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the way this show lets kids evaluate "good and bad" characters by making sympathetic, realistic representation of combinations of behaviors, beliefs, experience, and attributes... it feels like a step in the right direction for family media. as said, some of the redeemed character behaviors were NOT ok. but they can grow into better people, that change is also great to see exemplified. and the broad number of ways in which adults are shown to be bad, manipulative, inconsiderate, or otherwise fail... it seems like many spend their adulthoods coming to terms with their experiences with all kinds of shitty adult figures, so seeing flawed adults represented has felt very therapeutic for me, it makes me think it will be good for kids to see too.
Agreed. Always love to see flawed adults who are also NOT bad people, just flawed. Some deserve sympathy and recovery like Alador or Lilith. They deserve time and forgiveness, but with the understanding that it's not "all good now," they still need to work to become better. Others deserve to be alone until they learn how toxic they are like Odalia or Kikimora. And then there are some that don't deserve any second chances-- Belos most notably.
And they also draw a very strong line between those that can grow and change and when someone is just too far gone and you can’t talk to them anymore. The collector was able to change and become a good person because he was still learning. He was a child and had no clue what was happening. As opposed to Belos who was the oldest dude around and spent years as part of this culture and held tightly to his disgusting (cough n4z1 cough) beliefs. And I think that’s important too. Because while it’s good to try and talk to people with opposing views, sometimes that’s not safe and there are some people whose views are too far and you cannot safely engage with them.
@@saltydinonuggies1841 Spoilers I love Belos and Odalia as takes on the pure evil type of villain. They’re both very realistic depictions of actual bad people. They’re not actually irredeemable, I don’t really believe anyone is, but they’ve basically dug in their heels and refused to be redeemed. Like you said, Belos lived so long, saw so much, and never grew as a person. He putrefied, he got worse, he’s well and truly awful, when he seriously had no need to be. His more normal character flaw of being unable to admit when he was wrong, kept him stuck with his old (super fucked up) views, replaying the time he murdered his brother over and over without a shred of self awareness, planning to genocide a population that he blames for his own mistake. Odalia is less far gone, but she’s genuinely too selfish to be any sort of family to anyone. All she has to do is learn to care about people other than herself, but she won’t, and she doesn’t. She’s a villain not because she can’t grow as a person, but because she won’t. And in Belos’s case, he had an insane amount of time for chances, and even though I believe he could have turned back at most points throughout his journey, he never wavers in his genocidal intent, never questions it for a moment, and even if he could have formed a real bond with someone and admitted to not being a savior of humans or anyone else maybe a couple hundred years ago, he never looks back. Very human. Very inhuman. I love that they kill him on screen. It was the only ending that fit. He started it, he was the aggressor, every prejudiced justification he had about protecting humanity from inhuman threats ends up being true, but he’s the threat. He would NOT have reacted well to the modern world. The same way he justified his bloodlust as witches being dangerous (when they literally didn’t do anything to him), he made it so the only option left was to kill him, for being an actual real and present threat to earth and the boiling isle. He’s not even a cool villain, he’s a clever one, well written, interesting, and a major killjoy. Actually hateable
One thing i love about The Owl House is how it never played the "oh god im becoming my mother/father" joke kid shows love to do. In fact, with Camilla in season 3 specifically, the show goes out of its way to show how the similarities you may share with your parents doesn't have to be something to be embarassed or ashamed about.
Agreed. I think those moments can be funny when a child's parent is an absolute disaster in some way or another, but more often than not, people become like their parents in smaller, subtler ways. Taking interest in the same hobbies, making the same food, carrying on their habits and mannerisms, etc. Their influence is important and it helps shape who you become.
What I love about Camilas story is that it flips that entire concept. Instead of Luz becoming her mother over time, it’s Camila who reveals she’s always been like Luz
One of my favorite jokes in the entire series -- and one of the moments I knew I was gonna love this show -- is a joke about being an adult right in the first episode. Eda's head is cut off and she goes "Oh, this just happens when you get older." Luz gets a horrified look and asks seriously "Does it??!??" The joke was so absurd and yet simultaneously *_so realistic_* and I couldn't help but crack up.
God I feel that. I'll wiggle around and every single joint in my body cracks and my little cousins look at me like I'm Beetlejuice and it's like BWAHAHAHA Yessssss this is what happens kids!! >:D
Well, I loved how Papa Titan was characterized while also showing how he even made mistakes while also helping Luz by not only giving perspective on Phillip's delusions and vices but also giving her the choice of using his power to be revived and save the Boiling Isles. It was so awesome and powerful and I can't help but love him as a parent shown as a person despite how short he appeared.
He's so great, I freaking love Principal Bump--what about him felt so refreshing to you? I'm super curious of any details you'd be interested in sharing!
I had been expecting him to be one of those evil principal type of characters and at the very least, apathetic, but that was subverted and he actually, genuinely cares for his students and *listens* to them, and can admit when he's wrong. I never seen any teacher/principal figure in any of the shows or movies I've seen so far do that. Like, he's 100% someone I'd trust. I also love the little backstory crumbs we get, like his involvement in Hexside burning down the rival school (that one photo on the phamplet Luz had with young Bump in it) how he used to play flyer derby when he was younger, tiny little things that are never elaborated on but still make him feel like he's lived a life of his own. Then there's the Them's the Breaks Kid episode, "No student is beyond redemption!" and STILL being all proud of Eda even though she lost *when he knew that he'd lose his job because of it* That part of him reminds me heavily of the one teacher I had in 8th grade who never gave up on me (she also tried the whole outlet thing, like Bump did with giving Eda that squeeze toy) @@idlescree
For me? The line two lines that won me over were "I'm a principle, not a stooge" & "I'm smart enough to know when I've made a mistake". It's one thing to say it but quite another to actually put heart and actions behind it. And I freaking love that! Its being brave enough to actually call out those in higher position of power for their shityness at least twice while still being fair and straightforward.
@@WoodlandGloomthiiiis, i love him so much, we love our disabled king✨️ He was such a competent principal, he cared so much. I loved the part when he missed the crew as he was forced to expell them, or how he managed to help his students in the Day of unity and after the whole colector thing! He was turned into a puppet but even his students loved him so much they made a statue of him like c'mon, even his fatherly attitude with Eda is awesome, how he handled the whole Luz enroling thing, how he knew Eda and still gave the oportunity for her student to enroll, i could go all day on how awesome he is as a character
This essay was top notch. Your line, "misconstruing outrage for morality" knocked me on my ass. I had never heard it put that way, but it is a very tempting misconception to run with if you're not careful. It carries a lot of energy and self righteousness. Additionally, the idea that adult children need comfort from their elderly parents too and how humanizing it is to show that. That it's ok to need comfort from the people who were once your authority figures. You never grow out of needing comfort or not knowing exactly what to do. Thanks again for this. it made my morning.
Thank you for your comment!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. We thought long and hard about how we wanted to boil that part down, but in the end that's so much of where the catharsis of a witch hunt comes from. It is trashed bathrooms. It's asserting control over something or someone you CAN control and making a cute little narrative about how this is the righteous thing instead of looking inwards, or the hard and heavy work of doing small, good deeds in the trenches. Flaming people online instead of giving a homeless person socks or participating at a city council meeting. it FEELS better to be part of a crusade than do actually do anything of value. RIGHT. Like. Adults to cry to their parents! And while an adult child may absolutely comfort a parent there is something very timeless and primal about how an adult child seeks comfort from their elderly parent...I was so happy to see that reflected here. I'm so happy you enjoyed
@idlescree I appreciate the point about outrage too. I try really hard online to not make assumptions about what people are doing irl, but sometimes I do find myself wondering if some folks are spending as much time trying to create change as they are flaming people. In my snarky moments I catch myself wanting to ask "when's the last time you went to a school board/ city council/ union/ etc. meeting?"
As someone at this "transitional" age of becoming an adult, hearing other people say this is wonderful. That there should be no stopping to learning. That regardless of age, people are still...people. with lives, goals, everything. With no close examples of adults in my life that continued who they were, seeing people talk about and express it, saying there is no right way to adulthood, its great
Thank you for your commentary on Darius, it always grinds my gears whenever people overlook everything Darius has done just because he's suddenly nice to Hunter, as if that means his past actions should be handwaved away
Darius is one of my favorite characters. I want to study him under a microscope. I love how messy he is, it is *interesting* and worthy of so much discussion and interpretation.
To be fair, we don't know how much bad stuff he did. As far as we know he could have been planning to rebel against Belos and stop his evil when he first joined a Coven similar to Raine, the same applies with Eber Wolf. Could he have been nicer to Hunter, sure, but I can't hold that much against him for that, after all Amity was pretty mean to Luz and Willow at first, plus he was planning a rebellion against Belos and Hunter seemed like someone completely loyal and obident to Belos so he's an enemy or at least someone to keep at a distance so he doesn't potentially spill the beans to Belos because then everyone is doomed. And to be fair again, even if Darius did do some bad stuff, well so did everyone who worked for Belos, even Hunter, as much as I love the kid and he is very kind he worked for Belos since he was born, so I'm confident he did at least one really horrible thing, he either probably killed one innocent person or at least torture them. And again everyone helped Belos in some way or form, like Willow and Gus being excited about joining a Coven back in season 1 or anyone attending or running Hexside because they were all following Belos rules and stuff and thus unknowningly helping a madman without realizing it. Even Raine technically was helping Belos by joining a Coven So its not okay to overlook all the presummed bad things Darius, but it is okay to overlook all the presummed bad things Hunter and others did? Honstly, when I first saw Darius and Eber Wolf I assumed they were bad guys because they captured Raine. And at the time, I was trying to figure out which Coven Heads were good and which ones were evil, since I assumed not all of them were evil and somewhere just indoctrinated and blindly loyal to not see all the evil Belos was doing because he tricked them like he tricked so many people into thinking they were doing good, plus considering there were 9 Ccoven Heads and how powerful they are suppose to be I assumed not all of them would be evil because it would hard to believe Luz and her friends could beat all nine of them, so some would have to be good to turn on Belos and help to even the odds. But then, Dana the masterful writer that she is, completely surprised me with the reveal that Darius and Eber Wolf were good guys pretending to be loyal to Belos to stop him in, Ingenius.
@@zexalbrony4799 I loved that comment of yours. Especially the part where you ask why one character should be held accountable, while others should be given a pass. I wish we could have actually seen Darius busting Raine out of jail, though I love their banter, when the ruse is revealed. I also love how it goes into a direction of Darius slowly becoming kinder to Hunter, since there is some baggage involved there, since the former Golden Guard was Darius beloved mentor and Darius has pretty much internalized his grief and is lashing out. The transition could have been done better, but hey...Darius is very much a side character and for every detail to fit in the show, they would have needed at least 15 more episodes in the first two seasons and even more with Season 3...or more Season altogether. 😅😅😂😂
@@kidoftheforce Yeah we sadly missed a lot of great stuff, espically because of that shortening of season 3, but luckily, that's what great fanfics and fanworks are for.
I love how they didn't treat the adults as people who knew less than the kids. The kids needed them, they needed help to deal with a lot of stuff and the adults knew how to handle it.
Escaped a cult a few years ago... when you mentioned how it stunts development, it just makes me remember. They used to yell at me to "grow up" while exerting great control over me. Funny how making my own decisions and leaving helped me grow up way more than they ever could. Lol.
I do love how you can tell there is a history and nuance to the adult relationships, especially Raine and Eda, that the younger characters just would not have yet. I think it is the very strongest part of Owl House's story telling.
Honestly I loved how in episode one we were made to see Camilla as a parent who wants to push her ideals onto her daughter thinking it’s what’s best, but later when luz finally sees her mom and meets Vee it shows us that Camilla worries about something happening too luz, and in season 3 ep 2 it was revealed she was bullied in the past for being different and ridiculed for it causing us to realize she just wanted to make sure that what she suffered through doesn’t happen too Luz.
On intergenerational friendship, I'd say the internet helps a lot with that. As a teen during vanilla wow I played a lot with older people, as in people well above twice my own age at the time. I'm still friends with some of them 18 years later. And now, as a 36 year old woman I take on the role of the adult myself as I frequent different groups related to different cartoons. Common interests transcends generational barriers.
It's another reason why we REALLY have to fight to defend those spaces, as they're constantly under attack. If you have a way to support a space, such as AO3, or keep in the loop of how the laws of the land are looking to use bad internet bills to censor the internet to ashes and destroy these places of creativity and mutual joy, it's important that we do so!! Thank you for your words!!!
Bump was very much a refreshing surprise when it came to characters that are pricinpal, his strict, yet understanding and compassionate towards his students most especially to Eda Luzz shenanigans
Alador is a. . . complicated character. He's introduced in a flashback that REALLY paints him in a bad light, and even when we do get to meet him in the flesh; I was really not sold on him being as aloof as he seemed. To me; he came across as an adult that saw eye to eye with Odalia in their view of potential for their family, which allowed him to so quickly change her mind on Amity's actions. But; we definitely missed out on potentially more to allow him to show what he was like as a father, outside of his work. I feel like his arc is just another victim of the Disney cancellation;. Its also especially sad; because there's so much potential with the background information of Alador, Odalia, and Darius. There's a goldmine there lol
SOOOO much. Like i said, there's tons of good fanfic about them that expand on those ideas very interestingly, and the cancellation definitely cut a lot of arcs short. I feel that Gus, probably of everyone, got done the dirtiest.
Really love the thoughts about adulthood as defined in the "traditional" sense, plus how there is most certainly more than one way to be an adult. Watching this got me to: 1) fondly remember how much screentime was dedicated to the Clawthorne sisters' interactions with Gwendolyn, 2) be impressed all over again with just how many shades of unhealthy adults are painted and explored in the show. Thank you also for highlighting those heady Mommy Persona power trips that can even reach Discord servers as the relevance of that can't be understated in the online world
Yeah, when thinking about it it's such a weird moving target historically. And then if you live in America, the peak surface level "social cohesion" of the 50's set such a messed up and nowadays completely unrealistic standard of what adulthood means...to say nothing of its variations around the world. the whole thing with Gwendolyn genuinely floored me. I keep going back to this desperate wish that all of these adults are doing their best and so much of it is so imperfect, flawed, messy and earnest. And don't get us started on the Discord servers, when I jumped into TOH fandom I was friggin' appalled but it's quite a common thing that happens. Thank you for watching and letting us know what you liked, the time you take to offer a comment like this is much appreciated
At my last job I was in my very early 20's and worked with three women in their early 40s, early 50's, and 60's respectively. The bond I made with them over six years is unbreakable. We are a genuine family and it was fascinating to share all of our perspectives in life, as well as learning new things that we hadn't considered before. So when I binged this show it really hit home to see not only a narrative for the teen characters but for the adults as well. You don't stop growing just because you're an adult and I appreciate the show for acknowledging that in the best possible way.
I’m 21 with a rough relationship with my parents. I absolutely started crying over the Clawthornes and Camilla because it put some things into perspective as well as putting into words what the core of the issue with my family i s, which is. So helpful, honestly
nice essay, I think we should see more adult representation (especially adults older than the young adult, 18-35 age) in shows not marketed exclusively to them!
Me too, and I genuinely think it is desperately needed. The political ruling class benefit from a fragmented population, from forcing people into social islands of one and reducing our understanding of each other to the stories they feel good about handing us. Art is powerful, art is meant to make people FEEL (which is so different from education or indoctrination) human with each other. I'm glad you liked the essay, and thank you for your comment!!
I loved the adults in The Owl House because, well, I'm middle aged myself. It was refreshing to see a show that could be enjoyed intergenerationally. Where the adult characters were as complex as the kids/teenagers. And it's because I really get how messy and unsure adulthood is. Sure, maybe as adults we've gotten wiser and more knowledgeable in some ways, but like you said, life is always changing and there's new, complicated challenges to face. I love the growth in everyone in the Owl House, and only the evil characters are incapable or unwilling to change.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, I had never seen a character like Edda represented in any media let alone in a kids show. Edda was the first time I saw a middle aged woman struggling with disability who doesn't have it all together, and she's not treated as a joke or a falure.
Im 27 and terrified of turning 30 because i dont want to stagnate. I love learning and growing and changing. The Owl House has so many role models in that regard. This is a great breakdown.
OMG, Idle, I really liked this video. As a freshman in college, I feel like it's important to realize that in order to be an adult you have to see others as independent from yourself. If a person is just copy of you, they haven't done any growth as a person, only memorizing what you've taught them.
Community Theater was my third space! I learned so much from the different generations I interacted with as peers, and I definitely wish that there were more experiences like this!
These are the kinda videos that will stick with me for the rest of my life. Even if I forget “watching” this video, it’s message is clear and something I’ll take with me for the rest of my life.
That warms my little bat heart so much. Thank you for your kind words. There were video essayists who have long since disappeared from platforms that are long dead now that permanently changed for the better the way I think--that any of our videos can help you in a similar way is some of the highest praise I can imagine.
This essay discussed how this show explores and dives deep into stuff that comes with adulthood so beautifully, and the entire analysis was outstanding. I'm in college right now and despite only being a young adult, and legally being so, I do not feel like one by any means even if I'm told otherwise. Seeing this video helped remind me that no matter what age you are, the determination of being an adult doesn't quite come at a certain age, or when you achieve specific goals. It's a constantly changing thing, and one that can take a lifetime or more to do.
Honestly? I've definitely hit rockbottom a few times and it was NOT easy to climb out. So I was cheering for Alador & Hunter. I was crying when Eda and Lilith reconnected with their mom. I had both painful paths of Lilith and Eda - I wasn't the perfect child like my older siblings but when I tried to end my life in 6Th grade? My parents did everything in their power to make sure I got the help, support, and love I needed. It had a heavy effect on my middle sister who's working as a therapist so no one else had to go through what I did. Now I know that my sisters and I are loved & it just manifests in differences. I'd argue that Darius was trying to help Hunter but in a way Hunter would actually hear and understand. A huge part of communication is changing how you talk to someone. Darius knew that praising Hunter wasn't going to work right away because Hunter has NEVER been praised by anyone. So he uses a tougher approach to get Hunter to listen and THEN introduce kindness when he knows Hunter heard him. Hunter is used to either absorbing or deflecting cruelty because it's all he knows. Darius was instrumental in helping him get honest positive reinforcement despite the isolation.
Thank you for sharing your story. That's incredibly challenging and I'm glad to hear you did manage to claw your way out. Even with support its really hard and takes an enormous amount of courage.
@@idlescree Thanks... I love how much we see both parents in each kid, especially if there's more than one like the blight children. You can see a bit of what alador was like as a kid from how he talks to Amity. Like the twins? He goofed off a LOT and likely didn't take his studies seriously waaaaay late in the school years due to natural talent. We see how Amity is a forward thinker like her mother but has her father's heart. Lilith takes after her mother in personality while Eda looks a LOT like Gwen. Its a little harder to say with Dell but I imagine he and Lilith look slightly similar even if his personality is more in-line with Eda. Hunter is probably the clostes we're going to get to what Evelyn was like - someone who what very expressive and knowledgeable. Luz is definitely a health balance between her dad and mom. Just sucks we didn't get to see a lot of him.
How is it possible that your video essays always come when I need them? I’m turning 20 this year with no plan and no defined future. I haven’t gone to college and I’ve never felt like an adult despite being one legally for almost 3 years. But I’ve certainly changed and I haven’t stopped my entire life, so at least I’m doing something right and I appreciate you helping me see that💛
I'm happy to hear the timing has helped you. And you have time...adulthood and maturity are active, not passive states. Any plan you have right now is likely to change anyway so don't get bogged down in having a perfect roadmap, especially at 19!!! You got this.
As a kid I always enjoyed talking to adults because they could offer some new perspectives id hadn’t considered while I was able to do the same. Even now I never saw it as strange to interact with adults because MOST of them genuinely wanted connection. The Owl House was full of that and I enjoyed that they were able to portray that relationship. Awesome video!
One of my favorite aspects of the owl housr ghat you dont see in kids show, not when I was growing up, is dynamic adults with aynamic relationships. Thank you so much for covering this!
I love how the adults aren't stereotyped in any way,like most shows have either the "adult who knows nothing" or the "adult who always knows better" This show makes them feel like people that know some stuff but not everything,like actual flawed people, but not completely ignorant or evil
This video was fantastic 🩷 the bit about "third places" was so fascinating. It made me realize that I was so blessed to have grown up in a church community that provided a safe, wholesome third place regularly 🥰
Another great example is Tenzin from The Legend of Korra, who is not only part of an intergenerational team but is a husband and a father, as well as a leader and master who, along with his siblings, struggles with responsibility and identity and is never old enough to grow and learn
I'm at the age where I'm about to end my journey in HS and going off to college and I guess by that standard becoming a young adult, but honestly I felt kinda like an "adult" (kinda? idk) but also not for a while because all of the self-reliance I had to do while living by myself due to my very messy and toxic family situation as well taking on massive responsibilities at home & extracurricular-wise. I often feel like I'm disconnected and isolated from everyone else's normalcy at school, seeing the life I could have lived and grown up in that I can never have. And I'm also very familiar with all kinds of adults from the exploitative, abusive, and ones who can't stand to tolerate or develop any empathy for kids to the ones who are actually kind and supportive and are good mentors to me. I guess my point is that I have seen how messy and chaotic adulthood can be, but watching the Owl House made me feel represented and seen and gave me good models to navigate my relationships with adults and to grow into (plus queer rep :D) and it was honestly rare to ever see something like that. Intergenerational relationships outside the societal bounds of family and teachers should be explored more in media. Stories from both the kid's sides and the adult sides both hit pretty hard for me and I feel alot of people in my life can take away from. Also a story that actually respect kids and actually take the time to tell their story? Hell yeah
I want to say so much... but i would literally write an essay. So i want to say thank you for this video, it made me feel so SEEN and most importantly, understood. As a 41 year old single mother who is currently jobless and trying to support two almost grown teens; i have never once felt like i was doing anything right as an adult/parent. Heck, even as a child, i never felt like i did anything right... but I'm still trying. I do my best to parent them in a way that doesnt shackle them to societal and family expectations, because i know how much it hurts from experience. I do my best to show them how much i love them no matter who they are and encourage their dreams for their own future... still, i wonder if im doing enough or doing it "right". Seeing this video made me feel a little better about my entire existence, lol. I know that sounds a little extreme, but its how i feel. On that note, i really REALLY need to finish watching Owl House. 😮 i liked the show when i started it, i just never got the chance to finish it. 😅 anyway, thanks again! ❤
If you ever feel compelled to write the essay, please do--seeing how any part of our work has moved you means a lot to us. Thank you for sharing! Your story is very powerful but it requires so much strength. If our work is of any help in that, I'm very glad. And yessss do finish it, it's very worth it :3
OMG I'M IN A VIDEO!!!!!!! YAYYYYYYYYYYYY I'm so happy you've included Darius in this video, his journey is not so noticeable, but it is important for his character. And thank you for making a video on this topic, as a just turned adult I relate to it a lot
Thank YOU! It was a really important contribution overall--and Darius was someone I really wanted to talk about and for the most part its hard to justify because of our scope. But it worked out this time, and we always love hearing what you the audience are wanting to see. I'm glad you liked it!!
There is no point at which adults stop growing. Life is constant change. That's one reason this fiftysomething adult loves shows like The Owl House, as well as Gravity Falls and the DuckTales and She-Ra reboots. Not only can I identify with the young people on these shows -- particularly Luz, who, as a female fantasy nerd, simply did not exist in the shows that I, as Gen X, grew up with; now, at last, I get to see my younger self represented -- but each of these shows features at least one interesting, complex adult character. Thank you for this thoughtful video essay.
Thank you for enjoying. I love hearing the perspectives of audiences of all ages and it's really gratifying to know the work is resonating with peers across generations. We are all so much closer to each other than we think...
Love this. The ability to change and grow really is the true mark of coming-of-age, not just in stories but in life. And it's also true that no matter how old you get, you'll never stop coming-of-age.
The Owl House has had such an impact on me. So much hit home and I’m GLAD the show covered stuff most shows wouldn’t dare to. Even if it got canceled 😢
What makes the behavior of Belos and Odalia worse is that they can't even use the argument that there evil so their bad parents because even evil people can be good or decent parents, as I've seen in several franchises over the years. Like I said back in my comment on you're video discussing the evil of Belos, I've learned from many villains from many franchies thattThere's a difference between being evil/bad and being a monster. Just because someone is bad or evil, doesn't mean they still aren't Human and they still have Humanity in them(or some other equivalent because in many franchises there are people who aren't Humans like demons, witches, aliens, robots, anthropomorphic frogs, the list goes on, so they have something that is the equivalent to Humanity, but I will still be calling it Humanity for simplicity). Many bad people can still have good things about them being that some form of honor, loyalty, or comradery with those on their side. Here's an example of a bad guy whose still a good parent or at least a decent one. In the Power Rangers series Lost Galaxy, the main villain at the start of the show is Scorpious and he has a daughter Trakeena. Both are evil, they acknolwdge there evil and like being evil, they like ruling and conquring and hurting people. However, despite that the two still geniually love each other as father and daughter to the point when Scorpious is dying after being mortally wounded in a battle with theRangers halfway through the series, Trakeen returns after having left a few episodes ago because she didn't want her dad to turn her into an insect just to increase her power and she and Scropious have a truly heartwarming final moment where they both apolgize for their behavior and show how much they love each despite being evil: Trakeena: Oh, father. I'm so sorry. Scorpious: It is me who is sorry, for trying to keep you so sheltered. Trakeena: But you were only trying to protect me. Scorpious: But I can protect you no longer. And after this, Trakeena takes over as the main villain for the rest of the series and her fathers death is a major driving force for her to get revenge and become a really great villain for the rest of the series. Even evil people can be complex and have more motiosn then just being evil. And even evil people can be decent enough parents. And it's not just parental relationshsi, it's all kinds too. For example, in another Power Rangers series Zeo, in one epsiode the main villain King Mondo is trying to kidnap a piano player, not for any grand scheme to conqure the Earth, but because he wants them to play for his wife Queen Machina because it's her birthday and she loves music. And later his sone Sproket joins him in his mission to capture the piano player to be Machina's birthday gift. These two are essitially wasting the time and resources of their mighting Machine Emoire that is suppose to conqure the Earth just to get a birthday gift for their wife/mom because they geniually love her and want to make her happy on her special day. I can't agree with the attmepted kidnapping because that is wrong, but I have some degree of respect and admiration for their effots to get a good gift for the they love. Thus, people like Belos and Odalia are even worse in my opinion. There bad parents, not because there evil, no because they are beyond evil. There heartless monsters who don't care or love anyone but themselves. As I said, even evil villains can love others and want to make them happy, but not these two. I mean these two would never do what Mondo and Sporket did and waste time and resources just to make a loved one happy. Sure Odalia threw birthday parties for Amity and the twins, but as Understaidn Willow showed us those parties were always for herself not her kids, they were ways to mingle with other people of importantce and get her kids to be friends with their kids so she could get in closer to these powerful people. And Belos there is no way he ever threw Hunter a birthday party, several fanfic writers have even written stories about Luz and the others throwing Hunter his first birthday party and some of them take it a step further by saying Belos never even told Hunter when his birthday is and honstly I believe that monster would do something like that.
Coming to The Owl House as an adult with my eldest kid being Gus' age, it was really wonderful to see the adult characters portrayed so richly, especially the flaws of the parental figures. It feels like, in so much children's media, the parents are either fantastic or they're bumbling fools. To have a cast of adults so richly portrayed made it really enjoyable for me to approach on another level. They all approach the kids differently, too, which is nice. I love that we see Darius grow, even if we don't see it as enough (I love writing him for this purpose) and that the adults have to detach from the mission mindset to realize these are *kids* they're working with, who clearly are going to want to fight, but shouldn't be the ones taking the biggest risks. Belos is a fascinating example of an adult who refuses to grow and change for something like 350 years and an example of the danger of dogmatic adults with unhealthy views of power. I hope the kids watching see how the healthy relationships are modeled and find places to engage with informal or formal mentors like what the characters in the show find. It's so wild to me that fandom spaces have so many DNI requests for adult/minor relationships when that intergenerational engagement was foundational in the early internet fandom I started off in over 25 years ago. I honestly miss how open the internet was at that time and how we kept safe in those spaces that are being nixed today through unwise legislation and the purity policing of online spaces.
Thank you, I'm glad you did! And yeah, the Owl Beast absolutely personifies the relationship with the chronic illness so freaking well and growing with it is absolutely a different experience than life without.
Rewatching Owl House purely to focus on the adult characters now that I have EVERYONE’s story and context as given in the show, I love the writing and characterization of all the individuals in this show. Listening to this video had me sobbing in the shower at 30:00 , I’m approx the age of Camilla and seeing her story broke me. There are a lot of us aging millennials who were viciously bullied for being “nerds” or “weird”, and watching her come to terms with her own struggles manifesting in her child and the drowning feeling of trying to get through all of this while grieving…your words and the show’s message of change at all stages of life is something I didn’t know I needed to hear. Thank you, love your content!
This made me cry at so many moments, and I'm a 40-year-old man grown up with emotional neglect so severe I can't cry when there is another person in the room
It makes me think of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. In the Team Star story, Clavell, the Director of Naranja/Uva Academy, poorly disguises himself and takes the name "Clive", saying he's a teenage student of the Academy. With that Clive persona, he supports us in taking down Team Star in order to get closer to them and understand their motives. During that time, our character and "Clive" build trust. Sadly, after his real identity is revealed, there is no aftermath to that, mostly because our character is a blank slate I suppose. But it would be interesting to see our character try and discuss their relationship with Clavell. He's the director of the Academy, and they're a student which creates a rift between them, but he's also Clive, and our character and Clive are friends. I would like to see Clavell and our character bridge that gap between them and keep their friendship going. But it wouldn't be easy since there's also that director/student relationship as an obstacle.
This essay hit at a good time for me. As you said for Alador, I hit rock bottom last year, though I had the virtue of doing so much younger than the adult characters of this show. And I've had some anxieties about what that says about me as an adult, if I can still make a place for myself even if I'm adrift right now. So, having someone go right out the gate "you don't need to meet up with the 'traditional' or expected indicators of success," and then examining characters growing and recovering from their own hardships? That helps me a lot. So, thank you, Idle Scree ^_^
I’m so glad that Luz lying to her mom is portrayed as a bad thing and that Camilla is allowed to act in a realistic way. Most Disney shows intentionally or not have one lesson in common “your parents are stupid, so it’s okay to lie to them”. Sure it can feel like that when you’re a kid but you can’t placate that mindset too much, it’s important teach children that there are trustworthy and untrustworthy adults, how to tell the difference and that lying to adults who love you is a terrible idea.
I used to have friends, as a kid, who were adults back in the early 2000's. We would just go for ice cream or to the museum. They either moved away or died. Now, neither other adults or kids know what to do with me. Too mature and spooky for kids and too childish for other adults. Do regret this? No. The others have the problem, not me.
The idea of “Adults shouldn’t be friend with kids!” at least to me is dumb and dangerous. For me it’s like this, adults with bad intentions will take advantage of the fact that a kid being friends with them isn’t common and make the kid feel special, I am a kid, that could work on me if I wasn’t as aware as I am. But yeah I do believe that kids and adults can be friends.
this is one of the greatest essays I've ever watched. I don't think ill be able to stop thinking about or forget the reasonings behind fragmentation and atomization of society and the way the lack of community leads to terrible takes like 'why would an adult ever interact with a child?'
Watching this video and really listening to it has let me see another view of adulthood, I already knew that even when people mature they don’t have to lose their interests or personality. But what I didn’t take into consideration is the growing part, they don’t jsut stop learning and stay stable, adults are just big kids, they’re also figuring it out they just know a little more than younger people do(sometimes)I need to put into my head that everyone is growing, the only stability you should find is within yourself, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be vulnerable with others. Don’t expect too much but don’t expect too little either
I get a lot of shit sometimes from my coworkers about being a childless adult that watches cartoon and stuff like this what I tell try to tell them. Sure not every cartoon is like toh but there's so much good in some of these shows I feel bad that "mature adults" don't want to give them the time
1st congratulations on the 14k. As far as adults in the owl house, theres somethings i've learned in life, as previously mentioned adults are basically big kids too and you still don't know anything about the world because its still such a big place. You try to fill it with the idea of control or false confidence so, it doesn't eat you up and you have this idea your on top but really that's not true. Honestly I don't know what it really is somedays ya just have to keep on going but I do agree nobody can do it alone the relationships and friendship you make regardless of the differences can help ya through itexperience
Thank you! We are so excited for this coming year. Yeah, I like your take here--it's similar to the conclusions and experiences I've come to and so much of it comes down to forming real community with people of all kinds and ages.
you had no right to emotionally devastate me like this when I was supposed to be wrighting my upcoming essay this was ment to be procrastination not gut wrenching emotional art
Hey! As someone from scandavia, we still acutally have a sort of tradition oround "adulthood" when we reach the age around 13-14. Its changed now, to be more or less, just being a teenager now, but its still a big tradition and we call it "Konfirmation", Conformation in english. Idk, if the other scandivaion countrys do this, but we do it in Denmark. Its traditonaly about becoming a christian, and a adult, and you will ofically be "konfirmerert" when the preacher has told you, after around a year of learning about christiany and what it means. It has though evovled, and some people will still get a "Konfirmation", without christaintiy involved, then it will just be called a "Nonfirmation", and be more about reaching "adulthood" or the teenage years.
OOOOO Thank you so much for supplying this! I really appreciate it. I was raised Catholic...ish, and we have a type of confirmation as well. It's a bigger deal with my Mexican relatives, and heavily cultural as well. I actually super love that this tradition persists for you. We reached for Scandanavia largely because of how well things are documented, but I suppose its also true that Americans have "sweet sixteen" and Latinx have quinceañera as far as modern versions of old standards.
For Alador he shows symptoms of d0mest!c ab*se throughout all actions. He is getting at least emotional and financial ab*se and I think that’s important to realize that he tried his best while under his own terrible marriage 21:14
I thought I was the only one who saw that! I have to add one thing though: He is most certainly getting physically abused by Odalia. There is one thing in the pre ultimate episode of Season 2, where she threatens to end their deal about keeping the kids out of the company and brandishes her Oracle Pendant in front of him, which we later learn is used for combat, and Alador looks outright terrified.
Just a 36-year old disabled and chronically ill queer person who has been ill since age 12 sobbing with joy while I drink my coffee, nothing to see here… 🥹😭 This show has been such an utter joy to watch as an adult and to know there are kids out there like me who have this media to feel seen and to grow along with, makes my heart swell. Thanks for such a lovely video. Truly.
MAN you knocked it out of the park once again with your analysis! When you got to the segment about Camila ngl it was hard for me, considering the messy relationship I have with my own mother. Camila admitting that she messed up honestly still destroys me to this day. Loved the video!! ❤
I love your analysis videos. In explaining the intergenerational friendships I could help but think of my mentor who is 40 years older than me but on top of teaching me about my trade he is also a friend and secondary father figure in a sense.
It is so incredible that you have this relationship in your life. Genuinely that's so wonderful, these things have gotten so rare but they are SO incredibly important. I have a voice teacher I've known since I was ten years old and his role in my life is very much like a close uncle but there is also that component of genuine trade/skill and worldview. Thank you for sharing!!!!
growing up and exsepting yourself is a part of life. and what life has taught me so far is that life can be hard but we must stay strong and happy even if it gets bleak. i am 16 years old and i am just now learning that growing up is a sign that you yourself are changing for the better and exsepting yourself for who you are as a person in your own world and others. i think that growing is both a transitional and emotional prosess that is not done easily but also can grant you good expeariences and good people to experence that change with, in the end this show has taught me how to exsept myself for who i am and it also taught me that people will be around to comfort me if i need it most and that is why this show is so wonderfuly beautiful.
As a teenager, between the ages of 15-17, I have two 22-year-old friends who are amazing and part of my life and playing RPGs together, and they share with me ways to improve my experience living as a teen
This video gives me an idea of one of the things I wants to do different in the animated show I want to make in the future. As someone in the young adult stage where I don’t really feel fully like an adult or a kid I think it’s a shame not many animated media shows that. It’s usually either focusing on kids or older adults and the middle stage can be just a rocky and confusing as being a teen. So I hope I can make something interesting with this idea based on my own experiences with learning and growing (also anxiety and mental health stuff) I kinda feel if people were more accepting of how we all make mistakes people would be much more willing to consider when they are making one.
My mom was pretty similar to Camilla, but a bit different still. My parents are HUGE nerds/geeks, and they encouraged my interests & quirks because they loved the little weird child they created. Problem was, my mom actively discouraged it outside of the home, and my dad didn’t, and unfortunately, I didn’t get to see my dad much growing up. She’d berate me for the way I’d behave, even tho I was never a “bad” kid. Never acted out in school or anything, but I was terribly shy, and afraid to speak to people. I’d play unusual games by myself, talk about strange topics with other adults because I was used to speaking that way with the adults in my life. The constant whiplash was confusing as hell and wrecked the little self confidence I had. It took YEARS for us to be able to have a conversation about the ways she made me feel because she absolutely refused to believe she could’ve been wrong when she was “doing what she thought was best”. I just turned 24 this month, and I have a little weird soon to be 4yo. It wasn’t until fall last year she FINALLY stoped being so defensive and combative, and listened to me, and apologized without deflecting blame on me. Our relationship still needs heaps of repair, but her being able to do that meant the world to me.
Love the way you express how life is consistant transition state for your self, that resonate with me and now I finally have word to describe it. I don't know what else to say but I love all if your videos, they are very thoughtful and remind me to keep an open minds on everything, as much as alduting in real life force most to be who Steve was. Hope to see more in the future!!!
@@idlescree let's fucking GOOOOOO! I'm excited for that. I honestly love the IDW comics, flaws and all, it's fantastic, mtmte in particular. "Thanks for traveling with me."
@@Middlefingestudios1 Yeah, meanwhile you've got people who are talking about Cyclonus, Tailgate, and Whirl as their favourite disaster throuple and I'm like "I've never even heard of those guys"
On your comment about people's resistance to intergenerational friendships/those with minors, I'm part of the crowd that says I don't have business hanging out with them, but I usually say this as exaggeration. The only time I said and meant it was while working part-time in college, when one of my teen coworkers was way too flirtatious with me, even found my number to text me. I didn't feel comfortable engaging, and sometimes he'd get too personal. He knew how old I was, and I told him I wasn't comfortable with that sort of thing, from anyone, but I ultimately had to just assert my boundaries with him, and that experience made me reluctant to interact much with people his age range. I'm more than happy to hold a conversation and develop the sorts of bonds as I did with most of the people there, I mean we shared a lot of opinions about media and gave each other some decent insight (I gave them advice for getting scholarships for college and they told me about new media or hobbies I came to enjoy). I'm just reluctant to do it because I'm worried I might unintentionally send the wrong messages now. I guess I'm just hyperconscious of who I interact with, and a person's age/maturity level plays a big factor in how I interact with people, and sometimes younger people's/minors' don't always click with me. So, yeah, I totally get the argument that writing off any friendship with someone younger than you can be a disservice to yourself, I could take steps to avoid generalizing, but simply put, I just don't always feel comfortable in their space, if anything, there are times where I feel I'm unintentionally invading it. I wouldn't feel this way for online/public places or media for general audiences of course, but I wouldn't want to make younger demographics feel the same way Sephora Kids make me feel. I just think that some places can and should just be for the youth.
Hey, I wanted to start by saying thank you so so much for sharing this thoughtful and detailed response. I think that in most things in life, moderation, nuance and context are all critically important when it comes to investments of time and energy, especially when it comes to genuinely tricky to navigate situations like inter-generational friendships. I also want to emphasize that your experience and perspective are not wrong in any way. Some places are emphatically not really for adults and vice versa! It's mostly that middle ground, a general aversion I've seen on the rise come up that I'm addressing--this overall horror and revulsion to the notion that healthy inter-genrational relationships are possible. The main thing I was thinking of were teachers, mentors, or how senior citizens can make friends with younger ones to the benefit of all parties, or people who share a hobby in a space in fandom or irl. And a big part of what you're sharing here is coming from a place of what appears to be genuine empathy! So I really, really appreciate you presenting your words and experience here. Not everyone NEEDS to be doing this. If you find yourself uncomfortable, certainly it makes sense to step away. Our position has more to do with resisting the idea that NO ONE should, ever! Thanks again!!!!!!
I broke down yesterday whilst talking to my occupational therapist about sorting out a mess that I’d landed myself into, I’m 23, living predominantly alone, disabled (always have been but things have been going wrong and while I’m still under my parents roof (I’m essentially renting from my grandmother) it took my OT to remind me, that I’m a disabled young adult, trying to do so many things, on my own, without the proper assistance, and it was okay that I couldn’t do it all, that I was ONLY 23, it didn’t make me any less of an adult, I still don’t know what an adult is for me, but that and this have reminded me that I’m not some failure because I’m an adult and not handling everything about my disability or living alone or uni, and, it’s okay.
This to me is what Svtfoe lacked and it turned into a problem on top of more problems. In my opnion they didn't know how to deal with Meteora/ Heinous. Not only was she of different age than the main cast, they didn't know how to conclude her very well so they turned her into a baby, but then only explored her more when she was the same age as the cast. The series has adult cast but most of them or are very one dimensional or are the source of problems ( The high commission, bc Hekapoo is an adult to me, Moon's betrayal, etc ) Eclipsa was an amazing mysterious character that sadly lost all that when she got introduced and became Queen, she never felt like she had authority. In TOH the adults come in many forms, not only as villains but friends so you can really start seeing them as individuals.
I'm gonna be honest, Steve is my favorite character because he's just so. Normal, as a person. He's just a dude in a situation with a history, a future, and the wacky present we see him in now. And he's just like me, I'm in a wacky time with a past, a future and the present. I've changed for the better by seeing what I knew was right wasn't actually correct. I've left parts of myself behind that I didn't love, and some that I did. But since it loved me, it came back. Now I'm a better version who's seen my shit and ready to see more, and I will do it with a shit eating grin because I know I've survived this far, and like Steve, I will continue becoming a new person, and this journey is still going. He may have got a show ending, but for me it's till death do me and my bullshit apart. PS: I totally shipped Lilith and Steve, it's just my little thing where I saw a common man fall for an uncommon woman and somehow, she fell back.
as someone who is a new adult, I am just starting college, and yeah, its a scary, exciting, daunting, windriding mess of emotions, so genuinely I needed this video
Another BRILLIANT analysis!! Bravo!! I'm writing a YA novel and you inspire me to think more about my young adult characters and their relationships with the adults in my story; thank you for that. AND, thank you for reminding me again and again about how much The Owl House means to me
Yesssss I'm happy it's been useful to you. And you're welcome, any chance to remind the world this show rules is an opportunity we take because it's GREAT
Polyhexian- the fanfic author you mentioned when discussing Darius- IS SO SO GOOD. If you love a bit of tragedy, if you love Hunter and you love Grimwalker lore- please consider reading a few of his works!!
They are SO freaking skilled, absolutely one of my favorite writers for a couple of fandoms. Their Owl House work is stunning (and my all time favorite of theirs is Jabberwocky--have you read that one?) but also if you're interested in their work in general, they've written an original novel called Ophelia Was Murdered, which I also HIGHLY recommend.
Titan I had missed your videos! I was rewatching them since last week hoping a new one would come out, perfect timing! Your analyses and insight are always so interesting and thoughts-provoking, it's always a pleasure to listen to you.
The world never stops. The world never stays the quite same as it was before even moment to moment. People also never stay the same, neither mentally or physically and true adulthood and maturity is recognizing that and finding the balance between mutability and stability. To find who you believe you are and what is right but not being to set in your ways that you reject new ideas and loose touch with the times. It is the job of the past generations to make a stable foundation with tried and true methods that the new generation can build upon. And it is the job of the new generations to provide new ideas and methods for all generations to benefit from. We need to be able to teach each other.
I love the sheer disconnect between Coven Lilith and Wild Witch Lilith. They're almost two entirely different characters but the fundamental traits are the same. They're eager to please, studious and dedicated. Which goes to show that your first impression of someone can be entirely wrong and the things that you think might be a downside to someone can be their greatest strengths with just a small shift in perspective. It was something shown in Willow as well with her going from the Abomination Track to the Plant Track and is one of the more quiet messages in the show, and it's important that it was shown in both adults and children because it's TRUE for both adults and children.
Great video! It’s the first of yours I’ve watched, but definitely not the last, and I have a whole year of videos to choose from! I really appreciate your focus on the maturing adults because I feel like I never got to see that growing up. It was always kids having character growth and adults being mostly static, and I think that led to a weird stumbling block: I never imagined myself as old as I’m currently am (less than 25). Instead of a fully formed person, I had vague ideas of being self-sufficient, cool, and finally free of all the anger I felt. I’ve been chasing this goal of becoming a static adult, because that’s what’s required, right? But not only is that impossible, but would also suck. I still don’t totally know what it means to be an adult version of myself, but it makes that task less daunting when maturing is still a part of it! So thanks for really spelling it out.
The trend of wholly static adult characters is thankfully changing--grabbing for a random example I deeply enjoy, Transformers: Earthspark has an adult cast that changes quite a lot--but is certainaly one of those things that has less representation. In a world where we're experiencing a poorly defined, protracted "adolesence", defining oneself as an "adult" has become really murky and frustrating. The idea of a clear end point: ludicrous in the context of an actual human life! We are all constantly in states of change as any living thing. I find it a comforting to know that I'll never be fully cooked or "done", because it leaves so much room to become better and different versions of myself. You'll always be maturing--if you give yourself the room to! You've got this.
2:13 to show how arbitrary the adulthood thing is, the US changed the legal age for smoking to 21 in December 2019. My graduating class was born in 1999-2000, so we were all above 18 but still about a year+ from 21. There was this weird thing where people who were smoking had to illegally get cigarettes they previously were previously able to purchase legally. I’m not a smoker and don’t like it around me, but I still think it was kind of ridiculous. Like would you be charged as an adult if you got a cop who was a dick? Idk 🙃
The only 3rd places I can think of that are somewhat arround would be (some) Churches and the dwindling number of out of school clubs like scouting. (Even then some can’t count due to parental or other overbearing pressures. Taking it into responsibility. Or that they don’t have external activities in an “non-required” situation).
Churches are an institution, so they don't quite count as a "third place." Scouting is so structured (and also religious) that it also doesn't really fulfill the role of a "third place" either. Take it from someone who was a Scout for 3 years. Hated it so much after a while because it just felt like school after I finished school.
@HedgehogEditor as someone who also was a scout for years, i did not have the same experience. It can be verry dependent on scout masters and other people with troop leadership. High focus on the somewhat or some, in my statement. It is more a sentiment that the only mass 3rd places are not the best for everyone nor consistent enough.
Thank you all for watching! Special shout out to those of you watching live, it's so fun to see familiar faces in the live chat and meeting us across wild timezones. In news, we have a PATREON now! If you love our work and want to see more of what we do, please consider supporting us over at www.patreon.com/user?u=112093714. See you all in the next one. Reeeee!
Go Steve!
the way this show lets kids evaluate "good and bad" characters by making sympathetic, realistic representation of combinations of behaviors, beliefs, experience, and attributes... it feels like a step in the right direction for family media. as said, some of the redeemed character behaviors were NOT ok. but they can grow into better people, that change is also great to see exemplified. and the broad number of ways in which adults are shown to be bad, manipulative, inconsiderate, or otherwise fail... it seems like many spend their adulthoods coming to terms with their experiences with all kinds of shitty adult figures, so seeing flawed adults represented has felt very therapeutic for me, it makes me think it will be good for kids to see too.
Agreed. Always love to see flawed adults who are also NOT bad people, just flawed. Some deserve sympathy and recovery like Alador or Lilith. They deserve time and forgiveness, but with the understanding that it's not "all good now," they still need to work to become better. Others deserve to be alone until they learn how toxic they are like Odalia or Kikimora. And then there are some that don't deserve any second chances-- Belos most notably.
And they also draw a very strong line between those that can grow and change and when someone is just too far gone and you can’t talk to them anymore. The collector was able to change and become a good person because he was still learning. He was a child and had no clue what was happening. As opposed to Belos who was the oldest dude around and spent years as part of this culture and held tightly to his disgusting (cough n4z1 cough) beliefs. And I think that’s important too. Because while it’s good to try and talk to people with opposing views, sometimes that’s not safe and there are some people whose views are too far and you cannot safely engage with them.
@@saltydinonuggies1841
Spoilers
I love Belos and Odalia as takes on the pure evil type of villain. They’re both very realistic depictions of actual bad people. They’re not actually irredeemable, I don’t really believe anyone is, but they’ve basically dug in their heels and refused to be redeemed. Like you said, Belos lived so long, saw so much, and never grew as a person. He putrefied, he got worse, he’s well and truly awful, when he seriously had no need to be.
His more normal character flaw of being unable to admit when he was wrong, kept him stuck with his old (super fucked up) views, replaying the time he murdered his brother over and over without a shred of self awareness, planning to genocide a population that he blames for his own mistake.
Odalia is less far gone, but she’s genuinely too selfish to be any sort of family to anyone. All she has to do is learn to care about people other than herself, but she won’t, and she doesn’t.
She’s a villain not because she can’t grow as a person, but because she won’t. And in Belos’s case, he had an insane amount of time for chances, and even though I believe he could have turned back at most points throughout his journey, he never wavers in his genocidal intent, never questions it for a moment, and even if he could have formed a real bond with someone and admitted to not being a savior of humans or anyone else maybe a couple hundred years ago, he never looks back.
Very human. Very inhuman. I love that they kill him on screen. It was the only ending that fit. He started it, he was the aggressor, every prejudiced justification he had about protecting humanity from inhuman threats ends up being true, but he’s the threat. He would NOT have reacted well to the modern world. The same way he justified his bloodlust as witches being dangerous (when they literally didn’t do anything to him), he made it so the only option left was to kill him, for being an actual real and present threat to earth and the boiling isle.
He’s not even a cool villain, he’s a clever one, well written, interesting, and a major killjoy. Actually hateable
One thing i love about The Owl House is how it never played the "oh god im becoming my mother/father" joke kid shows love to do. In fact, with Camilla in season 3 specifically, the show goes out of its way to show how the similarities you may share with your parents doesn't have to be something to be embarassed or ashamed about.
Agreed. I think those moments can be funny when a child's parent is an absolute disaster in some way or another, but more often than not, people become like their parents in smaller, subtler ways. Taking interest in the same hobbies, making the same food, carrying on their habits and mannerisms, etc. Their influence is important and it helps shape who you become.
What I love about Camilas story is that it flips that entire concept. Instead of Luz becoming her mother over time, it’s Camila who reveals she’s always been like Luz
One of my favorite jokes in the entire series -- and one of the moments I knew I was gonna love this show -- is a joke about being an adult right in the first episode.
Eda's head is cut off and she goes "Oh, this just happens when you get older." Luz gets a horrified look and asks seriously "Does it??!??" The joke was so absurd and yet simultaneously *_so realistic_* and I couldn't help but crack up.
God I feel that. I'll wiggle around and every single joint in my body cracks and my little cousins look at me like I'm Beetlejuice and it's like BWAHAHAHA Yessssss this is what happens kids!! >:D
@@idlescree Perfect merch for adult fans: an icepack that says "Ice pack for Steve" lol.
@@LittleHobbit13this is the funniest thing anyone has said so far, yes, absolutely
Well, I loved how Papa Titan was characterized while also showing how he even made mistakes while also helping Luz by not only giving perspective on Phillip's delusions and vices but also giving her the choice of using his power to be revived and save the Boiling Isles. It was so awesome and powerful and I can't help but love him as a parent shown as a person despite how short he appeared.
AAAAAH yeah Papa Titan. I would have liked to get to him Q__Q Thank you for sharing your thoughts, I wholly agree with these feelings
@@idlescree You are welcome! And thank you for the wonderful video! 🤗
Bump's definitely one of my favorites! He was really refreshing as a principal character
He's so great, I freaking love Principal Bump--what about him felt so refreshing to you? I'm super curious of any details you'd be interested in sharing!
It was nice to see a teacher in animation actually be competent and truly care for their students
I had been expecting him to be one of those evil principal type of characters and at the very least, apathetic, but that was subverted and he actually, genuinely cares for his students and *listens* to them, and can admit when he's wrong. I never seen any teacher/principal figure in any of the shows or movies I've seen so far do that. Like, he's 100% someone I'd trust. I also love the little backstory crumbs we get, like his involvement in Hexside burning down the rival school (that one photo on the phamplet Luz had with young Bump in it) how he used to play flyer derby when he was younger, tiny little things that are never elaborated on but still make him feel like he's lived a life of his own. Then there's the Them's the Breaks Kid episode, "No student is beyond redemption!" and STILL being all proud of Eda even though she lost *when he knew that he'd lose his job because of it* That part of him reminds me heavily of the one teacher I had in 8th grade who never gave up on me (she also tried the whole outlet thing, like Bump did with giving Eda that squeeze toy) @@idlescree
For me? The line two lines that won me over were "I'm a principle, not a stooge" & "I'm smart enough to know when I've made a mistake". It's one thing to say it but quite another to actually put heart and actions behind it. And I freaking love that!
Its being brave enough to actually call out those in higher position of power for their shityness at least twice while still being fair and straightforward.
@@WoodlandGloomthiiiis, i love him so much, we love our disabled king✨️ He was such a competent principal, he cared so much. I loved the part when he missed the crew as he was forced to expell them, or how he managed to help his students in the Day of unity and after the whole colector thing! He was turned into a puppet but even his students loved him so much they made a statue of him like c'mon, even his fatherly attitude with Eda is awesome, how he handled the whole Luz enroling thing, how he knew Eda and still gave the oportunity for her student to enroll, i could go all day on how awesome he is as a character
The way I cheered when Steve was mentioned
Glad you liked his entrance!
Playing it off as a meme then getting into why Steve was genuinely interesting to think about was genius.
Standing ovation for Steve!
YAY STEEEEEVEEEEE
I love how TOH handled adults. So many shows like this dont show much from the adult's yet here they do and make them just as important as the kids
This essay was top notch. Your line, "misconstruing outrage for morality" knocked me on my ass. I had never heard it put that way, but it is a very tempting misconception to run with if you're not careful. It carries a lot of energy and self righteousness. Additionally, the idea that adult children need comfort from their elderly parents too and how humanizing it is to show that. That it's ok to need comfort from the people who were once your authority figures. You never grow out of needing comfort or not knowing exactly what to do. Thanks again for this. it made my morning.
Thank you for your comment!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. We thought long and hard about how we wanted to boil that part down, but in the end that's so much of where the catharsis of a witch hunt comes from. It is trashed bathrooms. It's asserting control over something or someone you CAN control and making a cute little narrative about how this is the righteous thing instead of looking inwards, or the hard and heavy work of doing small, good deeds in the trenches. Flaming people online instead of giving a homeless person socks or participating at a city council meeting. it FEELS better to be part of a crusade than do actually do anything of value.
RIGHT. Like. Adults to cry to their parents! And while an adult child may absolutely comfort a parent there is something very timeless and primal about how an adult child seeks comfort from their elderly parent...I was so happy to see that reflected here.
I'm so happy you enjoyed
All of this.
And when you think about it, it's frightening how *old and consistent* of a substitute outrage is for morality.
@idlescree I appreciate the point about outrage too. I try really hard online to not make assumptions about what people are doing irl, but sometimes I do find myself wondering if some folks are spending as much time trying to create change as they are flaming people. In my snarky moments I catch myself wanting to ask "when's the last time you went to a school board/ city council/ union/ etc. meeting?"
As someone at this "transitional" age of becoming an adult, hearing other people say this is wonderful. That there should be no stopping to learning. That regardless of age, people are still...people. with lives, goals, everything. With no close examples of adults in my life that continued who they were, seeing people talk about and express it, saying there is no right way to adulthood, its great
adolescent
Thank you for your commentary on Darius, it always grinds my gears whenever people overlook everything Darius has done just because he's suddenly nice to Hunter, as if that means his past actions should be handwaved away
Darius is one of my favorite characters. I want to study him under a microscope. I love how messy he is, it is *interesting* and worthy of so much discussion and interpretation.
To be fair, we don't know how much bad stuff he did. As far as we know he could have been planning to rebel against Belos and stop his evil when he first joined a Coven similar to Raine, the same applies with Eber Wolf. Could he have been nicer to Hunter, sure, but I can't hold that much against him for that, after all Amity was pretty mean to Luz and Willow at first, plus he was planning a rebellion against Belos and Hunter seemed like someone completely loyal and obident to Belos so he's an enemy or at least someone to keep at a distance so he doesn't potentially spill the beans to Belos because then everyone is doomed.
And to be fair again, even if Darius did do some bad stuff, well so did everyone who worked for Belos, even Hunter, as much as I love the kid and he is very kind he worked for Belos since he was born, so I'm confident he did at least one really horrible thing, he either probably killed one innocent person or at least torture them. And again everyone helped Belos in some way or form, like Willow and Gus being excited about joining a Coven back in season 1 or anyone attending or running Hexside because they were all following Belos rules and stuff and thus unknowningly helping a madman without realizing it. Even Raine technically was helping Belos by joining a Coven
So its not okay to overlook all the presummed bad things Darius, but it is okay to overlook all the presummed bad things Hunter and others did?
Honstly, when I first saw Darius and Eber Wolf I assumed they were bad guys because they captured Raine. And at the time, I was trying to figure out which Coven Heads were good and which ones were evil, since I assumed not all of them were evil and somewhere just indoctrinated and blindly loyal to not see all the evil Belos was doing because he tricked them like he tricked so many people into thinking they were doing good, plus considering there were 9 Ccoven Heads and how powerful they are suppose to be I assumed not all of them would be evil because it would hard to believe Luz and her friends could beat all nine of them, so some would have to be good to turn on Belos and help to even the odds. But then, Dana the masterful writer that she is, completely surprised me with the reveal that Darius and Eber Wolf were good guys pretending to be loyal to Belos to stop him in, Ingenius.
@@zexalbrony4799 I loved that comment of yours. Especially the part where you ask why one character should be held accountable, while others should be given a pass. I wish we could have actually seen Darius busting Raine out of jail, though I love their banter, when the ruse is revealed.
I also love how it goes into a direction of Darius slowly becoming kinder to Hunter, since there is some baggage involved there, since the former Golden Guard was Darius beloved mentor and Darius has pretty much internalized his grief and is lashing out. The transition could have been done better, but hey...Darius is very much a side character and for every detail to fit in the show, they would have needed at least 15 more episodes in the first two seasons and even more with Season 3...or more Season altogether. 😅😅😂😂
@@kidoftheforce Yeah we sadly missed a lot of great stuff, espically because of that shortening of season 3, but luckily, that's what great fanfics and fanworks are for.
@@zexalbrony4799 the huge difference between Amity, Hunter and Darius is their age, understanding and ability to act.
I love how they didn't treat the adults as people who knew less than the kids. The kids needed them, they needed help to deal with a lot of stuff and the adults knew how to handle it.
Escaped a cult a few years ago... when you mentioned how it stunts development, it just makes me remember. They used to yell at me to "grow up" while exerting great control over me. Funny how making my own decisions and leaving helped me grow up way more than they ever could. Lol.
the whole abusive concept of "do xy" while doing anything in their power to prevent that----------
also, i believe you. and i'm proud you got out. many people may not be able to handle the topic but just wanted you to know that someone believes you
I do love how you can tell there is a history and nuance to the adult relationships, especially Raine and Eda, that the younger characters just would not have yet. I think it is the very strongest part of Owl House's story telling.
Honestly I loved how in episode one we were made to see Camilla as a parent who wants to push her ideals onto her daughter thinking it’s what’s best, but later when luz finally sees her mom and meets Vee it shows us that Camilla worries about something happening too luz, and in season 3 ep 2 it was revealed she was bullied in the past for being different and ridiculed for it causing us to realize she just wanted to make sure that what she suffered through doesn’t happen too Luz.
On intergenerational friendship, I'd say the internet helps a lot with that. As a teen during vanilla wow I played a lot with older people, as in people well above twice my own age at the time. I'm still friends with some of them 18 years later.
And now, as a 36 year old woman I take on the role of the adult myself as I frequent different groups related to different cartoons.
Common interests transcends generational barriers.
It's another reason why we REALLY have to fight to defend those spaces, as they're constantly under attack. If you have a way to support a space, such as AO3, or keep in the loop of how the laws of the land are looking to use bad internet bills to censor the internet to ashes and destroy these places of creativity and mutual joy, it's important that we do so!!
Thank you for your words!!!
I loved especially that the show took the adults seriously and actually gave them arcs and something to do!
It has a fully dual cast. A kid cast with the kid preoccupations, the adults with there's and this incredibly beautiful, tense overlap.
Bump was very much a refreshing surprise when it came to characters that are pricinpal, his strict, yet understanding and compassionate towards his students most especially to Eda Luzz shenanigans
Alador is a. . . complicated character. He's introduced in a flashback that REALLY paints him in a bad light, and even when we do get to meet him in the flesh; I was really not sold on him being as aloof as he seemed. To me; he came across as an adult that saw eye to eye with Odalia in their view of potential for their family, which allowed him to so quickly change her mind on Amity's actions. But; we definitely missed out on potentially more to allow him to show what he was like as a father, outside of his work. I feel like his arc is just another victim of the Disney cancellation;.
Its also especially sad; because there's so much potential with the background information of Alador, Odalia, and Darius. There's a goldmine there lol
SOOOO much. Like i said, there's tons of good fanfic about them that expand on those ideas very interestingly, and the cancellation definitely cut a lot of arcs short. I feel that Gus, probably of everyone, got done the dirtiest.
maaaan; Gus needed so much more time to cook.
The flashback that alador was introduced in was from Amity's point of view (i think), which makes sense why he would be seen as a bad person
@@bakedpotato_1396see; that's the thing, it could be amity being an unreliable narrator. . . but we'll never know XD
@@idlescree I'm here for further fanfic recs 👀
Really love the thoughts about adulthood as defined in the "traditional" sense, plus how there is most certainly more than one way to be an adult. Watching this got me to: 1) fondly remember how much screentime was dedicated to the Clawthorne sisters' interactions with Gwendolyn, 2) be impressed all over again with just how many shades of unhealthy adults are painted and explored in the show. Thank you also for highlighting those heady Mommy Persona power trips that can even reach Discord servers as the relevance of that can't be understated in the online world
Yeah, when thinking about it it's such a weird moving target historically. And then if you live in America, the peak surface level "social cohesion" of the 50's set such a messed up and nowadays completely unrealistic standard of what adulthood means...to say nothing of its variations around the world.
the whole thing with Gwendolyn genuinely floored me. I keep going back to this desperate wish that all of these adults are doing their best and so much of it is so imperfect, flawed, messy and earnest. And don't get us started on the Discord servers, when I jumped into TOH fandom I was friggin' appalled but it's quite a common thing that happens.
Thank you for watching and letting us know what you liked, the time you take to offer a comment like this is much appreciated
At my last job I was in my very early 20's and worked with three women in their early 40s, early 50's, and 60's respectively. The bond I made with them over six years is unbreakable. We are a genuine family and it was fascinating to share all of our perspectives in life, as well as learning new things that we hadn't considered before. So when I binged this show it really hit home to see not only a narrative for the teen characters but for the adults as well. You don't stop growing just because you're an adult and I appreciate the show for acknowledging that in the best possible way.
I’m 21 with a rough relationship with my parents. I absolutely started crying over the Clawthornes and Camilla because it put some things into perspective as well as putting into words what the core of the issue with my family i s, which is. So helpful, honestly
nice essay, I think we should see more adult representation (especially adults older than the young adult, 18-35 age) in shows not marketed exclusively to them!
Me too, and I genuinely think it is desperately needed. The political ruling class benefit from a fragmented population, from forcing people into social islands of one and reducing our understanding of each other to the stories they feel good about handing us. Art is powerful, art is meant to make people FEEL (which is so different from education or indoctrination) human with each other.
I'm glad you liked the essay, and thank you for your comment!!
I loved the adults in The Owl House because, well, I'm middle aged myself. It was refreshing to see a show that could be enjoyed intergenerationally. Where the adult characters were as complex as the kids/teenagers. And it's because I really get how messy and unsure adulthood is. Sure, maybe as adults we've gotten wiser and more knowledgeable in some ways, but like you said, life is always changing and there's new, complicated challenges to face. I love the growth in everyone in the Owl House, and only the evil characters are incapable or unwilling to change.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, I had never seen a character like Edda represented in any media let alone in a kids show. Edda was the first time I saw a middle aged woman struggling with disability who doesn't have it all together, and she's not treated as a joke or a falure.
Im 27 and terrified of turning 30 because i dont want to stagnate. I love learning and growing and changing. The Owl House has so many role models in that regard. This is a great breakdown.
Good news: YOU have the power to prevent that stagnation! You can do it! And yeeee, thank you, I'm glad it resonated.
OMG, Idle, I really liked this video. As a freshman in college, I feel like it's important to realize that in order to be an adult you have to see others as independent from yourself. If a person is just copy of you, they haven't done any growth as a person, only memorizing what you've taught them.
Glad you liked it!!
Community Theater was my third space! I learned so much from the different generations I interacted with as peers, and I definitely wish that there were more experiences like this!
This is one of the few shows that actually makes me excited for who I can be when I’m older!
These are the kinda videos that will stick with me for the rest of my life. Even if I forget “watching” this video, it’s message is clear and something I’ll take with me for the rest of my life.
That warms my little bat heart so much. Thank you for your kind words. There were video essayists who have long since disappeared from platforms that are long dead now that permanently changed for the better the way I think--that any of our videos can help you in a similar way is some of the highest praise I can imagine.
This essay discussed how this show explores and dives deep into stuff that comes with adulthood so beautifully, and the entire analysis was outstanding. I'm in college right now and despite only being a young adult, and legally being so, I do not feel like one by any means even if I'm told otherwise. Seeing this video helped remind me that no matter what age you are, the determination of being an adult doesn't quite come at a certain age, or when you achieve specific goals. It's a constantly changing thing, and one that can take a lifetime or more to do.
Honestly? I've definitely hit rockbottom a few times and it was NOT easy to climb out. So I was cheering for Alador & Hunter. I was crying when Eda and Lilith reconnected with their mom. I had both painful paths of Lilith and Eda - I wasn't the perfect child like my older siblings but when I tried to end my life in 6Th grade? My parents did everything in their power to make sure I got the help, support, and love I needed. It had a heavy effect on my middle sister who's working as a therapist so no one else had to go through what I did. Now I know that my sisters and I are loved & it just manifests in differences.
I'd argue that Darius was trying to help Hunter but in a way Hunter would actually hear and understand. A huge part of communication is changing how you talk to someone. Darius knew that praising Hunter wasn't going to work right away because Hunter has NEVER been praised by anyone. So he uses a tougher approach to get Hunter to listen and THEN introduce kindness when he knows Hunter heard him. Hunter is used to either absorbing or deflecting cruelty because it's all he knows. Darius was instrumental in helping him get honest positive reinforcement despite the isolation.
Thank you for sharing your story. That's incredibly challenging and I'm glad to hear you did manage to claw your way out. Even with support its really hard and takes an enormous amount of courage.
@@idlescree
Thanks... I love how much we see both parents in each kid, especially if there's more than one like the blight children. You can see a bit of what alador was like as a kid from how he talks to Amity. Like the twins? He goofed off a LOT and likely didn't take his studies seriously waaaaay late in the school years due to natural talent. We see how Amity is a forward thinker like her mother but has her father's heart.
Lilith takes after her mother in personality while Eda looks a LOT like Gwen. Its a little harder to say with Dell but I imagine he and Lilith look slightly similar even if his personality is more in-line with Eda.
Hunter is probably the clostes we're going to get to what Evelyn was like - someone who what very expressive and knowledgeable.
Luz is definitely a health balance between her dad and mom. Just sucks we didn't get to see a lot of him.
How is it possible that your video essays always come when I need them? I’m turning 20 this year with no plan and no defined future. I haven’t gone to college and I’ve never felt like an adult despite being one legally for almost 3 years. But I’ve certainly changed and I haven’t stopped my entire life, so at least I’m doing something right and I appreciate you helping me see that💛
I'm happy to hear the timing has helped you. And you have time...adulthood and maturity are active, not passive states. Any plan you have right now is likely to change anyway so don't get bogged down in having a perfect roadmap, especially at 19!!! You got this.
As a kid I always enjoyed talking to adults because they could offer some new perspectives id hadn’t considered while I was able to do the same. Even now I never saw it as strange to interact with adults because MOST of them genuinely wanted connection. The Owl House was full of that and I enjoyed that they were able to portray that relationship. Awesome video!
One of my favorite aspects of the owl housr ghat you dont see in kids show, not when I was growing up, is dynamic adults with aynamic relationships. Thank you so much for covering this!
I love how the adults aren't stereotyped in any way,like most shows have either the "adult who knows nothing" or the "adult who always knows better"
This show makes them feel like people that know some stuff but not everything,like actual flawed people, but not completely ignorant or evil
This video was fantastic 🩷 the bit about "third places" was so fascinating. It made me realize that I was so blessed to have grown up in a church community that provided a safe, wholesome third place regularly 🥰
Another great example is Tenzin from The Legend of Korra, who is not only part of an intergenerational team but is a husband and a father, as well as a leader and master who, along with his siblings, struggles with responsibility and identity and is never old enough to grow and learn
I'm at the age where I'm about to end my journey in HS and going off to college and I guess by that standard becoming a young adult, but honestly I felt kinda like an "adult" (kinda? idk) but also not for a while because all of the self-reliance I had to do while living by myself due to my very messy and toxic family situation as well taking on massive responsibilities at home & extracurricular-wise. I often feel like I'm disconnected and isolated from everyone else's normalcy at school, seeing the life I could have lived and grown up in that I can never have. And I'm also very familiar with all kinds of adults from the exploitative, abusive, and ones who can't stand to tolerate or develop any empathy for kids to the ones who are actually kind and supportive and are good mentors to me.
I guess my point is that I have seen how messy and chaotic adulthood can be, but watching the Owl House made me feel represented and seen and gave me good models to navigate my relationships with adults and to grow into (plus queer rep :D) and it was honestly rare to ever see something like that. Intergenerational relationships outside the societal bounds of family and teachers should be explored more in media. Stories from both the kid's sides and the adult sides both hit pretty hard for me and I feel alot of people in my life can take away from. Also a story that actually respect kids and actually take the time to tell their story? Hell yeah
I want to say so much... but i would literally write an essay. So i want to say thank you for this video, it made me feel so SEEN and most importantly, understood. As a 41 year old single mother who is currently jobless and trying to support two almost grown teens; i have never once felt like i was doing anything right as an adult/parent. Heck, even as a child, i never felt like i did anything right... but I'm still trying. I do my best to parent them in a way that doesnt shackle them to societal and family expectations, because i know how much it hurts from experience. I do my best to show them how much i love them no matter who they are and encourage their dreams for their own future... still, i wonder if im doing enough or doing it "right". Seeing this video made me feel a little better about my entire existence, lol. I know that sounds a little extreme, but its how i feel. On that note, i really REALLY need to finish watching Owl House. 😮 i liked the show when i started it, i just never got the chance to finish it. 😅 anyway, thanks again! ❤
If you ever feel compelled to write the essay, please do--seeing how any part of our work has moved you means a lot to us. Thank you for sharing! Your story is very powerful but it requires so much strength. If our work is of any help in that, I'm very glad. And yessss do finish it, it's very worth it :3
The Owl House was an amazing show it’s change me in so many ways I’ll never forget the show.
OMG I'M IN A VIDEO!!!!!!! YAYYYYYYYYYYYY
I'm so happy you've included Darius in this video, his journey is not so noticeable, but it is important for his character. And thank you for making a video on this topic, as a just turned adult I relate to it a lot
Thank YOU! It was a really important contribution overall--and Darius was someone I really wanted to talk about and for the most part its hard to justify because of our scope. But it worked out this time, and we always love hearing what you the audience are wanting to see. I'm glad you liked it!!
This essay was really neat! I really loved when you brought up that life is a constant transition.
a fellow bat enjoyer, owl house enjoyer, and a good video essay? this was so great !! and you really did make like, all great points here :]
YESSSSS BAT ENJOYERS UNITE!! Thank you, I'm glad you liked it
There is no point at which adults stop growing. Life is constant change.
That's one reason this fiftysomething adult loves shows like The Owl House, as well as Gravity Falls and the DuckTales and She-Ra reboots. Not only can I identify with the young people on these shows -- particularly Luz, who, as a female fantasy nerd, simply did not exist in the shows that I, as Gen X, grew up with; now, at last, I get to see my younger self represented -- but each of these shows features at least one interesting, complex adult character.
Thank you for this thoughtful video essay.
Thank you for enjoying. I love hearing the perspectives of audiences of all ages and it's really gratifying to know the work is resonating with peers across generations. We are all so much closer to each other than we think...
30:36 I actually Feel that way being someone so much younger (I know I’m very late)
Love this.
The ability to change and grow really is the true mark of coming-of-age, not just in stories but in life. And it's also true that no matter how old you get, you'll never stop coming-of-age.
The Owl House has had such an impact on me. So much hit home and I’m GLAD the show covered stuff most shows wouldn’t dare to. Even if it got canceled 😢
What makes the behavior of Belos and Odalia worse is that they can't even use the argument that there evil so their bad parents because even evil people can be good or decent parents, as I've seen in several franchises over the years. Like I said back in my comment on you're video discussing the evil of Belos, I've learned from many villains from many franchies thattThere's a difference between being evil/bad and being a monster. Just because someone is bad or evil, doesn't mean they still aren't Human and they still have Humanity in them(or some other equivalent because in many franchises there are people who aren't Humans like demons, witches, aliens, robots, anthropomorphic frogs, the list goes on, so they have something that is the equivalent to Humanity, but I will still be calling it Humanity for simplicity). Many bad people can still have good things about them being that some form of honor, loyalty, or comradery with those on their side.
Here's an example of a bad guy whose still a good parent or at least a decent one. In the Power Rangers series Lost Galaxy, the main villain at the start of the show is Scorpious and he has a daughter Trakeena. Both are evil, they acknolwdge there evil and like being evil, they like ruling and conquring and hurting people. However, despite that the two still geniually love each other as father and daughter to the point when Scorpious is dying after being mortally wounded in a battle with theRangers halfway through the series, Trakeen returns after having left a few episodes ago because she didn't want her dad to turn her into an insect just to increase her power and she and Scropious have a truly heartwarming final moment where they both apolgize for their behavior and show how much they love each despite being evil:
Trakeena: Oh, father. I'm so sorry.
Scorpious: It is me who is sorry, for trying to keep you so sheltered.
Trakeena: But you were only trying to protect me.
Scorpious: But I can protect you no longer.
And after this, Trakeena takes over as the main villain for the rest of the series and her fathers death is a major driving force for her to get revenge and become a really great villain for the rest of the series. Even evil people can be complex and have more motiosn then just being evil. And even evil people can be decent enough parents. And it's not just parental relationshsi, it's all kinds too. For example, in another Power Rangers series Zeo, in one epsiode the main villain King Mondo is trying to kidnap a piano player, not for any grand scheme to conqure the Earth, but because he wants them to play for his wife Queen Machina because it's her birthday and she loves music. And later his sone Sproket joins him in his mission to capture the piano player to be Machina's birthday gift. These two are essitially wasting the time and resources of their mighting Machine Emoire that is suppose to conqure the Earth just to get a birthday gift for their wife/mom because they geniually love her and want to make her happy on her special day. I can't agree with the attmepted kidnapping because that is wrong, but I have some degree of respect and admiration for their effots to get a good gift for the they love.
Thus, people like Belos and Odalia are even worse in my opinion. There bad parents, not because there evil, no because they are beyond evil. There heartless monsters who don't care or love anyone but themselves. As I said, even evil villains can love others and want to make them happy, but not these two. I mean these two would never do what Mondo and Sporket did and waste time and resources just to make a loved one happy. Sure Odalia threw birthday parties for Amity and the twins, but as Understaidn Willow showed us those parties were always for herself not her kids, they were ways to mingle with other people of importantce and get her kids to be friends with their kids so she could get in closer to these powerful people. And Belos there is no way he ever threw Hunter a birthday party, several fanfic writers have even written stories about Luz and the others throwing Hunter his first birthday party and some of them take it a step further by saying Belos never even told Hunter when his birthday is and honstly I believe that monster would do something like that.
Bro the representation in the owl house was such a banger and I’m so upset it was cut shorter than it should’ve been
Coming to The Owl House as an adult with my eldest kid being Gus' age, it was really wonderful to see the adult characters portrayed so richly, especially the flaws of the parental figures. It feels like, in so much children's media, the parents are either fantastic or they're bumbling fools. To have a cast of adults so richly portrayed made it really enjoyable for me to approach on another level. They all approach the kids differently, too, which is nice. I love that we see Darius grow, even if we don't see it as enough (I love writing him for this purpose) and that the adults have to detach from the mission mindset to realize these are *kids* they're working with, who clearly are going to want to fight, but shouldn't be the ones taking the biggest risks. Belos is a fascinating example of an adult who refuses to grow and change for something like 350 years and an example of the danger of dogmatic adults with unhealthy views of power.
I hope the kids watching see how the healthy relationships are modeled and find places to engage with informal or formal mentors like what the characters in the show find. It's so wild to me that fandom spaces have so many DNI requests for adult/minor relationships when that intergenerational engagement was foundational in the early internet fandom I started off in over 25 years ago. I honestly miss how open the internet was at that time and how we kept safe in those spaces that are being nixed today through unwise legislation and the purity policing of online spaces.
Honestly really love this digest, especially involving Eda or mention of growing with an illness.
Thank you, I'm glad you did! And yeah, the Owl Beast absolutely personifies the relationship with the chronic illness so freaking well and growing with it is absolutely a different experience than life without.
Rewatching Owl House purely to focus on the adult characters now that I have EVERYONE’s story and context as given in the show, I love the writing and characterization of all the individuals in this show. Listening to this video had me sobbing in the shower at 30:00 , I’m approx the age of Camilla and seeing her story broke me. There are a lot of us aging millennials who were viciously bullied for being “nerds” or “weird”, and watching her come to terms with her own struggles manifesting in her child and the drowning feeling of trying to get through all of this while grieving…your words and the show’s message of change at all stages of life is something I didn’t know I needed to hear. Thank you, love your content!
Adulting is MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE. ~
This made me cry at so many moments, and I'm a 40-year-old man grown up with emotional neglect so severe I can't cry when there is another person in the room
I would like to say that this video gave me great comfort rn. Thank you.
It makes me think of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. In the Team Star story, Clavell, the Director of Naranja/Uva Academy, poorly disguises himself and takes the name "Clive", saying he's a teenage student of the Academy.
With that Clive persona, he supports us in taking down Team Star in order to get closer to them and understand their motives.
During that time, our character and "Clive" build trust. Sadly, after his real identity is revealed, there is no aftermath to that, mostly because our character is a blank slate I suppose.
But it would be interesting to see our character try and discuss their relationship with Clavell. He's the director of the Academy, and they're a student which creates a rift between them, but he's also Clive, and our character and Clive are friends.
I would like to see Clavell and our character bridge that gap between them and keep their friendship going. But it wouldn't be easy since there's also that director/student relationship as an obstacle.
This essay hit at a good time for me. As you said for Alador, I hit rock bottom last year, though I had the virtue of doing so much younger than the adult characters of this show. And I've had some anxieties about what that says about me as an adult, if I can still make a place for myself even if I'm adrift right now. So, having someone go right out the gate "you don't need to meet up with the 'traditional' or expected indicators of success," and then examining characters growing and recovering from their own hardships? That helps me a lot. So, thank you, Idle Scree ^_^
I’m so glad that Luz lying to her mom is portrayed as a bad thing and that Camilla is allowed to act in a realistic way. Most Disney shows intentionally or not have one lesson in common “your parents are stupid, so it’s okay to lie to them”. Sure it can feel like that when you’re a kid but you can’t placate that mindset too much, it’s important teach children that there are trustworthy and untrustworthy adults, how to tell the difference and that lying to adults who love you is a terrible idea.
I used to have friends, as a kid, who were adults back in the early 2000's. We would just go for ice cream or to the museum. They either moved away or died. Now, neither other adults or kids know what to do with me. Too mature and spooky for kids and too childish for other adults. Do regret this? No. The others have the problem, not me.
The idea of “Adults shouldn’t be friend with kids!” at least to me is dumb and dangerous. For me it’s like this, adults with bad intentions will take advantage of the fact that a kid being friends with them isn’t common and make the kid feel special, I am a kid, that could work on me if I wasn’t as aware as I am. But yeah I do believe that kids and adults can be friends.
this is one of the greatest essays I've ever watched. I don't think ill be able to stop thinking about or forget the reasonings behind fragmentation and atomization of society and the way the lack of community leads to terrible takes like 'why would an adult ever interact with a child?'
Agreed. Humans need community, and it's community that power fears the most! Thank you for commenting, I'm really glad you liked it!
Watching this video and really listening to it has let me see another view of adulthood, I already knew that even when people mature they don’t have to lose their interests or personality. But what I didn’t take into consideration is the growing part, they don’t jsut stop learning and stay stable, adults are just big kids, they’re also figuring it out they just know a little more than younger people do(sometimes)I need to put into my head that everyone is growing, the only stability you should find is within yourself, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be vulnerable with others. Don’t expect too much but don’t expect too little either
Reconnecting with elder parents... That's hard, but we need more moments of seeing it. It's not too late just because you're over X to reconnect.
Your channel is some of the best and most underappreciated analytical content on RUclips, seriously!
Wow, thank you! That's really high praise!
I get a lot of shit sometimes from my coworkers about being a childless adult that watches cartoon and stuff like this what I tell try to tell them. Sure not every cartoon is like toh but there's so much good in some of these shows I feel bad that "mature adults" don't want to give them the time
1st congratulations on the 14k. As far as adults in the owl house, theres somethings i've learned in life, as previously mentioned adults are basically big kids too and you still don't know anything about the world because its still such a big place. You try to fill it with the idea of control or false confidence so, it doesn't eat you up and you have this idea your on top but really that's not true. Honestly I don't know what it really is somedays ya just have to keep on going but I do agree nobody can do it alone the relationships and friendship you make regardless of the differences can help ya through itexperience
Thank you! We are so excited for this coming year. Yeah, I like your take here--it's similar to the conclusions and experiences I've come to and so much of it comes down to forming real community with people of all kinds and ages.
you had no right to emotionally devastate me like this when I was supposed to be wrighting my upcoming essay this was ment to be procrastination not gut wrenching emotional art
We strive to offer a healthy mix of pleasurable distraction and brutal catharsis. Good luck on your paper!! You can do it :D
Hey! As someone from scandavia, we still acutally have a sort of tradition oround "adulthood" when we reach the age around 13-14. Its changed now, to be more or less, just being a teenager now, but its still a big tradition and we call it "Konfirmation", Conformation in english.
Idk, if the other scandivaion countrys do this, but we do it in Denmark.
Its traditonaly about becoming a christian, and a adult, and you will ofically be "konfirmerert" when the preacher has told you, after around a year of learning about christiany and what it means.
It has though evovled, and some people will still get a "Konfirmation", without christaintiy involved, then it will just be called a "Nonfirmation", and be more about reaching "adulthood" or the teenage years.
OOOOO Thank you so much for supplying this! I really appreciate it. I was raised Catholic...ish, and we have a type of confirmation as well. It's a bigger deal with my Mexican relatives, and heavily cultural as well. I actually super love that this tradition persists for you. We reached for Scandanavia largely because of how well things are documented, but I suppose its also true that Americans have "sweet sixteen" and Latinx have quinceañera as far as modern versions of old standards.
For Alador he shows symptoms of d0mest!c ab*se throughout all actions. He is getting at least emotional and financial ab*se and I think that’s important to realize that he tried his best while under his own terrible marriage 21:14
I thought I was the only one who saw that! I have to add one thing though: He is most certainly getting physically abused by Odalia. There is one thing in the pre ultimate episode of Season 2, where she threatens to end their deal about keeping the kids out of the company and brandishes her Oracle Pendant in front of him, which we later learn is used for combat, and Alador looks outright terrified.
Just a 36-year old disabled and chronically ill queer person who has been ill since age 12 sobbing with joy while I drink my coffee, nothing to see here… 🥹😭
This show has been such an utter joy to watch as an adult and to know there are kids out there like me who have this media to feel seen and to grow along with, makes my heart swell.
Thanks for such a lovely video. Truly.
Thank you, it felt wonderful to make. I'm glad it resonated!
What a wonderful way to finish this hell of a week I've had. Going to pop in my headphones and take an extended lunch break to walk and listen :)
Enjoy!
MAN you knocked it out of the park once again with your analysis! When you got to the segment about Camila ngl it was hard for me, considering the messy relationship I have with my own mother. Camila admitting that she messed up honestly still destroys me to this day. Loved the video!! ❤
I love your analysis videos. In explaining the intergenerational friendships I could help but think of my mentor who is 40 years older than me but on top of teaching me about my trade he is also a friend and secondary father figure in a sense.
It is so incredible that you have this relationship in your life. Genuinely that's so wonderful, these things have gotten so rare but they are SO incredibly important. I have a voice teacher I've known since I was ten years old and his role in my life is very much like a close uncle but there is also that component of genuine trade/skill and worldview. Thank you for sharing!!!!
growing up and exsepting yourself is a part of life. and what life has taught me so far is that life can be hard but we must stay strong and happy even if it gets bleak. i am 16 years old and i am just now learning that growing up is a sign that you yourself are changing for the better and exsepting yourself for who you are as a person in your own world and others. i think that growing is both a transitional and emotional prosess that is not done easily but also can grant you good expeariences and good people to experence that change with, in the end this show has taught me how to exsept myself for who i am and it also taught me that people will be around to comfort me if i need it most and that is why this show is so wonderfuly beautiful.
As a teenager, between the ages of 15-17, I have two 22-year-old friends who are amazing and part of my life and playing RPGs together, and they share with me ways to improve my experience living as a teen
This video gives me an idea of one of the things I wants to do different in the animated show I want to make in the future. As someone in the young adult stage where I don’t really feel fully like an adult or a kid I think it’s a shame not many animated media shows that. It’s usually either focusing on kids or older adults and the middle stage can be just a rocky and confusing as being a teen. So I hope I can make something interesting with this idea based on my own experiences with learning and growing (also anxiety and mental health stuff) I kinda feel if people were more accepting of how we all make mistakes people would be much more willing to consider when they are making one.
That sounds very interesting--I wish you every success!
@@idlescreeThanks
My mom was pretty similar to Camilla, but a bit different still. My parents are HUGE nerds/geeks, and they encouraged my interests & quirks because they loved the little weird child they created. Problem was, my mom actively discouraged it outside of the home, and my dad didn’t, and unfortunately, I didn’t get to see my dad much growing up. She’d berate me for the way I’d behave, even tho I was never a “bad” kid. Never acted out in school or anything, but I was terribly shy, and afraid to speak to people. I’d play unusual games by myself, talk about strange topics with other adults because I was used to speaking that way with the adults in my life. The constant whiplash was confusing as hell and wrecked the little self confidence I had. It took YEARS for us to be able to have a conversation about the ways she made me feel because she absolutely refused to believe she could’ve been wrong when she was “doing what she thought was best”. I just turned 24 this month, and I have a little weird soon to be 4yo. It wasn’t until fall last year she FINALLY stoped being so defensive and combative, and listened to me, and apologized without deflecting blame on me. Our relationship still needs heaps of repair, but her being able to do that meant the world to me.
Love the way you express how life is consistant transition state for your self, that resonate with me and now I finally have word to describe it. I don't know what else to say but I love all if your videos, they are very thoughtful and remind me to keep an open minds on everything, as much as alduting in real life force most to be who Steve was. Hope to see more in the future!!!
Yes! Thank you!
Y’all don’t miss 😊🌈 deeply appreciate all of your TOH analyses
Thank you! We've been hoping to return to TOH for a bit now, we're so glad the work is appreciated! Thank you so much for watching!
It scares me that a picture of Tarn was what you showed on screen at 24:59
Good. >:)
"More than meeta the eye topic"
AND TARN IN THE BACK?? AYE YO?
also, expertly done essay, i love y'alls videos
Nobody is ready for how much of a freak I am about Transformers. And YEEEE thank you!!
@@idlescree let's fucking GOOOOOO! I'm excited for that.
I honestly love the IDW comics, flaws and all, it's fantastic, mtmte in particular.
"Thanks for traveling with me."
@@Middlefingestudios1 Agreed. The Bat has been wanting to do a video on Transformers for a long while now. I've got a lot of homework to do. lol
@@HedgehogEditor oh my God. Bruh it is SUCH a rabbit hole.
"Optimus Prime is my favorite"
"Okay are we talking G1, Unicron trilogy, IDW, Animated or-"
@@Middlefingestudios1 Yeah, meanwhile you've got people who are talking about Cyclonus, Tailgate, and Whirl as their favourite disaster throuple and I'm like "I've never even heard of those guys"
On your comment about people's resistance to intergenerational friendships/those with minors, I'm part of the crowd that says I don't have business hanging out with them, but I usually say this as exaggeration. The only time I said and meant it was while working part-time in college, when one of my teen coworkers was way too flirtatious with me, even found my number to text me. I didn't feel comfortable engaging, and sometimes he'd get too personal.
He knew how old I was, and I told him I wasn't comfortable with that sort of thing, from anyone, but I ultimately had to just assert my boundaries with him, and that experience made me reluctant to interact much with people his age range. I'm more than happy to hold a conversation and develop the sorts of bonds as I did with most of the people there, I mean we shared a lot of opinions about media and gave each other some decent insight (I gave them advice for getting scholarships for college and they told me about new media or hobbies I came to enjoy). I'm just reluctant to do it because I'm worried I might unintentionally send the wrong messages now. I guess I'm just hyperconscious of who I interact with, and a person's age/maturity level plays a big factor in how I interact with people, and sometimes younger people's/minors' don't always click with me.
So, yeah, I totally get the argument that writing off any friendship with someone younger than you can be a disservice to yourself, I could take steps to avoid generalizing, but simply put, I just don't always feel comfortable in their space, if anything, there are times where I feel I'm unintentionally invading it. I wouldn't feel this way for online/public places or media for general audiences of course, but I wouldn't want to make younger demographics feel the same way Sephora Kids make me feel. I just think that some places can and should just be for the youth.
Hey, I wanted to start by saying thank you so so much for sharing this thoughtful and detailed response. I think that in most things in life, moderation, nuance and context are all critically important when it comes to investments of time and energy, especially when it comes to genuinely tricky to navigate situations like inter-generational friendships.
I also want to emphasize that your experience and perspective are not wrong in any way. Some places are emphatically not really for adults and vice versa! It's mostly that middle ground, a general aversion I've seen on the rise come up that I'm addressing--this overall horror and revulsion to the notion that healthy inter-genrational relationships are possible. The main thing I was thinking of were teachers, mentors, or how senior citizens can make friends with younger ones to the benefit of all parties, or people who share a hobby in a space in fandom or irl.
And a big part of what you're sharing here is coming from a place of what appears to be genuine empathy! So I really, really appreciate you presenting your words and experience here. Not everyone NEEDS to be doing this. If you find yourself uncomfortable, certainly it makes sense to step away. Our position has more to do with resisting the idea that NO ONE should, ever!
Thanks again!!!!!!
This intergenerational friendships makes a lot of sense to me. My friends parents are sick
I broke down yesterday whilst talking to my occupational therapist about sorting out a mess that I’d landed myself into, I’m 23, living predominantly alone, disabled (always have been but things have been going wrong and while I’m still under my parents roof (I’m essentially renting from my grandmother) it took my OT to remind me, that I’m a disabled young adult, trying to do so many things, on my own, without the proper assistance, and it was okay that I couldn’t do it all, that I was ONLY 23, it didn’t make me any less of an adult, I still don’t know what an adult is for me, but that and this have reminded me that I’m not some failure because I’m an adult and not handling everything about my disability or living alone or uni, and, it’s okay.
You're doing amazing. I'm glad this video was of help
This to me is what Svtfoe lacked and it turned into a problem on top of more problems. In my opnion they didn't know how to deal with Meteora/ Heinous. Not only was she of different age than the main cast, they didn't know how to conclude her very well so they turned her into a baby, but then only explored her more when she was the same age as the cast. The series has adult cast but most of them or are very one dimensional or are the source of problems ( The high commission, bc Hekapoo is an adult to me, Moon's betrayal, etc )
Eclipsa was an amazing mysterious character that sadly lost all that when she got introduced and became Queen, she never felt like she had authority.
In TOH the adults come in many forms, not only as villains but friends so you can really start seeing them as individuals.
I'm gonna be honest, Steve is my favorite character because he's just so. Normal, as a person. He's just a dude in a situation with a history, a future, and the wacky present we see him in now. And he's just like me, I'm in a wacky time with a past, a future and the present. I've changed for the better by seeing what I knew was right wasn't actually correct. I've left parts of myself behind that I didn't love, and some that I did. But since it loved me, it came back. Now I'm a better version who's seen my shit and ready to see more, and I will do it with a shit eating grin because I know I've survived this far, and like Steve, I will continue becoming a new person, and this journey is still going. He may have got a show ending, but for me it's till death do me and my bullshit apart.
PS: I totally shipped Lilith and Steve, it's just my little thing where I saw a common man fall for an uncommon woman and somehow, she fell back.
as someone who is a new adult, I am just starting college, and yeah, its a scary, exciting, daunting, windriding mess of emotions, so genuinely I needed this video
Another BRILLIANT analysis!! Bravo!! I'm writing a YA novel and you inspire me to think more about my young adult characters and their relationships with the adults in my story; thank you for that. AND, thank you for reminding me again and again about how much The Owl House means to me
Yesssss I'm happy it's been useful to you. And you're welcome, any chance to remind the world this show rules is an opportunity we take because it's GREAT
Polyhexian- the fanfic author you mentioned when discussing Darius- IS SO SO GOOD. If you love a bit of tragedy, if you love Hunter and you love Grimwalker lore- please consider reading a few of his works!!
They are SO freaking skilled, absolutely one of my favorite writers for a couple of fandoms. Their Owl House work is stunning (and my all time favorite of theirs is Jabberwocky--have you read that one?) but also if you're interested in their work in general, they've written an original novel called Ophelia Was Murdered, which I also HIGHLY recommend.
@@idlescree I had no idea they were a novelist?? That makes a lot of sense and I’ll have to check it out!
Titan I had missed your videos!
I was rewatching them since last week hoping a new one would come out, perfect timing!
Your analyses and insight are always so interesting and thoughts-provoking, it's always a pleasure to listen to you.
It's so nice to hear that these were missed, it's incredibly motivating. I'm glad you liked the video!!
The world never stops. The world never stays the quite same as it was before even moment to moment. People also never stay the same, neither mentally or physically and true adulthood and maturity is recognizing that and finding the balance between mutability and stability. To find who you believe you are and what is right but not being to set in your ways that you reject new ideas and loose touch with the times.
It is the job of the past generations to make a stable foundation with tried and true methods that the new generation can build upon. And it is the job of the new generations to provide new ideas and methods for all generations to benefit from. We need to be able to teach each other.
31:16 STEVE 💛
STEVE, STEVE, STEVE, STEEEEEEVVVVVEEEEEE! I genuinely got so excited when his name was mentioned!
Another banger. Another banger from Idle Scree.
I love the sheer disconnect between Coven Lilith and Wild Witch Lilith. They're almost two entirely different characters but the fundamental traits are the same. They're eager to please, studious and dedicated. Which goes to show that your first impression of someone can be entirely wrong and the things that you think might be a downside to someone can be their greatest strengths with just a small shift in perspective. It was something shown in Willow as well with her going from the Abomination Track to the Plant Track and is one of the more quiet messages in the show, and it's important that it was shown in both adults and children because it's TRUE for both adults and children.
This video may have made me cry just a little. Keep up the good work!
The fact you like them makes me so happy, thank you so much! We'll endeavor to!
Great video! It’s the first of yours I’ve watched, but definitely not the last, and I have a whole year of videos to choose from! I really appreciate your focus on the maturing adults because I feel like I never got to see that growing up. It was always kids having character growth and adults being mostly static, and I think that led to a weird stumbling block: I never imagined myself as old as I’m currently am (less than 25). Instead of a fully formed person, I had vague ideas of being self-sufficient, cool, and finally free of all the anger I felt. I’ve been chasing this goal of becoming a static adult, because that’s what’s required, right? But not only is that impossible, but would also suck. I still don’t totally know what it means to be an adult version of myself, but it makes that task less daunting when maturing is still a part of it! So thanks for really spelling it out.
The trend of wholly static adult characters is thankfully changing--grabbing for a random example I deeply enjoy, Transformers: Earthspark has an adult cast that changes quite a lot--but is certainaly one of those things that has less representation. In a world where we're experiencing a poorly defined, protracted "adolesence", defining oneself as an "adult" has become really murky and frustrating. The idea of a clear end point: ludicrous in the context of an actual human life! We are all constantly in states of change as any living thing. I find it a comforting to know that I'll never be fully cooked or "done", because it leaves so much room to become better and different versions of myself.
You'll always be maturing--if you give yourself the room to! You've got this.
2:13 to show how arbitrary the adulthood thing is, the US changed the legal age for smoking to 21 in December 2019. My graduating class was born in 1999-2000, so we were all above 18 but still about a year+ from 21. There was this weird thing where people who were smoking had to illegally get cigarettes they previously were previously able to purchase legally. I’m not a smoker and don’t like it around me, but I still think it was kind of ridiculous. Like would you be charged as an adult if you got a cop who was a dick? Idk 🙃
The only 3rd places I can think of that are somewhat arround would be (some) Churches and the dwindling number of out of school clubs like scouting. (Even then some can’t count due to parental or other overbearing pressures. Taking it into responsibility. Or that they don’t have external activities in an “non-required” situation).
Churches are an institution, so they don't quite count as a "third place." Scouting is so structured (and also religious) that it also doesn't really fulfill the role of a "third place" either. Take it from someone who was a Scout for 3 years. Hated it so much after a while because it just felt like school after I finished school.
@HedgehogEditor as someone who also was a scout for years, i did not have the same experience. It can be verry dependent on scout masters and other people with troop leadership.
High focus on the somewhat or some, in my statement. It is more a sentiment that the only mass 3rd places are not the best for everyone nor consistent enough.