#even moreso when i fucking watched the ten episodes

[trashie-sdumpstr]

DR Spoilers! Ahead!

[einsk8rot]

man i really did just realize (a lot after looking at @emmiewtf 's posts and @//animemindset on tik tok they are so cool) why the last episode really did overall feel so much more unsatisfactory and didnt have like. as much oomf as it could've. (tiny tl:dr at the end if you cant read through this all this do be long)

despite having some really cool ass scenes and little things and some cute ass renga stuff. it was so much more focused and around adam than usual? and being genuinely uncomfortable and still not really liking adam because he's still. super creepy. its really just kinda disappointing to see how focused it was on him and how he literally didn't get like any consequences for any of the shit he pulled? like cool clown man you like skateboarding again, are we like gonna acknowledge the constant assault of skaters you went against, one being reki why is obviously just a minor trying to have fun while you literally traumatized him? like so much of the shit that happened to reki. adam inadvertently or not caused that and the fear of him getting left behind by langa and stuff because of how adam skated with reki. like i don't know if this makes sense and im super happy reki is happy with skating again but that shit and trauma still happened and led reki to that downward spiral and i feel like we don't talk about that enough. and adam still like. never got any consequences for that. if not for weird ass behavior around people that are literally minors, especially knowing how adam acts and that adam had some sort of connection with miya who's like. hardly 13-14 or so. you had a fucked family life and childhood and it's understandable to change because of that but just because your past is shit doesnt mean you commit assault for fun and act like that to kids. and innocent people just watching like when he used bystanders when he raced. that wasn't fun that was just. concerning. and he got no punishments, he like, as i understand practically got away free

he genuinely is not a character i like. and many people probably feel the same. the last episode was more focused on him and redeeming him compared to others and it really just didn't feel right. more focus on the protagonists, reki and langa, ESPECIALLY reki just would've made it better i think? more about their relationship, cherry, joe, MIYA. miya like, got so pushed on the back burner in the more recent episodes? didn't even get an on screen apology or proper explanation of reki's situation and as someone who genuinely loves miya that was. pretty disappointing please give miya more appreciation. but despite that uh. reki and langa's relationship was like, practically used to give adam a reason to skate for fun again. which is. like alright i guess? i just really didnt like it. it was fucking amazing to see langa break out of 'the zone' type thing because of reki and him putting fun in his skateboard but the focus on teaching adam thats its fun. it makes sense, it was practically expected considering how focused the show is on skateboarding being fun but after all the stuff adam did it wasn't satisfying seeing him get away with everything and suddenly be sort of friends? like ok with the rest of the cast. (ALSO TADASHI WHY WERE YOU OK WITH THE DOG THING???? DUDE???????? his like. love for skating once again is back i guess? but bro that. alright if he's into that im not judgin)

episodes like episode 6, 10, and 11 were my favorites and that's solely based on it being more centric on the actual protagonists and the cast genuinely having fun. and adam getting what he deserves. or adam must not being there HEHAHAHEJHFV so. in episode 6 there was like no adam and it was just the main 6 having fun! it was a genuinely great episode to watch with the cutest moments, plus some good ass foreshadowing? okay just more subtle buildup of reki's insecurities with some really nice moments while also being funny and fun! and that was really nice to watch! i think episodes 10 and 11, moreso 10 are my favorites because they're reki-centric. episode 10, we got to see so many intense character moments, shadow literally getting fucking bonked by that dude with his manager (STILL SAD OVER HER GETTING WITH SOMEONE ELSE WHERE IS THE HIROMI APPRECIATION HE TOOK A BAT. LIKE MULTIPLE HITS TO THE HEAD FOR HER???), i think that was the episode with the matchablossom carry? MANAGER OKA MOMENTS WE LOVE TO SEE IT HELL YES GET IT MAN WE LOVE TO SEE THE SUPPORT AND ADVICE TO REKI. TADASHI TAKING REKI TO A LOVE HOTEL?? THAT WAS SO OUT OF NOWHERE BUT ACTUALLY SO FUNNY TO ME (kinda creepy when he asked have you never been here before like. tadashi he's like, 17, please) and HOO BOY. LIKE ALL OF THE REKI MOMENTS IN THE EPISODE. GETTING MORE INSIGHT IN REKIS PAST (WHO IS!!! THE GANG HE WAS WITH!!!!!!!) AND SEEING HIM SLOWLY START TO REGAIN HIS LOVE FOR SKATING AND APOLOGIZE TO LANGA???? LITERALLY THE WHOLE SCENE WHEN HE RECONNECTED WITH LANGA. NOW THAT WAS SATISFYING. SEEING THE WAY THAT REKI LIT UP AGAIN WHEN HE REALIZED SKATING WAS FUN. HIS CONFIDENCE COMING BACK. SKATING WITH LANGA BECAUSE SKATING IS PRACTICALLY LOVE AND THEIR LOVE LANGUAGE SO THAT WAS ENOUGH. THE WAY LANGA WAS FOCUSED ON REKI. HIS BOARD WAS BROKEN BUT HIS TOP PRIORITY ISN'T JUST SKATING, IT WAS REKI. IT WASN'T FUN WITHOUT REKI AND HE LOVES IT BECAUSE ITS WITH REKI. AND EPISODE TEN JUST REALLY SHOWED REKI AND LANGA'S RELATIONSHIP PERFECTLY AND THE MAKE UP WAS SO GENUINELY SATISFYING WITH THE CUTEST FUCKING MOMENTS. THAT COMBINED WITH HOW GOOD THE PROGRESSION OF REKI WAS THROUGHOUT THE EPISODE REALLY JUST MADE IT HIT TO ME. it actually focused on the protagonists. and it was. so good. i will give anything to feel the same way i did watching episode ten for the first time again. it was a rollercoaster in all the perfect ways and it was just so genuinely fun and satisfying. and episode 11? was the perfect continuation of that for me.

episode 11. was so good. as i've seen many people say, its like reki reclaiming his spot as the main character and one of the main protagonists. he took a chance on the rain, he went against adam again and this time showed he wasn't afraid. he was just having fun and he was overcoming adam because of it. it wasn't just the board he made. this was emphasis on reki's own skills and confidence and how it got him to, even with not actually winning the race, he fuckin won. he showed adam who the hell he was. he showed EVERYONE what he was capable of despite of how much everyone doubted him. and do you know what makes that doubt people had in him even better? okay that wasn't worded really well but the doubt people had in him made the payoff of his success even better. but its the way that langa didn't fucking doubt him for a moment. he had his FULL TRUST in reki the entire time even when pretty much everyone else wanted him to give up. expected him and wanted him to stand down against adam. but langa believed and trusted reki. and even when he didn't win his first thought was to check on him and protect him from adam. renga's relationship, platonic or not is just. so amazing. so fucking beautiful despite the ups and downs because of how much care. the amount of trust they have in eachother, how they just know and understand eachother. its fun and okay because its the two of them. and that showed throughout the episode and i loved that. BUT ENOUGH RENGA. THE FOCUS ON REKI IN THE EPISODE. i believe in reki supremacy and that he needs more appreciation as the main character, the protagonist, and hoo boy. eleven was THE most satisfying shit. ARE WE NOT GONNA TALK ABOUT REKI EFFECTIVELY, DESPITE TALENT, COPIED LANGA'S TRICK? HOW HE SORTA REVERSE LOVE HUGGED ADAM? HOW HE USED AND LEARNED THE THINGY MIYA TAUGHT HIM yes i forgot the name IN THE FIRST RACE WITH ADAM. HOW REKI IS SO GOOD AT LEARNING THAT SHIT JUST BECAUSE ITS FUN. HE JUST DID IT BECAUSE IT SEEMED MORE FUN AND THATS SO AMAZING. PLUS THE CONFIDENCE REKI HAS? THE RESILIENCE HE HOLDS? HOW HE KEPT STANDING UP? TAKING EVERY THROW SPIN AND PUNCH once again fuck adam thats just a kid having fun and you were punching him until he was bleeding. if he didn't pull away, adam had those spiky things on his elbows. he would've genuinely hurt reki AGAIN. PLUS HIM PULLING THE FULL SWING KISS ON REKI???????? WHAT THE FUCK MAN. LIKE THE WAY REKI EVADED IT WAS SO COOL GO OFF REKI BABY YOU'RE DOING AMAZING BUT ADAM WHAT THE FUCK. but on the note of reki being amazing again, this episode really did show that. it had so much focus on reki and showed how him being reki, his confidence, the skills he developed himself, his love for skating is what makes him amazing. him being reki. thats what made people like him. thats what gave him everyone's support. thats what made him practically win and show that he IS the main character. that was reki at his BEST. the satisfaction of proving everyone wrong. his found skating family being so hyped and proud of him. AND HOO. FUCKING, BOY, ANOTHER ONE OF THE BESTS PART OF ELEVEN WAS ADAM EATING SHIT. WHAT HE FUCKING DESERVED. the mentality of the s goers and fans is kinda dumb with them not really caring about reki until this and literally bashing him still sorta at the start of the race. then immediately clowning adam, but adam like actually deserves the clowning hah. bitch. the best part of episode 11 was not only reki, but how they treated adam. he was GETTING what he deserved. seeing adam on the ground and fallen. people booing him and focusing on reki being cool as shit instead of adam winning. that was so fucking satisfying. taking the 'king' away from his throne after all the fuckery he's done, him being shunned. now that was beautiful. that was what i liked and adored. 11 once again, reki-centric, and adam getting some punishment for his actions. that was amazing. that was what i liked. i watched sk8 for reki and seeing that made me scream in delight.

episodes 10 and 11 were just, yeah. the focus on the main characters and adam getting what he deserved. the renga relationship moments were just. something about them both was just perfect and i hope i conveyed that right. episode 12 just . didn't make me feel all that much. at least compared to those 2. and that's pretty much completely because of adam. and because after 10 and 11, 12 really was just. kinda underwhelming i guess? the adam-centricness of it. the use of langa's love for reki and skateboarding for adam's sake really was just kinda. eh. THE ENDING AND ACTUAL MOMENTS THAT HIGHLIGHTED REKI AND LANGA WERE BEAUTIFUL AS ALWAYS but the adamness was just. yeah. it was. mm. all of my rant juice is like running out ive been typing this for like an hour so

TL;DR: the focus on and redemption of adam and not our mains was what made 12 so eh. the characters and their relationships is what makes sk8 so good and the sudden focus on adam was just. mm if you read all of that i hope that made sense and please feel to add on and respond!! i love seeing people's insight on things and i tend to forget about stuff when i rant!

[janiedean]

Wait they fucked the SPN ending for Walker? How? And now the show is more conservative than the original, which was headlined by known conservative dumbass Chuck Norris? Ugh

tldr (I can attest in the sense that I did watch the very last episode and with everything I've seen until now...... it holds up)

basically from what it seems like they pushed so that the finale ep was sam focused so it would make ppl idk stick with jared and they didn't give dean time to shine or a basic excuse of a storyline at all before the dumbest death he could have had and jensen's obviously pissed

like... can imagine why he would be

also like nothing happened in that ep is2g I watched it live while it was happening and it was all..... filler? like I swear even the fillerest filler episode for any show I've watched had more stuff happening in it than the spn series finale which... was... bad

and like I remember walker promos airing every ten seconds when the ep was airing sssoooo

anyway apparently the cw got heavy on walker promoting and shit and got both jensen & misha shafted which like... I mean misha was def in vancouver for the finale but he wasn't in the ep and jensen spends 15 years playing dean for that?

and like now idk if the background rumors re jared not opposing any of that and basically screwing them over because it was convenient for his new show are true or not but if he is like... ofc jensen is pissed off

anyway like as stated I'm catching up on the whole thing now and with that in mind the finale looked like 'okay we wanted to do a thing but you execs told us that we couldn't and we had to do this this and that so we're going to do it in a way that sucks ass on purpose but that delivers what you wanted' even moreso than it did in the beginning like... it's not bad in the way any other bad finale I watched is bc AT LEAST SOMETHING HAPPENED IN THE OTHERS LITERALLY NOTHING HAPPENED IN THIS ONE I'm still trying to wrap my head around it tbh

NOW with this in mind I'mma gonna say what I told @emilysnora when the first walker casting stuff came out but basically

the remake has jared being walker blah blah and honestly I'm not even pronouncing myself on the whole 'I got the idea when reading the interview with the ICE policeman who felt conflicted abt putting kids in cages' because it's not my place to but honestly as your resident white european person it's... really... I mean the nicest I can say it's that it's a very privileged way of looking at it and he probably didn't mean it to be a racist thing buuuuuttt thaaat kind of iiiiisssss so there's that and on top of that we have that it's him plus: - hispanic partner in the force - gay brother who's like AN ATTORNEY FOR THE STATE so like... right wing gay dude? okay - his wife was dead before the entire shebang began so hello fridging before the plot even starts - I gave a quick look at the main cast and like there's one biracial dude plus lindsey morgan and they're the only two nonwhite ppl in the entire main cast (idk about the recurring but I'm talking about the MAINS) add to that the... background premise it's really not as progressive as it looks like honestly

now not to be like your resident person who's like BUT THE REP but like if y'all gonna do a show in 2021 about ppl in texas doing that job having to deal with keeping children in cages or latin american immigrants having all white ppl in the main cast except two of them is like.... kind of... not exactly what I'd do in this time and age

now with the premise that as stated I hate chuck norris's politics and I don't thing great of him as a person or anything else so like pls don't take this as chuck norris endorsement or anything

my grandfather used to be obsessed with it same as like apparently 90% of italian grandfathers bc everyone I know had at least one who loved that show so like I've seen my fair share of it back in the day and to my best recollection - basically no one was presuming it was like.... there to make a political statement it was basically chuck norris roundhouse kicking bad dudes coming from whichever background and saving the day the end but - walker himself had native american ancestry bc he was raised after his parents' death by his uncle who was played by floyd westerman who was like a prominent NA actor so like technically you had the lead who had NA ancestry himself plus there was like actual NA actors having a relevant role which like... bros not to be that asshole but last time I saw that in pseudo mainstream tv in the last ten years it was on a netflix show that lasted one season so make of that what you will, also there were at least two other NA supportive chars from the reservation they all came from like one was the sheriff and the other was a spiritual leader or smth but anyway it had three NA chars played by NA actors - walker's police partner/bff was black - he had the ongoing willtheywon'tthey romance with the district attorney or smth but she didn't get fridged actually she lasted the entire show but anyway like... there was no 'ah he had a wife who DIED BEFORE THE SHOW EVEN STARTED' plotline - in the last two seasons they had rookie rangers showing up and like I went to check on wikipedia to be sure but the girl is half filipina which again not a category that gets exactly much rep on american tv - there was a recurring dude who helped them out in cases but was from another police branch who was def latino (don't remember the background sorry but he def was) also like walker was a vietnam vet which imvho would be an improvement over 'I was undercover for eleven months and my wife died :((((' when it comes to give your main like.... a srs background but anyway the point was that new walker in between the mains has like two nonwhite ppl and if I look at the recurrings it looks like there's four ppl who are latin* but three of them are undocumented immigrants so like... bro there's some typecasting going on I see, old walker had NA/black/hispanic/filipino people in the main/supporting cast and none of them was like... typecast in the sense that they were all cops except two of the NA ones so it's not like they went out of their way to typecast and like obv og walker wasn't making the whole thing a political statement but looking at it...... it's still way more progressive than whatever the new one wants to be

yes even if chuck norris was headlining it

and I mean... again when you manage to reboot a show starring chuck norris of all ppl and you manage to make it less progressive than the og while thinking you're being progressive while rebooting it I mean as we say here ask yourself a few questions and give yourself a few answers, also like the entire point of og walker was crack where he kicks ppl and says doing drugs is bad, I honestly don't get why the fuck they had to reboot it instead of like having the guts to say we wanna do an original thing, bc like in order to say hey I wanna do a show about a conflicted cop on the texas border you really can just make it an original thing and own it not go like I'M REBOOTING WALKER TEXAS RANGER ROUNDHOUSE KICK CENTRAL EXTRAORDINAIRE but that's my two cents make of that what you will

[blessedsage99]

Why Lapis and Pearl Could Work As A Great Pairing

It is without a doubt that most people agree that Lapis and Pearl would do absolutely anything for Steven. Maybe not anything as Lapis jumped off to the nearest solar system to get away from conflict, but he is in fact the one person she would indefinitely pull out extra stops for (ie; willing to indulge befriending Peridot, live on and try earth, go into the ocean once more, etc) . But I do not think that would be the one of the driving forces between their relation but it might be one of the factors to goad them into trying and befriending each other. And perhaps…. More.

Similarities On a surface level you can perhaps glean several similarities, perhaps similar shadow and body type, sasuke pointing hair… And then another layer and find their personalities are vastly different. Pearl is very educated, prefers order, dramatic, emotional, enjoys engaging in combat, very forgiving (ex; is quick to forgive Peridot once she actually makes the amends to not call her an object), and does her best to make up for mistakes (ex; several episodes of making it up to Garnet).

Lapis is very lazy and blase, the barn she and Peridot have formed together has no sense of order and moreso chaos, she instantly flies at the first sight of conflict, is the least forgiving gem out there (ex; holds it against the crystal gems for pretty much the entirety of the series, and Peridot goes lengths and miles to try and get Lapis forgive her and still is unable to and it takes Steven to intervene and scold her to make an attempt), and honestly? Lapis hardly ever apologizes for her mistakes versus Pearl. She shows signs of guilt but she never really apologizes to Peridot for anything she’s done to her nor Steven nor… Well, really anyone else, except in Future.

But that aside, it’s when you think about their more lighthearted sides and trauma is where most of their similarities lie.

Hobbies

As off as it sounds, it’s fairly essential in pretty much any relationship to cross over a few hobbies, even if you don’t share everything, it often all starts with something along those lines. And Pearl and Lapis share a huge chunk of their hobbies, believe it or not.

Both Lapis and Pearl definitely enjoy reading, Pearl being the educational beast she is and Lapis probably enjoys the relaxed activity. In fact their genres might be even similar as Lapis and Pearl enjoy reading odd textbooks (ex; The hairstyles book for Lapis, and the engineering book for Pearl) and both enjoy dramas (albeit, perhaps this might be different) like Camp Pining Hearts and Pearl was willing to write a play and overseer one in Jamie’s case. This perhaps is b-level canon however, in the comic issue Camp Pining Play, Lapis is willingly engaging in participating and acting out in a play, she even enjoys it.

If given incentive of enjoying the subject already, Lapis is willing to perhaps enjoy the drama of things along with Pearl.

Both enjoy singing, if we’re going off Lapis was previously like other Lapis, that would mean singing and dancing is looked down upon on her caste. So the fact she even makes the attempt to do so in Distant Shore means she’s practicing in it, and if we want to add another layer of it, in the game Unleash the Light, one of Lapis’s key items is the Crying Breakfast Friends Sing-Along. And who else enjoys karaoke? Pearl (ie; the commercial karaoke). Also Lapis does it in Future so like if you want canon material it’s right there in Why So Blue.

This is a bit of a stretch but it’s clear that Lapis enjoys the arts which her participation in the class and what the heck else she does with Peridot in the barn, and Pearl has at the very least has experience in it. (ex; the drawing she makes, despite her humble opinion, makes it clear she’s done it before, in fact I’m willing to bet she even painted that fucking painting of Rose Quartz) It perhaps could lead to some more experience and artworks together if you know what I mean…

Casting that aside, it’s clear the two have a main stream of things to enjoy together should they choose to versus some other couples. (And different ones should they choose to introduce the other, Pearl with baking and sword fighting and Lapis with farming and flying, etc)

Traumas

Now this is the important part, I’m willing to argue they both can share extremely similar and relate to each other’s problems. They just have vastly different ways of coping with it, or well… They both have some similarities there as well, but we’ll address that in the next paragraph-ish.

But the biggest one? Both miss their homeworld. Dearly.

In fact it’s the driving force for Lapis’s introductory episodes and one of Pearl’s where she tries to get Steven into a rocketship back to her home. Both are ancient and dusty as fuck, or well, at least heavily implied to be ancient with the fact of Pearl commenting she learned the sword when she was only ten thousand years old (Sworn to the Sword iirc), the war was six thousand which implies Pearl learned before it. And Lapis, it’s merely conjecture however the fact that Lapis isn’t a vegetable after and still has a strong sense of identity after being in the mirror for 4 thousand years says something (ie; My name is LAPIS LAZULI!), the likely conclusion is the fact it’s because that’s not even close to how old she is. It’s only a fraction of her lifetime, which means both are… Well, old as hell. And even more likely? They come from the same ‘homeworld’ unlike Peridot or Amethyst who were made after and Garnet who has herself.

The second one is the one both of them likely have their divisive opinions on, especially as they were from opposing sides of it, is that they were both part of the War.

Both obviously have their trauma’s from it, as shown as Pearl in ‘A Single Pale Rose’ she’s still traumatized over the thousands of shattered gems (which is essentially corpses to her) she was forced to witness right after the war, and Lapis being forced to watch inside the mirror as everyone condemns her to being a crystal gem. I’m willing to bet she saw everyone die while inside the thing as well. As well as considering Lapis never really got over anything as she was gonna literally yeet herself away at the mere IDEA of the war… Well, who else could help her but another person who knows the horrors as well? And Pearl has experience as she had a support system unlike Lapis who got worse and worse purely just by being herself.

Moving on as I don’t have a cool and smooth transition...  This might be a bit of a stretch, but the last thing they both share very heavily over is the fact both were objectified.

Pearl was born to be an object, whereas Lapis was forced to become one, the mirror. And both consistently fight over the fact throughout most of the series. In the movie, the thing that makes Pearl remember herself is the freedom to be herself, and when she returns to her homeworld she’s forced to be reminded of her place when she talks to Holly Blue and returns to Steven in the final season. Lapis is obviously shook over it and holds it against the fact she always feels like she’s being used, (‘[...] AND YOU CAN’T KEEP ME TRAPPED ANYMORE!’) she longs for a safe place and to be free just as well just as Pearl does and the freedom to express herself (ie; her art). And who else but Pearl----- *coughcouhgcough*

Differences

I covered this in the first part where it's obvious the two have very vast differences when it comes to their personalities. But I find it important to have differences as both have something to bring to the table with their differences, no? Another essential part of a working couple.

And to quickly cover what I had before, their personalities. Pearl is literal and Lapis is sarcastic, Pearl is outwardly emotional and sobs and Lapis moodily and angrily exists, so on and so forth. How does this work? It’s also one of the hardest parts of their relationship, should they ever try it out because one of their biggest differences, is one of their flaws in a relationship as proven over and over.

Pearl is all give and no take, and Lapis is all take and no give. Which is a mix for a toxic relationship, as Pearl would constantly be giving to Lapis as Pearl’s entire worth as shown in her previous relation was all about what she would give to Rose, or else she was nothing. Even by the end of the main series she still needs to be reminded she’s still something without her. And Lapis’s emotional baggage? Let’s face it, Lapis is selfish and it’s all about her. She’s angry? She’s gonna fuck you up (ie; Jasper and the two Lapis), Lapis doesn’t want to deal with war? She doesn’t even think twice about what Peridot wants, and jumps away despite Steven calling out towards her.

But, but, but, but… It’s also a mix for something amazing as after their development, they’re kind of the perfect people to call each other out. In theory of course should they communicate.

Lapis would teach Pearl to be a little more selfish and care about her own needs, whereas Lapis needs constant reminders to actually take notice about what others want and feel (ex; the way she immediately rushes in and notices Steven’s expression at the last moment). It’s clear that Pearl isn’t willing to be treated that way should Lapis do so (ex; the way she snapped back at Peridot and towards Holly Blue) and Lapis upon caring enough? Is in fact willing to try to do better (ex; Why so blue, and Alone at Sea). It’s just that Lapis is farther behind on maturity (considering she ran away and panics instantly twice in a row). They can strike a perfect balance should they put the effort to do so, which would lead to the possible second problem they might have and would need to work through.

And the second difference the two of them have?

Fusion.

It’s the one trauma Lapis has that Pearl wouldn’t understand, and, it’s something Pearl clearly finds something addicting or to use above others. In fact she needed a crash course on it with the string of episodes of what she did to Garnet. Because Pearl is the kind of person who would desperately try so hard to not repeat the same mistake, she’s probably she’s willing to wait a millennia about it or even be fine with never fusing with Lapis. Because consent is important, but I think because of her actual experience with good and loving fusions? She might not be actually be a bad candidate for helping Lapis should she ever want to try again.

The Biggest Conflict

Now, for the biggest problem of the relationship. Uh, let’s be real here…. Despite all these arguments and nice claims and all.

Lapis doesn’t like Pearl, at all. Perhaps she even holds the biggest grudge against Pearl because Pearl was the one who literally carried her around in the mirror for a good chunk of time, doesn’t even bother to learn who she was, and even was willing to bubble her and trap her further. And Lapis probably has incentive to keep it against her for purely that fact as she was holding it against Peridot for the same fact, except for the fact Pearl has made zero amends to apologize for it. So why would Lapis ever want to talk to her?

You might consider the possibility of Steven but it’s not his job to make them friends. The only thing the two of them would do for him is to pretend to be friends, as shown in ‘Hit the Diamond’ and ‘Gem Harvest’ but otherwise, there’s clear distaste from Lapis’s side (ie; The New Crystal Gems) and her consistent ‘fuck the crystal gems’ attitude from the beginning. Maybe for him they might try something however I doubt it’s enough.

Regardless, I do believe an apology is due on both sides whenever they are ready. And that would be the start of perhaps their romantic relationship shenanigans which I consistently desire. Also I’m a slut for tense relationships to friendship to lovers if people would just---

Anyway I think there’s a lot more material for them to work with and they might actually be a pretty awesome couple

[veryangryhedgehog]

Man of Medan: AKA Let me Throw my Money at your Face Supermassive

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these little analysis things, and I doubt this one will be very long (just kidding I lied), but I’ve been playing Man of Medan, the first episode of the new “Dark Pictures” anthology by Supermassive games, and I think you can tell by the title exactly how I feel about it.

(As a note, I will be discussing the contents of the game, so SPOILERS ahead)

First of all, let me just start by saying that I am a huge fan of horror in general, but especially of horror anthologies. There’s just something about the format that fits in so well with this particular genre, one that is often more about eliciting a certain kind of emotion or feeling from the audience vs. any grand character studies or morals to be shared. Don’t get me wrong, those things are great as well, as a writer becoming known for my massive amounts of character (a large number of which I kill off) I understand entirely. But horror in particular is a genre best encapsulated by its brevity. The shorter and more visceral it is, the less you have to explain, and often the more terrifying or thought-provoking. 

Another benefit of the anthology format is the ability to explore a larger amount of ideas in a shorter amount of time. And horror is of course, all about its ideas. So the instant I heard that Supermassive was going to create a series of shorter horror stories in the format of its previous game “Until Dawn” I was immediately excited. I held back a little, holding onto the fear that sequels are often worse off than their predecessors, and that lightning doesn’t often strike twice. I am pleased as punch to admit that my caution was entirely unwarranted.

Keep in mind, I have never actually played “Until Dawn”. I have seen two different Let’s Plays of it, but I feel as if I can’t truly judge a game without actually having played it myself. That’s kind of the purpose of a video game. Thusly I will not be making a whole ton of comparisons between the two works, but rather discussing “Man of Medan”, or MoM as I will abbreviate it as, on what I have observed and its own merits.

However, the one point of comparison I will have to make is between its two “framing devices,” mostly because I think it’s interesting to compare these two with the themes of their respective games. Until Dawn had a psychiatrist character, and many of its themes were related to the characters and their interpersonal relationships. I think people who claimed that the “choices didn’t actually matter that much” in the game were incorrect, as the choices weren’t so much based on how the story went moreso than how many characters made it out and how their relationships with each other changed. 

A lot of this theme of character interaction carries over to MoM, but at the same time I feel like there’s a much larger emphasis put on the concepts of the tales, as horror anthologies are wont to do, and the plays and twists on tropes that the creators can make. Thusly, MoM trades out the psychiatrist for the Curator. I will say that personally, I like the Curator better as a character. The psychiatrist was meant more to scare you, whereas the Curator has a deeper sense of disquiet to him. It’s more subtle, and it shows that while MoM does have a lot of “jump scare” moments to please the masses, it also contains that hint of genuine creativity and understanding of its genre. Also, for those of you who read Ede Valley, I think it will be obvious to you why I like this character so much. Or maybe not quite yet.

On the topic of its creators, I was incredibly impressed with the writers’ understanding of tropes and their uses in Until Dawn--I always hated when people complained that its characters were “weak” or “annoying” because once again, they completely misunderstood the creators’ intentions--and Man of Medan continues to impress on that front. To be fair, my friend (an actor) and myself (a writer) were able to guess what was really going on within about ten minutes of the game’s beginning, but even with that knowledge, it was still utterly fascinating for us to go through the game and seeing what the creators did with it.

Have you noticed that all of the characters see different things? (Special thanks to @allimiece for pointing this out.) Alex and Brad see pretty generic things, but Julia (who is unsure of her relationship) sees Alex trying to attack her, Fliss (who is relatively superstitious and cautious) sees cults and rituals, and Conrad, most interesting of all, has his own hornyness turned against him in the form of a pretty pinup girl turning into an ugly crone and hunting him down.

I am sincerely impressed with the amount of thought that went into the writing of this tale. As with its predecessor, these characters are not the smartest people. They are a little older than their wendigo-chow counterparts, in a slightly different phase of their lives, but still kind of idiots. But that’s the point. Sure, there’s some incredibly cheesy lines here or there, but all of it is done with this knowledge of “yeah, we know this is really stupid too. Look at this fucking idiot. You wanna kill him, right?”

But not only that, I am even more impressed with the thought and care that went into absolutely every detail of this game. I decided to go and watch some of the small featurettes that came with the game, as I’ve always been a sucker for behind-the-scenes stuff. This is actually what prompted the writing of this essay. Because in those featurettes, the creators talked about the amount of thought and love that went into every aspect of the game, down to hiring a costume designer and getting swatches for the Curator’s potential clothes, down to the details on his fucking desk and the hours of thought about the lighting in his repository, and I was utterly astounded (and honestly a little cowed, I wish I could write some of my stories with as much effort). 

I’ve always held the belief that if you put a lot of love and a lot of effort into a work of art, it will really show. And sometimes this will elevate a work from great to stellar, and now if I ever need a ready example of this, I can point to Man of Medan. You can truly tell that everyone involved with this project really cared about what they were doing, and about making something truly great, and every second of screentime just bleeds it.

I’ve played through the game about 2 and a half times now, once in multiplayer, and once in single, and it ran so smoothly and wonderfully and I only ever experienced a few minor graphical glitches (which are slightly worse in the multiplayer, but that’s most likely out of Supermassive’s control). Even my friend who is a professional business man was highly impressed with it, so much so that he was wondering how much money it would take to buy Supermassive (keep dreaming, Wimdy, keep dreaming).

So yeah, Man of Medan is absolutely fantastic and if you haven’t experienced it yet, you should really just go buy it. It’s available on Steam for only $30, and is worth every penny. I understand that it’s very easy to simply go watch Lets Plays, especially of games that play mostly like movies such as this one, but Supermassive is not a huge AAA studio. They certainly don’t get the sales figures that say Call of Duty or even Assassin’s Creed receives. So if you can, please, please go support them in any way you can. MoM is an incredible game and I’m so excited to see what they come out with in the future.

(Also, Allimiece and I are so excited for Little Hope. The Crucible is our shit and we are over the moon about it!)

[andsoshespins]

Thursday’s Thoughts

The number of cookies I consumed alone since last night is astounding.

Sometimes a regular chocolate chip dessert is just what you need to hit the spot. 

Related: These are the days for which I freeze homemade cookie dough.

I do think that my general outlook on life is much different from (and more often than not, better) than those of some people who participate in social media posting, scrolling, and absorbing.  

I have some very extreme friends, on both ends of the spectrum; and it is very interesting to me. 

Will we ever move past this hyper-political, constantly-knee-jerking climate of interaction?  For example, I would like to pick up my earrings without being asked about my personal opinions on controversial topics in the news by someone I barely know.

Virtual parent-teacher conferences are not the same an in-person ones.  I know we do the best we can, and it is nice to be home early on a half day, that this is more convenient for many parents.  But I am kind of missing the late night and seeing parents with their children.

I have also been wondering lately about large, district-wide events and professional development experiences.  How long will it take to return to those kinds of gatherings?  Again, there are many benefits to the virtual learning, but I am craving that genuine energy from swapping Post-Its and sharing Sharpies with teachers from other buildings, learning about their students, and seeing where they live every day in the school building. 

Keeping a Hope Journal has been an interesting exercise.  I am trying to maintain this level of mindfulness.

I am starting to have strange bouts of anxiety over the end of Daylight Savings Time next weekend.  I am sometimes content that the hour is earlier than the sky intimates, but the darkening twilight at 4:30 PM is more often sad. 

Today I had to wear a real jacket.  And a scarf.  Sigh. 

In the morning, I am on duty to welcome and gather the students outside.  I don’t hate the ten minutes of fresh air in the sun.  I have a feeling that even when the temperatures drop, I will not mind this responsibility. 

Doing yoga counts as exercise, no?  Otherwise I haven’t worked out in two days. 

Related: I should do yoga more often because my body was extraordinarily tight and in dire need of stretching.  I have to go back to my once-or-twice-a-week routine. 

A neck massage would feel nice. 

I started watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine this week because I needed something light to elevate my energy, and I forgot how much I love Andy Samberg.  Also, although I am only a few episodes in, I have a feeling that this show fits RIGHT IN to that sweet spot around New Girl, The Mindy Project, and Happy Endings as they were all filmed within the same time frame.  Maybe I have a type.  Or an era. 

Rereading Holes because I may teach it to my students is invigorating.  It is STILL a great fucking story, even as an adult.  Or maybe even moreso.  Ah, Kissin’ Kate Barlow.  What a crazy bitch.

[kidolegend]

FFXV and Disabilities

All right, heavy post, but I feel like I need to say something about it in the wake of Episode Prompto. I want to give some serious creds to the FFXV writers for their depictions of various mental and physical abilities, so trigger warnings for depression, self-harm, allusions to eating disorders, and physical trauma that results in drastic lifestyle changes (loss of vision, specifically).

Spoilers for both the end of the game and Episode Prompto, so if you’re not past these, come back later.

Tagging.... Uh pretty much everyone in the Discord lmao there’s too many of you

First off, the most obvious one: Ignis and his blindness. It took a lot of guts for the game developers to realistically depict a character who has lost his eyesight (well, as realistically as a fantasy world can). They easily could have made Ignis into some super character who had an amazing ability to fight blind or perhaps even had Noctis heal him with some special Lucian power, but they did not. Of course, he does regain his fighting ability, but for a person who trained their entire life in combat, ten years is a long enough span of time to adjust to a handicap of that nature. The poignant way they show Ignis struggling to follow along or even outright falling or hitting a friend was ballsy and could have gotten a lot of negative flak from the gaming community, but the game devs handled it in such a tactful way that it could be appreciated and accepted.

 I’ve heard complaints about the Cartanica mines being ‘slow’ and ‘a pain to deal with’, but that’s where the realism lies--adjusting to a physical handicap takes time, not only for those afflicted but the people closest to them as well. Noctis, Gladio, and Prompto had to learn alongside Ignis--they had to find the fine line between helping Ignis and coddling him--and make their mistakes crossing that line as well. Ignis also had to swallow his pride and while he never verbally acknowledged it, he had to learn to accept help and deal with the fact that his duty to the crown had been compromised. Once the boys were past these hurdles, they were able to adapt to the changes and work accordingly.

Next, I'll talk about Noctis. The Lucian Prince had so much to deal with his whole life and his mannerisms and outlook on life strongly resembles a person who has severe chronic depression. Even as a child growing up, Noctis isolated himself from others. He easily could have reached out in school, as many people gave him attention but he chose to reject most attempts to socialize with the other children. Perhaps this was due to him being highly aware of his position as Prince, but I digress. 

In Brotherhood, Noctis lives on his own with Ignis regularly stopping by to check on him. Iggy enters Noct's apartment to find it in shambles, and while it might be normal for students living on their own to get a little disorganized and cluttered (moreso for a prince who was probably used to being cleaned up after), Noctis' mess is on a whole different level--a level that can really only be reached by someone who is too overwhelmed and exhausted with life to even take care of their basic necessities. Ignis takes it upon himself to clean up after the Prince and (judging on how Noctis predictably looks for his comics when he walks in) does so on a regular basis.

Noct is highly aware of his responsibilities is constantly tormented by the knowledge that his father will one day (and in the not-so-distant future at that) die and he will have to take on the very physically taxing duty of protecting the people with his life force. He lives knowing that there will be no long, happy life, no growing to old age or enjoying seeing his children or grandchildren grow up. He's so aware of his own mortality and it takes a toll on his emotional health; Noctis isn't just some lazy millennial who can't clean up after himself--he is an extremely depressed person who struggles to get up in the morning to tackle that hurdle we call life.

What really sticks out to me is the way the other characters handle Noct’s depression. They don’t tell him to ‘be more positive’ or ‘look on the bright side’--they generally accept his attitude and are understanding. They don’t try and change Noctis or deny the fact that he is an incredibly depressed individual but they also don’t baby Noctis or treat him like he’s an invalid. They support Noctis in their own ways--whether it’s Ignis quietly cleaning up in the background, Prompto keeping spirits up but also giving the prince space, or Gladio’s tough love that kicks Noctis into gear when he needs that extra push--and keep him functioning.

Last but definitely not least, Prompto. Prompto is such a deep and emotional character and his episode truly broke down his psyche layer by layer and grasped at the root of all his insecurities. I would say that in the course of his episode he had the most character development of any of the FFXV characters--Noctis included. The way Square Enix represented his depression, anxiety, and his dangerous tendencies towards self harm were painful to watch, not because they were bad but because they were oh-so-real.

A lot of people disliked the fact that they made Prompto overweight as a child. Some complaints I’ve seen relate to body-shaming/fat-shaming, and insensitivity towards those who are uncomfortable with their appearance. While these concerns are valid, I feel that the FFXV developers chose to have an overweight young Prompto in order to physically represent his emotional baggage.

I feel that Prompto is a person with mid-to-high-functioning anxiety and tendencies towards depression. ‘High-functioning’ means that although a person has a specific disorder or disorder they are generally able to live on their own and participate in society as an adult (i.e. keep a stable job, do chores, go out, etc). Since people like this are normally able to live their lives, it becomes difficult to place these emotional disorders, let alone portray them in media. After all, they still go to work and school and don’t “look” like the stereotypical anxious/depressed person.

I believe the game developers chose to make Prompto overweight as a child to physically represent his anxiety. It’s not uncommon for people who have generalized anxiety or similar disorders to experience difficulties with their diets--some people will have trouble eating and will lose weight and some will ‘stress-eat’ and gain weight. Combine that with the fact that Prompto’s ‘parents’ were not actively present and the fact that he felt alienated from the start (as a resident from the opposing country) and it becomes very understandable why his living habits (i.e. eating fast food daily, not interacting with other kids or people) were at lower standards.

Prompto’s change in appearance from his youth to his teen years was a symbolic representation of Prompto attempting to change his lifestyle and improve it for the better. While it’s apparent he still has quite a lot of baggage going into the roadtrip, his main anxiety and depression was controlled (well, technically suppressed) to the point where it was hardly visible and  was represented as such--basically, he had gained control of his (emotional and physical) weight. He still has insecurities about losing the only friends he’s ever made, but he feels included when he fights and travels alongside them.

In Episode Prompto, that all goes straight out the window. Noctis--the only person who truly chose him as a companion--attacks him and brings Prompto’s worst nightmare to life. He’s shoved off the train with the belief that Noctis no longer wanted anything to do with him, tapping into the long-repressed fear of losing the people close to him. His childhood self appears in his mind--again, as the physical representation of his emotional distress--and he struggles to cope with both that and the knowledge that not only was he a citizen of Niflheim, but he was an experiment with the sole purpose of bringing his best friend’s country to its knees. The anxiety breaks through his carefully-crafted facade and doubles as he (literally) meets his maker, drowning him in doubt, hate, worthlessness, failure, and self-loathing.

Prompto’s emotions come to a head when he reaches the campsite and the player is given the choice: burn his wrist or give up. The wording is so specific here: it’s not ‘burn his wrist’ and ‘put the fucking flaming stick down’, or ‘don’t do it’.

It’s ‘give up’.

Whether Prompto self-harms is up to the player, but the emotion behind the whole gesture is the same regardless of choice: Prompto no longer has the will to continue. It had taken Aranea literally dragging him to his feet to even get him out of the research facility, and at that point he was only moving out of obligation to the woman--if left to his own devices he probably would not have made it out of the compound alive. Prompto had no intention of reuniting with his friend--he had resigned himself completely and was ready to ‘give up’ on life.

Seeing that represented in such a visceral way was so difficult for me, but it was also so important. It showed that these types of experiences are real, that people with emotional disorders can be driven to actions that result in bodily harm. And what really hit home and stuck with me was Aranea’s reaction to Prompto burning his wrist. She didn’t tell him it was wrong, she didn’t yell or cry or think he was crazy.

Aranea said “did you really think that was going to work?” She told him (albeit indirectly) that there were other ways to go about dealing with his emotions. She acknowledged that he had made that decision and didn’t put him down for ‘being overdramatic’, but rather she stayed and patched him up. She helped heal him and once he had recovered she expressed her opinions on his despondent perspective (even if it did get a little aggressive).

I feel that the FFXV developers depicted these physical and emotional handicaps in a tactful and beautiful way. While some people think Gladio and Aranea were too tough on Noctis and Prompto (respectively), as a person who has dealt with depression and physical disabilities from a young age, I can safely say sometimes I needed a kick in the pants to get me going. The developers depicted not only various disabilities but also the ways in which different people responded to those with the disabilities. Seeing those kinds of support and the validation was really important to me and was not something I had ever seen in a major video game franchise.

All in all, I have to give my applause to the writers of FFXV for their handling of such sensitive topics. I believe it was done very tactfully but was also very realistically--and realism was one of the biggest selling points of the game--and was happy to see that representation in something so widespread.

Please feel free to leave comments or perhaps counterpoints--after all these are my personal interpretations and views based on my experiences, and I’d like to see if there are other perspectives I hadn’t considered.

[kariachi]

Okay y’all, by popular demand, Omni-tricked. All four parts.

Portland again? Really?

Did, did Animo make an ant/elephant hybrid? I mean I wouldn’t be surprised.

Sounds to me like that alarm you get when you check the smoke alarm’s batteries. Have you considered changing them? Also Ben you do not need more power you just used the wrong alien fucking chill.

Stop trying to break your watch, Tennyson.

Mount Megalodon? Really? That’s where the ele-ant comes from? Gods preserve me

Yep, Animo.

Dude, it’s Portland. You couldn’t have gone for something.... moreso? I mean is Oregon for fuck’s sake.

Um, did Ben just dial up a Chimera Sui Genesis? I mean don’t get me wrong if there was a species I’d like to see him turn into that’d be it (seriously, somebody write that fic), but not what I was expecting. Also the sudden shift in background color from green to yellow is concerning. Wait, oh fuck, is this the new Ghostfreak?!

Goddamnit Ben!

Oooooo, looking awesome. If they’d put this level of cool factor into the other alien designs I wouldn’t have had to deal with over a year of “this cartoon dug up my grandma’s corpse and fucked it” sentiments in the tag.

Ben, do not listen to the whispering in your brain. It’s not a good sign. Although I clearly have been dealing in too much Pern because I got wher flashbacks.

So, is like a Ghostfreak/Venom situation, is the vibe I’m getting?

Goddamnit Ben

Oh Holy Shit, I did not realize Chimera Sui Genesis could do that

Fucking laser eyes?!?! Seriously?!?!

Welp, bye-bye Portland

I wanna say “goddamnit Max, leave the child behind”, but so far this show has proven to me that if he did a second critter would pop out from under her, take her captive, and things would just escalate from there.

Animo!

Ben, chill.

“You can’t control Gax”, oh Gwen you have no idea. Wait for the other shit he’s gonna unlock, so far he’s doing good.

Welp, bye-bye Portland

This fucking critter!

For fuck’s sake!! What does it take to take down an ant/elephant critter?!?!

I admit, I saw a screenshot of this scene (with the “Gax Was Here” boulder) back when the episode aired an assumed that this was actually Vilgax and he was the one who made it. Which would’ve been awesome and hilarious and right up the alley for this show so far. Honestly, I’m kinda sad I wasn’t right. I mean come on, tell me you wouldn’t like a Vilgax who does shit like that.

Okay, so, if becoming a Chimera Sui Genesis is what it takes for Ben to stop being scared of squid, does that mean who could clear up Prime Ben’s peacock phobia with careful application of a kick-ass peafowl alien?

Welp

Ben pls

~~~~~

I have to assume the Omnitrix going white isn’t a good thing.

Phil? Wait what? 1) Tell me this ain’t the same Phil from OS, 2) Phil’s an electronics genius? The hell?

Finally he’s human for a while.

I will say, I’m becoming more and more convinced this Max isn’t a Plumber.

Somebody tie him to a chair

Well at least there’s some weakpoint.

Not much of a cave-in, and it don’t look like nobody’s hurt. Fucker’s just climb out. Even I could make that climb. In flip flops. With ease. You don’t need rescuing, you need to stop being pansies.

See that’s a fucking cave-in! What you fucker’s had was a pile of loose rock.

Also hi Phil. You look like the same Phil, but reboot style. We shall see if you’re as big an asshole. I have to assume so, even though you have shown no signs, because I’ve seen Prime you in action.

Phil! Please! Attention!

*gasp* It’s SixSix and Kraab!! Yay! Hi guys!

And, who are you?

So, Phil knows what the Omnitrix is? Is Max just that much better at hiding shit in the reboot? Are they still Plumbers? My interest has been piqued.

Oh, Tetrax, okay. I thought it might be you, but I wasn’t sure. Ya know, what with the fucking hazmat suit.

No, I’m with Ben, you are too damn fast for a Petrosapien.

Dude chill.

Welp

You have no anything

Um.... That looked suspiciously like a Null Portal...

You’ve made bigger jumps, Tennyson, and you know it.

Welp

And you’re not dead. Which I hope is a plus for you, given you’re ten and haven’t seen even half the horrors you’re going to yet.

Welp (this has been a very ‘welp’ four-parter so far, I’m noticing)

~~~~~

Let Gwen sleep

Welp

I wouldn’t trust Phil with a potted plant they’re letting him put shit on the Omnitrix.

Welp

Ben no.

Welp. Somebody’s gonna die.

Ben is just walking chaos in this four-parter.

Of course, the forest is saved by another thing falling from the sky. It’s like a reversal of the first episode of OS.

What the fuck are you looking at Phil? That screen don’t make no sense

....Vilgax? Is, is that you? Um, nice cloak Your Warlordship?

There is something incredibly hilarious about the idea of Vilgax being reduced to trying to essentially pickpocket the Omnitrix

Who saw this coming, raise your hands? Is that all of us? Everyone? Of course it is.

Welp

Never expected Vilgax to give me Kevin flashbacks, but then the reboot seems dedicated to throwing bits of him everywhere rather than giving us a cohesive whole Levin.

Hello Null Void bounty hunters. Nice to see you. If you could do something about the warlord parading around, that would be swell.

Well, thank you for trying.

It’s not gonna stop him, but throwing him off a cliff will delay him for a few seconds.

I gotta say though, pausing for a second, the idea of Vilgax wanting to destroy the watch this time around is very unique. Wonder what would happen if he and Prime!Vilgax met...

Bye-bye Vilgax

Welp. Sucks to be you, Benji. Or, well, not you, as the case may be.

~~~~~

Poor Ben....

What are you doing, Vilgax?

Nice Job Breaking It, Hero

There goes Gwendolyn

mrrrrrr, Tennyson Cousin Moment

Welp

Huh, this Vilgax knows how to fix the Omnitrix?

Nice Job Fixing It, Villain

Yay Upgrade!

Did, did Ben just Upgrade the Omnitrix? Oh my fudge. Holy crap.

Vilgax the Conqueror, out to destroy Earth out of spite

Welp

Bye Ben.

Goddamnit Tennyson!

Aww, Tennyson moment.

Also what do you know, Phil?

Well now they gotta have a season two, because I have too many damn questions!

9/10

[janiedean]

What are your thoughts on Sansa becoming queen in the north?

+

I know you said you were gonna shut your mouth about Sansa but I've been dying to know what you think of her queen in the north moment T_T

*deep breath*

okay guys I waited a few days to see if my feelings somehow mellowed, if anything the contrary happened so at this point I’ll just go with it.

premise: book!sansa is one of my favorite characters. show!sansa is imvho not at all her book self anymore and I have disliked her writing and openly said it since S5 so please don’t take this as bashing because it comes from loving sansa, not the contrary. if you liked that scene or thought she had a nice ending please stop reading now and skip this post.

this say: I hated it, I hated how they framed the starks’s ending and I loathed how she was written this episode even moreso than this entire season which is saying all. specifically:

of course no one held her accountable for having betrayed jon’s trust and basically pulled a lf on him, but then again she had to be framed by the narrative as ‘she was right’ re dany which I found... really... in bad taste because I don’t think book!sansa would have ever done it, but I wasn’t expecting that;

her asking bran for nothern independence when the iron islands and dorne have been wanting them for centuries and no one batted an eyelid and it went like WELL SURE THE NORTH IS INDEPENDENT GO AWAY WE’RE COOL esp. when the king is a stark is out of this world ridiculous, but never mind that;

the fact that she basically went ‘lol shut up’ at edmure, her UNCLE, who has been hostage for years, who was the only arse lord in these books who risked a lot to have the smallfolk inside his castle and save them when everyone thought he was too *soft* and it was a bad political movie, when her mother’s house words are fucking FAMILY DUTY HONOR, in that frankly unsufferable smug way, about made me lose every last inch of fucks I had when it came to giving her writing some leeway. like, sansa stark ‘courtesy is a lady’s armor’ does that to her goddamned uncle who has literally bled and lost family members for her family and who ended up caught in the red wedding to help robb and cat and who has been a hostage for years also because he sided with them......... and she doesn’t even let him talk? when excuse me but he wouldn’t also have been a bad choice whatsoever at least he cares about the people? like fuck that noise that was it for me, that’s not sansa, that’s a bodysnatcher they made out of cersei/lf and dusted with some vague book characterization when they remember it and forgot it, and honestly I’m not here for that.

on the queen in the north scene:

.... it was fucking depressing?

and ooc?

I mean, I should believe that sansa stark, who in the books has spent all the time wanting her family back, who wants to name her children like her brothers, who does want children, who wants still her brave strong and gentle knight (btw, GOOD JOB FORGETTING THAT ROMANCE IS AN ESSENTIAL PART OF SANSA’S SL and that half of it is about finding out that *beauty* on the outside =/= inside, but hey, we went for the feminist TM narrative where strong women need no men and we forgot that it’s a fundamental part of what sansa wants), who only wants to go back home and be with her family........ gets her crowning achievement becoming queen in the north at a coronation where there’s literally no face she knows present, where her family isn’t present, where she’s utterly and totally alone doing the ice queen business when she’s not an ice queen in canon, with no friends at her side and no relatives and........ nothing? that’s it? I should be happy she’s on her own ruling the north without her sister or brothers or anyone she knew because she got her badass crowning moment and the north is independent when literally no stark in these books wanted it ned first and robb later, robb only took it because they elected him and couldn’t say no? because......... that was the only way for her to come out on top and having a throne is it when the entire underlying messages of these books is that thrones don’t mean shit and political power on your own is useless and corrupts you if you want it specifically and no one helps you with it?

sorry but I can’t buy that. I cannot. not at all. that’s not the character I signed up for, I didn’t sign up for the starks getting scattered in all four winds as if they don’t care at all for seeing each other again ever (THE PACK SURVIVES WHEN???), and the fact that it was a beautifully shot scene doesn’t mean I liked it for one second.

also: this entire thing reeks of a book storyline they most likely cut off with ten hatchets. specifically, that robb’s will exists and it had disinherited sansa and arya and made jon heir thinking bran and rickon were dead. like, you know what’s way more likely to happen? that jon gets hailed kitn because ROBB MADE HIM IT, davos shows up with rickon who DOESN’T DIE, jon then gets the show ending because that actually felt like a thing grrm might do, bran gets it the same (I’ll rant on it in another ask I’ll reply to asap) even if better-written, and sansa, who at this time has managed to come back to wf, has come into herself and has her family, stays there being rickon’s regent along with arya unless arya gets with gendry which I also think is endgame (this stark/baratheon marriage has to happen or not??) and plays a leading role without this bullshit single ice queen in the north storyline, possibly along with whoever it is the brave strong and gentle knight she ends up with, because that is not a thing d&d have realized, but a lot of *good* and strong female characters in these books have storylines that revolve about getting both what they want and the romance, but apparently it makes people weak? we just don’t know. that is a *sansa rules* ending that would make sense to me. not whatever the hell I watched in the finale, and believe me I’ll forever dislike it. the only good thing about it tangentially was that they didn’t drag brienne into it, and that’s everything I have to say on this subject. sorry but it wasn’t earned, it was built on giving her someone else’s storyline and on forcing sansa into being basically the nice/ethical version of cersei/lf and ignoring 85% of the themes in her arc and giving her an ending that’s all the contrary of what her book self wants, and I can’t bring myself to like it.

also, the edmure thing was really out of this world the most ooc thing in existence and if edmure doesn’t talk to her for the rest of his life no one would blame him, me first of all, and sure af catelyn tully was tearing her hair out in the afterlife asking herself where did her daughter end up. end of story.

ps: I know this is an unpopular opinion and I don’t have much interest in discussing it any further, so like.... take it for what it is. sorry but whichever way I look at it I can’t find any positives in it. :/