Pokémon Art

by 高瀬

I didn’t play this game to cry over a middle aged man that overuses the term ‘hard-boiled’.

In defense of Genn Greymane

He gets a lot of shit from fandom for various reasons. But I do hate seeing him painted as evil or just a jerk. He’s much more than that and I find his journey over the years very interesting.

He’s a complex character and I love that shit okay.

Like I don’t blame people for not liking him because sure, he’s a jerk a lot of the time (especially on a surface level) but to dismiss him as a badly written character or whatever? That irritates me.

Genn Greymane is an ass. He’s gruff, emotionally repressed, stubborn, impulsive, harsh, and just generally snide.

He’s also a dedicated husband, father, friend and king, this is where people are going to get iffy but I believe it.

He makes mistakes. Many. (What character hasn’t?) but he’s also a character who has learned from those mistakes in most cases and improved himself. He admits he was wrong in many cases and tries to sway others from making those same mistakes. That? I respect.

Him insisting Kul’tirans not to isolate themselves because he knows how that ends and it ended badly for his people. They paid the price for his mistake. He knows now they need to work together and he does.

He loves his family even if he’s not outwardly a soft and cuddly guy. That can’t even be disputed. He loves them. He would die for them and has been willing to do so before.

He had a strained relationship with his son? Okay? That happens. He’s not a perfect parent but neither is Varian or any other parent in WoW. (I would hardly call Varian emotionally available lmao)

It’s difficult, especially when two people have different ways of expressing affeftion. Genn is not good at showing it and sadly that’s what Liam needed from him.

As I said he’s been a huge jerk before and that much is obvious but he knows that and that counts for something to me? That he tries to do better counts for something to me.

Regardless I do believe without a doubt he loved his son and his son loved him. (His son died saving him for god’s sake)

He cares for his people. Genuinely. He’s said he feels guilty for their plight (rightfully so in some cases) and wants nothing more than to fix it for them.

“My people have suffered so much..if only I could shoulder more of their burden.”

His advice to Anduin is also very telling. He thinks Anduin needs to see battle. He needs to be there seeing the sacrifices his men make in his name. He needs to see and his soldiers need to know their king is with them.

This is harsh but it’s /true/.

Anduin is a naturally compassionate person so he’s not apt to see people as mere numbers or toy soldiers but it would be easy for him to slip into doing so if he had a completely hands off approach.

It builds empathy and compassion for his soldiers which, with a blatant hands off approach, could diminish even in someone like Anduin.

He needs to see the weight that his decisions have and the gravity of the situation. These are lives in his hands. Anduin admits he needed to see it as well. Now look? He’s on the battlefield beside his soldiers more often than not.

Also Genn’s people love him. Despite his mistakes. They are fiercely loyal to him and that says volumes.

He’s not a cruel king.

I wouldn’t say he’s a bad man either. Just a deeply flawed one just like everyone else. He tries to help others now. He fights for causes he believes are just.

His loyalty is something I deeply admire. His refusal to abandon the night elves and leave them to fight on their own..was a huge character moment. He defied his king (Anduin didn’t really mind but that’s besides the point) and fought by their side.

Because he’s been there and the night elves are the people who took them in when their home fell, they’re the people who helped them learn to control the curse.

As for Sylvanas? He has every reason to hate her as viciously as he does. She destroyed his kingdom. She killed his son. Now she’s committed genocide against his allies. How can anyone blame him for this?

One of the books had a brief moment of him acknowledging the humanity within the forsaken (who are not Sylvanas) and that also says volumes about how far he’s come. It’s a moment of genuine empathy.

What about his loyalty to Varian? They were genuinely good friends.

Composed, emotionally repressed, gruff Genn Greymane screamed out in grief when Varian Wrynn fell.

The guilt he felt for it was also very telling about how he feels about both Varian and the situation.

The fact that he tries to guide Anduin and look out for him says volumes.

Reaching out to Jaina’s mother and encouraging her to make up with her daughter before it’s too late says volumes.

His fierce desire to avenge his son, Varian and his people says volumes.

He made some very shitty choices especially regarding isolationg Gilneas. But damn the man has already been punished enough for it hasn’t he?

And it’s not quite as black and white as people think. He’s a king. It’s his duty to protect his people over anything else. In his impulsive and selfish decision he was trying to protect his people. But only /his/ people.

Was that right? Leaving the other kingdoms to essentially die? No. And he’s paid for it. He explicitly acknowledges that he was wrong and tries to do better.

The release the worgen decision? Was stupid. But it was not out of malice. He did not release them to infect his people. He made an impulsive and bad choice. The same could be said for any character at some point.

This is a deeply flawed man but he is not an intrinsically bad one. In fact I would say he’s a good one if only because he tries to do better. (He doesn’t always succeed but he tries)

He’s gone from a selfish man who refuses to help anyone but his own to a man willing to risk his own life and the lives of his people to defend allies. That’s character development, baby.

You don’t have to like him. He’s not the most likable character on a surface level. But he’s no monster and painting him one is doing him an enormous disservice.

He’s just a man like anyone else.

OP, you are amazing. Thank you so much for this post! What irks me the most about people who complain about him being “consumed by hatred towards Sylvanas” is that most of them appear to have no clue regarding his lore. As you’ve stated, he has every reason to hate her - she destroyed his kingdom, killed his son right in front of him, burned Teldrassil aka the home of the people who sheltered his kingdom - and despite this he has changed his views on the Forsaken as a people. In Before the Storm he openly admits to never having believed Forsaken to be capable of more feelings than hatred and a desire to destroy and openly confessing that he was wrong - which is a huge thing for someone so incredibly stubborn like him. This is character development and something very, very important. He’s flawed, sure - but in my eyes it makes him an amazing character and most importantly: It makes him human. Now please excuse me while I reblog this good stuff another three times. 

My deepest gratitude as well, OP! Thank you so much for your effort. Regarding @ritterschaf‘s post, I’d like to provide a citation from Christie Golden’s Before the Storm, which is - in fact - the very situation they are talking about: Genn Greymane on what he saw in Arathi, when Forsaken and their human families met; admitting he was wrong and apologizing for it.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now Genn faced Anduin. “There was no violence. No…anger, or hate. Not even hard words, it seemed. And while those happy reunions were remarkable, extraordinary, it struck me that this was even more important. Because if humans and Forsaken could meet, with so much emotion involved, and disagree – dislike or even be repelled by one another – and simply walk away…”

Greymane shook his head. “All I’d seen from the Forsaken was treachery, deceit, and a hunger to end life.” I watched my boy die in my arms, giving his life to save mine, he thought but did not say. “I saw ghastly, shambling monstrosities descend upon living beings with no desire other than to snuff out that light of life. I’d never seen what I saw that day. I never thought I could.”

(…) “I still think what was done to the Forsaken against their will was horrifying. But it’s clear to me now that some of them haven’t been broken by it. Some of them are still the people they once were. So I was wrong, and I apologize.”

 - Christie Golden, Before the Storm, pages 278 to 279.

In defense of Genn Greymane

He gets a lot of shit from fandom for various reasons. But I do hate seeing him painted as evil or just a jerk. He’s much more than that and I find his journey over the years very interesting.

He’s a complex character and I love that shit okay.

Like I don’t blame people for not liking him because sure, he’s a jerk a lot of the time (especially on a surface level) but to dismiss him as a badly written character or whatever? That irritates me.

Genn Greymane is an ass. He’s gruff, emotionally repressed, stubborn, impulsive, harsh, and just generally snide.

He’s also a dedicated husband, father, friend and king, this is where people are going to get iffy but I believe it.

He makes mistakes. Many. (What character hasn’t?) but he’s also a character who has learned from those mistakes in most cases and improved himself. He admits he was wrong in many cases and tries to sway others from making those same mistakes. That? I respect.

Him insisting Kul’tirans not to isolate themselves because he knows how that ends and it ended badly for his people. They paid the price for his mistake. He knows now they need to work together and he does.

He loves his family even if he’s not outwardly a soft and cuddly guy. That can’t even be disputed. He loves them. He would die for them and has been willing to do so before.

He had a strained relationship with his son? Okay? That happens. He’s not a perfect parent but neither is Varian or any other parent in WoW. (I would hardly call Varian emotionally available lmao)

It’s difficult, especially when two people have different ways of expressing affeftion. Genn is not good at showing it and sadly that’s what Liam needed from him.

As I said he’s been a huge jerk before and that much is obvious but he knows that and that counts for something to me? That he tries to do better counts for something to me.

Regardless I do believe without a doubt he loved his son and his son loved him. (His son died saving him for god’s sake)

He cares for his people. Genuinely. He’s said he feels guilty for their plight (rightfully so in some cases) and wants nothing more than to fix it for them.

“My people have suffered so much..if only I could shoulder more of their burden.”

His advice to Anduin is also very telling. He thinks Anduin needs to see battle. He needs to be there seeing the sacrifices his men make in his name. He needs to see and his soldiers need to know their king is with them.

This is harsh but it’s /true/.

Anduin is a naturally compassionate person so he’s not apt to see people as mere numbers or toy soldiers but it would be easy for him to slip into doing so if he had a completely hands off approach.

It builds empathy and compassion for his soldiers which, with a blatant hands off approach, could diminish even in someone like Anduin.

He needs to see the weight that his decisions have and the gravity of the situation. These are lives in his hands. Anduin admits he needed to see it as well. Now look? He’s on the battlefield beside his soldiers more often than not.

Also Genn’s people love him. Despite his mistakes. They are fiercely loyal to him and that says volumes.

He’s not a cruel king.

I wouldn’t say he’s a bad man either. Just a deeply flawed one just like everyone else. He tries to help others now. He fights for causes he believes are just.

His loyalty is something I deeply admire. His refusal to abandon the night elves and leave them to fight on their own..was a huge character moment. He defied his king (Anduin didn’t really mind but that’s besides the point) and fought by their side.

Because he’s been there and the night elves are the people who took them in when their home fell, they’re the people who helped them learn to control the curse.

As for Sylvanas? He has every reason to hate her as viciously as he does. She destroyed his kingdom. She killed his son. Now she’s committed genocide against his allies. How can anyone blame him for this?

One of the books had a brief moment of him acknowledging the humanity within the forsaken (who are not Sylvanas) and that also says volumes about how far he’s come. It’s a moment of genuine empathy.

What about his loyalty to Varian? They were genuinely good friends.

Composed, emotionally repressed, gruff Genn Greymane screamed out in grief when Varian Wrynn fell.

The guilt he felt for it was also very telling about how he feels about both Varian and the situation.

The fact that he tries to guide Anduin and look out for him says volumes.

Reaching out to Jaina’s mother and encouraging her to make up with her daughter before it’s too late says volumes.

His fierce desire to avenge his son, Varian and his people says volumes.

He made some very shitty choices especially regarding isolationg Gilneas. But damn the man has already been punished enough for it hasn’t he?

And it’s not quite as black and white as people think. He’s a king. It’s his duty to protect his people over anything else. In his impulsive and selfish decision he was trying to protect his people. But only /his/ people.

Was that right? Leaving the other kingdoms to essentially die? No. And he’s paid for it. He explicitly acknowledges that he was wrong and tries to do better.

The release the worgen decision? Was stupid. But it was not out of malice. He did not release them to infect his people. He made an impulsive and bad choice. The same could be said for any character at some point.

This is a deeply flawed man but he is not an intrinsically bad one. In fact I would say he’s a good one if only because he tries to do better. (He doesn’t always succeed but he tries)

He’s gone from a selfish man who refuses to help anyone but his own to a man willing to risk his own life and the lives of his people to defend allies. That’s character development, baby.

You don’t have to like him. He’s not the most likable character on a surface level. But he’s no monster and painting him one is doing him an enormous disservice.

He’s just a man like anyone else.

Quiet voice problems: waiting for silent breaks in conversation so that you can be heard but trying 5+ times anyway before giving up because you can’t get more than a few words in before someone else with more robust vocal cords starts talking over you.

Hnng.. friends….. I’m trying to speak but my vocal cords are dummy thin and my contributions to the conversation are being ignored

In this new quest line what we got, you can see Sylvanas and Nathanos stand beside each other when Talanji speaks to the people.

I hate how men say he is her bitch or boy toy. No, he is her mate.

You just have to accept the fact that strong female leaders can have equal relationship with a male. No one bragged about Durotan’s mate, Draka. She was the chieftain’s mate, but also a warrior in her own right. Nathanos - when he was alive - was the first human ranger in the elves’ army. Also, he was the mate of Sylvanas, who was Ranger-General.

A female leader can work together with a male mate even is he is lower in ranks.

Sylvanas wouldn’t bring his boy toy to every important political events if she wouldn’t take him seriously.

Warcraft 3: Reforged by Bayard Wu Source: https://ift.tt/2PwYfx6

here’s an ancient sketch of alive sylvanas and n*thanos that i slapped color on bc i dont want my pc to die

World of Warcraft - Nathanos by Benjamin Tang (www.artstation.com/bentang)

smh whenever I see someone claim the Sylvanas/Nathanos romance is a recent plot development when there have been hints since vanilla

It went from being “read between the lines” to “super obvious in both the game and the official short story,” but it’s not a new idea.  And it’s canon.

You don’t have to like the ship, but at least get the lore right.

Radiant TV Series OP Song - Utopia 04 Limited Sazabys

(°◡°♡)

This is for @princessazula.  She doesn’t have enough with getting me into Anahardt and making me write a novel of their adventures, she also has to share her love for Genn and Anduin  with me.  As if I needed anything to love the Alliance and the old grumpy werewolf grandpa…

Please, never stop sharing the love <3

I was supposed to draw his doggo person, but since I just had drawn doggo!Rein, I just went to practice Genn’s grumpy face >8)  I’ve never drawn him before, hope he’s all right. For Gilneas! For the Alliance!

Please look at this beauty

His name is Dart Dragunov.

Remember his name. And if you like him, watch the anime Radiant. Thanks for your attention.

Ugh…. 😒🤢

it’s this part 

cut for A Whole Essay

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