#I'm definitely qualified

[yombleflobber-mobile-emporium]

My Terrible (possibly) Dating Advice

First off, I have a large couch to move into this space, and we can sit on it, and I will tell you my advice, because that's definitely what you want.

I'm a Christian, so I have a certain perspective I think is "the right way" to handle dating. Primarily, this means that throughout the dating process, you don't have sex, you don't live together, you do your best to respect your significant other's parents' wishes (which can look like a variety of things, every situation is different). I also am a very firm believer that you try to keep the whole process from start to finish short. There is almost no reason to keep someone on the hook for five years while you both dick around trying to figure out your feelings/situation. Life is fucked up, and having someone with you that can cut through the shit with you is a literal lifesaver.

SO!

You have found someone you like, that seems to tolerate you. Nice! Are you, like, friends? Just friends? Or...are you...

First things first, let's talk about the Friendzone. I know this feels like it mainly applies to guys, but I'm sure a lot of women also have the experience that you want to be with someone that you can call your friend, so you avail yourself to your peers of the opposite sex as a friend in the hopes that possibly that could progress to something more. There is nothing inherently wrong with this.

My wife is my best friend. I can tell her anything. I don't feel "at home" unless I'm with her.

That said, you gotta make your intentions absolutely clear, like, yesterday. Good relationships are built on trust, and open communication. Telling someone you like them romantically is an amazing test for finding out who they are, who you are, and determining next steps. It seems like a cop-out, and I know it's hard, but if you really want to spend the rest of your life with this person, you need to tell them.

By the way, when I say I know it's hard, I don't want you to just glaze over that. Like, It's Fucking Hard To Talk To People. I've wanted to get married, in theory, since I discovered it was a thing. Women are fucking sick, and I still struggle to talk to them (outside of my wife, because she is incredibly long-suffering, and can take my shit). I had to be introduced to my wife; I sure as hell wasn't going to just talk to her on my own.

I'm saying you need to tell this person you like them (or even go hogwild and say you love them, just know that can be manipulative, and you should absolutely feel like a sack of shit if you are trying to use your feelings to leverage their sympathy), because I've tried the other stuff. I've been that creep on the other side of the room trying to telepathically communicate by staring intently, I've tried to casually insert myself as a friend and work up to a point where I thought we were good enough friends that, you know, dating with a view toward marriage is the logical next step.

The only thing I've done that consistently works is telling the other person how I feel, making my intentions clear, and dealing with the consequences. It doesn't have to be massively demonstrative; there are so many methods of communication you could use, and it is absolutely not a problem if you ask someone out via text — do what works in your situation.

From there, you have a fairly simple, if deceptively so, series of actions you can take.

If the other person is receptive to your advances, great! You can work with them to move forward with the relationship and move further down the path of mutual sacrifice in love.

If the other person is not receptive, it's...tricky? People don't like to straight up say, "I don't like you." Usually they'll say things like, "We can still be friends!" Which, I might add, is perfectly acceptable. Friends are difficult to come by, and we should avoid writing friendship off as a relationship. Maybe you don't want to view them as friends, though, and that is also acceptable.

If you don't feel like you can be "just friends" with this person, DON'T.

This applies to both people. If you're being rejected, you say, "Hey, I really appreciate that, but I really had a need in this relationship that you are not willing to fulfill, and I don't feel comfortable filling the role as a friend right now; it would be disingenuous of me to tell you that is satisfactory, and I think in future I will try to distance myself from this relationship in order to recoup and move on."

That's maybe a bit of a mouthful, but I want to stress that the same underlying principle applies that drove you telling them your feelings in the first place.

You have needs, and if the relationship is not meeting those needs, you don't need to pretend that it is.

Don't be a dick about it. Again, friends are hard to come by, and the offer of continued friendship should be taken at face value. Sometimes, however, being with that person can make you relive that rejection over and over again, and it's important to parse that out, be honest with yourself and others, and don't cause yourself or others unnecessary pain and resentment.

If you are rejecting someone, don't offer friendship if you aren't willing to follow through.

I really don't have a lot of experience in this regard. One, I've never had to outright reject anyone, two, I've always just heard the "let's just be friends" as, "I'm probably never going to talk to you again."

I know I said you should take it at face value, and I want to be honest, I'm not sure what that looks like. I can't imagine me personally having the same level of relationship with someone that I had put myself out for and been rejected by.

Well, okay, that's not entirely true. There was this gal that I asked on a date, and she was really nice, and told me she wasn't interested romantically, and I don't think the friendship died after that. Like, we could still talk, and, like, now I'm not in contact with her, but I would still consider her a friend.

I just kind of forget about people that aren't in my immediate vicinity, but that may or may not be ADHD.

Anyway, this is pretty much all I wanted to say about this.

I get frustrated by Internet Logic that states (1) As a woman being friends with a guy, you're obligated to want to marry him if he wants you to, as well as (2) If you, as a guy, enter into a friendship with the eventual view that you may have a romantic partner from it, you are the scum of the earth.

I mean, how exactly are you supposed to find someone? Tinder?

You are absolutely allowed to enter a friendship with the intent to move toward romance, but you also have to understand the other person is never obligated to reciprocate those feelings. You are both obligated only to control yourself, and respect the other person.

And that's hard, but if you just got what you wanted and they're left in a relationship they don't want, that's...that's a hollow victory, there, buddy.

[justabiteofspite]

I honestly don't get the spawn vs ascended debate when we really should all be coming together to shame those who think it's "unrealistic" that Astarion could fall in love with default dragonborn Durge on account of that Durge "not being attractive."

Like, I'm sorry, but are you fucking high? In what world is Default Durge not peak sex appeal? Big, tall, muscley thicc ass man who can barely run because he's so caked up with a deep, haunted voice struggling to overcome the darkness within himself all while looking like he could bite Cazador's head off in one satisfying crunch? You're telling me Astarion wouldn't be speed running that romance arc to climb him like a tree? Like that wet pathetic cat man looking for protection and attention wouldn't be the president, vice president, and treasurer of the "Top That Nice But Kind of Disturbed Hot Lizard" club?

Get fucking real.

[omaano]

"Trouble on Zeffo! After his daring rescue by the crew of the Mantis, Jedi padawan Cal Kestis has embarked on a journey to possibly restore the Jedi Order! Following the steps of Jedi master Eno Cordova, hope has never been easier to grasp. But standing in the way is a massive storm…"

My art piece to go with Steampunk Star Wars written by @hotcocoandmarshmallows my amazing partner for the @swprequels-big-bang. Please give it a read, to see what Cal gets up to on this alternate version of the Mantis, and Zeffo!

[f0x-meets-w0lf]

i might post the full drawing of this on here, i think it may be tumblr-safe — but as someone who's already flirting with danger, for now, feel free to hop on over to see it on ao3. promise it's worthwhile <3

[venus-is-thinking]

DRDT Chapter 2 Episode 14: Initial Thoughts

What an episode! I can't believe that we're probably starting to near the end of the Trial. But, considering we're almost there, we DEFINITELY have a lot to talk about. It's a longer episode, and there's a LOT to go over, so buckle in!

SPOILER WARNING FOR DRDT CH 2 PART 2!

T/W: Murder, hanging (with depictions)

The Reactions

Hu is literally so pretty.

I wasn't expecting her to get a whole mechanic defending Nico, but it makes sense. Letting other students cut in during the Class Trial is a great way to draw specific attention to a character point, and it's very clear that Hu's over-defense of Nico is going to be important moving forwards.

RIP to my "using the weight rack as the carousel" theory. The fan probably makes more sense. I just still have no idea how the 300-ish pound or whatever weight rack managed to get knocked over in the struggle.

I'm glad they directly pointed this out. Trying to kill everyone in the Class Trial was the EXACT thing Hu was so pressed about David doing. It's a weird double standard to be so forgiving of Nico when they tried to do the same thing.

Insane thing to say if Eden is the culprit and killed Arei because she didn't believe her. Then again, if my explanation for a lot of Eden Trial dialogue is "she's speaking out of regret for killing Arei now that she knows Arei was being legit," maybe she's just calling herself cruel as well.

This is honestly very valid.

Do you think "here" implies Nico trusts someone in the outside world? Based on their secret, it seems like they probably didn't have many friends. Could also be referring to animals? Or Mai Akasaki?

Big psychic damage to Hu though, considering we know she thrives on other people relying on her. She wants Nico to be someone who relies on her sooo bad, but they just... don't.

Like, girl. They literally JUST said that they don't trust anyone. That includes you.

She's clearly projecting in some way, though, which is definitely an oof. I wonder if Hu wishes she had someone who was undeniably on her side in the past...?

(To be clear: I think Hu is a very well written and interesting character. She fits the fucked up vibes of Despair Time, but coming from a more surprising angle of "that really nice and caring person can also be fucked up." She's just clearly in the wrong here, so I get to clown on her as I clown on everyone else.)

Ace is honestly so valid for this. Like, yeah he's kind of a bully and he sucks sometimes, but. Like. He did almost get murdered and people are, like, mad at him for it? Huh???

If Ace does end up being the Chapter 2 killer because he snapped, I honestly think he's so valid for that.

It is my personal agenda to record every instance of J being notably anti-murder. I don't know where it's going but if it does go somewhere I want my credit because it is Apparent.

(The entire fanbase nods in agreement.)

I know some people definitely still think/thought that Hu and/or Nico was responsible for the crime, so we've all DEFINITELY been squinting at that alibi. I fully believe it's true, but that doesn't change the fact that I wouldn't put it past Hu to make a fake alibi to protect Nico. Idk if Nico would go along with it, though.

I got so jumpscared by the Closing Argument-style CG.

I'm so glad we did get a definitive answer on how this thing worked. I was so afraid that we were just gonna solve the Arei murder method and the exact solution of Ace's would be a "left to audience interpretation" kind of thing.

I'm not exactly sure where the blood on Ace's fingertips comes from? Maybe he cut his hand on the wire when he was trying to struggle after he woke up or something.

This makes so much more sense than anything I saw theorized though, lol. The fan falling from drop hanging totally checks out as a way that the murder mechanism could fail.

I have NO fucking clue why Nico opted for this as the murder mechanism, though. I get wanting to use Hu's wire to frame her, but why didn't you just cut Ace's throat with the wire in the first place???

where did their cape go :(

Potentially suspicious line from Ace? I don't know what he's referring to as "go through all this." Like, maybe just reliving the murder attempt, I guess...? Could also be going through the Class Trial, though, if Ace killed as a result of Nico trying to kill him.

*Levi's secret quote looms*

Things that make me think Nico is either a victim or a survivor. Like, are you really gonna say this and then go try to kill someone else? ...Or Ace again, I guess??

Fun fact: this was actually what guided me to my initial killer picks, before I discussed with anyone else or read any theories! I thought the killer was trying to frame Nico, so it had to be Eden or Ace. The tape and everything else was just what locked it in for me. It's fun to see Teruko follow more or less the same path that I did when I was trying to solve the mystery :)

TAPE TIME :D

The use of the Bound Wrists truth bullet actually really confused me at first bc I didn't realize we were just talking about the tape. I was like, were Arei's wrists bound because Ace's were and it was intended to be another similarity???

Maybe Eden's just being nice, but I find it really suspicious that her instinct after all this time is "didn't MonoTV take it" and not "oh I guess Ace is probably the murderer."

Teruko has now outlined two different ways that it makes sense if the killer was in the gym that night. If I were Eden, and I were innocent, I would be realizing that there's a very small suspect pool left, and I know that I'm not the killer, giving me additional information. Instead, she's questioning the validity of the tape argument, which isn't useful for narrowing down the killer-- it's useful for keeping the suspect pool wider and not leaving herself as one of three (but basically two) options.

I kinda get why people are upset with Rose here, but it's also kind of an oof because they're only mad because Rose is really smart. Like, no one's out here like "oh my god Ace you didn't recognize the tape??" Y'know, because they think he's stupid. Rose has a really good memory, which raises the standards really high, which sets Rose up for failure.

In Rose's defense, she also never saw the tape in Nico's gym murder OR on the carousel for Arei's murder. She only saw the pieces in the trash can, which seemed to be inside out. Against Rose's defense, it would probably have been for the best if she'd gone in to look at the crime scene.

Am I tripping, or is "fish misunderstanding" a weird way for David to phrase this? The misunderstanding with Teruko was assuming that the murder happened last night, which was in fact because of the fish-- but the thing Teruko should have noticed, which makes it Teruko's mistake specifically, was the body swinging.

I'm probably reading into things too hard, but it's so hard with David. What do you know!!!

Damn, Teruko is SPEEDRUNNING this character arc. Considering we basically know she's locked in for all 6 chapters, I'm really surprised to see her making this much progress this fast.

I'm guessing that this means that Teruko is probably due for a major setback sometime sooner or later. But, interestingly, this makes me feel like Teruko realizing that working alone doesn't work isn't her character arc's end destination; it's the willingness to open herself up to caring about others even in the face of the consequences of losing someone you love. Teruko is closing herself off from everyone because she knows she's going to lose them. Maybe her end destination is allowing herself to love people, even if she might lose them someday.

This was fruity as hell btw. I'm starting to think Rose may be our replacement support if Charles does die in Chapter 3.

It's so funny that this is basically Teruko claiming in-universe protag privilege. Go off, queen.

I also said something along the lines of "Hu are we really doing this again." Totally forgot that the BDA is still relevant, lol.

I personally find the way Veronika phrased this to be very telling from an author's POV. Veronika doesn't say "she must not have committed the murder," she says "she must not have witnessed the murder." It would be totally reasonable for any of the students to forget that the rule is written in a way where a killer could fail to see the moment of murder, but DRDTdev wanted to draw attention to the rule's exact phrasing again, which is a deviation from the phrasing in the canon games.

To be clear here, I stand by this even if Eden isn't the killer and the BDA group really is Eden/Whit/Teruko. I still think it could be a reminder for a future chapter when it comes up. But, I don't think it makes sense to change the phrasing of a base rule unless there's a specific reason you want it to be different. Whether now or later, this feels like a reminder that it IS possible for the blackened to trigger the BDA.

I don't necessarily "believe David," per se, but I do think it's interesting that we're drawing attention to this. I don't really think it matters, especially because I doubt the characters remember, but I'd place my bets on Eden being the last one because of that, "Teruko, wait!" thing.

It doesn't matter because, if David or anyone else saw the body, no one can confirm which two of Teruko, Whit and Eden set off the BDA, but it's an interesting note.

It's so funny how no one, fanbase or in-universe, can tell if David is lying though. Like, he COULD have seen it, but he also easily could just be making shit up to try to throw the Trial again.

will I EVER understand what the fuck this man is cooking

Why. I thought you wanted to end the killing game to finish what Xander started. I don't know what's happening :( /pos

My guess for now is just that he's still trying to kill Teruko, in keeping with Xander's plans?? Idk how making her more distrustful makes her more likely to die, though.

I do find it very interesting that Eden's approach/reaction has been to be very quiet and freaked out whereas Ace's approach/reaction is to freak out VERY loudly. Ace's is fitting because what does he do other than freak out loudly, but I might have expected Eden to do... idk, something else? It makes enough sense though, considering either the group is right to suspect her, or she's still coping with losing Arei a little bit ago.

...*squints REALLY fucking hard*

The music and voice acting in this section is REALLY fucking good. It's sad/charming/soft enough that it feels like it could be genuine, but there's still a little something that makes you have to question whether or not it's real. You WANT to believe Eden, but it's so hard to do so fully.

Y'all think Eden's crying is reminding Teruko of whatever Arei's crying reminded her of?

i'm out of images :(

I really like Teruko assuming that Eden is innocent first. She's too distrusting and also reasonable (it is life or death after all) to just hard clear Eden based on nothing, but she's offering a bit of a reprieve to Eden. Eden's friendship means that she isn't going to get immediately targeted in her most down moment, and that's it. It's a small way to show Eden she does care.

On another note, the fact that Eden got to hug Teruko and that Teruko said the "let go of me" NOW is honestly one of the main reasons I trust Eden more. I felt like that was obviously going to happen, but I was expecting the post-Trial. Putting it here is wild.

Theory Update/Analysis

Oh boy, it's accusing time! It makes sense that we're going to start with Ace. At this point, I can honestly see it going either way. Major props to DRDTdev either way, but ESPECIALLY if Eden really is the culprit. I was so confident in it, but they're really making me question my assumptions.

I think that both Ace and Eden have good reasons to be the blackened or not to be, and good reasons to die here or to not. I'm going to do my best to make a list of reasons for both characters and give a bit of my thoughts on them. They're roughly ranked in most to least important order imo, but I didn't think too hard about it.

EDEN

Reasons Eden Would Be The Blackened:

THE TAPE: It would be easier for her to take the tape than Ace, as attention was on Ace in the gym. The tape's disappearance from the background also happens to coincide with Ace knocking her over and her standing back up.

THE NOTE: Eden already knows all the info she would need to know to write that note. She could have put the note back together to give herself a defense, to try to disprove herself as the culprit with her handwriting, because Rose was going to do it anyways, and/or to frame Arturo if she didn't know he had an alibi. I think any of these reasons, or a combination of these reasons, are enough to make it possible, and while Ace could've overheard, it's definitely less easy for him.

NOT BELIEVING AREI: Both Arei and Charles have, in this trial, been shown to question whether or not Eden believed Arei wanted to be Eden's friend. If Eden simply did, this plot point goes nowhere.

A GOOD PERSON: Eden has been called a good person, but other than that freaky CG, nothing has really come of it. Is the plot relevance of Eden being a good person really going to resolve by saying "Eden is a good person, she'd never kill her friend!"? If a good person isn't gold, Eden still feels like a missing piece of that puzzle.

INCENTIVE TO FRAME NICO: This one's a bit more of a reach, but I don't really understand the point of framing Nico if you're Ace. Of course Ace is going to insist Nico is the murderer no matter what. If you're Eden, you have a direct audience to setting it up similarly: Ace. If you can get Ace to go all in on Nico, that's one less person who was in the Gym who suspects you. Eden and Teruko feel less likely to say "oh well it looks like Nico's murder so it MUST be Nico."

HEAVY FOCUS IN CH 2: DRDTdev seems to give the chapter death's important content shortly before their deaths. Eden has been one of the most prominent characters this chapter, which could be a bad sign.

Reasons Eden Wouldn't Be the Blackened

HER EMOTIONAL REACTIONS: I think I stand with everyone else when I say that the thing giving me pause with Eden!Culprit is how devastated she truly seems to be. I do still think it could be a combo of guilt and panic over the prospect of dying, but it's hard to justify everything.

HER FRIENDSHIP WITH AREI: Sort of a spinoff of the last one, but Arei was at least offering to Eden to be friends and to protect her. If Eden did believe that, to any extent at all, it's hard to imagine her killing Arei in cold blood.

THE FISH: The biggest question when it comes to evidence as to how Eden could be the killer. If Nico fed the fish and they were all still there last night, and Eden had an alibi until after the Relax Room closed, how would she have gotten the fish to add to the crime scene?

THE BDA: Easy to ignore imo considering we've already called it into question within the series proper, but still worth talking about. For Eden to be the culprit, either someone else saw the body first and isn't claiming to have (or it's David), or we're burning the "Eden didn't witness the crime and thus could still trigger the BDA" card here.

GENDER BALANCE: Possibly an irrelevant point, but it is true that we've had 2 women and 1 man die so far. If a man was the killer, it'd keep it even. Unlikely to be relevant as any disparity could be easily balanced out in Chapter 3 with (presumably) 3 death slots.

Points About Eden That Could Go Either Way

THE FORK CG: I firmly believe that this could be setting up for Eden being a more important character throughout the series or to die after a moment of intrigue, possibly letting us explore/imply more in her post-death bonus episode.

RELATIONSHIP WITH HU: Hu has lost David as a sane ally. Nico is telling her that they don't want her speaking for them and that they don't trust her. Would DRDTdev prefer to fully isolate Hu moving into Chapter 3 by getting rid of Eden, or to leave Hu with one friend who still believes in her.

CHARLES HAVING EDEN'S SECRET: By telling us Eden's secret ahead of time by Charles revealing it to Teruko, extra focus was given to Eden's secret. Was this just the easiest way to get everyone's secrets revealed based on character dynamics, or was it meant to imply that Eden's secret is extra important? Is that because she's the killer? Is it a #ArEden sweep???

ACE

(why are they both orange)

Reasons Ace Would Be The Blackened:

NO EVIDENCE-BASED ISSUES: This is the biggest and strongest point across the whole board imo. There is no tangible, evidence-based reason why Ace COULDN'T have done the crime. Out of all 13 currently surviving students, he's the only one who that's true for. That obviously makes him a viable suspect.

WOULD ABSOLUTELY FUCKING DO IT: Ace has been Freaking The Fuck Out this chapter. I could VERY easily see him deciding to kill here. I don't think anyone is trying to argue that Ace is too emotionally attached to the cast to try to kill all of them, because he clearly isn't.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?: I'm not really sure where Ace's character is going to go from here. I'd be interested in seeing more from him, but, like, where is his character arching to if not a killer? Ace is so disliked and intense that it's hard to imagine him really, fully pivoting and caring about others, but if he can't do that, is he destined to be a killer eventually?

HEAVY FOCUS IN CH 2: DRDTdev seems to give the chapter's death important content shortly before their deaths. Ace has been one of the most prominent characters this chapter, which could be a bad sign.

Reasons Ace Wouldn't Be the Blackened

OBVIOUSNESS & POINT OF CHARACTER: Of course Ace would be willing to kill Arei or whoever and the rest of the students. This is kind of the inverse of my "would absolutely fucking do it" point-- I don't know exactly how much surprise it would carry if Ace were to be the culprit. And, more than that, I feel like the point of Ace is that he is a victim here, but he's so unlikable that no one wants to acknowledge that or believe in him. I think it'd be an interesting comparison, if everyone really wants Ace to be the killer, but he just isn't. To everyone's dismay, Ace is still here. Now what?

SECRET LARGELY UNRESOLVED: Ace's secret hasn't really had any plot relevance yet. It seems like most people's do. I'm like lowkey expecting them to bring back the starvation motive from SDR2 in Chapter 4 and have SOMETHING happen with Ace there. Either way, while it could be reserved for his bonus episode (a la Min and Xander), I'd expect that his secret would have more main-story impact before he dies.

EXISTENCE OF SCRUM DEBATE: We're suspecting Ace first, but we still haven't done the scrum debate for this trial. Unless the scrum debate is "do we just vote for Ace without ever really pursuing Eden" and the answer is "yes," I don't see how we get out of this suspecting Ace period with a scrum debate without at least entertaining the idea of Ace's innocence.

STRONG CONNECTIONS TO OTHER CAST MEMBERS: Ace is very relevant to the Levi, Nico and Hu plotlines right now. Are they really going to just... get rid of him, when that's what both Nico and Hu would want?

ABILITY TO FIGURE OUT THE CONTRAPTION: Ace would not only have to recognize the way in which Nico was trying to kill him (which, to be fair is easier if he did wake up partway through), he would also have to conceptualize and figure out how to make the playground contraption successfully. I think Eden's clockmaking skills and... generally higher intelligence imo would be better suited to that.

COWARDICE: Ace is so fucking scared of everything. Would he want to put himself into harm's way by becoming the killer and having a do or die moment in the Trial? But, is he more scared of dying as a victim in the killing game, after seeing how close Nico came to killing him?

Points About Ace That Could Go Either Way

TAYLOR LORE DROP: Ace's friend, named Taylor per a Q&A with the dev, got vagued about in this Trial. Is that something to be pursued in a later Ace free time (following the one with Levi), or is that something that's going to be explained further in Ace's bonus episode (which could VERY easily be about friendship, considering it's Mai fucking Akasaki as the other person in the convo).

ACE'S BREAKDOWN @ LEVI: When Ace said he didn't fall for Levi caring about him at all, was that him affirming himself that it was the correct decision to try to kill, even if it'd put Levi's life at stake, who he previously kinda liked? Or was he lying to himself, and, at least previously, he wouldn't have wanted to kill Levi, no matter how harsh he seemed on the surface?

Well, that's all I got! Please let me know if you can come up with any more points for any of the 6 categories, because I'm very very curious to hear them! I'm thinking I might try to do an expansion on this in a separate post before next episode if I have time, exploring the ins and outs of each point with more textual evidence to back it up. I'd love to discuss any reader-suggested points too, if y'all have some in mind!

For now, I'm still personally leaning towards Eden as the culprit over Ace, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it be either of them. Well, other than the fact that my reaction to the killer being revealed is going to be :O no matter what.

[nachosncheezies]

In defense of late-canon x files (including the revivals)

I was thinking about this poll after I commented on it, and I kinda want to be brave and say more.

Short answer to the poll's question before I go any further: If you're a new fan and a sensitive sort who thinks you'll struggle with your blorbos Really Going Through It and you really need a happy ending, I suggest you stop at the end of season 8. Do not pass go, do not look at spoilers. Disregard this post entirely, close the internet, and go look at something that makes you happy. (Also fuck every part of society that characterizes sensitivity as inherently weak and bad and some kind of personal failing, you are valid.)

That said, "quality" as a concept is entirely subjective, and the question of whether or not there's a decline in quality for any story is wholly subjective, too. In the case of x files? I'm not convinced there is a decline. I am going to be upfront that I haven't yet watched past season 8, though I am almost completely spoiled on events after that - and the reason I haven't watched yet is not because of how I know events are going to unfold, but simply because I don't want it to end!!! Ohh, the tension between "I CAN'T WAIT!!!" and "Nooo don't be over D:"

When I first came to txf fandom on tumblr and gradually became spoiled about what happens in late canon though, I was often left uncomfortable and tbh kinda queasy about it. As I said in my comment on the poll, the hate for especially the revival and IWTB, or to a lesser extent even seasons 8 & 9, is very well documented. But! There are other takes to be found here on tumblr if you figure out where to look, and my feelings have changed!

The thing is, I have yet to find myself in any fandom where there isn't a vocal subset of fans who dislike the story after a certain point. I am not joking when I say that no one hates the things they love as passionately as sci-fi and fantasy fans. In my experience, it often hinges on the extent to which a viewer has strong notions on where they would like the characters to end up. In particular with series where shipping is a dominant component for the bulk of a fandom, I have almost universally found that there comes some turning point in the story where "let them be happy you cowards" is the dominant view, and things that compromise the attainment of a degree of romantic stability and/or domesticity are, to many fans, annoying at best and despicable at worst. But! As one tagset on the linked poll said:

and I think for any fandom, that last tag especially is so so so important. (I think that's harder for people watching a weekly series live, bc you have so much time to analyze and speculate and dream before the next breadcrumb drops, but I digress.)

So why am I saying this and how do I apply it to x files? Well, I eventually found that there are also a subset of fans who find redeeming things right up to the very end and actually quite like the whole thing! The things that I had seen people rage and ventpost so much about honestly never quite sounded to me as "out of character" or "untrue to the story" etc as those same ventposts made them sound. And I've discovered I'm not the only one who felt that way. Do I love that the spooky squad had to go through all of those things? No, those poor guys D: Life is hard and they have been through so much trauma. But do those events and their choices make sense to me in light of everything that came before? Yes! And I honestly can't wait to see them fight to overcome those things, breaking, healing, always learning, always growing, always getting better.

So if you're wondering "where does it go wrong"... well, I'm a completionist, as many people who've answered that post are, but also my personal opinion is that I don't think it does go wrong. If you're new and interested in exploring why I've gone from "vaguely queasy" to "excited" about the whole thing, or want to maybe balance out the impressions you're getting about the later seasons before deciding whether or not you want to see the whole thing, I'll put a few blog names in the comments.

Final admission: even once I started feeling a little more confident in the possibility that "actually ok maybe I'm not crazy, maybe this all kind of is in character and does make sense", there was one big plot point that I was NOT looking forward to and I thought I would never be comfortable about. In hindsight, I think my discomfort came from the negative responses being SO seemingly universal that I hadn't stopped to let myself truly consider other possible interpretations on that point. (I mean my initial instinct when I first read about it was, why are we mad about this?? CSM is literally the most unreliable narrator in history???? it's obviously fake news?????? this must be either a fever dream someone's having or it's a misdirection ploy against whatever shadowy forces might still be lurking?????????????? but for whatever reason I guess I had halfway written that off.) Happily, just last month there's a new post-s11 novel out, and although reviews for the book as a whole are mixed, it seems to have laid the groundwork for resolving that plot issue in a way I think most fans would be broadly happy with. If you're interested in being spoiled about that and seeing how, I recommend searching #perihelion on @agent-troi who liveblogged reading it with receipts, scroll back chronological-style to the first post on the subject and see how it unfolded. (And never forget that Dana Katherine Scully is the queen of denial as a coping mechanism lol)

Everyone's mileage will vary. Each person can feel however they want! But for anyone new, I wanted you to know that the very many ventposts you might be seeing are not all there is to this show or its fandom. Some of us love it despite - or even because of - all the things that went "wrong". I think we just don't talk about it as much.

[2pen2wildfire]

"Transmascs can be lesbians but not trans men!" Ah yes because there's definitely a measurable, quantifiable difference between a trans man and a transmasc. It's not like people have their own life experiences and use the labels they feel comfortable with or anything. Not like someone might have a complicated relationship with womanhood and the sapphic experience while still fully identifying as a man. Definitely never a thing that happens. Jesus christ be so fucking fr.

[apocalypticdemon]

Be the change you want to see in the world

Behold, an unhinged, very approximate flow chart for each character on the ships, cobbled messily together in an unhinged 3-hour sprint I did right after I came home. Thank god for the Terror wiki. who tf are some of these guys.

Flowchart based on the ranking chart from Nelson's Navy: The Ships, Men, and Organization 1793-1815. It's outdated by about 30 years for the setting, but I am simply not hunting down the intricacies of naval rank shifts between 1815 and 1845. I'm a musicologist, not a naval historian

There was some guesswork on a few of the ranks; I couldn't quite figure how ice masters fit in here, nor the gunner's steward when there were no other mentions of gunners anywhere. ugh

[number1villainstan]

we need transman/transmasc characters who are a) butch dykes or/and b) absolute bastards of any variety--magnificent, sleazy, fucked-up, garden-variety, weaselly, queer-coded, with a heart of gold, any and all varieties! more butch trans men/mascs! more bastard trans men/mascs! the stereotype of "trans men are/want to be Just Some Guy" might be a step up from "trans men/mascs are all effeminate uwu softboys and can never be Real Men" but some of us want to show off!

[elvenbeard]

Ya boi has a job interview for a graphics design job today, wish me luck 🤘

[braceletofteeth]

But I can learn. I'm a quick learner.

[dewwshi]

@davekatweek 2023, day 7: "beginnings"

(n.) the point in time or space at which something begins.

[peppermintmochafem]

cute silly femme from my poetry class asked me to have a threesome with her and her gf… do you have any advice for me 🫠🫠

Threesome advice for you sweetheart ♡

So I think with threesomes the thing that makes it tricky is like mostly logistical like figuring out dynamics and positions and such so for me I don't approach it any differently it just might take longer for it to flow you know? But if you are worried about it you can always figure out some details beforehand

♡ watch for a while! (Ooh bonus if you hang out before watch their cutesy pda they will notice and like that) (bonus bonus if you touch yourself if that's your vibe or make little commentary)

♡ talk to each other about each other! ~ isn't it so cute how they.. etc etc~

♡ ask questions for dirty talk like "oh she's like when you do that? Does she like this?" type thing can be such a cute vibe and cut through awkwardness & it allows you to just try things or copy!

[gender-euphowrya]

spell of explode all transphobes Activate

[outeremissary]

Tagged by @arendaes to make a "creator vs creation" (Balthazar today) in this picrew, a reliable way to summon me. I really do carry a plushie around a lot of the time- if not in my hands, in my backpack. Today it was a Sylveon. His name is Lou. Or maybe Lu. Haven't formalized a spelling yet.

I haven't really been online and don't know where this has or hasn't been, so I won't be tagging anyone ^^;;

[romance-rambles]

you know what. YOU KNOW WHAT.

i need to see ehlonna&alkaid&clarence content. i need clarence struggling with two kids on his own. feeling the same guilt that he feels with amelia, and it—it never quite goes away. how can it ever go away?

ehlonna is dead—she died with a smile. she died still trusting him. if alkaid betrays him? well, frankly, clarence can't blame him. he's the reason ehlonna is dead.

but he needs to go on. he has to, for godheim's sake. for his savior's sake. he can't care about someone's disapproval. he gave that right up long ago

and in alkaid's first bad ending? do you think he consoles himself by reminding himself that alkaid would die anyway?

he's a mage—he has no future. he's a mage—he betrayed clarence first. he's a mage—he should never have been trusted.

he's alkaid—one of the two mages clarence trusts. one of the two mages he saw grow up. in a better world, they could've had a happier childhood. he could've given them a happier childhood.

because no matter how many he loses people, he still cares so deeply about everyone he meets.

and the worst part is—even in the end, neither of them hated him. even in the bad ends, i doubt alkaid ever hated him—because while alkaid is very particular in regards to mc, i also think the amount of trust alkaid has in clarence would never translate to pure hatred. a part of him will always care for the man who took him in.

and on the flipside, i need godheim-adjacent aus. need clarence being made fun of for not knowing how to handle two kids—then immediately offered all the wisdom lars' parents can offer him.

need baby alkaid and ehlonna trying to surprise him for his birthday but they just, do not know when it is. so they guess and pick the date they met—then clarence tells them later when his birthday is.

need someone to unintentionally pick on the kids, only to earn clarence's ire. how dare you. those are his kids, you can't hurt—oh wait what was the first part?

need clarence leaving for some important business, leaving them in lars' family's care, but he's definitely checking in on them as often as he can. what if they get hurt. what if they feel uncomfortable. what if. what if what if what if—

essentially all the childcare manhwa tropes!! but with these three!!