#Episode 208: An Issue of Trust

[vesivoro]

To achieve the dragon form the ninja just need to jump up kick back flip around and spin

[gorogues]

Spoilers for comics in April!

These are from the official solicits for that month, which you can see in full at Adventures In Poor Taste.

SUICIDE SQUAD: KILL ARKHAM ASYLUM #4 Written by JOHN LAYMAN Art by JESÚS HERVÁS Cover by DAN PANOSIAN Variant cover by ARIEL OLIVETTI Variant cover by DAVID NAKAYAMA $4.99 US | 32 pages | 4 of 5 | Variant $5.99 US (card stock) ON SALE 5/7/24 It takes more than a boomerang to survive a riot at Arkham Asylum, and all its super-powered rioters. This in particular sucks if a boomerang is your weapon of choice, and your name is Captain Boomerang. So, to survive you join up with some allies. But be careful who you join with, because nobody is to be trusted, and your allies just might be worse than your enemies. Presenting the most brain-bending, backstabbing, boomeranging-est episode yet of Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League! Each print issue includes a redeemable code for a bonus weapon doll digital token in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League inspired by the comics. Get the new Mad Hatter weapon doll digital token with issue #4. Paying subscribers with a DC Universe Infinite Annual or Ultra subscription (U.S. only) who read the digital issues of Suicide Squad: Kill Arkham Asylum will also receive these bonus digital codes.* *Terms Apply. See dc.com/suicide-squad-faq for details. DC UNIVERSE INFINITE is not intended for children.

Ah Digger, never change.

This next book reprints some Webtoons strips, which has a new Mirror Master.

RED HOOD: OUTLAWS VOLUME TWO Written by PATRICK R. YOUNG Art by NICO BASCUÑÁN, JAVIER RODRÍGUEZ VÉJARES, and SEBASTIÁN FRANCHINI Cover by VASCO GEORGIEV $14.99 US | 208 pages | Softcover | 6″ x 9″ | ISBN: 978-1-77952-689-2 ON SALE 7/2/24 Jason Todd, Bizarro, and Artemis know what it means to play second fiddle to the Justice League…but now, that is even more the case as they’ve been contracted into work-for-hire duty by none other than Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. All aboard the Watchtower as the new Outlaws tackle a meddling Medusa and take a trip to the Mirror Dimension to face Mirror Master himself (along with some other Bizarro versions of our great trio). Can the Outlaws handle the twisted reflections of themselves? Or will they succumb to pressure from all (literal) angles?! Collecting episodes 12-22 of WEBTOON’s smash-hit series, optimized for a brand-new reading experience in print. Your new favorite series continues!

And we're finally getting a William Messner-Loebs Omnibus! For those not familiar with it, this (partially) covers the run which introduced Hartley's reform and coming out. However, this particular volume won't contain the coming out issue; that'll probably be in the next one.

THE FLASH BY WILLIAM MESSNER-LOEBS AND GREG LaROCQUE OMNIBUS VOL. 1 Written by WILLIAM MESSNER-LOEBS and MIKE BARON Art by GREG LaROCQUE, BUTCH GUICE, and others Cover by GREG LaROCQUE $125.00 US | 986 pages | 7 1/16″ x 10 7/8″ | Hardcover | ISBN: 978-1-77952-581-9 ON SALE 6/18/24 Following the death of Barry Allen, Wally West will don the red suit and become the new Fastest Man Alive. Kid Flash no more, Wally must pave his own path forward and live up to the legacy of the man who saved the universe. Collects The Flash #1-28, The Flash Annual #1-3, Manhunter #8-9, Secret Origins Annual #2, and pages from Invasion! #2-3, featuring over a dozen never-before-collected issues.

[matan4il]

Hey 👋

So, do you think Natalia is using Buck? Perhaps she's writing a dissertation or something. It would definitely fit in with the running theme of women using Buck. I just don't trust this relationship, and not because of the usual buddie bias, but because it just feels....weird. I can't wait to read your meta on the episode. 💙

Hi, darling! *HUGS* How are you? Awwww, thank you so much for the kind words, I do hope you enjoyed my 615 meta! *sending you even more hugs*

Hmmm, IDK if I would go as far as saying she's using him. She def seemed like her primary interest was not in Buck himself, but rather in learning about what it's like to die, yet nothing between them was clarified enough for me to be able to say that she knows beyond doubt that Buck is interested in more than that, and she's intentionally leading him on to get info out of him.

The theme of Buck & issues of consent is strong, and his story with Natalia kind of strayed into that area... Buck himself brought this up in 208 with Ali, when he was referring to the issues surrounding a firefighter dating someone he saved on a call, and now Eddie has echoed a similar sentiment in 615. Then again, Buck didn't save Natalia's life, so I would wait a bit longer before I say definitively that she is a part of the theme. But it's not too distant from it, either.

I hope this helps? Thank you for always being a part of my joy in this fandom. Have a good day! As always, my ask tag. xoxox

[pja-party]

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#please beat those asshole classmates they are the reason why i have trust issues with anyone who's close age

2022 上我的熱門貼文：

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I just finished watching the new Cuphead show.....Holy Sh♡t.....

Me after seeing the last episode :

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"Dropped the cookie *

Cuphead: * Mad boi *

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#3

My gameplay experience of Fnaf Security breach-Part 1

When I need to vent near the salad bar kitchen.

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[entomjinx]

Here's 1554 words on Why Gray/Juvia is toxic for both parties + receipts and a small personal anecdote about why I'll never shut up about this: 

Google doc Or click keep reading:

Firstly, Juvia gets very little growth as a character, to the point that even by the end of the series, she is still entirely obsessed with Gray and it's basically her only character trait(in canon). Everything she does is in someway related to Gray. Had she gotten real character development, I think I really would have loved her, but instead she was made to be nothing but someone who has an obsession with Gray. (Which clearly stemmed from hero-worship, and had it only lasted a short time with her coming to her senses and apologizing for it, then it might have been a good subplot!)

Secondly, even if she had gotten better, that would not erase the fact that she is a stalker and never even apologized. Even if she had apologized, Gray isn’t obligated to forgive her. Gray rejected her multiple times in canon(see bottom), and she continued to come on to him. If their roles were reversed, and it was Gray doing this to Juvia, everyone would be disgusted by the ship. There's a double standard around it. During the one year time skip when she forced him to live with her for 6 months while he was emotionally compromised, there was emotional manipulation similar to what is found in  Stockholm Syndrome patients. In several fields of psychology, it's been tested(and confirmed) that in 99% of cases where a person dates their stalker, it is because of their manipulation during moments of high emotion(typically negative, chapter 416) often caused by the stalker themself but sometimes by outside elements(like with Gray(chapter 416), and yet again, is similar to Stockholm Syndrome). They only thing that happened between them is that she emotionally manipulated Gray into being complacent. 

Thirdly, SHE WAS A STALKER. Period. There is NO justifying that for any reason. She made him uncomfortable in canon. He openly said he was uncomfortable IN CANON. She followed him around to places he thought he was safe, and made those places unsafe, and it affected his mental state in a visible way. 

Fourthly, Gray is someone who cares deeply about his nakama, which makes him ignore a lot of his own problems if that means helping them, which is why he tried to let her down easily at first. He still protected her, because even though she made him uncomfortable, she's still a member of Fairy Tail. 

Fifthly, she has several delusions about Gray, as are shown in canon, which are vastly different to how Gray actually is. Which means she's likely in love with her own idea of him, and not Gray himself (Again, this stems from the hero-worship and obsession). So while the delusions are played up for comedy and don't accurately depict Gray, they do accurately depict Juvia's VIEW of Gray. 

Sixthly, she freaks out anytime he so much as speaks to another girl, which is a red-flag. That's not the kind of relationship anyone wants to be in, because it's over controlling and there's no real trust. It also speaks volumes about her codependency issues, which shows that being with Gray(an extremely independent individual) is also bad for her! The ship is toxic both ways. 

Receipts

(and please note I only used a few for each because I could have pulled out more.)

Point 1 (little character growth):

-chapter 48: Juvia's debut chapter. She's depressed after what has clearly been years of abuse and is later reinforced in the few flashbacks we get of her (people leaving because of the rain and other reasons.) 

-chapter 116: this is during the battle of Fairy Tail arc, and while Juvia has a little bit of character growth here, she goes right back to being overly jealous of everyone and trying to control who Gray interacts with as soon as the arc is over. Character development isn't development if it doesn't stick.

-Chapter 424: Juvia is in the exact same headspace as before, making herself sick over someone who rejected her multiple times. She could have gone to others for help! Lucy had a lead on Gray, so refusing that help and keeping to herself only shows that she was obsessed with the idea of doing things herself. This is a toxic mindset and would big a massive red flag in a real relationship, as it shows a desperate need for control over the other person. 

-ft100 chapter 1: she still gets into the same headspace when Gray leaves. This is further proof that the relationship isn't just toxic for Gray, but for Juvia as well. (Extreme codependency is terrible)

Point 2 (emotional manipulation): 

-Chapter 340: Juvia tells Gray that he's rude for being upset. She tells him that he should be smiling! She's blatantly ignoring his feelings and trying to control him. 

-chapter 416: Gray is obviously distraught over what happened, and Juvia tries to make her guilt more important than his grief. She says "Juvia doesn't have the right to love you anymore," which is an obvious guilt trip. She's attempting to get him to respond positively instead of getting the negative responses she usually gets from him by using his grief weakened mindset against him. And that's not even mentioning that she stalked him to his parents grave all the way in Isvan. He clearly didn't invite her. Gray's too private of a character for that, and he obviously expected to be alone, considering his surprise when she shows herself. ("juvia! You followed me here?")

Point 3 (stalking, general abuse)

-see 416 above (how else would she have known he'd have gone back to an entirely different country when he obviously didn't tell anyone, let alone her.)

-episode 50: Juvia attempts to drug Gray with a love potion. This would make him love her regardless of his own feelings, basically making him a slave to her whims. 

-chapter 67: she's clearly shown stalking him before joining Fairy Tail, and she never apologized or grew enough as a character that we can definitely say she wouldn't do so again. 

-episode 129: Juvia stalked Gray when he went on a job with Erza.

-chapter 432: Gray's "why are you here?" Is a clear indication that she shouldn’t be there, and that she most likely followed him.

-there's also multiple sexual harassment issues, such as when Juvia asks Gray to punish/spank(depends on translation) her on Tenrou(chapter 249: "I don't have those kinds of hobbies!" Gray says, and then she responds with "I do") and when she admitted to sleeping with him without his knowledge during the Avatar arc(chapter 424: see Gray's rejections for the quote)

Point 4 (Gray is a softie and tried to let her down easy before being blunt):

-literally the entirety of Fairy Tail.

-Lullaby arc: he protects Lucy and Happy from some of the Eisenwald guild members, and openly worries about Erza pushing herself to hard to finish the mission.

-Galuna arc: he protects Lucy, Natsu, and Happy from Lyon, and he attempted iced shell TWICE to protect them from Lyon's plan.

-Phantom Lord arc: Gray is so adamant about protecting Lucy from Phantom that it's literally what starts Juvia's obsession with Lucy as her "love-rival."

-Tower of Heaven Arc: he's incredibly anxious about getting Erza when she's captured, and arguably the most urgent to get her back to protect her

Do I need to keep going or do you get the picture here?

Point 5(delusions):

-Do I even need to track all these down? There’s one ever dozen chapters or so, so we’ve all seen them.

Point 6(abuse and mistreatment of other characters): 

-Lucy: chapters 77, 79, 86, 103, ect (there's so many more, all for the sake of getting rid of her "Love-Rival")

-Chapter 202: Juvia's is rude to Lisanna even when she's being kind and offering to be Juvia's partner, because she thinks Lisanna might "take" Gray. Gray isn't an object and shouldn't be treated like one, and that shouldn't be Juvia's priority here anyways. She can't see past her obsession to be nice to anyone else.

-chapter 208: Juvia puts Gray's safety over everyone else's and intended to lie to everyone so that she could go find Gray on her own to be his savior. 

Some of Gray's rejections: 

-chapter 271: This is one of the gentler rejections. Juvia brings a sleepy bag for her and Gray, and Gray says "No way am I getting in that." 

-chapter 322: Gray asked her to let go of his hand and she refused.

-chapter 338: "Gray-Sama! I love you!" Was met with Gray's "I don't."

-chapter 424: "slept together.... well tried to. He kicked me out." Quoted Directly from Juvia. 

One last thing: As someone who has been stalked TWICE, I can attest for how it fucks up your mental state. While it was still nowhere near as extreme as some of the lengths Juvia went to, it STILL has lingering effects on me. I still have difficulty even talking about it at times, because of how much it's fucked me up and given me paranoia. I literally live out in the middle of fucking no where and the though of my window now being covered terrifies me. What Juvia does is not okay, and I refuse to shut up about how toxic they are.

[ambitionsource]

S2 Rewatch - Maggie’s Take [ 207 ]

oh honey we’ve got a big storm coming...

Favorite scene

We’re getting to the point now in the season where all these questions become a million times harder to answer. All the scenes have an oomph to them. All the characters are at their richest. All the performances go off. So forgive me for cheating and giving multiple answers from here on out most likely. So in 207, three answers jump to mind. 1) The sequence where Farkle is having his true meltdown, before “Santa Fe.” From a writing standpoint, I remember I was really proud with how that scene turned out. It was a fun challenge, trying to capture that anxiety and panic and loss of reality. A fun fact that you may or may not know is that nearly all of the lines of dialogue said by the hallucinated characters are repetitions or variations on dialogue that has actually already been said in the show, meant to highlight how Farkle’s brain has taken these (usually offhand) comments and held onto them obsessively and in some cases even warped them into something more antagonistic than they were. Then there was the pattern of tying the sentiments together into one overarching monologue of sorts, repeating that thematic word over and over, “enough.” It was just so fun to write, and I’m really happy with how it came together. 2) The Dylan, Lucas, and Asher argument in the booth. Ooh, buddy. This was a true turning point, both for the narrative and for Asher and Dylan as characters. To me, that is the scene where they rise from supporting characters to mains, and in some ways it’s a long time coming. I love how it highlights the imperfections at play between that trio, and the way that Lucas and Asher know exactly how to get at one another, but nothing gets me more than Dylan’s “HEY” and stepping in between them. How Dylan snapping seems to be what pulls Lucas out of his anger, and how Dylan’s anger only lasts seconds before it shifts into like shock / concern... ugh I love him. I love them! Definitely a standout scene, even back when I first wrote it, but even more so now that Dylan and Asher have such larger roles in the third season. 3) The unintentional coming out scene between Riley and Charlie. The whole thing is just rich with tension, like I love the moment where Charlie is like you can’t tell anyone you can’t -- and she just interrupts him and it goes dead silent until she’s emphatically like I would never tell anyone... like chills, bro. Chills. And the relief that comes from Riley finally understanding why he’s been acting the way he has... so good. The follow up to this choice is the Zay and Charlie scene at the end where the freedom of someone knowing seems to allow him the strength to kiss Zay in their studio... I love them. I love it all. Whew. 

Favorite performance

It’s getting hard... it’s getting tough to choose... like “Santa Fe” is up there because of the raw emotion of it and what it represents for Farkle and his arc. “Loser” is great too, mainly in concept, as we have Dasher acting as Lucas’s subconscious mind essentially and all of the cool choices in the production of the number. But I think I will have to go with “Waving Through A Window,” as that is such a standout performance in my opinion. It delivers emotionally, it has a cool flow and concept, there’s snow... whenever it comes on AMBITION shuffle I’m like oh yeah. Now we’re talking. And I love the visual of Isadora being stuck on the acting block / courtyard table, always inches from falling off the ledge but managing to avoid disaster. It’s just a really cool visual in my head. So that’s the top for me I think.

Favorite character (within context of the episode)

I literally can’t choose. I don’t know what to say. I think I’ll say maybe Charlie and Zay? Both in their storyline together as well as individuals. They’ve both got great solos (“Consideration” and “Exhale”), Charlie has his devolution emotionally and Zay finally (righteously) snaps at Angela. They find refuge, in Riley and Harper and of course each other. There are standout moments throughout the episode for their relationship -- holding hands at the top in the studio, Charlie hugging Zay in the hallway to comfort him and telling him it’s okay, the fraught moment of Charlie snapping at Zay about being at his locker which feels like a tiny unintentional step back, Charlie’s frazzled kiss on the cheek in public, the ending scene with another handhold and the softest kiss... ugh I love them. They were at a peak this episode, which makes sense considering what’s about to come...

Favorite line(s)

“You know what, you’ve got a lot to think about. Let me just get out of your hair. Best of luck with this next phase in your life, sir. Save a little social security for the rest of us provided climate change doesn’t kill us first!” --Lucas James Friar, to Eric

“I mean, but what am I going to do instead? Follow in the footsteps of my mom? I won’t survive veterinary school, Mister E. And you can only cure lung cancer once!” --Darby Winters

“Might be nice to help combat the impending danger of climate change and issues with renewable resources by studying environmental sciences or maybe aeronautical space engineering in pursuit of space materials that could be used as new energy sources. Ooh, or a rodeo clown!” --Dave Williams

“Actually, I’m near-sighted. But I wear contacts.” --Dylan Orlando, in response to Eric asking if his future plan is “short-sighted”

“I looked into “space cowboy,” but as it turns out you need a degree in aerospace engineering as well as a license to boy cows, and that seems like a lot of work. So then I thought, well, if I don’t have the capacity to work, what else is there in this capitalistic hell we call society? Sure, I could probably enter myself in human cage fights and scrap to death for spare change, but I think that would hurt after a while and to be honest, I think I’d feel a bit like a piece of meat if I took up that mantle. Who would I be fighting to impress? The bourgeoisie? Hard pass. But after some deep, probing soul-searching, I finally hit the one. Trophy husband. Now, I know what you’re thinking. To accomplish such a grand ambition, I’d have to get someone to like me. And that’s a pretty hefty task, believe me I know, but I’ve devised a work around. This is, as Dave would say, galaxy-brained thinking, Mister E. I’m going to put an ad on Craigslist.” --Lucas James Friar

“It’s easy to say you believe in someone. Showing up for them is a different story.” --Zay Babineaux

“We’re friends, Lucas. We care about you. Asher wasn’t lying about that. And when you decide you want to do something about this, we’ll be there. When you need us... we’re going to be there for you. No matter what.” --Dylan Orlando

“I don’t know if this will make you feel better or worse, but the truth is it all comes down to endurance. How long you can take it, how long you can stick it out until it ends up being your shot. The true test of who lives the dream is who hangs on… and who gives up.” --Harper Burgess

An underrated moment

There are so many it would be so hard for me to pick one if I thought about it too hard, so I’m gonna go with my gut. My favorite mini moment in the episode is during the end montage, when Dylan climbs in the window to comfort Asher. There’s a lot of small details I like about it that occur just within like 30 seconds -- Asher’s routine with crushing up his anxieties (a thing elaborated on in Cruel Summer), how commonplace it is for Dylan to climb in the window, and how he jumps into comfort mode and they both fall into that without any words at all. I just love it. And I can picture the way Dylan kisses his cheek and then his shoulder and then rests his head against him so perfectly... I adore them. They are angels.

First impression vs your reread impression

Obviously, even when I wrote this last year it felt major. Because it is. This is the turning point episode, literally and narratively. It’s smack in the middle, and from here I knew everything was going to be bigger and more, especially since we pulled the (metaphorical) trigger with Farkle. We knew that was a narrative risk, but we felt strongly about it, and we took every method we thought possible to set it up well, be cautious about it to y’all (with trigger warnings and hotlines, etc.), and then follow through on it in a way that balanced realism with care and attention. I think we managed to pull it off, but it was a great relief that you all reacted so well to it (in terms of the narrative, not like joyously LMAO) and trusted us to carry it forward. That kind of trust in a writer means a lot, and that’s what I’ll always remember when I think about this episode. Thankfully, we all survived it, and now here we are on the cusp of S3. Insane. And now onto 208... the storm is here...

[somethingpositive4positivepeople]

SPFPP 210: Delayed Rejection - It’s Fine Til it isn’t

First thing’s first, I did end up not getting ghosted ha! Kelsy started her herpes journey on Herpbler and was inspired by Ella Dawson’s anonymous profile there.

Kelsy became loud in her personal life and on social media about her herpes status. She shares a story about having flown out to meet with a guy she had been talking to. He introduced her to 25ish of his friends. They were intimate and the sex was average. Not getting oral is NOW a boundary for her, but she made an exception because he checked the boxes. He said he just needed time to be comfy with it. He got real quiet on her after the visit was over and she wondered why. He eventually shared he wasn’t comfortable with her having herpes and he’s a nurse too so he had the information.

We discuss how to navigate people saying they’re okay with us having herpes and then later not being okay with it. Managing the emotional labor with boundaries is key. They might already have herpes, but they just don’t know because of how tricky testing is as well as all the misinformation that’s out there making it challenging. So how do we REALLY know who’s okay with us having herpes? We don’t, man. It’s unfortunate but we are always taking a chance with someone. So all we can do is measure people’s actions and the consistency of that alongside their words. People are willing to unlearn stigma for themselves. We have to trust that.

What having herpes REALLY means is the same thing for any other condition. We learn to give our body the best opportunity to operate at its natural capacity. A health condition creates a baseline for us to work with. As herpes is a highlight to an underlying trigger, we speak to Kelsy’s suicide ideation after her diagnosis. We also speak to her fear of abandonment and the narrative “What’s wrong with me?” as the topic when not being chosen given one’s weight of your value as it relates to your herpes diagnosis. Having herpes added to her security in herself only because she was willing to explore this within herself.

Accepting my status doesn’t mean you’re a good person, and rejecting my status doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. Don’t put all that weight onto someone accepting your diagnosis to the point where you overlook the red flags and other incompatibilities. Not wanting herpes is perfectly fine. Hell, I didn’t want herpes and here I am. It’s ok to not want herpes, what’s not ok is invalidating the wholeness of a person. I think this is an excellent follow up from episode 208 where I talk about '“lowering my voice” when it comes to having herpes and sharing what I do to keep those around me comfortable. It isn’t brave to be loud about our status, it’s confronting internalized stigma that is. I know I personally have some work to do around that for sure. Talking about sex is challenging and not “normal”. Filtering in people receptive to sexual health communication through sex positivity and people’s relationship to mental health leads to a higher likelihood of a positive disclosure and much more pleasant interaction. We get to a point where we have to stop caring so much about what other people think in the short term for the sake of our own bigger picture of wholeness.

We discuss how we can benefit from communicating about past challenges in relationships. Having the sexual health talk should be just as normal as speaking about past relationships. Another thing to consider is how we look at compatibilities outside just herpes status?

She also shared an experience she had disclosing her status to a health care worker who hadn’t known their herpes information. They were unaware that HSV1 can be genital story. WE ARE THE EXPERTS OF OUR EXPERIENCES! Take the opportunities to share experiences where it’s safe to do so for ya! Look at who has herpes that we’re NOT hearing from! Most people are okay with their status, don’t know or it just isn’t an issue for them. The younger folks navigating stigma correctly! They’re communicating, utilizing resources, becoming empowered far earlier than those before us. Now we have Safe Slut, Positively Positive, Shana Singleton, etc. TikTok… the list goes on.

The end of stigma isn’t a universal ending of stigma. It comes at an individual level to be shared as needed and within the communities of those who’ve ended it within themselves. For Kelsy, it took 6-7 years to hit up a therapist in regards to the trauma that came from the relationship/person who gave her herpes. Empowerment and taking care of yourself is asking people about their status despite being someone positive in their status. Value yourself! Having a support system, their friend, and resources helped her not end her life. @herp3tic Goddess

[asflowersfade]

Scribble-Doodle: We’re Lightwoods

It’s Mother’s Day today ♥♥♥ This is a companion fic to my ficlet Mom that featured Maryse and Jace. This one features Maryse and Alec. It follows episode 208. Maryse and Max are headed home...

Maryse’s small smile is tinged with pain when she says. “What happened back there, on the roof… Alec, that was--” She falls silent and shakes her head, and when she continues, her voice’s a little too unsteady for Alec’s liking, “That was a mother’s worst nightmare, to find out only after the fact that her child was in so much pain that he was driven to… this and she didn’t even notice, she was not there to help.”

“I’m fine, mother,” Alec assures her and gently squeezes her upper arm in comfort. “Really, it was the magic, just that. I would never do that to you - to any of you.” His voice sounds so firm and certain that he almost believes it himself. Almost. If Maryse noticed that he only talked about them and not about himself, she doesn’t let it show.

“Magic…” Maryse whispers, focusing on something else instead, and shakes her head.

Alec sighs, knowing exactly where this is headed. “Mother, I know that you don’t like Magnus--”

She lifts one hand to stop him. “My liking him or not has very little to do with it,” she says. “Yes, Magnus and I, we’ll always have… issues. We have a past that will always color the way we see each other, I think - a past I have no desire to discuss,” she adds when she sees his inquiring look, “but that’s not really the problem here.”

Alec want to ask what the problem is, then, but he already did that once and received a non-answer. So he waits.

Maryse looks up at him and her smile’s a little brittle around the edges when she reaches out and strokes his arm, mirroring his gesture of comfort from moments before. Like mother like son.

“You have to know, Alec, that I’ll always love you, whether you’re with a man or a Downworlder or, like in the case of Magnus Bane, both in one. Your choice of a partner, no matter how unfortunate, will not change that, you’ll always be my son.” 

Then she sighs and a look of sadness passes over her face. “But I won’t deny that I would have preferred if you fell in love with and married Lydia Branwell. She’s from a well-respected family, she’s smart and driven, a career woman who will certainly go far. Your life would’ve been so much easier - and so much safer.”

Alec frowns. “Mother, a Shadowhunter’s life’s never safe. Look at what happened to Lydia’s first husband. And Magnus would never hurt me--”

“I’m not talking about Magnus, Alec,” she interrupts him pointedly and there’s something in her voice that makes him really pay attention. “The Clave’s an archaic, rusted organization, very set in its traditions. And it has a way of… eliminating disruptive elements. Especially since Valentine and his Circle almost destroyed us all.”

“What are you saying, mother?” Alec asks carefully. Because she cannot really mean--

She smiles the same brittle smile again. “All I’m saying is, you should be very careful who you trust. And always watch your back. Always.” 

She takes a deep breath. “And watch out for Jace and Isabelle, too, please. Valentine hurt Jace badly, and your sister” --she shakes her head-- “something’s going on with her, I don’t know what, but I can feel it. She won’t talk to me about it but maybe she’ll talk to you.” She smiles again. “You’ve always been her favorite.”

Alec shifts a little and glances away. The topic of favoritism has always made him uncomfortable. All it ever leads to are hurt feelings all around.

“I wish you could stay, mother,” he says in a soft voice after a moment. “I know that we haven’t really seen eye to eye lately, but I’ve always felt safe with you here. And I… miss you.” Why is it so hard for him to talk about feelings? Even with the people he loves the most?

Maryse hugs him. Standing on tiptoes, she wraps her arms around him and whispers in a voice thick with emotions, “I miss you, too. But I can’t stay. If I stayed, if I insisted on defying the Clave’s orders, I would only make it worse for you, all of you. And I can’t have that on my conscience, it’s heavy enough.”

Alec sighs and hugs her back, leaning into her for a moment. He knows exactly how she feels. 

“Alright,” he whispers back. “But if it gets bad, if you can’t stand it over there anymore, with dad and the Clave and everything, then just come back, okay? Come back and we’ll deal with the consequences together. And we will deal, we always do. We’re Lightwoods, after all.”

She laughs and pulls back, patting his cheek affectionately. “That we are, son, that we are.”

[battlemagnus]

soulisthirsty replied to your quote “Oh, definitely you’ll see romantic moments. One thing I’ll say to that...”

I keep hoping that 2x07 was just a one off for Malec and that it made 2x08 collateral damage as a result, and that it wasn't indicative of how the relationship will be handled in future episodes because truthfully apart from screentime and promotion complaints they've been handling the relationship fairly well this season. I think that's part of what made 2x07 so disappointing tbh, aside from the other obvious issues. So this quote from Harry is reassuring :)

same tbh :”( 

201 to 206 had such a good thing going on. it was 207 that was so awful. tbqh i actually did like 208 but i 100% agree that there were scenes missing that should’ve been included (magnus and alec confirming themselves that they had sex, not jace letting the audience know bc he “felt it through the parabatai bond”, being just one example). 

i’m hoping (and praying and then hoping some more) that 209 and on will have more of the feeling that the first six episodes did. i also trust harry and matt to do justice to the scenes they’re given. 

i’m just..... worried lmao bc now we have the aftermath of 208 to watch unfold and i don’t trust the writers to handle alec’s sui/cide attempt and do it justice. i really don’t.

[marymosley]

Guest Post by Prof. Ghosh: A Fitter Statute for the Common Law of Patents

Guest Post by Shubha Ghosh, Crandall Melvin Professor of Law and Director, IP & Tech Commercialization Law Program and Syracuse Intellectual Property Law Institute, Syracuse University College of Law.  I asked Professor Ghosh to offer his views on the ACLU and Law Professors’ letter.  Below is is response. -Jason

As a law professor, I am in the camp of those who are critical of the proposed bipartisan, bicameral legislation (“the Coons-Tillis bill”) to amend provisions of the Patent Act dealing with patentable subject. I am also in the camp of those who find the “two-step test” introduced by the Supreme Court in its Mayo v, Prometheus, 566 U.S. 66 (2012), and Alice v CLS Bank, 573 U.S. 208 (2014), decisions unworkable and inconsistent with its own precedent. I am also in the perhaps much smaller camp that is skeptical of the approach adopted by the Court in its Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad, 569 U.S. 576 (2013) decision (even if I agree with the result that identified genetic sequences are not patent eligible). Here are my thoughts about the Coons-Tillis bill and the comments in the letter from the ACLU and the law professors and practitioners organized by Professor Ted Sichelman of University of San Diego Law School.

A proposed provision of the Coons-Tillis legislation states: “No implicit or other judicially created exceptions to subject matter eligibility, including ‘abstract ideas,’ ‘laws of nature,’ or ‘natural phenomena,’ shall be used to determine patent eligibility under section 101, and all cases establishing or interpreting those exceptions to eligibility are hereby abrogated.”

The language expresses frustrations with judge-made exceptions to patentable subject matter based on implications drawn from the language of the Act or from judge made common law reasoning. If enacted, the amendment would not only remove established exceptions to patentable subject matter, but also would limit the power of the federal judiciary to create exceptions based on its own reasoning and interpretation of the Patent Act. Such legislation is in conflict with the long-established relationship between federal courts and Congress. If enacted, it would invite constitutional challenges claiming violation of the separation of powers, under Article III, of the Constitution. The proposed amendment would very likely be found unconstitutional.

Federal courts have as their role the interpretation of statutes. By abrogating the federal court’s power to develop any implications from the statutory language and to engage in common law reasoning in interpreting the statute, Congress invades long-standing judicial power.  Although a full analysis of the separation of powers is beyond the scope of this post, Congressional limitations on judicial power in other realms have failed under judicial scrutiny. At the extreme, Congress is limited in its power to legislate that federal courts cannot hear certain cases or controversies. See Boumediene v. Bush, 553 U.S. 723 (2009) (suspension of writ of habeas corpus unconstitutional); United States v. Klein, 80 U.S. 128 (1871) (Congress’ limitations on claims relating to confiscated and abandoned property unconstitutional). But see Patchak v. Zinke, 138 S.Ct. 897 (2018) (Congress’ stripping federal court jurisdiction over claims arising from Department of Interior’s taking of land into trust was not unconstitutional).

I am not suggesting that the proposed abrogation goes as far as the suspect legislation in Boumediene and Klein. Federal courts can still adjudicate patent law questions under the Coons-Tillis bill. But the bill does put limitations on how courts can decide cases. This attempt to bind the way federal judges approach a federal question is as problematic as taking away their power to adjudicate in the first place. The Coons-Tillis bill if enacted as drafted will invite substantive litigation which may well lead to the legislation being struck down, in part, as an unconstitutional exercise of Congressional power.

The drafters of the ACLU letter express the concern that the abrogation of the established exceptions will essentially reverse the Supreme Court’s ruling in Myriad that isolated gene sequences are not patentable subject matter. I am not as sure of the specter of genes coming back under patent should Coons-Tillis be enacted. My hesitation stems from what I find to be the opacity in the Supreme Court’s analysis in Myriad. If the Court’s reasoning rested on a constitutional holding that natural occurring substances like genetic sequences are not the “discovery of an inventor” contributing to “progress” in the “useful arts,” as required by Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the Constitution, then perhaps the Myriad holding survives a possible enactment of the Coons-Tillis bill.

That is the promise of the Law Professor Letter promoted by Ted Sichelman (and his co-authors Kevin Noonan and Adam Mossoff).  Their principal point is that courts can base patent subject matter exceptions in the constitutional language rather than in a murky common law. This point they contend is true for the established exceptions of abstract ideas, laws of nature, and natural phenomena.  But this optimistic assertion is far from clear; it is certainly possible, but not guaranteed. The Coons-Tillis bill, however, offers no guidance on how the courts should assess patentable subject matter. The proposed legislation requires courts to consider eligibility based on “the claimed invention as a whole” and to disregard the manner in which the invention was made, the state of the art at the time of invention, whether limitations are well-known, conventional or routine, or to the standards of novelty, nonobviousness, or enablement. I would assert that there is some general acceptance for excluding laws of nature, abstract ideas, and natural phenomena from patent eligibility (even if there is disagreement on the scope of these exceptions). I find little comfort in abrogating am established body of law on the hope that a Constitutional analysis will either not change the status quo or provide more light.

In summary, the Constitution may not come to the rescue of the proposed abrogation and more likely the Constitution will be its downfall.

Instead of shackling judicial decision making, a bill more carefully tailored to address the problems with the two-step test of Alice/Mayo and the unclear holding of Myriad would be more desirable.

The two-step test requires the PTO or a court to first determine whether patent claims are directed to an abstract idea, natural phenomenon, or law of nature.  If they are not, then the claims are patentable subject matter. If the patent claims are directed to ineligible subject matter, the second step requires the agency or court to identify an inventive concept for which the ineligible subject matter is embodied, used, or applied. What “directed to” and “inventive concept” mean has been the source of controversy with courts often failing to find an inventive concept beyond the ineligible subject matter. The problem is that there is no meaningful definition of an inventive concept beyond the notions of novelty, nonobviousness, usefulness, and enablement. The Coons-Tillis bill attempts to finesse this problem by basing a determination of patent eligibility on a consideration of the “claimed invention as a whole,” but this only begs the issue.

More targeted reform would abrogate the two-step test with its confusing language of “directed to” and “inventive concept.”  Instead, Congress might attempt to more clearly define the established exceptions, drawing on precedent. The Supreme Court tried to do something like this in its Bilski v. Kappos, 561 U.S. 593 (2010), decision. Justice Stevens’ concurrence would have established an exception for “business methods” but for the switch in Justice Kennedy’s vote. Although the Court, Congress, and the patent bar disfavor exceptions for broad classes of inventions, like software or business methods, Justice Stevens’ approach would have set forth a more principled approach to defining the exception that rested on a careful interpretation of the word “process” in the Patent Act.  Instead of this potentially fruitful approach, we were given an open-ended opinion by Justice Kennedy that quite correctly avoided any specific test while endorsing open ended standards.  Justice Stevens’ policy-based interpretation of the word “process” would have taken us further. The irony is that despite Justice Kennedy’s refusal to adopt a specific test, the Court adopts a rigid, unworkable test in Mayo/Alice.

Congress can follow the trail blazed in Justice Stevens’ Bilski concurrence by spending time offering more helpful definitions of the established exceptions.  The Court’s Myriad decision illustrates the need for more clear definitions.  In determining whether Myriad’s isolated gene sequences were natural phenomena, Justice Thomas’s opinion took us through an exploration of biotechnology that read like outtakes from an episode of Nova. The purpose of his scientific exegesis was to explain why the isolated gene sequences were in fact identical at the level of code to the natural phenomena of the naturally-occurring gene sequences. Justice Scalia would have none of this exegesis and simply concluded, in his concurrence, that the two were in fact the same based on his reading of the record. Notably, the Federal Circuit came to the opposite conclusion, ruling that the isolated sequences differed in chemical composition from the naturally occurring sequences.  This conflict as to determining how the subject matter of an invention compares to ineligible subject matter shows to me that guidance from Congress would be desirable.

One source of uproar over the state of the patent subject matter doctrine is the Federal Circuit’s decision in Ariosa v. Sequenom, 788 F.3d 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2015), finding ineligible an arguably valuable pre-natal diagnostic test because it involved cell-free fetal DNA. The court’s analysis is a collision of two errors, combining the two-factor test in Mayo/Alice with the question of when isolated DNA is naturally occurring in Myriad.  Finding the claims directed to natural phenomena and laws of nature, the court failed to find an inventive concept. Its analysis reduced the test to its nonpatentable elements and not finding more. The case illustrates the mechanical application of the two-step test combined with the uncertainties of determining when an invention is identical to ineligible subject matter.

Can Congress set forth clearer definitions of the recognized categories of ineligible subject matter? Can it clarify the definition of process as Justice Stevens set forth in Bilski? The politics of patent reform may inevitable corrupt the process.  But better than stripping courts of common law decision making in patent law, Congress should nudge the process along through clearer statutory guidance.

Guest Post by Prof. Ghosh: A Fitter Statute for the Common Law of Patents published first on https://immigrationlawyerto.tumblr.com/

[lmk88]

From Wounded to Inner Wisdom - Wade Cook Case Study- #208

Angel blessings! Welcome to the latest episode of Between Heaven and Earth with Lisa K! Going from wounded to having inner wisdom is not always an easy journey. Today, Lisa welcomes special guest Wade Cook to the show to have an emotional conversation about the huge transformation that’s been happening in his life as a result of finding, growing and trusting his intuition. From accepting his life and feeling like things were going to be the same forever, to realizing the potential of truly being alive, Wade found a deeper purpose in his life and is determined to see it through. Lessons in letting go, and seeing the bigger picture were difficult at times, with a little help, and some interesting exercises, Wade was able to tap into his intuitive side, and strengthen his bond with his new found gift. Tune in and hear his story!

In This Episode

Skepticism, to curiosity, to massive transformation.

Finding meaning where there didn’t seem to be any before.

From being wounded to being wise

How life differs once your intuition comes into play.

When things make no sense, it’s very possible that you’re still onto something.

More Peace.

Quotes

“Turning your wounds into wisdom”

“Judgement has been my biggest issue”

“If it seemed wrong, it might not be”

“All of a sudden I have this new lease on life that makes me emotional”

“It’s kinda given me this sense of being alive”

“We always seem to attract the nicest, beautiful souls”

  www.intuitiononly.com/circle

  About Lisa K. Lisa K., PhD, is a teacher, author and speaker specializing in intuition. Founder of Developing Your Intuition, and considered an intuition expert, Lisa has taught hundreds of people intuition development in workshops and seminars.  Her public appearances reach people around the world through guest speaking, online media and her popular radio show, “Between Heaven and Earth” on everyday spirituality. Learn more about intuition and sign up for weekly intuition tips at:  https://www.LMK88.com

  Check out this episode!