[Spoilers] Shadowlands: Afterlives Cinematic Discussion

[formerShandalay]

The Maldraxxus cinematic kind of makes me wish Garona had died at some point. She'd be perfect for this in every way. No need to explain why she suddenly doesn't care about her family anymore (I get it, you die, you spend time there and at some point simply let go and embrace your new destiny, but the emphasis that was put on the past life and how you are supposed to overcome it was everywhere in the last one and here it's just... uh, I died for my baby, together with my mate and then they were just gone and I didn't care about anything else but that this place seems kind of odd... ), because Garona doesn't have one. No need to explain why she'd be a perfect assassin and spymaster, no need to make her into something she never was.

Otherwise I liked it, because it showed something of Maldraxxus we are not used to seeing from something that looks like the Scourge. Draka's boss came across as cool and wise and I really wish he isn't dead, because it sure seemed like he knew this was going to happen. He knew something that she and we don't. It makes me curios about what's going on there and I want to know more, so I guess it did what it was supposed to do, at least for me.

[Nagawithlegs]

You know, actually, nevermind Zaela, though I do agree with @Syegfryed that she'd be a better pick. Why not just center it on Vashj? She's already in Maldraxxus. She's a woman, so you fill the quota. Vashj has a backstory and she has a design distinct from when she was alive as a naga. We already know she chose to take that form instead of be the night elf she originally was because she figured that better represented who she was when she took her fate in her own hands. That is when she took up strength instead of vanity which gels with the values of Maldraxxus. That's already a story even before you have her house get destroyed too. Vashj is also a character that got shafted in WC3 and has more name recognition and naga are cool.

The whole ass spider dude thing is really not a good substitute for an actual story.

Vashj is supposed to be an ingame surprise I think. The quests leading up to her aren't clear about who she is and then its kind of a "gotcha" moment when you talk with her. Similar to the how the Ysera twist is presented in game and how Blizzard hid her at Blizzcon.

Also interesting is that it doesn't look like Kael may appear in the Revendreth short either, although he has been marketed.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, Mograine is a twist ingame as well. So they really seem like they want to hide some of the big hype characters.

[Syegfryed]

You're telling me that if it was the same, shot by shot, but only with Zaela featuring, you would be content? You would consider this a good animated short?

If the answer is yes, then i've got nothing more to say to you.

no, are you even reading? you said it would be the same and i said no it was not going to be the same

just less bad/better

Zaela was a proeminent warrior and chieftain of the dragonmaw, she took the position by force, and she was strong, I can make a correlation of why she could go to maldraxxus

but Drakka? she was a frostwolf, most hunters, not warriors, she was a mother not a chieftain, why she went there and not the afterlife Durotar and other orcs went?

There is a big problem in the base

[Combatbutler]

but Drakka? she was a frostwolf, most hunters not warriors, she was a mother not a chieftain, why sh went there nd not the afterlife Durotar and other orcs went?

There is a big problem in the base too

When in doubt revendreth it fits almost every character.

[username993720]

Could have sworn that was it, yeah, and later on we see the outside of the place it and definitely isn't Maldraxxus, there's trees and a river. No idea if that's an inconsistency or she's supposed to not be in the Shadowlands at all- which only raises many more questions.

Definitely a much, much weaker short than the Bastion one. Probably the weakest of that kind of video from Blizzard since the WoD ones, the Sylvanas Warbringer had a shit story but at least the visuals were awesome. They didn't sell me on Draka or on the Covenant itself either, which is a shame as the Necrolords were my go-to one for my main so far.

You actually consider Lords of War weak? Out of all the animated shorts, they are the best ones to come out.

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no, are you even reading? you said it would be the same and i said no it was not going to be the same

just less bad/better

Zaela was a proeminent warrior and chieftain of the dragonmaw, she took the position by force, and she was strong, I can make a correlation of why she could go to maldraxxus

but Drakka? she was a frostwolf, most hunters, not warriors, she was a mother not a chieftain, why she went there and not the afterlife Durotar and other orcs went?

There is a big problem in the base

There is nothing particularly Draka about this one, except for the short begining. Meaning, it could have been just about anyone and it would still be the same. Unlike the Uther one, which was really character driven. Remove Uther and it's completely changed. Meanwhile, if you remove the begining of this one and put someone else instead, but keep the same lackluster narrative you get the same shitty result.

[tromage2]

Draka is a boring choice, if it was Orgrim, Ner’Zhul, Grom, Blackhand or Garrosh I would roll this zone asap. Now with Draka I get a feminist feeling that this was just to please the PC/Woke cult so I will stay far away from this zone and it’s plotline of strong Independent female needing no man.

[Arrashi]

Something tells me there will be questline where we help draka find her lost personality/charisma.

[Traveler Voltin]

Draka is a boring choice, if it was Orgrim, Ner’Zhul, Grom, Blackhand or Garrosh I would roll this zone asap. Now with Draka I get a feminist feeling that this was just to please the PC/Woke cult so I will stay far away from this zone and it’s plotline of strong Independent female needing no man.

you need some form of help. i highly doubt that is the case.

[Super Dickmann]

Vashj is supposed to be an ingame surprise I think. The quests leading up to her aren't clear about who she is and then its kind of a "gotcha" moment when you talk with her. Similar to the how the Ysera twist is presented in game and how Blizzard hid her at Blizzcon.

Also interesting is that it doesn't look like Kael may appear in the Revendreth short either, although he has been marketed.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, Mograine is a twist ingame as well. So they really seem like they want to hide some of the big hype characters.

That's some good info. Even then, I think it'd still have been a better choice to make her the focus character. Make it a round up of characters that were shafted in TBC. They didn't have a story to tell with Draka. We saw Thrall meeting his mom in WoD and there was nothing much there. Turning her into an assassin after being killed by assassins doesn't really improve this.

[Raetary]

Draka is a boring choice, if it was Orgrim, Ner’Zhul, Grom, Blackhand or Garrosh I would roll this zone asap. Now with Draka I get a feminist feeling that this was just to please the PC/Woke cult so I will stay far away from this zone and it’s plotline of strong Independent female needing no man.

Oh no.
A woman.

The horror.

[Nagawithlegs]

That's some good info. Even then, I think it'd still have been a better choice to make her the focus character. Make it a round up of characters that were shafted in TBC. They didn't have a story to tell with Draka. We saw Thrall meeting his mom in WoD and there was nothing much there. Turning her into an assassin after being killed by assassins doesn't really improve this.

The conspiracy theorist in me thinks they might not have had Vashj frontline because the idea that Vashj is getting "redeemed" may have sparked some asshurt about Sylvanas getting redeemed CONFIRMED!!!!111

I also think it might just be because otherwise there's very little Horde in launch Shadowlands at all aside from Kael stuff and Draka.

[tromage2]

Oh no.
A woman.

The horror.

Can alrdy tell you that these writter will not let her be a woman.
She will have a female body but feminists will write her to be almost a man because they think a strong female needs to be like a man.

[formerShandalay]

Can alrdy tell you that these writter will not let her be a woman.
She will have a female body but feminists will write her to be almost a man because they think a strong female needs to be like a man.

She's a friggin orc, not some human, get over her being a bit too gruff and rough for human taste^^

[Sorshen]

Draka is a boring choice, if it was Orgrim, Ner’Zhul, Grom, Blackhand or Garrosh I would roll this zone asap. Now with Draka I get a feminist feeling that this was just to please the PC/Woke cult so I will stay far away from this zone and it’s plotline of strong Independent female needing no man.

Garrosh fans review: "women!!!!!!!1!!11"

[Kyphael]

Garrosh fans review: "women!!!!!!!1!!11"

This made me laugh harder than it should have.

[Raetary]

Can alrdy tell you that these writter will not let be be a woman.
She will have a female body but feminists will write her to be almost a man because they think a strong female needs to be like a man.

Looks like someones still stuck in 1950s gender segregation lol.

[Super Dickmann]

The conspiracy theorist in me thinks they might not have had Vashj frontline because the idea that Vashj is getting "redeemed" may have sparked some asshurt about Sylvanas getting redeemed CONFIRMED!!!!111

I also think it might just be because otherwise there's very little Horde in launch Shadowlands at all aside from Kael stuff and Draka.

I doubt it's the first if only because they've tried even harder this time around to tell people that no, really, the spade is a spade, Sylvanas is a Giga-Satan, there's nothing more to it than that in both dev interviews and with their mouthpiece characters.

The second I can buy though, the Horde, good or bad, is ultimately irrelevant except in its circular firing squad expansions. This time around, we have Vol'jin, Baine and Thrall taking up roles, the former will probably the most relevant. They've implied Baine will meet Cairne later. Bolvar meanwhile's talking about how loyal he still is to Anduin and how he must look into the Maw for his sake. Kael and Draka up that count, but the thing is, no orc fan really asked for Draka in that role. We've seen that movie already.

[Syegfryed]

There is nothing particularly Draka about this one, except for the short begining. Meaning, it could have been just about anyone and it would still be the same. Unlike the Uther one, which was really character driven. Remove Uther and it's completely changed. Meanwhile, if you remove the begining of this one and put someone else instead, but keep the same lackluster narrative you get the same shitty result.

you just dodged the point entirelly, good job

[Nagawithlegs]

I doubt it's the first if only because they've tried even harder this time around to tell people that no, really, the spade is a spade, Sylvanas is a Giga-Satan, there's nothing more to it than that in both dev interviews and with their mouthpiece characters.

The second I can buy though, the Horde, good or bad, is ultimately irrelevant except in its circular firing squad expansions. This time around, we have Vol'jin, Baine and Thrall taking up roles, the former will probably the most relevant. They've implied Baine will meet Cairne later. Bolvar meanwhile's talking about how loyal he still is to Anduin and how he must look into the Maw for his sake. Kael and Draka up that count, but the thing is, no orc fan really asked for Draka in that role. We've seen that movie already.

What's interesting is that Voss SHOULD be around to advance the Forsaken storyline. Though she has yet to be found on Alpha I think. The idea might just be that Calia has a hand in killing Sylvanas so she inherits the Forsaken from her yadda yadda (bonus points if something happens to her to make her ugly for fans, as an even more overt nod to Sylvanas being the new Arthas)

Wonder if she gets axed during prepatch (I doubt it, because she's the ONLY notable ugly Forsaken left and will probably stick around as token)

[username993720]

you just dodged the point entirelly, good job

How exactly?

You say the problem is in the character, i say the problem is in the narrative.

(maybe it's a combination of both)