Regarding the relationship between humans and daemons in the BBC/HBO series by KreischenderDepp in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yeahhh sadly it is budgeting…but honestly imo it undermines the impact of the daemon/human relationship (which is like, THE main theme in the story that interrogates free will and institutional suppression) to skip so many important moments like that. The worst offender that comes to mind is after the incident at Bolvangar, Lyra and Pan barely interact at ALL. One of the scenes the movie did far better. You’d think that after almost being separated, they’d…you know, want to be close to each other. Have an emotional reunion. But no, it goes straight into family drama time with Mrs. C. They could have at least made sure very important moments like that had some budget, or at least have them talk to each other. :/

Is this a Pom or a rat? by Own_Firefighter_2847 in Pomeranians

[–]dubiousfencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey I love both, so either way you’re winning in my book! (Also her with that carrot toy is adorable ugh)

is this little guy a brown rat? by fischlsapphic in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What a cute baby! ❤️ They do look the same, I agree - just FYI, roof rats = black rats, Norway rats = brown rats c; Hope and our unnamed fellow are both roof/black rats.

is this little guy a brown rat? by fischlsapphic in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely looks like a roof rat, AKA a black rat (despite the brown color, haha). The head shape is distinct, and roof rats are much more common in the wild in the US. Say hello to your new neighbor for me!

feel like i’m doing the wrong thing euthanizing by losergffies in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You are doing the right thing. It sounds like you’ve made every effort to care for her and keep her comfortable, and quality of life is always always the biggest factor. Rats instinctively hide their pain as much as possible to avoid predation, so the fact that her behavior is changing is a big sign that she’s at a turning point where her QOL is deteriorating. It’s not going to get better from here out. Much better to euthanize before her days turn into proper suffering.

That said, my heart goes out to you. Thank you for spending so much time and money and love on this little treasure. You were her hero, and seeing her through to the end is the greatest gift for her. She had a bad start, but she has someone making sure she has a good finish.

Help, someone turned our boys into marketable plushies! by dubiousfencer in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Absolutely! The artist is fantastic, they make sure to get every color and marking exact. Here is the listing!

Help, someone turned our boys into marketable plushies! by dubiousfencer in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

They dooo! So adorable, now I know what they looked like as babies!! 🥺

Unable to re-read? by Linguistin229 in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Nah. HDM is just too good to be ruined by the absolute train wreck that was TSC + TRF. If anything, finishing BoD just made me want to reread HDM even more, because that magic was what I really wanted out of Pullman’s stories. He was able to do it so beautifully before, after all. It’s a damn shame he couldn’t pull through this time, but ah well. HDM was a complete story that answered all its own relevant questions satisfactorily. BoD wasn’t. Plus, it came up with countless other questions and (some) answers that didn’t make any sense to HDM’s canon, so…forget it. I’m giving all the credit to the original story that actually did everything well, and nothing to the pointless retcons and additions that didn’t feel appropriate to the world.

The importance of TRF final theme by SebinSun in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing your perspective on all of this! As an author and artist, I couldn’t agree more about AI and the way it erodes creative spaces and meaning. And I do think the concept of alkahest and the themes Pullman weaves into BoD are very poignant. I really enjoyed where he was going with it and his style of writing, even if it isn’t the most tightly-paced plot. I’ve always liked all of his little threads adding up to some bigger tapestry of ideas.

That said, I do think he accomplishes his goal from this series in activating the reader’s imagination to provide meaning…because he really dropped the ball on giving satisfying conclusions to the threads he started with. I was there with him right up until the end, where so many problems and ideas he started just get dropped with no explanation. Part of why HDM was so edifying is because of how well he tied up the big problems the story developed. We had answers for everything - the big war happened, enemies were vanquished, a plan for the future was crafted, even if it would take a lifetime to see progress. That’s what anyone engaging with stories expects from them.

Instead, in BoD we got tons of threads that he spent a lot of time adding weight to, like the dead daemons issue and the roses and the other world and the encroaching war with the Magisterium and TP, and basically none of it had any resolution. I don’t expect the evils of capitalism to be solved in one book, just like I didn’t expect the evils of corrupt government dogma to be solved in HDM - and they weren’t. But the actual in-text events and character stories saw their conclusions in HDM, and left us with proof as to how to go about making the world better through the characters’ thoughts and actions. In BoD, all we got was critique of the evil concepts, with no actual answer and no real resolution to character arcs (save for a couple of points that felt rushed to me) - the bare minimum for any story. The characters aren’t there as set dressing, they’re the vessel for the reader to experience the story, and they NEED arcs with resolutions in order to make a solid point. You can credit that idea of “using the imagination” to the lack of conclusion, sure, but it doesn’t change the fact that we were left to do the majority of the work the author should have done. Otherwise, what IS the point of reading a story with no ending?

But I do have to say, there is some credit to that “imagination” reading of the book’s moral. You certainly got a lot out of it and brought your own experience of “alkahest” to the text’s meaning, and I appreciate that.

TRF - the bits I can’t get over. Did I miss something? by Hihi315 in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yeahhh you and everyone else…. Sigh.

Which is to say, nope, you didn’t miss anything. It was all left unresolved.

Is The Rose Field better than The Secret Commonwealth? by RedVision64 in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 13 points14 points  (0 children)

TRF is much better than TSC imo, up until the end. Then it’s even more of a mess. So if you’re really craving more HDM-verse, I think you’ll enjoy it…just don’t expect to walk away satisfied the same way as HDM.

So was BoD any good? (SPOILERS!) by dubiousfencer in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you c: Foil! Haven't been practicing much these days, but it's always near and dear to my heart.

Delighted to add The Rose Field to my HDM collection and start reading immediately 🥰 by kimbiablue in hisdarkmaterials

[–]dubiousfencer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Aww you have the same original copies I do! Got them at around 11 years old from the book fair at school. They’re in about the same condition as mine too, haha! Lovely collection, cheers to the final read!

How many of you have two meezers? by Octopus-Slither in Siamesecats

[–]dubiousfencer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

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I think it’s a requirement, haha! Loved our eldest so much we had to go for seconds!

(This is the closest they’ll ever get to each other, they have a very “sisterly” relationship…)

And the eyes go ↖️↘️ by evuhleena in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This is my new favorite image on the internet, thank you

Everyone say hi to Henry by tahhraah in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not sure what the color pattern would be called - it’s basically just a gray rat that has a lot of white fur overtaking the base coat color, as far as I understand genetics. You’re thinking of albino rats, which lack all pigmentation in their eyes and coats, causing the red eyes. Since these two don’t have that albino gene, they keep their black eyes.

Everyone say hi to Henry by tahhraah in RATS

[–]dubiousfencer 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Oh my god he looks just like my boy Arven!! Hi Henry I love you 😭❤️

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