#God I could do an entire breakdown of the first episode

[exhuastedpigeon]

Sometimes I sit back and think about how almost all of the most insane and unhinged stuff about Buddie is stuff that, before getting into 9-1-1, I thought was fanon.

I started watching at the end of s6 and binged watched s1-s6 and I thought I was getting into another show where two guys stand near each other and the fandom ran with it and instead I got Buddie. I was sitting there watching being like.. wait this is all in the actual show? I thought it was all fan created stuff.

-> Eddie's introduction being set to "Whatta Man"? I thought that was a fan edit. -> Buck getting bashful after Eddie says "You can have my back any day" felt like something you'd see in fanon until you watch it ant realize it's canon. -> The entire Christmas elf scene -> Eddie holding Buck's hand while Buck is trapped under the ladder truck -> "There's no one in the world I trust with my son more than you" with Ed Sheeran playing over it??? CANON???? -> "Wanna go for the title" -> Buck digging at the earth like he could get to Eddie through 40 feet of mud is canon???? -> Eddie seeing flashes of Chris and Buck while he was buried under ground was canon and not an edit (this one blew my mind I'm not gonna lie to you). -> Chris ran to BUCK when he was mad Eddie was dating someone. -> The whole "construction on sunset" scene being that domestic blew my mind too. What do you mean that was actually in the show. -> The entire shooting scene? I genuinely can't believe we got that one shot of them just staring at each other in slow motion -> "Just say with me" -> THE WILL??? I truly thought that was fanon until I watched it with my own two eyes. -> Buck and Chris spending time together without Eddie (Eddie's line about Buck taking Chris to the zoo all the time in s5 I was like.. I've read this fic before) -> Buck canonically worrying about Eddie's health and mental health in s5? How is that canon and not fanon? -> Chris calling Buck during Eddie's breakdown truly blew my mind. That was in canon. When Chris was scared and worried about his dad he called Buck! -> THE LOVE HEART BUCK DREW?? THAT WAS CANON?!? -> The small moments we get of them (both together and with Chris) that just have a different vibe than when they're hanging out with other characters. Again I thought that was fanon and it turns out, nope it's just canon. -> Eddie running up the ladder without a safety line to get to Buck (screaming Buck's name) when Buck was struck by lightening. -> EDDIE CALLED BUCK COWBOY! THAT HAPPENED IN CANON TOO?! -> Eddie yelling "DO MORE" when the get Buck to the hospital after the lightening. -> Poker night? The same episode when all the canon couples were on dates Buck and Eddie actually got dressed up and Eddie took Buck to a secret poker game? IN CANON! That isn't fanon either??!? -> Buck's entire "Eddie, Eddie, Eddie, Eddie" moment in 704. He was about to be kissed by another man and he said Eddie's name, what? 7 times? -> Buck being SO nervous about telling Eddie about his date with Tommy. Like just freaking out for an entire episode. -> THE BACHELOR PARTY?!? Those two being in cahoots is another thing that I thought was fanon at first and then you get moments like that and you're reminded it's canon. -> Buck being who Eddie turns to when he needs parenting support because he sees Buck as a co-parent of some sort. I still can't believe that's canon. Like in the text of the show Eddie has turned to Buck for parenting support multiple times. -> Buck being there when Chris left with his hand on Eddie's shoulder. Again, so insane that it's canon.

Anyway, this list is in no way comprehensive since there's a lot of other stuff in canon that I thought was fanon, but my god the list is already so long I don't think I need to add more. I didn't even touch on the casual touches and the way they're almost always looking at or for each other when they're in scenes together.

[wafflesandd1ck]

Moral Orel.

If adult swim never canceled moral Orel.

I would love to see Orels grandfather give Orel a proper "puppington hunting trip."

Show the durrastic contrast between Clay and his father.

Clay drank the entire trip, trauma dumped on Orel and literally SHOT Orel in the leg and left his own son in excruciating pain for 13 hours straight.

I would love to see older Orel and his grandfather really bond like:

Showing Orel how to make dandelion root teas as a substitute for coffee in the morning

They don't get to kill any animals, so Orels grandfather shows him how to harvest chicken of the woods. (an edible mushroom)

Showing Orel how to star map to find their way back to camp.

How to make a fire

How to make a shelter out of old logs

I mean, it says in the show that was a "puppington tradition from father to son, generation after generation. " That means there's a lot of knowledge in this trip that never got handed down to clay.

I also think it would be really hard hitting. The first person Orel opens up to about Clay's abuse is his own grandfather. The man who had a hand in Clay becoming a downright bastard.

Then, of course, have the conversation turned to nature vs. nurture and then the philosophy of "is my dad a bad person because God made him one?"

I just adore this idea of Orel and his grandfather kind of having this moment of closure about Clay.

I'm not quite sure how the conversation would go, but I think it would hit home when Orels grandfather talks about how Clay accidentally killed Orels grandmother by pretending to shoot himself. Causing her to have a heart attack.

It makes me think of that Beforel Orel special about the grandfather teaching orel that sometimes people lie and are cruel. In the special, He speaks gently in a way that a child could understand, but because orel is older now. He doesn't pull any punches. It's a blow to the emotional jugular every time Orel asks a question.

I always see the episode ending with Orel just sobbing into his grandfathers shoulder. No music, just the sound of the forest and Orels slow creeping mental breakdown getting bigger and bigger, which each broken sob. While the credits roll, I want Orel to ask his grandfather a question over and over:

"Why doesn't he love me, Grandpa!? What did I do wrong?"

"I'm so sorry, Orel,"

[crazyoffher]

WATCHTOWER. - 2

jenna ortega x fem!reader

summary: the same late-night visitor meets with you once again, this time with a goal in mind.

warnings: unedited. somewhat long, which i'm very sorry for i just love attention-to-detail sometimes.

word count: 2600+

part one part three

Scandal was playing on the TV, but you weren’t paying attention to what was happening — not that it mattered because you replayed the show so much you could name an episode's events off the top of your head. It was a rather chilly Thursday night for springtime, and you lay on the couch all sprawled around with a massive headache and a runny nose. 

You had allergies, and they acted up harsher than usual, causing you to take the entire week off of work. You wanted to stay around in case Jenna came in that week, but you felt like fainting the first Monday, and you had been told to go home by your manager, Derek.

You were mindlessly scrolling through your phone, looking through Jenna’s entire Instagram your feed, when you were interrupted by a caller screen. It was your regular closing buddy, Jack, calling. 

“I told you, the cleaning supplies are stocked under the boxes on the shelf next to the cooler.” You sighed, assuming that he was calling because he couldn’t remember the location of where you put the items. 

“No, bro, it’s not that.” He practically screamed into the phone, erupting a groan out of you. “Keep your voice low; I have a massive fucking headache.” 

“Well, I'm sorry that I can’t contain my emotions after just dealing with Jenna Ortega, who was looking for you.” That got you to sit upright. You have to be fucking kidding me.

You sighed heavily. “You can’t be serious! Ugh.”

“What? You were expecting her? God, I hate when you keep exciting secrets from me (Y/N), like when you literally served Zendaya and I had to sit and gawk at you when you were telling me you and her had a conversation!”

Rubbing your eyeballs, you put the phone on speaker as you pulled yourself up, turning to clean up the mess of tissues and plates that had accumulated over the past two days. “What did you say to her?”

“I told her that you work Monday, Thursday, and Saturday every week, but that you’d be gone the rest of the week because you were sick. When the fuck did you meet her?” You loaded the tissues (and empty ice-cream pint) into the trash and set the plates into the sink, saying, “Two weeks ago, when you decided to do the easiest job on Earth and leave me to do all of the cleanup work, you assface.”

“Man, you better be good by Monday because she looked pretty down when I told her you weren’t here.” You sighed at that; it only made your hatred for your pollen allergy worsen. “And she told me she’d be back on Monday if she wasn’t too busy that day.”

“I’ll take this as a sign to actually start taking my antibiotics.” You filled a cup with water, grabbing a Tylenol pill for your headache. “Why haven’t you been taking them in the first place?”

“So I’d have an excuse to take more than four days off. You just have to hate working at a Michelin star that celebrities love to raid sometimes.” You downed the pill, or more so, tried to, as it came back up, making you cough.

“Yeah, well, you tell that to Marissa, who’s been covering your days. She looks like she’s on the edge of a breakdown constantly.”

You attempted to swallow the pill again, this time successfully, as you downed the entire glass of water before placing it in the sink, joining the dirty plates. “Well, she’d be more accustomed to it if she didn’t decide to work only once a week and constantly coax me for a share of my tips. Now go back to cleaning up.”

Leaning against the counter of your kitchen, you hung up the phone, saying your goodbyes to Jack. Couldn't she have come around next week?

On Monday, you returned. In your nice suitwear, you made sure to groom yourself extra well in the morning in case Jenna did make her return to you that day, and she did…not.

To say you were disappointed was an understatement; you even stayed out five minutes past twelve to see if she’d walk in, but to no avail. Closing the doors to the restaurant with Jack, you took each step to your car with a form of anger.

“Are you alr-”

“You said she was going to come today!” You huffed. He shrugged, choosing the right words to reply to you; otherwise, you’d go insane.

“If she wasn’t too busy, she said. She probably just had an overwhelming day.” He assured you, but you weren’t necessarily in a positive mood. You mimicked him, putting your hands on your face and rubbing your eyes.

“Or she just didn’t want to see me. She probably saw that I wasn’t there and was like, “Oh, well, fuck that girl then.” Ugh, I hate sickness.” Sneezing right after your sentence, Jack shuffled away from you slightly before climbing into your passenger seat when you unlocked your car.

You had promised to give him a ride because his car’s engine sounded off and he didn’t want to take it to work. “I call the music!”

“It's my car, asshole.” You jumped into the driver's seat without fighting Jack for the Bluetooth, as he had already been connected. “All I’m saying is, you shouldn’t worry. Celebrities, especially rising ones like her, are always busier than we are. Plus, you’re not all that special; I know I wouldn’t willingly go to a restaurant to see you at midnight when I’m a second away from passing out from tiredness.”

You shoved him, one hand on the wheel, as you rolled out of the parking lot and onto the immediate freeway. “And you’re so amazing?”

“I’m perfect, thank you very much.” 

It took you about thirty minutes to drop off Jack at his apartment, seeing that it was in a different town, and he made you stop at a gas station for a bag of Munchies. As soon as you fell onto your bed, you were out like a light.

When Thursday came around, you weren’t so optimistic about Jenna showing up. Actually, you debated calling out just because you didn’t feel like working that day, but you knew that your request would probably get declined because it was last-minute and it wasn’t for an emergency, so you got ready.

To your surprise, the day was calm. There were only about two well-known celebrities, and they were enthusiastically nice to you and tipped generously, leaving Jack to complain about your tips for the day, considering that he had almost half less and had a drink thrown on him by a TikTok influencer.

“Why do you always get the nicer tables with big tips while I get stuck with cows who try using their “influence” to get out of paying for their seven-fifty ($750) dollar meal?” He huffed, pretending to be busy because he was currently dealing with — actually, not even a D-lister, just somebody who was in the background of a Marvel movie in 2015.

Meanwhile, you were on your thirty minute break, munching on a burrito you had bought before walking into work that morning. “Because I’m nice and charismatic, even to those that throw their food on my clothes. You, on the other hand, have no charisma at all, and you purposefully set a bitchy tone whenever someone’s mean to you. Nobody’s tipping a man who looks to be on the verge of throwing them onto the highway.”

“Well-”

“Carlile!” Derek called out Jack’s name — or technically, last name, “Back to work, there’s a girl that came in, I’m thinking B-list but on her way to the A-list.”

“I’m dealing with some background extra right now!” He called out, buttoning up his vest he had unbuttoned earlier to breathe, and Derek came into the back where you guys were. “They wanted to leave, so Harvey gave them their check and took your tip from them while he was at it, so go and serve the girl!”

Derek left, and Jack huffed. “God, I hate that fucker. I’m getting that tip back.” And with that, he disappeared as well, anger evident in his step. You just laughed at him, twenty minutes left on your break as you laid back on the chair, tearing up the bulky burrito.

Not even five minutes later, Jack came rushing in, sweat beads on his forehead as he had a large smile on his face. “Guess who’s here.”

“Mmm, by the way you’re smiling, I’d say Spencer Charnas.”

“No, dumbass! Jenna’s here.” You coughed, choking up the burrito chunk you tried to swallow. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.” Getting up, you viewed yourself in the mirror. Your hair was messed up, tie in disarray, and your shirt sleeves slightly wrinkled from having them rolled up. You were not looking sharp.

“Yes, I told her that I’d switch her table over to you after getting her the drinks she and her — might I say, massive bodyguards, ordered. So go!”

He ushered you out of the backroom, hands on your tie fixing it into place and undoing your sleeves, fixing them down to your wrist. “I thought she was gonna come after we closed, like how she did before.”

“I guess she couldn’t wait to see you, buddy. Now you go and get your first girlfriend, yeah?” He patted your back, and you slapped him on the arm before heading into the dining section. Luckily, she was sat at the edge of a window where there was an empty walkway to her table, avoiding you of any interruptions by surrounding customers.

“What would you like to get started with?” You adjusted your vest, not making eye contact with Jenna just yet. Any observant person could tell you were nervous. “Well, hello to you too.”

You looked up, meeting her eyes and smiling. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there last Thursday, got a little sick and thought it was best to not infect everyone, especially you.” 

“It’s fine. Oh, and here.” She reached into the bag sat next to her, pulling out the book before handing it over to you, urging you to take it due to the weight of it. “Thank you. I didn’t expect you to finish so early, you said you’re busy constantly, after all.”

“I read it on the days I wasn’t all too busy, mostly on the way to meetings and in my trailer on set.” Jenna shrugged it off, adding, “And you were right, it’s a really good book.”

“Well, if you ever need any more book suggestions, I’m here. You want to get something to eat, or do you want me to come back in a bit?”

“Mmm, give me like five minutes, yeah?” She flashed you a smile that you dumbly nodded at, turning on your heel and heading into the kitchen, meeting Jack halfway there and you practically jumped on him.

“Someone’s giddy.”

“Oh, shut up. She’s making me nervous, Jack, she keeps eye contact — do you know what it’s like to hold eye contact with a pretty girl?”

“I’m assuming it’s nervewracking.”

“Oh right, I forgot. You can’t talk to girls.” You put his hand on his shoulder, sending him a fake sympathetic smile that he glared at.

“So, when are you asking her out?” Jack grabbed a couple plates, presumably for the table he was serving and you just laughed, causing him to send you a look.

You stopped upon seeing his confused glare. “Oh, you’re not joking. She doesn’t like me, I think I’d know if a girl likes me.”

“But, you wouldn’t. You’ve never had a girlfriend in your life, despite your many talking stages, all of which were online. You’re not experienced in body language, bud. Go out there and take her order, and see how it goes from there.” Leaving you standing in the busy kitchen, you thought about it.

Taking advice from Jack wasn’t the best idea, though. He dated a catfish for five months, for fuck's sake. 

Walking back into the main room, you walked over to the shelf and put the bulky navy-colored book back in it’s former place, shifting some books to slot it in. Eyeing Jenna’s table, you saw how she sat there, hands clasped together, talking to her bodyguards.

“You ready now?” You walked up to the table, hands together behind your back, and gave her a small smile.

“Yeah, I’ll have,” Jenna re-opened the menu, pinpointing her option as “Lobster ravioli with Mascovy duck breast, whatever that is.” She laughed slightly, a smile still etched on your face, and said, “And…a date with you.” She spoke lowly, as if she were purposefully lowering her voice so you couldn’t hear her.

“And a what? Sorry.” You apologized, leaning in slightly closer to hear. “A…chance to hang out with you, if you’re up for that. Other people, like friends, can be there too, of course.”

Your mouth gaped open, and the longer you took to answer, the more anxious Jenna became.

"Definitely, yeah, sure.” You managed to get out, nodding your head extensively, and Jenna’s anxiousness faded. 

You got her bodyguard's order as well, practically running to the kitchen to give your paper to a chef before scanning for Jack and watching him eat a lobster that one of the cooks seemed to have prepared for his break time. “Did you ask her out?”

“No, but she asked me to hang out with her.” To your words, Jack shot one hand up and mumbled something that you couldn’t recognize, lobster in his mouth.

“She practically wants you.” He repeated, this time more recognizable. “Yeah, yeah.” You waved him off, pacing around with your hands glued together, thinking. 

“No, think about it.” Jack set his plate down, swallowing the last bits of his lobster. “She’s busy, right? She’s got like five thousand movies coming out this year and next year, which means that she’d be making time through her busy schedule to be with you! She likes you a lot.”

You stopped, your hands transferring over to your hips. You eyed him, skeptical at first, before sighing. “You think so?”

Jack nodded. “Definitely, go get her tiger.” He pushed you away, hearing the sound of your name being called along with four plates being set off to the side.

You took the plates, setting them on a tray before balancing it on your hand, suddenly a lot more paranoid about dropping them than you’ve ever been. “Here you go.”

Bringing the tray into both your hands, you set the plates aside one by one before tucking it under your arm. “If you guys need anything else, just call me over.”

“Well,” Jenna’s voice stopped you from walking away, “In order for me to see you again, I’d need your number.”

“Right!” You said rather enthusiastically, taking her phone that she held out and typing your number in, sending her one last smile before retreating back into the kitchen.

Sadly, that was the last time you saw her that day because Harvey decided to steal your table, as he did to Jack earlier, to try and capture your tip.

“(Y/N).” Derek called out for you, walking into the room to catch you wiping up tables. “That girl you served earlier, the one that Harvey stole, told me to give your tip to you. She definitely caught on to him.” He laughed, handing you a stack of money before waving goodbye.

You gawked at the amount, five-hundred dollars as a tip was probably the biggest you ever got, and it was from a girl who, besides you, took an interest in you that she was sure to soon act on.

☟ ☟ ☟

i feel like part one was written remotely better than this part, but regardless, i hope you enjoy this :)

[physalian]

On Tournament Arcs (I want more of these in lit)

The “tournament arc” is a staple of shonen anime. I’d find it very hard to believe anyone on here hasn’t at least seen gifs of it so here’s a quick breakdown: Your core cast of characters + extras and new adversaries are all thrown together in a tournament competing for anything from the low stakes of cash or bragging rights to who lives and who dies by the hand of the nefarious god throwing the tournament.

These are extremely popular for a few reasons:

They’re fodder for a ton of episodes without a whole lot of complicated story—the story is baked into the different rounds of combat

There’s a chance for a lot of different intense character interaction that might not normally happen pitting two random names against each other

They can sometimes artificially raise the stakes—in isolation, winning the Round of 16 in a series about saving the world doesn’t mean anything, but winning any one game might give the heroes the chance to stay alive just one more day

I just rewatched the first tournament arc of My Hero Academia a few days ago (the first sports festival) and man, I do miss when this show was good.

So! While tournament arcs aren’t exclusive to shows with super powers or magical abilities like Naruto—they’re baked into a sports anime—today’s essay is all about the efficiency and shake-ups that MHA pulled off, since its pacing is something you could realistically cram into a written novel, and, well, I like this one.

Disclaimer: This show is incredibly manipulative, in a good way (at least in earlier seasons it was in a good way). Elements are way more dramatic than they should be due to the music, the animation, and the pacing, but you’re having fun right along with the characters at the edge of your seat. The excitement isn’t manufactured, you’re hyped right along with the people in the stands. This isn’t very translatable to page, unfortunately.

Second disclaimer: I DNFed this show midway through an episode in season 5 and never went back. It got so bad I literally turned it off in both disgust and sheer boredom. I am not an MHA superfan.

—

Pacing:

For a shonen anime, this first tournament arc is brutally efficient. Take a show like Naruto or DBZ, shows known for their filler, and their tournament arcs for any given season will last 50 episodes or more. MHA’s is 11 episodes, 12 if you want to include the setup in episode 1. In that time, there’s three unique stages of combat and an entire three-tiered 1v1 tournament within the tournament.

Some fights last two episodes, some last about 30 seconds, but none are too drawn out, or too rushed, based on who’s fighting and what their powers are.

Example: Todoroki kind of has “instakill�� powers (or at least he does in this arc, he forgets about it 6 episodes later) and if he’s up against anyone who doesn’t have the specific kind of powers that can counteract his, the fight’s decided pretty much instantly, like when he’s up against quasi-Spiderman Sero, and manifests a whole glacier from teenage angst. When he is up against somebody who he can’t freeze immediately, well, that’s where the drama comes from. This is his arc, after all.

Character fodder:

Not only that, but it’s not 11 straight episodes of 1v1. The first leg of combat is an obstacle race, the second is a “cavalry battle” with teams, and the last, the majority, is 1v1. These different challenges require the core characters to think different ways, and as the number of competitors thin dramatically, different side characters get the chance to shine at different points in the arc as more and more are disqualified.

But the way that this arc is written leaves even some core characters in the protagonist class on the outs pretty quickly, even those who make it to the final round, usually due to bad matchups. Characters who had excelled either in power, physical ability, or intelligence just aren’t suited to face whoever they’re up against and it shocks them as much as it does the audience. Even when it forces them to get creative—and that is one thing I loved about this show in its early years, how smart some characters had to be with their niche powers to compete with the natural born powerhouses.

A surprising standout fight was Bakugo vs Uraraka, where nearly every single person in the stands, including the teachers, all professional heroes, were like “dude you can’t hit a girl, you can explode shit with your hands, she’s only got anti gravity” and Bakugo did not give a single fuck about what’s in Uraraka’s pants. It shows that he’s smart, and that he’s a dick, but he has a shit ton of respect for other people’s power and determination when they have as much as he does. Only one other character, their personal teacher, Aizawa, notices: To go easy on her would be a far greater insult than to treat her like an equal challenger.

She lost, in a heartbreaking defeat, but she absolutely made him work for it. It did so much for his character, this whole arc did, but more on that later.

Audience expectations:

But the big reason this arc worked so well was how it subverted expectations. Midoriya is (or used to be) the show’s protagonist. In this arc, he’s got two real main adversaries in his way to gold: Bakugo, a kid with extremely impressive raw talent that he’s honed with a dangerous perfectionist streak, and Todoroki, who wants to win by half-assing it to piss off his abusive hero dad. Both of these two are far more competent with their powers while Midoriya still has the training wheels on his.

Usually, in these types of shows, if the hero doesn’t win, he comes in a very close second in the big dramatic final showdown. It’s part of his arc to be not quite ready yet. But usually, he wins, and the character he’d beaten to a pulp learns some humility and joins the hero squad in the next arc out of respect to their better.

MHA doesn’t do that. Midoriya never faces Bakugo in the 1v1 and he faces Todoroki in the semis, not the finals, and he loses.

The big fight of the tournament is Midoriya vs Todoroki. I used to hear it compared to Rock Lee vs Gaara (which I actually have seen despite not liking Naruto) and it’s… not, if only because it’s missing about 300 episodes of buildup and drama between these two.

But the fight isn’t just a fistfight. Midoriya wants to win, yes, but he’s a hero, first, and he wants to save his friend in the true shonen way of punching friendship into his enemies. Their fight plus the buildup takes two episodes, littered with Todoroki’s PTSD flashbacks (to a gorgeous score) that basically boils down to:

Todoroki: Wah I hate my powers, fuck my dad, I’m gonna half-ass this out of spite and my raw power is enough to win

Midoriya: Fuck you dude, if you want to beat me, you have to give it your all, and it’s not his powers. You may have inherited them, but it’s your power.

Well, Midoriya gets what he asked for, and Todoroki does not at all hold back.

And that’s the semifinal.

With Midoriya out, there’s still the rest of the semis and the final round. This does not happen.

So why did it happen? Because our hero isn’t ready yet. He’s so new with his powers, so inexperienced in combat, that so far he’s skated by on his smarts and his sheer raw ability the few times he’s able to let it out like releasing a pressure valve, seriously injuring himself in the process. Against kids who’ve been training their whole lives, being smart only got him so far.

It was the perfect path for his character, one we’ve only known for maybe 30 episodes in total at this point in the show. If he won or even just barely lost, that would have left so much less room for growth in later tournaments. He’s hella OP, but he’s not at all a Mary Sue, and his greatest strength—his heart—is what cost him the win. In the end, he lost the medal, but he won a friend.

And then the final round comes.

Bakugo vs Todoroki, the two most well-rounded kids in the class (in their whole grade level probably), after Bakugo opens the entire tournament with “I pledge that I’m going to win”.

Thing is, with Bakugo, he’s an asshole, but he’s an asshole who continuously puts his money where his mouth is. He’s never blowing smoke. If he says he’s going to do something, by god, he will do it.

So the final round comes and Bakugo tells Todoroki that he wants to win fair and square, that Todoroki'd better not hold back, he’d better give it his all, because going easy on Bakugo would be giving him the win, and he ain’t no charity case.

That… does not happen. One does not overcome a lifetime of childhood trauma by the Power of Friendship and one speech in this show. Todoroki botches it, gets his ass handed to him, and Bakugo wins the tournament, and he is pissed.

Character Arcs:

I already talked about Midoriya above and won’t repeat myself, but like I said above, tournament arcs are a fantastic way to do many things at once, which is crucial to pacing. It won’t feel stale, no matter how long or repetitive it is, so long as the characters are still developing within that repetition. This was about showing off their powers, yes, but the pressure to perform and get their names out their in a highly saturated, cynical heroism market of capitalism is a lot for 15 year old kids.

Some are out there to make money, being a hero to their families. Some are out there to be the best. Some are out there to be the friendly neighborhood super kid. Since all but one character must lose, everybody but Bakugo failed in some way, big or small, to make the impact they wanted on tournament day. And Bakugo, though he won, feels like he still failed because he won basically by default.

Since it’s set so early in the show, one would think that it would be a fantastic foundation for where all the core characters see themselves and where they go from here. If you’re writing this into a novel and you don’t have a million characters that don’t matter, it’s a brutally efficient way to establish the major players in high-octane fashion.

I’mma gush about Bakugo for a second now: He and Todoroki are two sides of the same coin in this arc. Both are plagued by expectations because of their powers, and both suffer because of it. Todoroki’s been beaten like a dog by his dad to hone his fire and ice powers to one day usurp the number one hero.

Bakugo, though, Bakugo is “the gifted kid” who suddenly entered a world where the gap between him and everyone inferior to him is a lot smaller. He has incredible power, which has always gotten him high expectations and little margin for fucking up and looking weak—cause if you’ve got the ability to make explosions with your hands, you have to be the best all day every day. There is no falling off the wagon, there are no sick days, there is no flab or fat or cheat days.

All of this is an undercurrent in this arc. He has such high expectations for himself, such high expectations thrown on him by hero society, such critical views of his attitude and his powers—he was literally called a villain when he fought Uraraka and didn’t treat her like a “frail” little girl—that when he wins because Todoroki throws the fight, it’s the biggest insult anyone could do to him.

Nobody else cares, but Bakugo cares. In his desperate quest to always be the best or else, winning by default doesn’t prove anything to him. He doesn’t want the medal, he doesn’t want this victory by his name, he doesn’t want anything except a rematch that truly challenges him. And mad respect to this kid for it.

—

Some things to consider for your tournament arc should you choose to write one

Every character should have their own separate goals and reasons for winning, beyond simply “winning”. Why do they want to win, or what will happen to them, internally or externally, if they lose?

Would it be better for your hero to win right now, or lose so they have room to grow? Who else loses and how? Are they disqualified, do they cheat, is it a devastating defeat or a photo finish?

What do these people do to themselves in their desperation to win? Do they hurt themselves, go past their physical limit? Do they bully themselves and pick their faults apart? Are they completely different people when they’re under this kind of pressure? Who’s overconfident? Who’s exactly as competent as they say they are?

What are the best matchups, not for spectacle, but for character development? In the written medium, character work absolutely comes before how pretty it might look one day on the silver screen, and that’s what will hold audience attention long after the arc is over and done with. That’s what will have people coming back to reread over and over again.

Remember: The tournament is never just about the combat, it’s about the combatants.

[chnt-confessions]

i think i'm the only person in the entire fandom that has any genuine empathy for elijah, and i'm stuck thinking there's something deeply wrong with me for that. i feel like quite a lot of people split black on him (and joshua) and then split white on jedidiah, and sydney. the ONLY two options are to dehumanize or objectify him. no hate to jedidiah-likers, but jedidiah is not a victim. he doesn't act entirely the way he does because of trauma, he acts that way because he implicitly looks down on sydney. what kind of man jeopardizes the entire world for a man that he let gravely sick in the first place, only to gaslight and neglect him?? all this because of mommy and daddy issues that, like, 70% of the population has?? i had to headcanon extra issues and trauma for him to just to keep myself sane. i don't mean to invalidate his trauma, but he has lived such a privileged life and can easily go to therapy and yet. i'm sorry but it's bojack-horseman levels of "how tf do you expect me to feel bad for you? lmao." like, i need him to get better because people will likely die if he gets any worse, but other than i couldn't care less about this guy. i'm way more sympathetic to sydney because he's trying his best but he seems to have an empathy deficiency of some kind (it's not his fault but it is painfully obvious sometimes and i wish i could fix him but i have to fix myself first because i also deal with this); i also relate to the "feeling unlovable" aspect of things.

we have only seen elijah at his worst. the elephant man is elijah "mental breakdown, 2 years and counting psychotic episode" core; did everyone just assume he was born like that? and if he was, that would also make me sad tbh. he had a similar upbringing to jedidiah and yet he does not show it at all and i'm wondering what tf was different. he also generally sucks at being a villain sometimes (i.e. telling sydney his weakness, letting sydney go back to jedidiah, reacting way better than most people would when sydney told him that he couldn't get the journals). when jedidiah says "sydney, you're always fine." vs when elijah says it; jedidiah said it to gaslight sydney and because he feels bitter about the fact he's working so hard to keep sydney alive and can't use it to manipulate him (i'm joking but i'm also not joking), while elijah was just being a little acolyte and also he's symbolically the earth, so when he says the earth will catch him when he falls, he is fr. idk what snapped in him with the murder-suicide thing but considering that he is the earth, and unfortunately due to sydney's weird little mind and jedidiah's horribleness, the earth is, like, post-apocalyptic now so it probably has something to do with that (idk why he switched from stabbing to burning alive; probably cuz of the theatrics/j). anyway, he does suck and he needs to go back to russia and never come back for everyone's good, but i really do think he would be better than jedidiah could ever be (yes, even with therapy; i'm literally speaking facts/hj) if "everyday [wasn't] a living fucking nightmare." and i'm constantly like "._." whenever i remember that jedidiah is the reason "everyday is a living fucking nightmare." also i really wanna see someone do elijah/the elephant man analysis/interpretation that doesn't reek of disgust and hatred (or lust; do whatever you want, but i'm judging you rn), just for variety tbh. here is his official playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/389N5sUULTXFC63I3CSn7c?si=756dacaa18cd491c some of the songs in here are, like, "???" and i want to see someone's else's take on them (even elijah haters tbh) sorry for the essay, that's all i wanted to say :)

also im so happy that i can say this anonymously, thank you chnt-confessions for doing god's work, i love you platonically <3

(ABOUT THE LAST PART) no need to apologize and I'm really glad to make you happy!!

[strykingback]

My Reply to Stop The Hate 2.0

Okay so I know I prompted to stay quiet about this one anti/RWDER but you know what screw it. When I saw what they were posting yes it left me a bit disturbed, but also the fact that he was liking some incredibly wild shit. But one post caught my attention the most and it was and I quote: "Stop The Hate 2.0." So I took a read at it and little to know surprise in the words of Genji from Overwatch.... I'm not impressed. and surprisingly this person needs no introduction I'll just get right into the nitty gritty of this poor individual who has entered the Thunderdome. papitimefire177.

Before I continue with this, I just want to immediately say this: Please for the love of god and all things holy. DO NOT WITCHHUNT Do not send any anon hate just do what I did. Block and Move On. Anywho lets get into it.

This individual here first off says things such as calling people who criticize Jaune (ala Jaune Haters) as fucking stupid and categorizes them all as he quotes: Fucking Morons and how we bitch about "made up stuff that is not true."

Okay, first things first is Jaune has basically stolen a lot of screentime from RWBY. How much? Over around 5,489 Hours of Screentime. Which is one hour thirty-one minutes and twenty-nine seconds (Counting from Volumes 1-6) And oh do please use this chart here. Special thank you to Emotional-Feed 5489 on the r/RWBYCritics subreddit for going through hell and back to get these results.

Further note- This is only going from Volumes 1-6, Seven is not included since he did not get any screentime until Volume's Eight and Nine.

Secondly, Jaune really began to grind my gears when Volume six had to reinforce the fact that Pyrhha is gone. Okay. We get it already Pyrrha is dead and Jaune is literally mourning her still. At this point lets just get it over and done with and move on. Yes, I am fully aware that Pyrrha's death has lingered heavily for him but at the same time it does not take you three entire volumes to take a deep breath in and a deep breath out to carry on.

What really set me off was in Volume nine after, Ruby who had one of if not the MOST SATISFYING mental breakdown scenes and calling out her teammates (Especially Yang) for being horrendous teammates when throughout that whole volume Ruby was going through the shitter, only for Jaune to steal it all the way cause "I suffered more than you have."

Yes Jaune as if you have the whole world on your shoulders? Like dude grow the fuck up. Because you are also talking to someone who is fifteen years old (once again this could be the case of time goes forward but the characters don't age trope.)

Then right after Ruby literally "Ascends" by drinking the tea. It's time for more Jaune angst cause he's going through it more than Ruby did?! It took Weiss, Yang, and Blake almost the entire volume to care about Ruby but it took them just a few minutes in an episode to hug Jaune for his "angst" fuck that.

Now moving on. Of course lots of people do write him out of their stories but some people do keep him only for him to have atleast one or two arcs depending on the writer of course and have him die or keep him around to develop him better than what RT's writers could do. Once more his historical allusion is to the legendary female knight Joan of Arc and I have spoken with a few friends of mine who did have plans for their RWBY Re:Write to have him transition into a woman to better fit the allusion and have him die a hero.

Gee it's not like I have MADE A POST ABOUT THIS.

Also furthermore I did do some research trying to find that "Jaune Arcless" video paptimefire177 talked about in their Stop The Hate 2.0 message. Instead I didnt find jack diddly shit at all. So I can only assume they pulled that out of their ass to try and get their point across as they go on to say that Who wants that because Removing Jaune is fucking stupid.

Which as my counterpoint. Lots of people do want Jaune to be out of the picture whether if relegated to side-character status for him to not be so damn annoying where he wont step in whenever characters like Oscar for example who in Volume 6 got a wardrobe change and some development only for it to be stolen away for a fucking statue sequence.

Or how at the end of Volume eight he could have healed up Penny and got her across the gate to Atlas so that way she could also have the relic with her. Nope lets have him kill her so he can have angst in Volume nine!

And lastly he goes off on a rant stating how Jaune Haters are pathetic along with the hate for Jaune and stating how people who hate Jaune need to wear diapers and go back to the basement we have come from.

Okay Papi. since you wanna ball. We're gonna ball. You are the pathetic one seriously do you really think people are going to follow you? You who have used ableist language against someone calling them a slur in DM's no less. Want proof?

Or how you claim to not be a race fetishist but at the same time you liked this.

WARNING RACEPLAY BELOW

(When I looked back in there again to find this man in the likes section of this post I could not find his name but earlier when I did my first post of Jaune Arc A Horrendous Example of A Knight. I did see his name amongst those likes)

Lets also not forget that you would happily block evade through your other accounts as well. Now then are you listening there amigo? Cause I can keep this shit up if you arent too busy. Oh wait, whats that?

You claim RWDE has made as you quoted yourself: "Sends Death Threats, Suicide Bait, False Accusations, Being general assholes, Bitches about everything"

Really then? Where is your evidence? What is your source where made those bold accusations from?

So papitimefire177 do me a favor and go outside, touch some grass, walk around take in nature itself. Instead of trying to start fights with your raceplaying ableist ass... cause guess what. Ain't nobody got time for that.

And if you do plan on replying, you aint gonna be sayin' shit so whats it gonna be!?

[ghoodles]

A bunch of noir headcanons because im normal i promise

- Either really sensory avoidant or seeking, it depends on the day

- Either way he's still pretty affectionate, on the avoidant days its usually just words of affirmation but otherwise he's the type of person to like pat someone on the back or something (there's actual movie scenes in itsv that supports this)

- The strongest sense of justice you'll see. He sees an injustice and soon enough he's interfering

- He will find a way to get information out of you if you have it, he used to work for the press, and is a private eye, and he was damn good at BOTH

- The color of his webs depends on how long its been since his last revival. Darker usually means its been less time, and it usually lasts for like a month or two before it becomes white again

- Intrusive thoughts about violence that he's just slowly become desensitized to

- Used to be all bark no bite before he got his powers, would get his ass kicked a LOT, but now, i mean, he still gets his ass kicked sometimes, but he's more capable of holding his own

- He has fangs and claws, because, come on, he's literally been revived like multiple times by the spider-god, she's had to replace something

- Speaking on that, a lot of his blood is significantly darker than his natural color, because of the god having to replace it

- Actually figured out how to use futuristic technology pretty quickly

- In shattered dimensions, he definitely thought Madame Web's voice was the spider-god talking to him before he was like "hold on she doesnt sound like that, who the fuck are you?"

- Swears like a sailor, but doesnt like younger people doing it

- Probably screamed in agony at seeing all the colors for the first time, especially in brooklyn during the night, thats gotta cause so much eye strain, especially in a black and white world

- Actually could see color in his world, but they were pretty dull colors, almost monochrome, but not

- Most people cant see the difference though

- Has met Miguel before (shattered dimensions) and was absolutely just in shock by the change

- A god at cooking, shit at baking, he tried to make cookies and almost burnt down the house

- Sometimes just feels like a puppet for the spider-gods entertainment

- Religious trauma is strong with this man, i can tell

- Derealization episodes where it feels like he's just not there anymore

- Back to his blood being darker the more he loses it, he has a full on breakdown over it once he realizes it, because he percieves it as a sort of indicator that he isnt human anymore

- The most unintentionally father figure acting person you'll ever see, he doesnt realize how many people see him as a dad, and if he does he's just extremely confused

- Had his gun with him the entire time in ITSV, just didnt want to accidentally scare someone with it

- Has a pretty good relationship with the other spiders in Shattered dimensions, but ends up getting a little iffy about Miguel once he brings up the canon events

- He almost fought him after Miguel brought up his uncle Benjamin and all his other canon events (ive only read like two issues of the comics im SORRY)

- The most vibrant color he saw in his world was the color of his spider-sense; a red

- For this reason, he can point out red really quickly

- Increased senses, to the point where it can become a hindrance

- Constantly on alert, checks so many things to make sure that he's not being followed

- Despite being naturally weaker than all the spiders, he can punch clean through walls

- He'd be bruised and a bit scraped by it but otherwise he's perfectly fine

[autisticlancemcclain]

fic rec friday 10

welcome the the tenth fic rec friday! where, on friday, i rec five of my favourite fics.

1. A Rain-Check on Redamancy by @youraveragemushroom

Burnout these days usually came from working long nights at the Garrison. If Lance from five years ago could see himself today—working part-time to rebuild Earth and full-time as an instructor at the very same institution that gave him his crippling anxieties—he would probably shit a brick. Hell, five years ago he hadn’t even known aliens existed (although he always knew deep down that humans weren’t alone in the universe), and now he’s best friends with multiple! One of which had apparently texted him an hour ago.

Forgoing proper texting procedure due to fatigue and general doneness, Lance tapped on the icon to call back.

“Hello?” a familiar deep rasp answered from the other line.

“Hey, mullet,” Lance replied, pushing aside the papers in front of him to lay his head down on the desk. “What’s cooking?”

In which Lance finds himself ignoring how late it is and indulges himself in pining after Keith. Which becomes slightly more difficult when said object of his affections shows up in the middle of the night to rescue him from paperwork, stress, and the melancholy that came from being away from him.

the ‘god i wish you were here’ ‘look behind you’ trope will get to me EVERY single time idc. always makes me all stimmy bc its THE epitome of romance. this whole thing was so so romantic and full of parallels to the first episode to show how deep their relationship has gotten...i love me some romantic parallels fr

2. sweetheart by @jilliancares

“Sorry, babe,” Keith says. He even smiles, no doubt proud of himself.

And Lance knows it’s his fault. He started it, after all, but at least the biting term of endearment made sense when he was the one doing it. Keith had been talking to him like they were some old married couple. The kind who’ve been married too long and don’t love each other anymore and gripe over meaningless shit, only managing to piss each other off even further.

That’s why Lance called him dear. Because it made sense in the situation. It was a calculated insult. A strategic jab.

Keith, on the other hand, is weaponizing the term of endearment without any rhyme or reason, simply to get back at Lance.

Or: Keith and Lance have gotten into the habit of using pet names as condescending insults. They're not really terms of endearment.

ooooooo god endearments going from sarcastic to desperately genuine and the inherent hopelessness in that....whew boy. its def a Concept that u indulge and then you have to clutch ur stomach. i remember reading this as i was getting ready and brushing my teeth and the cliff scene made me gasp out loud and stop just to i could pay Full Complete Attention

3. don’t speak the language by @goldengalaxies

“More importantly” Lance says. “I am currently having a breakdown in this lift because look at him- I am so incredibly gay.”

“Lance!” Hunk buries his face in his hands. “He could speak English you know, your skills of deduction are really not that good.”

Lance ignores his warning in favour of groaning dramatically. “Oh, Dios mio, Hunk, he’s so gorgeous. Look at those muscles. He could probably bench press me.” Lance fanned himself. “Oh my God, fencing is my new favourite sport, fuck swimming.”

(or the one where Lance thirsts after a random guy in the lift who he thinks can’t speak English. lance is very wrong and hunk is very much done with his shit.)

let me tell u about this fuckin FIC. it’s hilarious, but i first read it before i meticulously started storing and bookmarking my fave fics, so when i wanted to reread it i couldnt find it. but i KNEW it was hilarious so i spent fckn hours looking for it, and it took me hours too bc i coulnt figure out which tags to filter. but it was WORTH IT. the entire concept of this fic is hilarious and makes me laugh. amazing work.

4. Whose bright idea was this? by IronScript

When Lance is captured during a mission with the MFE pilots, he wakes up aboard Haggar's ship, though the witch herself isn't there, so he figures why waste an opportunity? Then he finds something that he definitely hadn't expected.

All the while, he has no idea that back at the Garrison, his team and a few select others are watching his every move.

bro the idea that the team is panicked for lance’s safety and they desperately organise a rescue mission for him terrified that hes getting tortured and losing hope but by the time they find him he’s already got one foot out the door and has rescued himself is ENDLESSLY funny to me. like he really said ‘damsel in distress who’ and i love him for that lmao

5. Garfle! Warfle! Snick! by IronScript

How the game show episode actually should have happened.

I'll admit to being a Lance stan, but even people who don't like him seem to agree that he was really fucked over in this episode. So here's my attempt at it. Is it more realistic than what actually happened? I like to think so.

another ironscript fic bc they nail bamf lance. this is how the gameshow WOULD have gone if vld gave a shit about their characters like actually. like yes of course the team is proud of each other and capable of acknowledging mistakes. of course keith knows lance’s worth. of course lance is a badass. of course the team knows wtf theyre doing. love to read this when i get mad about the game show

that’s it for today!! i’ll see y’all back next friday for the next fic rec post!!!

[she-toadmask]

A post where I say random things (including spoilers) about Earthspark Season 2 Part 1

The season started great, I was super here for it. Aftermath is fun and Breakdad is entertaining. Didn't love the part where they had the flashbacks and the photos of Aftermath and Breakdown's faces pasted on stereotypical father/son things. Felt weird.

Not a ton to say on the second episode other than fuck yeah Quintessons and lore!

Hashtag upgrade was really fun and we got some great Con scenes. Ravage finally gets some solo time and Shockwave is here being cool too. This is also the episode where I sent the text "Hhggngnhngng starscream" to my amica. Starscream is fucking amazing in this drop.

Swindle and a human immediately threw me back to TFA, Fairmaestro is voiced by the guy who voiced the villain in The Bad Guys and I had to skip to the credits to make sure I was right because nobody had updated wikis with the new VA info. The butterflies thing was kind of funny but I'm too aroace to enjoy it. Cosmos didn't get enough lines. Still a really fun episode though!

The ending to this episode made me sad. Like ok we got the return of the contaminated energon and new horrors and that's great. Jawbreaker is a sweetheart and he was making a friend and they were cooperating so well! JBAM! They were friends! But then Aftermath just was mean and it was upsetting. I am aware that I am a soft baby.

I liked Spitfire during this episode. She had a fun attitude and I liked her vibe. Her asking if everyone there was old as dirt was great. Obstacle course and a fun fight!

I stopped liking Spitfire and get to the first of two episodes I am unlikely to rewatch even beyond me usually not rewatching stuff. The title says it all, it's an impostor episode and a significant number of characters are frustratingly unobservant. The Decepticons are fun though, this is another example of Starscream getting to be cool and stuff. Also I do not like that they made it seem like Wheeljack could have died and then didn't make it clear that he was fine???? Like I was going OK BUT IS WHEELJACK OKAY for a while. Spitfire going to the Con base with the weapon at the end was great though.

The second episode I'm unlikely to rewatch! It's not as personal as the other one, it's just a flavor of cringe-adjacent comedy (especially the Jawbreaker things - I love him but god the interview bit was not my speed) I don't jam with. The family helping to fix up the trailer was really good though.

The finale! This one I'm like 90% down for. Hashtag wanting to keep exploring is amazing and a mood (yes yall keep going let us see the Lore), TITAN TERRATRONUS, QUINTUS AND QUINTESSON LORE (Mo asking if Quintus was good and Terratronus saying he is a Prime deserving of respect....that's not an answer I'm excite), the fucking fights, Starscream having some really good lines and once again obtaining cosmic powers, STARSCREAM CHANNELING FUCKING HORROR AND STABBING AFTERMATH AND SPITFIRE, THE ENTIRE PART WHERE HE CONTROLS TERRATRONUS, Shockwave going "fuck this" and all the other Cons following him as Starscream does his ego stuff....

I know this is just the end of the first drop, but I really found the ending unsatisfying. Like I was just going 'Terratronus is still there'

And also I don't like that the rest of the Cons were trapped inside the dome with Terratronus and Starscream. If the dome stays up to contain Starscream, that means that none of those Cons can do anything. I want to know what Shockwave's plans were. He talked about returning to Cybertron, he can't work on that from Green Quintus Magic Jail.

The other thing is so many characters got good moments (I didn't go into all of them but most of the Cons got them, Wheeljack got multiple really good things, Megatron and Optimus got some highlights) but there was ZERO sign of Tarantulas. Hardtop even got some good lines! Like if it just means he's getting his own episode again in another drop that's OK ig, but like. We didn't see him at all after his debut. Soundwave in the s1 finale was originally going to be Tarantulas, that's why he's sitting like that. Where is spider.

Cosmos was also underutilized, but maybe he'll come back later on. He's definitely voiced by Weird Al (positive). The lore dump was great, can't wait for more screaming about Quintus Prime and his creations (and there being a Quintesson Judge in one of the lore dump images).

Again, it was a fair drop. I said 7.5 but maybe more of a 7.8 idk. The two episodes i don't vibe with and the way it ended take it down but there's a lot to enjoy. Steve Blum continues to be fucking fantastic as Starscream, one who gets to experience all the cosmic powers TFP didn't. He gets to be cool as fuck and also mildly terrifying

[delyth88]

Mid season trailer breakdown

Finally found some time (ha!) to take a closer look at the mid-season trailer.

It starts with a very brief shot of Loki time-slipping in a spaghettifying TVA that we've seen before, and then a split second shot of Loki walking into the pie room. But the lights in the pie dispensers are all off. Does this mean it's near the very end of the timeline where the power was cutting out? Or is there some other significance to this? Where is my anon who suggested they need to go through enough repetitions of the time loop to eat through all the pies...!

Then we move on to this scene of the gang in front of the model of the gantry and the Time Loom.

OB asks, "Loki, how much do you know?' and Loki replies "Lets assume I don't know much but I'm a fast learner, and I'm a god."

Timely is still holding his device, so this is towards the beginning of episode 4 shortly after Timely arrives in the TVA, and before the pie room or the Dox in a box.

I'm assuming Loki has just explained to them the situation and they're just going with it! :)

Then it skips to this scene where Loki says "Here we go".

Later in the trailer he follows on with a voiceover saying "Listen to me carefully, hit the green button", and then shows this shot again as he says "it can be a little sticky".

When he says "Hit the green button", Loki seems to be quite fearful and intense, with a slightly more whispery quality to the sentence, than the following shot where it's more light hearted when he says "It can be a little sticky".

Now if I'm not just reading too much into this (which to be honest that is exactly what I'm doing in this entire post, but its fun), it looks like this might be two different instances of the same event. Maybe the first is earlier on and the second is later on once it's resulted in destruction a few more times? Or perhaps the other way around once Loki's been through enough repetitions to be confident this bit will go well. *shrugs*

We then see what I assume is Timely again (because he's the only one missing from the shot above) out on the gantry having actually made it as far as the sphere at the end, pressing the green button.

However, we ALSO see this shot of what I again assume is Timely, but from behind this time. He's not wearing a helmet and we can see his hair, and the throughput multiplier is leaning against the wall. The airlock doors have been opened though and he's being spaghettified again.

So it looks like we're going to be seeing this attempt to fix the Loom multiple, presumably spectacularly unsuccessful, times. Poor Victor. :(

There's also shots in the operations centre (what are we calling the room looking out onto the Loom. Oh. Okay that just wrote itself, didn't it? XD). In the LOOM ROOM we have another shot of Loki saying "Here we go" and Mobius excitedly shouting "Yes!" as Loki drags him over towards the control panel / airlock. Which I'd guess is once they successfully manage to get a Timely out to the end of the gantry, or possibly even fire off the throughput multiplier.

There's a shot of Loki in the Loom Room turned back to face OB and the other while it looks like the Loom is exploding. He looks more dishevelled than he was in the scene we saw in episode 4. And I can't tell if he looks sad and defeated or suspicious. He's looking towards Sylvie, OB, Casey, and B-15. There was that whole weird moment with Casey and the throughput multiplier that just seemed off, so really putting my effort into leaping here, could this be that Loki's suspicious Casey sabotaged it?

Then outside the TVA we get those shots of Sylvie listening to music. I'm really not sure where she is - but I'm assuming since she looks to be wearing a T-shirt rather than her armour under her coat that she's on the timeline.

For Casey we get the shot we've seen of him in a tunnel, immediately preceded by this shot of what looks like a searchlight at a prison and audio of a siren. So is Casey escaping from prison? A POW camp?

They show Casey in two short shots in time with the music - does this mean anything? Like indicating the repeating of events? Or does it just look cool.

I do wonder if they're going to make some of the really likeable characters have a despicable past on the timeline and use that to further the discussion of free will and the power to choose to be different. That could be interesting. But I'd like Casey not to be a horrible person. :(

There's a couple of shots of a new location we've not been to, but one that still looks like it's within the TVA. There are pneumatic tubes behind Loki and great big fans. Some old armchairs on one side, and a pinboard on the other. The shot starts with what looks like spaghetti strands with Loki's magic radiating out from the centre.

As the magic fades we see the strands have disappeared and there are some other people in the room with him.

B-15 in plain clothes, and Sylvie just moving out of shot as the camera zooms in towards Loki. It also looks like Sylvie is in her outfit with the grey T-shirt.

So does this indicate Loki can use magic to hold things together to stop them from spaghettifying, even if only temporarily?

We get a fairly horrifying shot of Loki being distorted in front of spaghetti.

And I'm afraid this next image is going to give me nightmares, but it looks like this is in the same room - we can see the yellow on the wall and the same ceiling lights behind him.

By the time he's slipped away the spaghetti is gone. So again, is this because he somehow carries this destruction with him? Or is this a shot shown in reverse because time really got all timey-wimey on him and time is actually flowing backwards at points? (That would be pretty damn cool to see how he deals with it!)

Then we get another shot of that room and Casey, OB, and Mobius are there with Loki. All in their plain clothes. But this shot is flipped around from the one above that had the chairs on the other side of the room. Again, is that meaningful, or just somehow one of the versions looks cooler? Or does the room just have a pneumatic tube gizmo at both ends?

There's also this shot which I can't figure out where it is. Sylvie's still in her T-shirt, and Loki is either pointing at the ceiling or making some magical gesture. All around them are spaghettified strands. I still don't quite understand how it's possible for people to be in the same space as anything else that's spaghettifying (I never thought I'd need to use that as a verb so often!), without becoming spaghetti themselves.

It looks like that record player Sylvie was using might be in the background, if so does that mean the last thing Sylvie was doing while the universe crumbled around her was listening to music? And then Loki turns up to get her out of her timeline and take her to the TVA to help? Or is the spaghetti somehow related to Loki?

It looks like we get the final shot of episode 4 in reverse. My bet is this is the opening of episode 5.

And finally we get to see Mobius on the timeline. And the house he lives in.

Loki visits him at work and says "The TVA is gone."

Mobius has absolutely no idea what he's talking about. So I think we can assume that Mobius is the first person Loki tries to find on the timeline and he wasn't expecting Mobius not to know him. I wonder how on earth Loki manages to convince him about the madness that is the TVA!! I think that's going to be a fun conversation. :)

I also wonder how Loki is actually able to find them all? Does he jump back and look everyone up in the system? Does he use HWR's special tempad?

I'm not usually a big fan of trailers mid season, but there's still so much unknown at the point that I've really enjoyed looking through this and trying to work out what might be happening. :D

Tagging my partners in wild speculation @pinkpondofasgard @woodelf68.

[turtlesocksv2]

Liveblogging DFF episode 10

Last episode we got some past reveals, some vows to tell the truth, a spanking, and Regina George enjoying the chaos. Can't wait to see what happens next.

The shot of Tan visibly pulling himself back into character as a Person With Hinges is so good. And so funny.

I do like White being like "you told me you wouldn't be like this!" to Tee. Maybe White does know more about Tee than we think.

Tan doing the wire to get Uncle Dang is so cold. Poor Uncle Dang. Tank knocking Top the fuck out is 10/10 though.

Ok but the TanTop eye contact and manhandling at the brainwashing "Calm down. Non's not going to hurt you if you protect him." 👀

"i never would have let you all come here if I knew Tan was going to kill you all!" well maybe you should have, Phi! You lost focus! You've done pretty much jack shit to get answers for like 2 years, of course Tan resorted to a little murder. I still love you Phi but your lack of resolve disappoints me.

Jin's a judgy bitch for someone who did revenge porn on a boy he wasn't even dating. Oh, you're surprised Non had people care about him enough to go to such lengths? You don't like being manipulated? I mean, I'd be judgy too if people were trying to murder me so I get it. It's just funny.

"Actually I don't have the right to be mad at you" You really don't! but also you do just a little bit.

Cool Motive, Still Revenge Porn for a guy you weren't even dating. It'd be one thing to track Phi down and send HIM the video, if you were really actually caring about Non 'cheating'. Another beast entirely to post it online for everyone to see. though of course he was so drunk it very well could have been Tee/Top/Por/etc uploading it from a shared drive for their movie and Jin might just think he's the one who did it. But he still recorded it in the first place, for which there is no forgiveness.

Phi with the axe 👀😍

"Everything's happening just like in Non's script! Look at Top, it's like he's possessed!" "....Actually I think he's just high." Aaaaaaand White just got added to Tan's Murder List. Baby White, you have to stop. Your eyes too big. Your logic too smart. Your tripod too tough. They'll kill you.

Phi and Jin getting lost in the woods, because now that they've talked to each other they have too much information. they can't just reunite with the group or the murder party is over 2 episodes early.

so like, the Janta Cult is real, right? or at least not something Non made up for the movie. He had to have known Por's family had a mansion in that area and it gave him the idea for the movie. The shrine existing was clearly not built for the movie either. I want More Janta Cult! give me More Janta Cult! Stop giving me hints about supernatural murder cults in woods that bend and change to get you lost within them if you're not going to follow through!

god Phi wants to badly to be the Strong Protector Boyfriend Who Fixes Things.

And of course the second Phi and Jin reunite with the group, Jin immediately outs Tan. really interesting that Fluke freaks out immediately after Tan is outed as New and takes White hostage.

Oh shit, Fluke is absolutely going over that railing isn't he?

Tan's gleeful surprise when Top gets shot.

Fluke's breakdown is so good.

Oh next episode is going to be fun.

[thosesillylittlegayghosts]

FINALE THOUGHTS

DO NOT START IT WITH THEM CRYING HOW AM I MEANT TO DEAL

well there goes my one last night theory

Just because it’s over doesn’t mean its really over and if I think it over maybe-

Actually just kill me off it would hurt less HIS VOICE

NOT THE FISH FUCK OFF

they’re bestie goals i adore them also im sorry but the song being called perfect movie scene and them two looking like they’re in a rom com (from far away) will actually be the death of me

Fuck she’s wearing purple again and he’s wearing beige

SIMON PLS I WANT TO WRAP YOU IN A BLANKET YOU DESERVE SOME COMFORT

damn okay Sara admitting Simon’s right??? NO don’t call yourself stupid you’re finally getting the recognition you deserve

Them having their lesson outside is so real it’s my favourite thing about summer

AHHHH I WAS SO RIGHT THEYRE CLOSING HILLERSKA

SEVERAL WARNINGS

Vincent fuck off fuck off fuck off. Nils please defend him

NO THEYRE GONNA BLAME FELICE AND WILHELM

NOT NILS AND WILHELM YELLING AT EACH OTHER YOU GET ALONG

not August crying

Omg omg he just pulled a Queen Kristina he did what she did is this foreshadowing cause now he’s having a mental breakdown???

Stella and Fredricka get together whilst comforting each other??

Nah I actually love the third years having a group hug that’s amazing

And Henry and Walter talking to their parents (?) but still being together it’s so cute to see all their little favourites

Oh it’s so gonna end at the end of term, hillerskas closing and Simon’s moving away so they’re having like one last day together all of them

Wilhelm you’re killing me here

Has his room changed? I swear he used to have one window

NOT KRIS

NEON PARTY NEON PARTY

Not Vincent and nils calling him out

VINCENT YOURE ACTUALLY TALKING SOME SENSE FOR ONCE

okay so Augusts gonna back out and then Wille can threaten to do whatever he wants

AHHH TALK TO HIM THROUGH THE BOOKCASE WILLE GO ON

noooo they’re both returning crisis

HES WEARING PURPLE

HENRY FUCK OFF

NOOOO HE WAS GONNA SAY SOMETHING

okay maybe my one night theory wasn’t entirely off…

Not the housemaster doing shots with them??? No wonder the schools getting shut down

Yes Wilhelm Felice besties era again!!!

LOVE OF MY LIFE AHH

no he thinks he’s gonna kill his mum

HOW DID SHE HIDE A WHOLE BOTTLE OF WINE??

PARTY PRINCE RETURN OF THR PARTY PRINCE TITLE

not her hiding the wine Felice I love you

I love all these people so much man

Alexa play closure by Henry Moodie

HE DID THE THING THE THING WITH THE GRASS

REVOLUTION?!?!!

ERIK WOULD HAVE LOVED YOU NO MATTER WHAT

theyre near tears so im near tears

PLEASE SARA YOURE MEANT TO BE IN LOVE WITH HIM WHAT DO YOU MEAN STRONGER FEELINGS

they’re bestie goals and couple goals and I’ve never really shipped them but honestly I could be convinced-this all happening where they first became friends is just too much

Stella I had hopes for you man

NILS YOU HAVE….??? I seriously thought he was gonna say I have feelings for you

AH HE CAME OUT AND THEYRE ACTUALLY SUPPORTIVE AND ACTUALLY ACTING LIKE FRIENDS I LOVE IT

God he’s so in love HA REJECTED AT LEAST HE APOLOGISED

military service he’s doing military service now?

I CALLED THIS WEEKS AGO THAT THEYD GET BACK TOGETHER THEN SHED REJECT HIM BUT THE LAST EPISODE TRICKED ME

I LOVE YOU ITLL PASS FUCK OFF WHY ARE YOU BRINGING UP THAT TRAUMA RN?!

ONE LAST NIGHT TOGETHER I WAS SO RIGHT

OMG THE LAKE SCENE NOT THE LAKE SCENE

NOT IT TAKES A FOOL TO REMAIN SCENE THE CYCLICAL STRUCTURE IS HURTING ME

NO THIS HURTS SO MUCH MORE THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD

HOW CAN IT JUST BE OVER NAH THIS IS MY CAUSE OF DEATH

STEDRIKA GOT TOGETHER AND FELICE IS JUST SMILING I LOVE HER

Them showing Henry and Walter right after Stella and Fredricka get together means they’re also canon actually

REMEMBER WHEN YOU SAID EVERYONE WAS FAKE??? REMEMBER WHEN YOU SAID YOU COULD BE FREE I HOPE YOU GET THERE. It’s not looking good for the endgame guys

WE WERE A REVOLUTION?! IT SHOULDNT BE A REVOLUTION TO LOVE EACH OTHER???

He’s gonna do something OMG OMG WHAT DOES THAT MEAN HE THREW IT AWAY DOES HE MEAN HES DONE WITH THE CROWN?! WILL I HAVE TO EAT MY WORDS AND WATCH HIM ABDICATE?!

Queen redemption arc???

Say no say no say-damn at least maybe now he’ll get support??

What is it with frogs and this royal family??

Goodbye Simon MY HEART MAN COME ON

I HOPE YOU HAVE A NICE SUMMER YOU DID NOT JUST SAY THAT I CANNOT EVEN IM ACTUALLY NEVER GONNA RECOVER FROM THIS

Girls trip!!!

AHHH HES SO GONNA ABDICATE

but August might…

AHHHH WILHELM I LOVE YOU IVE NEVER BEEN HAPPIER TO BE WRONG

NAH ITS A ROMCOM HE PULLED A LOVE ACTUALLY IM NEVER RECOVERING FROM THIS

AHHHHH

FOR HIS OWN SAKE IM SO PROUD

NOT THE FLASHBACKS IM GONNA CRY

THE FINAL LOOK I CALLED IT

[narkinafive]

ahshowka breakdown! tagged #ahsoka spoilers and #ahshowka

the good:

when i tell you i almost stood up and cheered during the memorial ceremony. i could feel the great cosmic energy surging through my VEINS, senator jai kell and clancy brown and UGH. thank GOD

relatedly, i really liked having hera be the first person to say his name. idk. it felt nice and in character that she still thinks of her crewmember-cum-son-and-boy

i, for one, am really, really really digging the slow, deliberate pacing. time will tell if it ends up more plodding than contemplative, but i love having the space to breathe and observe... almost like a jedi? lol, but mostly i'm happy not to be taken on a roller coaster

kiner bros putting their whole pussy into the soundtrack

EMAN ESFANDI ON THE RECORDING WHEN HE DOES THE LITTLE HEADSCRATCH i was like yes. yes. this man understands

showing sabine's helmet in the foreground and having her twice avoid it to pull out other stuff from under the table. i have so many thoughts

man i love that they're all kind of bitches to each other. i support unlikable women

huyang: man you suck ass at this whole force thing, huh

the... less good:

ignore the makeup ignore the makeup ignore the makeup

i'm interested to see the show tackle the idea of how to transition from empire to republic, and i think it can be a salient critique of capitalism to have the republic essentially absorbing the imperial workforce so as not to stop production, but i am, as always, skeptical, since LF has uh... not been great about this before (i mean narratively, not even like getting into unfortunate implications lmao)

utterly bored with we-have-asajj-ventress-at-home and the other dude (rip ray stevenson tho, what a phenomenal talent) but i'm hopeful that will change!

dreading thrawn just bc i hate thrawn but that is entirely personal and not at all a critique of the show 😂

seated and watching:

i am extraordinarily interested in the sabine/ahsoka dynamic, and i am dying to know more, because it really is reading like a nasty lesbian breakup. which i am totally okay with

i am less... concerned? wary? of sabine as ahsoka's apprentice than i was before we started. idk, given all the visual emphasis on sabine avoiding these two "opposed" poles (avoiding the jedi by not going to ezra's memorial, avoiding the mandalorian by shoving her armor away under the table) i am curious to see how this plays out. it feels like a natural evolution from her rebels arc of choosing her new family in the ghost crew, but inverted? which i'm interested in. idk. feeling hopeful, tho

there's an interesting motif of seeing things through (and failing to do so) in these first two episodes. obviously ezra says that to sabine almost verbatim, but there's also ahsoka walking away from both anakin and sabine before training was completed, there's the new republic failing to fully eradicate imperial sympathies (sometimes deliberately so), and there's something there too, i think, about failing to confirm thrawn's death. or account for his return? anyway. i'm interested

but truly, highlight of the premiere is huyang being like good god you are bad at this

[rynnthefangirl]

My Top 10 Favorite Breaking Bad Universe Episodes (+ explanations/analyses because I can't not gush about these shows dammit)

"Face Off" (BrBa, S4E13)- this episode had me on the edge of my seat like no other one in the entire BrBa universe. It's not my favorite in terms of themes or character development-- which are my usual priorities in a show-- but good god, it was an EXPERIENCE. And it held up SO GOOD on rewatch, even knowing how it ends the pacing and buildup is done so phenomenally that it almost feels like watching it for the first time. It's just epic. And that final scene... coming off the thrill of watching an evil villain like Gus Fring be defeated... relishing in Walt's victory and relief... then the camera slowly tracking inward to reveal the Lily of the Valley.... that sudden shift as you realize the guy you were just aggressively rooting for is a monster as well... Oh my god. Perfection.

"Ozymandias" (BrBa, S5E14)- do I even need to explain why I love this episode? It's often regarded as the best episode in this universe, and for good reason. It is Walter White's downfall, the epic culmination of 4 1/2 seasons of steady moral degradation, the consequences of Walter's greed and ego finally brought to horrific fruition. This is one of only two episodes in the BrBa universe to actually make me cry (the other being "Granite State", when Walt Jr. tells his father he should just go and die). Hank's death is abrupt and horrible. "I watched Jane die" makes ME want to go die. Walt's fight with Skyler is both devastating and somehow cathartic. The acting is some of the best I have seen in my entire life. It truly is the peak of Breaking Bad, and there will never be anything else quite like it (although my #3 comes close).

"Plan and Execution" (BCS, S6E7)- this episode is so effective, that I could barely even stand to rewatch it. And not just Howard's death, but everything building up to it. Watching Howard suffer and be humiliated, knowing all the while that this is his last day on Earth. That this is how he is spending his final hours. And the fact that the whole thing has the fun and whacky tone of the other McWexler scams makes me want to throw up. Watching an oblivious Jimmy and Kim dig both Howard's and their own graves with joy and gusto. The inevitability of it all too, how every little detail conspires to put Howard and Lalo in that room together. I never thought a cockroach scampering across a screen could make me want to scream, but here we are. It's honestly unbearable. And then of course the final scene is breathtakingly brilliant. Howard's amazing speech, the sudden tonal shift, the horror of his death. The candle. And this all barely even touches on what it means for Jimmy and Kim's characters, but this is getting long enough, so lets just leave it at P&E is their very own Ozymandias.

"Chicanery" (BCS, S3E5)- I love how perfectly rated Chicanery is in the fandom. I feel like an episode like this would be prone to being totally overshadowed by the more action-packed ones, and I'm so glad that it isn't. Because it is brilliant. To me, Chuck and Jimmy's relationship is the single most compelling dynamic in the BrBa universe. And this is their ultimate showdown, both giving their all to take the other down, Chuck with righteous glee and Jimmy with bitter reluctance. Chuck's final breakdown/monologue is incredible both in terms of writing and acting-- this is the moment we see Chuck McGill for who he really is. Years of bitterness, and jealousy, and frustration, and desperation, finally let loose. And while Jimmy won, it's not a triumphant victory. It's a somber one. Because like Kim said, all they did was tear down a mentally ill man. A man who needed help, beneath all the hatred and envy. Aghh. Chuck.

"Felina" (BrBa, S5E16)- I love the vibe of Felina. There's just this palpaple tiredness and resigned acceptance from Walter. He destroyed his family, they will never forgive him, he is going to die alone. He has realized his ego and selfishness, but it's too late. Everyone is just sitting in the ashes of the world they once knew. And yet, with that acceptance, there also comes a sense of peace. Nothing left to do but make things right in whatever way he still can. Finding a way to get his money to his family, admitting to Skyler that "I did it for me", seeing Holly and Jr. one last time, avenging Hank's death. Then there's Jesse and his resolution, "do it yourself", him crying and screaming and laughing as he drives away, a well earned freedom. The final shot of Walt is bittersweet in the best possible way. A conclusion worthy of the phenomenal series that came before it (rip GOT but BrBa is different).

"Waterworks" (BCS, S6E12)- where Saul Gone is the resolution of Jimmy's arc, Waterworks is the resolution of Kim's. And I think Kim's ending hits me harder, because while we always knew that Jimmy would break bad, Kim's corruption felt like such a betrayal. And it made it all the more sweeter when she redeems herself and begins to come back from that dark place she was in. The Florida scenes were utterly unnerving in how empty Kim was, but then it was so cathartic to see her finally let all that emotion out (and Rhea Seehorn absolutely KILLED IT, she was ROBBED at the Emmy's). Her scene with Jesse was beautiful too, and a perfect example of how to do fan-service in a meaningful way. Also, as a devoted Howard Hamlin stan, I loved seeing him haunt the narrative and watching Cheryl stand up for him again.

"Saul Gone" (BCS, S6E13)- another excellent and worthy conclusion to an amazing show! Jimmy is one of my favorite characters, and like with Kim, it was so beautiful to see him find himself again. I'm very fascinated by Jimmy's coping mechanisms for his grief & guilt, and this episode is where we see them finally be torn down. The whole confession scene is wonderful, A+ writing and acting. Particularly him finally saying out loud that his actions led to Chuck's suicide -- that knowledge has controlled Jimmy for the past three seasons, and him facing it at last is the final nail in the coffin for Saul Goodman. Saul is Gone, and Jimmy McGill remains. I love it.

"Lantern" (BCS S3E10)- this one killed me on rewatch. Watching Chuck completely unravel and destroy his home after he was finally on the road to recovery from his mental illness. Howard and Chuck's falling out, with Howard's pain in having to force Chuck out of HHM and Chuck's pain in losing the last good relationship that he still had in his life. "You've never mattered all that much to me."🫠💔 Chuck's suicide, and knowing how it will haunt the narrative, how it will lead to Howard's destruction in P&E and Jimmy's transformation into Saul Goodman. Daggers. The whole episode - Daggers.

"Fly" (BrBa S3E10)- I am so so glad this episode exists. It wasn't necessary towards the plot at all, but it's such a wonderful little character study. The first half is comedic gold, some of my favorite whacky Walt + Jesse banter. Then the slow shift to the more somber and pensive tone as the sleeping pills set in. Everything is just dripping with importance and symbolism. Especially "it's all contaminated" -- one of my favorite lines in the whole show. And Walt’s speech about the perfect moment for him to have died... I don't even know the word for what that evokes in me. "Beautiful" doesn't cut it. It's ethereal.

"Peekaboo" (BrBa S2E6)- if I wanted to show someone why I love Jesse Pinkman and could only pick one episode to do it, Peekaboo would be that episode. It so perfectly encapsulates his character. Jesse goes to a house to threaten and get money from two junkies, and spends the entire episode trying to look after their neglected child. His conscience and decency at constant odds with the necessity of appearing strong and dangerous. And this is reinforced by the episode's bookends - Jesse delights in a small bug before Skinny P comes along and squishes it, foreshadowing the horror of Spooge getting his head squashed. Jesse is a sensitive soul scrambling for control in a world of the blackest violence. I'm so glad it never was able to fully consume him.

Honorable mentions:

"Point and Shoot" (BCS S6E8) and "Fun and Games" (BCS S6E9)- I feel so bad leaving both of these out of the top 10, because they are such phenomenal episodes. But I feel like my favorite moments are scattered across them and "Plan and Execution", and it's really the triad of episodes that makes up one of my favorite arcs in either show. So as individual episodes they don't quite outrank the others I have, but in spirit they are definitely up there sharing the #3 spot with P&E.

"Better Call Saul" (BrBa S2E8) and "4 Days Out" (BrBa S2E9)- I have to give a shoutout to two of my favorite chaotic and hilarious Breaking Bad episodes. Walt and Jesse's dynamic is so perfect in 4 Days Out, and Saul absolutely killed his introduction to this universe (+ the additional heartbreak of rewatching knowing why he was so freaked out about Lalo).

[thatmomentwhen345]

Hi I know I never post personal stuff on here but I’m just having disconnected thoughts and I feel like you can say anything on tumblr and someone will connect with it, plus it has to do with pokemon so it’s relevant to ppl who follow me (presumably)

Don’t tell anyone I want it to be a surprise to the people who will actually see it but I’m working on a video right now of me ranking all of the different Pokeani dub opening songs and

HALT here is some important context before we continue

1. Last year (2023) I spent 7 months binging the entire pokeani

2. I livetweeted the whole thing for some reason (and subsequently left Twitter a few months later)

Anyway, so I’m scrolling through my ridiculously long twt thread to get screenshots and clips and be reminded of important plot beats so I can talk abt them in the video and I’m reliving some of these moments and

Yesterday I was looking for the episode where May loses her second chance at winning the Grand Festival during the battle frontier

I found it and I rewatched the end so I could record the clip I wanted.

Ngl, that was one of the strongest emotional reactions I had during my initial watchthrough. May’s breakdown was just so raw and EARNED and idk I haven’t cried a lot in the last few months but rewatching that bit over a year later that same powerful emotional reaction came back and it was like. Really cathartic

Last year was a rollercoaster for me and the Hoenn gang (Ash, Brock, Max, May) was with me during a somewhat traumatic period of the year but I don’t think about them as often as I do characters from other regions (namely the Kalos gang who I have a nostalgic connection to). But god I miss them and that period of my watchthrough (but not the period of my life LMAO)

And today I was reading my tweets from the Sun and Moon and Journeys period of the binge, reliving all the touching moments and it’s really weird because I dont think I’ve really processed much of the latter part of last year bc it was another weird time for me (turning 18, getting my first job, starting my first year of college) and

I’ve scrolled through that thread so many times since I finished that endeavor. But it just doesn’t compare to actually going back to the episodes themselves and seeing the little details my brain forgot or my thread didn’t mention. In fact, I think because I made the thread my brain chose to forget about everything that ISNT in the thread because it takes up less space in my head that way, but now that I’m committing so much brainpower to it again and actually rewatching some of those episodes is finally actually taking me back to last year and helping me process some of the stuff that happened? Or I could be bullshitting but idk

I said once my binge of the anime was over I was going to do so many creative things in relation to it but I think by the time I was finished my brain had had enough and so I kinda moved on quicker than I thought I would, or even wanted to. But now I’m finally revisiting those creative ideas I’m being reminded of just how much that stupid adventure meant to me and especially the characters yknow

The May example is just one of them. There are plenty of episodes I could go back to and the same thing would happen but I’m not ready for all that. I was just curious enough about the May clip because I didn’t remember it and because May basically didn’t show up at all after Sinnoh aside from a few second long cameo in Journeys but Fuck. It was even more heart wrenching than I remembered. Genuinely one of the realest moments in the show. I miss May, I miss the Hoenn gang. I miss all of the characters. I miss the escapism and the emotions

Anyway that’s enough rambling. I needed to talk about this somewhere and I think it would too out of place in the very first video I’ve ever done where I’m actually talking.

I know I said I livetweeted the entire thing but it was on my priv twitter and it was probably extremely annoying for the people who did follow me over there so like even though I was constantly talking about it, I didn’t really get to talk To anyone about it and I think that’s another part of why so much if it has gone unprocessed so if anyone is interested in hearing more of my thoughts on that experience I’m eager to share. And I suppose I’ll let you guys know when the video goes up if you’re interested. I’m planning to post it September 8th (2024), the anniversary of the English dub ending so keep an eye out if you’re interested

Thanks for listening tumblr people

[my-name-is-jefferooni]

I JUST SAW “GRIME TIDINGS” AND I AM SHOOKITH TO MAH CORE

The new episode was… Oh my god. There’s so much Sonadow in just this first episode and I am close to fucking SOBBING.

So to start off, we got the fabled “Sonic feels bad about how Nine took the shards” in the cavern scene and even though it ended far too quickly compared to most other predictions, it was still very enjoyable! Shadow wasted absolutely no time in getting Sonic back in the game, while it took Sonic a while to realize that now is NOT THE TIME FOT A GODDAMN MENTAL BREAKDOWN. Twas a great interaction that had my soul flying outta my body frfr

THEN SONIC’S FRIENDS LITERALLY START FLYING AWAY AND MY HEART JUST SHATTERS BECAUSE WTF THEY LITERALLY JUST WENT TO SAY HI TO GOD I AM NEVER GONNA BE NORMAL ABOUT THAT THEY LEGIT JUST SAID “Bye Sonic cya in heaven” AND THEN WERE GONE LIKE WHAT

Poor Sonic just had to speed run the five stages of grief lmao

AND THEN ALL MY WORRIES WASH AWAY WHEN I SEE SONADOW WORKING TOGETHER TO GET OUT OF GHOST HILL AND IT IS SERIOUSLY THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SEQUENCE OF 3D ANIMATION I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. There is so much squash-and-stretch, so much dynamic posing, so many fast movements, so many moments where you blink and you miss something. It’s so fluid and so expertly done, my heart was melting when I saw it. Prime is just straight up eye candy at this point and I am not in any way complaining. This scene was so pretty and so epic and so intense. And I could feel literally every impact. Wonderful story boarding to whoever did the storyboards. You have my full respect.

And then Shadow gives Sonic a compliment and my soul once again leaves my body. I am not okay.

AND THEN THE SONADOW FANKID BATTLE ENSUES WOOHOOOOOOOOOOO

And then. AND THEN. WHEN NINE BRINGS OUT THE OTHER 4 ROBOTS TO FIGHT SONIC AND SHADOW THE TWO HEDGEHOGS LOOK AT EACH OTHER AND GO “Behind you!” AT THE SAME TIME AND I START DYING AGAIN. Feel bad for Big tho. Bro didn’t get a robot… 🥺 Feel so horribly bad for Shadow too. He got stuck fighting the Rouge robot during the fight. Must’ve been a horrible experience. Can’t wait to see how he’ll react to the other versions of her though! If we even get to see him again…!

Which by the way, the ending scene…? OH MY GOD??????????? THEY REALLY HIT US WITH THE BIGGEST CLIFFHANGER EVER. SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG. SHADOW THE GODDAMN MOTHERFUCKING HEDGEHOG. THE BITCH WITH ALL THE EMO DRIP AND THE HEELIES. THE ONE WHO CAN FUCKING FLY NOW. YEAH. HE SACRIFICED HIMSELF FOR SONIC. WHAT!!!!!?????????

Obviously, he’s not gone for good. Cuz then we wouldn’t be able to call this season “Sonadow Prime season 2.” But the fact that he gave himself up and chose to fight off a whole horde of super strong and powerful robots that could beat him in an instant all because Nine had his sights on the blue blur…? That is A LOT. Especially since we’ve waited like 2 whole decades for some good Shadow characterization. In no way am I complaining, duh, but for someone like me…? MAN I WAS NOT OKAY.

Sinister Nine is… It is wild. I always knew he was gonna be a problem ever since Shadow pointed it out at the beginning of season 2, but I never expected him to actually be this evil. He lands next to Sonic and Shadow before the sacrifice, and when he reveals what he plans to do to Sonic… He’s hardly recognizable anymore. It’s scary, how utterly broken and changed he feels. This is still the same fox as before though, just a bit more sure of what he wants. And that’s terrifying.

So naturally, when Shadow figures it out, he is mortified.

AND I START INTERNALLY SCREAMING BECAUSE I WAS NOT EXPECTING HIM TO REACT THAT WAY OH MY GOD BRO WAS FLABBERGASTED HE WAS SO TAKEN ABACK HE WAS SO HEARTBROKEN HE WAS LIKE “Why u tryna hurt my boo???” AND THAT MAKES THE SACRIFICE HIT THAT MUCH HARDER. OH MY GOD. MAKES IT WORSE THAT SONIC HAD NO IDEA WTF HE WAS TALKING ABOUT TOO.

Anywhizzle my energy has dwindled since my first watch because it’s been like 30 minutes but I just wanna add that. I am pretty sure it’s official that the Prime Universe is dead. Gone. Deceased. That shit ain’t coming back, I can guarantee. We spent like half the episode trying to get out of Ghost Hill and then mourning the loss of it, and I highly doubt all that screen time is gonna go to waste. They’ll probably say that Sonic succeeded and that we’ll be shown everyone returning to normal, but based off what we see I at least hope this isn’t the case. This now feels more like a show about moving on, about finding out who you are and making friends. It’s about change, but it’s also about connection. And with the Prime Universe gone, with Ghost Hill destroyed, and with the Paradox Prism in Nine’s grasp until the foreseeable future… I really doubt we’ll see Ghost Hill restored. This fact is amplified by the fact that we’ve been getting more screen time and development with each different universe/shatterverse.

Aight that’s all for now bye bye