#and everyone dealing with the fallout of their adventures and new revelations

[patchodraws]

i could seriously watch episode 5 of paper girls on repeat, it’s actually such a phenomenal piece of television 😩

[13runningsomething]

Chain of Events

@tmnt-write-fight Attack For @turtle--thoughts

Based on their prompt:

TMNT 2003, Donnie not coping as well as he seems with both the aftermath of Good Genes and how that indirectly led to the Foot Mystics being freed (bonus if Hurt/Comfort ensues)

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it :)

Word Count: 4021

Donatello liked to think of himself as the most sensible among his family. His scientific mind was easily capable of putting logic first in any given scenario, and dealing with any emotional fallout after the fact. He knows this quirk has more or less become a skill in the last couple years, given all the wild adventures he and his brothers have found themselves on, adventures that often compounded on top of each other with hardly any breathing room in between. That’s the old saying, isn’t it? Out of the frying pan and into the fryer?

That was probably the best description he had for the events of the last couple months. First it was some mutant monsters, courtesy of Bishop’s outbreak, then a persistent cold that refused to break, which naturally culminated in a seemingly blackout weekend that started in April’s apartment and ended at Area 51 of all places, after which Donnie was told he’d actually transformed into a raging monster himself. Huh…

The downtime after that was consequently spent resting by order of his family, and trying in vain to remember any of it for himself. Though he had noticed some small changes in that time, his logical mind concluded that he would just take longer to heal. He was the only mutant affected by the outbreak, after all. His recovery was bound to be different, right?

Weeks that felt agonizingly slow in the moment became far too brief when they were whisked away to Japan to train with the Ninja Tribunal, and informed of the looming threat of the Shredder Tengu and his Foot Mystics. None of them could afford to rest with the world at stake, and it meant everyone was essentially teetering between deep exhaustion and tense anxiety. The lighter moments were few and far between, and even those had been tainted by the deaths of their new friends and the Tribunal at the hands of the Mystics.

Those stupid Mystics.

Their most recent encounter with them was still at the forefront of Donatello’s mind. How could it not be? Considering they’d managed to resurrect their master from his grave and nearly put Karai in one of her own…

And they dropped the bombshell that’s been rattling Don’s head all night.

You are the ones who sealed her fate.

Without you we could never have freed the Shredder,

For it was you that freed us.

When you took that crystal on behalf of Agent Bishop,

You set a chain of events in motion that led to—

Everything that was currently going wrong in their lives.

He couldn’t dodge quickly enough. He couldn’t recognize his cold for what it really was. He couldn't be there to help Leatherhead, which left Bishop and Stockman as their only other option.

And they still couldn’t entirely fix him.

Don had made it into the bathroom earlier to wash up and prepare for another day of waiting to see what might happen, but having the revelation from the Mystics intruding his every thought has also managed to bring up issues he thought he’d set aside.

Like the fact that his nails are still tougher and sharper.

It isn’t by much, no where near as bad as his brothers had described from his temporarily monstrous state, but they still weren’t back to normal. Donnie tried to cut them just before they’d been Shanghaied (as Mikey put it), only to nearly break the clippers with how much extra effort it took. Even the scissors struggled with the job. If that wasn’t enough, it seemed his nails would only grow back into the same pointed shape, regardless of how flat he cut them.

Don couldn’t really convince himself that it was just in his head either, that it was some anxious response his brain manufactured if his nails got too long, because while they took a month or so to grow back, the scarring was always there.

He didn’t have to be a genius to understand why. He went from being 5’2” and 180 pounds to over seven feet tall and double his weight in a matter of seconds. He knew there’d be stretch marks, and considering how fast the “cure” took effect, he’s surprised he didn’t have more. Donnie wasn’t necessarily bothered by them cosmetically, but the fact that they were always there served as a constant reminder that their weekend at Bishop’s was real, and not just some wild story his brothers had made up to freak him out.

Don’s also not entirely unconvinced that his temporary growth spurt may have affected his actual growth, too. He and his brothers had only just turned eighteen, and he was sure they were bound to grow at least once more, mutated status not withstanding. In the weeks since his recovery though, he’s noticed himself looking down at his brothers more and more, which just felt wrong. They’ve been the same height for so many years, and being next to the youngest among the four, he didn’t expect his growth spurt to happen first. Rationally, he knew it was possible, but a deep part of his brain kept whispering that it wasn’t probable.

Unless there was something helping it along.

With this whispering in the back of his mind, Donnie began checking every drawer and cabinet in April’s bathroom for a tape measure. He rustled desperately through all of them, knowing he could’ve been quieter and more respectful of their host’s space, but his anxiety was taking on a mind of its own. Eventually, he found what he was looking for, and let the tape unroll until it was just touching the floor. Don moved in front of the mirror, holding the tape upright in one hand and pinching it off with the other where it met the top of his head. He slowly brought it down to see—

5’6”

—He really wasn’t imaging things, huh?

His infection had left him permanently scarred, permanently changed, and may now lead to the end of the world—

Nope! Nuh uh. Don was not going to hop on that little train of thought right now. Shredder and the Mystics were out somewhere, plotting their next move. Karai has yet to wake up, let alone recover from all her injuries, and they all needed to focus on understanding these new “Dragon-forms” of theirs before they could even think of using them in battle again. Donnie took a moment to breath, to find his center, and move all the spiralling fears to the back burner. There’d be plenty of time to deal with them when the world wasn’t at stake.

When he finally felt fit enough to leave, he reached for the doorknob and flicked off the light—

Red…

His eyes… were red!

Don yelped, backing away from the shocking sight until his shell collided with the wall, staring in abject horror at the glowing orbs reflected in the mirror.

He knew they were his. Despite the almost complete darkness of the bathroom, he could still see himself in the mirror clear as day.

His normal self.

Donnie takes careful steps back toward the mirror, reaching for the light switch hesitantly.

When he flicks it on again, everything seems fine. His irises are invisible beneath the white membranes, and opening those reveals their natural hazel colour.

When he flicks the light off, the burning red returns.

On again, nothing.

Off again, bloody crimson.

He continues toggling the light switch as his brain struggles to make sense of this new quirk of his. The reflection staring back at him was clear, despite the minimal lighting in the small room, the only source other than the main light being a small emergency bulb plugged in just above the vanity. He couldn’t recall at the moment if his night vision’s been any better in the last several weeks, but he figures a hulking turtle monster would probably need it for killing hunting its prey. He hadn’t had much opportunity to catch a glimpse of his own reflection while they were training in Japan (nor did he want to, given the state of his scars). If his family and friends ever noticed anything in the low candlelight they were often surrounded by, surely they would’ve brought it up with him, meaning they hadn’t seen it, which meant it wasn’t as bad as he thought and he could probably forget about it until—

“Donnie!”

The interruption, coupled with a hand snatching his own away from the light switch, startles Donatello out of the spiral. He catches Leonardo’s eyes in the mirror, gazing back at him and full of worry.

 “You trying to round up April’s electricity bill or something?” The elder speaks with a soft chuckle, but they can both tell it’s forced. The concerned stare never drops.

“No, I…” If they haven’t brought it up, that means they haven’t noticed… “It just stopped working for a minute. All good now.”

“Really?” Leo squints at him, “I was sure I could see the light flickering from down the hall.”

“… I must’ve had the wrong switch then,” Donnie tries. “It was the fan that wasn’t working.” He toggles the other switch to prove his point. “And now it’s working fine! Sorry about that, Leo.”

Donnie really tries to get past his big brother, but a hand catches his upper arm before he can make the doorjamb.

“Don, look at me.”

He refuses at first, keeping his gaze locked on the tile floor. He doesn’t want Leo to notice.

“Please…”

It’s the desperation that breaks him, so Don slowly looks up.

He’s definitely shorter than me now.

“What’s going on with you?”

Leo speaks so gently, so patiently, like he was afraid of scaring off a wild animal, and Don finally let’s everything boil over.

“It’s my fault.”

He doesn’t know when he started crying, or when standing became such a chore, but Leo catches him before he can fall, and lowers them both down against the vanity.

“Talk to me,” Leo pleads, as he pulls him into a side hug and rubs his upper arm comfortingly. “What do you think is your fault?”

“Everything,” Donnie breathes out. “The Mystics were set loose because you guys had to save me, because I couldn’t move fast enough. Everyone that they’ve hurt, that The Shredder hurts, it’s on me!”

“Don—”

“And I thought I could ignore it. If I could focus on fixing everything and saving the world, I could worry about the why and how later. But my scars, my body… it’s always gonna be different and it’s always gonna be proof of just how bad I—”

“Donnie.” Leo grabs him by both shoulders, turning to face him head-on. “Listen to me, and listen well. This is not your fault.”

He wants to protest, but Leo presses on. “None of us knew what the Mystics really were when we stole the crystal. And I don’t think we would’ve even considered the possibility of another Shredder before Splinter and the Ancient One first talked about him. You might be a genius, Don, but as good as you are at preparing for the future, you can’t predict it. I promise, it’s nothing we would ever hold against you, so there’s no need to hold it against yourself.”

As nice as it was to hear, Donnie’s still not convinced. “You heard what the Mystics said, though. This nightmare wouldn’t even be possible if I hadn’t gotten infected in the first place.”

Leonardo’s expression softens, but the determination doesn’t go away. “You can’t take what the Mystics say to heart. They’d say anything to distract us if it made defeating us easier. Besides, the day you were infected, it could’ve easily been one of us instead. We all make mistakes sometimes, and no matter how good or bad they work out, we just gotta move forward and learn from them, not spend time dwelling on them.”

“It’s harder when your mistake could bring about the end of the world, though.” Donnie draws further into himself, and Leo can feel the argument becoming lost. He thinks for a moment, drawing on anything that might truly make Donnie believe him.

“…If you really need someone to blame for this, then it would be my fault.”

Donnie’s face shoots up like a rocket. “No. What— why would you even say that?”

“Because we were the ones who stole the crystal,” Leo puts simply. “You had no say in the decision at the time, and since I’m the leader, the responsibility falls to me.”

“Leo, that doesn’t make any sense, even by your own logic,” Donnie argues emphatically. “You didn’t know about Shredder and the Mystics either, and you were still doing it to save me.”

“The responsibility doesn’t solely fall on you, Don—”

“But it doesn’t fall on you either! I thought you already got that through your head when you were with the Ancient One!”

They’re both surprised by the outburst, and Donnie feels like he’s sinned somehow. None of them really talked about Leo’s guilt complex after his trip abroad unless they really needed to, and Don’s just gone and used it against him like it was nothing.

He was just making things worse.

“Leo, I—"

“No, Don, it’s okay.” Despite what Donnie believes, he does in fact look okay. “You guys don’t need to walk on eggshells around me anymore. I know I still have things to work through, and I am, but that’s not why I would be responsible for all of this.”

“Leo, you’re not—”

“It’s because I would do it all over again, knowing the Mystics would be set free, knowing the Shredder would be set free, as long as we got you back.”

The silence in the bathroom is heavy. Donnie is too stunned to speak for a moment, and what comes out is ripe with disbelief. “How… how could you say that? How can you even justify that? I’m one person, one mutant. I’m not…” He feels like he’s gonna start crying again.

“You are to us,” Leo pleads, gripping his shoulders tightly. His face takes on a faraway look before he continues. “I don’t know if you remember, but you would’ve died without a cure.”

Donnie remembers. Leatherhead gave him a complete rundown of what had happened as soon as he was coherent enough to receive it. “Leatherhead was the one who found it, though.”

“Yeah,” Leo confirms, “and he admits that without Bishop’s lab resources, he doesn't know if you would’ve received it in time.”

Donnie hunches uncomfortably. He can’t really argue with that.

Leo turns back to him, looking earnestly at him. “We can’t survive without you, Don. If saving the world means losing you forever, I don’t think I could live with making that call, and I know Raph and Mikey couldn’t either. You’re too important to us, and I need you to see that.”

He says it like a confession, and for a brief moment, Donnie is struck by an image of his brother thirty years older, more haggard and world-wearier than he could ever believe, blinded by combat, but still no less of a warrior.

He realizes for the first time that things could’ve been even worse than they already were. His logical mind starts firing again, and he wonders just how long the Mystics have been looking for a way to break free of their prison. If it hadn’t been Bishop, would it have been someone else? Would his brothers have been left to fight them off without him, or with a monstrous version of him who couldn’t support them the same way he could now?

Would they have already fallen apart before they had the chance?

That alternate future was already a frightening enough nightmare for Donatello. The idea that it could have easily come to fruition in his own dimension, and so soon too, was paralyzing. Thinking about this, he supposes he’s grateful that it hadn’t been worse. The fact that he and his brothers were all here, together, meant that they had a better chance of succeeding, just as they had there. The future may be unpredictable, but in his case, it at least set a precedent.

The reminder of his monstrous potential does derail his relief, however, as Donnie takes in the marks he can see from his position on the floor. He musters his courage, but still worries what kind of answer he’ll get when he finally asks the question that’s been plaguing his head for months. “Even if I came back from Bishop’s different? Or… wrong?”

Leonardo feels the shift in his brother’s anxieties, and follows it just as quickly. “There’s nothing wrong with you, Donatello, I swear.” He gives Donnie a once over. “Your scars, they don’t cause you pain, do they?”

Don shakes his head.

“Then the way I see it, they’re proof that you survived. Proof that you’re strong enough to get through whatever life throws in front of you. It’s nothing you need to hide, and it’s certainly nothing you need to be ashamed of.”

Leo massages his left shoulder as he says this, and Donnie can picture the chunk missing from the shell on his back. He knows his brother is speaking from experience, and supposes he can be grateful that most of his deep muscle pain had subsided during his recovery.

“What about my eyes?” He asks.

Leo tilts his head at him. “What about them?”

Donnie slips out of his brother’s hold, standing to face the mirror again. Leo quickly follows suite, glancing between his brother and their reflections. Don looks him in the eye one last time before he shuts the light off again.

As expected, his irises glow bright red beneath their membranes.

“Oh, wow.”

Donnie turns toward his brother’s reflection anxiously.

He looks back reassuringly. “It’s not bad, I promise. Just surprised me a little.”

Don’s not sure he believes that. “Have you guys really not noticed?”

Leo shrugs. “Our membranes glow under certain lights too, don’t they? It could just be this one that’s setting it off.” He points to the orange-tinted emergency light.

Donnie supposes that’s possible, but the fact that it’s visible even beneath the protective membrane concerns him. “What if it becomes a problem on missions? Or it gets worse?”

“Then we’ll deal with it if it happens,” Leo asserts. “You don’t know that it ever will, Don.”

You can’t predict the future, he recalls.

Donnie chooses not to tell him about his nails, given how they might fall into that same state of limbo, but from where they stand in front of the mirror, the other change is made glaringly obvious.

“I’m taller than you guys now,” he whispers.

“What?”

“Oh, come on,” Donnie faces him, now slightly annoyed. “I know you’ve at least had to notice that.”

Leo shrugs again, seeming somewhat guilty. “Maybe a little.”

Despite the apprehension, Don’s surprised to see no discomfort in his brother’s expression. “And that doesn’t upset you?”

“Should it?”

Donnie scoffs. “We’ve been the same size our entire lives, Leo. It doesn’t bother you that you need to look up at me now?”

“Well,” he thinks, “it would probably bug me more if you were rubbing it in my face all the time.” He finishes with a chuckle.

Donnie frowns. “I’m serious.”

“So am I.” Leo makes sure to give Donnie his most sincere expression. “Look, for all the things the four of us have in common, we still have our differences. I don’t expect that to change as we get older, and I’m sure you know that it won’t.”

Donnie thinks for a moment. He’s never really investigated their mutations all that much, aside from what’s required for medical treatment and general upkeep. Though they were all originally exposed to the same ooze, that couldn’t guarantee they’d all be affected the same way, or how they’d be affected in the long term. They were still just teenagers, after all. They could potentially have years left to grow before they stopped.

“Besides,” Leo continues, “having your growth spurt first doesn’t mean much when it’s only a few inches. Mikey could very well be looking down at you by next week.”

The mental image is like a jump scare. After recovering from the shock, Donnie shoves him by the shoulder. “Why would you say that?” He laughs it off before he can think about it too hard, laughter that Leo immediately joins in on. They eventually go back to sitting on the bathroom floor as it tapers off.

The silence that follows is a lot more comfortable than it had been before. As they catch their breath, Donnie can feel that at least a few of his anxieties have simmered down for the time being.

Leo wraps and arm around Don’s shoulders, squeezing him slightly. “Regardless of who ends up being the tallest, or how tall any of us get, just remember that we’ll always be brothers, so we’ll be dealing with it together.”

Donnie smiles up at him. “I know.”

“And we’ll do the same with the Tengu Shredder,” Leo remarks, smiling back at Don. “Right?”

Donnie’s a little surprised by the return to their original conversation.

He doesn’t answer fast enough, apparently, because Leo leans in and repeats, “Am I right?”

After everything they’ve talked about, every argument proposed and rebuked, Donnie finds he can’t really disagree with him right now. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Of course I am,” Leo replies cooly. “I am still the oldest, after all.”

Donnie knocks into his side, feeling fond exasperation for just how cheesy his big brother can be when he’s trying to cheer them up.

The sound of footsteps makes them both look to the door, where Raphael appears a second later. He switches the main light on, blinking like he’s still half asleep. He peers for someone at eye level before his gaze drops to the turtles huddled together on the floor. “What’s going on in here?”

“Nothing.” “Impromptu sibling hug.”

Raph pinches between his eyes. He’s definitely just woken up. “One at a time, please.”

“Just get down here,” Leo exclaims.

The two seem to have one of their silent conversations before the red-clad turtle complies. “Fine, if no one else cares that this is a bathroom, I guess.” He takes a seat beside Donnie, looking them both over unsubtly.

He must find something that tips him off to Don’s prior distress, because Raph looks at him a bit softer now. “Seriously, you all good, bro?”

Donnie glances back at Leo for a moment, who has a knowing smile on his face. It makes him more confident that everything will in fact turn out okay. “Yeah,” he turns to Raph, smiling. “I think I will be.”

Raph smiles back at him, joining the hug and squeezing him tightly.

He’s about to complain about the air his lungs are losing when Mikey appears in the doorway, surprising all but him.

“Woah woah woah! You’re doing a group hug without me?”

“Mikey, don’t—”

Raph’s protests fall on deaf ears as the youngest leaps at the huddle, crushing the air out of all of them when he lands.

“Thanks for that, Mikey,” Leo squeaks out.

“No problem,” Mikey replies as he moves into a more comfortable sitting position. “Every team needs their star player, right? And no one gives better hugs than this guy.”

He proves his point by wrapping his arms tightly around Donnie, who’s now trying to figure out how Mikey knew they were in there for him. He stops thinking about it when the others join in from either side, instead focusing on the warmth, belonging, and love he feels being at the center of the turtle pile.

“Not that I wanna cut this short, but I’d still like to brush my teeth sometime today,” Raph teases.

They all laugh at the complaint, but manage to stay huddled on the floor for an extra fifteen minutes. If the lighter moments were gonna be few and far between right now, they might as well savour every second of them.

[fictionadventurer]

@lady-merian, Well, now you’ve made me curious. How does each chapter of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe end? I’m going to use the same categories I used to classify the Hunger Games chapters, but there are a few things that alter how these endings function in this book.

Genre: This is a portal fantasy, not an action-adventure book. To borrow terminology from Orson Scott Card, this is a Milieu story rather than an Event Story. The tension comes as much from exploring a new world as from navigating a plot, so a lot of the revelations and narrative changes aren’t going to be as dramatic or devastating as they might be in a more intense narrative.

POV: Rather than a first-person narrator, this book has an omniscient narrator who can show us things that the main characters don’t know about. This means that chapter endings are classified by how they function for the reader rather than the characters, since we know things that the characters don’t know.

The Categories

Bombshell: A surprise event or revelation occurs that’s outside the characters’ control. We want to turn the page to see the fallout from it.

Cliffhanger: Something is about to happen or be revealed, but we’re not sure what it is yet. We turn the page in the hope of learning this new information.

Tension-builder: We’ve just learned some new information that  makes the situation more difficult or stressful.. It’s sort of a long-term cliffhanger--we know this is going to have an effect on the story, but not necessarily at the beginning of the next chapter.

Initiative: Characters are about to or have done something to take action.

Resolution: Main conflict of the chapter has been successfully resolved.

The Chapters

Chapter 1: Lucy has just entered Narnia and seen a faun. The faun is startled by her and drops his packages. Bombshell.

Chapter 2: Lucy comes back to the spare room and announces to everyone that she’s alright. Resolution.

Chapter 3: The witch demands to know what Edmund is. Edmund says he doesn’t know what she means, and says he’s at school, but it’s the holidays now. It’s a very odd place to end a chapter, since the next chapter picks up with the same argument, and this is the second time that the Witch has asked what Edmund is.  I’ll call it a Cliffhanger, since we’re waiting to find out what the Witch means by asking “what” Edmund is.

Chapter 4: Edmund and Lucy are going back to the wardrobe. Edmund feels sick knowing that his siblings are on the side of the animals and he’s sympathetic to the witch. Lucy says, “What fun we shall have now that we’re all in it together.” A nice little bit of irony that serves as a Tension-builder.

Chapter 5: The four children hide in the wardrobe (and they don’t shut the door, because you never shut yourself in the wardrobe). Cliffhanger.

Chapter 6: Edmund and Peter argue if they can trust their guide, and Edmund points out that they don’t know the way to get back home. Bombshell.

Chapter 7: The children have just finished a meal with the Beavers and Mr. Beaver says it’s time to get down to business (and that the snow means no one will find tracks if someone’s trying to follow them). The gentlest form of Cliffhanger. We’re about to get an infodump, and we turn the page to learn the answers to questions, but it’s not a dramatic need-to-turn-the-page-now kind of tension.

Chapter 8: They’ve just found out that Edmund has gone to the White Witch, and the Beavers tell them they have to flee immediately. I’m going to call this a Bombshell, because Edmund’s defection is a huge surprise to the other three, and the announcement that they have to leave feels like an extension of that surprise.

Chapter 9: Edmund has just told the witch where his siblings are, and the witch orders her sled without bells to be prepared. Tension-builder.

Chapter 10: After everyone enjoys tea and sandwiches in the cave, Mr. Beaver tells them it’s time to move on. Initiative.

Chapter 11: The dwarf tells the White Witch that winter has been destroyed and it’s Aslan’s doing, and the Witch says anyone mentioning that name will be instantly killed. Tension-builder.

Chapter 12: Peter, still shaky after killing the Wolf, kneels before Aslan and is dubbed Wolf’s-Bane. “Whatever happens, never forget to clean your sword.”  Peter has just been prepared for the coming war. Initiative. 

Chapter 13: Aslan announces he’s made a deal and the Witch has renounced her claim on Edmund. When the Witch questions his promise, Aslan roars, and she flees for her life. Resolution.

Chapter 14: The children cover their eyes as Aslan is killed. Bombshell.

Chapter 15: Aslan brings the girls to the Witch’s home and they find themselves in a courtyard of statues. A resolution, because Aslan is alive, the journey’s over, and they’re safe, but as I’m reading it, it feels like a mild Cliffhanger, because we’re still curious about what Aslan’s going to do next.

Chapter 16: Aslan’s forces join the battle; Peter’s tired forces cheer, Aslan’s forces roar, and the enemy gibbers. Cliffhanger, since we’re not told how the battle goes, but an extremely joyful one, since it’s clear that circumstances are on the side of good. (And the first line of the next chapter tells us the battle was over in minutes). 

Chapter 17: “And that is the very end of the adventure of the wardrobe. But if the Professor was right it was only the beginning of the adventures of Narnia.” Resolution of the whole story, but with a tantalizing promise of more.

Observations

The children are pulled along by the narrative and make no decisions for themselves (at least in the chapter endings). Even in the two chapters that end in Initiative, other characters are telling the children what action to resolve upon: Mr. Beaver tells them to keep moving after tea and Aslan tells Peter to go forward in the fight. And in both cases, they’re just continuing actions that have already been happening: the flight from the Witch and the battle against the Witch’s forces. This is part of the function as a middle-grade portal fantasy. First off, they’re children, who usually need authority figures to tell them what to do. Second, the characters are just vehicles to explore the world; we don’t need to explore their struggles with finding the right course of action. We just need them to go along for the ride so we can see more of Narnia.

Only three chapters end with neat Resolutions: Lucy coming back from meeting Mr. Tumnus, Aslan sending the Witch fleeing in terror, and the very end of the book. The first one serves to set the tone: this is a place where you can go on wild, fantastical adventures, but don’t worry because you’ll get home safely in the end. (It’s like those two chapters are a miniature form of the entire book). The second one gives us a moment of triumph before the ultimate, heartbreaking defeat of the story’s lowest point. And the last one is there because the book has come to an end (though we do get imagination-firing sequel promises).

The tension-builders all relate to the villain’s wider plot. They all relate to Edmund, and two of them come when Edmund is with the Witch and separated from his siblings. This makes sense, because the villain’s plot is the only large-scale thing happening in this otherwise very immediate quest story. The story isn’t driven by tension between the characters (except the tension introduced by the Witch). It’s a very concrete “we need to go here and do this” kind of story, which provides more opportunities for the promises of immediate resolution that we get from cliffhangers and bombshells.

The cliffhangers are all very mild. It’s not “oh no, are they going to be okay?” It’s a much gentler, “I want to find out what happens next” or “I want to find out what’s going on.” We turn the page, not necessarily because we’re worried about the characters, but because we’re curious. This makes sense with the portal fantasy structure. The story is driven by that sense of wonder and curiosity.

The bombshells are the hardest-hitting moments of the story. And this story provides plenty of opportunities for them, since the children aren’t the ones driving the narrative. The four bombshells actually provide some of the turning points of the story according to Seven-Point Story Structure.

Plot Turn 1(The character’s world changes): Lucy discovers Narnia in the wardrobe

Pinch 1 (forces the characters to action): Learning that they don’t know the way home forces them to continue with the adventure, but the third bombshell is the actual pinch point that forces them to act, because Edmund’s defection is what them to flee from the Beavers’ home.

(Midpoint is Peter joining the battle after meeting Aslan)

Pinch 2 (lowest point): Aslan’s death

This function of the bombshells makes sense according to the demands of the structure. The midpoint occurs when the characters move from reacting to taking action, so it can’t come from a bombshell, but the Plot Turns and Pinches happen when the characters are faced with events that are outside of their control.

All this is fascinating to me, because we have an story where the main characters make almost no choices, yet the underlying structure is still present and still satisfying. The characters aren’t driving the story; they’re just swept up into it, yet it works because a portal fantasy is driven by wonder and curiosity. We’re the ones going on this adventure, swept up by the story with no control over where it goes, so the story functions best when the characters themselves lack that control. The story’s momentum comes not necessarily from life or death stakes, but by the readers’ curiosity to know what happens next or what’s around the next corner. And yet, because so much of the story is outside of the characters’ control, we have opportunities for bombshell revelations that provide the story structure. There are a couple of odd chapter endings, but Lewis knows what he’s doing, and can keep up the tension in a way that’s appropriate for the tone of the story. No wonder this book has become a classic.

[waveypedia]

My Writing - Masterpost

from most to least recent

Ace Attorney

Here Comes the Sun - A late-night conversation (well, for Franziska), a few monumental realizations, and the start of something very beautiful indeed.

How Far We’ve Come - A few months after the events of AAI2, Miles and Sebastian sit down for a game of chess and a heartfelt conversation.[mild aai2 spoilers]

to coda - Ryunosuke, Susato, and an important sunrise conversation between siblings on the boat ride home.

I am not as misunderstood as I once thought - Directly after State v. Misham concludes, Klavier shuts himself away from the world. He never expects anyone would care enough to notice his disappearance, especially not now... but the people who care about him will not stay away.

At Least You’re There - The day Thalassa Gramarye finally decides to break her silence, and the fallout that follows.

the more things seem to change, the more they stay the same. - Miles Edgeworth and Phoenix Wright have loved one another since the day they met.  Four non-linear glimpses into the lives of Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth over the years. Written for Narumitsu Week Day 7: Seasons

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Infinity Train

and now, for my next number, i’d like to return to the classics - Veritable musicians Chicken Choice Judy, otherwise known as middle-aged husbands Ryan and Min-Gi Akagi-Park, go about their day and enjoy each others' company. Written for Rymin Week Day 7: Domestic

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come and dance with me - On a rare night off at a club, Min comes to a startling realization. He blurts out a proposal to Ryan. Written for Rymin Week Day 6: Dance

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they don’t know you like i do - Ryan and Min spend their first shared birthday together on their road trip. Written for Rymin Week Day 5: Birthdays

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New Days - A day in the life of Ryan and Min on the road, writing music, playing a show, and beginning a new chapter in their relationship. Written for Rymin Week Day 4: Off the Train

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geez, you’re something to see - During a quiet evening on the road, Ryan struggles to articulate his feelings for Min in a love song. Written for Rymin Week Day 2: Love Song

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Sunny Afternoon - A snapshot into Ryan and Min’s childhood. An afternoon spent watching the clouds, playing on a hill, and enjoying each other's company. Written for Rymin Week Day 1: Childhood

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Ducktales

The Real Deal - “Stop pushing your feelings into dumb little boxes they don’t belong in. They won’t fit." Lena talks Boyd through something that's been bothering him. Written for the Because We’re Family zine.

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A Day in the Life of Gyro Gearloose - Gyro is just trying to have a normal, productive day. But his friends and family - and enemies - seem dead set on making his day as busy and nonsensical as possible. Written for the Gyro Gearloose zine.

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got fears but i face them - Webby and Lena finally reconcile. Post-The Last Adventure.

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Leaving the Nest - Webby is growing up. After the revelations of The Last Adventure, she and Beakley sit down for a much-needed conversation. Companion piece to The Family We Make; can be read in any order.

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The Family We Make - After the events of The Last Adventure, Webby and Scrooge have a long-overdue conversation and figure out how they fit into each other's family. Companion piece to Leaving the Nest; can be read in any order.

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We Are the Lovesick Girls - Lena and Webby have a fun day out in the snow and then warm up in McDuck Manor with hot chocolate and cuddles. Written for the Duckfalls discord server Secret Santa 2020.

and i’ll shine for everyone who’s with me - A snippet of Lena's journey after the events of The Phantom and the Sorceress. Lena decides to use her magic to help people, and chooses her own path. It may or may not involve some heroic activity, intentional or not. Part 1 of the Heroes of Duckburg AU (canon compliant), as well as the Sapphire Spellcaster’s origin story.

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Outta My Head - Gyro falls asleep in the lab and Fenton takes care of him, leading to some... surprising outcomes. But not unwelcome.

Home is Wherever I’m With You - On their first solo adventure, Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Webby think they have this one in the bag. But the source material that Webby used to carefully plan out the adventure isn't accurate, and there may be a deeper mystery to uncover. If anyone can figure it out, it's the heirs to Clan McDuck. Written for HDLW Sibling Week 2020.

Ao3  Day 1: Adventure

Best Laid Plans (Often Go Awry) - Donald's life gets upended, again and again. He makes plans for the future, and then makes more plans when those plans go to ruin. He's used to it, and he'll do whatever it takes to keep his boys and his family safe and happy.

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complete and utter chaos [group chat fic] - The McDuck family & friends participate in a mega group chat. (And some smaller ones.) Chaos ensures. (with a small dash of feeling here and there.)

Ao3 Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4

He Grows On You - Gyro's perception of Fenton over time, from annoying subordinate to endearing mentee to treasured friend, to maybe something more. 

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Key to a Memory - Della and Gyro were best friends before she took off for space, but now she's back and he's ignoring her. (or: Gyro is hurting, Della is mature, and their journey to reconciliation, told through a one-sided text chain, as well as vignettes of their friendship in the past.)

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Duck Crossing - Goldie arrives on Scrooge’s island New Horizons, managing to shatter his peaceful morning and distract his kids. Animal Crossing AU from the Delpad Discord, featuring Scrooge as Tom Nook and Goldie as Redd, bitter business exes. Written for Scroldie Weekend 2020.

What’s in a Family - Boyd character study, detailing Boyd’s relationship with Gyro over the years and how they pick up the pieces, with appearances from the extended McDuck clan and Dr. Akita’s influence. (gee boyd i can’t believe wavey let you have five families!) (post-Astro BOYD)

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The Best Birthday Gift - Donald contemplates his birthday alone on the moon. Meanwhile, Della and the family discover a shocking secret. Written for Donald and Della’s birthday 2019. (pre-Moonvasion, slight canon divergence)

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Love Is a Spin on Gyro’s Crazy Machines - Della and Launchpad sneak out at 3 am on the date of the century to take a test spin on one of Gyro’s new inventions. Written for Delpad Day 2019.

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it’s love, not rocket science - Fenton is overcome with weird emotions when Della Duck comes back and Gyro spends all of his time with her. He should be happy. Gyro is happy, he's yelling less, and he's actually getting sleep. So why is Fenton so upset? Things might not be quite as they seem. And hey, maybe Della can help him out with this little problem he has.

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Family - As Lena builds her strength to go home, she reminisces on what she desperately hopes is her family. (pre-Friendship Hates Magic, slight canon divergence)

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Common Courtesy - Fenton crashes into the lab at 4am, injured, and is pleasantly surprised by Gyro’s concern. He also has a worrying lack of care for his own wellbeing.

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Mini companion ficlet with the prompt roles swapped (tumblr) - Fenton patches Gyro up after a fight

Choose Your Last Words Wisely - Everything is going wrong for Gyro today, but that doesn't mean he's allowed to take it out on Fenton. If he does, he might just ruin everything he had going for him.

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Halloween Hijinks - Huey calls a meeting to discuss Halloween costumes. Written for (as you guessed it) Halloween 2018.

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Weblena Week 2018 - Ao3 (full story)

Day 1: Crush - Lena’s worried about her crush on Webby, but the boys persuade her into acting on her feelings.

Day 2: Adventure - On an adventure with the McDuck family, Lena gets separated from everyone else and panics. Luckily, Webby comes to her rescue. (pre-Friendship Hates Magic, slight canon divergence)

Day 4: Date - Webby proposes!

Midnight Spree - Gladstone runs away. His family chases after him.

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The Power of Four AU - Ten years ago, Bentina Beakley dropped off her lonely egg at Donald’s Duck houseboat for a quick stay while she went out on an important SHUSH mission. She never came back.

ao3 Chapter 1 Chapter 2

Huey Week 2018

Day 3: Gizmoduck Sidekick - Huey rescues Fenton from a particularly precarious situation involving the Beagle Boys and lands a job as Gizmoduck’s sidekick.

Days 4 & 5: Sassmaster & Logical - Huey tries to talk Dewey and Webby out of a dangerous stunt on an adventure.

A Spy In Peril - It has been many years since Scrooge McDuck has spoken to Bentina Beakley. It’s quite a surprise to hear her voice on the phone. It’s even more surprising that she needs help, and who is hunting her down. But who is Scrooge McDuck if he doesn’t take care of his family?

Emergency Texts - Fenton finds out Gyro's birthday is tomorrow. Team Science scrambles to give him a gift. Group chat shenanigans!

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A Helping Hand - Della deals with some insecurities in the early days of her return to Earth. Launchpad comforts her. (can be taken as slight canon divergence, since they don’t interact the same way they do in canon)

Give What You Get - Gyro calls Fenton at 3am to get him coffee. Scrooge forces them both to get a good night’s sleep.

Field Trip - Huey and Louie accidentally sneak out together and commiserate about mental health and their worries about Webby and shadow!Lena.

We Need To Talk. - Donald calls Daisy early in the morning. His sister is gone. (canon divergence: Donald and Daisy are childhood friends.)

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Operation: Cherry Crush - Huey's siblings find out about his crush and take matters into their own hands.

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In Hiding - Fenton hides out at the lab. Gyro, Scrooge, and Manny are there for him.

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If We’re Friends - The McDuck family has to clean up the city after Magica ravaged it, but Webby's busy wallowing in grief for a lost friend. (directly after The Shadow War, slight canon divergence, pre-Friendship Hates Magic and focuses a lot heavier on the implications of Lena’s unwilling betrayal than the show ever did)

Ao3 Part 1 (tumblr) Part 2 (tumblr) Part 1 (amino)

It’s A Secret - HDLW speculate on Paperinik’s love life. Donald and Uno go stargazing.

Tickles - Gladstone and Louie have a tickle fight.

Talk It Out - S1!Scrooge and Donald are trapped during an adventure and spill some hard-to-hear pent-up feelings about Della and the kids.

Spats and Scraped Knees - Scrooge patches Webby up.

Burned Bridges - Lena leaves Webby behind. It’s painful for the both of them.

A Tale of Grudges - After ten years of struggling to provide for the boys, Donald feels incompetent at what they get with Scrooge’s wealth. They have a talk post-The Shadow War, taking the first step to reconciliation. (slight canon divergence, written before The Shadow War so their relationship at that point is a little off)

Fighting His Luck - Someone miffed by Gladstone’s easy luck comes to beat him up. Scrooge steps in.

Under Pressure - Louie gets hurt on an adventure, and Dewey does his best to take care of him until they can get out.

Go On Without Me - A guilty Gladstone tries to get Donald to leave him behind on an adventure. Donald isn’t having it.

A Pilot’s View - Della and Launchpad sit under the stars and talk about their relationship.

Reunions - At Della’s welcome back party, Launchpad confronts some feelings. (slight canon divergence)

Coffee - Louie is struggling with school. Luckily for him, he has his brothers to help him out.

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Regrets - Donald spends a singular birthday at McDuck Manor with Della still lost to the moon, and contemplates. His family takes care of him.

Miraculous Ladybug

It’s You, My Dear - Ladybug and Chat Noir enjoy a rooftop picnic and each other’s company.

Musings - Ever since heroes and villains have come to Paris, Luka has noticed change in the city around him, especially his sister. (Ladybug!Rose and Black Cat!Juleka)

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City of Love - It's been four years since Adrien gave up the Cat Miraculous and went to college in America, parting ways with his friends, father, kwami... and Ladybug. Both miss each other and regret not revealing their identities and staying in touch. Now Adrien is back in Paris with a rare extra day before he visits his father. Ladybug is out on patrol. A little nudge is all it takes...

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If You Love Him, Let Him Go - Short introspection piece. Chloé watches Marinette and Adrien get together and forces herself to let Adrien be happy, however it may pain her.

~

that’s all, folks! Writing requests are always open (feel free to find a prompt under the #send wavey a prompt or #writing prompts tags) and keep an eye out for writing commissions in the near future!

[drops-of-moonlights]

*ryo feat. Hatsune Miku’s MELT plays softly in the background*

HAPPY EARLY VALENTINE’S DAY I DIDN’T THINK I WOULD HAVE FINISHED ALL OF THESE IN JUST A DAY. Feat. a messier artstyle for once since I wanted to try some other stuff. Back on topic, these would all be the couples in the AU! Feat. their team-up attacks on each pic rather than ship names, because. Why not. More on how each couple got together below!:

(Oh, also, this whole collection kind of had a beach outing theme! if anyone was wondering why everyone was in tank tops lol. Most Valentine's Day art that's seasonally themed it's on winter, but since Valentine's on summer down here I wanted this set to reflect that.)

ORIGINAL CANON COUPLES

Brandon and Stella: Pretty close to canon, except for one thing: Stella knows from the start he’s not a prince. Solaria and Eraklyon have pretty close ties, and Stella was at one point considered to be engaged to Sky when they were younger, though Radius and Luna inmediately turned the offer down. They’ve been lowkey dating for two years or so before S1, but had to drop it in public when entering Alfea and Red Fountain as to not cause suspicions. They kinda suck at hiding the affection, so they kinda flirt every time they meet regardless, even when they pretend they totally weren’t just flirting haha shut up Timmy. Once the reveal is done to the rest of the system they lay down for a bit, what with having to deal with the fallout of that day since both Sky and Bloom kinda shut themselves in. They decide to fully start dating right before the final battle of S1 once the war is over, and so they do. They do have some issues with how they tend to take the other for granted, but they’re blessed with the power of communication so they tend to make up pretty quickly.

Tecna and Timmy: Also pretty close to canon. Tecna’s the one that aks Timmy out during the middle of the S1 war, kinda throwing it out there just in case they survive. Timmy does agree, but it was kind of a spur on the moment situation and they lowkey can’t deal. Or rather, Timmy can’t deal - Tecna’s has had a couple partners before so she knows how awkward everything is at the start, but Timmy’s kinda flying blind, which leads to some setbacks alongside S2 - mostly Timmy accidentally ghosting Tecna and Tecna not wanting to confront him. They do work out their issues as the season progresses however, and by S3 they’re the most stable couple of the entire group.

Flora and Helia: Flora and Helia knew each other as kids, and were in a friend trio alongside Krystal (then known to them as Rosa to avoid being caught), but Helia moved shortly after and they lost contact. They do recognize each other and try their best to catch up, but Helia’s kinda too focused on his art career (and also, y’know. making enough money to survive), which puts a hamper in Flora’s budding feelings for him. They do manage to snag a few cafe outings, however, and Flora decides to finally stop dancing around the subject and straight up ask Helia out during the stay at the Wildlands, which he accepts. They start dating shortly afterwards, and while they do face some issues (mostly with Flora’s somewhat overbearing caring and protective nature and Helia’s tendency to ignore everything around him), they keep steady and secure.

AU COUPLES

Sky and Riven: They have a rivalry for most of S1, but it’s more thanks to Riven’s standoffish attitude and Sky matching his stubborness that leads them to clash. Riven does tend to ignore Sky, but that’s because he doesn’t want to risk exploding on him and having to be relocated to another team, which only raises Sky’s curiosity more. Riven doesn’t date Darcy on the AU, but he does become close friends with her, which she milks for all its worth, alongside the fact people don’t know she’s part of the Trix in my AU until the nightmare attack. Riven considered her a great friend and the revelation she’s one of the witches that has been making his and his new friends’ lives hell shakes him quite a bit. After that it’s closer to canon - he goes to confront her and ends up trapped. Sky spends the rest of the arc worried sick for him and instinctively runs to hug him (which surprises him), but he’s beat by Stella, happy her oldest friend is still alive. They start to hang out more in S2, and start thinking of each other differently though they don’t realize it yet. Brandon and Stella can read them like an open book though, so they start subtly nudging them together without rushing them, knowing how Sky is kinda awkward about romance and Riven’s a stubborn dude. This carries over to S3, when after the attack on Eraklyon by Valtor and Sky’s sudden possesion makes Riven realize he’s in love with him by how crushed he feels hearing Sky give the speech about marrying Diaspro after al. (Sky is possesed here by Valtor himself disguised as a servant, rather than being poisoned by Diaspro, and to keep this cover he also makes Sky kidnap her). After Stella manages to remove Valtor’s mark from him, he gets seriously ill and stays in Eraklyon to recover, and Riven decides to stay with him to nurse him back to good health. It’s thanks to Riven’s care that Sky realizes he’s also in love with him, but they don’t confess to each other until that danceclub trip later in the season, during the middle of a dance because I’m a sappy fuck. They do have to tackle some communication issues from time to time but my Riven has the unique power of Having A Therapist, so they tend to resolve them peacefully though it takes a bit.

Aisha and Musa: do I even need to explain this one? We all saw S2. Anyways, Musa and Aisha strike a friendship during S1 thanks to their love of music and dance, and start hanging out on the regular alone. Musa was crushing on her from the second she saw her, but kinda dismissed her feelings until they knew each other better, until she started falling in love for real near the end of S1. Aisha takes longer to reach that same point, however. After escaping Shadowhaunt she lowkey clings to Musa for support, and she’s the first one she speaks with when her nightmares come back. Their lowkey date on Earth starts to give shape to Aisha’s feelings finding herself crushing back, and during the trip to the Wildlands she realizes she fell in love when her first thoughts after getting lost were all about Musa, and only her. Aisha takes the first step and asks Musa out during the interlude between S2 and S3, and start a relationship fully during S3.

Bloom and Diaspro: they don’t get the best of starts, what with Bloom’s paranoic ass attacking Dia and all. Bloom feels horrible about the event once the reveal is done, and kinda ignores both Dia and Sky for the longest time until she feels she can talk to Sky and apologize to Diaspro fully. Diaspro stays on Magix during the attack of the Trix (though rather than trying to go fetch Sky she had gone to Alfea to speak with Bloom personally), but they don’t get a chance to properly speak about anything with a war on their hands. They do get a small talk right before Sky and Bloom leave for Cloud Tower, but that one basically amounted to “we all kinda fucked up, let’s be friends regardless” and it didn’t went deeper than that. During the interlude between S1 and S2, Bloom goes with Sky, Stella and Diaspro to Domino once more to find a way to release Daphne from the mirror she’s trapped in (and how to get to the mirror in the first place), and after getting separated from the rest Bloom and Diaspro finally get the chance to properly talk about what happened. Bloom apologizes for what she did, Diaspro apologizes for how she treated her as well (since she did badmouth her in public in a bad attempt to save face), and with the promise to be friends and Diaspro getting her Glamourix, they manage to get closer. It doesn’t develop into love until well into S2, after Diaspro enrolls in Alfea and she and Bloom get even closer. Diaspro starts to realize she’s falling in love with Bloom shortly before the Shadow Bloom shenanigans, but keeps it hidden for a bit as to not dump one more thing for Bloom to worry about. Bloom on her part did develop a crush on Diaspro, but she feels it’s more akin to her minor crushes on Sky and Stella since she has a thing for blondes, so she doesn’t think much of it until the S2 finale, when Diaspro actively taking a blast from her crazed self to snap her out of the spell hits her heart hard, inmediately being filled with regret and sadness and undoing her transformation, the negative emotions overwhelming the fabricated euphoria. Dia earns her Enchantix thanks to this act and survives, however, and with renewed fervor she manages to destroy Darkar with the rest. During the interlude between seasons she starts thinking her feelings for Diaspro, wondering if she’s truly falling in love with her of if it’s just because she saved her life. It’s when Diaspro gets kidnapped on Eraklyon thanks to the possessed Sky that she realizes that she does love her, but she doesn’t get to confess her feelings at that point. It’s during the trip to Omega in search of Tecna, when in a moment where they though they might die, that Bloom confesses her emotions. Diaspro does the same, and they hug awaiting serious damage from a falling stalactite (as both of their legs were stuck on a small crevice) and being saved by Tecna at that very moment. They start properly dating after that adventure.

[ozzdog12]

2019- Top 7 (And 1)

  Another year has come to an end and thus the hotly anticipated Top 7 (And 1) from your ‘average at best’ Ozzdog12 is here for you to feast your eyes upon. 2019 was an extremely odd year for me, gaming wise. As parenthood has taken the full brunt of my time, my gaming time and the choices of what games I decided to play, have changed. I played several games this year that, under any previous year I may have stuck with longer or tried again, but as time for gaming has become more and more thin, I now have less ‘patience’ to stick with a BIG RPG (Disco Elysium, one day I’ll get to you). Now I’m going to contradict my previous sentence with this next sentence. I was unemployed for a stretch of 5 weeks and in between looking for jobs I also found myself with a decent amount of time to play some games. What I did with that time is played 2 games that ultimately made the list, for two very different reasons. I also cleared out a chunk of backlog games (Finally beating Diablo 3 for one, thank you Switch) and played several, shorter smaller games in the process. If interested in my previous Top 7 (And 1) 2017 & 2018.

And now on to the And 1 this year

Favorite game that came out in 2019 that actually came out 20+ years ago: Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening (Switch)

This one was actually a hard one to decide as Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition also released this year. AOE2 is the one game I may have put the most time into ever, cumulatively. But I’m giving the nod to Link’s Awakening simply because its BRAND NEW to me. I did not play the original release and this has been an absolute joy to play and is by far, the best Zelda available on Switch. The updated graphics are gorgeous and the art style is great. I haven’t completed the game yet, but I’m slowly chipping away at it at night. It feels and plays like a Zelda game but updated properly to a modern console to make it feel like a brand new game released in 2019 and not just a reskin/up-resed re-release. The game is also structured in a way that appeals to me more than Breath of the Wild was (see 2017 And One for reference). The world feels big, but is contained in a clever way to make it FEEL bigger than it actually is.

Number  7: Rage 2 (PS4)

Rage 2 is a very weird game. I don’t mean it’s weird in the sense that nothing clicks or that its bad. In fact, it’s a joy to play (especially is you love iD shooters). It’s weird because outside of the gameplay mechanics, it’s fairly barren (intentional or not). And I mean that in terms of both story, things to do and the world itself. Having very little to do with the previous Rage (which I really enjoyed on the 360), Rage 2 starts off quick and with a bang. You choose which version of the character you want to be, learn the mechanics and then are eventually sent to a town. There are a total of 6 ‘story’ missions that are stretched out by requiring you to complete tasks for one of the 3 town leaders who you’ve enlisted for help to take down the General. Once you do this, you fight the General and that’s kind’ve it. Now along the way, you will kill a bunch of mutants and humans alike. There are 3 factions (4 if you count the Ghosts in the DLC) that are in an ever engaging gauntlet to the death and you get to play janitor by spilling more guts and blood, but none of it really matters, the Factions I mean. There are a few Crusher Mutants (BIG MUTANTS) to also fight, but they are essentially extra heavy bullet sponges. Now, I know I haven’t really sold you on it, but here’s the thing. I REALLY enjoyed RAGE 2. It was the perfect game to play during the summer. Due to a personal situation I was dealing with (the looming unemployment) it was nice to just sit down at night, turned my brain off and just kill things. It reminded me of a simpler time in my youth playing games like Doom. Same vibe honestly. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more of a story and narrative driven player, but Rage 2 scratched a nostalgia itch for me at the perfect time. 

Number 6: Concrete Genie (PS4)

Concrete Genie is a game that is honestly out of left field for me these days. Not that I don’t like these types of games, it’s just as previous stated, time is somewhat of a precious commodity and had Concrete Genie come out in any other year, I probably would’ve skipped it entirely. However, it didn’t and I’m glad I picked this up for $20. It also scratched a nostalgia itch and reminded me very much of the PS2 era of games like Sly Cooper and Jax and Daxter. You play a kid who is bullied (something I am familiar with first hand, sadly) for being a loner and an artist. His creature drawings come to life with the help of a magic paint brush and your objective to put color back into an abandon town and bring it back to life. There is a VR component I wasn’t able to play because I don’t have a PSVR. The game is fairly simply and doesn’t deviate far from that formula. There is very little combat and just enough variety in the monster’s you can make to keep you going. It’s also fairly short. I was able to complete and collect everything in around 7-8 hours. Having a complete game in a bite size package is something I long for these days. 

Number 5: The Outer Worlds (PS4)

This game should be higher on the list but I put it here simply because while I have played it a fair amount, I haven’t played it enough to warrant it being higher. I’m maybe halfway through? I love Bethesda Fallouts (And Obsidian’s New Vegas) and this is an improved New Vegas in space with a more cheeky approach. The Outer Worlds never takes itself too seriously and revels in its sarcasm. The companions are all mostly likeable enough and each planet has felt distinctive enough to entice me to keep exploring. The mechanics are improved and the overall gameplay is better than New Vegas.  Its structured just like a Fallout game, so there is a lot of comfort there. However,  just like any open world RPG, sitting down for less than an hour and trying to accomplish anything is hard. The Outer Worlds is best played in big chunks. It’s at the top of my list to finish in 2020. 

Number 4: A Plague Tale (PS4)

A Plague Tale was THAT game that was on everyone’s ‘Hidden Gems’ list. I had seen a trailer around E3 and it intrigued me enough to check it out. I completed it over a whole weekend, a rarity. The game isn’t perfect, but everything is serviceable enough to work within the confines of what it’s trying to accomplish. It has some technical flaws and the occasional hiccup, but I’m a sucker for 3rd person action adventure games. The game is mostly centered around stealth with combat as a mostly secondary option. The game takes place in France in 1348 during the rat plague. You play as the daughter of an alchemist and your brother has been sick since birth. Once your village has been raided by the Inquisition, you are cast out to find help. The plague has taken over the majority of the country, but it isn’t until later in the game where the game takes a turn into the fantasy in a major way. You meet up with some really likeable characters with different personality traits along the way that really kept the story moving in an interesting way. The story was really grim at times, but honestly kept me hooked until the final chapter. The boss battle was extremely frustrating. With a sequel being announced, I am extremely interested in where they take the next chapter. 

Number 3: Katana ZERO (Switch)

Katana ZERO rules. There is a fine line where a game is challenging and when a game is unfair. I like a challenge, but I don’t want to work (games like Dark Souls are work). KZ is very similar in style, gameplay, tone, and even music to Hotline Miami. The difference being KZ is a side scroller instead of top down. You play a samurai in a quasi-dystopian future after a war. You are programmed killing machine…or are you? The story is fairly heavy and can bring up some tough subjects. KZ is pretty challenging, especially later in the game, but never once did I feel the game was cheap or unfair. Every time I died (MANY, MANY TIMES) it was always my fault. Either I didn’t plan my attack correctly, I hit the wrong button, took the wrong path, or didn’t time it right. The game has a nifty way of dealing with ‘deaths’ in the game using a neat rewind feature. When you complete a level, it shows you a replay in ‘real time’ giving you a nice recap of your work. Every time I completed a level, I felt a sense of accomplishment. My Switch says I put around 5 hours or more into it once I completed the final level, but it honestly felt longer than that, in a good way. KZ is an absolute blast to play and you should go play it right now!

Number 2: Gears 5 (Xbox One)

I’m a fan of the Gears of War series. The first Gears of War still being my favorite of the series. As time has passed, I’ve become less interested in the series as a whole but still interested enough to play every entry. I thought Gears 4 was the Force Awakens of the series. Essentially a retelling of the same story, with a new coat of paint and new characters with the old ones sprinkled in. Gears 4 was ultimately, fine. So I was actually excited for Gears 5 was going to go and to see how they built upon 4 with a focus on Kait instead of a Fenix. Halfway through the story, the group is divided and it starts to take a different tone. Gears 5 experiments with a first of the series, a semi-open world. I thought it broke up the monotony of wall hug, shoot, reload, repeat. I finished the story in a few days and had a good time with it, though once again, the ending being kind’ve abrupt. The series has a knack for being sort’ve slow, then suddenly turning it to 11, then ending.  I wished the campaign was longer, but it’s still solid. Gears 5 introduced a new mode called Escape, where you and two other players plant a bomb and try to escape a level with limited ammo. There is weekly a revolving door of new levels, which is nice, but each level is just reusing assets. I suspect with time and each new Operation (Season) that will be expanded. Horde mode is back and the character classes are fun. New characters have been added and will continue to be added, but they are an absolute grind to unlock (But you can always pay for them!) The reason Gears 5 is this high is mostly due to the amount of time I spent playing multiplayer. As stated, I loved the original Gears of War and put an insane amount of time into the multiplayer. That was in 2007 and the older I’ve gotten, my desire to invest into multiplayer has waned, almost completely. Once again though, right time, right place. I spent almost the entire month of October, logging on every night, completing challenging and playing online. Something I haven’t done since I was a freshman in college. I had an absolute blast. While I don’t delve into online as feverishly as I did in October, I still occasionally dabble when I get the chance.

Number 1: Mortal Kombat 11 (PS4)

As if this was going to be anything else. I’m a Mortal Kombat mark, plain and simple. I’ve loved the series my entire life. I love the lore, I love how ridiculously violent it is, how goofy and bat shit insane the story has evolved. I love it all. But its not all gore and lore, Mortal Kombat is a supreme fighting game. It’s not a nuanced as the likes of Street Fighter, but its infinitely deeper than a game like Smash Bros. Mortal Kombat is in a good sweet spot for both casuals and hardcore fighting fans. MK11 has maybe the greatest in-depth tutorial that has ever been made in any fighting game. It not only teaches you how to play, it teaches you the terminology. The story picks up right after MKX, with Raiden upset with everyone and taking matters into his own hands by torturing Shinnok. Liu Kang and Kitana rule the Netherrealm. Raiden plans an attack where he is essentially the Trojan Horse. All goes according to plan, until Kronika, The Time Keeper, decides she doesn’t like this anymore and eventually brings back some old friends to help her change time (again) and finally eliminate Raiden from existence. In doing this, Kronika has made all those mirror matches from previous games cannon. The production level and story mode in Netherealm games are on another level compared to other fighting games and they continue that trend in MK11. They implement the gear system from Injustice 2 into MK11 and its fine. The Krypt is amazing and is full of secrets. The Living Towers have returned, this time in the form of the ever changing “Towers of Time”. The roster, which is what everyone really cares about isn’t the worst but isn’t the best. None of the new characters are all that fun (Cetrion, Geras, & Kollector) and the returning roster was missing some notable characters. The DLC thus far has been fairly underwhelming compared to MKX. It was nice to see Shang Tsung, Nightwolf, & Sindel return (all 3 should’ve been in the main roster) but Terminator is lame. MKX had the likes of Tremor, Tanya, & Predator. MK11 seems to break what was a fun tradition in DLC having new, MK characters (Skarlett and Tremor, respectively). While I do think there is another set coming after Spawn, if the leak is true, then it seems underwhelming. I played MK11 pretty religiously for almost 2 months and still play at least once or twice a week. I love MK!

[221brownstone]

TVLine: Elementary Boss Talks Finale's Big Move, Previews Season 7 Time Jump

Cheerio!

“When we come back in the seventh season, a year will have passed,” showrunner Rob Doherty reveals to TVLine. “So all of our characters will have had time to really reflect on what happened at the end of the sixth season.”

Elementary wrapped up Season 6 on Monday night by moving Sherlock and Joan across the pond. So how did the duo find themselves in London? After discovering that Hannah killed Michael, and that Captain Gregson was protecting his daughter, Sherlock confessed to the murder to cover for prime suspect Joan. Rather than going to jail, the PI made a deal which allowed him to keep living and working in London… and his partner followed him to Baker Street!

Below, Doherty talks about the location twist, which was borne out of believing that the show was coming to an end — don’t worry, it’s not — and Sherlock and Joan’s feelings for each other.

TVLINE | Talk to me about the decision to kill off Michael. Did you hesitate at all to lose him as a villain? No, there was no hesitation. At the same time, I can’t say that was the plan from go. The season finale was, in fact, shot in the 13th slot of a 21-episode season. Initially, we had an order for 13 episodes. We got to a point, schedule-wise, where we couldn’t wait for an order for more, and just had to assume [Episode] 13 was the end of the season, and potentially the end of the series. We had to factor those things into our arc with Michael. So as we’re approaching what we think is truly the end, we didn’t want to focus on Michael. We wanted to focus on Sherlock and Joan, and we didn’t want their lives at stake. We wanted their livelihood and their partnership at stake. Taking Michael off the board when we did cleared a path to tell a story that, if it really was the end of the show, would feel like a proper wrap-up for everybody.

I also confess to being attracted to the idea that we’ve primed everyone for a real duel with this very peculiar villain at the end of the season. I liked clearing a runway for that, and then killing him. [Laughs] I liked the surprise of it — that, in fact, Michael is not going to be the final problem. It’s the fallout of that, it’s the fact that Michael died, and it’s bringing all sorts of unwanted attention to Sherlock and Joan, and putting everything they do in jeopardy.

TVLINE | Had you known that you were going to get more episodes, would you have used Michael more in between? Yes, absolutely. Had we known from go that it was a 21-episode season, we absolutely would have spent more time with Michael. Desmond [Harrington], who played Michael, was phenomenal, just an incredible person, and a great presence to have on the set, and he made Michael everything we wanted the character to be. We were having a good time together, and it would’ve been great to find a few more slots to keep Michael alive, so to speak. But we had to tell that story a certain way. And then it became this very unique challenge once we finally did get an additional order to tell stories that could be placed in front of the finale that we had already written and produced.

TVLINE | As you were approaching this finale, did you always have Hannah in mind as the killer, or did you go through variations of who it could be? I’d say everything in the finale was sort of born whole. It was kind of of a piece. By the time we made the decision to kill Michael in [Episode] 12, we knew that we wanted Joan to become the suspect. And once Joan is supposed to be the suspect, we looked around for who else has a motive, and Hannah certainly did, because of what Michael had done to her roommate in a previous episode. Forensically, Hannah made sense. There could be some good forensic confusion that would seem to implicate Joan. So once we knew we were killing Michael, and we wanted Joan to take the fall, Hannah was really the only and best option for us.

The other thing that we loved about Hannah as the killer is that it put Gregson in such a terrible spot. It was interesting to take someone who is never anything but an ally and friend and champion, and make him part of the problem. To put him and Sherlock up against each other, we thought, was a big and interesting thing to do in a finale.

TVLINE | You end this finale in a completely different location. How much time are you going to be spending in England next season? I don’t know if I can say much more than we will absolutely be in England as the seventh season begins. We had to commit. We chose to move Sherlock and Joan to London at the end of the season because we felt it was canonically appropriate, for lack of a better term. We really liked the idea of taking our Holmes and our Watson, and putting them where, really, a Holmes and a Watson belong — bring them home, so to speak — and let everyone imagine that there are additional adventures and mysteries ahead of them in a place where they really belong.

TVLINE | How will Sherlock and Joan’s partnership and the work that they do be changed going forward? Their work is really cut out for them, as we move into a seventh season. By the end of the season finale, we’ve established that their relationship with the FBI is in tatters. That’s never good. Their relationship with Captain Gregson is in a bad place. Sherlock is not allowed to set foot in the states without being arrested, and yet they both feel a pull to the place where they spent the better part of a decade together, and to the people they’ve worked with previously. They’ll certainly be exploring an opportunity to work in New York again, but a lot of problems exist, personally and professionally.

TVLINE | You reached a new depth with Sherlock and Joan’s relationship this year. Sherlock even says to her, “We’re two people who love each other.” How will their personal relationship evolve in the new season? You’re talking about a scene that killed me to write because it was my goodbye, too. I had to assume this was the end for the series. So I thought it was time for Sherlock to stop beating around the bushes and let the subtext be the text for once. When you look at any of our seasons, what you see or feel between them is love. I think that’s the way it is for all Watsons and Holmes, or Holmeses. I don’t know what the plural is… Yes, there’s respect and friendship, but I think a Watson loves his or her Holmes, and vice versa. It’s underneath everything we do, and yet I didn’t want the show to end without somebody making that explicit. The challenge, of course, now that there’s a seventh season, is continuing to explore that and expand upon it. I don’t think it was any great revelation to Joan that Sherlock felt that way, because she feels the same. There’s nothing embarrassing about it. I don’t think it’s anything Sherlock regretted saying. But it’s something that they’ll both compartmentalize, and put away as they continue to move forward together.

TVLINE | It’s interesting to see a scene on TV between a man and a woman with that sort of declaration, where there isn’t romantic, sexual tension. It very much read as a platonic love. Was that what you intended? Oh yeah, absolutely. Because that’s what it’s always been. I have lifelong friends that I love like family, and yet it’s not so often I put it to them that way. If I thought it was the last time I was going to see someone I cared about, I think I would say that with great ease. It’s why Sherlock was able to say it in that moment. He really thought it was goodbye, and you don’t walk away from even a platonic relationship without telling your partner how you feel. I wish there was an even more appropriate word than “platonic.” It’s fraternal. There’s great love, and there’s great respect, but there’s no romance.

[cosmi-trashbin]

My Top 5 Favorite Ducktales 2017 Episodes (So Far)

I’m pretty new to DuckTales as a whole.

The reboot has been my official introduction to Scrooge McDuck, Duckburg, and otherwise. So, it may be awhile before I’m familiar with or better acquainted with the original comics and the first cartoon series, as well as other series referenced such as Darkwing Duck and Talespin. After getting caught up with this series, I’m definitely curious about the source material that bits and pieces of the toon makes loving references and homages to. Regardless, these picks are based on what I’ve personally liked and enjoyed about DuckTales 2017 so far.

5.) "The Golden Lagoon of White Agony Plains!"

Golden Lagoon is the reboot’s introduction to Scrooge’s old flame Goldie O’ Gilt. She’s cunning, she’s devious, she’s beautiful, and she’s one of the few ducks that can really give Scrooge the proverbial run for his money. It’s kind of fun to see how dramatic, complicated, and dysfunctional her relationship with Scrooge is. Scrooge and Goldie definitely gives off vibes of ‘This is the only man/woman I have genuine feelings for’ but it’s tempered by the idea of a perpetual cat-and-mouse chase.

Goldie and Scrooge sync up on so many things, but their attraction towards each other and the big deal-breaker are their respective obsessions with and opinions on treasure-hunting. For Goldie, treasure is the ultimate objective, she will go to any length to get it, and she’ll do whatever she thinks she needs to do to keep it. For Scrooge, he’s obsessed with gold and hoards treasure like a true miser, but he’ll pick a loved one over treasure every time if it comes down to those rough circumstances. It’s a bit of a toss-up as to how Goldie will react to or behave in certain situations. The ideal meeting for Scrooge and Goldie is a fairweather Indiana Jones venture with low stakes and only the other as their worst enemy. It’s more fun and the focus is on being both enchanted by and disgusted by what the other will do next.

Scrooge and Goldie had the spotlight for this episode, but Glomgold is a ridiculously welcome third wheel. Apparently, his jealousy of Scrooge’s love life is the kind of kicker to give him “Grade A Villain” casting for at least an episode. It was unexpectedly grim when Goldie slipped into that river of molten gold.

4.) "Who is Gizmoduck?!"

I love episodes of cartoons that focus on and follow another character of the cast for at least that one story.

This episode is pretty much the underdog story of how Fenton, the humble and starry-eyed intern, became the hero Gizmoduck. Previous episodes set up Fenton as an awkward, kind of over-compensating, but sympathetic figure. All he wants is to earn his boss and personal hero Gyro’s respect and get a few words of encouragement. Viewers learn that Gyro isn’t the only one Fenton’s trying to impress. His M’Ma, Officer Cabrera, is skeptic of Fenton’s role as an unpaid intern and his insistence that “it will lead to bigger, better things, I swear!” In short, Fenton is caught between his personal hopes and the expectations of others.

With how much respect Fenton holds for Gyro, the expected story was that he’d be let down by how the man doesn’t live up to the idealized image in Fenton’s mind. Instead, Fenton has been losing respect for and blind admiration of Gyro for awhile. Fenton’s attention shifted to Gyro’s highly experimental prototype suit of armor and what kind of potential said suit has. It’s no longer about gaining Gyro’s approval. It’s about figuring out who Gizmoduck is and what he can do. Whether he expected it or not, Fenton unexpectedly stumbled into his life’s purpose. Suddenly, Gizmoduck isn’t just an abstract idea or an idealized concept, Fenton is Gizmoduck. Since the episode shows things from Fenton’s perspective, Gizmoduck can be considered a key part of his own journey towards self-actualization.

Honestly, I consider “Gizmoduck” an example for why this toon has something for everybody. Kids have the triplets, Webby, and Lena. Older adults have Donald, Scrooge, and Beakley. And personally, as a twenty-something on a self-discovery journey, I relate to and empathize with Fenton.

3.) "From the Confidential Case Files of Agent 22!"

There was a scene in the very first episode where Webby posed dramatically in front of a Scrooge statuette. Part of me was pointing excitedly at the screen thinking “She’s Scrooge McDuck’s thematic echo for the current generation!”

I was a bit off. Arguably, both Louie and Webby have traits, goals, and motivations in common with Scrooge. In Webby’s case, she shares Scrooge’s intense enthusiasm and zeal for adventuring and the history attached to the relic/site they’re about to visit. The reason why she’s so drawn to and utterly fascinated by Scrooge is that she’s Scrooge’s kindred spirit for lack of a better description. “Confidential Case Files” is the most significant episode so far for fleshing out this particular idea and Webby’s specific bonding-with-Uncle-Scrooge episode.

Viewers are treated to a fun James Bond parody, the official reveal and confirmation of Mrs. Beakley’s background as a spy, and direct focus on Scrooge and Webby’s dynamic. It’s fun to see Webby’s and Scrooge’s vie to rescue Mrs. Beakley compared/contrasted with the first time Scrooge teamed up with Agent 22. Webby naturally goes for similar conclusions and approaches to island threats that Scrooge originally had, but her actions are tempered by Beakley’s shrewd instincts. Scrooge and Webby’s team-up is a showcase for what kind of impact Beakley had on both of them: Scrooge tries to be more conscientious and responsible of his actions and Webby’s reckless adventuring spirit is teamed up with thorough training from Beakley. In short, Webby benefits greatly from having both Scrooge and Beakley as her mentors and guardians.

Scrooge and the triplets have been a driving force in Webby opening up and exploring how to be more comfortable her strange, eccentric self. When Scrooge acknowledges how important bonding with her is, it’s pretty much on-screen confirmation that Webby and Beakley are extended members of his family.

2.) "The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck!"

Throughout the series, Lena kept trying to convince herself and her aunt Magica that she was just ‘using’ Webby and that she’s locked away all of her ‘weak’ emotions. But it was just lip service the entire time.

I’ve loved her character writing over the course of the entire first season. Viewers can see Lena’s struggle and empathize with how difficult it’d be to act against her aunt, but root her on that much more the bigger and more significant her defiance becomes. It starts with how ambiguous her reasons for saving Beakley were and grows into signs that she sincerely cares about her friendship with Webby, if not the McDuck family at large, when she uses her magic to destroy Magica’s money shark. Lena’s personal dilemma has been gaining her freedom vs the possibility of hurting someone completely innocent. Despite her position, when things get dire, Lena opts for the decision that helps/protects others from Magica.

Lena’s freedom was the most powerful incentive Magica had to keep the girl under her control. The nightmare is Lena’s bucket of cold water. It’s one thing for the McDucks to find out about how she was part of Magica’s plot, but the bigger realization is that Magica can and will hurt the people Lena cares about no matter what she does. Even worse, Lena was always just a tool for Magica and that if she can, Magica will use Lena to destroy the people Lena cares about and revel in it.

Watching Lena inadvertently destroy Webby permanently left a bigger impact than anything else Magica did. The build-up and execution of that scene, in addition to Lena’s relief at it all just being a dream, is hands-down one of the strongest scenes in this series. It’s satisfying to see Lena try to reach out to Scrooge for help. It adds to how fantastic a twist the Magica possession is and gives ample weight to how tragic Lena’s death is.

After “Shadow Wars,” I’m really hoping Lena returns at a later point in the series. While there’s a certain kind of narrative closure and gravity to the idea of Lena as Webby’s guardian spirit, the sappy part of me wants her to come back. I want the happy, fairytale ending of Scrooge adopting Lena, okay?

On a side note: It’s kind of interesting that plush doll Webby partly resembles her original character design from the 1987 DuckTales series. Maybe this scene could be interpreted as having a double meaning or something?

1.) "The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!"

This episode is an emotional gut-punch because of the ending montage. The entire season kept dropping bread crumbs about the missing Della subplot. As the story keeps building, it’s like a rubberband is slowly getting pulled to the point of snapping with Scrooge’s confession about the Spear of Selene. In the heat of the moment, the triplets directly blame Scrooge for losing their mom and old wounds are ripped open for Donald. It’s understandable why everyone is so emotional and the big fallout that follows. As if seeing the triplets’ hearts break wasn’t enough, viewers see Scrooge’s side of the story: He was getting used to the idea of having family join him on adventures, building the Spear was a gesture of goodwill and hopes for how grand future adventures would be, how everything went wrong when Della took off against his warnings, and how desperately he tried to get Della back home safely.

Losing Della broke and devastated Scrooge just as much as it did everyone else. Over the course of adventuring with his niece and nephew, he was starting to become more open-minded and open to others in general. He already took people under his wing if they had interesting ideas and rebellious ideas that stuck out to him, but even then, they were just colleagues or employees. Della and Donald started to convince him to consider others, family especially, as someone he could trust, confide in, and learn from just as much as he could teach them. Seeing Scrooge sink back down into that big arm chair was the dramatic climax of his character arc in this series; a weighty echo of this series’ fantastic take on the classic ‘curmudgeonly Scrooge’ story.

In short: This episode’s writing tugged at my heartstrings and made me feel things.

[ethenell]

Best Films of 2018: Honorable Mentions

The time, once again, has come. The Oscars nominations are out there, and they’re ... puzzling ... But anyone interested in an alternate take can look no further. 

The cinema of 2018 offered too many notable treasures to whittle down to a simple list of ten, so before we get into the meat of my countdown, here is an alphabetical list of ten films that just missed out on making my list, but are essential viewing for anyone looking to take in the best that 2018 had to offer.

Enjoy!

Blindspotting (dir. Carlos López Estrada)

I’m still waiting for the moment when the world collectively discovers the thing at which Daveed Diggs is not amazing. He had already garnered acclaim as a part of the experimental hip-hop group clipping. before reaching a wider audience and netting himself Grammy and Tony Awards for his role in the paradigm-altering musical, Hamilton. To that already distinguished list, we can now add co-writing and co-starring in one of 2018’s most original films. Blindspotting, set in Digg’s hometown of Oakland, CA, is a searing take on gentrification, racism, and police brutality that show off a deep understanding of the myriad political problems in the rapidly-changing Bay Area, while displaying an equally deft touch with the characters who find their lives irreparably damaged as a direct or indirect result. It’s impressive work from Diggs and co-writer/co-star Rafael Casal that first-time director Carlos Lopez Estrada brings to life with singular vision. Something tells me we’ll continue to see more of everyone involved, but Diggs is undoubtedly headed for greatness.

The Death of Stalin (dir. Armando Iannucci)

You’d be forgiven if you thought the creator/director of Veep, The Thick of It, and In The Loop had already mined politics’ deepest, darkest depths for the pitch-blackest comedy that one could possibly generate from the toxic combination of bureaucratic incompetence and egotistical narcissism. However, as The Death of Stalin shows with brutal precision, you would be wrong. The Death of Stalin is at times so bleak its difficult to even describe as a comedy without a bit of a cringe on your face, but it revels brilliantly in the theater of the absurd and probes ruthlessly at the ruling class with chilling contemporary resonance. And that’s all without mentioning that it features one of the best ensemble performances of the year. In a time when its easy to despair how much our everyday political reality has started to resemble a particularly discomfiting episode of Veep, Iannucci makes a triumphant return with an even more discomfiting message - never forget, things can always get much, much worse.

 Hereditary (dir. Ari Aster)

Another year, another Sundance horror breakout. Even if it doesn’t quite match up with some of its more distinguished predecessors (I wouldn’t quite put it at the level of It Follows, The Babadook, or The Witch) Hereditary is clearly the year’s best horror film, featuring a handful of sequences sure to push you to the edge of your seat, and then keep you up at night. The perennially under-appreciated Toni Collette delivers a performance of such vast emotional range that it deserves mention among the absolute best performances of the year – which, of course, meant that it was doomed to be ignored by the Oscars. Nevertheless, any fans of the genre should stop what they’re doing (including, presumably, reading this list) and watch this film immediately. You won’t be sorry.

If Beale Street Could Talk (dir. Barry Jenkins)

A pairing like Barry Jenkins and James Baldwin makes so much sense, and has such immense creative potential, that it’s generally something that could exist only in cinephile dreams. It simply makes *too* much sense. Yet, here we are, and Jenkins’ follow-up to the critically-revered Moonlight, an adaptation of one of Baldwin’s lesser-known novels, If Beale Street Could Talk, is very much real. Does it measure up to the immense expectations thrust upon it, due in no small part to Moonlight’s rapturous reception and the much-hyped pairing of Jenkins and Baldwin? In some important ways, no. Is Jenkins’ script at times overly-reverent of its source material? In some important ways, yes. But when Jenkins filters Baldwin’s story of the redeeming power of love in the face of oppression through his own unique cinematic voice, the results are breathtaking. Jenkins remains one of cinema’s greatest emerging artists. 

Mission: Impossible – Fallout (dir. Christopher McQuarrie)

At the very least, this latest installment in the M:I franchise was the most balls-to-the-wall fun I had in a theater this entire year, hurtling at a breakneck pace from one jaw-dropping set piece to the next with one of the world’s biggest stars carrying the screen from the first frame to the last. But at most, you could call it one of the decade’s best action films, with some of the most breathtaking stunt work ever put to film with an absolutely singular star who continues to push his penchant for cheating death and tempting fate for our entertainment to daring new heights. The truth probably lies somewhere between the two extremes, but either way, the Cruise’s latest ride as Ethan Hunt is undeniably one of the most thrilling yet.

 Private Life (dir. Tamara Jenkins)

With 11 years having passed since her Oscar-nominated feature debut, The Savages, hit the silver screen, news that Netflix was financing and developing a new film from Tamara Jenkins was met with nearly unbridled optimism. More than delivering on that promise, Jenkins once again delivered a film that delves deeply into all-too-common but dramatically under-explored modern adult experiences. While The Savages followed two adult siblings dealing with the mental decline of their elderly parent, Private Life details a couple in their 40s going through fertility treatments. Like her debut, Private Life uses this trying, even destabilizing experience to explore the ways in which our long-established adult lives can be uprooted as much by our own choices as by external, unforeseeable events. With two sterling performances from Kathryn Hahn and Paul Giamatti at its center, Private Life is rife with incisive observations about overlooked truths of aging together. It’s beautiful work, and undoubtedly one of Netflix’s best “original” offerings.

The Rider (dir. Chloe Zhao)

Using a cast of untrained actors to spin a poetic tale lost opportunity by way of the American rodeo, director Chloe Zhao’s sophomore feature has keyed her as a rising master of cinematic realism. The film follows the struggles of a former rising rodeo star dealing with the fallout of a traumatic head injury suffered during a bronc riding competition, and mirrors the real-life experiences of its star, Brady Jandeau. who Zhao befriended while shooting her debut feature, Songs My Brothers Taught Me. Drawing out brilliant performances and setting them against the perma-golden picturesque of the Badlands, The Rider is a testament to what truly independent cinema is capable of and is sure to springboard Zhao to greater heights.

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse (dir. Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman)

The most unexpected triumph of the year, Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is not just a high watermark in the Spider-Man film series, it is almost certainly the best film to ever come out of Marvel Studios, and possibly the greatest superhero film since The Dark Knight. With an airtight script that spans several universes (literally) with ease, and featuring some of the most glorious and inventive animation ever to grace the big screen, Into the Spiderverse is a rare and perfect marriage between the words on the page and the visual language employed on screen. It a testament to what’s possible when talented artists with an original vision take big risks - it’s a breath of fresh air.

A Star is Born (dir. Bradley Cooper)

Even with an improbably underwhelming Oscar campaign sputtering its way to the finish line, it’s hard not to peg A Star is Born as the year’s most-talked about film. Bradley Cooper brought his gestating passion project to life with scope and vision rarely seen from a first-time director and Lady Gaga turns in an absolutely electric performance that elevates the film whenever she’s on screen. From the spine-tingling live concert scenes to the beautiful on-screen chemistry between Cooper and Gaga, there’s an awful lot to love about this latest iteration of this long-tenured Hollywood classic. Sure, there’s also plenty to nitpick at - obviously more than enough to fuel a backlash against the once-assumed Oscar frontrunner - but when this film is firing on all cylinders, it’s right up there with the greatest cinema of 2018. Cooper is officially a filmmaker to watch, and A Star Is Born looks every bit like a directorial debut that will stand the test of time. 

 You Were Never Really Here (dir. Lynne Ramsey)

One of the year’s most boldly-directed films, Lynne Ramsey’s latest is a lean thriller that goes for your throat but takes up permanent residence in your gut. Ramsey and star Joaquin Phoenix (delivering yet another show-stopping performance) bury you deep inside the mind of killer for hire, traumatized by his abusive childhood and haunted by his military past, as he embarks on a job to rescue a young girl from sex traffickers. If this premise seems familiar, believe me, the execution is anything but. Ramsey’s direction is unerringly brilliant, elevating You Were Never Really Here well beyond it’s pulpy origins to bracing, almost hallucinogenic heights. Oh, and did I mention it boasts one of Jonny Greenwood’s most adventurous scores to date? If that’s not enough to get it in your Amazon Prime queue (hint hint), then I don’t know what to tell you ...

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 27 August 2018

Quick Bits:

A Walk Through Hell #4 focuses largely on flashbacks to the case the agents were working before whatever’s currently happening happened and...I’m not really sure of anything that’s going on. I think that’s kind of the point, unsure as to how everything is supposed to connect and what any of it all adds up to. Great art from Goran Sudžuka and Ive Svorcina, though.

| Published by AfterShock

Beyonders #1 is off to a great start. Between this and The Lost City Explorers, it seems like AfterShock right now has pseudoarchaeology stitched up and it’s wonderful. Paul Jenkins, Wesley St. Claire, and Marshall Dillon kick this one off with a wee bit more crunch, though there’s a very interesting upheaval this issue that will make you wonder what’s going on.

| Published by AfterShock

Blackwood #4 brings this series to an end and it is dark. Very dark. Evan Dorkin, Veronica & Andy Fish have crafted a wonderful horror story here, with some interesting twists, and one hell of an ending.

| Published by Dark Horse

Bone Parish #2 takes a deep dive in to some of the foundational moments of the Winters clan, even as they begin to deal with the fallout of one of their dealers dying from an overdose. This is great stuff. The art from Jonas Scharf and Alex Guimarães is incredible. Great detail and atmosphere, perfectly bringing to life the premise and characters from Cullen Bunn.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Brothers Dracul #5 circles back around to the beginning of the story, as we reach the end of this interesting retelling and interpretation of the intersection of both the historical and legendary story of Vlad the Impaler, from Cullen Bunn, Mirko Colak, Maria Santaolalla, and Simon Bowland. There’s an interesting twist here that certainly paints Vlad’s action in a different light, and I hope we see it followed up upon in a second series.

| Published by AfterShock

Cyber Force #5 is a nice change of pace as Bryan Hill, Matt Hawkins, Atilio Rojo, and Troy Peteri introduce us to another old familiar face. This incarnation of the team definitely is taking its time to be brought together, but when the storytelling is as entertaining and the artwork is as gorgeous as this, it doesn’t really matter. To note, though, this is not the kind of decompression that feels empty or padded, it’s just fleshing out characters and their lives more than what we’ve seen before.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Daredevil Annual #1 presents a standalone story of Misty Knight’s days as a detective and her first meeting with Daredevil. It’s good. It feels a bit more like a pilot for a Misty Knight series than necessarily a Daredevil tale, but, as I said, it’s good. The art from Marcio Takara and Marcelo Maiolo is nice. I really like Takara’s style which gives me hints of Phil Hester, Jim Mahfood, and Tomm Coker.

| Published by Marvel

Dungeons & Dragons: Evil at Baldur’s Gate #5 is another fun one, with a focus this issue on Boo. I’ve really enjoyed this series, with Jim Zub giving the party a bit of a breather between larger adventures and giving a great look at them as individual characters. Great art, too, including this issue from Francesco Mortarino and Jordi Escuin.

| Published by IDW

Edge of Spider-Geddon #2 gives us a view into another alternate Spiderverse, circling back around to SP//dr, and giving us a new twist on the power and responsibility rubric and VEN#m. It’s nice to see Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson play with more technological horror, with some incredible artwork from Alberto Alburquerque and Tríona Farrell.

| Published by Marvel

Euthanauts #2 is a thing of beauty. Nick Robles and Eva De La Cruz are seriously delivering some of the best art in comics right now with this series. The page layouts, character designs, use of colour, and incorporation of lettering choices from Aditya Bidikar, just elevate the storytelling immensely. Not even to mention how Tini Howard is making the weird science seamless in the dialogue. This is great.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Exiles #7 concludes the Old West-ish arc with cowboy T’Challa. Drop dead gorgeous artwork from guest artist Rod Reis. His depiction of the ultimate villain here shows some nice influence from Bill Sienkiewicz.

| Published by Marvel

Extermination #2 brings the fight to the school, even as the team (and the reader, although it’s not a bad thing) is still confused as to what is really going on. I love this, the tension that Ed Brisson, Pepe Larraz, and Marte Gracia are building is palpable, and the hints of kid!Cable’s actions are chilling. Also, the art is just phenomenal. 

| Published by Marvel

Harbinger Wars 2 #4 is kind of the end to this, but the ramifications and fallout are all supposed to appear in the Aftermath issue. That being said, Matt Kindt, Tomás Giorello, Renato Guedes, Diego Rodriguez, and Dave Sharpe go all out for the spectacle in this final confrontation between Livewire and X-O Manowar. It is still kind of insane how Capshaw could possibly consider what GATE and OMEN have done as being “good”, especially in light of Palmer going absolutely batshit insane, but it does lead to interesting set-up for future conflicts.

| Published by Valiant

Hillbilly: Red-Eyed Witchery From Beyond #1 begins the next adventure of the black-eyed tramp. I get a bit of a Beowulf vibe from Eric Powell’s set-up and I’m interested to see where it goes. This series sees Powell passing on the artistic duties to Simone Di Meo, Brennan Wagner, and Warren Montgomery and it’s an interesting visual shift from the washes of Powell’s own work in the original series. I quite like Di Meo’s style, which reminds me a bit of James Harren and Troy Nixey.

| Published by Albatross Funnybooks

House Amok #1 is something I’m not sure I can describe. It’s kind of a family drama, but if that family were all collectively sharing a hallucinatory experience or delusion. It’s a very interesting concept that’s only partially revealed by Christopher Sebela, Shawn McManus, Lee Loughridge, and Aditya Baker, but it leads to a very compelling start here. Gorgeous artwork from McManus and Loughridge.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Hunt for Wolverine: Dead Ends #1, like all four of the Hunt for Wolverine mini-series, is kind of a bit of treading water. I cannot say it or any of the previous series are bad, taken on their own separated from this “event”, they’re usually quite good, but as a whole it’s kind of disappointing. It’s a search for Wolverine that kind of comes up empty, acting as a prequel to the return of Wolverine, despite already having returned in Marvel Legacy and hopped across numerous different titles, before apparently being used for evil, as per throwaway bits in the fourth issues of those previously mentioned minis that didn’t necessarily connect with the plots of those minis. It feels a bit scattered and unnecessary, unfortunately, especially when it comes to comparing notes, coming up with the organization we already knew was behind it, and a bit of hand-waving mystery and grandstanding that still tells us a whole lot of nothing. It’s sound and fury. All of which is a bit of a shame because I otherwise generally enjoy the work of Charles Soule and Ramon Rosanas.

| Published by Marvel

Isola #5... Just look at the artwork. Karl Kerschl and Msassyk just keep delivering page after page after page of beauty.

| Published by Image

Jessica Jones #2 reaffirms that this is one of the best things that Marvel is currently publishing, with the next two chapters in this story. Kelly Thompson’s dialogue, narration, and banter throughout this issue is spot on, propulsive, and funny as hell when it needs to be, but what elevates it is that this isn’t your typical talking heads approach. The characters are doing stuff, like hunting sea monsters, instead of sitting at a desk or whatever. It’s a refreshing change that overall just makes this all the better. Not to mention Mattia De Iulis’ stunning artwork. It’s slick and polished with a line style that somewhat reminds me of Paul Gulacy and a bit of Rick Mays, and an approach to shadow and colour similar to Frazer Irving. This is a great series that really shouldn’t be missed.

| Published by Marvel

Judge Dredd: Under Siege #4 wraps up this entertaining series from Mark Russell, Max Dunbar, Jose Luis Rio, and Shawn Lee. I really like Dunbar’s take on Dredd and the Russell’s idea of people creating their own law in the absence of law is an interesting philosophical counterpoint to the idea of man naturally sliding towards a state of chaos. Even the mutants striving for society is an interesting challenge to the typical idea of things falling apart.

| Published by IDW

New Mutants: Dead Souls #6 concludes the series with Illyana putting the pieces together for what actually has been going on, it isn’t a pretty picture. This has been a great series from Matthew Rosenberg, Adam Gorham, Michael Garland, and Clayton Cowles and the revelations this issue are heavy. The implications for the X-universe is huge and I want more.

| Published by Marvel

The New World #2 essentially reveals itself as a romance comic, amidst the ultraviolence and social engineering. Didn’t really see that coming, but it’s an interesting move. Trippy art from Tradd Moore, Heather Moore, and Ludwig Olimba.

| Published by Image

Paradise Court #2 continues to be an entertaining horror comic from Joe Brusha, Babisu Kourtis, Leonardo Paciarotti, and Taylor Esposito. This gives us the part of the story where our protagonist is experiencing the horror and everyone else is telling her she’s just imagining it, but it’s still well told and well illustrated.

| Published by Zenescope

Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons & Dragons #1 is about as perfect a crossover of two properties as you can get. Morty trying to get into D&D because he thinks it will get him laid is the perfect in to the world of the game and the cartoon, perfectly blending the two for fans of both without alienating or diminishing either. Jim Zub, Patrick Rothfuss, Troy Little, Leonardo Ito, and Robbie Robbins are faithful to both and in doing so deliver a wonderful beginning to this story, that also educates along the way.

| Published by IDW & Oni Press

Runaways #12 is easily one of the best issues in what has already been an exemplary series. Rainbow Rowell, Kris Anka, Matthew Wilson, and Joe Carmagna focus here on forgiveness, acceptance, and second chances, with some truly beautiful character work between Gert & Victor and Nico & Karolina. If you don’t have a giant grin on your face by the end of the issue, I question your humanity.

| Published by Marvel

Submerged #2 is still weird, very weird, but there’s some really good bits in here demonstrating some of the emotional manipulation that family members sometimes employ. Beautiful, ethereal artwork from Lisa Sterle and Stelladia.

| Published by Vault

Venom: First Host #1 is somewhat strange to see in light of where Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman have taken the character, but this limited series from Mike Costa, Mark Bagley, Andrew Hennessy, Dono Sánchez-Almara, and Clayton Cowles serves as both an interesting addendum to the symbiote’s history and as a continuation (and likely capstone) to the previous creative team’s run. It’s pretty decent.

| Published by Marvel

Web of Venom: Ve’Nam #1 is a one shot fleshing out the backstory of Rex Strickland and the SHIELD experiment that bonded the early symbiotes to soldiers set loose during the Vietnam War. It’s an entertaining tale with some nice guest stars and sweet art by Donny Cates, Juanan Ramírez, Felipe Sobreiro, and Clayton Cowles. I particularly like the scratchy, faded look in the art to make it look a bit “old”.

| Published by Marvel

X-23 #3 is great. Mariko Tamaki has nailed the characters and the art from Juann Cabal and Nolan Woodard is incredible. The page designs alone elevate the storytelling immensely.

| Published by Marvel

The X-Files: Case Files - Hoot Goes There? #2 concludes the second of this new approach of a series of mini-series and it’s...weird? Funny, but weird. Definitely taking a page out of some of the more outlandish episodes of the series, where you question whether or not what you saw happened actually happened. Still, it’s entertaining, which is all that really matters. Fun from Joe and Keith Lansdale, Silvia Califano, Valentina Pinto, and Shawn Lee.

| Published by IDW

X-Men Blue #34 looks like it largely serves as a capstone to Cullen Bunn’s work with Magneto over the past four years or so, as he winds down his run here and continues to tidy the characters up a bit before he’s done and hands the reins off to the next band of storytellers. It feels like there’s a lot more here that he would have like to have told, but what we get here is still excellent. The hints at the next stage for Magneto and mutantkind are intriguing. Great art from Marcus To and Matt Milla. 

| Published by Marvel

X-O Manowar #18 gives an interesting transition from this flashback of Aric’s pre-Shanhara life to his return to Earth, focusing on how ideas, people, and culture keeps changing. Matt Kindt delivers a pretty chilling reaction to it. All with some nice artwork from Trevor Hairsine, Brian Thies, and Diego Rodriguez. 

| Published by Valiant

Other Highlights: Deadpool: Assassin #6, GI Joe: A Real American Hero #255, KINO #9, Marvel Two-in-One #9, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Shattered Grid #1, Modern Fantasy #3, Moon Knight #198, Ms. Marvel #33, Red Sonja #20, Rick & Morty #41, StarCraft: Scavengers #2, Star Wars: Lando - Double or Nothing #4, Star Wars: Poe Dameron Annual #2, Star Wars Adventures #13, TMNT: Bebop & Rocksteady Hit the Road #5, Wayward #28, X-Men: Grand Design - Second Genesis #2

Recommended Collections: 2021 - Volume 1, 30 Days of Night, Big Trouble in Little China: Old Man Jack - Volume 1, Black Cloud - Volume 2: No Return, DuckTales Classics - Volume 1, Eugenic, Factory, Femme Magnifique, I Hate Fairyland - Volume 4, James Bond: Hammerhead, Judas, Killer Instinct, Stray Bullets: Sunshine & Roses - Volume 2

d. emerson eddy is not the very model of a modern major general. Nor a scientist salarian for that matter.

[quoteablebooks]

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult, Steampunk

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Summary:

Rue and the crew of the Spotted Custard return from India with revelations that shake the foundations of England's scientific community. Queen Victoria is not amused, the vampires are tetchy, and something is wrong with the local werewolf pack. To top it all off, Rue's best friend Primrose keeps getting engaged to the most unacceptable military types. Rue has family problems as well. Her vampire father is angry, her werewolf father is crazy, and her obstreperous mother is both. Worst of all, Rue's beginning to suspect what they really are... is frightened.

*Opinions*

Imprudence let’s the reader return to following the crew aboard the dirigible The Spotted Custard, manned by Lady Captain Prudence Maccon Akeldama who has recently gained her majority at the age of 21, once again into hijinks across her Majesty’s empire. While Rue is attempting to deal with the fallout of her decisions in the first book of the series (Queen Victoria is not amused) she also has familial, platonic, and romantic problems brewing all around her. Rue was never one to let a couple of problems stand in her way and soon The Spotted Custard is speeding through the skies toward Africa, though whether to fix problems or outrun them, only time will tell. While the core group of the Custard are the same, new friends and characters from previous novels join the band of adventurers to help Rue solve some of her problems and possibly make sure she doesn’t end up dead along the way. To get my biggest complaint out of the way, I feel as if this was two separate stories squished into one book. The first half of the novel focuses on Rue’s shift into adulthood and everything that comes with that both what the means for her as a supernatural no longer under Lord Akeldama’s protection and in the sense that she has to deal with the hard truths that everyone deals with when they become “an adult”. While Rue’s situation is a bit different given that two of her three parents are immortal, I believe she goes through a universal experience realizing that her parents are infallible, they make their own mistakes, and they don’t tell children everything because they don’t want their children to know that they are infallible and make mistakes. Again, this idea is heightened because it is a novel meant to entertain, but this is something everyone has to deal with at some point, realizing that their parents are human and don’t have a game plan on how to go through life either. As I have passed this part in my life already, it was hard to see Rue come to these realizations and how isolated it made her feel. It was especially hard because Lord and Lady Maccon are two of my favorite literary characters and I hated seeing their “happily ever after” threatened. In this first part of the novel I really appreciate Carriger setting up limits to her world and the supernatural creatures that she placed in it and sticking to them. I appreciate that her immortal creatures have limits past the normal moon madness for werewolves and the need for blood for the vampires. By having only female vampires able to make more vampires and having them bound to their Hive and the werewolves dying young via fighting or going mad if they lived long enough makes these creatures more palatable and real because the immortality is not perfect. Even with characters that are weathering immortality well at this point, such as Lord Akeldama who we find out just how long her has been an immortal, Carriger makes sure to drive home that immortality is not perfect and not easy. Carriger might bend the rules with some of her worldbuilding, but she never breaks them, no matter how heartbreaking it might be to the readers. The second half of the novel is a race to find the Daughters of Sekhmet as The Spotted Custard wants to warn them of the British Empire knowing of their existence, due to one of their crewmembers. During this part of the novel, it was hashing out personal issues among the crew, worrying about supplies, and being attacked that looped a couple of times. Luckily, I like all of the characters on The Spotted Custard, so dealing with all their interpersonal issues did not bother me, but this part of the novel seemed to go a bit slower than the first half. Still, I truly enjoyed that a conversation about the British Empire and how they exploit people, whether they are foreign countries or supernatural creatures. It would make sense that a crew mostly born into privilege, especially Percy Tunstell, wouldn’t think about how revealing new supernaturals to the world without some sort of protection for them would put them into danger of being killed or exploited. Carriger’s novels usually don’t take themselves too seriously, so it’s not an in-depth conversation about the evils of the Empire, but it’s nice that it is discussed and this group decides to work against it. Also, Carriger undermines the white savior issues well at the end of the novel. Surprisingly, I cared more about the secondary relationship than that between Quesnel and Rue. Maybe it was because I never doubted that Rue and Quesnel would finally get together once Rue allowed herself to stop using humor as a shield. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy them as a couple and their flirting, especially during the final fight, but I knew it would end well. Meanwhile, Tasherit’s interest in Primrose and her obvious returned interest was far more fascinating. While there are two more books in the novel, I’m sure this will be resolved, it was that push of pull that was more entertaining to me. Perhaps I am more cat-like than I want to admit. Overall, as with almost all of Carriger’s novels in the Parasolverse, this was a fun and entertaining journey. While I do feel as if there were was a clear demarcation between the first and second half of the novel, I enjoyed both parts. I also enjoy that Rue has decided her purpose is to find new types of supernaturals and attempt to protect them from exploitation or at least let them know it might happen. Then again, we know that things rarely go to plan when The Spotted Custard is involved so I am sure the next two novels will be just as chaotic as the first two. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

[thisweekingundamwing]

TWIGW April 15-21

Good morning lovely fandom!

Here’s your round up for this week!  If you submitted something we missed, drop us a line, we’ll get it corrected! 

And if you find something you like, remember to leave the creator some love!

XOXO,

Mod CB

Fanfiction:

A Little Piece of Gundam Wing

The archive is being ported to AO3! Check it out!

AerisEithne

The Snow Queen

Days after the incident that nearly sparked a new war, Relena returns to the Sanc Kingdom to contemplate her future. She can’t help but wonder which path the perfect soldier will choose… and whether their destinies will continue to collide.

Pairings: 1xR

Warnings: Gundam Wing (Frozen Teardrop), Preventers

@anaranesindanarie

Tout pour toi mon amour

A collection of Dorothy and Relena oneshots for @maevemauvaise

Pairings: DxR

Warnings: none

Death Unspeaking (Chapters 19 and 20!!)

What happens when a Gundam Pilot is mute? Will the other Pilots look down at him because of it? Will he overcome the odds or will the odds overcome him?

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Graphic Descriptions of Violence, Underage, Mute!Duo Gundams, Eventual Canon Divergence, Mobile Suits, Fighting, Eventual Yaoi, AU, Sign Language, just pure awesomeness, Blowing Shit Up, blowing ships up, Circus

a_river_of_stars

Post Nihil

Much of Trowa’s past is lost to him, but he can’t help feeling drawn to the pale boy who’s been haunting his dreams. When the boy turns out to be real, Trowa follows him into space. But something’s not right. A deep sense of sadness has taken hold of Quatre, and Trowa makes it his mission to free him from it. Unfortunately, Quatre seems to think he deserves to be miserable.A love story told as a series of codas, all taking place between Episodes 35-49. This is my first fic for this fandom, so please be kind. I'm new to this site.

Pairings: 3x4

Warnings: Temporary Amnesia, Troquat, Quattro - Freeform, 3x4 - Freeform, 4x3 - Freeform, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Guilt, Teens Acting Like Teens, Atypical Treatment of Amnesia, Probably ooc, Canon Compliant

@claraxbarton

Of All People

After his relationship with Zechs ends, Trowa meets Duo - a vaguely familiar, handsome stranger who promises to help him forget his ex.  Giftfic for @kangofu-cb

Pairings: 2x3, 4x5, past 3x6

Warnings: AU, academic au, nice and fluffy, no really, happy endings and fun times, and SMUT

@claraxbarton , @kangofu-cb

Bad Company

"The only hell and the only paradise are the ones we build ourselves." - Unknown Years after the wars, Preventers has decided to tackle one of the most powerful and oldest of all the Terran crime syndicates. Embedded dangerously deep in an undercover operation targeting the violent and bloodthirsty Sinaloa Cartel, Trowa Barton is pushed beyond even his flexible morals - and when his new "partner" arrives in the very unexpected and unwelcome form of Duo Maxwell, the one person he'd been trying to protect at all costs, both men must deal with the realization that preserving peace for humanity is turning into a bloodsport.What follows is race against time to uncover the evidence they need to bring Sinaloa, and its beautiful but deadly leaders, down - all while keeping each other alive in the process

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Post-Canon, Undercover Missions, Undercover as a Couple, Implied/Referenced Torture, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Human Trafficking, Gang Violence, Canon Typical Violence, Explicit Sexual Content, Moral Dilemmas

@duointherain

The Dance Politic

A star-struck Heero finally confesses to Duo, who is now the mayor of L2.

Pairings: 1x2, 5xR

Warnings: none

Foopy, kirallie

Knights of Avalon

Multi-series crossover fic

The Galaxy is a weird, wonderful and dangerous place. There is far more to history than anyone remembers.

Warnings: Very AU, Stargate pushed up to movie in '04, sentient weapons, many dates have been played with to fit

Ginnybag

Past Tense

'Milliardo.... I'll be waiting on the other side....'A quarter of a century after the fight at MOII, the Epyon System follows the last command given by its maker, returning him to where he will, once again, be needed. But 25 years is a long time and the world he left behind is not the one he wakes in, and fighting to be more than the ghost that he has become to his friends and family may be one battle Treize Khushrenada really cannot win.

Pairings: 6x13, 3xUne, 5xMariemaia, 4xR, 2xDorothy

Warnings: Other Children, Past Relationship(s, )Past Zechs/Noin, Past Treize/Une, Hints of Treize/Dorothy, Newtypes, POLITICS!, Sanc, Past Heero/Relena, Past Treize/OFC, Past Treize/OMC, Dysfunctional Family, Family Issues, Parents & Children, Discussions of Politics/War/Abuse/Sex, References to Drugs, Romefeller Foundation, Mentions of Past Nastiness, ZERO System, Canon - to a point

Wild Roses: Cold Comfort

December AC 191: Six months after creation, Treize's new Wing is rapidly gathering a reputation as the best of the best. A routine patrol in space cements Zechs's status as an Ace and leaves Treize injured, revealing the depths of his religious beliefs.As the 10th Anniversary of the Fall of Sanc combines with the fallout, Leia begins to doubt her husband, Lady Une summons the Zodiac to form, and Noin earns her wings. On Christmas Eve, Treize marks his 21st with a mission he did not expect, culminating in professional triumph and personal revelation for both men.

Pairings: Zechs Merquise/Original Male Character(s), Zechs/Otto, Treize Khushrenada/Lady Une, Leia Barton/Treize Khushrenada, Zechs/Otto/OMC

Warnings: Graphic Descriptions of Violence, Nuclear-powered suits, The Duchess of Richmond's Ball, Medical Euthanasia

lithle

Salt

Three months after the events of Like Oxygen, Duo shows up on Wufei's doorstep. As familiar, dangerous patterns assert themselves, Wufei's left wondering if there is, or could be, anything between them beyond self-destructive desire. Sequel to Like Oxygen

Pairings: 5x2

Warnings: Unhealthy Relationships, Post War Trauma, Suicidal Thoughts, no EW, Post-Warm Explicit Language, Sex, Bad Decisions, POV Chang Wufei, everyone is broken, But Maybe Trying to Get Better?

Lthanz

Life is War

Multi-series crossover fic

Sequel to 'Life is Fringe'. Five years later, Max, Chloe, and Kevin have settled into their new lives. However, they soon find themselves caught up in a power-struggle between two powerful men competing to control the fate of the world. Loyalties will be tested but a greater threat looms in the darkness, ready to strike.

Characters: Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price, Kate Marsh/Original Character(s), Maxine "Max" Caulfield, Chloe Price (Life Is Strange), Kate Marsh, Olivia Dunham, Treize Khushrenada, Natasi Daala, Lucrezia Noin, Lady Une

Warnings: Science Fiction & Fantasy, War, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Original Character(s), Post-Canon, Crossover, Multiple Crossovers, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, pricefield

Luvsanime02

To Be Kind

A @gwcocktailfriday submission

Cathy knows that this isn't going to work anymore.

Pairings: Cathy x OMC

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Mild Sexual Content, Mild Language, Mild Angst, Cocktail Friday

Maldoror

The Source of All Things

Center, a planet where magic and technology blend. Or more accurately, fight tooth and nail. A planet of Sources, holes in our boring dimension letting through arcane power, chaos and pseudo-deities. In this hot-house of myths and very real dangers, Trowa and Quatre find a mysterious man at the end of a shamanic voyage. Portents suggest this Heero Yuy is crucial to Center’s survival. He’s important enough to have some interesting enemies after him, at any rate: a devious killer and thief called ‘Shinigami’, and a very irate Dragon. Beyond them looms an even greater threat. Indeed, the greatest of them all.

Pairings: 3x4, 2x5, eventual 1x2x5

Warnings:  alternative universe, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Plot Twists, fairly graphic depiction of sex, Mild description of self-harm, Mathematical Magic, weird science, crones - Freeform, Magic and Technology brawling and eventually screwing, Eventual Threesome, Kinda, Insanity of arcane origin, The universe is a pile of marbles and other dubious allegories

Two Halves

The two kingdoms of Sanq and Lin were at war for years; a conflagration involving magic, armies and political murder. The conflict left both nations devastated and strewn with refugees. The king of Sanq finds his infant son, lost at birth, among the death and the ruin, a miracle he barely dared to hope for. But there isn't just one boy, there are two, clinging together like two halves of a whole that cannot be separated. Decades later, the truth behind that second child’s existence will put a hole in the world, or possibly save it.

Pairings: 1x2

Warnings: Fantasy AU, medieval setting with magic, starts with our heroes as children, Cousin Incest, sort of, eventually, being royalty this is in fact the norm and rather expected of them, Canon-Typical Violence

Neutral

La última impresión

Pienso en todo esto mientras espero que Duo Maxwell haga su aparición anual. Cuatro años han pasado desde que abandonamos nuestras vidas militares y él, desde el término de los conflictos armados, cada año aparece en la misma fecha, sin importar en qué parte del mundo esté yo instalado.

Pairings: 1x2

Warnings: Creator chose not to use archive warnings

@remsyk-blog

Souls for the Bayou for @maevemauvaise and written for @fandomtrumpshate

For Trowa Barton, exploring the bayou is the ultimate adventure. Drawn to its borders since before he could walk, he spent his childhood learning its paths and uncovering its secrets.  But a chance encounter sets him on a path that spans across time, challenging everything he thought he knew, plunging him deeper into its mysteries than he ever thought possible.

Pairings: 2x3

Warnings: Supernatural - Freeform, Fae & Fairies, Fae Magic, Bayou, Cajun, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Mystery, Slow Burn, Technically Speaking, Young Love, Use of accents, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, I don't want to give it all away at once, Fandom Trumps Hate

Martini Time

Trowa is not the first pick for Relena's protection detail, nor is he even second or third, but his presence is requested at this particular party, involving a very particular dress code.

Pairings: 3xR, implied 2xR, implied future 2x3xR

Warnings: Cocktail Friday, 1950s Theme, Another stupid charity party, dressing up, Comments on Trowa's hair, Unwanted attention, Sharing

SkullQueenLorita

Wrong Number

Duo, as Quatre's self appointed wing-man and in an attempt to reduce some of Quatre's innocence, gives Quatre the number to a sex hotline. Quatre reluctantly agrees to it. Unfortunately for Quatre, Duo got distracted and gave him the wrong number. But maybe that's a good thing.

Pairings: 4xOFC, 2xOFC

Warnings: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Wrong Number AU thingy, Quatre is a cinnamon roll, Duo is Quatre's self appointed wingman, Duo shouldn't be Quatre's wingman, Duo was trying to help but messed up, Quatre is weak against freckles, but that's later, Heero has a gilfriend, Duo doesn't believe she's real though, Booy is he proven wrong later, Quatre swears, and gets mildly flirted with, Texting, group chats, Quatre has a tattoo, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Drunk Texting, Drunk flirting

tb_ll57

Properties of Zero

Four years after the war, Zechs is an embittered relic wrapped up in his own suffering. A chance meeting with Quatre Winner may lead to something more, if Zechs is willing to try. If ZERO will let him.

Pairings: 4x6 (main) with multiple background pairings

Warnings: Post-Endless Waltz, Artificial Intelligence, Psychic Bond, Psychic Violence, OZ wins the war, Everybody Lives, Politics, Rough Sex, Dubious Consent, Drug Use, Drug Addiction, Enemies to Lovers, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Zechs is not a great person, But kind of wants to be, Quatre is not that innocent, ZERO is not your friend, ZERO may not be your enemy either, Resistance

white_fox

Life Is A Highway

On an impulsive plan to travel from California to New York City to propose to his longtime girlfriend, Heero Yuy did not plan to pick up a hitchhiker in nowhere Texas. Faced with some setbacks and a growing attraction to his passenger, Heero goes through more challenges than he planned on facing.

Pairings: 1x2, 1xR

Warnings: light slash, Fluff, Road Trips, Dubious Morality

Snippets:

@fadedsepiascribbles

WIP Wednesday - Awkward Une

@lifeaftermeteor

LAM!verse - Snippet featuring Wufei and Sally discussing future opportunities

@remsyk-blog

Dreamscape

Photo Edits/Manipulations

@gundamwing-ellesmith

What if Gundam Wing was real? - Chang Wufei’s office ft. Sally

Headcanons / Meta / Discussions:

@lifeaftermeteor

L5′s origins and history

@robo-rad

Pet headcanons

Multiple Contributors

White Fang meta discussion

Fanart:

@anaranesindanarie

Pilots as pixies

@constantscribbles

Relena meme

@duointherain

Duo

His Excellency, Mayor of the Confederate Second LaGrange States, Duo Maxwell

@drkstars-art

Quatre stickers

@elfbingo

Duo VS Wufei a commission for @lifeaftermeteor 

@forksplitdoorknob-blog

Gundam desktop wallpapers

@napalmarts

Post-war Duo and Heero

@noelleian

Meilan Long

@shigerugal

Gundam Titans

@zibelinbelt

Gundam Wing PDF cover

Calendar Events:

Cocktail Friday

https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/

A new prompt every Monday!

Submissions should be posted Fridays between 3 and 5pm EST, and tagged with @gwcocktailfriday, and are included in the This Week roundup on Sundays.

Interview with a Creator by @remsyk-blog @interview-with-a-creator

Remsyk has created an online interview for fandom creators to fill out and then she features one each week so that everyone in the fandom can learn a bit about each other.

If you haven’t filled out her interview, go! do! now!

This week’s featured creator is @ellewritesfiction check her interview out here!

Discord Meet Up!

@lifeaftermeteor has organized our next fandom-wide Discord Meet

You can join the channel at any time (it is permanently open), but “official” events will start around 0900 EST both April 28 and April 29 and run until…well, whenever!  Fans are encouraged to pop in and out of the channel as their schedule and time zone allows.  

More information can be found here

Diamonds in Stars Challenge

@terrablaze514 has posed an OT5 challenge to the fandom!

Hello Gundam Fans! April is the month of Gundanium and the warriors who use them. It is also the month where Art and Creativity is celebrated. 

Those who are interested will write an OT5 (friendly, platonic or romantic). A diamond has five points, just like a star. This challenge is just for fun; writers are free to choose which trope, type, rating, genre, etc. to work with. If you want to write a poem about Gundam Wing (pertaining to the five pilots, gundams or other major characters) that’s a bonus! So send your shooting star here (or post on AO3). Make sure you tag it as #diamondsinstars or #gwdis. Entries are due on April 30th. Have fun! 

30 Day Gundam Wing Challenge

Daily questions about Gundam Wing. Please tag your participation posts with @gundamwing30daychallenge for them to be recognized.

Challenge questions and more information can be found here

Pick and choose which questions you wish to answer (or tackle them all!). The point of this challenge is to stimulate fandom participation and to promote conversation and interaction between all fans!

[agl03]

Hypable Tease Breadown:

Here is my quick breakdown/thoughts on the Hypable Teases.

The Emperor is mad

After Sinara’s rather abrupt death in last week’s episode, it’s finally time for Kasius to take his place as the Big Bad in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 5×10. And if you thought this wannabe deity responded poorly when his pretensions to God-hood were rejected by the lowly humans, believe me — you ain’t seen nothing yet.

“Past Life” goes full-on Caligula crazy with Kasius, so extremely that it would be funny if it weren’t straight-up freaky. Kasius’ already grand monologues are cranked up to eleven, peppered with random acts of violence and more than one diabolical plot. But will Kasius’s rage lead him to fiddle fruitlessly while the team burns the Lighthouse around him, or do his plans have sharper edges than we previously thought?

From my promo breakdown, Kasius most definitely goes into final boss mode tomorrow.   He’s going to have more that a few tricks up his sleeve from his Seer (Loop Elena), some sort of weapon or drug that makes his and Tye’s eyes go all black, and I also wont’ be surprised if he’s got the monolith pieces stashed somewhere.  Kasius has been one of my favorite villains on the show so his terrifying curtain call will not disappoint.  

‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ goes ‘Walking Dead’

A subtly-referenced element makes its proper debut in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 5×10, and quickly presents a bloody new challenge for our agents. But that’s not the only part of this episode that recalls the motifs of The Walking Dead. In addition to the violence, “Past Life” makes full use of its title and takes the time to contemplate the fallout for those who return to life from death — a conversation that has wider relevance than we might initially think.

As someone who has never seen the Walking Dead I could be missing something big like Kasius has some sort of undead army and those with the black eyes have had the serum and will go into some sort of scary battle mode at some point.   But Tess, Daisy, and Coulson have all done this and last week Tess was clearly uncomfortable and I can see that being explored more.   The bigger part I think this will speak to is Loop Elena and how many time Kasius has brought her back.  

Deke makes a stand

Whatever you think of the (somewhat half-heartedly) enigmatic Deke, “Past Life” will give you a new perspective. Deke has spent the first half of this season being dragged kicking and screaming along with the agents’ adventures, but in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 5×10, he finally stands up and makes a solid choice of his own.

In doing so, Deke profoundly effects the events of this week’s episode, as well as the story going forward. It’s a refreshing development for the character, but don’t worry; there is still plenty of mystery left hanging around this scruffy-looking nerf herder to satisfy the most speculative of fans.

AKA some questions will be answered but not all with a bigger mystery looming with him.  Possibly a bit more of his backstory and likely some more teases of a possible Fitzsimmons connection.  I am thinking whatever he does is good and possibly saves someone at a crucial moment, last week he could have let Daisy get killed by Sinara but chose to save her.  This is one of the pieces I am most anxious to see play out because I desperately need to get a better read on where they are going with Deke.

Deke is also high on my list as the one that takes out Kasius.

Seer sights

Here’s one mystery that won’t linger for long, though. The identity and circumstances of Kasius’ recently-mentioned “Seer” are integral to the events of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 5×10, and the consequences are truly breathtaking. Yes, there is an unexpected clarity cast on the confounding problem of the timeline (future? past? time loop? destiny? WHAT?) but there is also a marvelous emotional fallout. This is territory that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has never visited, and the show pulls off a challenging development with grace, sensitivity… and revelations that will leave your heart pounding.

It’s Loop Elena and she was captured when she left May to go fight.

The full fall out from that is going to hurt.  I won’t be surprised if the Inhuman program wasn’t started using Elena’s blood.  

More painfully is she could reveal what happened to everyone in from her loop Daisy, Mack, Coulson, May, and Fitzsimmons (so be ready for more doom and gloom teases there) but even worse something she did/gave Kasius lead to their deaths and allowed the Kree more and more control.  

She could also offer up other revelations that will loom over the team upon their return home.

Daisy is already burdened with the thought she destroyed the world and Elena would also have to deal with knowing her future self caused something terrible.   Her giving up information on the team (and who knows what else) to Kasius, knowing what happened to Mack in the past, and nearly losing him will all take their toll.  I honestly won’t be surprised if she resits coming back as well or if she takes off when they get home.  

Mack will also be devastated.

Expect and even bigger twist to come from the reveal.  Something that will have consequences long after they get home.

Coulson has an idea

Our prime director of S.H.I.E.L.D. has kept things on the down-low over the past few episodes, mostly content to follow his team’s logical plans and bark out decisive orders. But “Past Life” isn’t playing like that anymore. With the team so close to achieving their goal of building a magical monolith to travel backwards in time and save the planet, Coulson snaps back into Executive Decision Mode.

And boy, does he execute those decisions. Boy, oh boy, oh boy.

Well one will be knocking Daisy out and dragging her through the portal whether she likes it or not.  

When Coulson goes into full on Director mode is when things really start to happen, get done, and get them home.

[aion-rsa]

The Expanse Season 4 Recap: Ilus, the Ring Gates and the Cliffhanger Ending

https://ift.tt/33wqYH6

Warning: contains spoilers for The Expanse season 4

At the beginning of The Expanse season four, the show’s characters stood at the crossroads of a brave and expansive new world, as did the cast and crew in their new home at Amazon. It was a marriage made in heaven. The Expanse was bigger, slicker, bolder, and grittier, but just as gloriously deep, rich and complex as ever. As season five gets ready to drop, let’s remind ourselves of the ups, downs, ins, outs, fights, smites and subterfuge of season four. We’ll start with the set-up and then look at each of the main locations/groups in turn, leading up to the season’s denouement and planet-busting cliffhanger. Major spoilers, obviously, ahead.

In the Beginning

Season three ended with the opening of the mysterious ring gates, and the 1300 habitable systems beyond them. Holden feared the beginning of ‘a blood-soaked gold rush’.

It’s a fear shared by UN Secretary General Chrisjen Avarasala (Shohreh Aghdashloo), who wants everyone to stay put. The UN’s stance is backed by the Martian Congressional Republic (MCR) and many of the Belters. The balance of peace and power in the Sol system is precarious, and a mass exodus could destabilise human civilisation. Besides, no one group wants any of the other groups to rush in and gain the upper hand.

A convoy of Belter ships rushes the blockade on the Sol side of the slow zone. The Barbapiccola, containing refugees from Ganymede, makes it through and enters one of the ring gates. The Belters settle on a planet there and begin mining lithium. They name the planet Ilus.

Two ships are dispatched in the settlers’ wake. The first is the Edward Israel, owned by a corporation called Royal Charter Energy (RCE), which already had a UN-and-Mars-backed mandate to conduct scientific studies beyond the ring gates. The second is the Rocinante. Avasarala wants Jim Holden (Steven Strait) and his team to bring their knowledge and experience of the protomolecule to bear on this strange new world, and also act as adjudicators. Officially, at least. It’s not really in Avasarala’s interests for the situation on Ilus to run smoothly.  

Life on Mars

Bobbie Draper (Frankie Adams) spent seasons two and three in a whirlwind of defections, double-dealings and divided loyalties thanks to the cold war (and almost total war) between Earth and Mars, and the revelation of Mars’ role in the development of protomolecule bio-soldiers. Season four finds her somewhat adrift, living on Mars with her younger brother, David, and working for a company that dismantles decommissioned warships. She’s generally having a hard time readjusting to civilian life.

David gets embroiled in the criminal underworld, helping a gang to prepare illicit sense-enhancement drugs. Bobbie takes exception to this, so goes looking for the gang. She finds and beats down some of its members, in the process smashing up one of their labs and damaging their inventory. Her brother is kidnapped and forced to work off the debt incurred by the damage. Bobbie pleads for her brother’s release, a request to which the leader of the gang is willing to acquiesce, but only for a price: Bobbie has to leave a door unlocked at work so the gang can steal some military equipment. Reluctantly, she complies. When Bobby’s conscience gets the better of her she tries to report the gang to the police, only to discover that the high-ranking policeman who comes to log her report is the gang leader himself, Esai Martin (Paul Schulze). She later quits her job when her supervisor seems keener on getting in on the lucrative illegal action than in pursuing justice. Eventually she’s arrested for her part in the gang’s crime, and is only saved from prosecution when she agrees to accept Esai’s offer to work for his gang. Esai is motivated in his criminality by the pressing need to make enough money to secure passage off Mars and start a new life elsewhere with his family. He knows that the ring-gates, and the life and fecundity beyond them, have rendered Mars’ terraforming initiatives pointless, thereby dooming the planet to stagnation and, very possibly, extinction.  

Esai and his gang are later involved in the theft of another piece of Martian military tech, which is handed over to a team of Belters, who summarily execute the gang before retreating off-world. Bobbie witnesses this happening.  

Avasarala, Earth, and The OPA

The Outer Planets Alliance (OPA) faction represented by Camina Drummer (Cara Gee) and Klaes Ashford (David Strathairn) allies with the UN. They re-brand and re-purpose the Behemoth as Medina station, setting themselves up as gate-keepers of the rings, helping to enforce the UN blockade.  It’s hoped that this will grant them a place at the table and influence over the new galactic order.

Not all Belters are on board with this new paradigm, perceiving it as selling out; a capitulation to those who would still demean and exploit them.  Marco Inaros (Keon Alexander) is the most vocal and militant voice of opposition. Marco is Naomi Nagata’s (Dominique Tipper) ex-beau and father of their child, Filip (Jasai Chase Owens), and while these days he styles himself a freedom fighter, it wasn’t always thus. When he was with Naomi, he tricked her into writing code that he claimed would merely disable other ships, allowing their faction to come to the rescue and extort payment for their time and trouble. However, Marco used the code to overload the reactor of a docked ship, killing hundreds of people. When the distraught and guilt-ridden Naomi left the faction she was prevented from taking their son, Filip.

Marco is apprehended by Drummer and Ashford for his part in capturing the UNN colony ship Soujourner and executing its crew. While aboard the Behemoth, Marco tries to win Ashford over to his world view, reminding him that the Belt will suffer a terminal decline of profit and influence owing to the exodus, and, besides, very few Belters, due to their space-bound physiology, will be able to take advantage of the brave new worlds beyond the ring gates. The heads of the various OPA factions assemble to decide whether or not Marco should be spaced (ejected into space sans suit) for breaking the fragile truce between the inner and outer planets. It’s Drummer who breaks the tie, reasoning that killing Marco would make him a martyr, and propel into action those factions loyal to his cause.

On Earth, Avasarala faces a leadership challenge from Nancy Gao (Lily Gao) who, in contrast to the incumbent, is a fierce advocate for embracing the change, opportunity and adventure that the ring gates represent. Avasarala’s campaign takes its toll on her ethics and her personal life, especially her marriage. She resorts to smears against Gao, and isn’t above attempting to use the problems on Ilus to her advantage. 

Read more

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By Michael Ahr

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By Kayti Burt

OPA bigwig Fred Johnson (Chad L. Coleman) reveals Marco’s location to Avasarala, who wastes no time in dispatching a team of marines to the Pizzouza spacecraft to extract him. Marco, however, isn’t on board, and the resulting firefight between marines and Belters results in grave loss of life. The fallout critically damages Avasarala’s image, reputation and election chances, and moreover plays right into Marco’s hands. 

Fred Johnson visits the Behemoth, receiving from Drummer both a punch in the face and news of her resignation. Ashford vows to track down and kill Marco and wants Drummer to accompany him, but she declines on the grounds that she’s sick of politics and its machinations.

Ashford’s pursuit of Marco through the Belt leads him to a Martian naval officer, who reveals under interrogation the existence of a conspiracy involving Martians and Belters. When Ashford finally tracks down Marco, on an abandoned asteroid mine in the belt (from which there are also some asteroids missing) he’s prevented from killing him by the appearance Marco’s and Naomi’s son Filip, who emerges from the shadows to tip the balance of power in his father’s favour. Ashford is spaced, but before he dies he broadcasts a secret recording that incriminates Marco and will alert whomever receives the transmission to the conspiracy – even if Ashford never learned its exact purpose or shape.

On Earth, Avasarala is defeated by Nancy Gao. Avasarala dictates a conciliatory message to Nancy Gao, which ends thusly: “As for policy and the direction you’re taking the earth and all her peoples. Well, we disagree. One of us is wrong. I think it’s you… but I hope it’s me.”

Ilus/New Terra

When the Rocinante arrives on Ilus – or New Terra, as the UN would have it – there is already palpable tension and mistrust between the Belters and the crew of the Edward Israel. The RCE’s shuttle was downed on its way from orbit, resulting in deaths and injuries. Survivors of the crash include the group’s leader, the merciless Adolphus Murtry Burn Gorman); RCE security officer Chandra Wei (Jess Salgueiro); and exo-biologist Dr Elvi Okoye (Lyndie Greenwood). Violence is halted when everyone is swarmed by alien bugs, soon confirmed as protomolecule-based.

The planet is home to large structures that were built by the long-dead beings responsible for the protomolecule. Proto-Miller (Thomas Jane) appears to Holden and makes him go to one of the ruined structures to remove a root that’s blocking a connection. This turns on the structure and, it would appear, the entire planet, shaking loose forks of promethean lightning from the dark, oppressive clouds. Holden fires a torpedo at another of the structures when it too appears to activate.

Amos (Wes Chatham) and Murtry play detective for a time, discovering that the planet’s landing pad was blown up deliberately. In the ensuing stand-off between the Belters and the RCE group, Murtry shoots and kills one of the Belters. This violent act kills the potential bromance between Amos and Murtry. Both men are killers, but Amos, despite his shallow affect, follows a more honourable code of ethics, one that puts him at irreconcilable loggerheads with the ruthless Murtry. Amos is taken into custody while Naomi – still having trouble adjusting to terra firma, despite the help of acclimation drugs – helps a Belter woman named Lucia (Rosa Gilmore) escape the RCE’s clutches. She’s being pursued by the RCE because they know she was involved in blowing up the landing pad. Lucia explains to Naomi that it was only supposed to be an act of sabotage to buy the Belters more time. When it became clear that this act of sabotage would coincide with the arrival of the RCE’s shuttle, Lucia tried to abort the action, but was prevented from doing so by her co-conspirators. Holden and Alex (Cas Anvar) come to Naomi and Lucia’s aid as they’re hunted across the encampment, bringing some of the Rocinante’s firepower to bear. Alex takes Lucia and Naomi into orbit aboard the Rocinante, leaving Holden behind to plead with the two factions to evacuate the unpredictable, proto-molecule-soaked planet, with a little time left over to punch Murtry in the face and demand Amos’s release.

Neither faction wants to abandon the planet, or their claim to the lithium, but soon the planet itself renders Holden’s exhortations irrelevant. An island explodes, precipitating a shockwave and tsunami that threatens their survival. Worse still, the fall-out has somehow rendered the fusion drives on the orbiting spacecraft useless. There’s no prospect of escape or rescue. Everyone has to flee for refuge in one of the alien ruins.

Structures, slugs and synthesised drugs

Once inside, the survivors split into two factions, RCE on one side, Belters on the other, with Holden and Amos somewhere in the middle. They quickly discover that the structure is teeming with countless thousands of neurotoxic alien slugs and hostile micro-organisms. Everyone except Holden starts to go blind after being infected by the micro-organisms. Many others succumb to the fatal touch of the slugs. Murtry, becoming more unstable by the moment, reveals to his group his true objective on Ilus/New Terra. It isn’t the lithium he’s after, but the proto-molecule tech. He also wants to kill Holden and Amos.

Above the planet, Alex and Naomi devise a plan to tether the Rocinante to the Barbapiccola to prevent its decaying orbit from dragging it down onto the planet’s surface. Murtry keeps things interesting by ordering the Edward Israel to fire on the Rocinante.

The exo-biologist Dr Okoye works out – just in the nick of time – that Holden is immune to the micro-organisms because of the anti-cancer medication he’s been taking ever since he and Miller were exposed to radiation on Eros. She synthesises a cure, and the effects are reversed. In time, the waters recede enough for the survivors to leave the structure.

Meanwhile, proto-Miller again appears to Holden. The ‘real’ Miller is now battling with the protomolecule for control of the Miller ‘avatar’. In a moment of lucidity, Miller explains to Holden that the hat-wearing Miller he’s been dealing with is The Investigator, whose mission was to bring Holden and a dose of active protomolecule through the ring gates to activate the structures on Ilus. Miller, however, has identified a place on the planet where the protomolecule can’t go, where in fact all trace of it can be destroyed.       

Holden heads off in search of this weak spot. He’s led to a portal which transports him to another structure elsewhere on the planet, swiftly followed by Murtry and Chandra (with whom Amos had a brief ‘romance’), who are intent on killing him. Amos and Okoye follow. Amos fatally shoots Chandra, then Murtry shoots and disables Amos. Meanwhile, Okoye and Holden find a mysterious circular rift that Miller refers to as ‘the bullet’. While Holden rushes to aid Amos and incapacitate Murtry, Okoye stays behind to help Miller with ‘the bullet’. Miller merges with items strewn around the room to give him the corporeal form necessary to enter and plug the rift. His self-sacrifice not only saves Okoye, who is almost swallowed by the phenomenon, but returns everything to normal. All vestiges of the protomolecule are removed, the planet is ‘deactivated’ and fusion engines can function once more. The Belters and some of the RCE scientists decide to stay behind on Ilus. In orbit, Holden ejects the only piece of protomolecule that’s still aboard the Rocinante into Ilus’ sun. Murtry is a prisoner aboard the Rocinante, but the crew decides to let Lucia go.    

The Beginning of the End

Bobbie reaches out to Avasarala to tell her about the criminal conspiracy between Martian and Belter criminals/terrorists. Ashford’s message, which lends weight to this intel, is out there in the ether somewhere, but no one has yet detected it. Bobbie and Avasarala are now working together.

It was Filip who was with the team of Belters on Mars that stole the piece of military tech before eliminating Esai’s gang. The hardware taken was stealth tech, which we discover that Marco Inaros has used to cloak eight asteroids that are currently hurtling their way towards Earth.  

It’s going to be fascinating and harrowing in equal measure to see what a few million tonnes of space-rock will do to the tentative peace that’s barely holding the Sol system together, and how the various factions will make peace – or war – with the atrocity to come.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Roll on season five.

The post The Expanse Season 4 Recap: Ilus, the Ring Gates and the Cliffhanger Ending appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3ly85ts

[itsbenedict]

No Driver’s License: Omakes 23.1-23.5

No Driver’s License is a Madoka Magica game I’m running for five players, using a homebrew of Yaruki Zero’s Magical Burst system. It follows five magical girls as they deal with an upheaval in the world’s magic system caused by some strange new three-eyed Incubators. They have to figure out what’s going on, who to trust, and how to put a stop to the cycle of despair.

I post session logs and omakes weekly, both as a reference for the players and for anyone who wants to follow along with the party’s misadventures.

[adventure log- read from the beginning]

[session 23]

Been a while since omakes! It’s been pretty much nonstop crisis management since the Engine, but now that Seina’s witch is done and things have cooled down, they have some downtime to catch up with each other and some of their NPCs.

In 23.1, Sakura makes some phone calls to her family and friends. In 23.2, Sakura tries interrogating Yoshe, but doesn’t really get anything besides her feelings hurt. In 23.3, Yukari tries the same, and ends up spilling considerably more information than she gets. In 23.4, Ibara visits the bunker to talk to Nano and her delinquent buddies, and in 23.5, she and Makoto have a heart-to-heart.

23.1 (Sakura, Olivia, Kazuya)

Olivia seems concerned about something, but she’s determined to deflect and not talk about it, instead asking Sakura how she’s doing. Eventually her attempts get so transparent that Sakura leaps to a conclusion.

Olivia declines to say as much- and is forced to explain. Apparently Reiko’s flown into a rage over something- a bounced check or something like that. Fortunately, Reiko’s responsible enough not to blame the people staying there for Yukari’s failure, but... 

Sakura asks Olivia to check in on Reiko’s soul gem- and then has to explain the concept of a soul gem. Olivia’s very worried about this, of course, but agrees to check on Reiko. And in the meantime, she asks how Sakura’s doing.

Sounds like Olivia’s got it pretty tough.

Sakura then tries to call Kazumi- who doesn’t pick up. (You’ll recall Kazumi is her friend Kazuya’s sister, who’s best friends with head cannibal Kimiko and panicked and ran away at the hospital.) Dejected, she tries Kazuya instead.

Oh, right- she hasn’t spoken to him since he found out she was trans and then she witched out. That’s... awkward.

At this point- having already taken four Trauma from Overcharge, she picks “your mundane form has a permanent change” from the Overcharge Fallout options, and rolls on the Change table. Now, I would’ve let her just pick, but she wanted to roll anyway- and serendipitously got 1+5, which on that table is

So hey, that’s on-theme! She also gains peppermint swirls.

Kazuya’s been on the line through this whole meltdown, and is very confused and concerned. Sakura then spills her guts, essentially- confessing everything about her wish and how he reacted.

Apparently his reaction is a lot better when in his head it’s not “my friend, a boy, is deciding to be a girl now” and is instead “my friend, a girl, is telling me about a bunch of weird magic memory stuff she did that I don’t remember”.

Then she confesses her crush and tries to blow past it without letting him react by moving on to some important instructions about high-stakes magic safety stuff- thoroughly confusing him, at which point she hangs up. A successful interaction!

23.2 (Sakura, Yoshe)

On the heels of those phone calls, Sakura then visits the team’s captive cannibal. When Yoshe sees her- and her new candy stripes- she seems amused.

Sakura changes the subject- to Kazuya and Kazumi. Yoshe was in on the plan to kidnap Kazuya- but apparently she didn’t know anything about Kazumi, or is at least claiming as much. She’s surprised to learn he has a sister.

Sakura moves on to trying to feed Yoshe misinformation- telling her stuff about magic coming from upside-down fairies who live in the moon, a whole bunch of total lies spoken with conviction. Yoshe seems to eat it up, although it’s not changing her outlook.

After a bunch more taunting and snide comments about how they have to kill each other and so on, Yoshe eventually gets Sakura tired of her bullshit. Sakura tries one last barb- trying to claim Yoshe doesn’t have any real friends- to no effect. And, that failed, she makes an effort to try to connect with her.

When Yoshe doesn’t immediately take hold of Sakura’s olive branch, Sakura flips her lid and starts shaking the cage and yelling about how miserable this is making her and AAAAAAGH. This having been pretty much exactly what Yoshe wanted, she is very smug about it, albeit slightly worried that Sakura will follow through on her threats of violence.

So... that could’ve gone better. Or- well, no, I guess it was really unlikely to go better, since Yoshe is explicitly trying to get everyone she talks to to witch out so she can steal their powers and escape. A productive conversation that left Sakura feeling better was probably off the table entirely.

That said, let’s see how Yukari fares!

23.3 (Yukari, Yoshe)

Yukari’s turn to guard Yoshe. She addresses her.

After some pointed questioning about hey what do you think you’re doing there, Yukari moves on to her main discussion point- the near future, and how it looks bad.

Yukari manages to talk for a while without being interrupted, because what she’s talking about is how she feels bad that she’s not really friends with the group and it’s just a marriage of convenience due to a common enemy. It’s very sad! She’s doing all Yoshe’s work for her!

Yukari voices her confusion over the issue of Katou Kimiko and Midarezaki Honoka- who they are, when they showed up, who’s who and who’s when... Yoshe just laughs and laughs at her theories, because Yoshe claims to know the whole story and isn’t telling.

Yukari offers a trade of information.

Yukari then... dumps her entire backstory on Yoshe, everything about Honoka and how she killed all her friends.

With a 10, Yukari’s able to pick up on something.

Yoshe, confident that Yukari hasn’t figured it out yet, just starts laughing and making fun of her again.

Done with this line of inquiry, Yukari then... offers information for free. Apparently, she wants to make sure the cannibals know the truth of the situation, so they won’t be caught unawares when their plan- kill the three-eyed incubators in charge- goes sour on them, if they manage to defeat the party and go back to their business. The cannibals being armed with information is better than the cannibals inviting an Incubator invasion due to their ignorance.

She doesn’t tell them about Nishi and Tama’s real identities, exactly, but...

After a little more discussion, Yukari seems to go on the offensive.

Yukari relents, and- after issuing some cryptic warnings Yoshe doesn’t know enough to understand- puts the cotton candy back in place.

23.4 (Ibara, Nano, Nails, Shibu)

Ibara has something important she wants to talk to her friends and family about- so she arranges a meeting.

(This one is going to be longer and more detailed than usual because it is literally my favorite omake I’ve ever done.)

Now, if you’ll recall, Ibara disintegrated her new phone, so this is from Yukari’s.

She also asks them to drag Nano upstairs, too, and they naturally interpret this literally and haul her bodily to the rendezvous point.

They ask a zillion questions on the way to the juice stand, which Ibara waves off until drinks are dealt with. Nails, as before, orders a terrifying concoction of drinks which should not be mixed. Nano gets black cherry. Shibu...

Ibara, trepidatious after the incident with Nails’ drink last time, orders an ice water.

(Naturally, I gave her a unique player role, Drinks Wuss, which I later folded into her main role, Hero of Justice.)

Then Ibara starts in on the exposition dump! First, she tells them all about Incubators and contracting.

Her friends try to be understanding, but Nano’s expression is dark, and she’s seriously disturbed by the revelations about the Hell Engine.

Ibara explains in vague terms, and they make the connection to Sakura’s “witch” event that they lived through. Nano seems shocked that this could also happen to her older sister, who’s supposed to be invincible.

With the exposition out of the way, Ibara tries to get to her main point- the reason she wanted to talk to them, and why she had to give all that exposition. She addresses Nails and Shibu by their real names, which is how they know she’s being serious.

Shibu immediately tries to clarify- saying that Ibara’s sharp, has good instincts- but tends to stop thinking when she has a plan of action. Which, she says, is what makes her their leader. It’s all very honest and serious stuff, which is why Nano is confused because this is supposed to be the part where she rags on her dumb sister.

Ibara explains that there was a plan, there was supposed to be a pain ritual thing...

(Then there’s a bit where Ibara notices Nano’s been on her phone this whole time, suspiciously typing something, and tries to ask what’s up. Nano seems panicky and gives vague reassurances that it’s fine.)

After the giggle fit is over, and they bring up the running gag about magic vampires, and a good time is had by all... Ibara starts expositing about the Critical Condition fight.

Did I not mention that? She got an Overcharge Fallout, much like Sakura, and the effect is that her arms turned to stone. Shibu’s concerned, but Nails thinks it’s the coolest thing in the world. 

Ibara beats herself up some more about how she’s dumb and the rest of the party is smart and useful and all she can do is hit things, and-

Ibara’s not crying. You’re crying.

And that’s scene!

No, wait, no it’s not.

Ibara draws her weapon.

23.5 (Makoto, Ibara)

Ibara has some questions about their captive.

Ibara just... doesn’t understand how Makoto can talk to her like she’s a person, after what she’s done- but she wants to know how that’s possible.

Ibara’s not sure she can be the person who treats Yoshe like a person and shows her kindness- she can’t get what she’s done out of her head- but she’s glad Makoto’s there to do that.

As always, romance within the party is fraught with complications and hard feelings. And... neither of them are experts on this.

They’re both... confused, unstable, not sure what to do about their relationships.

Misery loves company, and them both being in the same boat is something to bond over.

Next time on No Driver’s License: the team does some much-needed housekeeping. They’ve got a very angry landlady to placate!

[hickorycreekrp-blog]

Out of Character:

Name/Alias: Elle

Pronouns: she/her

Age: 23

Timezone: EST

Face Claim Preferences:  Jessica Stroup

Character Basics:

Full Name: Rosalie “Rose” Kingston

Nicknames/Prefers: Rose

Age: Twenty Six years old

Occupation: Rose is currently the receptionist at the Castaway Inn; she’s not the most fond of her job, as it’s a big change from her old lifestyle, but it puts food on the table.

Pronouns: she/her

Gender: cisgender female

Hometown: Hickory Creek, CT

Current Neighborhood: Cohen Point

Highest Education: Bachelor’s Degree; English, with a minor in History (Art and Literature concentration) started at Columbia University, finished at American University Florence

Religion: Non-practicing Catholic

Family and Relationships:

Parents: Jonathan and Sybil Kingston (deceased).

Siblings: James Kingston (older brother)

Children: Juliet Kingston, just barely age 4.

Other: Reagan Kingston (aunt, age 45)

Pets: None at the moment – though she’s quite determined to adopt a dog sooner rather than later.

Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual (though this could develop)

Romantic Orientation: Heteroromantic

Marital Status: Single, briefly engaged

Personality:

Favorite Film: Under The Tuscan Sun

Favorite TV Show: Gilmore Girls

Favorite Book: Eat, Pray, Love

Favorite Song: This is an impossible question for poor Rose to answer – at the moment, though, she can’t quite get enough of Cherry, by Lana del Rey.

Favorite Color: Green

Likes: Travel, tea, home-cooked meals, spontaneous adventures, her daughter, dark chocolate, sun dresses, being barefoot, the beach, sunlight, her brother, the arts, theater

Dislikes: Monotonous schedules, judgmental people, black coffee, being guilted, being tied down, making big decisions, early mornings, the gym

History:

She’d always been the wild card in the family; flitting from one interest to the next, never truly committing to any one venture at a time. Responsibility had never been her forte, and for that she got into much trouble at a young age. Without her brother acting as her veritable partner in crime – and her conscience, more often than not – she lived a rather charmed childhood, for a time. But no family is free of its tumultuous times; Rose was simply determined not to see it, not to hear it, not to process it. This became a pattern of hers from the get-go, this nasty habit of acting as if glaring problems simply did not exist. From playground squabbles to the heavy family tumult that plagued the Kingstons, Rose simply found herself better off for turning a blind eye to all of it in hopes that it would simply disappear. She focused greatly on her love for her brother – her brother, who’d never done anything wrong in his life, and loved her for her messiness nevertheless; Rose was never lacking in support and self-confidence, from the very beginning, for there was always James, the great problem solver, to make all unhappiness vanish. She was undeniably coddled in this way, undeniably flighty and spoiled, though she had a good heart – as was hereditary in the Kingston family.

But it became a problem in itself, this insistent need to aggressively repress every negative thing that faced their family. It created a rift between them all from the very beginning, with Rose emotionally distant in times of trial and tribulation – leaving poor James to deal with the fallout all on his own. It would not be inaccurate to say that Rose never truly processed the death of either of her parents; being in such close proximity with her father’s death did nothing but propel her further into her fantasy, her flighty tendencies, her determination to act as if she was untouchable. She drowned herself in anything she could find – from work, to school, to boys, to a brief addiction to shopping – and wholly refused to stop for a moment and realize that she was needed. Ignorance was bliss, and Rose was utterly blissful, determined to maintain the sense of childish fun that she and her brother had found as children; it was not until she left for college that she truly began to flourish outside her life attached to his hip, but never truly seeing beyond it. (It would catch up to her later, though, that she’d bottled up sadness and let it sit in the cellar of her mind, like an untouchable wine, far too expensive to drink)

She wrote to him often, when she attended Columbia; in fact, she wrote him by hand, insisting that it was the better way to communicate – Rose continued to romanticize, to decay in lackadaisical and noncommittal laziness, majoring in something she knew would never lead to anything immediately lucrative. But she was horribly fanciful, and felt as if she was fulfilling some sort of ridiculous romantic fantasy by sinking so deep into a luxuriously artistic lifestyle, hopping on the first chance she could to study abroad. It was then that her letters to James grew less frequent, dotted here and there with emails of little substance. And while she was gone, the moment she left, in fact, she refused to admit – once more, as was the case with her father’s death – that her mother was sick. Her mother, who’d inevitably scold her at the next family dinner she attended, who’d rail at her for prioritizing travel and fun over a practical degree. When James’s insistence that their mother was in horrible shape grew more vehement, she simply stopped responding; it was here, in Florence, after deactivating her every social media outlet in the name of a “cleanse” that she met the father of her daughter, of dear Juliet, who quickly became the realest thing she’d ever known.

He was something very real in a fanciful world, and by proxy so was her daughter. Theirs was a whirlwind romance; she continued her studies abroad, opting to stay in Italy with her new lover rather than return to the States and finish her degree in a traditional sense. Travel trumped study, Rose barely scraping by in all her classes, for her days were occupied with museums, road trips, gelato in the square, and him – they were engaged for a long while, which she refrained from telling James. She knew that he would meet this revelation with nothing but judgement – or so she figured; she often wonders if he’d have come to her wedding – and so reveled in her secret love affair, building a life in a studio apartment in Florence, where no troubles brewing in the States could touch her. She went willfully out of touch with everyone she’d known in the States, fully committing to a life of sun, and wine, and the mindset of an enlightened vagabond. When Rose discovered that she was pregnant, however, the man who she’d come to love so much did exactly what she’d always done to her family – he drifted. She was encouraged to be rid of it, and when she refused she’d find adoption pamphlets littered about their flat, tucked in all too convenient places. While Rose was uncharacteristically thrilled about the prospect of adding to their little family – for she’d been so sure that they could have continued just the way they were – he could see no place for a baby amongst the wine bottles, the oil paints, the plays and poems which littered their flat.

Juliet was born, but not before Rose was all too suddenly a single mother. This abandonment had no place in her romantic fantasy of what life was supposed to be; she’d pictured them all in a villa in the countryside, all bronzed, sun-drenched, and laughing. She’d pictured herself luring James across the sea to their countryside home, regaling him with tales of their travels to Greece, to France, to exotic locales the names of which she didn’t even know yet. But, quite suddenly, there was no room for romanticizing. He left her with the flat, with the money they’d saved, with all their belongings – perhaps this was his last kindness. And it was this kindness that mingled both spite and gratitude in Rose’s belly, fueling her to finish her education in Florence, with Juliet on her hip. It was this that drove her to revisit all the correspondence with James that she’d so wholeheartedly ignored in the name of blissful ignorance – it was here that Rose became an adult.

But she was quickly running out of money; a just-graduated American with a baby and no job could hardly flourish in a place such as Florence. And she was thinking of Juliet, too, her beautiful baby who could do no wrong. The most wonderful child, who deserved the very best – and the very best, she realized, was the life she’d left behind in Hickory Creek; traipsing around Europe was no life for a child; she needed the stability that Rose had so desperately shunned for so long, and so she took it upon herself to take what remained of her savings – selling the flat and all of her precious belongings, which now only belonged in a life lived in fantasy and fancy – and returned to Hickory Creek. It was not a grand return, but a bleak one – but she is determined to start anew, if only for the sake of Juliet, who needs family now more than ever.

She’s been living in Hickory Creek a few months now – on her own, as she is determined not to lean too greatly on her brother, despite his offers. The lifestyle change is a great one, and she has found herself floundering a bit, for her sense of purpose now revolves entirely around someone else. But she loves her daughter, and she loves her brother – no matter how estranged they may be. Rose has all but forgotten her engagement, for out of the ashes of her first love came her greatest love, and she will do anything for Juliet – which is quite clear in how quickly she was willing to return to Hickory Creek. But it may have been quick – but it has never been easy. Rose is still an utter romantic at heart, and quite often she wonders what she is missing, and what sort of person she might have been, had her life not been changed. She wouldn’t have it any other way, though, as she’s never loved anyone quite as much as she loves her daughter.