#(it was episode 3 “future tense” btw)

[finnslay]

*Season 4*

Buck: Actually, I don't have a girlfriend...

Maddie: What? I thought you were seeing someone?

My younger self: HES GOT A BOYFRIEND???

[in-a-brown-study]

----continuation, part four: cxs falls----

we don't see exactly How cxs starts falling, but we can see it happens right after he claps hands with lu guang, the latter looking like a glitch/not really there 🤨 that's cruel

then later qiao ling, emma and the new hottie look at him as he falls, and later we can see a shot of those three plus lu guang watching him fall and fall. cxs reaches out but it's useless (pls this is heartbreaking) the feeling of helpness while cxs falls is conveyed throughout the whole video it almost gives me vertigo

and i want to point out WHY has this new hottie also got yellow eyeeeeees ????? does it have something to do with cxs's powers or those are his normal eyes or

there's also this, qiao ling looking at him and then turning around 😢 no don't be like that

----end of part four----

----part five: the scene that drives me nuts----

super slow-mo of this scene because is marvellous and delicious to watch. there are so many little details and the transitions are so SMOOTH it's glorious.

okay so pink teddy=cxs.

cxs/pink teddy literally falling into the metal claws(from the toy machine) = getting caught by red-eyes. meaning red-eyes is kind of controlling him or he *will* be controlled in future episodes or at some point 🤔😥

and later, teddy!cxs gets throw down by red-eyes

gosh, will everyone just leave him alone <|||3

----end of part five----

that's all i've got, just unloading some silly thoughts. i love it yet hate it at the same time

cxs live happily ever after you only deserve love and happiness pls stop suffering it's hurting me

once again this opening is by far my most favourite of all and the song is incredibly good, today i saw the behind the scenes/making of the music and what can i say, they're all so talented and they sound amazing. it took them about a year to finish the song and it turned out beautifully, kudos to all the people who worked together to make this masterpiece, im in love

(spoilers for season two in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1)

on another hand, i'm soooo enjoying the donghua and this second season started off tense and full of action which i LOVED, the animation is smoooooth and i was so relieved to see lu guang was alive😢 i mean he couldn't possibly die but anyways. definitely my favourite part were the action scenes 11/10 but qiao ling's "what i need is your trust!" made my chest HURT okay it physically hurt. god.

the second episode ended in a cruel cliffhanger 😃 i try to get used to it, but nope. btw the ED song melting with the ending of the episodes always sounds spectacular.

i'm really looking forward to the next episode, i can't wait for red-eyes revelation 🤔 and i pray that nothing bad happens to lu guang (again) i think i saw blood when he was walking to lock the door :(( you need rest bby

[castle-dominion]

castle 7x9 last action hero

the action movie episode liveblog

hard kill garbage earbuds sus person running person dead person!! Love the music btw talking out loud to himself

Aw I love 90s beckett's style Oooh allclads are a good brand! But bex is right, some pans just Work Better, you can't just live life with a full set of one, you need a couple mismatched ones thrown in there too. & it has pictures in it.

Cousin sofia! Nice Bex offended mr kuniak XD ofc he never said anything, that'd be impolite

Hohhhh her puppydog sleeves <3

raises crime scene tape uwu He's that guy! Esposito's face of "Really castle? HIM above any of the OTHER action heroes?" RC: Ex-Navy Seal Zen master Rico Cruz? With the catch phrase “Time to hit Cruz control”? JE: Yeah, I was never a fan. KR: Me either. What’s he done lately, anyway? JE: Yeah, right? RC: (seriously) Beat leukemia. KR+JE:

Lanie <3

LP: Cause of death is clearly strangulation by ligature. KB: A narrow ligature, from the looks of it. KR: Made by a thin wire tied to two wooden dowels? KB: KR: CSU found this in a dumpster. KB: A garrote? Who would use one of those? JE: Special forces will sometimes, when they want to kill quietly. RC: The bigger question is how they got the drop on Lance Delorca. KR: Uh, Lance played an action hero, Castle. Doesn’t mean he was one. RC: Au contraire, mon frère. Thank you transcript for actually saying that, screw you captions. I speak French, I want to see the words. If hearing bilingual people can understand the french, Ddeaf/hoh ppl should be able to have that same opportunity. RC: Lance was born in Spain where, before he became an actor, he was a member of the CNI, the Spanish Intelligence Agency. He was black ops. This man was a lethal weapon. Me then: Wow, that's so fake, he wouldn't become an american actor. Jon Huertas: *was in the military, poor guy, before becoming an actor & is literally Esposito in this very show* But then again, I have a friend from Israel/Sri Lanka (I think he grew up in israel but was originally from sri lanka, idk) & he was in the air force for thirteen years but I met him as a cheap cafe sandwich maker in the banquet cold kitchen. I mean he left that job a couple weeks ago for private security but other than that. My point is, being n the military does not denote your future, you can escape your past.

Love the music btw

*Knows it word for word* RC laughs. He notices KR+JE’S looks. RC: I was raised by a single mother. Hard Kill was how I got my brotime. KR: That explains so much. JE: Mmhmm.

JE: Yeah, the guy from The Indestructibles movies, where all the badass action heroes band together for one last mission. KR: Before they die of old age? JE: Hey. That’s a great film. And so was the sequel. Sequels are never good bro KR: (sarcastically) Yeah.

KR: The redhead, she’s an archaeologist? That strains credibility. (XD casually sexist) JE: Yeah, in a good way. KB: Hard at work investigating, I see. They all turn around quickly. (Love her)

Castle being sort of helpful while just watching movies *pushes esposito out of the way a bit* why garroute, not garawt? KB: I know what her name is. While you were having your B-movie festival, I tracked her down. She’s in New York. She’s shooting a film and she’s on her way in now. *Esposito's face lights up & Castle accidentally hits ryan*

love the music XD but bex, let Castle find girls pretty in the past tense, he had her poster on his wall when he was younger & def before he met you that is ok.

oh no Another indestructibles? before they all die of old age? Yay friends Wow guns Cheesy is not bad KB: The real miracle is how a girl like that’s hanging out with a bunch of guys old enough to be her grandfather. She's not wrong

RC: Hi, Mr. Harmon. Huge fan. Huge fan. (he holds out his hand for a shake) I – I’m – it’s an honor – honor to meet you. Brock Harmon: The honor is mine. I’ve passed many an hour in the john reading your books. (in the washroom but still, he reads em! Love it when two celebrities are fans of each other lol)

Sometimes they say first names, sometimes they say last names.

When castle said that I just thought "Jon huertas was drawing on his past as an airman to play a detective (who used to be a green beret)" but also I miss the days when Castle said smart stuff

Just so happens that everyone they need is in new york i love it

I know why they are "stonewalling" her heheh oh yeah she has "guys" in washington now!

Why Hard Kill of any of the ppl he's played?

KR: (reading the tagline) “Time to hit Cruz control.” Maybe that’s what I need, a catchphrase. (he lowers his voice) Time to meet hard justice. Time for prison time. (nOOO I HATE IT MY FACE IS CAUGHT BETWEEN A CRINGE & A SMILE JHDSKJHSDFJ) XD on second thought: don't. clipping.

Oh yeah I remember this stuff. Man's a regular little robotics high school student!

Oh yeah sobriety. Loev the set behind them too lol

Ooh I noticed the commotion in the background this time! Man holding his face!

Classic action movie other wife XD

{But Castle couldn't tell that this man was NOT ex-cni? He got beckett's entire life story so why is this like this?} btw I want a fanfic where castle pulls the same trick he did on beckett to learn abt esposito & ryan's lives

espt layers upon layers isexy

Enrique Gomez: He needed a bodyguard. Somebody he could trust. And I know such people. But none of them were available on such short notice, so I couldn’t help him. I mean yeah no yeah that's how things go

At least he ASKED his friend I mean Tavi was a sheep herder too! But then he became an operative! & wanted to be a lawyer! & then became captain of the army! & then became the king of the entire nation!

Aww castle so depressed deeply personal XD Tori *pops out* *pops back in*

Earology XD but also acupuncturists might know a lot, I feel like that could be a plot point in a future episode & the shows the little animation XD like girl why not just say "I have an ID" & give the ID & if they ask say "I compared her ear shape to pictures of women connected to Lance DeLorca" & show the green pic of the scan but since you already compared it, you don't need to compare it to any more (which is where we got that pretty ear shape animation from)

not quoting, rather clipping, but the captions are incorrect so beware

I like how dark the obs room is in comparison to the inter room but the box is still so dim

set smth right! Words we've said before!

RC: My opinion is not affected by her skimpy outfit. I’m speaking as an objective investigator. Someone who has set their personal feelings aside. KB: Along with your poster? RC stops abruptly. RC: Who told you? It’s Ryan, wasn’t it? Apparently everyone knows ryan as the blabbermouth. "She's going away with her boyfriend!" "It only proves that Ryan has a big mouth" like girl this is a minor character trait for him at this point

Yay I'm hopefully getting my meds filled! I went to the hospital for self harm & suicidal motives on wednesday & I still haven't gotten my meds yet *goofy face emoji* but now I am yayay

why does ryan say "except for her story is still holding up" instead of "except that her story is still holding up" but ig it's better "except FOR the fact THAT her story.."

slaps ryan's mouth XD

her fridge is EMPTY

THANK YOU! Thank you Lanie for giving us all this information, all the reminders of the past, the explosion, the best apartment ever! Also I totally thought that they were going to kiss & then I forgot this isn't fanfiction. Btw we need more femslash in fandom. Straight women, we need you! Lol wine in ceramic mugs

Ooh Ryan's outfit! It was good yesterday but now it is also good today!

Hollywood style one at a time fight, castle's face, espt's face, castle's face, espt's nodthe MUSIC, man he did a great job choosing the right instruments for this!

Reminds me, I was in martial arts as a kid (& I wish I could go back but college is awful & nobody should have to work more than five hours a day /gen /revolution /ubi) & some friends of mine got into a fight at mcdonald's & they TOTALLY should have asked for the security footage!

btw, kicks are low not for their face

You get sides of pork, not sides of beef. Cattle are cut into quarters. Sorry lol I took a meat fabrication course in college

Standing in a very fenton oconnell type way there huh

JE: AD says his name is Ernest Howe. He’s playing ISIS militant number twelve. KR: Not for long. You know what time it is? It’s Ryan time. KR walks, JE follows him. JE: Please. Just stop. KR: Name’s Ryan and I hate lyin’. (he flashes his badge) JE: Oh my god KR: Ernest Howe! NYPD. not clipping too embarrassing KR: Oh, you’ve got trouble. Ryan trouble. JE hangs & shakes his head EH, softly & deeply: I don’t know what that means.

add to 1x7 when esposito & ryan were about to fck "moot" btw love espt's outfit. "put the hurt on all of you" sounds like irish, "there is hurt on me" or "there is hunger on me" is how irish sentences work

wait then why were you there beating on him in the alley? Or maybe they couldn't connect him to any of the assaulters, he just looked kind of like them

Ryan mr narco didn't notice? well ig it has been like 9 years since then...

love a good old middle aged dude

RC: I’ve learned that every good fiction contains a kernel of truth. Mr writer

BH: Say, the gang and I are going out for drinks later tonight. How’s you like to come with us? RC: RC: BH: Castle?

RC to KB: You are my boyhood dream.

XD that little run! He's a teen girl I love him!

There is NOT enough space for three broad shouldered adlult men to sit in a caar together

BH: Somebody takes out one of our own, we take him out. Valid ig? but castle is right: Oh, guys. Hey. Listen. If your plan is to go to the club and steal that slot car, no, that would – that would taint the evidence. Rolf Magnus: Actually we can compel the DA to consider it, since the car technically belonged to the victim, Lance. Wow actually smart lol

Where is Castle? Oh wait that's him. When did Castle change? Cool guys don't look at explosions

Love the heist comp XD. & they call him el jeffe XD I love the triframe but castle is conspicuous Lol always check, esp if you don't want to create a distraction Now get gone he's only on his way you can still get gone! Pull the fire alarm! Oh good for her lol

KB: You’re telling me that this was handed to you by a concerned citizen? RC: Uh … yes.

KB: And reward you for your []illegal behavior? (she shakes her head) I think not.

& then she livetells him anyway?

They be f*ckin' /j "omg this is not what I expected to be listening to"

yk what trey, that's valid. But also dude maybe ask for help yk what the DA might feel bad for you but also girl go to the authorities at that point maybe except that yk how cops are but at least theyd arrest boothe for conspiracy to commit murder

What did the blood bone marrow donor have to do with all of this?

he's your real dad & blood bone tests showed that?

ryan weird with the vest half open tbh

Ohhhh his son that's how this was involved!

WOAH THE JEWELRY WIRE IS THE SAME!?!? I don't think Lance was trying to ruin things, just trying to build a connection with a kid he's met a few times, his friend's kid, who just so hapens to be HIS kid.

Gates said good job to castle XD!

RC: I was just going to suggest the exact same thing. We’re starting to think alike now! As if they haven't been doing this since s1 XD KB: (laughing) That is horrifying. Okay, go cue up the movie, open up a bottle of wine. I’ll be home in a bit. I’ve just got a stop to make first. (& make popcorn!) RC: Well, if I’m thinking what you’re thinking and it’s to pick up a sexy archaeologist costume, don’t worry. (he drops his voice to a whisper) I’ve already got the whip. KB: *surprised pikachu*

but girl that's nice wood! & that is too good of a carving tbh

cinematic <3

Mkay so it's 17 & I started watching at 13.30 so that's 4.5 hours & 3 hours is already double my allotted time this was triple my alotted time which means it took me sextuple times the episode... then again a lot of it WAS spent trying to upload stuff to tumblr, at least 30m.

[literatikoo]

Jess Mariano's alleged communication problems

If there is one thing the Gilmore Girls fandom agrees upon, whether you're team Jess or Dean or Logan, it's that Jess isn't great at communicating. There's just a consensus that he's not great at discussing his problems and that's the number 1 reason why his and Rory's relationship blew up in their face in season 3. But... this is a (somewhat) unfounded complaint? Don't get me wrong, I know Jess can be harsh and rude and really knows how to hit the nail on the head sometimes but there are also multiple instances where he talks after being pushed a little. Like every single time he's talked to Luke about Rory problems ("The girls I like don't give a damn about me," "I told her I loved her" and the infamous swan episode) or when he tells Rory, a girl he barely knows, that his mom doesn't want him back for Christmas.

The problem with Jess is that he picks and chooses who to communicate too. He definitely doesn't talk about Liz to Luke because he knows that Luke just doesn't believe that Liz is a bad person and a neglectful mother. And seriously, we've seen Luke enable Liz' terrible behaviour multiple times on the show, do you really think he would've believed whatever Jess had to say about her? He talks to Rory about Liz that one time and she doesn't believe him either and both we and Jess know that she has a right to that because she's never met Liz, but this is still enough for Jess to never bring her up again (at least from what we see) because he's a 17 year old kid with a terrible relationship with his parents. NO 17 year old kid who's been treated bad by their parents would want to open up about it because it's pretty strongly ingrained in us that having negative emotions against your parents is WRONG. On the other hand, Jess knows that Luke sees his and Rory's relationship and may even help because he has his own unique relationship with the Gilmore Girls, which is why he's much more open about Rory and even seeks advice on occasion.

Now, let's talk about Jess' less than stellar communication moments:

1. Lying about school and Walmart: Jess skives off school a LOT to work at Walmart and save up money. He doesn't tell anyone about it. Why? Because for everyone else in Stars Hollow, and for most of us too, school is important and education is a positive thing needed for growth. But who knows how often Jess went to school before SH, we already know he has a bad relationship with the educational system but why? When he goes back to NY in s2 it's obvious he's not going to school and we know Liz moved around a lot so he may be a lot more behind in school than we know. Yes, he's smart and he reads a lot but that's not enough to do well in school; you need to be able to conform a fair amount and I don't think Jess even went enough to know that. Jess already wasn't planning on going to college and he knows that living with Luke is temporary, which is why he puts more importance into saving up money. He was already working for the future, just in a different way from everyone else. It's obvious that he also wasn't planning to flunk out of school, it happened because he wasn't attending enough not because he was failing (which pisses me off so much don't even get me started). He was going to graduate and then he was going to use the money he saved up while looking for a job that suited him. And that's a pretty solid plan honestly, especially since he didn't have the luxury to suddenly decide to go to 4 year college because his girlfriend told him too like Dean. But this is something else he just couldn't talk about to Luke or Rory, who both think he's capable of great things within the academic sphere. Mind you, once Luke found out he was skipping school he didn't deal with things in the best way either. He stole his car, effectively cutting off Jess' last bit of independence. I really feel like Jess was just waiting to graduate before he had THE talk with Rory about their future, and it was obvious he was thinking longterm ("22.8 miles"). That is before everything goes to shit.

2. Keg! Max!: Let me preface this by saying that Jess definitely made irreversible mistakes in this episode... but it wasn't for the lack of trying. This is the episode that he finds out he's not graduating and we can see him struggling with this information, he's tense and angry and his emotions are simmering. His interactions with Rory, which are usually so easygoing, are surrounded by this air of finality. At this moment, he knows he's going to lose her and his home with Luke because that's what the deal was. But he still goes with her to that party and he still does the bare minimum of mingling. Throughout the party he tells Rory that he wants to leave, I'm guessing to talk to her about what happened. But they don't (this is NOT Rory's fault btw, she had no way to know what happened either) and instead Jess' emotions get the better of him. This is the first of the two instances where we really see how non communicative Jess can be. However I still maintain that if Dean hadn't gotten involved, Jess and Rory would've been able to talk. (fuck Dean)

3. Jess leaves: This is the second case where we see him being truly non communicative, and unfortunately I don't have much to say in his defence. Except that he probably was still reeling from losing his home and meeting his Dad and just didn't know how to put that insane amount of emotion into words. He also probably thought that Rory just didn't want to talk to him anymore because of how terribly he treated her, especially since he was just going to give her more bad news. He could see himself self destructing, and didn't want Rory to be collateral damage.

4. Smaller instances (Swan song, Not calling Rory, fighting with Lorelai): Okay, I think the swan incident was Rory's fault, because he was telling her the truth and just didn't want to get into it in front of Emily. But she wasn't ready to hear it until she talked to Dean, which honestly was a sucky move on her part. The not calling her when he said he would while they were dating in that one random episode was also a similar misunderstanding. The thing in common with both of these instances was that he was ready to learn afterwards; he said he was willing to go back to Emily's house and he bought them tickets to the Distillers and from what the show tells us they had a lot more consistent date nights after that. This was Jess' first proper relationship and he was really trying. Now the Lorelai thing... he just didn't want her in his business. They had no relation to each other and she was very condescending to him the first time they met, he wasn't great either but when an adult talks to you the way she did after you've just been uprooted at your mothers whims, you tend to hate them a little. And honestly I always thought that Jess being weirded out by Lorelai's involvement in his and Rory's relationship was more normal 17 year old behaviour than Dean being overly friendly with her.

So, in conclusion, because he made two big fatal communication mistakes, he's labelled as the broody non talking type. When we see most of the characters actually do the same (Rory drops out of Yale and cuts off ties with her mother, Lorelai sleeps with Christopher after months of miscommunication with Luke, Luke doesn't tell Lorelai, his fiance, that he has a daughter), seriously, they've all made mistakes and this doesn't diminish the mistakes that Jess has made and the hurt he has caused, but he also doesn't deserve to have non communicative as a personality trait. If it was seriously that big of a problem, he wouldn't have been able to grow from it that quickly (by the end of s4) and by reading self help books of all things. I also think it comes off like that because he was in the show for so little time, and that's what the writers chose to focus on.

So tldr, Jess isn't as non communicative as the show wants us to believe and he definitely isn't broody.

[bizzyizzyg]

My TMA episode ratings:

21: *puts this episode at the top of the list why I don’t want to skydive* I don’t really like Simon Fairchild tbh, sorry to all the stans. 4/10

22: MAHTIN <3 <3 <3 i fucking love the shenanigans of the start of this and the absolute dread of the last half. Poor thing. 7/10

23: very slow start, but i rather like the ending. The description of ‘Johann’s steps’ is worth it for me. 5/10

24: oh calliope organ, my beloved. so horrible and cruel. quite like this one, but this clip of sasha just makes me sad now lol. also dolls are creepy, don’t let this statement giver tell you otherwise. 8/10

25: rather boring statement regarding The Dark. almost has too many details? if that makes sense? the interesting for me is mostly in the post research and its ties to future plot things. 4/10

26: SASHAA~ such a great statement, I love her descriptions and determination to confront Michael. who btw is my favourite monster in the early seasons. so damn creepy and genuinely scary imo, takes uncanny valley and literally stretches it out of proportion. 10/10

27: i HATE this episode (complimentary) it’s so frustrating and awful. 9/10

28: Melanie is a great character and “silk will not stitch the butchers meat” IS SO FUCKING RAW i love it so much. Overall a very very good episode, love when different entities fight. 10/10

29: very tense episode, a good unique draw and premise. The description of the ‘swap’ is so gut churning I love it. Poor intern that had to write this down, it makes me laugh every-time. 9/10

30: all The Flesh episodes in the beginning are so… sticky. Make me feel gross since you have no idea why the body horror ramps up soo fast. Its like nothing nothing nothing then /boom/ giant flesh pit. 7/10

[nightqueendany]

Original Final Season 7 - Episode 5: The Storm

Your weekly reprieve from canon...

IN KING’S LANDING: 

The episode begins with a puppet show among the smallfolk of the city - the puppet show from the books - “At the end a dragon hatches from an egg and devours all of the lions.” The puppeteers are swiftly arrested

Euron is getting ready to leave on a “mission” but before he goes, he and Cersei discuss the “traitors” (the puppeteers) and what their punishment should be, they decide on a “fitting” execution - since they clearly support the Targaryens, they’ll die a “dragon’s death” - death by wildfire

This causes Jaime to have flashbacks of Aerys II

IN THE RIVERLANDS: 

On her way south, Arya comes across a pack of wolves - Nymeria’s wolf pack - she tells Nymeria she’s going to King’s Landing with the Tully forces, that the woman who killed Nymeria’s sister is also there and they could kill her together to avenge Lady, Nymeria and wolf pack seemingly desert Arya, leaving Arya bereft

ON DRAGONSTONE: 

Jon and Dany grow close in Davos/Tyrion/Varys/Baelish’s absences, a few flirty tense moments, audience can see Jon wants to tell Dany about R+L=J but can’t find the right time/words

Jorah arrives on Dragonstone freshly cured from his greyscale, he’s being a little bit of a cockblock

Jon attempts to give back Longclaw to Jorah but Jorah refuses

Jon/Dany receive word from Tyrion and Davos about Gendry and that they’re waiting in King’s Landing because of the coming storm - the raven had just flown in as the storm hit Dragonstone (Davos’ instincts are spot on)

During the storm Jon/Dany flirt heavily, talk about her nickname “Stormborm”, and just as Jon and Dany are about to either act on their feelings or Jon is about to tell Dany the truth (unclear what his move is, the audience just sees it would be an intimate moment), Euron attacks Dragonstone in full force

Viserion is injured with a ballista

Though most of their ships are burned in the process by the retreating dragons, Euron and co overrun Dragonstone, forcing Team Targaryen to abandon the island (only a small retinue of soldiers are on Dragonstone with them, Dany’s bulk forces are already on the mainland for the siege of King’s Landing)

Dany is about to fly off with Jorah, Missandei, Melisandre and Jon when Jon remembers Rhaegar’s harp; Jon tells Dany to leave, he’ll find a way to safety, Jon goes back to get the harp, runs into Grey Worm, persuades him to flee with him rather than die with the small group they have on the island, Rhaegal rescues them both, they ride Rhaegal to safety

Team Stark/Targaryen retreats to the mainland, Dany wonders where they should go and Jorah makes a suggestion, though the audience isn’t told what it is yet

AT CASTLE BLACK: 

The sick Black Brothers from Episode 1 die, rise as wights south of the Wall, just as in S1, attack the rest of the brothers before anyone realizes they’re dead/now wights, all Night’s Watchmen are killed, including Edd

Wight!Edd blows the Horn of Winter, “knocking” down the Wall for the Army of the Dead to pass through (a callback to: “Don’t knock it down while I’m gone” from Season 6)

IN WINTERFELL: 

Bran sees all this in a vision, tells Sansa they need to send out the ravens (like when he has the vision in 7x05 of the dead marching on Eastwatch and tells Wolkan this)

Title of the episode is multi-meaning - in Season 6, Euron tells Balon, “I am the Storm” and in this episode, “The Storm” comes to Dragonstone (figuratively and literally, as it’s storming outside when Euron’s fleet arrives).

As Jon told the Lords of the North in 6x10, The Night King “brings the storm” and obviously, the Night King finally brings the storm to the realms of men.

And of course, Dany is Stormborn, her nickname of which is discussed because of the storm raging outside right before Euron attacks Dragonstone

Episode 5 Inside the Episode: The Storm

1) The Puppet Show

I really loved the idea of including this in the show to a) foreshadow Cersei’s death and b) bring out more of Cersei’s madness/parallels to Aerys II. I think the show did a real disservice to Jaime/Cersei’s relationship by having Jaime not be present when Cersei blew up the Sept - in this way, he never sees her do anything particularly awful, he only hears about it. But having Jaime watch Cersei burn men alive with wildfire would be truly horrific and would fuck Jaime up big time. When Jaime leaves Cersei, it will be very easy for him and it will be permanent. 

2) Euron attacking Dragonstone

Honestly, it was so dumb that they didn’t attack Dragonstone in Season 7!!! Like, hello! Cersei full on knew that that was where Dany was headed! Jaime told her! She’s got a thousand fucking ships thanks to Euron! Qyburn was working on the scorpions! Why not, you know, just attack the woman at the root of all her problems instead of taking risks like a sea battle with the other Greyjoys or hitting Highgarden which could have been (should have been) heavily guarded by Dothraki!. Just take Dany out at Dragonstone, she’d have nowhere to go, end of Cersei’s worries.

Plus, Euron does attack Dragonstone in Season 8 but the result of the attack doesn’t do anything - it just lends to the Mad Queen storyline, which as I’ve argued, was added to fill the last three episodes of Season 8.

So yes, this fixes that flawed battle plan, or lack thereof. Also, with Euron and co overrunning the island, it gives Dany relatively few options for a quick/easy retreat from the mainland (she has no base of operations anymore). More on this in the next episode.

3) Hadn’t mentioned this before but, Rhaegar’s Harp?

I know, I know guys. It’s a little far-fetched. But I wanted Jon to have some kind of tangible evidence that he was who he says he is when it comes time for him to reveal the truth to Dany. And the harp works really well. Dany will have known about it from Ser Barristan and there is no other explanation as to why some random northerner would have it, unless the story is true about Rhaegar/Lyanna being married and Lyanna having it in her possession when she dies in childbirth.

4) Viserion injured with a ballista:

This will weaken him so he’s not 100% when facing the AOTD in future and also takes care of foreshadowing as to how he will die at the hands of the Night King, just as Drogon getting hit with the ballista in 7x04 foreshadowed this in actual canon. Because in case you guys hadn’t noticed from the episode guide at the end of each post, Viserion still turns into a Wight!Dragon in this version of events lol.

AAaaaand that’s it for Episode 5! Five more to go!!!! See D&D, it’s not that fucking difficult! You can move at a quick pace while still sticking to a coherent story. Also, this makes the threat of the AOTD more urgent and as if they’ve actually had things to do instead of just waiting beyond the Wall for everyone else’s storylines to catch up. Sheesh. 

As always, let me know your guys thoughts on the episode! Favorite parts? Least favorite parts? Predictions for next episode?

BTW if anyone wants to take this and turn it into a legit fic and write it in prose, go ahead! It is free for the taking!

Original Final Season 7: Preface Post

Season 7 Episode 1: Family, Duty, Honor

Season 7 Episode 2: Greywater Watch

Season 7 Episode 3: The Last of the Dragons

Season 7 Episode 4: Dragonglass 

Season 7 Episode 5: The Storm (Current Episode)

Season 7 Episode 6: Summerhall

Season 7 Episode 7: A City Fit For A King

Season 7 Episode 8: Protectors of the Realm

Season 7 Episode 9: The Battle For The Dawn

Season 7 Episode 10: ?

[wolfwhiteflowers]

Some thoughts I commented on forums about the 10x03 Q&A spoilers.

dslfjlsdjfl Very Carol episode. I also love that they’re showing Aaron more btw.

-Read the last two questions. It tells me the TF and Carol are tensed and paranoid. Carol was right about the whisperer in the end but Michonne trying to keep calm and didn't see them, doesn't believe her. Like the whole group is paranoid...in the comics I think it kinda goes like a witch hunt way.

- From the Q&A, They really mentioned Sophia, Lizzie & Mika, and Henry. :( I liked that I think/hope the writers are gonna show and deal with Carol”s and Daryl's (mentioned/hinted) past and loss throughout the season. Daryl mentioned his past in ep 1 from the table reading and in ep 3.

- It really shows how TF is really getting tensed and paranoid already.

-Wow for real!? Carol, Daryl, Henry moment and Grimes family moment! Is this ep real? This ep is so everything!

-Carol's dream and seeing Henry, kinda reminds me of Carl's future/goal dream of old man Rick. Asfnlgjkl :(

-Alex_in_orbit said: i thought about that too. but Carl's dream was about all alive being. I think Carol's about her "wish to be" but it won't be like that for sure because Henry already died. But IMO Daryl there tells me he's one who she can't lose. 

It's interesting to me that Daryl was in the dream. Why is he there? I guess the dream can be interpreted in any way. I like those kind of scenes. he is her BFF who she cares of right now and one that supports her when grieving. It's like she depends on him on what's real and not real. ..(Katniss and Peeta/Hunger Games).

 -nana said: Hmmm, I like the Katniss and Peeta connection.

I just thought about it and like afghhjllkl wtf lol Before it's just jokes like they're the last two from ATL and Carol with her bow. But yeah it would be a nice parallel if Caryl were to have that similar plot like K and P grieving and depending on each other on what's real or not.

-Maybe they show Zeke grieving in his own way in the Hilltop episodes. I do think and hope they talk about Henry eventually. This ep is about Carol.

[mysterylover123]

BNHA Rewatch: Episode 17 “Strategy, Strategy, Strategy”

mysterylover123

This visual is so great for conveying Midoriya’s POV and emotions, isn’t it? I feel like I don’t appreciate the great visual storytelling in BNHA enough, but I love how much Horikoshi can convey with a single image. This is also a good exemplar for the early parts of BNHA too. Everyone’s out to get Deku, no exceptions. Things have gotten chummier in recent years, and I’ll admit the socially-anxious part of me misses this early atmosphere a little. A little.

Deku’s newfound empathy for All Might’s situation here is interesting - part of him beginning to understand, really understand, his goals, and his mentor as more than just an idea. 

After some worldbuilding with the Security staff, we jump to the Cavalry Team selection to see that everyone wants on Team Bakugou. In hindsight, I kinda wonder why that is. I mean, he’s powerful, but so are a lot of people here, and everyone knows he’s hard to work with. Class A saw him blow off his only teammate from the past (Iida in the BTA.) So why do they wanna work with him here? Maybe for his point value?

And Kirishima coming over to tell Bakugou bluntly “You’re basically my second choice. Teammates?” Lol. Even Bakugou’s best friend only hangs with him when Todoroki isn’t available. (Also since I hardcore ship KiriMina, I headcanon he picked this team because Mina wanted in). 

Uraraka later on cites this decision as perhaps not her best move. She realizes that her instinct to team up with Midoriya is not out of a pure sense of friendship, but rather because she wants to rely on MIdoriya’s superior skills to get by, something that she realizes may stem from a lack of confidence in herself. As I’ve observed, this seems to be one of Uraraka’s consistent flaws. She tries to copy or siphon off of other people, rather than figuring out who she is on her own. (I wouldn’t have figured this out if Uraraka didn’t point it out herself, BTW). 

This twist absolutely floored me the first time around. I’m so used to the Hero’s BFF always following him blindly, like a golden retriever, that Iida defying this just...I never saw that coming. I do compare it to how, say, Ron in HP getting jealous of Harry is treated as him being petty and just having to get over it, while Iida’s jealousy of Deku just spurs him to be better, stronger. (And also inspires Uraraka to be the same herself. Iichaco ship still sailing!) 

Mei Hatsume! I love her. Absolutely one of my favorites in the series. She definitely has the potential to be a mainstay. The series often uses her as an exemplar of the virtues of pursuing your dream, with everything you’ve got, and examining both the faults and the virtues of that mindset. 

Seeing them talk about hero packs makes me ship them a little. At the very least, a BROTP who I’d like to see interact more. (Also, Ochaco’s jealousy sets me up for a very pleasant surprise later on this arc, and a less than pleasant surprise later on in the series). 

Tokoyami, the unexpected rider! Also, dayum, Deku looks fine in that headband. That Naruto look really suits him. He also goes barefoot a lot in the series, and has notably nice feet. There’s a lot of emphasis on them throughout the series, i’ve noticed, visually, probably cause of that whole Shoot Style switch.  

And now to Team Todoroki. Gotta say, this team is pretty OP. Creation, 1/2 cold 1/2 hot, electrification and Engine. I noticed last ep that Kaminari said he’s “bad at cavalry battles”, and he ends up on the #1 team. Aw! Also, Todoroki and Momo teamwork! Todomomo ship! and setting up Iida’s future relationships with Momo and Shoto too. Such a great crew! 

Everyone wants Deku. Also, they’re after his points. 

Deku fanboys a bit over Tokoyami here. He’s such a gushy sweetheart, so full of praise for everyone...why are you not real, Deku. Oh yeah and Tokoyami is cool and awesome and stuff. 

Another Ochaco is jealous of Mei moment. Sigh. She does have good reason to be tho, since Deku’s (spoken) gush is reserved for Everyone But Her. Seriously, Deku, keep up all your teammates’ morale! 

Sadly for Uraraka, she ends up being the one to mess up Deku’s strategy when she gets the moon shoe stuck on one of Mineta’s...things. I wonder if this was the part she felt kind of embarrassed about later on. 

Monoma is so dumb here. So smug about “Oh the Smartness of Me”. When he’s really an idiot for throwing the first round of a festival you’re supposed to show off in.  And provoking the most temperamental person around (though to be fair, he doesn’t know Bakugou.) 

This is the first of two times where Monoma brings up one of Bakugou’s Damseling incidents to provoke someone...Wonder Duo get really pissed off whenever someone pokes that button. Monoma, please tell me you’ve learned your lesson now, after both of them went nutso on you.

Todoroki vs Deku. To Be Continued!

So this is another episode I like. It’s good. it’s very suspenseful and tense the first time around, so full of strategy. Perhaps because of its structure, it’s a little less re-watchable than some others, since it’s all about the strategy, teamwork and suspense - things that don’t hit you as hard a second time as some of the more emotional episodes, or fight-centric ones. Still though, great ep.

BKDK CORNER

You wanna take MIDORIYA down, right? You know it, Kiri. Savvy boy, that Kirishima (I think he’s one of many in-universe characters who ships it. Alongside All Might, Uraraka and Koda’s Rabbit.)  Also, the Dub changed this line to “Let’s go into battle together”, which doesn’t fit Bakugou’s reaction. It seems like they maybe did it to better set up Kirishima and Bakugou’s friendship moment from Season 3. 

Bakugou and Deku notice the same thing about Tokoyami’s quirk at the same time. I can’t help but snicker about Monoma saying Bakugou is chasing a ‘dangling carrot’. My inner twelve year old coming out. 

Deku has pleanty of time to watch Bakugou’s confrontation with Monoma for someone in First Place trying to evade everyone. 

BEST GIRL OF THE EP: Itsuka Kendo! 

For more info on her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_Iyu30pkHY 

RANKER: Favorite Cavalry Battle Teams

5. Team Hagakure (Jirou, Koda, Sato &  Hagakure)

4. Team Kendo (Kendo, Setsuna, Komori, & Yanagi)

3. Team Bakugou (Bakugou, Ashido, Kirishima & Sero)

2. Team Midoriya (Midoriya, Uraraka, Hatsume & Tokoyami)

1. Team Todoroki (Todoroki, Momo, Iida & Kaminari)

[clairebeauchampfan]

Tripe. Bollocks. Absolute tosh. Deliberate distortions?  Anyway, how would they know? Many ES claimed they only watched the first three episodes, then gave up because there wasn’t enough sex..(I mean, intimacy). did these people watch the whole series? Were they paying attention to what was actually going on? 

gaelic-fullmoon-lady

Only at the start…😩 Season 4 she’s soap-opera-equipment

accardi1921

Yeah,where did this character go she's talking about? Not badass in S4 & doesn't always have to be but S4 Claire was Just so unhappy looking.

mylessanchez

Session 4 she’s an after thought.  She had nothing in season 4.  She entertained his admirers and rubbed his shoulders.  Had to have irked Cait to no end

Etcetera etcetera (and ‘liked’ by people who should know better) . What a load of absolute cobblers. So here we go, Claire apparently had NOTHING to do in Season 4. Perhaps they’ve forgotten. Most likely they just blindly followed the reviews of people who were absolutley determined to be negative about the Season, about Outlander  and about Caitriona Balfe, as they  have been since 1st January 2018. I wonder why? 

Episode 1 Claire rescues Bonnett from hanging. Badass Claire  Claire sets off with her husband into a new land where they have only one relative, aunt Jocasta  Claire loses her wedding ring; has presence of mind to swallow one. Badass Claire.

Episode 2 Claire encourages Jamie to reject Aunt Jocasta’s inheritance; a life of ease and luxury, because she can’t own slaves. She faces down the lynch mob; patches up Rufus, then has the courage to give him a poison to spare him from a lynching, thus breaking her hypocratic oath - first, do no harm. Badass Claire much.

Episode 3 Claire sets of with her husband into the wilderness. She can ride a horse, confront ghosts, load and fire an eighteenth century rifle. Claire is badass Claire

Episode 4 Dr Claire fixes up Myers and , husband wounded after confrontation with the man bear: makes friends with wise woman from  potentially hostile indigenous people, the Cherokee. Does Claire run screaming back to civilisation? No, Claire is badass Claire. 

Episode 5. Dr Claire brings baby into world. No epidurals, no midwife....Dr Claire is badass doctor.  Dr Claire stops Mueller from starting war with cherokees by interposing herself between them. Badass Claire. ‘Vulture’ recap:  “Claire gathers her gun, Rollo, and some decent beef jerky, and hunkers down in the cabin. She’s terrified, but in a very badass way. Mueller finally arrives, but not to kill Claire — he wants to make sure she’s okay. He also wants to give her a gift. In a horrifying reveal, Claire opens the package to find Adawehi’s scalp. I’m sorry, but the fact that Claire hasn’t had some type of breakdown yet after suffering through an unreal amount of atrocities just seems ridiculous at this point. But she soldiers on. She throws Mueller out, gives Adawehi a proper (as proper as she can) send off, and still, the carnage continues”

Episode 6  Dr Claire saves Lord Johyn from the measles, survives having her husband’s would-be gay lover and Jamie’s by-blow son drop in on them, exchanges some brutal truths with Lord John. Badass Claire

Episode 7 Yeah, okay, Claire wasn’t in THIS ONE frigging episode. Oh My God! Her badass daughter is instead. 

Episode 8. Dr Claire works with her husband to save Murtagh from arrest, performs operation on local corrupt official . As Vulture says:

“There is chaos! There is commotion! Claire says he needs surgery immediately or he will die! Even in the midst of this, men are like, “But you have a vagina, how can you wield a scalpel!?” Honestly, Claire should just let Fanning suffer, but she’s a professional, so she orders everyone INTO THE LOBBY to get set up for emergency surgery. Meanwhile, she gets the low-down from Jamie, who needs her to distract Tryon as he runs off to warn Murtagh of the trap; Tryon can’t know Jamie’s gone.

Jamie uses George and Martha Washington as a sort of Colonial Lyft to get to Fergus and Marsali’s (they had a boy, BTW), and has Fergus find Murtagh while Jamie tries to slip back into the theater unnoticed. Don’t worry guys, it all works out! Although, it’s a little unsettling that Tryon knows exactly who Murtagh is. Keep an eye on our guy, Jamie!

And sure, saving Murtagh is exciting and all, but the most exhilarating part of the entire excursion to the theater is Claire, back in her element, crushing some impromptu surgery. Before you know it, she’s three knuckles deep in that dude’s abdomen and not even breaking a sweat. Governor Tryon is impressed, Fanning’s dummy doctors are impressed, we’re all impressed. You also must remember that while Claire is successfully performing surgery under less-than-desirable circumstances, she is also successfully saving her husband’s ass by distracting Tryon. She manages both tense tasks with a cool composure. Never forget that Claire’s the true hero of this show. If only the entire episode had just been Claire, Jamie, and George Washington”

Episode 9. The reunion. Claire is bowle4 over by her badass daughter travliing back through time to warn her mom about the fire. Claire , badass Claire, says nonchalently: we’ll just go have a holiday every year on that day. 

Vulture recap again:

“Brianna is pregnant and Claire figures it out. After a hilarious fight about why Brianna didn’t pack condoms for her trip to the 1700s (moms are moms no matter the century), Bree confesses that it might not be Roger’s baby, and the truth (without naming Bonnet) comes spilling out. This is definitely Sam Heughan’s episode, but can we give it up for how incredible Caitriona Balfe is in this scene as Claire processes a whole slew of emotions at once? “

Episode 10 No much badassery, to be sure . Here’s Vulutre again to remind us:

“As important as that Jamie-Bree conversation is, and as nice as their shared moment commenting on how at peace Claire seems in the wilderness is, the parent-child moments in this episode that moved me the most belonged to Claire and Bree. The ladies talking about what they missed back in their time — cheeseburgers, Led Zeppelin, and toilets that flush, to name a few things — was a rare lighter scene on Outlander, and brought me so much joy! Claire compassionately and tactfully discussing abortion as an option for Bree was a great reminder of both how Claire is a woman ahead of her time literally and figuratively and of the strength of this mother-daughter relationship. It’s all pretty great.

and Badass Claire takes the side of her daughter against the man she loves, like a real mom! And rides into the wilderness to find and rescue roger from that seriously badass tribe, the Mohawk, just a 700 mile ride away in upper NY state. Badass? 

Episode 11 Vulture again; my memory’s not what it was

Regardless of their scant airtime (in this episode) , Jamie and Claire get the best scene of the episode — maybe the best of the season.Things between Claire and Jamie are still very icy since separating from Bree, and no amount of ignoring it to focus on Claire’s fabulous headband will change that. Even Ian is begging Mom and Dad to make up. Finally, Claire gets to a point where she just can’t watch Jamie in so much pain over what he’s done to Brianna.She (Claire) he goes to him in his tent one night and explains that she’s not mad at him — she’s mad at the world. She explains that after Frank died, she and Brianna shared secrets and they belonged to them — so she’s sorry she didn’t tell Jamie about Bonnet as soon as she found out, and she blames herself for this entire mess. She explains that their marriage is different now because they’re parents. Listen, you guys, two people talking about the difficulties of balancing being a parent with being in a marriage is typically a snoozefest, but Balfe and Heughan are just so freaking good together (what’s new, I know) and imbue such vulnerability and honesty in this moment (I’m still sobbing over Jamie admitting that he’s worried both Bree and Claire think Frank was the better man), that I’ll be thinking about this scene for days. Sure, after Claire assures Jamie that Bree didn’t mean what she said and knows that Jamie for sure didn’t mean what he said and they both say “I’m sorry” and they both wipe away tears from their gorgeous faces, they have sex in that tent

Episode 12 OMG this episode didn’t feature Claire. Shock, horror

Episode 13 Badass Claire and her husband try to rescue Roger from the Mohawks. it all goes wrong. There’s a fight. Badass Claire is wearing the stone from the future! How badass do you have to be as a woman to go, outnumbered, under armed, into the wilderness, to rescue your daughter’s husband from a people whose track record is um.er...(how can one put this in non-judgemental terms?)..to use extreme methods when putting people to death. 

So there you have it: ‘not badass’ in Season 4? In Season 4 as an afterthought? Soap opera equipment ? She had ‘nothing’ in Season 4? I’ve gone on about how Cait-Haters have misused pictures of Claire holding her arms (which she does in EVERY season) as proof she is unhappy. Well, lots of unhappy things happen in Season 4, to Claire, to her friends, to her daughter. It would have been odd if she’s looked happy the whole time, wouldn’t it. I know I’d have been terrified, most of the time, in her position. Here’s some pix of Claire looking sad in Season 4.  

#Badass Dr. Claire Beauchamp

[zenosanalytic]

THE SACRED TEXTS!!! EPISODE 3

I just finished the 3rd season of Clone Wars(2008) and I have Thoughts!

s3 is typically where I’ve seen ppl saying Clone Wars gets gud but, for the first half of the season, I was pretty skeptical. Until ~ e11 the season’s dedicated to filling in holes from the earlier seasons which, frankly, didn’t really need to be filled? Like: I’m not really sure WHO, in the audience, would be sitting around wondering “gee, I wonder what’s going on with Mandalore’s trade-policy during all of this?”?? Or “was a Republic Army sent to help Ryloth when it was first invaded, and what happened to it?”??? And most of this not only felt pretty unnecessary, but was also pretty Meh (:T There were good bits! Like, I didnt ACTL mind the Ryloth ep, and it acts as a declaration of sorts that it’s now both open-season on Jedi(yeah, technically Kit Fisto’s ex-padawan Vebb died in Lair of Grievous, but he was very much An Outlier), and more broadly open-season on named&faced humanoid characters.

To give an example: not ONLY does Domino Squad from Rookies in s1 get a fleshing-out backstory(which is... very Pat and derivative and convenient, but the characterization is ok given they’ve only got one 22min ep to do it in. & I liked 99′s whole role as basically surrogate dad to all the other clones), but pretty much ALL of them, I think, end up getting killed off during the season? Like I said it’s a clear statement they want to break with the past while building on the “hey fans: CLONES ARE PEOPLE! THEIR SITUATION IN THIS WAR IS MONSTROUS!!” message the series has been soft-peddling from the beginning, but I feel like they didnt really commit to it enough. Like: IF they had stuck with the Domino survivors throughout the season, if we’d gotten to see them in episode after episode, gotten to know them better alongside the other members of Rex’s ARC battalion, gotten to see them face dangers and survive them, only to watch, agonized, as they, and the rest of the Battalion vets, slowly get picked off in the increasingly dangerous missions of the second half of the season, then that would have made the message MUCH more effective, AND made the Citadel and Padawan Lost arcs much more tense.

And really all of the impactful deaths of the season sort of feel like that. Like: we get one episode to know Mina Bonteri(a human, of course) and her family before she’s killed off(though i did Dig how unceremonious and unsentimental it was; that really got across the stakes involved and the sorts of scumbags Amidala, and the audience, are dealing with). We get even less time with the Jedi killed by Oppress; a few seconds at most(and btw it’s kind of HILARIOUS how he just... bulls in there and wrecks em like it’s nothing, after two seasons of ep after ep of uneventful cat-and-mouse. Of course that’s undermined by him&Ventriss, then, utterly failing to be successful against Dooku, purely because the plot demands it |:T) Same with Master Piell. Ziro we know much better, but he was also a fairly annoying caricature and his final eps went out of their way to use him to introduce EVEN MORE annoying caricatures so, while his getting gunned down is successful in showing violence and violent death as sudden, unsentimental, and pathetic rather than heroic and worthy, we dont really care. And that’s further undercut, pretty seriously, by his being a caricature; pathos is hard to pull off with an object of laughter/scorn as it risks just making their suffering funny to the audience(which... is the OPPOSITE of what you want to accomplish). This isnt helped by having the Jedi who find him basically shrugging at his death before racing into a Cool Fight. The “Force Wielders” in the Mortis arc suffer from the same problems(and also: Force Dualism&”The Chosen One” Talk: BLEAGH!). The only one of these they manage to get right, to me, is Kalifa’s death in Padawan Lost which, due to us getting more time to see her sitch and hear her&the other younglings talk about it, genuinely ends up having an emotional impact(if still feeling super-convenient and a bit improbable)((also I love the inclusion of a predator ep, even if they’re cheap dime-story predators)).

The same goes for all the non-death falls and endangerments. The corruption of the Mandalorian Prime Minister falls flat because we barely know him, and he’s never been portrayed as sympathetic or, for that matter, as anything other than a factotum. The only Pantoran we know in Sphere of Influence is Senator Chuchi, and more than half the episode is dedicated to the Prime Minister, his Son, and his(interchangeable) daughters(and we never see any of these characters again in the season); the ep comes off as nothing more than an excuse to reference Greedo(and Im annoyed by him speaking common all of a sudden. Who watching CW would have a problem with subtitles?).

BUT! They’re trying!! They’re moving in the right direction!!! I’m happy about this ^v^ And the later half of the season, while I have my problems with certain episodes, and the continued non-human stereotypes, and the convenient writing, and the not-great(tho getting better!) dialogue, is actually kind of entertaining, and attention-bearing. Arc Troopers, the 2nd ep of the season, is Solid! The Mortis arc is good, overall! The Citadel and Padawan Lost arcs are Compelling!! I like the Witches of Dathomiir, even if their Arc is “Meh” because the series IMMEDIATELY undercuts their cool concept(aside from the laser-bows which are LEGITIMATELY Stupid. I’m sorry; I will not argue over this they’re Dum) by having their plans, and all the implication towards deep plots&cunning manipulation, turn out to be empty and fruitless(ie, Dooku totally should have been terribly wounded by all this, which would have also been cool re: Sidious, as it’d imply THAT WAS HIS PLAN ALL ALONG! TO WEAKEN THE GROWING POWER OF HIS APPRENTICE AND DRAG THE WAR OUT EVEN LONGER!!) Also: the Witches, rather than being “magic users” drawing from the “unique power” of their ~evil planet~(a swamp, of course, following long-established Magic the Gathering tradition u_u) should have just totally been a non-Sith(possibly Pre-Jedi) sect of Dark Side Force Users. I really like the idea of Non-Jedi/Non-Sith(since they’re literally just two sides of the SAME tradition; the Sith are literally Jedi Heretics) Force Traditions being out there in the galaxy, and this was a good chance to build on that which I felt they didnt do enough with, and hope they WILL do more with in future(I especially like the ideas of force-attuned poison? Like what if they could “poison” or “curse” people THROUGH the Force? That would be sweet as hell :3).

Another improvement is in the action in this season. It’s not at a level I’d call “thrilling” or anything, but it feels much less like stiff, rote, weightless FLUFF than it has in the two previous seasons. Frankly I think a lot of this is just their engine and how ppls joints just sort of SNAP into position during fights, and also the excessive acrobatics of the prequel-style, both of which makes it feel unnatural, predetermined, and performative rather than deadly and vital(like excessively practiced and robotically acted choreography, basically). But, having said that, you see ppl make mistakes, you see consequences FOR those mistakes, and thus there is SOME sense of danger and weight to it that makes it more compelling than it has been in the past, and this should be praised uwu

And I like that the Politics are a lot clearer and more forefronted in this season than previously! While the Corruption Arc on Mandalore did feel rather hollow, rushed, and After-School-Specially(and, I DEEPLY resent its peddling of offensive and baseless anti-Ophidian tropes >:( ), it’s core message abt the dangers of profiteering and the corrupting influence of profit-seeking(ie Capitalism) on politics and society is a good one and clearly delivered. The Amidala episodes in this season Knock it out of the park consistently, and especially on their messaging ^v^ ^v^ Also, I DIDNT MIND the very fillery C3PO and R2 ep! Yes: it was essentially a waste of an episode since Bane was working for the Hutts to spring Ziro in s1′s Hostage Crisis & there’s basically NO WAY they wouldnt have been able to provide him with a set of plans for the Senate building(and the prison, for that matter), but WHATEVER: it was Kind Of Fun and I like seeing those two be an old bickering married couple and C3PO freak out over getting praised; IT WAS FINE!

So, while there werent any standout ep that I REALLY ENJOYED like Trespass in s1 and R2 Come Home in s2, and I very much didn’t like the 1st half of the season, I think I do have to concede that s3 is An Improvement, overall. I’m actually a bit excited over moving on to s4, given the upward trajectory this season ends on quality-wise owo

Oh: and the Ahsoka redesign? Neat uwu uwu(if untentionally Hilarious since they havent been changing her model over time so she just... grows three feet and bulks out in, like, a single night, presumably. Togruta Puberty must be HELL :p :p :p)

[twyt-podcast-blog]

—[ twt ;@_sailortea ] lori with the 🍵

so episode 5 is starting...fingers crossed.

minho’s team is first. okay. let’s get it. royal court. i like the name.

they really going to bring up his idol past whenever they can. idk how i feel bout this

MINHO IS MORE THAN AN EX-CONVEX MEMBER. thank you for listening to my TED talk.

heejin is so adorbs. these glasses XD

yes. i still use XD. what about it?

jieqiong is very beautiful.

kyungsoo is one of the top vocalist if i recall right?

ugly truth. i see what they did there. smart.

“it’s about to get funky” “triple threat” me likey.

i bet i’m not the first one to say that hansol looks like baby leo.

kenta and hansol being shy around jungeun. bless their pure souls lol.

okay, jinyoung, why you out there giving people disapproving stares lmao <3

papa kenta and childniel~ aw~

JINJINIEL!

park jinyoung, my pick <3 fingers crossed

that disney prince edit. jinyoung for prince eric /o/~ i approve this message

honestly tho. jinyoung has this actor quality to him. a whole visual.

jinyoung’s voice.

oh, daniel. I C U 2. yeah, you’re not a child. O.O

oh the tension between daniel and jinyoung...

i do agree a bit with minho about the teamwork, but i still love them

this episode is a lot more tensed than the previous ones.

i mean...i know it’s a competition.

then again, it’s freaking mnet. they love to hype up drama and give shady edits.

yugyeom, joohyuk and jackson. i like this trio too.

NAKYUNG! my girl o/ let’s get it. show ‘em that you are amazing.

still annoyed by what the judges said about her.

look she got chemistry with her teammates.

chaeryeong is awesome too

man, woojin. the talent. okay, boy.

; n ; eardrums injury. i hope he can continue his journey

cue evil editing.

i understand that nakyung mentioned competitivity among peers, mnet tone it down. you don’t need all the dramatic effects.

i fear for suwoong and people potentially hating on him. 

they barely gave him any screentime to give his side. wow.

chaeryeong. unbothered queen. i can see the memes coming.

nakyung, chaeryeon & woojin for potentially top 3?

time for golden trio. hope they let them share their piece.

bloody freaking hell mnet.

i hate freaking snakes.

y’all gonna edit the fight like that.

you really don’t care if this will lead to hate comments and stuff.

i’m pissed.

oh wow...i got mixed feelings. still mnet didn’t have to air that drama.

y’know when they debut, people are gonna go back and bring this up, right?

at least their performance was great.

the thing is that even if you add the “we talk things over” some people won’t even care.

fml. anyways, it’s above me now.

i guessed 2/3 of the top 3. congrats /o/~

omg.

omg no.

i hate this bs. that’s why i didn’t want to go through freaking watching the mgas.

i’d like to know why jinyoung was eliminated. again.

damn, the other two were good too tho.

fml. i hate survival shows. you get attached to people. you get invested. than, your heart is ripped apart, trampled over and nuked. i’ll still follow where you go park jinyoung.

so, who do i have left?

top picks: minho, nakyung, woojin, chaeryeong, kyungsoo, jackson.

holy shit

HOLY GUACAMOLE IT’S CONVEX’S 2JIN /o/ <3 so they are going to be mentors?

hojung from mga winner to mga mentor. THE GLOW-UP.

ah, sunmi looks like a goddess.

btw hyun bin. so future and*roma, when are they debuting? we’re still waiting btw. B|

honestly their reason is probably “due to the mgas” but it doesn’t add up. eclipse been promoting.

anyways, it’s above me now.

K.ARMA!  K.ARMA! sana is a beauty. doyeon’s a goddess. jinsoul is a whole visual too.

eclipse’s haseul and minji. very good choice ngl. 

i love how they bring out star trainees, but, then, it will take millions of years before they debut. sad.

btw, katie lee usually looks stunning, but today’s clothes...choices.

they brought ella and cheri. i approve. 

baek jinyoung should fire whoever let her go out like this. that makeup. sweetie no.

only one girl in sphere? okay. choices. lol.

i would have made a few changes. idk. maybe the coaches know more than i do. just that...hm...choices.

anyways. episode 6 is in days. mnet’s editing sucks. i hope everyone who is eliminated not abandon their dreams. like y’all better not apply for a 8-5 job.

i can’t wait.

oh, and none of my biases are coaches. choices. lmao.

[lgbtqforeverything]

rewatching stargirl: summer school episode 4

- oooh a prison!!

- artemis!! babygirl!

- great transitions

- god the crocks are good parents

- damn this guard is an asshole

- beth’s house is great

- beth sweetheart you are trying so hard and i love you

- yep that’s weird

- wow this is a tense kitchen 😬

- oh damn they’re telling her??

- oh pat is lying

- ‘i won’t rush in’ court you are a fucking jock of course you’re going to you liar

- oooh cindy backstory/angst

- this is a cool as fuck outfit btw

- fuck this foster mom

- poor artemis :(

- mike!

- oh shit this is hilarious

- yolanda and artemis would be friends >:(

- court you done fucked up

- ok so artemis definitely has advanced strength

- UGH THAT’S THE ASSHOLE TEACHER

- oh damn wait redemption and future support figure for rick??? we love to see it

- isaac :(

- i don’t like the bows on cindy’s shirt

- ‘OLD FRIENDS’ ONCE AGAIN IT IS GAY

- crusher comes back to town and has two goals: support his daughter and be gay with pat

- oh i love this i hope this is the energy of season 3

- crusher comes back and instantly starts talking about pat’s body i can not make this shit up y’all

- barbara vs paula call that milf on milf violence

- accidental bonding we love to see it

- yolanda looks cute as all heck in that diner outfit

- rick smiling at yolanda’s joke i love them your honor

- rick slouches so bad

- rick baby no one believes you about the dog

- hournite is so freaking cute

- cindy he plays the tuba ya idiot

- the title of this store isn’t ominous at all

- lmao i love that they talk through the shelves

- icicle and brainwave were in gay love court

- wow i can’t believe the shade/mcnider gayness started in episode 4

- ‘i’m bored’ LIAR ITS BECAUSE YOU LOVED YOUR SISTER AND YOURE GAY

- dude she’s not going to listen to you

- wow this is so not staying quiet

- cindy why the fuck did you full on change outfits

- UH OH

- ooooooh fuck this is bad

- god they are good parents

- yeah pat is full on lying to you court

- damn two in one day cindy is making MOVES

- well this is not going to turn out well

- court you really shouldn’t trust everything anyone says

- oh of course beth makes her bed

- MCNIDER MENTIONED THE SHADE ITS GAY

[davewakeman]

Talking Tickets: 21 February 2020--MLB! NBA! NHL! And More!

Hey everybody! 

How’s your week? Let me know!

If you haven’t had a chance to fill out my short survey yet, I’d appreciate it if you’d take 3-4 minutes to share your thoughts and ideas so that I can make sure this newsletter and the podcast continue to deliver value to y’all.

Anytime you want to say hello or share something with me, you can always reply to this email…you definitely will get a response from a live human.

To the tickets!

————————————————————————————————————

1. MLB continues to struggle to put the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal in the rearview mirror:

My frustration with baseball is that they just are always on the back foot to use a soccer term.

This week really highlighted the challenge that is going to have for the game to ever right its ship.

I know they report that they are making more money than ever, but from an attendance standpoint, reporting tickets distributed while Twitter is showing you stadiums sitting there with 3,000-5,000 fans a lot of nights isn’t a great look.

Compare MLB’s reaction to the Astros scandal with the way that Man City’sbreach of Financial Fair Play in Europe is being handled and you see a leadership gap, which hasn’t been helped by the Rob Manfred trying to throw the blame everywhere but his office.

From a marketing standpoint, a tough situation, selling baseball in a crowded market, has gotten more difficult.

I’ll type up some more thoughts about this on my blog, but here are a few actionable things:

1. Stop digging. Rob Manfred’s PR team shouldn’t keep running him out there if he is just saying the same things. If you find yourself in a PR crisis, please don’t just start saying crazy things.

2. Step back and focus on how you are going to move forward. Just speaking about the scandal in the past tense isn’t very effective. You have to have a clear plan for moving forward.

In any organization, change begins by sharing a compelling vision for the future. This is obviously a challenge for MLB and all the teams, not just the ones directly implicated in the scandal. The teams need some leadership and a vision for how this ends and how the game gets back on the front foot, their partners and sponsors need this, and their fans and customers deserve it.

3. I’ve worked with teams that have won the World Series and one of the coolest things from my teenage years was making friends with a member of the World Series winning Big Red Machine teams and going over to my friend’s house to see his replica trophies.

Don’t slag on your trophies, ever. Those trophies represent much of the power and emotional connection your fans have to your sport and if you are crapping on that, why are people supposed to even care?

2. The NBA is seeing some financial challenges from their dust-up with China:

I’ve had the flu this week and I haven’t had the voice to record the intro to a new, updated episode with Greg Turner about doing business in China, but if you can make out anything from the first episode, it would be how this was to be expected. (Technical difficulties due to the firewall in China’s internets caused the first episode to be a big disjointed.)

It seems like the NBA is reporting taking about a 4% hit on revenue this year due to standing up for their beliefs in dealing with China.

In a world where brands are all shouting about how “cause marketing” is so important, real cause marketing means you put your bottom line on the line. The NBA did that, on purpose or not.

To me, the more problematic situation that the NBA is facing right now is a ratings slump at the local level with the Warriors falling 66% and the average team down 13%. Which mirror a slump in the NBA’s ratings this year despite a jump in viewership for this year’s All-Star Game.

Right now, we see the NFL rushing to finish up a new labor deal so that they can negotiate their next round of TV deals while extreme premiums are still likely to be had.

My concern is that losing ratings for a season isn’t going to harm the NBA too much, but if the trend of NBA viewing continues to lag, the issues in China become a multi-year challenge, and maybe you have some more injuries, retirements, or other on-court issues…the revenue becomes challenged. And, that trickles down to raising ticket prices, concessions, and merchandise to levels that to higher levels than they are now.

I mean, you’re already seeing in New Orleans with Zion.

As we’ve seen since the online shopping has become so prominent, we have trained consumers to wait and shop for deals. We’ve also seen an entire generation of marketers and business folks that have become almost blindly committed to managing by spreadsheet while consumer spending on experiences has increased dramatically.

TV viewership is a fickle beast. Live by the sword, die by the sword…I guess.

The real focus here has to be on creating communities of fans around teams, communities, stories, and experiences. These can absolutely happen online and offline.

P.S. The NHL is having hiccups as well. This can be even more problematic because the NHL probably would benefit from more television exposure.

3. Rage Against The Machine is raising money for charity and taking on the secondary market: 

I’m going to guess that the Rage Against The Machine tour is going to be interesting. It is their first tour in a decade. It is an election year. It seems like a perfect storm for them, yeah?

This idea that Rage is going to thwart the secondary market would seem consistent with their ethos. Raising money for charities also seems on brand.

Where the big challenge comes in, is whether or not the charity pricing aspect was explained clearly at the start.

Pearl Jam does a similar thing with their charity tickets that support their Vitalogy Foundation. They handle it slightly differently, which I think helps with the messaging and the fan blowback.

To me, this is just a situation where if you have a fan base and you can sell the tickets directly with no issues at all, sell. But today’s consumer also has a higher expectation of transparency…so that if you are going to institute a charity program like Rage to fight the secondary market, just share that at the start.

BTW, where did Tom Morello get his “85% of the secondary market” comment anyway?

And, Don Vaccaro and TicketNetwork have committed to donating all their service fees from the first 3 shows in March to National Action Network, the civil-rights organization founded by the Reverend Al Sharpton.

4. Congress is going to continue to investigate the world of tickets: 

Just as I trying to close out this week’s newsletter, this news came down the pipe. So, on February 26th, 2020, Congress is going to hold a hearing on tickets.

This comes on the heels of a letter being released that Pearl Jam sent to Representative Frank Pallone Jr on Wednesday saying that the BOSS act will hurt consumers and pointing to transferability and transparency of the number of tickets being on sale would be bad for consumers.

After the release of Pearl Jam’s letter, Bill Pascrell sent out a release of his own rejecting Pearl Jam’s feedback on the BOSS act.

This continued investigation of the ticket business is a global trend. Last week, I talked about the CMA in the UK halting the Viagogo & StubHub merger due to their concerns, even as the US government approved the deal despite these objections.

And, this week, news out of Australia shows that people are rallying around an Information Standard in regards to the secondary market.

Along with the UK government stating they will investigate the illegal resale of football tickets in the UK after a report in the Guardian uncovered the ins and outs of massive football ticket resale.

As for how do you approach this story:

* Pay attention to what comes out of next week’s hearing. I stated at the time of the workshop in June of 2019 that I felt like this would be an issue that would hang over the industry through the election because it is easy for both sides to beat down on ticket sellers, technology companies, resellers, and everyone involved in the industry directly or indirectly. Fun for the whole family.

* I’d also pay attention to what gets defined as “consumer” friendly. I’m on the side of giving Pearl Jam the benefit of the doubt. They’ve worked pretty hard and taken steps that definitely haven’t been in their own best interests to do what was right for their fans, but I’m also conscious of unintended consequences.

5. Red Bull shows how to grow a team from the ground up: 

RB Leipzig beat Spurs 1-0 on Wednesday! (Just adding to the suffering of having the flu. You think Dele was mad…try watching a poor showing while barely keeping your eyes open and feeling like reheated death!)

But this story is really great in the context of the continuing story of the Astros scandal in the States, Man City in Europe, and Thursday’s news of the arrest of PSG’s president for bribery.

Closer to home for me, it highlights what is possible with vision as the Mets are for sale and the sale has started to have its own amount of drama…and, as the Knicks continue to struggle at MSG.

3 things here:

1. Vision is so important. Melbourne FC just released a plan this week for their fans. It was called out on Australian radio, but without a plan and a vision…you don’t ever reach your potential.

2. Winning matters, but community is powerful. I’ve given this speech on 3 continents now…but you can’t just sell winning, you need to build a community. Leipzig is showing that now and we can see in a lot of places that there is a thing like winning fatigue. Or, in the case of the Warriors, a new arena and a lot of winning aren’t going to fix a bad season in every case.

3. Marketing matters: Red Bull’s involvement in sports and the way they have managed their teams shows that they understand the value of marketing and they understand that great brands, teams, and organizations aren’t built in a day.

While their teams haven’t been successful 100% of the time, they have been consistent and have continued to focus on their vision, their values, and their message over and over. That’s something we can all learn from. —————————————————————————————————————-

What am I up to this week?

I’ve got a couple of webinars coming up this week starting with Wednesday’s visit of my ebook created in partnership with Booking Protect: What Matters In Ticketing Now.  Sign up for the webinar and learn ideas, trends, and actions that you can take to put these insights to work for your business. 

On Thursday, I’m turning my eye to sales by putting together: The Language of the Sale–10 Ways To Use Language More Effectively In Your Sales Process. This is built on the last 6-9 months of sales training I’ve done with teams around the world and this one will be fast and actionable for your team as soon as you get through with the webinar.

Check out the podcast archives: new episodes coming this week now that my voice is coming back. If you have suggestions for guests and the podcast, fill out the survey at the top of the page. 

Please follow and like us:

Talking Tickets: 21 February 2020–MLB! NBA! NHL! And More! was originally published on Wakeman Consulting Group

[heavensentgohansrage]

Recap and Notes: Heracles!Stiles Ch. 1

find the chapter here

So, wow, I actually posted it xD Originally I’ve always planned to start posting the chapters once I finish the whole fic (as of the time I’m writing this I have three left, even less considering that I have some of their parts already written and planned out, so don’t worry!), and that’s it’s anyway going to be before the show ends.

Three years later and I didn’t mange to do it as I really wanted- with writing blocks, other fandoms and life in general interrupting me a lot, and I really wish I could blame it on the huge amount of research I’ve done.

But yeah, now it’s here and there’s no way back (even though I want to scream thinking about it T-T) and hopefully I’ll be done with the three left soon enough- and surely before I finish editing the rest of the chapters.

And the editing process (and when I say editing, keep in mind that I’m not a native English speaker, and it’s only done with the best of my abilities so it’ll at least being able to be understood even when grammar isn’t right; can someone tell me again why did I choose to write in past tense??) is a much bigger project than what I anticipated- I had to stay up two whole nights just to be done with this chapter, which is currently the shortest of all the chapters (though I really wish I could keep them all around 8k).

So, without further ado, let’s start with some background of the fic itself:

After getting into the Sterek fandom in 2014 (I’ve watched the show since the fisrt season but was not full on shipper like today), I found this post while browsing through the 2014′s Sterek Week tag. It really caught my attention above any other post I’ve seen about them for some reason (because not only the characters really fit their roles, but I love the Greek myth in general, even more so after reading the Percy Jackson series; I’d include references to it, but decided against it for the sake of my friend, who’s the biggest fan of the series), and after daydreaming about it for a few days- the idea of writing it according to the original Greek legend popped into my head, and I decided to try it out (btw, I was embarrassingly surprised to find out how different it was from the film, along with the fact that the Roman name is more famous than the original one).

As I was taking it more and more seriously (at my first few months in the fandom I was so excited about the unending amount of posts about them that I spent my free time basically stalking many old posts in random blogs xD), around 2015, I translated what I’ve written to English and finished the chapter. As I started reading about the legend in general, I found out these interesting points that drove me more than anything to write the fic, because now I had answers to why I was so instinctively drawn to this AU, why it felt so right (can also be read as: the amount of times I fangirled because of my own stupid AU >< ) :

1. His canon real name, Mieczysław, means “fame by swords”- with name Heracles meaning “fame by Hera” (and now I’m really glad I’d waited until this name was revealed, instead of only using Alcaeüs, which supposedly means “strength”, as his lone first name like I’d planned). As we know Stiles, though, neither of them is needed in order for him to reach glory :P

2. According to the original legend, Heracles actually has an average size body, and isn’t as well-built as the Romans fantasize him to be and as we imagine him to be today.

3. Heracles’ preferred weapon was a club, which is as close as it can get to  Stiles’ modern bat lol.

4. Like Stiles, some of Heracles’ most known features were being vengeful and preferring to kill anyone who stood in his way (though Stiles only suggests it) but also struggling a lot with guilt. He used his cunning skills in some of his labours, too.

5. In this interview with Jeff Davis, he stated that not only the show is inspired by Greek mythology, but Stiles itself is inspired about non other than another Greek Hero, Perseus (Heracles’ ancestor): “...He needed to be Perseus, given a sword and shield by the Gods, but he has to rely on his own wits when he faces the monster, in the same way Perseus chased Medusa and used his own wits to show her own reflection and turn her to stone. That is Stiles. You give him mountain ash, he can spread a circle around it, but he has to rely on his own wits as well.”

* mind you, I’d still write the thing even without Jeff proving that the legend fits Stiles and the Teen Wolf universe to perfectly, but as a real Sterek fan I take whatever little good he does leave to us and make the best out of it. In the end I didn’t even write him as Perseus, because it was Heracles’ legend that inspired me in the first place, and I preferred to give Stiles to go through the most legendary journey of them all (which is also why I didn’t go with the “legend repeating itself” trope). I did use the comparison in some instances in the fic, though, as the most known feature of both of them is cunning. 

But when we leave the plot aside and focus on the ship that really was the cause of it all (and fair warning: THIS FIC IS AS SLOW AS A SLOW BUILT CAN BE)- I’m a sucker for stories where a character’s mentally doesn’t for with the level of his power, and with that I could write the best story I could give to Stiles and Derek.

So with that’s done, let’s get to the chapter itself. ^^”

Myth and Historical Overview

Alcaeüs is the name Heracles was born with, before it was changed later on in his life to Heracles- though no one knows at which point it happened. A less common name that is associated with him is Alcides.

The story about Stiles lifting the car doesn’t represent anything in the legend of Heracles, who, unlike Stiles, was always aware of Zeus being his Father.

General Recap

Additional car scene to the Magic Bullet episode! :D This is the first scene I’ve written to the story, though I translated it after originally scrabbling it to myself during my time off at the office in Hebrew, my native language, before translating it later when I got it on my computer: 1 2 (HOW COULD I THOUGH, IT’S NOW SO WEIRD TO ME TO READ IT LIKE THIS XD also, there isn’t a good translation in Hebrew to the word “Dude”).

Poor Derek, though- everything crushes around him and he’s about to die, but he still had the patience to let Stiles take his time while telling about the tough parts T-T 

So yeah, in this universe Stiles finds out that Deaton knows stuff, but still prefers to treat Scott’s condition after the bite on his own at the beginning.

I find that scene with Scott to be adorable, and presenting what I wish their relationship will always be like in the canon, but don’t get your hopes up for something similar to that to happen again. I may write the story from Stiles’ POV, who is led by his incredible loyalty, but I don’t like Scott or his friendship with Stiles in canon, so prepare for subtle criticism at future parts.

The “incident” will be explained further in the story.

Fun Facts

The idea for the aura that Stiles came from S3B, where Derek sees Kira’s. It doesn’t have a shape like her for Derek to know what Stiles is, though.

Reading the first draft, apparently I planned for Stiles to know he is connected to the Greek Deities somehow- probably scene Heracles has always known about it according to the legend. I’m glad I changed that, though, because if Stiles knew enough to be aware of that- he’d figured out already about being a Demigod, and it could ruin... the drama, I guess? “XD

And that’s all for this time, since I don’t really have anything from the legend or history fact being used in that one. I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter and that you will with the rest too! ^^

And if you want to ask anything, feel free to send me!

[nightqueendany]

Is Jon Really A Prisoner On Dragonstone?

Okay, this seems to be a sticking point to a certain part of the fandom so I’m going to attempt to address it as well as I can.

Is Jon a prisoner on Dragonstone or not?

Evidence for Jon being a prisoner:

Jon and co are asked to hand over their weapons upon arriving at Dragonstone.

Jon asks Daenerys “am I your prisoner” and she replies “Not yet,” hinting that he may become one in the future if she so decides.

Tyrion and Jon stand together on the cliffs when Tyrion is coming to “brood about the Greyjoy attack” and Jon literally tells Tyrion “I’m a prisoner on this island.”

Daenerys tells Davos and Jon “you will stay” when Tyrion and Varys give her the news of the sack of Highgarden and Olenna’s death.

During the wight hunt council meeting, Daenerys tells Jon “I haven’t given you permission to leave.”

Jon and co are asked to hand over their weapons upon arriving at Dragonstone. Jon is an unknown foreign leader. Daenerys has never met him before and the only advisor she has at her side who has met Jon - Tyrion - knew him years and years ago. Jon has since become a member of the Night’s Watch, become Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, and become King in the North. Knowing those three things, it would be hard for anybody to determine Jon’s character this late in the game, even for someone like Tyrion. Melisandre urges Daenerys to summon Jon and Tyrion says he liked (past tense) Jon. But Dany still can’t be too sure. As Jon and Tyrion and co walk up the steps to the castle, Drogon of course flies overhead so it’s clear Daenerys wouldn’t have been in too much danger had she allowed Jon to keep his weapons and had the mind to harm her. But still, he’s in a foreign embassy basically. Of course it’s expected he come to court unarmed. It would just be stupid of Dany to allow him and Davos to keep their weapons otherwise. The Targaryens and Starks have bad blood between them because of what Aerys did to Rickard and Brandon Stark. For all Daenerys knows, Jon’s only purpose for answering Tyrion’s summons is to seek revenge for his family. While her bloodriders would likely stop Jon before he could get to her, she is obligated to protect them too as they are her men - she doesn’t want to risk losing them in a sword-fight with Jon. So it’s requested that Jon and co remove their weapons in order to ensure the safety of all those on Dragonstone. It doesn’t spell out “prisoner”.

2) Jon asks Daenerys “am I your prisoner” and she replies “Not yet.” The first meeting between Jon and Dany does not go the way either of them would have liked for it to go and of course it ends abruptly because Varys has news of the Greyjoy attack. During this meeting, we have to remember three things a) Daenerys is the one who asked Jon to come to Dragonstone for the purpose of bending the knee to her - Tyrion might not have written that in his letter to Jon but it was Daenerys’s intentions; also Tyrion’s letter did say “join us.” - What else could Jon have implied by that except that Daenerys wanted him to bend the knee? b) Jon accepted Daenerys’s summons - so she’s expecting him to bend the knee and pledge to her when he arrives; otherwise, in her eyes, why else would he come? And c) Jon has come to Dragonstone seeking aid while offering nothing in return. 

***Jon might say “I need your help and you need mine.” But let’s seriously consider this a moment. Say Daenerys never calls for Jon to come to Dragonstone. Jon never goes. Daenerys carries out her war with Cersei and inevitably wins one way or another. Then somehow, magically (because he wouldn’t have a dragon at that point) the Night King breaks through The Wall - via the Horn of Joramun or something. Daenerys gets word of this somehow. She still wouldn’t need Jon to defeat the Night King. She has armies just as large as that of the Night King and (in this scenario) three dragons. She’d be just fine without the help of the Northmen. The only reason Jon says “you need [my help]” is because Dany hasn’t been told about the army of the dead yet. So Jon’s only purpose here in this season is to be the messenger. He’s there to tell Daenerys of this threat near a particular part of the country she intends to rule one day. That’s it. Again, Dany has dragons and armies. She doesn’t need help defeating any enemies should she come across them. It’s Jon who needs Daenerys, her armies and her dragons, not Daenerys needing Jon.*** 

So with all that in mind, because their argument gets particularly heated that first meeting, both feel cheated of something they believed they deserved. Daenerys feels cheated of Jon’s loyalty. Jon feels cheated of Daenerys’s aid. In this moment, tension is high, emotions running wild. Jon feels dismissed by Dany - though she has good reason to dismiss him as she’s got other, more important issues to worry about than arguing with him - and of course, something we really need to remember here, Jon doesn’t speak Dothraki. When Daenerys orders her men to show Jon and Davos to their rooms, Jon has no idea what she’s saying. Jon asking “am I your prisoner?” is essentially him clarifying this. What did she tell her men? Are they going to guard his door and prevent him from meeting with his fellow northmen that travelled with them but weren’t present in the throne room? He has no idea. And because he’s pissed off, he asks in a snippy, sarcastic way. “Am I your prisoner?” Dany, also being upset, her mind already elsewhere on the problem of the Greyjoys, snips back at him “Not yet.” 

BTW what Daenerys does tell her men in Dothraki: Escort these men to their rooms. Treat them well, but keep an eye on them. 

Keep an eye on them. That’s all. And of course she wants her men to keep an eye on them. Again, she doesn’t know Jon. He could still be plotting to kill her for all she knows. So she wants them watched over. They’re not barred to their rooms. They’re not being prevented from speaking to each other or their fellow Northmen. They’re just being monitored. Again, this doesn’t spell out “prisoner.”

3) Jon literally tells Tyrion “I’m a prisoner on this island.” Let’s look at the circumstances under which this is said: 

a) Jon is standing out on a cliff on Dragonstone alone. He has no escort or Dothraki men flanking him. He’s by himself. Daenerys’ men are no longer keeping an eye on Jon. 

b) Jon has his cloak on. Why does this matter? Because he didn’t arrive with it on. So at some point, he has been allowed to go to his ship to unload his belongings. So when Jon tells Tyrion “you took my ship” and Tyrion replies “I wouldn’t say we took your ship,” it seems Tyrion is closer to the truth of what really happened than Jon. Where else would Dany’s men take Jon’s ship to? We see it anchored out in the bay when Jon and Davos arrive so the only other place for the ship to be is at the docks (there are docks on Dragonstone but we never see them in the show - book only) - where the ship would need to be in order for Jon and co to unload it. But let’s give Jon the benefit of the doubt and say at least his ship is likely being watched over by Daenerys’ men so Jon and co cannot leave. Which brings me to point 

c) Tyrion gives Jon his speech about expecting too much from Daenerys and mentions their “single meeting”. Jon and Daenerys have been face to face only once and we saw the entire encounter - the opening scene of the episode. They haven’t seen each other since, Daenerys being too busy dealing with the aftermath of the Greyjoy attack to make time for Jon. 

So the question is: how long has Jon been on Dragonstone when he talks to Tyrion? —And just casually going to slip in here it’s a good thing Jon did stay on Dragonstone long enough for Tyrion to ask if there was anything he could do to help Jon because at that point, Jon had forgotten all about the dragonglass! — In the cliff scene with Jon and Tyrion, Tyrion is wearing a different outfit than he had when Jon first arrived so it’s definitely implied it’s a different day. Tyrion’s outfit stays the same when he talks to Dany about the dragonglass and Dany’s hair and outfit stay the same from this scene to the scene when she talks to Jon on the steps. So those three scenes we at least know happen on the same day. AND, when Tyrion and Daenerys are talking, Dany is still incredibly preoccupied with the Greyjoy attack. “We just lost two of our allies.” 

ALSO, the scenes cut between the Dragonstone scenes are the King’s Landing scenes - Euron delivering the Sand Snakes to Cersei, Cersei killing Tyene, Cersei blowing Jaime, and Jaime and Cersei waking up in bed together the next day. 

So, with only one day passing in King’s Landing, with Jon forgetting about the dragonglass, and with Dany still very preoccupied with the Greyjoy attack (and also still sore about her meeting with Jon - as evidenced by her tone when saying And what does the King in the North want with dragonglass?) I think it’s safe to assume, Jon’s private meetings with Tyrion and Dany were the day after he arrived. 

If Jon had been on Dragonstone for any longer, he most definitely would have remembered the dragonglass and would have attempted to get word to Daenerys about it. Does anyone really believe Jon would go for a week or more, being allowed to talk to Davos and his crew, and just up and forget the entire reason why he wanted to come to Dragonstone in the first place - to secure the glass? Also, if he had been on Dragonstone any longer, Daenerys would have been able to make time to meet with him again. But none of that happened, implying Jon was not there for very long at all. 

ALSO Jon has been a prisoner before, remember? He tells Jorah this in 7x06 “I was a prisoner of the wildlings.” And what did the wildlings do to Jon? He was tied up, constantly monitored, and occasionally hit in the head with his own sword just for the fun of it, not to mentioned periodically threatened. This is vastly different from how he is treated on Dragonstone. 

AND remember, Jon is traveling with the best smuggler in the Seven Kingdoms, Davos Seaworth. If Jon and Davos really felt like they were being held captive, they could have figured out a way to get away. Davos helped Gendry escape the island. He used to live there and serve Stannis. Davos likely knows the island better than anyone on it. So why didn’t we get a scene with Jon and Davos talking about escaping or feeling like prisoners? 

AND why did we only get the one scene (up to that point) of Jon asking to leave? Again, we know from Tyrion and Jon’s conversation that Jon and Daenerys had only met the one time. And when Jon is talking with Tyrion, he says “I’d like to leave.” If he truly was a prisoner, we would have gotten a scene before this with Jon saying he’d like to leave, and being denied. But we never got such a scene. So I think it’s safe to say, his conversation with Tyrion is the first time he’s asked to leave the island. Tyrion continues prompting him until Jon finally remembers why he is there in the first place - the dragonglass. Dragonglass which Daenerys grants Jon to mine. Would a captor really allow their captive to mine resources for the captive’s personal use? No. So can we really say Jon is a “prisoner” on Dragonstone when he has only been on the island for a day, a few days at max, hasn’t yet formally asked to leave, has been given free range of the island, and has even been given permission to mine resources from the island? No. Still doesn’t spell out “prisoner.”

4) Daenerys tells Davos and Jon “you will stay” when Tyrion and Varys give her the news of the sack of Highgarden and Olenna’s death. Pretty quick one. Again, Jon is her guest on Dragonstone. It’s customary for guests to need permission to leave when in presence of royalty. Daenerys simply does not give it. It does not mean she’s keeping Jon and Davos prisoner. She just showed she trusted Jon enough to go into a dimly lit cave with Jon alone, with neither her bodyguards nor her advisors. And of course, Daenerys had reason for making Jon and Davos stay. She wanted Jon’s advice. Again, does not spell out “prisoner.”

5) During the wight hunt council meeting, Daenerys tells Jon “I haven’t given you permission to leave.” Another quick one. In this scene, Daenerys obviously does not want Jon to go. The script notes even say their little spat has the connotations of a woman trying to keep her man from harm. So Daenerys forgets herself and tries to get Jon to stay by any means necessary. That aside though, when Jon tells her “With respect, your grace, I don’t need your permission. I am a king” Daenerys does argue with him. He gives his speech about trusting in a stranger, blah blah blah. And Daenerys nods in agreement. When Jon leaves, he’s got Longclaw at his hip again. Daenerys even gives them a ship to go up to Eastwatch on.

Key ideas to take away from this: when Jon tells Daenerys he’s leaving, Daenerys allows it/doesn’t question or challenge it. Would that really be the case if Jon were, indeed, her prisoner? No.

[twdmusicboxmystery]

2017 Re-Watch: 6x15 - East

So of course we start with Carol in this episode, who has just left Alexandria. I'll talk about Beth parallels here in a minute, but it's important to know that the end of S6 was very Carol-heavy. 

Most of what I'll go over here is to show how they foreshadowed coming arcs. You can see it clearly in hindsight, even if we couldn't while watching the first time. There isn't tons of Beth stuff in these final episodes. A few things, which I'll point out, but not tons. These were really about finishing up this arc and moving into the Negan arc.

First, we have Carol getting ready to leave. I noted the matches she took with her. 

Then Tobin comes in and starts talking about Denise. This is yet another part where Carol is obviously relating what he's saying about Denise to herself. Everything he says could be applied to Carol. He says that when Pete (the abuser, btw) was alive, Denise was really quiet and stayed fairly hidden. But after Pete died, she stepped up and began a brave, contributing member of the group. Sounds like Carol to me.

We can also clearly see the turning over of the arcs here. As I said HERE about the theme music, we usually have sunsets at the end arcs and of course the theme music doesn't play. So in this episode, they make it really obvious. We see several sunsets while they play Johnny Cash's "It's all Over."

The arc doesn't completely end until Negan shows up in 6x16, but we're seeing that this arc is coming to a close through the song and the sunsets it keeps showing.

Not to mention, the characters they focus on during this part is very foreshadowing. We do see Carol, who's leaving, and Daryl, who's pissed about Denise and thinking of going after Dwight. Plus we see Carl, looking at one of the Savior's guns that has the bat carved into the handle. But by far the heaviest focus during the part where they play the "It's All Over" song is on Glaggie (shower scene) 

and Sashraham.

See how this is a foreshadow? These are the characters that will have the biggest changes going forward. Carol is leaving Alexandria and TF and will eventually end up at the kingdom. Daryl leaving leads not only to Glenn's death but also to his imprisonment at the Sanctuary. And of course Sasha and Abraham die soon after. It's really quite haunting to listen to the Johnny Cash song while it shows Glaggie and Sashraham, knowing one half of both these couples are about to die.

Notice how we don’t see Rick and Michonne while the song plays, or Aaron, Eugene, Father Gabriel. What they show here is a major foreshadow.

Another thing I thought of while re-watching this episode: they like to make it look like one person will die, but it tends to be that person's partner instead. Not always romantic partner, but just the "other one." Let me explain.

When Glenn, Rosita and Michonne go after Daryl, we see Maggie growing smaller in the side mirror of the Phoenix van as they leave her behind in Alexandria. 

That SEEMS like a death omen for her. Yet it's Glenn that dies. And we can see how this is relevant. It's the last time she'll see Glenn before his death scene.

Similarly, when Abraham and Eugene hug, it really seems like Eugene might die. Not just because of Abraham, but because he gave Rick the recipe for bullets and pretty much says goodbye to everyone. Now, I never really thought it was Eugene. I felt like they were trying too hard to make us think it was him. But between the two, it was Abe, not him, that died. The other person. The "other character" in the Abe/Eugene hug. See what I mean?

You could even argue that they kind of did this with Bethyl. LOTS of people thought Daryl laying in the coffin in Alone was a foreshadow of his impending death. I do think it foreshadowed his emotional death when he lost Beth, but between the two of them, it was here that "died," not him.

We'll have to remember that for the future.

Abraham says the line about how Glenn, Michonne, and Rosita went to "shut that shit down." He means they're gonna bring Daryl back. But obviously this foreshadowed this even ending in Negan's appearance, as well as the fact that Abraham himself was the first victim.

Okay, so the Carol sequence, where she kills the Saviors in the truck. First, we have the blue eyes shot. We've seen it a lot, and I've tried a lot to figure out what it means. First and foremost, it happens when we're being or about to be introduced to a new community. Here, we're about to be introduced to the kingdom in the next 3 episodes. Carol is headed there.

The other thing it might mean is that the character's arc is about to include romance. Like, they're headed to a community where they'll find romance. We saw Rick's blue eyes before entering Alexandria, where he eventually hooked up with Michonne. We saw Abraham's eyes at Hilltop, which is where he decided to leave Rosita and pursue Sasha. And now Carol's before the Kingdom. Carzekiel anyone?

The one person this ISN'T true of, actually, is Beth. She didn't find romance at Grady. However, I think you could argue that her Grady arc will lead to her romance with Daryl. It's kind of a whole different discussion, but Norman and tptb like to say that Beth and Daryl's connection was deeper than romance, and if Daryl felt romantic feelings for Beth, he didn't understand them. So both characters were a little too immature to sustain a romance at that point. But Beth's Grady arc will strengthen and mature her for a more mature relationship. Anyway, you could say my theory on the blue eyes is still evolving. ;D

So we see the sequence where Carol kills the sequence before the opening credits. They do kind of an Ice Monster Prologue with it. By that, I mean they show us a tense part of the show to make us take notice and ask what's going on. Then, when the episode starts, we're at a part previous to what they showed us and we work toward that point.

So the fact that they emphasized this part with Carol by showing it twice, once before the opening credits and then again in the course of the episode, is already important. Here's a list of things we see in this sequence: blue cars with doors open, blood dripping onto the ground, 

broken glass (X) a windshield with a bullet hole in it (much like the one in 5x09), 

a flat tire, 

and a dead dude on the hood of a car. 

It took me a little longer to figure out why he's important. I think it's because he's been shot in the forehead. It happens so fast that it's hard to see, but if you take a screenshot, you can see the bullet hole on the opposite side that Beth was shot on.

My point: they emphasized things here that I think are important in Beth's arc. If you watch the part that's actually in the episode (not before the opening credits) they show all of these things two or three times in fast succession.

And while we're on the subject, after Carol is injured and staggers away, this Savior suddenly wakes up. Obviously Carol thought he was dead or she probably would have taken care of him.

So I know this savior guy is evil and has very few parallels to Beth, but the point is that this sequence results in someone who was BELIEVED TO BE DEAD and LEFT BEHIND suddenly waking up and walking away from the CAR with the OPEN DOOR he was left in.

Can I take it a step farther? First of all, this guy who was left behind and assumed dead picks up Carol's cross. Totally side-eyeing that. But I also noticed that they don't have him follow Carol. Rather, he hides and when Morgan and Rick follow Carol, he follows them. Now, it makes sense in the plot because he's obviously not a great tracker like Daryl and when he woke up, he didn't know where Carol had gone. So when Rick and Morgan say this is Carol's trail, of course he follows at that point.

But was that detail really necessarily in the plot? Even though he follows Rick and Morgan (which means they're between him and Carol) he still gets to Carol before Morgan does, and we're not shown his exact path.

I think it's all symbolic. (I'll wait while you recover from your shock. ;D) While Carol IS a member of TF by herself, but I think they specifically wanted this dude to follow Rick and Morgan for symbolic reasons. I'm sure it will make more specific sense when Beth shows up.

So let's talk a little more about Rick and Morgan. We have a visual parallel here to Eighteen Miles Out. In that episode, Rick and Shane are driving together. Rick drives and Shane is in the passenger seat. Here, Morgan drives and Rick is in the driver's seat, but the shot is similar and you even see the reflections of trees and leaves running over the windshield. Just kind of interesting.

There's a lot of East/West talk between them but I'm gonna save that for a different theory. Just wanted to mention it here.

Morgan has an interesting line about Carol: "She could still be alive, but she's not here." Hmm.

Rick and Morgan come upon a Carol walker. By that, I mean a walker that looks a lot like her (they were worried) but obviously it wasn't her. We've seen this definitively at least three times. In 4b, there was a Michonne walker, which she saw herself. In this episode, there's the Carol walker. Both times, the character turned out to be alive. In my book, that proves that Heath is still alive (we saw a Heath walker in 7x06 with Tara) and that Beth is still alive, given all the blond Beth-ish walkers we've seen.

I wondered about the farm parallels here. Morgan and Rick find the Kingdom dude looking for his horse on a farm. Now, the parallels are nearly as visually similar as the ones in 6x10 when Rick and Daryl meet Jesus. But again, the writers didn't absolute HAVE to set this on a farm. They could have put it elsewhere.

There do seem to be a lot of correlations between the Kingdom and Beth symbolism. Maybe this sequence with the Savior who was left behind on Carol's journey to the Kingdom and then the farm both point to Beth showing up first at the Kingdom? Just a thought.

I also noticed that Rick tries to shoot the Kingdom dude. Morgan stops him. It's EXACTLY what happens with Daryl, Carol and Noah in Consumed. Carol tries to shoot him and Daryl smacks her gun and stops her. So it's kind of a retelling of Consumed (S5) and of course in that episode they were searching for Beth. Just saying.

We also have Rick telling Morgan that Michonne at the protein bar. I honestly think this is just so the end of the season mirrors the beginning. The whole protein bar thing in 6x01 is important because Morgan calls it a peanut butter protein bar, and remember that peanut butter is a Beth symbol. Not to mention, if you go back and watch Clear, it really doesn't look like Michonne is eating a protein bar. She's crunching something that looks an awful lot like potato chips. So we have the peanut butter being put in as a symbol in S6.

Here, they don't say peanut butter. So I think this is just to mirror the beginning and ending of S6.

Some other details:

Maggie gives Enid pickles. (Pickle Theory). Glenn says they've been lucky. (Luck Theory). And of course Daryl is shot by Dwight at the end, which is another example of symbolism being fulfilled. 

So I guess my major point here is that we see a lot of symbolism set up and then fulfilled. As much symbolism that was set up around Beth…I just don't believe it won't be fulfilled eventually.

That's all.

Relevant Posts:

It's All Over Song Analysis

Carol/Rosary Theory 01/25/2016

Whistling Theory

6x15: Symbolism and Analysis 03/28/2016