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fountainpenguin · 2 months

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I think the fundamental thing about Ep. 1 Martyn-Cleo [Zombiewood] dynamic IS that it's about misunderstanding... but in an interesting way.

Martyn spends Episode 1 mostly in the mines (getting armor; not unusual for Day 1), but he and Pearl do search the Overworld. They run into several people, but not their soulmates.

Once Martyn has a water bucket and finds a lava pool, he opts to go to the Nether because he wants potion resources, which would set him and his partner up well.

- In the previous season, the Southlands (Martyn's allegiance) struggled because they didn't have a brewing stand for most of the game, so they tried to steal one from Team BEST (iirc). - He says in Episode 2 (granted, after he's had a week to come up with a defense) that he wanted to bring his soulmate gifts so he wasn't showing up emptyhanded, because that's rude.

So, decent reasons to go to the Nether: he'd taken the time to get armor and now he's after an item he'll regret not having if the other teams start brewing potions later. It would only take one jerk breaking the blaze spawner to limit potion access for everyone else.

But Martyn going to the Nether is super confusing to Cleo, who gets the notification that he's gone into the Nether, but remembered potions were against the rules that season.

- Cleo is acting under the assumption that Martyn also remembered potions were forbidden, so they're flummoxed as to why he would go somewhere he has 0 chance of meeting his soulmate. Clearly, he is goofing off for no reason. - Further confusing for them, Pearl entered the Nether right behind him, implying they're allies. Cleo cannot fathom what possible reason Martyn has for what he's doing- Just that he doesn't seem to care about having a soulmate and seems to have picked Pearl as his buddy instead. - Write him off, king. You don't need him.

When the "potions are banned" reminder dropped in chat, Martyn panicked. At that time, he'd been trying to barter those resources to Bdubs and Impulse, but when he got the reminder, he hurriedly closed the deal and scored unlimited access to their cows.

- In his mind, he messed up, but recovered well and came out with a great deal; that's gotta be worth something, right?

In my mind, when Cleo figures out in later episodes that Martyn forgot potions were forbidden, she's more willing to see his side. This is why she apologizes to him in Episode 3 for judging him harshly.

- Cleo makes comments throughout the season that she's willing to take him back if he apologizes. - She recognizes his mistake and stops holding it against him, but wants him to indicate he's willing to work through things with her. She can't put her trust in him until she knows he'll work with her without resenting her. - She remains emotionally aloof, but doesn't push him away. Scar sets her and Martyn on a date and she tolerates it. She plays along with Martyn and they lightly try to mug Bdubs on their walk home. - She even invites him to stay in her base after Etho and Joel grief his and the warden drops down in Ep 3, and Martyn says he might take her up on that- after he killed her that episode. [Martyn POV 49:04]. - In the end, she even shares stuff from her Red Life base. She keeps a wall up, but stops begrudging him so harshly.

Martyn, I think, is slower to come around to Cleo's POV that the items were useless. I think his vision is "It was a risk worth taking. It didn't work out, but if that HAD been allowed, I would have set us up for success and it would've been a gamechanger."

- It didn't pay off, but he has no regrets and sees no reason to apologize. - If his early Episode 2 dialogue is to be believed, Martyn is convinced that Cleo cheated on him first. He says this to Jimmy 14 minutes (in his "When is she going to think about mending OUR bridges?!" rant). And to be fair, Cleo was already living with Scott and calling him her chosen soulmate when Martyn finally met up with her, so you can see his confusion. - Martyn does apologize when he wants to. He goes from 0 to 100 apologizing after accidentally killing Cleo by punching them off a cliff and losing their first life, because he legitimately and completely knows he messed up. - He also apologizes to Pearl for breaking up with her, which was a heat of the moment decision he made after Cleo dumped him. He just ?? refuses to apologize to Cleo, because he doesn't get it. - And b/c he's probably playing the divorce quartet bit up, but shhh...

He wasn't there to see Cleo when they were confused about why he ran off to the Nether. I think Martyn focuses on "Cleo is mad at me for getting hurt, which is stupid because I came prepared with food and armor and was trying to be careful. Yeah, of course I got a little hurt- I was fighting blaze and ghasts! She expects me to be perfect, and I'm only human. She expects me to read her mind; she's so high-maintenance."

- Martyn's also so mean to Cleo in Ep 2 and that's worth pointing out. They're both victims of misunderstanding, but they're also petty and mean. - It's very funny how much he insists to the audience that "this is all Cleo's fault currently" - either because his character is refusing responsibility or is genuinely confused - and it's wild how much he lays into Cleo by telling her she's being "childish, immature, and really selfish." They are such a mess <3 Terrible job, everyone /jk - He just so badly wants to distance himself from blame (and be in the right) that he's not focused on if this hurts them or burns his bridge...

After Cleo cuts ties early on, Martyn does try to "be a good partner" while staying outside their house. He just... shows his efforts in comedically terrible ways, like building a giant heart in front of their door or watching them through his spyglass.

- Shout-out to Martyn in the dead of night hiding in trees and watching Cleo until he's determined that "she seems safe, she seems happy, she seems healthy" before he goes to do something else. I'm not saying stalking is good, I'm just saying it's hilarious for his clingy ex persona. - Just rewatched and it's Martyn who's the first to tell the audience he's putting his heart on the line and Cleo can connect back up with him if they ever want to. I thiiink Cleo in Episode 3 seems to think she was the first to have the idea of symbolically connecting their bridges - seeing as she tells Martyn later that he needs to put in the work to meet her bridge halfway - so that's kind of funny. They're on the same page, so close yet so far; I want to shake them-

In Episode 2, he defends himself by claiming he was "providing" and "putting food on the table," and he's probably still proud of the fact that he scored unlimited cow access despite accidentally pursuing banned items.

- Up until Cleo corrects him later in Episode 2, Martyn operates under the assumption that Cleo might take him back, but Scott is whispering in her ear and warning her not to. He tells the audience that "He doesn't like it" and that he's "going to wait until they've parted ways to do anything else." Yeah... How'd that work out, buddy? - Interestingly, Martyn cites Scott as a bad partner because "He's all about building cottages and flowers while meanwhile [Martyn] is trying to get the most powerful items in the game." - Side note, but Martyn's stress levels going up when he sees Cleo's outdoor furnace is my everything. it's so funny. "Take it inside! Look, he's ruining you!" He has such strong opinions about outdoor safety... - Martyn seems to be operating under the assumption that Cleo's already turned her back on him and won't really forgive him unless he proves he's a good ally. He clings to things that will make him [and Cleo] stronger and safer, so he offers to enchant Cleo's gear while he's heading down to the Deep Dark to enchant anyway, even though they're on poor terms. - Which is so... ahughuggh to me because Cleo asks him why he'd even want her and says "What do I bring to the table? I mean, really. I bring rubbish PVP skills and pithy one-liners" and Martyn's immediate response is that he loves pithy one-liners and doesn't care if she's bad at PVP because he'll handle it. "I bring the skills, you bring the vibes." Just?? Lovely dialogue, fantastic improv; no notes. - EXTREMELY funny to me that when Cleo and Martyn part ways, he tells the audience that 1) He thinks it went well and they're actually genuinely on the same page, 2) He's convinced he misjudged her at first, 3) He believes Cleo is scheming to trick her allies into protecting her, and 4) He's going to play up his broken heart base design and pretend he and Cleo are more at odds with each other than they actually are to fool the other teams... ... meanwhile in Cleo's POV she's like "Yeah, I had to talk to him about strength and the value of having allies in a way he'd understand so he'd go away" sdfklj. She reads him so well there and Martyn is... like that.

Anyway, when Martyn and Cleo talk early on, Cleo pushes this idea that Martyn went to the Nether, got hurt, and it was annoying because she had to use her food to save his life (especially when she saw no purpose in him being there and probably thought he wasn't taking the game seriously).

But I think the core of her hurt is more along the lines of "I can't fathom any reason why he'd be in the Nether unless he straight-up doesn't care about finding his soulmate."

- Which!! what I'm trying to say is, Martyn doesn't get why this is her conclusion. His thought process seems to be "Of course I care! That's why I'm trying to get valuables so we'll have an advantage in the game!" He and Pearl defend themselves by saying they DID look for their soulmates. - Cleo and Scott focus in on "Why did you go somewhere with no people, then?" They knew potions were banned and (judging from their Ep 1 convos) don't seem to consider the possibility that such a thing was forgotten. Thus, it's upsetting their soulmates left them for no perceivable reason and paired up with each other.

Martyn I think focuses more on "My soulmate thinks I hurt myself" - In Episode 3, he claims he "hasn't been dangerous since then," and Cleo acknowledges he's been better at not taking damage. But it's not about the hurt... it's about being ditched.

- There's a certain level of being ditched that Cleo can take, which I think is why she's more accepting of him after finding out he forgot potions were banned. She's not mad he wanted good resources- she was mad that she saw him go to the Nether because to her, going somewhere with 0 people meant he had no interest in finding his soulmate. - She forgives him after she realizes he made an honest mistake and wasn't being malicious. She keeps a safe distance, but she tolerates his presence and even forms a secret alliance with him. - And I think Martyn understands and acknowledges that Cleo is frustrated... for taking damage, or for taking so long to find her (which he'd probably chalk up to bad luck since he and Pearl did wander that map looking for people). - But instead of doing the one thing she asks him to - apologize - he tries to show what a useful ally he is... while Cleo's looking for evidence that he can be emotionally self-aware, so she can put down that wall and trust him. - Also they attack each other and it's great. Martyn walks off and insists he killed her as a joke, this would hold up in a court of law despite Cleo's giggled protests, and he's now banned from pudding for two weeks... very silly.

tl;dr - I have so many thoughts about them and wanted to put my interpretation into words :p

They counterbalance and play off each other so well, and it's a shame (in a beautiful storyline kind of way) that they came crashing down. But I love it so much... The mortifying ideal of soulmates passing like ships in the night.

#Zombiewood #trafficblr #ZombieCleo #Martyn InTheLittleWood #They have a very interesting dynamic and I enjoy ;_;#traffic life smp #traffic soulmates #Double Life #wheeze it took me an hour to track the source for Cleo inviting Martyn to her base and I was VERY WORRIED I made it up #can u imagine. after talking about it multiple times? I would die #mcyt #director's cut #traffic meta #character analysis #Long post

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fogwitchoftheevermore · 7 months

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Assigning Every Fall Out Boy Song to The Life Series

because i'm a normal person with normal person feelings about fall out boy's discography and the life series. trust me.

“every” is a strong word here because fall out boy's discography is Literally Like 150+ Songs so i’m only doing the songs off their main 8 albums in this post. if enough people ask (which i seriously doubt will happen), i’ll do the eps+remixes as well.

sorry if there is an overabundance of certain characters/a lack of certain characters. i tried to include people are frequently as possible but a: i am inherently biased (though some of my faves are pretty underrepresented), b: not everyone has the same amount of content to draw from because they haven't all been in every season and c: some of these guys are simply not fall out boy characters to me. it's just how it is.

so, under the cut will be, in release order, every fall out boy song assigned to a life series character/event+the lyric that i think best represents why i assigned it.

TAKE THIS TO YOUR GRAVE

Tell That Mick He Just Made My List of Things to Do Today: DL!Pearl

To my favorite liar, to my favorite scar (to my favorite scar!)/I could have died with you/I hope you choke on those words that kiss that bottle/Confess (so bury me in memory)

Dead on Arrival: SL!Gem and Pearl (Gem POV)

This is side one, flip me over/I know I'm not your favorite record/The songs you grow to like never stick at first/So I'm writing you a chorus, and here is your verse/No, it's not the last time, 'cause I'd never say no to you/This conversation's still dead on arrival/And there's no way to talk to you/When you're dead on

Grand Theft Autumn / Where Is Your Boy: DL!Etho (JUST TRUST ME. AND ALSO GO WATCH THE BIT WHERE FINDS OUT BDUBS+IMPULSE ARE SOULMATES)

When I wake up/I'm willing to take my chances on/The hope I'd forget that you hate him more than you notice/I wrote this for you (for you, so…)/You need him, I could be him/I could be an accident, but I'm still trying/And that's more than I can say for him/Where is your boy tonight?/I hope he is a gentleman

Saturday: SL!Gem

Pete and I attacked the laws of Astoria with promise and precision/And mess of youthful innocence/And I read about the afterlife, but I never really lived/More than an hour (More than an hour)/When I say/Two more weeks, my foot is in the door, yeah/I can't sleep, in the wake of Saturday

Homesick at Space Camp: Post 3L!Skizz

Tonight is all about "We miss you" now/These friends are, new friends are golden

Sending Postcards From a Plane Crash (Wish You Were Here): Post DL!Joel

Every friend we ever had in common/I will sever the tie, sever the tie with you/You can thank your lucky stars/Everything I wish for will never come true/When you go, I will forget everything about you

Chicago Is So Two Years Ago: LimL!Martyn

You want apologies, girl, you might hold your breath/Until your breathing stops forever, forever/The only thing you'll get is this curse on your lips/I hope they taste of me forever

The Pros and Cons of Breathing: DL!Pearl

Woah, I want to hate you half as much as I hate myself/You know that I could crush you with my voice/Stood on my roof and tried to see you/Forgetting about me/Hide the details/I don't want to know a thing

Grenade Jumper: The Heart Foundation

They'll say it's not worth it, so we'll leave this town in ruin/Living like life's going out of style, and you came to watch us play/Like a "big shot talent", but at the end of the day you know/Woah, those busted lips we take back home

Calm Before The Storm: DL!Ren

You said/Between your smiles and regrets/"Don't say it's over"/Dead and gone, dead and gone, yeah

Reinventing the Wheel to Run Myself Over: DL!Jimmy and Tango

I can't wake up to these reminders of who I am/A failure at everything, 18 going on extinct/I know my place, it's nowhere you should roam

The Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes: SL!Jimmy

I'm all ears and I'm all scars/To hear you tell me, "Boys like you, you try too hard/To look not quite as desperate," I'm hanging on/But I still know the way to make your makeup run/So, and when it all goes to Hell, will you be able to tell/Me "sorry" with a straight face?

FROM UNDER THE CORK TREE

Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn’t Get Sued: 3L!Impulse

We're only liars but we're the best (We're the best)/We're only good for the latest trends/We're only good 'cause you can have almost famous friends/Besides, we've got such good fashion sense

Of All The Gin Joints In All The World: 3L!Ren and Martyn

You only hold me up like this/'Cause you don't know who I really am/Sometimes I just want to know what it's like to be you

Dance, Dance: DL!Bigb and Ren (Ren perspective, also this is specifically applicable most antagonistic moments of their relationship we get, to be clear. This is not the usual approach I take to them.)

You always fold just before you're found out/Drink up it's last call/Last resort, but only the first mistake, and I/I'm two quarters and a heart down/And I don't want to forget how your voice sounds/These words are all I have so I'll write them/So you need them just to get by/Why don't you show me a little bit of spine/You've been saving for his mattress, love

Sugar, We’re Goin Down: Martyn

We're going down, down in an earlier round (Take aim at myself)/And sugar, we're going down swingin' (Take back what you said)/I'll be your number one with a bullet (Take aim at myself)/A loaded God complex, cock it and pull it

Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner: LL!Cleo

I keep my jealousy close/'Cause it's all mine/And if you say this makes you happy, then I'm not the only one/Lyin'

I’ve Got A Dark Alley And A Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Songs): Joel

Joke me something awful just like kisses on the necks of "best friends"/We're the kids who feel like dead ends/And I want to be known for my hits, not just my misses/I took a shot and didn't even come close

7 Minutes In Heaven (Atavan Halen): LimL!Grian

Sitting out dances on the wall/Trying to forget everything that isn't you/I'm not going home alone/'Cause I don't do too well on my own

Sophomore Slump Or Comeback Of The Year: SL!Skizz

We're the therapists pumping through your speakers/Delivering just what you need/We're well-read and poised/We're the best boys/We're the chemists who've found the formula/To make your heart swell and burst/No matter what they say/Don't believe a word

Champagne For My Real Friends, Real Pain For My Sham Friends: DL!Joel and Etho

Strike us like matches, 'cause everyone deserves the flames/We only do it for the scars and stories, not the fame/At least everyone is trying, everyone is shining/Everyone deserves the flames but it's such a shame, such a shame

I Slept With Someone In Fall Out Boy And All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me: Scott

I'm the first kid to write of hearts, lies, and friends/And I am sorry my conscience called in sick again/And I've got arrogance down to a science/Oh, and I'm the first kid to write of hearts, lies, and friends, now

A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More “Touch Me”: LL!BigB

I confess, I messed up/Dropping "I'm sorry" like you're still around/And I know you dressed up/"Hey, kid, you'll never live this down"/And you're just the girl all the boys wanna dance with/And I'm just the boy who's had too many chances/I'm sleepin' on your folks' porch again, dreamin'/She said, she said, she said, "Why don't you just drop dead?"

Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part To Save The Scene And Stop Going To Shows): DL!Grian and Scar (Scar POV)

I know this hurts, it was meant to (it was meant to)/Your secret's out and the best part is it isn't even a good one/And it's mind over you don't, don't matter

XO: LL!Mumbo (Look, this is a stretch, I'll be real, but this song was giving me so much fucking trouble. Let me live.)

To the "love," I left my conscience/Pressed between the pages of/The Bible in the drawer, "What did it ever do for me"/I say/It never calls me when I'm down/Love never wanted me, but I took it anyway/Put your ear to the speaker and choose love or sympathy/But never both, love never wanted me

Snitches and Talkers Get Stitches And Walkers: SL!Tango

Here's a picture with a note, "No, don't turn out like me"/It's only for your own good/No-oh, oh, oh/And haven't you heard, the word on the street is/"I lost it, called it quits," get out into the sun

The Music Or The Misery: LL!Bdubs and Etho (Etho perspective)

I got your love letters, corrected the grammar and sent them back/It's true, romance is dead, I shot it in the chest then in the head/And if you wanna go down in history then I'm your friend/Because they've got me in a band where I've never seen a heart I couldn't break

INFINITY ON HIGH

Thriller: SL!Scar

Last summer, we took threes across the board/But by fall, we were a cover story, "Now in stores"/Make us poster boys for your scene/But we are not making an acceptance speech

“The Take Over, The Breaks Over”: LimL!Cleo

Wouldn't you rather be a widow than a divorcee?/Style your wake for fashion magazines, oh-oh-oh/Widow or a divorcee?/Don't pretend, d-d-d-don't pretend/We do it in the dark with smiles on our faces/We're trapped and well concealed in secret places/We don't fight fair

This Ain’t A Scene. It’s An Arms Race: SL!Scar

I am an arms dealer/Fitting you with weapons in the form of words/And don't really care which side wins/Long as the room keeps singing/That's just the business I'm in

I’m Like A Lawyer With The Way I’m Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You): SL!Jimmy and Martyn

We're the new face of failure/Prettier and younger, but not any better off/Bulletproof loneliness/At best, at best

Hum Hallelujah: LL!Cleo

I thought I loved you, it was just how you looked in the light/A teenage vow in a parking lot/'Til tonight do us part/I sing the blues and you swallow them too/My words are my faith, to hell with our good name

Golden: Joel (LimL especially, but also just in general)

How cruel is the golden rule/When the lives we lived are only golden-plated?/And I knew that the lights of the city were too heavy for me/Though I carried carats for everyone to see/And I saw God cry in the reflection of my enemies/And all the lovers with no time for me/And all of the mothers raise their babies/To stay away from me

Thnks fr th Mmrs: LimL!BigB and Pearl

Been looking forward to the future/But my eyesight is going bad/And this crystal ball…/It's always cloudy except for (Except for…)/When you look into the past (Look into the past…)/One night stand…/One night stand off!

Don’t You Know Who I Think I Am?: LimL!Skizz

They say quitters never win/But we walk the plank on a sinking ship/There's a world outside of my front door/That gets off on being down/Oh-oh, oh-oh/I could learn to pity fools as I'm the worst of all/And I can't stop feeling sorry for myself, whoa-oh

The (After) Life Of The Party: Scar, again. I don't know what to tell you, this is a very Scar album.

I'm a stitch away from making it/And a scar away from falling apart, apart/Blood cells pixelate and eyes dilate/And the full moon pills got me out on the street at night

The Carpal Tunnel Of Love: LL!Mumbo and Jimmy

Tired yawns for fawns on hunter's lawns/We're the has-beens of husbands/Sharpening the knives of young wives/Take two years and call me when you're better

Bang The Doldrums: DL+LimL!Jimmy and Tango

The tombstones were waiting, they were half-engraved/They knew it was over, they just didn't know the date…/And I cast a spell over the west to make you think of me/The same way I think of you/This is a love song in my own way/Happily ever after below the waist/Best friends, ex-friends 'til the end/Better off as lovers

Fame > Infamy: LL!Joel

I am God's gift, but why would he bless me with/Such wit without a conscience equipped/I'm addicted to the way I feel when I think of you, whoa/There's too much green to feel blue

You’re Crashing, But You’re No Wave: This is far from the only FOB song about a sensitive topic but it's one of the like... two that I don't feel comfortable assigning to something.

I’ve Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers: DL!BigB

You're a canary, I'm a coal mine/'Cause sorrow is just all the rage/Take one for the team/You all know what I mean/And I'm so sorry but not really/Tell the boys where to find my body

G.I.N.A.S.F.S.: DL!Impulse and Bdubs

Trade baby blues for wide eyed browns/I sleep with your old shirts and walk through this house in your shoes/You know, it's strange/It's a strange way of saying that I know I'm supposed to love you/I'm supposed to love you/I've already given up on myself twice/Third time is the charm, third time is the charm/Threw caution to the wind, but I've got a/Lousy arm

It’s Hard To Say “I Do”, When I Don’t: Am I allowed to say this is a Watchers song? I don't care I'm saying it.

I speak fast and I'm not gonna repeat myself, no/So listen carefully to every word I say/I'm the only one who's gonna get away/With making excuses today/You're appealing to emotions that I simply do not have

FOLIE A DEUX

Disloyal Order Of Water Buffaloes: Impulse

Oh, I'm a loose bolt of a complete machine/What a match, I'm half-doomed, and you're semi-sweet/So boycott love, detox just to retox/And I'd promise you anything for another shot at life

I Don’t Care: LL!Fairy Fort

Let the leaves fall off in the summer/And let December glow in flames (In flames; oh)/Erase myself and let go/Start it over again in Mexico/These friends, they don't love you/They just love the hotel suites now

She’s My Winona: SL!Martyn

We didn't come to compete, this is a demonstration/Even the young ones become irrelevant/They always bring up how you've changed

America’s Suitehearts: SL!Gem

Let's hear it for America's suitehearts, but I must confess/I'm in love with my own sins/You can bow and pretend that/You don't, don't know you're a legend, oh/Time, time, time hasn't told anyone else yet

Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet: LimL+SL!Cleo, Bdubs, and Etho

Does your husband know the way that/The sunshine gleams from your wedding band?/Does he know the way, does he know the way/Of the crickets that would convince me to call it a night?/But I will never end up like him/Behind my back, I already am

The (Shipped) Gold Standard: LimL!Bdubs

All the yes-men said "No comment"/My mouth got going/The wrong way, and all the calls started snowing/The time my dad caught me a horseshoe crab/And I asked him if throwing it back into the sea would bring our luck back/I wanna scream "I love you" from the top of my lungs/But I'm afraid that someone else will hear me

(Coffee’s For Closers): LL!BigB

Though change will come, oh, change will come/I will never believe in anything again/We will never believe again/Kick drum beating in my chest again/No, we will never believe again/Preach electric to a microphone stand, oh

What A Catch, Donnie: This song is a compilation of different vocalists from bands associated with the band, a compilation of previous songs of theirs, and one of the only FOB ballads. I can't pull a specific lyric, but this one could be solidly used for a compilation/retrospective of every season so far.

27: This is the other one I don't feel comfortable assigning to anything. Moving on.

Tiffany Blews: SL!Lizzie

I'm not a crybaby/I'm the crybaby/A caterpillar that got stuck/Mr. Moth, come quick with any luck/A long walk to a dark house/A Roman candle heart, keep us far apart/I'm cocktail party doin' alright, hate me baby/Maybe I'm a piece of art/Oh, my friends all lie and say/They only want the best wishes for me

w. a. m. s.: LL!Mumbo

I'm a young one stuck in the thoughts/Of an old one's head/When all the others were just stirrin' awake/I'm tryin' to trick myself to fall asleep again, whoa

20 Dollar Nose Bleed: Dogwarts

When I look at the man who would be king, the man who would be king/Goes to the desert, the same war his dad rehearsed/Came back with flags on coffins and said, "We won, oh, we won"/Permanent jet lag, please take me back (Please take me back)/Please take me back, (ooh, ooh)/I'm a stray dog sick, please let me in

West Coast Smoker: SL!Joel

Wishes bounce me weightless/The infrared scope on pointlessness/The bulls are sedated/And this fight's fixed

Pavlove: SL!Tango

Something make my chest stir/Something make my head blur/Oh, oh, I'm not ready for a handshake with death, no/Oh, oh, I'm just such a happy mess, whoa

SAVE ROCK AND ROLL

The Phoenix: Team TIES

Bring home the boys in scraps, scrap metal the tanks/Get hitched, make a career out of robbing banks/Because the world is just a teller and we are wearing black masks/"You broke our spirit," says the note we pass

My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up): LL!Cleo

I've got the scars from tomorrow and I wish you could see/That you're the antidote to everything except for me/Through a constellation of tears on your lashes/Burn everything you love then burn the ashes

Alone Together: The Roomies (Cleo, Etho, and Grian)

I don't know where you're going/But do you got room for one more troubled soul?/I don't know where I'm going/But I don't think I'm coming home/And I said, "I'll check in tomorrow if I don't wake up dead"/This is the road to ruin and we're starting at the end

Where Did The Party Go: LL!Tango

I'm here to collect your hearts/It's the only reason that I sing/I don't believe a word you say/But I can't stop listening

Just One Yesterday: LL!Bdubs and Etho

If heaven's grief brings hell's rain/Then I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday/(I know I'm bad news)/For just one yesterday/(I saved it all for you)

The Mighty Fall: DL!Divorce Quartet

Your crooked love is just a pyramid scheme and I'm dizzy on dreams/(And I'm dizzy on dreams)/But if you ask me two's a whole lot lonelier than one/Baby, we should have left our love in the gutter where we found it/(Gutter where we found it)/'Cause you think, you think your only crime is that you got caught

Miss Missing You: Impulse and Bdubs (Impulse POV)

Baby, you were my picket fence, I miss missing you now and then/Chlorine kissed summer skin, I miss missing you now and then/Sometimes before it gets better, the darkness gets bigger/The person that you'd take a bullet for is behind the trigger/Oh, we're fading fast, I miss missing you now and then

Death Valley: This is the soundtrack to the LL Battle Royale Finale

We're going to die, it's just a matter of time/Hard times come, good times go/I'm either gone in an instant/Or here 'til the bitter end, I never know

Young Volcanoes: The Heart Foundation

C'mon, make it easy, say I never mattered/Run it up the flag pole/We will teach you how to make boys next door/Out of assholes (Hahaha!)/Tonight, the foxes hunt the hounds/It's all over now

Rat A Tat: LL!Grian and Mumbo (mostly Grian POV)

But I'll take your heart served up two ways/I sing a bitter song/I'm the lonelier version of you/I just don't know where it went wrong

Save Rock And Roll: DL!Pearl

I cried tears you'll never see/So fuck you, you can go cry me an ocean, and leave me be/You are what you love, not who loves you/In a world full of the word 'yes', I'm here to scream/No, no (No, no)/Wherever I go, go (go, go)/Trouble seems to follow

AMERICAN BEAUTY/AMERICAN PSYCHO

Irresistible: SL!Gem and Pearl (Gem POV)

Count me in unannounced, drag my nails on the tile/I just follow your scent/You can't just follow my smile/All of your flaws are aligned with this mood of mine/Cutting me to the bone/Nothing left to leave behind/You ought to keep me concealed just like I was a weapon/I didn't come for a fight but I will fight till the end/This might be your battle, might not turn out okay/You know you look so Seattle, but you feel so LA

American Beauty/American Psycho: LL!Scott

I think I fell in love again/Maybe I just took too much cough medicine/I'm the best worst thing that hasn't happened to you yet/The best worst thing/You take the full, full truth, then you pour some out/You take the full, full truth, then you pour some out/And you can kill me, kill me or let God sort ‘em out

Centuries: LimL!Martyn

And I can't stop 'til the whole world knows my name/Cause I was only born inside my dreams/Until you die for me, as long as there's a light, my shadow's over you/Cause I am the opposite of amnesia

The Kids Aren’t Alright: The Mounders

It twists my head just a bit to think/All those people in those old photographs I've seen are dead/And in the end/I'd do it all again/I think you're my best friend

Uma Thurman: 3L!Cleo

You'll find your way/And may death find you alive/Take me down the line/In Gem City, we turn the tide

Jet Pack Blues: Impulse and Bdubs

Honey, don't you leave/Don't you remember how we used to split a drink?/It never mattered what it was, I think/Our heads were just that close/The sweetness never lasts, you know

Novocaine: Guess what, it's Joel again. I'm not even a Joel main why is this happening.

In the truly gruesome do we trust/I will always land on you like a sucker punch/Singing I am your worst, I am your worst nightmare

Fourth Of July: LL!Lizzie and Cleo (Lizzie POV)

I said I'd never miss you/But I guess you never know/May the bridges I have burned/Light my way back home on the fourth of July/I wish I'd known how much you loved me/I wish I cared enough to know

Favorite Record: Post DL!Jimmy

You were the song stuck in my head/Every song that I've ever loved/Play it again and again and again/And you can get what you want but it's never enough

Immortals: 3L!Grian and Scar

I am the sand in the bottom half of the hourglass, glass (Glass)/(Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)/Oh, I try to picture me without you, but I can’t/'Cause we could be immortals/Immortals/Just not for long, for long/And live with me forever now/Mmm, pull the blackout curtains down/Just not for long, for long

Twin Skeleton’s (Hotel In NYC): SL!Martyn and Jimmy

I just need enough of you to dull the pain/Just to get me through the night 'till we're twins again/'Til we're stripped down to our skeletons again/'Til we're saints just swimming in our sins again/And there's a jet black crow droning on and on and on/Up above our heads droning on and on and on/Keep making trouble 'til you find what you love/I need a new partner in crime and you, you shrug that

MANIA

Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea: 3L!Ren

I'm 'bout to go Tonya Harding on the whole world's knee/And I'm stuck, night vision, so stuck, night vision/But I come to life, come to life/Some princes don't become kings/Even at the best of times, I'm out of my mind/You only get what you grieve

The Last Of The Real Ones: Bdubs

My head is stripped, just like a screw that's been tightened too many times/When I think of you, when I think of you/I will shield you from the waves if they find you/I will protect you, I will protect you/Just tell me, tell me, tell me I, I am the only one/Even if it's not true, even if it's not true, yeah

HOLD ME TIGHT OR DON’T: DL+LimL!Etho and Joel

I got too high again, realized I can't not be with you/Or be just your friend, I love you to death, but I just can't/I just can't pretend, we weren't lovers first/Confidants but never friends, were we ever friends?/But when your stitch comes loose, I wanna sleep on/Every piece of fuzz and stuffing that comes out of you/You, I took too many hits off this memory/I need to come down/An-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-nother day goes by/So hold me tight, hold me tight, or don't/Oh n-n-no, no, this isn't how our story ends

Wilson (Expensive Mistakes): LL!Bdubs

There's nothing more cruel than to be loved by everybody but you (but you)/Than to be loved by everybody but you, (but you) but you/If I could get my shit together/I'm gonna run away and never see any of you again/Never see any of you again/I hope the roof flies off and we get blown out into space/I-I always make such expensive mistakes

Church: SL!Lizzie

I love the world/But I just don't love the way it makes me feel/Got a few more fake friends/And it's getting hard to know what's real/And if death is the last appointment/Then we're all just sitting in the waiting room (Mr. Stump?)/I am just a human trying to avoid my certain doom

Heaven’s Gate: LimL!Skizz (right at the end)

I got dreams of my own, but I want to make yours come true/So please come through, honey please, please come through/Oh, go out in the world, start over again and again/As many times as you can

Champion: SL!Pearl

I got rage every day, on the inside/The only thing I do is sit around and kill the time/I'm trying to blow out the pilot light/I'm trying to blow out the light/I'm just young enough to still believe, still believe/But young enough not to know what to believe in/Young enough not to know what to believe/If I can live through this, if I can live through this/If I can live through this, I can do anything

Sunshine Riptide: LL!Scott

The world tried to burn all the mercy outta me/But you know I wouldn't let it/It tried to teach me the hard way, I can't forget it

Young And Menace: LimL!Martyn

We've gone way too fast for way too long/And we were never supposed to make it half this far/And I lived so much life, lived so much life/I think that God is gonna have to kill me twice

Bishops Knife Trick: Bad Boys

I got a feeling inside that I can't domesticate/It doesn't wanna live in a cage, a feeling that I can't housebreak/And I'm yours 'til the earth starts to crumble and the heavens roll/Away, I'm struggling to exist with you and without you, yeah

SO MUCH (FOR) STARDUST

Love From The Other Side: SL!Etho

I'd never go, I just want to be invited, oh, got to give up/Get the feeling, get the feeling, don't fight it, fight it/Sending my love from the other side of the apocalypse/And I just about snapped, don't look back/Every lover's got a little dagger in their hand

Heartbreak Feels So Good: 3L!Grian

Is there a word for bad miracle?/Nobody said the road was endless/Nobody said the climb was friendless/But could we please pretend this won't end?

Hold Me Like A Grudge: DL!Pearl

(You put the "fun" into dysfunction)/Hold me, hold me like a grudge/The world is always spinning, and I can't keep up, woah/Faster and faster, can't do it on my own/Part-time soulmate, full-time problem, yeah/So hold me like a grudge

Fake Out: SL!Lizzie

But I didn't take the love when I had the chance/But I swear I'm not sad anymore/So make no plans and none can be broken/No plans and none can be broken/Do you laugh about me whenever I leave?/Or do I still need more therapy?

Heaven, Iowa: 3L!Scar

And they don't know how much they’ll miss/At least until you're gone like this/Talking to the mirror, say, "Save your breath/Half your life you've been hooked on death"

So Good Right Now: DL!Bdubs

And I know, I know I've made mistakes, yeah/And I know, I know, but at least they were mine to make/They were mine to make/And all of our wildest dreams, they just end up with a-you and me/So, let's drive until the engine just gives out

The Pink Seashell: Ok, I cannot pull a lyric for this because it is the world’s most specific monologue, but the general message of it (“Life is a lottery and bad shit happens all the time, so might as well find happiness in the good things, even the small things.”) feels like it could be Skizz. Just trust me. This one is so fucking difficult.

I Am My Own Muse: LimL!Jimmy

Here I am, not sure you should take a chance/I like playin' dumb, lettin' you figure me out/But I was faded, in my own defense/So, drop a bomb on all the things we dreamed about

Flu Game: SL!Joel

Last night I dreamt I still knew you/You/I carved out a place in this world for two/But it's empty without you/I got all this love I've got to keep to myself/All this effort to make it look effortless

Baby Annihilation: Scott

The first time I took the mask off, just had another one on underneath

The Kintsugi Kid (Ten Years): LimL+ SL!Martyn (but mostly LimL)

Passed my old street, the house I grew up in/It breaks your heart, but four of the Ramones are dead/I felt you at the beginning, but needed you at the end/We're goin' low, low, low, low

What A Time To Be Alive: SL!Bigb

When, when, when I said, "Leave me alone", this isn't quite what I meant/I got the quarantine blues, bad news, what's left?/So, it seems the vulture's gettin' too full to fly, oh/What a time to be alive

So Much (For) Stardust: Ren

I'm in a winter mood, dreamin' of spring now/Burnin' myself down, burnin' myself down, burnin'/I feel like something that's been stretched out over and over again/Until I'm creased, and I'm about to break down the middle/Split me right down the middle, right, right down the middle, yeah

#trafficshipping #trafficblr #life series #third life smp #last life smp #double life smp #limited life smp #secret life smp #fall out boy #ok youre getting all the series tags but not all the member tags. your welcome #anyways ITS DOOOOOOOONE #i love this post. this was so fun. and also took so fucking long #please look my work. and be so niceys to me about it. thank you #save tag

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sneeg-snag · 10 months

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while the zombie apocolypse was very cool (and i understand why the want to have ppls lives shaved off was a thing- kinda sucks if your pov/you die in a series and then said series goes on for five more eps) i was kinda sad about everyones tasks being voided. im not sure what a workaround would be but like bdubs still doing his task after cause he didnt realize... and grian still running around trying to make sure ethos dishwasher was okay... not only that but what about cleo??? does she pass or fail because the two people involves were voided? just made me sad cause some of the tasts were really interesting and i would have loved to see them play out fully

#ros talks #secret life spoilers #secret life #life series

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hatingfromacrackedscreen · 1 year

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I love episode 191 of Sailor Moon, and feel like it doesn’t get enough credit. It’s pretty unique for a Sailor Moon monster of the day ep given it was only 9 episodes out from the series finale. And the episode decentralizes Sailor Moon herself, which in turns lets it truly analyze her role this season, along with adding complexity to the seasons overarching theme of what it means to be a Senshi.

First off, I love the setup, with the inners minus Usagi all participating in a video game tournament. The most unique thing about this is that this is the only time in the ENTIRE 200 episode/3 movie series that we focus on just the inners doing something without Usagi. It makes sense that we almost always see them with her, as they’re all besties, but also showing them hanging without her gives their lives more interiority and shows their bond too. And it gives us some really great and fun moments, with the ridiculousness of Mako/Mina/Rei vs Ami at the tournament.

The next part of Sailor Moon’s structure that the episode plays with is the monster battle. In this season all monsters are phages and were previously people, and Sailor Moon is the only person who can heal them back. This episode is the only one this season that looks at that as the strategic disadvantage it is. A phage shows up at the event (of course), and without Usagi there the inners just pretty much get their asses handed to them rather than hurt and potentially kill an innocent person. The Starlights themselves even comment on this, and I love this because it drives home a point that we take for granted but has been there since episode 1. These girls truly are heroes, and regularly put their lives on the line not necessarily to defeat the enemy, but to protect people, and this episode really highlights that difference.

This heroism then inspires the Starlights, in one of my favorite “Solar System Senshi”/“Sailor Starlights” interactions. Seiya sees the inners fighting a dead end fight without Sailor Moon, risking death because they want to protect the life of one single person. This leads them to question why they ever left their home planet, fleeing but also ensuring it’s destruction by Galaxia. This echoes one of the major thematic threads of the season, which is what makes a Sailor Senshi. The inners are sailors & have powers, but that doesn’t automatically make them heroes, it’s an active decision to protect that they follow through on that does. The season contrasts this most obviously with Sailor Galaxia, who uses her sailor powers for destruction & domination, but also in more subtle shades with the Starlights here. Seiya realizes if the inners can’t write off a single person, they could never write off their planet. And that maybe the Starlights’ willingness to write off people for the greater good, and flee potential further harm, was the first step to their planets destruction. I love that here the Starlights realize again that maybe there’s another way to fight a war, and that it’s something the inners do so instinctively that they don’t even think about it.

And lastly, I love how Sailor Moon fits in all of this. By not having her here, we really get to look at what her role is this season, and what she means to her team. None of the girls want to kill a phage and thus a person, which is something that Sailor Moon can solve. In effect, the plot cannot be solved without her here. This works in the literal sense, but also in a meta sense as well. Usagi has been the biggest proponent of harm reduction, and serving to protect, the entire time. In episode 1 it’s not a monster out there that gets Usagi up and fighting, it’s that her best friend Naru needs help and only she can save her. It’s this wish to protect the people around them, that has been driving the inners the entire time. It’s what drives the biggest stake between them and the outers in S, when they refuse to sacrifice anyone for the sake of the world, it’s fundamental to their ethos. And that’s why Sailor Moon’s eventual appearance is one of my favorite Usagi hero moments & entrances, because it works on two levels. Sailor Moon, the hero of the show, has arrived to take out the bad guy. But also to the inners Usagi is their hero because she’s protecting them from having to kill an innocent person. Thus Sailor Moon is protecting everyone, the phage and the inners. That’s why I love the way the episode plays with the idea/role of Sailor Moon as a whole: she doesn’t have the monster-healing power because she’s the hero of the story, but rather she’s the hero of this story bc she’s the one with the healing power, and out of the plethora of destructive powers the Senshi of earth possess, that healing power is the one they most value. That’s why the look of relief and love that the inners express when Sailor Moon shows up always melts my heart, and really shows how much she means to them here.

The episode isn’t perfect, but it’s fun and experiments with new ideas in a lot of really subtle ways, and is a much-needed late addition to the Sailor Moon canon.

#sm #sailor moon #sailor moon meta #sm ep 191 #sailor stars #who asked?#I talk sm #sailor Mercury #sailor starlights

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single-malt-scotch · 9 months

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i have watched bdubs and scar and so im gonna talk abt SL again like i did before. obvs spoilers!

i keep my posts pretty meta/only about the game, its mechanics, balance etc so i have no bias on players own actions. but i do want to talk about players and the final moments for a minute here!

obvs i like bdubs a lot and hes been very good at getting to almost the finals in all the series. hope ppl realize that more. if he had more hearts like scar did im sure he could of have gotten further too. etho's ep isnt out but i saw him die in scar's and scar's ep was wild for sure. i mean damn, there was hardly a way etho could have escaped scar when he landed right on top of him, insane. obvs i dont have a view on the others i havent watched but it was interesting to see how they ganged up in this series for the end. scar winning made me happy too, hes a really good player!!

bbut onto the gameplay. i dont wanna repeat myself so im kinda using this as an overall conclusion + specific thoughts about the finale.

its been established clearly that mods assign specific tasks to people at times. and the warden/wither + bogey were not something i enjoyed. this season felt way too "directed" as it went on... and i also think the tasks ability to grant you so much good stuff (a LOT of hearts) is what kept everyone out of being red so easily! which is probably why they did the bogey zombies. which is really just poor balance that no one clearly tested (i recall grian implying before that they dont really test anything but dont quote me on that). maybe a way to have improved that would have been reds were the only ones to gain hearts, and yellow/greens could not. i knew from the start that the heart giving mechanics this season were kind of pointless or overpowered. gifting one heart? really...? that doesnt add up to much of anything in the long run imo unless you manage to get hearts from multiple people. and then on top of that you get hearts back from the secret keeper too. i would have loved if this season was simply "no regen and thats it!" like a sorta UHC deal where you only can heal with specific items (and not 30 hearts prob? bc i understand the tasks were kind of a way to possibly make them die).

on big forced tasks it only made sense with this episode, since everyone is red, so i dont mind that. but again.... they had to force this to happen which is annoying to me. also in terms of balance i really wished they bring back strict rules on enchantments because that also gets frustrating to watch. but perhaps i just like fairness in combat due to watching so much UHC, which also is a death game.

the other issues i had were with reds and red tasks. as pointed out they forced reds in the previous sessions but no one had any time to do red tasks?? and admittedly it was kind of boring bc people couldnt interact about it without failing. but they could not team up properly and i think that is what red life is all about. all the reds coming together because they *need* to face yellows and greens, and hunt people down. but instead the few reds there had to be alone to do their traps, another social issue with this series where tasks often pulled people away from others and left them with videos where they were very alone. there being no space for greens and yellows to exist and get hunted is something i think is great in previous seasons too and it just didnt happen. all that getting forced in that one session just didnt flow well to me.

really even trying to look back at episodes, i cant recall any notable interactions between people i enjoyed minus some brief pauses when they were traveling to do their tasks. there just wasnt a lot of typical socializing! and thats what i didnt like with this series. this plus the balance issues of lives just made this series feel messy, and the length of the episodes due to tasks could be kind of boring if the task was boring or even felt too stressful to force them into places where they could just die (these kinds of dangerous tasks given to greens or yellows felt unfair, as if it was trying to force them to die, and as a viewer i wouldnt want the game make my fave die!).

and as i mentioned in a different post, the lack of fixing some issues in multiple seasons is wild to me. this season faced the same issue as limlife where deaths were not in chat. the episode after, they fixed it (still with some bugs). and then it happened again last session.... and they didnt fix it! this is also annoying bc people dont react to the deaths at all which you kind of wanna see you know? actually im not even sure why they still did it this way. i imagined the clock running out made it more complicated for the system of fying to work. but why this season....? seemed like pretty forward deaths. idk the tech side, but they had 3 solid lives like all the other season, and there were never issues with the death messages happening at all.

but anyways. theres multiple parts of this i mentioned above that just made this gimmick feel so messy and unbalanced, and sometimes not super interesting to watch. it was way too complicated some times. i know theyll likely never do a repeat of the old versions but man idk if i cant find myself liking future seasons if they start stacking so much on top of what is a simple concept. it has started to feel like the three lives havent mattered at all/arent really the focus-- the anxiety of having three times. and the stakes become less and less due to some of these new gimmicks (the ability to gain lives in so many easy ways- limlife and secret life- is why imo) makes death feel less of a problem especially when we know how buddy buddy everyone is now. people need to be limited like before, and be more anxious. 3L, LL, and DL had people quickly establishing their friends bc they knew right from the get go that the series really depended on them being alive and nothing else. the only focus was to stay alive and not die. DL was where ppl kinda chilled a bit on alliances bc they knew each other more but, death was still right around the door with health being tied, it still brought a similar kind of anxiety for players.

i do hope people like grian can recognize these issues behind the scenes bc genuine critique for this series/season is important. like i hope they dont brush off the fact "hall monitors" were an issue-- they can ignore them openly in their videos.... but there is a reason why its a problem that started at all. the concept was way too subjective and hard to judge! so id hate for them to decide "eh, lets not listen to them, im gonna keep doing this and not consider the issue for a new season" right? and hour long episodes? thats crazy, and i dont think it was good for a lot of cc imo, because it made me way less likely to watch or even finish others' episodes. i hope that makes sense... stakes need to be raised, and i think limlife still achieved that to some degree because time was still very sensitive and risky to take. but then SL comes in bringing way too many things that keep them alive far too easily, leaving very little concern as long as they got their task in.

and last thing is from the outside pov i get concerned about this season happening only 6 months after the last one. because that would very very easily cause a burn out/inability to make more gimmicks real quick. i find this particularly odd bc this season too place through multiple holidays...! not sure if they thought this one through very well. considering how much limlife changed things in a way that was a bit more complicated, and then have SL with even more going on.... id just be worried about how much new stuff would even be made after this.

before this season started i was thinking to myself that i would be fine if this was the last one (it was speculation off some posting 3L compilations that was being me think itd be 'over' bc that was the first season). and truly i would be fine if they stopped forever for for a long time. i dont want to start disliking this series if they keep going in this direction... i will ALWAYS enjoy seeing these people play together and it will no doubt keep me watching but, i would hope that i will enjoy what they do for the next seasons and not fall down this path of convoluted, unbalanced and complicated concepts.

#secret life spoilers

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prince-of-elsinore · 2 years

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Dear M*A*S*H: S1 Ep 01 “Pilot”

I want to talk about M*A*S*H. The 50-year-old show that, completely unexpectedly, has captured my heart and mind. I finished the series just over one week ago and had to force myself not to immediately begin a rewatch. Now that I’ve had a bit of time to process, though, I’m eager to dive and dig back in, to pick apart what makes this show tick and what made it resonate with me. I want to take my time this go-around (though I expect that will be difficult) and document my thoughts on episodes and characters as the show morphs and grows. I don’t know if I’ll make posts for every episode (that’s a lot) or how long I can keep this up tbh, and I make no promises as to the eloquence or deepness of all my reactions (sometimes you just wanna stare at Mike Farrell’s fuzzy chest amirite). But this show left my brain buzzing with how much there is to talk about and, well, it’s my blog, so here goes.

Korea, 1950: a hundred years ago

What a line to open on. When the show first aired in 1972, it was only 22 years ago. But maybe for audiences jaded by 7 years of direct American entanglement in Vietnam, the first war with moving images broadcast directly into living rooms across the nation, swiftly drawing to an embarrassing and disastrous conclusion, this other war did seem like a hundred years ago. That other, “lesser” war sandwiched between the heroically fought Second World War and the unprecedentedly divisive living nightmare of Vietnam. The supertitle is a simultaneous reminder to the audience of a conflict not often discussed around dinner tables, despite its relative recency (almost as recent to them then as the Iraq War is to us now), and an acknowledgment of how very, very distant it feels. What fascinates me most is how it positions the story we’re about to see as a fable of sorts from a distant time and place, presaging--somewhat paradoxically--the show’s perpetual relevance. This is Korea. It is also every war.

Then, the rest of the cold open. Visual storytelling at its finest! In a brief series of images we glean not only a sense of who our major players are at their cores, but also the notion that at the 4077, not all is as it seems. Two men in Hawaiian shirts playing golf: a familiar sight, until--kaboom, the ball lands in a minefield. A surgeon and nurse work over an unseen patient--oh, no, it’s a bottle of champagne. A man and woman in uniform studiously read a Bible and medical manual--while playing footsie under the table. So, Hawkeye and Trapper are the happy-go-lucky types who don’t see being in a war zone as any reason not to get their kicks where they can; Henry may appear official on the outside (though as we’ll soon see, rarely even that) but really he’s concerned with having a good time with a nurse (it strikes me this could also be an appropriate establishing situation for our two leads, but it’s even more fitting for Henry who is consistently negligent in his duties as Commanding Officer for the sake of sensual indulgence); and Margaret and Frank put on a hypocritical show of military and Christian officiousness while succumbing to their baser desires like anyone else.

Perhaps the implied injunction to look beneath the surface is nothing more than a promise to audiences of what kind of comedy the show will deliver. Perhaps it’s a commentary on the absurdity of life in wartime and under military jurisdiction (people will be people, no matter how many rule books you throw at them). I doubt the show intended this at the time, but I also see an early indication of the ethos that will come to permeate the series: that the truth--and often, our shared humanity--is found in looking closer, not making snap judgments based on superficial features. In any case, this much is clear: your expectations will be subverted. What is familiar becomes foreign, what’s foreign is familiar. It’s a topsy-turvy world. That’s the oldest root of comedy; it’s also war.

“Par is a live patient”

We get Hawkeye’s first “Dear Dad” over our first O.R. scene, conveniently filling us in on the what and why of the 4077 and meatball surgery. It’s also a thesis statement of sorts. They’re there to save lives, not for glory or to be pretty or precious about their work. Life: the number one concern of a doctor, and the number one thing that war takes away. In some ways, a doctor in a war zone is a paradox. This will be Hawkeye’s struggle straight through to the end of the series. He’s more needed here than he could be at any General Practice or stateside hospital, but what the hell is he doing here? He keeps fixing bodies--just enough to keep them clinging to life--only for the war and the army he works for to keep breaking them.

Back at the Swamp, Hawkeye voices a sentiment we’ll often hear repeated over the 11 seasons to come: invite the North and South to a cocktail party. Last one standing wins the war. Here, it’s a throwaway joke, but as we’ll come to see, the tragedy of Hawkeye Pierce is that he simply cannot grasp, cannot accept, how human beings, given the chance to just talk to one another, cannot come to an understanding, or at least an agreement, and settle their differences without resorting to killing.

All right, on to Lieutenant Dish. The scheme to auction off a nurse, even for the good cause of sending Ho-Jon to college in the States, is cringe-inducing today, as is the awkward montage of Hawkeye’s dogged pursuit of the lieutenant. The show’s misogyny, especially in its early seasons, is by far the hardest aspect for me to stomach. If, however, you take what is shown at face-value, as intended, there’s no harm, no foul here. The Dish-Hawkeye dynamic walks a thin line. Yes, she rejects him over and over and he ignores her over and over. Yet, even as she claims to be saving herself for her fiance, Dish seems indulgent towards Hawkeye, and later at the party even flirtatious. So, she enjoys the attention. Convenient and typical of an attractive woman written by and for men. At the same time, it doesn’t take any stretch of imagination to see that flirtation and sex are some of the only outlets available to the women of the camp, and that they could enjoy it just as much as the men.

I do want to know what the hell the plan was with the raffle of the weekend passes. Father Mulcahy winning is simply too convenient. (Incidentally, I feel robbed of seeing William Christopher react to his name being drawn. I’m looking forward to more familiar faces rounding out the supporting cast.)

The party scene also provides the stark juxtaposition of revelry and Hawkeye dancing cheek-to-cheek with his conquest with the sobering reality of their purpose, the raison d’être of the whole camp. To his credit, Hawkeye looks appropriately grave as he informs Margaret that they’ll be operating on a fresh batch of wounded within hours. While the 4077 dances and drinks, Canadian troops are fighting and dying not far off. Not only is this the linchpin of the episode, the get-out-of-jail-free card for Hawkeye and Trapper after all their shenanigans behind Henry’s back, but also a stamp of credibility for so much of the show. How on earth can these clowns get away these schemes, in the army, of all places? Because they are indispensable. Not only are they surgeons, they are the best at what they do. And once again the hypocrisy of army rules and regulations reveals itself; if everything were done by the book, to the letter, the army would cease to function. It would regulate and court martial itself into obsolescence. (Though, as is pointed out more than once in later episodes, would that really be a bad thing?)

Okay, some more thoughts, now as bullet points so I can wrap this up:

I’m watching without the laugh track, and boy is its absence obvious here in a way it never is later on. The pacing is off, much of the comedy wooden. Still, I prefer this subdued, awkward version of the show to the one with the incongruous canned audience. I think watching it this way allowed me to see so much more.

We get a “Come on, Mary” from Hawkeye to Trapper in the first six minutes! And they facetiously, effeminately point their noses in the air in unison as they walk away from Frank. They’re so in sync straight from the start and I love to see it.

I’m so glad the show left these awkward montages and flashbacks (Hawkeye with Dish, Margaret with General Hammond) behind.

Margaret’s limp hair and awful bangs make me sad.

I forgot The Still (tm) is not with us from the start! I assume they build it after Frank breaks their rudimentary barrel gin mill.

Oh, the bucket hat. Odd that it stays with us in the opening credits for the entire series run, when it feels so odd to see Hawkeye wearing it.

Radar is a surprisingly smooth operator here, even devious. He’s no dummy but it’s odd seeing him like this before he became more the wide-eyed innocent kid.

What is the true origin of “Hot Lips”?? Hawkeye calls her that seemingly off the cuff, and her reaction makes it seem like it’s a new nickname. Then Hammond shows up and calls her the same thing. Is this simply a case of Impossible Coincidence Played for Comedy?

I don’t think I got it the first time around that Margaret recognizes the gauze-covered Frank by his butt when she goes to give him the injection. One of the better jokes of the episode imo.

I listened to the Mashcast podcast for the episode and they were puzzled by the use of Japanese covers of popular songs. I assume that this was because Japan was so firmly established as a base of US military operations, a place every G.I. would pass through on their way to Korea, and where they would hope to go for R&R. I assume (but have not done research to confirm) that radio stations they might get would play Japanese tunes like this. The Japanese cover of “Happy Days,” for instance, seems like a nostalgic choice for US servicemen of the era.

Biggest laugh for me: Such a simple moment, but when Hawkeye and Trapper come into Henry’s office and shake hands with a “How are you, Henry?” and he responds, a little wary and knowing, a little sad-sack, “That’s not what you guys came to ask. I mean, the last thing you wanna know when you ask ‘how are you’ is how am I.” God, I really love Henry.

Parting thoughts: In retrospect, the pilot does a better job than I would’ve suspected in setting up not only the characters but also the lasting themes of the show, even while striking a tone a world away from what the show would become. Not a particularly good or funny episode, but it’s rewarding to rewatch and see the pebble drop into the pool, sending out the rings that will reverberate far into the future.

#mash #mash meta #m*a*s*h #mash 1x01 #mash pilot #dear mash #my meta

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liloinkoink · 1 year

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open apology to everyone who has ever asked me a question about bigb and jimmy in lamplight bc i just don’t know. i am Only here to write treebark and it absolutely shows

i’ve watched one bigb video ever and it was a last life ep back while ll was running, bc the only povs i was watching were grian cleo and etho and i wanted to see bigb’s e4. tho his life series pov is high on my list, i’ve just not gotten around to watching a new pov of any season since limited life came out

conversely, the only time i’ve ever watched a jimmy life series pov was the day after technoblade died to try and make myself less sad, so i remember very little of it. as such basically all the content i’ve Really seen for jimmy is his phasmo streams w grian and this was bc i think grian suffering thru phasmo is hysterical so i was Really only watching grian

that’s literally all i’ve got. as such i don’t actually know how to confidently answer about either of them. one day i’ll hit the point of lamplight where they become relevant again and i’ll have to go study their life series povs and actually learn things about their personalities (beyond what i’ve learned thru my friend worm’s infodumps about jimmy—thank you worm you’re carrying me thru lamplight for real) but today is not yet that day.

when that day hits i’ll probs try to go back and successfully answer some of the questions i’ve been asked abt them tho. like how every time a strawhat joins the crew oda fills in on the trivia he’d been asked abt the other members of their favorite flower and stuff

#sorry for having a painfully one track mind that can only focus on my special guys and nothing else #says words #lamplight au

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pattersplash99 · 1 year

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!Spoiler warning!

I've only watched 3.5 povs (Cleo, Scar, Scott and Martyn part way) and I'm already so emotional.

The family is dead!! But reunited as ghosts. I'm imagining them haunting Etho for the last minutes of his life.

Etho and Grian sword loyalty, honestly forgot about it for a bit with Ethos mess of questionable loyalties. Only know about it because of Scars ep so idk how that's gonna go.

Martyns unfailing loyalty until the very end. Scott giving up time so things would be fair and him just killing them, saying he doesn't want to play silly games. Him going for Scott first. Unexpected but not out of character, I'm pretty sure he considers betraying everyone.

...Just reached the last few minutes of Martyns, it's so dramatic and intense here and I'm worried even though I know he wins. Heard we get lore if he wins but there's only 2 minutes left so I'm doubtful...

We'll see I guess.

#limited life #inthelittlewood #scott smajor #dangthatsalongname #mean gills #clockers #grian #goodtimeswithscar #zombiecleo #ethoslab #bdoubleo100

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fountainpenguin · 11 months

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BigB and Joel Secret Life Ep 1 commentary:

lskdfj BigB charming Scar and then telling him that he only wants him for his diamonds.

Jimmy: "Your challenge is to get someone to fall in a hole, right?" BigB: "You in particular. You're right on time." Jimmy: ":'D??"

BigB making Jimmy turn around and then hiding under a ledge and you can hear him trying to muffle his giggling...

<3 Sharing gold with Grian, the sweetness of Grian chirpily calling him "B" when he comes around the corner. BigB all "I'm going to get a very nice iron chestplate like you." We love chill secret soulmates hanging out.

The incredible amount of gaslighting BigB does this episode, it's just... It's SO much funnier seeing this from his POV, because originally I thought he was just being secretive because he was still under the oath. But no, he's freed from his secretkeeping requirements... he's just Like That for no reason. crying.

BigB: "If you want to use the secret tunnel, just ask." Grian: "??? I did ask? You said no?" BigB: "I changed my mind." Grian: "WHAT??" BigB: "That's all you need to know." Grian: "What."

skldjf it really does keep going. This was in Grian's POV too but I can't emphasize enough how much funnier it is knowing BigB is free to reveal but just... won't.

Scar: "Are you the one who made the big hole?" BigB: "No." Grian, losing his entire mind because they just had a conversation about the hole like 30 seconds ago: "?!?!?" BigB: "I didn't do it. There is no hole here." Scar: "... I went down and there's an enormous hole here." BigB: "I didn't do it. It was Jimmy." Grian: "????"

Love them.

Hold on hold on hold on. BigB, are you seriously dropping "My base is going to be a corridor of doors" with no context and you're just brushing past that like that doesn't sound unnecessary and insane.

His base is so creepy, he's just got double doors all the way down the wall slkdfj. He wants to run an underground hotel. No one is making him do this. This is a death game. BigB, what on earth?

---

?????? Joel's task was to find the worst time to plug Life series merch? I like how he read that and immediately refused to plug merch for the next several minutes. There's not even a penalty for plugging it appropriately, he's just stubborn.

Joel screaming and running towards a baby zombie while spitting the fastest possible Life merch promotion and taking random swings and covering his screen with big moving Sale stickers and blinky text and explosions... He understood his job.

Lizzie @ her husband: "My heart is worth more than a porkchop and a feather."

Lizzie, within earshot of Joel, who is a beaten-up porcupine after taking 4.5 hearts of non-regenerating damage while protecting his wife from skeletons: "Thank you, Pearl :)"

"Screw tools."

I'm very excited Joel made a big deal about assigning his water bucket to his 9th inventory slot "for the rest of its days," because I know I had a moment in one of my 'fics where he mentions he has a preferred placement for his water bucket but I couldn't be bothered to watch back and see if that was true sdljkf. This works great.

Already pointed this out in my Etho POV commentary but <3 Joel meandering up to Etho like "Remember Boat Boys? Surely that's worth a heart." / Etho: "You own my heart, Joel."

I enjoyed the dramatic music he played while building his fence

"Nighttime is pretty good to get people in inappropriate situations." Joel???

Joel, screeching and flailing and trying to kill multiple creepers that he personally lured in: "Make sure you buy the merch, Mumbo!!! Just make sure you buy it!!" / Mumbo: "???"

Joel getting back up to 30 hearts for about .5 seconds before dropping back down... Poor sad boy.

Spider had an effect so that's probably our full moon night; good to know for my "full moon strengthens mob hybrid traits" fanfic worldbuilding. In Double Life we normally had the full moon early in the week so maybe we'll have it pretty late in this one?

Joel ripping a flower away from two bees that were using it

Lizzie: "Fabulous behind!" / Joel: "???"

sdlkfj Martyn's despair when he falls off Mumbo's house and takes damage is somehow so much funnier from Joel's perspective... he sounds SO brokenhearted

I appreciate how Joel suspected Impulse's task was to get other people to put cherry petals / cherry saplings in their base so he immediately tried skewing this to his advantage by requiring payment

I will be interested to see if the players end up calling people out on their tasks or not, because there were definitely a few times tasks seemed pretty obvious (like Lizzie's poem) and there doesn't seem to be a penalty for calling someone out incorrectly. I wonder if they're just playing nicey-nice for now. Will be interesting to see if they start turning each other in later in the series.

#Secret Life #trafficblr #Joel Smallishbeans #bigbst4tz2 #Grian #Lizzie LDShadowLady #EthosLab #Boat Boys #secret soulmates #Secret Life SMP #Secret Life spoilers #mcyt #Secret Life SMP spoilers #traffic life smp #traffic spoilers #Riddle watches Traffic #BigB

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lorephobic · 11 months

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2, 8 and 15 for the recent ask game? :0

2. who's POV are you watching currently, and why?

so far this season i’m literally only watching etho and bdubs which is crazy for me bc i normally watch AT LEAST five povs, but tbh i’m kinda burnt out rn and just need to know what going on with my guys LOL

8. who do you think deserves to win this season?

this is so hard because im biased and think that bdubs always deserves to be rewarded for his big beautiful heart and thoughtful performance, but also im such a big joel guy and i really want it to be his time.

15. are there any interactions/events/moments that you think people have overlooked?

im in the middle of watching this weeks bdubs ep and havent actually checked the timeline so idk if this was overlooked but i do want to shoutout the moment where bdubs and etho both try to give each other food at the same time even tho theyre both starving. ik im lame but it makes my heart so fucking warm and fuzzy to see them try to take care of each other<333

#asks #theres so much boring shit that i didnt explain when talking about only watching two povs #but the tldr is that im busy and tbh i (re?)started my deep dive into fatt and i just want to spend every second listening to it #ask game

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aurora-by-jacqui-natla · 1 year

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18. POWER

I WAS SURPRISED WHEN INGRAM ASKED ME to hunt animals with me. "I want to give it a go," he had said to me. His interest in hunting was unexpected, considering his usual aversion to the sport. Ingram was always drinking human blood for hundreds of years rather than having a thirst for animal blood. Yet, there he stood, with a determined look in his eyes, ready to embark on this unusual venture.

All I just needed to remember was the Quileute territory. Translation: do not go to La Push. The Quileute tribe was fiercely protective of their land and their secrets. Venturing into their domain uninvited would not only be disrespectful but could also provoke a confrontation. I had heard countless stories about the mystical and formidable nature of the Quileute people, and I had no desire to become the antagonist of a new cautionary tale. Sticking to the boundaries was crucial for our safety and for maintaining the fragile peace that existed between our worlds.

Carlisle had advised me to start with carnivores rather than herbivores as its blood tasted much sweeter than the other. He emphasized the importance of this choice for a novice hunter. The richness of carnivorous blood would provide the necessary sustenance and energy for someone like Ingram, who was new to this experience. Additionally, Emmett told me to stay away from the bears as it was his favorite to feast on. His preference for bear blood was well-known among our circle. Emmett's fondness for the robust flavour of bear blood was almost legendary, and he often spoke about it with the enthusiasm of a wine connoisseur describing a rare vintage.

I couldn't help but picture his reaction to seeing the Ursa Clan back at Epping Forest. He would have freaked out when he saw the bear shapeshifters, warrior women of unparalleled strength and ferocity. The Ursa Clan was a formidable group, known for their unique ability to transform into bears and their fierce warrior ethos. They were a living testament to the blend of human and animalistic prowess. Imagining Emmett's wide-eyed astonishment at encountering these legendary beings was almost amusing. His bravado would likely be replaced with a rare moment of awe and perhaps even a touch of apprehension.

As we prepared to leave, I couldn't ignore the flutter of excitement mixed with a trace of unease. Ingram's unexpected desire to hunt animals rather than sustain himself on human blood intrigued me. It hinted at something deeper, perhaps a desire to reconnect with a part of himself long buried under centuries of bloodlust.

We ventured into the dense woods, the air thick with the scent of pine and the distant sounds of wildlife. Ingram walked beside me, his usual brooding demeanor softened by an uncharacteristic curiosity. His tall frame moved with a grace that belied his internal struggle. It was as if he was stepping into a new chapter of his existence, and I was there to witness it.

As we moved deeper into the forest, I couldn't help but steal glances at him. His profile, sharp and timeless, was etched with determination. There was a raw magnetism about Ingram that had always drawn me in, even when we had first met. Despite our differences, an unspoken bond had formed between us, a connection that seemed to strengthen with each passing moment.

"Ingram," I began, my voice barely above a whisper, "what made you want to try this?"

He paused, his eyes reflecting the dappled sunlight filtering through the canopy above. "I've been alive for so long, I've seen and done things that most people couldn't even imagine. Yet, there's a part of me that feels empty, disconnected. I thought... maybe this could help me find something I've lost."

His words hung in the air, heavy with the weight of centuries. I reached out, placing a gentle hand on his arm. "I understand," I said softly. "Sometimes, we have to go back to basics to find what truly matters."

We continued in silence, the forest alive with the whispers of our past and the possibilities of our future. It wasn't long before we caught the scent of a deer, its musky aroma leading us to a small clearing. Ingram's eyes darkened with a primal hunger, but there was also a flicker of hesitation.

"Remember, focus on the heart," I instructed gently. "It's the quickest and most humane way."

He nodded, his jaw set with resolve.

I also heard the sound of a heartbeat and a heavy footing. I inhaled and... it smelt like a cat. Not a cat but definitely feline. Ingram inhaled too and his eyes narrowed, catching the same scent. "Mountain lion," he muttered, a hint of excitement lacing his voice. "Perfect for a first hunt."

We moved in synchrony, our steps light and deliberate as we tracked the predator. The scent grew stronger, mingling with the forest's natural aroma. I could sense Ingram's pulse quicken, a blend of anticipation and anxiety coursing through him. This was uncharted territory for him, and despite his centuries of existence, the unfamiliarity of the task at hand was palpable.

Finally, we spotted the lion, a magnificent creature perched on a rock, surveying its domain with regal indifference. Its golden eyes scanned the surroundings, unaware of our presence. Ingram tensed beside me, and I placed a calming hand on his shoulder.

"Take your time," I whispered. "Feel the moment, let your instincts guide you."

He nodded, drawing in a deep breath, and stepped forward, his movements fluid and precise. The lion's ears twitched, sensing a disturbance, but it was too late. Ingram pounced, his speed and agility a blur as he closed the distance. The lion barely had time to react before Ingram's teeth sank into its neck, a swift and decisive strike.

I watched as he fed, a mix of pride and relief swelling within me. This was a significant step for Ingram, a departure from his usual predatory habits. As he drank, his eyes flickered with a strange blend of satisfaction and introspection. When he finally pulled away, the lion's lifeless body slumped to the ground, and he turned to face me, wiping the blood from his lips.

"How do you feel?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Different," he replied after a moment's thought. "Lighter, somehow. It's strange, but... I think I understand now why you and the others choose this path."

A smile tugged at my lips as I observed the transformation in him. "It's not just about the blood," I said. "It's about finding a balance, about choosing to live a way that respects life, even as we sustain ourselves. It's a small way to hold onto our humanity."

"You sound wise for someone who hasn't been a vampire for long."

"Well, when you lived with ancient vampires, you tend to be more philosophical."

Ingram chuckled, a smile appearing on his pale bearded face. I smiled even wider as I watched Ingram's face soften, the weight of centuries momentarily lifting from his shoulders. He stepped closer, his gaze locking onto mine.

"How old are you?" He suddenly asked me. "When you were turned, I mean?"

"S-Seventeen," I replied, completely caught off guard by the question.

Ingram's eyes widened slightly, as if surprised by my answer. "Seventeen," he repeated, the word rolling off his tongue with a mix of curiosity and something deeper. "So young, and yet you've adapted so well. It's impressive."

I felt a blush creep up, even though my pale vampire skin wouldn't show it. "Thanks," I said, feeling a strange warmth at his compliment. "What about you? When were you turned?"

His gaze turned distant for a moment, as if he were reaching back through the centuries. "I was twenty-seven," he said finally. "It was a different world back then. So much has changed."

We stood there, the forest around us alive with the rustle of leaves and the distant calls of birds, yet in that moment, it felt like we were the only two beings in existence. The connection between us, always present but often unspoken, seemed to hum with new energy.

"Ingram," I began hesitantly, "why did you really come with me today? I mean, hunting animals is such a departure from your usual ways."

He looked at me, his dark eyes searching mine. "Maybe I wanted to understand you better," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "Or maybe I just wanted to spend time with you, away from everything else."

His words sent a thrill through me, and for a moment, I forgot to breathe. The intensity of his gaze, the honesty in his voice—it was all too much and yet not enough. I wanted to reach out, to bridge the small distance between us, but something held me back. Fear, perhaps, of what might happen if I did.

Instead, I offered him a smile, hoping it conveyed everything I couldn't say out loud. "Well, I'm glad you came. It means a lot to me."

He smiled back, a rare, genuine smile that softened his features. "And to me," he said simply.

We continued our hunt, but the atmosphere between us had shifted. There was a new understanding, a silent promise of something more. As we moved through the forest, side by side, I felt a sense of hope blooming within me. Perhaps this unexpected journey would lead to something far greater than either of us had anticipated.

I inhaled and smelt the scent of deer. I soon realised that I was hungry. My throat burned, amplifying my thirst. I glanced at Ingram, noting the subtle shift in his demeanor. The hunt had ignited something within him, a spark that I hadn't seen before. As the scent of deer grew stronger, I couldn't deny my own hunger any longer.

"Ingram," I said softly, "there's a herd nearby. Let's take this opportunity."

He nodded, his eyes reflecting a newfound determination. Together, we moved through the underbrush, our steps almost silent on the forest floor. The deer were grazing in a small clearing, their movements graceful and unaware of our presence.

Ingram watched me closely as I crouched low, ready to strike. His eyes held a mixture of curiosity and respect, as if he was learning not just about the hunt, but about me as well. I focused on a large stag at the edge of the group, its heartbeat steady and strong.

"Follow my lead," I whispered, knowing he would understand the unspoken lesson in patience and precision.

With a swift, fluid motion, I sprang forward, closing the distance between myself and the stag in an instant. The creature barely had time to react before my teeth sank into its neck, the warm, sweet blood filling my mouth. I felt a rush of energy, a reminder of the life I had chosen.

Ingram joined me moments later, his own prey captured with a similar ease. As we fed, there was an unspoken understanding between us—a recognition of the balance we sought to achieve in our existence. When we finished, we stepped back, allowing the natural cycle of the forest to reclaim what we had taken.

The sun dipped lower in the sky, casting long shadows through the trees. I turned to Ingram, wiping the blood from my lips. "How does it feel now?" I asked, genuinely curious about his thoughts.

He took a moment to answer, his gaze thoughtful. "It feels...right," he said finally. "There's a sense of harmony in this. It's not just about survival; it's about respecting the life we take."

I nodded, understanding exactly what he meant. "That's what they taught me. It's not just about feeding; it's about finding a way to live that honours all life, including our own."

Ingram looked at me, a new depth in his eyes. "I'm beginning to see that. Thank you for showing me."

"Anytime," I replied, feeling a warmth spread through me at his gratitude. "I'm glad you decided to come with me today."

We disposed of the mountain lion and deer and began to head back to the Cullens. As we walked in silence, my thoughts returned by to Amun's revelation. I could picture the Volturi's reaction of my presence, my existence. Not just me being a vampire maxima - a rare kind of vampire with multiple gifts - but a vampire who shared an uncanny resemblance to one of the the Volturi's mate who had been dead for thousands of years. I could imagine the shock, confusion and fear on their faces.

Then, I thought about the Romanians and Amun's history with Gabriel, especially about the Volturi. The reason why the Romanians and Amun were the survivors because the Volturi wiped the whole coven off the face of the earth. The Volturi wanted power and control over the vampire society much like how the Romanians and Amun wanted to have power. Amun's overprotective and possessive behaviour, like what Tia told me, seemed to make it clear. And Vladimir and Stefan's obversation on me and Renesemee made it clear too.

And strangely enough, I started to think about Macbeth.

Shakespeare's tragic hero, Macbeth, was a man driven by ambition and the whispers of prophecy, a tale of power's corrupting influence. In many ways, the parallels to our world were unsettling. The Volturi's relentless quest for dominance, their manipulation of other vampires, echoed Macbeth's descent into madness and tyranny. And like Macbeth, the Volturi might find their reign challenged by unforeseen forces—perhaps even by us.

As we continued our journey back, the forest around us seemed to darken with the weight of my thoughts. Ingram walked beside me, his silence a comforting presence. I glanced at him, wondering if he sensed the turmoil within me.

"Ingram," I said, breaking the quiet, "do you ever think about what it means to have power? Not just the physical strength we possess, but the influence and control we can exert over others?"

He looked at me, his expression thoughtful. "Power can be a dangerous thing," he replied. "It's seductive, and it can change you if you're not careful. I've seen it happen too many times."

I nodded, his words resonating with my own fears. "The Volturi are a perfect example of that. They've ruled for so long, bending others to their will. But even they must face consequences eventually."

Ingram's eyes darkened slightly. "The Volturi have always believed they're untouchable, but no one is invincible. History has a way of catching up with those who abuse their power."

"Do you think we'll ever have to confront them?" I asked, the thought both thrilling and terrifying.

"Well, why do you think we're here?" he said. "And when we do, it will be because we have something worth protecting. Power used to protect and defend can be just as potent as power used to control."

I found comfort in his words, a reminder that our strength could be a force for good. Then, I found myself being pulled back and my back was on the ground. Ingram was chuckling and I turned my head, seeing him on his back as well. I caught glimpse of a red blood line at the corner of his mouth, trailing down to his chin. It must had been from the hunt and he didn't clean it off; he must had pulled me down to the ground.

I smiled. "Why did you do that?"

Ingram turned his head to look at me, his eyes twinkling with a rare playfulness. "Because you were getting too serious," he said, his voice a low rumble. "Sometimes, it's good to just... let go and enjoy the moment."

I couldn't help but laugh, the sound echoing through the forest. "You're right," I admitted, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders. "We should enjoy this. It's not every day we get to hunt together."

He smiled, a genuine expression that softened his features and made him look almost boyish. "Exactly. Life is too short, even for us immortals, to be bogged down by worries all the time."

We lay there for a moment, staring up at the canopy of leaves above us. The light filtered through the branches, casting dappled shadows on our faces. It was peaceful, a stark contrast to the usual chaos of our lives. I turned my head to study him, taking in the strong line of his jaw, the way his hair fell across his forehead. There was something undeniably captivating about Ingram, something that had drawn me to him from the beginning.

"Ingram," I said softly, "do you ever think about... us?"

He turned his head to meet my gaze, his eyes searching mine. "All the time," he replied, his voice just above a whisper. "But I didn't know if you felt the same."

"I do," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "I think about it a lot."

He reached out, his hand brushing a strand of hair from my face. His touch was gentle, his fingers cool against my skin. "Then maybe it's time we stop thinking and start doing," he said, his voice low and filled with promise.

I felt a shiver run through me, a mix of excitement and anticipation. "What do you mean?" I asked, my breath catching in my throat.

He leaned closer, his face inches from mine. "I mean that I've spent centuries living in the shadows, feeding off humans and avoiding any real connection. But with you, it's different. I want to know what it's like to truly live, to feel something real."

His words resonated deep within me, echoing my own thoughts and desires. I reached up, cupping his face in my hands. "Then let's find out together," I whispered, closing the distance between us.

Our lips met in a gentle, tentative kiss, a spark of electricity passing between us. It was a kiss that held the promise of more, a kiss that spoke of centuries of longing and the hope for a future together. As we pulled away, I saw the same emotions reflected in his eyes—hope, longing, and a newfound sense of purpose.

"Ingram," I said, my voice steady despite the whirlwind of emotions inside me, "we can face whatever comes our way, as long as we're together."

He nodded, his expression determined. "Together," he agreed. "No matter what."

We stood up, brushing the dirt and leaves from our clothes, and continued our journey back to the Cullens' home. The forest around us seemed brighter, more alive, as if it too shared in our newfound bond. I felt a sense of peace, a certainty that whatever challenges lay ahead, we would face them together.

As we approached the edge of the forest, I glanced at Ingram, a smile playing on my lips. "I never thought a hunt could lead to this," I said, the warmth of the memory already etching itself into my mind.

He chuckled, the sound rich and full of life. "Sometimes, the most unexpected journeys lead to the best destinations," he replied, taking my hand in his.

As we emerged from the forest, the Cullens' house came into view, bathed in the golden light of the setting sun. It felt like a homecoming in more ways than one, not just to the physical structure but to a newfound sense of belonging and purpose.

Ingram squeezed my hand, grounding me in the present. The weight of our shared experiences, the hunt, and our honest conversation seemed to solidify a bond that was growing stronger with each passing moment. I looked at him, a sense of gratitude and love swirling inside me.

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lgalacticjayl · 1 year

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Ok Friday was super busy so heres my weekly Tango Live tweeting,

featuring my friend @fakezircon who i live tweeted to

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 10:58 PM do u want live tweets?

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 10:59 PM Yes

[10:59 PM] Who are you starting with

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 10:59 PM tango

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 10:59 PM Wait it’s obvious

[10:59 PM] Ha yeah

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 10:59 PM ..

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:00 PM Hehe

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:00 PM oh boy

[11:00 PM] only 15 minutes

[11:00 PM] they are pouring one out for skizz

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:00 PM I haven’t seen his ep actually

[11:00 PM] Might pull it up and watch as well

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:00 PM watch alonmg

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:01 PM augh "team TIE"

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:04 PM tango wanting to avoid tnt minecarts

[11:04 PM] team TIME?

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:04 PM hehe Martyn

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:05 PM hearing bombs while underground is wild

[11:05 PM] skyspagetti

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:05 PM I think we are near perfectly synced (edited)

[11:05 PM] you sent that as they said it in video

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:06 PM i will likely pause and go back periodically

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:06 PM fair

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:06 PM it's begun

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:07 PM I've seen 3 vids already

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:07 PM oo setting up a dripstone kill

[11:08 PM] immeditatly took down their own trap

[11:08 PM ]hahahah grian far away scream

[11:08 PM] OMG

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:08 PM ha

[11:08 PM] god, Grian's squawk there killed me

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:08 PM yeah that was really good

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:08 PM killed him too

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:09 PM seeing the tnt fall and then just a hole is wild

[11:09 PM] NOOO BDUBS

[11:09 PM] also they added titles

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:09 PM yeah!

[11:09 PM] bdubs

[11:10 PM] impulse finally got his revenge on bdubs

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:10 PM god

[11:12 PM] scar got spleefed

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:12 PM that kill is so fucking funny from martyn's video

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:12 PM all the spleefs are

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:12 PM oh yeah

[11:12 PM] the best part of skynet, spleefing

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:13 PM game?

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:13 PM ouch

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:13 PM WHAT

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:13 PM ha

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:13 PM WHO DID THIS

[11:14 PM] blew up out of nowhere by grian

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:14 PM he has such bad luck with tnt minecarts

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:14 PM why is scar attacking ahhh

[11:14 PM] nooooooooo down to 14 minutes

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:14 PM top tier tango noises tho

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:15 PM "i loved hunting him like a wolf"

[11:16 PM] TANGOOOO

[11:16 PM] YOU IDIOT

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:16 PM yep

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:16 PM AHHHHHH

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:16 PM his curse continues

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:16 PM immediate cut to scar cleo and bdubs dead

[11:16 PM] inconsequencial death

[11:17 PM] no angst

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:17 PM anti climactic and ultimately pointless death

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:17 PM man

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:17 PM 4/4

GalacticJay — 04/21/2023 11:18 PM well i still dont know who wins, the only other povs i was watching were scar and etho

FakeZircon — 04/21/2023 11:18 PM :

#limited life #live tweeting #tango

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sinceileftyoublog · 1 year

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Durand Jones & Kara Jackson Live Show Review: 5/9, Lincoln Hall, Chicago

BY JORDAN MAINZER

Even if you’re familiar with the retro stylings of Durand Jones & The Indications, Wait Til I Get Over (Dead Oceans) is a reintroduction. The solo debut for Jones is inspired by his roots in Hillaryville, Louisiana, a town established as part of reparations to previously enslaved Black folks, and it sees him grappling with his biographical history while gaining a greater sense of self. Contextualized in the duality of the South--the beauty of the landscapes and the simultaneous institutional racism that’s devastated it--Jones’ record traverses a swath of Black music, from soul and rock and roll to R&B and gospel. With spoken word interludes, hymnals, prayers, and laments, all backed by guitar, bass, keys, and drums, he’s provided a contemporary classic.

Playing his first solo show in Chicago on Tuesday at Lincoln Hall, Jones brought many of the album’s players with him, including drummer Ben Lumsdaine, guitarist Drake Ritter, keyboardist Matt Romy, and bassist Glenn Myers. They gave all the songs on Wait Til I Get Over the “Lord Have Mercy” treatment. On that first single from the record, Jones sings, “Can you see me in those sad, smiling eyes?” emphasizing the further contradictions within himself, his desire to overcome by keeping on. Similarly, it was the celebratory aspects of the music that shone live, the raw guitars and slinky bass and Jones’ dancing. He let out cathartic James Brown-level screams during “I Want You”, a described prayer for music written during a stint working at a science lab before music was his full-time employment. Though the orchestral flourishes on the studio versions of songs like “Gerri Marie” and “That Feeling” give them a cinematic feel, the songs didn’t lack drama on Tuesday. The moment Jones walked out on stage, clad in a fitted blue suit with white stripes, a saxophone in one hand and a drink in the other, you knew you were in for a show.

Further, sharing the stories behind the album, both in the rollout to the release of Wait Til I Get Over and Tuesday night, proved therapeutic for Jones, who has been citing James Baldwin’s belief in “strength in vulnerability.” That includes both the blue-eyed doo wop of “Sadie” and “That Feeling”, the latter of which was not only the first breakup song Jones has ever written but his first love song written to another man, effectively his coming out as bisexual. During the middle of “Some Day We’ll All Be Free”, essentially a Donny Hathaway cover with a verse from rapper Skypp injected in middle, Jones cited another vanguard of Black art, Nina Simone. “To be free is to live without fear,” he quoted over the band’s percussive funk, later declaring, “Love will win.” It’s the same sense of radical optimism that permeates a song like “See It Through”, existing alongside the doubts and sorrow, and the very ethos of Wait Til I Get Over. Towards the end of the show, Jones admitted that he almost had to cancel the tour; a bout with food poisoning led to 3 ER trips and a lost voice. But with patience and belief, Jones has used the spirit of the album and seemingly every show to move one step closer to where he needs to go, personally and communally.

Oak Park’s Kara Jackson has also released a hell of a debut, Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love? (September); like Jones’, her set acted more as an introduction of a newfound voice than a faithful recreation of her released songs. Playing acoustically, Jackson sang a few new tunes in a short set, plus two from her 2019 EP A Song for Every Chamber of the Heart and Karen Dalton’s “Right, Wrong or Ready”. The latter showcased a few of the talents that would extend throughout the set: Jackson’s smoky, controlled, octave-leaping voice, her dexterous finger-picked guitar playing, her effective tempo changes. But the songs from Why Does The Earth were the true indicators of her poetry. At multiple times, the audience howled with laughter at Jackson’s directness. “Every man thinks I’m his fuckin’ mother,” she sang on “therapy”. “And if seeing you naked wasn’t such a bargain / It would be a home run,” she quipped on “no fun/party” right as her dress strap inadvertently fell, an admitted possible cosmic wink. Of course, “dickhead blues”, whose very announcement garnered the most cheers to an audience clearly already familiar with Jackson, was the highlight. The crowd wowed at how her wordplay and delivery followed along with her guitars during lines like, “My dilemma is always a dickhead / Who’s drunk on the daily news / Like coyotes in culottes / Clawin’ for coffee in open-toed shoes.”

I admit that I can’t wait to hear what Jackson’s new songs sound like with a full band, should she decide to play with one. On the album, she collaborated with Chicago wunderkinds KAINA, NNAMDÏ, and Sen Morimoto, whose lush, shimmering instrumentation alongside Jodi’s slide guitar gives many of the album’s songs a borderline theatrical feel, the furthest thing from Tuesday’s stark arrangements. Jackson was never going to play 7-minute epics like “free” and “rat” in a short opening set, nor the heartbreaking title track of her new album, an ode to romantic and platonic love, inspired by the death of a dear friend in high school. “I’ve buried old and young / I’ve watched them lower a saint / We’re only waiting our turn / Call that living?” she sings. Its wistfulness would not have been the best way to prime a crowd for Jones’ life-affirming songs, which Jackson undoubtedly knew. What she does have in common with Jones is the sheer ability to punch you in the gut, with a one-liner, bluesy guitar lick, or an octave change. Inevitably and deservedly, in due time, they’ll both be headlining bigger stages and reaching more people with the power of their stories.

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