she trusted me enough to carry her

five stars

[vivilanlu]

Most of the mischaracterization Riza suffers from wouldn’t be nearly as popular if people actually understood why she follows Roy and it isn’t just love and loyalty.

One of the main reasons she stays by his side is because she sees herself as the guardian of flame alchemy. She’s trying to make sure of two things: 1. no one ever gets their hands on it again. and 2. the only person who can use it never misuses it again. That’s why she follows him. She has to. She’s watching the weapon she helped create.

And she has to keep him alive not only because he’s the one with the political power (meaning he’s her only real way to make sure the trials happen), but because he has to live long enough to atone for what he did with flame alchemy. The power SHE gave him.

From Riza’s point of view, every crime Mustang commits is hers too. Every time flame alchemy is used to kill that blood is on her hands too. Every person he killed is someone she killed by proxy.

She’s not just guarding him. She’s sharing his guilt. It’s like she’s trying to atone for her own sins, but he has to atone too so she can atone through him.

I think this Hannibal quote fits them really well: “You and I have begun to blur. Every crime of yours feels like one I’m guilty of.” Like yeah she obviously loves him. But reducing their relationship to just that completely flattens what’s actually going on.

[emily-axford]

CRITICAL ROLE: CAMPAIGN 4 Episode 27: Complicated Questions

[communistkenobi]

girls will leave you beautiful little presents by shedding their hair all over your clothes

[microsff]

The parking attendant paused by the double-length bay. Intended for mobile homes and cars with trailers, it was currently occupied by a sleeping dragon.

No parts of it extended beyond the lines, and the paper ticket was clearly displayed, impaled on a horn.

The parking attendant moved on.

[lionessfeather]

I was going to just queue it for later but then it stuck in my brain, and I decided to make it everyone's problem

[prokopetz]

Historically, one of the most reliable sources of widespread banditry was rulers ramping up military recruitment for major wars, then cutting their soldiers loose afterwards without pay, leaving a bunch of heavily armed men with military experience floating around broke and homeless.

Knowing this, whenever someone jokingly refers to raccoons as "trash bandits", I get a vivid mental image of, like, a raccoon succession crisis leading to a raccoon civil war, the aftermath of which forced the former soldiers of the losing side (who are all raccoons) to take up the life of the raccoon outlaw.

[emily-axford]

CRITICAL ROLE: CAMPAIGN 4 Episode 27: Complicated Questions

[myrtlebroadbelt]

[charlesoberonn]

I think there're broadly two kinds of mystery plots

"Something's wrong!"

"Something's not right..."

In a "something's wrong" mystery, the questions are out in the open, but the answers are hidden. The classic example is a murder mystery. We know there's a killer, but we don't know who it is.

It's a known unknown.

In a "something's not right" mystery, both the answers and the questions are hidden. The characters don't know initially that there even is a mystery to solve. It's only when they examine their situation more closely that they realize things don't add up. A lot of thrillers are like that.

It's an unknown unknown.

A good mystery story will utilize both for the greatest effect.

The detective solving the murder will realize that even the things they took for granted aren't what they seem.

The thriller writer will pepper in small visible mysteries into the narrative that are all part of the bigger hidden mystery.

[tarydarrington]

"Thank you, you're a real one." "I am a real one. And so are you, sister."

[thelibrarybat]

[freezeframe]

You may be wondering how I got into this situation. That's good. Keep wondering. If you pay close attention to the rest of this movie and employ your critical thinking skills, you may find that the answer unfolds as it goes along. Sometimes it's good not to know yet, and to wonder. Sometimes that's the entire point.

[unfreezeframe]

[bahari-official]

vtm coteries looking for new members

[clytemnestraaa]

i think ilya has slept with both alexis and david rose at independent times without realizing they are siblings and also both alexis and david are unaware of this

[screechfoxes]

CRITICAL ROLE 4.27 Complicated Questions

+ bonus Laura reaction:

[emily-axford]

CRITICAL ROLE: CAMPAIGN 4 Episode 27: Complicated Questions

[coquelicoq]

i liked that mb got to preserve its deus ex machina role in platform decay despite the fact mensah's family was pretty much expecting it to show up and rescue them...you know who wasn't expecting that, though? the militia. from the militia's perspective, a rando with the exact skillset and knowledge they needed appeared out of nowhere on the cusp of a firefight and volunteered its services, nonchalantly pulled one of them out of the line of fire in the nick of time, asked politely for a weapon and exploded an enemy's gun basically instantaneously, and then peaced out and they never saw it again. i think they had an even more quintessential deus ex machina experience than the ravihyral polycule.

[blessphemy]

as we all now, a secunit can fit through any hole large enough to fit its face through.

[screechfoxes]

CRITICAL ROLE 4.27 Complicated Questions