Still Star-Crossed

Hey, guys, it's Willow, for the first time in forever. Sorry about sporadic updates recently! I've been busy with, y'know, getting an education and all that good stuff. But now that school's out, it leaves me free to do as I please... within reason, of course.

So.

"Still Star-Crossed" is a (relatively new, actually) TV show on ABC. It's a post-canonical adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Which, y'know. Catnip for nerds. Well. My kind of nerd, anyway.

So I watched the first episode. Here are some of my thoughts. Spoilers ahead, obviously.

Pros:

• The cast of this show? Incredibly diverse. About half of the main cast is POC; the main character, Rosaline Capulet, is a dark-skinned, beautiful Black woman. Prince Escalus? Black. Romeo Montague? Black. Excellent. I approve.
• This is... exactly the kind of overwrought, historically inaccurate, theatrical Shakespearean drama that I will probably always fall in love with, to be honest.
• Listen, I am so glad they made Count Paris a jerk. (So far, anyway.) He was an utter creep in the original-- an adult man, repeatedly asking for the hand of a teenager? Yikes. At least Romeo was somewhere in her age range. They've aged the lovebirds up in this, of course, but it's still sketchy.
• The mob/brawl after the funeral? Good.
• Ohhh, that scene with Rosaline and Escalus in the church. The softness in his gaze, the fondness in his voice, the helplessness that they can only try to escape-- yes.
• Isabella. Just... Isabella. Dang. Give me all the cutthroat, ruthless women who will do anything and everything for their city. "Escalus, Verona is burning."
• Escalus quietly cutting out his own heart to save the city he loves and is responsible for? Absolute perfection, my friends.
• We didn't get too much of them, seeing as they're dead and all, but I actually enjoyed the Romeo/Juliet dynamic. Cute.
• Rosaline and Livia. Everything about them: Rosaline, who would do anything at all for Livia's safety and happiness, who just wants to live a life where no one tells her what to do, and Livia, who doesn't understand her sister's quiet dream, who could be happy with a husband who loved her, who wants nothing more than to marry and live out a normal life.

Cons:

• Listen. At this point, I literally could not care less about Benvolio Montague. Give me a personality, Beardy McBeardFace.
• Same thing with Ben/Rosaline. They have no chemistry (yet), no reason to like each other (yet), and just... meh. 
• I think they might've gotten Benvolio's and Mercutio's personalities switched. Ben's the steady one, the designated driver, the Mom Friend and responsible adult. Mercutio, on the other hand? He does it for the Vine, he's an actual meme, and he will Fight Anyone.
• I'm kind of uncomfortable with the fact that Rosaline and Livia (dark-skinned WOC) are the servants of the Capulets, who are (drumroll, please) white. Like, I understand it as a narrative decision-- Ben and Rosa are both looked down on, they have to obey, they want a better life, yadda yadda-- but still, it skeeves me out.
• Why couldn't this show have given me Benvolio Montague and Rosaline Capulet, heirs of their respective houses, fiercely proud and loyal and also rock-solid and trustworthy and willing to do whatever it takes to keep Verona running smoothly? Who unwillingly agree to marry and find that they have more in common than they thought? Why?
• Related: love triangles are the spawn of evil and I despise them. Grr.

Final Rating: like, 3.7 out of 5 stars. Still, I think I'll keep watching. 

And there you have it. "Still Star-Crossed", ladies and gentlemen.

Happy summer! 

Willow

Star Wars Has a Women of Color Issue

Hey, everyone. Willow here! The title of this post is fairly self-explanatory, so. Yeah.

A month or so ago, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was released. Citali and I went to watch it together, and came out trembling, emotional, in awe.

What makes Rogue One so great is that not only is it gorgeously written, it's also infinitely more diverse than any Star Wars movie has ever been.

Only one of the protagonists was white. The others-- each with a fleshed-out story arc and excellent characterization-- were all men of color. 

Excellent!

But.

The white character was Jyn Erso, only female lead and arguably the main character.

Look. Every time there has been a new Star Wars story, the main female character has been white.

Padmé Amidala. Leia Organa. Rey. And now, Jyn.

Star Wars has a WOC issue. Namely: there are none.

But Willow, you say. What about Steela Gerrera? Or Depa Billaba? Or Korr Sella? Or Breha Organa? Or--

Well, my dear reader, what do all those women have in common? Oh, that's right. They're all minor characters. And they're all dead.

Fine. But what about Sana Starros? Or that one Rebel from Rogue One?

Hmmm. Tell me, if you go up to a hundred random people, how many of them do you think would recognize the name "Sana Starros"?

The galaxy of Star Wars is bigger than just the movies, yes. There are animated TV shows and books and comics galore, but here's the thing. The movies are the most important part. They're the franchise's biggest, most popular branch. 

If you want diversity in Star Wars, you need it in the movies. And I'm not saying that Finn and Poe and Chirrut and Baze and Cassian and Bodhi aren't helping, but we need our WOC too.

So give me a Calrissian daughter, or Finn's mother, or Poe's cousin. Give me WOC Jedi and WOC Sith and WOC pilots and stormtroopers and civilians and bounty hunters. Give me queer WOC characters and trans WOC characters and old WOC and young WOC and--

Well. You get my point, no?

Willow

Willow Liveblogs "World's Finest"

Hi, you guys! Sorry I've abandoned you! But never fear, I'm baaaack~ and I have a liveblog for you! As some of you might know, I've recently (well, relatively recently, anyway) become a DC Comics fan. The first DCTV show I watched was The Flash, and I adored it. (How could I not? The main character is literally just a nerd who occasionally goes "nyoooooooom".) When Supergirl arrived on Netflix, I was like, "AWWW YISSSS" and immediately got started. This is me liveblogging the crossover between Supergirl season 1 and season 2 of The Flash. Here be spoilers, etc. etc. Anyway. Here we go!

W: I... Don't Like Siobhan, but at least Winn's not pining anymore.

W: Kara, poor baby. It's okay.

W: Casual Lucy in charge, yessss.

W: Cat. Cat. Caaaaat. How do I love thee.

W: That's The Flash's theme music and there's a red blur omg omg omg

W: "I-- Nope! I'm--" Oh, Barry. Never change, honey.

W: Speedy red dORK

W: Dorks i n t e r a c t i n g. I'm dead.

W: I /love/ the music of this episode. Casual insertions of the Flash theme --> my jam.

W: Okay, so confession: I watched The Flash before I watched Supergirl. And I actually watched this crossover before I started Supergirl. (Yes, I know, I know, don't judge. This is me liveblogging my rewatch.) Anyhoo.

W: Dude. Dude. Dude. Winn and Cisco would be /such/ good friends it's not even funny.

W: "Barry... is from another universe!" their faces argh they're so cute and Winn's reaction

W: These interactions are my bread and butter tbh. Winn is so psyched about this, and James is just "Whut", and Kara just wants ice cream.

W: lowkey (highkey) jealous James. Don't worry, Barry's got an Iris waiting for him.

W: I love Cat Grant. That is all.

W: ugh Siobhan again but w/e. Hoo boy. Soul destroying, eh?

W: giRL DON'T DO IT *Siobhan does the thing*

W: Awww, Cat. You do care.

W: SUPERHERO TEAM UP AWWW YEAH

W: Oh. Alex + J'onn reference. Sads.

W: Ah. Supervillain team up as well, then.

W: Quality James/Lucy platonic interactions! Yayyy.

W: Reckless Kryptonian golden retriever is reckless.

W: Winn is crushing on Barry so hard rn.

W: B a n t e r.

W: oh nooooes.

W: Y'know, it's weird to see /Barry/ being the mature one for a change. Nice, though.

W: Subtle piano Flash theme in the background. I love.

W: Oh. Oh. I just realized: when he says, "Me too," not only is he saying that he's glad he met Kara, he's also implying that compared to what he faces back home, this is... nice. Idyllic, maybe. Relaxing.

W: She knows Winn's name now. #characterdevelopment

W: Epic battle no. 2. Here we go.

W: "Hey, Sparky. Shrieky. Hi!" also casually feminist Barry is my jam

W: Okay, Livewire's powers are actually really cool???

W: Kara! Property damage!

W: Saved by the power of Friendship. Sorta.

W: Oh, Cat. How wrong you are.

W: "Girl of Steel"/"Scarlet Speedster" noice

W: Even Barry ships Karolsen. Hey, I bet Kara'd ship Westallen too.

W: Lookit ma supernerds, huggin' and havin' fun.

W: KAROLSEN KISS THIS IS NOT A DRILL THIS IS NOT A DRILL

W: Oh, shoot, what happened?

~the end~

So!

Pros of this episode: nERDS interacting, Karolsen getting together, endless fluff and banter, Cat Grant being perfect as usual

Cons of this episode: not enough Lucy Lane, anticlimactic final battle, too much adorableness

Happy watching!
~Willow

Willow Liveblogs Voltron: Legendary Defender

Okay, so I will freely admit that I only thought of liveblogging this halfway through the first episode. Still. I've heard people talk about how good this show is, so I decided to try it out. Forty minutes in, and HELLO NEW FANDOM.

Here we go, and be careful: Spoilers for the first episode ahead.

• Purple aliens! Cool.
• There's a moon of Pluto called Kerberos. I'm guessing Kerberos is the Roman form of Cerberus, Hades's 3-headed dog? Fun fact: Cerberus, literally translated, means something like "Spot". That's right. Hades, lord of the Underworld, named his dog Spot. Nerd.
• Hunk no don't vomit-- too late.
• Pidge is so smol. So. Smol. 
• Pidge is also, apparently, really smart. Nice.
• So this is the Shiro I've heard so much about. Hmm.
• There's an immediate Lance/Keith rivalry. Interesting.
• Giant blue robot lion aww yeah.
• Giant blue robot lion vs. evil purple aliens aww yeah.
• It's a pretty wormhole!
• Princess of an ancient civilization, and she's not white. Nice.
• Shiro is such a Dad Friend oh my gosh.
• C o r a n ' s  m u s t a c h e.
• Aww, Pidge. Smol insecure genius child. I want to hug you.
• Hunk. Chill. It'll be okay. 
• "Go. Be great." my little HEART just melted.
• With a name like Zarkon, there's no way he can be anything but evil. 
• Coran, not helping.
• Pidge. Oh, Pidge. I love you.
• The whole "Allura-in-a-computer-garden" thing is giving me River Song feelings.
• Why is forming Voltron the only way to stop Zarkon? 
• Armor. Sweet!
• *snaps fingers* That's it! That's who Lance reminds me of! Sokka!
• Yesyesyes. Keith is Zuko. Lance is Sokka. Even the color schemes match.
• Shiro, honey, you okay?
• Oh. Oh. Pidge, poor baby.
• "What the quiznak?"
• Helpful mice are helpful.
• Nice going, Keith.
• So. Apparently I have a thing for one-armed butt-kickers. Anakin, Bucky, and now Shiro.
• BLACK LION IS ACTIVE. SWEET.
• Oh, quiznak. This looks bad.
• Oh, yes. 

In conclusion: AWESOME. Go watch this right now.

Pros:

• Good characters
• Humor
• Character development
• Nice animation

Cons:

• Literally only one woman
• Minor plot holes

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to watch the next episode.

Happy watching,

Willow

A Very Short Post on a Very Underappreciated Character

So I was rewatching Doctor Who, and I watched "The Christmas Invasion" (one of my all-time favorite episodes), and then I basically went on a rant on the Camp NaNoWriMo chatroom. This is a slightly edited, elongated version of that rant. Apologies for excessive analysis and run-on sentences.

Mickey Smith. Mickey, good old Mickey, faithful, reliable, steady as a rock, watches helplessly as Rose wanders farther and father away from him. She has seen things and people that he can never, will never, imagine, and each time she visits, his heart breaks a little, doesn't it? Because this Rose, the one that stands up to an army of Sycorax, the one talking back to a Dalek's "Exterminate!", the one holding the Doctor's hand and positively glowing with happiness? It's not his Rose, not the Rose he fell in love with. She is so much more, but she is not his anymore, and that breaks Mickey's heart.

Mickey watches as Rose and the Doctor fall head over heels for each other. He stands by as they gallivant across the galaxy, hand in hand, making memories and chasing trouble. He understands-- and this, this is important-- Mickey understands that what Rose Tyler needs is something that he can't give her. But the Doctor can, you see, and it's oh so obvious that the two were made for each other. So Mickey Smith steps aside and lets the Doctor and Rose tumble through their epic romance. And the best part? He's not bitter, or petty about it. Not overly so, anyway. He will still always be there for Rose and the Doctor, but as a friend. Always a friend.

Here is what I love about Mickey: he moves on. He accepts the challenges life throws in his path, and he moves on. Alternate universe? Fine, I'm staying, I have a duty to this world. Rose Tyler madly in love with a time-traveling alien? Let her be happy. Mickey moves on from what he cannot change; he goes freelance and marries Martha Jones. (By the way: that was an amazing cameo.)

So yeah. Mickey Smith, everyone.

~Willow
P.S. Ten was the best. No question.

#SayNoToHYDRACap

It is true what they say:

"With great power comes great responsibility."

Marvel Comics knows this;

after all, it's a classic Spider-Man line, isn't it?

On the other hand, it is also true that

power corrupts, and that

absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Marvel Comics

has just proven that never

has a truer word been spoken.

I write this

Regarding the recent controversy

Surrounding the release of a new comic featuring

Steve Rogers as Captain America

(which, as you might have heard,

he has not been in a while.)

This is all well and good, only...

Plot twist.

According to the writers of this issue--

(Imagine I am reading this out loud.

My voice is heavy with sarcasm.)

--anyway, according to the writers of this issue,

Steven Grant Rogers, Captain America,

is HYDRA. And always has been.

Wow.

First of all, how dare you?

How dare you take something that was

written by Jewish writers to oppose Hitler

(in a time when it was not wise to oppose Hitler)

and say, "oh, yeah, he's been a 

Nazi all along"?

"We've been dropping hints for a while--"

No, you haven't. Please.

Spare me.

Second of all, how dare you?

Captain America, the paragon of freedom,

the very embodiment of America--

not what it is, but what it should be.

Not a perfect soldier, but a good man.

How dare you take Steve Rogers

(kind Steve Rogers, humble Steve Rogers,

selfless Steve Rogers, good Steve Rogers)

and turn him into a white supremacist?

Third of all, how dare you?

How, might I ask,

am I going to explain to my little cousin

(she idolizes Cap; who doesn't really?)

how will I explain to her that the hero

she looks up to,

the person she wants to be

 when she grows up,

is a Nazi?

How dare you?

Fourth of all, how dare you?

This travesty is akin to

Bucky Barnes saying that

he consented to brainwashing.

It is like taking MCU T'challa

and forcing him to say that

his father deserved to die,

it is as if Tony Stark

set aside the suit

because,  he says, the world doesn't 

deserve protection.

It is like Natalia Romanova

confessing, a smile on her lips,

that she enjoyed the murder she was forced to commit.

(as if she would ever. no, no, Natasha could never. would never.

likewise: never could Captain America be HYDRA)

It is worse.

This is taking every Holocaust survivor,

and every Holocaust survivor's descendants,

and slapping them.

Telling them that they deserved it.

How dare you?

(This has been, lovely readers, a poem inspired by shock and disbelief and deep, deep rage.)

~Willow

Willow Liveblogs Watching Son of Batman

Hey everybody, it's Willow!

So I've recently gotten into DC Comics... (I know. Citali's first reaction was "You're cheating on Marvel!" No. No, I'm not. You can like both.) and since a movie called Son of Batman was on Netflix and I had nothing better to do, I watched/am watching it. Well, by the time this post is done I'll be done watching it... but I'm liveblogging it. Son of Batman, I'm guessing, is going to be a Damian Wayne origin story, because... duh. Apologies in advance for the all caps and squeeing.

(liveblog:  to post commentary about (an event) online while the event is taking place, typically in the form of frequent short blog updates)

Here we go!

W: Oh, hey, look, it's the **League of Assassins** in **Nanda Parbat**. I have to admit,  Nanda Parbat looks better here than it does in live-action, on Arrow.

W: Who's the old guy Talia calls "brother"?

W: Oh... okay then. Someone's attacking the League. Shouldn't world-class assassins be harder to take down? 

W: Oh, it's Deathstroke! Cool.

W: Daaang, Damian! This kid is, like, ten, and he just stuck a sword through a guy's eye.

W: Aaaand the League is dead. Welp. Looks like Ra's [al Ghul] is dead too.

W: They're going to Gotham! Where Batman is! I wonder why? *sarcasm*

W: Hi, Bruce! *waves* Talia just saved his black-clad butt, BTW. Nice.

W: So Talia had time to change into a fancy dress and Bruce is still in his Batman costume? Hmm.

W: Yes, Bruce, you have a son. Gasp! Also: Damian is a brat and I love it. "Don't look so surprised, father. I thought you'd be taller."

W: Damian is tiny; how does he know how to drive?

W: Alfred Pennyworth is my jam. Sarcasm sounds the coolest in a British accent... wait a second. Wait a second. He just said "Master Dick." Does that mean... *gasp*

W: Ruh-roh, Deathstroke's back. Man-Bats, seriously? Oh noes, Talia!

W: Back to Gotham. Damian is chasing a dude named Ubu. Scratch that, beating up a dude named Ubu. Oop, he's trying to kill him...

W: YESSSSS!!! DICK GRAYSON DICK GRAYSON DICK GRAYSON YESSSSS!!!

W: *snorts* "Bruce, chill. What's he gonna do, swim there?" Yes. Yes, he is. Nightwing, I love you, but you really don't know Damian Wayne.

W: Climactic fight scene, Talia takes a bullet, yadda yadda yadda... more Man-Bats. Lovely.

W: Batman + his batarangs to the rescue! He just overloaded a bunch of overgrown Frankenbats with sonar.

W: Talia's with Bruce, and Damian's left to fight Slade.

W: DAMIAN VS DEATHSTROKE!!! This is a Very Good Fight Scene, and dang, Damian, you've got skillz! 

W: Seriously, though, kid can't be more than ten, and not only is he fending off Deathstroke, but he wins. The. Fight. Damian Wayne, everybody.

W: He won't kill Slade... why? "I am my father's son"? Damian, you literally just met the guy.

W: Talia knew Bruce would come save her? Please. This was a good movie if not for the awful characterization of Talia. She's the daughter of Ra's al Ghul? She drugged Batman once? She can handle herself.

W: End of the movie. Bad guys defeated, of course. Talia's going to rebuild the League, but Bruce wants Damian to stay with him and be Robin. Why? He's a (talented, but still) brat. And Talia just lets him take her son? *flips table*

W: Well, here we are.

The movie was pretty good.

• Damian kicked butt and was wonderfully bratty and arrogant.
• Alfred was appropriately dry and sarcastic, which I loved.
• Dick Grayson. 'Nuff said.
• That last Damian/Deathstroke fight scene was *perfect*.

However...

• Talia al Ghul should be a *villain*, not a *love interest*.
• The League was taken down too easily.
• This movie needed more Dick Grayson. I want that Dick/Damian fight scene!
• Where's Tim Drake? Or Jason Todd, for that matter? They're never mentioned.

That's the end of my liveblog. See you next time!

Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na, BATMAN!

~Willow

(Sorry, I had to.)

After

I sense a disturbance in the Force: Spoilers!

Luke gives him a Jedi's funeral, for which he is impossibly grateful. (You don't deserve it, says a voice in his head. It sounds like Palpatine's. He pushes the thought aside.)

No, the important thing right now is: where is he? He's fairly certain he's dead. Wait. If he's dead, how is he thinking? He lets out a huff, then another thought occurs to him. His breathing is... silent. For the first time in twenty-six years, he can exhale without the accompanying whoosh of his suit. Slowly, not daring to believe it, he looks down.

Hands, both flesh. Feet intact. He reaches up, trembling, to touch his head, and feels-- hair? Yes, hair, the roguish curls he last remembers having during the Clone Wars.

Nope. Impossible. He's hallucinating. (You can't hallucinate if you're dead, Ani. This voice sounds like Padme, and it's equally soothing and heartbreaking.)

How is this happening? He was a Sith for close to thirty years; shouldn't he be burning in some Force-forsaken netherworld?

"Always so dramatic, Skywalker."

The voice is not his; he has not heard it in decades. (There is a lump in his throat. It was not there before.) He looks up and there they are, alive and well-- well, not alive, but standing there in front of his eyes is the Council: Mace Windu, the one who spoke to him. Plo Koon. Ki-Adi-Mundi. Depa Billaba. Kit Fisto. Even Piell. Adi Gallia. Saesee Tiin. And standing in the front, green-gold eyes filled with liquid wisdom, Master Yoda.

He does not hesitate before dropping to his knees and prostrating himself in a full kowtow. "My masters," he manages to choke out, "I am so, so sorry." It is an incredibly inadequate apology, he knows. "I... failed you. I failed the Order, I surrendered to the Dark. I have done such horrible, horrible things, and I am so sorry."  Words cannot express his guilt. He hopes they understand that. Even so, he does not dare to raise his eyes from the ground. Cowardly to the end, Skywalker.

"Anakin." This voice (one more familiar to him than any other in the galaxy) is rich with warmth, with kindness. "Anakin, get up."

And oh, if anyone could ever break him, it was Obi-Wan. The sound of his voice shatters Anakin's resolve; suddenly there are hot tears rolling down his face, and Obi-Wan is helping him off the ground and embracing him. (He is sobbing like a youngling now, because this is Obi-Wan, and Force, he has not seen him for so long...)

After a minute or so, Obi-Wan holds him at arm's length and examines him."No, Anakin. You did not fail me."

"Master, I killed you."

At this there is a ripple of amusement in the Force. "Only because I let you, my young friend. Only because I let you."

Anakin smiles through his tears. Typical Obi-Wan. "Where am I, Master?" he asks.

Obi-Wan raises an eyebrow in an all-too-familiar expression. "I would have thought that was obvious, Anakin. You're dead."

"I know that, Master. But where am I?"

It is Master Windu who replies. "You are one with the Force, young Skywalker."

"Or," supplies Obi-Wan helpfully, "rather colloquially, you are a ghost. A Force ghost, to be precise."

"That doesn't make sense, Master. I was Dark. How am I one with the Force?"

Master Yoda steps forward, and Anakin kneels to face him. "The Chosen One, you were. Jedi you were; Sith you became."

"I know, Master. I am so sorry." He is a rather tongue-tied ghost, it seems, only able to repeat one phrase of apology.

Yoda waves his gimer stick."Know this I do! Interrupt me not!"

Anakin bows his head in acquiescence.

The diminutive master harrumphs, then continues. "In the end, bring balance to the Force, you did. Die a Jedi, you did." He chuckles. "Only thirty years too late were you!"

Anakin winces. "Yes, Master."

"A joke it was, Skywalker. Bear no ill will, do we."

"I am responsible for so much death and destruction, Master. How can you just forgive me?"

"Jedi we are. Hate we do not, young one. At peace be. Your fall, the will of the Force it was."

He rises from his kneeling position and addresses the whole Council. "Thank you, my masters. I do not deserve this... but thank you."

"There is nothing to thank us for, Anakin," replies Obi-Wan. "Now come. Qui-Gon's been waiting for you a very long time. And Anakin?"

"Yeah?"

Obi-Wan smiles. "Welcome home."

FINIS

Hope you enjoyed! *hands you a tissue box*

~Willow

All Rise For the General (Episode I)

It's Willow here, with the first of my series of Star Wars posts. Enjoy!

Let's talk about Leia Organa. Princess, senator, rebel. Mother. Force-sensitive who chooses a different path. Who, despite having lost nearly everything, never even considers the dark side. (Skywalker boys, take notes. This is how it's done.)

We meet her first in A New Hope as she's captured by Vader and his stormtroopers. Leia never so much as flinches, going so far as to sass the man who captures her. ("I recognized your foul stench when I was brought on board.") Remember, this is a girl barely out of her teens. She's twenty. She's incredibly tight-lipped about the rebels' whereabouts, resisting interrogation by a menacing torture droid. Tarkin threatens to blow up her home planet, yet she remains silent. Tarkin actually does blow up her home planet-- and she lies, says Dantooine.

Think about this for a second. This twenty-year-old just witnessed a planet exploding. Millions of deaths. The destruction of everything she's ever known and loved. The massacre of her family. Yet Leia Organa maintains the presence of mind to lie to Grand Moff Tarkin about the rebel base. She allows herself no time to grieve. When Luke and company rescue her, she focuses on the task at hand. She snaps at Han, fires at stormtroopers, and comforts Luke when Obi-Wan is killed.

She allows herself no time to grieve. Even after the Death Star is destroyed, after Luke and Han are rewarded for bravery, she remains stoic. She has a duty to the Rebel Alliance, and she will bring down the Empire if it's the last thing she does. Do you think she never second-guesses herself? Do you think she doesn't blame herself for her parents' deaths? Leia pushes down her pain and carries on, something her biological father never learned to do.

To Be Continued

I hope you guys enjoyed this! This... Leianalysis will be continued in future posts. Please, don't hesitate to send me feedback. After all, as befits a Jedi, "I come to serve".

~Willow

These Are Not the Spoilers You're Looking For (These Are, In Fact, the Spoilers You're Looking For)

Hi, it's Willow here with the start of a new Archives series!
As many of you can probably guess from the title, it's going to be a very Star Wars-centric selection of posts.

It will include:

• Spoilers for Episodes I-VII
• Spoilers for all six seasons of Star Wars: The Clone Wars
• Spoilers for season 1 of Star Wars Rebels
• Spoilers for many of the new canon books and comics

It will NOT, however, include:

• The Expanded Universe (new canon calls it "Legends")
• Star Wars Rebels season 2 (I haven't gotten the chance to watch it yet)

This series will be a collection of posts critiquing, analyzing, and discussing multiple aspects of this wonderful galaxy far, far away. I'll write about character analyses, plot discussions, book reviews, parallels to the real world, and more.

May the Force be with you always,

Willow

On Girl Power

Hi! It's Willow.

I'm a member of quite a few fandoms (just ask Citali!) and one thing I've come to notice that more than a few of the female characters in most works of fiction are rather underestimated. This is somewhat irritating, so I decided to write a post showcasing a few of those characters. Disclaimer: I might rant a bit, so be careful.

Wow, that was an awkward introduction, wasn't it? Told you I'm bad at them. :-)

Let's get going.

• Minerva McGonagall, Harry Potter, portrayed in the movies by Maggie Smith
  
• From the first book to the last, McGonagall was solemn, strict, and severe. (Ooh! Alliteration!) She's one of Dumbledore's greatest and most loyal supporters, even becoming headmistress in his absence. 
• She has the courage and strength of will to stay at Hogwarts after Snape and the Carrows took over, speaking out against their evil ways. 
• Harry himself has so much respect for this incredible woman that he casts an Unforgivable Curse just because a Death Eater spat at her.
• Not to mention the numerous moments throughout the series when she makes her point with acerbic sharpness! ;-)
• Here's an example: "'You look in excellent health to me, Potter, so you will excuse me if I don't let you off today. I assure you that if you do die, you need not turn it in.'"
• Arwen Evenstar, The Lord of the Rings, portrayed in the movies by Liv Tyler

• Let me just say, I've got nothing against the other heroines of Middle-earth. Eowyn, Galadriel, and (yes, even) Tauriel (I know she wasn't in the book, but she's actually a decent character; more on that later) are all... *precious* to me. But the thing is, most people don't see her as too important. Eowyn killed the Witch-King, Galadriel is powerful beyond belief, and Tauriel is a superb fighter. Arwen's just "the love interest"... isn't she?
• Nope. While it is true that Arwen and Aragorn's connection is romantic, Arwen is so much more. Aragorn's every word, thought, and deed during the War of the Ring is affected by her. 
• Arwen and Aragorn do love each other beyond measure, and that only serves to emphasize her strength of character.  
• Sauron's darkness is killing her and she has a chance to escape to the Undying Lands, yet she does not. 
• Her loyalty towards Aragorn ensures that she stays in Middle-earth, at perhaps the cost of her life.
• She chooses a mortal life for him. She could have lived for thousands of years more with her own kind, yet she stays behind with him, knowing full well that both of them are doomed to die. If that's not courage, what is? She made the greatest sacrifice of all.
• While we're on that train of thought, let's talk about Tauriel (The Hobbit, played by Evangeline Lilly)
  
• She wasn't in the book. I am aware of that. I'm talking in terms of the movie for this one.
• Tauriel is a captain of the guard in the Elvenking Thranduil's kingdom. She's formed a rather strong bond with Legolas, his son (spoiler alert: Poor Leggi fancies her.) Naturally, Thranduil doesn't approve, leading to quite a bit of drama.
• On her own, she's a strong, independent character. A bit more rebellious and passionate than most elves we've seen, she doesn't have the detached wisdom we've come to expect from Elrond, Galadriel, and even Legolas. She has a good heart and speaks her mind. Plus, she's brilliant with a pair of daggers.
• Wonderful, right? Not quite. Enter Kili the (somewhat good-looking) dwarf, nephew of Thorin Oakenshield. The duo flirt through the bars of a prison cell, exchange a few lines of witty banter, and BOOM! They're in love. 
• That's where things begin to go downhill for Tauriel. She falls in love with a dwarf after maybe four conversations with him-- seriously, people? The romance is mildly sweet but unrealistic. (Didn't stop me crying when he died, though.)
• The filmmakers focused on Tauriel's love triangle (Legolas or Kili?) far too much. Had they expanded on her actual character a bit more, the movies would've been far better.

Didn't I tell you it would get rant-y? Apologies. Let's continue. Two more left.

• Martha Jones, Doctor Who, played by Freema Agyeman

• Hard-core Whovians, forgive me if I get something wrong; I'm relatively new to the Whoniverse.
• As opposed to most of the Doctor's companions (Donna Noble, I'm looking at you), Martha hits the ground running. When first confronted with hostile aliens, Martha spends far less time asking stupid questions and calling the Doctor crazy than most. She makes intelligent comments and takes the Doctor to task when he needs it.
• She has the intelligence to "retire" from the TARDIS after the Master's brief reign over the world, understanding that her unrequited crush on the Doctor is going to get her nowhere. For Martha, her damaged family comes first.
• Padme Amidala, Star Wars prequels, played by Natalie Portman
  
• Padme always was mature, empathetic, and brave for her age.
• In the events of Episode I, she's a teenager, yet she's the queen of her planet. That takes a certain level of intelligence and charisma.
• She's sweet and kind but not gullible. She sees the world clearly from an unbiased point of view, often acting as Anakin Skywalker's moral compass (that is, when Obi-Wan isn't around.)
• Padme's also a pretty good shot! She's no damsel in distress; she can defend herself well. 
• Long after Obi-Wan accepts that Anakin is lost and must be taken down, she continues to hope that there is still some good in him.

That's all for today! Happy reading and/or watching and/or doing both and complaining about how much better the book is! :-)

~Willow

Get Ready to Rock... Yourself Back and Forth While Crying!

Willow here, with (yet another) list. This one (as the title suggests) is about works of fiction that leave fans in tears and bereft of their ability to even. However, for this list, I'm not limiting the content to books. Movies and TV episodes count, too.

Beware: Spoilers.

Let's do this!

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix; Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (J.K.Rowling)
• Do I even have to explain this one?
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (J.R.R.Tolkien)
• This is heartbreaking in both the book and the movie because FRODO! NO! Apologies. I suffer from the occasional fangirl attack.
• If you didn't cry at this part, look up the song "Into the West" by Annie Lennox. 
• If you still didn't cry, then either I'm overly emotional or you're an Uruk-hai.
• Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
• 2 words: Order 66. Need I say more?
• Also, Mustafar.
• The Fault in Our Stars (John Green)
• Again, no explanation required.
• BBC Sherlock Series 2 finale, "The Reichenbach Fall"
• John's reaction is more heartbreaking than the actual fall.
• Doctor Who Series 2 finale, "Doomsday"
• ROSE! NO!
• Sorry again.
• Avengers: Age of Ultron
• Pietro! We really didn't see that coming.
• Brisingr (Christopher Paolini)
• Oh, Oromis...
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 5 finale, "The Wrong Jedi"
• Oh, for goodness' sake, Snips, stop it.
• Now We Are Six (A.A.Milne)
• There's a chance that you haven't read this or didn't think it very sad. I personally found it heartbreaking.

(Violently sniffs) What? No, no, I'm (sniff) fine. It's not like (sniff) I'm dissolving into a puddle of (sniff) feels right now or (sniff) anything.

Happy (sniff) reading! 

~Willow