#but like she was an objectively bad person up until like season 4

[itsoktopretenditshalloween]

My least and most favorite part of the Magnus archives is how by the end of the series pretty much everyone Jon meets kind of hates him?? I hate it because my kneejerk reaction is to go "this 28 year old guy got manipulated into doing all of this shit, he's made all of two actual decisions this whole time and both of them were decisions along the lines of "do this or die" or "do this or someone you love will die", like why would all of these people be so resentful to him and him alone when all he's done is be lied to and be bad at communication??" But then the other part of me goes "well yeah, of course he's gonna become the fucking scapegoat!!! Everyone's fucking scared out of their mind and it's easy to look at the person who's technically (literally barely, strictly in name, if that) in charge of one thing and project everything that's going wrong onto him!!! Of course everyone despite having the same urge to figure things out and ruining their own lives in the process of following it is gonna go "oh THAT GUY!!! He fucking consciously chose this, he must have known. He had to have known this is how it would go for me he had to have chosen. This had to have happened because someone wanted it to. It wasn't me making a mistake. It wasn't him accidentally steering me in the wrong direction because he truly did not know better, and he's, again, dog shit when it comes to people skills, it had to happen for a reason" humans are pattern seekers and we LOVE having narrative in our lives, and it's super easy and fun to blame all of our problems on one person, because then we can pretend that everything would be fixed if they disappeared. And of course that person became Jon, because the real big bad guy didn't actually talk to most of the cast very often, and they couldn't kill him without dying. Of course they picked the random guy they kind of knew who was always kind of an asshole. Who else is there to be mad at that would feel it?? Who else is there that would apologize to you for what's happened??? Who else is there that you know can feel guilty even if it's not as guilty as you think he should feel????

[notmyprey]

Guys, Im taking this into my own hands. There's not enough Ninjagº (sfw) vore writing, so I shall add to it :)

Context/Content Warnings

Contains: Some (SFW) Vore towards the end, a hella lot of g/t, bad injury (but not like- gory descriptions), and many many personal headcannons. One mainly being I kinda ship Zane×Cole. But if ya wanna see it as platonic, I have written it so it can be interpreted as such too.

This is very self-indulgent if you cant tell....

This takes place between seasons 4 and 5. I've not seen any season past season 10 or 11, I can't remember exactly, so yeah.

Also, important personal headcannon for this fic: Zane kept his more human looking form, not cause I dont like his titanium form. I just like my drawing design I made

Btw it's in first person, so it's hard to tell, but the person who is the pov is Cole-

Fic under cut:

It was a normal fight, honestly nothing special. Just defend the Bounty from a few wannabe villains. That's all we had to do. But it's never that easy, not for us.

Our ship wasn't soaring the clouds today nor parked near the city, but rather parked near a small mountain. We went there in search of a few caves that we were told housed a potentially dangerous artifact. Our plan was simple.

Get in, get out, and destroy the object.

But as we parked, and some treasure hunters flooded the Bounty, we didn't take the time to notice the ground beneath us, or rather lack of. That's where a large pit sat, unnoticed and waiting.

Among the commotion, I started a tussle with one of the bandates near the edge of the ship. She shoved me against the railing, knocking some air out of my lungs. I was quick to retaliate, sending a swift kick to her gut and sending her a few feet backward. Another swift kick, and she was out.

Before I had time to catch my breath, a panicked shout drew my attention. Zane had gotten cornered, 5 treasure hunters surrounding him.

I pushed myself forward, ignoring my still stinging lungs. Of course, they would go after Zane first, I thought bitterly. He was made of metal, and to them, an item practically begging to be sold. This is the third batch of these guys we've run into this week, and I still hated that was how all these treasure hunters and collectors saw him. I hated it with every fiber of my being.

As I got closer, Zane managed to kick one my way, prompting me to, instinctively, punch them, thankfully knocking them out. Now we were 2 against 4. This got the rest of their attention. I smirked. Something about it felt good, watching Zane fight back. It was almost like he was getting back at them in a way, but I knew that was very unlikely intentional. Zane had a heart of gold, with an intent to hurt no one if avoidable.

As these thoughts played in my mind, I didn't notice the large footsteps behind me. In an instant, someone behind me grabbed my shirt. They were much bigger, so much bigger than me. I couldn't even react before I was in the air. They flung me back but kept their grip on my shirt. I was slung forward, then their hand let go, and suddenly, I was flying in Zanes direction. Treasure hunters dove out of the way just before I landed on top of Zane, knocking him and I onto the ground. Due to the way I was thrown, my head took the majority of the impact.

My head started throbbing instantly. All of the aches and pains I had suppressed until now were showing full force. Each breath burned, making me think I broke a rib. I tried to get up, but I felt my consciousness slipping.

My ears were ringing, but I still managed to make out bits and pieces of Zanes' voice.

First, Zane muttered something I couldn't understand. But his next question was one I was all too familiar with.

"Cole, are you ok?"

I could only groan in response. With that, everything started to blur. I couldn't push myself off of him, and I knew the quicker he was back on his feet, the better this would be for the both of us. Thankfully, Zane understood what was happening and pushed me off himself. He didn't give me the grace of placing me down too gently, but I dont blame him. He had bigger problems.

Now that I was on my back, I could see bits of movement, a large figure was starting towards us.

I couldn't see anyone else, Kai, Jay, Lloyd, and even Sensei were all nowhere to be found. My blood went cold, and momentarily, my heart stopped beating. Had something happened to the others?

No matter how hard I fought to get up, how much I told myself I needed to keep fighting, I was starting to loose consciousness. My eyes started to close on their own, and I soon felt myself getting lifted into the air once more by the larger treasure hunter. The last thing I remember was falling. Between the pressure change and my pre-existing head trauma, I couldn't stop myself from passing out before I even hit the ground.

Where is Zane?

I shot open my eyes, a swelling sense of panic rushing over me, but to my surprise, I couldn't see anything. Where am I?

I felt terrible. I think I broke my leg, maybe my arm too. I rolled over, helping relieve the pressure off both of my most likely broken limbs. There was a light far above me, but I couldn't see anything else that would help me figure out where I was. I couldn't get up, I couldn't see anything, I couldn't even speak. All I could do was lie and wait.

For hours, the shadows jumped at me, making my heart race in my ears. I knew I couldn't do anything, and that made the dark that much more terrifying. It was sufficating, how dark and alone I felt. Seconds felt like hours, and hours felt like days. No matter what I did to calm my anxiety, nothing helped. All I could do was lie in the silence and pray someone found me.

"Cole?" I heard Zanes voice calling from above. My heart leaped out of my chest, tears forming at the corner of my eyes from gratitude. He had found me.

"Here." My voice barely even came out.

After a few long moments, I felt the ground beneath me shake, and a loud thud echoed beside me.

"Cole?" This time, Zanes' voice echoed through my very core. My good arm instinctively went to cover up my eyes and ears.

I felt the earth shake a bit more, then a gasp echoed somewhere above me. Slowly, a blue light was brought closer, one I recognized as Zanes eyes. I loosened up upon that realization, unfurling and opening my eyes once more.

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust. I sucked in a quick breath once I could finally see again. Zane towered over me, his meer hand was about as long as I was tall. I wanted to move away, but seeing that about half of me was broken, that was not an option. Slowly, he crouched down. Then gently he put one of his hands down and softly plyed his fingers under me. He lifted me up a bit, then placed his other hand under me as well.

"Cole?" He paused, a bewildered expression plastered on his face, "Cole, can you hear me?" His voice was a wisper now, but even his wispering seemed to completely surround me.

Between the shock of this whole experience and my hurt ribs, I was finding it increasingly harder to speak. I couldn't find my voice. The only thing that came out of my mouth was a pathetic squeak.

His thumb rose and started to brush over me. He didn't apply much pressure, but once he got to my broken arm, I couldn't help but flinch.

Zanes must have noticed that, since his eyes narrowed a bit, something he mostly did when he was annalizeing our 'injury status', as he tends to put it.

"Im going to get you back to the ship, alright?" I was grateful that he continued to keep his voice at a wisper.

I nodded again, to which he started to stand up.

Curling his fingers over me a bit, he suddenly shouts upward, "I FOUND HIM."

This sudden blast of noise hurt, making me return to the covered position I was in before. Zanes shout echoed through the pit, making me shutter in pain a few more times before the noise finally weakened.

Soon, Zane was lifted up, and as a result, I was too. As soon as I was out, noises boomed around me. One question seemed to come through the commotion in unison. "Where's Cole?"

I heard Kai, Jay, and Nya for sure, but Lloyd, I couldn't make out. Did he get kidnapped again? I knew Lloyd was another one of us that the treasure hunters tend to objectify, and that only increased my worry.

I felt Zane move his fingers again, this time unfurling them so that I would lay flat on his palm.

A series of gasps came from the group, and finally, I heard Lloyd. "What happened?" His voice, knowing he was ok, finally allowed my nerves to relax a bit.

"I dont know," Zane sighed in response, "but Cole is not in good condition. He has 3 broken ribs and a broken thigh bone. And his humorous bone is broken as well."

"Zane, now is no time for jokes." Jay piped up.

"The humourus is the bone in the upper arm, I am not displeased with Coles' humor." Zane said blatantly. I could hear the annoyance in his voice. If I had been able to speak, I would have tried to ease the tension, but unfortunately, I still felt too winded.

"Let's get him back then." Nya, the only one who seems to have more than half a brain cell most days, finally chimmed in. It was as if the same thought rung through everyones head, as everyone seemed to simultaneously start back towards the Bounty.

It was so strange. I never realized just how much I would miss the light until it was taken from me. I gazed up at the lamp above me, fixated on its lumosity. Most of my life, I had taken light for granted, but now, I couldn't be more grateful for it.

"How are you feeling?" The unexpected question made me nearly jump out of my skin. Zane must have come back into the room. It was only 15 minutes ago that he had left to take a well-deserved break, and honestly, I expected him to be gone for longer with how much work he put in to get me patched back up.

After I got back on the ship, Zane and Sensei both started to treat my wounds the best they could. With me being small, it was difficult for anyone but Zane to put my splints into place. He was the only one with such precision. Sensei, though he had tried, his hand kept shaking too much to do any good. This also was why they decided it was best for me not to get a cast since they could easily put it on too tight and hurt me more. They decided instead that no one would be allowed to handle me, but Zane.

This was something I found relief knowing. I had already started to imagine Jay coming in here to tease me over goodness knows what and getting too rough. It was strange how a part of me was now afraid of some of my friends. I didn't like it.

"Better." My voice was still weak, but at the very least, I had some painkillers now, so my lungs weren't on fire.

I had been set on top of a pillow, meaning I was a bit higher than I would've been on the bed. It wasn't too much higher than the bed, though it still allowed me a better view of the room. The pillow also meant I was more comfortable, which was a nice contrast to laying on the hard rocky ground in the pit.

Zane dragged his chair closer to me. He once again loomed over me, but in the light, now I was able to make out his face easier. I hadn't realized just how detailed his skin was till now. Even though it's not real, up close, you wouldn't be able to tell.

"Do you remember anything after you fell?" Zane broke the silence again.

"No," I shake my head, "I fell, and the next thing I remember is...." I fall quiet. Even the memory of how scared I felt sent cold dark shivers down my spine. "Waking up." I quietly finish.

"Is there anything that happened between you waking up and me getting there?"

"No..." I felt guilty for the fear I felt. Im sure they all were up on the bounty fighting, I shouldn't be pittied for falling in a hole. And I'm not lying, saying nothing happened since nothing did happen. But on the other hand, a lot felt like it happened. That fear was real. The pain was real. But neither of those should be anyone elses problem than mine.

Zane went quiet. He looked like he was thinking, but sometimes I can't tell with him. We sat like that for a while before Zane finally announced he was going to make dinner.

If I make a little in between part, I will link it here

Days passed. I was under strict orders that, until my bones were healed, I was not to leave the bed, save for when I needed to use the bathroom. It was long and boring. I couldn't play video games, nor could I even play board games. All I could do was watch TV and occasionally talk with one of the others. Zane came to check on me the most, but Jay made a point to seek me out a few times and mock me for my height. He made a point to remind me of the fact that I had called him short, and now the rolls are reversed and blah blah blah. I think he was trying to cheer me up, in his annoying Jay kind of way, but I honestly got tired of listening to him and zoned out most of the time.

The four days I lay in bed were practically tourture. I have never felt more lucky that my elemental powers also helped increase my bodies ability to heal itself. I may have gone insane if I stayed any longer.

Zane came in late on the fourth day of me lounging in bed. Once he announced that I could take both of my splints off, I did not hesitate to free myself from my confinement.

Once I managed to pry the splints off, it dawned on me. What was I going to do? I had been so focused on being able to leave this bed and the pillow that I hadn't thought much further than that.

Zane grabbed both of the splints I had set aside and placed them gently on the nightstand. Then, with a tired smile, he turned back towards me. "So, you're free now." He said with laughter in his voice, "Where do you want to go?"

"I dont know... I didn't think about it much."

"Well, I think I have an idea." A more sincere smile tugged at Zanes face, one that I wasn't sure if it was just friendly or one I should be suspicious of. His palm rested on the bed in front of me, but I hesitated to move myself onto it.

"I dont like that smile of yours. You're not bringing me somewhere to pull a prank on me, are you?" I narrow my eyelids, glaring right into his eyes.

He laughed at my suspicion, "No, no, I promise. This is a good surprise."

I climbed onto his hand, slowly, and still not feeling reassured. I found that sitting down is a lot less disorienting than laying down or standing, so I sit facing him.

I marveled at how large his hand was, even though he now had carried me many times, it was still something I could never quite get over. His hand so large that I could stretch my legs out fully and still have enough room to lay down.

He gave me a reassuring smile, then started out the door.

He carried me down the hallway and past a few rooms before turning into a doorway. I instantly recognized the room as the kitchen, even though it was now so much bigger. There was a delightful smell in the air.

"Mmmm, cake." I take another wiff, "Chocolate cake. " I specify.

"Your nose never ceases to amaze me, Cole." Zanes hand shook lightly as he laughed.

"I'm just that good." I smile, looking up at him.

A timer starts to go off, and with me turned towards Zane, I could see the exact moment he realized what the timer was for. He quickly placed the hand I was sitting upon on to the counter and gently nudged me off with the other. Wasting no time, he headed off, spinning around and rushing towards the oven.

Zane opened a drawer and pulled out two oven-mitts. I knew he didn't need them, and I'm sure he knew as well, but I guess it was a habit he had before discovering he was a robot. I also think that there's also a part of him that loves the oven-mitts since it was a gift we get him often.

Reaching forward, Zane opened the oven, sending a new wave of delicious chocolatey scents my way. I practically shook in anticipation as I saw him pull the source of the smell from the oven.

"One, Two, Three..." I mumbled as he took the tin of cupcakes out. He had made a total of 12 cupcakes. This means that if I take Zanes's portion, I get a total of 4 cupcakes! I big smile crept across my face.

I get up, still a bit wobbly from having sat mostly still for four days, and wander over to the cupcake tin. Zane was taking the cupcakes out and placing them on a rack to cool down faster.

"So I get all of them, right?" I give him the best pleading smile I could muster.

He rolled his eyes with a laugh, "No. You get two. Everyone gets two, or else they may need to make a movie about what happened when one of you got three instead."

Zane always had a way of making me laugh, "But I get your portion, right?" I step forward, closer to him and the edge of the counter.

"Not this time."

"Please tell me you're not giving them to the treasure hunters. You know they dont have a good bone in their body!" I joked.

"Ah, no matter how much I would love to see the look on everyones face at that, no. I am putting them away for when we get back to the city."

I furrow my brow, "But we won't be back to the city for a while! I mean, we haven't found the object thing, whatever it was - yet. And we still need to fix this!" I gesture towards myself.

"We have been looking while you were healing, Cole. Nia thinks she may have figured out where the object is. We're going to go tomorrow to try and retrieve it." My sholders slump. They have been looking without me?

"I thought you guys would wait." I mumble, on one hand, I was a bit bitter about it. They all went cave searching, finding who knows what cool objects and stuff, while I had to sit here and be on bed rest.

But, I could also see their side of it. They needed to get this done. If we didn't find this mysterious object, someone else would.

"Im sorry, Cole." Zane must have heard me muttering to myself.

"Well, at least I can come with tomorrow." I flop down on the counter, forgetting about my newly healed arm and leg. I let out a small shreak at the surprise pain. Zane reached forward to grab me but decided instead to hover his hands, ready to help me if needed.

"Cole," as Zane says this, his expression softened, "you aren't going to be coming with us tomorrow."

My heart dropped, "What?"

"You can't come with us tomorrow, Cole. It's too dangerous, and we can't risk you coming while you're..." Zane paused, considering his next words carefully, "... like this."

"I can still help!" I plea, I can't stay back again. I need to help. I have to help. "I still have my elemental powers! I can move some rock still! What if you get trapped? Then what? I am the Earth ninja! That's what I do! I move rocks!" I could see it. My words were doing nothing to convince Zane, and as I tried to reason more, I found I was grasping at flimsy straws, "I can still help..." I wisper.

"I am sorry, Cole. It's not only me who thinks you should stay. Sensei, he was the one who made the final decision. You need to stay here." Zane gave a sorry smile. "Rest up, maybe once we get back, you will be back to normal, and you can help us figure out what the mystery object is."

I sat there, defeated. I couldn't believe that I was being left behind. How could I keep them safe? How could I save them from the bounty?

The cupcakes started to sound less and less appetizing the more I thought of what tomorrow would bring for my brothers.

I woke up early the next morning. I had to get a good head start. I shuffle to the side of the bed, clinging to the sheets as I made my way down. Finally, once I reached the floor, I encountered my first obstacle. The door had been shut the night before, and I didn't know if I would be able to open it myself. The crack under the door was too narrow for me to fit under, so that wasn't an option. The door had a lever handle, so perhaps I could open the door?

I look around in an attempt to find something I could use to pry it open. The problem now I faced was that I was small, and I couldn't see much around the room. I walked back towards the bed, prepared to have to climb back up it so I could just see what was around the room. Just a moment after I grabbed onto the sheets, I saw something shiny under the bed. There was a clothes hanger under the bed.

I hesitate, the eery and mysterious shadows taunting me. My heart raced, I couldn't seem to look away. If I looked away, then it may consume me, the dark. My reason broke through my anxiety, telling me I had to go into the darkness, if just for one brief moment.

Shakily, I inched forward, feeling for the form of the clothes hanger with my feet. Soon, I felt the cold metal through my clothes. I quickly grabbed it and drug it back out to the light.

I had the clothes hanger, now to put it to use. I headed back towards the door, bringing the clothes hanger along with me. Once I reach the door, I swung the clothes hanger up, stretching my arms out and standing on my tip toes to give myself any bit of extra height.

The hanger caught at the handle, and I pulled down while also moving backward to open the door.

Finally, I was in the hallway. Though it was darker than the recovery room, it had many dim lights that fought off the dark enough for me to feel safe. Besides, the dark was the least of my worries now. I scurry along the edge of the wall, carefully listening for footsteps. I never thought that I would have to be so careful in my own home. But I had to pay attention, both because I dont want to get caught, and also because what would happen if someone didn't see me. The idea that someone could come along and accidentally step on me was one that I ran through my mind as I sped down the hallway.

I stopped at one familiar door. This is what I was looking for, my brothers room. Im sure right now they were still asleep, which was good for me. Unlike my recovery room, I knew that this door had a chip in it.

I believe Kai had said it was from Jay 'borrowing' my scythe. Whatever had happened before, it happened to work in his favor now.

I slunk into the dimly lit room. The only source of light was from outside the window where the moon was now lowering in the sky. Although it was difficult to see, I knew this room at least, and as such, I still found my way around. I creeped along the edge of the bunk beds, careful not to make a single noise.

In a heap on the floor, I saw my long-term goal, Zanes ninja suit. I darted over to the cothing pile, picking up and moving stuff out of my way until I found one of his pockets. I crawled inside, squirming to get comfortable as I did so.

A quiet but relieved sigh excaped my lips. Im going with them, whether they like it or not.

My brothers were too predictable. They woke up late, of course. Nia had already gotten dressed and was ready for them to start their search. Everyone was scrambling to put on their gear. Even Zane seemed to be unprepared, seeing that he didn't notice that his suit was a bit heavier today.

I bounced around any time Zane made any kind of big movement, including running, jumping, and turning. All of those being things Zane apparently does often. When Zane finally sat down to listen to Nia's brief, my head didn't seem to care and just kept spinning.

I couldn't hear much of Nia's ramble, but what I could hear clear as day was Zane. Normally, I tune out a lot of these long, borning, and often too elaborate plans. But today, I found it hard to disassociate. Any time I would finally zone off, Zane would ask another clarifying question. It hadn't dawned on me how many questions he asked before going on a mission. I swear he could write an essay just about the mission brief.

It took a while, but Zane eventually ran out of questions. Now, I thought, we could get on to the fun part.

A cacophony of chairs screeched against the floors as everyone stood at once. Once again, I started to sway and bounce. At one point, I think they were climbing down a rope, but it was hard to keep track. Everything was so disorienting that it was hard to even tell where I was. Were we in the cave yet? Or are we still on land? Did we even get off the Bounty yet? None of my questions seemed to be answered by the lighthearted chit chat that started from the group.

Once again, I wasn't able to hear what anyone else had to say other than Zane, which made it hard to figure out what was being said. The more I tried to fill in the gaps, the harder it became to understand what was happening. After about 15 minutes of me trying to decipher the illogical code, I gave up.

Who knows how long I have been in this pocket now. So far, they haven't seemed to run into any blocked paths, nor have they trapped themselves inside a cavern, which was a good sign.

How much longer will this take? All I wanted to do is get back to the Bounty, tell everyone I was here the whole time, and reassure them I can go on missions still. Maybe I couldn't walk by myself, but I was small and able to go places most cant. Imagine if I was this small when we got locked in the cage that one time. I could have gotten us out. I could be helpful.

We have to be in the cave now. There is a musty smell in the air, and I have to suppress the urge to sneeze every ten seconds. This could not be a worse time for my allergies to rear its ugly head.

We passed a particularly dusty portion of the cave. My heart sped up, I can't be caught now! They will just bring me back and go on without me! I hold my breath, hoping that if I dont breathe in the dust, I won't sneeze.

I had to breathe eventually, and as soon as I caught my breath again, I felt the overwhelming urge to sneeze. It started to rise from my nose and through my mouth. I had to stop it, I tried, doing everything in my power to stop the sneeze.

I breathed out once more, and the need to sneeze wad suddenly gone. I silently celebrated my victory.

I celebrated too soon. My sneeze snuck up on me. It was too late to stop it, so I tried to cover it up the best I could. But it was too late, I felt Zane come to a sudden hault.

"What was that." He asked, I heard the unease in his voice.

Some replies came from my brothers, but again, none that I could hear. My heart beat in my ears. Maybe Zane would write it off as the cave shifting. It does that sometimes, right?

An intense pressure shoved against my side for a moment before quickly disappearing. Zane gave an annoyed grumble above me.

Suddenly, a hand appeared, enclosing me in its grasp. It brought me up out of Zanes' pocket to be level with his face. He made sure to keep me facing towards him but didn't lighten his strong grip on me.

"Cole." The ice in Zanes' voice made my heart skip, I hardly hear him angry, and never is it towards me. His lips were thin, and his eyes were practically piercing through my soul. Normally, I can fight back, spit words, and defend myself. But his grip has become so tight that I was starting to struggle to breathe.

I wheezed a bit, doing my best to keep my composure. With my ability to breathe, slipping now, though, it remained difficult.

"Zane," I gasped in between desperate breaths, "Breathe. I can't."

The moment those words left my lips, Zane hand loosened, and so did his expression.

"What are you doing?" This was the Zane I knew now. He was annoyed, sure, but he wasn't the same as he was only a moment ago. He tilted me back a bit and set me down on his other palm.

"I -" Before I could get the sentence out, Lloyd brought up a finger to his lips. I turned to watch as Lloyd creeped towards a 90° turn in the cave. Just as quickly as he peered around the corner, he retracted his head. Turning back towards us, he wispers something. I couldn't hear it, I can't seem to hear anything lately. I turned to look at Zane, hoping he heard it. One look at his face told me he did.

I started to open my mouth to ask him to repeat what he heard, but shut it when I saw Zane already opening his mouth to reply.

(Start of events in comics here 1 + 2)

I watched as he didn't speak, but rather just kept his mouth open for a moment. One second, I was on Zanes hand, staring up at Zane. The next, I was shoved forcefully towards Zanes face. Suddenly, I was surrounded by a mass that glowed a light blue. Any time I tried to move, tried to reorient myself, I was pinned down again. I felt the confined space push me head first into another tighter tunnle.

The light followed me, and with this light came many new noises. There was a distinct ticking noise, along with the sound of what I assume was gears grinding together. Soon, blood started to run to my head, and my brain felt light.

(End of events in comic)

A few seconds after I thought I was about to pass out, I was pushed into a larger chamber. It was soft, and it had the same blue glow as the other one had before. It was definitely bigger and stretchier than the other two. That said, it was still very cramped. I was forced to lay down, as the ceiling was practically brushing against my hair, and the rest of my body was pressed into the sides of the room. Something about this place was familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.

A series of sporadic movements tossed me about a bit, but comparatively, it was not nearly as bad as it was in the pocket.

What would be my train of thought asking me where I am and what was happening got interrupted with a series of muffled shouts. I instinctively sunk into the rippling soft cloth underneath me, hopeful that it will keep me safe from this unseen danger.

The same sounds of gears and gadgets still were present but much more muffled now. The ticking was still audible too, but I had to strain to hear it.

There is where I stayed for a long time, trapped in the chamber. The pillow-like surroundings kept me in place for the most part, but every once in a while, there would be a bigger movement that caused me to fly into one of the walls. The walls, though, were soft and squishy, making the experience when I wasn't getting slammed into them actually kind of enjoyable.

After a while, the movement slowed down and finally came to a hault. Just as I started to bask in the peace, a loud voice from above brought me back. "He's fine. He's in my storage compartment." I recognized the voice instantly as Zane. I wonder who he was talking about? Who would even fit in his storage compartment? I have seen it before, it's small. No one was that small.

My breath hitched. I am that small. I felt the blood rush to my face as I realized just where I was. It was embarrassing how comfortable I had felt here. I lightly pushed at one of the folds around me, as if feeling it would help confirm.

I tried to push myself up, to put a bit of space between me, and what I now knew was Zane. My efforts were foiled as my back hit the top of Zanes storage chamber, and I flopped back down.

Zane started to speak again, "Is that all of them?" He must be talking to our brothers.

After a brief pause, where I assume someone had responded, Zane continued, "Then let's get moving again."

So they weren't going to bring me back. That was a relief. I can stay on the mission with them. Zane would let me out, and I could finally have some normalcy back in my life.

I felt Zane start to move again, this time, though it was more methodical, and the chamber only swayed slightly with each step. He wasn't making any sort of motion to let me back out. Did he forget?

I lightly knocked at the glowing pillow in front of me, "Um, Zane?" He didn't slow his pace. I waited for a few seconds, but he didn't respond.

"Zane?" This time, I raised my voice more in case he couldn't hear me the first time.

Zane started to slow his pace, meaning he heard me this time. "Yes, Cole?" He still sounded very annoyed with me.

"Are you going to let me out?" I poke at a spot next to me, hoping he would understand what I was getting at.

"No, I am not." He said matter of factly.

I'm a bit surprised. "What?" I scoff, not able to stop the word from coming out of my mouth.

"You not only disobeyed Sensei. But you also put yourself in danger and, by extension, could have put us in danger, and you still have no remorse for any of it." His tone reminded me of how he spoke to Lloyd when he was younger, something that hurt more than I thought it would.

"Im not a kid. I can handle myself just fine." The hurt seeping into my words.

Zane grumbled, a sudden pressure from the outside squeezed me to the opposite side of the chamber for a moment before releasing me once more. "I know you aren't a kid. But you need to listen to me, Cole. You aren't indestructible. You are putting yourself in more danger than I think you realize by being here. I dont want to lose you." He sighed, the previous annoyance in his voice fading. "There are bad people in these tunnels, and if you get separated from us all, it would take is for one to grab and toss you to..." The chamber pushed in again, "I can't lose you, ok?"

I couldn't think of anything to say to that. All the tension and defensiveness in me disappeared in an instant. How could I have been so neglectful. I know he cares about me. That's all he meant, and I should have known.

The pressure once again released, and I flopped onto the plush beneath me. I hadn't realized until then, but I had been tense. It had been exhausting, keeping that grudge. I relaxed, sinking furtherer into the pillow beneath me. Closing my eyes for a minute wouldn't hurt, right? I nestled my head down, and as I felt Zanes speed pick up to catch up with the others, my mind started to wander into the best sleep I have ever had.

[coraniaid]

For the Top Five thing, Top Five Episodes of Buffy that don't have Faith in them but do make you think about Faith?

Not in any order except chronological.

When She Was Bad

Obviously I don't think the writers had the slightest inkling about Faith when this episode was written -- I very much doubt they'd even started to think about Kendra, honestly -- but in some ways this still feels like a Faith origin episode to me. 

So much of how Buffy behaves in this episode would go on to be echoed by Faith the following season.  The insistence on doing things alone and not relying on others (Buffy's refusal to let any of her friends try to help her mirroring Faith's "I'm on my side, and that's enough"); to refusal to tell the people she cares about them that she cares (Buffy's too-late admission that she missed Angel over the summer mirroring Faith's "Uh, Buffy? ... Nothing"); the conflation of sex and violence (the way Buffy demands Angel tell her if he thinks he could “take” her mirroring Faith asking the same thing of Buffy herself).  Even the sudden feigned interest in Xander (as a way of trying to make the actual object of her affections jealous) fits.

Ted

Not just because it’s the first time the show asks what would happen if a Slayer accidentally killed a person, not just because the detective who investigates the death is the same man who will later investigate Finch’s death in Consequences, not just because Ted himself – with his cultivated wholesome image and the lurking unspoken threat of violence and his love of mini-golf – feels like a foreshadowing of the Mayor, but because this is perhaps the one time we see Buffy feel unsafe in her own home because of something ordinary rather than supernatural.  Which I think is something that Faith could relate to.

(By the way, you should read @explosionshark’s Common Ground if you haven’t already).

Anne

This is the first episode in which I think the Buffy/Faith parallels are probably intentional.  It's very hard for me not to watch Buffy alone in her apartment in LA and not be reminded of Faith in her motel room.  So much of Season 3 is about stressing the importance of Buffy’s family and friends in her life (as shown by their absence in The Wish, or by the Class Protector scene in The Prom, or the end of Graduation Day), with Faith as a version of Buffy who didn’t get those things (hence Faith’s “you get the Watcher, you get the Mom, you get the little Scooby Gang.  What do I get?”; and  Buffy’s earlier “Different circumstances, that could be me.”)  And in Anne we see a Buffy who doesn’t have those things, and who is – until she’s talked out of it, by one of the people she already helped save in Sunnydale – an awful lot like Faith.  (Not the same side of Faith that we saw foreshadowed in When She Was Bad, but still I think an aspect of Faith nonetheless.)

Restless

There are a lot of episodes I wish Faith appeared in, but if I could pick just one it would have to be Restless.  And -- given that Faith is actually talked about quite a lot in Season 4 (in a way she isn't in Season 5 or 6 or even the first half of Season 7) -- I’m inclined to think that she might have if Dushku had been available.  We know that Willow and Xander and Buffy are all still thinking about her, after all, and that they were even before she woke up from her coma. If nothing else, she'd have made a lot more sense as the voice of the First Slayer ("No friends! [...] We are alone") than Tara did.

Dead Things

Season 6 is the only season after her first appearance in which Faith’s never mentioned at all, and also the season where Buffy herself is the most like Faith (crawling out a grave in Bargaining the way Faith did in her dream in This Year’s Girl, struggling with money for the first time in a way that Faith had to have been doing for the first half of Season 3 even though we rarely see it; not able to find meaning or purpose in her life except through supernatural violence).

And arguably that most Faith-like Buffy becomes is in Dead Things, which itself is full of very deliberate nods to both Bad Girls/Consequences and This Year’s Girl/Who Are You?  Both because Buffy (believes that she) kills a person, but also because the way Buffy seems almost relieved to be able to give up and turn herself in to the police echoes the way Faith herself eventually did just that (at Buffy’s prompting) in Sanctuary.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

[Text: Tell me, what do you think of people actually liking the character development in season 4-5 and the show's treatment of mental health? [Redacted] thinks that and she's the mother of a teenager]

Re liking the show: I generally assume that they have poor taste and/or media literacy.

Re the mental health rep: I generally assume that they're incredibly privileged and/or ignorant.

I'm posting this as an image and not an ask response specifically because I will not participate in fandom drama or shaming. This blog exists specifically so that people can actively choose to engage in my content and so that I can post critical thoughts without dragging their source into some petty fight. So I'm not going to talk about the named individual. Instead, I'll replace them with the show's head writer and talk about him in a similar context.*

He's pretty famously denied that Chloe suffered any abuse, ignoring her obvious neglect, which came from both parents, just in different forms. When you pair that with how the show handles people like Gabe and Jagged Stone, we see a clear pattern of the show ignoring the devastating effects that abandonment and neglect can have on a person, especially if they're a child.

Now you could look at that and say, "The head writer condones abuse! He's a monster!" But I prefer to go the more likely route and assume that he's a privileged middle-class cis white man who has never had to deal with those issues or support someone who has, so he has no idea how to handle them properly or that they even need to be properly handled. There's every chance that he's a loving, kind man and a fantastic father who just happens to not be very good at writing a complex topic that he clearly has no understanding of or desire to learn about. I apply similar logic to fans who share his opinions. Never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence or ignorance.

And all of the above is assuming that we're talking about someone who thinks that the show is objectively good or that the mental health rep is good, which are big assumptions. It's fully possible to enjoy a piece of media that you know is objectively bad or even "problematic" in some way.

Personal confession time: is Loonatics Unleashed an objectively terrible show that you should never, ever watch? Absolutely. 100%. Are Rev Runner and Tech E. Coyote two of my favorite characters who will live rent free in my head until the day I die? Yep! I pulled up a YouTube highlight real as I was writing this and those dorks still make me smile even though the show is terrible on multiple levels and I know that I'm not alone in that sentiment. Those two clicked with a lot of people for some reason.

A piece of fiction need not be good for you to love it and you don't need to justify your love for a piece of fiction if you're not claiming that it's good. Similarly, people hating that piece of fiction or pointing out flaws in it is not a reflection on you in any way shape or form. You can even agree with their criticism and still love the piece of fiction. This approach to media - loving a thing in spite of its flaws - is normal and healthy and I'd really love to see it make a comeback in younger fandoms.

Like, I cannot emphasize this enough, most fandoms consider it perfectly normal to have lots of fans who are critical of the source or who have even lost interest in the source for one reason or another, but they still like some element of the source enough to want to create/consume fan content for it. These more critical fans arguably make some of the best fan content because looking at canon and saying "That's nice, let me show you how I'd do it" often leads to some of the most complex stories that you'll see in fandom spaces. Stories that can often blow canon out of the water for TV shows and movies since fanfic isn't limited by budgets or studio policies or marketability concerns. Fans who think that the source is perfect tend to just write fluff or romcom type fics, which is not a dig! I love bother of those genres! But woman does not live on fluff alone.

Obviously there's some complexity here because who decides if a show is bad? Saying "it's okay that you like a terrible thing" can certainly sound like an insult and prompt a feeling of needing to defend the thing, which is why I don't fight with fans who like the show. There's really no need to convince them that the thing they like is bad. Do I think it is? Yes. Does it matter if they disagree? No, not really. At worst, they create stories with similar issues and, well, they're not the only ones and fighting with them isn't going to stop them. You're much better off focusing on creating your own good media and trying to get that popular. Heck, even if you made the head writer see all of Miracuous' flaws, it wouldn't change anything. The show is already made.

So, yeah, I don't really assume anything bad about people who think that miraculous is good. I know lots of wonderful people who have terrible taste in media and I'm still friends with them. I just don't take recommendations from them.

It's important to remember that, when you're online in a fandom space, a person is condensed down to a very tiny snapshot of who they are and judging a person solely off of their thoughts regarding a poorly written kids show is a dangerous path to tread. Like, looking at this blog, you might assume that I spend all of my time thinking about miraculous and obsessing over its flaws, which is very much not the case. I actually have this blog specifically so that I don't obsess over miraculous' flaws because I've found that, when something is bothering me, writing it down or talking to someone about it is the best way to stop thinking about it. Even then, most of my posts are reblogs of stuff I come across while browsing my tumblr feed, which is not solely miraculous content. I mostly interact with the show by creating non-salty fanfic that I honestly enjoy writing and find to be a relaxing, positive outlet.

It's human nature to judge and it's totally normal to think that a person's an idiot because of something they post online, but be careful to not lean into those thoughts too hard. At the end of the day, Miraculous is just a stupid kids show that will fade from the popular consciousness a few years after it stops airing. If it and/or the fandom are negatively affecting your mental health, then it's okay to step away for a while or use the block button. It really is your best friend. I enjoy being critical about Miraculous specifically because it's not that important. While I do think that kids deserve better media, I don't think Miraculous is some terrible evil harming the youth. I'm not horrified when a kid watches it, it's just not a show that I'd encourage them to watch and, if the kids was close to me, we'd spend a lot of time talking about the bad things that the show showcases from time to time. There are lots of episodes that are fine and I can think of way worse kids shows. Shows that tell their horrifying morals really well, making a kid far more likely to pick up on them and internalize them.

*Note that I only feel comfortable talking about the head writer like this because he's a public figure with an active social media presence AND because I'm not @ing him. If he was a private person or if he was not a professional creator, then I would not talk about him like this and even in that context I try to avoid it whenever I can. You can think that he's a terrible writer, but he's still a human being and, as far as I'm aware, nothing he's done deserves people harassing him.

I absolutely understand how devastating it can be to see a story you love get ruined by the creative team. The first time that happened to me, the life lesson I came away with was, "I will no longer put my happiness in the hands of another creator. I will enjoy stories, but I will temper my expectations and remember that they're just another human being and it's completely possible that their vision for this seemingly awesome story may end up being terrible."

[thewertsearch]

Asks Comp - 16/4

I literally did not know The Baby Is You was a thing. To be welcomed back into the comic like this after four months is very on brand for Homestuck.

... and wow, its outro really does match the end of this song, doesn't it? That's even funnier than if he'd snuck some of Megalovania in there.

Ooh, that's another liveblog I'll want to check out when I'm done! I've never actually seen a Worm liveblog before. Adding it to the list myself!

Nothing's really changed since I've been gone! I make a conscious effort not to do much Homestuck analysis off-blog, since I want my journey to be fully documented here.

It's good to be back! I'm looking forward to a full reread when I'm done.

Would you believe I didn't even know there was a book?

I also didn't know the movie had two (allegedly) terrible sequels, which is very funny. Neverending story indeed.

Thank you! I can't take too much credit, though - most of my tagging system has been crowdsourced from askers!

At some point, before we reach the end of the comic, I'm going to have to formalize my approach to liveblogging Homestuck's side content.

What I'll probably do is give each of them the 'lite' treatment initially, but if they turn out to be more canonical than I thought, or particularly interesting to liveblog, I'll 'zoom in', and analyze them properly. We'll see how we go!

Could you imagine the relationship dynamics in your average troll soap opera? The shipping web for a single season would make our heads explode.

It's a fun question. What sort of object symbolizes everything?

The first thing I'd try would be a star chart, Dave's magnifier and a literal planetful of Grist.

Added to the list! Not until later later on, though - I'd worry that the opinions and theories of another liveblogger could interfere with my own, especially if they're talking about it with someone who's already read it!

I would find it hard to disagree.

Do people think Act 1 is pointless?

I mean, it is the slowest Act in terms of pacing, but slow pacing isn't always a bad thing. You sort of have to take it slow when your readers have this much to get to grips with.

...okay, maybe we didn't need quite as many Sylladex mishaps as we got. But we still needed some. Homestuck has a lot to introduce you to.

I always pictured an English accent for Hass - although, interestingly, I didn't picture one for Jade. As a headcanon, I like the NZ one better.

Where did Grandpa grow up again, actually? He was raised by Fake Mark Twain, who was from Missouri - but I don't have a clue what a Missouri accent sounds like, let alone one from a century ago. I have a funny feeling that it's not the accent I'm imagining coming from Jade.

Now that's a ship I'd never have seen coming. Props to Hussie for coming up with something more controversial than my Feferi<>Equius.

All four kids, with four endgame weapons, might be able to challenge Jack's current incarnation - but they're not going to get the chance. You've hit the nail on the head - he's semi-perfect Jack for a reason.

I have several theories for Jade's prototyping, and every single one of them would make Jack even more dangerous than before. It's just barely possible to challenge him now, but things will only get worse.

Read the room, Serket!

Would Vriska have tried to negotiate? She feels like the type of person who'd rather take a beating than admit they're outclassed. Plus, I'm not sure how much she'd have to offer Aradia, who seemed entirely motivated by revenge (and, possibly, secretly motivated by timeline stuff).

All that said, I would have loved to hear Vriska trying to worm her way out of this.

I love it! Please send in the completed house, if you get the chance. That's going to look so cool with a moving meteor.

And they're both easily distractible! This feels like two people who might actually get on surprisingly well, if they were in, say, the same high school class.

It's hard to say what's a rarepair, since I don't know what ships are rare in the fandom - although I'd have a few guesses about the most common ones.

If we're going for a ship with very tenuous connections, I will submit Rose x Feferi for your appraisal. They're both fans of the Noble Circle, and their signature colors are pretty close.

You know what, I'll just review all of your ships. Tavros/Gamzee - PB&J - is pretty cute. [] I'd recommend Miracle Child for a number of reasons, but it does include a well-written Gamtav. Jack/Droog is more <> to me than it is <3. Like One Sundered Star might be influencing that? I'm not really sure. Somewhere I think I saw a Jack<>Droog. Your pre-shipping chart post isn't in the chrono; also, I'm pretty sure the A6A6I5 ask is one of mine. Gamzee/Eridan is a rarepair; I've seen it, but not often, and it's a <> in the fic I'm referencing. Kanaya<>Terezi and Feferi<>Vriska are strange enough that I've never seen them anywhere, really. [] And finally, Vriska and Tavros. These two are the textbook example of why the ashen quadrant needs to exist, and they're a perfect pair for it. [] ~LOSS (8/1/23)

I don't even know if Carapacians have moirallegiance - but those two would definitely work if they did.

Out of all my ships you flagged as rare, I think my favorite is Feferi<>Vriska. I just think they'd gel weirdly well together!

[thekimspoblog]

Sweetness

Jimmy is around in "Slippin Kimmy", but there's no suspense or tension about his relationship to Kim. He's always loved her, he always will, even as he fights her it's almost inevitable that he will do what she asks. There's nothing "will they or won't they?" about this relationship.

The real whirlwind romance in this story is between Kim and a pistol.

We see her practicing at a shooting range with this handgun at the tail end of Episode 1. Then, in an extended flashback in Episode 2, we see where she got it: during the crisis at the Florida clinic, it was knocked out of the active shooter's hands and Kim grabbed it. She didn't use it on anyone; she just wanted to take the gun away from the bad guy, but she also chose to flee the scene before the police showed up. At first, Kim wanted to get rid of the gun, but after being attacked by the crooked cop she decides to keep it and learn to use it.

The gun continues to make appearances in Episodes 3, 4, 5, and 6, mainly as Kim attempts to do business with Dawson, and I want to spend a lot of time on the duality of Kim's feelings towards this object. In her mind, the pistol represents acquiescence to an extremist worldview, where everything comes down to a matter of life or death. And even as someone who's become disillusioned with the government, Kim is still warry that true justice cannot be carried out without an appreciation for nuance. On the other hand, the gun also represents responsibility: There's a recurring theme this season about Dawson and his meat industry, how everyone wants to eat steak but few people want to kill the cows, and how the money Dawson has made from doing the dirty work for the public is what has made him rich enough to perpetrate all this political corruption. The implication being that perhaps the "Law" is something similar; we put our faith in a higher institution to maintain social order for us, but this doesn't eliminate the ethical problem of vigilantism; it just outsources the power to make difficult choices to an untrustworthy third party. It doesn't matter how you order society; as long as you entrust one person to hand down punishments for everyone else, that person is going to be exempt from punishment themselves. The way Dawson sees it, the only alternative - the only mature choice - is chaos. He wants to return to the anarchy of the wild west, where if you're a MAN you don't come crying to Big Brother about your problems, you deal with your enemies with your own two hands.

This all comes to a head in Episode 7, when Kim finds Mary in the church playhouse. Mary gives Kim an ultimatum: if Kim endorses (or at least condones) Mary's crimes as justified, then she must give her food and shelter in the Church. If she condemns her actions, the moral thing for Kim to do would be to end Mary here and now. Mary has no remorse for the people she's killed, she even tells Kim she plans to kill more people, but she also realizes that without support she will probably be dead in a few weeks anyway. She just doesn't care anymore, she's too hurt confused and angry. She dares Kim to put her out of her misery, because that way at least Kim would stop Mary from taking other people down with her.

In spite of everything that has happened, Kim makes the choice to call the police and turn Mary in. Even though she knows getting the law involved means Jimmy will be going back to prison, and likely this time she'll be joining him. But emergency services don't answer the call: the rioting in Cheyanne means that the police won't arrive for hours if at all. Outsourcing this ethical quandary to the justice system has officially been taken off the table, so Kim must choose between helping Mary or killing her. And still, Kim does neither, opting instead to tie Mary up until police arrive or she can think of a better plan.

She keeps the gun trained on Mary just to keep her in check, all the while Mary egging her on to just pull the trigger already. But then, a distraction! Kim turns her back on Mary for two minutes because she thinks she heard Jimmy scream, and that is enough for Mary to wriggle free of her bindings and tackle Kim. She wrestles the pistol away from Kim and escapes out the Church's front door. Kim never sees the handgun again.

So everything comes down to a matter of perspective, and more specifically a question of whether Mary's victims deserved to die. Episode 7 put Kim in a position where she was going to break the 6th commandment no matter what, where her choice was between murdering a murderer or sparing that murderer's life so she can continue to kill other murderers. Was it cowardly, that Kim refused to do either option, and in doing so she ended up letting someone else make the choice for her? Or was it brave, that in spite of everyone around her trying to push her to her extremes, Kim refused to approach the dilemma as a binary? Maybe what's important is that Kim found a line she wasn't willing to cross, even if part of her knows that line is arbitrary.

In any case, this was the second time Kim's held a gun but it won't be the last.

[captainsolocide]

solo talks about cbs elementary part 1

okay so yesterday I made post wondering if anyone would be interesting in hearing my cbs elementary thoughts. in the tags of that post I threatened said that one note was all it took to make this (a fleshed out series? of posts detailing pretty much everything I've ever thought about this show) happen, and for better or worse, I got that note, so instead of studying for one of my two midterms I have next week, I started this!

I am currently in the first half of season 4 but I started recording my thoughts from the very beginning. unfortunately they are very disorganized, so at least until I get to where I am currently watching I think I'm going to group these by multiple episodes. This section covers about the first half of season one

Since I've watched past the episodes I'll be talking about at first, I thought I would also add commentary if I have any hindsight to add to any of them. Any future knowledge commentary will prefaced as such.

Enjoy! and don't be afraid to leave your own thoughts if you feel so inclined, even if you completely disagree. I am insane about them so I am always ready to discuss :)

the good:

Holmes getting weird with his investigating (i.e. sniffing the walls, crawling around on the floor, licking things, etc.). It is very important to me that Holmes is, at the end of the day, a weird little guy

bitchy Holmes! Also very important to me! This also ties in with Holmes having emotions, but basically I just want Holmes to be written like the drama queen he is. (future solo thought: Elementary and JLM consistently do a good job of portraying him as such)

Avoidance of both teh stupid Watson and angry Watson trope. At this point, that's perfection

Holmes hates rich people! (future solo thought: I did not realize just how much copaganda there is in this how. it's very difficult to portray some of his more left-leaning ideals in shows like this, so I'm honestly glad for whatever scraps we can get)

I think Holmes having tattoos is a good call for a modernized version of him

crediting Watson with helping even when she hasn't done anything — this is something ACD!Holmes does as well and I think it's really funny (of course we know that Watson actually does help, just not always in obvious ways — sometimes even she's confused when Holmes thanks her, it's just funny the way he does this because he very rarely elaborates)

Encouraging Watson to make her own deductions (future solo thought: at this point in my watching this I didn't realize they were going to make Watson a detective in her own right, so this goes double now)

Telling Watson that she's necessary to his process fairly early into their relationship — we love codependent besties <3

Watson as a puzzle — not everyone likes this read of their relationship, but personally I love it

"WATSON!!!" — when Holmes yells her name like this I cannot help but be reminded of Jeremy Brett which can only do good things for my opinion of JLM's version

Holmes having daddy issues is always fun to explore, not mad at all if they decide to do more with this (future solo thought: I was very correct in this lmao)

Holmes just 🧍‍♂️-ing next to Watson's bed to wake her up occasionally. Again, reminds me of Brett, and it's objectively funny

"My dear Watson," I love this sentiment in the books when Holmes was saying this every other sentence, so seeing him say that at a time where it's not as common. It means a lot. To me.

Holmes' reaction to Watson calling herself his friend 🥹🥹

CIGARETTE ASH MONOGRAPH YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FAMOUS

Okay. This one needs some explaining. Holmes starts out misogynistic does go in the good BECAUSE I think his growth through that can be a really interesting and important thing to watch — it shows that even the smartest of us can hold unconscious biases that we need to do work to undo

the bad

The reworking of Watson's backstory — not all of this is bad, in fact some of it was necessary to distinguish Joan as her own character, but I do resent how Watson's tragic backstory in this meant that her doctor title is not used, and I feel like taking away Watson's injuries was missed opportunity as well

no live-in Mrs. Hudson = Watson getting relegated to house keeper duties, something that character does not do in the books. wonder what the difference is here? (future solo thought: this was a bigger issue in season one, I think. as far as I can tell, there seems to be a more even sharing of household chores as their relationship develops more, but my point for early season one stands)

Copaganda. It's lame and not in line with Holmes' characterization if you think about it for more than two seconds. I understand he works with them sometimes, but the amount of respect they have Holmes have for the police is disgusting. there have been several episodes I could barely finish because it was just so so bad

Holmes called Freud a genius in season one. girl.

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Is any mention made in Ed's old radio show that he was dating a teenager at the time? If you do a deep dive (and a bit of math) on his now wife's Instagram, she was 17 and he was 24 when they first got together. Not illegal, but I'm not wrong to find that icky, right?

No mention of that, but I'm into April 2010 at the moment, which would be before that started happening. Having checked, though, you do seem to be right, though they might have been 18 and 24, which I guess is better, though still not great. Is there any chance you know from looking it up that it was definitely 17 and not 18?

Yeah, extremely icky, technically legal but I have spent enough time working with teenagers, and with adults who behave inappropriately around teenagers, to know that as soon as you start describing a situation as "technically legal", the older guy in that situation is probably someone you, at minimum, want to stop inviting out to pub nights (example from my real life). Does it also mean you want to stop listening to that guy make dirty jokes on a podcast that suddenly seem less funny if you know he was actually willing to sleep with teenage girls in real life? Yep, probably, to be honest thinking too hard about this is making me feel slightly physically sick so I'm going to stop. Not saying... I guess that age gap is not objectively bad enough so it should automatically make people feel sick. But it does make me feel sick due to experience.

I started a Taskmaster re-watch a few weeks ago, it went well until I got to season 4, which was my favourite season (narrowly nudging out 5 and 9) until a couple of years ago when I learned about Noel Fielding's history with teenage girls as well, so when I got to season 4 on the re-watch and remembered that Noel Fielding who used to be my favourite is difficult to watch now, I just stopped the re-watch for a bit. Picked it back up yesterday and decided I can ignore it enough to watch a Taskmaster season, it's not like I'm hanging out with the guy in real life. Got this message while I was watching Taskmaster and trying not think about adult men sleeping with teenage girls, may have initially reacted defensively especially since I actually tried to calculate the age gap from the start of the Gamble relationship months ago and thought it wasn't that bad, then later today I checked again and it turns out I added it up wrong months ago, and you're right. Maybe. She might have been 18. But still.

Honestly combining it with the Taskmaster re-watch is weirdly making me feel like this might be less likely to ruin the Peacock and Gamble podcast for me, just because it sort of gives the impression that if you'd like to avoid men who've slept with teenage girls when they were adults, you basically have to avoid all comedy. Hence the feeling vaguely sick and finding this depressing. But yeah, you're right, very icky, it'll probably be a couple of days before I can tell whether this has actually ruined my ability to enjoy listening to Ed Gamble talk shit. God fucking damn it. I don't know, it's probably not even that objectively bad, I do have a particular trigger point for the issue of adults sleeping with teenagers, because of the work I've done in my life. But of all the things to get disproportionately triggered about in life, I don't think that's a horribly unreasonable one.

It's not even about the action for me, not the part of it that makes me find it viscerally icky. It's the mentality. It's because I've worked with so many teenagers and see them as young people that I want to protect, and then knowing that other adults can look at them and see someone to want to have sex with, that makes me feel sick regardless of the specifics in a situation. It makes me feel like it tarnishes everything I've done with my life. Like actually people are right to be suspicious of adults who get personally close to teenagers.

Sorry I thought you were wrong at first and made a post to that effect (which I've now taken down so hopefully you just didn't see it), I just wanted you to be wrong. Fuck.

Quick question, just in case I find that my ability to listen to Ed Gamble's voice without feeling sick does not recover within the next couple of days so I need to listen to something else instead. Does anyone know whether any members of Pappy's Fun Club have, to the very best of all public knowledge, ever slept with a teenager while being an adult? Just fucking tell me now, don't let me find out ~85 episodes into a really funny series of podcasts.

[brionysea]

oh and while i’m at it i’ve been thinking about the absolute labyrinth of max's fears that was exposed through her vecna visions

layer 1 - vecna, wearing her mother’s face, tells her that she won't get anything she doesn't deserve, which serves as foreshadowing for her fear that she broke her family and that she thinks something bad should happen to her as cosmic retribution for her being Evil TM (when she’s literally just 15 and an abuse survivor who’s severely traumatised from seeing said abuser die right in front of her) before it was revealed to the audience

layer 2 - the letter she wrote to billy. the whole thing. that was packed full of lies. it’s the reaction she thinks she’s supposed to be having; that his death ruined everything, that she fantasises about saving him, that she’s sorry for what happened to him, that she wishes they could have been real siblings. it’s what she thinks she’s supposed to say

layer 3 - this one exposes layer 2 as total bullshit. vecna reveals through bits and pieces that max wanted billy to die, that she thinks about following him into death, and that she thinks she’s too sick for her friends to help her. max calls bullshit on the last one

layer 4 - here’s where we get to the attic. max admits that the bulk of what was revealed in layer 3 was right, in terms of her having those thoughts, if not their objective truth. she admits that billy made her life a living hell so she wanted him gone, but when he actually did die and she watched it happen not knowing if he deserved to be saved, it made her hate herself and want to die too because she thinks that “good” people don’t have thoughts like that. she thinks she needs to be punished for it

layer 5 - when the lure works, vecna makes max think that lucas is reacting with shock and disgust to everything she said. she thinks he’s affirming her worst thoughts that yes, actually, she is a sick and horrible person, and it would be better if she was dead. this is why she was pulling away from everyone. she was afraid that being honest with them would result in rejection, so she pulled away first so that if she ended up alone she could pretend it was her choice. it didn’t really work, because her friends never gave up on her. they all spent the whole season worrying about her, and she knows it; she knows that even if lucas suddenly decided that he hates her, he would never say that she’s better off dead. that’s what tips her off to it being a trick

layer 6 - when vecna talks to her in the snow ball memory he says that she’s brave(r than her brother), but ultimately weak and fragile, “just like him”. this brings up the guilt and fear she feels that he was suffering before he died, too weak to fight off the upside down until the very last second, and that it’s all her fault. it’s also a callback to the conversation she had with lucas in the junkyard about how she doesn’t want to be like billy. she knows she can lash out when she’s hurt but she’s terrified of crossing that line. she’s scared that she turned into him, a cruel jerk who takes her own pain out on others, and that she’s going to die like him, too weak to keep going, horifically and painfully and too young, and that everyone’s going to be better off for it

[flightfoot]

Uhm I dont know if u saw it if not I dont want to spoil details.. so... whats your opinion on that whole Lila thing now in the trailer?

Cause OOF, toxic Marinette stans are getting more and more validated by the show now. I thought season 4 Ladybug getting to cherry pick Cat Noirs rights in their partnership fully on her terms alone while leaving him fully oblivious to the actual offenses was bad enough bc it validated Marinette stans in their thinking that Marinette focused morality is all thats important... but now THIS with Lila?

Man I hope season 5 is not going to sacrifice even MORE characters for Marinette focused black-and-white morality. Chloes humanity was also already thrown out of the window bc she is Marinettes bully and therefore unworthy of spmething resembling an happy ending and Ladybug was declared above the long lost guardian culture she is in posession of its most important object their lifes and culture was dedicated to... bc oh boy Su-Han is a man and yelled at her. That sure excuses Marinette being written to completely disregard the entire guardian culture, traditions and set rules in her own guardianship she had no idea in what shes doing (how could she?) while doing whatever she wants to the long lost cultures holy relic and its spellbook.

But what does that matter? he YELLED, the horror. Invalidate the whole celestial guardian of the Miraculous, he yelled and asked marinette to follow important rules so he can only be redeemed by bowing to her, begging for her forgivness and doing whatever she says. Yay. its not like Suhan always ended up giving into what she wanted in season 4 so maybe we could have had an ounce of a compromise in this? no? Oc not...

I miss the first two/three seasons so much. I once enjoyed Marinette ALOT as a main character but ever since season 4 everything that goes against Marinettes will is either dehumanized or even demonized by the show or drowned in respect-women-juice™ until it gives in...

I hope Kagami and the rest of the class are not going to get that treatment either (Kagami because shes Tomoes daughter and she might be used in s5 by her, Lila or whoever in a way that opposes Marinette, and the class.. well, LILA is in the resistance.. and GOSH I hope the show will let Alya know about Lila's actions real soon or else she's gonna get salted to all hells again

Man I miss how things were back in season 2...

...I'm confused. I'm guessing you're talking about the trailer where we saw Lila cutting Marinette out of various photos she's in? I don't get what this has to do with "validating" Marinette-centric morality or anything like that, I think everyone agreed that Lila hates Marinette, whether they like Marinette or not.

I don't think that Chloe not getting a redemption arc (not yet, anyway) has anything to do with Marinette-focused morality. While she might have slightly more of a focus on Marinette, she bullies everyone, not just her. Chloe not getting the Miraculous back has to do with her really not being that great of a person in general, not just because Marinette doesn't like her.

As for the whole deal with Su-Han - frankly, he IS a jerk. Yeah, sure, Marinette had the super important object that their culture and traditions center around and are dedicated towards... but that object is the Miracle Box. With the Miraculous in it. Which are sapient creatures with their own opinions on things who have decided that they really like Marinette and the way she does the job of Guardian. "Respecting someone else's culture" isn't really a thing when that culture involves mistreating sapient creatures who prefer to NOT be treated like that.

And also when there's currently a major threat against the city you live in. If the tradition endangers the ability to stop people from getting hurt, then stopping people from getting hurt overrides that tradition.

I don't particularly like Su-Han kow-towing to Marinette and begging for her forgiveness, but that's more because it makes him seem pointless as a character. What's the point of making him this big old asshole who stands in her way and yells at her, and then folds and begs for forgiveness at the slightest bit of pushback? Either make him a genuine obstacle that she has to struggle to overcome (and who changes his mind about Marinette gradually, after she's had to make a lot of effort, not just by yelling at him a little), or make him genuinely helpful early on, don't do this weird thing in the middle.

I don't think the show has dehumanized or demonized everyone who's gone against Marinette? Not now, not in season 4, and not before that, either. Some of Marinette's biggest fans have done that (anyone who's followed me for any amount of time knows of my virulent hatred for Saltinette and everything that comes with her), but the show itself? No, not really.

I think Kagami is safe, no matter what the show does with her. There are five characters who the Saltinette crowd consistently champion as great, who're almost always shown in a positive light in saltfics, who're usually part of Saltinette's posse: Marinette (naturally), Felix, Chloe, Luka, and Kagami. I doubt that anything canon does with Kagami is gonna change that group's mind about her, not after they've been using her this way for four years.

Alya... yeah I'm more afraid for Alya. If there's an excuse to demonize Alya, I assure you, it will be taken. I hope that Alya finds out that Lila is actively malicious soon as well, and that we get a Fox vs. Fox storyline. Alya deserves it, with how badly she's been treated by the saltdom in part because of Lila.

[notesofarichlycolorednight]

s1ep1 stormy weather

man the creator really should have never said he was heavily inspired by magical girl anime (read: sailor moon) bc now all i do is making comparisons as i rewatch

the pacing felt better until the very end, when the writers started to have to wrap things up. like the fact that either of them can just look at someone and go, "huh they look pretty similar, they must be the akumatized person" and "and the akuma must be in her umbrella" is ASTOUNDING

it's too contrived. it doesn't make sense! how did they logic that out in 0.2 seconds? bc the plot needed them too?

again it's a symptom of the creator taking elements he liked from sailor moon and not knowing what to do with them or how to incorporate them into something original. if he was going to have the concept of akuma that infect an object that's special to the victim, then he should have spent more time coming up with a way for ladybug and chat noir to figure out what the object is when they encounter an akuma.

in sailor moon they completely skipped past that problem by not having the evil eggs infect an object, just the person. and the creator/writers should have done something similar or, again, thought longer and harder about how ladybug and chat noir would logic that out.

another thing i thought about at the end is the fact that s1 and s3 are interchangeable.

the other issue i have with ml that i've stated before is the fact that the writers treat it like a serialized show when the structure is episodic and don't even attempt to strike a balance between the two, which has been done time and time again, so we know it's possible with competent writers.

specifically, i was thinking about power-ups bc again, you could pick out most episodes from s2 or even s3 and place them into s1 and someone who's never watched the show wouldn't bat an eye.

and what i mean by power-ups is that every new season of sailor moon, her heart crystal that powers her make-up pouch (i forgot what they call it laksdjf) gets damaged and she has to do a little soul-searching before getting a power-up/upgrade. not only does she get a new look, but the heart crystal evolves and gives her new powers to face their new enemy, and gets character growth with it.

and what facilitates this is often them facing a new, more powerful enemy! it's a really good set-up for a new season and a really good way to raise the stakes! what's more is that sailor moon is often worn out or can't use her powers to their full ability, which i feel like really grounds her character.

the problem with ml is it never does that. sure, they have magic food that helps them adapt to different environs when needed, but neither ladybug nor chat noir ever get a permanent costume change/upgrade. their powers never fail them at a critical moment, forcing them into a character growth arc. and likewise, hawkmoth never really becomes more powerful than he already is.

i know in later seasons, they try and pretend he's growing more powerful by revealing the peakcock miraculous, and at one point obtains all, or most of, the miraculous and wears them. but that's a false and forced raised stakes.

we already know ladybug is going to think of a way out of it. bc she always does. she's never faltered. there's never really a moment in the show where we feel like she's actually in danger of not beating the bad guy.

but in sailor moon? god i can still remember how i felt after that first season, watching sailor moon's crystal lose its power and shine, and her detransforming. it was terrifying!!

and we never get anything like that in all 3 (i say 3 even tho there are 5 bc i haven't watched any episodes from 4 or 5 and am giving it the benefit of the doubt even tho i shouldn't and honestly don't) seasons.

everything is stagnate. the writers treat the show like it's both serialized and episodic, but only write for it as if it's episodic. and it's a worse show for it.

[aurelion-cerulean]

Defeating Vecna Part 1

Buckle up this is a long post.

By this point everyone and their family have talked about the possibility of Will Byers getting powers.

From his relation to the D&D classes of Wizard and Cleric. To his relationship with the upside down. There is a lot of speculation not on if but on when he’ll get his powers back. If you want to see more on that, so many other people have done posts on it.

I’m of the opinion that Will has powers and he’s chipped (like 001/Henry was) to limit them. CauseINeedU has a good TikTok explaining why Will could be a lab kid and while I’m not sure that’s true, I do think there’s a high chance that his powers were blocked.

Will’s powers along with how he acted (shy, softer, kinder) were two reasons Lonnie hated him. Will at some point was taken to the hospital and Hawkins Lab, realizing they couldn’t take Will from Joyce (because unlike the other lab kids who grew up in the lab, he grew up with Joyce) decided to chip him instead. I think there is a strong chance 001/Henry was involved with this.

When 001/Henry gets El to remove his limiter, he destroys the lab and wants her to be by his side and to rule with him. El obviously sends him to the upside down. Once there he accumulated his power (as we know) and connected to the mind flayer. I personally also think that the Upside Down is not inherently bad, but 001/Henry connecting in and his lingering resentment to humanity is what made it become horrific. (This is when he becomes Vecna, as we call him.)

As of now we know that 008, 011, and 001 all still exist. But Vecna didn’t go for Kali, instead he kidnapped Will. I think this is because Kali is similar to El, strong willed and would not bend to his resentment. Kali would not be easy to manipulate, AND she isn’t located in Hawkins, which objectively is ground zero. Vecna needs someone with powers in Hawkins that he can manipulate, and who better than Will Byers who (as we saw in season 4) mirrors 001/Henry’s life.

I haven’t seen a post, myself, of all the parallels between the two, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there is. Roughly, they both don’t feel like they fit in/belong/etc. There are behavioral similarities, and then they both are connected to the Mind Flayer in some way.

I think 001/Vecna took Will with the intent to use Will’s powers and the Will himself, as a proxy to renter the world. Will was alive down there for longer than anyone else and it’s fair to assume that there was intervention, allowing him to do so. Vecna probably used a series of memories like he did with the others season 4. I think that Vecna was unable to convince Will because while Will is an outsider, he had Joyce and Mike. Joyce as a strong parental figure who cares and Mike as a strong friend, who also cared. Will constantly tries to contact his mother.

We know what happens from there.

We also know that the Upside Down is frozen in time revolving around Will (Nov 6, when he disappeared). There is good reason to suspect that Will using his powers down there, perhaps because the chip limiter malfunctioned while he was there (as CauseINeedU suggested), is the reason it was changed. We see that Vecna can manipulate the world, so why couldn’t Will?

How does this beat Vecna?

With Will there are four people with powers. Four is an important number in the show.

Now we look at that D&D fight in 4x1. It’s fair to assume there won’t be any more D&D in the show until the fighting is over so this fight doubles as the foreshadowing for season 4 and 5.

Henry/001 should have been dead, but he’s back as Vecna —> parallels the “but Kas killed him” (Kas as El)

They fight but everyone goes down but Dustin and Erica —> we see this in Piggyback, everyone is down and El find the power to push him back enough.

Dustin roles an 11 but that fails —> El fails to kill Vecna.

So what is left? A few things actually. More than just the crit from Erica. I think a lot of people have been focusing on the fact that she got a nat20, which obviously is a crit. And no matter how much we add the numbers unless Will is 009, we can’t get to 20. 11+8=19.

Okay well… Vecna goes good and the mind flayer is the big bad 1+8+11=20.

I don’t think this will happen, because I’m of the opinion that Vecna and resentment/fear of adulthood and being different is the ultimate evil here. This is a coming of age story, after all. I don’t think Vecna will change back to good. I think that he will die, but his death allows the Upside Down to return to peace (as if might not be inherently dangerous or evil). The unknown doesn’t have to be evil, it can be scary but it doesn’t have to be bad. This theme works better IMO. And I could argue that Vecna’s death could be returning to 001/Henry and giving him comfort and support, but… that’s a whole other thing.

We have no proof that Will is 009, but I won’t knock it completely. However, what I will do is give another option.

Instead of focusing on the number 20. Maybe it’s more important to look at the scene itself. Rewatching this scene two things really stand out to me. One. It’s Erica, the SUB, who roles the crit. Two, Lucas at the exact same time, shoots the winning basket.

The score goes from 69 to 68

To

69 to 70.

Seven is a number tied to Will, starting with infamous line: The roll, it was a seven. The Demogorgon… it got me.

What I think will happen is this:

El goes to find Kali. She’s the only other person with powers and El knows she can’t do it on her own. This happens before the time skip. We find out here how Kali escaped, if Vecna has tried to contact her, close up loose ends, etc.

Option 1 Kali dies before the time skip: this is because Vecna realizes what El is planning and kills her. How? Idk, but with her plot done (in a way), this is wrapped up. Two paths open for El. El either realizes Will has powers and trains with him or she doesn’t, and she trains alone so she can be strong enough to do it herself like Papa said.

Option 2 Kali dies after the skip: El and Kali would have trained in the whole skip. But ultimately Kali dies before the fight with Vecna and El realizes she’s still not able to do it on her own. This is when El realizes Will has powers.

I like this second option better because the Kali’s group can join (giving them more numbers) and her ideology of accepting misfits can spread a bit more. And I also think that Will having powers for the two year time skip would be weird, cuz I 100% think Vecna would try to stop that.

Regardless of when, I think El trains Will. I also think that his powers are different from her’s. (There is a lot here about El’s arc and her hyper independence/ that I think has to be addressed but Will should not have the same powers as her, because she IS unique.)

Also, I think there is a good chance that Kali would be the one to alert El to the fact that where Will feels Vecna (back of the neck, possibly where the chip is) is strange. And now that El has her memories back, she’d know why.

Will and El as a combined unit take down Vecna. El as the major powerhouse/fighter as Will disconnects Vecna from the Mind Flayer. Without the backing from the Mind Flayer, Vecna loses his minions. El finishes what needs to be done.

My proof from the D&D game.

Two people are left standing in the battle: Erica and Dustin. —> Two people are needed to defeat Vecna.

69 to 70 as the crit is rolled —> the crit is tied to the 70. 7 means Will. Will is needed for the crit hit against Vecna.

Erica, the SUB, roles the crit —> Will would be a sub for Kali.

Lucas and Erica are siblings. Both are needed for the win. —> Will and El are pretty much siblings.

With this in mind, there is the possibility for Will to be the sub for El. (As Erica subbed for her brother Lucas) And I don’t think that’s the case at all. I’m more inclined for the Will+El team up, because the two of them are also strange mirrors. When Will disappeared, El arrived. Will returned and El disappeared. They love each other and care for each other but they haven’t fought together in a real meaningful way. I think by having them team up together, we get a very interesting power up. Will would be able to face his demons, and El won’t have to fight alone anymore. It’s good symbolism.

Of course there will be efforts by the whole group. What those roles will be? I think it’s gonna be tied to their character arcs and the loose ends that are left. Defeating Vecna will be a combined effort, this is certain, but I think Will having powers is necessary.

[okeydrama]

every drama i’ve seen so far pt.3

record of youth

4/5

so beautiful & aesthetically pleasing

very lighthearted, like a slice of life more than a melodrama

Park Bo Gum <3

both male leads are super cute, I liked how they were both just nice

subverts a lot of traditional drama tropes, it didn’t feel as predictable as other dramas

there was a lot of cute scenes between the leads that made the romance very believable

it was easy to watch until the end, I didn’t really lose interest very often

the leads and most of the side characters were very flushed out in their motivations, dreams and purposes

it’s just so cute

I took a star off because of a few unnecessary scenes, plots and twists but they were not that bad

weightlifting fairy Kim Bok-joo

5/5

wow wow wow

this is one of the most iconic dramas i’ve ever seen

this is a friends to lovers drama which is not something we see often

the leads have so much chemistry and it makes sense that they dated in real life

the female lead is not traditionally feminine and it is so refreshing

the male lead is also not traditionally masculine and it makes him really likeable

the drama itself is hilarious and has many quotable sayings

the characters in this drama also have really flushed out motivations

the found family is iconic

the pacing of this drama was well done

the love triangle was interesting because you don’t necessarily root for her with the second lead but it is realistic portrayal of a teen girl’s coming of age

i just loved all aspects of this drama

true beauty

5/5

another one of my FAV dramas of all time

i was very hesitant about this drama because of the premise and not absolutely loving the webtoon but i gave it a chance and i absolutely don’t regret it

the pacing, energy, tone and aesthetics of this drama were not only consistent but were SO incredible

i had heavy second lead syndrome the entire time but unlike usual, i still loved the main lead and was fully invested in both leads scenes with the female lead

besides the main leads, the side characters were just as incredible

the secondary romance with the female lead’s sister was so cute!!! i genuinely watch an entire drama of just their romance

the female lead’s brother’s romance was engaging as well

unexpectedly, i cried because of this drama which, trust me, i never do and it was because of the incredible representation of mother daughter relationships

the message of this drama was misrepresented in my opinion and is much better than its portrayal

my only complaints are that the horror comic aspect of this drama should have been played up and that the bullying and addressing of bullying could have been touched on more or at least better

love alarm S2

2/5

this was very much a waste of my time

i think i’ve outgrown this story honestly because i was not at all invested in this season

basically, i love that she didn’t end up with the first season’s main lead, i think the person she ended up with was more suited to her and will treat her better

i also liked the maturity of this season compared to the last

the last thing liked was the sweetness of the romance

that being said, this is was mind bogglingly boring to me

the side plots and messages were unnecessary and took up too much airtime

the romance was also unnecessarily drawn out

the tone of this season was completely different than the last and it was a negative change in my opinion

the slow pace, drama and characters were not engaging

this was extremely dramatic and whimsical and it didn’t work for me in this story

yeah... just generally not a fav

reply 1988

5/5

THIS IS IT THIS IS IT THIS IS IT

i have never ever seen anything like this

this is the perfect show, like absolutely perfect

the depictions of familial, platonic and romantic relationships was PERFECT

the nostalgic vibe of this setting was incredible

the settings, wardrobes, objects and events were so well done

never has a show so perfectly invested me in every single character’s story while having so many characters

when i tell you i watched this entire thing in 2 days despite its length, i am not joking

i could not look away or think about anything else for the entirety of watching it and for a week after

there is an element of mystery with who the female lead ands up with and i was personally VERY happy with the result

another drama that i cried watching MULTIPLE times

the representation of different families, romances and personalities was incredible

there were so many scenes that were placed in that were not related to the plot and that was perfect because it was like we were watching their daily lives and interactions and made the watcher love the characters so much more

it is such a sweet, low stakes watch and such a slice of life story

some of my favorite plots: the father daughter relationship, the single-father son relationship, the single-mother son relationship, the protest storyline, the smart-mean-girl nice-good-boy love story, the moments over time create love, the first crush story, the working-mom son relationship, the found family group, the not knowing what the future holds and SO MANY MORE

reply 1997

5/5

i obviously had to watch another show in the reply series

i also LOVED this one

this was more focused on just the kids in the families rather than the families as a whole

the romances were so cute in this drama, and there were more romantic scenes compared to 1988, which i loved

the stan culture depiction in this drama was so interesting and fun to watch

i can’t express how much i loved that she was a kpop stan like it was so entertaining

this felt like a really good depiction of high school and how high schoolers are

i loved the vide of this drama too, the high school and concert setting were very immersive and comforting

the main lead’s romance was SO cute and i fully developed a crush on the male lead

it really felt like i was in 1997 Korea and it was so nice

the gay character representation!!!!! like this is HUGE for a kdrama and especially one set in 2012

I LOVED the female lead, she was so cool

the characters’ growths were so good and well done just wow

i will say that 1988 was better because of the elevation of the familial bonds and the general plot connections but the romances of this one were a lot more developed simply because there were so many scenes

they tried to do a mystery ‘who does the female lead end up with’ but it was very predictable compared to in 1988

hands down another favorite of mine

love in the moonlight

3.5/5

this was a hard one to rate

the romance for me is a 5/5 but the rating went down for a lot of reasons

firstly, i’m a huge fan of sageuk and this drama was a perfect one

Park Bo Gum <3

i think the leads ahead a lot of chemistry

i loved the side characters a lot, and especially the female lead’s friendships with them

the settings and aesthetics were A1

the banter was great

the plot was great and believable

the reason i had to lower my rating comes down to few minor issues that compiled so much that it hindered my enjoyment

the first issue i had is that here were SO many third act conflicts like waaaayy too many

the characters got together way too early so you can tell the writers created a bunch of issues to keep them apart and it could have been avoided if they hadn’t done that

the plot started imposing too much on the main storyline towards the end and i didn’t love that

the second lead was good compared to how they’re usually written so it was extremely bothersome that the love triangle wasn’t made believable, not once did i believe the female lead had any romantic feelings toward him

just generally the individual aspects of this drama were very good but when combined it was all over the place and not cohesive

anyway that’s the update, if anyone has any recommendations for me, please let me know. thanks for reading!

[aspoonofsugar]

Red and Gray in a Black and White World

Carmen Sandiego likes playing with colors.

In particular, VILE is black, while ACME is white.

This is why Carmen’s codename is Black Sheep, which later becomes ironic when she grows to be VILE’s literal “black sheep” and their thorn in the side. At the same time, Shadowsan too has a codename suggesting something dark in color. Of course, his name also foreshadows that he is the one protecting Carmen from the shadows.

Similarly, the ACME’s agent closest to Carmen is Julia Argent aka “silver”. She is not completely “white” and she is able to see the complexity of the world, differently from Devinaux and Zari.

As a matter of fact the whole point is that Carmen refuses a black and white vision of things. She doesn’t want to join VILE, but she doesn’t want to be a part of ACME either:

She wants to use her “wicked skills” for good.

This is a fitting theme for a show whose aim is to help kids learn about geography and how rich Earth is. It conveys the idea of complexity.

In other words, Carmen explores the world and its wonders at her own pace and with her own rules. This is expressed by her color being “red”. Everything about her is red. Her codename, her clothes and even her adoptive family:

Similarly, Gray is another character, who is neither black nor white, but (obviously) gray (duh).

This is made clear in Chief’s speech above and his moral complexity is also what makes his dynamic with Carmen so interesting.

“GRAY” AND “BLACK SHEEP”: NOT MY NAME ANYMORE

Carmen and Gray’s relationship is one of mutual attraction (platonic or romantic does not matter), but also of conflict.

They want the other by their side:

But they can’t agree on which side they should both be:

This is because they both refuse a part of the other. This refusal is well expressed through the name symbolism of both characters.

On one hand Gray keeps calling Carmen Black Sheep:

He refuses her new identity because he does not understand it:

On the other hand Carmen refuses Gray’s VILE persona, but also his civilian one.

This is interesting because her refusal of “Crackle” is something Carmen does willingly:

She does not genuinely understand it, just like Gray does not understand her being Carmen Sandiego.

At the same time, though, Carmen somehow also refuses Gray’s civilian identity and keeps calling him Gray instead of Graham:

Even if the brainwashing makes their friendship easier, Carmen still feels something is amiss. The person in front of her is not really “Gray”, but somehow a “white” version of him. It is not by chance that she is able to partially rebuild their past relationship by involving him in a dangerous mission:

And in this mission Carmen needs Gray’s “wicked skills” that are still a part of him. She becomes Gray’s link to his previous world:

Just like he is the one who symbolically introduces her to what truly means to be a criminal:

And to its harsher aspects:

At the same time, it is interesting that when brainwashed Carmen still refuses the codename Crackle:

And she only uses it when she thinks he has betrayed her:

In that moment it is as if Gray truly became “black” for her and changed from her partner in crime to an enemy.

In short, both characters can’t truly pintpoint who the other really is.

Who is Carmen really? And is Gray good or bad?

The answers to these questions are difficult because Carmen and Gray themselves are not sure until the end of the series.

THE MISSING MATRIOSKA AND BROKEN LIGHTS

Carmen does not know who she is, while Gray is caught up between his wish to be a criminal and his empathic side.

These internal conflicts are well conveyed through specific motifs linked to the two characters.

Firstly, Carmen’s journey of self-discovery is commented by the burnt matrioskas motif:

The matrioskas are what links Carmen to her biological family. They’re the only things she has had since she was born and it is later revealed they’re a toy her father used to calm her down.

At the same time, the matrioskas symbolize Carmen herself. Like her “oldest traveling companions”, she too is made of multiple identities who live inside her and change as she grows. She starts as Lambkins, grows into Carmen Sandiego and finally discovers her identity in  the finale:

Both in terms of her origins and who she wants to be:

The missing matrioska represents both. On one hand it is the link to Carmen’s past and it is symbolically the smallest one (like a baby). On the other hand seeing it makes Carmen remember who she wants to be.

In short, the matrioska is Carmen’s missing piece both when it comes to who she was and to who she will be.

As far as Gray is concerned, him being caught between “light” and “darkness” is conveyed by his electrician’s motif:

Gray’s criminal career started when a light bulb went off. This is an ironic inversion of a light bulb switching on when one has an idea. Still, it also symbolizes a fall to darkness. Gray’s job was supposed to switch lights on, but he chooses to turn them off, so that he can steal.

This motif comes back in season 2 ep 7 where Carmen’s mission is to stop Doctor Bellum from causing dangerous black-outs. This is tied once again to Gray’s character. As a matter of fact not only the objective is to avoid physical blackouts, but also to stop Graham turning back into Crackle once again. The blackout which must be avoided is the one of Gray’s personality.

At the same time, this motif is not as straightforward as it may seem:

As a matter of fact the whole reason Gray has turned into Graham is a metaphorical “black-out”. This is an interesting idea. Gray has left criminality and can have a new beginning and Carmen sees it as a positive thing. However, this whole new identity is a lie built through brainwashing:

Carmen has good intentions and is ultimately proven right about Gray’s good nature. However, she is still ready to accept a persona constructed through an unethical method.

She meets an idealized version of Gray, she realizes something is missing, but still accepts it. This is why she needs to see this illusion shatter and to confront the real Gray once more.

This happens when Gray gets his memories back:

The one on the Himalaya is the second real confrontation between Carmen and Gray after the one on the train.

At this point, we are shown how they have changed and how they have not.

On one hand Carmen is finally forced to accept that Graham was nothing, but an illusion:

However, she does not completely give up on Gray:

Even if confronted with the truth she still hopes Gray will change. It is just that this change to be true should happen because of her friend’s free will and not through a coercion.

On the other hand Gray has grown enough to accept Carmen:

And to realize she will never come back to VILE. However, he still begs her to stop fighting the organization. In short, he has grown a little, but is still asking Carmen to give up on her life mission, just like she wants him to give up on criminality.

The two characters have clearly grown closer, but they are still unable to see eye to eye and this is why they end the episode as enemies, despite this:

There is clearly affection between them, but this affection is not enough to let them overcome their rift. At least not in that moment.

THE FLYING DUTCH AND THE RED PHANTOM

In season 4 ep 4, while Gray is about to make his choice, we hear a song from The Flying Dutch in the background. This is not a surprise because Graham and Carmen’s relationship has also an Opera motif.

Graham works in a operahouse and famous operas pieces comment his relationship with Carmen while brainwashed. They meet at The Carmen, are reunited through The Swan Lake and finally Graham turns into Crackle again while The Flying Dutch is playing.

This last opera is important not only for Graham’s story, but also for Gray’s overall arc. As a matter of fact the story of this opera is one whose main theme is about how love leads to redemption.

This is precisely what happens to Gray in the end.

In particular, he finds himself in the position Carmen was just a while before: he meets an idealized version of Carmen.

Brainwashed Carmen is who Gray has wanted Carmen to be all along. She is loyal to VILE, close to him and in love with stealing.

However, despite Gray having all he ever wanted he quickly realizes he does not like it at all:

Black Sheep realizes she does not want anything to do with VILE after she sees how the organization has transformed Gray.

Similarly, Gray decides to betray VILE after he sees what they did to Carmen. This is interesting because, while Carmen refuses to work both for VILE and for ACME, Gray ends up working for both.

Anyway, in the end Gray leaves VILE out of love.

Not only that, but he shows to have been influenced by Carmen on a deeper level:

It is because of this that Gray survives his final confrontation with his old classmate.

All in all, Gray manages to save himself and he and Shadowsan are the two people that helped Carmen to save herself the most.

At the same time, Gray and Carmen’s story ends on a bittersweet note. They have both hurted each other, but still clearly love each other:

Despite this, they are avoiding each other. This is not something new, if anything Gray’s final choice:

Perfectly mirrors Carmen’s one in the first season:

Both times the two characters decide that the best thing for the other is for them to walk out from their lives. However, I think that both times this is wrong.

Carmen’s decision is later on proven wrong by how the story develops. Gray would have never truly changed if Carmen had not walked in his life again and he would have stayed prisoner of a lie forever.

Gray’s decision happens at the end of the story and seems to be built on this idea:

The idea is that Carmen deserves a normal life. She deserves to stop being a symbol aka Carmen Sandiego and to become a person. She can now live a normal life and meet her mother.

However, even if it seems Carmen will do just that and she even disbands her gang aka her adoptive family, in the end we are shown this:

Carmen has not given up on being Carmen Sandiego and on fighting criminality. Whatever happened after she met her mother, she goes back to her previous identity. This is because Carmen Sandiego is not just a mask she has worn all this time, but it is genuinelly a part of who she is. The difference between the beginning and the end is that Carmen previously was Carmen Sandiego because she did not know who she was, while now she is because she knows.

Carmen will always be both a good person and a thief. She is both and ironically she has told us (and Gray) this since the very beginning:

Because of this, Gray’s worrying he will make Carmen’s life complicated if he even just contacts her is probably false.

Anyway, in the end their relationship has an open ending, but both characters have both realized who they are and who they want to be and they have done so with the other’s help.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Gale's Top Ten: Worst ML Characters

Here are the rules:

1. This is based SOLELY on my view of the CANON Interpretation of the character. I am not doing anything based on Fanon Headcanons or Character fandoms. (If that were the case, Certain Characters would be MUCH higher.)

1.5: (I am not counting the comics I am going based SOLELY on what has been shown on the show)

2. Worst in the definition is the following criteria. A character I considers 1. Objectively bad, 2. Personally Bad, 3. Conceptually Bad. or a combination of the 3.

2.5. Something that is personally bad will not off worse for me then something Conceptually or Objectively bad. But the more a character hits these points. The Higher they will be.

3. They need to have to appear AT LEAST Once AND have dialogue in that appearance.

4. This list is MY OPINION, and nothing else. So if you don't like it or Agree, that is fine _______________________________________________________________________

10. Otis Cesaire/ Animan

Honestly he isnt bad as a character in most regards. I just CANT stand Animan. The akuma is such a LAZY idea. Like they didnt really give him a unique form and the reason he was akumatized was just so stupid. The reason he is so low is because he is fine in his other appearances. But I cant overlook how cartoonishly dumb his motivation for being akumatized was.

9. Vincent Aza/ Pixelator

I am going to level with ya, His civilian self REALLY skeeves me out. His akuma is kind of cool. but the dude is a creepy stalker and his appearance was just so cringe. Aside from that his akuma and his design are fine. I have no complaints about the episode outside of his character.

8.André Glacier

Honestly, the idea of him is good on paper, but any man that puts Orange and Mint ice cream together and calls that a good flavor combination is actually a sociopath that is ready to murder. Also, his akumatization reason was dumb. I also just find him kind of... bleh in most cases. Nothing really awful but just kind of irritating.

7. Zoé Lee/Vesperia

I should Clarify. i dont hate her specifically. I just Hate what she represents. She is a cheap cop out. She was designed to be the new bee hero and its clear that she was created by Thomas purely out of spite. Im not a Chloé stan, nor am I someone that cares if Chloé gets a redemption or not. But Sole Crusher and Queen Banana (the two episodes Zoé starred in) had this air of manipulation to it that just seemed so... distasteful. Chloé (who was always mean) was made out to be infinitely meaner coming off as cartoonishly evil. And then there is Zoé who we are TOLD is sweet, and kind and everything Chloé isnt. And thats the real problem. Zoé is a Character that we are TOLD to like. And that rubs me the wrong way. I want better for her, and I hope later seasons help expand on her more.

6. Luka Couffaine/ Viperion

As time goes on, I find my opinion on Luka shifting. But now I think I found a definitive Opinion on the character. He is basically the Zoé of season 2. Luka is the other love rival. In comparison to Kagami, who was developed and put as a strong character, Luka was sort of... put in and we are told is nice and good. Truthfully we dont really get much development for him until the first episode of SEASON 4. Up until that point we only had. 1. Is nice. 2. Is in Band. 3. Likes Marinette. 4. Is Juleka's brother. The problem is also with the framing we see him in. We dont get a perspective of him from Adrien's side. We only really see him from Marinette's Lens. And really most of Luka is just told by others. We are TOLD that Marinette likes him from like 5 different people before she says so. We are told that they are good together. Really its just a series of Tell and not show (Until season 4, and even then Gang of Secrets still does it). I will say he is at least more developed then Zoé, but for the most part their placement on the list is pretty much interchangeable. Though the deciding factor is just... the look. Zoé is nicer to look at aesthetically. So thats why she is lower on the list. Though if i included the fandom shenanigans involving him (he would number one because of just how awful the toxic stans were/ are)

5.Tikki

Tikki is my least favorite Kwami.

She is not really a great partner, she always seems to be the one that points out what Marinette is doing is wrong, the problem is, that most of the time, Marinette isn't doing something actually wrong. Tikki is the Lesson dealer in most episodes and the lessons usually don't make sense or are Obvious. Tikki can be caring, but she is just not that great at being an emotional support for Marinette. Which is ironic because you would think Plagg would be the worse partner Kwami, but he isn't. I hoped Season 4 would help fix tikki. But really it only showed how much BETTER the other Kwami are and she seems even LESS competent then before. Plus Tikki is so inconsistent that at times i am not even sure what she wants.

4. Nathalie Sancoeur/ Mayura

Now we are at the point when I personally dont like the characters. I never really like Nathalie at the beginning. She just seemed like a boring assistant Character, at least in the first half of season 1. Origins made me see her in a slightly more positive light, and when I heard rumors that she was going to become a villain, I was stoked. But then... her character dropped. Her love for Gabriel seems almost out of nowhere and her care for Adrien is sadly dismissed whenever Gabriel/Hawkmoth needs her. Her character could be so easily improved, but she was quickly made the sickly sacrificial lamb. There is so much potential with Nathalie and it makes me Angry how poorly done her character is. I don't hate her concept, I just hate the execution. Though to her credit, she is clearly the smarter of the two. And if she was the main villain she likely would have been a MUCH bigger threat.

3. Thomas Astruc:

I hate shameless Self inserts. There is an art to it. And really this was not a good one. I know it will be a bad episode the moment he shows up and has a prominent role. It just screams ego to me and it is greatly irritating.

2. Gabriel Agreste/Hawkmoth/Shadowmoth

I am a guy that LOVES villain character. Give me malicious villains, give me corny villains, give me theatrical villains, sympathetic villains, tragic villains, diabolical villains, genius villains, psychotic villains, silly villains, any sort of villain that is over the top. With Hawkmoth he just doesn't hit the notes right, they try to make him sympathetic, but then they make him so theatrical that he enjoys evil, they try to make him strategic in a few episodes but then have him akumatize pigeon man 72 times! His akuma can escape his notice and go rogue. His characterization is not consistent or defined, the main problem is, he isn't crazy enough to pull off the uncertainty. He is too sane to be insane, to incompetent to be threatening, too manipulative to be sympathetic. Hawkmoth suffers from being too much or not enough of a villain trait that makes him so middling. The only thing consistent is that he is a really s*** parent. I will say he is somewhat improving in this season but honestly not enough for me to say I enjoy his presence. We needed a new main villain 2 seasons ago.

1. Su Han

I hate everything he represents. He is the Grand master of the order of Guardians. He is shown to be an arrogant D-bag. He is unnecessarily disrespectful when talking to Fu. He is a coward, and he demands respect that is unearned. I use to really hate fu in the past, He use to be my least favorite character, Especially with the episode Feast. But after meeting Su Han, I got it. NO WONDER FU MADE THOSE MISTAKES, THIS A**HOLE SUCKED! Child abuse, potential Kwami abuse. The guy was a dill weed that him and his advanced order lost to a 4 FOOT BLUE DOG. His appearance RUINED the mystic of the order of guardians. Sure he has a cool fighting style and techniques, but that doesnt change the fact that the order of the guardians were incompetent idiots that couldnt handle 1 dog. Ladybug and Chat noir shoud have not cast miraculous healing, and left the order in the past where it BELONGED.

[bluethude]

Angry rant on Miraculous Ladybug season 3

Requested : No Character : Chloé Bourgeois, Marinette and Miraculous characters. Summary : Just me sharing what I think about the third season of ML, which was recently aired on Netflix, but focusing on Chloé Bourgeois and a bit of Marinette Dupain-Cheng Word count : 1354 words Warning : Just an angry rant so beware, eheh. There no point or anything logical, it’s just me saying stuff without really organizing the thoughts or developping, I write as I thought. There’s some foul language.

No, don’t tell me “But it’s a kids’ show !” because i’m tired of this excuse. Kid show doesn’t mean we should just have a crappy writting. Kids are kids, but they are smart and can understand more stuff than we assume. ✨​Let's go ! ✨​

I’m pissed.

This show has like golden ideas. Golden opportunities. Season 2 was quite good (for the show’s standard) and it showed some better writing. But then season 3 crashed everything.

Like I know what happens in season 4, don’t worry, I also know the episode Kuroneko was my breaking point and it was the episode who made me legit quit liking the show. Honestly, I don’t even know why I watched season 3. Maybe because I’m attached to this show, like I’m attached to RWBY ?

Anyway.

Golden opportunities, golden ideas but the writing is just horrible.

Like they treat Chloé legit like trash.

“Oh no, I can’t give you the miraculous anymore because everyone knows your civil identity” says Ladybug before giving a second time the Dragon Miraculous to Kagami who’s known to be the Dragon Miraculous holder. Even Kagami is a bit like “uh, what ?”

Honestly, the finale had huge potential. Like yeah, Chloé snaps, but of course it’s on her, not on Ladybug who never talked about her of not giving her the Bee Miraculous anymore, and who’s anyway so perfect that the least mistake is forgiven and everyone who’s against her is a bad guy uwu (note the sarcasm)

Yeah. I hate Marinette. Like honestly, I’m trying to find something to like about her. But I can’t, because any quality she might have is just crushed under the fact she’s just a creepy stalker, a person with an unhealthy obsession with a guy she barely knows or talked to. Like honestly, this attitude is grossing me out.

Marinette doesn’t need a miraculous, she needs a psychiatrist, ffs.

And I hate how the show portrays this unhealthy behavior as being cute and quirky. And in canon, her friends know about her behavior, but they’re just like saying it’s cute, romantic or whatever. I think the only one who objects about it, it’s Alix, but of course, she’s a tomboy, she can’t get it. The amount of unhealthy behaviour in this show is astonishing.

I want to throw so many insults right now.

Also, what’s up with shitting on Chloé like this ? Oh, wait, of course ! Thomas Astruc based her on one of his middle school bullies and all the frustration he has, he takes it on a fictional 14 years old with a broken home. And Marinette is actually based on the daughter he could’ve had with his ex ?

Okay buddy, go to therapy with your imaginary daughter and leave the fucking show.

Before you say I don’t get it because I wasn’t bullied, let me tell you something !

Yes I was bullied through my entire school life until high school by a blond girl, rich asf and rotten spoiled because her parents were never here so they gave her whatever she wanted and she hated my guts for no reason (probably because I got what she wanted but couldn’t have : a family or at least a loving parent.). I was bullied by this girl and her group of friends until the end of middle school and I hated the ground she walked on and I hated myself for not being able to talk back. I hated myself more than she could ever hate me.

But you know what I did ? I didn’t create an imaginary girl with a ton of home problems to take it out on her. I moved on. Moving on isn’t forgiving, it’s just deciding that you leave whatever you have behind, accepting what happened. I learned to love myself and to fix whatever she had done. I didn’t go to therapy, but I still fixed myself and now, I’m getting better and better each passing day, no matter what. Because I understood that this girl was feeling so miserable that she felt a need to bring someone down to feel better. That’s of course my own experience, I won’t say he needs to do like me. But I think he needs to take a chill pill once in a while regarding Chloé.

And honestly, anyone with brains can understand how it’s wrong to go against an imaginary 14/15 years old girl, no need to get bullied to get it. Especially when you’re a grown man like the creator of the show and you’re the one who created the character. Or you go to therapy, or you decide to confront your demons on your own and figure out how to deal with those. But you can’t avoid both and expecting to be a functional adult

I saw my bully in Chloé. And the creator wanted us to hate her. But Chloé ended up being my favorite character with Adrien, Gabriel and Nathalie.

Why ?

Because she was trying to get better, and any person who tries to better themselves always deserves help and love. But the creator took away this chance from Chloé and for any character to change and better themselves, for the sake of his vision who gave us this twisted show who’s praising the bad and punishing the good.

You can do like Astruc, and call me a bad person, a bully and whatever, for liking Chloé. I don’t care. Because in my mind, Chloé was and will always be just a kid who saw her mother leaving her before being told by her mother she didn’t have anything special (remember when her mom straight up told her “The only exceptional thing about you is your mother” while she was in tears. Or when Chloé asked “Why don’t you like me ?” to her mom ? Or how her mom barely remembers her own kid’s name ??? like it’s presented as a gimmick but it just really not funny when you think about it), who wanted to be genuinely liked by one person in her life (I don’t really think Sabrina and Chloé have a healthy friendship and we barely see Chloé really interact with Adrien), who needed guidance and who found a way to change and become the better version of herself with Ladybug, who in return after her hard work to earn the Bee Miraculous, treated her like trash until Chloé snapped in Heart-Hunter.

All Chloé wanted in this episode was to save her parents. And it was her right to get the Bee Miraculous, to at least help save her parents she saw being akumatized and attacking her or others. She was still hoping for Ladybug to come, give her the Bee Miraculous, even after being ignored over and over through the season. She wasn’t even told why she was ignored because perfect Ladybug didn’t bother to explain to her because she couldn’t find the time to do so. Even if Chloé lost the right to get the Bee Miraculous per the rule of “no one can know your identity”, it was her right to be explained things and not be kept in the dark.

For me, no wonder Chloé is at the core messed up.

Because despite all Chloé’s calls and attempts at having a chance to better herself, nobody came, except Hawkmoth and Mayura. And she snapped, being categorized as a villain until the end, throwing all her character developement by the window, just because the creator refused the mere idea to let a fictionnal teen, based on his bully, change for the better and be liked by fans.