Villains are tremendously important for a story. They set the framework and standard for a lot of things in an unsaid but definite manner: how far your villain is willing to go sets up audience expectations for how big and how dire the stakes will be in the story.
If ...
The Slippery Slope (Or How to Make a Great Villain Origin Arc)
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, May 6, 2023Writing Overpowered Characters
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, April 22, 2023
One of the most frequent ways to make characters stand out in fiction or myth is to give them a staggering, amazingly powerful ability. Something that mere talent doesn't give you. Something miraculous, larger than the largest life, unique and insurmountable:
Like a dude that can part an entire ...
A Sense of Entitlement
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, April 8, 2023
Entitlement. Privilege. Obnoxiousness.
We all deal with these things every day, whether we want to or not. It comes in all shapes and sizes. From the kid that throws a tantrum if they can't take some other random kid's toy to the adult that is pissed they stole ...
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Uses Genre Tropes Against You
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, April 1, 2023
Recently I have been revisiting a sitcom that I used to love but, funnily enough, never finished. The last season of the show dropped during a hectic period of my life and by the time I had, well time, to watch it, I had lost the plot. But thanks to ...
Character Analysis: TK from Typical Strange
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, March 25, 2023
Ok so here we are! Let’s get down into the weeds with Typical Strange’s TK!
…did that come out wrong? I’m sure TK would have a thing or two to say.
So, first things first. Typical Strange is the lovely creation of Banes. It’s a comedy ...
Being Inclusive vs. Being Authentic
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, March 18, 2023
So for some reason my youtube is being besieged by rant videos over The Little Mermaid live action movie by Disney… AGAIN. You'd think the algorithm would know by now that I only watch ER skits and debunking videos, but here we are.
The controversy (again) is over the ...
You Kids Are Testing My Limits
Banes at 12:00AM, March 2, 2023
I was reading a critique of a series, a successful series, of novels. I think it's an urban fantasy/horror thing where the main character has a specific paranormal ability, limited, but useful in her detective work. She had a love interest, who was maybe on and off, but ...
Toxic Positivity, Toxic Acceptance (Part 2)
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Feb. 11, 2023
So last time, in Part 1 of this discussion of …sunnier villains or antagonists, we had left off talking about how toxic positivity is all about the toxic person's comfort. And that this need to impose a certain behavior, dogma, and/or approach to reality in their environment leads ...
The Challenge of Part Three
Banes at 12:00AM, Jan. 19, 2023
And a One and a Two and a–
The third and possibly final volume of the Guardians of the Galaxy films is coming out later this year. Or next year. Or whatever.
I liked the first two a lot, and in an interview snippet, James Gunn mentioned how the third ...