Tag: aladdin

“Forget Me Lots” – So I’m having more thoughts to do with this episode.

What would have happened if the cheap “love…?” plot device hadn’t broken the spell, and the rose just gives a person some standard form of amnesia the second they smell it? As in, the damage either eventually repairs itself or you NEVER recover your lost memories?

I don’t doubt that Jasmine would have eventually been convinced that Abis Mal lied to her, that she is the princess of Agrabah and she just locked her father in a dungeon. I can see it clearly that there would be a moment where she would have very nearly killed Abis Mal for what he’d done to her, but some innate part of her that still seems to find small bits of familiarity would key into right and wrong. And she’d stop.

Think of how she’d look at what she’s told of her old life, as a princess, the duties and expectations she’d be presented with and how much they clash with the way she’s been behaving throughout the episode – not just the villainy, but being assertive, athletic, and an expert combatant. Would she begin to realize that these abilities were in her all along and that, whoever she was before, following all of these rules and conforming to this role has been holding her back?

Click through for more because I have so many thinkythoughts on this 😐

I’d imagine that she would be less given to trying to chase Aladdin off, but she’d be quicker to call him on his BS, too. Because if she’s forgotten everything, even if she KNOWS this is the boy she was going to marry, initially? She doesn’t love him anymore, and doesn’t remember ever loving him. And their relationship might have to rebuild based on camaraderie rather than some initial attraction she might have had toward the freedom his life seemed to promise her when they first met.

Would a story like this focus more on how she felt when she thought Abis Mal was her father? Did she just immediately feel evil? Or did behaving like that just make her feel a little less helpless, having lost all of her identity?

Would some of the adventures Aladdin had without her (or even with her) have gone differently, with her playing the more active role? Would she continually be faced with the temptation to be as bullying as she was when she thought she was the Scourge of the Desert, because it feels easier, because not knowing herself so well and partially resenting the life being pushed back at her, still makes her feel powerless?

(Hell, imagine what ‘The Citadel’ would have been like if Mozenrath had, in spite of his childish, sexist ways, seen her defeat the creature he set loose in the Marketplace.)

So Haroud tells Jasmine that she’s Abis Mal’s daughter. She’s the “blackest heart, the scourge of the desert,” etc. And she immediately latches on to it.

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I…don’t actually know how I feel about her automatically accepting it. On one hand the second she got a hint that she might not like Aladdin, she jumped on it and wanted away from him.

However, that being said? I could see her doing that because if you lose your memories that’s the sort of thing you need to figure out in a safe place. And not around someone who you don’t like/may try to hurt you.

Especially when said guy pretty much kidnaps you and won’t listen to you when you ask him to put you back on the ground.

Accepting this, though? Would she not question it at all? “Do I feel like a Scourge of the Desert? That other person was out to cause me trouble; what about these people? Why was I in the palace if I was a known criminal?”

No questioning? Just immediately “Oh okay!”? And then this:

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You’re gonna conquer Agrabah at dawn? You didn’t even know what Agrabah was five minutes ago.

Believed scourge of the desert or not you’d think she’d want time to recuperate and try to regain her memories/find out why she lost them in the first place.

The Land of the Black Sand, Destane, Mozenrath, clever animation, and so much headcanon ahoy.

Iago recognizes this place as the Land of the Black Sand. Before we get to what he knows, fun scientific bit. Noting that the sand is actually black, and the atmosphere in the setting shots:

Black Sand is caused by volcanic ash. There is an active volcano somewhere on Mozenrath’s property. This will never be addressed in the series despite that it would obviously be one of the coolest places ever to have a third act fight scene.

Okay, on with what Iago knows:

Iago remembers that Destane famously owns this place. A sorcerer that even Jafar openly avoided. Mozenrath is happy to inform them that the Land of the Black Sand is under new management. This was likely a very recent development, because everything about Mozenrath in this episode screams “wet behind the ears” if you look hard enough at it.

(This is also just one of my favorite candid shots ever.)

Something you may have noticed in the last scene or so, also, is that Mozenrath’s features have been a little – well, bigger. More wide-eyed, less standard “evil” looking, and that abruptly stops right after he openly admits to murdering Destane, who was “like a father to him.” I’m sure this is just because the animators switched off, but I think it was an interesting shift.

Until now, light thievery aside, even releasing the creature that didn’t really hurt anyone could be seen as irresponsible, not evil. The second you get a hint that this kid could be doing hard time for the stuff he’s done, with good reason, he visually becomes more unpleasant, in subtle ways, to give the viewer cues that he is more than just a jerk. Like I said, this could have been incidental, but if it was intentional on the part of the animators, it was damn clever.

On to Destane and Mozenrath. It is never confirmed whether Destane mentored him or not. The most that we know is that Mozenrath says “He was like a father to me, until I stole his power and his throne.” And we have already discussed why, in several little ways, Mozenrath is not in any way a reliable storyteller. For most of his backstory we only have the little things that he says.

I am of the party that assumes Destane raised and trained him. In RP, my Mozenrath has been with him since he was four or five years old – well before he can actually remember. Everything he knows about magic that didn’t come from private personal study came from him. I also assert that this is where most of his behavior comes from as well. If Mozenrath is a bully (and he is), then Destane was a super maxi bully – otherwise I don’t think we’d get this shot of Mozenrath standing over him, making Destane bow to him, and wheedling over his defeat.

It is very rare that I will say this of people being mistreated by villains in a Disney show, but given what very little we know about Destane, courtesy Iago, and how Mozenrath behaves now?

Destane probably had to be the kind of bastard we can’t show in Disney cartoons to push someone that far, especially what is essentially a teenage boy. .

The exchange that takes place after Mozenrath steals the lamp is just way too funny when you take a closer look at it.

Everybody wakes up in a panic and Mozenrath is just like “SO ABOUT THAT JOB YOU WERE GOING TO DO FOR ME.”

Which…the presumption. But Aladdin and co. have yet to realize that Moze is kind of a bully and a brat and doesn’t hear “no” very often, apparently.

One of these people doesn’t seem to remember Aladdin telling him to piss off yesterday, and Aladdin is not certain who that person is.

“I just can’t take ‘no’ for an answer.” And I actually am not certain if he’s saying that in an “oh silly me I forgot that I was kind of an asshole and HERE I AM sorry” or if he’s playing it off casual because he actually CAN’T leave without bringing somebody back to handle his problem for him.

I love that when Mozenrath goes “nice hovel, Aladdin,” poor gullible Aladdin actually thinks he’s complimenting him and is like “Yeah, fixed it up myself. I’m putting in surround sound speakers later. My LAN parties are going to be AWESOME.”

And Mozenrath has to be like

“How did you even make it to your teens?”

Okay so I know that Aladdin keeps his hovel but he also has a room at the palace.

We covered this in a previous episode. Why does he sometimes sleep on the floor in his hovel, rather than in a nice comfy bed at the palace? And why does everyone else but Jasmine stay there with him?

Is there a curfew? If he’s out partying with the guys too late he’s not allowed back in? Are he and Jasmine fighting?

What is it?

Production Code Episode 70 – The Citadel

Screw it. Doing Mozenrath’s first episode. God knows I talk about him often enough in the other liveblogs.

And do you see that number? Do you see it? 70th episode written. Out of just over 100 99 episodes. That’s how long we would have been waiting if they hadn’t mixed up the episode order. In the official airing order this episode was in the 30s, not the 70s.

(And once again I call in to question shipping him with Sadira. As of this episode in the production code list, her final episode aired nine episodes ago. All of the Mozenrath stuff happens in the series after she clashes with the Witches of the Sand, and Sadira disappears from the series altogether until Aladdin and Jasmine’s wedding.)

The only criticism I have for this character is that the writing normalizes treating OCPD as a laughing matter.

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Yes, I said OCPD and not OCD, which it’s often mistaken for. In fact I’m willing to bet most Aladdin fans who know of this character have described him as OCD at least once. Even I almost did before I stopped and double-checked. Surprise: He’s not.

OCPD, or obsessive compulsive personality disorder, differs from OCD in that OCD behaviors go against the sufferer’s concept of self, causing them extreme distress, whereas OCPD behaviors are compatible with said self-image and therefore seen as rational and good behaviors (x). OCD sufferers see their behaviors as abnormal whereas one with OCPD can explain their behaviors as normal and would be extremely resistant to accept otherwise. In fact their concept of their views and those that don’t perfectly align with theirs can be so polarized they might think you’re a jerk for even suggesting there’s something wrong with their behavior.

OCPD is specifically associated with extreme perfectionism and an all-powerful need to control one’s environment down to the most minute of details. 

The DSM states that OCPD displays the following symptoms, when four or more are present:

  1. is preoccupied with details, rules, lists, order, organization, or schedules to the extent that the major point of the activity is lost
  2. shows perfectionism that interferes with task completion (e.g., is unable to complete a project because his or her own overly strict standards are not met)
  3. is excessively devoted to work and productivity to the exclusion of leisure activities and friendships (not accounted for by obvious economic necessity)
  4. is overconscientious, scrupulous, and inflexible about matters of morality, ethics, or values (not accounted for by cultural or religious identification)
  5. is unable to discard worn-out or worthless objects even when they have no sentimental value
  6. is reluctant to delegate tasks or to work with others unless they submit to exactly his or her way of doing things
  7. adopts a miserly spending style toward both self and others; money is viewed as something to be hoarded for future catastrophes
  8. shows rigidity and stubbornness

The article goes on to describe that some cases are also obsessed with cleanliness.

If you look through the article linked you’ll note there are several other means of classification and sub-classes, etc.

But no, what we’re looking at, here, was the template for this character. On one hand, it’s interesting seeing how the character functions – many of these symptoms perfectly explain his use of hand-made henchmen rather than people, potential reasons why he wouldn’t have stayed in Greece, etc – but on the other, the writing here, along with other pop cultural portrayals of OCPD and similar disorders, creates an environment where the audience is supposed to laugh at something the character can’t actually help or control.

For the record, I do find the character funny. I don’t find him funny when what’s being used for the joke is an obvious nod toward his disorder. I do find him funny when he’s actually being funny. More on this as it comes up. He has lines that I still laugh at when I think of them.