#but like actually. huntress breaking in at the beginning has been driving me crazy because it made me realize this is such a trope? and like

[andi-o-geyser]

it is midnight and i am desperately trying to find out if smoke really does help to reveal lasers for a super secret spy break in

[toysoldiers-rwby]

Hmm.. could you maybe write something where Winter doesn’t meet the HH in academy so when she does first meet them, maybe seeing them on TV about the election and she immediately goes, “Oh no they’re all hot!!”

RWBY V8 Countdown: 9 Days left!

Started before class, finished during it. hope it isn’t too messy Characters: Winter, May, Joanna Rating: General Audiences Word Count: around 1k tags: Humor

“Hey Schnee, you know that Marigold girl right?”

Being reminded about her father’s ties after finding out Weiss was gone, was not something Winter wanted to hear. She takes a deep breath and folds her hands behind her back.

Marrow’s eyes grow a little wide. His tail shrings between his legs and he fidgets around.

"Has this Marigold commited any crimes sever enough to concern us Specialist?"

“W-well… It could be a sever problem,” Marrow mumbled. Very unspecialist like. Winter scowls, glaring hard at him. He takes a deep breath and finally straightens out. Clover is being far to gentle with the boy. “May Marigold is leading Hill’s campaign for the Council Seat and their methods are-”

“Politics?” Winter scowls. The name doesn’t ring any bells. She was just a Marigold after all. “You’re bothering me about politics?”

“They’re methods are dangerous!”

“Then deal with it.” Winter said. She turns on her heels and marches back down to her office.

She has more important things to deal with.

They’ll need to send people to check the long range scanners. Need more ammunition for the turrets thinning the horde. More robots for the damn hole in the wall. At this point if they threw all the robot corpses and covered it with cement it would work. It would be better than nothing.

Another thing Winter disagrees with.

Winter sighs, collapsing into her chair. Her monitors catch the motion and flicker back to life. She finds Weiss’s pictures all over the monitor. Articles upon articles of the missing Heiress. Weiss’s fame shadowing over Klein’s dissapperane…

Her father wouldn’t be foolish enough to do anything that drastic. But she’s been gone for years. Maybe things got worse-

Winter cuts that thought.

She tought Weiss to defend herself. She was an acomplished fighter, at the very least. If Weiss did manage to run, she couldn’t have left the Kingdom. She would be in Mantle… if she was smart.

But her team RWBY has been having questionable effects on her little sister.

Winter straightens her back and checks her schedule. With no important meetings getting int he way, she beginnings her research, looking for any evidence for a small white haired girl roaming Mantle. One that can fight and defend herself.

What’s she get is an adorable Faunus- a regular Faunus girl. Short fluffy curls and cute sheep ears- and sheep ears. Winter sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. Did she grab coffee before sitting down? When was the last time she ate?

Winter adjusts the filters… or was about to when blue hair and yellow eyes caught her attention.

You know that Marigold girl? She’s helping Hill run for Counsil…

Marrow’s words filter through her mind. Hill… That name was familiar. Another Atlas graduate? Definately not military. Meaning it was a Mantle Rat was running for election. Against her father.

If Winter wasn’t part of the military she would have definately enjoyed helping someone upstage that bastard. She researches that May Marigold next.

The only Marigold she can recall was a boy with trying to offer her flowers. Winter blushes at the memory, some sympathy sparking in her chest. It was only after that incident did Klein take a more active roll in her life.

He tried his hardest to teach her to be gentle, to be kind… There was only so much a bulter could. Yet he did more than enough. More than needed and always kept sneaking off treats and sweets to Winter and her siblings.

And he’s gone.

No where to been in Atlas. She makes Mantle her priority and calls for a transport.

During the ride she continues her research on this Marigold on her Scroll. Hill was easy to find. A top student’s santity is questionable for leaving Atlas. Winter can summerrizes all the lessons she’d taught her little sister. A smart person picks their battles. Stupid ones start losing fights.

Hopefully team RWBY wasn’t that bad of an influence on Weiss.

The third lesson was to never let your guard down.

Winter barely catches the Grimm lunging at her transport. She slices open the door first and jumps out. But another Manticore has her in it’s claws. It’s weak. More of an annoyance. Winter stabs her saber deep into its eye and summons-

The ground comes at her fast. Buildings already flying past her. Her Glyphs barely have time to form-

“Ow!” A blur of green and browns darts across the roof. The body tumbling and sprawling on her is far to soft to be Penny’s. It was definately still hard and- a women’s. Winter pulls her hands from her chest and gets to her feet. “Sorry, that was a lot smoother in my head.”

“You’re lucky I wasn’t a civilian,” Winter huffs.

The handsome women scowls and probs herself up, "Normal people say ‘Thanks you’ but… your an Atlesian…" The words drip off with some hint of remorse.

Winter scowls but there was something… familiar about the women. The photos mostly focused on Hill but there was always a green themed women at her side. So Winter bites her tongue, literally, and offers a hand.

The women grins and takes it- Winter could feel the power in her. The Aura, thrumming hot was almost startling. “Dont’ worry, we taught May some manners we can teach you some too. Like looking people in the eyes.” She says.

Winter stiffens and quickly moves off those chest and arms. She’s surprised that she needs to look up and the change of angle makes her breath catch. It wasn’t the winking and grin. “How about we start with names, princess?”

“Specialist Winter Schnee.”

“Joanna Greenleaf. If we don’t hurry up Penny will-” The women flies above head, giving the pair a wave before lasering down the Grimm in the streets. Within seconds the alarm stops and she’s meeting the huntresses at on the Street. “Thought we talked about this Penn? Leave some for me. All this campaigning is driving me crazy…” Joanna playfully grumbles.

So the women was part of Hill’s entourage.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Ms. Greenleaf!” Penny giggles behind a hand. “I think Fiona tought me another reponse for you. I believe the term was ‘Get good?’”

Joanna throws her head back and laughs. It hits a cord in Winter’s chest and rings in her ears. Winter pulls her eyes off the coat that threatens to rip apart at her muscles.

“Jeez Jo! Keep it down or you’ll bring in more Grimm!” Another women yells. The Marigold postures against the rail. Grin far to smug for a Marigold. She jumps down and Winter finders herself running because this was a Marigold an artistrocrate, a civilian.

“You could have gotten hurt!”

“Don’t worry, Winter, May Marigold is an acompished huntress!” Penny said. Winter scoffs but let Penny take the women in arms. She watches the surprised blush crawl up those ears. Two more people catch Winter’s eyes. Winter’s stuck staring. The beauty marks on Hill’s face didn’t show up that well in the photos. A crim really-

“Where was that attitutde when we were kids?” May mumbles, following her gaze. Then a grin splits across her face. “Oh. Oooh!” She stands next to Joanna who’s grin is almost just as smug. "Am I your type now?"

Winter nearly chokes, cheeks flushing hot. Ears burning in an unfamiliar way. “You’re…” The name dies on her lips but that grin was far too smug. “You’re Henry’s cousin! That Marigold!”

“Hey asshole! She’s more than a name!” The cute Faunus yells. She rushes over, linking her arms with May and glaring lightly at Winter. "Ugh. A Specialist."

Winter blinks. Unfamiliar with how she should be processing. Training sessionis emphasis that Specialist should disengage from hostile civilians. But the Faunus was another Atlas graduate.

“Play nice, lambchop,” Hill says. Winter’s feels the flush crawl further. Deeper into her cheeks. Her voice match those beutiful photos which should have been near impossible. Hill catches the stare. It’s a little thin. Dipolomatic and testing, “Nice to see the military finally doing their job.”

“Actually, it’s Winter’s break,” Penny interrupted. She tilted her head curiously at her. “Assigned break. Due to her habit of overworking herself. You’re temprature is quiet high, Winter.” The four women grinned. Fiona’s was particulously vicious for being so small and cute. “Are you alright? Did you finally get sick?”

“I- I’m fine.” Winter stuttered. May’s shit eating grin she had when they were children grew. Winter took a deep breath. “I came to ask Hill about non-military matters.”

“If it’s a date, that’s a No.” Fiona says arm possessively linked with Robyn’s-

“It’s not date!”

[calliecat93]

Top 5 Things I Liked About RWBY Volume 7

(Top Dislikes)

Gosh, we are so close to Volume 8 now, and it’s driving me crazy! But we’re not there yet. So let’s continue to remember what Volume 7 delivered upon us. Last time I did the Dislikes post, so now it’s time for the Top 5 Likes post! Which this was so, SO much easier to come up with than the Dislikes list! Like I said there, this volume is so well-written and jam-packed full-on content. It was a rollercoaster of a ride where even though I didn’t want to get back on for a while, that thrill was everlasting. Whether V8 will give the same result will be determined soon, but for now let’s go over the Top 5 Likes of RWBY Volume 7. As always, just my opinion, so take with a grain of salt~

Okay, let’s go!

#5. Oscar Development

By far one of the biggest criticisms against Volume 6 was how it handled Oscar. There was a LOT of good setup concerning his identity crisis as he struggled with keeping control, maintaining his own identity, and the potential burden of just being another of Oz’s wasted lives. While he DID reach a new confidence by the end which was nice, it... was more or less offscreen. To many, myself included, Oscar felt wasted and I specifically criticized how the execution made it feel like depite what Ruby said and what the narrative is trying to say, it DOES feel like Oscar’s viewed as just Oz’s vessel and that’s all his importance amounted to. I was hoping that Volume 7 was going to rectify this like they did with Ruby in Volume 6. Did they do so?

Absolutely yes.

While they still have a bad habit of setting up Oscar in trouble but it turning out to be a fake-out (his disappearance due to Neo), the volume did a LOT to improve his position. With Oz gone, Oscar has to be diplomatic on his own. He’s in a position where he can get close to Ironwood in a way that the others can’t and see him actually vulnerable. Unlike the others, who keep just pointing out to Ironwood how his actions are problematic to varying degrees, Oscar can see what’s really causing it: fear. Which is something that Oscar can relate to. After all, he was terrified when his quest began, but he always faced it and went forward everything to do what was right. Even when it meant leaving home, even when it meant facing unjust anger from others, he did so.

Oscar tries to reason with Ironwood. He tries to have him realize that it’s okay to be afraid. That it’s okay  to be honest with those around him. That it’s okay to be vulnerable. Ironwood isn’t the only one either. In the beginning, he’s worried about Ruby’s lie because of how much it reminds him of what Oz did to them. You could argue that he’s developed into the conscious of the group, but he knows how to reason with these matters in a peaceful way. He’s becoming more of a diplomat similar to Ozpin, which even Ironwood points out in Chapter 9.

Then there’s the finale. Sadly, despite all of his pleas and how much he reached out to him, Ironwood ultimately rejected him and Oz. He rejected the route of trust and embraced fear, sealing the deal by shooting Oscar. But while he couldn’t help Ironwood, he did help someone else: Ozpin. His words convinced the former headmaster to at last return and face his own fears, saving them both. It also allowed Oscar to gain more of Oz’s power and memories. The boy has gone form a scared teenager entering a world he doesn’t truly understand, to becoming a courageous young man filled with compassion and hope for those around him. And this time, we got to actually see that growth unfold. He’s still got a long path ahead of him, but this greatly amended Oscar’s character and I am grateful for it.

#4. Penny Polendina

SHE CAME BACK! YAY!!! I MISSED HER SO MUCH!!!

Every since hr death in V3, I fully expected Penny to come back at some point. And indeed, she did! And with her memory intact, thank goodness! While I do wish we got some more exploration in how she felt about dying and such, her role int his volume was so well done I can forgive it. She has more screentime in this volume than Volumes 1-3 combined, and I love it! A cute new design, her struggling between duty and her own wants, trying to understand feelings and finding them to be a beautiful thing, there is SO MUCH going on with her here.

Penny is part of Ironwood’s inner circle, having been assigned as he Protector of Mantle. She takes her job seriously and does her best to protect the citizens. She’s elated to see Ruby and the others again and tries to assist them as much as she can. But as the volume goes, we see how much she struggles between her dedication to Mantle and Ironwood’s orders. It’s especially clear fter she is framed for the massacre during the elections. The poor girl is mortified, everyone viewing her as just another of Ironwood’s robots. Even Ironwood feels this way with his insensitive comment bout her being ‘under his control’ during the Council Meeting. The poor girl just needs a hug.

But this helps set Penny apart from Atlas. Unlike the others, who are following orders, Penny is trying to follow her heart. She tries to encourage Winter to do the same when she snapped at Jaques, even saying that all she did was speak form the heart and has no reason to feel ashamed of it. After Ironwood declares martial law, she is clearly upset and outright says that it’s wrong. She even asks Winter if this bothers her, and isn’t very convinced by her argument about the general taking on the burden. Penny chooses to embrace her feelings, not reject them as Winter, the Ace-Ops, and Ironwood have done.

It ends with Penny comforting Fria as her Maiden powers go out of control. How does she do this? She simply goes up to her and gently asks her if she’s okay. She shows the old woman more compassion and care than she’s probably had in quite a while. As a result, Fria ultimately transfers the Winter Maiden powers ot her. It proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that despite being a robot, Penny is a real girl. Hell, she is by far the most human of the Atlesian characters in this volume. She ultimately feels disheartened by Fria’s death, but still goes with Ruby and the others because that’s the right thing.

Penny’s character arc was a delight. There were so many expectations with her return, and I am so happy with the result! Penny feels so much more three-dimensional now. She still has the sweetness that made us love her before, but she also grew as a character. She embraced her feelings, she made choices for herself after having to abide by Ironwood’s rules for so long, she even managed to get some payback on Cinder for her death. Her good-heart and kindness was rewarded at the end. I do worry for her, especially since Salem’s Whale Grimm is absolutely a Montstro reference, but I’m still so happy with her in this volume~

3. The Atlas/Mantle Conflict

I am... not good at talking about this kind of thing, so I apologize if this seems rambly or all over the place. The big conflict pf the volume was the division between Atlas and Mantle. We knew going in how Atlas was seen as a bastion of civilization, but also full of snobs and an army leader who doesn’t exactly have his priorities straight. We knew that Mantle was the former capital and it was easy to assume that it probably wasn’t in the best state... and HO BOY were we right.

While Atlas looks futuristic and pristine, Mantle is run-down and out-of-date. The former capital and it’s people have not been treated well and worse, Atlas controls everything including their heating system. Ironwood has forced the city to be without essential provisions for Amity, and has therefore left them vulnerable to the Grimm. It’s easy to see why Mantle would resent Ironwood and Atlas as a whole, and why it was easy for Watts and Tyrian to widen the divide. It’s like the Chorus conflict in the Chorus Trilogy in RvB, only we’re there to see the division outright instead of coming in many years later. Our heroes are trying to mend the divide, but it’s so much easier said than done when neither side will budge.

There’s a lot of contrast with the two sides. Ironwood is a seemingly cold man with an authoritarian streak. Robyn is more laid-back, if a little cocky but her heart is very much set on helping Mantle. Both can be very brash and place trust above all else. But they both run their respective groups very differently. Robyn views the Happy Huntresses as her friends, while Ironwood trained the Ace-Ops to be his loyal attack dogs. Robyn is willing to give her trust until it gets broken, while Ironwood is wrapped by his own paranoia. We see how these two groups function. They have similarities, but are also very different especially when it comes to how their leaders treat their respective groups.

There is a HUGE class issue between Atlas and Mantle. It’s not helped by Ironwood’s plans causing further suffering, and of course in the end he chooses to leave it open to Salem in favor of saving Atlas. The fandom has fought back and forth for months over if this was right or not, which only proves the point of the division. You can see where each side is coming from, and we care for the people on each side. The conflict was presented throughout the volume with the heroes trying to help, but they sadly fail. The moment Tyrian’s slaughter happens in Chapter 6, you can break the tension with a butter knife and it doesn’t let up. We’ll probably only see more of it with Volume 8 now that Mantle has no protection. But as far as this volume goes, it was presented very well and very strongly.

#2. The Fall of James Ironwood

Love him or hate him, Ironwood is by far one of the strongest written characters in the show. Ever since his intro in Volume 2, we have been building up to this moment. The man has a LO of flaws. He’s arrogant, brash, favors military might over being discreet, and has a bad tendency to not learn form his missteps. These flaws contributed to the Fall of Beacon. But we also saw a man who was honest, righteous, respected Ozpin, and for all had flaws seemed to have good intentions. He was always willing to put himself on the front lines and took none of Jaques’ elitist shit. Sure he caused the Dust Embargo and closed Atlas down, but he also defended Weiss in Volume 4 and was clearly upset about the Fall fo Beacon. We saw a flawed, but still good man and if he could just embrace his flaws and open his heart, he could have been the great hero that he appeared to be.

Sadly thought, that wasn’t meant to be.

Ironwood is shown to be dishelved and plagued by paranoia, but he HAS created a plan to re-establish communications and expose Salem. But his police state with Mantle has the heroes concerned, so they lie to him about Oz and the lamp. The man continues to make questionable decisions, like I already said about his treatment of Mantle. But he still seems devoted tot he cause and like despite these calls, his intentions are still good and it will pay off even with the bad press. Heck, after Robyn tells him to trust her in Chapter 9 and with a push form Oscar, he seemed to FINALLY be doing the right thing. he revealed the truth about Salem to everyone, he worked alongside Mantle, and he faced Watts in the same place where his greatest failure had occurred. It seemed like all the begging and pleading had worked.

Sadly though, it all fell apart once Ironwood saw the glass chess piece.

Ironwood’s greatest enemy isn’t Salem. It’s not Robyn. It’s not he council. No, it’s himself. He has closed up his emotions and his hear to everyone around him. He has buried himself in his paranoia and his pursuit in defeating Salem. With every mistake, Ironwood failed to learn and move forward. He just became more and more consumed by his own fear. He wanted to be a strong leader. To be like Oz. But like Oz, he ended up losing himself and unlike Oz, he couldn’t acknowledge where he went wrong. In many ways you can sympathize with him because of the bleak situation and him trying to do what he can with what he has. But sadly, none of that can justify the path that he ended up taking.

Ironwood is angry at Team RWBYs lies. This and Salem’s approach pretty much causes him to snap. He’s going to let Fria die so that Winter had the Maiden powers. He's going to abandon Mantle to their demise in a futile plan to raise Atlas into orbit. When RWBY opposes this, he orders them to be arrested. He even coldly confirms that he’s leaving Mantle to die. However one feels about this choice, as a cruel but necessary choice to save what can be saved, or a needless sacrifice made by a fascist dictator, one can at least make an argument about either point that makes it hard to say who was right. Him snapping at Oscar and knowingly shooting the kid to his demise? No. That one cannot be justified at all, especially since he was as cold as steel when he did it.

This moment has been built-up since we met him all those years ago. We wanted Ironwood to do the right thing. We all hoped that he would. But he didn’t, and it isn’t shocking at all. We saw enough to like Ironwood, but to also be very much aware of his faults that he just never seemed able to conquer. His fall form grace is tragic, yet done in such a satisfying way as well. I felt for him, but there was no justifying his actions. I kept hoping that he’d pull through, but once Chapter 11 hit, I knew we were at the point of no return. The James Ironwood we once knew is no more, consumed by his fear. What will happen to him next? Will he manage to realize his wrongs? Or will he continue to fall until there’s nothing left to salvage? It’s hard to say. But for now, the tin man has lost his heart,. A very sad, but very well done, character arc for sure.

1. The Theme of Trust and Fear

When I first heart this volume’s opening, Trust Love, I liked it... but the more the volume went, the more the optimistic song felt out of place for the dark volume. Considering this IS an anime, that’s probably intentional. But the more I examined the lyrics, especially after the full version came out, the more I truly realized how it fits with this volume. The song speaks of one trying to live in their dream world, but they need to face reality and trust those around them. They need to stop waiting for a miracle, they need to take control of their life now and move forward. hey need to... well, trust in love. Then you have the finale song, Fear, which  outright asks ‘who will you be when you are faced with fear? Will you see the person you hope to see? Or will you see a stranger?” Will you feel proud? Or will you feel betrayed?

This is the theme of the volume. The theme of trust and the right thing against fear. Ironwood claims to trust the heroes, yet he can’t trust anyone else and his own fear is slowly consuming him. The heroes are mistrustful of Ironwood, but they trust each other and want to help mend the divide between Ironwood and Mantle. But at every turn, fear gets ii n he way. Tyrian’s slaughter makes Mantle afraid and enraged. Ironwood’s fear keeps him from opening up and it leads to his downfall as I already described. The Ace-Ops don’t fight together as a team, which leads to Team RWBY who DO trust each other to defeat them. Clover is blinded by his loyalty to Ironwood to recognize that he’s doing the wrong thing, and it leads to his death. Not to mention the mistrust between him, Qrow, and Robyn lead tot he crash to begin with.

As Oz says in his monologue, fear is the greatest thing that everyone shares. We see everyone afraid. Ironwood is afraid. Ruby is afraid. Ozpin is afraid. Even Cinder is afraid. It’s all for different reasons. Ironwood is afraid of Salem. Ruby is afraid of the uncertainty ahead. Ren is afraid of failing Nora and the others. Cinder is afraid of failing to achieve her foals. Qrow is afraid of bonding with others, especially considering what happened to Clover. Ozpin...d o I even need to elaborate on him? The title to Chapter 13 is ‘The Enemy of Trust’. What is that enemy? Fear. Recently, I’ve been feeling that same fear of trust. Fear of being hurt. Fear of being betrayed. Fear of the unknown. It’s a VERY powerful force, and a tempting one at that.

The message of the volume ultimately si that it’s okay to be afraid. It’s perfectly human to feel that way. You don’t need to get over it. It doesn’t matter if you’re afraid, it’s what you do in the face of it that matters. Will you face it? Will you do what’s right? Will you find it in yourself to trust and love again? Or will you succumb to it? Will you end up repeating your mistakes because of your fear? Will you make the wrong choice? What will that say about the person you are? One way or another, we all will find out the answer to that question. We may not know the answers for a long time, but you ultimately need to try and do what’s right. You can’t let the fear control you. You need to decide who you will be when ti comes, and if in the end you will be happy with who you are left with.

Ironwood chose to repeat his mistakes, and is now a heartless tin soldier. Ozpin ultimately chose to return and face it and while only time will determine how that goes, it’s a step in the right direction. People like Ruby and Oscar still tried to do what thy knew was right. Weiss was afraid of her father, but faced him to gain her freedom. Blake feared Adam and the White Fang and chose to run, but eventually decided to fight back and ultimately won. Yang was afraid after losing her arm and of being abandoned, and while she struggled she ultimately faced it, proving herself stronger than her cowardly mother. Even after Ruby broke down when it became clear that Salem killed her mother, she still faced the wicked witch, told her off to her face, and pulled herself together enough to warn everyone about Ironwood and stand her ground. And there’s so any other examples that I could list. 

I think considering the times right now, this message is incredibly important. It’s been a major part of the series since the start, but Volume 7 especially made it prominent. We need to trust in love. We need to be courageous enough to do the right thing. We need to be able to express our fear and doubts with others to become better. In a world where everything 9si uncertain and everyone is on edge, I think that the themes here are more relevant than ever, and was handled very well. Especially with that monologue in Chapter 13. As such, this is my favorite part of RWBY Volume 7 without a doubt.

Well, that’s it folks! It was nice to revisit Volume 7 again after so long~ But as we close the book, we’re about to open another for Volume Eight. What’s gonna happen? I don’t know. Am I scared? Oh big time. But I’ve come this far, I’m not backing out until the very end. So I hope that you all enjoy Volume 8, and as always I look forward to reviewing it all~ See you all on premiere day~!

[elementalchick1]

Birds of Prey rewrite

Birds of Prey/ Harley Quinn Fix this story

My disclaimer: I ma more a Birds of Prey than Harley Quinn fan, though I love her in the cartoons and Suicide Squad. However, this movie was not good. Basically the story needs to be an empowering, funny, sexy, chick flick and it fails miserably. First, the costumes must be wonderful, not the trash bag thrift store panic shopping of the movie.

Synopsis: Harley and the Joker break up. Not sure what happened because it does not matter, but it happened when she was in prison. Harley does a drunken melt down, similar to the movie, but the soundtrack is “bang” by AJR. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4THFRpw68oQ During this Harley realizes that she has no friends. They are all Jokers crowd, and the ones who are still friendly think they are getting back together. They are also all gangster groupies. One can even quip “girls just wanna have fun”. This is different from the movie because she thought she had friends, not just Joker. Harley is doing what she calls couch surfing, which means breaking into rich people’s second homes while they are out and eating their food and raiding their closets. Harley is arrested and Amanda Waller tells her that she is on indefinite probation if she can show she is rehabilitated. Basically the suicide squad can only be from activated criminals who have potential to be rehabilitated instead of the worst. “I want you on a chain, but they want you lobotomized or put down like a rabid dog. Your choice. Is this you or is this him?” She chooses mandated rehab. “Which one?” “I don’t care. You are the psychiatrist. DO them all” New Rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2qgadSvNyU

SO we have the joy of Harley quin going through 12 step (and other) programs.  Shot of a board at a Y/center with the Support Groups schedule. She takes the whole thing. Comedy montage of Bikram yoga mindfulness class, breaking the finger of a guy that gropes her, “SO sex addicts group was a mistake” etc. Visual quote of Fight Club support scenes. In “co-dependents no more” she meets Canary/Dinah, who she had seen around. Canary is assigned as her sponsor. Part of the fun is we are not sure who Canary means when she describes “Men in power are addictive. The surrender of control, the reduction to Id, seems like a type of freedom. But it is a cage. You are on their leash.”  Ras-al Ghul or Arrow? (Hint underlying message- all of the birds in the movie destroy their cages- or make new ones) HQ:“You know the 12 step programs don’t work if you are an atheist.”  Canary: “You know that placebos work even if you know it’s a placebo?” Therapy montage song options:  I Love me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vImvzQCb0o8&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=23

I drive me mad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqBvK14JPGg&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=36

In the different groups, she meets many people including Cassidy Cain in Klepto Anonymous. Harley co-opts and ends up leading several of the sessions. (I am OK with the casting of Canary but would like Camila Cabello. Though she could be Huntress.) Cassidy is a very different character from the movie. She is still 13, but smarter, and always on a phone. Running joke, it is a different phone in every scene. She is an epic pickpocket, appearing to be a clueless teen who bumps into people because she talks and texts and selfies all at once while actually picking people’s pockets and photographing security. She also gleans information and is the source of information on why people hate Harley.  “Wow. You should see his Instagram. He should be banned for those images. Just a sec. Done.” She is the definition of plucky comic relief. Casting should actually cast a minor. (Marsai Martin, Mckenna Grace, Brooklynn Prince.)

The Bertinelli Diamond is a nice plot device, bringing in Huntress who is tracking it as well as the gangsters who killed her family. (BTW this needs to be recast with someone who has a charisma and can at least dance. Madison Beer, Nicole Maines, Hailee Steinfeld, etc. Huntress wears motorcycle leathers, a very Asian gang vs American biker look) HQ: “OOo! Italian leather!” The Huntress backstory is necessary but cut the bit about young Helena drawing with crayons. If she draws, it should be recognizable. She’s had art lessons since 2.

Harley sees Cassidy Cain on the street steal from a known gangster.  The chase begins. We can keep the glitter cannon/ prop room brawl, but it should be a gangster hideout not the police station, (unless she can get out of it another time and have a joke where Canary coughs “white privilege”) However, to preserve a better story arc, let’s move this to a gangster vault, and have this be where we meet the Huntress. Here is where we realize that Harley loves to hit things, but hates to shoot things. Huntress is fine shooting things. “Do you have to kill everybody?” “Do you have to blow up every crime scene?” “yes” Bad Guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyDfgMOUjCI

SO Harley has Cassidy and Huntress hanging around. Huntress wants to use Cassidy as bait while they wait for the diamond to drop. Funny bit as Huntress gets sucked into group, probably an anger management group. “I always wanted to be a teacher” Harley wants to finish her program and needs to check in with her sponsor. She is on step 8/9.

Canary: “DID you make your list” HQ: “ I think so.” Drops a ream of paper. “I have to apologize to everyone?” “It’s a start. And I know someone you could start with. It might be easier than the rest because she was hurt when you were in jail” HQ”????” Canary “Practice” Barbara Gordon is never referred to using her whole name. (casting: Liana Liberato, Kennedy McMann) The cop in the movie is completely unnecessary. Either have Oracle, “B” be in the movie or cast someone like Rosario Dawson to be a kick ass Hispanic cop and have her stuck in vice and always asked to work for ICE. Since Gotham city embodies the worst of our current world skewed through a dark lens of madness, having the women in the movie own that “the women in Gotham are the ones who have to clean up and deal with the shit and the fallout of all the crazies.”-B. “That ain’t me”-HQ. “You act like the only options are to be the ass who trashes the place or the maid. (I’m going to) Find something else”-Cassidy. The rest of the film is Bs first real run as Oracle, remotely feeding them information, using drones, shutting down the bad guys tech. “There’s more than one way to fight.”

At the climax, which does have a giant brawl of gangster thugs after the team, but all of the team, each having a dose of enemies. It begins with a girl power makeover scene as they are arming. Cassidy:“We should RUN!” Huntress: “I have been running and hunting my whole life. I want this over” Huntress gets carbon fiber outfit from B “Moves better than leather and is knife and bullet resistant, but not proof” Harley gives Canary the fishnets. “Just try them. You need some fun.” The girls make Harley stop with the white face. “Keep the Harlequin Loose the clown. “  Cassidy has a CIA briefcase she stole from the gangster prop room HQ: “Where’s ya get that?” Cassidy:” Stole it from the gangsters but can’t open it”  B:”Here let me” It is adaptive camouflage stealth tech armor. Cassidy: ”Yay! You can’t hit what you can’t see” HQ and Huntress: ”That’s what grenades are for” HQ: “Jinx!” B: “No grenades!” HQ:”we know. No Grenades! (softer)… inside”

Makeover song montage options: My way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5I4KwxMXAA

All the good girls go to hell:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PZsSWwc9xA

Nice to meet ya: (also might work for the group therapy montage)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRvKL8FnrtU&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=42

The massive gangster fight proceeds. The movie does OK with this except for the dubious production design, and the lack of using Huntress well. And that all of the gangsters are completely incompetent. Note on the bad guys: We do not need a named bad guy. The “Black mask” was lame and sucked screen time. It can just be gangs, at least one run by the gangster(s) Huntress needs to kill. But just mafia, not stupid mask nonsense. As part of the makeover montage, they make a plan and set up a kill zone. B: Looking at Cassidy:”cough- Capture zone” Cassidy (on phone) “Please, what am I 12? Gotham only has kill zones.” B: “maybe we can change that” HQ: “Not tonight we can’t. Baby steps” Huntress snipes the ones with automatic guns that enter the building. Casandra fights and hides. Dropping stuff from vents, etc. When the dust settles, Joker appears: “DO I have to do everything myself?” He tries to talk Harley into coming back, She freezes, then realizes he is just distracting her so he can grab Cassidy.  It works. She chooses her new life and goes to get Cassidy.  She defeats him and kicks him off of the pier, possibly while analyzing him. “You were a horrible boyfriend!”

At the end, Birds of Prey is formed, with the good costumes. HQ:“I drop by every now and then, but I need to work on me. Cassidy stays with B, but we see each other all of the time” “Do I have to stay with you? You’re no fun” B: “I’m the only one who can pass a background check”

HQ; “I got an apartment. I had to get a roommate but I think it will work out.” There is a shot of the Help board at the Y/center with the “roommates” section and she grabs one of every tab numbers including one that says “Ivy” (Cameo of Evan Rachel wood or one of the CW redheads asking “Do you like plants?”) (This can occur earlier if we need a comic break)  

“And I got a job. Turns out in Gotham, group leaders can have an expired license.” Shot of Harley sitting in a bright spotlight with a notepad in a shadowed room full of figures in chairs with a highlight on a cape, an animal ear, etc. “Who wants to go first?”  

Playlist:

My Oh My: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fd2kkLmSDQ&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=18

The man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqAJLh9wuZ0&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=27

Good in goodbye: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQZJsOSw1pU&list=PL3oW2tjiIxvTKa5OYCIb8TdKjxSYuv5dg&index=45

Bang bang: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDdjwpPM3Y

New Rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2qgadSvNyU

Burn the house down: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnyLfqpyi94

Good as hell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmbmeOgWsqE

Beach bunny Prom Queen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dc6SSu5pnHw

Bored: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsPxaAVg584

Kings and queens: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jH1RNk8954Q

Sweet but a psycho: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXBHCQYxwr0

All the good girls go to hell:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PZsSWwc9xA

Insane like me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeltAGwwsDQ