#and that scarecrow scene oh wow

[stillness-in-green]

Pair of Advisor (Anime-Style) Asks

For @shockersalvage and @plf-advisor-stan, with thanks for your patience. I've got another ask from salvage coming down the pipe shortly, but it developed a rant on me that I want to give the space of a dedicated post, whereas these two covered quite similar ground!

First up!

I went and looked up the scene out of curiosity, mostly to hear what his voice sounds like in advance of the hospital stuff, and wow that is not the voice I would have gone with; it sounds way too old.  I realize the advisors are all supposed to be heads of bases and such, but it’s very clear from their designs that a number of them are still rather young people, and I feel quite strongly that Scarecrow should have been one of them, the better to have him, Spinner and Shouji all fighting for control of the crowd at the hospital, all thinking about and representing different visions for the future.

(Putting the rest of this under a cut, because between the two of them, they got fairly rambly, and also the second one has a bunch of pictures.)

Getting past my gut response there, the pep talk framing is a little strange, given the fact that he’s the second-ranked behind Nimble, so it’s pretty weird for her to be in need of a pep talk from him.  On the other hand, given the way the dialogue flows, I would not have to strain myself to imagine that Nimble is rolling her eyes a bit to herself at Scarecrow reiterating all this stuff they already know and replaying a message they’ve already heard half a dozen times because he likes to hear himself talk and also feel validated by the higher-ups.  XD

(Man, I also still dislike the choice for Skeptic’s voice actor—or if not the actor himself, at least the emotional range they’ve directed him to play the character in.  Needs to be 300% more spastic-sounding.)

As to the colors….yeesh.  Scarecrow’s pretty straightforward—I expect I’ll have more opinions once we see him unmasked and I can check his head-stripes and his scar.  The birds-egg blue for Cementoss’s cousin is at least eye-catching, and probably any color they chose would look pretty strange, given his appearance!  I do like that they maintain his somewhat uncertain, pensive expressions (insomuch as those can be read off of him in the manga).  I'll have one other observation to make about him (his wildly inconsistent height) which I'll cover in the next ask.

Nimble, though.  MAN, if I could sit down and have a chat with whoever in the BNHA production staff is so unbelievably enamored with blue-eyed blonde women……  Why would you look at her strange paper-strip hair and think, “Yeah, obviously yellow-blonde is the right color for this.  And give her purple-gray eyes, which is far enough from blue for plausible deniability.  And the blocky dude can be a shade of blue chiefly associated with blue cotton candy, but The Girl definitely needs to have a skin tone indistinguishable from the palest and most conventionally attractive female characters in the show.  Oh, and of course make her shirt pink.”

Just yeesh.

As to lumping in The Question, it’s a pretty strange choice to make, given the explicit dialogue being played there about how all three of Spinner’s advisors—obvious heteromorphs, the lot of them—were placed in his regiment Because Of Who They Are.  The group shot the anime uses seems to mostly understand that,[1] given the anime-original designs of the rest of the people in the shot, but The Question is not a clear heteromorph; he pretty much just looks like an alternate dimension Mr. Compress.  Kind of feels like the animators just wanted to minimize the amount of designs they had to come up with, so they grabbed the only one of the other Support Regiment advisors who could feasibly be a heteromorph and threw him in there, even though including him kind of misses the point—that it’s only Spinner’s underlings who are specifically and universally heteromorphic, not the entirety of the regiment he co-leads with Mr. C.  Which we know because neither Galvanize, Band Jacket Guy nor even The Question visibly qualify as Obvious Heteromorphs the same way all three of Spinner’s advisors do.

1: Mostly.  There’s a Hero-looking gal whose closest thing resembling a non-baseline feature is an unusually squared-off chin, which mostly comes off as mild cartoony caricature rather than a truly divergent facial structure.  There’s also a bowl cut dude two over from her who would need to have some truly bizarre eyes hiding under that hairline to make him anything other than baseline as all get-out.

Anyway, I see between this and the ask below that the anime’s made a few calls about adding them in where the manga never indicated their presence!  I wonder if that means it will also try to show more of them arrested when the anime inevitably gets to the tiresome scenes of the police talking about how they’re for-sure-definitely wiping things up at their designated battlefields?  Most of that stuff is, I think, just floating talk bubbles in the manga, but the anime will have to kill several seconds of time for voice actors to read those lines, and I think pretty often will try to fill that space with actual illustration of what’s being talked about, which Horikoshi only does when he’s in full montage mode, seldom when he’s in active/ongoing action.  Having more advisors available increases the number of Known Faces the animators can use for such filler shots.

While I forever crave more about them (more on that shortly), I definitely don’t relish the anime’s increased screentime being all A) still-frames of advisors when their group is being talked about in broad terms or B) anime-original shots of them being arrested!

Thanks for the ask, and I should have the other one up before the day's out!

---

Second up!

Also included in the ask were the following screenshots!

I gave my general opinions on the anime-mode advisors in the answer above but ohhhh my heavens, the sizing is so funny.  So, so funny.  A lot of the issue is probably that Horikoshi is not very consistent either, of course, but wow they weren’t even trying to keep #3 consistent there, were they?

For some comparison purposes, here’s Scarecrow’s first panel where you can really, fairly judge his height:

A true short king. Smolest of boys and realest of meowmeows.  Scarecrow they could never make me hate you.

Look at him.  Mentally try to move him back to where he’d be standing directly next to Hose Face.  He’s, what, maybe four feet tall?  No wonder he has to stand on top of a tall building to give his speech. 

Then look at this one, where he’s of a very comparable height to Koda (height: 6’1”):

  

Then these two, where Horikoshi can't decide whether he's a little shorter or a little taller than Nimble, but certainly over 4’0”!:

   So he’s a bit all over the place—and that’s hardly unique to him; Horikoshi draws pretty wildly inconsistent heights even amongst his main cast.

But man, #3 is on a different level even from that.

Let’s expand the frame on that last picture, shall we?

Now, when I had looked at this shot in the past, I had mainly been focused on the faces of the characters in it, particularly Bindi the Younger because I was so pleased to see she’d escaped her even-more-ignominious-than-Piercings-Dude no-hit wipeout against Edgeshot.  I hadn’t paid a great deal of attention to Not!Cementoss save to note that he was pretty big.  Like, wow, look how tall he is when he’s standing there behind Scarecrow’s shoulder!

But of course, if you look closer, he’s not standing behind Scarecrow’s shoulder.  He’s standing in the background, with probably at least three rows of people standing, roughly, between him and the people in front.  It’s given away by the silhouetted black heads of the people who are actually standing right in front of him:

   Like, not only do those presumably-grown men not quite come all the way up to his shoulder, the width of them compared to him is just cartoonishly shrimpy.  The guy is a giant, clearly built on a scale taller and heavier than any normal human.  Wow!

…And then of course you go back to this shot and just have to shake your head.

   Still, even if his height’s pretty inconsistent, his width is less so.  He’s in profile in the shot above, but compare this one, from the advisors’ introductory spread:

   He’s taller than The Question, if not by a monumental degree, but even if he were facing the camera directly, his cube-shaped head would still be 2-3x wider than The Question’s.

So it’s a shame that, as your screenshots show, on top of his height being much reduced the anime can’t even manage to keep his width intact.  Sad.

Thanks for the ask!

[fantoccia]

Okay, the score IS............. 4/5. Really!

The writing is good and the characters are likeable for the most part- even if I complain about fmc being kinda dumb, the scarecrow guy's kinda dumb too so I guess a match made in heaven lmao. There's some scenes that could've been less detailed while others could've had more detail, but I don't think any of it really detracts from the story.

And there actually is a story! It's actually the big plot of things that happened to have the two come together. Usually the plot takes back seat but the story line and the romance intermingle enough that the story wouldn't have played out well without them coming together and they wouldn't have come together if not for the story. Wow!

And then the spicy scenes... Like. When you're as tits-deep in the story and characters as I am at that point, it really does seem to be much more interesting! The things they get around to doing and how they go about doing em... I mean. He ties her to a scarecrow pole, even without reading the rest you can see how that's wild right? And okay, I'll admit. There's some stuff said and done that might as well have just said- hey Angie we made this for you specifically. But that's fine. That's cool. Whatever.

There are some tidbits that are just... so very What. The boy learns about sex and sex moves from a romance novel, ironically enough. Reads an anatomy book and decides he needs a cock- and calls it that too. You'd think he'd learn the anatomical term for it from the anatomy book but naaah. Plus he also somehow knows how to make a lavish meal and how different things taste better when paired with other things. Then there was the attempt of drama about the second farmer lady coming by saying she talked to the guy about buying the place sometime before they started bangin and Ooh Oh My Gosh How Could He. Then the fmc's entire family and how they're brought up every now and then only to be nothing more than reason for the brother to show up and pick a fight I guess. Eh.

But y'know. It's enough that it doesn't really detract from the story, just gotta keep in mind you're reading a monster fucker romance novel lmao. And also keeping that mindset, this 4/5 won't be the same level as, say, if I read one of my new horror novels next and gave it a 4/5. This is "silly smut romance novel 4/5".

[goryhorroor]

pearl (2022) / the wizard of oz (1939)

[gangrenados]

Jason, newly suited up as the red hood: "wow i sure am glad my unborn spawn is across the country from gotham and out of scarecrow's influence" cut to jason finding out that when bruce had told dick to come home and he brought home the titans, bruce told him to bring jason's brief gf with them, therefore putting her in gotham "oh son of a bitch"

I don't know why Dick sounds like some kind of sadist here wtf .-.

Jason walked in the scene with a new gained confidence, the weight of his gun in his hand made him powerful as well as knowing he was the one who decided who get to live and die in this city.

He was above everything, he was better than the bats. Not even the lightheartedness nor the sensation that his throat was on fire could stop him, minor side effects for being able to get ride of his weakness.

There were bigger things to care about than providing a point to those who underestimated him, like the girl he left behind in San Francisco who happens to carry his unborn child.

Jason didn't even knew if he felt love for his baby mama anymore, there surely was some old appreciation, but love was a strong word. As for the baby, well, he wasn't used to the idea of being a father, but even then he wants that kid to have a better life than the one he has.

"You don't want to do this" Jason scoffed at the video sent by the GCPD, those idiots truly thought they could convince him with some cheap words?

Nightwing appeared in the scene, eyes cold and face stern. He kept talking nonsense, however, one thing that caught Jason's eye was the scared girl with a big pregnant belly who was sat in the middle of that ugly room.

"Say hi to (y/n)! Don't worry she's safe, but I don't think she's too happy to know her boyfriend is a serial killer. Are you happy with that?" The camera focuses on you, and Jason heart aches at the sight of your tears. You seemed so helpless.

How did that bastard knew about you? The only person who was aware of your existence and the baby you carried was Bruce- in that moment everything clicked.

"Son of a bitch!" Jason yelled, wasting no time to pull out his gun and shot one of his goons.

[why-this-kolaveri-machi]

just because you’re afraid it doesn’t mean you’re broken.

Titans 3.05

once more into the cold dark void of the internet with my stream-of-consciousness take on a superhero tv show...

spoilers ahead.

1. i cannot believe that among the first things i get to hear in this episode with my own two ears is the line 'eluded our overdudes'. why must you give me such pain along with so much joy, show?

1.5. scarecrow stringing jason along on this path to red-hood-dom is not something i would’ve ever expected, but does kind of make sense. 

1.55. i don’t know all the details of the original resurrection arc in the comics but i like that jason, weirdly, has a greater role to play in his own demise and rebirth? i think it makes it easier to draw a line between his past trauma, the demonstrably shitty and terrifying responsibility of being robin, the ways bruce and the titans wronged him, his responses to that, the reasons he turns to scarecrow, and his final evolution to red hood. it makes for a smoother character arc rather than a one that was interrupted for two decades before somebody went oh hey let’s resurrect that kid that the audience once voted to kill and make him an anti-hero!

1.75. what’s crane giving him? anti fear toxin? anyway, crane is a fucking creep and i’m not sure i want to see a whole lot of him on my screen.

2. oh, um, heads up: there’s a long sequence of unsteady cam + flickering lights right after the title card upto the 3:16 mark. it’s a bit headache-inducing so if you want to skip, you can go ahead and do that. 

2.45. that’s... weird... why would he dream about... donna...

ok, who am i kidding. i’m going to jump right into my theory about Why Titans Makes Sense Actually because the show itself is apparently not interested in explaining itself:

a) it makes no sense for jason to be conjuring up donna--who famously did not care much for him!--in his dreams. (he wasn’t even there when she died.) or for her to be telling him don’t go or there’s still time.

b) this leads me to think that that’s actually donna, in some sort of limbo between life and death, the kind of place where jericho used to be

c) rachel has demonstrated that she has the power to link the minds of the titans across great distances--she called jason and hank/dawn for help in 2.01, she linked up everybody later in the season, projected dick’s hallucination of his father into their brains without even realising she was doing it, and in the finale, she managed to get dick into conner’s brain. she’s in themyscira now. is this how she gets donna back to life? but reaching out to her in that non-space between life and death?

d) the next obvious question is: why isn’t donna appearing in the dreams of the other titans? she probably is, but they have better reason to be dreaming about her since they were actually close to her, unlike jason.

e) but why would she warn jason in particular? does she foresee jason entering the afterlife--however briefly? does she have an idea of what jason plans to do and what he will become?

f) anyway, more trippy mindscapes and weird psychic powers, yay!

2.5. my heart clenched when bruce comforted jason post-nightmare: clearly i’ve been reading way too much batfam fic. this is a side of bruce we haven’t really been told to expect by all the characters on the show calling him a ‘psychopath’ (*cough*unreliablenarrators*cough*) and him getting jason to speak to a professional speaks volumes about the kind of self-reflection he’s done post dick’s departure, and maybe some of the regrets he has with regards to how he dealt with dick’s traumas.

i mean, just look at him when jason dismisses his concerns! BRUCE IS TRYING JASON

anyway, i have a whole lot more i want to say about this, but i’ll save it for later. 

also: LESLIE THOMPKINS!!!!

3. i really like molly--and i love that she’s a friend from before jason got taken in by bruce, the implication that they meet up regularly and that she’s a grounding influence on him (tho clearly not grounding enough to not go along with his dumbass idea about confronting a child trafficker alone). 

3.5. aw, jason. robin was his armour against everything in the world that would throw him down and chew him to bits, but san francisco proved that even robin wasn’t enough to protect him. it’s really interesting how ‘disillusionment with the idea of robin’ is so integral to the traumas of both dick and jason but in such different ways. 

4. LESLIE!!!!!!! i even forgive her office being so goddamn blue because leslie! 

4.5. it makes so much sense for titans!verse leslie to be a therapist, because this show is so inward looking anyway, and therapist sessions are a useful tool to showcase this character work in a story. besides, at least in fanfic, leslie often seems to double up as a counsellor anyway. 

4.6. oh man. i’m not terribly convinced by walters’ red hood (tho i think that may be the point--argh. i’ll come back to this thought later. have to stop getting distracted!) but he plays the asshole kid that’s trying not to let any real emotion seep through really well.

“you’d like me to punch you, wouldn’t you”

5. not sure what to think of batman’s little trophy case other than the show winking unsubtly at us and going look look - catwoman! the riddler! two face! you excited yet?! it’s like the scene from the end of amazing spiderman 2 when they were trying to drum up excitement for a sinister six spinoff by having harry osborne walk by a bunch of display cases with stuff from iconic villains in them.

... but then again, bruce does like to display a lot of shit in his batcave, including his dead robin’s bloodstained costume, so.

5.5. bruce is so soft with jason it’s killing me. beyond just trying to learn from his mistakes with dick, it speaks to his own genuine desire to balance his dedication to gotham with doing the best by his sons, although he’s often not successful with that. 

i love that titans is really playing the long game with bruce wayne, with each season and character-perspective sliding in fresh pieces of a bigger puzzle. titans’ bruce has always been a phantom of other peoples’ making, but now we’re getting the idea that he’s a whole lot more complicated than other people make it seem.

5.75. it really recontextualises some of his actions from previous seasons: the fact that he locked dick out of his security systems in 1.06 is likely his way of respecting dick’s independence and his desire not to be associated with batman/gotham anymore. jason knowing about bruce’s tracker while dick doesn’t is probably bruce trying to be more honest and upfront with his charges. bruce sending jason packing off to sanfran to spend time with the titans is probably not him passing on a big responsibility to dick (as i first uncharitably thought) but him trying to get jason out of the toxic influence of gotham for a while and a sign of his trust in dick as a leader and a mentor,

5.8. i mean, bruce is a prick, but he’s also human.

6. i think leslie is doing some good work with jason here, though she may have overstepped the line with her line about robin as a construct being projected by a man with BPD. her speculations about bruce’s diagnosis have no place in her session with jason, and if bruce confides in her, an egregious violation of patient-therapist confidentiality. 

(about the diagnosis itself... i don’t know. i can’t really confirm or refute this without a whole lot more information, and i’m not sure if the writer of this episode means BPD in the same way an actual professional might.)

6.5. i think a huge thing that gets missed out in a lot of recent comics as well as movies/shows is that bruce didn’t create the robin persona out of whole cloth. dick did. he’s the starting point of that legacy and to call it entirely bruce’s creation is blatant erasure of that. in fact, i’m surprised that dick doesn’t feature more in the conversations they’re having about the pressures of being robin. after all, the guy had been robin--bruce’s partner--for such a long time before jason. 

6.8. (and here’s the primal part of me that resonates the deepest with dick grayson--the Eldest Daughter part--that’s sort of resentful: that jason gets the therapy and softness and the learning from mistakes when it took years and years for bruce to reach out in any meaningful way to dick.)

7. oooh that was a great scene!

it’s fun to do these stream-of-consciousness live reactions, because the moment you step down from your soapbox, the episode goes right into tackling what you were just complaining about. bruce means well, he’s learning, but he goes about exactly the wrong way to help jason: taking away robin now can’t be read by jason as anything but a devastating judgment call from bruce. and iain glen really sells the moment that bruce realises this--too late--and his helplessness in trying to get jason to see that it isn’t jason’s fault that he’s trying to do this. he loves jason enough that jason is enough. 

7.5. aaaah so jason brings up the elephant in the room at last. dick got everything makes sense from his perspective, where getting to put on a costume and fight crime means approval, means being something stronger and better than you are. dick got to be robin, then nightwing, and a leader of a whole team of other costume-clad heroes. 

8. ... how did jason just walk into arkham????? this is ridiculous.

8.3. i mean, clearly jason’s not thinking straight, but betraying batman like this puts his possibilities of being robin again even further away. 

8.5. watching that chemistry experiment montage was strangely funny. this guy is looking for an antidote to fear? well, constantly mixing up and inhaling gases concocted by a mad-scientist supervillain is something only the very fearless--reckless to the point of foolishness!--would do. what’s to say crane’s not given you a formula for a drug that will keep you tethered to his every will and whim? hmmmm?

8.7. so he sought out the joker to... test the formula??? 

9. wow the “loud and clear... boss” hits different after a whole episode of them referring to each other as father and son.

9.3. waitwaitwait HOLD UP. wait a DANG MINUTE. you’re telling me that scarecrow had enough resources that he could not only have folks on the outside steal jason away and dunk him in a lazarus pit (i TOLD you that this show would bring up and dismiss ra’s al ghul in a ten second aside! I TOLD YOU) but also have his own little chemistry lab in the basement, AND have enough resources for jason to build his red hood persona???????? all of this in barely twenty four hours?

well there goes my ‘jason orchestrated his death’ theory. it was nice while it lasted. *cups hands to the sky* fly away, my baby.

9.6. a part of me is gleeful at the rushed nature of such an iconic transformation though, especially when compared to all the character work that went before it. we’re so used to getting the opposite that it’s fucking delightful to have a show that’s more interested in exploring its characters’ minds rather than battle scenes or recreating transformations from the comics. that’s taken such bold and exciting steps to fully convey all the nuances of its most recognisable character, bruce wayne, from casting an older actor to play him to unflinchingly showing just how damaging the vigilante lifestyle has been to him and the people he loves. BRILLIANT

*sporfle*

10. again, heads up: a whole lot of flashing lights between 40:28 and 42:00. 

10.3. i guess it’s the super-compressed timeline that’s really throwing me off. where did he have the time to get/develop the mind control thing from? or is it something that he got from the cabal of villains that he intimidated at the beginning of 3.02? very messy.

10.5. i love molly, i hope she shows up again this season.

11. aaaand that’s it! that was a solid episode as flashback episodes go, but now i can’t wait to return to the present.

[amarits]

Tim tiptoed down the hallway. The light filtered out the further from the windows he traveled, coloring the hallway a gradient of light blue to black. He flipped the night vision in his mask on and the outlines of four doors materialized in a sickly green.

Only one of the doors was open. He glanced in. Tiled floor, porcelain sink, tub. Bathroom. Decent quality for an apartment in this area. He was pretty sure he didn’t want to see what happened in the bathroom, even if it did involve cutting up bodies in the bathtub, so he didn’t leave a bug.

That left three closed doors. One was clearly the exit. He carefully leaned against another, putting his ear to it and listening closely. One minute, two. Nothing. He very slowly turned the doorknob, keeping his ear close as he inched it gingerly open.

“What are we looking at?” a voice asked from the opposite direction of what he’d been expecting. He jumped a foot in the air and turned, raising his hands in one of the defensive positions Batman had taught him.

A girl, barely taller than him, stood there in a sweater dress that hung to her mid-thighs, a belt, leggings, a leather jacket that had seen some wear and tear, and what looked like a Zorro mask, or at least like a scarf with some holes cut in it. The giant poof of hair sticking out of a large headband was a familiar blond.

“Steph?” he hissed.

“It’s Robin,” she corrected.

“Wha..? I… You’re not Robin!” Was this a dream? Was this some really weird Canadian bacon, onion, and artichoke pizza dream caused by the guilt of too many nights wearing someone else’s costume? The green glow cast over everything certainly added to the dream-like feel. He turned off his night vision and flicked on a flashlight instead. The leggings and jacket stayed green, but the sweater dress changed to red and the belt was yellow. It was a painfully familiar color scheme.

“I think I would know better than you whether or not I’m Robin,” the fever dream standing in front of him said.

His mouth flopped open and closed like a dead fish. What was she..? How was she..? Why?

A grin broke out across her face, serious façade dropping. “Oh my god, you look so stupid right now. Close your mouth before you swallow a bug.”

“I… I don’t understand…” He realized a minute too late that he was supposed to be Robin right now, and that Robin definitely should not know who Stephanie Brown was.

Well, he did, but Steph wasn’t supposed to know that.

He lowered his voice the same way Jason had when they’d seen him on the museum roof. “I’m sorry, citizen, but you shouldn’t be here right now. This is a potential crime scene.”

He could very clearly see her rolling her blue eyes through her mask holes. That was not a disguise. It was the opposite of a disguise. It was a hey-let-me-show-off-my-features-so-you-can-recognize-me-more-easily-later outfit. “I know it’s you, Tim.”

“It’s Robin,” he said weakly.

“That’s the spirit!” She peeked in the open door behind him. “So what are we looking for? ‘Cause this looks like a closet.”

He followed her gaze. It was, indeed, a closet, but instead of coats, there were large tanks, like what you’d use to fill helium balloons. It stank of a scheme in progress. Scarecrow maybe? If so, they definitely shouldn’t stick around long. Each of the tanks had a label, but instead of words they were stamped with card suits: a heart, a diamond, a club, and a spade.

“I’m not sure,” he said slowly. “I’m just leaving cameras to watch later. Something’s been happening, but I’m not—what are you doing here?” he cut himself off. She might have briefly distracted him, but that was still the most pertinent question.

“I saw you sneaking around by yourself and thought you could use some help.”

“I’m not by myself,” he said immediately. It’s what he’d planned to tell any bad guys that caught him, but blurted out like that, he had to admit it didn’t sound particularly believable.

She pointedly turned her head to look up and down the hallway.

“Okay, fine,” he said, frustrated, “but that doesn’t mean you should be here. It’s dangerous.”

“Exactly,” she said. “It’s dangerous, and I know Batman’s distracted right now, so someone needs to keep you from doing something stupid.”

“I’m not…” He stopped, replaying her words. “You know Batman’s distracted right now?” he asked slowly.

She hesitated, tugging on the sleeves of her jacket. It looked a little too small for her, probably why he’d never seen her wearing it. “I heavily suspect Batman’s distracted right now,” she said. Something about the way her eyes were peering at him through the mask felt surgical, like she was waiting for the answer to a question that hadn’t been asked.

He looked away, at the still closed door. It would be easy to agree that Batman was distracted, to confirm without confirming, but he couldn’t. “Sometimes he’s busy,” he said instead. “He has a lot of cases.”

She turned her face, and he couldn’t seen her expression in the shadows. He remembered the angry hurt splashed across her face when he pushed her away after Jason’s attack. He didn’t want that, but he couldn’t just give away all of the Bats’ secrets because he didn’t want to hurt his friend’s feelings.

“So that’s why you need me!” she said, turning back to him with an enthusiastic smile, like the emotions she’d felt in the shadows had never existed.

“Look, Steph.” He rubbed at his mask, grinding the lenses painfully against his face. “You know I like you—”

“You do? Wow!”

“—but this isn’t up to me.” He flicked his hand in the air like he was throwing something away. “Like, at all. I have no power here.”

“You’re literally wearing the Robin costume right now,” she said, deadpan.

“I know, but it’s all pretend. I’m not Robin any more than you are.”

“Then I have very good news for you,” she said, leaning forward and putting her hands on his shoulders, “because I am totally Robin.”

[katsidhe]

Ranking Every SPN Midseason Premiere

15) 10.10 The Hunter Games. Wow, this one is real bad. Has not one, not two, but three subplots I either don’t care about or actively despise: Claire bonding with Cas (uh, he’s wearing her dad’s corpse), Rowena’s petty infighting with Crowley (bleh why), and Metatron smugly egging on Dean’s violence (why would he care?). This is deep in the slog of s10 episodes that go nowhere fast.

14) 13.10 Wayward Sisters. Is it clear yet that I really don’t like Claire episodes? Sam and Dean roasting lizards is the only real moment of fun here. I liked Kaia, so I hated that she gets used as Claire’s insta-friend/retconned love interest in order to immediately fridge her for the backdoor pilot… so that Claire, who was orphaned young, can understand loss, I guess? Pointless and unimaginative. I also resent the deeply, deeply directionless magic spear/Alt!Kaia subplot that eats up, like, four other episodes in s14-15 and accomplishes exactly nothing.

13) 3.09 Malleus Maleficarum. I like this episode for the insight we get into Ruby’s backstory, and the frank conversation that she and Dean have about demons and his impending Hell tour. But other than that, there isn’t too much to recommend it.

12) 8.10 Torn and Frayed. The next several episodes are all good, and are difficult to sort. In 8.10, Sam and Dean choose each other over Amelia and Benny, in all-or-none ultimatums. I truly enjoy how miserable they both seem to find themselves about this, about how their relationship has grown more and more isolating when tbh it needn’t be. Naomi’s control of Cas in this episode fleshes out the chilling implications we got in The Rapture: Heaven is best when its dark AF.

11) 6.12 Like A Virgin. Monsters, dragons, and Eve: the reveal of Purgatory kicks off a brand new chapter of the show’s mythology. But more importantly, Sam is fully back now! Watching him navigate this brave new world while no one will tell him anything is fascinating and more than a little sad.

10) 4.11 Family Remains. Actually frightening! I like it when the show does the ~it was just humans~ twist. And this episode has great commentary on Dean’s emotional state after his reveal about Hell last time. It’s a good MOTW.

9) 15.10 Nihilism. Dean’s bar mindscape. It’s no Sam mindscape, but it’s definitely the most interesting thing that’s been done with Dean and possession. It’s kinda fascinating that Dean’s uncomplicated happy place exists in an underdog Americana limbo without either Cas or Sam. Also gives us, at last, a good take on Alt!Michael’s motivations—he’s hunting down God. Loses points because the idea of managing to lock Michael in Dean’s mind for any length of time is still extremely unlikely.

8) 1.11 Scarecrow. Meg’s iconic introduction, Dean and Sam’s first breakup; emotional clashing over Winchester family dynamics: what’s not to love?

7) 12.09 First Blood. We’ve got Sam and Dean coping with prison very differently, then using their deaths to escape, and an action sequence through the woods: it’s just real fun. Cas breaks their deal with Billie, which ends up having, uh, no consequences whatsoever. It’s a strong kickoff to a regrettably weak second half of s12.

6) 7.11 Adventures in Babysitting. A quiet, emotional breath after Bobby’s death: Sam and Dean are deep, deep in terrible misery. The potent psychological suffering of season 7 is a delight, and 7.11 doesn’t shy away from it. Plus, it’s got Sam volunteering to get bit in the neck, and a rare example of a Plucky Teen (tm) done right.

5) 15.09 The Trap. This is just a worse 11.10. But 11.10 is amazing, so that’s still a compliment: Chuck tries both torture and the promise of various bleak futures to get Sam to cave. Even if the various futures aren’t staged that well, there is so much stuff here that’s ripe for analysis: especially on the broader stage of s15, this episode is plain interesting.

4) 5.11 Sam, Interrupted. Sam and Dean in a psych ward! They’re dealing with the extreme stress and grief of season 5, and they’re doing it badly—this episode provides a great way for their respective coping mechanisms to be forcefully stripped away. In a delightful microcosm of the show, Sam confesses his anger and gets consequently wrestled down and tied down to a cot.

3) 2.10 Hunted. Gordon Walker, whose old-fashioned absolutism is only matched by his competence, is one of the most memorable early seasons antagonists, and for good reason. We also get Ava, the queen of season 2, who has taken it upon herself to warn Sam and save his life. Then Sam and Dean using code words to disarm Gordon’s trap, and the fallout from John’s final words: quality television.

2) 9.10 Road Trip. Oh my god, what a horror show. This is an exemplary episode. Just incredible. Kinda unfair that it has to compete with 11.10, because it would take the gold by a mile in most other matchups. It’s got a fascinating character study of Gadreel, which also serves to inject interest into the s9 angel conflict; it’s the violent, hypocritical lengths to which Dean is willing to go; it’s got needles in Sam’s brain and a nauseating, horrific picture of possession; it’s got That Bridge Scene. The payoff for 9.01 begins to come due, in spades.

1) 11.10 Devil in the Details. Season 11 gets two D-tier ranks and two S-tier ranks; this is the duality of man. Do I even have to explain why I love 11.10 so much? It’s Sam and Lucifer in a room in Hell for an entire episode, nuff said. It gets better with every rewatch—there are so many great tiny moments, so much history. Lucifer’s combination salespitch/dressing-down is threatening and fascinating and mostly accurate; Sam’s rigid terror and courage and heartbreak and anger and resignation and determination are intoxicating. I want to watch them talk in a room forever.

[rewatching-supernatural]

s10e05

Alright, this is one I heard A LOT about, even though I don't know what happens, I know it is an important one. As I've never seen it, these are my honest reactions.

Fan Fiction

*****

Supernatural Pilot, created by Eric Kripke

...

okay? yes, indeed

Oh SPN as a play?!

*****

Samantha and Deanna?

This director looks like the middle kid on Modern Family... Ariel Winter... can't remember the name of her character

wait wait so much just happened, Principal Salazar??

*****

and this drama teacher's just too emotionally invested, relax woman

oh well, she was taken by the trees...

*****

okay I just spent 5 min trying to find a gif of all the intros happening after one another and I haven't found one, so I'll try again later as I want to keep watching

[insert title cards here]

*****

- There is nothing there that even remotely suggests there is a case.

- There is nothing there that even remotely suggests there isn't a case. Boom!

😂

*****

Theater kids, great.

Supernatural, the musical

*****

Idjits! Hey assbutt!

Sam and Dean's reaction 😂😂😂

On the road so far!

oh my god

this is both so embarrassing, and fucking funny

I wanna tear my eyes out AND my stomach hurts

*****

There is no singing in Supernatural!

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

It would be classic rock! Fuck Dean hahaha

*****

This episode is making me want to spontaneously combust

*****

Sam is instantly so good at handling this while Dean is about to throw up

*****

The two of them, alone but together

But subtext??? WINCEST AGAIN?? 🤮🤮🤮🤮

fuck man can we just stop with the incest 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

*****

Sam is just trying to befriend the girl and she doesn't give a shit about him

*****

Okay, the actors they picked for this episode must have been so fucking happy, these are incredible roles

playing the characters as amateur actors next to the characters played by the actual actors

*****

And Dean becomes a woman 🤔🤔🤔😂😂

*****

Sam hit a dog...

Nice Dean, the most important events

*****

Wow, she reacted the same way we did to Cursed Child 😂😂

*****

DESTIEL

SUB--- WAIT WO

is there Destiel sex in act 2????

*****

*****

If it's not canon, then it shouldn't be in the show

well, that's a fair opinion, but I think it's too late to rewrite the whole show

*****

a scarecrow?

"I want to believe."

the girls are fucking laughing

I'm willing to accept that monsters are real.

Rufus Bobby 😂😂😂 THEY'RE TOO OLD

*****

A Tulpa, maybe

but it's not enough energy

the flower is a lead tho

*****

Say it once more but more Arnold "It's not a Tulpa" 😂😂😂

Borage or starflower

Calliope uh

they pronounced it so weirdly I had to rewind and look at the subtitles

*****

so, the show must go on, and then afterwards, Calliope will come to kill her

*****

The play is not dumb, even if he doesn't like this interpretation. That's a lovely message from Dean.

oh, a fan of Sammy, that's why she has such weird takes on the story

writer, director, actor...

okay?

*****

Where's Chuck?

They all hate the meta stories

*****

This is Marie's Supernatural

*****

As much sub into that text as you can

*****

You may get wet on this ride

*****

wow this is a high production

the plays at my school were never this well produced

*****

Dean's enjoying the music, cool 😂

THE ROAD SO FAR

Saving people, hunting things, the family business

Sam's been taken, uh

*****

Calliope isn't very impressive

*****

I'll just wait here then 😂

hahahaha they turned that into a song

*****

// I'm glad they did actual research into the moments that the fans stuck to, that scene really is one that stuck out

*****

There's robots and tentacles in space, I can't

same girl, same

*****

A single man tear 😂

[chorus in latin]

*****

Supernatural has everything: life, death, resurrection, redemption, family

all set to music

*****

THE MAN IN THE FRONT ROW THAT PUT ON THE PONCHO

I just can't

*****

all set to the music

it exploded

wow

*****

Dean is so uncomfortable on stage

*****

If Sam cut his hair he'd be a pretty good Dean

*****

Okay okay, for all its faults, this episode leaves me with one message, what Dean says to Marie

Keep writing. I have my version, and you have yours.

but keep writing

*****

Dean never should have thrown the amulet away, I agree with that

*****

The BM scene

The two of us against the world

❤️❤️❤️

*****

okay this is actually kinda an emotional moment, wow

this was very well done

ADAM IS STILL TRAPPED IN THE CAGE

reminder, guys

*****

I also love that it's all girls playing the characters, because cosplay is for everyone to be everyone ❤️

*****

wow eh, what a fucking reminder that you two morons gotta get over your bullshit

and love each other ❤️

followed by the fakest fucking shot of the Impala

*****

Oh, that's uh

oh, ohOhOH

that's Chuck isn't it

Chuck is there right?

yep

[oh-boy-me]

OH OKAY SO WHEN I GOT TO LUCIFERS PROPOSAL I WAS LIKE “oh wow they made him last surprise surprise what’ve you got for us huh? I don’t wanna say I have high expectations at this point but i have high expectations” and then he dOES THAT? Sorry, no, his was by no means the best proposal, they’re just pretty words, and that’s not really any different from how he normally talks really.

Your pride theory? Good, that’s good noodle, but also, I was just like... you forgot didn’t you? You got caught up in work or something and you came in here and was like “oh damn I got nothing” why do I think that? He legit uses his bros proposals in his speech (which is pretty small if you think about it), and not only does he use them as examples he tells me they shouldn’t mean as much as his words and like, first off, they all said words so your not special, second, at least they put time and effort into theirs,, but I think what I’m even more upset about is that they copped out on an ending? Like, I had actually chosen a favorite. I knew, and then they made MC take all the brothers and I’m like “boy oh boy do I hope this just looks like a catalogue of all the tuxes you can wear to a fall wedding because that’s what it’s gonna end up looking like”

Listen I can say all I want about him being prideful and not feeling like he needs any smoke and mirrors but him literally forgetting is one hundred million times funnier.  I’m reeling at “they all said words you’re not special.”  How does it feel to be a genius, anon?

Honestly... yeah idk why they couldn’t give you a branching final scene (not even a chapter, just a scene) with the brother you chose for the photoshoot.  I had a favorite too ;w;  And you could even keep the “I can’t choose option!”  The game said poly rights and I’m definitely not trying to take that away because we need more polyam positivity in media.  But I feel like neither side should have had to be forced with a branch as simple as this one.

Side note but I can’t take seriously the fact that they reused the butler uniforms as wedding tuxes because honestly whenever I see those outfits I think “fancy scarecrow.”

[not-me-simping-for-blasty]

Oh no, not Mahito 😭

Bestie how’d you go from moody toddler Katsuki to a psychopath? Man looks like a scarecrow

Have you not seen Kento?? He’s ultra fine

- i

ive never mentioned it but i think its v important y’all kno how much of a sIMP i am for stein from soul eater. franken prof was my v first love when i was like 8, n i think w/ that knowledge it should be absolutely no surprise how down bad i am for mahito

its the same character design, slightly different font

that being said tho, bestie ur so right about kento. ik this v much wasnt the point of that scene but when he was like “yuuji i am the adult, u are a child” ......🥴 wow, sure wish he’d talk down to me like that ,, iTADORI DONT KNO HOW LUCKY HE IS

[tbhwhocaresanymore]

Nancy Drew 2x1

ONE OF YOU apparently ran to @kat--writes, or as my friend and I call her Tumblr Kat, and snitched that I had not yet posted my Nancy Drew premiere review. I promised to get it up by today and yes it is technically after midnight but the sun has not yet risen, so please find my thoughts under the cut.

Before I do anything else let me just say I will never stop appreciating the continuous book Easter eggs the show writers drop. Nancy mentioning how she learned that trick with the mirror in “a bungalow mystery” when she did in fact pull that exact same trick in The Bungalow Mystery? Iconic.

Now that’s out of the way, I’m going to do something I’ve never really done before and start off with the negatives. Guys, I was underwhelmed.

Not by the episode itself, the episode was great. It picked up right where we left off and continued into the mystery of the Aglaeca, the cast was engaging, the horror was chilling, the story kept unfolding. The problem is, it was great as any other regular episode, it was less great as a season premiere. I waited TEN MONTHS for this episode. And granted I understand that ND didn’t get to finish off its first season how they wanted, but they have had, I repeat, ten months to plan this. The season 1 premiere, for all its issues, did exactly what a season premiere is supposed to do. It established relationships, a season-long arc, character trajectories, and even a couple of smaller plots. We saw Nancy and her dad were on the rocks, she and George didn’t get along in high school, Bess is rich but living in a van, Tiffany Hudson was murdered and the crew are suspects, George is sleeping with Ryan, Ace is working for the police, and we found the bloody Lucy Sable dress in Nancy’s attic, to name but a few.

You guys, that is a lot of plot lines. And the writers explored and solved every single one of them over the course of the season.

Now we have the season 2 premiere. The crew tries to find a mirror to fight the Aglaeca, meets a mouthy dude, and takes a break from the Aglaeca to hide from the Gorham wraith. (Gorham is 100% a play on Gotham fight me.) Like yes there is more if you squint, but aside from that nothing all that major really happened. Mr. Hudson is setting up a defense, but we knew that already. Ryan wants a relationship with Nancy and is pissed at Carson for keeping her a secret, but we knew that already. The new head cop doesn’t trust Nancy or the crew at all, but, again, we knew that already.

But since this was still a good episode even if a lackluster premiere, I will still give you some positives.

The Gorham wraith you guys, oh my god the horror was fantastic. Nancy Drew is really looking every other magic show’s super special effects in the eye as it hits them over the the head with a folding chair made by their costuming and makeup department. The scarecrow coming to life, banging on the back of the bus, crawling in after Nancy? On point. I was on the edge of my seat.

Ryan I know you are an asshole and your character arc is a work in progress but kidnapping? Are you serious right now? “Your suicidal girlfriend begged us to hide and take care of her child right before jumping off a cliff. Also I didn’t even know you were the father.” “Omg how dare you. Time for BLACKMAIL.” It’ll be interesting to see how this whole Ryan v Carson thing plays out. I suspect maybe Carson will become like an example father figure to Ryan, teach him how to be good to Nancy. Something like “if you’re serious about being a father lesson number one is it’s not about you anymore, it’s about her. And you sending me to prison won’t just hurt me it’ll hurt Nancy.” I think that would be a nice parallel, Kate was Lucy’s guidance counselor, and now Carson will be Ryan’s parental counselor/therapist/whatever.

I’m going to be completely honest here, I totally forgot Nick and George had not actually told Nancy they are together. No idea how long this is going to go on for, I suspect not that long, but maybe up until like episode 5 or 6. I do think it would be fun if Nancy found out in like the absolute worst way possible. Like here is my worst/best case scenario. I know Nancy is supposed to have some kind of thing with Gil so let’s say they hook up a couple times and he burns her, as he probably will, and Nancy goes to Nick cause she’s upset and needs to talk, and when he opens the door thinking it’s the pizza guy he is shirtless and George is in the bed behind him. Unlikely, but fun to imagine. But however they do it, all the Nick and George fans will undoubtedly get some fun footage of them sneaking around, so enjoy guys.

All the Nancy and Ace shippers are also getting good material, even if I want to grab Ace by the shoulders and physically shake him.

Nancy: I can’t let you guys help me summon the Aglaeca, there could be really bad consequences.

Crew: Psh, consequences? What consequences? We have the power of FRIENDSHIP.

*Aglaeca sends them all death visions*

Ace: How dare you drag me into this Nancy I can’t believe we’re all going to die because of you.

LIKE BRUH. ACE. MY GUY. If you could maybe use your considerable brain power to pull your head out of your ass for TWO SECONDS I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks. But aside from that, their scene at the end? Poetic cinema. The slow burn is strong with this one. Even if I do have faith she will eventually find her way back to Nick aaaaaaaaah

Not sure how I feel about the twins yet. I know they were in some other ND-verse book series, but tbh I only ever read the Nancy Drew books. I never delved into the Hardy Boys or anything else, I was a Drew girl all the way. I do think the writers could maybe have done a better job introducing us to Gil and making us like him. Like they were definitely going for the Han Solo type I feel, and George being all “wow the Bobsey twins are hardcore” as he ups the price while literally dying. Um, George, no, the Bobsey twins are fucking morons, or at least Mr. Diabetic over here is. It says a lot that Amanda had only two lines of dialogue and I liked her considerably more than Gil. But who knows, maybe they’ll grow on me. And they did mention their family used to work for the Hudsons, I would bet good money they know about more than one skeleton that’s been stuffed in the closet.

This paragraph right here is for me and the like two other Drewson shippers in the fandom. Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhh the first meeting flashback oh my god. I was dying. I rewatched it ten times. I am in love. The way they both just sort of stared at each other, the way Nancy clearly feels a certain amount of nostalgia for him and what they had. I am deceased. Honest to god I don’t care how many Nick x George and Nancy x Ace moments the writers throw at us, just as long as I continue to get crumbs like that I am good. Have faith guys.

And finally, oh my dear, talented writers. I would like to know when exactly you are planning on pulling my three most favorite women out of whatever floorboard you have stuffed them under. I WOULD LIKE DEAD LUCY, VICTORIA, AND HANNAH GRUEN TO PLEASE STAND UP. Yes I know Hannah Gruen is in the next episode but the wait is excruciating. And if the last time we saw Dead Lucy was going to be in the courtroom scene, her standing in the doorway as Nancy read her suicide note? I am going to mcfreaking lose it.

Well that’s all for today. Sorry this took so long, I guess I just wasn’t all that inspired by this premiere episode. But hopefully I will get the next one finished much quicker. And with that, I leave you until Wednesday the 27th when Nancy Drew 2x2, The Reunion of Lost Souls airs. See ya

[krenbotvt]

What The Fans Of (Almost) Every Scarecrow Design Are Like Just by Surveying Rogue Tumblr for Approx: 5 Months. (Not in any particular order. Also this is a meme.)

Year One: You probably needed a childhood to relate to/needed a justifiable reason to stan one of Gotham’s biggest criminals. (but if your childhood involves being half-eaten by crows i am VERY concerned)  BTAS: The gateway drug Scarecrow. You’re probably a gremlin, and also really like the Dork Squad(tm)  TNBA: He’s under-appreciated, and you know this very well, but you’re also thankful that you get some of the coolest artwork of your favorite spooky boy. (Also the voice. 11/10 you want him to read sleepy hollow to you.) TAOB: You are one of the only 3 living fans of Adventures Of Batman Scarecrow, but you give absolutely no shit. You love that uncanny valley, near on clown-like scarecrow, and i feel bad for you, because you’ll probably never get art of them. Super Friends: I...Wow. Y’all really do exist... Galactic Guardians: YOU GUYS ACTUALLY EXIST TOO??? BATB: JAZZY. You like his hat, and his voice. You also probably enjoy a lot of older scarecrow designs as well. You get sad because you wish there were more content.  The Batman (TV series): PFFT HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA (But seriously though, you poor, poor things...There, There...) Assault On Arkham: AA Scarecrow in an otherwise good movie. Basically, you’re sad he didn’t get more screen-time. At this point, just stan: Arkham Asylum: ABSOLUTE GOBLIN OF A HUMAN. One of the gateway drug Scarecrows that lead you to The Rogues fanbase in the first place. You either love the serious artwork of him, love him drawn/written as a gremlin, or are STILL offended by his lack of footwear. Either way, you adore him and will remind everyone of it. Arkham Knight: OH FUCKING BOY. This can go one of two ways. 1.You love his writing (or don’t, but still stan), his poetic dialogue and his voice, and you also love how much he hams up the fear factor. You probably adore every artwork of him you see, and you REALLY love reading any fan-written material of him. You have many headcanons, and probably have googled A LOT of stuff to make them more genuine.  Or 2. You are very, VERY horny... (But as a good friend once said, “these are not mutually exclusive.”) Nightwing And Robin: Aw, y’all are so cute! Here, have some tea with the SF AND GG Fans, I think they have Earl Grey over in the CORNER OF IRRELEVANCY. (But I feel bad for y’all too.) Unlimited: BEEF BOY. You’re either in the group of people that love Scarecrow designs that use scythes, or you like how strange, yet fun his appearance is. Most art of him is super colorful too. There aren’t very many of you, but the amount of you that I’ve seen seem like super cool people. You all probably also enjoy the next one: Batman/TMNT: You knew the movie was a wild ride from start to finish, but you love it. You probably also like birds (I know, really obvious.) There aren’t many of you, but you like the idea of a corvid-like Scarecrow, and you wish for more. Or...You may be a furry that also likes DC stuff, and that’s ok too! We too also oddly love that weird ass cobra joker anyways.  Salecrow: You love his rhyming (which is arguably the best thing about him), but are also annoyed by the fact that most content of him use the same 3 images every time. You’re probably in the same boat as all the other scarecrow fans that genuinely want a proper medieval themed version of him. If you write/draw him, you’ve googled endless nursery rhymes. Its like Dr.Seuss up in this bitch. Also, them hands. Blackest Night: Chances are you’re still amazed that your favorite bag-headed master of fear even HAS that thing. You REALLY want him to wear that damn ring again, and will probably pay an arm and a leg to see it happen in a form of animated media. You also have very interesting artwork/writings of him. And your head canons are outlandish, but in the most fun way. (Seriously though, Hatter with a ring, huh...) Injustice: You either love the concept of The ScareBeast, or you’re here for the fact that hes voice by FREAKING ROBERT ENGLUND. Admittedly, you probably aren’t all too good at fighting games, but you still insta-lock him despite that.  The Dark Knight: Cillian Murphy portrays the character rather well, but you either are unnerved by his strangely dreamboyish face, or would wish for a slightly older actor. But!!! Despite all that!!! You love him, and probably still quote “WaNnA sEe My MaSK???” (Although I see some of you get absolutely tired of that lol) I don’t see any loyal fans of him, but everyone seems to agree that he’s not too shabby (heheh... shabby...) Gotham (Tv Series): ...Hello? Where are you guys? I KNOW you exist! Show yourselves! Jokes aside, you either love him or hate him. Live action scarecrows seem to be a hit or miss for some.  Harley Quinn (Tv Series): Softies. You adore everything about him. His dialogue, his humor, his very surprising accent, and his, albeit a stretch, questionable sexuality implications. Most art of him is very wholesome and good, probably because you’re STILL not over...Well... Maybe its better if I not mention it (all fans of him are the “If I see anything happen to them I’ll kill everyone in this room and then myself” meme.). Detective Comics: Hroo Hraa, my friends. Hroo Hraa. Whether it’s his “Queer grasshopper leaps” or his strange laughter onomatopoeia, you can’t get enough of his antics. Nothing beats a classic, and the fact that there are still many of you that are fans of him makes me smile. New 52/Prime Earth: One of the few scarecrows that greatly changes his childhood, but you welcome the idea of it. He’s a very unsettling looking guy, but you’ll remind everyone that his writing makes up for it. He’s mostly treated like a semi-C tier villain in the continuity, but every time you see him you’re like “!!!!!!!”.You most likely have a list of every issue he appears in so you don’t have to suffer, and your heart still breaks when you read the scene with him and that one girl. (He said he was sorry, guys.) Batman:Hush: 2 and a half sweet and savory minutes of this guy, only for him to get kicked in the face? Nay, Nay, you say! A crime, you holler! You go to your keyboard to tell your friend about how good his character design is, and how well animated he was, but alas they say “that’s nice, bud.” Blast it all... The Lego Batman Movie/Lego in general: Our boy at his most gremlin. Sure, you know this is a 99% children’s medium, but that doesn’t stop you from smiling like a dummy every time you see him. He’s funny, he’s delightful, and he has... a weird obsession with planes? What is it with them and putting him in planes? Maybe he got a pilot’s license before he attended university? What a smart little block person!  Obviously, I left out quite a few here, but these seem to be the most popular. There are SO many comic renditions of him, so It’d take my forever. (My poor fingies already hurt!) But please enjoy this silly little thing :’] 

[babygirl06301]

SPN S1 Review

I honestly have no idea if this post is about to be hella long or moderate, but I feel like a lot of my feelings got aired out when I was reviewing each individual episode, so I’m just gonna dump the rest of my thoughts that I’ve jotted down while watching this season here. This is basically gonna be me saying, “Wow, this was interesting,” or, “This is similar to/different from later seasons because…” These are all coming from notes on my computer, so they’re half-baked. Nothing too fancy or analytical, but I’ll be doing one of these for every season.

Random thoughts:

I don’t like the monster-of-the-week, episodic format that much, and a lot of those episodes this season felt average in quality for me. However, when you don’t have much else to focus on besides an arbitrary goal of the boys finding John to kill something they know nothing about, it isn’t so bad. Filler episodes suck more later because they’re often completely disconnected from the main story, which isn’t the case for most filler episodes in this season. Plus, the main stories later have more involved goals for the season than this one did, which made the filler episodes later more annoying. For example, if Sam and Dean want to hunt a Tulpa at a haunted house because John is off doing something somewhere, that’s fine. Kill the time. But if Sam and Dean really need to figure out a way to kill God, like, now before Chuck decimates every fleck of existence he’s ever created, maybe don’t waste my time with an episode about a wood nymph, you know? If the stakes are higher, then the quality episodes shouldn’t appear with less frequency. All I’m saying.

The tone, acting, and writing of these characters is so different. Like, when you know a show intimately, these kinds of differences between one season and the next are natural to you. It’s not like I wasn’t aware that the boys looking for their father feels a lot fucking different than the boys having a kid, but when you actually let yourself be aware of how much the show has changed, it’s kind of crazy. Like, if I just think about it offhand, I’m like, “Yeah, this is Supernatural.” But if I break the fourth wall a bit in my mind, it’s like, “Damn, I really did watch these characters and their actors mature for fifteen years, didn’t I?” Crazy.

There are so many episodes that end with the Impala driving down the road. Like, an aerial shot of it. And if the very last scene isn’t that, then it’s probably the scene right before the last scene. Until the last few episodes, that is.

I don’t know why I’ve written this down, but it’s easier to remember episode titles in season one because you can match it to the creature without having to remember the plot. Like, “Oh, the Wendigo episode.” I’ve also said in this same note that the folklore plots died out later on in the series, which is true.

A quote from my notes: “The show really does feel better with Cas, huh?” Look, I’m not gonna say that the S1 finale didn’t slap, because it did. However, I will say that Cas can brighten any episode up, so, had he been in the series from the beginning, the season finale may not have been the only S1 episode to slap. Not that there weren’t other episodes that were good, but you know. Also, this isn’t to say that Cas should’ve been around the whole time because him coming into Dean’s life when he did was exactly perfect.

They do this later, too, but a handful of episodes in the early seasons will be like, “Here’s a girl. Now, one of you Winchesters, go bond with her this instant.” And it’s weird? You don’t need to bring a girl in just to make googly eyes at one of the boys? You could just give her the story she was supposed to have but minus all the flirting?

So, Sam is meant to be the central character for the first five seasons, right? Yes, Dean is supposed to be his equal; yes, he went to Hell and had that whole storyline; yes, he’s Michael’s vessel, but it was always really about Sam, you know? Sam was the one who had the connection to the biggest, baddest thing imaginable (at the time), that being Lucifer. Sam was the one chosen for Lucifer. Sam was the one with the psychic abilities and the one to drink demon blood and the reason Dean sold his soul. Dean is obviously a main character with his own story, but Sam was meant to be the special one, yeah? But even so, Dean is such a beautifully complex character because he wasn’t special. You can see that, even in S1—that his specialness came from his lack of central focus. It’s almost like the plot was saying, “Sam,” and Dean went, “I’m gonna cause problems anyway,” and that’s awesome. I don’t know if that makes sense, but I just feel like Dean is the most interesting character in the entire series, and he wasn’t even the one S1 picked out as special.

Sam’s psychic abilities seemed a lot cooler when you didn’t know as much about them. Like, yes, Sam having those abilities for the purpose of housing Lucifer is cool and all, but it felt so much more mystical when it just seemed like something Sam could do for some reason. Not that that would’ve been a better payoff than what we get—it’d be stupid for the story to say, “I know a demon chose you to be the vessel of Lucifer himself, but the psychic thing you can do? Just a coincidence”—but it’s some food for thought.

John is barely fucking there even though his existence permeates the entire fucking season. I thought he was so much more present than he was in this series. They treated him like they treated Cas. “We said his name a few times, that’s good right?” No. No, it isn’t.

I hate the pattern the episodes have in S1. It goes: location name, bad thing happens in said location, Sam and Dean talk about said thing, they go to said location, they research and maybe flirt with some random girl, they fight, they drive away in the Impala. Like, nearly every episode is like that.

Without demons in the mix that often, the tone of S1 is really different when you compare it to every other season.

Dean is a lot more emotionally vulnerable in this season. I mean, he’s not sitting down with Sam to talk about his feelings all the time, but his emotions are definitely closer to the surface. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that he hasn’t had to emotionally shut down to protect Sam yet. Obviously, he represses things because of the way he was raised, and because he had to raise Sam; however, he still had John to lean on at this point. So, he hadn’t developed that habit of hiding his feelings and leaning on no one but himself yet as he did when he lost John. Because of that, he was able to be scared and tell Sam that he was afraid of losing his family and stuff like that. He becomes a way darker character in after John dies, and he more or less only leans fully on one other person for the rest of the series, albeit in a different way.

John saying in 1x21 that he wants Dean to have a home after Azazel is killed is the saddest thing I’ve ever heard. For one, because John is aware that he deprived Dean of a real home, and by extension, is aware that Dean is damaged because of that. But also, it’s sad because Dean has lived 26 years of his life up until now without ever having a home he felt safe and loved in.

Dean running from a potential fight with Azazel in 1x22 is super interesting because he’s fighting to be a part of his family rather than simply fighting for them to be saved. Dean doesn’t want to die, isn’t willing to die. That’s something that definitely changes later. Big time.

Filler episode rate:

By my count, which admittedly might be wrong, there were 7 episodes that were primarily main story episodes this season and 15 monster-of-the-week/filler episodes. 

Now, in the early seasons, it isn’t as easy to separate the filler from the main story because almost every episode will deal with character conflict that’s tied to what’s going on with the main story. However, I called it a filler if the primary plot was just a random hunt. For example, I called “Scarecrow” a filler because, even though Meg was introduced after Sam and Dean have a big fight, the main plot is hunting a god.

My bottom 5 episodes in order:

These next two sections are based on my ratings of these episodes from my reviews of every episode. I’ve just ordered them, with one being my least favorite/favorite episode this season.

5.) 1x07: Hook Man

4.) 1x03: Dead in the Water

3.) 1x02: Wendigo

2.) 1x13: Route 666

1.) 1x08: Bugs

My top 5 episodes in order:

5.) 1x14: Nightmare

4.) 1x06: Skin

3.) 1x15: The Benders

2.) 1x21: Salvation

1.) 1x22: Devil’s Trap

My top episodes for Sam:

This section and the next will just be me bringing up some good points of development for Sam and Dean throughout this season. I mean, of course they develop almost all the time, but these episodes are some of the best/most interesting. At least, in my opinion. If you want to read more about my reasons, check out my reviews. Just search for “spn s1 reviews” on my blog.

1x05: Bloody Mary - Sam’s psychic abilities got alluded to for the first time during this episode, but it also told us how much Sam blamed himself for Jessica’s death.

1x10: Asylum - Sam’s resentment for Dean is voiced, and though he’s under the influence of a ghost while he talks about Dean, some of it is supported by development in other episodes this season.

1x14: Nightmare - Sam bonds with Max over their shared abilities and pasts. We also get to see that Sam initially related his own trauma when growing up to Max’s, even though he acknowledged that Max had it worse at the end. It’s an interesting point of development that Sam saw his upbringing that way.

1x19: Provenance - Through Sarah being a part of this episode, Sam reveals that he sees himself as dangerous because the abilities he has has put the people he loves in danger in the past.

1x21: Salvation - Sam reveals that he’s willing to die, and by extension, risk his family to get the job of killing Azazel done.

1x22: Devil’s Trap - Sam has to choose between losing his family through getting his revenge or losing his chance at revenge to save his family.

My top episodes for Dean:

1x06: Skin - Dean’s abandonment issues are touched on for the first time.

1x09: Home - Dean shows fear when faced with returning home and dealing with the trauma of what he went through the night Mary died.

1x12: Faith - This is the first episode that we see a serious internal conflict in Dean about the worth of his life, which is interesting, because we can see in later episodes that he doesn’t want to die. However, his attitude in this episode seems to suggest that he doesn’t see his life as valuable.

1x18: Something Wicked - Honestly, this isn’t my favorite episode in the world, but it’s the first flashback episode of the series; in it, you’ll see the reason behind Dean’s feelings of responsibility regarding Sam.

1x21: Salvation - Dean insists that nobody will die to kill Azazel, showing that he wants to be a part of his family rather than just saving them.

1x22: Devil’s Trap - Dean shows a darker side of himself in an attempt to get John back, and his fears of being unneeded by his family are revealed as well as his fears of losing his family.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for this season’s review. I’ll rate this season in my series review that I’ll write once all this is over, but my impressions right now are that the first season of Supernatural was all right. It didn’t necessarily walk in a straight line, but it still felt like there was a definite destination. And, on top of that, the season ended in one of the most banger ways an SPN season has ever ended. The monster-of-the-week stuff has made most of the episodes this season ones I would probably not revisit, but S1 is definitely still special. 

We’ll see if this changes later, but for now, my rating (and average, based on my ratings in my reviews) for S1 is ★★★☆☆.

[orthogonals]

tipsy live-blog of watch of hmc (from a book fan)

lmaoooo why is michael/Markl 5

why is calcifer 2D LOL

the scenes are drawn rly beautifully 😍

so far howl seems very... competent? hopefully not for long i love dramatic vain cowardly doesn’t-do-magic-until-halfway-through-book spends 3/4 of the time courting lettie/miss angorian howl

rn i cant tell if sophie has magic or not, hope she does

damn howl rly do be a bird

sophie is way too nice to howl ngl

he’s sooo pretty tho ugh

witch of waste portrayal is...interesting

loll when ben suliman/ms pentsemmon combo character is a villain

(time for a wine glass refill)

howl goes back to being somewhat competent *sigh*

idk why they couldnt have just kept witch of waste as main villain, it’s basically the same effect; i think adding complexity of suliman and war is a bit unecessary and could have been forgone in favor of talking more about martha and lettie, tor example (just me talking as a book fan first tho)

sophie is wayyyyyyy too nice. book sophie woulda rocked howl’s shit for not letting her know he was a bird man (also she was in too much self denial to ever admit that she was in love with howl, even in a dream)

so the cottage is... wales?

manz collarbones are sharp

this howl is COMPETENT i tell you; he pretends like he’s not but he is. book howl pretends like he’s competent but he’s not loll.

i like the touch of sophie’s oldness being correlated to her self-confidence. w/ book sophie, it’s more like she got her self-confidence from her oldness and she was afraid to let that go

is the witch of the waste senile or not i cant tell lol

i still dont know what howl does when he goes out as a bird, am i too drunk for this

he rides on bombs??? why is he so polite to everyone what

oh my lord sophie’s character is honestly very different :(

@ sophie’s hair: TURN BACK TO RED GOLD PLS

the scarecrow carrying the witch if the waste ayeee

o man he ate her hair

wow he’s str8 up LIFTING the castle ayeee

y is my man calcifer lowkey evil

sophie i swear do something other than staring at the witch

AHHHHHHHH

damn this howl’s been hesrtless since he was 10 or what

ok i finished so here’s some final (tipsy) thoughts:

everyone’s personality is a bit different. sophie’s still a go getter and headstrong, but howl swung her around market chipping the first time they met so i guess she was always in love w him

howl is wayyy competent ngl

why is he a bird?? am i too drunk for this? does making a pact w a fire demon make you a bird man im this universe??

so the witch of the waste lives w them from now on ?

they never explained where markl came from in the movie (i dont think)

why was madam suliman suddenly evil and then suddenly not ?

soooo basically the reason why sophie could break the contract was bc she was howl’s true love and not bc shes a super badass sorceress? :(

the first time i watched the movie a couple years ago, i was half asleep and didn’t rly understand it. now, i am half drunk and still dont rly understand it LOL. i think it was beautifuly drawn and the soundtrack was wonderful, but it rly cant be reconciled w the book version at all and i wont try to. was a nice 2am watch tho

[e-louise-bates]

Finished re-reading The Emerald City of Oz for the first time since childhood, and wow--Ozma is a truly terrible ruler in this story.

Let’s get one thing out of the way first: I adore Ozma. I love all the Oz girls, from spunky Dorothy to adventurous Trot to practical Betsy to, yes, our beloved Princess Ozma. But in this book ...!

She starts out by embarrassing Aunt Em and Uncle Henry by insisting on whisking them away from Kansas with no prior warning to show up in her throne room in front of all her courtiers (and unlike the Cabbie’s wife in Narnia, being in their working clothes is NOT an improvement for these two farmers). Even though Dorothy has specifically requested that she be allowed to go back and warn them (and I don’t know, maybe they’d like one or two things from their old life rather than leaving it all for the bank?), and requested that they be brought to someplace they feel more comfortable, Ozma insists on overwhelming them with her grandeur. Not cool. Then she ignores Dorothy’s common sense request that they be given a small farm in Munchkin land and instead has them stay at the palace, where--surprise!--they are bored and out of place and generally miserable.

So much for that. Far worse is Ozma’s reaction to finding out that the Nome King is assembling an army and tunneling through to take over Oz. She doesn’t find it very interesting, but checks every day or so anyway, but also doesn’t take any thought whatsoever to stopping them? And when Dorothy and the rest show up back at the Emerald City, she’s all, “oh, you are worried? I haven’t really been thinking about it,” shoots down all their plans, doesn’t come up with any ideas of her own, and it’s the Scarecrow in the end who saves the day.

What. The. Heck?

You have a Magic Belt, Ozma. You can turn the tunnel into itself and around itself so many times they could be tunneling forever and never actually reach Oz. You could make the rocks so hard they couldn’t tunnel through. You could contact Glinda, who apparently is capable of cutting Oz off from the rest of the world entirely, and ask for her help. It’s laudable that you don’t want to hurt anyone, even people who want to destroy you, but you also have a responsibility to protect your people.

I know, I know, it’s a children’s fairy story. It’s not meant to be read from the critical perspective of an adult wanting logical actions in the characters. But good grief. For such a wise, kind, practically-perfect-in-every-way princess, Ozma does not shine in this story.

Maybe behind the scenes she was having a bad episode of “wishing she was still Tip” and wanting to evade responsibility? (Ah-ha! That’s why she wanted Dorothy to live in the palace so much--if she has a friend by her at all times, she won’t be so lonely.)

[luckycheesefoodie321]

Titans Season 1: A Summary

Rachel: Please help me!

Dick: I will help you.

Rachel: Please dont leave me behind!

Dick: I promise I will not leave you behind.

*Dick leaves her behind*

*Rachel is kidnapped*

*Rachel is rescued by someone else*

Rachel: Please help me!

*Dick enters the chat*

Dick: But I’m helping her!

*5 minutes of Rachel emo sadness about no one wanting her*

Dick: Fine you can come

Titans Season 2: A Summary

Dick: It’s fine I got dis

*Dick did not in fact got dis*

Donna, Hank, Dawn: We hate this tower and have irrepressible guilt but we will lay blame entirely on Dick until he shows up in a new suit

Jason: I just wanna prove myself because I’m working under the original Robin who continues to never give me the time of day because of his unresolved insecurities in relation to Bruce despite starting the season with a supposed closure scene. And all his teammates continue to treat me like shit and mistake my immaturity and rashness with outright cruelty thinking I was pranking them by targeting their own insecurities when I myself nearly died and am clearly suffering trauma from the event

(Yeah I have some feelings)

Rose: I have a very complex relationship with my father but my character development will be shallow

Rachel: My powers are, once again, a mess and will define my entire character

Gar: I guess I’ll hang out here then and get brainwashed into a murder weapon

Conner: Look I’m literally a week old, I just want friends and to help people

Jericho: I’m ALIVE GODDAMMIT

Check date: 1/3/22

Titans Season 3: A Summary

Bruce: I think of Jason as my son but don’t even offer him the tiniest amount of faith that he can make his own choice regarding being Robin and if he still wants to continue it. And when Jason dies, I will take 0 actual responsibility for my actions, and just fucking murder the Joker before writing my will and ditching Gotham

(Im sorry but Titans Bruce Wayne is kinda a travesty)

Dick: Ok Titans I will now finally focus on you completely! All my attention is on you guys- oh wait what was that?? My past trauma with Bruce and my current issues with just the fucking horrible way I treated Jason require my immediate presence??? There’s also my former literal partner in crime who is super fine that is giving me vibes?Sorry fam, gotta go. HAHAHA jk im back I died for a hot second but let’s go on a road trip. I hear the DickKory love story finally beckoning (and not just bc I saw my daughter in a dream).

Kory: I’m having dreams. Oh wait lol it’s just my sister. I hate my sister. I love my sister. My sister stole my powers. I’m still having dreams. Oh wait lol my dad was actually a piece of shit. Oh wow look I actually have my own powers. And also I never call that therapist dude except during a crisis. I am currently unaware that Dick saw our daughter while he was dead.

Barbara: I’m a badass Police Commissioner but I’m gonna get swayed by a man child with severe trauma and attachment issues to his father figure.

Gar: Kory keeps trying to sleep-kill me??? Also I guess bonded with Jason a little so that’s the other half of my arc other than missing Rachel?

Connor: I am, for all intents and purposes like, what? A few months to a year old? But yo Blackfire is hot so sure let’s throw me into a relationship. Also Dick “betrays” me, then I torch my girl’s ship when she was boutta leave and claim her throne, bc I feel betrayed, but we’re gonna brush past all that and pretend everything is fine and settled.

Blackfire: I have a sister complex and that boy is hot. But actually I was probably one of the most interesting characters in the show and had a genuinely complex story arc (aside from the love story which felt stunted and out of nowhere).

Jason: Finally made it to the RedX story line. Do people still hate me? Yah. Did I try to make things better? Yah. Did it work? Kinda. Do I feel better? Nah. But hey at least Dick doesn’t treat me like dirt anymore.

Rachel: lmao I’m so bored on this island and Donna is still dead. Oop wait no her body disappeared. Guess imma head out.

Scarecrow: Mommy issues. Genuinely fascinating character to study. Genuinely brilliant plan to turn the masses against the Titans. Death by nightmare fuel via Rachel??? Brutal as shit

Dawn: I am once again completely defined by my relationship with Hank and none of my own personal worth. And then Hank died so guess I will have to continue to wallow in my misery.

Hank: Dawn hates me. Now I have a bomb in my chest bc I was a piece of shit to Jason, who was just a kid. Now I’m dead. But wait I can get back to the land of the living— aaand never mind. OH LOOK. MY BROTHER. Guess it’s all fine now.

Donna: I’ve been dead for like half a season already, but like there was this kid on the train and then I ran into Hank in the afterlife so what was I gonna do? Stay dead? Not for a hero.

Tim: I think superheroes are neat. Dying sucked but hey superheroes are still pretty cool.

Rose/Jericho: what was that? What was that you said about finding family in the Titans??? Hm?? Where were you?? All season???