#aaaaand the sacrifice has finally happened

[pttucker]

[Story, 'Demon King of Salvation', is continuing with its storytelling.] I managed to endure only because of my Stories. They continued to whisper into my ears – they said that you're the 'Demon King of Salvation'. You must save people. Just like how they did to Metatron and Agares, Stories were whispering to me.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

I know that Dokja has always been very Dokja about saving people whenever he could, especially his companions, but the way that this is phrased...

Is the fact that he became Demon King of Salvation actually making his whole "saving people at whatever cost" thing worse? Not to mention the fact that his only stigma is not only about saving people, but specifically about sacrificing himself to do it.

I know that stories in ORV give beings power (and can also give them weaknesses too) and Dokja himself has talked about how people can be taken over by their stories but I never thought that maybe the fact that his whole thing is saving people (by sacrificing himself) might have generated some kind of circle.

He saves people (by sacrificing himself) > gains a story/modifier/stigma related to saving people/sacrificing himself > that increases him wanting to save people/sacrifice himself > he saves people (by sacrificing himself) > that adds to his story of saving people/sacrificing himself > that increases him wanting...

Well, at least in regard to his companions. There have absolutely been times where Dokja has chosen himself over complete strangers or where he's chosen his companions over others. In fact, Heewon even says so in her fight with the Demon Kings:

The next one to pop up in her head was Kim Dokja. ⸢We should save him. But, if you do that, you'll die instead, Heewon-ssi.⸥ Kim Dokja might say the right things, but because he was worried about her life, he'd turn a blind eye to Kyle's plight.

Hmmm... so is Dokja being affected by his own story or is this just a natural reaction to him finally having friends & family that he cares about combined with the fact that even from the very beginning he's never thought much of himself?

Or both. Both is good bad.

[nattikay]

hmm...just thinkin’ about how to deal with Bellroc and Skrael in my headcanon, which lead to hmm, let’s try taking some of the general ideas from the movie but make them less dumb. I wouldn’t call this a rewrite per se, nor even something that I’m set on “officially” incorporating into my headcanon--just some idle hypotheticals.

Douxie uses his magic to mask Nari’s magical signature, thus making it much more difficult for Bellroc and Skrael to track her down. As such, the Titan reawakening takes place much further in the future--approximately 10 years from the events of Wizards. 

.

Jim has long since regained his half-troll form as per my headcanon, with the upgrade of being able to walk in daylight. He has probably already received the new amulet as well, and has had plenty of time with Douxie and Krel to troubleshoot and perfect its abilities.

.

Jim and Claire are married and already have their lil hybrid babies cuz heck if you can stop me. They are living in the New Jersey trollmarket, where the trolls have successfully settled after the Eternal Night. Thanks to Claire’s portal abilities, it is very easy for them to get from there to Arcadia and back whenever wanted/needed. The need to protect not only their friends but also their children puts 10x more ferocity into their determination in battle.

.

Strickler and Barbara, Toby and Darci, and Aja and Steve are all also married. Toby and Darci probably also have kids.

.

We can still even have Aja and Steve be expecting, but Steve is very most definitely NOT pregnant. And actually neither is Aja, cuz let’s flesh out this whole “seventh kiss” bs:

So Akiridions are made out of energy, and their bodies are a projection from the central “life cores”, correct? To form a new Akiridion, you need a new life core. So let’s say that to make a life core, two Akiridions must take bits of their own energies and merge them. Once merged into a new core, said core is put into a special device that keeps it safe and nourished while the projected body develops, kinda like a fancy electronic egg. Once the body is developed enough to properly take in and interact with the outside world, the “egg” is opened and boom, there’s your Akiridion baby.

Obviously this is very different from human/Earthling reproduction. If Steve is human, how is he gonna take bits of energy that he’s not made of in the same way Aja is to merge it with hers? Lucky for them, we are constantly reminded how advanced Akiridion technology is supposed to be. They take a DNA sample from Steve and use their technology to convert it into the required energy, which is then merged with Aja’s aaaaand...there you go. Because of this, while the bab(ies?) can resemble their dad in certain ways, they will be functionally fully Akiridion in that they are made of energy and fueled by a life core rather than human carbon-based biology and DNA.

So how does the “seventh kiss” play into this? Obviously the seventh kiss itself does not “make baby”; the process is much more intentional than that. BUT, let’s say that when a couple shares their seventh kiss, it means by Akiridion standards that they’re pretty devoted to each other. As such, it is the trigger that makes it possible for their bodies to split off a piece of energy to merge if they so desire. So the seventh kiss does not automatically make a baby, it merely makes it possible for a given couple to do so.

You’re welcome. Moving on...

.

Speaking of Steve, he is a knight, and has brought back a form of the roundtable as he promised Lancelot. He splits his time between Earth and Akiridion-5 thanks to Krel’s wormhole device, which has been refined over the years, and leads factions of knights/warriors on both planets.

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Nana (who is pretty much semi-immortal at this point ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ) and Barbara watch the great/grandkids during the battle, because someone has to do it, and neither of them have any particular magical powers to fight in the battle themselves anyways. This not only keeps they themselves safely out of the way while the magical heavyweights do the hard part, but also still gives them a sense of purpose in keeping their beloved great/grandkids safe. I was originally gonna have Darci with them but then I came up with a better idea:

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Darci is one of Steve’s new knights. Inspired by Toby, she was keen to sign up when Steve started accepting applicants. As one of the first recruits, she is now second-in-command of the Earthling faction.

.

Claire is officially Douxie’s apprentice and her magic has improved leaps and bounds with a formal teacher to help her. That said, not only have Claire and Douxie not been nerfed, their power level has actually increased since Wizards.

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Strickler doesn’t die suicide-bombing the titan because that’s dumb. He just drops the bombs onto it from above and gets the heck out of the way.

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Nomura also doesn’t die because no one was stupid enough to let a troll try to fight a titan in the middle of the flippin’ afternoon.

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The titan battle between Nari and Skrael still happens, but Nari is basically a distraction to keep his attention and efforts occupied while the rest of the team swoops in to take him down. Thus, Nari doesn’t die.

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No Khronisfere bs, and therefore Archie and Charlemagne don’t get trapped in the Chinese trollmarket and are still present for the final showdown against Bellroc.

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The showdown with Bellroc is now 10x quicker and easier as Nari is present, no one’s been nerfed, the whole team’s still kickin’, and everyone’s actually competent. Toby does not need to sacrifice himself.

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All the good guys survive and everyone goes back to their families and live happily ever after with no more world-ending threats of for the rest of their lives because they deserve their hard-earned peace thank you the end

[jerepars]

My QOTS 5x09 live reactions:

Oscar is in the “previously on”. Oscar x Jeresa team up?

SO MUCH Kote in the “previously on”. Whyyyyyy? We already had to sit through their episodes once, isn’t that enough?

James taking off that ski mask was somehow really hot

Is it bad if I want to skip through this suburbia Kote stuff and just get to the Jeresa team up lol

“Like the devil himself he lives in the shadows” uhhhhh that was a little…YA fiction-esque. Lol who wrote that line and are they serious.

If there were two very attractive people sitting across from me, dressed like yin and yang, promising me protection like that…I think I’d be very confused LOL

Konstantin Federov? Is Kostya like, a Russian hockey player? Did he play in Detroit with the Russian Five? I am howling.

an INSTRUMENT TO DEFEND OUR DEMOCRACY lol lol lol

again Devon leaves the room without being a blatantly obvious Jeresa shipper. Boooooooo.

suburbia suburbia why can’t we do away with ya?

what happened to don’t come out until I tell you to?! Do you understand the consequences of death or not?

oh good job just show the neighbors you guys have a fucking arsenal in your kitchen that’s not gonna be suspicious at all

“I am a soldado, I will never put my guard down” really REALLY we all know that’s not true this is how you guys got banished to Little Rock in the first place

“it was a big raccoon” Raccoons are adorable they look like little bandits leave them alone

Jeresa are sitting ~very close~!!!!

“in the DR” As in, in the Dominican Republic? Do people really say that? Sounds like I’m watching Big Brother and they’re talking about the Diary Room LOL

Wait what Teresa is doing coke right as James leaves the room? What if he forgot something and comes back??? Does he know? Has this just been accepted by him? This is never going to be addressed, is it?

Ooh, theory time. Is the coke...not coke? Is it something else and Teresa has been building up a tolerance to it so she can appear dead?

“I know you want things to go back to normal” BACK to normal? When were things normal? Why does half the episode have to be spent on these two?

“I don’t want to live like this anymore” You…you...WHAT? Why did you join a drug cartel? You BEGGED back in with them. Proved yourself. Worked too hard, isn’t that what you said? What did you think it was going to be like?

Do we, the audience, have to suffer through the garage sale, too?

HOW LONG IS THIS SCENE WHY ARE WE STILL IN SUBURBIA

Yeah snoop through your neighbor’s mail when the whole neighborhood is around THAT’S NOT SUSPICIOUS AT ALL

oh it’s his little girl’s team now we have to suffer through Pote’s redemption for his misogynist sexist comments from earlier in the season

Yo, why are we only meeting Domingo now? I like this guy. He’s fun. Plus he’s got cool piercings.

aaaaand he’s dead.

Oh, okay, not dead. But injured.

YO I LIKE DOMINGO

CHICHO HOW COULD YOU CALL POTE THIS IS NOT HOW I RAISED YOU

omg is KA going to tell Pote to go back to Teresa where he’s happy because she doesn’t want his spirit to die? If so, I think I might want to die.

I don’t need another tender Kote moment JFC MAKE IT STOP

BRICKS!!!! KISS TIME!!!!

“You wouldn’t let me do it, so why should I let you?” Dead. Dead. DEAAAADDDDD. 😭😭😭

I love you. SAME. (I still wish T had said it first)

So no conversation. Just straight to the sex? Okay. I guess we’ll roll with it.

The way he pauses to tuck her hair away from her face and looks at her all starry-eyed when she’s on top of him. Dead. Dead. Dead dead dead.

And then they SMILE. Can you be more dead than dead? I think that’s where I’m at. 👻

Sidenote: I don’t think we’ve ever seen this much of J’s tattoos up close. This is glorious. Lol yeah because there’s sex happening and I’m looking at the details of the tattoos hahaha

The hand on the thigh to end it before the camera pans and then fade to black. That’s great. I will accept it.

She’s touching his arm in the morning after scene. There is SUNLIGHT. This is the best lit Jeresa scene of this show’s existence, lol. Holy shit.

When does she tell him she loves him? This is obviously setting us up for a goodbye.

LOLOLOLOL James is talking about weapons and making sure she’s well equipped and she’s giving him heart eyes instead sooo is she about to say it?

SHE SAID IT!!!!!!!!!

Jeresa making out. Jeresa getting it on. Jeresa kissing after a love confession. In one episode. ❤️ 🥰 🎊 💞 💓 😘 🎇 🔥 Bask in the glory. Savor it. Let’s all enjoy this and rewatch and reblog gifs etc etc etc because it’s all we’re ever going to get. 🎁

“She’s not going in without us.” “I’ll go.” OoOoOoOo this is all part of the plan isn’t it?

But when did you have time to plan this when you spent all night making out and having sex. You must have been spent. Did you multitask in bed? 😂

Scared Puppy James :( :( :(

Wait. WAIT. This is very plot holey. Kostya didn’t know anything about Teresa’s business? He’s apparently the biggest bad-ass there is and he didn’t even vet her? He just let Oksana handle it? WHATTTTTTT

The tequila isn’t poisoned. She put something on the shot glass, probably? That’s why they had Chicho talk about how Oksana was killed at the beginning. Right?

So Kostya has been elusive all season. Fucked everything up. And he dies as soon as he meets her? WHAT. Just like that. This is so deflating.

Uhhhh, listen, I get it, Teresa is obviously gonna make it out of here. But why have Kostya’s guys not shot her in the head yet? This is very unrealistic. They wouldn’t hesitate. She would be on the ground in a second.

WHAT. NO. WHY IS POTE HERE. GO AWAY. YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO STEP UP, CHICHO.

I wish Pote had died. A final sacrifice for his family. That would have been his redemption. And I’m not apologizing for anything I just said. Full offense. Not sorry.

“You had enough on your plate.” Are you KIDDING ME? Yo WHO THE FUCK DOES CHICHO THINK HE IS? Making decisions for the boss? That’s not…that wouldn’t happen, helpful or not. Teresa would kill HIM. Know your place. Wow how nice of the writers to screw Chicho up.

“I’m only legit until Devon decides I’m not” So…okay. Jeresa have definitely talked about Devon and made the sniper plan now, right? If she’s saying this?

“Can you shut down operations in New Orleans and meet us when you’re done?” “Of course.” That’s the goodbye, isn’t it? We’re still on track for the sniper plan?

“When everything’s settled I’ll send for you.” Uh. Maybe KA is safer in Little Rock. But you’re gonna leave her out in the wind for an indefinite amount of time? OKAY.

“He may not be as nice” LOL

Omg this is like the most continuous dialogue James has had all season and it’s wasted on DEVON

Personally not a fan of this very predictable James-was-still-under-Devon’s-wing-the-whole-time because I think it’s lazy writing. Very lazy. BUT I bet in James’ mind, he’s for sure been pretending and this whole time whenever he’s been sitting boo-boo faced in the corner moping, he’s been planning out how to tell Teresa and going over the plan of how she’s going to “die” and they’re going to disappear. So he could tell her and they could execute it perfectly when the right time presented itself. Right? And that’s all going to be shoved into like the last few minutes of the finale, isn’t it?

Ah okay so sniper James is going to shoot Teresa through the window to make Devon think he followed orders. They WERE multitasking in bed. 😂😂

I knew it. I fucking knew it. It’s exactly the ending to this episode we all expected.

Finale preview: soooooooo Teresa is barely in it because she’s “dead” and we have to watch Pote carry out her “wishes” for most of it until it’s safe for her to come alive again? COME ON.

[kitkatt0430]

Okay, so I haven't watched the Flash season 8 2-part finale, nor do I have any intention to but... based on the screencaps, gifs, other people complaining about the nonsensical plot, and tvtropes recaps, I have a general idea of what went down. So, imagine something with me.

Iris shows up in the Time Stone and finds Damian Darhk there. And then, moments later, Matt!Eobard shows up too. He's a bit traumatized after how Tom!Eobard... appropriated his existence, but mostly he just wants to help stop the evil version of him because this is who Eobard is when he isn't corrupted by the Negative Speed Force. He's a decent person who loves science and pushing the boundaries of human understanding, but doesn't want to hurt people in the process. And also he wants to help Barry and Meena if he can. (Aaaaand he wants to flip off the evil version of himself.)

They figure out the other Negative Forces had planned to corrupt Iris' connection to all the Forces and combining her corrupted connection with the protection the Time Wraiths afforded Matt!Eobard when they gave him his second chance (cause he is still a time remnant) and Matt!Eobard's connection to the Speed Force through Meena as the catalyst to have Tom!Eobard be reborn. But much like if Damian leaves the Time Stone and becomes a real person again then his daughter will vanish, Iris and Matt!Eobard are the pillars keeping Tom!Eobard in existence. And while Damian is there because he misjudged how the Time Stone would work when Barry reset time - he just desperately wanted to see his daughter one last time - Iris and Matt!Eobard are there because the Negative Speed Forces pulled Tom!Eobard from the reverse!Flashpoint timeline which, unbeknownst to them, tied the sacrifice of Iris and Matt!Eobard to the Time Stone as well.

Damian helps Iris and Matt!Eobard escape the Time Stone, but the third pillar of Tom!Eobard's existence is the artificial Speed Force Meena is using because it was sharing her speed with Matt!Eobard that made the whole sacrifice thing work. In order to completely destabilize Tom!Eobard and finally make him deader than dead, the artificial Speed Force has gotta go. So Iris and Matt!Eobard destroy the artificial Speed Force. And then they both flip off Tom!Eobard as he vanishes from existence.

Admittedly this all ignores whatever was going on with Cecile (though I guess it could include her subplot fairly easily, if it made any sense whatsoever) and still doesn't explain why Iris was getting her time sickness before Tom!Eobard lost his connection to the Speed Force or why the Negative Forces were only targeting Iris' connection to the Still Force in particular. But it does give us Iris being more than Barry's morality chain and being instrumental in defeating Tom!Eobard, finally giving her some closure with what happened with Eddie. And instead of wasting a perfectly good character it would also give us Matt!Eobard helping to vanquish the evil version of himself, cementing his decision to be a hero instead of a villain. He also probably renounces using the Speed Force himself ever again because clearly he and the Speed Force are just non-mixy.

(But also why do the Negative Forces look like the avatars of the regular Forces when the Negative Speed Force doesn't take Nora Allen's form? Though that ties into the many questions I have about the three non Speed Force forces and the many, many frustrating plot holes that I've decided not to think about because, well... season seven wasn't really well plotted out either.)

[captainsspnanon]

C2E24 - The Hour of Honor - rewatch/liveblog

A little pre-episode commentary-  Here we are!  The Talks for e23 confirms that they’ve just announced their split.  I’m glad that Geek and Sundry got them to where they needed to be, and I’m sorry that G&S turned into the poo pile that it is now. :(  But I feel like Critical Role would not have gotten as far as they have now had they still been with G&S.

LOL Sam brings up people talking about how there’s no French accents.  Cue Avantika. Who so far I think is still the only one with a French accent?

Oh interesting...still in Talks, Sam says he really misses being more support and not so into only being a damage dealer.  That lends a lot into how Nott grows in the campaign, especially with her magic use, and also gives perspective on the way Sam plays overall.

Why do I have so much to talk about from this Talks??? I usually don’t include any of it in my thoughts!  But they talked about the emerging themes in C2, and they brought up “identity”, and it’s really so true!  I feel like the only one of the final nine who DOESN’T have identity be a theme at their core is Caduceus, but even he has a little bit of it.  But Beau, Molly, Caleb, Nott, Fjord, Jester, Yasha, Essek?  They ALL have so much of themselves revolving around discovering their true identity and who they are at the core versus how others view who they should be and UGH SO MANY FEELINGS.  And that’s one aspect where Molly is much stronger than Caduceus, because Molly had SO many aspects of his character tied to identity, who he was before, who he is now, who he WANTS to be versus what would have been who other people wanted him to be, etc. etc.  It’s still all looped in though, because instead of HIS view of his identity, his story becomes the Nein’s view of his identity, ending with that he should be allowed to remain Molly because that was his choice.  (not gonna get into the Kingsley stuff here.  I have thoughts which are way too long to get into now.  Saving that for my Molly wrapup when he kicks it).  Caduceus always seemed to be very comfortable throughout the campaign with who he was and how others viewed him.  I feel like his only real bit with personal identity came with him acknowledging the fact that he wasn’t as ready to return home as he thought he was going to be.  His ties with identity I feel tie in much more with Fjord and helping Fjord forge his new identity with the paladin mulitclass.  …..I am so full of feels now, SO MANY FEELS.  And of course the episode is all Hupperdook stuff which really doesn’t have feels.

INTO THE ACTUAL EPISODE

They just made the Mighty Nein shirt, omg!  I actually bought this shirt.  They are not kidding when they talk about shirts being super soft.

I like that they all think Rissa is going to steal from them, and it’s just foreshadowing that they’re going to get pickpocketed.  It’s one of the things that I wonder if Matt had the idea planned, or if he got inspired by all of them being so nervous.

Aaaaand here starts Beau’s obsession with firecrackers.

Oh yeah, Caleb’s full on crushing on Jester now.  I don’t think I realized it happened so early!  If I recall, I saw it when they were traveling through the tunnels to Xhorhas and I read some comments about Caleb would only ‘sacrifice’ Frumpkin because he was falling for Jester.  LOL I missed a LOT of the crushing, wow.

I LOVE director!Liam being completely distracted by Matt’s bottle opening noise and looking around is disbelief that no one else is as astounded as he is.

Huh.  I wonder if one of my reasons for not liking Molly is just not being invested in drinking/drugs RP when that’s the point of the scene.  I wasn’t really into Keyleth getting wasted in C1, and the drugs sections in C2 kinda bore me for the most part.  As Molly is so hedonistic, he’s typically searching for the strongest drink, the weirdest drug, and since it’s just something I’m not interested in watching I tied it into my opinion of the character.  At least this episode is pretty much the biggest drinking/drugs bit of the entire campaign. IIRC, the only other scenes with are drinking focused are in regards to the Beaurebar at Travelercon.  I think all other drinking in the campaign isn’t the focus of a scene, and the only other ‘drug’ scene is when Caduceus gives Beau truesight, which the scene had a lot more going for it than being JUST THAT.  So it works.  Huh, I didn’t even realize that it’s an RP aspect that I’m not fully into until just now.  But now I can think of all the times in C1 that the scenes didn’t hold my focus, because there were much more drinking focused sections in C1.  C2, there’s a decent bit at the beginning, them trying to introduce Cad to drinking, Molly and Beau seeking out strongest drinks, but I do think it eases up fairly soon.  Just need to get through this drinking contest.  (not gonna lie, alternating between watching at 1.25 and 1.5 speed for this episode.)

Couple of punks named Fitz and Ashton, huh

Good planning having Yasha watch Kiri.  COME BACK SOON ASHLEYEEEEEEE

also lolling forever at Fjord getting super flustered.  I honestly love it so much, as he’s a very charismatic and suave person, but it’s all a very superficial mask (until he starts growing into it more) so having it crumble as he desperately tries to save face is just very wonderful to watch

LIAM.  I know, Caleb and Yasha need to have way more time together and didn’t get nearly enough and I need awkward introvert buddy time all the time.  But not when Ashley’s not here!

Once again, while I didn’t see it first time around, I am also seeing the Widofjord.  I am appreciating when I see it, even though I do love the canon pairings.

I FORGOT WE GOT BEAU BACKSTORY oh my heart my heart BEAU I LOVE YOU SO MUCH YOU DON’T DESERVE THIS PAIN fuck you Thoreau, fuck you Zeenoth

They’re talking about scones being hard to make, but they’re not!  I just made scones yesterday and they are delicious!  LINK FOR SCONE RECIPE I USE https://www.fifteenspatulas.com/english-style-scones/

Little Tara needs to learn stranger danger

Ah, I was wondering why I was recognizing the introduction of Blemmy.  It’s because Nott uses the name “Otto”, and I’ve watched the compilation of Liam asking during the wrap up intercut with the three scenes of Sam using “Veth”, “Bren”, and “Otto” so many times.

I LOVE during the last roll for Sam they start cheering then cut themselves off because it seems like Matt may have won, then resume cheering when they confirm Sam won

I don’t get it.  I liked Molly this episode!  He was fun!  Him trying to cure Beau of a hangover was kinda sweet (even if I question why he didn’t test on himself instead of her, but still).  And then he goes and deliberately throws up on Fjord.  Like, that’s not funny.  That’s seriously gross and mean spirited.  And then the fact that I was liking Molly this episode is suddenly gone.

Matt really is good! I only barely caught his dice rolls to steal the party’s money, and only because I was deliberately looking for it.  And I almost missed it because I forgot to look for it.

This episode is a big reminder that regardless of everything the Nein do well, they’re just a pack of giant assholes, with this massive bullying of the kids (even though they were nasty themselves).  Not a complaint!  I don’t mind them being assholes to people outside of the party (yes it’s a very protagonist centered morality thing and I don’t care at all)! But oh boy this is a group that jumps straight to intimidation when the people they are intimidating aren’t threats XD

Huh, I forgot Molly was against helping the kids at first.  Yeah, I’ll be honest, I really REALLY just don’t understand his character.  He’ll merrily give advice and funds to people who steal from them, but something like this which would be actual help he immediately doesn’t care? And then in this situation, where Fjord is merely saying that they MIGHT try to help while they’re taking care of another task anyway, and Molly calls him ‘soft’ multiple times.  ‘soft’??  Because he wants to help four kids who are slowly starving and have to pickpocket to live?  Because he wants to even put in any effort?? Just checked critrolestats, they don’t have an alignment for him. I was going to get pissed if they had him as chaotic good.  He’s chaotic neutral at best.  Seems like he’s willing to do ‘good’ as long as it a) benefits him and b) doesn’t require any effort. Giving some people some coins, of which he now has plenty?  No worries!  Asking a jail warden something to a location that they were already going to?  Nope!  Until Fjord makes it about his personal backstory (the orphanage) and then Molly flips and agrees, either because it’s beneficial for him to do so by staying in Fjord’s good graces (I’m being cynical, I don’t actually think this is the reason, but it’s an option), or because now that it matters to Fjord personally Molly cares because he cares about Fjord.

Also what’s interesting to me on a self-analysis level is why Molly’s refusal bothers me way more that Beau or Caleb’s, considering they are also not jumping on it.  And I think the reason for that is that they didn’t disparage Fjord for wanting to help.  They just said that they had another job, and they could stop by again after.  Whereas Molly kinda mocked Fjord for it by calling him soft.  And I guess a part of it is me reacting to the fanbase who seems to feel that Molly did no wrong ever and was this amazing chaotic good lovable scamp who cared for all the lonely people in the world uwu.  

DAMN SAM/NOTT.  Not sure which one is taking the lead there on guilting Beau by using her backstory against her!  Effective, but DAMN.  Possible payback for her lashing out at Caleb with his backstory during bowlgate?  Maybe, or maybe just Sam trolling, or maybe Nott getting emotional because of Luc and the fact that she can’t help him right now.

Alright!  If I remember, this is the last episode before Travis and Laura go out on leave (pretty sure they were supposed to be there for the fight but weren’t) and then Ashley is back to have the nice kidnapping send off.

@suicidallyreckless

[fallout-drabbles-n-stuff]

Ok but like.. low-key want to see faction leaders and companions react to their faction being destroyed and everything the worked for gone.. feeling angsty today folks

(Angstyyyy)

Danse:

Danse's reaction completely is swayed by when it takes place. If it's pre-BB...I think it's damn safe to say that he will be so crazed and grief stricken that he will do everything in his power to get his revenge..and then maybe take his own life just so he wouldn't have to bare the pain of killing yet another one of his friends because of "duty". However if it is after BB, I highly doubt he would go on that murder-suicide rampage.

Instead Danse would completely shut himself out, choosing to be as far away from people as possible. The solitude, in Danse's mind, is the only comfort he can achieve. Nothing else makes sense to him anymore. He understands that the brotherhood had many enemies, shit..he was one of them too- but that still didn't make the pain of losing everything he worked for and the people he did so with. After all, Danse still considers them his family...even if they all would shoot him dead. If sole were to disrespect Danse's wishes of solitude, then they may just catch the poor man silently crying as he clutches his old holo tags.

It hurts. It just hurts..

Deacon:

His entire life would crumble before him.

Deacon would feel like he was back at square one. All that sacrifice, all the people he learned to never get close to..all of them, dead for not a damn thing. For someone who prides himself in being able to stay composed, Deacon's facade is completely obliterated. All the sorrow, anger, melancholy that he had bottled up just comes spewing out like a volcano of grief. Whoever was responsible for this...they'll wish they had never crossed him.

Dez:

She'll take this as a great failure..nay, the greatest failure ever to have been achieved. It not only hurts to know that so many of the people she loved died for naught, but now she must bare the weight of an entire race being permanently enslaved on top of it all. Life couldn't possibly be any worse than it is now.

Gage:

Typical of a raider, Gage feels nothing but immense rage. It all stems from something he knows all too well, betrayal. Isn't it sickening? He sure as fuck thinks so. You can guarantee that he will find the bastard responsible, break them into nothingness and tear them apart. He never was merciful anyway.

Maxson:

It is highly unlikely that Arthur would still be alive in the event of his faction going down, but let's just say that he is.

First, the once mighty elder maxson would have to face the fact that he no longer lives up to the prestigious Maxson name. But that wasn't really the first thing that came into his mind. Since his faction was just a mere chapter, he would have to return to the Capital Wasteland and go back to the Citadel. The entire time he waits, Arthur can hardly handle the deep agony that starts to build- the faces of all those soldiers and scribes that looked at him like he was some divine being..they wouldn't leave him be. The men and women that cried his name in battle, they were gone and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

The worst of it all was the squires. Oh god, the squires. Their innocent faces were practically seared into his mind- causing him to sob until no sound would come out, an occurrence that happens frequently. The whole ordeal caused him to drown out his pain with copious amounts of liquor, drinking himself to the point of making an even bigger fool of himself via having to get his stomach pumped or being on the verge of death.

He was finding it hard to care anymore. He just wanted to leave the constant reminders of his failures behind.

Preston:

As truly sad as it sounds, he knew it was going to happen. That still doesn't mean that he is "okay" with it- oh no, he is very far from okay. For the Minutemen to be completely destroyed, sole would've either had to die or just refuse being their general..and then the remaining bits of them just would've been picked off after one too many raider attacks.

For a few months Preston would try to convince himself that he still had a purpose, that somehow he could still help others despite how hard he had failed..but it all comes crashing down on him whenever he inevitably gets another innocent killed. After that, Preston would be empty on the inside- unable to do so much as look at the shining sun without feeling this overwhelming sense of despair. Any hope he had..it was gone.

It wouldn't take long for him to lose all will to live.

X6-88:

Confusion wouldn't even begin to describe what he feels.

It's much like a victim being hurt by an abuser, only to feel immense sorrow whenever the abuser has been brought to justice. He wants to find a way to tell himself that the Institute's fall was for the best- but he can't get over how...how pointless everything felt afterwards. For as long as he could remember, X6 relied on the cold, mechanical orders of the Institue. Without them in the picture, he feels like he has been casted out into a vast sea without a lifeboat to keep him afloat.

But you'll never be able to tell, at least not until he finally has enough of the misery and lashes out.

Aaaaand we've all seen how Shaun reacts-

[arashikitten]

“I am Danny Phantom”

Who knew that four words were all it took to turn someone’s entire life on its head? Well, Valerie knew, her father being fired and her subsequently being dropped by the A-listers proved that, but....

Danny Fenton. The small, quiet, funny, space-obsessed, sleep-deprived, nervous guy who slept in class, made puns out of everything, her boyfriend... was Phantom. The ghost who had ruined her life, who was a menace to the town, who had committed several crimes including kidnapping the mayor. They were the same person.

Her suit was on before she could blink, guns powering up and aimed at Phantom- Fenton- Danny.

“One reason. Give me one. Goddamned. Reason why I shouldn’t put a hole in your head.” Everything was red. She felt nothing but the blood in her veins turning into fire, only heard the sound of her heart pounding in her ears. It would be so, so easy to turn this... this monster into a pile of ectoplasm. All it would take was one little blast...

“Because it was an accident.”

Silence. It rang in her ears like a gunshot, quieting the pounding of her heart like the forest before the storm. Where her anger was once fiery red, now it was cold, calm blue, freezing everything in her path.

“What?” Her voice sounded flat, no hint of anger, and yet the ghost shuffled back slightly, wringing it’s... his hands nervously. (Somewhere in the back of her mind, a part of her recognized that was a habit of Fentons, that Danny- no, Fenton has been doing that earlier. Valerie shut that thought down before it reached farther into her head.)

“It was an accident. That ghost dog... Cujo, he- he was, um, looking for his- his toy because he’d been euthanized by Axion labs after they got the, uh, new security systems. He was just loking for his toy.”

“Then why were you there, spook?”

A pause. He was wringing his hands again. It caught her off guard slightly, how... human he looked. If you took away the glow and bright white hair, he could’ve easily passed as a normal highschooler. (That’s because he is human, part of her mind screeched at her. That’s your boyfriend for fucks sake, it said. Again, she shut it out.)

“I can sense them. The ghosts, I mean. Whenever one shows up, there’s this sort of... smoke, kinda, that I breathe. And that’s how I know if one’s around. So that night, when- when Cujo showed up, I sensed him and went to check it out. I never meant to get your father fired, or to- to fuck the place up as bad as I did. I’m sorry.”

Anger bubbled up in her again. He thought- he really fucking thought that a simple damned apology fixed that? Hell no! He’d screwed over her entire life, got her father fired, committed several crimes, and he thought a simple ass ‘I’m sorry’ would fix it?

She took aim, charging up her blasters.

“I don’t care if you’re sorry. You’re a ghost, a crook, and a thief. And I’ll be doing the whole world a favor by getting rid of you.”

Her blasters were charged up. All it would take now was for her to-

“Then do it.”

Valerie almost dropped her blaster. Had- had she heard that right? She stared at Phantom.

He was rooted to the spot, arms down by his sides, eyes scrunched shut. He was still in his ghost form, but he wasn’t levitating.

What in the hell?

“What do you mean ‘then do it’?” You’re not- you’re not even gonna try to fly off?”

“No.”

“Why?”

At that, Danny- no, Phantom opened his eyes. He looked, scared. Sad. Like he had seen a massacre, or a war.

“A couple of weeks ago... when- when we were about to take the CAT... I- well I got the answer key to the test. And... I wasn’t in a great place, mentally, at the time. I mean, I’m still not, but... it was different, in a way. But basically, what, well, what happened was that I was so stressed out, because I was trying to protect the town and my friends from ghosts, and my parents were just getting worse about trying to hunt me down, and my grades are already shit, and Mr. Lancer kept saying that this test would determine my future and I just...” Danny stopped, shaking and hugging himself. He looked.... Valerie didn’t think she’d ever seen him look this distraught, as Phantom or Fenton. It made something in her chest tighten, made her stomach twist.

“I... I had the answers. And I was already so worried about... well, everything, that I decided to cheat. I figured that maybe I could just do it one time, and then that’d be it, you know? But... of course, of course, it couldn’t be that simple.” Now he sounded... tired. Worn, and not in a good way, more like a war veteran disallusioned with the world. (Something in Valerie told her that maybe this was the real Danny, the part of him he refused to show anyone. The tired fighter who wanted nothing more than to be able to go to sleep without worrying if he was going to wake up with a gun pointed at him.. or if he would wake up at all.)

“Essentially what happened was that Sam, Tucker and I got sort of... teleported about ten years into the future, and... apparently me cheating on one stupid test leads to the end of the world, because Mr. Lancer would find out that I had cheated and would call a meeting with my parents at the Nasty Burger, which would then blow up and kill my friends and family.” Danny was shaking now, arms wrapped around himself as though he was trying to protect himself from his own words.

“That, in turn, lead to me tearing the ghost part out of me, which then proceeded to fuse with Vla- the Wisconsin Ghost. When- well, when that happened, it- drove my ghost half.... I-insane. And then he was killing people all over and... and I- I killed people in that timeline! I did the- the one thing I said I would never fucking do, and I killed someone.”

Danny was on his knees now, quietly sobbing. His black hair (when had he turned back?) shone in the sun.

Valerie was rooted to the spot. How in the hell did someone deal with that? Fuck, how in the hell would someone deal with any of this? In the span of about thirty minutes, Valerie had discovered that not only was her boyfriend dead, but was the town’s widely considered hero and had apparently fought an evil version of his future self and had almost seen all of his friends and family die.

And, to top it all off, he’d discovered that not only were his own parents hunting him, but she was too. Valerie felt sick.

Jesus. Just how much shit had she put him through? Fuck- was that why he was so nervous about telling her he was Phantom? Granted she was still pissed at him, but not for the Cujo thing. Not really.

“Danny.” He looked up at her, and she felt something in her chest break at just how scared and sad he looked. Was this the sort of shit he had to deal with every damn day? All that fear, over being hunted, or experimented on, or getting everyone he loved killed- was this how he felt all the time?

Slowly, Valerie stepped towards him and knelt down. Her eyes never left his.

“Danny. I care... so, so much about you. You... you were the first person to really give a shit about me, after the A-listers dropped me.”

Immediately he tensed, and distress filled his eyes.

“I’m-“

“Nope, don’t, stop. You’re not apologizing. Not right now. Maybe later. Not fucking now.”

He fell silent, eyes wide and searching. Still scared, still tense.

“You love space, and puns. Your favorite video game is Doom 4 even though you’ve never won. Your favorite subject is science, you’ve always wanted a dog, and you doodle in the margins of your paper when your bored.” Valerie paused.

Danny seemed to be noticeably more relaxed, as he was no longer gripping his knees so hard that his knuckles (how had she not noticed the scars? They weren’t exactly small.) were white. Good.

“You adore your mom and dad, even if they embarrass you all the time. You look up to your sister more than anyone on the planet, even if you don’t act it. You don’t make friends often, but when you do you stick with them through hell or high water. You’re incredibly smart when it comes to science and math, even if you have bad grades. And above all, you care so much about bathe people around you. You sacrifice everything, your grades, your relationships, your time, to help people who you think need it. And that applies to phantom and Fenton.”

He was crying again. But this time, there was a small, shaky sort of smile there, one that said something like this was looong overdue.

Slowly, Valerie recalled her suit, and wrapped her arms around Danny in a loose hug. He hugged back burying his face into her shoulder as he shook.

They would be okay. They’d figure it out, eventually.

But for now, they just enjoyed the relief in each other.

——————————

Aaaaand that’s a wrap folks! Part three is finally here! Not gonna lie, I wrote this in the span of about two and a half hours on mobile from 9 to about 11:20 pm, so apologies if there are any inconsistencies.

That being said, I would like to do a poll. I have about 120 followers and I was wondering if I should write something special for y’all once I reach 150. So, would you rather I write:

1) a Danny phantom/Rise of the Guardians crossover,

2) a Danny Phantom TUE! Au fic,

Or

3) part 3 of my Glass ghost au?

Comment your choice below and have a happy weekend or whatever.

[middle-class-trash]

Rise of the Titans liveblog!!!

that intro made me unexpectedly emotional

So if Blinky is narrating, he can't die, right? Right????

BRO THE SUBWAY SCENE!!!! We're getting right fuckin into it!!!

Steve, my son!!!

I wish Toby wasn't a constant punchline 🙃 it just makes me not take his character seriously

CLAIRE!!!!!!

Something about Douxie decking Skrael at the first opportunity is just so sexy of him

Jim is incredibly brave but it's really reckless to go hand-to-hand with a demigod without proper armor

My heart goes BUMBUMBUMBUM when Douxie looks out the traincar window

Sexy traincar tracks spell WHO

THE WRECKAGE AWWWW

Oh my gosh the people stuck in the magic circle because they wouldnt get out of the way

NO NO NO DOUXIE NO

So they were arrested that early?? Jeez

Nari's such a cutie

"None of us will be talking to you" *cut to Toby spilling every bean*

TOBY'S FACE AT THE END HAHHAHAHA

Something about Nari's voice coming out of Douxie's body is so deeply odd

Oh hey, Krel to the rescue

AREA 49 HAKSHDKSKD

"And your mom."

Oh my gosh he's still broken from Wizards 😂

The Guardians are just dead set on pissing off local authorities huh

JIM!!!

STRICKLER?????

BARBARAAAAA

Stricklake supremacy 😌 they both look so good

Claire listening in 😭😭😭 she's so cute

AWWWWW ENGAGED ENGAGED ENGAGED

......does that give them death flags? Fuck. Fuuuuck fuck fuck fuck. It totally does.

AWWW DOUXIE!NARI HUGGING ARCHIE

Aja!!!!

Your majesty!!

Oh yikes, here's that running gag everyone was talking about.. pregnant Steve

Oh hey, Eli's hot now. We been knew 😂

"Mazel tov!" HAHA

Poor Jim needing a bunch of support to walk 🥺 he's such a trooper

I will simply pass away if Blinky dies

I hope Douxie is okay, we haven't seen him in Nari's body and that makes me ✨nervous✨

OH JKJK

Nari is so goddamn pretty

"Only your presence, not your commitment" is such a rapey saying

"Abra-cadabra, buttsnacks" I love that he still says that 🥺🥺 he loves his friends so much

"Do your worst" *cue both Douxie and Nari absolutely screaming in pain*

Krohnisfere? Alrighty then, that's the first mission

"I wouldn't be so sure of that" AWWW

They fixed the amulet???? DUUUUDE

"For the good of all..." 😭😭😭😭

"Or I could lock onto Nari and portal us there" *dead fucking silence*

I hate how Toby's used as a constant punchline.. a penny? Really?

TRAINTRACK MAGIC CIRCLE GO BRRRR

Poor Nari 🥺 Douxie's in so much distress

Oh no, the new amulet isn't working?? Fuckk

That absolutely gorgeous screencap of pissed Aja

Part of me is glad Nari was forced to do this and wasn't actually a traitor

Ice titan awakening sequence? Ice titan awakening sequence.

Oh Nari. Oh sweetie

Oh my gosh she's fucking tied to her titan

Boiling water!!! Or underwater explosion, that works too. Much more dramatic but that's Bellroc's style

Oh wow Steve actually has a bump?? What the fuck???

Oooh, TrollDragons?

Charlie!!!

"We still don't have a trollhunter" Aja, honey, not helpful

"Does he even trust himself? AJA, HONEY, NOT HELPFUL

Barbara being proud of her son 😭😭

OOH fusing excalibur with the armor?

Aja is so full of confidence, it's a good look for her

Steve being preggo is..really fucking weird. When they said

AWWW BLINKY AND AARRRGHHH

Your honor, I love them

OOH IS IT SOFT JLAIRE TIME

Ohhhh it's soft Jlaire time

He's always looking out for his mom 🥺

"I will always be here (head), and here (heart)" just fuck me up fam

Charlie!!!

Zong-Shi?

"Only death will come to those who go looking for it" oh dear

"The troll with many eyes" how does Charlie know Blinky? 😂

AYYY this where the banner that I found first is from!!! it was so cool seeing my screenshot circulate when we were starved for content 😂😂 everyone was posting various rott icons and banners that they got hoping they'd find a new one

Oh dear.. government

Blinky dear they can't understand you

"Holy frijole" Claire I simply adore you

WOW THAT'S PRETTYYYYY

Troll slaves???

So is Zong-Shi this ugly ass pear-lookin ass

Aja chilling with Jim even though she has doubts is an interesting strategic choice

Douxie, AARRRGHHH, and Nomura? Talk about rarepare

NOMURA CATCHING HIM 😭😭 SEXYYYY

DOUXIE RESCUING NOMURA 😭😭😭😭 SEXXYYYYY

If I havent said it yet, the animation is breathtaking

OH SHIT JIM

aaaaand here come those frozen wings

Nari cant be in control of herself, there's no way. She's still tied to the titan for Pete's sake

NOMURA????

Please dont let this be a sacrifice

PLEASE NO

BOTH CHANGELINGS????

STRICKLANDER??????

No on-screen death, so it's not real. No on-screen death, do it"# notbsmejelreal

NO ON-SCREEN DEATH BUT IT'S NOT REAL

THEYRE TALKING AHOUT HIM PAST-TENSE NOOOO

THEY RBOGUHT UP HIS DADDDDDD

"There's no revelation I can give you" is a great way of saying he's not relevant, genuinely

Oh wow this guy's freaky

Ohhhh so the green thing from the trailers and promo photos is the Krohnisfere

Archie to the rescue!!!

"That's my boy!" AWWE

"Claire nooo, no no no no YESSS, I'm free!!!" Blinky, never change 😂

Oh wow, they're already in contact with Bellroc's titan??

Different note, but the titan's designs are just different enough to make them interestun

VARVATOS??? Okay jk somehow it's gun robot lmfao

WAIT NEVER MIND HAHAHAH HI BUD

....if the bridge falls, can't Charlie just fly them across

LMAO he just saw his death?? That is what he wanted to see 🤷🏻‍♀️

It's too early to celebrate, there's no way Bellroc is down after just a few pinches

Yeahhh

Oh dear... is Varvatos in danger?

Claire being the warrior of the group is incredible and sexy and hhnnngggg

Toby is a Hufflepuff. I will not be answering questions

OH WOW THAT'S HOW HE BURNED HIS HAND??? THE HONRGAZEL?????

ARCHIE SAID GOODBYE??? NO NO NO NO NO

Douxie's gonna be a flat mess!!!

God, plus Nomura and Stricklander

NOOOO DOUXIE YOU BIG SWEETIE

Oh my gosh this is the scene with Douxie trying to connect with Nari, it has to be

"I need to try again" AWWW HONEY

That shot of Mexico was incredibly stereotypical

DOUXIE SWEETHEART 🥺🥺

He's trying to hold her hand???? AWWWW

Oh my gosh he's being choked 😳

NARI BABY!!!!

The huggos 🥺🥺

Jim being frustrated is totally realistic

Wait wait wait waittt do they have the entire titan at their disposal?

"There's absolutely nothing all the way out here" cue a titan. Any of them.

And there it is.

CLAIRE SUPREMACY!!!!!!!

White haired Claire? White haired Claire???

Oh dear it's like.. a little over halfway and there's so much left that could happen

COACH. COOOOACH

OH THANK GOD!!! Steve doesn't need another paternal figure dying on him

Time for Skrael to fuck shit up 😬

I find it interesting how Bellroc and Skrael's titans are both bipedal but Nari's is on four legs, much more animalistic

NARI, NOOOOO PLEASE NO

At least Skrael's done????

We kinds knew Bellroc was the final boss but NOT LIKE THIS

DOUXIE SCREAMING FOR HER

NOOOOOOO

No more running. GODDAMNIT

The three can no longer unite but Bellroc can still fcuk shit up

A HIDDEN PAGE??? FUCK THE WORLD IS TO BE REFORGED WITH FIRE

THE HEARTSTONE??????

Oh shit, the explanation for why Arcadia's the center of everything!!

The only heartstone?? Really???? That's scary as shit, trolls could go instinct without a reliable hearthstone!!

EXCALIBUR TIMEEE

JIMMMMMM

Come on honey, you can do it!!

Aja, honey, I love you so much but now's not the time

THE HEARTSTONE???? FUCK DUDE

.......Steve

Eli the midwife?? ...gross

Jim, my love, my baby boy!!!

The nine of them!!!

AWW BLINKY BEING THE BEST DAD

THEY WORK TOGETHER 😭😭😭😭

FUCK YEAH!!!!!!

"Quiet desperation" is a great word for it

Are we coming on to the big final battle?

Ohnoohnoohno they all said the thing 😭😭😭 someone's gonna die. At least one more is gonna die.

HE'S DRIVINGGGG. LOVE THAT FOR HIM

STICKY SPELL TIME!!!!!!

"Some sort of stickum!" Bro 😂😂

I love how he calls them all Trollhunters 😭 throwback to the OG show where the three of them were all called that

Aja Terron supremacy

Oh it's weird.. it's very weird. Why did Steve have to be pregnant again

Oh dear, there's half an hour left.. this has to be the final battle

JIM

Varvatos shielding Claire and Krel 🥺

Fuck, man, people are getting thrown left and right

DOUXIE MY LOVE

Oh here we fucking go, rematch

NEW AMULET???

Jim's about to get royally fucked up

LIKE THAT

FUCK

WHY IS SHE TAKING HIM??? GOD NO

Anti-magic beacon??

Helloooo that's smart asf

This gives Mount Doom vibes

"Embrace your loved ones for the final time" FUCK MAN STOP IT

"I already was" DAMN RIGHT BUD

NEW AMULETTTT

GO GET JIM GO GET 'IM

DAYLIGHT ARMOR!!!!!!

He was ready to just sacrifice himself like THAT

DAYLIGHT ARMORRRRR WITH EXCALIBUR??????? FUUUUCK

Jim being great at combat is just the best fucking thing

Oh fuck. OH FUCK.

STABBED??????

PLEASE NO, GOD NO

FUUUUCK

"I'm powerless" "You get used to it" WE DONT HAVE TIME TO UNPACK ALL OF THAT

JIM HONEY PLEASE DONT DIE

Is that....is that it?? Oh dear god, is that it????

JIM WHERE ARE YOU

I'm calling it now it's too early to be celebrating

Oh god the weird babies

WHERE IS TOBY

WHERE

NO

MY JAW FUCKING DROPPED

NO WAY, NO FUCKING WAY

HE'S GETTING A DYING MONOLOGUE??????

ALWAYS HAVE BEEN, ALWAYS WILL BE

"Itll be the two of us at the end" WHY DOES THAG SEEM LIKE JIM WILL GO OUT TIO

THERE'S NO WAY TOBY JUST DIED

THHERE'S NO WAY

That was sad as fuck but in a narrative way I hope it's permanent

Oh dear, Jim's going back????

Oh shit

WWHAT IS HE DOING

NOOOOO

"I have cherished every moment with you" STOP IT HE'S HIS FATHER

"I FYOU WERE MY OWN SON" STOPPPPPP

WHAT'S HAPONEINGGGGG

CLAIRE

NOOOO

THIS IS WHERE IM SOBBING

THIS IS WHERE IM LOSUNG IT

"Dont give up on me" FUCK STOPPPP

"I WILL ALWAYS BE HERE AND HERE" FUCK IT STOPPPPP

"I would date you for a hundred lifetimes" IS REALLY BEING TESTED HUH

THERE ARE 10 MINUTES ELFT WHAT THEBFUCK

AND WE'RE BACK TO TROLLHUNTERS?.????

HUHHHH

Fuck, man. FUCK, MAN.

Oh, Toby. Ohhhh Toby

CLAIRE 🥺

ROMEO AND JULIET!!!!

Oh my fucking god

"IF YOUD COME OVER TO DINNER" AYYYYY

His smile at Steve 🥺

HE'S HAVING TOBY TAKE THE CANAL???? But wouldnt the amulet still call for Jim?????

"Nothing interesting ever happens in Arcadia" VERY FUCKING FUNNY

Destiny is a gift. Some go their entire lives living in an existence of quiet desperation, never learning the truth- that what feels as though a burden pushing down upon our shoulders is actually the sense of purpose that lifts us to greater heights. Never forget that fear is but the precursor to valor. That to strive and triumph in the face of fear is what it means to be a hero. Don't think. Become.

.......it actually called his name. I can't believe it actually called his name.

The fuck is that ending??? Let Jim REST

[moonlightreal]

Fate episode 6

When last we left Elemental Academy, I was seeing doomful parallels to every Bad Ending arc in Higurashi.  And sadly, I like the three adults and my genre-savvy tells me they won’t all make it through this last episode.

How much of a downer will the ending be?  Who will end up screwing everything up? (my money’s on Bloom.)  Who’s for the chop?  (my guess is Silva and one out of Dane, Riven or Beatrix.)  Will we finally learn the red truth of what happened at Aster Dell?  Will we ever get the skinny on what the heck Burned Ones are?  Will the show finally give me the lowdown on changelings that I’ve been whining about since episode one?  Will we get the full story on Bloom’s destiny? (My money’s on no to at least three of the four.)  

And I suppose we’ll finally answer the question we started with: Good, bad or irredeemable?  

One last time, let’s dive in!

We pick up right where we left off, Bloom having a mental chat with Rosalind!  Rosalind says, ‘Do you have any idea how special you are?”

...waitwaitwait, is there gonna be a prophecy?  There’s always a prophecy!  A prophecy that the Chosen one would be born in Aster Dell and that’s the real reason Rosalind nuked the place.  Only she didn’t know which of the babies it was, she guessed Beatrix and she guessed wrong.

Am I right?  Sorry, I barely let the episode start, let’s get back.

Rosalind encourages Bloom to bust her out.  Bloom flames her eyes up.

Aaaaand we cut back to the girls in the corridor.  Terra wonders what they could be talking about and Stella teases that she once heard Terra talk about dirt for two hours.  I’m liking friendly Stella, but she faceturned faster than Tinx at the end of WoW!  

Terra’s also worried Beatrix may recover from being frozen and come after them.  Sensible, Terra!  But no, Beatrix will be gone when you get back, off getting the mysterious “him.”  I know how these shows work!

Ahahahaha! I’m right!  Beatrix is gone!  I swear I type these things while I watch, all guesses are genuine!

And then Dowling, Harvey and Aisha bust in.  Yeah girls, you might’ve not done this during a Burned One attack!  Harvey says “Not another word!” which nobody listening is why y’all gonna get the bad ending, and the girls follow him.  Stella resurrects her inner witch to tell Aisha, ‘Hope the brownie points you get from this will keep you company when you’ve got no friends.”  simmer down Stell, she was trying to protect people’s lives…  Aisha goes with the girls leaving Dowling to go after Bloom alone.

Rosalind is coaching Bloom on how to burn through the barrier.  Bloom’s grinning, because magic feels hot and dangerous and you just want more.  Then the barrier goes down and Bloom has a moment of worry about what she’s done before she… has a very caring moment, she grabs Rosalind assuming the older fairy will need water and food after being trapped for so long.  That is really sweet, Bloom.  But Rosalind says, ‘No.  I need magic.”

And here comes Dowling!  I assumed Rosalind would steal Dowling’s magic, but when the headmistress gets there everybody’s gone.

Opening!

Bloom and Rosalind come out a door in the graveyard out in the forest. Secret passage!  Dowling doesn’t know about it.  Dowling doesn’t know about lots of things, according to Rosalind.  Bloom really should be having second thoughts here.  Rosalind has an evil face!

Harvey reads the girls the riot act.  He’s wearing his army coat, the same kind Rosalind wears, from their soldier days.  He’s horrified about all the girls have done.  He turns to go.

And Terra jumps up, “You lied again!  About Rosalind, about everything, and you’re angry with ME?  You can’t punish me for not knowing something you didn’t tell me!”

Yes! Get ‘em Terra!  

Stella and Musa tennis-match look from daughter to father.

Harvey just says, “I suggest you all cool down!” and leaves without facing his daughter’s very sensible argument.  And he magics the doors locked.

Terra: ‘I’ve caught him in a logic trap and he’s used his magic to ground us.’

Stella: “That means you won.”

Then aisha heads for her room to “deescalate the situation by removing myself from it” and Stella calls her a rat of a teacher’s pet and Musa asks for a brief pause so she can get her headphones.  She flees into her room as Stella and Aisha get into it.

There’s Sam!  Hiding in Musa and Terra’s room!

Stella says everyone over five knows not to snitch, even terra knows not to snitch, and Terra gives her a look.  Aisha brings the logic: burned Ones, outside!  Bloom, kinda single minded!  Rosalind, an extra problem we don’t need right now!

Dowling checks the stone circle.  Nobody there.

When she leaves, Rosalind and Bloom appear.  So Rosalind is mind/light at least.  Rosalind puts her hands over the center stone and absorbs magic.

Bloom asks what happened at Aster Dell.  Rosalind makes a very evil face. ‘Everything Farah told you is true.  I lied to them.  I told then Aster Dell was evacuated.  It wasn’t.”

Bloom starts to wonder if maybe she released a baddie.

But rosalind has more to say.  ‘One of the fundamental tenets of the Otherworld is that only fairies can do magic.  The settlers of Aster Dell were the exception.  They were humans who drew on sacrifice and death.  Blood witches.”

Gee it’d have been nice to hear that fundamental tenet sometime before the last episode! 9_9  

So Rosalind saw an opportunity to wipe out the totally unforeshadowed witches along with the Burned Ones.  And Bloom was a fairy baby kidnapped by the witches.  Her fairy parents are still unknown. Bloom’s freaking out, but Rosalind just says, ‘You weren’t safe in the Otherworld, the power inside you was too great.  that’s why the witches wanted you, to use your power.”  and the Burned Ones can sense Bloom’s power and want to get rid of it before it’s used on them.

Yikes! Bloom realizes her presence is putting everybody in danger!

Rosalind: ‘Sucks to be special sometimes, doesn’t it.”  But now they can go after the Burned Ones!  And Rosalind has another trick to teach Bloom…

Hmm, so these Burned Ones were just… around?  And gathering because they sensed Bloom’s magic?  I assumed someone summoned them back after not being seen for 16 years.  

We go to the fighters at the barrier.  Remember how last episode Bloom drugged Sky and left him passed out at the stone circle?  Well Aisha found out somehow and told the teachers so Silva is giving Sky the “why did I find this out from Aisha?’ and Sky hits back with, “Why’d I have to find out about Aster dell from Bloom?”  But they’re in the middle of a siege situation here so Silva logically suggests they talk about that later.  

Another few specialists including Riven and a girl named Kat who knows Stella are watching Noura’s last video.  Kat thinks she knows where it was shot.  Silva says, “Let’s go.”  Just him and five students. Riven says, ‘Without fairies?  that’s fucking stupid, there’s six of them!”  and Sky shuts him down; order’s an order.  That’s the most twit-ish thing Sky has done this whole show.

They hear Burned Ones growling… but it’s coming from the direction of the school!  Yikes!  Everyone rushes back!

At Alfea, the lights, that were never bright anyway so we’d remember this is a dark show, flicker out! Terra says the electricity runs on magic and there are energy wells… Sam says he’ll go check it out. He Kitty Prydes it through the door, unbothered my the sealing spell.  So if he can phase, can Terra learn it too?

Spooky empty corridors!  Flickering lights!  Sam all alone!  Y’know Sam probably can’t do that trick Kitty does where an enemy launches at her and goes right through, because he can only phase through earth-y and plant-y stuff.

Yikes! It’s a jump scare!  Burned One right in Sam’s face!  It claws him and he goes down yelling in pain!

But he manages to get back into the girls’ suite to tell them there’s a Burned One loose in the school!

Back with Bloom and Rosalind, Rosalind’s encouraging Bloom to channel lots of magic.  “More!  Let the fire consume you!  Control limits you!”  bloom says she’s scared and Rosalind encourages her to embrace that feeling, to enjoy it!  “And with the right people around you...”

Bloom unflames.  “You mean with you.”  Bloom’s realized it!  “You want me to listen to you and trust you and let you guide me?  I just met you.’  and that’s not all!  Bloom realizes Rosalind left her on earth a danger to everyone around her, to hide her from Dowling. “Without any guidance.”

Rosalind: ‘The guidance you needed was love.  Farah couldn’t give that to you.  Vanessa and Michael could.”  Ugh, so their names are canon. And Rosalind knew about their baby and “gave them a second chance. And I gave you a hiding place from the monsters that wanted you dead.”  And rosalind says she’ll always look out for Bloom, and when this is over they’ll find Bloom’s birth parents.

I dunno Bloom, maybe ask a whole lot more about how she knew about an Earth couple whose baby had a heart defect?

It had occurred to me that Beatrix might be the other half of the changeling swap, if there’s healing magic that can fix things like that.  

But no time for that, Burned Ones are in the school and the girls are stuck in their room!  Bloom has to go help.  She asks Rosalind if she’s charged up enough to help help.  Rosalind says she can’t, “But you don’t need it.  BS, Rosalind, you could totally help. But Bloom runs off leaving the lady with the evil face all alone.

In the suite, Sam is getting worse, they can’t get out, and cel phones are giving up.

Bloom races toward the school.  She hears noises from every side… but there’s Sky!  At least bloom seems relieved he’s ok after she spiked his drink.  He doesn’t seem nearly as upset as he should be over that, but I guess we gotta save the school first!

Inside dark halls there’s Riven and Kat with flashlights.  They hear noises, but it’s just some students led by a male fire fairy with a handful of flames.  Kat goes with them to the “courtyard” which I’ve been calling the cafeteria, I guess it’s outside?  The big set with the arches and walkway overlooking it.

So Riven’s all alone to get the rest of the students from this area! He goes into the greenhouse… and there’s Dane!  And Beatrix lying asleep on a table.  Dane brought Beatrix here but she’s still paralyzed from the spell and Dane doesn’t know how to help her.

Riven just says it sucks for her and she’s not worth it.  Which true we’d be better off without her but also yikes, heartless much Riven?

Dane: “She cares about you and I know you care about her.  Don’t act like you don’t.”

Riven shrugs and turns to go and Dane grabs him.  Riven says fine, he’ll help.  Dunno why they don’t just carry Beatrix to where the students are gathering, that’d be safer for everyone.

Sky and Bloom are having the “you drugged me.” conversation.  And the “I trusted you, I told you things.’ and “you trusted me but you’d still have stopped me.’ and “you were gonna release a murderer and a crazy ex-headmistress.” and Bloom starts realizing everyone had reasons for what they did and Sky wraps it up, ‘just because they’re doing what they thought was right doesn’t mean that it is.”  

Back with the girls, Sam’s getting worse and something is banging on the door!  it’s Sky!  Did he just kick his way through an enspelled door?  Badass.

Sky and Stella look at each other and say hey.

Then we all head for the courtyard and comparative safety!

Dowling is magically sealing the beautiful arched doors with trees in them, she tells the boy fire fairy to get his compatriots to weld them shut, and everyone to start making barricades.  Silva’s handing out armor to fairies who want it.  Harvey has a whole chemistry lab set up with a lunch lady helping him.  Badass Marco is still getting treatment for his injury when the girls bring Sam in for help.  Sam’s in a bad way.  Harvey asks why they didn’t bring him immediately and Terra reminds him they were locked in their room.  Harvey flinches.

Dowling stands on the stage where we saw Luna before, as behind her fire fairies weld the doors.  She tells them the situation: Burned Ones in, power out.  But she got word to Queen Luna and the army’s on the way!  Everyone looks at Stella when she says that.  They’re safe in the courtyard… but if the Burned Ones get through before the army comes, they’ll have to fight.  Dowling does her best to be inspiring, “Let’s show them what it means to be Alfeans!”  But I just feel… the lack of history.  And I know, we have history. Feels like we don’t.  

Sky and Stella have a moment.  Bloom told him Stella ran away from home. Stella: “Home’s on its way here, so that’s fun.”  Sky offers to help her hide but Stella says she’d love to take him up on it but… ‘Breaking up was the right thing to do, we never should’ve gotten back together.  We are codependant at best, toxic at worst. This time I have to deal with it myself.”  yay Stella!  Grow into a better person!  Sky says she sounds just like Bloom and Stella jokes that that’s what he’s into these days.

Meanwhile Bloom is following Dowling trying to convince her not to be mad. ‘Rosalind isn’t the monster you think she is.”

Bloom, you just met her you said it yourself!

“She had a reason to lie.  The settlers of Aster Dell weren’t innocent. They were blood witches.  And my birth parents weren’t even there.”

Dowling just sighs and says “She certainly has a way of winning people over doesn’t she.”  Dangit, I wanted her to just kill the retcon and say, “there’s no such thing as blood witches, Bloom.”

Bloom goes with, ‘is your ego so fragile you can’t even consider for a minute you might be wrong about her?”  Dowling says Rosalind is just manipulating, Bloom says you’re doing that too, and Dowling sensibly points out Dowling could be here defending herself and also defending the school.

Bloom flinches from that logic but says Rosalind is still too weak.  

Dowling says the stone circle is the conduit to the magic of the land.  It supplies everything… like the electricity.  And the barrier.

Yup. Nice job breaking it, hero!  Bloom singlehandedly brings about the bad ending!

Bloom says the Burned Ones are after her, and Dowling had figured that out. Bloom says she knows how to fight them now, but Dowling points out, ‘you’re he reason we’re in this mess, you’ve done enough. Help the other fire fairies weld the doors if you want to.’

And she strides off, pausing to suggest to Aisha that the other water fairies could use her leadership.

Aisha had been coming to talk to bloom I think, but she changes her mind.

In the greenhouse Dane and Riven are making a medicine to revive Beatrix.  Turns out Riven is good at potions because he used to hang out with Terra.  ‘Look, I’ll deny saying this but she’s not the worst.”  

Ok, that makes Riven’s nasty remark to Terra in the first episode way worse.

Riven: “I might’ve led you astray this year...’

Dane: “you didn’t.  Beatrix is special.”

Riven: ‘You are gay, right?  I’m not blind?  I know when someone wants my dick.”

Dane: “I think you’re hot.  She is too, in a different way.”

There’s nothing like a cute threesome!  ...and this is nothing like a cute threesome.  But now the problematic element sits up and says, ‘You made the right choice.  Rosalind will be impressed.  When this is all over, you’re going to want to be on our side.”

Burned Ones growl!  Rosalind pulls magic from the stone circle!

And Sam is in a bad way.  There was a splinter of Burned One claw near his heart.  Dang, I should’ve put him on the list of people for the chop!  Musa tries to use her mind magic to take some of his pain, but it’s too much for her.

Harvey starts falling apart, stuttering that he can’t get the splinter out.  Terra encourages her father, and Harvey manages to pull the claw splinter out.  sam’s alive, but until the Burned One that tagged him is dead it’s only a matter of time!

The fire fairy boy says he heard they have the rest of the night and a whole day before the army comes. Too long for Sam, and if the Burned Ones get through the doors too long for all of them.  Bloom, who’d been watching in horror the results of her bad choices, sets her lips and strides out.

Bustle of students putting up barricades.  Sky is working with Badass Marco, then he turns and there’s Bloom with an apology.  “I should’ve been honest with you like you were honest with me and I’m sorry.” And she reassures him that the kiss was honest, and gives him another one for emphasis!

Sky: “If I still say I don’t believe you, can we do it again?”

Well Sky is the most sane and stable person here, he’ll be good for Bloom!  And immediately her catches Bloom’s glance and says, ‘whatever you’re thinking of doing… I’m here.”

And Aisha knows Bloom’s gonna try something, because Bloom always tries something and this time she thinks it’s her fault.  Stella tries the, ‘If only her friend hadn’t turned on her..” and Aisha feels bad and she’s sorry.  And here’s Bloom, come to get them! It’s the last episode, we all get to go fight!  

Sky’s not with them, he’s with Silva and Silva has a final confession to make.  Because he thinks they’re all gonna die tonight, he wants to tell Sky the truth about what happened at Aster Dell.  Because that was where Sky’s father died.  But Sky thought he died in battle…

Flashback! On the plains.  Silva is yelling that there were still people, the town wasn’t evacuated.  He wants to run and tell Rosalind.  This must be while the magic users are up on the cliff ready to call down lightning.  Silva says his friends think they’re only killing Burned Ones, but Andreas says Rosalind knows the truth.  And he’s going with what Rosalind said.  

Silva says ‘I know Rosalind gave you a sense of purpose, I know you’re indebted to her.” backstory there, but surely Andreas wouldn’t be on side for nuking hundreds of people?!  Silva says, orders or morals?  And Andreas… yep, he’s Team Rosalind.  he’s not gonna let Silva warn the others.

He does not say, “They’re evil blood witches, we’ll show you the evidence and then come back.” which is really the only correct thing to say here.

Punches are thrown!  The two warriors scuffle.  Then Andreas goes for his sword.  Silva draws his own.  And a few swings in, he runs Andreas through.  And races to the top of the bluff to stop his friends being accessories to a massacre.

Oof! What a thing for Sky to learn!  And before that, Silva says, Andreas really was a great hero.  Just… flawed.  As we all are.  That’s not much good and sky snaps, ‘What the fuck am I supposed to do with that?”  But he’ll have to work it out later because now the Burned Ones are breaking in!

Dowling and the specialists move to the front, Dowling saying, ‘Keep your emotions in check.  Runaway fear leads to runaway magic.”

In the clinic Harvey and Terra battle to keep Sam alive.  Terra goes to get help and finds Musa zoned out with headphones.  Terra begs for help and Musa says she can’t bear to feel somebody she cares about die, not again.  This Musa’s mother dies last year, and Musa was with her and felt everything.  Oof!  The two girls hang onto each other and cry for a moment then Terra says, ‘It’s ok.  I’m not gonna let him die.”  And, understanding, leaves Musa to her music. But headphones can’t shut out the sound of the Burned Ones banging on the walls!

In the courtyard terra walks right up past everybody and starts dismanteling the barricade!  ‘We’re hiding when we should be fighting.”  Silva tells her they’re gonna be fighting soon enough and indeed, here comes a Burned One through the roof!  The boy fire fairy blasts it and Kat is ready to skewer the thing when it… passes them?

It’s looking for Bloom!  Who was last seen sneaking out a trapdoor with Stella and Aisha!  The banging stops, and Dowling figures out Bloom has left to draw the enemy away!

The girls emerge from the secret passage in the graveyard.

Harvey calls Terra over as she is clearly headed out to fight, but he says she needs to stay with her brother, to help him hold on until the Burned One is destroyed.  Then Musa appears and takes Sam’s hand. She’ll help him as long as she can.

Outside Stella points out that her mom is on the way with a real live army, but Bloom says there’s no time for that.  Rosalind taught her how to stop the Burned Ones but she has to do big magic and she’s not sure how that’ll work.  She needs help.  Aisha will be there with her water magic in case the forest catches fire, and Stella can hide them.

Bloom: “Rosalind wants me to believe that she’s the person I need to get through this.  But she’s not.

Aisha pulls the water from the pond into a cyclone around Bloom.  Bloon lights up her eyes and lifts off the ground and… transforms. Transforms-ish.  Flames spiral around her arms and legs, and around her body.  Bloom’s clothes don’t change but fiery veined wings open behind her, first very large then dwindling as Bloom lands back on the ground.

The designers definitely could’ve watched PGSM to get this, if they then decided to tone things way down.  And why not change her clothes?  I’m sure they could’ve managed something.  As a live action transformation sequence it’s… ok.  They were trying for something cool and they had some good ideas how to get there, the fie spirals were good, but they needed to really run with it and they didn’t.  So it’s just ok.

And how the night did Rosalind know the long lost secret of how to transform?  

Burned Ones advance and Bloom blasts them with fire one after another.  When the last one is down, her wings go out.  And where the Burned Ones fell are… specialists?  People, anyway.

Dowling arrives and Bloom collapses in her arms, then Aisha and Stella rush over to help.  “We did it.’

Inside Sam suddenly feels much better!  Terra hugs Musa.  The lights come back on.  

In the greenhouse too, where Beatrix and the boys are ready to bring the bad ending!  I still smell a bad ending, because we just had a good ending but there’s twenty minutes more to go!  The boys say they should rejoin their classmates but Beatrix says they should wait to meet Rosalind and her dad, who have a plan.  ‘The two of you can be part of it.  This doesn’t have to end.”

Dane asks if it was her dad who sent her to Alfea and B says he’s technically not her dad… and here’s Rosalind coming in the greenhouse doors.  She and Beatrix recognize each other though they can’t have met.  B says the boys are her friends and Rosalind reads their minds.  I wanna say the boys are wondering what they’ve gotten into but… no, they don’t seem to be seeing anythuing wrong with this at all.

The girls are putting Bloom to bed, talking about the good ending they think they have.  Sam will be fine, Terra’s great at doctoring and she’s sad she missed seeing Bloom’s wings.  Tinkerbell is mentioned and I can just hear my friend cringing as they say Bloom’s wings were cooler than Tinkerbell’s.  Bloom’s parents call and Aisha talks to them, covering for Bloom.  She calls it her ‘one allocated lie of the week” which is weird.  Bloom’s awake and fine, she could talk to her folks.  Aisha says they’ve been having killer exams and the girls giggle.

Nobody says, ‘ohmigod the secret of wings was lost ages ago, what exactly did you do? help us all learn it!” which seems like a very obvious thing for everybody to be saying.

Also being all happy and going to bed while Rosalind and Beatrix are unaccounted for is a weird choice!

Silva and some specialists are scouting for her.  No luck.  They find Dowling with the bodies of the ex-Burned Ones.

Dowling: “Bloom transformed, Saul.  She spent one night with Rosalind and unlocked ancient fairy magic, magic we thought was lost.  She told Bloom the settlers of Aster dell weren’t civilians, they were blood witches.”

And Silva seems to believe it.  Which of course means he killed his friend for no good reason.  If it’s true.  But if it’s true why didn’t Rosalind and Andreas tell the others, present evidence of the blood witches’ crimes, and make a plan to deal with things aboveboard?  So why does Silva believe it now hearing from Dowling who heard from Bloom who heard from Rosalind well after the fact? But he does believe it and this is his awful moment of guilt.

Sky too is grappling with what he’s just learned, pacing on the lawn outside the school as the night ends.

Bloom finds him as the sun rises and I gotta say, I was not expecting the night to end!  Everyone heard Bloom “went full fairy last night.” Bloom says it was the first time she truly felt like herself.  She says, “I belong here.”  but she realizes Sky is in the same clothes as last night and asks if he’s ok.  He says he’s fine, which he isn’t.

Then Dowling comes looking for Bloom.  The two fairies go into the headmistress’ office.  Bloom’s feeling ok after her big magic, and suddenly she apologizes for all the awful things she’s said to Dowling.  “You found me when I was lost, brought me to a safe place, gave me guaidance.  Surrounded me with amazing people.  And I’ve been...’

Dowling says, ‘It’s forgiven.”  And Bloom hesitantly asks for a hug, or maybe offers one.  Dowling looks like she’s never heard of hugs before, then she stands up and she and Bloom hug.  Dowling totally gets teary-eyed.

Dowling: “When I became headmistress I made a decision.  To become a figurehead.  To project strength.  It’s what students your age need.  Admitting mistakes invites uncertainty...but not admittng them means people you care about have to ask you if you hug.”

Awwww, that was sweet!  Dowling says she should have been more honest and Bloom says she maybe needed time.

...are we maybe NOT having a bad ending?  I mean if Stella confronts her mum that would take up the time and we could end on a good note! Nobody’s dead yet!  But all that bad-ending buildup...

‘Cause suddenly we’re back on Earth and Bloom is going to tell them the truth!  Which, what good will that do them?  And do you even know the truth?  People told you lots of things.  And the rest of the girls are here to hang out over the weekend!  They head upstairs so Bloom can drop the “changeling” bomb in peace.

Music plays, Bloom speaks and her mother cries and looks at a baby book, ultrasounds and a newborn hospital bracelet.  They believe it too, the whole mad story of fairies and magic.  Of course Bloom summoning double handfuls of fire probably does a lot to convince them.

Sweet family montage, Bloom hugging her parents, the girls at the kitchen table, eating pizza.

Back at Alfea, Silva asks Sky where Riven is.  Sky just says he and Dane are probably off getting stoned.  When is this?  Did y’all not do a full headcount after the battle?  Sky is of course not happy with his mentor.  Silva just says, ‘one day I hope you’ll see everything I did was for your benefit Sky.”  Which, if Silva’s parenting produced Sky the paragon of decency and Andreas’ parenting produced Beatrix the occasionally charming also slutty obsessed murderer, good point there!

Here come some doomful black SUVs!  They pull around and out hop a bunch of soldiers who surround the two confused guys.

Queen Luna gets out and… arrests Silva for the attempted murder of Andreas of Eraklyon!

Yow! Poor Silva looks most confused.  But there he is, Andreas gets out of an SUV still wearing his specialist vest thingy.  Sky looks at his resurrected father in shock!

Dowling is looking over some graves.  Rosalind suddenly turns up!  Turns out the Burned Ones are a sort of zombie, they were human once so when Bloom turned them human again and dead Dowling buried them.  I hope she tried to find their next of kin and stuff too.  Rosalind knew about them.

Dowling: “Are there more out there?”

Rosalind: “Shit ton.”

Rosalind must’ve already met Riven, his speech patterns are rubbing off on her!

And then Rosalind delivers the prophecy.  There always is one.  Or in this case, “There’s a legend.  It’s a thousand years old. That’s how old the Burned Ones are, by the way.  They were soldiers from an ancient war.  The legend is about the magic used against them.  It created them.  it’s powerful.  It’s primal.  The Dragon Flame.”

Whaaaaaat? Really?  Come on.

And that’s what Bloom’s got and that’s why she could transform. Rosalind let the Burned Ones into the school to see if Bloom could do it.  Dowling’s upset about the danger to, y’know, everybody.

Rosalind: “there’s a war on the horizon.  The Burned Ones are nothing compared to what’s coming.”

And Rosalind says she’s taking over the school, pretty much.  We go back to the front yard where Silva’s getting hauled away in handcuffs and Queen Luna is giving the ordersy and there’s Beatrix watching and inside someone’s taking down Dowling’s portrait and putting up Rosalind’s.

Soldiers march into the greenhouse and Harvey and Sam smile weakly, smart enough not to try anything against six big dudes.

We learn that Andreas has been in hiding all these years because “I needed someone to raise Beatrix.”  Uh, wow Andreas is one obedient guy!  He also looks a little nutty.  I dunno, the very regal beard… it’s too much somehow.  Next to him Beatrix smiles at Riven and Dane who are I guess her loyal retainers now.

And then, infodump over… Rosalind straight up MURDERIZES Dowling!  Well first she suggests Dowling might want to run away and take some time off, but Dowling is having none of that so Rosalind kills her!  And then angry rock music plays as Dowling’s body sinks into the ground and flowers come up over her, making one more grave.

The girls return from their weekend on earth wearing the awful clothes from the trailer and discover… not the three adults they were expecting!

Well that was… something.  You got the bad ending all right!

So lemme scroll up and see how good my guesses were…

Nobody but Dowling died, so my death guesses were wrong.  And if she’s an earth fairy she might be able to heal herself under the ground or something, I mean weirder things happen in this kind of show.  Bloom did indeed doom the school by releasing Rosalind.  

We learned what I guess is the truth of Aster Dell, but... unforeshadowed blood witches?  Reeeeeally!?  That’s what you’re going with?  And we found out Burned Ones are ancient zombies created by the unforeshadowed Dragon Flame which Bloom has for some reason. You’re supposed to foreshadow the important stuff for the night’s sake!  That’s how things have weight in your story, that’s how you make the world feel real like the parts of it are connected to the other parts of it!  The lack of worldbuilding has been bugging me more and more, can you tell?

Anyway we get a season two.  I’m pleased because I’ve enjoyed plenty of aspects of Fate, but on the other hand… Fate has turned the already weird Winx fandom into a pit of radioactive rage-bees, and I won’t be sad to put that behind us!

So what about the big question?  Good, bad or irredeemable?

I expected to judge how Fate lines up as a Winx Club show, but it… just doesn’t.  At all.  None of the characters are the same, none of the worldbuilding is the same.  It’s apples to oranges.

But as just a show… I think I’d have to go with “bad.”  The way the world feels so flimsy, all the really obvious bits of Otherworldbuilding that just aren’t there until the end, or aren’t there at all.  All the Earth popular culture references.  Beatrix being stuck in a slut stereotype role.  All the drugs.  All the everyone’s lying to everyone about everything, it got really tiresome.  Those things knock the show out of the “good” category.

But there was a lot to like.  I have to say, all the actors did a really good job.  Given the semi-mess they had to work with, they gave it all they had!  Stella was so awful but put across that she’s terrible because she’s terrified.  Sky was a truly good person. Beatrix and Riven are objectively terrible people but both had moments of being so charming it was hard to hate them.  And Dowling, Silva and Harvey managed to hold up this flimsy worldbuilding and almost make it work.  The magic was flimsy but pretty and the castle and the forest are absolutely stunning.

So it’s not good, but there’s something there.  So it’s not irredeemable, though there’s a lot we have to wallpaper over with it.  I’m’a go with “Bad.  The show has charms but is in general bad.”  

At least that’s what I think after a five-hour marathon of the last episode!  We’ll see what occurs to me in days to come!

[elenatria]

That moment in the 1x02 Chernobyl episode when Bryukhanov attacks Legasov because he can't tell how the reactor can explode, then mocks him, and Legasov is troubled, so Boris steps up and asks Bryukhanov about the graphite on the roof, and he's like "How dare you? Only I can yell at Valery. Am I clear?" And my heart bursted.

HHAHAHAHHA omg it never occurred to me to see it that way?? Brilliant. A want a ficlet on that scene.

You know what, it’s about time people got to know why this pairing is so hot and tragic and inspiring and and… And I mean I’m not crazy for shipping them, am I?? I mean ok ok “real people with tragic destinies” etc etc but but b-but the writer and the actors are doing SUCH a great job giving us the enemies-to-friends (or lovers) trope so effortlessly in a matter of, like, two episodes (btw I didn’t need two episodes, just the first time they met was enough for me to ship them hahah am I nuts or am I nuts). 

Alright, SPOILERS.

So at the end of the first episode Boris Shcherbina, the head of the Bureau for Fuel and Energy (aka aggressive, unapologetic apparatchik and bureaucrat), is calling Valery Legasov,  the first deputy director of the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy (aka awkward nerdy idealist scientist), to bark some orders at him and essentially tell him “We don’t want your opinion, nerd, you’re here to answer questions, nothing more, kbye.” So at their very first contact Boris is rude, entitled and arrogant to Valery, even hanging up on him.

In the second episode Valery reads Boris’ report and freaks out. When he joins General Secretary Gorbachev’s committee, Boris tries to downplay  the disaster, his arms sprawled out all over the armchair as if nothing happened. and looks at Valery in utter disbelief when the scientist tries to convince everyone how serious things are. Obviously Boris would rather be home with his wife or something. Btw in the show Valery doesn’t have a wife, he only has a cat, cat=loneliness, geddit?

When Gorbachev orders them both to visit the power plant Boris cannot believe his ears. He’s stuck with this annoying nerd, a scientist for crying out loud, a know-it-all, the kind he obviously hates because, as an apparatchik, he probably climbed the social ladder through his connections in the party and not through studying. So he obviously loathes anyone who knows more than him. He’s an alpha and wants to remain one.

Look at his face and body language when they’re left alone, he’s totally blaming the Nerd for becoming a burden. His burden.

Here it is, the “unlikely partners” trope. 

And now things start to get interesting.

As they walk towards the helicopter Boris is totally ignoring Valery. They’re not exchanging a single glance.

In the helicopter Boris asks Valery how a nuclear reactor works. Valery finds it difficult to explain and Boris quickly shows how inferior he feels to anyone who has studied more than him, so he puts on his aggressive and arrogant facade.

He acts SO entitled that he even threatens Valery that he’ll have him killed if he doesn’t explain how the reactor works.

At this point Boris inspires nothing but fear and disgust.

HOWEVER when Valery fidgets his pockets trying to find something to write on Boris is quick to give him both a pen and a piece of paper. Even if he has his poker face on, his gesture is clear. He’s helping Valery for the first time and not just because he wants to learn about reactors.

When Boris quickly catches the metaphor of the neutron being like a “bullet” Valery seems startled. Apparently Boris is a good student, who would have thought!

But as soon as the explaining is over Boris shuts Valery out once more saying he doesn’t need him anymore. Entitled and arrogant af.

Now it’s Valery’s turn to seethe internally because he’s stuck with this total asshole. 

Aaaaand then we get to the part when I totally flinched in surprise and I was like… “Okayyyyy do they want us to ship them now or what?…”

Because Valery, in a state of panic, finds the courage (or might I say, has the nerve) to call Boris by his first name (back then Soviet people would call each other by both names as a sign of respect). Valery probably mimicked Gorbachev using “Boris” in the previous scene but Boris simply. Won’t. Have it. 

He instantly snaps at the unexpected intimacy and I’m over here fangirling like crazy because who else would snap at terms of endearment and intimacy but a man who’s not used to it - and is probably craving for it. But not from this carrot-headed Nerd. Definitely not from him, he loathes the guy, okay??

Boris exercises his power once more threatening to have the pilot shot if he doesn’t fly over the reactor and for the first time Valery manages to “outrank” him by explaining to the pilot why he’d rather be shot than fly over the reactor. Valery convinces the pilot to disobey Boris - power play at its best. Boris is clearly defeated, maybe he’s never been defeated before.

And this is the first time Boris touches Valery (hopefully not the last).

As the helicopter turns to avoid the reactor Valery trips and almost falls on Boris’ lap. Notice how Boris doesn’t push him away but he rather steadies him and helps him sit. For a man who loathes his partner and is not used to intimacy he’s rather… well-behaved.

Of course the look on his face when the scene ends says it all: “You’ll pay for this, nerd.”

We’re 25 minutes into the episode and we finally see a glint of doubt in Boris’ eyes when Chief Engineer Fomin and the plant’s director Bryukhanov mouth off to Valery, disrespecting him and questioning his expertise and patriotism. For some reason something clicks inside Boris. Maybe he too had dealt with too many people doubting him and treating him like shit in the past. Maybe he feels Valery, for all his obnoxiousness, doesn’t deserve that kind of behaviour. Maybe the proud Head of the Bureau for Fuel and Energy will lose face if his partner is disgraced. Another nanosecond of doubt and he decides to step up. He uses Valery’s observations to talk about the core exploding.

At first I thought “Oh goooood I can’t believe this asshole is ripping off Valery’s observations to act all clever in front of his inferiors. What an asshole.”

But it turns out that he’s siding with Valery and starts to trust his judgement and expertise. Maybe because, for all his lack of formal education, he’s too clever to not know suck ups, cowards and liars when he sees them.

Next he challenges the two men to prove Valery wrong. Perhaps he does want to prove Valery wrong and ridicule him. Or perhaps he’s rooting for him already.

When Valery pushes him to evacuate Pripyat, Boris snaps again. He’s not here to follow the Nerd’s orders.

But the very next minute Boris walks away with the promise to get Valery as much boron and sand as he needs to put out the fire, like a king eager to impress his betrothed. “I’m going to get YOU.”

As soon as Boris leaves, General Pikalov is quick to offer Valery some help.

Because they both know they have long days and long nights ahead of them.

I will come back to the subject of the hotel in my next post. There’s another fanfiction trope right there, two unlikely partners forced to stay in the same hotel (or hotel room if you want your imagination to run wild). YESSSS.

Cut to the hotel room. An exhausted Valery massages his own neck (oh baby I’m sure you would like someone else to massage it for you.)

Boris enters his room (*their* room..?) without knocking - apparently someone doesn’t feel the need to lock his door. 

Boris is happy to announce they’ve been successful at dropping sand and boron into the reactor but Valery doesn’t share his cheerfulness.

AND THIS IS WHEN BORIS STARTS CARING ABOUT VALERY’S OPINION AND FEELINGS. The “what?” cliche when someone is not reacting while his friend/lover is begging for a response. Because. Boris. Needs. Valery’s. Approval. That’s why.

Valery insists that the city should be evacuated and Boris reassures him that they’re staying there “so it must be safe.”

But the way he utters those words in a hoarse whisper, shaking his head confidently, is almost like he’s saying “I’m glad we are staying here. Together.”

When Valery gets carried away and slaps Boris in the face with the horrible truth, Boris loses the ground beneath him.

But he doesn’t look just shocked. He looks hurt. Hurt that Valery didn’t sweeten the pill for him. 

Valery instantly regrets his bluntness and takes a step towards Boris as if to comfort a helpless child. Or a very good friend. But he can’t really hug him, shush him and tell him everything is going to be okay, can he? So he takes a step back.

“I’m sorry”…? What?? You just met the guy and you hate him and he hates you! Get a grip!!!

Boris feels so horrible that it takes him ages to pick up the phone.

When they join Gorbachev’s committee again to brief him on the crisis Boris seems totally lost, a fact that doesn’t go unnoticed by Valery who stares at him, concerned.

When Boris finally comes to terms with his own mortality he steps up once more, taking control of the situation. Valery fails to convince the workers to go to the basement and open the valves and that moment…  I just knew it was Boris’ turn for a glorious inspirational speech. And boy, does he deliver. Best, most laconic, most convincing inspirational speech I’ve ever seen. He appeals to the workers’ patriotism and self-sacrifice and he succeeds. So he’s not educated and he’s not as clever as a scientist but his true talent shines here, that of leadership. Inspiring people to do the right thing, like a true general. They’re at war and Boris knows he’s the man for the job. 

And now it’s Valery’s turn to look at him in utter awe.

“That’s him. That’s my guy.”

And I haven’t even talked about episode 3 yet. 

Oh god, ep 3, I mean…

[stonefangs]

what’re your top two favorite cats of each clan (excluding your own), as of right now? :3c

how could you……………….make me pick…………………… ((cracks my knuckles)) 

Keep in mind that my favorites change with the tide, these are just the cats I’m especially vibing with atm! For the sake of Everyone’s dashboard, I’m putting my answers under a Read More,

NettleClan:

Squirrelwhisker! I am absolutely biased because I have Daisytooth, his brother, but I never fail to have a lot of fun rping with Squirrelwhisker! I’m always laughing my ass off with him because he gives me an excuse to do the absolute most ridiculous things using Daisytooth, but that’s not the only reason! I feel like he’s a really consistent character, and despite how he tends to have thoughts of heroism and idealism when it comes to presenting himself, he feels grounded and realistic! He’s just a good guy who’s trying to make the best of the hands dealt to him/his family/his Clan. 

And Badgerstep! I really do have a soft spot for boys that are just…. good. Badgerstep has always been a sweet man with a big heart and lots of love to share, I feel like he should really be a good role model for the young cats of NettleClan! He’s been going through really tough times recently, but he lets his friends and family help him. He’s always been a feel-good character for me, even from the beginning of FogClan! 

CreekClan:

ohhh man this was hard to narrow down to just two… I’ll go with 

Currentstar! At least from what I’ve seen of ThreeClan’s leaders since I’ve joined, this mans provides a fresh new perspective and feel to the role! Though I love lenient leaders, modern leaders, it’s super interesting to see a cat who is clinging hard to old traditions that he grew up abiding by– especially in such tumultuous times as the generations of the Clans that are growing after The Great Journey. When tradition has never been more challenged and questioned, he’s trying his best to find a sense of normalcy. But all the while, he’s a very sympathetic character who has been thrust into leadership very quickly and struggled to settle down and feel right in his own skin. He’s developed a lot so far, it shows that he’s getting more confident in himself with a few bumps in the road, but I respect him immensely! I also have a crush on him 

Aaaaand Carpfang! I’ll be honest, i NEVER expected to enjoy Carpfang near as much as I do now. Rough and cold characters are really not my favorite type by far, and I tend to get frustrated with them and their attitudes, but Carpfang has always been so much more than that. She’s hard on the outside, but she has true depth to her character beyond her reputation (and Marigoldpaw ((who is my third favorite)) has done amazing at helping her develop!). She’s not incapable of having trusting and intimate relationships, even if it takes a minute to get through to her, she has really realistic (imo) motives for feeling and acting the way she does, given her family history… She’s real, she’s relatable, she’s well-meaning for much of what matters, and she’s a real bad ass. I love a gal 

JaggedClan: 

MANTISSTAR MANTISSTAR MANTISSTAR MANTISSTAR MANTISSTAR!!!! She is my WIFE, my LOVE. I really don’t think that I’ve met another character who embodies literally all of my weaknesses, everything that I personally love to see in an OC. Mantisstar comes from a more than troubled origin, where she’d been coerced into an ugly side of history, a victim of circumstance but one who knew that being a victim didn’t excuse her from a certain responsibility of wrongdoing. She rose above the sum of her parts, helped to make right what bad things had been done despite her, a hero from humble origins– and from that, she developed this heroic complex, a NEED to do right, terrified of hurting others despite her intentions. It’s so interesting to see her struggle with making the right choices when things are never so perfectly black and white, even if it breaks my heart when she finds herself getting lost. She is a genuinely good person, she’s wise and kind- forgiving, but just. But she isn’t untouchable. She’s so tangible and real, she reminds me of real people that I’ve idolized in my own life, and I LOVE her. Not only is she my favorite JaggedClan cat, but she is my favorite ThreeClans character! 

Then there’s Magpiestorm. Honestly, I feel a Bit similar to her as I do about Carpfang. Though Magpiestorm is arguably more antagonistic and… unstable? than Carpfang is, she’s a whole different take on the hardass girl with troubled family and trust issues, and I honestly took a long while to warm up to her. Again, like I need to feel about all of my favorite characters, she feels developed and truer than just the tropes she happens to fit into. She’s really complex! Though she puts up these barbed wire laden walls all around her, feels obligated to no one but her sister, she has this clear struggle with an innate need for connection. She doesn’t enjoy the way that she acts, she wants to be able to do more, be better, but stubbornness and pride keeps her from letting go of her demons. For a little while she might begin to let those walls down, she might begin to seek out other cats and let other cats in closer to her, but then something will happen that pushes her right back into her own headspace in a cyclical internal struggle… It leaves me guessing, leaves me wanting more, makes me want to see which path she finally makes a commitment to! 

FogClan: 

By all means, Duskfang. I am so happy that the OC who shares my name is THIS FUCKING GOOD. Duskfang is probably one of the most complex and meticulously developed characters that I’ve had the pleasure of seeing from their conception to their present. She had this ambiguous, mysterious origin that has been perfectly pieced together over time, not near so much from OOC talk, but through revelation and parallels set up almost Too perfectly for her in the ongoing plot line. She, herself, started off mysterious and ambiguous– which, I’ll be honest, turned me off at first. I was expecting an almost… stereotypical secondary-antagonist role to come out of the Fang and Flicker duo, but we got so much more than that. Duskfang has struggled and struggled hard in every aspect of her existence since she’s joined FogClan. She’s had dilemmas and choices that no other cat could hardly dream of having to face, and she has made some very horrible decisions along the way… and I’ve never felt more sympathetic for someone else who’s done the equivalent of what she has? Because I’ve never been able to see exactly what a character is thinking, and exactly why they’re having the thoughts that they are, and how they could be made to feel such raw and powerful emotion that has been brewing and bubbling since the very first day they were ever written. Duskfang’s entire character just feels perfectly planned and perfectly executed, and I couldn’t have ever expected to get what she gives us! 

Another popular choice, I’m sure- but Foxflame! Another biased choice? Perhaps! Bramblefang loves him, so I’m just obligated to feel the same…. No, but really, Foxflame is another character that has given me a very pleasant surprise! I’ll be honest, he had my attention from the get-go because bubbly characters really are my guilty pleasure… I would have been satisfied if he just stayed a bubbly guy, a sweet person. No, but then we had to be introduced to the reasons Why they try so hard to make others smile, to make others happy. We had to get into the nitty gritty, his fears, his shortcomings, a need to protect his loved ones even at his own sacrifice. They can definitely be a bit of an airhead, too caught up in the strings of their own heart to listen to their head when they might need to, but that just makes them who they are! They’ve made some really questionable calls for the sake of their heart- he’s gone through the motions of a well-rounded character with beyond two dimensional motivations, and it’s always a pleasure to see him written in the good and bad moments! 

Tribe of Twisted Tunnels: 

Hehe these might be some interesting answers, if I can talk without giving too much away…. I’m gonna start off with: Aspen Snow. Man, tough girls really have been more my type than I was ever prepared to admit, but I’m not ashamed of it! I’m NOT! I’ve always watched Aspen Snow with a healthy intrigue from afar from when she was a to-be, but it wasn’t until the Tribe’s suffering was coming to a close that she really began to catch my attention. She was a scrappy to-be, full of spunk and a very, very unhealthy dose of youthful hubris. She was fun to read! But after her brother left the Tribe with Raven, it started off an arc that I really wasn’t prepared to see her through- in a good way! The pure hurt that she felt caught me by surprise. I wasn’t prepared to see just how much losing her brother, feeling betrayed by him, abandoned, would break her down. Nor was I expecting the way in which she pieced herself right back together, with fangs and claws and all. She grew bitter, became resentful of not only her brother, but much of the Tribe, its leaders. She needed others to blame, and she clung hard onto that. But then, with Spark Feather’s companionship, she began to ground herself more again. She coped better, she moved on for the sake of herself and others’ betterment instead of just pure spite…. And now? Ohoh. Now. There’s a lot going on with her now, like a relapse into those horrible moons passed, and I’m as scared as I am excited to see where it leads her! And now, the reason that this might be an interesting answer to insiders– Patched Petal. I am going to be straight up, at the same moment that she occupies my top two favorite’s spot, I resent her in her entirety. I am mad at Patched Petal. I am hurt by her and indignant completely on Aspen Snow’s behalf for what Patched Petal has done and is doing to her, things that she’s said to and felt about her own daughter. I resent her, but I’ll be damned if I’m not enraptured by it. Patched Petal has always been a difficult character for me to place– she’s never been very pleasant, but she’s also not been entirely disagreeable- before now. She was a stubborn mother with a fire in her heart that could only be tamed by her children, and after losing her son? It was all downhill from there. I feel like she has made every wrong decision that she could have made in regards to her remaining daughter, after Maple/Flickerclaw left. She’s closed herself away from Aspen Snow, she’s pined for her son to the point of ignoring her daughter, and she’s grown more and more resentful because Aspen Snow has decided that she doesn’t want to wait up for her any more. And now, her most recent development? I could strangle the woman, but it’s such an engrossing conflict that I can’t take my eyes off of this trainwreck…. Patched Petal, you are Something Else. And thus concludes my 2 top favorite cats in each group! My fingers hurt!

@squirrelwhiskr @nicks-cats @currentfangs @crowfalled @swanface @cinderstar @boulderstep

[natashasbanner]

Endgame should have been Natasha’s movie. Period. 

And if there was at least one woman on the creative team (screenwriters/directors) I think the narrative of the entire movie would be different. 

*Spoilers ahead*

You have been warned. 

Now I will admit that I am a huge Natasha fan and would like to see her live at any cost but that doesn’t take away from the fact that her death feels empty and purely for shock value alone. Newsflash, if you have to kill off someone to get a reaction out of your audience you need to reassess your script. 

Natasha has never really be given the treatment she deserved. Her character was the second Avenger introduced in the MCU and she’s the first female hero we get to see. She is IMPORTANT. She’s just as much a part of the team as the guys, if not more so because if you all remember correctly, Fury sent her to assess Tony’s ability to fit on the team. They have this rich background to play with and explore but more often than not she’s used as eye candy or Cap’s sidekick. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the Russos don’t care about Natasha, or anyone who isn’t Steve for that matter. 

Endgame should have been her time to shine, but of course she gets the ax right before the final showdown. And the writers had the audacity to say that a big funeral would have been a disservice to the character. FUCK YOU!! Yes, she might have started in the shadows, but our girl has come a long way since IM2 and was the only one trying to keep the team together even when everyone else had moved on. 

And you wanna know the worst part, is they’ve been setting her up to take Steve’s place for years. Since the end of Age of Ultron. (Sidenote: Remember when everyone said that was the worst Avengers. Y’all can kiss my ass on that one because Endgame takes that title.) She was his right hand and the voice of reason in Civil War, but no one wanted to listen to her. She wanted to do good and if that meant compromising with the governments of the world, so be it. As long as they were together and kicking ass she was fine. But no. 

If you watch closely in Endgame, she’s not even the focus of her own death scene. When Red Skull appears, she’s shadowed and slightly out of focus, while Clint is crystal clear. God, men are frustrating. If you’re gonna kill her, do it right. But it wasn’t necessary or treated with the respect the character deserved. Which is why everyone is so pissed. 

They could have very easily have centered the movie around her and still have the emotional wrap up they were almost trying too hard to achieve. I watched Endgame for the fifth time tonight and cleaned up the whole plot in my head. 

Here’s how:

The first act remains virtually unchanged. Nat’s still the only one at the compound, doing her best to keep it together and be the leader of what’s left of the team. (What really pisses me off is that once Scott shows up Steve just takes charge again like he hadn’t spent the last five years lying to civilians while she was doing all the work alone. Ridiculous.) 

When it comes time to figure out when and who should go after the stones that’s when shit starts shifting. You’ve gotta be shitting me if you think Nebula didn’t put two and two together or that some of the smartest people in the world in one room couldn’t figure out that maybe there’s an exchange factor for the stone. And she would not keep that info to herself. Yes, she’s new here, but she also spent the last five years helping Nat make sure everything was going smoothly. You expect me to believe she let them go in blind. Horse SHIT!

No, instead of Scott’s “not it”, joke, you have the team have a real talk about the stone. They need it to bring everyone back, but are they willing to lose one of the few they have left for a plan that might not work. Natasha volunteers of course because that’s who she is. She’s put in the work for the last five years, but if her life means bringing back everyone else, she’d do it in a heartbeat. It’s who she is, giving it her all for the greater good. 

But it’s Steve who says it’ll be him. It has to be. The team argues of course, because they can’t lose Captain America, but Steve silences their protests. He always talked about making the sacrifice play and now it’s his turn to step up. He missed his chance at the life he wanted, with Peggy. She’s gone. But everyone else still had a chance at that if they pulled this off. Tony had his family, Nat had the team to lead, etc. He was always the man out of time and it was him who would do this for the team. Nat is the one who goes with him. She still tries to go instead but he won’t have it. They share a heartfelt goodbye and Steve passes the torch so to speak, but she was always the one in charge. And then he goes over the cliff. No gratuitous scene of his brain matter on the rocks. Just his shield in Nat’s hands as the sky goes white. Natasha wakes up with the stone, heartbroken, but determined to see this through. For Steve. 

They rest of the team mourns when Nat returns alone with the shield, but they all agree that Steve would have wanted them to keep moving forward. 

BOOM. The entire theater is in tears. Emotional pay off complete, let’s get to the action. 

They get the stones into the new gauntlet and Bruce still is the one to do the snap and bring everyone back. But it drains the gamma radiation from him leaving him as just Banner once more. (Because me and everyone I’ve talked to irl fucking hates Hulk/Banner and I want that shit reversed). 

Back on track. Clint gets the call from Laura and then Thanos bombs the place. Nat ends up in Steve’s place facing off with Thanos alongside Thor and Tony. She has the shield and is ready for this to be over. Whatever it takes. The fighting is the same and when it comes time to lift the hammer it’s Natasha who does it. The theater still gets that awed silence because literally no one saw that coming. 

But Macenzie, how is Nat worthy, she was an assassin you ask. She was, but ever since Clint brought her in, she’s tried to be better. She’s fought on the good side and been willing to lay down her life to save others. She encompasses what it means to be a hero even if she doesn’t believe so herself. Natasha Romanoff can lift the hammer and we finally get an answer to the question they left hanging in AoU. (I’d really like to see Nat get some lightning armor, but that might be pushing it since it didn’t happen for Cap). 

Boom the plot thickens. And just when you think she can’t take any more, Sam’s voice crackles in her ear. 

“Widow? It’s Sam. Did you miss me?” 

AAAAAND PORTALS!!!! Avengers freaking Assemble around the best Avenger, Natasha and whop some alien ass. And my all female scene is complete it the OG. 

Natasha lives to see Tony die and the audience again gets that emotional character ending. 

The funeral at the end is for both Tony and Steve, they send off a piece of his shield with the arc reactor. AND THE THEATER IS SOBBING!

Nat is the one to take the stones back, because duh and she makes a detour to the moment after Steve decided to give his life for the stone. She tells him they won and that she loves him and they hug. She offers to bring him to the future, but he can’t do that to the current reality. Natasha returns to the future and is seen at the sight of the old compound, looking over blueprints. She’s in charge and the rest of the team rallies around her.

The camera pans to the sky and fades to black. Before the credits role, the music changes to the song they had Peggy and Steve dance to and we see Steve and Peggy finally getting their dance together. 

Credits role. The theater is wrecked. Goodnight. 

But in all seriousness, there are so many better ways to do this movie that actually do the characters justice. 

[meimi-haneoka]

Thoughts on Chapter 34 of CCS Clear Card

Aaaaand here we are again, at that time of the month, ready to talk and scream (?) about another of Clear Card’s chapters! Sakura and Syaoran have sorted out their problems, no more lies and secrets between them, Sakura even had the chance to witness in front of her eyes how her wishes can instantly turn into “incidents”, and her resolute face at the end of Chapter 33 hinted that she’s not gonna succumb to her fate!

What possibly could go wrong?

CLAMP:

UNDER THE CUT!!

The calm before the storm

First of all, I have to admit it. Those talking with me on the Clow Kingdom discord server might have already heard this, but this chapter left me totally disoriented. I don’t know whether it’s due to CLAMP not planning the storyboard properly (unlikely) or because it was supposed to feel like this, as the focus is all on the cliffhanger on the final pages (after all, this is future volume 7′s last chapter), but the feeling I got is that the flow of events is a bit rushed. We have many POV in this chapter, first we’re with the kids, then Kero and Suppi, then Nakuru and Yukito, then the kids again. 32 pages might not have been enough to develop everything properly, but we had to arrive to that cliffhanger.

And some things look definitely off. Like, Tomoyo is finally made aware of the fact that Sakura is the one creating the cards. And her reaction is “Oooh.” . She’s totally....unfazed? o_o Even seeing the Clear Card that represents her, she just comments with “まあ”?! Ok, Tomoyo might not be a drama queen ok no scratch that, she totally is, but I expected a bit more of surprise from her. Instead, she gushed over the Rewind card’s cuteness and started her usual ranting about recording this and that. It’s getting a bit repetitive and stereotypical, CLAMP? Tomoyo is so much more than that. She may not be my favorite ever but I do like her and her perceptiveness. I went so far that I even imagined she already knew Syaoran was the one behind the Sakura Card’s disappearance. So much for that. I hope CLAMP will find the time to bring out a shiny moment for Tomoyo, as I understand that the pages are what they are, and they have to develop the plot for the new characters, so they inevitably have to sacrifice the screen time of other characters.

We have a brief moment of Suppi explaining everything to Kero, and here I go “eh?” again at the story: Sakura says “Kero-chan is at home, this morning a guest came over” .... Ok? Did Sakura see that it was Suppi??? DIDN’T SHE INSTANTLY GO “WHERE THE FUCK IS YOUR ELUSIVE MASTER?” on him??? Ok maybe not with those terms, but....isn’t she surprised, didn’t she ask him why he was there? Again, a totally confusing part. We’ll see if that’ll get explained later on. We have a cute moment between the two small guardians, and again we have a character who acts nonchalantly about the situation, justifying it with “It’s Sakura. She’s gonna do something about it.”

DUDE

I wouldn’t want to break your world made of unicorns and tasty gourmet dishes, but this is exactly the reason why Sakura is in the situation she is, right now!!  It’s a problem she’s got in herself and she can’t do much about it, at the moment. This is what she is. A 12/13 year old girl with a scary amount of power in herself, that is growing by the minute (and we’ll see how, in this chapter). A power she can’t control. Sakura being Sakura is the source of the problem in itself.

I know, it’s supposed to show that he’s totally trusting his mistress, like he effectively says to Suppi. But he’s the 2nd character out of 3 who is acting in a  way too relaxed manner, in this chapter.

The third one is Yukito. It’s Nakuru to remark this fact, adding that it’s better that way. Sure, if everyone started feeling gloomy it would be a big mess. But even being too relaxed, in a situation like this, might lead them to overlook important things. BTW, it seems Eriol arranged paperwork to enroll Nakuru in college! That’s totally an Eriol move! XD Keeping Nakuru and Yukito together without disrupting Yukito’s normal life, great idea.

Sakura’s anxiety

But it’s when the kids arrive to the classroom, that the “fun” starts. The girls are talking about the swimming class they will have today, and Sakura is her usual cheerful self.

Then, Akiho arrives.

Sakura turns around normally, but when she sees her, anxiety start churning inside of her.

Sakura, who never ever felt anything about Akiho, not even after Kaito rewound time, feels something is wrong with her friend. The moment we’ve been waiting for 26 chapters. But there’s more, she can’t shake the feeling even during the swimming class (OFFICIAL SCHOOL SWIMSUITS, BTW!! they’re even more conservative than before and it’s alright XDD).

Of course, eh, her frown doesn’t escape observative-boyfriend-Syaoran's stare. She asks him if he can feel something from Akiho, and he says no, AND HE’S NOT LYING DAMMIT, he really can’t feel anything, but how can he explain ALL THE REST to her, with the spell placed upon him? Of course, this is Syaoran we’re talking about, so he tries to say something anyway, and finds himself not emitting a single sound. See, there’s so much to talk about in so few pages, like how we’re again presented with the fact that Akiho is similar to Sakura in the good reflexes too, AND FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER Sakura’s smile to Akiho is so forced and lukewarm that you CAN really feel something is terribly wrong. Or, how we cannot talk about the first YAMACHIHA FLIRTING SCENE EVER?? I was so happy, in a moment of such tension those two managed to give us a breather before going back to the utter mess that is about to unfold. I love those two and their relationship <3

BUT LOOK WHO’S BEING A TOTAL CREEPER WATCHING KIDS IN SWIMSUITS? Our legendary asshole Yuna D. Kaito, of course!! XD Now, I have to be sincere. This is another of those “???” scenes because, ok, they try to explain that he’s there to cause some trouble now that Sakura knows the origin of the cards, but I still didn’t get why he’s doing that. What’s the connection between the two things? He smiles warmly while taking out his staff and he’s the usual smartass we love to hate!

Shit definitely goes down again

Then, panic unfolds. We have the final proof that in this chapter, Sakura could feel things before happening TWICE: one is as soon as Akiho arrives to school, having an uneasy feeling that she never had while looking at Akiho, and now, seconds before Kaito stopped time with his magic. Actually, scratch that: they might be 3 TIMES, as she pulls out her key and Reflect Card even before the real attack comes to her. This is all fun and games, until you actually stop to realize...that Sakura’s power might have increased once again, leading her to new heights of worrisome strong magical powers. 

A whirlpool raising from the pool attacks Sakura, to which she effortlessly responds using “Reflect” and here I’m once again confused because the scene just doesn’t flow right, there’s at least a panel missing to show that the one attacking her is “the pool” and those “arrows” don’t come out of nowhere, like the rest of this attack anyway, as it felt totally random (this might be the part pertaining to Kaito, anyway).

And, as if anyone called her: hello there, “vessel-mode” Akiho! (Ah, actually “vessel” is not a thing anymore, as the term has been completely erased in the tankobon release of volume 6, the latest out. The term “vessel” has been replaced with 中, “inside”. I’ll do a post about it, later on.) Just like last time, the usual assholes are talking through her again, using her as an intercom (though, I’m not sure if these are the Squids or the Association), commenting on Sakura’s powers and then attacking her, still using Akiho, stating that they have to bind her to this book. Yes, the verb used is really “to bind, to file” and it’s relative to books etc. 

Soooooo, now what I want to know is:

IS THIS THE CLIMAX STARTING TO MOVE FOR REAL, this time around?

Is something irreparable about to happen? Will Sakura be trapped in that book?

But most importantly, will Kaito rewind time once again and make the fandom riot like they never had before??? I really want to see if CLAMP are going to put their fan’s patience on the line like that ^^””” Still, it probably feels too soon to wrap this up, considering Kaito said there aren’t enough cards not many chapters ago. She did 3 in one day, yes, but if Kaito was about to cause something before the assholes interfered, it’s probably because he wanted her to give birth to another card. And now we have to see if this will happen or not.

If you’re wondering when next chapter is going to be released, please read my post on the matter.  UPDATE: a confirmation of a break for the July issue came from Nakayoshi’s Twitter account, you can read more HERE .

Thanks to @horitsuba for the scans featured here and thank you for sticking around to the end of this rant!! Mwah mwah! XDD

[amaliabalash]

It Chapter Two

Okay y’all I said I wanted to write a post of thoughts I’ve had on the movies (most the second, but here and there from the first), adaptation choices, etc., so here it is after five ten viewings of Chapter Two and a ton of viewings of the first movie as well. I stand by my initial sum up: I love it as a follow up if you’re watching it for the coming of age story of the group of friends that fight an evil being, but it’s mehhhh as a horror movie about a clown that kills children....which means I love it because I don’t give a fuck about the clown. 

I love the Losers love for each other. I hate any moment that separates them or causes conflict between them, because in the book they are magically, instantly united as they join together that summer, and nothing stops that, and that’s one of my favorite things about the book. So the movie taking that complete level of solidarity hurts. But even so, when it comes down to it, again and again we see how much they all love and care for each other and I am all about that. Now below the cut, have 4300 words of rambling thoughts in bullet point form!

Mike: I love and hate what he was given for this movie. Not getting incapacitated by Bowers and hospitalized (as in the book), and instead actually getting to be in the final confrontation? THANK YOU, YES. Lying to the Losers? No, not a fan. At first I was mostly focused on being grateful he was in the final battle because I think it’s awesome they’ve all together, but the more I’ve thought about it, the more upset I am that he still got kinda screwed. He had more to do than he did in the first movie, but then like...he doesn’t get a scene of going and finding the rock and having his own flashbacks, and then he doesn’t get a separate confrontation with Pennywise either once they’re in the sewers (like Ben and Bev, Eddie and Richie, and Bill do). Being the crazy librarian’s assistant is bunk. And the whole Native American ritual shit...

The Ritual of Chüd: I fully understand not doing the ritual exactly like in the book, because hello, a metaphysical battle of wills, biting each other’s tongues in your psyche and getting thrown around is just a wee bit complicated to film. But making it so that Mike got the ritual from Native Americans (the ~mystical face distortion especially bugged me), and then it also didn’t even work...ugh. And again, the lying, ughhhh. A battle of wills was still basically how they defeated It, at least? Also, like, maybe it’s iffy to use some ancient tribal ritual that Bill got from a book, too, but I think it works (in a story sense, I mean) because they’re kids when they first try it. They go “hey, there’s this thing, we believe it’s the answer” and so it works. And it works so much better as a thing the kids found in a book and believed in, than as a ritual adult Mike got from Native Americans that never even worked. However, James McAvoy’s delivery of the line, “You stole it...from Native Americans?” is incredible and hilarious. And on the note of the smoke scene...

The Clubhouse: I don’t fucking care how relatively little sense it made to include the clubhouse, and how Ben’s “the hole was already dug out and oh hey btw I like architecture we forgot to mention that in the last movie” was paper thin, because I AM SO HAPPY THAT THEY MADE THE CLUBHOUSE. I’m glad they didn’t retroactively have them do the smoke scene, because it REALLY wouldn’t have made sense with the first film to them suddenly have done that in the midst of everything and not used it, but I’m sad it wasn’t in the first film to start with. I understand that the budget, like, doubled for chapter two. Happy they included the clubhouse at all, but super eh on including the smoke scene in the way they did. Again, the kids going “hey let’s try this thing” and it working through belief makes so much more sense to me. BUT CLUBHOUSE! :D

Stan: fuuuuuuuuck. They gave Stan so much more in chapter two than in one, somehow? I hate that in the book, the only thing we get of adult Stan is from his wife’s perspective, and then he’s dead. By giving Stan the letter at the end, as well as his added kid scenes, I feel like Stan was given some justice. And on the small book nod end, I loved him doing the bird puzzle, because book Stan is a big ol’ bird nerd. Also when Stan asks what he looks like when he’s older in that first scene and Bev has that look and says like now but taller? OW. ALSO the head-spider thing, “so you don’t get spiders in your hair,” nice horrible touch there. And this isn’t a Stan characterization thing, but one of the legs going through Stan’s eye and Richie being the one to say “you’ve got to be fucking kidding me” also feels appropriate because eye horror is a book Richie thing. And on the note of the letter (which I love), I want to know what Stan wrote to Patty. Because like, wow, after her husband seemingly out of nowhere kills himself, she still sends these letters to his old friends. Patty Uris, you’re a good woman.  

Ben: I am generally in favor of Ben/Bev, and thought they had some nice moments in the new movie, but I haaaaate that Ben kept the yearbook page. It made no sense, and it was kind of weird for him to like...obsess over that for the next 27 years of his life when he hadn’t seen her? I think it would have been sweeter, honestly, if upon returning to Derry he was just HIT with how much he loved her, through that funky magic that bonded the Losers and broke them apart. Back in Derry, the feelings return freshly, even if they’re 27 years old (like happened for Richie, according to Bill Hader and my heart). If that had happened, and then they just...ended up sticking together afterwards, I’d prefer it. Lose the kiss, lose the yearbook thing, but keep the end scene with them on the boat, that’s fine. Also why the fuck was Ben in summer school, that flashback didn’t make sense, should’ve been in the library, please. If only we could have had a middle ground (aka the book) between the 1990 series where Ben was kind of presented as a manwhore and the movie where he’s still in love with the same girl from when he was 13 and that’s why he was alone. In the book he just...didn’t have much of an interest in the romance I think? Idk. Ben keeping the yearbook page is dumb and it was overdone but otherwise Ben and Bev are cute. But as for the first movie and flashback moments, I love little baby Ben Hanscom with all my heart, what a sweetheart. Sorry they made you creepily obsess on the same girl for the rest of your life, Ben. 

MEMORIES: THEY WERE ALLOWED TO KEEP THEIR MEMORIES! I AM SO GRATEFUL! Some people are like “but now Richie has to remember this” and I’m like, the book fucks me up when I read it knowing that none of them will remember each other, and that none of them will remember Eddie and his sacrifice, how bravely he fought, fuuuuuck. So I’d rather sad remembering and honoring than completely forgetting.  This is the happier ending, it really is. 

Bill: He wasn’t really sick??? ow??? Like it makes his determination to search for Georgie make more sense, but oof. I have mixed feelings on this because in the book Bill is genuinely too sick to go with Georgie, but like...the “just because you did x doesn’t mean this horrible thing is your fault” is a really poignant emotional point to make. On the acting side, both Jaeden Martell and James McAvoy did really well with the stuttering, not making it over the top or just...forgetting about it. It felt realistic to those I’ve known with stutters. I think I’m gonna make a separate bullet point for how the marriages were handled, but, it makes me sad that Bill and Audra weren’t shown to be loving like in the book. Bill actually had a good relationship with his wife and that’s a bummer to take away. The choice to have Bill’s fervor in going after It right then be about seeing another kid get taken instead of because he finds Audra’s purse, though, seemed like a solid choice, it worked really well. It keeps the story tighter in a sense, because Bill’s guilt about Georgie is shown to be one of his driving forces across both movies. And...okay that ties right into the marriages thing so...

Marriages: I am grateful that they didn’t have Audra and Tom go to Derry like in the book. There is SO MUCH book content that didn’t make it in, stuff that is really plot relevant, but like...fitting all of that in would have been crammed and we’d lack the emotional depth. Chapter Two is about the Losers, and the sacrifices that were made were there so that we could really focus on the Losers and their relationships with teach other and their experiences. It makes me sad that Bill doesn’t get his positive relationship with Audra, that they’re not shown to actually love each other, that he’s no longer wearing a wedding ring in that last scene with the phone call with Mike, but god. If they had had Audra and Tom come to Derry, it would have muddled the story more than it’d flesh it out. So not worth it to waste a single moment on that, as much as I wish Tom still got killed by It because it’s what he deserves. I almost wish that Bev’s relationship with Tom had been changed, but idk what I’d change it to. Including the abuse was rough, but at least it wasn’t as severe as in the book? It couldn’t be, anyway, because again, he doesn’t follow her to Derry, so he can’t be quite as evil as he is in the book or it’d be incomplete to expect her to just...leave him. Aaaaand Eddie and Myra. I CAN’T BELIEVE THEY CAST THE SAME ACTRESS AS MYRA AND HIS MOM. It’s completely book accurate, there’s that bit of narrative where he acknowledges that looking at a younger pic of his mom next to one of Myra and they could be twins, but damn, that casting choice. I feel bad for Myra, in all incarnations. A character meant only to be the embodiment of an oedipal complex...or, the projection of one? However you’d say that.

Bill & Bev: a whole bullet point just to say, thank god they didn’t sleep together, that one little memory based kiss and move on? THANK YOU. And that kiss worked, not like the wtf so awkward kiss between Bill and Bev at the restaurant in the mini-series. Also not driving home the “Audra looks like Bev.......” thing. I’m cool with that. Though I still think it’d have been hilarious if they’d cast Bryce Dallas Howard as Audra.

Beverly: I was talking to a friend about the first movie a few months ago and she said she hated how Bev was made into a damsel in the first movie, needing to be rescued...and I can get that, but compared to the book and the 1990 series, Bev gets SO MUCH MORE and I love her so much. I love that she’s pushing them to keep fighting against It in the first one, and that in the second she’s supporting the others still and encouraging, and in the final battle moments, she’s never a damsel. It’s just when she was in the deadlights. The scene with Mrs. Kersh was fucking insane though. Like, hugely increased budget from the first movie, and....they choose to spend it on a naked granny monster????? TWICE???? I feel like that scene could have been legitimately creepy but then NAKED. GRANNY. MONSTER. I have nothing deep to say on that scene but I’m so baffled. 

CGI and the Monsters: On the note of the atrocity of the naked granny monster...it must say a lot about what Andy Muschietti is afraid of that he includes these weird, gross CGI monsters. Also I feel like he’s afraid of old age, between the Mrs. Kersh monster and the focus on Mr. Keene’s old-ness. But like...the leper and the naked granny monster are both just really weird and gross, but not like scary? I mean, the leper being a physical representation of infection is specific to Eddie, and it sticking it’s tongue down Mrs. Kaspbrak’s throat is truly utterly disgusting, but...again, the horror of it is grossness, not scariness? And god the fucking naked granny monster just kills me because that scene would legit be scary if not for that. Instead, multiple times I’ve heard people in the theater whisper “what the fuck” during that scene. 

The Losers Fighting: Possibly my biggest complaint about the two movies is the choice to have the Losers have big fights.  For Dramatic Movie Purposes I get it, I guess, but in the book as each Loser joins, that’s it, there’s no question, fate is clicking into place, they are meant to be together. So the fight after the House on Neibolt in the first movie has always bugged me. Mike lying to them bugs me. Them being like, “fuck this I’m out” bugs me. However, the ONE concession I’ll make on this point is that at least the fight in the first movie was used in the second as an excuse to show new flashbacks. But the lack of unity is always gonna make me sad about these adaptations. 

Pennywise: I am NOT saying I want more Pennywise in the movie, but I think that there is a slight plot hole in the way that his motivations and his effect aren’t directly addressed in the films. Like, including the Adrian Mellon murder without including the whole thing where it’s relevant to It because It’s evil seeps into Derry and is an integral part of Derry makes the scene make less sense. Though, again, I’m cool with them not including Derry just completely falling apart when It dies because of that connection, bc that’d be too much time not about the Losers. But, yeah, motivation wise, it doesn’t feel clear why It wants the Losers to come home. Knowing in the book that It experienced fear and then true anger for the first time, that It wants revenge, makes the ultimately Dumbass Move of luring them back at least make some sense. 

Richie: I’m gonna try to focus on Richie things that don’t necessarily relate to Reddie first. I was super unsure about Bill Hader when I heard about his casting at first, because I’d never seen him do the drama I knew the role would need, but damn. He was a perfect Richie, from the comedy to the holy shit drama pain. And it’s a bummer that the whole cgi thing was needed (though, like, it was, because Finn Wolfhard does not look the same anymore) because I’d like to see the more nuanced version of his performance of the arcade scene and stuff. I’m so grateful for the depth given to Richie with the closeted storyline, as much as it hurts. This movie let (some) characters have some actual depth and it’s wonderful. Let’s see... I kind of hate that there was still the fatphobic focuses in the story as a whole, but like...those lines only coming from the trashmouth was at least appropriate. And his delivery throughout his whole bit with Bill outside the Neibolt house in Chapter Two about Richie said it best last time, is delivered so perfectly and I love it, particularly, “You’re lucky we’re not measuring dicks?” Excellent job, Bill Hader. And even though, as I said above, I am no fan of the Losers fighting and Richie trying to run off, the part where Ben says “at least I got Richie to stay” and then Richie bursts out of the back of the hotel to sneak off is way too funny to me. Him not writing his own material is kind of hilarious. And it goes in with a theme in the movie where the Loser’s adult success is a little bit tainted, which isn’t necessarily the case in the book - other things are off, no children, marrying their parents, etc., but their success doesn’t really have anything off about it. Book Richie finally does perfect his voices and that’s how he makes his money. But I’ll accept him not actually being great at comedy (not that the bit we saw at the start of the movie was great comedy) for the set up of the joke of Eddie saying “I FUCKING KNEW IT!” also oops mentioned Eddie. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  So why not go there now! 

Eddie and Richie: I didn’t think they’d actually fucking do it. I saw a still of young Richie next to the R+ on the kissing bridge, and Reddies freaking out about WHAT IF, and I was like “that’d be cool but lol no they won’t actually do it.” But then they ACTUALLY DID IT. I’m grateful I saw the movie at the first possible showing because I DIDN’T see the still with young Richie where you can see the full R+E until after, so it was a surprise. This is again where I applaud Bill Hader’s performance, and the directing and script writing and all, because all of those little moments where Richie is just attuned to Eddie are so great. He’s always been the one Richie focused on most for jokes (defense mechansim!), but then calling out for Eddie every time there’s potential danger and they’re separated - when the bat wing fortune cookie is attacking Eddie, in Neibolt when the spider-head monster is temporarily gone, when the balloon starts inflating after the ritual and they’re moving apart. And then of course we have the whole end, his desperation over wanting to save Eddie, his inability to accept that it’s over. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck! And god, like, he seems to just forget to even care about the whole Pennywise thing once Eddie’s hurt, he’s like “we gotta get him out of here” ignoring the “we still have to deal with this fucking clown” part of it entirely. On the lighter note though...the bickering! I LOVE THE BICKERING SO MUCH. In both movies, even during serious conversations, there’s so often Eddie and Richie bickering in the background (as well as main scene bickering, of course, like the hammock, or Richie teasing Eddie about getting married, his mom, his job, etc). In Chapter Two you can hear them bickering about Eddie saying he’s got these various ailments and Richie saying it’s in his head and he just reads shit on the internet while Bill and Bev talk about life, and down in the sewers Eddie has to pick on Richie bringing an actual token and they bicker about how that’s not gonna burn well neither will the inhaler. I LOVE IT. Also, in a story so focused on mirroring the past, Eddie should have kissed Richie out of the deadlights like Ben kissed Bev, that is all. I love every single thing about the scene with the three doors, but I especially love how those dumbasses, once Pennywise is no longer reaching for them, suddenly stop finding the dog behind a door deep in the sewers/cave/whatever suspicious??? They’re like, oh look this is fine, what a cute puppy that randomly made it down here??? What even, and I love it. The hammock scene is ridiculously adorable and Richie’s little sigh when Eddie’s sticking his foot in his face, so great. I have a lot to say about Eddie’s paralysis in the face of Richie being attacked, but honestly I feel that’s more Eddie than it is Reddie related so I’ll get there later, but Richie being the one to encourage him in this totally sincere way and then make the fat joke about Myra...in character af and a really charming scene despite the fact that, again, I am not a fan of fat jokes? That is just the language these two idiots speak. A moment of sincerity cannot possibly be left alone.  And on that note...

Eddie’s Death: okay that “paragraph” was very long so I’m making a separate bullet point for this, at least as it relates to Reddie. I could just quote line by line and be like “oh, shit, my heart” but that isn’t really relevant. Overall, that’s my sentiment as Richie is trying to save Eddie and so focused on him. But this is more about the “I fucked your mother” bit. I saw a lot of people upset about that, and others seemed to understand that it’s not a throwaway joke (like the post I JUST reblogged, but I was thinking about this before). Dumb jokes and bickering is their love language, duh. And I think in those moments, it legit made the most sense for Eddie to say “I fucked your mother” to Richie, the king of inappropriate your mom jokes (at least in reference to Eddie - I fucked your mom, Eddie’s mom’s vagina on Halloween, smells worse than Eddie’s mom’s slippers, etc.). I’m working on a theory that not only is that a communication of love/the importance of their relationship (like, he makes the effort to make that joke when he’s fucking DYING, something specifically for Richie), but about comfort. Dunno if it’s about comforting himself in the face of knowing he’s dying, or comforting Richie, or both, but...honestly, falling into a familiar pattern after all of this sincerity and fear just came pouring out of Richie makes perfect fucking sense to me. And, there’s also nearly a solid 2.5 minutes between cutting away from that scene and Richie running to join them in the final takedown (and tearing It’s fucking arm off, which is amazing, and I love Bev’s little shocked face right after that happens). There’s room for conversation, for sincere comments, if you want to imagine them there. But I’m not disappointed they didn’t do any real “I love you” moments or something, because I think we got a very in character and appropriate response. And I’ll say again, Richie’s anguish and denial, holy shit, my heart hurts. 

Eddie: Eddie Kaspbrak, my love. I was saving Eddie for last because I have so much to say but idek how to say it. I don’t know why, but I wasn’t expecting adult Eddie to have the same hyper, angry energy of kid Eddie, let alone an amped up version, but I LOVE THIS SMALL, ANGRY MAN. James Ransone was brilliant casting. When he was first cast (not that I knew who he was), I was like, eh he looks alright, we’ll see. But watching him in action and watching Jack Dylan Grazer in action, damn, they are well matched. And their eyes are very alike. But more than the physicality, just in general, damn he was a great Eddie. I’m not super solid on how well he matches up to book Eddie’s characterization overall, but if I see a major overlap in book and movie Eddie in any book scene, it’s when Eddie sprays his inhaler at the giant eyeball and just flips out: ““Fight It!” Eddie raved at the others. “It’s just a fucking Eye! Fight It! You hear me? Fight It, Bill! Kick the shit out of the sucker! Jesus Christ you fucking pussies I’m doing the Mashed Potatoes all over It AND I GOT A BROKEN ARM!”" But anyway. Movie Eddie. I love his angry bravado, because you KNOW so much is bravado. That one post that says Eddie has small dog syndrome is fucking legit. Eddie is hilarious throughout (again, kudos to James fucking Ransone), but then the emotional scenes? Oh my GOD the emotional scenes!!!  Eddie has moments of fear but still mostly maintains that bravado until the spider head thing attacks (even before it attacks Richie specifically, you can tell he’s pinned to the wall in fear). And after Richie is saved, and Bill comes to yell at him, BOOM the emotion kills me. That shield is gone and he’s just back to a scared little kid, and there’s such an emotional realness to the rest of his scenes (except when he’s bickering with Richie, of course). He’s scared and he’s hurt. And the way the Losers support him through that - Richie talking Eddie up to encourage him, reminding him all of the ways he’s been badass so far, and the entire interaction with Bev “This kills monsters” “Does it?” “If you believe it does.” His face, the gentleness of that scene, it kills me and I love them so much. It’s just a beautiful moment. Also beautiful on the other end of the spectrum is Eddie psyching himself up to save Richie this time, dammit, “IF YOU BELIEVE IT DOES! BEEP BEEP MOTHERFUCKER!” And then his face! Actually, his face when he first sees Richie in the deadlights is worth mentioning, and his “holy shit!” and then happiness after (you know, until THAT happens). IT GIVES ME FEELINGS. Ummmm let’s see, oh, I fucking LOVE that they referenced the gazebo line holy shit! Imagine being Jack Dylan Grazer and having your improv from when you were 11/12 become not only one of the most iconic lines in the first movie, but get referenced in the second!!! For mirroring kind of purposes, when they go down the well, Eddie is the one to mention grey water first in both movies, love that. Also love that in the first movie he has the line about how 89% or whatever of home accidents happen in the bathroom, then he gets stabbed in the bathroom. Which, like, that scene? Again, he is so fucking FUNNY. The initial shock of “HOLY SHIT HE JUST GOT STABBED IN THE FACE” fights with “HIS RESPONSE IS SO DAMN FUNNY.” His faces all the way through to “you should cut that fucking mullet, it’s been like thirty years man” is GOOD. SHIT. I love Eddie Kaspbrak so much. Also the delivery of “what the fuck!” after the leper run in as an adult. Oh, and speaking of the leper, Eddie Kaspbrak saves the fucking day by helping them understand how to actually fucking kill It, the way he almost actually killed it earlier. He’s fucking dying and he has this realization, this way to help them, and I’m just gonna be a broken record of I LOVE EDDIE. And I love James Ransone’s portrayal (and Jack Dylan Grazer, for that matter, since I am talking about both movies kinda though mostly Chapter Two). 

...and that’s more than sufficient for now. 

[ain-t-bovvered]

14x08 Commentary

Zeta and Giuls scream together, and then die.

Me & Zeta will watch together season 14′s episodes as they come out and we’ll do our commentary while watching.

1 2  3  4  5  6  7

14x08 Byzantium

Guys I don’t know if I can be funny this episode.

-....HER?! WHAT. ....oooooh they are gonna do something stupid aren’t they?

Zeta: can I not see Jack like this please?

- “please don’t be sad”

Zeta : Sam? Not sad? ..lol

-is Dean there to choose an album ? wth ...also damn son can you all stop looking like pain in the flesh?

- the oxygen tank?....naaah fam I’m good, bye I can’t. Zee give me the strength to keep going because I’m gonna throw myself out the window 

- oh shit...the scene....the promo scene that killed us all.

Zeta : Cas doesn’t know who to worry about anymore.

- Everyone but himself that’s for sure

-Oh my god SAM, omg Jared you and your eyes are gonna kill me this season.

Zeta : “what happens next?” 

-oh shit I didn’t think about it.

both: we are gonna die too

- “an adventure”

Zeta : is he serious?!?!

-Oh Dean really doesn’t want to be there.

Zeta : LOOK AT ALL THE HURT

- D: “I can’t..”  bitch me too the fuck

- ..pAiN

- C:” He NEEDS you “

- S:”He’s gone” 

-asgajsvdaksdasdh WHAT

- I can almost taste the guilt seasoned with pain right there.

Zeta : the fuck?!

- THAT WAS FAST . U KIDDIN’ , WHAAAAAAT THEEEEE FUUUUCK

Zeta : I’m speechless. I can’t even focus on the bowlegs.

- Dean talking about the hunter’s funeral and Sam can’t fucking take it

-OH I love Sam’s stance, beautiful.....aaaaand he’s gone.

-My soul and whole being is hurting but boy that was an amazing Destiel moment and that’s the shit I wanna see.

- Damn, Cas is spiriling 

Zeta : Cas is obliterated

-.... OF COURSE THERE IS A VOICEMAIL. Dean’s annoyed af face at his mom’s voicemail is giving me life, and look....my skin is already clearer. 

Zeta : Like the bitch cares

- Castiel clutching Kelly’s pic , probably thinking he failed yet again.  lol I wanna die....it would hurt less.

- SAM NO

Zeta : where is he going??

-I hope not doing anything stupid

Zeta : I can’t watch them like that bitch

-CASS IS DRIVING!, CASS IS DRIVING , WHAT. HOW. WHAT. I love that is Cass who is driving

Zeta : Dean’s not driving??

- FUCK YEAH

- Probably Sam took Baby and Dean was like....listen babe I’m not even gonna touch that suburban mom’s steering wheel I don’t wanna feel dirty. Baby could smell it and you know how jealous she is.

-”Why did you let him leave?” WELL HE DID AS U ASKED BITCH

- AND HE’S WEARING THE SEAT BELT!!  my European's ass is singing ( is it true that y’all americans don’t have to use it? because....wild and also why. Here if they catch you without the seat-belt they skin your ass)

- kill me with that axe

Zeta : something’s wrong here.

-Yeah...they are hurting so much, I hate it. What the fuck is it with everybody’s eyes, fuck me.

Zeta : I think n.1 dad was Sam

-Nah....Cass is #1 Dad , Sam related to Jack. Dean is the step dad who didn’t think could love the kid and now he’s fucked because he love him too.

Zeta : “Taken before me”

Zeta : We get loaded

- omg do we get to see them drunk? omg yes.

Zeta : Please call help

- Is THat NOugAt?

-OMFG 

Zeta : bitch

-AAAAAAAAAAAH CAS SMILE AND LAUGH THAT IS JUST SO MISHA OMFG.

- But Castiel entering the room a bit unsteady and with two bottle ? FUCKING MOOD.

Zeta : I love drunk Dean

-WHAT

.

.WHAT WAS THAT LOOK BETWEEN THEM . WHAT.

my soul....hurts stop it.

-Awe Sam....lol weak.

- Cause of death : Dean slurred drunk sad voice, “We did everything we could right?” 

Zeta : HIS VOICE

-”I’m gonna teach you how to read a map”

I can’t deal bitch

-THe DoubLE StRaws

-someone needs to change that lightbulb.

Zeta : Heaven

- THe fuck

Zeta :...Hell..?

- what’s up with shining there

- Dean’s dying groan in the morning: MOOD, SAME.

Zeta : you got old

- Cass and Sam looking fresh and stylish as always .

[enters Dean] the trashcan is heeeeere

- rebooting Dean.exe 

Zeta : he can’t even english

-shhh

- oh....no

both: PASS

- but what is the priiiiceeee

Zeta : simple as that

- ...well I mean...fair. I guess she wants to meet her daughter and shit 

Zeta : seriously?

-Well we already saw Osiris.

Zeta : Major Dick

-When god left - sorry long story- .

-Oh...no who ARE YOU

Zeta :he does that thing with the eyes.

-WHATSAHFDBF

Zeta : What the hell

- I wanna cry. I am crying

Zeta : thanks, the last part of my heart just withered and died

- Oh no wait until she realize he’s dead

Zeta : aaaaaand

- ...here it comes

- Boi this season is painful

Zeta : Peach, it rhymes with bitch

-oh he really doesn’t like her

- S: “ Taking risks , making crappy deals. The family business “

-”AWESOME”

- “ MORE AWESOME”

Zeta : Was that black goo Lucifer?

- I can’t tell honestly, maybe him and the Empty made a path or something IDK.

-I don’t like when Castiel leaves alone. Bad things happen .

-Sam head tilt lol.

Zeta : forced smile much. 

Zeta :look at him ( Dean)

- AH TOLD YA

-Heaven looking nice as always

- I do like seeing Castiel in heaven

Zeta : natural habit and I do love angels clothes

- yeah....50 shades of gray

Zeta : hello Bitch

- *gritted teeth* Naomi

Zeta : He was THAT annoying

- THAT ACCENT THO

- Naomi : Give it what it wants

Cas: 

- Cass: “ NO”

-no bitch , Jack he’s everything wtf.

- So Nick woke up the Empty then? *dean’s voice* AWESOME

So now there are 2 big baddies ?

*dean’s voice* MORE AWESOME

- SNAPPY

Zeta : pushing pencils , damning souls

-MY KIND OF WORK

-oh u going down that’s what

Zeta : I’d prefer the scale and the feather

- but the abacus has more sense tho...like....counting good deeds and bad ones, like in the good place right? Can we see the Winchesters using that? I bet the thing would explode.

Zeta : that went well

- Sorry bitch what did u expect

- oooooh what was that little chuckle Castiel stop killing me this season. It burned

Zeta : it stung

- “I failed you” 

 K: “ you didn’t....Jack...he’s wonderful “

*bawling* YES HE IS 

- Misha need to control that eyebrow or so help me god.

Zeta : he needs to control his whole face bitch

- I fucking hate where the angels goes when they die ok

Zeta : fuck

- OH BITCH. *dramatic zoom*

- “He’S OuR KiD”

KIIIIID

*bawling*

Zeta : look at Dean

-MY GOD

both: don’t do this to us

- Empty : “SToP iNteRrupTinG!”  Damn bitch, pipe the fuck down

Zeta : crazy ass bitch

  I     LOVE     HER

- I love how she’s doing the Empty. like....*slow clapping*

Empty: “Where I’m taking you is worse than Hell” 

oh well you are definitely selling the place

- Empty:” Oh god they look scared. Does that hurt you?”

- *Cass brandishing his angel blade* .... 

me already knowing where this is going: oh honey...no

-Puppy Winchesters eyes always wins

Zeta : He can’t hear you.....oh he can

- .... Is that how he is every time Dean pray to him?

When Dean prays:

SAME

me seeing Castiel getting up :

Castiel: TAKE ME

Zeta : take me instead

- he’s so.....snarly....

Zeta : I bet you are drooling

- I am.

 A dumb fucking angel: “You want me”

me: I do

A dumb fucking angel: “I would go now and I would go willingly “

me: no u don’t

-NO , NO DEAL, FUCK YOU, FUCK U.

Empty: “ oh “ creepy chuckle “but not now” sharps intakes of breath “ no no no, you see ...what I meant....I want you to suffer . I want you to go back to your own life and forget about this and forget about me and when you finally give yourself permission to be happy...and let the sun shine on your face ...that’s....when I’ll come. That’s when I’ll come to drag you to nothing”

Zeta :She’s goooood

- Castiel: “I accept”

oh look it’s me when I’ll meet Misha ^

and now for an out of context gif: 

-She’s so good. I love her BUT FUCK THE EMPTY

- “Because I love you Jack”  CRYING CRYING.

- C: “ They don’t need to know what happened”

Zeta : of course they don’t.

- Jack: “ I won’t tell them” 

OH so now Jack drove the Impala, snacked on burgers, has hunted, has died and now he has to lie and keeps secret?

CONGRATULATIONS YOU ARE NOW A 

- ...

NO 

FUCK , CASS YOU DAMN SELFLESS BITCH.

IMMA SMACK HIM.

hold me back bitch because imma smack his face

Zeta : control yourself bitch

-NO IMMA SMACK HIS ASS

Zeta : I can’t wait for the gag reel of this part.

Omg Kelly babe . I’m so glad they met .

-WHAT WAS THAT FACE AGAIN CASTIEL

Zeta : dEAD

- J:”Good, I feel good”

WELL I DON’T *hiss*

-oh that hug. omg my heart

- oh well....uh look at dat I fucking bet that the sacrifice got her heaven watch that.

HI LOOK HOW FUCKING HAPPY HE IS TO BRING HOME SO MUCH WIN ?!?!

friendly reminder that he just like...sold his” soul” to the Empty, tell me again that Castiel doesn’t care.

-...Naomi you bitch why couldn’t you tell that before?

Zeta : because she’s a bitch

- D: “ And we know where Michael is, not sure how you pulled that one off “ *side eyeing Cas* 

me: *HISS*

- don’t make me think about the fact that Dean cooked those burghers ( as you can see from the counter) while he looked happily at his family reunited . lol *sobs*

- There is a warm happy feeling in my chest right now. I don’t like it, can’t wait for the writers to rip it off my chest pretty soon.

Zeta : is he wearing the dead man’s robe?

. ....yep

Zeta : I’m dead inside

- Dead with a slither of happiness that will get choked out of us, just you wait.

...

...

WAIT A MINUTE 

*goes back*

wHAT IS THIS SHIT OMFG DEAN 

IT’S FINE

.

.

.

If you want to get tagged in the future ones send an ask HERE or to @waywardbaby or a smoke signal, idk whatever I’m tired af.

TAGS: @supernatural-teamfreewillpage  @destiel-honeypie   @mariekoukie6661   @dragontamerm @closetspngirl @rainflowermoon @mattiecat   @bunnybaby121115  @aliaitee @jacks-word-of-the-day @4evamc

[fairytalefantasia]

Still on hiatus. Still plan on coming back soon.

Things are still sort of settling down. I imagine I’ll be close to getting back on my feet in the next couple weeks and around then, I should feel relaxed enough to write.

In the meantime, though, I have a few feelings I need to get off my chest and I really just need to journal them. There’s not really anything to do about them other than just to get them out, so I’m throwing that under a cut aaaaand thanks for reading my little update and sticking with me. See y’all soon.

So I know that a lot of y’all who know me in the real world know that I’m actually a real hard-ass with thick skin and a stiff upper lip who always tells it like it is with no sugarcoat. And I am this kind of human, but I’m also just super sensitive and soft and a storm of feelings on the inside. I guess it’s fitting I’m a Cancer, because it really fits--tough, hard exterior protecting the soft, buttery delicacy inside. Times like this remind me just how soft I am and ugh. I hate it. 

Without getting too much into it and divulging too much detail, boyfriend and I are in a l o t of debt. Like, a substantial amount. Several thousand dollars. It’s bad, Brenda. Well, now that I’m working, my boyfriend has really like, gotten on my case about making sure that I pay him back what I owe. I get that he’s stressed. I get that most of the debt is his. But he tried to stake a claim on almost 25% of my monthly income without even consulting me first. I asked for how long and he said “for at least the first 18 months.” 

....wait, hold on--18 months?!

So he hasn’t itemized everything he’s qualified as a loan for me yet, but apparently, he hasn’t been helping me out in my time of unemployment just out of the goodness of his heart. I really have NO clue what he thinks I owe him and what he’s just been arbitrarily adding to my tab. So there’s that. Not to mention, I still have my own monthly payments to make towards my own debts. Plus bills. Plus food. 

And I get it, he’s super stressed about money, so I want to try to commit to pulling my weight and easing his mind. I don’t outright agree, but I don’t disagree to his proposition either. Then this happened.

On Friday, he told me his parents have pitched the idea of giving him a loan. It would be a clear loan, with interest, but it would be enough to pay off all his debt and square away everything for him. Awesome, right? So I say “great! That would mean we could focus on just paying my stuff down so I can catch up!” And in my mind, I’m already thinking of everything that would mean: savings, comfort, stability, good credit, and soon, my own car--but he dashes that with a stern “well, I’d still want you to pay me back.”

.....oh. oh okay. 

So....you get to wipe your slate clean and find yourself in a sudden state of NO financial distress whatsoever, other than normal bills.....and you want me, someone who has been unemployed for 9 months, depleted their savings, has no available credit, someone who JUST started working again and has their own things they have to pay towards and will never, EVER be given the same opportunity where my Mommy and Daddy can just swing in and fix things for me, to line your pockets and make sure I don’t get the same chance to dig myself out? okay.

It just hurt my feelings. When he and I first started dating, he was unemployed. Like, he was a total busta and we both acknowledge it. I was working a really cushy job at the time so I paid for everything. I didn’t mind. When I have a couple bucks in my pocket and it’s enough to feed me fancy or feed me and a friend junk, I’m gonna go the junk route every time. If I have it to give, I don’t mind giving. I love it. It makes me feel good to do things for people and just make them smile. And never once, for those first 6 months we dated, I never asked him for a dime back. 

But here he is, clinging more to money than me. Because of his parents, he has never wanted for anything in his life, and if it comes down to it, he will never know what it means to struggle because they can bail him out. Me? When I was unemployment, my parents would regularly ask me for loans. They asked me for loans when the unemployment and savings ran out. I won’t ever get that same kind of opportunity. He’s going to be comfortable one way or another, and he’s literally trying to Scrooge me into a lifestyle that will keep my head just underwater until I’m probably in my 40s. It just really opened my eyes about him and the way he sees me and certain things.

And then this evening, something unrelated happened that ended up giving me some clarity about this whole situation. He called me and told me his parents have tickets to Hamilton next weekend, both Saturday and Sunday. His dad was going to take his brother on Saturday, and his mom thought it might be nice to take my boyfriend with her on Sunday. Boyfriend told her that he has a social engagment, but Erica loves Hamilton and would love to see it. So she said she’d run it by his dad, who is the actual ticket holder. So I’m like, RAD! I CAN ACTUALLY HAVE A REAL SHOT TO SEE THIS GIG! 

welp, about an hour later, his dad texts him. The long and short of it was, ha, no, all four tickets are claimed and if boyfriend wasn’t going, it was never up for debate that someone else would go in his place. He would just keep them. “Dad is just weirdly stingy about some things,” boyfriend said as he shrugged it off. As is his right. They’re his tickets and he can do what he wants with them. I have no delusions of entitlement at all. It would have been difficult to go anyway. But like....dude, you’re already seeing it the night before? Why not share that with people, not just people but FAMILY, who can’t afford to go and would really love to because they love the show? I know I would if it were me. That would be my first thought.

But then it finally occurred to me--this family does not consider generosity a virtue. It isn’t a value for them. They didn’t teach it. They didn’t encourage it. They were so cozy and comfortable in their modest wealth and prosperity that it never occurred to them that it might be nice to share when you can. I know all about sharing and sacrifice. I was forced to share my favorite toys with my baby cousin even when I just wanted a few things for myself. I was forced to sacrifice my childhood so that my mom could have her emotional breakdown. I had to go without things so many people take for granted, like nice toys, nice clothes, trips, and other things growing up because my parents were too busy living their lives for them. It taught me that when I have something special to appreciate it. And if someone else didn’t have the fortune of knowing what that was like, give, and give freely with an open heart. It felt good to do for myself what was never done for me. My boyfriend was never given the same chance to learn this.

It’s not a big deal, in the grand scheme of things. It’s just another thing I know about him now. It was just a hard learned lesson that not everyone values the same principles I do, or sees the joy in giving to others. Not everyone gets satisfaction from just doing something nice that would mean a lot someone when it really wouldn’t hurt them at all. It’s sad, and it hurts my sensitive little heart to see the world this way. I don’t want to have to wake up tomorrow and know that I’m going to have to fortify my armor so that this can’t happen again, and that I can’t just naively assume someone would automatically be programmed to do the same generous and kind things I would do. But that’s life. This is growing up, and as the rose color fades from my vision a little more, I’m just going to have to remember that people aren’t basically kind. It’s a learned concept, and it’s one that a lot of people I love are ignorant to.