Concrit/Plot Post

[thethirdhare]

Hello there! This is where you can talk to me about my Mulan. Think I play her well? Think I play her poorly? Or perhaps my characterization isn't the problem. If there is anything at all you'd like to say about how I play her, or my roleplaying in general, this is where you can say it. Don't worry, I won't bite, just remember that if you do have an issue, please be specific and give me examples, and if possible, ideas on how to improve! Anonymous commenting is on but screening is not because its a Douchebag with a capital D. You can't reply to screened comments, and I'd like to talk with those who want to plot, or have crit :> Let you know I'm listening.

This post can also be used if you'd like to plot something in particular with Mulan, or if you just have any sort of question, or would like to gank her for a log. Drop me a note here, or ping me at RingCampana on AIM.

Comments

[thethirdhare.livejournal.com]

Hey no need to apologize, this post is for crit after all, right? Honestly I’m a little glad someone has spoken up about this because I’ve always worried if I’ve offended someone considering this is such a delicate subject, and that’s the last thing I want to do. Hopefully I can explain my reasoning and it will make a little more sense, but there is one thing I’d like to direct you to that make clarify a couple of things:

Here I explain a little of how this thing started and my reasoning.

I think it might also help to read my point two, but I’ll just copy paste that: “First and foremost, the movie did have an identity theme within it (Reflection) but I still think that before that it is a movie about a daughter who loves her father and family more than anything. I had a very nice discussion with an anon on the advice meme and I think they put it nice when they said: in order of importance it goes her family, her country, and herself at a distant third. Given her background it is no wonder she thinks this way, but it is all very, very genuine. She would do absolutely anything for them and to keep the prestige of her family.”

The thing I would like to highlight from point 10. the most is that I do not think that Mulan is transgender in the slightest, and I have never planned for her to actually go through with the operation, hence her still being female in TYL, but she will come close. As you said it’s not going to be easy for her to just suddenly change her mind but there are steps that have already been made to make her begin to delay, put off, or question her decision.

So back to the points that led up to her decision---and sorry for jumping all over the place. In the link I gave you, you see that one of the troubles Mulan underwent in her time in SC was the suicide of Lisa. On top of that, quite literally, she has lost everyone that she had deep CR, not only to BREW but to death. Shang’s death at Adachi’s hand also really messed her up, as did BREW take away Lavi who had been her partner at the same time Shang died. So she’s lost a number of people she really cared about in all sorts of horrible ways, knows that despite how well women have it here that won’t be the case back home, so really it’s more that at the time she learned about sex changes Mulan was at an all time low. This greatly influenced her request to Kurapika to teach her more about it. If none of the stuff I mentioned had happened, she wouldn’t have asked about it.

So combined with these losses, her desire to do something more for her family, and the belief that this is the most secure way out of these problems that’s why she decided to try and go through with the change. There of course –will- be a lot of problems when she returns, a lot of which were brought up to her by Ling and she is taking into account and trying to find a way around. Funnily, the whole being a different gender thing isn’t so much a concern since the only ones who will know about it, she expects, are her family, and in Taoism the changing of gender is actually something that is considering spiritually possible (though oddly it is usually a man becoming a woman for reasons of immortality). Still, those issues of what might happen when she returns home are issues and one she had been thinking about, and not all of them (in fact not most) really are things she has tied up, but she believes she can. So yes! In respect to how troublesome this can be when she returns, you are totally right, but at the outset she had been convinced she could resolve these.

[thethirdhare.livejournal.com]

Recently though she has begun to realize she needs to take a step back and rethink this. Ling, Mushu, and Kurapika’s efforts have finally started to have their effect, and I already have tentative plans for how she will eventually come to realize the error in her thinking, and that if she wants things to ever change she has to be ready to take that risk and be herself. It’s going to be a long journey though.

I hope that clarifies a couple things? And hopefully, if it does, hopefully that’ll make Mulan’s decisions and reasoning make a little more sense. I don’t think I answered or addressed all your questions, sorry if I didn’t, but please don’t hesitate to ask or point out any flaws in all this.

[poisonmoth.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for your reply!

Yes, it did clarify a lot, I admit. Like I told you, I haven’t been on SC for that long, nor my activity allowed me to really interact and understand Mulan’s whole character – I didn’t know about Lisa’s suicide nor Shang’s death.

I can understand your points, though. Again, I’ve a very childish vision on Disney characters (because they are my childhood, ahah), but I am flexible enough and I won’t condemn your choices for the character, because the growth seems very reasonable and fair to me.

Thank you :3

[thethirdhare.livejournal.com]

Not a problem ❤ and yea I can understand feeling the way about some fandoms. There are some things I probably wouldn't broach with Disney characters either, such as the things you laid out for Hercules, oh jesus xDD

And thank you for taking the time to so kindly give your thoughts and opinions.