#again genius writing Steven Knight

[duahauuoplanh]

Thomas and his pain they let you pass through but they wouldn't' let me pass!

[wysteria-clad]

Can I request a drabble with the prompt number 133, random writing prompts, with Steven Grant please? Thank you so much Wystie if can do it 🐣

133. "please never stop smiling."

paring: Steven Grant x fem! reader; established relationship with moon boys

genre: fluff

warnings: reader is insecure of her smile

------

Steven wasn't the best at many things, but he was great at noticing tiny details. He never missed, especially when it came to you. You couldn't hide anything from him even if you tried, not that you wanted to hide things from him. But, you couldn't help but hide one thing—your smile and laughter.

At first, he didn't mind it, but the more your hand covered your mouth when you smiled with your teeth, or laughed, worry was evident in his eyes. He couldn't figure out why you would hide your beautiful laugh. It lit up your whole face, your eyes glinted with unadulterated joy.

He only had the opportunity to see that beautiful sight when you laughed when you thought no one was watching you. You were lying on the bed and watching your favourite tv show, and that episode was hilarious. Like any normal person with a good sense of humour would, you laughed. Your hand didn't reach your mouth to cover it subconsciously.

It pained him to see you hide your smile and laughter. He didn't want to push you too much, but he wished you would smile at him at the same time. It didn't take a genius to figure out your insecurity.

.

.

Too engrossed, you didn't notice immediately when Steven crept on the bed next to you.

"Hey, cutie" you paused the video and turned your face to meet his.

"Love, I want to see you smile."

His tone wasn't demanding, a simple yearning, a request. But it made your heart hammer against your ribcage violently.

"Oh. I..it's just, uh.." you trailed off, thinking of every moment you've been told not tosmile much. 'Your smile is weird' 'Your mouth looks weird when you laugh.' And eventually, you grew the habit of covering up your smile.

He reached out his hand to touch your face tenderly.

"You have a beautiful smile, darling," he said.

Suddenly you never felt more shy. Being complimented on the thing you have been insecure about, gave you butterflies in your ribcage.

"I can't smile on command, Steven," you bit your lip, resisting the smile blooming on your face at him.

"Too bad it puts the Moon to shame."

"It worked, though," smiling, he reduced the space between your lips' and pulled you for a light kiss.

"God, that was so cheesy you could make a grilled sandwich with it," you couldn't hide your grin and bubbling laughter this time.

And he was right. You never looked more lovely than at that exact moment, next to him with a genuine sweet smile lighting up your face and eyes.

You didn't have to hide it anymore. He loved, all of you.

"Please, never stop smiling," he breathed between the kiss.

You smiled through the kiss, your fingers resting on the nape of his neck. You never had to hide your smile and laughter again. And you didn't want to.

----

Moon Knight taglist:

@twwcs @friendlyneighbourhood-parker @fayes-fics @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @devilish-mirage @syrma-sensei @gaymistakeboi @scarabgrant @mintpurplemnm @kittiesluvyou @luke-o-lophus @nana1000night @this-is-me19 @thatdummy-girl @vinsevena @hot-mess-express1 @hotbisexualmess @fandxmslxt69 @beaxtrice @ninebluehearts @moonknightwifey @i-still-dont-like-your-face @toracainz @damnzelsoul @bitchyglitterfox @21stcenturycirce

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

MUSIC! Part two. 

Who has an earworm? I’ve a whole colony of them constantly screaming the Moon Knight soundtrack at me at all hours nonstop. 

EPISODE 2! There wasn’t a lot of music in this one. Not outright themes anyways. As an episode that was mostly just to move the characters physically and mentally to where they needed to be, it was dependent on the original background music. Re-exploring Harrow’s theme a lot too. Which in my mind sounds like a swinging cane or pendulum that is off balance. It also first introduces very very briefly the madness theme that plays heavily in episode 5. But let us look at what they did give us. 

Episode 2 Song list: 

Bela Lugosi's Dead - Bauhaus

Wael El Fashny 

El Melouk (feat. 3enba & Double Zuksh) – Ahmed Saad

The opening of episode two was so off guard. No music to open. Just the sounds of the Jackal getting his ass beat by Marc. Props to the sound team on this one! 

"Bela Lugosi's Dead" - Bauhaus 

OKAY. I thought this was a joke at first. And MAYBE IT IS. Bela Lugosi. The man that played the most famous version of Dracula. I think we all know about Moon Knight and his grudge against Dracula... 

The song plays briefly when Steven is looking for Marc’s secret storage unit. There is no way this wasn’t picked for the laughs and I appreciate this. We already know that Oscar Issac likes memes and vines. 

We also get a re-emergence of themes here. Bob Dylan briefly returns as Harrow shows Steven his community that he built, much like a cult leader. 

We also get to hear the moon knight theme as well, mixed in with the fighting theme. It’s stronger this time. There is more to show us. We get to see him fight and we get to see Marc’s first full emergence. We also get to see Marc’s first failure and how it affects him. 

The music tells the story, less in the background than it was in the first episode. Which leads me to this man: 

Wael El Fashny 

Wael El Fashny is the man behind that SOUND. 

The song is Estaweet. Mixed in with the original music it blends so well and makes you FEEL the big reveal as Marc throws back the curtian to reveal our first look at Cairo and the pyramids. You hear bits of this all over the place but Maaaannnn what a voice. What a sound! Go listen to his stuff. Right now. I'll wait. 

  The genius of this composer is taking older songs, classic Arabic songs that were big and had history or culture and pulling them into his more modern composing. Taking trap songs and remixes of these songs. It pulls people in and connects them. 

Estaweet, I am not going provide a translation for this one. I could not find a good one. The gist of it is: "My dear nights. My heart has been filled with pain, my only drink is regret." And it's about being apart from your love. But we hear his voice swell as we see Marc drunk in his regrets and pain. 

This directly falls into our first big end credit song. Again, I love how this show doesn’t give you standard rules. Are you going to get a theme song opener? Who knows. Are you going to get a new song every credit? Yes. Sometimes you get two end credit songs. 

This time we get this banger of an end credit song. Which has them all returning to Cairo to get shit done so thematically, it really works. As Marc’s first real episode it also really works. 

El Melouk (feat. 3enba & Double Zuksh) – Ahmed Saad

I like to listen to this song a lot. It’s peppy. It’s Arabic. It’s a jam. Rough translation: 

[Enaba]

I don't see y'all

You're some kids living on chasing girls

Every one knows your little worth

Everyone knows I'm bold/aggressive

I've never needed anyone

Not an exaggeration I swear

I Stand like a Lion amidst everyone

I was not raised to be mean

In execution I got rocket

I'm enab( grapes/ the meaning of the singer’s name ) from Mars my dude

In the middle of my wars I shoot missiles

In the middle of my country I am writing myself a history

[Zuka]

Habeby (Darling)

Baba , wе've arrived like a gang

Wе lived simply

You will make it if you have the will

I haven't asked for help I stood alone

Numbers calling on the phone

They loved me when I reached the top they started acting different

Your ball misses my ball scores

[Ahmed Saad]

Silence Silence Silence Silence

The Kings have arrived

There's no escape, from the Lions

We aren’t selling words

We're straightforward and upfront

Doesn't bother me who says a thing

The haters don’t belong here

[Young Zuksh]

You mess with me you'll see madness and neighbors will be showing up

God gave me wisdom in tongue, I eat yall with words

Young "Zuksh" came from Al-Salam, your brother is hazardous

I'm straight up and okay, so don't call me "my man"

I won every trophy

I put the poison in bottles

I served everyone who wanted some

I want what I want

I want you to understand and see what's good

[Ahmed Saad]

Look where were we

And where are we now

Those who forgot me in two days

L'll forget you for years"

Thanks to the conditions

That made me see the true nature of People whom I loved truly

And other people who should not be seen

[Enaba]

When I came everyone disappeared

It’s outta my hand, I'm a blast

It's difficult to see you from space

If you show up l'Il deal with you

Get away from me because l'm mean

From Cairo and better than the western

Your planet is different from my planet

By myself I can lead Tatar

[Young Zuksh]

I'm hot i'm hot i'm cheque

A car will get you anywhere if you got the money

It's known, Don't hang with silly friends my dude

We got you if you know loyalty

You'll be up (be up)

Even If my hair turns gray

We'll continue to the last day

Success is tough you can't be sleeping

Honestly, I see this song choice as more Marc than anything. Episode one was all about Steven, I think this one shows more Marc. You be the judge of that. 

Go listen to the music! Explore the artists! Find more to love! 

[spiritsonic]

Hey there! I was wondering, do you have any concepts/concept art or storylines for gotf that you never ended up using? If so may we see? :)

Sure! There's a handful of things Okida and I have brainstormed at one time or another that I can confidently say won't happen now. Gonna put it under the cut so the post isn't super long!

Black Knight

The main one is a second Storybook Series adventure, this time focusing on Black Knight. We had a good time thinking about the changes to the setting post-game. Our version was more SatAM themed, putting "Robotnik" in the role of an invading Roman general, and "Sally" as a renegade Guinevere leading a Robin Hood-esque band fighting back from Sherwood Forest. There would have been a focus on Silver playing Galahad's role and needing to go on the Seige Perilous. Sonic and Metal were along for the ride too, but due to some magic rules bullshitting Sonic didn't get alive'd again, but instead played a haunted sword alongside Metal as a shield, both wielded by Silver.

(I would have it be known that I came up with this BEFORE Pokemon's sixth gen came out, thus Honedge didn't exist yet. Nintendo, I expect my royalty check in the mail any day now.)

Long story short, while coming up with the setting was fun the story quickly got VERY big and didn't offer a ton of opportunity for character or plot advancement so in the interest of time we decided to not do it.

GOTF Marine

While figuring out all the New Chaotix stuff, we considered adding Marine to the cast. She would have been a friend of Blaze's who was obsessed with conspiracy theories, especially relating to aliens and GUN. She was very pushy and wild, and kind of a technical/hacker genius sort, and of course like her game counterpart she would have been terrified of ghosts. In this earlier version the parents' secrets were kept longer, so the kids ended up doing an investigation on their own, I think.

(I would have it be known that I came up with this BEFORE Sonic Boom or Steven Universe had come out, so Sticks and Peridot didn't exist yet. Cartoon Network, SEGA, I expect my royalty checks in the mail any day now.)

We didn't have anything in mind for her beyond that initial arc though, and Sicily ended up filling the role of paranoid techie person so she never made it in. A bit of a bummer, she would have been fun to write.

Tarnish

Tarnish was the name of Anti-Silver from Moebius, and was considered for a much longer version of the Moebius arc. He would have been the last surviving disciple of Antique's cult, her warped protege. You already know what he would have looked like, the outfit Silver wears during the story was originally intended for Tarnish. the big difference is that when he was a child, Antique had his arms amputated so he'd be forced to develop his psychokinesis faster. So he had big weird psi-arms.

(This isn't actually a picture of Tarnish, I can't find one in my files, but you can see I re-used the arm idea here)

While cool and spooky, Tarnish really boiled down to a miniboss for the gang to fight before reaching Antique, and since Okida and I were getting really tired of being stuck on Moebius we decided to just get back home ASAP. If I ever do a "director's cut" of GOTF in prose form, I'd probably put him back in and expand on Antique's whole deal.

That one time I wrote a GOTF screenplay in college

Ok so in my first screenwriting class in community college, I in my infinite hubris decided to write an alternate version of GOTF that would be more tied to the Archie-verse. I think I was around 17? It starts off as a pretty straight redo/update of Issue 1, then the story veers off as the Zone Cops bust in, here to arrest the boys and destroy the dimension for being a fan AU disrupting the balance of the multiverse. Unfortunately, the class wrapped before I got past the very beginning of act 2... but what's there isn't that bad? It's not perfect, but does a better job explaining the premise and doing things in an exciting way. I have it saved as a PDF, if people want I could put it up on my Patreon.

The absolute worst part was when we did a table read in class. Listening to a random dudebro do a "haha you're too slow!" Sonic impression while reading GOTF Sonic's Traumatic Backstory Monologue... truly exquisite suffering. The teacher loved it, he wanted to submit my script to a college screenwriting competition.

----

Anyway, that's some scrapped GOTF stuff. There's probably more, but these are the ones that came to my mind right now!

[the-infamous-coat-of-baron-zemo]

Moon Knight | Episode 2 Random Thoughts:

Will place everything under the cut because the episode literally just came out today.

The way my heart exploded for Steven in this episode.

Watching him gain confidence in himself, was hands down, my favorite part.

Side Bar: I initially wanted to write a Moon Knight fic with the premise that we see an evolution in Steven. We watch him begin to trust himself, the decisions he makes, and gain confidence in the belief he can do anything he sets his mind to. While still keeping his heart of gold and quirkiness we adore about him so much. Because in the end, Steven with a 'V', is still going to be Steven.

Seriously, I really want one of the lines in my story to have my character drag Steven through a museum in Cairo and say something like, "Come on, let's not focus on the impending doom waiting for us. Talk nerdy to me, instead."

And then it dawns on Steven you genuinely enjoy spending time listening to him rattle off random bits of Egyptian knowledge and dissection of all the history.

----

Anyways, I digress with my plot bunny.

Great character development in this episode. I'm really happy we got to discover a little more about Marc. I really want to like him, but right now I feel like he's just an overprotective dick. I can't decide whether I want to hug him or whack him upside the head, telling him to lay off the angry face. I mean, don't get me wrong. He definitely is protective of his wife. He's trying to protect her by pushing her away and getting a divorce. Marc is also still trying to protect Steven. Trying to keep his reality in check within what he believes Steven can truly handle. I'm very interested in their future communications.

Sooooooo.....I'm under the impression, Marc feels like he's really just living on borrowed time. He was dead. He doesn't expect this temporary life to continue to go on after he fulfills his duty to Khonshu. With this knowledge, Marc is again trying to protect Steven. He's trying not to destroy his reality. He doesn't want to allude to the fact, that after his mission with Khonshu has been completed - they will be dead...again. So, when he tells Steven, "You'll never hear from me again." Steven doesn't understand HE will no longer exist too. Steven doesn't have the knowledge of how or why Marc made this pact with Khonshu.

However, that looks to be dicey given Khonshu's threat to use Layla as his next avatar. In for a penny, in for a pound.

I'm assuming by the end of the series, there will be some agreeable arrangement between Marc and Khonshu to continue being Moon Knight. We'll see.

-----

I won't babble about Steven too much. He's trying to find his place in the world. Having him dissect all this new information and changes in his life, is terrifying for him I'm sure. Perhaps, not giving him a second to process how his life has been completely turned upside down is driving him forwards at the moment. He's just got to keep putting one foot in front of the other and move.

Some of his revelations during this episode have been great. I'm taking a stab and suggesting he probably has a genius level intellect. He's proven over multiple times his awareness and ability to obtain all kinds of knowledge. Puzzles, books, prevention and safety tactics to theorize his sleep disorder, etc..

That all transfers over to Marc as well. Just utilized in different ways and skills sets.

Looking forward to seeing how Steven continues to grow. I'm sure we'll see some setbacks, but I'm invested in his journey.

-----

Layla seems like a pretty solid character. Even doubtful of Marc, she still had enough empathy to give Steven confidence and tell him it's okay, even though he said he wasn't up for the task at the time. She still supported him 100%. That was a fantastic moment. She didn't tear him down, she just said, "You know what? If you can't do it. That's totally okay. We'll find another way." Letting him know he doesn't need to feel sorry for himself or embarrassed he wasn't confident enough yet to fight.

Hopefully, I'm not projecting that. That's simply how I interpreted the scene. I could be totally off base in my assessment or any of the random stuff I've typed above.

-----

Harrow makes for an interesting antagonist. Ethan Hawke's delivery really sells the character for me, otherwise he seems uninteresting. But the delivery of the lines make him a more sinister character than what we see on the surface.

-----

The Mr. Knight suit was hot. Not going to lie. I got a little thirsty seeing it.

Marc saying he looked like a "psycho Colonel Sanders" had me rolling on the floor. Best line of the episode, possibly.

Mr. Knight's jittery confidence dance had me laughing, because he seemed a little Dead Pool-ish in that moment with the way the mask looks on his head. It was all fun though.

-----

If you made it this far, congratulations. You truly committed to reading my nonsensical opinions! Thank you!

I'll stop it here. I have more thoughts. Feel free to chat with me or leave comments below if you have something to add on, create a tangent from something I've said above.

Laters, Gators.

[hualianisms]

YOUR MOST DEVOTED BELIEVER: a hualian playlist

(books 2, 4, the 800 year separation) (books 1, 3, 5 here)

listen here

track annotations under the cut:

someone to stay - vancouver sleep clinic

You were alone, left out in the cold/Clinging to the ruin of your broken home/Too lost and hurting to carry your load/We all need someone to hold [...] Hear you, falling and lonely, cry out: / Will you fix me up? Will you show me hope?

an act of kindness - bastille

An act of kindness/Is what you show to me [...] It holds me 'till I ache/Overflow and start to break [...] But you warm me to my core and you left me wanting more

carry you - ruelle & fleurie

I know it hurts/It's hard to breathe sometimes/These nights are long/You've lost the will to fight/Is anybody out there?/Can you lead me to the light/Is anybody out there?/Tell me it'll all be alright/You are not alone/I've been here the whole time singing you a song/I will carry you, I will carry you

saturn - sleeping at last

With shortness of breath, you explained the infinite/How rare and beautiful it is, to even exist/I couldn't help but ask/For you to say it all again/I tried to write it down/But I could never find a pen  

die young - sylvan esso

I had it all planned out before you met me/Was gonna leave early and so swiftly/People would weep, "How tragic, so early"/I was gonna die young/Now I gotta wait for you, honey/I was a firecracker, baby, with somethin' to prove/Now I gotta contend with the living blues

strawberry blond - mitski

All I need, darling/Is a life in your shape/I picture it, soft/And I ache

花雨落 - xun (translation)

Flowers fall into the city as you look back/Horse's hoofs are far away from your gentleness/Who is still outside the building/Empty rain

do it for her - steven universe

You do it for him/And you would do it again [...] What they don't know/Is your real advantage/When you live for someone/You're prepared to die [...] Deep down I know/That I'm just a human/But I know that I can draw my sword and fight/With my short existence/I can make a difference/I can be there for him/I can be his knight/I can do it for him)

small hands - radical face

If you need come build your home in me/And you know I won't complain/And I can't fix what was done to you/But I'll shield you from the rain/And if the walls they build become too high/Then step up on my back and climb [...] And though my hands are much too small to hold you up/I will be there to pick up the pieces

angels - the xx

If someone believed me/They would be/As in love with you as I am [..] And with words unspoken/A silent devotion

the last of the real ones - fall out boy

I was just an only child of the universe/And then I found you/You are the sun and I am just the planets/Spinning around you [...] I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you/But not as much as I do [...] I will shield you from the waves/If they find you/I will protect you

alive - gabrielle aplin

When your kingdom falls/And your family fades/But it wasn't your fault/It was never your fault [...] All your worries will escape through the door/And you'll wake up all alone on the floor/It's not too late/Just rely on me now

everything i wanted - billie eilish

As long as I'm here/No one can hurt you/Don't wanna lie here/But you can learn to/If I could change/The way that you see yourself/You wouldn't wonder why you hear/"They don't deserve you"

take me to church - hozier

The only heaven I'll be sent to/Is when I'm alone with you [...] Take me to church/I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies/I'll tell you my sins so you can sharpen your knife/Offer me that deathless death/Good God, let me give you my life

sunlight - hozier

A soul that’s born in cold and rain/Knows sunlight, sunlight, sunlight/And at last can grant a name/To a buried and a burning flame/As love and its decisive pain [...] Know that I would gladly be/The Icarus to your certainty/Oh, my sunlight, sunlight, sunlight/Strap the wing to me/Death trap clad happily/With wax melted, I’d meet the sea

light - sleeping at last 

With every heartbeat I have left/I will defend your every breath/And I'll do better/Сause you are loved/You are loved more than you know/I hereby pledge all of my days/To prove it so

box of stones - benjamin francis leftwich

I am young, and I am yours/I am free, but I am flawed/I am here and your heart/I was here from the start

you’re the only good thing in my life - cigarettes after sex

Everything is wrong, but it's alright /You're the only good thing in my life

dirge - perfume genius   ((ch 190))

Boys that held him dear,/Do your weeping now,/All you loved of him lies here,/Do your weeping now.

shrike - hozier

I couldn't utter my love when it counted/Ah, but I'm singing like a bird 'bout it now/And I couldn't whisper when you needed it shouted/Ah, but I'm singing like a bird 'bout it now [...] Remember me love when I'm reborn/As the shrike to your sharp/And glorious thorn

NFWMB - hozier    ((wu ming))

If I was born as a blackthorn tree/I'd wanna be felled by you/Held by you/Fuel the pyre of your enemies/Ain't it warming you, the world gone up in flames?/Ain't it the life you, your lighting of the blaze?/Ain't it a waste they'd watch the throwing of the shade?/Ain't you my baby, ain't you my babe?

gone, gone, gone - phillip phillips

And I would do it for you, for you/Baby I'm not moving on/I’ll love you long after you're gone

(during the 800 year separation)

south london forever - florence + the machine

And everything I ever did/Was just another way to scream your name/Over and over and over and over again/Over and over and over and over again

hanahaki (bloom) by molly ofgeography

A braid of love and longing in the taste of rose and pine / A fatal growth belonging to the want you couldn't hide / Bloom / I don't believe in much but I believe in you

staring at the sun - MIKA

Here I stand, staring at the sun/Distant land, staring at the sun/You're not there, but we share the same one/Miles apart, staring at the sun/Distant town, staring at the sun/One thing's true just like you/There's only one

always - francois klark

Cause you are/Always in my mind/Always in my heart/Always the one that waits for me in my dreams/You are always the one I long for/Always the one I feel by my side even though you’re gone/Cause you are my always

finding you - kesha

after this life, I'll find you in the next/So when I say "forever, " it's the goddamn truth/I'll keep finding, finding you/I'm gonna search for your love/Right through Hell and Heaven/Millions of years yet to come/And in all dimensions

遇见 - stefanie sun (translation)

There is a person waiting in the future./To the left, to the right, to the front I look./How many corners must love turns before it arrives?/Who will I meet, what are we going to say?/The person I’m waiting for, how far away is he in the future?

[emeraldspiral]

Kim Possible hot takes coming through.

So, I should preface this by saying I never hated the show, I found it perfectly watchable and I don’t think Kim is unlikable or morally questionable or enough of a creator’s pet to qualify as a Mary-Sue. But I remember even as a kid, from the very first advertisements for the show, the way she was framed always rubbed me the wrong way. Like, they wanted Kim to be a Strong Female Role Model For Girls before they wanted her to be have any kind of authentic humanity. That’s not to say she didn’t have any personality or flaws. It’s just that, like with Rey in TROS, they kinda gave her a toxic mindset but played it like it was a good thing.

Like, with other types of role model characters like Superman, you never get the impression that the writers are saying that it’s reasonable to expect the average person to bench press skyscrapers and stop alien overlords from taking over the earth on your lunch break. The idea behind Superman as a role model is that he uses the power he has to help people instead of using it for selfish personal gain or to bully people and doesn’t compromise on his moral principles even when it’s hard.

With Kim, it often felt like they were trying to sell you on the idea that any girl could be like her, in the sense of having the ability to not only do anything but everything. Unlike almost every other superhero, Kim’s personal life never really suffers from her crime fighting activities. She’s a straight-A student, captain of the cheer squad, has only ever gotten detention once for being tardy a total of like, 3 times, and I don’t recall her ever angsting about the people close to her being targeted by supervillains.

One of the earliest episodes that always stood out to me started with Kim being called out by her squad for being late all the time. Her rival Bonnie makes the perfectly reasonable argument that if her crime fighting keeps her too busy to honor her commitment to the team then she should step down as cheer captain and let someone else with more free time takeover. But Bonnie is painted as being a conniving glory hound for daring to make this suggestion. Kim then spends the whole episode trying to prove she can balance both tasks. In any other show she might’ve really struggled with that and ultimately realized she was taking on too much responsibility. But instead, she does a perfectly fine job and she’s only threatened by Bonnie upstaging her with grand displays. In the end, she abdicates her position. Not because she’s realized that Bonnie was actually right, but because she expects that Bonnie will get burnt out and decide she doesn’t want the job anymore after two weeks. And indeed, after that episode Kim is back to being cheer captain and the issue never comes up again. So, the burden of being cheer captain is supposed to be too much for Bonnie, but not for Kim, who has way more on her plate. In what way are we meant to read that as anything but the narrative calling Bonnie lazy and venerating Kim for being hyper-competitive and achievement driven?

A couple episodes have Kim getting upset about not being instantly perfect at something, like cooking for driving, but even those episodes end with Kim getting the hang of it. I didn’t watch every episode, especially the later season ones, but I don’t remember Kim ever having to just accept that she straight up sucks at something or more than that, having her perfectionism really called out as a character flaw. There’s even an episode where Kim, who’s already a straight-A student, gets partnered up with a genius for a class project who doesn’t want Kim to contribute. Kim then feels the need to prove herself to this girl by studying whatever field of science she was an expert in until she had enough of an understanding to keep up with her. So it’s not enough for her to thrive and excel as much as she already does. She has to devote whatever time and energy has leftover after regular coursework, cheer leading, and saving the goddamned world to studying something, not because it interests her, but because she needs to earn the respect of a genius?

A thoughtful, realistic depiction of Kim would’ve called this behavior out as a pathological disorder. Things she does because she’s desperate for control or afraid of not being liked, or incapable of seeing value in herself outside of her achievements or usefulness to others, like Korra or Steven Universe. But Kim’s always portrayed as perfectly well-adjusted.

Batman, Spider-Man, Iron-Man, and even Superman are all regularly called out on how much responsibility they take on and the toll it takes on their physical and mental health and their relationships. What makes their actions truly heroic is how much they sacrifice to perform them. And its not depicted as aspirational when they let the guilt that drives them to make those sacrifices lead them to give up so much that they never get to be happy. Bruce Wayne ends up old and alone in Batman Beyond because he could never move on from his parents’ death and retire until a moment came that made him too ashamed to continue, and it’s a tragedy. But in The Dark Knight Rises, he DOES move on and the narrative celebrates him for releasing himself of his burden.

But with Kim Possible, they want to have their cake and eat it too. Give her all the perks of being awesome at everything without showing any of the drawbacks, the hardship, the sacrifice, or anything even remotely implying that her lifestyle isn’t 100% healthy, desirable, and achievable. Which is not a great message to send to young people, given how many struggle with the idea that they’re not achieving enough, even when they’re doing perfectly fine or have legitimate struggles that prevent them from “keeping up” with their peers.

And it’s this kind of writing that was considered acceptable in Kim Possible that ended up ruing Rey’s character in TROS. Vindicating her for wasting her life waiting for her parents. Attributing her darkness to Palpatine instead of the trauma and resentment of her abandonment. Refusing to call her out on her impulsive temper. Walking back on challenging her idolization of Luke. Paying lip-service to the idea of her realizing she’s not alone and has people in her life that she can rely on, only to cast her dyad partner aside and force her to fight the final battle alone. Ending her story with her as a solitary Strong Independent Woman after she spent her entire life desperately craving a family. Refusing to depict her grief over the loss of her literal soulmate. All in the name of promoting GURL POWER. This idea that girls can and should do anything and everything by themselves, without help, and it should be easy. Cost them nothing. Take no effort. Have no ugly consequences or side effects.

[yahoo-puck-daddy-blog]

What We Learned: When can we start the Auston Matthews MVP conversation?

Auston Matthews has been playing at an MVP level this season. (Mark Blinch/Getty)

Not to draw too many conclusions from the first week and a half of the season, but you know that step everyone expected Auston Matthews to take?

Looks like he took it.

Five games into the season, he has exactly that many goals and three assists. This after the season he walked away with the Calder and finished 11th in MVP voting as a 19-year-old. And as far as that Hart voting goes, he probably has a right to feel a little hard done by.

This is a kid who led the league in individual expected goals per hour a year ago, finished fifth in primary points per 60 at 5-on-5 despite drawing the best opponents other teams had to offer, attempted the 10th-most shots per 60 in the league last season, scored 40 goals, got the Leafs into the playoffs and generally pounded on the competition almost every time he was on the ice. As a rookie teenager playing his first season of high-level North American hockey.

And it looks like he took a step.

It’s not just the show-stopping goals (he already has a nice highlight reel going this season) and it’s not just the fact the Leafs are both scoring and preventing goals at unbelievable clips. It’s that, once again, Matthews is at the center of one of the most dominant lines in the league, and it’s even more dominant than it was last season.

Last season the Hyman-Matthews-Nylander line had an expected-goals share of more than 55 percent at full strength, putting them seventh in the league behind such groups as Calgary’s 3M line, that dominant Cogliano-Kesler-Silfverberg trio, John Tavares and Evgeny Kuznetsov’s lines, and the Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak line. If you can be mentioned in the same breath as those groups, and you’re playing with Zach Hyman (who’s perfectly fine and got more crap than he probably deserved, but he’s certainly not on the level of a lot of these players), you’re doing things very, very right.

And they’re at it again this year, currently second in the league in xGF% among lines with at least 30 minutes together, and frankly it’s tough to see the Lehkonen-Plekanec-Hudon line keeping this up all year. Expected goals measures both shot volume and quality to distill things down to a single number, and the Matthews line is pushing 71 percent in this regard through five games. Again, really early, and there will be rough stretches for this team and this group as there is for everyone in the league regardless of how good they are. That’s what happens when you play 82.

So the number will undoubtedly come down, but by how much? Last year, when all these guys were rookies, that 55 percent or so xGF was already elite. And while you don’t expect them to clear 60 — only four lines have ever done that in more than 500 minutes together over a single season since the 2012 lockout, and two of them featured Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand — the fact is, whenever you’re pushing up against even 55, 56 percent, you’re pummeling the other team.

And here’s the scary part: The Matthews line was actually a little unlucky last year. Despite that huge number in xGF — which ranks 16th among all heavily used lines since 2012-13 — they actually got outscored by a goal at 5-on-5 last season. The reason why? They had a great save percentage behind them (.930) but only shot 5.8 percent themselves.

So here’s the question that naturally arises: Is there any way on earth their on-ice shooting percentage remains that low all year? The answer almost has to be a firm “no,” not only because it’s low for anyone in the league, but because it’s insanely low given that Matthews personally had a 14.3 percent accuracy rate in all situations last year. And remember, this is after Matthews scored more goals at 5-on-5 than anyone in the league last season.

The issue, then, is that Nylander and Hyman took a combined 272 shots at full strength last season and only scored 17 goals; crunch those numbers and you come up with a shooting percentage of 6.25. Say what you want about either of those guys, but no forward in the league has a talent level that low, period. (Though this does explain why Matthews only had 29 assists last season.)

So now flip the calendar to this year, and the Leafs are currently outscoring opponents 7-1 when the Matthews line is on the ice. Obviously the goals against is going to go up, and the goal-scoring will slow down a bit (Hyman is now shooting 20 percent), but Matthews looks a little more assertive this time around in shooting the puck himself, and you can see the skill level at which he’s playing on any highlights package of a Leafs game this year. He has a point in all five, and at least one goal in four. He’s omnipresent when he’s on the ice and just picking out corners in OT, which likely won’t last (at least not at that rate). But hey, it’s two extra points for the team and two extra goals for the kid.

There are lots of guys off to hot starts right now, of course. Alex Ovechkin already has nine damn goals. Three of the league’s top five scorers are defensemen. Things can get weird at this time of year.

But when you look at everything — aging curves, what Matthews did as a rookie, the fact that he has a great coach who’s going to put him in a position to succeed, continuity of linemates, the fact that he was a little unlucky last year, and so on — you have to come to the understanding that Matthews is as well-positioned as anyone to clear 100 points and get himself in the conversation for the Hart.

Okay, yes, Connor McDavid will have something to say about it, but if Matthews isn’t in the top-five at the end of the year, it would be a surprise.

Honestly, it’s not just about how good he looks or how much he’s scoring this year. It’s the fact that a player who was already this good was always likely to get better. And it looks like he might have gotten a whole hell of a lot better.

What We Learned

Anaheim Ducks: Don’t all look at once but what if … 65-year-old Francois Beauchemin has had an unsustainable start and actually is as bad now as he was in Colorado?

Arizona Coyotes: Not ideal for the Coyotes to still be winless at this point, but also: It’s the Coyotes.

Boston Bruins: Similar sentiment but reversed: Let’s not get all excited about crushing the Coyotes.

Buffalo Sabres: One thing a team like the Sabres definitely needed at this time of year, given how they’re playing, was a nice West Coast road swing. For sure.

Calgary Flames: Now this is a take.

Carolina Hurricanes: Y���know, Scott Darling is holding up his end of the bargain so far here, but this team has two goals in its last 125 minutes of hockey. They’re lucky to be 1-1-1.

Chicago Blackhawks: Congrats to these guys for actually scoring against Nashville at home. Big day.

Colorado Avalanche: Yes, this is the kind of result that feels right for this team.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Turns out this Panarin kid can play. Not just a product of playing with Patrick Kane. Weird!

Dallas Stars: The Stars only have four 5-on-5 goals this season. That’s fun.

Detroit Red Wings: This is absolutely the best team in the league this year. For sure. I hope I get to write updates forever about how sustainable Jimmy Howard’s .950 save percentage is.

Edmonton Oilers: Uh oh, folks. Uh oh.

Florida Panthers: If you came from the future and told me this is a team that loses narrowly a lot all season, I would believe you.

Los Angeles Kings: John Stevens is a genius. Gotta admit that!

Minnesota Wild: We’re less than two weeks into the season and already Bruce Boudreau is busting out the word “embarrassing” in pressers. What a year this will be.

Montreal Canadiens: And jeez, the Canadiens are already talking about “moral victories aren’t good enough.” Buddy, it’s Oct. 16. Take it easy for like a second.

Nashville Predators: This is a weird angle for a story but okay.

New Jersey Devils: That Will Butcher signing is working out great. First rookie ever to have eight assists in his first five games. He played college hockey, FYI.

New York Islanders: Hey as long as you get 40 saves every night…

New York Rangers: We’re talking about firing a coach or making a trade, on Oct. 16, about a team that’s very clearly trying to rebuild on the fly? Am I getting that right?

Ottawa Senators: Thomas Chabot might stick with the team but also he might not. Probably comes down to roster flexibility. Who knows!

Philadelphia Flyers: Hockey’s weird sometimes. What can I tell ya?

Pittsburgh Penguins: Here’s a big stat that shouldn’t be a surprise: Pittsburgh hasn’t lost to Florida in regulation in the last 10 games.

San Jose Sharks: Yes, this was always the concern for a one-line team, wasn’t it?

St. Louis Blues: The Blues lost their last two games after winning the first four, so of course they’re mad or something. I dunno.

Tampa Bay Lightning: To me, personally? This Kucherov kid can play.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Let’s just watch this one again:

Vancouver Canucks: People are shocked that a rebuilding team that charges a ton of money for tickets isn’t selling out. What goes on out there?

Vegas Golden Knights: Heyyyyyy, there ya go.

Washington Capitals: Yeah turns out this Niskanen guy is pretty important.

Winnipeg Jets: *stage whispering* Looks like Hellebuyck should have been the starter all along.

Play of the weekend

RIP Madison Bowey. Welcome to the bigs, bud.

Gold Star Award

They might get rid of the All-Star Game to do something in Europe instead. What a league.

Minus of the Weekend

The Golden Knights mascot? Not a fan!

Perfect HFBoards Trade Proposal of the Year

User “MR4” is all about the specificity.

TOR: JVR, Bozak, Carrick, 1st (top 14 protection) MIN: Dumba, contracts/dumps

Signoff

My name is Zweig.

—

Ryan Lambert is a Puck Daddy columnist. His email is here and his Twitter is here.

(All stats via Corsica unless otherwise noted.)