#WHEN I TELL YOU THIS EPISODE FUCKED ME RIGHT UP!!!!!

[utilitycaster]

What do you mean (from your latest post) that you think that many actual play failures are failures of ambition?

Usually, when an actual play show doesn't click for me, it's because the GM or players aimed very high or tried to push the boundaries (of the medium or system) and it didn't quite land right. It's a pretty new medium, and while I've been very openly disparaging of how much many writers in the AP space focus overmuch on novelty over consistent quality, I do think these failures are important! I think it's good to play with what the medium can be! I just think that sometimes, it does indeed fail.

Examples off the top of my head:

Too much plot for allotted length: EXU Prime was fun to watch but I think this plot really needed to be a 16-20 episode season, not an 8 episode one, which meant that we never really learned Myr'atta's motivation or the deal with Ted until years later in the real world despite that being the core plot. Similar issues have come up with various D20 seasons; I think running a one- or two- session story isn't too hard to do, or running a longform campaign isn't too hard to do, but 8 or 10 or 20 episodes can be really difficult to plan for properly, and a lot of people overfill.

Trying to bend the system too far: I wrote a long-ass post I cannot find about this for a few D20 seasons as well (notably Neverafter) and I've fallen off of WBN for a few reasons but in part because it really increasingly feels like D&D is the wrong system - the classes of D&D support the worldbuilding, but the pace and style and magic system of D&D increasingly feel like they and the narrative are in conflict.

Trying to fit in An Important Message: the infamous Rusty Quill Gaming Everything Changes [now make a monumental decision we have not once explored in 7 real world years of telling this story, in the last half of the last episode] is a big one here. This is not unique to AP (this is why Battlestar Galactica's ending is widely panned) but I think the nature of actual play makes it more likely because to some extent you as the GM must relinquish a good degree of control.

Not realizing what you need to plan for: ultimately, in my opinion, the failure of Campaign 3. I don't think the problem is that Matt wanted to bring everything together across multiple campaigns; I don't think this is a cheap setup with a pre-determined outcome (though I could be proven wrong); I think the problem is that there needed to be a much more stringent character creation process and on-rails early plot to actually get from point A to point B in a way that felt natural within the story.

Trying to break production value records while neglecting story: With the caveat that I hated nearly every second of the hour of Kollok I watched, I have yet to see a review that talks about anything it does other than how good the production values are (*whisper* they're not even that good). Burrow's End had some really good aesthetic/filming choices and some really not good ones on top of having a story I found weak; the season of Candela Obscura I thought had the strongest story had no split-screen film edits. This could just be that my AP introduction was TAZ Balance followed by simultaneous C1 and early C2, but like...I've heard incredible actual play with no music and no fancy lighting and no sound effects and no official character art, and I've watched some heavily produced stuff that had the plot of a fucking Ed Wood movie and was utterly joyless to boot. Story first; accessibility production values (clean and clear sound, transcripts, making all speakers visible if you're a filmed production) second; anything else should ONLY come after that.

[scoobydoodean]

#but is this a safe space to be honest tho#definitely letting that go on and on unaddressed was in character for Dean and he was handling it#good for him#but i was a bit baffled that everyone else was like#oh you got this then? good deal#i mean i know they were worried but it just seemed ooc that sam and cas weren't like obsessively trying to deal with it#they both know how strong arch angels can be#and sam especially would have baggage about having an angel hanging out and banging on your brain cells indefinitely...#idk just seemed weird#but dean#good job sweetie#we're all so proud (via @minxyone93)

No but you're right. Like. Not to turn a simple post about Dean being a badass into a bitter post but you're RIGHT. Dean was worried enough about his control slipping and Michael escaping to make his mal'ak box plan. One would think that that would have impressed the seriousness of Dean's condition on the group. But two episodes later in Ouroboros, Sam is already being avoidant again and ignoring that Dean is not okay. When Rowena pushes him on how Dean is possibly managing, he insists that Dean is fine, "Because he's Dean. And Dean is Dean. He's fine." Sam insists that working is what's best for all of them, when it objectively isn't. It is a stupid and unnecessary risk to place Dean in the line of fire, and it backfires absolutely spectacularly.

Cas notes while they are working the case that Dean just sitting and drinking a cup of coffee is a herculean feat. And Dean opens up to him about not being okay, and also about feeling he is not really allowed to say that because dealing is expected of him no matter what.

Castiel: Are you really fine? Dean: I don't know, Cas. But that's what I'm supposed to say, right? "I'm fine," keep on moving? That's what we all say. Castiel: No, Dean. Dean: Okay. There's this pounding in my head. It never stops. Michael's in there, and he is fighting hard to get out. And I can't let my guard down not for a second. I'm barely even sleeping. Castiel: Well, that's not sustainable. Dean: No. No. It's probably not. But no point in complaining about it. It's on me. Castiel: No. It's on us. We are here to help you.

Dean tells Cas he is barely sleeping and that he cannot let his guard down for even a second, and Cas says that is unsustainable and that they're there to help him... but... are they? Because Dean being on this case at all is absolutely idiotic given the information Dean has previously and just now revealed about the tenuous hold he has on Michael. And still... no one suggests that Dean does not have to force himself to do this case with them— that it's a bad idea to bring Dean on a case involving an incredibly powerful, slippery monster they've never faced before while Dean is barely able to sleep and unable to let his guard down for even a moment. And lo and behold—Dean's head gets repeatedly smashed into a fucking wall and Michael gets out.

You ever just remember Dean kept an archangel trapped in his mind for months on nothing but sheer willpower?

[violetmuses]

Roman Reigns + Female Reader 🖤

Fandom: WWE

Character: Roman Reigns

@episodes-ff @expert-texpert @persethegawd @adriennegabriella @fearlesschimera @secretlifeoofmarpessa @mytribalnightmare @adoresmiles @blackgurlnhermoods @babybratzmaraj 🏷

=====

2021

Out of nowhere, unexpected rumors had spread all over the place that you've broken up with Roman Reigns and quietly found someone else.

Despite outlets pushing questions, you just kept working regardless, still laughing with your “brothers” Jimmy and Jey Uso nowadays.

“Hey!” Jimmy and Jey offered their special greeting when you entered behind the scenes.

“Goofball!” You laughed about nicknames before sitting. Cameras rolled for the segment. “Planning to see me again?”

“Only if you're cooking. I'm not staying around hotel meals.” Jey topped vibrant sunglasses.

“Both of you still have my number. Remember that.” Your kind grin brightened as always.

“All right…we'll be there...” Gentle crosstalk mumbled when Jimmy and Jey nodded, definitely planning to visit.

Yet, joyful energy dimmed once another person crossed this space.

Roman arrived.

Not yet fighting in the ring, this bun topped dark hair.

One beard smoothed his chin while brown eyes kept scoping every single corner. This black wardrobe had clothed his muscular physique.

“Got quiet. What's up?” Roman offered his Southern accent and pocketed both hands, curious.

“Nothing’s going on.” Jimmy shrugged first. Even Jey didn't know what to think.

Taking out your cell phone, you scrolled next to Jimmy like nothing happened and ignored Reigns.

As this segment played out, thousands of people almost gasped beyond the venue walls for you.

In truth, you started texting badass wrestler Naomi, Jimmy's wife and your best friend.

You: Red Alert! 🚨

Naomi: No! I can't leave hair and makeup right now. What happened?! 💚👀

You: Roman's here! 😳

Naomi: Don't panic. Just talk to each other. Love you! 🫂🫶🏾 💚

You: I'll try. Love you too. 🥺

Putting away the device, your eyes watched as Jimmy and Jey bid farewell to exit, sharing their embrace before leaving Roman with you.

________

Following one commercial break, silent air thickened when your segment returned to the locker room.

Roman welcomed this moment and both of you stood completely aware.

“What's wrong? Talk to me.” His strong yet easing voice would calm your dreams until now.

Even when this man joined the comfortable sofa, you know better. His brown eyes still watched your every move.

“It's important.” You just can't hide the truth anymore.

“Go ahead.” Roman didn't even smile and absolutely noticed the grieving sight of your presence.

“I don't love you anymore.” You no longer veiled reality, heartbroken.

“What?” Almost laughing, Roman scrunched up his chiseled face. “Princess…”

“Don't touch me. I'm serious.” You stepped back, fed up.

For quite a while, Roman Reigns worked as the Tribal Chief while shaming your brothers. Jimmy and Jey have suffered long enough at this point.

“Listen…” Roman tried.

“If you go around hurting Jimmy and Jey, what am I supposed to do?!” You shouted, prompting warm tears. Makeup would dampen all over your face.

“I'm sorr…” Before Roman could say anything else and apologize, you stormed out, encouraged by fans who cheered no matter what.

Fuck! Reigns yelled within.

*****

“Who lied, dammit?!” Marching forward, Roman ducked the ring and almost barked, enraged following this breakup.

“We didn't lie about anything! It's true.” Jimmy and Jey scrambled to respond for you as fans yelled in all directions. “She's done with your ass!”

“Who does she want now, huh? Who crossed my baby? Tell me!” As dark tresses of loose hair kept shadowing his face, Roman fumed directly underneath spotlights.

“A-Town Down!” Just before everyone could respond again, this nearly robotic sound picked up in the large-scale venue.

“Oh my gosh! Mr. Money In The Bank arrived. Austin Theory pulled the fray.” Commentators would dramatize this moment for television.

“Move, man!” Jimmy and Jey hurried to leave this ring, watching elsewhere before Roman spiraled.

“Reigns erupted with Theory! We can't even relay hits yet. You'll see utter chaos!” Announcers struggled through madness as the crowd lost their minds.

“Piece of shit! Look up when I'm talking to you. Huh? You'll never be like me.” Censors barely caught drops of explicit language when Roman pulled Austin's collar.

“I care…” Austin struggled, hardly, able to stand up. “Leave us alone…”

Kneeling, Roman alluded to forces by reaching Austin's chin and prompted eye contact.

“My baby, she's mine!” Roman's Southern accent deepened as he faced the backstage cameras and knew that you watched everything right now.

Fed up, Reigns nearly shoved Austin back down and exited the ring, devastated.

“The Tribal Chief just lost his Queen, ladies and gentlemen. An unexpected chapter has now turned pages.” Announcers pulled heartstrings to end this broadcast.

[whatdidtheydotomygirljinx]

Why Episode 7 is the worst episode in all of Season 2.

This fuckass Timebomb ship is the worst thing to ever happen to Jinx's character.

Ok so finally we're gonna talk about Boy Savior Complex and AU Girl Next Door Powder

This is gonna be long. Also, we're not only talking about Episode 7 and Timebomb, we're also discussing Jinx's suicide attempt and how her character's resolution is actually really sad.

First of all, Jinx never liked Ekko back. Season 1 makes it pretty clear that they're friends, and that Ekko has an unrequited crush on her. His feelings are clear, but she never shows any reciprocation. And, no, the art book that came out after season 2 concluded doesn't count. You can't just put "the boy with the unrequited crush" trope in your story and then retract it.

And now to get to the serious part... who the fuck is AU Powder?

Ekko gets transported into this alternate timeline where we the audience soon realize everyone is happy and none of the conflicts that plague the original story exist and everything is perfect and "as it should be". So this is the ideal world and the one where all these characters reach their highest form of happiness. Even Silco is back with Vander.

And in this ideal world Powder is... a waitress at The Last Drop? I rewatched this episode and I genuinely tried to pay attention to see what does she actually DO. Like what occupies her time in this universe. And between Vander's line about how she's "too smart to be spending her life in a bar" and the fact that she is at one point behind the counter (while Ekko is studying his books... imma get back to that) and the fact that we never see her in any other places besides the bar and her hideout and that one time Ekko takes her out... this seems to be it.

So in the perfect timeline, Powder has decided to stay back with her family once she's grown up, to remain with Vander and help him run his bar, and implicitly has no big ambitions of her own, and definitely no ideas that she would sacrifice her family life for.

Now... Powder/Jinx as a family person is not actually wrong characterization. This is pretty congruent with her character in season 1. Her entire story and literally everything revolves around her family and not much else. When she's Powder she's attached at the hip to Vi and when she's Jinx she doesn't seem too interested in the world outside of her hideout and Silco's office. So considering all we know, yes, Jinx does place family first.

And this is pretty assumed by the show. Now, I also characterized her like this in season 1! She is a family girl. And Jinx happens to have all these people with big revolutionary ideas around her, be it Vander or Vi or Silco or Sevika, but she herself never actually seems much interested in that. She has a small moment in arc 1 of season 1, which i think it's significant to mention comes right after Vi plants the idea in her head. It would've been one thing if these ideas stayed with her, but post time-skip she doesn't bring anything like that up again. She mostly acts like a bored teenager whenever Silco drags her to the river to tell her all about his tragic past that radicalized him. Overall, any time she exhibits any revolutionary spirit, it seems to actually be more of a personal vendetta for her.

So, okay, Jinx is a family girl and she's never really actually been about all these big ideas, I can agree with the writers that this represents her character.

It's just that... this much?

Man, COME ON. There were people making "Everything's Perfect" AUs since season 1, and they almost all had Powder be a student at the Academy. This girl was clearly passionate about her little inventions, her bombs didn't work but she kept and kept trying. You're telling me she would be completely uninterested in learning more about engineering, in getting a formal education in that, in doing anything with it? Since in this world, there's peace between Piltover and Zaun, we can't talk about any barriers to her becoming a student. And, for that matter, in League lore there's an academy in Zaun, too, that she could have attended.

Even Ekko points it out, man. Now, to the writers' credit, the story acknowledges quite clearly that Powder choosing to stay with Vander and help him run the bar is weird. It just... never explains it. Like why is she like this, though? Let's throw out some possibilies:

(1) in some scenes, there seems to be a little "jinxiness" in this Powder, too. maybe she's aware of that side of her, and doesn't like it, and fears that if she went off and did what she wanted, and was truly herself, it would ruin what she has, "things are good now" (in this case, this Powder is actually a tragic character. nowhere near ideal timeline stuff.)

(2) in act 1 of season 1, the reason Vi makes Powder stay back is because she fears losing her, after Vander tells her that she might lose Powder in a confrontation with Piltover. since Vi dies in this universe, on a job, maybe in that moment Powder internalizes that rocking the boat in any way is bad. Vi was spirited and had big ideas and wanted to be someone and it led to her death. so maybe this Powder gave up on all of that then. Vander seems like the type to give her a "look what happens" speech, too.

But these are just my theories. This doesn't ever get properly explained in the show. So then maybe Powder is actually content like this and likes this and maybe these people constantly pestering her that she could do and be more are just annoying nuisances to her, same as Sevika is an annoying nuisance to Jinx in the original timeline (although there it makes significantly more sense).

(Also, why is Vi even dead in this universe? They could've easily found another way for Piltover and Zaun to make peace. Guess Jinx doesn't even get to be happy in the Perfect Timeline, goddamn, girl really is cursed after all.)

If you're gonna spend an entire episode on fix-it fanfiction that is supposed to pander to fans and give them, on screen, what they always wanted to see, why didn't we get grown up Powder in a cute academy uniform, being a top student and working on school projects and being loved by her professors cause girl was a prodigy.

Instead... this is Ekko in this universe, actually.

Ekko is the "big idea guy" and he's working on an entry to the innovations fair and he gets to be Heimerdinger's pupil. To her credit, this Powder still seems to be very smart, Ekko comes to her for help cause he can't actually build his invention alone. But she only uses her intellect to help Ekko. I always thought it would be Powder who would be Heimerdinger's pupil. Instead, here, she's hanging off Ekko's arm, and being all cute, as he discusses Important Stuff with Heimerdinger, stuff that she doesn't get to be privy to, but that she is expected to help them with anyway.

So AU Powder is this very smart girl who is helping her boyfriend build his entry for a contest because he can't actually do it himself but it's okay she'll help him of course and no he can take all the credit she doesn't want to be recognized or anything or to go to like University that would be crazy she's doing it cause she loves him and she's sweet like that and she likes to help others and she doesn't have any character traits that make her difficult she's just a cute funny and relatable down-to-earth girl and she pokes fun at Ekko but like in a loving way and she likes being a waitress and she'd rather be recognized for her dancing skills and................ I'm sorry.....................

So you're telling me Ekko gets transported into an alternate timeline in which his childhood crush who never liked him back is stripped of all her personality, has no goals or ambitions of her own and has no interests besides being his supportive girlfriend, is devoid of all the traits that might have made a relationship with her difficult, and despite the fact that she never showed interest in him in the original world, here she is head over heels for him, always acting all lovey-dovey with him and being nothing but a cute and affectionate puppy.

This is every little boy's with an unrequited crush dream right here. Man, Ekko won more than any other character in this show. And she's mentally ill, too! He's hit the jackpot. Y'all what the fuck am I watching.

I'm sorry but literally ALL I COULD FUCKING SEE WHEN I WAS WATCHING THIS STUPID DANCE SCENE was that in this universe Powder is a good christian girl who stays home with her dad and loves her boyfriend and is always happy to help WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS GOOD GIRL PROPAGANDA get this bullshit OFF my fucking screen I cannot fucking believe what I'm watching here

Moving on.

Ekko has hurt Jinx more than any other character in the show.

Physically speaking.

Ekko is the one who does this.

Which leads to this.

Which ultimately leads to this.

It has always confused me and it continues to confuse me why no one in this fandom treats Jinx being injected with shimmer as a big deal, when this is the worst thing that happens to her post episode 3. And it's a point of no return for her character, she can't undo this. And yeah I know everyone thought Shimmer Jinx was cool in season 2, but her being turned into a half-dead monster is not a good progression for her character. She also goes through agonizing pain in the process.

Singed agrees.

It's Ekko who forces Jinx between death and being turned into a half-dead corpse. It's actually insane to me that no one in the fandom considers this and that this is never brought up in the show. If they wanted Jinx and Ekko to be a thing, you'd think this would be a big deal in their relationship. Ekko has changed her irreparably, for the worse.

Idk, is the guy who beat you up and left you for dead really boyfriend material?

This is the first moment Jinx shows any interest in Ekko. Interesting timing.

I'm pretty sure she doesn't even mention his name post act 3 of season 1. She doesn't wonder about whether he's alright after the bridge fight (for that matter, neither does he). The first time when Jinx looks at him with any hint of affection is when she's standing on a ledge, ready to throw herself off.

Jinx has no one anymore at this point. Her old family is long gone. Silco is dead. Isha is dead. Vi has decided having a good time with Caitlyn is more important than her. This is Jinx at her lowest moment. Does she like him back or is he just the only one who showed up?

Ekko is a winner once again. His crush has been abandoned by everyone, and he is the only one left to comfort her. Luck like this is hard to come by. And of course, she's gonna be super impressed and touched by any sliver of affection now. Probably gonna look at him with big, grateful eyes, and see him as her savior. I'm disgusted.

By the way, this should have never been Ekko. If Vi was too busy with fucking Caitlyn, this should have been Sevika. Sevika is the only character who has known Jinx since she was a child, and who has been with her through every iteration. And she's the only character who has never cared whether she's Jinx or Powder or any other persona she decides to take up, to her she'll always just be an annoying kid. And to Jinx this might actually be comforting. Sevika is the only one who has a realistic perspective on Jinx, and recognizes her flaws, so her talking her down might have actually been very touching, and there are things she could tell her that neither Vi nor Silco could.

(The fuck could Ekko tell her, honestly? That he went off to an alternate universe where she was his perfect girlfriend, so she shouldn't kill herself actually? What the fuck.)

I also wanna talk a bit about Jinx's resolution as a character. Not her fake-out death, but her in the last episode. I think it's interesting that everyone who had a connection to Jinx is gone, namely Silco and Isha. Silco and Isha are both people she chooses, actively, and she is herself around. Instead, now, she's back to Vi and Ekko, the same people that were with her in her childhood. This is a full circle moment for her.

This is Powder right here, guys. Powder was a little girl who made a mistake and then she went off on this journey where she met new people and she was someone else and it was fun for a while but ultimately she realized what she was doing was bad and she came back to her family and is ready to be that little, sweet girl again. The problem with the Powder-Jinx dichotomy is that Jinx, as much as she represents all this bad stuff that the show has made clear, also represents Freedom and Power, two things that Powder definitively lacked. Her coming full circle, coming back to Powder, is not actually a good resolution for her. She's right back where she started, with Vi and Ekko. Her venturing off on her own and making her own decisions was ultimately a mistake that only lead to her suffering. We can take this all the way back to when she decides to venture off on her own with that bomb, despite Vi's disagreement, and the consequences plague her for the rest of the story.

I know everyone thought it looked super cool when she lifted off that hood, but I could only think it was tragic.

[kissingarthurclaus]

OURGGGHHHH,,,

JUST WATCHED THE STAR TREK EPISODE WHERE DATA CREATES A CHILD TO RAISE....

[gregoftom]

MAYBE I GOT MINE  BUT YOU’LL [ALL] GET YOURS

[tackrusso]

show tempe gang crossover with the morris islanders would actually have been the best episode of bones ever. btw

[hirazuki]

To whoever made the creative decision for Aizen's characterization this season: Congrats, you've achieved the impossible. You've managed to turn me into an Aizen girlie.

[comixandco]

waiiiiit, now you made me think about other thing.... so, let's assume mermaids can get pregnant in human way right, but their child then has to be a merperson, because how would then a mermaid transform, if she turns into literal water... i can already imagine a pregnant mermaid and a baby with a littleee tail inside her LMAOOO.

no, actually, when mermaid transforms, the baby teleports to the backrooms /j

this goes sooo deep i just sought out a couple episodes of mako mermaids bc i remembered the guy was adopted and like. babies have to be brought up in that discussion right? And in the episode the teacher mermaid says “your mother was the only mermaid strong enough to stop you from getting your tail” which implies that????? they’re born without tails????????? How long are they babies with legs do the mermaids give birth on land and then return to the sea and their babies get tails then? do their tails slowly form as they grow older? if they have to become human to give birth why is it so unheard of for the mako mermaid girls to go on land for their mission? have they never seen any merbabies? there are canonically mermaids younger than them! And why does the h2o wiki refer to one of the characters as coming from a long line of mermen are mermaids not involved in the process do mermen get pregnant like seahorses????? why did they have to make mako mermaids and make everything so confusing?????? *cries*

putting mako mermaids aside because that’s a hot Mess. Would the baby also turn into water? it wasn’t in the moon pool but it’s parent was and the moon pool changes a person’s entire dna so like. it would change the eggs dna as well right? but the egg is only half of the dna and there would also be a human half that shouldn’t respond to water at all. does the mer dna overpower the human dna? would onlookers see a random tiny foetus floating in the air/water for a split second before the mermaid reappears around it?

yeah the baby goes wherever cleo’s coat went in the second episode

[psalmsofpsychosis]

I dont think at this point i can even start on classic literature if i tried, like, i have absolutely zero patience for stories that take their goddamn time "building up" to things. "give exposition talk and show your characters doing everyday things" girl only if the everyday things contribute to the theme of the story! I dont have an ounce of interest in traditional idle starting points, "this story takes awhile to warm up and nothing happens for 45 pages" lmao bye

[nerdynikki94]

Honestly? Did I want more from DTAMHD? Yes, I did. I wanted something signifying actual progression for Dennis' character (even just a crumb of genuine growth) , and I sincerely don't think we got that. However... we did get a fascinating insight into the process of his mind. Dennis' level of self-denial is so ironic and profound. He can't acknowledge the inevitability that he's middle-aged.

(I swear this episode honestly has given me an alt hc, that the show is based in his mind; because logistically, a man of his lifestyle and malnourishment could not commit the feats he is constantly sailing through. TGGB & DTAMHD... back-to-back? What happened to his hand? Did he even sprain it? Or is he just the most dramatic brat in the gang - clearly the latter.)

It is important to note that he didn’t fix the actual problem. He momentarily masked the symptoms, but ignore long-term help with blood pressure medicine is not going to fix the issue, nor is it going to protect him from fucking keeling over in a stressful situation (when he's not in a contained and quiet Doctor's exam room) and his blood pressure spikes.

I'm honestly a little jaded at this point (16 Fucking Seasons of crumbs, y'all), but if one were to continue 'trusting the structure' this episode conveyed a lot.

The B Plot: The pressure cooker. The metaphor parallels the building pressure Dennis quick-tempered bouts of rage. So, to toss out a little 'cat-in-the-wall' conjecture here: The pressure cooker is Dennis, but we all saw him eat that bloody diamond in the end and we all heard Mac's speech about coal turning into diamonds under massive pressure. Dennis' experience is a theory of pressure, he daydreams it all in the span of a minute or so. He's roleplaying with hypothetical obstacles. There's no risk. Maybe Dennis, isn't the pressure cooker, but the coal.

If I were to try and take anything hopeful out of this episode, it would be the way the narrative is showing us that this episode acknowledged that Dennis isn't ready yet. It's not his turn to break. It's going to take real, substantial pressure to get that diamond.

It was a hell of a misdirect (and honestly a little bit of a slap in the face), but if these characters live in the real world, where people are bound by the laws of mortality, then Dennis should have his time.

Genuinely, who fucking knows?

I'm not hating on the episode. We all know this is the trashy dick joke sitcom. I just thought that if Mac & Charlie could have moments of genuine heartbreak, culminating in deep catharsis, that maybe Dennis could have that too.... but no.

Can't wait to see the sunny dudebros miss the point & proclaim Dennis Reynolds - SA victim, traumatized individual with an emotionally tumultuous personality disorder - the new Andrew Tate.

I'm sorry, but yeah. I'm a little miffed. It was all a dream, and everything goes Dennis' way. Y'all I'm fucking tired. This was a great episode for Glenn, but a fucking frustrating episode for Dennis. I may have wanted a little macden, but all I cared about was seeing Dennis face the limitations of his mortality, to see that he's failing his body and his brain. He didn't have to actually take the medicine (I wouldn't expect him to), but Goddammit, everything seems to work out in his delusional favor. So, of course he's going to continue being delusional, and probably only change for the worse.

I'll say it: I wanted a broken Dennis, and we did not get that. He didn't even crack, the unbearble and apparently now canonical Golden God. That episode's title was intended to tease sunnyblr.

Excuse the plethora of tags. I just kept getting more irritated.

[hauntingblue]

I loved this movie about nami and her ex situationship reconciling and also anti capitalism

[puppyeared]

child of divorce moment

[moe-broey]

I'm def losing the plot now but like. Picked up PMD2 bc the suggestion of remakes actually deeply infuriated me and I was sooooo fuckibg mad about it until I was like. Oh. I can just. Play PMD2. Like. I can Do That. And I think what I realized picking it up again is like. PMD forces you to take things slowly. It makes you sit with characters. With their feelings. With your own feelings. It reminds you again and again that even the littlest most seemingly mundane moments are so so sooo important. Each moment becomes a cherished memory. Of someone you loved dearly. Someone who loved you. Someone you lost. You knew you would be lost. You did it anyway. You were set on it before, with someone you loved, who loved you, and a mutual understanding you have nothing to lose. Let this fallen husk of a world be undone, unmade. For a tomorrow that you'll never see. For a world you'll never be a part of. You don't know that, now, though. Now that you have everything to lose. Now that someone else is losing you. You chose it again. For a better tomorrow, and now, for a world that welcomed you in with warmth and life. For someone you loved. Who loved you so, so much. For a whole world that loved you, that you loved too.

[weidli]

oh so 1x22 really is exactly calculated to make me specifically go fucking feral huh

[paigemathews]

@forlorn-kumquat replied to your post “Writing a Phoebe/Coop fic and like. Can I mention...”:

Did she like him, or did she just like what he represented in her life: safety, stability, normalcy? Cause I think Phoebe's time with Cole has her so messed up that she would have latched onto any reasonably normal guy who wasn't trying to kill her and her family

Okay, so the context (and sneak peak, I guess) is Phoebe and Coop are discussing how she wasn't willing to be with Coop until she finds out about the future. Phoebe brings up how everytime she pursued the love she wasn't "suppose to," aka Cole and Miles, it goes poorly and her family is hurt in the crossfire. It's not- Okay, well, it wasn't intended to be a very in-depth thing bc it's just a oneshot that's gotten out of control on me again, but I realized that parallel between Phoebe's relationships with Cole and Miles and am kinda liking the idea of third time the charm-ing it, tbh. (I also bring up Dex, bc like I said! This is getting out of control on me again!)

She doesn't really delve deep into that relationship, so it's kinda your mileage may vary on that but here's the lines about it:

" I thought that it was just because it was Cole. But then I fell for someone I wasn’t supposed to be with, Miles, and I thought that I could change his fate. I thought I was supposed to change his fate, and instead I hurt my family again."

Idk, did that make sense? Any input is greatly appreciated!!