#doing what little i can to help reclaim this name from the mcu

[riotouseaterofflesh]

Thor is the god of thunder in Norse mythology , but Thor is also associated with fertility and protection. That's why in this song you can hear and feel both vibes , Thor as the god of thunder and giant slayer starring in epic battles, and Thor as the fertility god.

[stevetonyweekly]

SteveTony Weekly - May 2

I know I say every week that I read a lot this week but I have been indulging in my favorite coping technique and so this list is ridiculously long. Twitter encouraged me. Blame them. 

**Indicates my recent favs 

~*~ 

On the inherent homoeroticism of cake decoration by welcoming_disaster (616/8K)

“She’s matchmaking, Barton,” Carol sighed.

“We,” Thor corrected, thumping himself hard in the chest, “art matchmaking.”

“Who, Cap n’ Tony?” Clint asked, his mouth full.

“Cap and Tony,” Janet confirmed, cutting herself a thin slice of egg and gently depositing it on her whole grain avocado toast, “it’s getting ridiculous.”

“Wait, I thought they were—“ Clint frowned, glancing around the room as though to confirm. Nothing but confused faces met his questioning gaze. “Huh. I really thought they were fucking.”

“And there is the crux of the issue,” Jess licked a bit of spaghetti sauce off her lip.

“Aye,” agreed Thor, “there’s rub.”

-----------

The team tries to set up Steve and Tony. Things don't go as planned.

Baby lovers like you and me (never say die) by FestiveFerret (Old Guard AU/7.5K)

The Avengers. They'd found him frozen in the ice, told him he was immortal, of all things. And with the way he'd lived through seventy years deep in the Atlantic, he found himself inclined to believe them. They'd also been very… convincing.

Without question, they integrated him into their unit - The Avengers, a secret team of unkillables seeking wrongs around the world and making them right, supported and housed by an enigmatic billionaire named Tony Stark. Their immortality, it seemed, was a secret to everyone but him.

Ready, set, bake by ChocolateCapCookie (Great British Bake Off/11k) 

The Avengers are on a nationally televised baking competition, but nobody seems to have warned the producers that the Avengers, while they save the world everyday and put their loves at risk doing so, are a) insanely competitive, and b) absolutely terrible bakers. Steve Rogers, especially, has a competitive streak a mile wide, and he's determined to win this competition, but it's not easy when his only real opponent is also the man he's been in love with for years.

***To make flowers grow (in this barren heart) by SoldiersShield, KakushiMiko (Hanahaki AU/16K) 

“You hide yourself away in your technology, but you are just as human as the rest of them. Your heart betrays your desire to possess.” Her gaze falls to the arc reactor, and Tony's blood runs cold in his veins.

“The Earth will reclaim what we have lost,” she says, dragging a hand over the chestplate of the armor. “It is you, and your kind-- your greed that pulls life from the soil as if it were nothing. You will reap what you have sown, Stark. The avarice in your heart will strangle the very life out of you.” Arna meets his eyes once more, a serene smile on her face as she leans forward.

“I hope he is worth dying for,” she murmurs, before digging her hand into his ribcage.

(Tony Stark falls in love with Steve Rogers. A rogue enchantress ensures he pays for it.)

Shelter from the storm by silkspectred (KidFic/5k) 

Tony adopts a baby. Guess who's Majorly Fucked Up™ about it.

Keep on beating by itsallAvengers (Domestic Fluff/6K) 

There were an awful lot of things Steve loved about Tony. But one thing in particular Steve could never get enough of was his heartbeat.

The good or bad thing by petreparkour (Multiverse/10k) 

 “It’s the metal suit,” Thor informed Steve, his normally-booming voice tinny over the SHIELD comms. “What did Stark call it—Iron Man?”

“But he’s down here,” Steve protested as the Hulk roared in Stark’s face, startling him into waking with a shout. “How could—”

“It’s damaged,” Thor reported. “But it looks different. More advanced. And he—ah. He’s carrying you, Captain.”

“Please tell me nobody kissed me,” Stark breathed out, and then Stark’s voice suddenly came over the comms, but the man lying next to him hadn’t moved.

“Guys, come on, you’re killing me here. What is it, 2012? God, I hate time travel. First, I'm fighting Thanos. Now, I have to deal with my past self and Thor's bad haircut? Oh my God, Cap, yes I hacked their comms, they’re my comms.”

Steve nearly opened his mouth to protest that he hadn’t said anything when he realized that this replica of Tony Stark wasn’t speaking to him.

***The tipping point by nightwalker (Domestic Fluff/7K) 

Tony has a few quirks. Steve's still trying to figure them all out.

We two, how long we were fool’d by glassessay (Soulmate AU/9K) 

Steve Rogers comes into the world as unblemished as his mother. When Anthony Stark is born, his soulmark is an obvious pattern of ink across his tiny chest.

It only takes a century, two names, and a shared love of Walt Whitman for them to find each other.

The tape in the cave by betheflame (Canon Divergent/5K) 

Steve had no idea what was happening.

“You think I didn’t know that?”

Tony was staring Zemo down as though the Sokovian was actual vermin - which, Steve reflected, he kind of was.

“You think that I,” Tony continued, not hiding the sneer in his voice, “Anthony Stark, who has more powerful technology in my literal fingers than most nations have, that I wouldn’t know everything possible about how my parents died? That I wouldn’t know it wasn’t an accident, that your silly little HYDRA Nazi knock-off pals are the ones who murdered them? Please, you are pathetic.”

Happy ending by Robin_tCJ (No-Powers AU/28K) 

 Steve is a mobile massage therapist, and Tony is a stressed billionaire. What could go wrong?

With a decent happiness by torigates (Teacher AU/16K) 

Tony Stark is Iron Man. Steve Rogers isn't, and never was Captain America.

Or, the one where everything is the same except Steve is a kindergarten teacher.

Nothing left but scars by SailorChibi (MCU/6.7K) - Reread

Steve wakes up to the fact that no one ever compliments or even says thank you to Tony, and that he has fallen into the same trap of painting Tony with a specific paintbrush.

This is how he showers a very confused Tony with praise to make up for it.

Our hearts should remember and follow by frostfall (MCU/5K) 

Steve hums. “I didn’t know you could play. Or sing. Don’t think I’ve heard anyone mention it before.”

Tony shrugs. “It’s one of the few things, skills, I don’t flaunt. Not something people are interested in, anyway. Not gonna sway any board members by playing fucking Für Elise for them. Sides’, there’s a high chance I wouldn’t even play. Well, maybe if you get me drunk enough and near an instrument. Then, I might reconsider.”

(After a dream leaves Tony rattled, he turns to the piano as a way to distract himself.)

Finally, you and me by pensversusswords (Multiverse/10K) 

Because in every layer of time, in every conceivable dimension, he was always meant to love Steve.

By some miracle, Steve was meant to love him back.

***Full disclosure not required (but appreciated) by Potrix (Identity Porn/16k) 

The one where Steve knows more than he lets on, Tony knows less than he pretends, Clint has a big mouth, Bucky is a little shit, and everyone learns why keeping secrets never ends well.

Almost never, anyway.

Heartlines by nanasekei (MCU/7.9K) 

“Let me,” Tony repeats. He regrets it deeply, so much, he wants to stick the words back into his mouth again, and it must show, in the way his voice wavers. He feels exposed, all of a sudden, as if he’s asking something bigger than what he can actually say. Let me touch you, let me take care of you. “Just… Let me do it.”

i found a way to let you in, but i never really had a doubt (marriage series) by quidhitch (Marriage Series/16k) 

Tony Stark doesn’t believe in marriage. It’s nobody’s fault. —Well, it’s Howard's fault, probably, but Tony doesn’t like to think about that for too long, finds that it dredges up all sorts of issues he’d rather keep buried under a mountain of strategically employed sarcasm, humorous self-deprecation, and the occasionally effective substance abuse.

***Hide your love away by sineala (Soulmate/33K) - Reread

Tony has suspected for a long time that the soulmark on his chest matches Steve's -- but he's never told Steve about it. And then it's too late to tell Steve anything at all ever again. In the wake of Steve's death, the Skrull invasion, and Norman Osborn's rise to power, the identity of his soulmate is just one of the many things Tony cuts out of his memory forever.

When Tony returns to consciousness, he's forced to deal with the aftermath of a war he no longer remembers fighting, not to mention a Steve Rogers who can barely stand to be in the same room with him. Surely the last thing Tony could ever need in his life is more amnesia. But that's what he gets. And Tony's new missing memory just might be the key to finding out the truth of his soulmark... as well as his chance to make things right once and for all.

Break the chain (can’t live in circles again) by orphan_account (FWB/19K) 

There had been seven amazing weeks of dating Steve Rogers before Tony realised that they weren’t dating at all. And then it was a scramble to adjust to the situation as it had always been: being Steve’s friend-with-benefits.

And if Steve seemed a little confused and bewildered by the way Tony was acting, well. Tony was probably just misreading that, too.

Five times steve and tony (tried to) bail each other out of jail by Teyke (MCU/6k) 

Twice before Civil War, twice after, and once during. For very loose definitions of both 'bail' and 'jail'.

Cracked hearts under iron ribs by XtaticPearl (Established Relationship/14k)

Rhodey is away for almost six months now and comes to meet Tony after the mission. He doesn't understand the domesticity of the whole Tower and unknowingly sets off a whole truck of insecurities which make Tony crawl back into being a Stark instead of just Tony. The team is not at all happy and Rhodey joins them in trying to figure out a way to help their resident genius feel better in his skin.

The single biggest problem with communication by BlossomsintheMist (616/108K)

In the wake of Steve's return from the dead and the end of Norman Osborn's reign of terror, the superhero community is recovering--Steve has taken on a new role and Tony is trying to put his life back together. Things are still awkward between them, but they're determined to put things to rights. But when a discussion about their feelings leads to further misunderstandings, they discover that might be more difficult than either of them realized. Set in the early Heroic Age after the end of Dark Reign, this is a get-together story about crossed wires--and second chances.

What are friends for? by bobertsmallismydad (MCU /2.8K) 

In which Steve is targeted by a virus. Will the Avengers be able to save him in time?

Starving by festiveferret (Vampire AU/2K) 

Steve woke up starving.

***Everybody wonders (What it would be like to love you) by SoldiersShield (MCU/3K) 

“...Is that what this is about?” He asks slowly. Steve blanches.

“Oh my god. It is.” Tony has no right looking as giddy as he does. “Steven Grant Rogers, are you jealous?”

--

Or: Steve and Tony have been dancing around each other for a while now, and Steve's rather content with it. Attending a gala together just might change that.

Re(A)d all over by brandnewfashion, MusicalLuna (Drunk Flirting/3k) 

Contrary to popular belief, Tony Stark can blush.

It just takes Steve getting drunk on some magical Asgardian mead for it to finally happen.

***The Do-over Proposal by nightwalker (Established Relationship/1.2k) 

Steve wants to go on a journey, Tony doesn't think it's a good time, and Bucky needs to beat some sense into both these idiots.

A Winter’s Ball by alliejowrites (Victorian AU/3.8K) 

Steve moves to London in search of a patron, so that he can finally devote himself to painting. He is not expecting everything he finds upon meeting Lord Stark. A fluffy little Victorian AU. One-shot.

What’s a fanfic by starksnack (AvAc/1K) 

Kamala introduces Tony and Steve to the world of fanfiction. There is a surprising amount of content about them being gay.

[fearlessleaderbucky]

bunch of little things from the comics that i like to compare with the mcu to figure out what i would like to see going forward:

it's kind of a bare minimum petition in a way. i'd call this a comparative essay but it's too messy to be an essay so, let's just start LOL... im not actually that well versed in comics im more like "oh yeah i dig this" and run w what i like

first off sam in the mcu i actually really love what they've done with him. might be because i can't help but love sam since he's so damn charming. i guess one glaring difference between comics sam and movies sam is the way they carry themselves—compared to mcu sam, comics sam has been doing this for decades. he is rougher around the edges while having his big heart anyway, which is a really nice contrast and makes sense given how long he's been working as falcon lol. so what are the differences that can be found/how did the mcu adapt some of sam's comic traits?

he's a social worker and a community organizer! he also runs a veteran support group, not that different from sam being a counselor in the mcu. in tfatws it's shown that sam helps sarah whenever he's around in delacroix, in turn helping out the whole community—showing that they're (the wilsons) are very loved by all the members in their community, and this is a very important thing! a connection to a community! a purpose for a character to want to fight for others, to have something they love and protect and make it believable at the same time. it's lovely.

sam's heart being too big and moving people / seeing the best in others carries on super well in the mcu. everyone's familiar with sam giving shelter to stevenat in tws, sam never wanting to fight karli, sam being kind to john, etc. it's a lovely detail and one of my fave things about him so that's also super satisfying :)

so now in terms of sam wilson as a character what would i like to see more? it already started during tfatws when he confronted all those politicians on live tv but cap sam makes the point of not remaining quiet and speaking up, something that usually costs him public approval but he remains strong and tall about what he believes in. not being afraid to take a political stance despite people wanting him to stay neutral.

sam's struggles on wanting to do what's right by him and at the same time having some struggles according to how he's perceived by the public because it's always going to be an important conversation to have and again, this character is not one to shy again from stances like these. when tfatws was coming out lots of people were uncomfortable by how “political” and by the race conversations that took place in the series. i don't think they'd shy away from it anyway but still something i truly wish to see how they handle. esp with a not-white team working on it heh

more moments of sam being truly sure of who he is and killing it bc i love him

sam's connection to his family and how they influence him to be who he is, and sam's own little family composed of joaquín and shaun and redwing (currently just joaquín and redwing in the mcu) to have his own support system besides the guys we already know

just. sam :)

moving onto bucky, mcu bucky is... kind of starting to be his own character at last? like i remember watching tfatws ep 1 and going OMG HE HAS A PERSONALITY so it was a big deal. so it's a bit of a clean slate, right? so here are the things i wish the mcu would implement for bucky but i highly doubt they will but i love to dream anyway:

ideally seeing where the character is right now they could, yes, take an approach to winter soldier 2018 since it fits bucky's current character arc of learning to forgive himself and try to do good.

really want the mcu to stop pushing the white wolf narrative and trying to erase the winter soldier from bucky, seeing as how ed brubaker is responsible for bringing bucky back as the winter soldier and how he feels re:mcu bucky, i feel like the least they could do is let him still keep the winter soldier, just. reclaim the name like in the 2018 run, etc

bucky is a loving character. he just loves so damn much. if comics sam is sharp around the edges but soft inside, bucky is soft around the edges but firm inside. he's not afraid to call sam and nat his best friends when they're captured specifically to lure bucky out

he feels so much for people, he acknowledges the burden and the pain he carries to do better and take back his mistakes, and tries to take care of everybody without ever putting himself first, and endures So much.. talk about being a meow meow

super good with kids somehow?

please mcu give him friends who love him that's all i actually ask from you. bucky is loyal to a nauseating degree. even when sam and nat get captured it was literally illegal for him to break them out but what did he do? break the law, of course,

he's hilarious. for real trust me he's hilarious. like there's something wrong with him (affectionate)

so to sum it up: just dont be afraid to make him kind and loving bc thats where bucky shines most. as for the sambucky dynamic in general i just want them to still be themselves. just like this :)

[danwhobrowses]

MCU: 10 Ways WandaVision and Falcon & The Winter Soldier are the Same

So now we have 2 of Marvel's Phase 3.5 shows in the books, and both have been pretty great. In the 7 week wait for Loki though we'll have time to mull things over.

When watching the Falcon & Winter Soldier finale though, I started to notice that there were some patterns between it and Wandavision. While two completely different stories they did share some similar beats, so here's 10 I spotted and thus 10 to look out for when Loki comes around.

Spoilers for WandaVision and Falcon & The Winter Soldier, give it a watch before you give this a look

10 - Villains become Memes

While one can contest that Zemo acts more as an antihero in The Falcon & the Winter Soldier, he still provides an antagonistic edge in the story. However, both he and Agatha became villains that had charisma to charm the audience, and their actions brought about multiple memes. On Agatha's side there was the wink, Agatha All Along and her in the fitness outfit, while with Zemo there was the 'it captures the experience', his iconic dancing and Turkish Delight. While not a story beat on the shows, the writers must've known that fans would gravitate to these characters to give them such content to use. Also add a hat tip to John Walker who got his own memes too with him about to embed the shield into a dude's chest, and Wanda herself for her nose scrunch being used as a meme alongside Thor's 'is it though?'.

9 - The Government aren't exactly helpful

While the Government aren't entirely the enemy in the show, they don't do well to stay on our heroes' good side. In WandaVision, they enhance Wanda's grief in the fact that she can't even lay him to rest, SWORD instead deciding that her lover is government property and they are harvesting his 'organs' and vibranium skin as a resource to use for weapons. On Falcon & Winter Soldier, the US Government deliberately deceive Sam by having him hand over the shield to put in a museum, only to then take it out and give it to John Walker without even telling Sam or Bucky about it. In addition when they disavow Walker they try to reclaim the Shield - which, as the Contessa does reveal, isn't technically their property either. While Falcon & Winter Soldier delved deeper into the government's lack of help through the GDC subplot motivating the Flag Smashers, there were still similarities found with how SWORD - which is quite different to its comic version - antagonizes Wanda. In the end all this escalates because of them, and in the end neither of them get to keep the Vibranium.

8 - 'Good Person' is Bad Guy

Although there's a more supernatural threat in both stories, the characters end up having their trust betrayed by people they believed to be decent. For WandaVision it is current Director of SWORD, Director Hayward, who appears adamant in silencing Wanda after using her as a means to power up White Vision as a programmable weapon. For Falcon & the Winter Soldier, it's Sharon Carter - descendant of Steve's beau who he also made out with - the discarded agent who gave up a lot for the heroes only to not get it in return, remaining enemy of the state and becoming the Power Broker. The shows can also have this reserved for 'Agnes' and John Walker but in the end people expected them to break bad from day 1. You could make a statement for Wanda since she looks to be an antagonist for Doctor Strange 2 though.

7 - The MCU add a little history

Marvel has had a habit of changing Wanda's (and Pietro's) origin on a whim, the MCU deciding to source their powers on an Infinity Stone. Doing this however left a gap in the fact that Wanda is a Witch, which they cleaned up in WandaVision. Treading back on the Scarlet Witch being a mantle (though cutting her mother being a Scarlet Witch before her) as it is in the comics, they changed Wanda's powers from being latent and amplified by the stone rather than gifted to the stone itself. Falcon & Winter Soldier added to their history with the impactful Truth: Red, White and Black story, adding Isaiah Bradley into the MCU to further layer the conflict and tragedy Sam faces with being Captain America. Both are welcome additions to the MCU timeline, setting up for newer things to come in Phase 4 Movies.

6 - The hero wins the fight, but not the day

Winning isn't always winning, as Wanda and Sam would discover upon the finale of their respective shows. Wanda defeats Agatha and Hayward is forced to face his crimes, but she has also come to terms with the face that the Hex must go, and in turn her family with it. While the Hex has freed all its residents, Wanda knows that she's not on anyone's good side either with the people she subconsciously enslaved. Sam gets it a little better, he's recognized himself as Captain America and given a patented 'Cap-speech', but he was unable to save Karli Morgenthau from being killed, someone who he was once so close to reaching and sympathized heavily with. Although the Super Soldier threat is neutralized, the Flag Smashers' ideals will live on to further radicalize itself, and its vision will further sow conflict and division.

5 - (Mostly) Bigger Roles for old MCU Side Characters

Never one to shy past their crossovers, Wandavision and Falcon & the Winter Soldier both brought back side characters - some more obscure than others - from older films to gel into the plot. WandaVision brought back Darcy from the Thor franchise and Jimmy Woo from Ant Man & the Wasp to great comedic effect, fans already wanting a spin-off with them and possibly Monica - who may also count but technically not the same actress, the same can be said for 'Pietro' too. Falcon & the Winter Soldier stayed primarily in their lane of Captain America movies; with Batroc and Sharon both debuting in Winter Soldier and Dora Milaje's Ayo debuting in Civil War, while it was less comedic, the story was more interwoven with them since they all had ties to the main two characters.

4 - [Person] is obviously [Character]

Possibly a bit of a narrative backdrop, or maybe years of MCU has clued us in on a plot twist a mile away, but both shows also were unable to hide well that Agnes from WandaVision and Sharon from Falcon & Winter Soldier were in fact Agatha Harkness and the Power Broker. It's not to say that knowing ruined the story, it just felt more of a 'when' rather than an 'if'. The main difference though is that Sharon managed to keep her villainy secret, and remains that way, while Agatha went too far in trying to take Wanda's power rather than help her with it and has now become stuck as Agnes instead.

3 - New Blood coming on the Hero Scene

While the shows already did their job in setting up Wanda and Sam as big league heroes, they also looked a bit more in establishing new blood too. WandaVision established the potential for the twin Maximoff boys to grow into Wiccan and Speed - once Wanda finds a way to re-canonize them, Falcon & the Winter Soldier also made sure to introduce Elijah Bradley, Isaiah's grandson, which may also aid in establishing a Young Avengers team - what with Kate Bishop also soon to appear in Hawkeye. WandaVision also created the origin for Monica Rambeau, having her body altered by the Hex, which will likely be furthered in Captain Marvel 2, Falcon & the Winter Soldier also established John Walker as the US Agent to leave a potential for Thunderbolts, as well as introducing Joaquin Torres - opening the possibility to have a new Falcon. While not a bad thing to set up for the future, it is interesting that both shows had exactly 3 names that could become future heroes.

2 - 'Villain' character partly redeems themselves after a Grief-Fuelled Mistake

Make no mistake, technically speaking Wanda is still a villain in WandaVision: she enslaved an entire town and suppressed them as side characters of a tv show. But the thing is that she didn't really intend to cause pain, it was an impulse action triggered by her grief. The same can be said for John Walker in Falcon & the Winter Soldier, he was already pressured by the standards being Captain America would entail and he was feeling the stress of a string of failures, a Dora Milaje humbling and a frosty reception from Steve's two close friends, juiced up on Super Soldier serum, and then his best friend just got killed because he didn't back him up, in a rage he killed a Flag Smasher with the shield - even though they were fleeing and not the one who killed Lemar, which he would lie about to Lemar's family. Despite this though, they managed to find some form of redemption, even if it was small. Wanda released the Hex and stopped Agatha from going haywire with her chaos magic, John gave up on his revenge seeking to save a truck from falling. Even though it doesn't entirely make up for what they did, it was at least a sign that they had not completely gone off the deep end...yet.

1 - Comic-Accurate Costumes

Comic costumes are always a tough one because some of the older costumes were borderline atrocious. WandaVision at the very least managed to poke fun at it with them dressing up most of the Maximoff/Vision family in their comic-accurate costumes, Speed getting a few more nods in the finale alongside Wanda's revamped and quite on the money look. In Falcon & Winter Soldier, there was accurate costuming for John Walker's US Agent look and Sam's Captain America costume, not to mention Lemar's Battlestar outfit, Zemo's mask and Batroc's jumpsuit.

Overall, it's not a bad thing that they kept these story beats, but it may be worth trying to avoid some of these in later tv show plot points so that it doesn't appear repetitive and formulaic. These shows have been great, so let's keep that momentum going.

[daresplaining]

So, in one of your posts you mentioned that you could write a lot about the different contexts in which Danny introduces himself as Danny vs. the Iron Fist. Is there any chance we could ever read those thoughts. Thank you so much for running such an amazing blog; I love it.

    I want to preface this with a general statement and apology:

    This blog has slowed down a bit in the last… year? Ish? Possibly longer? And this is because life has gotten much more hectic for a variety of reasons. My wonderful co-blogger has been busy enough that she doesn’t really have time to blog anymore, and my life has been fairly chaotic as well. There are messages in the inbox that have been there for a really long time (this one included), and I want to assure you that they will be answered, and that this blog does, in fact, still welcome questions! Thank you all so much for your patience, hello to any new followers, keep on Daredevilling, wash your hands… and now, let’s talk about our boy Danny!

    (Context: The post being referenced is this one.)

    MCU Danny’s overall story arc orbited around concepts of identity. The entire first season of Iron Fist is an identity quest– Danny returns to Earth, has his identity as Danny Rand stripped away and fights to reclaim it, has his identity as the Iron Fist challenged and fights to defend that, and then is faced with the question of how to balance both of those identities– his adherence to the honor and duties of being the Iron Fist, but informed by his sensibilities and past life as Danny Rand. At the end of the season, he makes the wise choice to return to K’un-Lun to continue his training, to focus more on his role as an Immortal Weapon, only to discover that… something horrible has happened to his home. The truth of what actually happened to K’un-Lun was a mystery that was never answered, and remains for me one of these shows’ most frustrating cliffhangers. But regardless, this discovery is a bomb dropped in the middle of his identity quest. He believes his home was invaded, and it’s notable that his traumatic nightmares of his parents’ deaths are replaced by nightmares of K’un-Lun’s destruction. He feels he cannot fully claim the title of Iron Fist anymore because he has failed in his duties. He has failed his family, his home, the people he was supposed to protect. But he also clings to that identity more tightly than ever as he commits every moment of his life to righting that wrong, to fixing this unforgivable mistake. He is angry and grieving when we see him in The Defenders, his identity a painful, mixed-up thing, and this fact has to be taken into account as we look at the ways Danny introduces himself in that show.

    Overall, my feeling is that I’m thinking a lot more about this than the writers were, but hey, it’s still fun to examine. Let’s take a look…   

[ID: A screenshot of Danny Rand and Colleen Wing in a dark, green-tinged tunnel, kneeling next to an injured man (Shaft, a member of the Chaste).]

Danny (subtitle): “My name is Danny. I’m hunting members of the Hand.”

    This, his first introduction in the show, is a telling one. He is here in a professional capacity as the Iron Fist, doing strictly Iron Fist business (hunting the Hand), fully embodying that identity, yet he doesn’t introduce himself as such. Instead, he’s just “Danny”. (Note: not “Danny Rand”. Danny’s association with the name Rand is another complicated topic that I’ll get back to later.) This is in spite of the fact that he has reason to assume, given that Shaft knows about the Hand, that he would know about the Iron Fist legacy as well.  

    This can be taken a few different ways. It’s possible that he’s using Danny as just as shorthand; it’s more personal, and he may want to put Shaft at ease by using his civilian name. Or, at this early stage, having now suffered yet another failure of being unable to protect Shaft, it could be reflective of the fact that he doesn’t feel worthy of the title. He is shocked when Shaft recognizes him as the Iron Fist– maybe because he didn’t think Shaft would be so informed, maybe because he is embarrassed and ashamed to be addressed as such.   

[ID: Screenshot of Danny standing in Colleen’s dojo, arms folded, looking intensely sincere. He is speaking to Luke Cage (off-screen).]

Danny: “I’m the Immortal Iron Fist.”

    And here we have the exact opposite. The above scene with Shaft is very intimate, personal, emotional. Danny is avoiding his Iron Fist identity, downplaying himself. Everything is very quiet and desperate and genuine. 

    Here, though… Danny is wearing a mask. He is introducing himself in a succinct, summarizing way; projecting an image, providing information. His personal feelings about his identity are completely absent from this scene, because no way in hell is he going to reveal that vulnerable side of himself to someone he barely knows and doesn’t trust (yet). He is also reacting to Luke’s behavior, which up until this point has been dismissive at best, violent at worst. Luke is a sore spot here: a person who Danny initially thought was working with the Hand, and who he struggled to beat in a fight. If Danny was ashamed before, he is extra humiliated now, standing in front of Luke and being scoffed at (“Oh, this is a joke. Come on”). 

    And so he presents himself as the powerful, in-control Iron Fist he doesn’t actually believe himself to be (“I can answer myself” etc.), throws down a Clif-Notes version of his backstory so Luke can understand who he is, what he was doing when they first met, and why he is a trustworthy ally/asset, and introduces himself with the most formal, intimidating version of his title. Danny is recovering from a bruised ego, and wants the unpleasantness out of the way so that he can continue with his mission– and if Luke is capable of helping, then he wants to make that connection with as little angst and fuss as possible. He needs Luke to know that he is the Iron Fist, even if he doesn’t feel like he actually is. 

[ID: Screenshot of Danny strolling into the lobby of Midland Circle, wearing a business suit.]

Receptionist: “Name, please.”

Danny: “Daniel Rand, of Rand Enterprises.”

    Having seen one mask, we now get to see the other– this one much more fabricated, though he pulls it off with STYLE. (That swagger! I love this scene.) This is Business Danny at his Business Danny-est: Daniel Rand of Rand Enterprises, wearing a tie and everything. Danny is not a businessperson, as he himself says. He has never been a businessperson. He has never wanted to be a businessperson. And, as he also readily admits, he is not a very good businessperson. But it’s a mask he tried on in IF Season One for identity quest purposes– to tether himself to the Rand name, his civilian identity, which was his sole remaining connection to Earth and which the Meachums were trying to rip away from him– and it’s a mask he now dons again, this time as a weapon against the Hand. His introduction here is just as much of a necessary facade as his introduction to Luke was in the previous example, but this one lacks the emotional baggage. 

[ID: The same scene as previous; Danny is smirking coldly at the Midland Circle receptionist.]

Receptionist: “Are they expecting you?”

Danny: “[Chuckles softly] Not like this.”

Okay, sorry, I always say this when discussing this scene, but… DANG. Get ‘em. 

[ID: Screenshot of Danny standing in a white-walled Midland Circle conference room, hands folded in front of him, his back to an open door. A whole bunch of people in suits are sitting at a long conference table in front of him, watching him speak.”

Danny: “My name is Danny Rand.”

    The charade continues (though note the switch from “Daniel” to “Danny”. He is being just as formal and fake here, but he’s never really been a “Daniel” and it’s possible he says it without thinking). I talked about this moment in detail in the original post, regarding Danny’s strategy and the challenges he faces as his plan starts to go awry, so I won’t repeat myself here, but I will point out that Danny keeps this mask on for as long as he can, even after revealing that he knows they are the Hand, even after Alexandra shows up and starts behaving condescendingly toward him. He embodies the Danny Rand of Rand Enterprises identity for as long as possible, so that they don’t see him as a physical threat until he wants them to, and so that when the moment arrives, it can be as impactful as it needs to be. He wants them off their guard, unsettled, frightened.

[ID: A close-up of Danny from the shoulders up, same scene as above. He is resolute.]

Danny: “I am the Immortal Iron Fist, weapon of K’un-Lun.”

    I think this is genuine. Yes, it’s a shock-and-awe tactic to tell the Hand who they’re really dealing with, but I also think that in this moment, Danny rediscovers some of his confidence. He believes that, after all of his shame and failures, he has found a plan that will work. He has finally tracked down the Hand, he has breached their defenses in a way they were not expecting, and he believes that he can now destroy them. And then he gets emotional. This is about honor and vengeance, and they need to know who it’s coming from and what they are paying for. “I am the Immortal Iron Fist, weapon of K’un-Lun”– he is retaking his ownership as defender of his city, because he needs to, because he believes he finally can. He has conviction in his identity as the Iron Fist for the first time since the last few episodes of his solo show. And man, it hurts so much to find out that he is wrong. 

[ID: Screenshot of Danny, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Matt Murdock (in civvies with a grey scarf tied over his face), standing in a tight circle in a dimly-lit room (a restaurant). Danny is talking to Jessica.]

Danny: “Hey, I’m, uh… I’m Danny.”

Jessica: “Jessica.”

    Here is our final scene of Danny introductions: the team dinner, in which he introduces himself to Jessica, and tries to do the same to Matt (who is being grumpy and incognito and therefore is unreceptive to introductions). This one doesn’t have the emotional complexity of the previous examples– Danny is super cheerful and endearing here, delighted to meet these other superheroes and to have found more allies, and he introduces himself with a healthy, informal “Danny”. The beginning of the team-up is the start of the breakdown of his character arc, but it’s a very cute scene regardless– a glimpse of the happy, well-adjusted (or at least adequately repressed) Danny that we had not seen in the MCU at this point since the beginning of IF Season One.  

[ID: The same scene. The four of them are standing around a plate-laden table. Matt is leaning intently toward Danny with his hands on his hips, listening to him speak.]

Danny: “Sworn protector of K’un-Lun.”

    Part of Danny’s relaxed-ness comes from his belief, again, that with these new allies, his revenge quest is achievable. He is also clearly relieved to have help. He introduces himself as just “Danny” initially– using the most informal and least baggage-laden version of his identity, forming a personal connection with them– and then introduces himself as the Immortal Iron Fist, “sworn protector of K’un-Lun” later, when he starts explaining his role in the fight against the Hand. He is very relaxed about referring to himself in this way here, partly because– again– his sense of self and security has been bolstered, he is feeling good and hopeful, and also, it’s just necessary context that he knows he needs to provide. Specifically, he refers to himself as such to Matt, because he has gathered at this point that Matt has Chaste connections, and therefore assumes that he knows about the Iron Fist legacy. Little does he suspect that overly-emotional Matt failed out of Chaste School before learning any of the important backstory, and is therefore clueless. 

[ID: Screenshot of Misty Knight looking over Luke’s shoulder at something that clearly upsets her.]

Danny (off-screen): “You got a chair?”

    Please indulge me for just a second: Am I bitter that we didn’t see Danny properly introduce himself to Misty? Am I bitter that their relationship was almost entirely neglected in these shows? Yes, just a little. 

    Anyway…

    Overall, Danny’s emotional arc in this show suffered for the sake of the team-up, and I feel like there is not as much significance in these introductions– these shorthands for Danny’s identity struggles– as there should have been/would have been if this were his show. That said, I do think they are important, and I loved digging into this. Danny’s journey is one of my favorites out of all of the Netflix Marvel protagonists, and I love taking it apart and examining it. 

    Again, I’m sorry this post was so long delayed, and thank you for the question!

[web-of-fics]

Unnamed

Requested by: anon (kind of)

Starring: Peter Parker x reader

Fandom: MCU

Warnings: casual mortal peril (mild injuries) + two whole swear words

Words: 1211

Writer’s note: this is an early draft of a request I did but this has absolutely no fluff so I scrapped it and started over completely... but I thought some of you might enjoy reading it anyway :)

(bonus points if you can guess which fic this is a spinoff from)

✎_____________________________________________________________________

You were running. Your lungs strained against your chest while your heart  struggled to push enough blood into your limbs so they could match pace with the adrenaline coursing through you. 

The streets of New York at night were no more dangerous that the urban streets of other cities. In fact, they were probably even safer than Detroit or Chicago because of the fact that every superhero to ever crawl out of a radioactive pit seemingly did so within the confines of New York state. 

At least, that’s what you told yourself when you moved here. 

As your exhausted lungs grew more and more desperate for air, you wondered idly what you would have to say to convince yourself to stay here once you chased down this conniving pair of thieves and reclaimed your backpack

Your feet slammed one after another across the concrete as you envisioned yourself successfully catching the duo and standing over them, punching and kicking until they were forced to hand over your belongings. The image was exceptionally more violent than your usual train of thought, but seeing that they had done the exact same thing to you only moments before, you refused to feel bad about it. 

They turned down an alley. They were already scaling the fence when you rounded the corner after them. You spotted your bag--slung around the back of the furthest climber. 

You charged them and jumped, reaching to grasp any dangling strap or handle that might give you a fighting chance to retrieve your pens and notebooks, but more importantly, your laptop.

Your fingers curled around a handle sticking out of the bag. The thief stopped climbing, his hands hooked over the top of the fence but your dead weight preventing him from jumping it without shaking you off first. He yelled to his comrade, who ignored him and continued to jump the fence successfully. You heard his footsteps fade as he ran off, abandoning his partner. 

You continued to hang, your feet just hovering above the ground as your arm burned with the effort of holding on. The thief grunted and you felt him wiggle beneath you as he attempted to shake you off or continue over the fence. 

“Give me my bag!” you panted, screaming up at him.

“Let go!” he shouted back. You made a mental note of his gravelly tone voice to describe in your police report. 

“You let go!” you snapped back. 

You felt a sudden jolt as one of his hands slipped. He held fast with the other. With the freed arm, he shrugged off one strap. Then, with another grunt, he grasped the fence with both hands again and let the opposite arm fall limp long enough for the backpack to slip off. 

Before you had time to react, you hit the ground, still clutching the backpack. Your entire backside slammed onto the asphalt, your feet flying above your head and your bag landing hard on your stomach, knocking the wind out of you. Black spots dominated your vision and you rolled your head from side to side, trying to shake it off. When that failed, you rolled onto your side to try and catch your breath. You began to panic when your lungs refused to refill completely. The black spots worsened until they enveloped your field of vision completely, your breath now a thin rasp. 

The next thing you knew was nothingness.

- - - - - - - - -

“Two broooos, chillin�� in an alley. Five feet apart ‘cause they’re not gay,” a high, male voice said in sing-song as you came to. You opened your eyes as far as you could manage, and were greeted with the blurry image of a red-and-blue-clad figure sitting against a brick wall some feet away. The figure must have heard you stir, because it looked to and away from you quickly, as if they had not realized you were conscious when they had spoken aloud. As your vision cleared you recognized them.

“The police are on their way,” the guy said in an intentionally lower register.  

“Oh good,” you exhaled, feeling around for your backpack and struggling to sit up. You spotted another human lump lying against the fence. You recognized him as the asshole you’d piggybacked halfway up the fence. 

You noticed then that Spider-Man was staring at you. Even though every inch of his body was concealed, you could tell he appeared confused. You could also tell that the smaller shape next to him was your backpack.

You attempted to stand. Before you could find you balance, he shot a web that pinned you back to the ground. 

“Hey!” you complained. “What was that for?” You held out your free hand. “Give me that.”

He laughed and squeezed your bag to his chest. “No chance.”

Impatiently, you replied, “no, really, give it back. I want to make sure my stuff is okay.” You continued to hold out your free hand expectantly. 

“Nice try,” he said as he turned his nose away. “I’m getting this back to its rightful owner.”

You realized then that he had somehow mistaken you for one of the two thieves. You took a deep breath, doing your best to sound calm and honest. 

“I’m its owner. This is my backpack. I stole it back from this guy and his partner when they stole it from me and beat the shit out of me. Look.”

You modeled your blackening eye and bleeding lip. The left half of your face was indeed turning shades of red and purple. You noticed then that your backside was throbbing. 

Spider-Man was surprisingly graceful as he crossed the few feet that separated you to examine your wounds. 

“You’re hurt,” he said. You weren’t sure if he was being sympathetic or just observant.

“Yup. Can I please see if my computer survived? The suspense is killing me. I’m not going anywhere,” you pulled on the web, which had surprisingly little give, to prove it. 

A beat passed, then he passed the bag to you and crouched nearby, reminding you of a curious gorilla as he watched you slip your laptop free. It appeared intact. You opened it, entered your password, and shut the computer down when you verified that the screen and keyboard still worked. 

You sighed with relief, relaxing back onto the ground. Unfortunately, your relief was short-lived: now that you were no longer stressed about your laptop, your throbbing body forced its way into your awareness. 

You moaned and collapsed onto your side. 

“Hey!” Spider-Man said, moving to cradle your head as the black spots started popping up again. “Hey, hey, hey, I’m gonna get you help,” he said soothingly. 

You heard the approaching sirens before the flashing blue and red filled the dark alley, casting odd patches of light in the background of the blackness clouding your vision more and more. 

“This way!” Spider-Man called down the alleyway as the car doors slammed. Running footsteps followed his voice. His voice was softer and closer when he spoke next. “What’s your name? Hey, stay with me, we’re going to help you but I just need you to tell me your name.”

But the blackness swallowed you whole before your lips could part. 

_______________________________________________________________________

Just one more before bed? Click here for a masterlist of my fics!

[firestorm26621]

Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2020

A new year is upon us, and with it being such a visually impressive numbered year as 2020, it’s hard not to think we’re living in the future.  For me, though, it mostly means another year full of movies, many of which I’m very much looking forward to.  

So, without any further ado, here are the ten I’m looking forward to the most...

#10 – A Quiet Place Part II

A Quiet Place was #4 on my list of favorites movies of 2018; at that time I praised it for being tense and riveting but mostly for doing an excellent job of using the monster scenario to illustrate its themes of anxious parenthood in a dangerous world.  A sequel, in theory, was probably not a good idea, especially considering the track record on sequels to horror movies in general.  And yet, I still find myself excited; it has the same hand behind the wheel and cast, and the trailer looks like it is maintaining the intensity if nothing else.  This one has the greatest potential to disappoint, but I remain cautiously optimistic.

#9 – The King’s Man

The first Kingsman movie was a fun blast that walked a fine line between bad-ass, charismatic action and goofy, over-the-top comedy, and it did it wonderfully.  The second film fell way over that line, becoming a goofy pile of cartoony gimmicks.  Thus, I was very nervous when I heard they were making a third, but based on the trailer, they are trying their best to reclaim some of the more serious elements that worked the first time.  Plus, I think it was a smart move to make it a brand new story with new characters in a new time period, as it allows them to make unburden themselves of the weight of the previous films.  I won’t be terribly disappointed if this ends up being bad, but I will be very happy if it rights the Kingsman ship and recaptures the charm of the first.

#8 – The Gentlemen

Guy Ritchie is making another gangster movie, and I am here for it.  In all honesty, I kind of fell off with Ritchie as a director over the last ten years; Aladdin could have been directed by anyone, the Sherlock movies are fine at best, and his takes on King Arthur & The Man From UNCLE were genuinely bad.  He can bring his style to anything he directs, but it seems he has devolved from gritty yet charming film-making to be more of a director-for-hire, without much artistic vision in place.  But go back in time, to RocknRolla and Snatch and Lock Stock, and he could bring a style that no one has been able to replicate to date.  With this, I hope he can bring the old magic back, even if it’s been absent for a whole decade.

#7 – Black Widow

This one is a pure MCU fanboy entry, for sure, but I can’t help it.  I’ve wanted a Black Widow for a long time, since back when it would have actually made sense in the timeline.  I do still think this timing is odd, but it is absolutely a case of better late than never.  I’m unfamiliar with the director who seems to have done television and a couple female-led thrillers which I haven’t seen.  But what’s really exciting is the trailer, which recalled the way The Winter Soldier trailer played out, and since that is still my favorite MCU movie, I’m alright with getting my hopes up.

#6 – Top Gun: Maverick

This one is a bit of a surprise to me to be excited about.  I have no real nostalgic feelings for the original, I think I saw it far too late for that.  Instead, I recognized it as a pretty great, if dated, action drama full of repressed homoeroticism and a very cool style (I’d later fall in love with Tony Scott’s style, but I didn’t know who he was at the time).  No, as fun as that movie is, my excitement for this has nothing to do with then, but now.  Namely, the two names attached, the director Joseph Kosinski has been doing solid films with fantastic visual styles for a few years, and recently proved he can do films with real heart with Only the Brave; and then, of course, there is Tom Cruise, who has reinvented himself in the last few years as a high intensity, all-or-nothing, thrill-seeker willing to go to any lengths to put dangerous scenarios on the screen.  The kind of person who would actually learn how to fly a fighter jet for a movie; which seems like a good fit here.

#5 – The Personal History of David Copperfield

Armando Iannucci is one of my favorite comedic directors working right now.  His comedy is of a sly, sharp, often cunningly cruel variety while also somehow seeming whimsical, which is a feat.  With Veep ending, it leaves a hole where I can experience bad people saying mean things to each other in hilarious fashion, and this will fill that nicely.   Add to that a fantastic and sizable cast, which is an almost given for his work now, and I can’t wait for this one.

#4 – No Time to Die

The Bond franchise is wildly varied in quality, especially Daniel Craig’s run, going up and down in succession for years.  I still think Daniel Craig is the best Bond we’ve had, and I still think his first entry, Casino Royale, is the best Bond film, it’s just that the franchise has changed hands so many times and everyone seems to have different ideas of what he should be, which leads a bizarre jump where he goes from brand new 007 in one film to aged, retiring Bond in the next.  So, for the most part, I’m trying to take these one at a time, not together, and basing my estimations of them by who is helming them.  And this one is being helmed by none other than Cary Fukunaga, a director who exudes artistic vision.  I haven’t loved everything he’s done, but nothing has been middling; he swings for the fences with everything he makes, and so I’m very excited for what kind of vision he’s going to bring to the latest in the 007 series.

#3 – Last Night in Soho

I know almost nothing about this one, but it’s a new Edgar Wright movie, and that’s really all I need.  Seriously, there is a very vague description about a girl time traveling to meet her fashion icon, but it honestly doesn’t matter what it’s about, Wright never fails to bring his intricate, precise, magnetically charming style to anything he does, so a new movie from him after three years without is all I need to get excited about it.

#2 – Tenet

Much like the previous entry, I don’t need anything else to get excited for a Christopher Nolan movie.  He’s an unmatched storyteller who revels in complexity and telling stories in unconventional ways, and with this one, he is going back to messing around with time, something he seems to love doing, with a story that seems set to dig down into that particular inclination to an extremely high degree.  The first trailer was promising if vague, and that’s perfect; I don’t want to know any more about what I’m going see, I trust Nolan to take me on a memorable, mind-bending ride.

#1 – Dune

I don’t want to say that this film was crafted specifically for me, but it just might have been.  Dune is my favorite book of all time, and I’ve read a good number in the sci-fi/fantasy genre, but it has eclipsed all of them with the sheer power of its ideas; ideas that have lodged themselves firmly in my head and formed a good deal of my personal philosophies.  And then, it is being directed by Denis Villeneuve who is one of, if not the single greatest director working today. Sicario was one of my favorite movies of 2015.  Arrival was my absolute favorite movie of 2016.  Blade Runner 2049 was my favorite movie of 2017, and one of my favorite of the decade.  And unless something disastrous happens, there is very little chance that Dune does not become one of my favorite films of all time.  How’s that for getting my hopes up?

[asiryn]

tagged by @primrose-path-of-dalliance (!!!!!! thanks!!! (lmao, it’s been so long since i’ve been tagged in anything XDD))

Rules: Name your top 10 favourite characters from 10 different fandoms, then tag 10 people!

i’m putting this behind a cut, bc i rambled on for quite a while XDD these won’t be in any particular order, and the fandoms will be chosen based off of what i’m currently most into/whichever ones i think of first XD

1. Maleficent [Disney]

okay, i lied a little.....she is clearly my #1 favorite character of all time, so of course she’s first (the rest of the list won’t be in any particular order :P). but....yeah, i love her forever and for all time and eternity, i love her class and elegance, my hunt for all merchandise of her that i can get my hands on is legendary and knows no bounds, she’s my forever girl, etc, etc. if you know only one fact about me, it’s probably that i love maleficent. there’s nothing i can say here that i haven’t probably already said a million times over, so i’ll move on XD

(moana has risen to be a pretty close second, tho)

2. Anthony J. Crowley [Good Omens]

i read the book from a library over a decade ago, and i liked it well enough, but it like....wasn’t an instant new fave that i had to immediately buy for myself (tho it is on a list of books that i wouldn’t mind owning...but maybe it’s finally time, who knows). i’m halfway through the show, and i’ve finally fallen in love with it (i think it finally being a #confirmed love story between our favorite ineffable idiots finally gave it the push it needed XD). it’s still a bit early for me to have a solid, definite fave, but lbr, if i know myself at all, it’s gonna be crowley XD i love this dumb demon (who’s rivaled in his idiocy only by his equally dumb angel husband), i love how he’s so soft even as he tries desperately to convince himself and everyone else that he isn’t, that he loves so many things and humanity and an angel even as he tries to say that he isn’t capable of it, that he never stopped questioning even after it had made him Fall. also, i am so thankful that the fandom has really embraced the potential for the shenanigans of crowley’s snake form.👍

(second place is probably aziraphale, but i also really love anathema too)

3. Namine [Kingdom Hearts]

another one that probably comes as no surprise, if you know me. i love this girl to the ends of the universe. i love the way she reclaimed her agency, her selflessness and determination, her empathy and kindness, how she went from a damsel in distress to pretty much saving everyone, over and over and over again. she deserves only happiness and the best things from now on. and please, for the love of god, give her some new clothes, nomura. >_>

(second fave is roxas, tho really, i love 98% of all the characters in this series ;;;)

4. Aerith Gainsborough [Final Fantasy VII]

my precious sunshine girl 💖 i prefer her in the original game, where she was sweet and optimistic, yes, but she was also sassy and fierce and took shit from no one. i love the girl that decided she wanted to wear a sexy red dress just for the hell of it, and threatened to rip off a mafia don’s balls. i love the girl that was confident and flirty with cloud, but never let any kind of bullshit ‘rivalry’ get in the way of being friends with tifa. i love that she always called cloud out on his bullshit, that she never let tragedy and oppressive shinra forces grind out her optimism, that she never stopped dreaming of a better future. i love that she was exposed to the worst of human nature, and yet still believed that they were worth saving. i love all versions of aerith, obvs, but they’ve definitely smoothed out her edges over the years, and i think that’s a shame. so here’s hoping that she’ll be more like her original self in the remake. 

also, can’t wait to see aerith die again :)))))))

(my second fave tends to flip between cloud and sephiroth)

5. Ling Yao / Greed [Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood]

look. listen. i can’t choose between them, i just can’t. and hey....technically they sort of combine into one entity, so it’s totally fine to count them together, right?? XDD so yeah, it’s really fucking hard to pick a fave out of this cast, bc there’s only like....3 characters?? that i don’t love. but ultimately, it had to be these two. every single second they’re on screen, they totally steal the show, and they have a lot of the best scenes and moments in the series. i love ling, how he seems like a total goofball and comic relief at first, but fairly quickly you come to see just how fucking seriously he takes his duties and responsibilities, how selfless and devoted he is to his people, how he would walk through hellfire for the people he loves. he’s just....he just loves, so fiercely and intensely, that he moves even greed into loving him and the people he cares about without even trying. 

and then there’s greed, who even from the beginning, you can’t help but be charmed by, with his sarcastic slow claps and laidback attitude. but over time, you see that he’s just like ling, really, in that he can’t help but get attached to these humans, that he loves them just as fiercely and intensely, even as he desperately tries to play it off. i love the way his character serves as a means for the story to have a really thought-provoking rumination on the nature of sins and desires, and on humanity (as do all of the other homunculi). i could go on forever about these two, and about the show in general, bc it’s just so deep and incredibly layered and complex, so i’ll stop here. 

(next fave after them is winry)

6. Bucky Barnes [MCU]

it’s hard for me to talk about bucky without just dissolving into endless sobbing, but i’ll try my best. he’s just.....he’s someone who has ended up suffering so fucking much, who has every reason in the world to be angry and bitter and resentful and if this was the villain origin story, you’d probably find it hard to blame him. (also, i refuse to say that bucky was ever a villain, bc he never willingly chose to be with hydra, he’s a victim goddamn it--) and yet....he still chooses to be good. to be kind. he could have chosen to go on an endless revenge tour against hydra, but instead he focuses on his own recovery. and always, always, always, he puts other people first. he chooses to goddamn freeze himself, possibly forever, so that he doesn’t hurt people again. he’s truly an inspiration to me, because even after everything he’s been through, he still doesn’t give up. ......and if you’ll excuse me, i need to resume crying about bucky barnes for the rest of eternity 😭😭😭

(next faves are sam and steve. what can i say, i love my caps XP)

7. Keladry of Mindelan [Tortall]

speaking of inspirations, few (if any) characters inspire me more than kel does. unlike every other tortall protagonist, she has absolutely no magic at all, and she starts her story with more odds stacked against her than any of the others. the system and institution are against her, and most people actively, viciously hate her and want to see her fail, all for being a girl and daring to openly step outside of her gender roles. and yet, kel never gives up, and wins through pure will and determination. more than that, she never stops fighting any oppression that she sees, and is always looking out for the abused and marginalized of society. she is fair and just and righteous, and full of a quiet, immovable strength that i, frankly, envy. she’s a fucking mountain; you haven’t a hope of ever tearing her down. 

(other faves....george, raoul, and dom. it’s really fucking hard to choose between them, i can’t even)

8. Oree Shoth [Inheritance trilogy, by N. K. Jemison]

oree is pretty much single-handedly responsible for me loving this trilogy, and is the reason why The Broken Kingdoms (the second book, of which she is the protagonist) is in my top 3 favorite books of all time. she is....just so fucking radiant. she’s a blind artist, and is flung so far out of her depth in the story, and yet she holds her own. in this world of gods, she brings this incredibly human element, and is celebrated because of her humanity. she’s angry and flawed, but also full of love, compassion, kindness, and mercy. she teaches gods the meaning of forgiveness. she takes shit from no one. just....do yourself a favor, and read this series, even if it’s only so that you can read this book. 

(second fave....it’s probably shiny, lbr XD)

9. Sirius Black [Harry Potter]

ahhh, a classic fave. but yeah, i still love him, even after all these years. yes, he’s incredibly flawed, but at his core, he’s just so loyal, and he loves so fiercely, and he tries his absolute best to be there for harry, that i can’t help but love him. also, i have a Thing, for characters who suffer so tremendously, but who don’t give up, and still try their best to be good people anyway. also, wolfstar was the foundation of a very formative part of my life, and put me onto the road of accepting my queer identity, so i’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for the characters who were a part of that. 🤷‍♀️

(other faves are luna and harry, always)

10. Gladion [Pokemon]

mostly his anime incarnation, tho i do like him in the games as well. i love this soft goth boy with all of my heart. he’s so gentle and kind and loving, and i can’t even with him. 

(other faves are lillie, n, zoey, and kukui)

if you guys want to do it, i’ll tag... @dabiden, @green-piggy, @seasbelow, @theroyalweekend, @toomanyfeelings5, @ashetrashe, @neddea.....i can’t think of anyone else, and i’m running out of steam, so if you want to do it, then consider yourself tagged! :)

[briangroth27]

Avengers Endgame Review

I absolutely loved Avengers Endgame! I was a little skeptical at first—there are still solo stories I want to see with some of the characters we're saying goodbye too and I'd prefer those to Avengers movies, honestly—but everyone behind this film really pulled it off. The pre-release hype did get to me eventually though and by the time the movie opened, I was absolutely pumped. I left the theater nearly completely satisfied and I definitely felt the weight of a decade of stories coming to an end with this film. Had this been the end of the MCU, it would’ve been a great one.

Full Spoilers...

I thought they did an excellent job of wrapping up the cliffhangers left by Infinity War as well as providing closure and a worthy conclusion to this era of the MCU. Trading the bombastic fights of Infinity War for really solid character work and interactions here (and swapping focus on Thanos (Josh Brolin) out for focus on the heroes themselves) was perfect. Done the other way around, I feel like this would've been exhausting. Instead, while it did feel full, it was always engaging and entertaining and didn’t feel like it was three hours long. The pacing worked really well to keep things moving briskly even with an insane amount of characters to service. The direction and action were solid, and the writing felt totally in-character for an enormous cast, which was a feat unto itself.

My favorite Avenger is Captain America (Chris Evans) and I was extremely satisfied with how his story ended. I do wish we’d gotten a Captain America 4 where Steve faces the rising Nazism among everyday American citizens we’re seeing in the real world: the last test for his resolve would be to see whether he still wanted to represent ideals that the American people now only use as excuses for their hate. Can he carry on if he’s seemingly the only one who believes we can be better? I feel like that could be Chris Evans’ Logan. However, I was surprisingly content with this end to his story, especially once I realized he’d get to end up with Peggy (Hayley Atwell) after all (though I thought he was going to drop into the 70s instead of his original time). In hindsight I wish they hadn’t had Steve and Sharon Carter kiss, but I’m more than willing to deal with that awkwardness and sacrifice that bit of comics canon for Steve getting a happy ending with his best gal. I’m satisfied with either interpretation of Cap’s story: knowing that things have to turn out a certain way, I can see him not saying anything about the future and always having been Peggy’s cryptic, never-named husband (his comment to Nat (Scarlett Johansson) at the beginning of the movie also signals that he’s ready to stop fighting), or, that he immediately decided to shape a better century by saving Bucky early and then proceeded to kick Hydra out of SHIELD & continue saving the world alongside Peggy and Bucky. I can buy either resolution to his character arc and I really liked that they didn’t kill him in the end. If they want to use him more, they can, but if this is the end for Evans then he got a happy one and that’s perfect. I’m hoping he’ll show up as a mentor to Sam (Anthony Mackie), now that he’s the new Captain America (also the result I was hoping for: the mantle of Cap as Steve wore it is about fighting for more than making up for your past mistakes. Sam embodies that much better than Bucky (Sebastian Stan) would (and his fight scenes will be a whole lot more unique given he can fly)). Steve standing up against Thanos’ entire army by himself was perfect, finally getting to say “Avengers Assemble!” was great, and getting to wield Mjolnir was an outrageously fun sequence! I can see both sides of the “Cap was/wasn’t truly worthy in Ultron” argument, but again, I’m cool with either explanation: either Steve was on the cusp of worthiness but hiding Bucky’s complicity in the murder of Tony’s (Robert Downey Jr.) parents held him back, or he realized he could always lift it and is such a decent guy that he didn’t want to upstage Thor (Chris Hemsworth). I also liked the quieter moments with Steve, like finally patching things up with Tony, trying to get Natasha back into the world (just like she had done for him back in Winter Soldier)—I’ve always loved their friendship—and running a support group for everyday citizens in the wake of the Snap to help them move forward, even if he couldn’t (that was also a nice way for him to pick up what Sam was doing for veterans). It was fun to let Steve have moments of levity about himself too, like the “America’s ass” joke and his reaction to hearing “I can do this all day.”

There's only one major plot point I was disappointed in: Black Widow's death to get the Soul Stone. I'm glad that they had her fight for it (clarifying that it was her choice, given the circumstances, rather than a fridging) and going out to save the universe does put a significant cap on her (so far underwritten) quest to clear her Red Ledger. However, I've always felt there was more story to cover with her (the details of that Ledger for one thing, as well as her attempts to overcome her past crimes and her mental conditioning) and she's my second-favorite of the original six Avengers, so it hurt a lot to lose her. I was sitting there thinking “now we’ve had to lose both Nat and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) to this dumb Stone?” That was a less-than-great look. It was also a bummer to have a cool moment where all the female heroes protected Spidey (Tom Holland)...except Natasha. At least her death wasn’t used to give the guys license to get violent. I liked that they gave the Avengers’ reaction to her death significant time to breathe, even if she didn’t get the grand funeral Tony did. She might be the one who was closest to all of them (except Thor) and she deserved that moment of silence from her friends (Banner’s distraught “I tried to bring her back” to Steve was another great beat). I’m very excited for Widow’s (finally!) upcoming solo film, and I wonder if it will focus on the Natasha from the alternate universe Steve created (if that is what he did), rather than the one who just died. The MCU doesn’t tend to do prequels unless they’re introducing new characters, so a random Black Widow film, while welcome, seems like an odd choice if it’s an origin story like the rumors say. Maybe it’s the origin of that timeline’s Natasha, who can continue on in new adventures should Johansson want to (and why wouldn’t the MCU, given she’s the only actor of the original six who can successfully open a non-Avengers movie)? Maybe Steve and Peggy (given Peggy’s dealings with the Black Widow program on her own show) rescued their timeline’s Romanoff from the KGB before her Red Ledger started filling up. If we could see Nat struggling between her programming and the better life Steve and Peggy could show her before she’s done the horrible things she’s hinted at, that could be a very cool arc. Regardless, Steve’s the one I thought I would leave this movie wanting more from the most, but it was Natasha that I feel like the filmmakers left a lot of cards off the table for.

I loved Tony’s moments with Nebula (Karen Gillan) at the start of the film and hated that he still blamed Steve for not letting him build his “suit of armor” around the planet. His Five Years Later family (Gwyneth Paltrow, Alexandra Rabe) was really sweet and I really enjoyed his interactions with and protectiveness of them, bringing me back around on liking his character to an extent I haven’t felt since the first Avengers movie. I totally understood why he wouldn’t want to change the past and erase all of that (and I was very relieved to hear that, as I didn’t want the Snap undone). Moments like meeting his father (John Slattery) just before his younger self was born were more great character bits, especially after the tumultuous relationship the two of them had. I would’ve liked a little more balance between the Pym science, Banner’s intelligence, and Stark’s input rather than Stark essentially inventing the working time machine on his own, but oh well. While I didn’t want to see Tony Stark Saves the Universe, this win over Thanos felt like enough of a team effort that it didn’t bother me, and his last line to Thanos—“I am Iron Man”—was perfect. I could easily see him coming back in future films as an AI, but I’d rather not. I feel like they’ve explored everything there is to with his character (though admittedly I’m not well-versed in Iron Man lore) and it feels like the MCU has moved on from him; even moved beyond his level of technology. It felt right that this era of the MCU would bookend Stark’s life as well, and the writers and directors made me feel for him and feel his loss, which is impressive given I haven’t liked him in the vast majority of his appearances.

Thor's depression worked really well for me and while I didn’t recognize it when I saw the film, after hearing the complaints about fat-shaming from the other characters I understand the offense some viewers felt. It wasn’t the fact that he got fat that was the problem, it was the other characters mocking him for it, and I wish more consideration had been given to that situation rather than going for easy jokes. Otherwise, Thor dealing with the guilt of not killing Thanos—leading to the death of half the universe—was really well done. The fact that he couldn’t change anything even when the team tracked down Thanos, only to realize that the Snap couldn’t be undone, was a huge moment for him and Hemsworth played his depression and resulting sedentary lifestyle very well. I loved most of his conversation with Frigga (Rene Russo) (minus the “eat better” jokes) and the tearful moment where he realized he was still worthy of Mjolnir was perfect. I also appreciated that (as others have pointed out) he didn't magically get his fit body back when he reclaimed all his power and status (according to Wikipedia, this was Hemsworth’s idea and it’s a brilliant one). I feel like that would’ve been another insulting development (an “only attractive people can be useful heroes” sensibility) that they thankfully avoided. Sending him off with the (As)Guardians of the Galaxy is a brilliant move (particularly given the turn in his solo franchise to a Guardians aesthetic) and I loved the argument between him and Quill about who would be leader. I really hope he’s in Guardians 3!

Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk finally embracing Banner’s intelligence (and Bruce embracing the Hulk in return) was a great move and I’m so glad they finally found somewhere new to take his character, rather than the constant push and pull of Hulk and Banner hating each other. I would’ve preferred Banner accepting that the Hulk was part of his psyche and he has serious anger issues rather than him being some separate “other guy,” but this works too. It was a nice of pace to see people excited to meet Hulk, rather than everyone being afraid of him. I also liked Bruce and Tony reuniting as Science Bros to figure out how to use the Pym Particles to create a time travel heist. Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is my least-favorite of the six original Avengers, and this didn’t do much to change my opinion. The Avengers have never been shy about killing their enemies, so Hawkeye going Ronin to kill criminals didn’t feel like such a huge a fall (though it is a troubling example of man-pain in the wake of the deaths of his wife (Linda Cardellini) and kids (Ava Russo, Cade Woodward, Ben Sakamoto), whose losses do feel like fridging. However, I do like the parallel of Nat going to retrieve him from his vendetta, just like he made the call not to kill her when they first met and she was the violent criminal. His moment with Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) at the end was also a nice addition to their friendship.

Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang made for an excellent addition to the Avengers (and a great way to introduce the time travel capability), bringing levity to the proceedings with his off-kilter and genuinely sweet personality. Pushing time through him was a great sequence and I will always be happy for as much of this Ant-Man as we can get; these movies have made him a favorite of mine! I liked that they also let him get some drama out of the reunion with his now-five-years-older-daughter Cassie (Emma Fuhrmann) and I can’t wait to see more of how that relationship develops in the next Ant-Man and the Wasp film. I would have liked for Rocket (Bradley Cooper, Sean Gunn) and Rhodey (Don Cheadle) to get meatier roles here, but I understand that there’s only so much screentime.

Nebula’s development into an Avenger was a great arc, especially as things got complicated with her past self, and I think she’s my favorite Guardian after this. After all the torment and literal torture Thanos has put her through, it was awesome to see her stand up to her past self and help defeat him. I do think she totally knew what she was doing by sending Natasha and Clint to Vormir, and that’s a character moment I wish they had let play out onscreen. I’m glad that it was past-Nebula who played the role of villain here, rather than Nebula getting the gauntlet from her father and becoming the story’s real villain, like what happened in The Infinity Gauntlet. I’m excited to see her search for Gamora and help continue turning her life around in the next Guardians!

I wish they had explained what was going on with Thanos “in” the Soul Stone at the end of Infinity War (I was really hoping it was punishment for not making a real trade of love to get the Stone, since what he felt for Gamora was not love and should not have been cosmically confirmed as such), but ultimately I didn’t need any more of him than we got here. It was cool that his younger self knew he would die to see his quest for the Stones fulfilled, and so was set in his determination to meet that destiny because it also meant he’d win. Thanos brought a very impressive battle and unforgettable scale to our heroes’ lives, but ultimately I feel like he could’ve been entirely dealt with in just this and Infinity War. Outside of the familial ties introduced in the Guardians movies, there was nothing relevant about Thanos that we couldn’t have learned from just these two Avengers films if he’d shown up for the first time at the beginning of Infinity War (his being behind the attack on New York could’ve been a reveal to all of us, not just Tony and Bruce). The Stones arc went on too long and Thanos never felt really menacing until these last two appearances, making me bored with the whole plot at least halfway through if not sooner (Guardians itself calls the Stones meaningless MacGuffins). I hope the MCU doesn’t try to build decade-long (or even 5-year) stories out of its other villains to try and match this, because they don’t need to. Galactus, for example, doesn’t need build-up; just let him appear in all of his planet-eating glory as a new problem for the Avengers to team up and stop.

I really liked the movie’s fresh take on time travel: you can go back and change the past, but not in your own timeline (since the future you came from is now your past), and any changes you do make will result in a new timeline. That’s a cool way to preserve the events of the MCU while letting them go back and muck around with their history at the same time. I left the theater thinking that it’s possible to play this all as one timeline that didn’t branch at all if Kevin Feige and the rest of the MCU’s architects decide to. As I said, I can see Steve finally retiring to have a life of his own, saying nothing and knowing that things will turn out OK (though I really want to see him meet Red Skull (Ross Marquand) when he returned the Soul Stone!). The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) could have helped him restore the Tesseract and Aether to their former states using the Time Stone (as someone else pointed out online). Loki’s (Tom Hiddleston) escape from Avengers Tower with the Tesseract and eventual recapture could be the entire basis of his upcoming Disney+ series, given we never knew SHIELD was even involved with his arrest at the end of the first Avengers. His brief escape could’ve always happened. Present-Nebula might not have killed Past-Nebula at all, given she’s an alien cyborg and her internal organs might work or even just be arranged differently than we’d expect. My initial read of the end of the battle was that Tony had sent Thanos’ army back in time and erased their memories via his Snap (since he didn’t want to change history), not that he killed them. I suppose Past-Gamora’s existence in the present after the battle is the only loose end that can’t be taken both ways. If they do want to create a whole lot of alternate timelines, that works too…especially since I feel like the next big event is going to be Secret Wars (the more recent one, not the original).

Regardless of the potential new Marvel Cinematic Multiverse, I hope they use the Snap to its fullest potential going forward. Not only would it be a global disaster to lose half the population, but bringing them all back would throw things into disarray all over again. Nations would have fallen, new regimes emerged (Latveria, anyone?), superheroes going to extremes to keep the peace, and super-villains turning over new leaves when they realized how petty their crimes were. The possibilities for interesting stories are endless! It should affect everything going forward, from Far From Home to the remaining TV shows and beyond. They’ve created a world where the events of the films can have a huge, undeniable impact on everything else, and they should honor that shared universe. The only thing the Snap shouldn’t result in is the creation of mutants, because that would remove their “we’re supposed to be here” argument and the connection to the real-world people they’re supposed to represent along with it.

There are too many awesome moments and character beats to list here, so here are a few off the top of my head that I loved. Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) getting to be the queen of New Asgard.  Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) finally getting to team up with the Avengers. Wanda and Carol (Brie Larson) completely destroying Thanos at just about every turn. A much better use of Captain America saying “Hail Hydra” than in the comics. Time travel allowing them to not only revisit some of their greatest hits, but to bring back many of the actors who appeared later, forming a more tightly-knit world. Tony and Peter’s farewell. Black Widow becoming the leader of the Avengers. Hulk holding up the Avengers facility like the mountain in the original Secret Wars. James D’Arcy as Jarvis, finally getting to break the TV/movie barrier as the first TV-original MCU character to appear in the movies (go watch Agent Carter; it’s fantastic!).  Stan Lee’s last cameo happening in this film, which just feels right. Cap/Iron Man/Thor vs. Thanos. Everyone vs. Thanos. 

This was definitely a worthy conclusion to this era of the MCU. I’m really glad that they resisted the urge to tease what’s next by omitting any post-credit scenes or tags on the end of the film. The only thing at the end of the credits—the sound of Tony making the Iron Man suit from his first film—was the perfect touch. Let things rest for now. The massive credit sequence with all of the stars getting their own card was great, and I liked the page they took out of Star Trek VI's book (having the original six Avengers sign their names onscreen) too. That was classy. 

There are a few lingering questions about just what timelines might have been created (or not), but nothing that hurt the experience of the movie for me. There are more stories I wish we could be seeing with Cap and Widow, but that would likely always be the case no matter when they retired. Regardless, the filmmakers had a lot to wrap up and to do so to the extent that they did is truly impressive. The actors were all at the top of their game with a lot of really good material to work with, making this an excellent and supremely emotionally satisfying movie! I can’t wait to watch it again when I get it on home video!

I'd give it an A(vengers)!

[ladyleoart]

First Time For Everything

Fandom: Marvel - Avengers {MCU} AU:  Domestic Avengers - Let’s pretend they’re in a time bubble, I just want them to be HAPPY okay! Pairing: Steve/Tony {Stony} Rating: This is a solid fucking G, basically? Sex implied Warning(s): None <3 Prompt: "Stony goes through a haunted house, Steve does bobbing for apples for the first time, Tony takes Steve trick or treating" 

For: Eric @fiction-is-my-diction also viewable on ao3!

(Note: Bucky’s halloween costume is actually inspired by this post from @dorkcoffee !! Amazing artist <3)

--

Captain America is a symbol of hope. He’s an American icon, but his reach extends beyond its shores and touches the heart of every dreamer, the fiery soul of every broken and beaten outcast, the spot buried deep in anyone who looks into the face of inequality and inhumane treatment and yearns to kick and scratch bloody stripes into their skin. He’s a hero, a role model, a mythical figure in his own right.

And he’s terrified of robot babies.

Tony can’t believe it, but it’s true - Captain America has fears, and not something so grand and vague as fascism, war, or another metaphoric big bad. His fear is the goddamn animatronic baby in the haunted house crib.

“Steve, it’s not real.”

“I know that!” He groans, fingers digging into Tony’s arm so hard it hurts.

“We can’t leave until we walk past it.”

“I know that too!” His feet seem to be glued to the spot, and the baby’s scripted routine of jerking upright and wailing resets, causing Steve to jerk and yank Tony’s arm nearly out of the socket.

“Steve,” he hisses involuntarily, and the star-spangled crybaby relents slightly, allowing Tony to roll his sore shoulder and grab his wrist instead. “Alright, come on, I’ve got you.”

A soft whimper and at first Steve’s dragging his feet through the small “nursery”, but once the baby lays back down Tony is able to pull him out the draped doorway and into a hall of mirrors.

As they wander through, Steve seems to calm down; he’s almost back to normal by the time they make it to the exit - but Tony can still feel him flinch when a short little vampire pops out for one last jumpscare. The kid must be about sixteen, but Steve glares him down like he’s Red Skull all over again; Tony can’t help but slide him a twenty to make up for what are most likely stained pants as he drags his surly boyfriend across the lawn of the haunted house.

Steve is dead silent - pun intended - and Tony shoulder checks him gently. “They do say it’s the scariest haunted house on the east coast.”

“I am never doing this ever again,” Steve snaps, but the pout says he’s more embarrassed than angry.

“Hey, at least that kid has a story to tell about the time he almost made Captain America cry.”

“Oh shut up.”

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They show up to the Halloween party fashionably late - a quick pit stop to change into their costumes turned into Tony’s suggestive “Trick or Treat” implications which turned into a quick tumble in the sheets. Eventually, Steve manages to get into his cowboy costume without Tony prying pieces of it back off, even if it means he has to yank Tony’s grim reaper hood down over his entire face.

There’s music playing and lights pulsing when they finally make it into the party, which is conveniently located three floors under their penthouse apartment in Stark Tower.

“The party’s at your house and you show up late?” Rhodey greets them with a grin, an arched brow, and two glasses of scotch, one of which he hands off to Tony while initiating their routine banter. He’s making the most of his robotic leg braces and has committed to being a cyborg for the party, complete with glowing red eye-piece.

“Oh, you know traffic always sucks.”

“You know,” Natasha interrupts, appearing from seemingly nowhere to stand directly beside them. “This is the boring business equivalent of a Dad Joke.”

Tony looks horrified. “You take that back, I am funny.”

“Maybe the first time, if I’m being generous.”

“Hey, Nat,” Steve interjects, casually sliding between them to steer her away from a sputtering Tony and laughing Rhodey. “Where are Sam and Bucky?”

“Just arrived to the party and you’re already heading to the time out corner?”

“The what?”

She grins. “That’s what I call the corner where they’re inevitably snarling and glaring at each other.”

He snorts. “Guess I better go make sure they don’t start another brawl.”

“Nice costume by the way,” she gives him a once-over. Natasha herself is wearing what can only be called a combat ballerina costume. Grey tights and steel-toed black boots, a fluffy pink tutu and bedazzled bodice, hair in a tight bun and war paint streaked on her cheeks.

He can’t help but laugh. “You too.”

She salutes him with her glass of vodka and a dangerous smirk.

He finds his two best friends right where Nat suggested - staring each other down in a little corner lounge space. The armchairs are plush and they’re sprawled in relaxed poses, but the tension in the air does nothing to suggest comfort - in fact, the chairs seem to have been yanked out of place so they can stare unblinking over their bottles of beer. Sam is decked out in what he calls “modern warlock regalia” which is really just a fancy, fitted charcoal gray suit and a velvet magenta duster, both dripping with chains and jewels. Bucky, true to form, has gone the lazy route with his costume. He’s wearing a blousey black shirt with loose sleeves that has a laced front undone to mid-torso, tucked into tight black pants and tall boots with several belts and a red sash.

“Are you a prince, or a pirate?” Steve interrupts their staredown brightly.

“Pirate,” Bucky spits, wiggling his many-ringed fingers and taking a long swig of Sam Adams’ Octoberfest without breaking eye contact.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Steve frowns sternly. “This is a party and we are here to have fun. No more pissing contest, ya hear me!”

“Aw, fine.” Sam is the first to break and cave to societal convention. “I know what to do!”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Bucky is scowling and Sam is grinning and Steve is wary, but Thor enthusiastically grabs them all in a big bear hug as they approach the bucket of water.

“Bobbing for apples?” Bucky’s brow is arched sharply as he squirms away from the embrace, but his relaxed stance betrays his interest.

“On Asgard we call it epli grípa,” Thor explains. “And it is a great game of sport.”

“I saw Thor carrying in the bucket,” Sam explains excitedly. “My cousins and I used to love bobbing for apples as kids.”

“Y’know,” Steve muses aloud, “I don’t think I ever did bob for apples.”

“Wait what?” Bucky frowns. “I did.”

Steve smiles wryly. “I think too many dunks in the school toilet turned me off the concept.”

Sam spins to look at him, incredulous. “You got swirlies?”

“There’s a name for those?”

“Oh yeah,” Tony grins, sliding up behind them and wrapping an arm around Steve’s waist. “I had my fair share, being the misunderstood rich genius that I was.”

Rhodey snorts. “You were a smart-ass punk and everyone could see it.”

“Same thing,” he waves a hand dismissively. “All geniuses are inherently misunderstood.”

“Now!” Thor grins. “Will the Captain be the first to…bob?”

He pauses, and Tony nudges him. “Go on then, Cowboy. Reclaim your honor.”

“Reclaim his honor?” Bucky frowns.

“Don’t you dare!” Steve snaps.

Tony smirks. “If you can catch the apple within three tries, I take the secret……to the grave.”

Natasha, passing by with Pepper and Darcy and a plate of snacks, groans. “Oh, reaper puns? Now it’s getting worse.”

“You shut up, you,” Tony points at her sternly, shaking his scythe, and she sticks out her tongue.

“Fine,” Steve declares, pulling attention back to himself. “I’ll accept your challenge.”

“When have you not accepted a challenge?” Bucky mutters.

Thor claps firmly, grinning broadly. “Yes!”

“I kinda wanna hear the story,” Sam wonders aloud, and Tony winks.

Steve is focused on the tub of water like it hold the secrets of the universe, eyebrows furrowed with concentration.

It’s like watching a blind dog try to find its water dish in the dark. He’s flailing and pecking at the water like a chicken, and Tony Is trying so hard not to pee himself laughing. In the end he goes past three attempts with no success, a fact which seems to drive him further out of spite. Steve is nearly submerging his entire head at this point, and eventually Bucky and Tony have to pull him back by the arms - with an apple clutched firmly in his teeth.

“Good job babe,” Tony smiles, pulling the apple free and taking a bite. “I’m still telling the story though.”

Steve groans, proud grin falling into a resigned expression. “I knoooow….”

So Tony gets the treat in the end.

[aion-rsa]

The Boys Season 2 Succeeds By Allowing Its Female Characters to Shine

https://ift.tt/33KvkLq

The following contains spoilers for The Boys season 2.

On the surface, Amazon’s popular superhero series The Boys is a dark inversion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a profane, uber-violent world in which corruption, blackmail, and corporate greed rule the day rather than truth, justice, and the American way. Despite their super status, the show’s heroes are often depicted as selfish, morally reprehensible, and obsessed with their fame rather than interested in doing much in the way of saving the world.

Although the show certainly has moments where it feels like little more than a parody of our current superhero obsessed culture, The Boys is smart and insightful as a whole, tackling complicated and messy issues like the rise of extremism in America, the perils of celebrity culture, the risks of unchecked capitalism and more. 

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So, it probably shouldn’t come as such a shock when it’s the series’ women who actually turn out to be its best characters. And yet, in a world where popular superhero enterprises like the MCU drag their feet about even including – let alone centering – female characters, maybe it really does take a show called The Boys to illustrate how very necessary women are to this genre.

While The Boys’ central conflicts are ostensibly positioned around and among men like Homelander, Butcher, and Hughie, it’s the series’ women who get the strongest, most complete narrative arcs in season 2. From Starlight’s story of quiet but determined resistance and Queen Maeve’s decision to stand up to Homelander to Kimiko’s embrace of her voice, the women of The Boys are all actively reclaiming their own stories and making a place for themselves within the world of the show.

Read more

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The Boys Season 2 Ending Explained

By Lacy Baugher

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The Boys Season 2: Who Is Victoria Neuman?

By Kirsten Howard

Even newcomer Stormfront, who is revealed to be a literal Nazi during the back half of the second season, is a more well-rounded character than several of the male Seven members, and the outspoken way she refuses to participate in or be patronized by the sexist system global megacorporation Vought International has built to exploit its female heroes is admirable, even when she herself is anything but. (Though, to be fair, it’s certainly possible that Stormfront’s aggressive feminism is as much of an act as the rest of her persona and she’s actually a secret misogynist. But since she generally doesn’t treat women with the same open disdain as she does people of color, it seems less likely.)

At Vought, female supes are unfortunately seen as little more than another commodity to exploit. The “Girls Get it Done” campaign that’s launched upon Stormfront’s arrival purports to celebrate girl power, but relies upon shallow catchphrases and leans into sexist archetypes by insisting that feminist strength comes from a skimpy outfit and thigh-high stiletto boots. The female heroes are frequently condescended to by their male colleagues, and rarely given similar levels of agency or control over their own lives. (See also: Vought’s decision to brand Maeve as a lesbian, rather than truthfully label her as bisexual, in an attempt to sell more specially licensed rainbow Pride burgers.)

Thankfully, The Boys not only recognizes the value in the stories of its female heroes, it relies on them to give the season’s overall arc some much-needed emotional depth.

It’s not an accident that most of season 2’s best moments either come about because of or directly feature female characters. It’s hard to think of a more satisfying sequence than the moment in which Maeve, Kimiko, and Starlight join forces to beat the crap out of Stormfront, but it’s the quieter character arcs that do the heavy lifting of interrogating and what being a hero really means.

The most obvious example of this necessary narrative expansion is Kimiko, a character who, in the comics this series is based on, is simply known as “The Female” and has little in the way of interiority. The television version of The Boys not only gives her a name and a history but decides that Kimiko’s story is one that’s worth telling in its own right. The introduction of her brother Kenji and the revelation of their shared torture at the hands of the Shining Light Liberation Army give Kimiko a much-needed backstory and his subsequent murder by Stormfront just adds to her complicated reasons for wanting to take Vought down. (Which, by the way, have nothing to do with the pack of men she’s currently running around with.)

On the supe side of things, Starlight gets what is probably the most complete narrative of the season, growing into her role as both a hero and a leader by doing precisely what those kinds of people are supposed to do: Fight injustice. Her quiet commitment to doing what’s right in a world that consistently rewards those who look the other way sees her make hard choices – she must blackmail a former church friend to gain access to a sample of Compound V – and difficult compromises, but always with a larger goal in mind.

Her small acts of defiance feel both hopeful and thrilling in the wake of Homelander’s consistently domineering awfulness, and you can’t help but see her as the show’s best example of everything a superhero – in this universe or any other – is supposed to be. Her decision to remain in Vought Tower and to work with a man who tried to kill her in the name of being part of the solution to what’s wrong in the world is an extremely exciting development in a universe where superheroes can barely be counted on to save the day when asked. And since Queen Maeve also seems to be on a slightly more heroic path by the close of the season, Starlight may not be alone on the side of right next season

Back in season 1, Maeve is a cynical, world-weary veteran hero, beaten down by years’ worth of struggle within the Seven and at Vought generally. Like Starlight, she’s also experienced harassment and exploitation, but she’s grown tired of fighting a system that constantly treats her as a second-class citizen even as it touts her very presence as progress. Maeve has made so many compromises at Vought that she’s become the sort of woman that lets a plane full of innocent people die screaming because standing up to her team leader has become too much work.

Until it isn’t.

Maeve’s decision to finally to join Starlight’s cause – saving her from Black Noir, arriving just in time to face off with Stormfront, and blackmailing Homelander into leaving them all alone – feels like a choice that’s been years coming, and that could truly shake things up for both The Seven and The Boys itself. What does this group suddenly look like if it’s being led by two women (and, ugh, Homelander, I guess) but we all know who’d really be in charge there. How much good could they do? How much might they actually change things at Vought? The cover-up press conference that reinstates Starlight and closes the season suggests not much, but every rebellion starts with hope, right?

The post The Boys Season 2 Succeeds By Allowing Its Female Characters to Shine appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3nC9TUq

[syntheticaesthetic]

50 More interesting questions

Rules: fill this out and tag at least one person you’d like to know more about! Or just fill it out! Or don’t! Answer only some of them! Make up your own questions! “What kind of requirement is that”, you ask? A reasonable one! Who am I to tell you what to do? Anything goes!

I was tagged by @praxid!

1. What kind of food can’t you stand?: I’m sort of picky about texture. Not big on things that are sort of gelatinous - so no jello for me. I’m also not big tropical fruit person so I don’t like pineapple or most melons.

2. If you could choose one minor inconvenience to never have to deal with again, what would you pick?: Brushing my hair. It mats up while in a braided bun as I sleep. It takes hours to brush out. 

3. Have you got any useless talents?: I don’t have any talents really.

4. If you could be really really good at one thing, what would it be?: Film/photography/writing.

5. Name a few people you think are extremely good-looking: Melissa McBride, Sonequa Martin-Green, Andrew-Lee Potts, Kit Harrington, Karen Gillan, David Tennant, Scarlett Johansson, Jamie N Commons, Danai Gurirra, Donald Glover, Milla Jovovich, Tatiana Maslany, I should top. I find lots of people pretty. 

6. What was your favorite way to pass the time as a kid?: Reading, interneting, hitting my brother with sticks and getting hit back.

7. What is something you’re proud of?: I decided I wasn’t going to let another student film festival go uncaptioned at my college. I was the only one who captioned every film and I don’t think anyone has captioned the film festivals since, but I know that there were a few students that were able to attend the festival I did because they felt welcome for once. Fuck the kids who bitched about the captioning, it wasn’t for you.

8. What’s one character flaw in people that you just can’t tolerate?: Lying. For fuck’s sake just tell the truth. Also, don’t be cruel or intolerant of people’s differences or differences of opinion. Fuck you, there’s room for everyone and everyone’s thoughts. 

9. Do you consider yourself to be more of a leader or a follower?:  I’m a leader when I feel I must be - if absolutely no one else will step up, but I much prefer being a follower.

10. What kind of student are/were you?: I worked harder than anyone else to achieve mediocre status. 

11. Butterfly effect question! Has there ever been a seemingly minor decision you’ve made (at the time) that ended up having a profound influence on your life?: I told someone I liked a wristband/sweatband they were wearing and we became fast friends. I picked a school based on school colors. I followed my roommate to an ASL club meeting because she wanted me to get out of the dorm. I got a tumblr hahah. Honestly though the people I’ve met on tumblr have saved me so thank you.

12. Name your most irrational fear/aversion: Eyes - I don’t like eye drops, people touching their eyes, eye things happening in movies. I don’t like spiders. I’m still a little afraid of the dark. 

13. Are there any fictional characters you find especially relatable?: Tim Wright,  Jay Merrick, Clint Barton, Abby Maitland, Connor Temple, VERONICA MARS, Jessica Jones, 

14. If you drink, what kind of drunk are you? Alternatively, what sort of person are you at parties?: I get the munchies. And giggly. And sleepy. And I desire Left 4 Dead. Its my drunk video game. 

15. Do you fall in love easily? Or does it usually take a long time for you to trust someone?: I fall in love with concepts. I fall in love with characters. I fall in love with every dog I meet. But I’ve never had the opportunity to fall in love with a person. I love my friends, but I think that’s a different question? 

16. Would you rather have one close friend or 100 casual friends?: One close friend.

17. Do you consider yourself to be more of a slob or a neat-freak?: I’m a neat-freak who has given up. Dog hair will never be eradicated. I don’t have the energy to clean the way I want. My mind is too chaotic and I need clutter around me or I feel uncomfortable. Weirdly enough I was watching a documentary on Carrie Fisher and her mother, and I saw Carrie’s house and went “that’s me!” It seemed that her house was that way because of her bipolar status. I’m not bipolar but I do have major crippling anxiety and I think I clutter and throw art and things all over the walls as some sort of comforting mechanism. I’m unable to decorate like Adults do - I can’t do minimalism. It stresses me out. 

18. Describe a place (imaginary or real) that you would find incredibly cozy: Pacific northwest. Woods near a big lake or the ocean. Older farmhouse with brick and reclaimed wood. I have a room decorated in my usual chaos. There’s a bay window big enough for me and Ruby to both be on it at the same time. Its raining and the fall leaves are piled on the ground. I have candles and incense burning. Good music. Maybe a friend sitting on the computer next to me. There’s coffee and marionberry pie. Its october and everything is foggy and spooky and gentle and calm. Its probably sunday.

19. Do you have kids? If not, do you want them someday?: I don’t have any human kids. I like them, I think they’re funny. I’d want some if I was confident in my ability to care for them and raise them right and take care of them in all the ways they deserve.

20. What was your favorite book as a child? Harry Potter. To find something that not everyone else my age would say....Everything’s Eventual?

21. Name one thing you just don’t get what all the hype is about: Undertale. Its fine but I can’t get into it in the way everyone else does. 

22. Name one thing that you think is tragically underrated: Films on YouTube by indie filmmakers.

23. If you had to be glued to a person for a month, real or fictional (who you have never met), who would you choose?: Andrew-Lee Potts during the early days of Keychain Productions. Blood On Benefits made me want to make films, and I think spending a month with him working on all those short films would have made me actually live my dream rather than giving up on it. 

24. What’s something you’d like the chance to do someday?: I want to make films. I want to write an original story. Maybe make a video game? I want to make something. Do some crafting. Meet someone and actually date them. I’d like to have a kiss at some point, to see what that’s like. Have friends that live nearby that I can see frequently. 

25. Do you typically speak your mind when you have a controversial opinion? Or do generally prefer to not rock the boat?: No! Opinions are dangerous and people don’t like having friends that have different opinions than them, and I’d never have friends because I either don’t share the same opinions or I don’t feel strongly about my opinions. I’m very open to having people change my opinions. I’m not married to them. Please change my mind, I like thinking about things in a new way. But I am not going to share my opinions because it just causes so many fights among people - I just don’t feel safe doing it. 

26. What’s the dumbest fad you’ve been caught up in?: I’m sure it was fashion related but honestly I don’t care to think too hard about it. 

27. What’s something you thought was cool as a kid/adolescent, but now cringe at yourself for?: Only doing eyeliner on my bottom lids?

28. What’s a trait you consider to be very admirable?: True empathy. The ability to have practical skills that help people. 

29. Is there a particular kind of item people always tend to give you as gifts? (For instance, people always get you things with ducks on them because you like ducks, etc.): Hmmm....nerdy things? I mostly get gifts from Tumblr friends because we share fandoms so while the fandoms vary its usually homemade things based on our favorite things. And bless you all for it too - As my mom could tell you I beam for weeks upon receiving your guys gifts! I wish I could repay the kindness!

30. Do you speak multiple languages? Which ones?: I can do some really basic ASL. I used to do some basic spanish but that was many many years ago and I don’t think it would come back easily.

31. Would you rather live in the big city or the countryside?: Woods, middle of. I need my million dogs and my lots of land and fresh air. 

32. Has there ever been something you were certain you’d hate, but ended up loving?: the MCU lol

33. Do you mind being the center of attention, or do you prefer the spotlight to be on someone else?: Being the center of attention gives me anxiety.

34. Favorite holiday?: SPOOKY SCARY

35. Are you a more go-with-the-flow type of person, or do you need to have things planned meticulously?: My anxiety demands I have plans. Now, those plans are allowed to change, but I need to start with plans. 

36. Is there something you loved so much you wish you could forget it and experience it all over again? (A tv show, book, series–anything.): No.

37. What hobbies do you have?: Internet. Fanfiction writing (hahahahahaha). Photography. When my hand heals I wanna do leatherworking.

38. If you could have a superpower, but it was only mildly useful, what ability would you want to have?: I just want to know what my dog is thinking. So a superpower that lets me know what dogs are thinking/saying?

39. Something people are always surprised to learn about you: Could someone answer this for me? Because I don’t think anyone’s ever given me feedback on this one. 

40. Something that took you way too long to figure out: That I needed to do something about my anxiety. It gave me so many health problems and kept me from living my life. 

41. Worst injury you’ve had?: I’ve slammed my head against giant rocks. Hurt my knee in volleyball.

42. Any morbid fascinations?: Weirdly enough, not really! Post-nuclear apocalypses maybe? http://althistory.wikia.com/wiki/1983:_Doomsday was something I spent weeks immersed in to the detriment of my mental health.

43. Describe your sense of humor: Sarcastic, bitter, shitty puns? 

44. If you had to be born in another era/place, which would you choose?: 80s? Goth scene, I could have seen Depeche Mode and The Cure in their prime. 

45. Something you are irredeemably bad at: life

46. Something that sucked but you’re glad you went through: Being a shitty friend. Now I know how to not be that shitty?

47. Would you rather have a really godawful ugly tattoo in a place that is only slightly inconvenient to conceal with clothing (upper arm, thigh, etc.), or the coolest, most beautiful tattoo ever in the middle of your face? (Neither tattoo can be removed or concealed with makeup, and the ugly tattoo will deeply offend anyone who sees it.): Gimme that face tattoo.

48. Are you more of an optimist or a pessimist?: I like to think pessimistically so that if its true I’m not surprised but if it turns out better I can be pleasantly surprised!

49. What would be the most flattering compliment someone could give you?: That they genuinely loved me and that I made a difference in their life. 

50. Something you feel people often misunderstand about you: I don’t know........ How bone achingly lonely I am? Maybe someone can help me out on this one too. I don’t know if anyone really “understands” me - I don’t communicate my mindset well. 

I’m tagging: @gallifreystands @the44thpilot @autumnxtoxashes @ms-fagerstrom @marionarnold

[mikeymagee]

Iron Fist

So, I just finished Iron Fist. And honestly...

(spoliers under the cut)

It’s bland. I mean, it really really is. And a lot of that has to do with the setting itself. That’s one of the things that stood out to me the most. People love to say that the Avengers protect the world, while the Defenders protect the neighborhood. And the previous Defender shows all had some kind of deep relationship with their respective settings (Hell’s Kitchen for Daredevil and Jessica Jones and Harlem for Luke Cage). I actually wrote a post about this before

Iron Fist lacks this relationship entirely. First off, the most developed setting in Iron Fist was the company. Danny spends the first couple of episodes trying to get his company back, and then a lot of time in the day to day operations of the Rand Company.   But my biggest problem with all of this is that Danny doesn’t seem to have ANY personal connection to the Rand company, besides the fact that its his father’s old company. 

I mean, yeah, I get wanting to reclaim what’s yours by birthright (I guess) but there’s really no reason for me, as a spectator, to care about him achieving his goal, and getting his company back. And when he does, I’m not excited or relieved for him, because there weren’t any stakes to it at all. 

Allow me to give an example: Let’s say Danny’s father was always busy with his company (mainly because he wanted to provide a good life for his son) and due to his schedule, he never got a lot of time to spend with Danny. Danny, in his naivety believed he wasn’t working hard enough to prove his love, so when the plane crash kills his family, Danny grows up believing that his father never loved him because Danny never earned that love. Fast forward to now, and we have Danny, fresh from K’un L’un who returned to New York to get back his father’s company, not because he wants it back, but because he feels taking back the company his father built would (in some strange way) earn him his father’s love. And then Danny’s quest to prove his identity becomes something that’s a little more grounded in an emotional connection, so we, as audience members want to see that payoff. 

And the same thing was true for the last episode as well. When Danny and Colleen make it to K’un L’un to see how the monastery has been destroyed by the hand, and Danny now feels guilty. That moment did not feel earned, in any way. Mainly because Iron Fist did everything it could to avoid showcasing Danny’s upbringing in this city, so I never really felt any kind of connection to it. 

Whenever it comes to Danny’s history in K’un L’un it’s only ever told, rather than showed. If he wants to show us how important that place was to him, wouldn’t it have been better to show us more scenes of him training? Or more scenes of his hanging out with Davos, and being friends with him, or giving us more scenes that feature his relationship with his teacher Lei Kun?  How did they raise him? 

You know, for all the talk about Danny being a person of two worlds, they never really develop either world, OR the affect it had on Danny, and that makes the character entirely groundless. 

And near the end of the show, there seemed to be some kind of conceit about family that didn’t really have any build up. True, the Meachums were a second family to Danny, Danny himself is an orphan, Danny grew up in K’un L’un and they treated him like “family”. Colleen was raised by the Hand and she seems them as a family. And even Joy and Ward have problems that deals with their father, but honestly none of it really gelled well for me. I would have loved that conceit a whole lot more if they had LESS boardroom meetings and more focus on building these familial relationships.

I would have loved to see flashbacks of Danny’s time with Davos in K’un L’un. And I would have LOVED to see flashbacks of Joy and Ward growing up with their father Harold and how he molded them into who they are today. But...it just didn’t go anywhere, or have any kind of build up, so everything felt unearned in that regard.

And yeah, Iron Fist had pacing problems (and that’s nothing new, I can totally forgive that because the others had that as well). But what the others had that Iron Fist didn’t have, was world building. Yes, the pace was uneven because each show worked on building up the setting, the history, and each character’s goals. 

And I think Iron Fist’s biggest mistake was coming after the previous three shows because Iron Fist has a lot of the same story beats that the others had. The only problem is that Iron Fist does them far worse.  

Trying to straddle professional business life with saving people/being a superhero? Daredevil did it far better.

Dealing with PTSD and personal trauma? Jessica Jones was incredible with that.

Trying to integrate into new surroundings in a world that doesn’t want you? Luke Cage was a text book example of it. 

Up next were the Meachums themselves. Frankly, I think they are the worst villains out of the entire MCU canon. They’re uninteresting. Not very threatening, and I found myself nodding off every time they were on screen (which was quite frequent). 

What I loved about Mariah Dillard and Cornell Stokes’ scenes was that they were given objectives and compelling reasons for them. Mariah may have talked a lot about politics, but she did it to preserve Harlem’s culture and history. Cornell may have been violent and ill-tempered, but he believed it was for the good of Harlem (a place he loved and cherished). And there were plenty of scenes that showcased both of the characters familial relationship with Harlem. Mama Mable had loved for Harlem, and she past that love down to them. Sure, Joy and Ward want to keep control of the company. Cool. Why? I have no freaking clue. The story of Mariah and Cornell was a family drama done right. The Meachums? Not so much. 

And I think my biggest problem with Danny is that...he’s got no direction. Or identity of his own (which is strange because he spends the first two episodes trying to prove his identity.)

What I mean is, he doesn’t know why he comes back to New York. He doesn’t know why he wants to get his father’s company back. He doesn’t know what he’s even doing. And it’s alright if characters don’t understand EVERYTHING right away, but the problem is, Danny doesn’t even understand WHY he’s doing the shit he’s doing. 

Take Jessica Jones, for example, she’s a messed up woman who is dealing with the after effects of abuse/mind control. She’s distrusting, she uses sarcasm to keep people at a distance. She drinks. But in the first episode, her goal is clear: she wants to save Hope, find Kilgrave, and clear an innocent girl’s name. And it’s more than just that. She subconsciously believes that by helping Hope, she’ll be helping herself. She’ll be taking back her agency. 

Luke Cage: He’s an escaped convict who wants to lay low and keep to himself. He has no interest in being a hero. But he’s also not one to turn his back on people who need him (just take a look at what happened at Genghis Connie’s in the first episode. Luke defended those people from Mariah’s goons). I believe it was at that moment that Luke made the decision (subconsciously) that he would protect the people of Harlem from Cornell, but it wasn’t until after Pop’s death that he gave voice to those goals. 

Daredevil: He wants to protect Hell’s Kitchen because he feels its his duty (and forgive me, but I never really wrote too much about Daredevil, so I’m not fully equipped to dissect his motivations, but they were still far more defined in the first few episodes of his show than Danny’s was in Iron Fist). 

And of course, I can’t ignore the AAIronFist controversy. Because all throughout these casting decisions Iron Fist purists kept saying “Danny needs to be white because it shows him as being an outsider in K’un L’un” which is funny because 

1. They never even show K’un L’un. Not really. Not to the extent that we show what his life was like there. We don’t see Danny struggle with the language, learn a new culture, or make friends in K’un L’un. We don’t see him operate in K’un L’un at all. So, him “being a white outsider” is entirely irrelevant to the show. 

2. He’s seen as a “fish out of water” in New York. And really, its because (for some strange reason) Danny doesn’t seem to have any kind of social skills. Yes, he was raised in K’un L’un, but he still spent the first 10 years of his life in the West, so he should have some kind of common sense on how he can operate there. And also, let’s be real, if Danny was a nonwhite guy acting the way he was acting in the first few episodes, he wouldn’t have been dealt with so nicely. Which is another aspect of the show I couldn’t help but notice. 

What I loved about the previous Netflix shows was that they operated on a level beyond the run of the mill super hero franchise. They each had their own identity and subtleties that brought something fresh to the genre. You could write think pieces for days on the way Jessica Jones handled domestic abuse, and how women deal with PTSD, and the male gaze. You could write plenty of essays on Luke Cage and its postulations on the black identity, police brutality, the use of black history, etc. I could have conversations on Daredevil’s use duality and guilt and the failings of our Justice system. 

What exactly does Iron Fist offer me besides a backstory that I’ve seen multiple times over? 

Iron Fist also never plays with its genre. Not really. Cheo Coker said it best:

Daredevil is a Crime Drama/Superhero show. 

Jessica Jones is a psychological thriller, with neo noir elements. 

Luke Cage is a hip hop western, with blaxploitation elements.

And Iron Fist is a superhero show that can’t manage to break the mold. And they could have  made it a Wuxia Romance, or a tribute to the classic Kung-Fu films of the 70′s. Instead, we got a badly done boardroom drama about a company no one bothers to elaborate on. 

Some people may have seen the criticism of Iron Fist to be overly negative. Honestly, I think the reason for that is because this show came after Daredevil (which set the bar really high) Jessica Jones (which took superhero shows in a completely different direction and touched on abuse) and Luke Cage (which celebrated black culture and history). People were expecting something incredible and Iron Fist was...alright. 

And of course we had the AAIronFist casting which added another layer to this. And there are plenty of think pieces by Asian Americans who explain, in detail, why. Check the Nerds of Color for more info. 

Iron Fist isn’t really groundbreaking. It doesn’t say anything new. It doesn’t really have an identity to call its own (which is magnified by well worn backstory of “Rich white guy comes home to be a vigilante”)

Iron Fist may not be bad, but it is is pretty bland. Which (in the shadow of its other Defenders’ titles) is about as bad as it can get. 

[daresplaining]

Daredevil Countdown: 5 Days

“I’m Daredevil”: A Brief Discussion of Identity

    This post is probably going to be somewhat disorganized, and may not actually be brief, because I’m going to be covering a major Daredevil-- and superhero in general-- theme: identity. We know that Matt will be having various identity issues this season, both in how he sees himself, and in the dangerous nature of having two identities. Is Matt’s civilian life at risk from Wilson Fisk if he has already rejected it? What does it mean to just be Daredevil? How will he react to Bullseye also being Daredevil? Will he finally get a costume with the dang double-Ds on it? How brief will this post actually be? 

    Let’s discuss...

    In the comics, Matt has had one or two identity issues over the years...

Matt: “I’ve had it! It’s over! I’m giving up the role of Daredevil-- forever!”

Matt: “My problem isn’t Daredevil-- never was! It was always Matt-- the blind lawyer-- the hapless, helpless invalid! He’s been my plague... since the day I first donned a costume! Then, let Matt Murdock no longer exist!!”

Matt: “From this moment on-- Daredevil’s fighting days are over! And that means-- forever!”

Matt: “This is a funeral. [...] I’m cremating my remains.”

Matt: “Ol’ Matt’s the one with the brains-- but I’m the family pussycat! The name’s Mike, gang-- and try not to applaud-- I’m almost as shy as I am glamorous!”

Matt: “Jack Murdock. Jack Murdock. Jack Murdock. Sounds right. Yeah, that’s my name. My name is Jack Murdock.”

Matt: “Daredevil for the defense!”

    ...and while he hasn’t had it quite this bad in the show (yet?) it has remained a major part of his story-- as it is for many superheroes. Early in the comics, Matt was made to question multiple times the life he was leading and the reasons he was leading it. On some level, he was aware that swinging from high buildings and punching supervillains filled a personal need for freedom and adventure, rather than being a purely a selfless choice. And initially, becoming Daredevil was a coping mechanism-- a necessary fracturing of his identity to let himself feel comfortable breaking the promise of non-violence he made to his father. 

Matt: “I can’t break that promise I made! And yet, with my agility, my extra-sharp senses, there is so much I could do! I can’t let all my powers go to waste! Wait! I have it! I’ll see to it that Matt Murdock never does resort to force... but somebody else will...! Somebody totally different from Matt Murdock...”

Daredevil vol. 1 #1 by Stan Lee and Bill Everett

    Generally, Matt is confident in his superhero career. He sees how much good he is able to do as Daredevil, and feels strongly about continuing to keep that opportunity open for himself. But he considered quitting being Daredevil a number of times during his early career (see above). He also considered quitting being Matt Murdock (an identity that, at that early point, outwardly, was even more of a facade than DD). He has had a number of civilian identities over the years, most notably his “twin brother” Mike Murdock and confidence trickster Jack Batlin. He has retooled his Daredevil identity several times based on changes in his attitude toward crime-fighting, convincing the world at large of the existence of a Daredevil legacy. He had a public identity for a little while. And he has, on occasion, tried being exclusively one-or-the-other-- just Matt Murdock or just Daredevil. 

    As Matt, he is able to make a difference as a lawyer, without any ethics violations, within the confines of the law. But Daredevil is a source of freedom for him. It gives him agency and power-- both as someone who sees where the law fails and longs to pick up the slack, and also as someone confined in his civilian life by society’s expectations of him as a blind person. His few experiments with a single identity have generally been stifling experiences for him, and have not lasted long. He is passionate about being a lawyer. He is passionate about being a superhero. And his career has been a quest of personal discovery through which he must constantly reevaluate these two parts of himself and how to simultaneously be the best Matt Murdock and best Daredevil that he can. Of course, there’s no definitive formula for this, so the process will be a never-ending evolution, a continuous shuffling of identities in response to changes in his life and the world around him. 

    In the MCU, the situation has one important extra element: it’s really freaking bloody. This gritty approach to the character results in an extremely violent image of Daredevil, darker motivations, and thus extra ethics issues. In the comics, mostly the art downplays the violence, since that is the nature of the medium. His actions are only shown as a brutal when it’s a plot point, generally when he is in a really dark mental space and his life is falling apart. But the Netflix show gleefully leans into the violence, and it is depicted as Matt’s normal modus operandi. Thus, he has to explain to himself and others (and thus the viewer) his motivations behind that brutality. And he can’t always do it. The horror he and others experience at his behavior leads him to question himself again and again. He goes out and fights crime because he can’t help hearing it. It isn’t a reclaiming of power and act of standing up to metaphorical bullies like it is in the comics-- he doesn’t even choose his own superhero name in this universe (which I hate, see this post). It’s not even a response to his father’s death-- at least, not directly. He becomes Daredevil out of a sense of responsibility, a feeling of ownership of his neighborhood, and a compulsion he struggles to understand that sends him out night after night to stop injustice. He battles with the temptation to commit murder. He wonders if there is something wrong with him. But his quest and behavior are finally legitimized at the end of Season 1 when he combines his two identities-- Matt Murdock’s (and Foggy and Karen’s) legal work, and Daredevil’s butt-kicking-- to take down Wilson Fisk. He puts on a real costume. He achieves a sense of comfort in his superhero career, now that he has proof that it can have positive results. 

    In Season 2, these questions return, but in a different form. Matt feels good-- or, at least, not entirely bad-- about being Daredevil. And then Elektra and Stick arrive to enforce his belief in the important of that side of his life, as well as-- and this is important-- his enjoyment of it. When his actions as Daredevil impact his legal career and threaten his relationship with Foggy, and when his secret-keeping sabotages his romance with Karen, he is forced to choose between his two identities. He learns throughout the season that he does not know how to be effective in both areas of his life at the same time. And ultimately, he chooses Daredevil, turning away from his civilian life to devote more focus to his superheroing. After all of the moral back-and-forth in Season 1, he finally sees that he cannot live without being Daredevil. That his crime-fighting alter ego is an integral part of his identity, something he can’t give up.

    And then he experiences his first major Daredevil-related tragedy: Elektra is killed. Any confidence in the positive influence of his superheroing is shattered. Matt blames himself, he blames his actions as Daredevil, and in his grief, he rejects that identity entirely. But we see throughout The Defenders that-- just as Matt realized in the previous season-- this is easier said than done. As much as he claims to be finished with DD for good, as much as he buries himself in his work and enlists Foggy and Karen’s help to distract him, he cannot resist the call. He can’t stand by when people are suffering and he has the chance to stop it. And so The Defenders enforces his discoveries from Season 2, proving that even when he chooses to not be Daredevil, even when he stops prioritizing that side of his life, he cannot give it up for good. 

    And then he gets hit in the head with a skyscraper, which leaves him seriously injured, believing (hopefully incorrectly!) that Elektra is dead again, and seemingly with a conviction to just be Daredevil and reject his civilian identity entirely. The source of his motivations for this decision remain to be seen, but part of this may be tied into this new version of Daredevil. Matt seems to be reinventing that identity, returning to the extra brutal version of Daredevil first seen in Season 1, because he believes that is the only way to get things done. His rejection of his Matt Murdock identity may be tied up in his original feelings of guilt and conflict regarding this level of violence. By distancing himself from that side of himself, he may be attempting to cut off that avenue of self-reflection to avoid actually analyzing the moral iffiness of his behavior. If we look back at that panel from DD #1 earlier in the post, this may be something similar: Matt becoming “someone totally different from Matt Murdock” to escape an ethical dilemma. Having redefined his image in this way, it will be fascinating to see how he responds to Bullseye’s even more brutal version of Daredevil...

    Which brings us to Matt’s other big identity issue: the dangers of having a secret identity. He has also struggled with this a few times in the comics...

Karen: “It’s from Spider-Man-- he says he knows that Matt is-- Daredevil!”

Saxon: “And now, I’d better say it out loud-- before the proverbial house falls on me! Matthew Murdock is Daredevil!”

Ben: “It’s the story of a lonely little boy blinded by a freak accident. And it’s the story of how he overcame his handicap to become a successful lawyer and a Man Without Fear. It’s your story, Matthew Murdock, and I can prove it!”

Brown: “Heather... let me be certain I understand you. You’re saying that Matthew Murdock is Daredevil?”

Fisk: “Daredevil is Matthew Murdock-- and more--”

Matt: “Under oath and with God and the media as my witness, I’m telling you that I am Daredevil. Always have been, always will be.”

    This age-old superhero concern always brings out the best/worst in Matt, and he has gone to extreme lengths-- creating new identities, faking his death, lying under oath, literally agreeing to sue himself-- to protect his delicate balance of identities. He does it to protect his loved ones, who are put in danger every time someone new finds out who he really is. He does it to protect his legal career-- and he has, in fact, been disbarred several times. And he does it to allow himself to continue living his double life, as unruly as it is, because he needs that option. 

    There hasn’t been actual confirmation that this part of Matt’s life will be explored in Season 3, but it should be-- not just because it’s within the DD tradition, but because Matt has been really sloppy with his secrets and needs a wake-up call. Foggy found out on his own. Approximately half the planet found out in The Defenders. And Wilson Fisk has been digging into both Matt and Daredevil, and is smart enough to put it all together if the right clues become available. To Matt’s credit, he may also be scrapping his civilian identity as a precaution. It will be a little harder for people to connect Matt Murdock with Daredevil if Daredevil is active and Matt Murdock is missing. It’s not a great defense, but he’s still new at this. And hey-- Fisk can’t tear down his civilian life like he did in the comics if Matt tears it down first! Good plan, Matt.