Case (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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fandomsecrets2016-09-28 06:32 pm
case) wrote in fandomsecrets2016-09-28 06:32 pm
[ SECRET POST #3556 ]
⌈ Secret Post #3556 ⌋
Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.
01.
[Lord of the Rings trilogy]
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02.
[pride and prejudice; unnamed others]
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03.
[Endeavour]
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04.
[Tim Curry / Movies: IT, Rocky Horror Picture Show, Clue, Legend]
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05.
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06.
[Loud House]
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07.
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08.
[MST3K]
Notes:
Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 19 secrets from Secret Submission Post #508.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
Re: Book club - GRACELING discussion!!!
(Anonymous) 2016-09-29 12:52 am (UTC)(link)- Katsa: I'll be honest, I really didn't like her at first. In the end she still wasn't my favorite, but there were a few things that redeemed her for me - for one thing, her "quick temper/wants to be violent at everyone/cold and aloof" thing was not really portrayed as a good thing or brushed aside, the way it would with a lot of badly written protagonists, and was reasonable given her upbringing. Like, her knee-jerk reaction to hit people when they made her mad wasn't because she was a Cool, Strong Female Character but because she was a messed-up person raised from childhood to be a killer. So that was good. Also, I really liked the reveal of her Grace because it made her ~~totally amazing~~ skills a little less Sue-ish. Plus, the narrative challenged her in ways that made her Grace interesting and not overpowered. Leck was a good villain cause his power was something she couldn't deal with at all.
- Po: Liked him a lot. Their romance was a bit cliche, but not the worst I've seen - I did genuinely enjoy the progression of their friendship, and the way they worked to rebuild trust and communication after she discovered his real Grace was well-done. The final twist was also great, though I wish he hadn't been absent for the last part of the book - not that I didn't enjoy Katsa's journey with Bitterblue, but removing him from the narrative felt really awkward, idk.
- Leck's end felt really abrupt, and I also wish we'd found out more about his motivations than just "He's creepy and evil and likes to torture animals and people!" That said, what we found out about his habits - and him threatening Bitterblue and her mother with tortured animals and servants - were really, really creepy. I just felt like his fixation with Bitterblue was a little poorly explained, and should have had a little more to it than just "he likes torturing small animals and children" given the lengths he went to trying to get her. Also, his ending felt very... abrupt. I'm not sure what would have made it better, but the final confrontation felt really rushed and didn't have much time to build tension.
- I really liked Bitterblue, and thought her character development was frankly the best in the novel. She'd really come into her own by the end there, and I loved her relationship with Katsa. Oh oh and I loved the Lienid sailors, especially the captain, they were awesome.
I wish we'd gotten more of some of the characters in early parts of the novel, especially Raffin and Oll. Oh and as I mentioned in an early comment, I definitely thought Raffin and Bann were gay, especially at the scene where Katsa wanted to know if Raffin was secretly in love with her, and both of them started laughing. Dunno if that was intended, but it's my headcanon now haha.
Re: Book club - GRACELING discussion!!!
With Po, I think I went the opposite, I preferred when he was absent from the story except as thoughts and feelings and found it a bit awkward when he was present. But I suspect that's more because I liked Katsa but was indifferent to Po. So Po being present was less Katsa and Bitterblue and angsty-survival IMO.
I do really like how they met. It was cliche and overdramatic. But I still really liked how Katsa and Po met.
Agree with Leck, I feel like he kind of glossed over a bit after such a build up. Especially since I now realise towards the start of the book his rumours were alluded to - but in an appropriate fashion from Katsa's point of view and it really isn't until Po comes in that the way he is regarded in the store changes. And I like that, so the abrupt ending was...well, abrupt.
I could probably read a whole book on Katsa, Bitterblue and the sailors. Maybe one day the captain could get her own book, sounds like she has many stories!
I can go with Raffin and Bann being secretly gay. I confess, I didn't give them much mind as characters except as her friends.
Re: Book club - GRACELING discussion!!!
Re: Book club - GRACELING discussion!!!
Out of curiosity, what parts were those? :3
Love your assessment of Katsa, especially how her violent reflexes are a result of her fucked up upbringing and not just Being A Badass Teenager. lol. That's a really good point.
I love how Katsa and Po became close as friends before becoming lovers. Like, really love it. And there is so much more to their relationship overall than the romance.
and I also wish we'd found out more about his motivations than just "He's creepy and evil and likes to torture animals and people!"
I just felt like his fixation with Bitterblue was a little poorly explained
This is true! I really wonder what it is he wanted with her. It was stated that he liked spending time with women and thus implied that he was something of a playboy (surely rather easy for him to do...ugh...guhghhhhh now that I think about it could anyone even really consent to sleeping with him?????) but I really don't think his intentions towards Bitterblue were sexual (and he's enough of a monster as it is). Hmm.
As for Leck himself though I think the sequel actually explores his backstory a bit? I can see why Bitterblue would want to find out more about him, after all.
Personally, one detail I'd really like to know is did he ever actually lose his covered-up eye, and if so, how? He seems ruthless enough to be willing to destroy it himself to hide his Grace, but it could easily have happened in a fight or accident too. I have to think if it wasn't destroyed, someone would have figured it out at some point, but maybe not (and maybe he could use his Grace to cover it up anyway even if they did).
And yeah while it might have been better for the story for him to be alive more at the end I was very relieved when he died. He was that poisonous and creepy. D: And in a way I liked that he didn't have much page time, so to speak, for himself because it made him an even creepier psychological horror villain. It was the fear of him and his power that gripped Katsa even when he wasn't there. His influence reached far beyond himself.
Bitterblue was so great <3
If there was one minor character (besides Raffin, if he counts as minor, strictly speaking) that I'd want to learn more of, it was Captain Faun. How did she discover her Grace? How did she become a captain? I love her position; all of her men are clearly loyal and protective as fuck but also completely respect her authority. How did she earn that? How long as she been at sea? I admit I love the "commanding and confident gray-haired lady badass in charge" trope...
I think I share your headcanon about Raffin and Bann. Makes me want to get to know them both more!