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True Romance: Amy Pond and Rory Williams

Amy-Pond-Rory-Williams-amy-pond-23874861-492-700

(Don’t forget to read yesterday’s post).

I’m a little late in posting this, but it’s still Valentine’s Day in half the country right now.

If you haven’t watched any of the new Doctor Who series on BBC America—what’s wrong with you?! It’s one of the best shows on TV!

And Amy (Pond) and Rory Williams, the Doctor’s latest Companions, are two of the reasons why.

There’s a lot I could say about these two: how they met the Doctor, the adventures they went on with him, etc. (they’re my favorite Companions), but I will instead focus on their relationship.

These two met while in secondary school (which I think is the British equivalent of high school). They were best friends, but timid Rory always liked her, taking Amy’s teasing remarks in stride so he could spend time with her. Their other friend, Mels (who was their time-displaced daughter, River Song—don’t ask, it’s too complicated to explain), helped her realize Rory loved her. By young adulthood, when Amy began working as a kissogram and traveling with the Doctor, she and Rory were engaged. In fact, her wedding was the day after she met the Doctor. However, she wasn’t sure she loved him.

After a trauma-induced flirting session with the Doctor, the Doctor brought Rory onboard the TARDIS to join them. Later, the three of them were put into a dream world by a Dream Lord, who forced Amy to choose between Rory and the Doctor. Rory died in this world, but Amy realized she couldn’t live without him. Upon finding him alive, she finally told him that she loved him back.

Sadly, their story took a tragic turn when a crack in the space/time continuum erased Rory from existence and Amy’s memories. This came to a head when, in ancient Roman times, Amy, the Doctor, and River Song met a robot duplicate of Rory dressed as a Roman centurion in the service of an Alliance of the Doctor’s greatest enemies (again, a long and complicate story). At first, she didn’t recognize him, but gradually her memories returned. The Alliance activated their robots, and Rory couldn’t resist his programming and shot Amy. Thankfully, the Doctor traveled back in time to right before she died and had Rory place her in a device called the Pandorica, which was intended to be the Doctor’s prison. This kept Amy alive, but it couldn’t be opened until 2,000 years later.

Rory guarded it the whole time.

He waited 2,000 years to see his beloved’s life saved!

Yeah, Rory takes the cake for patience and longsuffering. That’s true love, people!

Anyway, the Pandorica was opened, the Doctor saved the day in a rather complicated fashion, resulting in a “rebooted universe,” and Amy and Rory got married.

But unlike most romance stories, which end at the wedding, their story continued.

After a long series of adventures with the Doctor where they had a daughter who eventually became the Doctor’s wife (again, a long and complicated story), the two started living a (mostly) normal life in London.

But their marriage turned sour. Amy kicked Rory out and filed for divorce. Both of them, along with the Doctor, were captured by the Daleks (the Doctor’s oldest enemies) and sent on a dangerous mission. During this, Amy was infected with nanites that were transforming her into a Dalek by “subtracting love.” Rory insisted that she use a protective device to slow this down. “Let’s face it—I waited for you for 2,000 years. I have more love.” Distraught, Amy confessed she was divorcing him because she had been rendered unable to have children during a previous adventure and was giving him up. This reignited their passion, and they decided to stay together.

Their story came to a bittersweet climax in a recent episode called “The Angels Take Manhattan.” Amy, Rory, and the Doctor visit present-day New York only to have Rory whisked away to the 1930s by the evil Weeping Angels, who feed off the time energy they steal from victims by sending them to the past. Realizing what had happened, Amy and the Doctor travel back in time as instructed River Song in a paperback novel based on her encounter with Rory in the past. Once there, they discover the Angels have taken over a hotel where they keep their time-displaced victims—and Rory is among them. The Doctor says there’s nothing they can do to stop it, but that if they did, thereby creating a paradox, it would “poison the well” and kill the Angels. Rory runs to the roof of the hotel with Amy. There he says he will jump off the roof, creating the paradox. Amy, unsure if it will work and unwilling to live without Rory, grabs his hand says something that puts every romantic line ever said in chick flicks to shame:

“Together or not all!”

They both jump.

They succeed.

When the temporal dust settles, Amy, Rory, River, and the Doctor find themselves at a graveyard in present day New York. But their celebration is short-lived. Rory discovers a gravestone with his name on it dated a hundred years ago.

Then a surviving Angel touches him. He vanishes.

Amy, tears streaming down her face, says goodbye to the Doctor, saying she will join Rory. The Doctor warns her that if she does this, it will create a fixed point in time that he can’t alter. He’ll be unable to visit them again.

She lets the Angel touch her. Her gravestone appears next to Rory’s.

Thankfully, the Doctor reads in River’s book that they lived long and happy lives.

What can I say? Here is a love that spanned time and space. A love that overcame insurmountable obstacles. A love that made both lovers into better people. A love characterized by self-sacrifice, patience, and longsuffering.

Honestly, I find myself running out of words to describe their love story. I’ve rarely seen one this powerful. A story like this makes me want to fall in love, to find a woman who will share an adventure like this with. It gives me hope that true love—true romance—still exists.

Happy Valentine’s Day, True Believers!

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True Romance: Kenshin Himura and Kaoru Kamiya

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Artwork by Nohuhiro Watsuki (so far as I know--it could be far art)
Artwork by Nohuhiro Watsuki (so far as I know–it could be far art)

(Be sure to check out yesterday’s post).

Rurouni Kenshin is a popular manga (Japanese comic book) written and drawn by Nobuhiro Watskui in the mid 1990s. It spawned two equally popular anime TV series, a theatrical anime film, two animated OVA films, and most recently a live-action film produced by Warner Bros. (which has yet to receive a wide release in America, unfortunately).

(Note: This blog will focus on the original manga. The adaptations are different. For one thing, the manga has a happier ending).

(SPOILER WARNING!)

Set in 19th century Japan 10 years after the Meiji Revolution, the titular character, Kenshin Himura, is a young swordsman with cross-shaped scar on his face who has been wandering Japan (rurouni is the Japanese word for “wanderer”) since the war’s end, righting any wrongs he finds as atonement for the atrocities he committed. He has sworn never to kill again and carries a sakabatou (reverse-blade sword) that allows him to fight without killing anyone. He goes to Tokyo and meets Kaoru Kamiya, a young woman running her deceased father’s kendo dojo, and decides to stop wandering. As time passes, he meets several other “rough” characters he helps reform and battles several powerful villains.

A subtitle for the series is Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story, which describes it very well. The series’ theme is redemption, but its heart is the romance between Kenshin and Kaoru. In true Japanese fashion, it is an understated and subtle romance—at first. Kaoru begins to fall for Kenshin after a few adventures, but Kenshin never seems to reciprocate. He treats her with respect as a friend, always calling her “Kaoru-dono” (a formal Japanese honorific title usually translated as “Ms. Kaoru”). Several times Kaoru has to pull Kenshin from the brink when he slips into the violent ways of Battousai, his dark and violent self from the war. She gives him a home when he was wanderer.

Until one night when, surrounded by fireflies, Kenshin comes to her—and only her—and says he must leave to go fight a deadly enemy in Kyoto. She is the only one he says goodbye to. There’s no farewell kiss, no sappy sweet nothings. Kenshin simply thanks her for everything she’s done for him and hugs her. It’s a powerful scene, one that I’m man enough to admit nearly made me cry when I watched it on the anime. (You can watch it here).

Kaoru at first wallows in her sorrow, but her friends chastise her and say that if she cares about him so much, she should go after him. She does. She catches up to Kenshin before he battles his nemesis. Her love helps strengthen Kenshin in the ensuing battle. But she learns afterward that Kenshin’s body has been so badly battered over the years that another severe injury may kill him.

In the manga’s final storyline (which the anime excludes), Kaoru is captured by Enishi, a psychotic young man, with a grudge against Kenshin. She learns from him that during the war, Kenshin married a woman named Tomoe, who died tragically at his hands. That’s why he was closed off, why he refused to reciprocate Kaoru’s love: he didn’t want to lose someone like that again. Enishi says he is Tomoe’s brother and will avenge his sister’s death.

Kenshin is pushed to his physical, mental, and emotional limits. Enishi fakes Kaoru’s death. When Kenshin finds her purported corpse, he yells her name without adding “-dono” for the first time. Kenshin is overcome with despair, during which he sees Tomoe in his dreams. She is smiling because she says Kenshin has learned to smile. She tells him to save her brother, who is still stuck in the past, and rescue Kaoru, who wants and needs his smile most. Kenshin awakes and goes to confront not only Enishi but the demons from his past. He defeats the young man and spares his life.

Finally, Kenshin and Kaoru get married and have a son named Kenji.

This is a romance full of longsuffering, patience, acceptance, and forgiveness. Kaoru loves Kenshin despite his violent and dark past. Kenshin learns to open up and love again. Kaoru gives Kenshin the wanderer a home. They complement each other perfectly. Kenshin’s calm demeanor is great counterbalance to Kaoru’s feistiness and Kaoru’s goodness pulls Kenshin from his inner darkness.

This also shows that a romance can be subtle. Often love stories are sappy and overdone, but this one is so understated that the reader has to connect the dots. I can’t recall either of them ever saying “I love you” to each other, yet the reader knows they do. It truly is an example of “less is more.”

Their romance blossomed slowly, often in dark times. Both Kenshin and Kaoru made sacrifices for what they thought was the good of the other. It was never easy for them until the end.

I neglected to mention that both the manga and original anime (I haven’t seen the new one yet) are also quite funny. In fact, I’d even go so far as to classify them as romantic comedies at points.

I could go on for hours about their story. This was one of the first romances I truly loved. As fantastical as the series was, their love felt real and authentic. Many romances in mangas/animes tend to go (for lack of a better term) unconsummated: the couple never gets together. It was refreshing to see a happy ending for a change.

NEXT TIME ON “TRUE ROMANCE”: A trip across “the Pond” for a love that spans time and space!

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True Romance: ‘The Lake House’

'The Lake House' poster

(Continued from yesterday’s post).

Mark it on your calendars, True Believers, because I’m about to admit publicly that I like a chick flick.

(gasp!)

I originally thought about using The Princess Bride (one of my favorite films) as an example of a “chick flick” I like, but then I realized it was equal parts “chick flick” and “guy movie.” So, I would classify it a romantic fantasy/adventure/comedy. (The movie defies classification, but I digress).

With that said, I opted for The Lake House, a 2006 romance film starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. The movie was disliked by critics, and unfairly so. They criticized some internal inconsistencies with its plot, but let’s be honest: it’s hard to write a time-travel story that is completely airtight.

Yes, it involves time-travel. The fantastical element is one of the things that intrigued me about it. It tells the story of an architect and a doctor who live in the same house but two years apart, and how they fall in love by writing letters to each other through a time-warping mailbox.

(WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!)

The first thing that strikes me about this story is how the couple never meets until late in the movie. Until then, their only interaction is through correspondence (lending credence to long-distance relationships). So, their relationship is at first free of physical lust (which is often confused for love in many “romantic” stories). They connect on a deep, personal level through their letters. They even find clever ways to interact, such as Alex (the architect) taking Kate (the doctor) on a time-delayed tour of Chicago with one of his letters (he even spray-paints an endearing message on a wall for her). They finally meet when Alex goes to a party Kate attended two years before—when she was with another man. He meets her, deeply in love with her, but she has no idea who he is, and he can’t tell her who he is.

They continue to write each other and decide to meet at restaurant on Valentine’s Day. Kate will only have to wait one day, but Alex will have to wait two years. Kate arrives, but Alex never shows. Heartbroken, she writes a letter to Alex saying not to write her anymore and recounts the story of how, one year prior, she witnessed a car accident and the driver, a young man, died in her arms. The two leave the lake house and go their separate ways.

One year later (2006 for Alex and 2008 for Kate), Alex returns to the house because something triggers his memory. Kate, meanwhile, is talking with another architect and learns that Alex had died two years earlier—that he was the man whose death she witnessed! That’s why he didn’t show up at the restaurant. She rushes back to the lake house and frantically writes him a letter saying she loves him and tells him to wait two years and meet her at the lake house instead. She stuffs it in the mailbox. Did he get it? The flag drops—he’d received it.

A vehicle pulls up. A man walks toward her. Alex! “You waited,” Kate says. Then, after four years, they finally kiss.

Despite what the critics say, this is a magnificent love story. The love is deep. How many people have the patience and commitment to wait four years to meet their true love after they “found” them? Four years! Think about that: they were so dedicated to each other, so patient, that they endured the pain of waiting to see each other for four full years! (Although, while noble, it pales by comparison to another couple I’ll be writing about later this week). Alex had to suffer seeing the woman he loved but she didn’t love him, at least not yet. He could’ve been selfish and tried to take her then, but it would’ve ruined everything. Kate had to watch Alex die and later be “stood up,” only to learn later what happened. These two wouldn’t let their circumstances keep them apart. As strange as everything was, they overcame every obstacle thrown at them. It wasn’t easy. True love never is. It must be tested. That’s how its authenticity can be proven.

So, there you have it: my favorite “chick flick.” It’d make a great date movie this Valentine’s Day. Go rent it now! Ah, heck, buy it!

NEXT TIME ON “TRUE ROMANCE”:  A manga romance! (A “mangamance”?)

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True Romance: An Introduction

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Broken_heart_by_KaattieMaattieThe dreaded day approaches.

Yes, I’m speaking of Valentine’s Day. I’ve never liked this holiday, and for the obvious reason: I’ve never had a girlfriend during it (although, I’ve had several of them).

I could go into a long treatise about what the holiday really means, but that isn’t my purpose today. I’ve decided to use this coming week to talk about what I think makes up true romance, both in stories and in real life.. It’s not that I hate them (I’ve often been described as a “romantic”), I just can’t stand how poorly done many of them are. I won’t necessarily be writing about how to write these stories since, oddly enough, most of those techniques are present in good and bad romances (and I might possibly save it for an episode of my vlog).

My biggest gripe with romantic stories, especially modern ones, is they’re shallow or fake. Look at a typical romantic comedy movie. Two young, attractive people meet, think each other is hot, and then haphazardly try to get together, sleeping with each a few times along the way. The audience assumes these characters will live happily ever after.

It’s a lie. Or rather, a fantasy.

This rarely, if ever, works out in real life. Why? Because the love is only skin deep. The couples in these stories are riding on the emotional high of their “chemistry,” the gooey feelings they have for each other. Studies have shown these don’t last long. I guarantee you that even Rose and Jack from Titanic (the most overrated film of all time), had they both survived the sinking ship, probably wouldn’t have stayed together because they were running on temporary romantic feelings.

A related gripe I have is how unrealistically fast these relationships happen. Admittedly, this is a lesser problem, because it does happen quickly for some people in real life, and stories (especially movies) often necessitate the romances start quickly, so it’s easy to forgive. More often than not, though, it takes time to cultivate love. Then the love must stand the test of time. As I said, romantic feelings don’t last. The love must have deeper roots.

As a Christian, I’m familiar with koine Greek, one of the original languages the Bible was written in. This ancient language had at least three words for “love”: eros (sexual/physical love; from which we get the word “erotic”), phileo (friendship; the source of the name Philadelphia, which means “city of brotherly love”), and agape (unconditional love). All of these loves are legitimate and are necessary to make a lasting romance, but agape is what binds them together. This is a love not based on feelings. It is an act of the will. It is commitment. It requires a person to put the needs of whoever he loves above his own, even if he gets nothing out of it. It says, “No matter what happens, no matter what you do, even if you don’t deserve it, I will love you.”

This is the sort of love that requires suffering. That’s why many people give up on it: they don’t like to suffer. But if you love someone, you will stick by them through thick and thin. You’ll do whatever you have to for them. That’s why fairy tales resound with us. Men want to be the knight who slays the dragon and women want to be the maiden he rescues. Even The Princess Bride, as “cheesy” as it is, understands this! (And this is one reason why I think the romances I write tend to be born out of suffering).

People may say that sounds romantic, but I wonder if they would say that if they had to practice it. Many don’t. That’s why there’s a 50% divorce rate.

(I’ll stop talking like Dr. Phil now).

My point is this: romances should have more substance. They should be founded in something far deeper and much stronger and feelings. When I read or watch a romance, I want that couple to stay together forever. I want that fairy tale ending. I have to believe love can last forever. That’s why it grinds me to see such shallow romances passed off as the real thing. Maybe I’m jaded. Or maybe I understand this better than most.

Regardless, I promise you that if you ever hear me say I like a romantic story, you can bet its good.

I’ll be sharing a few of those stories the next few days. Starting with…a chick flick?!

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Digression 2: Gun Control and ‘Pandora’s Box’

My next episode isn’t quite finished, but I did have an idea for a spur-of-the-moment “Digression” video, so I hope this tides you over for now. However, it’s on a very serious topical issue: gun control. I don’t usually get political, but this was a point where my politics and creativity combined. I read an excerpt from my novel, “Pandora’s Box,” that illustrates my opinion on the matter.

My next vlog should be posted in a day or two.

(Sorry about the voices in the background. They’re people in the next room. I hope it’s not distracting).

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Episode 5 of “But I Digress…” Corrupted, but Will be Re-posted

It has come to my attention that episode 5 of my vlog, “But I Digress…” starts skipping around the seven-minute mark and quits working (ironically when I tell people to stop watching and go read the Lord of the Rings books). The file seems to have been corrupted while being encoded to YouTube because I can watch the video on Windows Media Player without any problems (unlike the issues I had with episode 4). I will remove and re-post the video within the next week, although probably not until after Christmas. Sorry, True Believers. Please be patient Take this time to watch my other videos you haven’t seen or read my short stories and poems you haven’t read.

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A Writerly Christmas Exchange

You’ve heard me name drop my friend and fellow writer Nick Hayden several times. (If you haven’t checked out his his website or stories do it right now!) Recently, I suggested an interesting project to him: I said we should “exchange” worlds each other had created and write a short story set in it. In other words, I write a story in one of his universes and he writes a story in one of mine.

I suggested this because I’ve been wanting to write a Christmas story with it being the holiday season and all. I wanted to write one that was good and not just Hallmark movie sappy. I conceived an idea and decided to set it in a fictional small town Nick had created. Hopefully, it’ll be done by Christmas. It’ll be posted both here and on Nick site.

What does Nick plan to write in one of my universes? I’ve no clue. Stay tuned.

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The Perils of Video Editing

Undoubtedly, you’ve read enough “technology is wonderful until it stops working” articles and blogs to keep you reading from now until we land on Mars. Well, I’ve decided to throw one of my own out there. I promise it’ll be honest and entertaining.

I assume many of you True Believers have watched the latest episode of my vlog, “But I Digress….” While it’s normally instructional with some entertainment elements for seasoning, this episode was pure entertainment. I did a “sequel” to a series of Batman videos I made with a college buddy. This one was a spoof of the newest Batman film, the Dark Knight Rises. I’m very proud of it. I worked long and hard making it. It turned out great, in my opinion–except for one little thing.

The credits.

And it bugged me.

A lot.

Yes, my perfectionistic side reared its ugly head over the part of a movie that people ignore, skip, or wait through for a stinger (watch any Marvel Comic movie). While putting out the best product I can for everyone to see is important to me, what bugs me most about this is there were important people who helped make this video possible, most of whom served in multiple roles, and I wanted to make sure they were acknowledged for it. That’s the point of credits, isn’t it? Mentioning the unsung heroes of a film production.

But Windows Movie Maker keeps giving me problems. Whether I make the credits in the video or by themselves, at least the last third of them won’t be displayed. The music still plays and the background is still there, but the text is gone. Or it has this ugly line smeared down the screen where text should be. My only guess is the program keeps corrupting the files for whatever reason. It didn’t do this before. Maybe it was because I was using a different computer.

Some have told me I should use something better than Windows Movie Maker. I have tried. I first used Adobe Final Cut Pro (I think), but it was so extensive and complicated, I couldn’t figure out how to use it quickly. I’m not a viral filmmaker like James Rolfe (aka The Angry Video Game Nerd) or Doug Walker (aka The Nostalgia Critic). These videos are intended to be supplements to my writing; another means of building an audience. I will admit that sometimes I do get more ambitious and want to do more with my videos, but I then realize I have to real myself in and keep my priorities straight. Perhaps in the future, I’ll upgrade–or at least find a computer that won’t screw it up.

Anyway, I posted new credits. You can watch them here.

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What I’m Thankful For (2012)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Today is Thanksgiving, and traditionally people reflect on the blessings in their life and express gratitude for them. Admittedly, it’s been a very difficult year for me (I will spare you the details), and so it’s hard for me to be thankful today when I think I could be doing better than I am.

Regardless, I was reminded of how I tried to list as many of God’s blessings in my life earlier this year. I had heard a sermon about a woman who managed to list 1,001 for herself. I only made it to 80 before I quit. I probably could’ve listed more.

What follows is a condensed version of that list:

  1. God the Father (Abba)
  2. Jesus Christ, God made flesh
  3. The Holy Spirit, my counselor
  4. My salvation
  5. The Bible
  6. My wonderful family (Mom, Dad, Josiah, Jarod, and Sarah)
  7. Grandma Ruth, who’s still with us at age 90
  8. That I’m an American
  9. That I’m a published author
  10. God’s providence
  11. My talents

12. My spiritual gifts

13. My college degree

14. That I’m a TUFW alum

15. I’m intelligent

16. Running water

17.  I can read

18.  My car, which still runs with 200,000+ miles

19.  My church

20. My iPhone

  1. 21.  My many friends (you know who you are)

22. My pastors

23. My creativity

24. My jobs

25. My freelance writing gigs

26. That I almost never get sick

27. Our pets

28. That I’m a nerd

29. My movie, book, and video game collections

30. Our house

31.  Electricity

32. The seasons

33. That I live in Indiana

34. My driver’s license

35. That I volunteer with RemedyLive

What are you thankful for this year?