#alex x amos x holden x naomi

[imaginerhetoric]

When I say I choked on my coffee at the second one I mean full on gasping and chest pounding from laughing so hard.

the expanse + ao3tagsbot

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

[phantomstatistician]

Fandom: The Expanse

Sample Size: 520 stories

Source: AO3

[universalimagines]

I just finished watching The Expanse and I’ve got to say, it’s a hell of a show. Great characters l, well written world building, realistic physics for space travel and a jaw dropping story. (Plus the coolest ship I’ve seen, fuck yeah Rocinante)

Since I love this show so much now, I’m adding it and it’s characters to my list of shows/characters I write for so please send in those asks!!!

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

Holden returning from Earth having seen his parents....arrives back on the Rocinate ....

is greeted by Amos and says.....

characters saying “let’s go home”/”I’m home” after overcoming the most perilous of predicaments, the most overwhelming of ordeals, will always be a finishing move more powerful than whatever the hell they used to actually beat the final boss just now

[captain-noir]

one of the drawbacks of the tv format is that we dont get to experience naomi’s inner thoughts which were so goddamn good in the books. her despair, her rage, her longing and one of my favourite moments - 

where she is trying on different masks because everybody is constantly watching her, wondering at her loyalties, testing her and waiting for her reaction and so she thinks what would amos do? and she channels him, throwing off her captors and putting them on the back foot.

and later still, locked in her room and trying to come up with an escape plan, she keeps chanting to herself what would alex do? what would amos do? what would jim do? what would I do?

and i remember so vividly reading that and just...the gut punch of how much the roci crew need each other and how well they work as a unit and how much they rely on each other and how unmoored they are apart

[diane-w]

“Ma’am, for the first time in your life please just shut your damn mouth!” Aww Chrisjen was so anxious for Bobbie. And Amos expression. Not sure if he wants to join her, is admiring her bravery or is trying to understand her sacrifice.

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

✩ the expanse meme  ✩ [3/3] earthers  — Amos Burton

[itmightrain]

Jim and Naomi had to be tricked into family dinner. Amos not so much.

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

The Roci landing on Ilus 💗….team as FAMILY

[caribbeanmomma]

The Expanse - Naomi on the sidelines

I’m hoping that anyone and everyone is watching this awesome show. Maybe it’s because I love me a good scifi show (cue Battlestar Gallactica and Star Trek theme songs...). My only issue with the show is that I can’t watch this in one go like my other faves on Netflix. 

I’m sure everyone that loves the show have probably gone back and rewatched the episodes before season 3 started (amirite? Or is it only me?). This second time around gave me a lot to chew on when thinking about how the crew - mainly Holden - is treating Naomi.

Now, I haven’t read the books and am actually planning to, so I don't know what’s to come in the series (if they stick mainly to the book plot) apart from they supposedly are still together 6 books in? But for right now, Naomi is getting a rough handling by her family.

Yes, yes... we all know that she gave a sample of the protomolecule to Fred Johnson. Was she right? I’m not sure if she should have given it to him (better him than Dawes?) but we do know that he was manipulated in to killing those people on the Anderson Station and we saw that he had guilt and regret over it, so he may not be the biggest worst monster out there? Will he do the right thing with the protomolecule or will he really live up to his reputation as the Butcher of Anderson Station?

Anyways, back to Naomi... so one of the last sweet scenes we see between her and Holden is where he promised her “he’d love her through it all” but when she confesses what she’s done - he, along with one of the other most important persons in her life - Amos, turn on her vehemently. In the last episode, we see Holden basically telling her to leave. That certainly isn’t loving someone through it all.

What grinds my gears is that Holden, in his well placed mistrust of Fred Johnson, could not or would not see Naomi’s point of view or at least understand that her fears for the Belt and the Belters is warranted. Neither he nor Amos (who are both Earthers) nor Alex who is a Martian seemed to even bother to see the Belters as worthy as needing protection - preferring to lean towards a more wholistic approach to dealing with the war. All this even though Mars has a big hand in the events that have unfolded - even going as far as unleashing a hybrid on their own Martian Marines.

And another thing - yes, Fred Johnson using the protomolecule as a weapon against Earth and Mars would lead to more death something that everyone on the ship now including Chrisjen are furious about - but were they equally furious at the possibility of even more Belters being killed with it by Earth and Mars’ hands? Weren’t the Belters experimented on first?

Right, so having said all of that, and understanding that Holden does feel betrayed by Naomi for misleading him all this time AND bearing in mind that the sample that was supposed to be hurtled in to the sun was thought to be the last bit of it at the time (but subsequently finding out that it was indeed was NOT), can we truly say she has done the worst of the worst among this group of deeply flawed individuals? I say not. Case in point - some of the things these guys have done:

Holden - responds to the distress beacon against orders which in turn gets the whole thing rolling ever so much faster. He got everyone left on the Cant killed and Naomi covered for him until he was ready to reveal it to Amos, Alex and the guy who died fairly early on (forget his name!). I do wonder though, would Holden have covered for Naomi when Chrisjen was ripping in to them for allowing Fred Johnson to get his hands on the sample? At least Naomi gets a few reasons out for her actions without anyone shutting her up... again.

Miller - when presented with the opportunity to learn from one of the crazy scientists who was responsible for the protomolecule experiments, what does he do? He shoots him clean in the head - no real compelling reason apart from he was one of the dudes who killed Julie - a woman he’d never met while she was alive. The doctor could have helped - he made sure that didn’t happen. And wasn’t he considered to be a traitor to the Belters? Did Naomi care about that?

Prax - when presented with a room full of unarmed doctors who might have been able to lead them to his daughter and the location of more of the protomolecule, what does he do? He opens fire on them leading to yet another sh*t show. Uh, how do dead doctors help you find your daughter Prax? Yeah, thought so.

Amos - he doesn’t really do anything that I can remember that sets them back significantly but he’s guilty of not trying to see Naomi’s side and easily ignores and dismisses her. He who seems to be barely holding on to his sanity most episodes and he does this knowing Naomi’s got his back. No loyalty.

Alex - he also hasn’t done anything with regards to the mission that sets them back, but he is a lousy father and husband and has failed them on a deep level but Naomi doesn’t seem to judge him for it (luckily, he redeems himself by being anxious when he sees her looking at the path to Tycho while on the Razor Back and then reaching out to her through food - yay Alex!)

So these guys really aren’t blameless. Even Chrisjen is a manipulative person and sometimes you can hardly tell what her real agenda is - she has so many subplots going she’s always ten steps ahead. But Naomi sees clean through her though.

Bobbie is a defector - yes, she did what she did for what she thought were the right reasons. I didn’t get the impression she was going to be killed back on Mars, rather stripped from her rank as a Marine. Her people consider her a traitor but she’s being cheered for doing the right thing.

I’m going to close this dissertation by saying, I know that for the sake of the story and plot and in order not to turn the whole thing in to a space soap opera, there needs to be this conflict and some time taken to resolve it in order for it to stay true to what kind of show it primarily is. Doesn’t mean that it doesn’t suck though. Maybe we’ll see some steps closer to resolution in the next episode.

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

Amos & Naomi both know their bond is sibling like. I enjoyed how they both use the “brother” and “sister” description. But, I also liked Miller’s “he is like your kid”...and Naomi’s “guide star” comparison.

But what was clear about their bond was from the Canterbury. That was when Amos could really read her and understood her. Because it was a simple bond. They could work together in silence. No need to talk. Just work. They looked out for her other and as Amos’ boss, Naomi protected and stood up for him.

However - once they get away from that environment and circumstances change Amos can’t read her as well. Because suddenly there are a lot more factors, more gray areas and his crystal clear view gets murky. Amos can’t do grey areas.

He still maintains absolute loyalty towards Naomi but so much more is lost in translation. They are drifting apart. Naomi has secrets. Naomi is afraid of him.

It is not the same for her, she keeps the same understanding of Amos. She still protects him, respects him. She cares for Amos. But, she doesn’t want the role he wants for her. Naomi does not want to be the leader or the Captain on the Roci.

She is honest in her reveal that she is sometimes afraid of Amos and that trying to control him is unfortunately a bit of a burden. Naomi wants Amos to know that Holden concealed his actions because it was her advice.

Naomi never stops appreciating the bond she shares with Amos. But, she knows it can’t go back to the way it once was....and I don’t think she can explain that to him.

All of this happens while Amos really needs a moral compass. A definitive source of guidance.

So, he tries making decisions on his own and fails.

In the background though he also starts to get more involved with Alex and Holden.

The Roci crew really have this interconnected thread that weaves through all of them.

Because as Amos is kind of losing track of Naomi, she starts her relationship with Holden. The whole delicate matter is endlessly fascinating and I like to comb it over in my mind for all the ...origin moments...and what if...factors.

“You must think I’m pretty stupid, don’t you?”

[princessamericachavez]

I want everyone currently watching the Expanse to be aware that the book this season is based on (the 5th on the series) is the first one where we get Amos/Alex/Naomi POV chapters and that during their time apart they kept:

1. Downright yearning for their Roci family. So much longing. So much referring to the others as family and counting the seconds to return.

2. Doing everything in their power to get back to the others as the world falls apart.

3. Worrying about the others being alright during the chaos and trying desperately to contact each other, make sure everyone is alive and help/save each other however they can even at great personal risk. Holden has a especially hard time worrying about Amos (he convinced himself he HAS to have survived because, well, he is Amos) and trying his damn best to respect Naomi’s space (in the book he doesn’t know about Marco or Philip yet so all he knows is she left on personal business and he is a respectful king who is worried out of his mind and just waiting for her to text :( until the angst of her captivity finally reaches him)

4. Constantly, when in doubt or a particularly complicated situation, asking themselves “What would X do?”. (And this is my favorite thing, alright). Like, Amos tries to imagine Naomi’s advice when he needs empathy and Holden’s when he needs a moral compass. Alex keeps trying to be as apparently self assured as Holden and as brave as Amos. Naomi mentally tells herself what Amos would say during her captivity to help her keep a cool head and survive. Holden keeps longing for everyone’s grounding presence and warmth. They are so ingrained into each other’s lives that even at a distance they keep trying to conjure that support when the world is falling apart.

Anyway. If you haven’t read this books, you definitely should because all the found family feels are dialed up a million percent. This disasters (Holden most of all) are soft dorks whose inner monologue at least 60% of the time is “god, I love my friends more than anything in this universe.”

[radley-writes]

okay so... who... do you ship.... in th Expanse

HGGG NO YOU CAN’T ASK ME THAT IT’S EVIL

I basically have... three tiers of ships? 

1) It’s canon/practically canon

Naomi/Holden! The obvious one. You can’t get through this series and not ship them. Can you?? I mean, they’re a loving, competent power couple with a beautiful slow-burn. Their relationship arc isn’t quite Enemies to Lovers, but it’s definitely Opposing Sides to Lovers, so there’s some glorious moral tension there. And just. Healthy relationships! Where they respect each other’s space and always have each other’s back (especially in the novels)! Yes??? 

Naomi/Drummer! They had a thing!! You can FEEL IT!!! I don’t ship them as a Current Relationship, because no way would Drummer be into Holden sorry Holden and they’re both Too Professional but it’s GOD TIER QUEER YEARNING and I thrive 

Chrisjen/Arjun! Old and gold. Another power couple. Their interactions soften my heart, even when they’re on opposite sides of the solar system. Arjun just... melts Chrisjen out of her hardass shell. T.T

Anna/Namono! my wlw wifey darlings! Would kill for them, die for them, etc. Too precious for words.

Michio Pa/all her husbands & wives! Nuff said, queer poly awesomeness.

Miller/Julie! HAHA JUST KIDDING, WE DO NOT STAN FALLING IN LOVE WITH WOMEN WE’VE NEVER MET WHO ARE HALF OUR AGE no hate on folx who ship it, you do you

2) It’s never gonna be canon and I respect that but I would still read an epic fanfic about them

Naomi/Holden/Alex/Amos! Because poly relationships are already so accepted and normalised in The Expanse universe, and I want more. Gotta say, I don’t really?? Hardcore ship?? Amos with anyone anymore. He’s pan/bi, but I headcanon him as aromantic (plus, he doesn’t “shit where [he] eats”, as we all know). If I had to queerplatonically ship him with another main Squad character... I PICK ALL OF THEM 

[Edit:I have been kindly reminded that Holden does propose to the entire crew so... technically... I now pronounce this CANON FUCK YES]

Chrisjen/Bobbie! I’M NOT SORRY I’M JUST A SLUT FOR TINY BOSSY FEMME x BIG BUFF LADY BODYGUARD 

3) Pure nonsense

Fred Johnson/Anderson Dawes! Don’t even ask, I just love the sometimes-enemies, sometimes-allies, bastard old generals who understand each other vibes. Their history is juicy. There’s so much guilt on Fred’s side and Anderson - down to his name - is the perfect foil.

[captain-noir]

yep, the ot3 agenda is winning

[always-tilting-at-windmills]

The Expanse 5x10 🚀

Listen okay I know ships are great and all but there is nothing as good as getting to see a group of disasters slowly become a family even if they don’t realize it and then someone’s in danger and suddenly everyone’s like….don’t you fucking touch my family and there’s a moment of realization that they’d all die for each other in a heartbeat and that will always be better than any ship could ever hope to be