#I love how they gave it their all in Season 3

[miwiheroes]

Dropping Byler Evidence Every (Other) Day Until Season 5

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁ Day 23: Airport Hug(s) . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁

I haven't done one of these in a little bit because I'm just getting moved back in at university but I'm glad to be back! This time, we are looking over Mike and El's airport hug vs. Mike and Will's.

These two scenes are extremely different. It is clear which one the writers and directors gave more importance. AKA which one is supposed to be the main focal point of the scene. If you think that the meeting scene in the airport is supposed to be all about Mil*ven and how cute their relationship is, I'm sorry but you are not watching the same show as I am. The airport hug between Mike and El and the airport 'hug' between Mike and Will are supposed to convey these messages:

Something is wrong with Mike and El's relationship and they are trying to push it down, meaning it will come to the surface later.

It has something to do with the way Mike's acting.

Something has changed internally within Mike between Season 3 and Season 4.

This something is to do with Will.

You are supposed to notice Mike's actions towards Will more than his actions towards El.

This is how I will structure this ESSAY ASS POST

Number One:

Something is wrong with Mike and El's relationship. It may not seem this way from the beginning, in fact, it seems very much like they are back to the way they used to be at the beginning of S3, apart from the making out- um yeah, so it all seems well. But that's the thing.

Developed relationships with depth, relationships that the audience need to crave for, do not get presented in this super cutesy, teenager-y love way. Unless there are other stakes. In Stranger Things, it is apparent to us that there is always something off when characters seem Too Happy. Something will go wrong, things won't stay the same as they were at the beginning of the Season. I really don't know how to describe it, but basically what I'm saying is, even in their cute moments, the audience needs to sense that something is off. Even if it's very minute.

The kiss is cute. But that's all it is. There are no stakes behind it, nothing bad has happened yet, which is why an audience who likes the couple already may feel happy with it. But a GA may be able to sense that this is unlike other kisses or meetings in ST. The kiss is not after a fight, the kiss is not after a long time of pining, the kiss is not an 'i can't lose you' kiss, the kiss is not a 'relief after a long time of fighting through something' kiss. It's just a kiss.

You may be thinking this is a bit harsh, but the GA also know another thing. El is lying to Mike. Her letter foreshadows problems for their relationship instantly.

From her letter, we know that she is lying about having a good time at school and in California. The audience may then believe that there must be something wrong with their relationship if she feels the need to lie. Especially El, the one who always says 'Friends don't lie' and got annoyed at Mike lying last season.

So this kiss isn't supposed to be cute. It's supposed to be tense. Because we are supposed to know that she's lying to him, and narratively, the truth always gets revealed.

Therefore, the audience is supposed to take away from this interaction not that Mike and El are a cute couple, but that El is trying to hide stuff for a reason.

And the audience quickly gets their reason why:

Number Two:

The reason why El's been so weird with Mike, the question that is ringing around in the audience's head get's half-answered with the next sequence.

The audience should know that something is wrong based on the way that the happy music suddenly shifts to something far more morose, and El looks hesitant before faking a smile. JUST as she fakes her happiness in her letters.

Therefore, the audience sees it is somehow Mike's fault she feels the need to act this way. So far, we have ticked off two problems in their relationship: El is lying to Mike, and El seems upset at the unfeeling note Mike made. These must be linked together.

I also think that the audience see that it is signed in such an unfeeling way, despite the kiss. This means that the kiss at the beginning no longer seems genuine at all. So obviously, the audience must be wondering where this is all coming from , and why Mike is upsetting El.

Number Three:

Something has changed internally within Mike. The time between Season 3 and Season 4 has drastically changed Mike's actions towards both El and Will. We know that suddenly Mike is being unfeeling towards her in his note, meaning that the rest of his interactions don't seem as genuine to the audience. This may be a different view they had from Season 3.

They have just been introduced to a change in El's behaviour towards Mike (she now lies to him), meaning there must have been a change in Mike's behaviour to have caused this. And this is all internal between seasons:

What changed?

Now, we should get the answer when we look back at the end of Season 3. Mike looks back at Will's house. He hugs his mom like he's numb and just realised something huge. The monologue over the top keeps saying how he doesn't 'want things to change'.

Later, in the apology scene in Will's room, we find out that Mike was afraid of losing Will, which is why he got mad at Will seeming standoffish.

SO WE GET THIS SCENE WHERE WE ARE INTRODUCED TO MIKE BEING SUPER WEIRD WITH EL AND THIS IS ODD SO HE MUST HAVE CHANGED AND THEN HE ACTS WEIRD WITH WILL SO IT ALL POINTS TO.........

Number Four:

The reason why he has changed with El is because of Will. The reason why he seems so unfeeling towards El yet so disingenuous and unlike himself is all because of Will. The way he acts, the way he writes notes, it all boils down to this moment in the scene.

Will is reason he's nervous. Will is the reason things have shifted.

If something has changed internally within Mike to clearly act differently enough with El to make her lie to him, AND something to make him act weird with Will, then they must be linked together.

Besides, if we want to go the super obvious, on the face of it analysis - Mike is simply nervous because his feelings have been realised. He doesn't want to let them show so he can keep up this disingenuous relationship with El. He just wants to seem normal. It all adds up.

Harking back to El's letter, she mentioned one thing about Will, and that was that he was painting something for a girl that he had never told Mike about. And Mike acts standoffish about the painting when Will confirms that it probably isn't for him. It's clear as day - he's nervous to keep up this facade, he's jealous that Will's not making paintings for him, and he's been scared of losing Will (confirmed later on).

I mean, this might be all well and fine. Mike might not be having an impactful scene with Will, after all--

OKAY I CAN'T EVEN TYPE IT OMG ONTO THE NEXT POINT

Number Five:

Mike's big problem has to boil down to Will. This is proven by the fact that we are supposed to focus on this interaction far more than his interaction with El.

First of all, it is important to note that the directors of the show are intentional with where they place extras during a scene. They have free will, and we an see their choices being made during the airport reunion.

In the first and last Milkvan kissing scene, the camera is focused on them, yes, but it is very busy. Watch the shippers try to edit this scene, the duffers really said. I mean, it was so hard to take a screenshot of them without a person in the way of the camera. This is not by accident.

Mike is wearing a visor, he's holding a bag so he can barely hug her, he's also wearing sunglasses inside?? You can't see his facial expression, making this seem even more disingenuous. Again, people are moving in front of the camera, it's very very busy.

It's supposed to be a little overwhelming. That is not a coincidence, they aren't filming in an actual busy airport. So so many extras walk in front of them during the whole scene, not just the kiss, but while they are speaking as well.

Compared to the scene with Will...

No extras pass in front of them, the camera is closed in on their facial expressions, making them very clear without obstruction what they are feeling. This tells the audience to look quickly! This is important!

This is why the main takeaway from this scene is not at all about how 'cute' Mil*ven are. It is supposed to remind you of the problems in Mike and El's relationship, introduce that Mike has changed between S3 and S4, making him seem disingenuous and wanting to seem 'normal'. And that this is all because of something to do with Will.

And based on the clues that he's repressing a lot of his emotions all of a sudden, he's heard that Will is painting for someone else, he's being unfeeling toward El because of Will for some reason..... Mike's problem is that he is trying to deny or repress feelings for Will.

Atp it seems too obvious to post.

[hergurlc]

—MOONCOVEY—

Don’t mind me as I yap away my feelings about MOONCOVEY in season2 of XO Kitty cuz I can’t stop watching their arc and their slow burn or hold it in anymore🥹😅😂

Kitty and Minho are starting to finally align themselves with their feelings for each other but their timeline is off so the timing just needs to be right for the both of them and their situations which I think is so close but also not quite yet. Both their feelings are clear(at least to the us) yet very complicated and scary in a vulnerable type of way. They’ve been maneuvering and tip toeing around their feelings, being considerate and supportive of each other while also continuing their good banter and protecting their bonded friendship.

Ultimately this is Kitty’s story and journey and we get to see many things play out thru the lens and perspective of Kitty and girrrrl has been through just A LOT. She has all the right to find herself and be herself in the way she wants. Her life may be chaotic and she may go about things in a chaotic way but everything she does is ultimately out of the big of her heart. She values family, connection, her friends and she loves love and wants that for everyone she cares about including herself (and Minho as we’ve seen in both seasons is someone attentive enough to know that and values that). She can give to so many people but that can also hurt her cuz not everyone can give the same to her as we’ve seen so far.

For Kitty, her feelings for Minho took time. It built up when she didn’t even know it. I think his plane confession did do something to her but we all know she had way too much to sort thru to really try and accept that. However, with time, she recognizes how much he’s been there for her even at her most vulnerable and she wants to do the same for him. She got worried and protective when Stella put him and his family in danger. She wanted to look out for him as a friend but then ended up getting jealous. She was so bothered by their fight to the point that the distance made her miss him. When she realizes her feelings, she doesn’t want to hurt him and she’s hesitant, ‘repressing’ and ‘terrified’ to put herself out there when things are still so complicated and especially when his heart and mind aren’t in the best place after everything that happened with Stella, etc.

Kitty is someone who has a hard time figuring out her own true feelings but when she does, she ultimately will always go with her heart and I don’t think it really hit her until Minho walked away after their hug at the end there and her heart was pounding outside of her chest. It’s probably just me but that scene felt symbolic and after everything they’ve been thru, I could feel like she felt a little pain at the thought of either 1.)Losing him, 2).Not seeing him, 3).Not having him around or 4).All of the above and that’s when her heart jumped into action of asking him if she can join him. It’s subtle yet safe and very Kitty coded. If one little fight caused her to miss him, imagine losing him all together. Honestly, I’d love to see Kitty do the chase now. She needs to confess and align their timeline before it’s too late cuz girl was about to be too late if she didn’t stop him!!

Minho..oh our Moon Minho. He holds a strong front and can go with the flow but he’s been through so much emotionally and internally too. He’s tried to move on but he literally loves Kitty. It’s clear as day. He’s held back and tried to figure out on his own how to be okay and move past his feeling but the truth is, he gave his heart to her a while ago and it never really came back. He loves and accepts her as her even when they’re in a banter or when he’s there just as a friend or when he’s mad at her for overstepping.

He’s soo protective of her and will do anything to support and help her without crossing the line. He’s been hesitant and careful of his feelings bc from his POV it’s one sided and she doesn’t feel the same. I think he’s also taking her words about ‘thinking twice before doing anything impulsive’ to heart which is respectable of him and his growth (but pretty ironic of Kitty cuz she’s almost always impulsive on a lot of things😂). He’s already admitted his feelings once(or twice) and even tho he doesn’t know she’s truly developed feelings for him too, he doesn’t want to put her and himself (and maybe even Dae) in another difficult (or heartbreak) situation. We see him at the end there taking those ‘long walks’, thinking about things, clearing his head and basically deciding to start fresh by swearing off relationships and joining his dad and brother for the summer etc. yet (at least to me) every time I watch that last scene; the way he was and the way he kept looking at her just felt almost sad or solemn. I could dig into it foreverr but some of his smiles were smiles just to smile and right before walking away he takes a slight breath and it’s like he had concluded he loves her but has to let her go(romantically). That is until she stops him to join him and we’re all left to imagine for ourselves. But like Sangheon said in an interview, it’s also something Minho wouldn’t just say no to and he’d just go with the flow….and this is where I wish we had Minho’s lens and perspective cuz I bet his feelings are so jumbled, happy, confused but like didn’t you also just spend days walking the gardens to clear your mind?? I need to know!!!

Anyway, one last thing I will say about the ending scene of S2 is that we’re very lucky it gave us more hope for Kitty and Minho than leaving it with confusion, questions or frustrations. We can still naturally have those feelings but the screen could have gone dark with her watching him walk away or right after she said “maybe it’s not our time” but no, even tho Kitty may have been terrified of her own feelings the writers/producers gave us hope by having her continue her train of thought and going after what her heart wanted(to be/go with him). It was just enough butterflies to lead into a season 3 but if for some odd reason it doesn’t get renewed, that ending (in my opinion) would have still been a happy ending too.

[briastar-artz]

Since you all have seen my TGAMM X GF AU, here are other TGAMM AUs I drew that I come out with.

Friends In Time

Post The End Swap (I need a better name)

Also here an extra drawing I made of Todd/Scratch. Sorta like a deltarune sort of thing I think. This one is not an AU btw, I just wanted an excuse to draw him with a sword.

Below will have an info about these 2 AUs, so I'll be rambling bout it below. :)

Friends In Time

★ This AU is inspired by the Gravity Falls AU called Twins in Time. I love that AU and be like, "Hey what if Young Scratch and Adia got sent to the past but they ended up with eachother present self?"

★ This AU takes place after the 'All In The Mind' episode.

★ Scratch and Molly was messing around with the rare curses (Molly's idea) and Scratch accidentally messed it up, resulting for a portal to open up in the past and young Adia fall in it and she ended up in the present with Molly and Scratch. Past Scratch sort of witness how his friend just dissappear through a portal infront of him, another portal open up behind young Scratch and he falls in it. But instead of ending up with Molly and present Scratch, past Scratch ended up with present Adia. This left everyone confused. Especially present Adia.

★ Molly was kind of excited with the situation since she got to meet her ghost best friend old best friend. Though Scratch suggested for Molly to not reveal anything to Past Young Adia. (I mean hey, seeing your best friend kind of 'died' in the future isn't very nice to know.) I think they'll try to change Scratch name incase. He called himself Duke. They'll reveal about it later.

★ With Present Adia and Past Young Todd/Scratch, despite being confused, they both went on an adventure together while trying to get back to Brighton and find Past Young Adia.

★ Past Young Adia stick around until 'The End' episode. Present Adia with Past Young Todd/Scratch finally reach Brighton during The End too and they visit Todd's house, which also the same time Molly and Scratch and with Past Adia were there to see them.

★ The End would be a bit different than the original. Adia and Scratch finally have a talk before he goes back to his body. The Past selves are sent back to the past. And both Adia and Molly would try to help Scratch remember his time as a ghost before he and Adia went on their adventure together.

Post The End Swap

★ This is basically a personality swap between Scratch and Molly after 'The End'. Or a swap, literally. Thanks to Bill, one of the TGAMM creator for telling us what will Season 3 be like if Disney gave them a green light. This just gave me an idea on how this story would go.

★ In this AU, Scratch did not die. He is still alive and healthy and did not get into any hang-gliding incident.

★ But in this AU, Molly finally gave up her soul after experiencing the rough aftermath of how it gets harder to try to enhappify people, making Brighton better and losing people she love. (Patty becoming a ghost and Ollie moving away) She became lost and hopeless as years went on till high-school. Feeling less joy also made her wraith form change colour to pink like her eyes but a bit dull and a bit gold.

★ Idk how Scratch and Adia will meet Molly yet, but when they did Molly put a curse on them. The same curse that made Scratch got pull to Molly's side whenever she calls for him, but it's Molly who got dragged to Scratch's side when he said her name.

★ Molly had been a ghost for about a month or two. Ofc her family and friends are aware and tries to find Molly's ghost but unsuccessful. The Chens who now stay in another place after the move also being informed by the Mcgees about the situation too.

★ As for being a ghost for too long, Molly's memories started to become fuzzy and she had a hard time recalling them, slowly losing her memories and forgetting who she is. Though it's not as bad as Scratch, but she just had a hard time recalling. She forgot her name and only remember that it probably starts with a M. So Scratch just called her Moll and his reasoning is, "Idk, you just look like a Moll person." Which confused Molly, Adia and himself with it.

★ And yes, these two duo has no idea who the other are due to memory lost. Molly having a harder time to recognise Scratch since he is Todd now and alive instead of the ghost buddy she always remembers. (Same with Scratch as deep down he remember his friend being a human instead of a ghost, and the change of her wraith colour instead of gold is also less helping.) But the name sorta ring a bell for her a bit.

★ Together they tried to uncover Molly's memories as Molly follow Scratch and Adia through the adventure. Plus without them realising, they're also gonna uncover Scratch's memories too! Now it's The Ghost and and Todd/Scratch Mortenson, with Scratch being the optimistic one and Molly being EMolly or realistic and hopeless, or just season 1 Scratch but it's Molly, and Scratch is Molly but in Scratch own way, yk?

Welp these are the info I have about these 2 AUs for now. There are still more TGAMM AUs that I would love to share more in the future! Like there's ALOT in my notes. Wish I could make a fic for all of 'em. Anyways cya and have an enhappifying day/night!

B★

[mariacallous]

I love this comment and I also wanted to pull it out so I can go on about it more <3

It wasn't until I finally was honest with myself and accepted my gender identity that I really actually gave any fucks about personal fashion and style - pre-myself me was very much about function, and comfort, and on what I could get away with. I rarely dressed up or got formal, and I was ruled by the multi-event outfit - jeans or slacks paired with a polo shirt or sweater or sweatshirt depending on if I had class or a meeting or what have you. Working in a homeless shelter also amplified that.

Once I finally confronted reality and fully began to inhabit and realize who I was, I also had to confront the fact that not only would I need to dress more how I identified, but that from that moment on it would be scrutinized and likely attacked or demeaned.

It took a good...year or two of experimenting and gradually being bolder and building confidence to understand fit and comfort and personal preference. For a while I was essentially in a more feminine version of my previous standard, and it was rough for all involved. Between weight and learning and seasonality, it wasn't easy or great.

But eventually, you learn, you grow, you get comfortable, and I began to better navigate everything. (I am being completely serious when I say that transitioning made me more of a feminist, because you get to confront the casual and blatant misogyny combined with the transphobia and other bigotries, and that part of all of that involved confronting beauty culture and the insanity of women's clothing and fashions. I'm not saying I'm the best or even consistent with handling that, but it was eye-opening and sobering.)

And so much of the comfort and growth came as a result of thinking about what I liked while suiting me best, and I've always had an affinity and love for the clothes and aesthetics of the 60s-80s - Joan Holloway became even more of an icon at that point - and so I decided to lean into it, and try to make it work for me but also not be just cosplaying.

I like colors and patterns, the fit-and-flare. And, by making it enjoyable and also something more connected to me and who I am and how I felt, it makes so many other things more bearable. And we all need that, at this point.

I think it's also a matter of just going with it. Some days I want to be like a normie Shiv Roy, some days I'm imperialcore bureaucratmaxxing, other days I vamp and vant to be left alone.

I found out that I can at least have some control over something with my outfits and look, and that while that may be all I have control over that day, it isn't nothing, either.

I also really believe that there aren't many rules when it comes to fashion and style, and that the main thing is to find something you can live with and have comfort with.

[py-dreamer]

...hi again?

"WHAT IS THIS?!"

"WHERE'S THE MONKIE GANG? OR SHADOWPEACH?"

"HAS PY DROPPED OUT OF THE LMK FANDOM?!?!"

To answer that question: no. No I haven't

Short and concise answer is I do personally feel a little burnt out on lmk but while that doesn't mean I've abandoned it. Not in the slightest

Anyways, very busy time for me rn so updates and any art in particular will be VERY sparse in the coming months I'm afraid.

That being said, gotten back into an oldie of mine I'd never thought I'd revisit: Object Shows!

More specifically: Inanimate insanity

Look I was into this when I was like a preteen and grew out of it then all of a sudden II s2 ep18 dropped. Like hell, I didn't even know that invitational existed (and lowkey still haven't seen it- BUT I KNOW THE LORE, BOT IS MY WEE BABY OK I KNOW THE LORE)

And drawing these gijinkas kinda gave me more flexibility and let me design people again even though I'll admit quite a few ideas are very common in gijinka's used in the fandom

So um I'll see how this goes, I already have the sketches for the other season's cast and will probably post them regardless though.

Let's start with S1's king, the fruitiest lad on the aisle: OJ!

(Btw I think it's HOP rather than HOJP)

I know he's meant to be like a glass of OJ, so theoretically his hair should be more slick/smooth but I decided to go for the flowy juice angle! Something to make his hair look more like flowing liquid.

Orange slice earings! In fact, orange slice accessories everywhere! (it's so marketable srsly don't know why it ain't used more often)

The orange watch was a fun concept ^u^ specially since after getting the hotel, I'd imagine him being a lot more uptight with sh!t and use clocks/watches to keep track of things

TBH, he'd probably also have a pair of rectangular long glass dangly earings to swap out for like the formal events.

Yay! For slacks! Thought they'd look really cute on him and other than Suitcase, wanted to give him something unique rather than just a suit/suitjacket (eg the hosts, Taco)

But oh, look at that he comes with two outfits! Just like a doll...

Bet paper would bu-

(no but srsly I lowkey bet that fan has like mini action figures of the S1 cast in his room or something, maybe even S2 & 3 too.

Also this man might be snazzy but he has the ugliest ties. We're talking about the same person who designed his hotels to have hallways with windows but not bedrooms.

Paper! Such a cutie pie!

Looks like a cinnamon roll, could kill you, what's not to love?

Don't have much to say about him sadly

Though his eyebrows gave me a LOT of issues. I like his stripes though! Seemed like the guy to have freckles like when peeps give him pencil sketch lines in this object form, what do ya'll think about the warm brown eyes though? Wanted to make him seem welcoming but idk.

(Bonus: paperclip earing!)

Gosh, I'm too tired for this rn, I'll elaborate on the designs another time

OH!

And happy new year!

And happy Chinese new year!

[trvqvoiisee]

Between us

Part 9- The Little Things

Part 8- Through the Seasons

Part 7- The Unshakable Duo

Part 6- Finding Rhythm

Part 5- Reactions

Part 4- Navigating Us

Part 3- Love Finds a Way

Part 2- The Almost Moment

Part 1- A Glimpse Of More

The way he always saved her the last bite of his dessert, even though he loved sweets more than she did. How he would wordlessly drape his jacket over her shoulders when she forgot hers. The way he listened, really listened, to everything she said, no matter how mundane.

One night, as they lay in bed, Minho absentmindedly traced patterns on her arm.

“Do you ever think about how this could’ve happened sooner?” Y/N asked.

Minho shrugged. “Sure. But I think we got here at the right time. Any earlier, and we might not have been ready for this.”

Y/N considered that, then nodded. “I guess you’re right. Besides, it gave me time to realize how much better I am than all the girls you dated before me.”

Minho laughed, pulling her closer. “Oh, no contest. You’ve ruined me for anyone else.”

[pidayforpi]

(So...

After 3 years...

I finally finished DT17.

And I have to say...

I love it.

So much.)

[mettywiththenotes]

The way that Viktor offered a place at the cult for Jinx not just as a way to spread the hexcore's reach, but because he saw a little of himself in her, someone who's "imperfections" were holding her back and needed to be "fixed", just like Viktor was doing with the rest of the commune

I just knowww that if they had met before this, if Viktor were to look at Jinx/Powder, a fellow outcast, and see someone who needed guidance, see himself in her, and somehow get to a point where they work with each other, they would have been friends

[hauntingblue]

Last arcane episode ever..... here we fucking go....

[exoscreamsoda]

i know next season is supposed to be lestat focused (and im currently having a breakdown imagining him as a rockstar) but i would give ANYTHING to see a glimpse of how louis and armand were living in the current age before they invited their couple therapist. theres no way they figured out how to use the internet to its full potential. did rashid come over one day to set up their wifi and then ended up their little henchman. are their man snacks found on craigslist or something. armand said he didnt want daniel there so i can only imagine louis was annoying him 24/7 while he was trying to read on his kindle in peace 💀 the way louis is so adamant about getting this book made makes me think he was watching tv and one of those reality shows that covers old musicians came on and he saw lestat and started tweaking because no way did he think about old man dan's book out of no where

[batsplat]

A sentence in Casey’s book impressed me, even though he didn't name anyone explicitly

“Maybe someone who could put on the charm when they need it regardless of sincerity could have turned the situation around but I don’t have that skill.”

He totally gets that Valentino has endless charm, lol. I’m sure he felt it too when they hung out

yes!! this was about casey and his relationship to the fans wasn't it, and in a section of the book where he was talking about his rivalry with valentino, so hardly a stretch to say it was deliberately alluding to him. and of course casey talking about valentino's charm is not unrelated to how casey did seem to like valentino perfectly fine back in the day... how he said back in 2007 that he liked talking to valentino, that they generally talked about stuff other than racing, how valentino gets on with most guys in the paddock... though it's interesting (if not particularly surprising) how by the time the autobiography is written, casey portrays the early dynamic between the pair of them pretty dispassionately. just from the book you'd get the sense of someone who was coolly respectful of valentino until valentino started pissing him off, rather than someone who was... y'know, also a bit of a fan. somebody who got the valentino rossi appeal, shall we say. we all have our crosses to bear

which, I don't even think it was just about the racing. I doubt he ever wanted to emulate valentino in the same way jorge or marc might have wanted to do off the track, but stuff like calling him a "great competitor and a great sportsman"... that for years he'd been "dreaming to be like him"... that valentino and doohan were "the sort of people I wanted to become like"... I reckon that's a little more than simply respect for him as a rider, and I don't think casey back then would have said that stuff just because he knew it'll play well with the public. he found valentino exciting, like so many before and since have done - and still did so for the entirety of 2006 (he said more recently that he was even more impressed by valentino after that season, which is kinda noteworthy given that's the year valentino did, you know, lose the title). but then they became direct rivals, and. well

of course the "regardless of sincerity" in the quote is pretty pointed lol, like he does clearly see valentino as very two-faced and willing to spin a line regardless of whether it's true or not and also as someone happy to deceive others for his own gains. and his rhetoric has also changed just a wee bit since he published the autobiography on that count, where he more recently does stress how... well, he did learn from how valentino played the media! he learned how to get friendly with journalists! he learned how to play that game, of trying to win the public discourse! he might never have liked it, and he still probably would say like in the autobiography that this "charm" "regardless of sincerity" isn't something that he'll ever be as good at as valentino was. but he did dabble in the dark arts just a touch... I think one of the most interesting tensions of that rivalry is to what extent valentino forced casey out of his comfort zone both on- and off-track and ended up making casey adopt behaviours and attitudes he continued to find reprehensible. casey considers valentino 'selfish' both on- and off-track but to fight him both on- and off-track he became more selfish in turn... very dramatically compelling

anyway, here's casey chatting to fellow aussie jb when he's come to watch the podium celebrations after one of valentino's 2005 wins:

[incesthemes]

it is utterly miserable for a mediocre show to have a really good plot or make god tier parallels or connections because you're like well this show isn't good and the writing is flimsy and there are so many holes and bland storylines, but they paralleled the season finale to an earlier season finale and then made the weight of that decision foundational to the next season so now my every waking thought is consumed by it

[atalana]

me watching sab season 2, just mentally repeating to myself: it's not an adaptation it's high budget fanfiction, it's not an adaptation it's high budget fanfiction

[ilargeicontradictmiself]

I don't think we've talked enough about how iconic it was that the flash got both Wentworth and dominic to play partners, ice and fire, with wentworth the one making the plans. Like the first episode he appears in they don't even show dominic, you hear him say "yeah buddy im in" at the very end of the episode. They gave them whole ass brotherly partners they started in the flash then moved to legends and all that after the first run of prison break, like they knew the power they had at that point. Fucking iconic.

[leavemetoplaythesims]

i finished tlou on hbo btw

[autumnoakes]

was watching the covid season of grey's anatomy all afternoon today and it was REALLY good with like the emotional and physical toll it took on the workers, how they all seem so tired and defeated, how often they break down in tears out of fear of their loved ones and the pain of being isolated from them, etc.

but then i stopped before they could kill off the character who spent a lot of time in manic depression last season and was actually shown to be in a better mental state right before he was killed in the middle of being a healthcare worker in a global pandemic