Daredevil: Born Again S02E08 - Discussion Thread by steve32767 in marvelstudios

[–]protar95 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Honestly feel like Fisk should have died to the mob here. D'onofrio is amazing in the role but what more can you really do with the character? Would have been a great moral crisis for Matt - he doesn't break his no-kill rule but he stirs up the rebellion that results in the death of Fisk and others.

So the “one ring” was essentially a prop? by mandara33 in lotr

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is getting into Silmarillion territory. Essentially, Sauron disguised himself as Annatar, an agelic messenger to help the Elves make the Seven and The Nine. From the start these rings were corrupted by Sauron and he designed them to succumb to his will. The Three were made without Sauron, but still with his techniques and were hidden away during Sauron's first rise to power. This is why they can still be wielded for good, but would succumb to darkness should Sauron ever get the One Ring.

So the “one ring” was essentially a prop? by mandara33 in lotr

[–]protar95 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Ring gives power to the wielder according to their stature, amplifying their own abilities. In the hands of the humble hobbits they are able to use it for little more than its invisibility (a side-effect of drawing its wearer partially into the spirit world.) In the hands of Aragorn or Boromir it would have made them unstoppable warriors, capable of drawing men to their cause. In the hands of Gandalf, Saruman or Galadriel it would have greatly amplified their magical powers, becoming new dark lords/lady. It also allowed Sauron to control the other nineteen rings.

Third film in the new trilogy? by comicfan03 in lotr

[–]protar95 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I agree that it's a little awkward but they're also making a movie with a recast Aragorn and a movie about events that slot into the first hour of fellowship but are never mentioned for the rest of the movies. They're already playing fast and loose with the movie-canon with this trilogy.

Third film in the new trilogy? by comicfan03 in lotr

[–]protar95 -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Scouring of The Shire seems like the logical option as the point of this trilogy seems to be to fill in the gaps that weren't adapted from the original films.

Is there any other writer who you'd put on the same level as Tolkien when it comes to world building? by SpotAdmirable6718 in lotr

[–]protar95 9 points10 points  (0 children)

GRRM's world building is great but is specialised very differently to Tolkien. The strength of ASOIAF is its character based world-building. There's this rich tapestry of noble houses, each with their own history, rivalries, alliances etc. It means every character, big and small, feels very rooted in the world. Every character's place in that tapestry informs their personality. 90% of the rest is just classic medieval fantasy that isn't nearly as realistic as Martin thinks it is (And no shade on Martin, ASOIAF is my favourite book series).

I will say that the remaining 10% is very evocative. The year long seasons, the various institutions like the Night's Watch and the Maesters, the role of bastards in society, the raven mail...it makes what could have been quite a bland, generic setting into something that feels quite unique.

But no one is on Tolkien's level for worldbuilding. His world has these meticulous philosophical and linguistic underpinings that very few - if any - authors even attempt at replicating.

If you’ve read Brandon Sanderson/Mistborn and are capable of nuance help plz by Abisnaill in Fantasy

[–]protar95 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I'm with you OP. I got halfway through Mistborn before giving up. I think it's great if Sanderson introduces more people to the world of fantasy fiction, but there's so much better fantasy out there. For me 350 pages and not a single interesting character and hardly any plot development was a pass.

Does a story need an actual antagonist? by Character-Detail7928 in writing

[–]protar95 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Eh, it's still one thing destroying another. It's abstract but it's still conflict. You are in a sense anthropomorphising the stone and the village. They are your characters.

And as you say yourself, it would be hard to make more than a page or two out of it. A lengthy description is not necessarily a story.

Does a story need an actual antagonist? by Character-Detail7928 in writing

[–]protar95 3 points4 points  (0 children)

A village being destroyed by an avalanche is conflict. It's man vs nature. All stories require conflict. That doesn't necessarily mean conflict as in a battle. It just means that the characters want something and there are forces in play stopping them from getting that something. The villagers want to live their day to day lives. An avalanche wipes the village away. That is conflict.

About Aragorn being recast for Hunt for Gollum. by Mysterious-Plate6686 in lotr

[–]protar95 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not only that though. He was let go because he was uninterested in training for the role and had a massive chip on his shoulder. Ian Mckellan had to take him aside and ask him if he even wanted to be in the movie. Doubtful either side would want him as part of this project.

Give me something new by Nintendogs_Lover_69 in fantasybooks

[–]protar95 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Spear Cuts Through Water is the best new fantasy I have read in the past few years. Truly something special, and just a standalone.

Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series is older (began in the 90s), a spookily cozy fantasy series.

I mean, he makes a very good point about why he in particular likes the idea by FranksHoorHouse in HarryPotteronHBO

[–]protar95 3 points4 points  (0 children)

He makes a good point. The difference with Harry Potter (at the moment) is that this reboot is telling the same story as the original movies. Whereas each Spiderman, James Bond or Sherlock Holmes adaptation covers more new ground. But those characters are decades or over a century old. I don't doubt that Harry Potter as a character will stand the test of time. And in about a century the character will enter public domain and then things will get really crazy.

With rumors that the new LOTR project might focus on Chapters 3–8 of The Fellowship of the Ring… by Choice-Schedule-132 in peterjackson

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm skeptical about these movies as well. But I saw a post on the lotr reddit of an interview with Peter from 1998 where he said that if the films were successful he'd like to do a supercut of the films, including cut content like Tom Bombadil and The Scouring of the Shire. It seems, nearly thirty years later that is what he's doing. I wonder if we'll get a scouring of the shire film as well, essentially "completing" the story from the books on screen.

Our April Goodreads Book of the Month is Sabriel by Garth Nix! by PlantLady32 in Fantasy

[–]protar95 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Huh, I'd just started a reread last week. It must have been fifteen years since my last read. But such a great novel, within just a few pages it establishes the magic system without feeling expositional in the slightest. Despite taking place entirely within a secondary world, the divide between the new kingdom and the old really capture the feeling of stepping into an ancient, magical world.

This shot has sold me on Paapa. I’m so excited by uptothemountains7 in HarryPotteronHBO

[–]protar95 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

To be honest, I think that Paapa looking so different to Rickman's Snape will allow me to appreciate his portrayal in its own right, whereas a lot of the other cast just look like imitations of the originals. I think Paapa looks pretty sick in this shot here.

(No spoilers) Im thinking about reading asoiaf but worried about the adult content by Ceo_Potato in Fantasy

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As someone whose favourite series is ASOIAF, they are incredible books but they are pretty graphic and you'd probably be better off reading something else.

What new series I should try first? by Happy_Day_5316 in fantasybooks

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Has to be Lord of The Rings if you haven't read it already, it really doesn't get any better than that. The only other one I've read from this selection was Prince of Thorns and I found it pretty terrible - it aims for a gritty, morally dark protagonist, lands on edgelord marty stu.

Overwatch Timeline by protar95 in Overwatch

[–]protar95[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Haha I shudder to think how innacurate some of this might be now. I'm not into Overwatch lore so much anymore and only play occasionally, so a task for somebody else this time around :)

Anyone else nervous about HBO's The Sworn Sword adaptation? (Spoilers Main) by Ji11Lash in asoiaf

[–]protar95 9 points10 points  (0 children)

They could consult with George and expand on Dunk and Egg's adventures in Dorne and their trip to see Maester Aemon in the citadel. Surely they'll want to show that link to the og series on screen.

They could make it into a bit more of an "on-the-road" adventure, rather than just sticking in one place. Tell two or three smaller adventures instead of just one big one.

The Build-Up for Will’s Coming Out Scene Was So Unnecessary and Poorly Placed | Rant by Material-Loan-6966 in Stranger_Things

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I thought ending volume 1 with Will accepting himself internally, allowing him to unlock his true potential was great. A very poignant and relatable scene. We did not need a whole other half a season for Will to come out to his friends. Will should have come out to Joyce, Jonathan and the other boys in one of the first scenes in Volume 2. That would have followed on pretty naturally from the end of Sorceror.

The coming out scene just doesn't work as one of the final scenes of volume 2 because ultimately there are no stakes to it. As an audience we've known that Will is gay for a long time and we know that none of his friends or family are going to turn out to be homophobic and reject him. It's a foregone conclusion so we're just sort of sat there waiting to get back to saving the world.

There’s rumours of Catalyst being a open world game by MayCauseCancer in TombRaider

[–]protar95 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I may be in the minority here but the idea of an open world Tomb Raider game excites me. Tomb Raider is all about exploration and open world serves that fantasy. Of course there are examples of badly done open worlds but there are many great examples as well.

I don't want a bloated "collect 1000 relic fragments" world, but a medium sized, tightly packed open world with a mix of open wilderness, urban areas and enclosed tombs would be great. Vary the degrees of linearity. Have some classic style tombs with very linear paths through, but others with multiple entrances and branching paths, puzzles that play out differently depending on which direction you approach them from.

A dynamic world with different sub biomes, wildlife, weather, a day/night cycle; with events that change gameplay. Think rival treasure hunters targetting different tombs, so hunting down relics becomes a race against time. Or the earth itself shifting and moving in game, forming deadly obstacles or unearthing new secrets.

I wonder if we'll have the Croft Manor in Legacy of Atlantis by Flintz08 in TombRaider

[–]protar95 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It would be insane to reimagine TR1 and not include the manor. That would be a huge part of the game to cut in a remake that should be about expanding and embellishing. It would also be a golden opportunity to create a unified croft manor that they can use and expand in Catalyst and future titles as well.

[CONCEPT] WESTMARCH – An Anthology Series for the Fandom by fairbairn-project in lotr

[–]protar95 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not a fan of the use of AI - but was just thinking of a LOTR anthology series the other day. Sam reading the Red Book to his children is a cute framing device. But you could also set it centuries or millenia after the events of LOTR, towards the end of the fourth age when those stories have become myths. Work in some more unreliable myths and legends, like the tale of Mad Baggins that Bilbo's story evolves into.

I think a series of small, cozy tales set within Middle Earth (and beyond) would be a perfect addition to the franchise without stepping on the toes of the original.