Since the bandwagon for this has appeared...

[Keedounan]

What's your favorite trope/cliché? Why do you like them and how would you improve their general portrayal?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

@Ultimate Cell Yes. Going into the series blind with TPM, the prophecy says little on what could be done to achieve it, which still provides full agency for Anakin's character arc and expanded material such as the Mortis Arc of The Clone Wars help show the depth the concept can have to the franchise as a whole. I wouldn't even say it makes Anakin's endgame that predetermined either, considering you could argue that Anakin's role in the chosen one prophecy was also as a vehicle to have Luke fulfil it....from a certain point of view.

@Keedounan That's a difficult question as ideas start to lose their allure when reaching trope/cliche status. One that instantly comes to mind as one of great potential though is redemption arcs as the idea of someone realising and overcoming their faults in an attempt to be a better person is a very universal one of self-improvement. The problem many have is how last minute some changes can be or how little was required to achieve it (something such as Naruto doing a talk no jutsu on both Pain and Obito being an example recently mentioned in this thread). In terms of getting it right, there are many aspects that can be done well ranging from a more simplistic redemption and penance such as (as just recently mentioned) Darth Vader's sacrifice in Star Wars, to exploring the ramifications trying to change yourself has on those you've wronged such as what Season 3 of ATLA did for Zuko (despite a few problems with his overall character arc such as his rationale for sparing Ozai).
One aspect of it less explored despite the quality it has for storytelling is the idea of someone being unable to fully change despite their desire to. Without spoiling much, The Sopranos is one of the few series to do this well with Tony's central struggle being one of wanting to be a better person despite his job and everyday life constantly bringing him back to his old habits (something he verbally illustrates very well in Season 6 when going back on some of the resolutions he made) or the tragedy of Christopher wasting his talent and goals on violence and addiction despite his attempts to stop. Exploring the tragedy of how intoxicating and inescapable some flaws can be is not only just as important as the successful redemption arc (especially if you have both in a series to contrast each other, that of Boardwalk Empire's Richard Harrow and Jim Darmody being somewhat relevant, though more so in character catharsis after PTSD) in a reminder of the failings that can come if not having the resolve to make a complete change as well as acting as a case study both of character psychology and the road less travelled for this arc.

 

[Ultimate Cell]

Have you ever been to london?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

No. Not only is it very far away from where I live, but things such as the crowded atmosphere and crime rate are very unappealing.

 

[Ultimate Cell]

How did you get into anime?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

The very typical story of most in the west that grew up in the late 90s/early 00s. I watched Pokemon and Dragon Ball when I was young as well as B-Daman and One Piece a few years after them when they used to air on Toonami, then used the internet to discover that they were anime a few years later and discovered more of the medium from there.

 

[Ultimate Cell]

Did you watched the big green dub

 

[Captain Cadaver]

Yes, no joke. They started airing the Big Green Dub of Movies 1-9 around the time they were re-airing the Cell Arc on Toonami. I was extremely confused about why Piccolo was being called Big Green even then.
They even sold some of the DVDs over here that can still be found at second-hand retailers. I have the Big Green dub of Movie 3 for how much of an absolute meme machine it is .

 

[Keedounan]

Who are the best/worst actors ever?

 

[Papasmurf]

How differently do you think the final battle in FMA would have gone if Father wasn't being influenced by PIS and healed Wrath and Pride so they would be bigger threats to the heroes?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

@Keedounan Determining the best actors can be difficult with the factors that go into it such as immersion, variation in performances, etc. Jim Gandolfini often comes to mind for immersive and subtle performances as, even though I'm only familiar with him as Tony Soprano, it takes extremely good acting for both the emotional changes in his character and grasping such subtleties that you can read him from such minor details as his eye movement or breathing and the show probably might not have rose to the heights it did without him. When it comes to versatility and variation, I often think of Jack Nicholson's many different roles, Jim Carrey being able to show how well he can do serious drama with the range of emotions and tones within The Truman Show or how Bryan Cranston blew away all expectations with him going from playing a mild mannered guy in Malcolm in the Middle to someone like Walter White. Overall though, I don't think I could pinpoint any single best actor as a lot of actors all have their major strengths and chemistry is a very important part too.
Determining some of the worst actors is far easier though as it can be determined from a lack of those talents such as immersion, versatility, chemistry, etc. Leaving aside obvious Z-Movie tier acting from walking memes like The Amazing Bulk and on more mainstream sources, someone like Daisy Ridley certainly comes to mind as an example when her acting did little to add to the complete nothing that is Rey's character, her attempts at emotion often rely on her having her mouth open pretty needlessly and a lot of her interactions rely on the charisma of those she's working with; not to mention it being pretty telling when her peers in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy such as Oscar Isaac and John Boyega have performed decently in other works whereas she's yet to have a real stand out peformance. Wouldn't say she's the worst actress though, with that also being very difficult to pinpoint when there's plenty of bad and mediocre actors.

@Kenshi It seems doubtful he'd be able to revive Pride at all when he was more sealed away than actually dead and was the most experimental of the Homunculi and even retrieving Wrath could prove a hassle. It still took a little time to reincarnate Greed or revive Gluttony, which would be difficult to do when so busy. Even in the case he did revive both of them, it'd probably require a good amount of the souls within him and set his plans back a little, with him being weakened and highly reliant on them due to how much of a threat some opponents such as Mustang would prove. This scenario leads to one of two extremes, being Father is defeated with greater ease due to the loss of power or the coverage Pride and Wrath provide on his stronger enemies is enough for him to win the battle due to the fatigue of the humans.

 

[Papasmurf]

I meant what would happen if Pride's crumbling Selim shell were to be repaired by post-Truth absorption Father before Edward and CHAD ghost Kimblee destroyed it and if he just healed Wrath's injuries (which should be fairly easy to do when he healed Edward's injuries fine and most of the Homunculi are structurally very similar to humans).

 

[Captain Cadaver]

Depends how much it took out of Pride. Homunculi may be structurally similar to humans, bur they obviously have far greater life energy and it's difficult to say if having his shell destroyed did any significant damage to the dormant Pride. Assuming it didn't though, Pride would definitely have proven advantageous if getting in the position to use his powers, though the limits of them would be very difficult to use effectively at midday in Amestris unless somehow managing to get the more notable targets into a shaded area (something difficult to do when Ed is very aware of his abilities).

 

[ahill1]

Would you say the individual is the executioner or the victim of this new paradigm of radical individualism and moral decline of culture and, partially, society?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

More often than not, the victim. The fact that most major outlets or companies nowadays quickly alienate or demonise anyone that expresses something that doesn't go along with their agenda shows the idea of true individualism being prioritised is both a lie and a contradiction with how different individual beliefs and values will inevitably clash and the silencing of one proves that those in charge don't truly treat them as equal (eg. the several cases of students being either reprimanded or expelled from colleges/universities simply for stating that they believe there's only 2 genders). The idea of individualism holding so much power over society is also more of an optimistic lie as companies, departments and governments often still continue with whatever ideas they have planned despite the mass outcry from many individuals who speak up in protest of them, not to mention how many people's support even the most successful individual often needs to rise through the ranks in any profession.

 

[Ultimate Cell]

Your opinion on the scotland independence movement?

 

[GreatSaiyaman123]

Since one of the reasons you've grown to like the Prequels is their worldbuilding, what about the way it clashes with the worldbuilding from the OT? Stuff like Leia remembering Padmé, Qui-Gon's whole existence contradicting Obi-Wan's story to Luke, the first Death Star taking decades to build, nobody knows what Jedi are...

Also, is Vader not instantly arresting the Rebels on Bespin really a plothole? Either way Luke would be leaving with his training incomplete to arrest the others. At worst their stay is just filler used to balance the pacing of the movie, at best it works to flesh out Lando before his betrayal and foreshadow Leia's connection with the force, she constantly says she can feel something's odd about Lando and Cloud City.

 

[Captain Cadaver]

Your opinion on the scotland independence movement?

I'm in favour of Scottish independence in premise, considering Scotland has always tried to separate itself from English governance and the times where being under British rule had some positives have long since passed. In execution though, it doesn't seem like it'll change much when those at the head of the SNP are very much aligned with most British policies and the problems that come with that.

Since one of the reasons you've grown to like the Prequels is their worldbuilding, what about the way it clashes with the worldbuilding from the OT? Stuff like Leia remembering Padmé,

She didn't have clear memories of Padme though, with her only mentioning feelings she picked up, something that is highly plausible for someone that's Force sensitive. That, and even in the real world it's possible (albeit extremely rare) for people to retain memories from infancy.

Qui-Gon's whole existence contradicting Obi-Wan's story to Luke,

How does Qui-Gon contradict anything? The only things I can think of when saying that is Obi-Wan saying Yoda taught him and the midichlorians thing, both of which are flawed examples. Yoda teaching all Jedi as younglings (Obi-Wan included) and Obi-Wan having another master after him doesn't contradict Yoda still training him, and Qui-Gon's midichlorian explanation only explains how the Force works and not what the Force actually is. Lucas even stated that such an explanation would've been in ANH had he found a place to naturally fit it in.

the first Death Star taking decades to build,

Even with plans for it existing and the initial layer being built, a moon-sized superweapon is still going to take years. This is made very apparent with the knowledge it runs on kyber crystals which are very rare to find in such a quantity you can destroy planets, and even without that knowledge, Han mentioning how it'd take a star fleet to do what the Death Star did to Alderaan makes it apparent how much energy was required, especially when establishing dominance throughout the galaxy with a fleet and working on the Death Star isn't close to a quick task.

nobody knows what Jedi are...

They do though. Han had heard of them but didn't believe in their abilities at first, Mon Mothma held a belief in the Force, etc. The only person who was ignorant on what the Jedi were was Luke, a farm boy in a backwater planet in the Outer Rim.

Also, is Vader not instantly arresting the Rebels on Bespin really a plothole?

It is when not only is he portrayed as being highly efficient throughout the first act of ESB, but the chances of him doing so seem very slim when he'd have to conveniently get an idea of where the Falcon was headed despite it having evaded his pursuit. Vader really had no reason to not arrest them on sight.

 

[Ultimate Cell]

Why do you think media is so obsessed with subverting expectations despite how poorly it worked with last jedi and the last of faggotry 2?

 

[GreatSaiyaman123]

Even with plans for it existing and the initial layer being built, a moon-sized superweapon is still going to take years. This is made very apparent with the knowledge it runs on kyber crystals which are very rare to find in such a quantity you can destroy planets, and even without that knowledge, Han mentioning how it'd take a star fleet to do what the Death Star did to Alderaan makes it apparent how much energy was required, especially when establishing dominance throughout the galaxy with a fleet and working on the Death Star isn't close to a quick task.

So how was the second Death Star built within such a quick timespan? We see a full blueprint in AotC so it couldn’t have been because of planning. Was the second Death Star being built alongside the first or something?

It is when not only is he portrayed as being highly efficient throughout the first act of ESB, but the chances of him doing so seem very slim when he'd have to conveniently get an idea of where the Falcon was headed despite it having evaded his pursuit. Vader really had no reason to not arrest them on sight.

But literally nothing important happens. Had Vader arrested them entering Bespin he would have succeeded all the same.

In fact, wasn’t Vader using them as bait for Luke? That justifies his waiting. Even if he had no reason to, it’s really as relevant as what hairstyle Leia was sporting at the time.