And yes, I agree it's especially dumb after they just solved the problem the previous "joke" had made...
I'm atually not sure why they couldn't have just stuck with the book's way of doing it? The joke felt pretty out of character and was, as you say, just generally dumb.
Heh, yeah, Nenneke and Calanthe are the strong women done right,
Agreed, and I loved them both, unsurprisingly. (And thought the show did a pretty good job with Calanthe.)
So, what the first wish was in the show, then? No twist at all? Geralt means "Fuck off!" and he really says what he thinks he says?
It wasn't very memorable, so already has started to fade, but I think his first wish -- which he speaks when it looks like there is no djinn/the djinn is a dud, or if it exists, that Jaskier is its master, so it's also not meant as a wish -- is for Jaskier to shut up, which causes Jaskier's condition that they need to search for a healer for. Or at least that's what I think happens...
Wow, your translation is really good! :D I mean, I can't judge how it reads,
( ... )
it has to be pretty and funny and have cool special effects, and the rest is negotiable. Definitely agreed about the money motive, but I didn't really notice fans pissed about the show being "too prettified" (except Geralt XD) or "too light"; basically all complaints I've read revolved around "why did they wrote all that new stuff and then claimed they had no time for what already was there" and that the show botched the relations between characters (Ciri's whole storyline or Geralt being an utter grumpy aggresive jerk toward Jaskier who still inexplicably follows him - if that's true, I see why you got more shippy vibes than in the book, it's like a total hate-to-love cliche XD) or the characters themselves (featureless Ciri, 90yo-but-still-teen-minded Yennefer, vilified Cahir and Fringilla...).
(I definitely think Witcher dispensed with a lot of the Slavic flavor, for example. And I can't judge whether the video games did or not, but I'm sure the video game players were a bigger consideration, as far as "core fans" than the book
( ... )
Re: part 2 :)hamsterwomanApril 22 2020, 04:44:55 UTC
that the show botched the relations between characters (Ciri's whole storyline<
The problem with Ciri's storyline is that she really has no-one important to play off. I kind of understand why they felt they had to stick her in the first season, but she has zero interaction with Geralt until the very very last bit, and is mostly running away the rest of the season.
i>or Geralt being an utter grumpy aggresive jerk toward Jaskier who still inexplicably follows him - if that's true, I see why you got more shippy vibes than in the book,
Kind of. It's a different relationship, definitely, and also you get to see the very beginning of it (where Geralt is especially harsh) and then he's grumpy a lot in the other episodes, but I definitely read it as fond grumpiness.
vilified Cahir and Fringilla...I actually liked Fringilla. Cahir has not had a chance to do much except be menacing. Whether he gets more nuance in the coming seasons remains to be seen
( ... )
she has zero interaction with Geralt until the very very last bit, and is mostly running away the rest of the season.Looks so, I heard something about her assing around forests (none of which being Brokilon for some reason) all the time and doing hardly anything else. XD Of the descriptions I've met it seems like they wanted to introduce everyone immediately, but didn't realize they lose the all rather important buildup this way. I've read quotes from some interview that indicated the show team assumed they don't need to present characters "everyone knows and loves" and as a result: 1. old fans are pissed, 2. new fans are confused or at best didn't notice there were some relations they were supposed to care for. Which raises the question, who is this show for after all? :'D Besides creators of fan-content, of course. Any fanwriter worth of their kudos doesn't need more than BadManneredBeeftman & ManicPixieDreamBard to make content for showrunners. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without fanwriters in MCU... Probably wouldn't stay
( ... )
Re: part 2 :)hamsterwomanApril 28 2020, 00:04:33 UTC
(none of which being Brokilon for some reason)
One of them IS Broklion, but the thing that happens there is completely unlike the canon story, so I'm honestly not sure why they bothered including it at all.
BadManneredBeeftman & ManicPixieDreamBard
LOL! That has been a very enjoyable and fruitful dynamic :D
people mostly complain he got dumbed down.
Mmm... It's definitely a character change, but I don't know that it necessarily means dumbing down. I mean, you don't get to see Geralt's philosophizing, but I don't miss it, and being taciturn in itself does not make someone dumb. What makes him seem dumb is invoking the Law of Surprise as a joke, but we've already talked about that part of it.
But I'll add that you can find shared echoes sometimes in the mostly unlikely places. Oh yes, most definitely! That's what I also meant by "not sharp cut", and one of the best points he made, for me, was when he says about finding unexpected understanding with supposedly very alien groups (I agree that Germans "feel" closer in cultural sense than Englishmen, for one) and at the same time the all thing being a spectrum across the continent(s) rather than culture A, culture B, culture C, etc. And yes, I certainly agree that unexpected familiarity can be at times found very far geographically, too. It's true between other cultures as well, of course (The British as the "Japanese of Europe", for one; obviously it's never 1:1 thing, but it's a thing; an equivalent of sharks/dolphins/ichtyosaurs convergence).
And I do think that tinge of fatalism ("well, everything sucks, but what did you expect?") is a Slavic hallmarkSalted with gritty humour and peppered with defiance, at that, yes. Best jokes grew under the communism for a reason. I
( ... )
it's a specific combination of, like, groundedness and defiance and still living the history long after the actual battles are over. Yes, again! It's like, all opossite feelings about this at once, because all the nationalistic fuel and, ugh, will you stop with all this pride already?! ...but at the same time "we get this reference" we want it or not, and while we may not like some outcoms, we still get why this works and how this works. And finally, we can also just genuinely like "our" things just because those are "our" things done WELL. Hitting the right chord, sounding true, recognizable... Argh, I don't know. I can see why he tried to find it with music as well as with words, and I agree also about: I don't think I can explain it exactly, because put that way, it sounds like it could be almost anything. :) A case of hopeless defiance being epic af, and this one here doesn't feel like "I'm sad and it sucks", it feels like "let's appreciate this feeling". And then, while the "Slavic" is an umbrella, it's still a spectrum, because
( ... )
Re: part 2 :)hamsterwomanApril 22 2020, 05:20:43 UTC
B loves that "Когда мы были на войне" song -- that very YouTube version (or at least the same set of performers) is one of his go-to car songs. The second one you linked I haven't heard before, but I love the melancholy of Ukrainian songs (if there are actual happy ones I don't think I've ever heard them XP -- only sad ones (let's appreciate this feeling) or comically tragic ones XD)
'unapologetically soothing nihilism', seriously
Heh that's an interesting niche! (And the Polish songs you linked all sound lovely!)
So, for majority of Americans the cultures allowing/cherishing/exploring "dark" fellings (in their mainstream at that!), treating them like a companion of life instead of a sickness to cure/pest to ged rid of/danger to avoid, must feel exotic, I guess. And so, poof! enter "Slavic soul".
Yeah, I think so. Plus the culture is different enough that it's more convenient to exoticize than something that might be similarly melancholy but more like the Western world (like, IDK, Denmark?)
High five for B, I've been an on-off fan for those choirs in recent years. And for ballets, too (Igor Moiseyev team, EPIC). Wait, about the second you meant you haven't heard that particular one, or Flit band in general? I vaguely thought you probably knew them, I wrote about them here. :)
comically tragic ones XD Їжачок!!! :D
'unapologetically soothing nihilism', seriously Heh that's an interesting niche! Yeah, I don't think he has much competition. XD
more convenient to exoticize than something that might be similarly melancholy but more like the Western world (like, IDK, Denmark?) Or Irish you mentioned up there, yep. (Denmark tho? More like Finland, I'd say, as those stereotypes go? Denmark is hyggefied as hard as Russia is soulified, in them.)
Re: part 2 :)hamsterwomanApril 28 2020, 00:00:32 UTC
Haven't heard Flit the band in general (but I generally don't go seek out modern music, it's just what I come across, in RL or on LJ when the timing is right for me to listen, which isn't always, depending which device I'm browsing on)
Or Irish you mentioned up there, yep. (Denmark tho? More like Finland, I'd say, as those stereotypes go? Denmark is hyggefied
The reason I didn't say Irish is because for Americans Irish is a particular kind of exotic -- it's certainly that, but with a specific kind of kinship, since a lot of people have or at least claim roots there.
But I admit I picked Denmark kind of at random from among the Scandinavian counties, so Finland works just fine :)
(but I generally don't go seek out modern music, it's just what I come across, in RL or on LJ when the timing is right for me to listen, which isn't always, depending which device I'm browsing on) That about sums up my own experience/approach as well. :D
for Americans Irish is a particular kind of exotic -- it's certainly that, but with a specific kind of kinship, since a lot of people have or at least claim roots there. Which, as I noticed, rubs the Irish wrong way twice instead of just once, because on the top of being painted as some "cottagecore" fetish sprinkled with grossly romanticized IRA - so the cool exotic part - what Americans think of as "familiar Irish" turns out actually very exotic to the Irish (I keep seeing corned beef being brought up as a popular example). :) At least this much I gathered so far from forums of the cultural exchange type (which I love, btw, though don't contribute much, if ever).
A bit randomly, I was looking for something else and came across this song (in Russian) about Caer Morhen, by a Russian fan-songwriter I like a lot. Not sure if you're interested in this sort of thing, but if you are, let me know if you'd like me to take a stab at a literal translation. :)
A bit randomly, I was looking for something else and came across Story of my life... XD
If you have time! :D Even more for the sake of translation itself than the song (though it's a good song and vid, indeed), because yeah, I'm not much into this part of fandoms, but something interesting always comes up when we talk languages! :) (I only catch short pieces: "you won't buy love" "cold steel", and at "every day - new fight; every day - old fear" I blinked because it's basically Polish, but that's it, in a single listening.)
I'm atually not sure why they couldn't have just stuck with the book's way of doing it? The joke felt pretty out of character and was, as you say, just generally dumb.
Heh, yeah, Nenneke and Calanthe are the strong women done right,
Agreed, and I loved them both, unsurprisingly. (And thought the show did a pretty good job with Calanthe.)
So, what the first wish was in the show, then? No twist at all? Geralt means "Fuck off!" and he really says what he thinks he says?
It wasn't very memorable, so already has started to fade, but I think his first wish -- which he speaks when it looks like there is no djinn/the djinn is a dud, or if it exists, that Jaskier is its master, so it's also not meant as a wish -- is for Jaskier to shut up, which causes Jaskier's condition that they need to search for a healer for. Or at least that's what I think happens...
Wow, your translation is really good! :D I mean, I can't judge how it reads, ( ... )
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Definitely agreed about the money motive, but I didn't really notice fans pissed about the show being "too prettified" (except Geralt XD) or "too light"; basically all complaints I've read revolved around "why did they wrote all that new stuff and then claimed they had no time for what already was there" and that the show botched the relations between characters (Ciri's whole storyline or Geralt being an utter grumpy aggresive jerk toward Jaskier who still inexplicably follows him - if that's true, I see why you got more shippy vibes than in the book, it's like a total hate-to-love cliche XD) or the characters themselves (featureless Ciri, 90yo-but-still-teen-minded Yennefer, vilified Cahir and Fringilla...).
(I definitely think Witcher dispensed with a lot of the Slavic flavor, for example. And I can't judge whether the video games did or not, but I'm sure the video game players were a bigger consideration, as far as "core fans" than the book ( ... )
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The problem with Ciri's storyline is that she really has no-one important to play off. I kind of understand why they felt they had to stick her in the first season, but she has zero interaction with Geralt until the very very last bit, and is mostly running away the rest of the season.
i>or Geralt being an utter grumpy aggresive jerk toward Jaskier who still inexplicably follows him - if that's true, I see why you got more shippy vibes than in the book,
Kind of. It's a different relationship, definitely, and also you get to see the very beginning of it (where Geralt is especially harsh) and then he's grumpy a lot in the other episodes, but I definitely read it as fond grumpiness.
vilified Cahir and Fringilla...I actually liked Fringilla. Cahir has not had a chance to do much except be menacing. Whether he gets more nuance in the coming seasons remains to be seen ( ... )
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One of them IS Broklion, but the thing that happens there is completely unlike the canon story, so I'm honestly not sure why they bothered including it at all.
BadManneredBeeftman & ManicPixieDreamBard
LOL! That has been a very enjoyable and fruitful dynamic :D
people mostly complain he got dumbed down.
Mmm... It's definitely a character change, but I don't know that it necessarily means dumbing down. I mean, you don't get to see Geralt's philosophizing, but I don't miss it, and being taciturn in itself does not make someone dumb. What makes him seem dumb is invoking the Law of Surprise as a joke, but we've already talked about that part of it.
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Oh yes, most definitely! That's what I also meant by "not sharp cut", and one of the best points he made, for me, was when he says about finding unexpected understanding with supposedly very alien groups (I agree that Germans "feel" closer in cultural sense than Englishmen, for one) and at the same time the all thing being a spectrum across the continent(s) rather than culture A, culture B, culture C, etc. And yes, I certainly agree that unexpected familiarity can be at times found very far geographically, too. It's true between other cultures as well, of course (The British as the "Japanese of Europe", for one; obviously it's never 1:1 thing, but it's a thing; an equivalent of sharks/dolphins/ichtyosaurs convergence).
And I do think that tinge of fatalism ("well, everything sucks, but what did you expect?") is a Slavic hallmarkSalted with gritty humour and peppered with defiance, at that, yes. Best jokes grew under the communism for a reason. I ( ... )
Reply
Yes, again! It's like, all opossite feelings about this at once, because all the nationalistic fuel and, ugh, will you stop with all this pride already?! ...but at the same time "we get this reference" we want it or not, and while we may not like some outcoms, we still get why this works and how this works. And finally, we can also just genuinely like "our" things just because those are "our" things done WELL. Hitting the right chord, sounding true, recognizable... Argh, I don't know. I can see why he tried to find it with music as well as with words, and I agree also about: I don't think I can explain it exactly, because put that way, it sounds like it could be almost anything. :) A case of hopeless defiance being epic af, and this one here doesn't feel like "I'm sad and it sucks", it feels like "let's appreciate this feeling". And then, while the "Slavic" is an umbrella, it's still a spectrum, because ( ... )
Reply
'unapologetically soothing nihilism', seriously
Heh that's an interesting niche! (And the Polish songs you linked all sound lovely!)
So, for majority of Americans the cultures allowing/cherishing/exploring "dark" fellings (in their mainstream at that!), treating them like a companion of life instead of a sickness to cure/pest to ged rid of/danger to avoid, must feel exotic, I guess. And so, poof! enter "Slavic soul".
Yeah, I think so. Plus the culture is different enough that it's more convenient to exoticize than something that might be similarly melancholy but more like the Western world (like, IDK, Denmark?)
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comically tragic ones XD
Їжачок!!! :D
'unapologetically soothing nihilism', seriously
Heh that's an interesting niche!
Yeah, I don't think he has much competition. XD
more convenient to exoticize than something that might be similarly melancholy but more like the Western world (like, IDK, Denmark?)
Or Irish you mentioned up there, yep. (Denmark tho? More like Finland, I'd say, as those stereotypes go? Denmark is hyggefied as hard as Russia is soulified, in them.)
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Or Irish you mentioned up there, yep. (Denmark tho? More like Finland, I'd say, as those stereotypes go? Denmark is hyggefied
The reason I didn't say Irish is because for Americans Irish is a particular kind of exotic -- it's certainly that, but with a specific kind of kinship, since a lot of people have or at least claim roots there.
But I admit I picked Denmark kind of at random from among the Scandinavian counties, so Finland works just fine :)
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That about sums up my own experience/approach as well. :D
for Americans Irish is a particular kind of exotic -- it's certainly that, but with a specific kind of kinship, since a lot of people have or at least claim roots there.
Which, as I noticed, rubs the Irish wrong way twice instead of just once, because on the top of being painted as some "cottagecore" fetish sprinkled with grossly romanticized IRA - so the cool exotic part - what Americans think of as "familiar Irish" turns out actually very exotic to the Irish (I keep seeing corned beef being brought up as a popular example). :) At least this much I gathered so far from forums of the cultural exchange type (which I love, btw, though don't contribute much, if ever).
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Yeah I've noticed this also (also, "cottagecore" LOL! XD)
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Story of my life... XD
If you have time! :D Even more for the sake of translation itself than the song (though it's a good song and vid, indeed), because yeah, I'm not much into this part of fandoms, but something interesting always comes up when we talk languages! :)
(I only catch short pieces: "you won't buy love" "cold steel", and at "every day - new fight; every day - old fear" I blinked because it's basically Polish, but that's it, in a single listening.)
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