In addition to establishing setting, character, and plot, it is important, when writing a story, to establish morality. That is, to make sure the audience will consider your protagonists to be on the right side and your antagonists on the wrong. It needs to feel that the protagonists deserve to win. Obviously, this is not … Continue reading Establishing Morality
YouTube Recommendation
I'm not often seriously impressed by YouTube channels. They can be fun, but apart from Ross's Game Dungeon, they tend not to strike me as very interesting. Certainly very few are worth writing about. Now, though, I want to draw your attention to MauLer; a British gentleman who gives incredibly thorough critiques and dissections, mostly of video … Continue reading YouTube Recommendation
Multilevel Motivation:
Today I want to talk about a characterization trick I’m going to call multilevel motivation. This is where a character’s actions are driven by several different and often conflicting motives at the same time, creating a more psychologically complex and realistic storyline. Let me explain with an easily understood, but very well done example: the … Continue reading Multilevel Motivation:
Thought
There comes a point where, if your arguments are true, they disprove your position as thoroughly as if they weren't. For instance, you sometimes hear socialists claiming that 'real' socialism has never been implemented, meaning that the track record of Marxist politics shouldn't be taken as an indictment of the idea itself. But if that's … Continue reading Thought
Doofenshmirtz and Identity Politics
Phineas and Ferb is one of those shows that, though simple on the surface, lends itself to endless fascinating interpretations. Like so many great works of fiction, it tells the truth merely by trying to tell a good story. One of the chief themes of the show is the balance between childhood and maturity: Phineas … Continue reading Doofenshmirtz and Identity Politics
Thoughts on the Greatest Showman
The other day I got out to see The Greatest Showman before it left theaters, which I’d been meaning to do for a little while. I’d known almost nothing about the film before, except that it was about P.T. Barnum and the founding of his circus. Then a month or so into its release I … Continue reading Thoughts on the Greatest Showman
Why ‘Phineas and Ferb Star Wars’ is the Best Disney Star Wars
It is kind of a sad commentary on the state of the once-venerable franchise that the best and most satisfying work to come out of Star Wars’s move to Disney is a Phineas and Ferb special. Granted, Rogue One was pretty good, though it wasn’t well paced and the characters were mostly pretty bland. And … Continue reading Why ‘Phineas and Ferb Star Wars’ is the Best Disney Star Wars
Mission Marvel and Legit Heroes
On the subject of genuine heroics, allow me to present Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel, a crossover special where the Phineas and Ferb cast meet a bunch of Marvel characters. Now, this sounds like it wouldn’t work; goofy surreal kid’s show meets semi-serious comic book heroes. And it’s not perfect, or even one of the … Continue reading Mission Marvel and Legit Heroes
Legit Heroes
Every so often, while watching a show or movie, I'll think to myself 'yeah, this character's a really legit hero.' The concept seems worth expanding on. Of course, there are a lot of heroes running around in fiction one way or another. But a lot of stories seem to think that 'hero' simply means 'opposes … Continue reading Legit Heroes
Thoughts on ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’
Today my family and I finally got out to see Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, this season's sleeper hit. Having seen it, I absolutely can understand why it's found the success it has, because, yeah, it's really very good. The story has four teenagers - nerd, jock, popular girl, awkward girl - being sucked into a … Continue reading Thoughts on ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’
Serpent's Den 