#bc we all know the s3 finale was bs

[tanyalooovesyou]

Whoever trashed on Bridgerton S3 (because I KNOW I saw people doing that when it came out) needs to kindly stfu with all their picky bs bc it was FABULOUS.

I honestly had kind of lost my will to watch it based on some people’s feedback about it seeming like the Polin storyline was totally resolved by the hiatus but it literally wasn’t?? They has SO MUCH MORE CONFLICT that still had to get sorted for them to actually be together! I was on the edge of my seat the entire time!! Eloise and Pen’s relationship had yet to be repaired! They had me wondering how the hell Pen was going to get out of this mess until the MOMENT it happened!!! Amazing beautiful showstopping 10/10 I will be watching it again

Also, bonus points for Benedict BI Bridgerton finally accepting himself this season (bc we all knew ages ago except for him 😂) & Francesca just secretly being gay this whole time, we ❤️ making period pieces queer af

[jonquilete]

random but stefan’s character was fucked in every way and caroline was the saving grace of his character but also the doom. damon and ian won the hearts of everyone with his character and making them ship delena since s1. the writers tried to write good charachterisation especially for the past but ended up making damon better and human damon in contrast with his vampire self was so delicious especially since he was soooo pathetically in love and didn’t want to live and be a vampire but stefan makes him. stefan never stood a chance. and then we enter the whole i respect her wishes even if it kills her to damon being the bad guy just to save her like?!?!?! and then klaus and being the ripper and the whole s3 lskdjd. yes elena always loved stefan bc that was the right thing to do based on her being the main character so when she still chose stefan in that finale everyone went nuts so they had to come up with something like how stefan wants her as a human and sees her as a problem to be fixed. the only good writing is when stefan says something like i want to enjoy at being a vampire with her and join her but because of his problems he can’t. that’s the only reasonable explanation bc everything else is just out of character. also that whole he stalked her and wanted to know her and insert himself in elena’s life was a turn off even more for some which looking at it with fresh eyes isn’t something that bad. it’s just isn’t attractive. stelena being together immediately was just cliche and not as interesting as delena period. then they inserted delena meeting first ksjdj.

also stefan wasn’t really involved with anyone, didn’t have any dynamic besides caroline, where damon had with ric and liz forbes, the friendship with bonnie is just so beautiful, the occasional matt donovanism. like he just was funny and had nicknames for everyone. stefan didn’t have any besides care. they started involving him in s4 when they knew they were gonna make delena happen so they had to involve him somehow. and then make silas be a doppelgänger. like lmfaooo. That whole storyline is just nonsense written to prop Stefan’s character and importance and frankly is pathetic. They started that tid bit with caroline and some elena scenes and universe bs and he came back to life. S5 is just dumpster fire for delena too and it sucked. which s6 saved it. now we have stefan moving on with his life. I liked this season and rewatching it it was good, ofc the gemini storyline carried. stefan and caroline start to happen. honestly not a fan. and this is why he again was fckd. bc delena was clearly the romance of the show but nina left. they couldn’t make the changes they supposedly wanted to so delena became the endgame. and they make steroline kind of happen but just in the worst ways ever. and left it for s7 to become the main romance. now klaroline had huge fans so yet another situation similar to delena like lmfao it’s bad luck all around. they hated for making steroline happen bc klaroline was already sooo loved and popular. valerie was a nice touch and i liked them a lot while watching. him and caroline just didn’t work at all. stefan’s whole character was elena being his soulmate and how perfect they were for each other he never had a thing with any character for four seasons. he didn’t look at any girl any way, he had eyes for elena always. the writers were dumb man. so putting caroline with him was just not it. i get why julie wanted to have a stefan lexi thing going on. bc it’s something huge and meaningful. she helped him his entire life with vampirism and that’s why she probably wanted that to happen somehow bc what is there left? so they tried doing that with caroline but itjust doesnt work. care was a kiddie pool and shallow from the beginning. she was a self insert character, the audience’s mouthpiece and a karen later on. stefan’s character just didn’t fit with her at all. if the writers actually wrote for him something how they wrote for damon and elena in s1 then maybe it would have been possible. but they just didn’t have anyone to pair him up with so let’s go with caroline even though klaroline was much more loved. and then s8 dying as a hero ksjdndn. like this character had no chance. he was constantly that main character that needed to remind the audience he is the main character, the right best man, but it just made people turn off even more bc he was so broody and always the annoying right character and arrogant somehow. i mean ofc we have him barely treating any girl right like rebekah or caroline. especially caroline. she in s6 was desperate and in love but he didn’t have that till he supposedly figured it out later. and then the whole turning their emotions off was so annoying and boring to watch and they had s*x?! just a disaster ship. he is a tragedy character. damon didn’t struggle with being a vampire. he had a blast in fact. it was stefan who did, who struggled so much, was both the monster of the story but also the hero. who his heart was still pure. and who never stopped trying to be better. being a human again was his desire but damon got that too alongside with elena. i think people just at the end always simplify things. the writing was complicated and the fans were just going with vibes. the first season has all the moody mysterious dark vibes of vampires and that’s all stefan too. the whole red flags of how he stalked her and when he started to take blood how he changed and gaslighted elena and stuff. those are all vampiric sides. we explored everything of a vampire through stefan. the hard struggles. damon didn’t deal with that. he got to be the fun cool one. so much more but anyways

[wallflowerfangirl]

At first I was panicking about the trailer bc I do not wanna see Felix work with Gabriel. Then, I remembered how reacted when he saw Emilie's corpse. He might be a crazy smart devious bastard, but he's still human. That reaction was raw and real, he had no reason to fake that. I think he's gonna trick Gabriel into thinking he's on his side for a while, then backstab him. That's for fitting for the chaotic neutral bastard I know and love.

I'm esepicially curious on why Felix in the dog Miraculous is seen apoglizing to seemingly no one. What's up with that?

I really do feel horrible for Marinette though. I salt on her sometimes but this time, she really tried to do something good. Now she is really fucked. I don't wanna see any Marinette salt rn.

I wonder how Adrien's gonna react to all this. Will he realize that Shadowmoth is closer than he thinks? How is he gonna handle Felix? Will this start a new arc for him? What's Adrien gonna do after all this is over? I mean according to the news he's suppose to be traveling the world but we clearly see him in Paris. He can't just go back to school like nothing happened.

I'm just worried how this is all gonna end, bc it seems like things are gonna be messy, and we know the season ends with a cliffhanger, so what exactly will it be? It esepicially scares me bc we have no clue when season 5 will air.

How is Lila gonna play within all this chaos? I REALLY hope Felix and Lila don't work together bc Lila is a terribly written character and I don't want her to ruin Felix's character, someone who is really well written despite not being a "good guy". You cannot compare Lila's stupid lies to Felix's cunning tactics. He is leagues above her.

Will Alya, Nino, and Luka play a role in this bc of the shit that they did/know? I mean Alya's Rena Furative identity is gonna be exposed to everyone now, so that's really important to note.

So. Many. Different. Questions.

Yea I'm still panicking, but for different reasons now.

Edit: In the tags where it says "he was when", it's actually suppose to be "he was in love with her, when". I'm not rewriting the rest of the tags just fix that mistake so just letting y'all know.

[harwin-breakbones-strong]

So I finished S3 of Wisting last night (thanks again @houseoftrinity 🤗), and like the 2 previous seasons, it was great. I'm usually doubtful of the quality when it comes to crime drama tv shows. The US can have good ones but they never last and the ones that last are pretty generic and all a carbon copy of one another. We can have some gems in France but it's rare (HPI with Audrey Fleurot comes to mind) but French TV shows are pretty much a pale copy of American shows. So when I watched S1, I had doubts. Norwegian show, language I don't understand and all that. Carrie-Anne guest starring was enough a reason to watch it anyway.

And well what a surprise it was. It doesn't shy away from the horror of the crimes, they show you the bodies, the blood. I love the investigation part. The show is so well written and the acting is so good. They don't overdo it. They make it real and that's why you dive into the story, why you want to see it to the end, to know the truth. To see the killers get what they deserve.

I found Line so annoying in S1 but she grew on me. Same with Nils. I cried when Torunn died in S2 honestly. You care about the characters more and more with each ep, it kinda was a surprise for me.

So S3, when the head was found, I really believed it was a ritual crime or something. Wouldn't have imagine it would have something to do with drugs 🤷🏻‍♀️

I could feel Suzanne was involved from the beginning. There was no freaking way she wasn't. And I was right 😏

Those poor kids being used after fleeing their country... Khaled and Hanan being reunited did something to my heart 🥺

Now about Maggie 😁 I love her take no bs attitude, I loved it in S1 and loved it in S3. That move when Sammy had the knife and her jump out of window, damn 😳😍 I just love her. She gets involved emotionally into her job and that's why she's good at it. I was so scared for her at the end, thought she was going to get injured or worse killed. Relieved when she wasn't but damn the gun she had wasn't even loaded. Talk about unnecessary risks my poor heart 😅 She risked her life to be sure that American ex soldier wouldn't hurt anyone else. So yeah she's excellent at her job but a bit too much reckless if you ask me.

Can't talk about S3 without mentioning THAT kiss. Like I knew it had to come from her bc he definitely wasn't going to make a move but I didn't see it coming during that scene 😅

How frustrating it is tho, that they got interrupted and they didn't talk about it. I mean we know they like each other since S1. I was like well finally something happens and after that nothing. Case closed, she leaves and that's it. 1 step forward and 10 steps back.

4 eps felt super short, I guess that's why we didn't get to see a lot of things.

Wisting is a such a good quality show and I hope they plan for a season 4. I would love a storyline connected to France, a fangirl can dream 😁

[novadreii]

my thoughts on castlevania s4 SPOILERS obviously

wow, i was actually impressed with hector for once. he collected the last wit about him to turn his situation around and take his balls out of lenore’s hands back into his pants. i thought he would go sicko mode on her and feared it getting a little revenge misogynistic, but i was pleasantly surprised at how civilized it was between them up until the end.

lenore was a little useless, wasn’t she? i half expected her to go, “you know what? fuck diplomacy” and just go mach 1 on everyone. eh.

isaac, oh. isaac. my favorite secondary character. wanders the desert conquesting, killing and raising the dead which made him realize things. he realized so much he marched right into carmilla’s castle while her beserker and army were away and owned her ass. good for him.

carmilla. oh, carmilla. tied with isaac for my favorite. so determined and single-minded that she sent away all her forces while she schemed in her fortress. she depended too hard on her partners doing all the work for her, and as a result she wasn’t much of a thinker, just a bloody, murdery doer. for example, she didn’t think that there were other formidable forces in the world that may want to impede her whole world domination plan? did she forget about isaac, out in the world rogue forgemastering? that was a threat she should have checked on before going global. she got too greedy, too quickly, and she paid the ultimate price for it. she went out like a fucking boss though, and i was pleased with her arc overall. as far as villains go, her raison d’etre was relatable and hard to argue with. 

the dialogue style is both one of my favorite parts of the show but also at times a pain point for me. when it’s good, it’s relaxed, comfortable and realistic and the characters play off each other really well with it (like quipping back and forth during battle which i normally hate but works well here). when it’s bad, it’s a little cringe. some dialogue scenes went on wayyyyy too long while the characters repeated things they’d literally just said verbatim, which is awkward af in screenwriting. i.e. Isaac telling Hector twice in the space of 30 seconds “Dracula earned his rest.” which is odd because impactful phrases like this usually are not repeated so as not to, yknow, dilute their impact. Also Carmilla waxing spiteful about “evil old men” and repeating some variation of the phrase 15 times in one scene. lastly, the liberal sprinkling of the word “fuck” in every other line is also like, mostly welcome but once or twice just sounded silly given the context of the scene. i’m nitpicking, here.

saint-germain. Idk much about his woman, but she definitely seemed worth slaughtering a village and raising dracula from the dead for. violent and hot as fuck, she never uttered a single word which i want to think is indicative of something but what? did we ever figure out why she kept eluding him via dimension-jumping? imagine she was trying to get away from him all this time lol. yikes.

the smartest people in this whole show are the vampire lesbians who peace tf out immediately when they see their castle is under siege and figure out carmilla is dead. LOL at them assuming useless lenore is dead too (bc, she’s useless) and just leaving her there. they packed their shit up, moved out west, presumably to build a lover’s stronghold where they could just be in vampire love forever. GOOD FOR THEM.

trevor: continued to drunkenly yell Fuck while being masterfully proficient immediately at any weapon he picks up, though eventually always ending up using his fists like the brawler he is.

sypha: if she met the avatar, she'd be like “lmao, you can ‘bend’ the elements, huh? i can use them in ways that would make your skin crawl and your head explode to even think about. sit the fuck down.”

alucard: adorable himbo with a heart of gold, needs a tough as nails gf to jerk him out of his moods and organize his kitchen for him. another round of good for him. i was a little scared they would kill off his gf but that would have been unimaginably cruel considering what he went through in s3. alucard had imo the best/most stylish fight sequences of the season. and they know what we’re about, since he was shirtless or at least in a very deep V cut most of the time. thank you.

i had 2 major predictions for this season going into it: trevor would die (permanently), and sypha would have a kid/get pregnant. i was 75% on the money.

i liked the ending message of why humans win these wars against vampires despite being slow meatbags compared to them. the vampires’ fatal flaw is resistance to change, provoked by their immortality, arrogance, and insatiable desire for power in order to provide themselves long term stability in the world. whereas humanity’s best trait is the polar opposite: adaptability. throughout history, the ability to adapt has been proven to be the determining factor in a species’ survival. vampires, for all their god-like strengths, prove to be no exception to this rule. alucard, with his human heart, is the only one with vampire blood who has proven he can make major changes and overcome personal prejudices to live a better life.

And my final thoughts on the ending are: everyone major got a satisfying end to their arc. BUT. it was just too happy. either trevor should have stayed dead, OR dracula and lisa should have gone back to hell. but not both. having everyone come back to life and go on to skip in fields just seems contrary to the tone and messaging of the whole show, which is pretty high up on the edginess scale.

i love a bittersweet ending in general, so i’m biased. imo, the joy of a mostly good ending is rendered all that much sweeter by reflecting on what was lost to obtain it. imagine:

alternate ending 1: trevor comes back, the gang lives happily ever after at Belmont Village or wtvr they name it, BUT. we see alucard lost in thought thinking about his parents, how he saw a flash of their souls during the penultimate battle. there’s regret there, the regret of shit left unsaid and shitty family dynamics unsolved. we cut immediately back to hell, with lisa and dracula embracing, maybe whispering a few lines of doomed lovers dialogue and something about their son. they’re in hell, but ultimately, they’re together. cut back to alucard, yanked out of his sad thoughts by his pretty gf who won’t let him get too deep in the weeds. shot pans out of them together with the gang. the end.

alternate ending 2: trevor is DEAD dead. sypha stays with alucard and the gang at belmont farms and raises her kid. maybe we get a 2 year timeskip and we see the little shit have some of his dad in him/her. sypha is sad about trevor but doesn’t mope about it. she runs that town like it’s a business. alucard is the best uncle to that kid & the orphans they could ask for. everyone gets trained in ass-kicking next door at the belmont hold. lisa and dracula are miraculously alive through whatever convoluted bs makes it work, and contemplate one day moving back to see their son. dracula has a moment to realize that his family is mostly human, and what he loves in them he can learn to tolerate from all of humanity.

don’t those feel happy but just. TINGED. with just enough sadness to be more memorable? idk i may just be a masochist.

i haven’t mentioned the technical aspects such as animation and direction because they were amazing. really, really incredible animation that is going to be hard to follow up (and netflix is going to make copycats of this formula, you bet your ass they will). where cgi was used, it was excellent and barely detectable, really well integrated with 2d. so engaging to watch.

overall: 9/10

[waynedunlaptheorgandonor]

Re: daryls racism: the moment that opened his eyes was when tdog volunteered to get Merle from the roof, and it gradually faded the more time he spent with tdog. Also I think the majority of his racism towards Glenn was just ignorant, not-intentionally-malicious-insults/jokes ("you got some balls", "bad drivers", etc) that also faded

one of my FAVORITE daryl lines, that makes me laugh all the time, is in s3 (back when daryl still angrily yelled every nice thing he said, ex: “THAT LITTLE GIRL IS GONNA BE JUST FINE!!!”) is when he and merle are out alone in the woods, and daryl finally has enough of his brother’s bs, and starts walking off, and merle is like, “what? bc of that chinese kid??” and daryl, in the angriest voice, is just like, “HE’S KOREAN!!!” it’s so sweet and ik it’s not supposed to be, but his delivery is so fucking funny. i love him

and while we’re on the subject of dumb things that make me laugh re: daryl’s open-mindedness, his whole relationship with a-a-ron and eric is precious (the spaghetti scene is a gift), but there’s this random episode in s6 or s7 (it gets blurry for me after the second half of s6) where daryl’s on his bike and for some reason is wearing sunglasses, and after that episode we never see him wearing them again, and my partner and i headcanon that a-a-ron and eric were giving him fashion advice, and he was like, “okay, i’ll try this out,” but then off-camera carol or michonne or someone was like, “...sunglasses, huh?” and he’s immediately like

and then never tries to change his look up again

(we also have this headcanon where daryl is in a tank top fixing up a bike in a-a-ron and eric’s garage, and he’s all sweaty and greasy, his muscles all shiny, and a-a-ron and eric are standing at the door watching him with mugs of tea in their hands, and then carol walks by and just pauses and raises an eyebrow at them, and they awkwardly shrug, and she’s like, “yeah, i get it,” and just moves on, and daryl is none-the-wiser to this whole exchange)

(((y’all rly miss out on some quality shit when you don’t watch twd with us, we’re hilarious)))

anyway. i don’t know how we got here, but i’m glad we did bc i had forgotten about all that

[yeet-the-dreamies]

ok now that s12 only has the finale left, here's my personal take on each ep lol:

"i'm that bitch" - i agree with everything here except i would personally put jackie high rather than safe but there were only two spots for high rather than 3 like usual

"you don't know me" - switch jan and sh*rry and i agree with the placements!

"world's worst" - jackie winning instead of sh*rry but other than that agree

"the ball ball" - rock m didn't do that bad? i def thought that it should've been brita and aiden lip syncing 😓

"gay's anatomy" - agh i always feel for the ESL queens bc the show is literally so much harder for them :(( i personally think nicky's part wasn't that bad? like i don't think it was bad enough to warrant bottom two but this is a really talented group of queens. i think i would've given the win to jan, jackie, or widow this week bc their acting was >>> and sh*rry was literally mocking the disabled aha

"snatch game" - i thought it was gonna be a double win for jackie and gigi like s7's snatch game since everyone else was a little :// this season. unfortunately for aiden it was just her time to sashay (watch her on review with a jew i think it humanized her for me lol)

"madonna: the unauthorized rusical" - oh jan. jan jan jan. i don't think she was necessarily robbed if it was just challenge but if we take runway into account ah she was robbed on this one :(( gigi def deserved her win challenge wise tho. ig the judges were nostalgic? could've been any combo of heidi, brita, and jackie lipsyncing and i would've been ok w it

"droop" - ok i thought jackie was gonna win this one ngl. i liked heidi's but i personally liked jackie's more. any combo of gigi, jan, and widow lipsyncing made sense to me on this ep

"choices 2020" - i think the editing was rly weird during the actual challenge? like i don't think anyone was doing particularly well or horribly but were edited to seem rly on top or not? personally i think jackie should've been safe and had widow vs gigi but then we wouldn't have gotten that epic lipsync (ugh that moment when jackie finds the light right before the chorus gives me chills i love)

"superfan makeover" - mm yikes. ok no one was necessarily bad in this challenge. although i love heidi and jackie they were the least "polished" on the stage and that's what it basically came to. i think any combo of gigi, jackie, and heidi lipsynching made sense here. coin toss btwn jaida and crystal for the winner tbh

"one queen show" - i agree with miz cracker and bob the drag queen here - jackie should've won this challenge. if it was for pure comedy then yes crystal but since it's a one queen show i wanted the depth and personality that jackie brought. gigi did ok and was totally safe here. sh*rry should've been lip syncing for that selfish behavior there is a clear difference btwn 5 and 20 minutes. coin toss btwn jaida and heidi for the other lip syncer

"viva drag vegas" - everyone did so well. i was on dusty's livestream and we were all so confused on how the judges were going to pick who to send home. it unfortunately came down to track record which i think is kinda bs since drag race seems to pick when it wants to care abt track record super randomly like if track record was so important then nina flowers would've won s1 and technically manila would've won s3 and recently, shea would've won s9, etc. also i might be in the minority for saying this but i didn't like crystal's final look it kinda felt like a knockoff of raja's s8 finale look lol

yea this was mostly for myself but man s12 was such a great cast with rly good challenges and overall (minus sh*rry) just a really good season. the multiples of 3 are the best drag race seasons so far LOL - 3, 6, 9, and now 12 too!

[vausemania]

I just started watching Orange is the New Black again. Starting at Season 1 and I can’t get over how these characters have changed over the course of seven seasons. When I look at Piper in Season 1 and compare her to Season 7, the change is arresting. What are your favourite scenes of Piper in each season?

I’m planning to rewatch the whole series after I rewatch s7  (currently on 7x02 :) but yes, Piper changed so much over the course of the show. Thankfully, though, her character developement was for the *better* (some blips aside---hello s3) ...and as wrenching as it was to see her deal with inner and outer turmoil, it was worth it in the end.

There are so many wonderful Piper scenes in the series that it’d be hard for me to pick just one from each season, but if by "favourite" you mean the scenes that I can watch over and over again, here are the ones that first come to mind:

Season 1--There was a lot of comedy in s1 and there are so many funny Piper scenes I could choose, but the 1x08 scene in which Alex (who is stuck in a dryer) asks Piper if Nicky came back to the laundry and Piper replies "Your girlfriend? Noooo...." in a oh-so-gentle-but-incredibly- passive-aggressive voice always cracks me up. She's jealous as hell but she doesn't want to show it (and yet she does). Season 1 was about Piper trying so hard to convince others (and herself) that she was over Alex...and failing spectacularly.

Season 2--The first Vauseman ‘I love you’ scene in 2x10, which is probably my favourite scene in any show ever (I talk about it at length here-https://vausemania.tumblr.com/post/188582490960). Piper's vulnerability and softness (her "You do?" melts my heart) are so beautifully conveyed here...and then the expression on her face---positively beaming with happiness and love---that ends the scene...Aaaaaaah... I could watch that scene a billion times.

Season 3--The 3x02 cafeteria scene when Piper finally admits to Alex that she was responsible for Alex being thrown back in prison. The lead-up to this admission is Piper talking about "...how the universe had brought (her and Alex) back together" and I talk about that part of the scene here https://vausemania.tumblr.com/post/129867978725 because it positively breaks my heart. Piper loves Alex so much but she's so scared because she doesn’t want her confession to completely ruin things bc they had /just/ reunited again (remember that Alex was about to skip town forever before she was re-arrested). Such a powerful scene and they're both so great in it.

Season 4-The cornfield scene in 4x08. I talk about this scene at some length in several blog posts (check the list here-https://vausemania.tumblr.com/post/184656036075) so you know it's one of my very favourites. They're all so good in this scene, but seeing Piper go from feeling sorry for herself about her branding to her immediate concern for Alex (something that was completely lacking in season 3) was such a relief because it was us finally getting back the old Piper we loved and missed so much in s3.

Season 5-The Proposal (5x12) bc it's Piper finally choosing Alex ....forever. No more flip-flopping between Alex and Larry, no more Stella BS. Piper matured a lot in five seasons and after their traumatic experience with Piscatella, she realized that you don't let the love of your life go...again...not when it took a miracle for the two of you to find each other.

Season 6-The Wedding. Because they earned it (and we---the fans--- did, too).

Season 7-I'm torn between the 7x13 speech to Larry (where she talks about how she's not the same person he used to know) or Piper's face at the very end of the episode (the last image we see in the whole series) looking at Alex, beaming with the same kind of happiness and love that we saw in their first "I love you" in 2x10.

Thanks so much for the ‘ask’!

[gra-sonas]

I'm 1 of the few that hope A/F happens fast & we can move on to Malex. I don't want them thrown back together cause I want it to happen naturally,but I want them to start out single & work things out communicating like adults without any 3rd party involved. I want them working on that foundation for their relationship. Let them be happy. It's about time & like Tyler has said enough of the BS. Plus Tyler has only 10/11 ep per season & I don't want to waste time. I'm nervous we may not get a S4.

I‘m one of the few hoping it doesn’t happen at all, but since that’s unlikely, I’m definitely team “let it be over real fast and then on to the Malex goodness” (esp. with Tyler only being available for 10 episodes, not sure if Covid’s gonna allow for them to pull the 11 episodes trick again).

I‘m just really tired of waiting for them to finally talk. The lack of communication between them has always been frustrating, but especially in the finale.

Michael made the decision to walk away bc “now is not our time” (which is 100% okay and not the issue) without telling Alex. By leaving in the middle of the song without an explanation, he gave a strong signal that he’s not ready to meet Alex in the middle - which fair, Michael needs to work on some of his shit - BUT HE ALSO DOESN’T TELL ALEX THAT HE THINKS THERE WILL BE A TIME FOR THEM EVENTUALLY.

To Alex this must’ve looked like Michael has no interest at all anymore (regardless of how he looked at Alex with so much love and longing 🥺). Which also fair if that would actually be the case (which it isn’t), regardless, they STILL should‘ve talked.

Fucking hell, there are so many things unsaid between them, and the show is just dragging it out and out and OUT and it’s as infuriating as it’s damaging to the characters, Michael in particular who either looked or was made to behave like an ass more than once in S2...

And while he got to have his “detour” in all of S2, Alex was put on hold, was “dumped” every other episode, and at the end Michael even walked out on him (at least that’s what it must’ve looked like to Alex).

And while S2 would’ve been a good opportunity for Alex to be with Forrest, he wasn’t allowed to move on. We all know whose “handwriting” that is (or rather was, thankfully), and that it was all just done to stall Malex beyond S2.

It sucks that we’re now facing yet another season where any progress Malex could actually make will be delayed until A/F has run its course. (Just to be clear, I have nothing against Forrest, I‘m not hating on him or anyone who ships A/F, I just have ZERO interest in seeing them together romantically).

Like you, I'd much rather Alex and Michael got to work on the foundation of their relationship. And that could take them most of S3, in fact they should do that as “just friends” until they’re ready to be more. Bc as much as I want to see them together, I don‘t want this to be a half-assed thing that won’t last bc they are not communicating.

“Thanks” to Covid, S3 will likely have limits in regards to guest stars coming in,  that gives me hope that the show will focus on the core characters a lot more than they did in S2.

Let S3 be the season where everyone’s allowed to have conversations that aren’t cut short, let people work on their friendships (and show those friendships on screen, don’t just tell us certain friendships exist when we’ve never actually seen them on screen - looking at Maria and Rosa in particular, but also Liz and Maria), and most importantly (to me), let Malex put in the work for a great relationship that will last.

Because that’s my request: once they are together, there’s no more breaking up, no more misunderstandings that lead to one of them walking away, no more other people interfering with their relationship. Once they are together, THEY ARE TOGETHER. FOREVER!

They’ve had more than a decade of pain and misery, it‘s time they’re allowed to heal and be happy with each other!

[slightly-gay-pogohammer]

Well, it'd be a crime if you just watched so much of Wakfu and we didn't ask you about it, so, wakfu for the meme? :3c

fandom meme yay [ACCEPTING]

Favorite character: (bass boosted) AMALIA I LOVE YOU AND YOU DESERVE BETTER

Second favorite character: tristepin, goultard and noximilien. yes im listing all of them as second bc i cant pick one of my boys orz

Least favorite character: (very close to the mic) i’ll literally pay anything i have to not see bump ever again i fucking hate him i hope he chokes in his own spit. it’s literally one of the few characters in all media i actually hate i want that hunk obliterated

The character I’m most like: i wanna say,,,, probably elely?

Favorite pairing: tristeva Good and i love them a lot...............

Least favorite pairing: N/A tbh? i mean with the show being quite obscure i didnt see anything that makes me go :/ just yet except for the obligatory incest bs so we’re good so far. not... a big fan of the whole Oropo/Amalia plot but what can you do

Favorite moment: the entire final episode of s1, followed by the battle with Ogrest. also obligatory throwback to Pinpin revealing he did the devil’s tango with Eva with the most nonchalant chill tone possible bc i love him

Rating out of 10: might as well give ratings on every season tbh!!!! S1 is 9/10, it’s probably the one i enjoyed the most despite the first 10 episodes of nothing but filler. nox is legit one of my favorite antagonists in all media and i think it would’ve been a bittersweet, yet beautiful conclusion to the entire series too. S2 gets a 7.5/10, too many fillers. i REALLY loved it when the plot actually started moving, but unfortunately that happens in the last few episodes after a lot of fillers that i couldnt care less for tbh. loved qilby, really REALLY liked rushu, a LOT of filler characters (coughs @ mofette and the prince, elaine and felinor) are AMAZING but a lot more unfortunately fell terribly flat. the OVA get a 8/10. the first two episodes are a 7, they’re nice but not that amazing and lord knows how much adamai made my eyes roll, but the final episode is a hard 10 to me. i wouldve loved if it focused on all the characters instead of just yugo and tristepin, but tbh they’re the de facto main characters by now so i can complain just so much. plus the animation is [chef kiss] tbh, i consider it a TV movie more than an OVA  S3 is another 8/10. a little rushed here and there, but it’s for reasons that ankama couldnt control so they can get a pass. adamai is at his PEAK here and while i think oropo falls a little flat as a villain compared to the others he still made me SUPER emo and, most importantly, im putting him in comparison with villains that i consider Top Notch so he’s still very good. so, overall? a 8/10 crossing fingers for s4 to double down on the epicness of S3 and actually make yugo look his age

[sarahmaybank]

Your tags are so on point, I hated how much Justin and Clay’s relationship developed without us getting to see it and then Season f*ur just fucked it anyway

👌👌👌 ugh. It felt weirdly rushed too, like "oh, they love each other now ok cool"

i wanted to see Justin talk about his time on the streets and Clay's reaction, the finalization of his adoption, things like nightmares, Clay telling Justin about his panic attacks, apologies for misjudgement from hannah's pov on the tapes, Justin and Clay being grateful for each other after talks about their past, stuff like that. Bc we know they've both said they saved each other's lives so🤷🏼‍♀️

What we got just felt kinda rushed and empty bc we never got to see the real development. So when they went and did season f*ur, what the fuck was that. They gave us a strong bond in s3 that we didnt get to see develop and then fucked it all up just to make justin feel like shit and set up the bs ending for clay's development. Does not make seeense. Feel like im being repetitive and rambling bc im tired lol. Like why poorly show us how much they care about each other just to victim blame justin and take that all away

[hypnoticcastiel]

13RW s4 final(e) thoughts *SPOILER WARNING*:

- the show was a true gut punch... especially with the shaky quality of later seasons, but i DO LIKE IT OVERALL, and haters can’t be stopped so here’s just my 2 cents

- s4 felt so rushed, like they have time for horror movie like sequences but some couples or romances were thrown into a mixer or cocktail shaker. why not more streamlined care and balanced focus for all the relationships

- it was a very much needed change or development to let Clay do the voice over blahblah, giving that new girl character a pause and the twist with the psychiatrist was nice. this way Clay could distribute the endless talking on 2 forms of communication. how to turn questionable script or pure bs into gold, go and cast Dylan, he could sell the bible to an atheist. what a performance (with some others in the cast also delivering some of their best moments)

- the thing with the force ghosts..., some might love and some might hate it. in smaller doses it can elevate the thrill factor of any drama, but if overused........

- Monty was not forgiven his crime and that’s good in my opinion. in that prom&illusion scene Winston could have talked some bs (bc writer’s magic) but thank heaven it didn’t happen. instead, Monty shares a cosmic wisdom “You didn't even know me “, totally countering the cliche that such a ghost-bs scene would lead to absolving a character of any bad behaviour while he/she was alive. the scene was good, but mainly bc it didn’t drench their affair and the Monty character in apologetic sugar rainbows. 

- the final thought that i want to write down is of course the fate of Justin or what some fans viewed as an unfair and outdated handling of an HIV infection. i’m not a doc so idk how accurate the storyline was, but in a drama show about rape and other deadly serious topics you can’t actually blame the show to be cruel to one character. bc in the logic of those fans (and i read 2 very negative reviews of S4, both not giving any real argumentation as to why it may be shitty!) nothing deadly serious and damaging could have happened to any of the girl or that Tyler character. having characters suffer and do bad things is the concept of this damn show. you can’t say that it’s shit just bc you disagree with one character arc. it’s neither good nor bad, as long as it has some basic rules or logic that it follows. Justin had a complicated health, and creator decided to give the character that specific finale. i think it was done in a quite acceptable way, with Justin finally being accepted and loved by so many, not judged for how he got the infection. the acting was good, so we could agree at least on that detail.

- in the end the show wanted to be more than it already was with s1, some of s2. i liked the cast so much that i kept going through all the storms and shaky s3, 4. if the basic message was to highlight how complex and damaged and brutal teen & young adult life can be - mission completed. but it should have left all the additional psycho stuff out of the plot. i would still watch and take some lesson from it. so for S4 i give 3,5 of 5 stars.

[grizztheexplorer]

Reaction umbrella academy. Ep 10, s1:

- looks like reggie is a time traveler. But with his wife was he in the past or future???????

- GLAD LUTHER TRIED TO APOLOGIZE TO POGO. AS YOU SHOULD.

- I understand possessed vanya destroying the rooms she felt excluded from, but tell me a memory of luke and allison doing unplatonic things trigger you??? Girl who wants to cockblock. If anything the usual reaction is to go “shit sorry” and then leave😭 i just feel like that’s an odd memory to trigger her. Felt more like a reminder of allison and luther’s feelings going on since they were young, than something that upset vanya.

- god I understand she was possessed sort of and not in control but how she murdered pogo? Even if i can like her and all she can never be my fave. That was horrible. Him and Grace were the only love she got as a child. To murder him like that and watch him as he struggles with his last breaths?? Awful. Im glad his death was emotional and luther was hurt. An emotional scene is what pogo deserved :(

- mom’s moment is heartbreaking too.

- uhm.... can we just take a moment to realize this is all happening because five left for like 30 minutes?? Sjfjdjf literally nothing would have happened if he had stayed. I just KNOW he would have called them dumb for locking vanya and talked to her himself bc her demons talked to her.

- WHY DO THEY ALWAYS ASSUME KLAUS IS LYING HIS POWER IS LITERALLY THE DEAD HOW DOES THAT NO MAKE SENSE U STUPID FUCKS. HE DIDNT LIE ABOUTUR DAD EITHER WHH WOULD HE LIE ABOUT THIS

- damn fuck you got me. I started the show bc i saw a fun edit of s2. Ik allison finds a husband and loves him very much, but fuck im rooting for her and luther to end up together a little?????? They just have a bond sjdjdjd i hate the writers for this they really should have just had a strong sibling bond but here we are :/

- respect to hazel for that cha-cha has me tired. Has anyone had the conversation that from the only black women in the show the dark skin one is the insufferable one?? No?? We still waitong on that!? Would have literally made more sense to have her be in the position of hazel and hazel be the sort of power hungry one. I dont even blame the show, Netflix just had such bad reputation with dark skin female characters. Still glad cha-cha got fucked tho sjdjdjf

- why is diego on luther’s ass about a plan and being a leader as if he wasn’t just as bad lmaoooo. Y’all don’t function unless is under five or allison’s instructions sir pls sit tf down you BOTH useless.

- IS THAT THE COMMISSION?? GOD I HATE THEM

- PLS AGNES MUST BE SO CONFUSED SEEING THE LITTLE BOY HAVE THIS MUCH AUTHORITY WITH THIS OLD ASS DANGEROUS WOMAM SHDJD

- five is literally the only one that ever makes sense. However the one thing he lacks is communication. He keeps wanting to save everyone on his own and keeps leaving them in the dark. Had he told them earlier of apocalypse with vanya there this wouldn’t happen. Had he told them more about everything he wouldn’t be pulled away so easily. He gotta work on not thinking himself as the one carrying everyone and rely on them more. Altho i agree with him that he is the smartest. The others getting angry at that is dumb. He is 58 anyways and all he had to do for decades was read books. So that’s a given.

- i was gonna say thank you luther but never mind. WHY ARE MAN SO DUMB LET ALLISON DO IT DAMN IT.

- damn it agnes she really is an angel “everyone has a past” god i love her

- also i wanted five to kill the handler im a little :/

- men ruined it. Couldn’t let vanya have this. After all the shit, i like vanya more than luther and diego. I don’t dislike them BUT THEY NEVER FUCKINF LISTEN.

- OKAY HOLD UP THE FINALE WAS A LOT OKAY.

- im soso glad hazel and agnes made it and escaped. Agnes deserves the world thank u for coming to my ted talk

- i can see why allison in s2, being separated and not knowing if luther is alive AND having him constantly ignore her bc “he knows better” caused her to marry someone else later and offer him to go with her. I honestly do like luther and allison and they prob will be endgame, but he has to learn to listen to her and know they can protect each other and is not always him protecting her. He has to get the “but im the leader” bs out of his head to make it work with her. Which im guessing will happen in s3 later on anyways.

- if only they listened to FUCKING ALLISON

- i wonder if allison had just like,,,, hugged vanya instead of scaring her with the gunshot the apocalypse wouldn’t happen????

- i see they aren’t escaping but rather five has a plan to run away and just start again in order to solve it. Makes sense.

- YES KLAUS U GO BABY AND BEN!!!!!!!!!! WHAT THEY DESERVE!!!!!

- glad cha-cha died goodness gracious

- i liked that the children appear on the last shot of the circle. If only andy mustard ugly ass would have taken notes for It Chapter 2 BUT I DIGRESS

Overall good season good show. I liked it. I like all characters but top 3 are def allison, five, and klaus. And ben. So top 4 bc ben is a puppy who i will always love a treasure. Hope we keep seeing klaus’ powers grow too.

[lingeringscars]

disclaimer: i wrote this at 3am when i should have been sleeping and i have no desire to read back through it so if u see misplaced colons.....don’t @ me. just the usual me being back on my bs !

One of the more fascinating things about spacekru is that....most of the characters have very objective character growth. And im not about to dispute the fact that it has happened but i find it really interesting that....bellamy and raven haven't had it in a way. ( murphy’s going backward rather than forward in a way, at first, is also really important to me !!! )

@loveisaviolence and i have talked briefly about this with raven and how interesting it is but mostly the fact that it doesnt seem like raven has really processed any of her trauma and how instead probably threw herself into trying to get them home. This is as much as I'm going to talk on raven as i do not write her.

But bellamy on face value....seems to have changed a lot. Hes forgiven echo and formed a deep bond with her. Hes more rational in his actions than he typically used to be ( although i have talked ad nauseam about the fact that he always used both his head and his heart in tandem and it always being really fascinating to me. This shift in bellamy and clarke isnt bellamy becoming more head and clarke more heart....its them changing the motivation. Bellamy always used his head to think through what his heart was telling him. Everything with mount weather. Him dressing in azgeda gear to get to clarke. He was guided by his heart but used his head to do it. Clarke is the opposite-- shes guided by what is best for the whole. She uses her head but...her actions are very much her heart...not shooting bellamy when he opened the door or injecting herself with nightblood for instance. )

ANYWAY that tangent aside...bellamy was always very outwardly stressed / anxious. Every emotion would play out on his features and he was prone to outbursts pre space. After space...its become internalized. Like raven, he had a task: uniting them, leading them, survival. He, as always, gives his all to whatever the task is. That leaves little time to focus on himself.

While i do believe he came to terms with his actions, i do not think he ever processed them fully and instead pushed them aside. HOWEVER. Space is also the only time hes actually allowed to be angry. Bellamy doesnt allow himself these emotions when they have a war to fight. It’s also why him being so mad at Clarke in s3 is so important because....for the first time ( since first half of s1 )with her he was able to be !! He forgives because it is necessary. HIM TAKING 3 YEARS TO FORGIVE ECHO IS ACTUALLY PROGRESS. Instead of pushing his feelings down ( which lol he does w/ octavia in s5 and s6 hence the pretty violent emotional outbursts towards her ), he allows himself that time to hate her. He allows himself to be angry bc it doesnt directly impact their survival. They need to work together but that doesnt mean they have to like each other.

Flash forward to the ground and why i really dont think bellamy processed his trauma at all and instead just got better at hiding it. He did get that break from violence and going back to the ground throws him right back into the thick of it....but i also cannot fathom how people dont see how aggressively s1-4 bellamy is still present in his interactions, if more subdued. The most pressing relationships we see this: clarke and octavia.

Im not going to talk about clarke here bc quite frankly i dont remember enough to form coherent thoughts about his attitude towards Clarke in relation to finding out shes alive. Her "death" clearly had a major impact though. and despite them being out of sync...the do both fall back into coleaders with each other quickly.  

But the first thing bellamy does when he gets back....his primary motivation to return: Octavia. He thinks shes in danger so they need to go back down...immediately. more moments of everything being very internalized now is that very first bellamy & echo interaction where she reels him back in when he begins to spiral at the possibility that o isnt alive. He returns to the ground for her and then fights to get down to the bunker to rescue her.

Rescue. He still has the mentality that she is his responsibility. He should have been down there with her. He should have helped her. He is still taking the world onto his shoulders---- so did he really grow at all? Did he learn that everything is not his responsibility? Did he confront his upbringing and the consequences of it? No.

Come season 6 and he says that he has too many sins to release a lantern because he really hasnt forgiven himself at all. He thinks about it every day. He sees the faces in his dreams every night. He has not processed or moved forward at all.

And when we get the BIGGEST step of growth in the history of his character....."you are my sister. But you are not my responsibility. Not anymore." Not anymore. It is SO IMPORTANT that he is starting to FINALLY accept that octavia needs to take responsibility of her own actions..can no longer blame himself for not being able to stop her / help her....but...

Not anymore.

I dont know how to word this in a way that will sound eloquent so bear with me.... not anymore. Meaning it once was. Meaning....he thinks that up until she burned the farm he is to blame for her actions. Up until she burned the farm, she was his responsibility. He didnt confront what their mom said to him when he was six years old. He did not acknowledge the burden that was placed on him because he doesnt see it that way. He doesnt see it as something that was unfair or unreasonable because to go back to season 1....his life both ended the day she was born and started then too. He had a purpose taking care of octavia....he almost idolizes his mother [ the girl under the stairs like mom taught us...she raised me to be better than this. To be good ]. The thing space did allow him was the time to really, truly find a family outside of Octavia for the first time ever. Space allowed him the chance to have and love people FOR HIMSELF. And that made it a lot easier for him to break away and out of this stranglehold of a relationship where, in so many ways, he had been programmed to believe that everything was on him and any mistake was his fault. In space, he was able to see that there is life outside of octavia....but that doesnt mean he has processed the life he had with her...because he didn't.

In conclusion: bellamy really hasnt processed his trauma at all...just got better at directing it and hiding it. His anxiety became more internal: wringing his hands versus running into battle. He wants to move forward. He wants to do better. But he hasnt confronted the past--- not fully. And as long as there is a task to be completed, he never will. It isnt how he is programmed. He will run himself into the ground before taking a moment for himself because a leader gives everything that they are to their people. Space gave him a FAMILY. a place outside of octavia. something that is more balanced, with mutual respect and care....but when it comes to processing trauma? becoming more whole w/ himself in a way other members of spesikru have? not so much..........

[sheisthequeensil]

Contains GoT spoilers/possible spoilers. Followers and non followers who don't want to know, skip this long text of mine, please.

About the spoilers of tonight's episode, I totally understand them, I understand Gendry going for Arya with the hope she accepts be his family and to create a new history at Storm's End that I'm sure he would let her free to be in her own terms (WHAT I don't think she necessarily will let him say it), while she rejects (not because I think it doesn't fit her character, she CAN be a Lady in her own way and still would be appropriate, but the timing wouldn't be right a) it's only episode 4 b) there must have the inner conflit Maisie said Arya would face it between her feelings/love/life vs the cold/assassin/death path), so it has reason.

But about the "leaks" or even rumours of final ones, they're highly disappointing. (And no, I'm not even talking about that Gendry/Sansa nonsense bc hello, what a real joke lol)

I remember Joe saying not everybody would like GoT's ending, aka meaning he is in the last episode since he got the script to know, this answer is an obvious one seeing how bigger the Game of Thrones fandom is and how different are the ideal endings for most of it. Of course it won't be good for many. But what if what he says can also relate to Gendry and by consequence Arya (since he knows how people are invested into)?

Taking how some 'leaks' talk about Arya's ending being she leaving alone, no trace of Gendry at all. Just her, leaving alone. I personally find a very sad, unsatisfying and idiotic ending. Not to count a very disservice to her character after everything. When I read I remembered how Maise said her last scene shot was her alone. While we know they don't shoot in chronological order and it could be just a random scene, there also CAN be her last scene. Sometimes, the final shit is final. Like in S3 the last scene we have Gendrya is the 'I can be your family' one and was actual the last scene Maise and Joe filmed together, decided by directors. So sometimes, it can have a relevance. It's a case to wait and see

Joe saying 'Hello' about Gendrya caught my attention since the interview was released because he sounded sneaky. It could be about their reunion? Yes. But the hello definitely doesn't make the context. It could be something related to their ending. Or a new reunion. Maybe in finale? While I thought Gendry would be in episode 5 battle, there are mixed 'leaks' saying he is, others he isn't. So in finale? They seeing each other again with a hello and then they finally reconciling and getting together. It'd make sense. Either at begin of episode or just like some people of fandom are already headcanoning is what he says when she's leaving alone. But if it's the final thing he says to her. Or if he isn't even in the scene and we just hear his voice saying it and she looking it while "leaving"...

Call it BS. I see many saying an open ending is better than anything. No it's not. As someone who have read many books, watched many movies and series. The open ending in very most of cases is terrible. "Oh but there's fanfics", there's also fanfics for when the ending is closed and not what we like, so does it same effect.

In Gendrya's case even worse because they CAN (and SHOULD) have a well written ending, for worse or for better, both characters deserve a closed one. An open ending would be the biggest slap on the face of viewers for almost a decade following through. And they have EVERYTHING in their hands, all what was written and developed to end the show for those two characters in a honored way and tying the last threads. If we get an open ending you count of me never leaving D&D alone. The riot will be real. It's pure garbage.

That being said. I really hope it isn't true and that scene of her alone is her leaving in a scene from tonight's episode or next, not related to her ending. Joe said he liked his ending, so I try to believe it wouldn't be a such bittersweet one. Maise said she liked her too bc its possible see Arya going for new things, things you wouldn't think the character would. She leaving alone, forging her own adventures isn't something new for her character. Heck, traveling alone is what she's being doing for so long, what adventure has on it? But she actually choosing to live by, yes ofc still being her badass self but with someone she loves, a family, maybe even the power to be a Lady, yes, a kind of adventure she didn't think she would ever. Letting herself love and be loved, surrounded by family is something new. That wouldn't change her nature. She still could be a different ruler, train girls. Lead to a different generation in Westeros (and I said that only in Storm's End, not Iron Throne). And with this wouldn't have to make Joe leave all is been giving to him. Yes, maybe he never thought about being a lord or even king, it doesn't mean he wouldn't be good at. Usually the ones who don't seek power and get it can handle it better. Gendry Baratheon could be an amazing ruler for his people. One to bring fairness. I see it's very unfair only one lose to be with the other. No. Gendrya is about seeing each other as equals and BOTH fitting in each other's realities. So asking for Gendry leaving everything given to him and people who need his lead, a new adventure, to follow her, is very selfish. Both have potential to, together, be different, be great and learn new things.

Anyway, before I lose myself in thoughts I think I said enough. While I def was in the train of "too good to be true", yeah I still don't trust those writers. So I'm in a state of praying circle for the miracle of good sense had touched them when writing Gendrya ending. Because Arya Stark and Gendry Baratheon deserve it.

[trellanyx]

Hiya! So i started watching Broadchurch bc of you (and sad scruffy david tennant tbh) and i jUST FINISHED SEASON 1 OMG ELLIE DID NOT DESERVE THE BS SHE WENT THROUGH I FUCKING KNEW SHE WAS TOO CLOSE TOO THE CASE IM AKSSJSJASKW anyways, i read that s2 didnt really live up to expectations from s1?? I was wondering what are your thoughts on it??? Can i watch s3 without watching s2??

Aaaay, my first conversion! I’m thrilled! And yes, Ellie deserves all the hugs after s1. As for s2 not living up to expectations, well, it depends on what your expectations are.

S2 is all about fallout, not only with Danny’s case, but Sandbrook too. It’s about the different and sometimes messy ways people cope with trauma, it’s about facing your demons (sometimes literally), it’s about intent vs perception, truth vs justice. It’s about the different ways people find closure (or don’t). It is, to me, an incredibly human season.

I loved it.

My sister hated it.

I’m going to put the rest of my thoughts under a cut for season 1 spoilers, BUT NO SPOILERS FOR SEASON 2. The tldr version is that I think s2 is worth watching, and it provides important context for s3, but you don’t have to watch it to follow along with the storyline.

Season 2 focuses on two things: Joe’s trial, and Alec trying to reopen the Sandbrook case. While Sandbrook is a delightful mystery a la season 1, this season focuses more on the characters and their interpersonal relationships. I’ll break down the reasons people like and dislike it, and you can decide for yourself. Again, I promise there are NO SPOILERS.

Dislike

So it’s no secret that the relationship between the Millers and Latimers took a HUGE blow when Joe confessed. If you didn’t like Ellie going through shit in season 1, then you might not like season 2 because this gets ratcheted up to 11. How could you not know, Ellie asked Susan, and now it’s her that has to answer the question. If you’re hoping for a lot of people to start off in Ellie’s corner at the beginning of the season, you’ll be disappointed.

 Joe’s trial is as brutal and hard to watch as you’d expect. The prosecution and the defense are damn good at their jobs, and it’s a no-holds-barred fight all the way down to the verdict. If you don’t like the idea of anyone defending Joe and putting a spotlight on everyone else’s dirty laundry, you may not like s2.

Sandbrook is a messy case. We already know this from Alec’s confession in s1, and seeing the effects of what it did to his mental and physical health. We cannonball down a rabbit hole as Alec tries to breathe life back into a case that is deemed DOA by everyone else. Sandbrook is a toxic and bitter case for everyone involved, and no one is anything less than 50 shades of gray (sorry, I had to). You may find the new characters intriguing, or you may find them too unlikable to bother with.

Everyone is going through grief and shock thanks to the trauma of Danny’s case and Joe’s reveal. They all process these feelings in different ways. Not all of them are sympathetic.

Like

No one acts like they do without reason. You may not like the actions, but the motivations are understandable and painfully, beautifully human.

Alec’s backstory is fleshed out and it’s heartbreaking in a way only the sweetest angst can be. You know the kind. Watching how much he cares, how hard he’s trying, what he went through and is willing to go through to get justice for Pippa and Lisa will make you love him even more than you do. He also goes through some great character development.

Ellie’s strength through this entire nightmare is a goddamn treasure. Even when she’s in pain, even when she’s screaming and crying, even when it feels like she’s utterly alone, she never stops fighting and she never sacrifices who she is, never turns into something twisted by bitterness and pain like Alec did. You’ll be so proud of her by the time it’s over.

Alec and Ellie’s relationship also gets development, and the power dynamic becomes more balanced. Alec softens, Ellie hardens. Even when every other character has turned their backs, Ellie and Alec are there for each other 100% of the way. He’s a support system for her, she’s a fighter for him. Alec is clearer about his respect and trust for Ellie, and Ellie gives as good as she gets when he starts on with his shit, in a way she didn’t (and couldn’t) in season 1. They’re a well-oiled machine by season 3, but it’s season 2 that assembles the parts.

Sandbrook is a good mystery. Whether you like it as much as Danny’s case is a matter of personal preference, but imo it’s a good story with good twists.

LGBT content. ;) Though for the sake of keeping expectations realistic, it stays subtext up until the finale. But what a finale.

I strongly recommend giving season 2 a try. It all comes down to preference. Like I mentioned above, the things I loved about it were the things my sister hated about it. You’ll also start of season 3 with a much stronger foundation than you would if you skipped 2. Definitely gonna be some moments of, “oh shit, when and how did that happen?”

If you want, message me off anon and I can tell you the s2 spoilers you need to know going into s3. But I 100% recommend watching s2 in its entirety. I wasn’t disappointed, and hopefully you won’t be either.