#Black Lightning 1x06

[wordsmith30]

Black Lightning 1×06: “Three Sevens: The Book of Thunder”

Henderson and the rest of the police are gearing up to get Black Lightning. Why, I don’t know. He was literally helping them in the last episode with that Green Light kid. On the plus side, though, Jefferson’s cop friend Henderson doesn’t look too happy about it.

Head still ringing, Jefferson tries to stand and power back up, but it’s no good. Two kids further up the street recognize him, but thankfully, Gambi gets to him first. He can’t afford to get caught by the police now!

“Tobias is in Freeland, Gambi.”

Yes, he knows. He was supposed to tell you about it. 

Rather than say anything, however, his priority is getting him help. Gambi calls Lynn.

A limping and bleeding Toledo makes it back to Tobias’ office to tell him what happened and he’s not impressed. He wants to know the minute the cops have Black Lightning.

In the meantime, he’s put his sister, Tori, in protection after the threat from Lady Eve. While we don’t know exactly what she wrote to him, the letter was full of white dust from ground albino bones.

At the station, Henderson says that they got witness reports of Black Lightning getting into a black van, but because they were fans, that’s the only intel they’ll get.

“How does a criminal and a freak have fans?”

You tell me, copper. What exactly have you been doing for the Black kids of Freeland?

Henderson hesitates a moment and then asks him where he got his tip-off. Two seconds later, the chief gets a phone call from “JT” – aka Todedo.

So, the cops are in Tobias’ pocket, too. Be suspicious, Henderson. Be very suspicious!

Jefferson tries to explain to Lynn why he went after Toledo, but she’s ticked about him resuming his Black Lightning activities.

However, her saying that Jefferson’s father is dead and that there’s nothing he can do about it? Not cool. 

I understand not wanting him out there and being afraid for his safety (we’ve seen plenty of this with early Olicity), but Tobias is bigger than just Alvin’s death. He’s got all of Freeland under his thumb. Your girls have already been targets of The 100. This isn’t going to get any better!

Anissa and a few demonstrators take water guns full of pink paint to a statue on what looks to be a university campus. That is both very bold and very dangerous. Cops see Black people with anything resembling a weapon in their hand and they fire without hesitation. At least it was clear what they were doing, so security just arrested them. Still, that could’ve been a massacre.

One of Lynn’s coworkers at the lab shows her the brain scans of the Green Light victims. After he leaves, she takes out Jefferson’s scans for comparison. The same areas are all lit up.

Holy smokes. Is Green Light a variation of the vaccine (if that’s what gave Jefferson his powers)? 

Those kids had insane strength during those episodes.

Unbeknownst to her, the lab tech can see her outside the door and he’s on the phone. Oh, Lynn. You have to be more careful.

Lol, Anissa’s been arrested so many times, it’s like the novelty has worn off. Jennifer’s just like, “We’re back again!”

And Jefferson says the very thing I was most concerned about. Do not use fake guns!

Anissa continues her research on superpowers and realizes that her findings are supported by Alvin’s notes. She’s interrupted by Jen, who wants her to look over her homework.

Jen confesses that this isn’t what she thought dating would look like now that Khalil’s in a wheelchair. She wanted to dance with him at prom and now feels like they’re going to be stuck on the sidelines.

Anissa tells her that she’s not a bad person for feeling that way and that it’s a difficult situation to be in. Still, it’s always really sad to see the way people are treated after suffering from a permanent injury or disability. Few people are willing to accommodate or stick around for them.

Gambi and Jeff run some tests to make sure the suit is working properly again. Jeff is ready to go out and start hunting Tobias again so that he can put him in the ground for good.

Gambi doesn’t like that kind of talk and says that Black Lightning is supposed to be a hero, not a killer. Then, he goes on to say that maybe Tobias isn’t behind Green Light and Jeff gets suspicious.

While I do agree with Gambi’s point about vengeance, if you are not hunting Tobias, you are helping him. Whether you’re trying to protect Jefferson or not, the two of them are on a collision course. The problems that you want Jefferson to fight so badly are problems that Tobias helped to create and you know it. Send him in blind and he’s going to get killed.

Help him catch Tobias the right way.

Lynn comes in to work and finds Gambi already waiting in her lab. He expresses his concern about Jefferson and says that she may be the only one who can talk him down.

She maintains that he and Gambi chose this and she wants no part in it.

After getting an notification for a doctor’s appointment, Jeff decides to do some research on health concerns affecting people with albinism. The woman in the video he finds says that “regular screenings are a must” because of potential issues like psoriasis and skin cancer. That means Tobias may be seeing somebody.

Anissa stops by the lab to see her mom and asks how things are going between her and Jeff. Anissa says she used to hear them fighting growing up and knows their father is married to saving the world. Lynn was basically the “mistress.”

She shows Lynn the sample from Alvin and all I’m thinking is:

She must know what this is. Alvin’s work literally led to his death. You can’t exactly be running around with this stuff!

Lynn knows there’s more to the story, but decides not to pry, saying that Anissa can fill her in when she’s ready.

Jefferson decides to follow up on his new lead and breaks into a doctor’s office as Black Lightning. Gambi sees the footage from the suit cam and warns him that he and Tobias are different for a reason.

Black Lightning finds Dr. Henry Mayfield, who’s scared out of his mind. He says he does treat Tobias, but in secret after hours. Jefferson promises to help him and his family, and leaves him a phone so that he can contact him.

At school, Cara comes up to Jefferson with a cyberbullying incident: she shows him a video of a white girl dancing with Jennifer’s face plastered over it. It was posted by the same girl she got into a fight with, but under it is a comment from Khalil calling her a “Black Becky” with “nappy hair.”

Jefferson immediately goes looking for Jen and finds her in the workout room. He explains the “crabs in a barrel” metaphor where Black people lash out at other Black people because they’re supposedly rising above everybody else.

“No one is an expert on what is or is not Black because Black is everything under the sun.”

Thank you! It’s so infuriating when people try to stuff us all in boxes or make assumptions about our interests, our families, our skills, our backgrounds, our socioeconomic status. There is no one way to be Black just like there is no one way to be human. We can look like anything, speak like anyone. Stop putting parameters around what we can be.

Jen admits that that post backfired on the girl. Still, she’s not sure where things stand now with Khalil and wants to talk to him.

Khalil straight-up tells Jen that it’s her fault he got shot and calls her “Becky” to her face. Don’t even waste your time, Jen.

Dr. Mayfield calls Jefferson and tells him that he asked Tobias to come in for a test that evening.

Anissa, in full costume, joins the vigil for the girl who died in a white nationalist counter-protest. She stomps the ground, causing the whole statue to explode. All the mourners scatter.

Oh, Anissa. You couldn’t have done that when the people were gone?

She calls Lynn back in the car and says she needs to show her the reason she needs the research.

With his father’s murder still fresh in his mind, Jeff gears up to launch his attack on Tobias. Toledo, Syonide, and Tobias all get out of the car. Then Gambi puts Lynn through on his comms and she tells him that she can no longer separate Jefferson and Black Lightning. She accepts it as a part of him and as part of the hero he is.

Then Lynn’s lab is attacked, snapping Jefferson out of his rage. He ditches Tobias and goes to save her.

Anissa, however, gets there first and finds two guys tying up Lynn. Oh, the look in Lynn’s eyes as she comes marching through the doors and realizes that that’s her baby. 

She can only watch in shock and horror as Anissa flings them around like rag dolls and chases them from the room.

And then Jefferson shows up only to attack Anissa!

Stop, man! Stop! You don’t know your daughter’s face?

I have to give Anissa props, though. She gives him a run for his money. She blocks his swings and his lightning.

But the final blow is devastating. The poor girl gets the wind knocked out of her.

Jeff finally rolls her over on the ground and realizes what he’s done.

A concussion? Jeff, you idiot!

He’s just like, “What was she doing?”

“What you do!”

Y’all screwed up big-time.

Tobias takes Khalil out for a drive to tell him he made the right choice. Khalil, you son of a gun. How did Tobias get to you so quickly? 

Both he and Syonide promise that they can make him stronger than anything he’s ever been.

Gambi pays a visit to Lady Eve and apparently, these two go way back. He tells her that the Pierce family is supposed to be off-limits. She was behind the attack at the lab and says that Lynn’s research is invaluable.

Who are all these people that Lady Eve is cutting up anyway?

So, that’s why Gambi wants Jeff off Tobias. Lady Eve is blackmailing him.

Hi, Anissa, sweetie. Sorry about your concussion. That was Daddy’s fault.

I guess the family secret is out!

Y’all are going to have so much explaining to do. Honestly, did they never consider the possibility that the girls might inherit his powers?

Lord, help us all.

[scratchybeardsweetmouth]

Thanks for tagging me @lodessa in the WIP Folder Meme and for @youcancallme-ray for the Last Line - WIP Meme! I barely write so I unfortunately have nothing for this but just going to share some notes or initial plans or ideas I had that well, were initially WIPs, and now are just rotting in my folder (or brain) left un-giffed.

Goran Visnjic in every episode of Red Widow - I stopped at episode s01e04

Jorah Mormont in every episode - I stopped at s05e08 and have yet to compile for s05e09

Iain Glen as John Manly in Black Beauty - the last scene where he lets the horse roam

Iain Glen as Sonny McElhone in his undies helping a friend out of his heart stopping 

Tedbecca... (Ted Lasso and Rebecca Welton scenes) (see below the cut)

I kinda wanna tag writers that might actually enjoy the WIP Folder Meme and Last Line - WIP Meme but this reply of mine might be confusing lol! For any writer that does wanna check out that tag game, please see the links in the first paragraph.

########################## tedbecca side by side in one scene 1x01 - welcome to england 1x01 - drinking water after press 1x02 - keeley arrives with lion or panda (extra 1x02, standing in front of press) 1x02 - that's y you're the boss / toy soldier 1x02 - cake from sam's bday 1x04 - ted lasso, my god! 1x05 - ted in rebecca's office with head injury 1x06 - just the man i wanted to see 1x06 - ey boss glad u could join us 1x06 - oh spirits 1x07 - rebecca comforts ted/panic atk 1x08 - meeting milk sisters 1x09 - biscuit boost eggplant suit 1x09 - apology 1x10 - toast 'win whole fucking thing'

########################## tedbecca because you loved me by celine dion

for all those times you stood by me 1x08 - don't want to give him the satisfaction

for all the truth that you made me see 1x04 - who sees who he really is? you're not.

for all the joy you brought to my life 2x04 - walking together outside ted's place 2x01 - that laugh cheering from the box

for all the wrong that you made right 1x09 - rebecca apologizes, 'i forgive you'

for every dream you made come true 2x12 - you too ted! champagne to celebrate?

for all the love i found in you 1x02 - toy soldier

ill be forever thankful baby ---

you're the one who held me up, never let me fall 2x10 funeral, ted continues the song

you're the one who saw me through, through it all 1x04 hug or the start of convo --------------------------------------

you were my strength when i was weak 1x04 hug outside the gala

you were my voice when i couldn't speak 1x08 dart scene

you were my eyes when i couldn't see 1x09 i forgive you

you saw the best there was in me 1x09 eggplant suit

lifted me up when i couldn't reach 2x10 funeral, ted continues the song

you gave me faith 'cause you believed 1x09 apology hug

i'm everything i am

because you loved me

########################## struck by fuckin' lightning

1x01 how you holdin up 1x02 fuck me (biscuits) 1x04 *thank you* (end of gala, reacts to ted) 1x08 dart scene 2x12 you too, ted (congratulations)

########################## if you're with the right person, even the hard times are easy

1x04 gala hug 1x07 panic attack 1x08 you wanna leave? 1x09 rebecca's apology 1x10 carrying something besides biscuits 2x04 "hi ted" 2x10 never gonna say goodbye

########################## himbo moments, rebecca's reactions

1x01 ghosts need to believe in themselves 1x03 branding joke 1x03 owner of the sun 1x03 obama arm wrestle 2x12 "still" water

########################## s01e04 gala comfort s01e07 panic attack comfort s01e05 oklahoma s03e04 oklahoma s01e08 hi boss s02e04 hi ted s02e10 traumas

########################### Gifset of them with these lyrics:

God sent those eyes to get me through the night And all the shadows of the past fade into white When all the memories in my head subside You remain here, you remain dear inside, ooh

We try to understand the way the current flows We find the love and plan that only faith can know And underneath the veil of my wild eyes Is a heart unafraid to let love inside,

--  Godsent by Ben&Ben

[anissa-pierced]

#growingupwithsisters

[fashionofcomics]

WHO: Nafessa Williams as Anissa Pierce WHAT: Erdem x H&M Floral-patterned Hooded Top - Sold Out WHERE: Black Lightning | 1x06 “Three Sevens: The Book Of Thunder”

[anissapiercegifs]

# angel

[gracesgirl]

Black Lightning “Three Sevens: The Book of Thunder” Deleted Scene

[trashy-greyjoy]

Anissa Pierce is an icon and an inspiration and a beautiful lesbian and I love her. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

[marysocontrary1]

Thunder in 1x06

[forbescaroline]

top 100 favorite female characters: #79. anissa pierce (black lightning) “I'm just tired of walking around with a sign, trying to change people's hearts. I wanna do more.”

[cheryls-blossomed]

So ofc olicity fans are trying to argue w WA fans, and I saw one of them say that after olicity they made a rule that tv shows and movies had to stay comic accurate and because of this westallen was always gonna be endgame. Then all the snowbarrys use this to further their belief that sb was gonna be endgame but it wasnt “allowed”. What do you think about this?

I think both sets of fans are delusional. But that’s nothing new.

A RULE??? A RULE that live-action adaptations of comic books have to be comic accurate??? Man, O/F fans are truly ridiculous, and they are incredibly entitled, but I don’t think that they realize that in their attempt to say that O/F changed the game, they’ve literally insulted their ship. They’re probably trying to say that DC got scared of O/F’s “popularity”, but to this I raise them the argument that DC and Warner Bros. are both mostly concerned about money. Why would they limit themselves with a “rule” like this, if O/F was oh so popular? So, if such a “rule” did exist, I can only deduce that O/F flopped big time and there was immense backlash and money was lost, and DC didn’t want anymore issues, so they created said “rule” to prevent that disaster from ever happening again. It’s ludicrous what they’re suggesting, but it only would reflect badly on their ship, if such a rule existed. (Also, The Flash is way more popular than Arrow, and we know the O/Fs are eternally salty about this.) Anyways, such a rule does not exist. Westallen being endgame has nothing to do with such a “rule.” Berlanti wanted to bring Westallen’s love story to live-action and that’s really it. And DC and Warner Bros are clearly really happy with Westallen and what this icon live-action adaptation has meant to the CW DCTV-verse and greater DC, as well. This Westallen, our Westallen, has completely shaped live-action love stories throughout DC. (Can’t say that about O/F, now can you? No wonder they’re claiming there is a “rule,” lmao.) And a lot of it is because of how much of an impact Candice’s portrayal of Iris has had on the greater landscape of DC, both in relation to the comics and live-action adaptation. But O/Fs acknowledging Westallen as important representation and Candice’s impact on opening up the genre to casting more Black leading ladies is never going to happen.

As for the SBs, how does this make sense? Who didn’t “allow it”? When was this ever going to be “endgame,” and who put a stop to it? TPTB? DC? LMAO, O/Fs make up some dumb rule, because they’re bitter about their ship's lack of impact, and the SBs latch on... because... why. Hate to break it to them, but... Barry and Iris’s pilot reunion? The lightning rod connection starting from 1x06 and developing even more in 1x15 and 1x21? Barry being in love with Iris for decades? Where the heck did they see SB endgame in any of this? Oh wait, I forgot, they invent narratives in their own heads, because it’s unfathomable to them that their fave white male hero is head over heels in love with his Black wife. They’re so pathetically delusional. 

Long story short, there’s absolutely no such “rule”. 

[stahlop]

Once Upon a Time 2x05 “The Doctor” Review

Reviews 1x01 1x02 1x03 1x04 1x05 1x06 1x07 1x08 1x09 1x10 1x11 1x12 1x13 1x14 1x15 1x16 1x17 1x18 1x19 1x20 1x21 1x22 2x01 2x02 2x03 2x04

We finally find out who Dr. Whale is. Turns out he’s not from the Enchanted Forest at all and he’s Victor Frankenstein! Well, I certainly wasn’t expecting that. This is the first character we’ve seen who isn’t a fairy tale or nursery rhyme character. I did love all the misdirects to Whale possibly being the Wizard from The Wizard of Oz, though, he technically could still be, maybe just not at this point in the story. This is a long one, there are so many characters to talk about because there are 3 different storylines happening here. So buckle up!

Summary: Whale brings someone from Regina’s past back to try and get her to open a portal for him back to his land. Emma, Mary Margaret, Mulan, and Aurora find one survivor from Cora’s slaying of the Safe Haven, but Emma doesn’t buy Killian Jones’s ruse for one second. In the past, Jefferson brings The Doctor to help Regina bring Daniel back from the dead, despite Rumplestiltskin’s insistence that ‘dead is dead.’

Opening: Lightning bolts in black and white.

Character Observations:

Victor Frankenstein/Dr. Whale: We are given many clues to who The Doctor is in this episode. Many of them pointing to The Wizard of Oz. We see The Doctor (who I dubbed Steampunk Whale on first viewing) and it is explained that he can try and bring Daniel back but the procedure is experimental and he needs one of the enchanted hearts he’s heard about in this realm, because they are stronger than regular hearts. Young Regina won’t take a heart for him because it is considered evil and Victor feels she has wasted his time, but she knows where they can get one. Young Regina takes them to Cora’s heart vault and tells Victor to take his pick. He picks a random one and claims it’s perfect. It is time try putting the heart into Daniel’s body. Victor must do this alone. He’s in a tent outside, hardly the place for a medical procedure. He makes a dramatic show of pulling out the heart and looking like he’s jamming it into Daniel’s body, and then hangs his head. He tells young Regina that the heart wasn’t strong enough and it didn’t withstand the procedure. Victor and Jefferson meet up with Rumplestiltskin. The whole bringing Daniel back was a scam to make young Regina harden her heart enough to go back to Rumplestiltskin. Victor still has the heart and plans on using it for his experiment in his own land. Rumplestiltskin ruffles Victor’s feathers by saying he’s making a monster. Victor says he’s not making a monster and with this heart he’ll transcend the limitations of magic with whatever is stronger in his land. Rumplestiltskin thinks Victor will someday see that he’ll need magic, Victor doubts it. Before Jefferson takes Victor back to his land, Rumplestiltskin reminds him that everything comes with a price. And if you haven’t figured out who Dr. Whale is by now, we see  a stately home, in black and white, and see him in his laboratory. Considering the lightning storm brewing and the body on the slab, it’s not hard to figure out that we’ve been dealing with Victor Frankenstein all this time. He harnesses the electricity into the body and then it’s arm (complete with harsh stitches) starts rising up. Victor welcomes his brother back. His assistant says it’s magic, but Victor says it’s science.

While Victor is very cocky about everything that’s happening, Whale is having a really bad day. First he goes to talk to David who automatically punches him for sleeping with Mary Margaret during the curse. Whale wants to know if he is trying to find a portal. David confirms that he is. Whale wonders if all the lands survived. David thinks so. Whale goes to Archie’s office and interrupts Regina’s session with him. Archie, dude, lock your door during counseling sessions. Whale wants to be sent back to his land with his brother, who is dead. Regina says she can’t and Whale questions whether she can’t or won’t. Archie kicks him out. We next see Regina looking for Whale after seeing Daniel in the storm. Whale has brought Daniel back, but he apparently ripped Whale’s arm off from the shoulder (OW!), because he’s, dun dun duuuuun, a monster!!! So, a few days later, maybe, Whale is walking around town in a bloody shirt with his ripped off arm in a cooler. He goes to Gold’s shop and shows him the arm. He demands Gold reattach his arm. Gold wants to know why he brought Daniel back in the first place. Whale admits to wanting to get on Regina’s good side so she’d send him back to his land. His first experiment with his brother didn’t end well and he wants to try again. That doesn’t sound too good. I know the saying goes ‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again’, but I don’t think it meant when trying to bring back the dead. Gold reminds him there is always a price. Whale’s willing to pay whatever it is. Gold wants him to admit magic is better than science. Whale seems pained to do so, but he does, and his arm is magically back and usable. Whale is in shock that it worked so easily. Whale does not seem like the type of person to give up easily. I hope he doesn’t do anything else to piss off Regina.

Jefferson: Wow! This is a side of Jefferson we’ve never seen. He’s jovial and quirky, and much more in line with how we would picture the Mad Hatter. He shows up at Rumplestiltskin’s castle while young Regina is there. He brings Rumplestiltskin a crystal ball of sorts. They discuss if Jefferson found the slippers, but Jefferson says they’ve already been moved to another land. Jefferson talks to young Regina after Rumplestiltskin has told her he’s done teaching her. He says he travels a lot and knows someone who may be able to help her with her problem. He calls him a wizard. Jefferson’s price is a royal passport throughout young Regina’s lands, since she is the queen. Young Regina questions whether this wizard can really bring someone back from the dead. Jefferson says if he can’t, no one can. Later on, Jefferson is bringing young Regina to meet the wizard. He warns her that this wizard is not familiar with our ways and our magic. Young Regina doesn’t care as long as he can help her. He presents to her, her salvation, and young Regina just rolls her eyes at Jefferson’s ridiculousness. Jefferson hangs out while Victor takes a look at dead Daniel. He gets berated by Victor when he realized young Regina doesn’t know this procedure is experimental. But then explains to Victor why the enchanted hearts are so… hearty (because they’re ripped out from a living person). Young Regina refuses to do this and Jefferson tells her that if she wants her fiance back she’ll need to do it. But young Regina has other ideas.They go to Cora’s vault. Jefferson wants to know whose hearts they all are, but young Regina has no idea. Jefferson and young Regina are waiting outside Victor’s medical tent. Young Regina wants to know if he’s doing magic in the tent. Jefferson says he wields a power greater than magic, but he doesn’t know what it is. Young Regina wants to see what’s going on. Jefferson says there’s a lot they don’t understand about the land Victor’s from, but if he can’t bring Daniel back, then Rumplestiltskin is right and bringing back the dead can’t be done. Thank you Jefferson for explaining this for the millionth time. Jefferson seems to be the narrator for this story. After Victor fails, he and Jefferson are in the woods to return Victor to his land. Jefferson says the deal isn’t done until he says it’s done. He is Rumplestiltskin, and, oh, this was all a set up to get young Regina past the notion of bringing Daniel back to life. Jefferson pulls the box with the heart from his satchel and hands it to Victor. Rumplestiltskin and Victor have a little back and forth about magic and what Victor is doing. Jefferson just watches the fireworks. If he had popcorn, he’d be eating it and enjoying the show. Victor is done arguing and wants to go home. Jefferson looks to Rumplestiltskin for permission and he nods his head to grant it. He opens the portal and they jump. I loved seeing Jefferson before he became all broody. He was a lot of fun and just a breath of fresh air.

Young Regina/Regina: Rumplestiltskin is trying to mold young Regina into the heartless (pun intended) person that he wants her to be. He first tries to do this directly, just turning her into her mother, but young Regina isn’t having that. She expressly told  Rumplestiltskin in We Are Both that she didn’t want to be like her mother, and yet. Young Regina wants to bring Daniel back from the dead, a feat that magic cannot do. Rumplestiltskin tells her she’s wasting his time if she can’t take power from others, as that is apparently the point of magic. And also, that she needs to let go of the past. Jefferson appears and says he knows a wizard that can bring people back from the dead. Young Regina wants to know his price. He wants a royal passport since he travels the lands for his business. Young Regina is so cute when she asks how she’s supposed to get this for him, apparently forgetting that she’s the queen. She is certainly not dressing like a queen. She is still in her horse riding type clothes in almost every scene. She asks if this wizard can really bring someone back from the dead. Jefferson says if he can’t, no one can. Jefferson brings the wizard (who prefers to go by the doctor), to see young Regina. He warns her that he doesn’t understand their magic, but young Regina just wants him to do what he does to help her. She shows the doctor Daniel, who she kept preserved after his death. The doctor needs a heart to bring him back. Young Regina hesitates because she doesn’t want to take a heart, but the doctor challenges her by asking if he’s wasted his time coming here, so young Regina takes them to her mother’s heart vault (which you can apparently hear the hearts beating through the floor, ew). The vault is wall-to-wall hearts. Jefferson asks whose hearts they are but young Regina doesn’t know. Her mother was a collector, and a monster. Young Regina’s voice may say this in disgust, but her face almost has a bit of wonderment to it. Like she’s finally wondering if taking hearts would be such a bad thing since her mother was pretty powerful. Young Regina and Jefferson watch as the doctor attempts to perform the procedure. She questions Jefferson about whether he’s doing magic or not, but Jefferson says he’s doing something more powerful than magic. The doctor comes out looking defeated but young Regina looks so hopeful, she’s trying so hard not to smile and be happy and it’s not working. The doctor tells her it didn’t work and young Regina is heartbroken all over again. She goes in the tent to see Daniel and this scene is so sad. She brushes his hair back and closes up his shirt where the doctor attempted to put in the new heart and just cries over him, having lost him all over again. But apparently, that was enough for her to move on. She’s now dressed more Evil Queen like, in black leather and her hair up. She finds Rumplestiltskin teaching someone new in the woods. That pisses young Regina off and she immediately tears out her heart and crushes it. Oh Regina, how easily manipulated you are.

In Storybrooke, Regina is attempting to make good on her promise to Henry that she won’t use magic. Look, I get that the writers are trying to show that magic is like a drug addiction, but that’s not how I see it. Regina ends up having to use it to save people in this episode so maybe she should just learn how to harness it for good instead of evil. Learn how to control her temper instead of using it whenever she gets angry. Anyway, she’s decided to go see Archie to help her work through her magic addiction, or whatever. Whale interrupts wanting her to make a portal so he can go back to his land to look for his brother. She mocks him by telling him to check the missing persons board, but he says she only brought over the living. Regina may be trying to turn over a new leaf by not using magic, but her attitude is still pure Evil Queen. Unless it has to do with her, she doesn’t care. Archie tells him to go, then says that what Whale said isn’t true. She brought over her father’s body. Regina says she brought over who she wanted. Archie asks if she brought over anyone else. She tells Archie about Daniel and how she preserved him. He’s dead but frozen. Archie tells her that if she can’t let go of the past it’s doomed to haunt her. That’s a little too close to what Rumplestiltskin told her about Daniel, so she’s had enough. Archie says he can help her but Regina’s done. Regina is driving home in a downpour and swears she sees Daniel at a street corner, but then lightning flashes and he is gone. She goes to the mausoleum the next day and discovers Daniel’s body is gone. She then ventures down to the crazy ward of the hospital where it is sufficiently creepy (no Nurse Rachet or Chief sweeping this time), and she sounds so young when looking for Whale. She finds some kind of lab down there where it looks like someone has been fighting the cabinets and lights as they’re swinging and flickering. Regina discovers an arm on a gurney, and that actually freaks her out a bit. She finds Whale on the ground behind the gurney. He tells her that he did bring Daniel back because he wanted her to make a portal for him. But Daniel is a monster. David comes to speak to Regina after hearing about the attack on Whale. She admits that Daniel’s back. David knows that Daniel is dead. Regina says Whale brought him back by stealing one of her hearts. She’s so gleeful about this development. She’s just happy that Daniel is back, she’s not thinking about the consequences. David is though. He wants to know whose heart Whale took. Regina doesn’t know, she had so many she lost count. Oh, Regina. You definitely became your mother. Regina wants to go find Daniel, but David thinks he’s too dangerous. She doesn’t think Daniel will be dangerous to her. She figures he’d find stables since that was the last place he was before he died. And that’s where Henry is right now. Crap! Regina and David get there while Daniel is trying to choke the life out of Henry. Regina can’t do anything but stare at Daniel. David gets Henry out and locks Daniel in the stable. She and David argue about the best way to subdue Daniel. David wants her to use magic, she refuses to use magic on him. David wants to use his gun then, but she insists he’ll talk to her. This is the most vulnerable we’ve ever seen Regina, and it’s refreshing. David consents. Regina goes into the stable and is so happy to see Daniel. It’s like young Regina has come back. Daniel looks like he’s going to touch her cheek and kiss her, but he strangles her instead. She finally gets out that she loves him and that brings him back to himself. They hug and Regina is so happy, but Daniel is in pain. He wants Regina to stop the pain and let him go. She doesn’t want to. She loves him. Daniel tells her to love again before trying to attack her. She immobilizes him and starts to cry. Magically, she turns him to dust and he’s gone. Regina goes back to Archie for more magic therapy.

Rumplestiltskin/Gold: Rumplestiltskin is in rare manipulator mode this episode. He’s basically like a military drill sergeant, breaking young Regina down to mold her into what he wants. He wants her to take a heart and crush it. Considering how young Regina forgets she’s the queen with Jefferson, it can’t be too long after Daniel’s death that this is taking place. Why Rumplestiltskin thinks having her take and crush hearts so soon is a good idea is beyond me. Shouldn’t he be starting her slowly and not jumping straight to the magic her mother used to kill her fiance? Anyway, he basically tells Regina he can’t teach her anymore if she can’t let go of the past. Wow, pot meet kettle. Isn’t Rumplestiltskin’s whole agenda to get to his son, Bae, which is in the past? Anyway, we discover that Rumplestiltskin was behind young Regina’s whole adventure with Jefferson and Dr. Frankenstein to bring Daniel back and that Victor only pretended to try and bring him back so he could have the heart for his own experiment back in his land. Rumplestiltskin thanks Victor for helping him make his monster. That really didn’t take that long to turn young Regina.

We only see Gold briefly, when Whale wants him to help reattach his arm for him. Gold makes a quip about charging an arm and a leg to which Whale is not appreciative. The only price he wants from Whale is to admit he wants Gold to use magic to reattach his arm, since he’d said science was better than magic back in the EF. Whale does and Gold waves his hand and Whale’s arm is reattached and working as if it were never ripped off. It’s nice that sometimes Gold just wants to say ‘I told you so’ as payment.

David/Henry: David punches Whale because he slept with Mary Margaret during the curse. Again, hello pot, meet kettle. Kathryn thought she was pregnant at one point so obviously you weren’t chaste during the curse either. David reveals to Whale that he is searching for a portal back to the EF, and he’s pretty sure the curse didn’t destroy everything. David is teaching Henry to become a knight and that means taking care of a horse. So Henry gets a horse that he has to take care of before and after school and the horse will let Henry know when he’s ready to ride it. Henry’s not too happy about this, but David says it forms an essential bond between knight and steed. David hears about Whale and questions Regina about it. She says she just found him, but David knows better. He asks why Regina was coming to see Whale. She tells him about Daniel coming back. David knows Daniel is dead. He’s horrified to hear that Regina has a vault full of hearts from the EF with her in SB. When Regina thinks Daniel might be heading to the stables, David realizes Henry is there. Henry is still brushing his horse and talking to it when it starts to freak out and throws him before running off. Daniel enters the stable. Henry tries to talk to Daniel, but he’s not computing anything. Henry sees that he has blood on his hands and tries to see if he’s hurt, but holding out his hand triggers Daniel to remember Cora ripping out his heart so he starts to choke Henry. Regina and David manage to save Henry from Daniel and David gets him out of there. David wants Regina to use her magic to subdue Daniel, but she refuses. I find this interesting. David has been against Regina using her magic, but when it comes to the town’s safety, it’s alright to use it. David goes to use his gun to subdue Daniel, but Regina begs to let her talk to her fiance. Apparently, David leaves and lets her do it on her own.

Emma/Snow/Hook: Emma, Snow, Mulan, and Aurora are coming back to the Safe Haven from Snow’s castle. Aurora doesn’t think she can lie about Lancelot. Snow is telling her it’s technically not a lie, they just don’t want to incite panic. Um, why not? Cora is out there and has been masquerading as Lancelot for months, maybe years. I think the people deserve to know that. But it doesn’t matter because Cora has come and killed everyone already. But, she did leave one survivor. Oh look, it’s Hook! Now, see, this is almost where I wish we didn’t already know who Hook was, because it would have been so much better to see that reveal with him tied to the tree. Anyway, Emma is telling Mulan that having a survivor is sloppy and Cora isn’t sloppy, so Emma doesn’t trust him one bit. He’s supposedly a blacksmith that lost his hand in an ogre attack. Mulan says he’s been there a couple of months. So Cora has been planning this for awhile. I don’t know if the earring and rings scream blacksmith to me. Did men, other than pirates, wear earrings? He claims to have hidden under the dead bodies. Emma tells him about her liar super power. He offers to be a guide for them wherever they need to go and Emma puts a knife to his throat! Emma tells him he’s not going anywhere until he tells them who he really is.  Glad to see Emma’s bullshit detector is working again. They tie him to a tree but he still claims to be a blacksmith. So Emma decides to whistle some ogres over. They do that move where they act like they’re leaving so that he’ll freak out enough to tell them the truth, and it works. Emma asks who he is again. Gives the name Killian Jones but most people call him by his more colorful moniker, Hook. Mary Margaret recognizes his name and finds his hook in his satchel. Emma can’t believe she just met another famous fairy tale character. He tells them about Cora’s plan and Mary Margaret is incredulous about her trying to open a portal since they destroyed the wardrobe. Hook says the enchantment still remains so the portal can still be opened with the ashes. Mulan thinks they should kill him but Emma just wants to leave him for the ogres. Hook claims they need him because they all want to go to SB. He’ll make a deal with them and screw over Cora as long as it gets him what he wants. He tells them about the enchanted compass that will guide them in the portal and if they get it first, Cora won’t be able to get to SB. Emma thrusts a knife in his face again and wants to know why he wants to get to SB. He wants his revenge on Rumplestiltskin. That was enough for Emma to free him, so he takes them to where they can find the compass, which happens to be up a beanstalk where giants live. Of course. Emma and Mary Margaret are both convinced this is a trap, but knowing that it’s a trap will help them be one step ahead. So hopefully we have a beanstalk adventure next episode!

Questions:

Why are there holes in the dead people’s chests? Is it because Cora wasn’t enchanting the heart? Or did Cora do it for dramatic flair?

Was anyone else expecting a zombie army to rise with all the dead people missing their hearts?

There are pumpkin decorations at Granny’s. Does that mean it’s October again already? This makes no sense as it was (despite what the coats may say) spring when the curse was broken and it’s only been 4-5 days since then.

Where the hell is Kathryn? Do we really get no fall out from them thinking they were married and living as a married couple during the curse?

How did Whale know Regina was with Archie in his office?

Are the slippers another Wizard of Oz reference? Could Rumplestiltskin and Jefferson be talking about the Ruby Slippers?

How did Regina preserve Daniel? She didn’t have any magic when Daniel died and Cora certainly wouldn’t have preserved him. 

How did Victor learn about preserved Daniel being in our land? Did he overhear Regina talking about it with Archie?

Exactly how long did Whale have to go to the mausoleum, find Daniel, steal a heart, bring Daniel back to the hospital, and bring him back to life?

What is this room that Whale did the procedure on Daniel? Why is there a random laboratory in the basement of the Storybrooke Hospital?

What is it with people having body parts cut off and not bleeding out? First Killian’s hand and now Whale’s arm. At least there’s blood with Whale’s arm.

Why is Victor wearing sunglasses at night? Was this a thing?

How has Victor heard about our realm and that there are enchanted hearts?

What happens to the original person the heart belongs to if you put it in someone else's body?

Where did Victor hide the heart when he pretended to put it in Daniel?

How early were Henry and David at the stables? The whole encounter with Daniel had to take place before school because David said he was going to pick him up later.

Observations:

Henry is having trouble sleeping.

David calls his wife Snow, but everyone else calls her Mary Margaret.

Henry’s going to be awfully smelly when he goes to school if he’s doing he horse chores in his school uniform.

That’s a pretty small heart for a horse.

When you take a heart it becomes enchanted. It becomes stronger than a normal heart. Then you can control it.

Jefferson takes all the gold that Rumplestiltskin had just woven.

When Regina leaves Archie’s office it looks like it is late afternoon from the shadows on the wall, but when we see her driving home, it’s raining and dark out.

Whale somehow managed to put a tourniquet on his arm after Daniel ripped it off.

The girl Rumplestiltskin is teaching looks like Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Non-magical people can put hearts into people, as Victor seems to have done this with his brother.

According to the creators of the show, Victor’s land is called the Land Without Color.

Names:

Whale is named for James Whale, the director of the first Frankenstein movie.

This was a good episode, but I still don’t buy that young Regina caved so easily to Rumplestiltskin’s manipulations. How does she go from not wanting to do anything evil and be like her mother to basically turning into her mother overnight just because she wasn’t able to bring Daniel back? I also don’t like the magic as a drug metaphor. It’s not what it is, and besides, Buffy the Vampire Slayer already did this storyline years ago. It didn’t work then and it’s not working for me now. But we got more Hook and David punching Whale was worth the whole episode.

Please leave comments and reblog! Let me know if you’d like to be tagged in future reviews.

@searchingwardrobes​​ @thisonesatellite​​ @justbecauseyoubelievesomething​​ @laschatzi​​ @profdanglaisstuff​ @mariakov81​

[blodreina-noumou]

Hello can you rec some good Octavia episodes? (apart from s6) i want to re watch but not the whole thing hahah

I would love to! Let me build you a complete Octavia episode list - what I consider the best and most important in her arc. (Under a cut, since it’s long.)

Season 1:

(I tend to skip the first four episodes, because I find them really cringeworthy, and Octavia is barely in episode 1x05. But if you wanna see her chase some butterflies, that scene is in 1x02.)

1x06 - “My Sister’s Keeper” - An obvious classic, where we get to dive deep into the Blake siblings’ history and how Octavia was exposed as an illegal child. Shows how simple mistakes can have lifelong impact, and really illustrates how complicated Bellamy and Octavia’s relationship is. Plus, this is where we get all of the first interactions between Lincoln and Octavia, and where Octavia’s rebellion against Bellamy’s rules takes a more righteous shape - from here, her goals shift from “do whatever the fuck I want because I finally can” to “do whatever the fuck I want because I need to protect this strange, new person, who is an outsider like me.”

1x07 - “Contents Under Pressure” - This is where Octavia’s stubbornness really takes shape, and we see her compassion and kindness in full bloom. She refuses to stay away from Lincoln, even though Bellamy keeps threatening her when she goes to the captive Grounder. She poisons herself to get Lincoln to give up the antidote, so Raven will stop torturing him. In a camp starting to go mad with power, Octavia is one of the few who tries to stop the brutality. The first time she talks to Lincoln, and he speaks back, and her face fills with joy and wonder - ugh, it gets me every time.

1x08 - “Day Trip” - Octavia’s role in this episode is smaller, but I really love the scenes she has. Realizing that everyone in the camp is tripping balls, she cleverly distributes the jobi nuts and uses the chaos to help Lincoln escape. I love her offering Jasper an “anti-grounder stick.” It shows her ingenuity, chaotic-good methodology, and her quick thinking, and I love all of her scenes in this episode.

Season 2:

2x02 - “Inclement Weather” - I think 2x01 is worth watching as well, if only to see Lincoln lug Octavia around like a sack of potatoes, and to see the first Trigedasleng lines spoken on-screen. But 2x02 is where Octavia really begins to shine again. After being given the antidote to the poison she was attacked with in the s1 finale, Octavia recovers quickly and is pissed. She takes Nyko captive, and attempts to use him to trade for Lincoln’s release from his people, who want to kill him (brutally) for being a traitor. When she stomps into their camp, holding a knife to Nyko’s throat and shouts, “I laik Oktevia kom Skaikru…and you have something I want!” - I fall in love. Ferocity in a tiny package.

2x10 - “Survival of the Fittest” - Octavia’s fight with Fio, which is one of my favorite scenes of hers. Everyone - from her own people to the Grounders - wants to stop her from getting herself hurt, from putting herself in danger. No one thinks she can handle it. No one trusts her to weather the storm, despite the fact that she’s been dodging lightning bolts her entire life. When she rises, again and again, refusing to go down, we really get to see her almost manic determination to prove that she’s a fighter, a warrior, and she won’t give up just because she’s in pain, or scared, or angry. Then, Indra offers her the chance to become her Second, and Octavia’s life changes forever.

2x13 - “Resurrection” - As one of the few to escape the bombing of Tondc unscathed, the pressure to save those trapped in the rubble falls on Octavia. She struggles to earn the respect of the other Seconds, but ends up saving everyone with her ingenious “let’s chuck this bottle of alcohol at this burning pile of debris and use the smoke as cover” plan. She’s able to keep everyone moving and takes charge, even while people continue to doubt her. By the end, she’s earned a respected and admired place among the other Grounders.

2x16 - “Blood Must Have Blood, Pt 2″ - Betrayed by Lexa, abandoned by Indra and the other Seconds, and knowing Lincoln is trapped and branded, yet again, as a traitor to his people, Octavia desperately tries to find a way to rescue the remaining delinquents inside of Mount Weather. She teams up with Bellamy, Clarke, and Maya to devise a plan, and ends up playing an instrumental role in protecting everyone - right up until Clarke is forced to pull the lever that irradiates Level 5. In many ways, this is Peak Octavia - she’s an excellent soldier, a badass, stoic warrior, and a surprisingly soft and understanding friend towards Jasper and Maya.

Season 3:

3x01 - “Wanheda, Pt 1″ - My primary reasons for loving this episode are aesthetic and pretty shallow. We get to see how far Octavia has come in learning Trig - she’s basically fluent at this point, and manages to act as translator between the Azgedans and the scouting squad. She’s in full Grounder gear, but is also clean and uninjured - a rarity for her. She saves Jasper’s life with a super slick knife toss, rides around on Helios like a pro, and shares some wonderful banter with Raven and Bellamy. It’s a fun one.

3x05 - “Bitter Harvest” - Octavia is doing her absolute best to protect both sides of her identity - the Grounders and the Sky People - but they’re making it very, very difficult for her. She has a bunch of amazing scenes. Saving the little boy named Gabriel, trying to warn the Grounders about the incoming attack, letting Gabriel pet Helios. Unfortunately, in trying to protect both sides, she betrays both sides instead, and Zoe Monroe ends up dead. It’s an underrated Octavia episode, because it really shows her true nature, and how even when she has the best intentions, she just can’t get things to go the way she needs them to.

3x09 - “Stealing Fire” - A really, really tough one, but essential to Octavia’s arc. The death of Lincoln kom Trikru, her savior, her soulmate, her true love. The building energy and tension of Octavia being born for this role, of using subterfuge and misdirection to sneak everyone out, of hiding under the floor with everyone, and of nearly escaping with Lincoln safely in tow…only for it all to go horribly, horribly wrong, at the last minute… it’s good TV, even though it’s heartbreaking. I’ll never forgive them for killing Lincoln. But Marie’s performance is stunning, and this is the beginning of Octavia’s downfall - which makes for some great television.

3x12 - “Demons” - I think this is one of the weirdest episodes of this show, but it’s also a really good one for Octavia. She’s pushed down all of her grief for Lincoln, focusing solely on getting the mission done, and on figuring out how to save everyone from ALIE. When she finds his book, and his jacket, and has that moment where she breaks down and shoves everything off the desk - my heart breaks for her. It includes some good Blake sibling moments, as well. Bellamy going from “don’t surrender, no matter what” to “here let me put these cuffs on myself for you” in a matter of 0.3 seconds because Emerson threatens Octavia is a top Blake sibling moment.

3x16 - “Perverse Instantiation” - Octavia reunites with Indra, and receives some pertinent and salient advice - don’t kill Pike until the fight is over, because they need him. Octavia fights with herself, coming close to ruining everything, but manages to swallow her rage long enough to fight alongside the man who executed her soulmate. But once it’s done, she does not hesitate - I was immensely satisfied, seeing her run him through with her sword, although it absolutely signals the start of Octavia’s descent into darkness.

Season 4:

4x01 - “Echoes” - Octavia begins her role as Skaikru’s assassin, taking out the men guarding Roan and allowing Abby to swoop in and save his life, saving all of their asses in the process. Again her role is limited, but she takes out the guards with a spear chuck and a badass knee-slide. It’s a cool moment. We begin to see the cracks in the surface as she starts spiraling more and more.

4x06 - “We Will Rise” - Tensions are very, very high in camp, as Ilian is being held as a prisoner for destroying the Ark, and pretty much everyone but Kane wants him dead. Octavia is still healing from Echo’s failed attempt to capture her, and has clearly gone even deeper into the darkness as a result of being pushed away by Kane and Indra. She allows the crowd to rush Ilian, then lets them drag him outside. She very nearly executes Ilian, in the same place Lincoln died, and in the same manner. Kane talks her down, and we get a very emotional and well-done flashback sequence of Octavia remembering Lincoln’s death. When she flees camp at the end, we can’t help but see her as a wounded, grieving kid, who took on way too much violence and brutality way too quickly.

4x07 - “Gimme Shelter” - Black rain strands multiple characters inside and forces them all to wait out the storm, dealing with rising resentments and anger. Octavia and Ilian find themselves sheltering in a cave together. Pushed to her limit by Ilian’s questions, Octavia very nearly walks out into the black rain, in an attempt to kill herself. Ilian rushes to pull her back in, and they consummate their brief, sweet relationship in a moment of mutual need.

4x09 - “DNR” - Octavia and Ilian try out peace for a while, to disastrous results. Her scenes are brief, but one of my favorite Octavia moments happens when she’s left to her own devices in the garden plot, moodily whacking at the soil, trying her best but clearly begrudging this peaceful lifestyle. Although the scene where she kills the other Grounders is brutal, it’s very effective. Octavia can’t escape the violence of her past, can’t pretend that she is able to go back to being an innocent girl. She still needs more time to see how much damage it’s caused her. Unfortunately, s4 kind of twists this arc and tosses it on its head, because she ends up being greatly rewarded and venerated for her ability to use violence to win the Conclave.

4x10 - “Die All, Die Merrily” - Even still, I can’t help but be enthralled by Octavia’s struggle in the Conclave. She uses her lifelong skills of hiding and making herself small to survive most of the battle. Then she teams up with Roan, showing that she’s willing to make allies out of enemies, if it ensures their survival. I’m still really sad at the way Luna’s arc ended, and that Octavia was the one who killed her - but it’s still a great episode for O, and one that really underlines her entire arc and character progression.

4x12 - “The Chosen” - Heda Octavia rises, though she’s never explicitly referred to as such, of course. Watching Octavia take the lead with uncertainty but steadfastness is so compelling. She takes on the entire human race as her people in 4x10, and then, she puts her money where her mouth is, forcing Skaikru to make the choice over who will be allowed to survive in the bunker, and who will be forced out into Praimfaya. It’s the beginning of Blodreina, in so many ways, and really sets her up well for her s5 arc.

Season 5:

5x02 - “The Red Queen” - Another classic. We get to dive deep into what happened during the six years that Octavia and the rest of humanity were trapped underground. Octavia chooses her new mantra, her new armor, and her new identity. She fights viciously, without mercy, and ends up triggering the start of an entirely new, but still very brutal, tribal culture. It’s a fun one!

5x04 - “Pandora’s Box” - My favorite parts of the Blodreina arc are where we get to see the cracks in the surface. When Bellamy breaks through the bunker to free Wonkru, Blodreina disappears and Octavia comes back, for the briefest of moments. She manages to look so small and vulnerable when she throws herself into his arms, despite her warpaint and armor. Her first interactions with Diyoza are so good, and the building tension of the other characters realizing just how much things have changed is palpable.

(For what it’s worth, I think most of the episodes between 4 and 10 are worth watching - but for the sake of keeping this as short as possible, I’m gonna skip those synopses. Octavia does a lot of posturing and power struggling with Bellamy and Clarke.)

5x10 - “The Warrior’s Will” - Blodreina is finally knocked down by her former friends. After throwing Gaia, Indra, and Bellamy into the fighting pits, she is thwarted by Monty’s dramatic entrance, with his miraculous flowering plant. Octavia, deep in her spiral, recognizes that the people around her do not understand that remaining in the bunker is untenable, impossible, and not something she can accept. She burns the farm. It’s the first time I was ever really mad at her, but it’s a very important part of her arc.

5x11 - “The Dark Year” - After an entire season of teases and hints, we finally, finally get the long overdue explanation of what exactly happened in the bunker during the infamous “Dark Year”. Although the cannibalism thing was pretty obvious at that point, and almost everyone in fandom had figured it out, there was still something very shocking and unsettling about seeing the way it played out. I think the true twist comes from two places - that is was all Abby’s idea in the first place, and that Octavia is forced to execute her own people in cold blood for refusing to take part. They’re epic, emotional, difficult scenes, and Marie knocks her performance out of the park.

5x13 - “Damocles, Pt 2″ - It takes losing nearly all of her people, and almost losing her adoptive sister/close advisor, but Octavia finally comes to see the error of her ways. They gave her about fifteen different, gloriously perfect lines to go out on. She marches into the light, shooting like a madwoman, screaming her mantra - and then she drops to her knees, ready to give herself up to save her family. In some ways, I wish she had died, but really, I can’t lie - I cheered and felt overwhelming relief when Emori, Echo, and Murphy bust in with the rover, saving the day. In the later half of the episode, we get some excellent Blake sibling moments, as well as a great conversation between Diyoza and Octavia.

Those are for you, anon, since you only wanted the first five seasons! For the rest, who might’ve followed along this far, and want to know where to go from here:

Season 6:

6x02 - “Red Sun Rising” - While everyone else goes crazy from eclipse toxin, Octavia just goes crazy. Seeing her struggle, wanting the surviving members of Skaikru to beat her up, is so heartbreaking. I think this is the episode where I really started to resent Abby and the way she treated Octavia. Lots of great little Niytavia moments, as well as a deeply frustrating but compelling Blake sibling reunion.

6x04 - “The Face Behind the Glass” - Giving Octavia a scared little girl to look after was one of the best things this show has ever done with her. Octavia thrives best with a clear goal, defined mission, and identifiable enemy. She has all of those things in this episode, but tragically, she cannot prevent the Children of Gabriel from killing Rose. It’s a surprisingly emotional arc in the midst of a lot of sassy angst.

6x05 - “The Gospel of Josephine” - The Octavia/Diyoza team-up this season was everything I wanted, and so much more. The scenes of them talking in the weird quicksand stuff are so interesting. It’s great to see Diyoza give her version of a pep talk to Octavia, and I love the banter between them and Gabriel. Also, the little nod she gives Diyoza after coming up out of the muck - “guess you want to live after all” - it means goddamn everything to me, okay? Don’t touch me, I’m emotional.

6x09 - “What You Take With You” - Our babygirl pops out of that anomaly lookin’ fresh and clean and younger than she did at the beginning of s5. We still don’t know what happened to her in there, but we do get a certain visualization of the emotional and spiritual journey she’s gone on, which has resulted in her dramatic transformation. I really loved her mindscape scenes, the return of the butterflies, and even Pike’s return, as much as he makes my blood boil.

6x12 - “Adjustment Protocol” - Bellamy and Octavia can finally work together again without going at each other’s throats. Seeing this improved, peaceful version of Octavia is so satisfying, especially after two solid seasons of her unquenchable bloodthirst.

6x13 - “The Blood of Sanctum” - At the end of reliving her arc in my head, via writing this, I have only one thing left to say: Octavia Blake is a badass mothafuckin’ bitch and there is no way in HELL that she is dead.

Thanks for reading! If anyone actually decides to use this as an actual watch guide, lmk. If you think there are any really important ones that I missed, give me a shout!

[you-can-call-me-jennifer]

Criminal Minds Best Episode Poll Results

After a week of voting, a portion of the fandom has come together to reveal which episodes of Criminal Minds are the best (or, at least, the most loved).

Season 1:

1. 1x06: L.D.S.K.

2. 1x22: The Fisher King, Part 2

3. 1x14: Riding the Lightning

Season 2:

1. 2x15: Revelations

2. 2x12: Profiler, Profiled

3. 2x18: Jones

Season 3:

1. 3x09: Penelope

2. 3x16: Elephant’s Memory

3. 3x05: Seven Seconds

Season 4:

1. 4x03: Minimal Loss

2. 4x17: Demonology

3. 4x24: Amplification

Season 5:

1. 5x09: 100

2. 5x12: The Uncanny Valley

3. 5x23: Our Darkest Hour

Season 6:

1. 6x18: Lauren

2. 6x02: JJ

3. 6x17: Valhalla

Season 7:

1. 7x22: Profiling 101

2. 7x24: Run

3. 7x11: True Genius

Season 8:

1. 8x12: Zugzwang

2. 8x24: The Replicator

3. 8x04: God Complex

Season 9:

1. 9x14: 200

2. 9x24: Demons

3. 9x12: The Black Queen

Season 10:

1. 10x21: Mr. Scratch

2. 10x11: The Forever People

3. 10x13: Nelson’s Sparrow

Season 11: TIE FOR FIRST

1. 11x11: Entropy (first place)

2. 11x16: Derek (first place)

3. 11x18: A Beautiful Disaster

Season 12:

1. 12x22: Red Light

2. 12x13: Spencer

3. 12x02: Sick Day

Season 13: 3-WAY TIE FOR SECOND

1. 13x01: Wheels Up

2. 13x09: False Flag (second place)

3. 13x15: Annihilator (second place)

4. 13x17: The Capilano’s (second place)

Season 14: TIE FOR THIRD

1. 14x05: The Tall Man

2. 14x06: Luke

3. 14x01: 300 (third place)

4. 14x14: Truth or Dare (third place)

Overall Top Three: TIE FOR THIRD

1. 5x09: 100

2. 6x18: Lauren

3. 2x15: Revelations (third place)

4. 9x14: 200 (third place)

Conclusions:

Apparently, y’all like the episodes where the team is severely hurt in some way. You sickos (just kidding; it’s actually pretty interesting to see that the episodes the fandom loves most are extremely character-centric — it really goes to show how important the characters are to the success of the show).

Fun facts:

5 of Matthew Gray Gubler’s 12 directed episodes made the top three in their seasons! He also directed the second-favorite episode of the fandom, 6x18: Lauren.

The largest margin of preference for an episode was, by far, 5x09: 100. It easily won first place in the entire series with a percentage of 54.8% of viewers choosing it as their favorite episode of season 5.

The last episode of a season was the most commonly picked episode overall in terms of episode sequence in a season.

Y’all really like seeing Spencer get hurt don’t you (Revelations, Zugzwang, Demons, Red Light, Spencer, 300 (and arguably quite a few others))

Three episodes on the list feature Will LaMontagne Jr. as a major character in the episode (Jones, Run, Sick Day). This makes my heart particularly happy as a serious Will stan.

The season that received the most votes (the survey did not require you to vote for every season in case you hadn’t seen a season for some reason) was season 7!

Thank you all so much for taking this survey and being a part of this process! I really appreciate it and I hope you enjoy the results. They’re pretty interesting, in my opinion!

[4yourexcitement]

Jefferson Prepares To Cross A Line In "Three Sevens: The Book of Thunder" On Black Lightning

Jefferson Prepares To Cross A Line In “Three Sevens: The Book of Thunder” On Black Lightning

Credit: The CW

Welcome back to Black Lightning!

Okay, it’s time to continue on this journey. Jefferson was after Green Light (plus revenge) and tracked it down to Tobias’ right-hand Toledo. Due to malfunctions in his suit’s updates, however, Jefferson loses the fight pretty badly. He passes out in an alley.

Meanwhile, Anissa digs into her grandfather’s records about some children who were…

[gracesgirl]

Black Lightning Season 1 Episode 6 “The Book Of Thunder” Promotional Photos 

[xswestallen]

I'm so happy we finally got a Nora/Uncle Cisco scene. It was so cute, and honestly about time. But I'm bummed about the rumor that Carlos is leaving. Seems it hasn't been officially confirmed yet, but very likely :(

I’m so annoyed by all the outlets reporting the rumor that Carlos is leaving like it’s a confirmed fact. I know it seems likely right now, but we don’t actually have any conformation or solid evidence. It’s still possible Carlos just missed a few episode because of personal commitments in his life.

If Carlos does end up leaving, I hope we get good Cisco moments for the rest of season 5. I want to see him have one on one talks with every character. I want an epic Barrisco hug. I want more KillerVibe, like the stuff we were seeing early on in season 5. I want Cisco to give Nora advice on being a superhero. I want Cisco to tell Iris that since she’s now Barry’s wife, he’s officially Barry’s best friend, and Iris to fight him on that. I want Joe and Cisco to have a moment. I want some poignant Blake Neely music!

Top ship from every DC show?

I think it’s pretty obvious my answer for The Flash is WestAllen lol. 

I haven’t seen a single episode of Titans, but I know that Robin and Starfire are a couple on it, and if they’re anything like they were on Teen Titans (one of my favorite shows as a kid), I ship them! 

For the rest:

Arrow: Laurel x Tommy (MerLance)

Supergirl: Kara x Lena (Supercorp)

Legends: Zari x Amaya (Zamaya)

Black Lightning: Anissa x Grace (ThunderGrace)

I think Barry comes off more bisexual then Iris. I headcanon Barry as bisexual. His chemistry with men borders on romantic. Explains why there’s fanon ships of Barry and every male character.

I can see Barry as bi. Like I’ve said before, I basically assume everyone is bi or pan unless they explicitly state otherwise. With Barry, since we’ve only really seen him pine for Iris, it can be difficult for me to think of him as attracted to anyone else. We’ve seen him date other women, but it’s canon he wasn’t too invested in those relationships. So, when I think of Barry’s attractions, Iris is kind of the only person who comes to my mind lol. 

But, I can understand why Barry is often shipped with other men. I can easily see the love for ThAllen. When I watch scenes between Barry and Eddie, I think they give a vibe similar to other popular gay ships. Some of their scenes seem obviously coded, like in 1x06 when Eddie is helping Barry learn to punch and as Barry hits the punching bag, Eddie goes, “Harder!”

Or, when Barry goes to visit Eddie in the hospital after Eddie was shot by Clock King, and Barry brought flowers for him. Maybe It’s the ‘no homo’ homophobic culture internalized in me and I’m being closed minded, but I think it’s kind of romantic for a guy to bring another guy flower. Anyone else agree?