#and like... jamie's growth is so obvious?

[penny-anna]

classic who companion exit tier list

long ass post!! here u go:

TOP TIER:

Ian and Barbara: listen they have a very simple arc with a simple goal. they wanna go back to 1960s London. perhaps one of the most joyous moments in the entire show. they go home!! the world has moved on without them but that's a problem for tomorrow! they are home! hooray!

Sara Kingdom: i have a lot of opinions on this one oh boy! firstly: the ending of The Daleks' Master Plan is absolutely brutal n i love it. it's the kind of 'we defeated the daleks but at what cost' ending nuwho constantly teases but never commits to. The Doctor pulled the trigger on the Time Destructor and killed one of this friends in the progress and now he has to live with that forever.

secondly: Sara makes her entrance by murdering her own brother and while the text never really dwells on this it makes perfect sense to me that she's willing to do basically anything to defeat the daleks. if the daleks win then she killed her brother for nothing. I also love the horribly irony of her starting out so unable to question authority that she guns Bret down in cold blood & then dying bcos she disregarded the Doctor's instructions. love that.

Jamie & Zoe: yeah this one is a horrible suckerpunch of an ending and i love that for them. love to watch Jamie and Zoe learn and grow as people so so much over their time with the Doctor and then have it all ripped away. the execution is a little shaky but its conceptually so so good i can forgive it all its janky sins.

Adric: also absolutely gutting. his arc across Earthshock is so good. love him managing to resolve things w the Doctor and then dying right afterwards. love him trying to prove to himself & the Doctor that he can solve the logic gates but also his genuine desperation to save a planet that isn't even his home. 'but now I'll never know if I was right'. outstanding.

Tegan: the very rare 'companion abruptly leaves at the end of an adventure' that actually works. poor poor Tegan. 'it stopped being fun, Doctor'. 100% in character for her to just impulsively walk away and 100% in character for the Doctor to just let her go.

Turlough: I actually re-watched Planet of Fire the other night and I forgot how good it is. underrated frankly. full on deep dive into who Turlough is and where he came from. first name reveal. wonderful demonstration of Turlough's character growth since he came aboard.

Ace: arguably im cheating here as she doesn't have a TV exit but honestly I'm counting her. Ace affirming that the TARDIS is her home now and going off to have 1000 more adventures with the Doctor is the perfect ending for her. no notes.

PRETTY GOOD TIER:

Susan: so in theory I think this is the perfect ending for Susan. right from the start it's obvious that Earth is her adopted home world and she wants to stay there for good; staying behind to help them rebuild after the dalek invasion is a lovely way to bring her character full circle. and honestly I'm into the Doctor locking her out of the TARDIS. it's very in character all around. there's just something Off and vaguely sexist about the execution that knocks this one out of the top tier for me.

Katarina: im in favour of characters dying and on a certain level I love that they did this. it's just so exactly the kind of situation that Dr Who companions normally survive. uh oh Katarina's in danger! tune in next week and see how the Doctor will save her - oh. oh no. :( however this is a case where the ??? behind the scenes situations has me like honestly i don't think they should have done any of this. :/

Ben and Polly: as above I do think this was the right ending for them. they didn't leave home voluntarily and they get to go home. it also feels very apt that (unlike Ian and Barbara) they get sent back to the same day they left, making it kind of easier and also kind of harder to grapple with the consequences of what happened? just a real pity that the circumstances of the actors leaving the show made the execution so half-assed.

Jo: definitely the best of the 'companion leaves the doctor to get married' endings. far and away the most developed romance. love also that Jo made up her mind to quit travelling with the Doctor before even meeting Cliff. unfortunately: i just really fucking hate Cliff and I wish he was dead. :)

Harry Sullivan: honestly nothing wrong w this one. Harry had a good time and then he decided it wasn't for him and peaced out. fine from a character perspective i just think their reasoning for writing him out was kind of BS.

Sarah Jane: very mixed feelings on this one. I do get what they were going for and part of me really enjoys it. i just think Sarah could have had a better ending? honestly i don't know how I'd have ended this one.

K9: i don't really care about K9 but i think it's cute that the Doctor gave Romana the dog :3

OKAY TIER:

Vicki: I mean this one could have been a lot worse. the romance is very rushed but legitimately sweet. love her hugging the TARDIS goodbye. just sucks that they fired the actress. deserved a better ending.

Victoria: I think Victoria being like 'this isn't working for me, I just want to go back to a normal life' is the correct & proper ending for her. it's just one of those companion endings that's kind of abrupt and arbitrary and i don't love it.

Romana II: I think Romana heading off to be a solo adventurer in her own universe is the exact right ending for her & also love her being like 'tee hee the time lords can't make me go home if I hide in this pocket dimension :)'. however does unfortunately feel a arbitrary. wish they'd given her more of a send off.

Nyssa: feel similarly about this to above? like Nyssa choosing a new home for herself & her leaving to do medical research is on point. just feel like Terminus isn't a great send off for the character. would have liked more oomph.

Mel: yes this one is a bit perplexing but honestly in character of Mel to just breeze out of the Doctor's life like that and the whole scene is very cute. I'm into it.

BAD TIER:

Steven: look they just didn't write Steven an ending. of all the 'companion just kind of leaves at the end of an otherwise normal serial' i think this might be the worst. deserved massively better.

Dodo: perhaps the worst?? perhaps the very worst? vanishes without even saying goodbye. Dodo went to live on a farm with lots of space to run around w the other Dodos. :) she's fine don't worry about it.

Liz: character removed for sexist BS reasons. vanishes between seasons. i will give it 1 point for Liz's stated motivation of not wanting to be the Doctor's lab assistant being an actually decent reason for her to have left. just wish we could have seen the conversation. ):<

Leela: perhaps tied w Steven for stupidest 'companion just leaves' ending w an extra helping of sexism. do she and Andred even talk to each other?? do they talk ever?? what the fuck was this. fucking bullshit.

Romana I: honestly a hard one to classify as obvs she and Romana II are the same character but like really sucks that they didn't bring Mary Tamm back to film an actual regen and the bafflingly nature of the regeneration scene just kind of adds insult to injury. and then i think the producers lied about why she left? what?? awful.

Kamelion: look im just gonna say it everything about Kamelion was a mistake, including his ending. non-character.

Peri: what the fuck even was this. frankly if they'd stuck with the original ending i would have still put it in bad tier (and as seen above i like when companions get exploded & die) bcos it's just over the line nasty. attempting to walk it back by having her marry Brian Blessed was absolutely baffling. this was just a fucking mess.

[twojamie-o-clock]

longer ramble coming (eta: whenever I get off my ass and finish those Tasks and also a lot of tests) but I figured it was worth throwing out here, since it was Brought Up in the beloved Dunkin’ server, that 60s Who has so much room for aspec characters, relations, and interpretations.

Putting this under a cut cuz it was not supposed to get this long.

You could argue there’s always room, but 60s Who specifically just hits some switch. I always thought I was approaching it partially because. well. projecting. but speaking with others (albeit in a disproportionately aspec bubble ,,) made me realize that there is something a bit more prominent about 60s Who in contrast to the rest of it. I can’t really. translate. a single discord convo into a coherent tumblr post (also you caught me; this is promo for the hartnell server.) what I absolutely had to throw on my blog was this balance & inverse of how relationships are portrayed. Typically romantically skewed relationships - specifically, Steven and Sara - lack the overt affection both verbal & physical relative to relationships that are, at least intended to be, portrayed as platonic - specifically the second doctor and Jamie. (my blog is called twojamieoclock. I don’t care how you interpret two and Jamie. They’re a package deal.) This blurring of lines where traditionally romantic relationships aren’t given any higher pedestal, and where traditionally platonic (and again while this contributes to the General queerness of Twojamie right now I’m throwing aro beams at them) characters are allowed a Lot of touch & affection.

Hasty departures via romance (in 60s who particularly because it happens twice to characters who are filling a largely similar role in the space) are often seen as abrupt and more awkward as opposed to more interesting, underlying reasons; im not a huge enough of a susan fan to dig into that, but looking at Vicki, it’s far more interesting to poke at the odd, unstable perception of family she has. I lean on eu media way too much, but crash of the uk201 is one of my favorites, which painfully demonstrates the extreme lengths Vicki goes to to preserve her family, even as against-the-laws-of-time as they are….sound familiar? and even only interpreting tv canon, a character being welcomingly rescued from a dire situation and then outstaying some of her rescuers…….well, she’s a Big Moment for the show in any case. especially since her departure cuts right to the DMP.

and jumping from there is Sara!! and her whole arc of growth & change, leaving her harsh, straight world for Steven’s constant questioning and the doctor’s adventuring!! She learns to be everything she does because of their friendship, but - at least, again, in eu - there are obvious threads of romance meant to be picked up between her and Steven. But this is never really displayed, and not just because her tv run was so short, but even popular eu runs with the interpretation that this romantic inclination is largely one sided, and exaggerated. the anachronauts is doing the heavy lifting imo and I’m also going too far into headcanon here so I’ll stop.

then you get to two and Jamie…………while I do ship them romantically a lot, they can definitely be read as aromantic or queer platonic or platonic or whatever form of friendship you would like. But the fact is that they are extremely affection & comfortable with each other, sometimes it seems more than they are with themselves. and just that such a strong emphasis can be placed on friendship, such a close bond that doesn’t need to carry romance or in turn devalue platonic love….it’s the very core of 60s Who! While there is a very strong queer theme throughout the show, and you can draw on that in any way you’d like, it’s neat to see how 60s Who flipping dynamics on their head has created a safer space for aspec characters, highlighting - well - the actual characters themselves and the depth of their relationships which is deepened because of their fluid natures.

boooo ok sorry idk what I’m saying

[blank-house]

Did anyone from the cast had any awkward phase during adolescence? Any embarrassing outfits, hairstyles? Makeup mistakes? Unfortunate teenage romances? >:)

who didn't? lmao, puberty was not kind to anyone.

cameron was a mall goth. bought everything from hot topic, had one colored streak in their hair, had a raccoon tail keychain they wore on their belt, knee-high converse. it is their greatest shame, and this is the period of their life where they had the most pictures taken by their family. the evidence is on their walls.

deja's first "boyfriend" was when she was fourteen. they both had braces. because she believed in the urban legend that they'd get stuck together, she accidentally pushed him into a fountain when he leaned in for a kiss.

percy kind of had a bowl cut? he had a lot of acne on his forehead because, you know. happens around that age. so, he grew out his bangs, but then he also wanted to look stylish as one does that age. and then fucked it up so bad he had to wear a hat for half the school year. t'was also oily from bad shampoo choices.

jamie was more limb than person. like, he had a pretty obvious growth spurt in his early teens when it happened and is pretty obviously tall now but like. parts of him didn't look proportionate until he finally filled out with exercise and age.

elio's voice cracked a lot when he was getting older. it was a pretty regular point of embarrassment for him, so he just kind of tried to not speak as often when it first started. that, of course, lasted all of five seconds since he's usually the chattiest person around. it wasn't uncommon to hear it fluctuating, and something he kind of played for jokes. he kind of misses it.

reynah was pretty sure that the "i'm a child beauty queen" would transition over pretty well into her teen years, which meant that she got a little more avant-garde with her make-up and clothing choices. old pictures of her would have you second-guessing if you know reynah at all and it's a pretty obviously embarrassing thing for her, considering how she dresses these days.

[acourtofthought]

I did not say Elain wouldn't be mc next book. Sarah's answer definitely gave the impression that elriel is next

As I'm guessing you can imagine, my answer still stands.

Before she talked of Az's bedroom habits, she told us in book 3 how Elain's mate has fire in his blood and "fucks" like it too.

Do you really think SJM would waste that on someone other than his mate? When the author herself said she shares Elain's energy in her real life? SJM would have the chance to live vicariously through a character she relates to with a Jamie Fraser inspired love interest!

Before she ever talked of whether we'd met Az's person, she told us there was someone special for Lucien and went on to reveal Elain as his mate the very next year.

On Tumblr, she called Lucien "my love" and said this of Az in a special edition of FAS:

She told us how she purposely did not have Nesta and Lucien end up together because she realized they'd cause one another more pain and Elain took both she and Lucien by surprise so she mated them instead. Using your 2+2=4 logic, she mated Lucien to someone who would not cause him more pain. That means, despite their current state of tension, they're going to have growth and healing together (authors own words). Would that not be a little odd to read about in an E/riel book? Elain and Lucien having growth and healing together yet she ends up with Az in the end? If Az can't even handle the scent of her bond I cannot imagine what he'd do watching them become closer, turning into BFFs, seeing Elain make Lucien smile, seeing Lucien make Elain smile.

As far as plots, Lucien (not Az) is connected to the things threatening their entire world: Koschei and Vassa, Beron, Spring.

Elain is connected to those things too. Because of her visions and the very obvious hints SJM added to the books.

Az is connected to the Illyrians and any future time travel plots that may be introduced.

Elain is not connected to either of those things.

"Az's journey" could very well include him being humbled over how wrong he was about Elain, Lucien and Elucien, at which point he'll have his own growth and then be deserving of his own mate at some point.

I'm curious why you'd come onto a Pro Elucien / Anti E/riel blog and send messages like this? My stance is very clear at this point so you have to know I'm going not going to agree with you at all.

[inspofromancientworld]

Flowers of Mythology - Narcissus

Narcissus is a genus of plants that include daffodil and jonquil as well as narcissus. They are spring flowering perennial plants that have obvious flowers with six outer petals and a cup- or trumpet-shaped crown. These can be white or yellow and both the outer petals and crown can be the same or opposite colors. Garden varieties, which are specifically bred for other colors, can come in orange or pink. They developed approximately 20 million years ago in the area around the Iberian Peninsula. It is native to southern European and North African meadows and woods, but was cultivated elsewhere so that it reached the Far east before the 10th century. It was used for treatment of cancer and uterine tumors, as attested by Hippocrates (lived around 460-370 BCE) and possibly the Bible as the Rose of Sharon, though that usage fell out of favor as attested by Pedanius Dioscorides (lived around 40-90 CE) and Soranus of Ephesus (lived 98-138 CE). There are compounds that do help protect against the growth of tumors. Pliny the Elder (lived 23-79 AD) was an advocate for topical usage. They also repel rodents. Modern usage of narcissus include as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

By Unknown author - http://almacendeclasicas.blogspot.com/2015/05/pompeya-la-casa-de-marco-lucrecio.html, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=112691977

The Greeks have two myths that involve the narcissus flower. One is That of the hunter Narcissus from Thespia in central Greek. The -issos ending of his names indicates that this myth likely pre-dates the Greek world, though whether the flower was named first or after the hunter is unknown. There are several versions of the myth that survive to this day. The most well known version of the myth of Echo and Narcissus is from Ovid's Metamorphoses. In that version of the myth, Tiresias, a prophet who took Zeus' side in a contest between him and Hera, so Hera blinded him. Zeus then made Tiresias a prophet. He also spent seven years as a woman, again caused by Hera for his hitting mating snakes with a stick.

By Giulio Carpioni - Web Gallery of Art:   Image  Info about artwork, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10618028

Liriope was 'ravaged' by Caphissus, a river god, and later gave birth to Narcissus, who was 'beautiful even as a child'. Tiresias prophesied Narcissus could only live a long life if he never 'came to know himself'. When he was 16, he went hunting with friends, and ended up separated from them and lost.

By John William Waterhouse - http://www.allartpainting.com/echo-and-narcissus-p-16444.html, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7716057

Echo, a mountain nymph, was used by Zeus to keep Hera busy while Zeus catted about behind her back, or while his lovers escaped from Olympus. Hera punished her by making it so Echo could only repeat what she'd just heard. Echo saw Narcissus and became inflamed with desire and followed after him. Narcissus became aware of Echo's presence, but he couldn't see her. He called out 'Who's there?', which she called back, and so on. Echo crept closer to Narcissus, until he could see her. She tried to embrace him and he rebuffed her, telling her to 'keep her chains'. After this, Echo wasted away until only her voice remained.

By Jamie Heath - https://www.flickr.com/photos/mumblerjamie/49345495687/in/photolist-7dQTrU-Jt9nya-6hGRqg-2ibuyGp-KnkmSu-2iUBjfG, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=138436541

Meanwhile, Nemesis, goddess of personal retribution, heard the prayers of Ameinias, a man who had also fallen in lust for Narcissus, but was likewise rebuffed. She proclaimed that Narcissus would 'never be able to be loved by the one he fell in love with.'

By Caravaggio - Self-scanned, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25450745

Narcissus, wandering in the forest, becomes thirsty and approaches a pool of water that according to Ovid, no animal had ever approached. He leans down to get a drink and in the still water, he sees his reflection, one that he likens to a marble statue. He falls in love with his reflection, fulfilling both Tiresias' prophecy and Nemesis' curse in one moment. Narcissus eventually melted from the flames of his passion, becoming a gold and white flower with a bent head.

By John William Waterhouse - http://www.jwwaterhouse.com/paintings/images/waterhouse_narcissus.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8034986

The second myth involves the capture of Persephone by Hades while picking narcissus flowers. Because of this, they're held sacred to Persephone and Hades and they're thought to grow along the River Styx.

By Original uploader was 用心阁 at zh.wikipedia - Transferred from zh.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Shizhao using CommonsHelper., CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12462572

Among the Chinese, narcissus is connected to the Chinese New Year and symbolizes good luck, in contrast to the association with death in many Western cultures.

[faramirsonofgondor]

You're right about samjamie and you should say it!!! People ignore how cute their dynamic is, and the fact that they are constantly hugging/leaning on each other. Sam was pivotal in Jamie's growth and Jamie was key to making Sam a more assertive leader (in nice and not so nice ways). The material is RIGHT THERE and everyone ignores it!

yes! i think one of the most important aspects of their relationship is the fact that they CHOOSE to be close to each other, to support each other, and to love one another. in s1 jamie was a major bully to sam and hurt his confidence, and when jamie came back in s2 it would’ve been so easy for sam to write jamie off as a lost cause and move on. but he gave jamie the opportunity to prove himself, and jamie came through and supported him, and further acknowledged that sam was a good person who did a good thing despite the fact that they lost their match. now, from there it would also be easy for sam & jamie to remain distance from one another while still be cordial/friendly teammates. but from then on we see that they actively seek each other out & chose to grow closer. when the player jamie pissed off fouls him, sam is there. when sam decides to use his one haircut for his date with rebecca, jamie is there despite his inner turmoil and only leaves when he knows no one else will notice. i also think it’s very important to note that after what happened at wembley, sam immediately decides to seek out comfort in pursuing his most recent romantic encounter (rebecca), which i think highlights that sam was also feeling hurt for jamie and chose to pursue romantic relief (which maybe says something about how he feels about jamie). they continue to show their love and support for each other throughout the season.

then we get into s3 (yikes). while sam is also one of the people caught up in the zava whirlwind, it doesn’t necessarily diminish his relationship with jamie. while i do think it did hurt jamie that sam didn’t notice his struggles or check in on him, i think jamie was more hurt by the fact that NOBODY did, rather than just sam. and i think he shows more leeway towards the members of the team than he does the coaches in their obsession with zava because he understands that they’re still young and that’s it’s still easy to get caught up in all that. i also think it’s important to note that jamie still shows up to sam’s restaurant (wearing the sexiest outfit he could find) to support him despite being upset, and he doesn’t try to let his feelings overshadow the overall atmosphere. while i know some people see this as jamie being a team player, i think it has more to do with his relationship with sam than does it with that because we see him walking out of team meditation and showing more obvious disdain towards zava during the scene when they’re in the gym and zava steals his speech. then when we get to amsterdam, as roy is yelling at jamie on the bus, we see that jamie’s first reaction is to look towards sam (we see this in other moments where roy is being unhinged). in the strings that bind us, when the team flips off jamie, we notice him lingering on sam’s finger (which is quite close to his face) before speaking up. later when sam finds the team cleaning up his restaurant, jamie is the first one to answer sam’s question about why they chose to help out. in the next episode sam and jamie walk and discuss something together after the team finds out about the leak and deletes their nudes. then in la locker room aux folles, the camera focuses on a multitude of people turning towards jamie after the “somebody else in this room could be gay” but we don’t see sam’s (who jamie had shared a cute moment with like three minutes prior) reaction. when jamie does his little “i’m flattered” and the team laughs it off, only then do we see sam, who says they shouldn’t discuss it further. then we get a cute moment between jamie and sam when sam does his captain speech. skip to international break, jamie, after hearing that he’s making his england debut, immediately goes to see if sam is alright and tells him that he got screwed over. then, jamie chooses to wear sam’s number while he’s playing for england (just get married already). when jamie is having his breakdown during the press conference in mom city, sam is immediately worried about jamie’s behavior/attitude. i think the only reason we don’t see him checking in on jamie is because he can acknowledge that it might be easier for jamie to give space and let jamie come to him if he needs to.

i think the fact sam is able to give jamie space while also supporting him and letting jamie give him love in return is what makes it one of the healthiest jamie ships. while roy and jamie do have chemistry, roy is very resistant to jamie’s attempts to show support/comfort towards him. keeley, on the other hand, is unable to adequately support jamie while she’s trying to support and heal herself. sam and jamie have each others full and unconditional support, and sam is receptive towards jamie’s shows of love. i think this is essential to helping jamie heal because he hasn’t been able to show other men love and be met with love and reception in return. furthermore, sam doesn’t expect jamie to tell him all his secrets or come to him straight away, he has enough patience to let jamie work things out on his own, and will be there if jamie needs to come to him. this contrasts both roy and keeley’s approaches to getting jamie to open up during mom city, where roy yells and then somewhat comforts jamie and keeley brings up his worries in an attempt to gauge his feelings, and then they both proceed to stalk him until he reaches his mothers house. it wasn’t roy or keeley that made jamie feel better, it was jamie who knew what he needed and sought out his mother to comfort and reassure him. both keeley and roy are a bit restricting towards jamie and allowing him to express his feelings, with s1 keeley not explaining what made her upset (not communicating her boundaries) and laughing at his discomfort/fear with roy during the auction (dissuading him from communicating his own boundaries in fear of rejection/not being taken seriously). roy on the other hand attempts to manipulate jamie’s behavior and undermine the feelings jamie is expressing in those actions such as when pushes jamie into saying the ‘ugly boy’ thing and ignores the fact that jamie is clearly uncomfortable and that he has a lot of power over jamie in this scene, or when he tries to manipulate jamie into “backing off” keeley. when his attempts to manipulate jamie backfire, he tries to silence jamie through intimidation and physical aggression. overall, while it may not be intentional, both keeley and roy limit jamie’s behavior to the point where cannot fully express himself without fear of repercussions (whether that be mockery, rejection, or aggression). meanwhile jamie has the space to express himself how he wants when he’s with sam, and he doesn’t have to worry about being mocked or attacked for it. sam takes him and his emotions seriously in a way that others do not (although there could still be some improvement in that area for sam).

additionally, jamie is a great partner for sam because jamie is a very honest person and he is willing to learn, grow, and change. i think sam would value honesty a lot, because sometimes it’s better to hear what you need to hear rather than what you want to hear. From what we can tell, ola seems to be a very open and honest person as well, which is probably why sam values the truth. it’s also clear that sam likes it when others listen to him and ask for his input and jamie is willing to listen to sam and learn what sam’s boundaries are and he would respect those the best he could. i also think it’s important that jamie is one of the few people who shows pride in sam and recognizes his achievements and tells him that he should be proud of himself. when jamie has the opportunity to be jealous of sam becoming captain, he takes pride and joy in seeing him take on a new role instead. when sam doesn’t get picked to play for nigeria, jamie is the one to make sure sam knows that he deserved to play. when they lost their match after the dubai air protest, jamie is one to rally the team into celebrating sam and acknowledges the bravery of sam’s actions. they are just so perfect for each other!!!

[immobiliter]

✿ smack me with any of the muses combo you're feeling most 8)

send “ ✿ ” for 2 headcanons for our muses' relationship / @mercysought

JAMIE & ANORA

to link in with our recent thread, taking anora away into the woods for a horse ride/race becomes a habit of jamie's throughout their marriage and rule of ferelden, particularly when he notices that she is stressed or simply needs time away from the palace to think. it worked when he first tried it during their rebellion, and so after a particularly stressful audience with her council/her people or when she comes to him to vent ( or even when their children are being miniature pains in the asses ) jamie will suggest a horse ride to help clear her head with some physical exercise. of course, jamie will also encourage physical exertion in other ways, but there is something about being once again immersed in nature, instead of surrounded by palace walls, and reconnecting with a passion from their childhoods, that makes this a particularly favoured pastime for him and something that tends to work every time, in his experience.

as a consort who has no direct control over the throne, jamie is forced to find his own passion projects and interests to channel his energy into. while there is an initial obligation on his part to ensure that the avvari tribes who helped with anora's rebellion are rewarded for their support, avvari-fereldan relations do become a focus of his during their reign pre-veilguard. many avvari warriors return to their tribes scattered across ferelden, some remain in the city of denerim ( project exile his two uncles from denerim already ), but jamie tries to foster a better understanding between these two groups of people. he suggests a tournament to be held in denerim every year, open to warriors from all parts of ferelden society, high and low, where both fereldan and avvari combat strategies make up the various challenges. he also works with arls across ferelden to better both trade and overall relations between them and the avvari tribes that often live on their borders. progress is slow, but jamie is nothing if not stubborn.

VAL & ASHAREN

val was not present in ferelden in the aftermath of the divine conclave or during the growth of the inquisition, but the moment she hears all about it from leliana and learns that a dalish elf once again helped save the world, she really longs to make contact. however, by the time she returns to ferelden, the inquistion has been disbanded and asharen has returned to antiva — which is a tricky place for val to visit with zevran in tow for obvious reasons. their paths are seemingly not destined to cross until the re-emergence of the blight, and while those are tragic circumstances for them to finally meet all these years later, val's excitement and awe has not dimmed at all in that time

val understands tragedy and heartbreak better than most, as well as what life is like for a dalish elf forced to enter into human society and lose their sense of connection to their own people in the process. val would never pry, but she is empathetic enough to know that the inquistion certainly Cost her something, and hopes that her own open nature and willingness to talk about events that have happened in her own life ( necessary to explain the complicated political situation between crown and wardens in ferelden, i feel ) might encourage her to open up as someone she sees as a kindred spirit.

[solarxpunk]

𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙚𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩?

part i:

Interview for The Executioner, by Jamie Knox. Radical Environmentalist? Exclusive Interview with Dr. Risa Solana Garcia.

INTERVIEW BEGINS —

ABBREVIATIONS: JK-JAMIE KNOX | RSG- DR. RISA SOLANA GARCIA

We meet in a remote area on the eastern side of the coast, where Dr. Solana Garcia is researching a rare strain of heirloom corn in the region. She explained to me the importance of saving this particular species, as many seed savers say it is the mother to many. There’s a sort of dreamy haze in her eyes as she speaks about the seeds in the palm of her hand. It is obvious this work taps into a deeper part of the young woman before me. Her energy is just as contagious as it is in the rallies she leads. We sit under an apple tree after we pick a few of our own. I’m amazed by the loud crunch it makes as teeth meet flesh, and by the juicy bounty that fills my tastebuds — I don’t remember the last time I tasted something with this much flavor.

JK: Dr. Solana-Garcia, thank you for agreeing to do this interview with me. If it’s okay with you, we’ll get right to the questions on everyone’s mind.

RSG: Hit me with ‘em.

JK: You’ve made quite a name for yourself in the circles of environmentalists. Some might even say your popularity grew at an unprecedented rate…that your tactics are on the rather extremist and radical side. Do you fear this overshadows the importance of the work you’re doing, or even erases it?

She laughs, neither flinching from the question nor appearing surprised by it.

RSG: I fear that whenever anyone goes against the status quo they’re deemed radicals or extremists, yet these accusations remain one-sided. Do we not dare to call those who have pushed the boundaries of human and technology fusion radicals? What about the millions of acres they are destroying in the process of making more Hacked? No, I do not fear my words or growth take away from the work, instead, I’ll pushback, arguing that if something I say or do in the name of balance for both humans and this planet makes someone uncomfortable then they ought to look deeper inside them and ask: what exactly is making them uncomfortable? Is it the fact that

I am questioning their morals and ethics. I know I am steady on my stance — those who care to do good have nothing to fear. Are my methods any more extreme than the eradication of major resources on this planet?

JK: Fair enough, but you operate more loudly for rather polarizing stances, wouldn’t you agree? You’re an advocate for armed resistance, for disruptive organizing, and rather vocal around your lack of support for the government’s complicity with the Anti-Green Generation. Some would even ask, have you ever thought about running for office yourself?

RSG: For office? Never. I refuse to be a paper-pusher in a broken system. I work on more important matters, like ensuring we don’t lose all access to our seeds and freedom to grow our food. As for my lack of support for the government’s refusal to call out AG2’s destruction of this planet, I think it’s fairly obvious where my stance is. Besides…anyone who directly calls themselves Anti-Green freely is a threat to the balance of this world. Yet are they labeled extremist as I am?

I suppose the question here is what differentiates us…and I’d say on one end, we want to ensure that humanity lives on and that there’s a planet to inhabit. They push for the melding of humans and computers, no matter the costs: where do we draw the line in our advancement? There’s a difference between aid to help people with sight or hearing or suffering from illnesses, but we’re talking about cosmetic technology that completely alters our DNA for no purpose other than to make rich people’s lives easier, no matter its cost to the planet. Destroying our world so Rich Dick can blink his eyes to see how much money is in his bank account is a bit ridiculous to me.

JK: Yes it does seem rather silly when we have current technology that does this, even if we have to wait a few minutes for it. There are some promising key features as you mentioned, but for whom?

RSG: Exactly, and the other question that comes into play is that access to these technologies. Even in the case of their widespread existence, those who most need things will be waiting years to access them because of their obscene prices. They’ll fill them with ads as one way, just selling us the next upgrade until we’re cut off from the most advanced.

JK: I want to get back to your organizing efforts. They’re quite impressive, and as I mentioned the traction you’ve gained is quite large. You say you’re not interested in politics, but many would say that is exactly why you should. Nonetheless, your tactics while deemed extreme are effective, can you tell the readers more about your influences?

RSG: Maybe a few true historical radicals…but my main influences were —

to be continued…

template credit: @poolsofsunlight

[mostcursedofpastas]

I finished Ted Lasso yesterday and I'm so mad about Nate's arc that I can't stop thinking about it.

When he had that heel turn at the end of Season 2 my brother (who was watching it with me) was upset. He thought that the heel turn came out of nowhere and that Nate isn't a bad guy. I agreed that overall he's not a bad guy, but it had been clear since pretty early on in the series that he had some issues that need to be worked on. I was excited to see the show address Nate's problems with the same empathy it had addressed, say, Jamie's.

Nate wasn't an obvious villain like Jamie, but he had a nasty streak. It was clear that he kept a mean running commentary going in his mind about other people, probably in an attempt to sooth his inferiority complex. He would generally only let the commentary out if he thought it wouldn't be traced back to him (giving Ted a roast of the players that he was expecting Ted to deliver) or if he thought he had enough relative status to get away with it (the way he treated Will and Colin).

He also became addicted to reading social media about himself and became convinced that Ted was stealing credit from him for plays that worked and would pin the blame on him whenever something didn't work.

I wanted to see these problems be addressed! I wanted him and Ted to have a heart-to-heart! I wanted to see Nate grow as a person and end up in a better place!

Instead the show just kind of glossed over all of that. His growth was: get a girlfriend, realize that Rupert's relationships with women is toxic, quit his job, mope, reach an understanding with his dad, and rejoin Richmond as assistant kit manager.

That's nice for him, but where is the reckoning? Where is the catharsis?? Why does Nate getting to go back to Richmond have more to do with Beard's emotional growth than Nate's???

I'm so mad.

[vicstmichael]

Author Ask Tag

I was tagged by my amazing writeblr pal @scribe-of-stories! Read their post here, because Fleshtown sounds as fascinating as it does horrifying and I can't wait to read it someday! Also, I LOVED their writing advice for the last question. Definitely check it out!

I think I'm going to focus on 2 WIPs for this tag. My (STILL untitled) 90s rock band novel--click the tag to see more of what I've posted about that--and a dark marauders era fanfiction I recently started working on.

What is the main Lesson of your story? And why did you choose it? For my novel, I'd say the main lesson is that blood isn't a prerequisite for family. And that when you've found them you know... because together you can overcome any obstacle and rise to the top against all odds, and because when you truly see someone as family you love them despite their flaws and the mistakes they make. For the fic, I'll be honest, I haven't thought much about it yet. It's VERY new. All I was thinking was "DARK JEGULUS DARK JEGULUS" and... vibes? So, yeah. I'm a mess. But if I had to think about it I'd probably say it's that most bad choices are redeemable if you're willing to put in the work to change.

What did you use as inspiration for your worldbuilding? NOVEL: Oooh, this is a good one. I took inspiration from other works like Almost Famous and Daisy Jones and the Six for the rockstar vibes, and High School (the Tegan and Sara memoir) for the 90s vibes. I also wanted the general atmosphere to be very moody, so I took advantage of the setting (Seattle) and used the weather to manipulate that, which feels very Twilight if I'm being 100% honest. FIC: Well, I mean, that's fairly obvious. I took inspiration from the original HP source material. I also wanted to give it a very dystopian worst-case-scenario feel, so for that I took inspiration from another great fic I've been reading called As the Worm Moon Dies. Highly recommend it!

What is your MC trying to achieve, and what are you, the writer, trying to achieve with them? Do you want to inspire others, teach forgiveness, help readers grow as a person? NOVEL: This project has multiple MCs, so I'll focus on my boy Jamie. Jamie's goals are interesting because while most of the others in the band are looking to make it big and be super famous, all Jamie wants is to play music with his friends for the rest of his life. Also, he DESPERATELY wants to sort out his feelings for River and live an authentic life by his side. As for me, I'd say my goal is to show people that growth isn't necessarily lateral, and either is forgiveness. But no matter how bad things can get, as long as you're willing to put in the work and lean on your people for support, almost anything can be overcome. FIC: Regulus is just trying to survive, man. He's going through it. He's also trying to live with the choices he's made and (though he doesn't consciously know it yet) find ways to make up for them. Meanwhile, James is quite literally trying to save the world. Which is very him. He's also trying to overcome the cognitive dissonance he's experiencing when it comes to aligning his feelings for Regulus with his own personal goals and values. I don't know what I want as the writer yet, my dudes. Like I said, right now I'm just here for the vibes and the angst.

How many chapters is your story going to have? Unknown for both WIPs. Although my novel is currently up over 40 which I worry is too many. Mind you, it's still in the first draft stage so that will likely change as I cut and edit.

Is it fanfiction or original content? Where do you plan to post it? I'm HOPING my novel will be picked up by my pals at NineStar, and the fic will be up on Ao3 when it's ready!

When and why did you start writing? I started writing when I was 9 or 10, when I would make kids books (illustrations and all, haha) for my baby brother. All I had was printer paper, crayola markers and a dream baybeeee. Then I started writing short stories for youth magazines and contests, then in high school I moved onto fanfiction, and so on. As for why... I don't really know. It has always just felt natural to me. I've always known I was going to be a writer. It's what I feel best doing. I could never give it up.

Do you have any words of engagement for fellow writers of writeblr? What other writers of tumblr do you follow? I don't know how to follow Scribe's advice because it was just so damn good. So everything they said! I'd also like to add that there's nothing wrong with working at your own pace. As a neurodivergent author who goes months at a time without writing a single word only to suddenly and without warning embark on a three-week writing hyperfixation where I block out absolutely everything and everyone around me, I'm here to tell you that it's FINE. It's fine to take breaks, it's fine to take ten years or ten weeks to write a novel, the important thing is that you're writing it. Like Scribe said, don't let other people tell you how YOUR process should go. Deadlines are one thing, but all you can do is your best. What that looks like to one person may look completely different to you, and that's FINE. <3 Oooh shoutouts! I love shoutouts! Some must-follow writeblrs: @scribe-of-stories, @idgie-stark, @dewiwrites, @artcoffeecats, @rachaellawrites and @brieflyinfatuated!

Open tag! Any and all writeblrs are encouraged to play along!

[lunar-years]

@thetarttfuldickhead @sweeterthnfictionwere curious about these rankings so here's the run-down:

Roy: Out of these three characters he definitely took the longest to grow on me, which is why I put S1 last for him. I never disliked him, but in S1 he was sort of just a meh character to me, which had less to do with the character himself but more so that I was mad about how much plot armor he was given in the narrative and by the audience when I felt he was often every bit as much of an arse as other characters like Jamie (who were punished way more for it). I also (INCORRECTLY!!) thought he was sort of one-note in terms of *just* being the ~grumpy with a soft heart~ trope, which is a trope i like but also find kind of boring in certain iterations lmao. Now I can rewatch s1 and see soooooo much more depth in him that's clearly there from the start, but that was really influenced by how they fleshed him out imo in seasons 2 & 3 and how deeply i fell for him as a result.

Meanwhile I LOVE Roy's s3 arc and think he got the best s3 journey out of any character on the show. They showcased his slow growth very well. I Don't Want To Go (To Chelsea) is my favorite Roy-centric episode on the show and I also love his speech about Isaac in La Locker Room. We really saw him come into his own as a coach and a friend and a man and it was so lovely watching him finally start to let people in, especially Jamie. When he succumbs to being a Diamond Dog I literally teared up lmao. When he finally goes to therapy I also teared up. 😭 obviously he also makes a lot of mistakes in the course of s3 and has some messy moments but to me it was very effective? I think they did a great job showing growth as a non-linear but still forward motion. He's messy and complicated and I'm so proud of him <3

S2 is the happy bridge between two, featuring scruffy Roy (beloved) and the RoyJamie Man City hug (beloved). But I didn't love how much of his storyline was dedicated to roykeeley's fall (and I'm a roykeeley enjoyer don't get me wrong, I just didn't love the material they gave them in s2)

Jamie: s3 Jamie is literally everything to me (and to everyone else lmao). This is truly Jamie at his best. I loved watching him grow into his place as the central cog of the team and be a leader and also be the one to crack Roy open. Literally everything about s3 Jamie is just, that's my baby 😭 even his hair and his stupid eyebrow slit wow i love him so much. Since most of him actually becoming a better version of himself and learning to be a team player happens in s1/s2, s3 Jamie feels so settled and I loved that we really got to bask in the fruits of his overall growth arc. He's just wonderful.

I chose S1 Jamie over S2 Jamie because I love mess. S1 Jamie is a disaster, but he's one I loved right from the start. It's just something about him. And he's really funny, like you cannot deny that some of his arsehole lines were deeply hilarious. Aren't you going to take your sweater off before you get into the shower, Roy? help 😭 The little moments of vulnerability that poke through during the gala and at the bonfire and in the season finale were so well done and satisfying. S1 is such a tight and perfectly told story and Jamie is a huge part of that to me.

I love s2 Jamie as well but I deeply wish they'd given him more screen time and more to do, because I ultimately think his arc left something to be desired (I wanted so much more of him reintegrating himself into the team and making genuine friends, in particular. They should have done a joint Sam & Jamie friendship arc instead of Sambecca but i digress).

Keeley: My rankings here are probably the most obvious of the three, lol. Her s3 arc undeniably sucked for reasons I do not need to explain again and was often legitimately difficult to watch. Keeley Jones my babygirl I will avenge you <3 I chose S2 over S1 by a very slim margin as my fav Keeley season because I think S2 really showcases her ambitions and talents and her really, really good heart. Her trying to help Jamie and Nate, her scenes with Higgins and Rebecca as she works for the Team, the deep pride you can feel in her during the Vanity Fair shoot.... Also, there were some *small* hints in there about her backstory (like the mention of her mom a couple of times) that I really appreciated and wish had gotten more attention in s3. I also love her SOOOO much in S1 though (and her outfits and styling are def the best in s1, not that that's in any way the most important thing about her). those two seasons are truly neck and neck. I love you Keeley Jones.

for me it's...

Roy: s3 > s2 > s1

Jamie: s3 > s1 > s2

Keeley: s2 > s1 > s3

[thetarttfuldickhead]

Still not over this episode and still not over how Roy’s love language might be shouting (I mean, it’s quality time, but okay) but the effort he makes to speak Jamie’s language and accommodate Jamie’s needs in the boot room? Ungh. That’s love, baby. And growth.

The moment Jamie starts crying Roy immediately trails off and switches from shouty love to asking what’s wrong. He nods along as Jamie explains the issue. He lets Jamie squish his face and when Jamie clings to him Roy lets him do that too and immediately moves to put an arm around him. And yeah, it’s very much awkward guy pats, but there’s no hesitation. When Will walks in, Roy doesn’t use that as an excuse to extricate himself from the hug, isn’t at all embarrassed to be seen like this, and once Will leaves there’s no indication Roy’s planning on breaking this up before Jamie is ready to let him go.

Roy is clearly not comfortable in this situation, but I think that his discomfort, much like his heartfelt “fuck”, has more to do with him really not knowing how to handle this than anything else. At a loss, he settles for giving Jamie what Jamie’s asking for, feeling woefully inadequate but staying there, being there. Meeting Jamie where Jamie’s at, and doing the best to be what Jamie needs him to be.

Compare with 3x02 when he reflexively pushed Jamie’s attempt at a hug away – and sure, part of that is probably him still being more comfortable caring for others than being cared for, but part of it is growth; an openness to vulnerability that he very much has picked up from Jamie throughout the season, and now is prepared to deal it. (And part of it is just him being damned fond of Jamie and done trying to deny it, but whatever, no big deal, that’s not driving me insane or anything.)

[sylvies-chen]

okay I’ve refrained from posting my thoughts on the ted lasso finale until now in the interest of making sure they’re expressed properly so that people understand how correct my opinions actually are. but I’m here and I’m queer and LET’S DO IT FOLKS:

TED LASSO FINALE THOUGHTS

THE GOOD:

Nate!! Nate was a timid, sweet note in this episode. It was such a gentle little reintegration of his character back into the team and seeing him get a secure happy ending after all that time of insecurity was the part of the episode that provided the MOST payoff. Seeing Nick Mohammed’s post about Nate and his family life and understanding how much he put into that character was so beautiful to see too. I adore actors who very publicly (and in a nerdy way) love their craft!

His conversation with Ted also made me cry like I have never cried before.

COLIN KISSED HIS FELLA AFTER A WIN!! Ugh such a beautiful payoff and full circle moment for him, I was truly squealing with joy <3

The team’s rendition of So Long, Farewell had me GIGGLINGGG oh my god, I’m a die hard Sound of Music fan so I loved it! I would have maybe liked a little more emotion from Ted, I felt like his reaction was kind of… meh? meek? but other than that the song itself was FANTASTIC.

Obviously I love that they won the game, duh

They also had a lot of really amazing and thoughtful callbacks in this episode, like Keeley’s parallel to her entrance in the pilot was great, Ted’s bbq sauce mantra, Nate leaping into Ted’s arms, the ussie guy, the winning play being the play from season 1. All of those little moments showed a strong attention to detail I truly loved.

I love that Rupert made HIMSELF unlikeable in the end. Rebecca didn’t need to ruin his life; she stopped caring and soon saw he was doing a perfectly fine job of doing it himself. Karma truly is Rebecca Welton’s boyfriend!! Or is it?

Jake the motherfucking client seducer over here turning out to be a total dud like yesss!! I don’t want Ted and Michele back together by any means but fuck that guy lol, glad to see she and Henry were getting sick of him

BELIEVE. 😭

Which leads me to…

THE BAD:

I know you all know I ship Tedbecca, but this is truly not coming from a shipper standpoint when I say that that first scene of them was absolute BAIT. It was pretty disappointing because I know Ted Lasso’s been prone to red herrings and fakeouts every now and then but I didn’t take it as a show that would truly bait their fans with something like that??

I don’t care if I’m biased, I don’t care if the writers were trying to be avant-garde with their ending for rebecca, I’ll say what I’m about to say a million times: writing off 1 of your 2 most main characters into a happy ending with a man whose name the audience doesn’t even know is literally never a good writing decision. I think this should be obvious.

I have no hate to Boat Guy, Rebecca’s whole thing with him was basically the plot of Before Sunrise + Before Sunset (all hail Richard Lanklater) if someone watched those movies and then tried condensing them into fifteen accumulated minutes of television

Keeley, Roy, Jamie… they did you three so fucking dirty my babes. Keeley you especially. I’m beyond disappointed, bordering on genuinely hurt, by how much they screwed up Keeley and all of her adjacent storylines this season.

I loved RoyKeeley so much in seasons 1 and 2, they had such a sweetness and a magic to them. There were so many elements like that to season 1 and 2 that I feel the writers gave up on in the name of growth or… honestly, at this point, I don’t know why they did this. Roy was a little insecure in seasons 1 and 2, but I never felt like he was needy. It felt so cruel to have shown us RoyKeeley in all of these moments of such stability, such healthiness, and such genuine love for so long and then rip it away for some version of Roy Kent that felt hollow, twisted, and who just Did Not Get It. It makes me so sad.

It makes me sad for Jamie too. Him falling for Keeley again was like the last thing I needed to see from his character. There’s so much else they could have done with him, and instead they took that beautiful moment of him being accountable and respectful with Keeley and the tape, and they turned it into something ugly: they had him weaponize it as a bargaining chip against Roy.

I don’t understand why they thought having our favs engaged in this very sexist outdated convo with such possessive language in the name of comedy was a good idea. I get it was poking fun at them but it was the kind of fun that shouldn’t have to be poked at by now. They’re not these men, I don’t recognize this version of them. It’s such a regression.

speaking of weird and uncomfortable shit being played off for laughs… beard and jane got married! ted wasn’t even there! she shredded his passport to keep him in captivity! how creepy! (see the joke is that they’re crazy and do toxic things to each other. you’re supposed to laugh.)

[cuethemulti]

First, I wanna say that I’m so proud of Jamie for being open. But the fact that he has to speak up about his addiction over a twelve year old tweet that people tried to cancel him with??

Cant show the tweet bc 1) He deleted it and 2) It just does more harm but it was a 2010 joke that he did (mind you, it was part of a vine trend as well and this was the age where “edgy humor” was cool) Yes, it is important for people to recognize that these types of jokes are not okay to make, but it’s ridiculous that they try to write him off as a horrible person for this. The same people who harassed him over this tweet and are now making fun of his addiction shows who are the real assholes here. Once you take a look at his music, his interactions with fans and colleagues, it’s obvious that’s he’s grown so much and that has learn from the past, so it’s just sad that he had to disclose his trauma like this.

Anyways, again I’m really proud of how far he’s come in his recovery journey and the personal growth he’s gone through.

[my-current-obsession]

So uh... I binged through a first run of Our Life: Beginning and Always last night and today. The free base game, no additional DLC. And I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT.

As I do for all otomes/romance games, I played blindly and made the choices I liked most on a first run, practically never reloading to pick different outcomes. I also strived to make the MC as close to me in terms of appearance/personality/etc. as possible, since that was an option here.

If anyone’s curious, I went for direct indifference at step one (since I barely knew/cared about Cove at first and have always been rather honest/blunt about my feelings), then direct fondness step 2 (it definitely felt like we were friends by the end of step 1, so...), then nervous crush step 3. I definitely wanted a romantic (or possibly never-acted upon romantic) ending, and after everyone teasing/implying the relationship was like that or heading in that direction, combined with Cove repeatedly sneaking into MC’s room it felt like the right time.

I went nervous because, well, developing feelings for a friend is bound to make things super awkward and leave you feeling less comfortable. I noticed that starting in step 3 people starting calling Jamie shy and reserved, and I’m not sure if that’s a result of me picking nervous (because I was under the impression those choices only related to how she related to Cove but maybe I’m wrong) or my prior choices of mostly being non-confrontational and passive led to that.

I had decided immediately I WAS NOT going to confess to him, because realistically I’d never risk sabotaging a friendship like that. I played MC often getting flustered but happy when Cove flirted with her and very occasionally made somewhat flirty banter myself, but I shied away from strong advances and never told him how I felt when presented the opportunity.

When our friends were “fighting” and things got heated, I rode things out and managed to calm him down. I finally told him about the $20 deal his dad had given me afterward, and thankfully he laughed it off. I’m sure in earlier steps he might not have been so receptive to that truth, so I took it as a sign of his growth and also how close we’d gotten.

I actually got a seemingly rare outcome of Cove confessing to me at the end of step 3 - it’s about 20% achieved on Steam and there are at least 3 different threads on the forum asking how to get the outcome I literally got blindly. It was an outcome I was VERY happy with, though I was wondering while playing (and still wonder now) if it’s possible to create a scenario where there are clearly mutual feelings that both parties just NEVER confess to, for fear of ruining what they already have.

Since they ended off step 3 officially together (although I had MC going a little ways away for college, which made things pretty bittersweet, especially since she and Cove had FINALLY gotten together only two days prior) I used “relaxed love” for step 4 since I knew it would take place several years later. I figure after several years of dating you’d be entirely committed and casual/comfortable with your SO. I didn’t have them living together, but it was still obvious how close and cozy they were, which I loved. There were so many emotional/physical intimate moments in this step that cemented how happy they were together. There was much cuddling, hand-holding, and a little more on occasion to be had.

And to end things perfectly Cove proposed and we told literally all our friends and family. Which was sweet, albeit incredibly embarrassing. I had tried to play MC as “neutrally” towards marriage as possible since that’s my honest feelings. For me the important thing is being together and marriage doesn’t really change that, but I’m not opposed to it either.

I honestly LOVE how Cove remained so emotional and soft as he grew up. I know my choices impact his personality and appearance so I’m not sure how much of this was set in stone versus my choices affecting things, but he was a crybaby to the end and struggled SO HARD to confess and then to propose but that was honestly real and wonderful. “My” Cove was more studious than sporty, never ditched his glasses (though he often took them off), cut his hair a bit shorter in 3 only to grow it back longer than ever in 4, and patched his relationship up with his parents over time to the point that he was VERY close and loving with them both in the end. He was more slender than buff (which suited me fine), though he was still very into surfing and his ORCA responsibilities.

He was flawed, but he was perfect to me. I imagine many players went a very similar route to me and got nearly identical outcomes in terms of most of the major plot beats - though maybe they were brave enough to confess, or perhaps their Cove was more sporty than studious. My path just felt VERY organic and natural as they went from strangers to friends to potentially-more to happily committed to each other.

I absolutely intend to replay this again, and with the steps 1-3 DLC for much more content. There are so many variations I’m looking forward to trying. The fact that the base game is free is honestly stunning because I would happily pay 20, 30 bucks for it. I can already tell it has SO MUCH replay value, though I do wonder how much all the choices really matter. Outside of setting your preferences and obviously major decisions (like telling Cove about The Deal or whether to confess your feelings), a lot of them feel like they might just slightly change a specific conversation, but on the other hand there are some choices that SEEM relatively innocuous but have far-reaching consequences or at least callbacks/in-jokes.

I look forward to seeing how much Cove as a person changes in subsequent playthroughs and how much his dynamic with Jamie can be altered at every step. So glad I gave this game a try and I can’t recommend it enough - especially since the base game is free, so anyone can try it without spending a dime! If you give this game your time and love, it has SO MUCH potential content and love to give back to you.