#but then every time there's an episode that focuses on them they're just back to square one every time

[skrunksthatwunk]

not my dad not liking moral orel season 3 🤭🤭🤭that's so embarrassing for him (<- he's not wrong for feeling that way but i think it's like 60% because he doesn't like it when art gets weird and that's so so tragic for him)

[running-in-the-dark]

okay but. how am I supposed to ever watch another show again? I'll never love a show this much again. I'll never love all the characters in any show this much again. I'll never have an actual breakdown over a show's final episode again. I just want Leverage forever :(

[joshuaalbert]

they should invent a tom and b’elanna conversation that doesn’t make me want to hit him with a stick

[1shirt2shirtredshirtdeadshirt]

Sexism in TOS: Worst Offender, or Progressive in Retrospect in Comparison?

I see a lot of folks claim that TOS was the most sexist of the Star Trek shows by a landslide -- and while I agree that it definitely suffered from the sexism of the times, I also have other perspectives to share to give some food for thought.

I am of course not insinuating that TOS isn't sexist -- it is, but I have to ask folks to consider the breadth and depth of Berman's sexism in his run and ask yourself: Was Gene Roddenberry genuinely more sexist in his storytelling and delivery than Rick Berman?

I'm not telling you to feel one way or the other, but all I ask is that you hear me out and consider some perspectives and make your own balanced assessments. Nobody is obligated to share my opinion, but it means a lot just to have folks hear it and see their thoughts on the subject. So here is what I was originally responding to:

Someone's response to this photo:

"Devil's advocate. This was a part of the popular form of cardio during the production time of TNG. Yes, it was heavily sexualised by men, but so is literally every other way women work out. Men have been caught taking pictures of women while trying to do dead lifts, running on tracks and working on sled machines. They post them online to share too. The fact is, there is no way a woman can be shown working out without it going there. And yeah,t hat includes the combat forms of workout they do in Star Trek. Just look at how Dax dresses when she spars with Worf. Yes, they're dating, but still, same goes when 7 does and any other female.

Aerobics routines like this were made dirty and cringy. This was what women wore then by and large. This is how the workout was done. We make it cringy."

My response to them:

"I respect your take, but I disagree on a few fronts.

The miniskirt was chosen by the TOS female cast, not the male cast, specifically requested by Grace LW and affirmed by Nichelle and Majel who would go on to vehemently defend the miniskirt over the years as comfortable and embraced by them.

Grace said it was comfortable and seen as a symbol of female sexual empowerment during the 60s and thought it would be a progressive garment (and turns out that it was, as it was later adapted and worn by male crew as a skant on TNG) -- FYI those were designed by a gay man and Gene approved them.

This was also supposed to be Spock's TMP outfit:

Literally lingerie.

We saw both Uhura (who saves Kirk in from Marlena Mirror Mirror) and Yeoman Landon (the first to initiate combat with a classic Kirk-esque kick to help the Captain being attacked in The Apple) carry out their combat training in their Starfleet uniforms without ever being made to change into any ridiculous workout gear.

In fact, I'd argue Jim Kirk was sexualized even more than the ladies of the week on the show and I saw his naked body more than anyone else's on a fairly regular basis. He wore red yoga tights while topless in Charlie X while the women wore full length gymnastic suits that covered their entire body. If anything, it went out of its way to avoid sexualizing women practicing fitness in those scenes and instead focused on Kirk.

Gene confessed that he asked to have Shatner filmed in suggestive/provocative ways to "give something to the ladies", so he -- as he said -- liked to "film him walking away" or have him conveniently busting out of his shirts in just about every episode as it were, because Shatner apparently had great assets. LOL

Gene made an effort to at least sexualize both if he was going to sexualize one, and he carried that attitude forward in wanting the m/m and f/f scenes in the background on Risa for TNG. He also insisted that the men and women wear skimpy outfits on THAT TNG planet. You know the one. LOL I mean the dudes even had on less than the women:

Gene also gave permission to K/S shippers to have their conventions back in the 70s when he was asked for permission. Gene and Nimoy felt with all the skimpy outfits they had the ladies wear, why not let the ladies and gay men have their fun, too? It's how we ended up with moments like this:

Yes, those are two people dressed up as Kirk and Spock's penises doing interpretive dance. Gene didn't give two damns. LOL

In my eyes, that was a very progressive take on Gene's part for the 60s. It was actually PARAMOUNT STUDIOS who had the big problem with K/S stories and vehemently tried to shut them down. Gene literally hired slash authors on his payroll and even had several slash stories/writers published in his official Star Trek books (The New Voyages & The New Voyages II).

I feel I saw Uhura and women in TOS engaged in more physical combat/altercations defending themselves that Troi or Bev were shown holding their own.

In fact, Kirk used to get furious when someone would "dress up" his female crew members without their consent (Trelane episode, Shore Leave episode) because like his male crew members, he wanted them to be treated professionally and to also have his male crew act professionally.

Berman brought some of his own personal biases into Star Trek that in some ways regressed it. While TOS had blatant sexism and was called on it time and again, that show was made in the 60s -- a solid 21 years before TNG. We as a modern audience understood why some of it was cringe/sexist due to the time period -- look at any other media coming out in the 60s and Star Trek was miles ahead of what other shows were doing.

Compare that to Berman who was churning sexist stuff out when women like Starbuck and Scully were simultaneously on screen on other programs airing, and we had already had Sigourney Weaver and other strong women in Holywood playing respectful roles.

In my eyes, there was no need of the sexism seen in TNG but especially VOY and ENT. There was no excuse for it when other shows were writing women far better and a number of those weren't even set in the future like Trek was, making it age even faster due to having those dated perspectives frequently highlighted.

In the Center Seat documentary as well as "The Fifty Year Mission" book you will find cast members, writers and other studio alumni who attest to this. Some discussions from "The Fifty Year Mission":

"First, Berman was supposed to have been a real sleaze ball . . . According to Terry Farrel, he would go on constantly about how her breasts weren't big enough, how she should do something about it, and how his secretary was a good example to follow as she had huge breasts. She even had to have fittings to get larger bras, and that was all done at his behest.

Later Berman and Braga developed a name for Jeri Ryan's character prior Seven of Nine. They originally called the character "perineum" which if you look it up it is the area between the anus and the scrotum. Later they floated the name "6 of 9". I mean, what does it tell you about where these two were coming from in the development of this character if they had names like that put forward in all seriousness for her?"

Gene Roddenberry also had some of his own more progressive ideas for TNG cut or watered down by Berman. Roddenberry agreed TNG should have homosexual relationships and representation at a con in the 80s and insisted on it in a meeting with his writers -- something Berman later would not honor. Gene wanted the AIDS episode, showing m/m and f/f in the Riza scenes -- these were some of Roddenberry's requests to include in TNG that Berman later stonewalled.

Berman's era was sadly dated by his own misogynist bias, IMO, to the point that it can somewhat hurt the shows he worked on through his cringe egoism and blatant disrespect toward his female cast.

There is a reason why Gene could keep female actresses working with him and Berman had a revolving door of women that he couldn't seem to keep working for him -- he was abhorrent to women, on and off set. Gene wasn't perfect at all, he had a lot of issues himself -- but Berman was a whole other level. Just look at what he did to poor Jolene Blalock, Marina Sirtis and his toxic commenting on her body weight which exacerbated her struggles with eating disorders, or how he treated and talked to Terry Farrell.

Anyway, just some food for thought. I'm not saying anyone is wrong regarding a take like that, but there are a variety of ways to look at this. Gene Roddenberry isn't a saint by any means, but it definitely bothers me how folks will tote the Berman era as if it were the lesser of two evils or the more progressive depiction of women when I felt there were far more concerning portrayals of women in his era with far less justification.

(P.S: I don't event want to go near the sheer amount of "creepy old dude/villain preys on innocent/naïve/scared young woman or little girl" stories there were in Berman's era, either. But that's a whole other can of worms I can write about in a part 2.)

[hamliet]

Derry Girls: A Masterclass in Detailed, Thematic Writing

Several years after the end, I finally watched Derry Girls, and it's become one of my favorite shows. Not only for the way it captures the absolutely unhinged aspects of Irish families (askmehowiknow) but for the sheer writing skill.

The vast majority of the episodes are laugh-out-loud hilarious, while also offering insightful commentary on the Troubles and on humanity's foibles as a whole. The characters are allowed to be human and act in unlikable, unsanitized ways, and to still be human and come back from that. (Almost like a metaphor for the Troubles or something.)

The story is also incredibly detailed; for example, when the girls are accused of killing a nun and Erin points out the nun was like, 98 years old and askes "might that shed some light on the situation?" there's an hourglass behind Sister Michael--emphasizing the idea that her time was up. Even more than that... the window is behind the hourglass, literally shining a light on it.

But that's a micro level. On a macro level, I also appreciated the way the story discusses the political backdrop that is part of its premise. Even as Erin, Michelle, James, Clare, and Orla grow up in a place that's been in a state of low-level warfare for decades, they live full lives. In fact, that's kinda the point.

Case in point: episode 4 of the first season, wherein Erin gets an exchange student from Chernobyl. The way the Northern Irish in general treat the Ukrainians is hilariously awful and patronizing, believing that they are giving them a respite from the troubles "over there" while Northern Ireland isn't in a much better state. But, as Sister Michael assures the Ukrainian students, the Irish troubles don't matter because "we're the goodies."

This line gets to the heart of what the episode is saying about political divisions and the way people view an "other." Everyone sees themselves as the "goodies." Because of that, they don't self-examine and wind up hurting the people they see themselves as wanting to help/save with their ignorance. It's a paradoxical egotistical (and frankly teenage) worldview that is also unwilling to look critically at oneself. The focus on their own perceptions over focusing on the actual humanity of the other results in ruining gifts that could come with cross-culture interaction, as seen in how Erin's misunderstandings and petty jealousy of Katya leads to her literally ruining a surprise gift Katya had prepared.

And the end of the episode also comments thematically on the story. One of the Ukrainian boys turns out not to be Ukrainian after all--he's actually Irish and from just down the road. He just didn't know how to say that. The ironic message is clear: despite differences in culture and views, they are actually all human beings, and assumptions make it hard for people to speak. If they could actually talk openly and without presumptions about who is "good" and who is "bad," they could prevent and solve a lot of problems.

This kind of background, symbolic commentary on the Troubles continues in just about every episode of the series. For example, even after the ceasefire, season 3 has an episode where it's discussed how negotiations are stalling, and the entirely of the rest of the episode takes place on a train that stalls between two separate places.

The Troubles are always something affecting their lives, but the only time the Troubles ever become the main story is in the finale episode. Which is also an episode that makes everyone cry. Michelle's brother is finally mentioned for the first time the entire series, yet it doesn't feel like a retcon so much as a recontextualization, and again mirrors how a lot of society (and Michelle's own family) have treated those who murdered others during the conflict.

Erin and James' relationship also works as a metaphor for the Troubles--an Irish Catholic girl and an English boy. Earlier in season 3, after they finally kiss, they're told they can't be together, that it's wrong, and that it'll create problems for everyone around them. Michelle doesn't want things to change. And Erin agrees that it's not good to pursue something.

But, in the final scenes, as Erin prepares to vote in the Good Friday Agreement and talks to James, she directly states she thinks things can't stay the same forever--thereby countering what she said to reject James earlier:

There's a part of me that wishes everything could just stay the same. That we could all just stay like this forever. There's a part of me that doesn't really want to grow up. I'm not sure I'm ready for it. I'm not sure I'm ready for the world. But things can't stay the same, and they shouldn't. No matter how scary it is, we have to move on, and we have to grow up, because things... well, they might just change for the better. So we have to be brave. And if our dreams get broken along the way... we have to make new ones from the pieces.

Symbolically, also, given that we know the outcome of the Good Friday Agreement, I think it's pretty clear Erin and James end up together even if we're not directly shown it.

That the last shot of the episode (besides the funny epilogue) is Grandda Joe, one of the eldest characters, helping his youngest toddler granddaughter Anna leap over a threshold as they leave the voting station, is also incredibly clear in its symbolism.

Erin: People died. Innocent people died, Grandda. They were someone's mother, father, daughter, son. Nothing can ever make that okay. And the people who took those lives, they're just gonna walk free? What if we do it, and it's all for nothing? What if we vote yes and it doesn't even work? Grandda Joe: And what if it does? What if no one else has to die? What if this all becomes a--a ghost story you'll tell your wee-un's some day? A ghost story they'll hardly believe?

I dunno, I think this is a sentiment we need more of in the world. A peaceful future means taking risks and accepting that punitive justice will not be perfectly doled out; however, if you allow more people to be hurt, is that not also injustice? It's a paradox that the story leaves us without a dogmatic answer to (for example, we never find out if Michelle's brother gets released), but it's also hopeful--because we know that the Good Friday Agreement largely worked.

(For further analysis of the final scene, I recommend PillarofGarbage's analysis on YouTube!)

[ms-cartoon]

Normally, when I see posts like this, I ignore it cuz it's nothing serious to argue over, but I just feel like giving some fair points about it.

I can agree that not every single episode has to revolve around Charlie. There are still some characters we are curious about and want to dive into, but here's the thing;

The problem is we're already 4 eps in and most of them hardly contain Charlie and the plot of the whole show, not to mention they're fast-paced with the show cramming in new characters and the plot containing them as much as possible without even taking the time. Our 4th episode in and we already have Adam, Lute, Vox, Valentino, Velvette, Camilla (her daughters included), Zestial, the other overlords, etc. All these characters and we're not even in episode 5 yet!! I'm surprised Cherri Bomb hasn't even shown up! She was in the pilot and had a whole speaking role and everything while the three Vees and the Overlords didn't.

EP 1: Charlie takes her father's place in having a meeting with the Angels meanwhile Vaggie tries to make a commercial about the hotel with the assistance of the staff. Okay, we were off to an alright start. Though I wish the ep didn't go back and forth with Charlie and Vaggie. I feel like 1 half of the ep should've been about one person while the other half focused on another.

EP 2: The three Vs are introduced. We see that Vox and Alastor hate each other and he, along with Val and Vel, figure out a way to keep Charlie from ever striking a deal with Alastor. Why they are trying to do this? I dunno, it's never explained really. They get Sir Pentious to spy on Charlie and Alastor by seeming to Charlie that he's interested in rehabilitation. Meanwhile, Angel's feeling all upset about it and we're given a hint at him and what his relationship is like with Valentino. (Charlie was present, but overall, this episode was not about her).

EP 3: Alastor arrives at a meeting with the other overlords (Camilla n them). It's a meeting about . . . Idk, it was a meeting. Velvette comes in and reveals she's found the head of one of the exorcists which is a shock to Camilla (because she secretly was the one that killed the exorcist). Meanwhile, Vaggie tries to help Charlie figure out how the staff can have trust and bond with each other. (This episode kinda involves Charlie, but we're mainly focused on Vaggie and how she feels she doesn't do much for her. Crazy thing is someone apart from Viv or Adam wrote this and much better than either of them could write a page.)

EP 4: We immediately jump into the Angel Dust arc where we focus on him and his situation dealing with Valentino. Meanwhile, he continuously argues with Husk but then they make up and become friends in the end. (Charlie's only there for the first half of the episode while just barely being there for the second. Aside from that, this episode wasn't about her at all.)

Y'all see what I mean?

Also, Viv said that Hazbin Hotel was a female-focused show where it is centered around Charlie and even Vaggie, so of course we're gonna expect more of them instead of the rest of the characters.

[riansdiary]

Assume it as a fact + Do not accept waiting + Focus your awareness to what you want 🎀

Dearest Gentle Readers 💎

Rian, yours truly is back with a new epiphany for the law of assumption! If you were ever wondering what the hell I'm doing on my break, I'm just living my life and relaxing. Manifesting left and right. Also a lot of reflecting and thinking deeply about loa and how I can help myself and others to make it easier.

In fact, this just happened today. I thought of these today and I'm so glad I brainstormed about the loa to understand it more and make it easier for myself. It is hella easy, it's only us complicating it because it is truly that simple. I was thinking and finding a way to manifest easier in a relaxing way and to make my mindset better.

Let me break it down to you in three pieces. The things written in the title of this post are basically all I'm doing to use the law of assumption and it has never made sense like this ever before. It made it even easier for me! Let's go!

Oh and yes! I am a huge fan of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder Books and have finished reading the first two books in just four days! Can you believe that? I was hooked! I couldn't put my phone down! Yes, I read the e-book version. I also adore Emma Myers so much! She was the Pip Fitz-Amobi I imagined while I was reading! She's perfect for the role! I watched the first four episodes of the show today and I love how they did almost if not literally the exact same as the book! Anyway, let's get that out of the way now.

This all started this morning when I was eating a snack. The snack was a snack in my country and it's kind of hard to break. It's a big piece, I can't just shove it in my mouth like that. I was trying my best to break it but it just couldn't break. You know what I did? I relaxed and I did this in a second. I assumed that I was very strong and could break this snack easily. All I did was assume it's a fact and believed it. I had this silent confidence as I assumed that. I thought of this once - "I'm so strong I can break this so easily" and that thought came out naturally after I assumed that I'm strong and guess what? I was able to break the snack very easily and effortlessly. I broke that hard piece in half in a freaking second after I assumed and thought that. I then realized that this was the way I used to manifest when I first started learning about the law and I should continue it this way. Starting from that, I started assuming that my desires are a fact, fully believing they're here even without proof and persisting has been a breeze ever since that moment. Every time I manifested in this very simple way, things just materialized way faster so I decided that I will do it this way again which is the best way for me.

This is the meaning of assume:

Assume good things and assume your desires into being. Assume that your desires are facts now. Simply assume something and shift your mindset to the person who is it or has it. All I did was assume that it's a fact that I'm strong. I embodied the version of me who was always strong and can break that hard snack in two in one second.

I literally was trying so hard before and yet nothing happened but as soon as I assumed and shifted my mindset to the me who's strong then I was able to break it so easily.

Now on to the next point.

Don't accept waiting when you're manifesting.

I learned this one from Indigo Detry's video:

Everything I learned is in here and as soon as I implemented this, I never wavered even once. I fully accepted that I have my desires immediately. Do not accept waiting. Do not make manifesting a process because that just makes it longer when it shouldn't be. Decide that it's instant for you. I'm not waiting for my manifestations anymore, they're here now and I'm focusing on them instead of the old story. Because of that, I now feel fulfilled and consider it done.

Now, the last part.

Focus your awareness on what you want.

This is a little bit more non-duality but I feel like it's also true for manifesting. This was taught to me by my friend @starnightlover and it only sinked in today as I brainstormed about how I can stop looking for my desire in the 3d or how to stop focusing on the old story. I'm doing a combo of all three. It goes hand in hand.

I always say this when I'm answering asks about the 3d. What you focus on grows so don't pay attention to what you don't want. Awareness and Attention are our superpowers. Whatever you are aware of and what you focus on is what will manifest. I was thinking about how to stop looking for my desires in the 3d or how to stop thinking of the old story and this fixed these problems for me.

What you focus on manifests so how do you focus on what you want? I thought as I was doing something in the bathroom. I wanted to manifest having Dove Cameron's lips. Her lips are so gorgeous so I started manifesting that today. So I came up with a way to focus on what I want instead.

1. I made myself a vision board of my desires. The photos I used are in 1st person POV and I just included pictures of me having my desires and I made it the background of my phone, that way I will always see it everyday and it reminds me that I have it and it's already done.

2. I stopped expecting or accepting waiting when I'm manifesting. I decided that starting now, there's no waiting or process when I manifest. I immediately get it.

3. I assumed that my desires are facts now. I stopped feeding myself the old story. I stopped feeding the old story with any attention to let it die off. There's no waiting so that means it's already done. I did not care about what the 3d was showing me. I shifted my awareness from me not having Dove Cameron's lips to me actually having it already and I started to only pay attention to my desires. I also stopped wanting and desiring and instead assumed that my desires are facts and instantly here now. I shifted my mindset to be in my ideal reality. I embodied the version of me who had whatever she wanted just by assuming my desires are facts now, rejecting the waiting process, not forcing anything, focusing my awareness to what I want and using my vision board as the proof of my desires being here.

I also implemented my recent post about the devil's snare scene from Harry Potter and I'm always just relaxed now. Because why would I worry about my desires when I have them now? I also stopped forcing myself to feel things which made it be like act as if for me. It wasn't it.

All I do now is just assume, assume my desires are now facts, reject any waiting or process, change my thoughts and shift my awareness and feed my attention to the new story instead. If ever the old story bothers me which is super rare, I just relax, take a deep breath and either see my desire in my head or look at my vision board. I'm also embodying Hermione and using a sub for her so I'm getting the intelligence boost for sure! I'm embodying how Hermione would learn and apply the law of assumption and I've been seeing some benefits from acting like her!

This has been making it really easy for me and I know this will help a lot of people! I'm assuming so!

Assume your desires are now facts, dismiss and don't feed the old story any attention, reject waiting or anything implying a process, simply change your thoughts, focus your awareness on what you want (make yourself aware of what you want), relax and know it is done. Stop wanting and start relaxing and having! You would relax if you have it now.

I'll try and make an example post for this!

[buddiebeginz]

Okay everyone listen to me Tim posting a B/T video (if he even did because his FB is private and people are saying he posted it but took it down) does not mean he’s saying Buddie is a no go and T*mmy is Buck’s endgame.

First of all let’s remember that Tim wanted to do Buck’s bi storyline years ago particularly back in season 4 and this was likely going to lead to Buddie (look at how the shooting arc was handled).

Second so much of this season has been geared towards Buddie. We had a lot of joint interviews with Ryan and Oliver (more than ever before). We’ve had Buddie talked about in pretty much every interview Oliver and Ryan have done both together and separately this season. This is not something that happened (to this extent) previously, it’s clear Fox did not really want them talking about Buddie. Also remember that if Buddie wasn’t happening and if Tim and ABC didn’t want them talking about Buddie they wouldn’t be allowing these kinds of questions over and over again. They would answer the Buddie question once or twice and that would be the end of it. Everyone knows how much people ship Buddie especially Tim. I'm positive he knows it would be really stupid to keep bringing it up if he wanted the subject to die down.

More importantly let’s look at how this season has gone we’ve had Buck and Eddie together more than ever. Tim even explicitly stated he was trying to put Buddie scenes in almost every episode. Look at how he answered that person about the karaoke scene. Tim basically said he was a Buddie shipper too.

Also think about this Tim knew he was going to have Buck come out and naturally it stands to reason that when it happened people were going to speculate more than ever about Buddie. If Tim has no intention of making Buddie happen and if his long term goal has been to put Buck with T*mmy as Buck's forever love interest (Like Bathena and Madney) wouldn't he have handled this season differently?

I'm not saying Buck and Eddie wouldn't have scenes together if the plan is never for them to be a couple, obviously not they're best friends but I do think Tim would have been extra careful with this being the first season Buck is out as as a bi character. Yet like I said we've had Buddie together more than ever. We've had them talking about sexual tension, dressing in couples costumes (when the actual pair that is dating didn't), singing karaoke together (even if most of it got cut), Buck talking about Eddie's cologne, Buck being a parental figure to Chris, Buck coming out to Eddie in a private quiet scene (when he only had two coming out talks this season), a buddie hug when we haven't had one for years, Buck talking about how he wished he could help Eddie when Eddie was talking about being sexually frustrated.

Most importantly though and what really seals the deal for me on why I think Buddie is happening is that Buck's entire bi awakening episode was focused very heavily on Eddie. Buck was NOT jealous that Eddie was getting to spend time with T*mmy in that episode (i.e. jealous because he wanted to spend time with T*mmy) he was jealous because Eddie was spending so much time and sharing parts of himself with someone else. He was jealous of T*mmy getting to spend time with Eddie and felt like he was being replaced. He thought him and Eddie had something special but then he sees the connection Eddie so easily formed with T*mmy and it hurt him.

We just haven't (as of yet) seen Buck really be willing to dig deeper to understand what he was truly feeling during all of that. How it was all about Eddie and not T*mmy. At this point all Buck knows is that T*mmy kissed him and Buck realized oh I like guys and he's reveling in the newness of all of that. At some point though he's going to realize none of this was ever about T*mmy and that even the main things drawing him to T*mmy were because of his similarities to Eddie. (I wrote a whole post about this episode btw)

But back to my point and that's why would Tim make a whole episode about how Buck obviously has feelings for Eddie and make it in the same episode where the audience (especially the general audience) realizes that Buck isn't straight? Why do that if Buddie isn't in the plans? If Tim's goal is B/T he still could have had something with Buck being jealous. What if T*mmy was hanging out with Chim and the rest of the 118 and he started being friends with all of them. They could have had it where Buck felt threatened kind of like he did in season 2 with Eddie but what it really was about was that Buck liked T*mmy and didn't know how to express that. What I'm saying is that Tim wasn't backed into a corner with this bi Buck storyline and T*mmy there were so many different ways he could have told it. He chose to tell it where it revolved very heavily around Eddie. Buck was even talking about Eddie right before and after he kissed T*mmy what exactly are we supposed to take away from that?

I know B/T stans like to say we just see what we want to see but decisions like having Eddie feature so heavily in Buck's coming out ep aren't made on a whim these are very deliberate especially when the powers that be know how much people ship these characters. Very specific choices have been made to tell a story with Buck and Eddie this season that is leading them towards the same goal and that's eventually together. If you're not seeing that it's because you don't want to.

There's also the fact that if B/T is the ship we're supposed to be rooting for if it's the ship that's going to be as big to 911 as Bathena and Madney (at least according to B/T fans) why has there been so little focus on them? I know some people might say it's a shorter season and they already have so much to fit. Or that they're trying to go slow with B/T's story but here's the thing they rushed into having Buck come out to the audience in one episode and then rushed into having him come out to all the other characters a couple of episodes after that. If Tim wanted more focus on B/T there would be. They also wouldn't even have to do much with them. We've barely even seen them have an actual conversation and the few times we have most of it has been when there has been some kind of uncomfortableness or annoyance between them. Like when Buck was full of anxiety during the date (and then T*mmy made that closet joke) or when Buck was upset about T*mmy not dressing up and T*mmy seemed annoyed.

I don't know I've watched a ton of different shows and to me this doesn't feel like how you build a ship you want the audience to root for. And I'm not saying that you can't have two people at odds and then have them get together. I love a good enemies to lovers thing but that's not what this is. To me the show is trying to tell us that Buck and T*mmy have an attraction but they really aren't on the same wavelength in other areas. Plus the show is always having Buck either talking about Eddie or having Eddie show up. Like when Buck came out to Maddie and was more concerned about lying to Eddie than his date going bad. We had Maddie literally Telling Buck if he had something to tell Eddie he'd tell him in his own time. What am I supposed to think about a line like that? Or when you had Eddie there during the whole scene with B/T at the karaoke bar or how the scene immediately cut from the B/T hospital kiss to Eddie. Plus we haven't even had a mention of T*mmy since 7x06 and now we're going into the finale. You'd think that they would have at least had Buck mention T*mmy during that date night scene where Buck was watching Chris for Eddie but no instead we had Buck being rather flirty with Eddie talking about his cologne and throwing popcorn into his mouth.

Now let's look at this video. There’s a high probability Tim didn’t even watch it. It’s long and not good in my opinion (I saw it before today). B/T stans call us delusional but they’re yelling about how Tim must believe in this bs invisible string theory they came up with and because it’s mentioned in that video. But here’s what the cover looks like

And this is why I think Tim posted it (if he even did) because it’s not about what’s in the video it’s about the title.

Has 911 found Buck’s perfect match?

This is what Tim wants us thinking about going into the finale. Is T*mmy the perfect match for Buck? Some like to think so but we know there is someone better and Buck is going to realize that.

No matter what happens with Buck and T*mmy at the end of this season and even if they're still together going into season 8 I 100% don't believe that T*mmy is meant to be Buck's endgame. Buck is for all intents and purposes the shows main character. We were basically introduced to the show through him we've watched him have the most growth, tim is not going to give him some lackluster love story.

Most primetime shows have a couple that the audience can root for. A couple where the audience isn't sure if they're going to get together but everything happening with them makes you want to see it happen so it keeps the audience tuning in waiting for the day it finally does. 911 had that for a long time with Madney before they got together and then later when they broke up and got back together. But now that they and all the main couples are happily married and rather settled 911 has no main couple like that not one that will garner media and audience attention, except oh wait they do it's Buddie. If B/T were going to be the couple they were betting on we would have had at least one Oliver and Lou on screen interview by now talking about them and we haven't. We definitely would have had more press promoting the couple but we haven't. The focus like I said before is on Buddie. The focus in the episodes is towards Buddie, the focus in the media, it's all a bright neon flashing sign that says BUDDIE. Nothing is pointing towards B/T in actuality I think Buck and Taylor may have even had more press than B/T has gotten so do with that information what you will.

I know a lot of you will hear about Tim posting this and think that's it Buddie is dead in the water but it's just not true. We are closer than ever to Buddie happening I promise you. We just have to be patient and let the story play out. Please don't pay attention to all the negativity coming from that other ship in fandom. Block as much as you need to so you can keep your peace. The best thing you can do right now is to show your love for Buddie as much as possible. Make sure you're tweeting about Buddie, leaving comments about Buddie on 911's official accounts (on ig YT tiktok etc), making new posts and graphics about Buddie on tumblr. We need to continue to be a loud (respectful) presence online and to remind everyone that we won't give up on Buddie.

Sending love to all of you ❤️

And remember:

[zmbiesuga]

I literally jumped with joy when you fallowed me back omg ily sm. So I was at the doctors and my doctor told me how he proposed to his wife and it was so sweet. He said he was stressed from finals and he had like a dream that his wife died and he dreamed of everything he couldn’t do with her. So when he woke up it was like 2 in the morning and he ran to his room to get the ring he had. He had it for two whole like years but ran to her dorm and begged her to say yes because he couldn’t wait. Could you write a fic of kuroo doing that with his boyfriend?

JUMP THEN FALL — k. tetsuro x m!reader

sypnosis: kuroo has always known that he wanted to marry you, and he's always said that he'll do it when he knows it's right. what's more perfect than asking after he had a dream about you dying?

warnings: mentions of death (nothing too graphic but still), kuroo being a fucking loser dork but i adore him so it's fine <3, fluff, happy ending!, angst if you squint really really hard, kuroo and reader are in their last year of college in this one, but i'm not in college yet so idfk how it works but i'll pretend i do!! use of the petnames 'babe' and 'baby'

notes: okay i'm so so sorry this took so long, i had a really bad depressive episode, i hope you like it, this request is really cute and i had a lot of fun writing it :D and two, that is so nice of you to say omg :( of course i followed you back, you always send me requests, you interact with my stuff a lot and you're just really nice so thank you for that <3

Kuroo has always wanted to marry you, it's the one thing he's been sure of in his entire life.

When you bring up marriage to him, however, he just tells you to "be patient" and that he'll "do it when he knows it's right" which constantly keeps you on your toes in case your dork of a boyfriend decides that the "right time" is during one of your lectures or at any inappropriate time really.

It kept Kuroo on his toes too, because what you don't know is that in the far-right corner of his sock drawer holds a small velvet box with a beautiful band inside of it. Every day he can feel his hand graze over the box, thinking to himself, maybe now is the right time.

But then he shakes his head, and decides it isn't.

And besides, as much as Kuroo loves you, he has finals to worry about. And they're really kicking his ass.

Although most people would peg Kuroo as the focused studious type (which he tried so desperately to be), the truth was that he tried so hard to procrastinate as much as possible. However, was it really procrastination if he needs the sleep?

When it was to avoid studying for finals, yes it was.

"Kuroo, sleeping to avoid studying for finals is not something you should do," your voice rippled out through the speaker of his phone, "especially if it's every single time you have them."

"Babe, you are the one who is constantly nagging me to sleep more," he rebutted, that stupid cocky tone he always had lingering in the back of his throat ever present, "I'm finally listening to you, I think you should take that as a win."

"Kuroo," your voice cracked again through that shoddy android speaker again, a certain firmness to it this time, "please promise me that you'll study, you're gonna hate yourself if you don't."

"Baby, I promise you I will, you know my word to you is good," he replied, you could hear that fucking cocky grin etching itself onto his face, "right after my little nap. I love you; I'll talk to you soon."

After you too bid your goodbyes, Kuroo made himself as comfortable on that dorm room mattress as he could, until his eyes got heavy, and he drifted off to sleep.

Kuroo could have sworn it was real.

The chase, your blood curdling scream, the way his stomach dropped to the soles of his feet when he realized he was too late.

It wasn't until he shot up in bed with that same nauseous feeling sitting in his chest as his breath came out panicked and labored had he realized it was nothing but a fucked-up dream.

Kuroo had never been so happy to wake up.

Slowly, but surely, he had calmed himself down. His breath returning to normal as the nauseous feeling in his chest disappeared, what didn't disappear, however, was that he didn't want to live life without you. He didn't want to graduate without you beside him, he didn't want to start a company without you there cheering him on along the way, and he sure as hell didn't want to imagine having a family with anyone else that wasn't you. Life was too short for hesitation, it was too short for his hesitation.

He quickly rushed out of bed, pulling an old hoodie over his torso, slipping on his shoes, and rifling through his drawer to grab that velvet box that had been sitting there for two years, begging to be let free.

Luckily for him, your dorm wasn't far from his. He hadn't even bothered to check the time on his phone, where the light flashed a large: 2:03 A.M. at him, he didn't care if his frantic speed walking down the hallway woke up everyone on that floor, he was only worried about getting to you.

When he got to your dorm, he rapped his fist against the door so hard he could've sworn that his knuckles would crack open. The door opened to a very annoyed you, but he didn't care if he interrupted your sleep, or your studying, he was just so elated to see you in front of him.

"Kuroo, what the hell?" you seethed, "It's two in the morning, what on earth —"

You were quickly cut off by Kuroo dropping to one knee in the doorway of your dorm room, pulling out that velvet box in all its glory, revealing that beautiful band you had mentioned liking to him once, you couldn't control the way your mouth slightly dropped in confusion, a wave of emotions hitting you like a tsunami.

"(Y/n), please, just listen to me," he blurted out in an almost pleading tone, "I've always wanted to wait until the right moment to ask you this, but recently, I've realized that the right moment was in front of me the entire time."

You tried to get a word in, but Kuroo's word vomit was faster.

"(Y/n), I've realized there is so much I want to do with you, so much that I can't do without you," he said, you swore you could see the tears well in the corner of his eyes, "everything from this point forward is useless if I can't do it with you by my side, so I'm begging you, even though it's two a.m. and we're both in our pajamas with messy hair and dark circles under our eyes, will you make me the happiest man alive, and marry me?"

It was your turn to be stunned, you stared down at your boyf — fiancée, in front of you with stained sweatpants and an old Nekoma sweatshirt barely big enough to cover his torso asking you to marry him at two in the morning.

You stayed quiet for so long, it scared Kuroo. Maybe this wasn't the right time, you two were still in college, this was all so sudden, so impulsive, he should have waited, he should have —

All these thoughts were expelled from his head as he felt your body weight push against his, squeezing him so tight in an embrace that he could barely breath.

"Yes," you whispered against the side of his neck, he could feel the tears from your eyes splashing there as well, "oh my god Kuroo, yes, a million times over."

He smiled softly at you, resting his own head against your shoulder as you held him in your arms. If this is what the rest of his life looked like, then god was he excited for it.

[zeroslashsix]

Following my Gambit post, I love love love the way Rogue's powers are handled in X-Men Evolution. Like Gambit, Rogue tends to have a certain set of 'roles' when she's in a show/movie: she's focused on inner torment about her powers, on being a Spicy Southern Belle, or her romantic connections. Which is to say, her stories are usually about emotions and relationships, which is fine, I love those parts of her as much the rest. But if she's not fighting, her powers are only really viewed through a lens of how she feels about them, and how they impact her ability to connect with others.

And here's X-Men Evolution, fully leaning into the fact that Rogue’s power is one of the most dangerous in the entire show. I love the s3 ep "Self-Possessed" so much because it takes the brakes off her, and really commits to the idea that stacking powers is catastrophic when you consider she can wield multiple omega-level powersets at the same time. Her main limitation is that she doesn't want other personalities in her head, she limits her power usage because she just doesn't like it, and yeah, totally fair, but Rogue could absolutely wake up one day, go through the mansion and decide to be an omega squared. X-Men Evolution is about teenagers who are still figuring out their abilities, even at the end of the series when they're a year (two years?) older. By the finale, they have more control and training, but they are absolutely still growing into adulthood and have not reached full potential.

Which is why I think "Self-Possessed" is such a fascinating look at Rogue's powers. Every iteration of Rogue imposes a time limit on her absorption, meaning that any powers she absorbs will only stay with her for a short time. But in that episode, when she's succumbing to all those personalities in her head, her time limit stops existing. She can access powers for months, maybe even years after the initial absorption. Mystique's powers couldn't have given Rogue that ability; the only way Rogue could do such a thing is if that potential already exists inside of her. This implies that when she absorbs a power, that power stays inside her as long as the personality does, and her "time limit" is just a matter of control, or lack thereof.

This seems to be backed up by the s3 finale, where Mesmero and Mystique mind control Rogue to gather powers, and Rogue proceeds to SWEEP the X-Men, Brotherhood, Acolytes, and Magneto in less than 24 hours. By the end of it, she seems fully capable of using any and all their powers at will, ignoring any sort of time limit. Mesmero can mind control others, but he can't enhance them. He cannot give someone powers they don't already possess. The only reason Rogue could do all that is because she was already capable of it, and the fact Mesmero could mind control this out of her seems to imply that Rogue's limitations are entirely self-imposed, mostly mental/emotional, or maybe a lack of experience. (Similar to the season four finale where Rogue seems to use Leech’s power better than he does, probably just because he’s a little kid and she’s an adolescent so has a better grasp on powers in general)

Like, no wonder Mystique and Destiny wanted her powers. No wonder Magneto was so thrilled to have her in the ranks in the first season. No wonder so many people in the world want to use her; she is the all-mutant, the living multi tool that can gather multitudes of power in one place and then combine them. The only reason she isn't considered omega-level is pure technicality; in terms of destruction she could actually lay down, Rogue is absolutely as dangerous as plenty of omegas. The requirements for an omega are 1) infinite power, and 2) limitless power. Rogue has the first one; she can stack an infinite number of powers. But she lacks the second; all her powers must come from the outside, and she cannot generate them herself. But if she has access to multiple omega powersets like she does in Self-Possessed, that technicality kind of stops mattering once the punches actually start flying.

Which all leads into Rogue's main emotional journey through X-Men Evolution, which is perhaps my favorite she's ever had: being used. That's why she was adopted. That's why she was raised being unable to touch, being lied to by both her moms. That's why she was taken into the Brotherhood, and it's why Mystique will never leave her alone. Extra fascinating because after the reveal in season one that Mystique is Kurt's mother, Mystique leaves Kurt completely alone for the rest of the series, while simultaneously stalking and manipulating Rogue. Why the difference? Because Kurt is not a useful tool. Not compared to Rogue. And I think Rogue sees that difference, which makes for such a juicy dynamic when Kurt is so interested in actually loving Mystique, for insisting that Rogue should forgive their mother and 'let hatred go,' because he genuinely thinks that anyone can be saved with enough love. Whereas Rogue, who has seen Mystique's 'love' up close for her whole life, is desperately trying to get away from that, with good reason.

One of the reasons I wish we’d had more seasons, or at least more episodes in the last season, is how seamlessly Rogue’s feelings about her powers flowed into her feelings around being used, her feelings around family, and being dehumanized to the point of mind-wipe by her own mother. Yes she’s sad about the no-touching thing, but that’s nothing compared to being seen as a literal object in the eyes of others, because her powers are utterly perfect—for someone else to use. Which flows into questions of bodily autonomy, of who her powers “belong to” vs. who they “should belong to.” Especially considering that Rogue is only at full power when she loses control/is under someone else’s control, which could lead someone to conclude, “Well of course Rogue should be under someone’s control, preferably mine. She’s so powerful when someone else is controlling her, and so weak when she controls herself. It’s honestly such a waste for Rogue to be her own person when she could be so much more. She needs to be used to reach her full potential.”

In a perfect world, we’d have way more X-Men Evo than we got. More seasons, more episodes, more time to explore whatever the hell Rogue had going on. And if I was allowed to pick, I would have loved to see Rogue with a character arc of self-ownership. In particular, it would be so cool to see her powers develop to the point she can have a “Self-Possessed” crisis and control it, fully aware of herself and all the powers she holds. I’d love to see her use those powers for her own benefit, on purpose, independent of both her mother and the X-Men. I’d love to see a self-serving Rogue in the XMenEvo. Not necessarily evil (though it would be a fascinating villain arc) but a Rogue who chooses selfishness as an act of rebellion. Who can use all those powers simultaneously, consciously, and disobediently. Vengeance, maybe? Or something that heightens humans’ fear of mutants? I’d love to see Rogue become inconvenient to the X-Men, at the very least, either physically or philosophically. Certainly nothing so dire as the Phoenix saga, but something that uses her powers to their fullest extent. (Damn could you imagine Rogue as the Horseman of Death if this went in the opposite direction. How fucking overpowered would Death!Rogue be, how the hell would the X-Men deal with that)

Anyways. Fanfiction is the folklore of the now or whatever. And XMenEvo was already a crazy high school AU anyway.

[newtthetranswriter]

Hello !

Can we have some hc for Natsu , Gray , Luxus & Gajeel reuniting with their s/o after the 7y they were « stuck «  in Tenrou island ? Their s/o stayed at the guild so they still think they are dead . FT has such good angst material I wish they used it more 😞 they talked about the 7y gap only for 5 min like it didn’t deserve an entire episode about it .

A/n: Thank you for the request. I just gotta say I completely agree that they should have talked about the gap more, like a lot can happen in seven years, and they're just like 'wow seven years past, here's the like three major things that happened while we thought y'all were dead, now get back to work'. Anyways, sorry it took so long to get this out. I hope you enjoy and remember to hydrate or diedrate.

General Background:

Hearing that the entirety of Tenrou Island had disappeared during the S-class trails broke your heart

And as much as it pains you to admit it, you were probably the first member of Fairy Tail to accept that the wizards on Tenrou had died

So when Blue Pegasus showed up saying that there was evidence to suggest that Tenrou Island was still out there, you refused to believe them

You tried to reason that is had been seven years, if the Tenrou team had survived they would have made it back by now, not to mention every trip out to look for them there was no sign of the island at all

Of course the Remaining members of Fairy Tail still held on to hope that their friends where out there somewhere, so a small group left to try and find them once again

Still not wanting to get your hopes up, you decided it was best to stay at the guild and wait for their return so you can comfort them when they show up empty handed

You had been focused on protecting Romeo from Twilight Ogre, and failed to notice the mass of Magic energy that approached the guild Hall.

So when the man holding the hammer was sent flying across the room, you were just as much shock as the rest of the guild

After the new presence beat the crap out of the rival guild members and the dust settled, you couldn't believe your eyes

Standing in the door to the Fairy Tail Guild hall was none other than the group that had disappeared seven years ago

Natsu:

Seeing the pink haired mage you had spent the last seven years mourning, standing right in front of you stole your breath away

He looked exactly the same as he did when he left for the trials, how could that be possible

After they explained what happened and everyone began talking about some of the major changes that had happened while they were gone, Natsu came over to talk to you

He thought he would be greeted by a hug and some words of how much you missed him, maybe even some happy tears, but as soon as he made eye contact you broke down into full on sobs

He immediately wrapped you in hug pulling you close and rubbing your back, whispering gentle words about how he's there for you

Being back in his arms and taking in his scent just caused the tears to fall harder, but after a few moments you finally calmed down pulling back looking him in the eyes again

He waited for you to make the next move, and when you started talking about you were sorry for not believing in him and how you should have been there when they found him, he was stunned

Being completely taken aback by that response he pulls you close again, assuring you that he's not mad about you not being there and how he can't blame you for thinking he died after all it had been seven years

Once he had gotten you to calm down again he asks if you want to go for a walk and tell him about what has changed for you while he was gone

He'd listen to every detail, how you help search endlessly for them but after a while you gave up hope, how you still lived in the shack that you shared with him and Happy because you couldn't bring yourself to part from it

He listened to how you tried once or twice to go out with someone new but every time it fell through because no matter how many times you told yourself he was gone you couldn't get over him

Natsu just listened, he knew what it was like to have someone you love suddenly disappear so he didn't blame you for any of it

He just wanted too be there for you as handled this new wave of emotions and he wanted to assure you that he would be there not matter what

Gray:

Seeing Gray standing in the guild hall once again brought tears to your eyes

Ignoring as everyone explained what had happened, you were brought back to every night you spent crying yourself to sleep after you accepted that he was dead

You stood there tears streaming down your face as you relived every memory you had with the Ice Make wizard

Once he noticed you standing off to the side with tears falling, he rushed to your side

Hearing Gray ask if you were ok snapped you out of your thoughts, reaching out placing a hand on his face you couldn't stop your self from asking if he was really there

He would just chuckle softly and assure you that he was in fact really there

Deciding that you weren't dreaming or hallucinating, you pulled him in to a tight hug, soaking his shirt in fresh wave of tears as you berried your face in his shoulder

He just let you cry as he held you close knowing that it was shock to have someone that was supposed to be dead show up again

Once you stop crying Gray would suggest the two of you go somewhere to talk

He'd listen as you told him about the past seven years, squeezing your hand any time you looked like you were about to break down again reassuring you that he was there for you know

If you even tried to blame yourself for believing he was dead or not going when the rest went to see if they were really out there, he would make you look him in the eyes as he told you that it was in no way your fault

He would make sure that you knew he would never blame you for thinking he had died, and that he would spend everyday of his life making up for the seven years of hell he put you through, if you would let him of course

Laxus:

He wouldn't wait a second after making his appearance in guild hall to find you

After all his only other friends had all been on Tenrou so there was only one person he need to catch up with

Seeing his giant frame make it's way towards you left you speechless, after all this time he was finally back and he looked the same as when he left

Not giving him a chance to speak, you wrapped him in hug expressing how much you missed him

He wasn't surprised when a damp patch started to form on his chest where your head rested

He let you cry it out, rubbing your back so you knew he was really there

Laxus wouldn't even care about the strange looks the rest of the guild was giving him, all he cared about was making sure you were okay

After you calmed down and spent a small amount of time welcoming the rest of the Tenrou Team back you found yourself going for walk with Laxus

You apologized for not being there when the rest found them, after all you didn't know he had gone out to Tenrou and thought he just stopped visiting you

He assured you that you didn't need to apologize for anything, he then apologized for not telling you he was going to Tenrou and for making you think he just abandoned you

He also promised to do whatever it took to make up for everything

Gajeel:

It took Panther Lily pushing him in your direction for Gajeel to notice you had been staring at him since the moment they walked back into the guild

Realizing you hadn't taken your eyes of him, he timidly approached and apologized for leaving you for seven years

He's not the best with words or emotions so he is startled when you pull him into a bone crushing hug followed by tears soaking his shoulder

He'd pat your back trying to get you to calm down, saying that you're going to ruin his bandages, secretly he's just happy you were there

After you calm down he lets you vent about how much you missed and how sorry you were for losing hope

Again not the best with words so he'd probably mumble about it not being your fault

Seeing that the reunion wasn't going super smoothly, Panther Lily would probably show up and assure you that while Gajeel is shit with words, he really is happy to see you

(dividers by cafekitsune)

[salemshotspot]

SECRET

CM Punk x Little!Reader

WORD COUNT: 1.3k

DESC: After a stressful day y/n reveals to Phil that they're a little

Gender Neutral Reader [They/Them]

WARNINGS: SFW Age Regression//Not Proof Read//Implied Anxiety//Overstimulation//Alcohol Mentions//Mentions Of Drunk People//Mentions Of Stress//Crying//Characters Probably Acting Out Of Character//Generic Pet Names

A/N >> This is my first time writing for a little reader so apologies if it's not great, I've been thinking about writing for other wrestlers with a little reader [as well as more Punk!] So hopefully this isn't that awful no one wants to read any other stuff from me lmao

TAGS: @seasonal-depression-of-punk

Enjoy!

——————————————————————————

The entirety of the wrestling roster were more than familiar with and accepting of age regression due to how open The Judgement Day were about Dominick's age regression; however this didn't stop y/n from keeping their regression a secret from everybody. They had gone as far as trying to avoid The Judgement Day while they were caring for a small Dominick as y/n found themself slipping into a regressed state whenever they were around other regressed people and their caregivers. This is why when y/n felt themself slowly slip into a regressed state they wanted nothing more than to go home for the evening so they could do so without any fear of being seen.

After a successful episode of Monday Night Raw a handful of wrestlers decided to go out for a drink to celebrate, y/n couldn't think of a worse situation for themself right now; they were exhausted, they were anxious and going to loud, packed bar wasn't going to help them at all.

'Hey y/n a few of us are going out to celebrate, do you want to come with us?' Phil's voice echoing through y/n's dressing room, pulling them from their thoughts. Y/n forced a smile to paint their features, Phil always made sure to involve y/n in everyone's plans as he knew they tended to go unnoticed due to their quiet, self-reserved nature. 'I think I'll give this one a miss Phil, I'm not really feeling up to it' y/n softly replied to which Phil jokingly rolled his eyes; 'come on y/n' he began, 'It'll help to take your mind off of things and plus, it won't be the same without you' he softly pleaded. Despite the anxiety slowly filling y/n as well as the difficulty to not fall into a regressed state slowly becoming greater y/n couldn't bring themself to disappoint Phil so, after letting out a subtle sigh, y/n replied; 'alright Phil, I'll come out, just for a while though ok?' Phil's eyes practically lit up, completely unable to hide his excitement; 'awesome!' he exclaimed, 'we'll see you there.'

Once y/n arrived at the bar their eyes tiredly scanned the building until their eyes landed on Phil, Drew, Becky and Seth who simultaneously waved to y/n, signalling for them to come over to the area of bar which they were sat at; 'Y/N!' Drew shouted, his voice laced with intoxication 'you made it', wrapped in Seth's arms, Becky reiterated what Drew was trying to relay; 'we're really glad you're here y/n.' Before y/n could reply, Phil playfully patted the empty seat next to him signalling for them to take a seat next to him, to which they agreed, instantly feeling at ease from Phil's presence alone.

Around half an hour had passed and it was becoming increasingly more difficult for y/n to stay focused on their surroundings despite the grounding feeling they got from Phil's presence; they couldn't take it anymore, it was so loud, every decibel of sound infiltrating y/n's body, attacking their senses. As their head began to pound, y/n silently and abruptly shot up from their seat and rushed outside to their car, haphazardly pulling the door open, crawling onto the back seat and locking the door. Y/n wanted nothing more than to go home, they wanted nothing more than to have all of their comfort items so they could comfortably regress but instead they were stuck in the back of their car, completely overwhelmed. As their stress and desire to go home grew y/n found themself unable to stop themself from finally slipping into little space, inadvertently meaning that they were officially stuck in their car as operating a car whilst not only overwhelmed but also in a regressed state was definitely not a good idea.

Y/n did the only thing they could in their situation; they curled up on the backseat of their car and allowed tears to cloud their vision. Suddenly y/n was pulled back into reality by a gentle yet prominent knock on the car window, as their eyes shot up they met with the concerned and unwavering eyes of Phil who motioned for y/n to roll the car window down so he could speak to them. Y/n was reluctant to roll the window down, secretly hoping if they didn’t do so then it’d mean Phil never caught them in the state they were in, however they couldn’t bring themself to ignore Phil, he had a look of concern in his eyes which was impossible to ignore. Once the window was rolled down Phil leaned into the car so that he could speak to y/n without raising his voice, sure that speaking loudly right now would distress y/n. Softly he requested; ‘can I come in sweetheart?’ Sweetheart? Phil had never uttered such a name to y/n, surely he was just trying to provide comfort and right now comfort was all a little y/n needed right now.

With a subtle nod y/n unlocked the car door allowing Phil to climb in, once he was seated, y/n couldn’t contain themself, they instinctively crawled over to Phil, laying their head on his lap. As y/n lay down Phil took his calloused hand and began gently running it through y/n’s hair before softly speaking; ‘can you tell me what’s gotten you so upset sweetheart?’ Mumbling into his lap, hiccuping from the tears still pouring from their eyes y/n replied; ‘want home.’ Phil lightly chucked, ‘well there’s a very simple solution, you can go home, there’s no need to cry is there?’ He said in a tone which he intended to be playful but came across as mean-spirited, causing y/n to cry further. Realising his tone, Phil spoke once more; ‘shh y/n I’m sorry, why aren’t you going home hmm? Is everything ok?’

Y/n froze for a moment, slowly realising that the secret they were so desperate to keep from everyone was moments from coming out. Phil, growing anxious himself from y/n’s change in demeanour, gently rubbed circles into y/n’s shoulder with his thumb, silently encouraging y/n to speak. Further burying their face into Phil’s lap in order to muffle their words, y/n muttered out ‘I'm like Dom’ secretly hoping that Phil wouldn't hear them. 'I can't hear you sweetheart' Phil spoke out to which y/n repeated themself at the same register. Warmly smiling down at the person on his lap, unable to find their shy nature anything short of amusing, Phil took his large hands and placed them on y/n's shoulders, pulling them into an upright position. 'I can't understand you when you're hiding that face of yours y/n' he lightly chuckled, 'can you repeat yourself one more time?' After a moment of thought filled silence y/n let out an anxious sigh and repeated themself for a final time; 'I'm like Dom' they said lowering their head.

Phil admittedly wasn't the smartest man but once y/n uttered those words he instantly understood what was going on; 'and do you have somebody to look after you like Dom does?' Phil asked anxiously, the thought of y/n not having a caregiver to keep an eye on them while regressed worried Phil more than he'd ever like to admit. Y/n quickly shook their head, they had been without a caregiver for as long as they can remember, pulling them into a sympathetic embrace Phil planted a soft kiss on the top of their head before suggesting something tempting to y/n. 'How about we get you home hmm? What kind of a guy would I be if I didn't make sure you were all looked after?' Y/n giggled softly and nodded at the prospect of having a caregiver, and Phil of all people? They couldn't help but feel excitement well in their chest.

With that, Phil climbed into the front of the car, sure to keep a hand spare to drape around to the back of the car for y/n to hold onto for comfort. Once they had arrived home y/n retrieved all of their comfort items before joining Phil on the sofa. Tomorrow they would discuss Phil becoming a more permanent member of y/n's life, possibly becoming their caregiver but right now all y/n needed was to feel safe so they could finally sleep and out the stress of the day behind them.

——————————————————————————

A/N >> I'm sorry this isn't great but if anyone wants to give my writing a second chance drop requests in my inbox lmao and lmk if you'd like to be tagged in any future fics

[cheeseanonioncrisps]

One of the more interesting aspects of Stayed Gone is the implication that, prior to his disappearance, Alastor must have been producing some quality programming.

Despite it's obvious importance in the modern world, TV apparently only started outcompeting radio in Hell after Alastor vanished. Seven whole years ago. And when Al returns, Vox's first response is to freak the fuck out about whether he's gonna keep his audience.

That's fucking crazy.

And we can be pretty sure that people weren't just listening in out of fear, either. Or because Alastor was making any major effort to crush all other forms of media.

If this was purely about which Overlord was the most powerful, then Vox's verses would surely have focused on emphasising his own strength. Instead, they're all about calling radio outdated. Vox is genuinely worried— apparently based on experience— that Alastor is going to outdo him in terms of sheer entertainment value.

Which raises the obvious question: what were Al's shows actually like? (Aside from those early broadcasts guest-starting the screams of the damned, obviously.)

We get kind of a taster in the song:

“Salutations! Good to be back on the air. Yes, I know it's been a while, since someone with style treated Hell to a broadcast— Sinners, rejoice!— instead of a clout-chasing mediocre video podcast. Is Vox insecure, pursuing allure? Fitting between this fad and that, is nothing working? Every day, he's got a new format! Is Vox as strong as he purports? Or is it based on his support? He'd be powerless without the other Vees! And here's the sugar on the cream: he asked me to join his team! I said no, and now he's pissy, that's the tea!”

Obviously he's doing it to music, so there's going to be some difference in the cadence of his voice from that, but still, he's talking noticeably quicker than he does in person. And he gets right to the point.

Compare it to his commercial in episode 1. There's a big difference in terms of both how much respect he's showing his audience (“well hello there, you wayward sinner!” vs “good to be back on the air”), and how much relevant information he delivers.

Alastor is a great character to watch, but most people who interact with him directly seem to find the experience either annoying, awkward, terrifying or all three.

Mainly because Al seems to go out of his way to put people off even when he's actively trying to get them to trust him, by making condescending asides or constantly dropping references to his own power. On air, however, he greets everyone politely and even drops what is almost an apology for being gone so long (“I know it's been a while”), then immediately gets to the information that he knows they're really listening for.

Alastor may not respect Charlie, Adam or Lucifer, but he does respect his audience.

And the content he's producing makes it clear why people are still tuning in. Al has the gossip. Katie Killjoy and Tom Trench may not be unbiased exactly, but they're clearly trying to provide sources for their claims and maintain some veneer of professional news reporting.

Al, meanwhile, is quite happy to provide strong opinions and baseless speculation about public figures, content that is less fitting with the professional image that Vox seems so desperate to keep up, but that is likely to attract a bigger audience.

What gets me curious now, however, is wondering what else he used to provide.

Again, radio was apparently the medium for news and entertainment in Hell until Alastor left. Implying that a) radio was at the time fulfilling many of the function that TV now provides, and b) Alastor was involved enough in this that it collapsed/got overthrown the moment he left town.

Did Alastor have an empire similar to the Vees? Did he run a bunch of channels? Did he have DJs and sports commentators and presenters on his payroll?

Given that radio seems to have collapsed completely after he left— did they all go running to Vox when he was presumed dead? Was the Vees new empire in part built on the ruins of Alastor's old one?

Or did he do the whole thing solo and just run like, a bunch of different shows. (In which case, since radio's bread and butter has always been music, Helluva Boss fans can now have fun imagining him interviewing Verosika Mayday about ‘Vacay to Bonetown’.)

[piracytheorist]

Twilight Eyes Project: "Secure a Wife" (part 1)

Previous episode analysis here

Unsurprisingly, as the very first scene of the episode is Twilight deciding that Franky isn't eligible for the wife role, we get Twilight eyes.

And as mentioned before, it's with certain expressions still visible through them.

We continue to closed Twilight eyes.

Eyebrows are still furrowed down towards his nose. That's usually a big telltale.

Continuing with more Twilight eyes.

I might not need to actually catalogue every single time we see his eyes. But those scenes were purely business as usual, with only Anya and Franky present. It makes sense why he wouldn't use "Loid eyes" or reveal his real face with Franky... but it's interesting how he doesn't use "Loid eyes" for Anya either. In his mind, being "neutral" like that works, so he doesn't bother putting more effort to make himself look more approachable to Anya. Little does he know why Anya already trusts him 😆

Then, we're onto the boutique scene. He looks at Anya with neutral Twilight eyes, wondering where she learns words like "getting trafficked",

and then, investigative eyes as he considers his options around the boutique.

After he rejects two possibilities and considers it will take a long time to find an ideal fake wife, in the manga we're still on investigative eyes looking to the front, but in the anime it's Twilight eyes looking to the side (where the shop owner was, as his attention was on her).

I believe this was done in order to emphasize on the animation of his face as he reacts to Yor's sudden presence behind him. The manga goes from the expression above to an immediate jolt. The anime allows him a small reaction of "wait what's that" before he also jolts.

And just who is that woman that sneaked up on him? Time for work! Thus, focused Twilight eyes.

Another difference: when the memory of Yor's picture pops in his mind, the eye we see in the manga is open, while in the anime they're both closed (in concentration). A deliberate change?

His eyes open right after, outside the "memory effect", as he looks back at Yor and inner-monologues about Yor's situation.

In the manga, he seems to turn a little back so he stands by her side, though pretending to not be looking at her. (at first he was leaning his side on the counter, so Yor came up right behind him. Now he's turned to lean his back on the counter, and I assume he did so he could check out who she was)

In the anime, he keeps his back turned on her. Still, in the manga he looks to his other side, away from Yor, as he berates himself for not noticing her immediately.

After all, Yor is supposed to be an everyday citizen, working a casual job at city hall, right? Why would she be able to sneak up on him? Must be his fault.

Anyway, the positioning is a little different here, though both cases seem to make Yor noticing his gaze make more sense. In the manga, if he turned around so he could keep her in his periphery, it would be noticed by her. In the anime, him looking over his shoulder at her is quite distinct.

Yor confronts him about his stare, and he swings a chance, telling her he thinks she's pretty. Yor reacts positively (albeit not in the way he'd expect from a honey pot target), and... though he activates Loid voice, his eyes are more expressive of his surprise at her reaction than anything else.

To be fair, her reaction was unexpected, so he probably wasn't sure whether the welcoming, over-willing "Loid eyes" would be appropriate. I just like that it threw him off, haha.

The anime treats us to another view of his face as he looks at her, having no idea she's about to ask him to be her pretend boyfriend and thus make all his plans fit into place.

Hi pot, meet kettle!

Twilight eyes as he considers asking Yor to play the wife role, then grows doubts about it. Kind of a miss for the anime to not have him say that he had doubts because he thought that Yor being so intuitive might become a hurdle.

Anya puts her plan to motion, Yor asks about the wife, and we get our first Loid eyes of the chapter/episode.

His backstory is already established (even though Franky called him a divorcee in the beginning, was that a translation error?) so he doesn't need "work" eyes, and said wife never actually existed so there's no emotions tied to her, so no excuse for "real eyes". But he gotta look approachable to Yor. He's but a mere single father, trying to do his best for his daughter that he definitely knows longer than a week, see!

I don't claim to be an expert in this analysis, so half the reasons I share these posts is so that more people can chime in. I don't think those below are "Twilight eyes", while Yor explains her situation.

They look more neutral than anything else. Definitely focused, but more relaxed since, curiously enough, Yor seems to be setting a very fruitful foundation for his plan. Almost too good to be true. If only he knew it will actually get even easier 😆

They do, however, turn into Twilight eyes as he undoubtedly goes like "That's it. That's my chance."

The next manga panel is too small to discern his reaction, but in the anime he immediately switches to Loid (?) eyes as he accepts Yor's request.

My question mark is there because "Loid eyes" make sense there, cause he's about to warm her up to his request, which is a far more complicated ordeal than hers. However, his eyes aren't as wide open as "Loid eyes" usually are. His smile reaches his eyes, making him look calmer - this is usually the telltale sign for "real eyes". But I think it's too early for him to show any honesty with Yor there. Maybe I'm overthinking it. There will be a lot of that down the line XD

Anyway! Twilight eyes as he explains his situation, and makes himself look like a very dedicated father who totally wants to honour the wishes of his late wife, who totally, 100% existed.

Narrowed, focused eyes. This is his one chance to get the ideal wife for the mission and the rest of his life. He can't pass it up.

And then, a complete change! Investigative eyes (aka extreme "Twilight eyes") in the manga... and Loid eyes in the anime!

I get the need for a change, though. The manga has a "shadow" over Twilight's face, suggesting that it focuses more on his inner thoughts - and planning - than what is being said. In the same manner, in the anime, the sound focus is on Twilight's thoughts, with his speaking voice being almost inaudible under the former. But! He's still trying to get Yor to trust him - he can't look shady like that. In reality, he does look at her with Loid eyes.

In a way, the manga gives us a more "inner" view, aimed at the audience. The anime shows us what the camera sees, aimed at the characters in-show.

Welcome to my blog. We overanalyze things here.

The supermarket cashier passes on a code to Twilight, and it's back to work with Twilight eyes.

Twilight realizes that his new side mission creates a hurdle to his meeting with Yor. The anime allows a second of animation to show him go from shock to Twilight eyes as he immediately puts a plan together.

(continued in part 2)

(anime only fan here, don't spoil me for the manga)

[fafefae]

on the topic of alastor's hatred for vox vs alastor's hatred for lucifer, there's actually a HUGE difference. one is a hatred based in mutual respect and spite (some may call it rivalry, others, kismesissitude), but the other one is just pure unhealthy toxic hatred.

here's my thoughts on alastor's reasoning behind why he hates lucifer, and also some speculation on why alastor seemed so insistent on calling himself charlie's dad when that's so wildly out of character for him in the context of the theory that lilith is the one holding alastor's leash. his relationship (as in, his interactions) with lucifer are not a personal choice; this has his own soul on the line with lilith involved, and it puts him on edge. he's extremely manipulative in "hell's greatest dad" and for the entire rest of the episode too.

but enough about that, in this post im gonna look at alastor and vox, because unlike alastor and lucifer singing "hell's greatest dad", (in which alastor is genuinely fighting to push lucifer out of charlie's life and to keep him gone for ulterior reasons), alastor makes an effort to meet vox as an equal while singing "stayed gone", pushing and allowing vox to push back. his relationship with vox is a personal choice he continues to make.

because by the time vox realizes alastor's back, alastor has been back for a week, and yet it's only when vox announces it on TV that alastor decides to do his first radio broadcast since his return. the radio demon, waiting to do something he loves that he hasn't done in seven years? but that's what he did, alastor waited for vox to initiate something via TV broadcast before jumping in with a radio broadcast.

"did anybody miss him? did anybody notice?"

vox seems really desperate to dismiss how much alastor's return doesn't bother him, how much he doesn't care about where alastor's been, and how much better he's been doing without alastor,

"while he hid in radio, we've pivoted to video!" ... "hell's been better since he split, where's he been, who gives a shit?!"

which REALLY sounds like someone who's been rejected and is bitter about it. and when alastor sings his verses later in the song, that's actually exactly what he says!

"and here's the sugar on the cream, he asked me to join his team! i said no, and now he's pissy, that's the tea!"

alastor REJECTED vox's offer to be part of the Vees, but then alastor seems to have no trouble meeting vox on his own turf. in fact, he seems to get some enjoyment out of riling vox up, to the point where alastor pretty much admits he kept tabs on vox while he was gone those seven years.

"is vox insecure, pursuing allure? flitting between this fad and that, is nothing working? every day, he's got a new format!"

alastor finds this rivalry with vox enjoyable. one could argue that vox is obsessed with alastor, but i'm gonna argue that the inverse is true as well. alastor is JUST AS OBSESSED with vox as vox is with him, and the proof is in the way alastor speaks.

"instead of a clout-chasing mediocre video podcast" ... "now he's pissy, that's the tea!"

those are MODERN SLANG PHRASES. one of alastor's biggest character traits is that he despises modernity, or really, anything that came after he died. and YET, he updated his slang to not only keep up with vox, but meet him as an equal on vox's turf. "see? i can do it too."

and vox does meet him back! the instrumental of "stayed gone" starts off with some electro technical modern sounds (vox's sounds), but when vox opens up the rest of the song to address alastor in his broadcast, it switches to a big band jazzy sound that's extremely reminiscent of the 1920s-1930s, aka, vox is singing a song that's backed by something that is alastor's theming. this is vox meeting alastor. "see? i can do that too."

because at the end of it all, they're actually both the same kind of demon; they're both focused on entertainment, which truly makes them equals. it's just how they both go about it that makes them different.

vox's domain extends over modern entertainment and two of the biggest entertainment industries (adult entertainment and pop-culture) are already in his pocket. the real leader of the Vees is vox (not velvette, as much as she likes to believe she is). but vox wants all of the entertainment domain under his control; for all that vox makes fun of alastor, he still asked alastor to join his team, because radio and podcasts are entertainment, and more importantly, they're sections of the entertainment domain that alastor will never give up.

vox will never stop chasing after alastor, but alastor enjoys that. he enjoys having something vox will never have, and he enjoys that it makes him equal and relevant to vox. and as much as vox proclaims he'll make alastor wish he'd stayed gone, he knows very well he can't control alastor, and alastor knows this very well too.

and that's what makes him so alluring to vox! vox is used to being able to control people! he easily calms valentino down, he easily hypnotizes the masses, but alastor? vox knows damn well that alastor is his equal. and alastor knows damn well that vox is his equal.

"oh, this will be fun."

[arecaceae175]

I’m rewatching Phineas and Ferb (it’s my fav comfort show) and it’s SO full of autism. SO FULL

Ferb is autistic

Phineas is autistic and ADHD

Candace is autistic

Dr. Doofenshmirtz is autistic and ADHD and has CPTSD

Their dad is autistic

Their mom has ADHD

I will not be taking criticism. My qualifications are that I'm autistic XD

I can go into detail AND I WILL

Ferb

Nonverbal!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Non!!!!! Verbal!!!!!

In the episode where they make an animal translator Phineas talks about how Ferb has a lot of thoughts, he just can’t say them out loud

Special interest in engineering and building and such

Incredible imagination

He can’t show emotions on his face

He doesn’t respond to social cues

He and Phineas are each others special interest person

In the Aglet episode when Candace is making fun of their dad for not looking up “aglet” on the computer Phineas explains to Ferb that “removing prepositions makes it more condescending”

“The cartilaginous fibers from the bovine patella structure that gelatin’s extracted from gives it that fun, bouncy quality.”

When he does speak, it’s monotone and often a fun fact- perhaps because he doesn’t know how else to connect to people through his words

He’s nonverbal!!!!! 😄😄😄😄😄😄

Same routine every day. They do the same things at the same time (different inventions but same routine) and even have their alarms set to 7 in the summer

In the bully breakup episode he has trouble with the routine change. He tells Phineas he felt like he would scream if he couldn't build something

In the episode where they all try to figure out where their inventions go every day, at the end of the episode Candace is really upset because it disappeared and she doesn't know why. Ferb realized she's upset but isn't sure how to help so he says a science fact "Well, we were all watching it. And quantum theory states that the mere observation of an experiment changes its outcome."

He's nonverbal / semi-verbal and it makes me so happy

Phineas

Hyper verbal

Candace’s busting attempts go completely over his head

Special interest in engineering and building things

Incredible imagination

He talks over other people a lot and doesn’t notice

He and Ferb are each others special interest person

Special relationship with animals, specifically Perry

He repeats the same phrases every episode

Has trouble recognizing sarcasm

He doesn’t really have social awareness

His voice is very often monotone

He hyperfocuses on the inventions

Same routine every day. They do the same things at the same time (different inventions but same routine) and even have their alarms set to 7 in the summer

In the bully breakup episode he has trouble with the routine change. He keeps suggesting things to build to get back to their routine

But despite the routine he doesn't know what they're building until the day of because he also needs spontaneity

Candace

Has trouble focusing except when focusing on busting

Can't focus on other things when focused on busting

Special interest in busting Phineas and Ferb

Other special interest Ducky MoMo and collects items for it

Hyper verbal

Very focused on routine

In the episode where she’s sick and she tries to get Stacy to bust Phineas and Ferb, but she isn’t able to let Stacy take the lead and ends up getting out of bed when she isn’t really well enough to do the busting

VERY black and white thinking

Candace stims a lot!!!!!

She has trouble learning to drive (which is very common in neurodivergent people)

Has trouble making friends

She scripts conversations

Repeats the same phrases every day

Overanalyzes social situations because she has trouble understanding them

She’s obsessed with being cool and fitting in because she doesn’t naturally understand social cues

“I calculate that soon must mean first thing in the morning, since ‘soon’ can’t refer to a period in excess of or equal to 24 hours give or take a 59 minute cushion of time on either side of the event in question.”

Has a lot of childhood toys that she refuses to get rid of

She mentions in one episode that she feels like her room is too childish and she isn’t as mature as others her age (difference in maturity to neurotypical peers)

She doesn’t join in when her friends play with Phineas and Ferb because of her rigid thinking that she has to bust them. Even when they want her to play or hang out with them, she often doesn't realize it and can't let herself

When she reads Sherlock Holmes she copies his personality and phrases

Hyperfixated on the book series and read the whole thing in a single night

She plays every instrument that starts with B

Grilled cheese safe food

Goes into the panic room when overwhelmed or something is outside routine

Dr. Doofenshmirtz

Special interest in making evil scemes

He monologues to Perry every day about his special interest

Bad posture (common in autistic people)

Stims a lot

Repetitive thinking (inators)

Echolalia

In one episode Vanessa is trying to talk to him about something and he keeps getting distracted by echolalia and stim-speaking his words

He only interacts with animals on a regular basis and when he has to talk to people he is very socially awkward

Inattentive, forgetful, unorganized

A lot of his inators have to do with his childhood trauma

Norm the robot helps him with home tasks

Face blindness- he can’t recognize Perry unless he’s wearing his hat

Dad

Vocal stimming!

“Fossils! Bum bum bum.” (fun fact this is a vocal stim of mine!!!!!)

Special interest in antiques and gladiator movies

He has a huge collection of gladiator movies

In the lake nose monster episode he’s telling phineas and ferb stories and completely unaware of anything else happening while he’s talking (infodumping)

Hyperfixated on buying stars and buys a TON in one day

Also gives someone a star as a tip and doesn't realize why that might not be appreciated

Mom

Different interest/activity every episode

She gets hyperfixated on the activity and has trouble leaving it to come home or answer Candace's calls

Oblivious to the boys' antics

I’m gonna keep coming back to update this as I rewatch so it will eventually be the Ultimate List of Autism ™.