thoughts on rise of the wolf
things i like:
drew in general is better in the books i fear.
i like that wergar wasn’t a great guy- it makes it more realistic that people would be hesitant to follow his son
vincent not intending to betray his family, but trying instead to just help them
i like the vibes of the rat king- i understand why the group of 5 wasn’t included but i do like it
i also really like the prophecies. i’m a big fan of prophecies- especially when the chosen one is necessarily the MC. with a lot of the prophecies foreshadowing hector stuff too.
i don’t think drew’s dad had a rushed redemption arc which is neat. i like that they didn’t hurry that.
the fact drew didn’t realize whitley was a girl is very silly and i think i like it. idk if it makes drew sexist or whitley just super androgynous, but hopefully it’s the latter
the fact vega is a drug dealer in this version and not just a regular pirate. he’s a drug dealing pirate.
the fact hector found a drug dealer for a ride.
the fact hector’s family is both werelord but also healers.
that the king was probably going to kill both hector and drew. it makes more sense then him just being chill with hector even if he acted like he was merciful.
things i did not like:
tragically like all the girls. they’re not necessarily poorly written, but they’re just better in the show.
like whitley? she goes after the first couple chapters. also why is it so absurd for her to be a scout? she’s a semi-immortal werelord.
gretchen? oh yea she’s better than most, but she literally can’t do anything. she doesn’t win them money. she doesn’t beat hector in a fight to escape. she can sing though.
drew’s mom dies with out ever being characterized which is also in the show but it’s somehow worse since time restraints are less of an issue in a book.
the wyldermen being actual dudes who live in the woods is weird. like in the show they seem to be otherworldly beings, but in the books they’re just a “uncivilized and innately evil” group of people.
everyone is white. not surprised just disappointed.
i don’t like the way people talk about hector. maybe it’ll be addressed later on but everyone is going on and on about how he’s heavier and not used to living in the woods.
like why is him loosing weight due to malnutrition a good thing and a sign he’s gaining moral integrity?! he’s starving in the woods.
this one specific scene where vega, hector and drew are talking and vega says that it doesn’t matter what a person has in their pants sir they’re a good sailor as a joke to address a sexist assumption. he laughs and hector laughs too. drew for some reason is like. “oh he doesn’t care if someone’s a girl?!? automatically don’t like him.” ok…
the fact hector seems to have a crush on gretchen. stop that. now. aren’t they cousins?!???? (getting flashbacks to kotlc)
i fear that hector’s mental health will be demonized in the narrative. time will tell if it’ll be in a commentary sort of way where it’s like “oh we need to not bottle up our emotions” or in a “people who are mentally ill are predestined to be evil” cause he definitely has symptoms of anxiety.
in summary, some decisions regarding hector and just in general a poor understanding of women.
things i’m not sure about:
the gore ironically. i don’t mind gore i think its useful and necessary in some stories. but it actively annoys me when it’s “dark” for the sake of being edgy? like if there aren’t ramifications, i don’t like it. so i guess we’ll see how stuff goes from here.
