Carmen Sandiego And Color

Carmen Sandiego and Color

So let’s appreciate the absolutely Legendary™ use of Color Symbolism in Netflix’s Carmen Sandiego:

V.I.L.E’s Iconic Color is green– all the villains wear green, the lair is green, the uniforms are green, etc.

When Carmen rebels against them, she obviously starts wearing her iconic red– which is green’s complement, its “opposite” on the color wheel. This shows that Carmen has become the “opposite” of V.I.L.E.

Scenes where V.I.L.E has a lot of power/influence are often tinted green, scenes where Carmen has power/influence will often be tinted red.

VILE in San Francisco:

Carmen in San Francisco:

Julia Argent, the ACME agent who believes Carmen is a good person, wears a bright red shirt that the other agents do not wear.

This ties into the series’ theme of “don’t be fooled by initial appearances.” Green is the color we usually associate with goodness, while red is the color we usually associate with danger/villains. But in this show, the colors’ meanings are flipped.

Green means danger, and red means safety.

And again, this isn’t just in the costumes!!

Contrast these scenes where Carmen is nervous on V.I.L.E island:

And can’t relax Because V.I.L.E:

With this scene where Carmen feels confident and free:

The dialogue in the “Carmen finally relaxes” scene is cute too:

Player: Red? Carmen: Yes, it is. I may finally be unwinding.

Because scenes where Carmen is at peace, or confident and in power, tend to be tinted red (or pink/reddish-violet.)

Scenes where Carmen and co. are frightened, losing, trapped, or in terrible danger will be tinted green.

HOW TO SPOIL THE SHOW FOR YOURSELF:

If a fight scene in this show is red, things will probably go well for Carmen. But if the fight scene is green, things will probably go badly.

The battle Carmen loses against Paperstar:

The one that she wins:

The Indonesia episode is very green, because the Stakes Are High and Carmen seems to be losing:

but after Carmen wins RED FIREWORKS GO OFF, lighting everything red:

Also: Tigress was an idiot for choosing to battle Carmen on the Golden Gate Bridge, bc it’s the reddest place in San Francisco, meaning that it’s where Carmen’s POWER IS GREATEST

Tigress shoulda gone to New York and battled her on the Statue of Liberty instead, that’s a guaranteed victory right there

And in Carmen’s worst failure in the season, her red coat is even torn off, so that the shot is completely green:

But then she escapes and look who’s back?? RED

ANOTHER ONE OF MY FAVORITE MOMENTS:

Before Carmen steals the VILE data thing, everything is green:

But the moment she successfully steals it, RED ALARMS START GOING OFF:

Like “heck yeah La Femme Rouge is finally here!!!!”

And (major spoilers ahead!) what I find most interesting is this Red™ scene:

The scene where Carmen fails her pickpocketing test, ruining her chances of becoming a V.I.L.E operative.

When you watch it for the first time you see it as a failure. The blood-red sky is there to show us that Carmen is in serious danger, and her life is about to be ruined.

But when you rEWATCH THE SHOW WHILE PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE COLOR SYMBOLISM (as ya do) you realize it’s the opposite. This is the moment that saves Carmen– that sets her on the path to becoming “The Red Rogue.”

And I might do another post on this but like– it’s so cool how red is used in Shadowsan’s scenes in general!!! Most V.I.L.E people’s scenes are all green, but Shadowsan’s scenes are often red, to hint that he’s secretly sympathetic to Carmen.

See you initially think he’s grabbing the sword to kill Carmen, but when you rewatch it, you realize he’s going to sabotage the VILE’s helicopter and rescue her! He was on her side all along, and the Color Symbolism knew it!

TL; DR:

As Carmen says in “The Sticky Rice Caper:”

“Green bad……red good.”

JEALOUSY IDEAS

Here are some prompts that involve your characters getting jealous of each other:

Person A and Person B have been best friends since childhood. One day Person B introduces Person A to their new friend, Person C, who they’ve been hanging out with a lot recently. Person A gets jealous of Person B’s new friendship and starts doing a bunch of silly things to have an excuse to spend time with Person B like faking sick so Person B will take care of them or purposefully locking their keys in their house so Person B has to come bring them a spare.

Person A and Person B are friends who both idolize the same musician/celebrity/YouTuber/etc. (Let’s call them Person C.) One day Person C notices Person B on social media. Person A gets jealous and spends the next few days/weeks desperately trying to get Person C’s attention online, but instead of noticing them, Person C ends up blocking Person A for spamming them.

Person A auditions for the lead role in a play but ends up being cast as a secondary role while Person B gets the role that Person A originally wanted. Jealous of Person B’s spotlight, whenever Person A goes onstage to play their part they exaggerate their performance to a ridiculous degree which earns them lots of laughter and attention from the audience.

Person A has a crush on Person B. Person B keeps liking all of Person C’s photos on Instagram but never Person A’s. Person A gets jealous and starts posting pictures in similar poses/outfits/lighting to Person C’s photos, trying to be subtle but it’s super obvious and eventually Person C confronts them and asks them why they’re doing it.

Person A has to move to a new school away from their best friend, Person B. They keep in touch for a while but after a few months, Person A has made new friends and doesn’t talk to Person B much anymore. Person B gets jealous and transfers to the same school Person A moved to. Person A is shocked when they walk into class one day and see Person B there.

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bigbadivy

3 years ago

I dont really...have the emojis so I'll just list em...post nightmare cuddles, a warm hug, fluffy blanket, and bedtime story....villain caretaker and whumpee hero...sorry if I used the whump term wrong just first time trying to use it lmao

Warnings: referring to a person as a "creature" but that is all

"You know what? I am done with this. C'mere." Villain suddenly grabbed the shaking hero and pulled them closer to their chest.

"What are you-"

"Shh," the Villain soothed and wrapped their arms tighter around the hero. They murmured soft words without any real meaning, but Hero relished in the comfort. The warmth and the care that Villain gave them- it made their heart flutter and their heart pump warm blood throughout their veins.

Until reality struck. They were with the villain. A creature of pure evil and menace, just waiting to take the perfect opportunity to twist this newfound trust and hurt them.

So Hero jerked away, but Villain hands were linked together. They blocked any hope or chance of escape with merciless living shackles.

Villain, who was slightly taller than Hero, rested their chin against the other's head. Hero dug their nose into Villain's neck instinctively. Comfort felt good, especially after...

Hero shuddered, remembering their previous vision of the city being destroyed... it was horrific.

Hero suddenly felt themselves drop and in an instant they were coated with a thick faux fur blanket with Villain tucked in next to them.

"Okay... what is this?" Villain said. Just as quickly as they laid Hero and themself in bed, they reached over and revealed a book.

"A book?" Hero guessed somewhat sarcastically. But it came out squeaky and quiet, choked and heavy.

"The BFG by Roald Dahl," Villain sighed as they settled back down next to Hero. The hero cuddled right next to their enemy, not caring anymore that they could kill them in a heartbeat.

Villain flipped the book open to right where Hero dog-eared it and began to read, "The great yellow wasteland lay dim and milky in the moonlight as the Big Friendly Giant went galloping across it. Sophie, still wearing only her nightie, was reclining comfortably in a crevice of the BFG's right ear-"

Villain swooped an arm around Hero's shoulder and brought them closer before continuing with the paragraph, "She was actually in the outer rim of the ear, near the top, where the edge of the ear folds over, and this folding-over bit made sort of a roof over her and gave her wonderful protection against the rushing wind. What is more-"

Villain was cut off by Hero resting their own arm across Villain's muscular chest. Villain smiled to themself and resumed reading.

After a while, Hero's head gently became more heavy in weight as they fell alseep soothed by the villain's deep rambling. The villain set the book on the nightstand and curled up next to them.

Hero tensed up, but melted right back into the embrace. Villain watched over them for a while, studying the delicate features of their face. The slightly crooked nose and the prominent jawline that shifted ever so slightly. The thick, bushy eyebrows that were so relaxed and the long lashes that brushed lightly under their eye to complet the placid expression on their face. Villain grinned and rested their own head against the pillow, falling alseep to the slow breathing of their enemy.

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bigbadivy

4 years ago

Hero and Villain dramatically fighting on a rooftop so people won't think they're dating (they totally are)

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bigbadivy

3 years ago

Coach Brunt: We should appreciate the small things in life.

Coach Brunt: *picks up Bellum*

Coach Brunt: You are appreciated.

Bellum: Put me down or I will kill you

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bigbadivy

4 years ago

Prompt #97

"I hate you" villain roared out, pointing their gun at the hero as the cold air swept around them.

Hero hung their head, their eyes shutting close. "I hate myself too."

Villain instantly drew their gun back, taken aback by the hero's statement. "Wait, no, that's not how it's supposed to work–"

Hero let out a sob as they covered their face. "Of course, I can't do anything right. "

"No–"

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bigbadivy

5 years ago

The work I got done from 9:00 to 21:00. And I will continue. #school #math #quarantine #quarantinelife #productivity #mathematics #homeworks https://www.instagram.com/p/B--MwAbBtRe/?igshid=omhm4b830ay0

Tags

quarantine school math mathematics quarantinelife productivity homeworks

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bigbadivy

4 years ago

“Oi, Hero.”

Oh no. Please no. Not now, not now…

“Hero, what are you doing?”

Hero ignored them, curling up into a ball and covering their head with their hands. They closed their eyes, tears sliding down their cheeks.

“Stop ignoring me.” Hero ignored them.

“Hero, you’re so annoying, I swear to-” Villain started, walking around and crouching in front of Hero. Villain’s voice broke off, clearly seeing the expression on their face. Hero’s hands shook as they sobbed uncontrollably, not even caring that their nemesis was standing in front of them. They knew how they must have looked- completely devastated, eyes red and puffy and hands trembling. Hero looked up. Villain had an unreadable expression on their face. Hero sighed, shaking their head in annoyance.

“Well, just do it, then.” they spit. “I’d rather get this over with.” Hero sighed, placing their hands on the ground next to them and closing their eyes, preparing for the final blow. Villain nodded, crouching down in front of them. Hero felt dread rising in their stomach, but they tried to ignore it, instead waiting patiently. After a minute, they opened their eyes, looking at Villain in confusion. Why were they hesitating?

“Hey, come on-”

Arms suddenly wrapped around them. Hero blinked in confusion, trying to push away. Villain grabbed onto them, holding them tight. Hero felt what little emotional control they had left completely break, and they started crying again. They clutched Villain’s shirt desperately, leaning into their shoulder. Villain’s hand coursed through their hair, and they whispered reassuringly.

“Better?” Villain asked, some time later.

“Better.” Hero replied.

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bigbadivy

3 years ago