#Mirroring

[soulmaking]

"Mirror" by Rita Dove

[uwhe-arts]

daydreaming . . . | uwhe-arts

[inchidentally]

Oscar picking up the “training camp” and Lando’s proud “uh huh!”

Oscar saying “we’re back” way too much and Lando teasing him

Lando saying “you did” to Montenegro idk that’s adorable bc like we can safely assume they filled each other in either once they got back or during the trips

Oscarisms like “well, laid on the rocks… cuz there’s no sand” tickling Lando like they tickle us lasfgljsagfjla

Lando clearly not knowing what’s in the south west of France

the mirroring each other’s words !! Oscar predicting Lando’s words by default whenever Lando pauses bc Lando might have gotten stuck !! idk I think I’ve said before but it feels like their little coded way of doing these videos bc it feels so silly to be talking to each other like talk show hosts on camera so they do their little mirroring as an inside joke and just…they are so mutually disinterested in making their dynamic and relationship PR-ified or translating it for fans and media that they keep doing those shared looks and little in-joke moments bc it feels so weird to play ‘pretend talking’ for the cameras - and Lando always saying things like how he sees himself as “relaxed” and similar to Lando in being “just a normal guy” and then them both choosing to not share their downtime with fans at all. for all that we love how we get so much high quality content from Lando w Carlos and Daniel, it’s interesting how evident it is now that Lando really did lean on those two for how camera-friendly and easy with the public their dynamics and relationships were and are. Lando being easy to get along with is all down to him tbh it’s just a quality he has - but that now we’re seeing a much more naturally Lando-type teammate relationship with Oscar bc he’s actually as nervous/anxious around cameras and crowds as Oscar is.

so idk I say it allllll the time but it’s just rly cute how they squirrel away and have their little privacy door at the hub and then when they have to peep their heads out and be on camera or on stage they all but huddle together and hold hands and eyeball everyone warily. (probably also why they get the twins from the shining comparison salfgalfjgal bc the finishing sentences and mirroring can easily be creepy if you don’t think it’s cute ???)

and as always Oscar babe Lando didn't say anything that funny it's just a comment about neck training <3 <3

[jarpadandjensens]

J2 | AHBL 2024 | mirroring

[funeral]

[rosstrytobe]

THEY WERE REALLY MIRROING EACH OTHER AND BE LIKE THAT LIKE...

[buckaroo627]

Ryan and Oliver: trust between and they matter

What we see is the trust between them.

[notafanjustpassionate]

LOOK AT THIS: both with their hands on the waist, same posture and face 🗣️🗣️

[crimson-and-clover-1717]

Mundus Inversus (or something about feet)

In 203, Ed gives himself up to the dark blue waters of purgatory. His feet are bare, a symbol often associated with death and mourning in art and literature, and his soles are facing upwards. Ed’s literally turning up his toes; dying.

The scene cuts immediately to Stede’s slippered feet, continuing, but altering the motif. The slippers are blue, similar to Ed’s surroundings; but as well as being clothed, indicating a living state, Stede’s feet are contrary to Ed’s - soles down, signifying life. Importantly, Stede’s feet are also in contact with water.

What strikes me is the clarity of the reflection of Stede’s feet, a soles up, but clothed, living version of Ed’s. And if we think about this reflection, it might stretch all the way down, meaning there is an upside down ‘living’ Stede in a sort of Mundus Inversus or mirror world.

Stede’s feet are also getting wet, and if we believe in the truths of folklore, certain ‘monsters’ transform in such conditions.

Our inverted Stede emerges out of the darkness into Ed’s purgatory, transformed. Tail replacing feet, pointing upwards, mimicking Ed’s death plunge. Stede enters this mirror world and meets Ed where he is.

There is also a kind of evolutionary inversion to Stede’s appearance, a fetal shape in a womb-like state. And of course, This Woman’s Work is playing, indicating a chance for rebirth.

As they mirror one another, neither Stede nor Ed are inverted any longer; they are soles (tail) down, ready to ascend out of this upside-down mirror world into a state of renewal.

And as they ascend, we glimpse them in the post-credit scene, returned each by their own agency, heads above water, back to the land of the living.

They have moved from soles mirroring to souls mirroring. Choosing life, together.

(some ideas inspired by @follows-the-bees)

[theniceandaccurategoodomensblog]

I keep puzzling over the bizarre mirroring with Maggie and Nina and I keep coming back to the idea that Maggie is Aziraphale and Nina is Crowley after all.

Read more under the cut or on AO3 here.

Let me explain. We are initially set up to think of Maggie as the Aziraphale mirror and Nina as the Crowley mirror. Then when we see Nina’s abusive relationship we reconsider. It looks rather like Aziraphale’s relationship with Heaven. Is this a mirroring switch? That would make sense except then the single biggest piece of Maggie = Aziraphale mirroring happens: Nina calls Aziraphale Maggie right in front of Crowley. So if it is a mirroring switch, then it switches right back again. Why?

What is going on? What can this possibly mean?

The thing is, the thing is… the only mirroring that points to Maggie being Crowley and Nina being Aziraphale is the abusive relationship itself…

If we exclude that then all of the mirroring points to Maggie as Aziraphale and Nina as Crowley.

That is:

Maggie = Aziraphale

-Record shop instead of a Bookshop

-Style and clothing

-Sunshiney personality

-Maggie says she’s “not that kind of person” in connection to Lindsay thinking she’s Nina’s bit on the side

-Maggie is connected to Aziraphale and the Bookshop from birth through her family

-Maggie doesn’t drink but there’s “no judgement” for Nina’s drinking (yes Aziraphale drinks but Crowley started drinking first and is more likely to drink to excess)

-Nina calls Maggie angel in front of Crowley.

Nina = Crowley

-Style - the coolness factor

-Grumpy exterior

-Nina herself connects herself to Crowley and Maggie to Aziraphale

-Give me coffee or give me death- if coffee is a metaphor for freedom then Nina is playing the role of the Serpent, dispensing freedom

-Crowley says to Nina “trust someone for once in your life” (and the person he’s telling her to trust is Aziraphale).

-Nina wants to cope with the break up with Lindsay by drinking alcohol and crying in her empty flat.

And the other thing is — Nina’s abusive relationship with Lindsay does not perfectly mirror Aziraphale’s relationship with Heaven. If it did, we’d see Nina being manipulated into getting back with Lindsay and we don’t. Instead, what we see is Lindsay breaking up with Nina. We see an abusive relationship where the abuser calls it quits and ends the relationship. Now, who do we know who had an abusive relationship with God/Heaven and then was dumped by God/Heaven? Not Aziraphale. Crowley!

And the other other thing is the purpose of mirroring is to tell the reader/audience something about the main characters that they do not already know from the main characters directly. We all know that Aziraphale is in an abusive relationship with Heaven. It is obvious from watching Aziraphale interaction with the Metatron directly. But what if it is telling us something more about Crowley’s past or current relationship with Heaven? Could that tell us something new? Absolutely! There’s much about the war and the Fall and the aftermath of it all that is unknown.

So, let’s take seriously the possibility that Maggie is a mirror for Aziraphale and Nina a mirror for Crowley and see where that leads us…

Lindsay is controlling and passive-aggressive. They demand utter devotion from Nina and when she fails to meet this impossible standard Lindsay breaks it off with Nina in favour of moving in with her sister who apparently cares for her in the impossibly devoted way she expects. This sounds just like God and Heaven casting out Crowley and the other demons in favour of the angels who were sufficiently devoted according to God/Heaven’s impossible standards.

In the aftermath of the break up Nina understands that Maggie is in love with her but she also knows that she is not ready for a relationship just yet.

I can see two possible readings of this (and it could be a bit of both).

The first possibility is that Maggie and Nina are there to show us a piece of Aziraphale and Crowley’s past, a slice of time we haven’t seen directly— the war, the Fall and the immediate aftermath. Has Aziraphale loved Crowley since meeting him in Heaven? Was it Crowley who held back in the early years?

The other possibility is that the mirroring is telling us something about Crowley’s current state that isn’t readily apparent. That is, that he is not psychologically ready for a relationship with Aziraphale (whether he knows this or not) because he still hasn’t healed sufficiently from the Fall. This isn’t about Crowley loving Aziraphale or not or him wanting to declare his love or not. It is about the fact that, like Nina, he still needs to psychologically heal in order to be ready for a healthy and happy relationship. This is consistent with a demon who continues to act out the Fall with his plants, who doesn’t tell his best friend that he is living in his car and who is oblivious to obvious romantic overtures.

We are used to the idea that it is Aziraphale who holds the relationship back while Crowley goes too fast but the mirroring suggests that there’s another dynamic to the dance too. This is consistent with what we see in season two— Aziraphale making romantic overtures and Crowley missing them. Perhaps it is not just Aziraphale who is setting the slow pace of their romance.

It also gives context to how Crowley responds in the Final Fifteen, especially if you suspect that Aziraphale may be lying or trying to send Crowley subtle cues. Of course Crowley misses them. He is right back in his trauma place hearing the loud and angry love is being asked for impossible things and being rejected forever klaxon sounding.

The mirroring leaves us in a hopeful place, however, Aziraphale will wait until Crowley is ready, has been waiting until Crowley is ready this whole time in fact.

[uwhe-arts]

everything flows . . . | uwhe-arts

[inchidentally]

not the mirroring nervous tongue thing after laughing at each other above Andrea’s head

[scratchybeardsweetmouth]

Mirroring my gaffer/boss | Ted Lasso 3x02

[justc2world]

These two 😮‍💨

[rosstrytobe]

THEY REALLY NEED TO STAND UP PLEASE WHAT WAS THAT: