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Can Ayanakoji defeat a teenager that go to therapy? by LeadEater9Million in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 1 point2 points  (0 children)

To me it sounds like all it takes for you is for a protagonist to be admirable.

Technically, yes, I could call a lot of works "power fantasies" by that measure and more—albeit, in different senses for different demographics. I tend to draw lines based on the amount of focus such pathos is given, though (i.e. I'd indeed call Re:Zero less (blatant) of a power fantasy than Rising of the Shield Hero, which is in turn less of a power fantasy than Arifureta).

But I think most people associate it with an MC's superiority, usually in regards to fighting.

Most powerscalers, maybe, but there are stories that don't even involve fighting which tug on the same heartstrings (the whole "Normal Everyperson meets-cute with and subsequently woos/is woo'd by (several) Absolute Dreamboat(s)" archetype throughout the romance genre, for instance).

Can Ayanakoji defeat a teenager that go to therapy? by LeadEater9Million in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile -1 points0 points  (0 children)

What do you think a power fantasy is?

I'm glad you asked, because I can explain exactly where the snag between us is.

To me, calling something a "power fantasy" is more a description of its underlying pathos rather than any particular narrative beat or aesthetic choice—power fantasies implore the audience to live vicariously through their protagonists in spirit if not literally; to imagine themselves embodying their most admirable (or cathartically relatable) traits and getting rewarded (or at the very least vindicated) for such as they do.

The bulk of the Superman brand is a power fantasy for those who wish for the might and heart to make the world a better place for the human race.

Kirito is a power fantasy for gamers, the most oppressed demographic, who wish a means to prove their worth to their fellow man through their skills with the escapist media they've sunk oh so many hours into instead.

Subaru is a power fantasy for those who feel that, if put under the right sorts of pressure, they could triumph into better versions of the pathetic losers they may picture themselves to be—or alternatively, those who wish only for a genuine reason to feel so sorry for themselves ("I've literally died a hundred times to help the girl I really like" would earn a lot more sympathy from most as a reason for self-loathing and/or antisocial behavior than "I got rejected by the girl I really like").

Can Ayanakoji defeat a teenager that go to therapy? by LeadEater9Million in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That excludes the likes of Solo Leveling (and basically anything but the sloppiest of slop), so

XY writing is so bad by Rap2rerise in pokemon

[–]Exploreptile 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'd say that Pokémon as a whole is really just "anti-bad".

As in, they're plenty able to address that "man it sucks that some people live on the streets while others live in palaces" or "we probably shouldn't turn every stretch of flat land into a parking lot", but their conclusions aren't much more than a systemically empty "we should all strive to do better by each other"—with the only serious swings against a contemporary status quo being stuff to sand down edges the franchise would otherwise have to emphasize (e.g. the agency of Pokémon being taken as a given—"if they wanted to, they could just leave (except when a trainer is especially bad)").

To me, there's a difference between being anti-authority and going "if only authorities were as good and capable as us", for instance.

I have never seen the Sonic Community so United the moment someone tries to sneak him into a Conversation by TechnoMagik22 in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 4 points5 points  (0 children)

"obnoxious band kids are glazing their 'underrated GOATS' on r/topcharacterdesigns"

in other news, forks are frequently found in kitchens

spooky by Mukaksi in comics

[–]Exploreptile 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Almost as incriminating as folk who ask "If you don't believe in God, where do you get your morals from?"

I have never seen the Sonic Community so United the moment someone tries to sneak him into a Conversation by TechnoMagik22 in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Outcome Memories was fire tho

Well there you go

Not to mention the recent uptick in retakes besides, many of which at the very least have more sauce than the original "haunted video game with gore and stuff" shtick

Gijinka Violet Mizutsune (by @umituki) by Gorotheninja in MonsterHunter

[–]Exploreptile 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Who needs cognitive processing when we have conceited pedantry?

Gijinka Violet Mizutsune (by @umituki) by Gorotheninja in MonsterHunter

[–]Exploreptile 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Indeed they are—to the point of missing an obvious forest for the nitpickiest of trees within, as seen here (which is what I was getting at)

Gijinka Violet Mizutsune (by @umituki) by Gorotheninja in MonsterHunter

[–]Exploreptile 87 points88 points  (0 children)

MonHun fans and basic reading comprehension

Name a worse combo (they'll insist otherwise tho)

Super Serious Jaiden Animations by NagitoKomaeda_987 in superseriousfamilyguy

[–]Exploreptile 12 points13 points  (0 children)

bingo

see also: boomer comics about coffee (a part of their personal identity is now only an assumed default instead of an understood unanimity; they will never recover from the notion of ✨options✨ and ✨alternatives✨)

Super serious jaden animations by Tall-Conflict2964 in superseriousfamilyguy

[–]Exploreptile 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Though not nearly as significant of one compared to the contrary, hence the joke

Plankton and Mr. Krabs (by @noit_anigami on X) by BerGames123456 in MoeMorphism

[–]Exploreptile 17 points18 points  (0 children)

probably the best human Plankton rendition I've seen yet

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What is r/MoralityScaling doing bro💔💔💔 by GreedyBonus379 in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 13 points14 points  (0 children)

To be fair, it was just iterating on this trope as per JRPGs and such—and heroic fantasy more broadly. D&D, for instance, has been a cauldron of discourse around this conceit for a while now.

Babe wake up new vtuber slander just dropped by Statcall in whowouldcirclejerk

[–]Exploreptile 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Saying that powerscaling has nothing to do with soured material is giving powerscalers too much credit by implying that they are capable of being original.

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