Wonder + 1, and then some (Destiny)

by Cody Miller , Music of the Spheres - Never Forgot, Wednesday, June 14, 2017, 23:55 (2723 days ago) @ CruelLEGACEY

I love mystery when it SERVES A STORY, but mystery just for the sake of tricking the viewer (or player) into caring long enough to introduce the NEXT mystery is the storytelling equivenalnt of click-bait headlines. This form of storytelling is hugely popular these days, and I largely blame JJ "mystery box" Abrams for it and (Something about David Lynch which is wrong and I'll ignore).

I'm pretty sure it was the Hulk who put it very well: it's actually clarity that drives stories. Clarity of characters, motivations, and decisions. If you have a whodunnit, the identity of the killer might be a mystery, but the motivations of the detectives aren't. The more you KNOW about what the characters are doing and why, the more drama you can have.

Abrams' problem is that the mysteries are often a part of the character motivations… Remember when Ray takes Luke's lightsaber, has her vision, then runs off "refusing the call"? By the books hero's journey stuff, but why does she do that? We are teased about her past on Jakku, and that's supposed to inform our decision somehow… but in the moment you are shaking your head wondering wtf is happening. And so it feels weak.

Why is the queen's brother hostile toward you? If we knew why, it could be way more powerful… but nope. He's just a dick for no reason.

Mystery can be fun… but not when everything is one big mystery.