#and before you say it— NO. that scene does not MEAN a redemption arc

[phantom-fleetways]

IDW, Issue #71 thoughts:

Spoilers below cut. Issue 71 should be available to all on the grabber zone on the 7th.

Don't touch me.

Don't touch me.

I'm having thoughts don't fucking touch me.

Fucking—

YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THAT KIT. YOU CAN'T JUST SAY SHE'S YOU'RE WHOLE WORLD LIKE THAT. FUCKING—

GAY ASS FENNEC.

Coherent babbling in the tags this time.

[hollowflight-propaganda]

"What about me?" Glory asked.

Kestrel shifted her wings in a shrug. "I have no idea. Webs scrounged you up somewhere after we lost the SkyWing egg. I never cared where, because I knew you weren't important."

"Oh, go away!" Tsunami burst out. "Everything you say is hurtful and mean."

"Everything I say is true," Kestrel said.

"I don't think you'd be good for me," Peril said, staring up at her. "I never imagined you like this."

Kestrel hunched her shoulders. "I am the way life has made me. Take it or leave it."

I genuinely don't understand anyone who says that Kestrel could've had a "redemption arc." Her response to her own long lost daughter saying that she never thought she'd be this cruel is just going, "This is how I am, and nothing will ever change that."

Kestrel herself admits in the second to last scene we ever see her in that this is just how she is and there's no room for improvement for her. If she truly believes this (which I think she does because if not she would've changed something about herself before now) then there's nothing anybody can do to help her.

This is why I'm satisfied with Kestrel dying the way she did. There was nowhere for her to go, her character ends here because she's denied herself change over and over again. She decided to constantly take her anger out on children for 6 years, she decided to treat them as horribly as she possibly could, even now when finally reunited with Peril she acts the same as she always had.

She never makes any strides to change herself because she genuinely believes that the only way to survive in a cruel world is to be cruel back. And look at how far it got her.

[ghouly-boiiiii]

Does Max give anyone else major twist villain vibes???

Okay I haven't talked about Max much yet, but I think it's kinda wild to see people talking about him like he's just this sweet innocent cinnamon roll when my read on his character was the COMPLETE opposite.

I mean yes, he does seem very sweet. He's very soft spoken. Naive in a way like Lucy, but not as much. Kinda vulnerable. Got a killer smile. And some of the moments with him and Lucy are super cute and adorable. But damn if he doesn't have a DARK side!

Like I've heard people say that Max is stupid or that Aaron Moten's acting is bad, but hell no. Aaron Moten sold me on his acting during the interrogation scene. Max was scared shitless and I FELT that. I think Max was meant to be played as a character who lacks understanding about certain things and seems disconnected from people due to both being brought up in basically a cult and having an inherent lack of empathy.

You think about the fact that he admitted he wanted Dane to get hurt, someone who's supposed to be his best friend. How he coldly sat there and watched Titus die. And before that stood there and watched him get mauled by a bear, almost like he was fascinated by it and wanted to see what was gonna happen. The fact that he tried to kill Thaddeus the moment he became a threat, even though the two of them had appeared to have bonded and developed a genuine friendship. And let's not forget he was willing to let all of Vault 4 get plunged into darkness just so he could keep playing with his power armor.

Max wants to be a knight, he wants to be a hero. And I think he tells himself he wants it for the right reasons, but I think what he REALLY wants is power and recognition. Which is really what every (okay maybe not every, but a lot) good villain wants, right? Because at the end of the day Max wants what Max wants. He's selfish, even though he doesn't think he is.

And sure, he's nice to Lucy. And he went balls to the wall to save her when he thought Vault 4 was gonna execute her. But she's a pretty girl who helped him and offered him a safe home. When she gave him the proposition that if she helped him bring back the head, he would have the Brotherhood lend her some knights to save her dad, he KNEW he couldn't make that promise. But he made the deal anyway. So he doesn't REALLY care about her or what she wants.

And that blank stare he gets when he gets mad? ACTUALLY terrifying. The guy's got serious psychopath vibes. Literal anti-social personality disorder, if you ask me. In fact the first thing I thought about when Max let Titus die is this kids going to end up going to the dark side lol.

And I think that would work really well thematically if they plan on giving The Ghoul a redemption arc beside it. There are so many parallels between Lucy and The Ghoul, and they have such a strong connection to the beginning when the bombs dropped. I get that Max is there to represent the Brotherhood and he's from Shady Sands, the town Hank destroyed, but it felt weird that he didn't seem to be AS important in the grand scheme of things compared to Cooper and Lucy.

But if Max turned out to be a badass twist villain to thematically contrast Cooper's redemption arc, while Lucy remains steadfast to her commitment to goodness and the golden rule I feel like that would really round it out. It would make sense if you consider a lot of people have pointed out that Lucy, Cooper and Max all seem to represent different play styles and different moral alignments. And I think it'd be pretty crazy if the writers of the show set out to make it seem like Ghoul is a bad guy and Max is a good guy, but then it ended up being the opposite.

I mean, there are definitely hints all over the show that The Ghoul isn't as bad as he may seem. And Max has already done some pretty messed up stuff, so I'd say the possibility is totally there, and I'd be here for it!

Who's with me???

[graceshouldwrite]

The Most Powerful Hack to Make Your Readers Cry

You’ve seen it all: show, don’t tell, plant a visceral image in the reader’s brain of the environment/character, write a complex character arc with lots of growth and setbacks, establish deep relationships, high stakes, etc. 

All the advice for making readers cry I’ve seen so far is basically that list. But, while those things are absolutely important, I find that the thing that always does the trick, whether as a tipping point or in and of itself, is this: 

THE CALLBACK! 

Before we move on, this is an ANALYSIS heavy post, so all the book + show examples contain spoilers!!

So, what do I mean by a “callback?” Think of Chekhov’s gun, but, here, you use the gun to pierce your reader’s heart. As a refresher for anyone who needs it, Chekhov’s gun is just a rule in writing that anything you introduce in the book should play some role in the plot.

Specifically, the name comes from the example that if a reader introduces a gun in the first act, it MUST go off later, (maybe, say, in the third act). For example, in the TV show Breaking Bad, the protagonist Walter White prepares a vial of poison (ricin) that he wanted to use to eliminate an opponent early on in the series. After the assassination attempt falls through, the ricin makes an appearance again in the very last episode of the show, when Walt finally uses it to kill another opponent. 

Got that? Alright, onto the examples of successful, tearjerking callbacks: 

1. The Last Olympian (Rick Riordan); “Family, Luke, you promised.” 

Context: The character Annabeth says this line. Years ago, Annabeth had run away from home, and Luke had effectively adopted her into a found family with another kid named Thalia. Common reason for leaving home = parental trauma! Yay! He promised Annabeth that they would be each other’s “family” from now on. 

Now: Kronos, the antagonist titan, has possessed the demigod Luke and uses his body to strike Annabeth, injuring her. She’s also holding a dagger that Luke had given her when she joined his “family.”

Significance: her words + the dagger are a mental + physical reminder to Luke of his promise. They force him to recognize the sheer degree of his current betrayal by bringing him back to a different time. The fact that their found family only happened because of parental trauma bringing them together makes it worse—Luke felt abandoned by his Olympian father, Hermes. Now, he realizes that he basically did the equivalent to Annabeth by joining the titans. 

2. Les Miserables (Victor Hugo); Jean Valjean’s death 

Context:  At the beginning of the book, the bishop had caught Valjean trying to steal candlesticks to sell. Instead of handing him over to the police, the bishop told the police that he had given them to Valjean, saving him from arrest and showing him mercy. This changed his life forever, kickstarting his character redemption arc. 

Now: Jean Valjean dies surrounded by his loved ones, remembered as a benevolent man who bettered thousands of lives. He’s surrounded by light from candlesticks that once belonged to a bishop.

Context: Valjean had once taken in an impoverished woman named Fantine, showing her mercy and promising to take care of her daughter, Cosette, after Fantine died. Valjean then rescued Cosette from abusive quasi-foster parents (it’s a long story), raising her as his own daughter. This furthered his arc by allowing him to finally understand how unconditionally loving someone feels. 

Now: Valjean describes Fantine to Cosette, who never knew her mother. 

Significance: Both examples throw readers back to much earlier points in the story before the completion of Valjean’s character arc. In a way, this final scene feels like an external manifestation of his kindness paying off; both he and the reader feels a sense of accomplishment, relief, and just a general “OMG WE MADE IT.” Readers don’t feel cheated, because they were with Valjean every step of his 1,400 page arc. The weight of it all just crashes down on you...

3. Your Lie in April (anime); Kaori’s letter after she dies

Context: Kaori’s entire plot significance is that she helps Kousei, a piano prodigy who can’t play piano anymore due to traumatic parental memories associated with it, play again—but also, just to help him enjoy life again after a turbulent upbringing. She meets him a year before she dies of a medical condition, and her free spirit + confidence influences him to find beauty in life and music again. They basically do a crap ton of crazy funny stuff together lol

Now: Kaori has died, and she leaves a letter to him. Among other general confessions and thoughts, she references things they did and memories they shared: she says, “sorry we couldn’t eat all those canelés,” reminisces about  jumping with him off a small bridge into the stream below, “racing each other alongside the train,” singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star as they rode the bike together, etc.

Significance: Yes, the nature of the letter is just sad because she’s revealing that she loved him all along, apologizing for not being able to spend more time with him, lying that she didn’t like him (to spare his feelings b/c she knew she would die soon), etc. BUT, these small details highlight exactly how many experiences they shared, and the depth of their relationship. Thus, they emphasize the significance of her death and the emptiness it leaves behind. 

4. Arcane (show); “I thought, maybe you could love me like you used to, even though I’m different.” 

Context: Character Jinx says this in the last episode to her now estranged older sister, Vi. Without going into the crazy complex plot, basically, orphans Vi and Jinx used to care for each other before a bunch of crap went down that got them separated. They then grew up on opposite political sides; Jinx grows up on the side of the underbelly city rebellion, and Vi grows up working on the side of the richer city that essentially oppresses the undercity. Thus begins the development of their opposing viewpoints and work environments, to the point where they always meet on opposite sides of a political battle, never able to come together as a family or understand each other again. 

Now: After a super dramatic confrontation, Jinx reveals that although she wants Vi to love her like she did before their separation, she knows it’s not possible because “[Vi] changed too.” She finishes with, “so, here’s to the new us” before blowing up a political council meeting a few blocks down filled with people Vi sides with. Oops! This cleanly seals the fate of their relationship as something basically irreparable.  

Significance: This callback isn’t through literal flashbacks or items like in the previous examples. Jinx’ lines are enough to bring back images of their childhood to the audience’s mind. Now, the audience subconsciously places this image of: 1) two sisters so different, hurt, and torn apart, right next to 2) the image of two sisters as innocent children who loved each other and would care for each other no matter what. 

Why do callbacks work so well? 

If you’ve noticed something in common with all of them, you’re right: they remind audience of a time BEFORE the characters have come so far on their arcs, developed, and put on so much more emotional baggage. 

Callbacks force the audience to SUDDENLY and IMMEDIATELY feel the weight of everything that’s happened. The character’s anguish and overwhelming emotions become the audience’s in this moment. Callbacks are a vehicle for the juxtaposition of worlds, before and after significant development. 

This works because we, as mortals, fear IMPERMANENCE the most. We fear LOSS. For us, time gone is time we will never get back; callbacks make us face that exact fact through a fictional character. A lost moment, time period, or even part of oneself may hurt as much as losing a loved one, and nothing makes humans grieve more than the realization of a loss. A callback slaps the audience in the face with the fact that something was lost; loss hurts so much because almost 99% of the time, what’s gone is gone forever. 

Of course, a good callback requires good previous character development, stakes, imagery, and all that jazz, but I thought I’d highlight this specifically because of how under covered it is. 

∘₊✧────── ☾☼☽ ──────✧₊∘

instagram: @ grace_should_write

I’ve been binging general media lately: I finished Death Note, Your Lie in April, and Tokyo Ghoul all within like a month (FIRST ANIMES I”VE EVER WATCHED!!), reread lots of Les Miserables, analyzed a bunch of past shows like Breaking Bad, watched a bunch of My Little Pony, worked to fix up my old writing... and that’s not even all! The amount of times I’ve CRIED while enjoying the above media and so much more honestly just inspired this post. 

Like, no joke, my eyes were almost always swollen during this period whenever I hung out with my friends and it was so embarrassing help 

Personally, I just find that this method works super well for me, and I watched a bunch of reaction videos to these above scenes (and read book reviews on the book scenes I mentioned), and it seemed that just about everyone cried during these parts. That’s when I realizes that the callback might also just be a universal thing. 

Anyway, this post is long and dense enough as is. SORRY! As always, hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated <3333

Happy writing, and have a great day,

- grace <3

[babygirlbites]

Their Reaction to the Vampire Dairies

Wolf Pack Headcannons

Can’t explain why this is so important to me, it just is….

Sam

Sam is definitely not the type to sit down and watch vampire dairies off his own accord.

That being said; Sam IS the type to want to spend every waking moment with his imprint.

The compromise being that he must deal with your favourite show being re ran every single time you face even a minor strain in your every day routine.

Sam will sit there silently, respectful enough to not grumble at your choice of viewing material but not particularly taken in by the idea of vampires being sex symbols.

He’s not a fan, but he knows you love it and he loves you, so it’s a bareable consequence.

Although I don’t think he’s particularly watching, he is definitely a team Stefan - this being the only topic he speaks up on, both surprising and assuming you when he does

It’s the Delena kiss scene at the end of season one (Damon and Kathrine, but Sam doesn’t understand the doublegagger plot yet, give him time)

“This is all wrong” he says, between mouth fulls of salty popcorn

You turn to look at him, a questioning look on your face,

“She should stick with the other one” he mutters under his breath, eyes returning to his bowl of snacks

Paul

Unlike Sam, Paul can’t HELP but get involved.

Yer okay, he gives you shit for watching a teen romance about vampires,hybrids and the like, but he literally can’t keep his mouth shut when it’s on.

He’s FAR to involved; it’s got him gasping, laughing, often shouting at the screen.

I believe Paul to be a team Damon, he’s also a klaus fan.

Special mention to his HATRED for Tyler Lockwood; which has you a little confused until you realise it’s just Paul looking in a mirror.

Maybe an emotionally agressive, reactive werewolf is a little too close to home for Paul to enjoy.

When the pack bring it up, seeing the two of you cuddled up in front of another TVD marathon, he tries to deny his enjoyment of it but is also very defensive of the fact that it’s NOT for teens

“It’s pretty spooky actually, I only watch it to keep (you) from getting scared”

It’s a lie, and they all know it.

Jacob

Jacob is similar to Paul but HEAVY on the team Damon.

Thinks he’s a Damon, he’s actually a Matt, not that you’d be the one to tell him.

He’s the kind of guy to say he’s not watching and then ask you questions through the whole thing

“So what’s his deal again?”

“Is he trying to bang her?”

“What happened to her parents”

Ect.

He’s so busy sending you tiktoks about the show he accidentally sends one to the pack group chat and it’s all either of you hear about at every meet up or bonfire for the next 6 months.

He definitely has a big crush on Elena, not as big as his crush on you of course, but a close second

Embry & Jared

Rolling these two into one because they are both unapologetic vampire dairies fans

Jared has actually already seen the whole show, and recapped it twice by now, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t willing to watch it again with you - from start to finish.

He’s also seen the originals and legacies - Jared isn’t messing around guys, he’s a super fan.

I don’t believe Embry has seen anything TVD before you, but you suddenly realise you’ve unlocked something in him that you never expected to see.

Embry lives and BREATHES the show.

Unlike Jacob , he sends the tiktoks to the pack on purpose, hoping to get them into it too so he can talk about it when he’s on patrol.

Jared is team Stefan, Embry is team Damon - they fight (physically) about this often.

Seth and Quil

Simp simp simp

These men are both rocking team t shirts in public

Quil gives team Stefan to me but I feel he eventually will change sides with elena - by the time we get the hotel scene/kiss he’s a full fledged team Damon.

Seth is team whoever, he just loves love. He’s happy to see any of them with anyone as long as they are happy - but he does really like the Stefan redemption arc of season 3.

I feel like both the lads would be caught watching the show without you, which would lead to apologies and promises to never do it again.

Leah

Leah is a reluctant fan; like many of the others she’s not a fan of a vampire centric plot - but you’ll win her over with quality time, in bed cuddles and the Damon/Elena pipeline eventually.

Not so much a fan, but she watches it for you.

She knows you like to talk about it so she watches closely to be able to give you her educated opinion .

I feel she’s more team Damon but I KNOW she’s a Katherine apologist!

Elena tends to remind her of Bella, so she has a bit of a prejudice against the main character. Leah, as a general rule of thumb, has an issue with Mary sue type characters.

Katherine, being the anti Elena, steals Leah’s heart immediately.

There is three people in this relationship now, you will just have to accept that.

Also a fan of Rebekah!

[melrosing]

I actually hadn’t seen that quote and now I know it exists I don’t know how the limits of redemption discourse still goes on ☠️ George has literally given spoilers to get people to understand

I don’t even consider it spoilers tbh lol because I think it is just quite obvious that Jaime’s arc is a redemption arc and GRRM doesn’t have any idea how many people online are trying to argue otherwise for the sake of being contrarian.

Like we understand that one of Sansa’s key arcs is about empowerment, i.e. we see her disempowered and lacking agency, but know from the general trajectory of her story so far that through her trials she will grow into a more active and empowered character. One of Arya’s key themes is identity, so we know that whilst she’s cycling through various different names and faces, this is all building towards her becoming Arya Stark once again.

And we know this because we know how stories work!!! doesn’t mean we can say exactly how these things will happen or that these are the only themes in their story, but knowing how arcs work is just basic media literacy.

So when people come out with these limp takes about Jaime’s arc as one of failed redemption/that his arc isn’t about redemption in the first place and wait for applause….. idk I just have to cringe.

bc it’s always backed with these sad little notions about ‘Jaime saving Brienne from a bear because she reminds him of himself and he’s that self obsessed’ or ‘Jaime saved KL to save his own skin’ or ‘Jaime sent Brienne to look for Sansa bc he couldn’t be bothered’ or ‘Jaime’s actions at Riverrun show that he’s just a Tywin wannabe’.

Sorry but this is just such a sad fucking way to read a book lol. Like. you must KNOW that that’s not what these scenes mean?? you must know that GRRM, who himself hates nihilism and says he believes in redemption, is not someone who would waste his fucking time writing a story about a character who starts out shit, does a handful of accidentally/selfishly good things, then decides he can’t be bothered anymore and dies. like is that really the story you want to see?? be honest lmao

I’ve said before I think that apart from the people who really can’t get their heads around the idea that redemption is even a theme here (and as for them…. what can you even say lol), the rest is just bad faith reading from ppl who are desperate to prove they weren’t taken in by Jaime Lannister and his charms, and want to shit on ‘the fangirls’ whilst they imagine themselves nodding sagely when he, inevitably, capsizes as a character in the next book. like for sure. Jaime, after abandoning his army to follow Brienne into the woods in hopes of saving Sansa, will meet LSH and decide he can’t be arsed w redemption and so will promptly go running back to KL to commit some kind of mutual suicide with Cersei because ofc, that relationship has to be as static as the rest of his character, as they see it.

I mean sorry but how am I meant to take that shit seriously lol it’s just not how stories function. that’s not subversive that’s just bad

[diientedegato]

I'm curious if you have any thoughts on what Ben Paul would look like if he was alive years after S1 of TWDG :> I honestly prefer to imagine both him & Kenny going off on their own adventures after S1, because Idk if I'd've had Kenny as part of S2, it felt like when he returned it became less Clem's story & more his. That might be controversial among fans but it's how I feel :s I like to imagine Ben, Kenny & Sarita forming their own little family in fact <3 I'd expect Ben would end up with shaggier hair after a while but I wouldn't mind knowing what he'd look like with short, spiked up hair ;>

IM SORRY BOTH THE ASK AND DRAWING ARE OLD- but I came across the sketch I had eugeugeh. I do not have many headcanons but behind the cut is just a rant about. Kenny mostly. Too much should I warn? But yah I'm sorry it took me like 5 months lol

The only headcanon (regarding Ben's appearance) is that he'd keep his school jacket for as long as possible. Until it thorns apart. Or until he dies.

I'm big fan of Ben lives possibility btw I've gotta draw sum about that sometime (I say, about every twdg character i like,)

And dude, do I agree about Kenny. Man doesn't belong in season 2. The character they made him to be in the second season is not Kenny, it's just a nostalgia element. Don't get me wrong, I love the guy, I'm biased as hell, I break that hug choice every time. But it made the character development in the first season just.... pointless. "For some reason, I saved that piece of shit Ben", man, that quote just disappoints me. Kenny lost everything. Father and husband of none no more, which was pretty much the arc of Kenny on the first season?? I think? . Everything he loved and he had he lost, and he killed the person responsible for it. But not as revenge, he killed a kid out of mercy. He saved the boy from suffering a painful death, and that was forgiveness, to the reason he hadn't any. He took a decision he would be fully responsible of, when it was time for him to go. And he was perfect.

Hell, if he had appeared during season 2, I do prefer the Kenny as Carver idea. Clementine wasn't even that close to Kenny in the past, the player was, so even then it feels... off, off to be forced to care about a man that says so much he wants to protect you. (They're not really family, but is as if Kenny tries to protect and have Clem on his side, to have Clem's loyalty through and through. Though he does let her go and is proud of her on her individuality... hm.) But still, I mean, second season Kenny is not first season Kenny, and it isn't even a change that made sense. If he had been antagonist (which pretty much feels like it in the Canon story already), he should have had some other background story, no Sarita or company. Maybe then the cynical view he has would have mattered. The violence and anger and whatever else. For him to change that way was a consequence of him losing what he represented, protection of family? Wasn't failure and grief and acceptance meant to be important after all?

But otherwise yea I think it would've been pretty cool if Ben survived :3 I am a sucker for tales of redemption, forgiveness, and found family. And I hadn't thought about Kenny, Ben, and Sarita, but hell yeah. Man, even if they appeared in the second season, it would've been interesting if the choice wasn't between two individuals, but between two families. Ben already had a relationship with Clem! He appreciated her and calls her his only friend during season 1, he did leave her behind during that scene, -but the point of Ben was that- He was a coward all the season, until when he wasn't. He wanted to help Lee help Clem. They would've had an interesting sibling relationship-? also Ben had a young sister before the apocalypse so ooooh projection and parallels and shi. And if Ben had lived, he would've completed his development to something close to bravery-?

Well, I don't know, at least I think that'd be one interesting way to bring back old characters. Otherwise, Kenny should only be mentioned on dialogue maximum. The way I see it.

(I repeat the same thing over and over when I talk about something I'm sorry

(I've developed no language skills whatsoever in my life

(Yippee

[tizzyizzy]

More Reasons Izzy's Death Doesn't Work

Assuming you're not writing grimdark where the point is that no one is safe, it can be tricky to pull off killing a sympathetic character in a satisfying way. S2 does not nail the landing. Here are a trio of types of character deaths, and why Izzy's doesn't end up succeeding any any of them.

The Tragic Death

A tragic death, first and foremost, Bad. The audience should be sad, the framing is sad. This death is meant to raise the stakes, or deal an emotional blow to the other characters. If the major villain does it, it makes them seem more menacing, and makes the audience hate them even more. This often occurs in the "dark moment" before the third act, and is part of the protagonist's internal struggle under the weight of their mission. Their death helps the goal seem impossible to reach. If it happens at the climax, the death shows the costs of victory.

Is Izzy's death a tragic death? It's true he's shot by the main villain at the climax but...no. Ricky wasn't defeated; he's still out there. The main couple don't actually intend to pursue him, and are instead settling in to a happy life. Most importantly, Izzy's death was nowhere near sad enough to function as a tragic death. Sure, there was some sadness in his death scene, but the funeral scene was incredible short and almost offensive in its lack of emotional impact. If anything, Izzy's death seems to have cleared up Ed's emotional issues instead of burdening him with despair.

The Final Redemption

This is a classic for redeemed villains and cynical antiheroes. In these deaths, the character marks the end of their character arc by making some final sacrifice for the greater good or their new friends. Their death has meaning for the dead character, the plot, and those they sacrificed themselves to protect.

Izzy's cause of death is more or less random. He just happens to be the one holding the knife to the villain's back.

You could say Izzy's final words are his final redemption, with him giving a final apology. This could work, but unfortunately, not with Ed. At least not how it was handled here.

Izzy had already completed his character arc of accepting Ed retiring and supporting Stede and Ed's relationship. Worse, any of Izzy's wrongs against Ed pale in comparison to Ed's wrongs against Izzy, especially in S2. It doesn't help that Ed had an entire arc of him failing to come even slightly close to making up for what he did. So instead of being glad that Izzy apologized to Ed on his deathbed, we're baffled Izzy is apologizing to the man who forced him to eat his own toes, shot off his leg, and drove him to suicide.

And his dying words fall on deaf ears, since Ed just up and leaves his "family" immediately.

The Good Death

Everyone has to die sometime. A good death is a scene where a character dies, usually due to some sort of natural cause, at peace. This may mean they're surrounded by family and friends, or doing what they love to do most. The point is that, while death is inevitable, to die well is still a happy ending.

Izzy's death isn't peaceful, and following a sneaky plan from Stede isn't what he loves to do most. Worst of all, he isn't surrounded by family. Sure, a some people say he is, but watch the scene again. The reason Roach doesn't even attempt to help Izzy is not only because Izzy is a goner (for some reason). He is also giving Ed space to be with Izzy semi-privately.

Everyone who Izzy developed relationships with is standing back in favor of Ed, who he has just barely started to get along with again. You can't even get a good look at the faces and reactions of some of the characters who had the most meaningful interactions with Izzy.

You could say it's a good death because he is with Ed, but the plot has simply failed to build this up as something satisfying. In fact, focusing on Ed is sort of tragic in and of itself. If this is Izzy's ideal happy ending, it suggests he was obsessed with Ed to the point he'd rather die giving advice and closure to Ed (who will ignore his advice) than be close to the people who actually helped him heal and find peace.

Conclusion

Writing this actually helped clarify, I think, why the death didn't work, but might seem to be doing something on the surface.

There are all sort of bits from each of these meaningful types of deaths. Izzy's speech to Ricky seems like a statement that could seem like part of a brave, dramatic confrontation or last stand, but the actual killing blow falls out of nowhere, without drama. There is tale of revenge that the leads have no interest in pursuing. Izzy's apology is supposed to be a capstone to his development with Ed, but Izzy's supposed corruption of Ed was so downplayed compared to Ed's brutal abuse of Izzy that him apologizing felt more offensive than cathartic. We're supposed to feel like Izzy finally got to die happy after a long life, but Izzy's life just seemed to be starting after healing from his trauma, with his life snatched away just when he was beginning to explore its possibilities.

This is the danger of relying on tropes without understanding the underlying reason why they work. It's why you can't say, "Izzy is a mentor figure, actually, so he should die for Ed's development" on the day you're shooting the scene.

[myfairstarlight]

This is a post about a part of s3 I've been struggling to put into words, but oh well, let's try anyhow:

I think, if it had been anyone else's season other than Polin's, and if anyone else had been Whistledown, Cressida could have had a proper redemption arc.

When we first learned she would get a sort of redemption arc this season, I expected Cressida and Penelope to have at least one proper conversion. It would be odd to have Penelope's bully get a happy ending in her season without them at least talk it out, right? Well...

The thing about her journey this season is that her redemption was about trying to be less of a mean girl, but never to amend for the bullying she's done before. Her behaviour was explained by her terrible home life, but we do not get the feeling she regrets it, Eloise calls her out and she's like oh well, guess I will stop now, and that is it, because it was a means to an end, that's how she's been raised to be.

I've seen people wonder why Eloise didn't give her some money to escape and to that I say: which money? She's a Bridgerton, but she's also a woman, she does not have any money to her name, she would need to ask Benedict and as close they are, I doubt Benedict would just accept to do that, or she would need to ask Colin and he hates Cressida because of the way she's always treated Penelope. It's an endless circle, even Violet did not really approve of their friendship, even if she didn't meddle to avoid a repeat of last season. Cressida's behaviour led to people turning her back on her. However, Eloise knew Cressida's struggles, knew the fate that awaited her if she had just sat back and done nothing, and she turns her back on her so quickly? It was a bit jarring I admit but in Eloise's defence, I think her main gripe is that Cressida is blatantly lying and taking credits for someone else's work, this line stood out the most:

That scene is also a direct parallel to Eloise and Penelope's fight as Cressida regresses and lashes out, the difference being here, Eloise admits she's been envious of Whistledown. Something she could not admit last season, but now can after a year trying to fit in society and being miserable in it. Furthermore, now that the Queen thinks Cressida is Whistledown, Eloise sees this as her way out to secure her family's safety and her brother's happiness without breaking his heart, she's the one who suggests that Penelope just give it up, let Cressida take the name, so no one has to be hurt more, while Penelope is the one who still wanted to tell Colin.

But back to the topic at hand. If anyone else had been Whistledown, I feel like Cressida would have thought that she could have appealed to her emotions, perhaps manipulate her. Whistledown is power indeed, they all knew that, and she knew if anyone could help restore her reputation, it is the real deal. But then she finds out Penelope is behind the column, and there's still unresolved tension between them because they never talked and they were in competition for Debling not so long ago. Penelope also just married a Bridgerton, whose name Cressida just tried to slander in her fake column (granted, because of Lady Cowper's influence). Cressida has no one else in her corner, the clock is ticking, and she definitely doesn't think Penelope would help willingly (although I personally think she would have eventually, as Penelope's been grappling with the damage she's done herself as Whistledown, and in anonymity. After all that season, she was trying to change her column, and use it to uplift the other debutantes), so Cressida resorts to blackmailing instead.

This brings more drama, and I think that's why her arc was doomed from the start - the writers never made her feel remorse for the bullying, and Penelope never learns of her reasons (not that it would mean she'd need to forgive her for the bullying anyway). I personally think it was compelling, that you could understand her actions and her desperation, but she kept making worse decisions despite the choices offered to her. And again, she kind of parallels Penelope in that way, and the big difference by the end of s3 is that Penelope had the support of her family who listened and understood her once she had the confidence to stand up to them but Cressida was alone.

I originally did not care much for her character, and I'm still mostly neutral about her. She is a young woman put in an impossible position and if they ever bring her back, I hope she can find her own peace and properly grow from her mean girl persona, but I doubt she can find that near the Bridgertons now.

[meraki-yao]

RWRB Movie Thoughts: Philip

Honestly I might be the only one, but I wanna know more about Philip in the movie. And at the very least, I am begging for a redemption arc in the sequel.

Because they fucking cut the Kensington Breakfast scene, we barely get any of Philip in the movie. And the consequence is while we know that just like the book, Philip is an antagonistic character, we're not sure about his stance on the matter.

So the thing is Philip in the book isn't homophobic. And by that I mean that in the most generous sense: Queen Mary straight up says it's unnatural, which is the textbook definition of homophobia, but Philip says, and I quote from Henry "Essentially, I gathered that he was not surprised to discover I am not the heterosexual heir I'm supposed to be, but rather surprised that I do not intend to keep pretending to be the heterosexual heir I'm supposed to be" and from the man himself "I don't care if you're gay, I care that you've made this choice with him, someone with a fucking target on his back, to be so stupid and naive and selfish as to think it wouldn't completely fuck us all!"

Philip isn't necessarily against the concept of homosexuality, he's against bringing that into their family, and is worried about the conservatives turning their backs on them because of that. In a way, his stance is closer to the King in the movie than the Queen in the book.

Other stuff we can learn about Philip from the book:

he's...kind of racist, but in the form of microaggressions (his comments on Pez during Wimbleton)

He is genuinely in love with Martha, and he's kind of a hen-pucked husband (his retelling of his and Martha's suitor photos)

He started off a people pleaser, then the Queen took that and made him an asshole (explanation of why the change of attitude after Alex and Henry's photoshoot)

He wanted Arthur's approval but never got it, and resents Arthur a bit because of that (his argument with Henry before they met with the queen)

He wants to get along with his siblings, he just kept doing it the wrong way

My point is, even though a relatively minor character, Philip's motivations and character is actually painted out pretty logically if you take a closer look. His redemption in the book, his change of attitude, it makes sense if you looks back on it.

And while I can't fault the movie for cutting down details like these, this is just the way adaptation works and Matthew did an excellent job of picking and choosing, it does leave space for questions and curiosity.

The only thing I can get out of movie Philip is 1, he also loves his wife, since they're childhood sweethearts 2, the King dismisses him 3, he didn't know Henry was gay at all.

From the deleted Breakfast scene bts from Taylor and Thomas, we know that Philip is in that scene, and that Philip sees something, and is in shock.

Bur from the bts of the Thanksgiving scene, he and Martha are at the Brownstone: he's forgiven.

So here are my questions:

Is Philip homophobic in this one? Or is he also more mad about the family aspect?

Does he, at any point in the 65 deleted scenes, act like he wants to be a brother? Like he genuinely cares about his siblings

What is he reacting to during the Breakfast scene? In the book, when Henry came out to him it was just him, Henry and later Shaan, but the Breakfast has all of the Super Five there. Is he really gonna make a scene in front of all five of them?

Why is he forgiven? What is his change of heart?

I don't know, I think it's probably just me who's wondering about him of all people. But I would really like to see more of Thomas in this role (the photobooth shoots he did with Nick and Ellie, peak sibling energy) and I'm just really interested in Henry's family dynamic in the movie-verse, given that I feel like it's less black-and-white and more... realistic? than the book? There's also part of me that's somewhat sympathetic towards Philip despite being a Henry-coded girl because I feel like if I was a less feeling person, I might have ended up just like him.

Anyway, yeah. Philip redemption arc in the sequel please!!!

[unordinary-diary]

Blyke and John: Parallel Characters

I’ve written multiple entries about this,

[x] [x] [x]

But I’m back to make a comprehensive analysis about the glaring similarities between these two. I’ll try not to repeat myself here.

‼️SPOILER WARNING for the whole series‼️ but this mostly focuses on the story before John’s suspension.

Firstly, this scene:

ch. 121

This conversation takes place near the beginning of the Joker arc. It’s after John targets Zeke, after he targets Juni, and the day before he goes after Seraphina’s kidnappers. The timing is important.

“If someone hit your best friend, would you let it slide?”

That question is supposed to remind us what John does to people who hurt Seraphina: hunting them down and sending them to the hospital. Blyke shooting a destructive beam really close to John was an example of a trait they share: they both blow up violently when people mistreat their friends.

John’s downward spiral carries strong themes of hypocrisy. He’s angry at the world, he’s angry at himself, and as a coping mechanism, he chooses to believe that everyone else is as bad as he is. That means that most of the traits he hates others for are the same things he hates about himself. In this scene, Blyke is unintentionally calling out this hypocrisy: “What I did is no different from what you do”.

But Blyke’s just trying to connect with John here, he has no idea what John’s been doing. And John, of course, doesn’t give a shit about what Blyke has to say. This line was here for the audience to notice.

They’re both so similar, but their similarity immediately causes tension between them because, well, John was on the wrong end of Blyke’s protectiveness.

I really love the way this was written— there are so many flashbacks to this scene, but they remember it differently. John remembers the part that hurt him— he’d describe it as “the time that jackass shot a beam at me”. Blyke remembers the part that hurt him, or rather, hurt Remi: “the time that jackass hit Remi for no reason”.

Blyke and John are both hotheaded characters with strong ideals. They’re similar enough that Seraphina points it out:

(ch. 80)

As Blyke grows as a character, he becomes more like John: sticking up for low tiers and speaking out against the injustice in the world. But while Blyke is doing that more, John is going in the opposite direction, until they are fully opposed to each other.

Speaking of Blyke’s character arc, it took me a few rereads to actually understand what part of him changed. His kindness, selflessness, bravery— all of those things were there from the start. Blyke’s character arc was about becoming more aware of his surroundings, and how his carelessness can harm others. Blyke was never malicious, but after X-Rei and integrating more with the school, he becomes aware of people suffering around him and how he unintentionally contributes to it. He becomes less reckless, privy to the flaws in the system he grew up not questioning, and uses his power more responsibly. He even comes up with a more controlled way to wield his ability. The part of Blyke that changes is his maturity.

Part of John’s character arc is also about being careful. It’s not as close of a parallel as other things are, but one of the things that John works on during his redemption arc is holding back. Both of them learn self-control throughout the series, and for John, that means acting early before his emotions spiral out of hand.

Adding onto my first point about the two of them wanting to protect their friends— the fact that they can’t do that makes them both angry and desperate. For most of the story, the “block” that prevents John from protecting Seraphina is in his head. It’s his own trauma that holds him back. The block that prevents Blyke from protecting his friends is, guess what? Also John’s trauma! Parallels abound.

Another thing I noticed in Episode 80 is this:

Notice that when Seraphina says “I’d take that over strength any day,” John is looking at the camera. He’s avoiding Sera’s gaze. Seraphina is saying she prefers honesty over strength. John is very strong, and very dishonest, but Seraphina thinks the opposite because John is so dishonest. John appears to be reflecting on this disconnect.

In relation to this analysis, Seraphina is actually pointing out a major difference between Blyke and John. Beyond that, she’s praising Blyke’s traits, (less strong but very open) above John’s traits, (strong as fuck but a liar with his pants on fire). Furthermore, John really cares what Seraphina thinks of him. Knowing that she would think less of him is the main reason why he spent so much time and effort preventing her from catching his lies.

This leads into my main point here: Blyke is the “goody-two-shoes” version of John. Or, more accurately, the person that John wants to be. Blyke has a clean track record and doesn’t really get into trouble. He is respected and left alone by the school without being hated and feared, he de-escalates conflicts without taking things too far, he doesn’t lose control, he’s someone Seraphina thinks highly of, hell, even his grades are better! Blyke represents everything that John wants to be, and the person that he could have been if he’d gone down a different path.

But, crucially, John is also what Blyke wants to be. Well, not wholly, but his ability? His strength? It’s one of the things John hates about himself, but Blyke wants that strength so desperately that he risks his life for it over and over again.

They’re both desperate to be like each other, even when they hate each other the most. Neither of them have any idea how alike they already are.

I don’t know what Season 3 holds in store for us, but I do hope that John realizes that Blyke embodies who he wants to be, because mutual jealousy would be a very interesting dynamic to explore in my opinion. I also hope that it ends up being something they can bond over, by helping each other accomplish their personal goals. (Blyke being another helper in John’s character arc, and John helping Blyke train.)

A side note: John beat up Blyke four separate times. That’s more than any other character, which is interesting because John’s main rival is supposed to be Arlo. For reference, John has beaten Arlo twice, three times if you count the time when Seraphina intervened, and he only beat him unconscious once. But John beat Blyke to the point of passing out all four times, the worst of which being a shot clean through his chest. (shoulder? Unclear. S1 finale).

It’s odd, isn’t it? Out of everyone, Blyke is the one who John physically hurt the most. John’s only grudge against him is an old memory from episode 33, of an event that didn’t actually harm him. John’s grudge against Arlo is much more serious and again— that’s his main rival. So why is it that he’s so much more violent towards Blyke?

The problem here is that I’ve been thinking about these fights as “John picking on Blyke”. And that’s… kind of true? But while Blyke didn’t start any of these fights, they were all consensual in a way. He didn’t seek to fight John, nor was he ever happy about fighting John, but he was always a willing participant.

(138, 153, 206, & 211)

In three out of these four fights, John didn’t even expect to be fighting Blyke going into it. This is significant because while Arlo is John’s main rival, John absolutely fills that role for Blyke. Blyke’s own agency is what leads to most of these events. The reason, narratively speaking, why they fight so much is not for John’s character, but for Blyke.

For John, his reason for fighting Blyke so much is not narrative but moreso symbolic. John is angry at everyone and everything, but ultimately the person he hates the most is himself. It’s only fitting that the character most like him would bear the brunt of his wrath.

As John is having his positive character arc (suspension and post-suspension), he is becoming more like Blyke, and the two of them reach a point where they’re even more similar than they were at the start of the series.

In the Rowden amusement park, John does start to realize how similar they are:

(249)

Additionally, I want to draw your attention to the parallels between this scene:

Blyke and John’s argument in chapter 249

(which the image limit won’t let me add, scroll until you see red hair.)

And this scene:

Argument in ch. 121 (it’s at the beginning)

Two sides of the same coin.

Furthermore, in the S2 finale, Blyke is shown being taken to Keon. There is an implication that by Season 3, Blyke and John will share Keon-related trauma as well. Despite my pessimistic predictions, I do hope that this is a similarity that can bring them together rather than tear them apart.

[coraniaid]

🔥 - Cordelia

Cordelia is a character I generally like without actually thinking about her very much, if that makes sense? Maybe I would care about her more actively if I were more invested in Angel; or maybe knowing what that show will ultimately do to her is what stops me from getting invested in it. Not really sure either way to be honest.

As far as hot takes go ... well, I don't think I really buy into most of the Cordelia fanon I sometimes see on Tumblr. Can't really put why better than I did last year. Like I said in my recent Faith hot take: I don't like the fanon instinct to try to make characters nicer and more sympathetic than they're presented as in canon, especially when they have some kind of canonical redemption arc. You're getting rid of one of the more interesting things about them! Why?

On the other hand, I do like the headcanon (not originally mine - I think I got this from @all-seeing-ifer) that Cordelia is ace, or at least that she's accidently ace-coded. I mean, I certainly don't think it is at all deliberate on the part of the writers, but when you go to look there sure are a lot of scenes in which Cordelia either expresses disinterest in (sometimes even disgust at) the very idea of sex (in Faith, Hope & Trick for example: "not the horny thing -- yuck!") or admits to being confused by the thought that other people might want to have sex (in Innocence, for example, she asks Xander with seeming genuine puzzlement: "does looking at guns really make girls want to have sex? That's scary.").

Oh, and although the show is really not clear on this at all, I think the high school Scooby dynamic is slightly more interesting if Willow and Cordelia were (briefly) friends when they were both much younger. To borrow a term I saw recently, this is more canon compatible than canon compliant -- I don't think anything in canon rules it out, but it's a bit of a stretch to say this something that actually comes from canon.

Certainly Xander and Cordelia knew each other from a very young age (they've known each other for at least twelve years in Season 2, as per The Dark Age). And as Willow and Xander were friends as early as kindergarten (which is confirmed in Grave if not before), I think it's safe to assume Cordelia knew Willow at that age too. In Innocence Willow reminds Xander of the "We Hate Cordelia" club ("of which you are treasurer!"), but we don't know exactly when this was formed (I'm guessing a while ago though, given the childishness of the name). What if said club was something Willow formed only after she and Cordelia stopped being friends? After Cordelia met Harmony, say (who we also know, from Graduation Day, is somebody Willow has known for at least a decade: "she picked on me for ten years") and chose being popular over her previous friendship?

Again, I suspect this isn't intentional but it's a take I rather like, and one that I think makes a bit of internal sense. Willow and Cordelia do actually seem to get on better than you might think in the early seasons -- when there's nobody else around for Cordelia to try to impress by putting Willow down, anyway (among other examples, see their intereactions throughout Prophecy Girl). And while Willow obviously doesn't like, say, Harmony -- in fact she hates her "with a fiery vengeance" according to Graduation Day again -- there was apparently no "we hate Harmony" club. What makes Cordelia different (beyond being a main character when Harmony isn't, which is probably what the writers actually had in mind).

Well, what if Cordelia isn't just one of the many people who bullied Willow in high school: what if she was her friend until she ditched her to be more popular? Wouldn't that sting just a little bit more?

We know that Cordelia is actually pretty smart, even though she tries to play it down ("I have some experience of covering these things up," she tells Xander after he sees her SAT scores in Lovers Walk; and don't forget she'd previously said she was "looking forward" to taking the SATs because she "does well in standardized testing" and was accepted into multiple good schools she just couldn't afford to attend). In fact, Cordelia basically has to be academically successful in high school in order to fulfull her primary role as Buffy's shadow self.

But if Cordelia consciously realised at some point that she should hide how smart she is from her peers in order to be popular, is it that much of a stretch to think she also decided to cut off her existing friendship with Willow, who Principal Snyder describes in Doppelgangland as represenative of "the pinnacle of academic achievement at Sunnydale High"?

Also, in the spirit of this post about parallels between Willow and Cordelia (which I really like), it's interesting to compare Willow's nightmare in Restless -- being back in high school and somehow being Found Out -- with Cordelia's fear in Season 1's Nightmares of being dragged into the chess club (which, at least in the language of television) is easy to read as a metaphor for being exposed as somebody who is secretly brainy and perhaps enjoys stereotypically academic or nerdy things. Just like Willow does, in fact.

Remember what Cordelia tells Buffy all the way back in Welcome To The Hellmouth when they run into Willow: "if you want to fit in here, the first rule is: know your losers". That is: Cordelia tells Buffy, the girl who she serves as a mirror of all season, that if she wants to fit in she'll have to choose not to be friends with Willow (and instead performatively belittle and bully her whenever she has an audience). Is it that much of a leap to suppose that a much younger Cordelia once learned that lesson herself?

[flower-boi16]

I would like to ask what your opinion is on MDHWrites's blog, or some of his most comprehensive takes criticizing the show at large, for he's covered a lot of ground. What is your regard for his opinions, if you have seen it.

The second I saw this ask pop up in my inbox my thought was "should I even answer this?". On one hand, I would like to express my opinions on Writes' TOH takes since I have er...strong feelings about some of them, but on the other hand part of me still feels a bit iffy about it.

For my 200+ followers who don't know who tf this anon is talking about; MDHWrites is a tumblr user who makes a heavy amount of posts critisizing TOH, he's kind of the most well-known TOH critic on this site, at least in the TOH critical commuinity (and yes, TOH has a critical commuinity).

I remember once randomly stumbling across Writes' blog when I was new to tumblr and first discovered that critical tags were a thing and I started reading some of his posts. I don't remember exactly what all the posts I read said but I do vaguely remember some of the points Writes' made in the posts.

This was at a time where I kinda just accepted critisicm of things I liked rather than actually thinking about the validetly of the takes, and since Writes' posts sounded proffesional enough (and because I went on the toh critical tag and watched videos critisizing the show WAY too much) I think I kinda just forgot why I liked the show in the first place...? I know that sounds weird but I first watched TOH when I was 13 (I'm 14 now) and my analysis skills were still developing at the time.

A couple of months later after I rewatched The Owl House and fell back in love with the show leading me to grow an attatchment to it that was stronger than ever before I thought back to Writes' posts and decided to revist his blog and read a handful of posts out of curiosity to see what his points were. And...I thought going in that there might be some good points about the show but...I can't really say I agree with any of his takes.

While I don't Writes' TOH takes are Lily Orchard levels of infuriatingly media illiterate, and Writes' doesn't look like a bad person...I don't think his TOH takes are that good. They sounded professional at first but everytime I think about them I notice more holes. That's all I'm going to say. I don't want to cover Writes' TOH takes in detail because I know some might alert him of this post, he'll see it and I'll end up starting an argument I don't really want that.

I guess I'll just say that I think his comments about the understood scene in the posts I read feel like he completely missed the point of it. The scene is meant to be a moment of realization for Luz of what she truely wanted, it's not intended to be a "character finish" and just because she realized what ultimately wanted doesn't mean that her self-loathing and guilt of helping Belos is just going to go away.

He even goes as far as to say it doesn't matter to Luz as a character in his post about filler in TOH, where he labled several episodes that are extremely important for outside context as "filler" by the standards of the general commuinity that complains about Amphibia's filler (that post is a whole other can of worms that I don't want to get into) which is just....baffling.

I could also get into things like Writes' takes on Luz's depression arc or his post about Waffles or his post about grom factor (a fan comic by moringmark) but again I don't want to say anymore things here beyond that.

I just don't agree with most of the takes that Writes has on the show. I will say sometimes he makes interesting points like his post about why the boiling isles woulden't work as a setting to a sequel series which does raise some valid points and his analysis of Boscha's "redemption" on my post that he reblogged was fairly interesting (though his reasons for Luz reaching out to the collector not making any sense weren't valid to me) but overall I don't care for his TOH takes.

[rhondafromhr]

More ideas/headcanons for the ‘Nerds Corruption AU’

Link to the original post for those who aren’t familiar: https://www.tumblr.com/rhondafromhr/738012368733356032/dont-get-me-wrong-i-love-max-redemption-arcs-in

-The LIB adopt their human forms after the first time Max, Steph and the nerds summon them and RELENTLESSLY make fun of their true/eldritch forms. “our real forms would melt your minds” yeah sure whatever you need to tell yourself Pokey

-Tinky tries to use having Ted in the bastard box as leverage against Pete, but he just doesn’t care because that’s not his brother, it’s some other Pete’s brother from another timeline so it’s not his problem.

-Once everyone in the group starts acting like an agressive bully the way Max does, Grace finds herself attracted to all of them and has a crisis over it.

-At some point Max tries to apologize for before (“sorry for bullying you guys all these years, you never deserved that, everyone we’re currently bullying does but you didn’t.”) Now that they’re all literal monsters too they just dismiss him like “don’t apologize, we get it now, the power trip is fucking awesome!“

-Max’s signature move of using anti-bullying slogans to justify and get away with bullying is their favorite. They always tell Max how smart he is for coming up with it.

-They decide Kyle can date Brenda now but plot twist! Brenda leaves him for Ruth. Ruth taunts him for this every chance she gets and purposely makes out with Brenda in locations where he’ll have to walk by. Cue Kyle sobbing in the bathroom while Jason comforts him, leading to one of very few sweet, wholesome scenes we get in this universe.

-Ruth is confident enough to perform now, which obviously means they need to sabotage the lead in The Barbecue Monologues so she can take the role. They either just straight up intimidate them into quitting or frame them for vandalizing the school and get them expelled.

-One day Pete randomly remembers the time Brad Callahan pantsed him and he and the rest of the crew just drop what they’re doing to go beat him up. When they get called into principal Blim’s office they tell him they did it because Brad was picking on Hannah Foster earlier (“what do you want us to do? Stand by and do nothing? Being a bystander is just as bad as bullying, we learned that at the anti-bullying assembly!”) Brad has been known to do that so he believes them and lets them off with a warning. When word gets around people actually do mess with Hannah a lot less.

- (already mentioned this in a separate post but I’ll put it here too) after graduation Max, Steph + the nerds run an anime/comic book store together and Richie’s the only one who knows or cares about any of it. He’s rude and condescending to customers, everyone else is not knowledgeable and completely unhelpful, Grace tells every customer they need to go read a bible instead. They have like 1.5 stars on yelp but stay in business because the next closest similar store is in Clivesdale so nobody’s going to go there

-At some point Linda Monroe comes in and sees the gang being rude to Becky Barnes, so of course she takes an instant liking to them. She becomes an investor in the store and sort of a mother figure to all of them. She encourages their bad behavior, giving them tips for manipulating people in a more sophisticated way. Max and Steph get especially attached to her (the three bond over their dad issues) and they go to her house once a week to drink wine and and hear all the hot gossip about Linda’s rich frienemies.

-When Roman finds out about Linda’s new investment he comes to check out the store and he’s as icy towards her as usual. True to form, Max, Steph and the nerds say the rudest, most out of pocket stuff to him (Richie goes after his appearance HARD, not realizing the irony that he looks pretty similar) and eventually he storms off. Linda’s touched that they stood up for her. She cries and tells them how proud she is. Max and Steph cry a little too because this is the first time a parental figure’s ever told them that. After this they become obsessed with impressing Linda so they can hear it again.

-Grace babysits Linda’s kids sometimes and Linda pays her an outrageous amount due to being so out of touch with regular babysitting rates (“it’s one banana, what could it cost, ten dollars?” energy). Grace refuses to babysit for Tom anymore because he can’t match these rates. One night he can’t find any other sitters, so he tries to cancel on Becky but she suggests they spend a night in with Tim instead, leading to some nice family bonding (okay there can be one more cute wholesome moment, I’ll allow it.)

-They’re rivals with Frank Pricely. They hate him because Toyzone cuts into their merch sales. He hates them back for stealing Linda, who used to drop thousands per week at his store. They always scheme to screw each other over. Black Friday doesn’t happen in this timeline solely because they pay Lex to destroy the entire shipment of wiggly dolls. This is also what gets them on the LIB’s radar, Wiggly is absolutely furious.

- (This one relates to the popular “Paul is Richie’s uncle” headcanon) At some point, Paul is at his wit’s end with Richie and makes him move out in the hopes it’ll force him to reevaluate his life and stop being so awful. He doesn’t just throw Richie out, he gives him a timeline and helps him find a place. But he’s not sure if he did the right thing. He mentions this to Ted at work and Ted says his parents did the same to him and he’s totally well-adjusted. Paul just gives him a look and says “Ted…no.” This is the catalyst for him getting involved with the group and eventually getting his own corruption arc.

-After moving out, Richie becomes roommates with Max and Ruth. Steph and Pete have a luxury apartment together downtown (Solomon pays for it because he can’t deal with her anymore and wants her out of his house). Grace has a two bedroom apartment to herself - she had a roommate at one point, but they got fed up and left. Luckily she can afford it with her cushy babysitting gig.

[eddiediazismyhusband]

Even though they've increased his episode count I think the overall point of Tommy will not change. The date scene made no sense in the context of the episode and was clearly shoehorned in to show that he and Buck are not on the same page. Buck is trying to have a genuine conversation and instead of having that conversation Tommy went straight for the daddy joke. The opposite of what Buck was going for in that scene. I think it was supposed to feel ick. It was supposed to show that they're probably not looking for the same things out of this relationship.

unfortunately i do not trust studios enough to actually show that much care… i genuinely fear they are just gonna stick with t being like that and try to play it off as “oh that’s just how he is” because it’s been done before. as much as i wanna examine things in the episode to find what is intentional, it’s really hard to look at things past the surface on this ep especially because it was so sloppy and rushed that i feel like they didn’t actually put that much thought into it.

especially now that tim has suddenly decided he isn’t against “fan service” anymore (which…. i have complicated feelings over fan service being an actual thing but that’s another story for another time)

tim has suddenly decided to start playing into this whole t arc after all these fans started fawning over him— yeah he’s underdeveloped and 2 dimensional, but this whole season has been the same.

this finale set up nothing for me except that eddie is sad (i mean… he jsut lost his son for fuck’s sake and all we see is him just 😐😐 like the writers barely even gave him any feelings in the episode aside from the scene where chris left and even then it was…. minimal?) and that G is back…. and so my thoughts are why bring G back?

to showcase to the others what Hen and Chim went through? okay, but how does that move the plot along…. do we showcase T’s own complacency and use that to show that he’s not as good of a person as the fans and lou are making him out to be? that would be the obvious choice narratively….

but then you risk upsetting half the fandom who have been harassing journalists and other fans for being critical/not caring about this character by reiterating that he is in fact not a good guy, and has had no development to show us otherwise— if anything he’s still the same just with a pride flag filter smacked on his forehead.

so they use this as a cheap lukewarm redemption arc for him to “make up” for his actions. they do the white savior.

and if they spend time to showcase T’s development as a character…. then why not keep him around. and if you keep him around, what esle would he be there for if not as a love interest? it’s just another textbook example of “we only had the balls to make half of this ship queer so we’re gonna just call it a day and leave it as it is bc we don’t actually care about good rep, we care about the money and attention that any rep brings to the show.”

i am not saying this to disagree with you, i fully felt like the date scene was icky and out of place… but unfortunately i don’t trust the writers (especially not KR) enough to believe that anything this season was actually thought out after this episode has seemingly left us with barely anything to explore beyond maybe the first few episodes of s8

[royal-they]

You know the whole hunter having scars on his hand’s theory was an interesting bit. As much as I enjoyed that theory, I feel like the symbolism behind Hunter’s hands in general is just as interesting. 

When we are properly introduced to the Golden Guard in Separate Tides - I know he’s technically in the finale of season one but whatever - we have no clue what he looks like beyond this version of him. He’s confident, bold, and incredibly dangerous. And as much as I enjoy the Golden Guard this version of Hunter it feels like there isn’t a lot to him at this point. We don’t know a lot about him, we don’t even know what he looks like. 

Then Hunting Palisman comes along, 

(I picked this screenshot because it amuses me greatly lol) To me this is Hunters actual introduction. We learn a lot about him, and most importantly that there’s clearly a lot more than what meets the eye. The reveal of his face is completely involuntary, and it throws him off his game a lot in my opinion. (haha throws like throws him off the ship- excuse me, my humor is bad ignore me)

His power at this time is heavily reliant on his persona, the Golden Guard. His age is a big part of this it seems. People aren’t taking him as seriously anymore, not even Luz if we’re being quite honest. He’s just some grumpy kid, and Luz is a huge empath and starts to understand him more and in turn we also get to. 

It doesn’t feel like a huge coincidence that when his face is shown we get to see more of him as a person as well. 

But there’s another detail about this scene that sticks out to me personally, 

Hunter just shows his wrist. Now this could very well be because his sigil is on his wrist, but it also feels very purposeful. Like nobody's supposed to see his hands. 

Hands are very telling of a lot of things. Hands are quite sensitive, hands are quite expressive, and hands can - in my opinion - tell you a lot about someone. 

Yet throughout this whole episode Hunter is quite resistant to show any part of himself other than the Golden Guard. 

But there's a clear shift when Hunter tells Luz his name. He stops threatening her, and he pulls down his mask. This time by choice. He wants to open up to her, at least a little. And this is the start of Hunters redemption in my mind.

When he starts to let down his guard. However, 

Kikimora strikes him right after he opens up.

Hunter pulls the mask right back up though. Which, wasn’t really needed? Like you could argue that it was so she wouldn’t recognize him, but she literally says, who’s there. So, it feels like the only reason he did that is because it makes him feel safe, it’s a security tool of sorts. Which makes a lot of sense, he’s a child soldier of course he feels a lack of security.

Their a lot more open with this message in Thanks to Them, 

He acts so much like the Golden Guard throughout this. He’s trying to come across as dangerous, which okay how the hell are you going to fight Belos with a rake in crocs but whatever. 

The symbolism of what the mask means to him is made quite clear. As I said before, it makes him feel secure. He’s not as reliant on it anymore, but in the moment it does make him feel better. Confident and sure of himself as Hunter seems to put it. 

Now I know, I said I going to talk about his hands and I haven’t really and I’m sorry, I’m getting there. 

One of the most pivotal parts of Hunters arc is arguably Any Sport in a Storm, it’s when he finally smiles and he’s a lot more trusting and happier. His pose is very showing of that, throughout this episode he never hides his face and in this shot he holds out his hands. 

His stance is open and welcoming because he genuinely feels that these other kids are people he can trust. He hasn’t had that up to this point other than with Flapjack. 

The way he says “I’m your friend now.” is really interesting to me. In his mind he wasn’t their friend before, they were friends with Caleb not Hunter. Which, he’s not completely wrong, he was hiding a lot. However, he was still Hunter. His personality wasn’t any different. But Hunter doesn’t really know how relationships work, he views his relationships only existing if he’s giving the other person something. In this case, it’s a job. Now their friends, because now he’s contributed something. The others don’t view it this way at all though, because it’s not supposed to be this way, 

This is a line that I feel was incredibly important. Hunter isn’t aware this is the case and even after he denies it. But Gus probably more than anyone knows this is true and I think that’s what makes Labyrinth Runners work so well. They both understand what it’s like to be as Gus puts it, stabbed in the back. (Also just like, Wittebros foreshadowing lmao)

Gus gets what Hunter been through. The things he’s dealt with are on a much smaller scale next to Hunter’s but it doesn’t take way from them. It makes perfect sense that they’re able to connect like this. That their able to later on be open with each other. 

All right lets tie all this together and bring it back to his hands cuz I’ve been getting way to excited about all these other things I keep mentioning and then I want to talk about them for way to long, 

The first time we see Hunters hands is in Thanks to Them. He’s a lot happier throughout this episode and much friendlier and more open with his friends. Of which he now has! (Other than Flapjack of course) 

Every single time, every single fucking time Hunter gets to comfortable it feels like someone rips the rug out from under him. And every single time he goes back to closing himself off from everyone. 

This is made apparently clear in For the Future, 

Hunter finally gets it in this episode. I’ve mentioned before that he’s telling everything he’s telling Willow to himself as well as her before: https://at.tumblr.com/royal-they/royal-they-i-feel-like-a-lot-of-people-misread/oyirnb6vph5u 

I feel like this is important because while this is a very Willow centric episode - well also a Luz centric episode but like that’s not relevant - Hunter also has a lot of growth in this episode. 

The fact that he literally links fingers with Willow and is actually open with his feelings to her and Gus is very telling. That’s the true symbolism of his hands, they’re not just the troubles he’s faced in the past. They’re a symbol of him, his growth, his relationships. They’re not a sign of Belo’s abuse towards him, he’s not held back by it. He’s his own person, and he’s not going to hide that anymore. 

That’s too me, why Hunters hands not having scars is actually super important. 

(note: this doesn’t mean those who want to interpret him as having scars are discounting any of his character development or saying he’s not his own person separate from his trauma. im just saying that i think his hands not having scars has just as must symbolism, if not more then his hands having scars.)