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beccatoriaSo, something awesome happened today that I am going to share with YOU, interwebs, because I love you.
A friend's been dating this awesome person for a while which is great, because when your friends date awesome people, you get to make new awesome friends. Now, this person is pretty quiet, likes to listen to everyone else more than to herself, but from a few comments, I knew that she wasn't really a big fan of comics, they made her kinda uncomfortable - I am pretty sure she classed them in the same category as lad's mags other stuff that's basically porn you can read on the train. Like I said, she's a quiet person, a few comments from her constituted a forceful opinion.
The thing that's interesting to me about this, though, is that her opinion wasn't formed in a vacuum. It's not like she had a media stereotype in her head. The guy she's dating - our friend - reads a lot of comics we lend him and doesn't read a huge amount of books beyond that. I haaaate gratuitous cheesecake and shitty depictions of women in mainstream cape books, and the books our mate was reading reflect that - but we were mostly lending him mainstream cape books, and it made me realise how numbed I am to how they look.
And damn, man, it just made me sad. And also nostalgic for those days when I didn't really read cape books, I read whatever trades were available at the library because I was a broke teenage girl and didn't even know where the local comic shop was. And honestly, it's rose-tinted spectacles of enormity if I say that none of that shit made me uncomfortable or made me wonder why I was reading it or didn't have shitty depictions of women - not to mention how confusing it is to read like ONE trade from near the end of Marvelman, because hell if I knew what order things were sposed to be in - but...that's when I fell in love with the medium, even though I spent the ten years after that wandering in and out.
And I wanted to do that for my new friend. So when it was her birthday, just recently, I thought to myself, fuck it. I am going to buy her a comic. I am going to buy her a comic that a) features a woman as a main character, b) is not drawn in an exploitative manner (and that will be defined broadly), and c) is self-contained.
So first I went and got depressed at how difficult this was. I basically had to write off superhero stuff entirely except for possibly Batwoman but I felt even that had too many ties to the wider DCU to be an easy entry point and besides, I wanted to show her that it's not all a genre where spandex is an entry requirement.
In the end I settled on the first volume of Fables. When I gave it to her I said, more or less, "this is a comic that will not make you feel like you need a shower." I honestly thought that would be an end to it - perhaps I'd get a polite "Oh, it was fun!" in a few weeks. I honestly suspected it might sit on her shelf gathering dust forever, and I would not have judged her for it.
Instead, I started getting texts about how much she liked it - how easy it was to read, how she wasn't expecting to be so engrossed she finished it in one sitting, how much fun it was and what should she read next.
Today she dragged her boyfriend shopping for new comics; I got a panicked text from him - they didn't have the next Fables! What did I suggest instead! - I missed out on answering because I was at my new job where I'm still nervous enough I don't let myself check my phone unless I'm on break - but apparently she bought the first volume of Madame Xanadu because she thought it looked cool.
And that's my story, interwebs. Just one more of the million examples of how it's not that chicks don't dig comics, they just don't dig exploitation.
A friend's been dating this awesome person for a while which is great, because when your friends date awesome people, you get to make new awesome friends. Now, this person is pretty quiet, likes to listen to everyone else more than to herself, but from a few comments, I knew that she wasn't really a big fan of comics, they made her kinda uncomfortable - I am pretty sure she classed them in the same category as lad's mags other stuff that's basically porn you can read on the train. Like I said, she's a quiet person, a few comments from her constituted a forceful opinion.
The thing that's interesting to me about this, though, is that her opinion wasn't formed in a vacuum. It's not like she had a media stereotype in her head. The guy she's dating - our friend - reads a lot of comics we lend him and doesn't read a huge amount of books beyond that. I haaaate gratuitous cheesecake and shitty depictions of women in mainstream cape books, and the books our mate was reading reflect that - but we were mostly lending him mainstream cape books, and it made me realise how numbed I am to how they look.
And damn, man, it just made me sad. And also nostalgic for those days when I didn't really read cape books, I read whatever trades were available at the library because I was a broke teenage girl and didn't even know where the local comic shop was. And honestly, it's rose-tinted spectacles of enormity if I say that none of that shit made me uncomfortable or made me wonder why I was reading it or didn't have shitty depictions of women - not to mention how confusing it is to read like ONE trade from near the end of Marvelman, because hell if I knew what order things were sposed to be in - but...that's when I fell in love with the medium, even though I spent the ten years after that wandering in and out.
And I wanted to do that for my new friend. So when it was her birthday, just recently, I thought to myself, fuck it. I am going to buy her a comic. I am going to buy her a comic that a) features a woman as a main character, b) is not drawn in an exploitative manner (and that will be defined broadly), and c) is self-contained.
So first I went and got depressed at how difficult this was. I basically had to write off superhero stuff entirely except for possibly Batwoman but I felt even that had too many ties to the wider DCU to be an easy entry point and besides, I wanted to show her that it's not all a genre where spandex is an entry requirement.
In the end I settled on the first volume of Fables. When I gave it to her I said, more or less, "this is a comic that will not make you feel like you need a shower." I honestly thought that would be an end to it - perhaps I'd get a polite "Oh, it was fun!" in a few weeks. I honestly suspected it might sit on her shelf gathering dust forever, and I would not have judged her for it.
Instead, I started getting texts about how much she liked it - how easy it was to read, how she wasn't expecting to be so engrossed she finished it in one sitting, how much fun it was and what should she read next.
Today she dragged her boyfriend shopping for new comics; I got a panicked text from him - they didn't have the next Fables! What did I suggest instead! - I missed out on answering because I was at my new job where I'm still nervous enough I don't let myself check my phone unless I'm on break - but apparently she bought the first volume of Madame Xanadu because she thought it looked cool.
And that's my story, interwebs. Just one more of the million examples of how it's not that chicks don't dig comics, they just don't dig exploitation.
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Date: 2012-02-29 09:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-03-01 11:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-02-29 10:32 pm (UTC)And... while I see your point I do also have a soft spot for Empowered...
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Date: 2012-03-01 11:46 am (UTC)And I understand completely what you mean; I adore Amanda Connor's run on Power Girl - I think it hits a brilliant tone to include cheesecake aspects humorously and to write a character who would really wear that boob window while laughing at the fact that she has a boob window, but someone flipping through that with no context, just having a look at what's in it, is just gonna see yet another scantily clad woman semi-regularly ending up in situations where people are making jokes about her boobs. And given the number of times I've been told, "No, no, you don't get it, this is ironic, this is making fun of that stuff!" and I have checked it out and been like, "No, no it isn't, dude, it's just saying it is so you can feel better about it," I totally get why that's a...bad gateway into the medium?
And now I sound like I'm disagreeing with you or something, which I'm fairly sure I'm not - because I do know Empowered, though I haven't read most of it! - I'm just sort of...monologuing my thoughts!
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Date: 2012-03-01 12:27 am (UTC)I almost recced Simone’s “Birds of Prey” as a good stand-alone comic entry (it’s the only DC I read, and I wasn’t lost or confused by any of it), but then remembered the horrid cheesecakey art, so I think we all sort of…become immune to it after a while? I hate it sooo much, but I have to say that on a list of things I find objectionable, if that’s the ONLY thing and it comes with awesome women and a good story, I am ridiculously willing to handwave it. Which I feel bad about, but sigh, the line has to be drawn somewhere or I’ll never read/watch anything.
But anyway, my experiences in converting women have been similar. You just have to find the right book, because just like with every medium ever? Most of it will be exploitative and/or offensive.
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Date: 2012-03-01 12:44 pm (UTC)But I think if Fables had been around back then (I missed it by a couple years - man I feel old!) it would likely have been that that sold me.
I have really enjoyed, more or less, the whole run of it so far. Some stories are better than others and I think broadly it was stronger at the start, but having said that, I'm not sure how much of my opinion is influenced by how much I hated the Great Fables Crossover and how disappointed I was in general with Jack of Fables. Occasionally the author's conservative politics are a bit obvious, which sometimes pisses me right off and sometimes doesn't, but I actually think that's less prevalent in the series these days than it was when Snow was making Pro Life statements and Bigby was leading with comparisons to Israel?
Overall I think that it was probably stronger early on, but also I think I'm a bit more forgiving of later stuff because I was actually a little disappointed by the resolution to the war around #75 but then felt it was somewhat redeemed by the Mister Dark stuff, possibly just because the Frau Totenkinder stuff in that storyline was just aces and since I adore her beyond reason, I may have been a little willing to take a generous stance. I'm glad he's finally getting back to Rose Red and her story and hope we get some stuff soon about her new position. I'm also looking forward to the first Fairest arc, because apparently that's going to be picking up the story of Briar Rose.
But...I think also some of my feelings on Fables are momentum based since I read a lot of it quite quickly. I'm still trying to unpack the way I adore parts of its message and just detest others. So far, though, I'm finding it a net positive.
At which point, I'm rambling about stuff I'm not even sure you've read, so I'll get back to the subject at hand!
I seriously considered Bird of Prey too - but decided against it for the same reason as you, sadly. Also because (I KNOW IT'S AWFUL OF ME) I actually haven't read all that much of it (I do keep meaning to). Even the art I've seen of the Nicola Scott issues I think decided to shy away from because I wanted something where I didn't have to make the distinction between, "Yes, she's wearing a swimsuit to fight crime but she's not being drawn in a spinebending sexual pose at all times, so it's okay!", you know? I was also somewhat nervous of throwing her into superhero stuff straight away just because it does feel like such a big universe.
I completely agree with you about being willing to handwave art for story, though. I mean...it's just necessity in cape comics at this point - though I do think it's getting slowly better. As you say, it's not a problem that is unique to comics either, and I imagine, when/if she continues her comics reading career, she'll choose to make the same compromises, as we all do. But it's still startling to be reminded just how much we get in the habit of handwaving off the bat just because of low expectations and a desire to enjoy stories about these characters. Which is what frustrates me about basically EVERY counterargument I've ever heard on the subject, which all boil down to, "Well you're still buying it," and like, ARGH. *flails hands*
But anyway, my experiences in converting women have been similar. You just have to find the right book, because just like with every medium ever? Most of it will be exploitative and/or offensive.
Yes, exactly! And very interesting (if not that surprising, because it makes a lot of sense) that you've had similar experiences.
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Date: 2012-03-01 02:25 pm (UTC)Snow White's pro-life triad was my first "Put the book down until the rage fades" moment. I mean...if Snow were *human,* I could have probably just...gotten annoyed and gotten over it? But the overwhelming PRIVILEGE dripping from her judgement towards human women who elect to go for abortions was just...well, rage-inducing. HI, HUMAN WOMEN ARE NOT IMMORTAL AND DO NOT HAVE THEIR WHOLE LIVES EVEN AFTER THEY ARE DONE RAISING CHILDREN THEY DO NOT WANT AND WERE FORCED TO HAVE. GAH. Oh, wow, look at that, it's still there. ;) I mean, I *understand* that this is a privilege that only exists in fiction, but GAH.
After that, his politics were sort of very easy to read. Enough that I tragically had to drop the books shortly after the Arabian Fables started making an appearance, at which point, the racism was just...really offensive, and by the time the Cindrella mini came out, it had gotten even worse, and I had to let it go for my own sanity. It didn't help that all of that came around the same time that I felt the comics were making women less prominent. Um, I know we have talked about Aeryn before and you know how I feel about HER treatment in season four, but I think Snow White got a bit of the Laura Roslin and Aeryn Sun treatment, too. Which still really, really hurts to think about.
But I shall not ruin your squee by getting into my issues (more than I already have, I mean! SORRY!). And I suspect that if I had read everything together without time to think about it, I probably would be at the same place? I mean, I loved PRINCE CHARMING I was so in love with this at one point. ;)
I am ashamed to admit that I had to read a fair bit before I even started noticing offensive art on its own? Because my approach to finding issues with fiction is still MAINLY metanarrative, so I barely even reach a narrative level of being offended, much less an artsy level. And for all my issues with fiction, I am willing to overlook a ridiculous amount of things as long as characterization is good and non-stereotypical.
In other news, people keep mentionomh Frau Totenkinder's arc enough that I might be forced to check it out at some point. :)
"Birds of Prey" makes up most of my DC reading. I am odd with comics in that I tend to follow characters rather than titles, but that also makes the huge universes easier to handle? And I started having trouble with "Birds of Prey" right around when they started adding too many characters for me to keep track of, ALAS. So I am nowhere near current on it, either. But it's a good title in that, like Marvel's "Alias," it's almost set on the fringes of the Superhero world and features women with character-based arcs that de-emphasize the rest of the huge universes.
Yes, exactly! And very interesting (if not that surprising, because it makes a lot of sense) that you've had similar experiences.
I should also mention that my standard conversation methods usually include bombarding people with comics featuring Emma Frost. Who possibly has one of the most offensive costumes, but really, I have had good success with even that, as long as I stick to stories that are more interested in her character/personality than her lack of clothing.
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Date: 2012-03-01 09:46 pm (UTC)I actually clocked the guy was probably a republican from the anti social welfare state stuff Snow was spouting to Beauty and the Beast in the first few pages of the first issue and that left me with an impression of Snow as a social conservative and had that tied to her obvious traditionalist tendencies - in turn tied to her privileged longevity - pretty much from the get go. Which didn't mean I didn't roll my eyes something fierce when I read the prolife stuff, it just meant...it wasn't a complete shock to me, more a confirmation of something I already suspected.
I have very mixed feelings about the Arabian fables whereby I think tonedeafness to the fact stereotyping the fairytales of a culture you have a history of oppression with is not the same as doing it to your own, but on the other hand, the baldness of the Israel vs Arab Nations analogy in the war between Fabletown and the Empire meant that if they hadn't had the actual Arab Nations there as Fabletown's equal partner in the war, without whom they would not have won it, that analogy would have been even weirder and more uncomfortable.
I think that reading it fairly quickly, I always had an opinion of the series having a huge rotating cast, but I do agree that it started out with more of a focus on the women which then shifted to the guys during the war and I gave them leeway on that for a fair while because I adore Blue Boy and it was really his story, but if I'd been stuck for...well years really, reading that rather than over a few months, and not knowing the balance would shift back (or at least somewhat back), I might well have experienced similar frustration. Hell I still might if it does it again. Right now, though, Ozma's getting more page time, Rose Red's getting a Destiny set up, Very Interesting Stuff is happening with Snow's daughter, Winter, and another of her daughters, Therese, looks to be the star of the next arc, not to mention the stuff with Totenkinder.
I'm honestly unsure whether I'd recommend you go back to it. You quit for good reasons and I don't know that any of the underlying issues are fixed. But if you don't mind spoilers, I did have some thoughts on Totenkinder and her role here (http://beccatoria.livejournal.com/161689.html), chiefly musings on my complete fascination with the fact that Willingham, who is clearly pro-life, has pitted a witch who is literally powered by abortion against a nation that is literally powered by creating infinite children, and we're supposed to be on the side of the witch. I just. Mind. Blown. So. Confused.
Um, long story short, I'm happy to talk about it. I'm just confused that I love so much something that is clearly so problematic in certain respects, and created by a guy I'm fairly sure I'd hate if I met in real life. And then I think to myself, is this what it's like to be a fan of Supernatural? O.O
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Date: 2012-03-03 11:41 am (UTC)I think I was generally a lot less...politically aware in terms of non-feminist issues at the time I read it so that's not something I either caught or remember? But also, um, I realize that a lot of characters I like tend to be socially/financially privileged people with those views. Doesn't mean that I don't see their issues, just that...I sort of really have a thing for women aware of their advantages and willing to use them (since fiction SO often throws women at us that we're supposed to like because we feel bad for them. Sympathy (rather than admiration, as is the case with male characters) as the main point of connection with female characters). Sigh, I just get really iffy over heroines I consider to be feminist spouting anti-women stuff. I LOVE LAURA ROSLIN, but I still haven't forgiven her for passing pro-life laws. I mean, I know *she* is pro-choice and did it for the FUTURE. But her reasons seemed very short-sighted and badly researched, so I am bitter (oh, the days when that was my biggest issue with BSG.;)
The rotating cast of "Fables" probably also made it easier for me to drop it because by the time things were starting to offend me, characters I liked were also being shifted to the background. But Snow White running Fabletown was a huge point of investment for me, as was the Snow/Bigby relationship before it became something where Snow was promising to love and OBEY him, sigh. And then Beauty never really took over to that extent.
I appreciate the involvement of Arabian Fables in the Fabletown war, but I wish their characterization had not been reduced to a joke. I could've overlooked them? But my main issues with that is that I was very disturbed by how "Fables" took one of the most feminist fairy tales featuring a woman of color and rewrote that story to feature Snow in her place. And instead of writing the WoC out entirely, rewrote her back into the story in such a way that Snow becomes her mentor/teacher, so her agency/story is TAKEN away and given to a white woman, who then is placed in a position where she can teach a woman of color something she should already know. GAH. It really brought the weird race/gender intersectionality/hierarchy issues to the surface for me, and it was very uncomfortable. And then it made me realize how all of the fairy tales, regardless of their origins, were now populated with white people.
BUT. I am actually glad you discovered "Fables." I actually almost recommended it to you a while back when you started posting about your love for "Once Upon a Time." Not that they're the same in any way, but because you read comics and "Fables" is a superior and more deconstructive take on fairy tales. But I am always reluctant in reccing things that may have failed in some areas because I somehow feel that their failings reflects MY FAIL in liking them. *headdesk*
I don't know ANYTHING about the writer in the real life except for his politics that come across on the page and that he said that he wanted to GUN DOWN the fangirls demanding Stephanie Brown's resurrection. Which, GAH. Given how much Stephanie Brown has sort of become the symbol of feminism within the comics community, that's just more disdain directed our way. I *really* hate him.
And then I think to myself, is this what it's like to be a fan of Supernatural? O.O
*dies* I...don't think "Supernatural" *has* any positive qualities? This is probably closer to being a fan of "The Vampire Diaries?" Where there are lots of women who are awesome, but it's so, so deeply problematic that you wonder why you're still watching despite all the issues.
I am saving the Totenkinder post to read when I am a bit more awake. :)
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Date: 2012-03-04 11:59 pm (UTC)I was more aware of the politics because I've lived in Wales most of my life, but my mother is actually American so UK/US cultural difference ping me more. The first issue opens with Snow refusing to help Beauty and the Beast by paying for marriage counseling so he can look human again and avoid moving to the farm, and says they can't afford it but if they could she wouldn't do it because they're not like the mundanes and don't look to the government to solve their problems and attitudes to the social state is another of those transatlantic culture shock issues.
I'm not sure this is a point at which I'd say that Snow is expressing views typical of heroines I like, but I do very much empathise with falling in love with the sorts of women who will use the power given them or that they've managed to claim, even if the power structures are problematic simply because claiming their place within them becomes revolutionary. Regarding Laura Roslin, I was...so frustrated with that storyline mainly because I felt it was stupid. Baltar gave nonsensical reasons. And if they'd managed to give sensible reasons, and still had my (at the time) favourite fictional character doing something I found ethically abhorrent, and she found ethically abhorrent, man, that would have been amazing and complicated and a sharp look at the dangers of democracy despite it being the best option we have because at that point, I would have turned around and voted for Baltar too.
But as you say: WOULD THAT THAT WERE OUR GREATEST QUARREL WITH THAT SHOW.
(Oh also yes: oldskool wedding vows = whut & ick, Snow, whut & ick.)
Regarding the Arabian Fables, yeah, there's a difference between the structure of their inclusion and the individual execution of it. Although I did enjoy Sinbad for the most part - I thought his eeeeeeevil caricature of an adviser was far more concerning, though it's an area I don't feel I'm educated enough in all the various stereotypes and tropes to really comment comprehensively on? I did wonder, while reading it, what I would make of it if I were more familiar with the crap that tends to go with Western attitudes to Arabian culture. Along those lines, I have to confess, the issues around Scheherezade in 1001 Nights of Snowfall actually went right over my head as I never had anything more than a very, very passing familiarity with her, and so I clocked that the entire concept of recasting Snow in the role was potentially problematic, but not quite the degree to which Scheherezade was a fairly radically feminist figure in her own story. I googled her before replying, however, and think I get it a bit better now. :(
Regarding the overwhelming whiteness of the Fabletown population, I think I would have been okay with that (given they do clarify that there are many homelands, often tied to the nations that originally told their stories in the mundy world) if only the author had included more of the other fable communities in the story, but that never really happens, even after their treaty with the Arabian Fables.
I agree with you that Once Upon A Time and Fables are very different. I also at the moment agree that Fables is better, although I think they're doing some significantly different things and I'm not quite sure that Once is attempting to deconstruct in the same way that - at least early Fables - quite clearly had as a goal? I...have very unformed thoughts on this that I wish would form better so that I could make a post about them. :/
Re: Willingham: I didn't know he said that and yes, Ugh. My decision to find out nothing about him definitely appears to be the correct one.
I TRIED to watch the Vampire Diaries once and failed! But it was just a random episode that was on TV and I didn't understand what was going on... But I will definitely take any analogy over Supernatural! :p
Hope you enjoy the Totenkinder post whenever you get a chance to get around to it. :)
(Also - meant to reply to your other comment this evening but have run out of time! Hopefully tomorrow!)
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Date: 2012-03-07 07:56 am (UTC)On Arabian Fables, I enjoyed Sinbad, and Aladdin. I specifically think they were more iffy towards the writing of women than the men (and there's a definite race/gender hierarchy/intersectionality issues going on). I did some meta on that arc (and specifically on the issues involved in erasing Scheherezade from her own story) here, if you're interested.
Even with the premise that there are multiple homelands, many of the Fairy tale characters that "Fables" is claiming as its own are actually from stories that originated in different parts of the world. But yeah, all the race issues are very, very iffy.
You will not be surprised to learn that "Once Upon a Time" frustrates me in the same capacity at its treatment of race. I don't find it to be deconstructive at all, but you're free to convince me otherwise! I am watching it, but I have been very iffy on some of the choices they're making, especially the very black/white view of morality it seems to take, which is, I admit, very fairy tale-y, but it's frustrating. But like yours, my thoughts on this show are mostly...unformed. There are things I like, and then things that I really don't, and I am not sure exactly what they're trying to do, and most importantly, um, I don't trust the writers. Which makes it harder for me to connect with the characters.
I have a weird relationship with "Vampire Diaries," where I grew up reading the insanely women-positive books by the writer, so I am attached, but oh god, the show's opening line pretty much starts with the male protagonist going "THIS IS MY STORY." When the books were entirely in Elena's POV and very heavily focused on her friendships with other women. What the show DID have going for it was its multiple characters of color, and then it killed them all at the end of the season and continues this tread. Be glad you're not watching.
I promise that I *do* have good things to say about "Fables," too, and reading your Totenkinder post reminded me of some of it. I am hopefully going to find the time later today to do so. :)
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Date: 2012-03-08 06:28 pm (UTC)Yes, I too wondered why they wanted to have a baby boom while on the run with NO FOOD, LIKE AT ONE POINT THEY ACTUALLY RUN OUT OF FOOD. It's why I also always never bought those arguments some fans used to bring up early on that they should have brutally only taken those most likely to survive with them, ditching old people and kids and stuff because, well basically that only works if you know you're going to find a safe place right around the corner and restart; if you're going to be living for years, possibly more than a generation on a ship, you need a staggered population.
Honestly, they pretty much did nothing WITH the Arabian Fables women except...dress them up and let them be oppressed. :( I have some thoughts on this and the widening of the Fables world with new creators, but I will respond over on the Totenkinder thread.
Thanks for the information about Scheherezade! I never knew that - I never knew that her sister was such an integral part of her story. That's both fantastic, fascinating and yes, sad that it's gone. Especially since, while not free of potential problems, a far more interesting reimagination of the tale would have been for Snow to somehow take on the role of the sister/supporting female character so that it would still have been a tale about two women and a plan. Perhaps if Scherezade were still the bride, but colluded with Snow so that, in her role as ambassador, Snow asked to hear one final tale from Scherezade before such tales could no longer be heard. It's so sad when stories are so...wasteful of such great potential. :(
I'm honestly not sure what to say about Once Upon A Time. I don't really think that it is trying to be deconstructionist? I mean, sure, I guess it is on the level that there are attempts to make both Rumplestiltskin and Regina characters with reasons to be evil rather than cartoon characters and we have a more modern narrative structure. But I feel those are more concessions to our current storytelling mores rather than deliberate commentary on the nature of a fairytale. I think what Once Upon A Time is doing is...telling fairystories.
I think it's trying to modernise without criticising, rather than rebuilding through critical deconstruction. I want to believe that what it's trying to do is possible, but I waver wildly on how successfully it's achieving it. Its record on pretty much all issues save gender issues is abysmal. I had fairly high opinions of the way it had three female leads with complex relationships with each other on multiple levels, and I still really appreciate that, but I'm starting to seriously pissed at the way the fallout from Mary Margaret and David's affair is blowing back solely onto her in ways that can't be solely explained by the Mayor's personal vendetta and secret can of red spray paint.
Finally! I didn't even know the Vampire Diaries WERE a series of books. If they were pre-Twilight, I bet the author is seriously annoyed they missed the moment... ;)
And as I said, no worries on Fables. I'm enjoying it a lot right now, but I don't think it needs to be cocooned away from criticism, particularly not the criticism it's fairly obviously earned. My opinions may not be as harshly critical as yours on some issues, but I have the benefit of different OTCs, and a longer run where I got to power through more of the stuff I found distasteful and find more stuff I enjoyed. Plus, never, ever get me started on Jack of Fables! :p
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Date: 2012-03-01 09:46 pm (UTC)Re: DC - I ABSOLUTELY follow characters not titles too. It's the only sane way to do it, I think. I also rigorously adhere to personal canon, which is weirdly, I think, easier in DC than Marvel with their habit of declaring "CRISIS OF REALITY! NEW LEVEL!" and just keeping all the shit they arbitrarily like at that moment and ditching the rest, like infinite ultimate remakes. I read these things like myths and legends retold and retold; a million versions are true, so I will pick the one I like best (and, obviously, still RAGE at the ones I find offensively stupid or out of character because what, I am an internet geek!)
I didn't read the old BoP much but the new one is actually kind of fun. It's like...a spy thriller kind of thing. Honestly it's a little slowmoving for me, like it's deliberately playing with perspective and time and who knows what when and I'm like WAIT I WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON ALREADY but it's well-written, the art is nice and not icky and you know, it's still a comic about girls being friends. The line-up is Black Canary, Starling (new character, a friend of Dinah's), Katana (a character who has been problematically portrayed in the past, but it's nice the team isn't entirely white), POISON IVY (no rly) and Batgirl (though she only joins a few issues in, and obvs, she's not Oracle anymore so your tolerance may vary on that point). It's good stuff though and there's only 6 issues so far, so easy to catch up on. It has adorable moments like Starling driving a car through a church to grab Canary from out of a firefight, muttering, "hang on, sweetie," and the dude sat next to her going, "I AM!" and her going, "I WASN'T TALKING TO YOU."
Re: Emma Frost - dude I cannot understand any of Marvel, like, at all and even I know Emma Frost is the awesome boss queen of the universe. ♥ and also a really good example of a sexualised costume that works. For me, at least in part this is because it feels unique to her; it doesn't look like any other sexy superhero costume. It feels more like eveningwear; it's actually beautiful as well as revealing.
No lie, I went to see new Muppet movie today (if you're in North America - it came out months later in the UK for some reason), and we also got a free Avengers vs X-Men prequel/intro comic at the comic store, so we were talking (OBVIOUSLY) about how the next Muppet movie should be The X-Muppets and we were in total agreement that clearly Piggy was Emma Frost.
Final note: LOVE your icon. :D
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Date: 2012-03-03 12:09 pm (UTC)For some reason, Marvel's heroic formula works better for me than DC's, and it's no coincidence that my only interest in DC has mainly been in Batverse, which actually follows Marvel's heroic formula. It's hard for me to say if Marvel or DC is harder to navigate because I, um, cheat. I have no problems with spoilers, so I tend to read the wiki entries on women I am interested in, then find their entry on Marvel/DC database and just read those issues, knowing the basic outline of the story already. It's sort of how I approach learning new systems of mythologies, too. ;)
Simone's entire run of "Birds of Prey," especially her first run, is fifteen shades of awesome. I am especially in love with how she develops the relationship between Barbara and Helena from something that's a weird rivalry/jealousy (as defined by writers before her) thing into one of the most complex/uneasy/deep friendships between women in any canon ever. I keep meaning to write meta about the epic-ness of Helena/Barbara, but reading stuff with them just makes me speechless with squee. I know, fandom is all about Barbara/Dinah, which is awesome, but Helena/Barbara is so unique that it just makes me want to draw hearts all over it.
and also a really good example of a sexualised costume that works.
YES, THAT! I mean, Emma Frost is the ONLY superheroine I love where her offensive costume actually WORKS with who she is. But she has claimed that it disarms people, making it easier for her to use her telepathy on them. She's entirely responsible for starting my thing for Machiavellian, morally ambiguous women in power positions. Um, if you ever feel like navigating through Marvel for the awesome of Emma Frost, I have a post up here with all the relevant titles. This is my standard, "START READING COMICS!" post.
Also, um, if you're looking for indie, not-entirely-superhero comics with awesome women, I can probably rec some things? WITH APPROPRIATE DISCLAIMERS, of course.
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Date: 2012-03-05 09:20 pm (UTC)The notion that metatextuality is always clever simply through its existence is a notion I abhor, but in this specific instance, I find their kind of...blunter, structural acknowledgement of the narrative processes that keep a 75+ year old, shared universe afloat, almost reassuring. In some ways it makes it feel more like a myth to me, because how many versions of the same stories get retold and retold?
Which isn't to say when they retell it I don't sometimes go, "yeesh, didn't I JUST HEAR THIS STORY LAST YEAR?!" or when they retell it in ways that are offensively influenced by modern oppressive societal models I don't get pissed at that, just...as a platonic ideal, it's not something that bothers me.
Helena Bertinelli is obviously a bit of a different situation given that she's been more radically shifted in the reboot. I'm pretty sure that what they're gunning for is to give her the Wayne!Huntress backstory while keeping the Bertinelli!Huntress character and motivation. Again, as a platonic ideal, I take no issue with the notion of amalgamating similar gods, as it were, but (1) if that were the only god in the pantheon I liked, I might rage quit my religion too (2) the everpresent question of why this happens more to girls than guys and (3) I have some concerns about whether Bertinelli's character could stand a shift in origin (http://beccatoria.livejournal.com/160085.html) and retain the things that made her a unique addition to the universe.
Regarding BoP, have you heard of the Graphic Audio No Man's Land (http://www.graphicaudio.net/p-900-batman-no-mans-land-1-of-2.aspx) audio drama? It's based on Greg Rucka's novelisation and is just awesome. Babs and Helena both have large roles, and although this is still at the point when Babs is very antagonistic towards Helena, both characters are fully realised, sympathetic, and will break your damn heart when getting angry with Batman. Also I think Helena gets the best voice actress in the production.
And thank you for the link to your post! I have a huge number of comics to read right now so I need to get through my backlist but I may well revisit your offer; I'm about to have a reduction in income, which is frustrating for my comic buying habit, but I have a very well-stocked local library (srsly, they had a giant stall at the local Comic Expo the other week, run by a Poison Ivy cosplayer, signing people up for library cards), so it might be a good time to start looking at stuff I wouldn't otherwise have thought to take a glance at!
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Date: 2012-03-08 03:54 pm (UTC)I think my problem is my tendency to OTC. So while in theory, I invest in characters, for any given canon, I am likely fangirling just the one character hard enough that I have no energy left for the rest of it.
In some ways it makes it feel more like a myth to me, because how many versions of the same stories get retold and retold?
YES. I have no idea if you've read any of Roberto Calasso, but he has an epic quote for mythology that I think VERY MUCH applies to comics and why I love them, "Mythic figures live many lives, die many deaths, and in this they differ from the characters we find in novels, who can never go beyond the single gesture. But in each of these lives and deaths all the others are present, and we can hear their echo. Only when we become aware of a sudden consistency between incompatibles can we say we have crossed the threshold of myth." But, yes, all of that with the alternate realities, and I love seeing the echoes of the timelines crossing over. It's awesome and it does make the characters seem like greater than the sum of their parts. One of these days, I need to go down my list of "Wonder Woman" comics and read some of the runs that have been recommedned to me. :)
I am usually the one defending different versions (movies vs comics vs animated shows, etc) while others are hating them for being different, but I just hate losing the main universe that I had invested in, in this instance.
Helena Wayne, as being written now is pretty much the DC version of one of my favorite Marvel characters, Rachel Summers, where she has the Bertinelli personality that I love so much and the tragic backstory of being from a defunct timeline (I have no idea if that's where they're going with Wayne in this version?), so I am entirely sure I would love her? But I really loved the Bertinelli backstory (I think Rucka's "Cry for Blood" may be my favorite graphic novel ever, and the deconstruction of the Broken Bird trope therein just makes me SQUEE so hard.), and it makes me sad that that's no longer part of canon. Or, at least, not part of the timeline they're interested in telling me the story of anymore. And, well, basically all of the concerns you addressed in your post (which I read at the time you had posted it, but refrained from getting all of my BITTERNESS in the way of your excitement ;) are very valid. I imagine I will end up reading them, but I know myself enough to know that it will have to be after I have gotten over the loss of Helena Bertinelli.
Oh, and I had NO Idea that audio drama existed! THANK YOU for linking me to it. Maybe I can spend my weekend happily shipping Barbara and Helena. <3
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Date: 2012-03-08 06:40 pm (UTC)Also that quote is just...fucking brilliant. So true and so powerful, and so succinctly captures the nature of a landscape that is as much about the power of inconsistencies and irreconcileable tales still being true as it is about facts.
I adore Wonder Woman, like, immensely, which I never did before sitting down and reading some complete runs. My favourite stuff is probably either Rucka's run or Simone's. I know you like both writers. I found Rucka's run was...slow to start, and quite honestly it took me some time to grasp her character because it felt (and I hate to say this because this is harsher and more unfair than I intend it to sound) more like a goodie-two-shoes slightly disney princess, zen-peace-and-love version of her character. Which it later became clear was intentional as Rucka, over the course of his five trades, starts with a deliberately distant view of her; how others see her, and then slowly, as he strips more and more away from her character and we get closer and closer to her, until she's left with nothing but blood on her hands and internal integrity. It's really pretty beautiful, but it's the third, fourth and fifth trades in his series that are the best, and best illustrate the deftness of his writing. There's so much in there about truth and perception as we follow Diana between two unwittingly televised fights, identical in many ways, but one makes her a hero and the other damns her. It's just great stuff.
I also particularly love Simone's first trade, The Circle.
I really need to read Cry for Blood at some point - I've been meaning to check out more Huntress stuff since listening to the audio drama. (Speaking of, I really hope you enjoy it if you listen, but I feel I should warn you that while Babs and Helena have large roles, they don't interact with each other very much at all, though when they do it's powerful stuff. Probably my favourite section in the whole thing is the first time Babs sees Helena in the Batgirl costume and the effect that has on her).
And absolutely no worries about not commenting - as I said, I'm in a different position to most. I completely understand where you're coming from; I would be throwing a similar fit of bitterness and potential separation before reintroduction if this were one of my OTCs. Hell, I'm still desperate for confirmation that the Secret Six are still around. :(
Anyways, Helena Bertinelli: boss king of the universe and fierce, fierce, fierce.
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Date: 2012-03-01 02:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-03-01 12:48 pm (UTC)Unfortunately, I've never really been a Marvel girl - I read more DC, so I'm unlikely to be able to commiserate with you on specifics, but Moar Comics Reading By Girls is good because dammit, we should be excluded from no geeky arenas, and the more of us there are (plus allied men) the more chance there is of finally being able to hand a non-comics reader a superhero comic and go, "here are all the reasons why this is awesome! Check out her boss protective armour!"
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Date: 2012-03-16 02:28 pm (UTC)(oh, I did just read that Amy Reeder got replaced on the Batwoman run. Bummed about that.)
Imma go back to playing Mass Effect now. How much do I love that I get to play a female character in a scifi shooter? THIS MUCH.
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Date: 2012-03-16 09:35 pm (UTC)And yeah, I read about Amy Reeder being gone too which is majorly disappointing. Especially since now I can't recommend it to this girl on account of how she loved Reeder's art in Madame Xanadu. BOO.
I also (literally half an hour ago!) just finished playing Mass Effect 3. I know that there's a lot of fuss on the net about the ending, but (no spoilarz!) personally I loved the one I got. Commander Shepard is just epic. And okay I'd be biased anyway, but the voice acting for female Shepard is just drastically superior to the voice acting for male Shepard. ...I may have a vid or twelve planned. *facepalm* We'll see if I can get the footage I need...
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Date: 2012-03-16 10:43 pm (UTC)I'm a complete noob, still on Mass Effect 1, but if I continue at this pace that won't last very long. *g* No clue about the male voice acting, but yeah, I'm super pleased with femShep. I shall watch all your vids for sure! Kinda wish I had some way of capping my character, as I'd love an icon, but I'm on the xbox so...
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Date: 2012-03-16 11:09 pm (UTC)A lot of people are fine with the male voice acting, but Jennifer Hale (who is in like every video game ever!) is just so fantastic I can't help but compare and find the dude tonedeaf in comparison.
I play on Xbox too, so I can't cap either, which is annoying. Or pull footage so I need to err, source it elsewhere. I'm looking for default Femshep so as not to be using someone else's creation, but that's a bit tricky since they changed default femshep between ME2 and ME3 and the default in ME3 looks...weird. But I'm making progress! We'll see if it works at all - I've never tried to vid video game cutscenes before, I'm not sure how the footage would look.
I'm sure there are loads of icons out there but again the issue would be it's not your Shepard. Which is part of the awesome.
I really hope you continue to enjoy the game. While I'm often a bit miffed at the concept of having extra download content for storybased stuff, I kind of make an exception for Mass Effect because it's like, the one video game franchise I really love. If you play ME2 and have access to the online stuff, I do recommend getting the download content extra missions. The two that give you extra companions are reasonably fun, but the Lair of the Shadow Broker and The Arrival will really add a lot to your understanding of the situation in ME3. Like if you don't play them, ME3 knows that and fills you in with dialogue, but...I dunno. ME2 feels a lot more complete to me with them included.
Let me know how you get on! Can't wait to hear what choices you make! (Or if you manage to hilariously and repeatedly screw up your romantic options as thoroughly as me...)
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Date: 2012-03-17 06:46 pm (UTC)Yeah that does sound tough to get around. Also I'm thinking the armor upgrades become jarring, especially if you don't edit all that linearly. I tried capturing a couple of images on my iPhone but no doubt those turned out shit. *wants her epic damn icon already*
Not all that familiar with games and who does what, but judging by her work here, I can see why everyone would be wanting her on their team.
Don't think I have the kind of disc that comes with the bonus material already included, but if not I'm not too bothered to dl it. At the moment I definitely want all I can get ;)
OH OH JUST FINISHED THE FIRST GAME. I killed Ashley /o\ By accident! Damn me and my twitchy fingers. Imma go
celebrate my victorymourn her with pancakes. Apparently afterwards I have to make sure peoplekind don't act like a bunch of dicks now that we're in charge.no subject
Date: 2012-03-19 10:12 pm (UTC)Re: vidding it - I think the armour upgrades will depend on the settings the playthrough used - for instance some people play sans helmet, particularly for cut scenes. Mainly I'm worried that a few I've seen as potential sources of footage have the annoying eye-electronic headgear things which DO stick around for cut scenes. I'm less worried about changing armour (which I figure would come off as changes of clothes) than I am about something visually on the face of a character I'd have to handle changing slightly from source to source already anyway. Ah well, we'll see how it goes...
Not all that familiar with games and who does what, but judging by her work here, I can see why everyone would be wanting her on their team.
Guuuuuh, I keep watching spoilerrific clips from the end of Mass Effect 3 where she's just so beat up and exhausted and fangirl swooning over the awesome of her acting.
In other voiceactor news I also nearly fell over when I realised I'd somehow missed the fact that the actor who plays Kaiden (whom I have a ridiculous attachment to mainly just because I already knew it was the same voice as Carth from Knights of the Old Republic, who was a ridiculous video game person in every way possible and thus I loved his whiny self and made him run around the entire game in his underpants), is THE SAME GUY WHO IS JIMINY CRICKET IN ONCE UPON A TIME. My mind, it was blown.
I don't think they've actually released a deluxe bonus-material-included version of ME2 yet, actually, so you probably would have to download, but glad to hear you're enjoying it enough you want to!
YAY YOU FINISHED THE FIRST ONE! :D Congratulations! I have to confess though, I sort of killed Ashley on purpose. I...don't really like her much. *dodges rotten fruit* Her views on space racism disturbed me but I was well up for changing her mind until that weird, long, creepy story about how heartwarming it was when her sister beat up her boyfriend for attempted sexual assault and then decided not to turn him into the police because he started crying. o.O That said, I do have her alive in my second playthrough (when I play as a renegade dude), because in my first playthrough I ended up with Liara because Kaiden dumped me after I suggested a threesome (which was clearly the solution to EVERYTHING). But...the tragicomedy of my Mass Effect Romantic Choices is...an entire post for another time. All I'm saying is, when you get to ME2, WATCH OUT FOR YOUR SECRETARY. She will trade you sexual favours in exchange for feeding your fish. ...I was scared.
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Date: 2012-03-20 04:08 pm (UTC)ooo I am swooning in advance! Also hoping I'll get to go to earth. Pretty miffed that hasn't been an option yet. Especially if the location is Not New York Or Washington For Fucks Sake.
Jiminy Cricket? Hah. Awesomesauce. My mind will have fun with that later while playing hee.
Nope, I just had a code for dl the Normandy landing site and a couple of weapons, but I got the rest as well. I'd already started playing though, so not sure if it'll be included in this round?
Weeeeell. "Finished" is a strong word. I did all the story stuff. I'm so ridiculous about these things. When they say it's urgent and I have to get there right away, I have a very hard time not rushing off. I know it's ridiculous, and yet! I'll do all the side assignments next go though. I'll be doing the renegade thing too, so then I can be all "relax, bub. I'll do it in my own damn time."
Ew I don't remember that conversation with Ashley. Basically my deep reasonings for using one and not the other=ovaries before brovaries. I am so very very bad at being tactical. Just like the weapons confuse me in ME2. I mostly just leave them alone(though doing research). I did really liked the Quarian, so sad to see she's unavailable now *pouts* But yay the Krogan is back! I actually installed the no scar system thingy for the medical bay so he could get his face fixed up.
I have had, um, absolutely no romantic shenanigans at all. lol I did have one conversation with the secretary, where it was very clear she was lusting after the aliens. So I was all "have at it, lady. that is one service I will not be providing my crew with". ...I'm actually more worried for the fish now. (or not. I seemed to have killed it.) No clue what the romantic options are, but if Jacob is available, I plan to climb that like a tree. Next round when I'm a Renegade I'm guessing Jack will be my go to.
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Date: 2012-03-20 09:59 pm (UTC)You don't get to go to Earth in ME2, but you do in ME3 although not for all that long. Skirting spoilers, but it is neither DC nor New York.
The DLC should show up just fine in your game even if you've already started. It's designed so that people could buy it later, go back and load up their saves when they'd COMPLETED the game and go BACK and play it if they wanted, so don't worry.
I love your justification for being slow about things as a Renegade! :D I'm the opposite of you though, I can't leave stuff unfinished! I feel I Didn't Save Someone or something! But I think it'll make for a more interesting and personalised experience for you when you get through to 2 and 3 though, because as the series continues, what side-quests you do and don't do have more and more effects on what happens to various characters (both in large and small terms) and sometimes in ways you wouldn't expect. Like in ME3 some characters survive or die certain scenarios partially based on what you did or didn't do for them in previous games. Again, skirting big spoilers, but I remember a moment I actually had to look up on the net to see if I'd deducted what had happened correctly is when one minor character you've met a few times in previous games shows up in ME3, then you think the character will die, but gets saved by a TOTALLY DIFFERENT minor character you had the option of interacting with once in a previous game and - if you encouraged her into the line of work she is now in - saves the guy, but if you encouraged her into a different line of work, the guy dies. CRAZYSAUCE.
Basically my deep reasonings for using one and not the other=ovaries before brovaries. I am so very very bad at being tactical. Just like the weapons confuse me in ME2.
I REALLY REALLY WANTED THAT TO BE MY REASONING TOO. But then she just got space racist creepy and I had to ditch her.
I did discover, however, that it's perfectly possible to play through all the Mass Effect games using only a single gun and not knowing what the hell you're doing as long as you leave it on casual. *thumbs up*
Your fish will be fine as long as you feed them between missions. I'm mostly bitter because I did this OBSESSIVELY until Kelly offered to feed them for me in exchange for dinner that I am going to STUDIOUSLY INSIST WENT NO FURTHER. And what happens when I get back from my next damn mission? MY FUCKING FISH ARE DEAD. So I bought more immediately and...she did seem to feed those. But ::sideeye::
Jacob is a romance option, yes. So is Garrus, and I gotta be honest if I coulda done that in ME1 I would have been ALL OVER HIM, except then I get to ME2 and the game tricked me into monogamy with a paragon interrupt! (Okay, it didn't, but I felt too filthy and unheroic to break up with anyone...seriously, I need to make a post at some point about the trials of my Mass Effect relationships. They seem to be a series of accidents or examples of terrible judgement. Like when I slept with Miranda instead of Jack. I still don't really know why I did that. Maybe my Guy!Shep was hankering after a brunette space racist? Though I gotta be honest, I like the idea of Jack more than her execution.)
Seriously, my relationship with this game is like: OMG THE TECHNOLOGICAL NARRATIVE META, IT IS SO DEEP! Wait, whut, kissing? Ahahahaha lolz that's awesome. Oh no, wait, what did I dooooooo?!!
I actually installed the no scar system thingy for the medical bay so he could get his face fixed up.
THAT IS ADORABLE. (Also that's a totally different Krogan...) :p Although you can meet up with Wrex later.
And don't worry, Tali, the Quarian, comes back too. She's my FAVOURITE. I want to adopt her.
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Date: 2012-03-22 10:48 pm (UTC)The DLC showed up just fine. Though I wish I could do more with the Shadowbroker Lair(although the short vid clips were amusing hee). Why won't they just let me be a
ninjamaster spy already?Oh the consequences of my actions are already impressing me(just opted to save a residential zone on a planet over the industrial/military zone, meaning they'll have to leave the planet. Wondering how that will bite me in the ass later), so really biting my nails to see what'll happen in ME3. Like, Rachni invasion? oooops. hehe. *sheepish* say, remember that time I saved the Universe? like, the whole damn thing? I just wish the paragon/renegade points weren't alway top/bottom on the conversation wheel. It would be even more awesome if they were a mix and match thing, so people would have to put more thought into their choices.
Bah the romancing, it is harrrrd. Mordin is singing me showtunes and telling me other species hit on him all the time, Garrus out of the blue suggests we go work out our frustration in our private quarters, but I'll be damned if I can get my assistant to feed my fish(btw, damn you for luring me into using conversation options that has the word "embrace" in them), and Jacob didn't so much as bat an eye until I showed up in that fancy dress from the Thief mission. Imma go be lesbian cross-species asexual partners with Tali, thank you very much. That that, social norms. (unless banging someone gives me an achievement? cause then it's back to Jacob) I am however NEVER sleeping with Miranda, due to her Cerebrus loyalty(Jacob I see as someone who can be swayed, but not her). When I go Renegade I might, but that makes sense in an emotionally detached/keep your enemies closer/eh just a bit of fun kind of way. But then the Renegade character would probably have too much fun making her lower her guard and then ask gross questions like does she come with a vibrator function.
Oh hey, apparently there's an add-on in the works, since so many fans were disgruntled with ME3's ending. Yay?
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Date: 2012-03-22 11:37 pm (UTC)I know what you mean about the paragon/renegade options too. One thing I liked about ME3 was that it changed to being more of a "reputation" system, where some things add to paragon and some to renegade but some just add to your overall reputation (which increases your bar with the same ratio of paragon/renegade) and having the special paragon or renegade options generally comes with your reputation rather than your skill in one of the other. I'm also not sure if they gave me renegade points or not, but the overall emotional tone in ME3 did make me choose a fair number of fatalistic, rather than aggressive responses on the "renegade" area of the wheel when talking to my teammates and I was actually really satisfied with the responses I got and didn't feel they were out of character for my heroic Shepard. Stuff like...like acknowledging someone's probably gonna die instead of being perky "keep fighting and we'll win!" or admitting that I would have been willing to kill Person X if I'd really had to rather than insisting I'd always magically find another way?
It's interesting that you talk about the lack of having to think about your choices though, because, well, to jump ahead a bit in your comment - I think that plays a very big role in why some people are disatisfied with the ending. Without spoilers or pressure to eventually agree with me, I actually adored the ending and have...deeply mixed feelings about Bioware's response. My hope is that they are adding to the existing endings with more context rather than adding any alternate endings, which I believe is what their statement implies for...well a whole host of reasons. I'm gonna make a post about it...possibly even later tonight. Or at least try and make some kind of post about it - I'm not sure I could contain all my thoughts in one.
Re: romancing: mwahahahahahahaa! Actually I've never really had trouble getting people to pay attention to me, more I have trouble ever actually following through with romances in the way I at all intended. Becka's Hilarious Mass Effect Romantic Mishaps is...another post I need to make. But first I need to see what new and inventive ways ME3 finds to screw up my GuyShep's playthrough (other than denying me my ORIGINAL thwarted goal of seducing Kaiden because I went and dun killed him when I realised I couldn't in ME1...)
You DO get an achievement for teh sexxing though, so you may wanna go back and hook up with Jacob. ;)
TALI IS MY FAVOURITE but she will forever be my adopted daughter. For some reason - and I admit this has nothing to do with the game - in my head she is forever 12 years old. *facepalm*
Thinking about it now, I think my Renegade Shepard went for Miranda not Jack because I felt less...I don't know, exploitative that way. I though, being in-character, he'd get his Renegade kicks out of err, conquering that challenge, and Jack was broken enough I didn't really feel right entering a relationship with her I had no intention of taking seriously. But I was kind of fine with breaking Miranda's heart. And I wanted the achievement since the game guilt-tripped me into monogamy (well, terrifying-fish-secretary-excepted-monogamy) with my FemShep playthrough and you get no achievement for sticking with Liara in the Shadow Broker DLC.
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Date: 2012-03-23 05:45 pm (UTC)I'm still on the second game. I'm only playing in short spurts now because I'm dealing with the husks and they freak me out! They just crawl out from everywhere and swarm you and it is not awesome. I just have to take breaks because of the stress.
Really glad to hear about the Reputation System having changed. And yes, my Shep has also been choosing some of the less positive responses here and there(as well as utilized the Renegade option a couple of times) because that's how I realistically see her responding to those situations.
Oh, you do? Great! That ups the odds that I'll like it as well. I know a lot of people are annoyed by abrupt/dark/open endings, but not me :D And no, it really doesn't sound like some kind of alternate ending is forthcoming, just more... "closure" is the word they used, I think? And yay I saw you posted! Just steering clear until I'm all caught up(honestly that might not be until Summer gets here).
I love Tali so much! I just wanna explore the Universe with her and talk about history and technology.
RoadSpace trip! \o/Ah yes, that makes sense re: Jack vs Miranda. Ahh yes the Liara thing. Nothing's happened there since the "catching up" achievement. Maybe that's after I go through the Omega 4 Relay or something? Not sure if that's the big finale or if I have to go back and do something else after.
Btw, after this I am totes going to go for Dragon Age as well *glomps Bioware*
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Date: 2012-03-21 04:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-03-22 06:04 pm (UTC)(I also approve of you letting me rant at you about comics over skype while she was there; you are very patient with me. :p ♥)