dr. freeman,,,,,

james farrow analysis (+ oliver and richard as they relate to him)

so last night i stayed up until 2 am messaging with my friend about iwwv, and what is tumblr for if not posting your 2 am ramblings. (i’ve streamlined and expanded on them a bit.)

massive spoilers for the whole book under the cut.

(edit: i realize now that the cut doesn’t show up on mobile, sorry 😬)

part i - james farrow + heroism

james’s casting archetype is the hero/lover/prince, but he actually subverts tropes of traditional heroism/heroic characters.

he doesn’t really have classic heroic traits. he’s not really brave, he’s slight of build, he’s intelligent yet manipulative.

he doesn’t really fall in love with the ingenue, wren. he sleeps with her, but more than anything, he does it to make oliver jealous. and i didn’t read his protectiveness of her as something that comes from a place of romantic love. you’re welcome to disagree, of course, because that’s a bit ambiguous, but most of the squad is protective of wren. james isn’t unique there. we see oliver and even richard, in his own way, feeling protective towards her. it’s not really an indicator that he loved her.

he falls into the trope of the hero killing the tyrant (richard), but it’s not a heroic action when he does it. it’s not a noble slaying. it’s the desperate act of a cornered animal.

he has what you might call a “hero complex”, a need to save and protect everyone. but this backfires hugely. his need to protect wren leads to him going into the woods to find richard, which, as we know, ends up with richard dead in the lake. his need to save oliver (and his own guilt over not having been able to save him) leads to the deterioration of his mental state, even to the point where he feels the need to disappear.

part ii - james farrow + villainy [buckle up, this is a long one]

here’s where it gets interesting. there are a lot of moving parts here:

he says he wants more variety on his resume, to not play heroes and lovers and princes all the time.

in gwedolyn’s class, he says he immerses himself in every character he plays, but can’t always find himself again afterwards.

he gets cast as macbeth.

he gets cast as edmund, the villain in king lear.

over the course of acts iv and v, he goes slightly insane.

james’s casting in the role of macbeth is arguably the inciting incident. it’s the root cause of richard going off the rails. it’s also the first time he plays a villainous character (macbeth is the tragic hero, sure, but when i say “villain” i mean it in the moral sense), and it virtually intoxicates him.

being cast in the role of edmund is not, of course, the only thing wearing on his sanity throughout acts iv and v. but it doesn’t help either. he says, “i want to hurt the whole world.” ultimately, this stems from his trauma from killing richard, but it’s no coincidence that he got himself cast as edmund while in this state. he wants to hurt the whole world, as james, and by immersing himself in edmund, he finds rhyme and reason for it.

not only that, but it’s through edmund and lear in general, through the vessel of villainy and tragedy, that he’s the most honest before his confession. in act v, scene ii, he gets drunk and desperately tries to talk to oliver through lear. there’s a lot to unpack in this scene, but here are some of the highlights:

“they’ll have me whipp’d for speaking true; thou’lt have me whipped for lying, and sometimes i am whipp’d for holding my peace.”

i’ve never read lear, so i can’t contextualize this in the play, but it’s very relevant to james. he’ll be punished (sent to prison) for confessing, but oliver can’t take any more lies.

“‘where is the villain, edmund?’ i asked. he smiled crazily and echoed, ‘“where is the villain, edmund?” a pause for punctuation, yes? but not the playwright’s - commas belong to the compositors. “where is the villain edmund? here, sir, but trouble him not - his wits are gone.”’

james isn’t really talking about edmund here, of course. he’s talking about himself, calling himself a “villain” and admitting he’s gone more than a little crazy with guilt and fear (“his wits are gone.”) he thinks he can’t be saved. but his hero complex and archetype are still important here. he’s been deemed the hero for years, and now all of a sudden he’s committed murder. his complex, his need to save everyone that in part stems from the role he’s been given for his whole career, is at war with his new belief that he himself cannot be saved.

“‘no less than all - and more, much more. the time will bring it out!’ he wrenched his arm away and smoothed the front of his shirt, as if he were trying to wipe his hands clean. ‘some blood drawn on me would beget opinion / of my more fierce endeavor.’”

clearly, this is a reference to richard’s death. james knows he’s running out of time, and soon enough his secret will be revealed one way or another. it also shows his guilt: he’s trying to “wipe his hands clean”, presumably of figurative blood, and he thinks he deserves to be hurt for his “more fierce endeavor” e.g. killing richard.

part iii - james + richard + oliver + royalty

princes fall into james’s archetype along with heroes and lovers.

kings fall into richard’s archetype along with tyrants and conquerors.

in the woods, richard repeatedly calls james “little prince”, placing james “below” richard in both literal and figurative stature.

after james’s confession, oliver says “worthy prince, i know’t” to him onstage even though he’s supposed to say that line to camilo.

he’s reclaiming the word from richard, in a sense, and telling james that no matter what he’s done, he’s still a “worthy prince”. he means everything to oliver despite the fact that he’s a murderer, and despite the fact that he himself doesn’t believe he’s noble anymore (though he desperately wants to be). it’s quite literally a love language for oliver, and perhaps the closest he comes to a declaration of love.

part iv - james + richard + oliver + the water [this is also a long one]

richard wants to see james drowned, and oliver is the only one preventing this.

the first appearance of this motif is on halloween, when richard tries to drown james in the lake.

this foreshadows james’s eventual fate. whether or not he truly drowned in the end is, of course, a point of contention. for the purposes of this analysis, i won’t take a position on whether or not james is alive, and i will address it with the same ambiguity that canon gives it. however, regardless of whether or not james is alive by the end, it’s undeniable that he went under the water, and in a sense, it was richard that dragged him under. filippa says, “it was the guilt, oliver.” and once oliver isn’t there to comfort him, enable the two of them to forget richard for a little while, it’s only a matter of time before his guilt weighs him down so much that he feels the need to disappear from his own life. even if he’s not dead, he’s certainly not james farrow anymore, wherever he might be.

james reveals that richard kept pushing him towards the dock. it’s unclear if he really intended to drown james or even push him in the water, but it’s not unlikely that this was his intention.

in the dock scene (act iii, scene i), james tries to dive into the water to save richard’s life, and oliver stops him. but oliver goes into the water himself in that scene (to make sure richard’s dead before they call the police). this parallels how in the end, oliver will turn himself in and falsely confess to save james.

finally, there’s the epilogue. when filippa tells oliver “james is gone”, oliver sees richard’s ghost again. “there he sits, in lounging, leonine arrogance. he watches me with a razor-thin smile and i realize that this is it - the denouement, the counterstroke, the end-all he was waiting for. he lingers only long enough for me to see the gleam of triumph in his half-lidded eyes; then he, too, is gone.”

this is the confirmation: from oliver’s perspective, at least, richard has always, always wanted to drown james. it was certainly his intention at halloween. while to us, it’s unclear whether or not that was his intention at the dock, oliver believes it was. so he sees richard’s ghost again and gets a final confirmation of what he’s always believed. richard, as oliver sees him, is finally satisfied.

but we’re not done. how could i be, without addressing the pericles in the room?

disclaimer: i’ve never read pericles, so as with lear, i’m not going to contextualize the monologue contained in james’s “suicide note” in the play as a whole. that’s a separate analysis, albeit an interesting one i’m sure, for someone with more shakespeare knowledge than me. (although i have read caesar, so i might analyze iwwv and caesar some time in the future.)

“alas, the sea hath cast me on the rock / wash’d me from shore to shore, and left me breath / nothing to think on but ensuing death.”

right from the outset, we see that james might be alive. he’s been “wash’d [...] from shore to shore, and left [...] breath”. the water has transformed him (to use a christian metaphor, almost like a kind of baptism. i think. i’m Extremely jewish so i might be using that wrong.) but not necessarily killed him.

death consumes james’s thoughts, and it likely has since he killed richard seven years earlier.

“what i have been i have forgot to know; / but what i am, want teaches me to think on: / a man throng’d up with cold: my veins are chill, / and have no more of life than may suffice / to give my tongue that heat to ask your help; which if you shall refuse, when i am dead, / for that i am a man, pray see me buried.”

all the life has slowly been sucked out of him since he killed richard to the point where he’s little more than a shell of a man by 2004, so he decides to disappear into the water. again, whether or not he’s dead, he’s clearly not living the life of james farrow anymore, wherever he may be. so he’s disappeared. he may not be dead, but james farrow, the identity if not the man, did drown in that freezing water.

and yet, he has just enough of a will to live, just enough of a desire to be known (and perhaps loved) that he writes this note and puts oliver’s name on the envelope. he’s not ready to drown just yet. maybe the water didn’t care and drowned him anyway. but maybe, just maybe, it saved him.

part v - conclusion/author’s notes

if you stuck around all the way here, to the end, wow. thanks for suffering through my ramblings. seriously, thank you. and congratulations i guess.

i tried to write a tl;dr, i’m sorry, i failed. i know my strengths, and conciseness isn’t one of them.

i do wanna say this, though: james farrow is not a good person. neither is he a bad person. iwwv does not deal in moral absolutes, or really any absolutes at all. and i do feel like we as a reader base and fanbase don’t always do the best job at acknowledging james’s moral complexity. (or oliver’s, or meredith’s, but that’s another post for another time.) this is not a direct callout to anyone in particular, nor is it an attack. it’s really just meant to be food for thought.

SO i just finished wonder egg priority and i think that with confidence i can say it has been one of my favorite animes like... ever ?? and not even from hyperfixation or obsession over it just... its so fucking real yet so simple in a way that i havent rlly seen shown in any other shows you feel ??

but first i wanna talk about how sexy the art and animation is real quick... HOMIE ITS SO GOOD LIKE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT JUST... serotonin... the characters are all so unique and iconic and fun but not over the top in their designs yknow ??? they seem like regular every day girls but they stand out and theyre all sO CUTE !!!! also i love how the style is like this soft bubbly slice of life lookin stuff with bright happy colors and the most beautiful scenes you could find but they also have the SICKEST fight scenes complete with whimsical animal helpers and terrifying villains and crazy weapons unique to each character. and the animation. god DAMN shawty i am obsessed with everything in this show. i might make a post solely about the art later lol bc i wanna get into the other stuff.

so the themes in the show right ?? it starts just as this cute lil magical girl kinda deal but within the first episode we see that like.. oh damn... thats kinda heavy... tbh i was a little shocked and thought about stopping bc yknow bad mental health BUT i was so intrigued that i had to keep going and i am SO GLAD that i did. because this show just so beautifully discusses all these heavy topics in such an eloquent and artistically expressive way. and also like, , the juxtaposition of the charming childlike vibe with bright colors and 14 yr old girl protagonists against the dark themes of suicide and so much else,, i think is just perfect. bc a lot of heavy animes are more of the seinen genre and have some middle aged dude as a protag or make the entire color palette dim or offer little relief to the pain of these heavy themes right ?? but NO not wonder egg bitches B) because these problems arent just things that ppl face later in life or just problems that need to be talked about among adults or the edgy seinen watching squad,, these are REAL problems that face people of every age, gender etc and i think its awesome that wonder egg addresses that. some may cringe at the thought of their high schooler watching animes that discuss sexual harassment, suicide, abuse, self harm, eating disorders etc,, but in reality it is the most comforting thing i have ever come across and is basically jsut free anime therapy. because not only does wonder egg present these themes to the viewers as something real that happens to all kinds of people (making said people feel heard in a way that maybe they hadnt before), but it also makes sure to vanquish all of these forms of trauma. and the way the trauma is vanquished isnt always beautiful and it isnt always just magically gone with a poof. the struggles of overcoming or living with that sort of thing are shown in such a real and relatable way that addresses every hardship trauma survivors have to go through. and i just. god i cry bro. 

oh m y GOD and the lgbtq+ rep in this show ?? like shawty... as soon as i saw episode one i was picking up on some gay/lesbian themes but then again im sapphic and project that a lot so i tend to see that sort of stuff like... everywhere... but NE WAYS... episode ten made me FUKCING CRY BRO LIke i cant believe there was a whole trans character with a whole trans pride hoodie like LKGHKDGH my heart is just so.. so fucking full thinking about him. bc like yeah i know there are trans characters in anime but i feel like theyre always very ambiguous about actually being trans or not or erased or portrayed as a harmful stereotype or theyre constantly misgendered and still refered to as their assigned gender at birth and i hate it. HOWEVEr... Kaoru.. *chefs kiss* it was so amazing to see a character straight up say “yeah im trans” in such a casual yet powerful way bc i personally have never seen that before. and i love love loved how he went into his backstory and talked to momoe about gender bc i think thats what she rlly needed and that it helped her find herself and it makes me so happy oh my god,, and the way they talked about it never seemed forced or like it was the focal point of his existence yknow ?? like yeah he existed to help momoe overcome some of her trauma but he also just existed to be HIM yknow ?? also... personally, i headcanon momoe as a trans girl even though i dont remember it being explicitly stated plus the school scenes of her and stuff would seem like they suggest otherwise ??but,,, SHAWTY THE AMOUNT OF SUBTEXT and her complicated relationship w gender is... something i feel like a cis girl would not go through so harshly yknow ?? with all of the questioning and feeling detached from femininity or feeling like ppl dont see her as an actual girl and only like her as a guy or for her masculine traits,,, but dont take my word on this bc i myself am a cis girl but that was just my take on it as someone in the lgbtq+ community trying to educate myself on the transgender community :) either way,, wonder eggs portrayal of momoe and kaoru and the way that momoe becomes so passionate about expressing herself the way she wants to as a girl is just... good lord im gonna cry its so perfect,,,.so ... i just love this show way too much. i also am honestly super lost about the relationship btwn acca and ura-acca ?? bc i was gonna mention ura-acca as a canonically gay guy bc when i was watching i interpreted ep 11 as him being in love with acca and being jealous of Azusa (bc i mean,, they lived together (i swear to god there was only one bed in that apartment) and had a daughter together and def loved each other and also when Frill said they were husbands and then when ura-acca said he wasnt attracted to azusa but he was def jealous of their relationship ??) but then i saw somewhere that theyre brothers ?? which would make sense ig since they look kinda similar and accas daughter called ura-acca “uncle”.. but at the same time its ANIME SO THEY ALL LOOK SIMILAR and referring to gay couples as siblings is an EXTREMELY common euphemism soooo... IM JUST LOST HERE... but yeah i tried doing research and found different things so i cant say anything for sure >:( however,,, if they are canonically a lil fruity for each other... when frill refered to acca as ura-accas husband i imploded dude you never hear that sort of wording in anime.. but if theyre related i am so sorry. 

god this is so much longer than i planned it to be oops but i also love the theme about like.. relying on friends to help carry your weight but at the same time not becoming completely dependent on those friends and using their support to learn how to love yourself and rely on yourself yknow ?? bc that is exactly what healthy friendships look like. bc i think ai sort of had a codependency thing goin on with koito maybe ?? but now she has a whole squad of funky friends that are so so different but all struggle with different kinds of trauma and although they fight over it, they always get through it with each other together. and they push each other no matter what to be the best versions of themselves and they teach other that getting hurt is okay because theyre always gonna be there to pick up the pieces no matter what happens. they can give each other space when they need and adapt to meet each others needs but theyre always able to balance it out with their own needs and thats such a beautiful thing in friendships especially at their age like damn i wish i had that maturity when i was 14 but no all i had was depression. another thing is that through these friendships you get to see all the different sides of each girl; you get to see them being strong or a shining light to their friends when theyre hurting but you also get to see them being hurt and weak and allowing themselves to be on the receiving end of the comfort. their friendships allows them to have weaknesses but it also allows them to highlight their strengths and thrive off of each others. I LOVE FRIENDSHIP DUDE

next i wanna briefly mention some of the themes connected to suicide that ive noticed. a big one is the survivors guilt that ai feels once koito is dead. several times she screams that she wishes she couldve gone with koito and she dreams of a “perfect world” where they committed a double suicide. one of the main reasons for her troubles is that she blames herself for koitos death and feels like it should be her thats dead... but at the same time she feels like too much of a coward to do anything now that koito is gone. she just has all these complex and contradicting feelings that wear away at her in ways that ppl that havent gone through the suicide of a loved one could never imagine. a lot of the times when things like this are portrayed in media i feel like its more in a way thats meant to guilt trip those that have taken their own lives and paint suicide as this selfish sin thats unforgivable but... not only does wonder egg reject that idea and instead portray it as a heartbreaking tragedy with,,, so so many terrible reasons, but it focuses on the feelings of ai separate from koito without blaming her in any way. not once did i feel like the show antagonized koito or that ai blamed koito for doing any of this, but they simply mourned her loss and touched on ais reaction towards the event but separate from koito herself if that makes sense. and i think that discussing survivors guilt without painting koito as the bad guy is something so beautifully done in wonder egg that can really resonate with those that have lost a loved one to suicide and have struggled with these same things.

okay i think this is the last thing ill mention,,, but HOMIE THE PARALLEL UNIVERSE BIT AT THE END. I AM. OBSESSED. i am such a whore for anything about the multiverse okay n e ways...,, not only did this make a super epic trippy ending of season one and add a little bit more magical girl whimsy to the show,, but it had such a powerful message. from the perspective of og ai,, finding out that you killed yourself in another world is... i mean its definitely not a surprise but at the same time it rlly makes you think how close og ai herself couldve been to that point and what decisions led her out of that dark place in her life. if i were in her shoes i would be terrified and id cry bc the thought of going back to such a dark place and actually going through with something like that is my worst fear and probably something that ai fears too. but at the same time,,, think from the perspective of ai two !!! like yeah its true that theres this awful terrible version of ai that dies but theres also a whole version of ai that is a superhero magical girl fighting off monsters to save countless ppls lives !! and she has a badass lizard and a gang of awesome friends !!! at first i was worried that ai two would be jealous of og ai and compare herself to her and feel inferior but like.. THEYRE LITERALLY THE SAME PERSON AND CAPABLE OF THE SAME THINGS !!! and ai two realized that !! just within the span of one episode, she went from the version of ai who took her life,, to the version of ai jumping in front of a friend to take a bullet for them and save their life. and that just inspired THE SHIT OUT OF ME. i think that ai was sent another version of herself to sort of beat her own worst enemy yknow ?? those doubts and fears that shes no good or that shes that same bystander from episode one and that she hasnt changed at all. but getting to interact with her parallel self and see her grow was just what she needed to realize that while yeah sometimes the worst thing can happen and things can be terrible but on the other hand sometimes the most wonderful thing imaginable can happen because she has the power to do either. 

so im gonna go ahead and stop rambling bc i got all my thoughts out that i wanted to for this post :D but yeah lol i might make another if i feel like it sometime. long story short: this show is perfect and it is going on my favorite of all times.

Why Us? Why Now? Why Ever?

In a post apocalyptic world where walkers took over the living, Era realised that she was different from every one else. Wanting to uncover the reasons to her differences, she embarked on a journey to the West where she met a few Strays,, including a man named Hwang Hyun Jin who, just like her, was cold, hot headed, and full of distrust. She thought they would never get along, but what happens when the two cold hearts start to melt?

STRAY KIDS ZOMBIE AU // WUWNWE MASTERLIST

Chapter 4 ~ “See? It’s simple.”

prev // next

The walk through the forest was thankfully quiet. We didn’t bicker like we usually did, letting the soft crunch of the dried leaves under our feet be the only sounds we could hear.

My steps were halted by Hyunjin’s grasp on my arm, pulling me back harshly. There were no signs of walkers, not even a movement in the forest, so I turned to him, a confused and slightly annoyed look on my face. I was not pleased with the sudden and rough physical contact.

He pointed to the ground just in front of me, revealing a thick brown rope which tied into a snare knot, easily camouflaged in the dried leaves. The rope led up to a tree, creating some kind of trap for whoever stepped in it.

“Walker trap.” Hyunjin explained, “We have these all around camp thanks to Seungmin’s brain.”

I nodded, muttering a small ‘thanks’ as I stepped aside to walk past the so-called ‘walker trap’.

Walking deeper into the forest, I made sure to watch out for the slightest hints of ropes in the ground, not wanting to be hauled up in the air like the zombies we had come across. The walker trap caught the ankles of anyone who stepped foot in it, dragging them to hang upside down from the tree.

Hyunjin had his dagger out, easily stabbing any walker that fell prey to the trap in its skull, before disposing of it and resetting the trap back in its original place. 

It really made me curious as to what the boy went through when the apocalypse hit. He didn’t seem shocked to see any walker in his way, as he had the same undeterred look on his face when he put an end to each of them. Not shocked. Not scared. Unbothered. 

I hadn’t even realised that I had been staring at him from the back. And I didn’t realise he would notice, proving me wrong when he let out a sigh, “Why do you keep staring?”

Flustered, I quickly muttered out the first plausible explanation, knowing that I was caught red handed, “I’m sorry for cutting you,, and you know trying to kill you.”

His cheek still bore the cut that I placed on him during our first meeting, scabbed. A corner of his mouth twitched as he raised his brow towards me, “I didn’t know you were capable of apologising.”

“Well,, you don’t know a lot of things about me.”

“Yeah? Let’s keep it that way.” Hyun Jin replied, causing my face to flush red in anger and embarrassment. Here I was, apologising to a jerk like him, and yet, he continued to be a jerk. I shook my head, knowing that I should just accept the fact that Hyunjin and I will never be more than acquaintances who can’t stand each other.

“Jackpot.” I exclaimed, immediately forgetting my anger as I spotted the small prints of an animal deepened into the mud. “One’s close by. Stay quiet.”

Following the tracks, I set down a handful of corn on the ground.

“Bait?” Hyunjin asked. I nodded, “Better to shoot it when it has its guard down.”

We stationed ourselves behind a bush, a distance away from the bait we had just placed, far enough to not scare our meal, but close enough for me to get an accurate shot. After a long and dreadful silence, the deer came into view, sniffing the bait we’d placed.

With my bow ready and arrow in place, I aimed, taking a deep breath. In. Out.

Remember, Era. Aim, Breathe, Shoot

I relaxed myself, closing my eyes as I recalled his face. His hazel brown eyes. The wrinkles that would form when he smiled. My shoulders relaxed the way they always did as and I opened my eyes, releasing the arrow.

The deer let out a squeal as the arrow hit just inches away from its fatal spot. Immediately, I aimed for another shot, shooting it directly through its eyes and causing it to fall fatally to the ground.

“Impressive.” Hyunjin remarked as we walked towards the prey I just caught.

I turned to him, a small proud smile on my face, “I didn’t know you were capable of complimenting.”

He shrugged his shoulders, helping me tie the legs of the deer together, “You don’t know lots of things about me, Era.” He said, imitating me.

Rolling my eyes, I busied myself with tying the rope as replying him with the same comment he made previously would be too cliché. Also, the comment would’ve been untrue, given that my curiosity actually wants to know more about him even if the two of us can’t stand each other. I mean, keep your friends close and your enemies closer,, right?

“We’re catching another one?” Hyunjin asked, noticing that Ive place more bait on another area. I shook my head, tossing him my long bow, “Nope. You’re catching another one. Deers travel in herds. His mate shouldn’t be too far.”

“I shoot guns, Era, not arrows.”

“Well, you said to teach you how to hunt. You can’t hunt with guns unless you’re hunting for a hoard of walkers. And you won’t always have me. As soon as you guys are good with hunting, I’m out.” I said, leaving him to find another spot to hide from.

His gaze switched momentarily. So quick that I couldn’t decipher what had possibly changed because his expression went back to his dry one. “You’re still not staying?”

I passed him an arrow, which he was able to attach the end of it to the string easily. “I told you. I don’t do people.” I replied, nodding to the tree several meters away from us, “Practice a few shots.”

Unlike guns, a bow and arrow was much easier to learn. It wasn’t as complex because all there was to learn was how to aim properly. Since the arrow was longer than a bullet, it was much easier to aim accurately with a bow than a gun and there would be no recoil that would screw up your aim with the bow.

Hyunjin gave me a glare as I challenged him with a smile, “Don’t you dare laugh at me.”

He raised his arms, pulling the string back tensely— his first mistake. Barely taking the time to aim, he released the string, causing the arrow to land on the tree next to the one he was aiming for.

He watched my expression, expecting to see a smug look on my face. But I simply shrugged my shoulders, “At least you hit something..?”

Passing him another arrow, I helped him with his pose, “It’s simple, Hyunjin.”

“Make sure you line your body perpendicular to your target. Close your right eye and pull using three fingers. Aim using the tip of the arrow, slightly above your target,” he followed diligently, altering the way he held the bow. Aim

My heart ached as I remembered how I was taught, imitating every move that was done for me. Placing my hands on Hyunjin’s shoulders, I felt them tense from my touch, “Relax and breathe. You can’t be tense.”

His shoulders raised and fell as he took a breath in and then out. Breathe

Then he released the string, launching the arrow into its desired target. Shoot

Hyunjin’s eyes seemed to almost widen when he realised he actually hit the target. Almost. I gave him a small smile, “See? Its simple.”

By the time Hyunjin had caught another deer, the sun was nearly setting. We both knew that there was nothing good when the sun was down. Though some walkers continue to be active in the day, they seemed to be more active at night, making it a lot more dangerous to roam around without the comfort of the sun.

“You caught these?” Jeongin exclaimed. He was the first to greet me the minute Hyun Jin and I were back in the safety of the camp.

I nodded, giving him a smile. “I’ll hand these to Suzy.” He said, referring to one of the middle aged woman who was in charge of providing food as he took the two ropes from Hyunjin and I.

Hyunjin and I hadn’t spoken a word ever since we left for camp. I thought that he was being his usual cold self,, which I didn’t mind since the feeling was mutual. Except, his mind seemed to be distant. Like he was thinking of something beyond where to step and which way led us back to camp.

Felix called out for the two of us, waving his hands from the usual table they sat in for dinner. 

“You coming?”

Hyunjin shook his head, “I’m gonna look for Chan first. Tell him how it went.”

I nodded, beginning to walk towards Felix to join them for dinner. I felt a sense of excitement when I spotted Han at the same table, waving.

“Era.”

I stopped in my tracks, turning to face the man who had just called my name.

He shifted uncomfortably, though his eyes remained cold, “I’m sorry too,, for trying to shoot you.”

I blinked, surprised that Hyunjin actually just apologised to me— something I thought he would rather die than do. I found myself flashing him a genuine smile,

“Took you long enough”

Hamish Update: Hamish Pt. II

Genre: Adult literary fiction // Status: Rewriting // Progress: 53,548 words

Pt. I

I’m back with chapters IV-VI! Hoo boy, is it an event.

Chapter IV

Epitaph: “The things that go unsaid are often the things that eat at you--whether because you didn't get to have your say, or because the other person never got to hear you and really wanted to.”-Celeste Ng, Everything I Never Told You

This is the chapter where we meet Ofelia! She is one of my favorite characters to write for. She is beautiful and wonderful and a goddess and I adore her. (I’m reading myself for filth through the character of Ofelia because she is literally both my type and the woman I’ve always wanted to be.) Ofelia is the Queen of Roasts.

There are also some confrontations between Hamish and his mother, which I live for.

Excerpts: 

First of all, I love Ofelia. Ofelia Bello, if you are free this Thursday, I’m free to hang out any time. Again, Ofelia Bello, if you are on Thursday, I’m free to hang out. Please.

She’s a goddess. Literal goddess.

She looked at me, eyes large and all-seeing, more like fire opals set into the bronze of her face than eyes. I felt as though she were seeing into the very essence of my being, judging me like a god. Ofelia was one of those people who would never be referred to as mortal. She was Prithvi; she was Freyja; she was Persephone. She was anything but mortal, made of fire, flowers, and knowledge.

And a savage. She’s That Bitch every moment of every day, even when she has her “perfect daughter and sister” persona on. And when she doesn’t? Well...

“You could fight back,” she said. “You could make yourself known, reveal who and what you are. Scream, I’m a person, not a thing.” Ofelia fixes the wisps of hair arranged around her face into a perfect frame. 

“I’m not a fighter,” I said.

“No,” Ofelia said, watching me carefully. “You’re a runner.” She uncrossed her legs and stretched them out. “He doesn’t like fighters. That’s me. That’s my brother. He loves runners. If you can confront your issues, you won’t stay for long.”

Hamish confronting his mother when she dismisses his childhood trauma is honestly *chef’s kiss*. Writing my characters being savages is one of my favorite things to do, right after dramatic, floral descriptions of women. 

(TW: referenced child abuse!)

“Ungrateful for what? My nightmares? My feelings of abandonment? My hatred of authority? Thank you so much for everything you’ve done for me, mother. Without yours and father’s amazing parenting, I would’ve grown up to be a well-adjusted adult.”

And the trademark Soft Moment of the chapter. 

(TW: death mention!)

“Don’t die,” you whispered, hot and damp against my face. “Please don’t die.”

“I won’t,” I promised you, so open and honest it felt like I’d cracked open my ribs to expose my child’s-heart to you like a blossoming flower. 

The tension between all the characters has increased so much in this chapter and tbh the anticipation is killing me, and I know what happens in this book.

Chapter V

Epitaph: “At parties I point to my body and say This is where love comes to die. Welcome, come in, make yourself at home. Everyone laughs, they think I’m joking.”--Warsan Shire, “The House”

This chapter begins with Hamish and Horacio in an interview about their “relationship”. There’s something lovely about the way that Horacio and Hamish talk about each other, even if it is built on half-truths. Then we’re introduced to Leon, Ofelia’s brother, and oh boy. Oh boy. Is that a wild ride.

This is also the chapter where Hamish begins planning how he’s going to get Claude to confess to the murder, via a PowerPoint presentation. Yes. Yes, good.

Excerpts:

The first is when Horacio is asked when he knew he was in love with Hamish. It’s just... soft. As a former theatre kid, this really is the dream.

“No,” I said, tearing my eyes from you. “We were in Theatre 101 together, and he was reading Doctor Faustus and playing all the parts. He was jumping around and doing different voices, being really dramatic and having the time of his life. It was the first time I’d seen him act young instead of like a wistful old man.”

I didn’t tell her that you’d been wearing a black hoodie with the moon phases printed on it, the strings following you as you leaped from place to place, sticking your tongue out when you fumbled a line, your tongue stud glittering in the lights. It felt too intimate to share with the world. When I saw you in the lights, being a goofy young man for even just a moment, in your purest state of adorable in your glee, my heart expanded well past the confines of my too-tight ribcage.

Here’s Horacio’s mention of his past ex-boyfriends, because he can hardly believe that he is in a semi-functional relationship with anyone, even if it’s fake.

(TW: sex and abuse!)

It was simple symbiosis: I was a parasite, and they were the hosts, defending themselves against me with violence. I don’t think any of them ever loved me, just loved using me while I would use them, trying to nibble on their scraps of affection between beatings and the rough sex.

Leon is... a lot. He’s sort of obsessed with masculinity, like someone who watched Fight Club without really realizing it��s meant to be satire and wants to punch whoever talks shit about him.

Leon was one of those guys who either believed he was better than you or you weren’t worth his time. Sometimes, in his more complex moments, he would believe both at once; at his most simplistic, he would believe neither. 

The further I go in this work, the more difficult it gets to pick excerpts!

Chapter VI

Epitaph: “Even still, we run. We have not reached our average of 57.92 years without knowing that you run through it, and it hurts and you run through it some more, and if it hurts worse, you run through it even more, and when you finish, you will have broken through. In the end, when you are done, and stretching, and your heartbeat slows, and your sweat dries, if you've run through the hard part, you will remember no pain.”--Lauren Groff, The Monsters of Templeton

Hamish gives the presentation. It goes about as well as you can assume. Now that Genoveva and Claude know he’s onto them... it’s game time. There is so much plot that happens in this chapter that I can’t really mention much of it, other than this being the point where the work goes from a slow-building horror to more of a thriller. It’s a major turning point and climax. Whoo!

Also, Ofelia and Horacio bond, which is awesome! I love the dynamic between them. They have the sort of friendship where you can tell that they really enjoy each other and their company.

Excerpts:

Most of these are from the portion where Ofelia and Horacio are talking in the woods because 1.) it’s the least-spoilery part of this chapter and 2.) their friendship is one of the most light-hearted parts of this work. Please, allow me to indulge.

Ofelia isn’t necessarily a “bean”, but she’s still babey. I adore her.

Ofelia gave me a mysterious look, full of night sky and brilliance, then added a crescent of a smile. She began climbing, one foot and then the other, effortlessly lifting herself up the branches as if she was built to do nothing but ascend trees, her tights protecting her modesty from me as I struggled up after her, unused to the climb. 

And then Ofelia describes a dream of mine every wlw: going a group of young women and becoming the modern Sappho. 

“I think I’ll buy a house somewhere by the ocean. Live with a group of girls who love books and pictures. Become my own Sappho, create my own Lesbos.” 

Then there’s this astute observation from Horacio about how Hamish views himself. Hamish doesn’t have a very good self-image. At all. Then again, neither does Horacio. 

You’d make yourself into an object sometimes, a cyclone of emotions and pain, held together by frozen flesh and string. 

So that just about wraps up these chapters. IV-VI really is the most intense part of this work, and writing it is is just as intense as the chapters themselves. 

Songs:

The music is mostly what I’ve been listening to while editing this post, since I already wrote these chapters, but they’re still jams

Your Love (Deja Vu) - Glass Animals

In the Heat of the Moment - Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds

Blood In the Cut - Seattle Sessions - K.Flay

Peach Scone - Hobo Johnson

That’s all for now! Part III will contain the falling action/the part where it gets Real.

Tell me if you’d like to be added to the tag list! :)

The Best and worst changes for the Original Trilogy

Been wanting to do this for a while, so here are what I think are the best and worst changes that George made to the Original Trilogy

The Good

The special effects enhancement. This is an obvious choice, but the re-releases do improve most of the effects in the film, with just a few exceptions. One might argue that the film’s original effects were part of what made it so good – after all, at the time of release the visuals were one of the major selling points of Star Wars. But most fans agree that there’s nothing wrong with bringing the original films up-to-date with modern special effects, and that certainly shows when you compare scenes like the Battle of Yavin where the older effects do somewhat break immersion, particularly if you are used to the newer releases. The improved laser blasts and lightsaber effects make the action scenes appear less scratchy, and improve continuity between this trilogy and the ones that come before and after it in the timeline. It would certainly be

Aurebesh replacing english. The Star Wars universe is vast, containing hundreds of aliens from different worlds speaking a variety of languages. However, in the original trilogy, just about everyone on screen spoke English - or as it's referred to in canon, Galactic Basic Standard. The Basic language is just that, the most basic language that most residents of a galaxy far, far away (and us, the audience) can understand, and for the most part it's indistinguishable from English. Except when written. Basic does not use the Latin alphabet of English and countless other Earth languages, instead Basic is written using Aurebesh. But Aurebesh didn't appear on screen until Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, and even then, the Aurebesh symbols used were completely random. It wasn't until Stephen Crane of West End Games chose to add meaning to the random symbols when working on several Star Wars miniature and role-playing games that Aurebesh was officially "born." And in the 2004 DVD release, Aurebesh finally replaced any and all English writing that still appeared in Episode IV: A New Hope, most notably on consoles within the Death Star. The change is minor, to be sure, but it's one that gives a cohesiveness to the Star Wars universe and adds to its otherworldly vibe.

Biggs Darklighter added scenes. In an earlier cut of Star Wars, Luke was introduced much earlier in the film, with scenes of his life on Tatooine spliced with the capture of Princess Leia and C-3PO and R2-D2's escape. These scenes primarily showed Luke hanging out with friends, giving us a sense there was at least a little more to his social life than power converters and Tosche's Station. But these scenes also introduced us to a minor though pivotal character: Luke's best friend, Biggs Darklighter. However, I wouldn't be surprised if you do recognize the name (or hear Mark Hamill in your head saying, "Blast it Biggs! Where are you?") and that's because though these earlier scenes on Tatooine were cut, Biggs still appears in the theatrical release of Episode IV - albeit very briefly. During the attack on the Death Star, it's Biggs flying alongside Luke and Wedge Antilles when they make the final and successful trench run to destroy it. Biggs doesn't survive that trench run and we see the effect his death has on Luke, but we aren't told why Biggs was important to Luke (as opposed to the countless other Rebel pilots who died). Without any earlier scenes setting up the childhood friendship between Luke and Biggs, the impact of his death is lost. That was until the Special Edition release when at least one of Biggs scenes was added back in. It's a scene that now comes right before the assault on the Death Star, inside the Rebel Base, and it features Luke and Biggs reuniting and reminiscing like old friends. It's a short scene, but it practically doubles Biggs' screen time and gives us a least some idea that he and Luke go way back, making his death yet another in a long string of tragedies Luke suffers throughout the trilogy.   

Ian McDiarmid's Palpatine, but using the original dialogue would've been better as Vader was already hunting Luke for destroying the Death Star

Cloud City’s enhanced scenery. The Empire Strikes Back has the least major changes of any of the original trilogy in the Special Edition. The Special Edition added enhancements and additional aerial shots. Expanded scenes and new backgrounds in Cloud City made the location lovelier and added depth. I can't picture Cloud City as it used to be.

Enhanced Lightsabers. For the original films the lightsaber effects were done with the actors holding white spinning three-sided rods covered with reflective material. Korean animator Nelson Shin drew saber effects onto the film. They also added the glowing effect and the colors were put onto the film by hand. It was a complex feat of engineering for its time but it left many problems behind. There are many scenes where you can see the white rods or the colors were wrong. Lucas went through and corrected the mistakes with the lightsaber using CGI.   

Boba Fett's voice change. Boba Fett was a fan-favorite for decades before he was revealed to actually be a clone. So when it came time for the original trilogy’s 2004 DVD release, it made sense for actor Temuera Morrison — who played Jango Fett and various clones in the prequels — to return to the franchise as the new voice of Boba Fett, the cloned version of his original character. Luckily, Morrison has a fitting voice, allowing the continuity fix to help rather than hinder the classic films.

Oola’s Death. It’s strange to consider when you watch it now, but in the original cut of Return of the Jedi Oola’s death scene was much more brief – she simply falls down the trap door into the Rancor pit in Jabba’s Palace, and the Rancor reveal is saved for later. Amazingly, the actress who played Oola filmed the extended death scene over a decade after first appearing in Jedi, with no difference to the visuals whatsoever. The Rancor isn’t revealed completely, meaning that the impact of its later appearance isn’t spoiled, but it does create a menacing scene showing more of the mercilessness of Jabba The Hutt  

Battle Of Yavin. Star Wars revolutionized film making and ushered in a new era of special effects. But some effects get outdated. And even though there is a magical charm to the practical in-camera effects that the original Star Wars trilogy were made with, digital and CGI effects would be become the modern norm. And when its used correctly, CGI can look amazing. Hence, the climactic ending space battle in A New Hope. Tossing away the bluescreen, matte film and super imposed ships and replacing them with digital X-Wings and Tie Fighters. This recreation of the attack on the Death Star and galactic dogfight finale is a thrilling piece of cinema. Seeing spacecraft flying and zooming in and out of impossible camera angles is just as dazzling as the original scene. Lucasfilm actually did the impossible, they took one of the most classic epic battles in movie history and actually made it better.

The Death Star Explosions. The explosions of the Death Star and Alderaan were one of the most striking changes in the Special Edition movies, enhanced with brighter colors and expanding rings of matter. But one of the most exciting things about the original Star Wars films is that the groundbreaking special effects were being invented as the films were made. The newly-formed Industrial Light and Magic spent years building models, inventing cameras to shoot them, and occasionally blowing them up. So when the Death Star is destroyed (both times), the explosions look and feel real, because they were created using footage from actual explosions.   

The victory celebration The change to the music at the end of Return of the Jedi is, in my opinion, one of the best decisions George Lucas ever made. The original song that played during the celebrations on Endor was ‘Yub Nub’, a nonsensical and comically puerile ditty that doesn’t do the finale justice, but the replacement, John Williams’ aptly-titled ‘Victory Celebration’, seems a much more fitting tune to end the original trilogy. For comparison, one needs only to look at the ending of A New Hope – the tune used there fits the tone and gravitas of the scene, and ‘Yub Nub’ simply does not.

The Worst

Darth Vader saying No in ROTJ. There was absolutely no need to have Darth Vader say “No” in this moment. We were looking at a still mask. Yet we could still sense his feelings and thoughts. He was clearly conflicted and you could tell he was about to do something. This is good film making. You can tell he is making the hardest decision of his life, choosing between his master and his son, the conflict was visible on his face. There was no need for Vader to say anything. Vader saying “No” lacks any sort of nuance and has him verbally stating those feelings. "NOOOOOOO". This scene was shot so perfectly that you could see Vader's internal struggle to do the right thing despite being unable to show any facial expressions. There was no need for a "nooooooo" to indicate what he's going to do, we know what he's going to do because of how the scene is shot. This takes away from the scene and it makes it so obvious that it takes the viewer out of the moment. The silence was a powerful moment.

Jabba’s appearance in A New Hope. I feel like the scene takes away the menace from Jabba The Hutt. The horrible CGI did not help either. The appearance is a complete downgrade from his appearance in ROTJ. And it really did not help that it’s a shot for shot of the same dialogue with the Han and Greedo scene. The added scene with Jabba was completely unnecessary. Han and Greedo’s  scene ALREADY showed us Han’s debt to Jabba. And really, Jabba is a powerful and influential figure in the galaxy. He is the boss. He uses Bounty Hunters as play things to do his bidding. He was capable of ensuring that Han could not be in a civilized star system without being hunted. Jabba is someone who feeds slave girls to his pet monster if they screw up a dance routine, but he's apparently okay with a deadbeat lowlife smuggler who owes him money stepping on his tail in front of all his men. Hell, Jabba would not care if Han fried Greedo, Tatooine is a hive of scum and villainy, Jabba can easily replace Greedo.   It took away the menace from Jabba. Not to mention, this change takes away some of the suspense people originally had about Jabba the Hutt. It just takes away some of the mystery of Jabba as a character. Jabba is the boss, he should not be doing grunt work and it just takes away the impact of seeing Jabba in ROTJ.

Greedo shoots first. Here’s why Han shooting first matters.  Greedo was hunting Han Solo and found him in Mos Eisley Cantina who wanted what Han owed Jabba, which Han didn’t have it with him just then, so Greedo ready to shoot Han, is then killed by Han. In the original theatrical version, Han shoots Greedo dead, but in all the film alterations, Greedo shoots first.  Lucas  wanted Han to be a good role model so he editied out but that was pointless because at that point already Han was still a smuggler out for himself. Lucas wanted kids to think he was a hero Except he’s SUPPOSED to be a cold blooded killer in the beginning. That was the whole POINT of his story arc. A selfish smuggler who is COMPLETELY fine with letting other people die if it meant his own survival and goes through an internal and external journey to not only give a damn about his fellow person but also grow as an individual to be a hero that is willing to risk his own safety for a much larger cause than himself. Him shooting last takes away the beginning part of a GREAT story arc and reduces it to “This bad ass is a bad ass. The end.”. Killer to hero is a much more interesting story than bad ass to still being a bad ass.

Pointless CGI in Mos Eisley. Mos Eisley was the home of scum and villainy and also the home for wayward CGI creatures that escaped their digital pens. The thought was more roaming creatures would add color and vivacity to the bustling desert town, but unfortunately, they looked like lost sideshow attractions. The CGI stuff in the background doesn’t blend in with the rest of the film and just draws attention away from the action in the foreground. It’s like an irritating five-year-old onscreen screaming, “Look at me look at me."

Editing the Jabba’s Palace Sequence. Jabba's palace was another opportunity to put a vast array of unique and interesting aliens on display, much like Mos Eisley's cantina. And also like the cantina, a gangster's hangout deserves a house band. In the original release that was the Max Rebo Band and the number they performed was "Lapti Nek." The original scene was short and feels like it belongs. This scene doesn't feel intrusive and out of place like the special edition, it feels like in Jabba's Palace there is a band playing some alien music. The added CGI was awful and became unwatchable. It detracts from the grit of the scene that’s created, in part by the aliens in the background, that in this case are actually portrayed by actors or puppeteers. It didn't need the whole new scene and terrible CGI dancing. To call the scene distracting would be an understatement. Visually, it's incongruous with the dingy, smoky atmosphere of Jabba's Palace, largely in part because of how badly the CGI aliens mesh with the real actors and sets. The new song also doesn't fit with the mood of the setting, it’s just tonally offensive and just kills the mood of Jabba The Hutt. Jabba’s Palace was so uncomfortable and full of dread. All we needed to see was a short music scene, Oola displeasing Jabba and Jabba sending Oola to the Rancor. That’s all you need to establish that everything about the palace is a nightmare and just adding the horrid abomination known as Jedi Rocks just killed it for me.

Replacing Sebastian Shaw with Anakin Skywalker. I understand the in-universe reasoning behind  changing Anakin’s Force Ghost to Hayden, but to me it is completely and utterly disrespectful to replace a now dead actor’s only appearance in Star Wars. It ALREADY made sense for Anakin to appear old. I love Hayden and I love the Prequels, but he should not have replaced Shaw as Anakin. It both contradicts Vader’s redemption and disrespected the memory of Sebastian Shaw. It’s not that they shot a whole new scene with Hayden, Hayden Christensen’s head was pasted on over Shaw’s body and that is really disrespectful to Sebastion Shaw since he passed away a few years before the special editions. The whole idea was that there was still some good left in the old man version of Anakin and that’s what we’re seeing here. It was the old Anakin who made the choice to save Luke so it makes more sense to have him as the Ghost. Luke wouldn’t even recognize the young Anakin which makes the change even more of a fail. Anakin appearing as he did in ROTS invalidates the fact that he was redeemed at all in the end. I mean, the first thing he does in that movie is behead Dooku, then immediately admit that it’s “not the Jedi way.” He then goes on to slay a ton of Jedi and then murder a bunch of little kids, before going to murder Nute Gunray/other Separatist leaders etc. That’s why it’s such a baffling decision to show Hayden at the end of ROTJ… it completely undermines the payoff of ROTJ: Vader still had good in him (like Luke said) even as an old man. Why would you turn back to the person who murdered children and betrayed everyone you loved? The entire point of the ending of Return of the Jedi was that after years of having been corrupted as Darth Vader, Luke’s adherence to the Jedi principles and refusal to strike down his father in anger is what causes Anakin to realize that he’s been consumed by the dark side. He then atones as best as he can by sacrificing himself to kill Palpatine and asks Luke to remove his mask in a final act symbolizing his freedom from Darth Vader. Anakin has mere minutes as a jedi before he succumbs to his wounds, but it’s extremely important to note that he died a jedi. This is why Luke gives him a traditional jedi funeral, and why he is able to apparate as a force ghost. This is why the movie is called Return Of The Jedi. This is what makes the ending scene significant. Anakin appears not as the intimidating figure of Lord Vader, but as a mild old Jedi knight, like he would have appeared if he had never been corrupted by the dark side. This is why Anakin as an old man works, it shows what the dark side can do to you, but it beautifully shows that Anakin can still find redemption and die as a Jedi and return to the light. He nods to Obi-Wan, who smiles at seeing his friend finally free of the Dark Side, and the film ends with them standing side by side as old friends once more. Having Anakin appear as he had looked when in his 30’s would discredit his sacrifice in the final scene. It would imply that the last time he was truly a jedi was when he was the young hotheaded general who saw the jedi code as a hindrance, and not a healed version of the wisened old man who finally understood the importance of peace. Additionally, it removes the symbolism of Anakin and Obi-Wan standing side by side as old friends once again. With Anakin appearing as an apprentice to Obi-Wan rather than an equal. And Luke recognizes him. He already saw the father behind the mask. Anakin appears as the wise old Jedi and father figure to Luke that he would and should have been have been and who he died as. Shaw is more aesthetically pleasing in that shot. Seeing him portrayed as Alec Guinness’ contemporary, as a father to Luke, he just looks like he belongs in the original shot. I grew up with the Original Trilogy on VHS, so seeing Sebastian Shaw as both the unmasked Anakin and the ghost of Anakin was wonderful to see, when both Anakin and Obi-Wan look at each other here, it seems they are finally at rest after decades of war thanks to Luke, Leia and the rest of the Rebels who believe in the Old Republic, when we got to the prequels, it all changed and did not make complete sense, I enjoy the prequels, but it did not work to change, there was ALREADY an in-universe explanation as to why Shaw works as Anakin’s Force Ghost. Shaw fitted a much better vision of Anakin, an Anakin who did not intend to fall but raised up when he realized his true self in his son. And finally he looks at his children with so much love in his eye which is really emotional. Anakin Skywalker is finally at peace with his old friends and looking on his children with so much happiness.

BlackKklansman

So, for the third year running I’ve decided to watch and review the Oscar movies in preparation for Hollywood’s biggest night. I was worried I wouldn’t have time to finish this because I was just overseas for a month, but I think I’ll be able to finish them in time. However to make sure I do so, I’ve decided to only watch the Best Picture nominees this year, as opposed to the acting and animation categories.

So without further ado, let’s start off with BlackKkKlansman.

I went into this film with few expectations. I’d heard semi-positive rumblings and the premise seemed pretty interesting. I’ve never seen a Spike Lee Joint before (which just speaks to how few films I’ve actually seen…) so I was interested to see what people liked so much about this acclaimed director.

BlackKkKlansman does many things well. First and foremost, the main character Ron Stallworth is well written and extremely likeable and sympathetic. I really appreciated that he kept a level head and stood between two extreme groups and ideologies; Black power and White supremacy and navigated them well. This great character is brought to life by a fantastic performance from John David Washington. He brought a lot of charisma and class to the role, while also being very likeable.

The side characters are equally interesting, Adam Driver did a great job portraying Stallworth’s partner in the operation. He effectively portrayed how difficult it was for his character to pretend to agree with the Klan’s ideals and his scenes where he was undercover were simultaneously entertaining and confronting. I also quite enjoyed the character of Patrice, a member of the Black Power movement who gets involved with Stallworth.

An aspect of this film, which has been widely discussed - and criticised by some - is how this film keeps a rather light tone, despite its subject matter.  I personally didn’t have a problem with this, or find that it impeded on the film as a whole. I am a big believer in films that present reality as it is: a crude mixture of humour and drama. Films that take themselves too seriously and get too down in the dumps for no reason tend to bore and irritate me, so I’m glad BlackKklansman didn’t go that route. I actually found that Lee did a very good job of balancing the tonality in this film. Because he manages to keep the humorous scenes enjoyable and light, while driving his point home very effectively. I fluctuated between grinning and frowning during this film numerous times, but the transitions felt smooth and natural.

I have a couple of topics I find are rather overdone when it comes to “artistic films”, especially period films, The Second World War and race relations in America to name a few. I think these topics have been done too many times for my liking and the more recent productions tend to bring little newness to the topics. What I’m trying to say here is that I am tiring of films that touch on racism but do little novel with it. I’m happy to say that I don’t think BlackKklansman suffers that problem. Because the way in which Lee decides to tell this story that hasn’t been told before sets this film apart, in my opinion.

I will say that I found the characters in the Klan to be rather bland and stereotypical one-dimensional racists. I think they would have benefited from having some added complexity. I also found that the references to today to be a little forced and heavy handed at times. While I think the cut in the final few minutes to the Charlottesville rally that recently took place to be very effective, there were other moments where it almost felt as if the characters were going to turn and look into the camera. What they were saying was just so heavy handed and obvious. In those few instances the film would have benefitted from a bit more subtlety. There were also a couple of stylistic choices and camera angles that bothered me and didn’t make much sense.

But overall, I found this to be an effective, interesting film. I don’t think its absolutely incredible or particularly groundbreaking, but it kept me entertained and did something new with a subject matter that has been discussed numerous times over the years.

SnK Chapter 94 Poll Results

Hey everyone! I’m helping @momtaku out this month with her poll and she asked me to make the final results post this month while she is away! The poll has closed with 1,212 responses! As expected, a long post is incoming.

Rate the Chapter (1,181 responses)

Not as loved as last month’s chapter. But this month’s chapter still overall seemed to be favorable among the majority with few people actually disliking it.

Pretty good chapter with great backstory. Only gripe is there should've been some bigger hint of future conflict or teasing at the Walldians invading Marley.

Since the Warriors are my favorite group in this manga, this chapter was a gift sent down from heaven. It gave further enlightenment on the outside world and FINALLY some backstory for my favs. If we switched back to Paradis at this point, I'd be okay with it.

We've had an entire volume focused on Marley. Rate your approval. (1,181 responses)   

Despite many of us being thrown off at the beginning of this volume, it turns out that it grew on us after all!

It provides good insight on the "villain" point of view, making the story more interesting as you sympathize with what you thought were the "bad guys"

I know it's bit controversial but I'm really pleased with this arc. Ive always had I bias for the warriors in general but finally knowing their motivations has just cemented how complex and tragic their characters are.

Overall a slow volume, with a much appreciated info-dump in chapter 93. Mixed feelings on it. Loved chapters 92 and 93, but not sold on 91 and 94. I hope the story picks up pace soon and the Liberio/Rebellio-Eldians soon come face to face with the Walldians.

What was your favorite moment of the chapter? (1,175 responses)

There were many different replies to this, but the top two were at an almost tie! Seeing Reiner, Bertolt and Annie as kids only barely outweighed Reiner’s account of the 104th Trainee Squad as the most loved part of the chapter.

You know I always loved Warriors. I waited for years to get their flashback and I am really happy and also broken to get it. I get why we didn't get it earlier but still I do wish we'd get it in one of those earlier chapters. It would make much difference in fandom. Other than that, SOMEONE JUST FIND MY CHILDREN. GIVE THEM HUGS AND BLANKETS AND SOME ACTUAL LOVE. THANK YOU.

Although I thought it should have all been referred to sooner in the story, I'm glad that it at least exists. Many have brought up the parallel between Eren and Reiner, I think this chapter properly illustrates just that. I wish we had morr flashbacks like this sprinkled throughout the entire series but I'm overall content that it was relevant to the volume. Also BITTY CHAPTERS ARE PRECIOUS!

Best reveal of the chapter? (1,172 responses)

People really seemed to enjoy the parallels between Reiner and Eren. Second comes the reveal that Reiner is half Marleyan.

Do you think Reiner truly believes the people on Paradis are cruel and barbarous devils? (1,172 responses)

The overwhelming majority agree that Reiner doesn’t really believe anything he’s saying.

dear Reiner, you're not fooling anyone, is that really all the bad things you could say about the 104th squad?! You made them sound like toddlers that need the naughty step rather than evil devils, ha!

Did Annie deliberately squish the bug? (1,170 responses)

Most people agree that Annie wanted that bug smashed into the dirt!

Annie killing the bug looks like when she killed humans (like Petra). I think it shows some things never changes and maybe it means something ? Like about her pov before ? How determined she was (as Mikasa) and seeing the people of Paradis as nothing else than bugs and maybe seeing everybody as bugs ? And then showing how it changed with this two and with Armin ?

I'm a little spooked by the bug squishing scene. I'm a little spooked with how she handled it and how Reiner and Bertholt reacted as well.

Prior to this chapter, did you view the warriors favorably? (1,165 responses)

Before this chapter, it was nearly a 50/50 split. Some of you loved them already, others did not, and a fair chunk of people were pretty neutral or uncaring either way. 

im not a big fan of the warriors tbh

I've always felt sympathetic towards the warriors, and this chapter just reinforced that. And I feel like I have a much better understanding of Reiner's character now.

Has this chapter changed your feelings towards the Warriors? (1,163 responses)

Most people’s opinions did not change although there are some that have come to sympathize with them more as well as those just happy to see their side of the story.

It did a really good job of further humanizing the warriors

Now I mostly feel sorry for them.

After seeing how extreme the Marley brainwashing has been and how BRA never seemed consider going against it after seeing how blatantly wrong all of it was, despite acknowledging how wrong it all is, has made me hate them even more

I feel really bad for not liking the Warriors because I know they were doing what they thought was right and it's really not their fault for what happened on Paradis so even seeing their backstory hasn't totally made me love them

Rate each warrior in terms of how this chapter affected your perceptions of them:

Reiner, Bertolt and Falco all shot up in favorability while Annie and Zeke gained small boosts or had no changing perceptions. Gabi, however, had either no change, or has started to be viewed less favorably. 

It was great to see Reiner struggle so much in warrior training, compared to how the soldiers of the 104th looked up to his strength. This chapter really solidified my love for his character.

Gabi is veeeeery overrated.

I love bertholdt so much with my entire heart and soul 

Look at Pieck! She is dying from those laps. More sweaty than Bertolt. I love her. Best girl.

Which of the Warriors would you most like to see switch sides? (1,164 responses)

With only a slight percentage above Annie, Reiner is now the most favorable candidate for side-switching. 

The way things have been set up, I don't see anyone switching sides, but with Zeke and Reiner's hidden agendas and that undercurrent of dissent in the kid warriors, I could see some kind of kindred goal appearing between the Warriors and the Walldians. After all, Zeke seems to want the Coordinate and Eren needs someone of royal blood to work it. Tenuous cooperation might ensue, though how longboard they can last without turning on each other is anyone' and guess.

Mystery man is back! Any thoughts about his identity? (1,171 responses)

By a landslide, the majority believe that Eren is amputee-kun.

If the mystery-man isn't Eren, I'll be shocked! But kind of excited, too, to see who might have been brave enough to infiltrate Marley and actually go through the war with them to keep their cover... Not to mention losing a leg. I still find Eren a more likely choice, of course, because he could keep his leg from regenerating and blend in pretty well, but if it's someone else, that opens up a lot of possibilities too.

It'd be interesting if Eren is this mystery soldier. I wonder what it was like to have to cut his leg off! If it is Eren I really worry for him!!

Will Eren meet his grandparents? (1,166 responses)

With the revelation that the Jaeger grandparents are still alive and kicking, most of you believe Eren will get the chance to meet them.

I wonder if the reveal of Zeke's grandparents still being alive is a deliberate set up for Eren to perhaps meet them?

Will Reiner meet his father? (1,165 responses)

Even though all he wanted was to be able to meet and be with his father, the larger percentage of readers don’t believe he will achieve this wish.

Is Reiner's dad gonna be important at all? To me the whole scene of Karina talking to little itsy bitsy Reiner seemed to saying, "Pay attention, take notes." Some theories have been floating around that Reiner's an Ackerman? Some say Annie and Reiner are siblings (it would explain why we didn't see Annie's fathers face if he looked like his son?

How badly do you want to return to the original cast on Paradis? (1,175 responses)

While plenty of responses indicate a continued interest in the Warriors and Marley, most are eager to see some familiar faces again.

I feel like the Warrior side of the story isn't done yet and that's fine, but Yams give us something of the Walldians!

I've been fine with the diversion on Paradis because it was good, so to me the switch to that side didn't make me frustrated, so I'm not super frustrated and demanding to go back there immidiately, but I'm still really eager.

Give me Paradis right now and no one will die.

On a scale of 1-5, how pinchable are Bertolt's cheeks?  (1,159 responses)

39.6% of you think Bert’s cheeks are too cute. But 19.2% are not impressed.

Ask Armin about how "pinchable" Bertolt's cheeks are... yeah.. cheeks

His cheeks are so squishy, you can use them as a trampoline.

Which characters do you generally like the most? (1,169 responses)

The 104th squad are still the big winner, with the vets and warriors in an almost-tie for second place.

Where do you primarily discuss the series? (1,158 responses)

Final Thoughts?

Would've liked to see more about Marcel

Bertolt is such a caring person. I think it helps the fact that the second season of the anime concentrates on them. Reiner must be feeling many contrasig seniments, he seems broke inside. Annie.. it's always so misterious, but I like her way of behaving, so distant from everything.

Really good chapter. It did it's job in showing how truly messed in the head all these children because after living in fear and propaganda for the majority of their lives.

I wonder if the reveal of Zeke's grandparents still being alive is a deliberate set up for Eren to perhaps meet them? I also wonder if Falco will be the first of the Warriors to change his mind about Paradis being the enemy. And dear Reiner, you're not fooling anyone, is that really all the bad things you could say about the 104th squad?! You made them sound like toddlers that need the naughty step rather than evil devils, ha!

Why did Marley only pick six warrior if they are supposed to have seven? Where is the ninth titan? Is Falco a restorationist at heart? Eren, wtf are you doing?