#i am juxtaposing scenes. i think there was something more to this case

[the-unofficial-village-idiot]

Of course I'm thinking about house breaking his own hand when he was detoxing for a bet so he could focus on something other than his leg. Of course I'm thinking about his conversation with the self-harming, bulimic patient who accidentally destroyed her own heart. The patient asks if house wants her to cry and he shouts in response that he would, that he'd like any indication of whether she cares if she lives or dies. Of course I'm thinking about him lying to the transplant committee for her, putting his medical license on the line to save her life. The way this case seemed personal

[rianafying]

journal entry time i guess

idk what i said in my last journal entry or how much of my chaotic life my journal is up to date with, but i’ve started earning a little more than i used to and things have been nice. going pretty smoothly. which is pretty shocking, considering how incompetent and inconsistent i am prone to being. i’ve been calm. i did have a full on panic attack this morning, but i did the steps and went back to normal in a few hours. i bought some cornflakes for myself as a treat. i wanted to get cinnamon toast crunch but they don’t have that at woolies, and the closest thing they have is cinni churros (mini churros dusted w cinnamon sugar), i’ve had them before and they’re good but they’re expensive, so i just got the honey nut cornflakes. oh here’s a thing, in bangladesh, cereal in general is called cornflakes regardless of whether it is actually flaked corn or not. obviously not in every family, but in mine and many other i know, this is the case. and by far the most popular cereal option is kellogg’s chocos. but i’m not a chocolate girl, so actual corn flakes for me thanks. (only second to cinnamon toast crunch, whatever that is made out of, toast? crunch? is it made out of crunch??)

i went on a walk like i have been doing everyday lately, just got home and i’m excited to take a shower and have a bowl of my good stuff. super excited. after that, i’ll prep for tomorrow’s shoot. but it’s in the evening so i’m not too stressed out. and it’s just one model and one outfit. so all good.

i have that stupid ass crush on this person that i spoke to once and now im posting stories on MESSENGER? trying to get their attention, it’s so dumb im. there is no excuse or explanation for this it’s pure pathetic. but i can’t stop thinking about this person. what do i even want out of this? nothing. because i don’t even like myself enough to let someone else like me. and they probably don’t even like me. which is fine. it’s fiiiiiiiiine. it’s fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine.

don’t they know it’s the end of the world. anyway, for some reason i think the movie of my life end this year. i’m not gonna do anything, but it feels that way, like, the credits are about to roll after the melancholy christmas scene. it just weirdly makes sense. that i won’t make it to next year. you know when a horrible death is juxtaposed with a nice new year’s eve kind of song or like the ending credits kind of song. i’m thinking of “the end of the world” by skeeter davis, but im not married to it.

i’m tired of it all actually. i’m tired of everything. i’m not devastated though. but i feel like im just done.

my journal entries are not supposed to make sense, and so they won’t. i’m literally writing it as i’m waiting for my scalp medicine to do its thing. my psoriasis has been completely out of control, and i’ve stopped trying to control it. i just go through the motions, i put on my medicines and oils when i can, and i do my homework, when i can, i wake up i do my chores and i go to sleep. and even at my happiest, i don’t think it’s worth it. i’m getting older, and i knew i’d be doing this by myself, and i know it’s not changing, ever.

maybe i’m just not that good at anything, and im fine with that, just let me step aside, i don’t want to participate anymore. i just want to get away. i want to stop. things are getting better and even in the scenario that everything works out as i hoped, i still don’t want it. what do i want? i don’t even want to read books or watch movies. but i still do. because that’s what i’m supposed to. i don’t even care anymore. i can’t think of something i care enough about. enough to stick around. i don’t know why or how my journal took this turn i thought i was doing fine but looks like im kind of not doing that well.

i’m so tired. i’m so so tired, please. but i know i’ve been much more tired before and i still was okay. so i’ll be okay. i will. but. i’m so tired. i took that test and i scored 100% on positivity and 5% on happiness. and that checks out. i’m not ungrateful, but im not necessarily happy. but i don’t like to let people know im not happy. because they take it as a chance to point out my flaws or to give unsolicited advice. i don’t even care. m

i’m just a little overwhelmed. maybe i need to stop trying to be okay all the time and actually go through the emotions instead of pretending they’re not there. i can’t be numb forever.

maybe i need to just feel super sad tonight and not do anything. i really feel like binge eating. i’ve been kind of doing that recently. not really full on binging but eating more than i *need* to. which i can’t afford to do for too long. i’m just scared of letting food go bad and of idk, not having food, because that does happen to me on weeks when there are surprise expenses. but it’s not as bad as it sounds, i don’t even eat that much regularly.

IM SO DISTRACTED. i’m so distracted and i can feel my heart beating faster than it should even though i am in bed trying to RELAX. idk what is wrong with me. things are no where near perfect but i am doing much better than i was a couple of months ago, better than last year, better than any year before. i think.

but i wish i was doing better than i am now. nothing too crazy, i wish i had the time, money and energy to properly clean and decorate my room. and to be able to pause worrying about bills and food constantly. hopefully ill figure out how to do things better so im a step above just making ends meet. things are actually good and getting obviously better, then why am i still so upset? why do i complain so much? i just feel like ranting and ranting and ranting because im avoiding the things i should actually be doing. such as cleaning and homework. but i have such a hard time getting started. what with adhd and all. and i cant believe i posted a story on facebook after so many years just so some random stranger will give me attention, what’s that gonna do? nothing!!!

Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah i just can’t do it, i can’t do things. i can’t do anything. I just watched 3 episodes of rory in yale and im in uni right now!!! isn’t that crazy? i’m living that life! i moved out, i live in my room which isn’t exactly a dorm room but it’s a unilodge so it’s close enough, and then what? i just feel like crying and i don’t even know why???? i’m not even that lonely, like i talk to my cousins and my friends all the time. i’m caught up with people, i meet people all the time, i participate in activities. i’m doing my best, i got 85-97% in all my assignments this trimester, and i just have two little assignments and an exam to go before my holidays start. but then the real difficult thing will begin. which is cleaning my room, which is the most godawful task to have ever been invented. but i’ll do it, and it’ll be hard and tiring and lengthy, and then what? do i get to enjoy myself? no i have to get a fucking job in hospitality or something, and earn extra money during my break. why does my scalp literally hurt. oh right because i have a severe chronic autoimmune disorder that makes my whole body flare up and makes my nails hurt. i love life 😍.

no but seriously, of all the things that could go wrong, psoriasis is still easy mode. i’m grateful. i’m very very grateful. you know what, it doesn’t really feel like i have the worst combination of problems like it used to feel before. like my eating disorder is kind of under control. so is my anxiety and depression. like it’s all still there but it’s not that bad? is it time for me to come to terms with the fact that the person i have a crush on is never going to text me again? but isn’t that nice? like isn’t that ideal? isn’t that literally what i wanted/want? it is actually. i think i just need some validation. it’s crazy how i end up wanting more validation when im on social media vs when i’m off of it for months. maybe after my trimester ends, i’ll get off of social media or figure out a solid plan to stick to that ensures i don’t spend too much time on socials, because it not only eats up my day but also makes me feel awful about myself.

it’s crazy how out of touch with my feelings and myself i get when im on social media. it’s decided then. i will severely limit my social media usage during my holidays. actually starting now. that’s one thing. and i’ve started walking regularly again, so that’s also good. what else, i go to therapy regularly, and i am journaling. i’m managing my money better? i’m doing the best i can. i’ve been emotionally self sufficient. i’ve been self aware and i have not been doing that bad. i’m being kind and forgiving to myself and to everyone else as well. i’m a better person now than i used to be, not necessarily in terms of intentions, but more in terms of consequences of my actions. but also because i’ve simply had the energy to do more for myself and for others. can’t fill their cup if my own is empty. things are good. i need to do something about my mood swings. this person i was talking to said to take cold showers to feel better and i would rather pour vinegar into my eyes than do that. but maybe i could give it a try. no i absolutely couldn’t. even the thought of it is jarring.

[georgieluz]

16 and 20 for the choose violence asks?

hiiii

i already answered 16 over here :)

20. part of canon you found tedious or boring?

okay, so for the pacific, i found a lot of the added romance plots pretty boring. i don't think we needed to spend so much time on leckie and stella, but i understand why they chose that narratively for leckie's story arc. but i still found it dragged and didn't actually add anything special. i think that time could have been spent letting the audience form stronger attachments to the three companies we were following. i like that they showed some of the home aspect, but i think it wasn't quite the right show to do so because it wasn't really an actual focus. it felt like a side quest. i would actually love a hbo war show that was 50%+ focused on characters at home. it would give those characters time for development and depth and would have a lot of interesting perspectives to tell the story from.

i guess in gen kill, i didn't really find any of it boring.. it kind of just felt very well paced in what it was saying and doing. i guess, i would say the emphasis on ray saying a shit ton of slurs and stuff did get tedious and grating for me at the beginning of the show. i understand the point of it and the characterisations they were trying to form with these marines, but it was just a personal thing that i got sick of. it wasn't a big focus after the first few episodes so not a big deal in the long run and something i, again, understood narratively.

band of brothers: again, i didn't really find anything boring in band of brothers. it was very much a first love kinda thing for me, so every second of that show was something i enjoyed. except, i do hate watching the parts where everyone shits on web when he returns. it just bugs me bc it wasn't the case irl, esp with him being an og. frustratingly, though, i do, once more, understand why they chose to do that narratively. they needed the parallel and wanted to juxtapose him with those who went through bastogne, etc. but yeah, i still didn't like it and don't really enjoy watching those scenes. though as a webgott enthusiast who is very much into his angst, i also love them. what can i say, i'm a confliction of emotions!

i am biased though bc i love web and will absolutely bite anyone who talks shit about him :)

for the choose violence ask game!

[c0ffinrehearsal]

Omg where to start. I have already been punched in the heart over and over with just this first chapter of ywlm. I guess here are just some rambling thoughts?

- that hello kitty boombox. Something that was a symbol of the role you could never fulfill, but also gave you the first thing you could really claim: music. And now claiming it as a tether to your Inner Child, to keep what you choose of Little Sirius and spend some time seeing him and telling him "it's going to be ok see we have our boom box our stuffie our proof we were a child once we existed and that childood happened and now I'm the grown up I'm here and I'm going to take care of you"

-I am ill for the Black brothers and always will be. The "I'm proud of you" is truly the most emotionally poignant thing a younger sibling in a family like that can say to their elder sibling who doesn't quite fit the mold. And the gender validation "big brother" I cry and laugh and celebrate so intensely with Sirius there. And how Sirius wants to protect Reggie but Sirius needs his own protection more than Regulus does. That's a brutal reality for an older sibling: because your younger sibling "fits the mold," they will be more ok than you will be if you don't save yourself. You have to give up the one role you did have: big sibling. Protector.

- the shopping scene omg. I was curious what reading this would feel like, since I am not trans but have major body ish leftover from growing up in the 00's and my god. Wonky sizing, feeling overwhelmed, being able to pick your own clothes instead of your mother doing it and not knowing where to start. I was FEELING Sirius there. It was giving the fitting room in the junior's section of Macy's. And I loved seeing him be brave and pick that skirt because he LIKED it and he could PICTURE himself in it, and start to dream about presenting the way HE wants rather than having to miserably exist in these extreme binaries to try to make things easier for everyone else except himself.

- ok last but not least the queer gaze from James and Remus. I don't know if your James is going to be queer but to me, juxtaposing those two moments side by side is Sirius's introduction to the other side of the mirror, the queer spaces where he will be fully seen and loved for the first time. The fact that just the way they *looked* at Sirius was clocked as Different from how anyone had ever looked at Sirius before, like "he wasn't a problem to solve" (and I'm going to come back to that line), to me that puts all three of them on the queer playing field so to speak. I am wicked pumped for the found family vibes.

-and ok REMUS. Having a boy look at you like that and making you feel like LIKE YOU AREN'T A PROBLEM TO SOLVE is a big fucking deal for an AFAB or femme teen in 2005. I've written about this. A lot. Living under the male gaze is so all-encompassing, it's like the very air you breathe from the moment you're born. And it's not until you're a teen that you realize the implications of it, but in 2005, you have no idea where the exit is. You're just stuck in this maze trying to use whatever tools you have to find some reprieve from having your body always being the first and most important thing that is noticed about you-- like maybe being a "tomboy," or in my case, leaning into purity culture and patriarchal hyper-femininity. I LOVE that Remus is going to be part of that "exit sign" for Sirius- like turn here onto Lupin Avenue for unconditional acceptance and whatever the opposite of objectification is.

Um ok hope this wasn't too much but I've said before I learn so much from your writing so I wanted to share what Things you are making me Think. Can't wait to read more!!!!

okay putting this under a cut bc my response is sooooo long <3

hi hello i’m sorry it’s taken me so long to reply to this - i just haven’t had the time to really sit down and give it the kind of attention it deserves!

the BOOMBOX. one of the first things i pictured when i started writing this was sirius’s boombox. bc Little Sirius needed something to cling onto that he could make his, and that could carry over into their new life. its basically a character in itself lmao i an very attached to The Boombox

sibling dynamics are so important to me. i am the youngest, though, and so when i write about regulus and sirius it’s a flipped situation from mine - i was younger and did not fit in and my sibling was older and Normal. but yes, regulus is very aware that he needs to be a support system for sirius, and all he really needs FROM sirius is for them to be around. they’ll get there. 

a lot of fics (that i love and re-read all the time) explore sirius acting out and like, getting tattoed and stuff once they’re allowed to make their own decisions. in ywlm, sirius is acting against what his parents want, but in the way he can just - let his body exist however he wants to and it does not answer to anyone but them. there are a few other scenes coming up where we get to hang out with sirius while they do a 2000s shopping montage and i love thm.

my james IS queer, yes. everyone is queer to me at this point tbh! a similar thing happens in chapter 2 where like - quuer people just SEE each other, in a way that’s hard to explain to anyone who isn’t. sirius deserves a bizarre little family of misfits and he will get one. i

REMUS oh i LOVE him. he’s so soft in this. also like, it’s weird bc sirius isn’t as aware of that gaze bc he grew up with parents who didn’t really let them out of the house. like they know that it’s bc their parents see him as a girl and treat them differently but he won’t really connect the dots for a minute. so like, for them it’s more of a gender thing. very similar to how it was for me. i’ll go into this a lil more in depth later on, but. anyway REMUS i love the idea of him just being Some Guy and like he’s objectively handsome but sirius doesn’t fall for him bc of that, he falls for remus bc he gets them, exactly as they are. they’re so good for each other i’m :’)

anyway no it’s never too much, thank you so so much for reading my silly little fic. i LOVE talking about it, and i will continue to do so with any and everyone who will let me lol xx 

[kari-izumi]

My slash shipping friends don't think this whole "It's not real if they don't kiss" attitude is a thing that exists among M/F fandom pairings, but I would love to thank everyone without reading comprehension for giving me this example to show them lol

Snark aside though, if this W was any bigger, it'd be replacing Warner Music Group's current logo. Spirk is THEE ship that saved this franchise from obscurity and not even THEY have gotten this kind of huge moment in the sun in official canon like we've been given in Prodigy.

Also, keep in mind that unlike live action media, where actors can make choices that go against what the writers or creatives want (see also: Garashir), any and everything that makes it into an animated shot, especially one where animated motion is involved, was done with intention.

This one was a very deliberately thought out easter egg that could've easily have been left out as we'd already seen Chakotay gift her his chah-moo-zee, a very, very, veeeeery personal heirloom to pass down to anyone, and that would've also sufficed. But no, we get this mirror that also had stones from their time from the Delta Quadrant. I thought I had the passenge screenshots but I think they've been shared recently enough at the time of this posting on July 29th 2024 to find in the tag.

But hey, let's put aside beta canon and look at the show itself. Damn near every time J/C are in the same scene as Dal and Gywn--two characters who HAVE kissed and who we know have feelings for one another--the show makes a point of juxtaposing the latter with similar actions from the former. I mean, it's clear enough that an 8 year old fan asked Kate Mulgrew about whether Janeway was in love with him or not in a rather adorable clip I saw on Twitter (and good taste on kid, you're gonna love this ship tag in seven to ten years!). I mean, that's someone in the target demo of the show who picked up what the writers was laying down like Chakotay did the minute he and Janeway got some privacy after their reunion

It's just strange to me that people think this is not something to be excited for as someone who came into VOY shortly after it ended and never thought we'd have any official follow up to the show after Janeway's two second cameo in Nemesis. When we got that bullshit asspull in Endgame we thought that was the end of that and C/7 was forever more, the end (thankfully, Picard pulled that bandaid right off with gay Seven tho). Most of us just ignored that entirely.

But even if there weren't all these details? The great thing about fandom is we can transform it into our own vision *anyway*. And I love what we got because it's just enough where I can still have scope for the imagination where I can still fill in my own blanks.

But in this case? As much as I'd love to see an actual kiss onscreen, this has watered my crops and cleared my skin more than any other callback or shout-out in Modern Trek. For comparison, Picard and Crusher, the J/C equivalent on TNG, had a whole ass CHILD but apparently were a Ross/Rachel level disaster of a couple that Crusher went off the grid to raise the kid. That one was confirmed but speaking as someone who shipped that concurrent to J/C in the 2000s, I know which of the two feels far more satisfying because here I am, writing my first two J/C fanfics since high school, re-watching VOY (a show I have unfortunately slagged off after learned from other fans that it was "bad" but now realize many ppl were gonna hate it no matter what it did) and having headcanons of Janeway and Chakotay doing the JoJo torture dance together on their Lake George date (we all know that's a date when he came by with a frigging ROSE and I'm tired of pretending otherwise!) because I'm a shit poster at heart but also, these two have been through it and need some fun.

This post was longer than I expected it to be, but TLDR: OP is right and kissing is not the only way to convey that two people live each other. it's not even the most meaningful way, most of the time.

J/C shippers are being salty and lamenting Prodigy for not being explicit about Janeway and Chakotay’s love for each other.

Meanwhile, in the text of the Prodigy series itself…

In Janeway’s Ready Room on the Voyager A (seen in episode 5) are a bunch of mementos from her adventures. Some are obvious, such as the framed arachnid on the wall as a reference to her Captain Proton Holodeck adventure, or the mini Voyager model…

But there’s ONE deep cut memento you might not realize the significance of. And that’s this compact mirror she stops to admire.

Which is a reference to a series of short stories that was published around 2005 under the title “Distant Shores.”

And in this series of short stories is one titled “Isabo’s Shirt” written by Kristen Beyer. And the story centers around Janeway and Chakotay… going on a DATE.

So when Janeway looks over the mementos in her Ready Room, she specifically stops and dwells on this compact mirror and the episode takes the time to show her doing this and show how much it means to her.

I’m sorry, but how are you lamenting that J/C is NOT cannon after witnessing THAT??? The writers of Prodigy took non-cannon short stories from 2005 about a J/C date and turned it into factual, textual, official Star Trek cannon!!!

[deliciouswastelandgoddess]

Why Porsche's arc as the minor family head unsatisfying for many viewers?

[A case study of film-making techniques]

The way I look at it - this is purely a story writing and screenplay problem. I will elaborate how.

Narratively, they needed Porsche in that position at the end of season 1 for multiple reasons:

- THE CONPIRACY SUBPLOT: Porsche is a key player in Korn's masterplan (whatever the fuck that is now) so he needed both the major and minor families under people who are faithful to him and/or people he can manipulate

- THE ROMANCE SUBPLOT: The showrunners understandably wanted Kinn and Porsche to end up at an equal footing. They have finally reached an equilibrium with balanced powers. The family rings also symbolize their metaphorical marriage

- This is just.....good fodder for season 2

But it is still so unsatisfying to watch Porsche walk through the blue corridor as the family head juxtaposed against the flashback of him walking in their as a bodyguard.

This scene is supposed to make us appreciate his journey, his climb in the mafia world but it falls flat. Because it feels unearned. This arc of Porsche's character is dissatisfying for so many of the audiences because it is unearned*, i.e, we never actually see Porsche grow into this role in the screenplay.

(And no, I don't think Vegas should have made the minor family head either. I may or may not write a separate post on that.)

Forget being a mob boss, we get to see very little of him growing in terms even being a good bodyguard, that could successfully preclude his ascension into becoming a family head. This is basic film making.

There could have been multiple ways in which the showrunners could have turned this around but honestly to give them credit it would have changed the tone of the ending each time. Anyway just to list them out:

Have Porsche showcase his acumen either for business or ruthlessness or any quality that would serve a mob boss. Maybe he helps Kinn in working out a good deal with the Russian mob or something. Maybe he is great at dealing with law enforcement. Maybe he successfully earns the respect of all bodyguards (both from the major and minor families) by just being nice to them and protecting them however way he can, charming his way into their hearts. Maybe he is great at networking with the other clan leaders and their bodyguards. Who knows, the possibilities are endless. This would however not play out very well for THE CONSPIRACY PLOT but I am sure there could have been ways where we could have Porsche have agency and still be a pawn in Korn's plans.

If not talent, have Porsche showcase ambition. We see him time and again feeling helpless and weak, always a pawn for those in power. Rather than Korn or Kinn giving him the ring it would have made more impact on viewers if Porsche came up with the idea himself. He wouldn't even need to earn (talking about narrative!earning here, not screenplay!earning that I talk about earlier* - they are two different things, let me know if anyone wants an explicit explanation on that) the title in this scenario, he would just need to force his way into it because why the fuck not - he has had enough of everyone's bullshit by this point. This would again make it harder to push THE CONSIPRACY PLOT pretty much like point 1 but it would be possible to do it.

Third option would have to change nothing else except to remove the whole montage of Porsche who has happily taken up the mantle. Narratively it would have been more satisfying if we could see Porsche being more reluctant to accept it, or being more suspicious of Korn, or making him look like he's aware that he is in fact a pawn but just not in a position to do anything about it. In this scenario we won't have the flashback scene in the screenplay scene at all (the gif above) - it would have to left for Season 2. It would also absolutely ruin the tone of THE ROMANCE SUBPLOT. The ending would also become a hard cliff-hanger rather than the soft one that we currently have.

Some sort of a combination of all the three points above.

Broadly speaking, I agree with the showrunners for their narrative choices but it could have been written better because it feels screenplay!unearned. Its ridiculously difficult and hard to cut out stuff in the editing room but showrunners make do with the limitation as best as they can. I made this post not to criticise the final product the showrunners served us, but rather an explanation for why so many people are not liking this particular plot twist purely from a film making perspective. The dissatisfaction is logical and valid but also-

To squeeze in all the things I mentioned to make the Boss!Porsche arc more organic and satisfying, they would have to remove some of the other scenes and I honestly don't know which one??? I already love everything that we already have, I wouldn't want to remove anything - so the only real solution is to have more episode which is again a practical issue. I think they could have easily done a 26 episode season with all the different subplots that were going on, but of course, finances and television contracts don't always help in those matters so they made do with the 14 hour runtime as best as they could have.

In conclusion, it ain't much but its honest work.

[bughat]

Thoughts on Silco and Jinx

Just some 4am thoughts on some of the discourse I’ve seen on the relationship between Silco and Jinx.  (I struggle a LOT with putting my thoughts down in writing so this is probably going to be kind of disjointed) So one of the things that struck me about the portrayal of Silco throughout the show is his ruthlessness.  Like - we are repeatedly reminded that Silco is Not a Nice Person, to the point that he’s even given not one, but multiple, cold-blooded examples of the “Would Hurt A Child” trope to firmly establish how Not Nice he is just in case we got distracted.  I feel like that was a VERY deliberate choice on the part of the writers.  It added validity to the obvious question for the audience as to whether his affection for Jinx was a genuine thing or something he would eventually betray.  (The way he reacts to a child desperately and suddenly throwing herself into his arms - a child he’d given every sign of being prepared to dispose of not two seconds ago - is strange and seems distinctly unexpected to both the audience and Silco himself.  Looking back, they practically trauma imprint on each other in that moment, and I’m not saying that’s at all a good thing, but I do think it explains a lot of their bond and why it wound up existing at all.) Something that definitely got my attention when I was still wondering if Silco truly cared about Jinx before the finale was the way Jinx interacted with Silco after the timeskip.  I was pleasantly surprised to see her written more as an affectionate, but eye-rolling, gawd-not-the-drowning-story-again-Dad teenage daughter.  She clearly has an emotional dependency on Silco, but she’s not slavishly devoted to him and she’s not only well AWARE of his tendency to project his own emotions onto her, she obviously chafes under it sometimes.  I feel like their mutual codependence on each other as well as their similarities and understanding of each other because of those similarities are particularly highlighted during scenes like the one where Jinx presents Silco with the gemstone.   The manner in which she surprises him with the stone is deliberately coy and calculated - NOT in a sexual way, but in an “okay Dad, I know you’re REALLY mad,BUT LOOK WHAT I GOT YOU, AM I NOT THE BEST, WORTHIEST DAUGHTER EVER” way.  I felt like that scene, especially taken into consideration after the finale, said a lot about how both Jinx and Silco work, emotionally, and how aware they are of those mechanics.  They’re both heavily affected by trust, betrayal and abandonment issues.  Naturally something that is very meaningful to both of them are solid, concrete displays of loyalty, risk, and devotion.  The way that Silco looks at Jinx as he holds the stone isn’t just pleased and surprised, it’s almost stunned, moved.  Jinx, in turn, approaches Silco with the confidence of someone who knows that in this moment, for once, they don’t have to question their own worthiness because they’ve fully earned a reward of acceptance through proving themselves.  Later, when that confidence begins to slip when she’s struggling with the construction of the weapon, Silco takes her to the river for the symbolic washing away of her "old” identity and presents that ritual to her almost as a gift of his own.   To Silco, this makes sense.  In the flashback scenes of his drowning we are repeatedly shown the visual of him floating serenely in calm, cool blue and green lighting, eyes closed as if at peace.  This is juxtaposed violently with the scenes of Vander holding him by the throat underwater, the sickly color palette of the bloody, yellow river water and the storm-darkened sky, and the absolute terror on Silco’s face.  Those moments of false peace seem to represent a respite, a denial of the horror of what was actually happening to him.  As if a part of his psyche almost shut down and gave up and submitted willingly rather than having to face the ugly reality that someone he loved and trusted was committing a terrible act of violence against him. Silco sees his choosing to defend himself against Vander rather than let himself be killed as his choosing strength over personal weakness.  To him, this was a genuine triumph over the “weakness” of his own emotions that tied him to the person that betrayed him.  What better gift to give his daughter than that same freedom? I think he honestly believes that Jinx separating herself from Vi would be an act of self-protection because he also honestly believes that Vi will eventually turn on her.  Why else would Vi have been recently freed from prison after she’d been kept there for years right after a valuable piece of technology had been stolen from Piltover by her younger sister?  In the Lanes with an enforcer, no less.  It’s obvious that he sees Vander in Vi, but he also sees danger and betrayal as part of that projection.  Vander stopped loving him so it’s probably near inconceivable to him that Vi might actually still truly love Jinx. To Silco, nothing could be worse than being to Jinx what Vander was to him.  Nothing could be worse, by his own personal standards, than for her to believe that he would’ve betrayed her in the same way, especially to Piltover.  I do think that’s why he struggles so hard to shout over Vi at the dinner party and why he tells Jinx that she is perfect and shows no anger towards her as he dies.  I felt like that part of the finale answered the question the show had been presenting us with from the beginning.  NOT the question “is Silco a good father?”, mind you, but rather, “IS Silco a father?” full stop.  And the answer, for better or worse, was ‘yes’.   Was he a villain?  Yes.  Did he do terrible harm to the very Undercity he sought independence for?  Absolutely.  Do people like Ekko and Vi have every right to hate his guts for all eternity?  Hell yes.  Did he see Jinx as his actual daughter and family, not just a convenient pawn he’d grown somewhat fond of?  Yes.  In coming to love her as genuinely and deeply as he did mean he fell victim to the same “weakness” he couldn’t forgive Vander for?  Also yes. Part of the cruelty of Jinx’s particular fate is that we are shown time and time again how she, FAR beyond anything she herself could ever intend or even possibly know about, is constantly placed in the role of karma and of catalyst.  It is driven home just how close every little unlikely thing in terrible situations comes to falling into place, how very CLOSE things come to working out perfectly, only to be blown to pieces by an action of Jinx’s.  In a way, I think her choice to embrace the philosophy of “we’ll show them all” and to push Vi away was an attempt to try to protect both herself and the last member of her previous two families that she hadn’t accidentally killed. (And before anyone yells at me, I DO see both Silco and Jinx as villains.  Tragic villains born of extremely fucked up circumstances, but definitely villains.  There’s nothing wrong with both acknowledging that AND being able to appreciate them as well-constructed, fictional characters.  This dumb blog is named after a meme joke about Marvel Loki’s helmet, Loki being one of my favorite tragic villains.)

[liquidstar]

FURTHERMORE

I wanna point out the flashbacks from when they were kids- I think they're emblematic of the way that this was Always Going To Go, the same way that Sua always covering for Mizi set their dynamic in stone. (They're all so fucking doomed)

Ivan crushes the flowers, possibly in a bid to get Till's attention, and Till gets pissed off and starts a fight. Ivan is NOT upset about the fight at all, instead he is very viably stoked. Part of this might be because Ivan does not really know how to properly show emotions (This is something a lot of stuff about his childhood establishes). He doesn't know when to smile (He'd practice it in the lake every day) but he also doesn't know when Not to smile... He's just happy he got the attention he was looking for

In the rest of the flashbacks, He's looking at Till, but Till isn't looking at him.

ESPECIALLY THE METEOR SCENE CALLING BACK TO ROUND 3... I really do think it would be blatantly wrong to say Till doesn't care at all about Ivan after sharing almost running away together. He just isn't in love with him the way he's in love with Mizi. Ivan probably sees it as completely null though

Till still isn't looking at him for the whole round, his own mind still clouded with grief. I think Ivan's actions are very much a "LOOK AT ME" cry. He'll die here and Till WILL remember him this time.

But I also wanna touch on the notion that the strangling wasn't just bait to get him shot. I do think he intentionally lowered his points with the kiss (Given he checks the score right after) but the choking might also be more of a double suicide situation. "We're going down together and I'll be the last thing you see" type thing.

I don't know if I fully believe it, but at the very least if you DO read it this way then

I think the sequence of him coughing up blood is also him snapping out of it. While he looks very intent at the start, it's like he jolts awake by the end. His face in the second to last pic is like "What am I doing? I can't kill him. I love him." and he just accepts his own death, the same way Sua did. (Of course it could also just be realization that he's Done For so he does his best to smile in the end)

Either way though what I personally believe is that the single chaste kiss he gives Till in the end was the "real" one in a sense. Almost like an apology for what he's doing. It juxtaposes the violence of the scene with something mush softer and kinder. Something moreakin to the warmth we see when he tries to comfort him before the round (even if he's not awake)

If all Ivan wanted was just to force himself on Till and make an impact, he could've done that off stage at any point. It's not like he doesn't consistently push boundaries (again possibly due to his limited grasp of emotions), but.... Doing all this on stage is also a means to an end. Whether he was trying to be the only one to die or to get them to go down together.

But no matter the case, in the end, he chooses to be the one to die. Because he loves him. This action isn't fully noble because it's still painted with the intentions of "I'll hurt you so you never forget me, my pain, or my love. Even if you have to carry it with you as a source of trauma"

Because he's a hypocrite.

ok ill say one thing rn

completely wild that ivan tells sua off for consistently sacrificing herself for mizi- saying that she's not being noble by doing this and will only become a source of trauma for her by the end (WHICH WAS TRUE BC SHE THREW THE CONTEST TO DIE IN MIZI'S PLACE)

but then the SECOND hes put into that same situation...

HE DOES THE SAME THING!!! HE KNOWS HIS SCORE IS WELL ABOVE TILL'S SO HE KISSES HIM TO BRING HIS SCORE DOWN AND CHOKES HIM TO MAKE SURE HES THE ONE KILLED (THE SAME WAY MIZI WAS TARGETED FOR BEATING THE CRAP OUT OF LUKA). IVAN YOU PIECE OF SHIT HYPOCRITE. "SOURCE OF TRAUMA" HUH? YOURS WAS WORSE. I CANT BELIEVE YOUVE DONE THIS.

[juniperhillpatient]

I think I'll do little "takeaways" from at least some if not all of the episodes in my ATLA re-watch :) 'The Boy in the Iceberg' is one of the episodes I've seen the most times so no real surprises there but -

-I was already thinking this from reading The Corners of the World Our Mere Prologue on ao3 which has brilliant Katara characterization but WOW I need to lean into explosively angry & sometimes alarmingly impulsive Katara more in my future writing projects. She literally breaks the Avatar out of a block of ice in a fit of rage. Angry Katara my beloved <3

-On that note, Katara & Sokka's struggles over their different complicated reactions to their mother's death & the responsibilities they were left with are also set up super early & super well. A lot of fandom discussion over Sokka's development especially after he meets Suki later on surrounds his "sexism" & SURE that's PART of it. Still, there's also a massive issue in the way he doesn't respect the way Katara cares for him & takes on chores. This isn't just about "sexism" in a broad sense, there's a personal issue with the way he treats Katara. And Katara isn't blameless either. She doesn't respect that Sokka is trying to train the other children in case there's another attack. She sees it as a waste of time. This isn't a critique on either sibling personally, but a note about where their characters are at when the show starts - and their relationship & understanding of one another will grow as the show progresses.

-It's a little funny how much I did NOT get that they were setting up Katara/Aang the first time I watched this show because whether I personally like it or not it's pretty in your face that they're setting up the ship from episode 1 I just simply misread all of their interactions as 100% platonic the first time I watched so every romantic moment threw me way off lmao. Fiiineeee I see it now, the framing is totally romantic I don't have to like it but I'll acknowledge it lol

-I LOVE the way that Aang & Zuko's introductions mirror each other. Zuko is introduced directly after Aang & juxtaposing "Do you want to go penguin sledding?" we have "I don't need any calming tea! >:(" It's SUCH fantastic narrative framing & introduces the way that Aang & Zuko's journeys & characters are always interconnected & contrasting. Narrative foils my beloved <3 <3 <3

-Huge huge huge fan of how Aang's introduction leans heavily into how much of a CHILD he is. When he asks Katara a question it's not "where am I?" or "what happened?" or "who are you?" It's "will you go penguin sledding with me?" There's something about that simple request to do something FUN that's so adorable & endearing but also it's a GREAT setup for the major theme of the rest of the show about preserving childhood & fun even in the face of war.

-On the same note as the above takeaway, I really love the moment when Aang & Katara are penguin sledding & Katara yells "I haven't done this since I was a kid!" & Aang responds "you still ARE a kid!" That is another moment where this episode serves as a great thesis statement for the rest of the show.

-The end of the episode shows that Zuko's ship is approaching & the foreboding vibe + the genuine fear we finally get from Aang in the final scene is SO good. This show is fun & lighthearted but with serious undertones & I think the first episode sets that up so well.

-Love love love love this show <3 Avatar the Last Airbender my beloved <3

I probably won't do a whole long list of takeaways for every single episode (well, maybe I'll feel like it, we'll see) but I wanted to for the pilot. I love this show so much. That is all, for now :)

[i-dreamed-i-had-a-son]

Okayyyy now that I've slept on that episode I am ready to do some good old traumamongering so let's look at how Loki's responses to his environment and those around him are informed by his trauma--and how Mobius/the TVA are using his trauma to manipulate him.

One of the ways Loki deals with unpleasant or stressful situations is to verbally maneuver or posture, to try to assert control (if he feels he can reasonably do so). We see him do this with Tony in Avengers, who during their confrontation--at least for the moment--poses no active threat; instead of attacking him, Loki talks. In Thor, Loki tries several times to defuse situations with his words, which generally goes poorly for him. But when it comes to handling stress, it's essentially all he knows how to do--Mobius is absolutely right to point out that Loki "loves to talk," but usually his silver tongue is borne out of necessity.

In this case, starting from the moment of his escape, we see a lot of talking from Loki that is not strictly necessary. When he lands in Mongolia, the very first thing he does is make a speech to the bystanders--literally and figuratively trying to get his bearings. He's not aggressive at all (which would confuse the Avengers were they to see him, but wow, it's almost like Thanos/the Mind Stone was influencing him!) and seems quite at a loss as to what to do when the people he's addressing don't understand him. When the TVA agents try to arrest him, he tries to ask them what's going on, and gives plenty of warning (and posturing!) before attempting to physically assert himself. In the TVA itself, this continues. Loki complains, tries to intimidate, questions, and even talks to machines with no other real witnesses (twice). He's pulling out all the stops, so to speak, to try to verbally establish control of his situation. He's trying to get his bearings, to assert his autonomy and individuality--but no one is listening to him.

When that doesn't work, and only when a lot of that doesn't work, does Loki attempt physical control of his environment. He first tries his magic (something familiar to him) and is shocked when that also doesn't work. The TVA is already a foreign environment, but because none of Loki's usual and comfortable methods of surviving are working, it becomes more foreign, and more stressful. That's why he escalates to actively resisting the guards (but note he doesn't try too hard once someone (Mobius) starts talking). Physical resistance has never been Loki's forte, so he plays to his strengths while he can, but when that fails and he gets more desperate, he has to get creative.

But when Loki is stressed enough that he starts to physically fight back, the illusion of confidence starts to break down. We see this continue really clearly in the interrogation room scene. The subject matter actively makes Loki uncomfortable. His attempts to deflect or lie aren't effective, and his words once again fail to control his situation or even shield him from what he'd like to avoid. Unable to escape the direct questions, Loki again becomes physically restless and uncomfortable, standing and pacing while growing more obviously agitated. The questions Mobius is asking are ones Loki does not want to think about, and that's because they ultimately hit on his most vulnerable points.

The question of "What would you do if you could go back?" while seeming rather innocuous, is really a well-disguised gateway to all of Loki's trauma and insecurity. Why does he feel he should rule Midgard? Well, Loki attempts to respond, that's what he deserves, it's what he was born for--but it wasn't, really, and he knows it. Firstly, when it comes to his royal birthright, Loki has always fallen back on that as a grounding mechanism. It's what he asserts to claim his identity and feel powerful and in control. He does this with being a god, too, and we see him do this several times just within the TVA. But ultimately, it's just words--the real power is with those who can make what they want to happen actually happen, and in Loki's life, that has never been him. (Even talking about his birthright, and the concept of ruling, brings up the traumatic events of Thor 1; and the fact that he was looking to rule Midgard, not Asgard, means that he would still be playing second-fiddle to Thor. Midgard wasn't his birthright--Asgardians never ruled directly on Earth. It was just the best he could get.) And secondly, Loki's attack of Earth was directly caused and influenced by Thanos. That is the main source of trauma that Loki is desperately trying to avoid, and the questions he's being asked don't allow him to do so. He can't weasel out of it; Mobius is too persistent, and he knows all the worst buttons to push. In fact, he's systematically targeting Loki's weaknesses.

Look at the questions and statements he uses: "For someone born to rule, you sure lose an awful lot." Your birthright is false and you know it. "You weren't born to be a king. You were born to help others become the best versions of themselves." He juxtaposes this with footage of the Avengers, Thor among them: your identity only matters so far as you can enable others, especially your brother. Loki starts avoiding looking at the footage, becoming less brazen with his attitude and responses, so Mobius asks, "What is it that you're running from?" It's at about this point that Loki stands up, trying to physically distance himself from both Mobius and the question. This interaction reveals much about what Mobius is intending by this conversation. He's not trying to learn about Loki, necessarily. He already knows Loki is running from something, and seems to know what it is, which wouldn't be immediately clear to someone uninformed. What he's really trying to do is make Loki vulnerable, and make him admit it.

Mobius uses Loki's role in his mother's death to push him over the edge. Immediately, Loki turns on Mobius, furiously insisting that the whole thing is an illusion--more desperate verbal posturing, and Mobius treats it as such--and then Loki snaps, first throwing a chair at the painful image of his mother, which promptly reforms (it's inescapable), and then trying to attack Mobius. The fact that Loki is lashing out physically means he is desperate, but even his last resort isn't effective. He simply can't protect himself. He's powerless. That's triggering in and of itself.

But it's the footage that's the final blow. After escaping his restraints, he returns to the very room he left, and looks at his life. And he cries. He's so vulnerable and hurting and scared that in his first moment alone, he cries. And just as he thought he'd have a little bit of comfort, even laughing to see his improving relationship with Thor, he watches himself die a humiliating, pitiful, ignoble death, and hears himself say, "You will never be a god"--and that old boast means nothing because Thanos snaps his neck anyway. That moment, seeing the thing he was running from catch up to him and kill him, is his final emotional breaking point. When Loki laughs and bitterly says, "Glorious purpose," that's the end of the posturing. He's admitting Mobius was right: he didn't have a glorious purpose, or a glorious anything. Which is why when Mobius comes back, Loki tells the truth, unprompted. He actually calls himself weak. He admits he's been putting up an illusion in a feeble attempt to get control of his situation.

This level of vulnerability from Loki is unheard of, and speaks to how utterly he's been worn down by the very intentional psychological manipulation of Mobius and the TVA. When Loki entered, he was actively opposing them. Now, after having been massively triggered and emotionally exhausted, he's suggestible, and by playing a friendly angle, Mobius can manipulate Loki into working with them--and, literally, against himself.

Whether he has good intentions or no, that makes Mobius a truly formidable player, and one Loki--and we--shouldn't be too hastily comfortable with. He is clearly a master manipulator, and has no qualms using Loki's trauma to break him.

But what should be most concerning of all is that he succeeds. Because the only other person to have ever done that?

Is Thanos.

[milfzatannaz]

I kinda see this ongoing sentiment on here running in both Zatanna and Hellblazer circles about their power in relation to each other and I kinda just feel the need to clear things up.

First off, the only issues we have that reference their origin together are Secret Origins #27 and a few lines in Swamp Thing #49. So for their original timeline, we know next to nothing about how they met, how long they were together, etc etc. The only thing we are kind of aware of as readers is one page where it is said that John was someone that helped Zatanna get familiar with her powers.

(And then they started an affair of some sort, but details are never given about that).

I think this dynamic is interesting, but overall unimportant to both of them as characters. John being a mentor to her is never referenced again in any other work.

In Zatanna: Come Together, their time together is shown as something Zatanna looks back on fondly, and it isn’t framed as a her learning from him or anything. It reads as a clandestine relationship between two adults.

I just want to reference these two stories to show that their time together evolved slowly over time in the way it was portrayed, especially since Come Together has major themes about feminism and female empowerment. It’s a subtle shift, but worth talking about.

This kind of leads me to my overall point, which is to say measuring John in relation to Zee in terms of power misses the point of their early partnership, and mostly just misinterprets John as a whole.

John Constantine, at least in his original Hellblazer/ Vertigo iteration, is not powerful. He’s dangerous, and cunning. He was never supposed to fit a typical hero archetype; he was meant to be someone that moved through the social scene of 90s England juxtaposed with horror elements.

He’s not a superhero like Zatanna. He is not a case of what he can do with his skills, he is someone trying to survive.

Zatanna is DC’s resident magic user on the JL roster. She thematically has more to do with discovering her power limits and honing her skills than John does.

John and Zatanna’s relationship pre-New 52 was one of friendship and mutual respect. John never interfered with her heroism on page; he literally occupied an entirely separate canon anyway.

New 52 I think is the biggest insult to more than 25 years of shared history together, because it negates who John was altogether. Now it was a matter of John learning magic from Nick Necro and Zatanna, which ignores how closely his identity as a magician is tied with his birthplace of England. This is where fandom starts to misconstrue who Zee and John are to each other, because JLD 1 tries to place John on equal footing with superheroes. Rebirth has gone back on this, by the way, so it’s not even something we should think of as well-established canon.

When you measure Zatanna up against John and assert that “she’s more powerful! John would never be able to [blank]!” I am inclined to agree purely for the reason that yes, she’s more powerful because John isn’t about power, as I’ve stated above. This doesn’t mean that John isn’t formidable in his own right, because he is.

What I’m trying to say here is that there should never be a contest between the two because it’s not really fair to John. It’s measuring apples to oranges essentially. He fills his own niche within the DC community, as does Zee. Modern writing often forgets how separate their worlds are, which is another essay, but John is not some cocky guy who rushes in to be better than everyone else. If we were following original canon, he wouldn’t even be there in the first place.

[my-mt-heart]

Let's talk about the thing. And just for the record, I am really tired of talking about the thing, so tired I am literally begging the TV gods not to give me any more reason to talk about the thing for at least a few episodes so that I can rest. But like it or not, the thing is relevant to Caryl's story, the thing being the potential for a Daryl and Connie romance. In order to understand it, we need to look at Daryl's commonwealth arc in 11B as a whole because I believe it's all a package deal. I know Daryl has only been in the Commonwealth for one episode, so I might be jumping the gun here and this could all blow up at any second. Also be advised that I'm going to be making predictions based on the trailer, and it may or may not coincide with filming since I don't keep up nearly as well with that as other amazing sleuths. 

Pro tip: If you're trying to track a story based on sequence of events, you're going to get lost. Always follow the emotions. The emotions are your compass. So where is Daryl starting off emotionally at the Commonwealth? He's feeling like an outsider looking in. He's behaving like an observer. In the very first scene, we see him looking around, taking everything in from the maze to the games to the people. But he's not really a part of any of it. He's still Daryl from Alexandria and he has the vest to prove it.

Juxtapose this with Connie, who is already fully immersed in this new way of life. She's hard at work, wearing what a journalist would wear. Yes, Kelly is too, but Connie is the star, the one whose accomplishments prove that she belongs here. So is it weird that Daryl takes her in too if she also represents the world he's trying to get a sense of? Maybe not to Daryl, but then Carol chimes in with her comment about asking Connie to dance and suddenly, he can't just observe anymore. Now he's being pressured to conform to someone else's vision of life, which is heartbreaking because his own vision (Carol) is continuing to put a wall between them. He knows his identity and his heart well enough to be able to brush it off in this moment, except then throughout the episode, the pressure to conform continues to build and build. 

At first, he goes about his assigned role as a military trainee with little conviction since, per his conversation with Rosita, it's only temporary anyway. He doesn't have to be a team player. He doesn't have to trust anyone outside his longtime friends. Alexandria's going to get cleaned up and then he can resume living the way that feels natural to him. Mercer insists otherwise, and maybe Daryl doesn’t know him well enough to take that to heart, but then he returns to his shitty apartment that no doubt reminds him of his troubled childhood, and something changes. The kids want to stay, and because he has a responsibility as an uncle, because his brain is wired to put literally everyone else's happiness before his own, he now has to re-evaluate everything he's doing. Alexa, play the "Under Pressure" song!

That conversation with Judith and RJ is an emotional turning point for Daryl, which is why we see him behaving differently afterwards. Standing at the door of the ball, symbolically the entrance to higher society, Daryl takes a beat to study Mercer, take notice of his status, and think for the first time that maybe, he should be striving for the same thing. And strive he does, arresting the first Commonwealth rebel to emerge, then letting the governor's egotistical son take the credit in order to gain his favor.

We joke that Daryl looks absolutely ridiculous in his armor, and that is not without reason. Him putting it on conveys he's ready to do what everyone is telling him to do, which is to be in the Commonwealth. To lead that life. To hold those values. But he is trying to fit into a role that's not meant for him, and that my friends goes hand-in-hand with Connie.  

In case it isn't clear, I am not saying Daryl has feelings for Connie. I very much maintain that he has his heart set on one person and that is Carol. I am not saying he's going to get together with Connie, even temporarily. I'm not even saying he's going to actively pursue her. The only thing I'm saying is that Carol has planted this concept of how he should see Connie in his head, and in the spirit of trying to craft the life people think he should have or want him to have, it is something that is going to be weighing on him when he and Connie interact going forward. Would he be doing even that much if Carol wasn't making herself emotionally unavailable to him? Absolutely not. See why it's important to track characters' emotions? Because ultimately those emotions determine what they do next.

In the trailer, we see Daryl attacking one of the soldiers and in another shot, we see him standing with Maggie and Hershel. Now maybe I’m misinterpreting what’s going on here, but I think it might mean we are going to see another shift in Daryl’s attitude toward the Commonwealth by 11x16. If he is rejecting their way of life, then it stands to reason he should reject the idea of Donnie along with it. Because he is affirming what he doesn’t want for himself, so that come 11C, he can start working toward what he really does want. Need that hint again? Vroom, Vroom. Like I’ve said before, pacing is always the hardest to predict, but this feels like a reasonable timeline. 

I know that this is still not the direction we want. I know some were hoping Donnie would die with the reunion or that Daryl would simply keep dismissing Carol's suggestions without another thought until the big eruption (which very much remains in the realm of possibility). But alas, the writers want this issue to be more complicated for both Daryl and Carol (and us!!). It's okay. Like I said before, it is counterproductive to build up to Donnie if the only goal is to let them be together for a bit before Daryl decides to peace out. That's not what's happening. It fits into the larger story, which is Caryl.

[dutchdread]

Bruh, we don't want to hear about your negative views about cleriths. Cloud loves Aerith and he always has. He lives in her church because he loves her. He thought of Aerith a lot in OG , On the Way to A Smile, and AC. He went to live in her church. Why tf would he go live in her church if it wasn't for Aerith? There are millions of places he could've gone but he chose the church. You don't have to believe our way of thinking if you don't want to, but don't tag clerith in your posts.

Thanks for your question. I think it's important to have these conversations so we can clear up these misunderstandings. Clouds motivations have been well documented so it's unfortunate that large swaths of the fandom seemingly are still in the dark about something that has been known for quite a long time, and I blame lack of communication. Before I answer your question though I'd like to address the style of it, since I find it amusing that in response to my article concerning productive conversation styles you not only used one of the styles I described, but even the same exact argument. This is a nice confirmation for me that I am right on the money. In my article, I said that the "dishonest inquiry" is the Clerith conversation style of choice. The example I gave was as follows:

The dishonest inquiry: “Why don’t you admit that Clouds actions in AC show that he doesn’t love Tifa?”

You mirrored this approach by saying "Why tf would he go live in her church if it wasn't for Aerith?". The defining characteristic of the dishonest inquiry is that the question isn't asked with the goal of seeking clarification, but as an offensive tactic meant to attack the others position, you're not trying to evaluate your position, you're trying to get others to re-evaluate their position under the guise of a question. If we look at the rest of your post we can see the indicators I described for someone who has reached the last stage of the debate style. "Cloud loves Aerith and he always has. He lives in her church because he loves her". As I noted in my article:

If assertions are backed up, they are backed up with other assertions designed to dissuade rebuttals, rather than investigating veracity.

This "argument" had no actual arguments, it was a meaningless assertion. Stating that you are correct in an attempt to avoid having to actual show that you're correct. "Cloud loves Aerith and he always has. He lives in her church because he loves her": This is what you're trying to prove, you can't state what you're trying to prove as your starting premise.

If you're honestly interested in learning more about FFVII then leave out the baseless assertions, they literally just waste peoples time and makes them less willing to engage with you.

If I had to rephrase your question in a way that's more inviting for a productive discussion it would be something like this:

"Why do you believe Cloud chose Aeriths Church as his hiding place in AC? He thinks about Aerith a lot, what do you think the reason is for that if it's not love?".

The answer to this is pretty simple of course, it's been restated several times, this is not something that is some grand mystery, it's not even an aspect of FFVII that's particularly ambiguous. The reason he stays in Aeriths church is the same reason he's seen lingering at Zacks "grave", it's guilt. As stated in the 10th anniversary ultimania, and several other times:

when Cloud contracts Geostigma he disappears. Behind these actions lies feelings of guilt towards his past failure to protect people who were important to him

While this is an element of the story that has been explicitly confirmed through ultimanias and quotes, this is not an element of the story that was ever in any way unclear, its a direct continuation of Clouds character arc in FFVII. Infact, Clouds mental health issues are the central part of the fake persona storyarc, and is arguably the core of the story. The rough order of events shown in FFVII, on the way to a smile, and Advent children (and also CC) concerning Clouds mental health is as follows. 1: Cloud as a boy want to protect Tifa. 2: Cloud fails to protect Tifa. 3: Cloud and townspeople blame Cloud for Tifas injuries. 4: Cloud internalizes this and beats himself up over his failure to protect Tifa. He develops a fear of failure. 5: Cloud starts acting up, starts wanting to prove himself, and decides to join Soldier to impress Tifa. 6: Cloud fails to get into Soldier, develops an inferiority complex. 7: Cloud is too ashamed of his failure to face Tifa. 8: Cloud fails to save his mother. 9: Cloud fails to save Nibleheim. 10: Cloud fails to save Tifa, again. 11: Cloud fails to save Zack. 12: Cloud develops a soldier alter ego that is everything that he isn't, as a defense mechanism. He hides from his own weakness. 13: Even as a soldier, Cloud fails to save Aerith. 14: Cloud regains his memories in the lifestream, and discovers he did fulfill his promise to come save Tifa. Here we basically end FFVII, and go into on the way to a smile. At this point Cloud has overcome the alien parasite messing with his mind by establishing a stronger sense of who he is. However, now that he's lost his fake soldier defense mechanism he's forced to deal with the past. His past failures haven't been fixed, he doesn't suddenly think he's a great person now, he simply can no longer use his fake persona to hide from his own weakness, and is forced to confront it. 15: Cloud still blames his own weakness for the deaths of Aerith and Zack, he thinks that he needs to atone for his sins, and thinks that the only way to do this is through living* 16: Cloud starts living with Tifa and experiences happiness and peace for the first time in his adult life.** 17: Cloud develops cherophobia and survivors guilt. He feels ashamed for being alive and happy while Aerith and Zack are dead because of him.*** 18: Clouds mental health deteriorates because of these feelings.**** 19: Cloud finds Denzel and sees him as a way to atone, having found a pathway to redemption, Clouds situation improves.***** 20: Cloud is unable to save Denzel from geostigma, and contracts it himself. 21: Clouds mental health worsens again, he failed again, he is unable to save Denzel, he is even unable to save himself, he won't be able to atone for his sins through living. He potentially brought an infectious disease into the house and as a result of his actions Tifa and Marlene will now lose him. 22: Depressed and ashamed, Cloud runs away. He thinks Tifa and Marlene are better off without him, he doesn't want them to see him waste away and die, he feels like he doesn't deserve to be happy and should instead die alone, Etc. Classic depression. (Some quotes concerning the *** are at the bottom of the article)

As for why he thinks about Aerith and Zack a lot, and hangs around the places that are connected with them, what else do you expect? Of course he's thinking about them, they're the people he failed, they're DEAD because of him. Cloud is a caring man, he beats himself up over it, of course he'd be thinking about them. And where else would a man wallowing in guilt and self-pity go than to those places? But the important thing to remember is that none of this is supposed to be seen as romantic. It's supposed to be viewed as sad and negative. Every internal character arc has something to overcome and this is what Cloud has to overcome in Advent children.****** Tifa to Cloud: "have we lost to our memories?" Cloud to Sephiroth: "Stay where you belong, in my memories" A well written story has internal and external obstacles to overcome, and ties the two together. In the case of advent children, the return of Sephiroth is the physical representation of Clouds internal character arc, which is that he should stop living in the past, and should move on. The past here isn't a positive thing he wants to get back to, Clouds past has always been a thing he's ran away from, but then is forced to accept. The past in Clouds case is a bad thing, his failures, and is something he should stop dwelling on. If you've ever seen the lion king, this resembles the scene where Rafiki hits Simba with a stick. "What does it matter, it's in the past", "yeah but it still hurts", "Oh Yes, the past can hurt, but the way I see it you can either run from it, or learn from it".

When Cloud returned to his normal self, he stopped running from the past, but as a result, he started dwelling in it. That's what he's doing in Aeriths church; dwelling in misery.

If we juxtapose Aeriths church with the 7th heaven, we can start to see where peoples misunderstandings are taking place. When some people look at the events of ACC they think that 7th heaven is a place of sadness, which Cloud leaves to be happy at Aeriths church, the place of happiness. The "have we lost to our memories" is then seen as a confirmation of this and that the memory, which they think corresponds to Aerith, is better than life with Tifa. This character arc then concludes with Cloud being happy by finally leaving Tifa behind, and riding off in the sun-set in search of Aerith at the end of the movie. But this interpretation falls apart as soon as you apply context to it, both narratively, and factually, it doesn't fit with with developer quotes, as well as the fundamental story themes of FFVII. 1: If 7th Heaven/Tifa is a place of sadness, then why has Cloud been consistently quoted to experience happiness there? 2: If 7th Heaven/Tifa is a place of sadness, and Cloud leaves at the end of the movie, then why has it been stated to be his promised land, aka, his land of supreme happiness (the reason it's literally called 7th heaven), and why is he stated to return there? ******* 3: If Clouds "memories" are positive, why is the plotarc resolved by Cloud telling the villain to "stay there"? 4: If Cloud is happy at the church, why is he living in self-deprecating squalor? 5: If Cloud loved Aerith and thought Denzel was sent to him by her, why did he abandon him? 6: Do you really think SE would write a story about a "hero" whose main emotional hurdle concerning the past comes down to. "I am sick of the girl I am with, I prefer the one that is dead, so I will get over the past by letting go of the girl I am with, as well as my adoptive children, to go chase the dead girl"? 7: Don't you think this would do Tifas character a tremendous disservice and do you think SE would be that preferential in their treatment? I could go on, but I think the point is clear. While the "Aeriths church is a happy place" interpretation is semi-coherent when looked at in isolation, it becomes exceedingly bizarre as soon as you place it in context. As I am fond of saying, this is not a matter of personal interpretation, it's a matter of lying to yourself vs not lying to yourself. I also suspect that this is the reason why SE changed the ending to advent Children, because people were misinterpreting it in this bizarre way, so they made it more in your face. In context, the following interpretation is much more fitting. Aeriths church is a place of sadness that Cloud runs to because of his guilt and depression. The "memories" line refers to Cloud dwelling on his past mistakes, as evidenced by his constant quotes about needing forgiveness. The character arc of moving on from the past is then resolved when he forgives himself, and as a result, defeats sephiroth, the metaphorical demon of his past. This allows him to return to his place of joy, his promised land, the 7th heaven, with a more positive outlook on the past. Instead of tarnishing Aerith and Zacks memories by wallowing in the past he instead moves on from it, thereby allowing it to become beautiful, which is represented by him planting Aeriths flowers on Zacks grave, and placing Zacks sword in the church. Instead of Zacks grave being the place where Zack died, it is now the place where a hero was born. Cloud has moved on, he has let his mistakes go, and has learned to come to terms with himself. I think it's hard to argue that this version of events is much less shallow, and much more meaningful than the story of a lovesick guy who abandons his partner and adoptive kids to go chase after a dead girl, but that's just me, what's more important is that it's the only version of events that's corroborated by the evidence. Thanks for the question. __________________________________________________

Corroborating quotes (not comprehensive)

* from case of Tifa: "“I’m going to live. I think that’s the only way I can be forgiven. All sorts of things…"

** Nojima in AC prologue: "“Cloud never had a candid personality to begin with, and although he started living with Tifa and even started working, he obtained a peaceful livinghe’s never experienced before, and this conversely made him anxious. And in the midst of this he contracts Geostigma himself, and rather than being able to protect the people dear to him, he instead was forced to face his own death, and so ran away.” (among other quotes)

*** 10th anniversary ultimania: "when Cloud contracts Geostigma he disappears. Behind these actions lies feelings of guilt towards his past failure to protect people who were important to him"

Aeriths 10th anniversary profile : Aerith still lives on in the hearts of her friends who saved the planet. And in particular to Cloud, as a symbol of his failure to having being unable protect those dear to him, she was a major factor in causing him to close himself off. -Aerith’s 10th anniversay profile.

And more, really this is reiterated constantly.

**** From case of Tifa: "During that time, it was Marlene who noticed a change in Cloud. She told Tifa how Cloud would sometimes space out and not listen to her.

Transporting mail around the world meant he was traveling around his past too. She knew that Cloud was in great pain because he couldn’t protect Aerith. Cloud was trying to overcome that and live on. But, going back to the place where he parted from Aerith might mean that his sorrow and regret was going to tear his heart again.

It was night, and they had closed the bar. Cloud was drinking alcohol even though he rarely did. He drained his glass. Tifa thought about it before going over and filling his glass.

***** From case of Tifa: "Tifa wondered if they became a real family after Denzel appeared. Cloud was clearly taking less jobs. At night, he would always make sure he had time to spend with the children. The silly little conversations he had with Tifa were also back."

****** Reunion files, page 58: "As long as Cloud blames himself for Aerith’s death, he won’t be able to move on with his life. One of the first ideas we had for Advent Children was to have Cloud overcome and resolve that immense feeling of guilt. For Cloud, no one other than Aerith can solve that problem for him."

- Takahiro Sakurai pg. 15 reunion files: After Cloud was told, “Which is it? A memory or us?: by Tifa, he tells Sephiroth, “Stay where you belong. In my memories,” just before he defeats him. I think Cloud finally becomes free at this moment. Deep down, Cloud knew that he shouldn’t be so hard on himself, but at the same time he couldn’t let go of those feelings of guilt for what happened to Aerith and Zack, or the thought that he could never forgive himself for it. But then his companions made him feel better by telling him to let go. ******* "The place where he awakens—- That is Cloud’s Promised Land As he sleeps, Cloud hears two voices. The voices of two people very dear to him, who are no longer with him. Playfully and kindly, they give him a message: he doesn’t belong here yet. When he awakes, there was his friends. There were the children, freed from their fatal illness. Tifa and Marlene, and Denzel asking for Cloud to heal his Geostigma— his family were waiting. Engulfed in celebration, he realizes where he is meant to live."

"Aerith lends her power to the people suffering from Geostigma in Edge, and personally provides for Cloud’s recovery. Geostigma is cured. Cloud returns to Tifa and the children."

-  FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania Complete Timeline

[bartramcat]

Some Random Critiques of CSI Vegas

I decided to list a few of my likes and disappointments where CSIV is concerned before the last episode. How the show handles its ending will potentially color my overall impression, for better or for worse.

First of all, cut kiss notwithstanding, GSR has been an utter joy to watch. Grissom and Sara are so close to exactly how I thought they would be after living together on a boat for 6 years.

Now as much as I have loved watching them, I do think the writing team made some errors. I think they isolated them too much from the rest of the cast. More character interaction among all 6 of the principals I think would have given more insight into the newbies. For example, we learned more about Hugo in the ring scene with Sara because he was telling her about himself. I think had Grissom or Sara spent more case time with Folsom and Allie that we may have seen them through a wider lens.

Whosever idea it was to try to make Folsom and Allie GSR light needs to have their head examined. One thing that is always true on film is that you cannot manufacture chemistry. Granted, over time, sometimes actors will find something together, but you can't force it from the get-go.

Secondarily, they were trying to do this thing within the same arena as GSR. Now, call me crazy, but I think there are few pairings in the entire history of filmed fiction that wouldn't pale when juxtaposed with Billy and Jorja as Grissom and Sara. They are that unique. They are, as Zuiker says, magic.

Bad choice.

They could have made both Penny and Chris a more integral part of the team, cross-pairing them with Folsom and Allie, so that they could have become more than throw in characters, developing them as well as offering entree into the two primaries outside of interactions with each other.

I actually enjoy Folsom and Max far more than Folsom and Allie because that relationship seems genuine, whereas Folsom and Allie seem spoon fed.

I love Max. She has chemistry with everyone, but I especially like her dynamic with Sara.

I don't think it was necessary to have every crime they investigated to be completely over the top. I've become inured to gruesome and grizzly on crime drama, so little shocks me. What gets me are small, human foibles that are true human tragedies. This iteration has none of that, perhaps because they knew that there were only 10 episodes, so they opted for the bombastic. Sometimes the quietest drama speaks the loudest.

We've known about Wix for some time now, but we've been given little insight into his motivation, other than that he blamed CSI for losing cases. But there should be some defining moment that turned him into a murderer.

I will admit I will be somewhat disappointed if there isn't some Wix mole at CSI. We still don't know how Chris' luminol got back into the supply closet or how Wix found out about Guillermo.

All in all, even given the shortcomings, I am grateful for this version of GSR. It has been far better--and truer-- than I expected or even hoped.

[omgitsshrimp]

[SPOILERS from Manga!] Attack on Titan Theory: The baby was NOT PLANNED.

MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!! IF YOU’RE ANIME ONLY SKIP THIS POST! 

I thought I’d share my own theory on the whole situation with Eren and Historia. Keep in mind this is just my opinion/interpretation of everything so far. I just want to get my two cents in. 

I know suggesting that the baby isn’t planned sounds nuts, but hear me out. In Ch 130 we’re shown panels of Eren and Historia discussing the military’s plans for her, Eren telling her his plan, and Historia discussing a baby with Eren. 

In one panel, Historia is standing in front of the wooden fence, on the left side of the panel; then in a later panel she’s standing in front of the wooden fence on the right side of the panel. 

I don’t think this is by accident. This implies that Eren and Historia met up more than once, which opens up a strong possibility of them meeting up several times in the past. So when Historia asks Eren about having a baby, we don’t know if she said that in the same conversation as the earlier panels. It could have happened at a completely different time. We only have a close up of her face when she says it, and we dont see the whole convo, which means we don’t know the full context around her bringing up a baby to Eren.  

*Assuming they have met up several times, it begs the question, why does Eren even meet up with Historia? In my opinion, it’s because he has feelings for her, and they might be involved romantically.

 We know that the songs for AoT can allude to or foreshadow events in the story. I feel like Eren and Historia’s meet ups were alluded to in two songs (that I know of) in AoT OST, “Zero Eclipse” and “Yuugure no Tori” (ed3).

Zero Eclipse (only later part of the song is related to Eren):

“Make a promise that I cannot regret, As long as I can see you but in secret”

Yuugure no Tori:

“I’ll sing out with my girl, Go to the meeting place sing alone”

If the Baby was Planned, It Would Contradict Eren’s ideals/motivation

Another reason I don’t think the baby is planned is because if the point is to not produce kids just for a strategic purpose then why would Eren and Historia make a plan to do just that? (ie having a baby to put off Historia eating Zeke). Having the reason for making a child be reduced to convenience/serving your plan doesn’t sit right with me. It doesn’t align with Eren’s beliefs, in my opinion.

Assuming that Eren and Historia are romantically involved and have been physically intimate for some time, I think its fair to consider that this baby was conceived by chance (as well as love) rather than some sort of necessity brought on by a situation. I think upon hearing what the military was planning for Historia, Eren decided to make plans for another way that wouldn’t sacrifice her. I don’t think that involved making a child. I think the child came about by chance and the panel of Historia asking Eren about a baby was maybe part of a longer conversation where she was telling him that she was pregnant. I know I’m making a lot of assumptions, but I don’t think its impossible. 

I think from there, Eren and Historia came up with a plan to hide the pregnancy in order to protect Historia from being connected to Eren, since he knew he was going to start going against the military and wanted to protect Historia from any association with that. And also, kept it secret because if Zeke some how found out, it would compromise Zeke’s confidence in Eren and mess up Eren’s plans. Eren and Historia’s plan to keep the paternity a secret involved lying about the due date and using the Farmer as a cover. I suspect the farmer guy agreed because he really did feel guilty about bullying Historia as a child. The fact that he felt guilty enough to work there for years opens the possibility of him willing to go along with Eren and Historia’s plan, so he can make up for everything.

Paneling Choices

Now I want to talk about Isayama’s choices when it comes to the panels in ch 130, specifically in regards to the scene of Eren making his plans, Eren and Historia talking, and Eren and Zeke discussing Mikasa. How Isayama chose to order these panels seemed to me, very intentional and meticulous. 

In the previous panels in the same chapter we see Eren refusing to allow Historia to be sacrificed and we see him willing to go against humanity for her (and Paradis as a whole). Isayama decided to shows us the process of Eren deciding to carry out this plan through his interactions with Historia, as if to convey that she’s a big reason for why he’s doing all this. He’s emphasizing her importance in how Eren came to start this mission by positoning her front and center. This sequence ends with Eren telling Historia that she saved him, paralleling Mikasa in a big way.

Then, we go to a conversation between Zeke and Eren about the Ackerman bloodline. Zeke is clarifying to Eren that there is no ingrained behavior and that Mikasa does all these things for him because she loves him. And right after Zeke says that, there is a panel of Eren and Historia. I feel like Isayama gave us an explanation of Eren’s actions right here. A discussion about Mikasa’s affection and devotion juxtaposed with images of Eren and Historia right after we saw several panels of Eren doing exactly what Zeke described Mikasa does for Eren, in my opinion, was meant to indirectly allude to why Eren is doing this and how he feels about Historia. Isayama doesn’t want to give it away just yet, but is giving subtle breadcrumbs. Using Mikasa’s feelings to juxtapose probably threw people off too.    

It’s my opinion that Eren loves Historia. There’s other evidence that people have pointed out that I also agree with, but I won’t delve deep I’ll just mention them here:

 -Hanji noticing Eren smiling at Historia and defending her wellbeing, then asking Eren about it. Eren snaps at Hanji when she brings up Historia.

-Historia getting teary eyed when Eren defends her in the meeting. 

The only person Eren has been consistent with protecting this whole time has been Historia. His desire to protect her never wavered. He’s been talking about protecting her since the end of season 3. The only person we’ve seen Eren confide in (about his plans etc.) is Historia. She’s clearly significant to him.

What Eren Kruger Said to Grisha

Another reason I think Eren loves Historia and is romantically involved with her is because of what Eren Kruger said to Grisha. The Attack titan shifter can see future memories as well as past ones. Kruger told Grisha to “love someone in the walls, build a family. If you can’t do that, the same cycle will repeat itself. If you want to save Mikasa and Armin, carry out your mission to the end”. I think Kruger was also talking to Eren here, OR Isayama was alluding to what Eren will need to do in order to save everyone. In the anime, they added a line for Kruger, he says “someone in the future might see this [moment/memory of their conversation]”. I think it was added to establish that there may be a link between what Kruger said and what Eren is doing. Afterall, we know Eren saw this conversation. 

I think Eren did fall in love, with Historia, and is building a family (conceived a baby by chance), and something about the experience of love and impending fatherhood has played an important role in Eren carrying out this mission and ultimately saving Armin, Mikasa and Paradis, while also ending the cycle of hate.

In Ch 130, we see Eren saying that he has to do the rumbling in order for the cycle of hate to end. Similar to what Kruger said. Everything is happening exactly as Eren saw it, we saw that with that little boy Halil (or was it Ramzi?). The future memories were all correct, so if Kruger was speaking based on future memories then what he said about love, building a family, saving Armin and Mikasa, probably had truth to it.

 Eren’s Talk with Mikasa in Ch 123

A lot of people see this as an ErenxMikasa moment but since Eren and Zeke’s conversation in Ch 130, I don’t think that’s the case. In Ch 123, Eren asks Mikasa “what am I to you?”. Mikasa flusters and says “family”. I think Eren asked her this because he was suspecting that her Ackerman bloodline was influencing her decisions. This probably worried him because he didn’t want Mikasa to be a slave to her bloodline. Mikasa’s answer didn’t clarify anything for him. He was left ambivalent on the subject and that’s why he asked Zeke about the Ackerman bloodline. 

Mikasa says in Ch 123, that maybe if she gave a different answer things would have happened differently, but Zeke did give Eren a clear answer about how Mikasa felt. Eren knew how she felt and it didn’t change anything. Eren was concerned about the Ackerman bloodline influence because he wanted Mikasa to be free, not because he’s romantically interested in her.

I do realize I could be dead wrong. I know suggesting the baby wasn’t planned is a huge stretch but I just thought I’d put it out there. I just want it to be true so badly lol. Even if the baby is planned, I think there’s still some truth to some of the other things I pointed out. This was just a fun thing for me to do. I normally don’t write long theory posts, but I figured why not since it’s so close to the end and everyone is speculating. Why not join in?

I think that’s it. I hope I’m not missing anything. As for how I think the whole story will end? I think because Eren freed Ymir, titan powers might cease to exist. But I don’t know how that’ll affect the 13 year Ymir curse if that does happen. So I guess we’ll see. 

Feel free to share your thoughts. I’m not AntiMikasa or anything. Please be respectful! Thanks for reading!

[flashflashhundredyarddash]

okay my idea for a batman v superman movie rewrite i just spent a shower’s worth of time thinking about, indirectly inspired by @asilentguardian posts about his rewatch. also note i havent seen bvs probably since it came out and barely remember ANYTHING about it let’s go

so idc about plot someone else can worry about it lets focus on the THEMES. the big, overall message we explore in this movie is the parent/child relationship and how that affects people, particularly superheroes. the specific theme we want the movie to convey is that the reason superheroes fight and can provide hope for people is because of the loved ones in their life.

so we start with that scene of batfleck in metropolis as its being destroyed. he’s driving through downtown and we see that he keeps trying to call someone but it keeps going to voicemail. “this is dick grayson, i can’t answer the phone right now-” bruce hangs up, tries again, gets voicemail again, etc. finally he’s forced to abandon his car and trek through the wreckage on foot. so he’s running towards the center of the destruction, a big plume cloud engulfs him, he’s looking around, BAM rans smack into a preteen. it’s jason. jason tells him dick told him to find bruce, but dick stayed back to help. when they reach where dick is (a library or museum??) bruce and jason get there just in time to watch dick drop off a kid, run back into the building, and watch the building fall on top of dick. boom, end scene.

now we’re back in the present, bruce has clearly lost it. very aggressive/willing to torture people, but hasn’t killed. alfred tells him off about it, says he’s going too far, tells bruce he still has another son, in case bruce has forgotten. as soon as alfred leaves we get a scene of bruce destroying some shit.

idk wtf clark was doing in this movie so let’s give him more or keep his scenes with his mom where he bonds with his mom and talks about his dad or whatever idk. clark’s whole thing with his parents ties in nicely with the theme so we don’t really need to change anything apart from just digging into those more. maybe dealing with his decision to kill zod to juxtapose with bruce’s struggle to keep himself from killing? clark is able to kill zod to protect his family bcus zod was a threat that would not be able to be contained with clark’s resources, but clark is not the type of man who would keep killing for the sake of killing. it was a stressful moment in his life but clark knows not to go over the edge. bruce’s struggle is that he knows if he kill a criminal, he won’t be able to stop.

lex luthor. i kind of liked that they made an Artistic Choice for lex luthor bcus i get it. the general version of lex luthor is like. evil billionaire which doesn’t give him a lot of depth so we’ve got to do something with him for this movie. so what we do with lex’s backstory is that we keep the abusive father angle, so what lex would do, at night, is that he would pray for god/anyone to save him or grant him powers so he can save himself. i THINK there are some continuities where lex and clark went to high school together so we do that. as an adult, lex figures out who clark is and he gets upset specifically at clark because since clark has super awesome hearing, he would have been able to hear lex begging for help as a kid, but clark never did anything. personal grudge there.

so we’re ramping up to the actual fight. i don’t remember what lex’s plan was so we can keep it or rewrite however we wish. bruce is ramping up to kill supes bcus supes killed his kid, supes is ramping up to try and stop batman bcus batman is acting fucking nuts. lex is drinking champagne on a yacht, i guess.

bruce is going back and forth on whether to kill superman, alfred gives him another talk. bruce stares at his little batch of kryptonite. he’s about to lock it up, turn away from his quest when boom, flashback.

this was from right before the metropolis fight. bruce is about to enter the room for his board meeting, but dick stops to talk. jason is chilling nearby playing minecraft on his phone you’ve seen kids. dick and bruce scene where we get the pure essence of bruce and dick’s relationship. they’ve clearly been fighting for a while and their relationship is tense but they both want to work on it and they both clearly love each other a lot. dick says he’s gonna take jason to go bond with him, then beat, dick clearly thinking of something, then dick gives bruce a hug and calls him dad.

closeup on bruce’s reaction, clearly shocked and overwhelmed. choked up but trying to hide it, he says bye to dick, gives jason a hair ruffle. goes into his meeting.

present time. can see in bruce’s eyes he’s fucking IN IT now. LET’S GO KILL SUPERMAN MOTHERFUCKERS.

we’ll keep the martha scene i like it its fine it works. maybe for the villain we have lex, like, merge with zod or something?? something fucked up. redesign the appearance too make him actually look cool idc. wonder woman comes in and kicks ass like always.

okay so bvs ends and clark is dead AWW. i don’t remember the end of bvs so here we go. quick scene, bruce gets home, clearly exhausted, and we see jason in his room reading or working on smthng. bruce walks in and sits down with him and they start talking, jason is clearly happy about it. shot of a picture of bruce, dick, jason, and alfred on jason’s desk.

clark’s funeral scene. martha and lois grieve together. martha expresses how wrong it is to bury a child. maybe lois and bruce have a convo? maybe lois is pregnant fuck it let’s go all in. she makes a joke about setting up playdates and bruce is like i am Incapable of providing any emotion support you need in this moment because i am So Bad at human emotions and lois is like oh i know i just enjoy watching you squirm. then the scene with bruce and diana where they set up the justice league movie. bruce is like yeah killing people is wrong bcus kids are the future, i guess. diana is like yeah rock on, man. shot of the dirt rising off of clark’s grave. boom end movie.