#before they really started splitting off and having individual episodes

[qoldenskies]

Always personally believed the reason some of the best angst is found in rottmnt fandom is because the canon show is so silly imo, theres like the room for the horrors and everyone went "we can traumatize them :)"

honestly if the movie didnt exist i probably wouldnt have walked into the fandom more comfortable exploring darker topics in my work, i probably wouldve kept to stories with tone akin to cvd where things are more silly while occasionally dabbling into serious,,,, maybe its something about the movie willing to get more visceral that made it feel like an opening for me to really dig into these characters . like a juicy salad

but i consider the show a lot when i write as well!! i really love all the little subtle bits of characterization in the ways that they act and how much i can attribute that to little bits of angst. i will find it in anything if you leave me alone without food for long enough, and maybe its not that deep but its soft soil and brother I WILL START DIGGING!!!

i remember turtle dega nights really surprising me on my first ever watch though. donnie actually snapped and i was like Ohhhhhh SHIT!!!!

[kimpossibly]

THE CHAIN -> e. roundtree PART ONE: drummers' curse

PAIRING: eddie roundtree x fem!reader WARNINGS: mentions of minor injuries (NOTE: some warnings for this story include MAJOR spoilers for this series down the line, so I'll put those beneath the cut. If you don't want to get the story spoiled, then just ignore it ― but I did want to provide the chance for you to get an idea of how the story will go later down the line if you have any sensitive topics you'd like to avoid. please prioritize your mental wellbeing!)

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Apologies in advance for making Y/n the drummer and putting Warren on rhythmic guitar. I just loooooooove female drummers. Also can you tell that I love Karen and Camila? Because I love them with alllllll my heart and soul. Another sorry in advance because this one may break your heart a little ― it sure broke mine. NOTES ON THE WORK: I used the timeline from the book, mostly because I couldn't keep track of it in the show haha. I read the book twice before watching what episodes of the show were out, so the lines may blur between the two. For your convenience (and mine, tbh), I'll put the year all the characters were born underneath this note so you can reference it when you need to. I just couldn't keep track honestly. I think in the show they start the band when Graham is fourteen, but in the book he's around 18 when they add Warren on, so it's kind of confusing?? I decided to stick with the book because it was a more physical timeline. Anyways, enough talking, here's your guide! ― YEARS BORN (in order of age) Billy Dunne -> 1947 Camila Dunne -> 1949 Graham Dunne -> 1949 Warren Rhodes -> 1949 Eddie Roundtree -> 1949 Daisy Jones -> 1951 Y/n L/n -> 1951

WARNINGS (SPOILERS INCLUDED): reader has a terminal illness. Discussions about death and loss, depictions of grief, hospitals

It's no secret that the renowned 1970s band Daisy Jones & The Six went through its fair share of ups and downs. Until their inexplicable split on July 12, 1979, they were undeniably one of the biggest bands in the world. While a more detailed account of the band's history will be recounted in a more thorough transcript, this advanced edition will focus specifically on two of the band members: Eddie Roundtree and Y/n L/n. More specifically, it will focus on their individual and combined roles they played in the band's eventual downfall.

THE RISE OF THE SIX (1965 - 1972)

GRAHAM: Y/n grew up next door to us. She was a little younger, two years or so, so we never really gave her a second look. Until the day she wandered into our garage during band practice out of nowhere. She practically ripped the drum sticks out of Chuck's hand and just started...wailing on 'em. I mean, she could make your head spin. Here was this thirteen, fourteen year old girl next door, this kid, and she was the best fuckin' drummer we'd seen. I mean, in the neighborhood. She wasn't Mitch Mitchell, but she was the closest thing we had. And she was too good to be shoved in the back with a tambourine. But we couldn't just take Chuck's spot away and hand it over to the new girl.

CHUCK: I knew right then and there that they wanted to give my spot to the new girl. There was no doubt in my mind. And, you know what? I got it. This chick was good. Way too good. Did I feel threatened by her? Hell yeah, I did. And at the time I probably wanted to tell her to screw off, but now...now I get it.

EDDIE: She was good. Amazing, actually. Graham and I looked at each other and knew that she was something we'd be stupid to pass up on.

BILLY: When Chuck told us he wanted out, we were pissed, of course. We were heading off to open for Winters that week. It felt like things were going to look up, just like I always knew they would, and he was ditching. I know now that that wasn't really what it was ― he'd gotten into college, fan-fucking-tastic. It was a good opportunity for him, a sure thing. But right then it felt like a betrayal.

WARREN: So he ditched, and Billy just turned right to Eddie and said, "Go tell Y/n she's in." And he was just...terrified.

EDDIE: I said, "why me?" You know? It wasn't my band, it was Billy's. And here he was, ordering me to tell some new girl she was in. I was fifteen and could barely ask a waitress for ketchup. At the time, that was probably the last thing I wanted to do.

GRAHAM: He asked why it had to be him, and I told him the truth: he was the least intimidating. Billy, you know him. He had a tendency to get too focused on the task at hand and could get a little...harsh. And Warren? He had one of the biggest personalities you could find. He'd scare her off before we had a chance to offer her the spot...[Pauses] I probably could've done it, in all honesty. I just didn't want to screw it up. Eddie was better with words than I was, and we needed her in our band. Badly.

EDDIE: And I remember thinking, "Here goes fucking nothing."

The doorbell ringing was what got her attention. No one ever used the doorbell. It was always a knock ― that, or someone just walked in. The L/n's front door was hardly ever locked back then. Y/n's mom was a nurse, formerly a school nurse. She didn't want to risk the chance that some kid took a spill and had to limp home on an injured leg. So all the neighborhood knew, if you got hurt playing outside, you could march on over to Miss L/n's place to get yourself fixed up.

Y/n had her own share of walk-ins, too. By the time she was ten, she had seen her mom help out enough kids that she was practically a nurse herself. She could disinfect and bandage and stitch up any old case that walked through her front door. And if someone who was too busted up for first aid? She knew where the keys to the family Winnebago was and how to drive herself and them to the local hospital. She was only fourteen and didn't have a license, but it didn't matter. She was a safer driver than most everyone else on the road.

So when someone rang the doorbell, she assumed that it was someone too injured to knock. She grabbed the car keys and made sure her suture kit was within reach.

When she opened the door, she didn't see the blood and broken bones she was expecting. Instead, Eddie Roundtree stood on her front porch, hands shoved anxiously in his pockets. He looked all right, but that didn't stop her from asking: "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Um. No," Eddie said quickly, taking his hands out of his pockets.

"Okay," she said slowly, eyes narrowing. "Do you want to come in?"

"Yeah, sure."

Y/n turned and walked further into the house, prompting him to close the door and follow her. She led him to the kitchen. "Lemonade? I made it this morning," she offered, already opening the fridge.

EDDIE: That jug of lemonade was bigger than she was. [Laughs] I could barely watch her get it down. I was afraid she'd drop it on her foot. But she just took her time getting it from the fridge to the table. I found out later that her mom bought a pound of lemons a week because Y/n wanted something to offer every kid that came through their front door. [Pauses]. She was just like that.

He gave a nod. Y/n stood on her toes to grab two glasses from the cabinet. She poured one glass, hands shaking from the weight of the jug, and Eddie realized that this awkward silence was probably the best time to transition into his real reason for visiting.

"Chuck left the band."

"Oh," she said simply. "Sorry."

"Don't be."

She paused, looking confused. And Eddie, who's will to live was slowly draining from this conversation alone, raced to finish what he had (awkwardly) started.

"I just mean that...you're in. The band. If you want to be our drummer, you're in."

Y/n paused mid-pour, setting the pitcher down on the counter carefully. She turned around until her back pressed into the kitchen counter, arms crossed over her chest. "And you thought I'd jump at the chance to join?"

"No. No," Eddie said quickly. "We just wanted to offer you the spot if you still wanted it."

"Did I say that I wanted it?"

"No, but―"

"Okay, just making sure," she handed him a glass and hopped up onto the counter, crossing her legs underneath her. "So you need a drummer?"

"Yes. Badly."

She took a sip from her glass and paused, as if weighing her options in her mind. She swallowed. "Are there any other girls in the band yet?"

EDDIE: Yet. Like she knew it was going to happen. It was just a matter of time.

"No, not yet." he replied.

"Then be honest with me: are you guys sleazeballs?"

EDDIE: Sleazeballs. She didn't sugarcoat things. She wanted to know if we were creeps or if we'd let her play drums in peace. I get that, one hundred percent. but back then, it felt like she was trying to accuse us of something.

"No," he said quickly, "Well...Warren can be a little much, but he means well."

She took another slow sip, once again weighing her options in her mind. "When's your next gig?"

"We play pretty much every night, wherever we can find. It might take us a bit to teach you the songs, but―"

"I can learn them," she said confidently. "How soon do you need someone?"

"Soon as possible."

EDDIE: By then, I was terrified she'd say no. All these questions and never once did she seem really interested in joining. I was already trying to figure out which of us would be the least shit at the drums.

"Okay. I'm in."

EDDIE: And that was it. She said yes. I didn't appreciate how much she'd saved our asses right then, but I was relieved. That was for sure.

GRAHAM: Eddie came back, told us she said yes. She couldn't join practice until her mom got home ― she didn't want the house to be empty if some injured kid wandered by ― so we had about an hour and a half to teach her every song.

BILLY: She picked 'em up like [snaps] that. Never doubted it for a single second, either. Once she knew it, she knew it.

EDDIE: She showed up to the first gig in overalls and sneakers. She let Camila put a little makeup on her, too, but we could all tell she hated it.

CAMILA: She was sweet. And, surprisingly, a little shy. I could tell she was a little scared of the boys. That's why she was a little cold to them at first. But she was just the coolest kid. I mean, fourteen years old and joining a rock band? She was a little rockstar, right off the bat. She asked me to put some makeup on her before her first gig with the band. When I gave her a mirror after and asked her what she thought, she said, "I like it, but it makes me feel like a doll. Not a drummer." She liked the glitter the most, though. It became her trademark. She put it on her cheeks, in her hair, everywhere that would catch the light. She'd come off stage and you'd see a little pile of sparkles behind the drum set.

EDDIE: Right off the bat, first gig. It was enough to freak anyone out. She joined the band six hours ago, learned the songs three hours ago, and now she was playing in a club to a couple dozen people. It seems so small now, but back then? It was like starting at Wembley.

Y/n shook out her hands for the eighth time. It wasn't about loosening up for the gig anymore, she just needed something to do that didn't involve throwing a punch or screaming at the top of her lungs. She looked up at Billy, standing at the front of the group, cool and calm as ever, and she had the distinct urge to kick him in the shin. Why did he get to be so calm when she was right behind him, on the verge of throwing up?

She turned to anxiously twisting a single drum stick between her fingers, around and around, faster and faster. Eventually it became so mindless that she barely noticed as the stick slipped from her fingers, clattering to the floor. She bent to retrieve it quickly, hoping no one had noticed.

But, of course, someone did.

"Hey," Eddie said, looking back at her.

"Warren knocked it out of my hands." she said quickly.

Eddie glanced over at Warren, who was a solid two feet ahead of her, physically unable to have knocked a drum stick out of her hands. Y/n knew from that glance that he could see right through her lie. Now she really wasn't in the mood to talk.

EDDIE: She was terrified. And she was lying her ass off about it. I didn't want to run the risk that she choked up in the middle of the show and screwed up our set. So I figured I'd just, talk. And if she wanted me to screw off, she'd tell me. She had a way of saying exactly what she wanted.

"You've heard of the Drummer's Curse, right?" he asked.

She frowned in a way that told him no, she did not.

"First, there's the obvious stuff: drummers have to lug around the most shit out of anyone in the band. Drums sets are heavy and expensive, so there's that. But the worst part is that they're easy to overlook, you know? They're at the back of the stage behind all this shit, everyone stands in front of 'em. Drummers can fade into the background real easy. The best drummers can outshine anyone else onstage. You'll do that one day, but if you're freaked out now, just let yourself fade a little. You'll play better than anyone up there and the crowd'll know it, but you can let them focus on someone else if you want. You get what I'm saying?"

EDDIE: For a second, I thought she was going to punch me.

But then she nodded, wiped off some of the pink lipstick Camila had put on her with the back of her hand, and pushed her bangs to the side. "Drummers' Curse, huh?"

"Some people believe in it, some don't."

"And you?" she asked, turning to him. "Do you believe in that kind of stuff?"

Eddie paused. Shrugged. "Sure. Seems true enough to me."

Y/n nodded. "I don't. It sounds like bullshit to me."

Eddie frowned. She looked up at him. "I'm not going to let myself fade because I'm scared. I signed up for this, you know. The least I can do is own my place. If I outshine you, it's just because I'm that good," she said matter-of-factly. "I will need help carrying the stuff, though."

EDDIE: I didn't know what to say. I mean, [laughs] what the hell do you say to that?

He felt like he'd had the rug pulled out from under him. And then, he surprised himself: he laughed.

And Y/n surprised herself then, too ― she smiled.

EDDIE: That was just...[Shakes head. Smiles.] I don't know.

"I think we can manage that." he said with a smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen...The Dunne Brothers!"

WARREN: If I were still the guy I was back then, I would completely undersell her to you right now. I'd tell you she was an average drummer who was more in it for the thrill than the craft. But that wasn't it at all. She got up there and she just...shined.

GRAHAM: We all knew she'd be scared before the first gig. In fact, she looked about ready to throw up when they announced us on stage. But the second she hit those lights, it was like she was a different person. She waved and smiled like she'd done it a hundred times. The only other person I'd seen do that ― I mean really become another person on stage ― is Billy.

BILLY: That first show with Y/n was a little bit of a trainwreck. We were at least a half beat behind the entire show. And I'm not saying I blame her, but she was new and shiny. We got through it just fine, but I think we all felt it wasn't our best show.

WARREN: That show was bitchin'.

GRAHAM: It was a great show.

WARREN: Back in those days, we'd get off stage and start cheering for ourselves like we'd just won the goddamn lottery. Somewhere along the way, that stopped. We'd just pat each other on the back, say 'good job,' and that was that. But when Y/n got backstage? She was screaming and yelling like it was the best night of her life. And all of us joined in without a second thought ― well, maybe all of us except Billy. He was kind of a hard ass, even then. None of us had ever heard this girl talk louder than a glorified whisper, and then she came out of nowhere with this full-body scream. And who did she run to? Well, I think you can guess.

CAMILA: She just about jumped into Eddie's arms.

Adrenaline is a funny thing. For one, the effect is had on different people can be vastly different depending on who it was. Some people mellowed out, some people amped up. Y/n fell into the second category.

The second she got off the stage, a giddy laugh ripped from her chest, turning more into a scream of triumph halfway through. She was buzzing. Literally. Her hands felt numb ― or, more accurately, they felt like they felt more. Everything she touched was sharp and blinding.

The next person to join in on the screaming and jumping around was Warren. Then Graham. Then Eddie. And then, reluctantly, Billy. Eddie was the last to come off stage, slinging his guitar off his shoulders, and Y/n, without thinking much about it, ran straight to him, leaping directly into his unsuspecting arms.

The others were too hyped up on their own adrenaline rushes to notice that anything out of the ordinary had happened. She wrapped her legs around his waist hanging onto him like a koala. And Eddie, who couldn't deny adrenaline, held onto her back without a second thought.

After a moment, she leaned back, arms still wrapped around his neck, faces inches apart. "Drummers' curse, huh?"

EDDIE: She didn't fade. She couldn't, not even if she tried.

Eddie just smiled and shook his head. "Sounds like bullshit to me."

[rwbyrg]

I don't known if you noticed or not, but in the back ground of v7ep9, with the Rosegarden fumble scene, the pillars have what looks like roses and green stems going around them and I'm just like did they (CRWBY) plan this !?!?

I did notice!! Everything about that scene is so blatant, intentional, and in your face and... y'know what, I've been meaning to talk about this scene for forever. Now feels a good a time as any.

Reasons Why Rosegarden is Canon: #013 - The Fumble

I have to admit, this was the first scene that really made me realize that these two were being set up as more than just character foils. And the way it does that is by making this scene sooooo tropey. We've got them Speaking in Unison, Finishing Each Other's Sentences, all with the air of Sickening Sweethearts. Ruby's little run towards him making them almost completely collide? Her closed off body language and nervous giggles? The second jinx at the end? The way it ties into their respective arc(s) while also paralleling other ships?

Lets break it down piece by piece.

First, this scene represents a resolution of sorts to the conflict - or, in romance arc terms, "break up" - that was set up between them at the start of the volume. The disagreement over what to say to Ironwood about the Oz situation is something that Oscar doesn't agree with, but respects either way; prompting the two of them to spend much of the volume separate and distant from each other.

As CRWBY says in the V7 commentary, The Fumble is when they "finally start to regain trust in each other". This, as well as their interactions within it, stand perfectly well on their own. Especially how it talks about the themes of trust, truth, and fear that both their solo arcs brush up against often. It also reaffirms the mutual care that's been established within their relationship thus far.

Ruby has spread herself too thin with her responsibilities and is offering to go tell Ironwood the truth that she initially decided to keep from him... but she's needed in Mantle with the rest of her team. So Oscar, who as we've previously established, is well aware of the weight of responsibility Ruby carries as leader, offers to take over for her. While he didn't agree with her decision from the start, he did respect it and therefore has his own amount of blame in keeping the truth hidden. His actions in this scene tell Ruby that she doesn't have to carry it all alone. That her decisions are not solely hers to bare the weight of. Even reassures her when she double checks that he's okay with it. Look at the little thumbs up! He's got it, Ruby! No worries!!

But outside of how it works for their individual and shared arcs as a pair, it also follows an established pattern within how CRWBY writes their romances. This 'breach of trust/break up' arc is one that has been explored with both Bumbleby and Renora as well. With BB, it kicks off when Blake runs at the end of V3, followed by her and Yang at odds with each other throughout most of V6, before they regain trust after protecting each other against Adam.

With Renora, it's running tangentially to Rosegarden throughout the Atlas arc. Ren, not believing they should be huntsman or be carrying these responsibilities, follows Ironwood's orders to the letter, represses his feelings and gives his team the cold shoulder, etc... all while Nora is in complete disagreement with how he's handling it. But both Bumbleby and Renora have new conflicts and resolutions throughout V8 as well... and so does Rosegarden.

Ruby and Oscar don't end this scene working fully together. They split up, following the name of the episode. Oscar stays behind in Atlas (As Above) to talk to Ironwood, and Ruby goes down to Mantle (So Below). Only for the two to swap places by the end of the volume with Oscar falling to the crater, and Ruby getting picked up from Atlas. They separate again in V8 following the split of the other ships as well; Yang, Ren, Jaune, and Oscar split from Blake, Nora, Weiss, and Ruby, respectively. The narrative constantly separating them with intention.

When they do have another resolution with the (rudely interrupted) reunion hug in V8E10, it is once again in this same location: The Schnee Manor entryway. Which, if you look at the full scope, with its rose engraved pillars, is designed like the definition of a fairy tale ballroom.

This romantic setting having not just one, but two very important moments to their shared narrative, ties into a Chekov's gun that's been following them around since the beginning: the idea that fighting and dancing aren't so different.

Even their body language and poses have them set up as if they're asking the other to dance!!

During this scene, they're also framed between two open doorways. Doors framing Rosegarden is something I've mentioned a few times, but am still working on a full meta for. To explain it briefly, open doors within stories - especially RWBY's narrative - are often symbolic of a few things. New beginnings, transitions and change, but also opening up or vulnerability. In this scene, Ruby and Oscar end up coming to an agreement between two thresholds marking a mutual transition. And they do this by trusting each other, opening up to one another, and ultimately growing closer in the process.

Speaking of being on the same page, I also want to talk about how the other characters are framed here. (Disclaimer: this isn't meant to downplay other ships, it is just an objective observation.)

Within the scene proper, team JNR all leave before Ruby and Oscar arrive, but there is an Interesting Focus on the characters that pass them over. The first we see passing over Ruby's shoulder is Penny, the second one is Weiss, this time over Oscar's shoulder. Leaving the two behind...

But then the camera angle changes. When Ruby and Oscar say "we should tell Ironwood" in unison, they are overlapped by Yang and Blake. Ruby then asks "Guess we're on the same page, huh?" before it pans back to Oscar and shows Bumbleby crossing past them a second time, as he responds "Guess so".

Which tells us two things. First, that they're on the same page as each other, and second that they are also on the same page narratively as Bumbleby. And if that wasn't enough to really drive the idea home, they give us another parallel to them by the end of the scene when Ruby and Oscar jinx with each other again!!

Ruby is so excited that she actually jumps off the ground when she turns around to wish Oscar luck, they bid each other farewell before she gives him the finger guns (just like her big sis does to Blake in V9), and then Ruby leaves through the front door, giggling again. Which prompts Marrow to roll his eyes in exasperation at the cringey, overly romantic youth he's been forced to witness twice over now. Once here, and once with BB earlier in the volume.

The last thing I'll mention has less to do with analyzing the scene objectively and more about a little test a dear friend of mine ran. She took the clip of this scene and sent it to some friends that weren't familiar with RWBY, the ship, or either of the characters individually, and asked them the question: What do you think the dynamic is between these characters?

And every single person that was asked immediately agreed that there was either a crush situation going on or it was building to a potential romance arc.

So take that as you will. Love this scene with all my heart, and thanks for giving me an excuse to talk about it. 🥰

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Life, 12/27/2024 Issue ft. Chinen Hidekazu & Hayama Yuki (translations below)

Publication: December 11, 2024

GavvPare! Vol.8 (Chinen Hidekazu)

-I was worried about the scene where he confronts his older brother and sister-

I confront Siita and Jiip in episodes 13 and 14. For Shouma, they're his older brother and sister, and although they abused him, they lived together in the same place, so I think he feels differently about them compared to how he's been fighting the Granutes and Agents so far. He has to take them down, but he's abit hesitant in taking action. With these complex feelings, I was worried about how to convey his feelings during the confrontation scene. However, the Director told me, "If Shouma doesn't stop them, the people of the world will lose. Stop them as if they're two violent criminals, don't think of them as his brother and sister." Even though Shouma's conflicted, he's determined to carry out his basic desire to "protect people," so I think I was able to show a different side of him than usual. We're enemies during the performance, but Hono-chan who plays Siita and Ruito-kun who plays Jiip, are similar in age to me and are good friends in our private lives. We also have a relationship where we can say what we want to say to each other, can compete with each other, and the three of us even set goals for the next year and promised to "make them happen together." Now that we've overcome the difficult scenes, I'm truly happy that Hono-chan and Ruito-kun are Siita and Jiip.

It's alittle early to say this, but looking back on this year, it's been a really crazy one. Around December of last year, I was saying to those around me, "I feel like something big is gonna happen next year." I never thought it'd be this production, but I'm really happy that I'm actually playing the lead role in Kamen Rider Gavv like this, and that I'm able to spend my days making my dream a reality. I'll never forget what I learned this year, and I hope to make even more progress in the next one!

Q: What's something that fills you with energy when you eat it?

A: Okinawan senbei. It has a taste that brings back memories of eating them during my childhood, but there are very few places in Tokyo that sell them. My mother in Okinawa often sends them to me. They're so delicious that I can't stop eating them once I start, so I try to restrain myself from eating them before filming so that I don't become bloated (laughs). I'd love it if everyone gave them a try!

Off Shot: During the last scene in episode 14, Hanto rushes to Shouma's side after his deadly battle with Jiip and Siita. Hanto helps Shouma up by lending him his shoulder, and the two of us imitate how to carry off an "injured person." On a tokusatsu set, the actors often discuss with the Directors how they'd react together during such unusual situations! That was alittle peek into the behind the scenes. _

BakuDAYS Vol.20 (Hayama Yuki)

-If I could express Ishiro's individuality-

In episode 37, I was assigned to perform two different types of action scenes. I had a scene with Taiya and a scene with Sutea, a colleague from his spy days, and we practiced the action about a week before the shoot. When the screen splits, there's a line where both Ishiro and Taiya say to each other, "I believe in him," but the real line in the script was, "I believe".* However, Haruhi consulted with me, saying, "I think "I believe in him" would be better since it sounds abit more like they have no doubts." I understood what he was saying and also revised my line. I also played the role of the fake Ishiro in episode 37, but I had trouble separating the two roles. I consulted with the Director in advance and was told that there was no need for me to force out two different characters, so I played the role while being conscious of facing everyone in Boonboomger with a cold expression and avoiding eye contact. Ishiro's strong point is analyzing, as he can anticipate what's going to happen in the coming future. So, as I play the role of Ishiro, I try to anticipate things that aren't written in the script, and ask the staff in advance about things that might happen in the future. By doing this, I hope to express Ishiro's individuality. Other things, for example, include his posture when standing, his vibes when speaking, and the pauses in his speech. I feel that it's been a very valuable experience being able to create Ishiro's character like this over the past year. (*it's the same meaning, but the first is casual while the latter is formal)

From now on, the internal circumstances regarding the Hashiriyan organization will become clear. If you pay attention to the actions of each and every character, I think you'll be surprised and amused!

Q: What's something the "Informant" wants to research?

A: I started working on my body once I started performing action in Boonboomger. I've been going to the gym for a couple months now, and I spend my free time researching the anatomy of the body, efficient ways to work out, and foods that are good for attaining the ideal shape (laughs).

BakuageSHOT: Thanks to the efforts of the production team, they made sure that I wouldn't get scars from the handcuffs, and I was able to film without any injuries. This filming session made me once again realize how much support I get from those around me!

[yrrtyrrtwhenihrrthrrt]

I'm obsessed with whatever they put in the water that is making everyone share their comic Nimona fankids, but let's fucking go I have more Gregor doodles (and headcanons) to share

-Nimona is The Most Protective auntie and she will rip anyone to shreds who would bully her little buddy

-Gregor's favorite color is light orange. He favors light colors like Ambro, but warm colors like Ballister so he loves light pinks, oranges, and yellows, but he still looks good in and regularly wears other colors

-It cannot be understated how terrified Ambrosius was when he was born. He did not feel deserving of something as wonderful as he considered his baby to be, and in light of his track record of hurting people he loves, he was petrified and didn't trust himself to be a dad (while also being hormonally protective and not trusting anyone else). I imagine he'd struggle a lot at first and would experience PPD or even episodes of Postpartum Psychosis for a couple months before settling in and feeling more confident

-Ballister started reading to him every night basically from when he was a newborn infant. Ambrosius would walk in to see Ballister, cradling a scrunched-up, tiny, squinting baby Gregor who can hardly see, and reading to him pointing to the words as if he could follow along

- Anyway as a kid Gregor would insist that BOTH his parents do bedtime EVERY night because he wouldn't sleep unless Ballister read to him and Ambrosius sang to him and all three of them cuddled the whole time (he is a snugglebug like his parents)

- He learned about the joust, and about Nimona's split when he was fifteen. In an attempt to not make himself out to be perfect or better than the others, Ballister also told him about how he'd poisoned the townspeople. This did not help. He suddenly felt like his loving family were all horrible people and was openly hostile to all of them for weeks. They got him individual and family therapy and he was able to come to terms with it but the news really hurt him and his ability to trust others

- He likes to study biology and history the most, but since he can't do math he leans towards history, I think he'd be a history professor as an adult :3

- He is bi and demisexual, he is relatively charismatic and does not come across as shy, but he's secretly very closed off and afraid of connection. It's easy for him to be friendly with people but hard to make deeper friendships or relationships

- He also has ADHD and General Anxiety Disorder. Ambrosius blames himself for the latter because he was so anxious/depressed when Gregor was a baby. Literally nobody agrees with this assessment

[no-see-um-incorrect]

Yv  Acting AU PT 3

(this is pt 1)

(this is pt 2)

Slight NSFW warning⚠️⚠️

 Interviewer: this first question was submitted by @everything-redacted-and-others

(I answered the second question in the first part)

Interviewer: who forgets their lines the most 

Alphonse: Wow! What a tough question. I’m really going to have to think on this for a second….👀

Seth: Wh- don’t look at me like that!

Alphonse: Oh Kiss my candy ass! you know I’m right!

Seth: OK name one time! that I forgot my lines 

Sugarboo:  in the beginning of your birthday episode, when you and Alphonse were about to go beat the shit out of the goons and Charlie, almost All of the lines in the last episode of Campfire confessions WHICH YOU WROTE!

Alphonse: the conversation before I walked out of the bathroom in bittersweet, when you were in the recording booth for your werewolf special. Would you like me to continue? 

Seth: all right, ya pricks I get it 🙄

————————————————————————

Interviewer: these next questions were submitted by  @antipasto-the-theif

 Interviewer: Seth, what’s your favorite memory on set so far?

Seth: my favorite memory onset so far…..let’s see… OK I got one. it starts out Kind of sad. so basically.  our characters birthdays match our actual birthdays. and on my birthday Alphonse was out of town. You see He wasn’t supposed to be in my birthday video…so I was kind of upset…and all melancholy throughout most the day…until we’re filming and it’s the scene in the kitchen where sugar was supposed to be  the only one there and singing me happy birthday, and Alphonse just pops in!

Alphonse: did you honestly think I was going to miss my favorite cowboy’s birthday~

Seth: so somewhere, there is an outtake of me, spontaneously bawling my eyes out and running off camera to go hug Al 😅

interviewer: OK next question. So, Casper and Charlie, how many times was the prop weed just prop weed?

Casper: we are constantly high on set 

Charlie: like for real 

Casper: we both focus more when we are um…in the clouds..so Yuuri lets us

Charlie: and it’s not like smoked for six hours  before filming high..it’s more we split a special brownie at 5 AM and washed it down with a monster energy high. So we’re not like a danger.

Casper: but yeah, for the 420 video. yeah, that was real 

Charlie: BUT For my birthday, the brownies we were eating were normal brownies, and not special brownies because I was given some special birthday brownies, and wanted to eat them later after dinner..so I guess you could say those were prop brownies,

Interviewer: next question. Auron, the world wants to know the workout routine!

Auron: oh boy well I’m a father running after a toddler with a need for speed which pretty much replaces any sort of missed day at the gym. But other than that and other activities that may or may not involve my spouse…..it’s kind of embarrassing… when I was younger I wanted to be in the MCU and my mother had told me “well those kinds of actors have really strict workout routines. If you want to be like them, you gotta get that down”…… so after much research that’s what I���ve been doing since about 16 years of age…captain America I’m coming for your Brand

Interviewer: onto the next one. What’s the worst blooper you know of, Sugar-Boo?

Sugarboo: 😈 there’s a scene in bittersweet and it’s when Seth finds Alphonse about to essentially kill Charlie, and alphonse grabs Charlie’s face and…..he’s like really aggressive about it so when he grabbed his face, Charlie let out the most….porn star like-moan I have heard come from an individual…And we had to take a five because nobody could stop laughing!

Interviewer: onto the next one. Which cast mate is the least like the character they play??

Seth: I want to say Auron

Alphonse: yeah, yeah I can get behind that

Charlie: I mean, Finn swears like a sailor but other than that….yeah, I’d say Auron 

Seth: Yea Auron in real life is a very sweet man  with a Darlin spouse, and a daughter he adores 

Alphonse: yeah, nothing like the cold Dom boss that you see on the screen.

Charlie: he’s a real sweet guy and he takes time to listen to everybody and help everybody. He helps me with line delivery, helps Faust with costume designs, he helps Jackie with photography when it comes to these snazzy thumbnails we’ve been doing recently.

Alphonse: he’s a lot more like a really helpful and quirky art teacher versus a mysterious and dominant boss.

————————————————————————

Interviewer: the next three questions are from @oceanlue

Interviewer: what was rooks reaction during the shower part?

Rook: 🤭

Auron: you are a shameless Thot my dear~

Rook: A THOT is a Admirer without Action I AM A WHORE i act on my thoughts

Auron: here we go🙃

Rook: SO if you don’t know. I think this was mentioned before BUT…he’s my husband in real life 

Auron: I am. I am your husband

Rook: So when I saw him come out of the Dressing room in nothing but a towel….I Started Catcalling him like a construction worker🤣

Auron: IN FRONT OF EVERYONE no less

Rook: And Then Yuuri gave us the script for the shower scene and I Said OUT LOUD-

Auron: “AWOOGA!” quite enthusiastically…which I found odd because you see me like that EVERY DAY

Rook: Never gets old *Sips coffee*

Interviewer: did auron or rook trip on set

Auron: Yes I did! I completely tripped and fell into Alphonse And I’m so sorry for that!

Alphonse: IT WAS FINE. But that an’t the first time you tripped You also fell into the wall because you stepped on ya own Boot laces 

Interviewer: did auron actually cry in the car ride home?

Auron: yes that was the one time I cried in a scene that Didn’t end up in an outtake

Yuuri: I kinda felt bad too because I didn’t realize he was getting choked up until we finished and he asked for a tissue!

Auron: it’s not uncommon for me to get emotional during scenes like that. They’re lucky that I only got choked up. I would’ve full on sobbed if the scene went any longer. 

————————————————————————

Hope you all enjoyed 

Feel free to ask “interviewer” questions 

I do prefer reblogs and replies, but you can send an ask too if you want 

Make sure to check out pt 1&2 I love making these

I was not Abel to get to all the question I apologize for that🙏

[justsomemusingsandthoughts]

Now about season 3 of Bridgerton....some thought from a Greys Anatomy fan of the first hour cause I need to get it off my chest :)

I was really excited to see Polins story unfold even though I didn't watch Bridgerton before or read the books but I was swept up by the excitement on tiktok and got invested in their story.

But as soon as I heard Shona was involved I was like okayyyyyy, I gotta keep my expectations in check cause the women is not one to write healthy and lasting relationships and reasonable men who communicate well😬

Looking at how the season played out, I completely understand why so many people are disappointed cause there was so much potential wasted, so many scenes that could have made clear to the viewer what was going on in Colins head. I think I filled in the gaps in my mind but there are still some moments, some things he said and did that were almost character destroying, specially the comment about the entrapment, cause dude, she didn't even know what sex was🙄 Also, not even trying to have a converation with her about why LW started and has such significance to her was not sth Colin would do.

And that's the crux of why I think for many die hard fans, the season was a let down. They didn't show any true discussions or enough moments of passion alongside the argument cause in truth, there was no time with all the unnecessary side plots and so few episodes. If you saw the season you know, I won't list them all but I will say they better put a proper Polin side story and spicy scene in Ben's season cause the amount of pointless threesomes I had to skip through is almost offensive, especially cause it should be clear people want intimate scenes of the main couple😮‍💨

But looking at all of it considering this show is part of Shondaland, I am not the least bit surprised. The number of downright character assasinations I watched on Grey's (and other shows of hers) after over a decade watching the development of some of them is kinda ridiculous. The number of ruined relationships and the horrible ways most of them were ruined (I almost cannot believe I'm saying this now but thank god they killed off Derek before completely undoing who he actually was and what Meredith meant to him😭).

Untimately, Shonda loves the drama and the angst and very clearly doesn't think there is much entertainment value in showing happy couples resolving their issues in a healthy way. If you watch a project she's involved in, you gotta be prepared for the couple to not make it and in that way, Bridgerton fans are rather lucky considering no matter how the seasons play out, it's gonna end with a happy couple that's not gonna split up again.

She also was never gonna just take books and keep to the narrative cause I don't believe that would be any fun to her. Especially this season, since she has said that Pen is her favorite character. I was immediately thinking Colin will be taking a back seat and have moments viewers will hate him for to have Pen in the forefront individually.

I guess I'm gonna take away and rewatch the beautiful moments, even some of the angsty ones and wait for what little side plots Polin will have in future seasons. I don't believe I will watch the entirety of future seasons cause I'm not interested to be disappointed by Shonda Rhimes' story telling anymore. Been there done that😂

But my little obsession with Polin was still worth it cause they're just an amazing fictional couple and I might just read their book now☺️

And I have definitely found a new actress to follow along for her future roles cause Nicola is just amazing as an actress and as a person🥰

(Also find it deeply offensive to make an audience wait for 2 years (!!!) for 8 episodes but that's for another day😅)

[malaismere]

C3 Ship Stats, Year 2

Hey, look it's been two years of Bells Hells, so I'm back with more stats. You can see my previous post here - or just my stats tag.

First up, the overall top ships: Laudna/Imogen. Nothing else comes close, although there is an Ashrym peak (ship week), Dorym (start of Issylra arc), and FCG/Frida peak (canon) that cross over. Everything else is much lower. Cut off for view, Laudna and Imogen get a high point of 67 for episode 65 and going canon - only beat by the 73 fic peak of episode 34 and dying.

The top ships remain fairly stable from last year; Callowmoore swaps places with Ashton/Dorian, and FCG/FRIDA and Fearne/Imogen jump up to knock Fearne/Orym off the top, but these are pretty small changes.

Since the rest are too small to see... the individual character charts are hanging out below the cut!

Chetney Pock O'pea

Chetney's got some new ships! With the party split in episode 52, we introduce Deanna; there's only a handful of fics with her, but that's pretty significant with how little Chet there is. We can see the episode 58 peak for the threesome, but once the party reunites there's not much of staying power.

Other than that, uh, Fearne/Chetney remains the top Chet ship by a longshot. Nothing else to sya, really.

Laudna

So, Laudna and Imogen, huh.

Okay, actual notes - we get an all time high at 67 fics for their reunion / becoming canon in episode 65; they're back and forth over the next episodes although still consistently the highest ship not just for Laudna but for all of Bells' Hells. It's currently calming down, but we can see the

Compared to year one, we can more clearly see that Ashton/Laudna is the number two ship, with Laudna/Dorian having dropped well after his departure. Other than that, some Laudna/Dusk and the witch trio ot3, nothing else of note, and all much lower than Imogen.

Fresh Cut Grass

Speaking of ships going canon, hey, look, these robots are gay? Okay, more seriously, we can see a bit of Loveletters after FRIDA's introduction, but it hits its stride with their hand holding in episode 55, and has its largest spike after the Uthodern arc concludes. Unlike Deanna/Chetney(/Fearne), this coninues, and is the only FCG ship going on - although that was true well before FRIDA showed up.

Fearne Calloway

Fearne has been relegated to the same scale I used for Chetney (and previously FCG, with no peak higher than four - although hers remains much busier than any of them. Look at this mess. Callowmoore is definitely the strongest contender of the group, and the most consistent, although there's a decent showing with Imogen as well, especially immediately after the party split.

Aside from threesomes and Chetney, everything else is in one-fic peaks and hard to analyze.

Imogen Temult

Imogen and Laudna, nothing comes close. Again, the peak of them going canon is 67 fics, and they're consistently high for the next several weeks.

Imogen has less ships going on in the background than Laudna; really, it's just Fearne, and some three witches ot3 stuff, and a few one-fic peaks here and there.

Orym

Orym's got a decent battle between his three ships: Ashrym, Dorym, and his husband, who never gets the highest peaks but remains fairly constant.

Dorym is slightly higher for total this year, but it's much tighter compared to their overall, and for the past several weeks it's usually been more Ashrym than Dorym. The Ashrym peak is the result of a ship week event; the Dorym peak lines up with the start of the Issylra crew and the introduction of Deni$e.

In the background, we mostly see ot3 ships, with Dorian and various people; the EXU crew ot3 remains present even though there's very little Fearne/Orym solo.

Ashton Greymoore

So, Ashrym dominates; the peak is for a ship week event, but even then we see it strong. Callowmoore takes the spotlight while the party is split, but drops off once we move over to the Issylra crew, and is only just starting to pick up again.

Other than that, Laudna takes a decent showing before the Solstice, and is one of the only things to get higher than a single fic, even if it's not competitive with the top two.

Dorian Storm

Dorian, since his departure, has definitely lessened in the amount of fics, and is very much dominated by Orym and ot3 pairings including Orym. There are a handful of Ashton/Dorian fics as well, seperate from the ot3, but everything else is a scant few oneoffs.

As mentioned, we can see the big spike for the first episode of the Team Issylra arc, since then dropping down to lower normal values.

Other Guests

There's a tail of Dusk ships from last year, but the main show is our newbies from the party split.

FCG/FRIDA takes the cake by a longshot; Deanna/Chetney and Deanna/Chetney/Fearne are the only other ones to hit a 2 peak.

Other than that, we saw some Prism ships and Ashton/Denise, but nothing that's really had a presence, and all the ships have faded away since the guests departed.

Majority Ships

95% of Laudna's ships are with Imogen, and vice versa

76% of Dorian's ships are with Orym

71% of Chetney's ships are with Fearne

65% of FCG's ships are with FRIDA

64% of Orym's ships are with Dorian

56% of Ashton's ships are wih Orym

and there's no Majority with Fearne, but 47% for Ashton is the plurality

Compared to last year, these are pretty similar, the big change being FCG/FRIDA becoming the majority and Chetney going from 93% Fearne to 71% Fearne due to Deanna.

Platonic (&) Pairings

Laudna & Imogen (71% of Laudna, 67% of Imogen)

Orym & Dorian (67% of Dorian's)

Orym & Ashton

FCG & Ashton (75% of FCG's)

Fearne & Orym

Laudna & Ashton

Imogen & Orym

Imogen & Ashton

Laudna & Orym

Fearne & Imogen

Orym & Ashton rose a few rungs (with some quality time in Issylra, I imagine) and Laudna & Ashton rose a rung as well. Laudna & Orym and Fearne & Imogen replace Dorian's tags with Imogen & Ashton, as we move further away from his departure and again, party split quality time.

Most Romantic vs Most Platonic

This is calculated by Romantic ("/") fics divided by Platonic ("&") fics, with greater than 1 being more romantic and less than 1 being more platonic. As I've said previously, this is a little tenuous because many fics are tagged both & and / while, some intending it to be read platonically and many not.

Most Romantic

Laudna/Dorian (16.5)

Ashton/Dorian (5.7)

Fearne/Ashton (5.5)

Orym/Dorian (5.0)

Laudna/Imogen (4.3)

(the exact same group in the exact same order as last year!)

Most Platonic

Chetney/Laudna, Chetney/FCG, Chetney/Imogen, Laudna/FCG, and Dorian/FCG (no ship fics)

Laudna & Orym (0.03)

FCG & Orym (0.1)

FCG & Imogen (0.11)

Imogen & Ashton (0.15)

FCG & Ashton (0.16)

(We got more Chet ships to the list, and Laudna&Orym pushes Imogen & Orym off the top five by qualifying)

Most Contentious (closest to 1 / an even split):

FCG & Fearne (perfect 1.0)

Fearne & Imogen

Fearne & Dorian

Dorian & Imogen

Fearne & Laudna

(there's some rearranging, but Fearne & Laudna take Laudna & Ashton's place as a more even split)

[highfantasy-soul]

NATLA Episode 8 - Legends (1/4)

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

Of course, full spoilers ahead.

<previous/next>

Opening this final episode with the Gaang all working together to take out the fire nation ship felt so natural, I completely forgot that's not what happened in the animated version! In the animated show, it's just Aang who takes out the whole ship with Katara and Sokka hanging back behind the walls. (Which is odd because of all the ppl screaming that animated Aang would NEVER have Katara sit out on a fight when…that's exactly what he did. Katara and Sokka weren't doing their own thing while Aang was attacking the ship, they were literally just standing on the wall with Pakku and Chief Arnook - so….yeah, about all that live-action Aang hate for not wanting to lose Katara in the battle…..hmmm maybe…uh…watch the OG show with your brain turned on….)

Why was there no outcry about Aang 'not letting his friends fight' in the animated version when that's exactly what he did when he went out alone on Appa and Katara and Sokka did nothing? Almost like there's a massive double standard here.

Aang takes point in the battle, wooshing soldiers overboard and doing some nice AOE damage then Katara comes in with the pointed attacks to take out individual enemies. Aang and Katara working in tandem, their move sets complementing each other, was really beautiful. Then Sokka coming in with the 'Appa-eyed' view of the situation and calling out battle plans and heading to the command center to take out the leadership (of the ship) really showed how each person had their own strengths and balanced each other out. I think it was a really cool choice to not have Sokka fighting the actual soldiers, but rather taking out the mechanics of the ship: person on person combat isn't the only way to win a battle - making the smart move and taking out resources IS!

Zuko's tenacity and flat refusal to stop trying is on full display here - I love the desperation and Iroh not wanting him to go, but supporting him anyways. Iroh giving the advice about the fissures is so sweet and I really like the change to it being Zuko who mentions the father-son dynamic between them. Not directly, of course, but by telling Iroh Lu Ten would have been proud to have him as a father, to me, makes the bond clearer and stronger than Iroh telling Zuko he views him like a son.

While I'm not sure it was the animated show's intention, not showing how Zuko has helped Iroh, too, did make his declaration that 'Ever since I lost my son, I've come to think of you as my own' feel a little like he just attached himself to Zuko because he was a young boy who he could replace his son with and shape the way he thinks he should be - I know that's a pretty uncharitable interpretation of that scene in the OG, but because it's not very well fleshed out what their relationship was like before Zuko's banishment, it could easily come off that way. I think the way the live-action really delved into specifically the funeral scene showed how it was a two-way relationship from the start.

I've seen the argument that the live-action was actually enforcing sexism by having Katara and the women of the tribe push Pakku to change his mind about allowing women in combat, claiming that it was the '2000s feminism movement' of the women still 'asking' the man for permission to fight. To me, this isn't a legit criticism of the scene. Barring the fact that in the OG, Pakku still gave Katara permission to fight before the battle started (and in the live-action she went out on Appa to attack the ships without his permission anyways), they're at war. This isn't a 'I'm taking charge of my own destiny alone' thing - if they want to be effective, they need to all be a united front, not split between men and women. In this instance, they NEED to be working in tandem with the male warriors or else they'll fail - you know, the whole house divided will fall thing. So no, it's not 'women still not getting power until the man approves' like some say, it's logistical military strategy to make sure all leadership and combatants are on the same page.

I see this scene, Katara getting all the women to come out and demand to be a part of the battle too, as a precursor for her arc in the Imprisoned storyline (which I'll go into why I think that will be a character moment Katara will get in season 2 in my 'cut storylines post'). Katara doesn't just stand up for herself and takes the role of combatant alone, she inspires others to stand up, too.

It's also another example of the idea that so many people are desperate for a change in the way things are going, but they need a catalyst to give their movement momentum. Team Avatar is that catalyst and we saw it with the Fire Nation rebellion group, Tayo getting his father to start fighting back, and now the women of the Northern Water Tribe. Katara (and the Gaang at large) aren't coming into a culture and demanding they change their backward ways and the natives are all hearing and thinking about this 'gender equality' for the first time ever. It's clear the women standing up to Pakku have been talking about this for awhile (not to mention Yagoda's talk with Katara last episode where she doesn’t seem fully on board with the gender divide either, but she doesn’t see the opportunity to change the system quite yet) and big catalysts have a way of springing social change forward dramatically. Katara was the just first crack in the dam and Yagoda steps forward to back her.

I have a whole-ass thing about how narratives that try to talk about the white savior trope being bad usually end up in the same racist camp as the ones trying to make the white savior trope good and it comes down to the depiction of the indigenous population. In most, even if they're saying white savior bad, they give the indigenous population no agency - they just roll over to whatever the outsider is coming in to change about them or lead them toward. If the culture has a practice we would consider bad (like sexism), the outsider (animated Katara) is the only one standing up against it and no one else in the culture backs their bid for change, they just sit silently, let the outsider fight their battle for them, then 'reap the rewards' of (or 'blindly follow to their doom' in anti-white savior stories) the new societal change that they took no part in.

In the live action, they show that it's not JUST Katara wanting this change - the women of the tribe want it too and will stand up with and for Katara as they join forces to make societal change. They are ALL claiming their agency rather that letting Katara do all the work.

I know some people think it's 'virtue signaling' or whatever and complain about the shot of all the women heroes in Endgame or Captain Marvel's 'standing up after being knocked down' montage, but call me a stupid woman, those scenes actually mean a lot to me. Why is animated Katara railing against Sokka because she has to do the laundry seen as the height of feminism and yet a group of indigenous women standing up and backing one of their sisters in her bid to make systemic change actually the opposite of feminism? It makes no sense to me.

I like that the live-action shows the women and learners joining the battle too, but recognizing their lack of experience in battle. It's a realistic take on letting those with no combat experience join up. They aren't taking point in battle, they're going to certain parts of the field and doing what they can - shoring up the walls and aiding the fighters. That 'aid' is broad and quickly turns into intercepting fireballs and creating ice barriers to stop the soldiers from advancing. Like with Sokka's story: you don’t need to be a master at combat in order to help in a battle - you just need the chance to join others defending your home using every skill you have.

The whole 'Katara can't be a master! It's bad fem power rep to have her become a master all on her own without a teacher!' outcries are really feeling like a repeat of people pissed that at the end of Daredevil s3 they added Karen to the business sign 'Nelson, Murdock, & Page' crying "But she's not a lawyer!! You can't do that!!!! That's so stupid!!! She doesn't deserve it!!!" Shut up. Seriously, shut the fuck up. This obsession with 'traditional' schooling being the only legitimate way to learn and if you haven't had a learning process that's highly prejudiced/not available to everyone, then you're actually shit and none of your accomplishments are 'real' is just straight poison. When they add Karen's name to the sign in DD, they aren't saying 'you're a practicing lawyer now', they're saying 'your contributions are why we're here, why we succeed in so many ways - we want to honor that even if you don't have BAR certification'. Same with Katara being called 'master'. It's not saying that she's reached Pakku's level (after all, he's THE BEST, not every master is going to be at his level) but they are acknowledging that she has skills and experience none of them have - she's been in the world, she's learned on her own, and she's held her own and has things she can teach to others.

There's actually a whole thing about how the term 'master bender' is thrown around willy nilly in the animated series - like, every character is considered a master (including the earth bending teacher in season 2 that's super annoying and is beaten easily every time he's in a fight) and there's not any actual explanation as to what that means. So people coming in now pretending that they actually know the threshold one must meet to become a waterbending master is really just them wanting to complain that a female character advanced her skills without traditional training. (She DID have a scroll, remember? She DID observe other benders and try to incorporate that into her moves, remember?). Airbenders are the ONLY group that have a clear definition for what makes a 'master' and Aang got it at 12, Jinora got it at 11. The term 'master' seems to be used more for ceremony/respect or a quality that they have something they can teach others rather than an actual course and test one must go through to attain the title. If we're going by that standard, then Katara is definitely a master all on her own.

It's not a 'girl boss getting a title you didn't earn just because you’re a girl and writers think that makes you cooler', it's a 'Katara has worked her ass off all season to teach herself, come up with clever ways of finding instruction, and even when denied formal training, took it upon herself to keep going  and inspire others'. When she tells Jet "this wasn't you, it was me" and to Zuko, "Yeah, I found a master - me", it IS empowering and EARNED. It isn't cheesy 'I don’t need anyone's help' pop feminism, it's honest and a declaration that even if you are barred from traditional methods of learning, when you seek to educate yourself, it's still worth something. Just because you don't have a diploma, doesn't mean what you know isn't 'real'.

[mdhwrites]

Ever think Polly felt like a bit of an afterthought at times in Amphibia? Like among the main cast, she's probably the one who adds the least. Among them, we have Sprig being the younger frog sibling who guides Anne into outgrowing her bad traits and being a better friend, Hop Pop being the well meaning authority figure for Anne in Amphibia, Sasha/Marcy being indications of how toxic things were for Anne before Amphibia and Anne learning to forgive, and Anne's parents show what Anne's life on Earth was like, but what does Polly add to Anne that no one else provides? Heck it's telling how she probably has less episodes that actually make her the main lead than even Sasha (despite appearing more than Sasha). Sure you got Frobo, but I doubt it'd make much a difference if Sprig had been the one to befriend and be close with Frobo in a world where Polly didn't exist considering he has similar reckless younger sibling traits like she does. It's even more obvious in season 3 where after Fixing Frobo, Polly barely does anything on the show with virtually no individual focus after that (Sprig and Hop Pop still got focus episodes in season 3B, while Polly's more or less in the background until All In) until All In and even then, it only really amounts to Frobo helping the group escape from Andrias' castle at the start and that's it. The moment where she helps tame the herons doesn't even hit the same impact it does for Sprig and Hop Pop considering she never quite talked about how the herons affect her. We see Sprig talking about how he misses his parents that he lost to the herons in Hopping Mall (and also likely fuels his behavior in Thai Feud to be seen as family by Anne's mom, and gives a touching moment in Sprig's Birthday) and how the heron attack is why Hop Pop buried the music box and acts overprotective. Polly on the other hand never even thinks or talks about it until All In so she doesn't quite hit the same emotional beats as Sprig and Hop Pop do with the taming herons. Like it makes me think the show probably wouldn't change much if Polly didn't exist or simply just merged her and Sprig instead.

So again: Long and unformatted so I'll sum up the main thesis of the statement: Did Polly need to exist? And does she feel sidelined?

And you know... Not really to the first and a bit to the second but I actually chalk that up more to her archtype/role than I do her being bad conceptually, especially since she's actually a good example of her trope and executed her role well. Polly isn't as important as Hop Pop or Sprig though. Hop Pop isn't even as important as Sprig which is usually why when I mention main character status, I include all three and sometimes mention Sprig alone as a true main character away from the Plantars as a unit.

But none of this is really all that surprising with Polly to me. Comic relief are almost never main characters. They can be main supporting cast like Polly is but- "Weh?"

Oh, hey King, wish I could say it's shocking to see you here. Unfortunately... I almost can't personally talk about this without bringing up King because Polly and him are almost identical at the starts of their shows and how they split off as their series go on are emblematic of the shows themselves. They're both meant to be extremely violent children where their role as comedic relief is derived from how they're so small and yet are either so bloodthirsty or so adult. This isn't a new trope, just like Miss Croaker being a tough, badass granny isn't, and King leans more into the adult side of the trope's humor while Polly leans more into the violent side of it.

Both characters suffer from being a part of this trope though and a main character. There are actually a couple tropes I consider almost taboo for me because of this one effect: The trope IS their character. They spend so much time obsessing over the silly juxtaposition of their nature that they don't really get to escape it. Polly actually doubles down on this with her sudden intelligence which just made her comedy stick out more than anything else to me, even if I'm happy she got to find a more interesting outlet for her desires and violent tendencies as a mechanic. It still feels awkwardly grafted onto the character which can happen a lot when you try to go from using someone as a trope to using them as a character. It's why Polly's best episodes are ones that embrace her tomboy or adventurous nature (including Fixing Frobo) because they keep her in character. In fact, adding super intelligence is just doubling down and being irreverent about the juxtaposition. It's admitting it's a children's comedy so why not go all in?

That's not a position The Owl House can accept though for itself, not when it so badly wants to claim it's not like other kids shows, and this is why in S2, King effectively inverts the balance of his character. He becomes his trope 10% of the time and now daddy issues and a proper child 90% of the time. It causes him to commonly feel out of character with what came before and him gaining wisdom at the end isn't doubling down for comedy like with Polly's intelligence, it's just making the eight year old suddenly a damn near Buddha compared to effectively anyone else in the series. With how little time is spent getting him to that place, it's hard to say it feels earned, especially when his character didn't make the change from S1 to 2 with any real grace honestly.

It's also part of why I like Polly more. Is she fairly one note and could have potentially been cut? Maybe. But at least she's consistent for the most part and while her jokes are a bit cheaper than a lot of jokes in the show, they keep them varied enough to keep them somewhat fresh and know to tuck her away when she's not needed. They also remember her age, like with the herons (since the ask did bring this up) as she wouldn't have the same reaction as Sprig or Hop Pop because she was barely alive at the time. She doesn't remember anything about her parents and so she just accepts Hop Pop as her parent and moves on rather than trying to give her the same angst of a character five years older than her (or however many years older Sprig is). Instead, her angst, the few times she has any, is a lot more about being taken seriously and proving herself which absolutely happens to children as young as her. Not in a supernatural way or the like, not because she sees herself as grown up, but because she's finally starting to figure out the start of her identity and what matters to her beyond play.

Side note: I LIKE that she doesn't angst about her parents. Not only is her being accepting of Hop Pop as her sole parent and okay with that befitting the found family and community themes of the show, it's also nice to adopted kids. Yes, Hop Pop is still blood related but he still didn't have to take her in and is still not her biological parent. He had no obligation and if Polly acted like that mattered, it could have been seen as a kind of middle finger to any adopted kids out there who never knew their parents and don't care either because whoever adopted them IS their parent. Not everyone has to have mommy or daddy issues, let alone if the never knew them and while I think Polly once or twice does admit to wishing she at least knew what they look like, she never acts like her family is lesser without them or that she's lesser for not having known them, something I actually like.

Meanwhile, King is hamstrung by the fact that TOH is a MUCH worse comedy and so the comedic relief is going to suffer from it. He has maybe three jokes repeated ad nauseam throughout the first season and while he gets one episode that's okay dedicated to him, Really Small Problems feels like an entirely different character. Then when he drops the mantle of comic relief, he almost vanishes from the show and his heritage becomes not only his whole character but also the whole point of his character. So he goes from an almost one note comic relief character to a one note side character who's almost more a plot device than a character and the transition isn't exactly graceful, especially since some of the retcons in S2 are just straight up incompatible with parts of S1.

And just while I'm talking about this trope, you do have the middle ground between these two with Spike from My Little Pony where his shtick never gets old, or takes a long time to get really old, and his episodes are definitely extensions of his character... It's just a problem that neither element is written great in the first place. Spike wasn't a terrible character but you NEVER wanted it to be a Spike episode and the more Spike was playing into his jokes instead of being just a helpful friend, the more hit or miss he could be. He never damaged the show by his existence like King but he never added a nice flavor and different angle on characterization like Polly does, all while still being constrained by being the child amongst older characters. I will also admit that Spike arguably doesn't entirely fit into this trope because he actually stays fairly age appropriate when it comes to violence and adventure, not that he couldn't have his moments where he felt a little older than he should have.

So yeah, in conclusion I think Polly could have been way worse and that honestly she's used as much as she needs to be. Do I love her writing? Not really, I don't think Amphibia needed a strictly comic relief character when Wartwood has so many that work for that, but she works well enough and they do still very effectively use her to explore additional family dynamics as she gets at least one episode as granddaughter to Hop Pop, little sister to Sprig and baby sister to Anne. She also is consistent with the sillier tone Amphibia goes for 99% of the time and frankly I love the little gremlin too often to think that she failed in her role.

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I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

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[darkysilverwing]

Doctor who: the star beast ramble.

So I feel like they put a bit too much emphasis in rose's nonbinary status in this episode, and i'm saying this as someone who is nonbinary and loves the representation. Because the way they put it in felt super clunky.

Like I can excuse where rose snaps at the doctor and goes "why are you automatically assuming Meep uses masculine pronouns?" cause if they are nonbinary you can assume that they've been incorrectly gendered for years and it might be a sore spot for them, and having Sylvia mess up on rose's pronouns and being weird about it cause they're not used to it was amazing, they could have ended it there.

Heck, I would have loved for Rose and the Doctor to end up splitting off for a second and Rose sticking out her hand to the doctor and going "Rose Noble, She/Her pronouns" and the doctor going "Right... uhhh.. i'm the doctor, he/Him pronouns... for now at least..." would have been a good way to throw in some bits and pieces of that representation.

Instead, we get a bunch of exposition just thrown at us where Donna goes "hold on, that's why my child is nonbinary! Cause the metacrisis within her caused her to inhabit one of the main parts of the doctor, you being the male part, me being the female part, and her being the nonbinary part!"

Like I loved the scene with the password, where uttering the right sequence of words would allow the doctor to release the lock on donna's mind, ending with the "binary... binary... binary" which felt like an homage to donna's break down when she literally started breaking down and repeated "binary" over and over and over again, and it was fully undercut by the fact that apparently rose, internally, going "nonbinary... nonbinary... nonbinary" which... what?

Like would it have been so hard to just extend the flashback a little to show Rose repeating the same words her mother was using? Maybe even have Sylvia going "Rose, what are you doing sweetie?" before the light show happened? Instead it's just sort of implied that the metacrisis was the reason for rose being nonbinary, either somehow it forced donna to give birth to a child who would grow up to be nonbinary, or with the energy in the back of her mind she grew up and was basically forced to become nonbinary in a weird, nature verses nurture scenario.

This Then kinda undercuts the whole representation of rose, cause now she's not just nonbinary, but she's nonbinary because of some weird scifi bullshit, not because it's just a normal thing for someone to be nonbinary.

And even if you did look at it like "oh she was born nonbinary because the scifi bullshit made her nonbinary" they then go "oh yeah, also if you're male presenting you're just power hungry and couldn't possibly think of just releasing the energy" which... i mean I love the fact that we can have some more donna episodes but really? they couldn't have just made up a bit more science fiction nonsense? Like "Oh doctor, dont you get it? the Shared inheritance created a monotelepathic psudoresonance frequency, allowing for a progenerational metasiphoning energy transfer. Which means we can perform an simultanious inverse chronoamplitude redistribution." and then shaun could just be like "you could... what?" and donna can go "we can just let it go" and then do the whole light show thing without throwing a weird jab at male presenting individuals.

Also, with the whole "Just let it go" thing, this kinda just implies that donna could have just gone "oh damn, I'm dying, but I can just choose not to die." and then we wouldn't have lost her for so long? I don't know, it was fine I guess, but like... still wasn't all that great, maybe I'll go watch some video essays and have my mind changed but still.

[qoldenskies]

i genuinely adore the way that anatawa hitorijanai/the third part of the finale brings back the little motif with leo falling and raph jumping to save him in bug busters because it was such an important moment that really propelled raph along in his own abilities (although i personally interpret mystic powers as being more related to the individual and their emotions, while ninpo is more about. yknow. the family and their trust with each other since its hereditary, i see it as separate. post for later) but i always find it SO WEIRD that it's treated as like. a trust fall. because leo falling was not a trust fall. it was the opposite, actually.

is it representative of raph putting himself aside for the sake of his family? oh yeah. i do believe its a point that marks a turning point in the way he perceives the role of the oldest and leader, which is why i like the parallel because he puts the same into his younger brothers' hands. but was it really an act of trust? hell no! raph spent the entire episode NOT TRUSTING LEO. they were put in that exact position because raph cared a lot about being right just as much as leo did, and draxum dropped leo because raph didn't listen to him!!

leo pushed and bitched and begged pretty much that entire episode to be listened to, and raph never truly gave him the floor because he was expecting him from the get-go to be cynical and selfish. and even though leo can be those things at times, it didnt mean he wasnt a voice worth not listening to. and that did nearly get him killed! joke aside, leo shouting about his last words meant he really, really did not actually expect raph to do something like that, and raph jumped in a blind, panicked act of desperation for leo's sake. i think learning he SHOULD trust him from that point was something that should've been clarified, or they should've left the parallel more implicit tbh.

but you know what IS an excellent parallel to bug busters? the movie! their roles are reversed! raph has well learned the importance of taking things seriously and is loudly pushing for caution, and leo is pushing him away and shrugging it off like he's just being too pessimistic, its pretty much a HERE COMES THE FUN POLICE WEEWOO. which i think is like, the equivalent to raph's "she's a nice spider lady, why are you being so negative, do you just want to prove me wrong? you're up to something"

and i think a big reason raph is so loud about the lesson he's trying to pound into leo's skull is because of the exact lesson he learned in bug busters, because he definitely does actually see a lot of himself in leo (i do love when people play around with raph going "oh god did i teach him that" about some of leo's more self-destructive behavior btw, that's good A team angst) and i dont think he wants leadership back at all. he's perfectly fine with splitting the load, because they already have been The Big Brothers from the start and leo's been his second in command and cheerleader a lot before. but leo in his eyes is being vindictive and refusing to take this seriously, and i'm sure for raph it hits a little close to home! projection moment

this was honestly just me trying to say that i think the perfect leo/raph roof moment parallel should be their fight when raph is krang-ified, leo telling raph to go save donnie and mikey, and then him leaping into the prison dimension, just like raph leapt for him, because there was no other choice in order to save lives. it's the exact same type of move, bonus points with how leo points it out, "hero moves are your style".

(also potential parallel if you choose to interpret raph's tears as he jumps off the roof as overwhelming guilt because he suddenly realizes that his own choices brought them to this point, because like.... leo crying in the prison dimension..... same thing)

point is, love the raph trust fall in the third part of the finale. but i think the point of him catching leo was that he didn't trust him, and i think it wouldve been better to the finale trust fall more about how he's grown from the behavior that put them there back in bug busters.

OH AND AND AND this is compounded in by the B team moment RIGHT AFTER THAT with donnie and mikey, because that is an ACTUAL example of two brothers that genuinely, earnestly trust each other. donnie tells mikey to let go intentionally and mikey doesn't hesitate, because he knows donnie will always be there to catch him and he trusts him wholeheartedly. the difference is jarring and most likely intentional.

[datusaguy]

My thoughts on Doom Patrol S4E12, Done Patrol:

Watched the last episode of Doom Patrol last night before going to sleep; I’m sad to see it go yet so happy it did last so long. I watched the first season with my dad and we both loved it, although he unfortunately passed before we could get around to watching S2. So watching and especially finishing Doom Patrol does bring up a lot of memories with him I’ll cherish which makes seeing this show go feel extra hard.

Anyways, onto the actual episode, spoilers are down below past the “read more.” Overall though, I really enjoyed the ending and will probably end up rewatching this show quite a bit through my life.

Getting some bad out of the way first, my biggest gripe with the ending is probably that the Doom Patrol split up entirely rather than just not being a superhero group anymore. I don’t think them as superheroes needs to last forever, although with how fucking much I love them being a found-family, seeing all their endings just completely disconnect with each other hurts. On an individual level however, I do think each of the endings for every character works well so I can understand why they did all break off.

Before going into specific endings though, first I want to bring up Immortus and the Butts. I don’t really mind that it’s resolved so quickly and oddly. If anything, I like that they yet again resolved issues in a strange way. Plus the fact that they resolved it so fast did give a lot of time to resolve everyone’s arc which I’m glad about.

Anyways, gonna start with Rita. While watching the episode and having her explain how she wants to disband the Doom Patrol and stay dead, I was both thinking and somewhat hoping that there was somebody pulling a ruse with a fake Rita ghost or something. I don’t know how the hell they would’ve pulled that off without feeling like “why the fuck would the writers even do this,” but I hoped just so the Doom Patrol wouldn’t fracture. I think her reasonings to want to stay dead though were understandable, she did live a very long life, she did end life happy and she does have someone to be with while dead she loved (I don’t ever recall hating Malcom, but I also don’t recall him much outside of “the guy Rita fell in love with” so I mainly just like the ending in Rita’s perspective). I would’ve loved it even more though if she got to stay with Laura.

Speaking of Madame Rouge, I think her ending was my least favorite since there’s so much shit left with her to explore. I want to see her try and resolve the pain of losing the Doom Patrol, I want to see her one day not hate herself so fucking bad. What’s actually shown isn’t bad, love her burning down the Ant Farm, but I want more and I want her with Rita! I really like that she was introduced in season 3, but if there’s anyone I’m not done with, it’s her. ):

Next is Larry. Love him with Mr 104, although I’m not really sure where the hell they would be going in space. I like that he still holds onto John and his memories with John. Him so enthusiastically running out without really knowing where he’s going was just so fucking sweet, I love him happy.

Then K(aleidoscope). I do wish she got to have some more development with her relationship to Casey (Casey in general I wish got more screen time), but otherwise I think her resolution was also good. Yeah some part of her feels like the biggest dork in the world wanting to be an artist, but she still wants to do it and does it. I also love that what she was painting was both a scene in the comics and a scene in the first episode with Cliff. I don’t know much about DiD, but I feel like for what they were doing with K, her being a ton of personalities all at once rather than just 1 personality lives feels fitting.

There’s also Vic who I almost forgot to write down. I do actually really like him though and I thought he worked really well for this show in general. I feel like his ending was already basically resolved in the previous episode though, so this one didn’t do a lot for him when we knew he was gonna start teaching with his friend. He feels as much a member of the Doom Patrol as anyone else though which I appreciate.

Lastly is Cliff. His death felt so sudden to me, although it overall was still so sweet for him. I imagine it would feel fucking awful for Clara though who hasn’t really gotten a lot of time with her dad. I think Cliff seeing a parallel between his life and Rory’s future (except Rory never gets into a horrible car accident and went through Doom Patrol shit) was really beautiful. There may be a ton of awful shit they go through, but they both end up okay.

Anyways, I’m sure there’s more stuff I could write about, but that’s just what’s in my head right now.

[sshbpodcast]

Going out with a bang: The best and worst of season 7 of Voyager

by Ames

The final season of Voyager wraps things up nicely for the crew that’s traveled 70,000 light years to get home. You can tell that the whole arc of season 7 is culminating with the arrival back home as we get more and more glimpses of Starfleet in the Alpha Quadrant, the episodes start to really show the growth of the characters over the course of the show, and things start feeling more and more final.

So come in for a soft landing with us here at A Star to Steer Her By as we ignite the fireworks fuses to light up our best and worst picks from the season. You’ll see a good mix of ooh’s and aah’s below, as well as some explosive accidents that regrettably went off in the middle of a crowd. Set your sights below or listen to the bangs over on the podcast (jump to 1:09:39 for the season chatter), featuring some audio-exclusive picks from guest star Liz. Oo, sparkly!

[images © CBS/Paramount]

Top Three Episodes

Somehow, we had a lot of agreement for pretty much this whole season, so both our tops and bottoms lists are going to be quite short. Here are the episodes that piqued our fancy:

“Endgame”: Chris Let’s start at the end, as we are wont to do on this podcast. And the end, overall, is pretty good as an episode! There’s Borg Queen, there’s time travel, there’s Klingons. What’s not to like? But what really stands out is the Janeway-Janeway dynamic, as we’ve seen before that Kate Mulgrew has really great chemistry with herself. It’s a wonder to behold.

“The Void”: Jake While this episode might be a little similar to “The Time Trap” from The Animated Series, is that such a bad thing? We get to see Janeway start up her own little mini-Federation in this space pocket and things really pay off! Score one for upholding your idealistic worldview for a change! Plus Jonathan Del Arco as Fantome is just too cute for words.

“Author, Author”: Caitlin There’s a lot going on in this episode, and all the individual pieces are actually quite thought-provoking. From the doctor’s fanfic episode depicting his plight throughout the show, to the crew’s amazing depictions of their caricaturey selves, to the “Measure of a Man”–style debate about the rights of an artificial being (dang, that’s topical), there’s some good discussions to be had here.

“Shattered”: Ames, Chris This episode could easily have made it onto our Best Time Travel Episodes list if we’d thought to include it. The conceit of having the ship split up into different eras is just so damn clever and allows for a lot of fun references to past episodes without feeling forced. “Shades of Grey,” take note: this is how you do a clipshow in science fiction. 

“Critical Care”: Ames, Caitlin, Jake EMH at his best. While it’s a trend that the Doctor’s personality has gradually turned toxic by this season (more on that below), putting him in a situation clearly in his wheelhouse is a strength. The moral debate of how to treat patients with different treatment coefficients is such a smooth allegory for medical ethics disparities today. It makes you angry. It makes you start connecting the dots. This is what science fiction is for!

“Homestead”: Ames, Caitlin, Chris, Jake The one on all of our tops list is one that you would never have expected if you’ve been following along since the first season. Your hosts here at SSHB have grown to be such great fans of Neelix (some of us more slowly than others) because of his consistent writing, his profound character development that builds upon his traumatic backstory, and of course his excellent portrayal by Ethan Phillips. And this episode sends him off in such a touching fashion it brings a tear to your eye. Go Neelix!

—

Bottom Three Episodes

But not everything from this season is sparklers and champagne. There were also some icky missteps, missed opportunities, and true bombs along the way home. Grab the first aid kit; these are going to sting:

“Flesh and Blood”: Chris While there’s a lot of good fun to be had in a hologram revolution, this two-parter faceplanted on the landing. Making Iden into some kind of megalomaniacal nutjob utterly compromised the point of an episode that should have been about freedom, the rights of workers, and difficult choices in where your loyalties lie. The way Iden took power so fascistically took the easy way out by negating those conflicts.

“Drive”: Ames, Caitlin I try to be a big Tom Paris defender on this podcast (like in my defense of “Threshold,” which I still stand by), but boy howdy, does Tom blow it in this episode. The way out of an argument is NOT by proposing to your girlfriend at the spur of the moment. I’m no relationship counselor, but that sounds like the worst time to go making lifelong commitments. Try listening to her first, flyboy. Sometimes you make it really hard to defend you.

“Renaissance Man”: Ames, Caitlin I am so utterly confused by this episode. The whole thing feels like it deflates at the end when we realize the Doctor really only had step one of a plan underway and everything else just happened by coincidence. He’s cleverer than that! He outwitted every member of the crew, but he couldn’t outwit two turd people? And that ending love declaration to Seven is just gross and makes me not like him anymore.

“Body and Soul”: Ames, Jake Speaking of the EMH being gross, this episode is just a full 45 minutes of cringe. Sure, Jeri Ryan is nailing it every moment, but the takeaway we get is that the Doctor shows no remorse for nonconsensually exploiting Seven’s body, it’s really all Seven’s own fault for never indulging, and she’s the one who apologizes at the end? Doc, I rescind putting you on my Ideal Bridge Crews list. Pulaski all the way.

“Nightingale”: Chris, Jake Sure, it’s a running gag among Trekkies that Ensign Kim never gets a promotion, but I never realized it seemed to be so present on the show as well! If you ever wondered why Harry is our forever-ensign, look no further than this episode in which he’s given a taste of command and fails so spectacularly I’m surprised he had any pips left at all. You did Harry dirty, episode. Real dirty.

“Natural Law”: Caitlin, Chris, Jake Finally, one long Prime Directive debate that wasted way too much time with portraying some noble savage tropes and didn’t leave enough room for the actually interesting part! It’s so late in the episode that the Ledosian surveyors get into the Ventu bubble that we really only glossed over the cultural contamination of it all. Oh, and Chris reminds us that he hates Kleg the flying instructor for reasons.

—

All that’s left now is our full series retrospectives, and hey, they’re both out already! Check out our Top 5 Voyager Episodes and Bottom 5 Voyager Episodes lists as we wrap up our journey and get ready to move onto the next era in our show watching. Follow along wherever we take you over on SoundCloud or wherever you get your podcasts, raise your glasses with us over on Facebook and Twitter, and stop being gross to Seven!

[eriexplosion]

Crosshair / Hunter for the shippy meme! If you wanna! \o/

Ship It

What made you ship it?

Watching the first episode. Like Bad Batch was my first Star Wars thing in a long time, all I knew going in was that Crosshair was going to be an antagonist and the show instantly started feeding me divorce energy from episode one. "Crosshair and Hunter are going through a bad breakup" was the first impression I had of them before I even fell hard for Crosshair OR Hunter individually.

(That said, special shout out to the part where Hunter can tell Crosshair is staring at him while his eyes are closed, that was a big moment of in tune with each other that got me, I'm WEAK for that.)

What are your favorite things about the ship?

THE ANGST OF IT. Hunter not being able to save someone he loves from himself, even though he feels like that's his responsibility as the leader, and dealing with that fracture in what was a super solid relationship. And it isn't either of their faults. The Empire started the split with the chip and now they don't have the conflict resolution skills to know how to close that gap. Which makes a happy ending more rewarding (and I always go for the happy ending because I'm a SAP)

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

Hmmmmmm... honestly not sure, I guess I see a lot more dominant Crosshair than I would have expected purely because Crosshair gives off terminal amounts of bratty submissive energy to me. This does not seem to be prevalent among most Hunter/Crosshair I've seen but I don't know that I'd really call it UNPOPULAR.

I do think that the whole chip fiasco is their first major fight which is why they're handling it so badly, when I think that the tension between the two is often written as having preexisting precedent. Again not Unpopular so much as less common.

[booksbydlwhite]

#SampleSunday- The Pearl: "It's time to make a move for yourself."

Welcome back to Sample Sunday! I am sharing snips of THE PEARL, my upcoming Black Diamond romance. Pick up last week’s sample to meet our hero, Davis Scott. Today we meet our heroine, Kari Savoy.

Interested in my inspirations for this novel? Follow The Pearl’s Pinterest board.

As usual, I am tracking progress and revelations of writing this book on my author podcast The Bookcast. Catch up with Episode 77 to hear how the writing is going.

“What do you think the kids will say about you leaving Austin and moving to Black Diamond?”

“Well,” I mused, thoughtfully. “Since the kids are nineteen and twenty-one, I’m not sure they care. They’re probably happy to be rid of me.”

“Nonsense. Where would Reyna and Moses would be without you? Literally, where?”

I rolled my answer around my head before giving it air and sounds. It was time, but I knew leaving my siblings would be harder than I told myself it would be.

“They got to stay in the house they’ve always known,” I parsed out, thoughtfully. “They kept a semblance of normal life. They don’t see the sacrifice it took to make that happen. Moses gets some of it, but Reyna has blinders on. They don’t know what parts of my life I put on hold to make sure they stayed together, finished school, became productive members of society. They’re used to me being there, taking care of everything, being the adult. The authority figure. I’m afraid they’ll see me moving away as abandonment. And after losing their parents, I don’t want to make them feel that.”

“You’re not abandoning them, though. You’re four hours from Austin. Phones and Face time and planes exist. And they’re both away at school. They hardly come home, anyway. It’s time to make a move for yourself, Kari.”

“True.” I raised my head and shot a sad smile across the table. “I hope they see it as me making a move for myself, and not me running away from them the first chance I got. I know that’s going to be Rey’s reaction.”

Dionne huffed, peeling away a layer of the cinnamon roll we were supposed to be sharing, but I was full from the milkshake, and talking about the difficulties of raising my siblings always sapped my appetite. “Let’s not talk about how you could have run away from them when you had to choose between staying in Houston or moving back home so they wouldn’t be split up in foster care. As for Reyna, she’s a… what are they called? Millennial? That age group that people say are self absorbed and need to be winning all the time or the earth will tilt off its axis?”

I giggled. “No, Dionne, you and I are millennials. And thank you for that unflattering description of our generation, by the way. Rey and Mo don’t like to be put in socially constructed boxes.”

“Of course. They want to be individuals. Just like everyone else.”

Dionne smiled up at the waitress as she set our bill at the corner of the table. I snatched it up and dropped it into my lap.

“Other than school and grades and attitudes… how are they? Emotionally.” She asked, going back to the cinnamon roll.

“Well, Mo has always been better than Rey, but even he has rough times, especially around the anniversary of the accident. Some days it’s like it just happened. Some days they act like everyone should be over it, and want to know why people are concerned about their mental health.”

“Do you think they’re ready to be out there on their own?” Dionne questioned, concerned.

I let out a sigh, leaning back in my chair. “Honestly, I don’t think anyone is ever really ready. We just jump. I did my best to prepare them, so we’ll see.”

Dionne nodded, understanding the weight of my words. She reached over and placed her hand on top of mine, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I’m glad you’re moving here,” she said softly. “You need a fresh start and new opportunities. Speaking of…”

She rolled her eyes up so they met mine. I already knew what she was about to ask. “Noah is still in the past. Right?”

“Girl, yes. Noah has been history.” 

“Does he know you’re leaving Austin, though?”

“Not from me. We haven’t spoken in months.”

“Not at all? He just stopped calling one day and…” Dionne shrugged.

“And nothing. Five years of on, then off, then on again because he was bored and between girlfriends, then disappearing into thin air. Then I see him parading other woman around town, without even having the relationship ending conversation.” I twisted my lips into a surly frown. “I can take a hint.”

“I heard that,” Dionne said. “All the way to a beachside resort.”