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hyperfixingfr · 7 months ago

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I just had a 2 x Cree shipper try to follow me on main so I'm gonna say this bullshit again since grown ass adults can't get the damn point. Content warning for some mentions of weird proshipping stuff. Not in depth.

2 x Cree is a proship/comship. Aside from the disgusting age gap and role Cree has over Hoagie (most likely having babysat him and/or kids his age), she ASSAULTS him. With no reasoning behind it or comedy/playfulness to it. That's two different types of proship: abusive x abused, and authority x controlled. If you wanna say it for what it really is, much younger x much older.

I. Do. Not. Care. What. You. Change. NO ONE WITH A BRAIN DOES. You can't say, "but I made them adults", "but I made Cree nice" and expect people to take you seriously. The fact that you go as far as to change the canon character just to attempt to justify a disgusting ship should make you stop and think. If you need to change an aspect of canon to make it look better, your ship is disgusting and probably wrong. I don't know why you 2 x Cree shippers keep insinuating this makes it okay, because it doesn't. You don't look at siblings and decide, "how about we make them just really close friends so I can ship them!".

Cree is, as far as the canon has told, unwilling to change. She has no intention of it. She has "nice moments" with her sister, but that means nothing when you think about how people who act like that irl do it. They can't be all evil, or else no one would let them into their lives. It's completely unreasonable to change the very key villain aspect just for some stupid ship. If something were to happen in canon where she has a change of heart, then I would retract my statement. But she hasn't. And it doesn't seem like that will EVER happen, because Cree is supposed to be the villain of the Lincoln family. Her tendency to assault him alone makes it weird, but him being a very obvious abuse victim almost seems like a sort of non con justification/abuser support message. He has been hit and berated by his grandmother for at least since Tommy was a baby... His "feelings" for her in the show are most likely a trauma response at most (similarly to how S/A victims suffer from hypersexuality) and at least, they're just because he's confusing his feelings for Abby with Cree.

And that's just one reason why it's a disgusting ship. What makes it even more concerning is the gap. Look, if they met as adults with fully developed frontal lobes (aka 25+), I'd raise an eyebrow but I'd let 4 years slide. But they didn't. They met as little kids. Hoagie had been in the KND for a long while and most likely knew Cree ever since first grade - when she would've been in fifth grade. She has been there to watch him grow four years behind her ever since he was 7 (estimate). Not only that but the one episode implies that Cree frequently babysits for children of Hoagie's age, if not for Hoagie himself. Betty seemed to be extremely familiar with Cree and extremely trusting in her capabilities to babysit, implying it wouldn't have been her first time. Yes... I get that it was a dream. But the dream was also rooted in reality at the beginning. Hoagie thinking of her as someone to babysit him alone should make you feel weird about the pairing being together, even when they're adults. Because even as adults, they'll still have the same connection they had back then. Those connections don't go away. Normal people tend to always think of their babysitter as, well... Their babysitter. They would remember feeling that sort of connection with their babysitter, and vise versa. But even if she wasn't babysitting him, it would still feel weird. They have four years between them (for all we know, it could be closer to five due to uncounted months). That would make Cree in 9th grade (high school) while Hoagie is still in 5th grade (elementary school). That's such a big gap that Hoagie isn't even in the school level behind Cree, which would be middle school. He's so young, he'd still be in elementary school by the time Cree finally goes to high school. And to remind you once more... They know each other very well during this period. I'm sure they see each other frequently due to teens clashing with the KND. That, or visiting Abby and seeing Cree there.

I'm just gonna say it... It's ridiculous to ship them and try to justify it. If you're just proship and like pedo ships go ahead and just say it. I'm not gonna think of you any differently, but saying it out right is better than trying to hide it. There is NO REASON to want to ship them unless you like the problems the ship has. Abby is right fucking there, and she isn't abusive nor too old for him. It's the same family too - come on! If you personally don't ship 2/5 that's fine. But trying to ship 2/Cree instead is almost blatantly saying, "I wish 2/5 was more problematic". Cree is the older, more malicious counterpart of Abby. Aside from that, they're very similar. Cree is literally Abby's foil. There is no reason to think 2/5 isn't your flow, but 2/Cree is... Unless, once again, you like disgusting ships. And none of you hit me with the "but I ship Abby with someone else" because I don't recall anyone in this fandom bashing multishipping or polyamorous relationships. A matter of fact, most people in this fandom think of Sector V as polyamorous. Don't you dare use the fear of a harmless thing such as multishipping to excuse a creepy ship.

The maturity of you 2/Cree supporters/neutrals is shown very clearly through the amount of bashing and hatemail I've gotten from grown ass adults. None of you have acted any more mature than me and that says a lot.

To sum it up... I'm not a shipping wars person. I'm someone who has very reasonable evidence to support my feelings of disgust towards this ship. There's no reason to want to ship it unless you're proship with the existence of a near identical, canon, within normal age range, much more kind and loving character.

#knd #codename kids next door #rant

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wigwurq · 3 years ago

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WIG REVIEW: PAM AND TOMMY

Ok so I just finished this whole series and I sort of feel like a bad feminist for watching it at all since Pamela Anderson did not cosign this. HOWEVER this show could not be more pro-Pam!! But what about the wigs? Let’s discuss on an episode by episode basis.

EPISODE 1

We begin with one of the worst people in the 90s or any other time: JAY LENO. Or I should say, some random actor playing Jay Leno. He asks Pam Anderson, played breathlessly by Lily James, how it feels to have a sex tape. Already I wanna vom. This is going to be a show.

The episode flashes back to the origin of said tape and the carpenter who stole it: SETH ROGAN. IN JORTS!! This show is so so very mid-90s. But Seth’s character, Rand, is firmly stuck in the 80s as shown by his very late 80s mullet. This wig ain’t bad! It avoids the issue with most bad guy wigs - the back taper - by being a total party in the back.

Enter party pooper: Tommy Lee. This show is very anti-Tommy and I love it for that! Tommy Lee very much sucks in life and on this show. As played by Winter Soldier Sebastian Stan, I have to say: he looks exactly like Tommy. This is NOT a wig - he underwent a dyejob and keratin treatment for this lewk - and the result is pretty perfect. Way to commit to hair for your craft!

We don’t get much of Pam in this episode but the few scenes she is in I have to say - this wig is pretty great!! Lily James underwent a pretty intense makeover to look like Pam and she honestly very looks like her!

LOOK AT THIS WIG! The part, seams, texture, roots - everything is working here. It looks just as platinum bombshell as Pam did circa 1995.

Most of this episode is devoted to Rand NOT being paid by Tommy Lee because, well, Tommy is an asshole??? Rand decides to get his back payments by stealing a super unguarded safe in Tommy and Pam’s garage, where Tommy, a professional drummer, plays drums. This was honestly the biggest question I had in this episode: WHY DOES TOMMY LEE PLAY DRUMS IN THE GARAGE LIKE A SUBURBAN TEENAGER? WOULDN’T HE HAVE HIS OWN HOME STUDIO??? Anyway, Rand hatches a plan that legit involves buying a fake fur rug from Pier 1 (PEAK 90s!) and using it to pretend to be a giant fluffy dog for the security guards. IT IS SO STUPID BUT STUPIDER STILL: IT WORKS!!!

Rand gets all the loot from the safe including, yes, the sex tape (which he was not banking on) as well as lots of guns (UGH) and money. The plot of this show is basically: don’t screw over a carpenter because he will enact revenge. AND DID WE LEARN NOTHING FROM OVERBOARD?!?! THIS IS THE SAME PLOT!

EPISODE 2

Rand takes the tape to friend and porn impresario “Uncle Milty” as played by Nick Offerman IN THIS DAMN WIG. Yes, this is a complete mess but I suppose it is on brand for a mid-90s porn kingpin. I really appreciate the difference in texture from the greased back top to the frizzed out ends.

Most of this episode centers on the further flashback origin story of Pam and Tommy’s romance which begins at an LA club. PAM’S 90s UPDO IS EVERYTHING! LOOK AT THESE BANGS!! Look at these tendrils! YES!

CAN I GO TO THE CLUB WITH 90s PAM ANDERSON?!?! This episode includes Pam’s posse of gal pals who are never explained or seen again in this series. Their identities will remain a mystery for the ages! Anyway, apparently Pam and Tommy met when Pam bought the whole club shots which included Tommy and he responded by walking up to her and LICKING HER FACE. TRUE LOVE!!!

He then basically stalks her to Mexico where he distracts her from her friends and career and this relationship is really starting out great.

This show never shies away from what an absolute dick Tommy is but will likely be remembered best for the scene in which HE ACTUALLY HAS A CONVERSATION WITH HIS OWN ANIMATRONIC DICK. Yes, you read that correctly. Apparently Tommy is ruled by his own penis (makes sense!) and it is telling him to avoid Pam but he isn’t listening. He wants Pam! Also this show is actually maybe bonkers.

4 days after meeting, Pam and Tommy get married on a Mexican beach. Yes, this really happened! Yes, Tommy’s hair was actually much shorter in real life but Pam’s beached out blonde is every Baywatch reality.

But on the plane back from Mexico, these two lovebirds realize that they actually barely know each other and might not be compatible. Pam doesn’t like horror movies like Tommy! OOPS! I love Pam’s undercover wig here. She’s hiding it but she still used her curing iron!

EPISODE 3

MORE FLASHBACKS!! As Rand and Miltie try to find a way to sell this sex tape, we get some background on how Rand even had connections to the porn industry. Turns out his ex wife - as played by that bitch from OITNB - in the most shoutrageously frizzed out late 80s wigs ever - is a porn star and so was he? Kinda? Anyway, she has now left him for a woman and basically treats him like her super and his new mission is to find her a replacement part for her toilet.

It is whilst researching toilet parts that he discovers this new weird thing called THE INTERNET and a sex crime scheme is born! Of course, as with any startup, they’d need some cash on hand. Enter: Andrew FRIGGIN Dice Clay as some sort of mobster or whatever who will fully bankroll this mess and what could go wrong?

Meanwhile, Pam and Tommy are adjusting to married life and Pam is fighting for Baywatch monologues. There’s talking in Baywatch? Anyway, this updo is fighting to be a serious actor! The parting of the bangs is really everything. Also apparently Baywatch producers are scumbags! This show is fairly educational.

EPISODE 4

Welp here we are. Rand and Miltie actually did it - they figured out how to harness the internets to sell VHS copies of Pam and Tommy’s stolen sex tape. SEX CRIMES!!! It’s all very awful as is the fact that Pam discovers the existence of the tape on the Baywatch set whilst crew members casually view it. She brings it to Tommy who is living under the misbelief that Motley Crue is still a viable band.

Pam is sick to her stomach, also because she is pregnant (mazel!) Having dealt with scumbags exploiting her for her entire life, this is nothing new but Tommy is just PISSED. Pam’s sad deflated wig really says it all.

One of my favorite parts of this show is how little people knew how to use the internet in the mid 90s. Especially celebrities! Pam and Tommy go undercover to find their sextape online at the....the public library! WILD! You know that they had to use Pam’s library card - there is no way in hell Tommy Lee has a library card. ANYWAY, Pam’s under hoodie wig is still amazing.

Tommy of course DOES NOT GET IT as in all things and quickly forms a list of people who might have been mad at him enough to steal and broadcast a sex tape and it basically includes ALL OF HOLLYWOOD. I have to hand it to Pam’s wig for staying calm under the pressure of it all and managing very good updos!

However, the pressure finally gets too much and ends in a miscarriage which is apparently true but the timeline was rearranged. It’s all heartbreaking. I love that they show a deglammed Pam for this - and her disheveled hair works on its own sad level. Of course, the paparazzi still harass them at the worst possible time and Pam loses it with the help of THE CLUB (the 90s anti-car theft device!) on a pap’s windshield and I SUPPORT YOU, PAM!

EPISODE 5

It’s hard to know exactly how true any of this is or what facts have been enhanced but I firmly believe that Pamela Anderson meditates as much as this show would have us believe. Girlfriend has a lot going on! Namaste away!

I am in love with Pam’s lady publicist, Gail, who has the unfortunate duty of dealing with all this sex tape nonsense when she just signed on to promote Pam’s new movie, Barb Wire. Gail is way better at the internet than Pam or Tommy and shows Pam the full extent of internet searches for the sex tape. Pam and her glorious updo are horrified.

Even more horrifying? Penthouse publisher Bob Guccione somehow gets ahold of the tape. HE IS PLAYED BY REX MANNING HISSELF, MAXWELL CAUFIELD!! THIS IS PEAK MID90S! SAY NO MORE, MON AMOUR! This wig is sleazeball perfection! I don’t know who this lady is supposed to be but I want her dress!

Bob wants to publish stills from the sex tape in Penthouse (rival of Playboy where Pam has modeled many times). Tommy immediately lawyers up about it and all the men in the room say THEY MUST SUE! Pam (correctly!) says that if they do, it will only draw more attention to the tape. Everyone ignores Pam and sues.

And the tape gets so much attention that Jay Leno starts mentioning it in his monologue. THE VERY WORST TIMELINE. However, Pam’s beach waves have never looked better!

EPISODE 6

THIS EPISODE. UGH. The Penthouse lawsuit results in a deposition JUST for Pam which is perhaps the most awful slut-shaming episode of an TV show I’ve ever seen. SCUMBAGS ALL AROUND! However, Pam’s professional updo with CRISS CROSS PART is everything.

We get a flashback to the late 80s where apparently Pam was discovered via a Canadian sports jumbotron?! I have to say that the late 80s wigs (OITNB chick included) are not as fabulous as the mid-90s ones and this dude wig is probably the worst of the series. Also Pam definitely had a type: JERKS!

I think the main issue with these late 80s is the large gap between the bangs and the hair flip - this is DEP gone bad! However, this episode does portray Playboy as a very respectful place to work (!) you can even bring your mom to the Playboy mansion!! However, back at Pam’s deposition, I have never felt so very nauseated for anyone. JUSTICE FOR PAM. Also of course Penthouse won. UGH.

EPISODE 7

It’s time for Pam’s big movie, BARB WIRE, to come out! I have never seen this movie and did not realize Pam played a character named Barb. BARB Wire. Wow. Anyway, I’m pretty sure Pam’s hair has never looked this full and fabulous in real life but given how awful the last episode was - good for her!

Meanwhile, everything is VERY BAD FOR RAND. As in Miltie has absconded with all their money to Amsterdam, Andrew Dice Clay is now making Rand repay their debt with his own violent debt enforcement, and a bunch of randos are trying to sell bootleg sextapes outside Tower Records. Rand’s solution is to bring his higher quality VHS tapes to try to sell inside and it does not go well. It goes even worse when he tells his ex about the tape and compares it to porn and she delivers the point of this whole show: Porn is consensual. This sex tape was stolen and is a sex crime against Pam and Tommy. Rand doesn’t get it. MEN!

Jay Leno doesn’t get it either, obviously. We come back full circle to the most awful and awkward interview in the world, where Jay tries to lightheartedly ask Pam about the tape and she gives him a dose of sad reality. These wigs are all fabulous but let us all remember: JAY LENO IS THE ABSOLUTE WORST.

Well no: actually Tommy Lee is the worst. Always. It’s Pam’s big Barb Wire premiere and she is heaven in pleather while Tommy is a walking punchline as always. THIS OUTFIT. It is sort of sweet that he is so supportive of Pam’s acting career but it is absolutely heartbreaking when Pam sees that she, in fact, is the punchline.

EPISODE 8

Oh Pammy! We made it to the last episode! Pam’s acting career is a trainwreck due to the sextape and Barb Wire being a bomb. APPARENTLY SHE AUDITIONED FOR BOTH LA CONFIDENTIAL AND AUSTIN POWERS?! And although she is finally pregnant (MAZEL!) her attitude is as defeated as her hair. I do love that they show Pam’s un hot curled hair when she is feeling down. UGH PAM.

Also down? MOTLEY CRUE! Still attempting to be a viable band, they make an appearance at Tower Records and I have to say - compared to Sebastian Stan’s real hair, these wigs are pretty lousy. However, it is these bandmembers who explain to Tommy that this sextape actually had no negative effect on him at all - it just showed the world what they always thought of him: he’s a dick with a big dick.

A lifeline is delivered to Pam and Tommy via an internet porn king played by that kid from White Lotus who offers to buy the rights to the tape from them and shut down all bootlegs of it; thus putting an end to this sex crime nightmare. Pam and her sensible updo just want to sign and end this thing. Tommy of course is against it because his main enemy is: rational thought. The couple runs away from the paps to....Las Vegas?! Where Tommy abandons his very pregnant wife to....go to the hotel bar and brag about his big dick. THIS ASSHOLE.

In the end, the reunite and sign over the tape rights. Rand sells the master beta to the White Lotus kid and gives it to the OITNB chick and also never faces any criminal charges for any of this. Pam has a water birth and becomes a mom! And gets her Tommy tattoo replaced with a Mommy one. The show ends with an epilogue explaining how the couple broke up: with Pam having to call the cops on Tommy’s physically abusive ass. WHAT AN ASS. #TEAMPAMFOREVER. The tone of this show was really all over the place but I will say that it rightly showed who the real victims and villains were in all this. And: the wigs were pretty good.

VERDICT: WURQS

#Wigwurq #PamandTommy #PamelaAnderson #PamAnderson #TommyLee #LilyJames #SebastianStan #SethRogan #UncleMiltie #THE90S #PAMFOREVER

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perriwinklesblog · 3 years ago

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Yo, Perri, lurker admirer here. Just wondering if you had Opinions on c!Dream's current character direction (or his lack thereof imo) or if you kept those thoughts Secret to not invoke the unholy wrath of... everybody. As a writer meself I have Opinions as well but I save them for people who are willing to discuss for fun and story's sake, and not for blood. Lol. Always I'd love to chat with you about him if you wanted! Love, ⛏️

I'm pretty open about my opinions on c!Dream.

I really enjoy Dream. But I don't agree with his characters morals or the dark path he went down and the abuse he dolled out. But it's entertaining to watch, I'm captivated and I wish to understand.

I have a degree in psychology (this does not make me an expert in any way) and my favourite part of that degree was forensic psychology. I did my dissertation on decision making in female serial killers. So I have a natural interest in those who do not follow, lets say, the "normal" morals that the rest of us do.

I consider Dream to be like Joffery from Game of Thrones. Human embodiment of the period. But I liked watching the show and you always need an antagonist and sometimes downright evil character to root against. Dream took up that mantle and he's doing a great job. I also think it's okay to feel sympathy for a character who is evil because at the end of the day it's still uncomfortable to see someone have bad things done to them. That doesn't mean you agree with or are like that character. You just don't like pain.

It would also be quite hypocritical of me to say I enjoy Quackity's current character arc and not Dream as the paralells there are off the charts even without the knowledge of Dreams perspective.

I've mentioned before that the downfall Quackity is currently going through in regards to morality is probably something that Dream went through too. Its starts off with small decisions and spirals into downright awful moral choices but it gets to a point where you've gone too far and you've convinced yourself this is the only way. Eventually you start to enjoy it and thats the point of no return. Quackity has admitted that he just enjoys torturing Dream just like Dream admitted it was fun to torture Tommy.

I think through Quackity we can see more of what turned Dream. We can infer more with more knowledge than before. We know from testimonies and past clips that Dream wasn't always like this and therefore you have to wonder where the turning point was, what was the event that caused him to decided Imma go to the dark side, peace!

And Quackity offers us some knowledge to this, albeit not a lot but more than before.

I also mentioned that in a Black Mirror episode you can see how Dream most likely ended up down this path and taking pleasure in pain. I can't remember the title but it was about a Doctor who could feel his patients pain and therefore diagnose them better but one day he felt someone die and that rush he got became something he was addicted to. He then started seeking ways to feel the rush again but never quite managing it. Eventually he becomes unregocnizable and a "monster" compared to the good man he was before. It an uncomfortable episode. He wasn't the best man in the world, he had flaws but he was good but through certain events and decisions he ended up in an awful place and doing awful things. And I think Dream is partially like that.

Dreams current arc is interesting personally, even though there isn't a lot to it. In the prison a lot of people think he's changed but really he hasn't. I think they could try to do a Theon Greyjoy from Game of Thrones where he's tortured into a completely different human being and then begins to piece himself together again and redeem himself but without his perspective of before, I don't the fandom will forgive. Also, do we really wanna see change through torture? Like is that really the message we from this?

I think its always going to be difficult, I'm never sure where they're going to go. All my predictions are wrong but I enjoy everything they do.

The good the bad and the ugly, they do it so well and they honestly commit to it and take the flack. It'll be interesting to see how they try to redeem him because I think they will.

I'm always open to asks as long as they're respectful and love to hear other peoples perspective on characters, Dream included.

#dream smp #dreamwastaken #quackity #enjoying the show does not reflect an individuals morals or character #tw torture #tw abuse

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pigtailedgirl · 4 years ago

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Cobra Kai LOVE

So I finally got to watch all of Cobra Kai after loving the first two free episodes on Youtube but not affording it or having access til Netflix.

Dad and I nostalgia tripped it together and it's so good and it was also a great little family thing to do for us, since we always watched the movies as a family and are missing Mom, and I cried (there were some moments in season 2 especially hard) and laughed and we both loved it and I can't wait for season 3.

What can you say about a show that picks up 30 years after a properties heyday and kills as a tie-in! That honours the themes, and even better the cheese and feelings of the originals. Be it kick-ass karate, 80s style and music, the over the top plotting, and the profound kinda searching for inner life peace mixed with silly karate moves or metaphors and longing for Dad guidance.

I absolutely adore Johnny, who is by no means a perfect person. He's a stunted functional alcoholic who reopens his best part of his life, he tragically peaked in high-school (Christ!), for the best intentioned reasons, not realizing until committing the same mistakes how toxic it was the first go round.

Daniel. Oh you sweet fucking it up-ward man. Every movie was Miyagi having to help you pull your hot head out of your own ass because you were desperate to earn inner acceptance through outer validation and he's not around to do it anymore and you sweet pea think you've got it figured out, that you can give it to kids or protect them from the bullying toxicity of the way that high-school and a loss of place moving to California and Cobra Kai did you in, but you just keep jumping from victim to projecting and anticipating victim-hood and responding against Miyagi's first lesson, learn karate so you don't have to use it to fight.

It's sad and beautiful that these two are twinned and stuck in their pasts. Man-children in their 50s still trying to grow up (And figure out technology in Johnny's case LOL) hurting their future generation.

The teen themes are great.

Teen Breakdown of S1 & S2

The beginning popular crowd being easy and simple bullies. Morphing in Season 2 as both Cobra Kai and Demetri, Robbie and Sam trade off with Hawk and Tory on are we the bullied or the bullies all at once. Free for all high-school fight!

Aisha and Miguel represent the honesty of strength of self and confidence in finding themselves and their voice in Cobra Kai.

Hawk and Demitri, of using a newfound self to bully or staying safe to play victim.

Robbie as the growth from getting respect and guidance from Miyagi karate and Daniel, being the truest student, to the heartbreaking reality it doesn't mean you still don't crave wanting to be declared ultimate right or winner and fuck yourself over with your past issues.

As Miguel does the twin tango with him in having innate respectability and good moral guidance, even passing it to Johnny, but slipping into loss at the karate finals, mentally giving into loss of morality being violent to show his strength and losing himself and his GF, and physically when he's hurt (please be just hurt) defending the good guidance of mercy and stopping fighting.

But yeah, I could do essays on all the teens.

Then there's Sam, Daniel 's daughter. Robbie's mirror student and Aisha should be her foil but I fear based on a rumour and the way of season 2, they went with the easier and show attractive rival GF Tory. Samantha Larusso is a problem. She is marked good, to be going the way of Robbie to being the child of the former protagonist that leads into a creation of harmony among the two karate's and teachers/families/philosophies. Instead despite the show sympathizing and trying to identify with her as that role, she's straight up a cause of strife and exhibits neither the good traits of Miyagi karate, or a inner self confident bravado of Cobra Kai. She's almost the bizzaro evil version of a teen Ali, and that guy from the third movie. She thinks she's both victim and bad ass and she's just someone who needs a good dose of someone sitting her down to tell her she's owed or earned either status. And Aisha, the friend she wasted for faux status as a popular pretty girl, as well as her adult parents letting her currently skate responsibilities of teenage dramas and violence, and her suitors, whom she waffles unhealthy betwixt so that they all suffer, are the ones to do it. She doesn't need her ass kicked by Tory, who is a one note character, she needs her mindset toggled by realizing her self-wants aren't priority. Basically grow up, and outta the me mentality.

What's fabulous is the show honoring it's roots in teen drama and life so it's not like the drama is too over the top. How their world revolves around them and their perception of the importance of their wants. Romance. Party. Popularity. Identity.

Leading to the teenage version of power posturing. Bullying. (Which even the adults haven't mastered escape from.)

The high-school pettiness and importance of structure and status and coolness. The different norms of today versus the 80's that are still about wealth, the right looks (cultural or physical), and violence being the forever enforcer. Of course kids will break down along the lines of Cobra Kai and Miyagi karate. Brute correctness or passive acceptance?

Seeking strength and refusing to accept weakness of self builds confidence. Using that strength to physically fight in anything but defense brings a cycle of conflict and violence.

Neither the past nor the present generation ignore the other big life influence of the age. There you have the Daddy or parental abandonment angles.

Johnny's step dad failed him in absentee. Kreese used his position as teacher to abuse him. Johnny failed his kid in absentee. Johnny tries to uses his teacher position with Miguel to fix all these errors. Meanwhile Daniel is over there in the opposite corner with lost his father figure, and then Miyagi taught him respect and guidance and Daniel regained one and clung, and now Daniel is a lost or losing father figure to his own son and daughter, the family unit does not respect him or seek his guide. So he entwines his then teaching Sam and Robbie as a fix.

But does karate fix this shit?

So all these kids they drag in are confounded by the lessons because a step would be stop you yokels and talk or acknowledge what really happened in high-school and with All Valley and Ali and Kreese and Miyagi. And move on.

You won 30 years ago Daniel. Miyagi was a great old man and your teacher and like a Dad but you never had to be the best or have the girl to earn him. You got bullied by Kreese & co, were devalued because you weren't rich or popular in high-school. Some people were dicks. Or worse. Tell the world. You don't have to beat them now and forever to hold to knowing that. Be a happy car salesman and focus on your own kids.

Johnny, 30 years have passed my dude. You were okay with defeat when you gave Daniel that trophy and said he was all right. Cling to that guy, not the jerk with a shitty teacher/Dad, pining for a girl you were in conflict with. And stop reliving the mindset you were the loser in those things ending. You missed out on living with your losses and celebrating the moments between and after. Find a GF. Reconcile with your biological son. Admire and mentor your students of now. Take a lesson from your Miguel and be like the young man you clearly are learning from. You will never be a loser to this kid, you will always be the bad ass who defended him.

Also also, I hilariously crack-ship Daniel/Johnny as a love hate bromance. HEAD GAMES vid it!!

Also, Daniel's wife is a treasure with her snark on the childishness of this karate feud. She the MVP.

And I legit cried with my Dad and the Miyagi grave visit. At the Tommy scenes. At the Miguel voicemail. At the Mrs. Larusso Dad on my shoulder scene.

And you can't not laugh at dick billboard.

#cobra kai #season 1 & 2 spoilers #new show to love

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tomeandflickcorner · 5 years ago

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Umbrella Academy Rewatch 1x01

With the second season of Umbrella Academy approaching, I figured I should have a rewatch of the first season again.

Of course, we start at the beginning, with us being told that on October 1st, 1989, 43 completely unrelated women around the world miraculously gave birth at the same time. This event was particularly unusual since none of these women had been pregnant when they’d woken up that morning. We’re also told that Reginald Hargreeves, an eccentric billionaire and adventurer had attempted to adopt as many of these miracle babies as possible, even going so far as to approach the mothers directly and paying them to allow him to take their baby. away. In the end, he managed to obtain seven of these unusual babies and brought them to his estate. As it turned out, each of these seven babies had seemingly been born with a unique superhuman ability. Luther (AKA Number 1) possessed super strength. Diego (AKA Number 2) could control the trajectory of any object he throws, with his preference being knives. Allison (AKA Number 3) can manipulate people’s actions simply by saying the words ‘I heard a rumor.’ Whatever she says after those words will actually happen. Klaus (AKA Number 4) is basically the kid from The Sixth Sense. Number 5 (who never received an actual name for reasons that I’ll explain a little later, can teleport/time jump. Ben (AKA Number 6) can essentially summon Lovecraftian horrors from his body. And finally, there’s Vanya (AKA Number 7). She allegedly doesn’t have any special abilities, so she was always left out when Reginald meticulously trained the others to be some sort of elite superhero team in the vein of X-Men, with the building they all lived in being treated like a school called The Umbrella Academy.

Of course, the main story actually begins years later, when the Hargreeves Siblings have all grown up. And grown apart as well, as each of the siblings have, for the most part, put their old lives behind them and have therefore become estranged from one another. In an opening montage, we’re introduced to the now-adult Hargreeves Siblings. Luther, for reasons that are revealed later on in the show, has spent the past four years on the moon. Diego has become a vigilante. Allison is now a big movie star with a legion of fans. Klaus is a drug addict, and is pretty much in and out of rehab. And Vanya is a violinist who hopes to make it into a major orchestra. As you might have noticed, there are two of the Hargreeves Siblings that haven’t been accounted for. As the episode explains as it progresses, Number 5 mysteriously disappeared 17 years prior, and hasn’t been seen or heard from since. And Ben has died for reasons that are as of yet unknown.

As the opening montage wraps up, Luther, Diego, Allison, Klaus and Vanya all learn that Reginald Hargreeves has suddenly passed away. So they all return to his old estate to attend his funeral. Though, upon arriving, it’s made very clear that Diego is not the least bit pleased to see Vanya. It turns out that, at some point, Vanya wrote an autobiography about her life growing up as the odd one out among the others. And she apparently revealed some of the Hargreeves family’s deepest, darkest secrets within her autobiography. So this has pretty much further ostracized Vanya from hier siblings, particularly Diego. Though Allison seems to be willing to look past that in light of the current situation.

Anyway, the next few minutes of the episode allows us to get to know our main characters, and how they interact with one another. Diego, as we’ve established, isn’t very pleased to see Vanya, which does’t help with how she already felt like an outsider amongst her siblings. And Luther also seems mistrustful of Klaus, though this wasn’t entirely undeserved, as he stopped Klaus from trying to pocket some of Reginad’s old trinkets. Off hand, only Allison seems somewhat normal, as she responds with reasonable softness to each of her long-lost siblings. However, it seems even she has some sort of baggage, as she admits her husband filed for divorce 8 months ago, and her now-ex-husband has full custody of their daughter, something that clearly upsets her a great deal. During this whole sequence of events, we also meet Grace. who was, for all intents and purposes, the Hargreeves Siblings’ mother, and Pogo, the family butler who is, to put it bluntly, an anthropomorphic chimpanzee. (Just roll with it.)

As the episode progresses, Luther makes it clear that, despite the autopsy report stating Reginald died of a heart attack, he suspects foul play was involved somehow. He points out that Reginald’s signature monocle was missing, and he and suspects that somebody took it. And if somebody took the monocle, it meant that Reginald hadn’t been alone when he died. Of course, Luther’s attempts at sharing this theory with his brothers and sisters goes poorly when he clumsily makes it sound as if he suspects one of them might have murdered Reginald.

In spite of the tangible rift between them, we do get a small indication that there’s still a deep-rooted bond between the siblings when Luther plays a vinyl recording of Tommy James and the Shondells’ I Think We’re Alone Now. Even though the five siblings are all in different rooms, they all are shown dancing to the same song. It’s a particularly enjoyable scene, particularly when the camera pans out to what I call ‘the dollhouse shot.’

However, the dance party is interrupted by a sudden disturbance out in the courtyard. When the five siblings run outside to investigate, Luther surmises it’s some sort of temporal anomaly. (Lucky guess!) As they watch in confusion and bemusement, a figure emerges from the time portal. To everyone’s amazement, the figure is revealed to be Number 5, who hasn’t seemed to age a day since the morning he vanished 17 years ago.

The Hargreeves Siblings convene down to the kitchen, where Number 5 fixes himself a snack. As he proceeds to make himself a sandwich (peanut butter and marshmallow), Number 5 explains his prolonged absence happened because he went against Reginald’s instructions and attempted to travel through time, resulting in him getting stuck in the future. And, while it’s been 17 years since his disappearance for the other Hargrees Siblings, it’s been 45 years for him. But he managed to finally find a way to return to the present day through some technobabble explanation. But for whatever reason, while his consciousness remains that of a 58 year old man, his body has regressed to that of his 13-year-old self. Although, he doesn’t really explain anymore than that and simply walks off, leaving his brothers and sisters to take it all in.

Of course, it then cuts to the funeral service, with everyone gathered out in the courtyard to pay their last respects to Reginald. But of course, drama erupts when Diego begins an emotional rant about how Reginald was a horrible man and father. Which wasn’t entirely off the mark, as we see through flashbacks that he might have also conducted experiments on the Hargraves Siblings. Here, it’s also revealed that Reginald never gave any of them their names and had simply referred to them by their individual numbers. It was their mother, Grace, who had given them their actually names. (Which does explain why Number 5 doesn’t have a real name like the others. He must have vanished to the future before Grace began issuing names) This ultimately leads to a fist fight breaking out between Diego and Luther. In the ensuing fight, the statue that had been erected in the late Ben’s memory is broken, and Diego ends up throwing one of his knives at Luther, leaving a bleeding gash in his arm.

So, things are clearly still strained between the Hargraves Siblings, who all soon part. Vanya is the first to leave, with only Pogo seeing her off. Diego heads off soon afterwards (with Klaus tagging along). Number 5, however, retreats to a local doughnut shop called Griddy's Donuts, hoping to get a decent cup of coffee. But before he can begin his drink, he notices a group of men armed with guns entering the shop. Number 5 doesn’t seem to be the least bit surprised by this, simply remarking he thought it would take them longer to find him. The leader of the armed men instructs Number 5 to come with them. But Number 5 chooses to not cooperate. And he proceeds to utilize his teleportation skills to meticulously kill every single one of the gunmen, as Istanbul (not Constantinople) by They Might Be Giants plays over the scene. Once all the men are dead, he calmly cuts into his arm with a discarded knife, putting out what appears to be a tracking chip. With the tracking chip removed, he calmly walks out of Griddy’s Donuts, as the poor waitress (whose name will be revealed to be Agnes in later episodes) peers over the counter at the remaining mess and dead bodies, completely shell shocked.

As the first episode wraps up, we see Diego has Reginald's missing monocle, though it’s not clear at this point how or why he has it. We also get our first glimpse of Ben, the deceased member of the Hargraves Siblings. Even though he is dead, he is present in the show as a ghost. Though only Klaus can see and hear him on account of his ‘superpower.’ As for Vanya, she returns to her apartment, where she is shocked to find Number 5 has broken in. Vanya is quick to spot he’s bleeding (on account of his self-inlicted cut), but Number 5 virtually waves away her concern. He tells her that he’s decided to share some vital information with her, since he feels she’s the only one he can trust. Throughout the episode, it was implied that Vanya and Number 5 had been rather close as kids. For instance, after Number 5 had vanished, Vanya had made a habit of leaving out peanut butter and marshmallow sandwiches for him every night, because she didn’t want him to go hungry if he ever returned. As such, Number 5 tells Vanya that, when he jumped ahead in time, he learned that something catastrophic will happen in the future that will effectively wipe out the entire human race. While he wasn’t sure what exactly caused the apocalypse to happen, he was able to determine the date it occurred- exactly eight days from the present date. Vanya takes this bombshell surprisingly well.

Well, that’s quite an opening episode. We got a group of siblings with a strained relationship, a suitable mystery on our hands and a fast-approaching end of the world. Not to mention the whole weirdness the show just expects us to accept with no actual explanation. All in all, this episode does effectively rope you in, leaving you with a bunch of questions that you want to see answered.

Additional things of note:

Grace is revealed to be a robot. Which explains how she sometimes seems to be out of it at certain points in the episode

Vanya is taking what appears to be a prescription medication

The exploits of the Hargraves Siblings as a superhero team led to them having a certain level of fame. There were even comic books made about them in the show’s reality.

Even though Luther made him drop Reginald’s trinkets, Klaus still managed to make off with an ornate box with currently unknown contents

#umbrella acedmy #umbrella academy 1x01

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courtneyyharper · 5 years ago

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Top 10 Netflix TV Shows to Binge during Quarantine & Chill

To help out my fellow friends in lockdown and so you don’t have to put up the standard Instagram story asking, I’ll be doing a quick countdown of my top 10 tv shows available on Netflix that will hopefully help you all pass this monotonous time.

This goes without saying but I’m going to say it anyways: all opinions are my own and as admittedly these are all very popular shows please feel free to shoot me suggestions to broaden my own horizons!

I’m going to try and create some semblance of order and countdown from 10! So, without further ado…

10. American Horror Story

Okays, so maybe not one if you scare easily although it’s definitely verging more towards the creepy and uncomfortable side than horror. The good thing about this show is if you don’t like the plot, not to worry because the next season is a completely different ball game with a new story, new characters and probably even a different time period, making the show more of an anthology than a series. A nice little link is the use of the same actors each season and if you look closely, you’ll see the Easter eggs and links between!

It remains popular amongst it’s fanbase and although the initial hype that made me jump on the bandwagon in 2011 has eventually died down it’s still one to check out, if at least just for the first three seasons, if you want something a little strange and peculiar.

https://www.netflix.com/title/70210884?s=i&trkid=13747225

9. Gilmore Girls

Set in the little dreamy American town of Stars Hollow with fast-talking sarcastic humour and a coffee-loving mother and daughter bond at the centre. This is one for those of us who appreciate many a cultural reference and enjoys many a love triangle. An easy watch with truly engaging characters you’ll be sad when this show comes to an end… but not to worry they do one more season, A Year in the Life, to wrap everything up with a bow.

Perfect for an easy watch about college, boys, and most complicated of all… family!

https://www.netflix.com/title/70155618?s=i&trkid=13747225

8. Prison Break

A true classic! You’d be hard pressed to find someone that doesn’t consider this show one of the greats. It’s the one your mum’s boyfriend will continue to talk about and recommend time and time again, right? Just me? Well I finally gave in and was caught into the binge that is Wentworth Miller.

We see him play Michael Scofield, a structural engineer who gets himself purposefully incarcerated in order to save his innocent brother Lincoln from death row, with a classic prison escape. If nothing else this show has you on the edge of your seat for the first season and impressed at the continual twists and turns the character relations and plot takes. This is a show you want to see before it is eventually spoiled for you…

https://www.netflix.com/title/70140425?s=i&trkid=13747225

7. You

Although by show of hands Joe Goldberg is decidedly just Dan Humphreys on steroids, I can’t deny that each Boxing Day that the new season was released it was binged in one day. See Joe fall in love and do anything to keep it. Character driven; monologue driven. Binging this show may have you questioning who’s side you’re on once you’re rooting for the murderer and it’ll make you gasp out loud while doing it.

Just don’t get too attached to any of the characters…

https://www.netflix.com/title/80211991?s=i&trkid=13747225

6. Stranger Things

With an entrancing 80s vibe aesthetic we centre around the small town of Hawkins and a group of best friends during the disappearance of their friend Will and the appearance of a young mute girl with a shaved head and some peculiar abilities. As the story unravels, we’re brought into the world of the supernatural and government conspiracies based loosely on some very real and very spooky Soviet Union experiments. You may also be thinking ‘hey, these kids look familiar’ and that’s right they’re in every other show with a similar 80s theme (see: IT and I Am Not Okay With This). Oh, and Winona Ryder.

I can see this show climbing the list when I finally get round to watching that last season…

https://www.netflix.com/title/80057281?s=i&trkid=13747225

5. Peaky Blinders

I’m just going to say it, it’s cool. What gang movie or show isn’t? We see the Shelby family conduct some dodgy business in 1919 Birmingham as part of the gang, the Peaky Blinders (based however loosely on the real Peaky Blinders street gang in Birmingham). Perfect for fans of DiCaprio’s Gangs of New York. Run ins with the law, underhand criminal happenings in the back room of a bar, gang wars. Have I said enough? Cillian Murphy in a suit perhaps?

The only thing that stops this show being further up the list is despite the overall plot being capturing, each individual episode runs slightly slow, although that won’t affect the awe-feeling at the end of each one.

If nothing else you’ll really get off on the fun of saying ‘By order, of the Peaky focking Blinders!’ again and again until you drive even yourself crazy.

https://www.netflix.com/title/80002479?s=i&trkid=13747225

4. Suits

This one nearly made me change my whole career path and choose law for a degree.

With this show you’ve really got to binge to keep up with the legal jargon but it’s oh so worth it. Mike Ross, an extremely smart college dropout is questionably hired by Harvey Specter, high flying lawyer for a prestigious New York law firm, all while hiding Mike’s secret. And wearing lots and lots of very nice suits.

You’ll be surprised how fast you get sucked into the daily going-on of the law office. Plus, you get to see Meghan Markle (fun fact: who’s real name is Rachel!) pre-royalty vibes. Sleek, sexy, sophisticated, sharp-dialogue and by episode three you’ll be singing the Greenback Boogie and buying your own ‘You Just Got Litt Up!’ mug by the end of the week.

https://www.netflix.com/title/70195800?s=i&trkid=13747225

3. Atypical

A truly honest coming of age story as Sam Gardner, a teenager on the autism spectrum, attempts to navigate high school, family, friends, love and… penguins? This is one where you’ll just have to trust me and watch to understand.

https://www.netflix.com/title/80117540?s=i&trkid=13747225

2. The Vampire Diaries

Now we’re getting down to the nitty gritty. Okays, yes, if you’re a regular binger then chances are you’ve already saw this show. This show has been on my favourites list since the day it aired in 2008. The first adaptation ever (it’s the English student in me, sorry) that was better than the book and with 171 episodes it’s the ultimate binge.

Vampires (not the sparkly kind), witches, werewolves and love triangles all clash in the small town of Mystic Falls. Granted it sounds like a chick-flick, but I know just as many boy friends as girls that have got sucked (ha, get it?) into this rollercoaster. This is my number one recommendation to anyone who asks for a new show and I’ll say now what I always say: give this show a go and once you get over the cheesiness of the angsty story-telling from the beginning of Season One, then it’ll be worth every moment.

https://www.netflix.com/title/70143860?s=i&trkid=13747225

1. Friends

Oh… my… god!

The one where it’s controversial.

You probably love it, hate it or if you’re a culchie then you’re most likely discovering it for the first time (which still baffles me). If you didn’t grow up with this show on E4 nine times a day before Comedy Central stole it then I do feel sorry for you. A truly iconic show and if you truly believe that loving it is not a personality trait then I beg to differ.

Six friends learn about life, family, careers and relationships in New York city.

With 10 seasons it’s the ultimate binge and will always place my number one!

https://www.netflix.com/title/70153404?s=i&trkid=13747225

Netflix Honourable mentions:

Money Heist (Season 1 and maybe season 2, we didn’t really need more after that)

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Because obviously: nine nine!)

South Park (yeah I know, I was against this show for years but recently just caved and #noregrats)

Lucifer (sexy devil, need I say more?)

Rick and Morty (which was originally on the list but got bumped because I’m just watching the same episodes again and again until they’ve lost all meaning now)

I hope this has helped a few people out and cut down the endless hours of scrolling before just watching something you’ve saw time and time again!

Well that’s all folks! Stay safe and happy binging! ✌🏼

#netflix #lifestyle guide #blogging #social distancing #the vampire diaries #prison break #ahs #american horror story #gilmore girls #suits #atypical #netflix top 10 #binge #quarantine and chill

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trippin-over-my-fandoms · 7 years ago

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An Appreciation Post for Arrow

With the new episodes and the new season of Arrow getting quite a bit of backlash, I haven’t hesitated to recently express how I think the show can do no wrong. I mean there are things I don’t agree with or things I would do differently but that doesn’t mean I don’t still love it.

So this post will kind of explain what I love so much about it and why I think that as well as the deeper connection I have to it, Oliver Queen, the Lance sisters, and so on.

Let’s get to it.

The first non-emotional part of it is because I was impressed with how the writers remember things. My first true “wow” moment was in like season 4 or 5 (can’t remember which season to be honest. Best bet is 5 though). I had been thinking about the flash backs in season 3 and remembered that when Oliver was searching his dad’s computer, there were video files for him and Thea. Oliver watched his later at his house but we never saw Thea’s so naturally I was curious. However, I only had to wait a scene or two and we actually did get to see it. I was so impressed. Little things like that get me all the time though. But there’s just these things like that that they do and it’s just so cool to see they don’t forget their roots.

Now for the emotional part.

Trigger warning for Suicide.

A lot of people don’t know that I actually started watching this show a little over a year ago.

Early 2017/late 2016 I was really into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles after I had finished watching a show called Haven and didn’t really have a show or movie series to watch. I liked the 2012 version mostly because my youngest cousin was into it and the little guy got me into it. I liked Casey Jones the most so when I saw Out Of The Shadows I instantly fell in love with Amell’s portrayal.

My best friend’s mom had shown me clips from season 2 of Arrow back in 2015 but I was too into Avengers and X-Men to really bother. So once I saw TMNT2 I was intrigued. I didn’t have netflix so I couldn’t start from the beginning and I wasn’t at my friend’s house enough to watch it there.

April 7th last year my uncle, on my mom’s side, past away from a suicide brought on my drugs. My mom’s youngest brother, my uncle had been the middle child, was having a really hard time shortly after so we went over to his house so my mom could talk to him and guess what, they had netflix.

My cousins had apparently watched it and really liked it so I started it from season 1 and eventually a friend gave us her netflix password so I got to catch up.

By season 2 when Moira died I was in tears. Not so much for Moira, though I did like her, but more for Oliver. I was very upset when Tommy died and I cried because I didn’t know that’s what was gonna happen and I just loved the friendship the two had, plus Tommy and Laurel were just too precious for words. However, I found myself crying for Oliver and mad at everyone who was mad at him. He didn’t go to his mom’s funeral.

Not even a full two months previous I was dealing with that. I had never been to a funeral (or a viewing, don’t ask my aunt is weird) before and I was so upset and this was so fast. It was the first death of anyone I had been pretty close to. So of course when Oliver Queen, a character I was seeing bits of myself in, didn’t go to his mom’s funeral for the same reasons I almost didn’t attend my uncle’s, I was sobbing.

Over time I became to love Laurel Lance. Her relationship with her little sister was a lot like mine with my younger sister. Oliver and Thea’s was kinda like it but they had such a huge age gap between them and the Lance’s were a lot more similar to what I had with my sister. I was Laurel and my sister was Sara. So when Laurel died of course I was crying because this female hero I had managed to come to love so much was gone. In the past I tended to like the guys more and had never related to a female this much ever. I still wish they hadn’t killed her off because she had come so far as a character. Even Black Siren has had some SERIOUS character development and she’s only been around for two seasons.

Yet I haven’t gotten to what’s become the biggest part.

This past November my grandfather, on my dad’s side, died of a whole mess of cancers. I was so close to him and it’s still so hard to deal with. So much so I started crying once I got to this part. He meant a lot to me. He was like a second father and would have given me and my sister the moon if we had asked for it. We used to visit him and my grandmother every Thursday since I was old enough to walk. Very much like a second father to me.

I am very grateful for Arrow being on Thursday nights because I have something to take my mind off the fact that this week we aren’t going to “Gram and Papa’s” that day and I can think about all the trouble Oliver is going to get himself into.

I’m also very grateful for Stephen Amell and Juliana Harakavy for being two of the most positive people I see on my instagram feed. I can’t tell you how many Arrow fanpages I unfollowed for ship shaming and opinion shaming. Everyone is so negative yet Stephen, Juliana, and even Caity Lotz continue to inspire me in everything that I go through. I cried for poor Colton Haynes when his mother past away because I was still feeling that hurt myself.

So if I am ever over protective of this show and it’s characters, here’s why.

I also have some great friends I’ve met over the internet and in real life in this particularity hard time in my own life that have just helped me through so much.

I love all of y’all.

- TOMF, aka, Liz.

#arrow #rant #vent #apprication post #love #green arrow #oliver queen #laurel lance #black canary #family #personal issues #grief #emotional stress #shit

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lonestarpost · 4 years ago

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Episode Review- “Displaced”

by @lonestarbabe

The seventh episode of season 2 is full of strong character moments that reflect the changes that many of the characters are feeling at the onset of the episode. Tommy continues to worry about how her job impacts her relationship with her daughters and husband. Further, there’s tension between Nancy and T.K. as they settle into their new roles as teammates on the ambulance. Finally, Owen and Gwyn continue to have melodramatic scenes together that take up way too much time in the episode. Despite the flaws, the episode has some heartwarming moments that make it well worth the watch. Hopefully, the episode marks the beginning of the end of Owen and Gwyn’s relationship while making space for some of the other character dynamics that are much more satisfying.

Starting, as usual, with Owen, the episode is quick to dive into the theme of the week of being “Displaced” as more conflict between Gwyn and Owen starts to spiral out of control. The episode, as has the whole first half of the season, focuses too much on the baby drama between Owen and Gwyn. Owen’s initially upset because Gwyn has moved her items in from New York and is displacing his items with her. Of course, they start to fight because these two don’t know how to communicate like normal adults. They fight, and things cool down, but they shift to their normal state of falling for the fantasy and reassuring themselves that everything will be fine without making any major changes in how they are communicating. It’s no wonder that just a few scenes later, they’re back to arguing over which items they should keep and which ones they should throw away. Then, they decide to stop fighting and have sex instead. With the way the conversation goes down, you can tell that they’ve not grown since the beginning of the season. By the end of the episode, because they never actually learned to talk to one another, they have a big fight after it’s revealed that the baby’s father is actually Enzo, Gwyn’s ex-boyfriend who she’d been with for fifteen years. In the end, Owen and Gwyn are both displaced; Gwyn leaves to find somewhere else to stay, and Owen is displaced from his role as the baby’s father.

Nancy also feels displaced. She is still grieving Tim, and T.K. comes blazing into his new position and makes changes that make Nancy feel like she’s losing her grip on her role on the team. It only makes matters worse that Tommy and T.K. get on so naturally. They’ve got a natural flow, and their vibes align so that Nancy suddenly feels like the odd one out. She tells T.K. that while the firefighters are the cool kids, the paramedics are the geeks. T.K., being a cool kid, doesn’t understand until Carlos points out that they’ve never invited Nancy to their hangouts. The tension between Nancy and T.K. is emotionally intense, and it creates drama without a bunch of useless plots (ahem Owen). Thus, the plot serves to grow T.K.’s relationship with Nancy, and it shows them getting through a natural adjustment period. The plot ends in a heartwarming moment where the 126 has put Tim’s name on the ambulance so that he can always ride with them. While it seemed to Nancy that her and Tim’s time together was displaced, those feelings are eased when the 126 welcomes Nancy into the fold.

Tommy herself feels displaced in her own home, as she has for a good portion of the season. Tommy’s one daughter is trying for her black belt, and she’s intense with Evie’s training. Tommy wants to help her daughter, but as she later finds out when she’s unwelcome to Evie’s black belt test, Tommy realizes that she made her daughter feel more nervous, and it’s a harsh truth for Tommy to face. She wants to be part of her daughters’ lives, but that love can easily turn into pressure. Tommy is naturally upset upon feeling displaced from her role as Evie’s mother, but after a talk with Grace, she’s able to begin to understand what she feels and then can talk to Charles about how she feels rather than ignoring it. She admits her worries and the jealousy she feels that she isn’t there for her kids. The hurt doesn’t go away, but by the end of the episode, you start to feel like she’s healing and learning that her place is different than it was before, but that doesn’t mean she’s any less of a mom. Tommy and Charles fight, but their fight turns into a food fight that cracks the tension in the household and allows Tommy to have a fun moment with her husband and girls, so the displacement is a temporary feeling.

There are many high points in this episode, and it’s great to see familial moments between the 126. While the Owen and Gwyn storyline is no doubt draining and has little purpose in the show, it does highlight through juxtaposition how the other characters can move forward via communication and togetherness. Owen and Gwyn, meanwhile, are mostly isolated from the other characters, and they are stuck in their own dysfunctional little bubble. Teamwork is critical for communication, and teamwork sometimes requires working through tension, as seen with T.K. and Nancy. Likewise, once Tommy understands the pressure she put on her daughter, she was able to process it and start to address some of the issues within herself and her relationships. Owen and Gwyn never work through their tension. They patch over it, and so they give themselves a reprieve from what bothers them without ever addressing the root causes. Even after talking to others, such as Judd and Tommy, Owen never seems to have a moment of clarity. He vents to other people, but he never tells how he feels to Gwyn in any of the episodes. The lack of communication ultimately means that while the other characters find their places, Owen and Gwyn never find theirs.

#text #Issue 6 #March 8 2021 #Lone Star Post #episode review #contributor: lonestarbabe

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sceawere · 7 years ago

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We’ve lost more than just the plot: my thoughts on the season 4 finale

I have a lot of problems with this season. I have problems with characterisation. I have problems with storylines. I have problems with the way things were shown (I’m looking at you, informed consent).

But last episode was so good! The Luca/Alfie scene was one of the best pieces of television I’ve had the pleasure of consuming. So, there were problems, but I went in with high hopes because, you know, it’s Peaky Blinders, and I love it, so I ignored stuff. But how am I supposed to ignore that raging inferno of a dumpster fire that was the finale. Look. I’m so mad I’m using Americanisms. On that note, give me a Changretta spin off because we deserve it.

A lot of the arguments I make here are going to circle back to a few main points which can be covered by various subtitles such as: ‘Holy Fuck, is someone going to jump a shark in the cut at some point?’, ‘Tommy Shelby is a 4D chess master, except he hasn’t told anyone else where the board is kept’, and ‘Why?’.

This is rambing and probably at times confusing but bleh. Let’s begin.

Major shout out to dorahog for her comment where she said that it seemed very truncated – I think the events of the finale should have been spread over at least two episodes, and maybe three. A lot of the tying of the knots to me still left loose threads and didn’t really seem complete.

I think this, and some of the editing as a result is what causes some of the major problems I have with the episode. Lots of rushed finishing off to introduce too many new lines, idk. Anyway, I’m going to walk through it pretty much scene by scene, so buckle in.

We spend at least the first quarter (in terms of irl play time) of the episode at the boxing match. I was pumped. It was great. The Gold’s are my new faves, and while I may try to present myself as a refined you know, whatever, I love watching two people kick six shades of shit out of each other in a semi controlled manner any day of the week.

Even better when everyone is wearing sharp tailoring and it was someone’s entire job to light the place fantastically. I was about to write an ode to the costumes and props people but then I got a shot of Abbeys wig and the feeling swiftly fled.

Still, I will give the editing people props for this particular section. The pacing was great, the frenetic activity, the flicking back and forth between sets. Here, the editing was spot on. It built up the feeling of not only the excitement, but a sense of panic. Arthurs paranoia really seeped into me and I was on edge about whether Bonnie might be just a little over his head.

Since I’m going to reference pay off recurrently, I want to point out these elements. Arthur is always a paranoid, frenetic, madman. Bonnie has been woven into this season and everything has been building to this moment. The scene with the garotte and Bonnie winning the match – that’s how you do payoff.

Before we move on, I’m focusing on Alfie’s story a lot more later, so I’m skipping over that particular scene for the moment.

I loved the scene in the loos. It was funny, it was an accurate depiction of the politics and preening that goes on, the interplay between the women was indulgent. We got exposition, we got characterisation, we got costumes that made me salivate. More of all of this please.

I’m assuming that Linda is going to get a bigger role in Season 5 – the focus on her descent into Shelby Ladyhood, and the mentions of her past and family (especially her mother) seems to point that way. Which, I for one would enjoy. I think Linda gets a lot of hate because she’s written to. She’s portrayed as the shrew who tore poor little rabid dog Arthur away and leashed him up. I don’t think their relationship is completely healthy, I think there’s co-dependence issues there. But the way I’ve seen her described in fandom is eye-rolling to an extent that I physically injured myself on at least three occasions. So, please, give me more of her as a character and less as a caricature.

I’m so upset that Tommy would lie to Finn about Arthur being dead. Finn, the baby of the family, who wasn’t in the war, and doesn’t think and feel the way they do, was lied to about his brother dying just months after his other brother died. I think it’s sick emotional manipulation and unconscionable on Tommy’s part. If you can’t trust Finn, don’t bring him near the business. You can’t have it both ways. Either he’s in and you bring him in, or you don’t, and he needs to leave. I understand keeping the circle small, but they’ve just learned with the ‘don’t tell Michael about the plan’ plan that it doesn’t really work, and you just end up causing more problems.

Tommy has no consideration for people’s emotions or their state as beings of their own. They’re players to him, pieces on a board, and he’ll move them how he wants. He gets to make all the decisions, they don’t have any real input, and they have no ability to decide if they want to accept the consequences or not, because they’re already five steps deep in the process by the time they learn about it.

Side note: I’m bored of all the plans being made off screen and magically revealed to us later. If you’ve seen the really good video essay about why Sherlock is shitty for doing this, that’s the basis of my argument. It’s not smart or exciting to say ah! Got you! When I never had a chance to work it out in the first place. It’s just kind of lazy and boring.

Also, Tommy lied to a pregnant woman and caused her great distress, so that’s nice.

I cannot believe this is the first proper scene with Isaiah we get, because opening car doors and skulking in the background doesn’t count. Jordan Bolger is a great actor who brings so much to the character and they continually waste him. Isaiah could be so much more – he’s a black, working class kid, with a preacher for a father, in a crime family, and all he gets is a two-minute scene where he’s a bystander to Finn’s character development. Give me his struggle, give me him working through the moral conflicts – even the times they’ve just shown him to be a young lad being a young lad it’s been great, give us more. I assumed with the including of him in the heist plot that he would be stepping up into actual business, but they seem to have abandoned that idea and it’s disappointing. He can firmly join the ‘they deserve better’ club.

Finn should be left to be smol and soft, those are my complete thoughts.

Also, Tommy terrifies and holds hostage a whole room of innocent people as a charade because he doesn’t give a fuck about anyone else’s feelings or autonomy any longer than they are useful to him.

Also, I love Goliath and I’m sad that with Alfie gone we’re probably not going to see anymore of him, my big son, I loved you while I had you.

We move away from the boxing scenes and get Arthur’s ‘funeral’.

I will say, I bloody love the wagons and wish my alternate theory that the Shelby’s did in fact lose everything to Luca and have to start from scratch could have happened because they were would have got more shots of them being ethereal in the forest somewhere surrounded by beautiful woodwork a la the Polly/Abbey scenes, but alas…we get this instead.

The shot of the empty room and the fireplace was beautiful, and poignant, and I’m gonna give them that.

Also, was that Karl? Thank fuck if it was because I had assumed Ada had abandoned him in the states somewhere for all we’ve seen/heard of him so far. It’s not as if any of the children are seen to be particularly important or have any type of characterisation of their own though so why am I surprised?

The way that Tommy treats Michael is ridiculous. You can’t complain about Michael keeping something back from you when you are lying to him about the exact same thing. I am so heartened by Michael saying, ‘I chose my mum’ because it not only shows that Michael isn’t Tommy Jr after all, but also that there’s a chance that the new generation will succeed the old guard after all and that this won’t just carry on forever.

Also, if Tommy can’t trust Michael with his life of all things, why would he trust him to handle the American business alone? How ridiculous. If I think someone was willing to screw me over in a double-cross that led to my death, I wouldn’t hand them the key to my secondary kingdom. Sense – this makes none.

Audrey Changretta turning up at the funeral like the badass she is and I’m so sad that her whole life has been torn apart in order to make Tommy Shelby look like a big man. Honestly, if you ask me, the Shelbys should have lost. Luca should have won. It would have made more sense, and provided such great material for next season.

The Shelby’s, having lost everything and become the people they used to rule, must fight to get back to the top. It should have been everything this season was meant to be, getting back to their roots, scrapping again. It would have provided stakes again. They need to be taken down a few pegs. If I know that Tommy is just going to fix everything off screen at the end anyway and everything turns out the same, then why am I wasting my time?

But that’s what the show has become. It started off as an interesting look at the moral complexities of the family, how they worked together, struggling to be something other than what they were destined for by the people who consistently maligned them. Now it’s a show about how amazing Tommy Shelby is. But the only way they’ve made Tommy Shelby great, is by making everyone else an idiot.

Tommy is a 4D chess-master, but only because no else knows where the table is being kept.

Luca Changretta was introduced as what should have been the most terrifying antagonist yet. And they turned him into an idiot. Luca Changretta, mob boss, doesn’t know to leave men behind to keep an eye on the kingdom? Bullshit.

I understand that Tommy is the main guy and has plot armour, but he doesn’t need to be the centre of the universe to be compelling as a character. This guy has manipulated Churchill and the king, got a city, a country, and an empire revolving around him, been given an OBE and now is an MP. But he can’t count two steps in front of himself and predict that killing a mob boss’ father might bring the mob down on him? He never really sees the consequences of his actions. His wife dying didn’t change him as a person, he just got meaner. His brother dying didn’t change him as a person, he just got reckless. I need a little bit more.

Alfie is such a beloved character not just because Tom Hardy plays him so well, not just because he belts out hilarious nonsense like a slightly faulty spitfire, but because he’s a match for Tommy. A much-needed match. He can go toe-to-toe with him, hell, even half the time get one over on him. He tells it straight when he knows Tommy needs it, and he doesn’t take his bullshit. He’s a breath of fresh air in a show that wants to convince us the literal world (or at least the empire, and America, and the political-social climate of the period, and every woman in sights life) revolves around Thomas Shelby.

Even add Campbell to that pile. He was a shit show. He was disgusting. He was mildly inept at times. But he was menacing. He had political connections. You knew he was the guy they sent out to do the work that everyone turned an eye to, and how much damage he could cause without official recompense. But in the end, it wasn’t Grand Master Tommy who got him – it was Grace, and then Polly. Hell hath no fury like women scorned, and the beauty came so much more from the fact that it wasn’t the person who he perceived as his adversary that ended up doing him in. Someone he trusted, and someone he abused, doing what needed to be done. The priest last season was menacing because of the same, and in the end, it wasn’t Tommy that brought him down, it was Michael. It meant something because it was Michael.

I don’t see how killing Luca makes sense except it as a way to make Tommy look good and have the big Arthur reveal, which was bullshit anyway. There was little pay off there.

And Alfie. Oh, sweet love, Alfie. So, not only do they take what is pretty much the most beloved character in the fandom, even casuals love the shit out of this man, and dispatch of him like a secondary mop up, but they do it in such a shitty way.

When the spoilers came out about Alfie’s cancer I had a personal reflexive ‘well fuck off with that’ having just lost someone irl to a long and messy cancer battle, so mainly I pushed it away and thought ‘ah, that won’t get dealt with yet, they’ve done nothing about it for season upon season, it’s probably just internal backstory bullshit’. Nope.

Alfie has been chronically underused in this show, and I understand it. I think the rare glimpses we get are so powerful that it makes sense. It’s Christmas Day. It’s an island in the sea of winter, and the anticipation’s half the fun. You get presents every day, and you’re just going to turn out to be a spoiled brat. But we spend seasons adoring this guy who lives in the damn shadows, scrapping together parts of his life so that we can better understand him, only to be fed a massive plot point as an offhand spoiler and then have the entire thing resolved in what felt like 20 minutes? There was no anticipation. There were no stakes. There was no payoff. I was just…sighing, mostly.

I knew when he started talking about Margate that I was about to be emotionally ruined, but I expected at least to get a fitting end. But no. We got Alfie screwing Tommy over again in a predictable but fucking useless way. We got Tommy shooting him on a beach and walking away. And that was it.

I think the Tommy breakdown scenes would have had a bigger impact on me two seasons ago when I still had care for his character, but I just used the time to check my messages, so it didn’t really land with me tbh. The whole last segment of this ep just flew over me.

The malignment of Jessie Eden’s character will likely get a post of its own soon. Except I am going to say here that I’m entirely sure that what Tommy is doing counts as sexual assault – see the case of the woman who had a child with someone she didn’t know was an undercover agent in her what I think was also Communist action group, and also the new laws that stop undercover people from sleeping with those they are surveying. Because you can’t give informed consent. But they’re probably not going to address that, because we have a love triangle to deal with now.

Also, Tommy abandoned a dog and tampered with an election so he’s everyone I hate now. You don’t come for the animals or the democratic process. Taking inspiration from my dear love, Alfie Solomons, what a fucking cunt.

But besides that, it was fine.

#peaky blinders spoilers

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love-takes-work · 7 years ago

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SDCC 2017 Rebecca Sugar interview

Rewind and Pause interviewed Rebecca Sugar in this fifteen-minute interview. Here’s a sorta-transcript–not word for word, but basically what the questions are and how she answered, paraphrased.

Question: A lot of the show's symbolism is inspired by Utena. Can you discuss that show's influence?

Rebecca: When I was a teen, that show was an epiphany for me! It plays with the semiotics of gender and I was a bisexual teen relating to it in a way I'd never related to anything before. The show is beautiful and I love that she decides she wants to BE a prince after being saved by a prince. And it's also funny. It's so extreme that it's funny, and that was a huge influence on me as well, that something could be so dramatic and so beautiful but also wacky. It's so extreme that it's powerful at the same time as being funny. I got to see the origins and see Guys and Dolls at the Takarazuka Theater when I visited Japan. Osamu Tezuka grew up in that town! You know, Princess Knight, which has everything to do with Utena. I got to see some of the roots there and it was a big influence. Amazing.

Question: Another influence, especially lately, you can draw comparisons between Steven's miracles and Christ figures. Are you exploring this, and potentially modernizing that allegory, with different kinds of love?

Rebecca: We're inspired by every voice that has ever spoken about peace. I think--I've been reading about Hillel the Elder and how he said "If I'm not for myself, then who will be for me?" The gentleness with which he approached everything is really inspiring to me. I think that I'm very influenced by my Jewish upbringing. I'm half Jewish and was raised Jewish. I've felt the feeling of belonging but not belonging. I've been moved by this incredible history and this wonderful community that I wanted to understand and be a part of. That's all been a big influence on the show as well. It was all about growing up with my brother, and that was a big part of my life. There's a lot of spiritualism in the show.

Question: I wanna ask you about the color symbolism? And I'd be remiss if I didn't say thank you for showing our community on TV. About Steven: His Gem is pink, his shield is pink, his sword is pink, his shoes are pink! It subverts the tropes of a traditional male hero. Was that intentional?

Rebecca: Oh, it's COMPLETELY intentional. Yeah, I think one of the things I wanted to do as I went into the show was address how intensely gendered shows for children are and dissolve that. That was my first goal. And I think it came in large part because as a little kid I always gravitated toward boys' shows, and I felt extremely guilty about that. And I don't think my child self should have had to feel bad, but I understood "this is not really for me." So as we went into this, I wanted NO ONE to have to feel that. I wanted everyone who wanted to, to feel it was for them. Especially since it's gender nonconforming as a show.

Question: Silly question: Peridot and Lapis are roommates. What do you think their biggest pet peeves are of each other? If they have any, I mean.

Rebecca: Gosh. I think Lapis is sort of both annoyed and comforted by Peridot's infinite energy. I often thought of them like the sort of old cartoon idea of a small dog and a big sort of like doesn't-really-care dog. With a small very very excited dog. I felt that that was a dynamic for them. So I think that that, like those characters, it's annoying to Lapis but she doesn't actually dislike it.

Question: Congrats on the Emmy nomination!

Rebecca: THANK YOU!

Question: I hope we get to see "It's Over, Isn't It?" and "Both of You" during the Emmys. How do you feel?

Rebecca: I'm so excited, and I'm so glad it's that one. It was such a fun dream to make a musical episode. I always loved those, they're always my favorite. I couldn't wait to do ours. Everyone was firing on all cylinders for that episode. I got to do music with Jeff Liu and Ben Levin, and Aivi and Surasshu's compositions for the finals were stunning, the backgrounds are incredible, the art is so beautiful, it's Jeff Liu and Joe Johnston's last board together, it was one of the last episodes I got to work on with Ian before he left to do his show, so it also has a special place in my heart, I remember seeing it come back and being in the edit bay watching it and my eyes were welling up because "this is it, this is everything I ever wanted."

Question: Not to mention Deedee crushing it.

Rebecca: She's amazing! And that was when she was doing Tommy! So we got her on a day she'd been doing shows all day, and she came and knocked that out.

Question: First take?

Rebecca: We did several, but all of those takes were amazing. I love writing songs for Deedee. And that one, it has some notes in it that I cannot hit. But I know Deedee can do it.

Question: Now when you write songs, you hear a lot of the demos you write on ukulele a lot, but you play other instruments. Do you find that you write differently depending on what instrument you're writing for?

Rebecca: Yes! Oh, completely. I have my go-to ukulele chords. But I also like to write songs on the omnichord, which is like a synthetic harpsichord from the 80s. And it has a row of buttons, you hit a button and you get that chord. I can use it for experimentation for chords I might not have thought of. I got one off eBay, the OM-84, and it was a little buggy, it wouldn't play right, would go out of tune, and I took it to get it looked at, and these incredibly corroded batteries fell out of it! With this cloud of red dust! So I can't put batteries in it anymore. But I can plug it in and it still works.

Question: So for "Love Like You," is it connected to any of the characters or any point of view, or was it more a one-off?

Rebecca: "Love Like You" is so unusual. It started as a point-of-view song for all Gems, and the thesis of the whole show, sort of toward Steven, and my own brother Steven, but because it was the credits, I wrote the song over three years in little pieces. I thought at the start that this is about an alien that's looking at a human, who loves them, and the secret meaning of this is that they don't have the capacity to feel this way. By the middle of it I was deep into the show and going through a real crisis of confidence, where I was like "why are people looking to me? It's not right!" and these people were coming out of the woodwork to thank me for the show, people who had been able to speak to their families in these wonderful new ways, people who had become comfortable with themselves in these incredible ways that I had not been able to do! Where I was like "I'm so inspired by everyone! Why are they thanking me?" So the middle of the song I was sort of in that place. And about a year later, I realized the beginning was not what I had thought it was about at all. It's not a secret meaning about an alien who doesn't understand humans. It's about the fact that I had always loved my brother and had these people who would love me unconditionally in my life, and because of my insecurity I had not been able to be there for them 100%, and I realized this was maybe one of the most human things I'd ever written, and I had written it by accident. So I got to conclude it. It was seriously written over 3 years.

Question: Recently we talked about how the show has been dramatic and full of conflict. It's great but do you ever have concerns about taking the show--it's a very positive show, so does the conflict have the potential to go too far, or do you like making it more challenging?

Rebecca: I'm excited to be more ambitious with the story, and the danger they're experiencing also feels like a danger for us who are writing the show. Writing stories that are more ambitious and challenging. It feels necessary, because it's about how love conquers all, but you can't write that story without showing what comes up against that. I'm excited to explore the--you're right, it's scary to explore where hate comes from in a show about love. I want to--it's a challenge to stay positive while exploring that. But that's a challenge I experience in LIFE. And that's a challenge we're all experiencing right now. So it also feels like the time to explore that in myself and in the show.

#steven universe #rebecca sugar #sdcc17 #rebecca sugar interview #long post #myblog

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aion-rsa · 4 years ago

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WandaVision Episode 3 Theories Explained

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article contains spoilers for WandaVision episodes 1-3, and the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The internet is full of places to go and thrash it out with likeminded overthinkers if you become obsessed with a particular TV show. Lost, Breaking Bad, Twin Peaks and Game of Thrones all boasted thriving fan communities who had a blast dreaming up theories about where their series’ story was heading. Now, Marvel’s WandaVision has tapped into the natural curiosity of viewers with its wall-to-wall Easter eggs and mysterious MCU nods, and people have gone full ‘It’s Always Sunny red string meme’ over them.

You don’t need to dig too far to find comment sections, YouTube videos and Reddit threads jam-packed with theories about WandaVision, so we’ve been mulling over what might be going on beneath the surface.

Here are some of the most intriguing fan theories about WandaVision, three episodes in…

Online Catch

Just as Ultron’s consciousness could escape into the internet during Avengers: Age of Ultron, a developing WandaVision theory posits that Vision didn’t exactly ‘die’ by Thanos (and Wanda’s) hand in Avengers: Infinity War, but found a safe space to hide online instead, much like JARVIS did after Ultron destroyed him in the lab.

By creating a new reality stitched together from old TV sitcoms and potentially using the late Tony Stark’s burgeoning BARF tech, Wanda may have found a way to slowly bring Vision back to his body without the Mind Stone as an essential component – hey, Shuri thought was an option – but if these efforts to retrieve Vision from the internet are all above board, why is SWORD so desperate to get information on what’s happening inside Wanda’s Westview nook?

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 10

Camp Lehigh

Camp Lehigh has popped up in the MCU a fair few times so far. The New Jersey military base was where Captain America trained in the 1940s, has been a SHIELD facility, a HYDRA hub, and a storage home for the Tesseract. Lehigh even housed Arnim Zola’s brain after his body died. Since Westview is supposedly in New Jersey, is it really Camp Lehigh?

There’s a theory that after the Avengers compound was destroyed during Avengers: Endgame, Wanda may have been taken to a hastily-rebuilt Camp Lehigh in the midst of her grief, eventually constructing a forcefield around an altered version of it at some point and shutting out SWORD, hence SWORD’s continuing efforts to penetrate it.

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 8

Power Swap

Some viewers were puzzled by Vision’s accelerated speed when he flipped through the playing cards during his magic act in episode 2 and when he ran to get the doctor in episode 3, which we haven’t really seen before as part of his powers. Vision can phase through matter, and can also fly at an accelerated speed, but these moments felt more Quicksilver-ish in their nature. Has Wanda or whoever is behind the creation of Westview pieced this new version of Vision together with shattered memories of others that she’s loved and lost?

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 8

Welcome to Skrullville

Wanda’s Westview neighbors may not be willing or able to reveal their true nature yet, but some people are wondering whether they will turn out to be a gang of shapeshifting Skrulls, just like Ben Mendelsohn’s Captain Marvel character, Talos. How the Skrulls could have possibly become roped into the scenario is currently anyone’s guess, but we do know the alien race will play a pivotal role in Marvel’s upcoming Nick Fury-centric Disney+ series, Secret Invasion.

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 7

Young Avengers

Now that Wanda’s twins could conceivably grow up to become their Wiccan and Speed comics counterparts, it may be a chance for Marvel to pave the way for Young Avengers, a team whose line-up has previously included Kate Bishop (soon to be introduced in Disney+ series Hawkeye), Cassie Lang (Ant-Man’s now-grownup daughter) and America Chavez (already reportedly cast in Doctor Strange in the Multitude of Madness). We wrote more about Billy and Tommy, and what they could mean for the MCU, right here.

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 5

The Butterfly Effect

We’ve been told that WandaVision will set up the events of Marvel’s Sorcerer Supreme sequel, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, so fans have been keeping their eyes peeled for ties to Strange’s comics history and his MCU story so far. Episode 3 seemed to make a couple of nods to the good Doctor – after Westview’s OB-GYN Dr. Nielson checks on Wanda’s pregnancy progress, Vision assures him he has nerves of steel, and calls him “Mr. Doctor”, a callback to Strange’s banter with villain Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen).

There are also the butterflies that materialize as Wanda is preparing to give birth to her twins, one of which lands on Vision and looks very similar to the first ‘out of place’ thing Strange sees after he’s taken on a mind-melting tour of the multiverse by The Ancient One in Doctor Strange. As he heads up into the Earth’s atmosphere, Strange notices a single butterfly remarkably like those that flutter into Wanda’s nursery, and when The Ancient One begins to talk Strange through opening his mind’s eye, she asks “What is real? What mysteries lie beyond the reach of your senses? At the root of existence, mind and matter meet. Thoughts shape reality.” Hmm…

Rewatched Doctor Strange and noticed something…..interesting from WANDAVISION

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 5

Westview Is Mephisto’s Womb

There’s a theory flying around online that Westview is acting as a kind of mystical womb that will eventually give birth to a fully-realised Mephisto in our world. The Marvel Comics villain and all-around pain in the ass has already been teased in a trailer for Disney+’s Loki series, but may first come to fruition inside Wanda’s powerful-but-twisted reality.

A specific creature has featured in each episode of WandaVision so far. Some fans think these are Mephisto’s evolving “animal stages” – first appearing as a lobster to represent “mating for life” (they don’t, but sitcom Friends played a large part in the myth), a rabbit representing reproduction, and a stork manifesting during the “birth” stage of episode 3. Will Wanda and Vision get a young puppy in the next episode? Probably!

An trailer image from a future episode of WandaVision, where you can see a doghouse marked “Sparky”

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 5

Hawkeye Will Save the Day

Apart from Vision, Clint Barton is the Avenger with the closest relationship to Wanda. He inspired her to take action and fight her way through her fear during the final battle with Ultron and his hoards in Avengers: Age of Ultron, and it was Clint who came to her aid when Tony Stark put her under house arrest in Captain America: Civil War.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

At the time, Tony took his frustrations out on Steve for helping to concoct the plan to pull Wanda out, saying Steve rescued Wanda “from a place she doesn’t even want to leave, a safe place.” Scarlet Witch didn’t take much convincing to leave the Avengers’ compound during Civil War, so Tony’s assertions felt off, but in WandaVision she genuinely doesn’t seem to want to leave her safe bubble.

Though many online rumors point to Doctor Strange facing off against Wanda at the end of the series, will Hawkeye actually be the one who breaks through to her?

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 5

No It’s Becky

It’s long been rumored that Evan Peters has a role in WandaVision. The actor continued to play the X-Men’s Pietro Maximoff, aka Quicksilver, long after the MCU had killed off its own version of the speedster at the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron, and he quickly became a fan favorite. Could WandaVision’s upcoming Roseanne homage be key to how Peters briefly enters the MCU?

If you recall, Roseanne Barr’s successful sitcom replaced her daughter Becky with another actress – Scrubs star Sarah Chalke – when original star Lecy Goranson left, and the audience was expected to accept it. With Wanda’s mind now lingering on the loss of her twin brother Pietro, this could be the kind of classic TV trope we could expect to see, and it would also be a fun-but-bittersweet appearance for Marvel fans who have probably seen the last of Peters as Quicksilver in the X-Men film franchise.

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 4

Ad Infinity

HYDRA has clearly been a factor in WandaVision’s commercial breaks, with the organization’s logo appearing during two of them so far, but what if the theme of the ads goes beyond its callback to Wanda’s pre-Age of Ultron experiments under HYDRA boss Baron Wolfgang von Strucker, and represents the unique capabilities of the Infinity Stones, too?

A growing swathe of MCU fans think the Stark toaster represents the Power Stone, the Strucker watch represents the Time Stone, and that the team behind WandaVision weren’t really hiding Hydra Soak’s likeness to the Space Stone/Tesseract during episode 3.

Post-Endgame, the stones were reduced to the atomic level by Thanos, but the Space Stone may still be out there in its Tesseract form thanks to Loki’s thieving hands. It can’t be a coincidence that Hydra Soak is the more fully-formed MacGuffin here, can it?

Is it just me or those the “Hydra Soak” look a lot like the tesseract… from WANDAVISION

Pinches of Paprika Out of Ten: 3

Have you heard any compelling new theories about WandaVision since episode 3 arrived? Let us know in the comments.

The post WandaVision Episode 3 Theories Explained appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2YcsVFE

#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

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ruwithmeguys · 7 years ago

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Olicity Fanfic Rec List:

(You’ll find all of these on AO3 unless I specify otherwise)

There’s so much love in this fandom and a great way to express them is to write fanfiction! I’ve had a tiny but if a difficult time recently - my mum was ill, ambulances, hospital and lost of chocolate (me) was involved - and I haven’t been able to write a thing.

Coming back to it, I took a quick look through all the bookmarks I’ve near-to obsessed over in the past and thought I’d write this list. @scu11y22 is to thank so if you actually manage to find one you haven’t read, then go send her a word :)

(This list is not exhaustive) They are to be: multi-chapt, slow burn, well written, mature, no threesomes (ditto x 1000), no kids and AU/canon divergent... and not @so-caffeinated and @dust2dust34 AMAZING FICON

So.

Legacies series by @chronicolicity

Part 1 is called You’re His Hope ( Felicity struggling to save Oliver's humanity after losing him to the League of Assassins. Anything else would legit be a spoiler. Expect drama, romance, angst, humor, plot and plot TWISTS. Sparked by some amazing Tumblr theories I apologize in advance for completely ruining.) And so on and so forth.

The Crow

(Bratva Captain Oliver Queen has been looking for revenge his entire life. When he can’t trust his own family, the Bratva to get it, he finds the answer to all of his problems in Felicity Smoak; a genius hacker who is running for her life from the same object of Oliver’s hatred, The Triad. With an unlikely partnership, The Crow might just find out that light can shine in the darkest of places.)

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING EVER TO EXIST BY @anthfan JUST MAYBE?

AO3 Address: Anthfan

(My personal fav is the Devil’s Backbone)

When the Day Comes

“Have you talked to her?”

“Yeah.”

“So you'll call her-” Thea sent a teary look back through the window at Tommy.

“I'll call her if he wakes up.”

“When,” she gripped him fiercely then, her little nails digging into his forearm, “when Tommy wakes up.”

Oliver nodded, “Yes, of course.” His tone as hollow as his smile had been.

An all time favourite of mine: Sins by @smoakandarrow

(Oliver Queen is alive.After being presumed dead in a violent shipwreck five years ago, Oliver Queen returns to Starling City determined to right the wrongs of his family. But the billionaire playboy's homecoming stirs more than feelings for joy; it threatens secrets someone is determined to keep buried. Secrets that threaten the life Oliver has just reclaimed, and the lives of those he loves the most.Vowing to protect his family at any cost, Oliver digs deeper, bringing danger to his doorstep, and leaving him with the shocking realization that the sins of the past are rooted much closer to home than he ever thought.When friends may be enemies, when enemies may be his best allies, when love is used as a smokescreen to hide the most vicious hate, Oliver isn't sure who he can trust. He just knows that he'll do anything to protect those he loves... even it means dying all over again.)

You Have Not Failed This Verse by @so-caffeinated

(Sometimes a payday ain't exactly what it seems.) Don’t let the brief description fool you. It’s incredible.

Hands

(Felicity knows her place in Oliver's life. She's the sidekick not the love interest. But in the Summer after the artificial earthquake lots of things can change.)

The Ways of the Universe

(No two epic love stories are the same. For Oliver and Felicity, it's quite the long road. What with all the crime-fighting, and super-secret identities, and emotionally-stunted men, and old flames, and meddlesome friends and family. Some goats, too. Picks up right after the end of 'City of Heroes' (2x01). Any similarities with the rest of S2 are, for the most part, coincidental.)

What Happened in Vegas - a very different take on the usual Vegas hookup fics

(It's all fun and games until you wake up hung-over and married to a stranger. Five years ago Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak made a drunken mistake that could never be corrected. After years on a hellish island he comes back as a man on a mission only to find out that what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas. (Season One Rewrite))

Every single story by @supersillyanddorky06 but especially Predator

(Oliver Queen is the one anomaly in the Chicago Outfit. He is the only non-blooded member to be a part of the high circle in the family. His reputation precedes him and he is their best hunter. Felicity Smoak, daughter of the Starling boss, infiltrates his house, intent on killing him. But a startling encounter tips the scales. He goes on the prowl and she escapes. Hate, heat, and friction. Sparks. But something bigger is happening in their world. And despite their disagreements, only they can fight it down. Mob AU. Not Bratva. Enemies-lovers. You'll want to bash their heads sometimes. Stuff will happen. Enjoy! )

The Legacy Series by @ash818 (I’m sort of in love with this universe: it involves Oliver and Felicity’s children and it’s a wonderful and very serious - possibly quite honest - look at what the future might look like for them. Plus, I wrote a one-shot for this. SHE’S THAT GOOD.)

(It's 2039, and Jonathan Queen cannot stop looking for trouble. Then trouble finds him and his family, and Jonny discovers that there is more to his parents than he ever suspected. He must learn to bear the weight of his parents' past, and he must learn fast, because time is running out for his mother.)

Most of these aren’t finished but this one hurts me because it’s been left alone:

Somewhere Out There

(When Felicity falls through a gate that takes her to a parallel universe, she finds herself in a world that is so much like her own, except for one very important thing.)

Layers

(I feel sad. Wanted something to cheer myself up. This is the result.I have no set dates for updating, so bear with me.This is the Bratva fic no one wanted. Note - I like that Oliver isn't possessive. I also like when women have agency. You will find both here. This is a Oliver/Felicity-centric story.)

His Girl Wednesday and Some Things Are Meant to Be

Insanely long fics (THANK GOD): Missing her interview for a position in the IT department of QC, Felicity Smoak meets Oliver Queen, son of the CEO and future CEO himself. Only Oliver doesn’t take the company as seriously as he should and after yet another fiasco with his assistant, his mother decides to take matter into her own hands and select one with more qualifications than long legs and deep cleavage. In an effort to get her off his back, he pretends he already hired one: the blonde nerdy girl he met a few minutes ago.Or when Arrow and Ugly Betty crash in my head (except we all know Felicity could never be ugly). It is mostly Arrow, I borrow a few plot ideas/characters from Ugly Betty.

Sequel: Three years ago, Oliver went on a cruise on the Gambit and never came back, leaving Felicity devastated. She forced herself to move on with her life, trying to forget that the love they had shared was one she'd never get to live again.

Except Oliver didn't die on that boat. But no matter how much he wants to, he knows he can't come back. Too many things happened, and the only way to keep his loved ones safe is to stay as far away from them as possible.

It all changes when Felicity starts questioning the circumstances of the accident that took him away from her...

One More From the Top

(In the aftermath of his fight with Ras Al Ghul, Oliver finds himself somewhere unexpected: his hospital room when he first came back from the Island.With a second chance to right the mistakes he’s made since coming back to Starling City, what will Oliver do to save the people he’s loved and lost?Will he be able to change his past or will be he forced to watch history repeat itself?)

Break

(After the events of Unthinkable, Felicity burns out from Arrow activities. So she takes a step back to get some air. This story tracks Felicity's journey of becoming a heroine in her own right as she helps form the Justice League.)

Good, Better, Best Series by redtoes - a three part series each specifying how O + F got together and stayed together. Not very long but 15 chapters so...

The Grand Adventures of Felicity Smoak

(a.k.a How Felicity did not save the day.Felicity's father comes back only to take her away from the life and the people she loves. But sometimes, it takes a series of misadventures for a girl to discover how badass she really is and how valuable she is to her friends. She gets in trouble, gets rich, gets in trouble, gets hurt, gets in trouble again and gets the guy.Canon divergence. From in mid s02 before the revelation of Slade Wilson.)

Another I need to mention - though it isn’t a multi-chap slow burn - is: This Love Thing

Also a short fic but there aren’t that many slow burns around :) is Love Me Like I’m Not Made of Stone

(When meeting Felicity, Oliver has a flashback. Afterwards, he flees, leaving behind his 'latted' laptop. She further investigates on her own, but lurking underneath everything else is Felicity's concern for Oliver. Just like with anything that matters to her – she doesn't know why he matters but he does, she can't let the episode – what she fears to be PTSD – go.)

The Darkest Hour

(just weeks after moving to Starling City, Felicity Smoak is kidnapped for information she does not have. She endures weeks of torture before she is rescued by a man in green leather and his partner, John Diggle. As Felicity begins to put the pieces of her life back together, she realizes the trauma she suffered changed her in unexpected ways. Restless and with a driving need to help others the way the man in green helped her, she finds herself using her brilliant mind and considerable computer skills to follow a different path fraught with danger and violence. As Felicity grows closer to the Green Arrow and Diggle, helping them in their cause to save Starling City, the three struggle against unseen enemies, and discover the unexpected truth behind her kidnapping.)

All in a Day’s Work

(By 9:00 a.m., she had broken a heel, lost her cell phone, and been the victim of a coffee catastrophe. By 9:30 a.m. she had “borrowed” the NSA mainframe. By 10:00 a.m., she was engaged to Oliver Queen. Really, it was all in a day’s work. Plotty, fluffy fun with a side dish of heart.)

The Best of Friendships have Benefits

(like Communism or time travel, having a sex-buddy sounds a lot better in theory than in practice. However, Oliver and Felicity see it as a means to rebuild each other. So, inevitable consequences be damned, they still give it a go, not expecting to gain a whole lot more than what they initially bargained for.)

Also, most fics by @yellowflicker09011996 will make you want to tear out your own heart but one of my favourites is: All The Worthy Places (They say if you get hungry enough, you start eating your own heart. When she sits on top of him, arms and legs tight around him and kisses his mouth like she wants to eat him alive, Oliver believes it. ) and To Rage Against the Dying Light (There could be no time to think, no moment to feel. The dark was going to engulf him till there was nothing left, if he so much as flinched.He had known grief and he had known fear but this… this was wordless.Nobody had ever told him that ruin felt so much like death.)

The Fall Verse by @callistawolf

(Taking place directly after the events in “Sacrifice” (the season 1 finale), Felicity tries to pull Oliver back from the edge. But is Oliver ready to be pulled back? Or is he ready for the fall?)

Step By Step

(During the summer between seasons two and three, Oliver and Felicity are attempting to navigate their new status post-fake but not actually fake I love you's, and a kiss that may or may not have meant everything. Or: What would have been different for Oliver and Felicity if that summer had been about both of them truly coming to terms with what they meant to each other. Basically - Felicity decides to live her life, and Oliver realizes that her life doesn’t necessarily include him as much as he may want. How he reacts, and how Felicity responds to his actions, shape the future of their relationship.)

City of Fallen heroes

(Five years ago, Felicity was kidnapped and forced to do the unthinkable in order to return home. Convinced she couldn’t be the loving wife Oliver deserved, she left and tried to keep her darkness from hurting their daughters. The return of an old enemy will force Felicity to decide if she’s the monster she thought she was— or the hero her family believes her to be.)

Absolution

(It’s been two years since the Atom invented a plague that wiped out most of Starling City. With a ruthless government agency in control, and a hooded vigilante fighting to shut the Atom down, Felicity Smoak quickly learns that life post-apocalypse isn’t exactly like it seemed in movies.)

He Deserves a Shot at Being Happy alos by @chronicolicity

(Short version: an AU where Tommy Merlyn didn't die, and is around for season 2 of Arrow.Long version: Tommy Merlyn has spent most of his life being an expensive disappointment to his family, but now he's a part-owner of a semi-successful nightclub in the worst area of town (it's seriously looking up) alongside his best friend, who — after five years on a deserted island — decided to come back to be a freaking vigilante. It's a long story, one that's longer than Tommy wants to remember, but it took the Glades collapsing and the death of one of their best friends to get him officially done with being a troublemaker. Nothing interesting. Just running a nightclub, and trying not to get into any trouble.Oliver's been gone god knows where for most of the summer, which means he's stuck being the big brother to the guy's snarky little sister, whose boyfriend "Ron" seems completely set on getting himself killed. An afternoon of test-driving Verdant's new cocktails gets interesting when Felicity Smoak and John Diggle show up asking (more) questions about where to find Oliver, and Tommy has to decide whether he wants to keep his new rule.Spoiler alert: he doesn't.) It’s so good guys... THE SLOWEST OF SLOW BURNS BUT SO FLIPPING REWARDING.

In Another Life

(Their lives couldn't be more different - and yet Oliver can't take his eyes off the beautiful blonde woman that leaves the subway every morning at 7.43am. There is something about her that makes him look up every morning - something that also makes him aware he'll never be good enough for her, or that she'd even notice him.He had no idea how much his life would change the day he rushed over to help her...Olicity AU - no Lian Yu, no saving the city (at least not in the way we know from Arrow :D ))

Felicity Takes a Holiday

(Frustrated by Oliver's apparent indifference, Felicity takes a solo trip to NYC where she meets with unexpected dangers. Is it super-soldiers amped up on Mirakuru, or Beasts created by Muirfield? Starts at the end of Season 2; a story of how Oliver comes to realize that he is in love with Felicity, told with help from CW's Beauty and the Beast and a whole lot of Diggle.)

What’s a Little History Between Me and You by @sarcasticfina

([Canon-Divergent] In the wake of The Undertaking, Felicity returns to Starling City when her brother Tommy is severely injured, and soon finds her world turned completely upside down.)

THERE AREN’T THAT MANY SLOW BURNS @scu11y22

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saebrfan · 8 years ago

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Well, that’s a hell of a way to kick off the final stretch of the season, isn’t it? Tonight’s spectacular episode of Arrow set the stage for a tense, thrilling, and emotional conclusion to Season 5, a season that has been, in my opinion, the show’s best since the unmatched Season 2. However, if the next four episodes of Arrow can reach the same incredible heights that “Dangerous Liaisons” hits, there’s a chance that Season 5 could match, if not surpass the quality of Arrow‘s outstanding second season. But in order to do that, the show is going to need to do what it does when it’s at its best and focus on the Holy Trinity of characters, the Big Three, the OTA: Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle.

The reason why “Dangerous Liaisons” is one of the best episodes of Season 5 is because it turns its attention over to Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle and allows the three of them to have meaningful interactions with one another. There are debates over morality and whether the ends justify the means, but none of it feels like surface-level superhero discussions and that’s all because it’s rooted in the deep, powerful history that that these three characters share.

Simply look at all the mentions and nods to the past in tonight’s episode if you need proof of that. When Diggle tells Oliver that the two of them know what grief can do to a person, he’s specifically referencing not just Laurel’s death but also Tommy’s and Moira’s and, of course, Andy’s. And when Felicity calls out Oliver for not having her back, for not supporting her actions like she has supported his throughout the five years she’s been a part of Team Arrow, it’s easy to remember the countless times that Felicity went along with Oliver’s more problematic plans or allowed him to use his less-than-ethical methods to take down villains that were threatening Star City.

But more importantly, what Felicity says in that final scene, and really what she and Oliver say to each other throughout the entirety of this episode, reminds us of how essential their relationship is to Arrow‘s DNA. What the two of them have can’t simply be defined as a romance; they’re not just like every other TV love story. As we’ve seen numerous times throughout Arrow‘s five seasons, Felicity Smoak has been and remains Oliver Queen’s conscience—she’s his most enthusiastic supporter and his harshest critic, the voice inside his head who constantly tells him that he can be better and do better, even when he keeps doubting himself.

However, in “Dangerous Liaisons,” the roles are reversed, as Oliver tries to bring Felicity back from the brink of darkness, and even though he isn’t successful, it still serves as an important piece of their story and a major sign of his evolution. The Oliver Queen of old, the person who was more monster than man, would have never objected to Felicity’s work with Helix and their plan to break Cayden James free from ARGUS custody; if their actions ensured that they would be able to track Chase, the old version of Oliver would haven’t blinked an eye at breaking the law or injuring innocent ARGUS agents. Now, though, after Chase has forced him to confront the monster inside and after five years of Felicity’s constant, unwavering support, Oliver is finally ready to be that conscience for Felicity—he is ready to encourage her and advise her to make the right choice for all the right reasons, to ensure that she doesn’t fall into the same pit of darkness that he has been trapped inside of in the past, and to help her be the best version of herself.

All of this is why Oliver and Felicity are finally at a place now in which they can believably reunite as a couple. While the two of them have always had magnificent chemistry and have always possessed the ability to make one another laugh or smile (just look at the grin on Oliver’s face after Felicity mentions that he’s finally using the front door of her apartment in tonight’s episode), they needed to reach a place of growth and maturity, a place in which they both could be sounding boards for each other, strong individuals that bring out the best in one another. That was there before in terms of Felicity always bringing the best out of Oliver, always inspiring him to be a true hero, someone that the people of Star City could look up to. But now that Oliver has confronted his demons, that he’s dealt with his original sin of being a killer for killing’s sake, he’s finally able to purge himself of the guilt and pain that restricted him before, that caused him to lie and keep secrets, which is the whole reason why Felicity broke off their engagement in the first place. Oliver is now ready and worthy to be a true partner to Felicity, and with next week’s episode, “Underneath,” centering on the two of them and featuring pretty much nothing but Oliver/Felicity scenes, I think he’ll be able to prove that to his former fiancée and put them on the path to their romantic reunion.

The Oliver/Felicity conflict in tonight’s Arrow is extremely well-written, but it also helps that Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards are fantastic throughout the hour, delivering what might be their best work since “Who Are You?” (another terrific episode that primarily focused on Oliver and Felicity—hmm, I’m sensing a pattern here). David Ramsey is also absolutely heartbreaking, as Diggle deals with the fact that Lyla, unlike Felicity, might not be able to be brought back from the darkness and that, despite how much he loves his wife, the two of them may never be able to resolve the problems that broke them up years ago. I’m still hopeful that Lyla’s turn here, as she begins to understand why Amanda Waller was the way she was, isn’t permanent and that she and Dig will be able to find a way to make it through this. However, whether the two of them can bounce back from these ARGUS-related issues or not, Diggle is going to need friends to lean on, and you better believe that it will be Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak. Just like he’s been there for them throughout their years of up-and-down romance and emotional turmoil, they will do the same for him.

Outside of all the outstanding emotional moments throughout “Dangerous Liaisons,” the episode also offers some tremendous action, particularly that final set piece in which Helix breaks Cayden out of ARGUS custody. Everything from Dinah taking down the mercenaries in a hand-to-hand fight to Curtis using his T-Spheres to scare off his enemies is so much fun to watch. Plus, the action only benefits greatly from the fact that we are so invested in the emotional stakes of it all; we understand that what’s going on here is bigger than just Team Arrow stopping a villain—for Oliver and Diggle, this is a battle for Felicity and Lyla’s souls.

And then just when you think the episode can’t get any better, there’s that cliffhanger: Oliver and Felicity discover that Adrian Chase is inside the Arrowcave and then a bomb goes off. What type of bomb is it? Are Oliver and Felicity okay? What exactly is Chase planning? These are all exciting questions that “Dangerous Liaisons” leaves us with, and after how entertaining and emotional this episode was, I can’t wait to see what happens next week. What a way to come back from a four-week break. Welcome back, Arrow. I missed you.

Other thoughts:

I didn’t mention it above, but I can’t stress how much I loved this week’s storyline with Quentin and Rene. The two of them together are a fantastic duo when they’re just trading barbs; however, having Quentin take the time to help his friend reunite with his daughter, when he knows that he’ll never have the chance to do that with Laurel, is pretty damn beautiful and a very poetic and powerful way of keeping Laurel’s spirit alive in the Arrow universe. Very nice job by the Arrow writers with this storyline and great work from both Paul Blackthorne and Rick Gonzalez. Can we take a moment to acknowledge just how amazing of a scene that conversation between Oliver and Felicity in her apartment is? When she tells him that he no longer needs to carry the burden, that she can take it for him, that’s some powerful stuff. Seriously, if that’s not love, I don’t know what is. So do we really think that’s the end of Helix on Arrow now that Alena and the group have parted ways with Felicity? The fact that we never see Cayden James’ face makes me think that the hacking organization will be back in a major way. Perhaps as a villainous threat in Season 6? How wonderfully nerdy is Curtis about the arcade in tonight’s opening scene? “It was vintage.” There are so many great, biting Felicity Smoak lines in tonight’s episode, but I think my favorite has to be her response to Oliver saying he’s sorry that she no longer is working with Helix: “Thought you were never going to lie to me again.” “First, close the door. Second, what have I told you about calling me ‘Hoss’?” “Don’t.” “Thank you, Hoss.”

#arrow review #dangerous liaisons #arrow #chris king

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survivormyanmar-blog · 8 years ago

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Ep. #1 - “Love At First Chat” - Steffen & Gaston

The game started with Day 0 and the tribes having time to get to know each other. On Day 1 the players were made aware of "The Cave" which will be used to get rewards throughout the season. The first Immunity Challenge was Guess that GIF. Both tribes finished early so results were announced on Night 1 and Togye (the Favorites) won and the Mata tribe chose to send Amanda and Ting Ting to The Cave. With having to go to Tribal, Caroline tried to take control of a majority alliance on the Fans tribe but her aggressive game play was turning everyone off. The vote quickly changed from people wanting to vote off Linus for being inactive to wanting to vote out Caroline for playing too hard. When the votes came in it was an 8-2 split with Caroline going home and leaving her ally, Maranda, on the bottom.

WHAT THE FUCK TREVOR AND OWEN this faves tribe is iconic i'm not worthy of anyone here jay was my first host so she's my mother tommy is an icon in his own right because we're both in the 7th place club i've literally only heard of the legend ting tine STEFFEN?? GOD I already feel on the bottom and nothing has happened

...and I think Tommy is already tryna flirt with me. I mean, I love flattery but I'm not letting it get in the way of me and my villain edit. uh-uh honey.

so the game is afoot I guess but I really don't feel any pressure to make alliances yet? we'll see how the rest of this goes though.

Dear Diary, I feel hurt, and destroyed, but I got my main hoe Amanda over here, Ashley who I'm in another game with and Sam and Christian who I knew from outside the game so thats a start, but like I LOVE TING TING, she could be my Angela 2.0 and I love her soooooooooo much. Gotta do this quick, because challenge soon, and now just hope I can make it to merge with Leah on the fans, my baetato, so wish me luck, cause I won Myanmar before, I intend to do it again.

So, I arrive a little late to the whole introduction to the game, and it turns out that one person hasn't shown up at all. I feel great that I'm not already casting myself as the tribe outcast, but there is always room for that to change. I love everyone here. Everyone is so sweet and so engaging on topics that we talk about, and really its shows that people care about the game just like you. So here's to the best, cause otherwise, I'm so screwed.

Oh my gosh!!! I am on Survivor...or close to it! I definitely am going to have so much fun no matter my freaking age. I am the youngest one here. But age is just a number and I'm gonna prove that to these people. First impressions I am talking to everyone trying to find something to bond with. Maranda and Netflix, and stuff like that. Immediately Leah attracts me. I think anyone close to my age I can work with. Because on Zwooper my gaming website there are people like that who I can relate to and am more free of will than people in their 30s with kids. That's kinda weird. But just wait because Neme (I call myself that but also Nehe) is gonna be a star of this game for sure. I am all about strategy and I am gonna slay this.

This is going to be one hell of a ride.. I can't wait to see how far I can get in this game... I already starting my alliance and it's going to be great fun!!!

idk just feeling kinda *nice* as we move into tomorrow. hopefully there'll be more talk of game then, but I'm totally okay with just relaxing right now.

Confessional, Day 1 Welcome to Fans vs. Favorites in which just like the CBS Survivor Fans vs. Favorites, the fans aren't fans so much as they're newbies who want to play the game. No one has really copped to following Tumblr Survivor before (which is fine). I've checked out the short bios and bio videos and I definitely have a few thoughts, but I want to talk about these Favorites first. If I am in a position to work with any favorite, GASTON is at the top of my list. His bio video made him seem very reasonable and definitely a person that I'd get along with in my day-to-day. RICHIE also seems very lovely and smart. On the flipside, I only made it through 3 seconds of STEFFEN's bio video before determining he's a loser and I couldn't even press play on AMANDA's because she seems like a very sweet, but very real Disney freak. I worked at Disney for 6 years as a post-high school job and she reminds me instantly of every co-worker that I didn't want to sit near because she's a Disney-obsessed freak. Also I guarantee you that 45% of the cast are virgins. I don't know why I feel like that's related. As far as my own tribe, everyone is very sweet and agreeable on the surface. I've had great one-on-one conversations with most of everyone. I get a really good vibe from CARLOS and KRYSTEN. Their bio videos are adorable and they both seem like great people to work with. ADRIAN, KEEGAN, and LINUS are nice enough. NEHE is very sweet and I love his energy and enthusiasm, but I wouldn't work with him too closely because he's in early high school and that's a loose cannon waiting to happen. I haven't talked with LEAH or MARANDA yet individually. Both seem nice. LEAH is trying to play the "I don't know what's going on" card to the point where she volunteered herself playfully as willing to be anyone's puppet. Her Skype name gives away that she's an ORG host. Big Brother is not all that different from Survivor. Even if she hasn't played one before, a host knows their shit and she's not fooling me. Her bio video was kind of cute though. As for MARANDA, and this applies to CC (CAROLINE) as well--please shoot me in the face if I'm playing these sorts of games 10 years from now. I don't think either of them will really have a sense of how to relate to the younger group--hell, I'm worried about that for myself and I'm 10 years younger than them! CC is the only person who has talked game this evening with me. Whether that means I'm at an immediate disadvantage or if everyone else is like me and feeling everything out before plunging in remains to be seen. I appreciate that CC reached out to me to align, but after I told her I got a good vibe from KRYSTEN, she told me flat out that KRYSTEN is going to be out first because when asked about aligning, she was hesitant and non-committal. I feel like that's such a strong take to have on a player this soon in and her attitude (and god awful spelling for a grown adult) really turns me off about her. She comes off as really intense and she's playing hard immediately. How I proceed when it comes to CC will be interesting. I want her gone because her erratic negativity and immediate desire for discord makes me want to get rid of her immediately. However, I need to be careful if I'm to make this happen--if CC were to find out, that negativity and intensity would be shifted over to me, and I don't need that. So I'll work with CC cautiously for now, but if I feel like I can get KRYSTEN, CARLOS, and three other tribe members to join me in getting rid of her, I'm going to make it happen. If CC approached KRYSTEN before me, I can only imagine how many people CC has approached for an alliance this early in the game. It's been a few hours. Calm down. I'm going to check out the Wikipedia pages tomorrow to learn more about everyone. Until then, goodnight!

youtube

All I have to say is this: I get serious Abbey vibes off that Jay girl who I have yet to speak to. This makes me want her gone so bad. But then, I wanted Abbey gone ‘so bad’ all last season and she ended up winning. So maybe it would be wiser for me to become Jay’s best friend and that would better lead to her demise. MWA HAHAHAHAHA.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26ZbDyZe_Nw

okay I just wanted to say that everyone has been so nice to me in this game so far! I got gifs and messages from so many people saying that they're rooting for me and it just warms my heart so thanks to all! (sun)

anyway I like this *all-star* feel because nobody is screaming and trying to make alliances yet like in every other game i've played someone has approached my about alliances on the very first day. I feel so relaxed like I could get voted out now and still feel like a ray of sunshine.

(Queen of long confessions begins now) First impressions: I got added to this the Togye tribe chat and almost passed out (I may have punched my boyfriend in the arm when I saw the cast). I didn't realize how scary being a favorite with lots of players I recognize would be. I'm going through all the episodes of everyone's seasons so I can get the tea. Amanda: She knows everyone in the community, which scares me a bit, but we've been talking and she seems nice. I think we could be in an alliance together pretty easily. Ashley: Doesn't seem like a huge threat from what I'm reading on the Sicily Tumblr, didn't really betray a ton of people and seems relatively trustworthy. Definitely a potential alliance member. Christian: We haven't talked at all yet, but also doesn't seem super threatening from Sicily. Gaston: Seemed strong in M*ldives but didn't actually do a ton of big moves. Anyone who survived that season has thick skin, but I'm not terrified yet. Richie: Very wary of Richie. Very. Even though we've been having a super friendly conversation and I like the personality he's showing me, I followed M*ldives closely and I know how he played. In short, he played like me, which is terrifying. Sam: I hosted Sam, so I know that he's super smart and strategic. He found two (or maybe three I can't remember) idols in Monuriki, one before the game even officially started, so I know he's going to play really hard. He would rather be voted out because everyone's playing a savage game than win because everyone else was weak, so I know he shouldn't be messed with. I think we'll either be super close allies or at each other's throats, maybe both. Steffen: Seems super nice, very #notorious in the community. Love Abbey, who I love (that's right bean ur getting a shoutout) Ting Ting: First boot. Very nice. Doesn't seem afraid of tumblr survivor, which is either good or bad depending on how we work together. Tommy: A bean, hasn't played in a main season in a really, really long time, which, again, could either be good or bad. I think we could work together. In his Mali confessions, he definitely seems like a power player and about as crackt as me, so I'll keep my guard up a while yet. That's.........all for now, I guess.

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oh thank got we got that win! now nobody from this tribe has to go home! the cave sounds exciting though so maybe I can go and get a leg up. fingers crossed!

honestly my edgic better be good istg

Well we did it! by 2 points we beat the stupid newbies. I wonder who's going to be sent to the caves and like what's going to happen but everyone is pretty chill so... we good

After Immunity Challenge: Lordie lordie, we lost by a small margin and it was upsetting. There's literally 10 of us on Mata and only half of us worked our asses off in that challenge. Like? Hello?! Where were the rest of you? This is a team challenge that required all 10 people... You're already playing with the mentalits of the merge... holy damn.

well this sucks I wasn't wanting to lose this chanllenge but it is was it is not sure who the vote will be but hopeing its not me if my alliance stays true it wont be me :)

So, we lost the first immunity challenge. It's a huge hit to morale and the paranoia immediately set in. However, I do have options. Two different alliance groups have approached me and as far as I can tell I'm safe this first vote. Deciding which group to side with could influence my entire game, so I need to choose wisely.

I worked hard for this tribe to win immunity. I love my Survivor so I did the best I could with the help of Brett, Adrian, Krysten, and Keegan. The fact we lost the first immunity challenge really does suck. I don't think I have anything to be scared about going to tribal. I think right now the vote will be Linus or Caroline. Linus was the last person I talked to yesterday. He showed up late to the immunity challenge while Caroline is playing hard too fast. I personally don't like bitches and she's a massive bitch. I know she's a 36 year old woman who's on bed rest but I don't like how she talks to me. She's playing too hard and not with class. I think everyone will vote her out if I ask for it. Theres not reason to keep bad energy around. Keep the tribe with good energy and move forward playing in immunity and killing it. I made an voting block tonight of the 5 who put the most work into the challenge. It shouldn't be an alliance but if we loose again the chat is there and we can try and vote together again. But I made a alliance with Brett and Leah individually. From conversations i have, I worked my way for people to trust me I believe and would work with me. So I'm in a good spot for now.

Day 2 Things aren't so bad. I put my thoughts on paper this morning before the challenge to evaluate who I wanted to work with most and who the least. I have great feelings about CARLOS, KRYSTEN, and ADRIAN and not so good feelings about CC (CAROLINE). We did our best at the challenge and fell just short of victory. I'm fine with it for now because the sooner I solidify my place in a majority alliance, the better. After the challenge, those who (like me) participated in the challenge and worked hard at it (ADRIAN, NEHE, KRYSTEN, and KEEGAN) formed a pact to go after someone who didn't participate. Of the people I wanted to work with, only CARLOS didn't factor in. I didn't have to weigh in much at all--the group felt like giving CARLOS a pass because he was on a plane and MARANDA was celebrating her son's birthday. That left CC, LEAH, and LINUS. I can also, meanwhile, acknowledge that we really shouldn't be so high and mighty about going after people who did not participate because it was us that elected to go early. The others pretty much showed up at the actual scheduled challenge time. It's really not their fault, but I'm not going to say that. I have the best working relationship with LINUS, but I am wary about both LEAH and him possibly having connections within the favorites because a lot of the Tumblr Survivor community wished both LEAH and LINUS well pre-game. I can't ignore that. But CC is so paranoid and completely crazy--she has plenty of time to think as an injured and unemployed 30something, she's made herself a huge liability. It makes sense to keep goats around, but not explosive ones. While this conversation was happening, CC attempted to start an alliance with MARANDA, KEEGAN, and me. I immediately spoke with KEEGAN to tell him we should move in lockstep for this vote. He agreed and ultimately we decided CC wasn't worth the effort to keep around. CC approached NEHE and ADRIAN and I intercepted them to tell them it's a bogus alliance. ADRIAN did the smart thing and appeased CC while NEHE did not and tried to play dumb, sending CC in a blind rage. LINUS is also voting for CC as far as I know, which gives us a 6 majority, in theory. I haven't decided whether or not I want to clue in CARLOS. I want to because I might need CARLOS in the event of a swap. MARANDA, as kindhearted and lovely as she is, can be slayed to leave next. I don't think anyone should tell her the situation. LEAH is an enigma, but I feel like she'll be told by the majority to vote for CC, so if things remain intact 21 hours from now, CC will leave in an 8-2 votes while the minority will probably vote for LINUS or NEHE.

My name is Jasmine Masters, and I got something to say. Round one and Im already at the bottom lol. My team was a bunch of idiots who tried to do the challenge we had 24 hours for in 5 minutes and the people who were here all formed an alliance). So, this round hopefully the votes been turned onto Caroline because she's been sketching people out. I heard the vote was starting on me, but now it's changed off, it looks like I gotta pray for the merge already haha. I want to stick with these people because I do like them, but a swap would simply save me as even though I may be on the outs of their alliance, it will have to expand to fit everyone on the swapped tribe from our original tribe :D .

Well kiddo's, its 4am and Im pulling an all nighter because I left a college paper waaaaay to long, and Im about to die of tiredness so I thought I'd take a break by telling all about myself because Im a huge egomaniac xD. So, Im Linus, I work as a childrens entertainer and am also currently getting a bachelors in political science. My job can basically be summed up as "Dress as Spiderman, go to birthday, make money!" and my school can be described as fuck stats class, live for monday nights when I have my theatre class. One fun fact about me is despite being a pretty ditsy dude, Im actually a Canadian trivia provincial champion and national finalist in Reach for the Top, which is the highschool Canadian version of Quiz Bowl. My favourite season of survivor is Survivor Gabon, followed shortly by Tocantins and Cambodia. My alltime favourite survivor is definitely Randy Bailey since he is such a morally conflicting character. On one hand Randy is very loyal and never turned on the onions, and we even feel some sympathy for him since he is basically all alone in the world as he has no family and didnt even have a loved one to bring to the loved ones challenge (Had he gotten that far). On the other hand he really is a dick and thats probably why he has so much trouble making those connections, and that kind of character disposition is something I just havent seen in any other reality show ever. I started playing orgs in May, and I've mainly played orgs in the facebook/wiki community where I've had some decent success I like to think, as I have won two of the biggest facebook orgs, the main and 703. My strategy is usually that of lay pretty low in the early game and coast by on social connections until late game where I can go hardcore on challenges since I tend to be pretty good at flash games. Im a very team oriented player and if you're with me, there is virtually a 0% chance Im turning on you pre final 5 (And if you're good enough at guilt tripping me I may still not turn on you xD). This game looks like its going to be a bit different though since Im used to being brought in by the power alliance early on since I am that loyal number for most of the game, so the fact that Im on the outs is gonna make me have to adapt a little. My strategy right now is even though I am on the outs of the big alliances, I gotta be useful in all the future comps and hopefully make the personal bonds with the people in the majority alliance so that they can find other targets more tempting than me. I just gotta hold out until a swap at which point I can hopefully gain some more favour with the fans by being that loyal number through the swap too and ideally we can slay a few of your favs ;) . As a player I look to keep the VL informed since whats the fun in watching if you have no clue whats going on, so Im really hoping none of y'all break my trust and leak this haha (Seriously Ill cry T_T ). So far in the game I'm really liking Brett, and although I know he's part of this majority and he hasnt told me, I see him as definitely a leader figure so I'd like to become his extra vote for now. Alternatively, I like Adrian quite a bit, and Keegan seems really nice so I definitely want to get in with her. I'm a bit weary of Nehe right now. We talked yesterday and today when I tried speaking to him after the challenge he basically ignored me until the vote got switched off of me, which on one hand isn't bad because he has a really obvious tell, but on the other means he could definitely have been one pushing for me from within the main alliance. Ideally though this is still very early and hopefully we can get back on the same page, since he's very active and I assume will be helpful in all the challenges and right now a strong tribe is key, although maybe Im just too into pagongings.

Nehe told Maranda that Caroline is the vote. This wouldn't be an issue if Maranda wasn't Caroline's closest ally. He's lucky we already have the numbers or he could have just ruined his own game. Although, I'm glad this happened so early on. It tells me Nehe is probably not the best ally. I'll work with him this vote but when the chance arises, he needs to go.

I'm so excited to be back! It's going to be an amazing game, the cast (at least for the favs) seems pretty competitive. So I thought I would do my first impressions of everyone for my first confessional. Amanda - she's nice but I feel she might be wrapped around Steffen's finger. I feel like she will do anything he says, they will probably be a pair. Otherwise she seems pretty nice, I think she would actually do better gameplay wise without Steffen in the game. I think if we went to tribal she wouldn't be someone to gun for me at the first tribal. Ashley - I like Ashley a lot, she seems down to earth and an individual. I can't really tell where her loyalties lie. I feel that me and her have a really good connection and I would love to work with her in the game. I just hope she wouldn't betray me, at least not too quickly. Christian - she doesn't respond to my messages. All she does is comment memes in the main chat, and honestly if your not here to talk to people when people approach you, you shouldn't be on this season. I would enjoy it if she was first boot, nothing personal against her. It's just I think out of everyone on the tribe she deserves to stay here the least. Gaston - he seems like a really genuine and nice guy. I'd like to strengthen our bond more because I feel he would be a good ally. I might approach him so about a deal or something just to make sure he can vote with me in future votes. Jay - she seems really nice, but there's a vibe that I get from her that reads "danger" "threat" "beware". I don't know what it is about her but something about her makes me skeptical. I like her as a person but honestly I don't know if she'd want to align with me but by the way she's positioned in the game it's more likely I think I wouldn't be one of her top picks to align with. Richie - he is cool. Our conversations are very nice, and he's a cool guy. I wouldn't mind allying with him. However, I don't think people see him as a threat so he may just go far because of that. If I'm ever in a dire position and I'm allied with him, I'm definitely going to be the one going home. Sam - something about him makes me trust him. I like chatting with him, he's pretty cool. I think he'll be one of the bigger game players this season. I think he's in a good position in the tribe. I want to get on his good side, because I like him a lot and he seems to have good ties with a lot of people and overall likable. Steffen - he is probably the biggest threat out of everyone out here. Whenever I talk to him it feels like he's trying to analyze me, and what I'm about. I feel like we are kinda close but Steffen would cut me whenever because he thinks I'm a game player. (I'm predicting) He has the most social ties to everyone, and I think he's in a good spot to "master mind" but in FvF "master minding" the entire season usually doesn't work out on ORGs. Also he seems kinda cold-blooded like he'll cut or betray anyone to get himself ahead in the game. I like the guy but something about him tells me "watch out". Even though I really wanna play with Steffen, I just hope he feels the same way about me. Ting Ting- she's my bae. I love her. She's my #1. I wanna strengthen our relationship even more. I think she's awesome and hilarious. I think we can definitely have a good under the radar alliance going that can last a long time. I can see myself and her working well together. It's just we have to strengthen our bonds together. She can be the Laura Alexander to my Julia Landauer except I wouldn't betray her. The Cave twist seems fun, kinda has me worried at the same time. I think I want to remain my under the radar approach and stay that way. Keep attaching myself to bigger threats and play lowkey for right now. I think it will be fun to see how it plays out. My biggest fear would be, being in the majority and the minority getting their hands on something from the cave, and I get out. The fans seem pretty cool, the only fan I know is Linus. What I know about Linus is he's a beast and amazing at comps and wins a lot of games by just being a beast. He's also the only fan that I think knows of me. So I wouldn't mind voting him out the minute I'm on a tribe with him. I also wouldn't mind jumping ship to the fans if I had to. It isn't like once we get out all the fans, all of us favs will win the season. There's only one sole survivor, not 10. Overall, I'm just gonna keep doing what I'm doing and try to have fun like I am having. I think I will try to beast these immunity challenges! Also slay us for winning the first challenge and more importantly, immunity challenge of the season! Final 19 never felt so good. That about sums up everything so far. I'll update when there is more to come. Peace out, girl scouts.

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I don't have too much to confess this round. It's gone fairly smoothly. The challenge was fun and most castaways took part. We think we found a classic "first boot". Someone who was just playing a little too hard and seeming a little crazy. She approached me on night one and let me know she had "numbers". Asked me if I wanted to work together. How was I supposed to make a decision on that alone? haha So I don't think it's me tonight, and if it is, you can use the #blindside for sure! xoxo

so just waiting for tribal--eating my pizza, doing my thing.

Everyone is pretty chill. The group call was fun it was cool

Don't have much to say. It's crazy how quick everyone was to vote out Caroline. I thought maybe people judged her too quickly. Then I thought about and realized, she never even approached me. She didn't cared to include me, so it didnt bother me too much to writensure her name down.

Today was a reassurance day for me. Last night I made an alliance more so voting block to get out one of the people not contributing to the tribe. (Leah, Carlos, Maranda, Linus, Caroline) I was more so leading to voting out Linus as I didn't have any relationship with the guy after our 48 hours of knowing each other. Then miss crazy pants Caroline comes over and gives me like this attitude because of the answers I gave the bitch. I am not dumb I knew that Caroline was trying to get info from me after knowing me for only like 36 hours and we didn't talk a lot and when i responded to her with answers like idk and i don't think anyone is in an alliance she got very angry. You got 10 people who want to be here but one of them is crazy person who came out to hard . That seems like a very easy vote right there. Today like I said was making sure if it went down. Target #2 made her entrance today trying to save Caroline from the vote. Maranda was very dumb to do that. I like her but if we loose I am coming for her because a majority agreed to Caroline and she knew this yet still tries to protect her. That's dangerous to my game. This voting bloc I mad is very communicative in which they are telling me all of their conversations and I talked to Brett and Keegan about making it an official thing. Before tribal I need to speak with Adrian and Krysten. Leah is amazing and hands down someone I am gonna keep by my side. She seems to like me too because I talk to her but I think I can morph her into liking me as a strategical ally and we can move through this game together. Going into tribal no funny business should be happening. Everything should go as plan and Caroline should go home. You don't play hard in the beggining of this game and act like a total bitch to people who aren't on that level yet. I take things slow and that's why your ass is going. I do need to keep an eye out on Adrian as he was fighting real hard to keep the vote off Linus so soon he may need to go.

#mustlearntoadapt #confessionals

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