#and he only comes later after Super Epic is a thing

[quibbs126]

You know it’s a bit ironic how canonically, Dark Choco is supposed to be very powerful, but in both Ovenbreak and Kingdom he’s pretty useless

Now granted, this is because of the constantly changing meta and power creep, and because he’s an old character who’s been around since launch for Kingdom and not long after the launch of Ovenbreak, he’s been rendered obsolete for quite a while. It’s not really his fault, and I’m given to understand at Kingdom’s launch, he was a very useful Cookie to have, it’s just how the game goes. It’s still a little funny though

[sophswritingthings]

BESTIE okay so fourth part of Apothecary series and it's abt how Mizu and Her wife met and I need to disclose backstory about Apothecary wife.

So basically Apothecary wife is a Ex-Shinobi warrior who ran away from that life because it was super traumatizing since she needed to kill her siblings to prove she's worthy to her father. (Her older brother also taught her to be an apothecary).

So after that she became an apothecary and works as a doctor in a nearby town but instead of living in the town she lives in the mountains away from people (Tanjiro core lol), so her home mostly un occupied until she comes home from being a doctor.

One night Mizu finds the home with no one inside and let's herself in for refuge from the cold and like a few hours later the reader comes home to see Mizu inside and she immediately freaks out threw poisoned laced Kunais at Mizu in defense (It's only poisoned lace because she's an apothecary and she knows ALOT abt poison).

So Both Mizu and Reader have an epic showdown (More like a small argument) and reader sees that Mizu is injured and offers a truce to help heal Mizu and that's when their love blossom 😍🫶

(Most of readers backstory is inspired by Tengen 😭)

pairing: mizu x fem!apothecary!reader

warning(s): blood, injury, swearing, poison, you know the usual. not a warning but reader obviously believes mizu is male. 

a/n: WE ARE GETTING THE BACKSTORY BABE. TRAUMATIZE THEM

summary: I believe the ask summarized this quite well lmao <3

word count: 1,270 words / 6,802 characters 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

your eyes are locked onto your fathers. 

the gaze was fiery. It held passion, it held determination.

you weren’t going to hurt your family. you weren’t going to touch your siblings, let alone kill them.

they were your family, your little sister and brother, two people you had vowed to never hurt. you wouldn’t hurt them.. not to prove yourself, to to save yourself, never. you would rather kill your self than do that.

you blinked. you blinked away the thoughts, choosing to focus on happier ones. like how your elder brother had taught you your skills.. he had trained you in the ways of kindness, in the ways of healing, rather than hurting.

you'd never wanted to hurt. anybody.

you wondered where your brother was now… if he had ever taken over. if he had died in your footsteps, and if that was maybe your fault—

—no. you weren’t going there. he would never blame you for such things.. he wouldn’t. so why should you blame yourself now?

you were headed out into the town, to the collect what herbs you needed. the herbs you hadn’t managed to find in the peaks of your mountain home; than you were on your way to stock the shop for the morning. than back home, to rest in the nestled creaks of your home. 

you had a basket on your arm, a hood concealing your face. you were worried someone would recognize you, someday, or simply kill you for being that of a woman who worked for her keep.

you walked into one of the local shops, the bell ringing as you opened the door. the shopkeeper was a friend of yours; someone you could let your guard down with. you pulled down your hood, greeting him with a smile.

“back again, are you?” he chuckled, “what are you in need of this time?”

“I am in need of shisho, kuromoji and mitsuba. I was unable to find them outside, and I and the shop are in need of them. a few extra for cooking, yes?” you laugh softly watching as he folds the herbs into a cloth for you. he placed them in your basket.

you bow, handing over five iron coins. you leave the shop with a smile, pulling your hood back up. if was half to protect your face from the cold, and half to conceal your identity. 

your shop was two doors down. a pretty painted door illustrated with cranes and flowers, like the ones that littered her kimono's desgin.

she pushed the door open, settling the basket down inside. she grabbed the herbs out of it, leaving only a few behind for her personal use.

she made her way to the back, a wall of baskets greeting her. she sorted the herbs into their respective baskets, which were all labeled which was which. she was organized, that much was true.  

once finished, you whisked your basket away and headed for your mountain home. the only reason you had decided to live in the mountains was the seclusion; definitely not the work it took to get there and back each and every day.

you spent your walk thinking about your family again. It had been years since you had seen them; since you had hugged them, or brushed your little sisters hair.

you assumed that they were dead. you basically knew they were dead; you had been ordered to kill them, and when you did not, you were sure your father had finished off the job. they were only half his children, after all, but they were family to you. no matter how related you were or not.

you sighed. you never wanted to think about your horrible past ever again; you wished you could cleanse your mind of these memories. but it would never be possible.

you were coming to the door of your cabin. that’s when you noticed the door cracked open, the snow slipping in.

your eyes narrowed. who was in your cabin, and what were they taking?

you held four kunai's between your fingertips; laced with poison you had fused with them. whoever was in there was about to regret their damn decision.

you stepped inside, tossing the kunai's at your intruder. This effectively trapped them, pinning the fabric of this man's clothes to the wall.

he looked to be a samurai. tall, broad, a hat and glasses covering his eyes and face.

you were absolutely freaked out; a man rifling through your things. only god knew what he had been doing before you had arrived home.

“who are you?!” you yelp, removing one of the kunai's from the fabric of his clothes and holding it to his chest. “and—and why are you in my house?!“

he gazed at you, expression stone cold and heartless.

“I thought it was unoccupied,” he grumbled, eyes narrowed. “now I see I was wrong.” he glanced down at the kunai you were holding to his chest. “you can put that thing away.”

“not until I get answers,” you hiss, inching it closer to his chest. the poison was dripping from the tip onto his clothes.

“you're getting me all a mess,” he said nonchalantly, as if you weren’t holding a sharp object to his chest.

you roll your eyes, “answer my questions,” you reply. “what we’re you doing in my house, when I found you? what did you take, what did you touch—“

“I didn’t take jack-shit, miss, if you would just let me explain, I could—“

“you have three minutes,” you step away from him, removing the kunai's from his clothes. he nods, dusting off his coat.

“I am a samurai. I am traveling alone, to complete my quest. to fulfill my duty,” he said rather calmly. “if you hadn’t noticed, it’s cold outside. I was simply looking for refuge and a place to bandage myself up.” he gestured to his wound, “I saw your cabin and assumed it was uninhabited, being so high up in these mountains.”

“hm.” you narrow your eyes, “so you didn’t steal anything?”

he shakes his head, “no.”

for some reason, you felt.. trust, to this man. he seemed to be telling the truth.

“you were lucky that you stumbled across my keep,” you murmur. “I am an apothecary. I have knowledge of healing and medicine.. if you would like me to assist you. I offer a truce.”

he looked skeptical, that stoic expression never fading, even for a minute.

than he shrugged, letting his muscles relax. 

“I will accept, only for your healing,” he seemed amused by your words, settling down on a nearby stool.

you gather up a poultice, that you had been mixing. you apply it to the wound, taking bandages you had on hand, and wrapping them tightly around the wound.

you gazed him up and down. there was something about him. some kind of presence, a feeling you couldn’t shake.. your heart was heavy just thinking about it.

you hadn’t felt that way in a while.

“.. you may stay the night, if you so wish,” you whisper. “I have extra keep.”

the samurai bows, “I thank you for your hospitality. may I know of your name?”

you nod, “it is (y/n),” you reply softly. “and may I know yours?”

“It is mizu,” he forked over his name so easily. as if he trusted you already.

mizu.

you repeated the name in your head as he disappeared into one of the rooms. waves.. the name meant waves, that you knew.

and he was like a wave. a wave that washed onto your beach and sucked you in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

a/n: OUHGHHHHH I AM INVESTED

[theguardianace]

hi bittersweet polyshow thing i came up with in the shower (tw death mention, but nothing that's not already discussed in canon)

EDIT ITS A FIC NOW GO READ THAT INSTEAD

one of the only things emu truly regrets never being able to do is introduce her partners to her grandfather. she wishes he could be there to watch tsukasa's performances, to listen to nene's singing, to admire rui's directions. he would have loved playing the piano with tsukasa, or boasting about nene's gaming high scores, or to mess around with rui's drones. he would have adored these three show idiots who made emu feel like the most special girl in the whole wide word. how emu wishes he could have met them.

emu confides this in tsukasa one day through a casual little remark. she only meant it as an off-hand thing, not really expecting him to remember it for very long.

(oh, how wrong she was.)

on the day of emu's grandpa's birthday, emu awoke to a text from nene asking if they could meet near a local cafe after school quick. when she arrived, it wasn't to find nene with a latte for herself and a hot chocolate for emu, but the rest of her troupe in slightly nicer outfits than usual (aka nene was wearing her favorite dress and rui had on a long skirt and knitted sweater instead of the hoodie designed to camouflage only in a roller skating arena). rui took them over to a nearby flower shop to pick out small bouquets (though none of them would tell her why, exactly). rui told them all about what flowers grew where, the species that pollinated them, the meanings we have given them, and anything else that could come to mind. once they had a satisfactory selection, they followed tsukasa over to pxl and through the secret back entrance of the wonder stage.

there, tsukasa explained how, when she mentioned it, he truly did wish he could meet her grandpa, too. how they all wished they could. he, rui, and nene had gone to emu's brothers soon after, asking if there was anything special they could do to honor his memory with her. they had chosen her grandpa's birthday over his death anniversary, partially because the date had only been a week away but mostly because he would have wanted to celebrate life, not passing. they wanted to go to his burial site or a memorial place, but turns out he never wanted one built in the first place. he had always been a free spirit, never tied to one place even in death. so, they chose the best place they could think of - the stage he loved so dearly, where emu fell in love with the world, and where they fell in love with emu.

the four of them set their flowers down on the front row of the audience. emu arranged them into a little heart. then, she tackled them in a massive bear hug and told them just how much this meant to her and how grateful she is to have met them and just how super mega epic wonderhoy this all was (though she spoke mostly through emuisms so the only person who really understood was rui). (and if they all started crying a little too, nobody but them had to know)

they went and got taiyaki afterward. it had never tasted so warm and sweet.

(thinking about it later, emu realized; though she may never have gotten to see his reaction to them, in a way, hadn't he already met the ones she loved? hadn't he been watching over them the whole time? the ones who brought smiles to that stage, who performed and laughed and grew there, who saved the dream he created? who saved the little girl he loved so much?)

[piko-power]

idk what to post so here's me getting excited over an animated hedgehog lol

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 so far is VISUALLY STUNNING. The lighting, the animation and SFX, just, BEAUTIFUL ON SO MANY LEVELS.

Everything about the trailer blew my mind, but I will do a post about my thoughts and theories on it later on. For now I wanna talk about the Blueberry Muffin himself.

Sonic in the movie looked GREAT. He got a small upgrade compared to how he looked in both Movie 1 and 2. (Especially Movie 1)

But he's still the goofy, heroic dork he is, and I'm SUPER EXCITED to see my boy again!! 💕

I don't know what else to post, so I'm just gonna gush over some of my favorite (which I'll admit, are almost every shot of Sonic in the trailer. Just wanna admit that, right now XD) shots of the Blue Devil.

I will do another version of this but with Shadow, but that'll be in the future. Shadow looks INSANE in the movie, so of COURSE I will lose my mind over his design once the post comes out lol

But right out of the gate, we got a really cool shot of Sonic running through a log, I think? Absolutely love the blue glow emitting the entire dark interior. And it gave Sonic a nice glow, too.

I love how determined he looks here, too. There were some scenes in the trailer where it looked like Sonic, Tails and Knuckles were racing each other. I think it's really adorable that the Wachowski Bros. spend time together by just racing through the woods outside of their own house.

This shot looks like Sonic might be in the lead.

Tom: "It hasn't always been easy, but it can't change who you are *points to Sonic's heart* in here."

Sonic: "Yeah. In my lungs."

The pure innocence from this hedgehog is killing me 😭

This is probably after the race? Idk when this is taking place, after all, all we got is a trailer. But I'm just spitballing here, but this is definitely another scene in the series where Tom gives Sonic some profound words for him to remember by.

But anyways, I love this shot of Sonic. You can already tell there is some slight differences with how he looked in the first film and the second film, which I kind of already freaked out over on this post here lol.

His expression complete with his line is just the perfect mixture for this shot. It describes Sonic to me. He's got a heart of gold, but at times he can be just a little confuse but still got the spirit.

He's just a child 😭

Here we got Sonic casually breaking the laws of physics just to grind on a tree branch, because he's just that cool.

Now this shot here? PROBABLY ONE OF MY FAVORITES.

Sonic is up in the air, twirling around with a huge smile on his face 🥺

He is having the TIME of his life. He is just so happy AAAAAAAAA-

Also, I love that Sonic's body, mainly his chest, has become a bit more puffy (since the Knuckles show anyway), but he still has that bean shape in certain shots lmao (Got a bit of Classic Sonic in there since day one XDDD)

I mean, come on. Look at his cheeks and tell me he don't have any baby fat anymore? He's still small! He's still squishy!! 🥺

Anyways badass Blueberry. EPIC callback to the beginning of SA2, only this time Tails and Knuckles are along for the ride. (also love Tails' expression as he jumps off the helicopter.)

I love this particular shot a lot for some reason XD

Knuckles really wants to fight Shadow despite Sonic not wanting to. He wanted to handle Shadow just by talking things out (clearly he has not met the dude) and Knuckles is over here ready to throw hands.

Sonic looks very annoyed here 🤣

I'm just so happy to see Sonic and Knuckles together on screen again after the Knuckles show. I fell in love with their dynamic ever since. Sonic and Tails' bond is truly special to me, but it's Sonic and Knuckles' bond that means SO MUCH to me, and I SERIOUSLY need to write more about these dorks.

This is the face of a hedgehog who was NOT prepared for the horrors that is Shadow the Hedgehog and maybe bisexuality. XD

Pissed off Blueberry.

Sonic is one of those characters where they rarely get upset or angry, but when they, it's badass and genuinely terrifying. I am NOT ready to see Sonic get so upset in this movie.

I know shit is about to go down in this movie, and I know Sonic is probably gonna go feral when it does. And it won't be pretty.

He is NOT happy at all. But at least here he looks kind of pouty.

It's kind of funny XD

"Here. Take my stupid strand of magic hair, just make sure you clean it when you're done. >:("

"What did you do?"

Yeah, no, he's furious. It's actually scary seeing Sonic like this. I have seen pictures of Sonic in rage mode in the comics and yeah, you can say that Sonic's about to reach his limit, if you know what I'm saying. (btw best moment in the Archie comics hands down)

Okay, one last image, I PROMISE-

THIS ONE, is my favorite out of all of them. Everything about this shot is just... I... don't even know how to explain how much I love this.

The lighting. The intensity of this whole scene. Sonic's anger. His powers going up to 100.

Yeah, this movie is gonna drive a little crazy. :)

Of course I'm just getting started on my Movie 3 hype rambles lol. Don't want this post to be too long or annoying-

I'm just so happy to see my comfort character back in action. I'm so happy that EVERYBODY'S back! I CAN'T WAIT DUDE!!!

[ohmigoshiloveu]

Okay so like. I still haven't managed to get myself to finish episode 9, so I don't fully know how Theo's glow up finishes, but regardless I fucking love relistening to Emizel's section of episode 1 and like. Fuck man Theo does a lot of growing. Like he's a little bit pathetic at the beginning of the series. He's so, so brave during the alleyway fight, but he sounds shaky and scared and like a sopping wet pathetic baby the entire time. Charlie specifically describes him as not very alert, not a great fighter, and gives him this little moment where it takes him a second to manage to crush a soda can. He botches the check to beat Emizel in Smash Bros so there's a chance he sucks at the related skills (dexterity and computers I think?), but also after he loses Charlie specifically has him sound super frustrated and conclude that he should've 'stayed in his lane'. When Emizel says 'We'll do what we do best,' and Theo immediately responds with 'drink soda?' so fast that the other players notice it. Charlie might've had that as a predetermined character thing. Theo drinks soda. There's not much else to him.

Which creates this interesting dynamic between him and Emizel, because Emizel is so much better at him at all of these skills that the people around them (a FUCKING GANG) value. Emizel's perceptive, and agile, and strong, and a great fucking fighter irl and in videogames AND he always sounds badass. He's the top dog, the apex predator in their social circle. And I think that colors their relationship a lot? Like Theo has to look up to Emizel. I bet that Theo's looked up to Emizel since they first met, maybe Emizel came crashing into his life doing something epic and Theo thought it was the greatest shit ever.

On the flip side, I was getting a few hints of resentment? Hear me out! It's that 'should have just stayed in my lane' line. He's painfully aware how great Emizel is, compared to how much he's (from his perspective!) just a one trick pony. He's here to drink soda and say funny things, that's all most people want from him and he fucks up whenever he tries to do anything else!

And later in the segment Theo snarkily brings up a medicine check that Emizel had just fucked up in like this super backhanded, super passive aggressive way. That could be him wanting to rub Emizel's one singular fuck up in his face (especially because Theo was having a Moment about how he feels like people only see him as the soda guy, so any feelings of inadequacy would've been dialed up to eleven, so if there was any time for him to resent Emizel it'd be then), but it could also be that he was frustrated with Emizel being an ass (Emizel had just guessed that Theo's dream was to be a nurse, which was flat out wrong, and that's literally what set up the backhanded comment. Theo was saying something like 'thank fuck you don't wanna be a nurse cuz you sure fucked up with nursing that guy earlier.' It could also be that Emizel literally almost forgot Theo's name. Theo literally gave him the 'th' sound, it might've just been a bit Charlie was doing or it could've been Theo being AWARE that Emizel almost forgot his name. Or! It could be that in this moment, where Theo was confiding in Emizel about feeling like being the soda guy was all anyone ever saw in him, Emizel said something to the affect of 'well yeah Soda's the fun one.' Emizel doesn't think before he speaks and literally has a 1 in empathy. Just because he loves Theo doesn't mean he's not gonna blunder into being a complete and utter asshole to him. I'd hazard to say Emizel accidentally being an ass to people he cares about is a running theme).

But also all of that might come down to Charlie still getting the character down. Or, because I've theorized before that Theo might not've been supposed to survive the first Gabriel fight, the little hints of bitterness might've been intentional (even if they were completely improvved and Charlie didn't mean to add that to Theo's character) because Charlie was trying to shove as much character into this character before he was gone, but once it became clear that Theo was going to stick around longer he dropped it. As far as I remember, that bitterness is completely gone in all later interactions we see with Theo. OR! It could be that the bitterness drops because they've both got bigger fish to fry from that point onward, what with Theo's Shilo Incident TM, Emizel's vampirism, the Weylin twins. He doesn't have time to be bitter, he's too busy worrying about losing a cornerstone of his identity or helping his best friend adjust to being a fucking vampire now. And then after he learns to live without soda that basically negates his feelings of inadequacy- like, getting over the idea that he's nothing if he's not the soda guy would be required for him to give up on being the soda guy. And then Emizel would drift back into JUST being a guy to aspire to instead of also being a reminder of Theo's short comings, and then drift even further down into being 'guy who is actually going through it and has to overcome his own demons just like I had to overcome mine'. Like, I think we got to watch Theo slowly start to take Emizel off this pedestal in real time (he still definitely thinks Emizel's hot shit tho. Emizel's his boy, after all.)

Regardless, even if Theo did resent Emizel a little in the beginning, it's so fucking clearly overshadowed by how much he fucking loved him. And like, how could he not? Imagine you're Theo, critically low self esteem, and the literal coolest guy you know fucking LOVES you. Like, Emizel keeps consistently going out of his way to pull Theo up to his level and to treat him as an equal (mostly. Sometimes protectiveness bleeds through, like in his hypothetical fang scenario in ep 1 where he predicts there being five Fangs to fight and he says he can take three and Theo can take two (which in itself is still incredibly kind to Theo. Like, boy, you thought Theo was gonna be able to take out two whole guys? Hell no.) But that could also be chalked up to Emizel just being a cocky ass who wants to show off). Like dude, c'mon. Emizel might be a reminder of everything that Theo's not, but he's also probably Theo's biggest cheerleader. He wholeheartedly thought he was being supportive when he said he thought Theo'd make a great nurse! In all seriousness, though, even if it ultimately discourages him, Theo playing that Smash game against Emizel was at least a little bit of proof of him decidedly not 'staying in his lane,' and Emizel seems to inspire that! Later in that segment he challenges Theo to see which of them can break one of the Fangs kneecaps first! I bet Emizel challenged him to stupid competitions a lot, and that got Theo fired up and competitive in return!

And even when Emizel's not building Theo up, he's still giving Theo special attention, or readily receiving any attention Theo gives him. If nothing else, even at his lowest points that might've made Theo feel cool by association.

On Emizel's part, I think he's like, possibly completely oblivious to any turmoil Theo's going through? Like he thinks Theo's the shit and genuinely sees him as an equal. I'm 99% sure that Theo being his right hand man happened because Theo would've put himself into the role (in episode one before he gets all of his character development he's pretty much always looking to Emizel for what to do, and still more or less does whatever he says up to where I'm at in the series, with refusing to leave the alleyway being the only exception I remember). I think if Theo'd had higher self esteem or been less eager to defer to Emizel, Emizel would've happily gone about his business slotting Theo into more of a partner role. He tells Theo to run from that alleyway because Theo'd taken a fucking devastating hit and Emizel was sure he could handle himself, not because he knows Theo sucks at fighting. He tries to turn Theo into a cool vampire. He convinces Shilo that Theo'll be a valuable asset to raiding the Weylin warehouse and they take Theo with them instead of having him stay behind with the car like Grefgore, despite Theo being the one who actually knows how to drive. He tells Theo about being a vampire even though he keeps it a secret from everyone else, confides in Theo that 'yeah he might absolutely be susceptible to going into a frenzy like Shilo did.'

When you get down to it, Emizel pretty much tells Theo everything he would think is relevant, with two notable exceptions. Maybe three if you count him not telling Theo he has nine lives like a cat but tbh I think he might've just forgot. Or maybe he gets to it later, or maybe he did tell him and I forgot! idk man! But! Those other two things. First off, he like. Pointedly does not tell Theo that he's a prince. Like when they were doing the recap on the way to the Weylin warehouse, there's like. Charlie gives Condi an opening to say it, a little 'is there anything else?' and Emizel just. Doesn't. And the second one is that (at least where I'm at) Emizel never comes clean about bloodbonding Theo. Maybe it just hasn't come up yet, but still. It fits a pattern of Emizel not wanting to admit something that makes him, like, ABOVE Theo somehow. He sees Theo as an equal, and a precious one at that, he doesn't want things to get weird between them because he's literal royalty, and he doesn't want Theo's life to literally revolve around him like it would under a level three blood bond- and doesn't want to admit that he even considered it, even if he did it without really understanding what it was.

And Emizel backing off from ghoulifying Theo after Arthur explains what it actually entails kinda leads into a far more headcanon-y relationship analysis thing so um. Feel free to skip the next paragraph.

So! Like. Why the fuck was Emizel so attached to Theo being Soda. Like he gets over it decently quick, cuz that's his buddy and it's what Theo wants, so like. Whatever. But like, if I'm right about Theo always looking up to Emizel from the moment they met, there might've been some wiggle room between when they first became friends and when Theo became Soda. And like, before Theo became Soda, being Emizel's buddy would probably be the only thing he'd feel he had going for him? Which would've made it even harder for Emizel to get them both on equal footing, and I think that's just... really unappealing to him. Like! Don't get me wrong, I'm sure Emizel loves having people kiss up to him and respect him and blah blah blah, I just think Theo being his boy and Emizel treating him like a partner go hand in hand. Either they weren't best friends yet or Emizel was just. Kind of uncomfortable and eager to push Theo into growing into something more than a hypeman. And then the soda incident occurs, and it gives Theo SOMETHING to define himself by, something people like him and know him for that's got nothing to do with Emizel, and maybe the initial soda incident was bad, but having that sense of identity and falling into what kind've feels like a class clown kinda role might've helped get Theo over his self esteem issues long enough for Emizel to go 'oh you're actually super cool. sweet.' and then blah blah blah they get super close like they are in canon. And then whenever Theo seems like he's backsliding into what he was before the soda incident, Emizel tries to course correct not because he doesn't think Theo's any fun without soda, but because he's made the mental connection that Soda without soda turns into less of a best friend and more of a follower, which as stated before he probably really doesn't want from Theo specifically. but idk. pure conjecture here.

Anyways, above all else, Theo's important to Emizel. I really, really like the idea that Theo was supposed to be like a brother to him (which. Again pointing at my 'Theo was supposed to die in episode 1' theory, can you IMAGINE the angst Emizel could've had about that? Lose one brother and then someone else claiming to be your brother shows up? It would've felt like some hellish, not-worth-it trade. Like a betrayal, like accepting Shilo might mean replacing Theo, and how could he ever?)

And Emizel's important to Theo! But unlike Emizel (who I'm 99% sure is gonna have some kinda moment with Theo but I genuinely cannot see him loving Theo in any other way than the way he does now), Theo has the bonus of having his view of Emizel have a clear trajectory to evolve over the course of the campaign. Like I said, he seems to be getting more confidence in himself and like, not gonna get into the stuff I've had spoiled beyond episode 9 but it seems like Theo's gonna get a lot more comfortable being a proper leader and not just a number two. He's gonna have an easier time seeing Emizel as an equal, and I think that's fucking awesome!

I could be completely off base, but if I never watch another episode then I'll never be proven wrong. So. Ya know.

[kay-lalala]

What I hope to see in PJO TV Episode 6

I’m guessing the episode is gonna cover the chapters “We Take a Zebra to Vegas” and “We Shop for Water Beds". So I made a list of things that are in the book/story beats and could be included. Hoping for more book accuracy this time tbh.

The animal transport

-The zebra, the albino lion and the antelope. I saw an ostrich I think in the trailer so maybe that’s an addition but I don’t know why they would change the original animals

-The animals having the wrong food and the trio changing that, taking care of them, giving them water, cutting off the balloon etc

-Grover getting angry about that and maybe even trying to leave to start a fight with the drivers. Did they mention he’s a vegetarian yet?

-Grover talking to the animals (I’m still hoping for goat noises)

-Since the spiders were cut out of the waterpark scene maybe it will come up some other way? Since Percy uses it to help Annabeth snap out of the Lotus Casino trance. + the Athena/Arachne story

-”We’re a team, remember?” (even though I wished they would have shown that teamwork of the trio in the waterpark)

-Annabeth and Percy sharing an Oreo

-I guess they will not talk about Thalia and Grover because Percy already knows and they cut out the Iris message scene where Luke mentions it. So I wonder if they will talk about something else. Maybe more Annabeth backstory/her family. Maybe Annabeth and Percy uplifting Grover.

-Since they cut the Poseidon/Athena rivalry discussion I guess there will be no ‘I don’t know what my mom will do. I just know I’ll fight next to you.” “Why?” “Because you’re my friend, Seaweed Brain. Any more stupid questions?” Maybe there will be a similar scene

-Percy dreaming about Thalia and Luke and Kronos and his mother in front of Hades’ throne

-The drivers taunting the animals and Grover getting mad about it

-Annabeth tricking them into fighting by knocking on the wall

-The zebra talking to Percy (and him figuring out that it’s because Poseidon created horses)

-Grover blessing the animals + the “Why can’t you place a blessing like that on us?” “It only works on wild animals.” “So it would only affect Percy.”

-Percy freeing the animals

The Lotus Casino

-Epic games and water slides and bungee jumping and stuff like that

-Percy throwing Ares’ backpack in the trash and it later returning to him

-The kids enjoying the room, getting new clothes etc

-Percy teasing Annabeth for watching National Geographic

-Grover playing the reverse hunter game

-Annabeth playing trivia games and a city builder sim

-People that look like they are from all kinds of different time periods

-Groovy Darrin

-Percy getting suspicious and asking everyone what year it is

-Percy realizing and being scared that he forgot his mom’s name for a second

-Percy helping Annabeth snap out of it (not with spiders probably, so with something else?)

-Sudden weather change when they leave, stormy, checking the date to realize there is only one day left

-Apparently they go there on purpose because Hermes is there? I’m just hoping that they will for once actually fall for a trap and not just avoid everything because Annabeth is *~too smart~*.

The Santa Monica Beach + The Waterbed Palace

-Annabeth has the idea to use the casino cards for a cab

-The cab driver calls Annabeth “Your Highness” after seeing the infinite money

-Percy tells the trio about his dream and they start to realize something’s wrong because they were talking about two items, but they settle for “It has to be Hades” for now

-”You have evil thoughts for a goat.” “Why, thank you.”

-Percy walking into the sea in Santa Monica and letting a shark take him further to the edge of a huge chasm (could look super cool)

-The nereid riding on a sea horse

-Percy having flashbacks to seeing faces in the sea when he was a kid because she said they were watching him

-The nereid telling Percy to not judge his father and that they are not allowed to show favoritism

-She giving him the three pearls and explaining how they work

-”You have gifts you have only begun to know. The oracles have foretold a great and terrible future for you, should you survive to manhood.”

-”What belongs to the sea will always return to the sea.”

-In the Mississippi she said “don’t trust the gifts” so maybe she will say it now? Referencing Luke’s shoes and hinting again at his betrayal.

-Annabeth “No gift comes without a price.”

-Someone on the street recognizing Percy from TV

-I guess they already showed Gabe so they won’t see him on the News again? Though I think the young woman sitting next to him would make him more despicable because he replaced Sally immediately

-A gang of kids surrounding the trio and Percy scaring them off with Riptide

-While running from them going into Crusty’s waterbed palace

-God I hope they don’t cut it

-Crusty looking kinda reptilian

-Grover and Annabeth getting trapped on the waterbeds getting streched to be 6 feet tall

-Percy remembering the story of Procrustes and tricking him into laying down on a bed and killing him

-The trio finding the address to DOA records

[fondofeveryprickle]

My AO3 Wrapped 2023

Welcome to my AO3 Wrapped 2023, where I take a look at some of my favourite fics from 2023 (one bookmark per month). 

There were so many amazing fics in 2023, so many new people and friends I met because of fanfic <3 So here’s to a very good 2024, full of words and worlds!

Let’s go to the fics:

January-

The Fine Line Between Hormones and Home by seekingmoonscapes (Bad Buddy: The Series)

In an almost canon universe where the only difference is that it is omegaverse, Pat is an omega, and Pran is an alpha. And during one of his heats, Pat is at home, and decides to ask Pran for a shirt with his scent to help with his heat. But instead, he asks Pran for help in other ways. Fic where the porn IS the plot, everything is super consensual, and sexy and hot. Alternating POV, so on Pran’s pov we get to see all the pining.

February - 

If Never Again, If Every Day by gallifreyburning and takiki16 (The Old Guard)

This fic was wonderful from beginning to end. For reasons, 2021 Nicky goes back in time to Jerusalem and his first death at Yusuf's hands. Meanwhile, 1099 Nicolò goes forward in time to 2021 and meets Joe. It's heartbreaking and loving and funny and so full of love. Nicky and Joe miss each other even when around their younger versions. But the love they feel for each other is stronger than that. Wonderful story, happy ending.

March - 

Wooing the Water Tribe by lenaballena (ATLA) @dameferre

Sokka has been living in the Fire Nation as Zuko's second in power and his best friend and everything. When Katara comes to visit, Sokka thinks Zuku is courting her. And he realizes he is also in love with his best friend. Lots of pining. There's absolutely no courting of Katara. It's also really funny. My heart broke for Sokka at some moments.

April - 

The Grand Unified Theory of Shen Qingqiu by 00janeblonde (SVSSS)

WIP - This story is all fluff and no angst, like the tags say, slice of life and it's wonderful. SQQ dies at Maigu Ridge, and is offered to acquire the Game Plus, where he can go back to the past with his cultivation and memory intact, and try again. Doing that he discovers that he is actually the real Shen Jiu reincarnated, and he can try to recover memory markers to be able to restart the "game" even before than when he first "transmigrated". His friendship with YQY becomes strong, LQG also becomes his friend (it's really sweet how he wants his friends back). Everything is very soft. Absolutely great teacher SQQ.

May - 

but for me, there is a storm by Authoress (Haikyuu!!) by @kiribakus

An epic pacific rim au. Hinata and Kageyama are both cadets who want to be Jaeger pilots, but they cannot get along. So they work really hard because they are their last hope to pilot a one of a kind Jaeger - a Kaiju/Machine hybrid. They solve their problems in the beginning (and then later they have more problems). Hinata and Kageyama are not the only main characters, other characters are also very important and have their own storyline and pov. This story is heartbreaking as well. There's MCD, and it made me cry so hard I got puffy eyes. It's a wonderful read, and very well written.

June - 

The UA Analyst Kid by RogueVector (BNHA)

Izuku meets the UA teachers before getting OFA and they see how good his analysis is, so they start to train him (together with some other heroes). But some things don't change and Izuku still meets All Might and gets offered OFA. This story is funny, sweet and with amazing relationships. Izuku is OP with his intelligence and training. All the teachers and heroes are so supportive and good. A really feel good story.

July - 

Deku? I think he’s some pro… by Clouds (BNHA)

After All Might told Izuku he can't be a hero, he finds himself in a forum used by some underground heroes and offers his analysis to them, since he can't be a hero, he will help them. The underground heroes think Izuku is some kind of retired pro when they ask for help analyzing some villains and all, and when they finally meet face-to-face they all decide to practically adopt Izuku and teach him to fight so he will have a chance to be a quirkless hero. It is amazing! Also, the relationship between Izuku and the underground heroes is more like friends than teacher-student, and it's amazing that way. (some All Might bashing - be warned)

August - 

Mobius by Foxquills (BNHA) @fox-quills

WIP - I love this story so much!!! Third-year Izuku is sent to the past because of a quirk accident, to the time both Shouta and Hizashi are third year students at UA. Problem is, according to Nedzu, time is constant, or a loop, so he can’t change anything in the past, and everything that has happened, will happen again. He becomes fast friends with both Shouta and Hizashi, and starts crushing on them as well. Both Hizashi and Shouta also start crushing on him. It is lovely. There’s pain. It’s awesome. (also omegaverse).

September - 

Factory Settings by Anonymous (Good Omens)

Post season 2 au, because Crowley follows Aziraphale to heaven. Things happen, and instead of Crowley, there is Raphael, without any memory of all the time he's lived as Crowley. Heaven and Hell are at it again. Aziraphale has no idea what to do, and he misses his Crowley. Muriel is a sweetheart. Both Aziraphale and Crowley/Raphael povs. Great story, feels very much canon.

October - 

Justice in Defiance by Foxquills (BNHA) @fox-quills

WIP - Aizawa is a hero turned villain who kills both heroes and villains alike. And one day Izuku finds him right after he kills someone. They fight. And now Izuku needs to know more. What made Aizawa turn????? To do that, he will also need Hizashi in his corner. Absolutely lovely story!!!! The povs are amazing. The feelings and pining are perfect.

November - 

If I Must Starve (Let it be in Your Arms) by Igneum807 (The Witcher)

So think about the softest story involving Jaskier and touch-starved witchers, and this is the result. During his travels alone, when he and Geralt go their different ways for a few weeks, Jaskier meets Geralt's brothers, who are just as touch and companionship-starved as Geralt was before meeting Jaskier. It's super soft and tender.

December - 

Cultivate: Slow Life on a Monster-Infested Mountain by NeonGhostCat (SVSSS) @neonghostcat

When SY transmigrates, the System tries to put him on SQQ's body, but SQQ is aware and is able to stop it from happening. The System then gives SY his own body, but something goes wrong with the system and SY is decided to not get involved with the plot, or with Cang Qiong Sect, and specially SQQ. He finds an abandoned mountain, with an abandoned house there and decides to stay there until he is strong enough if SQQ finds him and wants to kill him. Obviously things cannot be that simple. Now he is stuck on the mountain he can't get out of, every full moon night there are monster attacks and one day LQG appears on the Mountain, how can he get out of helping with the plot now? Shen Yuan is absolutely perfect on this fic. I love how he deals with the mountain and its beasts and plant-life. Liushen is the softest you'll see. Slow burn, super domestic, feel good story.

~

Enjoy your readings!

[hello-nichya-here]

Some Peter Pan 2003 edits, enjoy.

(Nichya, do you agree with me by thinking this movie is the few examples of a live action Disney remake being as good if not better than the original?)

I agree and there's a very good reason why that is the case: it wasn't made by Disney, but by Universal, who wanted to be more loyal to the original story - and like Jason Isaac's himself said, that was the thing that made this movie so different from most adaptations of it.

I'm gonna be real, I used to hate basically every version of Peter Pan, mainly because of the Disney cartoon being my introduction to the story. I just never understood why Wendy liked him, or why he liked her, or how Neverland was in anyway special/different from any generic "Magic place", or why I should care if any of these characters leave it behind or stay. And keep in mind, this was coming from a child that was all about the Disney formulas. Peter Pan, as a concept, just REALLY felt hollow to little me.

... And then I watched this movie.

Let me tell you, 6-year-old Nichya was OBSESSED with this movie (and with Jason Isaac as Hook). 24-year-old Nichya too, even more so actually, because EVERYTHING ABOUT IT is perfect - including the thing that aged "poorly", aka the special effects.

Neverland doesn't really look real and that's good. The dated effects, the epic music and the very colorful lighting make it look like a place that could only exist in dreams, so when Wendy and her brothers are in awe of it, I totally get it. Today's tendency of films in which every scene look super dark and/dull makes me appreciate it even more.

The lighting also does wonders for the storytelling, showing Peter's magical connection with Neverland as it changes based on his emotional state, or in moments like Wendy seeing Hook for the first time, with the extra focus on his eyes - you can practically hear the book quote of Wendy being fascinated instead of frightened.

Speaking of the book, the fact that this adaptation had the guts to go with THE thing that could end making it far too corny and silly, aka the "kiss" Wendy has on her lips and that shows she's starting to grow up and become interested in romance is SUCH an important plot-point and key aspect of her character arc, and is delightful to see an adaptation that goes "We already have a magical land, fairies, mermaids, and a boy that stays a kid forever. How is the 'kiss' going to make it less realistic? It's fantasy already!"

And I love, love, love how they make sure we know who Wendy is outside of romance (a storyteller that wants adventure, a child that is both really mature and responsible, but also activelly trying to escape that role, someone who is very motherly but has a ton of anxiety about the prospect of eventually being the adult in charge) - but without ever downplaying how much her romance with Peter means to her.

He was the boy that was giving her everything she was looking for at the moment: friendship, adventure, excitement, and, more importantly, a way to escape any responsibility she didn't want - forever. He really is the hero she had been waiting for, and that, as a consequence, makes her realize that growing up and eventually having a family is not that scary after all, as long as she finds the right person, someone who understands her and that she trusts.

Obviously, she doesn't want to get married and have a ton of kids NOW, but she wants the promise that this will happen - when they're ready for it, when they're older. But Peter Pan is no ordinary boy. It's not just that he's too immature to fully embrace his feelings for Wendy right now, and could truly allow himself to love her later. He is NEVER going to reach that point, he's far too afraid to allow himself the chance to even try. And that breaks Wendy's heart.

And it breaks Peter's heart too, because he WANTS to be loved, and he already cares for Wendy in a way he never cared about anyone else. But because of who he is, she, and everyone else, will inevitably leave him. Because ALL children grow up. He is the only one who was blessed, and cursed, to be the exception.

He'll never be a husband and father. He will never be someone's child or sibling. He's the true lost boy, out of reach forever. He is truly free from everything and everyone, but the price is the knowledge that, sooner or later, he will find himself completely alone time and time again. And Wendy, the girl he loves, will one day either forget him or grow old and die - after having lived a full life with someone else, because Peter couldn't, and wouldn't, grow old with her.

He's doomed to be lonely forever... just like Hook. But unlike Hook, when he is immature and selfish (like when he closes the window at Wendy's house in the hopes that she'll believe her parents stopped waiting for her and her siblings), he does it out of pure desperation, because he's a child that genuinely doesn't know any better.

Hook however, is coming from a place of malice. When he "pursues" Wendy, he does out of jealousy that Peter managed to find true love, while he will never have that. He does it to steal that from him, to hurt him, to make him endure the pain of knowing that, of all people that could have replaced him in Wendy's heart, he was the one who did it.

And, of course, while he never really does anything to Wendy, the constant implication that, at any second, he might, looms large. Their dynamic is inherently predatory, with Hook exploiting the fact that Wendy is mature enough to want a romantic connection, but is still too naive to understand all the implications behind it, and, more importantly, that no adult that wants to be with her like that could possibly be someone she's safe with it.

He is an intriguing, tragic figure like Peter and thus can "seduce" her rather easily too (the fact that Jason Isaacs is really fucking hot doesn't hurt either), but he is doing it through constant manipulation, reminding her that she can never have the boy she actually wants and exploiting her childish need to have some form of petty revenge against him for it, by "befriending" the person he hates the most in the whole world.

But there's another thing that brings her closer to Hook: the fact that, despite being the complete opposite of her father, he still LOOKS like him, is the real adult authority figure around, and he is offering her advice and comfort when she experiences her first heartbreak. He represents both her adolescent impulse to rebel, to proove she's grown already, and her childlike instinct to just run to the arms of her parent and let him call the shots because she's afraid of making mistakes and wants someone who can tell her what to do, how she's supposed to act.

There is a recurring theme through the movie of Wendy's mostly innocent fantasies being read through an adult lenses (see the teacher's concern and offense at the drawing of Peter above her in bed - because he's FLYING, not touching her in anyway). Much like when she was the "mother" of the Lost Boys, when she is by Hook's side, Wendy is a child playing pretend. But the threat Hook poses is very real and his intentions are downright evil. Because Wendy ran away from the flawed, but well-meaning adults she could trust, she walked right into the trap of a very dangerous man that is taking advantage of her need for a protector, a mentor.

And that's why the kiss scene is the perfect climax for the movie, as it concludes three character arcs at once. It shows us Wendy choosing true love, however fleeting, instead of Hook's lies, and indulging in one last childhood fantasy before growing up. It gives Peter the only form of closure he could ever have, knowing that even if he can't be with Wendy, he will always be "the one" for her and won't ever be forgotten, just like he won't ever forget her, because they mean too much to each other. And Hook is forced to accept that, because he can't connect with anyone without manipulation, which could never last, his life truly is void in a way even Peter's never would be.

So yeah, it's a great movie with serious guts, and everyone else can just quit trying to make a new adaptation, reboot, sequel, prequel or whatever because they're never getting anywhere near this level of quality.

[sbbarnes]

Hockey Romances. Why?

So I was taken out of work a couple weeks ago due to ~pregnancy stuff~ (mostly just stress, the baby and I are fine) which has left me with a lot of spare time on my hands. And as one does, I have been filling my time reading lgbtq+ romance novels. Because I can.

In this time, I have fallen headfirst into the hockey romance novel subgenre, and I ask myself, as I have done every time I see these books advertised, why? I am not a sports fan. One time, my husband was watching football (European), and a team in red kits was playing against yellow kits, and I started laughing because "it looks like ketchup is playing against mustard". His expression was great, but he hasn't taken me seriously since.

So why is hockey of all things such a draw for the mlm romance subgenre? Especially given the NHL's apparent fear of rainbow tape? Why do I now know what the word "celly" refers to and what an "enforcer" is? Why why why?

Here are my answers:

Extremely organic way to set up some of the most classic romance tropes. Forced proximity? Being on the same team takes care of that. There was only one bed? Shared hotel rooms during away games. Enemies to lovers? Rival teams.

Lots of potential for drama given that players lead very transient lives in terms of the constant possibility of trades. In mlm love stories, even more so given that the NHL is so blatantly homophobic.

Perfect level of fame. Fame and wealth as a draw for a love interest are kind of staples of the genre, and NHL players are famous, sure, but not all of them, and they aren't as famous as football stars (either kind of football). They are still filthy rich, which makes great wish fulfillment. You can have the sexy penthouse and the anonymity.

I would go on to talk about how different roles on the team lend themselves to different tropes (goalie = tightly controlled dude who needs someone to help him cut loose; enforcer = misunderstood fighter with a heart of gold; coach for all your forbidden love/sleeping with the boss desires) but that would very quickly reveal my utter lack of hockey knowledge, so let's not. Instead, here's a quick reclist.

Rachel Reid's Game Changers series. It's a classic in the genre for a reason and it has everything. Forbidden love? Got that, maybe the definitive example. Redemption arc? Got that. Misunderstood bruiser with a heart of gold? Got that. Age difference? Got that. Also really excellent sex scenes, not gonna lie, and satisfying endings throughout - sometimes a happy end will come a little suddenly for me, but these books really delivered, and the nice thing about how romance series are structured is that you get a little peek at what comes after for the couples in the other books.

2. Him, Us and Epic by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy. This one surprised me, I don't generally go for first person POVs, but I did enjoy this! Coming-of-age story turned coming out story featuring a budding hockey star and his best friend. Lots of fun.

3. Scoring Chances series by Avon Gale. This series is fun in that it doesn't focus on the NHL, it actually focuses on the minor leagues in the southeast of the US, a place almost no one associates with ice hockey. As such, there's a chance to tell different stories about professional athletes who aren't super rich and famous, which I appreciate a lot. TBH the first pairing wasn't entirely my cup of tea, but I'm glad I kept going because I especially enjoyed the later books, which tackle tough topics (including eating disorders, abuse etc., so content warning for that). These are still romance novels though, so rest assured that there's a light at the end of the tunnel. What I especially appreciate is that these books don't have relationship drama, in that the main couples communicate and work together instead of a third act break-up-make-up!

4. Hockey Ever After series by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James. These are just great. Lots of fun to read, lots of cameos from character in later books, just excellent mood all around. Also features my favorite ever trope (secret relationship, sorry, anyone who knows me knows I am a sucker for it I just can't help myself) heavily, which is a win in my book. I especially enjoyed book two, "Scoring Position". Is that because Nico is German and I loved him? Is that because Ryan is my new blorbo? We may never know.

Happy reading and please give me recommendations for more books like these, I'm lowkey obsessed.

[jedineedlove]

LMK Wish List/ Questions

This is a wish list for LMK and I don't just mean for Season 5.

Can we please see more of Pigsy's revelry with the boar demon across the street? We've only seen him for a few shots in a Hero is Born. Pigsy went through the trouble of declaring war on the boar's restaurant. This could make an awesome episode or at least a side story like Pigsy had with his ping-pong addiction.

We have got to get to the episode where Macaque or Wukong reveals Macaque's death to the others. This would be a shock for them and would cause conflict especially with MK but it would be a start to the healing process these monkeys need.

We'll probably get an episode with Scorpion Queen with her and the Tudi moving in with Yin and Jin. She at least has company.

This accountant needs more screen time. She's like the only one that can really deal with all this super power nonsense and the twin demons nonsense.

Peng you better show yourself . Come back for round 2 I know Mei and Macaque looking forward to that, people wonder is they are involved in the mass scheme of things personally no but they like many other character on this show their past and full personalities vage. They could have been scheming behind the brotherhoods back the entire time.

This girl need more screen time and real lines of her own I know she had like four before she got possessed but after everything she been through she deserves better.

Can I get an more detailed explanation on Mo like he is far to sentient to be a normal cat, he dont look like one he definitely doesn't act like one can someone please explain this cat to me :( ????

Can we please get an explanation a scene something that tell us how this epic fight ended please!!!

Mei need some of the spotlight on her more than she got in her episode Coming Home, she holds the Samadhi fire , her dragon heritage, and her overall personality come on she needs at least another episode or two for her.

That's all for this list may make another later :)

[spoofymcgee]

Rating Various Companion Exits in Terms of How Objectively Sad They Are

because if we do my personal opinions it'll just be donna donna donna bill rose jack everyone else

Least: Martha

i don't think it's an unpopular opinion that martha's exit was the least sad. like, she retires to take care of her mental health and for her family's sake, gets her doctorate, continues being an absolute badass who is also in touch with her emotions and super nice. she finds a partner who sees her for how incredible she really is and appreciates her.

personally i do believe that she and the doctor clear the air at some point–though i don't think martha holds anything against him still–and she'll just call up the TARDIS when she's having a bad day and one of various doctors will come do a girls night with her and paint their nails and talk about the wild shit they've each been up to lately.

(i don't think martha ever stops being in love with the doctor a little bit. but it's not a tragic kind of love–it's a comfortable one, the kind of love you can have once you understand that love will never be perfectly symmetrical and it can be nice without being reciprocated. in the same way that the doctor loves their companions in a way that they can never fully return for how vast and unending and universe-ending it is, martha can love the doctor in a small and quiet and steady way that never fully goes away even when she does hate them.)

(and if you keep to canon with mickey as her husband you get some fun angst about that! okay, martha digression over.)

Second-Least: Rose

look. i know this is an unpopular opinion. i know the doctor is haunted by rose leaving and the narrative is haunted by rose leaving and everyone and their grandma is haunted by rose leaving.

but. girl got sucked into a parallel universe. she got to say goodbye to the doctor, even if he had a stick high enough up his ass that it kept him from saying he loved her. she moves to a different world to retire in a mansion with her mom and her dream guy and has a baby and spends the rest of her life being awesome and cool and saving the world.

yes it is sad that she left. but her method of leaving itself is not sad. she gets a happy ending and the doctor knows about it and no one dies! so i think maybe that's my hot take. first of a few.

Third-Least: Clara

idk how unpopular this is but i'm not entirely certain it's correct because.

look. clara does technically die. the doctor watches her die and spends four billion years smashing diamonds with his fists to save her. as pissed i am that those two episodes basically made her retroactively superfluous before getting rid of her, i can admit that that's a pretty epically tragic way to go out.

but the thing is, she spends the rest of time running around the galaxy with me in a TARDIS, and the doctor only forgets her for, like, seventy years and then he's fine with it again.

so her exit is sad but it's undercut by the fact that she gets at least a bittersweet ending and also that she should have left a season before she did and also the episode after she dies establishes that the doctor hasn't needed her for a while.

so worse than martha and rose who have a happy end and don't die, but better than everyone else.

Third-Most: Amy and Rory

this is why i wasn't sure where to put clara, and i'm sure this is not a popular opinion but. i don't think amy and rory's exit was so sad.

like, i can acknowledge that the course their story was going to take was amy having to choose rory over the doctor. i get that now. i understand that.

and their exit is sad! it is! it is mathematically engineered to be sad. but. and i don't want to go cinema sins about this. is there a really the doctor couldn't have picked them up and brought them home a year later? like, the year is the problem, yes?

and maybe if i didn't have spoilers and also had no media literally or ability to understand foreshadowing i might have been more affected by the real death right after the fake-out death, and the doctor running across the bridge to the book is a nice scene and the bit with river is excellent but.

i just think it's missing something. i think it feels like it's designed to put them in an impenetrable plot prison in a way that was totally unnecessary because they want to leave anyway. it feels like it wants me to be sad–and then move on right away.

Second-Most: Bill

first off! bill dies! because if you really think about it. nearly none of the nuwho companions do? and bill technically becomes space oil yes but

a) the entire downslope of world enough and time and the doctor falls is so fucking sad. she dies and she wakes back up and she has to live in a body that is clunky and awkward and painful and doesn't fully feel like hers and is slowly failing her and that everyone treats as not having a chance despite the fact that its doing its best. and eventually even that gets taken away from her and she is being slowly deconstructed, everything that makes her who she is sawed off piece by piece until she can't even get angry because it's too dangerous, and everyone is scared of her, and she is clinging to the edge of herself because the only thing worse than being a walking rotting weapon is hurting her friends.

b) the doctor only like, 50% knows that she survives as space oil. the glass people don't fully know, so he might not trust them and from his perspective she's dead and he got her killed.

c) no other companion's death affects the doctor's next regeneration so deeply. thirteen throws herself between people and guns, she drops the monologues and the arrogance because her overconfidence is the reason why bill died. what the fuck is that. insane.

anyway bill is so high up and it's been weeks since i watched world enough and time and i'm not over it. bill potts my beloved you made me so happy and then crushed my heart to bits.

Most: Donna

i mean this is just canon. what can i say here that has not already been said.

the doctor has to take donna in his arms, donna who is finally seeing how brilliant she is, who saved his life and her life and the universe, who is brilliant and ruthless and burning.

her takes her in his arms and he kills her while she's begging him not to, begging him to let her go because she'd rather die as herself than die knowing that (from her perspective) the shallows cruel, self-hating voice in her head will replace her and talk like her and look like her only she'll be dead and that will be all that's left.

donna knows who and what she is without the doctor, without her memories, and it is her worst nightmare. and the doctor sends her back to that because he can't bear to lose her, because she is donna even if she doesn't show it, because he thinks that she will figure out how to do so again–and it's so easy for him to make excuses for the fact that he cannot stand by and let her die in his arms when he can do something about it.

god.

[popculturebuffet]

Supermay!: President Luthor Review (Comission by WeirdKev27)

Hello all you happy people and welcome back to SUPERMAY, a month long celebration of all things superman.

Today we spotlight one of the greatest villians of all time. Not even going to undersell it I LOVE Lex Luthor, in large thanks to Clancy Brown's performance as the man the myth the legend in Superman the Animated Series and Justice League. Wether he's a super scientest, a super buisness man or some combo of the three, Lex is a fascinating character.

Lex is a perfect mirror to clark: Clark had two loving wonderful parents, Luthor's were abusive. Clark has incredible power, but uses it to help people, while Luthor has incredible intellgence but uses it to crush others under his heel metaphorically or quite literally depending on the day. Clark is empathetic and belivies in everyone, while Lex belivies in no one but himself. They don't just come into conflict because Luthor is a terrible person.. they come into conflict because it's hard for these two to coexist: Superman wants Luthor held acountable and as a rich white man in america, that's a tall order, and Luthor simply can't STAND that all these people love Superman and not him.

So that lead's us to today's comic, an intresting chapter in Lex's history borne ENTIRELY out of that egocentric spite: In 2000 Lex Luthor ran for president.. and he WON. Most of you are likely aware this happened as it's been adapted a few times, the movie superman/batman: public enemies adapting the end of his presdiency, Justice League Unlimited featuring him doing said campaign (if JUST to piss superman off/further his evil plans), and Smallville has that happen somewhere.

It's an iconic storyline.. that's sadly undercollected. Yeah today's review covers trade released after an even less subtle evil billionare won the presdiency.. and the probelm is Luthor's campaign was less a storyline and more a big status quo change. As such this collection covers a handful of stories, dosen't really feel like an actual storyline, and only covers up till just after Lex is elected.

There IS a decent reason as this trade was likely reconfigured from the original trade released around the time the storyline happened, and the year after this they began reprinting the era these stories come from in "Superman: The City of Tommorow"... which stopped after two volumes. DC.. isn't great at collecting it's own history, though marvel's only a smidge ahead thanks to their Epic Collection line. They have a bad tendency to stop halfway through and this was a casuality.

Still this trade does at least provide a peak into the election of lex luthor, why he ran, who his running mate was, and how Clark took his greatest enemy WINNING. So join me under the cut for all that and more!

Our first of many stories, and pieces of stories, is The Why. And it's easily my faviorite collected here as it's simple yet brilliant. It's a story with no dialouge till the final panel, with muted colors around, that follows a day in the life of Lex Luthor.. and how no matter what he does or where he goes he can't escape superman: He sees him on a news, at newstands, an employee having a superman action figure (who he naturally gestures his assitant to fire), even a tatoo on a woman he was going to flirt with and maybe unsatisfygly do sex with. I mean lex CAN be hot but let's face it: there is no way in hells someone that egocentric is not selfish in bed.

So we get to the final page.. where he sees a headline with superman and gets an idea. A wonderful awful idea

It's a true masterpiece and while some would say "would luthor REALLY be so petty as to run for president just to spite superman", I say "Early into this post crisis version of the character the man spent billions of dollars and had a woman kidnapped to find out his secret identity and later created a temporary cure to Lois Lane's mother's terminal illness just so she'd date him". Pre-Crisis he was sore superman made him bald and dedicated his life to destroying him. Lex Luthor is a petty bitch and always has been.

This brilliant story was by Greg Rucka, who if you haven't heard of him, you rmissing out. Rucka has done a ton of work at DC with the two standouts to me being his sadly short lived run on Wonder Woman, redefening the character, givnig her her own lex luthor and really just killing it. THen eh did it AGAIN for rebirth. The other is his run on Catwoman, which took Frank Miller's edgelord riffic Year One retcon of Catwoman having been a sex worker.. and recontexualizes it, making Selina's rough background part of her and making her a champion for sex workers and others who simply dont' have one, taking what was meant as stupid fanservice and giving it depth and weight. What i'ms aying is he's really awesome so it's not a shock some of the best stories here are him.

So we then go to part of a story called Adversaries, by JM Demattis, one half of the masterful team behind Justice League International. As Superman is having his morning meditation and thinking "golly gee nothing could ruin this gorgeous day"... Lex Luthor announces he's running for president.

Now you may be asking "Jake how in the flying fuck is lex luthor running for president. " And while 2000's superman is one of the gaps in my comics knowledge I know enough about the time period to know what's going on here and thus why Lex has a shot, with the various storeis themselves filling in a gap or two.

Okay so a while back, Lex Luthor was dying. This was the famous "Kryptonite gave him cancer" story, which I know thanks to the Justice League cartoon. Like the cartoon he eventually escaped it, but rather than Braniac curing it he found another way out: Cloning.

Yes folks Lex Luthor cloned himself, and then pretended to be his own illgitamte child for a while. I mostly know about THIS because I did read the death of superman, reign of the supermen and return of superman all of which happen while Lex is pretending to be his own son and also romancing supergirl who was a shapeshifted alien blob who trusted him for something at the time rather than a teenage girl, which still dosen't make it less creepy as it's still lex luthor grinding up against a member of superman's family. He's also the reason she didn't intervene in said death, telling her to back off clearly hoping superman would die. Granted he ALWAYS hopes superman will die this time he just happened to be correct.

The clone eventually degraded, Luthor blew up metropolis, and he made a deal with the demon neron for a new body. He later pinned all his crimes on a "failed clone" and thus was scott free for any overt supervillany. So as far as anyone knows Luthor's record is clean.

Helping this are two factors: one is that while Luthor was shady as fuck, like most buisnessmen in the 80's and 90's he didn't go around announcing it or hoping he can get courts to ignore his crimes and put them down to "politics". He kept his hands clean like any shady billionare so superman could stop his nonsense, but couldn't really stop HIM, with superman the animated series keeping with this line of thought.

The other is that any shady stuff left tha tcould be dug up.. was erased. See something very weird I haven't read the storyline for happened right before this: at the dawn of the millnieum, braniac attacked and converted metropolis into a literal city of tommorow, a futurestic city packed with fancy tech, robots and other stuff. Braniac was beat but Luthor barganed with him: His baby daughter for the knowledge of how to work all this. Thus Lex was able to make everything run well and had the popular vote.

Finally we have the climax of the year long Batman epic No Man's Land, a story that like president luthor has been adapted a few times because it's that good an idea. Now what it was was a bit nuts.. after a massive earthquake and a plauge, the goverment, backed by some shady folks hoping to profit off the situation, decided Gotham just.. wasn't part of america anymore.

Yeah they just.. set up guards so no one got in or out, and it was declared a no man's land, hence the title. Many evacuated but some coudln't and some like Batman, the GCPD and most of Batman's partners stayed behind to try and save the city. It introduced Cassandra Cain Batgirl, and was where Nightwing and Oracle finally hooked up.

The important part to this is towards the end, as the goverment was finally shamed into doing the right thing Luthor stepped up to help rebuild the city. Naturally this being Lex Luthor he can't do a nice thing unless it either benefits him or pisses off superman somehow, and so he tried to steal the city out from under it's citizens, foiled naturally by batman. So while Batman stopped his shit, the public at large just sees this as a huge humanitarian boost and a bane against the incumbent who you know, signed off on no mans land in the first place. Granted any presidency would struggle after electing to abandon a city and let the joker sort it out, but Luthor being the guy who went in and cleaned up the mess only makes it worse.

It's also here I want to stop and point out the obvious parallel: Lex Luthor is a buisnessman, with a reputation for putting his names on things, having heavy ties to one of america's big cities, flaunting his wealth and being pettily vengful at everyone who so much as sneezed at him wrong. As much as I don't want to talk about him, we really can't talk about this arc anymore without talking about Donald Trump.

Luthor getting elected got comparisons to Trump, to the point they threw in the story Luthor the Unauthroized Biography in here despite having happened long before this arc , simply so they could use this cover

The thing is though while the two have SOME similarities, Luthor's campaign was done long before Trumps.. and thus Luthor presents himself as an actual human being instead of some shouty sack of skin and hair plugs who dosen't understand how anything works. Luthor may be evil.. but part of what makes him an intresting villian is the presentation: Luthor wants to be seen as a good man, to be praised. His reputation and power is everything. Thus luthor packages two evil schemes as him trying to help people, packages everything he does carefully.

Trump DOES have a carefully cultivated brand.. but also has zero filter. He never has. He flat out admitted a few months ago he'll be a dictator on day one.. and day 1001 but he didn't say that part, but he sure is thinking it. Trump is a bafoon who got into office preying on people's need for some sort of economic upturn, pandering to racists and other anti-change bigots, and getting a loyal army of fellow dumbasses to back him and whatever he does, to the point his loyalists held the senate hostage and that he's been able to use them to get away with formenting an insurrection. Would lex luthor storm the captial? yes. Would he do it in a way that couldn't possibly be linked to him? Yes.

Again i'm not saying Lex is a good person: he gave his daughter to an alien robot man. Lex Luthor is a monster. I'm saying that he dosen't really resemble trump.. because he's a FUNCTIONAL monster. Part of why this arc works is that you can see WHY lex can sell america on this as he uses a mostly pristine image. Trump had a combination of luck and racisim. Luthor actually worked at it.

Anyways one of Superman's foes The Adversary, a guy I know nothing about and whose unrelated to the trickster god from marvel far as I know, kidnaps luthor, superman rescues him.. and superman is all too happy to give him a haughty "your welcome" after luthor is a dick about it saying his people could've handled the giant flying man as strong as superman.

Our next story is another Greg Rucka banger, The Most Suitable person and is another tie to Batman. Lex knows he can't keep his company and since he gave away his only children to use as a puppet king, he instead courts the best woman for the job: Talia, daughter of Batman superfoe Ra's Al Ghul. It's an intresting pull and makes sense: He could have his right hand woman mercy run it.... but he needs her at his side for his evil schemes and it'd still look like he was running it. He needs someone he can trust to run it and not take it from him, but also not make it less evil.

Talia at the time was on the outs from her dad and not really in a mood to accept given the centruies old head of a large terrioist group kinda wants her dead. Lex naturally takes her no.. by having a bunch of mercnaries pretending to be her dad's men. It IS left ambigious if it was really them.. but like Talia I fully think Lex set this up and despite his refusals he WOULD blow up a building and get 17 mercs killed just to get what he wants. She agrees to here him out if only because it's clear he won't take no for an answer... and there's no telling what he'd do for an encore.

Next is the great debate, a fun short story and another likely backup. This time it's from my boy Peter David, writer of X-Factor over at marvel, and Young Justice and Supergirl here at dc among a LOT more. It's a fun three pager where Luthor has a nightmare of a debate.. with two face.

Next is some forward movement with the concept, the american way by Jeph Loeb, who'd not only write superman for the luthor presidency as a whole, but would also write it's end with Public Enemies.

Lois and Clark get an ugly suprise that morning: Luthor's picked his running mate..and it's Clark's childhod friend Pete Ross, a former senator and clear pick to get the vote of midwesteners. And living in the mid west I can tell you this ploy probably woudl've worked.

Clark heads down there to find out what the hell and after LUthor exploits his sudden apperance for press, Clark asks pete what the fuck. Pete explains he's given up on dreaming: he wants to be a winner dammit and Luthor is going to win.

Clark confides in his parents, with Pa not knowing what the hell got into Pete.. I mean he was apparently always a moron but my god. Clark considers talking to his wife Lana, Clark's childhood sweetheart, and Ma tells him he should but that she's suffered enough and he shoudlnt' write a piece against pete.. even though pete did this dumbass thing himself and it's clark's job as a reporter, not to mention pete FLAT OUT ADMITTED he's only doing this because he wants to win.

Lois goes to work where Perry, SHOCKINGLY isn't happy. Also she ignores Jimmy, expect that to be a theme here. At any rate, Perry is pissed, but Lois is more concerned about a ticking time bomb: she agreed to kill any one story luthor asked and is afraid the bill will come due. This.. dosen't come up strangely. I THINK it plays into the arc, but I can't be sure as it's missing here.

Superman decides to deal with his own issues with this whole situation the way he does.. by battling a giant monster in the atlantic. He wins.. but finds a bigger problem, Aquaman, whose still in his angry phase but is ANGRIER than even usual: turns out it's Lexcorp that's been causing creatures like the giant monster thing to go nuts, and he's going to do something about it even as Clark TRIES To get him to calm the hell down. Thankfully this isn't bad character writing as there's a reason for Arthur being mopeier than usaul.

For now Clark swoops into an event for Lex, but before he can talk to Lana, Aquaman shows up with a giant net to kidnap lex luthor

Superman naturally goes after him only to find THE ARMIES OF ATLANTIS led by former aqualad and current tempest garth, who orders superman to stand down or he'll flood the city

Garth is the key indicator somethin'gs up: arthur does have a tendency to be a grumpus in this era, him doing this isn't SUPER out of character.. but declaring war and Garth participating in it and activating a giant wave machine? Something's fucked.

Superman may be faster than a speeding bullet.. but he isn't fast enough to stop garth.

Thankfully he gets some help from the boys YOUNG JUSTICE IS HERE! Specifically the comics version, which I love dearly and which is nothing like what got on screen. Nothing against the cartoon, Weisman did a great job, it's just based more on the teen titans with bits of greg's own ideas. Young Justice is more like the teen titans cartoon , which was intended to be a YJ adaptation but they coudln't get the rights to some of the cast.

The lineup for this crossover is the core of the team: Robin (Tim Drake), Superboy (conner king) Impulse, and Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandmark), along with their mentor and advisor and babysitter my boy red Tornado. Clark is.. less than enthused, but takes the help as they hit the streets. Naturally things don't go on too long before robin and cassie get eaten by that big thing from earlier.

This is on purpose though: Tim revs up the super cycle, had cord attached to it and superboy and later superman PULLL PULLL while he revs up, allowing them to pull the thing back into the ocean. Superman sincerly compliments them, which is nice: clark may be mildly frustrated with them.. but he's still superman. He's not a dick and as weird as the plan was, it worked. He quickly saves lois , as he do then goes to rescue Luthor.

This being Luthor though.. he spins it in his favor. He claims he had no idea the braniac tech he was using was turning sea life mad.. including the atlantians, explaning why Arthur done did a war crime, and vows to actually fix it, spinning this pr disaster into a win.

Then he gets another PR win.. the hard way. He gets shot. The culprit is Jenny Hubbard, a minor character I had to look up, a waitress he once offered a million dollars to spend a month with him... then left long before she could accept the offer, it being a cruel prank he does to fuck with people. Naturally the media spins it as her being delusional... it also uses the same shot for an entire page but i'll only show you 4 panels

Also for some reason they didn't think to not have a shot wher eluthor looks like a preist getting down instead of having just taken a bullet... he smiles in his hotel room. It's as if he planned it.

The next story is another Loeb story, and another backup, tales from the Bizzaro World. Batman shows up and he's understandably nettled: As I mentioned, and learned from this story, the braniac 13 thing wiped Luthor's records. That means there's no dirt to dig up, the planets records also wiped and Batman wants to know if Clark personally has anything.

Clark dosen't.. but is pissed Bruce would even ask, pointing out this isn't the usual try to take down luthor thing: their talking about a political canditate running for office and this isn't something they should be doing.

I see both points: Luthor should be stopped and Batman is right ot question the american people's judgement when they let no man's land happen. But Clark is right: he can't just suddenly DECIDE who can be president or can't. He's not king superman. He put away the pope hat ages ago. He can vote, he can use his power at the planet to TRY and stop this.. but they can't just start deciding who runs america. Even if the people choose wrong they should be allowed to choose. Granted i've now seen how bad the people choosing wrong can go.. but the whole point of elections is to prevent a dictator ship, just like this one and likely others after it given the way the republican party is going. If someone else is sinking canditates ;using their billions and connections and bat skills, that's not freedom and clark is aware of it.

We move on to election night as everyone prepares.. and we get a really nice moment with Clark and Jonn

A reminder the leauge isn't thrilled about this either. More on that in a minute

In the office Pete White considers two headlines: Luthor Loooses.. or Luthor wins.

We then get Triumph Over Tragedy, a heavily doctored detaling of luthor's past, leaving out that he killed his dad, that the evil clone was him, etc. It's a neat piece that goes over his history and shows just how mnuch he's buried..a nd he buries it again as he asks cat to cut out the piece. This ending is chilling.. especially now as we have full channels like fox news dedicated to telling blatant lies and propping up people like luthor.

We then get the results as Jimmy is assigned to do a story on where they were when they heard about his announcment.. only for him to be interuppted. Perry announces, comparing it to other disasters.. that luthor has won. They have to press on because shit is going to get bad.. but they ahve to. While the Luthor trump comparssions don't really work for the most part.. this part hits as it's the reality most of us faced that day: that someone truly bad won.

Next up is another greg rucka story. Batman shows up , wanting the kryptonite ring. Luthor can have it or the presdency. Luthor says nah he can have both.. and shows just how bad things are now. While he said in the cartoon "you know how much power i'd have to give up to be president" this shows how much he GAINS: every wet works orginzation in the us now responds to him and he threatens batman: come after him again and he can track him and his allies 24/7 and he will. Bruce says he'll be back.. but it's an empty threat. Luthor.. has once again won. It's a great shor tlittle story, showing WHY Batman was so afraid of this and how even Superman's equal... can't lay a finger on him. Luthor.. has won.

We get a jeph loeb short story next: have you heard the news. it's a fun short three pager as Superman goes into an absolute RAGE on saturn's moon. He's.. not happy and luthor can see that. I also would like to take a minute to praise Ed McGuinnes, who did the art on Jeph Loeb's story. He has this nice bombastic cartoony style i REALLY love and it's always a pleasure to see him when he pops up and we'll be seeing him again when we cover public enemies at some point.

Next is the confrontation with Lana. Turns out part of Superman's understandable bafflement is that he kidnapped her like I mentioned.. and she never told pete as she couldn't without compromising clark's identity and admits they have NOTHING on luthor and that maybe pete will make it better and her marriage has to be mor eimportant. In other words.. it's all justifications: while Lana COULD have told Pete what happened and it's on her to not trust her husband enough. Clark would've let her. The truth is she just didn't want to and cries as she hopes he won't be president. Unsuprisingly this marriage did not last.

We get one final piece of election night: Superman storming in.. and admitting defeat

I love this image as it just convey's both how little clark wants to do this.. and how much he has to. To show america he won't undercut the president even if that president has cameras on saturn just to see if superman has a venting session.

Next up is a snippet of an issue, where Luthor has his big innaugration parade. He even hired an old friend to help celebrate

Trust. It's interuppted by some protesters from the Suicide Slum, a poorer area of Metropolis that got left behind by the Braniac updgrades to the rest of the city. Luthor dances a little sidestep saying he's not in charge of Lexcorp, he'll look into this, bullshit bullshit.

Clark and Lois go to talk to John Henry Irons, aka Steel aka Lana's next better husband. Then we cut off but we'll be seeing my boy here soon

For now we have my other faviorite story in this collection, a very close second to our first: Help.

Help is set at christmas and follows Clark as he talks with the other members of the Justice League about the shit that just went down, clearly stressed to hell given the people he protets and tries to inspire.. just willingly choose an egomaniac with a shady history to be their new leader. We also get a murder's row of artists for each vingette, written again by Jeph Loeb.

The first is the Martian Manhunter.. and Plastic Man as he was the only member of the expanded league from Morrison's run to stick around because he's awesome. Fun fact; Ben Schwartz has apparently campaigned to play him. James Gunn.. get.. get on that buddy.

Jonn is TRYING to help Clark relax but he can't because he's a boinger. And again a sociopath is in the white house. Clark wonders if he shoudl've done more to stop this.. but Jonn helps put it into perspective: Clark is integrated into this world a bit better than Jonn is, something he envies... especiallys ince what happened made no sense. But he assures clark the second Lex does something illegal, he's there... which also feels like his way of assuring his friend he did the right thing. We also get a sweet moment as plastic man makes him smile. Clark gives the two a gift: rubber bands fo rplastic man, choco's, jonn's faviorite oreo stand in, for .. well guess. It's a fun runner as I love the idea Clark gives his friends each a cheesy gag gift.

Next up is aquaman, by rob liefeld, which is shockingly passable. Clark and Arthur both look pissed off and dead at the same time but at least their spines are in tact. Arthur is actaully on lex's side since he's the first world leader to both promise trade with atlantis and offer commuincation and while Clark admits those are probably lies, Arthur warns they better not be, implying Luthor would be kinda stupid to do anything. Arthur then gets his gift a snowglobe and cracks the closest thing he can to a smile.

Next is a talk with green lantern drawn by Mike Wirnego, who i'm less familiar with but whose art looks sensational and expressive here. Granted anything is expressive after Rob Liefield but still, it's good stuff.

The League's green lantern is Kyle Rayner, imaginative boy and 90's guy. So naturally his stance is Luthor is crooked.. but so was the last guy and so will likely be the next guy. Things really don't change. Kyle still votes though as he has to hope things will be better. It shows Kyles' character off well: he's flip and easy to crack a joke.. but he's an optimsit at heart. His stance here is honestly mine: the system is broken, our vote only pivots thing slightly in elections where a known criminal and tyranical narcsist isn't running.. but it's worth voting just to TRY and make things better. There's no reason not to vote even if sometimes it's the lesser of two evils. Kyle's gift is ring polish, which he cracks up about.

Next up is Wally West, the flash by art motherfucking adams, an artistic legend and a genius at the pen. Truly fantastic stuff as always. Wally is picking up some chcoclates linda wanted, last minute of course since when your the fastest man alive you can do that cliche without coming off like a douche. Also when you have undiagnosed ADHD. Wally's stance is voting early and often, as that's the american way and admits he'd drag luthor out if Clark asked.. but he won't ask that because that's not the american way. The American way is putting your faith in something and hoping it works out. Wally gets tube socks for some reason.

Next is Diana, Wonder Woman and it's by Ian Churchill who i'm less familiar with.. but i'ts not drawn great. Diana also has large fake nails for some reason. It's this weird tendency i've noticed: artists tend to give long painted nails to women even if it didn't fit the character back in the 80's through the 2000's. I don't mind it if It fits and I could see diana doing it for a fancy occasion or fun, but not for a sparring session.

Diana dosen't care about the electoin and while she probably did vote she's more worried Clark is slipping and has already let Luthor win mentally. He hasn't but it's good of her to worry. She does have a valid suggestion that comes off as more in character though: take some time off. Granted i'ts written as "as a woman and as your only friend whose a woman " which just tells you a 2000's man wrote this. He gives her a tiny mjonr, which I again don't get but gets him a hug. Awww.

We end on Batman whose still pissed at Clark, rubbing the whole "letting humans have free will thing' in his face and saying when the time is right we will take down luthor. In other words prime bat dick behavior, not suprising for the era wher Batman was extra dickish at times.

So Clark takes the advice of a friend who didn't want him to interfere with free choice and takes a few days off in kandor with lois, content for now to accep tthe situation

We then get World without Superman by Mark Schultz... and this story is just..

The IDEA for the story is good: Around christmas time we see Clark depressed that Luthor won. Granted it dosen't jibe well with the previous story: Luthor won, but clark at least tried to take some time away from. I can still allow it though thanks to personal experince. Like with Perry's line before CLark depressedly watching the tv as Luthor makes good, butters up to the league and geninely seems to have america's approval hits harder after the 2016 election. Anyone on the left.. was left dismayed and shocked this actually happened, that this openly racist, sexist, homphobic pile of hair and spray tan won. I can sympathize with Clark having GENUINELY belivied in the people.. and them having let him down. I can buy that Superman, one of the most hopeful and hope inspiring characters in all of fiction.. could be laid low by this.

So the followup, Lori Lee of the time traveling Linear Men who i'd only vaugely heard of before this, shows up because things are going VERY bad thanks to decisions clark makes soon, that he quits being superman and gives up.. and the world goes to hell as a result. This idea.. is brilliant. While the it's a wonderful life riff is common, I like merging it with the future segment of a christmas carol here.

The problem is that they go WAY too far in this distoypian future to the point that it defies logic and sense. A good bad future has to have some sort of logic to it. To use an X-Men example because I got x-men on the brain now and always, Days of Future Past was effective because it was so simple how things went wrong: a mutant killed an anti-mutant senator, that ramped up anti mutant tensions, and things slowly escalated to the regestration act and the sentinel program going public. It took TIME for the world to go to hell in a realistic fashion.

This story does try to do that, it's 15 years later, Lexcorp runs the world. A large part of this is due to Our Worlds at War, a massive crossover and interstellar war that happened next year. During that war a powerful being named impereix decided to unmake reality due to a percieved imperfection in the cosmos and given his drones were incredibly powerful and if defeated detonated like nuclear bombs it took ALL of earth's superheroes as a united front, along with a few villians of course, to fight it back. Luthor proved his presidential chops by directing the conflict. The idea that this war goes badly without supes is a good one.

The problem is it dosen't really make sense with the storyline next year or even objectviely: Luthor apparently spent through a bunch of heroes with costly battle strategies.. but while Clark being gone DOES impact the superhero community severely and his clear replacement, Wonder Woman, was also gone, replaced by her mom, they still have the rest of the league, and if they coudln't inspire hope, there's the justice society of america, who the whole superhero community looks up to and who have vetran clout. Sure Lex could TRY and send them on a suicide run and did send them on a risky mission in the actual war, but the fact of the matter is it'd be a bit hard to both overtalk and cover up the deaths of world war II vetrans. Heroes who as far as I can tell have a unviersally good reputation. It's also overlooking the younger generation like DIck Grayson or Wally West, both of whom have enough collections across the various dc heroes to rally them.. and rally tem against luthor if he went to far.

Even putting that aside.. the second step, putting in laws to fuck with all them, is more plausable.. but the fact their ALL gone but batman and co by this point dosen't make any sense to me. Only one league member wasn't against luthor's election on some level, Arthur, and even his terms were VERY conditional. Luthor would have to do a lot of state sec killing to get the heroes down to a point where they couldn't just overthrow him and while he has the b13 tech, the heroes have geniuses like Oracle, Steel, and Batman on their side to help reverse engineer things. I also don't think bruce would remotely wait to go commando on Luthor and is smart enough. I'm not saying batman's a god : many a weak story has made batman a gary stu by forgetting he's a flawed man.. but he CAN beat lex luthor even with the world against him and wouldn't let Luthor get this far.

With days of future past the X-Men are a bunch of average people, with only charles having any political pull at the time. Batman.. is a billionaire. Wonder Woman and Aquaman both rep whole nations. Kyle and Wally while average joes are both gods. The only reason the justice league didn't say, remove Luthor the second he got elected.. is he was rightfully elected and they respect that. Even Batman, as pissy as he's been, knows better than to do that. But if things got bad enough they would and would let america hopefully pick someone better. Even if they ended up jailed.. they'd expose luthor if it killed them. Maybe i'm just an optimist, maybe the world would beat them all down.. but i've read enough dc comics of all kinds to know these characters.. don't give up and would fight their hardest for a better world even if it killed them. So it feels reductive to say superman being gone instantly means their all fucked. It'd mean they'd be more depressed, might go to darker places without clark, and some MIGHT give up.. but I can't imagine everyone giving up because superman decided.

And yes folks.. THAT'S what they went with. Superman just GAVE UP ON earth. I could buy Clark giving up on being superman if pushed enough: the world is full of heroes and as seen with the later storyline up up and away, which I hope to cover one day and might save for the next supermay, the dcu.. didn't burn down because he was gone a year after being depowered. He can still do good as Clark Kent. I can't buy Clark being SO fed up he'd leave. Retire maybe, and even then that's hard to buy.. but it's PLAUSABLE. Superman abandning his parents, wife and friends to fend for themselves and NEVER coming back is ludcirious, especially since the imperix war ended up spreading wide enough hat there's no way he wouldn't speed back to help. Darkseid pitched in for fucks sake: you think he'd let Superman sit out a war he had to humble himself to get help for? No. Darkseid is. Darkseid would be PISSED superman gave up and demand he come help or he'll kill his ass. I get the writer probably didn't have all the pieces, but said pieces really hurt htis series longetivity

What also hurts it is the present day part: Lois, Jimy and Perry try one last hail mary to save journalism.. and fail, as Luthor saw it coming a mile away and has his personal hit squad kill them. and some tigers. I don't buy Lois being this dump or thinking cozying up to luthor would remotely work. He took satstifaction in Lois, Jimmy and Perry joining his propoganda.. but he never forgot.

We also get another insult with that.. see some heroes.. sold out to luthor.. and who they choose...

Yeah normally on this blog I try to be positive. I will point out when a work is bad or not great.. but I try to be constructive. Explain why it is or at least thrown in a joke. I try to avoid nerd raging.. but my GOD does the choice of having Plastic Man, Booster Gold and Huntress honk me off. Part of it is i'm a big fan of the latter two thanks to JLI and Birds of Prey, respectively. So I admit to a little bias. That being said, said bias is from having actually read the characters apperances and not just picked who would make a good edgy shocking luthor justice league out of a hat.

I get WHY each one was picked: Plastic Man comes off a tad shady and entirely unserious, Booster is both not all that serious and was introduced as a willing corprate shill: he had standards but DID it for the fame and to escape his criminal past and once bought an island with justice league money, while Helena often clashed with the bat fam at the time due to her more violent methods and bruce being a tad dickish.

The problem is NONE OF THIS MEANS THEY'D SIGN UP WITH LUTHOR. Plastic Man is loosey goosey.. but he's not so loosey goosey he'd agree to work for luthor to opress people. Booster sold out.. but he both grew past that and already fueded with Luthor in his solo: he knows he can't trust him and if he's going to make money, he'll do it on his own and if things are going THIS bad he'd either go back to fix them.. or just go back entirely to avoid this crap if the's that cynical. He also wouldn't blow up a building full of people under any circumstances that aren't accidental, and even the latter is a bit much for Booster. he may be a fuckup.. but he's not a "murder a bunch of people fuckup" and is a good guy, i'ts just buried under layers of self intrest.

Finally Helena.. has a super strong sense of justice: she DID start her career killing and went after the mob because they murdered her family. She'll do things Batman won't , or at least would at this point in her career.. but I can't remotely buy her selling out to luthor and not trying to put a bolt in his head, even if he is the law. She went outside of the law in the first place, why would she trust it enough to work under lex? This feels like the writer picked three characters he thought might do it and didn't bother to think thorugh how their fans would feel, which happens a LOT and always feels cheap and has only gotten worse since booster and helena got furhter fleshing out in the later 2000's that makes this somehow dumber.

Our last few stories cover his actual swearing in and right after and i'm going to rapid fire them as they aren't BAD stories, but mostly either small one offs clearly designed to set something up later.

The first is the actual innugaration which is a full story.. but I simply don't have much to say about it. It's by the same guy who did the previous dumbassery, but he does a good job here. I'ts innaguration day and Steel and his niece and future steel herself Natsha plan a protest. They even run into some othe rheroes: Pat Duggan, formerly Stripsey sidekick to the star spangled kid.

His daughter courtney, bitter about having to move when her mom married pat and being a bit of a brat at the time found the equipment and became a costumed hero just to piss him off. Pat used some powered armor he was making to become S.T.R.I.P.E. to keep an eye on her. That's where we are here, with Courtney and Pat having bonded but still not being on the same page a lot of the time. This would soon change as Courntey realized her bio dad was a piece of shit, and accepted pat as her dad, becoming Stargirl and taking up that legacy.

For now though their just at the inagguration because history and all that, but naturally superhero stuff breaks out as Steel's protest was leaked to team luthor. HIs bodyguards mercy and hope attack, but with an assitn from Courtney Steel wins the day.. and asks how they knew. He figures out itw as a setup.. just in time for someone else.

A supervillian attacks, having been created by the same circumstances that John Henry and co were protesting: luthor's devistation of the suicide slum. Naturally superman sweeps in as he planned not to attend, a silent protest but WAS nearbye just in case. He, Steel, Stargirl and Stripsey win of course, and Luthor also wins of course, getting a photo op with superman as "you wouldn't deny your president would you". A masterful dick move sir.

The next one is cleaning up a loose end, courtsey of Karl Kessel, long time superman writer and superboy co-creator and writer.. the connor kent one. Luthor was actually married once to the Contessa, an immortal buisness woman he secretley married who is the mother of his child and once took over his company. Luthor blows her up with missles as you'd expect.

The last two are setups for later... that i'm baffled are in here. The first one I get a little. Cerce, wondy's arch enemy I mentioned (one of them anyway, she has a few contenders) waltzes up planning a partnership but Luthor shoots her down and is naturally a dick abou tit. Some shady man offers her his help and.. that's about it. It's a decent story showing that Luthor's old criminal buddies aren't getting any free rides by this administration, it just baffles me it's in here. You could've used the pages to finish one of the other stories from earlier or put in a story from his adminstration. We also get one setting up his bumbling assitant Mercy is bitter about. That's.. really it. That's how it ends.

So overall this trade.. was a bit better on the second go round. The first act, while pieced together, does tell a cohesive story.. they just felt for osme reason the need to include the innguration and some other stories to pad it out at the end. It would've been better to end at luthor becoming president, maybe at the justice league story dealing with it. We really didn't NEED the terrible future story or the innaguration and tales. The rest tells a good story of how luthor GOT here, how he won, and how Clark feels about it. Throw in the unathorized biography and it would've been enough. Still if you have a few bucks the trade IS worth picking up, and did the best it could with the space it had. IT's an intresting look at an intresting storyline and has some real gems: like I said "The Why" and "Help" are really great stories and worth the price of the trade alone. Thanks for reading

Next time: We get super serial as we look into "The Clan of the Firey Cross"

[robot-roadtrip-rants]

Konrad Curze is yeeted to Gotham instead of Nostromo

A child mysteriously appears on the streets of Gotham and beats the living daylights out of whichever lunatic tries to kill him before Batman finds him. Batman, perennial foster failure of orphans, promptly adopts him. Motivated by a thirst for justice and violence, Konrad sets out to become the best Robin there is, and succeeds with flying colors because he’s a super powered transhuman. Damien is pissed about being outdone. Tim nicknames him Konny. Dick steps in as the Angsty Child Whisperer to get him to calm the fuck down. Steph and Cass are too busy getting screwed by editorial to make an appearance. Batman realizes immediately that Konrad’s physiology is hella op and embarks on an epic, years-long storyline to figure out what the hell is going on. At least three origins are introduced and then retconned. Konrad angsts about how he’s a monster who doesn’t belong anywhere. Much drama is wrung from this.

The writers keep using Konrad’s visions to foreshadow that Konrad is destined to be A Baddie. This goes on long enough that you start to suspect that the writers will never actually follow through on all that foreshadowing. Finally the DCU magicians are called in for a crossover, and this fixes all of Konrad’s problems for a few years. Unfortunately the spoopy visions are too good a story hook and eventually they come back just in time for Konrad’s other Primarch capabilities to properly manifest. More angst ensues. Someone travels from a bad future where Konrad became the totalitarian dictator of Earth after he snapped and killed the Joker for doing a genocide (or nuking New York, or starting the Fourth Plague Pandemic, etc.). All of the visions suddenly start focusing on Evil Future Konrad and how he'll murder people for jaywalking and it’s all very tragic.

Konrad flips the fuck out over his evil destiny just in time for the annual giant crossover event where Trigon or Darkseid or some other extradimensional monster invades. It might actually be good but the damn thing is spread out over multiple books and you don’t want to buy them all, so you ignore the missing chunks and just focus on the cooler splash pages of kickass fights. Konrad is nearly tempted to do An Evil but at the last second he is pulled back from the brink by the teachings of Batman, and possibly by the baddie gratuitously killing a popular B-list character. Instead he strikes the decisive blow and saves the day. Much rejoicing is had, and Konrad finally bids farewell to his evil destiny in a heartwarming scene where he is surrounded by the Batfamily. All is well in the DCU.

Five years later all of his character development is thoroughly destroyed when a writer decides he needs a shocking new villain.

Konrad fans lose their goddamn minds. Think pieces are written on all of the geek websites, Tumblr churns out discourse, Reddit churns out circlejerks, 4chan churns out gross memes, but somehow the worst takes all come from Twitter X. It’s chaos, absolute chaos, and honestly you’re kind of tired of it all, and the latest Batman cartoon looks pretty good, so you take a break from comics and just get your fix that way. Much later, you run across a drama write-up, which makes you wonder, whatever happened to Konrad Curze? You look him up on the DC wiki…but he’s gone. Vanished. Disappeared, just as mysteriously as he first appeared. It’s almost as if some mysterious entity whisked him away. A million theories circulate, but no one ever knows for sure.

The grim darkness of the far future may only contain war, but hey, at least it’s simple.

[jinxedwood]

List your nine most favourite books

Tagged by @arenee1999

Listen, there are books I think are good, and books I like, and sometimes that list doesn't overlap. This was a tough list to compile and I reserve the right to disavow it at a later date!

All Systems Red by Martha Wells. This is a novella and the first of the Murderbot series. It’s an action story about a sentient robot that has broken free of its programming and has developed free will. This is a recent read and I loved every moment of it and it was so awesome to find a series and go ’wait…there are four more books already published? Its my Birthday!’

A Player of Games by Iain M Banks.This was the first of the Contact books I read, and while there are more sophisticated books from this series, this book deftly introduces the Culture  and its universe and ethics while still giving you a gut punch to the stomach. It also gives you a surprisingly modern take on gender and identity considering it was written over thirty years ago. 

Orlando, by Virginia Woolf. A story about a nobleman born in England during the reign of Elizabeth I, who  wakes up a woman one morning and then goes on to live for another 300 hundred years - although others are too polite to mention this. I fell in love with this book as a teenager and that hasn’t changed. 

Witches Abroad, by Terry Pratchett. This is the 12th Discworld book and the 3rd of the Witches books, but it also happened to be my first introduction to Granny Weatherwax and I will love her always and forever. 

The Robber Bride, by Margaret Atwood. Listen, I know the Handmaid’s Tale is awesome, but she has written a whole ton of other books in a ton of different genres that are also awesome. This book is about friendship and betrayal (and that one crazy fucker who meandered around your friendship circle when you were in your twenties and left carnage in their wake)

The Assassin's Apprentice (First of the Farseer Trilogy) by Robin Hobb  Epic Quest Fantasy, except the primary character is not who you’d think he’d be. Loved this series from the beginning to the end.

The Rivers of London, By Ben Aaronovitch. First of an Urban Fantasy series in which Peter Grant is a beat cop with the London Met, who has an encounter with the supernatural and suddenly gets seconded to the in ‘The Folly’, the officially unofficial branch of the London police that deals with the freaky side of things. Also, he’s now a Sorcerer's apprentice.

This is such a beautifully crafted world and the characters are perfectly rendered. If you haven’t read this series, you’re missing out. 

And two old faves that probably wouldn’t pass the smell test nowadays.

The Many Coloured Land (form the Saga of the Exiles Series), by Julian May.

 Listen, the 21st century is a rough place for a lot of humans. First the Aliens came, and then all those super powered humans came out of the woodwork and your average Joe just wanted to go back to a simpler world - so that handy time gate back to the Pliocene Era will come in dead handy, am I right? A new virgin world that's just a younger version of the present, and it will be all theirs and only theirs.

Except for the Fae, who already live there and are in charge, and all of you would-be frontiersmen are now their serfs and slaves. Good times.

I don't know what this writer was smoking when she dreamed up this series but it must have been some serious shit (and I still love these crazy books) 

The Chrysalids, by John Wyndham. You know this writer, you really do. This is the Guy who wrote Day of the Triffids and the Midwich Cuckoos. Like most British Sci Fi writers from this era, he leans more into the eerie and creepy rather than epic and operatic. I came across this book in my School Library (back in the OLDEN TIMES) It’s a post apocalyptic future that we assume happens after a nuclear winter.

This was written in the 1950s but gives a good stab at describing what this kind of world would look like, warts and all and it's one of those stories that kind of stuck with me through the years so I thought it might deserve a spot on this list. 

And because it's Wyndham, there are telepaths.  

Tagging in a non compulsory sort of way: @cbk1000, @hellsbellschime, @yamimana-ramblings, @pers-books, @lilbreck @randomkiwibirds @galvanizedfriend @garglyswoof @manicpixiesdreamdragon

[johaerys-writes]

What is your preferred interpretation of Achilles' demi-god powers?

Do you think it's the armor that gives Achilles most of his abilities? Do you think he inherited god-like-superhuman powers? Do you think he's a hulking giant (like Ajax is usually portrayed)?

Thank you so much for this great ask!! Achilles' powers are something I've thought about a lot yet never before in relation to his armor. I gave this a lot of thought, so let's see what we have!

What is your preferred interpretation of Achilles' demigod powers? Do you think he inherited godlike-superhuman powers?

First of all, just to get this out of the way: I'm sure it's a pretty well-known fact, but in the Iliad Achilles isn't invulnerable in any way. The "Achilles' heel" thing and the impenetrable skin is from later myths and is not Iliad canon. Achilles bleeds like any other man, he's just better at not getting injured than most men.

Homer uses a variety of epithets to describe him, some of which are: swift-footed, breaking through men/armed ranks, lionhearted, and godlike. From these we can gather that he's super strong, super fast, far beyond what a normal mortal man would be since he's like to the gods, but he doesn't have any other flashy powers. He's a super-soldier essentially, and that is attributed to him being a demigod. So I do believe that he inherited godlike powers from his mom's side of the family.

Is it the armor that gives Achilles most of his abilities?

I admit I thought about this a lot and it made me question what I already know lol, because I didn't remember anything like that mentioned in the Iliad. So I went on a little deep dive for this, searching for any and all mentions of both of Achilles' sets of armor. The first one, the one which he gave to Patroclus and was then later claimed by Hector, I'm not sure where Achilles got it from (probably from Peleus? Perhaps it's mentioned somewhere and I missed it) but it's described as very shiny, very strong, very beautiful, but not as having any like... magical qualities of any kind I guess. It didn't give Patroclus any special powers (he's a beast all by himself uwu), and in the end it sadly didn't prevent him from getting killed, and it also didn't prevent Hector from getting killed, so I think it's safe to say it's a non-superpower-giving armor, however splendid and strong.

The second set of armor, the one that Hephaestus made for him, is a bit more interesting: it's described as extremely strong and durable, way beyond what normal armor would be, while also not being heavy or cumbersome. Nothing can really get past the shield, and the breastplate and greaves get their fair share of beating, but no sword or spear can pierce them. There's an interesting passage when Achilles is putting on his armor in the camp:

godlike Achilles made trial of himself in his armour, to see if it fitted him and if his splendid limbs ran freely; and for him it was as if they were wings that lifted the shepherd of the people.

Describing the armor in such a way, it makes it sound like not only is Achilles' new armor uncannily light for how strong and durable it is, but it actually makes him limbs feel like they're wings that lift him. If we take this very literally, it could possibly mean that Hephaestus also crafted the armor in such a way that would give him bonus power, or something like that? So it gives him +10 dexterity as well as strength and a massive constitution boost lmao. It is epic armor after all.

However, the armor itself isn't indestructible, nor would it prevent him from getting killed if the enemy was stronger. During his fight with the river god Scamander, Scamander calls to the Simoeis river, his brother, to help him defeat Achilles:

Come, defend [the Trojans] with all speed, and fill the currents of your water from the springs, and stir all the torrents in the gullies, raise a great wave, stir a tumult of timbers and stones, so that we stop this savage man, who now is powerful and determined as a god. For I think his strength will not help him, nor at all his beauty, not that fine armour, which somewhere at the very bottom of the floor will lie buried beneath the mud; and his own body I will wrap around with sand, spreading more silted rubble than can be counted rubble in abundance, nor will the Achaeans know how to pick out his bones; so much silt I will cover over him.

Achilles was in actual danger of being killed by the river gods, and he probably would have been had Hera not asked for Hephaestus' help to burn away the waters, armor be damned lol.

So from all of these I think we can conclude that a) Achilles' sets of armor were both dope, the second one especially dope, but b) they do not, by themselves, give him any sort of special, magical power. Achilles was described as a force to be reckoned with since way before he got Hephaestus' armor, and after it he became (almost) unstoppable.

Is Achilles a hulking giant like Ajax?

I don't think so? Ajax's size specifically is mentioned in the Iliad a few times: he's referred to as "the bulwark of the Achaeans" and he is also characterised as gigantic and mighty. He also carries a huge-ass shield which is big enough to cover both him and Teucer in battle, and which he also uses to bash people's skulls if I remember correctly, so that alone gives the impression of someone who is built like a mountain.

Achilles' size on the other hand isn't really mentioned, I don't think? Like he's very powerful and must be of considerable height, but his superhuman strength is attributed to the fact that he's a demigod, not to his size. I feel like if he were a beast like Ajax we would have heard more about it, but since that isn't the case, I think it's reasonable to assume that he's impressive-looking, but he's not gigantic.

I hope I answered your questions! <3

[pfannkuchen07]

The Changes from POTO Italy in Monaco- Monte Carlo

I've seen no one talk about it, so I'm gonna talk about it!! I was at the POTO Italy showing in Monaco on the 20th December 2023, and they made some interesting new changes for that show 👀 Beforehand I gotta say, I was also at the showing in Trieste in July 2023 and haven't watched ANY other of the productions, so I'm not too sure what may be new for people who only saw other versions :'D (well besides the anniversary version from 2011) But if you have any questions, just ask them! Also I'm gonna post my super secret complete audio recording of the show on another post, so look out for that hehe

In The Music of the Night Ramin's Phantom did that candle thing again, where he (in Trieste) would take one of his candles from the organ and blow it out, but this time he took the candle (somewhere at the start of the song) and placed it on the ground in front of Christine. She than sat in front of it and stared at it, like she was hypnotized by the light and by his singing promising her all these things she never even dreamt of, until finally he came to her, crouched in front of her and blew it out. "Close your eyes, let your spirit start to so~ar. And you live *candle blows out* as you never lived befo~re." From then on she was under his spell. For the rest of the song, anyway. Later she woke up in the Phantom's four-poster bed and proceeded to find him.. sitting thoughtfully on his piano bench. I guess inspiration for his music where to be found floating somewhere in the direction of the audience. They probably did that so that we could easier see when Christine snatched the mask from his face, but it was funny to see nonetheless. Just imagine this epic shadow man of gothic stories than can basically appear and disappear wherever he wants, truly a master in every craft, and he gets bested because a ballet girl sneaked up on him. :'D Anyways.

Later after the first chandelier got destroyed, Christine ran off to the rooftop and stood on the edge of the precipice. Just one jump and the Phantom might not kill again... but thankfully Raoul came before she could have acted on any of her wayward thoughts. Although Raoul only climbed up to the end of the roof ladder and Christine was scarily near to the edge. Why Have You Brought Me Here became a song to talk to Christine about what scared her and hopefully get her down from the roof. After one almost jump at the end of the song Raoul finally got off the ladder and scooted to her, to bodily keep her from any other near falls. He comforted her with All I Ask Of You and they end up kissing and engaged. Yay.

Now fast forward to The Point Of No Return. They do their intrigue thing where they try to find the Phantom somewhere IN the opera, because he must be somewhere to watch them present his masterwork. Unknowingly he changes positions with Piangi (which looked very smooth. With his hands on the curtain during the switcharoo and all that). Lots of cool outfits during this scene. It must have been very hot, especially when I first saw it in Italy during a heatwave when it was like 30°C outside. Luckily they had air conditioning. Also I love that Ramin went all out in his attempt to make the Phantom sound more like Piangi in this scene and have the accent full on. Makes the switch that much more surprising when you don't know that it is coming since he does a really good job of imitating him. And I kinda love how he sounds with it hehehe The interesting thing though is that the Phantom loses the accent as the song The Point of No Return really starts as if to show Christine who really is behind the costume. You can here it on the first "Our games of make believe are at an en~d." especially well. He drops the accent and goes from his chest voice back to his more typical register. Also he gets his signature "whine" back. He kind of goes in and out of it as the verses go on. Fighting his desire to be with Christine with his need to keep the ruse going. Maybe he needs to be with Christine, maybe he needs to finally come clean, whatever it is, it made him take the disguise off at the end of The Point Of No Return and look guiltily at her while she sadly looked on. Christine herself didn't even try to look under the costume during TPONR and unmask him. Even when clearly she must have know that he was under it. I mean yes, during the song she didn't touch him as much as I know she does in the anniversary version (which here sadly takes the sensuality out of the scene for me because most of the time they stood with a few meters in between them or walked around the table :c), but she knows his voice and clearly heard him change his accent. One could argue she might know his voice like this (without the visuals) even more intimately then with. So I'd be easier to pick out for her. Not sure what I think about this change. After the Phantom runs away with Christine, and the police and audience is in chaos, Firmin and André let some lanterns fall down and proceed to burn down the Opera house because well, insurance doesn't cover maniacs but hopefully it does fires? As long as no one from the audience tells on them, I guess. The funniest thing about this show was the end In The Lair when Raoul gets hung up on a rope (by the Phantom's bed ;))) 90% less wet than he was in Trieste but 80% louder with his yelps and moans of pain. After some minutes he even goes still and passes out. And the show ends with the Phantom magically disappearing under the blanket on his bed. I do wonder how they did that, since I could very clearly see under it to the wall. Hmm... All in all, very fun to see tho. c: