Lurker > masterpug53

Amenadeel posted...

Now that I've seen the whole series I have to ask, how is it like Empire strikes back?

**Spoilers for both Empire Strikes Back and Avatar: The Last Airbender**

> our hero, the last of an ancient line of warrior-monks, splits off from his friends to seek training from an inexplicably-old guru
>meanwhile, the main villain's ruthless enforcer, who's hounded our heroes nearly every step of their journey, infiltrates the city where they erroneously thought they were safe, and captures one or more of them.
> guru teaches our hero that he must detach himself from his friends and loved ones in order to complete his spiritual training
>while attempting this training, our hero has a vision of his loved one(s) in peril. This compels him to turn his back on both the guru and his training to go save his friends
>Arriving at the city, our unprepared hero faces the enforcer, gets his ass kicked, and nearly dies; his life is saved only by the intervention of his love interest
>The bad guys take over the city and win the day. Our defeated heroes make their escape and live to fight again.


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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Your first question is expanded upon in Legend of Korra, the second and third through a comic book series that came out after TLA ended. I think some editions of the TLA box set come with said comics.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Bad_Mojo posted...

Unjustly HATE. Do you HATE it? I don't care if you have problems with things here and there, we all do. But I see so many people claim that Korra is f'n garbage, and it's not, it's a fantastic show as well, imo

I've said before that the only reason I'm remotely critical of Avatar: The Last Airbender, is that the people who dump shit all over Legend of Korra while giving TLA a free pass compel me to glare back at both series with a more jaundiced eye. And I don't particularly like doing this, since both rank high among my all-time favorite television series.


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Jeff AKA Snoopy posted...

There was mention of a lion turtle being a creature that existed, but never anything about it being overly special?

It's shown briefly in the Spirit Library when Aang finds an illustation of one, and statues of it can be seen briefly at Master Piandao's castle (Piandao also comments that Sokka has a heart 'as big as a lion-turtle). S'bout it. I love this show to death, but this is about as clear-cut an example of deus-ex machina that you can find.

Funny thing is, plenty of people who wouldn't give a second thought about the lion turtle complain up and down about how (Legend of Korra spoilers) Korrasami 'came out of nowhere,' despite the latter having more instances of foreshadowing.

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Buff Toph sonic-screaming is one of my favorite things ever. I recently learned how to make a gif, and after all these years I might finally sit down and a make a 'that's my fetish' gif out of the camera panning over the entire audience looking disgusted and only Toph has a huge smile on her face.

spikethedevil posted...

Sokka really only has the moon princess and Suki.

And all those haiku students. At least until he went one syllable too far.

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Amenadeel posted...

Oh man sorry I really wanted to! Here's the thing, it was so good I had to see more and couldn't stop myself from binging before posting in this topic.

Such a great sokka episode. I mentioned before that despite making him the goof/comic relief most of the time, they really know when to treat his character well. I loved how the gang missed him and showed what he brings to the group.

And I particularly loved how they showed something that was brought up in a later episode: that one being from the Fire nation doesn't mean they're bad. The sword master knew right away and helped sokka. Also I like his meteor sword, that looks cool.

This show handles its characters so damn well.

Korra, Zuko, and Iroh are impossible to top on my 'best series character list,' but Sokka is easily #4, and that's quite an accomplishment. I can't think of another 'comic relief' character in fiction who's treated with such respect and allowed to grow and develop the way Sokka is. Let's just say you're in for a treat when you get to The Boiling Rock.

This is one of those aspects in which I'll freely admit Legend of Korra dropped the ball: even at his best moments, Bolin can't hold a candle to Sokka. Also, now with the benefit of hindsight (because I watched LoK first), I'm really miffed that (Legend of Korra spoilers) Sokka didn't live long enough to be part of that series. I can get why it happened: the show was initially planned as a thirteen-ep miniseries, at that point it wasn't confirmed that Zuko or Toph were still alive either, and when Katara mentions in the first ten minutes that Sokka's passed away, they'd already written themselves into a corner by the time the series got extended. But the one plotline I always wanted to see further developed in LoK was Korra finding identity and self-worth beyond being the Avatar, and Old Chief Sokka would have been the perfect person to help her develop that side of her personality.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Bruh, don't even tell me you didn't comment on one of my favorite eps, 'Sokka's Master.'

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Toph was already an earthbending goddess when she entered the group, so the only way for her to develop in power was a more lateral approach, in which she unlocks an entirely new sub-form of bending.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

DuneMan posted...

Or how they complain that Cait has an Irish accent in post-apocalyptic Boston while ignoring that New Vegas had a New Zealander in Sloan.

To be fair though, Bethesda missed an opportunity to have a Vault that segregated people such that an Irish accent might be expected to survive in pockets of the Commonwealth.

I think in that case it was more that they just wanted badass Zoe Bell to voice a couple characters, instead of a deliberate attempt to have characters with a New Zealand accent.

Both Fallout 3 and 4 have numerous characters with thick Irish, Eastern European, and Asian accents.

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She looks too much like a fem version of Clemson's QB. Which I could normally look past, but the OSU loss is still fresh enough in my mind for the resemblance to be particularly repulsive.

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Sure. I stand by my assertion that if you're going to turn your body into a canvas, don't just make some half-assed doodles in the corner.

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Is that the same deranged individual who came up with 'if you can't handle me at my worst you don't deserve me at my best?'

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

I love the show to death, but once it dawned on me that the last two episodes of S2 were almost a direct copy of Empire Strikes Back, I couldn't unsee it.

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It's been behind your ear the whole time.

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Other: 'NOOOOOOOO!' x2

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Looks like someone beat me to the punch, but I'll add that anything and everything involving Goron Rolling in Majora's Mask enrages me.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

voldothegr8 posted...

LOL did the refs make Fields throw two picks and make Dobbins miss 2 easy TD catches which resulted in FGs? Not to mention many blatant 3rd down defensive penalties which kept Clemson alive numerous times.

This game wasn't rigged. OSU played sloppy and had all the chances to win, including the last play which resulted in a pick.

OSU had two touchdowns overturned in review on questionable evidence, taking 12-14 points directly off of our score. Even the most brickheaded announcer will rightly go on about how things like that can be demoralizing enough to change the course of a game. If that's the type of game the refs are going to play, they need to drop this 'indisputable evidence' pretense and exchange it with 'referee bias and / or whimsy.'

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008Zulu posted...

The Great Escape. An old fashioned prison break out movie is what I liked best about it.

Good call, I wouldn't have thought of that one otherwise.

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I think I might be genuinely done getting invested in college ball until something changes. Two (or was it three?) back-to-back instances of reviews overturning calls on questionable evidence. The 'indisputable evidence' thing has zero value now; it only exists to shield the refs from criticism and gives them a gross overabundance of power with which to control the flow of the game. It dawned on me that I can't really enjoy watching these games anyone because I can't even let myself get excited over a touchdown without waiting the prerequisite fifteen seconds to see whether or not it gets called back. My interest has been lagging over the last few years, I guess this was the final blow.

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Sucks that these poor kids are going to get increasing caught between such restrictions and their [expletive expletive expletive] parents, but it is of utmost importance that said parents be dragged kicking and screaming back into the 21st century.

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Reggie (Paul Newman) in Slap Shot is definitely up there.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

I like to consider myself a good loser, but this Clemson win comes with an asterisk as far as I'm concerned. 'Irrefutable evidence' has never rang more hollow than tonight, and it robbed us of a lot of points.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

A guy who did some yardwork for us about a year ago had a swastika tat on the back of his neck. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and assumed it was a prison necessity.

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Good to see that the 'irrefutable evidence' line continues to be absolute horseshit.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Freddie_Mercury posted...

lets try the holdo maneuver

no

There were so many better counters to that, ranging from 'we don't have enough ships for that to make a difference' to 'umm...you first.'

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Vader's new reaction is ironically my own reaction when thinking about watching the bluray version of this movie.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Iron Man 3, pretty handily. I think the only thing I really remember / like about the movie was the Mandarin.

Still haven't seen Hulk or Dark World, though.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5qLgL-E7uY

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Guns_of_Verdun posted...

You can use companions if you get the DLC

Theres no point or drama in introducing a complex moral dilemma and then backing out of it

"You need to pass a check" doesn't fix that

Look at Veronica and the Brotherhood. you dont just "pass an explosives " check that makes them realise she is right or leave the Followers alone.

The checks help you along the way but at some point you have to make a call or run away

There absolutely is a point in introducing a third option to a complex moral drama: the satisfaction that you figured a way out of an un-winnable situation. The feeling that you are making a direct positive impact on a worldspace that has pretty well fucked itself.

Now granted, this needs to be used sparingly: you are correct in that the game would be watered down to nothing if you could skill check your way out of every single dilemma without consequence. But so too would the game get monotonous if every single confrontation railroaded you into a bad option or a worse option, as your actions would start feeling increasingly futile and your motivation to carry on would dwindle.

Giving you the occasional high-skill 'good' option also increases replay value, if you see such an option unavailable to you on your first playthrough and endeavor to make a build more suited to passing such checks the next time.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Guns_of_Verdun posted...

Another game having bad writing doesn't excuse this

Do you have anything to counter the fact that the 'good' third outcome is gated by a very high check from a skill that otherwise rarely justifies a significant investment? Or just the general notion that no problem should be arbitrarily binary / insurmountable if you have the brainpower to think around it?

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Pretty sure you have to have a 90 in Science to take that route, so the option is sufficiently gated.

Anyway, I strongly disagree with the sentiment in the OP, since instances like that fixed one of my biggest problems with Fallout 3, most notably the ending. It doesn't matter how high my Intelligence or Science is in that game: the ending still railroads me into FO3's Idiot vs. Dick moral dichotomy wherein I'm either daddy's little girl / boy and dutifully press the buttons, or I force someone else to do it. They quite infamously thumbed their nose at lateral thinking with Fawke's whole 'destiny' bullshit, and still managed to get their passive-aggressive digs in even after they patched in the Fawkes alternative.

So, long story short, I quite like that NV rewards you for skill investment by actually allowing you to use your brain guilt-free in several crucial scenarios.

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Call me when the Mila Valentina sequel livens things up. 'I work with my mother, to sell fruits and vegetables. It's fun most days, but *stove own face in with a daedric shovel*

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I feel like there's a decent overlap between people who critically demolish the ST and people who love RLM's content; might be that those vids inspired them to take a more critical approach to these kinds of movies. Anyway, even the RLM guys made a point in their Half in the Bag for tRoS that the prequels are not now suddenly validated / better / not complete shit by comparison.

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Parks and Recreation

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Doe posted...

That would be O, not Oh, O Fake Fan

Thanks for reminding me, ironically enough, why I should learn not to bother with these topics.

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Oh Bother Where Art Thou?
(An artsy Deep South retelling Pooh's quest for honey)

Raisin Arizona
(A quirky tale of the lesser-known Arizona Raisins' attempt to steal an infant California Raisin and raise it as their own)

The Bug Lebowski
(This is what happens with a fly a stinkbug and some ants)

Bern After Reading
(A film documenting the natural reaction to viewing too many Trump tweets)

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Ultros.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Agreed. The ending is one of the warmest, fuzziest, faith-in-humanity-restoring endings I've ever had the pleasure of watching.

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It was a spectacular hot mess, but I enjoyed it.

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So what changes?

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

5>6=4>>>9>8>RO>7>>>>3>1>2

In terms of how much I enjoyed them and how much I'd want to see them again.

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Deadpool gets my vote, but if that's too obvious a choice, Nice Guys is a darn close second.

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Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.

Just six posts in and this is already the CEest topic I've ever seen on CE.

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Tired-Insomniac posted...

10/10 post right here

Thanks for making me take a second look at said post, I missed its greatness the first time.

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StealthRock posted...

Im saying that they did so after the fact. Which doesnt negate the possibility of last minute changes or retcons

This is the crux of your entire problem: you're aggressively denying the reality put before you for the sake of reinforcing and attempting to prove your incorrect first impression. Exactly what problem do you have with looking at the information given you in this topic and saying 'oh, okay...well, I can see that.' What is your motivation to dig in your heels and repeatedly deny this?

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StealthRock posted...

Ok. Wasnt a slip at all. But ok

If typos are what you cling tp then i feel sorry for you

Clingy tp is the worst, we can definitely find common ground there.

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StealthRock posted...

Predicting an argument does give yours any more validity

Thanks for giving me a chance to screencap your freudian slip before you had a chance to edit it.

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