#and also it doesn't feel like his arc is done bc he still needs to work on his issues before he's ready to accept the idea that he's lovabl

[parachellum]

I don't have another fandom blog, so I'm just putting this here, but I'm putting it under a cut so it doesn't fucking blast anyone's dash like the color of the rainbow post. But feel free to ignore this bc this is not sams related lmao

But anyways, I have Thoughts about Stolitz from Helluva Boss and nowhere to put them so I'm putting them out to the void and yeah, sorry, it is long as fuck 😔. My general opinion is that I do like the ship, I find it compelling and I want to study it under a microscope, but I do think the show doesn't really execute it well.

First of all, the show establishes them to be in a business/transactional relationship, but suddenly shows that they want genuine intimacy with each other? Like, where did that appear? Before episode 6, I mean. Episode 6 is the first time that the series shows that they both may like each other, but before this, they don't hang out in a particularly "romantic" way or even get to know each other. It's just constant sexually aggressive flirting from Stolas and Blitzo being annoyed. And you can argue that episode 5 shows that Blitzo may like Stolas because he chooses to save him over teaming up with Striker, but I don't think it does a particularly good job of it. We don't really see them appreciate each other as people, so the foundation and defining quality of Stolitz so far is still majorly transactional sex. Which is to say there's not really a foundation for a romantic attraction or any implication that there's something that draws them towards each other beyond business and sex.

Then Ep 6 happens and I like... Honestly, I can accept how they portrayed Stolitz with Blitzo in his hallucination scene, I can see why Blitzo would want to be with Stolas beyond "fuck him to keep the grimoire and keep IMP open". Similarly with Stolas with his focus episode in S2 EP1, which kind of explains why he wants Blitzo beyond physical, but I don't think the show does enough to justify them feeling *genuine* affection. At best, I think they show that they're using each other for personal emotional gain rather than caring about each other. And there needs to be more development to show the transition from that to romantic attraction.

I think Stolitz has the potential to be a ship that showcases how two people navigate their own emotional baggage and inability to communicate properly to change themselves to actually get a proper relationship (which I think is what most people find appealing? Not the actual relationship as presented in the show, but the "I can fix him/them" fantasy of it), but I do think the series doesn't develop it well enough or went through with it too fast.

Like, in Blitzo's hallucination scene, I can buy that he may want Stolas beyond a transactional relationship, but not because he really loves him. I don't think the scene frames Stolas as his "ideal lover" as most people seem to read it. Rather it shows Blitzo's awareness of the power dynamic, but also the fact that Blitzo craves recognition and praise from people, especially authority figures, which Stolas is. Compared to Blitzo, Stolas is far more powerful and successful as well as a Prince; that he would give Blitzo attention even though Blitzo is an imp is probably like catnip to Blitzo. On the other hand, when Blitzo climbs up the stairs, we see 1) Stolas' feathers cleans up all the gunk and 2) Blitzo is also cleaned from the mud/paint and his clothes transform to his work suit. Blitzo creating his own business despite being an imp has shown to have garnered him respect (like with Striker), but it's also only because of Stolas that he can even recreate his own identity to be this respectable boss figure; I think there is a sense of debt that Blitzo feels towards Stolas. But the main point seems to be that while he feels indebted and trapped by Stolas' attraction to him, it's also because of Stolas that he himself feels "clean" and "worthy"

All in all, rather than genuine romantic attraction, it feels more like Blitzo likes Stolas because of how he wants a solution to his own insecurities and sees that being provided by Stolas, as well as the fact that he may want approval from such an authority figure-- especially one that doesn't seem to be chased off by his usual front of crassness or pushing people away. Like a "I want to date the people I envy" type of deal. It also seems like Stolas is the only person Blitzo is currently having sexual relations with? Or at least on the regular, so that probably adds to the confusion between projecting his emotional baggage and attraction.

For Stolas, in the S2 Ep1, it felt more like he's projecting a memory of happiness onto Blitzo rather than genuinely liking Blitzo. One of the most impactful moments in Stolas' childhood is the day he met Blitzo; it's a moment of genuine joy and connection, and from the way he recognizes Blitzo immediately, it's clear he obsesses over that, especially in his loveless marriage. From the way the show then presents Stella and his time at the party, it doesn't look like he made any more meaningful bonds with other people. Stolas, I think, even mentions it himself: he's been waiting to feel this kind of passion and it feels even more meaningful that it comes from "his very first friend". It feels more like a desperate attempt to latch onto just one relationship in which he feels he's not trapped within his own social status as well as to relive his past when he felt happier and less weighed down by his obligations to marriage and social appearance. I think he does feel that he can be his true self around Blitzo, but it's less because of who Blitzo is as a person and more because of what sentimental nostalgic value Stolas has projected onto Blitzo/what Blitzo represents to Stolas.

Like, they're both essentially using each other to deal with their own insecurities/baggage (short of actually addressing it and/or getting therapy) and not really caring about each other as people. But I think it would be compelling to see them work through that to either break off from this mutually toxic relationship or work on themselves to commit to an actually healthy relationship.

But then the show tries to jump to them already having romantic feelings without doing the dirty work of dissecting their insecurities and showing how that develops into genuine affection for each other. To me at least, Stolas saving Blitzo in Ep6 doesn't really show he loves Blitzo; to be more specific, that his desire to escape his own aristocratic life and marriage through Blitzo has transformed into love I think you can still argue that he just doesn't want to lose his only outlet of self-expression, or what having sex with Blitzo does *for him*.

On the other hand. I can definitely see the transition happening in Ep 7 when Stolas realizes he's hurt Blitzo and wants to end the transactional relationship to make Blitzo happy. But! The point still stands that I don't think the show really makes it clear what the trigger for that transition was, what about Blitzo made him see Blitzo as a person rather than tool to deal with his own trauma? What made him treat this outing/date more seriously and with more emotional investment than the monthly sex or the time at Loo Loo Land, etc?

I know it's now getting Stolas to address the power imbalance part by getting a crystal for Blitzo so that their transactional relationship will be dissolved, but it doesn't actually address the fact that Stolas' attraction towards Blitzo kind of amounts to (or should amount to) him just wanting to feel better about his own life rather than Blitzo, like does he even know who Blitzo is?? Outside of sex and work?? I don't think so. And if he does, the show doesn't show that, so it's kind of a moot point.

Although, for Blitzo, it's in-character that he's still confusing his own hang-ups with romantic attraction, because he still hasn't really gotten over his coping mechanisms or worked on himself. The show still shows that he's constantly coming onto other people to make himself feel better rather than thinking about what the other people *need*; for example, Loona as a 22yo doesn't need the overprotective and doting father in her life, but that is the type of father Blitzo *wants* to be. He's thinking about his own childhood and daddy issues and the father he wished he had instead of what will actually help and match Loona. Similarly, he completely ignores all the boundaries sets by his sister and hunts her down for reconciliation because he wants to patch things up and not because she needs him in her life; she just wants to move on from him.

However, I do still think HB probably should've shown Blitzo and Stolas interacting with each other beyond the "Stolas aggressively comes onto Blitzo and Blitzo gets irritated" dynamic and allowed them to have moments where they realize qualities about the other that makes them go "maybe he isn't so bad after all" or "he's someone I'd like to know more about". For me, to make this relationship work or be viable, there has to be something genuine about their dynamic despite the miscommunications and transactional set-up, because that should be the real foundation of their romantic attraction.

BUT I also acknowledge that this is an indie animation series, so they deserve some slack. Especially since the time between video uploads can take months. I doubt they want to release an episode to their fans and audience only for it to develop a character arc by a micro-inch. I can see why they want to make the pacing a bit faster and hit the main beats of the ship development. And I probably just feel this way because I binged all the published episodes recently instead of waiting out the hiatus like a true fan. In any case, I still like Stolitz and would pay my fucking soul to get them to talk to each other like actual adults.

[iamnmbr3]

I hate it when people say Ginny "deserved better" when it comes to the way she was written and portrayed in canon. I'm sorry but no she didn't deserve better. She was a barely there Mary Sue character who existed primarily to be the future wife of Harry and link to him joining the Weasley family. She was also supposed to be this very powerful witch but again it never paid off. She didn't amount to anything. She turned out to be a big nothing burger of a character.

Idk. I do think she deserves better, though I definitely get where you're coming from. Ginny as a character really annoys me from book 6 on. Book 6 and 7 Ginny feels like a shallow and annoying Mary Sue and also is just kinda mean and I hate that she never gets called on her bad behavior. As soon as I feel like a story is trying to shove a character down my throat and insist that I love them and that they are flawless, I kinda feel turned off by the character and I want to hate them out of spite. Ginny's pettiness and stuff like her being pretty awful to Fleur and getting angry at Harry for even saying something nice about Fleur even though he has no romantic interest in her just really rubs me the wrong way. Especially bc these flaws are ignored and even glorified by the story. Plus there's not much there with her character.

She feels like this kinda wish fulfillment empty vessel. And I hate that she gets touted as this perfect girl for Harry when their romance feels so empty and her character feels so un-compelling - which is honestly pretty unusual because generally the characters in HP are really interesting, even the ones we only hear a little about.

Now that said, I still do actually feel that she deserves better. What do I mean by that? Well, first of all, in-universe she ends up with someone who frankly, doesn't pay much attention to her. Harry barely knows anything about Ginny and never makes her his priority. Even in the epilogue it feels like he barely even consulted her on naming their children. He never really views her as an equal or respects her opinion. And she seems to feel pressured to act a certain way to please him. Like not crying in front of him because it might bother him, but apparently having been extremely upset after their breakup according to Ron etc. I don't think they are really compatible or have a deep or substantive relationship and I think that's sad and she (or anyone in that situation) deserves better.

Also from a more Doylist POV she deserved better because her character had so much potential. I actually loved Ginny in book 5. She has a lot of growth but also still feels connected to who she was in the first 4 books. She doesn't need to be amazing and perfect at everything. She's human and real. She catches a snitch by luck because it was slow and her competitor looked away at the wrong moment - and she has the humility to notice and admit this. And it doesn't matter. Harry's professional-level good at Quidditch. She's good at other things. Also Harry and Ginny actually have a deeper and more trusting relationship in that book than in book 6, but I digress. She doesn't need to suddenly be an amazing seeker and an amazing chaser and be #NotLikeOtherGirls and super into Quidditch (even tho she wasn't in book 4) to be likable but book 6 makes her all these things and it just takes away from the real and human and flawed and empathetic and actually funny Ginny we have in book 5.

Also her whole backstory from book 2 was really promising. She and Harry could've bonded over both having had Voldemort inside their heads. She could've provided critical insights about Tom Riddle since she spent a year essentially being pen pals with him. She could've had an epic arc where in book 7 she took on a more central role in the fight and ultimately got to face her childhood monster and destroy a Horcrux. Also there was just a lot to explore with her dealing with the trauma from book 2. She could've done so much. But nope. She just gets reduced to Love Interest TM. So yeah we had this really great character who was just coming into her own in book 5 and had all this amazing potential and then gets absolutely torpedoed by JKR bc she doesn't know how to write romance. And I do think that's a shame.

Now I ship drarry and I think that's always going to be the most interesting and well set up relationship for Harry to be in. But I think Harry and Ginny getting together the way they did is realistic but I think they would then realize they aren't really a good match - they don't know each other and both are more attracted to the idea of each other than anything else. I think them realizing this and working through it would be something interesting to explore in an 8th year fic.

[gachagon]

Love your Eden’s Garden analyses my dude. Seriously, you’ve tackled aspects of certain characters I hadn’t even considered. I agree about Eloise being one of the blackened, girl is hiding nerves of steel behind a thin layer of shyness. I also think she’s gonna be connected to Desmond as the thing he guards and trusts the most (in reference to what was described in his blackmail). Upon further analysis, Desmond strikes me as someone who wants people to trust him, but has issues trusting others, outside of maybe Eloise. In a nutshell, he wants people to trust him without him putting his trust in other people. That’s his hypocrisy, in my mind at least.

I’m also gonna keep an eye on Grace in the chapter(s) going forward, in addition to Diana and Kai. Her silence after Eva’s execution speaks volumes. Mayhaps she’ll be going through a character arc? I feel like even SHE thought that execution was way too cruel.

On to my questions though! Out of curiosity, with what you’ve said about students’ deaths being linked to their hypocrisies, who do you think is the least hypocritical in the cast? By extension, who do you think is most likely to survive and/or die, at least within the next chapter or two?

Thanks so much lol I'm glad people ave enjoyed my thoughts so far and I've loved hearing everyone else's opinions and theories as well this whole week!

As to answer your question, I've got to say I think the "least" Hypocritical student so far is actually a controversial opinion of mine since I've noticed lots of people don't like his character T_T

It's Kai Monteago. (Note: I have NOT done everyone's FTE's yet but I'm gonna watch each one for this update soon!)

Now, this does not mean I don't think Kai lies or is a hypocrite, just that I think out of everyone on the cast so far he's the one who's the most honest about how he actually feels.

If Wolfgang is the most Hypocritical person because he hides everything he's feeling and doesn't let anyone know what he's actually thinking, then I think Kai is the least hypocritical out of the student body (minus Damon & Diana bc I think they're both being set up obviously as the protag and antag) because he's so honest about everything about himself and doesn't actually feel the need to hide his own insecurities, worries, fears, and anxieties.

Whenever anything goes remotely bad, Kai is always the first out of the cast to admit he didn't actually trust anyone, he's also the only one who's outwardly always wary of others and nervous. He just doesn't like thinking about the potential for someone murdering him or someone winding up dead. But it's pretty clear just from how he acts in his FTE's, trial, and body discovery that he not only doesn't trust anyone there but that he's not afraid to admit that openly when shit hits the fan.

For Kai, it seems like he's fully aware of the situation and thus knows that just agreeing with whatever the rest of the cast is talking about will keep him safe. He obviously is still a bit of a hypocrite because he's judging the ones who openly admit to not trusting other people, but he's also the first of the cast to always admit he had reservations about trusting them to begin with.

In a way, I can't exactly say Kai is a bad person because of his hypocrisy. He's only been an Ultimate for like 1-2 years, which is way less time than most of the student body. All of this is very new to him, he reminds me of Makoto in that sense where he was someone who would've never thought they'd be an Ultimate, or someone who became one by chance. Even the story he shares of how he became The Ultimate Influencer makes me believe that it really was just dumb luck that he got his title.

And he's only really falling in line because he obviously sees the way everyone treats you when you don't agree with the majority opinion, even if that majority opinion is rooted in rationality. In a way, it makes sense that Kai would act this way because he's an Influencer and has to deal with widespread groupthink about himself daily lol Any small action he did in the outside world was scrutinized and judged by an invisible audience, so now when he's in a situation like this he just goes with whatever will make the most people like him.

Though I can definitely see Kai breaking out of that kind of mindset the more he becomes friends with other people, and now that Wolfgang is gone, I definitely think the rest of them will act more freely instead of looking towards a leader of sorts. This is also why I think Kai will be the "support" character for Damon that we thought Eva would be. Kai is the one person left now who's wholly honest about himself, meaning he and Damon can become friends quicker that way and potentially work on investigations.

Also the two of them have very similar talents in the sense that "anyone could do this". But their ideas about their talents are swapped. Someone mentioned earlier that they think Damon might hate being a Debater or that he has some kind of insecurity rooted in the fact that he's a Debater. And I kind of agree. Where as Kai is wholly proud of his title as the Ultimate Influencer, Damon is very insecure about being seen as the Ultimate Debater and makes up for it with a big ego.

He doesn't let anyone look down on him for being an internet personality, and doesn't let lies about his past or things people wouldn't know about anyways (like the scandal he mentions in his FTE) get to him. But Damon flounders when someone even remotely challenges the idea of his talent being "useless" to society. In truth, the both of them are like foils and will probably be paired more often especially since they share a room together.

[viquipo]

No bc I'm so mad rn I usually post my rants on ig stories but I need the tumblrites to tell me if I'm crazy or what. Jwcc/ct spoilers WHATEVER

First of all I want to preface this by saying that this is just my opinion on the matter, I'm not saying your headcanons are "wrong" or whatever tf, it's a kids cartoon where they unironically use terms like "fam". You can play with the characters however you'd like.

That being said, this is why TO ME it does not makes sense for Ben to be anything other than gay. Again, if you think he's bi or straight or anything else that's cool. I'm also leaning towards the opinion that he does actually have a girlfriend. I don't think the shows gonna pull a 180 on it because, realistically, 2 queer characters is already a lot for a DreamWorks kids show. As much as I'd like it not to be.

But, since the beginning, Ben has been very clearly coded as exclusively into men to me. Before finally going into it, I remind everyone on here that I'm a lesbian. I have felt an affinity with his character specifically for the experience of only liking the same gender. I might be totally projecting.

Ok, so.

1. The arc Ben goes through during the show is yes, one of self discovery, but also one of self acceptance. He changes a lot from the start of s1, but he also comes to terms with stuff himself or other people didn't like about him. He doesn't throw the dork pouch away or tells Kenji to keep it, the first thing he does when he takes it back from Kenji is put on hand sanitizer. He is covered in dirt, he's not afraid of filth anymore, but he still does that action because it's part of who he is as a person. He also becomes very unashamed at the things he does. He went from being embarrassed of his carob bars to eating grubs in front of people who he knows think it's gross. He knows himself as he is and he accepts it. To me (and to lots of other people) this works very well as a gay metaphor, and pairs up pretty nicely with the whole "jungle boy? Jungle MAN" arc being a trans metaphor. But how does this make Ben uniquely into men?

Well, it doesn't. But I think this next one does.

2. Enter Yasmina. She's pretty, she's smart, athletic, funny, all that good stuff. I'm not saying that means every wlm character should automatically be into her, but it certainly helps. Now forgive me if I don't remember specific episodes/seasons, but we all remember that episode where Ben convinces himself that Yaz is in love with him for some reason. When he "rejects" her, he says : "I'm just now starting to find myself". That's cool, cause I'm pretty sure Ben's " finding himself " personality wise was over and done a couple of seasons ago. To me, that is a really good hint at him dealing with his gayness.

3. He's also the first person Yasmina talks to about her feelings for Sammy. Now, in this particular context, the options for Yaz to talk to were Darius, Brooklynn, or Ben. It would initially seem to make more sense for her to confide in Brooklynn, since the two of them are far closer than her and Ben, and it also wouldn't be the first time she brings up Sammy as a romantic interest for Yaz (see: everyone tweaking abt that one line back in like s2). So why does Yasmina, a very private and reserved person, choose Ben to talk to about her same sex crush? She has probably gathered from the previous conversation that Ben relates to her struggle in a unique way in which Brooklynn just can't. Ben seems very receptive of what Yaz is saying ("feelings, am I right?") and it seems like he REALLY gets where she's coming from.

4. This is one I don't see talked about a lot, and maybe it's just cause I'm too out of the loop with the fandom, but I want to examine it as well. It's when Ben decides to not actually stay on the island. Everyone (except Sammy) already knew he wasn't going to stay in the end, but still didn't force him out. I think this is especially clear in a line Darius says when they reunite on the boat that goes something like "you needed to figure it out on your own" *smile hand on shoulder combo*. No explanation needed I think

I am diagnosed with autism did you guys know what

[agentoffangirling]

I've done the pros, now here is my cons post about TDP s7. As always, spoilers below

For being hyped up as a major threat, Aaravos didn't do that much. Most of his power is in his words, but he's literally the most powerful mage in the world, with all forms of magic mastered and no need to do incantations for any of them. And yet, he does very little magic in the season (in reference to how much his magic was hyped) and only monologues for the finale. Like. You can do so much. Why are you letting these ants get their way? Why are you bothering with them?

I somewhat dislike how they got rid of Aaravos as well. I agree with several other people when they say we were "cheated", bc there was so much marketing around Callum using dark magic. His arc was leading up to him using dark magic, that's what was foretold from the start. And it's kinda disappointing that they don't go through with it

To add onto my last point slightly, there wasn't enough death for a season finale. I know a lot of y'all are going "death? it's a kids show!" (absolutely not, kid me would be crying at the scenes they show), but we expected there to be some element of sacrifice. While Zubeia's death was incredibly sad and I mourn the death of the other Archdragons, no one else was particularly hurt. Most characters were left unscathed, further adding to the "cheating" part

Claudia should have died. I don't mean that in a bad way, like a "oh I hate her so much!!", no, she just doesn't have anything else to do. Viren's dead and everyone else has left her; her loved ones are what she was doing the whole Aaravos thing for, and clearly, no one wanted to stick around for that. There just isn't much of a reason for her to stay alive anymore and I think it cheapens her to be a puppet of Aaravos forever. Furthermore, her dying would be an excellent way to complete the "doomed siblings" trope. It would all come full circle

I dislike how the show tried to portray Ezran in the wrong for locking up Runaan. At that time, they all still believed Harrow was dead and that Runaan killed him-- if I was in Ezran's position, trust me, I would do much worse. Ezran was right to feel angry and vengeful and I don't think he necessarily should've forgiven him at the end

Filler. To make it clear, I am not anti-filler, and I think shows nowadays trying to remove filler is to their detriment. But TDP has always had a problem with having filler that just. Completely stops the story. And you would think that in a season finale, they would get rid of that to focus entirely on the big threat. But they don't. The scenes of Callum watching the Moonshadow kids are cute, and I love him bonding with Ethari and Runaan, but I can't think much of a reason for these scenes to exist. That time could've been better used to develop other parts of the story and the "meeting the parents" would fit better for the epilogue, not the middle of the season

There was also a ton of exposition dumped on us this season. Again, a problem TDP has been dealing with, but imagine instead of us being told everything about the mage wars and the Orphan Queen, that time used on filler is instead used on a flashback at the beginning of the episode showing how she rallied the troops together. That would be so badass!

These are very few grievances compared to my pros post, like I said, I was content watching this season and I enjoyed it greatly. There's just a couple things they could've done better

[lemonhemlock]

I love Larys this season and his scenes with Aegon that's all. Compelling and Matthew Needham is quite a force. Well and Rhaena hunting down Sheepstealer is good. Nothing else is fun.

i agree about larys with the one caveat i'm going to list below

larys is probably the one green character who makes the most sense, both that his characterisation is consistent AND the way others view him and his reactions to that MAKE SENSE. larys is still larysing but when aemond proves to be a contrarian he switches back to aegon. for once, aemond's shenanigans get proper consequences from his small councilors.

how does alicent not have any leverages against being dismissed when she is the one hightower representative left? sure, aemond sends back for otto, but do you think the story frames that as compensation for dismissing alicent or did the writers feel obligated to bring him back bc he needs to have his death scene? not one braincell was put into this. daemon does shit in the riverlands and the riverlords STAND UP and bully him back. he also has a big scary dragon and they don't give a shit, so it CAN be done, the writers know deep down how to do this, IF THEY CAREF

why is tyland not putting his foot down and demanding something for house lannister? his brother has a bunch of maiden daughters and daeron is unmarried and has a dragon. the frey lord and lady negociated with jace for their support, jeyne arryn is PISSED that she didn't get what she wanted

what the hell is ironrod even doing? he threw in his lot with aemond but aemond doesn't seem to like him or even give a shit about him so why doesn't he have some kind of reaction. i guess the discussion with larys could have been a step in the right direction because you can say he is testing out the waters to see if he can curry favour with aemond by offering up intel OR if he could forge an alliance with larys and go from there

and this is where i have an issue with the writing bc, on the one hand, they are categorically NOT portraying larys as incompetent, but they are also inadvertently making him SO BAD at his job by making these stupid changes from the book. another symptom of wanting to have one's cake and eat it too. the city is in lockdown but rhaenyra can sneak in, no problem, elenda can not only sneak in, she can access an entire network of pro-rhaenyra agents larys somehow knows nothing about, can raise literal riots, can recruit dragonseeds (why do you even need dragonseeds from KL when you're living on dragonstone?!), rhaenyra's food can reach the population somehow even though there are checkpoints at every entry, the dragonseeds can leave by boat and LARYS KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT ANY OF THIS 🧍and no one even thinks to ask him 'hey wtf is going on? you're kinda fired'. but they can't, can they? they can't get rid of larys because he is important to the plot and they need him in the thick of things!

there's a dumbass post circulating now in which someone ✨generously✨ gives people permission to complain about the show but without bringing that "boring book" (FB) into discussion for a comparative analysis. because apparently the book is bad but somehow not bad enough to keep watching tv media derived from it 🤡

the problem with HotD is that it makes FB the pinnacle of logic and storytelling. it doesn't fix any problems, it compounds them. this shit with larys would not fly in the book bc it is dumb as fuck! so you can't help but compare it to the book where these things did not have to be explained away by waving a magic wand or getting a lobotomy

this post is long enough as it is and other people have already explained the problem with the rhaena storyline, so i won't get into it right now, but, in a nutshell: her story can make sense in a void, she get a semblance of an arc: she wanted a dragon and now she will get one and goes on a journey of re-defining her identity, i suppose, after having been dismissed as not sufficiently targaryen as a result of her being dragonless. so, it's the classic problem of making sense in a watsonian way, in the context of the show, but in a doylist way it's Not The Best because they have to delete the only canonically POC low-born character. so we lose that perspective in a show that already prioritizes the highborn

larys has the same problem with him being a sexual deviant directly connected to his disability. as an individual character, it can be explained and justified, but as representation for disabled people (who suffer from a severe lack of representation in media as is), it's Not Great

[isa-ghost]

happy early borth use me as a vessel to infodump about your qphil headcanons immediately that’s an order >:D

This too-broad I Just Wanna Hear You Be Abnormal About Your Guy prompting thing is gonna become an inside joke between us I s2g

I think rather than hcs I'm gonna go on a rant about this sTUPID MOTHERFUCKERS WACK ASS BRAIN. YOU ARE YOUR OWN BIGGEST EMOTIONAL DETRIMENT, YKNOW THAT qPHILLIP MINECRAFT? GOD.

This entire thing applies to AMFMN Phil btw

That son of a bitch is such a MESS. He's so deep in his own bullshit he doesn't even see the times he contradicts himself or acts like a hypocrite.

He has to care for everyone (he feels obligated to as the Usually Oldest And Wisest + being constantly put into the paternal/caretaker role) but god forbid anyone takes care of him, even when he needs it most. When people take care of him he feels like he's failed somehow and he gets this not-quite ashamed or embarrassed feeling, but still Distinctly Uncomfortable And Awkward nonetheless.

He's like thousands of years old and has had more life experience to handle stress 100x heavier than "just a scratch" or "feeling a bit sad." He's spent decades just fucking around risking his life in hardcore mode, which puts near-constant strain on a person. Which has definitely warped his perception of what's too much for himself. He has a HUGE problem with being too critical of when something is or isn't Enough to be "worth" letting himself be upset or down for the count for a while. (In AMFMN he's going to be told straight up he Should Have Literally Died with how bad of shape he'll be in and that's the only reason besides his body being in literal physical shambles that he's going to remain bedridden during the recovery arc).

It's so foreign to him between his habitual isolation (hc life), rarely actually being taken down long-term by any threat, and his own evasion of being the one depending on someone that he just. He doesn't know what to do here. It's like putting socks on a dog and watching them try to walk all weird, he's like What The FUCK Is This?? How Do I Navigate This Situation?? He hates it.

Also survivalist brain hates feeling vulnerable in any way in general obviously, so that's another factor. But FUCK MAN sometimes you NEED to, it's HEALTHY even!! You dumb ass motherfucker!! Like yeah he'll cry, but not in like a Go To His Room And Let Himself Break A Little way, in a "these extremely stressful circumstances are actively happening/ongoing and it's overwhelming me so badly that I couldn't hold this back if I tried" way. Case in point: Ender King's initial arrival and how the kids couldn't see anything, or his actual possession and telling Tallulah to flee.

Alternatively if something involves not him but his loved ones, THEN he'll cry. Assuming it's not something he can do anything about (bc then his default reaction is Pissed The Fuck Off and preparing to throw infinite hands). Case in point: the goodbye letters pre-Purgatory.

But generally speaking this idiot is SO BAD at emotional self-care and letting himself be the one looked after for a change, it feeds into a lot of his other flaws (ie: being strong all the time & how he pushes that on Chay). But like. It's not just done out of refusal due to stubbornness.

It's fucking tragic, honestly. He's spent So Long being this way, he just straight up genuinely doesn't know How to be in the reversed role. Like even if he Wanted to be, it's so beyond his comprehension now that he doesn't think he Can. And a shred of why he continues not to just Start is bc he knows deep down that there is SO MUCH shit he's bottled up and buried or ignored over time, esp ever since The Nightmare, that if he let himself stop being a brick wall he'd crumble for so long he doesn't know what he'd be like once he recovered, or if he would even bounce back properly. And he does NOT like the idea of being irreversibly fucked up by properly digesting the trauma and grief and stress he's been through over the last year.

He'd rather truck on and "keep it together for the kids." :)

[blanketorghost]

SIDE A:

I fell in love with the ideal person But as you can see They had to go And it is the love that tore apart my entire heart and soul When holding hands, In the park we kissed and tears fell On fallen rose petals And, sadly, they told me so: "I have to leave, And it's not because of me, my heart lies with you All the love of my insides, my chest and my soul I know one day I will return."

SIDE B:

It was you who said goodbye And yet tears run down your cheeks If you are going to erase even the memory of yesterday like this, That's enough. Just smile for me. I sing and sing about love, one that's out above the clouds But I can't see it with my clouded mind No, no, we talk and talk about those regrets that grow day by day, and as the night swarms We forgive each other but there's no meaning to it.

SO HEY UH. LIL SNEAK PEEK OF THEIR BREAKUP ARC???

TW: for mention of underaged sex (??? only adding this just in case bc it all depends if you think their bio ages are counting their bdays during the school year the main story takes place so they'd be 17/18 respectively but I consider them to be before the school year so they'd be 18/19)

ANYWAYS HI

I decided to make their breakup so specifically heartbreaking i myself choke up a little when I imagine the scenes I'll have to write (I'll definitely cry)

So uh.

The inevitable happens and Yuu has to leave. The days leading up to his leaving date things are very tense between them. A lot of their conversations are thinly veiled arguments about Azul wanting Yuu to stay and Yuu telling him he has to leave even though he doesn't want to. Azul thinks that he's making excuses and wants him to admit that he values his life on earth more than their relationship─ Yuu just wants Azul to understand that he has way too many responsibilities and life issues he needs to tie up before he can even think about running away with him to another dimension where he has nothing to his name and could slow Azul's progress down (It also doesn't help that Yuu never actually tells Azul just how famous and influential he is on earth). Yuu also thinks that they could try making a long distance relationship work since Idia and Ortho are working on ways to allow Yuu to reliably travel since they've already managed to make phones work, but Azul is very against long distance because he thinks Yuu would fall out of love if Azul isn't physically there to be of use to Yuu. They always get out of these fights by apologizing and just expressing how sad they are they can't be together but they ultimately never decide on anything. It's actually so stress inducing for everyone because they were in their whole honeymoon phase before this.

There's a whole going away party the day before Yuu leaves and even though it's fun, everything is very bittersweet and I even have this cute scene where Grim asks to go to sleep on Yuu's bed like how they did before Ramshackle was fixed up pre ch.3 🥺

BUT ANYWAYS before the Grim scene, Azul texts Yuu to come to his room in Ramshackle (Yuu often gifts the dorm's spare rooms to friends including Azul ofc) so they can talk about what they're going to do. Yeah well the conversation gets derailed and they end up having sex for the first time as like a way of Yuu physically trying to show Azul that he will love him forever no matter what //sobs

Thats when Grim barges in after they're done and asks for Yuu to sleep over. With Azul's permission he goes and sleeps with Grim but he still feels guilty because they did something very intimate together and if able he would've wanted to spend the night with Azul instead. Yuu ofc can't say no to Grim because he also loves him a lot, though.

In the morning then Yuu wakes up and makes breakfast for Azul as like a way to apologize for not staying over+ maybe make up and talk more about what they'll do?? but when he goes over to Azul's room he finds out that Azul left even earlier in the morning and broke up with him through LETTER.

So uhm yeah Yuu is obviously very heartbroken about all this but he tries to keep a strong face for his friends since he is literally leaving today and doesn't want anyone to feel even worse than they are rn. All while Yuu is giving his goodbyes, he doesn't see Azul and thinks he just dipped and won't say goodbye in person. But Azul actually does go at the last second and they say goodbye, trying to leave their relationship in amicable terms despite everything and despite they're both crying like babies. But then Yuu kisses his forehead tells him he LOVES HIM so Azul decides to play the bad guy and say goodbye to him for good.

Obviously he eventually regrets that decision but in the meantime,

here we are

also fun fact!! Yuu's vc is Symag (alongside others- im trying to catch a vibe) and this SONG in Yuu's canon he actually writes it after their break up so legit this song is about Azul in Yuu's universe BYE

[moronkyne]

The only thing Christian has done is think Asher isn't a good fit for beta and constantly complain about how he should be beta because he's been in the pack longer than Ash and just generally being disrespectful to Ash (and in turn David if you think about it)

And making fun of Milo's wolf form for being small (even tho that's not true. Milo's wolf for is average everyone else in the pack is just really big) and I don't mean harmless teasing I mean like genuinely making Milo ashamed and insecure of his wolf form to the point that David had to step in. So bullying

But also throughout the series, David, Asher and Milo have all said

"Yeah, Christian is a jerk and an asshole who has way too much ego and is way too fucking sure of himself but he's not a bad guy and he's still family"

So I feel like some of the Fandom has a reason to hate Christian but he hasn't made fun of Milo since David first stepped in (which was years ago) or complained about not being beta since before the inversion soooooo....

I think what really pisses me off is when people write Christian as a bigot or some sort of monster

Like I've ran into way too many fics of Christian hating Angel, Sam, babe, and sweetheart bc they're not werewolves even tho he prolly doesn't even give a fuck

Or like him trying to get darlin kicked out of the pack. He wouldn't do that because he prolly sees darlin as family

Sorry for the long ask

-ramble anon

THISSSS

I did some more diving and I found all of this out and I wanna say TYSM (I have an attention span of a pea)

I just wanna say, I need a redemption arc and he needs to ask Amanda out. nOW

<3 ty /gen

[allthedamnlove]

after rewatching the proposal scene for like the millionth time atp i feel like i wished when sofia mentions there's something she's done bad with hollis and rafe immediately counters that he's done worse things she doesn't know of i wish instead in response to that she says "rafe but i-i need to tell you this before that ring slips on my finger" like in that moment she tells him. i feel like if he blew up in her face and they subsequently broke up (also the angst in a scene like that would've served so hard in person as opposed to a 5 second phone call where they're distances apart🤨) his actions and scenes after it with the pogues would look even better bc there's a build up of mistrust and anger boiling inside of him that the pogues would ultimately face unknowingly that was actually instigated by a breakup and furthered by his history with the pogues, i feel like his scene with sarah "no, you're just going to screw me like everyone else in my life" would hit even more bc it's almost an accumulation of mistrust and betrayal that has happened to him built up to that one moment through his friendships/relationships and family where he's been lonely with no one to fend for him until sofia and sarah visibly in ep 10, idk random ass thought, at the end of the day i just wish the break up was more fleshed out but i understand why it was abrupt

THIS IS A LONG ASS ANSWER

i am so pissed at the writers that rafe didnt even properly ask, "will you marry me?" like I MEAN I LOVE LOVE THE FACT THAT THEY GOT ENGAGED AND I CAN REPEAT THE WHOLE SCENE IN MY SLEEP butt yea i completely get your point.

I think the main reason (And i hope to god that its true) that it was a twenty second breakup scene is that they wanna extend the angst between rafe and sofia. usually the couple angsts like jarah and jiaras went all over one season's arc so we were fine with it cuz we knew that they reconciled but since we are going to wait FOR ONE AND HALF YEARS is what's pissing me off. If it was six seasons, then maybe rafes past's effect on sofia would have hit more but sadly a blonde guy ruined everything and now we gotta wait to see how rafe is going to spiral in morocco knowing that he just got his heart broken and most importantly, how sofia is going to handle life after being dumped by her fiance and jobless too (rafe did her so dirty, I WANT HIM TO BEG FOR HER FORGIVENESS)

and also he literally stopped her worries by saying "I dont care...I wanna be with you" and fiona and drew are so good at micro-expressions since they didnt get that much screen time; you can sofia's worries melt away for a moment that he is ready to look past all the bs to marry her. i feel like sofia knew anyways that the breakup might happen; when sofia shakily said, "I love you" on her call in morocco, you feel like she's still scared that he will break it off with her. I HATE THAT RAFE MFER SO MUCH, LITERALLY SAID IDC AND BROKE IT OVER A PHONE CALL, HE IS A PUSSY I SAID WHAT I SAID.

Hmm, i get your point but i feel like if the writers get it right, they can nail how being broken up affects both rafe and sofia individually who are continents away . And its true, his dialogue abt everyone's going to screw over him would have hit harder if the breakup was more extensive but again i know rafe's going to go off the rails now that he thinks...thinks "he's got nothing to lose", and jj and jiara occupied a major chunk of the screentime so i think and i hope the implications of the breakup will be explored more cuz he just cut off kinda his one person he genuinely loves and loved him back.

god i hope that the angst builds up to the most passionate makeup cuz ill probably burn the netflix hq if anything happens to my babies.

Since officialy jj is dead for now, pates are going to put rafe as a main part of the storyline and I want them to deeply explore the angst between them. Thats why I am so pissed at jiara and rudy cuz they occupied a lot of time yet IT WAS SO FUCKING AWKWARD LIKE ATLEAST KISS MFERS. compared to that, the fact drew and fiona gave it all for such less screen time MEANS WE NEED MORE RAFIA SCREEENTIME. THEY DESERVE IT.

Thank you for the ask lovelie, hope you have a good new years.

[chirpsythismorning]

Mike’s monologue makes so much more sense when you remember, he’s a frickin’ Paladin...

Paladins take their oath very seriously, and I do think that the whole theme of friends don't lie, is in part loosely inspired by this oath that Paladin's make, and how one of their most defining qualities is swearing by tenants of honesty.

All of us often overlook the D&D aspect in the show and how central of a role it plays, arguably even more so than parallels with the hundreds of movies they refer to for inspiration, and that's why this moment of Mike's monologue with El in s4, along with Mike's monologue with Will in season 2, is so important to consider if we want to be ready for what's about to go down in s5.

It's as if Mike is acting out an oath of devotion to these two characters. Though his oath to Will comes off a lot more genuine, it's unfortunately undermined slightly by the oath he presents to El, because they're both attempting to be an oath of devotion. By saying he loved El the moment he saw her and how his life started at that very moment, he's contradicting what he said to Will just hours before about how meeting El was simple dumb luck, as well as directly paralleling (and in turn undermining) what he told Will back in s2, which is that meeting Will/asking to be his friend was the best thing he's ever done.

Mike is inadvertently breaking an oath he once made, while also creating a new oath that stands on false grounds.

We've talked about the whole Watch out dominos, your dominos are gonna fall, and how it's related to Mike because he's in the shot equally to Argyle as he says it. But seriously you guys, it's related to Mike.

It's about the internal struggle he's been having for a few years now, growing and growing and him sort of refusing to examine it closely, because he knows that he's in a situation where he's supposed to be devoting himself to El. It's the expected path, and not only that but he also feels indebted to El after all she has done for him (also what the ga thinks which is why they argue even if Mike doesn't love El, they shouldn't break up bc it would hurt her.... Mike shares the ga's logic...), and so as it becomes more and more clear to him that she loves him and wants him to love her, he's trying his best to accept it, while also not being able to because he knows deep down he's breaking an oath that he already made if he follows through with this.

While I think there are a bunch of different factors at play, very likely Mike is aware of what his heart truly wants, which is why he's having such a hard time following through with devoting himself to El. Because deep down, he knows he's already devoted to someone else.

Luckily (tragically), Mike is breaking his oath because he thinks it's the right thing to do. Which just makes him even more of a Paladin if you think about it. The fact that him not wanting to break an oath is why he's been struggling for so long.

I don't think he knows that he's hurting Will while he's doing it, because the oath has more to do with him and being honest with himself, and I don't think he knows he's hurting El by doing this either, because he's under the assumption she wants him to say all of these things. He had doubts originally because there were reasons to have doubts as a result of Mike stalling for so long, but I just don't think Mike would go through with the monologue, if he thought that it wasn't what El wanted.

What makes Mike's arc so painfully tragic, is that he is led to believe at this point that El wants him romantically more than she needs him and that's the whole problem. He is unable to love her in the way she wants him to at this point, and he knows this. And he's still holding back.

That's another thing that's so sad about Mike going through with it in the end anyways, because I think a lot of his guilt stems from knowing that El wants him to love her, and yet he's unable to meet her halfway. And then going through with it in the end, when he doesn't truly mean it, that's... like he's breaking every code in his own book by doing this.

And it is likely going to really affect him.

The dominos are gonna fall. Not just for him, but for everyone.

The good news is that there is a standard way for this to play out, based on D&D rules and interestingly enough, it fits quite well with what s5 is likely to entail...

[meanderfall]

Submission by @nightwatcherraph: Your post on Leo was so interesting. Sorry to send this your submissions your asks are closed. So I wanted to ask how do you feel about Raph in this series so far?

Oh, thank you!!! yes, sorry, it's been closed for a while, and I didn't bother to open it again bc I didn't think it'd be used at any point hfljdfhg

And to answer your question, I love him a lot! My thoughts on him probably aren't as in-depth as Leo's just bc Leo is my blorbo, but I've noticed a couple of things about him and characterization that I just whole-heartedly love.

Things like how, if they're in a big fight scene, and one of his brothers is about to get attacked from behind and they don't notice, Raph will be the one to jump in and protect them. He is so protective over his brothers, it drives me insane ("you mess with my brother, you mess with me!"). And, like, the fact that he can even do that in the first place probably means he has some pretty good battle awareness. Or at the very least he is crazy aware of where his brothers are and what they're doing. (People say Leo is an overprotective mother hen, but 1) I havent seen THAT much evidence of it since he usually only intervenes when they ARE actually in trouble and 2) i think Raph in this show could give him a run for his money on that front lmao.)

I've also noticed just how often he just. Throws his sai at opponents. To the point I'm actually surprised he hasn't LOST them yet. And, once again, it usually happens when one of his brothers is in trouble and he's too far away to intervene. Which means he'd rather be weaponless but protect his brothers over seeing them get hurt when he could've done SOMETHING. (once again. the protectiveness drives me crazy.)

There's also how the two Raph-centric episodes I've seen so far usually involve him meeting someone going through a similar emotional turmoil he is and it's through trying to help them that he seems to actually process and understand the advice his family gives him. Like, I think he does know that on some level that they're right when they tell him to control himself or calm down or not to rush ahead but it doesn't feel right to him so it's hard for him to take it, until he's on the other side of the equation and he can, like, understand their side better.

Also, I think Raphael is usually talked about being the angry or aggressive turtle but like. Not really? There was that one early episode where losing a sparring a match with Mikey got him so mad he tried to seriously hurt him, but I don't think it's actually cropped up much since then. Like, yes, I guess compared to the other turtles he's more aggressive, but that usually comes from a need to protect or defend or DO SOMETHING when something is wrong, which isn't the same as having a temper imo. He gets annoyed with Mikey a lot, but in fairness, Mikey also deliberately tries to annoy him in the first place so like.

Same thing actually for the impression that Raph and Leo fight a lot. I think in the first two seasons I can think of only 4 moments where they actually seriously disagree? When Raph wanted to get revenge on the Mousers destroying their initial lair in the show, when Raph confronts Leo on meeting with the Shredder and actually getting into an agreement with him at first, when they're staying at April's place bc the sewers have been invaded by Foot ninja and Raph wants to go back to their home and Leo keeps saying it's a bad idea, and the whole City at War arc. And tbh, those middle two barely count imo, Leo needed to get his head knocked straight after meeting with the shredder that first time. And since Splinter also warns Leo against going back to the sewers after the episode with that argument, I think it's safe to say that Leo also kind of agreed with him lol.

Actually, the Raph and Leo relationship seems pretty supportive and understanding to me! In Monster Hunter, when Leo woke up from his coma but is still struggling with what happened to him, Raph is the one to support him as he processes what happened and helps him forge new katana. And when Splinter is missing and Raph is getting increasingly frustrated waiting for news, Don and Mikey are the ones telling him to chill and be patient, but Leo is the one to tell him to go up top and search for Splinter and blow off some steam. (and considering the way the City at War arc starts, they apparently still play Follow the Leader together, which is weirdly adorable to me? and it's so friendly too?)

Dunno, they just feel like they're on the same wavelength most of the time, it's just that since Leo has to consider the safety of everyone first, they have some mild disagreements here and there (which, I think, Raph is aware of and why he does listen even if he doesn't always like it, bc he wants his family safe first and foremost). (City at War is an outlier but like. I have other thoughts on that that's going to be touched upon on a different Leo post.)

[scribefindegil]

ok i'm soooo happy you talked about the mind control thing with the divine tree arc. it rubbed me the wrong way a lot and is the reason why i still don't really like dimple, even though i know it's an important story point and all, i feel like brainwashing is a huge violation and it was never really talked about afterwards. it also rubbed me the wrong way when mob wondered if he did something wrong by stopping the brainwashing even though it made peopl happy, like i feel like that's so disrespectful to autonomy and such (even though, it is a fictional story)

i really like what you're doing with the brassica heresy, with tsubomi taking center stage bc she is one of my faves, i'm really excited where it will go!

Okay. It is possible that you will not like what I have to say. That's fine; you don't have to agree with me and you certainly don't have to like a fictional character who has done fucked-up stuff.

That said.

I feel like you're approaching this with framing that's pretty at odds with the themes of the show. Everyone agrees that the brainwashing was bad. A lot of Mob Psycho characters have done things that are bad. Pretty much everyone I know spent most of the Divine Tree confrontation absolutely furious with Dimple. But the question is: Okay, a character has done something awful. Now what? A lot of people would say that the only solution is punishment and rejection, that Dimple has done something too terrible for him to remain a sympathetic character, and he needs to be exiled or killed or imprisoned or otherwise removed from the show.

But Mob Psycho 100 believes, completely and utterly, with its whole chest, with every arc and with every character, that there is nothing you can do that is so terrible that you are undeserving of human connection, that you are incapable of changing for the better. It believes that there is no fundamental, ontological difference between the people you hate and the people you love, between a terrorist trying to take over the world and a kid who lashed out once and accidentally hurt his brother. Which isn't to say that actions don't matter; obviously they do, and they have consequences. But regardless of what they've done, everyone is just a person. Everyone can grow.

And, crucially, it isn't interested in punishment. Did the character realize their mistake and begin to change? That's what matters. The show doesn't have people constantly rehash the bad things they've done; it just gives them the chance to stop and choose a different path. And Dimple does. Dimple realizes that his goal of godhood wasn't going to make him happy, but his friendship with Mob was.

And people can have boundaries; people can decide that they don't want to be associated with someone any more; forgiveness, in Mob Psycho, is always a choice. But it's a choice that the characters continue to make because the show values kindness and transformation.

So like, yeah, the brainwashing was truly, deeply horrifying. And Mob loves Dimple anyway. And I do too.

(Also, to your point about the LOL cult: Mob is extremely anxious about doing the right thing and specifically about following social rules. And those people did seem to be happy, so of course it makes sense that the fear that he made their lives worse is going to eat at him. That's why Reigen's there, to reassure him, to tell him "You saved some people that only you could have saved," to listen to him tell his story and say that no, those people weren't really happy, and he did something good and important and necessary by breaking the spell.)

[tri-punisher]

it actually makes me so sad that while razlo and livio Obviously arent a Perfect depiction of a system they were still clearly crafted with love and are still as flawed and sympathetic and human and believable and loveable as every other character in trg but people just go out of their way to malign razlo however they can. like even when the manga clearly shows u all the details of how chapel completely fucked razlo up by taking advantage of his instincts as a protector and desperation to feel needed, earning his unflinching loyalty by sparing him (and livio!) from execution, isolating him and training him up into a living weapon for him to use and control, and later discarding him when it was convenient bc trying to kill ww was more important and chapel Did Not care if he Also took LR out in the process, which literally shattered razlo's whole world, people still insist on reducing razlo to the schlocky hollywood Scary Evil Alter stereotype that doesn't do anything except scare livio and commit atrocities just for the sake of committing atrocities (i've seen razlo be depicted as a fucking rapist. like. for god's SAKE). as if that's in any way the dynamic of their relationship. when we know razlo exists in the first place bc livio was in a horrific situation and needed someone to protect him when no one else would. when livio tells razlo he's thankful for all that he's done for him and apologises to him for how he shouldered all the hard shit onto him. when their whole character arc climax in the manga is them figuring out that they are stronger as a unit, stronger when they work together, stronger when they actually communicate with each other!!!! but people literally just want to be ableist about them and insist razlo is a bad guy, that he's only evil and unknowable and dangerous and scary, and he's not worthy of even a MENTION, not even a name drop wherever livio is concerned cus the other half of the time people would prefer to flat out ignore his existence. ok. ok ok ok im doing this to you rn

[allwormdiet]

Tangle 6.6

Well hell, not a whole lot getting worse when one of you has a gun to their back

"Surrender." "No." is kind of the vibe, isn't it.

And yeah, fuck this was smart, but now the offensive has ground to a halt thanks to Armsmaster's interception

...Also it's cute that he fell for Tattetale's fib

Yeah exactly. Information control, an incredible asset

She's picking him apart, and his tools as well, but she either doesn't realize she's playing with fire or doesn't care

This is a fight, so I'm not gonna act like Armsmaster swinging on Tattletale is somehow a foul, but it does feel a little like a foul considering that's the only swing he makes for another while here

Are we sure Miss Militia is more likeable than Armsmaster? Bc Armsmaster isn't the one putting a bladed weapon at someone's neck, and I don't think you can "rubber bullets" your way out of a machete blow

Also the exchange between Grue and Regent is amusing

Hi again, Emma, hope you're having an awful time <3

Oh, that's why Tattletale was willing to risk the fucking sucker blow from Armsmaster; she knew that was gonna be the assist the others could use to get the score

God that's kinda great though. This business is about reputation and pageantry and they can use this stage, with an audience of rich and important people, to get a shitload of leverage against the heroes

Also the machete really is a bad look, like c'mon

And the reluctance to swap the machete out for a fucking baton or something doesn't look much better, why does Taylor still think she's cool at the end of this arc?

Fucking good job on Regent's part here. Outrageously gross, but it gets the job done.

And another really fucking clever maneuver. I dunno what Armsmaster is talking about, this was a fucking slick maneuver. Minimal harm taken and she gets to keep her bugs up, that's obviously the play

So this is actually a neat way to work around the whole "speedster" concept. Velocity's still good at what he does, but he's not the kind of low-key god that Flash is

Yeah, exactly, he doesn't need to hit hard to make this a problem, he just needs to hit enough

So Taylor is in fact gonna keep going for the eyes, got it

At least Velocity gets to keep his, last guy wasn't so lucky

Okay so first off, who the fuck at the Protectorate signed off on this man not wearing a cup? Extra mobility and reduced friction my ass, that's a sacrifice you make so your dick doesn't get punched clean off your body

Also Taylor, honey, I really don't know if there's something he'll ever accept as recompense for this, especially because I don't think the two of you are ever gonna work together outside of truce conditions. Even if you do manage to swing becoming a hero (which I think she does) there's no way they're having you work alongside someone you beat and humiliated this thoroughly

Yeah this man is not the local Protectorate boss for nothing, no kidding he's kicking ass like this

For all that I think Armsmaster has acted like a massive tool, his versatility and competence really can't be understated. I think there's still bad match-ups for him, even or especially in the Bay when you're looking at hitters like Purity, but I don't think that's really insurmountable for him. Hard, absolutely, but not insurmountable.

Tattletale getting desperate, I think. Obviously the hostages worked great against the Wards last time, no reason to think it wouldn't work against the Protectorate, except of course Armsmaster isn't going to allow a hostage to be taken

Bitch ilu

No for real, Bitch I love you

What an incredible display of defiance and trust. She doesn't bother with the head games, she's just like "oh you really don't want to turn your back on Skitter, she'll fuck you up like she did Lung"

Of course Skitter does kinda fumble on the pass but that's okay, she's learning

EDIT: also, of course her smile is unnerving Taylor, it’s a threat display, you know this about her

Haha, oh no

I wonder if this whole sequence would've gone differently if Emma wasn't there to fuel Skitter's rage and spite. Probably, right?

So, they're both idiots, is the thing

Skitter knew going into this that Armsmaster has an ego thing, that he soured on her between their first and second meetings because she tarnished the big win on his record. So far her team has defeated and embarrassed every Ward and Protectorate member in the building except for him, and as the leader of the latter and mentor of the former that already reflects poorly on him, setting aside the fact that villains crashed a fundraiser to lift morale and trust in the Protectorate/PRT. There was no way he was ever going to fold on this.

Meanwhile, Armsmaster has already completely written Skitter off as a loss. She cost him the glory of taking Lung down, she absolutely punked the Wards during the bank job (which again reflects on him as a mentor), and she's clearly in over her head as a rookie. But he could still pull her out of the villain life at this point, she's still got a hand outstretched even though their last meeting broke down (because he was having a fit over his tarnished glory) and all he has to do is meet her there. And he doesn't, because he can't compromise like that. Because it might reflect poorly on him. Because this apparently certain win against some upstart thieves is worth more than a hypothetical takedown of whoever is backing them.

And now Armsmaster has to eat seven hundred wasps for his trouble

Alright cool now get the fuck out of there

Taylor what are you fucking talking about, you could not be more bound to the Undersiders at this point

Current Thoughts

Armsmaster really put up the numbers on this chapter, man was fighting like eight-to-one for most of this sequence and it was a close fucking thing. It's a shame his personality sucks or else I'd almost be tempted to root for him in a way

Still thinking about how Miss Militia resorted to a machete to pin Regent down, like how is that one not a threat of lethal force

Velocity made a good showing, got some hits in, but. Nobody in their right mind should ever skip out on protecting the groin. Points deducted for an easily avoidable loss

And holy shit the Undersiders managed to pull this one together. They've still got Dauntless and an absolutely pissed Armsmaster to still deal with, but the worst kind of defeat is already cleared and even if they were to lose they'd have still dealt a massive blow to the heroes

...which is why I'm still a little stunned that between the mission and the conversation with Armsmaster Taylor still thinks she can walk away from this clean. Lil delusional on that one, hon.

[oodlyenough]

Re:DW, I liked the final well enough but I agree with you that the shorter series really hurt the development of team Tardis. I wish they kept Ruby as the companion for two series, would have solved a lot of issues I had.

I also have so many questions still? I absolutely don't understand why it keeps snowing around Ruby? That's just...a normal thing that happens?

Also did the grandma not mention to the Doctor that their neighbour was acting real weird?

I'm also very intrigued by Roger ap Gwillam returning - is that going to be an ongoing thing or just a nice throwback to 73 yards?

Anyway. I've enjoyed reading your commentary because we feel very similar about this show in that the way RTD writes just works for us.

Yeah, I know we're getting some Ruby in the next season, but she's at least sharing the screentime as companion, so it doesn't quite solve it. I don't mind a break over the holiday special I suppose, lmfao esp because it's Moffat writing it so whatever he can write some one-off idc... but with how little development the team TARDIS got in s1 I worry that the problem will be compounded when you've got three people in s2. I don't want Ruby to finish an arc at the expense of Varada getting one y'know.

I'm not entirely sure what the scifi answer about snow etc was meant to be. I think something about the communal belief that the woman MUST be mysterious (incl. Sutekh) infusing it with godlike power or something... I mean... it's all a bit conjecturey lol. I like the idea of "surprise, it was just a normal woman" but I think they could've offered more explanations around the supernatural stuff like the snow or the "shifting memories" the Doctor mentioned. I've seen a number of fan answers and even RTD joking in commentary "time shrouded her" (re: her cloak) like, just pick any one of those and give a couple lines to Ncuti.

(Somewhat related -- an explanation (of sorts) for the pointing, to me, was that she didn't point in the original timeline and did point when the Doctor was there, bc he was the only other person around, she's pointing for him. (Whether or not pointing at the sign makes any sense is a different issue to "but no one was around anyway".) So I thought that basic fact (didn't point in timeline A; did in timeline B) works. But it wasn't explained in the show, it's just how my brain connected the dots, so.... ?)

Not sure about Roger! I didn't expect we'd see him after 73 Yards, or for 73 Yards to be relevant in the finale at all, which was a really nice touch I thought. I liked that this episode explains what happens to Roger in the regular universe (the Doctor being part of the "overthrow") VS in Ruby's universe where she did it, since that was a question people had. I also loved the idea that the 73 yards is the perception filter distance... I don't need an explicit explanation, just that connection (and the camera with the mother) works once you add in fae magic imo.

Overall, as a big RTD fan, not my fave finale. His scifi nonsense and handwaves are always saved for me by the great character stuff, and the character stuff in this season was only so-so. Moments of brilliance (Ruby and Louise in the cafe!) and some great performances (Millie is SO good) but... in a way this season felt to me like he tried to get out of his regular wheelhouse (huge emphasis on the mystery box stuff) and then the finale was like, a return to his roots (who cares about the mystery! ordinary people 4 ever, etc), but the two don't quite jive. And an extra four episodes would've done wonders.