Which character designs did you like the best (aside from the prairie dogs)?
I'd agree with 石矶娘娘 design, pretty fun. Especially after she miniaturized. 敖光 was a case of "oh, well, it's obvious he's a good guy" design, but yeah, he's not exactly "hot" if that's what people are salivating over.
Personally, I'm weirdly fond of the derp dragon minion (the one that did the tail-biting schtick with the shark minion). It reminds me how the Chinese dragon can easily go from ferocious to derpy with a few brush strokes. 🤣
Do you see see the villain faction as primarily identifying with the CN government then?
The thing about sneaking shit past the censors is that one can't be too explicit, which leaves room for alternate readings. Obviously the most literal interpretation is that the villains represent dangerous cults. But when you dig deeper into certain decisions, such as the tiny squinty eyes of the Big Bad, the fake rehabilitative prison system, the PR brainwashing of the demons, creepy uniformity of the "good guys", the false flag operations that blame disasters on "outside agitators", turning minority leaders into collaborators in the oppression of the "other"... Even if it wasn't somehow intentional, the fact that these characteristics are shared by the CN government is enough for audience to start drawing their own conclusions.
But my personal take is the movie's criticism is directed internally.
Even in qidian trope of orphan-background MCs, some of them will also gain the trope of "discovering their 'real' parent with mysterious/angsty/powerful origins", lol.
Also reminds me that heritage lineage is also very important in Chinese stories. Even when the biological parent isn't featured, the adoptive parent (usually teacher/master) will take up the parental mantle for the MC to go batshit over. Protecting the reputation of the school (门派) is basically the shared motivation for every Wuxia hero that ever existed. And if there's ever internal conflicts, it's usually fighting over the reputation/saving face of the school.
more recent trends in enovels favoring edgy anti-hero MCs and grimdark/conspiratorial re-interpretations of stuff
Well, there is something to be said about the popularity of reinterpretation of the monster. Monsters are a literary tool used to depict the "other", so sympathy for the monster (in the story beyond just "edgy grim dark") is often a reflection of sympathy for the marginalized groups. And while sure, there's probably a lot of reinterpretation driven by the "edgy grim dark" immaturity, I think the prevalence of monsters reinterpreted as forces of good rather than evil shows a general trend of sympathy for the marginalized or at least identification with the marginalized groups. These ideas are bound to catch on as the powers that be continue to suppress diversity.
Like, I don't think people are really blind to the current...ehm, less than inclusive domestic political atmosphere, and that usually drives the popularity of "monsters are the good guys" narrative. (See Guillermo del Toro's filmography for a representative case of "sympathetic portrayals of monsters to criticize fascism" trend.) So that's my long winded way of saying I think this is more than just a grim dark trend, there is serious discontent that monster stories are tapping into.
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Date: 2025-03-19 07:44 (UTC)Standard.
I'd agree with 石矶娘娘 design, pretty fun. Especially after she miniaturized. 敖光 was a case of "oh, well, it's obvious he's a good guy" design, but yeah, he's not exactly "hot" if that's what people are salivating over.
Personally, I'm weirdly fond of the derp dragon minion (the one that did the tail-biting schtick with the shark minion). It reminds me how the Chinese dragon can easily go from ferocious to derpy with a few brush strokes. 🤣
The thing about sneaking shit past the censors is that one can't be too explicit, which leaves room for alternate readings. Obviously the most literal interpretation is that the villains represent dangerous cults. But when you dig deeper into certain decisions, such as the tiny squinty eyes of the Big Bad, the fake rehabilitative prison system, the PR brainwashing of the demons, creepy uniformity of the "good guys", the false flag operations that blame disasters on "outside agitators", turning minority leaders into collaborators in the oppression of the "other"... Even if it wasn't somehow intentional, the fact that these characteristics are shared by the CN government is enough for audience to start drawing their own conclusions.
But my personal take is the movie's criticism is directed internally.
Also reminds me that heritage lineage is also very important in Chinese stories. Even when the biological parent isn't featured, the adoptive parent (usually teacher/master) will take up the parental mantle for the MC to go batshit over. Protecting the reputation of the school (门派) is basically the shared motivation for every Wuxia hero that ever existed. And if there's ever internal conflicts, it's usually fighting over the reputation/saving face of the school.
Well, there is something to be said about the popularity of reinterpretation of the monster. Monsters are a literary tool used to depict the "other", so sympathy for the monster (in the story beyond just "edgy grim dark") is often a reflection of sympathy for the marginalized groups. And while sure, there's probably a lot of reinterpretation driven by the "edgy grim dark" immaturity, I think the prevalence of monsters reinterpreted as forces of good rather than evil shows a general trend of sympathy for the marginalized or at least identification with the marginalized groups. These ideas are bound to catch on as the powers that be continue to suppress diversity.
Like, I don't think people are really blind to the current...ehm, less than inclusive domestic political atmosphere, and that usually drives the popularity of "monsters are the good guys" narrative. (See Guillermo del Toro's filmography for a representative case of "sympathetic portrayals of monsters to criticize fascism" trend.) So that's my long winded way of saying I think this is more than just a grim dark trend, there is serious discontent that monster stories are tapping into.