#Chuck versus the other guy

[renegadesstuff]

Charah 🤍

[mochiimadness]

hello!!! i love your works so far :DD!!

can i request the rise boys with an s/o who’s a human but has experience fighting with mutants? like s/o uses a scythe and can easily fight with the turtles :)

The Rise! Turtles with a human scythe wielding s/o!

Neon Leon

He thinks you're so cool!

Listen, he knows humans can go up against yokai's and mutant's

I mean, his dad and April are living proof of that-

But he genuinely can't help but be amazed when he sees you using a scythe of all things to go up against yokai's literally four times your size

Especially since you seemingly appeared out of nowhere to join the battle-

Seriously, can you portal or something???

He stops are stares as you easily knock a rather angry lizard yokai off balance, before sending them running with a slice of your wicked scythe

Your movement were so fluid,

A literal blink and you'll miss it type of speed

"Woah S/O! I didn't know you could do that-"

He'll exclaim, before ducking as you swipe at another angry yokai right behind him

"Think you could teach me how to do some of that??"

"Sure- we should probably finish this fight first though."

Oh right the fight-

He loves to spar with you

You're able to keep up with him quite easily!

And Leo is fast- like really fast

But even when he uses his portals to try to get near you-

Your scythe easily keeps him at bay.

He's absolutely in awe of you

Your blades clash together and Leo gives you this bright smile

"How in the world did I end up with someone so cool!?"

Don Tron

Donnie's impressed!

Though, he tries not to show it

Wielding a weapon like a scythe or bow staff automatically gives you cool points in his book

And you're incredibly proficient with your scythe too???

Donnie definitely want's to challenge you

"Your scythe versus my magnificent Bo-staff, I think the winner is pretty clear here."

What he thought would be an easy fight ended up being a nearly 20 minute long battle

You both were neck and neck

You were quick to block his attacks and dish out some deadly looking slices of your own

Afterwards, Donnie offers to modify your scythe for you!

"Think about it- it's already incredibly sharp and in your hands?? Borderline deadly. Now, hear me out, imagine if it had a chainsaw?"

Donnie pls.

"Or what if it was purple!?"

Donnie no-

Whether or not you let him add some "flair" to your scythe

He genuinely thinks you're cool

He doesn't even flinch when he sees you, his wonderful human s/o, go up against a super powered yokai

"Me? Worried?? No need to, I already called a mystic doctor."

"You mean a human doctor, right?"

"No??? That yokai obviously needs a mystic doctor."

He never doubted you for a second~

(That yokai you beat definitely needed that doctor- yikes)

Mystic Mike

He thinks you're amazing!!!

You're out here with no powers

No magic

No mutations

Just your normal human self and scythe

Fighting angry mutants and yokai like nothing!!!

Mikey thinks you're one of the strongest people he's ever known!

Aside from his family ofc

He loves to watch you fight

Has and will bring snacks to watch

Ofc, if you're ever in a pinch, Mikey will gladly swoop in to help you

He absolutely loves teaming up with you

Between his nun-chucks and your scythe-

No villain stands a chance

He even uses the blades in his nun-chucks from time to time to "match with you" ^^

Loves asking you to let him wrap his chains around the staff portion of your scythe so you can launch him at people

"It'll look so cool! C'mon just once???"

To be fair-

It does look and feel pretty dang cool!

Mikey knows you can handle your own in battle

He's seen it more than once

But if things ever get too rough

He's always there to lend a hand!

Big Red

Oh Raph...

Poor guy nearly faints every time you go into battle

Yes he knows humans can fight too

But you're not even using a mystic powered weapon like April does!

You could get seriously injured or worse!!

He always starts worrying over you

Especially when you both were just starting to get to know each other-

He didn't want to loose one of the few friends and humans that he knew!

He often will go into battle and cover you,

Taking hits or tackling opponents away

But you end up having a serious talk with him about this

"I know you're worried, but I can do this. I know how to fight-"

"I know, I know, I just get worried ya know?"

While he's still nervous about it,

He eventually starts hanging back to let you fight your own fights

And he comes to realize you are pretty great at what you do!

Your scythe is practically an extension of your own body,

And you easily handle opponents larger than you-

Both mystic and mutated!

"You're amazing!!"

Raph really comes to respect your strength and proficiency with your scythe.

He knows you can handle yourself

That still doesn't stop him from jumping in to help or defend you

Even when you may not necessarily need help

He still cares and worries about you

Doesn't want you to get hurt

Especially if he can help it.

"Er- sorry, I just jumped in again without thinkin'..."

I hope you enjoyed! Sorry for such a long wait

[mincyberr]

welcm to cy's hot takes, where my takes might fire back at me 😭

sorry in advance! 😭

- this hot take is about Minho (my bias <33)

it's about he's underratedness, aka he's trama, hows he's is in the movies versus the books, and some other stuff! ❤️ it's about how he should get more attention. 🙌

1 - he's 👏 f***ing 👏trama!

Ok how many times have I seen this man JUST GET TRUAMA!!? he gets almost killed by Grievers by WCKD as a punishment in Fever Code, he goes in the maze daily for three years in Maze Runner, he gets electrocuted by lightning in Scotch Trials, in the movies he saw Winston do sui****, in Death Cure he saw Newt death, (hes best friend who has been with him for 3+ years), and Teresas sacrifice to Thomas

Give 👏 my 👏 guy 👏 therapy.

2 - personality in the movies vs books

In the movies he's seen as someone who changed the game in Maze Runner by making Thomas a runner, a hot ass man (IM SORRY HE IS <33), a tough guy who protects Newt and others. Noting much because he doesn't get much screen time. Aka it was a waste of he's character in the movies.

In the books however he's sassy, sarcastic, has a tough build from he's trama and is more life like unlike the movies, when he explained Thomas in the Maze in the gathering, he was more defensive to anyone who said no to he's opinion that he should be a keeper or runner. In Fever Code he literally trys to escape because he knew that WCKD was not safe, aka it showed that he was quick to think. That makes he's character interesting.

3 - he's abilities (ITS UNDERRATED)

Ok he was a quick to thinker, I swear the moment Chuck was shot, he threw. Not to mention he remembers THE ENTIRE MAZE!. Beat for beat, ask this man for your passwords, he remembers. That's how good of a memory he has. I'm jealous man 😭.

Anyways that's my rant about my fav tmr character, tell me if you have any other hot takes I can talk about

𖹭 cy/cyber (stan minho)

[roryparis]

https://www.tumblr.com/roryparis/756921139018743808/the-thing-about-season-1-of-the-big-bang-theory-is

Saw your post regarding Leonard and Sheldon at the beginning of the show and what they were like versus how they became… and I definitely do agree that the writers and creative minds behind the show definitely did fudged a few things over the course of the show not just with our 4A duo turned 4th floor trio once Penny’s more established in their lives, but a lot of characters and relationships.

As a person who has read and watch a lot of interviews with the folks behind the show and read the behind-the-scenes book by Jessica Radloff… Unfortunately, it’s a too common occurrence with sitcoms that have both a large main cast and it being a series that becomes so popular that it has multiple seasons.

Add the fact that Chuck Lorre - one of the minds that birthed TBBt - has personally admitted to not being the type to plan ahead, which can cause storylines/plot/canon to suffer along with character development/growth, and he’s more known for his classic mean-spirited humor and drama gags than anything else… And you have the cons and hiccups of Big Bang explained.

Plus, while having a lot of creative minds in the writers room can be a good thing as you have people that you can soundboard off and help you figure out potential ideas. It can quickly become a too many cooks in the kitchen situation where in that analogy the ideas or “dishes” either get scrapped entirely, burned, or under satisfying/could have been better prepared. 

Lorre also has a reputation in the industry for being a bit of a control freak and in the behind-the-scenes book, he mentioned trying to adopt a more hands off stance and being more willing to listen to others opinions, which worked out with a lot of decisions in certain episodes, but also didn’t pan out too well when folks were trying to… I guess the word would be emulate his style in the writing once he stepped back from directing to let others take the reins… and well… 🤷🏻‍♀️ We got great episodes, good episodes, and depending on your mood episodes out of that.

anyway, now I’m rambling, but I just thought I’d go ahead and share what I know along with my opinion.

However, going back to the situation with Leonard and Sheldon, I do think it could’ve been handled differently, and if they wanted to go ahead and show like say… Sheldon being stuck while Leonard and the rest of the guys are moving forward with their lives and sort of learning to grow emotionally and socially, then it would better explain Sheldon‘s behavior since we know Sheldon is notoriously known for not liking change as he frankly is scared of it.

I certainly think there was a bit of a missed opportunity of having Leonard eventually understand just why Sheldon is responding this way - like a scared animal - and confronting his roommate/best friend in a way that reminds him that change isn’t bad but this behavior is out of line. We did see early on in the early seasons that Leonard - Howard, Penny, & the staff at CalTech too - was able to reach Sheldon through the use of logic that even Sheldon could deny their arguments no matter how much he pouted or sulked.

It’s part of the reason why I kind of love and hate that episode way later on where Sheldon makes a big stink about Leonard getting a dining room table for the apartment - Leonard makes a very solid argument about the good of change, but of course since it’s Sheldon and Sheldon is the breakout fan favorite… 🫤 plus, I know it’s to keep the iconic scene of them all eating takeout 🥡 dinner together around the coffee table.

oh that’s interesting about the behind the scenes stuff! i didn’t know any of that, thanks for sharing!

and then about leonard and sheldon, i think that they did show leonard moving while sheldon stays in place. like, i think that the central conflict in their relationship in later seasons was that leonard is changing his life and therefore their lives and sheldon is unhappy with that. and i think the reason for that is. sheldon in season 1 kind of already has his dream life. he’s passionate about his job and he’s free to pursue his hobbies and interests and he has friends who understand and are also passionate about both of those things. and then leonard i think is happy in the day to day for the same reasons that sheldon is. but unlike sheldon, leonard’s always had this picture of what he thinks life should look like and it isn’t the life he had at the time. so leonard was always going to make changes in his life and therefore their lives and it makes a lot of sense that sheldon would be upset about that both because he loves their life as is and because, as you said, he’s afraid of change. i personally didn’t mind the way that was handled. (i might have had issues with some individual storylines but those stemmed from the fact that it irritates me that sheldon was flanderized.)

and then i also tend to think that leonard did understand why a sheldon reacted that way to him changing their lives. and he argued the point a lot for small things but for big things, he empathised and always tried to help. like when he and penny stayed with sheldon after they got married instead of moving away. like i think that for me, the issue isn’t that leonard didn’t understand or love sheldon. he very clearly did. but i feel like later seasons did a bad job of showing that he liked sheldon. that they were best friends and had fun together. i feel like that started to feel less true and they more were saying that leonard views his love for sheldon as a burden.

[f0point5]

The lack of standardization of penalties given by the FIA is not only seriously annoying but I think it’s hindering the sport. And I agree with u on carlos - there’s also something about his vibe that feels like he’s been told one too many times how hot he is and it comes across cocky. Versus Charles gives me vibes of a man who - while also gorgeous and I’m sure aware of it - still gets nervous and knows what anxiety feels like… Carlos just seems a bit full of it (it being himself)

I think it probably hinders the sport in terms of fans and creating that level of toxicity and discourse.

It is a problem, for sure. They need to figure out a way to sort it out and for me that’s having one set of full time stewards, because you won’t eliminate human error but then at least you have the same error every time, and you have people to hold to account on the precedents they set, rather than them being like “yeah I know there’s a precedent but it wasn’t me that even made that first decision”. I don’t agree with LH saying they should chuck AI at it or something.

Yeah, Carlos and his vibes. I said elsewhere, I think he’s a good guy, but he has an ego (just like all drivers) and I feel like his gets the better of him sometimes. I also think he measures himself against others too much, like he’s almost too hungry to beat specific people rather than to win. Idk, I haven’t studied him that closely and I don’t know him obvs but that’s just the vibe I get. I feel like he views himself more in relation to competing with others rather than just trying to do what he knows he’s able to do. And because of that focus, he comes out with these sideways comments because he’s always looking sideways rather than ahead. Also, dude filter yourself, people can hear you.

Also, Carlos kinda seems like maybe he needs to do a Verstappen 2018 and distance himself from the family a bit. His mother liking tweets about Charles, Sainz Snr saying Carlos needs to ask questions, ferrari this that the other…your son is nearly 30 and he’s a GP winner, trust him to ask what he needs to ask and protect him by not making him look like a moron.

Honestly driver families just fascinate me.

[himbosandhardwear]

Sweet Revelation

It's a bonfire afterparty, what's the worst that could happen?

"Says the greatest cocksucker this side of the Mississippi," some guy says loud enough to catch Steve's attention. He's primed for violence even though the statement was said almost fondly.

It's Eddie who responds. "I asked your dad not to kiss and tell!"

Everyone laughs at the response - it's common to hear a 'your Mom' joke, not so much a 'your Dad'- but the guy doesn't laugh it off. He's not pissed but he certainly doesn't think it's funny.

"Ed, you didn't," he says as though horrified and disappointed.

Steve snaps back to Eddie, confused.

He glances back, notices Steve watching and looks away quickly.

"Like I would stoop so low. I know he works the factory line with Wayne. I'd rather fuck a coalminer, at least they make good money."

Blood makes its presence known all throughout Steve's body: fingers, toes, scalp, stomach. Is Eddie saying…

"Good," the first guy says with a glare.

"Gareth's cousin Trevor, on the other hand," Eddie says, which makes Gareth chuck a pack of hotdogs in his direction.

"You complete asshole! He's not allowed to come back after what you two did at Circle K!"

Everyone is laughing. Eddie is gay and it's a joke but it's not at his expense or…or…

"Oh, did Steve not know?" Jeff asks, horrifically bringing attention to whatever look he must have on his face.

He tries to reel it in. "No, but it's cool. I mean, I'm cool."

Eddie's cheek twitches. "Thanks for being cool, Steve."

"Surprised he hasn't tried it on with you, pretty boy," the first guy says, all teasing smiles.

Steve sits up straight in his camping chair. "Oh. Am I pretty?"

There's a beat of silence before everyone laughs at that. He's not sure why that's funny. He's never been called pretty before.

He looks over at Eddie again while the conversation moves on to other things - "Who would win in a fight, three Fresno Nightcrawlers versus one Mothman, and be prepared to defend your answer." - Eddie immediately starts trying to fuck with him, jamming his tongue into his cheek in a pantomime even an idiot like him can parse.

You're a riot, Steve says with eyebrows and pursed lips.

Oh, you don't want me then? Eddie conveys with a mock frown.

Steve laughs him off. But when he looks back at Eddie he's still looking. Somehow Steve gets caught in his stare and can't help but feel like he's trying to convey something he's missed.

Wait, were you serious? Steve asks with a series of facial twitches.

This seems to stump Eddie. He looks away and back again a few times before giving Steve a shrug that says, Why not? No big deal.

Steve feels as though his brain might very well have fled the scene. He watches Eddie nod toward the treeline with a raised brow in question.

He floats out of his chair and follows Eddie toward the woods like some dumb kid in a fairytale. Eddie could murder him so easily right now.

Someone wolf whistles at them, which almost jars him back into his body, but Eddie just laughs, calls out, "Just going to study for a big test on Monday!"

"You're not in school anymore, you idiot!"

He flips the bird without turning around.

Steve follows Eddie about thirty feet or so away from the group, stopping just behind a massive tree, for better coverage. Coverage for what he has no idea.

He turns and gives Steve a once over. "You know, they're gonna think I sucked you off, even if I don't suck you off. You know that, right?"

His stomach vacates his chest, galloping off to wherever his brain went. "Sure."

"So I should probably just do it anyway."

"Totally up to you," he says casually, despite what his dick is screaming.

They stare each other down, both waiting for the other to break first. Gay chicken.

Eddie shrugs, says, "What's a little oral between friends," and drops to his knees in the leaf litter.

[episodeoftv]

Round 1 of 8, Group 8 of 8

propaganda and summaries are under the cut (May include spoilers)

Chuck: 5.13 Chuck Versus the Goodbye

tw I don’t think memory loss needs a trigger warning but maybe? The episode itself it’s not safe for epilepsy and has flashes

Chuck enlists the help of his family, friends, and even the employees of the Buy More to stop Nicholas Quinn from destroying everything they have.

In one of the earlier episodes, one of the main characters (the love interest) loses her memory, and a lot of the episode, along with stopping the bad guy, is focused on that. The episode ends with a suggestion that she would get her memory back if they kiss, so she asks the main character to kiss and her and he does (also it parallels the first episode where she knows stuff about him but he doesn’t know her), and it ends without any confirmation of whether she gets her memory back or not. Obviously it’s a little controversial, with some fans hating it, but I think it makes it a very memorable finale and way to end the show. There were several times earlier in the show where they thought it might be cancelled so they planned a sort-of finale that wrapped things up and left the characters in a happy place, and I think that makes the actual finale stand out more, with the main character maybe not getting a happy ending (all the other characters get a happy ending though).

The Haunting of Hill House: 1.10 Silence Lay Steadily

tws for general horror content, death, and drug abuse

The Red Room's contents are finally revealed as the Crains return to the house to confront old ghosts, unspeakable secrets and an insatiable evil.

the entire show is a masterpiece but this episode gets me, especially the part where the siblings talk to nell in the red room. i think about “i loved you completely. and you loved me the same. that’s all. the rest is confetti” EVERY SINGLE DAY

[onyxbird]

Thoughts from my rewatch of "Chuck Versus the Tango" colliding with my Bryce Lives AU WIP:

Ellie and Sarah bump into each other in the courtyard on their way to the apartment, not paying much attention to the faint strains of upbeat jazzy music drifting out of one of the units... until they open the door to the sight of Chuck and Bryce dancing an energetic lindy hop in the living room. Chuck is leading (slightly clumsily, but very well for a beginner); swing music is blasting; both of them are laughing so hard they can barely breathe. It takes Bryce a solid 10 seconds to catch his breath and stop laughing long enough to speak as he waves the girls to come join them.

With two pairs of dancers in the small living room, they rack up multiple banged shins, a barely dodged elbow, and one full-on crash (fortunately onto the padded surface of the couch) by the time they look up to Devon standing in the doorway watching with a fond expression and a "Aww, this is awesome!"

(It started with a tango lesson so Chuck could finally learn the "guy's part" that Awesome neglected to teach him, but tango just wasn't really Chuck's style so they moved on to styles more entertaining to two guys prone to nerf-gun battles in the library.)

[renegadesstuff]

“SHUT UP AND KISS ME.” 🥹🥹

[unproduciblesmackdown]

further musings with the ability to consider the overarching series wherein it like as ever, questioning how well anything was questioned when in the end it seems like it's going "okay let's look at these people we think are epic" where ultimately of course it's like oh they might also be shitty they might not get the best endings, b/c they couldn't Change....while characters like wendy who ostensibly did get [better endings, b/c you can change] status spent the whole time Not choosing to change, ends up with a foot in both camps w/axe & chuck, like okay watch me assuming she's just off to more of the same. but what mattered was that billions always considered her Epic. rian's not a character and didn't do anything and ended up clearly only another [just some asshole] employee who'd just like to keep showing up for the usual and stepping on & bullying other employees for ego, and the fact that it was completely believable she just committed to sticking with that forever until then it was like oh okay she's supposed to have only just now for some reason decided it's time to leave b/c she's just too nice? like, that is not convincing, i'm sure she's off to more of the same forever too anyways, but yet again the non plan here seems to have been determined by billions' deciding this character is like, ambiently epic. chuck sr gets alleged heartwarming moments (on his terms) b/c damn if he isn't epic at least, like axe and chuck sufficiently are. winston as a consummate cringe loser nerd couldn't ever be written anything in particular besides being crushed, which he deserves, and is so fun. ben kim on the other hand might be billions' specialest little guy who they Don't think deserves being crushed (as much) (and/or we can at least sympathize with him over it) but he doesn't get much of an ending to speak of or muse on b/c if anything his triumphs were about being a little more Epic but in the end maybe he just wasn't quite Epic enough, whether for a better or worse ending. b/c these other characters might end up either way but again if you're really worth talking about on the show at all you do simply have to have been Inherently Epic in the first place, which will no matter what guarantee you an epic consideration and material devoted to you, versus the inherent losers who will get no such thing no matter what. (wags was useless and an asshole but we Needed his involvement and focus and ending that was just fine thanks)

[of-twilight-and-moonshadow]

Worried - Best Friends/Orange Cassidy x Emery

Part of my Dark Angel of the Bullet Club series

I wasn't planning on this being a thing, but it's kinda cute. We'll see where it goes.

I allude to the conversation between Yuta and Emery from this fic here during this one.

Word Count: 4,706

Tag List: @blxxckheart @katries @summertimefun1982

(divider by)

Emery stood backstage, leaning on one of the walls as she subconsciously chewed on her lip. With everything going on between BCC and her Elite boys—and things happening with other friends of hers—she was stressing badly. The worst was between Blackpool and Elite, though, and everything considered, Emery needed a distraction. Her mind went to another group she was close to—or rather had been close to.

Best Friends.

While the thought brought a smile to her face, it also pained her. Running around with the Best Friends is where she met Yuta. And now? Yuta was almost a complete stranger to her. She didn’t recognize him, the person he had become since joining BCC.

Shaking her head, Emery pushed herself off the wall and made her way through the backstage area before she came upon the room she was searching for. As she swallowed the lump in her throat, Emery gently knocked on the door, unsure of how her presence would be taken.

“Come in,” Trent’s voice rang out. Slowly, she pushed the door open and slid into the room, and left it ajar behind her. Instantly, all three guys had their eyes on her.

Trent narrowed his eyes as he tried to figure out her intentions.

Chuck sitting there, surprised that she was even in the room with them.

And Orange. As stoic as ever, not even his eyes giving away his emotions. His signature sunglasses were resting on his leg as he leaned back in one of the folding chairs with his arm slung over the back.

“…Hey guys…”

“What are you doing here, Emery?” Trent questioned, his voice low and dark.

“I’ve seen what’s been going on… between you guys and House of Black,” Emery told them, looking at each as she spoke, “I’m worried about you guys. Elite has had their fair share of run-ins with the House, I know how dangerous they can be…”

“We’ve seen,” Chuck said, giving a single nod.

“We’ll be fine,” Trent bit out, “I’m not worried. We’ve faced tougher.”

“Toughness isn’t what I’m talking about,” Emery frowned, her eyebrows knitting together, “House of Black is tough, yes. But they’re cold and calculating, and that’s what makes them most dangerous. I’m worried that—”

“It’s a bit late to be worried about us, don’t you think?” Trent interrupted coldly.

“Trent, dude.”

“What?” Trent asked, looking at Chuck, “She all but stopped talking to us months ago and acted like we didn’t exist. Now her boys are getting their asses kicked, and suddenly she comes to us, worrying about us?”

“Things just got busy—I still care—”

“Just save it, all right?” Trent told her, “Besides. It’s three on three, us versus the House. We’ll be just fine without you.”

The tension in the air was palpable, and the silence stretched for what seemed like eternity as Emery let his words sink in. Chuck looked like he wanted to say something to ease the mood but kept quiet after a look from Trent. Orange sat there, just wordlessly staring at Emery as everyone waited for her next move.

“Just fine, huh?” she quoted Trent, her eyes narrowing at him; the guys could all tell she was hurt just from how she stood, “You know what? Fine. Three on three, sure. Until Julia Hart gets involved, and none of you want to lift a finger against her.”

Emery looked around the empty room for effect as she added, “Too bad Statlander’s still out.”

Looking back at Trent, she scoffed, “Whatever. Fine. You guys go out there and get your asses handed to you. Don’t say I never tried.”

Without a further glance at Chuck or Orange, Emery spun around, yanked the door open, letting it slam against the wall behind it, and disappeared down the hall.

A part of her was angry—but more so, she was hurt by Trent’s words and the fact that neither Chuck nor Orange had stood up for her. Back in the room, Chuck looked over at Trent, holding his arms out wide, silently asking him ‘What the fuck?’ as Orange picked up his glasses and put them over his eyes.

“Not cool.”

-time jump-

Just two nights later, on Rampage, Emery watched from a monitor backstage as Orange rushed out onto the stage and tried delivering his signature Orange Punch to an unsuspecting Buddy Matthews.

However, Buddy calculated it somehow, maneuvering his Trios belt to block the attack, causing Orange’s already injured wrist to smack right into it. Her gut twisted, and she felt sick to her stomach as she watched Cassidy writhe in pain and officials rush to keep the two separated. Buddy just stared at Orange, a small smirk on his face as he knew the All-Atlantic champion was injured. One of the officials helped him up, careful of his wrist, and escorted him backstage, and the camera zoomed in on Buddy, who just watched as Orange disappeared from his sight, that smile on his face falling flat as the wheels in his head began turning.

She hated to think about it, but she was right. House of Black were calculated, organized, and methodical, which made them more dangerous than your typical faction – and Best Friends were severely underestimating them. Biting the corner of her lower lip, Emery quietly stepped back from the screen and made her way through the halls. Despite Trent’s harsh words the other day, she still cared about them. Some more than others, but that was beside the point.

Emery wanted to know how bad Orange’s condition was. She needed to know.

Luckily when she approached the medical room, there was no sign of the Best Friends. While she did find it odd that Chuck and Trent weren’t anywhere to be seen, she was relieved as well. Stopping just before the door, Emery listened as someone asked the doctor if Orange would be able to defend his title or not. Taking a risk, she slowly leaned forward and peered around the door frame, past the camera guy. The winces of pain were very noticeable from Orange as the doctor worked carefully, and as he was about to answer the question, Cassidy waved him off. He looked to the camera with a frown on his face and with his signature glasses nowhere to be seen, his brown eyes narrowed in determination.

Emery listened as he admitted that his wrist was screwed up but claimed Buddy had taken the easy way out by blocking him twice now. First with his mask and now the belt. Orange will face him on Dynamite, injured or not.

The cameraman and interviewer left, and Emery watched in silence as Orange was left alone, wincing as he tried bending his wrist some. She hated seeing him in pain—with all her friends, she was that way. With Cassidy, though, she felt close to him. They had become good friends since the start of All Elite Wrestling, hanging out on occasion. When Kenny had been out with his injuries and surgeries, Emery had gotten closer with all the Best Friends- but Orange made her feel calm. He helped her relax—and weirdly enough, he was funny and had his own charm.

She saw Orange tense up and slowly looked in her direction, seeing her peering around the door at him. Their eyes met, and for a moment, they just stared at each other before she quickly darted back, not saying anything to him. He gave a sigh, looking down at the ground as his hand tensed. The pain returned, causing him to squeeze his eyes shut again and breathe deeply.

They should have listened to her warning.

-time jump-

Five days had passed, and now it was time for Orange’s match against Buddy for his All-Atlantic championship. He stood near the go-position with Trent and Chuck, waiting for his turn to go out, gently moving his fingers. The pain had subsided, but only just barely—and Orange knew that any wrong move out there could be damaging.

“I don’t know, Cass, I don’t think she’s coming,” Chuck frowned, looking at the area surrounding them before glancing back down at his friend. Orange had told Chuck and Trent about Emery standing outside medical on Friday, and with their agreement, he sent her a text over the weekend.

“Watch my six?”

He knew she had seen the message, as it was marked as read, but she hadn’t replied to it and had not sought them out.

Orange kept his gaze on the floor, a calming feeling coursing through his body, one had hadn’t felt for a while – but the nervous feeling was also there.

“She will…” he muttered confidently, although a part of him was uncertain.

She had to be.

Trent frowned, his hands in the pockets of his tracksuit, “I don’t know, man. She ain’t here yet, and we haven’t heard from her.”

As they stood there waiting for Orange’s match, Emery slowly made her way through the building. Despite any hostility or negative feelings, despite the exchange she had with Trent, she still cared. What didn’t help was Yuta’s cutting words that kept ringing through her mind.

“You and the rest of the Elite and the VIPs think you deserve everything around here.”

“The Elite walk these halls like they’re Gods or something, but they’re not. Their pompous, ignorant assholes—”

“Where one goes—the others follow. Just look at you... Ringside with the Bucks… Kenny. Ringside for Page--- well, not recently. Right? No, no—because Kenny ousted him from the group, so suddenly, all of you act like he doesn’t exist. When was the last time you were ringside for him?! When was the last time you traveled with him?”

Was he right? Emery had been so focused on her Elite boys – had she blindly pushed others to the side?

Trent seemed to think so, according to his words from last week.

That wasn’t what she wanted, though. Emery didn’t want to lose her friends—and now, as she realized just how important Hangman was to her, she also realized how valuable other friends were to her. She was determined not to lose anyone else. Up ahead, she saw Best Friends standing near crates, waiting for Orange’s music to hit as Buddy and Julia slowly made their way to the ring.

Emery cautiously approached, coming to a stop when Trent looked over at her. Chuck followed his line of sight, staring at her as he gently nudged Orange’s arm. He slowly looked up from the floor, his brown eyes boring into her own.

“H-hey…” she said, looking directly at Cassidy. They could tell she was uncertain—uncertain about being there, about where they all stood, and about if they wanted her there or not.

“What are you doing here?” Trent asked her, crossing his arms across his chest as he stared at her, “Why now? You haven’t been around for… how long now?”

“A few weeks back… someone made me painfully aware of how I’ve…” Emery started, her words uncertain as she tried to find the correct ones, “… How I’ve unfairly neglected people I care about. I already lost Hangman due to it… I don’t want to lose you guys too… I just hope I’m not too late…”

“Yeah- don’t you have other things to worry about right now?” Trent questioned, raising an eyebrow, “Something to do with that lost friend. Your Elite boys, too.”

Emery pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing briefly as she stared at Trent. Enough was enough.

“Yeah. A problem that includes a feral Yuta—which I should be blaming you for,” she said, glaring at Trent, before taking a breath and calming down, “I’m trying… to get my mind off everything that’s going on… Come on, guys… I thought…. I thought we were friends?”

As she said the words, her mind flashed back to her conversation with Yuta, her heart tightening in pain.

“You thought wrong.”

Chuck exchanged a look with Trent and Orange before speaking up, his head slightly shaking, “Nah, not friends.”

It became difficult to swallow, her airway feeling as though it was constricting, and her heart felt as if it had shattered. Tears began to build in the corners of her eyes, and in a desperate bid to keep them from falling, Emery bit her tongue as hard as she could as her gaze dropped to the floor.

All three of them felt terrible. Chuck gestured with his head, encouraging Trent to do something; before Emery had a chance to walk away, he spoke up—his voice softer now, the harshness to it was gone.

“We’re best friends.”

Emery’s head snapped up, her eyes wide as she looked at them. Trent and Chuck were smiling at her, and when her eyes met Orange’s, he even gave her a small smile of his own. Wordlessly, Chuck took a few steps towards her and reached out, cupping her face in his hands as he wiped away the build-up of tears in the corners of her eyes. Afterward, the tall Kentucky man-child wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

“You’ve always got us,” Trent told her as Chuck let her go, reaching out and giving her a hug of his own. When they parted, Orange walked up to her and gently placed a pair of sunglasses on her head, sliding them towards her until they rested on the bridge of her nose. Slowly, his head lowered until it rested against her own, both closing their eyes to just take in the moment. Cassidy’s music began to play, bringing them out of their own little world as he stepped back to grab his backpack that held the title.

“Bring it in, guys,” smirked Trent as he put his hand down in the middle of the group. Chuck quickly followed suit, placing his down on top of Trent’s, and Orange used his shoulder to support the bag, placing his good hand down on the very top. His hand was face up, open palmed, as the three looked at Emery. With a smile, she placed her left hand directly onto Orange’s, and he gave it a small squeeze before Trent called, ‘Break!’ and then headed to the stairs.

Orange followed Trent and Chuck out onto the stage, and after a brief pause, Emery took a deep breath and walked out behind him. As soon as the crowd saw her, their cheers got louder. Chuck and Trent unlocked their hands before grabbing one of her hands each and extending the chain, causing her to laugh. With his available hand, Trent patted Orange on the back in encouragement as Chuck gently squeezed Orange’s shoulder. As Cassidy began walking down the ramp, they let go of her, and Emery casually followed along behind him, but Best Friends stayed on the stage before disappearing to the back. Spotting a mini version of himself, Orange carefully sat down on the ramp and bumped hands with him before continuing to the ring.

Emery glanced across at Julia and Buddy, shivers running down her spine. She had a bad feeling about this – but she was going to support Orange through the entire thing. He was determined to do the match, to be a fighting champion—injured or not. As Orange flung his bag into the ring and rolled in after it, Emery shook her head in amusement, opting to stay outside on the floor as Cassidy held the belt up for the audience. The referee, Bryce, took the championship from Orange, holding it up briefly before handing it off to the timekeeper as Orange took off his jacket, shirt, and glasses. Each one he would hold over the top rope and drop into the waiting arms of Emery, who watched him with a smile, shaking her head. As he lazily slid on his black elbow pad, Emery quickly folded his clothing before setting it down on the timekeeper’s table and turning her attention back to the ring.

At the very least, in her opinion, with Bryce being the official for the match Emery knew that Orange was in good hands. Bryce was close with Best Friends, Orange in particular, and wouldn’t let anything happen to him if he could help it. The bell sounded, signaling the beginning of the match, but neither individual moved from their spot.  

Across the ring, Buddy stared at Orange, waiting patiently as he crouched in the corner. Julia stood near him on the outside, her face void of all expression. Emery watched as Orange crouched down against the turnbuckles, his arms supporting him on the middle ropes.

“What are you doing?” Emery questioned him softly, watching as he brought his left leg up across his right knee and propped his left elbow on the middle rope, resting his chin against it with a small smirk on his face.

Was he seriously trying to mock Matthews? Emery sighed, gnawing on her bottom lip in worry. As amusing as it was, it was still not the best idea.

Eventually, Buddy stood up from his corner, his eyes never once leaving Orange, as he followed suit and stood up. Slowly, they both walked to the center of the ring, staring at each other. Emery watched closely, her breath caught in her throat, as Orange lifted his arms up and aimed to put his hands in his pockets. Buddy wasn’t having it, however, grabbing both of Orange’s hands and tossing him into the corner of the ring.

Emery watched carefully as Buddy began to walk towards Orange before her eyes flickered to Julia on the opposite side. As long as Julia didn’t get involved, Emery wouldn’t – that was her stance. Quick movement caught her attention, and she looked back to the guys as Buddy went flying through the ropes, landing rather hard on the floor. She noticed he placed a hand to his jaw, holding it for a moment as Orange ran at the ropes, turning his back on Buddy to hit the other side for momentum. Buddy quickly slid into the ring, aiming to catch Orange unaware, but Cassidy quickly turned around and held his hands out in a ‘stop’ gesture as Buddy came to a halt in front of him. The House of Black member was still lying on the ring, his arms holding up his body as he watched in annoyance as Orange lifted his hands and put them in his pockets. In frustration, Buddy hopped up and continued the match.

The match continued, and the longer it did, the more worried Emery got for Orange’s safety. He sent Buddy to the outside of the ring once again, this time following him with a dive through the ropes. As Orange stands up, though, Emery sees him holding his wrist, pain written across his face causing her heart to sink. Orange seemingly shook it off, working through it as he got Buddy back into the ring and hits him with a thunderous Orange Punch. Buddy went down—but so did Orange. Emery’s eyes widened in worry as Orange instantly cried out in agony, rolling around on the matt, clutching his injured wrist. Slowly, he crawled over to the side of the ring where Doc Sampson and Emery stood and painfully clawed at the bandage until he finally tore it off his hand. As the doctor looked at it, Emery reached out and gently ran a hand through Orange’s hair, trying to soothe him as best she could. For now, Buddy was forgotten as Doc examined the damage to Orange’s wrist. He could barely clench his hand at all, the pain almost too much as his hand shook from even the smallest of movements.

Emery was about to ask Doc a question before loud footfalls neared them, and Buddy’s foot came out of nowhere, stomping on Orange’s hand. He screamed out in pain at the rough contact, rolling away quickly as Bryce backed Buddy away from him. Rolling under the bottom rope, Orange sat on the edge of the ring, delicately holding his injured wrist as Emery rushed around the ring to him. She wanted to reach out and hold his hand but didn’t want to cause him any more agony.

“Are you sure you want to keep in this match?” She questioned him, looking at him with a pained expression. He looked up from his hand, grimacing as he nodded to her.

“You don’t have to do this, Cass. You could seriously damage yourself if—” She couldn’t finish her sentence as Buddy stalked over and grabbed Orange, dragging him into the ring. Every time he went to attack, it was focused on the wrist; Buddy was hellbent on inflicting as much pain on Orange as he could—and Julia stood nearby, smiling at the damage being done. Orange’s face got more and more red the longer the match went on; the pain he was in was evident in his eyes. But he refused to give up.

Not when he’s finally got Emery back in his corner.

Orange gets the upper hand once more, bashing Buddy’s head into the turnbuckles a few times, but gets hit with a superkick—only to retaliate with a superkick of his own. They move to the outside of the ring, standing on the apron as Emery watched on from the side, yelling out words of encouragement each time he’d get going and trying to get the audience on his side. She watched as Orange set Buddy up for a DDT, wincing as Buddy avoided it, hitting Orange directly in the jaw with a high knee. Out of nowhere, Orange hit him with a Beach Break, and both fell to the floor, catching their breath. Emery watches closely as Julia walks closer and closer to them before getting too close to Orange for her liking. Quickly, Emery rounded the ring, walking right up to the guys and staring down Julia.

“Back. Off,” Emery warned her, voice low, as she narrowed her eyes. Bryce was administering the ten count, closely watching all four individuals to ensure neither lady got involved in the match. Julia stared at Emery wordlessly, her face void of emotion once again, eventually slowly backing away from the guys. Emery mirrored it, backing up a few steps but keeping her eyes locked on Julia.

By the time the referee yelled ‘9,’ both guys finally slid back into the ring and continued the match. Emery returned to her side of the ring, watching closely and noticing that Orange could barely put any weight or pressure on his injured wrist. He began to resort to forearms for his hits, and for a bit, they went back and forth, both using a forearm to attack their opponent. Eventually, Buddy got the upper hand once more, kicking Orange in the stomach and causing him to fall to his hands and knees. With a sick smile, Buddy jumped up and stomped on Orange’s hand, pressing his boot into the bones and flesh as much as he could before Bryce finally backed him off. Orange kneels up, holding his wrist as the pain flares through his body.

“Come on Orange… come on…” Emery whispered, leaning against the apron. Buddy began to mock Orange, using the weak kicks as a taunt against him, one foot and then the other, tapping it against Orange’s upper arms. A small sigh of relief followed by a slight smile graced her face as Emery saw Orange was starting to get mad; she knew that once he started, then he usually kicked it up a notch, and that could be exactly what he needed to do right now. As Buddy stepped back and went for the slow kick, Orange put his hands out in a ‘stop’ motion once again, causing Buddy to stop and narrow his eyes, watching him curiously.

Orange put his injured hand to the sky before lowering it and using his good hand to put it in the pocket of his loose jeans, grimacing in pain as he did so before adding his uninjured hand to the other pocket. Emery gave a soft smile at his antics as Orange gave Buddy a pained smirk of his own—only for Buddy to kick him harshly. As he went for another attack, Orange diverted it into an enormous DDT from the top rope. Buddy rolled to the outside of the ring to shake it off, but Orange quickly followed it with a torpe to the outside. He followed Buddy, climbing through the rope, and gave him a third DDT before pushing him into the ring and slowly climbing to the top rope, careful not to use his injured hand more than he had to. Diving off the top rope, Orange caught Buddy with a diving DDT and went for the cover.

“ONE!” Emery counted with the referee, “TWO! —” but Buddy kicked out at two, causing her to groan in annoyance.

“Come on, Orange, you got this!” Emery shouted to him, hoping to will him on, and saw Julia across the ring, calling out to Buddy with a worried look on her face.

Good. She should be worried.

Orange grimaced in pain as he grabbed his elbow pad, slipping it off and throwing it to the ground.

“Oh no…” Emery worried as she watched, knowing what was coming, “Orange… you really shouldn’t—”

Buddy evaded the Orange Punch, lifting him up only for Orange to roll him into a schoolboy but only got another two count. Shaking his hand as he stands up from the pin, Orange manages to pull a weak Orange Punch off, but again only gets a two count for his efforts.

Emery circled around to the side closest to Orange, reaching out her hand towards him with a sad look on her face. He was breathing heavily, grasping his wrist as the pain was getting worse and worse. He shot her a look, a smirk-like grimace to try to ease her worry before he stood up and turned his attention back to his opponent. Buddy was on his knees in the middle of the ring, and as Orange got closer, he taunted him, goading Cassidy into punching him—and he did. Or at least, he tried.

As Orange’s forearm got close enough to Buddy, he grabbed Orange’s wrist and twisted it as he stood up. Cassidy yelled out in pain the more Buddy twisted it to the side as he finally let go, lifting him up and delivering a knee to Orange’s jaw. Cassidy pushed Buddy away from him and demands him to hit him. As Buddy goes to, Orange falls flat to the mat; Buddy ran to the ropes to do a dive or kick of some kind, and Orange quickly hops up, but Buddy stops short, causing Cassidy to put on the brakes and falls back to the mat.

Emery watched in horror as Buddy hit the curb stomp on Orange, and went for the pin—but he kicked out at two. Buddy went for another move, but Orange countered it with Chuck’s patented move, the Mousetrap. As the ref counted, Emery held her breath, and time seemed to slow down.

One.

Two.

Three.

“YES!” Emery exclaimed, jumping up in excitement as she grabbed Orange’s bag, shoving the title and his shirt and jacket inside, slinging it over her shoulder before hurrying over to him. She placed herself under his arm, a smile on her face, and helped support him as they backed up the ramp a few feet. Emery was beyond worried about the status of his wrist but was happy for him getting the win. As she looked back at the ring, she saw Julia’s look of dismay and Buddy looking over his shoulder at them with a confused look on his face, not sure what the hell had just happened. 

Emery smirked at them before turning around with Orange and walking up the ramp, and put them out of her mind as she focused on him. Sure, he was sweaty, grimacing in agony, and breathing heavily—but he was back in her life, and now? She wasn’t going to lose him again.

Any of them.

[shallowseeker]

Becky Rosen-Baron, MIA.

Becky's "death" + Dean's side of the fireplace mantel

Becky loses her husband, then her "junior" and daughter...and then she herself dies. Just like Dean.

///

The two sides of the mantel:

Ahh, the mantel, nestled as the hearth of home. Hearths are associated with home and family because the hearth was historically the main source of heat in the home, as well as where the cooking was done.

The left side is Chuck's side, black chess pieces. Sam is driving the car with TFW safely confined to the roadhouse at the end. The monster hand is pointed away from Sam.

The right is Becky's side: white pieces, glass half-fall.

It's also Dean's side, with Dean driving the car and heading towards Cas and "mini Cas," plus a family portrait showing what Cas and "mini Cas" are to Dean. The monster's hand is reaching for Dean's side, as Dean-action-hero figure frantically fights against it.

Awww. the cute little family picture with Rod Baron, Rod Jr, their daughter, and Becky Rosen, which also foreshadows the order of the losses (hub dies first in the form of Cas and finale-dad).

This is right next to...Dean in a car, Cas, and a "mini Cas." (Becky doesn't know about Jack.)

///

Other suspicious details: Dean prime is in the car driving towards Cas in front of a reddish Hellscape.

Alternatively, the photo behind Cas bears some resemblance to a blossom, like the Leviathan blossom he was searching for, crazed, as he rushed through the lands of Purgatory on the verge of losing Cas. They even look like they could be two blossoms straining towards one another. Who knows? It could be a famous fanart I'm just not familiar with.

Anyhoo, both Cas and "junior/little" Cas are turned away from Dean.

This is a nod to Dean...without? Bereft. A la The Winchesters companion series. Here's Dean's ending. Limbo. Wandering. Searching for a happy family he doesn't have.

///

If the more-discussed left side was Sam's ending, then the less-discussed right side is Dean in The Winchesters. It's the head side versus the heart side.

And the heart ending, which we sort of get from The Winchesters is a wandering, driving Dean, looking for this nebulous happiness he can't seem to find without Cas and..."mini Cas/Cas junior" Jack.

///

Becky was "doing great"

But Becky's life is so cute, y'all. That hub is adorbs.

ROD: "We'll be fine, babe...it's just Lake Michigan. Hardly any chop!"

Famous last words, Rod. You don't know that it's you who is going to mishandle that "Michigan chop."

Becky/Rod - But OMG can we just take a minute? They LIKE each other. They tease each other. They know the motion sickness comes from him, probably. And he knows she's gonna be nerding out during her relaxing weekend (that's part of the point of getting away--to let her have that time).

AAaaaaaahhhhhHHHHhhhhh.

Rod knows about Becky's writing and her superfan status (hard to miss in her office hehe) and loves her for it. And it's just so damn cute.

BECKY: Four hours in a boat? Rod, Junior gets seasick in the tub. ROD: Where would I be without you? BECKY: Covered in puke. [BECKY taps on the window.] Have fun, sweeties! JUNIOR: Thanks, Mom, we will. [ROD and BECKY kiss.] ROD: (fondly)Wow. Felt that. You can’t wait to have the house to yourself. BECKY: (flirtatiously) Oh, you have no idea.

///

Along comes Chuck, the metaphorical stop sign to Becky's life; her "off-screen murderer"

Chuck sees her big house and her van and her fam and notes sees that she's doing "great" for herself. She doesn't know it yet but he is the end of her life--he even appears in front of a stop sign!

BONUS: Becky's wearing the gray duster/caretaker warrior/hearth of house/"dead guy robe!"

Instinctively, she runs. See, even with their baggage, Becky's already got a bad feeling, "Well I don't need or want to see you."

So naturally, he worms his way in.

CHUCK: I’m sorry, I… I know we’re not together anymore, and it seems like you’re doing great. I just – I… I wanted to talk. Catch up. It’s been a rough couple of weeks. BECKY: That’s not my problem. [She turns to walk into the house.] CHUCK: Wait, Becky, please. I don’t have anywhere else to go.

So then, after denigrating her POV:

BECKY: I’m a writer, too, Chuck. CHUCK: Oh. I mean, fanfic… it’s not really the same thing… BECKY: Writing’s writing. The self-sabotage, the doubts, the struggle against time. So, whenever I have a spare minute, I write.

He steals.

///

He will wind up taking everything

First, he steals her rosy little laptop with her cute little rose decal-skin and the rose keyboard cover and he even puts on HER GLASSES:

///

Then, clever girl that she is, she fakes liking it to try to get him to leave! The LYING motif. "It's so good! I loved it....it's so good I'd love to get back to my own work."

CHUCK: "No...no no. You're shining me on. ...Come on, one note."

Then Becky makes her fatal misstep

She gives concrit, which is what Chuck said he wanted but not what he actually wanted. Just look at this face. Becky's starting to feel that...wrongness.

Something's off.

It's the same subtle change--that same whiplash we saw when he cruelly turned on Metatron in the diner.

After he writes his hopeless ending on her computer, and she lets her criticism rip. He sadistically enjoys her discomfort. He's sticking it to her, with her love of laundry and conversations and banter, which will appear in the terrible finale. Then, he says this:

[BECKY walks but turns to CHUCK.] BECKY: You have to leave. CHUCK: Nah, I kinda like it here.

He took a crap on her computer, wore her glasses, sat in her seat...now he's taking her office. Her house.

///

Chuck takes all

[ROD enters the living room.] ROD: Babe, you wouldn’t believe what happened.

JJLKgj! Aw, Rod. He cannot wait to tell her that he's the one that wound up puking. KJALGJAGH get you a man like that!

Then he kills Rod right in front of her.

[BECKY looks at CHUCK.] BECKY: Please. ROD: Junior was fine, but I puked everywhere. [ROD walks in and sees CHUCK. He looks at BECKY, confused.] ROD: Babe? CHUCK: Hey. [CHUCK snaps his fingers. ROD disappears in a puff of dust.] BECKY: (screams) Rod?! What happened? Where is he? CHUCK: He’s gone. BECKY: What?!

Her children enter next; we can only hear them off-screen. Rod Jr. can't wait to tell her about the puke incident either. They just know she'll love it.

Chuck will take Rod right in front of Becky's eyes, but her children will die off-screen. "Away."

[ROD JR. enters.] ROD JR.: Hey, mom! We’re back! Dad got sick! He threw up all over the side – [CHUCK snaps his fingers again. The kids disappear.] BECKY: (gasping for air, on a whisper) No! (shudders) The kids. CHUCK: Oh, don’t worry. They’re not dead. They’re just away. [BECKY turns back to CHUCK.] CHUCK: Oh, yeah. I’m God. [BECKY looks horrified.] BECKY: What are you… No. You bring them back. You bring them back! [CHUCK smiles.] BECKY: Please…you can’t do this.

It echoes both Dean pleading with God in 13x01, "Now, you're gonna bring them back," and his 15x18 "Don't do this, Cas." Yeup. Becky is now bereft. Without. Rod's gone, like Cas will soon be gone.

CHUCK: Oh, Becky. I can do anything. [CHUCK steps closer to BECKY. He snaps his fingers. She disappears in a puff of dust.]

Becky faces him defiantly but quickly unravels into grief. "You bring them back...please."

And then he kills Becky.

And here we have these "withouts" culminating. The fun motifs about having the house to yourself end with a cheeky disappearance of the things Becky loves the most. It's cruel. She'd been trying to help Chuck, and he did not show the slightest glimmer of gratitude once her "fluffing" ceased.

And then she herself is gone.

///

It makes you think of this too from 15x18:

DEAN: "She's gonna kill you. And then she's gonna kill me."

///

Girls named Becky take things and break things?

In 13x01, the angel Miram ranted and raved about the specter-like example of a "super bitch named Becky."

This Becky would "take things and break things."

But the funny thing is...here? As Chuck settles into her office and takes her house…

He's the one taking and breaking. He stole everything from her the same way he tried to wrap himself up in Dean's gray MoL robe.

Just 'cause he can.

[clay-cuttlefish]

Next chunk of the pre-NML stuff, to the end of 1996.

Batman versus Predator II: Bloodmatch

Yes this is in mainline continuity. Just thought you should know.

Honestly not the worst Helena feature I've read.

Troika (Robin #14 and Tec #682-683)

I hate Bullock. I know this is an attempt to give Renee connections but I simply do not care and I hope he stays in a coma so I don't have to see him.

This does make me like KGBeast more. He's not a good character but he's so over-the-top it's fun.

Homecoming (Showcase '95 #3)

Vic's back!

This is a solid showcase for him. Not the most revealing story or anything, but he's in good form and gets to reminisce. A good change of pace from the Bat-event-overload.

Guy Gardner: Warrior #29

Apparently appearing in Showcase made people remember him enough to have him cameo. That or it's because a couple other Charlton guys are here.

Renee gets a new partner who I hate way less, which lasts all of two issues, and a boyfriend, who lasts a little longer.

Azrael #10

Vic and Shiva bump into each other at a karate tournament in Gotham. Neither of them do anything about the guy in the Azbat costume, they're just chilling.

Contagion

The first event I'm recording in full, since Renee's in more than half the issues anyways and it's part of the NML buildup.

Her boyfriend dies. RIP. Made it a whole eight months.

I'm mixed on Contagion. It's got a lot of strong moments, this is a good era for grim and moody Batman, but there's more Gotham-in-crisis to come that I like more. Hard not to compare it to the rest of NML, yknow?

Deadbolt (Tec 697-699)

Lock-Up is another transfer from BTAS. I have a lot of thoughts on how he gets used compared to how the cops are treated, but I've been ignoring that part of my brain so I can get this project done, so it's whatever. I am being normal. Tim is funny.

Batman: GCPD

Oh boy. I had my hopes up for a moment that Bullock would finally fuck off for a while and I'd get to stop looking at him but nope, it's just even heavier on the police brutality apologism than usual. Fuck this so much.

Chuck Dixon is an enormous piece of shit, what a surprise.

Legacy

Contagion but again and with Ra's Al Ghul. Not recording this one in full.

[missgryffin]

This feels like a WIP ask, but isn’t about a specific one — how do you view/balance your recurring side characters? Like Dahlia and Greta and Adelaide. I love them and that I almost know what to expect when they reappear, but you somehow manage to keep them surprising and refreshing and I would just love to hear your thoughts about them/the process!

Ahh I love this question!! It's been really fun for me to build this cast of side characters with you all, and I love that you have come to expect what they'll bring, because I definitely use them strategically. Since I write solely Jily romance (as in, the focus is always strictly on Jily and from their POVs), my main recurring side characters largely began and evolved as exes outside the "set" Marauders-era cast of Marauders + Mary/Marlene/Dorcas, and that's primarily how I use them now. Similar to the discussion about the dynamics at play in this ask, the dynamics of the tropes, backstory, and character arcs at play in a story guide which side characters I use:

Dahlia Fleur-Peri is unique in being both a non-threatening ex of James and a friend of Lily, so I can use her as one or both of those things. Her having French heritage also makes her an easy friend to Lily in AUs where Lily's from/in France and wouldn't have gone to Hogwarts with the main cast of Mary, Marlene, and Dorcas. I consider her a "safe" character, in that she should connote no drama for Lily (or James), but I know there are strong opposite feelings out there 😅 so I tend to minimize using her outside of Eternal Summer. (Though I do miss her!)

Greta McLaird and Edgar (Eddie) Bones are my other non-threatening exes. I like using Greta as a first situationship for James—sort of an echo of the Harry/Cho relationship in the books, where it was really just a first exploration based on physical attraction and Quidditch, with no real substance or hard feelings once it was over 🤣 It gives James some experience and maturity, plus it can be used as a source of internal turmoil (jealousy/denial of feelings, etc.) on Lily's part without causing outward drama or being a "threat" to Lily/Jily. Similarly, Eddie is just a sweetheart of a guy and often serves the role of being a perfectly nice, vanilla boyfriend whose only fault is not being James 😉 There's no drama or outward threat with Eddie either. Lily likes him and likes how he treats her; James is internally raging with jealousy; Lily and Eddie discover after giving dating a go that they're just not the right fit and maintain friendliness; all is well.

Adelaide Selwyn, Cressida Nott, and Garrytt Ollivander (also Chuck Davies but I haven't ended up using him as much) are the Jily threats. They bring the drama, and they bring it hard. They're selfish, vain, catty, and douchey people who 100% exist in the story to cause conflict 🙃 (Though I do try to humanize them at least a little bit.) Cressida is a new name to you all because she's not yet appeared in any stories I've published, but you'll see her in Seasons of Love (and in Scorching Singles whenever I circle back to that one) (and some others that have been in the pipeline). She was born out of the need for an ex who would cheat on James, because Adelaide's so obsessed with him I could never see her doing that. (And the inspo for her name is definitely from the sparse Wiki on the Nott family; in my character profile, she's a descendant of Cantankerous Nott and for a canon fic would be the unnamed deceased mother of Theodore Nott.) So the difference between using Adelaide versus using Cressida comes down to, Adelaide is more of a pain point for Lily, because of how she's manipulative and undermining in her competitive pursuit of James, whereas Cressida is more of a pain point for James, because of how she betrayed their relationship and damaged him emotionally in the process. Garrytt and Chuck are parallel ex options for Lily: Garrytt is the undermining one to James whose pursuit of Lily threatens James, whereas Chuck is the one who's shitty to Lily and inflicts that emotional trauma that she then has to work through when embarking on a relationship with James.

[antigonewinchester]

15x01 (transcript @ the link) This ep is very clearly pulling from early seasons: not just the extended spooky ghost sequence that was much more common earlier on in the show, but literally bringing back ghosts who Sam & Dean had beaten in season 1.

Unsubtle with the symbolism of "spell it takes to trap ghosts is literally salt plus a human heart." It's love, caring around other people, all that jazz, that will help you trap and defeat the bad guys in the end. And, of course, it means someone has to die to get that human heart; sometimes protecting ppl comes at a sacrifice. One question I've had is if Dean's death really does 'come out of nowhere' as ppl say it does, but there’s arguably foreshadowing here in ep 1 of the season.

BELPHEGOR: I mean, the last time I was on Earth, I mean, I was human. Ah, it was a while ago. I mean, but, you know, we were all worshipping this giant rock that looked like a huge penis, and... Anyway, folks back then, you know? Had a lot of humps. I mean, a lot. Look at 'em now. I mean, look at you. I mean, you're, uh, you know, gorgeous. DEAN: What? Okay. When are you gonna get out of that body? BELPHEGOR: Eh, when I find another one.... So, uh... who was... he, anyway? DEAN: He was our kid. Kinda.

Even pulling in some (pseudo) incest subtext, hmm. Very early seasons indeed.

DEAN: Just when we thought we had a choice. You know, whenever we thought we had free will. We were just rats in a maze. Sure, we could go left. Sure, we could go right. But we were still in the damn maze. Just makes you think, if all of it... you know, everything that we've done... What did it even mean? SAM: It meant a lot. We still saved people. DEAN: Yeah, but what for? You know? Just so he could throw another End of the World at us and then sit back and chug popcorn? SAM: Maybe. Yeah, maybe. But... now he's gone. DEAN: You think? SAM: That's what he does. He gets bored and... and... and... and pulls the ripcord. I mean, that's what he did with Apocalypse World and... and probably with all of them. He moves on, starts another story. But you know what? Good. 'Cause if he bailed, it's just us. For the first time. It's just us. DEAN: And about three billion ghosts. SAM: Yeah, well, what's one more Apocalypse, right? But, seriously, if we win... When we win this, God's gone. Hm. There's no one to screw with us. There's no more maze. It's just us. And we're free. DEAN: So you and me versus every soul in Hell? I like those odds. SAM: Yeah, me too. DEAN: Well, you know what that means. We got work to do. [DEAN shuts the trunk, and the scene shifts to him shutting the trunk at the end of 1.01]

Most of the analysis of Chuck I've seen is as him as a metaphor for the creators/producers/metanarrative of the show. I think there’s also something of a deadbeat dad (the whole creating universes and then abandoning them for new ones) and, much more speculatively, as a "bad" fan, altho I'm going to expand more on that later.

Sam & Dean’s last exchange sets up the big questions of the season, meaning vs. meaninglessness, where does meaning come from if a shitty God can just wipe out all the things you did, or has been controlling your whole life. If Dean is the side of despair & hopelessness, then Sam is more faith & hope, and the show seems clearly to be on Sam’s side.

[snakeoilpictures]

-DEEP BREATH-

Destiel. Is. Not. Canon.

When there are literally 15 seasons and 325/327 episodes that have down right not even acknowledged the depths of their relationship aside from "I'm the one who reached down and pulled you from perdition" shit.

Dean and Castiel are toxic to one another. Dean thinks the entire world revolves around him and Castiel thinks he keeps making the right decisions when he fucks up literally everything he touches. Also he seems to forget he's an angel half the fucking time and gets thrown across the room by a goddamn werewolf like he's a cum rag.

Sure, Castiel may have been crushing on Dean hard (but also that's because Misha Collins has no boundaries and continually sexualizes Jensen Ackles in panels and touches him inappropriately) but it was not reciprocated.

Yeah, maybe they acknowledged it in the musical episode, and how did Dean react? With disgust.

The SPN writers also failed the entire fandom.... BY LISTENING TO THE FANDOM.

Sometimes, fan service will absolutely destroy a series. Actually, most of the time. Castiel was supposed to die at the end of season 5 but because the fans loved him so much, they kept him in. The show was supposed to END on season 5, which would have been a perfect ending... I mean, how can you top Lucifer versus Michael and the apocalypse?

Borax and leviathans, that's how. -DIES-

They then continued to bring back every character who had ever died and made us feel something in their deaths... which in turn, cheapened everything. For fan service.

They made Chuck the big bad guy, even though it literally makes no sense and the Chuck in season 5 that vouched for the boys' "Free Will" was not the same Chuck that was so wholeheartedly against it he destroyed worlds. Fan service.

Then, at the very end of Castiel's appearances, he confesses to Dean he loves him. Dean says nothing. Destiel fans everywhere just DIE.

And there is literally nothing in the world to back it up.

For fan service.

Destiel is not canon. I don't care. You won't change my mind and Misha Collins continually sexualizing his coworker is just weird and would get someone sent to HR in every other environment, but the whole fandom supports him cause "GAAAAY" like, no. There are plenty of gay ships that are consensual and NOT TOXIC and they're much more sexy. Destiel was dredged in fan service, battered in digging at the bottom of the barrel, and fried in Misha Collins' wet dream.

Jensen is a dick too and don't even get me started on how he treated Jared.

TLDR; Misha is a creep. Jensen is a dickhead. Destiel is NOT canon.

Supernatural ran itself into the ground and is the perfect example of how a fandom can ruin a series.

okay wait ive never watched supernatural but is destiel canon?

i wish there were an easy answer to this question