Bisexual
asrise
pfp by a good friend who wishes to remain unnamed!
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Post by asrise on Sept 5, 2024 15:13:03 GMT -5
I've just gone and finished Ivypool's Heart, so I just wanted to share my take on it. I was kind of unsure of what I thought of this book, to be honest.
So, some part of it that were done well include how Ivypool's grief was handled. I quite liked how she feels guilt for enjoying herself at various times during the journey, and I loved the various dreams and visions that she had along with the other members of the group who were also coping with loss.
I also like the new lore, although it can be a bit confusing at times. They did a good job of not completely destroying what was established while expanding on the present lore to a significant degree.
On the other hand, the whole Galestar story was a little out of place in my opinion and I had a hard time getting invested in it to be perfectly honest.
The characters also work quite well. Some standouts include the pathetic pick up line toms from the Sisters and also the Sisters themselves. I also enjoyed the section of the book between Icewing and Ivypool... they work well together! But seriously, Icewing is one of my favourites, and she kept that up during this book. I like how her own loss ties into the book. Dovewing is also quite nice here, and so is Whistlepaw, but they don't get as much time. I'm not a huge fan of Rootspring, but I don't think they did anything wrong with him really. Unfortunately the none of the Wildcats really landed for me at all, which set the latter part of the book back.
My biggest problem was with all the stuff that was happening in the physical world. There seemed to be way too much running away from random twolegs for my tastes, and the travelling sections just about put me to sleep. The fox attack on the wildcats also seemed really contrived. Altogether the journey part of the book could really have used some work. It made this otherwise great SE just meh for most of its page count.
FINAL VERDICT: kinda mid, but has some very good moments. (6.5/10) Please, if you have read Ivypool's Heart, share your impression of it! I don't know yet, but I've seen a lot of people rank it as among their favorite SEs, and I'd like to know why if you are one of those people. Even if you hated it, I'd like to hear why as well. |
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Post by Purdyisbestboi on Sept 5, 2024 17:54:47 GMT -5
7/10, Beach and Slate carried However it was a little confusing. It doesn’t seem like they did anything to save Stormclan at all. That brings it down for me a little. |
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Post by wygolvillage on Sept 12, 2024 7:22:52 GMT -5
[ 7/10, Beach and Slate carried However it was a little confusing. It doesn’t seem like they did anything to save Stormclan at all. That brings it down for me a little. I don't think the mission was to save StormClan (beyond returning memory of them). It was to repay the debt Galestar owed to the wildcats for rescuing her by reuniting them. I wrote my own little review on my website's blog page (should be listed under September 2024). The TL;DR is that I quite liked it but thought the writing was a bit shaky at times. |
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Post by dahliadove - #1 nightpelt fan on Sept 12, 2024 8:32:54 GMT -5
dude that rinse and repeat formula of "they're walking, they're hungry, they go to get food, oh no it goes wrong because of something bad, they run away, they have to run back because they left someone behind, they eventually escape" was so tiring like how do they get away with using that formula like 4 times in a row??? hello???
and hard agree on the stormclan stuff. i jumped in my seat reading it and then galestar was being all cryptic for ages and then she just outright told us everything. like oh that's cool i guess. excellent composition here warrior cats! what a way to tell us instead of show us. for something as major as an entirely new clan you'd think they'd cover it in another way, like giving galestar her own novella or super edition or something along those lines. i mean that's a whole new generation of cats we've learnt about?? with an entirely new clan?? i would've been so much more intrigued if they revealed it in a better way but the build-up they did was TRAGIC. they could've shown us half the stuff she said in that story but instead they had her literally appear at the tree and just tell them everything
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Post by Moonblazer on Sept 14, 2024 20:30:53 GMT -5
Reading it right now and honestly, I love it so far. One of my favorite characters getting such amazing characterization regarding managing grief and loss, I can get past all the new branches of lore on spirituality and the new animals by enjoying the dynamic of the traveling group. I already love journey plots, so this SE is already my bread and butter.
I think I’ve got a new top 3 SE now, alongside Graystripe’s Vow and Crookedstar’s Promise!
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Post by Birdskip on Sept 14, 2024 22:53:47 GMT -5
I love this Super Edition!
I've said it multiple times on this site, but I am so glad they went more ambitious with their story! Warriors is over 20 years old, if they are going to keep going, I am pleased that it is more interesting and dramatic. I really enjoy how they incorporated the new afterlife lore into the arcs of the characters, especially Ivypool, Icewing, and Rootspring! The idea that the Clans only know a partial truth about the afterlife makes it more interesting rather than the Clans being the one society that has it all correct. I also love how all the afterlives are connected!
I cannot wait for SE18!
I will say the pacing is kind of odd. The way the new information gets revealed is pretty sudden and exhaustive. The idea of another Clan that had to leave generations before the Clans feels kind of like... SkyClan, but again, this time even OLDER and MORE MYSTERIOUS and MORE DOOMED! It would have made more sense to me if only parts of ThunderClan and WindClan left rather than everybody and then the two Clans are rebuilt by so few cats. But I do like how it was able to relate so seamlessly with the current character conflicts, especially about moving on from a previous mate.
Huge tangent about new lore implications but...
Ivypool sees countless afterlife territories: Tribe of Endless Hunting, a forest, bleak moorland, islands in lakes, meandering streams, the Dark Forest, and StarClan. The Dark Forest specifically looks like a "dark stain on the surrounding landscape," and she isn't struck by any other afterlife as being so dark or miserable.
Is StarClan the only afterlife with a hell-equivalent? Or is it one of few? If so, why don't other afterlives need one? Does the Clan system naturally fuel ambition in its hierarchies and rage in its rivalries? Does the Code inspire StarClan to choose who doesn't deserve them? Icewing mentions StarClan to be a "gift" for Clan cats rather than something any cat "deserved," but that seems difficult to believe when the Dark Forest literally exists. It's right there. StarClan does choose who deserves them or not. It makes me think of how the philosopher Rousseau believed society made people evil (I am way overthinking it at this point).
The Dark Forest seems specifically tied to StarClan, as we have only seen Clan cats there (plus Darktail, and One Eye from DotC was said to have probably been the first cat there, but that was never seen in the text). If it is not exclusively tied to StarClan and all evil cats go there, then the vast majority of evil cats are from the Clans. Idk it's probably very unintentional but I do think it's a question worth asking.
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Post by vectoring34 on Sept 15, 2024 23:22:53 GMT -5
I love this Super Edition!
I've said it multiple times on this site, but I am so glad they went more ambitious with their story! Warriors is over 20 years old, if they are going to keep going, I am pleased that it is more interesting and dramatic. I really enjoy how they incorporated the new afterlife lore into the arcs of the characters, especially Ivypool, Icewing, and Rootspring! The idea that the Clans only know a partial truth about the afterlife makes it more interesting rather than the Clans being the one society that has it all correct. I also love how all the afterlives are connected!
I cannot wait for SE18!
I will say the pacing is kind of odd. The way the new information gets revealed is pretty sudden and exhaustive. The idea of another Clan that had to leave generations before the Clans feels kind of like... SkyClan, but again, this time even OLDER and MORE MYSTERIOUS and MORE DOOMED! It would have made more sense to me if only parts of ThunderClan and WindClan left rather than everybody and then the two Clans are rebuilt by so few cats. But I do like how it was able to relate so seamlessly with the current character conflicts, especially about moving on from a previous mate.
Huge tangent about new lore implications but...
Ivypool sees countless afterlife territories: Tribe of Endless Hunting, a forest, bleak moorland, islands in lakes, meandering streams, the Dark Forest, and StarClan. The Dark Forest specifically looks like a "dark stain on the surrounding landscape," and she isn't struck by any other afterlife as being so dark or miserable.
Is StarClan the only afterlife with a hell-equivalent? Or is it one of few? If so, why don't other afterlives need one? Does the Clan system naturally fuel ambition in its hierarchies and rage in its rivalries? Does the Code inspire StarClan to choose who doesn't deserve them? Icewing mentions StarClan to be a "gift" for Clan cats rather than something any cat "deserved," but that seems difficult to believe when the Dark Forest literally exists. It's right there. StarClan does choose who deserves them or not. It makes me think of how the philosopher Rousseau believed society made people evil (I am way overthinking it at this point).
The Dark Forest seems specifically tied to StarClan, as we have only seen Clan cats there (plus Darktail, and One Eye from DotC was said to have probably been the first cat there, but that was never seen in the text). If it is not exclusively tied to StarClan and all evil cats go there, then the vast majority of evil cats are from the Clans. Idk it's probably very unintentional but I do think it's a question worth asking.
With regards to the question of evil cats, if you look at Rock's complaints in OOTS, the idea isn't that the clan cats are uniquely evil, but that they are unique in remembering their evil cats. It's not that evil cats don't exist in places like, say, Bloodclan, but that Bloodclan makes no effort to remember them or think of a place for them, and so they fade rapidly. It would not be strange that other cultures may be similar; perhaps they have taboos relating to the names of evil cats or have excised them from their memory in some other way. In this method, it's impossible for any kind of Dark Forest to appear; the evil cats' ghosts would simply linger for a little while in living memory and then dissipate.
Darktail is also educational in this respect, as he was explicitly NOT in the Dark Forest. Ashfur had to summon him and his other dead rogues there using his spirit power. So presumably, other groups of cats like the disbanded Kin simply don't care to believe in any kind of punishment after death or want to remember their villains, so their ghosts are just harmless shades soon to dissipate unless invoked by a power like Ashfur. In other words, the clans are only unique in that they keep the stories of their villains alive and thriving with their continuous retelling of them, as per Rock |
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Post by Birdskip on Sept 16, 2024 9:22:49 GMT -5
I love this Super Edition!
I've said it multiple times on this site, but I am so glad they went more ambitious with their story! Warriors is over 20 years old, if they are going to keep going, I am pleased that it is more interesting and dramatic. I really enjoy how they incorporated the new afterlife lore into the arcs of the characters, especially Ivypool, Icewing, and Rootspring! The idea that the Clans only know a partial truth about the afterlife makes it more interesting rather than the Clans being the one society that has it all correct. I also love how all the afterlives are connected!
I cannot wait for SE18!
I will say the pacing is kind of odd. The way the new information gets revealed is pretty sudden and exhaustive. The idea of another Clan that had to leave generations before the Clans feels kind of like... SkyClan, but again, this time even OLDER and MORE MYSTERIOUS and MORE DOOMED! It would have made more sense to me if only parts of ThunderClan and WindClan left rather than everybody and then the two Clans are rebuilt by so few cats. But I do like how it was able to relate so seamlessly with the current character conflicts, especially about moving on from a previous mate.
Huge tangent about new lore implications but...
Ivypool sees countless afterlife territories: Tribe of Endless Hunting, a forest, bleak moorland, islands in lakes, meandering streams, the Dark Forest, and StarClan. The Dark Forest specifically looks like a "dark stain on the surrounding landscape," and she isn't struck by any other afterlife as being so dark or miserable.
Is StarClan the only afterlife with a hell-equivalent? Or is it one of few? If so, why don't other afterlives need one? Does the Clan system naturally fuel ambition in its hierarchies and rage in its rivalries? Does the Code inspire StarClan to choose who doesn't deserve them? Icewing mentions StarClan to be a "gift" for Clan cats rather than something any cat "deserved," but that seems difficult to believe when the Dark Forest literally exists. It's right there. StarClan does choose who deserves them or not. It makes me think of how the philosopher Rousseau believed society made people evil (I am way overthinking it at this point).
The Dark Forest seems specifically tied to StarClan, as we have only seen Clan cats there (plus Darktail, and One Eye from DotC was said to have probably been the first cat there, but that was never seen in the text). If it is not exclusively tied to StarClan and all evil cats go there, then the vast majority of evil cats are from the Clans. Idk it's probably very unintentional but I do think it's a question worth asking.
With regards to the question of evil cats, if you look at Rock's complaints in OOTS, the idea isn't that the clan cats are uniquely evil, but that they are unique in remembering their evil cats. It's not that evil cats don't exist in places like, say, Bloodclan, but that Bloodclan makes no effort to remember them or think of a place for them, and so they fade rapidly. It would not be strange that other cultures may be similar; perhaps they have taboos relating to the names of evil cats or have excised them from their memory in some other way. In this method, it's impossible for any kind of Dark Forest to appear; the evil cats' ghosts would simply linger for a little while in living memory and then dissipate.
Darktail is also educational in this respect, as he was explicitly NOT in the Dark Forest. Ashfur had to summon him and his other dead rogues there using his spirit power. So presumably, other groups of cats like the disbanded Kin simply don't care to believe in any kind of punishment after death or want to remember their villains, so their ghosts are just harmless shades soon to dissipate unless invoked by a power like Ashfur. In other words, the clans are only unique in that they keep the stories of their villains alive and thriving with their continuous retelling of them, as per Rock Ah that makes more sense! I forgot that whole tidbit about Darktail. Thanks for the response! |
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