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bamfdaddio · 3 years ago

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X-Men Unabridged: 109 (1978)

The X-Men, those plant-loving mutants that have sworn to protect a world that hates and fears them, are a cultural juggernaut with a long, tangled history. We’ve been untangling that history for a while, but sometimes, you really want a more in-depth look. Interested? Then read the (un)Abridged X-Men!

(X-Men 109) - by Chris Claremont and John Byrne

Ororo not noticing Moira casually drowning Banshee or Wolverine being punted around by some poutine-roided idiot because she’s too busy eating the Piotr-shaped eye candy is such a mood.

I wonder what my ethnic curse would be. Perhaps: ‘By Mata Hari’s bedazled bikini!’

Plot-wise, issue 109 is not that dense. Half the issue deals with the X-Men coming home from their space-adventures, the other half has Wolverine dealing with the Canadian government coming to claim their lost asset. I mean, Claremont uses three pages to tie up some loose Shi’ar ends through flashback because the last issue couldn’t fit it all in. It’s by its very definition a breather issue.

Doesn’t mean it’s not awesome.

WHERE TO START?! Why not with plant mommy Ororo?

Storm’s secondary mutation has to be that her hair always looks like a fabulous follicular cascade, even during an indoor spring shower.

Look, if I had weather powers, I’d probably be using it for mundane shit like watering my plants and ensuring nice weather at my friend’s weddings too. (Okay, maybe sometimes I’d zap dudes who tell random girls in bars to smile more.)

While Storm talks to plants and takes all her clothes off, Kurt does the other thing I do after a rough day at the office: he calls someone for some nookie.

I love that Amanda is so extra that she gives out signed photos of herself.

Kurt just looks so fucking cute here. Look at those little fangs! Yeah, Amanda, get it.

Like a lot of people to whom communication comes as easily as breathing, Piotr is defeated when faced with a blank letter. Look at that trash can: he’s tried this waaaaay too many times.

Anyway, I think “Sorry I haven’t been writing, was busy saving the universe. Weather’s lovely” has a nice ring to it.

Star Wars had been out for around half a year when this comic was published, and it’s safe to say Claremont was a huge fan. You can tell by the direction these comics are taken: the whole Shi’Ar space opera is obliquely inspired by Star Wars and Star Trek and their aesthetics. I mean, Corsair asks to be beamed up and there’s even references to a captain “Spo’ock”.

It was the end of the 70s. Everybody wanted to be a Skywalker: space was big, y’all. Nightcrawler loving the movies is not a coincidence - I wonder if Claremont was also a fan of Errol Flynn.

Anyway, we follow Kurt one more floor down, where he spooks Scott, brooding at the window. The result is an unintentionally hilarious interaction, where Scott and Kurt discuss Real Issues Like Men while Jean comes out to her parents outside.

“Mom and dad, I’m… the Phoenix.”

“Honey, we figured you might be when you introduced us to Misty Kn… Wait, what?”

To be fair, being possessed by a cosmic force for rebirth is almost the same as being gay: it imbues you with fabulous new insights, you start experimenting with your wardrobe and ever so often, you want to burn down the galaxy because some bitches in a gay club have slighted you.

But all that will come later.

Anyway, Jean’s kinda silly coming out leads to a pretty honest heart-to-heart between Nightcrawler and Cyclops. Scott tries to give Kurt grief because of his happy-go-lucky attitude, and Kurt gives him a deserved put-down.

Life can be unkind, Scotty, so embrace the kindness provided to you by a wise little devil.

Scott prefers to brood and Kurt is hanging with Amanda, so it’s a foursome - maybe even a double date? Moira and Sean, Piotr and Ororo. Logan asks for a ride - not because he wants to eat cheese and crackers among ants, no, he wants to blow off steam.

The X-Men’s chicken or egg: did Logan’s sideburns decide the shape of his headpiece, or did the headpiece shape his haircut?

I started reading the X-Men just when the Marvel Universe was starting to reach the height of Wolverine saturation: he was simply everywhere. Like, at some point, he was in X-Force and the Avengers while also being a Headmaster of the Jean Grey school. Add to that him being the face of the Fox X-Men universe… Listen, it was easy to get sick of him. I kind of did.

But this? Original flavor Wolverine, who’s still kinda short, kinda ugly and kinda stuck being a loner? He works as a character. Chris Claremont is beginning to explore his duality: the wild animal who has been experimented on vs. the honorable man who would do anything for his found family. He gives me major Granny Weatherwax vibes: he’s the kind of person who doesn’t need people, but he does need people to know that he doesn’t need people.

So yeah, he's still cool.

Also, his healing factor hasn’t been kicked to superhuman levels yet - you know, being able to regenerate from a single cell or whatever - so he actually feels kind of anxious when he’s about to toss himself off cliffs etc.

Not happy about that red belt, though.

Anyway, Wolverine is out doing the noble hunting-without-killing-thing, and then this motherfucker wrapped in a flag shows up. Look, I know I have something against dudes who brandish their nationality as their superhero identity, but this fool is just… ugh.

James MacDonald = the worst. Trust me on this.

Major MacMapleleaf then punts Wolverine across the forest, right into the other X-Men’s picnic, and now we’re all caught up.

Out of all the X-Men in this issue, Sean gets the least amount of screen time but, hey, at least I can steal a joke from him.

Don’t worry, despite the martyr/pièta pose, Moira will turn out just fine!

You weren’t worried?

Anyone?

Look, is there anyone who genuinely likes Moira as a character?

James Hudson, being the worst, doesn’t give a fuck that he just cross-fired an innocent woman - er, innocent as far as he knows, at least - and just nopes out of there, too outnumbered to fight the X-Men.

Yeah, you better run.

He vows to return with Alpha Flight, which… Eh, he’ll at least bring some more interesting characters with him. (Snowbird!) Now that he has sown enough seeds for a future plot to pick up on, Claremont calls it a day. I will also call it a day, after a little fashion watch. Out of all of these character, who has chosen the worst outfit?

Scott. It’s Scott. Look, I get that those ruby quartz glasses make the world a different color for you, but you’re wearing a mustard suit and a bespeckled yellow shirt underneath. Even when considering Moira’s attitude, it’s still the most stank thing in the doorway.

Sean, just what do you see in her?

#x-men #abridged x-men #x-men abridged #professor x #banshee #cyclops #phoenix #nightcrawler #storm #wolverine #colossus #moira mactaggert #chris claremont #john byrne #weapon alpha #alpha flight #lillandra #shi'ar #amanda sefton

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collidingxworlds · 1 year ago

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[ 📲 Fish ] Oh, so you go around all day chasing after depraved people and a slightly wild sous-chef is the one who has a bad influence on you? [ 📲 Fish ] Uhmmmmm, sounds like a very convenient excuse to me🤔 [ 📲 Fish ] Right, I keep forgetting that threatening you does the opposite of discouraging you😒 [ 📲 Fish ] Call it a reward for saving me from the deadly clutches of boredom and formalities😜 [ 📲 Fish ] You can sign the contract in blood once the party is over 😌 [ 📲 Fish ] Says the one who walked up to me at the end of my shift and unashamedly asked me out for a drink 😂

[ 📲 Abigail ] i just lose all my principles when i'm around you, miss hobbs [ 📲 Abigail ] i can't help myself! [ 📲 Abigail ] threats? well this is getting better by the minute [ 📲 Abigail ] and now you're offering to feed me? where do i sign up? [ 📲 Abigail ] you're the flatterer! i didn't stand a chance

#* Let's tell my story * ::ic ; Abigail::#* a trek among the stars * ::casual interactions::#&& Fish Monet #v. Never the victim ::serial killer AU ; Abigail::#imprvdente

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paperbackrevolution · 4 years ago

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“Book People”: a response

I have been thinking about an essay I read on Jezebel for the last while. It fit in so nicely with something I have been mulling over for months: readers. I mean serious readers. The kind of people that track their reading, that keep up with the publishing industry, that can relate to bookish memes, that overthink how their bookshelf is organized, and that seek out like-minded readers to interact with on social media. This essay, by Joanna Mang, uses a phrase for these kinds of readers: ‘Book People’. Mang uses it in a derogatory manner, and I have heard it used as such before though in those cases I believe the phrase Book Snob would have been more fitting. For Mang, Book People, are not the good sort of reader, but I want to unpack that in a bit.

Mang’s article is titled “We Have to Save Books from the Book People”. I actually only found it through a response written at Book Riot by Tika Viteri (“Back-Talking the Tone Police: Book People are Not Your Enemy”). Essentially, after rereading Mang’s essay a half dozen times (to try and follow the meandering argument and to seek what the point was) I think Mang is arguing a few things: that classics should still be taught in high school and not argued about on twitter, that English teachers bear no responsibility to encourage reading, and that Book People are bad for liking books a whole lot and have a Secret Plot to keep the publishing industry running. What any of this has to do with the title of her article remains unclear.

Mang opens her essay by complaining about people complaining on twitter. Specifically, people that are complaining about the classics they had to read in high school. The Great Gatsby, The Scarlet Letter, and Catcher in the Rye are all mentioned. Even more specifically Mang is upset at the redundancy of these arguments, that they come up again and again. I mean she is definitely correct, because once someone talks about something no one else is allowed to talk about that thing ever again. Ever. Right? I doubt it is the same person rehashing this conversation daily, more likely Mang has stumbled across or perhaps actively searched out these conversations as they are being had by different people. I mean as far as I know there are more than a handful of people using twitter, right? And if it is the same person dredging up this conversation daily, I have a suggestion: unfollow them. Problem solved. But then if that had happened, we would not have this essay to unpack.

Mang seems upset that people on twitter say that they felt forced into reading books that they did not enjoy. According to Mang anyone that disliked these books did so because these books are classics that they just failed to understand. Mang mentions that with a good lesson plan anyone can like classics, but perhaps they did not have a good teacher with a good lesson plan or maybe it is because they just did not connect with the book. Not everyone must like classics simply because they are part of the canon. A book’s inclusion within the canon does not mean that it is necessarily enjoyable to read or study for every single person. It simply means that it was influential in some way. I can recognize and value the significance of a classic novel and still also dislike the reading experience.

I did find it ironic that these conversations on twitter are doing exactly what Mang says she encourages her students to do: “When I teach literature, my goal is to give students the tools and confidence they need to attack and write about texts, to “talk to” the text rather than receive it passively” (Mang 2021). On these twitter threads we have people reflecting back on books that they were required to read in school. But because they are engaging with these texts on twitter it cannot count as the same thing? I have come across some fascinating analysis on classic books on social media that would have made my English professors proud. I fail to see the problem here.

Mang then goes on to speak about the notion of whether certain books should or shouldn’t be taught in school to avoid “turning kids off” reading, since this is often an extension of those twitter conversations. This is something that people in education have been honing for years. A quick google search reveals many theories, pedagogies and lesson plans that can help encourage reading. Teachers and other education experts are out there exploring options to encourage reading in their students. Why though? Why do we want turn children in to readers? Mang suggests that Book People have an odious plot to save the book-as-object which I will unpack in a moment. But maybe it is actually because it increases empathy? Or because it builds vocabulary? Because it prevents cognitive decline as we age? Because it is a stress reducer? Might even make you live longer? Improves general knowledge? Improves writing skills? Aids sleep? Could even help prevent alzheimers? I think it could be at least one of those reasons, especially since most of these studies explain that these benefits do not come from reading those three books back in high school but as a sustained habit over a lifetime. Though Mang, an educator, also states in her article “It’s not an English teacher’s job to make students love reading; an English teacher’s job is to equip students to read and communicate” (Mang 2021). Which I think is certainly true, but (thankfully) many other educators are attempting to go beyond the pressure to yield good test results and are still trying to help their students become readers. Of course, as Mang does mention, the formation of a sustained reading habit is based on more than a single factor (Mang mentions “parental attitudes, family wealth, the student’s disposition and other sources of stimulation”). Why this should excuse English teachers from even trying to encourage reading is lost on me. Further I also wonder what the point there is in teaching students how to actively engage with books if they are not continuing to read outside of school? Why bother with English class at all if this is the case?

I am not here to say that schools should not teach classic literature or should not encourage students to engage with the canon, I am here, however, to say that we can also all go on to complain about it on the internet afterward. If someone does not find value in these conversations, then they are free to tune them out.

After talking about education and American schools’ reading lists, Mang finally gets to the part about Book People. Mang differentiates between readers and Book People stating:

“A reader is someone who is in the habit of reading. A Book Person has turned reading into an identity. A Book Person participates in book culture. Book People refer to themselves as “bookworms” and post Bookstagrams of their “stacks.” They tend towards language like “I love this so hard” or “this gave me all the feels” and enjoy gentle memes about buying more books than they can read and the travesty of dog-eared pages. They build Christmas trees out of books. They write reviews on Goodreads and read book blogs and use the hashtag #amreading when they are reading. They have TBR (to be read) lists and admit to DNFing (did not finish). They watch BookTube and BookTok. They love a stuffed shelf but don’t reject audiobooks and e-readers; to a Book Person, reading is reading is reading” (Mang 2021).

Let’s dig into this before we get to the conspiracy. Just because I am baffled by the snobby tone of this paragraph, and I do not understand what is wrong with any of this.

A Book Person has turned reading into an identity: Just as many people do with any hobby, they tend to entrench themselves within it. People who hike seriously can and have turned that into an identity, they’re hikers. But just about everyone can walk so hikers should then not make their hobby part of their identity? Sometimes people really, really enjoy something and it becomes a big part of their daily life. What is wrong with that?

A Book Person participates in book culture: A culture can form around a social group. So, if we have a hobby group, which is a kind of social group, it is not hard to imagine that eventually a culture would build up around it. So then, yes, people would then also participate in that culture.

Book People refer to themselves as “bookworms”: What I am most puzzled by are the quotation marks, as if this nickname is something strange and new. The first known use of the phrase bookworm dates back to the 1590s and is defined as “a person unusually devoted to reading and study”. Yeah, it is a little dorky, but many hobbyists across various hobbies have silly names for the people of their hobby. Star Trek fans call themselves Trekkies or Trekkers and apparently train enthusiasts call themselves railfans. It’s a hobby thing.

and post Bookstagrams of their “stacks”: As for this, I think this is an example of a fascinating development among readers. Robert A. Stebbins, a scholar of leisure activity and hobbies, has long denied that reading could be considered a ‘serious’ hobby or what he refers to as a Serious Leisure Pursuit (SLP). He has maintained that reading is a prime example of a casual pastime, and even explores his stance in more depth in the book The Committed Reader: Reading for Utility, Pleasure and Fulfillment in the Twenty-First Century. He argues that reading cannot be a SLP due to the solitary nature of reading and the lack of a social world. To Stebbins a social world is a social network group made up of hobbyists and others connected to that hobby. Social media has changed that, however, allowing serious readers to form a social world and also find ways to make the act of reading more social itself. Book clubs have always been an attempt by readers to make reading more social. But social media allows these attempts to get closer to the mark. Readers on twitter host reading sprints to encourage people to read together at the same time. Others host read-a-longs on various platforms such as instagram to encourage a more engaging version of a book club that invites readers to read the same book section by section. And some booktubers (Book People on youtube), host live videos that invite their subscribers to grab a book and read with them. I will digress here for now, but this is something I plan on exploring more on this blog in the future. Put simply, what Mang is disparaging here is actually evidence of reading achieving SLP status under Stebbins’ hobby model. This is simply an active social world of readers.

They tend towards language like “I love this so hard” or “this gave me all the feels”: This is simply how people tend to talk on the internet? Especially amongst fandom communities, of which there is huge overlap in bookish communities. This is hardly exclusive to Book People.

and enjoy gentle memes about buying more books than they can read: memes are things people share on the internet. I am failing to see the issue with this. Again, not something exclusive to book people. What I am starting to see here is that Mang seems to take issue with internet culture in general, more so than with Book People.

and the travesty of dog-eared pages: Only Book Snobs care if other people dog-ear their own books. I am using the phrase Book Snob to distinguish between avid readers and people that find the book-as-object almost sacred. There can be overlap, certainly, but not all Book People see books this way.

They build Christmas trees out of books: No books were harmed in the making of those christmas trees. Oh, is this where the title comes in? Are we saving books from becoming christmas trees? I promise it doesn’t hurt the books.

They write reviews on Goodreads: I am confused by what is wrong with this. Mang stated earlier in her article that and I quote again, “when I teach literature, my goal is to give students the tools and confidence they need to attack and write about texts, to “talk to” the text rather than receive it passively.” How is reviewing a book not doing exactly that? Not all reviews are as aggressive as an essay can be perhaps, but it is still an act of engaging with a text rather than simply consuming it. Further, many Book People likely either have access to or want access to ARCs (advanced reader copies) from publishers and part of that deal is writing an honest review in exchange for the free copy of the book. So that would be them holding up their end of that deal. I am uncertain if Mang takes issue with goodreads in particular or with writing reviews in general.

and read book blogs: People that are active within a hobby often seek out other like-minded individuals. And beyond that most book bloggers are reviewers. Meaning people may be seeking reviews of a book to help them curate their reading selection.

and use the hashtag #amreading when they are reading: another example of Mang’s dislike of internet culture. People use hashtags to help get their media piece to others that may enjoy it or find commonality with it. They are using this form of metadata as it was intended.

They have TBR (to be read) lists: I think non-serious readers have TBR lists as well, but I think they tend to be more unconscious in nature. For example, a non-serious reader may vaguely know that there are some classics that they want to get to, or maybe the latest hyped general fiction novel. Book People are hobbyists, and if we used Stebbins’ model, they are serious hobbyists. They take their chosen leisure pursuit seriously and as such it is on their mind a lot because they intend to spend a significant amount of time pursuing that activity. So, it seems only natural that they may want to organize the content that they want to consume. It appears to me that Mang is more upset that this hobby group has formed in-group vocabularies. This means that only people residing within the group will understand some of the words or phrases used. This is a natural progression of language. You need words to succinctly capture the meaning of something. In this case, many readers have lists of books they want to read, rather than saying all of that it gets shortened down to TBR.

and admit to DNFing (did not finish): Are we saving books from not being fully read? Many of the books that Book People are reading are for enjoyment. If you are not enjoying something, why would you continue it? Do you watch the entirety of a season of a tv show that you are hating? No. Finish a snack that is making you want to vomit it back up? No. Same logic for books. To suggest you must complete a book simply because it is a book is more like Book Snob behaviour. This seems so common sense that I am again inclined to point to this as evidence of Mang’s distaste for in-group vocabularies more than the idea of not reading a book.

They watch BookTube and BookTok: This is further example of the community and social world that readers are setting up on the internet. People typically like making connections and further, making connections over something you share in common is natural. The internet made this easier, and social media has made it easier still. This is just evidence of readers seeking connections with other readers.

They love a stuffed shelf but don’t reject audiobooks and e-readers; to a Book Person, reading is reading is reading: This line is fascinating. Because following this, Mang’s article takes a turn toward a conspiracy about how Book People are trying to save the book-as-object since ereaders have threatened the physical book. And yet here, as part of her definition of Book People, she disparages Book People for finding value in ebooks and audiobooks. Mang herself becomes the Book Snob here, rejecting other book formats. Ebooks are convenient, you can have access to hundreds of books from your chosen device (I like to use my phone personally not an ereader). And audiobooks are great for when you are performing another task such as chores or driving. Both formats also allow people with disabilities better access to books. Audiobooks are perfect for people with visual impairments or who struggle to read. And with ebooks the size of the font can be changed to allow the book to be turned in to a large print book as needed and can even allow the font to be changed into a dyslexic-friendly font. To suggest that ebooks or audiobooks are not real books or don’t count as books is just blatantly ableist.

Let’s get to the conspiracy now. Mang claims that reading became an identity and a culture in response to the decline of interest in reading. She also continues on to say that not only is reading threatened by other media and diversions, but that ebooks and audiobooks distract from physical books. And so with the book-as-object threatened by television and alternate book formats, physical books became more precious. She even goes as far as to say books are fetishized. And then Mang says, “This could be why those arguing that classic books alienate young readers suggest 21st Century titles as substitutions: if we want to keep the book alive, we have to read, and more to the point buy, the books being produced now” (Mang 2021).

So let’s make this clear. According to Mang, Book People are people who have made reading an identity and revel in book culture. And Mang also already said that Book People “love a stuffed shelf but don’t reject audiobooks and e-readers; to a Book Person, reading is reading is reading”. But then Mang changes her argument and says that all of this is about the physical book. So, the people that complain about classics they read in high school on twitter, some of which are Book People, are all actually attacking classic literature because it may turn children off reading which would be bad because that would mean that less people are reading books regularly which is bad because then it means that less people are buying books which is bad because the book-as-object is precious and must be protected and perpetuated.

Riiiiight. I believe Mang conflated Book People with Book Snobs partway through this essay. They are not one in the same and by Mang’s own definition, Book People see any format of book as worthwhile. Meanwhile a Book Snob would uphold the physical book-as-object as the supreme format. So saying that Book People are behind this conspiracy simply does not hold up under scrutiny. Not that this conspiracy should carry much weight at any rate.

But then Mang wipes that argument away, saying that Book People are not that practical. That actually their purpose in complaining about classics books on twitter is solely to revolutionize American schools’ text selection policy. Further Mang seems to think that people ranting about their least favourite classic novel on social media is all about putting pressure on teachers and public education to shape their students into model human beings. When in reality, sometimes one simply needs to whine about a bad book, even if it’s a classic.

At the end of all of this, I am left simply confused about this essay. Firstly the title: “We Have to Save to Save Books from the Book People”. What books are we saving from Book People and how exactly do we go about doing it? Are we saving classics? Or are we saving the current school reading list books? Or physical books? Or ebooks? Perhaps it is that books are somehow being ruined by those that worship that book-as-object? I propose that Mang just thought it sounded good, especially seeing as how it does little to pertain to the wandering argument of this essay.

Secondly, I am also confused about what exactly is the point of this essay. The three main conclusions reached at the end of it seem to be that 1) arguing about classics on twitter does not impact text selection policy in schools, 2) teachers bear no responsibility in encouraging their students to make reading a habit, and 3) that books are not sacred objects. So what?

While I disagree with Mang’s essay, I do still find value in some of the points she brings up, and in her definition of Book People. I have been casually curious about the leisure studies, and where committed readers fit within leisure studies, for the last couple of years. Mang may not understand what she sees before her, but she did see something. It is that insight that has finally spurred me to dig into the social world of committed readers, or as Mang calls them, Book People.

#booklr #book blog #readers #bookworm #bookstagram #booktube #amreading #bookish #book people #paperback revolution

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collidingxworlds · 2 years ago

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Five snorted at Elise's comment about how his business sounded 'serious'. She had no idea. He could have mentioned that she had chosen the worst moment possible to move there, but it wouldn't have mattered. The whole humankind would be annihilated if he couldn't find a way to stop the Apocalypse, after all, and she would be no exception. Not unless she was an alien or something of the sort.

"You could say that it's of vital importance," he still answered, leaning against the same counter she had climbed on to retrieve his snack. "Quite literally."

He might not be bleeding and in pain anymore, but the exhaustion was starting to catch up with him. It wasn't just the tiredness of the chase, but also the too little food and too little sleep. Hopefully he could have convinced Grace to fix him a strong cup of coffee too, once back home. If not, he would do it himself.

"Thanks," he mumbled as he accepted the tin, his voice losing the sharp edge it had carried till that moment. He couldn't show how drained he was, even if the woman had been nothing but helpful. However, he could allow himself to relax a little.

"Easy," he replied then, fishing out one of the two cookies. "This place is too small, some of them would be visible if you had stashed them away in it. And, if you had shipped away already, you would be gone too. There's barely anything to carry on daily routines in here, and yet nothing points to the fact that you're about to leave. No essential belonging packed, random food left lying around." He waved the half eaten biscuit. "And the appliances are still all plagued in."

He paused to swallow and bite off another piece, before answering her questions.

"Yeah. I spent my childhood in this city, even if I was born elsewhere." His face darkened. "I've been away for...a very long time. I almost thought I would never be able to come back. But I did. I had to."

{ @elisethetraveller }

Had it not been for the fact they'd more or less established that they were both more than their appearances gave away, Elise would have been concerned about the young man talking so blatantly about murder. Even if it, at this point, probably could be viewed as self-defence, the tone he with spoke made it quite clear that the moral specifics weren't a big concern. It made her wonder if he had killed before. Language was not the same as action, and she had seen her fair share of people throwing around threads and deadly promises who, when it came time to deliver, simply couldn't do it. If her guest fell into the same category was yet to be seen, though something in the way he spoke and carried himself made her doubt it.

"Urgent? Sounds serious." The mage mussed back as she climbed onto one of the counters to reach the upper cupboards. That he had failed to respond with his own name had not gone past her, and while curious, Elise did not press the issue. For now, at least. Being nameless had its advantages, both for oneself and the safety of others. Should the gunmen come back, she could, after all, honestly say that she had not seen anyone with whatever name they asked for.

"Ah, found them." Digging out a tin can from the higher shelf, she put it on the counter before climbing down next to her guest. "No idea why I put them up there, but at least there's still a couple left." Opening it, there were indeed a couple of cookies left in the tin, which she offered to her guest. Considering where they'd been, they looked surprisingly fresh.

"You're an observant one. How do you know I didn't already move the boxes?" He was, of course, correct, but she couldn't help poking a little at his observation. "But you're right. I am new in town. Only been here a couple of months. What about you? Are you from around here?"

#* I don't think I'm better than you. I know I am * ::ic ; Five::#&& Elise Leuko #* A trek among the stars * ::casual interactions::#elisethetraveller #(( beam me up scotty ::queue:: ))#v. The World ends in Eight Days ::season 1 verse ; Five::

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rotationalsymmetry · 4 years ago

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And since I’ve been whining about it elsewhere (ie to my partner):

The show is missing a lot of opportunities to show aliens having normal interactions, especially non-romantic ones, with others of their species.

The main exception is with the Ferengi, but 1. The basic concept of the Ferengi is terrible and wtf were they thinking, and 2. They’re generally not happy relationships. Quark is an asshole, he’s an asshole to Rom and he’s an asshole to Nog. Rom does end up supporting Nog, which is something, and has a positive relationship with his mother, and occasionally Quark isn’t a complete asshole.

And we sometimes see Kira interacting with other Bajorans, but...1. It’s not that often and 2. When it happens it usually is either hostile (eg with Winn) or turns into a romance (with unpleasant power differential stuff going on without any sort of, y’know, exploring the potential downsides to being in a relationship with someone who’s got more political or worse religious authority than you. Even if the Bajorans do seem to have a remarkably casual attitude towards religious hierarchy.) We get far more interactions between Kira and Cardassians than Kira and just other Bajorans she might be on friendly, platonic (or familial) terms with, or who she might experience empathy for.

Whereas. Picture a Deep Space Nine where Garak’s not the only Cardassian and you regularly see Bajorans whose names we actually know hanging out and talking to each other (like the human crew talk to each other, like humans and non-humans in Starfleet just talk to each other), where Jadzia has a few long standing penpal or regular holo-whatever relationships with other trills, where Morn isn’t the only whatever he is, where the blue skinned whatever they are’s have that one shift where they all arranged to work together because they get each other’s humor. Picture an Enterprise where instead of being the only Klingon, Worf had a couple Klingon crewmembers where sometimes they all get along and sometimes they get into massive fights about what’s honorable and what isn’t. Where Spock didn’t have to be the lone half-human when he was among Vulcans or the lone half-Vulcan among humans.

Not to mention Odo, ayyy.

I mean. That sort of intense loneliness is a thing Star Trek does, and it does it well. It’s high drama. But...I think it does it justice with some characters more than others. And, they could have hit other notes — notes of being different from most of the people around you but not everyone around you — and that would have been really good too.

And yeah, they kinda do the same thing with humans of different races. I’m a little reluctant to go there with DS9 because I think they really nailed Benjamin and Jake as having a father-son relationship that’s both basically positive and also has normal realistic difficulties and frustrations. In other ways though...people outside the norm in any way tend to be outside of the norm alone.

#deep space nine #representation in media

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timeagainreviews · 5 years ago

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Sifting through the Dregs

For series twelve of Doctor Who, I have opted to take a casual approach. I've avoided spoilers as much as possible. Although I caught the trailers, and the odd press photo, I've managed to stay away from things as simple as episode descriptions, writers, or even episode titles. I want to come into each story with as little expectation as possible. This is so that I might avoid hype, both of the negative and positive varieties. So when I read the words "Part One," after "Spyfall," it was genuinely a surprise. And when I read the words "Orphan 55 by Ed Hime," I was suddenly very hopeful.

If you remember from series eleven, I was a big fan of Ed Hime's episode "It Takes You Away." I praised its brazen absurdity, likening it to something Douglas Adams may have done. The episode is rather divisive in the fandom, as some might call it one of the worst episodes ever. Obviously, I disagree. Ed Hime stands out to me as exactly the kind of writer Doctor Who needs. Someone with a bit of a taste for the absurd, while still managing to capture human moments. Ironic then, that despite my best efforts to approach the episode without expectation, the hype I would most contest with would be my own. Does "Orphan 55," live up to my expectations? Let's get into it!

As I said, Ed Hime lends a sort of mad weirdness to Doctor Who that I feel a certain section of writers possess. Think your Lawrence Mileses, your James Gosses, or even the occasional Steven Moffat. These are writers, who for better or worse understand one thing about Doctor Who- it's weird. Strangely, one of the common most aspects ignored by Doctor Who writers is the absurdity. A blue police box wrapped around an impossible machine, piloted by an ancient trickster somehow becomes mundane. Doctor Who's weirdness is an integral element that has been around since its inception. That's why when the gang gets teleported by a contest cube Graham has assembled, and the first person we meet is a furry, I feel we're already onto a good start. Especially when they just finished cleaning up the biggest calamari ever from the TARDIS floor. (Anyone else think of the Nestine Consciousness?)

Characters like "Hyphen with a 3" or "Hyph3n," remind me of some of the '80s era's odder characters. I could easily see her and her tail living in "Paradise Towers," or perhaps riding a bus in "Delta and the Bannermen." But another reason I love her is that she's not just a furry, it's part of her identity. You don't get the idea that she's an outlier like real-life Trekkie, Barbara Adams, who famously wore her Star Trek uniform to jury duty and her place of work. Instead, you get the feeling that in the future, people respect identities. To use Star Trek again, I remember watching an episode of "Star Trek: Enterprise," where the character Trip has a crisis over whether or not a girl "was a man." When you compare this to the dialogue we're having about transgender rights in 2020, you're automatically reminded that Enterprise came out in 2001. By today's standards, furries are still seeking acceptance. Seeing Hyp3n in a partial fursuit may seem absurd now, but in its own way, it's futuristic. How very Doctor Who.

Things in this future, however, aren't all progressive acceptance of our fine furry friends, there seems to be trouble in paradise. As I said, the gang is greeted by Hyp3n, a sort of porter for a relaxation destination called "Tranquility Spa." The companions immediately take to the spirit of things, as they settle in for a bit of rest and relaxation. The Doctor, of course, starts snooping around. Meanwhile, a security team of two, Kane and Vorm are responding to "another security breach." Whatever it is requires machine guns, which seems like quite a lot. And if you're like me you'll spend the next half hour trying to figure out where you've seen Kane before. I'll help you out- it was Lydia from Breaking Bad. You're welcome. I just saved you a trip to IMDb.

The next scene introduces us to a concept that will run strong within this episode- Yaz as a gooseberry. We see a couple of pensioners, Benni and Vilma, enjoying their spa getaway. Just as Benni is about to ask Vilma to marry him, Yaz stands right between them. I mean, I know the pool is for everyone, but read the vibe, Yaz. Jeez. Meanwhile, Ryan is checking out the interior of Tranquility Spa. The bar looks like the kind of place art vampires go to get lemongrass enemas. It reminded me a lot of "The Leisure Hive," with a budget, or even a more modern twist on the Centre of Leisure from "Time and the Rani. So much of this episode reminded me of classic Doctor Who.

Ryan notices a vending machine, but as he's retrieving his food is infected by a hopper virus. The Doctor explains the virus is capable of jumping from computers to humans. After expelling it from his system, the Doctor bags it to take to whoever is in charge. While Ryan is sucking his thumb to reduce the hallucinogenic side effects of the virus, he sees a cutie in a similar situation, a young woman by the name of Belle. It's pretty obvious at this point that Belle is to be a sort of romantic interest for Ryan, and who can blame him? She lives up to her namesake!

Everyone is rounded up for a "tranquillity drill," to a safe location while Kane and Vorm run through the lobby with their guns in tow. As with most companions, travelling with the Doctor embeds a deeper curiosity. Much like the Doctor would, Ryan questions what type of drill requires guns. This question entices Belle to follow him as they investigate. I really liked this pairing of the two of them as their chemistry was natural, despite Ryan's repeated failures at chatting her up. It only added to their charm.

The Doctor confronts Hyp3n who seems just about as confused and nervous as many of the guests. Whatever she's hiding is only because she's been instructed to by her superiors. Considering the hopper virus and drill, the Doctor deduces that the spa is under attack, and demands to know what they're hiding. Who would want to harm a spa? The spa has been using an ionic membrane to keep out unwanted visitors, visitors which appear to have breached the membrane. Now under a full-on attack by a group of monstrous beings, guests become casualties. Not only is the base under attack, but the viruses have also handicapped the systems, disabling the emergency teleportation devices. With everyone trapped the Doctor has to work fast to stop the killing, as well as survive.

Graham finds a pair of green haired servicemen in the form of Nevi and his son Sylas. Their entire character design once again had me thinking of classic Doctor Who characters such as the Swampies from "The Power of Kroll," or the Karfelon androids from "Timelash." I liked wondering if they were a kind of species that has naturally green hair, or if they had father/son hair dying nights. In this brief interaction, you learn that Sylas is the better mechanic between the two of them, but that Nevi does a bad job of acknowledging this. Graham gathers them and others to evacuate while Ryan and Belle hideaway in a sauna of sorts. While there, they confide in each other that neither of them is nearly as impressive as they initially led on, and the truth strengthens their bond.

Sadly, as Graham is rounding people up, Benni gets separated after backtracking to pick up Vilma's hat. As life signs extinguish across a computer screen, highlighting the trail of carnage, the Doctor finds a way to push back the onslaught. By repairing the ionic membrane, the creatures, known as Dregs, are physically pushed out of the spa by a force field. The crisis averted, the survivors search for the bodies of their loved ones. Much to Graham's relief, Ryan and Belle have both narrowly avoided the claws and teeth of an angry Dreg. Benni, however, is nowhere to be found.

After discovering a hole, which looks like a tear in reality, our heroes discover that Tranquility Spa is actually an illusion. A dome separates the spa from a hostile planet far too polluted to inhabit. This abandoned, or "orphan," planet is designated "Orphan 55." This is the reason guests are teleported to the spa- to cover up its seedy location. However, it would appear that whatever the Dregs are, they seem to be apex predators, able to survive the hostile environment of Orphan 55. And they want the spa and its inhabitants gone.

The Doctor makes Kane drive them out into the wasteland to find Benni, as his oxygen tank would allow him to survive outside of the dome for some time. It was a thin chance, but it might be enough to save at least one person among the carnage. I was really hoping for some silly "Moonbase," style helmets, but instead, we got these minimalist blue breath right strips across the bridge of the nose that linked to small wrist canisters as supplied by Nevi and Sylas.

The trip out onto the surface reminded me a lot of the great Russell T Davies episode "Midnight." And much like Midnight, the confined space of a vehicle traversing harsh conditions offers plenty opportunity to explore the people within. Remember how I said Yaz is a gooseberry? She wastes no time getting right between Ryan and Belle. I honestly can't tell what's going on between Yaz and Ryan at the moment. Last season, there was a bit of a "Will they or won't they?" vibe between them. But series twelve seems less interested in coupling them off. First, we had the Master and Yaz getting weirdly touchy-feely, which surprisingly never comes up again. And now we've got Yaz teasing Ryan in front of Belle like a jealous school girl. We learn that along with sucking their thumbs, Ryan and Belle also share having a dead parent in common, so that's something.

The vehicle picks up a bit of barbed wiring leaving it, as the Doctor put it- completely knackered. Keeping with the Midnight vibe, the surface of the planet is too dangerous due to monsters and killer sunlight. Afraid for her own self-interest, Kane wants to abandon the search mission, but a pleading Vilma begs her to continue looking for Benni. After callously accepting Vilma's necklace as payment, Kane agrees to continue with the rescue mission. The crew abandon their vehicle and run for the safety of an underground service tunnel, but Dregs attack from every direction causing them to return to the safety of the vehicle. But that safety won't last long.

It's then that they hear Benni calling for Vilma. He asks her to marry him and then asks them to shoot him as well. It's a morbid moment as you realise the only reason the Dregs have kept Benni alive is to taunt the survivors and prolong his suffering. I don't really understand what the point of having them run back into the vehicle actually was. They basically run back out a moment later with the new plan of Kane and Vorm covering with gunfire. I don't understand why it was so important that they leave one location just to return moments later.

As Kane and Vorm blast Dregs, the rest of the crew run to the safety of the service tunnel. In the scuffle, Vorm dies, but Kane catches up just in time to open the tunnel. The entrance to this tunnel had me thinking of the opening of "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers." I kept waiting for Rita Repulsa to pop out and say "Ah! After 10,000 years I'm free! It's time to conquer Earth!" They make it down into the tunnel where there is a short-range teleporter nearby. Vilma asks Kane if she saw what happened to Benni, and Kane coldly tells her not to worry, that she shot Benni as he requested. It's at this time that Belle steals Kane's gun. She reveals that Kane is her mother and that she's here for revenge for abandoning her and her father. Belle teleports back to the spa taking Ryan with her. Seeing as the teleporter only had enough juice for one go, the rest of the crew must go deeper into the tunnel to find their way back.

Back at the spa, Belle reveals a huge bomb she plans to use to blow up the spa. Poor Ryan, he just met this girl and already he's dealing with her baggage with her mum. I kid, but damn girl, take a guy to a movie first. It's lucky for the Doctor that this adventure isn't actually from the '80s. Had it been Ace in this position, she would have seen the bomb and said "Wicked!" while offering up Nitro 9 to add to the destruction. Instead, Ryan pleads with her not to blow up the spa, dooming everyone involved.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and crew discover a plaque written in Russian, cluing them in to the fact that not only is the planet abandoned, but it was also abandoned by humanity. Orphan 55 is in fact, Earth. This revelation hits Graham and Yaz hard, as they never imagined the fate of the world to be so ugly. Their grieving is cut short by the appearance of Dregs, who Vilma bravely sacrifices herself to, to save the others. The Doctor, at this time also appears to be running out of air. It appears that the ability to be the loudest talker isn't always helpful when oxygen preservation is to be considered.

The sole reason for her running out of oxygen serves only to discover the Dregs breathe out oxygen. She discovers this when she finds a Dreg conveniently hibernating within the tunnel. Why this is important is that it gives a bit of insight into the Dregs' motivation. Kane's big plan was to make a spa that slowly terraforms the planet, which would harm the Dregs. It also explains the trees seen on the surface of the planet. That or these trees are also apex predators able to adapt to anything. Using her Time Lord brain magic, the Doctor looks into the mind of the Dregs and affirms what she feared most- they evolved from humans.

Everyone has now made their way back to the spa. The Dregs are closing in and they need to fix the teleporter. We're treated to a series of people once again leaving and returning to the same location for the sake of upping the tension. Kane appears to sacrifice herself and Sylas gets in an argument with Nevi once more over being told he's not a mechanic causing him to run away. But both of them are ok, as they both return unscathed. Yaz and Ryan wheel Belle's bomb to try and take out a few of the baddies. It's kind of a clusterfuck if I am honest. Lots of characters get taken in and out of scenes merely to pad time and add to the tension. It's not egregious but could have been edited better.

Sylas appears just in time with a solution to use the hopper virus to convert fuel for the teleporter. I was happy they brought the virus back, even if they don’t make a whole lot of sense. Were the Dregs weaponising the hopper virus? Were the viruses remnants of human civilisation? Regardless, I’m glad they brought it back. Sadly, this entire end sequence acts as evidence that perhaps there are too many companions in the TARDIS at the moment. Graham's job is to stand over Nevi and Sylus saying things like "That's right lads!" Yaz and Ryan are basically running around doing busywork, while the Doctor and Belle are having a stand-off with a Dreg. The Doctor manages to equalise the air in the room so that it is mutually beneficial to keep her and Belle alive. What the Dreg breathes out, they breathe in, and vice versa. This stalemate allows them the ability to leave. With the teleports up and running, the Doctor and her crew are transported back aboard the TARDIS, but not before Belle steals a kiss from Ryan. Are she and her mother going to be okay? We're left to wonder.

The victory celebration is short-lived as the companions remember the fate of the earth. Now, I need to preface what I'm about to say with the following- I fully believe climate change is a thing. I say this because we need to talk about how Doctor Who handles the subject. I've seen a lot of people (see: morons) complain about when Doctor Who gets "too political." They seem to think anything they don't like is political. The Doctor being a woman is political to them. But as I said with episodes like "Rosa," and "Demons of the Punjab," it's not that Doctor Who shouldn't be political, it's that it's simply not very good at it.

I can appreciate that the message of climate change is a real and pressing matter, but the cautionary edutainment way in which they present the information was so cringe. It felt so unnatural and tacked on. In their desire to address the audience directly, they lose a level of reality that makes the dialogue seem fake. These scenes always feel badly acted to me, but it's the fault of the dialogue. There's no good way to break the fourth wall without also sacrificing the characters' voices. It's like one of those adverts where you have two people talking far too candidly about something like their period flow, or constipation. It's a way to disseminate information about a product or ideology, but don't mistake it for dialogue. Nobody talks like this.

All in all, this was your standard "base in peril," episode. While not as transcendent as "It Takes You Away," I believe Ed Hime has given us another solid episode of Doctor Who. It's hard for me to tell if Hime's ability to write action was wanting, or if it is simply the fault of the director, but it definitely suffers at points due to the janky pacing. Pacing has really been an odd sticking point for series 12, and I hope they work it out. Even still, I was hoping that after the two-parter of "Spyfall," we would get something a little more grounded. Having this odd little contained storyline with little homages to classic Who is actually more than I had hoped for. It also gave us a new character in Belle, whom I expect to see return eventually. And despite the heavy-handed and unnatural way in which they dealt with climate change, I understand that it's a family show. In keeping with classic Who, it aimed to be educational, and for that, I cannot fault it.

#doctor who #Thirteenth Doctor #Jodie Whittaker #Bradley Walsh #tosin cole #mandip gill #Graham O'Brien #Ryan Sinclair #yaz #yasmine khan #orphan 55 #ed hime #dregs #series 12 #TARDIS #BBC #Time and Time Again

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sigynpenniman · 5 years ago

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The Protective Energy of Dr. Julian Bashir: An Analysis of Exactly Why I Love This Space Doctor So Much

Note: I said I was gonna fuck around and write an essay and then I kinda did. I tend to end up writing essays when I get into stuff. I actually have a longform writing blog but all the Bashir fans are following me here so this seemed like the better place to post this. This was completely inevitable. 3,500 words. Enjoy, y’all.

I have very severe fear of doctors. It’s what the medical field calls White Coat Hypertension, on a slightly higher scale. It’s not debilitating – I’m able to receive medical care when necessary. But it is quite intense, and it’s been a bear to live with. Every interaction with medicine – every physical, every dental cleaning, every trip to the ER (and yes, there has been one in there) has been accompanied by overwhelming, nauseating anxiety. It’s severe enough to affect me even when I am not the patient – even walking into doctor’s offices in support of other people lights a certain fire of anxiety in my stomach. While I have never been walked across the gallows to face my own execution, I can’t help but imagine the way I feel walking into a doctor’s office has to be a similar emotion. I explain this because while this is a semi-analytical piece, it’s also a personal one; I’m writing this to not only talk about the technical features of this character that make me love him so much but to also talk about exactly what he means to me, and in order to really understand the weight of that, you need to understand the context. I do not like Doctors. Never in my life have Doctors been a source of comfort, of safety, of any positive feeling other than vague gratitude when they prescribe me the antibiotics I so often badly need. I understand that there’s a big difference between fiction and reality, but trust me when I say, the distance of fiction is not enough to take the edge off this particular phobia – as much as I want to get into watching House (it’s exactly the kind of show I tend to get into), the medical scenes always make me feel a little woozy. So just know – when I stand up and say that I really, really love this Doctor – that is something of note.

Out of the 6 (so far) series of Star Trek, the most unique, and almost definitely the least well known, is Deep Space Nine. The Original Series and The Next Generation are legendary, most devoted Trekkies have a soft spot in their hearts for Voyager, people are aware of Enterprise (even if it is just to hate it), and Discovery is a current pop culture phenomenon. But while Deep Space Nine shares the genre and aesthetic of other Trek shows in its time period, it’s a creature all its own. DS9 can sometimes be “the forgotten trek” – it never aired alone (TNG started before DS9 and Voyager ended after it – there was never a time when DS9 was the only Trek show on) and it’s more known to devoted and establish Trek and sci-fi fans than to casual viewers. Among Trekkies, however, DS9 is one of the most beloved series: many would call it their favorite. Certain elements of the show – the multi episode arcs, discussions of grey morality, overall heavier subject matter, and the way the crew treat each other like a family (to a greater extent even than other Trek crews) endear the show to Trek fans and other sci-fi fans alike. Another unique feature of DS9 is the broad diversity of its cast – while most Star Trek series’ casts tend to consist of mostly humans with one or two aliens, the DS9 cast is mostly aliens with only a few humans. There is not one character in DS9 who makes you groan when they appear, and to be completely honest, I could write essays about just about every single one of these characters. But we are here for one of these characters in particular: Doctor Julian Bashir.

Julian Bashir is Deep Space Nine’s Chief Medical Officer, fresh out of Starfleet academy when the show begins. He’s book smart but young and naïve, and could probably stand to work on his social skills – he’s got that endearing (or wildly annoying, depending on who you ask) tendency to talk far too much for far too long, he thinks he knows absolutely everything, and he’s all smiles and idealism. Many people find him annoying in these early seasons. Personally, I have to disagree – I find him absolutely adorable. He’s got a bit of the character of a puppy in human form, but whether season 1 Bashir is annoying or adorable is certainly a matter of opinion. As the show progresses, he matures quite a bit; he learns when to shut up and certainly some other hard lessons about the nature of life. But these are characteristics which anyone who has watched the entire series would comment on, these are the general character high points anyone analyzing DS9 would hit. I’m less concerned about those. I’m much more concerned with the other features of the character, the things he does that are easily missed because the show generally doesn’t linger on them. And more primarily, I’m concerned with understanding exactly why I love him so much. I’m here to take a dive into my own mind.

The first thing to know about Bashir is that he’s portrayed with an incredible softness. He’s reassuring and gentle, and tends to spend as much time comforting his patients as actually working on them. He exits so many scenes by reassuring people that “If they need him, he’ll be right outside” that an entire supercut could be made of just him saying that line. Towards the beginning of the series, his caring nature is about the only thing we know about him. He’s clearly a doctor who became a doctor because he really, truly cares about saving people, and has devoted his life to that cause. This is common among Star Trek doctors – every Trek series has a doctor, and being genuinely caring and good is a definitive character element for the role. But Dr. Bashir has got the best bedside manner of any them, not just in his words but his whole bearing. He’s just got a kind of comforting aura about him. This is a major part of what makes the character so loveable – now let’s talk about the rest.

Let’s start with episode 1x13, “Battle Lines”.

“Battle Lines” is one of the first major dangerous situations the main cast gets themselves into. Plenty has gone wrong in the series so far, yes, but this is the first time we’ve seen the main cast up a creek without a paddle on a distant planet (or moon, as the case may be). Sisko, Kira and Bashir are shipwrecked on an unexplored moon in the gamma quadrant without any easy way to get home or contact the station. Unbeknownst to them, they’re stumbled into a many-hundred-year war between the “Ennis” and the “Nol-Ennis”. It’s pretty much the Sneeches on the Beaches here, but a little more deadly. Kira is shot in the shoulder almost as soon as they arrive, and deals with the injury for most of the episode. This exchange is what follows (scripts from TrekCore):

KIRA I'm all right

BASHIR The hell you are.

Bashir approaches Shel-la. Nima's gun is instantly on him. Despite Nima's threat, Bashir points to the medical kit next to Shel-la's throne. He is well aware of the danger he's courting.

BASHIR She needs treatment. I’d like my medical case (beat )If you don’t mind.

After a beat... Shel-la nods to Nima who picks up the kit, looks through it briefly, then tosses it to Bashir. Bashir hurries over to Kira. He scans her with his tricorder and administers a hypospray.

Here’s a relevant note: the scripts differ slightly from what actually occurs in the show. Nima doesn’t toss the kit to Bashir – he grabs it from her, losing patience with the way the Ennis are treating them. The thing that sticks out in this exchange is the extent to which Bashir prioritizes the safety of his patients and colleagues above his own. This is the first time we really get to see him in action or in real danger – and he’s got a gun to his throat, and he doesn’t care. His single minded concern is taking care of Kira. The fact that there’s a person holding a gun on him is completely irrelevant.

Let’s talk about another phenomenal Bashir episode (and one which stars our favorite Lizard, Garak): 2x22, “The Wire”. Everyone jokes about this episode being a fanfiction come to life but to be honest that’s exactly what it is. More importantly for my purposes, it contains another fantastic “Bashir doesn’t care about anything except his patients” moment:

ODO Doctor, I was hoping to ask Garak some questions.

Bashir intercepts Odo by the door.

BASHIR (glances at Garak) He's asleep. He has been ever since I turned off his implant. (a beat) Come on. We can talk outside.

ODO Doctor, I need to talk to him as soon as possible. I have four homicide cases left in my files that I'm almost certain were committed by the Obsidian Order. If Garak was a member... he may be able to shed some light on them.

BASHIR I'm afraid your questions will have to wait.

ODO (not happy) How long?

BASHIR I don't know yet.

Bashir sees that Odo is about to object and beats him to the punch.

BASHIR Constable, Garak's body has undergone a severe shock. I don't know when he'll recover. I'm not even sure if he'll recover.

ODO In that case, I want to talk to him now. Wake him up.

BASHIR I'll do no such thing.

ODO Doctor, these are murder cases. And he could be a suspect.

BASHIR Maybe so, but he's also my patient. And I won't have him disturbed. So until further notice, his quarters are off limits to everyone but emergency medical personnel. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a patient to attend to.

Odo nods, not really happy, but right now Bashir could care less. He returns to Garak's room, leaving Odo outside in the corridor.

Odo’s interested in solving his murder cases. Bashir is…unbothered. His sole and only concern is the health and safety of his patient. And this carries on...

BASHIR What happened?

WEBB He got beaten up by some ghosts.

Bashir kneels down next to the boy. Danny's shirt is cut up and bloody.

WEBB (continuing) My wife went to get help, but there's only one doctor on duty at the Processing Center.

BASHIR Why don't you let me take a look? I know a bit about medicine.

SISKO Julian...

Bashir takes Sisko aside so they can talk in private.

BASHIR It can't hurt just to look.

A beat, then Sisko nods his consent.

Bashir returns to Danny's side. He carefully unbuttons and pulls aside the boy's blood-soaked shirt, then examines the wounds.

BASHIR Looks like you were lucky. No broken ribs and these cuts are mostly superficial. You're going to be okay. (to Webb) You're going to need some clean rags and something to disinfect the wounds. Alcohol should do.

What’s at stake here? The timeline. This episode takes place a couple hundred years in the past (transporter accident, of course), and everything Sisko and Bashir do risks messing up the future. That’s what Sisko’s concerned about here, but Bashir is, still, unbothered by anything other than worry for this injured person.

And on…

(6x02, Rocks and Shoals)

KEEVAN Captain Sisko, my name is Keevan. We have a lot to talk about.

BASHIR Not for a while, you don't. (to Sisko) He needs immediate surgery.

SISKO Now?

BASHIR I don't think I have any choice.

The Jem'Hadar suddenly start gathering around Keevan. Bashir looks up in concern.

BASHIR I'm a doctor. I won't harm him.

KEEVAN (cynical smile) They're not here to protect me. They've just never seen what the inside of a Vorta looks like.

The Jem'Hadar crowd around for a better look as Bashir takes out his surgical instruments. Sisko decides he doesn't want a better look and grabs a seat on the floor as Bashir prepares to operate in front of an audience.

(later in the same episode)

KEEVAN (groggy) I... am... alive.

BASHIR No self-diagnoses, please. I'm the doctor here.

Bashir checks him out with the tricorder and his own observations as Sisko and Remata'Klan come over.

BASHIR (off tricorder) Internal hemorrhaging has stopped...your free collagen levels are dropping... tissue growth factors have stabilized... and there's a fifty percent rise in cell oxygenation. (beat) You're alive.

Keevan shifts a little, tries to get more comfortable, but an unwary move sends a jolt of pain throughout his body.

BASHIR Careful. Most of your insides are being held together with cellular micro-sutures and a lot of hope.

Another note the script doesn’t show: The banter between the Vorta Keevan and Bashir in these scenes is kind, comedic, almost affectionate. Bashir’s choice to operate on the injured Vorta was something he pretty much had to do, to save everyone’s lives – but he certainly doesn’t have to be nice to him on the way. But he is – just because.

And on, and on, at length. These are the first type of “Bashir Moral” episodes – the repeated scenes where Bashir prioritizes his patients over criminal investigations, over war alliances, over his own safety, over everything. There’s a second type of “Bashir Moral” episode– the ones where he gets very, very angry. He doesn’t get angry much. He’s not an angry character or a character with a temper. But every now and then, we see him truly furious. The most notable examples being

(4x04, “Hippocratic Oath)

O'BRIEN You can bring me up on charges, you know.

BASHIR That's not really my style.

O'Brien nods.

O'BRIEN I... wish things could've been different, Julian.

BASHIR So do I.

O'BRIEN And I'm sorry I had to destroy your work

BASHIR (quiet) You didn't have to, Chief. You had a choice. And you chose to disobey orders, override my judgment, and condemn those men to death.

O'BRIEN Yes, I did. (beat) Because I thought it was the only way to save your life. Whatever else you make think of me and what I did -- at least understand why I did it.

Bashir has been attempted to synthesize a cure for the Jem’Hadar’s Ketracel White addiction, but O’Brien is forced to destroy this almost-cure in what O’Brien believed was the only right choice. This episode is morally fascinating – the episode ends making a clear point that there’s two sides to be on here, either siding with Bashir or O’Brien, and most people who watch WILL fall on one side or the other of the episode’s moral conflict. While it’s hard to represent with script alone, another fantastic episode in the series of “Bashir being angry about injustice” is 4x24 “The Quickening”, in which he does everything he can to rescue a planet affected by an apparently incurable, artificially created illness. He does everything he can, but is unable to find a true cure. But what he is is angry – quietly, yes, but angry just the same. And then there is, of course, possibly my favorite episode: 7x23, “Extreme Measures”. Bashir and O’Brien capture Luther Sloan, leader of arguably evil Starfleet Underground division Section 31, in hopes of securing a cure for a disease that’s killing Odo and which they have reason to believe Section 31 was involved in. They get their cure – and they kill Luther Sloan in the process (technically Sloan commits suicide, but it would be hard to argue Bashir and O’Brien’s innocence in a court of law). I adore this episode. It’s the clearest we ever get to see Bashir’s character and moral choices – risking his life and safety in search of a cure for Odo, furious about Section 31’s very existence. And…somewhat unbothered about Sloan’s death. Certainly not remorseful.

And that’s the thing. That’s what differentiates Dr. Julian Bashir as a character; what makes him so incredibly special. His softness is not endless. His kindness bears an edge. Julian Bashir is man with puppy-saving kindness and spy-murdering ruthlessness in the same body. Combined with his genetically engineered superintelligence, he’s almost got a superhero bent about him, a sort of “with great power comes great responsibility”. He’s kind, he’s soft, he’s capable, he’s ruthless, and he’s ready to fight for his patients and his friends if the situation calls for it. And the situation does – several times. The whole energy of the character is best summed up in a single word: protective.

It’s that protective energy that makes him so completely endearing, at least to me. But it’s not just in the lines – it’s in the way he’s played. It’s impossible to discuss Bashir with giving due credit to Alexander Siddig. Bashir could have been really any kind of character off the back of the scripts alone. It’s the subtler choices the actor makes, the way he speaks, the tones and emphasis he chooses, his body language and the way he carries himself that turn Julian Bashir into something truly great. As played by Siddig, Bashir is a doctor you almost can’t help but trust. If you watch DS9 for any length of time, it’s almost impossible not to think at some point that you’d probably be perfectly happy leaving your life in Dr. Julian Bashir’s capable hands. He’d go to ends of human knowledge to save your life, and be more than happy to defend you against untold alien hoards on the way.

I cannot express how much I love this character. I find him endearing and adorable and protective and comforting and loveable. I started watching DS9 to begin with because I was introduced the character of Bashir and had to know more about him. I loved him from episode 1, and continued to love him for every minute of the following 175 episodes. This is certainly a matter of personal opinion – lots of people don’t feel this way at all, and it’s down to my personality that this particular character happens to fit in exactly with what I love in a character. But that’s how it always is with fictional characters we adore. Sometimes, we get lucky, and stumble upon characters that feel as if they were created just for us. This is just the kind of lucky I happened to get, and I’m so grateful for it.

I’ve established at the opening of this essay that I have a few issues with doctors, as a concept. I find them inherently terrifying. I have the exact opposite response to Dr. Bashir. Fictional, yes, but this is a doctor I want to run towards, not away from. I always joke that if I was in this universe, on DS9, you’d find me in the infirmary pretending to be injured or ill. I can’t express how significant this is. I have an ambient audio track from the wonderful Ambient Mixer that I assembled for myself (and also shared on tumblr) which consists of the background noises of Dr. Bashir’s infirmary – the low rumble of space station power, the distant beeping so ever present in Star Trek scenes, a few footsteps in the background. This audio mix is something I get a lot of use and listening out of. It’s a tool of calming and I often fall asleep to it. If you had walked up to me six months ago and told me that I would find comforting escapism in pretending to be in what’s effectively a hospital, I would have laughed in your face. Julian Bashir is the first positive association for doctors I’ve ever had. It’s kind of a weird thing to say as an adult, but so be it. I love this character so much, and it’s had real, positive effects on my real life. I’ve been sick for the last several days, which eventually involved me having to drag myself to the doctor. And I’ll be damned if I wasn’t…okay with that? Sure, it’s not somewhere I was thrilled about being, but I didn’t feel like throwing up, and I was able to get my heart rate down low enough that the doctor didn’t feel the need to comment on it. And the credit for this, funny as it may be, as much as some people would laugh at this, lies with one Dr. Julian Bashir. This character means so incredibly much to me, not just because he’s a fictional character I adore, but because he’s helped me to take a step towards overcoming something that affects my real life.

What more incredible can fictional characters do for us than that?

#Julian Bashir #star trek #ds9 #deep space nine #deep space 9 #i wrote an essay whoops #this tends to be what I do #sigyn's longform writing #please enjoy

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collidingxworlds · 1 year ago

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Sam glances down at the package they are still holding, squinting at it for the briefest moment. The snack had of course being consumed outside the library, since there were rules against consuming food inside of it. They might have a strong rebellious streak in them, but they also made sure to be respectful of the few places they actually enjoy.

And, among them all, the library is their second favourite.

"So they are purposefully feeding us bugs," the teen comments making a face, but their heart isn't in it. They would pick eating something that contain insects but that tastes good over some of the disgusting cooking they have been subjected to over the years. "Why having a law about it, if they weren't? But that's what humanity will eat in a few decades, so...better get use to it, right?"

With that, they throw the wrapper in the nearby bin, before wrapping their hand around the strap of their backpack, fingers squeezing it in a show of nervousness.

"Maybe it would be best not to know, but...personally I don't like not knowing what I'm dealing with." Their life has been a mess of secrets and half truths, so facts are always preferable in their eyes. "Maybe I'll google it up."

A beat of awkward silence passes, then Sam speaks up again.

"Sorry for the...uh...for being weird." They are really glad that the woman hasn't been put off by their attitude. "I actually came to ask if you could help me finding a book...?"

{ @smokedanced }

@collidingxworlds said: “ how much insect essence do you think are in every square inch of chocolate? like, just how many cockroach guts have i consumed with my hershey’s? ” [[ Inbox call: from this meme || Sam for Ella? Mayhaps at Ella’s library, Sam needs to ask her for info, but they have no social skills so they blurt out some random disgusting fact instead xD ]]

prompts for emotionally stunted idiots / ACCEPTING ↷

❝ There is an FDA regulation about how much insect, in general, chocolate is allowed to have. ❞

It’s by far not the strangest question she’s been approached with. People ask her all kinds of things; she enjoys finding the answers. This one feels more rhetorical, though. ❝ I doubt what’s allowed directly corresponds with what’s actually there, but I could probably find you a maximum estimate. Worst case scenario of amount of bugs eaten. ❞ She smiles at them, leaning her elbows against the counter. ❝ Although I feel like ’ignorance is bliss’ applies here? ❞ If they really want to know she has no issue looking the information up for them.

#* Life are you there? It's Sam * ::ic ; Sam::#&& Ella Finnegan #* a trek among the stars * ::casual interactions::#v. Spread your wings and show your claws ::main verse ; Sam::#smokedanced #(( damn there is? x'D now that's one curious fun fact x3 ))#(( a little disturbing too xD ))#(( beam me up scotty ::queue:: ))

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hunterguyveriv · 5 years ago

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Kacxa Week 2019 (Extension) - Day 8: Convention Attendance

This starts off Kacxa and briefly steps away from it and then becomes a Kacxa again. I wanted to do a pseudo-continuation of the Halloween-Wrap party story I wrote last year.

I hope you enjoy this little piece as my others. Sorry for the late posting, was called into work yesterday and didn’t have any time to post it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Keep Reading~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She had a rather angry look standing outside their room; she was dressed in black form-fitting black latex long sleeve shirt with matching pants. She was wearing an intricate black corset that stopped halfway up her bust. She wore black leather goth-motorcycle like tactical boots that went up to her mid-thighs with various buckles going up the sides.

On her hips were pistol holsters with Desert-Eagle props as per convention regulations. She had combed her hair in a way to cover her horns. Something she didn’t mind but looking at her hands that were painted with a white flesh tone. On a chair of their small one-bedroom apartment was a leather trench coat which had Celtic like designs among the hemp of it.

She looked at the clock; she threw her head back, releasing a grunt of dissatisfaction, “Come on, Keith!” She looked back at the door, ”We are going to be late!” From behind the door, she heard him grumbling, “I’m not wearing this! This is an outrageous costume!” Glaring at the door, “HOW?!” “IT JUST IS!” was the only response that came from behind the door, “Why can’t I wear my Guyver outfit?!”

Keith was glaring at the suit that was on their bed. He hated how they tried cashing in on the Voltron series. He looked at the box that had his Guyver outfit when she “YOU wore it to the Wrap-Party last week!” She was right about that, but he’d rather be a Guyver than a friggin then what was in front of him “Besides, you turned down being Michael because ‘People would be able to tell it’s you,’ so I don’t want to hear it! Now hurry up, this is very uncomfortable!”

He glared at the door, but he knew he was defeated. He looked back at the ridiculous outfit. Grumbling, he started taking his traditional red jacket and black t-shirt off. Thirty minutes later, Acxa sat up, smirking as he walked out of their room. She picked her phone device up and snapped a picture, possibly for typical couples’ blackmail, “Hey, buck up! From my understanding, he is just as much of a badass with a bladed weapon like you.”

She got up grabbing her coat, and walked towards the door of their apartment. As with all form-fitting outfits, certain things were noticeable. She looked back at her boyfriend to see if he was coming, he stood still for a couple of seconds and quickly followed suit. It was a good thing he was wearing a helmet because she would have caught him staring. He opened the door and looked at Acxa over again in full detail. “If I have to wear this, you need to wear that more often.” Thinking of his declaration, she looked at him with a devilish look, “Make it through today in your outfit, and I will take your negotiation under consideration.” She winked at him, “now eyes front soldier.”

They attended the Platt City convention together. But when some of their former castmates started showing up, they agreed to split up to play a prank on them. Lance was dressed as something with dog ears that looked like it came from Dungeons & Dragons. Allura was dressed as some Disney Princess.

Pidge dressed as the Pidge from Defender of the Universe. Hunk dressed as a character they didn’t recognize. Shiro arrived dressed in casuals, Romelle dressed up as Laura Croft. When asked about her outfit by Allura, Acxa replied that she was Selene from Underworld.

Acxa met up with them and started fraternizing with them when asked about Keith. She told them he disappeared when they arrived, “saying he had something to do.” When asked about Keith’s outfit in which she replied, she was Michael from the same movie. But the cast members continued fraternizing as they continued exploring the Sci-Fi/Fantasy Convention. They then broke off and explored the convention. Acxa, keeping the prank on looking for Keith, even though to her, he stuck out like a sore thumb.

He was currently looking at the Star Trek table. A new Star Trek movie dealing was being in the works. He slowly started making his way towards a few other tables. She was about to approach him when an announcement went over the intercom asking for all Voltron panel participants to report to the theater four. She saw him lift his head and look right at her.

On the stage, were the moderators Daniel, Vince, and Larmina. Again Voltron Alumni from a previous series. They introduced the entire cast from the Voltron: Legendary Defender. Everyone cheered as each cast member, but when they got to Keith, there was a silence as no one came out. Castmembers started asking Acxa, and she gave them a baffled shoulder shrug.

There was a murmur as everyone in the audience was asking where he was. Even his castmates started to murmur except one Acxa. She turned her head to the left, smirking, causing others to turn their heads. An even louder murmur erupted as a man walked onto the stage towards the moderator's platform.

His outfit enough caused outrage from some of the fans. Dressed up as the Green Ranger from “The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.” A series that many Voltron fans consider a knock-off trying to cash in on the success of Voltron. Larmina looked at the costumed man, “Sir; I think you are in the wrong Panel Hall.”

SMirking underneath his helmet, “No…” He reached the stand and reaching up to his helmet, “I think I am in the right one.” The whole hall gasped and erupted in cheering as the removed helmet revealed Keith’s face. Even his castmates were shocked as he walked over to the table to his place where Acxa was.

He was interacting with his fellow castmates, interacting with some of them as he did. He sat down next to Acxa, placing a peck her cheek before putting his helmet on the floor and held her hand. The audience was in a frenzy which lasted for a couple of minutes before settling down, in which the moderators could start conducting their panel

#kacxa #kacxa week 2019 #keith #acxa #kacxaweek2019 #Kacxaweek19 #kacxa week extension

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