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[AlleluiaElizabeth]

(You guys started with anime and I made a wall of text, I'm sorry. >_>)

 

 Did I just watch a particularly bad anime

Sounds like it? lol

 

I love anime, though I've never watched Fushugi Yuugi. There's different genres within anime just like there's different types of television shows and books. And it sounds like you were started with a kinda weird one. lol  For example, cross-dressing is most definitely NOT a requirement in most anime. It does occur in certain types as a trope, though. Which is very hard to like for a lot of people. Only anime that includes it as a semi-regular element that I've ever actually liked was Ouran High School Host Club, and even then the lack of a serious plot for most of the series tried my patience.

 

And I'll be honest, its hard to find an anime, particularly older stuff, that has women who last as three dimensional characters for more than their introduction. Even less so if they're fighters. Like, they'll get an intro as cool and bringing something to the table to help the protagonist, but a lot of times they end up being sidelined by the middle or so.

 

I'm sure there are many, particularly more recent anime, that don't do that. Attack on Titan is one example, though that's also a fairly gruesome and grim-dark anime, so dunno if you'd be interested in it. its a dystopian future and involves fighting large monsters that look like deranged humans and eat people. A lot of good guys die cus the monsters are really hard to fight. Plus side: the leading female in the group is the best fighter of said monsters and schools them regularly, though you still worry whether she'll survive the encounters intact just like you do for every one else. Its very Game of Thrones-esque that way. lol

 

Ghost in the Shell is another: woman task force captain who does kick butt often. Her clothing could be less sexualized sometimes, but... yeah. >_> Its also scifi/cyberpunk, if that interests you. If cyber crime, computer hacking, and the question of what a society that embraces cybernetics would possibly look like interests you, then you might like it. I personally find it a hard anime to get into, even though I love the art style and (in theory) like the cyberpunk, so YMMV.

 

Overall, I prefer plot-heavy anime, with action, comedy, and a dash of romance.

 

First anime I'd actually recommend is Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, if you want great writing. Its a fantasy setting, set in a world with maybe WW1 level of tech, but also with magic (the 'alchemy" part of the title). The relationship btwn the main protagonist and his brother alone is worth watching for, imo. And *everyone* introduced in the story has a role, some kind of character development/change they undergo, and an ultimate purpose to the story. Its REALLY solid writing. Course its my second favorite anime of all time, so I might be biased.

 

Also, I'd recommend Cowboy Bebop; a scfi show set in the nearish-future about a group of slightly dysfunctional bounty hunters ("cowboys") who live on a ship called the Bebop. All the main characters get interesting arcs, IMO. There's a cool jazz theme to a lot of the episode titles and the musical score. The whole series switches between comedy, action, and melancholy, all somehow without giving you mood whiplash.

 

I'd rec Trigun, as well, if you don't mind goofball protagonists. I love them, personally, as long as its not their only character trait. In Trigun's case it is just the first layer to him. Also, its a western with scifi elements that are always there, but become more prominent later on.

 

My personal favorite anime is called Princes Tutu. It is in, or at least starts in, the "magical girl" genre (girl gets magical powers letting her transform into a heroine to defeat evil), but it also basically deconstructs the process of writing and fairy tales and uses it as a plot point. And everything ties together in the end, and there's a lot of symbolism btwn characters and parallels -- its just really solid writing, IMO. And the characters are great though the main character *is* young and her antics can provide a lot of the comedic value of the show. I personally consider it fitting to the character and endearing, but if that's a major sticking point for you, I'd recommend not starting out with it. If you like fairy tales, writing, or art/ballet, and can give a show starring a 12-14 year old girl a chance, I'd recommend it. If you do start watching, I'd recommend giving it till at least episode 4 before deciding if you like it or not. That seems to be the watershed point for people who are uncertain.

 

Of the 4 anime I've recommended, two end happy and two end on rather bittersweet notes. You've been warned. >_>

[AWTEW]

(You guys started with anime and I made a wall of text, I'm sorry. >_>)

Sounds like it? lol

I love anime, though I've never watched Fushugi Yuugi. There's different genres within anime just like there's different types of television shows and books. And it sounds like you were started with a kinda weird one. lol For example, cross-dressing is most definitely NOT a requirement in most anime. It does occur in certain types as a trope, though. Which is very hard to like for a lot of people. Only anime that includes it as a semi-regular element that I've ever actually liked was Ouran High School Host Club, and even then the lack of a serious plot for most of the series tried my patience.

And I'll be honest, its hard to find an anime, particularly older stuff, that has women who last as three dimensional characters for more than their introduction. Even less so if they're fighters. Like, they'll get an intro as cool and bringing something to the table to help the protagonist, but a lot of times they end up being sidelined by the middle or so.

I'm sure there are many, particularly more recent anime, that don't do that. Attack on Titan is one example, though that's also a fairly gruesome and grim-dark anime, so dunno if you'd be interested in it. its a dystopian future and involves fighting large monsters that look like deranged humans and eat people. A lot of good guys die cus the monsters are really hard to fight. Plus side: the leading female in the group is the best fighter of said monsters and schools them regularly, though you still worry whether she'll survive the encounters intact just like you do for every one else. Its very Game of Thrones-esque that way. lol

Ghost in the Shell is another: woman task force captain who does kick butt often. Her clothing could be less sexualized sometimes, but... yeah. >_> Its also scifi/cyberpunk, if that interests you. If cyber crime, computer hacking, and the question of what a society that embraces cybernetics would possibly look like interests you, then you might like it. I personally find it a hard anime to get into, even though I love the art style and (in theory) like the cyberpunk, so YMMV.

Overall, I prefer plot-heavy anime, with action, comedy, and a dash of romance.

First anime I'd actually recommend is Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, if you want great writing. Its a fantasy setting, set in a world with maybe WW1 level of tech, but also with magic (the 'alchemy" part of the title). The relationship btwn the main protagonist and his brother alone is worth watching for, imo. And *everyone* introduced in the story has a role, some kind of character development/change they undergo, and an ultimate purpose to the story. Its REALLY solid writing. Course its my second favorite anime of all time, so I might be biased.

Also, I'd recommend Cowboy Bebop; a scfi show set in the nearish-future about a group of slightly dysfunctional bounty hunters ("cowboys") who live on a ship called the Bebop. All the main characters get interesting arcs, IMO. There's a cool jazz theme to a lot of the episode titles and the musical score. The whole series switches between comedy, action, and melancholy, all somehow without giving you mood whiplash.

I'd rec Trigun, as well, if you don't mind goofball protagonists. I love them, personally, as long as its not their only character trait. In Trigun's case it is just the first layer to him. Also, its a western with scifi elements that are always there, but become more prominent later on.

My personal favorite anime is called Princes Tutu. It is in, or at least starts in, the "magical girl" genre (girl gets magical powers letting her transform into a heroine to defeat evil), but it also basically deconstructs the process of writing and fairy tales and uses it as a plot point. And everything ties together in the end, and there's a lot of symbolism btwn characters and parallels -- its just really solid writing, IMO. And the characters are great though the main character *is* young and her antics can provide a lot of the comedic value of the show. I personally consider it fitting to the character and endearing, but if that's a major sticking point for you, I'd recommend not starting out with it. If you like fairy tales, writing, or art/ballet, and can give a show starring a 12-14 year old girl a chance, I'd recommend it. If you do start watching, I'd recommend giving it till at least episode 4 before deciding if you like it or not. That seems to be the watershed point for people who are uncertain.

Of the 4 anime I've recommended, two end happy and two end on rather bittersweet notes. You've been warned. >_>

yeah I was exposed to anime at an early age 5yo (samurai pizza cats anyone?) then primary school during the dbz era there was a saturation of kids anime shows. I don't know if anyone else here remembers the Pokemon bs digimon debates..but I do. digimon had the better story, and changed evolutions which Pokemon would steal a decade later and claim was 'new' in Pokemon x and y..

I think that early exposure ruined me in some ways, it made me fussy.

but nostalgia aside I also recommend FMa brotherhood..for story an also Gundam Seed (which recently had a remaster). For the characters and story themes.

[Merela]

Welp, a deal is a deal. Ask AWTEW for more details.

Spoiler

 

Source: http://somekindoferr...t-my-motivation

[AWTEW]

Welp, a deal is a deal. Ask AWTEW for more details.

Spoiler

 

Source: http://somekindoferr...t-my-motivation

 

Yeah, this is my fault. 

i posted some tethragahst in cass thread.

[Hunter111]

Welp, a deal is a deal. Ask AWTEW for more details.

Spoiler

 
Source: http://somekindoferr...t-my-motivation

Well, you draw very nicely...although I think Bianca should get the murder knife. But I don't think that's exclusive to Cass/Varric shippers. Just people who hate characters who are obnoxious, annoying, and badly written.

Maybe one day you can make something nice for us?

Thanks for sharing,

[Merela]

Well, you draw very nicely...although I think Bianca should get the murder knife. But I don't think that's exclusive to Cass/Varric shippers. Just people who hate characters who are obnoxious, annoying, and badly written.

Maybe one day you can make something nice for us?

Thanks for sharing,

 

Oh no, it's not my drawing. My current skills only allow me to draw potato-shaped horses at best. But the artist does draw nicely indeed. Also I would never murder-knife Bianca. I like her, for all her flaws and the bad writing. But I guess this is not the proper thread for having this conversation.

[Hunter111]

Oh no, it's not my drawing. My current skills only allow me to draw potato-shaped horses at best. But the artist does draw nicely indeed. Also I would never murder-knife Bianca. I like her, for all her flaws and the bad writing. But I guess this is not the proper thread for having this conversation.

Oh, I thought it was yours! No worries, potato-shaped horses are probably a cut above what I can draw.

And if you want to talk about Bianca here, be my guest, although I'll refute every argument you have.

But by and large, people on this thread don't really get upset unless you just drop in to say, "Your ship sucks!!!"

And I saw what AWTEW posted. If you hate the pairing that much, count yourself lucky...there's actually really explicit NSFW Tethraghast art. Be glad she didn't post that, .

[Merela]

Oh, I thought it was yours! No worries, potato-shaped horses are probably a cut above what I can draw.

And if you want to talk about Bianca here, be my guest, although I'll refute every argument you have.

But by and large, people on this thread don't really get upset unless you just drop in to say, "Your ship sucks!!!"

And I saw what AWTEW posted. If you hate the pairing that much, count yourself lucky...there's actually really explicit NSFW Tethraghast art. Be glad she didn't post that, .

 

Oh, she posted NSFW arts as well. And while I will never write that the Tethraghast ship "sucks", well...I think I've made my dislike of it quite clear in the Cassandra thread. Which is kinda ironic, since I used to ship those two together. But it was a long time ago, before Inquisition blew that pairing up and pissed on its ashes.

[Master Warder Z_]

Well I hate to disappoint.

[Hunter111]

Well I hate to disappoint.

So....don't?

[Hunter111]

Uhm, I wrote something new. http://archiveofouro...hapters/8231143

It is a bit more cloying than I usually go in for. Please be gentle.

[rda]

Uhm, I wrote something new. http://archiveofouro...hapters/8231143
It is a bit more cloying than I usually go in for. Please be gentle.

Well, that sucked.

Just kidding! So sweet and nice, A+!

[Master Warder Z_]

So....don't?

Your ship is awful! It completely ignores the fact they despise each other.

So yeah ship sucks!

That work?

[rda]

yeah I was exposed to anime at an early age 5yo (samurai pizza cats anyone?) then primary school during the dbz era there was a saturation of kids anime shows. I don't know if anyone else here remembers the Pokemon bs digimon debates..but I do. digimon had the better story, and changed evolutions which Pokemon would steal a decade later and claim was 'new' in Pokemon x and y..
I think that early exposure ruined me in some ways, it made me fussy.
but nostalgia aside I also recommend FMa brotherhood..for story an also Gundam Seed (which recently had a remaster). For the characters and story themes.

My brother was an oops baby, and considerably younger than me, so I remember watching Pokemon with him on occasion. I actually liked Pokemon a lot more than digimon. . Does this make me a bad person?

And Elizabeth...I read everythng you wrote re: anime . Unfortunately, a few I checked (Cowboy Bebop sounded cool) weren't on Netflix. Which ones on Netflix would you recommend?

[AWTEW]

My brother was an oops baby, and considerably younger than me, so I remember watching Pokemon with him on occasion. I actually liked Pokemon a lot more than digimon. . Does this make me a bad person?

And Elizabeth...I read everythng you wrote re: anime . Unfortunately, a few I checked (Cowboy Bebop sounded cool) weren't on Netflix. Which ones on Netflix would you recommend?

 

Nah Pokemon is fine, I just never took to it like I did digimon. On netflix... Eh can't help out there

[morie91]

bumping this thread up

 

and letting y'all know that i've not abandoned cassarric, and i constantly watch over this ship. tho it's sad that fanfic writers seem to have lost an interest in it ;n; not many fanfictions with cassarric are written nowadays.

 

in my free time i try to work on something new

and i'm so excited for how this piece slowly turns out

 

a little snip from it ;u;

[rda]

Oh my goodness Morie, that is beautiful!!  I can't wait to see it when it's done.  My favorite pic of these two is still the one you posted with Cass with Varric's shirt on. 

 

And I dunno if the fandom is going away or not (I hope not), but to be honest, a lot of the stuff is slowing down.  Most of the threads on the Story, Campaign & Characters forum that are very active are people who just like each other and are posting off-topic stuff (or, like in the Cassandra thread, they're posting the same pictures OVER and OVER and OVER again...)

 

I mean, I guess we could do that here, theoretically, but I don't know if anyone is really interested in doing that (I mean, I would, but even my on topic posts have a tendency to veer into OT, so...yeah.)

 

And Bioware isn't helping.  They're not exactly cranking out high quality DLC to keep people's interest up.  I mean, we're 6 months out from Inquisition's release, and they've only had 1 DLC, which is only for XBOX1 and PC right now (I, for example, can't play it because I have a PS4.)  And from what I've heard, the DLC is "ok" but not "have to have".  I mean, I guess I'd rather them take the time to produce something really high-quality rather than rush something, but...I don't know why those have to be mutually exclusive to the extent they currently are.

 

And as far as fanfiction goes, there's a link a little further up this page.  Hunter's posted a new story to AO3, and it's happy and cute.  Maybe you might like it?  (It's post #937.  For some reason, my computer is being bad and not letting me copy and paste.)  Also, in the last post on page 37, I posted a link to another cute, fluffy little story that is also good.

 

I cannot wait to see your art when it is finished.  Don't forget to post it here, because I don't have tumblr and I would love to see the finished product.

[AWTEW]

bumping this thread up

 

and letting y'all know that i've not abandoned cassarric, and i constantly watch over this ship. tho it's sad that fanfic writers seem to have lost an interest in it ;n; not many fanfictions with cassarric are written nowadays.

 

in my free time i try to work on something new

and i'm so excited for how this piece slowly turns out

 

a little snip from it ;u;

 

OMFg that's beautiful!

[OrilliaOrange]

bumping this thread up

 

and letting y'all know that i've not abandoned cassarric, and i constantly watch over this ship. tho it's sad that fanfic writers seem to have lost an interest in it ;n; not many fanfictions with cassarric are written nowadays.

 

in my free time i try to work on something new

and i'm so excited for how this piece slowly turns out

 

a little snip from it ;u;

Morie! MORIE! YOU ARE A BEAUTIFUL UNICORN HOLY CRAP THIS IS UNREAL!

 

Uh. I  may have some strong feelings about this sneak peak. 

 

Most of those feelings are intense longing for the rest of this piece. 

 

You're amazing. Just flat out unbelievably amazing and I am in AWE of your skill. 

[morie91]

Morie! MORIE! YOU ARE A BEAUTIFUL UNICORN HOLY CRAP THIS IS UNREAL!

 

Uh. I  may have some strong feelings about this sneak peak. 

 

Most of those feelings are intense longing for the rest of this piece. 

 

You're amazing. Just flat out unbelievably amazing and I am in AWE of your skill. 

 

*incoherent gurgling*  skdnfkjsnlkjvn gaaah, stahp it x33 tho i think i might like my role as an unicorn xD

 

believe me, i can't wait to finish it, so i could show it to the world ;u; and the wip itself gives me a lot of feelings too! (babies, my babies! TuT)

let's hope it will be as much inspiring for the fandom as my first cassarric picture, i need dem fanfics! xd

 

@rda

thank you ;u;

 

yup i've kinda noticed that as well. even such talkative thread as cullen thread, doesn't have many posts per day as it used to.

i haven't even bought that dlc, if people say it isn't worth the money, then i won't waste it. i must save it for new computer parts and tablet ;u;

 

i look for cassarric stories on ao3, and read everything i still haven't read (: tho i'm a very picky reader, for example modern AUs are the least desired type of fanfics for me (i'm sorry), i prefer those, which stay within the da universe.

 

don't worry, how could i not post it here? ;p

[OrilliaOrange]

@Morie I hope it does as well, I'd love to see this fandom get a little more fanfic going. EnigmaticAgentScully's started posting some one shots over on AO3, and she's pretty wonderful. They're also set in the DA universe, and she has an Inquisitor who is a cranky Dwarf grandma. 

 

 

@rda I don't think it's just that the DLC isn't impressive. It's also that there isn't anything ELSE to fall back on. Comics, books, expanded universe stuff... as far as I can tell, it's only the games and the few bits of writing that are out. None of which particularly help our little fandom, being a bit bereft of Varric/Cassandra. 

 

Though I did enjoy the comics- Varric and Isabela's interactions particularly. It also gave some insight into Varric's character, since the last part is narrated by him. 

 

But yeah. We're basically left to our own devices. If there were more DA/DA:I books out there, you can bet your ass I'd buy them. But there aren't any, so we're stuck in this sad wasteland waiting for whatever happens next. 

[AWTEW]

@morie don't go on the cass thread...and mention tethraghast..

[morie91]

@morie don't go on the cass thread...and mention tethraghast..

 

don't worry, i know they're not particularly fond of our ship xD

.

.

.

.

and i'd rather not be eaten alive ;p

[rda]

@Morie I hope it does as well, I'd love to see this fandom get a little more fanfic going. EnigmaticAgentScully's started posting some one shots over on AO3, and she's pretty wonderful. They're also set in the DA universe, and she has an Inquisitor who is a cranky Dwarf grandma. 
 
 
@rda I don't think it's just that the DLC isn't impressive. It's also that there isn't anything ELSE to fall back on. Comics, books, expanded universe stuff... as far as I can tell, it's only the games and the few bits of writing that are out. None of which particularly help our little fandom, being a bit bereft of Varric/Cassandra. 
 
Though I did enjoy the comics- Varric and Isabela's interactions particularly. It also gave some insight into Varric's character, since the last part is narrated by him. 
 
But yeah. We're basically left to our own devices. If there were more DA/DA:I books out there, you can bet your ass I'd buy them. But there aren't any, so we're stuck in this sad wasteland waiting for whatever happens next.

The one thing that kind of annoys me about the comics/books is that they don't do a great job of tying into the games (IMHO). So, in the book, Briala has a network of Eluvians...which are promptly never mentioned again. That could've tied in to DAI in a really cool way. Maybe that's the real reason Morrigan comes to the court. Maybe Morrigan intercepts you and asks you to make a deal with Briala. But...nothing. (Do I need to spoiler this?). The game doesn't contradict the book, exactly, but it doesn't exactly draw on it either. For all the relevance it has, the book might as well be a piece of (really good) fan fiction.

I'm also kind of worried about Gaider leaving. For all that he could be preachy, anachronistically liberal for an ostensibly Middle Ages world, and heavy-handed about his pet issues (Dorian's dad does blood magic on him for being gay...ugh. How much more obvious can you get? It was like an after school special from the 80s. There were so many more beautiful and subtle ways that could've been handled...but no...). Sorry, where was I? Yeah, for as much as I could dislike the direction Gaider took things in, he also wrote some of the characters I loved the most in the DA franchise (Morrigan, Cass)

And Weekes has written some of the ones I've disliked the most. Iron Bull was mostly played for laughs, but there were a couple of things there that were downright creepy/inappropriate, and Solas...why do I want a companion who is constantly preaching to me? He reminded me of a jerkish college professor. Like, he loved you if you agreed with him (tell me more about the fade, professor!) but would get unreasonably dickish if you didn't (Uh, Solas, the fade can be dangerous. 'Solas disapproves'.)

So, I'm kind of feeling a bit of trepidation about Weekes taking over. We'll see I guess. So far, there's not too much to judge on so I'm trying to keep an open mind.

But...yeah. Bioware/Ea really dropped the ball when it came to keeping a buzz around Inquisition. It won all these GOTYs and then...nothing. They could've had a book/comic series ready to go about 4 months after the release. They could build a little buzz by saying what the next DLC is going to be. But...crickets. They just kind of showed up with JoH with no real buzz, no announcements prior to, they just kind of dumped it and left.

I'm trying to hope there some kind of method to the madness, like they're working on a full blown expansion that will blow our minds that they're trying to keep under wraps, but the folks over there aren't exactly making me ooze confidence thus far.

Oh well. At least there still is Fanfiction, even if it is slowing down. Some of the writers we have for this fandom are some of the better ones in the DA-verse, in aggregate. I would say at the moment, at least a good 4/5 of the Cass/Varric stuff is readable, and maybe 1/2 of it is pretty good. For a fandom, that's excellent. Better than all the Mary Sue inquisitor stuff out there.

Anyone read any really great DAI fanfic that's NOT Cass/Varric? (Preferably nothing that's Bull or Solas centric?)

Sorry for gigantic OT wall of text.

[OrilliaOrange]

The one thing that kind of annoys me about the comics/books is that they don't do a great job of tying into the games (IMHO). So, in the book, Briala has a network of Eluvians...which are promptly never mentioned again. That could've tied in to DAI in a really cool way. Maybe that's the real reason Morrigan comes to the court. Maybe Morrigan intercepts you and asks you to make a deal with Briala. But...nothing. (Do I need to spoiler this?). The game doesn't contradict the book, exactly, but it doesn't exactly draw on it either. For all the relevance it has, the book might as well be a piece of (really good) fan fiction.

I'm also kind of worried about Gaider leaving. For all that he could be preachy, anachronistically liberal for an ostensibly Middle Ages world, and heavy-handed about his pet issues (Dorian's dad does blood magic on him for being gay...ugh. How much more obvious can you get? It was like an after school special from the 80s. There were so many more beautiful and subtle ways that could've been handled...but no...). Sorry, where was I? Yeah, for as much as I could dislike the direction Gaider took things in, he also wrote some of the characters I loved the most in the DA franchise (Morrigan, Cass)

And Weekes has written some of the ones I've disliked the most. Iron Bull was mostly played for laughs, but there were a couple of things there that were downright creepy/inappropriate, and Solas...why do I want a companion who is constantly preaching to me? He reminded me of a jerkish college professor. Like, he loved you if you agreed with him (tell me more about the fade, professor!) but would get unreasonably dickish if you didn't (Uh, Solas, the fade can be dangerous. 'Solas disapproves'.)

So, I'm kind of feeling a bit of trepidation about Weekes taking over. We'll see I guess. So far, there's not too much to judge on so I'm trying to keep an open mind.

But...yeah. Bioware/Ea really dropped the ball when it came to keeping a buzz around Inquisition. It won all these GOTYs and then...nothing. They could've had a book/comic series ready to go about 4 months after the release. They could build a little buzz by saying what the next DLC is going to be. But...crickets. They just kind of showed up with JoH with no real buzz, no announcements prior to, they just kind of dumped it and left.

I'm trying to hope there some kind of method to the madness, like they're working on a full blown expansion that will blow our minds that they're trying to keep under wraps, but the folks over there aren't exactly making me ooze confidence thus far.

Oh well. At least there still is Fanfiction, even if it is slowing down. Some of the writers we have for this fandom are some of the better ones in the DA-verse, in aggregate. I would say at the moment, at least a good 4/5 of the Cass/Varric stuff is readable, and maybe 1/2 of it is pretty good. For a fandom, that's excellent. Better than all the Mary Sue inquisitor stuff out there.

Anyone read any really great DAI fanfic that's NOT Cass/Varric? (Preferably nothing that's Bull or Solas centric?)

Sorry for gigantic OT wall of text.

 

@rda I agree about the books/comics etc. There was a nod to Maevaris Tilani in Inquisition? She was one of the magisters involved with Dorian's personal quest stuff, as I recall. But that's only a brief appearance in a war table mission, so it might've been easily overlooked, and if you aren't aware of her presence in the comics, it's not very clear who this person is beyond the context you're given. As far as I can tell, her connection to Varric isn't even brought up? I enjoy seeing what happens in between the games, but it would be nice to see those things tie into the games as well. 

 

Though, being sort of outside main canon could be more beneficial than not? 

 

 

I have to disagree about the anachronistic comment. It isn't the medieval ages as we know them, and I think that excuses the liberalism. If it were our medieval world, then I would agree that the writers took some liberties. And if they stayed true to the medieval setting, it would seriously affect the roles of the female characters like Cassandra, Leliana, and Josephine, and it would definitely alter the story concerning Dorian, Sera, and Krem. 

 

On a personal note, the liberalism is what I like about the Dragon Age series. If I have to suffer through one more grim, sober Medieval fantasy world where no one's allowed to be happy... I'm so done with that sort of thing. It's boring, cynical, and repetitive. Dragon Age has flaws, god knows, but it's got all kinds of things for all kinds of people, and it's not depressing as hell. 

 

I will totally agree with you about Solas. I don't particularly like him, since you can't really argue with him. He holds such strong viewpoints, and as a Dalish elf you're stuck with agreeing with him (which he likes) or defending yourself (which he doesn't like). I did like his knowledge, and the thought of all the things he's seen, but as someone who really liked the Dalish, he rubbed me the wrong way a couple times. 

 

God, I hope there's more happening with an expansion, or more DLC. Additional comics or books would also be awesome. I really love this universe, and the characters therein, but if we don't have more to work with as fans, then interest is just going to wither and die.

 

Fingers crossed something good happens, everyone.

 

Unfortunately rda, I don't have any fanfic recs for you outside of Cassandra/Varric. I started out big into Solas/Inquisitor but I have a feeling that won't be your thing (it's not really my thing any more either). 

 

I miss all the Tethraghast fanfic authors. Rest in the Warmest Places hasn't updated in forever, nor has Dreaming in Red, and they were some of the first fics I read that really fuelled my interest in this ship.

 

When interest wanes like this, it's so tempting to give up on your works, and that's why I'm really hoping there will be something to fan the flames. I don't want this ship to die. I also don't want authors or artists to feel as though there's no point to making anything for Cassandra/Varric because there's no damn interest. 

 

*sigh*

 

EDITED TO ADD: I don't remember if Dorian says his Dad did use blood magic on him, or only entertained the idea. I don't know that I'd agree with you about it being ham fisted? A lot of people can probably sympathize with Dorian's pain at his father trying to change him, seeing his homosexuality as a choice, and something that can be undone, rather than it being a part of who he is. Could it have been different? Probably. What would you have changed?