#1x07 bad to be good

[teenagemutantninjafangirl]

[isagrimorie]

Star Wars Ahsoka, 1E07 - Dreams and Madness

It's like, for the first time in many years, Ahsoka can breathe again.

Bonus:

The box of Anakin's memories.

[cleo-serotonin]

moon spell is SO FUNNY i wish watching it didn’t give me severe second hand embarrassment on emma’s behalf

[imminent-danger-came]

Crying and shaking knowing that an MK V Sun Wukong fight is in the cards for us

[astral-herald]

arcane's depiction vs. endorsement and why it flopped

~ i think i'm finally ready to complain ~

My general opinion of season 2 is potential squandered. My recent post about Viktor's storyline as an intentional tragedy lets ya'll know that I did, for the most part, enjoy his arc (hot take, I know, and I know lots of people disagree with me, and I fully understand). If he'd gotten the screen time necessary to pull it off, it would have been legendary in my book. But the lack of screen time, even in the case of the season's eventual BBEG, speaks to my greatest issue with Arcane: no commitment.

(Critical) Discussion of Jinx, Ekko, Sevika, Vi, and Viktor below!

Arcane, as a tragedy (I've said this word too many times to count smh), asks the plot, "what is the worst thing that could possibly happen to this character?" and answers in kind. This is why we get Viktor's lost agency until the very end (and like I've said in the past, I completely understand and hold space for those who dislike this route).

If we ask this same question of the following characters, the scope of loss and despair innate to Arcane's final narrative is made very clear:

Sevika: a revolutionary forever devoted to the cause, not the individual, is nominated as an individual to represent the masses in a governmental body that has no interest in her class-conscious ideal.

Ekko: the people's hero in every sense of the word who never sees the fruits of his labor/sacrifice and who goes without the acknowledgement he deserves (more than any other Arcane character).

Vi: the ultimate victim of Piltover police brutality coerced, through grief, trauma, and loss, into working for the system that oppressed her. Even Caitlyn, for all her good intentions, seems incapable of ever understanding this.

Viktor: a genius hellbent on ending the same suffering he endured at the hands of Piltover's oppression has his agency revoked, driving him to inflict the same choicelessness he endured on Zaunite innocents.

On paper, these arcs are devastatingly sensical. And we don't always need happy endings in our stories (I'd sure like them, more often than not, of course). We can and should witness the harsh realities of class oppression if we don't experience them ourselves. The writing team painstakingly crafted and foreshadowed these worst-case scenarios throughout season 1. For example, in 1x07, Ekko being immediately shot at by Marcus at the bridge confirms our suspicions that Piltover Enforcers are a lost cause, not just full of bad apples but internally broken beyond repair. It felt that, despite all the hope, this struggle was doomed, and we were careening toward something dark - "In the pursuit of great, we failed to do good."

Had these arcs been successful, audiences would be confronted with the systemic issues we see today that implicate the physical and mental health of downtrodden individuals on account of lazy, prejudiced leadership. This actively happens. It is actively happening, sans the fantasy of it all. This is where Arcane should have shined: they depict the tragedy of these characters, but DO NOT endorse it.

But Arcane chickens out and the entire thing fails. Here are the Flop Era Spark Notes:

Maddie is the egregious bad apple stereotype that absolves all other agents of the regime. She clearly is not a stand-in for Enforcers at large because, all of a sudden, they're capable of coordinated artillery strikes that are necessary to the defense of Piltover, which the viewer must suddenly and abundantly care about. So glad she died. Also, Arcane, you cannot introduce abject warfare in the last 30 minutes of your show successfully.

Jinx's "revolutionary" plot was a red herring, and Sevika humbly vying for the spot was never delivered upon. They pay lip service to the Undercity organizing, but the scene is interrupted for larger (messier) plot concerns almost immediately. No commitment. No depiction to even refrain from endorsing.

Ekko and the Firelight Tree. Clearly this was set up as a means of showing how Piltover's mistakes were physically seeping into the only sanctuary left in Zaun. Yet this is just...never resolved? If someone has some insights into this, please let me know. No depiction. No discussion about endorsement.

What could Vi specifically gain by aligning with the Enforcers/Piltover? Human connection with Cait, sure, but why return to them in 2x06? Vi's character begged all season for development, but she kept returning to her nonsensical error of her ways (looking backwards) until the very end, and this is basically what "kills" Jinx. This is a nod to her lonesomeness post 1x03, sure, but to what end? Again, why the Enforcers?!? Oh, because now that Cait has been redeemed and Sevika is in Piltover to save the day, there are no systemic issues left to fix? Sure, Riot.

WHY DEVELOP VIKTOR'S ENTIRE HEXCORE ARC OFF SCREEN?I'M ADMITTEDLY BIASED ABOUT THIS, BUT THE AMOUNT OF DISCUSSIONS I'VE HAD WITH VIKTOR NATION ABOUT THE DEGREE TO WHICH HE WAS INFLUENCED/MANIPULATED BY THE HEXCORE (now that we know Sky was a manifestation of his humanity, not her Actual Self) IS DESPICABLE. HIS COMPROMISED AGENCY NEEDS TO BE FRONT AND CENTER AND OBVIOUS, OR ELSE IT SURE SEEMS LIKE RIOT IS ENDORSING THE LACK OF AGENCY IN VIKTOR'S STORY. I shouldn't have to make 1k word posts to explain this. I'll do it because I love him with my whole heart, but still.

I begged and pleaded for months for BBEG Viktor (I'm really proud of my predictions from October), but by introducing a villain/conflict beyond the Piltover/Zaun dichotomy, Riot severed all threads of class conflict that were so rife and exciting in season 1. The proletariat and the bourgeoise will never coalesce like they did by the end of 2x09 without systemic revolution. Sevika is just one individual. Ekko's people need him. Jinx and Viktor are gone. Vi is downtrodden, and we have SO LITTLE to show for it.

In summary, we just didn't get enough explicit explanation of any character development to make Arcane-As-Tragedy successful. They did not stick the landing. The finale leaves us all with various bad tastes in our mouth. Instead of lamenting the harsh reality of oppression, I'm confused about what Riot prioritizes and agrees with, what they aim to criticize, and what they condemn.

I'll die on the hill that revoking Viktor's agency has the potential to be one of the greatest tragic hero storylines I've ever seen, but it's a lonely hill because I'm fighting against the writing team's consistent flops. At least Balayage Viktor was so gorgeous.

shameless self plug for my earlier discussion about the innate political clashes in season 1 that were abandoned for flashy fantasy fights in season 2:

[i-smoke-chapstick]

damn ur last pengy smut was 🔥🔥🔥 in those 3 imagines with him ive read u write the character so fucking accurate like u actually feel him. can we have more of a needy bird boy? smth with him being all pent up but not wanting the reader to think he only sees her like that? powerful men are hot when vulnerable😈

'CURTAINS,

-GOTHAM!OSWALD COBBLEPOT X READER-

⋆ 𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒 ; really just oswald and reader fucking.

⋆ tags/warnings. small GOTHAM!oswald x female reader. SMUT!!!! Somewhat of a character study but not really. Oswald wants to be a gentleman so bad. Inspired by Frankie Carbone's death scene in 1x07. Oswald being needy. Bondage. Oswald's canon praise kink. Lots of open-mouthed kisses because he can't help himself.

♫ “It's not over till it's over baby. / I stepped outside myself so transcending. / The lights go dim and every sin, that ever was, will always be a perfect part of me.” Curtains by Jackie Vae

He can't help it. He never can. Deep down he's just a silly, love-starved little boy. You've struck him, amused him, amazed him. How could he not gift you with whatever you wish? His true love. How you stay with him enthralls him everyday. Maybe that's why he can't help himself.

He was raised to be a gentleman. He was supposed to be saving himself. For marriage. He dreamed of that night for so long. Perhaps, it's came a bit early.

Every bit of you is on fire. Your arms tied to the bedframe, chained together by his own sleeve garters. You watched as he took every inch of you in, savoring you like the wine he adores. Enchanting blue-green eyes mesmerized by your every breath, every moan, every sound he elicits with every thrust.

The way he speaks. Murmured praises on his parched lips, aching to speed up.

"Good girl." He whispers, half-incoherently, expression twisted into a grimace of pure ecstasy. His chest rises and falls as he pants on top of you, hanging onto threads of self-control.

"So good to me. So precious, baby. So good." He's babbling, moving as slow as he can, feeling his cock piercing you deep. When you cry out, trying to bounce against him through your restraints, body begging for more friction, he has the kindness to offer you a quick chuckle.

"Patience, my dear." He whispers against your lips, coming down to kiss away your eagerness. His tongue sweeps the bottom of your mouth, begging to taste you. It feels warm and wet, the way he worships you.

"I have no more patience." You whimper, yelping against him and his defiance. He half-heartedly rolls his eyes, clicking his tongue. Such a brat. He thinks. His beautiful brat.

His hand traverses up your body, jaw-clenched tight as he moves against you; still inside your core. He grabs your face in his fingers, offering you just a taste. A particular hard thrust causes the both of you to moan, his hips stuttering. He throws his head back as he groans, taking the time to savor the feeling.

He wants too speak. Talk down to you. Tell you you're behaving like a slut, a hussy, but he knows it'd be hypocritical, seeing as how he's tied you up like his own personal gift. He cringes in pleasure before opting to take the leather between his teeth- keeping eye-contact with you, as he pulls away to untie your restraints. Self-control be damned.

Those big beautiful colorful eyes of his, they never leave your own. Now untied, your hands immediately go to his back, forcing him up and down. His pace finally speeds up.

The world around you is a blur as he cradles your head. He looks down at you, his mouth open and eyebrows together. He pounds into you- and you feel the mattress shake. You watch his face contort in euphoria, and scrunch together with a sharp intake of air as he reaches his orgasm.

As you both cum, sticky ropes filling you up, he leans in. An intimate kiss placed to your lips, slow and all-consuming. And another, placed to your forehead. He rocks back and forth as finishes, gently hushing you and your cries of pleasure through his own shakiness. You feel how he pets your hair, still fucking you through your orgasm.

He finally rests his forehead against your own- breathing against your mouth, still kissing and sucking the ghosts of kisses on your lips.

He can't help himself. He never can. You're too lovely.

[geronimomo-spd]

and there we go! the full Confidential Archive!

here are all the episodes, according to tardis wiki list, including all of the mini specials and chrismas specials and most if not all in good quality! the full list of everything is under the cut because yeah, its a longgg list!

all in order, including some youtube videos and dvd rips hehe, all according the the tardis wiki list

SERIES 1 -

1x00 - A New Dimension (a prolog to season one, narrated by David Tennant)

1x01 - (rose)

1x03 - (the unquiet dead)

1x04 - (aliens of london)

1x05 - (world war 3)

1x06 - (dalek)

1x07 - (the long game)

1x08 - (father's day)

1x09 - (the empty child)

1x10 - (the doctor dances)

1x11 - (boom town)

1x12 - (bad wolf)

1x13.1 - The Ultimate Guide (another little documentary right before

parting of the ways, about key aspects about filming the season)

1x13.2 - (parting of the ways)

1x14 - Backstage at Christmas (the nine minutes they gave us from some of behind the scenes of The Christmas Invasion)

SEIRES 2 -

2x00 - One Year On (a general preview for season 2, including the series 2 press launch, a lot more behind the scenes of The Christmas Invasion and some Torchwood stuff)

2x01 - (new earth)

2x02 - (tooth and claw)

2x03 - (school reunion)

2x04 - (the girl in the fireplace)

2x05 - (rise of the cyberman)

2x06 - (the age of steel)

2x07 - (the idiot's lantern)

2x08 - (the impossible planet)

2x09 - (the satan pit)

2x10 - (love & monsters) - (featuring the winning of the contest of designing a monster)

2x11 - (fear her)

2x12 - (army of ghosts)

2x13 - (doomsday)

2x14 - Music and Monsters (the behind the scenes of doctor who's first music show, including some behind the scenes stuff of The Runaway Bride)

SERIES 3 -

3x01 - (smith and jones)

3x02 - (the shakespear code)

3x03 - (gridlock)

3x04 - (daleks in manhattan)

3x05 - (evolution of the daleks)

3x06 - (the lazarus experiment)

3x05 - (42)

3x06 - (human nature)

3x07 - (the family of blood)

3x08 - (blink)

3x11 - (utopia)

3x12 - (the sound of drums)

3x13.1 - (last of the time lords)

3x13.2 - Children in Need Special (the behind the scenes of the special where 10 meets 5, really cute stuff)

3x14.1 - Kylie Special (series 3 christmas special. version 1 - the full version in less of a good quality i found on youtube, bless this youtube channel honestly)

3x14.2 - Kylie Special (series 3 christmas special. version 2 - the shorter version that was up on iplayer)

3x14.3 - Kylie Special (series 3 christmas special. version 3 - the version i edited to include the low quality parts that were missing with the good quality shorter version)

SERIES 4 (INCLUDING THE SPECIALS) -

4x01 - (partners in crime)

4x02 - (the fiers of pompaii)

4x03 - (planet of the ood)

4x04 - (the sontaran stratagem)

4x05 - (the doctor's daughter)

4x06 - (the posion sky)

4x07 - (the unicorn and the wasp)

4x08 - (silence in the library)

4x09 - (forest of the dead)

4x10 - (midnight)

4x11 - (turn left)

4x12 - (the stolen earth)

4x13 - (journey's end)

4x14.1 - The Journey (So Far) (a documentary about the entire show so far)

4x14.2 - Confidential Christmas 2008 (behind the scenes of The Next Doctor christmas special)

4x14.3 - Doctor Who: Top 5 Christmas Moments (a sort of confidential behind the scenes clip show of all of the episodes set at christmas)

4x15.1 - At the Proms 2008 (behind the scenes of doctor who at the proms 2008)

4x15.2 - The Eleventh Doctor (the special they used to announce Matt Smith as the new doctor who)

4x15.3 - Desert Storm (behind the scenes of Planet Of The Dead)

4x16 - Is There Life on Mars? (behind the scenes of The Waters Of Mars)

4x17 - Lords and Masters (behind the scenes of The End Of Time, Part One)

4x18 - Allons-y! (behind the scenes of The End Of Time, Part Two. version 1 - full dvd version)

4x18 - Allons-y! (behind the scenes of The End Of Time, Part Two. version 2 - shortend higher quality version from iplayer, this version has a song in the soundtrack that is diffrent from the dvd version, this is the most accurate version to what aired on tv at the time)

SERIES 5-

5x01 - (the eleventh hour)

5x02 - (the beast below)

5x03 - (victory of the daleks)

5x04 - (the time of angels)

5x05 - (flesh and stone)

5x06 - (the vampires of venice)

5x07 - (amy's choice)

5x08 - (the hungry earth)

5x09 - (cold blood)

5x10.1 - (vincent and the doctor)

5x10.2 Monster Files: The Daleks (a little documentary about victory of the daleks/daleks in general)

5x11 - (the lodger)

5x12 - (the pandorica opens)

5x13 - (the big bang)

5x14.1 - Monster Files: The Weeping Angels (a little documentary about the weeping angels episodes this season)

5x14.2 - Monster Files: The Silurians (a little documentary about the silurian episodes)

5x14.3.1 - Monster Files: The Alliance (a little documentary about the alliance of monsters from the pandoica opens)

5x14.3.2 - Backstage at the Doctor Who Prom 2010 (behind the scenes of doctor who at the proms 2010)

5x14.4.1 - Charlie McDonnell - Runner (the first Charlle behind the scenes videos, pretty quiet - Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

5.14.4.2 - Charlie McDonnell - TARDIS (another Charlie video, she explores the tardis set this time -Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

5x14.4.3 - Charlie McDonnell - Decorating Bus (another Charlie video, she decorates the food place with christmas decorations, i liked them Charlie - Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

5x14.4.4 - Charlie McDonnell - Christmas Presents (badger) (the famus Charlie video where she brings the cast and crew presents! this is where Matt gets his badger puppet - Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

5x14.5 - Christmas Special 2010 (behind the scenes of A Christmas Carol)

SERIES 6 -

6x01.1 - (the impossible astronaut)

6x01.2 - My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen (a special memorial for the late Elisabth Sladen 😭😭)

6x02 - (day of the moon)

6x03 - (the curse of the black spot)

6x04 - (the doctor's wife)

6x05 - (the rebel flesh)

6x06 - (the almost people)

6x07.1 - Charlie McDonnell interviews Neil Gaiman (Charlie interviews Neil Gaiman, appewrently causing some ruckes on Charlie's blog at the time hehe - Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

6x07.2 - (a good man goes to war)

6x07.3 - The Monster Files: The Silence (a little documentary on the silence, thank god because i needed that)

6x07.4 - The Monster Files: The Gangers (a little documentary on the gangers, my beloveds)

6x07.5 - Charlie McDonnell Becomes A Dalek (the last Charlie video, released late because it had the 1-4 tardis set, also she gets to ride a dalek in this one - Currently not up on the archives as Charlie has expressed the need to remove her old videos)

6x08 - (lets kill hitler)

6x09 - (night terrors)

6x10 - (the girl who waited)

6x11 - (the god complex)

6x12 - (closing time)

6x13.1 - (the wedding of river song)

6x13.2 - The Monster Files: The Antibodies (a little documentary on the antibodies from lets kill hitler)

6x13.3 - The Monster Files: The Cybermats (a little documentary on the little adorable cybermates because awww)

6x14 - The Nights' Tale (a little documentary on on the nights mini episodes! the last confidential stuff ever made rip)

[vegancas]

MISHA COLLINS as HARVEY DENT in GOTHAM KNIGHTS ↳ 1x07 BAD TO BE GOOD

[piratekane]

what r some of ur fav kacy moments?

a FANTASTIC question. here's a top ten in no particular order:

the parking lot scene. kate is not the bad guy! let's kiss under the parking lot lights! they did not go get that beer and i love that for them.

that one scene in season 3 where kate is bringing ernie mochi and lucy says that kate is looking fantastic today. something about that whole interaction just... got me. the grin on lucy's face. the way kate smiles back over her shoulder. pls tell me about your acting choices and why they made that 15 second scene endearing.

first date reenactment. those freakin dorks, i swear to god. kate's "well, i don't seem like a lot of things" lives rent-free in my head.

OF COURSE the scene in 3x04 where they have to dip into that storeroom to avoid the bad guy and they're, like, 2 inches away from each other. maybe i've watched that a few times.

the first kiss in the pilot. i'm split equally between the original airing with the smash cut kiss and the extended scene because i originally thought that lucy initiated the kiss, but finding out that kate was the one... mind-blowing.

the 2x01 episode kisses (plural!) because i love domestic kacy. i could write about that allllll day. i was not expecting lucy to straight up (ha) get into kate's lap at the outro of that episode. sigh. that was such an opening episode.

kate waiting at lucy's desk in 1x10 after the whole finger business. i just loved how kate said she was more comfortable with things at dinner and then just casually sits at lucy's desk waiting for her to come back (which is why 1x11 is so fucking crushing).

the scene in that episode in season 2 where lucy is helping Joe, the sailor with the memory problem. and joe elbows her in the jaw and lucy and kate are in the kitchen in the office and kate is snippy because she's worried. i'm not mad kate says, definitely not happy.

and speaking of lucy being beat up... the scene in 1x07 (? maybe) where lucy agrees that secrets can be fun and kate ducks her head and says something like, "want to tell me more about secerts" or whatever (i am not searching for the lingo, sorry). like, goodness. kate. relax.

the 'move in' scene where kate is so far behind on the conversation and she's just blinking as lucy explodes. i love a good "why are we fighting?" "we're not!" in shouty volumes and then the break in the tension where they realize they're definitely arguing scene. and they did this one perfectly.

okay, that was a nice little walk through my mind. now i need to go watch all these scenes (shoutout to the people who upload their scenes to youtube, they're the real ones).

[cateyeswrites]

Not gonna lie Karadec was so supportive 😭 he obviously is doing his job by playing devils advocate with Morgan about Sam because sometimes good people do bad things but he wanted to believe in Morgan and Sam and I think the actor who plays Karadec does a great job with the expressions!

Maybe I’m insane

Anyways watch me write 1000 fanfics about 1x07

[lucianalight]

Magic, storytelling, Time and Death

or my scattered thoughts on Agatha All Along 1x07

"The felow of time is an illusion."

"Your path winds out of time."

This is consistent world building. Sth mcu lacked for a long time. Now I don't know whether this was planned or not. But the way they handled Lilia's connection to time, is consistent with Loki Series and general world building of mcu.

For someone out of it, time is an ever changing chaotic tree. The flow of it is only felt by people who live in it. And for each of their choices a new timeline appears. And if someone go back in time, they can't really change their past because then their future becomes their past and a new timeline appears which wouldn't be theirs.

I spent some time thinking about whether what happened to Lilia was time slipping the same as Loki. It's not. Loki could move through time and space and could cause changes and control the events to a certain point.

Lilia's task is not to control but to see. She can glimpse through her life but can't change anything. Which brings us to one of the central themes of Loki series this episode touched: The connection between magic and storytelling. The safe passage spread is basically a cycle of hero's journey. And in this trial the hero is Lilia. As the coven are the travellers in the Road and as Agatha is the protagonist of the story.

What makes Loki the god of stories in mcu is his ability to rewrite the story, the story being the singular "sacred timeline", by letting everyone write their own stories. Therefore what a divination witch can do is reading others' stories as well as writing their own.

This connection to stories also shows itself with the theme of the trial. Sure it's because of the stereotypes Lilia hate too but it also speaks of the power of stories. I found it interesting that all of them were cosplaying as classic evil witches except Lilia who I assume is Glinda. A hint to their personality? Like the new Maleficent movies show her as a character who is both a hero and a villain. Perhaps hinting at the same potential for Billy/William and his identity issues? Not to mention there's sth weird going on with Billy and the Road as others mentioned before. Billy starting all the trials. Lilia appearing just a he wished she was there. The blue lighting in the road. Lilia's cryptic "because you need me now". It could simply be sarcasm but it could mean sth more.

But then this means Jen would be evil? And I'm highly doubtful of that. She isn't set up like that. It would be a good twist though. What is certain about her is that she is the path ahead. Seems like she plays a vital role in future episodes and possibly gets her powers back. (She's also Lilia's sister in craft. Not just as a witch. I think that broom exchange possibly creates a deeper bond. Another evidence against her being evil).

The destination is Death. I'm curious about how they're going to explore the concept of Death as the original green witch. She's set up to be an antagonist and seems like to be the big baddy at the end. I have some doubts though. All roads lead to Death(unless you're Loki :D) but it's not necessary a bad thing. Why Death would be the antagonist? Isn't meeting it what we all have in common as Lilia's teacher said? And that in a larger scale makes all of us, all the living, a coven? "We are one" etc? Someone said Rio Vidal means the river of life. It is such a poetic take on Death to make it what brings everyone to the hypothetical sea. I don't know why she would be a villain and not a neutral entity.

Speaking of Death, is Wanda really dead? Yes, no, maybe(Thor's answer every time someone asks him whether Loki's dead :P :D ). The only other person aside from Agatha who we are sure saw her body is Rio. But she never said Wanda's dead, she said "that witch is gone". Maybe this means the scarlet witch is gone but Wanda survived?

If she returns though she's going to have to deal with Billy's new mom, her ex bestfriend turned enemy turned adoptive mom to her son and Billy's mommy issues with two of his moms.

Before the destination though there will be a great transformation. It was about Lilia in this episode but also it's about Agatha our main protagonist who is being more truthful and visibly protective and lowering her walls and yet Billy doesn't trust her and questions everything and it hurts her. She represented the obstacles in tarot. Her grief, sorrow and heartbreak are her obstacles.

The episode takes us through the story of its hero in a nonchronological order as she experienes it. And the hero goes through her journey and bravely faces her fear and overcomes it as she forshadows what's about to come. It's starts and ends with falling. A full circle. A story arc within a story arc.

[cuddlytogas]

an incomplete list of terrible but extremely popular Our Flag Means Death takes that I would like to never see again please

(and I do mean popular, as in, lots of people seem to think they're canon, to the point where I feel slightly insane and like I was watching a different show to everyone else)

1. Ed's mum was loving and nice and supportive, if hampered by her bad situation

this comes up more in fic than analysis, to be fair, but good god, what show were some of you watching? this isn't to vilify her, because yeah, she's clearly a product of colonialism, white christian supremacy, and domestic abuse, but like. that doesn't make how she raised Ed good. clearly she was trying to keep him safe, but "we don't deserve nice things", and especially "it's not up to us, it's up to god", speaks to me of someone who squashes down any ambition on her son's part, has fully bought into the lies of christian colonialism, and tries to pass them down to her son.

as does happen in colonised communities, particularly among older generations. I know us white people like to think that every indigenous person is a perfect left-wing anti-imperial activist, but that's simply not the case, and Ed's mum is so clearly an example of an older conservative christian indigenous parent who had to believe the lies told by their coloniser in order to survive, but is now passing on that trauma to their children. and I just...

if I read one more fic where Ed's mum is a perfect loving supportive angel who always believed in her kid and always supported and protected him, I'm gonna scream. yes, it's sweet, and it's fun to sometimes veer from canon and give your blorbo nice things, but it's still veering from canon. and yet, I see very few people acknowledge that, or actually talk about the nuances of Ed's mother, and how she definitely tried to protect him, but was far from sweet, doting, and unconditionally supportive.

2. Ed's loving look when Stede is picking food from his beard in 1x07

like most of these things, I enjoyed it as a joke or exaggeration at first, until I realised that people were actually being serious. but every time I watch that scene, I see Ed looking absently-mindedly over Stede's shoulder, because a) that's what you do when someone leans in to pick something off you, and b) surely the point of the scene is that they're so comfortable and easy together that they don't notice the intimacy of what they're doing, but Lucius, an outside observer, thinks it's obvious. right?? I can't be the only one seeing it???

[sigh]

anyway. finally, the really really big one:

3. Ed is a soft uwu babygirl princess femme bottom sub who loves her cat collar and is teaching Stede how to dom him in the "say you're the captain" scene

I mean, there's not much to say except to link to duke's absolutely phenomenal twitter thread about "how the 'babygirlfication' and infantilization of ofmd ed teach is an extension of racist perceptions of indigenous men being inherently violent and thus needing to be emasculated to be considered sympathetic"

but especially That One Fucking Scene, good lord. talk about taking shit out of context. everyone looked at a slowed-down gif of one shot in the trailer and cried "babygirl!! he's such a simp, he just wants to be dommed!!", when actually that scene is about how a) Stede is cringefail and terrible at being a typical harsh, commanding pirate, and b) Ed is lovingly embarrassed by this. he encourages Stede to assert himself (and give Ed something to do during his probation/help him make amends with the crew), but like. normally. he's acting perfectly normal in that scene, and mostly annoyed by the outfit and embarrassed by how badly Stede fails. but just because he's sitting down while Stede is standing, and he happens to take a breath in that one shot (because, you know, people breathe sometimes), everyone's doubled down on their "submissive babygirl" bullshit, and I can't get the fuck away from it.

which - listen, it's fun for me, too! it's fun to explore exaggerated aspects of a character, it's fun to read/write/draw that angle in smut, I get it! but I keep seeing people keep claim it's literally canon, and I cannot stress enough that that is Straight Up False. for the love of god, please just watch the show without your (potentially kinda racist) bias glasses on, and remember to treat the characters with respect instead of projecting onto their every interaction a shallow dom/sub binary just because you find it hot.

Our Flag is a show very specifically about masculinity, and what it means to be a man; how assumptions about that can harm and restrict men; and how men can grow beyond them. it's a nuanced and sympathetic examination of this. the whole point is that Ed is allowed to like nice fabrics and be tired of violent piracy and still be a man. the point is that two men fall in love - equal, honest, sincere love - and are still men, still exactly who they are.

(on that note, insisting that Ed is canonically trans or femme because of these things often ends up just leaning into gendered stereotypes: men are harsh and active and dominant, and women are soft and passive and submissive, and if Ed's not the former, he must be the latter, right? it also tends to hetero-ify the central relationship, casting Stede as "the boy" and Ed as "the girl", needing one to be masc and one femme. not always, and again, I understand and have enjoyed transformative works that take those elements and run with them, and explore what the story could be like if Ed were trans/nb/etc - but it's still a transformative interpretation. it's not canon.)

relatedly: those fucking wedding toppers! it seemed blatantly obvious to me that half the point of those scenes was that Ed is distraught and blaming himself for Stede leaving because he wasn't the ideal partner. it's his entire arc for the first half of season 2! Ed hates himself and believes there's something wrong about him that makes him unlovable. so he keeps and then discards the wedding toppers, painting himself onto one of them, because he's projecting himself onto an image of ideal/successful romantic love that he thinks Stede wants, and in which he doesn't fit. he's trying to mould himself into someone else to make himself lovable, not realising that Stede already loves him for himself.

so it's important to the whole narrative that Ed's yearning for/projection onto the wedding toppers is false, and born from his insecurity. he gets drunk, and play-acts a stereotypical image of romantic happiness into which he doesn't fit, but real love looks nothing like that, because real love isn't found in stifling hegemonic cultural structures, but honest, emotional connections between people allowed to be their whole, vulnerable selves. Stede is not like the groom, and Ed is not like the bride, because they shouldn't have to be. Ed should not (and does not) have to warp himself into a demure bride in order to be worthy of love: he's already lovable and loved exactly as he is! that's the point!! of the scene!!!!!!

like, it's important that the groom figure isn't actually like Stede, either. yes, it's blond and has a nice, peach-coloured suit, but a) Stede was very specifically unhappy in the posh, heterosexual, married state the figures represent, and b) Stede by this point looks nothing like that figurine. it's directly contrasted with the image of him in the rowboat, scruffy and plain and earnestly in love, rather than fancy, cold ceramic.

[EDIT 29/12/24: I ended up writing a whole Twitter essay about the wedding cake toppers that I then gussied up for Tumblr; so if you want a clearer, more substantial, and better supported argument about those, check that out!]

but no, I have to wade through swathes of art and fic and meta about how badly Ed wants to be a sweet little demure kitty princess, how he wants a wedding night and a ring to prove he's Stede's property, and acting as if this is somehow canon, because people on the internet have zero reading comprehension and are scared of brown men.

the whole point of Our Flag is that you don't need to compress yourself into prescribed social roles, and in fact, doing so will only make you miserable; and that racist, patriarchal, colonial institutions should be resisted and dismantled at every opportunity.

so tell me again why the ultimate message is that Ed and Stede should get married under an arch in front of an altar and their lined-up friends, with flowers and rice falling around them, all dressed in white, one in a suit and one in a dress, with rings and a kiss and a honeymoon after, before they move into a detached house with a yard and a fence and re-adopt the kids that Stede abandoned? and this isn't about promises, fidelity, or even monogamy - I'm specifically talking about everyone in this fandom who seems to think that the ultimate goal is the most stereotypical 20th century cisheteropatriarchal christian wedding, but with the name "matelotage" slapped on top, as if that takes away all of the underlying baggage.

just - I know we're all meant to hate men and masculinity and yadda yadda yadda, but actually, to be earnest for a second, men deserve respect too, because all people and all genders do. and two men are allowed to be in a relationship and still both be men - complex men, with their own, layered relationships to their gender - without having to fall into neatly-arranged dom/sub masc/femme roles, or seal the deal with a hegemonically-approved ceremony.

so please, stop reducing an indigenous lead character to a caricature of a femme uwu princess bottom just because he has long hair, wore a robe once, and you're too scared of brown men to imagine him with proper agency. and then please, for the love of god, stop claiming that that interpretation is canon.

[i-believe-in-melinda-may]

Okay, i really enjoyed that: thoughts on 1x07

THIS Is what 1x06 should have been, an episode where you learnt the characters backstory and yet still moved the story forward. SPOILERS BELOW

"Want a straight answer ask a straight lady" that was epic

I LOVED that the one thing Agatha said Billy can't ask about is Rio.

'What can i say, i like the bad boys..." Agatha you are my queen.

I really like the Jen/Lilia bonding, Jen pisses me off a lot but i really liked her in this episode.

I will have to give a couple more re-watches to get it all but i like how they tied everything from the past together.

Rio as Death was EPIC

"HEARTBREAK"- For Agatha... oh this is going to hurt.

"When she calls you coward hit the deck"-that's going to be Rio saying that isn't it....

I am sooo sad about Lilia, i loved her so much, i don't know if i am going to be able to keep her alive for the story i am writing but i'll see.

Tarror proving that Agatha is telling the truth... interesting.

There was a noticeable pause between EX and Friend when talking about Wanda... .right.

I did love Jen being so confused but just going along with everything

Jen becoming High Prentiss, ohhh that is good.

I figured about half way through that Lilia was dead/about to die, but i was still holding out that she wasn't. RIP Lilia i love you.

Rio not being in this episode actually made sense and i didn't hate as much, BECAUSE we still got the others.

I'll watch again later today to see if there is anything else i wanted to talk about.

SO 1X08 IS GOING TO BE AGATHARIO HISTORY RIGHT?? RIGHT???

[bronx-bomber87]

The Rookie Reviews Season's 1-6 Master List. Will be Pinned To Blog for Easy Access. S6 in a seperate link at bottom of list. S7 coming Summer of 25’

Top Eps Listed Season's-1-4 Made a ranking list my fave eps for an ask. Wanted to include in this list.

Started: 5/13/23

Last Updated : 10/05/24

Works: 108

Season 1

1x01-Pilot

1x02-Crash Course

1x03-The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

1x04-The Switch

1x05-The Roundup

1x06-The Hawke

1x07-The Ride Along

1x08-Time Of Death

1x09-Standoff

1x10-Flesh and Blood

1x11-Redwood

1x12-Heartbreak

1x13-Caught Stealing

1x14-Plain Clothes Day

1x15-Manhunt

1x16-Greenlight

1x17-The Shakeup

1x18-Homefront

1x19-Checklist

1x20-Freefall

Season 2

2x01-Impact

2x02-The Night General

2x03-The Bet

2x04-Warriors and Guardians

2x05-Tough Love

2x06-Fallout

2x07-Safety

2x08-Clean Cut

2x09-Breaking Point

2x10-The Dark Side

2x11-Day Of Death

2x12 Now and Then

2x13-Follow Up Day

2x14-Casualties

2x15-Hand Off

2x16-The Overnight

2x17-Control

2x18-Under The Gun

2x19-The Q Word

2x20-The Hunt

Season 3

3x01-Consequences

3x02-In-Justice

3x03-La-Fiera

3x04-Sabotage

3x05-Lockdown

3x06-Revelations

3x07-True Crime

3x08-Bad Blood

3x09-Amber

3x10-Man Of Honor

3x11-New Blood

3x12-Brave Heart

3x13-Triple Duty

3x14-Threshold

Season 4

4x01-Life and Death

4x02-Five Minutes

4x03-In the Line Of Fire

4x04-Red Hot

4x05-A.C.H

4x06-Poetic Justice

4x07-Fire Fight

4x08-Hit and Run

4x09-Breakdown

4x10-Heart Beat

4x11-End Game

4x12-The Knock

4x13-Fight or Flight

4x14-Long Shot

4x15-Hit List

4x16-Real Crime

4x17-Coding

4x18-Backstabbers

4x19/4x20-Simone/Envervo

4x21-Mother's Day

4x22-Day In The Hole

Season 5

5x01-Double Down

5x02-Labor Day

5x03-Dye Hard

5x04-The Choice

5x05-The Fugitive

5x06-The Reckoning

5x07-Crossfire

5x08-The Collar

5x09-Take Back

5x10-The List

5x11-The Naked and The Dead

5x12-Death Notice

5x13-Daddy Cop

5x14-Death Sentence

5x15-The Con

5x16-Exposure

5x17-The Enemy Within

5x18-Double Trouble

5x19-A Hole in the World

5x20-S.T.R

5x21-Going Under

5x22-Under Siege

Season 6 Separate Post

[taylorkellyreporting]

i hope no one minds if i inconsistently liveblog this bitch: doctor who season one from 1x04

1x04

HELLO??

A WHOLE YEAR???

shit

“you’re 900 years old?” “yeah.” “my mum was right, that is one hell of an age gap.” lmfaooo

“i’m the only person who knows it exists.” spoke too soon

damn, he left her. i wonder if the key he gave her was even real.

it was a pig 😭

OH NOOOO

every time they get separated, shit goes off the rails

IS HE GONNA KILL HER MOM?!

1x05

girl, FUCK the emergency protocols

“sorry.” 😭

that shit was intense

“my mother’s cooking.” “good, put her on a slow heat and let her simmer.” CACKLING

i feel so bad for her mom :(

1x06

this episode really is…something.

why the fuck is the doctor just offering up all of this information???

he really should have seen this coming

*pretends to be shocked*

their cockiness is gonna get them killed

i never want rose and the doctor to be separated EVER again

“what use are emotions if you won’t save the woman that you love?” damn

don’t know how i feel about this dude joining them

1x07

“he’s your boyfriend.” “not anymore.” did i miss something???

something’s wrong…

is that guy dead?

i don’t trust adam at all

rose is so stupid. i could understand if it was mickey she was trusting but she doesn’t even know this man

huh, that was unexpected.

what the actual fuck

1x08

this ep’s gonna be so sad

the doctor never should’ve taken her to that day

“alright, i’ll tell him you’re not my boyfriend.” obsessed with her thinking that was the issue 😭

not important but jackie looks really good with her hair like that

well. that was heartbreaking.

1x09

sorry, but if a kid wearing a fucking plague mask was repeatedly saying “mummy” in an eerie voice, i would have turned and walked the other way. r.i.p. to rose but i’m different

what part of “don’t answer it.” is hard to understand? lmao

“excellent bottom.” gross.

i know i sound like a broken record but what the fuck?!

this is one creepy ass episode

this dude is coming on so strong dkgjgks

“finally, a professional.” rose, be serious.

“they’re not dead.” okay.

girl, what the fuck?

1x10

i can’t believe that worked lmfaooo

“those would’ve been terrible last words.” 😭

“half this street thinks your missus must be messing about with mr haverstock, the butcher. but she’s not, is she? you are.” SCREAMING

“i sent it to its room. this is its room.”

that’s fucking terrifying

“the first day i met him, he blew my job up. that’s practically how he communicates.” pls

“okay, so he’s vanished into thin air. why is it always the great- looking ones who do that?” “i’m making an effort to not be insulted.” “i mean…men.” “okay, thanks, that really helped.” fkfhhgdj

i hate jack for interrupting their dance. IT WAS JUST GETTING GOOD.

“carry on with whatever you were…doing.” “we were talking about dancing.” “it didn’t look like talking.” “didn’t feel like dancing.” 😭

these episodes are so fucking creepy but they’re definitely the best of the season

oh my God, he’s her son

THEY’RE DANCING 🥹

1x11

i can’t wait for mickey’s reaction to jack

“trust me, safest place in the universe.” famous last words

i hope the doctor doesn’t trust her

poor mickey

“it’s always the doctor, it’s never me.” buddy you should’ve known you weren’t first choice when she left you in the beginning

she’s an egg 😭

1x12

i almost don’t want to press play.

lmao, what the hell

it always comes back to floor 500

oh shit, the doctor cause all of that?

WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK

rose can’t be dead

THANK GOD

i can’t believe the daleks actually survived

1x13

i’m not ready to say goodbye to nine

rose is getting a taste of her own medicine with the doctor and lynda djfjgjs

HE KISSED THEM BOTH 😭 I LOVE JACK

i can feel my heart breaking

who the fuck is bad wolf if it isn’t the daleks???

mickey’s really getting on my nerves this ep

HELLO

“there’s nothing left for me here.” ‘nothing?” “no.” she’s RUTHLESS 😭 but honestly he shouldn’t be surprised at this point

JACK ☹️

“i am the bad wolf.” BITCH???? WHAT????

i got my kiss but at what cost

OH SHIT THEY LEFT JACK

all i feel is pain

that’s it??? how am i ever going to move on from eccleston? how the hell are you guys strong enough do this every season? cause i’ll tell you how i’m doing: not well, bitch!!

[imminent-danger-came]

What the Legos Want

MK: "I just- I don't want to let my friends down, you know? It's like, I want to help out in the store, do arts and crafts with Sandy, and party with M-m-m-Mei! Mei! But it's to hard, I'm just one guy!"

(1x02 Duplicatnation)

-

MK: "Okay! I did bad, I just- I really wanted that peach, and I guess I got carried away."

(1x06 The Great Wall Race)

-

Sun Wukong: "Take in everything! Choose what you want to do, and then do it! That is focus."

(1x07 Impossible Delivery)

-

MK: "I just wanted to be good enough—like you."

(1x09 Macaque)

-

MK: "It's like- I want to be strong, and I'm trying to be! But it- it's like Monkey King isn't giving me a chance! *sigh* What if- what if he knows he made a mistake—chose wrong, chose the wrong successor?"

(2x07 Shadow Play)

-

Sandy: "Hurting others isn't a measure of one's strength—took me a really long time to realize that. As long as I'm doing something to help out a friend, I don't mind what it is! I just want to be there for 'em when they need me."

(2x08 To Catch a Leaf)

-

Sun Wukong: "You want me to leave it, and I want me to take it! Eh, it's toughy." Ne Zha: "What!? Don't do this! Sun Wukong: "I'm sorry—it's the only way!"

(3x01 On The Run)

-

MK: “Why are you helping her—Lady Bone Demon—like, look, I get that you’re a bad guy, but you know that she wants to destroy everything, right?”

-

Sandy: "I don't want to fight, but I can't let you hurt my friends!"

(3x04 The Winning Side)

-

Sun Wukong: "What? You got what you wanted didn't you? Not gonna gloat? Monologue a little before scurrying off to your master? Go on! The Lady Bone Demon is waiting." Macaque: "I couldn't care less about what the Lady Bone Demon wants!"

(3x09 The King, the Prince, and the Shadow)

-

Mei: "I can't! I don't want to hurt you—any of you! I'm sorry."

-

Mei: "No! Stay back! I- I don't want to hurt you!"

(3x10 The Samadhi Fire)

-

The Mayor: "All my lady ever desired was a world no longer plagued by pain—until the Monkey King and his companions got in the way. Fate however has gifted her a second chance!"

(3x13 Time to be Warriors) (Desired, wanted, same thing.)

-

Lady Bone Demon: "Save your hero speech child—I've existed long enough to know when it's over. MK: "You still think that the universe really wants anything, from any of us?" Lady Bone Demon: "Don't you?"

(3x14 Destiny Fulfilled)

-

Macaque: "Still the same Wukong, doing whatever he wants with no regard for others!"

(3x14 Destiny Fulfilled)

-

Sun Wukong: "It's actually amazing how quickly you're mastering your powers—when I was your age-"

MK: "-You were fighting the celestial armies and generally swinging your big ol' tail around to get what you wanted?" Sun Wukong: "Well I was going to say making regrettable life choices but yeah, thanks for laying out. I'm embarrassed to admit it but—you might have actually already done more for this world that I ever have!"

(4x01 Familiar Tales)

-

Mei: “What’s the point of having power if you won’t use it? Don’t you have people you want to protect?”

(4x05 Court of the Yellow Robed Demon)

-

Sandy: “But you were too WEAK to be who you truly are! I am a monster! That’s what the world wants me to be, so that’s what I’m gonna give ‘em!”

(4x06 Show Me the Monster)

-

Curse MK: "Hey no no no- I get it man. You want to get back to our monster of the week adventures, get back to our simple missions with Mei, mastering all of Monkey King's powers and delivering noodles for pigsy. Right?" MK: "Yeah...yeah actually that's exactly what I wanna-" Curse MK: "But we can't! Not after all we've seen! All we know and all we don't? *sigh* Right friend?"

(4x07 Pitiful Creatures)

-

Azure Lion: "No no—this isn't what I wanted! All you had to do was wait, after this was all over I was going to release Sun Wukong, help him see reason! That is now impossible—not after what you've done!"

-

MK: “No matter what I do, it’s going to lead to pain. It’s like the Lady Bone Demon said—it doesn’t matter if I want to help people or not! Everything I do just- it just makes things worse!”

(4x08 The Brotherhood)

-

Macaque: "Point is, it’s time to start making your own choices—something I wish I would have learned a lot sooner than I did. You don’t want to fight Azure because people might get hurt, you don’t want to not fight him because people might get hurt–so do something else! Only you get to decide who you are kiddo.”

(4x10 The Jade Emperor)

-

Sun Wukong: "Ah, don't be like that! Eat some fruit, soak up the sun—that's why I've been training so hard!" Macaque: "What, so you can be the strongest?" Sun Wukong: "Nooo! Well, maybe a little bit—but that's not the point! It's so we don't have to worry about anything or anyone ever again! Just living a lazy life, sitting in the sun, eatin' fruit, and doing whatever we want!"

-

Sun Wukong: "I just wanted to protect the people I cared about—to be strong enough. I lost sight of why I was doing any of it."

-

Macaque: "You did it for yourself! You've become this like, obsessive demon! I told you going against the Jade Emperor was a bad idea, but no, Wukong doesn't listen to anyone, he just does whatever he wants!"

(4x11 A Lifetime of Mistakes)

-

MK: "That's what you were pretending to be right? To be my friend? To care about me? When really you were just using me to get what you wanted! To turn me against my own mentor! Put your hand in the monkey cage, and expect to get bit son!"

(4x13 Rip and Tear)

-

Sun Wukong: "Azure just stop, okay? You've won—you're going to destroy us just like you wanted! Us an the entire universe." Azure Lion: "Huh? No. This is not what I wanted! I can still fix this, it's- it's the whole reason I'm here at all!" Sun Wukong: "Wait, how are you here!?" Azure Lion: "What? What kind of a question is that you know exactly how I'm-" Sun Wukong: "-No! Here and now! I put you in the underworld myself. How'd you get out, how'd you get the scroll? I know for sure you didn't steal it—you couldn't have! Azure, who gave you that scroll? Because whoever it was they must have known this would happen, wanted this to happen! And they used you to do it."

Azure Lion: "I just wanted to make the world a better place!" MK: "You still can—you're the only one who can."

(4x14 Better Than We Found It)

-

Welcome viewers, to a shadow play the likes of which have never been seen! It follows the tragic tale of a legendary warrior, and how those who bring light into this world inevitably bring darkness to those they hold dear whether they want to or not.