#3. for some reason they're calling it season 1 even though it ISN'T because it's not a reboot and there hasn't been a gap so they're lying

[skamenglishsubs]

Subtext and Culture, Young Royals, Season 3, Episode 1

Season 3 picks up a short while after the jubilee speech by Wilhelm. Both Wilhelm and Sara have been absent from school for a noticeable amount of time, so maybe a week or two later? The show isn't very diligent in ensuring a perfect timeline, but this would put us in early March perhaps? Anyway, we're off to the castle for a meeting to deal with the fallout of Wilhelm's speech and Sara reporting the video to the police.

Subtext: The Queen is so pissed she's not even looking at her son, a reversal from the opening to season 2, when Wilhelm was pretty pissed at his mom.

Subtext: This is probably the first time that Wilhelm gets a hint that the Queen is seriously ill.

Cinematography: Same procedure as last season! Every season opens with a fourth wall break where Wilhelm stares in to the camera during the opening titles, defiant as ever.

Culture: For practical reasons the end of season 2 was filmed in April 2022, while the beginning of season 3 was filmed in February 2023. That said, the spring in Sweden can be pretty fickle, and it's not uncommon to have surprise snowfall as late as April. If you want a cinematographic interpretation of this scene, it's supposed to show how cold and unwelcome Simon feels arriving at the royal palace.

Cinematography: In reality, the monarch would be the last one entering a meeting after everyone else has arrived, but having Simon arrive like this makes it look more like he's entering a court of justice or some kind of disciplinary meeting. It's of course not a coincidence that the royal family represented by Jan-Olof is all on one side of the table, while everyone who has been causing them problems is on the other side.

Subtext: Jan-Olof is trying to minimize the video, by using "so-called", and by calling it an intimate video and not a porn video. However, for something to fall under the definition of "revenge porn", it's enough to depict people in an intimate situation, it doesn't have to meet the much higher threshold for when it's considered actual pornography, so he's at least admitting that it was an illegal video.

Culture: Nordiska Motståndsrörelsen is unfortunately a real organization of actual neo-nazi white supremacists in Sweden, with offshoots in neighbouring countries.

Lost in translation: The subtitles are struggling here, it's "piss person" in one, and "shitty person" in the other. The former is literally what they're saying in Swedish, but the latter is probably the better expression in English.

Also, we've been told that August's stepdad, Rickard, is one of Sweden's best lawyers. What that means is that he is probably a well-known criminal defence lawyer, and has probably been handling the defence in high-profile cases, and if you're defending obviously guilty criminals, you tend to get a lot of shit from the media and people in general, even though what you're doing is necessary for a fair justice system. This sounds like his way of dealing with that.

Culture: It's a pet peeve of mine that no-one seems to know that the name of the Swedish currency in English is kronor, not crowns. Simon is getting 1.2 million kronor, which amounts to about 105,000€ or $115,000.

Subtext: Linda isn't wrong, they're being strong-armed here. They have some sort of legal counsel, and they wouldn't have to pay any trial costs even if they don't win, but they can't afford to match the resources that August's stepdad can bring, and might get nothing in the end.

Culture: We don't know what Årnäs looks like or how large the estate is, but a quick check shows that you can buy a typical manor house and some farmland in Sweden for tens of millions of kronor. However, the amount of land that some of the other guys were boasting about at the Society party in season 1 would be worth several hundreds of millions of kronor, so it's unlikely that Årnäs is as large as that, because August would have a lot more options if his total net worth was in that ballpark.

Culture: Realistically, Simon isn't wrong. Even if August was convicted on all points, he wouldn't be sentenced harshly because of his age, because he's a first-time offender, and because it's a non-violent crime. He would most likely just be fined a large amount of money and ordered to pay damages, so settling isn't that bad.

Cinematography: The low winter sun creates some lovely golden light, so we know we're in for some sweet love between the boys. Another detail is the difference in how they're dressed and how they're carrying themselves. Wilhelm is tall and proud, he's at home, he's in a suit, he's sure of himself, while Simon is the guest, the intruder, and is almost shrinking away in his oversized purple shirt and jeans. Yes, yes, colour theory, I know.

Subtext: A nice little flashback to season 1 when Wilhelm said the same thing when he visited Simon's place.

Lost in translation: Simon is actually saying "Var det såhär i din dröm?" - "Was it like this in your dream?", which is a reference to the rather steamy dream Wilhelm had at the start of season 2, when he was lying in this exact bed.

Subtext: Absolutely no-one is fooled, everyone knows our two idiot boys were sucking each other's face a minute ago.

Subtext: Both Linda and the Queen are hearing about their sons' awful behaviour for the first time at this meeting. Linda had no idea Simon had been dealing drugs, and Kristina had no idea Wilhelm threatened August with a gun.

Culture: I have no idea here. There's no real-world example for this in Sweden, you can't put someone into the line of succession by giving them a title. The show is just hand-waving this. Alright. Ok. Fine.

Culture: All adults in the line of succession can be called upon to be acting Head of State, if the monarch is indisposed or on vacation or something. This means that once Wilhelm is 18, he would occasionally have to step in and do the job, even though he's not king yet. If there are no royals available for this, the duty falls to the speaker of the house, Riksdagens Talman.

Cinematography: We're returning to Hillerska after the episode intro at the royal palace, so we're treated to a little montage of what those gosh darn rich kids have been up to in the meanwhile, so here's a horse to remind us that some of them are still riding! This is the only horse we'll be seeing this season, because the show really isn't about Rousseau after all.

Subtext: Madison is doing Tarot, and she's got Three of Wands reversed and Four of Wands reversed. The first one represents obstacles and lack of progress, and the second one represents home conflict, instability, and lack of support. A bit on the nose, don't you think?

Subtext: It's true, but the show is also calling out itself for the somewhat inconsistent weather we've been seeing due to actual shooting schedules.

Culture: Graduating gymnasiet in Sweden has a bunch of elements that are the same pretty much across the country, and then there are regional differences and individual school differences. I recognize only a few of the things Fredrika rattles off, but it makes sense that a place like Hillerska has a ton of traditions.

Subtext: All the girls have noticed that Felice isn't doing too great, but Madison appears to be the only one that actually cares. Fredrika still hasn't stopped talking about all the crap the third-years are gonna do, because that's apparently more exciting. However, the trucks she's talking about are pretty common, this is what we in Sweden call a Studentflak.

@hanna-kin wrote a long post on Swedish graduation traditions, and I reblogged and added some stuff here: https://www.tumblr.com/skamenglishsubs/684659770007961600/its-that-time-of-the-year-again-and-if-season-2

Culture: It seems Minou isn't the head of PR for the royal court anymore, this is Farima, and we've actually seen her all the way back in season 1 when she was instructing Wilhelm to smile more in the photographs. Either way, it seems like she's got a promotion, and she's probably not wrong in her assessment. A bunch of old farts would balk at the idea of the monarch being in a same-sex relationship, but a lot of others would see it is proof that the monarchy can change with the times. There were quite a lot of fans in Team Monarchy after all. 👑🌈

Lost in translation: Linda actually says "Du har utegångsförbud", which means curfew. Grounding kids isn't really a thing in Sweden, to us it's some kind of weird thing that only happens in American teen shows, along with detention. What the fuck even is that?

Subtext: Unlike in season 1, Simon now consistently speaks Swedish at home to his mom, further showing us how distant he is from her, and from himself to some extent.

Lost in translation: Linda actually calls Sara a "hemmasittare", which is a Swedish term used for kids who simply refuse to attend school, typically for mental health reasons. What to do about the problem is a hotly debated political issue, and let's leave it at that.

Subtext: This is how the culture of secrecy and solidarity against outsiders work at schools like this. Everyone is abused, everyone participates in abusing younger students, and everyone is told to shut up about it. Every house guards their "secret" initiations to outsiders, to foster loyalty to each other, to your house, and to the school. It's cult behaviour 101.

Cinematography: The show does it's usual trick with the sound design where all outside noise disappears as Simon and Wilhelm retreat into their little bubble, but there are still people in the frame this time, even though we can't hear them, because this time they're snogging in public. Oh, and everyone needs to update their colour theory, new colours dropped, pink and orange, what does it all mean??!?

Blink and you miss it: The list of activities for the point hunt includes:

Tattoo "Hillerska 4-life" on your arm.

Take a selfie at the back of a police car.

Give someone a buzz cut.

Dance the balloon dance in public.

Sext a teacher.

Get a piercing somewhere.

Blink and you miss it: I love Vincent so much, he's just the worst. Oh, and it looks like he's wearing a $2000 Valentino sweater, but I'm not 100% certain.

Subtext: Neither Ayub nor Rosh agrees with Simon when he says he's gonna reply to idiots online, but unfortunately they're not telling him off, because that would lead to less drama in the season.

Blink and you miss it: Ayub and Rosh are talking about going on a hike to Talludden with their school, Marieberg, which is why we're gonna encounter them out in the woods in the next episode. Spoiler alert!

Subtext: Wilhelm puts up the first stanza of a poem by Karin Boye called The Shield Maiden. In English, the poem goes: I dreamed about swords last night. I dreamed about battle last night. I dreamed I fought by your side armoured and strong, last night.

Blink and you miss it: Wilhelm's desk has a ton of stuff, but he's also kept the broken frog prince snowglobe, and he's still got Erik's lighter and cigarette case from season 2.

Lost in translation: The comment in Swedish uses the word "bögar", which isn't quite as offensive as "fags". However, it's more offensive than "gays", so I understand why the subtitles went with this choice. It's one of those words that is offensive or not depending on context, and it's certainly offensive in this one.

Subtext: The soundtrack is on point as usual, highlighting the animosity between Wilhelm and August.

Blink and you miss it: Someone ordered a Horse Girl Desk™ from the props department, and they sure delivered all the horsey things! The book is the Swedish edition of Not on a White Horse by Nancy Springer:

From the day twelve-year-old Rhiannon spots a lost white Arabian gelding in the woods near her small Pennsylvania mining town, her life finds a focus as she learns to deal with family problems and decides the direction her life will take.

As you do.

Subtext: As a throwback to season 1, this time it's Sara's turn to make a surprise visit at their dad's. He is surprised and starts cleaning up his place, but he seems to be in better shape than when Simon originally turned up. His place is just messy, there are no signs of drinking and smoking unlike last time we saw him.

Culture: Who goes to New York to suntan? No-one sane, but sun-starved Scandinavians get a bit of cabin fever after a long dark winter.

Culture: Fake IDs aren't really a thing in Sweden, you're allowed to legally drink at 18, and underage kids are much more likely to have an older friend or sibling or alcoholic parent buy them some booze for a private party instead. Sure, they exist, but equipping your friend group with a bunch of fake IDs to go clubbing is not how it's done.

Subtext: Simon drew a heart on Wilhelm's hand and suggested he get that as a tattoo. Wilhelm objected because he's "not allowed to" as a royal, but here he is, redrawing it on himself, almost as if he's toying with the thought, defying the rules.

Subtext: Simon doesn't know anything about the initiations since he's a lowly external student, and even though they're boyfriends, Wilhelm automatically tries to play it down. He knows it's true though, he doesn't question that, he just doesn't want Simon to know about it because it's humiliating to talk about it.

Cinematography: A++ Main Villain Entry Walk.

Culture: The Swedish Schools Inspectorate is a very real government agency that has the very real power to shut down schools that are mismanaged in any way, either academically, or socially.

Culture: Just a quick reminder that every single third-year student is 18 or 19 years old at this point in time, and therefore they are legal adults, which means the school has less authority over them. However, since it's a boarding school, they can enact and enforce regulations for boarders, and kick them out from their houses if they disobey the rules, which effectively kicks them out of the school while technically not doing that.

Cinematography: I love the camera angle here where we just about see Vincent giving Wilhelm the evil eye for indirectly causing this.

As a closing note, this season felt a lot less subtexty to me, compared to previous seasons. On the other hand, a recurring theme now is the airing of secrets, of exposing the systems that create toxic environments like this, so in line with the theme, a lot of characters are voicing things that were left unsaid in previous seasons.

[fantasywater]

Is Stolas actually cheating? Why or Why Not?

I've had some debates where I've been told that Stolas isn't cheating, and especially not continuously. However, I personally think that he is.

The not cheating crowd reasoning's are:

1.Only the initial act was cheating. Once Stolas screamed the morning after that he wanted a divorce than every sex act with Blitz afterwards was not.

2. Since the marriage was consentless, loveless, and abusive this means he was never cheating on her. This interpretation tallies with Stolas's words on the balcony and in Western Energy.

3. Divorce only takes one person's consent and Stolas called it so he's free to fuck whomever, whenever, and wherever.

My rebuttals:

1.It's still cheating until that balcony scene where he calls for the divorce and kicks her out.Because even after his petty moment of triumph he still tries to placate her, and she's still living in the house. She is also still eating dinner like a family while still very much pissed at what he keeps doing.

I also find it ironic that only when he finally stops being passive and goes through with the divorce is when he also finally stops sleeping with Blitz for good. He went backwards with it. Which means he absolutely would have kept blatantly cheating(as well as kept Blitz in the deal) if the dropoff wake-up call hadn't happened.

2. No one gets to redefine a word just because the character doing it is a fan favorite. Stolas is committing infidelity by the very definition of it. He's an adulterer and a victim of domestic violence. Both are true at the same time.

Basically Stolas as a character can think what he's doing is indeed not cheating,but this doesn't mean the narrative agrees with him.

Narrative disagreement: Stella and Octavia's call-outs in Loolooland. Asmodeus's call out in Ozzie's. Via's pain again in Seeing Stars. Andre's call out in Western Energy. Via yet again in the Sinmas leaks.

Out of all the people I've listed I think the narrative has been very consistent in using Octavia to drive home that his cheating was wrong, and therefore damaging, regardless of what he personally thinks about it.

3. Yes, he called for divorce, but he cheated to initiate it therefore breaking his daughter's peace and mental health in the process.

The Via angle will always be why despite his pain his cheating still makes him an asshole. As well as the fact that he kept doing it even after his daughter told him that it was negatively affecting her.

Do you all agree with the view that both parties need to consent if they want to have sex with other people during separation or divorce proceedings,and especially if one spouse still has feelings, is pissed, or sad about it?

I know for example celebrities very much sleep around when they're only separated or in the various stages of divorce though they're technically still married.

Other bits:

Anyone else think Stolas's take back my power moment against Stella was lacking?

I mean it didn't really hit because there was no strong buildup of her wronging him.

But there's plenty of him wronging her with his frequent and remorseless cheating, and therefore her negative actions are because of that inciting incident.

To me Blitz and Via's felt earned while Stolas's didn't.

We had a whole season(honestly Stars and Western as well) of Stolas wronging Blitz so when he so strongly lashed out in Full Moon it truly felt cathartic.

Same with Via. We have two full episodes of this man repeatedly neglecting his own child for his affair partner and breaking her mental health. So when the third time happened and she has her take back my power moment I cheered.

With Stolas however I should have been cheering, and in a vacuum it wasn't a bad scene,but then the buildup was pretty bad because he has been onscreen for a season, and the circus bedroom scene, very much wronging Stella not the other way around.

Thoughts?

[diientedegato]

I'm curious if you have any thoughts on what Ben Paul would look like if he was alive years after S1 of TWDG :> I honestly prefer to imagine both him & Kenny going off on their own adventures after S1, because Idk if I'd've had Kenny as part of S2, it felt like when he returned it became less Clem's story & more his. That might be controversial among fans but it's how I feel :s I like to imagine Ben, Kenny & Sarita forming their own little family in fact <3 I'd expect Ben would end up with shaggier hair after a while but I wouldn't mind knowing what he'd look like with short, spiked up hair ;>

IM SORRY BOTH THE ASK AND DRAWING ARE OLD- but I came across the sketch I had eugeugeh. I do not have many headcanons but behind the cut is just a rant about. Kenny mostly. Too much should I warn? But yah I'm sorry it took me like 5 months lol

The only headcanon (regarding Ben's appearance) is that he'd keep his school jacket for as long as possible. Until it thorns apart. Or until he dies.

I'm big fan of Ben lives possibility btw I've gotta draw sum about that sometime (I say, about every twdg character i like,)

And dude, do I agree about Kenny. Man doesn't belong in season 2. The character they made him to be in the second season is not Kenny, it's just a nostalgia element. Don't get me wrong, I love the guy, I'm biased as hell, I break that hug choice every time. But it made the character development in the first season just.... pointless. "For some reason, I saved that piece of shit Ben", man, that quote just disappoints me. Kenny lost everything. Father and husband of none no more, which was pretty much the arc of Kenny on the first season?? I think? . Everything he loved and he had he lost, and he killed the person responsible for it. But not as revenge, he killed a kid out of mercy. He saved the boy from suffering a painful death, and that was forgiveness, to the reason he hadn't any. He took a decision he would be fully responsible of, when it was time for him to go. And he was perfect.

Hell, if he had appeared during season 2, I do prefer the Kenny as Carver idea. Clementine wasn't even that close to Kenny in the past, the player was, so even then it feels... off, off to be forced to care about a man that says so much he wants to protect you. (They're not really family, but is as if Kenny tries to protect and have Clem on his side, to have Clem's loyalty through and through. Though he does let her go and is proud of her on her individuality... hm.) But still, I mean, second season Kenny is not first season Kenny, and it isn't even a change that made sense. If he had been antagonist (which pretty much feels like it in the Canon story already), he should have had some other background story, no Sarita or company. Maybe then the cynical view he has would have mattered. The violence and anger and whatever else. For him to change that way was a consequence of him losing what he represented, protection of family? Wasn't failure and grief and acceptance meant to be important after all?

But otherwise yea I think it would've been pretty cool if Ben survived :3 I am a sucker for tales of redemption, forgiveness, and found family. And I hadn't thought about Kenny, Ben, and Sarita, but hell yeah. Man, even if they appeared in the second season, it would've been interesting if the choice wasn't between two individuals, but between two families. Ben already had a relationship with Clem! He appreciated her and calls her his only friend during season 1, he did leave her behind during that scene, -but the point of Ben was that- He was a coward all the season, until when he wasn't. He wanted to help Lee help Clem. They would've had an interesting sibling relationship-? also Ben had a young sister before the apocalypse so ooooh projection and parallels and shi. And if Ben had lived, he would've completed his development to something close to bravery-?

Well, I don't know, at least I think that'd be one interesting way to bring back old characters. Otherwise, Kenny should only be mentioned on dialogue maximum. The way I see it.

(I repeat the same thing over and over when I talk about something I'm sorry

(I've developed no language skills whatsoever in my life

(Yippee

[miriadalia]

Things I wanna see in Cobra Kai S6 part 2

Since I'm on a Cobra Kai streak since they dropped the new photos, I want to make a list of things I wish to see in part 2. And then check if they become true 🙏🏻 (I'm writing this before they drop the trailer)

Feel free to add whatever you want <3

Alright, HAJIME!!

1. Kwon's backstory and character development

I don't want him to be a 2D villain. Every character until now has had at least some internal conflict and reasons behind their behaviour (even bullies like Kyler), so please, PLEASE, give the guy an interesting background. If we have to tolerate Daniel and Johnny love-hate every season, I want my little Kdrama too 😂

Also, if they're going to add even more secondary characters (who, according to the leaks, will be kind of villains too), I need them to focus on Kwon first.

2. Tory defending herself from whatever BS the Miyagi Do's will tell her

Yes, she's not well at all after her mother's death and yes, Cobra Kai isn't the way to heal from her wounds... But if I hear one of them getting angry at her or calling her a traitor when none of them went after her, I'll be kicking 540s in my room................

I would also love to watch her train in Korea with the new team, giving Kim a "TAKE THAT B*TCH, who wouldn't have lasted one minute in your dojang back home??" (In season 5 Kim told that to Tory and Devon) and watch her training her hardest and truly fighting and earning her position as captain, not to appear magically in Barcelona as sensei Kreese's pet ('cause I don't think neither Kwon nor Yoon will like that).

They can even do this as flashbacks before each round of the tournament. But... I'm kind of losing hope on this because of the producers' comments. I write it here just in case :(

3. Johnny being a real father to Robby

I understand his main interest is defeating Cobra Kai, especially now that they know Kreese is back. But Robby will need him more than anyone during this tournament: the poor boy has the pression of being the team captain in a televised international competition, he needs to win the Sekai Taikai because that's the only way he could be offered a better future after being in juvie for so long, his girlfriend (ex?) has been MIA only to appear with their nemesis' team........

I've seen an interview where Xolo said Miguel's going to be Robby's main support during part 2. And while I like that, I still feel that, for once in his life, Johnny should step up and put the son he abandoned for so many years first. That would be his REAL redemption arc, more than being sensei for his own version of Cobra Kai.

4. Demetri and Hawk fixing their problems FAST

I understand them both, but their argument seems like the typical post-high school crisis where you have to separate yourself from your lifelong friends because (surprise!) each one wants and must follow their own path and dreams.

So for me it's alright if they solve this with just one conversation after winning together some round during the Sekai Taikai. I don't need something like one of them DYING or ending up in the hospital (though that's probably what will happen to Demetri seeing the X-men-mutants they've chosen as their rivals........).

In short, for me the character arcs of Hawk and Demetri are already complete and do not need more drama. They can become secondary characters, although I love both actors and I'll miss them so much :')

5. Bring back #MiguelSeason 1!!!!

I don't think there's anyone who doesn't want this to be honest haha. But in my case what I mean is I want the concentration and power he had back then, not him playing dirty or seriously injuring someone.

I want FULL POWER Miguel, the ultimate version of this young fighter we saw growing each season, using every style he's learned and making it his own.

And who knows, I won't be mad if he wins after all, but that only if Robby gets an awesome final character arc.

6. Sam and Tory supporting each other even if enemies on the tatami

These girls have already apologised to each other and now Sam understands Tory's situation and mental state without any judgement, so I want Tory to find selfless support in Sam and to learn how to confide in her.

And I want Sam to fully embrace Mr.Miyagi's teachings of forgiveness, balance and strength.

And what better way to do it than by applying them to your former arch-nemesis?

EXTRA POINTS if they fight together against Zara or any other enemy!

7. Silver NOT coming back in this second part...

At least until the end of the last episode.

We have villains already. We have NEW characters (villains?) already. And as much as I like chaos and drama, I don't think it will be easy to follow a story where everyone is against Miyagi Do lol

They can save him for the finale.

... Plus I just can't stand that dude :'), I prefer Kreese as an antagonist all the way.

8. Sassy arguments, teenage drama and funny scenes

I already read that part 2 is gonna be very action-oriented. But Cobra Kai is much more than amazing stunts and choreographies (which I love, don't get me wrong). I just don't want them to forget the potential of having a hotel and a sports park full of troublesome teenagers, with even more troublesome senseis.

They're participating in a hard competition abroad, but that doesn't mean they can't have some comedy scenes here and there like the ones they have in the Valley.

Idk, you have a Korean dude with an anime-looking hair and an American dude with a freaking American flag in his mohawk!!!!! Someone has to make at least a comment about that.

9. The characters eating Spanish food or trying to speak Spanish

This one is personal hahaha

I grew up in Spain so I need to watch them tasting a tortilla or trying to buy something and getting scolded by a Spanish "abuela" (grandma).

BONUS POINTS if Johnny Lawrence drinks the typical beer from there (Estrella Galicia). (Know this won't happen as it would be free advertising haha).

10. Amanda and Carmen being the queens they are, finally happy and in peace as every karate freak (including their respective husbands) are booked and busy at the other side of the world

[ivyial]

okay time for some delulu gojohime analysis that's a bit of a reach.

so earlier today, i was rewatching a compilation of gojo and utahime's scenes from season 1 and it rang a bell (also, i just want to say, mappa gotta have gojohime shippers on the team cause some of the s2 gjhm elements weren't in the manga). ANYWAY.

so in episode 14 (the beginning of the tokyo-kyoto goodwill event arc), utahime is introduced (and i'm not gonna say that her literal second sentence onscreen ever is inquiring after gojo, but i am going to say that). then gojo comes in with gifts for the kyoto students - some charms from a tribe. this is how the panel goes in the manga:

nothing specific about those charms/souvenirs. gojo also explicitly mentions that they're for the kyoto kids - nothing for the staff.

now here's how it goes in the anime:

unfortunately i don't have the japanese script for this scene or the exact intended meaning, so i'll have to use the english translation :')

in the anime, there are two changes to gojo's dialogue:

the tribal charms are specifically protective. whether they work or not, they were made with the intention of protecting the user in mind

"the kyoto kids" becomes "everyone from kyoto" (including staff, technically)

now assuming that these changes are correct, it makes the scene way more relevant to gojohime.

as we know, gojo thinks utahime is weak. he says it to her multiple times and it's pretty much his go-to insult for her. we also know that gojo is loaded with cash, so spending a few more bucks isn't an issue. and yet... he didn't get her one of those. this is one amazing opportunity for gojo to make fun of utahime, by giving her one of those charms and implying that she needs it because she can't defend herself. but for some reason, he didn't take it.

there are a few ways to interpret that:

gojo is a decent enough guy to not embarrass her in public in front of other people. although, this isn't true, since he does do it in front of other people all the time: see season 2, episode 1, when he calls her weak in front of mei mei and geto. so maybe he just doesn't want to embarrass her in front of her students. again, not exactly true, since he puts her on the spot later in the goodwill event arc:

pretty 'eh' to ask her to give a speech unprepared in front of all of the students, especially since she ends up performing very poorly. maybe he draws the line at calling her weak in front of her students, because he understands that they look up to her.

2. gojo didn't give her a protective charm because despite calling her weak all the time, he doesn't fully believe that and he knows she can defend herself. it is vaguely reminiscent of their recent shared scene in the manga, in which *spoilers for the current arc* utahime's cursed technique is revealed and she acts as an amplifier for gojo's. he definitely trusts her enough to team up with her, just like he did to find the traitor at the kyoto school.

3. utahime doesn't need protection, because he is there. for this interpretation, i'm drawing a parallel between this scene and this post explaining how utahime is metaphorically always under gojo's eye. even without that detail, there's his whole spiel in 2x01 where he dramatically announces "i'm here to save you, utahime". it's worth noting that he pretty much came round to help her out because he knew she was in danger (i think? someone correct me if i'm wrong please).

one thing's for sure though, it's that gojo doesn't truly believe that utahime is too weak to be a sorcerer. is she weaker than him? sure, but that doesn't make her incompetent. and if she needs to be protected, he's more than happy to do it for her.

[papabearbobbynash]

So i want to share some thoughts here, because I've been spiraling until now and I'm not sure I will ever stop until the episode airs. About the bathena fire, I really want to believe is the opening scene of the episode considering Bobby is in his LAFD hoodie sleeping on the couch in entrance hall (???) of their house, something that clearly feels displaced. The following would be we watch him wake up from said dream and then the 9-1-1 intro comes. Would connects the audience with latest episode and set to them that Bobby isn't well. However, the bts of Athena in her black leather jacket with a gun in her hand is preventing me from thinking it's only a nightmare, because i don't think they would have time to introduce a random call in the middle of the chaos of storylines happening in this season, unlest they are short calls) but also in those bts Athena doesn't not have her badge at all (different from the S4 snyper chase), it could be due not being necessary on the scene (close up) but it's an interesting point to analyse.

And this makes me think about the conveniently unwrapped loose of the cartel situation, because showing that to the audience feels like it's a narrative choice.

So i'm lead to believe it's either it's a nightmare and something else happens to Bobby that set Athena in rampage, or the fire is actually happening in bathena house and we are actually being mislead into thinking the fire was a preview mislead purposely, because of the previews misleading us last episode. when i said i was spiraling i mean it My current favorite theories i've seen around are:

1 - Bobby has a brain injury

To me this seems like a very plausible theory where Bobby has a brain injury from the car accident in the desert and since he didn't get check, he is only now showing signs. Also fits to how this season seems to be playing with the characters minds and mentality (Chimney hallucinating with Doug due a disease, Eddie daydreaming about Shannon after seeing Kim). A brain injury would explain Bobby having hallucinations (if it's the case with bathena house on fire) and such injury probably contribute to his mental state that clearly downgrading. However I didn't find a reason to why would Athena be on the same "mode" she was when trying to catch the sniper in S4.

2 - Bathena house is actually on fire

At first I though the writers would be evil and play a "Bobby accidentally set the house on fire when making cookies" pretty much throwing a callback to 7x08 and making an even better job triggering himself, but In the 7x08 previews, seems like the fire started on the yard's door, like something was thrown on it and went boom. So maybe there are some shenanigans with the cartel. Since Herman got hurt in the car accident and they stole Bobby's car (what is a plot tool to keep both Bobby and Amir in the desert, but it can also be used for later). Also the fact the accident happened after Herman told to the guys both Amir and Bobby were with him is conveniently fitting for a narrative like this. I mean the guy got on an accident and got arrested so maybe there is some revenge in Bobby's plot, but not as we thought. This would also explain why Athena seems to be in chasing mode (with that face lol she looks really not in the best mood). Because not even lord will save those man from Athena, if they're the reason Bobby ends in the hospital

Another thing that contributes to this theories is how she seems to be approaching Amir. Could be to help Bobby with his mental state for sure (i would prefer if it was the case) but the thing is the way she put it "I think my husband is in danger" i feel like she would do different if it was to reach out Amir about Bobby's mental state. It feels like she is voicing a thought and her best source of info regarding that is Amir, and he also might be a potential target (since y'know he shot that guy on the road).

3 - Coma!Bobby / injured on the big fire from bts

This one is quite short because we have so little details regarding what that fire is, but this is more an assumption based on the show history.

So we have that big fire, and Bobby seems to be working still in some bts, but his mentality is in a place where he believes he doesn't deserve to be alive at all. People are assuming this means he is well, but, guys, this man did bottle up his feelings for a long time, he surely might be trying doing now. Would also be lovely to the team perceive the strange behavior or their captain. Anyway theory here is that he ends up in coma after being hurt due saving someone in that fire, be a civilian or one of the team (for extra angst as Tim seems to be in the mood this season lol). And it happens the fire was criminal and then it explains why Athena is in chasing mode in some bts. Also explain other pictures such as the one of Bobby with the ladder behind, that could very well be from before the whole thing happens.

Anyway what you guys think, do y'all have any other theories around that seems fit the content we have? Particularly i think those theories doesn't explore much the healing of Bobby's current mentality, mostly because I believe (hope) this is going to be extended to S8, where Bobby's arc is to deconstruct that mentality he is rn.

[room-surprise]

Delicious in Dungeon Anime Season 1, Episode 2 Review

Spoilers for season 1, episode 2 below the cut! There may also be mild manga spoilers so proceed with caution.

This episode was great! I think it was a big improvement on the first. Honestly no real complaints... I do kind of wish both Marcille and Chilchuck could have had stand-alone episodes dedicated to their character development, to allow for a deeper focus, but I understand why they didn't do it, and the pacing was still excellent. I do still sometimes feel like the show is in fast-forward at times, because with 3 meals in one episode, it feels like the characters finish eating, and we jump cut to them saying that they're hungry again, without anything to help really impress upon viewers that time has passed. Makes it feel a bit like we're reading a collection of short 4-panel gag comics instead of a continuing story… which, early Dungeon Meshi DOES have that as part of it's format, but it changes with time, as we get into longer individual stories.

During the Basilisk/Doni and FIonil section, I really do miss some of the dry humor from the manga. ("Hurry, he's getting cold!" "Move him closer to the fire!") The hilarity of slowly preparing a meal while someone is dying of poison has unfortunately been lost, which makes Doni and Fionil much less memorable characters…. But it benefits the other 2 stories in the ep to have more time so I think it was the right choice to make. It also gives people something to go back and read the manga for, since it's a little different! If you're reading this and you're an anime only, consider reading the manga while you watch the anime! I promise it's worth it. I'm excited about next week because I think they'll devote the entire episode to Laios and the living armors, which is me and my spouse's favorite early DM storyline, and the part where we both said "Oh, I LOVE this manga..." and got really invested. It's 2 chapters in the manga so it could be an entire episode…. which also would make sense, if that's why they needed to crunch 3 chapters into episode 2. Just like the first episode, animation was fantastic, and as usual the weakest points are when characters are just walking or talking and not doing much. Everything more dynamic is just bouncy and adorable and full of life. Very rarely is anything animated in a dull or flat way. They're doing their best to use "move a drawing around" or "zoom on a drawing" for comic effect and I think it's working well so far. There's some great animal animation in this episode, the bat flying around and the basilisk chasing Marcille in particular. Translation was better this time around, no dumb modern or game references in the dub ("newbs" "as if" etc.) … But there are differences between the subtitles and the dub script that change how easy it is to understand what's happening. When Senshi tells Chilchuck to cut up the giant bat, the subtitles make it hard to understand what he's telling him to do, and the dub makes it a lot clearer. In the subs when Senshi calls Chilchuck a half-foot child, the subtitles say "I'm not a child" and the dub says "I hate it when people call me 'kid'"… The latter is more interesting for keeping the mystery going for things that happen later in the story. If the show continues like this, I think the English dub may be the more satisfying way to watch it (even though the Japanese performances are great), mostly because the subs are very literal and sometimes miss things that the English dub somehow manages to include. And for some reason Netflix isn't including translation of Japanese signs on-screen during the subtitles, but they DO provide them when you watch the English dub. A lot of Dungeon Meshi's humor is sometimes in those background signs so completely missing out on them sucks. Anyway those are my thoughts for this episode! See you next week Meshiheads.

[cryaboutitpal]

Discussing what happened between Marshmallow and Paintbrush.

(This analysis post is going to primarily focus on Paintbrush. Sorry Marshmallow fans.)

As we know, Marshmallow decided to abandon Inanimate Insanity during episode 11 of season 2 and was officially disqualified in episode 12. What I don't see a lot of people talking about though is the relationship between Marshmallow and Paintbrush and just how much hurt this could have possibly caused the poor artist.

So, let's take a look at the whole ordeal together in my attempt at an analysis post and see how this all affected Paintbrush. Marshmallow won't be mentioned too much because I'm mainly focusing on Painty here, not Marsh.

Let's not waste anymore time! Let's go! The analysis is under the cut!

1: Marshmallow and Paintbrush's friendship

From what we (the viewers) have been shown, these two are pretty close. From that one Santa ploy they schemed together to trick Apple in episode 9 season 1 to Paintbrush helping Marshmallow hide from Apple in episode 6 season 2, they were commonly shown helping each other and in general just being best buds.

Bare in mind, all that is simply what's shown! I know they're fictional characters and all but still! Imagine all the shit they could've done together off camera! (If that was possible, of course.)

So, with the context that Paintbrush and Marshmallow were extremely close... Doesn't the whole "Marsh abandoning the game to live with Bow, Dough and Apple" thing seem much more tragic already?

No?

Don't worry, I'll show you just how tragic it truly is.

2: Abandonment and the (assumed) circumstances behind it

We all know why Marshmallow abandoned the game. Here's the thing though: just because we, the viewers know the reason doesn't mean that they, the characters know that reason.

Paintbrush doesn't know that Marshmallow simply got sick of the game and wanted to live with Bow. They have no idea where she is or if she's even alive.

Not only that... They probably think they are at fault as well.

I'll tell you my reasoning as to why I think they blame themself.

The episode right before Marshmallow abandoned the game (episode 10, season 2) Paintbrush lost it right in front of Marsh and assaulted Fan. Verbally and physically. Doesn't help that the run in with some of their other teammates ended with Paintbrush calling Marshmallow, telling her that they were leaving.

I doubt Paintbrush meant to seem as controlling as I made them sound. They just got frustrated, that happens.

That doesn't mean they don't blame themself now, does it?

I mean, if you got angry in front of your best friend and that anger led to you hitting someone and storming off, dragging your friend along right before they mysteriously vanished, never to be seen again... Well, who wouldn't blame themself for that?

Again, Paintbrush isn't evil. They aren't exactly good but they certainly didn't want to control Marsh. If anything, they wanted to help her. It's just that their anger got in the way and now she's left them.

Things get even worse however...

3: Lightbulb's time travelling shenanigans

(Great quality screenshot, Akemi. You could probably count the pixels in that goddamn thing.)

Lightbulb fucking around with time in of itself didn't really do much about the whole situation. What I want to talk about is something that is barely even touched on, if at all.

Like with Marshmallow leaving the game, the cast didn't know that Test Tube and Lightbulb were time travelling and messing about in an alternate universe like us viewers do. To the cast, they just disappeared.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Yep, it's similar to Marshmallow going AFK.

Not only that, the circumstances are similar as well, at least to Painty.

They got angry with a teammate, hurt a teammate (emotionally this time) and walked off mad.

Considering how Lightbulb disappeared basically right after this scene, Paintbrush probably thought that Lightbulb had left them forever.

Just like Marshmallow.

Granted, Paintbrush displays a positive reaction to the news but... How do we know that they were actually happy about Lightbulb suddenly going missing? What if they were mentally tearing their bristles out or something? That had to have felt some guilt and self-hatred over the whole thing, right?

Faking a smile is basically Lightbulb's whole character (heavily watered down but still kinda right), I wouldn't doubt that Paintbrush would fake one as well.

Remember: actions and thoughts can be separate! A character could look happy but actually be extremely sad and self-loathing!!

At least Lightbulb didn't actually disappear forever like Marshmallow. That probably made Paintbrush feel a little less guilty. Keyword: a little. Not entirely. They still don't know where Marshmallow is and still probably blame themself for her leaving the game.

Not entirely a happy ending but more bittersweet, kinda like their season 2 elimination.

So, in conclusion. Paintbrush's conscience is probably a guilty one due to Marshmallow leaving them and never coming back.

(I could still be wrong though, feel free to correct me.)

Anyway, Sayonara!

[passionateseadruid]

Why Lucifer is a dragon

Okay Fine! I'll write the essay you savages! But as consolation I'm tagging it as whatever the hell I want!

One may ask themselves what a mythical creature of Sin has to do with a quirky father in an adult Cartoon. Everything! That is what they have to do with each other! He has the religious evidence to back it up. He has the form of a dragon. Finally he has the symbolism. Throughout this essay the intent will be made to prove without a doubt Lucifer from Hazbin Hotel is certifiably 100% a dragon.

Onto the first point: what makes a dragon. Dragons have many forms from European six limbed beasts of destruction to Asian four limbed creatures of prosperity. Lucifer may seem like he fits into the Eurocentric definition of dragon but considering he has 6 wings that may shed some doubt on the credibility of this thesis. Fear not however, for according to Christian History For Everyman a seraph is defined a 1) a fiery serpent and 2) a six winged being. This seems pretty conclusive that some people saw seraphs as serpentine creatures. "Heavenly creatures of fire stood above him. Each creature had six wings" (Isaiah 6:2 — New Century Version). What more is there to say? So to recap Seraph (the singular form of Seraphim) are six winged angelic creatures with fire and serpent connotations.

Point 2: His form. Lucifer from Hazbin Hotel has a very unique form in the show. "According to Vivziepop... demons that appear more humanoid-looking, such as Lucifer and Charlie, are actually quite rare" (Hazbin hotel wiki, Demons page). So not only is his appearance called out to be quite different by the creator herself but as is about to be brought up in the show his "other" form is quite unique as well. Sera and Emily do have different forms from each other in their full angelic forms but they do have similarities, such as their long lashes and a third eye in their foreheads, as well as gaining several dozen eyes (Season 1 episode 6). Lucifer However notably lacks a third eye on his forehead. Some might ask themselves "why is this in the essay?" reason 1 to pad the run time, reason 2 because it demonstrates that Lucifer can have a draconic form even if he is still biologically an angel. Onto Lucifer's appearance! Lucifer's other form (his demonic form) has crooked horns with a small fire in between them, a snake shaped halo (Quite possibly being the same snake wrapped around his hat in his normal form), six wings (like previously mentioned), and a black tail with a red heart in the center of the triangular tip, as well as breathing fire at Lute when he tells her to "Go home" (Season 1 episode 8). When people think of dragon they usually think of the Eurocentric type of dragons that have two front legs, two back legs, wings, a tail, and horns (though a lot dragons/dragon variants (I.e. wyrms, wyvern, drakes etc.) have horns, even Asian dragons).

Finally onto point three. Symbolism of sin. Lucifer is the sin of pride in both the show and in the Peter Binsfeld classification of demons. "In 1589 Binsfield published [a]... list of demons and their associated sins... Lucifer (pride)" (Wikipedia, Peter Binsfeld page). An important thing to note is that other lists also have Lucifer as the sin of pride such as the Lanterne of light. Dragons are also the ultimate symbol of sin. Being big and powerful (both good to represent Pride and Wrath), sitting on mounds of gold all day (Greed and Sloth), kidnaping princesses/generally beautiful women (Lust), and eating any humans who come by especially if they're trying to save said women (Gluttony and Envy).

Bonus:

Dragons are literally associated with the guy

So to recap Lucifer from Hazbin Hotel is a dragon. He has the religious evidence to back it up. He has the biology to back it up. Finally he has the symbolism to back it up. If somehow this essay isn't convincing enough then 2-3 hours have been wasted on making this.

Isaiah 6:2

Demons

Peter Binsfeld

[xinnamonbun]

Got Nostalgic

So I decided to look at some old Inanimate Insanity humanizations I did a couple years back. I'm pretty sure I did these RIGHT when season 3 released. Good times-

(Looks)

...

AAAAAAAAÆ-

Below will be humanizations of: Soap, Bow, Paintbrush, Blueberry, Goo, Cabby, Test Tube, Cherries, Taco, Apple, Fan, Lightbulb, Suitcase, Balloon, Lifering, Microphone, Marshmallow, Nickel, and Yin-Yang

⚠️ WARNING OLD ART ⚠️

Off to a great start...the soap hair tie is almost cute...almost. (also I'd like to mention that I only knew like three types of shoes so you're going to be seeing these once or twice)

It's... Okay. This is one of the better ones we're going to see. Why does she have ballerina shoes???

I was really really bad at drawing guys and was much better at drawing girls (not that that was very good either). Paintbrush being an entirely different thing made me nervous that I was going to make them too masculine or too feminine. I remember being SO proud of myself... And like this one isn't terrible... But why are they wearing ice skates- (they're not supposed to be ice skates but that is NOT lined up)

Not terrible. I think that this still gives Blueberry vibes it's mainly the shoes that are bugging me. But other than that it's not BAD.

I remember one of my cousins called him Caillou, I sobbed... I hate that they were right- I MADE HIM BALD

Did not know how to draw a wheelchairs (still don't but I hope I could do better than THIS) THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE CABBY. END OF STORY. I also don't want to talk about the dress- it's bad

I guess I don't hate this one. I don't love it either. This one is pretty much just "I could believe that's test tube" BUT THERE'S NO SPICE

I had this headcannon that one of the cherries was trans which is why they never spoke because they were self-conscious of their voice. Not the worst head Cannon but I just can't see it anymore. These outfits also just suck. And the return of the ice skates-

This is season 1 Taco specifically and the idea was upon show to hide the hands while having her fancy spy outfit underneath. With the little that you can see of the spy outfit it sucks. The top doesn't look super bad I guess. I also gave her little fangs that I decided to make gray for some reason so they blended into her skin.

I remember this one was my absolute FAVORITE like I thought this was peak character design. It's not that good but at the very least it's definitely the most okay one here... Except for the fact that APPLE'S KNEES ARE LIKE 5/8 DOWN HER LEG- WHO BROKE YOUR LEG?!? Also are those green jeans? Also return of the ice skates.

RONALD MCDONALD!!! IVE FOUND YOUR COUSIN- in case it wasn't clear (it isn't) this is Fan... Excuse me while I bash my head into the wall- WHAT IS THIS ABOMINATION?!? AND ON TOP OF THAT WE HAVE ANOTHER CASE OF ICE SKATES- I swear if I see one more ice skate I'm going to lose it-

This is...kinda adorable??? The hair doesn't fit though. I still like the socks.

This one isn't THAT bad, it's just...the nose. The idea of her having a backpack to carry stuff is still cute. And-... Are those. Ice. Skates. (Inhale) AAAAAAAAÆ---

Burn it with fire. I didn't even like this one when I first drew it! I always had plans of redrawing it but I never did. In case you need clarification this is Balloon... In my slight justification for why he's wearing... that. I was originally going to give all of the returning season 3 contestants vacation clothes because they thought they were going on a vacation but I didn't really do this with any of the others so it just looks out of place and ugly.

I saw an ad around the time I drew this that showed a child missing their upper lip. I thought that that would be an interesting design choice for Lifering to to represent the hole in his face. I was correct that it's interesting. It being a good design choice before this art style is a different topic- still like the earring I gave him though.

I hate those fingers. They're so small. I hate it. I remember this was my favorite outfit, and now I don't like it that much. But I guess it's not THAT bad. It's still kinda bad.

This is Marshmallow. I needed to lead with that otherwise you wouldn't know who this is. This is straight up isn't marshmallow. That is some random girl that should not be trusted with hair dye.

This one is just...okay. at least compared to the other ones on this list. It's not the worst. It's DEFINITELY not the best. His hair is... Something. Also the return of the ice skates

This one is honestly just funny to me now. Yin just looks done (I feel you buddy) I really played around with a vitiligo (the reason why they have both pale and dark skin; look it up) and I do like the concept I had of this I just don't think I have the skills at the time to properly pull it off.

Wait...is that it? IM FREEEEEEE-

Bonus: (this was made before season 3 and I only found this because it was one of the reference images for my Bow humanization shown above)

You know what I said about Balloon? I take it back. Burn THIS with fire.

Ok NOW I'm free.

(for the record I give you full permission to bash me in the replies, in fact I encourage it. I'm planning on making redo's of these humanizations with my (hopefully better) art skills. So pointing out things that you didn't like in the previous designs or things that you think would be nice to add are greatly appreciated feedback)

[inkblot-inc]

RCD: NYFW, FYI

Summary: Now introducing the first part of what I would like to call The Fashion Week Incident. You know something's gotta happen when you have what's supposed to be a "relatively lighthearted and enjoyable event", right?; For Your Information AKA Forget Your Intentions

Pairing: Jeweler!Wanda Maximoff x Metalworker!Reader

[Everything Else in The RCD Universe] This is Part 1 [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]

Warning(s): it's pretty tame actually, but I'll do a quick disclaimer- I've never attended fashion week anywhere, so don't begrudge any inaccuracies about what goes on here alright? This is all fiction for funsies, we can let that go.

Note(s): Welcome to the miniseries inside an alternate universe! This storytelling is going to look a little different bud; I was going to write this in a traditional story narrative, but in my ever-evolving ways of writing shit, I've just let the brainrot take over and wrote things as they played out in my head...Not unlike the way I write my headcanons, except this is actually in the AU timeline. I hope y'all get ✨the vision✨ and enjoy :3

Word Count: Just shy of 500

ALSO: *squints* I give NO ONE permission to repost or translate my work. Make your own shit

Concerning New York Fashion Week, Wanda is attending for the majority of the week because she is looking at all the designers' new releases and fashion trends that they're introducing for the season. It would make sense that Wanda takes notes on that in regard to her own designs. Skitch is attending as Wanda's plus one, but they are also just genuinely interested in seeing more of what Wanda does as part of her job.

The first few days are a little overstimulating for Skitch, but enjoyable nonetheless. being introduced to some of the people Wanda works with and just entering into a different circle of people was both nerve wracking and exciting at the same time. Though both Wanda and Skitch were happy when they made their way back to their room at the Greenwich hotel to unwind and just decompress from the days full of networking and social and vehicular traffic.

It was on their second to last day attending the runway show for fashion week. One of the designers that was called up next was called Romanova. Skitch freezes before turning to Wanda and asking, "Who's presenting next?" And Wanda responds with "Romanova, it's Natasha Romanoff's brand."

Romanoff.

It's like your head was in a fishbowl as that info sunk in. You suddenly felt much younger; the nineteen-year-old you were the last time you saw the person with that name.

Wanda was little distracted since she was taking her notes, but she later realizes that Skitch isn't nearly as vocal for the rest of the show (since they usually make smaller comments like about the clothes as they're being modeled). They aren't even as responsive to Wanda's own small comments, and she notices that.

Wanda doesn't know what's wrong, but Skitch definitely looks a little stiffer and the smallest bit uncomfortable watching the rest of the show. Wanda keeps a hand on Stitch's thigh for the rest of the showcase in a form of comfort to hopefully ease whatever feelings came about.

The mingling after the show starts up again and Wanda is talking to designers and Skitch sees the person that made them react so perfectly: Natasha Romanoff.

Skitch separates themselves from Wanda so they won't have to be around while she and Natasha talk. Again, Wanda senses their discomfort, but Skitch goes off on their own before Wanda can articulate her concern, so Wanda just keeps a concerned eye on them as Skitch drifts off to talk to other people they met earlier in the week, away from her and Natasha.

Wanda continues her conversation with Natasha as usual; they're not the closest of friends, but they are familiar acquaintances in the industry. Let's be clear though: Wanda's not daft. It's when Skitch walks away from the approaching woman that Wanda puts two and two together that Natasha was the reason skitch became uncomfortable. Though she's more concerned as to why now...

[vienna-salvatori]

It's been 10 years since 1x07- The Hub first broadcast (Nov 12 2013)

So, in honour of an episode that's been playing on repeat in my head for a decade...

Here's my theory on what's actually going on with Victoria Hand, and why she's actually a paranoid-but-clever strategist, not as petty and incompetent as she comes across as.

Ah, series 1. Those were the days. The HYDRA reveal hadn't happened yet. Everyone was happy! They trusted each other, mostly! Sure, Skye's allegiances were questionable, but they got over that eventually. May might've had that whole "secret line to Fury" thing, but they sorted that too. Coulson might've had his head messed with, but it's not like that caused serious problems with his judgement until series 2.

... that we know of.

Here's a couple facts: 1) The team are running worldwide missions. Despite this, in one season, they end up passing through The Hub on three separate occasions (The Hub, The Magical Place (I think), and Turn, Turn, Turn/the finale arc.) It's clearly a bit of a, well, hub, for SHIELD activity, and sees a lot of people coming in and out. 2) It's unclear exactly how long Hand has been in charge of the Hub, but we know from s7 that she's been in SHIELD a while. There's nothing in series 1 to suggest that her command of The Hub is a recent promotion. Coulson, meanwhile, was recruited by Fury just out of high school. He's been in the field for decades by this point.

and-

3) When Coulson first meets Victoria Hand in 1x07, he claims to know her only by reputation.

Yeah, no.

I think it's highly unlikely that he's never crossed paths with Victoria Hand before. They might not know each other well- I, personally, think it's best if they do, but YMMV- but I cannot envision a scenario where the two haven't run operations together before.

My assumption, then: they did know each other. Coulson's had his head messed with, though, and he's forgotten all about it.

From Hand's perspective: that dude she really doesn't like has just shown up. He was supposed to be dead, but whatever, they work for SHIELD, shit happens sometimes. That said, he's got the strangest team she's ever seen- Melinda May back in the field, two sci-tech kids who didn't even pass their field exams, John Garrett's antisocial protege, and an enemy agent. (We, the audience, know that Skye is clear, but Hand has no reason to think anything but the worst of her.) He's also pretending that this is the first time they've ever met, for some reason.

... Maybe it's a weird prank.

She decides not to engage with it, because she has a lot of very important work to do and she doesn't really want to deal with any of That Bullshit. Except, Coulson's acting really differently to how he did before- I don't think it's very controversial to say that pre-Avengers Coulson and AoS!Coulson are two very different people. Melinda May- who she knows is one of his closest friends- is... not calling it out, for some reason. Also, he does have a history of recruiting wildcard agents, but usually he follows protocol once they're in. This random kid he found in a van is just wandering around poking her head into things, and Coulson isn't stopping her even though that is against the system. Hand might not like Coulson, but she knows that he does his paperwork and follows the rules. He'll bend them completely out of shape, but he won't break them outright without very good reason. Or at least, he used to do that.

The whole situation is alarming on so many levels. So... she decides to test him- the stupidest, most obvious test that Phil Coulson- who has always been pedantic about the safety of his people- will catch instantly.

She'll "forget" to file the extraction plan.

He'll spot it, of course. He'll spot it instantly, and she'll roll her eyes and file the paperwork she's already filled out. She'll say that this is why they have procedures and it's important to follow them, not just turn up in someone's airspace with a team that makes no sense and ignore all rules and protocol.

Except, Phil Coulson does not notice. It takes his team members breaking protocol in front of of all of them for him to spot a problem in the mission paperwork she physically placed into his hands.

And that? That is not Phil Coulson. She might not like Phil Coulson, but she does know him, and he always looks out for his agents. That's not Coulson, and May is playing along with the imposter for some reason, even when she knows him even better than Hand does.

In the end, she just lets it all play out, because this is so far off what she expected she honestly wants to know how far it reaches.

If she tries to chase up Coulson's file afterwards, she'll hit the (canonically very weird) firewalls and restrictions around TAHITI protocol. If she tries to report the oddities to Fury or Hill, they'll brush her off- again, TAHITI protocol. There's something wrong with that dude and no one in her agency is taking her seriously.

So. Once the HYDRA reveal happens, and she starts looking for moles? Well, there's one really obvious place where standard SHIELD protocol is failing. The issue stretches to some pretty high levels, too- this isn't just baby-agent incompetence. That probably means Coulson's HYDRA. May must be too, if she's covering for him. Skye is, still, basically an enemy agent, Hand won't lose sleep over her. I have... thoughts... about the fact that Hand outright tries to shoot John Garrett out of the sky despite, or because of, their working history, but she's definitely suspicious of him, too. Ward is his agent and likely to follow his lead- when the Twist happens, Ward plays up how betrayed he is, and Hand buys it without question, which makes me think she did know they were pretty close. Simmons is already in the Hub, she can clear her separately.

Really, the only actual loss if she was to take that plane down would be Fitz.

Hand brings down the plane because she has legitimate reason to believe Coulson is an enemy agent, and so is the rest of his team. When she sends her people to storm the BUS, she wants Coulson alive, because he's probably the highest-ranking HYDRA member she can actually get her hands on. She wants some answers, damnit. The rest are acceptable losses if it comes to that.

[mrhowells]

Smallville 5x04

LOISSS MY WIFE IS BACK!!!!

Shut up Clark no one was hoping she'd stay in Europe longer, you just can't deal with her greatness

"Actually, I just ran into Mrs. Kent at the Talon and right out of nowhere, she asked if I'd like to move back into the farm😇". "Yeah right." "...😇" "...Really?"

AHJKHSJS PLS THE FACE JOURNEY

Lois: 1 - Clark: 0

See that's why we need Lois, it immediately turns into a comedy and Clark gets more personality.

LOIS BIKINIJFKSFJAKJK

BRO. HOLD ON. Was the AC actor on b99 as young Scully?? PLS that would be so funny.

the prettiest girl I've ever seeeen🎶 from the cover of a magazineeee🎶

like????????

she's still insulting the guy who saved her I LOVE HER SO MUCH THAT'S THE LOVE OF MY LIFE OKAY

and the Lana/Lois scraps I liveeee (but also, why didn't we get more, where is the humanity?)

"He can swim faster than I can." HEHEHEHEEHEE😈

Professor Milton Fine? I don't think so

He really just compared Lex to Hitler, BRO💀💀

Same Clark, same

"I got a buck." "Yeah? You should use it to get some fashion sense."

lmaoooo

LOIS STAHP I'M NOT STRONG ENOUGH FOR THIS

It's actually beautiful, you can see her come up with her next burn in real time

"You know, this, uh, whole orange and green thing you got going? Looks like Flipper threw up."

Gooodd I'm in love with her

SHE CALLED HIM FISH STICK I'M-

"You were turning blue." "It's a good color on me."

LOIS STOPPPPPP I NEED TO BREATHE😭😭

THE WAY HE'S LOOKING AT HER? DUDE SAMEEEE

no because they actually have great chemistry

wdym German philosophy is easy DO YOU KNOW THE TORTURE I WENT THROUGH IN HIGH SCHOOL??? DO YOU??

stop why am I shipping Lois and AC they're so cute together😭

HELP

Lois if he falls into the water, shouldn't you jump in after him??💀

I really feel like they made the change in Lex too abrupt which is kind of a bummer because they had a great setup for it after Lionel tried to kill him at the end of season 3.

"You really don't listen, do you?" "No, I try not to, I find it distracting."

AGAIN, I LOVE LOIS AND THEY'RE CUTEEEEE

some of his pickup lines are really cringy though💀

not me getting invested when I know this isn't going anywhere😭

"LOIS??!?!?"

perfect timing Clark

Clark: 🧍😠

"Lois is all over this guy. And all we know him is that he can swim faster than I can."

jsdkdjHkas HE NEEDS TO GET A GRIP BECAUSE WHY DOES HE SOUND ANGRY AND NOT CONCERNED😭💀

I can't

Chloe: listing perfectly normal things about AC like him being on a swim team

Clark: Does he have a criminal record?😠

"I don't know what it is about this guy but I get a bad feeling."

Mmmhhhmmmm okay yeah...

CLARK DON'T EMBARRASS YOURSELF PLS

Even Lana is so done with his shit I'm crying

"Do you really believe that or is that just a pickup line for the girls?" "Clark!!!!"

RIGHT IN FRONT OF LANA LIKE-

you can't make this up😭

PLSSSSSS

Okay Lois he would totally attack AC because he's jealous (and he kinda did💀) but he wouldn't straight up invent lies about him, come on.

OOOOh is this actually the first time we hear the nickname boy scout? (I don't have the best memory so I'm not sure😅)

not AC calling Lex "bro"💀💀

"One day of college and he's already an activist."

PLSSSSS

Again, I think they could've set up this plot a bit better wrt Lex's reasons for selling that weapon despite the damage that it causes.

I'm sorry but this is kind of funny

OK NOW I'M FULL ON LAUGHING

WHAT IS THISSSS😭😭

"Are you okay?" "WET AND READY BRO."

SHDAJKFHDHGWAUIFGQM W H A T ???

WET

AND

READY

????????

I JUST FELL OUT OF MY BED WHO IS THE LEGEND RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS PIECE OF DIALOGUE I MUST KNOW😭

"Well, you didn't tell him about my pitchfork, did you?" "I defended you."

*brief pause from the comedy of it all to feel PAIN*

the way AC says "bro" takes me outttt

"Maybe we should start up a junior lifeguard association or something."

STOOP THAT'S WHAT BART SAID TOO (not the lifeguard part but you know what I mean)

This just in, JLA stands for Junior Lifeguard Association💀

STAY SUPER BRAH (I'll stop making fun of AC now I prommy)

noooooo Lois😭😭😭

welp, I shipped it while it lasted

(I'm still tagging this post as clois though because we all know who the OTP is😌😌)

"I was just trying to look out for you." If you say so👀

not to be repetitive but...

CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW GOOD SHE LOOKS IN THIS LIGHTING????

"I've known a lot of guys who want to own the world. I haven't met very many who actually want to save it. How am I ever gonna meet someone like that again?"

SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP FALLING TO MY KNEES DO YOU GUYS EVEN UNDERSTAND????

That, exactly that is the reason she loves Clark (or will eventually, whatever) I'M GOING INSANEEEE THEY WROTE HER SO WELL😭

"Lois, I promise, some day... you'll meet someone even more special."

this episode was everything I needed and more

[butterflydm]

wot rewatch 1x3: a place of safety

Onto episode three, where we get to have some new dynamics and some relationship building for the future.

spoilers for the first season and the new s2 teaser scene that we got and for book spoilers... through The Dragon Reborn due to an identity reveal, I guess.

Nynaeve! I think it was a really good idea for the show to make sure to show us that Nynaeve was still alive at the end of episode two rather than trying to draw it out any further.

We do get some useful info here. We see the Trolloc's willingness to kill their own. We get to see Nynaeve being both brave and clever in how she dispatches the Trolloc. And then she tracks down Lan & Moiraine afterwards. We get shown on screen how impressive Nynaeve is.

Lan is also very impressed by Nynaeve, even so that he's very honest with her here. And he also needs her help, of course.

I'm going to be watching for our mirrors and parallels between Rand and Egwene while they're separated.

Rand is still calling out for Egwene and Perrin, and Mat is the one thinking clearly - he reassures Rand that they'll find the others but that they need to keep themselves alive first.

Mat wants to go home, but Rand is now picking up the responsibility baton, both to protect their home and because he knows Egwene will want to continue to the White Tower. I love Rand and Mat's banter in this episode a lot.

Perrin and Egwene are being followed (by wolves) and make a fire - Perrin tries with a flint but Egwene succeeds with the Power. Perrin takes her using the Power pretty well -- I do wonder if he jumps on board the "Egwene is the Dragon Reborn" train here.

Now they get to have their parallel discussion about what to do next. Rand knew Egwene would continue to the White Tower but Egwene thinks that Rand will go home. Perrin says that they won't, and he's right. Rand wants to go home -- Egwene's correct there -- but both responsibility and wanting to reunite with Egwene and Perrin prevents him from turning back even though Mat was on the side of "let's go home".

But that gap between Egwene and Rand loving each vs maybe not always knowing each other is something that continues from the first episode. They know parts of each other but they both also have gaps of knowledge - Rand makes assumptions about Egwene in episode 1 because he doesn't know about her offer from Nynaeve and Egwene makes assumptions here because she doesn't know that Rand has reason to believe that he's the Dragon Reborn. Rand accepting being the Dragon Reborn means accepting that he "can't go home", which is a big thing that he struggles with over the season but deflects onto first Egwene and then Mat once it starts looking like Mat might be the Dragon (exhibiting the 'signs' that Thom told him about).

Lan is developing a big crush and Nynaeve has no clue. <3 also I like Nynaeve's little healer's kit. We get some hints about the Warder bond here but we'll be getting much more next episode.

The set-up of the give-and-take between the three pairs being explored in this episode is a lot of fun.

Perrin's dream... Ishy trying to suss out if Perrin is The One, I assume. I wonder if he was trying to trigger Perrin into a memory of "his" past life and guilt over his dead wife. Which isn't going to work because it isn't his past life, of course. But it does make me wonder if he thought Perrin was TDR. We know from the finale that he appeared to be genuinely surprised it was Rand until they got a bit of quality time alone.

So Perrin and Egwene start out having a rougher and scarier journey -- howling wind, howling wolves, and being chased. While Mat and Rand appear to have found a touch of luck by running across a town. But the town is not a genuine "place of safety" while the wolves are actually doing their best to help out and lead Perrin to people who can help him.

Thom's coat does have colorful patches on the inside. I do understand why they toned Thom down, for sure. I wonder who wrote this song - given the subject matter. But we know why Thom would feel so sympathetic to Lews Therin.

Dana was such a great introduction to Darkfriends. It really feels like the show put a lot of thought into why someone would decide to become a Darkfriend and are putting it into practice early on. Lots of thought into all the various world philosophies that we've seen so far.

Go to a slighter large village than the one you grew up in, immediately get pickpocketed. No safety here for Rand and Mat. And poor Rand is so grossed out by how Dana just dumps all the leftovers back into the stewpot.

Mat Tries To Set Up A Porn, take one: offering to work for their stay.

Mat Tries To Set Up A Porn, take two: threesome edition.

On a more serious note, lol, this is also where Mat and Rand first get into a genuine bit of conflict, when Mat blames Rand for them being here and tells him that Egwene and Perrin are likely dead and, even if they aren't, that Egwene wouldn't go through any of this effort for Rand's sake and so he shouldn't do it for her. Basically, taking all that emotional sensitivity that Mat has shown previously and using as a weapon against Rand to try to get Rand to do what Mat wants to do (go home).

He successfully hurts Rand's feelings, clearly regrets it, but instead of apologizing, he goes with Mat Tries To Set Up A Porn, take three, which ends in him serving drinks.

Dana is pretty honest with Mat and Rand. Except for the big thing she's lying about, of course.

Honestly, I'm finding Perrin's guilt and grief over Laila to be pretty touching in this rewatch.

Rand trying to talk himself out of a room for the night, lol. Rand burns Mat so hard and he's not even there to hear it. Dana, of course, already knows about Egwene so it feels like her trying to "help" Rand and Mat's, uh, relationship woes was her angling to get some kind of in with Rand (which worked). From what we see in S1, Ishamael does have a fair amount of knowledge about their current lives (likely from Fain) but just doesn't know how that tracks into them potentially being the Dragon Reborn.

Mat is starting to get pretty twitchy and quick to draw his fancy new dagger. But he's still willing to calm down and realize Thom isn't a threat. We also get some tiny bits of Aiel lore.

"Mat says a lot of things" yeah, so true. But both of these scenes -- the Mat & Thom one and the Rand & Dana one -- are so good.

At this point, Thom was willing to give some advice and then walk out, because the two boys might need a life lesson but there's no indication they're in trouble they can't get out of. And then he hears that a Fade is after them, and everything changes for him.

"All five of you... but only one matters, only one of you can be it." Ishamael hasn't ruled Nynaeve out yet, because he doesn't know the exact wording of the prophecy.

I love how passionate and sincere they had Dana be here. And now that we've seen the teaser, we get a look at how Ishamael acts around prospective marks so I feel like Dana probably got started with the 'soft sell' just like the little girl did.

And now Lan leads his group to a hopeful place of safety. And we get to explore Aes Sedai politics in the next episode. <3

Logain! Talk about you soon. <3 <3

[keroradio]

You've probably guessed that it's Kururu in the Kururuko suit, I'm actually not sure if Kururuko had actually been in the anime yet when this CD released, which is wild to think about

A fun little note to add, I've shorthanded Kururuko as 9665 to match to the pattern used for the canon shorthand versions: 9 is ku or kyu, 6 is roku (mu with some counters) and is also used for ru because they're similar, and 5 is go, but because go is ko with more vocal emphasis on the consonant, it works for ko as well

9665: Koyuki-chan, you seem listless. Could it be you have romantic worries too?

KYK: It could be, I might

723: What? Is it so!?

9665: Will you let us hear about it?

KYK: At first I admired them as a friend (1), but as I spent more time with that person, they became more fuzzy feelings

9665: That's love, isn't it!? (2)

723: That's right! Fuzzy feelings mean you're absolutely in love!

MMK: I also get fuzzy feelings...And warm feelings...And steamy feelings...

9665: Who's the person you're fretting over?

KYK: I can't bring myself to say it

9665: Well, try assigning a colour to that person

KYK: Uh...the red of passion! Perhaps

723: Giroro!?

KYK: You're mistaken!

9665: Then the right one is?

KYK: Strong willed, stubborn, but actually really kind

723: So it's Giroro after all!?

KYK: I said it wasn't him! The person I like is good at sports, and smart, and has the name of a season in their name

MMK: The person I like also has a season in his name! Ah! I can't say anymore! I won't give away even one more kanji character or anything like that!

723: Shares part of their name with a season...Fuyuki!?

MMK: The word part is right, but Fuyuki-kun hates sports- I almost gave it away! But that part's also "Kyun~♥"

KYK: Um. They're a member of his family

723: Fuyuki's family (gasp) The stupid frog!? Even though he's not a relative

KYK: Natsumi-san! Why won't you understand my feelings!?

723: About their name? Sorry, for some reason I'm just not getting it

Moa: Please listen! The person I like is the person I call "Uncle" you could say "A shocking confession"?

KYK: "Uncle"? Who is that? (3)

723: The person Mois-chan calls "Uncle" ...It can't be the stupid frog, so who is it?

Moa: Uh, well...

KYK: I know! It's 556-san!

Moa: It's not, it's

MMK: Could it be Paul?

P: Did you call me?

723: It's Paul's voice again!

N: It's your imagination, carry on talking

Moa: That person's a Keronian, and-

723: Giroro

Moa: There are other ones, aren't there!? That cool Mr Keronian is-

723: Dororo?

Moa: What~?

KYK: Congratulations! I hope you'll bring Dororo joy!

Moa: It's somebody else!

723: Then who is it?

KYK: Tamama-san? Ah, but he doesn't really feel like an "uncle"

723: That leaves...Kururu!?

Moa: That person is kind, and smart, and gallant, and a really wonderful person

9665: You're making me blush

723: Hey, what about the person Kururuko-chan likes?

Moa: My speech- you could say "sudden conclusion"?

723: Since everyone else has spoken, you tell us too, Kururuko-chan

966: Hmm-hmm, I don't really have interest in romance

723: That's no good, if you don't confess, nothing will change

KYK: That's right! When it's just us girls, we can confess things we normally keep to ourselves!

Moa: You could say "our lips are sealed"?

MMK: Did you already confess to that someone?

9665: I understand, she we've gotten this far I'll confess. The person I like is a Keronian! He has a sharp mind, is level headed, and on top of that, his inventing skills are unmatched. His favourite saying is "Traps and accidents, ku ku ku"

723: That sounds like, the unlikable one in an anime

Moa: The one whose goods don't sell, you could say "Inventory clearance sale?"

MKK: Wait, Kururuko-chan. What is that you're hiding in the valley of your chest"

KYK: What is it?

9665: T-this isn't anything

Moa: You could say "Getting a bad feeling"?

KYK: Ninja arts "chest valley target"!

(Ninja arts sounds)

KYK: What is this? It's a hidden camera!

723: What was that!? Then everything until now, us getting changed, and talking about love, you were secretly recording all of it!?

9665: D-don't make that scary face

All: We won't forgive it! Take that!

9665: Ah~ Stop it!

723: You can't run away!

MMK: Are you hiding anything else?

Moa: You could say "inescapable disaster"?

KYK: Restrain her!

9665: Oh no! That device is-!

723: K-Kururu!

966: Creeps

All: Who is!?

(Scene change~)

K66: Sgt Major Kururu, is this where you were? I've been looking everywhere for you

966: Leader?

K66: Gero! What happened to you, yes sir? You're covered in spiral shaped bruises

966: I made a small mistake, and all my efforts were ruined

K66: Ruined? (4)

966: Ah, that was a slip of the tongue

N: Right, the girls' names are Natsumi, Momoka, Mois, Koyuki, and Kururuko, these ordinary girls, went to an ordinary pool, and made flowers bloom with their ordinary conversation. But one was different, Kururuko-chan was really a boy

966: Ku ku ku~ Ah, that hurt

---------

1-The way Japanese is structured third person pronouns are used very rarely, in fact most of the instances you see any pronouns in these translations they were implied rather than being in the audio, which is why it's not clicking that Koyuki's talking about Natsumi

2-Here's something interesting, Japanese linguistically distinguishes romantic love, or infatuation, I don't think English really has a counterpart, but it's that phase where you can't stop thinking about the other person and feel melty when you do, that's "koi" and the term used here

Ai is for companient love like you feel towards your family, friends, and the person you're married to; there's even a saying that koi is self focused, while ai is focused on the other. And then a more generalised term for love is renai

3-Uncle and Aunt are also used to address people who are noticeably older than yourself, but not elderly, around the age range of your parents or so, it's typically associated with middle aged adults. So the other girls are guessing people who are categorically somebody you would address as uncle

4-This joke is a bit difficult to translate, but basically he's using the more feminine speech Kururuko used, instead of his normal speech pattern

[carefulfears]

top five season 2 episodes. or top five season 3 episodes. both iconic seasons for the myth arc but also full of really good motw eps

you're so right, they're both some of the best!! let's chat season 3

(some of this is derived from my newsletter)

1/ oubliette

#MYepisode. aside from paper hearts, this is my favorite episode of the series. it means so much to me. i love it so much. i love that they accidentally wrote a very poignant story of abuse and trauma reactions, from so many different sides.

oubliette opens on the abduction of 15-year-old amy jacobs from her bedroom, her nose beginning to bleed as her kidnapper whispers the words "nobody's gonna spoil us."

twenty miles across town, lucy householder is working her shift at a fast food chain when her nose begins to bleed, and she collapses, repeating the phrase "nobody's gonna spoil us" over and over again.

when mulder begins investigating, it is revealed that lucy had been kidnapped from her home 22 years ago at age eight, her abductor never found.

he becomes convinced that lucy is the connection to finding amy, as lucy continues to experience everything that amy experiences. every scratch on amy's face appears on lucy's. when amy is kept in the dark, lucy can't see.

"i feel like it's happening all over again," lucy whispers to mulder in her room at the halfway house where she lives, and this is a feeling that all trauma survivors are familiar with.

the supernatural element of this episode is a heightened version of the re-traumatization that lucy would be experiencing regardless, upon learning that her kidnapper had taken someone else.

the psychic connection between these two survivors, simply intensifies the implicit connection between them. they've never met, but they're tethered to each other. in experience, in understanding, in reaction and physical response.

lucy isn't the only one reliving the worst nights of their life, as mulder is once again walking into the childhood bedroom of a lost little girl.

years earlier, in conduit, he confessed to scully that he spent his childhood walking into his room with his eyes shut, feeling that maybe one day when he opened them, his sister would be there. "just lying in bed, like nothing ever happened."

in oubliette, he arrives at the jacobs' house alone, with scully's flight delayed in D.C. (later, when she says that she tried to call him, he tells her that he left "in a hurry," and forgot his cell phone).

it's hard not to feel a little pang in this scene, when he pauses to speak to amy's mother. tells her that he's sorry, that they're going to do everything they can to find her daughter, and she says "how could you really know how i feel?"

(i'll do another post sometime on mulder in this episode, there are a lot of angles to it that i'm not going to address here)

amy isn't the only person that lucy feels a connection to though, and i love the script page of this moment between her and mulder.

contrasted to mrs. jacobs’ reaction, lucy understands how sincere he truly is, even without knowing him. i love how purposeful the use of light and dark is in this story.

this is a really important episode for mulder's characterization, as the conflict builds to scully and the other investigators suspecting lucy as an accomplice in amy's kidnapping, due to her criminal history and traces of physical evidence.

mulder defends her from law enforcement fervently, leading to a confrontation with scully where she accuses him of "protecting her beyond the point of reason" and rationalizing a personal identification with her, because of her correspondence to his sister.

he responds that he's thought of that, and "not everything i do, say, think, and feel goes back to my sister," telling her that motivations are more complex than one singular childhood event.

this is something that elizabeth kubek touches on in the book deny all knowledge. kubek writes that the key women in oubliette, along with samantha mulder, are viewed as "simple equivalents."

and that the kidnapper of the first two girls, carl wade, "represents a symbolic logic of duplication," in the ways that he subjects both girls to the exact same experience and treatment, years apart.

this is amplified by the psychic connection between them, which furthers the degree to which they are, in many ways, the same person, having the same experience.

kubek goes on to note that mulder "resists" reading the girls as simple equivalents, instead viewing all three of them as individual people, leading individual lives.

in the end, when lucy gives her life for amy, the "logic of duplication" model would suggest that it's an even trade- that the girls are identical in their defining life event, and therefore exchangeable.

mulder relentlessly fights to save amy, then openly grieves lucy, weeping over her body outside of the home where she was held years ago.

in the final scene, it's mulder that suggests that maybe lucy's death was about more than saving amy. maybe it was about escape, and being her own person.

2/ pusher

along with beyond the sea, this might objectively be the best episode of this series, and i definitely view modell as the scariest villain.

even more than the gruesome monsters or the brutal serial killers, modell is impenetrable. he can pass through any security with one word written on a napkin. you can track him, you can seek him, but no one can stop you from lighting yourself on fire or pulling your car out into traffic when you find him.

he is the kind of killer who calls the police and confesses, because even if you get him to court, 5 bucks says he gets off.

this episode smoothly combines a truly well-executed MOTW with subtle character dynamics and standards.

mulder is any serial killer’s ideal adversary. scully is the disbeliever who trusts her partner more than she dismisses any phenomena.

these are themes that we’ve seen before, but they’re rarely as prevalent as in this episode.

the episode reaches its climax in one of the most intense sequences of the series, the russian roulette scene, which perfectly encapsulates so much of both what is scary about modell and what is steady about our agents.

mulder will put a gun to his head and pull the trigger with no hesitation, but he’ll shake and sweat and scream when it’s aimed at scully.

scully will cry with fear, but she won’t run, she won’t move, until she finds a solution that doesn’t involve leaving him there.

in the end, it’s not worth another minute of their time.

3/ grotesque

i love a good "maybe mulder's been possessed/bitten/infected, or maybe he's just like that" episode!

the moment that really sticks with me from grotesque is this one here; when scully, unable to find mulder, goes to his apartment, and discovers that it is completely wallpapered in the killer's drawings.

season 3 is heavy in characterization, more so than any other season, and grotesque is one of the more visual explorations of psyche and obsession, the effects of sanctity, of following someone who is constantly chasing something else.

grotesque follows a chain reaction of fixation and consumption, in line with its central statement, the advice that mulder's former mentor bill patterson lived by: "to know an artist, you have to look at his art...if you want to catch a monster, you have to become one yourself."

a mulder-centric story told largely through scully's eyes, the audience follows as patterson pursues the killer, mulder pursues patterson, and scully pursues mulder, each of them compulsively striving to understand the other.

undercutting the tension of this procession, is the entity that mostow claims possessed him to kill. with mostow in custody, the murders continue, and no one is sure who or what is carrying on the objective.

in the end, it's patterson himself who is responsible for the copycat killings, though it’s never clear if “possession” was literal or figurative.

mulder theorizes that after years of obsessing over mostow's murders, of studying his work, patterson sunk “deeper and deeper into that ugliness, as you taught us to do” until the violence he bore witness to, stayed alive inside of him.

this is something that mulder is quick to understand, and after all, he was once one of patterson’s students.

“you said it yourself, if you want to know the artist, look at the art. i’m finally agreeing with you.”

in a show, and character, that finds comfort in evil being found "out there": in space, in starlight, in underground creatures, grotesque posits evil as "something born in each of us."

something lying dormant, that can be seen or activated in examination and association.

4/ quagmire

like so many season 3 episodes before it, quagmire is a love letter to the core of who the characters are, except this episode ruminates on new revelations and quiet conversations rather than exemplifying the traits that we already see in them.

sitting on the rock discussing literature and family origins and earnest theses disguised in flippant remarks, the audience is let in on the same realization that scully has when she tilts her head.

that they are ahab and starbuck, and have been since childhood nicknames and “boyhood” fantasies. that they know exactly who they are, and what they’re doing, and where they’re headed, and they are never more than 3 feet from the shore.

they can get up and leave, but they don’t realize it, they’re sitting in the dark with each other.

this is a unique episode in that mulder is both right and wrong.

it might not have been the true culprit; but the creature is real, the hope is there, the belief is worthwhile. he’ll never know it.

scully knows it though, she knows it without ever seeing it, because she understands what belief truly represents. that people want to believe, that these stories will always endure.

ahab slew the white whale, and it wasn’t enough, but there’s still hope.

5/ jose chung's "from outer space"

i have a hard time writing about this episode because i literally have no reason for liking it this much except that it's funny. i don't even like the plot. it just made me laugh so hard that i had to keep rewinding it and laughing again, so it always makes my lists.

but we're just chatting so let's giggle over the top 5 jose chung's moments that make me laugh.

1/ blaine describing the ""men in black""

i swear to god this is what the transcript says:

"one of them was disguised as a woman, but wasn't pulling it off. like, her hair was red but it was a little too red, you know? and the other one…the tall, lanky one…his face was so blank and expressionless. he didn't even seem human. i think he was a mandroid...the only time he reacted was when he saw the dead body.

(mulder lets out a very girlie, high-pitched shriek)"

2/ the alien smoking a cigarette

not a day goes by that i don't think about this.

3/ roky's interaction with the men in black

MAN IN BLACK 1: no other planet has been misidentified as a flying saucer more than the planet venus...even the former leader of your united states of america, james earl carter jr., thought he saw a UFO once…but it's been proven he only saw the planet venus.

ROKY: i'm a republican.

4/ alex trebek

"mulder didn't say it WAS alex trebek. it was just someone that looked incredibly like him."

5/ agent diana lesky and "her partner, reynard muldrake, that ticking time bomb of insanity"

darin morgan, thank you for the implication that mulder gets off to the bigfoot tape. i treasure it.