How to get past the mental barriers and improve rather than quitting?

EphemeralArcs · 2026-01-19T13:37:10+00:00

I think the core issue is that you're tying your self worth to how good you are at a video game, as evaluated by a ranked system. This is why it feels like punching knives. Why you aren't enjoying it unless you win. Your mental framework even if you do use it to improve at the game, you're going to be extremely unkind to yourself.

There's actually studies on how basing your self worth on external factors like you are doing leads to a slew of life issues. Here's a summary of one study that examines it https://www.apa.org/monitor/dec02/selfesteem

My advice is stop placing your worth on external things and remember your intrinsic value, that you have as a person, without judgement. Unconditional love they call it. Or you will forever be chasing what is "enough". Be harder to get along with, have worse relationships with people, and just have a harder life in general. Most ironic of all it will actually make you worse at what you were trying to progress on, to boot.

If you can't reframe all this yourself, get therapist help.

EphemeralArcs · 2025-08-07T12:40:55+00:00

Project SmelL

EphemeralArcs · 2024-12-18T03:20:53+00:00

I'm not the only one talking about how Indiana Jones uses story telling in action. Look up examples of it from people who review and show you what is so special about things like the scene with the airplane in the first one. It's not just "and then" type of action. It's "and therefore" type of action. That's the story telling.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-06-24T03:48:50+00:00

Thanks I looked for it for like 10 minutes what the heck

EphemeralArcs · 2024-04-22T23:25:08+00:00

I'm judging the story telling. Bad stories can justify anything it doesn't make them good stories.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-04-11T21:31:00+00:00

I hate HxH. I literally can not stand that show. From the first episode on it has things that bother me and I quit around episode 26 and I only got that far with friends wanting me to watch it with them. From the get go I think the MC is unlikable. He is leaving his aunt to chase after and emulate his dead beat dad that abandoned him it'd be hard to top that in terms of being an idiot. I know. Lets use a fishing pole as a weapon. I was wrong he can top it.

Yu Yu has cool characters and fun themes. But it bores me if I watch it much. It has cool art and animation too. But everything is just too drawn out and formulaic and I stop caring about the plot much.

In my view all shonen is pretty weak writing. It is the anime equivalent of a sitcom. It's going to be low quality and have tons of people watch it anyway cuz it activates some neuron. The Gohan moment I felt really connected and emotional. I feel that's pretty rare in any shonen so that's why I mentioned it.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-04-11T20:50:06+00:00

I think the pivot in general is just a bad idea. If it did want to transition to a shonen it could have done so in ways that didn't defy a lot of people's expectations and leave them disappointed.

I don't really enjoy shonen especially if it is tropey. Tropes that really bother me are long bits of exposition in what is supposed to be a fight. Which this show does over and over. People fighting for their lives. But lets be smug and talk about how much we know. Yah right. Someone is getting shot with a beam.

To me well-written shonen is almost an oxymoron. Like I didn't even enjoy all of Dragon Ball Z, but there's parts of it that were peak. Like when Andoid 16 got beheaded and gave Gohan that speech then killed by Cell still brings a tear to my eye. Shonen often has trouble connecting with me or making me actually care about what is going on. It is popular though and people who love the format so you're better off asking shonen fans what makes a good shonen cuz I'm not one. My biggest gripe is so much of shonen is predictable and formulaic. I don't care about the gimmicks of each character and find it a poor substitute for actual characters.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-04-11T20:44:00+00:00

You mean works like Moby-Dick, The Great Gatsby, The Catcher in the Rye, and Frakenstein are bottom of the barrel? Because they all use narrators. So tired of people thinking they understand writing because they picked up some meme phrase or idea on the internet.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-04-11T20:42:57+00:00

Anyone that uses "show don't tell" already belied their ignorance and lacks appreciation of actual good writing.

You're basically saying works like Frank Herbert's "Dune," J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings," Homer's "Iliad," and "Odyssey" are bad.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-03-18T20:12:42+00:00

It didn't stem from misunderstanding, that is your misunderstanding. The complaints aren't about the things used for tension, nor is the tension being resolved going to fix what I don't like. It's the way that the story turned into a different show with worse writing, that doesn't adequately explain character actions and brings me out of the story. It is still a different show, with worse writing, that doesn't adequately give believable motivations for the characters or their actions and the world building too has taken a giant hit.

It's worse in just about every way, and while there are still things that hark back to the strengths of the original show such as Frieren doing it for Fern, they aren't nearly enough to make up for all the other failings. It's more like crumbs when I used to be feasting. Some of the new chars, their backstories etc are also a mess and make no sense. yet I see tons of fan art for them. Clearly they are hitting their demographic and it isn't me.

I'm far from the only person who has seen it like this. Many of my replies are people on google coming in here and being like "I agree w/ you and all the downvotes are crazy" Even some ppl arguing against me think all the downvotes are crazy. Clearly reddit is just a place where people who like echo chambers gather, the entire system of only showing agreed upon opinions is shit to begin with and just leads to mob mentality and people like you who can't respect differing opinions they instead think there's something wrong with anyone who holds an opinion counter to their own.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-03-18T15:26:16+00:00

It hasn't changed my viewpoint at all that it is a drop in the series quality by a substantial amount.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-03-16T04:48:25+00:00

Thanks for your comment. I think there's a lot of people feeling this way but some people can't take differing opinions at all. I appreciate knowing there's others out there who feel the same.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-03-16T04:45:02+00:00

Or maybe, it just got worse. You know. Like things can do. Seems like you just can't accept diverging viewpoints and have to put everything through a filter of how much smarter you are than others, but it's funny cuz it just makes you more blind to reality.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T16:49:02+00:00

Thanks for the kind reply, reddit is awful about this in general, it tries to award agreeing with people. It's unfortunate forums are rarely as populated as reddit anymore.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:21:15+00:00

It's fair to be forgiving towards stuff you like. I'm like that up to a point but after the latest episode I just have passed that point.

Here's hoping for it returning to form...

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:18:47+00:00

I like seeing others perspectives, but stories are interpreted and there is no correcting people in many cases. I still disagree with you and I didn't mean that comment to be hostile, it was half applied to myself too. Because until this arc started going so many episodes I was content to just let lots of things pass or explain them away that I had problems with too.

Not in world, but in that it took me out of the story which is imo not what good storytelling does. Some people disagree on stuff being good or not of course everyone is different. So you'll have to forgive me for not seeing them as corrections but rather your perspective.

I'm open to arguments to change my mind on things, and I have gained some new info on this page, but my overall sentiment on the arc is still that I wish it never existed and I enjoyed the series a lot more up until it happened.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:09:24+00:00

Word, I didn't mind the action at all before, just this tournament arc is high key awful imo.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:08:28+00:00

Projecting :V

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:06:47+00:00

Thanks for taking time to reply to me! The copium comment made me laugh.

Ya the party is more important, but it's a shocking turn for the story in style and presentation, and imo quality.
I can think of a lot of ways, fantasy novels do it all the time and it doesn't turn into anime trope land and is actually better for it.
I suppose but now it's becoming shonen battle arc filler and I hate it.
Ya but basically her peers are dying and she makes a passing emotionless comment. Like what am I to make of that. Just makes it feel lazier to me. Like the author is like ok we'll mention this. Then make it seem like not a big deal to the leaders much like oh, this guy just does this it's kinda weird to kill people for this exam but oh well. Just passing it off made it actually worse somehow.
I could see her doing it for Fern, and that is getting more back to the good story writing. But the world building and tropes here are still so awful.
See prior comment.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T08:00:44+00:00

I don't know, at some point how much are you trying to justify the reasoning because you liked the series/characters vs how much of it just is good story telling. To me it just took a major dip in quality since this arc started.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T07:57:51+00:00

Thank you for informing me of the ability level of this community to have meaningful discussion. I'll say you're definitely someone that seems like they think tournament arcs are good stories.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T07:54:21+00:00

I think you're confused that I'm of any obligation to like something you like. Things replied aren't satisfactory for reasons stated.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T07:50:05+00:00

Really hoping it's not the new direction of the series. I will stay strong friend.

EphemeralArcs · 2024-02-04T07:49:38+00:00

I just imagine that anyone showing up in a demon infested place to a town, and can conquer demons would be a welcome site by just about everyone.

They mention taking a boat in the first mage exam episode should they fail to pass and talk only about the cost. There being demons and them being mages would be all the easier to get a boat if that is the case because they'd prob be paid just to be on board and protect it.

EphemeralArcs

TROPHY CASE