#xtoad

[gabzilla-z]

I just read the first volume of Spy x Family and it was awesome. I just question Twilight's anti-escape measure for Anya, that door is pulled from the inside, not pushed, how was that piece of furniture supposed to help ?

this family shares one braincell, that’s how

[swan2swan]

Do you think that if the Jedi and Republic had managed to survive the Clone Wars, some Jedi, probably led by Mace Windu, would have pushed for the Order to have some sort of representation in the Senate ? For all that they're accused of playing politics, they pretty much have no power in that area and must rely on personal friendships made with some senators.

This is actually a really good question...

I doubt it, though, because the Jedi thrived largely because they had no agenda. I think they knew better than to try inviting themselves into the hall of politics--as soon as they had a corner, people would start whispering about how they were “using mind control” and “arguing against this because they’re afraid of threats to their power”.

The Jedi served the Senate as advisors to those who would approach them. Padme, Bail, and Riyo all went to Jedi for advice or used them as moderators when they needed help.

However, I feel like in an optimal world, Anakin Skywalker might have breached that line. I think when his children were born and the war was over, he would have come clean about his relationship with Padme and accepted his expulsion from the Jedi Order. He would have chosen a life with Padme, a life of his own, and lived Happily Ever After. Odds are that Padme would have withdrawn from the Senate, too, in order to avoid those rumors and accusations I mentioned above; but it’s possible that they would have stepped up into a new role. Perhaps as co-chairs of the Clone Wars Veterans Affairs Department, or the Galactic Reconstruction Movement. A former Jedi and a former Senator with hundreds of victories and mercy missions behind them...they would have had the respect of thousands of worlds. Especially if Anakin was the one who exposed the manipulations of Darth Sidious (though, honestly, the fall of Palpatine would have been its own super-problem, because Palpatine undoubtedly had loyalists aplenty who would be causing trouble).

Mace Windu, though, is the last person who would push for Senatorial representation. Especially because, if he had killed Sidious, I am pretty sure that he would have exiled himself from the Jedi Order and the Republic--having killed the leader of the galaxy, he could take no part in its rule himself, or else be seen as someone who seized power. Heck, the whole Order might have had to dissolve and withdraw, scattering to the corners of the galaxy in order to lead new lives. Fighting the Good Fight as best they could, winning their reputation from the ground up by tearing out the corruption they’d witnessed during the war, healing and liberating and becoming renegades...it’s an interesting concept, and honestly, one that could have been explored but we’re not discussing that.

[fantastic-nonsense]

Hello, I know this is 7 years too late, but I was wondering what were your thoughts about Boleska after watching the season when compared to your musings ?

It was an abusive relationship that got played for laughs because the abuser was a woman and Bolin was the show’s main comic relief character. I have no real desire to talk about them besides that; their relationship was easily the worst part of Book 2 for me.

[anghraine]

Do you think that a natural progression for Bolin might be to straight-up join the Air Nomads ? It would fit his desire to help people, he's pretty much hitched to an Air Nomad already and it could be an interesting debut to a new policy of diversification for Tenzin & Co, perhaps followed by a similar movement in the other nations ?

Hmm. The Air Nomads under Tenzin already had non-airbenders with the Air Acolytes, so it wouldn’t be at all strange for someone to join. I’m not sure Bolin really fits their mentality and practices, though—he could work with the Air Nomads without being one himself. 

[avannak]

Has there ever been an official discussion about whether or not Astrid's headband was meant to be a kransen ? I always thought it was just a way for Astrid to her her hair out of her eyes while still showing it off, unlike Ruffnut and every other lady who just go with a helmet.

She literally had her bangs in her eyes from day one. And let it all go to hell by the final movie.

I’m pretty sure it was referred to as a kransen a long while back, though don’t quote me on that.

[legobiwan]

I like your Maul-Obi-Wan-Ahsoka analysis, but I can't agree that Maul had Anakin in his sights as far as the murder of Satine. For me, his vision of Anakin came after that. Before, Maul had the ambition of creating a power block around Mandalore capable of opposing the Republic directly. After, he knows he can only grasp power in the shadows. I think his abandonment of the Mandalorians ties into that : as loyal and efficient as they are, they're not meant for hiding and are thus obsolete.

First of all, thank you friend, for reading and responding!

I do agree that Maul can only grasp power through surrogates, as it’s far too dangerous for him to try and rule anyone outright (which is an interesting question when it comes to Obi-wan’s rendering of aid - both times - to Mandalore. Because on the surface, to the Republic, at least, this is only a political coup on a neutral planet and with Almec being in charge, there’s no way anyone outside Death Watch and the Jedi would truly know what was going on, which, in terms of optics, the holonet, and Senators...is not a good thing - for Obi-wan, at least.)

And yes, Maul wanted that power block, whether to oppose the Republic to Palpy’s upcoming Empire and that move was a brilliant way of playing both sides just in case. 

I still personally think Maul had it in for Anakin at least as early as Satine (if not by Florrum, although he wasn’t ready to execute the plan at that point), or else why keep Obi-wan alive after killing Satine? Maul either wanted bait for Anakin or wanted to watch Obes turn, the latter of which was the far more dangerous proposition, as a dark!Obi-wan would be dangerous and Maul wouldn’t have the leverage over a dark!Obes that, let’s say, a Dooku would. 

Now, this doesn’t necessarily conflict with Maul’s eventual abandonment of the Mandalorians - they were, in the end, tools for a greater plan, although never obsolete (if there’s one thing we know about Mandalorians, it’s that they don’t, as a people, necessarily die well. Or at all. Kind of like Maul, actually. :D

[lokgifsandmusings]

I think that the EVHUL AVATAR part of Unalaq's plans is one that actually makes a lot of sense : Vaatu needs a human partner if he wants a chance to defeat Raava and her partner. However, if we're talking about Unalaq's vision for a world in which Vaatu exists but not Raava... I got nothing.

Exactly, lol. Vaatu’s aims were 100% clear, but Unalaq’s end goal was just…vines? Spirits>people, but at the cost of a spirit (and then why position himself as a dark avatar at all)? This doesn’t even touch on the “he was totally part of the Red Lotus” thing. …Really?

[inhonoredglory]

I thought that Hiccup overreacted to Grimmel, but as I think back on it, evacuate Berk makes sense. Hiccup doesn't want to lose anyone he cares about (did it feel like the indoor scenes with the Deathgrippers put a lot of focus on Astrid barely escaping them? I kept expecting her to be impaled!) and Grimmel just demonstrated his ability to infiltrate the village with some very dangerous dragons. And those aren't a blunt instrument like Drago's horde was, they're a commando of shock troops!

Very true. Hiccup is a pacifist in many ways. We have to look at his reign as chief to get a better context on his decisions in HTTYD3: After his father’s death, he saw his entire village decimated by Drago. This was violent, horrible, and frankly, shocking. Many people died. He spent a year after that rebuilding the village. We all know Vikings don’t mind rebuilding their villages; they’re used to destruction and death and picking themselves up afterwards. But this time it’s different, and more personal: it’s not dragons doing the killing, it’s people. Drago controlling a dragon into this violence. Grimmel poisoning dragons into this violence. It’s not nature doing the killing, it’s not necessity doing the violence (“if they don’t bring enough food back, they’d be eaten themselves”). It’s cold-blooded, greedy, arrogant humanity who’s doing this war.

(Drago’s Bewilderbeast literally crawled over Berk in a surprise attack that must have killed a lot of people.)

And I believe that hurts Hiccup deeply. He’s a man who loves dragons to the depth of his soul. He’s a man who can’t let his people die by the hand of violent men. He spend a year picking up the pieces of Drago’s attack. He’s not going to do that again. He knows Grimmel is only the first of many who will threaten Berk. Hiccup is a leader here: he’s forward-thinking enough to realize that if they don’t move now, they’d move eventually. And why let the death of people now be wasted if they needed to find a new place to begin with? Hiccup wanted to move Berk out to follow the dragons to the Hidden World in the first place. Grimmel only pushed his timetable.