#big fan tww so far

[aloui-draws]

she has no idea what to call this thing

[skelavender]

I just want to let you know I am obsessed with kind of perfect! The way you’ve written it is totally believable and so Them that I just *chefs kiss* 🤌 I look forward to the updates every Friday! (I’m also a big fan of the west wing references lol)

OH MY GOD HI. HELLO!! THANK YOU!!!! you're so fuckin nice i'm blushing and grinning like a fool, saying i write them believably is the highest form of praise :,)))) tww references have all been accidental so far LMAO but i'm glad you're enjoying them!!! i'll try to slip a few more into the next part in the series just for u ;)

[ancientskullkid]

Zelda theory time! We know the Kokiri became the Koroks between OoT & TWW. Obviously NOT a slow genetic biological evolution from fauna to flora, but instead a magical transformation. Also, not all Kokiri changed! Fado the Wind Sage remained a Kokiri when the Kokiri changed into Koroks. So this is my theory. The Kikwi followed Oolo up to Skyloft after the events of SS. The Kikwi became the Picori. The prologue of TMC says the Picori “appeared from the sky” This means the Minish World/Realm is so named because it is where the Minish went to after the events of the Hero Of Men, rather than being the place where the Minish came from (because they actually came from the sky first). So the Kikwi move to the Sky, become Picori, then move back down to the surface. The Picori in the forest become Kokiri between the events of TMC & OoT. However, how does this happen? Do they all change at once? Do they have individual choice whether to change? Farore, the Oracle of Secrets, is found in Castle Town in TMC. I believe her to be Kokiri, perhaps the first Picori to change into Kokiri. Timeline split. Adult timeline. of course TWW, Kokiri into Koroks. I’m not sure we see this race in ST. I suppose it’s possible that they became the Lokomo, but I personally believe the Lokomo to be Sheikah (magic technology like SS & BotW). I think the Koroks are still helping the Deku Tree(s) raise Old Hyrule and/or drain the Great Sea, which is obviously South of New Hyrule. Child timeline. TP. we saw Farore in Castle Town in TMC. we see Agitha in Castle Town in TP. both part of a trio. Farore is Kokiri. Din is Gerudo. Nayru plays the Harp of Ages, which is the same color as Timeshift stone & indeed its main function is time travel. The Sheikah symbol is on Timeshift stone in SS. Sheikah Tech in BotW is Timeshift stone color, & the Stasis rune freezes something in time. I believe Nayru the Oracle of Ages to be Sheikah. Agitha, Telma, & Fanadi. Fanadi is obviously Sheikah. Telma is Gerudo, she even has a Gerudo symbol on her apron/dress. Agitha is Kokiri. Child in appearance with strange adult maturity. Forest theme in her “castle” with living flora all over. These 3 each have 3 dots around their eyes. Red for Gerudo. Blue/Purple for Sheikah. Green for Kokiri. So Agitha is Kokiri in TP. But where are the rest? There’s a theory about the monkeys, but it’s far more likely that they are related to the Terminian monkeys in MM (same timeline split). The Picori came from the sky. The forest Minish have a feather. Are they wearing the feather or are they growing the feather? Fado & Makar are Wind Sages. Vaati is a wind mage. Saria was going to be Wind Sage before they changed her to Forest Sage. Strong connection between Forest & Wind elements. I think the Kokiri returned to the sky between OoT & TP. As the Oocca. so... here’s the thing... the Loftwings also lived in the sky... there’s a chance that the Kikwi & Loftwings were magically joined into 1 Picori race... which would strengthen the Forest/Wind interchangeability & the feathers of the Picori & the Oocca. But there’s an equal (if not greater) chance that the Loftwings are not connected... and I kinda prefer the idea that the Helmaroc King in TWW & 4SA is related to the Loftwings. but anyway, digress and all that. 4SA. Vaati was Picori. the only other characters I can think of that have any chance of being this race are the Maidens. Perhaps the Green Maiden, but I have another theory about her being Hylian & descended from (or just related to) Auru from TP and/or Rauru from OoT. I believe White to be the 4SA generation of Impa/Impaz, Yellow to be descended from/related to Fanadi from TP, Blue to be descended from/related to Renado & Luda from TP, Red to be descended from/related to Telma from TP, & Purple to be descended from/related to Ashei from TP. there’s also the Zuna, but there has been pretty much no desert connection with any of the other races in this theory. & I have a theory about the Zuna being descendants of some Twili that moved from the Twilight Realm to live in Hyrule’s desert. Downfall timeline! ALttP. There’s the Lumberjacks: A. Bumpkin, B. Bumpkin, & Q. Bumpkin. They are dressed like Kokiri, however they are cutting down trees... which seems like not a Kokiri thing to do. There’s also the dwarven swordsmiths. Dwarven as in short, like the Kikwi, Minish, Kokiri, Koroks, & Oocca. Swordsmiths as in the Kikwi forged the Slingshot, the Picori forged the Picori Blade, the Kokiri forged the Kokiri Sword, the Oocca forged the Dominion Rod, & the Koroks forged the Forest Dweller’s Sword in BotW. They also remarkably resemble the Mountain Minish. also, the 1 found in the Dark World is found in a frog-like form... frogs being consistently connected to the Wind element (Zephos, Cyclos, Cylos)... and the Kokiri & Korok Sages being Wind Sages. Of course... if Farore can be a Kokiri while there are Picori Minish... and if Fado can be a Kokiri while there are Koroks... and if Agitha can be Kokiri while there are Oocca... then it is possible that both the Lumberjacks & the Dwarven Swordsmiths are Kokiri. but it’s also possible that neither of them are Kokiri. Farore is in the Oracle games. I think it’s very possible this race in any form are the elves of Hyrule, as in ageless & immortal (but not invincible or unkillable!)... so I think it is possible (even probable) that Farore the Oracle of Secrets is the same in TMC as she is in the Oracle games, as opposed to an ancestor/descendant situation. She lives in the Maku Trees, which talk like Deku Trees. Seems pretty Kokiri. In the Oracle games, we come across the talking birds in a house known as the Know-It-All birds... just like the Kokiri Brothers in OoT... & the birds do not appear to have an owner... could be this race in an Oocca-like form in the Oracle games. Under Holodrum live the Subrosians in Subrosia. and here we get to another thing... in SS, Guld the Mogma also lived in the sky at the end... & we never see the Mogma again. Perhaps the Kikwi joined Oolo and the Mogma joined Guld. There is a chance the Mogma & Kikwi magically merged into one Picori race. the Picori themselves have very similar body types to the Mogma. Mole-like snout-ish face, 4 mole-ish fingers. Mountain Minish live underground on a volcanic mountain. if the Kikwi, Mogma, & Loftwings all merged into 1 Picori race... then when they return to the surface... the Picori more like their Mogma ancestors could have felt drawn to the mountain... the Picori more like their Kikwi ancestors could have felt drawn to the forest... & the Picori more like their Loftwing ancestors could have felt drawn to the Hylians in Castle Town. Perhaps after TMC... the Town Minish return to the sky as Oocca that show up in TP & as the Know-It-All birds in the Oracle games... the Forest Minish turn into Kokiri... & the Mountain Minish move to Subrosia & become the Subrosians. ALBW. just a few options. I believe Agitha to be Kokiri in TP. the bee guy is similarly obsessed with bees as Agitha is with bugs. so he could be Kokiri. and in Hyrule there is 1 Dwarven Swordsmith instead of 2, but for all the same reasons as the 2 in ALttP, he could be Kokiri. there is also a dwarven swordsmith in Lorule... but if Lorule is Termina, then the Lorule Dwarven Swordsmith is more likely related to Zubora (who I believe to be Sheikah). the 1st Zelda game has no characters & is in desperate need of a remake that really fleshes it out. TAoL. in the Great Palace are bird-like “enemies” that are only “enemies” because they protect the Triforce of Courage because they serve the King of Hyrule. could be this game’s version of Rito. could be this game’s version of Oocca. the Fokka have arms & they wield swords & shields. the Fokkeru are more bird-ish than humanoid. perhaps the Fokka are Rito. perhaps the Fokkeru are Oocca. last but not least BotW. Koroks, obviously. however... I believe adult Hylians become Stalfos when they get lost in the Lost Woods... child Hylians become Stalchildren when they get lost in the Lost Woods... & Kokiri become Skull Kids when they get lost in the Lost Woods without their Fairy partner... keeping their soul & personhood (unlike the Stals) when the Forest Curse turns them undead, because when they were not undead they were immortal. So what happens when a Korok gets lost? Blupees. Picori Minish supposedly made and/or hid rupees in the grass. they become Kokiri. they become Koroks. they get lost & become Blupees, which make rupees when shot with an arrow. also, the Blupees gather around Satori, the Lord of the Mountain, who very much resembles Ordona from TP, Light Spirit of a forest province very close to where the Kokiri & Deku Tree lived in OoT. Blupees gather around Satori very similarly to how Kokiri/Koroks gather around Deku Trees. I’ve got this big theory that the whole Zeldaverse is much MUCH smaller than most fans think it is. and this idea that the Kikwi, Picori, Kokiri, Koroks, & Oocca are all 1 race in 5 forms instead of 5 separate races is just a small piece of that mega-theory. but it is just that... a theory...

[heathtrash]

a little one year anniversary

one year ago today i started writing A Clock With No Hands, my first ever published fanfic in the history of my life, which then i managed to publish on the 7th august once ao3 let me in :’) a big ole happy birthday to what has been affectionately renamed “No Hams” by my f,fans :’) (yes, chapter 12 is still in the works and i’m sorry i got super side-tracked and fell into that 80s hicsqueak hole)

i didn’t really expect it to be seen or found or even liked?? i was just in this “heck, i’m feeling reckless and i guess fanfic might be fun?” mood while staying with my friends in northern ireland. i wrote the entire first two chapters on my mOBILE TELEPHONE and managed to work out how to publish it on ao3 while on holiday. the response was astonishing and i pretty quickly got embraced into the fandom after i unearthed this tumblr account from a million years ago. i’m so lucky to have had the warmth and friendship of so many people and i honestly don’t know if i would still be here without you all. your comments and kudos are the only positive thing i really have in my life and that’s not super healthy but it’s genuinely where i’m at,,

so anyway, a couple of weeks ago i noticed that i was pretty near a big milestone with my ao3 account - over the course of almost one year i was 8080 words off publishing 300k. is that a lot? is it worth celebrating or acknowledging? i don’t really know. but since numbers motivate me, apparently, i knew i had to meet this artificial target somehow, and planned to spread it across two short one-shots. i ended up exceeding that target with my latest hackle fic, A Rather Distinguished Guest, to my surprise (and delight, bc i needed a break after somehow producing a historical 1900s fic with a fair amount of research packed into 13k in the space of 6 days). on the last day i wrote 5k. i wasn’t rushing to finish,, i was just too involved in it to stop myself!

so now at present, i have 305203 words published on ao3 (quite a few more in unpublished works (bc they are wips, not bc i am holding them back)). essentially i wrote 833.9 words a day. so i would like to humbly take a moment to cry/reflect about how far i’ve come

while i think i have definitely, through a process of attrition, done Something there, i am also aware that i managed that and come out not being any more confident in my work than the first time i published. in fact, i feel mostly even less confident. putting oneself out there *and* keeping going is hard, especially in a small fandom, but for me it’s been kind of a herculean effort. i have many, many demons in the form of some good old cptsd from what my brain thinks of as catastrophic failure in academia, so the process of writing, and people looking at my writing specifically gives me flashbacks and other unpleasant kinds of feelings i won’t go into. i recently spoke to my phd supervisor (bc guess what, i’m still on that Fun Train) and she said of my fanfiction that i’d “developed a kind of exposure therapy”. it’s definitely not directly comparable to academic writing, but now at least i can look at a blank document of any kind without getting Too Much of a panic attack. but i still have a big problem accepting comments and i have a huge backlog from literally the past six months that i haven’t answered bc sometimes saying “thank you” makes me feel like i’m a terrible and arrogant person, even if it’s really lovely reading the comment and makes me want to hide for a million years and become a blush-monster forever. and there are times when i realise that yep, the next fic/chapter will be the one where you all realise i’ve been fooling you the whole time and i’m really just a rubbish writer who belongs in the bin (that’s why my name is heathtrash) and you are all going to be disappointed in me. i’m just waiting for the next negative comment to confirm what i believe about myself.

not ALL of the 305k-odd words i wrote have been for tww (7618 exactly for other fandoms) and that is definitely something i am a little disappointed about. but look, numbers don’t super matter. in the interest of supporting all writers of all lengths and types of works - however much you have contributed to a fandom, that is amazing! you have produced free content that people can experience together with you, and that in itself is beautiful! milestones aren’t important especially and no one should hold themselves to unrealistic standards to try to meet them (,,, except you know i will)

so uh,, happy 300,000 words/one year of being a fanfic writer to me?

if you have ever written a comment or left kudos, thank you, you are a STAR :’)

if you are one of the people who comments on all of my fics and every chapter, aaaaaaaaaaAAAAA you have done more for me than you could ever know, and i owe you so much :’’)

[ssaalexblake]

for the meme: criminal minds, doctor who, star trek (choose any!), the west wing, buffy or angel series

I literally have no idea how to rank these in preference order, wow. I’ve been staring at this for a week.  

A lot of these show i love them when i love them and hate ‘em when i hate ‘em??? 

6- Angel. This is a show i keep revisiting because i really love the cast of characters (mostly), Angel, Cordy, Gunn, Fred, Lilah and Darla first and foremost, but i have nothing against Wes, Lorne and Doyle? Lindsay was a boring villain, imo, and they missed such a chance when they decided to play him off angel more than Lilah because i think they could have made Far more interesting points by comparing them, tbh. That’s a pet peeve but i have a Huge shitlist for this show. But i really Do love the characters, and on occasion the plots Do show moments of brief, utter brilliance but then they swerve away from it Every Time and it’s So Annoying. I did not mention connor here because literally Everything to do with him is one of those ‘brief moments of brilliance that were swerved away from like they were contagious’ things. 

5- btvs... I Love this show but a lot of that is tied into childhood nostalgia??? If i watched it for the first time now it’d be hard to get through because i’d not know which parts to skip through for ease of watching, because i have very firm ideas on what episode and scenes need to be muted or skipped full stop by now and i feel like my ability to edit the show to my liking May have clouded some of my judgment on its quality on the whole lol. But my version of the show? Where i only watch the parts i like? Way higher than 5 here. 

4- TWW, would rank higher but seasons 5 and 6 are very slow. And I have to suffer through the Sorkin Self Insert Character(tm) because it’s a sorkin show. Loses more marks for creating female characters to shove Terrible feminism opinions on so it’s Socially Acceptable b/c it’s a woman saying it not him. In the shadow of two gunmen parts one and two are two of the best episodes of tv full stop, though, and honestly, season 2 on the whole is one of the stronger seasons of tv i’ve ever watched. I also really like s7, unpopular but it’s well paced and by like ep4?? it hits its stride and stays that way the whole time. Though, idk if i’m the only non american with this feeling, but on occasion some of the every day american value politics on the show is so Batshit i lose all sense of immersion? Not the Big Plots, i know those americanisms because of an awareness of rl politics and it no longer surprises me, but the small taken for granted stances that they mention offhandedly that make me go... what??????

3- Criminal Minds. Just over half this show was... at best average and at worst just straight up Bad, but damn when it was good it was good. I’m actually still mad at Patinkin for ruining the end of the Gideon arc because i may not Like the character as a man, but Damn he was such a well written and fascinating character and the story they were telling with him was fascinating and it was ruined. Also, this show will always have a place in my heart for killing him off years later out of sheer passive aggression. Honestly? i could write a 5000 word essay on my feelings on this show on the whole and i could never hope to say so briefly, but when it got it right this show Really got it right, and that actually makes up for a Great many hours of bullshit i watched in the name of it. And since it ended Tons of people have started loving Blake and i am Vindicated. 

 2- Star Trek Discovery - This show only has two seasons so it’s probably benefitting from not having ‘been on air too long-itis’ but i really do love it. And, truthfully, i could pick at it because it’s made some Choices and done some Real bullshit, but others could and have deconstructed that better than me... But also it has some great stuff in it too? i’d just end up writing an essay, again, but imo the good outweighs the bad, and this is way more my Thing in style than the older ones because?? idk, it just is. (tho.... !Picard Spoiler! what Does the trek universe have against gay latin men named Hugh??? That is weirdly specific.)

1- Doctor who - Okay, full disclosure, i won’t watch a lot of the new stuff, sometimes because i find the writing bad and sometimes because it’s written well enough to be infuriating, But like, when i love it, i really love it? I can honestly say watching s12 was the most fun i’ve had watching a season of tv in at least a decade and It was so satisfying to see all the threads everybody had picked up on in s11 come to fruition (and, also, vindicating lbr) and to see 13′s veneer fracture so completely. But then again, i’ve always enjoyed things for their character writing first and foremost and imo, chibnall’s always been good at that. The fact that the plots make sense 95% of the time too is an added bonus i would not actually expect from any era of dw. I just watched ten work a phone by putting a stethoscope to it. The fact that i don’t actually feel it needs to make sense probably helps it placing this high in this very over thought random meme i’ve spent a week on. Classic who is Also great because usually even when it’s bad it’s funny due to monsters made of carpet and papier-mâché. I even like the cybermen as villains in classic who and i am Not a fan of them in nu!who (the whole frankenstein mary shelley angle won me over b/c it was an interesting take on it with how they merged it in with classic horror, but i’m not big on them as a villain. Probably helped that they were kind of a vehicle for the main plot more than there for their own trouble making abilities? i find the whole type of narrative based around them is said better with the borg in star trek tbh). 

thank you! i did just win the over thinking prize, though. 

[catherine-batty-author]

If Destiel was a M/F pairing they would have been canon years ago... or maybe not. The slow burn TV couples.

Following on from my post The Show Made Me Do it (https://thechroniclesofjudas.tumblr.com/post/166439114361/the-show-made-me-do-it), I felt the need to speak again on a topic that seems to bounce around Tumblr all the time re Destiel – if they were a M/F pairing they would have been canon years ago.

All fandoms have ships and Destiel is not only one of the biggest but one of the most passionate. As I’ve said before and many meta writer’s have said (in far more detail) before me – it is there embedded in the show. Sometimes blatant, sometimes in subtext. But it is there.

I disagree with the notion that it is guaranteed that if they were a hetro paring they would have been canon by now. There have been many hetro (canon) screen couples who have had their relationships drawn out and explored over many years. All too often in TV hetro couples are thrown together within a series or two and then torn apart before coming back together again a few series later. It is a fairly standard trope - one used time and time again by SPN - but of course, it’s not romantic (whatever!).

But sometimes writers make interesting choices and there are canon couple/ships out there that have not taken the standard path…and the Destiel parallels are everywhere. Here are a few I love:-

The Doctor and River Song/Doctor Who

This is a brilliantly written relationship because it is known by dedicated fans and GA alike that they were a couple until her death. They loved each other deeply. She was one of the few beings in the universe who knew The Doctor’s real name. He spent 1 night (on a planet where that lasted 25 years in Earth time) with her because he knew the following day she would die based on their weird timeline, and he needed a way and time to say goodbye. Then, following her death he uploaded her memory into a computer so it was there for all eternity – it’s a beautiful love story told in reverse. Following her death he has kept her photograph with him. He finds it hard to talk about her and shuts people down when they try. But their relationship was not shown in a traditional light on screen. She is known as The Doctor’s wife, they even are shown getting married – however each time their relationship is shown, it is in the guise of something else. Although River was shown “marrying” The Doctor it wasn’t actually him. This was the same when she “killed” him. This follows a general theme of their on-screen relationship. What you see is not always what happened. The Doctor and River Song is basically all subtext but even if you don’t ship them you are not told you are delusional, it is accepted because it is canon.

Donna Moss and Joshua Lynam/The West Wing

There are soooo many parallels between Josh/Donna and Dean/Cas it’s unbelievable. Seriously, if you’ve never seen the West Wing (why not, it’s awesome and some of the best screen writing, ever) do it just for this.

So in a nutshell, Donna was introduced in the pilot as the personal assistant of Josh Lyman, the duty chief of staff of the White House. She was only meant to be a minor recurring character (like all the other assistants) but her on screen chemistry (mostly snark) with Josh meant her role was stepped up in S1 and then made a main cast member for subsequent seasons. They are also a big ship from S1 ep1.

Despite their snark and sass with each other, they care for each other deeply and are a great team. Their professional and personal relationships bleed over as time goes on as well. Over the course of 7 seasons they are on the same side, opposing sides, they fall out, they support each other, they are jealous when one is a relationship with someone else. They are not a canon couple until late in the final 7th season, but before they finally get together, it is common for their other love interests to ask the other party if they are “treading on any toes”. Third parties are always assuming there is more them because of they way they are with each other. Donna is directly asked in one ep if she loves Josh – we never see/hear her answer as the ep ends but her face says it all. When Josh is shot at the end of S1 she is broken. She doesn’t leave his side. When he survives, after a brief moment of longing looks they return to their old ways.

Interestingly enough; the writers (who had no plans to make Donna into the character she was, it was fan driven) deliberately kept them apart until the last season. Once the ship was known they slowly wrote two interesting characters who gradually came together with their endgame to become canon.

This is just a TINY insight in TWW writing of Josh/Donna but even so… the Destiel parallels are everywhere.

William Riker and Deana Troi/Star Trek: TNG

This really shows my age! (FYI I was 7 when this series started, my mum was sooo excited Start Trek was coming back and wanted me to watch it too. I also loved it from the start.) This one is a little different in that in the pilot it is canon that Riker and Troi were ex’s who still had feelings for each other. Over the course of 7 seasons they were never “together” but they had this sub-textual under current. There was a lot of pining and long looks at each other with occasional kissing. Again there was a lot of jealousy if one party was involve with someone else.  When they comforted one another they refer as “Imzadi” meaning beloved. They continued in this fashion for the full 7 seasons and 2 films, only becoming canon again briefly in the 3rd film and following their marriage in the 4th film “Nemesis” -15 YEARS after the pilot.

Temperance “Bones” Brennan and Seeley Booth/Bones.

This is another couple that took 6 seasons to become canon – even then it was because the writer’s hand was forced. It was clear that the endgame was to make them a couple but their friendship was developed first. As such there were many of the traits mentioned above and shared with Dean and Cas. Their relationship was only made canon after Bones actress Emily Deschanel fell pregnant. They could have hidden it but the writer’s decided to bring their endgame forward. Writer’s are fluid like that – we can change the direction as and when required.

If in 4.01 Castiel had chosen a female vessel (and this was the ONLY) change to the narrative) no one would have an issue with believing this to be an epic love story. But because it’s two men, it’s dismissed. (Technically one man and one being of multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent without gender, but hey.)

As @tinkdw said in her post Cas and Dean could have been totally platonic, (https://tinkdw.tumblr.com/post/163833238972/cas-and-dean-could-have-been-totally-platonic) I would have loved this show even if Destiel was a “family don’t end with blood” story. The brother Dean chose. It would have been an epic love story of a platonic/familial kind and free will. But it has been MADE romantic. The actors, writers, directors, editors, set designers etc, they have MADE this a slow burn romance. It might not have initially been planned that way but that is how stories (and life) work – it’s all fluid.

Even if you take out the favourite argument for it never being canon which is “Dean is straight” (he’s not but I’m not here to dissect that, meta writers have done a much better job at that than I can ever do), you are basically saying “a person/character has no ability to change or have room for personal growth”. And let’s face it, even in canon Dean’s already subverted many of the character traits he’s known for – why not this one?

It’s not AS common to keep a couple from going canon for as long as Supernatural has Dean and Cas, but in the end, I believe they will make the wait worth it. There is precedence after all. This isn’t a long list of slow burn TV couples there are so many we all could list, but these are just some that strike me a good parallels and leaves me hopeful for the future of these two idiots.

[ckerouac]

All right, I want to know all your West Wing feels, too.

SO MANY FEELS 

FYI -- I will argue with anyone that the first four seasons of TWW are the finest hour long dramas that American tv has ever offered.  Because it is.

my all time favourite character: god, that’s so fucking hard, because I’ve cycled through so many of them.  When I was watching it as it aired, I would’ve said Sam.  Now that I am older and have seen it many many times, it’s a tie between Jed and CJ.  Because there’s something about how Jed carries the weight of his responsibilities without letting it crush him, and how CJ commands the press room and manages all of the bonkers around her.

a character I didn’t use to like but now do:  Amy -- wasn’t a huge fan on the first go around, but in rewatches I enjoy her more and more.

a character I used to like but now don’t: ...I don’t think I’ve had one that I’ve soured on.  

a character I’m indifferent about: Will Bailey.  I didn’t enjoy the second half of the series as much as the first, so I’m not as passionate about the part of the series he’s in... plus I just find him kind of bland.

a character who deserved better:  Mandy.  She could’ve been interesting, but they never figured out what the hell to do with her.  But it did give us the trope of ‘going off to Mandyville’ so...

a ship I have never been able to get into: Josh/Amy -- they’re far too similar and it just didn’t work

a ship I’ve never been able to get over:  Josh/Donna and CJ/Danny -- I will fight anyone on their love.  I will fight them *lol*  

a cute low-key ship:  they were literally the old married couple, but I loved the strength of marriage between Jed & Abigail

an unpopular ship but I still enjoy it:  I didn’t participate in tww fandom back in the day, but I remember getting into fights with people in my dorm who I watched with who didn’t like Charlie/Zoey and I thought they were adorable

a ship that was totally wrong and never should have happened: um... none of them bugged me enough to be SUPER WRONG

my favourite storyline/moment:  fuuuuuck that’s hard.  okay, i’m going to narrow it down.  favorite storyline was the assassination attempt because it gave us the conflict over the 25th when the president was in surgery, Donna finding out josh was shot, the repercussions for Josh in ‘Noel’ with his therapy and Leo’s speech about being in that hole and knowing the way out, Charlie and Zoey and the white supremacists, and Jed finally snapping under the weight of this (and other things, including Mrs. Landingham’s death) and basically cursing out god in Latin in the National Cathedral.  There was just so much that the events in Rosslyn impacted and it was amazing.  For favorite moment, the last scene in the last episode of the second season ‘Two Cathedrals’, when they’re coming in from the rain and the president is answering questions at a press conference and instead of calling on the softball question, he calls on a reporter that is going to ask him if he’s running for reelection, and he slips his hands into his pockets and they fade to black.  That scene is so fucking powerful to me and I remember is was this BIG SCANDAL because there were people who were all ‘but we don’t have an answer!’ and it was SO OBVIOUS because they made a point of Mrs. Landingham pointing out in the flashbacks that when he puts his hands in his pockets and looks to the side he’s already decided he’s gonna do something.  It was a brilliant scene on Aaron Sorkin’s part and it gives me fucking chills to this day.

a storyline that should have never been written:  the kidnapping storyline.  I also realize that it suffered by being set up by Aaron and then finished after he left but it was dumb and not very well done and I pretend it didn’t exist.

my first thoughts on the show/my thoughts now:  ‘oh these characters are fun’ to ‘FIGHT ME I LOVE THIS SHOW NEVER LEAVE ME JED’

Fun fact: The West Wing is why I majored and then worked in politics