#Confessionals S8

[lipsyncforyourlife]

[fanficrocks]

I am with you @oeuvrinarydurian. So many questions about this scene which was cut in all probability.

appreciation post for b&w Shaun, inspired by @jessieren post

this entire set in this bus (?) it's so good it lives rent free in my mind

Pics by endeavourneverland

[fanficrocks]

The Sunday Confessional - Endeavour -> Morse

Just for a change, I thought a collection of moments in Endeavour that strongly underscore the move towards the original IM series and character traits would fill in the Sunday nicely 😊.

Let’s start with S8 and the drunk on the bus in Terminus!

And Russell Lewis’ play in words in the penultimate line of dialogue:

“Beginning to thaw.”

Capitalize the “t” and it says it all.

[quickreaver]

Jo Harvelle: was she and mirror, and for whom?

This is a requested repost (and a little update as I'm ruminating) of my response to a thread asserting that Jo Harvelle and Dean were mirrors of each other, and it got me smoke grinding (as one does when one has deadlines, lol.) Starting out, here's a grab of the Dean-Jo comparison in question:

This isn't to say that Jo doesn't have anything in common with Dean (of course she does), and as per usual, Dean relates more easily and charmingly to our other characters in the series (because he's the Han Solo personality), but...

I do appreciate the analogy of Jo = Dean, but imho (and this is just me, as ye olde Sam girl (gn)), Jo is far more an inverted version of Sam than Dean. But as per usual in SPNland, Dean is the character who opens up and “relates” more obviously to those folks he either needs or idolizes or befriends (or crushes on). He’s more overt with his affection and charm. But that doesn’t mean he parallels Jo as neatly as Sam does. Again, just my take! Both Sam and Jo were somewhat sheltered, if you will, and went against their parents’ wishes, but in different directions: Jo wanted to hunt and wasn’t allowed to, Sam wanted to leave hunting and wasn’t allowed to. Sam was the one who was canonically given a gun when he was fearful of monsters under the bed, though we know both boys were trained to hunt. Both boys were also expected to fall in line with the Family Business, but only Sam was the one who actively wanted out. From the pilot:

Sam: You think mom would have wanted this for us? The weapon training and melting the silver into bullets? Man, Dean, we were raised like warriors.

Dean: So, what are you gonna do? Are you just gonna live some normal, apple pie life? Is that it?

Sam: No, not normal. Safe.

The one time Dean got out was because Sam asked him to do so, in a sort of deathbed confessional. Finale, S5. And it didn’t stick. It never sticks for either of them…until it does. Sam wanted out consistently through the series. He ran away at 15. He went to college, like many a normal kid aspires to. He tried to get out when Dean was blasted into Purgatory (yeah, yeah, S8 was a tangled mess and I have endless bones to pick with it, but Sam did what he did), and then at the end of all things, Sam did get out out. Dean absolutely assumed he himself would die in a blaze of glory, but I don’t think he envied Jo that. Okay, well, maybe in that it’s “easier” to die than to be the one left to live with grief and loss. But at that time, they were just starting to unwrap what was going on with Heaven and Hell as actual places that existed. It was still scary. I don’t think Dean wanted that. But Dean and Jo would’ve made adorable hunting buddies! Kinda like someone else we know… *cough Sam cough*

[shameless-notashamed]

I was tagged by @gardenerian @milkimick @smokey-mickey & @squidyyy23 to answer some ✨fandom & random questions✨. Thanks to each one of you glorious and magnificent angels! 💖

FANDOM:

When did you start watching Shameless? Since the beginning, in 2011. I actually remember the promos for the show and thinking it looked bat-shit crazy, but I’m so glad I tuned in.

How did you start getting involved in the gallavich fandom? It was due to quarantine, early on in the pandemic. I couldn’t work and needed a diversion (more like an escape, but yeah). I can honestly say being a part of this fandom gave me so much joy during what was such a stressful and difficult time of my life, and it continues to bring me joy daily.

Favorite Shameless character? (other than Ian and Mickey of course): I’d have to say Lip. He’s problematic, sure, but what character on Shameless wasn’t? I wanted so much more for him, but I’m still happy with how it all turned out for him. (Btw, I still headcanon that Lip kept the Gallagher house and him and Tami are raising their two kids there.)

What plotline from the show irked you the most? There were a few, but probably s8 & s9 Fiona, like all of it. For a character I had adored so much, it just got harder and harder to respect her.  Fiona, Ian, and Lip were a big part of what I loved about the show. Seeing her fighting with Ian over the church building and then later when she facilitated Lip’s sponsee falling off the wagon, and how she was being compared to Frank at the end there. I didn’t want to dislike her, but I couldn’t not.

Favorite line from the show? This is so random, but it’s always stuck with me, it’s when Youens tells Lip “We have only two jobs on this earth, the first to learn, the second to cope.”

Fanfic(s) you can’t stop thinking about: Well, this is a tough one, there are so many, but here’s some that come to mind…

Ian Is Not A Vampire Slayer & The Mask Of Insanity by @annatrow

Dancing After Death by @squidyyy23

Cadmium & Carbon & You Can’t Always Get What You Want by @chat-noir12

The Night Was All We Had by @tear-soaked-cheeksdonteverlast

What Happens In Vegas by @ilostmylifeonline

Since We’re Alone by @buffymilkovich & @lethargicmick

Hollywood & Young Blood by @whaticameherefor

Let The Bodies Do The Talkin’ by @captainjowl

That Readhead Babyface/Fuck U-up Duality by WhatTheBodyGraspsNot

Cooperative Gameplay & Like Real People Do by @gallavichy

Hooking Up With Feelings by @peppermintkatie

RANDOM:

The best concert(s) you’ve been to: I’ve been to a couple Lollapaloozas and to Bonaroo once, and those were awesome. But my other favorites were Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes, Jason Mraz, The Avett Brothers, Dashboard Confessional, just to name a few.

Comfort movie franchise: Please don’t judge me, but it’d be the Marvel movies. Yeah yeah, lowest common denominator and all that, and they aren’t exactly cinematic gold, but I like them. And I had never experienced movie storytelling like that before where so many movies were linked together and how the characters came into play over and over again.

Piercings/tattoos? Just my ears pierced.

Most rewatched TV show(s): Shameless, The Walking Dead, Stranger Things, The Office, My So-Called Life, Outlander, there’s probably more but I can’t think what they are right now.

Pet peeves: I’m pretty go with the flow, so I don’t think I have many. But I do detest when my sink is full of dishes and I seem to be the only person with the know-how to fill a dishwasher.

Random fact about yourself: I can Tap dance!

I’m tagging: all of those writers mentioned above in the “Fics I can’t stop thinking about” answer (unless you were already tagged, in that case, I’m just over here adoring your brilliance). 💖

[quickreaver]

I appreciate the analogy of Jo = Dean, but imho (and this is just me, as ye olde Sam girl (gn)), Jo is far more an inverted version of Sam than Dean. But as per usual in SPNland, Dean is the character who opens up and "relates" more obviously to those folks he either needs or idolizes or befriends (or crushes on). He's more overt with his affection and charm. But that doesn't mean he parallels Jo as neatly as Sam does. Again, just my take! Both Sam and Jo were somewhat sheltered, if you will, and went against their parents' wishes, but in different directions: Jo wanted to hunt and wasn't allowed to, Sam wanted to leave hunting and wasn't allowed to. Sam was the one who was canonically given a gun when he was fearful of monsters under the bed, though we know both boys were trained to hunt. Both boys were also expected to fall in line with the Family Business, but only Sam was the one who actively wanted out. From the pilot:

Sam: You think mom would have wanted this for us? The weapon training and melting the silver into bullets? Man, Dean, we were raised like warriors.

Dean: So, what are you gonna do? Are you just gonna live some normal, apple pie life? Is that it?

Sam: No, not normal. Safe.

The one time Dean got out was because Sam asked him to do so, in a sort of deathbed confessional. Finale, S5. And it didn't stick. It never sticks for either of them...until it does. Sam wanted out consistently through the series. He ran away at 15. He went to college, like many a normal kid aspires to. He tried to get out when Dean was blasted into Purgatory (yeah, yeah, S8 was a tangled mess and I have endless bones to pick with it, but Sam did what he did), and then at the end of all things, Sam did get out out. Dean absolutely assumed he himself would die in a blaze of glory, but I don't think he envied Jo that. Okay, well, maybe in that it's "easier" to die than to be the one left to live with grief and loss. But at that time, they were just starting to unwrap what was going on with Heaven and Hell as actual places that existed. It was still scary. I don't think Dean wanted that. But Dean and Jo would've made adorable hunting buddies! Kinda like someone else we know... *thinky face*

Jo is a Dean mirror, but not in the way people think like their stories being the same, but in a literal sense of the word like bizarro world. Dean lost his mom and was raised (I use that term extremely loosely) by his dad, Jo lost her dad and was raised by her mom. Dean never got to be a kid and was forced to grow up too fast, Jo was always treated like a kid and never allowed to grow up. John brought Dean into hunting, while Ellen kept Jo out of it. Dean was in the hunting life and only wanted a normal life, Jo had a normal life and only wanted to hunt. Etc. They're both twisted but in different directions

[sunforgrace]

I think you're right about S8. I started watching live at the tail end of S9 and even though I absorbed bits and pieces about S8 fandom I think there's a reason I go so insane over S10 and that is because it was the first time I got to experience the week on week insanity. Dean sitting in the confessional, "you're living my life in Reverse", The Prisoner all hit different even though I KNOW S8 did it first and worse but it's because I spent hours looking at that one gif of Dean's hand on Cas' shoulder walking into Claire's motel room and the scene of Crowley saying "Dean Winchester completes me".

exactlyyy. I’m talking to @eurydicecastiel in the dm’s about this but I think truly so much of it is about the Experience, which is why I understand why younger/newer fans don’t experience that same feeling with season 8, and why I think people’s favorite seasons tend to be the one they associate with the most positive viewing experience/when they first started. but season 8 was a bit unique in the fact that it truly did air at a time when tumblr was in its Peak days and the vindication for destiel coming off of season 7 was wiiild

[devilmns]

here’s my thoughts <333

cas had feelings for dean very early like in heaven and hell he definitely was jealous of course and it was in a romantic way but i don’t think he knew what that was that he was feeling necessarily fast forward to s6 -> s9 that’s when it became more clear what these feelings were culminating in the s9 human cas arc (s6 is so obviously romantic to me but i think s8/s9 is where it really comes to a head of him understanding it) and then s9 -> s12 is where the denial really comes in i personally think cas finally had some of a grasp of what he’s feeling THEN we get the s12 botched confession which i think happened because he genuinely thought he was dying (he has the words to describe what he’s feeling but it’s literally last resort for him to actually confess -> denial) and then fast forward to 15.18 and the acceptance comes

dean on the other hand definitely knew what he was feeling first (though as i said i think cas had those feelings first) i personally think this happened in s6 and especially s7 (i could go on FOREVER about dean in s7 regarding cas but i wont 😅) then i think he just kind of kept it to himself/kept it down (as jensen says i love the idea of dean not knowing if cas can feel love as humans do) and in s10 (particularly the confessional) and s11 i think he gets close to accepting it/pursuing it but that gets cut short with amara/marys return/lucifer

[deadmegumi]

How do you think dean would react to cas being Like That. I’m seeing homophobic quips, I’m seeing horrible guilt, something akin to the confessional scene where he says something about getting what he wants in the worst possible way that is left intentionally ambiguous and never brought up again but makes me insane.

Post season six neither of them want to talk about any of it but sometimes dean intentionally microagresses cas for spice

I feel like there's ton of ways that could go... like dean in canon has never interacted with out gay men long-term, least of all one that is openly in love with him, so we don't actually know how he'd react besides guesswork. I think that during the godstiel arc, dean a. shuts down anyone who talks about it, b. makes mildly homophobic remarks the few times godstiel is around, because he's very closeted, and c. because I am a firm believer in evil deancas, would be like uhhh hold on 😳. Obviously an actual relationship isn't possible while cas is Completely Off The Rails, but there's Something happening there and it makes dean intensely guilty. So yeah: getting angry at anyone who mentions it while still being like, well HE'S obviously okay with it so why not. This also operates under a timeline where the godstiel arc is stretched out and cas hasn't scrampled sam's brain yet.

Okay a confessional-esque scene but Evil... I love that yeah. I don't know if it would actually be during the 10x16 scene, bc that's a little far in the future for godstiel angst, but maybe something similar to sam during season 7, between cas dying and them finding emmanuel? Maybe dean's 1 gay friend charlie meets him and cas during s8 and is like "wtf is up with y'all I read the books and know you don't normally act like this" and dean tells her what happened very vaguely and guiltily.

For post s6, I think there's also three routes: a. being very homophobic to cas and pushing him away. I can see this happening at first, especially if dean feels guilty over being with godstiel, but I don't think this is a long term thing bc cas is his best friend and he forgave him for the becoming god thing so why not the gay thing, b. dean comes out and gets with cas! Haha no. If anything this would make dean's internationalized homophobia worse, bc the first relationship (?) He had with a man was an evil man, and he feels guilty for letting his feelings get in the way of stopping cas, and c. dean is like "you didn't mean it, it was a symptom of the god powers now neither of us are gonna talk about it ever again capiche." both of them value their friendship too much to bring it up so they suffer in silence for another 8 years. I'm not completely sure how this would interact with the confession, but I like the hc that both of them know the other is in love with them and silently agreed not to talk about it, it just makes that whole dynamic worse. Maybe dean even outwardly reciprocates last minute, because he has experience with cas confessing his love and is like "hey maybe he means it and I'm not misunderstanding his weird angel feelings!" Which >:) makes it more painful. Okay this got pretty long bye

[romansrace]

Season 13 Sassy Reviews: Episode 02 - Condragulations

Oh mama. This one didn’t do anything to address the strangely - and unnecessarily - tense atmosphere, and instead actively stirred the pot with bizarre remarks from Tina, Kandy and LaLa, and our first (but surely not last) instance of blatant producer favour.

Let’s get into it.

So episode 2 opens with the Porkchop girls being forced to *actually*, no gag, vote off one of their own people based just off of first impressions. Because...what we really needed in 2020/21 was for a group of marginalized people who had had their income and culture taken away for six months to, on first meeting nationwide-reaching colleagues who could become friends and found family, to be instead forced to create divisions between themselves. Really?

So the group votes out the kooky queen and the queen wearing the least feminine clothing, and then when it comes down to a re-vote on just those two...production makes all the queens vote again until a sacrifice is chosen. Seriously unpleasant stuff. Rosé, the queen who objects most virulently to this, is painted as haughty and self-important by the edit for...literally raising valid concerns and trying to stand up for the group. So I guess our hopes of the show moving on from having a vendetta against Jan and any of her friends are crushed just like that.

Then we cut over to the ‘winner’ group of queens. Production-influenced or not, they spend a LOT of the episode crowing and boasting about how brilliant they are, after all, they’ve all made the massive achievement of.... being voted by Ru to win a lipsync in the previous episode, including some VERY questionable performances.

The BIG TWIST that no-one could have seen coming is that... gasp, MAYBE the 7 eliminated queens weren’t actually eliminated on day one of a show that hasn’t had less than 9 competitors ever. And then the queen the losing girls voted out, Elliott with 2 Ts, is introduced to join the winning girls.

As I said in my previous review, it feels really bizarre in the same season that every second word out of Ru’s mouth is chicken soup for the soul about self-love and how actually they’re all winners, to actively go out of your way to split girls into two groups, one of Losers and one of Winners, in which the Winners get smoke blown up their ass about how they are better, and kind of reinforced by the show by focusing on them and only them in episode 2. Especially if they’re going to just proceed to do a split premiere group challenge LIKE THEY DID IN THE LAST SEASON without needing an arbitrary way to justify dividing the girls.

Anyway, the dolls have exactly the same mini and maxi as E1/2 of S12, which... I’m not sure how I feel about. Obviously everyone really enjoyed it in season 12, but a straight redo feels lazy.

Mini-challenge: present two runway looks with a loosely connected theme. Maxi: perform a RuMix with original verses to a new Ru song. Runway theme: a material.

So onto the mini first. All of the queens do broadly as well as each other, with - to my eye - Gottmik being head and shoulders above the group nailing both runways, Olivia Lux’s day look being the second best look on the runway, Tina Burner doing the most impressive bodywork out of the group on her night look, managing to compress her substantial body into a tiny vinyl-latex-esque miniskirt and tube top, and Symone being wildly overpraised for simply having a slim and fit physique that she decorated with material, a la Courtney Act from S6 or Naomi Smalls from S8. Brace yourselves, because this won’t be the first time.

The maxi challenge is a hot mess. The song isn’t great, and the queens take wildly varying approaches in terms of style, genre, and tempo. If you thought Roxxxy Andrews’ random singing on Read U Wrote U was out-of-place... for Condragulations (providing an episode title drop) by my count, three queens give us a rap, two queens sing, one queen gives us spoken word and one queen (Gottmik) gives us literally two bars as an intro.

And onn that note, there’s a bizarre production moment during the rehearsals for the performance in which a moment in which Gottmik experiences gender dysphoria, for including his gender identity in his verse - “I was born a girl” (which, in itself... is that really how a trans person would self-describe rather than e.g. AFAB? I kind of feel like I don’t know how I feel about that line going out to a straight audience) - is represented as Gottmik not having any idea that the other queens would hear his verse. In a group challenge. Where the challenge is to each perform a verse of the same song, as a group, in front of each other. Ok Henny.

The choreography is not great in the challenge, with the best performance of the group going imo to the underrated Elliott, who is, of course, a dancer. Despite the fact that Tina Burner, having lipsynced against her in E1, was well aware of this, Elliott was shut out of the choreography discussion by the other girls - who throughout the episode gave Elliott the cold shoulder & even, bizarrely accused her of being a spy! - for who, QAnon?? Elliott, not wanting to rock the boat, kept quiet, only to go on to NAIL her own performance with a jump split and impressive, confident verse, with dance elements throughout.

So naturally she wasn’t put in the top 2 for the episode, despite everything in the storyline pointing to the ONLY REASON you would separate the queens into winners and losers and then bring back a loser would be for a redemption (RuDemption?) arc. Nope!

The top 2 queens are of course...Olivia Lux, who to be fair, performed her socks off in the challenge and wisely wore an outfit that accentuated her movement, and...Symone. Again. Who wore this.

Whose verse consisted of a walk to the center of the stage and pretty poor lyrics and vocal (”the ebony enchantress...is me” is giving Mariah in all the worst ways). Who looked a little manic during the performance. But who - like Ru - is tall, slim, and statuesque. Anyone else getting S2/S3 flashbacks?

Off the bat let’s make something clear. I don’t dislike Symone. I think she’s a fierce queen, I think she definitely won the top 2 lipsync, I think she’s an excellent lipsync performer, and she has a great body and a great swagger as a drag queen. And I know she can do flips and acrobatics if it calls for it - look for yourself on youtube.

But I think favoritism drags the show down, and ESPECIALLY - as we saw in S12, too - when applied to queens like Symone who are ALREADY among the strongest of the group. Let’s face it, on skill alone, Symone is likely to pick up at least 3 wins of the 11 weeks of this contest. So why stack the deck by giving her an early 4th?

Olivia Lux, the other top 2 queen, performed decently in the lipsync, but was perhaps a bit literal with the lyrics. Her runway gown was highly praised by the judges, but for me was on the simpler side, although she definitely sold it with her walk and attitude. All other queens were given an equal Safe this week which... may or may not have been used to shield the worst performers overall this week, Gottmik and Kandy, who were unsure of themselves during the performance and made a few slips.

I’m ending this week as I ended the last one - wary, but hopeful. After such a focus on how entitled and unpleasant the Winners were in this episode, perhaps the next episode will cast the Losers in a more sympathetic light. My favorite and second-favorite queen, Tamisha, and Denali, are in that group, and I’m hoping to get good confessionals and meme-worthy moments from them if nothing else. And also, I’d hope that this team have bonded and will give a better performance as a group as a result. Although the threat to eliminate one of them next week given by Ru at the end of this one seems like insult to injury in terms of creating division.

Was S12 a fluke? Will S13 be another S11? Will I start genuinely liking any of this? Be here next week to find out~ xoxo

[lipsyncforyourlife]

[more4gemini]

🍵 how are you feeling about the rumored as5 cast?

OH I am so glad someone brought this up because I am super freaking excited.

SPOILERS IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHO MAY BE ON AS5

So apparently Jujubee is on the likely list of queens and I am absolutely ecstatic!! She is one of my favorite queens and deserves SO much more love. I feel like this new younger fandom is going to eat her up, she's gorgeous and funny and shady but not in a mean way. I hope she gets a crazy surge in fans like Manila and Tati did. Ugh I'm so excited to have her back on my television she is gold!

There's actually quite a few older queens that are rumored to be on and I'm super happy about it. I think they all deserve the attention that this fandom gives to the newer queens, and I'm also happy that none of the s11 queens are coming back. I usually prefer when queens take a bit of a break before coming back for AS. Mayhem is another one who is very likely and even though she was on a recent season, she was done so dirty and this fandom does not appreciate the absolute legend that she is in WeHo. I hope she comes back and kills it but I also know that All Stars is pretty much all acting/comedy challenges (for some stupid reason) and I hope she doesn't slip on those.

Derrick is another queen rumored and honestly I want a fan of at first on s8 but she has really grown on me after the show. She can be really messy sometimes and that makes for great TV, plus her drunk haters roast set was absolutely iconic. I'm excited to see how she's grown, I think she'll be one of the queens with a good glo-up.

I'm not a huge Cracker or Blair fan so I'm kinda meh on them. They're both a little bland for my taste, I like queens that make good tv.

And of course Shea is very likely going to be in and I'm already ready for her to take the crown. She is such an amazing queen and needs her redemption. Although it is All Stars so you never know what may happen! Hopefully she doesn't slip and get eliminated because I want to see her right to the end.

Another queen I really want to see is Mariah. She's been doing so much stuff for WoW recently, I feel like it's her time. I don't know how she will do on such a performance-heavy season, but I do know that every single one of her confessionals is already iconic and I'm going to repeat them for the next year.

I'm excited to see who else is speculated, I've also heard rumors about Nina Bonina and Alexis Mateo too. I'm happy they are giving some of the as1 girls another chance, because a lot of them got really fucked over by that format.

[orionsangel86]

Destiel Going Canon? Key themes to look out for...

So I recently answered this ask and mentioned that I have a few key indicators that I am looking out for in the show which for me personally, will confirm the path the writers are taking in relation to endgame Destiel. I wasn’t thinking too much at the time about outlining those indicators, but since both @destielrose and @carasauruswrex asked me to talk about them, as well as getting the below ask from a nonny:

I figured I’d talk about about the kind of indicators I’m looking for. 

Usually I don’t like going on about this stuff too much because there is always a risk that too many people will take my random indicators really seriously and start seriously getting upset with the show if they don’t actually happen, and I don’t want that to be the case. Also because ultimately I have no idea how they are planning to progress this story regarding Bi!Dean and Destiel and anything I say is pure speculation based on my own logical understanding of how to build a decent narrative that would make sense to the audience.

The fact also remains that even if we DO get all the indicators I may mention, it still doesn’t actually mean 100% the writers will go ahead and make destiel an undeniably canon pairing. I can’t predict the future, I just happen to like looking into all this stuff and asking why when certain themes are continuously used in a narrative. So please don’t take this post for gospel. It’s all speculation. 

A while back I wrote a post about “preparing the audience” in which I explained how the show has a way of preparing the audience for anything that may surprise it, by adding in “buffers” which acclimatise the audience to certain concepts such as Cas formerly being in a female vessel. I spoke about how this is a clever way of trying to deal with an audience of extremely mixed opinions, political views, intelligence, tolerance, etc. and trying to please everyone whilst taking baby steps towards their own ultimate goals.

When I talk about key indicators for canon endgame destiel, I am talking about the continuation of using these buffers (some examples of which I outlined in that post). When I wrote that post, 12x19 had only just aired, and I was still reeling with utter disbelief that they would include a scene where Dean gives Cas a mixtape in a supremely intimate moment that made me feel like an intruder to my own TV screen. Never would I have begun to imagine that season 13 could have made it so much worse. 

Starting with where we are currently, it can no longer be denied that Dean and Cas love each other deeply. This has been made textual over and over again in season 13 on Dean’s side and was made pretty damn clear in 12x12 on Cas’s side (also arguably in 13x04 though far more subtle). The audience already knows that whatever these guys have, it goes beyond a standard friendship, and also goes beyond a brotherly bond because of the clear comparisons in Cas’s relationship with Dean and his relationship with Sam.

So what are the main hurdles left in order to establish destiel as a legitimate pairing?

The first and most obvious is sexuality. To a heteronormative audience, they would look at both Dean and Cas and say “they are straight guys”. Therefore the main indicators I would be looking for are to do with sexuality and bringing them both out of the closet.

Now Cas has never shown much interest in sex or sexuality, but he has only canonically been with women, so it’s easy to understand why certain people (heteronormative GA people) would still see him as straight. A key indicator then would be to somehow imply that Cas doesn’t give a shit about sexuality and is not straight.

You might want to interrupt me here and say “but Saz, we already had that in 7x01 and in 10x17″! Why YES we did! That’s right! So the key indicators would be LIKE those moments but stronger. For instance having a man flirt with Cas and Cas showing some interest (bonus points if he looks and is dressed like Dean). or we get another “teachable moments” scene between Cas and the boys and Cas specifically asks them about MEN much to their surprise. Cas getting grumpy about them going on about waitresses and instead asks them what they think of the waiter for example. It doesn’t have to be huge, but another reminder of this would be excellent timing.

For DEAN however any indicator for this category would be huge. I wrote a whole bloody post on his bisexual reveal, and I feel that Dean coming out of the closet would be the biggest indicator of them all that Destiel is going canon. Because well, that’s been the whole debate right? It’s the one thing holding the GA back from even CONSIDERING Destiel. “Dean is Straight!” they say. 

So whilst I am partly hoping for a bisexual reveal within this season (or at least early next season) other key indicators would be more noteworthy moments such as 8x13 Aaron scene. Or the glorious confessional scene in 10x16. Something that imo is substantial meat to the bisexual reading that isn’t easily argued away by an anti. Something that is enough to make the GA go “wait a minute...”

Those are obviously the biggest indicators. Though there are other things I would of course think would be huge moments as well.

Sam Winchester being more and more exasperated as per 12x10.

Sam dropping more hints. Conversations like 11x02 for example. Or in light of his current arc saying something to Dean like “you don’t know what it’s like because YOU have CAS”. 

I also think it will be a HUGE deal if either Sam or Dean ADMITS to Cas what it was actually like when Cas was dead during 13x01 to 13x05. Because Cas has NO IDEA. I would prefer this conversation to come from Sam. Sort of in a situation where Dean has an argument with Cas because Cas wants to go off and be a self sacrificial dumbass again for Jack and Dean isn’t happy about it and storms off, and then Sam just says something like “you need to understand Cas, you don’t know what it was like when you were gone. Your death broke my brother. Please don’t die again. Because I’m frightened if that happens I’ll be burning TWO bodies on a pyre...”

The other moments I would be looking out for are small things such as:

Dean’s bedside table moving back to the other side of the bed the way it was in 9x14, 

A picture of Cas in amongst Dean’s current photo collection, or one of Dean on Cas’s phone. 

The mixtape coming back into play somehow. 

Cas moving into the Bunker permanently and being shown to have his own room (this was an ambiguous topic in 12x19 as it appeared that Dean was running to a room allocated to Cas but it was debated that the room was also used to house Mary at one time so maybe what I’m asking for here is a Bunker room that Cas has personalised somehow.)

Other characters referring to them as a couple again. We used to get this a lot in the earlier seasons, but it hasn’t happened hardly at all recently and I actually consider this quite telling. The change came around the s8 time period which we also consider as the same time that TPTB decided to treat Destiel as a serious narrative in the show. The only times it DID happen after that was in 10x05 which doesn’t really count because it was a celebration of fandom and can be isolated from the actual narrative and also in 10x14 in a deleted scene, and that whole moment seemed less like a joke and more like a serious conversation where BOTH parties involved were admitting their very real and very non platonic love for Dean. It didn’t read the same way as the earlier characters joking about them being boyfriends, it read far too serious (which is why I think it was cut). So to bring this back, to have people like Rowena, Anael, Ketch, even Claire or Alex or someone non threatening, start referring to them as a couple to get a rise out of them would be interesting, because it would also be textually reminding the general audience that this is *a thing* in this show and get them thinking about it again... buffers people. Buffers are important. 

More scenes together/ shots where they are literally together. It has been the case in the later seasons that Dean and Cas have been separated quite a lot due to various plot reasons. I also stand by my own reasoning that if they did keep them together, the scenes between them at this point would be so freaking intimate it would be hard to watch without feeling like an intruder (10x03 and 12x19 are obvious examples of this) so for the writers to start introducing MORE scenes of Dean and Cas TOGETHER (and more specifically together and alone) it would be interesting to see their interactions and if they build on the destiel subplot - because they can hardly avoid it. Just having them interact in intimate ways is the best way now to start getting the audience used to what should in theory hopefully become a canon romantic relationship.

That’s everything I have right now. But like I said above I stress that none of these things would actually MEAN Destiel is going canon (except maybe a coming out episode for Dean) just that they would make me feel more and more convinced of the writers plan if they WERE introduced, whereas if we do just happily plod along in season 13 and NONE of the above happen at all, then I will definitely feel a bit disappointed. At the same time even if they don’t introduce any of the above, they may instead introduce a whole bunch of other stuff that I absolutely couldn’t have predicted (like the MIXTAPE) and throw me totally off guard. 

Ultimately, if we get another run of episodes like 12x10 - 12x12 and 12x19 I will be extremely happily and on cloud 9 about my feelings for destiel. Those episodes alone already raised my hopes and expectations for it as endgame, and season 13 episodes 1-6 solidified that, so really they can only go up from here. It’s just a case of ensuring that the show remains on track towards canon destiel rather than derailing somewhere along the line, but as of this moment this canon train definitely hasn’t derailed.

[sharonsgf]

sharon with the black hair from s8 ep1 on stage with the dog and in the confessional bit is sugar mommy ruthless ceo sharon who goes home after a long day of work to cuddle her spoiled brat lasky ijs

im having a heart attack because of this

[thing-you-do-with-that-thing]

Broken and Cursed

Characters: Y/N (reader), Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Castiel, Metatron (mentioned), Naomi (mentioned), Crowley (sorta).

Pairing: Sam x Reader

Warnings: Selfloathing, Self-blame, hurt!Sam, canon typical violence, s8 spoilers (but is that really spoilers anymore?)  

Word Count: 2400ish

A/N: This is a rewrite of the end of the season 8 finally. I loved the scene in the church, and I hope that I haven’t butchered it completely by inserting a reader into this moment between the brothers. I used some of the dialogue from the episode, and I do not claim to own any of that.  

This is 1 out of my 13 entries for @mamapeterson / @mrs-squirrel-chester’s Album Fanfiction Challenge where I chose the album “Smoke and Mirrors” by Imagine Dragons. The song prompt for this fic is: Shots

***My fics are not to be saved nor posted on any other sites without my express written permission.***

You clasped your hand over your mouth, staring into thin air as Cas disappeared before your eyes, and Dean called out to him to no avail. This had just gone from bad to worse, and the panic you had struggled to hold in ever since your talk with Naomi was getting harder and harder to contain.

“Goddammit!” Dean snarled, making you jump slightly. Not so much because of his reaction, but because you knew Dean tended to speak before he thought when he was angry. He said things he didn’t mean, things that Sam always ended up taking to heart. You didn’t blame Dean for it. They were brothers, and it was part of who they were. It had been part of who they were long before you had met them. Long before you had fallen in love with Sam, and long before he had pushed you away out of fear of what his love would do to you.

No matter how hard he had pushed though, no matter how much it had hurt, you hadn’t left. Not really. You had kept in touch with Dean, and the second Sam had started showing signs of being ill, Dean had told you and you had reentered the brothers’ lives completely. You had moved into their new found home with them, but you had given Sam his space because you thought that had been what he needed. Standing outside the old church with Dean yelling towards the sky, you weren’t so sure. You were terrified of losing him, and the nagging feeling you could have done something to prevent things coming to this weighed heavily on your heart.

“Dean, what are we going to do?” your voice sounded even more rattled than you felt, and the older Winchester instantly turned around to face you. His eyes softened as they found yours.

“About Cas? Nothing. We can’t do anything about that right now. Right now we go get Sammy okay? You’ll help me, right?” Dean ran his hands up and down your arms in effort to soothe you, as you stood like a lifeless rag doll in front of him. He had always been like an older brother to you. He had always been there when you needed him and listened whenever you needed to talk. Sam, however. Sam had always been something much, much more, and not even his fears for you could change how you felt about him. He had always been there for you when you needed him. He had believed in you when you couldn’t believe in yourself. No matter how much he had hurt you in the past, you still loved him with all of your heart, and you knew that would never change. Of course you were going to help Dean save him.

You nodded quickly, taking a deep decisive breath, “let’s do this.”  

You and Dean walked into the church. You walking a few steps behind him, even if every vein in your body screamed at you to run to Sam, screamed for you to wrap your arms around the man you loved more than life itself and beg for him not to leave you. But you didn’t. You stayed behind Dean, letting him take the lead, trusting Dean to know his brother better than Sam had have let you.

“Hey Sam. Easy there. Okay?” Dean moved slowly forward as if Sam were holding some lethal weapon in his hands, threatening to fling it at Dean at any moment. You supposed he was. Sam was holding the power to end his own life, and you know that would hurt both you and Dean more than any knife, gun, demon, or monster that you could ever face.

“Just take it easy. We got a slight change of plans,” Dean spoke, as he kept moving towards his brother slowly, with you right behind him, following Dean’s every lead.

“What? Where is Cas? Why is Y/N here?” Sam looked so sick that you had to fight to hold back your tears. He hadn’t exactly been the picture of health the last time you saw him, but now he was sweating. His arms were glowing, and he looked so weak and confused that your heart broke for him.

Rather than answering his brother, Dean just got straight to the point; calm and collected. “Metatron lied. You finish this trial, you’re dead, Sam.”

You were sure Dean was trying to rattle him into stopping, or maybe just seeing the world like he did, by simply stating facts. However, somehow you knew it wasn’t going to work. You braced yourself for the word you knew was coming, but it still almost stopped your heart as it left Sam’s lips.

“So?”

You saw the shock on Dean’s face. The pain it caused him to know that his brother cared so little about his own life. So you took a step forward, standing next to Dean.

“Sam, please listen to us. You don’t need to go through with this,” you tried, but all you earned from Sam was an angry glare as he almost yelled at you and Dean.

“Look at him! Look at how close we are! Other people will die if I don’t finish this.”

His words stabbed your heart. In that moment, you didn’t care about anyone else. All you cared about was Sam, and you knew Dean felt the same way as he finally seemed to regain his footing from the blow that was Sam’s reaction to his words. Dean slowly started moving forward again, still holding his hands out infront of him, trying to calm his little brother.

“Think about it. Think about what we know, huh? Pulling souls from hell, curing demons. Hell, ganking a Hellhound! We have enough knowledge on our side to turn the tide here.” Dean tried to reason with his brother, but you couldn’t think of anything to say to help him. All you could think about was Sam no longer wanting to live. All you could think about was a life without Sam and how that was not a life you wanted to live. Dean mirrored your thoughts with his words, looking to you, pleading with you to help him out. “But we can't do it without you.”

“Dean’s right Sam,” your voice was meek but unwavering. You wanted him to hear this from both of you. You needed him to know how much you still loved him, even if you couldn’t come right out and say it in that moment. If you did, you were afraid you would push him further away from you instead of reassuring him that he would always have you. For some reason you had never understood, Sam had always seemed to be afraid to let you love him. It had always pained you, but you pushed the thought aside for now. Right now Sam was the most important thing. Your hurt feelings would have to wait. “We need you. There’s so much more to fight in this world other than demons. We can’t do that without you.”

Sam’s eyes opened wider as he stared at you. “You can barely do it with me. Every woman that has gotten close to me is dead. Maddison, Sarah, Jessica… Mom. How long do you think you will last if you stay close to me, Y/N?”

You gasped at his words, trying to fight back your tears as you realized why he had pushed you away. He was afraid he bore some kind of curse that made his love be enough to kill you, but before you could answer him, before you had a chance to tell him how wrong he was, Sam turned his attention to Dean.

“And you think I screw up everything I try. You think I need a chaperone, remember?”

The pain and regret was evident on Dean’s face when he interrupted his brother, “Come on, man. That’s not what I meant.”

“No, it's exactly what you meant.” Sam didn’t let either of you interrupt him. Not even  when you stepped forward to reach out to him. He just pointed towards the confessional and proceeded, his voice thick from emotions now. “You want to know what I confessed in there? What my greatest sin was? It was how many times I let you down. I can't do that again.”

“Sam…” Dean finally tried to interrupt after hearing his brother out. You could hear the pain in his voice and see it in how he held himself. He couldn’t take much more of this, and part of you was scared he would break, and yell at Sam while the other part hoped he would do just that. You hoped he would do something, anything to get through to Sam. Anything not to lose the man you loved.

Instead of stopping, Sam turned to face you. “What happens when I get to weak, and I let you in. What happens if I break and let you know that I love you too? How long before I get you killed too?”

Tears were building in Sam’s eyes now, your own rolling down your cheeks when you stepped forward, screaming at him, “Stop it, Sam! Please!”

But he didn’t. Sam just turned his attention back towards his brother again, crying now. “What happens when you've decided I can't be trusted again? I mean, who are you gonna turn to next time instead of me? Another angel, another… another vampire? Do you have any idea what it feels like to watch your brother…”

That was it. Dean couldn’t take it anymore, and he interrupted “Hold on,” before raising his voice, gaining Sam’s attention. “Just hold on!”

You breathe a sigh of relief. You knew the boys fought, but the respect and admiration Sam had for his older brother ran deep. If anyone could get through to Sam in in delirious, pained state, it would be Dean.

You admired Dean for how calm he was able to keep his voice, only raising it to stress a point every now and again.

“You seriously think that? Because none of it... none of it… is true. Listen, man, I know we've had our disagreements, okay? Hell, I know I've said some junk that set you back on your heels. But, Sammy...come on.” The raise in Dean’s voice that came after that was not anger. It was grief. Strong, courageous Dean that had gotten you all through so much was fighting to hold back his tears at the mere thought of not only losing his brother, but at the fact that Sam didn’t see how much he cared about him. Dean loved Sam as much as you did. He would be as much of a mess if you lost him as you would be, if not more so. Dean had devoted his life to keep his brother safe, and Sam questioning his love for him cut him deeper than you had seen any blade or loss in the past do.

“I killed Benny to save you. I'm willing to let this bastard, and all the sons of bitches that killed Mom, walk because of you. Don't you dare think that there is anything, past or present, that I would put in front of you! It has never been like that, ever! I need you to see that. I'm begging you,” Dean pleaded with his brother, who finally looked as if he was beginning to listen, so you took a step forward to chip in.

“Sam you aren’t cursed. You are not to blame for any of their deaths. No matter if you chose to allow yourself love me or not, that doesn’t change the fact that I love you. I am not going anywhere, and if you think I am going to let you hurt yourself because you think it will me safe… Sam for the smartest person I know… that’s the stupidest thing I have ever heard.” You sent him a weak smile and drew a sigh of relief when you saw a hint of a smile on his lips before he turned back to his brother.

“How do I stop?” An almost audible sigh of relief left Dean as he walked towards his brother.

“Just let it go,” Dean urged him, but Sam didn’t stop crying.

“I can’t. It’s in me, Dean.”

Tears streamed down your cheeks again when you heard the fear in Sam’s voice, and you suddenly realized this wasn’t over. It was beyond Sam’s control, and even if he wanted to live, he might still die from this. Dean’s calm however didn’t break. He just wrapped his brother’s bleeding hand in the bandana he always carried in his pocket.

“Hey, listen. We will figure it out, okay. Just like we always do,” Dean promised, before pulling Sam in for a tight hug as you watched them with tears in yours eyes. “Come on. Let it go, okay? Let it go, brother.”

“Hey,” Sam broke the hug, twisting his arms in front of Dean, showing his brother how they had stopped glowing.

“You see,” Dean smiled relieved at his brother, before Sam’s eyes sought you out. He smiled at you, a smile you barely got to return before he crutch down in pain.

Your terrified scream filled the abandoned church, only echoed by Dean calling out his brother’s name, as he caught him just before he hit the ground.

“Y/N the doors! We need to get him to a hospital,” Dean ordered, snapping you out of your panicked state, and you did as you were told before grabbing Sam’s free arm, helping Dean support him as you together staggered out of the church.

“I got you little brother,” Dean promised as the two of you struggled to keep a groaning Sam on his feet. “You’re gonna be just fine,” Dean added before Sam feel into the side of the Impala, pulling you and Dean down with him.

“Sam, Sam, Sammy,” you and Dean both called out to him, trying to make sure he was alright. He clearly wasn’t. You had seen Sam hurt before but never in this much pain. His pain physically hurt you, and you could see by the pain in Dean’s eyes that he was going through the same thing you were.

“Cas! Castiel!” Dean bellowed in hopes your angel friend could do something to help Sam, but his prayer wasn’t answered. “Where the hell are you?” Dean mumbled, and you fought to hold back the tears. If Dean was this scared, it really was as bad as you thought it was. You might really lose Sam tonight, and the same reluctance to carry on that Sam had vocalized earlier rushed over you. Without Sam, you didn’t want to live, and you knew Dean felt the same way.  The same terror and agony you felt as you watched Sam writhe in pain before you was mirrored in Dean’s orbs when your eyes met.

The night sky suddenly lit up with thousands of lights, pulling you from your thoughts and fears, filling you both with an entirely different kind of terror.

“No, Cas,” Dean begged as the three of you looked to the sky.

“He did it,” you whispered, much to Sam’s confusion.

“What’s happening?”

“Angels,” Dean answered as you all stared to the sky, “they’re falling.”

You’re gaze met Dean’s while Sam kept staring into the sky, baffled and in pain. You and Dean however thought the same thing. Sam couldn’t die tonight. None of you could. You had work to do, and you needed Sam by your side through this. Whatever it took, whatever deal you had to make, or whatever sacrificed it would cost, Sam would have to make it through this.  

Sam Tag Team (CLOSED)

@mysupernaturalfics @blacktithe7 @percywinchester27 @jpadjackles @supernaturalyobessed @purgatoan @supernatural-jackles @revwinchester @starswirlblitz @skathan-omaha @feelmyroarrrr @kayteonline    @sinceriouslyamellpadalecki @winchesterprincessbride @curliesallovertheplace @faith-in-dean @ellen-reincarnated1967 @elliewinchesterr @adriellej @moonstar86 @atc74 @knittingknerdy @tia58 @tia58 @lycangirl44 @brooke-supernatural16 @yoursmilemakesmeloveyou @melonberri @thatonehaspanicchick @stilinski15 @impalaimagining @roxy-davenport @your-average-distracted-waffle @phoenixia67 @bringmesomepie56 @chaos-and-the-calm67 @jasminwild @gryffindorable713  @blushingsamgirl @mrswhozeewhatsis @smoothdogsgirl @angelkurenai @ayeeitsemry @deanxfuckingadorablexwinchester @charliebradbury1104 @chelseypaigeake @charliebradbury1104 @gecko9596 @nichelle-my-belle @ashleymalfoy @lucifer-ismy-bae @deansleather @fangirl1802 @jayankles @samgirlforeverandalways @spn-fan-girl-173 @for-the-love-of-dean @mamapeterson @zeneko1987 @scarlet-soldier-in-an-impala @jensen-gal @iamnotsaneatall @gemini75eeyore @winchester-writes @just-a-touch-of-crowley  @itsummertime22 @deanwinchesterisamazing @caitsymichelle13 @sandlee44 @nataly-world @riversong-sam @flawsweirdo @gabriels-trix  @jeremy-hilary-boob @captainradicalpassion @dontbeamenacetotheforce @love-kittykat21 @we-know-a-little-about-a-lot @thelittleredwhocould @ivvitm1109 @iamflanneltrash @mogaruke @haleyhay96 @thewhisperingfox @blanketmadeofstar @you-know-whodoesthat-crazypeople

[rpdredgic]

Drag Race Edgic- Season 9 Episode 4 + 5

At this point I really can only realistically consider Valentina or Shea to be the winners. I can’t completely rule out Nina although her negativity this episode is a big blemish. Peppermint’s edit isn’t something I can rule out either but her edit is less consistent than Shea. Everyone else I don’t really see winning. This season’s edgic is kinda tragic lol. I’m not gonna do episode 4 summaries, too much typing lol. Let’s dive into the summaries for episode five now. 

Aja- Ok so she did get directly called out by Peppermint with negative SPV but I didn’t really see this warranting a N tone. OTTN for her just felt weird to me, same with the others that Peppermint mentioned. 

Alexis- She would’ve been UTR if not for her first confessional. These last two episodes have started to show the divide between her and Shea who got the same ratings from episodes 1-3. I feel like she might leave soon.

Cynthia- For her I think her edit is too OTT to be a winner. I don’t see her going far though, this episode she was in the bottom 2 and didn’t go home yet we barely saw her.

Farrah- In the episode she got a lot of content but it was all mostly emotional and very one-toned. She didn’t really explain how she feels about the challenge, what she’s doing and how she thinks she’ll do. What cements that she can’t win even more was the disregard of her personal relationship with Cynthia. This weighs just as much on Cynthia too. In untucked we find out Cynthia gave Farrah her first gigs and how emotional their lip sync would actually be. Not showing this in the main show gives us an idea that the editors know Farrah (or Cynthia) won’t win and therefore won’t build/explain her relationships.

Nina- Her CPN this episode really weighs her edit down. I won’t rule her out completely yet due to the meh edits everyone else has but she’s definitely not as strong as she once was in terms of edit. If this attitudes persists through next episode, she’s toast.

Peppermint- She got a lot of visibility this episode but not that much development of her character. She got a couple confessionals about other people, had 1 throwaway confessional about being back in the workroom and then 1 confessional where she did actually get some development. I don’t think she’s winning but I could see her going far maybe to the end?

Sasha- She was basically nowhere to be seen this episode. At first I thought she might be UTRM since she got some negative SPV from Nina and then positive tone from the eating disorder scene but after the episode ended I felt like that negative tone was just to show Nina being bitter, jealous and thinking everyone is out to get her. This applies to the negative SPV she gave to Shea. Her edit is kinda Naomi Smalls like i’d say (I’m not looking at the S8 charts rn so I can’t say for sure lol) but there’s no way in hell she’s winning imo.

Shea- Pretty good episode for her. She didn’t get the development I’d like to see but the consistency of her edit and how she was the one to get the confessional on the eating disorder scene when it wasn’t her scene to begin with (it started with Eureka, Sasha and Valentina) have me seeing her as more of a viable contender with Valentina.

Trinity- They really milked her and Eureka’s feud this episode. 4 out of 5 of her confessionals related to Eureka but they also gave us her thoughts as well, so that’s why I gave her a MOR. 

Valentina- What worries me is that she didn’t get a confessional this episode, although she was just safe and didn’t really need to have one. It just gives me pause how the scene with her Eureka, and Sasha wasn’t shown from her perspective. What she said about her eating disorder could’ve really been made into a more positive moment. I think her edit is still good though.

Eureka- So we’ve gotten our first medical disqualification on Drag Race lol. Just like on Survivor, people that leave due to circumstances outside of their control especially health get OTTP ratings. Even though she got negative SPV from Trinity in the beginning, it was just kind of a rehash of what happened last episode and I feel like it was there because this was the last time we’d get to see this feud play out.