#both are going to emotionally destroy me if included in this season

[natp20]

guys can you come pick me up i'm scared

[puppyxaegon]

I have some questions.

What are all your favourite ships whether than are canon or not canon, from books, tv shows or movies.

What are all your favourite romance and character tropes.

Okay this ask is over a YEAR old but I never saw it so sorry lol,, that being said my all time fav ships in order of when I got into them include:

Frank/Gerard of MCR: This was the first ship I genuinely got super feral and invested in and learned all the lore and history and spent hours reading smut of them every night in middle school. I think this is the only RPF ship I still interact with to this day because they're just too perfect idk in an alternate universe they're together forever.

Stiles/Derek from Teen Wolf: My first love in terms of fictional ship, this one is very cutesy and nostalgic for me bc of my age at the time of watching, also my first time feeling the agony and evil of unfulfiled queerbaiting because WHY did Derek have that twink thrown up against the wall like that if not...

Marcline/Princess bubblegum from AdvT: One of my very rare sweet and wholesome ships,, I can't even think of them sexually I just love them and they make me cry

Carl/Negan from TWD: It feels weird to include this for obvious reasons but at the time Negan appeared in the show I was the same age as carl and that whole storyline rewired my brain and heavily impacted my sexuality lmao so that's that. I was just a silly little fujo and Carl was my self insert ahaha I was crazy back then

Ramsay/Theon/Reek from GoT/ASOIAF: To this day this is THE ship for me. I have never been more into a ship than Thramsay it's ruined my life a bit. Their whole arc in season 3 with Ramsays growing obsession and Theon's transformation into reek made me realize that there is something wrong with my brain bcs I was NOT thinking normal thoughts about them. Theon is also one of my fav characters like ever he's so tragic and beautiful and do I relate to him and see him as a self insert a bit too much?? Who's to say. I also think this ship is so adaptable and amazing in so many different AUs and also explores and psyches of both characters amazingly blah blah blah I could go on for hours about this so I'll cut myself off now but I'm always down to gab about these characters, as a ship or just in general.

Jennifer/Needy from Jennifer's body: I don't have as much to say about them BUT their dynamic is so ajshsksksis childhood besties who grow to be very different people but still grow up to be attached at the hip is something I love very much. Also they way they're like obsessed with each other and lowkey want each other so bad but neither of them understand it so they just end up destroying each other instead???? Spectacular I'll take 14 more.

Billy/Steve from Stranger Things (+Tommy if ya nasty): This is another ship that's like beautiful and perfect to me I think they go together so well their tension in the show is crazy and they just look so good together??? I was a Billy devotee from the start and lemme tell y'all when season 3 hit the streets????? and Billy was getting physically and emotionally destroyed every single episdose???? Trust me I was feeling things. Also regarding Billy being canonically racist,,,I'm black and I kinda dgaf I think that was kinda a random choice by the creators, its not integral to the character and its easy to do away with in fic! Also Harringrove is in the running for my personal best ship names ever.

Billy/Stu from Scream: WAITER??? MORE REPRESSED GAYS CLINGING TO EACH OTHER FOR SURVIVAL IN A WORLD THAT DOESN'T UNDERSTAND THEM!!! I love how goofy and chaotic and dramatic and immature they are, ellos son toxicos but they need each other I think. Also the fact that an actual QUEER CODED THIS (gay director) theres so much subtext and little things between them so theres just a lot of explore.

For romantic tropes, I'll make this section a lil shorter because I'm already writing a novel here but I very much enjoy: Tragic/doomed/haunting the narrative characters, strong power dynamics, mutual obsession, obsessive/emotional villans, secret relationships, captive/captor, childhood friends to lovers, opposites attract, unrequited crushes/love, rebounds, and lastly whatever the FUCK Theon Greyjoy got going on.

Honorable mention ships: Eddie/Buck (911), Stiles/Lydia (Teen Wolf), Byler (ST), Phan (youtube RPF), Reylo (Star Wars), Stucky (MCU), Rick/Negan (TWD) Loras/Renly (GoT), Ryden (band RPF), Klaine (Glee), Ben/Maddie/Ren (Siren), Dan/Herbert (reanimator)

Thank you for this ask and sorry its so late bc I love talking about my blorbos!!!

[hello-nichya-here]

YOU LIKE TVD TOO?????????? WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SEASON? WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SHIP? FAVORITE CHARACTER?

Yup. The easiest way to convince me to watch anything is to say "There's vampires in it."

My favorite ship is Delena - but Katherine's fucked up ot3/love triangle with both Damon and Stefan is genuinely great and she is my favorite character. Shocking, I know. Picking my favorite season is hard, because I genuinely feel all four seasons were great.

"But Nichya, the show has eight seasons"

Like I said, all FOUR seasons are great.

Season one has all that great build up + has Damon being a full on villain, which I adore.

Season two has Katherine and Klaus ruinning everyone's day (including each other's) and vampire!Caroline which everyone knows is best Caroline.

Season three is all about Elena falling HARD for Damon while feeling guilty as fuck for it because she's still hung up on Stefan - who is out there being an evil, chaotic bastard with Klaus - and that kind of juicy, character-driven soap-opera style drama is 1000% my thing.

And finally, season four has Elena, and everyone around her, having to adapt to the fact that shes's a vampire now, and the Salvatore being all angsty because there's a possibility that Elena breaking up with Stefan to be with Damon was NOT a result of her genuine feelings but weird magical shenanigans and no matter what the truth actually is, it will inevitably end with one of them emotionally destroyed.

I'm gonna cheat and say that I believe season 2 had the superior writting, while season four is the one I enjoy watching the most. But honestly, all the four seasons feel like one huge season to me, which is really what every show should be like.

Like, can you IMAGINE if The Vampire Diaries had kept going for four more years, largely relying on uninteresting villains and bringing back the Stefan/Elena/Damon love triangle even though it was clearly over by that point? Thank God THAT didn't happen...

[gorgxoxus]

My Wishlist for Bridgerton season 3 Part Two: (and did it come true)?

Spoilers ahead for the book/ whatever we’ve been fed by Netflix/ Shondaland:

In no particular order:

1. Pen and Eloise conversations/ makeup including all the stuff to do with Cressida pretending to be Lady Whistledown/ trying to get the bounty money. Eloise talking to Colin when he knows Pen is LW, and helping them come back to each other. Pen and Eloise hug (that will emotionally destroy me if it happens).

This was exactly right!!

2. A conversation or two between Pen and the Queen. Maybe even a Pen/ Colin asking Queen Charlotte for a quick marriage license that leads to some sort of LW conversation after Colin knows. Queen Charlotte giving Pen the choice to continue as LW, before any announcement to the ton.

Pen wrote a letter to The Queen telling her it was her and asked for an opportunity to speak. The Queen after hearing it, lets her continue!!!!! It was better than I predicted!

3. More Featherington sister and mother chaos/ comedy. The back half of the season will be stressful so I want them to break it up with whatever fun things they say/ get up to.

They had less scenes than I wanted them to! But Prudence getting upset about the attention on Pen actually broke my heart a little. Their ball that Pen bankrolled was amazing!

4. Colin’s love confession ‘I love you for our future and our past, the children we will have etc’

WE DIDNT GET THAT 😭. But the mirror scene, the multiple I love yous, and the speech at the end were amazing.

5. Mama Bridgerton getting courted and gardened. And whatever drama that will bring between Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton.

It was amazing to see her courted, I hope it continues. And Violet and Agatha had some of the nicest conversations in the whole season I loved it.

6. Will being able to keep his club

Unfortunately not

7. This is not a wish but a thought ‘is Pen going to stop because she’s engaged and that’s when the bounty goes out because she’s stopped writing for a few weeks or longer’?

The Queen is too petty, but she does stop for a bit because she is engaged.

8. When Pen and Colin have their fight when Colin finds out she’s LW, Pen grabs Colin for the kiss and we get gender swapped iconic Jess kiss. A second steamier carriage scene.

It was more of a classic kiss where they both go in, and its later. Also poor Pen asking where Colin is going, I believe he was out for a walk because in the book he loves them.

9. I know it may end with pregnancy at the end of season 3 because of the heir situation but ending the season with Pen and Colin going travelling

Just babies (the heir no less) but it was a pretty perfect ending.

10. Cressida finding out Pen is LW and confronting her. It’s such a good scene in the book. And Pen having to tell Colin about it and Colin being pissed because ‘it was bound to happen after you put out the pamphlet saying it wasn’t her after she confessed to be LW’

YES THIS WAS EVERYTHING.

11. Hyacinth saying something iconic about LW because she had some cracking lines in the book about her.

Nope, but she had some cracking lines about Gregory.

12. Colin being stressed about Pen writing letters.

This didn't go anywhere, why was it said?

13. So many frank discussions between Pen and Colin because I trust Shondaland to deliver emotional, long, beautiful discussions between the main characters. And even between Pen and Eloise.

Colin and Pen had less conversation than I expected, but Pen gave it good to Colin when he was angry about Whistledown. I loved her speeches about what she wrote, her power she gets from it and that she stood on her two feet and said she wanted to continue. Pen and Eloise had amazing conversations, they are both powerful and smart women.

14. Colin declaring his love and intentions and care for Penelope to Lady Featherington.

YES! GREAT SCENE!! NO NOTES.

15. Colin delicately getting Pen down from the carriage at the start of episode 5 because I hate that she fell in the book because he was so fast and aggressive at getting her down. Colin and Pens discussion as they walk towards Bridgerton house where Pen is like wtf and says something about accepting the proposal. And when the get to Pen and Colin’s new house, a proper kneeled proposal with the ring.

We didnt see her get out of the carriage, but I'm taking it as show canon that she didnt fall. There is no discussion and Pen looks so stressed. The ring scene happens at Featherington house and is not kneeled, but is so cute.

16. Pen and Colin in Colin’s room or Pen’s room

NO! but that's ok.

17. Francesca’s wedding and introduction to Micheal.

YES!! MICAELA STERLING I DIED! IT WAS PERFECT. NO NOTES. SO EXCITED FOR WHATS TO COME THERE.

18. Something queer happening with Eloise and Cressida and a continue of their friendship despite all the bounty storyline’s and how messy that will become. Cressida and Lord Debling?

I didn't like the route they took Cressida, I hope we see her again. You can have Peneloise and Creloise, i'm sure of it.

19. A conversation between Lord Debling and Penelope (I think I’ve seen a spoiler that this is happening) where he congratulates her on getting what she always wanted. Imagine if things didn’t happen between Colin and Pen the carriage and Debling pulled out of the proposal. That would’ve been so scandalous for Penelope and the Featheringtons if she didn’t get a proposal at all.

Lord Debling dipped!

20. Masquerade ball in episode 8 and introduction to Sophie.

There was a mention of the Masquerade ball to come!

21. LW continues, and ideally I don’t want a ton announcement at the ball by Colin like in the book? But we’ll see. Something in the epilogue that tells the audience about the future of LW.

YOURS TRULY, PENELOPE BRIDGERTON. IS NICOLA/ PEN GOING TO NARRATE THE STORY NOW?!!! Also, I love that she ended her letters to Colin Yours Truly, Penelope that is so cute.

22. Colin’s journals, Pen reading more of Colin’s journey, the beginning of writer Colin and published Colin?

No scenes of her reading the journals in part two (she did mention it once or twice), but we did start to see writer Colin and published Colin.

So much shit is going to go down!! I’m so excited.

[hectormcfilm]

Loki season 2

This is the first review for a season of television I have done since creating this blog, I have watched multiple shows since arriving at Uni including, Sex education, Ahsoka and Castlevania Nocturne but I never felt the urge to write about them as both Ahsoka and Nocturne were quite mediocre and unmemorable for me, not allowing much to talk about and the newest season of sex education I actively disliked and was fed up with the show by the end and didn't even want to write about it.

Sadly this first review won't be positive. I remember watching Loki season 1 back when it first aired and enjoying it week to week but having some problems like the romance of Loki and Sylvie and the idea the TVA controls everything, taking away the idea of free will and choice in the marvel cinematic universe, I had problems but still thought it was decent and one of the better Disney+ shows. However season 2 has been a huge let-down for me.

To start off with I want to discuss the character of Loki himself. Back in the avengers and Thor films Loki was cunning, conniving and very charismatic, changing from completely selfish and evil to someone more caring, still untrustworthy and selfish but wanting to do the right thing and willing to die to save the universe. In the Loki show he has lost most of his charisma and cunningness, feeling more generic and less memorable. The teasers for season 2 seemed to be implying Loki would return to a more villainous or at least morally grey character having lines like, "You're the God of mischief " or "You're the villain" but Loki has stayed very soft and generic. He has turned into a more passive character who is focused on his friends over the fate of the multiverse. The show also barely uses his powers in a creative way, opting for him to use knives, hand to hand combat and occasionally a burst of green light despite him being a god of mischief, anytime he does use some trickery it is awesome but these moments are few and far between, wasting his potential.

One of the main problems I have had with season 2 is very personal and other people may not understand it but I just find it incredibly disengaging, there are long dialogue scenes of exposition about the TVA or Kang or the timeline that always feel dull and dragged out and lots of conversations in the first 2 episodes are confusing and repetitive as no characters knows what is going on, making it very hard to follow. The show focuses a lot on dialogue and worldbuilding but dialogue scenes aren't really shot in an engaging way, there is nothing special about the cinematography in general.

Another big issue for me happens a lot in multiversal stories, the stakes are so high I can't get emotionally engaged, this story is trying to save the fate of the multiverse and save every branch but we don't know anyone in these branches, we don't spend any time in the different timelines so we can't get invested. We are told about there being infinite lives to save but don't meet these people, the cast is very small for such a large scale plot. The show tries to counter this issue by making the focus on saving Loki's friends but none of them are well developed or interesting, OB is used for comic relief, Sylvie goes through a strange arc of denying helping multiple times despite knowing the stakes and both Hunter B15 and Cassey (who's names I had to google) are lacklustre and one note. This means I am unengaged with the main characters and the overall stakes as they all feel underdeveloped or ignored. Most scenes with just the side characters talking like Hunter and Mobius or the TVA leaders really don't interest me and usually lead nowhere, feeling redundant.

One final issue I have is Kang. Kang as a character still hasn't interested me in the MCU after 3 attempts now, the first one was a good performance but more of a plot device then a character, the main villain of Ant Man Quantamnaia is a conventional villain wanting to destroy everything but is defeated by ants destroying his agency or anything intimidating about him and whilst again having a good performance isn't any better then your average. Then this new Kang in season 2 is unique but I don't like Major's delivery on a lot of lines, trying to make him overly quirky and he dies again so easily. Kang has started to feel so forced because Marvel wants to generate hype and intrigue around him.

The two aspects in the show I will praise are the editing and the music. In both season 1 and 2 the music steals the show for me, it is so powerful and heavy, adding an intense atmosphere to every scene and it is so distinct to any other music used in the MCU giving the show distinct audio identity. To add on, there are some very well edited scenes like OB's introduction where it is splicing between timelines and any scene of Loki being torn through different times is very well edited. Similarly, the show looks great, all the production design is identical to season 1 but still a fun aesthetic, the CGI is all well done which should be a standard for such a massive company but is now a shock in superhero projects, especially after The Flash and Thor love and thunder.

Overall this season has really unengaged me, reflecting my overall growing disinterest and dislike in Marvel as a brand and this will probably be my last marvel show since this is the first I've watched since Moon knight anyway. Granted the final episode isn't out and could change my mind on a few issues.

[eclipsebyler]

BYLER FIC RECS PT 2

Okay, so I'm here with another part! Compiling all my recent favorite reads (with commentary this time because I'm very normal about byler fics...) Anyway, sharing is caring because my bookmarks are becoming longer. So here you go.

• We Will All Go Together When We Go by perexcri

The Apocalypse, romcom Byler fic! Ongoing, chaptered, 30k words so far. I know I've rec this in a recent post but I'm including it here again because I LOVE and enjoyed everything in this fic, down to Byler's characterisation, esp Mike's, and their playful yet tensioned dynamics. It's so chefs kiss. There's enough amount of they-get-stuck-in-the-upside-down suspense, comedy, and slow burn fluff. Highlight of this fic is that Will has a gun and Mike has a flashlight. That's all you have to know to give it a read.

baby, we're perfect by bookinit

A fresh take on established byler relationship! Oneshot, 16k words. I don't know how to describe this glorious fic without it being a spoiler so you just have to read it. The Fluff and Angst are both in extremes, you've been warned. It made me cry, for real. Had to stare at a wall for a few moments because of some scenes. Like the title says, it was PERFECT. A devastatingly beautifully written work I owe this author my life for what they did in this fic.

i'd make a deal with god by smoosnoom

A fix-it fic for vol2 featuring Castle Byers and Rain kiss. Will attempting to rip the bandaid off and Mike not letting him. Oneshot, 15k words. Anything by this author has me in a chokehold and a puddle of feelings, seriously. Their fix it series is a MASTERPIECE. The way they write Will's POV here absolutely destroyed me. It encompasses his story so painfully and beautifully and just everything about him is so— I badly want it to be canon he deserves the BEST. And might I add that the way they showcased the Byers-Hopper family bond here is everything I adore. Please if you haven't read this, you should.

make me your future history by andiwriteordie

Byler through the years, childhood friends to lovers fic! Oneshot, 10.9k words. I am absolutely a sucker for childhood promises being fulfilled (and broken) till they grow up so I ADORE this fic so much. Not to mention this author is one of my favorites and they carry the byler ao3 tag on their back and always deliver the BEST fics. There's a lot of angst and also a lot of fluff and it's something I can just reread again and again and again and won't get tired of it. It deserves more reads and love!

Gotta Be A Strange Twist of Fate by PoeticPatron

The fantasy D&D Byler fic! Oneshot, 26k words. Another fic I'm rec-ing again because it deserves more recognition. I really, really enjoyed and adored reading the adventures of the party in a fantasy action setting and the way the author incorporated the D&D lore here was so good. This fic was so wonderfully written and sweet in all the right amounts for friendships and romance. The Paladin and the Cleric being soulmates against all odds and prophecies? Say no more!

A Darker Timeline by egg98

The au where everyone stopped believing Will was alive and he was stuck in the Upside Down for three years and only came back to the real world in Season 4 timeline. Ongoing, chaptered, 24k words so far. Like the title says, it's A Darker Timeline, can't emphasize that enough, so much trauma and horror is delved in this work especially for Will, but also the party. The author's writing style is so hauntingly captivating- every chapter leaves me at the edge of my seat. I am so hooked with this 'what if' scenario and this unique, creative concept because it opens a lot of possibilities and changes to the characters and the plot! Will especially with his UD abilities and his personality.. beware of a grim and more badass Will plus emotionally scarred party. It's written so WELL so you should give it a try! (It's more on the psychological horror side though, the romance aspect is very slow burn.)

the boyfriend problem by RomeoWrites

The fic where the Wheelers (especially Ted) thinks Mike and Will have been boyfriends since forever. Oneshot, 15k words. Who would've thought I'd read a fic where Ted of all people don't have a heteronormative view of romance? I very much enjoyed reading him embarrassing Mike every chance he gets, this fic gave me so much JOY it was such a funny and sweet and fluffy read! If you're looking for some lighthearted, family dynamics and eventual getting together of two oblivious gay teenagers— this is the fic!

The Dad Who Stepped Up by MagikMask

Hopper and Will bonding fic (and of course, Hopper being protective of Will especially when it comes to one Michael Wheeler). Oneshot, 7.8k words. I've been enjoying every Byers-Hopper or Wheeler family dynamics fic there is and it's even more enjoyable if Byler gets tangled up in it. This fic focuses more on Hopper trying his best to be a good dad to Will, but the Byler and Hopper parts of this fic gave me healing, so I have to rec it!

r/byler by danteapot

Mike Wheeler if he's on reddit, social media fic. Oneshot, 5k words. This fic was so fun and amusing to read and the social media aspect fitted so well, I could totally imagine Mike oversharing his problems online and asking for advices lmfao. Trust him to always talk about Will on every spaces and still not realize he's in love with him. He's just so oblivious and I love him for it.

i hate accidents (except when we went from friends to this). by blackdeathmamba

Post S4 college roommates Byler and miscommunication trope fic! The miscommunication in question is just them accidentally kissing all the time and having different thoughts on it. Three chapters, completed, 16.8k words. I've said it before and I'll say it again: it's one of the best and funniest work I've ever read. Byler are so disgustingly in love but they are also painfully oblivious about it. It's a competition on who's more of an idiot between them while you read through their POVs and it gave me immense joy and pain reading through it. I swear to God, these bitches are so gay, and this fic just showcased that. Please read it to brighten your day.

i need you more than anyone darling (you know that i have from the start) by friendstolovers

Instead of Byler getting murrayed, this is Byler getting Jonathaned fic (In a gentler and more subtle way as the tags says). Oneshot, 5.7k words. Mike finally comes to his overdue realisations (thanks to Jonathan) and attempts to climb bedroom windows to be romantic. They finally talk and confess and it's just the cutest and sweetest thing ever I swear.

without heart by aceoflanterns

Will Byers and the Upside Down (the mysteries between his connection to Vecna and his powers) fic. Completed, chaptered, 31k words. I am once again rec-ing this because I can't help go back to this fic when I need to read complex takes on Will surrounding vol2 and possible S5 plot! The author's writing style is one of the best and my personal favorites. It's art, a masterpiece, everything about it — down to the plot, the conversations, the characterisations, the family and friendship and romance dynamics. Even the Upside Down horrors with Vecna and the Mind Flayer and Will. How much Will's love for Mike and his love for everyone helped him (and their love for him, too.) Personally think this had lots of fresh creative takes, an interesting theory written in a fic. It's long and a worth it read! Totally in awe of this work.

i’d love to see me from your point of view by unidentifiedblackthorn

The fic where Byler gets high together and they let loose their disaster gay feelings. Oneshot, 8k words. Got me giggling, blushing, kicking my feet in the air, for real. The amount of cuddling, flirting and kissing this fic had made me sick (in the best way). I think Byler in Season 5 deserves a moment like this because of their decade long pent up feelings and pining, these gays deserve a break and just... be gay together. Anyways this fic was such a wonderful read! If you want to drown in fluff read this. (Also brb this author just posted a sequel to this fic, gotta read 🏃Probably gonna be a part of my next fic rec thread lol).

So that's it for now. Enjoy reading, everyone. And please if you guys have some recs feel free to drop me some, too! I need more fics to read.

[wonderpommey]

For someone like Roman “everyone wants to fuck me” Roy who couldn’t handle being confronted to someone’s genuine desire for him in previous seasons (the trainer relationship is transactional, Grace excites him when she wants someone else, he hates when Tabitha gets aroused). 

I think we kind missed that not being attacked by Gerri’s desire seems to create a safe space for him to develop a more reciprocal attitude. Is it because he thinks she won’t want him back or because it creates space for him to start craving reciprocity? That question is still up in the air. But certainly, this season moves away from the S2 pretend abuse from Gerri and has been a festival of words of affirmation from her “Great instincts, we have something going, visionary, well done”, as many self-esteem boosts that really don’t seem to turn him off. 

Propositioning her is a big escalation from their S2 stuff which didn’t involve her desire at all (the only evolution was around her consent), and unlike with Tabitha/Grace, sex isn’t something she asks for, so there’s no reason to offer.

His idea to “sleep with Laurie” is him going “alright I can see that you want that, maybe we can include him in our thing...” as long as I’m not getting left out.

The items initially are also about giving her something he thinks she wants and is being minxy about because Gerri historically is “this is unacceptable/get in that bathroom”. I think the dick pics were so interesting this season because they’re so much more than just unsolicited x rated items. Roman keeps facing pushback from Gerri sexually & emotionally and in the end he figures out a neat little way to make sure she cares about him; Putting his dick in her scissor hands, just like he did when he was considering teaming up with Kendall, giving her blackmail material, giving her prejudicial information. Forcing her to show him how she feels through protecting him or destroying him.

It’s awkward and misguided but there a definite move towards opening himself up to what Gerri wants and finding out how she feels about him. For Roman, that’s interesting because it’s so unusual. He’s never concerned himself with what his partners actually wanted. There’s also a move towards wanting care/affection from her “you love the boot because you love being kicked by it”, seems he’s starting to explore how untrue that can actually be with both Gerri and his dad. ETA - Someone also raised a good point to me and that’s how Roman has also revealed more and more of the sides of himself he may - rightly or wrongly - be ashamed of; “fuck Laurie” and the tattoo brothers thing. There’s a desperation to reach intimacy made even funnier by his dismissal of Shiv in episode 7 “Yeah I love people getting to know me”.

[bakasara]

head full with how much the theme of power balance is structurally at the heart of Buffy/Spike, no i won’t elaborate

SIKE! i’ll elaborate

The show deals recurrently with Buffy’s challenging relationship with her power: her fear of overpowering those she loves, her tendency toward punishing herself for having power, her fear that being vulnerable or a little selfish is a failure to uphold her power as expected, and the constant threat of gendered male-on-female abuse as she navigates girlhood and then young womanhood. This theme is staged often in the writing of her romantic/sexual relationships. E.g., her first ever sexual experience literally makes Angel derail completely and fall back to darkness. From her perspective, she both gets gendered abuse for it (having become soulless, he demeans and derides her for being vulnerable about losing her virginity to him) and proof that she wields a dangerous power (her sexuality, expressed freely, destroys him).

When it comes to Buffy/Spike, interrogating power imbalance is a fundamental part of their narrative that at various points explores nightmarish obsession, lack of boundaries, abuse of power, predatory entitlement... cast as triumph of evil. But by contrast their relationship, throughout, centrally romanticizes power balance as an ideal to tend to – which, reached, makes the pair mystic soulmates and beacons of good. And it’s one major reason it resonates with me, so let’s talk about how I read the narrative in these lenses!

Spike and Buffy have symmetrical arcs around power imbalance in the relationship in s5-6. Initially, in s2, they are matched mortal enemies. He wants to kill her, she wants to kill him, neither manages to definitively outsmart, out-luck, or out-power the other. A chipped Spike, however, having been forced to spend some time around the Scooby gang, gets a crush on Buffy. It’s based largely around eroticizing that idea of being an evenly matched pair (as per his fantasies) and it’s subtextually fuelled by his attraction to Buffy’s heroic goodness (a recurrent implicit suggestion he buries under the bad boy act, but which will be later confirmed in s7). Being a remorseless demon and, at that, one who has absolutely no idea how to navigate attachment, he starts stalking her, obsessively collects pictures and clothes of hers, he gets the Buffybot (to fuck and fight with), completely transgressing boundaries around her privacy. He’s every creep that’s ever stalked a woman, and to Buffy it represents the threat of him taking limitlessly and destructively from her.

But then something unexpected happens, as the narrative takes advantage of Spike’s character development and Buffy’s discomfort with herself to enforce a role reversal of sorts. In Intervention (5x18) Buffy tells Spike that the robot was disgusting, whereas keeping Dawn safe was a welcomed expression of affection… and Spike starts doing less of the former, and more of the latter. While he continues to be pulled towards limitless anger and hatred, he also starts to genuinely support Buffy emotionally more and being there for her as a means to express affection, as especially seen after she’s resurrected at the beginning of season 6. His relationship to her around this time and past the beginning of their sexual relationship in Smashed (6x09) becomes largely about boundless devotion on his part: letting her take what she wants, when she wants, how she wants, including with cruelty; being a “willing slave” to her, as he sings in Once More With Feeling (6x07). He enforces no boundaries around his bodily or mental integrity, and she, looking for someone on whom she can take out her shame of herself, becomes the one using and abusing him out of convenience, going to him for comfort yet treating him like her dirty secret and demeaning him. Buffy’s self-hatred tempts her to hurt him even when he’s demonstrating bouts of genuine effort to change for the better and even if continuing to call him sick and disgusting will curb his chances of developing a moral conscience. The dynamic now, to Buffy, represents the threat of misusing her power, the threat of taking limitlessly and destructively from another.

Importantly, though, one act of abuse isn’t framed as narrative retribution for the other, or as justifying the other (a gendered example of this would be when the narrative justifies the cheated girlfriend slapping the boyfriend). It’s acknowledged several times that both his stalkerish behavior and her continuous verbal abuse of him were wrong and ugly. So, rather than being about moral punishment to either the male or the female character, these arcs speak to a metaphorical exploration of gendered dangers of power imbalance. By contrast, they speak to wondering what “balance” means toward how (equal) power, reciprocity, and boundaries play into a constructive heterosexual relationship. In this narrative, that “balance” is romanticized well before s7, which is rather the time for payoff.

IMO this is best exemplified through Smashed. One of the most defining scenes between them, coming at the climax of mounting frustration and suggestiveness, is the one where they have sex for the first time. Tellingly, the sequence leading to sex starts with Buffy’s discovery that Spike’s chip no longer prevents him from hitting her, making their old promise to kill each other actionable again. The beginning of the sequence thus calls back heavily to their s2 status as sworn nemeses, where they became of interest to each other as opponents of matched power. They start hitting each other with escalating intensity until Buffy pushes Spike inside an empty building, at which point their long coming fight-to-end-all-fights takes center stage in the sequence, drawn out through cuts to Willow and Amy Madison being seduced by magic elsewhere. Violence here creates a continuity between the centrality that matched power had to their hate relationship, and the centrality it has to their love relationship: the momentum mounts as every punch, kick and throw given is matched by one received, without either Spike or Buffy keeping their dis/advantage for long, the fight continuously depicting the other as neither so weak as to crumble nor so strong as to annihilate, without end in sight... finally driving Buffy to kiss Spike passionately. (Please imagine me watching this sometime around 8-12 years old and having one HELL of a sexual awakening, bahaha). The action then becomes explicitly sexual, yet still just as visually defined by this reciprocity: they continue to throw and get thrown, give and receive (she pushes him against the wall, he pushes her, then again), with both of them, through and beyond the smokescreen that violence provides, experiencing a moment of shock/awe when he enters her, stopping the frantic kissing for a moment to stare in each others’ eyes with open vulnerability.

It’s a moment that subtextually takes this beyond an eroticization of matched power into a romanticization of it, and the sex resulting from this sequence is so supernaturally powerful that they literally bring down the building. (which may not go as hard as linked hands aflame with a holy fire born of their emotional bond to each other and trials faced together, but hey)

This sequence offers a great visual synthesis to much of the subtext in s5-6 that suggests Buffy’s genuine attraction to Spike, far from being at its core about a sadism or a masochism to her, is radicated in his appropriate support of her and in his unique capacity to meet her at her level. For an example of the former: “What you did for me, and Dawn... that was real.” said in Intervention (5x18) before kissing him on the lips in thanks. Exemplifying the latter: the dialogue during their throwdown in Smashed highlights the mirroring character conflict that's been subtextually tormenting them both and bringing them together, and suggests Spike is in a unique position to understand her alienation from humanity and from societal expectations of her:

SPIKE: Poor little lost girl. She doesn't fit in anywhere. BUFFY: Me? I'm lost? Look at you, you idiot! Poor Spikey. Can't be a human, can't be a vampire. Where the hell do you fit in? Your job is to kill the slayer. But all you can do is follow me around making moon eyes. [...] So really, who's screwed up? SPIKE: Hello! Vampire! I'm supposed to be treading on the dark side. What's your excuse?

In a similar vein, earlier in After Life (6x03) Buffy feels that, unlike her friends, Spike can handle the ugly truth about her depression and resentment:

SPIKE: Buff? ...Slayer? Are you okay? [...] Buffy, if you're in-- if you're in pain, or if you need anything, or if I can do anything for you... [...] I do know a thing or two about torment. BUFFY: I was happy. Wherever I was... I was happy. At peace. I knew that everyone I cared about was all right. I knew it. Time didn't mean anything, nothing had form, but I was still me, you know? And I was warm, and I was loved, and I was finished. Complete. [...] I think I was in heaven. And now I'm not. I was torn out of there. Pulled out, by my friends. Everything here is hard, and bright, and violent. Everything I feel, everything I touch... this is Hell. Just getting through the next moment, and the one after that, knowing what I've lost... They can never know. Never.

The notion that her attraction to Spike isn’t about dealing pain is also later reflected, still in s6, by her words as she relinquishes the drive to abuse the power she has over him: “I'm using you. I can't love you. I'm just being weak and selfish... and it's killing me. I'm sorry, William.” (6x15 As You Were).

I’ve purposefully focused mostly on s2-6 so far because while in s5-6 power balance is romanticized as an ideal condition they’re both subtextually attracted to, it’s also something utterly unachievable. Unwilling and incapable of offering Spike support, the best Buffy can do was break things off with him. And it goes without saying that, with Spike incapable of setting or respecting personal boundaries, his attempted rape of Buffy marks the lowest point in his reform efforts as soulless, and the closest he comes to his former mindless cruelty.

In s7, however, these premises change as Buffy continues to grow into her ability to navigate adulthood and Spike chooses to get his soul back in response to his actions with the aim of succeeding at reform. With those premises, that ideal equality/healthy reciprocity becomes something they are both capable of working towards and help each other achieve.

Their reborn relationship is littered with images and dialogue that both continue Spike and Buffy’s framing as reciprocal/symmetrical, and contrast former failures to navigate power. Spike is established again and again as respecting Buffy’s space, material and figurative: he knocks, lingers on doorsteps, restricts proximity, goes to touch Buffy’s hair but draws back when she seems unsure, punches a bag (with Angel’s face on it lol) when he’s jealous rather than directing hatred onto Buffy, respects her decision to go on a date, assumes he’s going to take the chair when she asks him to spend the night, and so forth. It’s about respecting her space though – not about doing everything she asks or letting her get away with anything like before, and I love how this distinction is framed as crucial to rebuilding their affective relationship as meaningful and constructive. His ability to handle her when she is too much for others is re-established as important, with him being the only one who can get through to her and thinks she should still lead when she’s given up (7x20 Touched):

BUFFY: I don't feel very right. SPIKE: You're not fooling me. [...] You're not a quitter. [...] BUFFY: Fine. The stage is yours. Cheer me up. SPIKE: You're insufferable. BUFFY: Thank you. That really helped. SPIKE: I'm not trying to cheer you up. [...] Something pissed me off, and I just— "Unattainable." That's it. [...] You listen to me. [...] A hundred plus years, and there's only one thing I've ever been sure of: you. Hey, look at me. I'm not asking you for anything. When I say, "I love you," it's not because I want you or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you. And I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman.

This special position in her life is so important, the narrative casts it as crucial to win against Evil itself (7x21 End of Days):

BUFFY: Do you see this? (holds up the magic Scythe) This may actually help me fight my war. This might be the key to everything. And the reason I'm holding it is because of you. Because of the strength that you gave me last night.

Buffy herself is called on by the narrative to rise up to her growth, and to the attainable (yet scary!) reciprocity that is now being offered. Part of what made their relationship toxic is that, while Spike offered her a shoulder to lean on in the past, she was too ashamed of herself to come out in his support. S7 insists on the notion that this hindered Spike’s growth and that Buffy is now capable and willing to offer that support.

See 7x09 Never Leave Me:

BUFFY: I don't hate like that. Not you, or myself. Not anymore. [...] You don't even know you. Was that you who killed those people in the cellar? Was that you who waited for those girls? SPIKE: There's no one else. BUFFY: That's not true. Listen to me. You're not alive because of hate or pain. You're alive because I saw you change. Because I saw your penance. SPIKE: Window dressing. BUFFY: Be easier, wouldn't it, if it were an act? But it's not. You faced the monster inside of you and you fought back. You risked everything to be a better man. And you can be. You are. You may not see it, but I do. I do. I believe in you, Spike.

In 7x14 First Date:

BUFFY: Spike has a soul now. That's what's gonna stop him from hurting people. [...] He can be a good man, Giles. I feel it. But he's never gonna get there if we don't give him the chance. GILES: Your feelings for him are coloring your judgement. [...] It doesn't matter if you're not physical with each other anymore. There's a connection. You rely on him, he relies on you. That's what's affecting your judgment.

She is shown to understand and embrace that decisions like putting faith in Spike’s ability to overcome the First Evil and freeing Spike of the chip are a commitment to sponsoring him – one that mutual reliance requires. Buffy’s support of Spike ends up being what gives him the strength to resist the First (7x11 Showtime):

THE FIRST (as Buffy, while torturing Spike): Dreaming of me again, aren't you? Poor Spike. He still thinks I believe in him. SPIKE (ignoring the First as she drones on): She will come for me. She will come for me. She will come for me...

Which cascades into more growth, leading him to confront his trauma with his mother – which the First was using to trigger Spike’s unwilling murders – and fully succeed in his reform. The season continues to reference reciprocity as the relationship grows stronger and healthier, with Buffy and Spike’s support of each other and emotional availability fostering trust and vulnerability between them in a virtuous circle. E.g., Buffy asking Spike to hold her in Touched (7x20), Spike finally admitting that being that close to someone was scary and the best thing that ever happened to him in End of Days (7x21).

In a mirror to the way Spike enabled Buffy to obtain the Scythe she needs to defeat Evil, Buffy enables Spike to become a champion for good – thus to literally wear the Amulet of the Champion and defeat Evil. So the narrative gives credit to both Buffy and Spike’s new beliefs and attitudes around navigating/striving for equality, depicting their building of healthy boundaries, trust, emotional availability/vulnerability, and reciprocity as keys to constructive growth and eventually as the key to defeat Evil – which I find pretty definitive as far as romanticizing reciprocity goes.

As a closing image… My favorite image of them that relates back to visualizing reciprocity in their new/healthy relationship is when they spend the night together in the abandoned home in Touched. Throughout the night, while the other pairs are connecting through sex, we see them looking into each other’s eyes in silence, both turned towards each other, heads level:

then, as they shift through the night, Buffy sleeping turned toward him, head in his chest, safe in his arms:

having shifted again, it’s now the other way around; she wakes up to find Spike turned towards her, head on her shoulder and chest, leaning into her as he sleeps on:

[yurimother]

How 'She-Ra' Delivered on Queer Promises and Helped Revolutionized LGBTQ Representation

DreamWorks's She-Ra and the Princesses of Power has already cemented its place among the short but rapidly growing list of children’s animated shows with impactful LGBTQ representation. Showrunner Noelle Stevenson made it a point to push and fight for more diverse characters in every aspect from race, to personality, to sexual and gender identity. However, the finale of the GLADD Award-nominated program delivered on a revolutionary promise built up throughout all five seasons and completed one of the greatest queer narratives ever seen in children’s media.

As She-Ra progressed, Stevenson became more encouraged and inspired to pressure executives to allow more and more explicit LGBTQ characters and relationships. While ever-present in the series, season one only featured a background couple, Spinnerella (Noelle Stevenson) and Netossa (Krystal Joy Brown), and of course, the famous dance sequence between Catra (AJ Michalka) and Adora (Aimee Carrero). While this amount of representation is comfortably leagues ahead of the vast majority of cartoons, the show only upped the ante and the amount of representation from there. Season 2 introduced viewers to George (Chris Jai Alex) and Lance (Regi Davis), Bow's fathers. The series presents them in a normalized fashion as a happy gay couple in love that built a family together. Jacob Tobia's non-binary Double Trouble featured heavily in season four, making them one of the first non-binary characters in children's animation and one of the first to holding an integral role in the show, a major step in representing such identities.

The many achievements and strides She-Ra in LGBTQ representation featured in She-Ra will doubtlessly affect other projects in the industry and help further programs walk a similar path. However, the greatest queer story inShe-Ra is the spectacular series-long arc exploring the relationship and dynamics between de facto antagonist Catra and protagonist Adora. The former friends, who grew up together in the ranks of the Horde, turn enemies at the start of the series after Adora gains the power of She-Ra and betrays Catra, joining the Rebellion.

Fans quickly began speculating on the nature of Adora and Catra's relationship during season one, mainly because of the Princess Prom dance scene. After the young women shared a charged and sinister dance, fans quickly began supporting and analyzing "Catradora." The next three seasons would gradually and gracefully define both characters' complicated feelings for each other. Initially, Catra attempts to rationalize Adora's leaving as a relief or else forces herself to appear apathetic towards it. She continuously uses the excuse that she is no longer living under Adora's shadow to gradually build up more power, rising through the ranks of the Horde while stepping on those who helped her.

While Catra's motivations are appropriately layered and complex, it becomes clear that she is attempting to win approval, to be less alone than she has felt since Adora abandoned her. She seeks others' approval, including her abusive maternal figure, Shadow Weaver (Lorraine Toussaint), and the cruel Hordak (Keston John). However, Catra does not realize until confronted by Double Trouble's gut-wrenching and emotionally resonating analysis of her psyche. They inform Catra that the reason she is alone and abandoned, she pushes others away. The realization that her problems and loneliness are by her own doing combine with her guilt for betraying her allies Scorpia (Lauren Ash) and Entrapta (Christine Woods), leads Catra to an emotional breakdown.

Thee fifth and final season of She-Ra opens with Catra still plagued by loneliness and self-doubt. She starts to form a bond with Prime's captor Glimmer (Karen Fukuhara), seeing her guilt reflected by Glimmer's regret for trying to use the Heart of Etheria's power. Eventually, Catra learns about Adora's impending rescue attempt and the villainous Prime's plants to capture her once she arrives. Ultimately, all the feelings and circumstances surrounding Catra clash together as she remembers a childhood promise that she and Adora would always be friends. The revelation that she loves Adora finally causes Catra to turn and do "one good thing," protect Adora. She frees Glimmer to prevent Adora from walking into Prime's trap; thus, Catra becomes the Horde's prisoner.

Adora's character arch is much less tragic than Catra. The "frenemies" clash multiple times throughout the early seasons with an ever-shifting dynamic that hints at their intricate relationship and confused romantic feelings. But, at the end of season three, Catra's reckless plan against Adora almost leads to Eternia's destruction. As Catra taunts and blames Adora for her suffering, Adora seemingly ends their conflicted relationship, noting that Catra's misdeeds are all her own, "You made your choice, now live with it."

In the final season, Adora has lost the powers of She-Ra. But, she continues to charge into battle headfirst, exposing herself and her tendencies to put other's wellbeing before her own. This tactic mirrors why Adora left Catra's side in the first place all the way back in the first season. She places more importance on duty and service to others than herself and her friend. Later, while Adora, Bow (Marcus Scribner), and Entrapta are traveling towards Horde Prime, Catra sends a signal to their ship, apologizing for everything she has done while teleporting Glimmer to them. Adora decides that she cannot leave Catra behind, and the Best-Friend Squad hurries to rescue Catra from the Horde. Adora saves Catra not only from Prime's vile clutches but her loneliness too. Adora's exclamation "You matter to me" is a powerful and victorious moment, as the two friends turned enemies unite, and acknowledge their connection.

Unfortunately, even after the Adora and Catra are together again, conflict continues to rise between them and with themselves. Catra feels unlovable because of her past and so convinces herself that Adora will not accept her feelings. She continues to struggle with abandonment, especially when Adora willingly takes the responsibility of a suicide mission to destroy the Heart of Etheria, yelling, "It doesn't always have to be you." Sadly, Adora again abandons her, putting the good of everyone else above herself and Catra. Acknowledging that Adora, "Always sacrifices everything for everyone else," Catra runs away. However, upon realizing that Prime is moments away from taking control of the Heart and killing Adora, Shadow Weaver and her run to rescue the girl she loves.

As Adora journeys to the Heart, she sees and an illusion of Catra, envisioning that her friend meets her to approach the suicide mission together. Soon, Adora faces a vision of Mara (Zehra Fazal), the previous She-Ra, who tells her that she does not always need to sacrifice herself and is deserving of love too. She becomes trapped without her powers by a first-ones' guardian until Catra and Shadow Weaver save her. Telling Adora to go on, Catra stays to fight the beast in vain. Moments before destroying the Heart and herself, Adora finally chooses to return to Catra, to put Catra and her own happiness over her sense of duty.

As Adora and Catra approach the Heart, the former almost succumbs to Prime's power and has one final vision. Adora dreams of living a life in peace in Brightmoon alongside her friends, Glimmer and Bow, and with her loving, playful partner Catra by her side. In the apparent final moments before her death, Catra reaches out to Adora. At last, the two confess their love for each other and embrace in a momentous kiss, restoring She-Ra's power to Adora. Renewed in strength and standing beside her beloved, Adora finally destroys Horde Prime. The series ends as Adora and Catra plan to travel together and restore magic to the universe and fades to black as the couple prepares to take their next journey together.

as Adora and Catra plan to travel together and restore magic to the universe and fades to black as the couple prepares to take their next journey together.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power has always been a powerhouse of LGBTQ representation, especially the final season. For example, it heavily features former background characters and married couple Spinnerella and Netossa in leading roles, as Netossa attempts to recover her wife’s mind from Prime. However, the relationship between Catra and Adora is not only the series highlight but a revolutionary in LGBTQ representation in children's television.

LGBTQ history in children's media and cartoons is disappointingly brief and, at times, unpleasant. Early examples mostly featured coded queer characters with harmful and stereotypical traits, such as the Silver Spooner from Dexter's Laboratory. Some works were able to include less harmful depictions. Networks allowed characters like Richie from Static Shock, who is gay, to exist as long as their identity was kept extremely subtextual.

Slowly some more limited progress was made, and a few less offensive or hidden characters were permitted to appear in one-off and minor roles. Nelvana's Canadian animated sitcom, 6teen included many vague but most neutral references to homosexuality and eventually a one-off character Jean, who says that she is "gay" and has a girlfriend. Notably, this 2009-episode marks not only one of the first moments of a character confirming their sexuality but also using the word "gay." This feat is so rarely replicated even in LGBTQ family media that even giants like Steven Universe do not include it. Outside of pedantic educational programs on minor networks, it may be the only time someone said "the-G-word" in such media until 2019's Kippo and the Age of Wonderbeasts  (live-action sitcom Andi Mack on Disney Channel also used the term that year). Sadly, American showings cut 6Teen's references to homosexuality, and the episode featuring Jean never aired at all outside Canada.

When most people look back to the beginning of the recent small boom in cartoon LGBTQ representation, they point to The Legend of Korra. In 2014, the series finally ended with female leads Korra and Asami taking hands and going on a private vacation in the spirit world. The Korra moment set the LGBTQ fandom on fire. Even so, the show faced incredible resistance and backlash. After the final episode aired, creator Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino had to go online to confirm that the somewhat ambiguous finale indeed depicted a same-sex romance. They then began to face backlash from a section of the fandom who believed bringing this badass bisexual moment to television was only for fanservice or to forward an agenda.

The Legend of Korra was a revolution in modern children's television, putting cracks in the oppressive dam that kept such dynamics out of the limelight and slowly pushed back against the status quo, allowing for more LGBTQ representation. Now, over five years after Korra, numerous children's programs feature queer characters in minor and supporting roles, often more explicitly than Korra was able to do. The Loud House includes a main bisexual character, and there are queer characters and couples in multiple works, including but not limited to Gravity Falls, Adventure Time, and Craig of the Creek.

The most notable LGBTQ representation in a children's cartoon comes from Rebeca Sugar's incredible creation, Steven Universe. As with She-Ra, LGBTQ characters make up a large portion of the cast and it features several groundbreaking LGBTQ scenes, including the iconic wedding of Ruby and Sapphire.

Sadly, many of these works had to fight tooth and nail or suffer through horrific backlash because of their dedication to diversity. Alabama banned an episode of Arthur that featured a gay wedding, and the depiction of lesbian mothers in Clifford the Bid Red Dog caused some parents and organizations to speak out against it. Perhaps most famous of all, Rebecca Sugar had to struggle to put LGBTQ representation on the small screen. Ultimately, to make the wedding scene happen, Sugar had to lay everything on the table and was willing to see themselves separated from the show and have it end to bring their vision to life. Unfortunately, many other countries censor the show to remove LGBTQ content. Still, Sugar's tireless work has pushed the boundaries of LGBTQ representation in children's media so incredibly far, allowing shows like She-Ra to exist.

The recent rapid progress of LGBTQ representation becomes apparent when comparing She-Ra to the "originator," Korra. The series share similar themes and mutually place importance on diversity in its main cast. At the climax of both programs, two female main characters became romantic partners for the other. However, the differences are what truly sets them apart and highlights the progress representation has made. Back in 2014, holding hands and staring into each other's eyes was the most action Korra could feature.

However, a myriad of queer characters and identities perforate She-Ra, all of which are more apparent and obvious thanks to actions including kisses, confessions, and other actions. This difference is especially true in season five, where even the title cards feature Netossa and Spinnerella engaged in a passionate kiss. Of course, the main couple was permitted a full on-screen confession and kiss, as Catra and Adora locked lips in the final episode. Finally, many "critics" complained that Korra and Asami's relationship came out of nowhere, despite it progressing the show’s last two seasons. If one were to assert the same claim about She-Ra, they need to completely ignore how Stevenson built Adora and Catra's romantic relationship as a fundamental aspect of the show from the very start.

She-Ra's depiction of queer characters was deliberate, explicit, and incredible. Not only did LGBTQ side characters express their identities in a variety of ways, but the main couple also got to show their love with both words and a kiss. Furthermore, and perhaps even more importantly, the main couple in She-Ra got a happen ending and a future for them and the viewers to imagine and look towards with excitement. Sadly, many LGBTQ characters and couples do not get to experience such conclusions. For decades, queer relationships ended in tragedy, often with the death of one or more queer characters killed off as part of the "bury your gays" trope. Even if the characters live, narratives rarely provided a happy future for those with queer identities. Sadly, this trend is alive and well. Recent examples include Adam from Voltron: Legendary Defender and Annika and Neha from The Dragon Prince.

Stevenson actively set out to avoid this trope in She-Ra, telling the Los Angeles Times, "I can't see another gay character die on TV for the moment." Not only did she not kill Adora and Catra, or any of the show's other queer characters, she gave Adora and Catra, the two lesbian leads in love, a happy ending. The show even offers viewers and Adora a glimpse of one possible future for the couple in the final vision of domestic bliss in Brightmoon. Both Adora and Catra struggle and suffered greatly, but they were allowed a happy ending and the opportunity to look forward to a life together. For the two main characters of a children's cartoon to achieve such a fantastic ending in such an explicit way is a genuinely revolutionary moment of representation, proudly standing alongside defining scenes like and Ruby and Sapphire’s wedding in Steven Universe. Importantly, both shows are made by queer creators, showing young viewers that people like them can achieve and create great things and that there are those out there fighting for them. For these reasons, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is one of the single most significant works of LGBTQ representation in children's media.

Queer representation in children's media matters so much, likely more than it does in any other medium. It normalizes LGBTQ identities for families and sends a powerful message to all LGBTQ children who may be feeling sad or alone or sacred: 'You are not alone, you matter, and you are accepted.' These words, implied with every positive depiction of queer identities, save so many children and young adults from unnecessary suffering and sometimes even saves lives. Noelle Stevenson and She-Ra will likely create giant waves in the medium just as Steven Universe did before it, and generations of queer people, myself included, wait with bated breath to see what results from it.

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: ‘Together Again’ (Distant Lands, Ep. 3)

Airdate: May 20, 2021

Story by: Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang, Hanna K. Nyström, Christina Catucci, Jesse Moynihan, Adam Muto

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Iggy Craig, Maya Petersen, Serena Wu

Directed by: Miki Brewster (supervising), Sandra Lee (art)

Across Adventure Time’s ten season run, the show explored a bevy of “mature” themes and story ideas—topics, like love, sexuality, depression, and grieving. The show also touched upon death, but the emphasis was usually placed on the emotional toll of a loved one dying, not really what happens when you die. We knew there were Dead Worlds and Death. We knew that there was reincarnation. But how does it all fit together? What does it mean? How does it work?

With “Together Again,” we finally have many of the answers.

This special opens with a marvelous fake-out episode simply called “Finn & Jake,” that sees the two steal a magical cartoon of 50-flavor ice cream before rescuing Turtle Princess and LSP from the clutches of the villainous Ice King. This is all deliberately anachronistic and over the top. Ice King is back to his season one ways, Finn has both arms, and he is still wielding his golden sword that he lost in season two’s “The Real You.” There’s lolrandom dialogue and silly monsters; it’s like a parody of seasons 1-2. But then, this adventure starts to get all wonky, and in time Finn realizes that he is in a some sort of trance or illusion: one that ends with Jake being buried in the ground. Suddenly, Finn awakens from his reverie. He’s an old man. And he’s dead. We’re then presented with a new title card that lets us know the episode is actually called “Finn & Jake Are Dead.”

Holy Glob! They actually went there.

Turns out Jake died years before Finn, so naturally Finn is super excited to see his best bud. But something’s wrong—he cannot find Jake!! They planned to spend eternity together. But all that Finn can find is his very own psychopomp, Mr. Fox (voiced by Tom Herpich, whose purposefully stilted line readings are the epitome of delightful). Finn rightfully assumes that Jake is in a different Dead World, and so, being the ball of spunk and energy that he is, he demands to meet with Death, only to discover that there’s a New Death in town (voiced by Chris Fleming). The episode eventually explains that New Death was the son of Death and Life, and after New Death killed his father, he became the sovereign of the afterlife. New Death hates his job and decides to just blow up all the Dead Worlds so he doesn’t have to deal with it all. (I won’t get too much into the details here, because there would be a lot of story to parse out.)

Finn soon learns that Jake has reached nirvana in the 50th Dead World, where there is nothing but peace and serenity. Finn nevertheless tracks down Jake, pulls him from paradise, but in doing so, accidentally lets New Death in, who promptly obliterates Elysium, sending all the enlightened souls—including those from different levels of the afterlife—to the 1st Dead World. This gronks up the afterlife, temporarily halting the reincarnation process.

Well, Finn and Jake are rightfully ticked, and so they haunt the material plane looking for Princess Bubblegum. She’s not home (more on that later), but Peppermint Butler is! After Ghost Finn and Ghost Jake explain the situation, Peppermint Butler tells them what to do: They need to find Life and explain the situation. The duo manage just that, and Life is rightfully angry that her kid has stopped the transmigration of souls. After Life gives Finn a McGuffin sword that can hurt Death, Finn and Jake return to his abode. A brawl ensues wherein we learn that New Death has been possessed… by none other than that spirit of the Lich.

That’s right, it’s the Lich! He’s back, and boy is he evil.

The Lich explains that by possessing Death, he can destroy the afterlife, thereby destroying a key aspect of reality. Naturally, Finn and Jake are not cool with this, and they engage in combat. After Mr. Fox grabs the McGuffin sword and uses it to annihilate the Lich and New Death, he is proclaimed the New New Death and sets everything right. Finn is slated to be reincarnated, and Jake is slated to return to the 50th Dead World where he and Finn will one day be reunited. As Finn is pulled into the wheel of souls, Jake suddenly decides to go back with Finn, too, “Just for fun.” The episode ends with a card letting us know that the episode is neither called “Finn & Jake” nor “Finn & Jake Are Dead.” Instead, it is “Finn and Jake Are Together Again.”

As they say, “And there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.”

If you were to tell me several years ago that the last episode to star Finn and Jake would revolve around them dying, I think I would’ve been upset. Not simply sad, but rather frustrated because “they all died” can feel like a cheap ending. But with “Together Again,” it all works. And a large reason that it works is because the show goes all in with their ideas. Finn and Jake don’t magically leap back into their old life (no, no, they very much do bite the dust). Instead, the special emphasizes the cyclical nature of life through the transmigration of souls. The episode ends with a beautiful scene of Finn and Jake, bound together as soul-brothers, being reborn into a new, mysterious (possibly Ooo 1000+?) world. It’s both aesthetically and emotionally pleasing; it doesn’t feel off the way over finales might. This is right. This is the way life works. “Round and round as nature goes,” and all that jazz.

I loved the series explanation of how death works. It seems that souls land in a specific Dead World, where they ‘marinate’ for a bit, presumably being rewarded or punished based on their life in our meat reality. After a time, they are then reborn. This process repeats, with each soul reaching higher and higher levels of enlightenment until they hit nirvana, which is the 50th Dead World. So in a sense, Adventure Time has a roughly Buddhist cosmology with a dash of Greco-Roman mythos thrown in for flavor. (As to what happens after a soul stays in the 50th Dead World for a long period is anyone’s guess, but I’d speculate that when all the souls in the multiverse have been purified and land in the 50th Dead World, they will all collapse into one another and form one perfect Monad. Perhaps this is the sphere of perfection that the beings who merged into Matthew thought they were connecting to? Who knows! It’s anyone’s guess!) I was a little disappointed that we didn’t get to see who Death, Prismo, Life, etc.’s boss was, but perhaps that’s a mystery better left up to the imagination!

One minor thing that I loved about this special was the number of characters who made cameos as well as all the callbacks that were made to previous episodes. Regarding the former: Finn and Jake’s canine family show up (including the oft-forgotten Jermaine!), as do Tree Trunks and her myriad husbands. Tiffany plays a major role in all these shenanigans as a “death cop” of all things. There is a delightful rogues gallery stuck in the 1st Dead World (including, among others, Maja, Sharon from “The Gut Grinder,” and Wyatt). In the 50th we find Ghost Princess and Clarence happily at peace next to Booshy, the weird spirit mentioned in the Pen Ward classic “High Strangeness.” As far as callbacks go, perhaps my favorite is the clap (from “James Baxter the Horse”) that Jake taught to Finn in case they ever do get separated in the afterlife. And of course, there are myriad references made to “Death in Bloom,” the episode that planted the seed for what this would grow into.

Going into the special suspecting that it would involve Death, I was curious how they were going to handle Miguel Ferrer’s character. (In case a reader is not aware, Ferrer played Death in episodes like “Death in Bloom” and “Betty,” but he sadly passed away a few years ago). The producers’ choice to feature him in a non-speaking cameo—despite playing a relatively significant role in the story—was wise; I’m not sure if I can articulate the exact reasons, but something about his role felt appropriate and not gross, as some post-mortem memorials can be. Speaking of which, the wonderful, lovely Polly Lou Livingston was featured for the last time in this episode as Tree Trunks, happily in heaven with her literal harem of husbands. It was funny, it really was, and I’m sure that Polly Lou would’ve gotten a kick out of seeing it on screen. (Also, this is a pro-Tree Trunks safe space. Any Tree Trunks haters will be chucked into the 1st Dead World with Wyatt.)

The biggest mystery in this whole thing, for me at least, is the question of Princess Bubblegum and Marceline. Several years ago, I wrote an essay about what could’ve happened to them in the Ooo 1000+ universe. I speculated that they peaced out and left Ooo behind. In this special, neither Bubblegum nor Marceline are to be found in the Candy Kingdom—Peppermint Butler seems to be the one in charge, given that he is now wearing Bubblegum’s crown. Likewise, the duo aren’t anywhere in the Dead Worlds either. Maybe the two of them skipped town and got a duplex in the Nightosphere? Who knows… I just want my favorite gals to be OK!

All things considered, “Together Again” was a marvel: An episode that managed to feel like a series finale even more than “Come Along with Me” already did without taking away from the series itself. An episode that managed to make the idea of dying funny. An episode that brought back the Lich in a way that wasn’t forced. An episode that made Mr. Fox the New New Death. An episode that gave us a beautiful ending to Finn and Jake’s story… as well as the beautiful beginning to a new one. I said it on Twitter, and I’ll say it again here: “Together Again” was the end of a sentence in a book with infinite pages. Truly, the fun will never end.

Mushroom War evidence: Everything takes place in the Dead Worlds, so not really. Perhaps a more eagle-eyed viewer can inform us...

Final Grade: That’s right, I’m gonna do it...

Post-script, I actually messaged Jesse Moynihan to ask about his writing credit. He told me that it was for an unused story idea that he had developed. I’m not certain, but I’ll bet it was a part of the cancelled TV movie they were trying to make during season 5, since that would’ve seen Finn and Orgalorg journey to the various Dead Worlds.

[bestruction]

How it’d be to watch animes with them

A/N: While i’m working on my Mikasa x reader royal au, this little idea came to my mind. I tried to put the links when i mentioned a specific scene and speak a little about the anime in case you don’t know it.  So here it’s: 

Warnings: Me exposing my otaku self, mentions of 18+ animes (Not hentais) 

Eren -  Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen (13+)

A / N: The main characters like each other, but none wants to confess because being the person who takes the first step would also represent being the defeated person. The anime develops in a series of plans that both elaborate to make the other confess their love.

Warnings: None

It was his idea to watch an anime together since the two of you liked it a lot. You saw no harm and agreed to go to sleep with your boyfriend on Friday night. So, you would have the dawn and the weekend to see everything.

“We could watch One piece! Everybody likes"

“In three days ?! We will not finish even if we do not take breaks ”

"Naruto then?"

“Haven't you seen it all five times or more?

"But it is a classic!"

"It is also too long!"

He would sulk when he saw you reject each of his suggestions for being too big animes. The truth was, he was trying to convince you to stay longer. After much searching in the catalog, you choose to watch a short comedy of 12 episodes.

Biggest mistake ever

Eren is already annoying by nature, and after watching Kaguya-sama's two seasons he would spend the day and night trying to get you to confess to him EVEN IF YOU'VE BEEN IN LOVE FOR TWO YEARS AND HE HAS BEEN THE FIRST TO DECLARE. HIT HIM, PLEASE.

"Do you think that using such a low trick will make me give in?"

“Eren, I just got out of the shower. What trick? Wear an outfit? ”

“Showing off your skin won't make you win”

If you wanted to play with him, great. You are going to spend the day in this little game until he gets tired and just hugs you or something because he can't spend a lot of time without touching you. But if you didn't want to, just you could use that touchy side of him against him too.

"Maybe I shouldn't show you anything else then"

"Yes, of course, do- Wait what?"

"You heard"

“NO, BABE! YOU WON! I CONFESS! I LOVE YOU"

Watching anime with him would be quite an experience. For being very verbal, Eren would be the type of person who doesn't shut up watching anything. Especially, something that makes him laugh. You would see him laughing out loud and throwing himself back on the couch or on you, whether you were with him or not. You may even complain, but it would be fun to see him react to everything as immediately and naturally as an unfiltered child.

He will sing ALL the openings for the rest of the days around the house until you are humming some without realizing it.

For some reason, can I imagine him doing Chika dance ?? Yes, please film this big bear dancing like a little girl.

Levi - Death parade 

A / N: Do you want to cry and hurt yourself? This is the right place. Death Parade is a story about what happens after death. The characters are sent to mysterious bars where they will be judged to decide the fate of the souls themselves. (18+)

Warnings: Suicide, depressive themes, mentions of rape and domestic violence

I don't see Levi watching many animes. In fact, I don't see him watching much anything at all. He would be the type of person who can't spend a lot of time in front of the television without feeling like he's wasting time. Which would result in a very selective and demanding taste.

He would always read the reviews about the film, and after watching it, he would make his own. Ever. No exceptions. Unlike Impossible-to-be-quiet-Eren, Levi would be silent to be able to capture and understand all the details. This is interesting because getting his attention is a difficult task. But once it's done, he is 100% focused on the story and immersed in the characters.

So, after reading about it, he would agree to watch Death Parade with you.

He would have low expectations at first, and if the anime failed to hold his very difficult attention in three episodes, he wouldn't even try with the rest.

So when in the first episode, all suspense and doubts left to the viewer entered Ackerman's head, he would finish the other 11 without realizing it.

As a rational person, he would love things that make him think and reflect on the proposed theme. In the case: Life and death.

For some reason, I imagine him as someone who would like to study and read philosophy as a hobby and that he would love Nietzsche? So, you could expect deep conversations after each episode.

But without any arrogance, humanity's strongest soldier might not be the most talkative man in humanity, but surely when he opened his mouth to it, it wouldn’t be to show himself off with something that he knows and you don’t. On the contrary, he would be more than happy to explain if you asked and added your opinion.

He wouldn't cry, but he would be touched by the way the emotions were shown and created in the characters.

He would probably see the scene where Decim cries more than once for being impressed with how the pain of a character who is supposedly not flesh and blood is expressed so well.

And after the anime is over, you would always see him listening to the music of the ice skating scene around the house while doing something.

When you were finished watching everything, you would talk again about the anime. You lying on his chest and he touching his hair, smelling him.

"Do you believe in reincarnation, Levi?"

“If so, I wouldn't go back to this shit a second time. No matter what they offered me ”

"Levi!"

"Unless it was to have you again"

“What a cliché” He would roll his eyes after hearing your response “But I like clichés”

Again, he wouldn't cry, but he would be thinking about how ephemeral things can be, including being alive. Then you can expect a more touchy Levi for a few days.

Jean - Banana Fish 

N / A: Another one to cry and get hurt. Banana Fish is way more than just a story about one character just is hard to define. So in case, you didn’t watch it, here’s the trailer. (18+)

warnings: pedophilia, rape, violence, drugs, your heart being destroyed

You know that guy who says that no yaoi is good, it's just a way to feed a bunch of fujoshi and stuff like that? Jean. It's him. I just know it. So when you suggested Banana Fish and said it was a BL / yaoi, he would probably laugh and ignore the idea.

But after insisting a little and showing him the many compliments that both the anime and the manga received, he would accept.

At first, he wouldn't pay much attention. He really thought it would be just another bad anime. But by the end of the first episode, he would be too involved in the story to stop.

I think he would love crime novels for the same reason that Levi: To think. Try to find out how things are going to end and pick up any clues that the author has left about the ending. So the plot would hold him so much because he would make a ton of theories about the end.

He will ship Ash and Eiji with all his soul. I mean, how can he not ship? To see an anime in which the physical touch between the couple doesn't really happen and still builds a well-developed and healthy relationship would be a new experience for him.

Jean is somewhat similar to Eren in this respect. So you can expect to see him huffing in anger, cursing one of the characters, throwing a pillow away, or using it to hide a tear or two that he would let go of you. The kind of person who gets emotionally involved with the things he watches.

He would cry an entire river after watching the last episode and deny it later.

“I was not crying. The cushion fabric made my eyes itch a lot ”

Show him again and he will cry the same amount and intensity

Armin - Haikyuu

A / N: Considering all the texts on Tumblr for haikyuu characters, I’m pretty sure you know what anime it’s lol (10+)

Armin is an otaku with a license card and no one can change my mind. He would probably start watching it as a child. So, his first animes would be everyone's classics: Naruto, Dragon Ball Z, Bleach, etc.

So it would be normal that as the vast majority, he would continue to have a preference for shounen when he grew up. So it would be your idea to see Haikyuu.

He would have low expectations because he thought it would be just another anime with cute characters for everyone to be thirsty as an inverted harem. And also because the synopsis does not create a strong impression, especially for those who consume shounen daily.

"So we are just gonna see a little boy trying to catch a ball?"

“It's gonna be good! Everyone is talking about it now ”

"Does he have some superpower?"

"No"

"Something scary?"

"Armin, just give a chance!"

He would like it. Did I say he would like it? Because he would love it. The atmosphere created and well developed with such a simple plot would hold his attention well. (Is it possible to dislike Hinata in the first episode?)

It would be a great anime for him to watch because 1. It is different from what he usually sees. Unlike shounen, Haikyuu deals only with real and tangible scenarios. Of course, still with that touch of anime, but it is very easy to recognize yourself in the characters and learn from them and therefore reflect on yourself as well.

It would be great to make him think about his own insecurities and how most of them were inside his head.

He would be so immersed in the anime universe that he would have to pause the game scenes because he would be too nervous waiting for the ball to fall.

You will probably see him taking a deep breath in each drawing scene of the characters and see him truly cheering for the team as if it were a real national game.

More than that, you will see his eyes full of tears when Yamaguchi hit the serve in the match against Aoba johsai.

In fact, Yamaguchi would be his favorite character. No discussions.

"I said it would be good"

"Shut up"

"Make me"

Mikasa - Heaven’s official blessing 

A / N: I'm going to leave the trailer here because I don't know how to define it very well. It's a novel, but the story doesn't focus ONLY on that. (14+)

Okay, you didn't suggest. She did not suggest. So how do you end up watching together? You catch her watching when you come home by surprise lol

Until then, you would know that she watched some anime, but nothing romantic. Never. In fact, that was her little secret.

Although common sense is that Mikasa would be cold even in a modern au (and I agree in parts). I think she would be the type of person who loves to see the sweetest and softest things to melt alone on the couch without anyone seeing. A moment for herself and a part of her that she would not show to anyone.

You would already know about her romantic side, but seeing her under the covers sighing while watching the Netflix special episode is a totally different story.

Please don’t mock her!!. She would be red enough by the time she was discovered.

When she was less shy, she would ask if you want to watch with her. She would say she saw no problem watching it with you again since doing it with you would be a different experience.

If you accept, you would spend the rest of the night in the room sharing a blanket and absorbing the soft atmosphere, the soundtrack, and the Chinese culture so present in history.

She would not speak a lot because she was paying attention, but she would hug you all the time. In the romantic scenes, she would tighten her arms around you a little and sometimes left a kiss on your shoulder.

I think she could relate to Hua Cheng's way of loving. He is always there to protect, care for and see his lover even if sometimes Xie Lian doesn't even know.

And that is what she wants to show you, that more than a girlfriend, she is also someone you can count on.

Days later, you will see her reading the rest of the work around the house because she couldn't stand to wait for a second season.

And later, SURELY melting and vibrating while watching Mo Dao Zu Shi.

[djemsostylist]

Son Yaz--The End

Son Yaz has ended, and I don't quite know how to feel. I joined the fandom late--I didn't watch until July, and then I was hooked. Son Yaz is one of those shows that sort of settles in you, and it makes you just feel happy. I took a minute to see where it was going, but once I realized what it was, I fell in love. It's the sort of story that draws you in. The characters are beautifully written and well conceived, the relationships are crafted to perfection, and the chemistry between every member of the cast was just electric. In short, it was one of the best shows I've seen, Turkish or otherwise. On the performances of Ali Atay and Alperen Duymaz alone I would recommend this show--@lolo-deli commented once that she wondered if the roles had been written with those two actors in mind, because they just fit so well.

Season 1 had beautiful pacing and an excellent storyline, and had it wrapped before Canan's murder, I would have been happy with what we were given. The characters all came to beautiful place, the ending was well written and satisfying, and the tone of the end felt in keeping with the rest of the show.

Season 2 promised to be more. The theme of Season 2 reminded me of an except from The Testing Tree by Stanley Kunitz.

In a murderous time the heart breaks and breaks and lives by breaking. It is necessary to go through dark and deeper dark and not to turn.

Season 2 was a test for all of them, but in particular, Season 2 was a test for Akgun and Yagmur: what does it mean to truly be your own person, to face darkness of your own and other's creation, and to emerge on the other side? Can we truly leave the dark and stay true to ourselves, and, perhaps most importantly, can we ever be more than our parents? Throughout season 1, both Akgun and Yagmur seek the approval of all the parental figures in their lives--their actions are almost entirely driven by either how they parents have, will, or might react to a given situation. At times, they are paralyzed by their parents--Yagmur is utterly terrified of becoming her mother, trapped by a man she both loves, despises, and cannot live without, bound to his shadow and reduced to nothing in his wake, forever cutting off pieces of herself to remain within his orbit, unable to break free. Akgun is terrified of disappointing both his fathers--all of his actions are bound up in what he believes is loyalty, love, and devotion to men who give him just enough love and affection to keep him, but not enough to make him feel whole. Akgun is bound in the circles of his fathers to whom he is, despite their real love for him, ultimately only a pawn, to be used and moved and traded as needed.

Selim is one of those parental figures I love--in many ways he reminds me of Leia Organa Solo, in that he is selfless to the point of selfishness--his desire to serve something greater leads to him destroying the lives of the people he claims to love, and ultimately, Selim will always chose himself. We see this clearly in the wake of Canan's death--the best thing Selim could have done for his family was to allow them, Akgun included, to be together to mourn the woman they all loved. Instead, fueled by a selfish need to punish himself and those he blames for Canan's death, he takes Akgun with him to kill a man in cold blood. Akgun would have already been dealing with enough in the wake of the death of his brother--we know how he feels about taking a life--but this is so much worse. He does it for love of the man he sees as a father (but who will never quite accept him as a son) and destroys himself, his future, and Yagmur in the process. Selim takes not only Akgun's soul and his future, but he also takes Yagmur's as well.

The act of killing Halil Sadi is breathtaking in it's utter selfishness, and in that fact that despite being the one to bring it about, Selim suffers no real consequences. His withdrawal from his family would have likely happened anyway--if not physically then emotionally, and he can go back whenever he wants. It is Yagmur who suffers, the loss of her father, her mother, the love of her life, the security and support she so desperately needs, and the future she seesfor herself. It is Altay who suffers, losing father, mother, brother in one fell swoop. It is Akgun who suffers, losing his soul, his family, and his future in one breath. Selim lost Canan, but he choses to lose the rest of them, and takes all of them from each other.

Season 2 promised to bring all this to a head. I am confident, had we the time to explore, we would have watched the slow evolution and growth of Akgun and Yagmur into people who can stand on their own, who realize their parents are people--fallible and imperfect, and realize that their own futures are not built by the ones who came before. We would have seen Selim, I think, slowly realize that perhaps the best he might have done for his children was to give them each other, and that sometimes, the best thing a parent can do is die, so that their child might live. I think we would have seen both Yagmur and Akgun see their parents, but particularly Selim, for who he is, and to finally grow beyond the shadow he has always cast. Selim is a character that, despite my love for him, I don't really think deserves a happy ending.

The writers for Son Yaz should be commended. It is clear they expected at least 20 episodes, and had planned a deeply intricate and interesting story that would slowly unfold over the course of the season. The little tidbits we saw of the new characters, the fantastic chemistry with our new main "trio", the beautiful tragedy of Akgun and Yagmur--everything promised a fresh, new exciting season that would have brought our characters to a place that made as much sense as the ending of season one. With all that being known, that fact that I was able to glean the general direction of the season from only 5 episodes, and that, with seemingly only two weeks notice, they were able to craft the powerful finale they did is truly commendable. They brought storylines to a close as best as they were able, crafted satisfying endings for all the people we have known and loved, and managed to keep the side characters just that--side characters. Watching the finale truly was watching a master class in acting, writing, directing--perhaps the only disappointing bit, which seems to be a dizi issue not a Son Yaz issue, was the editing.

I was, however, left feeling hollow in the last few scenes. I attributed it first to feeling disappointed we didn't get more AkMur moments in their happy ending--after all, prior foreshadowing indicated a Yagmur proposal, a wedding, and two daughters, and we saw, well, exactly none of that. This show is hardly all about AkMur though--arguably Selim/Akgun are just as much the main couple as AkMur ever was, and perhaps ending the show with them was more suitable.

I think my primary issue lies in that no one paid for anything. At all. Akgun and Yagmur were hurt, deeply, by Selim and his decisions. Now, I'm not saying Selim didn't love them both--he certainly did, I don't doubt that. That Selim has the capacity to love but also be deeply and inherently selfish is one of the things I love about the character--he is in no way a good person, but he still can do good things. Again, it's why he is so excellent at a character.

As I discussed above, perhaps the best thing Selim did was give Yagmur and Altay Akgun, and vice versa. He gave all three of children the family they deserved but never really had--Canan was unconditional love and support for them, but without her, they were all kind of adrift. Selim always loved them, but with conditions.

As I said, in my opinion, what Selim did by asking Akgun to help with Halil Sadi, was unforgiveable. He destroyed Akgun's soul and didn't blink, and he took away the only support either he or Yagmur had at a time when they needed it the most. Akgun was already going to have a hell of time forgiving himself for his brother (which is his other dad's fault), and now he has the added burden of Halil Sadi, Yagmur, and Selim. Yagmur was already in pain with Canan, and she loses Akgun as a result.

Selim is let go with the equivalent of a slap on the wrist, and no one else paid for anything either. Akgun's father ruined his life over and over again, and that was never addressed (I understand time constraints of course, and this one is perhaps the most forgivable, given how short the season was). Even Cihan, who we know tried to kill Soner multiple times, stalked Yagmur for years, and likely caused many, many more deaths (including Canan's, which is my own personal theory), gets away without even a bloody nose for daring to to talk to Yagmur.

I think that's why the end, with Akgun and Selim in the prison, doesn't sit well with me. I thought his goodbye to Altay and Yagmur in their house, where he finally admitted all his faults and all that he had done to hurt them, and his goodbye with Akgun in the car, where he finally took responsibility for what he had done and gave Akgun the trust he always deserved by asking him to watch over Yagmur for him, was beautiful and enough.

It gives his children a chance to forgive and have peace, but also allows for them not to have a close relationship like that with him anymore. The best thing Selim did was give them each other, and now he needs to let them be happy without them. They don't need to be pulled back into his shadow. I'm not saying they never speak to him but Selim is a powerful force in all their lives, and nothing about his story convinces me he will ever change. I needed them all to realize they can love him and not need him. The final scenes with Yagmur and Akgun, and particularly the last scene felt a little...overly saccharine to me? And unearned.

I think my ideal ending would have been the party scene, only this time we get Yagmur with a tiny bump and we see their rings--we know they are married and happy with a baby, maybe even get a little banter line or something so we know she asked him to marry her, then maybe we get another jump to a year later, and Selim is looking at a picture of them in the news in front of their restaurant, with a little girl (and maybe Yagmur is pregnant again) and we get to see that he is happy to see them happy. Selim's peace and happy ending is giving his family their future together, paying the tolls for his and Akgun's sins, and allowing them to be happy. If they wanted to leave it open, it could even end with Sare bringing him the folder, he says something about being content with where he is because his family is happy and safe, and then she gives the folder and he realizes they know who killed Canan--and now he has a choice to make.

In the end, I am as happy as I can be with the finale, given the circumstances. We said farewell to all the characters we loved, they all got their peace and a happy ending--I guess I just thought perhaps there was a little bit too much happiness?

[saturdaysky]

hello! i hope you don't mind a message, but i am just excited to see someone else who liked AMCE and would love to know if you have recs for books that are similar, because i've been thinking about it for like a month straight since i finished reading it and would love something else to occupy my brain the way that it did. no pressure to answer ofc, just happy to share good vibes over a book :)

I do not mind it at all! <3

I do have some books that scratched a similar itch as A Memory Called Empire! I looooved the thoughtful focus on culture and language and identity within an intricate setting, so these recs follow that pattern somewhat.

Under a cut because this got kind of long.

The Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie

Liked the exploration of culture, identity, and imperialism in AMCE? You will probably like these books, since they also grapple with those themes. Also present is the exploration of personhood, who has it, and who does not -- because our main character is a person who used to be a starship. Or well, sort of. Wikipedia has a decent blurb:

The novel follows Breq—who is both the sole survivor of a starship destroyed by treachery, and the vessel of that ship's artificial consciousness—as she seeks revenge against the ruler of her civilization.

These books are honestly some of my favorite books ever. They combine a really thoughtful and deliberate focus on all the stuff mentioned above, fascinating plots and world-building, and characters who absolutely made me Feel Things. Highly recommended if you like, say, emotionally closed-off and damaged characters learning to care and be cared for while also skillfully navigating an intricate web of power to pursue their goals and reckon with the harm they've caused. But with bonus smart thoughts about robots.

The Foreigner series by C.J. Cherryh

I haven't fully made my way through this series, but it's rewarding every time I sit down to read another book. The books follow Bren Cameron, diplomat to an alien court, as he negotiates the intricate web of politics and intrigue involved in making sure the crash-landed colony ship he represents doesn't get obliterated or obliterate anyone else, despite humans making some monumental fuck-ups in the recent past.

And when you live and work and eat among one people, how much do you really belong to the people you came from? Of course, neither side really trusts someone who straddles both worlds, and to cap it off, the atevi people he lives among are different from humans in a fundamental way: they have no word for friend or love because those are alien concepts to the atevi. They do not feel such things. Instead, they live by an intricate web of obligation and favors. Trust is something a little more practical and a lot more deadly, for the atevi.

But these are not heartless novels -- part of the joy is watching the main characters grow meaningful relationships, even though the form is fraught and strange and never quite means the same thing to the people on either side.

If you like slow and thorough explanations of culture where meeting with your friend's grandmother is a potentially perilous activity (because the tea might be poisoned, because she might take you on a hunting trip you won't come back from, because she's a formidable political power and might be trying to assassinate your friend, because your friend might know all of this and have sent you anyway, also your friend is the king) these are books you might like.

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

If you like deep dives of culture, language, identity, and loyalty within the deadly intrigue of a fantasy court, I hiiiiighly recommend this book. The book follows Maia, the youngest and least-favored heir to the throne who gets unexpectedly crowned when everyone else in line dies and must quickly learn to survive the cutthroat politics. But Maia isn't cutthroat by nature; he is kind and must negotiate how to keep that kindness in the face of pressures that would be easy to solve with cruelty, as well as people keen to take advantage of what they think of as a weakness.

This book'll hit you with a lot of fantasy language at first (it's a focus of the book), but if you stick with it you'll be fine. You're learning all this intricate court language at the same time as our protag; he too is a little out of his depth at the start.

Steerswoman series by Rosemary Kirstein

I dearly want to go back and read these -- it's been a few years, but they absolutely sucked me in. The books follow Rowan, a steerswoman, as she tracks down the mystery of a strange and incongruous gemstone. In-universe steerswomen are basically traveling scientists and naturalists who have taken an oath of truth.

The books start out in what seems like your fairly typical Standard Fantasy Setting with wizards and dragons, but as Rowan learns more about the strange gem, it's clear that this Standard Fantasy Setting is...not as it seems. There are three things that I loved about these books: the sense of wonder and discovery as our fantasy scientist protag reasons through problems and begins to discover she lives in a sci fi world, the interesting relationship between the main characters, and the excitement you as a reader have when YOU realize exactly what mysterious object Rowan is describing and what the implications of that are for the setting.

The Broken Earth trilogy by N.K. Jemisin

Riveting series -- brutal and beautiful. Straddles the line in some respects between sci fi and fantasy. Follows characters who live on a far, far-future Earth plagued by catastrophic climate events called "Seasons" that last generations. There are some people born who have power drawn from the earth; these people are alternately hated and ruthlessly trained to hone their powers to attempt to prevent another Season. (This sort of sounds like the setup to a YA coming-of-age novel, but it is really really not.)

The world and fantastical aspects are fascinating (cyclical post apocalyptic societies! geology magic!), and the books themselves explore family bonds, racism in both a personal and systemic sense, and broken systems and the wounds they leave upon the people within them even as those people wound others. The series is not a light read, but it is a good one.

Literally anything by Ursula K. Leguin

All of her work could be recommended if you liked AMCE. Her writing spans fantasy and science fiction, and includes thoughtful and moving explorations of some similar ideas: culture and cultural exchange, gender, different societal setups, you name it.

If you're looking for a good novel, The Left Hand of Darkness is a classic for a reason. If you'd like a sample platter of interesting short stories, The Birthday of the World and Other Stories is wonderful.

[nini-ricky]

obviously a lot had went down in this week’s episode and most things was a lot of tension relationshipwise across almost all characters (except gina and ej bless their hearts for saving me this ep and last ep really) but i kinda wanna dive into the rini breakup for obvious reasons. 

i would just like to start by saying that tree house scene absolutely destroyed me. you could see the amount of love they had for each other, even though it may be an incredibly heartbreaking scene. including when ricky had broke down at big red’s house. it was all just emotionally heart-wrenching. 

no matter how much i love ricky and nini together, i completely think they did the right thing. for the longest time, like even back in season 1, i’ve been saying nini needed to grow and figure out who she is as a person. she even said so herself in the treehouse that it’s always been ricky and nini. i love them so much, but both of them need to kind of figure out who they are without each other before they can even be together. it was clear that ricky and nini love each other so much that they had to let each other grow because they both knew it was what’s best for them no matter how heartbreaking that may be. 

now putting the actual storyline aside, i want to talk about the writing that led up to the point. i wanted to give tim the benefit of the doubt and trust that he knows what he’s doing, not just with rini but the entire show this season. it hasn’t been great i think we can all admit that. but with rini in particular, i think it’s poor writing in the sense that you begin to question what was the whole point of season 1? ricky fought for her and fought for their relationship. and at the end of season 1 everything was great and perfect. now i feel like we’ve regressed, kind of making the entirety of season 1 kind of redundant. 

i think tim was trying to create drama and angst for them, but he had approached it in the wrong way i think. i’ve always said that with writing you don’t constantly need issues to make things interesting especially when it comes to an already established couple. 

i am a hardcore believer in figuring out who you are before falling into a relationship. i’ve seen this with many of my friends, considering i am now a freshly out of college it’s interesting to see how people that went into university with a high school relationship haven’t really grown all that much. it’s almost like they are stunted and there’s no more room in the pot for them to grow. but that’s not saying that all high school relationships are doomed, it’s just that with a relationship you have to learn to grow with that person. you need to help and talk to each other in order for your relationship to bloom. that being said, i think there could have been a chance that ricky and nini could’ve stayed together to grow and find themselves, especially considering the long history they share. they just lacked individuality, in the sense that neither of them really knew who they are without the are. and it’s going to be interesting to see how ricky and nini grow from this and whether they drift back together or stay broken up. 

to be completely honest, all i can really hope for is that even they stay broken up they don’t lose the friendship they once had. it’d be an absolute shame to lose the person that’s gone through so many of your hardships with you. and i know that it happens, but i couldn’t imagine losing that person for me. i have once before and let’s say it’s an incredibly long journey to get over that.

i would say i’m putting my trust in tim, but he’s continually proving us all wrong. so, i guess all we can do is cross our fingers and hope for the best in the last few episodes we have. 

[chainofclovers]

Ted Lasso 2x1 thoughts

Running out of time to capture my thoughts on 2x1 specifically before 2x2 airs, so here's a mess of things I thought about in response to the season 2 premiere. (Heavily informed by conversations w/my wife and some friends and family both within and without the fandom, discord conversations, things I've read on tumblr, reviews in the press, and, yes, my own little brain when it's alone.)

I really liked it (actually, I loved it)

Because a lot of people--myself included--binged s1 in a single go, I think a lot of people came away from that (beautiful almost perfect) season of TV with a sense that it was just this continuous five-hour explosion of feelings-y goodness with a very clear thesis statement: Make The Audience Happy. But obviously there's a lot of complicated stuff being set up within those five hours of TV, with intentional dividing lines and transitions between the episodes. I know some people watched 2x1 and felt frustrated because it didn't "feel like Ted Lasso" but I didn't feel that way. What I did feel, by contrasting 2x1 with all of s1, is that the atmosphere in s1 wasn't so much an audience-centric feel-good make-em-laugh kind of thing so much as a reflection of the gradual feeling of settling into home as Ted finds his place in Richmond and at AFC Richmond and in letting go of things (marriage) for the first time, and Rebecca, who's majority owner of the damn club but doesn't have a place within it, goes on a parallel community-locating journey. So the intensely warm, comfortable, feelings-y viewing experience is really just a reflection of what it was feeling like for pretty much every character with the exception of Rupert and Bex to carve out a more comfortable, honest, warm place for themselves.

But the challenges of relegation, the specters of the past, the longing any character (any human) has for more, and the mental health issues that come along for the ride meant that 2x1 needed to feel uncomfortable. They create that atmosphere by riddling 2x1 with so many jokes and references that it feels chaotic, overstuffed. The football season isn't going horribly, but it's WEIRD, and everyone is uncomfortable, and Ted doesn't know how to deal with the discomfort within himself so he's relying on the things he knows: references, anecdotes, strung-together wisdom. He clearly plans the Hank-the-dog speech in advance of the press conference, and the tongue-in-cheek "wow, this is so profound" expressions on the journalists' faces are hilarious to me because it's like we're watching them react to a man who's about to lose it and is in the final moments of being able to control the narrative about his team before someone from the outside will have to come in.

I'm obsessed with a tag @ratherembarrassing put on a TL reblog: "This is a show of soliloquies." I loved Ted's manufactured yet thematically necessary speech. I loved that Rebecca basically blacks out at a coffeeshop and tells John all about the messages (harmful or at least profoundly still-in-progress) she's been processing about intimacy and safety. [Side note: it's so perfect that she's still afraid to feel safe. It's like, "If I feel safe, what am I missing about the situation that's going to come back to hurt me?" OOOOF.] I feel like these moments where characters kind of speechify and the audience matters but the audience also does not matter just reflect the overall atmospheric stuff the show does. Like, it's more important to make us feel how it feels than to construct a moment of hyper-realistic dialogue. I get why it can be jarring but I'm into it.

The dog. Welp. A dog died right away. The special effects looked weird. I love dogs, I'm not a monster, but I was also just...not emotionally torn up about Earl at all. It's a catalyst. It's a very quick way to kind of bloop the entire world of Ted Lasso into a skewed and uncomfortable place where these characters absolutely need to reside until they can figure out how to attend to their own mental health and healing with the same focus and compassion they apply to their friendships with other people.

I'm obsessed with how much everything is going to HURT. Like, Ted walked in and Rebecca said she wished he was Keeley and then she didn't start eating the biscuits right away?!?

The biscuits are such an emotional crutch in s1 and SO MUCH of Rebecca's headspace is taken up with destroying something Ted is starting to love, destroying Ted, but also being there for him and feeling seen by him in a truly unique way, so I kind of love the psychic shift here, where all this emotional stuff has happened between them but to move forward they're going to have to learn some new conversational skills. Like girl talk.

The nail polish. I love everyone. I love the nail polish. I love that Ted was late to practice because of it. I love how much he wants other people to need him because it's so clear that he got his feelings hurt like 30 times in 2x1 and doesn't even fully realize it.

I love Dr. Sharon Fieldstone. I love that everyone but Ted very clearly understands the value of having a sports psychologist around. I love that her introduction is not about having to sell the players on the fact that they should talk to someone, but rather about Ted's discomfort over his own leadership abilities and the conflict this could create. It's so good. I'm so excited about it.

Beard and Ted in the pub! All people are different people! Ahhhhhh! Thank God For Beard (TGFB). TGFB is probably going to be my personal motto while watching this season of adorable and emotionally wrenching and ambitious television.

OK, I feel better now that I have this chaotic list out of my brain and onto tumblr. Should that make me feel better? I do not know. I do know that I'll probably try to do this for every episode because watching it week by week is going to drive me insane and I would really like to have some kind of record of the distinct-to-episodes yet cumulative viewing experience before I'm able to take in the full season (and the full series so far) as a whole.

[army-of-mai-lovers]

Jet and Yue’s Deaths: Were They Necessary?

Two of the most common ideas I see for aus in this fandom are the Jet lives au, and the Yue lives au. I’ve written both of these myself, and I’ve seen many others write them. And while yes, fanfiction can be a great way to explore ideas that didn’t necessarily have to be explored in canon (I’m mad at bryke for a lot of things, but not including a Toph and Bumi I friendship is not one of them, even though I wrote a fic about it), it seems to me that people are mad that Yue and Jet are dead, to varying degrees. There’s a lot to talk about regarding their deaths from a sociopolitical perspective (the fact that two of the darker-skinned characters in the show are the ones that died, and all the light-skinned characters lived, is ah... an interesting choice), but I don’t want to look at it that way, at least for right now. I want to look at it as a writer, and discuss whether these deaths were a) necessary for the plot and themes of ATLA in any way whatsoever and b) whether it was necessary for them to unfold in the way that they did, or if they would have been more impactful had they occurred in a different way. 

(meta under the cut, this got really, really, really long)

Death in Children’s Media

When I first started thinking about this meta, I had this idea to compare Jet and Yue’s deaths to deaths in an animated children’s show that I found satisfying. And in theory, that was a great idea. Problem is: there aren’t very many permanent deaths in children’s animation, and the ones that do exist aren’t especially well-written. This may be an odd thing to say in what is ostensibly a piece of atla crit, but Yue’s death is probably the best written death in a piece of children’s animation that I can think of. That’s not a compliment. Rather, it’s a condemnation of the way other pieces of children’s animation featuring permanent character death have handled their storylines. 

I’ve talked about this before, but my favorite show growing up was Young Justice, and my favorite character on that show was far and away Mr. Wally West. So when he died at the end of season 2, it broke me emotionally. Shortly thereafter, Cartoon Network canceled the show, and I started getting on fan forums to mourn. Everybody on these fan forums was convinced that had Cartoon Network not canceled the show, Wally would have been brought back. And that is a narrative that I internalized for years. Eventually, the show was brought back via DC’s new streaming service, and I tuned in, waiting for Wally to also be brought back, only to discover that that wasn’t in the cards. Wally was dead. Permanently. 

So now that I know that, I can talk about why killing him off was fucking stupid. Wally’s death occurs at the end of season 2, after the main s2 conflict, the Reach, has been defeated, save for these pods that they set up all over the world to destroy Earth. Our heroes split up in teams of two to destroy the pods, and they destroy all of them, except for a secret one in Antartica. It can only be neutralized by speedsters, so Wally, Bart, and Barry team up to destroy it. It’s established in canon that Wally is slower than Bart and Barry, and it’s been played for laughs earlier in the season, but for reasons unexplained, the pod is better able to target Wally because he’s slower than Bart and Barry, and it kills him. After the emotional arc of the season has wrapped up, a literal main character dies. There’s some indication at the end of that season that his death is going to cause Artemis to spiral and become a villain, but when season 3 picks up, she’s doing the right thing, with seemingly no qualms about her position in life as a hero. In the comics, something like this happens to Wally, but then he goes into the Speed Force and becomes faster and stronger even than Barry, in which case, yes, this would have advanced the plot, but that’s probably not in the cards either. 

In summary, Wally’s death doesn’t work as a story beat, not because it made me mad, but because it doesn’t advance the plot, nor does it develop character. Only including things that advance plot or develop character is one of the golden rules of writing. Like most golden rules of writing, however, it’s not absolute. There is a lot of fun to be had in jokey little one off adventures (in atla, Sokka’s haiku competition) or in fun worldbuilding threads that add depth to your setting but don’t really come up (in atla, the existence of Whaletail Island, which is described in really juicy ways, even though the characters never go there.) But in general, when it comes to things like character death, events should happen to develop the plot or advance character. Avatar, for all of its flaws, is really well structured, and a lot of its story beats advance plot and develop character at the same time. However, the show also bears the burden of being a show directed at children, and thus needing to be appropriate for children. And as we know, Nickelodeon and bryke butted heads over this: the death scene that we see for Jet is a compromise, one that implicitly confirms his death without explicitly showing it. So bryke tasked themselves with creating a show about imperialism and war that would do those themes justice while also being appropriate for American children and palatable to their parents. 

The Themes of Avatar vs. Its Audience

So, Avatar is a show about a lone survivor of genocide stopping an imperialist patriarchal society from decimating the rest of the world. It’s also a show about found family and staying true to yourself and doing your best to improve the world. These don’t necessarily conflict with each other, and it is possible for children to understand and enjoy shows about complex themes. And in a lot of cases, bryke doesn’t hold back in showing what the costs of war against an imperialist nation are: losing loved ones, losing yourself, prison, etc. But when it comes to death, the show is incredibly hesitant. None of the main characters that we’ve spent a lot of time getting to know die (not even Iroh, even though he was old and it would have made sense and his VA died before the show was over--but that’s a topic for another day.) This makes sense. I can totally imagine a seven year-old watching Avatar as it was coming out and feeling really sad or scared if a major character died. I was six years older than that when Wally died, and it’s still sad and terrifying to me to this day. However, in a show about war, it would be unrealistic to have no one die. Bryke’s stated reason for killing off Jet is to show the costs of war. I’ve seen a lot of posts about Jet’s death that reiterate some version of this same point--that the great tragedy of his character is that he spent his life fighting the Fire Nation, only to die at the hands of his own country. Similarly, I’ve seen people argue in favor of Yue’s death by saying that it was a great tragedy, but it showed the sacrifices that must be made in a war effort. 

Yue

When we first meet Yue, she is a somewhat reserved, kind individual held back by the rigid social structures of the NWT*. She and Sokka have an immediate attraction to one another, but Yue reveals that she is engaged to Hahn. The Fire Nation invasion happens, Zhao kills Tui, and Yue gives up her life to save her people and the world, and to restore balance. Since we didn’t have a lot of time to get to know Yue, this is framed less as Yue’s sacrifice and more as Sokka’s loss. Sokka is the one who cares for Yue, Sokka is the only one of the gaang who really interacts a lot with Yue on screen, and Sokka is the one we’ve spent a whole season getting to know. While I wouldn’t go so far as to call Yue a prop character (i.e. a character who could be replaced by an object with little change to the narrative), she is certainly underdeveloped. She exists to be unambiguously likable and good, so we can root for her and Sokka, and feel Sokka’s pain when she dies. In my opinion, this is probably also why a lot of fic that features Yue depicts her as a Mary Sue--because as she is depicted in the show, she kind of is. We don’t get to see her hidden depths because she is written to die. 

In light of what we’ve established earlier in this meta, this makes sense. Killing off a fully-realized character whom the audience has really gotten to know and care about on their own terms, rather than through the eyes of another character, could be really sad and scary for the kids watching, but not killing anyone off would be an unrealistic depiction of war and imperialism. On the face of it, killing off an underdeveloped, unambiguously likable and good character, whom one of our MCs has a deep but short connection with, is the perfect compromise. 

But let’s go back to the golden rule for a second. Does Yue’s death a) advance the plot, and/or b) develop character? The answer to the first is yes: Yue’s death prompts Aang to use the Avatar State to fight off the Fire navy, which has implications for his ability to control the Avatar State that form one of the major arcs of book 2. The answer to the second? A little more ambiguous. You would think that Yue’s death would have some lasting impact on Sokka that is explored as part of his character arc in book 2, that he may be more afraid to trust, more scared of losing the people he loves, but outside of a few episodes (really, just one I can think of, “The Swamp”) it doesn’t seem to affect him that much. He even asks about Suki in a way that is clearly romantically motivated in “Avatar Day.” I don’t know about you, but if someone I loved sacrificed herself to become the moon, I don’t think I would be seeking out another romantic entanglement a few weeks after her death. Of course, everybody processes grief differently, and one could argue that Sokka has already lost important people in his life, and thus would be accustomed to moving on from that loss and not letting himself dwell on it. But to that, I’d say that moving on by throwing himself into protecting others has already shown itself to be an unhealthy coping mechanism. Remember, Sokka’s misogyny at the beginning of b1 is in part motivated by the fact that his mother died at the hands of the Fire Nation and his father left shortly thereafter to fight the Fire Nation, and he responds to those things by throwing himself into the role of being the “man” of the village and protecting the people he loves who are still with him. Like with Yue, he doesn’t allow himself to dwell on his mother’s death. This could have been the beginning of a really interesting b2 arc for Sokka, in which he throws himself into being the Avatar’s companion to get away from the grief of losing Yue, but this time, through the events of the show, he’s forced to acknowledge that this is an unhealthy coping mechanism. And maybe this is what bryke was going for with “The Swamp”, but this confines his whole process of grief to one episode, where it could have been a season-long arc that really emphasized the effect Yue’s had on his life. 

In the case of Yue, I do lean toward saying that her death was necessary for the story that they wanted to tell (although, I will never turn down a good old-fashioned Yue lives au that really gets into her dynamism as a character, those are awesome.) However, the way they wrote Sokka following Yue’s death reduced her significance. The fact that Yue seemed to have so little impact on Sokka is precisely what makes her death feel unnecessary, even if it isn’t. 

Jet

Okay. Here we go. 

If you know my blog, you know I love Jet. You know I love Jet lives aus. Perhaps you know that I’m in the process of writing a multichapter Jet fic in which he lives after Lake Laogai. So it’s reasonable to assume that, in a discussion of whether or not Jet’s death was necessary, I’m gonna be mega-biased. And yeah, that’s probably true. But up until recently, I wasn’t really all that mad about Jet dying, at least conceptually. As I said earlier, bryke says that in the case of Jet’s death, they wanted to kill a character off that people knew and would care about, so that they could further show the tragedies of war and imperialism. Okay. That is not, in and of itself, a bad idea. 

My issue lies with the execution of said idea. First of all, the framing of Jet’s original episode is so bad. Jet is part of a long line of cartoon villains who resist imperialism and other forms of oppression through violence and are punished for it. This is actually a really common sort of villain for atla/lok, as we see this play out again with Hama, Amon, and the Red Lotus. To paraphrase hbomberguy’s description of this type of villain, basically liberal white creators are saying, “yeah, oppression is bad, but have you tried writing to your Congressman about it?” With Jet, since we have so little information about the village he’s trying to flood, there are a number of different angles that would explain his actions and give them more nuance. My preferred hc is that the citizens of Gaipan are a mix of Earth civilians, Fire citizens, and FN soldiers, and that the Earth citizens refused to feed or house Jet and the other Freedom Fighters because they were orphans and, as we see in the Kyoshi Novels, Earth families stick to their own. Thus, when Jet decides to flood Gaipan, he’s focused on ridding the valley of Fire Nation, but he doesn’t really care about what happens to the Earth citizens of Gaipan because they actively wronged him when he was a kid. That’s just one interpretation, and there have been others: Gaipan was fully Fire Nation, Gaipan was both Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation but Jet decided that the benefits of flooding the valley and getting rid of the Fire Nation outweighed the costs of losing the EK families, etc, etc. There are ways to rewrite that scenario so that Jet is not framed as an unambiguously bloodthirsty monster. In the context of Jet’s death, this initial framing reduces the possible impact that his death could have. Where Yue was unambiguously good, Jet is at the very least morally gray when we see him again in the ferry. And where we are connected to Yue through Sokka, the gaang’s active hatred of Jet hinders our ability to connect with him. This isn’t impossible to overcome--the gaang hates Zuko, and yet to an extent the audience roots for him--but Jet’s lack of screentime and nuanced framing (both of which Zuko gets in all three seasons) makes overcoming his initially flawed framing really difficult. 

So how much can it really be said, that by the time we get to Jet’s death, he’s a character that we know and care about? So much about him is still unknown (what happened to the Freedom Fighters? what prompted Jet’s offscreen redemption? who knows, fam, who knows.) Moreover, most of what we see of him in Ba Sing Se is him actively opposing Zuko and Iroh. These are both characters that at the very least the show wants us to care about. At this point, we know almost everything there is to know about them, we’ve been following them and to an extent rooting for them for two seasons, and who have had nuanced and often sympathetic framing a number of times. So much of the argument I’ve seen regarding Jet centers around the fact that he was right to expose Zuko and Iroh as Firebenders, but the reason we have to have that argument in the first place is because it’s not framed in Jet’s favor. In terms of who the audience cares about more, who the audience has more of an emotional attachment towards, Zuko and Iroh win every time. Whether Jet’s actually in the right or not is irrelevant, because emotionally speaking, we’re primed to root for Zuko and Iroh. In terms of who the framing is biased towards, Jet may as well be Zhao. So when he’s taken by the Dai Li and brainwashed, the audience isn’t necessarily going to see this as a bad thing, because it means Zuko and Iroh are safe.

The only real bit of sympathetic framing Jet gets are those initial moments on the ferry, and the moments after he and the gaang meet again. So about five, ten minutes of the show, total. And then, he sacrifices himself for the gaang. And just like Yue, his death has little to no impact on the characters in the episodes following. Katara is shown crying for four frames immediately following his death, and they bring him up once in “The Southern Raiders” to call him a monster, and once in “The Ember Island Players”, a joke episode in which his death is a joke. 

So, let’s ask again. Does this a) advance the plot, and/or b) develop character? The answer to both is no. It shows that the Dai Li is super evil and cruel, which we already knew and which basically becomes irrelevant in book 3, and that is really the only plot-significant thing I can think of. As far as character, well, it could have been a really interesting moment in Katara’s development in forgiving someone who hurt her in the past, which could have foreshadowed her forgiving Zuko in b3, but considering she calls Jet a monster in TSR, that doesn’t track. There could have been something with Sokka realizing that his snap judgment of Jet in b1 was wrong, but considering that he brings up Jet to criticize Katara in TSR, that also does not track. And honestly, neither of these possible character arcs require Jet to die. What requires Jet to die is the ~themes~. 

Let’s look at this theme again, shall we? The cost of war. We already covered it with Yue, but it’s clearly something that bryke wants to return to and shed new light on. The obvious angle they’re going for is that sometimes, you don’t know who your real enemy is. Jet thought that his enemy was the Fire Nation, but in the end, he was taken down by his own countryman. Wow. So deep. Except, while it’s clear that Jet was always fighting against the Fire Nation, I never got the sense that Jet was fighting for the Earth Kingdom. After all, isn’t the whole bad thing about him in the beginning is that he wants to kill civilians, some of whom we assume to be Earth Kingdom? Why would it matter then that he got killed by an EK leader, when he didn’t seem to ever be too hot on those dudes? But okay, maybe the angle is not that he was killed by someone from the Earth Kingdom, but that he wasn’t killed by someone from the Fire Nation. Okay, but we’ve already seen him be diametrically opposed to the only living Air Nomad and people from the Water Tribes. Jet fighting with and losing to people who aren’t Fire Nation is not a new and exciting development for him. Jet has been enemies with non-FN characters for most of the show’s run at this point. There is no thematic level on which the execution of this holds any water. 

The reason I got to thinking about this, really analyzing what Jet’s death means (and doesn’t mean) for the show, was this conversation I was having with @the-hot-zone in discord dms. We were talking about book 2 and ways it could have been better, and Zone said that they thought that Jet would have been a stronger character to parallel with Zuko’s redemption than Iroh and that seeing more of the narrative from Jet’s perspective could have strengthened the show’s themes. And when it came to the question of Jet’s death, they said, “And if we are going with Jet dying, then I want it to hurt. I want it to hurt just as much as if a main character like Sokka had died. I want the viewer to see Jet's struggles, his triumphs, the facets of Jet that make him compelling and important to the show.” And all of that just hit me. Because we don’t get that, do we? Jet’s death barely leaves a mark. Jet himself barely leaves a mark. His death isn’t plot-significant, doesn’t inspire character growth in any of our MCs, and doesn’t even accomplish the thematic relevance that it claims to. So what was the point? 

Conclusion

Much as I dislike it, Yue’s death actually added something to atla. It could have added much, much more, in the hands of writers who gave more of a shit about their Brown female characters and were less intent on seeing them suffer and knocking them down a peg, but, in my opinion, it did work for what it was trying to do. Jet? Jet? Nah, fam. Jet never got the chance to really develop into a likable character because he was always put at odds with characters we already liked, and the framing skewed their way, not his. The dude never really had a chance.        

*multiple people have spoken about how the NWT as depicted in atla is not reminiscent of real life Inuit and Yupik people and culture. I am not the person to go into detail about this, but I encourage you to check out Native-run blogs for more info!