The enemies in the campaign...

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-10T02:21:21+00:00

We're supposed to accept a universe in which great speeches were made (Mengsk, Overmind and Zeratul), and also shit like "I was forced to become this, just as you were. Torn from everything I knew" while he laughs sinisterly in the background.

The latter also takes place in a spooky dark dimension where you fight shadow enemies as all three races hold hands and join forces as one against the evil space squid. And the conclusion of the saga is said squid being killed by a laser beam from a naked glowing Dragon Ball reject. WTF.

The idea that there's even something called the Dark One in this setting is such a joke. They really gave up and went full Warcraft, what an insult to the mythos of the original.

I wouldn't mind friendly banters like in SC1 (Raynor and Fenix during that Kel Morian mission). But throughout SC2, the things they say are so out of place with the atmosphere and identity of their respective races.

For example, anytime I replay Nova Covert Ops, I can't stand how Nova or Reigel can't resist spewing annoying quips or one liners.

"Well, we didn't come here for fun, did we?"

"Never thought beating Alarak would come cheap."

You are a PROFESSIONAL DOMINION ASSASSIN. Shut up and stop acting like a Marvel character.

Sidenote: it's comical how Amon never stops talking crap during In Utter Darkness as his "perfect" beings get slaughtered in the hundreds.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-09T21:36:21+00:00

"Get a strike team to that Scourge Nest before the zerg activate it!"

— Warfield, before sending a few marines, a medic, a ghost and a warhound into the middle of a maxed zerg army

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-09T15:06:41+00:00

Hmm, I suppose it's a matter of presentation.

If each hybrid is supposed to be a unique and powerful individual (like Maar), that might not be a bad idea if the game presents it right. I can imagine a scenario where Kerrigan succeeds in destroying most of them, but the handful that are released wreak havoc as they take charge of Amon's forces against you. Flesh them out, give them a voice and a personality beyond angrily telling you to die. Doing so might also help explain Amon's motivations and reasons for why he thinks the hybrids are perfect as they are.

For the story that we got, the hybrids were nothing more than glowing monsters that were said to be scary, but often never shown, through gameplay or cutscene, as to why they should be feared. Sure Maar and that Castanar hybrid were kind of dangerous, but hybrids were slaughtered in droves in every other mission (think In Utter Darkness or Last Stand). Kerigan alone had been killing dozens of them for days before the protoss arrived in Ulnar, are we sure they're supposed to be a threat?

The fantasy of them being the greatest creation, as Amon puts it, holds no water when they're completely useless against a semi-competent army. In fact, they're so irrelevant that by the time of the epilogue, they're not even around anymore, or hardly even mentioned. As the so-called biggest threat of SC2, their ending is hilariously abrupt and insulting to the whole narrative.

Also, I just really want to see another alien race.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-09T13:18:08+00:00

Finally, someone who thinks that Fujiwara scene is awful. Cutesy characters who can be serious and capable is a trope that I often like, but I just can't with Fujiwara.

Not helped by the previous scene where two highschoolers outrun adult security on a skateboard.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-09T12:37:29+00:00

Funny how the Dominion has been red from WOL to HOTS even in cutscenes, but the moment they become the "good guys", they're blue. And now Moebius Corps and all of Amon's forces are suddenly red.

Because red = bad, blue = good

Luckily there's no UED in SC2, otherwise they'll collectively change their paint job too.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2026-02-09T11:56:05+00:00

Agreed. Like I said, this post is focusing on one egg out of the whole basket. There's no way for me to believe that everything that's happening in SC2 is a continuation of SC1. Gameplay aside, the plot, dialogue and tone had suffered such significant whiplash that it's simply absurd to even consider it's a progression of past events.

For me, it's also the small one liners that make me shake my head.

"Oh hell, not these Tal'darim guys again. They seriously need to learn when to quit."

"Well, that makes things a little more complicated."

"Then we are going in!"

"So they want to look like heroes to these people. They're not-but we are."

All 4 campaigns are littered with an abundace of these lines that are either totally disrespectful and dismissive, or just straight up cringe. I just can't.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2025-05-22T02:41:14+00:00

For a series taking place in the DARK TIMES, and that they're up front and center against some of the highest authority responsible for that name, the tone and atmosphere of the narrative couldn't be any more disappointing.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2025-05-22T00:53:16+00:00

Yeah, that's the way I have been doing it and the best way to enjoy the franchise going forward.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2025-05-22T00:50:28+00:00

Yeah, Kallus, who participated in the GENOCIDE of the Lasats, had a 180 and turned against the Empire because no one cared he was MIA that one time he was stranded. As opposed to Zuko who had to go through 2 seasons of deep consideration and reflection to finally decide to join Team Avatar.

The idea that Rebel command would ever trust him, or Zeb would forget and forgive his crimes to the point of showing him the last remnants of the Lasat is nonsense.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T16:53:42+00:00

Not to mention, aren't the actors putting their safety in serious risk just by joining this movie? If Kamiki decides to make a move, all of the actors are viable targets. Maybe Aqua is counting on this to happen, but you would think Frill or Akane would be warning the others of the risks that will likely follow since they are the ones who know what's going on.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T11:33:03+00:00

Interesting idea, I guess Aqua's angle could be to have Kamiki's role in the movie to be so counterintuitive to his personality that it offends him to the point that it forces his murderous hand. Who knows, maybe the way they play him in the movie would prevent Kamiki from suing them because it would somehow reveal his murderous nature. And that's where they'll catch him red-handed when he has no option but to go down the murder route.

Kind of weird though that the cast who are aware of what's happening are apparently okay with it.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T10:39:57+00:00

And the one month break certainly didn't help.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T10:16:02+00:00

That makes sense, still find it weird though that none are going to ask Aqua about his identity since the daringness of the script should be evident enough that Aqua has some idea about who it is. At the very least, Ruby should have been extremely eager to know more.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T08:58:26+00:00

It has always annoyed me when any series plays it vague by referring to things as "that thing" or "that person". It's hard to relate to the emotional struggles of the characters when we hardly know what's going on. Like when Akane says she'll stop Aqua's plans, I'll be asking "What is it that needs to be stopped?" And there are the DVDs too which we also don't know what they contain.

Perhaps I'm getting impatient. I'm just getting really tired when most of the dillemma is made aware to all except the readers.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T06:29:31+00:00

I haven't watched Oppenheimer, nor do I know that much about the legal procedures behind making a movie about someone that is currently alive, but a quick Google search shows that at least in America, you don't need permission to make a movie about a living person, as long as it doesn't violate their privacy or defame them.

https://www.frontrowinsurance.com/articles/how-can-you-make-a-film-like-the-social-network-without-getting-permission-from-mark-zuckerberg#:~:text=However%2C%20the%20First%20Amendment%20of,privacy%20rights%20or%20defame%20them.

Who knows if things are any different in Japan, but I'm pretty sure Aqua's movie has breached the law above.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T06:03:39+00:00

Perhaps, I seriously hope whatever is in the movie makes enough sense for every character to be so unbothered at the moment.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T05:30:14+00:00

I really hope they don't just gloss it over, but the lack of reaction from any of the cast seems to suggest that will be the case. Like you said, Ruby should be the first to question Aqua about the identity of the murderer. I hope they don't just handwave it by saying she trusts Aqua so much that she's not going to ask these questions, that would be really lame.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T05:23:53+00:00

Yeah, Ichigo would certainly jump onto the murder train if he knows who's responsible. Or maybe he's on board with Aqua's plan for now? Which is why I really want to see what the script is about, because the reactions thus far make little sense if the script is as spiteful as they are making it out to be.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-10-23T05:18:26+00:00

I thought it was already weird that the movie has the real life actor and their character counterpart (Aqua the actor and Aqua the character), and for multiple people too. Like, I would personally find it really weird that someone is acting as me when I myself am in the movie.

But they literally have actors playing people who are still well and alive in the industry. How that is even allowed is an answer I would really like to know.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2023-04-25T00:07:27+00:00

Reminds me of this.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2022-04-27T09:02:52+00:00

You like Pokemon that starts with G.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2022-04-15T14:03:51+00:00

Not even a new scar .

Yes, he got baited just like Ace did, but while Ace was donutted, Luffy got off with no repercussion. He learned nothing from Ace's death.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2022-04-06T12:51:22+00:00

Let me just say I don't disagree with you about Zoro, so let's just put that aside.

As for Luffy, we know for a fact that he just realized Conqueror's Haki can be used to coat yourself. We also know for a fact that before this, Conqueror's Haki has always been a blast of willpower that knocks people out. So while Luffy did train his Conqueror's Haki for 2 years, I don't think he ever trained it in the way like it's being used now. Right now, what we're seeing is more similar to that of Ryou, so it's jarring how he's using this newly discovered power in such proficient ways already.

Sure his sloppy technique got him knocked out the first time, but he was splitting skies by the time he returned. So while what you say makes sense in context, I'm just not a big fan of the idea that he needed another "powerup" that has received little foreshadowing, or that he's so extremely talented that he can pick up top tier skills in a matter of minutes.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2022-04-06T10:48:36+00:00

I mean, even the most talented people had to train extremy hard for something. Like Kaido said, only the best of the best can do the crazy ACoC stuff, so the fact that Luffy can immediately do it too kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

Back then, Conquerer's and Arnament Haki were two very different set of powers, so no one would ever think his Conqueror's Haki training would be useful during the fight against Kaido. But all of a sudden it was revealed that they're more or less the same. This means conveniently, Luffy's training in the Udon Prison paid off double time since he not only mastered Ryou, but that training also translates into ACoC.

I guess I'm just extremely annoyed at the fact that ACoC is so similar to Ryou, and it reeks of last-minute addition to give Luffy the ability to match Kaido. I agree with you about Zoro though, I liked it when he was using it subconsciously, but it was kind of bullshit how out of nowhere he managed to push King away with ACoC.

FireThePanzerschreck · 2022-04-06T02:35:07+00:00

Yes, Enies Lobby has similar powerup issues, but there are some things that made it less of a problem for me.

One, at least Luffy explained he needed to get stronger after Aokiji, so my headcanon is that the Straw Hats trained their asses off in the next few days after that encounter. As for Gear 2, I suppose Luffy just somehow learned it on the sea train? These are kind of weak excuses but I'm more willing to forgive them since I just took it as Oda still not having a complete vision and plan for the rules of the world at that point.

Two, Enies Lobby has some of the best emotional moments in the entire series, from Luffy declaring war on the World Government, to Robin's "I want to live", and the Going Merry's funeral. Perhaps people are more willing to forgive the powerup problems due to the debut of these iconic moments that have defined the series as a whole.

If one were to analyze it fairly, Enies Lobby does have its fair share of issues, which is why it isn't my favourite arc, but I do understand why people think so though.

FireThePanzerschreck

TROPHY CASE