#(i tagged riverdale but this is not based on it and i have not seen it. however my riverdale enjoyers liked this so.... yeah)

[inky-squid-art]

im still alive. hi

[randomstupidchaos]

I'm stuck at home with Covid and incredibly bored, so, here, have a poll of shows I don't understand no matter how many posts show up on my dash and frankly I'm too afraid to ask at this point.

Feel free to explain your fave, badly or otherwise, in the tags if you reblog this.

[danystargaryens]

Rules: share some unpopular opinions about 5 different fandoms of your choosing tagged: by the lovely @astarkeytagging: @the-maidofmischief @usergirlfailure @witcherz @candicepatton @klinejack @burningblake @mistyquigly @reysorigins @jamescarstairs @fredweasleying @ariespedro @userbettycooper @ilslayfaust i don't think i have alot of unpopular opinions, but okay

Yellowjackets: Teen!nat & travis are the most skipable scenes, i dont care for them together, and i feel like it takes away too much storyline for nat. atleast in s1, to me it annoying in a horror show to have this relationship. + even if liked travis, he doesn’t have much personality to me besides his sibling.

From dusk till dawn: Kisa is very very undervalued or not taking serious in the fandom, like she just exists in the background, when she IS the plot. She’s a valueable member ! It’s not just the seth-kate-richie show

The originals: the only reason you would hate camille, is because she comes inbetween other blondie. also camille is also so underrated.

Sex education: maeve and otis should have happend in s2, or s3 WITHOUT the ruby storyline. it ruins both characters to me getting them together at the end. also just scummy

Riverdale: the whole show is pointless, if the ending is based on them being in their original timeline in the 1950’s. i get ras wanting that type of thing. however we’ve seen 1 timeline for 6 years. We’ve been through every silly storyline, and i dont care if that’s on purpose. It’s so poorly done. i dont even see season 7 as the real riverdale, it’s a parody. it would make more sense if this plot was in earlier seasons, or like timelines EXISTED prior to s3. I’m just so annoyed

[sprolden]

hey there! i want you to know that i’ve never watched an episode of riverdale ever, the only thing i ever knew about it before tonight was that someone throws babies over a fire or something?? (saw it in one of those ‘whcih of these didn’t happen’ things)

i followed you for tsc stuff, but your posts about today’s finale made my head spin. i thought riverdale was a mainstream typical heterosexual show w/ bad scriptwriting tbh, based on the look of it? i’m ace so i’d seen ppl complain about jughead’s ace erasure, but i did not know literally anything else about this show? so your blog tonight deeply confused me, but in a fun way, so i decided to go to the tag and try and figure it out.

and, oh my word. never seen an ep of this thing but i’m sitting here with tears rolling down my face, i can’t stop laughing, i cannot believe they ended it like this, this is absolutely hilarious and iconic and what the hell levels of finale….. i feel for y’all and i’m happy for y’all and i kinda wish i’d watched this show before it ended.

also…… i must ask how it feels to be a part of two fandoms in whcih two ‘finales’ have both been extremely unbelievably chaotic and ended w/ a polycule to avoid ship wars in which the polycule breaks up at some point in said finale (if i’m understanding riverdale’s finale right?)……. as someone who loved qoaad but had no clue what was happening i cannot help but wonder what y’all must be thinking of this episode, it seems even crazier than thule and sebastian and janus and annabel from the edgar allen poe poem and your boyfriend literally selling his soul to his job but telling you two to be happy and😭😭

welcome to riverdale insanity. i hope your adventure has made you want to watch this show. i can try to explain it to you but i physically can't put this show into words (i can actually, they're "camp" and "metanarrative")

basically: riverdale is an intentionally batshit insane show which started out as a somewhat normal teen drama. most people, however, stopped watching after the crazy got turned up a notch and because of that most people still think it's a teen drama and the writing's just bad. but it's not bad writing! it's very very good writing! because every insane storyline is purpose!!!!! and that's why people love it. because they love their insane and gay show. somehow this is very hard for the average person to wrap their heads around.

i love riverdale to death. it is truly, genuinely, the only show of it's kind. it's outlandish and crazy and hilarious and beautiful. there's literally no other show willing to be as insane as riverdale was and it's definitely one of my favourite shows ever made because of that. this quote from a recent interview with some of the actors says it best:

as for the comparison quoaad: i will say that i enjoyed this finale... about the same amount as queen? i didn't like some parts of it but more for general storytelling reasons (i don't want to know the exact fates of every single character at any cost and that's literally all this finale was lol).

the main difference here is that the dark artifices is a serious (wel.. serious-adjacent) ya fantasy series but riverdale is a show that's centered around outlandish, comedic and dramatic storylines. a crazy finale didn't really fit TDA, while obviously, a crazy-ish finale did fit riverdale for the aforementioned reasons (i say "crazy-ish" because i would say this episode is like. maybe #70 on the most insane riverdale episodes list? believe it or not this was very normal by riverdale standards).

and yes the polyamory ending is always ICONIC. they really kierarktina'd us and i'm delighted. more of this please!

also, can i just say, the fact that you thought riverdale was a straight show is unbelievably funny and i KNOW most people think of it that way but you have to know that genuinely, without lying, 80-90% of the characters are canonically bisexual. and virtually all the other ones are gay. all of the main characters are gay/bi (except jughead, though that one's still a little debatable?). most of the main characters' parents are gay/bi. homophobic villains all end up being gay in the end. random background will make one on-screen appearance just to say they're gay and then leave. every single one of cheryls ancestors was a lesbian. i don't have the time to count but think riverdale has somewhere around 30-50 confirmed queer characters. and yes i do wish that they had given is a crumb of ace or trans rep but this is not my story this is one insane gay person's 20 year revenge plan and who am i to judge.

go watch riverdale now <3

[slowandsteddie]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by: @numinosmoon

1. How many fics do you have on AO3?

Currently, three. (find me at deleteurtexthistory ; also have a sideblog by the same name where I just share my own writing if y’all are interested)

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

8,388.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

I write for a lot of fandoms, but so far I’ve only posted for Stranger Things. The other stuff I have is more… dark. More for me.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Uhh… I only have three published, but

Claudia Henderson and Her Two Boys has 119

Cleaning Headstones has 91

It’s My Turn (To Be The Hero) has 74

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yes I do. I know it makes me happy when someone replies to my comment.

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Can we count one’s that are still a work in progress? Because I’m writing a Steddie thing based on my grandparents' love story. And I’m going to have to keep it true to source, which means that someone is gonna die. If not, I wrote a Marvel one where the main character gets saved by someone only to end up dying (again?) a few chapters later because they were returning the favor… I’m not posting that one anywhere anytime soon.

7. What’s the fic that you wrote with the happiest ending?

I try to make all of my fics have a happy ending, with only the two exceptions. But I think the happiest is the one where Steve didn’t get what he wanted because he ended up getting something (someone!) even better.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not so far, luckily.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes and no. Yes, I do write it a lot. No I haven’t actually shared it with anyone other than a RP partner. When writing a smut scene, I go with the flow and the comfort levels of the person I’m writing with. When I write for myself, I notice that I tend to go omegaverse if that helps y’all figure out what kind.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest you’ve ever written?

I do write crossovers! I think my craziest might be Supernatural and Riverdale. To be fair, it was a crack fic.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I’m aware of, but someone did use our RP (without permission) and turned it into a fic that they posted on Wattpad. Everyone’s favorite parts are the ones that I WROTE. I’m still salty about it. They could have asked or given credit.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but I would be so incredibly honored if anyone were to ever ask.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes! In high school, I co-wrote a One Direction fic with my best friend at the time. I also have co-wrote on a Teen Wolf fic around the same time. I did our boy Stiles justice before I had ever actually seen the show. I wonder if I can find those fics. Hm…

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Steddie. 10000% Steddie. It is all I can think about most of the time. I have never been so obsessed with anything in my life. (And I’m autistic with Hyper Fixations being a normal occurrence.)

15. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Well. The thing is, I’m torn on it. It’s a SVU/Stranger Things crossover. I want to finish it, just to say that I have. But at the same time, it is… Probably the darkest thing I have ever attempted to write. I do know that I’ve taken some of the lighter scenes out and used them elsewhere. I say that I’ve posted a dark thing on here before, but it is so Tame compared to how dark I go most of the time. Like I will edit to make it more palatable and I have no idea why I do that.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I like to think that I’m good at dialogue. I’m good at explaining things, most of the time. At least in my opinion.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I never think anything I write is ever good enough. I always feel like I have to tame it, or lighten it, or just change everything about it in general. Even my answers have been edited and I still no happy.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fics?

It’s good as long as someone isn’t forcing it. Like don’t have someone just randomly throwing in the other language to prove that they know it.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

It was either StarGate: SG1 or Charmed.

20. Favorite fic you’ve ever written?

Cleaning Headstones for my published ones. There is one that I wrote in high school called The Wrong Mister Wright about werewolves and the main character falls for a guy with an older brother who ends up being his True Mate, so he has to decide between his heart and fate. And I think it’s really well paced considering I was like 14 when I wrote it. One of the few fics that I didn’t second guess every single word.

Tagging: anyone who wants to participate 💜

[serpentblccd]

INDY AU BLOG OF JUGHEAD JONES THE III ( originally from the Archie comic’s + Riverdale ) This blog is fully based on my own au version of Jughead Jones, It’s not Riverdale related. And will be considered my main verse when interacting with others. ( I will have somewhat of a Riverdale Verse.  But just know I don’t agree with a LOT of how Riverdale portrays Jughead or serpents ) My Serpent Verse is based totally on the realty of gang violence. Being in a gang is not a quick sign up sheet. Gang violence is deadly, so I will have tw tags when it comes to gore & fighting. And yes, smut will be taking place on this blog. You have been warned. ( no minors / will not interact ) Besides the Serpent Verse I do have other AU’s if you can’t handle the realty of gang violence or such, let me know ! Serpent verse . Vampire Verse . Preppy Verse . Hunger Verse . SpiderMan Verse

                                Written by Della . Blog remade on june 17 2023 . 18 + 

Find me on my other blogs : @leagueofdccm , @crimebabe

Also, a heads up and I have seen this on a post before. But I do love making ooc friendships, I know a lot of people may not be into that.. .but it does make plotting and evolving our characters together much more fun !! Please, I would love to get to know all of you, and send me anything & any time ! I want to make friends outside of our roleplay... the mun is just as important ! So add me on Discord : delladella #0900 Also heads up I am a mother to three kids, two of them happen to be still babies. So, it is a lot of work.... but I will get to things eventually, just please understand I have children to take care of. xoxo 

affiliated  with  @coophunts

[meangirlbracket]

Half of the round 1 day 1 polls have officially closed. Let's send off our losers with dignity

1. Queen Cersei Lannister - Game of Thrones

Cersei was nominated once without comment. She ended up having several passionate advocates in the poll, but not until several hours in when Lobelia already had a massive lead. Cersei Lannister was able to fight her way to an impressively close near-tie, and has been honorably discharged from the Mean Girl Bracket.

2. February of the Calendar Council - Fallen London

Fallen London is a text-based browser game set in an alternate Victorian London. Similar to Cersei, February fell behind early on but had almost caught up by the time the poll ended. Nevertheless, February of the Calendar Council has been eliminated from the Mean Girl Bracket.

3. Pansy Parkinson

Pansy Parkinson is a minor character from Harry Potter that is very popular with fans, in the words of Quinn Curio "fueled mostly by the premise that rich ambitious girls with jet black bobs look cool, and you wanna kiss them." which I respect. She was submitted once without comment. Pansy Parkinson has been eliminated from the Mean Girl Bracket.

4. Tohsaka Rin (Fate: Stay/Night saga)

Tohsaka Rin is the coolest girl in school and, separately an extremely powerful young mage. Also one of my personal favorite characters in the bracket. From @chevalierebf 's tags:

She and Amber traded leads several times, but ultimately Tohsaka Rin has been eliminated from the Mean Girl Bracket.

5. Medusa from Greek Mythology

Medusa is a character in many greek myths with snake hair that turns people to stone when seen. She was an out of the box submission and a beloved part of almost every modern adaptation of greek myth, including the one her competitor is from. She lost by only 3% in the second most voted in poll so far. Medusa has been eliminated from the competition.

6. London Tipton (Suite life of Zack and Cody and Suite Life on Deck)

London Tipton had an early lead but was overtaken in a second half upset by 10%. She is more famously clueless than mean, but classic it-girl nonetheless. London Tipton has been eliminated from the competition.

7. Cheryl Blossom - Riverdale

Cheryl Blossom is a close personal friend to me. While she is the mean rich beautiful cheerleading captain, she is also canonically a weird loser freak that no one likes. She had a brief lead but was solidly overtaken by GLaDOS. (tragically) (to ME) Cheryl Blossom has been eliminated from the competition

8. Tess Tyler - Camp Rock

I may have overestimated the continued strength of the camp rock fandom in this matchup - sorry tess!! Tess Tyler has been eliminated from the competition

9. Felicia Furrypaws - Babymouse

Felicia was one of my favorite submissions, and the addition of a children's book character was an essential component in the vibes of this competition. This was anyone's game right up until the end, with Neru winning by just 2 votes. Felicia Furrypaws has been eliminated from the Mean Girl Bracket.

[oldtvandcomics]

Indie books. Also, podcasts seem to have a lot of them? Which kind of proves that they are NOT mainstream, lol. You do find the occasional ace background character in bigger productions. They may or may not be aromantic coded, but it usually is not said out loud.

Funny thing is, because of aforementioned erasure, you will have to look very, very closely, or their asexuality and aromanticism will vanish into thin air. The ugliest one I can name is Jughead Jones, who in the comics has been confirmed asexual and strongly implied to be aromantic, and then when the show Riverdale - based on said comic franchise - started to air the next year, he was magically allo and involved in a lot of romantic and sexual nonsense that has been ALWAYS out of character for him. Still angry at that one.

I... could keep going if you really want me to. I was going to just put this in the tags, but now I'm railed up enough to make it the main post's problem. Just of the top of my head, we've got:

Sherlock Holmes keeps getting his queerness erased including any and all aroace readings of him.

Roshanna Chatterji in the DC universe exists but was only present for a short comic book run and they then only brought her back for one Pride issue or so. I didn't follow that closely to be honest. Marvel also has some ace superheroes in the comics, I just don't know a thing about them.

Alastor from Hazbin Hotel is currently going through The Drama because despite being canonically ace and strongly implied aro the fandom really REALLY wants to ship him with everything that moves. I don't think I've ever seen this many character x reader posts in a new fandom than I do now with him, it's ridiculous.

Then you have Aziraphale and Crowley from Good Omens going through it for YEARS, where people invalidated their relationship and general queerness because they didn't kiss on screen (DESPITE both being canonically nonbinary, but that's another discussion). THEN when season 2 came out those people continued to act as if that one kiss somehow confirmed their relationship despite that scene being about anything BUT that.

The Doctor from Doctor Who was completely desexualized and uninterested in romance in the classics, which lasted for 26 years. People generally read him as asexual, it sometimes comes up in discussions. From the moment that the show was brought back in 2005, they are put in CONSTANT relationship drama, especially with the companions who before have always been his friends.

The reason why you don't know any mainstream ace and arospec characters is BECAUSE of that erasure, both within the canon material and the fandom.

i find it incredibly funny when posts talk about erasure of aspec characters because bestie what characters are you talking about. i can’t think of one example on mainstream media, and i say this as an aromantic person myself. where are you guys finding canon aspec characters !!!!

[alignallofthelights]

Dean Cas Wedding Tweet Report

Now that the dust has settled, I wanted to do a quick after action report on the #DeanCasWedding trend. For those who aren’t aware. #Dean Cas Wedding trended on Twitter, based on some recurring Supernatural castmates sending a tweet about Dean and Cas getting married at the roadhouse. 

Destiel fans ran with this theory and created a fictional wedding between Dean and Castiel on Valentine’s Day. The hash tag trended for 8 hours, and peaked at #4 on Twitter’s United States trending top 30. In the end it generated 46.3k tweets. 

I am doing a deeper social media analysis of the hash tag findings to better understand Destiel fan activity, during this campaign. Further details are shared here as follows: 

Overall Campaign Metrics

As posted before the majority of this campaign was based on retweets - 67% of this campaign was based off of retweets from 13.7k original tweets. 33% of the campaign came from original content. For scale that means of the 46.3k tweets that were generated during the Dean Cas Wedding trend ~30k came from retweets. 

This means that the Destiel fan base has a predilection to retweet and spam  continuously to get their hash tags to trend.

Size of Destiel’s Fanbase/Stanbase

So this is the interesting story. Of the individuals who participated in the campaign there were 2.6k active contributors, 5.3k total contributors, this means we can deduce that 2.7k or so were just retweet contributors. The 2.7k numbers are “passive” contributors in that they did not create any new content with their tweets. While the 2.6k active participants are the tweeters who created original content that fueled the hashtag. This means that 5.3k people in total fueled enough content to create a 43.6k hashtag campaign. 

Supernatural’s Viewership Cross Reference

For context the average Supernatural episode in the last season attracted 1.1 million viewers. Quick facts to put this in perspective: 

For every 208 general fans of Supernatural you will find 1 Destiel, Misha Minon, or Destiel Extreme shipper stan

Destiel as a fanbase is less than 1% of the Supernatural audience/fan base (precisely less than .5% of the general audience)

The average Destiel fan tweets 5-8 times to get something to trend

When an extreme Destiel fan screams that “they made Supernatural what it is”, “that they are the majority of the audience”, and that everyone wanted “Dean and Castiel together”, show them these numbers. All in all, the reach of this fanbase is quite small. Their hash tag campaign had an overall reach of 3 million people. 

Cross comparison: Destiel’s hash-tag vs. Walker’s Live Tweeting

For scale Walker reached 12 million people when they trended for “Don’t Fence Me In” with a fraction of the tweets they had (46.3k vs. 11.7k). 

#DeanCasWedding (2/14)

#Walker (Don’t Fence Me In, Live Tweet 2/11)

What Corporations Value

This is why Supernatural and CW executives do not take Destiel and their hash tag campaigns seriously. 67% of this campaign is basically just re-tweets, which is what devalues this campaign in terms of meaningful social media engagement that corporations and stations look for. The value of the campaign is not there despite the high tweet count (Trended at #4, and generated 46.3k tweets but with no substance). The problem for Destiel fans is that their conversation is all insular, which is why the reach is so small. You have a max of 5k people talking about a ship, and a less than 3k actually pushing it. It is basically just these small .5% of audience members talking to each other and passing the ball between themselves back and forth.  

Destiel’s existing echo chamber

If you are interested in knowing who those individuals are look no further. I broke down the Top 10 Most active members during the campaign and top 10 for original tweets and retweets. You may see some familiar faces: 

Lastly, we will delve into the age of the twitter accounts who were active during the campaign. 

As seen here a sizable portion of this tweet campaign comes from twitter accounts that are less than 1 year old. This is an obvious indicator for multiple accounts and fake accounts. It shows that the two biggest splits here are twitter accounts that are less than 1 year old, and others that are 6 years or older. Combine this finding with the retweet threshold (67%) it’s highly likely that there  is some double dipping going on here. Remember the average Destiel account retweets things 5-8 times. As we can take a look from the most popular tweeters during the campaign some of them tweeted an excess of 400 times just from one handle. The top 10 tweeters during the campaign generated 3k tweets just amongst themselves.  

As such it’s likely that the 5.3k number shared here is inflated, with much of this engagement coming from fake accounts, double accounts which aren’t a genuine reflection of actual population size. I hypothesize that about a third of this fanbase is a result of multiple accounts. Especially since many Destiel fans say that they’ve been watching since season 4. How is it that a third of the audience just came aware of Destiel in the past year, when Castiel has been on the show since Season 4? 

Summary

The Destiel fans need things to cling onto. Often when they try to trend spontaneously as in response to Misha’s instagram video on the 13th the trend only got 8k tweets before it collapsed. They need to latch onto a social justice themes to trend (Eileen), they need to latch onto Jensen and Dean’s fanbase along with LGBTQIA+ representation that exists in other fanbases to partner in order to trend (Shameless Gallavich, MCU’s Stucky and Teen Wolf’s Sterek). But even for all of their efforts it doesn’t really mean anything in the end, when you look at the numbers and review the context of their campaign.

In conclusion, I know this is a long post but I wanted to double down on a few things. The Destiel, Misha Minon, Extreme Destiel fans are not the majority. They don’t have a lot of power amongst their group. The economic value of this hash tag campaign doesn’t compare to the likes of live tweeting events generated from the CW during their live tweet shows: Batwoman, Legacies or Riverdale. Definitely not Walker. Even when they try to trend with all their might they can’t equal or make a significant dent in social media engagement that means anything to the network. This is why the CW has ignored them. As such I hope that this tumblr post can help people understand how small the fanbase is, and how their bullying and smear campaigns are insignificant and don’t amount to anything. I hope this number can give people perspective and context to what this crazy stan base has led to with all their tantrums, doxing, anti-voting sprees and generally toxic behavior. Ultimately I hope this post shows that they are insignificant. Let’s let them be so. 

[milenadaniels]

Hi! I saw your tag on your informal buddie lap makeout poll (Which, exceptional scientific inquiry. Cannot wait to see the results. Especially if it leads you to write something...)

Anyway, what is your thinking on lonestar and a potential buck +e ddie sex scene? (FWIW, I don't watch LS. I tried, but just could not. Not yucking anyone's yum, just didn't work for me.)

Curious what you think?

Thank you! The study is going well, I look forward to analyzing the results in depth!

(Please note: after three hours of writing out this response, I realize I may have misunderstood your question 😂 If you meant "what do you think a buddie sex scene would look like given tarlos", please let me know and it would be my genuine pleasure to describe that in great detail. What follows is not that.....)

I have been thinking about the potential of a buddie sex scene more than I ought to, I'm sure. You could say I've been a smidge preoccupied since realizing all the legit sex scenes in the show happened in season 1/early season 2. In seasons 3/4, the closest I think we've gotten to textual sex is Madney having sex to induce labour and that consisted of Maddie throwing her shirt at Chimney from off-screen.

Someone on that post (can't find it now of course) said that 911 Lone Star took over the original 911 later time slot and thus took over the ability to have sexier content.

As someone who hasn't watched a television show live in like 5 years, your ask has prompted me to do actual research to confirm this 🤓 According to pogdesign, 911 currently plays Mondays at 8pm and 911LS plays at 9pm which supports the theory.

That said, it kind of strikes me as weird that 8pm is considered too early for sexy content? But maybe I'm just out of touch with cable television??

So I did more research! So much research omfg this took 3 hours of my life. 😅

First we define the issue at hand

I'm defining a "sex scene" as a scene that involves two or more people mackin' on each other with any of the following:

the beginning of clothing removal onscreen

the movement towards a bedroom or bed

getting into someone's lap as a sign of escalation

post-coital pillow talk or cuddling

actual shots of naked skin and writhing (softcore porn essentially)

So 911 got moved to 8pm. Do any other 8pm shows have sex scenes?

CW - The 100 🔥 (I know there was a minimum of 2 wlw sex scenes, though they may have been post-coital)

CW - Riverdale 🔥🔥 is another teen show that I don't watch so I youtubed "Riverdale sex scenes" and I'm led to believe at least one couple is banging semi-onscreen well into season 4 (it has 4 seasons???)

NBC - Chicago Med 🔥, a procedural show not about teenagers and seems to have a least 1 couple with sexy scenes (the other Chicagos air at 9pm and 10pm) and I saw lap sitting for a hardcore makeout for the other couple!!!!! TIM TAKE NOTES!

NBC - Superstore 🔥, a half-hour comedy that played at 8pm on NBC, did have at least this one cut-away sex scene

So 2 teen shows, 1 procedural and 1 comedy all had something in the way of "sex scenes" while airing at 8pm.

But what if Fox the network is the sex-scene-killers??

Apparently Fox literally has only 5 scripted dramas of which the 911 is one and the others are:

The Resident 🔥🔥, a medical drama that plays at 8pm as of season 2 (9pm for season 1) and the main couple seem to have several sex scenes, but interestingly from what I can glean from YT, they may have stopped after s2 (though the couple stays together until at least s4 from what I can tell)

LA's Finest 🚫, a rebroadcast through Fox, it airs at 9pm and YT didn't show me any sexy scenes

Fantasy Island 🔥🔥 which plays at 9pm and looks to have sexier content based on the trailer

911: Lone Star 🔥🔥🔥 which plays at 9pm. Tarlos have had like 2 heavy makeouts/implied sex scenes plus a pretty hardcore-for-tv sex scene in the s2 finale

So it seems like even for Fox, the 8pm timeslot isn't necessarily what's vetoing the sex scenes in 911. But just to hammer that home, I did even more researching into the watershed hours, which is apparently the designated time broadcasters can show sexiness, but in the US that's 10pm to 6am so if the restrictions were such that they couldn't show any sex scenes before 10pm, Tarlos wouldn't have gotten that finale action (thank you, IRL bff who watched 911LS so I didn't have to!)

TL;DR - a summation of our findings

The 8pm timeslot is not the sex-scene-killer I once thought it was (see: all them filthy shows)

911 being a cop show is not a sex-scene-killer (see: dramas, procedurals and comedies all had sex scenes)

Fox is not anti-sex in their 8pm scripted dramas in general (see: The Resident)

Fox is not anti-sex homophobically (see: Tarlos, Hen/Eva)

However!! There seems to be a somewhat weird, somewhat isolated trend of Fox shows either cutting off or tapering off sex scenes (see: 911, The Resident) after 2 seasons or specifically after 2019.

So what are the theories (from least to most favourite)?

Theory #1 (Buddie loses 🚫): "Something" happened at Fox in 2019. The Resident is the only true analogue to 911 as it's also on Fox, also premiered in January 2018, also started at 9pm but was moved to 8pm (in season 2, not season 3 like 911). If my very brief googling can be trusted, The Resident saw a lot of sex scenes in season 2 (at 8pm) but after 2019 there isn't much to write home about. That lines up with what we've seen in 911. If something happened internally at Fox that changed broadcasting guidelines for 8pm, then canon Buddie will not get sex scenes unless the timeslot changes back.

Pros: It would be a hell of a coincidence wouldn't it?? Both shows airing around the same time, both stop showing sex scenes around the same time???

Cons: It's pretty weak, I can't find anything that supports "something" happening in 2019 that would affect an 8pm timeslot but not the 9pm one.

Theory #2 (Buddie loses 🚫): Sex as a short-term sales tactic. Fox uses sex in the first two seasons of shows to boost ratings and get people hooked because sex sells. But then, for whatever reason, they taper it off. If so, Buddie being canonized would not produce any sex scenes as we're far removed from season 2.

Pros: The Resident and 911 both stopped showing sex scenes after season 2 from what I can gather

Cons: If sex sells, why wouldn't it keep selling all the way to the bank?? There's no reason to stop something that's working.

Theory #3 (Buddie wins 🔥): Actors are the roadblock. Fox is fine with sex scenes at 8pm but the actors aren't comfortable! If so, Buddie sex scenes could be in the cards as both actors have had on-screen sex scenes previously.

Pros: Angela Bassett, Peter Krause and JLH are bigger names and they presumably get to not get naked on screen or simulate sex scenes if they don't want to. Aisha Hinds as a (criminally) smaller name wouldn't have had that kind of leverage in season 1, nor would Ryan Guzman in season 2? And Oliver Stark knew what he was signing up to to play a self-diagnosed "sex addict" so.

Cons: This is absolute, complete conjecture. I have zero idea what each of their comfort levels with sex scenes are or how that might relate to the writing/direction of their characters.

Theory #4 (Buddie wins 🔥): Stable canon relationships kill sex. Fox dramas use sex only pre-maritally to build relationships and the network or the showrunners/writers decide it's not as important once characters are in stable relationships/married. If so, we will get Buddie sex scenes as their canon relationship develops.

Pros: The Resident couple did get married post-season 2 I think? Athena stopped having onscreen sex after she married Bobby. Hen had sex but out of her marriage.

Cons: That's dumb, let married people bone. And we technically do have a Madney sex scene, tame as it was (but maybe they straddle of the line of stable but pre-marital???). Also if sex = building relationship, EddieAna have been excluded from that formula oops 😌

Theory #5 (Buddie wins 🔥): We're overthinking all of this. There hasn't been sex scenes past season 2 because the stories haven't called for it but when it does, such as the start of a new relationship, then we'll get some!

Pros: We haven't had any "new" relationships other than EddieAna since season 2 and their lack of intimacy is a glaring reminder they aren't well suited - they're not boning for plot reasons. While not strictly meeting the aforementioned definition of a "sex scene", we could use Albert coming out of Veronica's shower as a use of sex-as-relationship-building.

Cons: That's dumb, let married people bone, the sequel. Especially since HenRen is criminally neglected in terms of development and could use a fun playful sex scene.

So what have we learned?

Should Buddie go canon, 3 theories indicate we'd get some sex scenes for them, and only 2 say we wouldn't. The odds are in our favour. 🤡

I will do literally anything to procrastinate writing this damn fic that's been tormenting me for weeks. Please someone, anybody...send help...

[tired-fandom-ndn]

The Orpheus Protocol is a horror ttrpg (being developed by the podcaster) actual play podcast. I really enjoy it too, i just didn't want to get sidetracked explaining it when I was trying to talk about the Riverdale thing. They have some of the best gore/body horror I've seen in spoken/written format, actually. the premise is essentially that Orpheus is an organization that deals with the occult, and the players are usually it's operatives, but this can be modified/evolve throughout the story. They also sometimes do some interesting blending of other genres with the horror.

Just to let you know ahead of time, if you want look into it- I suspect some of the main people involved might be more along the line of antis, based on some side comments they've made, but it's not really something I've heard them specifically discuss and isn't a major/definite thing. One of the main creators has expressed confusion over why people like amoral characters/villains, but he wasn't harassing anyone over it or anything last i saw.

Thank you, anon! Gonna throw this in my reference tag to find later when I have time to listen to a new podcast.

[angelicamerlinbarnes]

Being asexual is...

or, an amusing and devastating vent list.

(DISCLAIMER: These are based on my own experiences as a sex-repulsed asexual and no one else's. I'm hoping this can help some of my fellow aces feel seen and my wonderful allo allies to better understand our identities as asexual people. ^-^ Love y'all. Be kind. <3)

Being asexual is just being confused about why everybody is laughing at the number 69

Being asexual is saying “I’m just admiring their outfit” and ACTUALLY just admiring their outfit

Being asexual is reading the summer reading book and having a breakdown at 2 a.m. cause you’re taking an AP class and the book has mature content

Being asexual (and not aromantic in this case, but I see y’all and i love you ;)) is saying “pan” or “bi” or “omni” but never the second half of the word because it just feels fucking wrong (just realized I always said I was bi instead of bisexual because even my mouth knew I was ace before my brain did ✌🏻)

Being asexual is scrolling through the asexual tag on Tumblr because you need validation you won’t get from any fandom or family you’re in

Being asexual is turning the national average age for people to start having sex and waiting for all your friends and partner(s) to leave you because you just aren’t good enough

Being asexual is watching ten episodes of COMMUNITY in a row because you want to be Abed Nadir

Being asexual is identifying with Shaggy Rogers of Scooby Doo above all else

Being asexual is looking at Newt Scamander and Five Hargreeves and Sam Winchester and Jughead Jones and Hiccup Haddock III and Spencer Reid and Severus Snape and Remus Lupin and Luna Lovegood and Alice Kingsley and going, “Oh. Me.”

Being asexual is loving dragons

Being asexual is not looking at your own body when you shower because gross

Being asexual is loving romance books but not being able to read any because they all have one of Those Scenes™ in them

Being asexual is not wanting to be put on meds you’ve needed for years because you’re scared they’ll give you a sex drive

Being asexual is feeling uncomfortable enjoying fanworks the same way everybody else does because That Stuff™ shows up everywhere without warning

Being asexual is owning seventeen different pairs of heels but not wanting to wear them because people tell you it will make your butt look bigger

Being asexual is avoiding an entire section of the mall just because it has a Victoria’s Secret in it

Being asexual is ranting about the fashion industry surrounding junior girls because they think bralettes are shirts and speedos are shorts so you only shop in the boys’ section now

Being asexual is being afraid to go to colleges with fraternities

Being asexual is wishing you lived in Wonderland

Being asexual is being angry at Riverdale

Being asexual is struggling with/hating anime because they shove boobs into everything and you just don’t wanna see that, you don’t

Being asexual is not being able to listen to the same songs you loved when you were young because you understand them now

Being asexual is knowing, deep down in your heart, that the queer parts of fandom and media don’t want you

Being asexual is the most beautiful, precious, lovely, amazing, brave thing that you will ever do and I am so, so proud of all of you for doing it every, single, day. You are my heroes and I love you all more than I can say. Please never forget how magical you are. Please never stop fighting for who you are. Please never give up trying to be more you.

You are wonderful. Please know that.

[storkmuffin]

Everything You’d Ever Want to Know About Riverdale’s Southside Serpents

By Jessica Goldstein

New York Magazine

Slip on your black lingerie, throw a plaid flannel over that, maybe add some suspenders, and then top if off with your toughest leather motorcycle jacket, because we’re about to do a deep dive into Riverdale’s second-baddest biker gang: the Southside Serpents. Vulture talked to showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Cole Sprouse, and costume designer Rebekka Sorensen to answer all the pressing questions about the Serpent lifestyle: Where they come from, what they wear, what exactly it is they do (and don’t do), and just how dangerous Jughead’s clique of choice really is.

The Serpents first appeared in “Li’l Archie.”

“It was the adventures of Archie and the gang when they were in grade school, Aguirre-Sacasa said. “So it was like Muppet Babies, but Archie Babies.” But while Aguirre-Sacasa knows this is where the Southside Serpents made their debut, he’s never seen the actual issue in which they appear. “I don’t know if they were a biker gang menacing these toddlers or if they were fellow toddlers who rode on bicycles. I just knew that in the Archie mythology, there was a group called the Southside Serpents, and that always stuck with me.”

Luckily, a Spotlight-caliber investigation by Screenrant unearthed this classic comic and found that the original Southside Serpents were “a group of surly-looking kids” who “can be seen competing in contests of athletic prowess and physical strength,” like relay races or baseball. Their outfit of choice? “Matching sweaters with snakes on them.” Even without this adorable information, Aguirre-Sacasa said that “when it came time to introduce our biker gang — I can’t even remember why we felt like we needed a biker gang — I was like, ‘Oh! It’s the Southside Serpents.’ And they kind of grew from there.”

No real gangs were used or referenced in the making of the Southside Serpents.

There is nothing about the Serpents that is based directly on real-life bikers, gangs, biker gangs, or serpents. “I wish I could say [our inspiration] was like Sons of Anarchy, but it was more like the T-Birds from Grease, or the Greasers from The Outsiders,” Aguirre-Sacasa said. (This adds up: Betty is such a Soc.) “It was kind of 1950s, Crybaby, much more that iconography.”

Sorensen confirmed this approach, saying that their vision-board collage was full of photos of “the 1950s and ’60s greasers. The Outsiders, Marlon Brando, James Dean.” The only real gang that was on the mood board, so to speak, was the Hells Angels, Aguirre-Sacasa said, “because of the sense of community that they had, and the sense of family.”

“We always cherry pick on Riverdale,” he added. “When we want things to be realistic we make it realistic, and when we want alternate universe, we do alternate universe.”

The CW wasn’t initially thrilled about the idea.

During early conversations with the studio and the network, Aguirre-Sacasa remembers some raised eyebrows at the prospect of a motorcycle gang roaring through Riverdale. “They were like, ‘Bikers? Really?’”

But Aguirre-Sacasa knew the plan was never to make the Southside Serpents “the ur-villains of the series.” As soon as Jughead joined the Serpents, the Riverdale writers created a rival gang — the Ghoulies, those dirty, scheming jingle jangle angle dealers — who “hung around in funeral homes” when they weren’t moving product and corrupting the innocents. Anyway, the Serpents are sweethearts at heart. “In a weird way, [the Serpents] have a stronger sense of community and loyalty, and a stronger moral code, than many of their north side counterparts,” Aguirre-Sacasa said.

Rule No. 1: Dress for the gang you want.

What started as just a leather or denim jacket with a Serpent logo escalated once “we realized, very quickly, we wanted them to look tougher and more intimidating,” Sorensen explained. “We then added chains and any type of accessories, like dog tags or a belt, or cuffs, or rings,” to get that grit. Individual characters got spirit animals: Penny “The Snake Charmer” Peabody wears an owl claw because she’s “smart, educated, and the owl is a monster of the night”; Sweet Pea has wolf rings, to symbolize his loyalty and “desire for freedom”; Toni wears suspenders.

Want to shop the Serpent look? The women’s jackets are typically from All Saints. Jughead’s is from Jofama in Sweden. While they occasionally use real vintage jackets — F.P.’s is the real deal, for example — most of the ’50s style jackets on the show are from 2017. For one thing, the newer wares are softer. “Period leather jackets from the ’50s and ’60s are quite stiff,” Sorensen said. (Presumably because people wanted them to be useful in the event of a motorcycle accident.) Vintage is also dicey because you need duplicates for photos and stunt doubles. When they buy modern jackets, Sorensen said, “We take it, break it down, sand it, and God knows what else we do.”

As for the rest of the outfits, she said, “We shop them at Topshop, honestly sometimes at H&M, Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister.”

Wait, Abercrombie and Hollister? On Riverdale?

“It’s their plaids,” Sorensen explained. “Because we want them to have different color plaids. We wash and break them down, so they look darker and not so new. And I think half the show is from Nordstrom.”

For his part, Sprouse likes how Jughead’s jacket and hat operate as these “contrasting symbols,” two sides of his personality duking it out for dominance. “In my opinion, Jughead was a lovable, dorky loner who is turning into, through circumstance alone, a character who feels he is not qualified for this world,” he said. “And the adoption of this jacket means he has to find a way to fit this skin.” (“I love the jacket,” he added. “I’ve already told costumes I’m stealing it.”)

How dangerous are the Serpents?

On a scale from “they will straight-up murder you in cold blood” to “hey now, there’s no conflict we can’t resolve with a kitschy drag race,” where do the Serpents fall?

“It’s a little of both,” Aguirre-Sacasa said. “It is true that the Southside Serpents, though they didn’t kill Jason Blossom, F.P. and the Serpents were drawn into that murder — covering it up, cleaning the body. And it is true that Hiram Lodge hired the Serpents to trash the drive-in so he could opportunistically buy it. And they did send the rattlesnake to Hermione. And Jughead was in the drag race and was dealing with the evil drug lord Malachai. So there’s danger, for sure.”

“They definitely lean a little bit more West Side Story,” said Sprouse. “The Serpents are kind of victims of circumstance who, if they end up getting involved in crime, are really only doing so because of necessity. That makes them more of a morally gray gang.”

So the Serpents aren’t “necessarily gang members in an organized crime sense of the word,” Sprouse said. “But rather, they’re a group of people that have each others’ backs and who sing and dance and snap in unison.”

How does one become a Serpent?

The “hazing ritual” for would-be Serpents includes adopting the gang mascot, Hot Dog (he’s very cute), to sticking your hand in a terrarium with a rattlesnake in it (less cute) that has its venom glands removed (pretty considerate, considering). Then Jughead, as we saw, has to “run the gauntlet, and that’s a version of the beatdown that many new gang members go through, where they’re beaten to a pulp by their own, to show they can hang in a gang war,” Aguirre-Sacasa said.

“Much of the content is over-the-top, but everyone in the world takes it as seriously as life and death,” Sprouse said. Ironically, Jughead’s goal is to “ascend through the ranks of the Serpents … to take him even further from a life of organized crime to a group of people who are looking to do good and bring their community out of this trouble they’re in.”

Are the rules different for women?

Do ladies also have to do the gauntlet? The Southside Serpents are feminist enough to include women in their ranks, but also sexist enough to still have a “Serpent dance,” which I promise we will talk about in one paragraph. “When the gang is beating up Jughead, there are female serpents in that gauntlet,” Aguirre-Sacasa said. “So the assumption is that to earn your place to be doing that, you have to have done it yourself.”

“As Toni says to Betty, there’s this old tradition that comes up from one of the older Serpent ladies at the Whyte Wyrm, and that’s the Serpent dance that female Serpents have to do,” Aguirre-Sacasa added. “And you don’t know if the biker lady is joking or not, and then Toni says, ‘That’s an old, misogynistic Serpent tradition.’ And in a misguided attempt to get closer to Jughead, Betty does the Serpent dance.”

This deeply uncomfortable sequence is intended as a callback to season one’s Dark Betty, a.k.a. the Betty in the wig who almost drowned a dude in a hot tub, who is “more violent and sexualized,” Aguirre-Sacasa said. “Of course, Betty’s plan tragically backfires and it drives her even further away from Jughead.”

Jingle Jangle used to be heroin, but now it’s more like a grown-up Pixy Stix.

At one point in season one, Aguirre-Sacasa said that Clifford Blossom’s drug empire came up and the drugs in question were “described as heroin-based.” But as season two planning was underway, they decided to pull back. “It might have been a note from the network that said, ‘Can you not be dealing heroin on Riverdale?’”

After some initial concerns about Standards and Practices lame-ifying the show, Aguirre-Sacasa said, “We put a twist on it. There used to be this Archie song called ‘Jingle Jangle,’ and the joke was that it’s like an acid trip.” Aguirre-Sacasa liked the lyric, “So we took the word ‘heroin’ out and put the word ‘Jingle Jangle’ in. That’s much better, in a weird way. It captured people’s imaginations.”

Sprouse said, “When we first got the script with Jingle Jangle, I think all of us sat down with Roberto and said, ‘Is this for real?’” That said, he’s on board with the campiness. “We know the world that we come from. We come from 75 years of, ‘Golly Archie! Gee whiz!’ So it’s almost more of a disservice to not poke fun at that in these codified ways and to acknowledge them the way we do.”

And yes, it’s supposed to look like Pixy Stix. “That was a way to, as always, corrupt these youthful things we all remember from when we were kids and show the darkness of that,” Aguirre-Sacasa said.

Can a Serpent ever leave the Serpents?

As her mugshot revealed, Alice Cooper is a former Serpent — or at least, she was Serpent-adjacent enough to have a fishnet top and other such Hot Topic–esque stylings hidden away behind the bulk of her suburban wardrobe. Also, let’s not forget that Betty got awfully nervous the minute Jughead pulled on his Serpent jacket.

Sprouse’s sense is that “once you’re a Serpent, you’re a Serpent for life.” He pointed out that you get “branded as a Serpent in a tattoo” and people like Penny Peabody have, shall we say, a hard time letting go of her partners. “The fact that you went through the initiations and the fact that you were ever once part of the family, whatever circumstances took you out, you’re still in.”

[heytherejulietx]

Stressed - Bughead

Masterlists

Requests are OPEN!

Read on AO3 here!

Notes - this fic is based on the absolutely AMAZING fanart done by @easyminds i saw the art and i just had to write something about it. it’s absolutely stunning and i love it so much, it’s adorable. i hope you really like the fic i’ve written based on it, i hope i did it justice!

Warnings - N/A.

Word count - 1.2k.

Riverdale tag list - @bucky-j-barnes @adorably-sweet-hufflepuff @kpopgirlbtssvt @booksmusicteaandanimals @happy-puff @cheryllclayton @jesso80 @dietbreadloaf @thebluetint @lilireinhartsimp @camiczzzz @bitchy-broken @crazyninjalight @luella-cane @literarygetaway21 @hopeversusillusions @bc-jh22 @happygmc8

Fill out this form to join my tag list.

As soon as he had opened the door she was in his arms, tucked underneath his chin as he held her tightly against himself. It was days like those, where he was constantly close to a breakdown of some sort, where he really appreciated Betty’s comfort. Even just being near her with nothing said helped him. Her soft touch, the sweet smell of her hair he got when hugging her, her soothing voice when she knew just what to say; she always knew how to help.

Jughead had needed it all day, when the stress from the Serpents was at a point where he almost crippled under the weight of it all. He needed a break from all of it, so he needed Betty.

But once she’d pulled from the hug and he got to look at her he frowned, his hand lifting to her cheek. She looked just as worn down as he did; red eyes from crying, eyebrows scrunched downwards, shoulders slumped. He’d forget about his problems in a second if Betty needed him there for her; seeing her in such a state made him feel worse that she was suffering.

Betty’s eyes closed as his hand cupped her cheek and she sighed, leaning into it as his lips pressed to her forehead.

“What’s wrong, love?” Jughead mumbled against her forehead, followed by another soft kiss before he pulled back to look at her.

“I need to stay here tonight,” Betty whispered with a frown - at that moment Jughead noticed the backpack she carried over her shoulders. “My mom is going to kill me. I need a break from her, Jug.” She whispered, and Jughead frowned when it almost looked like she would start crying.

Betty’s mom had always worried him. She put too much pressure on Betty, too much pressure to be perfect. And he knew that Betty didn’t like the word, but she already was perfect to him. He could never see why Alice didn’t know that already.

“Of course you can stay, I’m sorry about your mom.” Jughead pulled her into another hug and gently squeezed her, pulling her inside gently so he could close the door of his trailer behind her.

“I missed you today,” Betty mumbled into his hoodie, where she’d buried her head against his shoulder. “Did you have a good day?”

Jughead almost laughed at the question, because he’d had quite the opposite really. It seemed neither of them had much luck that day. “Not really, no. I think I needed you here tonight just as much as you needed it, too.” He whispered, holding her even tighter to himself for a moment before he released her from his hold.

“Oh, I’m sorry Jug.” Betty said softly, meeting his gaze as she let her fingertips brush along his jawline.

“S’okay, you’re here now,” Jughead muttered, noticing her lips curve upwards lightly at his words as she nodded her head in response. “Do you want to watch a movie? My dad’s out still.”

“Yeah, I’m not really too tired yet.” Betty nodded, even though she looked exhausted, and leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss him briefly before she pulled away and dropped her backpack by the end of the couch.

Jughead sat on the couch and leaned back with a groan as Betty curled up to his side, her arms tightening around his waist as he browsed Netflix for a moment. He supposed she probably wasn’t in the mood for a horror movie at that moment, and he assumed she was still tired despite what she said, so after a minute or so of looking he put on the Breakfast Club - a movie they had both seen hundreds of times together - and moved both arms around Betty as he put the TV controller down again.

He felt her head drop against his shoulder, and turned to press his lips to her hairline. He always felt terrible when Betty had a bad day, he hated that she was suffering and he couldn’t do anything about it. Especially when it was her mother. Neither of them had luck in that department, he supposed. Jughead was just grateful that FP had taken such a liking to Betty. During the time that Betty was staying at the trailer, they had gotten really close, close enough that FP pretty much treated her as his own, which Jughead was grateful for. FP would happily take her in any time she needed, and he knew that Betty took comfort in knowing that she had another parental figure that she could look towards.

As the movie went on, Betty subtly but surely relaxed against him. Her stiff posture evened out until she was almost completely relaxed. A few times he’d glanced down at her and her eyes were fighting to close, but he didn’t comment on it or offer to move. There in that moment, with her in his arms, everything was okay. He didn’t want to break it and move them.

“I love you.” Betty mumbled quietly sometime into the movie, and had leaned up to press her lips to his cheek then to his lips for a few moments.

“I love you too.” He whispered and smiled softly as she pulled away, his palm rubbing against her back.

Betty smiled back and kissed him again, before she pulled away and shifted so she was laying across the couch with her head in his lap, her arm almost hugging his lag. He couldn’t help but smile softly as he watched her, continuing the movement of his palm rubbing over her back as she stretched out comfortably. Jughead wasn’t even paying attention to the movie anymore as he watched her in such utter adoration, utterly thankful that he got lucky enough to be with someone as amazing as Betty Cooper. He loved her so much that it was almost impossible. And at times like that where they needed each other the most, he was always so thankful that she was there. Comforting him without even realising she was doing it.

Jughead felt her grip loosen on his leg and he glanced down at her again, his gaze softening when he saw that her eyes were closed. He could understand how tiring it was to be stressed all day, and whenever Betty got calm enough she was easy to fall asleep. He didn’t want to wake her by moving, knowing that she’d appreciate the nap, so he carefully reached over to the back of the sofa and pulled the blanket off of it to cover Betty. She didn’t wake, only shifted slightly so she was hugging his leg again.

Jughead leaned back further into the couch as he rubbed her back underneath the blanket, smiling fondly as he watched her. If he needed to, he’d stay there forever with her just so she would be happy and calm. He’d feel all of the stress and negative feelings for her if he could, just so she would never have to suffer. She didn’t deserve it, she was too pure for the world; she deserved so much more than horrible parents and murders to deal with.

If he could, he’d run away with her just so she could be happy. Their own happily ever after. She deserved it more than anybody else.

[go-ldy]

Oh man, your tags have me wondering: if you had complete creative control, how would you run Riverdale season 5?

Ooh, such a good question! “Complete creative control” is a lot of responsibility in this show. As a first step, I would probably outline the character journeys and arcs first and then try and figure out how to use the plot to serve those arcs. Riverdale is such a plot heavy show that often its biggest failing is that its character arcs tend to suffer or get pushed to the sidelines.

But based on the little we know from season 5 so far, here is what I would do:

Keep the time jump, but make it five years rather than seven. Seven is  such a long time for these characters to be separated. Is it plausible that they are still drawn to each other after seven years apart? I mean, maybe, but more believable after five years.

I would have Betty and Archie be done and over with before the time jump. Make it clear that they will always have a special place for each other because of their past and shared history, but whatever romance they thought they had is not there. I would not keep it alive post time-jump other than the fact that they are both regretful as to the damage it did to Jughead and Veronica.

I have no problems with most of the characters being in dark or difficult places after the time jump. In fact, it makes sense. If life is not going well outside of Riverdale, that could explain what draws them home to the people they parted ways with after high school. Plus, it gives all of them a journey and a reason to reconnect with each other. Like, why would they ever come back to Riverdale if life was going well? Stay away lol. 

I like the idea of Jughead struggling with writer’s block and how to make it as a writer. LBR, “making it” as a successful writer is difficult, and even more so in this day and age. I don’t mind him being in a failing relationship either. I am 10000% against him becoming an alcoholic though, would ditch immediately. Jughead has seen the ravishes of alcoholism on his father, and I have always interpreted him being as rabidly anti-drug as he is as a reaction against his parents. Against FP for his alcoholism, and against his mother for her drug dealing. Really hard for me to imagine him then succumbing to an alcohol addiction - especially if the development as to why and how occurs entirely offscreen. And I don’t think it is necessary, at all. Jughead can be in a dark place without the alcohol addiction.

I am so here for badass FBI!Betty. I see her struggling to stay within the confines of the rules of something like the FBI. Betty Cooper loves to do her own thing. She will break into cars/houses/filing cabinets when she is on the trail. I don’t see her stopping for things like “warrants” or “the chain of command.” I would have there be real consequences to her for not following the rules. Does she get put on probation at the FBI for failing to follow the rules? Maybe have to attend a disciplinary hearing or two.

Ultimately I would have Betty have to choose - follow the FBI’s rules and potentially let a lead slip away or follow the lead knowing it will probably mean the end of her career? U know Betty would recklessly follow a lead at the expense of her career, and I would be here for it.

Betty and Jughead would get drawn in together almost immediately over what the big season mystery is - whether it is the mothman or Polly being missing or whatever. Who cares as long as they do the investigating together. The investigating would be fraught with overwhelming sexual tension. Lots of longing looks when they think the other person is not watching. I would have them conduct surveillance in a lot of tight and cramped spaces where they try desperately not to touch each other because every time they do, it is a jolt to the system. It would also make them cranky and snap at each other - again, because of all the overwhelming tension lol.

It is hard to be fair to Jessica, but I think it would be important to do so as much as possible. I could see Betty and Jughead reconnecting really quickly, and Betty even thinking that there is a ~moment between them before, bam, Jughead comes clean about his live-in girlfriend (who is back wherever he lives, but not in Riverdale). I think if the purpose is for Jessica to just be an obstacle, I would not keep the relationship going for long. That would not be fair to her. I would have it break down within a few episode - two or three? And for long-standing reasons other than Betty. Betty is maybe the final straw, but this is a relationship that was not going to last.

For Veronica, I am not opposed to her strolling back into town with a husband. But I hope the husband is not a complete tool. Like, maybe he could be good looking and they could have a lot of chemistry? Doesn’t mean he can’t be up to shady stuff or there is a reason for their relationship to break down, but I would like to see Archie have to fight for Veronica rather than get the benefit of looking better by comparison. I am okay with Archie hating Veronica’s new beau as soon as he lays eyes on him though lol.

I would probably end Choni and get Toni a less toxic relationship but that’s never gonna happen so....

I would love more screentime and storylines for Reggie. I think Charles Melton is so great and so funny. It would be cool to see him form a relationship with someone other than Archie. Perhaps he and Jughead could be buds. It would be fun to see him get sucked into the mothman mystery with Bughead. An odd ball dynamic, but one that would be fun! 

[sweetpeaownsmyheart]

Just a Couple of Notes (Sweet Pea x Reader)

Hello friends! Sorry for the inactivity, I've had a lot going on and have been dealing with mental health but I haven’t forgotten you! I was so happy to come on today and find that someone has messaged me a request, my first one yay - so I should get that out soon! This is a lil idea I had late one night, I didn’t really know I was going with it but wanted to get something out and actually kinda like it!! (just a warning bc the plot is a bit naff lol) Love you all sm - stay safe and healthy xxx <3

Word Count - 2300

Warnings - umm not that I can think of! An odd plot maybe? Too fluffy? Very OOC Pea?

Summary - you write notes to SP when you start work at Pops, it’s not long before he responds. But then there’s a bump in the road!!

-----

You're move to Riverdale was a quick decision made by your parents in Autumn when a new job opportunity arose. Within a week you were packed up and moving to the town leaving behind your friends, other family members and the quiet life you had gotten used to.

Riverdale was an odd place to you. You were used to the comforts and quirks of your hometown and for that reason your attention felt drawn to the awkwardness and divide and, what seemed to be lurking beneath the surface in your new neighbourhood.

It was about a week after your move that you had noticed the 'help wanted' sign in the window of Pops and were pushed to apply by Jughead who you had met the first night you had come to town. Besides Jug, you kept yourself to yourself, limiting your interactions to with your family and customers. Of course, it wasn't for others lack of trying, often Betty or one of Jughead's other friends would talk to you.  However, you knew that when you were old enough, you would move back to your hometown so didn't want to create too many ties.

That all changed when Sweet Pea started frequenting the diner.

He had come in asking for Jughead before noticing him in the corner and hurrying over. The way he sat with his shoulders hunched over and stony expression was intriguing to you, but you were quick to learn that he was as much of a 'mystery' as you were.

He always wore black in some way, had dog-tags round his neck that you longed to wrap your hand around and a curl on his forehead that you wanted to push back into place. If it wasn't for the few times that you saw him with Fangs and Toni, you would have thought him incapable of feeling joy but the way his face broke into a smile and his laugh carried across the diner was enough to make anyone's heart beat faster.

You were smitten with a boy you didn't know, the boy who was pegged as 'trouble' by Jughead when you asked about him.

Soon your want to know him overtook your want to keep to your solitude and that was when the notes started - that way you could still keep him at a distance.

-----

It was around 8pm on a Sunday that the first instance happened as Sweet Pea came to pay for his groups dinner. You had heard him complaining earlier that evening about how his English teacher was going to fail him if he didn't pass his next test with flying colours and you had subsequently spent your break writing out quotes from the book Jug had mentioned they were studying and exam tips you had found on google.

You passed the napkin to him along with his receipt and quickly left to serve another group (and avoid any embarrassment) missing the look on confusion on his face.

As you finished serving the table you turned back around you met his gaze as he reached the door. He threw you a quick wink and walked out leaving you standing with your heart racing and head spinning.

-----

For you it became common place after that day. Whenever Pea visited the diner, he left with a little note on a napkin that you wrote on your break. The notes ranged from help with school when you had overheard he was struggling to random facts you found or occasionally a cheesy pick up line. If you plucked up the courage to look, you often saw him smiling down at the notes when he thought no one was looking which made it worth it. You didn't expect a response, but it was something fun to do, and although the thought crossed your mind that maybe he it was making him feel awkward, he hadn't told you to stop so you continued.

He didn't respond, until one day he did.

You had just closed up for the night and were cleaning the tables when you noticed a napkin on the table where he had been sitting. You had given him a list of songs to listen to that day, slipped it onto the table as they paid and you hadn't seen anything then so were wondering if Sweet Pea had thought it odd and left the note but as you approached you saw the writing was not as light as yours. It had more of a scrawl to it.

'Don't walk home over the bridge today - Sweet Pea

PS. I like (your favourite band) and I like getting these notes :)'

And that's how your interactions were from that point onwards, he gave you a warning or a place to stay away from and sometimes something personal about him and you gave him a fact or compliment or anything you could think of. It wasn't much but it suited you both and you had had a few conversations with Toni and Fangs about how much he liked you and now a bigger part of you wanted to stay.

That was until Josie came along.

You had met Josie before, a couple of times, but your conversations were always limited to taking her order and the general waitressing 'stuff'. She seemed nice enough, but you hadn't seen her with a serpent before and since you were home schooling you didn't even know she knew them (besides Jug).

She sat with Pea for hours. Just the two of them. They spoke in whispers and you often caught at least one of them sending you quick glances. You did not want to infringe on them so let one of the other waitresses serve them both ignoring her questions on why there was a sudden change.

You thought back to all the longing looks, all the flirting both in notes and over your waitressing and of the fact it all was or at least seemed reciprocated.

That was the first time since you had first served him that he left without a note.

-----

He didn't come in again for another week or so. Everything was getting on top of you and your plan to move back 'home' was once again in your mind despite weeks of not speaking to your 'friends' or thinking of your life before Riverdale.

You felt odd. You knew that you had no ties to this place besides Jug but one part of you thought your plans to move away were based on the actions of Sweet Pea rather than your lack of connections.

You knew that you had no real relationship with the boy, it was only notes passed back and forth. You couldn't claim to know him or be his friend as you hadn't exactly spoken much but one part of you felt drawn to him and hurt that he didn't feel that too - he would rather step out with Josie.

If looks could kill, in that moment, both Sweet Pea and Jughead would be dead from each other’s stares. Jug was your confidant on all Sweet Pea matters. He had listened to you gush about how adorable Sweets was and in the last week had listened to your complaints. He knew that the actions of Sweet Pea may drive you to leave and he desperately did not want you to leave.

So here in the diner at 11pm, glares were thrown towards Pea by Jug who was sat with you whilst you were on your break. And glares were thrown right back in his (or your?) direction by Sweet Pea who had settled in a booth by himself.

You were the only one working that night so knew that you would have to serve him eventually so as your break ended, and Jug left the diner you walked over to him.

'what can I get you?' you said breaking the unsettling silence.

'Just the usual please.'

'And what would that be?' You knew his order. Of course you did. But part of you felt spiteful and hurt and you wanted him to feel that too. But you regretted it immediately when he turned to you with a look of sadness on his face.

'Come on Y/N. You know my order. I've only not been in for a week.' Maybe he was trying to joke to get rid of the tension.

'Yeh maybe I do and maybe in the week you've been MIA, you've forgotten that we don't serve food after 11. So, I'll ask again, what can I get you?'

'Just a chocolate shake please.'

You walked off to make the drink but were pulled back by a strong hand and a falsely strong voice. 'When were you going to mention in one of you notes that you're dating Jughead Jones?'

You scoff. 'When were you going to mention you're dating Josie McCoy?' You pulled your arm out of his grip. And turned to look at him. He looked confused. 'Yanno Sweet Pea, you were here last week with her? Has your memory gone?'

'I'm not dating her.' He splutters out.

'You know what Sweet Pea; I don't care who you're dating or not dating. It was only a couple of notes between us. So, I'll just go make your shake and you can sit here if you want or leave if you would prefer. And when you come back next week I won't be here.' You leave to make his shake but when you come back, he is not there, but a napkin is in his place.

'Sorry - SP'

-----

A couple of days later you were packing all your bags in the back of a rented pickup truck, ready to take a long road trip back to your hometown with Jughead. When he arrived, you said goodbye to your family and jumped in the passenger’s seat, Jug had agreed to take the first shift.

You made light conversation and sung along to the radio for about 20 minutes before you noticed that Jug was taking a wrong turning.

'You're going the wrong way.'

'Y/N, please don't hate me. He made me do this.'

'Okay Jug, what's going on, you're scaring me.'

'You know you said that Josie and Sweet Pea had been in Pops? Well, it's not what it seems. Just listen to him yeh?'

'Jughead Jones where am I?' He guided you out of the truck and led you down a path into what appeared to be a small forest. 'you better not be murdering me Jones.' You joked. 'I was going to road trip with you and all.' He rolled his eyes and remained silent.

He had led you to a clearing, told you to wait there and then ran off.

'Jones.' you shouted. 'Jones, come back here. Stop messing this isn't funny.'

'Did you know that the inventor of the frisbee was cremated and turned into a frisbee when he died.'

You jumped and turned around, shocked at the new voice in the quiet forest. 'Sweet Pea? What are you doing here?'

'Did you know that 12 bodies were found in Benjamin Franklin’s basement? You wrote that when i was studying for History.' You looked down and saw in his hands a pile of papers. Napkins.

'Here's one of my favourites - Do you know how much a polar bear weighs? Enough to break the ice. I'm Y/N. That was one of the first notes you gave me, remember?' You nod. 'Well thing is, it was never 'only a couple of notes' to me. I really like you, or I think I like you from what you've said about yourself in the notes. Just tell me now, did I read it wrong? I know you're leaving, I just wanted you to know.' His voice remained strong throughout, but his eyes did not hold the same confidence.

'What about Josie?'

'What about Jughead?' he retorts but quickly breaks into a smile and shows he was joking. 'Me and Josie aren't a thing. We used to be. I really liked her, but she didn't like me and then last week she came and told me that she suddenly did. But I told her I have a thing for this amazing girl who knows too many pickup lines and facts about dinosaurs.'

'really?'

He cleared his throat and looked down at a piece of paper he pulled out of his pocket. 'do you have a band aid?' you look at him confused. 'because i scraped my knee falling for you.'

You break out in a smile and walk closer to him, reaching out to his hands and then running yours up his arms and resting them on his shoulders 'Maybe let's leave the pickup lines to me. What google search found you that one?'

He pulled you closer and wrapped his other hand around your waist. 'I searched -how to get the pretty, witty, lovely waitress to fall for me-.' You giggled and brought your hand to rest on his cheek. You saw pure adoration in his eyes and hoped he saw the same in yours. You lent in and gently placed your lips on his in a quick and innocent kiss. When you pulled back and opened your eyes, he was smiling the brightest smile.

A question came into your mind as you noticed all the napkins strewn across the floor, you looked up with him through your lashes with your head tilted and asked. 'Did you really keep all my notes?'

'Like I said Princess, they are more than just notes to me.'

You felt complete and knew that in a couple of hours you would be unloading all your stuff again back in Riverdale because there really was something to stay for.