MEMECEPTION!
Our movie night was fabulous last night. Everyone loved Bride & Prejudice and a bunch of people stuck around for Bend it Like Beckham. And then after that we all just kept hanging out and talking, and we wound up discussing, among a host of other things:
- Inception fandom, and why Arthur/Eames is the monstrous phenomenon that it is
- why the fandom ( Read more... )
1. I like when my boys are badass, so either Arthur kicking ass in zero g, or Eames kicking ass on skis.
2. BECAUSE IT RILES ARTHUR UP :D But seriously, I think that a lot of what Eames does is calculated so that he comes across as slightly incompetent - the spelling, saying he's not good at math, dressing like he doesn't know how to match. Arthur's first reaction upon hearing his name is to refer to him as a thief, and if that's his main occupation, it makes sense that he doesn't want to seem too competent or smooth. Since he's the one who basically does everything and doesn't fuck up, he's obviously extremely competent, but coming across that way all the time is probably not good for job security.
3. I don't necessarily think Arthur is as meticulous as he is often portrayed in fic (though I adore that trope, and have written him that way myself) but I think that meticulousness is an important trait to have as point man. Even if he's not that way by nature, it makes sense that he'd try to be as organized as possible for a job. I think a hotel is a very neat and clean sort of place, with all the floors identical, stacked on top of each other, with the corresponding room numbers all lining up.
3.14 WELL. I am one of those viewers who doesn't actually care to know THE TRUTH. I love that people have come up with a billion theories, but I'm fine not having an answer. However, if pressed, I would go with yes. I'm a sap and want everyone to have a happy ending. Even Coob.
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WAIT WAIT.
1.14 so how much imagination does Arthur have, really, and was Eames just baiting him when he said that knowing cobb would totally tell arthur eames said he had no imagination or do you think he meant it?
2.14 SO do you think it's significant, then, that Cobb is the one who recognizes/sees Eames as a forger first and foremost?
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1.14. OKAY. So I mentioned that I don't think Arthur is a super perfectionist, but I do think he's a much more by-the-book kind of a guy than Eames. Yeah, he comes up with ideas on the spot when things get fucked up, but I just feel like he's less of an outside-of-the-box thinker (HOW MUCH CORPORATE SPEAK CAN I JAM INTO THIS COMMENT I WONDER) than Eames. So like, Arthur came up with the idea to use the elevator to drop them when he lost gravity, but that was because there was a change to the original plan. Arthur makes a plan, follows the plan, and when something goes wrong, he figures out what to do from there. But I think Eames is just a completely different kind of a thinker, in that he looks at a situation and doesn't like to make a linear plan at all.
I think that Arthur and Eames have been in situations before where they clashed due to the differences in how they think and plan jobs, and that Eames has given Arthur shit for thinking too narrowly. I don't think it means that Arthur is a huge fuck up (just sometimes, haha) but that his methods don't always mesh with Eames', and this annoys Arthur as much as it does Eames. Eames thinks Arthur lacks imagination; Arthur thinks Eames' plans are always too vague and nebulous. ARTHUR MIGHT SAY THEY LACK SPECIFICITY.
So when we get to MMMMM ARTHUR, Eames is thinking about their history of clashes (AND UNRELENTING SEXUAL TENSION OBVS.) I don't think that Eames truly believes Arthur lacks imagination in all ways, he's just referring to the long-standing tension between the two of them because of their different thinking processes. EAMES MIGHT SAY ARTHUR NEEDS TO DREAM A LITTLE BIGGER.
I WILL BE BACK TO ANSWER 2.14 LATER BECAUSE NOW I HAVE TO GO OUT.
Okay HI HI I am back :D
2.14 I think the significance is in how Arthur and Cobb best know Eames. Eames and Arthur have worked together in the past, we know this. During that time, Eames was primarily a thief, and a very good one. Eames and Arthur have a long history of antagonism, which led to explosive arguments about how they operate, as I explained above. THESE ARGUMENTS WERE OF COURSE FURTHER FUELED BY THE OVERWHELMING DESIRE TO FUCK EACH OTHERS' BRAINS OUT. Eventually they get to the point where they refuse to work with each other anymore. THIS ONLY ADDS TO THE RIDIC SEXUAL TENSION.
It's after this that Eames really gets into forgery, and during their time apart, Cobb works with both of them, though Arthur more than Eames. Cobb thinks of Eames as a forger, since that's the Eames he's most recently worked with. Arthur knows Eames is a forger, since obviously he gets the scoop from the dream sharing grapvine (and keeps tabs on where Eames is ♥), but in his head, Eames is a thief, because that's the Eames he knows. AND THE ONE HE FELL IN LOVE WITH ♥♥♥
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I LOVE THIS WHOLE ANSWER I REALLY REALLY DO, I HAVE NO FOLLOW-UPS, ONLY MORE LOVE
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1. When did you know that this fandom was going to own your heart and soul?
2. What would Arthur and Eames do for a living if they weren't career criminals?
3. Is Cobb really the most skilled extractor?
3.14 Who says I love you first, Arthur or Eames?
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OOH IT IS MY TURN :D
1. oh my god best questionnnnn. I said the other day on the friending meme that my favorite fandom thing was the Smart!Eames thread because it was the first time i realized what a phenomenon this fandom was.
but it may be a tossup between that and the moment I read Greedyhearts. I was sitting in the food court of a mall in Norfolk reading it on my phone, and then I got to the bottom of the IK meme and not only was there the AMAZING FANART, but someone had actually created http://arthurandeamesstealthings.com, and I remember just sitting there, grinning and tearing up from happiness. And that was before I even knew that there was a Superanon, or that she would turn out to be one of my closest fandom friends. I was just happy to see so much collective energy and joy and excitement, and I STILL AM so overwhelmed by it all, oh my god.
anyway, i think both of those things happened around the same time, so. yeah. <3
2. I think Arthur would be the world's most fearsome law librarian/researcher, dlkadj and Eames would bounce about from job to job, and probably spend a lot of time moonlighting on cruises, either as escorts to the rich and famous, or their dinner theatre entertainment--and often both at once.
3. COOB. If Cobb is the most skilled extractor, I would run screaming in terror before I came within a mile of the worst extractor. THE ABOMINABLE DR PHIBES WOULD BE A BETTER EXTRACTOR THAN COBB, BINA.
LET'S RUN DOWN THE LIST, SHALL WE!
- HIRES NASH. JUST. THAT ALONE SHOULD TELL YOU EVERYTHING. (sorry Courant, sorry Lukas)
- PLANS JOBS ON TRAINS EVEN THOUGH HE DOESN'T LIKE TRAINS
- SAYS "EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF" BUT CLEARLY EXPECTS ARTHUR TO FOLLOW HIM AROUND LIKE A LOST PUPPY
- CAN'T RECOGNIZE HIS KIDS ON THE PHONE EVEN THOUGH *ONE OF THEM IS A GIRL AND ONE OF THEM IS A BOY AND THEY SOUND NOTHING ALIKE*
- WHEN ASKED, "CAN YOU GET ME OUT OF HERE," RESPONDS BY LEADING THE SUBJECT TO THE MEN'S ROOM
- SELLS OUT HIS BEST PEOPLE, LIES TO THEM, REFUSES TO ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIS OWN ACTIONS, AND GIVES ARTHUR TONS OF SHIT INSTEAD OH NO HE DIDN'T >:E
- DECIDES HE NEEDS A BETTER ARCHITECT SO HE HIRES A 22-YEAR-OLD GRAD STUDENT
- DECIDES TO TRUST A MAN HE'S NEVER MET AND HASN'T RESEARCHED AT ALL WITH THEIR *BRAIN-ALTERING CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS* JUST BECAUSE EAMES SAYS YUSUF IN THAT PORN VOICE
- WHEN GIVEN A CHANCE TO BUILD A PARADISE AND BE A GOD OF HIS OWN WORLD, HE BUILDS BOISE
- WON'T TRUST ARTHUR WITH THE SECRET OF INCEPTION, BUT TRUSTS THE HOMICIDAL PROJECTION OF HIS DEAD WIFE TO STAY PUT WHEN HE TELLS HER TO
- HIS EPIC PLAN TO EXTRACT SECRETS FROM SAITO IN DREAM ONE BOILS DOWN TO "SWITCH OUT MANILA ENVELOPES WITH THESE BLANK PAGES!!!!"
- "UN CAFE."
sdflkasj;jkld
3.14 Arthur, finally. But that's because Eames has been saying it wordlessly for years, which drives Arthur crazy, because at first he's certain Eames is just saying it wordlessly to fuck with him, and then he's certain Eames is just saying it wordlessly because he's lying to himself, and then he starts to be half-convinced that Eames is saying it because he actually means it, and finally, he grows terrified that Eames is just saying it wordlessly because he's convinced that he can't say it aloud because Arthur will freak out, and OF COURSE Arthur's not going to freak out, but obviously he can't show Eames that if Eames isn't going to give him the opportunity, which means Arthur's going to have to say it, too, and which was probably Eames' plan all along, and really by now Eames is just rubbing it in every time he doesn't say it, that bastard, and it all culminates in Arthur snapping, "Fine, I love you, I've loved you for years, I am in love with you, all right?" and Eames pausing in the act of measuring out Arthur's half-and-half and saying, "I already knew that, but thank you the clarification, darling," and stirring it in as if nothing had happened.
And Arthur does not punch him, and they live happily ever after.
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TOP FIVE FANON CHARACTER TROPES
1. EAMES = BEST BOYFRIEND EVER. i do not even care whether there is any canon basis for it whatsoever, Eames as the one steady, watchful, attentive, ever-ready and concerned force in Arthur's life will never not send me into a flailing mass of want.
2. COOB. dlkajdkl do i even need to explain this. COBB AS RIDICULOUS. Oh my god I love what the fandom has done to Cobb. I love that it manages to make him a ridiculous figure while also critiquing the entire edifice of, uh, Chris Nolan's whole thing about manpain + dead girls.
3. Ariadne as, like, curious but not nosy, laidback badass who has her own life? Which I honestly feel is kind of as far away from canon as you can comfortably get while still keeping her in-character. There's a lot of A/E fic in particular that makes her sort of maniacally obsessive into other people's business, which I understand because canon went there first, but I love it when people pull back and just let her be totally awesome instead. BONUS FOR ARIADNE/YUSUF. I know you could argue that shipping Ariadne/Yusuf is a way to get the primary competition for Arthur and Eames out of the way, but I don't think that's the impulse behind what fandom does with those two at all! I think everyone went THOSE TWO CHARACTERS ARE SO INTERESTING, HOW CAN WE DO MORE WITH THEM, and the natural impulse became to put them together, because they're hot and awesome.
4. Don't tell anyone i did this, because it's never couth to rec yourself, and that fic is a huge sore spot: but i really love my characterization of Mal in my rbb fic :(( because I tried to make her the total opposite of canon!Mal. I wanted to emphasize that canon Mal is the warped product of Cobb's psychosis, and she could be ANYTHING other than what Cobb thinks / has always thought that she was. I love the idea that Cobb is just as mistaken and misguided about her as he is about EVERYTHING ELSE, and that he never saw her as she really was, rather than this fictional ideal he had of her in his head. I haven't seen that kind of portrayal of her in another inception fic, and even though it was clumsily executed and everyone hated it, I really love Mal in it. So. :)
5. PINING. just. EAMES PINING. ARTHUR PINING. I don't care which, I just sort of love that this fandom is all about the Arthur-won't-let-himself-be-happy-so-Eames~pines~until-A-figures-it-out, or Arthur-won't-let-himself-be-happy-so-he-assumes-Eames-isn't-interested-and~pines~until-he-figures-it-out.
So maybe what I really love here is "Arthur won't let himself be happy until he does," haha. There's a reason this tag exists. :D But really. Pining. HOW CAN YOU RESIST.
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1. What is your favorite Eames-is-the-best-boyfriend-ever fic?
2. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COOB FIC
3. ugh god i love Ariadne/Yusuf so much <33 they are so cute an perfect for each other. that being said, What is/are your favorite Ariadne/Yusuf fic(s)?
4. how do I make you write more Mal fic
5. what is your favorite PINING fic!!
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and PINING. poor tragic perfect boyfriend eames pining for arthur while arthur secretly pines for him.... oh dear god i disgust myself. SO AMAZING. trope trope trope forever unto ever, please, Inception fandom.
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aaaaaaaaand Part 2!
top 5 favorite fanfic characterizations!
1. Mal in electrumqueen's 'i am the hero of this story,' because in addition to the writing and the plot and everything that makes this the best story i have ever read in any fandom, Mal is so raw and alive and flawed and real, and she makes Cobb's version seem so abysmal inferior in comparison.
2. Mal in Courant's 'Daughters of Eve'. i don't think anyone but ifrit could have pulled off what she did in this fic, honestly. the way she allowed Mal to be unhinged and slightly deranged but also fierce and feminist and powerful and no one's puppet. I love these two fics together specifically because the first one is about letting Mal be what canon couldn't allow her to be, and the second one is about allowing her to be everything canon said that she was, while still erasing all the problematic awfulness of her character. and they're both so fucking brilliant, i can't even.
3. Arthur in all of cmonkatiekatie's writing, i think especially takes an ocean not to break, because he hits that balance between slightly insecure/hesitant/unsure/afraid and being so into Eames anyway, and it translates so well and I keep coming back to her fic so often, I think because I can actually see Arthur's love for Eames through his irritation and confusion better than anywhere else.
4. Ariadne in wldnst's "life among islands." Ariadne's pov made me cry a dozen times while i read this. I love how much love wldnst has for her, and how real and relatable she is, and how much presence she has in this fic (and in all wldnst's fics).
5. OH MY GOD i just reread like 6 different fics to try and figure out my final answer to this, hahahaha. Is it Nash in Deja Fucking deja vu? Philippa in the Delphini Trials? Is it Eames in all Erin's fics? Yusuf in Bossymarmelade's Mine I'll Leave to Chance? Arthur in Lurrel's When We Swam?
Ahhhh, I think I have to go with starlingthefool's Lions & Tigers, because, just, what is this fic even, how does it exist, let alone segue perfectly into canon, and slot so beautifully into what we know about both Eames and Calvin? HOW IS IT NOT EVEN AN AU? oh my god, I can't even, this fandom is the most brain-breakingly brilliant thing I've ever encountered in my life. NEVER LEAVING.
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ok 5 FAVORITE WRITERS (optional: & 5 FAVORITE FICS BY THEM.)
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gsjsagshdhjs ok i am totes going to bed but THIS IS THE EASIEST QUESTION so:
top 5 favorite writers and fics by them:
1. Courant - it's automatic. favorite fic in the fandom :((( followed by en route to transylvania :((( ilu courant i miss you lots hurry back :((( and i feel bad now bc i said something ABOUT all the other fics but not these. i don't even know where to begin. they are inscribed on my heart and they both speak to me of the collective wonder and hivemindedness of early inception fandom, and (speaking of pining), i like to think that 'it's automatic' was written for me in a way--it was written in response to this post i made talking about how difficult i found arthur's side of things; and i feel like the whole fic is saying, no, Aja, see, it's like *this*--and because it's *them*, and because it's by someone i love, it means so much. i think of both of these fics every single day, pretty much. i am pretty hardcore in love with them :(
2. cmonkatie - takes an ocean not to break is just so staggeringly wonderfullll i couldn't even review it for like six months i just READ IT AND FLOPPED OVER :(( but also her first fic, the one that ends with eames proposing that they "sit here and see how we like it" and arthur's like, shit. i kind of want to kiss him. and Eames LEANS OVER. i have read and reread that fic so often that i apparently have everything but the title ingrained in my head. I LOVE THAT FIC.
2. INDYSAUR. god her writing is so amazing, and i choose Plate Tectonics not because any of her other fics aren't as good (because they are all transcendent) but because i remember exactly where i was when i finished it and exactly how it made me feel.
3. Starlingthefool because oh my god her brain and her writing and her AUs that turn out to NOT BE AUs hshjdjdjfjhd!!!! and it is four am so i suck at titles but THE TATTOO PARLOR AU OWNS MY HEART.
4. Eleveninches - Don't Fall In Love With A Dreamer is pretty much my perfect quintessential Arthur/Eames fic. it's hot, it's charming, it's both complex and ridiculous like them, it features SMART EAMES :D, and Arthur being like "THE ANSWER IS ALWAYS YES" is like. my headcanon, haha.
5. Amazingly_me. I had serious issues with the second half of the fic but the first half of her lawyer AU was one of the most amazing reading experiences i've ever had, it was like reading DRP for the first time and feeling so caught up in the experience you had trouble physically detaching from it. And i think what she did in "And Try To Keep It All the Year" was ambitious and amazing and unique.
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KATIE IS THE BEST OMG ): especially with Kiss with a Fist & A Series of One Night Stands where they are just MEANT to be together, even if they don't know it (YET)
omg plate tectonics. <333 SO MUCH LOVE FOR THAT FIC. )))): does it ever get better than "hey I'm going to move in and then maybe let's be boyfriends."? (the answer is yes, as in YES IT GETS BETTER BECAUSE THEN THEY GET MARRIED.)
Starling is so amazing and the tattoo au is so good for me and all of her fics are just so good for me ))):
Oh goddddd eleveninches. IS THERE ANYTHING I DON'T LOVE ABOUT ELEVENINCHES )8 no, ffsfhhdjhfgfs no of course there isn't. Always so clever and funny and sexy and badass. SHE IS EVERYTHING I COULD EVER ASK FOR.
And amazingly_me's daycare!AU!!! bb!Eames pursuing bb!Arthur through lunchtime dates fsfshfdhgdfgs HEARTS FOREVER <33333
Thank you Aja, your answers are always stellar :D
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