very force-sensitive girl from nowhere that it was extremely hard to let go of that. And honestly, if JJ and everyone else involved had chosen to keep it that way, I would have been perfectly content. So why…you might ask, has Rey’s true lineage grown on me in the last several months?

Now, don’t get me wrong…there’s still a part of me that thinks it was a very odd choice to introduce a reveal like this considering what happened in the previous installment. However…this fact has already been discussed to death and this essay is intended to be more of a story exploration rather than a critical film review. So let’s talk more about Rey being Palpatine’s Granddaughter and how I have actually grown to love the idea.

2. Rey’s Journey

Throughout the trilogy, Rey has had to overcome quite a few challenges in her path to becoming a Jedi. Her journey has been one of mostly self-discovery and personal growth. In The Force Awakens, Rey discovers that she is strong in the force and can do things she never imagined. In The Last Jedi, Rey’s strength in the force grows stronger and she learns to accept that her parents were nobodies and that some things do not turn out the way we expect.

And so, thematically, it would almost seem like Rey has reached the end of her character arc. This is Rey at her most powerful. There’s nothing left to learn, and there are no more secrets to be revealed…right? Well, we know that this is not the case. Even from the first scene with Rey we know that something is wrong. She knows that something is wrong. There is a darkness inside of her; she fears for her destiny and who she is meant to become. It’s not until later that we understand why these feelings have come to the surface.

Up until TROS, we didn’t truly know who Rey was or where she came from. However, by this point in the story anyone should be able to describe her as a character. Kind. Brave. Resourceful. Curious. Compassionate. Strong. Rey has proven time and time again that she is an incredibly kind and capable individual who wants to do the right thing. Although both TLJ and TROS strongly hint towards Rey possibly turning to the dark side, we know that our protagonist never actually would because we know who Rey is.

And this a huge reason as to why the Rey Palpatine reveal works so well for me. There is an incredible juxtaposition with Rey being the most heroic, kind-hearted person imaginable, and yet she is related to the most evil man in the galaxy. There is something deeply profound about the last living Jedi having Sith blood in her veins. Part of the reason why this reveal is so shocking is because the two characters are complete polar opposites in terms of good and evil. Rey is absolutely nothing like Palpatine and so the familial connection seems impossible. It doesn’t just seem like an unlikely truth, it feels entirely incorrect. And yet, that is also what makes it (again, in my opinion) so interesting and bold.

3. Meaning and Impact

Apart from giving Rey one last emotional challenge in the final installment, I think this choice was made for other reasons as well (3 to be precise).

1. It made Rey even more similar to Kylo as he too is grappling with the dark influence from his Grandfather

2. This decision subverts a long-existing trope in fantasy stories

3. Used to further tie the 9 films together as a story about the Skywalker and Palpatine bloodlines

Since The Force Awakens, it was made very clear early on that Rey and Kylo were connected in some way; their destinies were intertwined. Although this was further explored in TLJ, we would not truly understand just how similar their journeys would become until the final installment. The dynamic between Rey and Kylo is infinitely interesting because at first glance they seem like completely opposite people, when in reality they share a very similar struggle, especially in The Rise of Skywalker.

Both Rey and Kylo experience the overwhelming darkness of their respective families. Kylo even says it quite bluntly before the lightsaber duel on the ruined Death Star: “The dark side is in our nature, surrender to it.” He is quite obviously trying to use Rey’s lineage against her in an attempt to turn her over to his side. What makes this so interesting is that we know Kylo himself is not yet completely taken over by the dark side. Despite his evil deeds, he has always been conflicted during this story.

When Rey finds out that she is related to Emperor Palpatine, she becomes withdrawn, angry, afraid and unstable. This is the closest to the dark side that we have ever seen Rey at. Indeed there are some moments where she almost seems to be channeling behaviour that would be more suited for Kylo (snapping at her friends, using anger as power). Although Rey eventually comes to her senses and realizes what is happening to her, she was clearly affected by her Grandfather’s dark influence, just as Kylo was.

Despite the fact that both Rey and Kylo come from families with a history of the dark side, the film makes it very clear that one character’s lineage is far “worse” than the other. This is where the subversion of a common fantasy trope takes place. Now, to be clear, this is only my interpretation and I don’t claim this to be exactly what the filmmakers were going for; however this subversion is yet another reason why I enjoy the Rey Palpatine reveal.

How many times have you watched a movie or a TV show where a character’s lineage was a significant part of the story? It’s probably more times than you can count on one hand, right? My point is that the idea of a character’s lineage/family history becoming a main plot element in a story is nothing new, we’ve seen this before a million times. For example, in Disney’s “Tangled” (2010) Rapunzel learns that she is the long lost princess who was taken away from her family when she was an infant. Disney influence aside, does this sound somewhat similar to Rey’s story? Yes, it absolutely does…but not in the traditional or conventional sense.

This is where Rey Palpatine (for me at least), becomes extremely appealing. This reveal is like the evil, twisted version of a heroine discovering that she is the secret heir to a royal family. And instead of the protagonist being overjoyed and enlightened by this information, the reveal comes with great personal shock and emotional turmoil. In this case, Rey is the Granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine, which essentially makes her Sith royalty if we’re being really comparable. Am I the only one who (for lack of better words) thinks this is insanely cool? Not only is it a direct subversion of a very common story trope, it directly ties into Kylo’s arc and it also parallels Luke’s family revelation in “The Empire Strikes Back.” Coincidentally, this also makes Rey’s journey similar to Luke’s in that regard, but I’ll get back to that later.

Now as you’ve probably heard before, as we look back on all 9 films in the Star Wars saga we can see that this is clearly a story about the Skywalker and Palpatine families. Granted, the Palpatine bloodline is largely unexplored in comparison to the former. We know that Rey’s Father was the son of the Emperor, but we still don’t know his name or who he really was. Ultimately this information is not relevant to the story as a whole, but it’s clear that Emperor Palpatine has been pulling the strings throughout basically the entire saga.

More specifically, Palpatine himself has always been tied to the Skywalkers. He seduced Anakin Skywalker to the dark side and later tried to do the same to Luke. Via Snoke he was also able to turn Ben Solo, who shares a dyad with Rey, Palpatine’s Granddaughter. It kind of comes full circle and it’s really quite clever in my opinion. The Villain of the ST is related to the Heroes of the OT, and the Hero of the ST is related to the Villain of the OT (Did I just blow your mind?).

Put simply, Rey being a Palpatine makes a lot more sense thematically when you examine the story that came before her. Families are complicated and messy, especially in Star Wars. Rey’s experience echoes this, but in a much darker and harsher way. Her journey is meant to resemble Luke Skywalker’s in many ways, but their stories do have differences. In Luke’s case, he actually got to see and interact with Anakin, the real face of who his Father was. Anakin Skywalker was certainly not a perfect person, but in his last moments he turned to the light and saved his son’s life.

Rey, of course, did not get to experience a moment even close to this. Palpatine is about as evil as evil gets. There is no hope or chance of redemption. She was forced to look upon her own flesh and blood and see nothing but a monster. It would be unfair to turn this into a competition of “who had the most devastating family reveal”, but the point I’m trying to make is that Rey and Luke’s journeys are undeniably similar, which serves to further strengthen the connection of Skywalker and Palpatine in these 9 films.

4. Conclusion: The Power of Choice

I feel I must end on the note of choice, because this is how The Rise of Skywalker chooses to end. Despite everything I have mentioned and how much I have grown to love the idea of Rey Palpatine, there is something that I love much more than this: Rey Skywalker. Even just reading it or saying it out loud fills with me an indescribable amount of joy.

To put it bluntly, Rey did not have an easy life. In fact, she probably had one of the most challenging upbringings of any Star Wars protagonist. Yes, Anakin was a slave at a very young age, but he also had friends and a mother who supported him. Luke was even better off with a relatively normal childhood, friends and parental figures who loved him as if he was their own son.

Rey had nothing and no one.

She was forced into a life of struggle and hardship, not by choice, and certainly not by her parents’ choice. Although they loved and cared for her, she would never feel this or know it to be true until much later in life. Rey did not choose where she came from, nor could she choose who she was related to. This is perhaps the most powerful and meaningful message that one could take away from the Sequel Trilogy: You cannot choose the circumstances of your childhood, nor can you choose who you are related to by blood. However, you can choose your destiny, you can choose who you want to be, and you can choose who you consider to be your family.

Rey had all the makings of a villain, but she chose to be a hero. A Sith that chose to be a Jedi. A Palpatine that chose to be a Skywalker. It doesn’t matter where you come from, only where you’re going. At the end of the day, it’s up to you to decide who you want to be. That is a beautiful thing.

Well folks, it took me a long time to get here but we’re finally at the end. I hope this essay was able to make some kind of a comprehensible point. Even if you didn’t agree with anything I said, I hope it was still something that made you think. It was quite a lot of fun to really delve into this topic and explore every microscopic detail. I sure hope it made sense, and if not, I’ll try to do better next time.

Thank you so much for reading! Bye for now.

#star wars #rey #rey palpatine #rey skywalker #TROS #please don't hate me!

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msindrad · 4 years

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an insanely long crazy-ass post about the dollars trilogy, I’m so sorry y’all

I FOUND THIS POST. I DID IT. I FOUND IT. JESUS. I spent the entirety of my yesterday searching for it.

I’m going to tag everybody who participated in this discussion and whose posts I‘ve found while searching for this discussion on the off-chance that they still might be interested in, yeah, discussing these films.

@clinteastwood-blog @geekboots-blog @istadris @sybilius @bleak-nomads @thenotsobad-thebad-andtheugly @bloncos @mcicioni-blog @unrealthings @stephantom @colonelmortimer

Also, please feel free to ignore me and my analytical outburst if you don’t feel like talking about the films or talking about them with my crazy hyperfixated ass specifically, lol. I didn’t mean to be rude by calling you out of nowhere, it’s just that sometimes people get excited when there is an enthusiastic newbie in the fandom and gladly return to their beloved canons.

Anyway. The dollars trilogy.

I’ll start with The Good, the Band and the Ugly (and will probably make myself instantly unlikable by nitpicking things, (sigh)).

As stupid as it might sound – the film being an absolute masterpiece, a cultural milestone that is timeless, epic, work of genius, love it, will write and draw about it with pleasure etc. – I’m kind of inclined to find the GBU the weakest film in the trilogy storywise. Don’t get me wrong: the plot is interesting and strong, every scene is entertaining, smart, and instantly quotable… But.

There are a few things that make the story, taken holistically, weak to a degree, especially in contrast to the other two films. Now, let me explain my bold-ass claim.

The first reason I couldn’t even pinpoint for myself until my best friend asked me: yeah, it’s all cool and fun, but what has really changed at the end of the film? They stopped the battle/blew up the bridge (kudos for the pacifist message), they killed a few folks on the way including Angel Eyes, but what did the story amount to in the end? Was their relationship changed? Have they themselves learned something about life, universe and everything? Tuco is still on the rope, Blondie still shoots the rope. They both got their money, split it 50/50. Sure, now it’s an insane amount of money but will it make them reconsider their ways of life? I don’t know, and I don’t necessarily think so. They’re really back to square one. If you consider the graphic novel The Man With No Name canon, then (spoiler) Blondie gives his money away to help rebuild the monastery of Tuco’s brother, and Tuco himself doesn’t really invest his share in anything other than booze, and sex, and troubles, so. Then, Angel Eyes got killed off, but he had even less backstory/character arc than, for instance, Captain Clinton, not to mention that his image, as memorable as it was, kind of lacked certain complexity, so, does it really matter storywise (although he is a great, stylish character, but I hope that you get what I mean)? (Note: Angel Eyes should have been the film’s ultimate personification of the war (inhumanely ruthless, only interested in money, extremely goal-oriented etc.), which, the war, kind of is the main antagonist of the film if you think about it; but the way he was used in the plot, the way he acted, and was generally presented, communicated it only in a limited way, imo).

Everything about the adventure was fun, smart, entertaining, one of the best films ever made, I agree 100%, and I rewatched it with pleasure many times. But I believe that stories have to bring about some palpable change in their world in order for them to be successful and finished. The GBU, in my opinion, doesn’t do it because it doesn’t want to be a story-story, and it’s fine with just letting its characters exist in a magic Western/a cowboy fantasy/a fairy tale. And I guess it’s also one of the reasons why the story didn’t go anywhere from the GBU – there is nothing to add to a basis like that. And I can’t help noting that it’s super ironic that the only film in the trilogy that truly seems to be all about money-money-money has no “dollars” in its title.

Another thing that I think is super important: there is almost no female energy or presence in the film. And it’s not even a matter of representation that bugs me, although I think it’s very important. It just feels like there is a deficit of something vital that renders everything even sort of unrealistic. In AFOD we have Marisol and we have Consuelo Baxter, and they’re relevant for the plot, and they have goals, motivations… lines. In FAFDM we have Mary, who has only a few brief moments, but she’s memorable, endearing, and she has a small story/motivation of her own, and we also have Mortimer’s sister, who is EXTREMELY important, and who also isn’t just symbolic, she herself makes a plot-relevant decision on screen, although a really horrible one from my personal moral standpoint. In the GBU we have what? A prostitute that’s beaten up by Angel Eyes (I never watch this scene), another woman at the hotel where Blondie stays in that is shut up and called an old hag or something like it, and another woman that makes a comment about Tuco’s hanging. None of them are memorable or have motivations on their own, and to me it makes the film lacking some really important counterpoint in terms of dynamics etc.

And nobody needs me to describe all the things that the film is awesome at because everybody knows that the film is one of the best films ever made, so painfully gorgeous that it’s difficult to praise it. So, I’ll move on to the other two films but will briefly talk about Tuco and Eli Wallach.

Eli Wallach is considered one of the best actors ever to appear on film for reason, so, I’ll just say about my personal impressions from his performance: he really made me emphasize with Tuco. His acting is incredibly rich, nuanced, concentrated, and, imo, just leaves you no choice but to think of Tuco as a real complex human being, not a film character. And Tuco is a superb character. Over the course of the story he gets to be loathsome, humane, funny, silly, terrifying, and cunning, - often all those at the same time. That’s one hell of a captivating character who’s just very, very interesting to watch and to analyze, regardless whether you like him or not.

Then, we have A Fistful of Dollars. I’m a huge fan of classic adventure stories that are gen, plot-driven, and have smart main characters figuring out a way to get what they want without being destroyed by other characters for wanting or trying to get it in the first place. I think it’s very difficult and very rewarding to write a good story in this genre. AFOD is exactly this kind of story, and this kind of stories is only as good as their protagonists’ maneuvers are. And Joe is, like, a tactical genius (the barrel! the fire!). And it’s much better to rewatch the film to remind yourself of how smart he is than have me talking about it, so.

But apart from that he is also humanized by his deeply personal motivations that appear completely irrational especially in contrast to his clever manipulations of the Baxters and the Rojos. And he doesn’t do it egotistically, to “get the girl,” which wouldn’t make him particularly sympathetic one way or another. Sure, he makes a good buck at the end, but his primary motivation still is justice for Marisol and her family (and then protection of his friend). Additionally, Joe gets his fair share of punishment for providing said justice, which further humanizes him and kind of makes you worry about him. And Silvanito with his scolding, humor, and skepticism helps with it a lot, too.

And then, there is the fact that the film wants the audience to either want to be Joe or want to be with him, sometimes both at the same time. Everybody on screen is a single Joe’s wink away from swooning because how he practically oozes charisma (only Silvanito is immune to his charms). I can’t blame them, though.

And I also want to point out the last lines of the film: Joe says that he doesn’t want to get involved into politics because that would be too much for him, and I think that it’s very fitting. The film just showed how cool he is, but he knows his limits, and he knows that he operates on a different plane.

So, all in all, it’s a masterfully done story.

Finally, we have For a Few Dollars more. I love all three films, but FAFDM is my favorite, there’s no doubt about that. I’ll start with the fact that it’s perfectly structured and perfectly balanced. We have three big players, Mortimer, Manco, and Indio, and the film shows how dangerous and how smart each of them is, so that the conflict between them ends up being very, very suspenseful. Not to mention the fact that it takes Manco and Mortimer almost 40 minutes, I think, to finally properly meet – by that time we are already speculating who will be the winner in the end, how will they react to each other, how will they interact, how will they work together etc. We get to know them quite well first, and then their relationship allows us to explore their characters even deeper through their interactions, their differences, and their similarities. For some time, storywise they become a single unit. While the story of Indio’s assault on Mortimer’s sister is revealed parallel to the plot.

Indio himself is terrifying as hell without being cartoonish. He is a really dangerous, broken man that is also methodical, smart, and ruthless. He is so bad that he kills the opponent’s family just to make him bitter enough to draw on him. And he is so bad that he is okay with killing off his own gang.

Speaking of which, Indio’s gang is colorful. He has interesting interactions with them at the beginning, in that church. And Klaus Kinski made his Wild stand out to me. I swear, the moment he almost cries in that saloon when Mortimer takes away his cigar, I feel bad for him every single time. And when he recognized Mortimer, it was tense. He even had a cool witty one-liner after Mortimer said that he should come to him in ten minutes to help him light that match and smoke: “In ten minutes, you’ll be smoking in hell!”

By the way, Indio’s tendency to get unnecessarily physical with his gang looks even more unnerving when he touches Manco to check his wound/shares a smoke him with some clearly visible eroticized subtext, which gets even creepier when you realize that he is a rapist. I swear, I was worried about Mortimer when I saw the film for the second time – that is even though I knew the plot – because Manco brought up that family resemblance between Mortimer and his sister, and we all know what Indio did to her.

What else? I could bring up all sorts of things, the action, the final duel, the small smart details that allow the plot to happen the way it happens (e.g. how Manco manages to hide the bag with all the money on that tree before Indio’s gang capture him and Mortimer – only to re-collect that bag at the end of the film), the humor, the street kids and all the other cool-cool secondary characters (Joseph Egger’s informer probably is my favorite), the opening sequence and the title card (oops, already rambled about this one) really, anything and everything including the perfect chemistry between Manco and Mortimer.

But I’ll just say that the music in this film is special to me. Every single composition by Ennio Morricone is special, unique, memorable, and intriguing, it’s true, and so it feels redundant and banal to say something like this. The Ecstasy of Gold is almost extraterrestrial, the main theme of Two Mules For Sister Sara imitates actual mule sounds, how genius is that, etc., and you must be dead to not be enticed and mesmerized beyond words by the main theme of the GBU, which is a hymn of all spaghetti Westerns now, a universal call for adventure (I feel like a bad person saying this, but I’ve always wanted to joke that Ennio put sexy back into the “waah-waah”… no, I regret nothing).

BUT. To me personally, the music in FAFDM is as personal as the film itself, and dare I say even more important to the story than in the GBU, despite the theme of the GBU being a kind of Greek choir throughout the film. The personalized sounds for Manco and Mortimer accentuate their personalities to the point where they almost create a reflex in you. The pocket watch chime is literally part of the story and plays a huge, crucial role in the plot! And it’s decidedly one of the saddest musical scores I’ve ever heard. It’s minimalist, mournful, and yet also nostalgically bittersweet. It feels like a reminder that there’s no going back whatever that might mean in the actuality. And the famous moment where Manco asks Mortimer whether his question was indiscreet and Mortimer says that the answer could be… I feel personally touched whenever I watch the scene. For me, it doesn’t feel like just an amazing scene, it triggers some deep emotion that is hard to express and almost gives me the urge to cry. Something along the lines of respectful and compassionate “I’m sorry that it happened to you,” “I’m sorry that I can’t help you.” The feeling of personal tragedy is conveyed infinitely better than a three-volume backstory ever could.

And then, there is this huge potential for all the stories about Manco, and Mortimer, and Blondie, and Tuco, and Angel Eyes, and even Joe to explore... Well, I better stop here.

So, yeah. It turned out to be a crazy long post, and I‘m grateful to anybody who reads it till the end. And if you haven’t watched these movies please do. Cheers.

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thefreelanceangel · 4 years

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Tagged: Three Characters

I admit right off the bat that I absolutely suck at this game. I only ever see parallels between my characters and others long after the fact. So... This is gonna be sparse.

The Purpose: Name three characters similar to yours. {Or at least ones that share strong personality traits.}

Annalei d’Latu:

Dona Elena Atima: The originator of all my “vicious, power-hungry ladder-climbers” character is my Dark Ages Lasombra. Elena went through seven husbands, over two thousand years of surviving in the Sabbat and attained a level of near godlike power. (Methuselah, in game terms.) She’s also insanely obsessive, cannot bear to have control taken out of her hands about anything and wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone if it meant furthering her plans.

Azhrarn, Night’s Master: The titular character from Tanith Lee’s “Night’s Master” has quite a few traits I associate with Anna. Perhaps the most telling is the quote I love so very dearly for her.

“And I will love you; for such as I am, I do not give my love lightly, but once given it is sure. Only remember this, if ever you make an enemy of me, your life shall be as dust or sand in the wind.”

Cersei Lannister: I could go into a very lengthy breakdown of why Anna and Cersei are very, very similar, but a single quote from “A Dance of Dragons” by George R. R. Martin will suffice.

“She never forgets a slight, real or imagined. She takes caution for cowardice and dissent for defiance. And she is greedy. Greedy for power, for honour, for love.”

Ferazhin Mercile:

Vel Thaidis Yune Hirz: One of the main characters from “Day by Night” by Tanith Lee, she has a very similar “spoiled rich girl thrown into misfortune by her own actions” pattern going along. She also has the same arrogance that rises at all the wrong moments, complete with not wanting to face up to reality when it bites her on the nose.

Sarah Williams: The protagonist of “Labyrinth” spends the entire film learning that she has to take responsibility for herself, including making reality into what she wants rather than retreating into fantasy. It’s a lesson Ferazhin hasn’t yet learned, but her “daring to be sassy to those who can punish her for it” is certainly very much a thing.

Longing Lore: An old character of mine made for a Neverwinter Nights server, Lore very much considered herself a victim of circumstance rather than an active agent in her own life. She had some cause for it--Ferazhin really doesn’t--but certainly shares that fatalistic view with Ferazhin that “this is just how it is, I can’t possibly fix anything.”

Summer Bellmayne:

The Phouka: The main love interest from Emma Bull’s novel “War for the Oaks” is a trickster fae with smooth charm, an amazing wardrobe and a remarkable ability to be the most annoying creature on earth while flashing a brilliant smile. The pixie catte tries to emulate all of this; she’s still working on his incredible ability to toss off profoundly accurate endearments without a moment’s thought.

Jilly Coppercorn: Although Charles de Lint’s character has a much, much more traumatic background than Summer, they share the same determinedly optimistic outlook and, obviously, belief in the fae. Summer’s is slightly less impressive because, you know, she knows fae are real. They did raise her after all.

Camillo Scarabae: Tanith Lee’s Scarabae family from the Blood Opera trilogy are a rule unto themselves, and Camillo is a rule beyond that. With his ability to drop out of sight, create an entirely new life for himself and reappear in the best of health and circumstances, he’s very much in line with Summer’s ability to leave different impressions of herself behind.

Tagged by: @katalinhunter; @va1kyn; @yshai-tia

Tagging: @scarssdoesrp (I’ll tag him till he does something); @mirugaidoesthings; @janderius-ffxiv; @mining-dust; @kymeira; @lareine-kira; @gatheredfates; @sola-ffxiv; @thedarknesssings; @thorstyrh --anyone else not get tagged? Do it! This took me AGES to finish so I’m probably way behind.

#Tagged #Prompts #Annalei d'Latu #Ferazhin Mercile #Summer Bellmayne #I could only do three #my brain was wracked dry getting these #I really have the hardest time connecting my characters to anything I've seen or read

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clockvvorker · 5 years

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Therion's Past: An Insane Meta/Headcanon Post

[cracks knuckles] all right I'm taking this literally 2% seriously, almost skim seriously, but this is a very serious headcanon that I refuse to let die until squenix tells me otherwise. So, without further ado, I present:

Hornburgian Therion, Royalty Therion and Both Of Them Put Together In A Clusterfuck of Headcanons I Call Hornburgian Royalty

(Mega spoilers for the entire game, including & especially Gate of Finis!)

Some Note Before We Begin

I make use of biblical allusions and parallels between Therion of Christianity and Therion of Octopath Traveler, mostly near the end, and as neat little conjecture rather than concrete evidence towards my theories. Usually, I’ll more often than not be talking about Therion of Octopath Traveler, but if I ever feel the need to make the distinction (like when talking about both of them in the same sentence), I’ll use C!Therion for the Beast from Christianity, and OT!Therion for the Octopath Traveler character.

Like mentioned before, some of the later bits and pieces will just be conjecture and mutual allusions to add strength to arguments rather than to be held as evidence by itself, so take those with a grain of salt. The larger arguments, however.....I’m very serious about those.

I may have forgotten some things, so pardon if I have to go out and edit this to complete some thoughts that I may have left unfinished. This is close to 3,000 words long and I haven’t proofread it yet.

If you have anything to add regarding anything in this document, feel free to send it my way!

Royalty Therion; Or, The Most Likely Explanation But That's No Fun Now, Is It?

Honestly, it almost feels as though they wanted to hint at this but didn’t do it enough.

Starting off strong character-wise, we’ve got the glaring similarities between Therese and Therion, namely the fact that they’re the only known characters with ‘unnatural’ hair colors in the game- that is to say, silver (and white) hair isn’t normally found in nature, while everybody else has colors ranging from normal blond to black; ‘anime’ colored hair isn’t exactly prevalent in Orsterra. It could be coincidence, but so could everything else and so I like to interpret it as not. Instead, it could be genetics. Bloodline, a recessive gene passed down more easily through the royal family or a branch thereof. Not to mention, mind, that Therion's hair is, if not confirmed, then highly implied to be naturally white. After all, while gaining white hair from shock or mental stress has been used in anime before (my own knowledge only really extending to Allen Walker from D. Gray-Man), it's clearly shown that Therion has white hair before his ordeal with Darius, and not enough is known before their meeting to imply any shock large enough for such a biological change (as unrealistic as it is to begin with). As for hair dye....while enough can be said of a thief not wanting a hair color that sticks out like a sore thumb in the middle of Orsterra (in fact, there’s no strategic benefit, only loss, to dying his hair white), the lack of untouched roots also lends itself to the fact.

Also to note is that Therion actually shares his green eye color not with Therese but with Princess Mary, with whom Therese does also share a biological (if distant) relation.

Another thing I would like to address, while less related to their direct blood lineage, is the similarities in their name. It's mostly just convenient coincidence, but THERion and THERese both have seven letters and begin with the same four letters, albeit with different pronunciations; this could possibly lend itself to a naming trend within the family. Also, while I’ve noted time and time again that Therion is most likely derived from the name of The Beast in Christian lore, the origin of the word itself is quite literally greek for 'beast'. The hunted. Therese can also be derived from Greek. The meaning? 'Huntress'.

Hunter and hunted. The one who stayed, and the one who ran away. Everybody's names have had some sort of symbolism related to their path, however distinct (Tressa's name quite literally meaning 'third', as she is third in OCTOPATH order, and Ophilia's name is a direct foreshadowing to the death of her father and subsequent madness of her sister) or vague (Alfyn's name relating more closely to his action of chasing after the apothecary from his past, for example), and yet Therion's seems to be out of place. This could be the missing link.

Game mechanics wise, my reasoning gets iffier, but there’s still some evidence, or at least nice potential for world-building, going around. The most notable is the fact that the only known characters who wield swords in-game are trained mercenaries and knights, as well as Therion, who, as far as we know, had only traveled with Darius beginning at age 12. Other NPCs and enemy mobs preferred to use alternative weapons, namely daggers and spears. Sure, you can chalk this up to “okay but OT just needed another sword-using class to balance out the game mechanics”, but that’s no fun. Instead, I offer another explanation: Therion was formally trained in swordplay at a younger age, before he was introduced to Darius who wouldn't be able to teach him due to his own lack of training. Furthermore, because of this small time frame (roughly six years, if Therion started at the tender age of 6 as was the average for similar, real-life medieval societies), it's likely that Therion was either very gifted at swordplay to be able to learn it so quickly, pushed mercilessly by the person training him, or both- all likely assumptions for somebody with a noble birthright.

Hornburgian Therion; Or, More Fun And Also Still Plausible So Just Let Me Have This One Thing, Square Enix

Let's shift our gears here and talk geography for a minute; more specifically, I want to talk about four distinct locations related to both Therion and Hornburg. While the first two may be more obvious, Bolderfall and Hornburg itself, I'll be talking about the other two locations quite extensively as well: Saintsbridge and Riverford. While we know from the guidebook that Therion's first known location was his meeting with Darius in Saintsbridge, this also puts him in close proximity with Riverford- one of the pivotal locations, if not the most pivotal, pertaining to the Fall of Hornburg.

First, the obvious. Bolderfall and Hornburg have very similar geographic makeups; they’re both assumedly dry, arid locations with cliffs and other topologically similar features. Really, that’s all I have to say about that. There is potential for Therion having settled in an area similar to the home that he had lost in the war.

Yeah. That’s all I’ve got.

.....is what I would say, but wait, there’s more! Let’s take a look at the lower lefthand corner of the full map of Orsterra (shoutout to IGN for the high quality image).

We see that three- nay, four important points are located all in this area. “Four, but Hornburg isn’t located here!” No, I’m talking about the Orewell/Quarrycrest area where Darius betrays Therion, but that’s only important with regards to the actual story, not quite this meta, so it won’t be touched upon here.

The first place of importance is Saintsbridge, the city where Therion meets Darius for the first time. The second place, Bolderfall, where Therion begins his story path. And the third, Riverford. Now, the question here is, if Therion were from Hornburg, than how would he have ended up so far into Orsterra?

Riverford is the answer to that question. Riverford is most commonly known as the city where you fight Werner at the end of Olberic’s path; that is to say, he is the number two instigator of Hornburg’s ruin (number one being Lyblac). It’s revealed in the journals found in the Gate of Finis that, while orchestrating the fall of Hornburg, Werner also invests in the trust of ‘powerful men within Hornburg and without’. Adding onto that the fact that Werner has enough prestige and money to buy the entire city of Riverford after Hornburg falls, it would make sense for the area to also serve as an out-of-Hornburg base or otherwise sanctuary for Werner and his men before the fall.

In which case, since Riverford now has ties to Hornburg, how would Therion get there? The simplest answer is that he had arrived of his own free will. After all, Werner had been recruiting both mercenaries and ruffians alike, and a thief like Therion would surely be on Werner’s radar (granted his young age, however, this may not hold as much water). While serving under Werner, either as a ‘villain’ in his little act or as a courier or other role suited for a fleet-footed thief, there’s potential for Therion to travel back and forth between Riverford and Hornburg, therefore giving him a reason to be in both Riverford and Saintsbridge, as the next city on the road towards Hornburg (at least, considering the impassable terrain between Riverford and Marsalim).

The second answer, and I’ll go over this in the next section, is a little more extreme.

Therion was abducted.

Hornburgian Royalty AU; Or, Put On Your Pirate Hats Because We’re Sailing Into Crack Theory Territory Now Boys (Actually There’s A Lot Of Allusions And Parallels So Strap In We’re Going Meta-Diving)

Let’s put this all together, now. We’ve got Royal Therion and Hornburgian Therion. Why not both? However, while we can pull a few things from both previous headcanons - namely the knowledge of swordplay from Royal Therion and the geographical preference from Hornburgian Therion - there’s also one more story-based piece of information I want to look at.

Namely, the connection between Therion and Beowulf I, the first king of Hornburg.

I’m gonna pull these two pieces from The Records of House Ravus specifically as a basic gist of my reasoning:

“The dragonstones were bestowed upon the first Lord Ravus by the legendary King Beowulf I of Hornburg, and they have been passed down in our family ever since.”

[.....]

“It is said that the great sorcerer Odin Crossford used the power of the dragonstones to seal shut the Gate of Finis. Crossford had campaigned together with King Beowulf and aided him in the founding of Hornburg.”

There is a lot of allusion and generational referencing of the original closing of the Gate within the journals for the Gate of Finis, and this is only part of the excerpt itself. Odin Crossford, King Beowulf, and Lord Ravus are all tied into the lore behind the Dragonstones here, and we’ve obviously seen why the names Crossford and Ravus are so important (especially considering their kin also play major roles in the plot). King Beowulf gives the dragonstones to Odin Crossford to seal the Gate of Finis, and those dragonstones then go to the first Lord Ravus for safekeeping. We see that the most recent Lord Ravus (Cordelia Ravus’s father, assumedly) loses the dragonstones during a family strife, which connects the past Ravus to the future. Obviously, Graham and Kit Crossford act as two different keys to opening the Gate of Finis, which parallel Odin Crossford closing the Gate. So here we have a cyclical series of events, but there’s one thing missing. King Beowulf doesn’t have a seemingly present-day counterpart.....but who gave the dragonstones to the Ravus family?

Or a better question is, who gave the dragonstones to the Ravus family after he retrieved them all during the events of the game?

Now, we know that Cordelia is related to the first Lord Ravus through direct lineage; the same can be said for Graham (and Kit by extension) being directly related to Odin. Through this series of parallels, it also wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Therion, despite lacking a proper (known) surname, could also be related to the first King Beowulf (also without a surname, mind you, just as the late King Alfred is without a known surname) through direct blood lineage because of this parallel of roles.

I CAN ALSO GO INTO HOW THE NAME THERION, DESPITE MEANING ‘BEAST’, IS ALSO THE GREEK NAME GIVEN TO THE CONSTELLATION LUPUS, AKA THE WOLF, LIKE, Y’KNOW, IN BEOWULF, BUT I DON’T WANNA SOUND LIKE A CONSPIRACY THEORIST OR ANYTHING...........

........there’s actually a lot of real-life allusions connecting both Beowulf and Therion, including the role of dragons (although this one is shaky at best when you compare the dragon that mortally wounds Beowulf in the eponymous poem, directly opposed to the ‘dragon’ said to bestow power on C!Therion) and the role of royalty and divine power (also interesting to note that, while Beowulf from the poem is a direct king, C!Therion represents a king who is not and never was, leading back to possibly alluding OT!Therion as some sort of punished or escaped royalty). Literally all of this is pointless trivia, though, and doesn’t serve as hints or proof, but rather interesting tidbits that could lend itself to some alluded connection between the two. In other words? None of it matters, but I like to pretend it does.

Speaking of names, have you noticed the similarity between the pronunciations of Therion and Ferien, the kingdom that King Beowulf I was prince of before founding Hornburg? Because I did. It’s weird. Absolutely pointless to mention, but still really weird.

Supplement: Hornburg’s Collapse; Or, Erhardt, Darius, And Where Everything Fucking Fits

I’m not going to go into too much detail here, but with regards to specifically Hornburg Royalty, this is a hypothetical order of events; everything labeled to the furthest left is concrete canon, while every indented bullet is conjecture and theory. This is also where I go into a bit more detail about Therion’s kidnapping and subsequent arrival in Orsterra.

T-22: Therion is born

T-21: Erhardt’s village burns down

T-20: Werner forms the Black Brotherhood; this is the earliest possible moment for Erhardt to join the Black Brotherhood.

T-17: After three years of gathering intelligence, Werner begins to enact his plans; this is the earliest possible moment for Erhardt to join the royal guard.

T-17 - T-10: Somewhere in this time frame:

Hornburg falls victim to a war (civil war?)

Therion is abducted and taken to Riverford- potentially by Werner, but also potentially by Lyblac or another one of her cohorts

Therion subsequently escapes from Riverford and arrives in Saintsbridge, where he gets imprisoned

T-10: Therion meets Darius in Saintsbridge jail

T-8: Hornburg Falls

T-8 - T: Somewhere in this timeframe:

Erhardt travels to Wellspring

Olberic finds refuge in Cobbleston

T-6: Darius Betrays Therion

T: Present-Day Octopath

That leaves a ten-year gap (from T-20 to T-10, but mind you, Therion is two at the start of that gap, so it’s highly unlikely the timeframe is quite that large) for Therion to learn swordsmanship and thievery skills and ‘go missing’. Within that gap, Therion would also have to have been kidnapped, either by Werner or Lyblac. While Werner is much more active in the plot against Hornburg, it is equally likely that Lyblac is the one to ‘dispose’ of Therion; it would give reason for Therion to have been taken care of despite Werner’s lack of knowledge of the king having an heir, and would equally give reason for Therion to lack memories of being kidnapped by Lyblac, because something something goddess powers.

Takeaway; Or, Kiril Is Fucking Crazy, Seriously, You Don’t Have To Sugarcoat It, I Know Already

Nah, for real bro, I know almost all of this is based on pointless coincidences and pushpin-string evidence, but it’s something that’s been in my mind ever since I first played through the game last July. I guess I just......needed an outlet, and wanted to get this out before

And on the off chance that this is real? That somehow, no matter how small or insignificant, I managed to hit a single nail on the head with some of this conjecture and crack theory levels of reasoning?

YEAH FUCK Y’ALL, I KNEW IT THIS WHOLE FUCKIN’ TIME.

#octopath #octopath traveler #therion #c. therion #hc. therion #i know there's not much basis for hornburgian royalty therion but listen.......#i'm taking this headcanon to this hill and fucking dying there

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chaos-of-the-abyss · 5 years

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I honestly feel so disappointed about the last episode. Daenerys character and arc allowed me to overcome my worst fears and the traumas I had. I could see myself in her, I could feel a connection, and that helped me believe I could also be as strong and determined as she was. And now.. I feel so depressed. Do you think the book will be different? Will GrrM treat her with the respect such a character deserves. I need to hold on to some kind of hope.

I relate to you so much, anon. Daenerys has always been one of my favorite characters, and I’ve watched her grow for ten years. I’ve seen her evolve, become stronger, become more confident, become powerful - I’ve seen her rise to become the most powerful player on the scene and a groundbreaking character: a female character whose power doesn’t rely on her marriage to any man, a female character who isn’t vilified for being a sexually adventurous woman.

And to see Dumb&Dumber tear all that down is fucking depressing, fucking disgusting, and it makes it worse because the angle they took is so blatantly misogynistic. I mean, in my opinion, any ending with Dany dying and Jon living would be sexist, because she’s the main female protagonist; she and Jon share parallel journeys, and the woman dies while the man lives? Amazing. It’s way too common in fiction that the woman dies in order to give the male protagonist manpain and something to angst over for the rest of his life, blah blah blah. I’ll be less angry if Jon dies as well, but still…I’ll hate it if Dany dies, regardless of all circumstances.

But the way Dumb&Dumber handled it - that’s something else. I can’t even manage to complain because I cannot formulate any words over my laughter at how utterly idiotic and utterly misogynistic their plot is. Because of course Dany, who has been abused since a young age, raped, lost a husband (yes, her relationship with Drogo was severely problematic but his death still left her heartbroken), lost a son, freed slaves, hatched dragons, made peace in the cities she conquered…of course Jon refusing to give her his dick is what breaks her - in the span of a few days, no less. Of course. Missandei’s death - racist as all hell, by the way - serving as “reason” for Dany to go mad is just…okay. Naturally. Heaven forbid a woman can mourn her best friend without being driven insane in the process. I haven’t even watched episodes 8x4 and 8x5; just hearing about it is enough to make me vomit all over the floor. Fuck Dumb&Dumber. Seriously, fuck them.

Anyway, I kind of went on a rant there. Sorry, anon, I know that wasn’t what you were looking for.

As for GRRM’s ending…it’s confusing. Sometimes GRRM states that the books’ ending will be similar to the show’s, but sometimes he basically denounces and roasts the show, so…….what gives?

My fingers are crossed that the books’ ending will be vastly different. There seems to be some hope for that, but I’m afraid to get optimistic. I don’t want to be let down all over again.

Frankly, for me, any ending in which Dany dies will be a letdown, even if GRRM handles it absolutely flawlessly. The only solid reassurance I can give you is that if Dany does go mad in the books (I hope not), it likely won’t be through such a bullshitted, half-assed, idiotic plot like the one Dumb&Dumber made up.

GRRM does like to foreshadow in his books, and reading metas by @rainhadaenerys, there is quite a bit of foreshadowing that Dany will indeed live and rule. So I suggest you check out her blog if you want hope on a good ending for Dany in the books. When I was new to the fandom, I was pretty dejectedly sure that Dany wouldn’t survive, if only because of the now tiresome words: “This is ASOIAF/GOT! No happy endings!” But her blog gave me a lot of hope that Dany would live in the end.

But frankly anon, I would advise you not to get too hopeful unless GRRM fully denounces the show. Until then, I’m remaining pessimistic.

#asks #asoiaf #got #anti got #f*ck this show #f*ck d&d #daenerys targaryen #jon snow #their misogyny is staggering

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krixwell-liveblogs · 6 years

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Check out this post. Wildbow talks about his life on reddit. This explains so much about Taylor’s school experience. No Worm spoilers

This sounds interesting. I’ve frequently wondered about how Wildbow’s life shaped this story.

Let’s take a look.

Redditors who have opted out of a standard approach to life (study then full time work, mortgage etc), please share your stories. What are the best and worst things about your lifestyle, and do you have any regrets?

Well, the title is already intriguing.

Hermit writer here.

Born hard of hearing, went to a regular school. Struggled in middle school. Struggled in high school. Kids who were in my class in kindergarten were in my classes all the way through to grade ten, with the elementary/middle school and high school being a stone's throw from one another.

I kind of knew about the hard of hearing bit already. I can’t find the ask that told me about it, though (it was probably before I stopped using screenshots for asks).

So far this sounds relatively normal, except for that part. But I’m guessing he’s going to elaborate a bit on the struggles surrounding his school life and hearing problems?

In grade 10, after years of bullying and a peer group that had established who was 'in' and who was 'out' when I was knee-high, tired of struggling, I was walking down the halls and I found myself wondering when the last time I'd even opened my mouth in school was.

Oh wow.

I stopped dead in my tracks, just paralyzed by loneliness. I asked myself what the point was, couldn't come up with an answer, resumed walking, went out the side door of the school and went home.

This clearly parallels a few of the last times we saw Taylor at Winslow High.

The start of me just not going to school for that entire year. Nobody noticed.

Damn. He really did write all that from experience. It took a while for Taylor’s absence to get noted, too.

Taylor’s absence getting noted at all actually seems like a fantasy compared to this.

I got caught at the end of the year, did the same thing the next year, got caught only at the end.

What the hell sort of attendance routines did this school have? Clearly not good ones.

Ended up going to an Alternative school (Self study), proved to myself that I had it in me when I got 3 years of studying done in 8 months, won two awards... and then had to go back to my old school for what was essentially grade 13, where I struggled.

Huh. Well done.

People learn in very different ways. Some people can do this much more effectively than learning in a group. Some people are like me and can’t make themselves keep up the effort required to self study, or learn better from lectures than reading.

Some people learn by observing their surroundings while flying.

I worked retail and found it fine. But family wanted me to go to University and figure myself out.

I’m currently working retail, taking a break from the educational system and buying time to figure out what to study.

I went to University and I struggled.

Guys, I’m sensing a theme here.

I spent a long, long time trying to figure out why I struggled, why I was tired all the time, and it took a kind of confluence of events before I realized what should've been obvious. I found the social stuff hard and I was exhausted after a day of listening because I'm severely to profoundly deaf.

Oh yeah, that makes a ton of sense. It’s like how focusing is exhausting when you have trouble doing that, how reading without glasses you need tires out your eyes and brain, etc.

Honestly, it’s a little surprising that I haven’t (explicitly) met a hard of hearing character in Worm yet. Maybe later? Oh wait, there was that deaf waitress at the villain pub in Hive.

Beyond that, the 'path' just isn't for me. The systems and institutions just grind me down. The idea of a 9 to 5 is death to me. These things are built and streamlined for the average person, and between disability and a fairly extreme degree of introversion, I'm far from that average.

That is very fair. There’s definitely a brand of ableism in that system.

In the end, I stepped off the path. I'd been writing a thing online as a side project and the reception was good, so I decided to leave school earlier than planned, use the savings I had, stretch things as far as I could, and work when I could (with a family friend when he needed the help and had the cash to spare, doing some landscaping, drywall installation, house painting, all prepping houses for sale in a boom market) to stretch things further.

This would be too early for that thing online to be Worm, right?

It just occurred to me that I have no idea how old Wildbow is.

And I wrote as seriously as I could while people close to me told me that I didn't deserve to 'get lucky' and have the writing work out because I hadn't seen University all the way through, or openly expressed doubts and disappointments.

Yikes.

Fuck that noise. Writing is tons of effort!

But you know, it worked out in the end. I wrote the equivalent of 20 books in 2.4 years, wrote another 10 for my next series in the ensuing 1.2 years, and I've kept up a similar pace over the last 7 years and two months.

Especially when you’re this coddamn productive!

That’s 8.33 books a year!

I started writing mid- 2011, left school at the start of 2012, went full-time-paying-the-bills in 2014 with an income around minimum wage. I moved to a small town (no car, nothing fancy) that same year. I'm now closer to the average Canadian wage. It's been two chapters a week (2.5 if crowdfunding money is enough) since the beginning.

Oh, I suppose that means it would be Worm after all.

When was this written... huh, yesterday? Well, that explains why this hasn’t been sent to me before.

Writing being Wildbow’s only/main income makes me feel even more right about my decision to set things up so that some of the money from my Patreon goes to Wildbow. It’s not that big a portion of his income (apparently average Canadian wage is 986 CAD or 755 USD per week, and I chip in with about 3.26 CAD or 2.50 USD per week), but it’s something.

My reality: I can go a week or two without really talking to anyone that isn't a cashier.

Sounds a bit lonely in the long run, but as a fellow introvert (or maybe I’m an ambivert, in the systems where that’s actually a thing), I get it - it also does sound pretty good. Especially if you’ve got internet people to casually interact with at your own leisure.

Every two months or so I go to a relative's to dogsit while they're on vacation or to see someone for their birthday, and that gives me most of my fill of socialization and companionship.

Nice!

I don't have a car, so it's usually walking or taking the train to another city, and using public transpo there. I subsisted on a rice and beans diet for a good stretch, one $15 video game bought in a year, and my level of expenses hasn't really risen that much from that point. I eat better and buy a couple more things, but nothing major.

So I guess this would be somewhere between average and reserved?

I don’t know. Being Norwegian spoils me on these things.

60%+ of what I earn goes to savings, which gives me security when my income could fluctuate or disappear at any time.

Oh, that’s smart. I suppose writing would be a bit of a risky business, what with writer’s block, audience fluctuations, sudden drops in popularity because something you wrote didn’t go over as well as you thought it would, etc.

My schedule is entirely my own, which usually amounts to 2.5 15+ hour workdays a week and another 5-10 hours a week spent managing community, finances, and exchanging emails with tv/movie studios, publishers or startups.

I was going to talk about the long but few workdays, but tv/movie studios excuse me what

Is a TV series version of something Wildbow wrote (Worm or otherwise) a serious possibility right now?? :o

Best things - I love what I do. I love creating, I love my reader's tears, I love my readers being horrified.

This is really important. You gotta enjoy what you do.

I get to make monsters and be surprised by what my characters do. Many of my fans are just the absolute coolest people - people I'm now insanely glad to have met and include in my life. There's amazing fanart of my work out there, music, people have gotten tattoos. Tattoos. That's insane.

People have permanently, painfully painted their appreciation of your work into their bodies, Wildbow!

The bad- I'm an online content creator, and it's impossible to convey just how toxic the toxic elements of a fandom can get and how negative the negative aspects can get, and how much it can affect you.

That is true. There will always be a toxic side, and I can imagine works like Worm would attract a lot of the edgy sort.

I've seen 20 online content creators either break down or remark on the effect it has, and it's wholly accurate- and my audience isn't even ~that~ large.

Yeah, it doesn’t take that many people to start brewing fandom sides like this.

This is multiplied by the fact that writing is lonely as a profession (I know too many writers who can't even talk to their life partners about their work) and it can be hard to find perspective or balance as you take it all in, when you don't have people to communicate with.

Robert Jordan used his wife as a beta reader or editor of sorts. She was there to tell him when something he wrote didn’t quite come across, to make up for the fact that he couldn’t tell. After all, he knew what he meant by that one line.

On a similar note, some casual dating would be nice, and living in a small town for economical reasons doesn't leave me with a large dating pool, and at this point I'm not even sure if I could or should inflict myself on someone.

Oof.

There are way too many people who think like that. I hope you find happiness with someone who sees you for the good bean you are, Wildbow.

I'm healthy, groomed, I can hold a conversation, I'm just pretty set in my introverted ways.

...relatable, though.

But still, I’m pretty sure there are people out there for us, who not only tolerate but appreciate the introvert lifestyle.

Hell, both of my crushes have been very introverted, even compared to myself, so I know those people exist because I’m among them.

On another, less social note, there is the fact that as an online content creator, you can't really take breaks. Or you can, but it costs. Consistency and frequency of updates are god, and a hiatus is a death knell.

No wonder he criticized me on this that one time. In his situation, it matters a lot.

I don't even know what an effective vacation would entail, because I feel like finding my stride again would cost more than I gained from having the break. So it's been seven years and two months without a vacation, writing a short book every month.

Damn.

You deserve so many props, Wildbow.

...at some point here I started talking to Wildbow, just like I do to Taylor and other Worm characters. Well, at least this time there’s actually a chance he’s going to read this sometime, if he hasn’t dropped my blog.

I just hope he doesn’t think it’s weird that I’m liveblogging his life story.

It makes for a very strange sort of burnout, when I love it so much, I can still regularly put out some great work to acclaim and praise, but am nonetheless worn down around the edges.

That does not sound healthy.

No regrets. This is me. This is what I'm built for.

As long as you feel it’s right for you, this is good. :)

I could do with less negativity from some fans and getting regular good nights of sleep (the deafness comes with insomnia by way of terminal tinnitus), but both of those just come with the territory.

Ouch.

I feel you on the sleep front (ADD has its ways of messing with your ability to fall asleep too), but tinnitus sounds like a particularly annoying way to be inflicted with it.

I've been telling family for the last year that I'll move to a city with more going on than (as my elderly neighbor phrased it) drinking and meth, where there's classes to take, a possible dating pool, and/or activities that could break me out of my hermit shell... but my current apartment is amazing and cheap, with the nicest landlords ever. It's just in a do-nothing town. I haven't found anything remotely competitive, even taking 'cheap' off the table.

I’ve lived in small-ish towns all my life. It’s pretty nice, especially as an introvert.

So that's where I'm at.

Thank you, Wildbow. This was an interesting read. I feel like I know you a bit better now. :)

(Again, if you’re reading this, I hope it wasn’t too weird to see me liveblogging this.)

#Worm #krixwell liveblogs #Arc 14 #chapter 14.11 #14.11 bet #asks #wildbow's life #mlp:fim #i tried to keep references and jokes out of this

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twdmusicboxmystery · 6 years

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Fear 4x10: Analysis

Good morning! Who watched Fear last night? I have to say, I'm really enjoying this season, still. I thought last night’s episode was excellent! And, as a bonus, it had tons of relevant symbolism in it.

***Spoilers abound for Fear 4x10. Don’t read until you’ve watched! You’ve been warned!***

Let's first talk about the broad stuff. Alicia ends up at the cabin or house. It's very much like a lot of the places we've seen before. There are a lot of things that reminded me of the moonshine shack, and also the cabin Carol, Tyreese and the girls went to in 4x14.

Remember last week when I said it seemed like the group would be split up for the B part of the season and we’d have individual episodes about each group? Did I call that or what? This episode was about Alicia and Charlie, and the next episode will (based on the trailer for next week) be about Morgan.

If you want to see this as a repeat of Beth and Daryl at the moonshine shack (and you probably will as I go along) then Alicia would be Daryl and Charlie would be Beth. My reasoning on that is just that Alicia is the more angry, surly one, and Charlie is the more sad, weepy one. Between the two, Alicia is also the stronger and more capable. In a minute I'll show some dialogue but also supports this.

So, when she gets there, Alicia finds four walkers in the house. Two men and two women. This was meant to be the family that lived there. Father, mother, son, daughter. The son and daughter were at least teenagers, if not adult age. So, the family all died in the house together.

In terms of Alicia, that would've reminded her of her family a lot. Before the apocalypse happened, it was Madison, Travis, Alicia, and Nick. I think that's why she threw the pictures out. She couldn't stand the reminders of a family she once had and no longer does. But everything about this is symbolism we've seen before. There is a very obvious example of the Bethyl side-by-side walker theme.

In this case, there were two men and two women. I'm not sure what to make of that exactly, but it's interesting. I don't think we've ever seen an example of two men and two women side-by-side like this in regular TWD. But I'm wondering if the other couple (besides Bethyl) could be John Dorey and June. So maybe they're doing to show there are now two couples, one on each show, that are following the same symbolism? Just an idea.

The photos themselves reminded me of Sasha in 5B. Remember, she used the photographs as target practice? Even though what happened was a little different, in both cases these women (Sasha and Alicia) were in pain and couldn't stand to see pictures of happy families around them. Even what was in the pictures was mildly suspicious to me. A lot of them were taken at the beach, which plays into the beach theme of this episode. But I noticed one was the little boy playing baseball (Negan?) And there is also one at an amusement park, kinda like one Rick and Michonne went to in S7. And there were other ones that had water in them.

I will also say that there were several things in this that made me think Alicia was being somewhat paralleled with Rick as well. There was a part where she looked at herself in the mirror, which reminded me of Rick getting to Alexandria in 5B. We also saw her silhouette against the light several times, which they did with Rick S8.

Later in the episode, Alicia goes out to look at the four walkers she dragged out and Charlie has wrapped them in shrouds. I noticed that three of them were dark and one was white. I'm not sure exactly how to interpret that, but it's the black/white theme that we see around Beth and Daryl a lot (X). I wonder if it's something like three deaths and one resurrection? Or could be connected to the St. Nicholas/pickle story which is three resurrections. I'm not sure. But I thought it was super-interesting.

At one point, there's something dead in the fireplace. It had been stuck in the chimney and fell when Alicia was cleaning it out. I couldn’t tell what it was at first, but I’m fairly sure it was a dead bird. That’s kinda huge! 1) It’s literally a bird surrounded by ashes. So, Phoenix theme. 2) Even more than that, remember that in 4x11, Carl saw a dead bird in the pudding house.

I’ve ALWAYS thought that was a foreshadow of Beth. Dead bird = Beth before she’s resurrected. If that dead bird had just been about Carl’s death, it wouldn’t still be a thing now. (This shot from S4 also includes a bird cage. Remember the bird cage in Beth’s cell in 4x01.)

Alicia apologizes to it and says, "I'm trying." The trying theme was especially big in TWD S5. I’m not sure what to make of the fact that she’s apologizing to it, but I’m sure it’s symbolic in some way.

On TTD, they said the family was supposed to have asphyxiated because the fireplace was clocked. So the dead bird actually killed the family. Also highly symbolic. Think of it this way: Beth’s death “killed” Daryl emotionally. In other instances of the side-by-side theme, Karen’s death “killed” Tyreese emotionally. So it’s very interesting that this bird literally killed the family in this case

In TTD, they also talked about the bird Madison talked about in 4x08. That’s what it was about for Alicia. But it all goes back to the bird symbolism from S4. And remember, who is the song bird?

This is probably the thing that made my jaw dropped the most. When she's trying to start a fire, she burns something that says "Rottweiler" on it.

Remember that Emily was rumored to be filming scenes at that white cabin with a Rottweiler. Wouldn’t it be crazy if those missing scenes from season five showed up in fear instead of in TWD? That would be insane! But this does seem to be foreshadowing something with a Rottweiler on Fear and having to do with Alicia.

While we’re on the subject, there were at least two other dog symbols that I saw in the house. (Sirius/Dog Star theme). When Alicia first enters the house, there's this plaque that has a dog and a paw on it.

It was also featured on TTD. The fat that it says “Rotty” made me think of the fact that at Grady, they called walkers “Rotters.” Perhaps another rottweiller clue we totally missed?

Then here in the background, I think this might actually be a picture of two Rottweilers. It's unclear, so I can't be sure, but that's what it looks like to me. See why I’m excited?

This house also had a lot of canned food in it. That's similar to both the funeral home from Alone and also from Carol and Tyreese's cabin in the Grove. It also reminds me a lot of the cabin we saw on the Red Machete miniseries.

Just cans of food out on the counter.

Alicia picks a green one and a blue one. It doesn't show us the labels on either one of them, so obviously what’s in the cans isn’t terribly important for us to know. But the color scheme is there. I also noticed that in this part, there's a water bottle on the left that says Green Valley Springs.

When Alicia finds Charlie in the house, she tries to leave because she doesn't want to end up hurting Charlie.

The sequence with the car was really strange. Alicia had the keys and tried to open the car door, but for some reason, the door stuck. I watched it several times and I'm still unclear on why the door wouldn't open. There is what looks like some sort of strap on the inside of the door, and I thought maybe it was some sort of bungee cord holding the door shut. Looking more closely, I honestly think that might just be decoration on the door. The door randomly wouldn't open and as a result, Alicia ended up with a mild head injury.

It just smacks of Beth to me. I'm not sure if we should be interpreting it literally—like something about Beth being left behind in the car had to do with the door not opening—or if it's more just the "please associate cars with head injuries" kind of thing. I don't know, but that seemed really suspicious to me.

Of course the cabin has the Grady lighting, where the inside is dark but light is coming in from the outside. We also see pictures of plants in the laws, which I think we seen before in a few different places in TWD. (Btw, on TTD, Chris Hardwick said we should be looking at the lighting, the pictures and things in the background, the shots, etc. So we’re totally justified in reading into this stuff. ;D)

Onto the dialogue. Charlie wants to save the pictures. Alicia is against it. I thought this was a really interesting way to do this theme. Alicia keeps telling her that the people are gone. (“Just gone” theme) and saving the pictures won’t bring them back. To which Charlie replies, "You don't know that!"

Exactly what Beth said. So once again, Charlie equals Beth and Alicia equals Daryl. The Alicia later says, "No one's gone until they're gone. And "When they're gone, they're just gone." Another Daryl line.

Remember that the “just gone” line specifically means that someone is not dead, but just missing. Daryl said it about Beth in 4x16. Also, 4x08 of Fear where Madison “died” is called “No One’s Gone.” So we’re seeing this a lot and to me it always means that someone who is presumed dead is not truly dead and will return.

The candlelight dinner Alicia and Charlie share reminded me of both Beth and Daryl’s in Alone and Carol and Tyreese in 4x14. We’ve seen other similar candlelight dinners as well, but none quite as potent as those two.

The basement was flooded, which reminded me a lot of the food bank in 5x02. At one point, Alicia has flashbacks to Nick and Madison's deaths.

That reminds me a lot of Sasha in 5x13, when she flashed back to Bob, Tyreese, and Beth's deaths. But it occurred to me that we actually have kind of an opposite thing going on here from Sasha. I found this episode to be very powerful. Charlie and Alicia, much like Beth and Daryl, came out of it in a much healthier emotional place. They found forgiveness and healing.

That was not the case for Sasha. At least not when she had her flashbacks. She was a great deal of pain and having the flashbacks did not heal her. So, kind of an antiparallel there, but still similar to S5.

The walker in the tree. This is pretty huge too. There's a walker impaled on a tree outside the upper window of the house, which Charlie keeps looking at. We can only assume it got there because the wind picked it up and flew through the air and it ended up being impaled on the branches of the tree. I wondered while watching it, if perhaps we could relate that to Beth in some way. It occurred to me that this was a type of crucifixion. The walker was up on the tree, just hanging there. It's not uncommon for Christ's cross to be referred to simply as a tree because it was made of wood. But I also wondered if I was reaching. Looking at something that wasn't there.

Then, near the end of the episode, that walker fell out of the tree and onto the basement door. Apparently, that made it possible for Alicia to push the door open and for them to get out. Honestly, I'm not entirely sure how that was supposed to work. The door was chained from the outside, and I'm not sure how the walker falling on it actually freed them. It could be that it's weight, and possibly the weight of a tree branch simply broke the chain. Still a little unlikely if you ask me, bordering on unrealistic. It doesn't actually bother me, though. I think the whole point is the symbolism.

Because Christ is seen as the Christian savior, I think it's important that this walker was hanging on a tree, and then ended up being the thing that saved them. There are some major Christian themes in this episode. And does this point it Beth? I don't know. It might. We have the Rottweiler references and now a reference to someone who was crucified. (Remember that Beth wore the cross bracelet at Grady to show that it was her crucifixion and Father Gabriel talked about how one of their own was “sacrificed”) will save them. I hope it refers to Beth. It may be more of a Christian theme than anything else, but Beth has also been set up as the Christ figure in TWD. So either way, it makes me pretty excited.

It's also worth noting that when Alicia shot the crucifixion walker, she shot it exactly where Beth was shot.

A look! A bunch of burials. Alicia buried a bunch of walkers that nobody actually knew or cared about. And who that we did know and care about didn't get the burial?

This brings me to another theme that we saw both in 4x13 and 4x14. Charlie said she wanted to leave the photos for anyone who might come later. That theme really came together for me at the end. After burying the walkers, Alicia said she done it for the people who might come later. I mean, this cabin could BE the cabin that Carol and Tyreese went to. It's not, but in that case someone else came before them and buried the people they found there. So when Ty and Carol got there, there were already graves on the property. Alicia’s set up was like a prequel to that. She stayed in the house, and ended up bearing the people she found there

This theme was also in 4x13 because Beth wanted to leave the thank you note in case anyone came back. It's a theme about doing something, leaving a message for anyone who might come after them.

I think it's a really interesting and powerful theme. Oh, and there's the “friends and family” sign behind the graves. Almost as if to show that friends and family always get burials.(Sorry this pic is a little blurry. My internet connection was being a chump at the time.)

Alicia passes the weapon her signature weapon to Charlie. Kind of reminded me of Daryl giving Beth his crossbow.

Alicia and Charlie are now looking for the others. Just as Beth and Daryl did in 4B.

I’m not going to say too much about the beach theme. It does suggest something about the coast, and possibly Oceanside, but I'll leave it at that.

Alicia drives back to Strand’s mansion but everybody is gone. I did notice one thing that I didn't notice last week. I don't know if we never got this angle or if I just missed it, but there is a black and white horse artwork over the mantle.

The school bus is now on its side. We know from last episode that nobody was actually there when that happened. John and Strand are out looking for someone and Luciana went chasing after Charlie. Meanwhile June and Al are in Al’s truck. But the overturned truck reminded me a lot of 5x05 when the short bus crashes. Even in 4x10, Inmates, the bus wasn't on its side, but Maggie, Sasha, and Bob did find the bus wrecked on the side of the road.

And back to the “just gone” theory. At the end, Alicia tells Charlie that the others are “gone.” Once again, this is an example where we (the audience) KNOW the other characters are still alive. Alicia and Charlie don’t know it, but we do. And they’re being described as “gone.”

I think that's all I have for now. This is structurally REALLY feeling like a mirror of TWD 4b, and that’s where Bethyl first happened, so it gives me tons of hope. I really loved this episode and Fear is really given me the TD tingles lately. How did everyone else like the episode?

#beth greene #beth greene lives #beth is alive #beth is coming #td theory #td theories #team delusional #team defiance #beth is almost here

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