The Cost of Inception

[sibilantly]

This is an interesting piece of meta on the possible cost of inception (the actual act of inception, not the cost of the movie ;D): How Much Does Inception Cost?

I'd take the initial section that speculates on payment with a grain of salt, since they're based off legal professions, and extraction is anything but legal. However, the parts afterward

Comments

Not related to the article in any way

[erimari]

I always thought Miles' comment to Cobb about coming back to reality suggested that he probably hadn't been involved in criminal dreamsharing before Mal's death. It felt like he thought Cobb was becoming too invested in the life and was giving up on trying to return to his 'real' life.

That, or it was Cobb's subconscious trying to tell him he was dreaming. If that's how you fall in the dream/reality ending debate.

Re: Not related to the article in any way

[sibilantly]

Yeah, that's the sense I got from Miles and Cobb's conversation, too. However, I've read quite a few fics where Cobb and Mal were already criminals before Mal's death, with the implication being that Miles just didn't know about their criminal activities.

And I cling to the reality ending because I am, at the core, a soft-hearted romantic XD

catnapswithjamesfranco/jedi_iwakura's take

[sibilantly]

From tumblr user catnapswithjamesfranco/jedi_iwakura:

This is all well and good but I think the answer to that last question’s forgotten in the fun speculation of the article: While Cobb’s doing this for money, he’s not doing this to make the money at Saito’s level of business. He’s doing it to bribe and pay off who he needs to, to get home. I think his kids are pretty well off as they are at the moment, it’s not a struggle for the support. But he smashed right into a problem by botching the first COBOL job, even though it was very likely the best thing that could have happened to him as his second assignment led him to Saito. Saito, who would secure him a safe return to his family. Remember, Cobb had promised his entire monetary share of the Fischer job to Yusuf. Dude just wanted to be home after all the initial “proactive” job experimentation that cost him his wife and his children and freedom.

Re: catnapswithjamesfranco/jedi_iwakura's take

[sibilantly]

(Hahahaha, I totally look like I'm talking to myself. Oh well

[citrinesunset]

That's an interesting piece of meta! I hadn't seen it before. I agree with you that I can't really get on board with parts of it, such as the estimated "salaries," but the speculation about what Saito would have to invest is very interesting (especially the part about who he might have to bribe to get Cobb's charges dismissed. That's one thing I've always wondered about

[sibilantly]

I love Mal-as-a-chemist! It's my personal head canon for her, too! :D

And yes! In a deleted/cut scene, Yusuf mentions there's a control council that regulates and monitors the distribution of brand Somnacin. The PASIV manual also states that Somnacin is not just a compound, it's actually a brand. So all the illegal chemists like Yusuf are basically making knock off/variant Somnacin (*sigh* I wish they'd kept that scene in).

Oh God, I'd love to see a fic where Cobb's reputation as the best extractor in the business is a complete fabrication (although I'd prefer to see it done without Cobb bashing, because... well... I have a soft spot for Cobb, the deranged bastard). But yeah, 2 and 3 (or a blend of 2 and 3, as you say!) seems more likely.