Obligatory disclaimer: real life sucks. The RPG 2nd Edition Pathfinder, in particular, seems to have gone marasmatic: they try to come across fast and lose, yet at the same time they try to micromanage everything. Look at the latest adventure path, one that is set in the Mosswood (or whatever it is called, it does not matter here). In the player’s guide to the path, the Pathfinder team is bombasting the readers’/players’ with oodles of suggestions and references yet all the while telling them it does not matter; they can be whomever they like. Fair enough, but… in this case either the readers/players really can be whomever they like, in which case all of the information in the guide is superficial and unnecessary, or this information is mandatory, in which case the players have to choose out of the options presented by the guide, and their personal desires are irrelevant. Pause.
Aside from the fact that both options are equally
bad and annoying, there’s also the fact that team Pathfinder and the DMs don’t
really have ways to enforce it, if the players will disregard the Pathfinder
options, (remember, they’re supposed to be suggestions), and go with the flow. Not
to mention that the DMs usually do not want to fight with their players,
because often the latter are their friends too, on one hand, and on the other,
RPGs are a luxury item, they aren’t needed, they cater to whims, and if they
don’t, people will find other options (such as D&D) that do. Onto X-Men ’97,
then?
Yes, pretty much. Not unlike the RPGs, this cartoon
series is also a luxury item, it is trying to tickle the audience’s fancy with
a lot of Easter eggs and references, and when they stop, we are left with
something else.
For example, Magneto – in this episode – restarts the
Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, taking Rogue with him, as well as Roberto. Well,
Magneto and Rogue’s relationship aside, firstly, Magneto actually saved the day
– or at least helped a lot – in the first part of the season’s finale, so is he
really evil anymore, or did the scriptwriters want to write yet another Magneto
vs. Professor X fight? (The two of them did fight here, sort of). On the other
hand, since Roberto is with Magneto now… err, with the Brotherhood now, Jubilee
seems to be actually missing him… why? Throughout the season, Roberto was
essentially a prop; his chemistry with Jubilee was nonexistent, and so was his
role on the show, and now that he is with Magneto and Rogue, Jubilee actually begins
to miss him? Can we say – ‘forced relationship’? And In the past, it looked as
if the relationships on AoS were contrived. Anything else?
The bulk of ‘Extinction 2’ episode was about fights,
with little being done, to be frank. The non-relationship between Jubilee and
Roberto feels forced, and so’s the conflict between most of the X-Men and
Magneto, Rogue and Roberto. This entire specific episode feels like filler,
albeit an exciting one, so odds are is that it is. In fact, as it was said
before, the entire X-Men ’97 now feels like a luxury product that is getting a
bit desperate for whatever reasons. Ah well, it is no skin off our back.
…Meanwhile, for now, this is it. See you all soon!
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