#The Society season two

[xanzilopterix]

I can't stop wondering if angels or demons would even kiss

Is that something they do?

I've seen people comment that the Aziraphale Crowley kiss looks kinda stiff and awkward but I think that makes it better

Neither of them have ever kissed before

It's a human thing to do

It just feels right that in a moment of pure emotion and desperation, Crowley would do something so human

A kiss that carries the weight of all the time they spent together on earth, not in heaven, not in hell, just the pair of them, on their own side

"when you're gone, remember us, remember how we could have been different"

[purpleshimmer]

I will now be petitioning for a chem baron spinoff show. I will personally go into millions of dollars of debt to fund it

and before you say “spinoff shows always suck!” this one won’t because I said so

[letsplaythermalnuclearwar]

me, watching season 2 of Prodigy, every time Janeway and Chakotay are on screen: KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS KI-

[howler-moon]

Arcane is making me violent

In other news spoilers under the cut

I'm so poor at writing out my thoughts but has anyone else noticed the red (or pink i suppose....it looks more red from a distance) on Caitlyn's hands in the new intro, its not something I've seen be brought up in the whole 2 days Act one has been out and it maybe be a stretch but i think it's fair to assume it implies she's going to have some blood on her hands

Apologies for the abysmal quality but considering how she's being engulfed by her grief and her need for revenge and she's now head of martial law it makes me wonder how far shes going to go. Cait i love you but you've already broken the Geneva Convention once don't do it again </3

[nobodysdaydreams]

Maybe it's just me, but why was Number Two’s stereotypically rural American family with stereotypically rural American sounding accents who were too afraid to leave the house somehow living in Luxembourg? I watch scenes with them and have to remind myself that they are in Europe and not the rural United States.

It's a weird detail to notice, but the only thing that makes sense is that the mom moved to Europe, stuff happened to make her super paranoid, she settled in Luxembourg, and then never left the house and shamed Number Two for trying to leave. So Number Two and her siblings were born there and never left the house/property, which explains why they have American accents (and everything else about them).

[e-louise-bates]

I am about 18 pages into the introduction of Winters in the World: A Journey through the Anglo-Saxon Year by Eleanor Parker, and am happy to report that not only does she cite references properly (and explains in the preface that some of the translations are her own work and that's why they don't have citations), she has also managed, in 18 pages (of merely the introduction!) to make a better case against the myth of the Dark Ages, without trying to make that exact point but merely as the result of discussing things like calendars and such, than the authors of The Bright Ages did in the entire 3/4 of the book that I read before I finally decided I had better things to do with my life and threw it aside.

[bisupergirl]

cowardly star trek tng writers couldn't handle the potential earth-shattering yuri of crusher and pulaski they had to prevent them from being on the enterprise at the same time...

[nebuvoid]

I beg to differ to anyone in the tag saying My new boss is goofy is 'cute BL bait' - there's a big difference between bait and queer media that just doesn't focus on direct romance. Just because they aren't shwinging around big yaoi dicks doesn't mean it's not clearly gay. Sometimes it doesn't need to be in your face, gay things are allowed to be subtle without being dubbed as bait or censored. ...though you really can't call this show subtle, there's literally something homosexual happening every 2 minutes. Hell it doesn't even matter if either couples get into a stated relationship - they clearly have no problem mentioning ex-boyfriends or dates with men. That's gay.

[sapphire-society]

[personinthepalace]

If I had a nickel for every time a major streaming service cancelled a beloved book-to-tv show adaptation (of my favorite books!) after adapting just the first two books then I would have two nickels

I'm just really tired of this happening guys. I would like the less well-known books to win for once

[autumnoakes]

man... rhoam's "redemption" in aoc really sucked, huh?

like botw SHOWED us, several times, how much pressure rhoam put on zelda to unlock her powers, despite her telling him, several times, that it wasn't working. he got angry and banned her from doing not only something she saw as useful, but something that she was clearly very interested in and passionate about because she "wasn't dedicating enough time to her prayers." yes, his diary expresses regret for it, but at the end of the day, if zelda saw that it wouldn't mean much to her. the actions rhoam took, and the way zelda grew up under so much pressure that she nearly died as a child in one of the springs (this is in urbosa's diary, iirc) mean so much more than his regrets and his intentions. it took him nearly 10 years to realize that he fucked up, and by that point it was too late. the calamity had returned, and rhoam had lost any chance he had at making things right with zelda.

meanwhile, in aoc, all that's there is some half-hearted scene in the temple of time that's supposed to make everything better? yes, aoc had a very different and arguably better outcome than the calamity that led to botw, but the damage was still done by rhoam. it's still the same hurts and abuse and trauma that he put his daughter through all because of the prophesized calamity.

[amarimeta]

wait okay. on the topic of people not enjoying the leftovers like i do. my friend's parents started it towards the end of january (per my recommendation of course) and i was getting very minimal updates from my friend. three weeks ago she texts and she's like "my dad is coming around to it but my mom still hates it. they're on season 3 btw" i'm like OKAYYYYYY HE'S COMING AROUND TO IT!!!!!!!!!! two days ago she texts me like "yea i think they've given up on it. my dad might finish it on his own but my mom didn't like it" so then i start wondering where in season 3 they left off. did they get to see _________? she checks the family hbo and they're on season two. episode nine.

EXCUSE ME?!?!?!?? U MEAN TO TELL ME YOU JUST WATCHED THE LEFTOVERS SEASON TWO EPISODE EIGHT "INTERNATIONAL ASSASSIN" ONE OF THE BEST EPISODES OF TELEVISION TO EVER AIR AND YOU JUST. STOPPED??????

[forlibcrty]

all the bridgert*n talk on the dash, perfect time to think about mid-fifties connor in england dealing with all this.

[ladyluscinia]

I do have to appreciate (?) how hard the haters work to ensure their definition of bigotry is Izzy-escape proof. I mean, yeah, if you are saying that it's functionally impossible for him to not be some flavor of bigoted because technically the very concept of having socially informed ideas about ways to be a man and men's behavior is intrinsically linked to homophobia and misogyny and racism, and therefore expressing any negative opinion on how a male character is behaving counts as such...? Alright then? Telling a man not to sob over a breakup (even with a hypothetical woman!) is homophobia AND misogyny if you consider the social reason that would draw attention as a behavior to criticize and our society's collective idea of masculinity. You've defeated me with your social studies thesis logic on Every Insult Under The Sun Can Be Traced To Bigotry 🤷‍♀️

But in practice I still just don't think it's worthwhile to say the antagonist with the literal raison d'etre of not being 100% supportive and approving of the protagonists in order to cause conflict is being irredeemable or violently bigoted by *checks notes* insulting men in the story about men. Just like I don't think Stede or Edward or the rest of the crew are being irredeemable bigots by also having socially informed ideas about masculinity???

Like, looking at it that way Stede is a clear misogynist (and more, but we'll stick with just the misogyny bit). I don't think he even realizes he is one, but the whole Mary sequence and just being a man in the 1700s makes it pretty obvious. He might do less misogyny in the future on account of just not interacting with women (suspect behavior tbh), but fundamentally he has not remotely addressed or deconstructed the misogynistic ideas that shape his entire perspective. Honestly, he's probably not going to at this point. They drew attention to his worst behaviors under the framing of just kinda being a self-centered ass, made him realize he fucked up and apologize to the woman he hurt over the course of about 15 minutes, and then sent them both toward happier endings.

Is this story saying that misogyny is actually fine and misogynists are admirable and likable people? Or that misogyny is just a surface level form of bigotry that doesn't really affect your attitude toward women once you stop being an ass? Or, maybe, is the story just not about misogyny???

And if it's not about misogyny despite being literally incapable of avoiding characters expressing misogyny (since in reality that's not so cleanly excised), then why on earth does it have to be about homophobia? Is it just because the leads are gay men?

Like, I'm sorry, but media for 5-year-olds has long been able to tell stories about antagonists learning that it's okay for boys to cry and be emotionally vulnerable and it's mean to make fun of them without insanely complex layers of deconstructing homophobia or intensive requirements to overcome internalized biases. I bet OFMD can teach that lesson without explicit, targeted homophobia. No one is denying in serious meta that Izzy has been an ass? Or that character development to be less of an ass is the logical next step?

I'm not disputing their assertion that Izzy is homophobic because I think the writing team accomplished the impossible and erased homophobia from the background hum of existence for this one TV show. I'm disputing it because the essential second half of said assertation is that this is a meaningfully included and emphasized part of his characterization that will typically justify his future karmic punishment for bigotry and/or require much greater redemptive effort of him to get any sort of neutral-to-happy ending on the table. That's why they care about it. The effect on the story!

If the story isn't about homophobia, then no, the antagonist doesn't usually have "homophobic" as a character trait I need to account for.

And twisting that fairly straightforward narrative interpretation into some kinda gotcha about "So you deny insulting gay men with gendered insults has shades of homophobia?!?" is - to borrow a phrase Lucius used against Stede - "kind of a bitchy question."

[skeletons-in-ur-closet]

not the blog for this ik but i finished arcane s2 and i have Thoughts

[wellpresseddaisy]

9 January, 1978

Lucius stood courteously at the head of the dining room table as the ladies filed out with Cissa. When the door shut behind the last rustling skirt, the gentlemen sat, relaxed now they were alone. The candles burned low in the candelabra down the great length of the table, the flame occasionally picking out the tawny gleam of decanted port. 

Velvet curtains of the deepest silver were closed against the chill of the winter night. Snow lay thick across the park, though the waxing moon and cloudless sky they'd been promised meant travel wouldn't prove too treacherous later. 

"Excellent dinner, Lucius, as always." Yaxley smiled thinly. "If you'll excuse me, though, I should find my wife. Had something I wanted to ask her."

"I'll pass on the compliment to Narcissa." Lucius nodded at the man as he left the room, ignoring the wafer thin excuse.

"Now, Lucius, there's something more important than dinner to discuss." Avery slapped the table. "An' I'm going to be indelicate, but it's Snape. High time you found someone for him. He's eighteen! Not gettin' any younger."

Lucius stared at the man. Avery and Mulciber had taken Severus under their dubious protection when he left Hogwarts. He really hadn't known what Severus saw in either of them, but the boy took to the pair like a puppy. They must have seemed glamorous, somehow, two years older than him.

"Wanted Mulciber and the Mudblood." Rowle, deep in his cups and thankfully at the far end of the table, chortled. "At's 'is problem. 'E wanned both."

Everyone stared as he thumped forward onto the table. 

"Thankfully, I had warned the footmen." Lucius drawled. 

A guilty snicker ran around the table. 

"No one ever knew what he wanted, was the problem. Except potions and he's doin' a Mastery already. Could sponsor him to Oxford, I suppose. S'what you do with brainboxes, isn't it?" Mulciber sighed. "Always had too much brain, Severus did. Brain and nerves."

"Why, if we're being indelicate, is it my responsibility to find our problem child a match?" Lucius asked lightly. 

"You and Narcissa know everyone, Lucius. Simply everyone. Surely you know someone who'd…well…take him in hand. As it were." Avery insisted. "He needs a nice…er…husband, maybe?"

"I have suggested no less than seventeen suitable matches, to date. He doesn't want a husband." Lucius sighed.

"Not want a husband?" Avery repeated. He tended to do that, as if he could only understand a concept from his own mouth. "Why the devil not? He doesn't want a wife, does he? Never been that wrong about a chap before."

"He does not." Lucius assured him. "Your reputation is safe, Waltham. Druella Heathcote was interested until he spent an entire dinner explaining the best way to gut rats."

"Rats?" Mulciber's voice had a strained quality. "The poor gel. Cathcart's given him a look or two. Good chap, Cathcart."

"He'd rather purposefully spring a were trap on his leg and then chew himself free. He's willing to leave the leg."

"Gibson?" Avery tried.

"I believe he felt drowning in flobberworm mucus preferable."

"Witherwaite? He isn't gettin' any younger, but he's always wanted a sharp one."

"Boiled in his own cauldron."

"Hallowfield? He's a bit like old Withers but a bit more biddable. As they go."

"Trampled to death by toads."

"The trouble is, we've spoilt him." Mulciber growled. "What about one of those Russians you know? They seem the imperious type. He likes that, y'know."

"He threatened to move to…where was it? Ah, yes, Outer Mongolia. Or possibly Newfoundland."

"What about you and Narcissa? She seems to like him well enough? You'd keep him out of trouble." Avery grasped at straws.

"The Malfoy contracts are strictly bi-partite. The only one coming to my marriage bed is Narcissa. Regrettably for both of us." Lucius winked at the pair. 

Was he a bit foxed? He hoped not, but the port was particularly nice. How did one measure one's level of foxedness?

"Damn!" Avery muttered. "There's got to be someone he'll take."

"He told me that husbands stopped you doing anything really interesting and he likes what he's doing now." Mulciber admitted it mournfully. "He especially said anyone with, well, our ideals, wouldn't let him do anything remotely fun."

"Of course they wouldn't!" Avery slapped the table again. "He'd be…he'd be taken care of. Properly. His blood line's good enough if you ignore the father and his manners are…there…if you ignore his habit of hissing at people he doesn't like. But he shouldn't be running about loose like he is."

"He's too bloody independent. And spoiled." Mulciber declared. "We should have been…well I don't know. He bit you if you tried to tell him what to do. Not you, though, Lucius. Or Narcissa."

"He knew much better than to bite Narcissa." Lucius agreed. 

"I just want to see him…cared for." Avery spoke quietly. "And…and out of this damned mess. If he had a husband like you he wouldn't be in it." He gestured at Lucius.

"I've suggested everyone like me I could with a clear conscience. Unfortunately, I'm not head of his family. I can't really make him do anything." And he'd certainly looked for any connection at all. 

The Princes had a habit of marrying outside England. The sods. The one time he wished for a family connection and the magical community's marriage habits let him down completely.

"We looked, as well. They marry out. Always have. Suppose that's why his mother…well, the less said the better." Mulciber traced patterns in the damask tablecloth.

"Surely he'd take Hadley? Absolute sport, Hadley." Avery tried one last time.

"He would rather snuggle a hippogryph."