anyway blackout poetry not just as an art form, but as an act of violence against other works of art
taking a piece of text that someone probably put their heart and soul into creating and using it as your raw material, cutting out everything that you deem irrelevant to the point you want to make
i mean imagine cutting up a painting and using it to make a collage, or taking a marble sculpture and carving pieces out of it to make a different sculpture
just to be clear: i love blackout poetry, im not criticizing it here. i am just waxing poetic about it. i dont really know where im going with this i just have Thoughts about art being destructive
anyway blackout poetry not just as an art form, but as an act of violence against other works of art
taking a piece of text that someone probably put their heart and soul into creating and using it as your raw material, cutting out everything that you deem irrelevant to the point you want to make
i mean imagine cutting up a painting and using it to make a collage, or taking a marble sculpture and carving pieces out of it to make a different sculpture
just to be clear: i love blackout poetry, im not criticizing it here. i am just waxing poetic about it. i dont really know where im going with this i just have Thoughts about art being destructive
Vincenzo: Fanmeta: In the finale, Cha-young no longer believed in the possibility that she and Vincenzo would become romantic partners
There is something deeply heart-wrenching about how Cha-young reacts to Vincenzo's declarations in episode 19 and 20.
By staying in Korea instead of going to Italy to help his family, Vincenzo has finally acknowledged what Cha-young really means to him and how he wants her to be in his life. The same man who struggled to reciprocate the hug in the underpass, who couldn't even look at Cha-young when Cha-young was hugging him a second time, who joked about there being a kissing "scene" rather than recognizing the realness of what happened at the art gallery, is now openly declaring his interest and affection for Cha-young at every possible moment. Expressing jealousy, promising to come back, stroking her hair, stating that they were similar to the Cowherd and Weaver Girl, outright confessing that she's always been on his mind since he left A YEAR AGO.
He is finally comfortable in his feelings. He's ready to move forward in his relationship with Cha-young.
But Cha-young isn't.
She spent months testing the waters, pushing the boundaries of their relationship. She knows she's important to him, but he never crossed that border with her. So she prepared herself for their ending. She prepared herself so thoroughly that she cannot even imagine that an alternate ending might present itself. That she might have her fantasies and desires actualized one day.
He compares them to one of the most famous romantic couples in Asian folklore. She treats it as a joke. Even when he pushes that he's being sincere, you can see her dismiss it immediately.
He's staring at her while she gets ready for the reunion, but there is no blush or pleasure on her face when she catches him. There's almost confusion. Remember her expression of expectation when he leaned towards her in the car and she thought he would kiss her?
He stayed by her hospital bed all night and reiterates that he'll keep his promise to come back to her when she mentions it's their last night together. She doesn't even acknowledge what he says - just tells him to leave without saying good-bye.
He initiates a hug with her for the first time in their relationship. She keeps her returning touch light, herself stoic until after he leaves.
When he returns, he says that she's always been on his mind. She isn't touched or shocked. She just... doesn't believe it. She knows that they're important to each other, but the idea that he yearns for her the way she yearns for him was something she stopped believing. This isn't something that could happen, and because it's not something that could happen, what's happening is not actually happening. (Because you can only be hurt by abandonment if you expect someone to stay. And she has been abandoned so many times by so many people that she knows what the more likely ending would always be.)
In that split second, Vincenzo realizes that she isn't misunderstanding or teasing him or flirting or playing hard to get. All those months of him struggling to deal with his feelings, of him remaining reserved and distant caused cracks. Vincenzo once told her to make her heart cold, but he didn't realize she would apply the lesson this way. And that if he doesn't fix the situation right now, no amount of gold will help him remake what's broken.
So he fixes it. And he does so decisively with no room for mis-interpretation or second-guessing, in the way he has always expressed his care for Cha-young: through action.
Circumstances occur in which Cha-young is adopted by the Italian couple. (How did this come about? I don't know!).
Oh Gyeong-ja still ends up killing her employer in self-defense. Hong Yu-chan is still her lawyer. But this time, her son is sitting at the front of the court rather than hiding in the back.
Many years later, Hong Yu-chan is still fighting a losing war against Babel. He is assisted by his trusty paralegal Nam Joo-sung, his newest intern Jang Jun-woo, and his partner at Jipuragi, the restrained but intense Park Joo-hyeong.
One day, a woman arrives at Geumga Plaza while thugs are terrorizing the tenants. As she flips her hair over her shoulder (hitting a certain lawyer in the face), she proclaims herself to be Vittoria Cassano. She then proceeds to strangle a thug with the strap of her purse.
Who is the Black King? Vincenzo Cassano or Hong Cha-young?
How do we interpret Vincenzo's actions at the end of episode 19 in the show's chess analogy?
(Please note: I have no knowledge of chess theory. This is me using a beginner's level of understanding of chess. Please don't take this too seriously. I know it's full of holes and contradicts itself (^-^;;;) I'm just babbling and having fun)
I mentioned in my finale wishlist that I thought it made more narrative sense for Cha-young to be recognized as the Black King rather than Vincenzo. Quote:
I know Han-seok and Vincenzo have been propped as the “kings” and Myung-hee and Cha-young are the “queens” in the chess analogy, but I really think that it makes a lot more sense that Cha-young is the Black King and Vincenzo is the Black Queen. I mean, what does the Queen do on the board? It’s the most powerful piece on the board, can easily wipe out many of the other side’s pieces, able to use a range of moves, it is a much more active threat to the White King than the Black King…
Remember that Vincenzo decided to stay in Korea longer specifically to support Cha-young. Although he developed some personal stake against Babel relatively quickly (Hong Yu-chan’s murder) and moreso now with the murder of his mother, his actions have been primarily driven by his desire to support HER war with Babel, not his own. And I feel like, if Cha-young were to be killed (which is no way going to happen in the show, but hypothetically), that Vincenzo would of course go on revenge-spree #4 (or 5 or 6… I lose count for that poor man) and kill Myung-hee (because I have difficulty imagining Han-seok ordering her death no matter how angry he gets. it’d totally be a Myung-hee Iconically Bad Decision) and end Han-seok/Babel, but that, ultimately, Vincenzo would have already lost the game.
In chess, a King without a Queen is disadvantaged but not powerless - you can still win the game. But a Queen without a King? That's an automatic loss, the end of the game.
From Vincenzo's perspective, losing Cha-young is the same as losing the game against Babel/Han-seok/the White King. Vincenzo does not think he can win the game without her. This is only possible if Cha-young is the King, the most important piece on the board. But Han-seok has set it up that there's no way to save the King/Cha-young. Vincenzo recognizes that any moves to fight back just puts Cha-young closer to being "captured" (killed) aka checkmated.
In chess, when you realize that you are going to lose, you can resign before the King is actually checkmated. This is symbolized by physically tipping the King over. Vincenzo does the real-life equivalent: he physically kneels to the ground.
-- but wait, wasn't my argument all about Cha-young being the King? Doesn't Vincenzo kneeling mean that HE'S the King being tipped over?
Vincenzo embodies two roles in chess in the show: he plays as a chess piece (whether it be King or Queen) and he is the player themself who orchestrates the moves of the game. In my opinion, the Vincenzo in that room is not Vincenzo the Chess Piece. It is Vincenzo the Player. And it is the player who resigns from the game.
Finally, I have one more conclusion to make:
Before he attacks Han-seok, Han-seo moves first towards Vincenzo before going towards Han-seok. You know what shape that kind of looks like? An L. You know what shape a hockey stick is? An L.
You know what piece is known for their unconventional movement that is shaped like the letter "L"?
What I hope happens in Ep 19 & 20 of Vincenzo:
1. Vincenzo initiates the next big romantic gesture. His affection for Cha-young is clearly present in the way he treats Cha-young (his attentiveness, his frequent touching, etc), but Cha-young so far has done all the first Big Romantic Steps. I think, from Cha-young’s perspective, that she still has some level of insecurity regarding Vincenzo’s romantic feelings towards her -- Vincenzo’s responses to her “testing of the waters” have been, overall, relatively equivocal from her perspective (even the Kiss got undercut by the (hilariously awkward) hahaha-there-was-a-kissing-scene-in-our-acting-ha...ha...ha...sweetie discussion in the car). So the next hug/kiss/confession? I want it to be from Vincenzo.
1b. I know I'm Always By Your Side will probably play during the next romantic scene, but if Adrenaline could also play one last time but instead of it happening when someone is looking at Vincenzo, it's when Vincenzo is looking at Cha-young... please and thank you.
2. I want Cha-young to complete her character arc towards "noble” villainy by killing Jang Han-seok or Choi Myung-hee herself. She’s gone from we-can’t-hurt-people to openly allowing Vincenzo to use more violent methods in his schemes to Cha-young herself actively torturing people (the car exhaust scenes) and approving their murders away from her (same people) to Cha-young basically ordering Vincenzo to torture/kill someone (his mom’s killer) to accepting the murder of someone in front of her eyes (her dad’s killer). Her final step would be to kill someone herself, and the ones that would get the “honor” to fit her arc would be either Han-seok or Myung-hee.
2b. I’ve seen some speculation about Han-seo being the one to kill Han-seok, but I personally feel that would be a great disservice to Han-seo’s character arc. Throughout the show, he has shown extreme aversion to violence and murder, and his plan to kill his brother was an act of extreme self-preservation -- he was in a such a place of desperation and fear and relative isolation (remember that at the time his only source of support was Seong-huk) that, to him, killing his brother was the only way to avoid his own death/not being imprisoned for life.
Han-seo is no longer in that situation of desperation, isolation, and powerlessness. He has more power, more self-resolve, and more support than before. I personally think his growth as a character has (nearly) reached completion by him finally standing up to his brother (him tightening those handcuffs!! so emotionally satisfying to watch). If anything, a more public declaration of undercutting Han-seok or a scene in which he openly betrays his brother for Vincenzo and Han-seo becoming the official chairman of Babel (or some new company) would complete his character arc. Killing Han-seok would be detrimental to his growth. (Not that I’m against Han-seo throwing a couple of punches/lamps at Han-seok during the finale! That’d absolutely be satisfying.)
3. I know Han-seok and Vincenzo have been propped as the “kings” and Myung-hee and Cha-young are the “queens” in the chess analogy, but I really think that it makes a lot more sense that Cha-young is the Black King and Vincenzo is the Black Queen. I mean, what does the Queen do on the board? It’s the most powerful piece on the board, can easily wipe out many of the other side’s pieces, able to use a range of moves, it is a much more active threat to the White King than the Black King...
Remember that Vincenzo decided to stay in Korea longer specifically to support Cha-young. Although he developed some personal stake against Babel relatively quickly (Hong Yu-chan’s murder) and moreso now with the murder of his mother, his actions have been primarily driven by his desire to support HER war with Babel, not his own. And I feel like, if Cha-young were to be killed (which is no way going to happen in the show, but hypothetically), that Vincenzo would of course go on revenge-spree #4 (or 5 or 6... I lose count for that poor man) and kill Myung-hee (because I have difficulty imagining Han-seok ordering her death no matter how angry he gets. it’d totally be a Myung-hee Iconically Bad Decision) and end Han-seok/Babel, but that, ultimately, Vincenzo would have already lost the game. So... if the script could throw that type of twist (ie either Han-seok or Myung-hee realizing Cha-young is actually the King and switching strategy or Vincenzo himself disabusing them of that notion (a la “tut tut you think I’m the King? you really are stupid”))... I’ll be shouting in glee.
4. The Cassano Family (Geumga Plaza branch) gets another heist to pull (while not overwhelming the finale episodes). I need Cho Yeong-Un and An Gi-seok to work together - their introduction to each other in episode 17 was hilarious and amazing and I need more of that dynamic.
5. Vincenzo builds a roost for Inzaghi.
6. Vincenzo stays in Korea at the end of the show (or stays in Korea for part of the year, and he and Cha-young live in Italy for part of the year - BOTH of them. None of this CLOY or TKEM intermittent meeting nonsense). And he and Cha-young use the hot air balloon not for running away, but just for a romantic date. Cha-young was the one who wanted to try the hot air balloon. Vincenzo kept telling her it was a terrible idea but ultimately caved. Vincenzo is wearing his mother's scarf. Cha-young has a ring on her finger.
(It was a terrible idea. The thing didn't even lift off the ground. Inzaghi may have been involved.)
i was planning to do a marvel cinematic universe marathon because (1) i have a lot of free time right now and (2) i’ve only seen 2/3 of the feature films. and i wanted to do them in in-universe chronological order because, uh, why not?
looking at the mcu timeline on the mcu wiki, i came to the following realizations:
1. fuckkk i forgot about all the television tie-ins. i don’t think i have that much free time.
2. am i finally going to make myself watch dr. strange and ant-man? and if i decide to watch the tv series -- iron fist as well?!
3. no, seriously, how many hours is this going to be in total if i went all-in? this redditor has it tallied to 6d, 15h, 41m. films only is about 30h.
this got significantly more complicated than expected.
“This weapon is your life,” is a statement that, I believe, gets a lot of unwarranted criticism and is frequently misunderstood, particularly amongst the Western, Star Wars fandom. The general opinion that I have found on the subject is that it indicates that the Jedi are teaching people to think of themselves as weapons, and/or that it shows hypocrisy as Jedi are supposed to discourage “possession,” and/or that saying a weapon is your life, encourages or advocates violence. I am here as an apologist for that phrase, because for the reasons indicated below, I think that that phrase is awesome.
What one must first understand is that George Lucas took a lot of inspiration for Star Wars from eastern sources, Japan in particular. Darth Vader’s mask was based upon the Samurai mask, C-3P0 and R2-D2 were inspired by a Japanese movie told from the perspective of two slaves who are caught up in the conflict going around them, and the Sith and the Jedi were inspired by the notion of rival Samurai clans. As such, I feel the lightsabre, its value, its treatment, and its symbolism come from Bushido, the Samurai code, and the katana.
“‘We’ll be alright,’ Cassian said. And for the third time that day, he squeezed the trigger on his blaster. He heard the sickly electric squawk, smelled burning fibers, and worse. . .”
— Alexander Freed, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Novelization
this is my first contribution to the spiritassassin fandom: a modern au with adi-dads being instagram famous even tho people don’t quite know if their sense of fashion is good or pure trash :-D
