#hopefully other episodes are easier for me to get lol

[godmerlin]

[vicvinegarandhughhoney]

Dennis Reynolds is AUTISTIC!!!!

(At least, I headcanon him as such).

Here's why:

Sensory issues:

If you've watched the show, you probably already know what I mean, but Dennis really struggles to deal with sensory input. When there's a loud noise, he often covers his ears- like in Family Fight:

or he gets frustrated, lashing out at diners for being too loud (The Gang Dines Out), getting annoyed at Frank for chewing gum too loud.

It's worth noting that later on in this episode, Dennis can hear Frank chewing gum from the other room. He's clearly hypersensitive, and perhaps this even goes to explaining a little bit why his room is soundproofed? Could it be that rather than not wanting people to hear what's going on inside, he's desperate to block the noise coming from outside?? (this was suggested by @kod-lyoko , and I LOVE IT).

There are SO many examples of Dennis plugging his ears (often when the others don't react in such a strong way):

There are way too many examples to list here, and too many images I could give (the above were taken from @dennisboobs ' gif set) but hopefully you get the impression.

Social issues:

I feel like this one is pretty self-evident, but I find deconstructing the things Dennis does super fun, so I'm going to explain anyway: Dennis does NOT know how relationships work. There are a great deal of factors at play to cause this (I would argue that his early experiences in life definitely moulded his view in an unhelpful way) but the systematic way he looks at interactions REEKS of autism to me.

The DENNIS system is hardly peak autism representation (it's certainly not the bright and bubbly stuff people often talk about), but the fact that he has a system for romantic/sexual interactions, both for men AND women, feels super autistic-coded. He quite literally has a script which he follows to make interactions easier, one which he sticks to rigidly. And if anybody tries to implement this carefully thought out system incorrectly? Well, he'll let you know (e.g in The Dennis System episode where he blows up at Mac and Charlie for not getting it right at the fair).

He masks his social deficits well, but sometimes things don't go to plan. Sometimes, the girl on the cruise ship runs away, and Dennis announces that 'that's not supposed to happen'.

He comes off as creepy, but that's not his intention. He doesn't understand the way he's perceived by others in general- he thinks he's the King of St Joseph's, not realising he was actually an outcast all along. Just like a lot of autistic people, he didn't understand that he was on the fringes of society until it was thrust in his face, and that hurt.

Speech:

While Dennis often appears to speak pretty normally, there are a few occasions where his frustration causes this mask of normality to slip.

In The Gang Finds a Dumpster Baby, Dennis is caught off guard by the hipster's reading of him, and immediately goes back to Frank and Charlie, parroting almost the same words he heard right back to them, despite not seeming to understand them at all (perhaps a form of echolalia?).

"I'm out here trying to make a difference, and you're over here rummaging around in the trash like a couple of narcs! Okay, you can't just come down here with your mainline cashmere, mousse... quaff... hairspray, and start being like, a suburban tool!"

It's also worth noting that even the poetic way he speaks when he's angry could be a trait ?? As a recently diagnosed autistic person, in my report they spoke about how I used 'idiosyncratic' language (basically, peculiar language lol), and listed terms like 'connoisseur', which I guess were deemed pretty formal for casual conversation.

And it got me thinking, who else do we know who uses VERY idiosyncratic language? Dennis. Reynolds.

"The thunder of my vengeance will echo through these halls, like the gust of a thousand winds"

"Begone, vile man, begone from me!... I am untethered and my rage knows no bounds!"

"You didn't tell me there was to be pollen!"

Etc... etc...

The way he repeats 'savages, idiots!' during his rage at the frat bros feels very autism coded to me. Repetition of certain words and phrases is common!

Heightened emotions:

Again, something that I didn't know until I myself was diagnosed is that for a lot of autistic people, we spend most of the time at a pretty 'flat' emotional state, but when we do experience emotions, we experience them intensely. Frustration turns into anger, sadness turns into despair, happiness turns into ecstasy- it's why some autistic people might be misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder!

This, of course, fits well with the way Dennis experiences emotions. He spends a lot of the time believing he doesn't have any at all, and when he does feel something, it's overwhelming.

"And I have feelings! Of course I have feelings, I have big feelings, okay? And it hurts."

These lines hit hard regardless of the extra weight you put on them, but when you see them through the lens of autism, through the lens of a lifetime of misunderstanding and overstimulation, it makes them hit even harder.

It hurts him to feel. His emotions are so strong that they're painful, and he's never been taught how to deal with them, because nobody even knew he had them in the first place.

Stimming:

Finally, I think Dennis stims. A lot. If you search up 'Dennis Reynolds autistic' on this very site, you'll find gifsets and videos illustrating this.

He has a few very common ones, like tugging on his earlobe when he's anxious, playing with his fingers, etc, but if you pay attention to him even when he's in the background of scenes, you'll pick up on a lot. Dennis is constantly moving, and while you could suggest this is simply a result of Glenn's ADHD, I'd argue that some of these stims happen so frequently in Sunny specifically, that there's no way they're coincidental.

Glenn makes a lot of very specific acting and directorial choices in Sunny, so why dismiss these as choices too?

That's all I can be bothered to type up now, but here's my case for Autistic!Dennis ! Of course, he's a complex character so there's always room for different interpretations...

but as an autistic person, I hereby claim him as One Of Us™.

[whatmitskisongarethey]

next up is homura and madoka! usually I wouldn’t do two characters in one post but this song is so painfully them.

I’ve assigned them Two Slow Dancers.

Keep in mind, I’ve only watched the show! I haven’t seen any of the movies or anything - this analysis is based off what I know from PMMM. As always, heavy spoilers for this media!!!

The song itself sounds devastating and kind of reminds me of the buildup in the show. It starts off with that (synthetic piano?) instrument with a simple pattern and mitski’s singing. but after the first part, that violin-like synth comes in, and oh, there are the tears!!! the sound of this synth reminds me so much of the later episodes when everything feels spacy, otherworldly… and oddly terrifying as we learn more and more about kyubeys goals, and what becoming a magical girl really means. There’s this dreadfully beautiful wining synth noise that gets loudest around 3:10, and combined with all the other aspects of the song, it just reminds me of the show so much. additionally, the songs diverse sounds remind me a lot of the varying artstyles in madoka.

ANYWAYS.. That was a bit of a ramble. onto lyrical analysis!!

The first five lines “does it smell like a school gymnasium in here / It’s funny how they’re all the same / It’s funny how you always remember / And we’ve done it all a hundred times before / it’s funny how I still forgot”

This is LITERALLY homura using her powers to rewind the timelines and try to save madoka. and madokas like… ‘you’ve done this a hundred times. we’re back in the school. it’s funny how you always remember me and I always forget you.’

It’s funny how they’re all the same. how every timeline has the same ending no matter what homura does. She’ll try and try forever and ever until the end of time and it’ll ALWAYS be the same, madoka will always end up making that deal with kyubey. LOL!!

“It would be a hundred times easier / If we were young again” The repetition of “a hundred times” again being a callback to the inevitability of madokas ending, but also

“If we were young again” if we hadn’t made that life-altering deal at fourteen. If we got to be young, to have normal childhoods.

“We’re two slow dancers, last ones out” they are, quite literally, the last ones out. the last ones to die / become witches.

“To think that we could stay the same”

It’s kind of inevitable that they couldn’t stay the same people. either homura stayed in that constant rewinding-time-loop, loosing herself, or madoka makes her wish and becomes a god. either way, they don’t know eachother fully anymore. homura starts to doubt if madoka ever really existed, and in the timelines madoka forgets homura every new meeting. they can’t stay the same.

My second and third choices for these two:

this was a hard one because I wanted to do them justice - hopefully I did alright! reminder that my asks are always open if you want to request a character!

also just as a side note, apologies if there are any grammar or spelling errors I’m sick rn and I’m kinda out of it lol

[crimsonhydrangeavn]

Hi! I absolutely loved the demo of your game—it was amazing! I'm excited to see more of it. I have two questions: First, how would Garret or Teagan react if they were in a room full of yanderes with y/n? Second, I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way, but I'm genuinely curious—how long does it usually take to release a new episode? I'm really looking forward to continuing the game, and I appreciate all the hard work you put into it. I hope I'm not rushing anyone, and I'm truly sorry if it comes off that way. Thank you so much for reading!

Thank you so much for your ask! I'll go ahead and answer your second question first before moving onto the first one! lol

I wanted to start off by thanking you for asking your question in a kind and respectful way, I completely understand where you're coming from and I don't take any offense to it what so ever!

I know I really appreciate transparency when it comes to games/ things I'm a fan of, so I want to do what I can to make sure I'm as honest and upfront with you all as possible.

So I went through my logs and did the math. Day 1 took me about 6 months from start to finish and Day 2 took me almost a full year from start to finish. That being said, Day 1 was 11k words and Day 2 was 24.5k words total. So given the fact that Day 2 was more than twice as long as Day 1, I can see why it took double the time as Day 1. (That and I learned how to add animation into Renpy and spent a little over a month going down that rabbit hole and making a few animations for the game. I also spent some time refining Day 1 while working on Day 2 so that probably made the Day 2 release take longer than it would have otherwise)

The reason why it takes as long as it does is because I'm making this game entirely by myself. That includes the script, all of the art assets, the programming, the audio, and not to mention all of the social media, and patreon content.

On top of that I also have a pretty steady stream of freelance work that usually equals to about 30-50 hours a week. I've burnt myself out in the past and I'm trying to keep a sustainable pace where I'm making progress on CHVN but I'm also enjoying life and taking breaks as needed.

That being said, I do post monthly game updates on my patreon to discuss what I've finished that month, what I have left, and what the current word count is. ( ATM it's longer than Day 1 and I still have a lot planned haha)

I also think it's worth mentioning that this is my first game and I'm learning how to do everything from scratch. My background is in the visual arts so programming and audio stuff is completely foreign to me. That being said, I'm stubborn as hell and for better or for worse once I put my mind to something, I'll get it done one way or another.

Hopefully that answers your question! Once I finish up the script portion of Day 3, I can give a better estimate of how long it'll take me, but until then I really have no idea when the actual release date will be.

Now, onto the easier/ fun part of your question! lol

Garret would play nice at first, however he would make sure that he was never more than a step away from your side. He doesn't trust anyone to behave themselves around you, especially if they're anything like him.

Teagan on the other hand would immediately try to get you to leave the room. They don't deal well with competition and would want to remove you from the situation asap. If you refused/ couldn't leave with them, then they would make sure to talk shit about all of the other Yandere's and taint your view of them. While it would put an obvious target on their own back, at least they'd know you wouldn't talk to or go off with them out of your own free will.

Thank you again for all of your support! I really appreciate it and I can only hope that the next update is worth the wait!

[waitmyturtles]

I have super little time to write the kind of extensive meta that I want to to CELEBRATE this FABULOUS episode 8 of Be My Favorite, so here’s more of a stream of consciousness edit of the notes I took during the episode, and prayers up that they all make sense as a whole.

This episode to me was about the start of Kawi EMBRACING THE PRESENT. To live with ACCOUNTABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY. I really loved the recap at the end of 1/1, before Kawi holds the crystal ball. Kawi’s reflecting and getting a BETTER, MORE OBJECTIVE overview of the impact of changing the future, and how much his power can ACTUALLY change things.

He gave the diary to Pisaeng so that Pisaeng could understand if things were changing in Pisaeng’s life without context. In other words: he is beginning to take responsibility for someone else’s feelings.

Kawi is beginning to recognize that his INTENTIONAL decisions in the PRESENT MOMENT will be the determinant to a future that’s... happier? Or at least -- a future that will, hopefully, include some, if not all, of the people he loves. 

AND: he’s learning that if you live your present life WITH that intention -- then THAT is the main control that a human has to determining one’s happiness.

He learns that he cannot change the future in an ABSOLUTE -- his father will still die. It’s an important lesson. He cannot predict every single turn a human can take and guarantee a great outcome. 

I absolutely love the reflection on not running away. Pisaeng tells his mother he doesn’t want to leave Thailand. Pisaeng’s mom wants him to live overseas to live an “easier” life. But we then get the comparative reflection of Kawi and Max at the wonderful LGBTQ+ event, where we hear that running away just -- doesn’t work.

Max is the guy -- the guy for Kawi and Pisaeng that’s rooted in a very present world. The guy that can really see through both of them, understand their internal shifts and discomforts, and diagnose what Kawi and Pisaeng each have been struggling with. And, so beautifully -- Max gives Kawi his flowers for just being a good friend. In the present.

Dudes, I never, ever shy away from a story that focuses on accountability and responsibility. It’s tough human shit, tough behavioral shit. When characters learn how to hold themselves accountable, and we see that process -- Kawi, Khai, Frame, Phupha at the end of Our Skyy 2, Nozue, even Fuse (holy shit), etc. -- the guys who will GO THROUGH a very TOUGH and HUMAN process of holding themselves PAINFULLY RESPONSIBLE to change on behalf of someone else -- it is just GOOD ART when it is DONE WELL.

I am sure I will unwind more as I get through my day, but wanted to note these awesome, predictive easter eggs. This show is telling its story in so many ways -- through the philosophical references we saw earlier in the series, and today, through shirts! (Yo, @grapejuicegay, we’re always looking for BBS connections, right? SHIRTS!)

MATCHING COUPLES SHIRTS! THEY’RE A COUPLE, NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS IN THE PRESENT OR ALL THE FUTURES.

KAWI WEARING A DUDES SHIRT! HE’S GONNA LIKE GUYS!

LOL. I WANNA WEAR A SHIRT THAT SAYS “DUDES.” Let me get my message across AS LOUDLY AS POSSIBLY -- I LIKE DUDES, I’M GONNA LIKE DUDES. 

FUCK THIS SHOW IS SO GOOD! More soon. Our boy Kawi is growing up. Krist and Gawin are EATING. THIS SHOW IS SO GOOD!

(ccing @dribs-and-drabbles​ @lurkingshan @chickenstrangers -- I got to watch this earlier than expected, yay!)

[multishipper-baby]

hope this isnt weird but i've been having fun reading your eakwynn takes and i've become very interested in your vision for them !! so i also wanted to ask (if you haven't been asked this before): how are they when it comes to physical intimacy? what about verbal intimacy? which one does each of them prefer? (it can be something else that's not physical or verbal too)

Never feel bad for giving me more excuses to ramble about eakwynn. Getting asked about them is like opening Christmas presents to me!

Anyway- they're both very physical people. Eak cannot go one episode without pulling Towntrap around, and Owynn canonically both hugs Springtrap and fantasizes about hugging Fox, two guys he just met. Once they get comfortable with each other there is never a moment when they're not touching in some way. Not necessarily in the "making out literally everywhere" type of touching some teen couples have, but rather in a subtle way- like they're always holding hands or locking arms or leaning against each other in some way, but they save the more affectionate stuff like hugging or kissing for when they're alone. But yeah they very much prefer this one.

Verbal intimacy is more... Complicated. Since their relationship started out being antagonistic, they're both initially unwilling to open up to each other too much. Trying to get Owynn to talk about his feelings is already like pulling teeth without the whole messiness that came before their relationship, and Owynn's unwillingness to be honest with him made Eak respond in kind, which meant they were pretty stuck for a while. They kind of relied a lot on non verbal communication early on, because giving someone a gift or a hug in place of an apology was much easier for Owynn than actually saying the words "I'm sorry" out loud, but that can only get them so far, you know?

I think the main issue would be that there's an imbalance in how they see verbal intimacy: Owynn has been so closed off from everyone that to him, he's actually being too open with Eak! He's told Eak things about himself he's never told anyone else ever!! Meanwhile, Eak has two best friends that know basically everything about his life, so he notices really easily how often Owynn will want to avoid certain subjects, or evade difficult conversations, or bottle up his feelings- and it kind of pisses him off that Owynn is so insistent on pursuing him but still keeps him at arms length. It's very much like, dude, if you're so afraid of being vulnerable around me why are you even dating me!!!

It's kind of why I've always imagined eakwynn as the sort of ship where they break up and then later get back together, or they only last if they start dating later on rather than during the show or directly after it- I think Owynn is the type of guy who needs some time to mature and grow by himself before he can be a good partner. Get a job, experience more in life, make some friends hopefully. Eak is a patient guy, but he's not trusting enough to lower his defenses if he thinks Owynn isn't going to do the same for him, and he doesn't have enough emotional intelligence to make up for Owynn's utter lack of one. So better for him to wait until Owynn is at least somewhat capable of communicating to work on things lol. But they do work on things eventually!

But uhhhh yeah they're very good on the physical side, very not good on the verbal side 👍🏻

[itspronouncedjulia]

i’m back for another annoying update of the laena lives fix it! Has the new season brought you any closer to figuring out how you’d write it?? Or have you started already? 🥰

I hope it’s okay that I’ve asked yet again! :)

Of course it's okay for you to ask! I love to yap so I'm the right person to ask a question like this lol

As for if I've started the story unfortunately no. I'm waiting to finish out Dragon Dreams before I really sit down and start working on it. Lucky Dragon Dreams has hit it's final arc so I anticipate starting work on this soon. Hopefully lol.

This new season has helped me a lot! Actually earlier I had a debate with my mom about one of Rhaenyra's scenes at the end of last Sunday's episode and it gave me idea.

But I think I have a solid vision for how I want it to work. I think my biggest issue was that I really felt like, and still do, Laena would be the voice of reason telling Rhaenyra they couldn't go to Dragonstone and basically alienate themselves from the court in King's Landing. But as much as I would like for Laena to knock that into Rhaenyra's head I just couldn't see a way that made sense for the Greens to usurp Rhaenyra while she's there and in court.

Plus I plan for Rhaenyra and Laena have an easier time being together on Dragonstone. Plus Laenor is going to be alive and around in this story so, they all get to have their freedom.

The only other real snags I have left is the dragon Aemond claims. I'm stuck between Vermithor and the Cannibal. I am also aware these are also the same two dragons on the main stage for Dragon Dreams but that's pure happenstance lol

The thing is the Greens need a dragon that can contend with Vhagar and pose a real threat so this isn't a two chapter story and I think of the wild dragons that Aemond could claim Vermithor and the Cannibal fit the bill. I think out of the two the Cannibal is the best fit but I also like that the Cannibal has never been claimed so idk. It'll probably be the Cannibal lol

But any that's the basic of my ideas so far!

[nobodysdaydreams]

Y'ALL I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO BEGIN. WTF? WTF?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

(Or my reaction to Episodes 53-54 of Wolf359).

Welcome back dear readers! Thank you for enjoying my reaction to the Mission Mishap and mini episodes, which were shorter and a lot easier to fit into my busy schedule. I try to make sure I have time to type out good live quality reactions for you guys, so thanks for your patience on this.

Tagging the mutuals who got me invested in this, and if you want to be tagged or untagged from these posts, lmk, or you can follow my blog or simply follow the tag "#bods wolf359 reactions". Anyone who has followed me for a while knows my updates are inconsistent, so I apologize in advance for that and for any spelling/grammar mistakes in my posts.

@sophieswundergarten @oflightningandstars @acollectionofcuriousreblogs @herawell @commsroom @lovelyladylavie

Episode 53: Dirty Work

This episode has gotten a lot of hype from the mutuals. I hope that means Pryce and Cutter are actually gonna bother to show up this time. The two of them did their whole ominous “we’re going to space” thing at the very beginning of this season, well hurry up and go to space then since you care so much! Instead they gave us enough time for Doug to have his radio show arc, which (while it was necessary, and I enjoyed it), just goes to show how much time Pryce and Cutter actually put into this. Which should be evident given that it has taken them at least this long to get to space despite it being their “life’s work” (and for some “higher purpose” they’ll probably monologue about too no doubt 🙄. Hopefully they keep their speech shorter or at least more interesting than Whiskey Boy). Laziest villains of all time sending other people to space the dirty work. Which happens to be the episode title, look at that.

And if I had to guess who is going to be doing Pryce and Cutter’s dirty work, my money’s on Whiskey Boy. Well, actually, my money’s on free-will deprived Hera, but I hope I’m wrong.

Well this is rare. No preview ads to skip through. Huh.

Oh, Minkowski 🥺. We know you didn't want to kill anyone. Don't worry, I will give you justice in fanfic if the show doesn't give it to you here.

HILBERT. Shut up. Even in death, you still don't get it do you? Minkowski has a right to be upset. Even if anyone on this ship makes it back to earth, they are still gonna be extremely traumatized.

Doug, what are you up to now?

And no, Lovelace. Minkowski is not okay. None of you are okay.

"23rd time is the charm!" That's the spirit, Doug! 🥰

Oh right, the reset that Hera has been putting off.

Lol, Hera's "Good Boy". There you go Doug. You see, he can be taught.

"Get him to do what he's told!" Well that would likely be Hera's department.

Not the bottles of beer song. I swear, why are Kepler and Jacobi even still here? What are they contributing? 🍻 "Don't do anything stupid?" a bit late for that.

Um...what is this? Who was that? Wait is that Maxwell's ghost talking to Jacobi?

Do not be a bad guy again Duck Boy. 🦆 That is how your friend got killed, remember? Do you want to be a dead duck?

Well at least we got some music. Nice work, Doug! 🎶

VERIFICATION CODE WHISKEY. a;lsjkfklsdjfk I KNOW Kepler came up with that one. I don't care that it's a legit code, I know it is, but he probably puts Whiskey in every single secret code of his.

Doug. GET BACK INSIDE.

Not demolitions. Jacobi. You fool. You impulsive explosive dumb-dumb. Do not blow up the ship you're on.

"Now I may not be as smart as my late colleague" understatement of the century Jacobi.

Oh great. He's willing to kill them all. Fantastic. Oh and Kepler's coming too. OH. Because Minkowski killed Maxwell and Kepler let her die and had no remorse. Jacobi wants revenge. Oh. Oh no...

"How's your day going?" been better.

Kepler's speech...so was he working with Jacobi this whole time? Convincing plan if he was, but I gotta say Kepler, I don't know if that's gonna work as smoothly for you this time around. Jacobi seemed pretty upset, and there would be no reason for him to reveal that now when he has the upper hand.

SHOOT HIM!

AS:Jlkfjsdlkfjlkds I KNEW IT!!!!!!!

"Pretty please with sugar on top" oh we're going there.

And after hearing about how Kepler bought him explosives...this whole betrayal thing really did go to the next level with them.

"Is this an elaborate prank to teach me a very important lesson?" askjdfkld;jf I love you Doug. 😂 And that would be hilarious.

Poor Doug...that's it Doug! Go into the star! That's what they want! Why do they want this? Who knows. It is weird though. They presumably know that humans die if they do that, and if they wanted them dead there's a million more efficient ways to kill them.

"Blow Kepler's brain's out" "Jacobi...where are you going with this?" Wow, Whiskey Boy really IS slow, isn't he? Maybe it wouldn't have killed him to shed a few fake tears at Maxwell's funeral.

"He was the one who put her in the line of fire, and you should be the one who has to do it."

That does make sense. Because Kepler won't care about shooting Minkowski or anyone else, and while Minkowski certainly wouldn't enjoy dying, she's still tortured with guilt over the fact that she killed Maxwell. But force Minkowski to relive that trauma, intentionally and painfully, and taking everything from Kepler...oh man Duck Boy really did think this through.

"You complete and utter idiot..." YES PUNCH HIM JACOBI! Unconventional grieving process is an understatement.

"I don't want to kill anyone" "Else" ouch.

And yeah... this is Jacobi's "2 birds one bullet solution"

Jacobi is unhinged.

"This is it. Either she shoots you or I kill everyone" yeah it really is over.

Jacobi. You don't need to do this. You really don't.

PHONE CALL?

No. Do not call Pryce and Cutter. Do not call them Jacobi, I don't care if you want to tell them off do not give them information do not call them. Do not call anyone. Maxwell is dead, who does he even have to talk to? Is he gonna call his family? Maxwell's family?

Kepler begging Minkowski for a backup plan...Jacobi really DID beat him...he's nothing now. Though to be fair, he didn't have much to begin with.

"There's no bomb?" Then...what is...oh no. Jacobi what is this game?

"I'm not crazy, that stuff's dangerous!" 😂 Why is Jacobi evil Doug sometimes? I swear if it wasn't for the circumstances they would be friends.

"You've been through plenty, just sit tight. It will all be over soon." I don't know if that's meant to reassure Lovelace or sound ominous Jacobi, but if it was the former, you really gotta work on not sounding like the bad guy.

"Blue, being sucked in, process, killed the original captain Lovelace...the door." There you go Doug! I knew he could figure it out! His science fiction knowledge really comes in handy.

That is a big risk, especially since you don't know what these aliens want, or their history with slimy business man and his evil science girlfriend!

Yep. Leap of faith. Scary stuff, especially when your trust has been broken before.

"Why couldn't it be snakes" Doug, be careful what you wish for.

"How could he? After everything we've been through?" Kepler, be serious. You stalked him, brought him expensive Whiskey and sweet talked a desperate and broken man into joining your murder organization, showed him creepy levels of favoritism at various points in time (especially coming from you of all people), and had zero remorse when you let his best friend get killed. That's what you've been through.

"Will he blow us up" "Yeah." "Can you override his override?" "No. He and Maxwell handled that. I trusted them." Yes, Kepler. And they trusted you. Now one of them is dead. Let's think about this for a moment. I'm sure if we all put our heads together, we can get to the bottom of this mystery of why Jacobi has betrayed you for apparently no reason.

Is Kepler's back up plan shooting Jacobi? OH MY GOSH IT IS...AND YOU WONDER WHY HE BETRAYED YOU? Kepler, you moron, he's probably listening to this entire conversation. He might be deciding which side he wants to back at this very moment. Now is the time to act really really sad about Maxwell and very very broken up about how you treated Jacobi. Not openly admit that you threw Maxwell's life away to get what you wanted, and that you'd throw Jacobi's life away to save your own skin. Otherwise, Jacobi might just end up shooting YOU when he walks through that door.

"Who is putting your station in danger?" You Kepler. You are doing this.

"For once in your life, shut up" About time someone said that Kepler.

"You're hurt, we all are. But you don't have to kill anyone." Oh Minkowski, I know you're trying but Duck Boy is not in a rational space right now. He's literally trolley probleming you right now.

Okay now Minkowski is going insane. Minkowski stop. JACOBI STOP.

If Kepler was a better man he would shoot himself to end this instead of muttering "this is crazy" at the drama that he is directly responsible for. He really does not know when to keep his mouth shut, does he?

"It's not too late to change your mind." YES MINKOWSKI. TEACH THEM GOOD MORALS. It's never too late. Thank you, finally, someone gets it.

"After everything he's done, after everything you've done?" Yes, and after everything you've done too, Jacobi.

Tell him Minkowski. "I know who you're angry at. It's you. Because you could have backed down but you didn't. We both did. We killed two people. And that's eating you up inside."

I love this so much.

"We kill them. Whatever orders, whatever they did, we did it. That's what the riddle teaches you. However you make the choice, you still make the choice. The blood is still on your hands." "You know what doesn't help? MORE BLOOD"

The cycle ends here! YES MINKOWSKI!

"What will?" Jacobi is listening! Come on Duck Boy. You're waddling your way there. You can do it!

"Twenty bucks says I figure it out first" is this really happening???? Is this really happening???? Please tell me Duck Boy doesn't relapse. I need someone to come to reason.

She never had a bullet. You never had a bomb.

YES, Shut Kepler up! FINALLY the team up we deserve.

I'm glad Lovelace and Minkowski are checking in on each other. And you two both deserve command. You need each other. You all need each other.

Oh Hera. She missed the whole thing. 😂

"What did I miss?" Well, Jacobi is a sort of good guy now (or at least an ally), Kepler still sucks, and everyone forgot about Doug.

Wait. DOUG WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

NO DOUG. NO DOUG NO. AT LEAST GO BACK TO THE SHIP AND TALK IT OUT WITH THEM FIRST.

Well that WAS a wild ride. Maybe one of my favorite episodes so far. I can see why y'all were hyping it up.

Episode 54: The Watchtower

Huh. No more pre-episode previews again. And who is this?

Oh Doug. Oh dear. Doug, you poor thing, I'm glad you had a breakthrough but you probably should have talked this through with everyone first.

Doug. Oh Doug. You're the main character and there are a lot of episodes left. You can't just casually throw yourself into the star midway through the season and die like that.

Something is coming out of the star? Reaching out towards, Doug? Oh boy. Well...

...yikes. What is he saying?

Hera is probably listening to this like "oh Doug...Doug what did you do?"

I love how Doug is still talking to Hera. 💕 "Any objections? Good girl." Well that certainly parallels the last chapter...

Wait. Two more stars? Triple star system? That's pretty cool.

Um. What is that? Aliens? ...hopefully nice aliens?

...or not. Oh dear.

...and um. Where is Doug now? Woke up? Woke up from WHAT?

Did the aliens put Doug back in the ship?

Or...is this now clone Doug? I hope not.

Well at least there's breathable air and gravity in this alien hotel.

Mirror? Yeah that is a creepy touch. Considerate, yet creepy.

Self-repairing mirror? Again, cool but creepy. And Doug is prefect for this. They got the movie from YOU MIND Doug. They built this creepy hotel for you, I'm guessing.

And when the alien shows up, I bet it's gonna be one that looks like you or your loved ones given that they used your voice already.

What was that noise?

Are they just keeping him there?

"Let's get our probe on" Doug...they are. What do you think this is?

Yep...alien Doug. Hi alien Doug. :) 👋👽

"Tell me this isn't where I die and you take my place. My dad always said I'd die if I wasn't more careful..." it's alright Doug, I've been told that myself plenty of times.

What?

Words. Speak more words.

Why do they need Doug to speak words?

Ah yes. Mirroring and learning. That's what they want. But why? Why Doug?

Crippled by a language limited by what? Yet achieving interstellar momentum? Uh...what? Symbiological base set of language?

Doug singing the alphabet 😂

DIE????

What is die? The concept is unknown? Oh...oh dear. Explain that it's a bad thing Doug. Explain that it's a very bad scary thing.

"I hate it when Kepler and Jacobi are right" Don't we all Doug, don't we all?

Stops existing!

Incomplete understanding of the universe.

Yes, yes, to dust you shall return, no matter is created or destroyed it simply changes form, but you seem very unnaturally calm about this.

All matter is reused and repurposed. Ceasing from existence is not possible. ...well that's true...but...YOU are something else now. YOU are gone. Something else is in your place now.

Bob. Bob. "Limited time?" "Unsuitable for his biology?" So you DO know what death is. Because you understand that a place unsuitable for his biology = no Doug.

Wait. In the NETWORK? WE? Bob. Are you a hive mind?

"You learned to speak English?" "Correct. It has also lead to debate over whether YOU can speak English." Dang, they really came for him there.

The process? Why are you evaluating Doug?

"Terms you can understand may take some time" Well for super intelligent beings, you should be smart enough to dumb it down.

Don't like that laugh. "A place very very far away from here." Interesting.

"The farthest point away from civilized space"

I see. And what exactly does civilized space look like?

"Discomfort should pass quickly" time is relative, so I hope you're right, Bob.

He gave Doug knowledge? Well, that might be a good way to one up Cutter.

Okay transfer between stars...I'm guessing no, because they didn't use the sun. Huh. I was correct.

Red = no, Blue = go. Well, Bob, sometimes the basics are all you need.

Another species. Rearrange matter? I see. So they are basically aliens with god-like powers that join together to form a superpower.

And they're recruiting humans...but they seem unimpressed so far. Why would they...oh.

They want the music don't they? They've never...they don't have music, but they like it for some reason.

Well then just send them up a band, seems like an easy solution.

Examination, evaluation...surrogates of specimens?

"Unnecessarily dramatic description" "The wolf doesn't even know it's a wolf!" "We arranged atoms" "You brought her back from the dead" "The distinction is irrelevant" Doug, please explain it to them. They really did do Lovelace dirty.

OH MY GOSH THIS IS EXACTLY LIKE WHAT CUTTER DOES TO PEOPLE. Spy on them, and if he likes them, they get to join his special secret club. And if they don't like you...I think we both know what happens Doug. They DO have a concept of death. They just prefer not to call it that.

"Ideally isolation" Well at least they are semi-ethical.

"If they can't be isolated" "redistribution into different atoms" SEE I KNEW IT. They call it redistribution because they can't accept the moral idea of killing people.

"They are given a new purpose." Bob...Bob this is immoral. This is horrifying.

"Terminology is inadequate" his terminology is spot on Bob.

"Our interest in your species is not moral. It is technological" Yeah Bob, I think you made that VERY clear when you said you were willing to kill everyone on Earth if they didn't play nice.

You don't deserve our music Bob. Not one note. Which is...a sentence I never thought I would type as a reaction to this show, but here we are I guess.

They can turn back time, escape death, and traverse space, but they don't have music Doug! Most of their language isn't auditory. They have it, apparently, but not to the extent where they'd develop it.

Commander Zhung...valued the tech more than anything.

Oh. I'd like to have met Commander Zhung (I hope I'm spelling that right). She sounds...she sounds nice if that was her reaction to hearing music for the first time.

"You haven't figured out sound recording?" No, Doug. "The music?" There you go, Doug.

And um...I think the aliens might be more into the oldies and by oldies I mean the classics Doug. The old school classics. Stick to classical music. Not sure they're ready for rock and roll or rap or pop or country.

In time they'll learn more about each other, slowly. Okay...so they have some time. That's good. 14,000 YEARS? Oh no wonder they don't fear death. They live a ridiculously long time. And yeah Kepler is in for a treat.

And then...he woke up.

But um...where has he woke up? Near the star? But where is the ship?

"Everything is completely under control"

Why...why does Minkowski sound like a robot? I mean, she usually sounds pretty strict before she snaps at Doug for risking his life, but the actress sounds distinctly creepy here, I don't like it.

Creepy music? Hera struggling and begging him to run?

Oh no. Oh no no no no no...Cutter and Pryce came didn't they? Oh no...Oh no...

Oh Cutter, you bastard.

And I don't have time to listen to anymore tonight. Or this weekend, or for a while, gosh DANG IT, BUT THAT WAS SO GOOD.

Well, I hope you guys enjoy this. I have a lot of emotions so I'm gonna post this with no edits and scream about it in a discord chat somewhere. Bye!

[fancy-a-dance-brigadier]

This is your invitation to ramble about 'Through The Trees' (or any other fic you'd like to more!)

(In response to this post)

Aww thank you friend! I shall gladly take you up on that invitation :D

So, Through the Trees is a Discovery oneshot I’ve been working on that focuses on the early days of Stamets and Culber’s relationship, spanning from their first meeting pre-canon to Culber’s death in season one. One of my favourite things about their relationship is the recurring motif of distance - there are so many instances throughout the show of them being apart from each other somehow, whether that separation is physical or emotional - and I’m using this fic to explore that theme. And since I feel like their relationship was at its most interesting in the first season (and the second, of course), I decided to focus on that era of their lives. Their relationship always struck me as kind of one-sided in the first season, with Culber almost always taking a backseat to the spore drive - and I don’t think it’s malicious on Stamets’ part, he’s just kind of obsessive and socially awkward, and I think he’s always felt more comfortable dealing with science than with people. The fic is from Stamets’ POV, and I’m trying to capture that sense of disconnect, of obsession, of unwittingly taking Culber for granted and just not realising it because there are So Many Other Things Happening. And because I love an immersive POV, I want to weave his distraction so thoroughly into the narration that when Culber’s eventually murdered, it’ll hit both Stamets and the reader in a way that’s kind of intense (only time will tell if I can pull that off!).

As far as progress on it goes, I’ve got all the pre-canon stuff pretty much written - I’m just stalling on rewatching the season one episodes I want to include as part of the story lol. One day I’ll get around to it, and hopefully soon because I really like how this one is turning out, and I’d love to finish it! Anyway, to close out this ramble, here’s a wee extract below the cut:

“Well, I don’t know if you’ve heard of the panspermia hypothesis-”

“That’s the idea that all life comes from microorganisms,” Hugh says - he’s not seeking confirmation, but proving that he can keep up. Paul raises his eyebrows, impressed, and Hugh picks up on the meaning behind his expression and grins. “I’m not as dumb as I look, you know.”

“I never thought you were. Dumb, I mean, or dumb-looking-”

“It’s alright.” Hugh’s grin does not drop. “Go on. Tell me more about panspermia.”

Paul does just that, not skipping a beat now that he is in his element. “According to my findings, fungal spores are the progenitors of panspermia - but they’re more than that too. They make up all the energy in the universe. So, if you understand the biology of spores, you understand what holds our entire existence together.”

“So what, at the end of the day we’re all made of fungus?”

Despite himself, Paul laughs at that. “I wish. It’d make people so much easier to deal with - I understand fungi better than anything.”

“You don’t understand people?” Hugh asks. A barely perceptible change comes over his soft expression - a slight knitting of his brow, a narrowing of his eyes.

“It’s never been my specialty.” His nerves creep up on him again, and he balls up his fists in the fabric of his trousers. “Can we go back to the spores?”

But they cannot go back now. Hugh has seen his vulnerability, a crack in his armour, and Paul can do nothing to erase his memory of it. And there is something about his stare - the gentle gravity of it, the piercing kindness of it - that frightens Paul to death.

[sadiecoocoo]

My re-watch recommendations (responding to your earlier post):

-Season 1 Ep 10 (do I need to explain myself? First EM apperance, first interaction between Morty and EM, citadel episode etc.)

-Season 3 Ep 7 (another EM character study and citadel episode)

-Season 3 Ep 8 (basically an anthology of Morty moments and interactions with his family)

-Season 4 Ep 2 (the dating app episode, might be a good plot device to use in future writing and another appearance of Morty's unhinged side + deteriorating relationship with Jerry)

-Season 5 Ep 8 (Rick's character study)

-Season 5 Ep 10 (Another EM episode)

-Season 6 Ep 10 (Lots of Smith family interactions, Rick being at his lowest, and a sprinkle of Star Wars inspired satire)

-S7 Ep 4 ("The Spaghetti Episode", I don't think this episode has much character-related stuff in it, I just like it.)

-S7 Ep 5 ("The Evil Morty Episode", my personal favourite R&M episode of all time)

-S7 Ep 6 ("Another Morty moments anthology)

-S7 Ep 10 ("The Morty Episode", the fear hole needs no introduction.)

Alright hopefully that helped narrow it down, a completely unbiased list of not at all my favourite R&M episodes.

As for my actual ask...

Why is Morty your favourite character?

Tysm for the recommendations! I’ll definitely be making a few analysis posts abt some of these later

As for why Morty is my favorite, I think it’s because there’s so much that can be done with him in the show! He’s the kid that’s innocent at first but is dragged on these mentally damaging adventures that slowly makes him see the world as a shitty place, but he still is a nice person and tries to help other ppl when he can. But I honestly claimed him as my favorite even before I actually watched the show, i don’t rlly know why tho lol it’s something that I tend to do before I get even get into a show (like Nikolai and Dazai in bsd)

Plus there’s so much that can be done with him whenever I write abt him too which is always gonna make me love a character cuz it makes my job easier lol

Honestly I don’t have a real answer to this that I’m absolutely sure of, I just rlly like his character

[rigelmejo]

7/9/2024 random notes:

I should look up sometime why Sherlock is 福尔摩斯 in chinese. Also, for the sherlock fans: the Granada Holmes show is on youtube with chinese subs if you search "fuermosi"

Listening to so much chinese this past month paid off!!! I listened to MoDu audio drama episode 1 yesterday and understood almost every single line! I was only missing some details when Tao Ran mentioned he won't bend (wan) and said "but if" and luo wenzhou told him to shut up, and when Luo Wenzhou talks to Wang Honglian and they use words like manage/supervise him but i am not sure which words meant which in regard to that "monitoring wang honglian" bit, and when Xiao Haiyang talked I just got his "strangled victim and moved" but for some reason i just couldnt understand him talking as easily as Wang Honglian, Luo Wenzhou, and Tao Ran. That's the most I've ever followed something thats only audio! I think I can officially listen to the modu audio drama just for like entertainment.

I've been relistening to modu chapters 1-5 audiobook a few more times, and more details get clearer to me (and i remember more words i used to know in reading) each time. Phrases are easier for me to comprehend immediately as i hear them, as i relisten. I'm now listening to new chapters (chapters 6 onward) and its fairly easy for me to follow the main idea - i know what scene im listening to and can tell what actions people do and their dialogue, its just more descriptive words (that arent the common serious/simple/clearly words) and phrases (like 4 hanzi non-verb descriptives) that I'm not understanding. I'm so excited. I'm looking up a word every few minutes (like saobao 骚包 show off) when I hear a word I don't know that I'm curious about. I'm really excited! I just!! I love this novel!! It's so cool hearing it kind of voice acted, you know what I mean? It's cool to hear scenes I imagined. I am wondering what the action scenes, or all the creepy scenes in case 2 arw going to sound like. One of my favorite scenes is when the killer little girl is being interrogated by Tao Ran and Fei Du and she thinks of people as prey, and Fei Du is paralleled to her and better at figuring out how to get answers. Its such an unsettling scene.

I'm through 1638 sentences in glossika japanese, its still listing that as high A1. I guess it hasnt taught many individual words compared to the 1638 sentences. I hope the unique words increase in number eventually. Maybe im getting good grammar practice who knows. I am mulling over the idea of playing ff7 Crisis Core (or the ps5 Remake ff7 Reunion) in japanese only, sometime soon. Since I've done it before (but it was a SLOG 2 years ago when i tried... i read so slow and felt like i was drowning lol). I feel like it should be more doable this time, since i can play Yakuza Ishin in japanese only now (although it felt like i was just guessing based on Vibes when i played ishin it was not as mentally draining). On the other hand, id like glossika japanese to fucking say "low b1" before I try playing a video game again. So i can also feel like i (hopefully) studied 2000+ or more basic words before i try playing games in japanese again.

Then again, who knows with me. I often end up deviating from my plans. Maybe i'll end up playing some game in all japanese today just to spite attempts to plan ToT

[lovemesomechenford]

ISABEL. FUCK.

Tim basically living at Lucy/Tamara's and her coming to THEIR door is kinda funny though. Casually Tamara answering the door for dadford's ex-wife. Totally not ironic. [I mean I know logistically that it's just easier to film at the apartment but ya know what nah that ain't it not in my head lol]

At this point, my theory of the episode THAT WE HAVE TO WAIT THREE FREAKING WEEKS FOR *insert eye roll* is that it will bring about some apprehension and worry and insecurities for Lucy, especially now that Isabel is doing MUCH better (as per promo) and definitely re-established herself post-rehab. Tim and Lucy still haven't vocalized their love for each other yet (at least that we've seen), so it could be reason to self-doubt. HOPEFULLY nothing bad will come about the return of Isabel because wtf.

However, it does remind me of the fic The Past, the Present, and the Future by @anonymouschenford (which EVERYONE should read cuz it was AWEEESOMEEEE) ... BUT LIKE FUCK THAT BEST NOT HAPPEN AND IF IT DOES TIM YOU BETTER SPEAK THE FUCK UP AND SET IT STRAIGHT THAT LUCY IS THE ONLY WOMAN YOU COULD EVER WANT AGAIN AND THAT YOU LOVE HER AND ONLY HER AND NO YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET BACK TOGETHER AGAIN CUZ I WILL BE SO FUCKING PISSED I SWEAR TO GOD TIMOTHY. anyways yeah that.

ALSO how have they not yet addressed the fact that Tim basically moved in with Lu and Tam? SAY I LOVE YOU ALREADY! YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO!

[candymaru]

You don’t have to do all of them, just doing one of them is fine w/ me fufufu

Toko fukawa x Carefree!Reader

Hyoko x joker!Reader (basically the ultimate joker?)

Chihiro x problematic!reader (basically the reader would go out of their to cause problems. Like junko; but less insane abt it lol)

Angie x reader

Ibuki x violinist!reader

Pairing: Toko Fukawa x Carefree! Reader

Warnings: A little bit of angst but a lot of comfort

A/N: hihi it's mod seiko!! Going to get to some of the other ones as well, but I wanted to get started on this and post it! Hopefully, it's alright I did this as headcanons. These are the easiest to write ;;;

To be fair, this relationship isn't the easiest at first. In fact, it starts off pretty rough.

She despises you at first, thinking you take her as a joke, especially when you confess to her.

Due to your carefree nature, she's very paranoid about how you "truly feel" about her. Believing everything you say to her is a lie.

She believes you're just making fun of her by giving her a glimpse of hope that you love her back

It's pretty hard to get her out of that mindset since she's had it pretty much all her life

She desperately needs a stable relationship, and you're the first one to give her that.

Once she finally accepts that you're not making fun of her or bullying her and you won't leave her, she's a very clingy lover

She wants to be by your side all the time, seeing other people as a threat to your relationship.

Toko wholeheartedly believes since you're perfect in her eyes, you'll leave her for someone better and more deserving of you.

You eventually are able to reassure her she's the one you want, not anyone else.

Although Toko still has her doubts and moments, she trusts you.

In the end, Toko is not a mentally sound person at all and it's not an easy relationship but you love her still and don't care about her faults and she couldn't be happier

You love her, and that's all that matters to her in the end.

It's obvious to how she's changed just from being around you. Of course, she still speaks her mind freely, if anything even more so now, and her old habits are still prevalent, but she's visibly happier and stronger than she was before.

Your carefree attitude has really rubbed off on her and she takes taking it easier and not being as hard on herself.

With how easy-going you are, being with you has also made her a lot more comfortable with touching and hugs.

You often just find yourself touching her in little ways, not really noticing unless she points it out.

Honestly now she expects to be touched by you although she gets spooked a little still when others touch her.

Of course even after all this, she still has lots of problems mentally

Occasionally, she goes through depressive episodes, but you're there with her, holding her close, and it really helps a lot.

She truly sees you as her savior, her soulmate

And honestly, the two of you are really just meant to be.

[claudiajcregg]

S5 Pregnancy AU - I’d love to hear about!

Welp, this is embarrassing – mostly because this has been sitting in my inbox for almost two weeks, and I kept saying “I need to write something up!” and then… I didn't. (Or rather, I did, then I forgot to post it.) Sorry for the wait, Lil! Thank you for asking <3 (I'll divide this up because I keep writing about the process and how it came to be, instead of any actual, interesting facts.)

I have talked about this one in the past though I don't have a tag for it. The gist is what it says… (Early) S5 but CJ is pregnant. I had this idea over a year ago when I hit mid/late S4 in my rewatch. I thought it'd be interesting to explore some of her disappointment at that time if you added an unexpected pregnancy to it, even if I had the idea before even getting there, lol. Think, the ending-ish of Han, or parts of Disaster Relief. (Both of which do feature! I surprisingly focus a lot on Disaster Relief.)

The thing with S5 is that the timeline is so weird, and I feel I've also created one that isn't entirely realistic but I think it works within the story. (IIRC, the season starts in “May” but also July, then the Shutdown is in November, lmao. A few of the episodes are sneaky two-parters that flow into each other… See 5-6, 7-8.) I've finally gotten out of the no-man's-land I wrote myself into and the next chapter or two, knowing myself, will deal with 7-8! There are a couple of scenes that should be fun to write! (There are so many details I want to mention that are technically spoilers for early twists…)

Every time I had the urge to write it, I'd edit whatever outline I was working in, and though I kept some details… my muse decided to make a big change early on that completely changed the fic's direction. That, and my inability to write anything succinctly. No reason why this story will cross the 100k barrier in a couple of chapters, tops. (It's sitting at 85k across 12 chapters. I think it'll be less than 20 chapters total. Hopefully.)

This might be too long to share snippets, but I've shared some either on the server or here, a couple of months ago.

For more irrelevant details on the “process”…

As I hinted at, I wrote an outline or two around this time last year, because I couldn't stop thinking about it. When I say outlines, it's a general path for the story to follow – ideas, suggestions of dialogue and/or scenes I write to myself; all focused around some sort of chapter structure. I find it much easier to write if I write down where a chapter might go, even if it's just a few lines saying “This happens → then this → finally this;” otherwise, it takes me months. Some would say that I should post it and get encouragement that way but… I hate being dependent on something I can control even less than my muse? That's not for me, thank you. Mad respect for those who work like that.

It was meant to be short – 1-2 “long” chapters per trimester, more if needed, but then interludes in between trimesters. It's not that. Most chapters currently cover 1-2 weeks, but there is not really a pattern. I was afraid of having a fic that would take over my life like the WOWO did three years ago… And it has, but I've also taken breaks and not felt too guilty about them. I definitely don't want this one to sit in my drive and have me wondering what to do with it.

(The novel, aka WOWO, aka IM AU (2021): 150k written in a little over five months, even with extended breaks over the summer. Still hits, even with all its crazy decisions, maybe because of them, but it's also been too long, and it will always remind me of someone who kinda hurt me. Attempts to replace those memories by sharing the story with others, trying to gather whether it's worth posting, have failed, lmao. One day! Maybe!)

But yeah. Uuuuuhhhh. As I've said… Twelve chapters in ten months, 85k words… It's still not done. In fact, I've repeatedly said I am unsure of how to end it (beyond the obvious), but I'd estimate it to be under 20 chapters. I'm not posting it anywhere yet because I want to be able to edit it as a whole and try to make it more consistent; to add little details as I come up with them. There's also the fact that I am not skilled enough to write a compelling story that mixes politics and emotion into something remotely engaging. As a result, the story's politics are very surface-level, and probably repetitive at points, but it's also true I've always been more interested and focused on the emotional journey and the relationship(s) at its center. (Which should surprise exactly no one who's ever read one of my stories.)

But, as critical as I might sound of myself here, I am having fun writing this and I'm committed to seeing it through. I just keep having ideas for stories down the line, putting actual show events through a 'but she also has a kid' perspective.

[after-nine-at-the-oasis]

O P E WHAT??!!?!??!

OH N O 😳😳😳😳😳😬😬😭

MARJAN'S GOING OFF THE ROAD AGAIN!! GIRL YOU DO THIS TOO MUCH

Yk like crashing and getting hunted down by a madman XDD

Wait who is that girl??

:OO Is that like a young Marjan??

That would be crazy :DD

OOPE nice they know :DDD 😬😬

Ohhhh nooOOOO thiiissss does not look good 😬😬😬😬😳😳😭

OOOOPE OHHH NOO

Okay well she's leaning on that girl so I do think she's real xD

I saw a couple cars I think, maybe her family died?? Idk

U H O H O.O 😬😬😬😬😳😳😳

HE'S GOT A GUN O.O

Ohhhhh nooooooooo 😳😳😳😳

MARJANNNN 😭😭😭😭

I am s t r e s s e d :')))

That's it for the last of my last thoughts! Now it's time for the. . .

REVIEW

I absolutely LOVED this episode :DD!! I thought it was amazing :)). I'm really glad we got a call, too! We don't always get calls, at least not ones the 126 responds to, in episodes like this. I mean, they're all about to characters, but these ones are like. Especially character episodes lol. Anyway XD, the call was really cool :D!! And! Marjan's storyline!!! We got to see her and she was AWESOME 🥰🥰🥰!!! And don't even get me started on the Tarlos wedding planning storyline :D. But, you will have to lol, because:

Now it's time for the individual parts!

Quick note, everything is after "loved this episode :DD!!" is from Monday, the day before the next episode. I didn't mean to put it off so much but I had a fundraiser and a concert and then planning a play rehearsal for spring break because we perform in 9 days :). Anyway! I didn't liveblog quite as much as I sometimes do, because I was REALLY invested in the episode lol 🥰. And then I'd get behind trying to do it and couldn't always remember specifics. But rest assured I did love the whole thing, and I'll try to put as much here as I can (but it has been a week and also my motivation is still not great lol)

Sorry that's a bit long xD. Anyway!

Nancy, Mateo, Paul, and Judd! I'm including them all together to make this easier lol. I love them 🥰🥰🥰. Their conversation with TK and Carlos XD amazing lol. Oh, and they were all great at their jobs :))). I'm gonna especially point out Paul, not that he was better than the rest of them, but just bc he was the one we saw more of. He slayed :D. Anyway, them all eating together was just 🥰🥰. And Nancy (all of them really) being like "you better have gotten enough to share >://" XDD. Amazing lol. Also Mateo with the fruit xD. Like my man not the time lol. And of course I have to mention Judd talking about his father in law xD, and then ". . . we didn't speak for two years" XDDD. They're all crazy lol, but/and I love them so much <333.

Tommy! We didn't see her much this episode but she slayed :)). I'm just putting her separate from the others because they were grouped up a bit lol. But! Yeah, she was amazing at her job, as always :)). And ayy, she said the thing xD. "Control freak", I mean, lol. I think she was the only one who did, even though it was the whole theme xD. Anyway, I love her 🥰🥰🥰❤️.

Grace! Another person we didn't see much - I don't even think we physically saw her xD. Just the call lol. But, nonetheless, she slayed :)). She was great at her job 🥰. Even if we only saw it for that second xDD. It's unfortunate, but alas, it happens. I miss her, even if she was technically here, though lol. Hopefully we see her more soon <33! I love her :)) ❤️❤️🥰.

Owen! And Andrea xD. He was GREAT this episode lol. As was Andrea. I mean, definitely flawed, but they were hilarious XD. And they learned :'))). Eventually XDD. But seeing the way they (especially Owen since he was doing it for longer) were acting before they talked was just OUUGHH. It was rough my man xD. And some things he said were more bearable than others lol. But the conversation he had with Andrea was beautiful :'). And SO so angsty xdd. Mostly from Andrea/Carlos. So good though <33. And of course, the ending scene :')). Y'all stoppp 😭😭😭❤️. It was so sweet and beautiful :'D. I'm really glad they got it sorted out, because I do think Owen and Andrea are capable of helping without taking over lol. And also just bc I wanted them to sort it out xD. But it was really great :'). With Owen's personality still in there, like with the magazine and the tea xD. Honestly though I didn't really think of it being the last thing he would give TK/TK would need from him as being the reason, but it makes sense and it worked well! All in all I just think it all worked out really well :). Also the Andrea Godfather scene was SO AMAZING AND ICONIC LOL. I was losing my m i n d during that scene xD. And many others but I was straight up dying lol. Oh, also, Owen was great at his job :)). As was Andrea if we're assuming it's mother lol. But also Owen in that same way too :). Eventually, like I said xD, for both of them though lol. Anyway, yeah, I love them ❤️❤️❤️❤️🥰.

Marjan! AAAHHHHH MY GIRLLLL!! SHE SLAYED S O HARD :DDDDD!!! I'm so glad we got to see her again, and she was awesome too :D. I'm so glad she listened to her instincts (and Patty, who's an icon by the way) to help Kylie, and even after the failed plan she still did :'). Also somehow I missed her ditch it so I didn't think about this till someone mentioned it, and obviously it makes sense she did, BUT SHE BETTER GET THAT BIKE BACK xdd. She's driving a car in the promo but still like long term she better get it back lol. Anyway, I'm so glad both Marjan and Kylie are okay :D. That fight at the end was INTENSE, but it was a slay :D. And Marjan did find what she was looking for :')). Turns out she was right the whole time lol xD. But really, I think rescuing and saving people is her calling. And based on the promo and episode description, I think she realized that too :') 🥰. Speaking of, AAAAHHHHHHHH!!?!???! NOT OKAY xdd!!!! I'm sure it'll all work out, but it looks CRAZY. I'm still wondering who that little girl is, but I'm sure we'll find out! And I'm sure that, and the entire episode, will be interesting. Anyway you can just post bail for abuse xd? What the heck. I don't know if I want Marjan to have to go through the emotional stuff of killing him, but he better be done for good by the end of this xD. Even if thats just back in prison lol. Anyway, Marjan was amazing at her job - calling - today :')). I love her <3333 ❤️❤️.

TK and Carlos! AAAHHHHHH MY BOYYYYS 🥰🥰🥰. Their storyline was so hilarious this episode XD. And it also gave us SO MANY GOOD MOMENTS FOR THEM :DDDD!! The little communication they kept having, like their looks to each other in the scene when the first brought Andrea over; standing by each other when standing up to their parents (parent technically but yk); THE LUNCH SCENE!!! Iconic all around :'D. Also I think that lunch scene was better than we ever could have hoped for XD. It was so good lol. Not just funny with their conversation, but cute too :'DD, especially the beginning. Like y'all they switched 🥰🥰. It's totally fine to be together and not share food but like :DD. It's also so cute xD. Anyway, they're adorable 🥰🥰❤️. But yeah, I'm so glad they worked everything out with their parents :'D. It was lowkey torture watching them make decisions for their sons xD. As was intending, and it was hilarious, but still lol. Also painful xd. Anyway, yeah, seeing Tarlos just become more and more stressed about the decisions were making was funny, but also kind of 😭. These poor boys are going through it xd. Also CARLOS IS CAPABLE AND DECENT AND WILL TAKE CARE OF TK 😭😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️!!! STOP I CAN'T DO THIS OWEN AAAHHHHHHH :'DDDDDD 😭🥰🥰!! Killed me lol. Like yk will take care of each other in a modern relationship kinda way not like a weird power dynamic lol :)). But, yeah <333. I loved all their little moments :')). And I just have to mention again the fact that Carlos didn't want to say anything but as soon as TK "snapped" he was right by his side - he loves his man <333. I just love them so much :'DDD 🥰🥰❤️.

Overall, I really enjoyed this episode! The call was cool, we got to see the 126 being amazing and adorable, and the two main storylines were AMAZING!! Also the way the Control Freaks theme translated over the plots was really cool :). Also I just love the parallel of an episode about Tarlos wedding planning being called Control Freaks, with TK calling Carlos a control freak and 3x04 and Carlos saying it in 3x05 :')). It was just sweet <33. And a bit funny xD. Anyway, I'm so glad Marjan managed to get Kylie out and Grant (that's his face right I just re-watched a bit to make sure I got Kylie's right lol) arrested :)). But I am definitely stressed for next episode 😬😬😬😳. I'm sure she'll be okay, but still xd. I mean. Probably. To be honest you never know with 9-1-1 or Lone Star XD. But I'm almost completely sure she will be lol - they wouldn't do that to us xd. I hope. Still, it looks intense o.o. It even looks like at some point he's pointing a gun at her in like a drain/sewer??? Wild o.o. And again, I'm excited and very interesting to see who the little girl is!! All in all it definitely looks great and I'm super excited for it :D. But with this episode, I'm glad everything worked out 🥰🥰🥰. I loved it so much :DDD!!

So yeah! I loved this episode, I thought it was absolutely amazing. I'm nervous for the next one! This has been my review of. . .

9-1-1: Lone Star, Season 4, Episode 8: Control Freaks

It was great! I'm definitely excited for the next episode, but scared too. I'll be back next week with my review of. . .

9-1-1: Lone Star, Season 4, Episode 9: Road Kill

See you then!

[witch-of-the-sands]

for the ask game I appear here with the same offer (1-25 if you want to ofc ofc)

My wrapped was an Oh Hellos song because I was reading Lord of the Rings to it and then I fell asleep to it so I don't really count it lmao, I probably have a few top songs :( I'd say for new discoveries... probably a tie between Bellbottoms by the John Spencer Blues Explosion (I love u baby driver), Wichita Lineman specifically from Glen Campbell, and Something by Snarky Puppy featuring Lalah Hathaway I'm a musician it's so hard to choose one song for these I'm so sorry I just gave four

Album of the year is wayyyy easier (still 2 albums tho) Let's Start Here by Lil Yachty was my no 1 album for wrapped and I know this bc Lil Yachty was my no 1 artist and I ONLY listen to that album, other top one would be So Far by CSNY

My favorite musical artist is so hard too!! I promise the rambles will end after the music questions are over :( I'd say probably Nova Twins or Bob Vylan were probably my favorite duos they're both incredible!! I discovered a LOT of music this year new and old. A few standouts are CSNY, Janis Joplin (+ Big Brother and the Holding Company), Snarky Puppy, Orville Peck, Chaka Khan, Alanis Morissette, Koko Taylor, Talking Heads, CCR, and Lil Yachty.

Movie of the year easily Baby Driver simply because it has been the most recent add to the list of my favorite movies and I first watched it this year. And then watched it about four more times this year.

TV show is a tie between Arcane and AMC's IWTV, both changed my psyche deeply.

s2 of iwtv, I don't remember the exact episode number and can't go get it sadly, but the one where Daniel and Louis are remembering San Fran... not only is Luke Brandon pitiful and beautiful but also it's just playing with their memories the entire episode just... UGH beautiful writing. Seconded only by the final episode of s2 of IWTV. Beautiful.

Actor? Sam Reid easy smash next question.

Game of the year GREEDFALL!! The story is so compelling I am having so much fun with the "your actions have consequences" stuff they're doing. And also pirate romance. Hopefully.

Best month? None of them?/j Honestly not exactly December but like now to about a month ago in early November has been my best time. I've been working heavily on self-betterment, organization etc. etc. I've been admitted to all my top schools. Have been seeing close friends a lot more outside of school. Been on the news. I got some gorgeous scholarships ranging from 10k to 30k (depending on the school). Also, I've been focusing on pulling myself out of my depression state and it has been working! I've been feeling much much better! I'll be able to say December with my whole chest later in the month I believe, for now, I'm going with about the week before Thanksgiving to now I think that's a month-long range.

Something that made me cry this year was when I had a pretty gruesome friendship breakup in late May/early June, it was really damaging to my self-esteem to say the least. I'm doing a lot better now and recognize there was some validity to the criticism that I was given during that breakup, but that it wasn't all founded in reality.

Something I want to to AGAIN? Hmm... bullet journaling! I picked it up again for the first time since 7th grade, it's been really nice. Technically it's part junk journal as well. I just enjoy it for the experience of getting to organize my thoughts.

Hm... oh I know a new friend I made this year! I go to a two-year trade high school currently, and I've made some wonderful friendships with some of my juniors this year. They're all extremely sweet. (They call me evil for fun)

My birthday was.... (so much this is struggling recollection) Good! That's right! I don't really remember a ton of gifts I got, but I went to see the Rocky Horror picture show with my friends again as I'm making a tradition. (I'm going again in 2025 lol.) It was slightly tainted by the fact I was actively failing english, but ykw it was a fun night!

I've very sadly fallen so far out of reading in recent times.... :( I think of the few books I read cover to cover this year was Gwen and Art are Not in Love and it was adorable I really enjoy queer fantasy/historical fiction so it was fun to have mild elements of both.

A bad habit I picked up this year was lowk not really taking feelings into consideration. I'm a bit of a stone wall sometimes, and it's not exactly that I don't care about other people's feelings, it's that I struggle to pick up on them at times. At the end of the day, it also kinda boiled down to my feelings not being taken care of too. I'm a pretty good communicator when it comes to having tough conversations, but there were a lot of rough conversations I had to have this year (and a lot of apologies) because I had a lot of moments where I was stuck in self-preservation mode, and I'll admit that I wasn't exactly the nicest person to be around. I've been working on it a lot in recent months, it's been helping!

I can't seem to get images to work w/ me on my computer I'll see if I can add them on my phone in a second!

same here!

The last meal I had with my friends before they all left for college. We had a movie night, and I convinced my mom it was super cool and sexy for her to let me stay out until 11:30 on a Monday so I could have this (because they were leaving in like a week and no time!) and we had pizza with like 3 peppers and my stomach was STRUGGLING. And then we had gluten-free cheesecake because one of my friends is celiac and it was honestly pretty damn good. That night is pretty memorable in general to me because it was also I believe the first time I'd hugged one of my closest friends and it was to say goodbye.

Oh my days I am so excited to graduate I'm so sick of high school. I'm so sick of having to drive my little car 40 miles every day. I'm so ready to stop having to wake up at 6 am just to barely make it to school on time.

Oh my god, this one is actually advice for every single person who is really committed and thorough. You need to learn how to say no to people. There was a point in time this year when I was so stressed and so overworked that it genuinely affected my physical health. I had to be taken to the doctor because of how fucked up I was. I learned how much I could handle this year and it was.... not the amount I took on to say the least! Not just a lesson for me fr fr a lesson I now try to tell literally everyone I come across. Don't let yourself be pressured into overwork to the point of detriment. You aren't worth your product you're worth your life.

I started putting posters on my ceiling this year! So far I only have DP&W and a Coraline poster, but I missed having posters on my ceiling like I used to! (I've run out of wall space)

Favorite place I visited this year was the festival that we played at. I don't want to share tooooo many details, just for internet safety purposes. But it was my first second time leaving my state for a gig, and we got to play with and stay with international bands. It was awesome frfr.

God, probably I'd go back to the beginning of the year, take myself by the shoulders, and tell myself that it's not a competition for who has the most work. (Overworked and unpaid was my fine business model at the beginning of the year.) And beyond that, I say that my mental and physical health comes before almost anything else.

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions I find that it makes it harder to follow through.

I made SO many beautiful characters this year. I think my favorite would have to be Kitty Young (who feels like he's much, much older than 2024, he's not!) He's a little show cowboy outlaw, very Orville Peck tbh. He's a matching OC w/ my writing partner, and he's just gorgeous. I think about him often, I think about him often. I daydream about his gun and his pretty little outfits. He's my babygirl (he's like 5'8). He's got some interesting political stuff that I'm exploring regarding drugs and class disparity and how they kinda overlap. Esp in the political atmosphere I'm putting together. While he's in a universe made by my writing partner and me. It focuses more on our other characters, and a lot of his vigilante work is done solo on another planet altogether, which means I get to pretty much define everything about that planet >:)

okay this turned into way more of a ramble than I anticipated. I had some self reflection while writing this this was pretty fire I need to do one in dec 2025 too now.