#and there is also no way that he wouldn't insist on her getting tf out of there

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Was Javier Garcia "not bisexual enough" in ANF?

I feel like everyone reading the title of this essay is going to say, "Well, yeah? Obviously? Javi didn't show any interest in men outside of that one optional moment of flirting with Jesus and then he was confirmed bisexual by one of the writers after the season ended. If they wanted to make him bi, they should've done more with it because that's not enough."

That's a commonly expressed opinion no matter where you look, and it's not like it's unfounded, either.

On a surface level, I agree. While I understand the excitement of learning a character is canonically bi, in the case of Javier Garcia it still feels like celebrating crumbs tossed to us by Telltale after they had their cake and ate it, too. They snuck in some bisexual representation at the last minute for queer audiences without it being explicit so the homophobes wouldn't throw a tantrum.

Stuff like that happens. Sometimes the representation is subtle or implied in the subtext. Or, the queerness is condensed into something digestible and sanitized for straight audiences. Or, it's stated after the fact with little to no actual evidence to support it in canon.

Hell, even if it is obvious, like with Clementine being bisexual in TFS, you still have biphobes who will die on the hill of denial. Even now, in the year 2024, we have people insisting "Clem being bi came out of nowhere! They should've showed it in earlier seasons if they wanted it to make sense. I'm not homophobic but here's my essay PROVING that violentine is bad and forced and that Clem isn't bi!" Or, on the other extreme, "Clementine is a lesbian to me, bisexuality isn't real :)"

But I've already talked about Clementine and what her bisexuality means to me. I want to talk about Javier now.

He's an interesting case, both in the way his queerness was handled and portrayed in the game, and how audiences received it... as in, a lot of people said, "That's great and all, but is it really representation when it's not actually present? It's not enough."

That. That right there: "It's not enough." That's what I want to break down and examine.

Is Javier Garcia not valid as a queer character because he didn't reach this concept of "enough" in the eyes of the player? But what would have been "enough" then? Do people really understand what they're asking for when they discuss what they think Telltale should've done? Does it actually matter if Javier is queer when it comes to the plot and his journey as the protagonist, and if it doesn't matter, is that okay?

Should we just accept these crumbs sprinkled in our hands?

I want to make it clear that I'm but one bisexual examining a bisexual character and doing an analysis. I've climbed out of my bog to write this because I want to discuss Javier and the writing as it pertains to his queerness, or lack thereof. I'm also aware that I'm not providing any irrefutable, concrete evidence here one way or the other; I'm speculating about Javier through a queer lens. I encourage any other bi, pan, or other queer person to add to these discussion points, whether in agreement or not.

Prior to TFS, the queer representation in TWDG wasn't great...

Though the games do get progressively gayer as the seasons go on. And some even get to live! Progress!

S1 had... uh, none? Wait, is that right? ...Yeah, no, I'm tuning my gay radio and it isn't picking up any signals, Captain. Nothing gay in these waters.

S2 had Walter and Matthew, who both died shortly after being introduced. There's some homoerotic undertones between Luke and Nick but nothing was ever confirmed. Also, they both died, so... not great.

The Michonne mini-series had Jonas and Zachary, but Zachary will always die no matter what. Jonas can die, too, but it's determinant. Paige was confirmed to be queer by the writers, though. Uh, progress? Kind of? Not really, it's never talked about and you only pick up on her feelings for Sam if you squint and pay close attention. But hey, at least she got to live!

Then, in ANF we have Javier, our playable protagonist, and Paul "Jesus" Monroe, a gay character who also showed up in the comics and TV show. Would'ja look at that, they both got to live! I should also mention nothing was ever confirmed about Ava but... c'mon, y'know? Captain, there's a faint signal on my radio; when you know, you know. Except she died, to, so... still not great.

Then came TFS, who really said, "Screw you, here's all the gay!"

They gave us bisexual Clementine with both of her romance routes. Violet, Minerva, James, mentions of his past boyfriend, Charlie... Aasim was planned to be bisexual and I don't see why we can't reclaim that for him, and one day I'll crawl out of my bog to write my analysis on the queer-coding/subtext of Louis' character because if I read "lmao Louis is such a Straight" one more time, I'm going to let the gators take a bite out of me just so that I can feel something other than irritation for once.

Sigh. It's so hard being a "Louis ain't straight" truther out here, so few understand.

My plights aside, there's no avoiding the queerness of TFS. Even if your Clementine doesn't romance anyone, or romances Louis, you can't avoid the fact that Violet and Minerva were girlfriends at one point. It's determinant if James will tell you about Charlie, but that doesn't change the fact that James is gay.

But it runs deeper than that. This is a story about these troubled youth who were abandoned by their families and teachers, the ones who were supposed to love and help them, because "something was wrong with them, they did something bad... they need fixing."

These young people have to fight against an oppressive group of adults looking to steal their autonomy, change them, mold them into what's expected to survive. Their identities don't matter to the raiders. All the raiders care about is erasing such identities so that they fall in line and obey, and if they don't comply, they die... or worse.

Yes, it's a story about Clementine and AJ finally finding a home, but no matter how you play, it's also a narrative steeped in queer themes and subtext. You can tell that the people who made it not only cared about these things and wanted them weaved throughout the story, but that some of them were queer themselves.

But where does that leave us with Javier?

With everything TFS did, it's easy to look back at ANF with a critical eye and pinpoint its flaws in every aspect. While I don't believe it's the worst game Telltale ever made [I mean, Minecraft Story Mode exists], in my opinion, it's the messiest game in the main series. It's not bad, but I'd much rather play S1 or TFS.

For all the criticism it received, most players did like Javier as the playable protagonist. Well, they did once they got over the fact that Clementine wouldn't be taking on that role again, and was instead relegated to only being playable in flashbacks.

Javi's personality can vary depending on player choices, but for the most part, he's a charismatic man who loves his family. He used to be a professional baseball player before he was booted from the league for gambling. He can be cocky and sarcastic, and it usually lands him in trouble. He tends to cope and deflect using humor. He has a past of being irresponsible and selfish; he wasn't even there when his father died, despite knowing he was dying of cancer. His relationship with David is complicated, only made messier if he and Kate end up together. He's trying his best... for the most part. Javi even ends up being a father figure to Gabe and Mariana after they all thought David was dead, and he's very open about his grief following Mariana's death.

But given everything we learn about him while playing ANF, how do we know Javi isn't straight? After all, his main love interest is Kate, a woman. He also has opportunities to flirt with Eleanor, another woman. He doesn't show any signs of being attracted to any of the men who are around... until Paul "Jesus" Monroe.

At the end of ep5, Javi and Jesus have a conversation where one of the dialogue options is, "I like you, Jesus." Granted, that doesn't have to mean "like-like;" you can say you like someone without any romantic intentions. Plus, Jesus IS a cool character. Players who picked that option likely weren't thinking of it in a romantic sense.

It's the way that Jesus responds to this option, though: a flirtatious smile, lidded eyes, the deep dip of his voice.

Javier: I gotta admit, man. You're a fucking badass! Jesus: You're a real charmer... You know that? Through and through.

It's not difficult to see Jesus is being flirtatious, and Javi sees it, too. How does he react?

Forgive me, but I'm about to over-analyze this six-second gif. I love his reaction so much. That subtle jump of his shoulders as if a jolt just ran through his gut at the way Jesus lowers his voice. Surprised, and then the movement of the brows, the slide of the eyes, and the little upturn of the mouth says to me "Oh… oh." Caught off guard, perhaps a little bashful.

Option 1: Javier: Oh, you know what they say. Takes one to know one. Jesus: That they do. Option 2: Javier: Are you really sure you don't want to stay? There's room. Jesus: Oh, uh... I'm sure there is, but... we got other people depending on us, Javi. Just the way it is. Option 3: Javier: Meant to tell you... That, uh, armor you got is great. Jesus: Oh... Oh, uh... Hmm... Well, uh... Thanks, um... It gets the job done.

Javi knows what Jesus is getting at regardless of your choice. He understands this is flirtatious, but is startled since he likely didn't consider that Jesus likes men, too. We the audience have a better chance at knowing if, especially those familiar with the character from the comics and the TV show. Javi wouldn't because why would he? It's not like Jesus is obvious and flaunting with the fact that he's gay.

What's funny about that is, given our topic of discussion, we could also argue that Jesus wasn't gay enough, couldn't we? If we're going to pick on Javier for not being more open about his sexuality, then it's only fair that we pick on other characters, no? Did Jesus need to be gayer? Would that improve ANF?

In fact, now that I think about, was James gay enough in TFS? Was one moment where he talks about his boyfriend, a scene that's determinant so not every player got it, enough? What about Minerva? We know she and Violet were girlfriends before Marlon traded her away, that's information that's unavoidable, but did she actually reach this apparent high standard of "enough" in the eyes of the audience?

Are we entitled to unequivocal evidence of queerness, and the heaping amount we deem necessary, otherwise it's not good enough and shouldn't be bothered with at all? Are more casual displays of queerness bad?

I can already hear people jumping to defend James and Minerva, and likely Jesus, against this because "it's totally different!"

Sure. Javier's situation is different from James, Jesus, and Minerva's respective situations. James actually uses the word boyfriend and he keeps a picture of him and Charlie in his pocket. Jesus appears in The Walking Dead universe outside of the game with more evidence of queerness. Minerva's past relationship with Violet is made clear even when you don't pursue Violet's route, not to mention the underlying metaphor of conversion with her being changed/brainwashed/traumatized by the raiders to be just like them.

Javier is different because that scene with Jesus is the only in-game evidence of his queerness, right? Then he had to be confirmed as bisexual by one of the writers once ANF ended.

Surely, they could've brought up the fact that Javier's bi earlier, right? Made mentions of a past boyfriend, or had a flashback about Javi coming out to his family? Why only let him flirt with Kate and Eleanor? Why wasn't there an option to flirt with Tripp, or some other male character? What about a darker turn where David didn't accept Javi for it? David's portrayed as an antagonist, anyway, why not toss a little homophobia into the mix? Why not reveal it if Javi rejects Kate? What if Kate was so hurt by the rejection that she asked him, "It's true, David was right. It's because you like men, isn't it?"

It feels like they decided at the last minute to just toss it in, like someone walked into Telltale one day and said, "Y'all, I just thought of the funniest thing- Javi should be bi so that we can make jokes about him swinging both ways!" And then everyone clapped.

Here's the deal: Something about this sits differently with me, and that's probably thanks to one of ANF's writers, Adam Esquenazi Douglas.

He's the one that confirmed Javier as bisexual.

Adam had his hand in writing for 4/5 episodes, and he said he wrote the scene where Javi can flirt back with Jesus, but it's that last line of his: "After all, they always say write what you know."

I don't know how many of you who are reading this are writers, or creators in general, but I assume many of you are. It doesn't matter if you write fanfiction, create fanart, write essay posts or headcanons or whatever. I have a firm belief that creative people pour so much of themselves into their work that, if given enough material and studied enough, you can get a glimpse of their soul. Even if done unintentionally, we project ourselves into these works; the characters, themes, conclusions, everything.

Am I suggesting that Adam was secretly a bisexual mastermind who threaded queerness throughout the entirety of ANF and we were all too blind to see it? No, and if he did, then he needs to step forward and tell me so that I can study ANF frame by frame to compile the secret evidence into a new essay.

...Actually, on second thought, maybe don't do that to me, Adam.

My point is, yes, it's true that it's likely Javi being bi was added in at the last minute... but can we really dismiss Javier as "not bisexual enough" when Adam had influence over Javi's character throughout the whole season? And I ask again: is the casual queerness of Javier bad?

Time to speculate and answer some of those questions about Javier

Let's talk about Kate for a minute. She is Javier's main love interest, whether you choose to accept her feelings or not, so she can give us a good point of reference for what Javi looks for in a partner.

Kate and Javi share a similar sense of humor that bounces well between the two. Kate wants to travel, Javi's well traveled from his time as a profession baseball player. They both exist in this space of "we're kind of the family screw up." Granted, Javi's more in it than Kate is, but you can see parts of her that come through where she's a little rebellious, a little not good enough [ironically]. They both feel trapped in their situations; Kate in her marriage, Javi in a slow downward spiral of not knowing what to do with himself now that he's booted from his career. They have complicated relationships with David, and together, they've raised Gabe and Mariana through the years after they believed David was dead.

They're a lot alike in many ways, so this is hardly an opposites attract type of romance.

What's interesting is if you then look at Jesus, he has some similar qualities to Kate; a sense of humor even when things are looking bleak, they to help and protect people, are willing to throw themselves in danger to save Richmond. Then if you add Eleanor, the other person Javi has some flirtatious dialogue with, you can apply those qualities to her, as well... though the big difference with her is Eleanor sells the group out because she wants to stay.

With the little information we have, we can speculate on Javi's preferences. He prefers someone more similar to him. I know, I know, everyone loves a good opposites attract tale, they're so different but similar at their cores, they fill in each other's gaps, yada yada... except not everyone is like that, obviously.

My working theory is that a partner who would act as the opposite of Javi would be someone who acts like David... and does Javi really want to date someone like his brother? Though that then opens up a whole can of worms since if Javi and Kate are so similar, and David married Kate... this isn't an essay about David, but that's certainly a thing to chew on.

With that, I suppose we can answer the question, "But if Javi's bi, why didn't he flirt with any men prior to Jesus?"

What men?

No, seriously, where are all these men Javi's supposed to flirt with? Are they hiding? I know you hid them in the game, Adam, where are they?

Wait, do you mean Tripp?

I don't want to step on the toes of any Javi/Tripp shippers out there, but let's actually think about this. When we meet Tripp, Javi's just been separated from his family. He was knocked out and tied up by these assholes who caught him siphoning their gas, then this teenager cut down a tree which resulted in him getting into a car accident. Said teenager then tried to rob him before agreeing to escort him back to his family but first, they gotta go to Prescott. I wouldn't say Javier's in the flirtatious mood by the time he meets Tripp.

But he can flirt with Eleanor, right?

So, why not Tripp?

Because Tripp is a man and he has feelings for Eleanor. That's made quite clear from ep1. He told Javi that he and Eleanor had a thing once. Sure, Javi could still harmlessly flirt with him, but have we stopped to consider that Javi isn't as confident with openly flirting with men like he is women? After all, who initiated the actual flirting between him and Jesus in ep5? That would be Jesus, and it happens after the danger is over and Javi doesn't have to worry about dying for a little bit.

Listen, I understand that Tripp is big. He's built like the lumberjack of our dreams. He has a nice beard. He's not afraid to talk about his feelings even when he fumbles all over them. He's strong and caring and brave. He could easily toss me over his shoulder like I'm a sack of flour and then throw me across the room... what's not to love? Surely, if Javi actually liked men, he would've made a move on Tripp at some point.

Except, would he? Is Tripp even Javi's type? Because I'm pressing X to doubt.

Also, why does he need to?

This is where I question why some people think Javi has to flirt with a bunch of men to "prove" he's bisexual? I'm sorry, do you believe there's a quota all bisexuals have to meet to maintain their membership card? You have to flirt with this many genders a month otherwise they'll revoke your premium status?

Sometimes I wonder if people unintentionally lean into the "promiscuous bisexual" stereotype, or if they do genuinely believe that bisexuals have to express interest in multiple people of different genders in order to prove themselves queer enough.

Did we ever stop to think that Javi's just not like that? An open flirt, I mean. Yeah he's charismatic and funny and all that, but Kate, Eleanor, and Jesus all initiate the romantic dialogue with him first; Kate tells him she needs to get laid hint hint, Eleanor calls him pretty, and Jesus calls him a real charmer.

Tripp never gives him any indication that he's interested or that he even likes men, so why would Javi make a move?

As for any other man? Again, what men? Max? Dr. Lingard? Clint? Conrad? And forget adding a new character to ANF; it could barely handle the characters it already had and you want to add a new one just for Javier? Let's face it, Tripp was the best option and that's just it, he wasn't an option.

"But my Javi WOULD flirt with Tripp and the game didn't give me the option!"

And there it is.

Javier isn't your OC

ANF isn't a massive RPG where starting a new game brings you to a character creation menu, and you get to decide every factor about the character you want to play.

ANF is an episodic, point-and-click Telltale game, and Javier isn't your OC. Like with Lee and Clementine, there are some things you just don't get a say in, and I think that gets to the player sometimes.

When I sit down to play a Dragon Age game, I go into it knowing that my character is mine, I get to decide who they are and who they're interested in. DA as an RPG has the capacity to give me a bunch of romantic options both in and out of my party that shape who my character is.

When I sit down to play TWDG, I go into it knowing that while I have my own Lee, Clementine, and Javi, I didn't create them but I am influencing who they become. I know it's a Telltale game, and that means limitations.

These games have always had the "illusion of choice" criticism chucked at them from the beginning. Usually that pertains to the choices you make that affect the overall story, but ultimately don't matter in the end.

For example, it doesn't matter if you save Carley or Doug because no matter what, they both die. My counter-argument for this has always been that the choice does matter in the way that it shapes your playable character, and how if affects the characters around you. A Lee who saved Doug over Carley had reasons for making that choice, and in turn, has a different experience going forward than a player who chose to save Carley.

Does it matter who shoots Duck in the woods after he's bitten? Or if he's left to turn? No matter what, he's going to die, so is that the illusion of choice? I don't believe so, because it does matter. It affects player experience.

That being said, I believe players who become invested in this series, especially those who engage in fandom, develop a warped sense of what should've been, forgetting the nature of a Telltale game. I know this because that's the foundation my blog was built on.

Javier Garcia isn't a blank slate. You didn't create him. He had a life before the start of the game, he has a personality that you didn't choose for him, and there are things you have no control over. If anything, we act as an influence over the TWDG playable protagonists. Most every option given is something that could reasonably play into their character. I say "most" because we all remember that [GLASS HIM] moment where Javi tells David that Kate's going to leave him and we were all like "THAT'S NOT WHAT I THOUGHT THAT OPTION WAS!" and it felt out of character.

Anyway, you don't dictate who these characters are but you get sway over the direction they take.

Javi can be a real prick to everyone, but that plays into the selfish and entitled part established with his character from the beginning. You can play him as genuine, trying to step up and do better for the sake of his family, another thing brought up from the very beginning.

"But why couldn't I make Javi flirt with Trip!?"

Because it's not an option. I don't know what else to tell you. I don't know what you want me to tell you.

ANF is a Telltale game that centers about Javier Garcia. It's a story about a man who, prior to the outbreak, screwed up and was wasting his life away. His relationship to his family sat upon a rocky foundation, crumbled by his own hands. He wasn't even there when his father died. We follow this man through a story of a family trying to survive, we watch him reunite with his brother and risk losing everything that kept him grounded and going. He experiences grief and anger and sorrow and happiness. In the end, he comes out of it all a different man, for better or worse.

That man just also happened to be bisexual.

And that's the thing: This isn't a story about Javier's sexuality. He isn't going around making moves on these elusive men that mastermind Adam Esquenazi Douglas maybe hid in the game somewhere because the game isn't about Javi liking men.

It's a game about his complicated relationships with Kate and David made messy by Kate being in love with him, and whether or not Javi loves her, too.

It's about Javi helping Clementine back on her path after she's been alone and bitter for so long. It's about them fighting to take down a group of people doing really shitty things to other communities. It's about losing Mariana and avenging her by killing the man who shot her. It's about Gabe feeling conflicted about his father, a man he always wanted to be just like, after realizing that David isn't this idealized figure Gabe thought he was.

It's about the promise Javi made to his father.

The fact that Javi happens to be bi doesn't matter in the grand scheme of the plot. It's just something that's apart of who he is, but because it's a small detail we feel was added in at the last minute, we decide it's not enough.

But what if it is enough? Do we even truly know what this concept of "enough" is?

Throughout writing this piece, I've found myself in a loop.

I'm happy Javier is bisexual. -> But should I be? -> We shouldn't settle for crumbs, we deserve more explicit representation. -> But is there really anything wrong with casual representation where the story doesn't focus on sexuality? It doesn't take away from other stories that do. -> I'm happy Javier is bisexual. -> But should I be?

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Queer stories are important and our voices need to be heard. We need stories that don't shy away from experiences that are hard to stomach. We need queer stories told by queer people. We need stories that are unapologetic, that aren't afraid to face their audience with pride. Stories that don't say "yeah but we have to bend a little to the bigots to maximize our profits." We need these stories that inspire us, hurt us, make us cry and piss us off. We need queer stories with happy endings that give us hope, that push us to seek a better future so that new generations of queer people don't feel alone in their struggles. We need queer stories that make us feel heard, seen.

Do stories with casual representation of queer characters fit in there somewhere, too? I think they do, because TFS is a casual representation story.

Clementine is bi and it isn't a big deal; she never has a moment where she's openly questioning, she doesn't have this big coming-out scene, there's no tears shed or anything. She isn't stomping around with her bi pride flag and announcing who she is with a heartwarming speech.

She just is.

Same thing with Violet. She never comes out to Clementine as a lesbian, no one ever calls her that, she just is.

Clementine's romance with Violet is treated just as it is with Louis, sincere and normal. No one questions her or Violet because to the Ericson crew, it is normal. They knew Violet and Minerva were together before but no one has any quips about it, positive or negative.

If you romance Violet but then save Louis, he makes mention that Clementine and Violet are close so why save him? But Louis, for as much as people side eye him for making jokes and never taking anything seriously, doesn't say anything more. He could've made a joke, "Ah, you like girls, I guess I never stood a chance then, haha." He doesn't, because it's not something out of the ordinary for him and it's not something he feels the need to pry over.

If you go fishing with Violet and Brody, you find the carved heart with Violet and Minerva's initials and AJ asks what it means. Clementine can tell him they were girlfriends, and AJ doesn't go, "Oh, that's weird," or "Huh, I didn't know girls could like each other." He just goes, "Oh. Love." and moves on because he grew up differently, it isn't a big deal to.

Even the antagonists aren't out here spewing homophobia, at least that I recall.

The Ericson crew are a generation that understands and accepts. Where Clementine could end up with either Louis or Violet and no one will raise a brow, or even feel compelled to signal their alliance like, "Ah, yes, I am accepting of you and your choice, good for you, I am an ally, I'm making this about me."

The Final Season of TWDG is great, and it proves that the writers at Telltale at the time wanted to explore these topics earnestly. It wasn't pandering or trying to score "woke points" with the LGBTQ+ community like some bigots will insist. If it were, it would've been way more obvious about it, I think.

Casual queer stories or serious stories that tackle the hardships of being gay?

Like the bisexual I am, I like both and everything in between.

Clementine didn't need to prove her bisexuality as "enough" in TFS, but since the circumstances were different, did Javier?

I'm going to take the potentially controversial road and say no. I understand why we wish they did more, and I understand why people have frustrations over creators dropping that information without actually having to commit in their work... but I also have some appreciation for the casual reveal of Javi being bi, regardless of why it was dropped.

Javier is valid. He didn't need to "prove" anything.

In a way, I believe we do have some control over the portrayal of Javier, and that's by engaging in fandom. If you were disappointed that Javi's queerness wasn't explored in game, then find a fic that does explore that side of him, or write your own. Engage with other people and their work about it. Comment on fanart, fics, and thought pieces. Write brain dumps. Find other Javi/Tripp shippers and prove me wrong, prove that Tripp is indeed Javi's type and have fun while doing it.

Telltale gave us the crumbs, so let that inspire us to bake a cake.

I don't think this concept of "not enough" is the most productive way we could go about discussing topics like this. Not everyone has the same level or standard, and every work is a unique case. But I think it is fun and productive to share ideas of what we would've done differently so that it may inspire us.

ANF, for all of its flaws, could be a tool used to teach us where our priorities are in storytelling, and influence what we want to create ourselves.

In conclusion: Javier Garcia is enough to me.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to crawl back to my bog and begin research into the meaning and metaphors behind walkers and their existence.

But before that, I want to give a big thank you to @pi-creates for making the Javi gif used in this essay, as well as for listening to all my bullshit during the writing process.

[graysnetwork]

What kind of dads I think the 141 tf would be

༻━━━━༺❀༻━━━━༺

𝒥𝑜𝒽𝓃 '𝒮𝑜𝒶𝓅'  𝓜.

❀ Deffo a girl dad

❀ He has three girls with you and always rough housing with them—throwing them in the air and doing anything to make his little girls giggle

❀ ALWAYs giving you heart attacks with the trick he does with them

Once pushed his daughter abruptly into the pool after swimming lessons to see if they payed off (they did)

Then one of your daughters wanted to try a yoga tick and she definitely flipped when she wasn't supposed to.

❀ Always trying to make them happy

Takes them to the daddy daughter dances, takes them on daddy–daughter dates

Buys them anything they want whether it be food to the latest toy

❀ Takes pictures of them all the time!!! What can he say, he likes proof

❀ After a year of taking a break from kids you two try again and finally he gets a boy

He’s so excited

𝒮𝒾𝓂𝑜𝓃 '𝒢𝒽𝑜𝓈𝓉’ 𝓡.

❀ Girl dad all the way!

❀ Obsessed with his little girl and never lets her out of his sight.

❀ Gets teary eyed when she grows every month

❀ He was hesitant to have a kid but you two got the case of baby fever (and horniness) and made one. Now he's in love.

❀ Cherishes her and makes sure she's always happy.

❀ The burly man is suddenly so gentle and always doing peek-a-boo to make her smile

❀ You two wait at least three years to have another kid

Now he’s a girl and boy dad!

❀ Makes sure to treat the two of them so well and make sure they never experience what he did when he was little.

❀ Even with his son hes gently

Sees how Soap plays with his daughters and has a heart attack at the thought of them being in the air

But when his son grows up a bit and starts getting more “tough” (aka punching Simon with his little fists and Simon just thinks it his muscles spasming until he turns around and sees the little guy) he starts playing with him somewhat more rough.

Teaches him Krav Maga

Takes him to the shooting range (only after hes 15)

Also teaches his daughter Krav Maga and gives her enough self protection items to protect herself and the whole school

❀ He tries to not over do it but he's always spending his money on them (and u obvi)

❀ Takes them by base sometimes just to meet their “uncles.”

❀ He just loves them so much

𝒥𝑜𝒽𝓃 𝒫𝓇𝒾𝒸𝑒

❀ Girl dad.

❀ Doesn't have a boy—wouldn't be mad if he had one but he doesn't care, hes ecstatic with his two girls.

❀ Cherishes those precious little girls with his whole heart

❀ Very strict and tells them once they can understand words that they cant date until they turn 30

When they grow up it gets annoying but he's very insistent that they cant date—at least not in high school

❀ He does all the things “normal families do” when he's back home

Disneyland trips, road trips, dinners anywhere the family wants

Speaking of dinners—everyone votes which restaurant sounds the best and that's where you guys go

❀ Almost cries every first day of school

Always posting/sharing photos in family and friend gc’s to show off his daughters achievements

Example:

Price: (Photo of him next to his daughter after getting an award) My daughters amazing

Ghost: 👍

Soap: good kid, congrats

Gaz: let her know we’re proud!

❀ If he posts a picture i believe the caption would go: My little girl is always putting in the work! Best student I know!

He’s always having proud dad moments 🥺

𝒦𝓎𝓁𝑒 "𝒢𝒶𝓏" 𝒢.

❀ Two boys and then one girl

❀ Loves all of them so much!

❀ He’s always teaching them new things

​​He’s a teaching dad

Teaches them how to cook, play sports, bake, swim, ect.

❀ Takes them to sports events and concerts

He’s the kind of guy whos always giving them reasons to post pics

❀ Soaps a cool dad but he's a rowdy cool, Kyle on the other hand is cool chill dad

His kids are never embarrassed by him and their friends also love him

❀ (He’s the dad who the moms like)

❀ Not as strict on his kids but he is very protective

❀ He also teaches his kids self defense

༻━━━━༺❀༻━━━━༺

[coff-in]

You know that last post about Andy being a reluctant sex maniac? It occurs to me if he really could just bust that hard on a daily basis, he'd probably like to experiment a little with it (maybe in a way that won't put someone in a hospital though). Say maybe you're stuck without food so he makes a, say, special bowl of clam chowder- extra thick and salty, just for you. (No you can't ask how he made it. It's a secret. Shut up. No don't share it with Ashley she can get something on her own.)

Then, by some miracle, you actually like it enough that you might try it again later, and he feels like just hearing that feedback gave his body the express command to refill right the fuck back up with enough for another few batches. Then, if he gets the food needed (probably from a more resourceful [reader] scrounging up some more ingredients) he starts putting it in other things he makes when nobody else is looking- the mayonnaise in your sandwich, the glazing of some rolls, the batter for some pancakes, a special protein shake- you think he's really on a roll with learning new recipes and getting some passion for the culinary arts during these rough days, but at the heart of it he's really just gotten addicted to the thought of filling you up with his jizz.

Somehow I think Ashley would do something similar- though she probably wouldn't be as good at hiding it or being too subtle. If it wouldn't be putting her cum into random things you and Andy had to eat, it'd be her bargaining a random neighbor off to a devil so she can lactate at will, then insisting on pouring you all a nice glass of milk for breakfast each day. And if she ever actually gets to know about Andrew and sees he's also doing funny shit with what you've been serving, she'd egg him on to go further and combine their "resources" to see what they can get away with, and ask for discreet lessons in cooking so she can feed you her own tainted dishes. And you'd be so, so incapable of just turning the two down, because as far as you know, hey, they made it for you! Poor, immature Ashley learned to make something nice from her sweet big brother just to make you happy! You wouldn't turn down a helping of special-made, sugar-glazed, extra-protein pancakes just because they taste a little off sometimes, would you?

notes from coff-in: reluctant sex maniac andrew my beloved <3 you guys don't understand the emotion i felt waking up at 6 o'clock in the morning and seeing that in my inbox. went through several stages of disgusted, amused, and horny. andrew must be tired slinging that huge log between his legs, having everyone tease him about that thick outline in his pants or the round bulge... he could hide it in me if he wants to

[gender neutral] reader-insert, NSFW

if [reader] was like me they'd eat anything edible without question. andrew hands them fucking extra creamy clam chowder and [reader]'s like "aw hell yeah, thanks :)" like NOO??? where tf did he get EXTRA CREAMY CLAM CHOWDER??? and why can't ashley eat any??? wouldn't question anything, just thankful to be eating something while stick in quarantine

the "mayo" sandwich is so funny for that fan service/horny potential because maybe andrew adds too much and when [reader] takes a bite, the mayo just squirts out the sandwich from the other end. they scoop it up with their fingers and then suck it, running their tongue over their fingers going "mmmh! it's kinda salty but it's tastes good!" andrew's watching [reader] eat with wide eyes and feels another batch weighing heavy in his balls, waiting to enter [reader]

i like to think that in this scenario that [reader] is good friends with andrew and ashley. yeah sometimes [reader]'s eyes wander towards andrew's uncomfortably, unreasonably big and needy endowments (never letting that go) but they still like andrew for the cynical english nerd that he is and ashley for the annoying and teasing girl that she is. i think that's how ashley came to think "yeah... i wanna feed them my fluids"

she'd be so teasing about it, hinting that it's "made with love" and it's a "family recipe" while they drink coffer made with her breast milk (maybe it's a breast milk tea for [reader] if they don't like coffee). it's a crazy thought seeing ashley standing over a dead body in the middle of a pentagram talking to a demonic entity "i want to be able to lactate" crazy...

andrew and ashley sneak around the kitchen so they could have their "cooking lessons" while [reader] is sleeping. i think [reader] would try to make them something in return, an honest and genuine attempt at a meal to say thank you to them "i know it's not as good as your food but i really appreciate you guys and the food you've been making me" it touches andrew and ashley's hearts

they get off to the idea of [reader] taking the "special ingredients" straight from the source :3

----

coff-in

[bereft-of-frogs]

since it is the last Sunday of Acolyte theorizing and I don't want to go get ready for the work week, here are my collected remaining questions / mysteries, thoughts, and whether I think they're likely to be solved in the finale, left up to interpretation, or saved for next season:

Is Qimir a Sith? Was he really once a Jedi? How old is he? How did he discover the cortosis mine? Who was the master who 'threw him away'? Likely Resolution: Saved for Season 2. I think most of the Sith stuff will be reserved for a season 2, if they get one. Allegedly his character was really only supposed to appear in season 2 but they moved some things up, so I'm comfortable saying most of the Sith stuff will end up being the 4-5 mysteries left on the table for future exploration.

How did Mae survive the fall? What has she been doing for 16 years, aside from training with Qimir? Likely Resolution: Solved in Finale. Confident this one will at least get a sentence or two explanation. Now that we've seen that Sol really does think Mae is dead, I can't imagine he won't ask how tf she survived.

What happened to Koril? What's she been up to? Likely Resolution: Solved in Finale, related to above. Honestly, I'm pretty convinced at this point that Koril survived, saved and raised Mae, until Mae decided to go make a deal with the Sith for additional training. Not sure we're going to get details but I'm pretty sure she'll at least show up.

Why did Mae think Osha was dead? Likely Resolution: Probably left to interpretation. But also I bet she was told Osha was dead either by Koril in the same way that Obi-Wan told Luke Anakin was dead in the OT (dead to them, beyond help), or to keep her focused on her training and her anti-Jedi mission.

How did Aniseya create the girls, and why was Koril so afraid of the Jedi finding out? Likely Resolution: Possibly left vague or for season 2, if it's Sith related. We know it definitely had something to do with the vergence, it was mostly Aniseya's doing, and Koril was very afraid of the Jedi finding out. My theories on this are either 1) it was a deal with the Sith. The Sith want to create life and they collaborate on an experiment with Aniseya. We know from other media and also confirmed by Indara/the Council's insistence on noninterference, that the Jedi don't actually care about other Force sects in the galaxy...with one big exception. Koril might be afraid they're about to uncover something that takes the vibe from 'live and let live' to a much more serious conflict. The Sith presumably would also be pretty pissed if the coven blew a thousand years of secrecy. And 2) the coven might be possessive of the vergence, if it's giving them power, and not want the Order to discover it so they could keep it for themselves. A bit weaker, but the coven might not realize the Jedi already suspect the vergence exists.

What IS the vergence? Likely Resolution: Maybe mentioned? Maybe not? I don't know I just really liked people speculating that the vergence is BOTH the Bunta tree and the spooky dark hole, would fit into the dyadic themes.

What are the origins of the Brendok coven and what did they do to get themselves exiled? Likely Resolution: Unresolved. There's the slightest chance they'd tie this explanation to what Aniseya did to create the girls but I bet they're not going to want to lock themselves into an explanation and will leave it up to interpretation. I'm not sure I even have theories, I could see it going a whole bunch of ways. People are going to come up with their own headcanons probably.

Why is Vernestra so afraid of a Senatorial audit? Likely Resolution: Left for season 2 / Hinted at. I think they might mention it a little bit, but I wouldn't be surprised if they leave it up in the air. Honestly, I sort of hope they do, personally I think it would be wise, because that would allow the books to wrap up and give us a better picture of Vernestra's position at the end of the Nihil crisis. I have my own book-related theories as to why she's so suspicious of the Senate (given where Temptation of the Force left off, I think the Senate is going to sell the Jedi out to work with Marchion Ro for the cure to the blight. This would also dig into her issues with Elzar, since he's the main liaison to the Senate and they've got a lot of unresolved issues. Feeling decent about it ending well though, he still hasn't given her Stellan's lightsaber and that feels like something that would happen at the resolution of their issues). I also would buy that she's starting to see into the future, maybe this is the new topic of her hyperspace visions, and is reluctant to let them be drawn in politically (all her 'something to turn the tide' stuff suggests she's sensing the growing darkness).

Did Indara know Mae was alive / how did Torbin know Mae was alive? Likely Resolution: Left up to interpretation. *Also technically includes 'Did Kelnacca know Mae was alive?' but we just have so little to go off of with that one, we do at least have Indara and Torbin's reactions to Mae. Up until the second flashback, I would have phrased this 'how did they both know Mae was alive' but I am no longer convinced that Indara did. It's possible Indara had no idea until she saw the mark on Mae's forehead and was just doing some very quick panic processing, which could have contributed to turning the tide of the fight. She's no longer focused, Mae can use the dirty trick with the bartender to catch her out. Obviously Torbin knew before Mae actually showed up (he calls her by the correct name, confirmed via CCs ), but they don't specify how long he's known. His 'I've been waiting for you, Mae' could mean he's known from the start and been waiting for 16 years. It could mean the 10 of the Barash Vow, maybe something happens and he finds out which contributes to his decision to take the Vow. But I've always had on my theory list that he'd seen Indara's death in the Force and that's how he knew Mae was alive and probably coming for him next. I think they'll probably leave this one up to us, considering the 3 murdered Jedi's narratives aren't really front and center, I think that ambiguity was just to add to the mystery around the flashback.

How did Torbin make master so quickly? Likely resolution: this is barely a question. This just keeps coming up on Reddit, especially from people who are still convinced 'to become a master you have to graduate an apprentice to knighthood' is hard canon. (Correct me if I'm wrong, I don't even remember where that comes from, but I'm fairly certain you don't need to have had an apprentice to be elevated to master. Or else Anakin's anger at not being elevated in RotS doesn't really make sense, if he knows he hasn't fulfilled an essential requirement, and Elzar's elevation is a big plot point in the books and he doesn't ever mention an apprentice, nor does Avar.) My personal headcanon is 'overcompensation and burnout.' Becomes an overachiever to try to make up for what happens. Given that they lied, the Order sees nothing but a model Jedi, and keeps rewarding that behavior while he tries to hide the cracks, until it all catches up to him. Alternatively, he's not 'really' a master, and it's just parlance, or there's some sort of ceremonial elevation for special circumstances like the Barash Vow. Nonissue, it's just come up a couple times.

Why did Osha leave the Order? + Why did Indara advocate for her to leave? Likely resolution: might be mentioned, might be left on the 'because I failed' line. I made a longer post about this one, but there are a few possibilities. I don't think they're going to explain it, just allow the audience to believe it was about not being able to let go of her anger at Mae, but if it ends up being my weird 'push-pull, when one twin gains power the other loses it' theory, they might address it.

WHAT AM I MISSING? Any final questions left on the table? Send them to me! I have had so much fun theorizing, I only wish this was longer. I keep joking that in a better timeline there's a 12 episode version of this show but it is not actually that much of a joke lol, it would have really been something if it had been allowed to develop the characters a little deeper and let some things breathe over a longer season.

My final prediction still stands: Sol is going down for training Mae, the deaths of the team of Khofar, and at this point probably the Brendok coven as well, since it's going to look like he took out Indara, Torbin, and Kelnacca to keep them quiet. And sorry, I highly doubt he's going to live out the finale. I think he's going to have a final confrontation with the twins, and Osha is going to kill him in an emotionally charged moment. If he was alive to provide testimony, that's problematic for the Sith, but dead he makes an extremely convenient scapegoat. Bazil has also seen a LOT of things out of context on board the ship leaving Khofar, I think his testimony could be damning. Sol's done a bunch of suspicious things, like when he didn't include himself on the list of targets during the meeting, failing to apprehend Mae, (seemingly to Vernestra) lying about Mae's death, Kelnacca didn't seem to put up a fight suggesting he may have known his attacker, turned off his transponder and disobeyed an order to remain, etc etc.

This is the solution to the riddle 'how to kill a Jedi without a weapon', destroying their legacy. Or, the riddle could have multiple solutions, it could also refer to Osha going full Sith. My only issue with the 'Sol is framed' theory is that there seems from leaks to be a formal funeral, which wouldn't necessarily happen if they thought Sol was a rogue Jedi or Sith. But possibly the Order will keep up Sol's good name for outsiders, and this is just what convinces the Council that there still aren't any real Sith out there. Funeral could also possibly be a collective one for everyone else who died.

I think Qimir and Osha are for sure going to live, I'm slightly on the fence about Mae but I'm leaning toward 'also survive'. I am 100% (ok I'll keep it at 90%) sure Koril is alive and shows up at some point. Leaks say there are a couple significant cameos, I'm guessing Sith pulled from Legends books or long-lived High Council members.

Will add on if anything comes to me in the next couple days but it's been nice theorizing with you all! I don't know what I'm going to do after this, wait for Tears of the Nameless to come out. Or, I guess, think about something else? Crazy.

[lizzardwitch]

Heckyl/Kendall :3

MY OTP EVER LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOOOO (Milk you're my goat for this just know I dropped everything to make this list)

who said i love you first?

If you think Kendall's confessing first you've got another thing coming lmao (projecting). Heckyl likely wanted to make it special, researching earthly romantic customs and getting flowers and wine and the like, but before he could actually go through with it, he just...blurts it out like the moron he is. Kendall stands there frozen like "Tf??" but eventually affirms him and kisses him

who laughs when the other trips?

Both of them. Heckyl is a given because he's a boyfailure with laced boots, but Kendall, despite being graceful as hell, is constantly wearing heeled shoes so Heckyl finds it hilarious when she trips because she's normally so composed.

who pays the bills? 

Kendall for sure. She technically pays Heckyl so....(different story when it comes to space currency lmao he's paying for everything)

which one makes a bigger deal around the holidays?

Heckyl would if he had any fucking clue about what Earth holidays were, but otherwise Kendall, although she's super lowkey about it outside of decorating for the museum. Shelby, Ivan, Tyler, and Chase have to get them in the mood.

who’s more clumsy?

Heckyl the alien boyfailure ever <3333

who checks their daily horoscope?

Neither, Heckyl doesn't have a birthday and Kendall is a scientist who finds it dumb.

who sings louder in the car?

Kendall, surprisingly. She's got a really great voice. Heckyl tries his best but is insecure about his voice, and Kendall tries to make more of an effort to include him and hype him up.

who leaves the cap off the toothpaste?

Heckyl fs but he tries to stop.

who is more up to date in pop culture?

Heckyl is pretty cynical about pop culture at first, but once Tyler, Chase, and Shelby put him onto TV, movies and music, he becomes obsessed. He wants to learn EVERYTHING about Earth culture pertaining to those things.

who insists on going to see the newest movies?

Heckyl for sure. Kendall only goes if there's a movie with her favorite actors/actresses in it that she secretly fangirls over

who cries when the abused animal commercials come on?

Heckyl. He wouldn't expect himself to find such a deep attachment to Earthly animals, but there he is with tears in his eyes as Kendall tries comforting him.

who’s the lighter sleeper?

Ms. Morgan the lovely insomniac (again, projecting). Then again, I'm also sure that Heckyl's trauma would also likely keep him from sleeping well. It alternates between the two depending on how exhausted they are, but it mostly goes to Kendall.

who believes in ghosts?

Heckyl. Probably his way of coping with what happened to Sentai 6.

who does the grocery shopping?

Kendall is the only motherfucker who knows how to make a list and stick to it. Heckyl's shopping cart would just be diabetes.

who updates their facebook status more often?

Neither of them own Facebook nor care to, but if Heckyl had social media it would just be a billion pictures of him and Kendall while going "I love my wife sm <333"

[z-nightshade]

For Kim Dokja centered stuff

He and Vivi wouldn't get along very well I don't think. Kim Dokja thinks she's too naive and she thinks he's too uncaring. Their personalities clash uncomfortably is what I'm trying to say. It especially annoys Dokja when the running gag of the Strawhats coming across something dangerous and Vivi saying "oh, I should've told you earlier but..." Especially with that sacred catfish thingy...

This isn't to say that they don't like anything about each other. Vivi finds him too very reliable. And Kim Dokja, despite his dislike of her naivete admires how much hope she has. He also thinks that she'd be a great ya heroine.

Ace is a breath of fresh air. He isn't a child, he's very polite and respectful. A good role-model for Luffy (and Cass).

And then Dokja leads that Ace is on a one-man manhunt against his former brother who killed another one of his brothers. And his target is coincidentally the guy who absolutely trashed Drum Island. And with the way Cass is acting... Kim Dokja is oblivious, not stupid.

So when he does go on a deep dive of informing himself on who tf Marshall Teach even is, he falls down the rabbit hole of being the most informed about the world they're in.

He can understand having only one continent, but how the fuck do the Calm Belts even work? Why do the winds just stop? How does the planet regulate temperature between the Blues? Why the hell is the Red Line so tall?

And that's only the geographical stuff.

Like what the fuck do mean that the World Nobles own slaves?? What do you mean there is racism against fish people. And don't get him started on the whole "learning a(n ancient) language is illegal".

On the bright side, he now knows what an Emperor is and why specifically a betrayal against Whitebeard is straight up moronic.

Kim Dokja has some serious questions for this Blackbeard guy.

(Cass definitely reads through his notes and even helps with them to find a solution for Ace's death)

Kim Dokja thinks of Crocodile as a Scooby-Doo-esque villain. His plan would've worked if it wasn't for the trio and their meddling kids. He also voices that opinion, which definitely doesn't earn sympathy points from Vivi. Kim Dokja doesn't care all that much though. Kim Dokja was also one of those bullied for not being sentimental at Vivi remaining at Arabasta.

He likes Paulie... Until he calls Nami an immoral woman for wearing a skirt. And as for CP9... He's acutely aware. And they're not lying about the boat But hey, not his circus not his monkeys.

As for Franky, he doesn't hate or dislike him at first, even with the Usopp situation. Kim Dokja is acutely aware that it isn't personal and Franky really doesn't know about their situation. Later on when he actually meets Franky, he can't help but respect the guy who found a job and home for everyone who needed one, a guy who when faced with rock bottom, started climbing back up instead of digging deeper like Dokja did himself.

Sorry this took so long to answer. I was out and mobile wouldn't let me

Vivi and Dokja are on, like, the opposite sides of the empathy spectrum. And while I do believe the two would clash, I think Vivi would probably remind Dokja of Yoo Sangah on some level

The "I probably should have mentioned this..." things would be hella annoying

Ace is nice, though I'd be much more interested in Yoo Joonghyuk's reaction to meeting Ace given his opinion on what Cass is doing

This is also around the time he'd meet Sabo too!

Also, I cannot stress this enough. Cass is being so fucking obvious that something is going down with Ace. Frankly, if they could outright say Ace was going to die, they would. Just not in front of Luffy

One Piece is wack and Kim Dokja finally gets a taste of that. He and Cass can bond over plans and how batshit everything is

I would like to say, Cass takes advantage of their own emotional distress when Luffy gets dragged back into the desert to hug Dokja. He tries to pawn them off to Yoo Joonghyuk but they are insistent on hugging him in particular

Waters 7, Usopp crashout over the Merry and Ennis Lobby are going to be wild, especially with Cass and the disaster trio thrown in the mix

Also love Dokja's complete lack of care for anything that doesn't affect him

Mild spoilers for Waters 7 in An Oracle's Odyssey below the cut

So, Cass definitely tries to defuse the situation only to get lashed out at in turn

I won't say what Usopp says to them but it does cause them to shut down pretty much completely. And I mean that

(I will say what Usopp says has something to do with their knowledge and ability to do anything)

I can only imagine how Joonghyuk will take his children fighting or how the other two will deal with the emotional fallout

[reikunrei]

A Parallel World

Last time I talked about Doctor Who, we met Rose's father, Pete, who died when she was 6 months old. That episode prompted me to watch a 2-parter in which Pete returns, only this time he's from a parallel universe. Let's talk about:

Season 2, Episode 6: The Rise of the Cyberman, and Episode 7: The Age of Steel

The general premise of these episodes is the Doctor, Rose, and her sort-of boyfriend Mickey find themselves crashed in a parallel world. There, they stumble into the nefarious plans of a scientist named John Lumic, who’s attempting to turn the entire population of the world — staring with Great Britain — into Cybermen.

We open on a scene with Lumic and a fellow scientist unveiling one of the very first successful Cybermen. A Cyberman is sort of like a robot, but rather than being built purely from metal, they’re an “evolution” of, in this case, humans. The human brain is slotted into a metal exoskeleton, making them a living thing.

Okay, Brenner-ass bitch. Even saying "blessed," something so close to the "miracle"-type language we get from Patty in TFS re: Henry's powers? Sure.

Lumic wants to go straight ahead with their plans to convert more people, but Dr. Kendrick reminds him that they need to get "Geneva's approval" due to its status as a new life-form. Lumic, however, knows that it'll be rejected, but he's hellbent on going ahead with it anyway. This experiment is a means to save himself in his declining health, and he'll be damned if anyone gets in his way.

He has the Cyberman kill Dr. Kendrick and decides to move ahead on his own.

We then cut to the Tardis, where we find the Doctor and Rose regaling tales of their travels to Rose's boyfriend, Mickey, while he holds down a button on the Tardis's control panel at the Doctor's request. The Doctor sheepishly admits he could've stopped holding it about a half hour ago, and after Mickey lets go of it, the Tardis lurches and starts going haywire. The Doctor frantically tries to regain control, but the Tardis's panels aren't reading the time vortex at all. He shouts that it's impossible, but it's just gone.

This honestly just makes me laugh, specifically the "Otherwise known as London" in conjunction with all the TFS promo about a "portal opening in London" etc. Also, the zeppelins are such a nice touch because of how Fringe does the same thing. I'm not sure if Fringe did it as a reference to this, because it's a trope that appears to happen in other shows, at least per my meager research. But given that Fringe began airing in 2008 and this episode of DW aired in 2006, I wouldn't be surprised.

Also, I know @aemiron-main has spoken about the UD as it possibly exists as an "in-between" place, which I can't find the original posts about, but he discusses here. I also recommend checking out Stav @heroesbyler's posts, like this one, about the void and differences between it and the "real world."

The Doctor says this isn't their world, and Mickey is the first to suggest parallel worlds, referencing the concept as it exists in films. That's when Rose notices a street advertisement of Pete, holding up some health drink and saying his catchphrase “You can trust me on this,” indicating that he's still alive in this world. The Doctor tells her that she absolutely cannot go see him, because he likely has his own Jackie and his own Rose, "His own daughter who is someone else, but not you."

Today, as it happens, is Jackie’s birthday (February 1st), and she and Pete are setting up her birthday party at their swanky mansion due to this world’s Pete’s entrepreneurial success. It’s her 40th, but she insists she wants to tell everyone it’s her 39th. Something something weird ages something something dates being just slightly wrong something something she wanted her birthday to be the same as a celebrity so specific dates are important. Here, we also learn about the EarPods that everyone is wearing, Jackie gloating that Lumic sent her a diamond-studded version of the latest model for her birthday. We’ll learn more about these later, but for the time being, just think of them like a cross between bluetooth headphones and Neuralink.

We return to the Doctor and Mickey, who are sitting in the darkened, dead Tardis wondering how they’re going to leave.

“The worlds were sealed” really popped out at me. While we don’t know when or how the UD and Dimension X were created in ST or if they’ve been there this whole time simply locked away, it’s interesting to imagine that there could inevitably be a harmonious existence between worlds, especially with what the Doctor says here about things becoming “less kind.”

It pulls on a similar idea from Fringe, wherein the two shown universes begin colliding, and with two universes being shoved into the space of one, they start conflicting with each other in highly catastrophic ways. Before that point, things existed harmoniously, with our characters even able to view this parallel universe without issue. It was when meddling began, including lots of hopping between universes (sometimes for selfish reasons) without understanding what it would do, that the problems started. Ultimately, all is solved by permanently separating the universes again, barring travel between the two forever. Which, and I’ll talk about this in a future post, is interesting when taking into account how the parallel worlds in DW interact with each other in the future, including forcibly keeping characters apart/having the two worlds be barred from one another unless massive amounts of energy are used to link them, and, even then, only temporarily.

I’m curious to see how all our dimensions in ST interact with each other and if the solution will be keeping their communication in check, or if they’ll have to be sealed off entirely. I’m of the belief that destroying the UD is not the way to go as a solution to anything in ST5, and I highly doubt they’re headed that way anyway, but only time will tell how it’ll really shake out.

As the Doctor and Mickey talk, the Doctor spots something: a little speck of light down in the grating of the Tardis’s floor. Though it’s small, it means they’ve got power, and, thus, a way to get home. They need more power though, but specifically power from their universe. The Doctor, being the one source of that available to them, gives away 10 years of his life to this little glowing power cell, putting it on a 24-hour recharge loop that, once completed, will give them enough juice to hop back home.

Meanwhile, Lumic has sent one of his henchmen, Mr. Crane, on a “recruitment drive” for his Cybermen experiment. He drives to a homeless encampment outside the city in a freight truck marked as “International Electromatics,” which doesn’t match the name of Lumic’s company, Cybus Industries. The henchman gathers the homeless men, claiming he has hot food for all of them in the back of the truck. Many rush to him, but one is stopped by a young man with a camcorder telling him to reconsider.

The man brushes him off and goes to the truck. Once he steps inside, however, he seems to realize what’s really going on, but he’s grabbed and wrangled behind some hanging plastic sheets as the doors shut, leaving us only to hear the screams of the men inside.

Lumic’s entire operation is very HNL coded, if you couldn’t tell. It’s even tied into the Russian presence in ST3, what with the both of them working under the guise of a different company name in order to skirt under the noses of the public. But here, specifically, it’s obviously reminiscent of HNL stealing kids to experiment on/with, especially under the guise of it being helpful.

The Doctor and Mickey find Rose, who’s been reading up on her dad in this universe after her cell phone was automatically connected to the Cybus Network, which is basically just a specific kind of internet access made by Lumic’s company.

“You can’t become their daughter” okayyyy alternate selves filling in gaps where they “should” be. The "wrong" kid being stuck into circumstances they were never meant to. Surely nothing to think too hard about. With a name like Peter involved too? Completely unimportant.

With their 24 hours to kill, Rose goes off to see Pete and Jackie, the Doctor right on her heels, while Mickey goes to visit his grandmother. In their world, his grandmother died several years prior, so with the understanding that Pete is still alive, Mickey is curious to know if his parental figure is still around, too. However, as he comes up on his neighborhood, he finds a roadblock. He asks if he can enter.

“Lessons begin promptly at 10:00.” … sorry, I had to.

We really don’t get much into the socio-economics of this world, but, as it’s easy to see, there’s a clear disparity between the classes, and the average citizen is strictly surveilled and poorly treated.

Mickey does find his grandmother, still alive, but, here, she calls him Ricky.

Boy, if you don’t quit it with the name swapping and taking roles… something about TFS Henry likely being Edward and taking on a role that possibly isn't his own...

His grandmother complains about his friends and him getting into trouble when Mickey gets suddenly scooped up by a mysterious van, driven by a woman and accompanied by the young man who tried to save the homeless men. They speak to Mickey like they know him, scolding him for speaking to his family when he supposedly said doing so would be dangerous. He runs with it, opting to let them share their intel.

Always gotta have a "who?" moment...

As Rose and the Doctor head to the Tyler household, the crowd of people around them suddenly freezes as all of their EarPods begin beeping. Rose’s phone, connected to the network, also begins beeping and showing what everyone else’s EarPods are receiving.

Color me surprised when we get a hivemind reference even in these episodes. Because why wouldn’t we?

It turns out that Cybus owns most of the companies in Britain, including Pete’s. As soon as the “download” is done, everyone goes back about their business as if nothing happened, and Rose and the Doctor watch in bafflement before continuing on their trek.

We then get a scene of Lumic meeting with the President of Britain (remember, alternate universe!) in order to gain approval for his Cyberman invention. He speaks about the human brain being “the most precious thing on this earth” and “yet we allow it to die.” Through his invention, he’d be able to sustain the brain “indefinitely.” This would be “the ultimate upgrade” and “Our greatest step into cyberspace.” Disturbed, the President asks him to stop his presentation.

It’s kind of giving Brenner’s “I did everything for you” moment to El in ST4, claiming that all that he did was for the greater good, and should that all be cast aside? Here, Lumic’s goal on the surface is to better humanity, but he has selfish reasons for pursuing it as well. We get hints of Brenner’s selfishness, with it being much more overt in ST4 and in the VR game, in which Vecna and Henry, respectively, call him out for using the kids as a means to seek out greatness for himself. Not to mention the idea that Brenner may have been using Henry, at the very least, to find some sort of means of immortality or regeneration, just like Lumic is doing here.

Referring to Lumic as “God” really jumped out at me, specifically irt things James @henrysglock has spoken of extensively regarding the religious imagery/coding of various characters. We get a lot of it with Vecna and One, but there’s also endless religious coding for Brenner, specifically in the role of a priest/father. While that’s also not specifically God, it’s not a stretch to consider on-screen Brenner as “God” in the sense that he’s creating these children in his lab to be used for his own purposes.

Also, I’d be remiss to not at least touch on the mention of “cyberspace.” Again, I’m genuinely surprised that we get a hivemind-esque aspect in these episodes that contain myriad other similarities to ST. It’s not really emphasized that the Cybermen can communicate with each other/are all connected in the way the UD creatures are in ST, but they do all experience the same lack of emotion and have one shared goal, and they can all be simultaneously communicated to via Lumic’s transmitter. It’s akin to the flayed in ST3, following the idea of them existing in their daily lives before being “activated.”

Despite the President’s explicit rejection of Lumic’s plan, Lumic once again goes behind the backs of authority and asks Mr. Crane to move their plans forward — “I am governed by greater laws, old friend. The right of a man to survive.” Using the homeless men from before, now equipped with EarPods that leave them blank and pliant, he orders them into surgical chambers which, though we don’t have a reveal yet, put their brains into the Cybermen exoskeletons. They, along with many others that have been made from the “vagrants” they’ve grabbed off the streets, are loaded up into trucks to be transported. When one of the drivers concernedly asks what they are, Crane says “I’m told they’re the future. Ain’t technology wonderful?”

Honestly, Crane gives me lowkey Owens vibes. While he doesn’t have as much (supposed) kindness as Owens does and is still rather cold like Lumic, his demeanor is very casually playful by comparison. Unfortunately he doesn’t show up too much throughout the episodes, but he does progress the plot substantially again later, also in a semi-Owens way.

Now let’s check up on Mickey, shall we?

So, he’s been not-kidnapped by these two folks in a van, but when they return to their hideout, they find… Mickey already there.

But, if we remember, this is actually the previously mentioned Ricky, Mickey’s parallel world counterpart. Realizing Mickey isn’t who they thought, the three of them strip him and tie him up in a chair to search for bugs, of which they find none.

Okay Henward… cloning and brothers but also just being alternate versions of the same guy… surely nothing to see here.

Mickey learns that these three — Ricky, Jake, and Mrs. Moore — are part of an underground rebellion called the Preachers — “As in ‘gospel truth’”, as Ricky puts it, since they don’t wear EarPods. He says they’ve got “freedom” compared to everyone else who gets downloads from Cybus, which is so... haha wow okay fourth-wall-breaking sentient Henry in NINA helping El learn that HNL is a prison. As we saw in the earlier scene of Rose and the Doctor on the street, it might be hyperbolic, but "freedom" isn't far off. Everyone being hooked up to the same system, being fed the same information at the same time every day, and being closely monitored at all times? Slight Soteria reference, I see you…

Then, Mrs. Moore, their techie, interrupts with news that they got “an upload from Gemini,” who tells them that the vans (containing the Cybermen) are moving. Gemini is someone working with them from inside Cybus — a double agent — but they don’t know who that person actually is.

Now we return to Rose and the Doctor, who’ve snuck into Jackie’s birthday party disguised as waitstaff. The Doctor takes a moment to tell Rose that she “can’t stay. Even if there was some way of telling them.” Rose immediately dispels the possibility, since she has her actual mother back at home, but she does lament that this Pete and Jackie “have each other,” while her Jackie has “no one.”

Something something a universe where none of this bad stuff ever happened.

Rose finds her way toward Pete to talk to him — obviously not giving herself away and simply making small-talk — and, similar to the other episode I linked at the top of this post, Pete finds himself sharing personal information with Rose and has a “have we met before?” moment. Again, despite not knowing who she is, and even though she’s not even from this universe, there’s an automatic connection that he feels.

Rose even tries to talk to Jackie, and, since she’s posed as a waitress, asks if she can get her anything, to which Jackie responds “The last 20 years back.” Yeah, I’d bet Henward would like that too.

Ultimately, after having a tender moment, indicating that this version of Jackie also feels a connection, Rose tries to convince Jackie to give Pete another chance, since she learned from Pete that the two were having marital problems and Pete had even moved out, they just haven’t made it public. Rose believes Pete to be a really wonderful guy, same as always, but the forwardness of her comment sets Jackie off, who verbally berates her for sticking her nose where it shouldn’t be when she’s “just the help.”

Here we also begin to learn that the Tyler residence is where the Cybermen are headed. Pete, with his company owned by Lumic, works closely with him — the Preachers call him a “henchman” and “traitor to the state” — but that also means he’s been interacting regularly with the President, who is in attendance at Jackie’s birthday, who also just rejected Lumic’s plans for the Cybermen. I assume you can see where this is going.

The Cybermen are released onto the property, where they promptly surround the house and start breaking inside to round up everyone. While the Cybermen are new to this universe, the Doctor recognizes them from his own — they’re from the original run of DW, which I haven’t seen, but we see the dismembered head of one in a season 1 episode, which Rose and the Doctor even call back to here.

Lumic, though not physically present in the room, speaks to everyone inside the house and, specifically, to the President.

Lumic argues that they were “homeless and wretched and useless, until I saved them, and elevated them, and gave them life eternal.” One of the Cybermen speaks, saying “We have been upgraded.” When the Doctor asks into what, it answers that it’s “The next level of mankind … You will become like us.” When the President asks what would happen if he refused the upgrade, despite the Doctor insisting that’s a bad idea, the Cyberman says he will be “deleted,” and promptly kills him via electrocution with its hand to his shoulder.

Do you see what I’m seeing? Are we seeing the 4.07 monologue parallels? One tells Eleven that she’s better than everyone else and he can help her get even further, that they can change the world to be what they want, and when she refuses, he tries to kill her. I also just think it’s neat that, while they’re not exact copies, Lumic being more Brenner-coded while the Cybermen are like One in the monologue… okay we get it, that wasn’t really One and he was just a husk for Brenner to puppet in NINA.

With the President dead, everyone panics and begins trying to flee, while Lumic orders the Cybermen to kill anyone who refuses and round up the rest. The Doctor and Rose flee outside alongside Pete, catching up with Mickey and the Preachers, who have guns and try to shoot down the Cybermen as they’re all surrounded. The Doctor warns them that bullets won’t stop them, however, and we see this in action with the Cybermen being entirely unfazed while they’re shot. Okay, Vecna.

Trapped, the Doctor orders everyone to put their hands up and says they’re surrendering, explaining “There’s no need to damage us. We’re good stock.” Doooon’t say that word!!! Don’t get that close to the HNL breeding program terminology!!!

However, the Cybermen claim they’re “rogue elements,” “incompatible,” and “inferior,” and therefore must be deleted.

Which, I haven’t really touched on that yet, but isn’t it curious that the Cybermen use the word “delete” rather than something like “kill” or “eliminate”? Searching around, it seems that this was something introduced in these episodes, so it’s not standard to Cybermen across the entire series, and it doesn’t even regularly continue when they appear in later episodes. However, while it ostensibly is a stand-in for “kill,” the use of a different word, specifically one more correlated to something like cyberspace and a digital realm, has me staring hard at NINA. To bring up Fringe again, it even makes me think of Peter being wiped from the timeline, something more akin to “deleted” since he wasn’t actually killed.

Stuck under threat of death, the Doctor uses the little power cell from the Tardis to hit the Cybermen with a beam of his energy, which…

Sure, disintegrate them, see if I care. Whatever.

Now able to escape, the whole lot of them pile into the Preachers’ van and drive off. There, Pete admits that he’s Gemini — the one who’s been giving the Preachers their inside information, though he was under the impression he was communicating with security services, not "Scooby Doo and his gang."

Lumic speaks to several of the Cybermen now, calling them “My everlasting children” and asking them how “it” feels.

Okay mister “you must not rely on emotions” and claiming that it will lead to failure if they use them to boost their powers, whatever you say.

At this point, it’s also very clear that the Cybermen are further reminiscent of massacre One with the lab kids, and Vecna with his whole “end your suffering” schtick that just amounts to killing his victims. Like, that sure is a way to end suffering, bud. Even if the Cybermen aren’t actually dead, as we’ve established, the humans inside of them are entirely stripped of their emotions and autonomy, which does technically lead to a sort of “end to suffering,” if you give it that angle.

Pete explains to the gang that “This all started out as a way of prolonging life, keeping the brain alive. At any cost.”, which Lumic claims is the one part of the body that “makes us human.” Having since removed their EarPods, all of them watch in horror as everyone who was wearing EarPods are activated and made to herd themselves toward the big Cybus factory where they’ll be made into Cybermen.

However, Mr. Crane roughly pulls out his EarPods before he can be turned into a mindless drone. Lumic is slightly disappointed by this when Crane comes to him afterward, but Crane says he wants to willingly offer himself for an upgrade. However, as soon as he gets close to Lumic, he begins ripping out the life support attached to the wheelchair he uses (“Are mommy and daddy fighting again?”). A Cyberman intervenes and kills Crane, but the damage has already been done.

Reminds me a lot of Brenner’s “bit off more than he could chew” tendencies. Like Lumic, he can control things only to a certain point, the only difference here being that Lumic’s situation is with the intent to help him, while Brenner’s is/would be a matter of creating something stronger than what he can control. However, it does make me think of the Brenner/One merge theory as well. Could there potentially be a sequence of events where, in Brenner's search for greatness, he is unwillingly, literally brought up to that level of greatness via some sort of merge with his favorite test subject? And, as a result, it ultimately destroys who he was, despite his desire to reach this point?

Then we get a really fun shot coincidence.

I also want to interject with a brief sidenote here. When I was plotting out this post, I found myself having to jump back and forth a lot. Many of the scenes as I've outlined are actually way more split up, with most of the different people interactions we get "overlapping" with each other. I realized it's because it's a very similar style to how ST operates, wherein there's several groups of people who are all working on different parts of the plot simultaneously, resulting in scene sequences getting "interrupted" by each other, before they finally converge and realize they've all got different information to help with the same situation. And I just thought that was a neat similarity! It's not something that happens often in DW, given that usually there's not this many "main" characters in any given episode and it's usually only the Doctor and their companion(s).

Anyway, Rose and Pete want to break into the factory to try and find Jackie, who they rightfully assume was taken to be upgraded, though they’re not sure if they can save her/if it's too late.

Not sheep……….

Now, Rose and Pete go off donning fake EarPods to sneak into the factory to find Jackie; Mickey and Jake go together to try and shut down the transmitter on the zeppelin; sadly, Ricky was killed by Cybermen while they were trying to flee the Tyler residence; and the Doctor and Mrs. Moore team up to go down into the cooling tunnels beneath the factory in order to enter from below to shut everything down. At this point, the entire lasting population of London has gathered inside the factory against their will, and they must stop it before they’re all converted.

The Doctor and Mrs. Moore make their way to the cooling tunnels, which they find lined with rows upon rows of inactive Cybermen. The Doctor asks her how she found herself in her current position with the Preachers, and she says she “used to be ordinary” (there’s that word again, we LOVE that word) and she even used to work at Cybus Industries.

Gotta love going down into an underground maintenance area while discussing truth and lies and escape. Hasn't happened anywhere else before.

When the Doctor asks her about “Mr. Moore” she explains that “he’s not called Moore” and she simply got that from a book — “It’s safer not to use real names.” She essentially faked her own death in order to keep her husband and kids safe.

Meanwhile, Pete and Rose are caught in the factory after showing emotion — they’d found Jackie, who had, unfortunately, since been turned into a Cyberman. Rather than be killed, though, the Cybermen recognize Pete as someone who worked with Lumic to create their species, and therefore decide to take him and Rose to be upgraded.

This aspect of their conversion is interesting to me, specifically the “she remembers” part of it. Because, yes, she does remember who she is; she herself confirms to them that she “once … was Jacqueline Tyler.” However, it’s not really her. On a physical level, obviously, but even still mentally, it’s barely Jackie. It even refers to Jackie in the past tense, saying it was Jackie rather than is. It's kind of giving "I'm normal. I'm Henry Creel" lol, like, okay, sure you are.

Let’s briefly touch on the whereabouts of Mickey and Jake. They’ve made their way to the zeppelin, where Mickey convinces Jake to simply knock out the guards at the entrance rather than kill them because then “what’s the difference between you and a Cyberman?” Usually I argue against this sort of rhetoric, because it’s just kind of stupid (“you’re no better than me!!1!” bro just kill the baddie it’s fine). However, we want to remember our emphasis on compassion, especially as it involves people who are either entirely innocent of or under the influence by the actual bad person. Mickey understands that there’s no point in avoidable death, even if these people are aiding in the eradication of the population of Earth — he doesn’t want to be part of it if it involves the murder of someone simply twisted up in a bogus system they have no control over. Something something circumstances make the man. The two of them find the computer controls, where Mickey begins tapping into the Cybus network to find a solution.

Returning to the Doctor and Mrs. Moore, Lumic is alerted to their presence in the tunnels, and so he begins waking up the dormant Cybermen to chase them. They manage to escape, crawling up out of the tunnels and shutting the door over the Cybermen making their way up the ladder. They then, however, come face-to-face with another, which Mrs. Moore incapacitates with an electromagnetic bomb.

This allows them the chance to get up close and personal with the suit. The Doctor opens its “heart of steel” to get into its chest, where they find it filled with flesh — a central nervous system which was artificially grown and then “threaded throughout the suit so it responds like a living thing.” Which, the Doctor clarifies, is what it is: a living thing.

Then he points out a small black chip within the chest plate.

The Cyberman then “wakes up” and asks why it’s so cold. The bomb broke the inhibitor, which is now allowing the human inside it to feel, which the Doctor apologizes profusely for. After learning her original name, he puts her to sleep so she won’t have to suffer in this new body.

This gives the Doctor the realization that that’s the answer to their problem: if they want to stop the Cybermen, they should aim for the emotional inhibitor, the key. All they’d have to do is find its cancellation code and feed it into the Cybus network, making them all realize what they are and kill them.

Just then, however, another Cyberman appears and kills Mrs. Moore. It senses the Doctor’s binary vascular system (two hearts), however, and deems him an “unknown upgrade” and will need to be analyzed.

So, he, Rose, and Pete all find themselves captive together once more. Lumic, now converted into a "superior" Cyberman — "designated Cyber controller" — reveals himself to them. Very early on in the episode, Lumic speaks on his experiments and, in an attempt to dispel rumors that his health is declining, talks about how his mind is "more creative than ever." In his new Cybersuit, he tells the Doctor that "London has fallen, so shall the world" and he shall bring everlasting peace, unity, and uniformity to the world so they never have to experience pain and suffering again.

The Doctor says that now the Cybermen will never advance, they’ll “just stop” and stay stagnant forever. He says that, in that world, the planet will lack the one thing that makes it so alive: “Ordinary, stupid, brilliant people.” I spoke extensively about the importance of the “ordinary” in my last DW post, so I’ll simply link that here again rather than talk your head off about it, lol.

Lumic asks the Doctor if he’s “proud of [his] emotions” and he gives an enthusiastic “yes.”

Um, Duffers… Tom MacRae called and he wants his ST3 Jim Hopper letter monologue back.

Emotions are good, even the nasty ones. Especially the nasty ones, because that’s what makes you alive.

Lumic says then, sure, he’ll simply kill the Doctor, but the Doctor shouts that that’s not his decision to make, and he “[doesn’t] control [him] or anything with blood in its heart.” Lumic threatens him with his army of Cybermen, but the Doctor argues against him.

Absolutely insane to me to call ordinary people the key. See again my last post about the importance of ordinary people, and this post (among others) about the importance of the word key as it exists in ST, and thus the tie to ordinary compassion being the key to solving our Vecna problem.

Mickey, with the Doctor’s help, plugs in the numbers for the cancellation code at his computer, which causes the emotional inhibitors in all of the Cybermen to cease functioning, which causes all of them to fall into hysterics. One stares at its reflection in a metal panel as it moans in agony, and the Doctor apologizes. The rest of the victims, those who hadn’t been converted yet, are free to escape with their EarPods now functionless.

With the Cybermen neutralized, the Doctor flees with Pete and Rose to head to the roof. They make it, but so does Lumic as he grapples up after them on the rope ladder to the zeppelin. However, with some help by cutting one of the ropes, he gets knocked off and falls to his death atop the roof of the burning Cybus factory.

The rest of them manage to escape, and Pete finally really asks who Rose is. She explains that she’s his daughter from another world, and he seems put off and overwhelmed by this. When she calls him “dad” in an effort to get him to come with her, he appears to panic and hurries off, telling her that he has to work on shutting down the rest of the Cybus factories across the globe.

Even Mickey decides to stick around in this parallel world, seeing as he has his grandmother here to take care of, and with Rose traveling with the Doctor, he’s become a bit of a third wheel anyway (specifically "the tin dog," an inside joke about the Doctor's old robot dog, K-9, which I won't get into here but... we love our dog talk here at ST, don't we?). He tells Jake, however, that he’s “a different man, I’m not replacing [Ricky].” Once again, I want to point to the whole "I'm Henry Creel" thing in TFS and the concept of Henry and Edward swapping, literally, or at least being "swapped" by way of being shown interchangeably on-screen, etc. etc.

The Doctor brings Rose back home to see Jackie, who’s surprised when Rose rushes her for a big hug.

Whew! Are you still with me? We’re in the home stretch, I promise. Time for some last thoughts!

The first thing I want to touch on is the concept of the Cybermen in general, but also as they were adapted for these episodes in particular.

The main objective of Cybermen, as indicated in these episodes, is a desire for survival and immortality. This slightly changes between iterations of the Cybermen across the whole series, but, as the fandom wiki puts it, “they were often born out of a human civilization’s, or an individual’s, fear for survival,” which even included threats like poverty or degradation of their planet, which, speaking specifically to the “poverty” aspect, is something we see with Lumic claiming that kidnapping the homeless men was helping them.

Cybermen, as we’ve established, also lack emotion. In this iteration, they have their emotions forcibly removed because Lumic sees them as a hindrance (and it keeps them agreeable in Cyberman form), but past iterations involve it being a voluntary part of the conversion process because they “considered [emotions] to be a weakness and instead embraced pure logic.” How borderline-Vulcan of them… but as I previously mentioned, it’s similar to the sentiment Brenner expresses in the ST4 NINA sequences, wherein he warns the kids against relying on emotions to strengthen their powers.

While some Cybermen had names or monikers, most were only individualized by ranks or numbers. All of them, however, wanted to fully conquer their universes to ensure survival and would work to convert any “compatible” life forms to ensure their survival as well. Something something they’re not gone something something they’re still in here with me. Stripping them of their souls but claiming now they’re somewhere better or safer. Sure. Whatever.

Cybermen, despite being considered “life forms,” cannot breed and they only increase their numbers by converting compatible living creatures into Cybermen. Evidently, however, an upgrade was introduced in, as far as I can tell, season 8 of the 2005 DW reboot wherein Cybermen could convert the deceased into Cybermen, no matter the state of their corpse, but this could only occur in a place called the “Nethersphere” which is dubbed a “Matrix-like computer” where the “minds of the dead” were stored until their bodies could be converted. This “Nethersphere” is also called “the Promised Land, Paradise, or Heaven” … aight. Surely nothing to see here irt recent leaks and speculation.

As an additional note, even the stuff about Cybermen being made rather than born has me looking at what's introduced in TFS irt Brenner using Henry's infected blood to do transfusions with other patients to give them the same type of infection/alteration. As we see on screen, it's very clear that at least some of the kids were likely bred from Henry/were actually born into the lab, even if they were from outside mothers like Terry ("outside" meaning "not presently living in the lab"), but TFS partially presents it as children being brought in from the outside to be directly given these transfusions and "turned into" the same "thing" as Henry.

A key point of interest with the Cybermen is that they have no real point of origin. They don’t have a “homeworld” that they’re born from, and instead they crop up across several universes, or even within the same universe, at different times and places simply because the populations there had a parallel desire for security and/or immortality. This has me mulling over stuff such as:

Us still not knowing what the origins of the UD (and Dimension X) is, and whether or not it’s been around forever or if El created it. And thus, in that vein, what’s the origin of the Mind Flayer?

The mere concept of on-screen Brenner, across timelines, seeking out the same kid(s) in order to fulfill his still-unknown final goal, which in itself is interesting… what are his motives? What are his origins? How did we reach creating a child torture dungeon?

Patty being referred to as “the girl from nowhere” and, though having never been mentioned before on screen, carrying immense weight in driving the story of TFS forward, often times by force, at least as it pertains to Henry. Something something her and Henry being connected “whether you like it or not” vs the Cybermen/Lumic forcibly converting people.

Henry, per TFS, is from Rachel, Nevada, despite the town of Rachel having not existed in 1959.

For these specific episodes, the writer, Tom MacRae, wanted to reimagine the Cybermen so they weren’t “mere villains” and instead were “sad figures,” made terrifying because they were forced into being converted rather than outright killed. He said that this would make them “a cross between vampires and zombies.” Please, not two of the monsters wound tightly into the imagery of ST…

He didn’t want these Cybermen to be simple mechanical beings, he wanted them to be as close to human as possible while stripping them of everything that made them as such.

Moving on, I briefly touched on it above, but I once again want to draw special attention to the scene of Lumic being forcibly turned into a Cyberman. As I’ve said, we still don’t know much, if anything, about what Brenner’s goals actually are. Sure, the government probably does genuinely want a leg-up on the Soviets, and these kids are a path to that. They’re funding it, after all! However, come ST4, the government doesn’t seem too happy with their continued existence. Hell, even in TFS, Brenner has a quick line about how the DOD wanted to dispose of Henry, but he convinced them out of it. If that tracks from stage to screen, then there’s some sort of personal stake here for on-screen Brenner. What can I say? The man loves his wife. If you want to see more about why I’m keeping a neat divide between TFS Brenner and on-screen Brenner, peruse @henrysglock’s page and keep an eye out for his big upcoming post that will delve into a lot of that.

Like Brenner using the lab kids to fight the Soviets, Lumic presents his goal as a means to better humanity on a global scale. It’s about preserving the human mind and giving them a reprieve from what he deems to be “suffering.” However, he has the fairly explicit ulterior motive of preserving himself. He’s in poor health, thus this would indefinitely prolong his life and, as the creator of the Cybermen, would put him in charge of every other Cyberman in existence. Again, we don’t know Brenner’s goals, but, as I mentioned above, it does have me staring at the Brenner/One merge theory and the potential for Brenner being somehow mixed up in Vecna, which then creates a neat through-line with Lumic and Vecna’s shared intention to “end suffering,” even if it’s in the most eyebrow-raising and clearly-lying way possible.

It is interesting, however, that Lumic begged to not be turned into a Cyberman. The Doctor said it for him, but Lumic likely understood that once he became a Cyberman, he would no longer be the same man who created the Cybermen. Early in the episode, he speaks of feeling creative, but removing what makes him human also removes that creativity. He wanted to save his conversion for his very last breath, prolonging his human life for as long as possible.

On top of everything else, this leads me to wonder if whatever personal goal Brenner had/has for the lab kids is a double-edged sword. A lot of that comes simply by virtue of the unknown. TFS Brenner wants to make contact with Dimension X/the Shadow, but instances of that often result in carnage. On-screen Brenner (potentially, allegedly, possibly) used El to find Henry “in the darkness,” which resulted in our Mother Gate mess in ST1 that kicked everything off. If Brenner was seeking something like immortality or abilities of his own, would any path to that “greatness” ultimately have a large flip-side that makes him “lesser,” for lack of a better term?

Moving on, I want to further discuss the similarities between Brenner and Lumic and them claiming their arguably heinous methods are “helpful.” In Lumic’s case, he believes that he’s “elevating” the people in the lower rungs of society by creating a world of uniformity, even if it means entirely stripping them of their humanity and freedom. Hell, he has to turn off their emotions so they accept it. Similarly, Brenner claims he’s helping the lab kids and making them stronger, more important, calling them his family and saying he loves them, but somehow that also involves isolation and shock collars. El and One are right to call the lab a prison, but from Brenner’s perspective, he believes he’s doing best by these kids to prepare them for their roles in the world and protecting them from folks on the outside who might abuse them for their powers (yeah, ironic, I know, but that’s also kind of the point, right? When someone else does it, it’s for the wrong reasons, but when he does it…).

Now, I personally don’t doubt that Brenner truly loves the lab children. He’s very distraught during the massacre, and he seems genuinely grief-stricken when he talks about Henry (I couldn't find the more serious version of this post, I'm sorry ghsfjdgk). While he’s using them for expressed and personal gains, it’s clear that the pain he feels at losing them is something more than just “oh, boo-hoo, my experiments are ruined now.” Lumic expresses similar sentiments, and while he’s much farther in the camp of “wow look at my inventions, everyone clap and cheer about how smart I am”/it’s more about being proud of himself, he does still call the Cybermen his children, indicating he does carry a deep fondness for them as his creations.

And I know this sounds contradictory to what I said earlier about them working for their personal gains, but while they might have their selfish reasons, that doesn’t mean the expressed ones aren’t also real, you know? Lumic fully believed that this would be better for humanity as a whole, and Brenner fully believes that this is for the better of his children and the country. They also just both happen to have their own personal stakes in it that give them a little more devotion to their respective projects, even if it backfires in the end.

Now damn. Am I done talking? I think I’m done talking. These two-parters always take a lot more words than I think they will, especially when they offer enough interesting connections and ideas irt ST! There’s little doubt in my mind that the Duffers may have taken these episodes, or the Cybermen in general, as inspiration for HNL and its inhabitants. There’s just too much language surrounding them for it to be a total coincidence. The similar parallel world stuff I can at least concede is by virtue of how parallel world stuff usually works, but the rest of it? I’m looking.

As I mentioned prior, we do get returns of the Cybermen, including in episodes where we also get a return of the parallel world, which I’m planning on delving into soon. But for now, I think this is some interesting stuff to chew on irt how things might shake out in ST5 in conjunction with Brenner, HNL, and his children. Only time will tell!

There's plenty more things I could have touched on, but there's so many little things in these episodes that just had me pointing and going "you see that, right?" It's really great fun, and I wish I had more articulate thoughts on a lot of it, but I know it'll stand out to the folks who read this.

Until next time!

[otherpigeon-moved]

Danyla Lavellan - The Inquisitor necromancer

major choices bunch of facts & headcanons under the cut!

Early Life

The Lavellan clan in my canon has no interest in humans, and they are incredibly blood thirsty

They travel from forest to forest, staying in the deepest parts, far away from civilization

Being raised in this environment, Dany is not the easiest to get along with

Her magic manifested at age 10, when she tangled another in thorns because they were teasing animals

She is an only child, and was doted on by both of her parents

Almost to the point where she felt smothered

SO getting to study under the keeper was something she cherished and took very seriously

In fact, she takes most things seriously. If you can make her laugh, you deserve an award

In studying under the keeper, she obviously learned a lot about Dalish history, but she also became an expert in lost magic- specifically shapeshifting

She's used this ability to scout or to scare off anyone who comes too close to camp

Her relationship with her parents remains strained- they still try to treat her like a kid, and she resents them for it. She considers the keeper to be her parental figure

Shortly before the conclave explosion, a couple of Clan Lavellan's young mages had wandered out of the woods, curious about the outside world

A group of templars found them and...well, it didn't go well for the mages

The clan found the young mages, and, being the way they are...decided on revenge.

In Game

They find out a bunch of templars- and the templar leader!- will all be in one place. The conclave.

Dany volunteers for the trip. She's furious & wants to keep the clan protected at all costs

So of course things go badly because why wouldn't they

Dany denounces being the herald any chance she gets

She wants absolutely no part of any of this, and pushes back a LOT. She just wants to go home

In fact, if it weren't for Cass pushing and insisting on recruiting, the Inquisition would be empty and would probably fail lmao

Eventually, Dany realizes she has power. Lots of it.

And she kind of goes on a tyrannical warpath. If you're with her, great, if not...well, I'll pray for you

And everyone is kind of like "what tf did we just do"

Romance

Dany took a lot of comfort in the one other elven mage of the inquisition

She just...really loved being around Solas. She could listen to him talk for days

She just loves learning ok!!! She's super open minded to his theories and ideas, and is incredibly interested in the fade

The only thing she doesn't take kindly to...is the slave marking thing because she is really proud of her heritage. No way they're wrong.

She takes the breakup badly.

She actually becomes softer, she thinks maybe it was because she was too difficult to work with

Aaaand then he leaves for good and she gets worse than she was before she met him. She lost her anchor, lost the one person she trusted and cared about.

So she kinda doesn't care about going off the rails

Post Game

Dany stays with the Inquisition since her clan is gone, and turns it into a powerhouse. It's something people have grown to fear, which leads into "is the inquisition actually useful now?"

She also works closely with Briala to make Gaspard's life hell

And maybe there's a lil fling there but it's very brief and hush hush

(no, she never got over Solas thanks for asking)

After Trespasser she is completely mind fucked. She disbands the inquisition and becomes sort of a recluse in order to reflect on everything

I say sort of because she does try to find Solas. She will help him destroy the world if it will restore elven glory- even if it will cost her her own life

She keeps in contact with Briala (who has become a dear friend), and Leliana

There are very few sightings of Danyla post Trespasser. She uses shapeshifting most of the time to keep a low profile

[finalgirlmoment]

PJOTV Ep 4 + 5 (spoilers)

My brain is, and has been, rotted entirely! I feel like the TV show is such a treat because the new content adds layers to the story SO MUCH like the plot and character dynamics it makes me want to scream. Yes the differences are absolutely notable but the bottom line is that our main trio would find each other in any universe or storyline and would choose each other every time

-The opening scene of episode 4 broke me a bit: the lore that Percy actually did not take naturally to being in the water, he was actually afraid to be swimming! I feel like before we definitely characterized him as someone who felt at home in the water since he came out the womb but damn look how far he comes. How jarring it must be to later find out you're actually the son of the sea god :o

-Percy continually being angry about the system of the gods (not) interacting with their children, being so shocked that a parent wouldn't help or talk to their child. He's so sweet and I feel like his rage grows the more he gets to know Annabeth because he sees how amazing and loyal and cunning she is and wonders how her mother could ever ignore or abandon her

-Annabeth just in general, her badassery is so fucking perfect for this character, the way she draws her knife, her being so fucking in tune with Percy already....the way she knows exactly what Percy is going to do before he does it ((and the way he listens to her unconditionally i.e. cutting off Medusa's invisible head in episode 3 but I digress)), knowing he was alive and waiting for them somewhere at the beginning of episode 5. she is a LEGEND and she is LOCKED TF IN

-the hug <3 i won't make it weird if you won't <3 <3 we're like friends now <3<3<3 do u understand how i hurt

-trio walking down the side of the road like bums -_- i died lmfao. also them hiding when approached by some dude and just being like <3 we good ty tho!!

-Percy, again still acclimating to this fucking weird ass world where gods are real and can kill u easily, is shook when ares threatens to kill them. luckily, as a change of pace, grover is cool as a dang cucumber and saves the day af. this is what i mean like absolutely the characters are so different like yes grover has been nervous a lot but he also can turn it tf on and smooth talk when he needs to

-Annabeth has never seen a movie. Percy immediately insists that they watch one together. Look me in the fucking eyes and tell me that's not a date? Hello?

-The entirety of the tunnel scene/chair scene. Percy being the one to figure out the story illustrated Hephaestus' life. Percy ALREADY working to save Annabeth first and foremost! Percy continually sacrificing himself for her! Believing deep down she is capable of great, impossible things and being willing to set aside his life for her without question. Telling her she is better. "You just are. And you know it." Giving her Riptide, no second thoughts, no backing down.

-ANNABETH CHASE ALREADY ASSUMING PERCY'S PROMISE WOULD BE ABOUT HIS MOTHER. HIM BEING ASSURED SHE WILL SAVE HIS MOTHER, NO HESITATION. HIM ASKING HER TO COME BACK FOR HIM. HER BEING SURPRISED THAT HE THOUGHT HE HAD TO ASK. (THE ENEMY PHASE WAS SO SHORT LIVED. THEY HAVE BARELY GOTTEN IN THE BACK OF A TRUCK TRANSPORTING LIVE ANIMALS TOGETHER. WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY WOULD TALK ABOUT IN THERE NOW. I'M fine don't worry about me).

-On that note, the ending. Percy is like a loose cannon full of a deep rage and a lot (A LOT) of unrealized power; his problem is that he is not locked TF in like Annabeth (as of right now) and the ending really made me excited because it feels like he is finally catching on to what a big deal he actually is. All this anger he has inside him, all this rage at what he has lost and the suffering he has seen, .... i'm honestly beside myself at what is to come because this is already SO JUICY and I feel like we've barely started!

-side notes: the score is so amazing, I'm really enjoying it and I understand all the videos of the actors promoting the soundtrack!!! also my sister has never read the books but she loves the movies and we watch it together; she is very very excited for the casino scene so there is definitely hope for her in the near future. ((my nico loving ass will also be holding binoculars and twitching))

so yes a lot was changed but i am really liking the new content a lot because it just feels like added lore and, again, these guys can best the odds in any universe and help each other in every timeline. the most important plot points are there and i feel like they have already set up a lot of info for later on down the line. I do wish there was a bit more banter/conversation (because Percy is actually so quirky and I feel like this could be explored more) but the time we do have is amazing and feels super fresh! even when i've read the books to pieces! and again the convos they're having right now are setting shit up for later and maybe then they can play and have fun wit it. as always, i will be loyally sat, lurking, reblogging. kiss

[needtobehisprettyboy]

Arcane Fandom Pet Peeve:

Ximena + latina stereotypes

I don't know if any other latino feels the same way, but it's so annoying seeing people make Arcane content with Ximena being the angry mexican mother stereotype.

Don't get me wrong! The chancla threat is definitely something I've seen firsthand and is common in latine (not just Mexican) families, but I still hate seeing fandom content with it because I am tirrreed of the angry/feisty latina stereotype being applied to latina characters simply because they're latina and not because they're stubborn, sassy, etc etc individuals. I don't even know if everyone who has made content with Ximena being like that are actually latine. If they aren't, omggggg that just makes it more annoying like plz get tf outta hereeee—also, Ximena is far from the stereotypical aggressive Mexican mother, so why make content with her like that?

(I mean I know why latines do it but anyone else? STAWWWPPPP)

When Jayce had almost gotten EXILED and had his apartment exploded because of his research in magic, did Ximena get very angry and threaten Jayce? No! She had every right to be angry due to the fear of losing her child and of Jayce being so. damn. insistent over his magic stuff, but instead she was more desperate and sad, asking firmly yet anxiously for the council to just let. him. come. home and wanted him to just let the dream go. She didn't yell at Jayce aggressively even if any other mother might have.

Personal hc based off canon:

She's not the type of mother to get aggressive when upset. Her emotions will lean more towards sadness and disappointment—if anything she's the "I'm not angry. I'm disappointed" trope than the "Que?! Pinche desgraciado—*chancla slapping sounds*" trope.

Ximena is a single mother and while she may not be perfect, she's not verbally much less physically abusive.

She spoke out to protect her son, but did so in a manner that had her appeasing the council. One could say she doesn't often fight back the way she should and is a bit of a doormat to society—which is common for a lot of people in the older generation. Her and Jayce's dynamic, as seen in the scene after Jayce's expulsion from the academy, is one where she tries to get him to keep his head down and he is too stubborn to listen. It's the classic "But mom! It's not fair!" vs "I know, honey, I know. That's just the way the world works." and "Mom! You shouldn't let him speak to you like that!" vs "Honey, it's okay. Let's just go—please don't make a scene."

I'd like to note that she let Jayce leave after Jayce told her he would "go find someone who will" support his magical, seemingly impossible dream because "my family won't"—not to mention didn't do anything when Jayce basically slammed the door shut behind him when he left.

If she were a stereotypical Mexican mother, she wouldn't have let Jayce's disrespectful behavior slide ESPECIALLY since he barely reacted to getting expelled and focused more on what she did to PROTECT him!!!! Anyway—

If things are unfair, she'll ignore them. She'll protect her family and keep her son safe however she can, but she doesn't like to rock the boat and wishes her son wouldn't either. She loves Jayce, loves him so much, and loves that he got so far in life, but Ximena has been through so much that she would have been fine to keep her small, quiet life.

All that matters to her is that her son is safe and alive.

[chronosaurvs]

anyway. having watched t1/t2 yesterday (it was a weird day) along with rewatching genisys recently (it's a weird month).

i actually do agree that the casting department was a bit misguided but definitely not as much as people insist it was... jai courtney was 100% miscast as reese and there's just no way around that (i don't even have a better actor for the part in mind, he's just giving channing tatum imo). having seen the movie without seeing t1 first i just thought he's supposed to be like that but afterwards it's like. is there tragic lack of male actors that would have matched biehn's physique/overall energy of a thousand yard stare soldier from the future better than the guy who looked like he wandered off the set of magic mike. i've only seen him in stills as i've never watched salvation but physique-wise anton yelchin was a much better reese, imo. (not to mention, physique aside – i'm not sure whether it's writers that are to blame or courtney or both but his performance did not seem even remotely based off biehn's which was. off)

but i absolutely don't get the hatred people have for emilia clarke as sarah connor tbh. while she doesn't seem anywhere near t2's linda hamilton it's also like. are we forgetting that this sarah, while raised by t800 and traumatized™ by the loss of her parents is like. not the same woman sarah was in t2 because she did not go through the events of t1/the time period between t1 and t2? like. deadass it did make sense for her to be softer around the edges than t2!sarah. what i choose to blame for her looking out of place is the styling department tbh. she doesn't look that different from younger hamilton (i've seen people complain about her being 5'2 but like. are we forgetting linda hamilton is 5'4 💀) but mein gott that styling was atrocious. i get that it was 2015 and >daenerys but also like. it was not that hard to style her similar to hamilton in t1...? and it would have worked so well for her too tbh. like they did not have to go all t2 on her styling, but finding a balance between 80s sarah dressed in casual clothing and t2 sarah was like. absolutely doable tbh. just give her 80s adjacent hair, a dean winchester jacket and a normal tank top (it's not that bad in the movie itself but that cleavage is straight up haunting, esp in the promo images. what was that for...) annd it would've been so good tbh.

and ok they could've definitely ditched matt smith (please) and jason clarke (please²). i just did not like the latter and while he did fit the part of an annoying antagonist he's just not john (not to mention the entire john is a terminator now plot should've stayed in the writer's room–). also >matt smith. not a fan of matt smith in general but he did take away from skynet being skynet tbh, i didn't watch dr. who but the second i saw him on screen (in that shot when kyle is about to get sent back to the past) i knew sth was up with him because why is there matt smith in the background. i just couldn't unsee him either tbh, why is matt smith there at all. funnily enough i didn't have that issue with emilia despite being a game of thrones watcher. also not a fan of human skynet whatsoever tbh... stay tf inside the puter.

that aside, i've seen people bitch about robert patrick not being in genisys (insane take to begin with because there's a reason he did not reprise the role. see: age). like yeah, it worked for arnie. it wouldn't have worked for him. i actually found arnie aging believable (the "old, not obsolete" stuff was p annoying given that it's a machine that's supposed to last 120 years but also. living tissue so i guess it's whatever). but also the entire thing with t100 is that he's supposed to be terrifyingly efficient and i just cannot imagine robert patrick pulling that of in this day and age.

moreover, i... liked lbh's take on t1000 better than his despite the shitshow that was that subplot, his screentime and whatever they did to his character (most advanced infiltration/assassination unit pausing to yap and hide from cops, one of whom he's posing as, and his target, who is hiding from him. hashtag writing). with that being said i do feel like he did a gr8 job with the shit script he was given, i do think it was a very respectful/tasteful performance in comparison to the og and also i definitely saw why arnie was praising him in behind the stage content (while seemingly not giving a shit about anyone else lmfao). i did read a lot of what ppl had to say about patrick scaring the shit out of them as t1000 bc of how inhuman he'd seemed at times but i did get more uncanny valley from lbh's t1000 with the way he worked with action scenes (that scene where he was getting shot at? yea... the moves/body language were just way cleaner and YEAH there is an argument to be made about him basing his acting off patrick's and it being an insane advantage given that patrick was indeed incredible in the role but like. still. it just looked better to my eye. especially if you watch behind the scenes content and how quickly he got into the role at times. oh arnie you're the only one that gets me...).

overall i feel like if they just:

1. focused on what made t1/t2 work (with a heavy emphasis on t1 because i did find it way more horror-adjacent than t2)

2. didn't shy away from making the movie R rated (pg-13 terminator movie is a crime in itself tbh)

3. leaned more into the grittier, less marvel-esque visual that og movies had (about to sound like one of those ppl on twitter fighting about wicked 2024 looking the way it does because i only have a rough idea of what i'm talking about but – i keep thinking back to the love witch 2016 looking the way it did, which was amazing btw, and being shot on 35mm. yeah. coincidentally iirc t2 was also shot on 35mm...)

4. ditched the 2017 plot and focused on the 1984 storyline, which would have been a mix of t1 (>1984) and t2 (>t1000 >t800 being the good guy) with some spins of their own (john not being in the picture unlike t2, delving into the dynamic between reese and sarah a bit more, etc.)

5. refrained from dumb ass writing decisions for the sake of marvel-esque jokes and EPIC MOMENTS™ (t1000 being the way he was, t800 learning less in 10 years with sarah than it did in a couple days with john in t2, og t800 being a dumb pile of metal, sarah and genisys!t800 preparing for this shit for 10 years and still running around like they had no clue what's going on, 1984!t800 getting revived by t1000 like that because reasons)

6. focused more on 1984!t800 and its contrast to genisys!t800 (hard because cgi but definitely doable in a better way than the movie did) and remained on the same page as the og 2 movies about t800 and t1000 being lowkey horrifying and hard to kill

7. made t1000 and 1984!t800 the main and secondary antagonists respectively instead of that cursed terminator john plot and expanded more on t1000 in particular (t2 did leave me with a lot of questions about the way that thing works and iirc other canon material did emphasize that it's capable of eventually developing a consciousness of its own, as t2 imo kinda hints at/suggests, whether intentionally or not, with t1000 developing its modus operandi/preferences as the movie goes, in particular that final fight sequence from t2. insert that one robert patrick gif here.)*

* – i actually did think of a few things after seeing a couple reddit comments (i know, i know) that could've worked well in tandem with the horror aspect/were something new to the series. funnily enough the comments in question were just ppl misremembering t2 lore but also it was inchresting to me that their minds went to that place and it's definitely sth one could work with, especially in the "how could we improve the technical side of it all" sense. it would've also been a good enough explanation as to why the t1000 model sent to 1984 is different from the one in t2 (iirc the script states it outright)

edit: yeah it does lmao

ANYWAY. if they have just taken all that into account it could've worked so so well...

[alyssalikestoreadbooks]

Disclose - Joelle Charbonneau

"Meri Buckley—or Meri Adams, as her new ID labels her—has lost everything.

Her mother to a fight much bigger than herself. Her father to grief, fear, and denial. And the truth—to an overbearing government that insists that censorship and secrecy are the only path to peace.

But though Meri and her band of truth-seeking Stewards did lose the first battle in their quest to enlighten the public, they have not yet lost the war. They’ve learned that society isn’t ready for the whole truth—so Meri is determined to find a way to spoon-feed the public the facts. That is, if those behind the country’s insidious system of big lies and bogus laws don’t kill her first."

Read Date - May 25th, 2025

Length - 368 Pages

Genre - Dystopian, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Rating - 8/10

Stars - ★★★★☆

Notes - Meri becoming Merrium and keeping the name Meri feels... like i get it but is it really that common of a name that people wouldn't notice? i love that Dewey is still active in Meri's life. them finding a group of minors that want to defend the cause is really interesting because its basically child warriors. Meri choosing to be captured and revealing where they're holding people is SO FASCINATING. it's horrific and literally torturous and i can't imagine it in reality. Meri getting fucking TAGGED? WITH A BARCODE? holy fuck... like seriously it's giving nazism, and the book addresses as such with the showering scene referencing the holocaust and how terrified they are that it'll be a repeat of history. the entire camp situation is literally terrifying and easily could be happening at our borders here in America right now, it's happening in other countries, its happening in Palestine, i can draw millions of similarities between reality and what this book depicts. it's horrifying. slavery and the holocaust and the prison system all wrapped in one disgusting bow. Dani attacking Meri because she thinks she's gonna out the stewards is WILDNESS. she gets beat tf up, and honestly, what prison story is a prison story without some violence and fights? Meri finds Isaac, and he tells her he cant leave. he hates his dad, and it's just... wow. Meri sneaks out and Wallace is there too. i do NOT TRUST Wallace. all the signs are pointing to him being a spy of some sort and i do not trust this fucker. the reveal that HE IS A SPY IS SO YESSS OI LOVE THIS SCENE. Meri kills him, and takes enjoyment in it. This is a tough scene because you're meant to see it as black and white but i think its not that grey. it makes a LOT of sense actually. Meri and Atlas kissing this time felt a lot better than in the first book. it made a lot more sense and fit seamlessly into the novel. Meri taking Mr Webster hostage was also an incredibly powerful scene where she got to regain her power in the situation. they go live and broadcast the facts, but then Meri is fucking shot. and then WEBSTER IS SHOT. I love how it ends with it not being perfect. theres no happy ending, it's just... an ending. Meri has atlas, but the government is still in power. as she says, it's just the beginning of change. it's very powerful and i think it was a beautiful ending.

[theglitchywriterboi]

I hate it here SM, my brothers thought it'd be funny to mess w/ me by insisting I was just outside talking to them. Except they both don't know how to mess w/ people cause they pretended to be dead serious [they've done these jokes before so yeah even though they sounded dead serious, Ik from past experience they were joking, this wasn't me being in denial] & insisted for a while that no I was just out there w/ my cat. Then before I left idk what I said but I referenced them saying I was just out here & then they decided it'd be funny to go [in a serious way still] "??? What are you talking about ??? You only just came out here ???" After spending a while trying to make me feel like I was crazy for not remembering.

And to be clear I know they were fucking w/ me cause their story changed [first it was I was just out there. Then I said no cause I had my cat in the living room so I wouldn't have gone out w/ him out there. Then it was I brought him out too. Then I said no I was going to but he was being bratty & squirmy so I didn't. Then they said I WAS out there w/ him, but only for a second cause of how he was acting. Then they gave me chicken [this was when I actually came out**] & one started insisting I go inside & give it our grandma her bit, so I was like "You already told her ?" & then they were like "We assumed you did when you came out here before ???" Then I pointed out the inconsistencies, so one said she knows cause he texted her. Then I pointed out how she doesn't understand texting & also they JUST said they assumed I told her]. Idk why tf they thought that'd be funny ??? They also kept doing shit like "No seriously we're not messing w/ you, are you okay ??" & the messed up thing is even if they're like "Sorry :(((" I'll still think I was the crazy one & they're only apologizing to appease me cause they know there's no convincing me.

[& one of my brothers texted me like "Sorry I only did it cause you try to do that all the time" But the thing is I ALWAYS start grinning/laughing. Neither of them believe me for a second. & If they did for some reason believe me I'd be like "No I was just joking". Also my shit is obviously lies like "You said you'd get me [insert place we can't afford]" or "Where's my [six expensive items] ???" Or things that wouldn't work like saying they'd get X when whenever they DO say that they'll get something I always text them a reminder to be safe.]

[ballorawan740]

SCP Scenarios: SCP x Fem!Child!Hybrid!Reader

Main Masterlist | SCP Scenarios Masterlist | My Works Masterlist | Rules | Request | Socials | My Original Post

Requested by: @nightfoxyycats

I'm so sorry this took longer than expected T_T

(Yes Ik it's longer than the others I do, and that's cuz I usually end up mixing the headcanons into drabbles/one-shots, but this time, I kept it as bullet points and I got carried away. Oops. And yes, it's easier to write headcanons this way but it'll end up being long af)

When Cain first met you, he overheard and was curious about this new SCP during a test, so he decided to come and watch, from afar of course.

When Cain first met you, he overheard and was curious about this new SCP during a test, so he decided to come and watch, from afar of course.

Anyways, the little test was just a plain and boring one and little (Y/N) was taken back to her containment cell after 10 minutes. Cain had requested to see you as he remembered seeing in your file that you can breathe fire and cry lava among other things due to your dragon abilities.

It's not like he didn't believe them since he's been in the foundation for many years, but he was just curious about a hybrid child like you and wanted to see if you were doing well. You being a shy child was quiet at first and when Cain went to visit you every so often, you both became close and he was a father figure to you, even though you were abandoned by your father since birth and your mother died not long later.

He took good care of you and made sure you were well fed. You were rather polite to the guards and staff so Cain wouldn't need to worry too much about you intentionally killing them. But only for a short period of time as who knows what you'll be like when you're older.

Luckily for Cain, you were also carnivorous, so he didn't have to worry about you eating your 5 a day (not that you wanted to anyways you ungrateful meat-eating child).

Whenever there's a containment breach, the first thing he does is to look for you

Aside from some side effects, he isn't worried too much as he wouldn't receive any wounds anyways so hell just charge towards anyone who looks/sound like you

He's basically your new dad ok?

SCP 076 (Abel)

Abel first came into contact with you during a containment breach

He just saw you casually flying around and occasionally lending the guards a hand by breathing fire just to burn some holes for easier access (how professional)

He saw you again moments later when you were alone and you decided to approach this hulk of a man to ask for some help, thinking he worked there. Abel had abandoned you (like your hopes and dreams left you a millennium years ago) but you insisted on going with him so he took you in

Later his rage in the facility had vanished as he had cared for you for the short period of time he had met you and handed you over to the guards, much to their surprise

He then ran away as he's not totally scared of kids or anything and hid in his box

You insisted on visiting 076-2 and so the researchers did, realising much later that you both had bonded. Abel was a parental figure to you.

A very overbearing protective guardian I must say.

Even more so when there's a containment breach

Like imagine 610 and 682 mashed up together to form an extremely hostile entity and that's Abel for you

But that's only if you were hurt, if you weren't or fit was just a normal containment breach, had be extremely worried

SCP 049 (Plague Doctor) (Guy's pls don't be mistaken, I don't have any beef with 049 ok? XD If I make any characters a little OC then 049 will gladly rid the pestilence from you without consent)

This sassy MF so-called doctor right here met you when for some reason, the doctors had decided to put you both into a testing room (no, it wasn't Bright's idea).

049 was just doing his thing as you just sat on a really high chair (cuz you do be short so ofc you wouldn't be sitting on a lower chair which is lower than your taste in men/women) and watched curiously. The doctor thought it was somewhat cute and laughed slightly from your curiosity.

Sensing that you didn't have the pestilence, he allowed you to scooch closer just to see. After the test was done, the guards took you back out with slight aggression, but you, for some reason, were still polite to the guards despite their aggression which made 049's heart swell due to your pureness.

You yawned slightly and accidentally blew out fire from your mouth which almost caused a containment breach if it weren't for 049's quick thinking

Later on, the researchers had decided to put you both in the testing room again, and you both began to bond as 049 requested you to burn the bodies he performed surgery on

Needless to say, you both had a great time and the researchers were mildly amused

If you somehow knew another friend (*ahem* 035), he'd probs ask him/her to care/loof for you if there were a containment breach

Or he would just sigh and look after you himself if you were closer to 035 and he asked so nicely

SCP 035 (Possessive Mask) (Right about 049 being sassy.... I'll take that back, 035 is the sassiest, right next to a certain sculpture in the foundation)

Anyhow, 035 was actually the reason you were stuck in the foundation anyways

God knows how, but you met this guy wearing this theatre mask and you ended up here in the foundation

Now everyone thought you were either a Keter or Euclid

I mean, you were so close to being put into the Euclid class but ended up in safe since you were so polite to the researchers as well as shy and relatively easy to contain... For now

Whenever they used you in a test, you were rewarded with whatever you wanted, within reason ofc, whenever you behaved well which was like 98% of the time minus minor accidents since you weren't entirely in control of your powers

Sometimes instead of a reward, you'd request to see 035 as he would perform to you and that was only granted when its safe to do so and when that hideous mask would do as he/she/it is told

035 would be that somewhat overprotective yet goofy uncle that everyone loved and he was totally wrapped around your fingers unless you were hurt or if he urgently needed something or someone

If there was a containment breach, he'd look for you, if not he'll call out his 'friend' to look out for you (*cough* 049 *cough*)

When 035 finds you, he'd most likely ask you to fly around to see the nearest exit or he'd just carry you when there's someone chasing you

If 035 were to kill anyone, you'd cry and tell him no to which did end up in burning the floor but oh wells, they're rich enough to contain him so why not use the extra money to rebuild the floor right?

Anyways, 035 loves you no matter what and he'd do anything to make sure you're doing well

SCP 999 (Tickle Monster)

Ok so, when you and 999 first met each other, you were kind of just wandering around the facility minding your own business

999 just casually slithered up to your leg and offered you some sweets and a hug since you looked upset and so you accepted it

You both found a place to sit and just talk bout stuff and what life was like before you were captured

But you were cheery just like 999 and rarely attacked anyone, and if you ever did, it was either that you were hella pissed or you accidentally breathed fire/teared up some lava which burnt some stuff

The researchers would secretly take in some notes bout your interactions and just continued on with their day and left you both alone, but would sometimes keep a stern eye on you

They say it's for everyone's safety, and that's true to an extent, but the main reason they do it is to monitor your progress of you controlling your powers

Anyways, sometimes when it gets busy in the cafe or down the hallway, you just fly across the room, and sometimes, you'll be extra cheeky and play hide and seek with the researchers

999 would occasionally join in but he's more like a worried older brother to you

During containment breaches, 999 would run around looking for you and when he did, he would check if you had any injuries

When you say you didn't, he was relieved but not for long since you mentioned bout making new SCP friends and he just died right there and then (not really)

SCP 682 (Hard to Destroy Reptile)

Similarly to Able, he'd be wary of you at first

Like, he can sense that you weren't just an ordinary child when you just appeared behind him

He was somewhat irritated when you followed him around, but you reminded him of 053, so he just let it slide and let you show some affection towards him

It's not like he didn't like it, he was just embarrassed

Anyhow, the researchers wanted to test how 682 would bond with you, so they made you meet up with him again but in his cell

You were both chatting like father and daughter and soon, everyone had found out that not only could you fly, you could also cry lava, which yes did burn a small hole on the ground and you could somehow breathe fire

You were also immune to the fire and lava so they decided to have a full-on body check and discovered that you were built similar to the komodo dragon with a side of 682 (XD Don't ask)

682 was left stunned, but luckily he didn't feel the need to run up the wall like that bunny

Like who tf invented a self-eating bunny?

Anyways, research shows that just like Abel, the giant lizard was very protective of you

The theory has it that you were somehow related to the lizard, perhaps he laid an egg before containment and some guy took it in and froze it then decided to hatch the egg

During containment breaches, he would basically rampage around the facility, killing anyone and everyone until he found you

And when he did, he would check on you like the amazing father he is and then carry on killing but was then stopped by you

So he would just carry you around until you fell asleep

SCP 105 (Iris)

I think Iris would be a good mother/sister figure when it comes to kids

It kinda came from the fact that Iris hangs out with Abel and Cain a lot, so it kinda just rubs off her

Her motherly/sisterly instinct just heightened when she first found you on a mission and she just took you in

It took a while to bribe the foundation that she kinda had custody

Not exactly custody, but she had a say when it came to your safety, especially the fact that you weren't exactly human and your appearance would cause a disturbance to others

I feel like Iris would be a stern yet kind guardian towards you, leaning towards the stern part since you're a child SCP and has fire breath and lava tears

Iris wouldn't be entirely bothered by you flying around, but she had to bribe the researchers and some SCPs to help you fly better

She would murder anyone who had to cry because they made you cry and cleaning up after your tears is such a mess considering that you have little control over them

Your fire breath on the other hand is slightly more controllable, but if you were hella happy or mad you'd breathe the fire and burn anyone/anything

Most of the time, its unintentional and you're usually sweet and kind towards anyone, so manners aren't a big thing for Iris to teach you

She'd even teach you some of the stuff she learnt/discovered and you'd just sit there being nosy and curious about everything

Like that one time, you almost caused a breach cus you were so curious and friendly that 682 was about to snap off your head and rampage out of the foundation

And don't even get me started with the brothers and 096, OML

Other than that, you both were like a family you never had :,) (You're welcome!!!)

During containment breaches, Iris would literally pick you up and run

Unless you weren't with her for whatever reason (Yes, you're attached to each other's hips... Don't lie, you love it!), she'd do anything to find you

If you were hurt, shed tend to your injuries immediately and lecture you about safety

If you weren't hurt, shed still give you a lecture, then pick you up and run

If you made friends on the way, she may or may not approve and bite of anyone head

And the foundation wouldn't want an Angry!Iris around

SCP 106 (Old Man)

This old man here is basically the definition of a cool uncle/granddad

Without a doubt, he'd go into his pocket dimension and comes back with a teddy bear or some sweets

He'd spoil you a lot and the foundation had enough of this cuz by the time you become an adult, you wouldn't be independent enough

Anyways, 106 would let you go into his dimension and practice your abilities there for the safety of others

The researchers would occasionally ask you to carry a camera with you just so they know what it's like in his pocket dimension

106 rarely gets mad, and even if he was, it'll be about someone trying to hurt you since you're too kind and shy to make him mad

You're even kind to the researchers and guards which is worrying to 106 as they might take advantage of your kindness (which may be true for some, but most of them are just glad you're kind since it makes their jobs so much easier)

Sometimes, you'd make things levitate which was a shock to anyone who walked by and witnessed this

But only for a few seconds though, so it's not much

106 would encourage you to use your telekineses and he'd attempt to train you

Which didn't work so well, so that sucks

During containment breaches, he'd use his pocket dimension to his advantage

He'd hide you in there just so you don't have to get hurt

If you weren't there with him, he'd kill and hunt down anyone who might know where you are

He'd make sure you weren't hurt otherwise he would go into scary uncle mode

If you weren't hurt, he would just hug you which stops you from crying lava

SCP 096 (Shy Guy)

Now what makes you and 096 a unique pairing is that you're both shy

The only difference is that you can speak but 096 kinda doesn't

But that's not a problem since you both just understood each other since day 1

I'd say 096 is that introverted uncle/cousin but he's kinda chill and sweet with you

As for containment breaches, the only difference with this tall guy is that not only will he kill anyone who sees his face, he'd also hunt down anyone who'd hurt you

096 has a newfound ability for this and the researchers were shocked when they first found out

A certain chainsaw loving doctor wanted to test it out himself but was stopped rather quickly by the other researchers

Anyways, one time you almost burnt down the foundation because 096 crept up behind you which scared you to tears

And you screamed as well which didn't help at all since you could breathe fire

Also, when you're not with 096, you'd use your levitating powers to grab lighter objects which did result in the objects falling onto your head

And this is why you need to train more, so then objects wouldn't be yeeted onto your tiny head and knock the nonexistent brain cells out of your nonexistent brain - Sorry not sorry (Ok so at least pretend to laugh)

If anyone bullied you and you didn't say a word, 096 would know and even if you tried to stop him, it wouldn't work

Unless you're in a life-threatening situation, but even then, he'd kill the guy

Dr. Simon Glass

Unlike the others on the list, you're the one who approached the doctor

Mainly because you were lost, but you were curious as well

Simon would probably be the best person to run into, other than Kondraki, but still

It's because he's a psychologist and still very much human (I mean, Kondraki's a normal human I guess, but he has those butterfly thingys)

Anyways, when he first saw you, you were in his office flying about and crying lava

Simon saw you and was shocked but attempted to calm you down and get you you sit with him for a bit, then call the others

But boy did that not work out, because this poor innocent boi was boutta get killed by your firey breath cuz he startled you too much

Bright, Kondraki and Clef just strolled in and saw the mess and even attempted to get you to chill, but this didn't work either

So poor Simon Glass had to find his way to get you to stop being so scared which obviously worked

You sat down with him and he let you doodle on a blank piece of paper

And being a good psychologist he is, he used psychological methods to get you to feel comfortable and to start talking to which you did

You were so polite he gave it to a chocolate bar, but instead of taking it off his hands, you used your telekineses to levitate it in your direction

Simon recorded what he had seen before letting the other researchers take you and offered to take you under his wing on the condition that you were you have a check-up every now and again

That wasn't much of a problem since you were so polite and chill - Usually

During containment breaches, he would make sure that you were safe first and it wasn't so difficult to deal with you since you were with him most of the time

When you're not with him, he'd be extremely worried like a mother hen and run in any direction that would take him to you

He'd be relieved to see you and if you were hurt, he'd bandage you up and try to not cry

If you've made new friends, he would be very happy about it - Unless it's a Keter or Euclid class

They'll be on his watchlist

Anyhow, Simon Glass is basically your mother and mentor

He'd teach you all the basics you'll need and help train you if he can (he'd most likely have to ask the other doctors and SCPs with some bribery)

Dr. Jack Bright

Our favourite doctor here would be that goofy uncle/dad

I feel that he'd sympathise with you since he's also an SCP (sorta) and he feels kind of trapped in the foundation

If you're lucky enough, Jack might be able to take you out for an hour for some fresh air

You'll automatically be under his wing and nobody will ever question it. Ever.

Although he may be goofy and does stupid things, he would be surprisingly protective and his fatherly instincts kick in right away since he first met you

He would allow you to use your powers to an extent and teach you how to use your power properly

You are well aware of his anomalous abilities with his neckless, so whenever Bright had to change bodies, you'd automatically know where he is (other than the obvious neckless thingy)

If there were to have a containment breach, Bright would panic but quickly become calm as that's the only way he could find you and keep you safe

When he finds you he would give you that lecture while finding any scratches on you

If you were to grow, he would give most guys the dad glare of the century and all those guys would run tf away cuz nobody messes with Bright's newfound daughter

I have high doubts that he would let anyone do tests with you when he's not there and even if he was, they would need his approval, so most of the time, you don't even need to worry much

Dr. Alto Clef

(OML Why do I keep adding new characters?! There's so much to write T_T)

Right, so when Clef found you, it was like as if his long lost (well... not so lost) memory came back to him

For some reason, you reminded him of 166 (OML I'm so lost for this SCP, like boi she had a rewrite)

So he took you in the foundation like he did with his daughter and took care of you Since he works for the foundation, he's not remotely terrified or anything, but he's curious about your abilities

And of course, you managed to use some of your abilities because of some SCPs and Bright Clef took you to meet 166 and you both showed your abilities and since 166 is older than you, she's probably trying to help you control your powers more

Which, of course, makes Clef a proud dad

If there were any containment breaches, he'd panicked but once he found you with his other daughter, he was relieved

166 made sure that you weren't hurt and if you were, you'd be bandaged up so Clef doesn't have to worry too much

Anyhow, if Clef decides to introduce you to the tiger doctors, he'd make sure Glass is the first since he's the most sensible person (but let's face it, he wouldn't admit it)

Then it'll be Iceberg, Coggs (that's his name right), Light and a couple others Bright and Kondraki would be last since they would be somewhat chaotic (mainly Bright) even though they're the fun uncle

Whenever Clef has a mission, he'd shove you to either 166 or Glass, if he's free, if not then it'll most likely be Light (and if she's also busy, then yall screwed)

And bless the guy who takes an interest in you when you become a teen cuz our messy boi would make sure that guy would suffer

Dr. Benjamin Kondraki

Ok let's face it, Kondraki would definitely be the mother hen of the dad world in the SCP Foundation

He's literally your mother, kinda like Glass but kinda not, ya know what I'm saying?

Like he'll feed your curiosity since many people around you wouldn't and you're an SCP so you're trapped in the foundation anyways

I'd say he's quite cautious and caring, obviously, but if he's out and about, he'd definitely let you go with him

Unless he's going out for a mission, then that's a definite no-no

He would let you hang out with the safer SCPs like 999 and maybe 166 if Clef is chill, but he has to let you hang out with her cuz she's the only other SCP who could help you get a grasp with your powers

Like how to not burn the bloody floor when you cry and stop breathing fire inconsistently by accident

An attempt was made when they try to train your telekineses but they'll have to wait till you're older

Since most of the time you're stuck with Kondraki, I don't think he'd be all too worried bout breaches, of course, he'd be worried about your safety, but you're there with him

If not then god knows what Kondraki would do

Like that one time, he begged Clef and Bright to look for you in which they did but then they made him do something for them in return

Let's just say, it wasn't pleasant at all, but it could be worse since Clef had a shred of sympathy left for the man and Bright just wanted chainsaws

[the-badger-mole]

Hi, I really like your blog!! And I strongly admire how you handle antis. I did a few times and nearly had a headache.( I've learned never to go into atla youtube comment boxes ever again😖, will ruin your whole day).

So, i just went through your blog and saw a picture of the atla live action cast and laughed my head off at how aang and katara looked.( i swear I will throw up if they try to make kataang canon) Like, even in the animation! people are gushing abt how their love is SO pure( katara's love for aang is pure idk abt the other way round tho) and honest and true and i'm just...dude, they look so awkward they literally look like a kid and his babysitter. I suppose I wouldn't have such an huge issue with the ship if Aang was a bit older, would've just dismissed it as hero gets the girl. but bryke insisted on having them kiss at the end.( My mind was boggled by how tall aang had got in that scene, like DAYS ago he was only up to katara's shoulders how tf did he grow up so fast?? give me a break bryke😒, do they think we don't have visual comprehension or smth?)

Like i ship couples who met when they were a teenager and a child,they only get together 800 years later when both are grown up. ( By the way you should really check out tgcf and mdzs, both ships in them have zutara vibes). Like even tho the age difference is tiny, we can SEE the maturity gap.

......sorry for the rambling, what i actually wanted to say was,

In the show, zutara actually drives the plot forward, like if we remove kataang scenes we don't really lose anything but if we remove certain romantically coded zutara scenes like the scar touch in CoD, their hug and the lightning scene. The ENTIRE STORY FALLS APART. Like i completely understand if they don't wanna make zutara canon, i was'nt expecting anything anyway, i have fandom. But the thing is what are they even gonna do to replace it?? Like the story is not gonna change if katara and aang's cute little dance never happend, but things will change if zutara scenes were cut. I know antis like to pretend that these certain scenes don't have romantic coding but No, they know it, we know it, everyone knows it.

Like just imagine live action zuko and katara in a cave filled with glowing crystals emitting soft green light while katara gently touches his scar and they lean together when aang interrupts them. How on earth am I supposed to interpret this as anything but romantic??

'drags hand down'

Unless katara manages to touch zuko's scar in a platonic manner and zuko runs faster than lightning to take a bolt for her while screaming 'NO' platonically. I simply cannot see this working. I'm just really worried abt what the live action is gonna give us. What do u think?

There is so much here! LOL! I'm absolutely not going to hit all the points, but...

. I suppose I wouldn't have such an huge issue with the ship if Aang was a bit older, would've just dismissed it as hero gets the girl

I still wouldn't have liked them ending up together. If Aang was older and Katara...was a completely different character, maybe I'd feel better about it, but just aging Aang up and not changing anything about the dynamic wouldn't fix what's fundamentally wrong with this ship. Also, I'd probably still hate Aang. Changing Katara's character would have likely just made me give up on the show, to be honest.

In the show, zutara actually drives the plot forward, like if we remove kataang scenes we don't really lose anything

I would go further and say that if they got rid of Aang altogether, we lose nothing. If you step back and look at what Aang actually added to the story, it really wasn't anything except a means for Katara and Sokka to leave the SWT and a reason for them to go anywhere besides the NWT, but he could honestly be replaced with a sturdy ship and a good map. Katara's desire to learn waterbending would have been enough on it's own to get her and Sokka started on their journey. Getting rid of Katara's connection with Zuko, on the other hand, would completely change the nature of the show. I would argue ATLA was largely their journey, both separately and together. Even without it ending in romance, Katara and Zuko's relationship was the linchpin of the show, and Bryke are fools for trying to deny that.

[annavysoul]

I can confirm, they introduced themselves as 3 readers and they made a post how Bee is leaving and starting their own channel. They even made a post to support it and linked the blog, that's how I knew of the Bee drama. But yknow whatever. But they shouldn't demonize those poor future apouses lmao, it's not gonna be them, or any of us.

Warning very long, I got carried away my bad lol

But the drama on tumblr is kinda mild conpared to Youtube "readers". At least the readers here on tumblr try to hide the fact, that they're describing themselves very well but yoooooooo.... Youtube readers are a different breed. Most of them are super young (12-13, but there are a handful of readers old enough to fucking know better) and just straight up describe themselves with no shame. I even found some who put pics of themselves lmao. Me and my friends like to go through readings and bet, who is describing themselves as a spouse. There is one reader who has over 30+ vids on Mrs. J, and most readings are like over 20 mins long. How much is there to know about a person, that doesn't exist yet??? But most YT readers are obssessed with the fact, that Mrs. J is from India, what a coincidence that the reader is also from India lmao. I'm not saying BTS wouldn't ever date someone from that country, I'm saying it's impossible to get a specific country, age, height, religion etc from tarot cards. The pics on the cards might give you clues and the cards can say that the person is different from you, but they go into way too much detail. And it's funny because they're always soooo specific for Jungkook and V, but for the other ones....crickets🦗 On one hand it's so sad bc you have these little girls, putting out their private info, looks and secrets for the whole world to see (these vids have thousands of views) and they don't really grasp the consequences of their actions bc yknow, their just children. The internet never forgets. But on the other hand, you have these grown women who, like I said, should know better than these little girls. Not only do they get so defensive if you don't 100% allign with what they said, they are borderline so obsessed of the idea of being a spouse. Like tf??? Bts aren't Gods. They're very attractive celebs, who's purpose is to entertain people with their contents and music (hence the word idol & entertainer), while they do feed into that perfect bf material scheme, it's up to the fan to not actually develop real romantic feelings (a celeb crush and being a stan is something very different). Most are actually fans for very superficial reasons, they just find them attractive, not the music. And if you take the glitz and glamour of fame and money away, Bts are regular human beings, with flaws and issues. Like. The. Rest. Of. Us. They only show you the best side of them, because it's part of the whole idol package. We truly do not know these people, no matter how sincere or authentic they appear on camera. Like so so many were suprised that they wanted to disband a few years ago, bc they couldn't handle the pressure. These readers always believe if they meet/marry them, their life is going to be better and they feel alive again or smth. Most of these readers actually need therapy, I don't mean that in a condescending way. They imagine that their spouse, a celeb they've never met, will be their sole reason for their happiness and only then they are able to fix their issues and unhappiness. That reeks of co-dependency. And even if they'd become couple and be public, then what? A really big big chunk of Armys are actually in love with Bts, no matter if they even know tarot or not (Armys usually claim that only 2% of the fandom are delulus but that's definetly not true🥴). You'd get send d*eath threats, be harrassed, get doxxed, be hated for all eternity, even if you'd decided to break up. Look what happend with Jk and the tattoo artist he only hugged. She lost her job bc Armys were reporting her, some were trashing her workplace, she got threats, her friends got harassed and doxxed and she lost a friend (Jk). Not only that, but people would legit stalk you and try to hurt you, if you were a romatic partner of Bts. Then you also have the tarot side, who'd try to curse youa nd paint you as the evil demon, who is toxic to member xyz. And I don't think you'd want to spend your entire life locked in your house. And I personally could never deal with like millions of haters, no matter how hot my partner is.

Yoooo! i search again in yt and watch a couple of videos... these are kids for go sake🥺🥺 where are their parents and why they let them public private infoooo?!? internet and children isnt the best combination...

and yess, theres also grown up women and thats really creepy, u can understand that children might do that cause they are young, BUT WHEN U ARE OLD ENOUGH, U SHOULD ACT BETTER!! and i insist, they just trying to prove to themselves and to the world that they are worth it to be with a celebrity, like yeah of course u are worthy, like any of us, but this is not the way u know? its weird, i dont think its sane at all, they just are using the cards to feel better, and thats bs. and if it is just a cope mecanism, plz work on yourself, get help, life its better when u are in a healthy place

also its interesting about mrs being from india and most of all the videos i watch where from indian armys, tarot doesnt work like that, yeah u can feel the energy that its different, perhaps different culture and think that maybe it could be a foreing, but the cards will never tell you something that specific, less if u dont even know in person the people you are reading for

we dont know them at all, and people put them in a such high pedestal just for being famous and hot, so i really have trouble to think that some tarot readers can pick their real energy, im a very intuitive person, but i need to be in the presence of the person to feel their real energy, so to be so specific in a reading they need to energise the cards with the energy of the person, they need to at least shuffle the cards and connect with the reader, sooo thats why i only see these reads as enterteiment, and its bad for the community to claim that we can see ALL of about them.

i'll never forgive the people who threaten the tattoo artist, poor girl, and thats why the guys cant have healthiest relationship, let them have a LIFE