#and i was watching daredevil earlier and it was the episode where the punisher gets uh. drilled into. literally.

[moinsbienquekaworu]

I very rarely have visceral genuine cringe reactions to things that aren't violence but um. Found a new one.

[ellieswr1d]

The Blatant Misogyny that is Daredevils Elektra

(This isn’t very good and probably isn’t any new opinions, I just wanted to share my thoughts. Please enjoy.)

Elektras's character has been around since January of 1981, first appearing in Daredevil no. 168 in Frank Miller's run. Elektra has appeared in many comics since then and has appeared in a few movies and shows. However, we will disregard the 2003 Daredevil and the 2005 Elektra movie. Today we will be focusing on Netflix's Daredevil, which ran from 2015-2018, and the 2017 Defenders show.

Elektra first appears in Daredevil season 2, episode 5: Kimbaku. She is a prominent character for most of the second season until she dies in the season 2 finale. Then she appears again in The Defenders, where she is an antagonist until her death, again. Most criticisms are about her character, claiming that she is a manipulator and sociopath. While these claims are valid, there is more to her character than meets the eye.

Elektra is portrayed as a badass independent woman, and skilled in martial arts. She knows what she wants, and will do what she must to get it. She lives for danger and excitement, as Matt says to her when they first meet, "The one thing daddy’s money can't buy, ... the unexpected." She finds exhilaration in violence and is calculated in her actions. All of this points to her being unempathetic and leads most to believe she is a sociopath.

Part of this is due to her role as a woman, and a woman of color in this show. While Elektra is Greek in the comics, she is played by Elodie Yung who is French-Cambodian. She plays a strong character in this show, and her character has a lot of depth. In the second season, where she appears, the main focus of the show is the Punisher and the Ninjas. The ninjas themselves seem like a play with stereotypes, the other gangs Daredevil goes up against are all centered around money or weapons, but the Japanese and Chinese are involved in an ancient group worshiping a mythical substance to grant immortality. And surprise, surprise, Elektra is revealed to be the person they've been searching for. As Ardo Omar wrote in his article, ‘The Misrepresentation of Daredevil's Elektra’, "She becomes part of a long line of Asian bad guys in the series." He puts it perfectly, illustrating how her character was minimized to a tool in the Hands games.

Throughout the show, we are introduced to many different characters who do not operate by the same morals Matt lives by, Elektra included. This does not inherently make them bad people, but it is important to note that each person has gone through something different than Matt, which Matt continuously disregards. Elektra however, went through something similar to him. Both she and Matt were trained as children by Stick to fight the Chaste’s war. Both Elektra and Matt were then abandoned by him. While Matt did not see Stick for more than twenty years after Stick left, Elektra ended up working for him once again. He sent Elektra to meet Matt in college to try and recruit him for the Chaste, however, Matt didn't know this until many years later.

Elektra's childhood is shown in episode 12, “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel,” where we see her as a child sparring with boys much older than her. One of the boys blows a kiss at her before they start, throwing Elektra off. We see Stick as her mentor, and another man watching her. Elektra, probably upset by the previous harassment, loses control and almost beats the boy who’d blown the kiss at her to death. Stick had to drag her off of him to stop her from actually killing him. Stick then whispers in her ear something along the lines of, "Nice job." Later, the boy approaches Elektra while she is training and she attempts to apologize; in return, he tries to kill her, pulling out a knife. Elektra beats him and slits his throat, just as the man who was watching her earlier enters the room. Elektra had been taught her whole life that killing was okay, and after this, Stick tells her that it is as long as it isn't someone on their side. That kind of thinking was put in her head at such a young age, and it is the same thinking that Matt continuously criticizes. Elektra is punished, and the man we saw earlier expresses thinking that they should kill her, calling her out of control. Instead, Stick kills the man and sends Elektra to love with a Greek couple. He tells her to watch them, and learn how to fit in. We are shown the type of environment Elektra grew up in, and Stick's abandonment of her. At such a young age, she was taught to fight and kill and told it was okay. She was not shown remorse, or empathy, and is consistently judged because of it.

We learn what she was training for later in the season. We had heard many times from Stick about a war, the same one he was training Matt for. He speaks of fighting for "The Chaste," and once again tries to recruit Matt. He says they are battling, "The Hand," and tells the story of how the war began. Matt of course doesn’t believe him.

After Elektra's close call with the ninjas when her and Matt were investigating Midland Circle, Elektra kicks Stick out. She tells him that she wants to change and Matt believes she can. Elektra killing has always been a problem in their relationship, and her decision to kick Stick out is a big step towards bettering their relationship. When Matt returns, a ninja is waiting for him and Elektra kills him, despite him being young. Afterward, she says, "This is who I am, do you still want me?" She was afraid that what she was and who she was would be what drove Matt away from her, leaving her truly alone. She truthfully wanted to change, (this is evident by the end of the season), but it is hard to undo what Stick taught her. Matt constantly tells her that she has a choice, a choice to stop killing and change for the better, but he judges her again and again, even when she is trying to help.

Elektra wasn't framed as a sympathetic character, she went through a lot throughout her life, like most characters in the show, but she doesn't get the same amount of fan love as other characters. Hell, Loki and Frank got themselves their own spin-off shows despite them killing dozens sometimes for the sheer fun of it. Bucky, Loki, and Frank are all common fan favorites, their actions justified by traumatic events they went through. Both Bucky and Elektra were brainwashed and forced to join an organization they would not consciously join, but why doesn't Elektra receive the same sympathy as Bucky?

Quite simply, misogyny is the answer. Everyone makes mistakes, Elektra included, but we expect Elektra to redeem herself. We expect her to become some big hero like Matt who atones for her sins by protecting people and stops killing. She eventually finds her atonement in her death, as Ardo Omar says, "In death, she is redeemed where redemption wasn’t necessary." In other words, she had to die before she was deemed good. In her final moments, she says to Mathew, "I know...I know now, ... what it feels.... to be good."

After her funeral, (a pitiful excuse for one,) we are shown that the Hand dug up her body and placed it in the stone coffin we saw with Nobu when Matt was rescuing the children. There they add a reserection elixer of sorts. And with that, she is brought back to life, once again, to fight a war that wasn’t hers. Alexandra Reid, the leader of The Hand at this point, begins training Elektra to be The Black Sky. She is sent to retrieve Danny Rand, or Iron Fist, to open the passageway to the skeleton of a dragon. From which they can extract more resurrection elixir, to grant immortality to The Hand once more. She has multiple run-ins with The Defenders, and Daredevil specifically.

The more she sees Matt, the more she becomes doubtful about her role as the Black Sky. She goes to Matt's apartment and sleeps in his bed, where she has a dream about being with Matt. This causes her to begin remembering more. She finds the card from her funeral and visits her grave, where Alexandra meets her and reassures her that she isn't Elektra, but the Black Sky. And that Matt allowed her to die, so he shouldn't be trusted. She ends up killing Alexandra and gains control of The Hand. "His name is Mathew. And I, and Elektra Natchios. You work for me now."

At the end of the season finale, The Defenders, the Hand, and Elektra are under Midland Circle. The Defenders have placed TNT on the support poles, and the building is set to collapse. The Defenders return to the surface, leaving Elektra and Matt underneath. They fight until the building collapses. Their final conversation being:

Matt: "This is what we get, isn't it?

For ever thinking we could make it work."

Elektra: "Who says we didn't?

We're together.

Something I've wanted since I first laid eyes on you.

We can have it forever."

And before the building collapses:

Elektra: "I'm sorry Mathew.

For all the pain I've caused you along the way."

Matt: "You know, we're going to die here."

Elektra: "No.

This is what living feels like."

People often blame her for Matt being under the building when it collapsed, but it was entirely his choice to stay under with Elektra and try to get through to her. Jessica and Danny tried to get him to leave but he chose to stay. People condemn her for every one of Matt's choices as if she had made them herself.

The MCU and its characters undermined her storyline and life, writing her off as the bad influence and the classic "femme fatelle" as they do with most female characters. They placed her second to a man who acted like a child for the majority of the show by lashing out at her because he thought she deserved it. They erased her storyline and backstory, opting instead to kill her off, once again like most female characters. (Wanda, Natasha, Gamora, etc.)

Elektra Natchios is a person with a past and future. She has feelings, thoughts, and dreams. She was written for her life to revolve around Matt, but she deserves more than to circle a man who sees her as something to be fixed. She was raised to be a weapon and when she wants to change she is used again and again. Elektra deserved more than what the MCU gave her.

That’s all:)

[amandajoyce118]

Agents Of SHIELD S7E05 “A Trout In The Milk” Easter Eggs And References

The team heads to the 1970s where they discover that Hydra has received a hand up from the Chronicoms. 

You know the drill. If you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’ve already seen the episode. Especially since I’m watching the episode four days after it aired. So, yes. There are spoilers.

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Those Opening Credits

They are so very ‘70s. If you’ve ever watched a sitcom or a spy series from the era, you’ll see nods in the sequence.

Sousa Wonders About Ending Up In The Present

Perhaps Sousa’s questioning of Daisy and Coulson about ending up in their present time is a nod to the actor’s cameo in Avengers. Let’s hope the show actually ties those two together instead of just giving us an Easter egg or two.

Dooley’s Booth

Coulson talks about Dooley’s booth in the old bar that becomes a SHIELD meeting spot. Dooley was the chief of the New York office of the SSR, for those who didn’t watch Agent Carter.

Bendeery English Ale

Daisy drinks one of these in the SHIELD bar, and there’s also a poster for it in Malick’s office. It is the official unofficial beer of the show. It’s named for a friend of Nick Blood’s and first appeared back in season two.

You Always Bounce Back

Yeah, this is, what, the third time someone has referenced Elena’s first episode of the series and her powers. That feels like it’s not going to bode well for her, but not sure what to make of all the on the nose references just yet.

‘70s SHIELD Uniforms

Those blue and white jumpsuits are straight out of the comics of the same era. Yep. 

Project Insight

We all saw Captain America: The Winter Soldier, right? Project Insight is the big project created by Hydra that targets “threats” to the world in the form of Stephen Strange and Tony Stark. In other words, it calculates the probability that people will go against Hydra and advises on whether or not they should be eliminated.

The Episode Title

The phrase is, as Sousa points out, an “old timey one,” and it’s fun that it gets used repeatedly in the episode.

Coulson Is From Processing

When Malick asks Coulson where he’s from at the bar, Coulson says he’s from processing. That’s a callback to season five when the team ended up in the future. It’s what Deke told them to say when anyone asked where they were from so they wouldn’t give away that they were time travelers.

Come With Me If You Want To Continue To Exist

This show loves to nod to its sci-fi and action movies, right? While Elena talks about Bond movies early in the episode, this line is a nod to the Terminator franchise.

The Launch Hangar

Where the Insight rocket/satellite combo launches from in the middle of the lake is where the zephyr usually launches from in the future.

The Episode Tag

Nathaniel Malick isn’t even supposed to exist anymore, but he’s sure working on living up to the family name, huh? His wanting to talk to Daniel Whitehall about surgically transferring abilities should sound familiar. Whitehall lives for so long by surgically transferring Jiaying (Daisy’s mom, remember her?) to himself. 

The List Of SHIELD Assets/Hydra Threats

I saved this one for last because this is where the majority of the episode Easter eggs come from. When Daisy and Sousa get the list of “threats” for Project Insight in the ‘70s, the computer has a nice “Level 7 only” at the top of the screen. That’s a nod to how the show began, with Coulson as a Level 7 agent, welcoming Ward to his new status on the team.

Sousa and Daisy mention that Bruce Banner, Peggy Carter, and Nick Fury all show up on the list. The long list features some other names that should be familiar. There are actually two sets of lists, but it’s really hard to make out the first one, so help a girl out if I miss some names.

Roberto Gonzalez and Victoria Hand both show up. You might remember them from earlier seasons of the show. Vic is killed by Ward when he breaks Garrett out of SHIELD custody and Gonzalez is killed by Jiaying when he tries to have a meeting with her. I believe Isabel Hartley is also on the first page of the list, but not positive because her name is blurry. In the comics, she dated Vic, but she was killed in the first episode of season two.

Also on the list? Jim Morita and Gabe Jones. They’re both Howling Commandos. Gabe also happens to be Trip’s grandfather while Jim is grandfather to Peter Parker’s school principal.

Some more familiar names that appear are Nicole Amador, Susan Morse, and Nathan Bowen. The first is likely a relative of Akela Amador from season one, while Susan Morse is mother to Bobbi Morse in the comics. Nathan Bowen is the father of Tandy (from Cloak And Dagger) and a scientist who works for Roxxon.

Still with me? Good. Because there are even more.

Conrad Murphy is the father of Sandra Murphy in the comics. Sandra is one of the “Caterpillars” or Secret Warriors in the comics, though she’s not on Daisy’s team. She actually is on the team sent to spy on the Russian organization Leviathan (which was in Agent Carter) and her entire team ends up dead.

Andrew and Margaret Nelson appear - though on separate halves. I’m curious if they’re meant to be relatives of Foggy Nelson from Daredevil, though their names don’t ring any bells for me. It’s worth noting that the show has connected to Daredevil in the past with other Easter eggs and Skye and Matt both having a connection to St. Agnes.

There’s a Susan Parker on the list, who could be related to Peter Parker, or she could be a really random reference to a character that appeared in one comic book in the ‘40s? Likewise, Michael Phillips is a name that is connected to a mercenary who worked with the Punisher in the comics who used to be a CIA agent, but that feels like too common of a name. (There’s also an assistant director with the name who works on the show, so he could just be a nod to him.)

Betty Wright is a famous singer who actually rose to fame in the ‘70s. She died this year. She wrote the original “Where Is The Love” and has been sampled on tons of R&B tracks. Likewise, Mark Roberts might be another pop culture nod since he was an actor who started working in the ‘30s, though that was just his stage name, so who knows?

I’ve got nothing on Ben Taylor, Ben Harris, James Cook (unless they’re talking about the British explorer who would have already been dead), Ronald Collins, Roger Stewart, Leonard Torres, Robert Moore (though I did think initially that it said Morse and wondered if Bobbi was named after her dad), and David Robinson. I also didn’t catch the last name for the entry that starts with Theresa. But that’s - a lot. So, some of the names are presumably filler names, entered just because they were ones the team could use, and they could also be nods to people the VFX team knows in real life.

Edited to add:

Chastity McBride

I completely forgot to note that May’s alias in this episode is a real SHIELD agent in the comics. She’s only appeared in a handful of comics and her main mission was stopping John Garrett and Elektra from an assassination plot.

I think this is the longest list I’ve done in a while, so no speculation this time. Until next week. Or, I guess, later this week!

[murderwasthecase]

Showcasing Marvel’s Daredevil - The Crown Jewel of MCU

Quick rant about the situation

So this shit just happened and of course I wanted to say something. Daredevil has been CANCELLED by Netflix. Honestly, if you follow this kinda stuff, I think you all saw it coming after they did the same thing to Iron Fist and Luke Cage, but this shit hurts because the show’s third season which was, in my opinion, maybe the best one yet still hasn’t cooled off, people are still talking about it, it received many praise from critics and audiences alike, and it just came off as a really cold thing to cancel the show now especially if you’re a fan of the series.

There are already millions of videos and essays on what this kind of Thanos-snapping his fingers action that Netflix just did with Marvel’s heroes could mean and I will not talk about them in this particular piece. Instead, I’m gonna pay a tribute to the show by going through some of my favorite moments of the three seasons that we got. We definitely deserved a few more and as of now it could theoretically happen on some other network, but the Netflix era of Daredevil is over and during that time, it made it the best superhero tv show that was ever created and probably the best thing to ever come out of MCU alongside Infinity War. And now you’ll see why. By the way, the idea is to showcase the genius of the series through some of its best scenes so if you haven’t seen it, you are warned.

Writer’s room of Daredevil has blessed the MCU with some of its richest characters. Their actions are well-thought, striking and every one of them has some kind of dilemma going on in their heads which makes them more human and more interesting for the viewer. They have personal demons and individual values which are fleshed out to the maximum. That characteristic just brings those fictional people closer to the audience, resonating with their own lives. While MCU’s movie characters are more concerned with battling aliens and saving the planet, ones in Daredevil fight the battles of the ordinary people. 

The drama in Daredevil is mainly based around the clashes of polar opposites in the lives of its main characters. The best example of this is, of course, Matthew (brilliant Charlie Cox), whose ever-lasting moral fight with his Catholic faith and God is one of the running themes of the show. The crescendo of it comes in the series’ third season when Matt, much more pessimistic than before, considers taking another man’s life which he earlier swore never to do, running away from the fundamental principles of his religion which earlier guided him through his vigilante mission.

While the aforementioned third season takes that battle inside the mind of Matt Murdock, in the previous one, we can see that fight literally taking place with another person. Enter Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, played by the amazing badass that is Jon Bernthal, who does the same thing as Daredevil, except he TAKES lives because of his beliefs. Psychological clash between these two broken men takes it’s heights in the third episode of the show’s second season, where Daredevil confronts Frank Castle and tries to reason with him, eventually planting the seeds for clash in his own head a season after that.

That is exceptional writing and phenomenal acting right there. Even though I think the second season of Daredevil is the least good one from all of them because of the tiring ninja subplot, the Punisher arc is one of the strongest things that happened in these series. That’s another polar opposite for you.

Dialogues like that are one fantastic way to flesh out characters and their essence, to show us who they are and what goes on in their heads. Daredevil isn’t overcrowded with quips and sarcastic insults like the movies are, the time it’s not wasted on melodramatic, soap-opera style love triangles which occur in the CW shows. Compared to them and even to other Netflix superhero TV series, Daredevil brings a deeper meaning to its characters by including philosophical arguments that connect us to their dilemmas, layering the story in the process. For instance, take a look at this scene (can’t embed it because of Tumblr) from season 1, when father Lantom tries to answer Matthew’s question about the existence of Devil.

Have you heard the last question in that clip? This scene not only brings a thought-provoking anecdote to the table - it’s much more than that. It serves as a great MOTIVATION for the main character to link the speech to his real-life situation, to try and stop the evil, even if its power seems impossible. This is superhero mythology at its finest.

And it works for antiheroes as well. Like the situation from season two, where Punisher refuses to deny his radical beliefs, taking a piss on the whole judicial system in the process, packed with another great Jon Bernthal performance.

Talking about great acting, it would be a sin not to showcase the ability of Vincent D’Onofrio who gives a role of his career as the main villain Wilson Fisk, the pinnacle of excellent writing on this show.

His portrayal of this crime lord is so menacing. D’Onofrio plays Fisk who with his posture and gestures reminds you more of a shy child than a criminal mastermind, but he’s at the same time almost harrowingly dominant and explosive.  This makes for an extremely unpredictable villian who is layered, complex and whose character development is, as a result, ever-lasting. Just watch as he transforms the scene by delivering this great analogy about the good samaritan.

To all you aspiring writers, actors and directors who want to work in the superhero medium - take notes.

When talking about Daredevil I obviously have to talk about action scenes. I would argue that Marvel’s Daredevil is probably the best action series of all time considering how it balances good writing and exhilarating fighting sequences, but I’ll let someone more experienced to prove that hypothesis.

The action in Daredevil has reached almost a mythical point by now, with fans making memes about their duration and ridiculously coordinated and well-executed stuntwork and camera work. Hallway fights have become a norm on the show and there are lots of good YouTube videos that analyse them so I won’t get in detail here and dissect them even though that would be fun - I will rather point out the one geeky detail about them which is key to why the most talked about action scenes in Daredevil are so good.

You know what was my all-time favorite action scene on tv for a long time? Let’s take you back to the first season of True Detective, precisely, to the end of fourth episode, when Rust Cohle infiltrates this biker gang and goes on a mission to the hood with them - just to blow his cover and capture their leader. This is one of the best scenes I’ve ever seen in tv series, ever. Director Cary Fukunaga decided to film this as a TRACKING SHOT.

By placing the camera directly behind Matthew McConaughey’s back he placed US in the perspective, almost creating a 3D, video-game like environment in which we get close to the situation as much as possible. Doing this, he creates tension, the feel of urgency and danger which resonates with audience and makes everything more interesting. That raid scene was six minutes long without visible cuts or edits. Fukunaga used a long take which made episode end on the high note. In my opinion, this is how grounded action should be made. It has to communicate with viewer, it enhances the atmosphere.

When I saw something similar in the hallway fight in Daredevil’s first season, I was hyped. It wasn’t exactly that as we watched everything from the hall, not from “behind Matt’s back” perspective, but it reminded me vividly of Fukunaga’s take. And in the second season, when they filmed the Staircase scene, they used that exact method which they pushed it to the limits in the prison sequence in the third season which is as of right now definitely my favorite action scene in any tv series, of all time, period. And another thing which is mind-boggling is how they make it longer every season. Hallway fight from the first season was three minutes long, Staircase was five minutes, while Prison was around eight. All in single take. By that, you can see how the cast and crew tried harder and harder every season, pushing the boundaries of not only superhero genre, but the tv series making in general. Do you know how hard it is to film something like those scenes? You can look it up online, it’s an extremely difficult work.

DAREDEVIL has created a perfect mixture of drama and superhero crime story, presenting us a gritty world of crime-ridden New York. Of course, as everything, it has a few problems here and there, but it’s by far the most mature thing to come out of MCU. I don’t know who’s really responsible for the cancellation, is it Disney or Netflix or both of them, but I hope they’ll realize what stupid move they’ve made and let the cast and crew continue their magic. Because if not, our dear MCU has just lost one of its crown jewels.

[honeylikewords]

why don’t you take your old posts down if you don’t want people liking them?? not being rude just curious.

Well, I actually have considered that. And, in some cases, it does seem like the best option, specifically regarding the old Grady posts, which I am sincerely considering taking down, and because of that, I answered a similar question to this one back when I was explaining why I don’t write for Grady anymore. 

The thing is, there’s also a couple of reasons not to do that for other cases. For example:

1. I don’t want to just get rid of my old work; I sometimes actually like the things I used to write, so on a certain level, I like being able to look back and see them and remember the pieces and enjoy them again. I guess I could just copy-paste them into a Google doc and archive them for myself that way, but it’s nice to have this blog in its entirety for me to look through on my own.

2. Some of these old posts seem to be the way people find my blog and then get interested in other things. I sincerely doubt I’d have any followers at all if I hadn’t posted Frank stuff, and if I didn’t still have it up now. While I’m not at all caught up about having a droves of followers, what I do care about is still getting interaction on this blog-- meaning people talk to me, I talk to them, I get anons that give me fun ideas to write and exercise with-- and it seems that one of the ways that people get interested in my blog and, by extension, the newer work I’m making is through these old posts.

3. I don’t necessarily hate or despise Frank Castle or Jim Hopper or even Shane Walsh (though out of the three, he’s the one I have the hardest time finding any remaining love for), nor hate the content I made for them. 

When I made that content, they were still good, rich, interesting characters with loveable sides to them (and, for Shane, I hadn’t watched every single one of his episodes, knowing full well that he only got worse with time, so I quit while I was ahead), and I know that, for many people, they’re only invested in that good side that we knew before they got progressively worse through their shows. 

I still hold nostalgia for early seasons Frank and actually do still like Hopper on some levels, and, heck, when Shane made that return on TWD, I was incredibly excited and it did re-light a small candle in my heart for the work that Jon did on that show, so I also understand that, for some people, they’re still running on those early-season-mindsets, the mindsets where they loved that character, and they don’t want to let that go. And I also understand that it’s a scale of badness and that these characters are not necessarily “entirely canceled”, and that there’s a lot of nuance in my opinions on these characters, and nuance in how other people look at them or try to reconcile early incarnations of them with their later downfalls (a la Daredevil season 2 Frank versus Literal Friend To A N*zi In Punisher season 2 Frank).

But the problem is that I get frustrated by the fact that A) people seem only interested in content for aggressive white men, B) people continue to seek out content for these aggressive white men after they have done incredibly reprehensible things within the most recent incarnations of their stories (for example, getting a huge influx of Frank fans immediately after season 2, meaning these people SAW him do all the horrible, horrible things he did in season 2 and still found him attractive and fetishized him for those self-same horrible things) and C) my very vanilla, SFW, loving, gentleness-focused posts for these characters get reblogged onto violence fetishizing blogs, serial killer blogs, IRL shooter blogs, etc, which violates not only the site policies, but also violates my work and my own feelings, horrifying me to think that my art is being consumed for its adjacency to sexualized violence. 

4. I actually still like Frank. I do. And I wish I could still write for him. But when I step back and look at the whole picture, I realize that if I did continue to, it would just be ignoring the problems created by his story and adjacent fandom, willfully ignoring the worst realities of this media and its biases, and what I want now is for people to be able to critically engage with that and know that it’s wrong to continue glorifying the violence and excusing the bigotry embalmed into the corpse of what used to be a good show and character. 

So I leave up my kinder, gentler posts to hopefully combat the masses upon masses of other posts that sensationalize, glorify, and deify his violence and aggression, hoping that maybe it’ll draw people into the conversation we need to collectively be having about the way we look at male characters, the way we look at violence, and the permissions we give to white (or white-passing) characters regarding violence and abuse that we don’t give to non-white characters.

That mentality is applied across the board to all the other characters.

5. Honestly? One day, I could come back around to these characters. Right now I’m at a stage in my life where I find it too difficult to reconcile the badness of the most recent incarnation with the good parts I saw earlier, and I also am trying to avoid seeming like I condone, excuse or turn a blind eye to these bad things by continuing to apologize for a character. But I might not always be in that stage, and may be able to someday articulate a more complex and nuanced understanding of media consumption and creation, and so I want to have these pieces of what I used to love about them still available to me if I ever change my mind. 

And what bothers me isn’t necessarily that people enjoy those old works-- they’re left up for that reason, so people (myself included) can enjoy them-- but rather that people engage with them uncritically, or without a conscientiousness about what it is, exactly, that they’re consuming. When I see people reblogging my old Shane posts, ones about family and healing and kindness, and then see on their blog that the other things they’ve reblogged are about him being brutal, violent, aggressively sexual, or demeaning towards women, it makes me aware that, in some way, people consider my content complicit with and equitable to content that allows for, excuses, or even adores and romanticizes the worst, most vile parts of characters like Shane or Frank or whomever. 

I know there are good fans out there. Good, critical, thoughtful fans who have been able to think about what it is they’re consuming and like parts of it anyway while simultaneously denouncing the bad parts. That’s what media consumption is, a lot of the time: balancing what we love about it with calling out what we hate about it. So I leave my posts up, hoping to find those thoughtful people who love what I love about it but also understand what there is to hate about it, too. But it worries me over and over that people continue to just glorify and digest abuse and violence as if it’s good, sexy, enticing, complex, or passionate, and that these people find my works and think that my work is aligning itself with these glorifications and digestions of wickedness.

[Obligatory line break!]

At the end of the day, though, I keep the posts up because they used to make me happy and they seem to continue to make other people happy. They get people to engage with this blog and hopefully find other, healthier things to enjoy. They’re not really even necessarily bad posts, sometimes, but when I post about being frustrated that these old posts are the only ones getting attention, what I’m frustrated with is the online cultural fixations on characters who seem to be nothing but aggressive white men. I’m frustrated not by my work, nor by people enjoying it, but by the awareness I have that this enjoyment can be connected to a tacit (or even outright) endorsement of white male violence. 

So I don’t take them down in the hopes that people will find my blog and engage with me about stuff I care about, stuff that I like to write nowadays instead of from however many years ago. I don’t take them down in the hopes that people will read them and be happy, or read them and see a more nuanced perspective on what makes a man attractive (which, 100% of the time on this blog, is gentleness, sensitivity, protectiveness, and kindness). And I like having these old pieces of my work to reflect on and learn from, and hopefully do better in future.

It’s a little like preserving a time capsule, in a sense: I may not like or need the things that were originally put into the capsule, but it’s sometimes nice to remember what they meant to me back then, and what they could mean to me some other day.

I know this response got ungodly long, so please don’t think of it as me roasting you; I promise, it’s not. It’s just me trying to articulate and explain how complicated it can be to negotiate the space between loving something-- for example, the work Jon did as an actor who I like and appreciate-- and the things there are to hate about it-- such as the detrimental portrayals of and subscription to hypermasculinity, violence, and white supremacy that can be found in this most recent Frank Castle iteration-- and why I have such a complicated, frustrated relationship with my old posts.

[care-devil]

Masterlist of Karedevil moments - Daredevil Season 2

[Season 1]   [The Defenders]  [Season 3]

It took me long enough, but here it is: the masterlist of Karedevil interactions for season 2! I did that for season 1 and didn’t do it for S2 because there were so many more scenes, and pretty self-explanatory, “canon” as some would say. But I figured it’d be great to have one for S2 as well. Season 3 is coming soon, as well as the one for the Defenders. I hope this will be of use to vidders, gif makers, or simply Karedevil addicts! If you do use this, please let me know, like, reblog or tag me so that I know it’s actually useful to someone :) 

Episode 1  - Bang!

Scene 1:

○ When: around 6′55

○ What: Foggy tells Matt Karen’s being suspicious about his... physical state.

○ Main quotes:

Foggy: "You know Karen’s been asking questions? The cuts, the scrapes, the bruises?”

Matt: “What did you tell her?”

Foggy: “You’ve a drinking problem.”

Scene 2:

○ When: around 8′50 (until 11′00)

○ What: Matt & Foggy get to the office, Karen’s already there taking care of the clients.

○ Main quotes: “And [we have] each other” (Karen)

Scene 3

○ When: 17′29 - 20′20

○ What: Foggy, Karen and Matt are at Josie’s. Foggy leaves and Matt and Karen chat and play pool together.

○ Main quotes: well, it’s more a scene to watch than to listen to.

Episode 2 : Dogs to a Gunfight

Scene 1:

○ When: 4′25

○ What: Foggy’s taking care of Matt after he was beat up by Frank Castle.

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Where’s Karen?”

Foggy: “We’ve been through this!”

Matt: “Oh yeah that’s right. You... You sure she’s okay?”

Scene 2:

○ When: around 24′30 to 29′30

○ What: Karen pays a visit to Matt, who took a “sick day.” She tells hims she’s not that okay, he hugs her. Karen then tells him he can tell her what’s going on with him, anytime. They also talk about the Punisher. Karen thinks they all created him, and that he and Daredevil are not that different.

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Come here. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Later

Karen: “Okay, let’s say this. When, or if you ever feel like you can tell me what’s really going on with you, I promise that I’m here. Is that a deal?”

Matt: “That is a deal.”

Later (29′10)

Karen: “Wait... Matt, I... We care about you. You’re worth... keeping around.”

Episode 3 : New York’s Finest

None

Episode 4: Penny and Dime

Scene 1:

○ When: 7′20-8′50

○ What: Karen helps Matt tie his... well, tie. 

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “But... You’re feeling better?”

Matt: “Yeah... Now... with you.”

Scene 2:

○ When: 9′38

○ What: Karen, Matt & Foggy are seating next to each other at Grotto’s funeral.

Scene 3:

○ When: 14′55-16′50

○ What: Karen, Matt & Foggy are talking about the Punisher at the office. Then, Foggy leaves the two of them to talk.

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “I think... You are...”

Karen: “Oh my God, you think I’m insane?”

Matt: “No, I’m kidding. Compassionate. It’s a good quality Karen. The stuff of saints.”

Karen: “Yeah, but I’m no saint.”

Matt: “I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that.”

Scene 4:

○ When: 52′15

○ What: The trio is at Josie’s. Foggy leaves to order some drinks, so Matt and Karen are alone. AGAIN. (I see a pattern here, don’t you?) Matt asks Karen about her brother.

○ Main quotes:

Scene 4:

○ When: 53′59

○ What:  Foggy and Matt are alone outstide of Josie’s, waiting for Karen.

○ Main quotes:

Foggy: “Careful, Matt.”

Matt: “What’s that?”

Foggy: “Keep going like this, you might just end up happy. And for a Catholic boy, it’s a pretty dangerous thing.”

Matt: “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Foggy: “God speed, Matt Murdock.”

Scene 5:

○ When: 54′38

○ What: THEY KISS IN THE FUCKING RAIN

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “Do you mind the rain?”

Matt: “No.”

Karen, taking his hand: “Then I’ll walk you home.”

THEY KISS I REPEAT THEY KISS

Matt: “Can I take you to dinner?”

Karen: “Yes.”

Matt: “Tomorrow?”

Karen: “Yes.”

Matt: “Goodnight, Karen.”

Karen: “Goodnight, Matt.”

Episode 5: Kinbaku

Scene 1:

○ When: 5′57

○ What: Karen comes into the office carrying coffee. Matt and Foggy are there. It’s the first time they see each other since their kiss. 

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Is that coffee I smell?”

Karen: “What? Oh, yes, arabica for all!”

Matt: “Wow, thank you, you’re a goddess!”

Foggy: “Ok you two...”

Scene 2: 

○ When : 9′50- 10′25

○ What: Karen and Matt talking at the office, the day after they kissed (and after Elektra came back into Matt’s life).

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “I don’t think you’re wrong about Castle, but it’s really simple, Karen. Just, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Karen: “So, hum... Last night...”

Matt: “Last night? I don’t, what happened last night? At Josie’s? With Foggy? Something happened? Anything else?” *smiles like a goofball” Yeah, it was great. And I’d like to think I can do better, if we’re still on for dinner?”

Karen: “Hum, yeah, it’s a date.”

Scene 3:

○ When: 33′47

○ What: their first date *_* They’re at this fancy restaurant, they talk about work and are both being very awkward. Karen leaves for a few minutes, and meanwhile Matt gets a call from Elektra.

○ Main quotes:

Matt, to a waiter: "If I had to seem like I know everything there is to know about wines in the next 60 seconds, what would I order?” (it doesn’t seem like a very interesting quote BUT IT’S SO FREAKING CUTE BECAUSE HE WANTS TO IMPRESS KAREN)

Scene 4:

○ When: 40′10

○ What: Matt & Karen are eating at the Indian restaurant.

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “I wish you could see this place.”

Matt: “I can, if you describe it to me.”

Karen: “So, anyways, my favorite part is the ceiling. So it’s literally dripping with thousands of lights. They’re shaped like chilli peppers. It sounds really tacky, I know, but it’s not, it’s just... it’s magic.”

Scene 5:

○ When: 42′30

○ What: The end of the date, and the second kiiiiiiiiss

○ Main quotes: they sit, and...

Matt: “All right, I’m gonna kiss you.”

Karen: “You could come up... if you’d like.”

Matt: “I would love to...”

Karen: “But you won’t.”

Matt: “Not tonight.”

Karen: “It’s okay.”

Matt: “Can I tell you why? Because, I have this... incredible ability to bring disaster to the best things in my life, and tonight has been perfect. Don’t you think?”

Karen: “Yes.”

Matt: “And if I stop now, then I get to keep this one perfect night, and also I have the chance of keeping it going tomorrow *kisses her*, and the day after...”

Karen: “And the day after that...”

Matt: “Exactly” *kisses her forehead*

Karen: “Then I guess it’s good night, Mr Murdock.”

Matt: “Good night, Ms. Page.”

Episode 6: Regrets Only

Scene 1:

○ When: 9′50-12′18

○ What: at the office, Christopher Roth (Castle’s lawyer) is talking to Karen about her deposition.

○ Main quotes: Just a conversation between the trio!

Scene 2:

○ When: 13′48-18′34

○ What: Foggy, Matt & Karen pay a visit to Castle at the hospital + Karen and Matt hold hands at 15′58!!

Scene 3:

○ When: 18′44

○ What: Still at the hospital. Karen’s admiring Matt, as usual.

○ Main quotes:

Matt, to Karen: “We’re on shaky grounds, you need to be very careful.”

Scene 4:

○ When: 21′59

○ What: Matt kisses Karen on the cheek before he leaves to meet Elektra, the “new client that pays”.

○ Main quotes:

Foggy: “Woah, okay. Is this officially happening? Are you guys dating?”

Karen: “Hum... Ah...”

Matt: “Hum, we’re...”

Karen: “Not... labeling it.” Pause. Then, to Matt: “You know, why don’t I, why don’t I walk you out?”

Scene 5:

○ When: 22′27-23′40

○ What: Still at the hospital. Karen and Matt are talking outside the room.

○ Main quotes (aka the whole fudging dialogue):

Karen: “You think he’ll be okay, with this?”

Matt: “Yeah, I mean, it’s a pretty small office, it’s gonna take some getting used to.”

Karen: “Yeah, I guess.”

Matt: “But, I’m not misremembering, am I? It really was the best... curry on the planet?”

Karen: “Mmmm, yes. Great, great curry. Even better company.”

Matt: “I’ll try to make this [appointment] go quick.”

Karen: “You know what, Foggy and I have got our hands full with everything here, why not just make dinner for tomorrow night?”

Matt: “Yeah, can we?”

Karen: “Yeah.”

Matt: “And, thanks for backing me up earlier.”

Karen: “Well, I didn’t do it for us, I did it because helping Frank, getting to the truth, that’s the right thing to do. *Matt chuckles* What?

Matt, after he kisses her: “I know. All right.”

Karen: “Okay.”

Episode 7: Semper Fidelis

Scene 1:

○ When: 4′03-6′44

○ What: Talk at the office. Karen is going to visit Castle on her own. Yet another kiss (4th one)!

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Karen? You know you don’t have to do this by yourself.”

Karen: “It’s okay, Castle doesn’t scare me.”

Matt: “Maybe he should.”

Karen: “I can take care of myself.”

Matt: “I know. But I’d be saying it to Foggy. Or a Navy SEAL. *smiles* “Just watch you back.”

KAREN KISSES MATT.

Karen: “Promise.”

Scene 2:

○ When: 35′10-36′50

○ What: Matt arrives late to Frank’s trial... They all chat and Foggy leaves.

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “You let him down, Matt.”

Matt: “I know. Hey, I know. But I’m gonna make it up to him. And I’m gonna make it up to you.” *kisses her on the forehead*

Scene 3:

○ When: 36′51

○ What: Karen and Matt are getting dinner at his place.

○ Main quotes:

Matt, about the preparation for the trial: “It could take all night.”

Karen: “Well, I don’t mind. What?”

Matt: “You ever considered law school?”

Karen: “Oh, I don’t know...”

[...]

Matt: “Just thinking Nelson and Murdock might be more fun as... Nelson, Murdock and Page.”

Karen: “Ugh, you’re sweet, uh... I don’t know, I don’t know if law school is really the right fit for me. I guess there’s just something about the rules and the loopholes. I just feels like the truth gets lost a little bit too often.”

Karen: ‘You ever think back to the night we first met?”

Matt: “Yeah, all the time.”

Karen: “Will I sat in that police station, alone, I was afraid of the whole world. Well, at least until you and Foggy came into my life, and... you trusted me, you gave me hope. And then we came back to your place...”

Matt: “I offered you Thai food.”

Karen: “Yeah, God, I remember everything about that night, ‘cause it’s... not everyday your life is threatened, then saved by a man in black. Hey you, you believe in what he does? You know, the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen?”

Matt: “I, mmm, uh, I... I believe in the law. If, that’s what you’re asking.”

Karen: “Yeah, right. No, but... but what about when the law fails? Like it did with me, like it did with Frank? You know, what are we supposed to turn to? What sould we... what should we believe will protect us then?”

Matt: “See, you’re asking a Catholic lawyer.”

Karen, laughing: “I know...”

Matt: “What do you want me to say?”

Karen: “I don’t know, I guess it’s just...

ARGUE ABOUT FRANK, then call it a night.

Karen: “I don’t know, maybe after the trial’s over...”

Matt: “Yeah, real date next time.”

Elek*tra has been there all along, so Matt tells her: “She [Karen] is important to me.”

Scene 4: 

○ When: 50′11

○ What: Shit’s going down after a big reveal in Frank’s trial.

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “No, no, no, no, you don’t treat me like I’m just you secretary, I’ve done more work on this case that you have!”

Matt: “I can’t get into this right now, Karen.”

Karen: “No, enough of the dodgy bullshit. I deserver to know what is going on with you two. With you.”

Matt: “You asking as my co-worker? Or my girlfriend?”

Karen: “Both.”

Matt: “Yeah. I am sorry you’re caught in the middle of this, but right now I have to go.”

Karen: “Where?”

Matt, leaving: “I’ll see you tomorrow, Karen.”

Karen: “Yeah, maybe” (Matt hears her, close up to his face)

Episode 8: Guilty as Sin

Scene 1:

○ When: 24′04

○ What: Matt is with Elektra, at his place, and Karen shows up unexpectedly.

○ Main quotes: well, it doesn’t last long enough really, Karen is shocked to see Elektra, she just tells Matt Foggy could use his help with Frank’s trial and leaves.

Scene 2:

○ When: 32′00

○ What: Frank’s trial, Matt shows up and tries to apologize to Karen..

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Karen, I’m so sorry about...”

Karen: “Uh, Foggy wants to walk through some things with you.”

Scene 3:

○ When: 39′21

○ What: After they lost Frank’s trial, outside of Court. Matt & Karen get into a fight.

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Karen, let him [Foggy] go.”

Karen: “I don’t wanna hear it.”

Matt: “Karen, can I talk to you for five seconds-”

Karen: “I don’t want to hear another bullshit excuse. Maybe you are an alcoholic . Maybe you’re in a fight club. Maybe you are sleeping with a whole harem of women. I don’t care, I’m done. You’re right. This city really needs heroes. But you’re not one of them.

Episode 9: Seven Minutes in Heaven

Scene 1:

○ When: 23′50

○ What: Indirect scene, as Karen’s not there. Foggy came to see Matt at his place.

○ Main quotes:

Foggy: “What am I supposed to say to Karen?”

Matt: “I don’t know, same thing I’m telling you. [that he’s done apologizing for who he is]”

Episode 10: The Man in the Box

Scene 1:

○ When: 9′13

○ What: Matt & Karen meet outside of Court. It’s Karen who talks to him, he was just gonna climb the stairs without stopping. Well, he can certainly pretend he did not see her...

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “I, uh, see Reyes dragged you in too.”

Matt: “Karen? You all right?”

Karen: “Other than being hauled in as a suspect in the escape of a confessed murderer? Yeah, I’m great.”

Matt: “Yeah... This whole case has been a disaster. I’m sorry I pulled you guys into it.”

Karen: “Don’t be sorry.”

Matt: “How are you otherwise?”

Karen: “Good. Yeah, I’m good.”

Matt: “Good.”

Scene 2:

○ When:   15′39

○ What: Foggy, Matt & Karen are summoned by the DA. They all meet her in her office + gunshots, Matt shields Karen with his body.

○ Main quotes:

Matt, whispering to Karen: “It’s probably not a good idea...”

Karen: “Trust me.”

Episode 11: .380

Scene 1:

○ When: 8′28

○ What: yet another fight outside of the police station...

○ Main quotes:

Karen: “Matt.”

Matt: “Karen?”

Karen: “What are you doing here?”

Matt: “Brett reached out, something shot at you?”

Karen: “Yeah, it’s okay, I’m fine.”

Matt: “Why didn’t you call me?”

Karen: “Would you have answered? Look, Matt, I know you mean well, but I can take care of myself.”

Matt: “No you can’t, Karen! Not if Frank Castle wants you dead, no one can.”

Karen: “You’re right! You’re right! Castle’s dangerous, and maybe I can’t handle this, but I don’t want your help.”

Matt: “What’s going on with you? What are you holding back?”

[...]

Matt: “Then you need to back off.”

Karen: “No, Matt, you need to back off.”

Matt: “This is not a game, Karen, this is dangerous!”

[...]

Karen: “Look, I’m gonna, I’m gonna go...”

Matt, making a move: “I'm gonna come with you.”

Karen: “No! Matt, I'm.. I'm not yours to protect.”

Scene 2:

○ When: 21′20

○ What: Indirect scene, the friggin dialogue between Frank & Karen at the diner.

○ THE WHOLE DIALOGUE BECAUSE JFC:

Karen: “You're honest. You never lie to me.”

Frank: “Does he?”

Karen: “Who?”

Frank: “Come on. Let's not do that. Okay, the lawyer. Not the other one. Murdock.”

Karen: “Um... Yeah... He's got issues. It's complicated, like most people. Hard person to get to know. I just think that inside he's...”

Frank: “You love him, right?”

Karen: “You can't know that.”

Frank: “I'm sorry, can't know what?”

Karen: “You can't...”

Frank: “Come, we're in court, all that shit going on, it's all over your face. You can't hide that. You love him.”

Karen: “I might have... feeling for Matt Murdock, but it's just... it's just a swirl, it's a lot of things. Like, ingredients, not love.”

[…]

Karen: “He's the kind of man who hurts people. Not like you, but... he damages them. Breaks them.”

Frank: “Sorry, is that supposed to mean something?”

Karen: “So those are the people that you get out of you life.”

Frank: “Is that right? Look, I might be generally considered out of my skull, so this might not mean much, but this could be the craziest, most batshit thing I've ever heard in my life. People that can hurt you, the ones that can really hurt you, are the ones that are close enough to do it. People that get inside you and... and... and tear you apart, and make you feel like you're never gonna recover. Shit, I'd... I... I would chop my arm off right here, in this restaurant, just to feel that one more time for my wife. My old lady, she didn't just break my heart. She... she'd rip it out, she'd tear it apart, she'd step on that shit, feed it to a dog. I mean she was ruthless. She brought the pain. But she'll never hurt me again. You see, I'll never feel that. You sit here and you're all confused about this thing, but you have it. You have everything. So, hold on to it. Use two hands and never let go. You got it?”

Scene 3:

○ When: 48′16

○ What: Indirect scene, Karen comes to the harbor after Frank has supposedly been killed. Matt’s there, as Daredevil, and he listens to her heartbeat. They don’t speak, but they breathe the same air.

Episode 12: The Dark at the End of the Tunnel

None

Episode 13: A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen

Scene 1:

○ When: 17′10

○ What: Matt learns Karen’s been taken. AND HE LOSES IT.

○ Main quote: “He wanted to know the names of everyone you ever saved.” (Brett)

Scene 2:

○ When: 18′10

○ What: Matt goes to Karen’s place, she’s not there, he’s FREAKING OUT

○ Main quote: “Karen” (I am not kidding you)

Scene 3:

○ When: 21′31

○ What: Matt just learnt that Karen has been taken. He’s on the rooftop, trying to hear her, but he can’t focus. 

○ Main quotes:

Elektra: “You can't just take the bait.”

Matt: “I know but I can't abandon them either.3

Elektra: “I know.”

Matt: “We gotta get ahead of this thing before any of them get hurt.”

Elektra: “Slow your breath. Focus. Okay. Focus. You'll find them. You'll find her, Matthew.”

Scene 4:

○ When: 27′30

○ What: Matt saves Karen, touches her face.

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “You're okay?”

Karen: “Better, now. Oh god... ”[seeing he's wounded]

Matt: “Go, go, go!”

Karen: “No, no, no, wait, wait...”

Scene 5:

○ When: 47′05

○ What: Karen and Foggy are having a drink at Josie’s.

○ Main quotes: “And now, not Matt...” (Karen)

Scene 6:

○ When: 54′05

○ What: the big reveal...

○ Main quotes:

Matt: “Thanks for meeting me.”

Karen: “What am I doing here, Matt?”

Matt: “I, uh, I have something...”

Karen: “No, I, I don't want it...”

Matt: “I have something... that I need you to see.” pause “I'm Daredevil.”

[brenli]

[28]

Tagged by: @goddamnitkastle​ (YAYAYAY ANOTHER ONE!)

1. how tall are you? 5′3″

2. what color and style is your hair? Dark brown. A couple of stray silver strands. When the light hits it right you can see natural auburn-y red highlights/tones in it, especially near the ends. I wear it long, down to my lower back, usually parted in the middle (sometimes on the left) and with bangs. Usually blunt-cut across my brows, but I'm not as good about trimming them as I ought to be so they usually end up growing out long enough that I need to brush them off to the right.

3. what color are your eyes? Brown

4. do you wear glasses? My cat-eye specs are basically part of my identity at this point.

5. do you wear braces? Nope

6. what is your fashion style? I have contempt for this question that likes of which you cannot believe. XD I guess in the most general sense it's rock-chic. Rock/metal girl elements mixed with glamorous or feminine elements/silhouettes. But this is MASSIVELY boiling down my massive wardrobe and I've certainly had moments of departure from the rock-chic umbrella depending on how I'm feeling. I dislike strictly adhering to specific style labels; I find it stifling.

7. full name? Brenda Lee Larson. My maiden name is cooler to be honest; I only changed it because I was more interested in sharing a surname with the Honey and I know I can still use my maiden name for other things.

8. when were you born? July 24, 1987

9. where are you from and where do you live now? Technically born in Coupeville on Whidbey Island, WA, USA and spent the first 4 years of my life bouncing around different naval stations because my family was about that Navy Life, but the majority of my formative years Spokane, WA, USA so my assumption is that would be more accurately where I'm "from." (Hawaii is where my heart wants to say I'm from though as that's where my earliest memories take place~) After some years spent CA (first in the Bay and then in LA), I'm currently living just south of Seattle, WA. So. Basically I've been wiggling around the West Coast my whole life, including going so far west I ditched the mainland for a spell.

10. what school do you go to? I WORK at a school currently, Cornish. Freelancing as a house manager for 3 of their 4 venues. The 4th one never seems to put on any events that require one of us from the house management roster, otherwise I'd work gigs at that one, too. XD

11. what kind of student are you? Some of you who make these questionnaires clearly cannot think beyond life-after-schooling and it shows. XD I was an above-average student for the vast majority of my years in schooling but I started falling off a little toward the end, largely because I was very keenly aware of what areas of study pertained to me and my interests/goals, and I had no patience for areas of study that did not. I left before it got too bad.

12. do you like school? I liked the parts of school that spoke to me~

13. what are your favorite school subjects? Literature/English was always the major go-to throughout all of my years of schooling. I was in Choir up until highschool; this was when Theatre became available to me and I wasn't able to participate in both, so I parted ways with Choir and focused on Theatre all the way up through my last years of schooling. Other subjects of interest, in highschool: Photography, Psychology, Forensic Science, World History. In college: Creative Writing, Journalism, Japanese.

14. favorite TV shows? The major ones have been racy period dramas The Tudors and The Borgias. I grew up on Star Trek TOS and as such it has a very dear place in my heart despite it not being a racy period drama. XD I also am quite invested in the Netflix MCU with Daredevil and The Punisher being my two favorite shows (Frank is my everything!). More currently I've been expanding my Sanada-san filmography-binge thanks in large part to @anagraves​; I recently finished the 1993 Koukou Kyoushi and am through episode 10 of Konna Koi no Hanashi. What I've been learning from this - Hiroyuki Sanada knows how to break hearts whether he's being soft and vulnerable to cold and cruel and anything in between, but that's exactly why I love him.

INB4 "you post Snow White everything so why isn't OUAT on here" I do enjoy OUAT a lot, but I don't know if I would consider it a favorite show overall. I'm more fond of the earlier seasons than the later seasons and it's that ambivalent feeling I have for the later seasons that make the show not a favorite - but still very good overall.

It's also at this point that I should probably explain what my blog description does not - my blog started running a Snow White-themed queue LARGELY as part of an inspiration-drive for a Snow White AU project that I haven't actually touched in a long time. I REALLY should do something about that; I just keep getting pulled in other directions and now it's years on and here I am with what's basically a Snow White queueblog. XD If I can ever get my dumb head in gear and FINISH what I've started, that would honestly result in the queue being mass-posted and then probably altered to suit whatever the next project would be. That's always been the intention, anyway.

15. favorite movies? While I'm still feeling the chilly gaze of my Snow White queue, my favorite Snow White movie thus far is Mirror Mirror. I think it's massively underrated and that makes me sad.

As far as Disney is concerned, while I have a HUGE amount of respect for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, my favorite film growing up was Beauty and the Beast (and my Rococo-loving ass does adore the live action remake). Surprise??? XD More recently, Moana is the film of my heart; it's the closest Disney has gotten to making a Princess culturally-relevant to me as a half-Filipina so my tropical islander ass is just utterly enamoured with Moana. ((Listen Disney if you ever decide to make a super fun colorful precolonial Philippine film THE PERFECT PRINCESS EXISTS FOR THAT, I submit for your consideration - Urduja!)

Because of my rather open-door childhood with regard to media, my earliest favorite movies are actually Nightmare on Elm Street and Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors. Freddy is my Nightmare King Murder Boyfriend and I'm prepared to face judgement for that. XD

Fondness for Star Trek TOS has resulted in an affection for the AOS movies~

But a movie that speaks to me very much is What Dreams May Come.

Currently I've gotten re-ensnared into The Last Samurai, in correlation with the most recent AU project. Because I am hopeless, Grumpy Samurai is Best Samurai, and I've been spending time manically fretting and pretending that because Ujio drops before the gatling guns are brought out, maybe he SOMEHOW managed to survive in SOME way and he can have tons of cool battle scars. Right? ... RIGHT???

16. favorite books? If manga counts then it's Angel Sanctuary. Hands down. No contest. It's easily woven itself into my life in the form of fanfic that is/was well-received within the fandom, and a weirdly HUGE list of AUs that somehow burst out of nowhere. (Currently all of it, AU work included, can be read via my FF.Net account under brenli. I have a placeholder page on AO3 that's currently empty but may end up holding all my content there as well, in time. If I can ever make the time.)

I was and am really into Sue Harrison's Ivory Carver series, particularly My Sister the Moon.

It was part of my middle school/junior high reading curriculum but I honestly DID really like The Diving Bell by Todd Strasser. Even if the cover art of Culca coming up out of the ocean looked A LOT like me and resulted in my class calling me Culca for the entirety of our unit on that book. It's fine. Culca is a badass queen of pearls and seawater so I'm happy to be associated with her~!

Every now and then I remember a book that clearly really resonated with my as a child if I still remember it, but the problem is that I don't remember the title or the author, or even any of the characters' names. It was about a Roma girl who lived in the American south - I wanna say Tennesee? - who was discovered for her talent playing guitar and singing country music. The book essentially details her struggle between her traditional roots as a Roma person, including the arrangement for her to be married young, and her interest in pursuing music as a career but feeling alienated by an industry and a society at large that is wealthier than her and has a different culture from her own. The book ends with her running away but it isn't made clear what her ultimate fate is. To this DAY it bothers me that I don't remember the title or the author because I honestly go through periods where I want to reread it. And yes, this was the kind of stuff I was reading as a child. XD I also read My Sister the Moon for the first time when I was like. 11 years old. If you're familiar with the content of that book then you're aware that certain scenes are really not 11-year-old friendly, but. If I can watch gratuitous 80's slasher horror at age 4 then I can read about a young woman surviving sexual abuse at age 11.

17. favorite pastime? Writing at this rate, honestly. Which probably speaks more to my inner tortured artist than anything else. XD

18. do you have any regrets? I feel like everybody has at least one regret and anyone who says otherwise is either very very young, or lying. XD It's not about whether you have regrets, it's about not letting them hold you in the past.

19. dream job? Telling stories, in any and every way attainable to me.

20. would you like to get married someday? I already am~

21. would you like to have kids someday? Absolutely not. I don't feel like my life is conducive to childrearing, and INB4 "you're never truly ready" and "you make it work" the key factor here is I'm not WILLING to become ready and I'm not WILLING to make it work. That's how I know my life is not conducive to childrearing. XD (I'm at that age where tons of people are asking me this and feeding me words meant to encourage me to consider and it's honestly EXHAUSTING by this point. I can't wait for when I'm menopausal maybe people will finally shut up about it because I'll be past my prime~)

23. do you like shopping? I mean, yes, but I usually avoid it because I'm aware of how impulsive I am.

24. what countries have you visited? I'm tempted to say that Hawaii should count because it's so far away from the mainland. XD But honestly I've never been outside of US territory. It's in the plans to try for Japan during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. I'm not sure if we'll make that goal but if not, I figure it won't hurt to continue saving up anyway and making a Tokyo trip post-Olympics. Prices will be cheaper post-Olympics, anyway, so~

25. what’s the scariest nightmare you’ve ever had? At the risk of raising weird red flags I've gone through periods where I'll have reoccurring nightmares about being actively pursued by someone who very obviously intends to do harm. It happens often enough that the Honey wonders if I'm mentally suppressing something. XD I did have a standalone dream though, where me and the Honey were asleep in bed and then I become aware that someone's broken into the house and is approaching our bed. I'm walking through every possible option in my head with my eyes shut; if the Honey and I both lunged at the attacker we could possibly overpower them just because it would be two against one. But I know that I can't possibly wake up the Honey and make him aware of the situation without the attacker immediately acting and resulting in at least one of us being injured or killed. I realize that I have no choice but to try and take the attacker by surprise by myself and hope that is enough. I make peace with that. I can feel the attacker leaning over me. I suddenly lunge at them in full primal adrenaline-filled rage.

I wake up.

26. do you have any enemies? I guess that I have a few, yes, but honestly at this point I've gotten probably a little too used to being vilified. Barring physical assault or turning the animosity on innocent third parties in my life, I am prepared to weather the metaphorical lashes.

27. do you have an s/o? I have my Honey~

28. do you believe in miracles? I believe in miracles that aren't the overt surface-level wish-fulfillment-from-above which I think most people expect a miracle to be. I think that sometimes luck plays out via a slim-to-none chance and that can be a miracle. I think that sometimes a person works very hard at something or for something and when they achieve it, that can be a miracle. I think that the butterfly effect is a double-edged sword, but sometimes that little flutter of a butterfly's wings is a miracle.

Tagging: @yacky-jackie​ @halorecoil​ @anagraves​ @benevolentqueenofstars​ @lesbomancy​ @candybunnieholic​ @lemonedscream​ @tinathefish​

[akamaiden]

76, 78 e 79 with my bae Tom Holland pretty please? Love ya 💛😊

Drabble Challenge

Requested by @float-autumn-leave #76, #78 and #79 with Tom Sweetie Holland. I hope that you like it. I love you!💘

≈≈

You woke up earlier than what you used to. You were dedicated to watch the half first season and the whole second season of Daredevil so you can watch The Punisher. Yeah, you definitely were a Marvel fan girl.

When Tom got home he found you concentrate watching the TV.

“Hey! What are you watching?” He said.

“Shh… It’s almost the final scene, don’t distract me.” You said without looking at him.

He sat at your side and start caressing your leg gently. “Do you need anything?”

“A sandwich would be great.” You said without taking your eyes of the tv.

“I’ll be right back.” He got up and went to the kitchen.

Minutes later he said “I’m almost finishing, can you pause the episode so you can eat?”

“No way, I don’t get pauses!” You said a bit roughly.

“Hey, calm down. I’m just trying to help you not dying while you do this insane marathon.” He said walking at you, staying right in front of the TV, shirtless.

“HEY! Get out! I need to see my show.” You cried trying to pretend he wasn’t shirtless. But the vision of his beautiful torso disturbed you.

“Pause the show.” He said firmly.

“Sorry, I just wanted a sandwich, I didn’t mean to start a fire. By the way, where are your shirt?”

“You’ve been watching it for seven hours, I’m asking for five minutes… Fifteen minutes tops.” He said.

“Okay, okay. Come here.” You said.

“How are you, love?” He said putting you on his lap and hugging you.

“Fine. Hey, it’s almost midnight and you haven’t said anything cute at all.” You said pretending to be sad.

“What do you want me to say? That I love you even that you rather do marathons than talk to me?” He said.

“Sorry again. I love you.” You said holding his beautiful face. “Can I kiss you?”

He didn’t answered, just hold you tightly in a hug and kissed you in such a passionate way that a moaned escaped from your mouth.

“I think we should take a break from this marathon. What do you think?” He said mischievously.

“That’s an amazing idea.” You said and then kissed him again.

[fadedtoblue]

Meeting Jon and Elodie!!

Ahhh, I wish I could have posted this sooner, but between the traveling and just trying to gather my thoughts, it took a while. Also I get really word vomit-y (as you’ll soon find out) and then I have to edit back the word vomit a bit so that it’s still comprehensible instead of just gibberish...but eek, so much to share! I’m also breaking my own rule about not showing my face b/c...well, I need to show these pictures off! But please please please don’t repost my pics. Like seriously, just don’t do it :). Thanks!

Now I actually didn’t post about a very crucial part of my day yesterday, mainly because I wanted recap it after the con was done, so I’ll bounce back to that first, which was *drumroll* -- meeting Elodie! I credit this first unplanned meeting to soothing my nerves enough so I could get up the courage to chat Mattelektra with her today...anyway, stay with me, I’m going to get there. I had always planned to do this on Saturday after my photo ops so I’m not, you know, spending so much $$$, but after I discovered that Elodie wouldn’t be doing the panel after all, I decided what the hell, I’d just go ahead and meet her first. First of all, her outfit on Day 1 -- stunning. Like omg what an Elektra red and she looked absolutely stupendous and I was more than a little starstruck. I’m very grateful to the event guy working her table because he was super kind and helped to break the ice as I was coming up to Elodie. I got to show off my Elektra shirt and the Elektra pin on my bag, and she immediately wanted to know where she could get the same one! 

At this point it gets a little fuzzy because I was legitimately SO nervous. She jokingly said to me, “Wow, so you REALLY love Elektra!” and while I definitely fumbled over my words a little bit, I think managed to communicate that my love for Elektra largely came from her performance on the show. I babbled a bit about how I had been a fan of DDS1 but it was really her characterization of Elektra that got me completely hooked! We also talked about SDCC because I mentioned I had come from San Diego and she spent a few moments talking about how crazy that whole experience was. I gush a bit about Defenders at this point since I was able to tell her that I got to see the first episode in Hall H, then binged everything with my husband when it came out, etc etc. I’d wanted to talk a bit more show stuff with her but we both got sidetracked because I’d picked up a few different comics that she could potentially sign and we were looking at them together and trying to decide which one she’d autograph (for the curious, they were Elektra Vol 3 #2, Daredevil Vol 2 #37, and What If Elektra Had Lived) -- she hadn’t seen the DD and What If ones before, and I asked her if she was familiar at all with the What If story. She wasn’t and asked me to tell her what it was about (and you know I LOVE THIS ONE) so I gave her a quick summary and she seemed very intrigued and said she would have to go shopping later to pick up a copy. I told her that I kind of wish she hadn’t autographed it because I would have loved to give it to her, but she was very gracious and sweet about it! After this, we took a selfie together, and me being a nervous fool completely forgot to take my phone out until she gently asked me if I had a phone, heh. Here I am, looking like a dork next to Elodie Yung. Ahhh!

After this, I went to attend Jon’s Q&A, which I posted a bunch of videos from last night. Dude is awesome. I feel like I don’t want too much of his press usually so I didn’t have any major expectations going into it, but he was really genuine and thoughtful and keen on sharing as much as he could with the audience (though if it was about the Punisher show, he shut the hell up lol). Anyway, it was truly a highlight (got to sit front and center which was awesome) and if you haven’t seen it yet, you MUST watch the short clips I took of Jon calling Elodie during the beginning...it’s priceless stuff!! (1st video | 2nd video)

Okay, fast forward to today! I got to do my two photo ops with Jon and Elodie, and then just Elodie. I debated whether to bring my Funkos but decided what the hell, I’m probably not going to have this moment again, let’s make it cute! Elodie was very excited to see them -- she loved that the Punisher one had a black eye? And Jon was like, wait, what do you want me to do??, and I said, just hold them and smile big and Elodie was like, yeah, you know, your job. So cute that one! Jon clearly did not follow directions lol. 

And because I’m such a friggin’ superfan (like, there was no way to hide this at this point, I just had to own it), I go back and do my solo op with Elodie. Who totally recognizes me and attempts to make small talk even though it is frowned upon. I asked her if she could hug my DD tsum tsum which she was super game for. Again, she looks freaking adorable here! 

Last thing on my list was to get their autographs on my group photo before I had to leave town. I started at Jon’s because there’s a bigger line and honestly, it was a lot of fun watching people interact with him. Like he’s so naturally charming, I think I hadn’t really seen him enough outside of his shows / movies to evaluate this, but crap, I get it now. And his VOICE. I feel like all of the ladies were in a tizzy haha. He even held a freaking baby while I was waiting. Honestly, I would have asked him to hold my baby too. Oh and he was chewing gum like a fiend, which I only noticed because he kept playing around with it while he was talking to people. And like he literally had tubs of Orbit gum and was like, shaking them into his mouth in massive doses. So...fun fact of the day for you Jon fans? 

I did realize as I got closer to the front that I had no freaking idea what the hell I was going to say to him, mostly because I’d been using all of my mental energy thinking about what to say to Elodie. So unfortunately the moment here was fairly short. He was super sweet and polite, said Hi, nice to meet you, I’m Jon :), which was kind of adorable. He was excited to see the photo we took, and spent a few brief moments exclaiming over it, like awww Elodie is so cute but ugh, look at my ugly mug. To which I promptly rebutted that he was plenty handsome and he gave me a smile. He was thinking kind of hard about what to sign and ended up adding a nice big heart which was very cute. Then I asked if I could give him a hug, to which he said of course!! Got up and came around and gave me a nice big hug. I told him thank you for coming out and he said Thanks mama, you have a good one (or something like that) and damn if that didn’t make me a little shaky. Which basically confirmed that I’m screwed if I ever meet Charlie Cox. 

Okay so THIS IS THE GOOD STUFF FRIENDS: MEETING ELODIE AGAIN. When Elodie saw me she was sooooo nice (instead of being like omg you weirdo lol), and was like hello again!! You’re really making the most of your weekend!! And I was like yes, yes I am :p. Told her how I came here solo just to get to meet her and Jon, left my two littles at home with my husband, and we got to small talk about my fam and I got to tell her how my youngest daughter stole my little stuffed Elektra and won’t give it back (true story, she refused to give up her Elektra so I had to buy another one). But here is nice little moment :) -- after our first meet the other day, I wanted to get her a copy of What If Elektra Had Lived so she could have her own, b/c let’s be honest, she wasn’t going to be able to shop while she was there, and who knows when she’d get her hands on it, if ever. So before I gave her my photos, I referenced our first meet and handed her a copy of What If Elektra Had Lived I’d bought earlier that day. She was like omg! and seemed genuinely surprised and pleased about it, like she actually got up out of her chair and came over to give me a hug, which was like eek! So that was such a lovely memory to have of her!

As we’re figuring out how to sign the new pics, I mentioned that I was super bummed she didn’t get to do the panel the other day (to which her and her manager provided a really nice explanation, and Elodie seemed genuinely disappointed to not have done it) and that I even had a question prepared and everything. To which she said, well, we can just have a chat about it now! To which I was like uhhhhhhhh OKAY. Ahhhh!

I’m going to bullet point these so 1. they’re easier to read and 2. so they don’t get lost in the shuffle b/c I’ve already wasted too much time babbling (ugh, I’m sorry, I overshare details, I know!). Keep in mind I didn’t want to be over the top or too serious / intense so I didn’t ask my actual question for the panel b/c it seemed a little too much, but instead just tried to let it flow naturally so that if she had thoughts she could share, and if not, that’d be okay too!

First, I reiterated what a huge fan I am of the Matt and Elektra relationship (understatement of the YEAR) and how she’s done such an amazing job with it and my question was whether she knew they were going to go that direction on the Defenders with Matt and Elektra because my god that ending was beautiful, and romantic, yet messed up at the same time. She was like YES I know!! And then shared a few thoughts: Marvel doesn’t tell them ANYTHING, but she asked a lot of questions so she could find out more info / clues and so yes, she did have a very good idea of where her arc was going to go. She was very excited about the storyline but you know, couldn’t say anything about it so she wasn’t sure how people were going to react but she had hoped they would react well. I, of course, told her that I LOVED IT, that it really hit me right in the heart.

This lead into a bit of a discussion about Elektra’s fate, and she was so adorably indignant about it like, there’s no way Elektra didn’t survive right?? I said of course! Who else was going to save Matt?? Which made her go like oooooh...but she quickly clarified she really doesn’t know how they’re going to explain it, but the agreement was implicit. She emphasized again that she doesn’t know if she’s going to be back but again...there has to be more Elektra, right?

Then I asked her how it was working with Charlie and if she had some favorite scenes they'd done together. This was a lovely bit of conversation for obvious reasons :D. She loves working with Charlie and had very kind things to say about him -- how he’s such a generous actor, always willing to try different things, and that all of their scenes together are such good scenes. But if she had to choose a favorite, it would definitely be the bed scene in 2x08 -- and she’s setting up the scene for me, as if I don’t already know it, but it was AMAZING hearing her talk about it -- “You know that scene, when I’m telling Stick I don’t want to be with him anymore, I want to be good, I want to be with Matthew? The bed scene after that." -- f’ing brilliant stuff. She then said her next favorite scene was dying in Charlie’s arms in 2x13. Little ol’ shipper me of course has to excitedly agree about how it was SO good, and I got to call out their beautiful conversation together before the fight and how emotional that made the death scene and I wasn’t expecting that. And then how I absolutely did not expect the ending of Defenders to also be so emotional!! Like the fighting and the emotion of the scenes (and I wish I had been more specific but I was just fangirling tbh :p). To which she was like omg yes! It was so emotional, and the fight was so tiring -- took a lot of days to shoot, but it was so worth it. She doesn’t know if Elektra will be back but she really hopes so, she expressed that it didn’t feel like the end. 

And this point we sadly transitioned out of Mattelektra stuff and into more Elektra stuff because then we were talking about the chances of her showing back up again. She actually had some interesting tidbits here -- apparently she was super surprised at the fan reaction to her in the Defenders. Like Marvel or Netflix, I’m not sure which one, they actually got in touch with her directly, asking if she’d seen the social media reactions?? Based on what they were tracking, she was a definite fan favorite. And that seemed to be a genuine surprise on the Marvel side too. So what that means for the future, who knows?? I did throw in a little hopeful, maybe you could have a solo series, but she kind of laughed it off like ehhhhh I don’t know about that, but I hope I get to come back!

And I think...I think...that was it :). I thanked her for making my weekend, nay, my year with this con, and she was such an absolute sweetheart about it and thanked me too and then...that was it. My glorious moment with Elodie wrapped up as quickly as it begun! But I’m so happy I got over my nerves and got to have a conversation with her like a normal person and I’m so freaking happy she is our Elektra. She is the epitome of class, grace, and kindness and Marvel better keep giving her work!! 

And thank you Tumblr friends for reading this long-ass novel and following my goofy adventures this weekend. It’s been a real trip and I am thankful that I have you awesome people to freak out tf to because I can’t really do this in real life. Anyway, I appreciate each and every one of you, just know that :D.

[screechthemighty]

“cut man” is the best daredevil episode, part one

Seriously, y’all, this is my favorite episode of Daredevil ever. My favorite. I have so much to say that this post is going to have a part two. That’s how much I love it. Here’s the first batch of my thoughts. Be warned, it’s a big batch. Again, here are the ground rules for these meta posts. Strap yourselves in.

This post is primarily going to focus on Matt’s interactions with Claire, because I think they set a baseline for how Matt acts in his natural state--not as charming Matt, not as Matt who is more himself but keeping parts of himself contained, not as Daredevil, but as Matt. It can be difficult to tell early on, because he is still keeping secrets, deflecting from her, etc., but there are contrasts between his behavior with her and his behavior with, say, Karen.

The way he talks to her is the first big clue. He’s very soft-spoken as he does, with none of the usual “get down to business” surety he shows when he’s lawyering or the obvious confidence he exhibits when being charming. It’s more akin to how he spoke to Karen when he promised he’d keep her safe, or when he was discussing his blindness with her--both moments of real vulnerability. It’s especially obvious when he asks what Claire’s name is, and when he thanks her for her help (especially that one, also it’s really hard to keep my shipper goggles off for that moment. It’s so hard, you guys).

There’s also the funny moments of honesty he exhibits when talking with her. He openly admits to where he screwed up, the fact that he was careless, all of that. Again, there’s less of the surety he exhibited in the police station. He’s not trying to seem like a big, tough, scary superhero who has everything under wraps. He’s a guy who’s in a lot of pain and knows why and is fine admitting to it. Only because it’s physical pain, though. Matt’s far more open about his physical pain than his emotional pain (even when he’s lying about his physical pain). It’s really depressing.

Something I think is interesting about his whole deal with Claire is the fact that he is more immediately honest with her than he is with others, in part because the jig is up on a lot of things. He can’t say he wasn’t in a fight, or that he isn’t blind--those are undeniable facts. So, he tells her the truth, or as much of it as he feels comfortable telling. In my mind, this parallels the way Matt does finally open up to Foggy when Foggy finds him bleeding on the floor in “Nelson v. Murdock” (oh BOY the analysis of that episode is going to be fun). Matt might be fine with lying, but he also seems to know when he can’t lie anymore. It’s rare that he keeps trying to lie his way out of a situation when there’s nowhere for him to go. The only exception to this is with Karen, whom he constantly tells lies and half-truths to. It’s possible that this is because she has yet to really back him into a corner yet. Both Claire and Foggy found Matt in compromising situations (harder to back out of, easier to just be honest), while Karen doesn’t really until season 2, and even when she does it’s nothing that really screams “Daredevil” or anything like that. It’s also possible that it’s because she gives him an out that Claire and Foggy don’t. They want answers; she is (for the most part) content to let Matt tell the truth on his own terms. It’s an interesting detail, and I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye out for it as the episodes go on.

On a final note with his behavior around Claire, he trusts her enough to try and find her again after he saves the kid (while we don’t see it, that is his intent in asking where she’s going to stay, and I don’t doubt that he found her again after he was done). This is an interesting parallel to him letting Karen stay at his place, despite them having just met and him (as I theorized in my last post), probably not completely trusting her. But he trusts her enough, and he trusts Claire enough. It’s easy and very true to say that Matt doesn’t let people in, but I don’t think it’s the complete truth. Matt lets people in all the time. He let Karen into his life in that moment because he felt some emotional connection with her and wanted to help her. He lets Claire in--lets her see him vulnerable, again--because she’s proven herself to be trustworthy, even kind (which I think is a big deal in light of his comment last episode about wishing he could find even one innocent soul--how big a deal must kindness be for him?). He just doesn’t let people all the way in. When he does, he seems to be most comfortable doing so by degrees--as we’ll see in his relationship with Claire (which doesn’t get enough love in my opinion, and I’ll fight about it).

Another thing that comes to the forefront in this episode is Matt’s connection with children or young adults. Remember how in my assorted notes for last time I indicate that I thought the way the kid cried out for his father when Matt was listening on the roof parallels the way Matt cries out “Dad? Daddy?” after Jack is shot? I was right. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg for this episode. There’s some really good meta someone wrote about the subject, also tying it into Jessica Jones, so I’ll just leave it here and add that I co-sign it wholeheartedly. There’s another detail from this episode that ties into the theme of Matt’s own childhood trauma making him empathetic towards people younger than him: his reaction to hearing Santino on the stairs. “Oh, no. He’s young. He’s scared.” He knows that sound, he recognizes it, and he sounds like he’s dreading the fact that he might’ve scared a kid. That also ties in to the way he--who had been really stressed about someone possibly seeing his face earlier in the episode--immediately takes off his mask so he won’t scare the kid he rescues. It’s the best, but it breaks my heart.

There’s also the connection to Matt’s repeated mantra of not being afraid, of always getting up, no matter what. I’ll talk about that more in the upcoming Jack Murdock post (AKA the Pain Post), but there’s an interesting moment here that isn’t super directly tied into Jack, so I’ll talk about it here, too. The show cuts from Matt telling Claire that she can’t give into the fear to a moment of him as a child reading that Thurgood Marshall quote we’ve all come to know and love. For me, that says something about how long Matt has clung to this concept of fearlessness--since he was ten, at the youngest, which is about 2/3 of his life at this point. With everything else going on in his life--being a blind orphan, abandoned by people who are supposed to care about him, struggling with depression and trying to find his place, it might’ve been one of the only things giving him any comfort.

I’ve seen some people discuss the fact that show!Matt seems to be less funny than comics!Matt, that comics!Matt cracks more jokes and they wish they would implement that character trait in the show. While I agree that show!Matt is less prone to out and out jokes (he makes fewer blind jokes than comics!Matt, for instance), I disagree in thinking that he is any less funny than in the comics. In fact, he can be freaking hilarious at times. It’s just a very dry, sarcastic kind of humor that can be hard to pick up on (especially when he’s in Charming Matt mode, where everything he says is done with the express intent of Maximum Charm). But I’ve decided to start compiling some specific instances of Matt’s sarcasm and jokes, just to prove that this grim boy still has a sense of humor. (Quotes by others in the conversation will be in italics.)

“Maybe I can help clean the place up a bit.” “...is this place messy?”

“...so you’re either blind, or in way worse shape than I thought.” “Do I have to pick one?”

“Yeah, well, you’re catching me on an off night.” He says as he lies bleeding on the couch of a total stranger.

There are some moments in his dialogue that do remind me of the Waid run, particularly how Matt constantly takes potshots at people in his internal monologue. Example in this episode: “You’ll smell him soon enough. He really likes that cologne.”

“Hold still. I might do some serious damage if you squirm.” Matt, you are about to stab this man in the eye socket, now is not the time for sarcasm.

“Add to that, he can take an incredible amount of punishment without one damn complaint.” “The last part’s the Catholicism.” This is still, to this day, my FAVORITE LINE in all of Daredevil--nay, in all of the Marvel Netflix universe--and the line that completely sold me on the show and Matt as a character. I love this episode so much.

Assorted observations:

“They’ll kill everyone in the hospital to get to me.” Another example of Matt’s catastrophic thinking, perhaps? While the Russians are shown to be ruthless and willing to do some messed up shit to get to Matt, their behavior up until Anatoly’s death later on isn’t exactly that level of “shoot-em-up.” But Matt really does seem to believe that he’d go that far.

Something I noticed on my first watch and continue to latch onto with every rewatch is the way the sounds of the city filters in as pre-blindness Baby!Matt sits at the table and waits for Jack Murdock to come home. Proof of a previously existing sensory processing condition, perhaps? I know that the walls in those places can be thin, and that cities are loud (it’s why I personally can’t stand them). But it could also mean something deeper, especially if you subscribe to the autistic!Matt headcanons.

Matt ends up in that dumpster with 2 or three broken ribs, a probable concussion, multiple slashes, and a stab wound serious enough that it causes air to become trapped in his chest, nearly collapsing his lung. He walks out of Claire’s apartment with all of those injuries, and goes on to kick the asses of seven to eight bad guys, some of whom were armed with guns. I say this both to point out that Claire is a hell of a nurse if she can patch him up that well, and also to point out that Matthew Murdock is a force of nature whose stubbornness and drive surpasses that of almost any other Marvel character. Seriously, YOUR FAVE COULD NEVER.

Matt’s treatment of his blindness is definitely interesting. There are times when he seems at peace with it--in this episode, the “There are other ways to see” moment--but his conversation with Karen in the first episode implies a sense of discontent with it that not even having badass supersenses can erase. It’s not something that gets explored too often, even in the show, and I’m of the personal opinion that the time he talks to Karen about wanting to see the sky again might be the only time he’s completely honest about it. Every other time, he seems to be emphasizing the positive traits (sometimes to the point of erasing his own blindness...but we’ll get to that in season 2), possibly to avoid pity. I can see that being a motivation for him.

Foggy asking Karen if she wants to talk about what’s bothering her and adding that “’leave it alone’ is not my strong suit” is a great moment between the two of them, but is also interesting in light of his relationship with Matt--Matt, who is notoriously bad at talking about how he feels about anything. How many times did he ask Matt that same thing? How much did he have to persist to get Matt to open up about anything? Did he ever get Matt to open up about anything? I wish we had more college flashbacks between the two of them. Also, I love Foggy.

The matter of whether or not Matt enjoys this pops up at the end of this episode. I won’t be really discussing that until “Nelson v. Murdock”, since it’s an issue that comes to the forefront there, but it’s telling that Matt responds to the statement by stopping, having  a quiet moment, and then leaving. It’s a question that I don’t think even he has an answer to right now--probably because he’s too afraid to think about the answer (especially in light of his obvious discomfort at talking about his anger issues in the first episode).

[culturejunkies]

Titans: So much wasted potential

By Kenshiro

Naturally, i expect this opinion of mine to be met with some angry reacts because we live in a world where opposing opinions are not welcome, but I can’t contain my utter frustration over what could’ve been an incredible experience from beginning to end.  Of course, everyone’s mileage will very, and not everyone will have the same level of expectations, but DC’s Titans: Season Two ultimately fell short for me in all the predictable ways possible.

The season started off strong…and by start I do not mean the season opening episode.  That episode actually belongs in Season One, so i’ll leave it there.  I was very enthralled by the setup episode of Titans Season Two.  I felt like the story beats they were setting up were finally pushing us in a direction that would get us to the Titans we all know from the comic book runs of legendary writer/artist George Perez and superstar writer Geoff Johns.  Johns, who serves as Executive Producer on Titans, is one of my favorite comic writers of the last 20 years so I just knew his influence would lead us to some cool superhero action along with a tight narrative plot that would delve deeper into what makes the Titans a family.

Color me disappointed!  This is not at all what I was expecting.

When the 4th episode came around, an episode delving into the team’s past, I was starting to notice a slight pattern that irked me a little.  This season had a definite pacing problem that either arose from too many plot points to write for, too many characters needing attention or some combination in-between.  Episodes would end on these GREAT cliffhangers (many of which oddly, had to do with Robin/Jason Todd needing to be rescued) and then the momentum would suddenly be stunted by them shifting focus to a flashback episode or focusing on a new/different character.  It was jarring!  Granted, binging the episodes back-to-back may help stifle some of that feeling, but Titans is a weekly streamed show, so it really hit every time it happened.

One of the only times we saw this in season and it was a damn flashback!

Can you call yourselves crime-fighters…if you never fight any crime?

This is probably the most irksome detail I noticed about this season.  I was willing to give them a pass last season due to it being a rookie show trying to find its legs, but midway through this season I’d reached my breaking point!  Titans exist in a world where it is fully established that the Titans are publicly recognized crime fighting vigilante teams. People know who they are, and supposedly what they are known for, which is fighting bad guys and saving the day.  THIS SHOW HAS NONE OF THAT.

I can count 6 instances where the team gets together and fights crime or the bad guy. Starfire and Wonder Girl vs. Shimmer, Dove fighting the dudes in a garage meth lab, the old heads facing Dr. Light for the first time, another time against Dr. Light to take him down, the old Titans team defeating carjackers, and then one more time when Dick and Starfire teamed up to rescue Jason from Deathstroke.  All of those instances happen within the first 4 proper episodes of the season.  Perhaps I am expecting too much, but the season set up the young Titans in Titans Tower with Dick training them for “The Life”, but they never see any action in the field at all.  Much of the crime-fighting takes place out of costume and/or in a flashback scene.  This show is about a superhero crime-fighting team…why not show it?  Probably because they’re too busy with my next gripe.

These People Are NOT Likeable. Like Not At ALL.

Run down the list of every character on the show, with the exception of probably Jericho, Starfire and Superboy since he’s mostly a blank slate, and you can find an almost irritating quality amongst all of them.  Hank is an irredeemable asshole. Dick is a utterly complete idiot who seemingly learned ZERO from being with Batman for years, Donna is kind of a icy bitch, before and AFTER she slept with Aqualad, Dawn is a nice girl who puts up with the biggest asshole for some unknown reason and definitely deserves better.  Tiger Boy…well he’s given nothing to do except maul people and be mostly annoying otherwise.  Raven, who admittedly grew on me a little bit early on, has gone full-on brat mode as the season went on.  It all starts up top though, and that’s Dick Grayson.

The prison subplot was a very out-of-character way to spark a Nightwing origin, and made even less sense on its surface.

  He does some incredibly head-scratching, mind-numbingly dumb things over the course of this season and in the revelations of his past that make him pretty hard to cheer for.  His characterization wavers from mopey erstwhile leader of a part-time special individuals babysitters club to a dude who makes some questionable decisions in the idiotic attempt to serve penance for past transgressions.  They spend so much time bitching about things that never should’ve come about had they practiced even a smidgen of common sense that it takes you out of the enjoyment of the show.  Its Season Two and it still feels like they are trying to find their legs in exactly what this show wants to be.  That’s not a great sign in my book. Similar shows like Daredevil, Watchmen, The Punisher or even sister-show Doom Patrol don’t require this long to get to the heart of what it wants to be!  Either get a new show runner or hire some much better writers!

It’s Not All Bad.  I expected so much better though!

Esai Morales has been so unbelievably excellent as Slade Wilson/Deathstroke this season.  I wasn’t too sure what to expect when he was cast, but dude has knocked it way out of the park in this season.  All the story parts involving him, were great and I had hoped the show would focus on him as the focal point, but they couldn’t help but squeeze in the god-awful Cadmus Labs story line, something that honestly could’ve waited until next season.  The subplot of Starfire’s destiny as crown Princess of Tameran was also intriguing. She was one of the best parts of Season One and Anna Diop, with better costuming in tow, killed it this season too.  I’m very much looking forward to her plot line developing with Blackfire next season.  Jason Todd really grew on me this season.  The subplot of the budding romance of he and Rose Wilson was definitely a high-point…much more believable than any of the forced attempts for Raven and Gar.  Don’t know what’ll shake out for next season, but watch it for that if you haven’t yet.

So while Titans started off pretty promising for me, ahead of the season finale tomorrow on DC Universe, ultimately I’m left feeling disappointed by the heights that were teased in earlier episodes.  I’m hoping that Season Three proves to be the one we’ve always hoped the show would be, but right now, its not hitting the mark in fulfilling its lofty potential.

[esonetwork]

Vengeance, violence, and vigilante justice: Marvel/Netflix’s ‘The Punisher’ offers compelling antihero and complex themes

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Vengeance, violence, and vigilante justice: Marvel/Netflix’s ‘The Punisher’ offers compelling antihero and complex themes

I’ve been looking forward to Marvel/Netflix’s “The Punisher” ever since the character showed up in season two of “Daredevil” (and was actually the highlight of that season for me). However, I was also a bit nervous about how Marvel and Netflix would handle his solo show, based on the fact it’s a series about an angry loner who is surrounded by gun violence. I didn’t want the series to over-glorify the violence or to gloss over some of the more serious issues that come with presenting this type of character.

Thankfully, “The Punisher” is just as complex, nuanced, and thought-provoking as most of the Marvel/Netflix superhero shows. The show is full of flawed but compelling characters and raises awareness about some deeper, real-world issues. The show has actually been out for a while, but my husband and I just finished watching it this weekend (he’s not as much of a binge-watcher as I am). 😉 “The Punisher” had a lot of interesting themes to chew on, so I wanted put together a review to sort out my thoughts, even though it’s a bit belated. Also, warning: there are some minor spoilers ahead!

Introduced into the Marvel/Netflix universe in “Daredevil” season two, “The Punisher” continues the story of vigilante Frank Castle and his quest for vengeance after his family is murdered. Out of all the Marvel/Netflix heroes we’ve met so far, the Punisher operates the most in the moral gray area between right and wrong. In his mind, prison is not enough for the people who hurt his family; he needs to make them suffer in the most painful way possible for their crimes. As part of his quest, he stumbles on a larger government conspiracy that expands his hit list. The viewers are asked to consider whether Castle’s brand of vigilante justice is morally defensible and whether it will even satisfy him in the end. What will happen when he finally reaches the end of his list of the guilty? How does he move forward, and is there any kind of hope for a normal life for him beyond that point?

“The Punisher” wouldn’t have worked without the perfect actor in the lead role, and based on Jon Bernthal’s initial appearance as the character in “Daredevil,” I was already convinced they’d perfectly cast the part. Bernthal gets to dig even deeper into the character here, capturing Frank Castle’s painful cocktail of anger and grief. Sometimes I was terrified of this character and what he could do, but I also pitied him. Castle deeply loved his family, and without them, he’s a shell of a man who is living only for vengeance. He also hasn’t been able to fully address the scars (both physical and mental) from his time in the military.

It took me a little bit to warm up to some of the supporting characters, but I liked all of them by the end. I especially enjoyed seeing the ways they contrasted with Castle’s character and how they each had a different reaction to Castle’s quest. Castle ends up teaming up with former NSA analyst David Lieberman (a.k.a. “Micro”), and an unlikely friendship develops out of their shared goals. I also liked Castle’s unexpected ally, Department of Homeland Security agent Dinah Madani, who gets pulled into the gray area Castle operates in. The show also brings in “Daredevil” character Karen Page, and it was really interesting to see their relationship. Page wants to help Castle but is afraid of where his history of violence may eventually lead him.

Since Castle is already an antihero, I was interested to see what sort of villain he would be paired with. If I had read the original comics, I might have seen this plot twist coming, but I was really surprised when Castle’s best friend Billy Russo turned out to be the villain. Russo is played by Ben Barnes, who I’m mainly familiar with from the Chronicles of Narnia series (he played Prince Caspian). Barnes is obviously having fun playing a more villainous role. It’s interesting to look back and see how Russo and Castle’s paths diverged, and even though Castle’s moral code has some major issues, he’s still a better man than Russo has become. Based on the show’s ending, I definitely don’t think we’ve seen the last of Russo.

As mentioned earlier, I was initially a little worried that the show might overwhelm us with violence and end up missing an opportunity to dwell on deeper themes. However, this show has plenty of thought-provoking themes for viewers to reflect on. Some of these include military/wartime ethics, surveillance, domestic terrorism, gun violence, and the treatment of veterans. The later, I feel, is an issue that doesn’t receive nearly enough attention, at least here in the U.S. I feel sometimes we send soldiers off to war but don’t do enough to help them re-adjust to civilian life (finding employment, housing, etc.). There also aren’t enough resources to help them deal with the lingering trauma from their experiences. Throughout “The Punisher,” we see how Castle’s PTSD continues to haunt him and influence his actions.

One of the main criticisms I have heard of the show is that it “meanders” and could have been shorter overall. Since my husband and I watched the episodes spaced out over a couple of months, this didn’t bother me as much. However, I do agree it probably could have been tightened (it probably didn’t need the full 13 episodes). There is some filler, and some subplots could have been condensed.

Still, what we do get is quite powerful. When a show or movie continues to linger with me days after I’ve finished watching it, I know it’s something special. I’ve heard that some fans wished there was more action, but I was actually glad the violence was a little restrained overall. “The Punisher” is a show that made me think, and for me it was well worth the watch.

[amandajoyce118]

Daredevil Season 3 Easter Eggs And References

I somehow managed to watch the full season in about a week. Probably because I actually had a day off of work in there. These season of Daredevil borrows heavily from two very famous comic book arcs, “Born Again,” and “Guardian Devil.” If you’re familiar with the comics, you probably saw a few things coming. That being said, there aren’t a huge amount of Easter eggs in the season.

As usual, the Easter eggs are broken down by episode so if you want to read as you go without being spoiled for future episodes, you can. This is spoiler-heavy though, so if you’re trying to steer clear and haven’t watched the season yet, look away. I’ll understand.

I didn’t spend a lot of time explaining who people are if they’ve appeared in the show before, maybe just a reminder here and there in case they didn’t make a huge impression on you.

So, onto the Easter eggs!

S3E01 “Resurrection”

Father Lantom

I’m sure we all remember him from earlier seasons, but this is just a reminder of his role in the comics. In the comics, he also provides a place of refuge for Cloak And Dagger as well as the Runaways. Taking in heroes with sad backstories is kind of his thing.

St. Agnes

Again, sure everyone recognizes it, but also just a reminder that on Agents of SHIELD, the orphanage where Daisy Johnson AKA Skye AKA Mary Sue Poots spent her youth was also called St. Agnes. I’d still love a connection.

The Timeline

Despite Matt waking up and seemingly thinking he just made it out of a collapsed building, it’s actually been “several weeks,” which probably puts this happening right around the same time as the events of the most recent season of Luke Cage or Iron Fist. More episodes will likely clear this up.

Sister Maggie

She is a comic book character, plucked from the pages of the “Born Again” story arc. There’s likely a big reveal coming with Sister Maggie, so I won’t spoil that for you. She also features prominently in the “Guardian Devil” story arc.

Ben Donovan

This lawyer certainly gets around. Taking care of Wilson Fisk still even though he was devoting so much time to Mariah Dillard over on Luke Cage.

Fisk And The Wall

After he gets bad news, he stares at the white wall of his prison cell. You’ll remember in season one, he liked “White Rabbit In A Snowstorm” because it helped him think. It’s also how he was forced to deal with his father abusing his mother.

Rymon Cable

The van that has bad guys Matt decides to test himself against? It’s full of clothes even though it has the Rymon Cable logo on it. There’s no comic book connection to Rymon, but Holly S. Rymon is a “production executive” on the series. She’s also worked on Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and The Punisher over the last two years.

S3E02 “Please”

Fisk’s Deal

This deal isn’t unlike ones he’s made in the comics to further his own ends. During “Civil War” he actually passes information about Captain America to Iron Man, which briefly makes him a target for other criminals. He tries to get his stature back by putting a hit out on Spider-Man and his family, which backfires when Spider-Man shows up in prison and beats him to a pulp.

Karen’s Backstory

In the comics, she’s an only child, but she does have darker and darker side stories. She becomes a drug addict and a prostitute at one point, so I’m curious to see how much the writers reveal of her dark backstory here.

Blackout Cripples NY

This headline appears on a new newspaper clipping on the wall in Karen’s Bulletin office. Now, all of the other clippings were there before the office belonged to her, courtesy of Ben Urich. That means this new headline is likely one of her stories. That story is likely in response to the blackouts that happened all over the world in Agents of SHIELD season four when a hate group was making a statement about Inhumans.

Blake Tower

You all remember Blake Tower, right? He’s been showing up on multiple shows, just like Ben Donovan, Claire Temple, and Turk Barrett.

“Hell’s Kitchen is ground zero for vigilantes…”

Foggy’s not wrong. Daredevil, Iron Fist, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage have all been around in the last few years. Iron Fist promised to protect Hell’s Kitchen, but the events of his last season changed things up a bit.

S3E03 “No Good Deed”

Kingpin’s White/Grey/Lavender Penthouse

The color scheme for Wilson Fisk’s room is very reminiscent of his clothing choices in the comics.

The Presidential Hotel

Was it just me who noticed the hotel, combined with the “Lock Fisk up,” the fake news comments, and the fact that the owner was convicted of fraud? I think those are a lot of real world shoutouts right there, and I appreciate every single one of them.

Fisk’s White Suit

Matt might be hallucinating Fisk, but this is Kingpin’s comic book look. It’s perfect.

Millar

I couldn’t make out the second name of the electrical/plumbing company Matt sneaks into the hotel with, but the first in the logo is definitely Millar. Frank Miller is typically the name associated with Daredevil, but I feel like Millar is a shoutout to comic book creator Mark Millar. He’s better known for the Kick-Ass franchise and his work for DC, but he’s also written on some X-Men books, some Fantastic Four, and some Spider-Man, as well as the “Civil War” arc.

Vanessa Hiding In Spain

Vanessa frequently has to hide out in the comics to escape the wrath of Wilson’s enemies. Spain isn’t usually a big spot for her, but Wilson lived there for about a year in the comics before Lady Bullseye caught up with him and sent a bunch of Hand ninjas after him.

Agent Poindexter

He seems to like the nickname Dex and he has a great skillset - never missing his mark. Benjamin Poindexter is the main alias of a villain named Bullseye in the comics, and I don’t think that’s spoiling anything for you since casting rumors and trailers should have done that already. He’s probably Daredevil’s biggest enemy, not Kingpin. So, that’s going to be fun to watch develop.

Matt’s Clothes

Not his vigilante ensemble, which is a callback to him first starting out in season one. His walking around clothes. It looks a lot like how Stick used to dress when he was in New York, huh? Guess Matt is taking cues from his former sensei.

Matt Picking Foggy’s Pocket

Okay, so I realize this is just a means to an end for Matt, but I like to think of it as another connection between Matt and Daisy. Both orphans at St. Agnes (possibly the same one), both steal the ID of someone who meets with them in order to get more info. (In Daisy AKA Skye’s case, it was Mike Peterson in the Agents of SHIELD pilot.)

S3E04 “Blindsided”

District Attorney Foggy Nelson

Foggy was District Attorney of New York City for a while in the comics. He also became Chief of Staff for the mayor for a while too.

The Prison Fight Sequence

Less an Easter egg and more a reminder that Daredevil is known for doing a spectacular single take fight sequence every season. This one, where the cameraman literally just followed Charlie Cox from room to room lasted nearly a crazy 15 minutes. No cuts. That’s impressive.

“We were just being friendly.”

And Karen pulls a gun on some guys up to no good. I feel like she and Jessica Jones need to hang out more. They could just intimidate skeevey guys in alleys for laughs.

Trucks Full Of Chemicals

The FBI agent’s story about her dad hauling chemicals, I think, made a nice nod to the fact that both Matt Murdock and Jessica Jones got their abilities from trucks full of chemicals hitting them in the comics.

Felix Manning

“Felix” has been the name of the person in charge of Vanessa’s location, so I’m going to wager they’re one in the same. He also appears in a whopping two comic books - Daredevil issues 230 and 231. He wanted Melvin Potter, who appeared early in the Netflix series, to make him a duplicate of the Daredevil costume. He was actually killed by a Daredevil imposter. Foreshadowing? We’ll see.

A Taxi To The Water

A version of this happened in “Born Again.” It didn’t get rid of Matt, but it did make him a little more loopy.

S3E05 “The Perfect Game”

Fisk Giving Matt’s Name

There is a story in the comics where Fisk implicates Matt as a vigilante and gets him arrested. The FBI, however, decides not to take the deal with him, and they put Fisk in prison for numerous crimes as well. This clearly isn’t playing out exactly the same way, but, when Matt and Fisk try to break out of prison during a riot, it’s Bullseye who has to save them. I can’t help but wonder if there was a little inspiration there.

Felix Threatens Karen

Again, a little hint of her backstory here. In the comics, she’s also from the New England area. Her father, Paxton Page, who gets namechecked in the threat, actually became a villain named Death’s Head in the comics.

Baseball And Bullseye

Cute that little Dex has a bullseye on his baseball cap in his childhood. Funnily enough, comic book villain Bullseye claims to have attempted to become a major league baseball player, but he got bored pitching a no hitter and threw the ball at the final hitter to kill him in a minor league game. Killing his coach when he pulls him from the game is a bit of a twist on that.

S3E06 “The Devil You Know”

Matt Doesn’t Take Karen’s Coffee

Luke Cage’s “coffee” has ruined he drink for everyone. Karen offering Matt a cup when he comes to her for help, and Matt refusing could be a sign that anything romantic between them is officially over. Or it means nothing. Who knows?

Karen Is Way Too Comfortable In A Drug Den

Karen is around drugs a lot this season. A lot. And it all seems to give a nod to her comic book story, but I feel like we’re inching toward more of her family backstory with just how comfortable she is buying drugs and making her way around other addicts.

“Maybe I’ll get lucky and they’ll lock me up next to Fisk.”

This did actually happen in the comics, as I’ve mentioned before. It’s a nice nod.

Felix Manning Getting Dex The Suit

Likewise, I also mentioned Felix being the one to get a copy of a Daredevil suit in the comics. Looks like his appearance was some foreshadowing after all.

Dex As Daredevil

Bullseye has actually dressed up as Daredevil in the comics as well. He’s not the only one. So has Foggy.

Karen Between Bullseye And A Victim

If Karen stepping between Dex and the witness gave you pause, it’s probably because you know how she loses her life in the comics. She gets between Bullseye and Matt in a fight, taking a lethal blow to save Matt’s life. This imagery is not going to be fun for Karen fans.

Side note: I’ve never really been a Karen Page fan because the comics put her firmly in the slot of victim. She never really outgrows that no matter who writes for her. But I love her this season. Maybe it’s because we got to see more of Karen being Karen than of trying to fill someone else’s shoes.

S3E07 “Aftermath”

The Hidden Room

Kingpin officially has a supervillain lair. Less of an Easter egg here and more of it being about time.

WJPBTV, WNEX, WHiH, etc

All of the news networks Fisk sees the Bulletin carnage on exist within the MCU already. WJPB is the news station most often seen in Luke Cage. WNEX is the station that aired Trish Talk. WHiH is the one most often seen in the movies. You get the idea.

Melvin Potter

AKA Gladiator in the comics is something of a gentle giant. He kind of fell into a life of crime, which is largely what Daredevil has done with him in the show as well. The shirt he’s wearing when Matt confronts him is a nod to his comic book costume. So are the saw blades. His girlfriend Betsy was, I believe, a social worker in the comics, not a parole officer. (BTW, the comic that features Matt, Fisk, and Bullseye breaking out of prison during a riot? Melvin’s in prison at the same time as well. Matt advises him to stay in his cell so he doesn’t get hurt.)

S3E08 “Upstairs/Downstairs”

Keys

As Karen nears the front door of her apartment, there’s a piece of paper from a legal pad that says “KEYS.” I love that she’s so focused on her work that she has likely forgotten to take her keys with her enough that it warrants a giant reminder.

Fisk’s Plan

His plan, of putting himself in charge of the criminal groups, is essentially what he wanted in season 2 as well when he gave Frank Castle a means to escape prison.

The Maggia

This is the first time the Italian-American version of the mafia has been mentioned in the present day in the MCU. I say present day because it did have its fingers in Agent Carter season two. In the comics, the Maggia gets the ire of quite a few heroes and antiheroes, but most often, the Punisher.

Sister Maggie

Unless you never read anything related to Daredevil at all, you were probably spoiled at some point that Sister Maggie was really Matt’s mom. People started speculating about the reveal being imminent as soon as there was a “get Maggie” at the end of The Defenders. In the comics, the reveal is a little different as Matt already suspected she was his mother before he found out for sure.

Apartment 131

Dex lives in apartment 131. What comic book did Bullseye make his debut in? Daredevil #131.

S3E09 “Revelations”

Kingpin

Wilson Fisk finally officially gets his codename. I like that we’re back to the season one idea of his lackeys not wanting to name him because someone is always watching/listening.

Karen’s Running

In the comics, Karen basically runs whenever things get hard. I’m kind of surprised she stuck things out this long on the show.

Rosalie Carbone

The woman we see Nadeem take in was last spotted in season two of Luke Cage making a play for Harlem. She’s the one with the Maggia connection. The other names we get are Hammond and Star. The only Hammond I know of in Marvel Comics was the original Human Torch. I’ve got nothing for Star, but the other names could have been picked at random. I don’t recognize the other two people at the table either.

S3E10 “Karen”

Karen Selling Drugs

At least this explains why she’s so comfortable in drug dens. I like that this gives us a nod to her comic book tragedy, but here she’s the seller instead of the addict.

Fagan Corners, Vermont

This is where Karen’s from in the comics as well. The name of the fictional town is an homage to Tom Rutland. Rutland organized an annual Halloween parade in Vermont themed around superheroes. He was actually written into Avengers comics in the 1970s.

Penny’s Place

Named for Karen’s mom in the comics, Penelope.

“... two lines away from doing blow jobs on the street for heroin…”

Maybe this isn’t true on the Netflix show, but yes, this happened in the comics.

Bullseye And Daredevil In The Church

Their in-church fight actually happened in the comics when Matt and Karen were hiding a baby in the church. The big difference here is that when Bullseye aimed a fatal blow at Daredevil with his own billy club, Karen got between them and died from her injury. Father Lantom takes the hit for Karen here.

S3E11 “Reunion”

Custos Diaboli

This is inscribed above the gate to get to the basement where Matt and Karen hide out. From the Latin, in translates to Guardian Devil, one of the comic book arcs the series draws from.

KTTA And ZCN

These are two of the networks I could make out on the mics in front of Fisk when he has a press conference outside of the hotel. KTTA is a television station from the comics that frequently reported on the Thunderbolts. ZCN already exists in the Netflix universe. They offered Trish Walker a job in the second season of Jessica Jones.

Nelson & Murdock: Attorneys At Law

Leave it to Foggy to formally name them as they were named in the comics (and the first season of the show).

Side note: I love the Holocaust survivor standing up to Fisk and refusing to give him her family’s painting. It very much reminds me of the scene in The Avengers when Loki demands everyone kneel, but one man reminds the crowd, “there are always men like you,” and refuses. It’s a great reminder that so many comic book creators, during an era when comics flourished, were Jewish, and their relatives were being persecuted and killed half a world away.

S3E12 “One Last Shot”

Vanessa Embracing The Kingpin

Not a lot of Easter eggs in this episode that I noticed, but I thought it was important to point out that in the normal timeline of the comics, Vanessa isn’t a part of Wilson’s criminal undertakings. In alternate timelines though, she’s the Kingpin herself. Her embracing his work and wanting to be a part of it feels like the writers are trying to find some middle ground there.

Side note: Some fans pointed out on twitter that the Morales vs Parker poster in Fogwell’s Gym is a nod to the Spider-Man characters of Marvel Comics. I find that unlikely only because there are plenty of boxers who have shared those names. It’s more likely a coincidence, especially since most of the names in previous seasons were nod to production team members and writers.

S3E13 “A New Napkin”

The Rose

Interesting that Vanessa specifies Fisk should pick the rose. Why? In the comics, Fisk’s son Richard became a vigilante who used the name the Rose. In fact, he wanted to overthrow his father at one point. His mother was the one who killed him. Will Vanessa become the Rose instead? It would be a nice touch.

The Crystals Bounce Off Fisk’s Suit Jacket

In the comics, Fisk actually wears kevlar under his suits to prevent any of his enemies from surprising him with bullets or knives. In the first season, his body armor that he was wearing were designed by Melvin Potter and he wore them under his suits. It seems he might have gotten an upgrade as everything just bounces off of it instead of tearing it, and he gives his jacket to Vanessa to prevent her being hit by anything.

Karen’s More Stable Than Jessica Jones

There are probably a lot of people more stable than Jessica Jones, Matt, jeez. That doesn’t mean she’s not a great detective.

Dex’s Injury And Cognium

In the comics, Bullseye did some time paralyzed. Of course, like all comic book characters, it didn’t last forever. Something else Dex had in the comics? A spine laced with adamantium. Yep, the same stuff on Wolverine’s bones. It’s what made him so indestructible. The MCU probably can’t use it since it’s reserved for the X-Men movies. At least not until everything about the Disney-FOX deal is official.

Dr. Oyama

This doc goes by another name in the comics. Kenji Oyama is Lord Dark Wind. This is the comic book doctor who found a way to make adamantium bond to bone. Wolverine and Bullseye have him to think for their bone structure.

Dex’s Eye

That final shot of Dex’s eye makes what we’ve all been waiting for clear. Dex is definitely officially Bullseye now.

Side note: The milk crates in the freezer with the bodies that have ice all over them? Must have been there for years. I’ve got milk crates used to store product in my freezer at work, and they never build up frost. And our freezer is kept far below zero. Also? I love how much Rosalie Carbone appreciates theatrics. And how Vanessa just wanders around in the background after Fisk repeatedly tells her to leave while there’s a huge fight going on. That’s all.